Digital Commons Network^™

Demand Response Management In Smart Grid Networks: A Two-Stage Game-Theoretic Learning-Based Approach, Pavlos Athanasios Apostolopoulos

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

In this diploma thesis, the combined problem of power company selection and Demand Response Management in a Smart Grid Network consisting of multiple power companies and multiple customers is studied via adopting a distributed learning and game-theoretic technique. Each power company is characterized by its reputation and competitiveness. The customers who act as learning automata select the most appropriate power company to be served, in terms of price and electricity needs’ fulfillment, via a distributed learning based mechanism. Given customers' power company selection, the Demand Response Management problem is formulated as a two-stage game theoretic optimization framework, where at the …

A Simple And Flexible Model To Calculate Annual Merit Raises For Health Sciences Faculty, Reza Mehvar

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Purpose

The objective of this study was to develop and implement a simple and flexible mathematical model to generate merit-based salary increases as a percentage of the faculty base salaries, with the flexibility to choose the range of merit raises.

Methods

Annual faculty performance scores, faculty base salaries, and available salary increase pool were used in a relatively simple linear model to determine the individual faculty merit raises as a percentage of their base salary. The core model allows the selection of a slope value that determines how steeply the merit raise changes with a change in the performance score. …

Using Customer Service Dialogues For Satisfaction Analysis With Context-Assisted Multiple Instance Learning, Kaisong Song, Lidong Bing, Wei Gao, Jun Lin, Lujun Zhao, Jiancheng Wang, Changlong Sun, Xiaozhong Liu, Qiong Zhang

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Customers ask questions and customer service staffs answer their questions, which is the basic service model via multi-turn customer service (CS) dialogues on E-commerce platforms. Existing studies fail to provide comprehensive service satisfaction analysis, namely satisfaction polarity classification (e.g., well satisfied, met and unsatisfied) and sentimental utterance identification (e.g., positive, neutral and negative). In this paper, we conduct a pilot study on the task of service satisfaction analysis (SSA) based on multi-turn CS dialogues. We propose an extensible Context-Assisted Multiple Instance Learning (CAMIL) model to predict the sentiments of all the customer utterances and then aggregate those sentiments into service …

Redundancy Effect Of Vehicular Cloud’S Environment Using Location Estimate (Revise), Mohamed El-Tawab, Samy El-Tawab, M. Hossain Heydari

Showcase of Graduate Student Scholarship and Creative Activities

The rapid growth of modern wireless technology increases the invention of new applications using the concept of Internet of Things (IoT). Vehicular Cloud, which is a concept introduced recently to use the vehicles sitting idle for hours as a processing devices, has been a hot topic. This subject became more popular after the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) announcement of mandatory wireless capabilities of each vehicle since 2015. We investigate the idea of benefiting from the unused processing power of vehicles sitting in parking lots for a long period of time (e.g. an airport, or train station). Moreover, researchers propose the …

Interactions Between Reinforcement Corrosion And Chloride Ion Diffusion In Mortar, Chun-Tao Chen Prof., Yi-Chieh Chuang, Chieh-Hao Wu, Chin-Wei Hsu

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

This study explored the diffusion of the chloride ions influenced by the reinforcement corrosion in the mortar. It is believed that, during the corroding process, a small current is generated at the surface of the reinforcement. Such current is supposed to influence the diffusion of the chloride ions, but the relationship between both was not well studied in the literature. In this study, the corroded reinforcements were prepared by applied currents. Reinforced mortar specimens with w/c of 0.6 were then prepared and cured by either salt or fresh water. Results showed that the chloride ion distribution was likely associated with …

Sustainable Solutions, Fall/Winter 2020, Issue 41

Sustain Magazine

No abstract provided.

Environmental Factors Influencing The Durability Of Concrete Structures In Maine Environments, Hairong Wu, Fengjian Zhang, Yi Wang, Xianwei Ma, Libing Jin

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

Concrete structures built in marine environment may suffer serious durability problems. Focusing on the reaction between concrete materials and environmental conditions on structural durability, the coefficients of environmental temperature and chloride content are established. Referring to only experimental data tested following the procedure similar to the regulations in NT Build 443(Concrete, Hardened: Accelerated Chloride Penetration) of North Europe, the relationship between D₂₈ and water/binder ratio, which are converted into equivalent values of a standard reference environmental condition at 20ºC and a concentration of 165 g ± 1 g NaCl per dm³ solution, using the established formula of coefficients …

Alkali-Activated Cements And Concretes – Durability Testing To Underpin Standardisation, John Provis

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

Alkali-activated cements, including 'geopolymer' materials, are now reaching commercial uptake in the UK and elsewhere, providing the opportunity to produce concretes of good performance and with reduced environmental footprint compared to established technologies. The development of performance-based specifications for alkali-activated cements and concretes is ongoing in many parts of the world, including in the UK where the world-first British Standards Institute (BSI) Publicly Available Specification PAS8820:2016 has been published to describe these materials and their utilisation. However, the technical rigour, and thus practical value, of a performance-based approach to specification of novel cements and concretes will always depend on the …

The Performance Of Concrete In A Marine Environment, Michael D. Thomas, Edward G. Moffatt

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

This paper presents a summary of data from wide range of concretes following periods of marine exposure ranging up to 25 years. Data are presented from more than 100 different concrete mixtures. The various types of concrete include fibre-reinforced concrete (FRC), ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC), concrete with a range of supplementary cementing materials (SCM such as fly ash, slag, and silica fume) and replacement levels (e.g. up to 58% fly ash and 80% slag), lightweight-aggregate concrete (LWAC) and concrete containing alkali-silica reactive aggregate. Testing included measuring chloride concentration profiles, electrochemical corrosion measurements (for steel-reinforced concrete), and various electrical and mechanical …

The Bond Behaviour Between Concrete And Corroded Reinforcement: State Of The Art, Yuxi Zhao, H. Lin

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

The corrosion of reinforcing steel bar embedded in concrete leads to the bond deterioration. This literature review summarises the influence of corrosion on bond strength and bond-slip behaviour. The influence of corrosion on bond strength has been intensively investigated and the main influencing parameters, including the corrosion conditions of steel bars, the geometry and the corrosive environment, have been well recognized. Based on the previous investigations and the author’s experimental work, an improved bond strength model, which can account for various parameters and is proved to agree well with experimental results in the literature, is developed. The literature survey also …

Estimated Service Life Of Carbonation Exposed (Cracked) Concrete With Pozzolans Or Self-Healing Agents, Philip Van Den Heede, Nele De Belie

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

Today, concrete with large portions of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) replaced by fly ash and self-healing concrete count as potential sustainable alternatives to traditional concrete. For the first concrete type, the increased sustainability lies in lowering the carbon footprint which is largely attributable to cement. For the second one that should be able to heal cracks autonomously upon occurrence, an extended service life is the key objective. In this paper, both concrete types were evaluated in terms of service life in carbonation exposed environments. When using the probabilistic model for carbonation-induced steel depassivation of fib Bulletin 34 with mix specific …

Service Life And Life-Cycle Assessment Of Reinforced Concrete With Fly Ash And Limestone Calcined Clay Cement, Ravindra Gettu, Radhakrishna G. Pillai, Manu Santhanam, Sundar Rathnarajan, Anusha Basavaraj, Sripriya Raju, Yuvaraj Dhandapani

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

Environmental impact due to the emission of carbon dioxide during concrete production can be taken care by reducing the clinker content in the cement. The clinker content can be reduced by replacing it with fly ash and limestone calcined clay. Such systems can have a potential to exhibit enhanced durability/service life when exposed to chloride and carbon dioxide. However, estimating probabilistic service life of concretes with such alternative binder systems is difficult due to the lack of quantitative estimates of the input parameters such as chloride diffusion coefficient (D_Cl), ageing coefficient (m), carbonation coefficient (K_CO2), and …

New Model For Natural Carbonation Prediction In Reinforced Concrete – Concept And Validation On Chemical Admixtures, Stephen O. Ekolu, M Raats

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

A new model for prediction of natural carbonation in reinforced concrete structures has recently been developed and presented in (Ekolu, 2018). For brevity, the model is referred to as ESS model. It employs concrete strength as the primary property depicting core carbonation behaviour of any given concrete while other factors induce secondary influence. Chemical admixtures in concrete significantly influence concrete behaviour. Using experimental data from the literature (Dan-Herrera et al., 2015), the model behaviour is verified under use of various types of chemical admixtures of concrete including internal curing, shrinkage reducing, viscosity modifying, and high range water reducing admixtures. Class …

Performance Of Concrete Made With A Calcined Clay – Limestone-Portland Cement Exposed To Natural Conditions, Fernando Martirena, Ernesto Díaz, Dayran Rocha, Hamed Maraghechi, Karen Louise Scrivener

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

This work presents the results of an investigation carried out to assess durability of concrete made with a calcined clay- limestone-Portland cement with 47% of clinker, hereafter named LC3, produced during an industrial trial in 2013. LC3 was used to cast concrete blocks and later expose them at a natural location at the northern coast of Cuba. Reference concrete was cast with Cuban Portland cement having 88% of clinker. Throughout three years (2015, 2016, 2017) concrete cores were systematically taken and the specimens were subjected to a testing program that included Formation factor, chloride profiling, surface resistivity, air permeability and …

Faculty Handbook Section Iii - College Of Liberal Arts Policies And Procedures - Updated 11/6/2019, All Faculty

Faculty Handbooks

No abstract provided.

Beyond The School: Opportunities For School Psychologists In Community Change, Alyssa Boltson, Aline Milfort, Angela M. Waguespack

Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches and Lectures

No abstract provided.

Faculty Handbook Section Iii - College Of Liberal Arts Policies And Procedures - Updated 11/6/2019, All Faculty

Faculty Handbooks

No abstract provided.

November 6, 2019 Faculty Senate Minutes, University Of South Carolina

Faculty Senate

No abstract provided.

Wcu Study Abroad And Carbon Offsets: Not Whether But Whxen Now!, Paul Sylvester

Sustainability Research & Practice Seminar Presentations

No abstract provided.

Patton College Faculty Create Peace, Love, And Math Club For Kids (November 6, 2019), University Communications And Marketing

OHIO News Articles Archive

No abstract provided.

Degradation Mechanism Detection In Photovoltaic Backsheets By Fully Convolutional Neural Network, Laura S. Bruckman

Faculty Scholarship

Materials and devices age with time. Material aging and degradation has important implications for lifetime performance of materials and systems. While consensus exists that materials should be studied and designed for degradation, materials inspection during operation is typically performed manually by technicians. The manual inspection makes studies prone to errors and uncertainties due to human subjectivity. In this work, we focus on automating the process of degradation mechanism detection through the use of a fully convolutional deep neural network architecture (F-CNN). We demonstrate that F-CNN architecture allows for automated inspection of cracks in polymer backsheets from photovoltaic (PV) modules. The …

Interview With Bill Head, California State University, Monterey Bay

Founding Faculty Oral History Interviews

Interview with William Head, Professor Emeritus, Earth Systems Science & Policy, College of Science Founding Director, Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center

Developing A Computer-Managed Mentor Matching System For Graduate Students, Donna J. Knudsen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Changes to the higher education landscape resulting from digital-age advancements in technology limit the opportunities for doctoral students and faculty to find one another for research and mentorship pairings as they once did when higher education was a wholly brick and mortar enterprise. Further, doctoral student attrition has remained unmoved at approximately 50% since the 1990s, with studies consistently citing the absence of mentoring (or doctoral students’ dissatisfaction with their mentors) as chief among the factors that contribute to the high rate of attrition. Some predict that the rate of doctoral attrition is as much as 20% higher for programs …

Formulation To Application: Thermomechanical Characterization Of Flexible Polyimides And The Improvement Of Their Properties Via Chain Interaction, Alejandro Rivera Nicholls

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this work, Polyimides were synthesized by incorporating an aromatic diamine monomer with a methylene linker, 4,4'-methylenebis(2,6-dimethylaniline) (MBDMA), to make a robust main chain along with aliphatic polyetherdiamine backbone linkers to reduce rigidity. The polymers were designed to exhibit thermal properties in between those of conventional aromatic polyimides and polymers with wholly aliphatic ether diamine links. Through dynamic mechanical analysis and differential scanning calorimetry, it is shown that control of the molar ratios of the aromatic MBDMA and the composition and size of the aliphatic polyetherdiamine can be used to tune the glass transition temperature. The materials were characterized and …

An Investigation Of High-Speed Consolidation And Repair Of Carbon Fiber - Epoxy Composites Through Ultrasonic Welding, David A. Hoskins

LSU Master's Theses

Adhesive repair of carbon fiber composite structures is commonly done on damaged structures to extend the service life. This method requires careful preparation of the damaged surface with intricate steps to ensure good bonding between the repair patch and the parent structure by means of an adhesive film. As with many forms of composite manufacturing, it is required to perform vacuum bagging, debulking, and a heated cure depending on the resin. All these steps make the repair process costly and time consuming.

In this present work, an alternative method of repair is investigated which explores the experimental feasibility of using …

Fall 2019, In Case You Missed It, Unh Global Education Center

UNH International Educator Newsletter

No abstract provided.

‘A Healthy Cit’: An Investigation Into Student Health Metrics, Lifestyle Behaviours And The Predictors Of Positive Mental Health In An Irish Higher Education Setting, Andrea Bickerdike, Joan Dineen, Cian O'Neill

Publications

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are potent health promotion settings, uniquely positioned to aid societal efforts to combat non-communicable diseases (NCDs). International evidence suggests that health metrics and lifestyle behaviours of higher education students are sub-optimal, yet a dearth of contemporary Irish data exists. This study aimed to examine sex differences in student lifestyle behaviours and identify significant predictors of positive mental health in an Irish HEI setting. An online questionnaire instrument distributed to all registered students (n = 11,261) gathered data regarding a multitude of health and lifestyle domains. Many items were adapted from previous Irish research. Further validated scales …

Overcoming The Shadow Of Expertise: How Humility And Learning Goal Orientation Help Knowledge Leaders Become More Flexible, Mai P. Trinh

Management Faculty Publications

Although experts are valuable assets to organizations, they suffer from the curse of knowledge and cognitive entrenchment, which prevents them from being able to adapt to changing situational demands. In this study, I propose that experts’ performance goal orientation resulting from pressures to perform contributes to their flexibility, but this mechanism can be moderated by learning goal orientation and humility. Data from a small sample of healthcare professionals suggested that performance goal orientation partially explained the mechanism of why experts may be inflexible. Humility, both as self-report and other-report measures, was found to be the most consistent moderator of this …

Habitat Associations And Reproduction Of Fishes On The Northwestern Gulf Of Mexico Shelf Edge, Elizabeth Marie Keller

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Several of the northwestern Gulf of Mexico (GOM) shelf-edge banks provide critical hard bottom habitat for coral and fish communities, supporting a wide diversity of ecologically and economically important species. These sites may be fish aggregation and spawning sites and provide important habitat for fish growth and reproduction. Already designated as habitat areas of particular concern, many of these banks are also under consideration for inclusion in the expansion of the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary. This project aimed to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the communities and fish species on shelf-edge banks by way of gonad histology, …

Large Eddy Simulation Of Coolant Flow Field And Heat Transfer In Low Aspect Ratio Incremental Impingement Pin-Fin Configurations, Susheel Kumar Singh

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

To address the issue of variable heat load near the stagnation and the mid-chord region of a modern gas turbine blade, an incremental impingement cooling technique, which is a combination of pin-fin channel and jet impingement, is designed and explored. Large Eddy Simulation (LES), a well-known turbulence model, is used to simulate the coolant flow field and heat transfer. The streamwise (X) and the spanwise spacing (S) of the pin-fin arrangement are 1.074D and 1.625D. The aspect ratio of the pin-fin channel is 0.5D. The diameter (D) of the pin-fin is 2.54 cm. The configuration consists of five rows of …