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  • Truss imperfections in the design of bar and diaphragm bracing systems
    • Natalia Korcz-Konkol
    • Piotr Iwicki
    2023 Pełny tekst JOURNAL OF CONSTRUCTIONAL STEEL RESEARCH

    In the article three variants of roof bracing were considered: bar bracing, diaphragm bracing and the combination of bar and diaphragm bracing. Different analytical and numerical ways of taking into account the imperfections of the truss girder were compared. The entire 3D model of the roof (shell and beam elements with the eccentricities taken into account) was analysed numerically. Selected stressed-skin aspects were considered. Stabilizing forces in the purlins and forces in bracing elements (bar and/or diaphragm bracing, connections) were observed. The importance of the imperfection issues (e.g. shape of the imperfection, method of including imperfection, wind forces) was evaluated numerically to indicate the key points in the design procedure. The biggest forces in purlins occurred for “nonstandard” shape of the imperfection. On the other hand, in case of bracing elements, when wind forces were taken into consideration, “standard” approach of including the imperfection was safe approximation. Moreover, the diaphragm took over significant part of the bracing forces, however the distribution of the forces depended strongly on the flexibility of the bracing and purlin/truss connection.

  • Trustworthiness and Subversion in Large Service- Oriented Multi-Agent Systems under Virtual Anonymity and Blind Provider Selection
    • Jerzy Konorski
    2023

    To promote honest service provision in multi-agent systems, a Computational Trustworthiness and Rating scheme collects service ratings and computes agents' trustworthiness levels (TLs). Studies of existing schemes fail to reflect closed-loop dynamics of TLs arising from the mutual influence of agents' behavior and TLs, and to capture relevant properties. Recent simulative and analytical models produce results tied to a particular attack scenario, or restricted to small-size systems or simplistic agent behavior. We analyze a class of parameterized skimp and slander attacks in a challenging setting featuring agents' virtual anonymity, collusion, and blind, i.e., TL-insensitive selection of service providers, as well as unpredictable service availability and receptivity. We derive closed-loop Markovian TL dynamics and their mean-value approximation to analytically characterize agents' steady-state TLs, and find a systematic defense against skimp and slander.

  • Tuning of eg electron occupancy of MnCo2O4 spinel for oxygen evolution reaction by partial substitution of Co by Fe at octahedral sites
    • Krystian Lankauf
    • Karolina Górnicka
    • Patryk Błaszczak
    • Jakub Karczewski
    • Jacek Ryl
    • Grzegorz Cempura
    • Marcin Zając
    • Maciej Bik
    • Maciej Sitarz
    • Piotr Jasiński
    • Sebastian Molin
    2023 Pełny tekst INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HYDROGEN ENERGY

    To study the effect of partial Co substitution by Fe in the B site of MnCo2O4 spinel on its physicochemical and electrochemical properties, a series of MnCo2-xFexO4 powders (x=0.125; 0.250; 0.500; 0.750; 1.000) were synthesized by means of the sol-gel method. The produced powders were characterized by powder X ray diffraction (pXRD), scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM & TEM) coupled with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), X ray photoelectron and absorption spectroscopy (XPS & XAS), Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP OES). The electrocatalytic activity towards oxygen evolution reaction (OER) was evaluated in an alkaline environment (0.1 M KOH). From our findings, the activity increased with the addition of Fe up to x = 0.5, characterized by a decrease of overpotential at 10 mA cm-2GEO from 406 mV for MnCo2O4 to 376 mV for MnCo1.5Fe0.5O4, with a corresponding 44 mV dec 1 Tafel slope. It was identified that the OER-specific activity exhibits a volcano-type shape as a function of the eg occupancy at octahedral sites tuned by Co substitution with Fe.

  • Tuning of the plasmon resonance location in Au nanostructures coated with a ultrathin film of Al2O3 – Optical measurements and FDTD simulations
    • Marcin Łapiński
    • Robert Kozioł
    • Paweł Syty
    • Sergiusz Patela
    • Józef Sienkiewicz
    • Wojciech Sadowski
    • Barbara Kościelska
    2023 SURFACE SCIENCE

    The Au nanostructures have been coated with an ultra-thin films of amorphous aluminium oxide. Optical absorption spectra show the influence of the thickness of Al2O3 on plasmon resonance wavelength. The observed red-shift of the resonance location with the increase of the thickness of the Al2O3 film, can be explained by the change in the dielectric function of this film. It allows control of the optical spectra of the coated particles. In this paper we present a two ways for determinaton of optical paramaters of aluminium oxide ultra-thin films. The first one is based on a ellipsometry method, while in second approach a shift of plasmon resonance is used for computer simulations of films. The experimental data are in agreement with the results of the FDTD calculations, showing the possibility of both determining such a function for ultra-thin layers by the computer simulation method, as well as predicting the value of the dielectric constant depending on the thickness of the layer. The experimental data needed for the simulation was obtained in studies such as XRD, XPS, SEM and HR TEM. The proposed models can help to adjust the coating thickness to the desired plasmon resonance position.

  • Tutoring - dlaczego edukacja spersonalizowana ma sens
    • Aneta Sobiechowska-Ziegert
    • Katarzyna Kubiszewska
    2023 Pismo PG

    W artykule autorki przedstawiają koncepcję tutoringu akademickiego. Ostatnie lata przyniosły wzmożone zainteresowanie nowymi formami pracy z uczniem. Wielu specjalistów z zakresu edukacji twierdzi, że osiąganie wysokich rezultatów jest możliwe, ale wymaga zindywidualizowanej pracy z drugą osobą. Tutoring wpisuje się właśnie w ten nurt zindywidualizowanej pracy i relacji mistrz - student.

  • Tweet you right back: Follower anxiety predicts leader anxiety in social media interactions during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic
    • Alexandros Psychogios
    • Dritjon Gruda
    • Adegboyega Ojo
    2023 Pełny tekst PLOS ONE

    Recent research has shown that organizational leaders’ tweets can influence employee anxiety. In this study, we turn the table and examine whether the same can be said about followers’ tweets. Based on emotional contagion and a dataset of 108 leaders and 178 followers across 50 organizations, we infer and track state- and trait-anxiety scores of participants over 316 days, including pre- and post the onset of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and crisis. We show that although leaders traditionally possess greater authority and power than their followers, followers have the power to influence their leaders’ state anxiety. In addition, this influence is particularly strong in the case of less trait anxious leaders.

  • Two-body dissociation of isoxazole following double photoionization – an experimental PEPIPICO and theoretical DFT and MP2 study
    • Tomasz Wąsowicz
    • Iwona Dąbkowska
    • Antti Kivimäki
    • Robert Richter
    2023 Pełny tekst PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY CHEMICAL PHYSICS

    The dissociative double photoionization of isoxazole molecules has been investigated experimentally and theoretically. The experiment has been carried out in the 27.5–36 eV photon energy range using vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) synchrotron radiation excitation combined with ion time-of-flight (TOF) spectrometry and photoelectron–photoion–photoion coincidence (PEPIPICO) technique. Five wellresolved two-body dissociation channels have been identified in the isoxazole’s coincidence maps, and their appearance energies have been determined. The coincidence yield curves of these dissociation channels have been obtained in the photon energy ranges from their appearance energies up to 36 eV. The double photoionization of isoxazole produces a C3H3NO2+ transient dication, which decomposes into fragments differing from previously reported photofragmentation products of isoxazole. We have found no evidence of pathways leading to the C3H2NO+, HCN+, C2H2O+, C3HN+, or C2H2 + fragments or their neutral counterparts that have been observed in previous neutral photodissociation and single photoionization studies. Instead, the dissociation of isoxazole after the ejection of two electrons is bond-selective and is governed by two reactions, HCO+ + H2CCN+ and H2CO+ + HCCN+, whose appearance energies are 28.6 (0.3) and 29.4 (0.3) eV, respectively. A third dissociation channel turns out to be a variant of the most intense channel (HCO+ + H2CCN+), where one of the fragment ions contains a heavy isotope. Two minor dissociation channels occurring at higher energies, CO+ + CH3CN+ and CN+ + H3CCO+, are also identified. The density functional and ab initio quantum chemical calculations have been performed to elucidate the dissociative charge-separating mechanisms and determine the energies of the observed photoproducts. The present work unravels hitherto unexplored photodissociation mechanisms of isoxazole and thus provides deeper insight into the photophysics of five-membered heterocyclic molecules containing two heteroatoms.

  • Udział społeczeństwa w procedurze planowania przestrzennego – analiza metod i technik konsultacji społecznych na przykładzie polskich małych i średnich miast w ramach projektu POWER
    • Barbara Zgórska
    • Marta Jaskulska
    2023 Pełny tekst Space-Society-Economy

    Udział społeczeństwa w procesie opracowywania aktów planowania przestrzennego w Polsce ma charakter informacyjny, a nie dialogiczny, co przyczynia się m.in. do jego konfliktogenności. W latach 2016–2021 zrealizowano ogólnokrajowy projekt POWER dofinansowany ze środków Unii Europejskiej, którego celem było m.in. przetestowanie angażujących metod i technik konsultacji społecznych, zwiększenie poziomu współdecydowania i poprawa metod rozwiązywania konfliktów w planowaniu przestrzennym na poziomie gminnym.Artykuł zawiera ocenę metod i technik konsultacyjnych zastosowanych w 83 małych i średnich miastach, które uczestniczyły w projekcie POWER, opis najczęściej wykorzystywanych metod i technik, sposobów ich łączenia oraz trzy studia przypadków analizowanych pod kątem możliwości wyeliminowania potencjalnych konfliktów.Badanie przeprowadzono z wykorzystaniem metod ilościowych i jakościowych: desk research, obserwacja, obserwacja uczestnicząca, ankieta.

  • UKŁAD REGULACJI MOCY DUŻEJ FARMY FOTOWOLTAICZNEJ
    • Mirosław Włas
    • Konrad Seklecki
    • Kacper Chyła
    2023 Pełny tekst

    W dniu 17 maja 2016 r. weszło w życie Rozporządzenie Komisji (UE) 2016/631 z dnia 14 kwietnia 2016 r. ustanawiające kodeks sieci dotyczący przyłączenia jednostek wytwórczych [3]. Na podstawie tego dokumentu i Prawa Energetycznego OSP i OSD przygotowało wymogi w zakresie przyłączania jednostek wytwórczych do sieci energetycznej. Moduły wytwarzania B, C i D powinny posiadać możliwość regulacji mocy czynnej i biernej. Niniejszy artykuł przedstawia wdrożenie wymagań Kodeksu Sieci NC RfG dla farmy fotowoltaicznej o mocy 60MWp

  • Ultra-Compact SIRC-Based Self-Triplexing Antenna with High Isolation
    • Rusan Kumar Barik
    • Sławomir Kozieł
    2023 Pełny tekst Electronics

    An ultra-compact self-triplexing antenna realized on a substrate-integrated rectangular cavity (SIRC) is discussed in this study. The proposed structure employs two L-shaped slots and an in-verted U-shaped slot to radiate at three independent operating frequency bands. Three 50-ohm microstrip feed lines are used to excite the radiation in these slots. The operating frequency is individually tuned using the slot size. The slot placement and size are designed having in mind obtaining one or more frequency bands below the SIRC cutoff frequency, which has the ad-vantage of enabling ultra-compact size. High port isolations are achieved by applying one of the ports orthogonally to the two remaining ones, which creates a weak cross-coupling channel. A lumped-circuit model is created to examine the antenna operation. The presented design has been prototyped and experimentally validated with the measured operating frequencies of 1.92 GHz, 4.43 GHz, and 5.25 GHz for GSM, 5G, and WLAN applications, respectively. The port isola-tions are better than 32.4 dB according to both EM simulations and measurements. Meanwhile, the measured realized gain of the antenna is better than 4.3 dBi at all bands.

  • Ultrasound assisted dispersive solid phase microextraction using polystyrene-polyoleic acid graft copolymer for determination of Sb(III) in various bottled beverages by HGAAS
    • Nail Altunay
    • Baki Hazer
    • Muhammad Farooque Lanjwani
    • Mustafa Tuzen
    • Hameed Haq
    • Grzegorz Boczkaj
    2023 FOOD CHEMISTRY

    A new polyoleic acid-polystyrene (PoleS) block/graft copolymer was synthesized and applied as adsorbent for ultrasound assisted dispersive solid phase microextraction (UA-DSPME) of Sb(III) in different bottled beverages and analysis using hydride generation atomic absorption spectrometry (HGAAS). Adsorption capacity of the PoleS was 150 mg g−1. Several sample preparation parameters such as sorbent amount, solvent type, pH, sample volume and shaking time were optimized (based on central composite design (CCD) approach) and evaluated in respect to the recovery of Sb(III). The method revealed a high tolerance limit of matrix ions presence. Under optimized conditions, linearity range, the limit of detection, the limit of quantitation, extraction recovery, enhancement factor, preconcentration factor were 5–800 ng L−1, 1.5 ng L−1, 5.0 ng L−1, 96%, 82, 90, respectively. Accuracy of the UA-DSPME method was confirmed based on different certified reference materials and standard addition method. Factorial design was utilized to estimate the influences of variables of recovery of Sb(III).

  • Uncertainty of Postmortem Time Estimation Based on Potassium Ion Determination in Vitreous Humor Using Potentiometric Ion-Selective Electrode and Microwave-Induced Plasma with Optical Emission Spectrometry Methods
    • Sonia Zięba
    • Marek Wiergowski
    • Bartłomiej Cieślik
    • Sein Anand Jacek
    • Marta Krzyżanowska
    2023 Pełny tekst Separations

    There is a need for a reliable and independent evaluation and confirmation of the post-mortem interval (PMI) based on objective factors other than only postmortem changes or temperature measurements. Estimating the PMI by examining the concentration of potassium ions in the vitreous humor (VH) has a tradition in forensic toxicology dating back to the mid-20th century. So far, the methods for determining the presence of potassium ions have not been characterized in terms of the measurement uncertainty of types A and B, which directly affect the estimation of time of death uncertainty. The study evaluated the uncertainty of the determination of potassium ion concentra- tions using potentiometric ion-selective electrode (ISE) and microwave-induced plasma with optical emission spectrometry (MIP-OES) methods. In addition, the influence of the estimated measurement uncertainty on the results of the analysis of potassium ions in the VH was investigated. The estimated values of the expanded uncertainty determined by the type A experimental method indicate lower uncertainty in the determination of potassium ion concentration in the case of MIP-OES than ISE; that is, for concentrations of 2, 10, and 25 mg/L of potassium ions, the expanded uncertainties by MIP-OES were 1.2%, 2.2%, and 2.5% and the uncertainties by ISE were 12.2%, 6.1%, and 3.1%, respectively. Similarly, in the case of estimating the uncertainty of type B, the MIP-OES method compared to ISE was characterized by almost two times lower expanded uncertainty; that is, for MIP-OES, it was 2.53%, and for ISE, it was 4.75%. Both methods of uncertainty estimation, types A and B, can be used interchangeably, as they provide comparable results.

  • Uncertainty Quantification of Additive Manufacturing Post-Fabrication Tuning of Resonator-Based Microwave Sensors
    • Sławomir Kozieł
    • Tanveer Haq Ul
    2023 MEASUREMENT

    Reconfigurability, especially in terms of the ability of adjusting the operating frequency, has become an important prerequisite in the design of modern microwave components and systems. It is also pertinent to microwave sensors developed for a variety of applications such as characterization of material properties of solids or liquids. This paper discusses uncertainty quantification of additive-manufacturing-based post-fabrication tuning of resonator-based sensors implemented using a microstrip technology. Therein, the operating frequency is altered by adding metallic patches of a specific size determined by the full-wave electromagnetic (EM) model of the system. The reliability of setting up the center frequency depends on both the accuracy of the patch size (manually cut out of the copper tape), and its allocation with respect to the resonator. A rigorous statistical analysis of the patch size and its allocation errors is carried out, including a quantification of their joint effects on the sensor operating frequency. Furthermore, the analysis of a possibility of compensating the patch size inaccuracies through its appropriate positioning is conducted. The details of the proposed approach are explained using a complementary symmetric split ring resonator (CSSRR)-based sensor designed to operate in X and Ku bands with the tuning range between 10 GHz and 20 GHz. The optimized sensor's fundamental resonant frequency is 9.4 GHz, its exterior size is 25 x 30 mm2, the quality factor of the fabricated sensor is 29, and the sensitivity of the considered design is 1.1 GHz/mm with the measurement error is 0.1 percent. The obtained measurement data are indicative of a practical utility of the additive-manufacturing-based tuning technique, in particular, a possibility of reliable center frequency tuning under mild assumptions on the accuracy of manual preparation of the tuning patches. Furthermore, a practical tuning scheme has been developed and experimentally validated, which allows for a precise allocation of the operating frequency with the error not exceeding 0.01 GHz (or 0.1% in relative terms), all under assumptions of a manual preparation and placement of the tuning patch.

  • Underground Water Level Prediction in Remote Sensing Images Using Improved Hydro Index Value with Ensemble Classifier
    • Andrzej Stateczny
    • Sujatha Canavoy Narahari
    • Padmavathi Vurubindi
    • Nirmala S. Guptha
    • Kalyanapu Srinivas
    2023 Pełny tekst Remote Sensing

    The economic sustainability of aquifers across the world relies on accurate and rapid estimates of groundwater storage changes, but this becomes difficult due to the absence of insitu groundwater surveys in most areas. By closing the water balance, hydrologic remote sensing measures offer a possible method for quantifying changes in groundwater storage. However, it is uncertain to what extent remote sensing data can provide an accurate assessment of these changes. Therefore, a new framework is implemented in this work for predicting the underground water level using remote sensing images. Generally, the water level is defined into five levels: Critical, Overexploited, Safe, Saline, and Semi-critical, based on water quantity. In this manuscript, the remote sensing images were acquired from remote sensing images. At first, Wiener filtering was employed for preprocessing. Secondly, the Vegetation Indexes (VI) (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Normalized Difference Snow Index (NDSI), Infrared index (IRI), Radar Vegetation Index (RVI)), and statistical features (entropy, Root Mean Square (RMS), Skewness, and Kurtosis) were extracted from the preprocessed remote sensing images. Then, the extracted features were combined as a novel hydro index, which was fed to the Ensemble Classifier (EC): Neural Networks (NN), Support Vector Machine (SVM), and improved Deep Convolutional Neural Network (DCNN) models for underground water level prediction in the remote sensing images. The obtained results prove the efficacy of the proposed framework by using different performance measures. The results shows that the False Positive Rate (FPR) of the proposed EC model is 0.0083, which is better than that of existing methods. On the other hand, the proposed EC model has a high accuracy of 0.90, which is superior to the existing traditional models: Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) network, Naïve Bayes (NB), Random Forest (RF), Recurrent Neural Network (RNN), and Bidirectional Gated Recurrent Unit (Bi-GRU).

  • Understanding Fuel Saving and Clean Fuel Strategies Towards Green Maritime
    • Van Nhanh Nguyen
    • Krzysztof Rudzki
    • Marek Dzida
    • Nguyen Dang Khoa Pham
    • Minh Tuan Pham
    • Phuoc Quy Phong Nguyen
    • Phuong Nguyen Xuan
    2023 Pełny tekst Polish Maritime Research

    Due to recent emission-associated regulations imposed on marine fuel, ship owners have been forced to seek alternate fuels, in order to meet the new limits. The aim of achieving low-carbon shipping by the year 2050, has meant that alternative marine fuels, as well as various technological and operational initiatives, need to be taken into account. This article evaluates and examines recent clean fuels and novel clean technologies for vessels. The alternative fuels are classified as low-carbon fuels, carbon-free fuels, and carbon neutral fuels, based on their properties. Fuel properties, the status of technological development, and existing challenges are also summarised in this paper. Furthermore, researchers have also investigated energy-saving devices and discovered that zero-carbon and virtually zero-carbon clean fuels, together with clean production, might play an important part in shipping, despite the commercial impracticability of existing costs and infrastructure. More interestingly, the transition to marine fuel is known to be a lengthy process; thus, early consensus-building, as well as action-adoption, in the maritime community is critical for meeting the expectations and aims of sustainable marine transportation

  • Understanding Sustainable Knowledge-Sharing in Agile Projects: Utilizing Follow-the-Sun Technique (FTS) in Virtual Teams
    • Edward Szczerbicki
    • Rodrigo Oliveira de Castro
    • Cesar Sanin
    2023 Pełny tekst

    In Agile IT projects, promoting effective knowledge sharing is essential not only for achieving success but also for supporting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). However, Companies using virtual teams may face challenges in coordinating work, particularly when teams are distributed across different time zones, ultimately hindering their ability to consistently share knowledge. This can lead to delays and inefficiencies, ultimately impacting the project outcomes and the organization's profitability. To ensure sustainable knowledge sharing, a comprehensive framework is necessary that addresses the environmental, social, economic, and political aspects of the project. This paper proposes a framework that combines the Follow-the-Sun (FTS) technique and the Sustainable Knowledge Sharing Model, enabling 24-hour knowledge sharing in virtual teams and benefiting IT agile projects.

  • Understanding the kinetics and atmospheric degradation mechanism of chlorotrifluoroethylene (CF2=CFCl) initiated by OH radicals
    • Saber Safari Balsini
    • Abolfazl Shiroudi
    • Farhad Hatamjafari
    • Ehsan Zahedi
    • Khalil Pourshamsian
    • Ahmad Reza Oliaey
    2023 PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY CHEMICAL PHYSICS

    The atmospheric degradation of chlorotrifluoroethylene (CTFE) by OH˙ was investigated using density functional theory (DFT). The potential energy surfaces were also defined in terms of single-point energies derived from the linked cluster CCSD(T) theory. With an energy barrier of −2.62 to −0.99 kcal mol−1 using the M06-2x method, the negative temperature dependence was determined. The OH˙ attack on Cα and Cβ atoms (labeled pathways R1 and R2, respectively) shows that reaction R2 is 4.22 and 4.42 kcal mol−1, respectively, more exothermic and exergonic than reaction R1. The main pathway should be the addition of OH˙ to the β-carbon, resulting in ˙CClF–CF2OH species. At 298 K, the calculated rate constant was 9.87 × 10−13 cm3 molecule−1 s−1. The TST and RRKM calculations of rate constants and branching ratios were performed at P = 1 bar and in the fall-off pressure regime over the temperature range of 250–400 K. The formation of HF and ˙CClF–CFO species via the 1,2-HF loss process is the most predominant pathway both kinetically and thermodynamically. With increasing temperature and decreasing pressure, the regioselectivity of unimolecular processes of energized adducts [CTFE–OH]˙ gradually decreases. Pressures greater than 10−4 bar are often adequate for assuring saturation of the estimated unimolecular rates when compared to the RRKM rates (in high-pressure limit). Subsequent reactions involve the addition of O2 to the [CTFE–OH]˙ adducts at the α-position of the OH group. The [CTFE–OH–O2]˙ peroxy radical primarily reacts with NO and then directly decomposes into NO2 and oxy radicals. “Carbonic chloride fluoride”, “carbonyl fluoride”, and “2,2-difluoro-2-hydroxyacetyl fluoride” are predicted to be stable products in an oxidative atmosphere.

  • Universities’ journey towards sustainability- systematic literature review
    • Magdalena Popowska
    • Monika Sady
    2023 Pełny tekst International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education

    Purpose: This research aims to identify a sustainable university's key features. It is an essential step in tracing the topics discussed in the context of a sustainable university and their evolution in the scientific discourse. Design/methodology/approach: This paper relies on a systematic literature review (SLR) conducted using two scholarly databases: Emerald and Scopus. The timeframe selected by the authors for reviewing the available sources spans from 2001 to 2021. Findings: The analysis distinguished seven sustainable university categories, each revealing critical features of sustainable higher education. Each of these categories represents an intriguing area for in-depth analysis. The systematic literature review (SLR) reveals gaps requiring further scientific exploration. Originality: SLR is a cornerstone of research synthesis and helps integrate scientific evidence from qualitative and quantitative published studies. Conducted research presents knowledge about university sustainability and can help scientists find research gaps. Research limitations/implications: The performed literature review was determined by the choice of entries (keywords) to identify the scientific papers in the selected databases. Moreover, since the authors aimed to focus on peer-reviewed sources, this SLR did not include books and doctoral dissertations dealing with the studied issues. The results of the analysis can be used practically by both researchers and practitioners in the field of sustainable development. Identified scientific gaps become a potential research field, and practitioners interested in the transition toward sustainable development (SD) may contribute by accompanying universities in this journey. Collaboration and networking with business stakeholders are critical vectors for spreading the idea of SD. Society's growing concern for climate change requires accurate and specific actions from institutions. As entities educating future generations, universities have a unique role in transforming toward SD. Our findings allow us to get acquainted with the existing main activities undertaken by HEIs in this field and understand the importance of this topic for researchers.

  • Unlocking the Secrets of River Pollution: Analyzing Organic Pollutants in Sediments—Experimental Study
    • Sadeq Abdullah Abdo Alkhadher
    • Suhaimi Suratman
    • Hussein Al-Hazmi
    • Mohamad Pauzi Zakaria
    • Bartosz Szeląg
    • Joanna Majtacz
    • Jakub Drewnowski
    2023 Pełny tekst Water

    Untreated wastewater released into rivers can result in water pollution, the spread of waterborne diseases, harm to ecosystems, contamination of soil and groundwater, as well as air pollution and respiratory problems for nearby humans and animals due to the release of greenhouse gases. The current study aims to investigate the recent input of anthropogenic loads into the rivers using linear alkylbenzene (LAB), which is one of the molecular chemical markers with application of sophisticated model statistical analyses. In order to determine the compositions of LABs, which act as wastewater pollution molecular indicators, surface sediment samples from the Muar and Kim Kim rivers were collected. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was utilized to identify LABs and investigate their sources and degradation. ANOVA and the Pearson correlation coefficient were employed to determine the significance of differences between sampling locations, with a threshold of p < 0.05. To assess the degradation degree and efficacy of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), LABs were identified based on chains ranging from long to short (L/S), C13/C12 homolog, and internal to external (I/E) congeners. The results indicated that LAB concentrations in the studied areas of the Muar River ranged from 87.4 to 188.1 ng g−1dw. There were significant differences in LAB homology at p < 0.05, and a significant percentage of sampling stations contained C13-LAB homology. Based on the LAB ratios (I/E) determined, which ranged from 1.7 to 2.2 in the studied areas, it was concluded that effluents from primary and secondary sources are being discharged into the marine ecosystem in those areas. The degradation of LABs was up to 43% in the interrogated locations. It can be inferred that there is a requirement for enhancing the WWTPs, while also acknowledging the efficacy of LAB molecular markers in identifying anthropogenic wastewater contamination.

  • Unprecedented Adhesive Performance of Propylene-Based Hydroxyl Functionalized Terpolymers
    • Jakub Kruszyński
    • Weronika Nowicka
    • Miloud Bouyahyi
    • Yingxin Liu
    • Lanti Yang
    • Artur Rozanski
    • Nithish Anbuchezhian
    • Lidia Jasińska-Walc
    • Rob Duchateau
    2023 ACS Applied Polymer Materials

    The synthesis of hydroxyl functionalized propylene-based terpolymers and their performance as hot melt adhesives were investigated. The products comprise uniformly distributed butyl and 4-hydroxyl-butyl branches along the polypropylene backbone. Despite the low hydroxyl-functionality level of ≤ 0.5 mol%, hydroxyl functionalized terpolymers show formidable adhesion to aluminum and steel providing an adhesive strength exceeding 16 MPa, whereas the non-functionalized congeners hardly adhere to these metals. As evidenced by rheological measurements, the functional groups form dynamic cross-links based on hydrogen bonding and electrostatic interactions with aluminum oxide hydroxide residues, remaining in the product after polymerization. At the industrial application temperature of 180 °C, non-deashed and deashed samples of polymers having 0.1 mol% or 0.5 mol% of incorporated 5-hexen-1-ol gave, upon cooling to room temperature, comparable adhesive strengths. Deashing and increasing the functionality level leads to a significant improvement of the adhesion strength at lower application temperature (130 °C), allowing application of the hydroxyl functionalized propylene-based terpolymers as high strength hot melt adhesive for combinations of polypropylene and metals.

  • Unraveling a novel microwave strategy to fabricate exposed {001}/{101} facets anatase nanocrystals: Potential for use to the elimination of environmentally toxic metronidazole waste
    • Adam Kubiak
    • Anna Grzegórska
    • Elżbieta Gabała
    • Joanna Zembrzuska
    • Anna Zielińska-Jurek
    • Michał Cegłowski
    2023 MATERIALS RESEARCH BULLETIN

    This study present a novel microwave strategy to fabricate highly active anatase particles, exposing {101} and {001} facets. Microwave treatment time was shown to determine the growth of crystals in a certain direction. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first report revealing that the contact time of TiO2 crystals with fluorine ions during the microwave process affects the formed morphology, in particular exposed facets ratio. The important element of this study was a parallel approach to produce active photocatalysts and a convenient UV-LED light source. The simultaneous use of synthesized anatase nanocrystals with exposed {001}/{101} facets and tailormade LED photoreactor led to the enhanced elimination of metronidazole. Photocatalytic studies showed greater activity in the elimination of metronidazole with increasing microwave exposure time, which was associated with the presence of the surface heterojunction {001}/{101}, leading to better separation of charge carriers.

  • Unraveling the Interplay between DNA and Proteins: A Computational Exploration of Sequence and Structure-Specific Recognition Mechanisms
    • Kazi Hossain
    2023 Pełny tekst

    My PhD dissertation focused on DNA-protein interactions and the recognition of specific DNA sequences and structures. I discovered that acidic amino acid residues (Asp/Glu) play a crucial role by exhibiting a preference for cytosine. Their contribution to binding affinity depends on nearby cytosines, balancing electrostatic repulsion with specific interactions. Acidic residues act as negative selectors, discouraging non-cytosine binding, but can be favorable with increasing proximal cytosine count. They exclusively recognize cytosine due to electrostatic repulsion with adenine's N7 atom and stronger hydrogen bonding. In another aspect of my research, I explored conformation-specific DNA recognition. I found that the EXOG protein prefers A-DNA and selectively recognizes RNA/DNA chimeric duplexes. Specific arginine residues induce the A-DNA conformation when EXOG binds to DNA/DNA duplexes, providing insights into mitochondrial replication and base excision repair. Furthermore, I investigated the DHX36 helicase, which recognizes G-quadruplexes (G4s) through its DSM and OB subdomains. The planar face of a G-tetrad and the specific backbone conformation of a G-tract are critical features in this interaction. The DSM and OB subdomains cooperatively recognize these distinctive features of parallel G4s. Importantly, the recognition by DSM is mediated through van der Waals contacts and hydrophobic interactions, exhibiting a preference for the accessible 5'-side of the G4 structure.

  • UNRES-GPU for Physics-Based Coarse-Grained Simulations of Protein Systems at Biological Time- and Size-Scales
    • Krzysztof Ocetkiewicz
    • Cezary Czaplewski
    • Henryk Krawczyk
    • Agnieszka Lipska
    • Józef Liwo
    • Jerzy Proficz
    • Adam Sieradzan
    • Paweł Czarnul
    2023 Pełny tekst BIOINFORMATICS

    The dynamics of the virus like particles (VLPs) corresponding to the GII.4 Houston, GII.2 SMV, and GI.1 Norwalk strains of human noroviruses (HuNoV) that cause gastroenteritis was investigated by means of long-time (about 30 μs in the laboratory timescale) molecular dynamics simulations with the coarse-grained UNRES force field. The main motion of VLP units turned out to be the bending at the junction between the P1 subdomain (that sits in the VLP shell) and the P2 subdomain (that protrudes outside) of the major VP1 protein, this resulting in a correlated wagging motion of the P2 subdomains with respect to the VLP surface. The fluctuations of the P2 subdomain were found to be more pronounced and the P2 domain made a greater angle with the normal to the VLP surface for the GII.2 strain, which could explain the inability of this strain to bind the histo-blood group antigens (HBGAs).

  • Unveiling the Green Mirage: Unearthing Weaknesses in Pro-Environmental Applications
    • Ewa Duda
    • Hanna Obracht-prondzyńska
    • Helena Anacka
    • Jolanta Kowal
    2023 Pełny tekst

    Growing ecological concerns and a general shift towards tailored digitized solutions in cities lead to an increased popularity of pro ecological applications, especially those associated with transport-oriented functionalities. This research focuses on the results from a testbed of a pro-environmental application deployment among early adopters. Based on quantitative and cartographic analysis enriched with interviews’ results, by applying a triangulation research approach, we are able to answer three research questions: related to potential constraints or unintended negative outcomes of pro-environmental educational applications, deviation from the intended use of these apps, as well as range of climate- responsive behaviors these applications promote. Research results allow us to analyze to what extent a pro environmental application affects users’ behavior and ecological choices. It also helps to critically evaluate potential technological weaknesses, their interaction with end users and an impact on motivations and habits of urban dwellers.

  • Unveiling the Pool of Metallophores in Native Environments and Correlation with Their Potential Producers
    • Francisco Calderón Celis
    • Ivan González-Álvarez
    • Magdalena Fabjanowicz
    • Simon Godin
    • Laurent Ouerdane
    • Béatrice Lauga
    • Ryszard Łobiński
    2023 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

    For many organisms, metallophores are essential biogenic ligands that ensure metal scavenging and acquisition from their environment. Their identification is challenging in highly organic matter rich environments like peatlands due to low solubilization and metal scarcity and high matrix complexity. In contrast to common approaches based on sample modification by spiking of metal isotope tags, we have developed a two-dimensional (2D) Solid-phase extraction-Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (SPE-LC-MS) approach for the highly sensitive (LOD 40 fmol per g of soil), high-resolution direct detection and identification of metallophores in both their noncomplexed (apo) and metal-complexed forms in native environments. The characterization of peat collected in the Bernadouze (France) peatland resulted in the identification of 53 metallophores by a database mass-based search, 36 among which are bacterial. Furthermore, the detection of the characteristic (natural) metal isotope patterns in MS resulted in the detection of both Fe and Cu potential complexes. A taxonomic-based inference method was implemented based on literature and public database (antiSMASH database version 3.0) searches, enabling to associate over 40% of the identified bacterial metallophores with potential producers. In some cases, low completeness with the MIBiG reference BCG might be indicative of alternative producers in the ecosystem. Thus, coupling of metallophore detection and producers’ inference could pave a new way to investigate poorly documented environment searching for new metallophores and their producers yet unknown.

  • Upgrading low value-added activities in global value chains: a functional specialisation approach
    • Aleksandra Kordalska
    • Magdalena Olczyk
    2023 Pełny tekst Economic Systems Research

    This paper aims to identify patterns of functional specialisation (FS) in global value chains (GVCs) and determinants of upgrading them for selected Central Eastern European (CEE) economies. By combing the World Input-Output Database with data on occupations, we reveal a new FS pattern among subgroups of CEEs. Poland and Slovakia have an unfavourable GVC position and specialise in low value-added fabrication function. In contrast, other CEEs have competitive advantages in high value-added tasks: the Baltic countries and Slovenia in management services, the Czech Republic and Slovenia in R&D. We identify upgrading factors for different types of FS in GVCs. The wages convergence of CEEs with developed economies, and strong GVC backward linkages support the path to higher value-added in almost all business functions. Higher GDP per capita and lower economic distance to Germany allow CEEs to escape from ‘factory economies' status and also generate higher value-added in R&D activities.

  • Upoważnienie do zaciągania zobowiązań na rzecz jednostek samorządu terytorialnego jako naruszenie dyscypliny finansów publicznych
    • Alicja Sekuła
    • Grzegorz Garbacz
    2023 Pełny tekst ZESZYTY PRAWNICZE BIURA ANALIZ SEJMOWYCH

    Artykuł poświęcony jest zagadnieniu upoważnienia do zaciągania zobowiązań na rzecz jednostek samorządu terytorialnego. W teoretycznej części zdefiniowano dwa pojęcia: zobowiązań oraz zaciągania zobowiązań. Następnie scharakteryzowano zagadnienie podmiotowego i przedmiotowego zaciągania zobowiązań. Nieprzestrzeganie przepisów dotyczących zaciągania zobowiązań, które zawarte są głównie w ustawie o finansach publicznych, prowadzi do naruszenia dyscypliny finansów publicznych. Problematykę tę przeanalizowano z punktu widzenia naruszenia dyscypliny finansów publicznych w związku z zaciąganiem zobowiązań. W części empirycznej artykułu omówiono trzy studia przypadków, tzn. opisano wyroki Głównej Komisji Orzekającej w sprawach o naruszenie dyscypliny finansów publicznych, dotyczące niezgodnego z prawem zaciągania zobowiązań.

  • Uproszczone metody obliczania wyboczenia silosów z blachy falistej wzmocnionych słupami na podstawie analizy MES i wyników doświadczalnych
    • Karol Rejowski
    2023 Pełny tekst

    Rozprawa doktorska dotyczy zagadnienia stateczności i nośności granicznej stalowych silosów z płaszczem z blachy falistej wzmocnionych pionowymi słupami. Przeprowadzono zaawansowane analizy numeryczne MES oraz badania doświadczalne dotyczące wyboczenia/stateczności analizowanych silosów. Analizy numeryczne zostały przeprowadzone w zakresie liniowej oraz nieliniowej analizy stateczności, z uwzględnieniem wstępnych imperfekcji geometrycznych w kształcie powszechnie stosowanej formy wyboczeniowej LBA oraz w kształcie rzeczywistych imperfekcji pomierzonych geodezyjnie dla rzeczywistego silosu. Na podstawie przeprowadzonych analiz numerycznych zaproponowano uproszczone modele numeryczne silosów w formie segmentu silosu lub pojedynczego słupa na podłożu sprężystym. Zaproponowane modele pozwalają na uzyskanie wyników analiz stateczności i nośności granicznej zgodnych z wynikami modelu powłokowego całego silosu. Zaproponowano również modyfikacje procedur normowych pozwalających na dokładniejsze w porównaniu z aktualnymi procedurami normowymi, określenie nośności wyboczeniowej analizowanych silosów metodami analitycznymi. W pracy omówiono także wyniki doświadczeń dotyczących wyboczenia słupa silosowego w skali laboratoryjnej oraz w skali rzeczywistej.

  • Urban flash flood hazard identification and assessment applying geospatial techniques and hydrodynamic modeling; Erbil city case study, Kurdistan Region of Iraq
    • Andam Mustafa
    2023 Pełny tekst

    This dissertation aims to investigate the factors behind flash flooding in Erbil's central district, located in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, and develop a methodology for assessing flood hazards in the city, despite limited data accessibility. In this thesis, each factor was investigated, including analyzing extreme precipitation events in the last two decades, including their spatial and temporal distribution of rainfall, intensity, and exceedance probability, and examines the impact of changes in Land Use and Land Cover (LULC) on the hydrological response of the Erbil basin. The hydrodynamic model's input data were generated using GIS-based modeling interface. HEC-RAS 2-D software package's suitability was ensured by evaluating two building representation techniques and two mathematical models (Diffusion-Wave Equations (DWE) and Shallow-Water Equations (SWE)) using the Toce River urban flood experimental model. The study utilized a two-dimensional hydrodynamic model (HEC-RAS 2-D) to assess the susceptibility, vulnerability, and socioeconomic impact of flooding in the study area. Using the model, flood hazard maps were created to show the extent of potential flooding in the study area during various rainfall events and return periods. Ultimately, the study concludes that without essential engineering measures, there is an increased probability of flooding in the center of Erbil.

  • Urban scene semantic segmentation using the U-Net model
    • Marcin Ciecholewski
    2023

    Vision-based semantic segmentation of complex urban street scenes is a very important function during autonomous driving (AD), which will become an important technology in industrialized countries in the near future. Today, advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) improve traffic safety thanks to the application of solutions that enable detecting objects, recognising road signs, segmenting the road, etc. The basis for these functionalities is the adoption of various classifiers. This publication presents solutions utilising convolutional neural networks, such as MobileNet and ResNet50, which were used as encoders in the U-Net model to semantically segment images of complex urban scenes taken from the publicly available Cityscapes dataset. Some modifications of the encoder/decoder architecture of the U-Net model were also proposed and the result was named the MU-Net. During tests carried out on 500 images, the MU-Net model produced slightly better segmentation results than the universal MobileNet and ResNet networks, as measured by the Jaccard index, which amounted to 88.85\%. The experiments showed that the MobileNet network had the best ratio of accuracy to the number of parameters used and at the same time was the least sensitive to unusual phenomena occurring in images.

  • Usability study of various biometric techniques in bank branches
    • Arkadiusz Harasimiuk
    • Andrzej Czyżewski
    2023 Pełny tekst

    The purpose of the presented research was to evaluate the performance of the prepared biometric algorithms and obtain information on the opinions and preferences of their users in bank branches. The study aimed to determine users' attitudes towards particular modalities and preferences on how to use biometrics after the bank customers had practical experience with the operation of the prototype solutions. The research results allow a better understanding of users' needs and expectations, which can help to increase the knowledge of the need for biometric solutions in banking. Making appropriate changes based on the research results can help improve user satisfaction. The experiments included the collection of biometric sample collection and verification processes conducted by bank customers assisted by employees. The study collected biometric samples and questionnaires from 365 people, and 179 complete verifications were conducted. About 95% of those surveyed expressed acceptance of the implemented solutions for handling transactions using biometrics. The HandVein-FaceImage (hand vein scanning and face recognition) modality pair was rated highest in 70% of cases in the studied population.

  • Use of the AHP Method for Preference Determination in Yacht Design
    • Jan Sierzputowski
    • Artur Karczewski
    • Przemysław Krata
    2023 Pełny tekst Polish Maritime Research

    A sailing yacht is a human-centred product, the design of which revolves primarily around the wants and desires of the future owner. In most cases, these preferences are not measurable, such as a personal aesthetic feeling, or a need for comfort, speed, safety etc. The aims of this paper are to demonstrate that these preferences can be classified and represented numerically, and to show that they are correlated with the type of yacht owned. As a case study, the owner’s preferences for deck equipment are considered. These are determined by pairwise comparisons of the importance rankings for features previously defined by yacht owners, following the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method. As a result, a quantitative representation of these preferences is established, and they are shown to be correlated with the type of yacht. The findings of the current study show that the yacht owners’ preferences can be represented numerically, leading to a utilitarian conclusion that concerns the support and even some degree of automation of the design process.

  • User Authentication by Eye Movement Features Employing SVM and XGBoost Classifiers
    • Piotr Odya
    • Franciszek Górski
    • Andrzej Czyżewski
    2023 Pełny tekst IEEE Access

    Devices capable of tracking the user’s gaze have become significantly more affordable over the past few years, thus broadening their application, including in-home and office computers and various customer service equipment. Although such devices have comparatively low operating frequencies and limited resolution, they are sufficient to supplement or replace classic input interfaces, such as the keyboard and mouse. The biometric application we researched verifies a user’s identity based on parameters acquired with a low-cost eye tracker. The use of the eye-tracking device in bank booths has many advantages, including the fact that eye trackers are contactless devices, which, especially in the light of the Covid pandemic, has increasing importance, in addition to providing a solution for confirming the liveness of the user. This paper describes an experiment in which 20 features extracted from eye movement data related mainly to saccades and fixations are used as a complementary biometric modality to authenticate clients at banking kiosks. Data were collected from 39 subjects while operating a banking system using engineered biometric kiosk prototypes. Authentication performance employing eye-movement tracking and parameterizing was compared for two classifiers: Support Vector Machine (SVM) and eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost). The results showed that the XGBoost-based classifier outperformed the SVM-based one regarding equal error rates (6.76% to 8% vs. 16.21 to 18.78%). Similar differences were obtained for true acceptance rates at different false acceptance rates (0.1 and 0.01), where the SVM-based classifier achieved a maximum of 81.08% and the XGBoost-based achieved 98.65%. Finally, prospects for the broader application of eye movement tracking as a biometric modality are discussed.

  • USING ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORKS FOR PREDICTING SHIP FUEL CONSUMPTION
    • Giao Van Nguyen
    • Rajamohan Sakthivel
    • Krzysztof Rudzki
    • Janusz Kozak
    • Sharma Prabhakar
    • Nguyen Dang Khoa Pham
    • Phuoc Quy Phong Nguyen
    • Nguyen Xuan Phuong
    2023 Pełny tekst Polish Maritime Research

    In marine vessel operations, fuel costs are major operating costs which affect the overall profitability of the maritime transport industry. The effective enhancement of using ship fuel will increase ship operation efficiency. Since ship fuel consumption depends on different factors, such as weather, cruising condition, cargo load, and engine condition, it is difficult to assess the fuel consumption pattern for various types of ships. Most traditional statistical methods do not consider these factors when predicting marine vessel fuel consumption. With technological development, different statistical models have been developed for estimating fuel consumption patterns based on ship data. Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) are some of the most effective artificial methods for modelling and validating marine vessel fuel consumption. The application of ANN in maritime transport improves the accuracy of the regression models developed for analysing interactive relationships between various factors. The present review sheds light on consolidating the works carried out in predicting ship fuel consumption using ANN, with an emphasis on topics such as ANN structure, application and prediction algorithms. Future research directions are also proposed and the present review can be a benchmark for mathematical modelling of ship fuel consumption using ANN

  • Using Continuous Integration Techniques in Open Source Projects – An Exploratory Study
    • Michał Wróbel
    • Jarosław Szymukowicz
    • Paweł Weichbroth
    2023 Pełny tekst IEEE Access

    For a growing number of software projects, continuous integration (CI) techniques are becoming an essential part of the process. However, the maturity of their adoption in open source projects varies. In this paper, we present an empirical study on GitHub repositories to explore the use of continuous integration techniques in open source projects. Following the Goal-Question-Metric (GQM) approach, 3 research questions and 7 metrics were defined for such a goal. We mined 10 repositories of open source projects with 101,149 pull requests, 399,671 commits from 20,432 developers. This was followed by exploratory data analysis for each metric. In summary, our results indicate that (RQ1) most failed CI builds required a small change in the pull request to fix the code; (RQ2) CI builds of smaller pull requests are more likely to succeed than larger ones; (RQ3) there was no correlation found between developer experience in committing to the project and the success rate of CI builds. Most of the projects studied have not yet developed a mature approach to using continuous integration techniques. In these cases, developers do not thoroughly test code before submitting pull requests. Furthermore, the results of the study confirmed that developers tend to submit pull requests with small amounts of new or modified code.

  • Using creative approaches for discovering biomorphic forms for appropriate human habitation in natural environments. Case study of Kashubian Lake District
    • Agnieszka Kurkowska
    2023 Pełny tekst Cogent Arts & Humanities

    The research process consisted of studies of natural and cultural conditions of the Kashubian Lake District This is an area of exceptional natural conditions. For centuries, it has seen human habitation with respect to landscape values. Given its extensive forest cover and the lack of heterogeneity of natural conditions, the area has become an interesting inspiration for the author’s original project. The project is aimed at searching for appropriate forms of human habitation. Creative activities, owing to the creation of a large number of drawings and paintings that feature diagrams of initial forms, followed by sculptures inspired by them, aim at identifying biomorphic solutions, spatial forms that match the site of the study. Methodically, in order to achieve the goal, an original research and artistic concept was designed whose non-obvious results make it possible to treat the given task as a divergence problem. The essential artistic part comprised creating small-scale sculptures of clay, which were later to be placed in appropriately selected places. The photographic documentation offered the possibility to work at the analytical and comparative level, with an account of the obtained effects and their potential. Ultimately, the author seeks an answer to how to design houses in this region. The results come in the form of a complete multi-element set of biomorphic forms; directly or indirectly transformable into architectural objects, they provide model hints to classifiable sets of features conducive to arriving at a match with a place. The creative method proves appropriate for architectural design, as it constitutes its initial stage in the case of inhabiting natural environments. It yields favourable forecasts for creating a catalogue of design guidelines for residential buildings located in the area of the Kashubian Lake District.

  • Using Isolation Forest and Alternative Data Products to Overcome Ground Truth Data Scarcity for Improved Deep Learning-based Agricultural Land Use Classification Models
    • Agustín Pereira García
    • Lukasz Porwol
    • Adegboyega Ojo
    2023

    High-quality labelled datasets represent a cornerstone in the development of deep learning models for land use classification. The high cost of data collection, the inherent errors introduced during data mapping efforts, the lack of local knowledge, and the spatial variability of the data hinder the development of accurate and spatially-transferable deep learning models in the context of agriculture. In this paper, we investigate the use of Isolation Forest (IF), an anomaly detection algorithm, to reduce noise in a large-scale, low-resolution alternative ground truth dataset used to train land use deep learning models. We use a modestsize, high-resolution and high-fidelity manually collected ground-truth dataset to calibrate Isolation Forest parameters and evaluate our approach, highlighting the relatively low cost of the methodology. Our data-centric methodology demonstrates the efficacy of deep learning methods coupled with IF to create mid-resolution land-use models and map products for agriculture using an alternative groundtruth dataset. Moreover, we compare our deep learning approach with a traditional algorithm used in remote sensing and evaluate the spatial transferability of the created models. Finally, we reflect upon the lessons learnt and future work

  • Using water sources extent during inundation as a reliable predictor for vegetation zonation in a natural wetland floodplain
    • Tomasz Berezowski
    • Martin Wassen
    2023 Pełny tekst ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS

    Distinctive zones of inundation water during floods were shown to originate from different sources in some major floodplains around the world. Recent research showed that the zonation of water in rivers and floodplains is related to vegetation patterns. In spite of this, water source zones were not used for vegetation modeling due to difficulties in their delineation. In this study, we used simulation results of a fully-coupled groundwater-surface water integrated hydrological model (IHM) HydroGeoSphere and the Hydraulic Mixing-Cell method to provide standard hydrological predictors (e.g. water depth, inundation length, groundwater depth, exchange flux) and the extent of inundation zones having a certain water source (discharged groundwater, river, rainfall, and snowmelt). These variables were used to train a vegetation model for the lower Biebrza floodplain (about 290 km2) using vegetation maps from 1960, 1980, and 2000. We used a one-at-a-time (OAT) approach, where each map was validated based on a model trained on the remaining two maps to obtain realistic error estimates. We also used a fractional approach in which a fraction of each map was used for training and validation. The single model from the fractional approach was used to assess the importance of predictors and to predict vegetation for the 20th century and for the 21st century using IHM simulation forced by the Twentieth Century Reanalysis data and EURO-CORDEX RCP 2.6, 4.5, and 8.5 model ensembles. The model which used both water sources extent and standard predictors performed the best overall and was sensitive to the future trends. The extent of river water within the inundation area was by far the most important vegetation predictor. The models that neither used the water sources extent predictors nor the exchange flux were not able to predict the trends of areas covered by certain vegetation types under future climate. The advantage of the water sources extent predictors was their ability to represent the spatial effect of local hydrological phenomena. This was not possible with the standard predictors, because they show only the source of the phenomena (e.g. groundwater discharge zone), but do not indicate the actual area affected by its physical and chemical properties, which is more relevant for vegetation development. Our results highlight the relevance of using water extent predictors due to their ability to explain spatiotemporal ecological processe

  • UWB-Based Indoor Navigation in a Flexible Manufacturing System Using a Custom Quadrotor UAV
    • Petros Savvakis
    • George-Ch. Vosniakos
    • Emmanuel Stathatos
    • Axel Debar-monclair
    • Marek Chodnicki
    • Panorios Benardos
    2023

    A novel solution for indoor navigation of a transportation drone in flexible manufacturing is presented in this paper. To address the challenges of accurate and robust drone navigation in occluded environments, an ultra-wideband (UWB) navigation system has been integrated with a commercially available open source control platform. The system offers high accuracy (± 20 mm), low power consumption, resistance to electronic interference, and support for automatic navigation. UWB technology has not been applied to drone navi-gation in flexible manufacturing before. Acceptable navigation accuracy was demonstrated in preliminary testing, which is expected to have significant im-plications for the efficiency and safety of manufacturing operations.

  • Validation of Interpolation Algorithms for Multiscale UV-VIS Imaging Using UAV Spectrometer
    • Tomasz Berezowski
    • Marcin Kulawiak
    • Marek Kulawiak
    2023

    In this study, we present a comparison of popular methods for the interpolation of irregular spatial data in order to determine the applicability of each algorithm for hyperspectral reflectance estimation. The algorithms were benchmarked against a very high-resolution orthoimage from an RGB camera and medium-resolution satellite imagery from Sentinel-2A. We tested five interpolation algorithms: Triangulated Irregular Network (TIN), Inverse Distance Weighting (IDW), Ordinary Kriging (OK), Universal Kriging (UK), and Kriging with external drift (KED) for transformation of spectrometer reflectance footprint into reflectance images. Next we tested four downsampling methods: Box filtering, Gaussian, Catmull-Rom (Catrom) and Lanczos to compare the interpolated reflectance images with Sentinel-2 reflectance. Overall the best interpolation was achieved with the KED algorithm, and the lowest errors were achieved with the Gaussian downsampling method.

  • Vascular stents - materials and manufacturing technologies
    • Klaudia Malisz
    • Beata Świeczko-Żurek
    2023 Pełny tekst Engineering of Biomaterials / Inżynieria Biomateriałów

    The objective of this article is to present materials and technology for the manufacture of vascular stents with appropriate design requirements. The use of the right material is very important in implantology. A biomaterial introduced into the circulatory system must be biocompatible and hemocompatible. At the same time, it should not initiate toxic, mutagenic, or immunological reactions. Currently, 316L stainless steel (316L SS), nitinol (Ni-Ti alloy) and cobalt-chromium alloy (Co-Cr) are used as standard stent materials. Additionally, drug-containing coatings are used to provide antithrombotic properties. Nowadays, scientists are trying to create biodegradable stents (BDS) using magnesium (Mg) or zinc (Zn) alloys. Laser methods are generally used to manufacture stents using Nd:YAG lasers with a pulse length in the range of several milliseconds. Material removal is based on the ejection of the melt using a high-pressure gas. The result is remelting and heat-affected zones. Various post-processing procedures are necessary to remove residues, including etching and electropolishing. Minimizing the heat-affected zone could be achieved by using femtosecond lasers. Additionally, immersion of the material in water prevents the deposition of residues on the workpiece. Interesting alternatives used in the manufacture of vascular stents are electrospinning or additive techniques. 3D printing enables obtaining of geometrically complex and personalized implants and reduces the consumption of materials and the production of waste.

  • Very accurate time propagation of coupled Schrödinger equations for femto- and attosecond physics and chemistry, with C++ source code
    • Jan Kozicki
    2023 Pełny tekst COMPUTER PHYSICS COMMUNICATIONS

    In this article, I present a very fast and high-precision (up to 33 decimal places) C++ implementation of the semi-global time propagation algorithm for a system of coupled Schrödinger equations with a time-dependent Hamiltonian. It can be used to describe time-dependent processes in molecular systems after excitation by femto- and attosecond laser pulses. It also works with an arbitrary user supplied Hamiltonian and can be used for nonlinear problems. The semi-global algorithm is briefly presented, the C++ implementation is described and five sample simulations are shown. The accompanying C++ source code package is included. The high precision benchmark (long double and float128) shows the estimated calculation costs. The presented method turns out to be faster and more accurate than the global Chebyshev propagator.

  • Vessel Energy Requirement Prediction from Acceleration Stage Towing Tests on Scale Models
    • Klaudia Wrzask
    2023 Pełny tekst Polish Maritime Research

    One of the most crucial tasks for naval architects is computing the energy required to meet the ship’s operational needs. When predicting a ship’s energy requirements, a series of hull resistance tests on a scale model vessel is carried out in constant speed stages, while the acceleration stage measurements are ignored. Another important factor in seakeeping analysis is the ship’s hydrodynamic added mass. The second law of dynamics states that all this valuable information, that is, the dependence of the hull resistance on the vessel’s speed and the added mass, is accessible from just one acceleration stage towing test done up to the maximum speed. Therefore, the acceleration stage, often overlooked in traditional towing experiments, can be a valuable source of information. For this reason, this work aims to generalise Froude’s scaling procedure to full-scale vessels for the accelerated stage towing tests.

  • Vibration monitoring of structures in the light of the Polish and international requirements
    • Aneta Herbut
    • Anna Jakubczyk-Gałczyńska
    • Marek Wyjadłowski
    2023 Pełny tekst Studia Geotechnica et Mechanica

    The paper concerns the wide range of strategies used to protect structures against man-made dynamic excitation. The most popular approaches applied worldwide are compared, and the main differences and similarities are summarized. The literature studies are supported by the results of the measurements performed on different types of real structures, which are sensitive and insensitive to the dynamic load. To make the conclusions more general, various types of excitation forces are examined (long-term and shortterm excitations, traffic load, and loads resulting from geotechnical works). The main issue raised in the paper is the problem of unequivocal and accurate assessment of the potential structure damage, based on the different legislations. It can be seen that the application of different codes can even result in opposite conclusions about the safety of the structure.

  • Vibrational Properties of LaNb0.8M0.2O4-δ (M=As, Sb, V, and Ta)
    • Aleksandra Mielewczyk-Gryń
    • Sebastian Wachowski
    • Kacper Dzierzgowski
    • Iga Szpunar
    • Judyta Strychalska-Nowak
    • Tomasz Klimczuk
    • Sawczak Mirosław
    • Maria Gazda
    2023 Pełny tekst CHEMPHYSCHEM

    LaNb0.8M0.2O4-δ (where M=As, Sb, V, and Ta) oxides with pentavalent elements of different ionic sizes were synthesized by a solid-state reaction method. The vibrational properties of these oxides have been investigated. These studies revealed that the substituent element influences both Debye temperature value as well as the Raman active vibrational modes. Additionally, the low-temperature vibrational properties of LaNb0.8Sb0.2O4-δ have been determined to show the phase transition occurrence at 260 K which is lower than previously reported.

  • Vibrational Quenching of Optically Pumped Carbon Dimer Anions
    • Markus Nötzold
    • Robert Wild
    • Christine Lochmann
    • Tanja Rahim
    • Sruthi Purushu Melath
    • Katrin Dulitz
    • Barry P. Mant
    • Jan Franz
    • Francesco Antonio Gianturco
    • Roland Wester
    2023 Pełny tekst PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS

    Careful control of quantum states is a gateway to research in many areas of science such as quantum information, quantum-controlled chemistry, and astrophysical processes. Precise optical control of molecular ions remains a challenge due to the scarcity of suitable level schemes, and direct laser cooling has not yet been achieved for either positive or negative molecular ions. Using a cryogenic wire trap, we show how the internal quantum states of C2- anions can be manipulated using optical pumping and inelastic quenching collisions with H2 gas. We obtained optical pumping efficiencies of about 96% into the first vibrational level of C2- and determined the absolute inelastic rate coefficient from v=1 to 0 to be k_q = (3.2±0.2stat±1.3sys)×10−13  cm3/s at 20(3) K, over 3 orders of magnitude smaller than the capture limit. Reduced-dimensional quantum scattering calculations yield a small rate coefficient as well, but significantly larger than the experimental value. Using optical pumping and inelastic collisions, we also realized fluorescence imaging of negative molecular ions. Our work demonstrates high control of a cold ensemble of C2−, providing a solid foundation for future work on laser cooling of molecular ions.

  • Virtual reality as a tool for development and simulation. Research projects and experience of the Gdańsk University of Technology
    • Jacek Lebiedź
    2023

    By supporting the human imagination, virtual reality technology can be applied in almost every human activity. This is evidenced by the cooperation of the Immersive 3D Visualization Lab with specialists representing such different professions from architects and artists, astronomers and chemists, through historians and museologists, criminologists and military educators, mechanical and ship engineers, up to physicians and psychologists. The results of this cooperation are presented with an emphasis on architectural applications including not only building prototyping. New applications are welcome.

  • Virulence analysis and antibiotic resistance of Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates from hospitalised patients in Poland
    • Barbara Kot
    • Małgorzata Piechota
    • Piotr Szweda
    • Joanna Mitrus
    • Jolanta Wicha
    • Agata Grużewska
    • Małgorzata Witeska
    2023 Pełny tekst Scientific Reports

    Klebsiella pneumoniae (KP) is a nosocomial pathogen causing difficult-to-treat infections. The presence of virulence genes and antibiotic resistance of 109 KP isolates from hospitalized patients were investigated. Among them, 68.8% were multi-drug resistant (MDR) and 59.6% produced extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLs). Metallo-β-lactamases (MBLs) were produced by 22% of isolates (mainly from anus), including 16.5% of isolates producing New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase (NDM-1). The genes encoding adhesins (fimH-91.7%, mrkD-96.3%), enterobactin (entB-100%) and yersiniabactin (irp-1-88%) were frequently identified. The genes encoding salmochelin (iroD-9.2%, iroN-7.3%) and colibactin (clbA, clbB-0.9%) were identified rarely. Iron acquisition system-related kfu gene and wcaG gene involved in capsule production were identified in 6.4% and 11% of isolates, respectively. The rmpA gene associated with hypermucoviscosity was present in 6.4% of isolates. In 19.2% of isolates magA gene was detected, specific for K1 capsule serotype, while 22.9% of isolates showed K2 capsule serotype. The rmpA, iroD or iroN genes being diagnostic biomarkers for hypervirulent KP (hvKP) were detected in 16.5% of isolates. We found that 55.5% of hvKP were MDR and produced ESBLs, thus hospital KP isolates pose a serious threat to the healthcare system.

  • Visual Features for Improving Endoscopic Bleeding Detection Using Convolutional Neural Networks
    • Adam Brzeski
    • Tomasz Dziubich
    • Henryk Krawczyk
    2023 Pełny tekst SENSORS

    The presented paper investigates the problem of endoscopic bleeding detection in endoscopic videos in the form of a binary image classification task. A set of definitions of high-level visual features of endoscopic bleeding is introduced, which incorporates domain knowledge from the field. The high-level features are coupled with respective feature descriptors, enabling automatic capture of the features using image processing methods. Each of the proposed feature descriptors outputs a feature activation map in the form of a grayscale image. Acquired feature maps can be appended in a straightforward way to the original color channels of the input image and passed to the input of a convolutional neural network during the training and inference steps. An experimental evaluation is conducted to compare the classification ROC AUC of feature-extended convolutional neural network models with baseline models using regular color image inputs. The advantage of feature-extended models is demonstrated for the Resnet and VGG convolutional neural network architectures.

  • VOCs absorption from gas streams using deep eutectic solvents – A review
    • Patrycja Makoś-Chełstowska
    2023 JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS

    Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are one of the most severe atmospheric pollutants. They are mainly emitted into the atmosphere from anthropogenic sources such as automobile exhaust, incomplete fuel combustion, and various industrial processes. VOCs not only cause hazards to human health or the environment but also adversely affect industrial installation components due to their specific properties, i.e., corrosive and reactivity. Therefore, much attention is being paid to developing new methods for capturing VOCs from gaseous streams, i.e., air, process streams, waste streams, or gaseous fuels. Among the available technologies, absorption based on deep eutectic solvents (DES) is widely studied as a green alternative to other commercial processes. This literature review presents a critical summary of the achievements in capturing individual VOCs using DES. The types of used DES and their physicochemical properties affecting absorption efficiency, available methods for evaluating the effectiveness of new technologies, and the possibility of regeneration of DES are described. In addition, critical comments on the new gas purification methods and future perspectives are included.