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A Framework for Coupling and Quantifying Sustainability and Resilience in Intelligent Buildings
No full textA Master of Science thesis in Engineering Systems Management by Deena Ahmed Al Qurneh entitled, “A Framework for Coupling and Quantifying Sustainability and Resilience in Intelligent Buildings”, submitted in July 2020. Thesis advisors is Salwa Beheiry, Dr. Maruf Mortula. Soft copy is available (Thesis, Approval Signatures, Completion Certificate, and AUS Archives Consent Form).The concepts of sustainability and resilience have become increasingly important. Sustainability is often related to implementing best practices in many facets of the construction industry and resilience typically refers to the adaptability and endurance of systems in harsh conditions. Both concepts are studied over the life cycles of buildings. On the other hand, smart buildings are growing in use and scope and tend to be more dependent on technology and complex systems. Therefore, they also tend to be more prone to unexpected failure. While the two concepts of sustainability and resilience are interrelated, there is limited research that quantifies and/or combines them, and none studying how the two behave when developers aim to apply both in smart buildings. Hence, this study constructed a framework that developed a financial model where the Net Present Value (NPV) was used to study the implications and limitations of the investment in both concepts, i.e. the NPV was measured using direct and indirect costs and benefits resulting from having sustainability and resilience integrated in smart buildings. Thus, translating the benefits of this integration into monetary values. Sustainability was essentially quantified via translating the costs and benefits of the three main components: environmental, social and economic. While resilience was measured via the impact frequency of faults and the absence of detection tools on the calculated NPV. The two were then coupled by measuring the costs and benefits of installing and maintaining resilience tools in sustainably designed smart buildings and studying this impact on the resultant NPV. The designed model was also applied on four case studies of selected smart buildings in Dubai. The results of the study indicate that integrating the targeted sustainable approaches in smart buildings, with tools that improve resilience, yield a higher NPV. However, to maintain the positive effect on the NPV and to minimize the cost of failure, fault detection and diagnosis tools need to be assimilated in the initial smart and sustainable buildings design.College of EngineeringMultidisciplinary ProgramsMaster of Science in Engineering Systems Management (MSESM
Fractional Integrodifferentiation and Toeplitz Operators with Vertical Symbols
No full textWe consider the so-called vertical Toeplitz operators on the weighted Bergman space over the half plane. The terminology “vertical” is motivated by the fact that if a is a symbol of such Toeplitz operator, then a(z) depends only on y = ℑz, where z = x + iy. The main question raised in this paper can be formulated as follows: given two bounded vertical Toeplitz operators Tλa and Tλb, under which conditions is there a symbol h such that TλaTλb=Tλh? It turns out that this problem has a very nice connection with fractional calculus! We shall formulate our main results using the well-known theory of Riemann–Liouville fractional integrodifferentiation.Fulbright Outreach Lecturing FundRussian Foundation for Fundamental Researc
Functionalized Metal Organic Frameworks For Chemotherapy Drug Delivery
No full textA Master of Science thesis in Chemical Engineering by Ahmed H.S Ahmed entitled, “Functionalized Metal Organic Frameworks For Chemotherapy Drug Delivery”, submitted in November 2020. Thesis advisor is Dr. Rana Sabouni and thesis co-advisor is Dr. Ghaleb Husseini. Soft copy is available (Thesis, Completion Certificate, Approval Signatures, and AUS Archives Consent Form).Cancer is the leading cause of death worldwide, and can be treated by various methods or sometimes a combination of different treatments. Chemotherapy is one of the conventional methods of treatment. Although it is effective in killing cancer cells, it affects other fast-growing healthy cells, resulting in several significant health issues. Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) gained tremendous scientific attention for their extraordinary physical and chemical properties. The use of metal organic frameworks was investigated in many applications, and recently they have been used in biomedical applications such as drug delivery. This work aims to investigate an engineered PEG-folate-functionalized metal organic framework as anticancer nanocarriers, specifically targeting cancerous via the folate moiety and using ultrasound as an external stimulus. An iron-based MOF was synthesized under microwave irradiation using FeCl₃.6 (H₂O) and 2-Aminoterephthalic acid (NH₂-BDC) Furthermore, the synthesized MOF was surface modified to conjugate a folic acid group that allows for the active targeting of cancer cells. The synthesized MOF was characterized using Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) and Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS). The encapsulation efficiencies and release profiles of the prepared MOF samples were studied using a model drug (namely calcein) and an anticancer drug (namely Doxorubicin, DOX) under different pH values (5, 6.4, and 7.4) with and without ultrasound. The encapsulation efficiency was determined to be in the range of 88-90% for calcein and 95-97% for DOX under pHs of 5, 6.4, and 7.4, respectively. Furthermore, low-frequency ultrasound (at 35 kHz) demonstrated the sono-sensitivity of PEG-folate-functionalized MOFs samples with release efficiencies of 44.4 % for DOX at 7.4 pH, 70.2% at 5.3 pH with PEG-FA modification, and 90% at 5.3 pH without PEG-FA modification within 280 mins compared to a control study (without ultrasound) of 14%, 14%, and 16%, respectively. Moreover, the release kinetics of both studies were studied and fitted to 9 different drug release models. Finally, statistical analysis confirms the significance of ultrasound triggered release. Accordingly, it is anticipated that using ultrasound as an external triggering mechanism with MOFs will help initiate a new generation of smart drug delivery systems in the fight against cancer.College of EngineeringDepartment of Chemical EngineeringMaster of Science in Chemical Engineering (MSChE
Quantifying day-to-day variations in 4DCBCT-based PCA motion models
No full textThe aim of this paper is to quantify the day-to-day variations of motion models derived from pre-treatment 4-dimensional cone beam CT (4DCBCT) fractions for lung cancer stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) patients. Motion models are built by 1) applying deformable image registration (DIR) on each 4DCBCT image with respect to a reference image from that day, resulting in a set of displacement vector fields (DVFs), and 2) applying principal component analysis (PCA) on the DVFs to obtain principal components representing a motion model. Variations were quantified by comparing the PCA eigenvectors of the motion model built from the first day of treatment to the corresponding eigenvectors of the other motion models built from each successive day of treatment. Three metrics were used to quantify the variations: root mean squared (RMS) difference in the vectors, directional similarity, and an introduced metric called the Euclidean Model Norm (EMN). EMN quantifies the degree to which a motion model derived from the first fraction can represent the motion models of subsequent fractions. Twenty-one 4DCBCT scans from five SBRT patient treatments were used in this retrospective study. Experimental results demonstrated that the first two eigenvectors of motion models across all fractions have smaller RMS (0.00017), larger directional similarity (0.528), and larger EMN (0.678) than the last three eigenvectors (RMS: 0.00025, directional similarity: 0.041, and EMN: 0.212). The study concluded that, while the motion model eigenvectors varied from fraction to fraction, the first few eigenvectors were shown to be more stable across treatment fractions than others. This supports the notion that a pre-treatment motion model built from the first few PCA eigenvectors may remain valid throughout a treatment course. Future work is necessary to quantify how day-to-day variations in these models will affect motion reconstruction accuracy for specific clinical tasks
A Comprehensive Method of Ion Exchange Resins Regeneration and Its Optimization for Water Treatment
No full textIon exchange membranes, specifically resin technology, lie at the heart of electrolytically conductive systems used in the treatment of wastewater. This chapter deals with ion exchange deionization and the effect of resin amount as well as the concentration of acid and base on the product conductivity. The strong acidic cation polymeric exchanger resin is commercially called MERCK 104765 cation exchanger IV with capacity greater than 3.2 mmol/ml, while the strong basic anion polymeric exchanger resin is commercially called MERCK 104767 anion exchanger III with capacities greater than 1.0 mmol/ml. Water conductivity, as an indicator of regeneration efficiency, was monitored over time at the different conditions and scenario. In general, it was observed that the conductivity decreases with time until one point is reached and then starts to increase as a result of resin saturation. It was also noticed that the lowest conductivity is achieved when using 1-vol% NaOH and 5-vol% HCl in the cathodic and anodic resin tubes, respectively, and that water conductivity increases with the increase in the amount of water being used. The amount of resin significantly impacts the deionization efficiency; more ions are removed as the amount of resin increases
Does Property Ownership by Women Reduce Domestic Violence? A Case of Latin America
Get PDFIt is widely believed that empowering women via various material means increases women’s outside options and, thereby, makes them less vulnerable to intimate partner violence. However, the effect of such empowerment on domestic violence could be subtle particularly in countries with pre-existing high tolerance to violence, weak law enforcement and male institutional domination. Using cross-sectional household-level survey data for Latin American countries, we test the effect of property ownership by women on domestic violence. The results show that a woman’s sole property ownership is not associated with less domestic violence against her; sometimes the correlation is even positive. However, married women who co-own the property are less likely to face domestic abuse by husbands
On the dot product graph of a commutative ring II
No full textIn 2015, the second-named author introduced the dot product graph associated to a commutative ring A. Let A be a commutative ring with nonzero identity, 1 ≤ n < ∞ be an integer, and R = A × A × · · · × A (n times). We recall that the total dot product graph of R is the (undirected) graph T D(R) with vertices R∗ = R \ {(0, 0, . . . , 0)}, and two distinct vertices x and y are adjacent if and only if x·y = 0 ∈ A (where x·y denotes the normal dot product of x and y). Let Z(R) denote the set of all zero-divisors of R. Then the zero-divisor dot product graph of R is the induced subgraph ZD(R) of T D(R) with vertices Z(R)∗ = Z(R) \ {(0, 0, . . . , 0)}. Let U(R) denote the set of all units of R. Then the unit dot product graph of R is the induced subgraph UD(R) of T D(R) with vertices U(R). In this paper, we study the structure of T D(R), UD(R), and ZD(R) when A = Zn or A = GF(pn), the finite field with pn elements, where n ≥ 2 and p is a prime positive integer
Carbohydrate-Functionalized Liposomes In Cancer Therapy
No full textExisting cancer treatments are often accompanied by adverse side effects that can greatly reduce the quality of life of cancer patients; this sets the platform for the development and application of nanocarrier-based platforms for the delivery of anticancer drugs. Among these nanocarriers, liposomes have demonstrated excellent potential in drug delivery applications. Furthermore, the overexpression of certain receptors on cancer cells has led to the development of active targeting approaches where liposome surfaces are decorated with ligands against these receptors. Given the central role that sugars play in cancer biology, more and more researchers are integrating "glycoscience" into their anticancer therapeutic designs. Carbohydrate functionalized liposomes present an attractive drug delivery system due to their biocompatibility, biodegradability, low toxicity, and specific cell targeting ability. This review presents an overview of the preparation methods, characterization, evaluation, and applications of carbohydrate functionalized liposomes in cancer therapy
Assessment of the Environmental Status of the Mangrove Ecosystem in the United Arab Emirates
No full textIn the Arabian Gulf, mangroves play a particularly important role in maintaining biodiversity. Water and intertidal sediments were collected from eight sampling locations in April 2017 to assess the environmental status of the mangrove forest in the Khor al Beida, Umm Al Quwain, which is one of the largest natural mangrove forests in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Khor al Beida is also a breeding ground for the largest Gulf colony of a regionally endemic Socotra cormorant. Total metal concentrations of water and sediments were measured using Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and ranged between 0.001–2.873 mg/L and 0.08–12683.02 mg/kg, respectively. Most metals were within permissible levels, except for copper, iron, aluminum, zinc, and nickel. Hazard Quotient calculations showed low risk to the ecosystem in relation to the presence of heavy metals, with the exception of zinc. Fifty-three diatom species of pennate benthic forms were identified in the intertidal sediments. For the first time in the UAE, diatom composition and diatom diversity values were quantitatively estimated in the surface sediments and a short sediment core. Overall, the assessment suggests that the mangrove forest is currently undisturbed and shows very little anthropogenic impact; yet, protection and conservation efforts are necessary in order to maintain its current status.American University of Sharja
Introducing Extended Data on Terrorist Groups (EDTG), 1970 to 2016
Get PDFThis article introduces an extended data set of 760 terrorist groups that engaged in attacks during 1970 to 2016. Unlike most extant group data sets, the extended data on terrorist groups (EDTG) is not tied to terrorist groups and attacks listed in the RAND terrorism data; rather, EDTG is linked to terrorist groups and attacks given in the Global Terrorism Database. Terrorist groups’ variables in EDTG include ideology, main goals, start date, duration, base country, attack diversity, peak size, alternative endings (if relevant), and others. We display interesting features of EDTG through a series of tables and figures. Our EDTG-based survival analysis is at odds with some of the literature: for example, the demise of a leader and a larger share of transnational terrorist attacks increase the group’s odds of failure. After 2001, religious terrorist groups are more resilient than those with other ideologies. We also analyze terrorist group lethality and productivity