Search results for " Analytic"

Development of artificial neural network for condition assessment of bridges based on hybrid decision making method – Feasibility study

2021

Abstract Managing a bridge at an appropriate level of reliability requires knowledge of its technical condition, which is decisive in terms of maintenance and repair activities. This is a multi-criteria decision-making problem which results from the need to allocate limited financial resources to this work. Although many calculation models have been suggested in published sources, none of them has ever met these requirements. The algorithm presented by the authors allows for the assessment of any number of bridges, taking into account the diversity of solutions in terms of materials and structures, and can provide a solution to this problem. This hybrid calculation model, combining the modi…

Crowdsourced analysis of fungal growth and branching on microfluidic platforms

2021

Fungal hyphal growth and branching are essential traits that allow fungi to spread and proliferate in many environments. This sustained growth is essential for a myriad of applications in health, agriculture, and industry. However, comparisons between different fungi are difficult in the absence of standardized metrics. Here, we used a microfluidic device featuring four different maze patterns to compare the growth velocity and branching frequency of fourteen filamentous fungi. These measurements result from the collective work of several labs in the form of a competition named the “Fungus Olympics.” The competing fungi included five ascomycete species (ten strains total), two basidiomycete…

A Dirichlet problem for the Laplace operator in a domain with a small hole close to the boundary

2016

We study the Dirichlet problem in a domain with a small hole close to the boundary. To do so, for each pair $\boldsymbol\varepsilon = (\varepsilon_1, \varepsilon_2 )$ of positive parameters, we consider a perforated domain $\Omega_{\boldsymbol\varepsilon}$ obtained by making a small hole of size $\varepsilon_1 \varepsilon_2 $ in an open regular subset $\Omega$ of $\mathbb{R}^n$ at distance $\varepsilon_1$ from the boundary $\partial\Omega$. As $\varepsilon_1 \to 0$, the perforation shrinks to a point and, at the same time, approaches the boundary. When $\boldsymbol\varepsilon \to (0,0)$, the size of the hole shrinks at a faster rate than its approach to the boundary. We denote by $u_{\bolds…

Real-time detection of highly oxidized organosulfates and BSOA marker compounds during the F–BEACh 2014 field study

2017

Abstract. The chemical composition of organic aerosols was analyzed using complementary mass spectrometric techniques during a field study in Central Europe in July 2014 (Fichtelgebirge – Biogenic Emission and Aerosol Chemistry, F–BEACh 2014). Aerosols were analyzed in real-time by Aerosol Flowing Atmospheric-Pressure Afterglow Mass Spectrometry (AeroFAPA–MS), Aerosol Mass Spectrometry (AMS), and Chemical Ionization Atmospheric-Pressure interface Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry (CI–APiToF–MS). In addition, offline detection of acidic organic compounds was conducted by non-target screening of filter samples using High Resolution Mass Spectrometry (HRMS) in combination with Ultra-High Pressu…

A case study of the radiative effect of aerosols over Europe: EUCAARI-LONGREX

2016

Abstract. The radiative effect of anthropogenic aerosols over Europe during the 2008 European Integrated Project on Aerosol Cloud Climate and Air Quality Interactions Long Range Experiment (EUCAARI-LONGREX) campaign has been calculated using measurements collected by the Facility for Airborne Atmospheric Measurements (FAAM) BAe-146 aircraft and radiative transfer modelling. The aircraft sampled anthropogenically perturbed air masses across north-western Europe under anticyclonic conditions with aerosol optical depths ranging from 0.047 to 0.357. For one specially designed “radiative closure” flight, simulated irradiances have been compared to radiation measurements for a case of aged Europe…

Methodological Aspects for the Implementation of the Air Pesticide Control and Surveillance Network (PESTNet) of the Valencian Region (Spain)

2021

A large amount of pesticide, applied mainly during agricultural practice, is released into the atmosphere, decreasing air quality and potentially causing public health problems. The Valencian region, after Andalusia, is the Spanish region with the highest consumption of pesticides owing to its large areas of agricultural land and the existence of crops that require intensive use of pesticides. In this work, we describe the sampling and analytical tools developed in the last decade and their transference to the Regional Department for Environment, where the main objective of the research was the creation and implementation of an Air pesticide control and surveillance network (PESTNet) in the…

Synthesis and characterisation of peroxypinic acids as proxies for highly oxygenated molecules (HOMs) in secondary organic aerosol

2018

Abstract. Peroxy acids were recently found to be involved in new particle formation in the atmosphere and could also substantially contribute towards particle toxicity. However, a lack of suitable analytical methods for the detection and characterisation of peroxy acids in the particle phase is currently hindering the quantitative investigation of their contribution to these important atmospheric processes. Further development of appropriate techniques and relevant standards is therefore urgently needed. In this study, we synthesised three peroxypinic acids, developed a liquid chromatography separation method and characterised them with tandem mass spectrometry. The observed fragmentation p…

2017

Abstract. In situ single particle analysis of ice particle residuals (IPRs) and out-of-cloud aerosol particles was conducted by means of laser ablation mass spectrometry during the intensive INUIT-JFJ/CLACE campaign at the high alpine research station Jungfraujoch (3580 m a.s.l.) in January–February 2013. During the 4-week campaign more than 70 000 out-of-cloud aerosol particles and 595 IPRs were analyzed covering a particle size diameter range from 100 nm to 3 µm. The IPRs were sampled during 273 h while the station was covered by mixed-phase clouds at ambient temperatures between −27 and −6 °C. The identification of particle types is based on laboratory studies of different types of biolo…

Application of an O-ring pinch device as a constant-pressure inlet (CPI) for airborne sampling

2020

We present a novel and compact design of a constant-pressure inlet (CPI) developed for use in airborne aerosol mass spectrometry. In particular, the inlet system is optimized for aerodynamic lenses commonly used in aerosol mass spectrometers, in which efficient focusing of aerosol particles into a vacuum chamber requires a precisely controlled lens pressure, typically of a few hectopascals. The CPI device can also be used in condensation particle counters (CPCs), cloud condensation nucleus counters (CCNCs), and gas-phase sampling instruments across a wide range of altitudes and inlet pressures. The constant pressure is achieved by changing the inner diameter of a properly scaled O-ring that…

Teaching Green Analytical Chemistry on the Example of Bioindication and Biomonitoring (B & B) Technologies

2019

Teaching of Green Analytical Chemistry (GAC) requires a not inconsiderable willingness on the part of the lecturer to familiarize himself with a relatively new field in analytical chemistry. Although there is much that can be derived from Green and Sustainable Chemistry, the GAC’s forward-looking perspectives in particular are independent approaches that must not be neglected. In the first chapter of this article, approaches are pursued “how (teachers) learn to learn,” ultimately based on a consensus on ethics, which allows dealing with people, society and the environment to become an interdisciplinary unit. The end of all this is a smart method of conflict management which provides solutio…