Research@THEA (Technological Higher Education Association)
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Heavy metals in sea food: Method validation and evolution by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry in accordance with commission regulation (EC) 333/2007, 582/2016
No full textThe goal of this study was to validate the analytical technique for determining the immediate development of lead
(Pb), cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg), and arsenic (As) in various Indian seafood products. According to Commission
Regulation (EC) 333/2007, various marine foods, including crustaceans, cephalopods, and fish species, were
employed for the validation of the developed method by ICP-MS. HNO3 and H2O2 were combined to prepare the
sample during microwave digestion. Specificity/selectivity, linearity, LOD, LOQ, precision-repeatability and
reproducibility, accuracy-recovery, robustness, and fitness studies were used to validate the approach. The maximum
RSD value and Horrat value (HorRat) for the within-lab reproducibility for all analytes (Pb, Cd, Hg, and As) in marine
food were 5% and 1 respectively. The mean recovery for all analytes examined at three spiking levels (0.5, 1 & 1.5 of
the permitted limit) was between 92.67 and 107.33%.Whereas limit of detection (LOD) values for Pb, Cd, Hg and As
were 0.018 µg/g, 0.032 µg/g, 0.031 µg/g and 0.034 mg/kg for repeatability 6% and <1 respectively. 0.061 µg/g, 0.127
µg/g, 0.0.103 µg/g and 0.101 µg/g respectively, were the limit of quantitation (LOQ) values. At a 95% confidence
level, the method's relative extended measurement uncertainty (k=2) was 9%. In fact, the developed method's precision
was examined by taking part in LGC proficiency testing (round 253, sample 742); the outcomes (Z score, i.e. < 1)
showed that this analytical method could be used for the routine analysis of these four toxic metals in seafood with
acceptable analytical performance in the laboratory.ye
Mass customization of polylactic acid (PLA) parts via a hybrid manufacturing process
No full textMass customization is the development of items tailored to specific customers, but
produced at low unit cost in high-volume. In this context, hybrid manufacturing (HM) combines
fused deposition modeling (FDM) and injection molding (IM) to fabricate a single personalized
part with minimum manufacturing cost. In this technique, inserts with different physical features
are first FDM-fabricated and then IM-overmolded. This study investigated the effect of hybrid
FDM-IM production technology, FDM insert geometry on mechanical properties, and micro-structural
evolution of Polylactic Acid (PLA) samples. The findings indicated a comparable tensile properties
of FDM-IM samples (68.38 MPa) to IM batch (68.95 MPa), emphasizing the potential of HM in the
manufacturing industry. Maximum tensile stress of FDM-IM specimens shows an upward trend
due to the increased infill density of preforms. In addition, overmolding interface direction results
in a big gap for the maximum tensile strengths between half-length series specimens (12.99 MPa
to 19.09 MPa) and half-thickness series specimens (53.83 MPa to 59.92 MPa). Furthermore, four
joint configurations resulted in different mechanical performances of finished specimens, in which
the female cube sample exhibits the highest tensile stress (68.38 MPa), while the batch with male
T joint shows a lower value in maximum tensile strength (59.51 MPa), exhibiting a similar tensile
performance with the half-thickness 75% batch without joint configuration. This study lays the
groundwork for using HM to produce bespoke and mechanically improved parts over FDM alonen
Digital Badge Accreditation
No full textSummary of Teaching & Learning Context
This active learning strategy was introduced to all
undergraduate programmes within the department: BBus
(Hons) in Business Studies (Enterprise & Innovation), BBs
(Hons) in Marketing and Management, and BBs (Hons) in
Digital Marketing. First year students are introduced to
enterprise level e-commerce software, Shopify, as part of
the Selling Techniques module. Shopify offer three digital
badges, which can be built into a variety of programmes.
The Shopify Basics badge is used in this module. This badge
is awarded for pre-launch setup of an online Shopify store,
giving students experience in building a store catalogue,
creating customer incentives, and customising their website.
Practical skills are gained, relevant for today’s employers, with
the inclusion of a digital badge accreditation.
Employers are becoming increasingly aware of digital
badges as credible evidence of workplace-relevant skills.
These alternatives to formal credentials offer students an
additional way to gain recognition of achievements. Digital
badges represent a new stage in supporting Ireland’s skills
agenda, allowing for a validated representation of a skill or
knowledge gained and verified online. This is the first digital
badge accreditation offered to our undergraduates in the
departmen
Process optimization for the 3D printing of PLA and HNT composites with Arburg plastic freeforming
No full textThe industrial use of additive manufacturing continues to rapidly increase as new technology
developments become available. The Arburg plastic freeforming (APF) process is designed to
utilize standard polymeric granules in order to print parts with properties similar to those of molded
parts. Despite the emerging industrial importance of APF, the current body of knowledge regarding
this technology is still very limited, especially in the field of biodegradable polymer composites. To
this end, poly(lactic acid) (PLA) was reinforced with halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) by hot melt extrusion.
The PLA/HNT (0–10 wt%.) composites were analyzed in terms of their rheology, morphology,
and thermal and mechanical properties. A study of the processing properties of these composites in
the context of APF was performed to ensure the consistency of 3D-printed, high-quality components.
The optimized machine settings were used to evaluate the tensile properties of specimens printed
with different axis orientations (XY and XZ) and deposition angles (0 and 45 ). Specimens printed
with an XY orientation and deposition angle starting at 0 resulted in the highest mechanical properties.
In this study, the use of PLA/HNT composites in an APF process was reported for the first time,
and the current methodology achieved satisfactory results in terms of the 3D printing and evaluation
of successful PLA/HNT composites to be used as feedstock in an APF process.ye
Optimization of Ethereum transaction and block delivery performance
No full textBlockchain is a type of distributed ledger. It is a chain of blocks. Each block contains a series of transactions. Each transaction
is for a value transfer or a smart contract execution. The main purpose of the blockchain system is to achieve consensus on
transaction sequence without a controller. The transaction processing capability of the blockchain is influenced by the
propagation time of a block in the network -- the shorter the block propagation time, the better the transaction processing
capability of the blockchain system, and the easier that system can reach consensus. Ethereum is the second-generation
blockchain. It supports Turing complete smart contracts. Although many factors will affect the performance of the Ethereum
system, the planned future work of the project is to optimise the transaction/block broadcasting process in the Ethereum peer-to-peer network
Brand activation in thanatourism: a comparative study of the Bram Stoker Festival and the Whitby Goth Weekend
Get PDFThe life and work of Dubliner Bram Stoker influenced a niche
tourism product popularly consumed today - gothic festivals.
Gothic or “dark tourism” (thanatourism) festivals attract high
spending tourists, usually in off-season, with implications for
heritage conservation, night time economy and the cultural
tourism experience. This thesis explores the promotion of these
festivals using an experiential marketing framework
D7.12 Annual communication and outreach report - 1st Report
Get PDFThe RUN-EU PLUS digital content is hosted on the parent RUN-EU website to maximise dissemination throughout an already established network of users associated with RUN-EU. The branding utilised also follows from RUN-EU in order to continue connectivity and recognition of quality of product and activities promoted. The RUN-EU PLUS webpage menu contains links to each activity associated with a work package output and content is continuously updated to ensure real-time communication and dissemination of RUN-EU PLUS outputs. Impacts are therefore measurable based on number of hits per activity page. News articles are also posted here
Development of the large-tonnage pressure-type prestressed anchor cable with BFRP for geotechnical engineering and its mechanical properties
Get PDFPrestressed anchor cable is widely used in geotechnical engineering to control the displacement or landslide of an unstable slope.
However, the traditional cable anchor is made of steel material, which is easy to get rust in a corrosive environment. Basalt fiberreinforced plastics (BFRP) are a kind of emerging compound material, with a good performance of high strength, low weight, and
anticorrosion. Herein, an innovative large-tonnage pressure-type prestressed anchor is made with BFRP. This large-tonnage BFRP
anchor cable has seven bunch structures of the “BFRP-connector-strand.” In each bunch of the “BFRP-connector-strand,” three
BFRP tendons and one steel strand are connected inside a steel sleeve connector using the epoxy resin adhesive. The ultimate loadbearing capacity of this BFRP cable anchor can reach 202.38 tonnages. At the ultimate tensioning force condition, the strain of
BFRP tendons for this large-tonnage BFRP anchor cable ranges from 1.51% to 1.76%. In the tensioning operation, there is a
linear growth relationship between the tensioning force and the strain for this BFRP cable anchor. Once the tensioning force
reaches the ultimate strength of this BFRP anchor cable, this cable will present system failure. This situation primarily results
from the failure of the “BFRP-connector-strand.” The failure modes of this BFRP anchor cable can be classified into three
types: the steel strand rupture, the steel connector rupture, and the BFRP tendon rupture. During the tensioning operation,
due to the length difference of the BFRP tendons, this large-tonnage BFRP cable anchor presents an end-off-axis effect. It
makes the load bearing of the BFRP tendons 5.00~6.60 times larger than that of the no end-off-axis effect. Nevertheless, due to
the plastic deformation of the end steel anchor sleeve, the influence of the end-off-axis effect decreases with the increase of
applied tensioning force. The load-bearing capacity of this large-tonnage BFRP cable anchor reaches 87.70~91.50% of its
theoretical value.ye
Virtual Communities of Practice for Postgraduate Research Students: Determining Needs and Reducing Isolation
Get PDFPostgraduate research is considered a lonely endeavour with students frequently experiencing social and intellectual isolation. Research offices in many higher education institutions have developed programmes to support supervisors and students undertaking research studies and supervision. These programmes include instruction on research techniques and methodologies but are often lacking in community-based approaches such as creating support and peer groups where students can share information and ideas directly. This study explores the use of online communities of practice as a support tool for postgraduate researchers in a university in Ireland. The research questions seek to determine the antecedents for successful implementation, the dominant problems associated with using online communities, and the motivators for, and barriers to, participation in communities of practice in this context. The study facilitates student collaboration by implementing a community of practice on an enterprise social network (ESN) platform. These platforms are increasingly used in industry to facilitate online community groups that collaborate professionally and socially. Professionally, ESN can be used as a platform to host virtual communities of practice (vCoP), where members can engage in sharingknowledge of their practice domains and experiences. The promotion of ESN and vCoP for this study is a joint initiative of the Research Support Office, the Students' Union, and the Postgraduate Society, who advocate for a strong peer to peer support system for postgraduate students. The study adopts an Action Research design and a mixed-methods approach, and data collection includes system use metrics, surveys, focus groups and interviews. The practical objective of the project is to manage the implementation of the virtual community as a peer-to-peer support environment, and success is determined primarily from usage statistics. This may lead to developing a framework for implementation that is generalisable to other higher education institutions.ye
Dynamic gill and mucus microbiomes during a gill disease episode in farmed Atlantic salmon
Get PDFAmoebic gill disease (AGD) and complex gill disease (CGD) are recurrent gill disorders in Atlantic salmon, resulting in significant aquaculture losses. The role of gill microbiomes in gill disease development is unclear. We undertook a longitudinal study to characterise the gill tissue and gill mucus microbiomes of farmed Atlantic salmon before, and during, a gill disease episode. Using a newly optimised DNA extraction protocol, we sequenced rRNA genes from microbiomes of gill samples taken from 105 individual salmon on a farm, over a summer season. The AGD aetiological agent, Neoparamoeba perurans, was PCR-quantified targeting 18S rRNA genes. Similar analyses were carried out on mucus samples. Mucus scrapings were suitable, non-lethal substitutes for characterisation of the gill prokaryotic community in this study. Gill tissue and gill mucus microbiomes changed during the campaign, correlating with N. perurans concentrations. Time explained 35% of the gill tissue and gill mucus microbiome variance, while N. perurans concentrations explained 5%. Genera including Dyadobacter, Shewanella and Pedobacter were maximally abundant in gill and mucus samples at the timepoint prior to the the detection of gill disorder signs, at T3. Shewanella was significantly more abundant before than during the gill disease episode, and we suggest this genus could be considered in future studies addressing relationships between gill disease and the gill microbiome.ye