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  • User experience evaluation study on the quality of 1K, 2K, and 4K H.265/HEVC video content
    • Przemysław Falkowski-Gilski
    • Tadeus Uhl
    • Christian Hoppe
    2024 Pełny tekst Zeszyty Naukowe Akademii Morskiej w Szczecinie

    Nowadays, most content creators focus on distributing rich media at the highest possible resolution. Currently, the majority of sold consoles, media players, computer hardware, as well as displays and TVs are advertised as 4K-compatible. The same trend is observed in the case of popular online streaming services and terrestrial TV broadcasts. Generally speaking, it is assumed that higher bitrates provide higher subjective judgements. In this paper, we present the results of a user experience (UX) evaluation study on the quality of video content coded and transmitted in different resolutions in the internet protocol (IP) environment. The image resolutions include 1K (1920×1080 pixels; full-HD), 2K (2560×1440 pixels; wide-QHD), and 4K (3840×2160 pixels; ultra-HD) content that are processed in the H.265/HEVC (high-efficiency video coding) format. A subjective evaluation is carried out in a laboratory consisting of 20 iMacs with a 21.5-inch 4K Retina (4096×2304 pixels) display. The group of viewers included 28 individuals aged between 21‒35 years old, comprising people with and without visual impairments. The obtained UX results are compared with previous experiments, including both objective quality of service (QoS) and subjective quality of experience (QoE), as well as the impact of down-scaling to 1K from 2K and 4K. The outcomes of this study may be of particular interest to any party interested in video content processing and distribution, as well as consumption and storage.

  • User Orientation Detection in Relation to Antenna Geometry in Ultra-Wideband Wireless Body Area Networks Using Deep Learning
    • Sebastian Urwan
    • Krzysztof Cwalina
    2024 Pełny tekst SENSORS

    In this paper, the issue of detecting a user’s position in relation to the antenna geometry in ultra-wideband (UWB) off-body wireless body area network (WBAN) communication using deep learning methods is presented. To measure the impulse response of the channel, a measurement stand consisting of EVB1000 devices and DW1000 radio modules was developed and indoor static measurement scenarios were performed. It was proven that for the binary classification of user orientation, neural networks achieved accuracy that was more than 9% higher than that for the well-known threshold method. In addition, the classification of user position angles relative to the reference node was analyzed. It was proven that, using the proposed deep learning approach and the channel impulse response, it was possible to estimate the angle of the user’s position in relation to the antenna geometry. Absolute user orientation angle errors of about 4–7◦ for convolutional neural networks and of about 14–15◦ for multilayer perceptrons were achieved in approximately 85% of the cases in both tested scenarios.

  • User-oriented GIS tools in higher education of urban design and planning
    • Weronika Maria Mazurkiewicz
    • Anna Kaczorowska
    • Anna Rubczak
    • Justyna Wieczerzak
    • Dorota Dominika Kamrowska-Załuska
    2024 Pełny tekst World Transactions on Engineering and Technology Education

    Geographic information systems (GIS) have emerged as indispensable tools for decision-making, planning and problem-solving tasks across various domains in today’s evolving world. However, there exists a pressing need to augment the utilisation of GIS tools in higher education of urban design and planning to foster a user-oriented approach. This article explores the imperative of integrating GIS tools more comprehensively into higher education curricula to empower students with the skills necessary to leverage geographic information effectively. Selected cases from the Programmes of Architecture and Spatial Development at Gdańsk University of Technology (Gdańsk Tech), Poland, and Physical Planning at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway, demonstrate students’ experience with user-oriented GIS tools. Results reveal there is a growing demand in higher education to integrate GIS tools into service design approaches and participatory practice. Enhancing access to GIS technologies for students and stakeholders will encourage collaboration between education and practice, facilitating real-time adjustments and crossdisciplinary efforts.

  • Utilizing Morphological and Physiological Parameters of Lemna minor for Assessing Tetracyclines’ Removal
    • Łukasz Sikorski
    • Agnieszka Bęś
    • Kazimierz Warmiński
    • Wojciech Truszkowski
    • Przemysław Kowal
    2024 MOLECULES

    Antibiotics with significant environmental toxicity, e.g., tetracyclines (TCs), are often used in large quantities worldwide, with 50–80% of the applied dose ending up in the environment. This study aimed to investigate the effects of exposure to tetracycline hydrochloride (TC) and minocycline hydrochloride (MIN) on L. minor. Our research evaluated the phytotoxicity of the TCs by analyzing plant growth and biomass and evaluating assimilation pigment levels and fluorescence. The research was extended with the ability potential of duckweed as a tool for removing TCs from water/wastewater. The results demonstrated that both TCs influenced Ir, Iy, biomass, and photosynthetic efficiency. The uptake of TC and MIN by duckweed was proportional to the concentration in the growth medium. The TC was absorbed more readily, reaching up to 8.09 mg × g−1 of dry weight (DW) at the highest concentration (19.2 mg × L−1), while MIN reached 6.01 mg × g−1 of DW. As indicated, the consequences of the influence of TC on plants were slightly smaller, in comparison to MIN, while the plants could biosorb this drug, even at the lowest tested concentration. This study has shown that using plants for drug biosorption can be an effective standalone or complementary method for water and wastewater treatment.

  • UV-assisted fluctuation-enhanced gas sensing by ink-printed MoS2 devices
    • Katarzyna Drozdowska
    • Janusz Smulko
    • Jakub Czubek
    • Sergey Rumyantsev
    • Andrzej Kwiatkowski
    2024 Pełny tekst Scientific Reports

    In this work, MoS2 flakes were printed on ceramic substrates and investigated toward 1–10 ppm of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), 2–12 ppm of ammonia (NH3), and 2–12 ppm acetone (C3H6O) under UV light (275 nm). The structure of overlapping MoS2 flakes and UV light assistance affected high responsivity to NO2 when DC resistance was monitored, and superior sensitivity to NH3 was obtained from the low-frequency noise spectra. MoS2 exhibited response and recovery times in hundreds of seconds and stability throughout the experiments conducted within a few months. MoS2 sensor exhibited a resistance drift during the detection of a specific relaxation time. Subtracting the baseline burden with exponential drift exposed the direction of changes induced by oxidizing and reducing gases and reduced DL to 80 ppb, 130 ppb, and 360 ppb for NO2, NH3, and C3H6O, respectively. The fluctuation-enhanced sensing (FES) revealed that the adsorption of NO2 on MoS2 decreases the noise intensity, whereas adsorbed NH3 increases the fluctuations of current flowing through the sensor, and these changes are proportional to the concentration of gases. The noise responses for NO2 and NH3 were opposite and higher than DC resistance responses with subtracted baseline (an increase of 50% for 10 ppm of NO2 and an increase of more than 600% for 12 ppm of NH3), showing that FES is a highly sensitive tool to detect and distinguish between these two gases. This way, we introduce a simple and low-cost method of gas sensor fabrication using ink-printed MoS2 and the possibility of enhancing its sensitivity through data processing and the FES method.

  • Vaccinium Species—Unexplored Sources of Active Constituents for Cosmeceuticals
    • Wirginia Kukuła-Koch
    • Natalia Dycha
    • Paulina Lechwar
    • Magdalena Lasota
    • Estera Okoń
    • Paweł Szczeblewski
    • Anna Wawruszak
    • Dominik Tarabasz
    • Jane Hubert
    • Piotr Wilkołek
    • Maria Halabalaki
    • Katarzyna Gaweł-Bęben
    2024 Biomolecules

    The genus Vaccinium is represented by shrubs growing in a temperate climate that have been used for ages as traditional remedies in the treatment of digestive problems, in diabetes, renal stones or as antiseptics due to the presence of polyphenols (anthocyanins, flavonoids and tannins) in their fruits and leaves. Recent studies confirm their marked potential in the treatment of skin disorders and as skin care cosmetics. The aim of this review is to present the role of Vaccinium spp. as cosmetic products, highlight their potential and prove the biological properties exerted by the extracts from different species that can be useful for the preparation of innovative cosmetics. In the manuscript both skin care and therapeutic applications of the representatives of this gender will be discussed that include the antioxidant, skin lightening, UV-protective, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and chemopreventive properties to shed new light on these underestimated plants.

  • Validation of dynamic electrochemical impedance spectrograms using autocorrelation function
    • Kazimierz Darowicki
    • Szymon Wysmułek
    • Anna Karólkowska
    • Łukasz Gaweł
    2024 JOURNAL OF ELECTROANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY

    Validation of impedance data is essential for checking the reliability of experimental data. Kramers – Kronig transformation is used to verify data obtained from classical Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) measurements. Data obtained from Dynamic Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (DEIS) could be validated in the same way, but in this case, there is no information about internal consistency between every single spectrum in the whole spectrogram. To address these challenges, the authors proposed an approach using the autocorrelation function ACF to validate DEIS time series. The reasoning conducted showed that ACF function is appropriate tool for validating DEIS spectrograms.

  • Valorization of paper-mill sludge laden with 2-chlorotoluene using hydroxyapatite@biochar nanocomposite to enrich methanogenic community: A techno-economic approach
    • Rania H. Hafez
    • Ahmed Tawfik
    • Gamal K. Hassan
    • Magdy Zahran
    • Ahmed A. Younes
    • Aleksandra Ziembińska-Buczyńska
    • Filip Gamoń
    • Mahmoud Nasr
    2024 BIOMASS & BIOENERGY

    While several studies have investigated the anaerobic digestion of paper-mill sludge (PMS), this technology suffers from nutrient insufficiency, inhibition by aromatic compounds, and low bio-CH4 yield. Hence, PMS was anaerobically co-digested with chicken manure (CM) and supplemented by hydroxyapatite@biochar (HAP@BC) nanocomposite for enhancing 2-chlorotoluene degradation and enriching the methanogenic archaea. Multiple continuous stirred tank reactors (CSTRs) were operated at 12.6 h hydraulic retention time (HRT), using PMS (R1), CM (R2), PMS + CM (R3), PMS + CM+100 mg HAP/L (R4), and PMS + CM+100 mg HAP@BC/L (R5). The maximum bio-CH4 yield of 147.5 ± 9.1 mL/g COD and 2-chlorotoluene removal of 91.2 ± 6.8 % were obtained from R5, experiencing a sufficient C/N ratio of 14.7 and the highest activities of acidogenesis (42.0 %), aceto- genesis (37.9 %), and methanogenesis (42.1 %). The abundances of Euryarchaeota, Bacteroidota, and Chloroflexi at the phylum level, and Pseudomonas, and Bacillus at the genus level could highly contribute to the dechlori- nation mechanism and acetate transformation into CH4. This biomass-to-bioenergy project (10 m3/d capacity) could benefit from pollution reduction, biogas recovery, and carbon credit, giving 5.6 yr payback-period, 3503 USD net present value, and 12.1 % internal rate of return. Because R5 exhibited an efficient techno-economic anaerobic biodegradation performance, future studies are required to optimize its HRT condition and HAP@BC dosage.

  • Value co‐creation (VCC) and value co‐destruction (VCD) via open government data (OGD): Empirical case of Tanzania
    • Fredrick Ishengoma
    • Deo Shao
    • Raphael Gouvea da Silva
    • Guillherme Costa Wiedenhoft
    • Charalampos Harris Alexopoulos
    • Nina Rizun
    • Stuti Saxena
    2024 Electronic Journal of Information Systems in Developing Countries

    Having emphasized upon the potential benefits of Open Government Data (OGD) initiatives via value derivation and innovation pursuits of the stakeholders, it falls in place to complement this line of OGD research in the specific case of Tanzania, a developing country, to support the inferences. Specifically, it is important to understand the manner in which OGD VCC-one of the hinges of OGD initiatives- and OGD VCD-a possible fall out of OGD initiatives- happens to pass. Thus, a content analysis of the interviews of 15 public officials and managers was conducted to arrive at its conclusions. Thus, the interviewees aver that OGD Value Co-creation (VCC) may be facilitated on top-priority bases by consistent marketing efforts by the government as also the partnerships with the key stakeholders of the OGD ecosystem, and, among the prominent Value Co-Destruction (VCD) factors may be counted the issues linked with data privacy and resource restriction. Literature on OGD VCC is at a nascent stage and the one on OGD VCD is evolving. As an atypical empirical validation case vis-a-vis the emerging OGD VCC-VCD research, the study is an additional contribution to the extant literature with specific reference to the developing country's experiences where the OGD initiatives are at an evolving stage

  • Variable Data Structures and Customized Deep Learning Surrogates for Computationally Efficient and Reliable Characterization of Buried Objects
    • Reyhan Yurt
    • Hamid Torpi
    • Ahmet Kizilay
    • Sławomir Kozieł
    • Peyman Mahouti
    2024 Pełny tekst Scientific Reports

    In this study, in order to characterize the buried object via deep-learning-based surrogate modeling approach, 3-D full-wave electromagnetic simulations of a GPR model has been used. The task is to predict simultaneously and independent of each characteristic parameters of a buried object of several radii at different positions (depth and lateral position) in various dispersive subsurface media. This study has analyzed variable data structures (raw B-scans, extracted features, consecutive A-scans) with respect to computational cost and accuracy of surrogates. The usage of raw B-scan data and the applications for processing steps on B-scan profiles in the context of object characterization incur high computational cost so it can be a challenging issue. The proposed surrogate model referred to as the deep regression network (DRN) is utilized for time frequency spectrogram (TFS) of consecutive A-scans. DRN is developed with the main aim being computationally efficient (about 13 times acceleration) compared to conventional network models using B-scan images (2D data). DRN with TFS is favorably benchmarked to the state-of-the-art regression techniques. The experimental results obtained for the proposed model and second-best model, CNN-1D show mean absolute and relative error rates of 3.6mm, 11.8mm and 4.7%, 11.6% respectively. For the sake of supplementary verification under realistic scenarios, it is also applied for scenarios involving noisy data. Furthermore, the proposed surrogate modeling approach is validated using measurement data, which is indicative of suitability of the approach to handle physical measurements as data sources.

  • Variable Resolution Machine Learning Optimization of Antennas Using Global Sensitivity Analysis
    • Anna Pietrenko-Dąbrowska
    • Sławomir Kozieł
    2024 Pełny tekst Scientific Reports

    The significance of rigorous optimization techniques in antenna engineering has grown significantly in recent years. For many design tasks, parameter tuning must be conducted globally, presenting a challenge due to associated computational costs. The popular bio-inspired routines often necessitate thousands of merit function calls to converge, generating prohibitive expenses whenever the design process relies on electromagnetic (EM) simulation models. Surrogate-assisted methods offer acceleration, yet constructing reliable metamodels is hindered in higher-dimensional spaces and systems with highly nonlinear characteristics. This work suggests an innovative technique for global antenna optimization embedded within a machine-learning framework. It involves iteratively refined kriging surrogates and particle swarm optimization for generating infill points. The search process operates within a reduced-dimensionality region established through fast global sensitivity analysis. Domain confinement enables the creation of accurate behavioral models using limited training data, resulting in low CPU costs for optimization. Additional savings are realized by employing variable-resolution EM simulations, where low-fidelity models are utilized during the global search stage (including sensitivity analysis), and high-fidelity ones are reserved for final (gradient-based) tuning of antenna parameters. Comprehensive verification demonstrates the consistent performance of the proposed procedure, its superiority over benchmark techniques, and the relevance of the mechanisms embedded into the algorithm for enhancing search process reliability, design quality, and computational efficiency.

  • Versatile Unsupervised Design of Antennas Using Flexible Parameterization and Computational Intelligence Methods
    • Sławomir Kozieł
    • Anna Pietrenko-Dąbrowska
    • Stanisław Szczepański
    2024 Pełny tekst Scientific Reports

    Developing contemporary antennas is a challenging endeavor that requires considerable engineering insight. The most laborious stage is to devise an antenna architecture that delivers the required functionalities, e.g., multiband operation. Iterative by nature (hands-on topology modifications, parametric studies, trial-and-error geometry selection), it typically takes many weeks and requires considerable engagement from a human expert. Consequently, only a few possible design options concerning the fundamental antenna geometry may be considered. Automated topology rendition and geometry parameter optimization are highly relevant, especially from the industrial perspective. Therein, reducing time-to-market and limiting the involvement of trained experts is critical. This research proposes an innovative procedure for unsupervised development of planar antennas. Our method leverages flexible antenna parameterization based on re-sizable elliptical patches. It permits the realization of a massive number of geometries of diverse shapes and complexities using a small number of decision variables. Computational intelligence methods are employed to conduct antenna evolution exclusively based on specifications and possible constraints (e.g., maximum size). Fine-tuning of the structure geometry is achieved through low-cost local search routines. Our methodology is demonstrated by designing several antennas featuring distinct characteristics (broadband, single-, dual- and triple-band). The obtained results, supported by experimental data, underscore the presented approach’s versatility and capability to render unconventional topologies at reasonably low computational expenses. As mentioned earlier, the design process is fully automated without human expert involvement.

  • Virtual Escape Room in Mathematics
    • Radosław Baziak
    • Tomasz Daruk
    • Karol Żyra
    • Dorota Żarek
    • Jacek Lebiedź
    2024

    The paper presents developing a virtual reality-based escape room to teach mathematical concepts. The goal was to create an immersive game to engage students in actively solving math puzzles. The research team built the application for use in the Immersive 3D Visualization Lab at the Gdańsk University of Technology. The escape room comprises an introductory room followed by three themed rooms with 13 puzzles total that involve mathematical thinking. To assess the tool’s educational impact, the team prepared surveys and planed an experiment with students. Key outcomes delivered were the completed application configured for the target lab, plus the surveys to quantitatively measure math comprehension before and after students use the escape room. Overall this project combined virtual reality and game design concepts to create an innovative approach for engaging students in learning math concepts in an interactive, visually stimulating setting.

  • Virtual tour as an innovative tool for architectural education - from understanding heritage to creativity stimulation
    • Karolina Życzkowska
    • Doria Elisabetta
    • Justyna Borucka
    2024 World Transactions on Engineering and Technology Education

    The article presents the potential of the virtual tour in architectural education as an innovative tool to better understand heritage and stimulate creativity. A methodology for creating a virtual tour based on a point cloud obtained from a survey based on 360° camera images is presented. Two different purposes for the use of point clouds are presented from reliable indicators of heritage documentation useful for digital twin modelling and architectural analysis, to the creation of thematic virtual tours enabling the testing of different scenarios. The article focuses on the case of virtual tours that were created as part of the 2023 Gdańsk Summer School associated with the H2020 PROMETHEUS project, in collaboration between Gdańsk University of Technology (Gdańsk Tech), Poland, and the University of Pavia, Italy. A virtual tour was created for a significant part of the Royal Way in Gdańsk. A comparison of the different types of virtual tours is presented in relation to their objectives (educational, tourist, entertainment), the characteristics of the scenarios (place, time, story, characters) and the experience environment (virtual, augmented or immersive space).

  • Vitamin B9 as a new eco-friendly corrosion inhibitor for copper in 3.5% NaCl solution
    • Hubert Kwiatkowski
    • Stefan Krakowiak
    • Łukasz Gaweł
    2024 Pełny tekst JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL AND ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY

    Folic acid salt (sodium folate) was studied as an eco-friendly and non-toxic copper corrosion inhibitor in 3.5% NaCl solution. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, polarization resistance and weight-loss measurements show that the inhibitor efficiency increases with concentration (the highest value- approx. 96% was reported for the solution containing 16 mM sodium folate after 24 h). EIS data and Tafel plots indicate that sodium folate is a barrier, mixed-type (with predominant cathodic character) inhibitor. Inhibitor efficiency decreases with temperature, which suggests that adsorption has physical character rather than chemical one - adsorption free energy calculated using the Langmuir model is consistent with this statement. Activation energy determined from the Arrhenius plot increases as a result of inhibitor presence. Efficiency of the inhibitor increases systematically during the first 12 hours of immersion. Potential chemical changes in sodium folate solution were investigated using UV-VIS spectroscopy. Furthermore, copper surface after immersion in the presence and absence of inhibitor was characterized with scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-Ray spectroscopy and microscopic photographs.

  • Voltage and Current Unbalance Reduction in Power Networks with Distributed Generation and Electric Vehicles
    • Krzysztof Dobrzyński
    • Stanisław Czapp
    2024 Pełny tekst ENERGIES

    The current development of prosumer microsources and the expected spread of electric vehicles may cause the appearance of significant current and voltage unbalance in low-voltage (LV) networks. This unbalance, which is an unfavorable phenomenon, may occur when using single-phase photovoltaic (PV) microsources and single-phase home chargers for electric vehicles. This paper presents a proposal for the symmetrization of the LV network using devices for the reconfiguration of phases in the power supply. Both the different locations of these devices and the different objective functions for device implementation are analyzed. The research was carried out on an example LV network, taking into account several variants of the development of PV microsources and home chargers for electric vehicles. The analysis indicates that the appropriate location of phase reconfiguration devices and the use of an appropriate objective function leads to a significant reduction in unfavorable unbalancing in the LV network.

  • Voltage Control of a Stand-Alone Multiphase Doubly Fed Induction Generator
    • Krzysztof Blecharz
    • Marcin Morawiec
    • Roland Ryndzionek
    • Michał Michna
    2024 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRIAL ELECTRONICS

    This article presents a multiphase doubly fed induction generator (MDFIG) with a dedicated and unique control algorithm in a stand-alone wind energy conversion system. The algorithm has been developed and elaborated in the case of different emergency modes. Compared with the traditional double-fed induction generator, the MDFIG has increased reliability, reduced current level per phase, and low rotor harmonic currents. The control system is based on a classical mathematical model and the stator field-oriented control method. However, especially for the wind turbine system, the control system has been extended for dedicated five-phase operation and additional scenarios have been added. First, the dynamic states of the generator operation under normal operating conditions with voltage variation and load were simulated and compared with laboratory tests. Second, the fault-tolerance results of rotor phase failures with different states and loads were presented. This performance is validated in the laboratory with a 4 kW prototype MDFIG. The method presented in this article is simple, robust, and cost effective with MDFIG and has significantly improved the reliability of the power generation system.

  • Walther H. Nernst - noblista z Wąbrzeźna
    • Adam Barylski
    2024 Przegląd Techniczny

    Przedstawiono życiorys i osiągnięcia naukowe prof. Walthera Hermanna Nernsta, urodzonego 25 czerwca 1864 r. w Wąbrzeźnie, laureata Nagrody Nobla z dziedziny chemii z roku 1921. W. Nernst jest autorem m.in. III zasady termodynamiki oraz konstruktorem tzw. lampy Nernsta. Była to jedna z pierwszych lamp elektrycznych, oświetlająca wieżę Eiffla i pawilon niemiecki na Światowej Wystawie w Paryżu w 1890 r. W roku 1914 zostaje honorowym doktorem politechniki w Gdańsku. W roku 1991 na domu w którym się urodził w Wąbrzeźnie umieszczono tablicę pamiątkową, podobnie jak w roku 2021 na murach szkoły w Grudziądzu, do której uczęszczał. W 120-lecie Politechniki Gdańskiej z uznaniem warto wspomnieć postać profesora, mniej nam znanego niż jego osiągnięcia naukowe.

  • Warstwowa ocena epidemiologiczna architektury zakładów opiekuńczo-leczniczych i zakładów gieriatycznych = Layer based epidemiological quality assessment of architecture of care security and geriatric wards
    • Wacław Szarejko
    • Rafał Janowicz
    2024 MEDYCYNA PRACY

    W artykule opisano możliwość wykorzystania autorskiej metody warstwowej oceny epidemiologicznej (WOE) do oceny potencjalnego ryzyka zakażeń w obiektach przeznaczonych dla osób starszych. Materiał i metody: W celu weryfikacji możliwości użycia metody WOE do oceny zagrożeń w zakresie bezpieczeństwa epidemiologicznego środowiska zbudowanego poddano analizie dostępne źródła literatury związane z obowiązującymi w Polsce wymaganiami prawnymi w zakresie oceny ergonomii obiektów medycznych pod względem transmisji zakażeń. W artykule odniesiono się również do wytycznych Komisji Europejskiej w zakresie Nowego Europejskiego Bauhausu i systemu oceny jakości Davos Baukultur Quality System jako standaryzowanej metody oceny jakości przestrzeni zbudowanej. W pracy przedstawiono podstawowe założenie autorskiej metody WOE pozwalającej na ocenę ryzyka transmisji zakażeń oddzielnie dla poszczególnych grup elementów, z których składa się budynek. Skuteczność metody wykazano poprzez wykorzystanie jej do oceny ryzyka zakażeń na przykładzie pokoju oddziału geriatrycznego. Wyniki: W artykule pokazano możliwość zastosowania narzędzia warstwowej oceny struktury budynku jako skutecznej metody wspomagającej działania ograniczające ryzyko epidemiczne. Wykorzystanie WOE umożliwia czytelne rozróżnienie potencjalnych dróg zakażeń w obrębie analizowanych obiektów i przyporządkowanie ich poszczególnym elementom składowym budynków. Dodatkowo przedstawiona metoda umożliwia zdefiniowanie koniecznych do wykonania procedur i opracowanie schematu działań minimalizujących ryzyko rozprzestrzenienia zakażeń w obrębie analizowanych nieruchomości. Wnioski: Zastosowanie WOE do oceny rozwiązań architektonicznych obiektów przeznaczonych do pobytu osób starszych wiąże się z wieloma korzyściami. Metoda ta może stanowić narzędzie eksperckie pozwalające na szybką i precyzyjną ocenę potencjalnych zagrożeń epidemiologicznych. Ważną zaletą jest także możliwość wykorzystania jej, w sposób odrębny, w przypadku różnorodnych typów zagrożeń epidemiologicznych cechujących się różnymi drogami transmisji zakażeń

  • Water retention curves of sandy soils obtained from direct measurements, particle size distribution, and infiltration experiments
    • Umar Farooq
    • Wioletta Gorczewska-Langner
    • Adam Szymkiewicz
    2024 VADOSE ZONE JOURNAL

    Accurate information about soil water retention curves (SWRCs) of sands is essential for evaluating groundwater recharge and vulnerability to contamination in many shallow sandy aquifers which are widespread on post glacial areas in Northern Europe and North America. Pedotransfer functions (PTFs) allow to estimate SWRC from basic physical characteristics of soils, such as textural composition. However, in the case of clean sands which are dominated by a single textural fraction, PTFs should be based on more detailed information given by the particle size distribution. In this study we evaluated three parametric PTFs, which estimate parameters of the van Genuchten SWRC based on empirical correlations to the parameters of soil particle size distribution, and five semi-physical PTFs, which derive the pore size distribution from particle size distribution. PTFs were compared to SWRCs fitted to the results of drainage experiments on sandy soil samples from six locations in Gdańsk region (northern Poland). Although in all samples the content of silt and clay fractions was low (<3.5%), the differences in actual content of fines strongly influenced the shape of SWRC. In contrast, the amount of gravel fraction (varying from 1% to 35%) did not have significant effect on SWRC. Semi-physical PTFs were found to be more accurate than parametric PTFs. The best overall performance was shown by the semi-physical Chang and Cheng PTF. Among the parametric PTFs the best accuracy was obtained with the Schaap and Bouten method. However, all considered functions showed limited accuracy in higher suction range. Additionally, infiltration experiments were performed on four sites. SWRCs were obtained from ring infiltrometer tests using the Beerkan estimation of soil transfer parameters (BEST) method and from the tension infiltrometer (TI) tests using numerical solution of the inverse problem based on the Richards equation. In almost all cases the wetting SWRCs were characterized by higher values of the pressure scaling parameter α compared to SWRCs measured in drainage experiments, which is consistent with the well-known phenomenon of hysteresis in soils. However, the BEST method resulted in significantly higher α and hydraulic conductivity Ks than TI, probably due to activation of the largest soil pores during ponded infiltration.