• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.1 no.4
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• pp.307-321
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• 2009

The paper employs a feed forward neural network with back-propagation algorithm for modeling time dependent swell in clays containing carbonate in the presence of sulfuric acid. The oedometer swell percent is estimated at a nominal surcharge pressure of 6.25 kPa to develop 612 data sets for modeling. The input parameters used in the network include time, sulfuric acid concentration, carbonate percentage, and liquid limit. Among the total data sets, 280 (46%) were assigned to training, 175 (29%) for testing and the remaining 157 data sets (25%) were relegated to cross validation. The network was programmed to process this information and predict the percent swell at any time, knowing the variable involved. The study demonstrates that it is possible to develop a general BPNN model that can predict time dependent swell with relatively high accuracy with observed data ($R^2$=0.9986). The obtained results are also compared with generated non-linear regression model.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.213-218
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• 1987

In this study, the rheological properties of a partially valcanized black filled EPDM were investigated as a function of degree of crosslinks using capillary rheometer. In order to obtain the samples having various degree of crosslinks between 0 and 6 percent, the vulcanization kinetics was also studied by Monsanto rheometer. The results showed that the die swell ana the pressure drop at the capillary entrance and exit increase nearly linearly with the increase in degree of crosslinks. However, melt fracture occurred at a lower shear rate for the samples of higher degree of crosslinks. These results were discussed in terms of the melt elasticity produced at the entrance region of capillary by the partial vulcanization. It is also interesting to note that the fluctuation of die swell during the practical extrusion or calendering process in the factories can be caused by the partial vulcanization occurred during the process.

• Advances in nano research
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.125-136
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• 2024

In the present research the durability and geotechnical properties of an expensive clayey soil stabilized by two different compositions of additives were investigated and compared. The first composition consisted of environmentally and ecofriendly materials: BOF steel slag ranging from 0-20% as well as rice husk ash (RHA) ranged 0-16%wt of dry soil. The other composition consisted of relatively new generation of materials including nanomaterials: nano-CaCO3 as well as nano-SiO2. Atterberg limits test, free swell percent test, swelling pressure test and unconfined compressive test were used to assess the stabilizers influences upon expansive soil geotechnical characteristics. Also, the recurrent wet-dry cycles test was exerted on experimental and non-experimental samples for estimating stabilizers effects on durability. According to the results, each of the BOF slag and RHA enhances the expansive soil properties individually, while combination of slag-RHA led to better improvement of the soil properties. Also, the composition of nano-CaCO3 and SiO2 dramatically improved the clay soil operation. The optimum values of slag+RHA were suggested as 20% slag+12% RHA to enhance percent of swelling, pressure of swelling in addition to UCS as much as 95%, 96%, and 370%, respectively. The optimum value for the second stabilizer in this study was found to be 2%nano-SiO2+2% nano-CaCO3 which led to 318% increase in UCS and 86% decrease in swelling pressure.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.166-172
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• 2019

BACKGROUND: Increase in the ratio of small berries in blueberry production decreases the farmers' profits due to weakening market competitiveness and lowering harvest efficiency. One of the reasons for increased small berries is over fruit-load. For improving productivity and competitiveness of blueberry in Korea, hand-thinning can be applied to increase fruit quality before the developing adequate chemical thinning methods. This study was conducted to investigate the proper timing and methods for floral buds thinning in rabbiteye blueberry. METHODS AND RESULTS: Eight years old bushes of rabbiteye bluberries 'Brightwell' as a primary cultivar and 'Powderblue' as a pollinizer were used for this study. Fruit size distribution by leaf-to-fruit ratio was investigated by counting the number of leaves and fruits in canes of 127 'Brightwell' plants whose fruit set varied. Fifty percent of flowers/floral buds were removed in four different floral buds stages such as bud swell, late pink bud, full bloom, and petal fall, and the consumed time for thinning and fruit characteristics were recorded to investigate the effect and proper timing of floral buds thinning. Fruit weight and soluble solids content tended to increase in proportion to leaf-to-fruit ratio and the production of the number of fruits less than 13 mm in diameter decreased when leaf-to-fruit ratio was more than 2.5. Manual floral buds thinning by hands was fastest in full bloom stage and slowest in bud swelling stage. In all cultivars, fruit size was significantly smaller in non-thinning treatment than thinning, and there was, however, no significant difference in total fruit yield. The number of fruits less than 13 mm in diameter increased in both cultivars as floral buds thinning was delayed. Consumed time for picking 90% berries out of total berries per bush was shortest in full bloom stage thinning in 'Brightwell' and bud swelling, full bloom thinning in 'Powderblue'. These were 25 and 20 days faster than no thinning, respectively. CONCLUSION: Although the effect of floral buds thinning varied depending on the cultivars, our results confirmed that floral buds thinning was effective for the early intensive harvesting and the increase of the large fruit ratio and the harvesting productivity. Also, in order to increase thinning efficiency, it is recommended to remove the flower buds before the full bloom stage.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.94 no.6
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• pp.476-480
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• 2005

Agricultural straws such as rice and barley were used as partial replacement of raw materials for particleboard (PB) manufacture. A melamine-urea-formaldehyde (MUF) resin, based on 5 percent melamine addition of the resin solids weight, was synthesized in the laboratory for the bonding of PB. PBs were made using two straw particles based on 10, 20, 30, 40% oven dry weight addition with MUF resin. PBs were tested for physical and mechanical properties, and water soak dimensional stability. The results indicated that as rice and barley straws addition level were increased, the properties of IB, MOR and dimensional stabilities such as thickness swell and water absorption were decreased. Overall, the agricultural straws can be used at 15% substitution of raw materials for PB manufacture.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.106-113
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• 2024

Understanding the tritium release and retention behavior of candidate tritium breeder materials is crucial for breeder blanket design. Recently, a melt spraying process was developed to prepare Li₄SiO₄ pebbles, which were subsequently subjected to the in-pile tritium production and extraction platform in China Mianyang Research Reactor (CMRR) to investigate their in-situ tritium release behavior and irradiation performance. The results demonstrate that HT is the main tritium release form, and adding hydrogen to the purge gas reduces tritium retention while increasing the HT percent in the purge gas. Post-irradiation experiments reveal that the irradiated pebbles darken in color and their grains swell, but the mechanical properties remain largely unchanged. It is concluded that the tritium residence time of Li₄SiO₄ made by melt spraying method at 467 ℃ is approximately 23.34 h. High-density Li₄SiO₄ pebbles exhibit tritium release at relatively low temperatures (<600 ℃) that is mainly controlled by bulk diffusion. The diffusion coefficient at 525 ℃ and 550 ℃ is 1.19 × 10^-11 cm²/s and 5.34 × 10^-11 cm²/s, respectively, with corresponding tritium residence times of 21.3 hours and 4.7 hours.