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The trafficking of people is expressly prohibited by the Indian Constitution. The Constitution's Fundamental Rights section forbids "trade in human persons and other comparable forms of forced labour" in Article 23. Even though there isn't a clear definition of "trafficking," one could say that Trafficking inherently entails the movement or transportation of a person via coercion or fraud, followed by their exploitation and eventual commercialization. The abusers take advantage of the vulnerable nature of the trafficked individual, including the traffickers, recruiters, transporters, sellers, buyers, and end-users. With globalisation, trafficking has increased dramatically. The problem is made worse by organised actions, increasing profit with little to no risk, and low attention given to law enforcement, among other things. In order to work as domestic helpers or workers, women are also trafficked into commercial markets. Similar to those who are forced into prostitution, Kuwait is thought to be a key hub for the trafficking of women for commercial exploitation. Futhur this paper will also talk about its impact and vulnerability, human rights and its impact on society and will see cases from real life.

Steady-state operation of dual active bridge (DAB) ac–dc converters can show a high dependence on the circuit nonidealities and on the transient nature of the consistently changing phase-shifts necessary to achieve ac–dc operation. These aspects are not fully captured using traditional modeling approaches derived from dc–dc DAB converter analyses. To address these issues, this article presents a unified modeling approach comprising of hybrid frequency and time-domain analyses that encompass the transient nature of the ac–dc converter while providing the advantages of steady-state frequency-domain analysis. The limitations of conventional modeling approaches are quantified and addressed. Additionally, a comprehensive analysis of modeling error trends with converter parameters is presented, which demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed method over conventional methods. Finally, using the proposed modeling approach, a numerical optimization routine is proposed to find the optimal-conduction-loss modulation trajectory. The effectiveness of the method is verified by experimental testing on a 1 kW, 230–28 V fully GaN-based single-phase DAB ac–dc converter.

Al2O3–water nanofluids along with stationary and rotating twisted tape inserts are used to increase the rate of heat transfer in a plain tube. The simulations are conducted through varying the desi...

This paper presents a 5-level inverter topology for open-end induction motor drives by using a single dc source. The open stator windings of the drive are supplied with a 3-level flying capacitor inverter from one end and capacitor-fed 2-level inverter from another end. The voltage ratio of the dc link to the capacitor in 2-level inverter is maintained at 4:1 ratio to generate five-level voltage output. The capacitor in 2-level inverter is balanced by the switching redundant vector combinations from both the inverters while the floating capacitors in the 3-level inverter are balanced by using redundant switching states. The proposed topology gives 5-level operation with less number of floating capacitors and power semiconductor switches compared to other existing topologies. Also, the balancing of the capacitors is independent of load power factor and modulation index. Further, the generalization of the proposed dual inverter scheme for any n -level inverter is also included in this paper. The experimental results and required analysis are also presented to validate the inverter scheme.

A multilevel dodecagonal voltage space vector generation scheme for variable-speed drive applications with single-dc-link operation requires a large value of capacitance for cascaded H-bridge (CHB) filters, when operated at lower speeds. In existing schemes, the multilevel dodecagonal structure is obtained by cascading a flying capacitor inverter with a CHB. In this paper, a new scheme has been proposed to minimize the capacitance requirement for full speed operation by creating vector redundancies using modular and equal voltage CHBs. Also, an algorithm has been developed to optimize the selection of vector redundancies among the CHBs in order to minimize the voltage ripple of the floating capacitors. The proposed algorithm considers instantaneous capacitor voltages and phase currents for optimal selection of vector redundancies. A mathematical model for capacitor voltage deviation is presented, and the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm is verified in both the simulation and the experiment.

This paper proposes a new 7-level inverter topology for induction motor drives. It is a hybrid topology formed by cascading a 5-level active neutral-point-clamped inverter with a 3-level T-type converter. It is obtained using low-voltage semiconductor devices with voltage blocking capability of Vdc/3 and Vdc/6. The topology uses three floating capacitors per phase, which are balanced within a pulsewidth modulation (PWM) switching duration using switching-state redundancies for each pole-voltage level. Topology forms two stacks at the front-end, which requires individual symmetrical dc source. The analysis of switching loss and conduction loss is performed and compared with some of the existing 7-level multi-level inverters reported in various literatures to show the advantages of the proposed topology. Furthermore, the single dc source operation with two stacked capacitors and closed-loop control of neutral-point voltage using symmetrical six-phase induction motor is proposed. The voltage-control algorithms for floating capacitors and dc-link stacked capacitors are proposed, which are independent of load power factor and modulation index. Open-loop V / f and closed-loop rotor field oriented control are performed, and various results at steady and transient states are presented to validate the aforementioned claims.

Generating dense multilevel voltage space structure using polygons of higher sides is one of the novel and elegant method to suppress low-order harmonics and to obtain refined sinusoidal voltages using voltage source inverters for variable frequency drive application without passive filters. Apart from the advantages of conventional multilevel inverter topologies, schemes generating polygonal voltage space vector structure can equip full dc-bus utilization, low switching frequency strategies to eliminate low-order harmonics, and increased linear modulation range. In this paper, an induction motor drive scheme generating a highly dense multilevel 24-sided polygonal voltage space vector structure using a single dc source, which can eliminate harmonics till 23rd order from phase voltages, is presented. Cascaded power circuit topology with a flying capacitor inverter fed with a dc source and two low voltage floating capacitor fed H-bridge inverters is used. Detailed experimentally validated results, under scalar as well as indirect rotor field oriented control of induction motor are provided. Studies on voltage ripple and reactive energy in various floating capacitors, harmonic performance of output voltage for wide range of speed operation, are also included.

This paper proposes a novel method for instantaneous balancing of neutral-point (NP) voltages with stacked multilevel inverters (MLIs) for variable-speed drives. The stacked MLI uses series-connected dc sources and NPs (connecting points of dc sources) to obtain the desired levels. The balancing of NP voltages are obtained by using a low-voltage-capacitor-fed cascaded H-bridge (CHB) per phase of a symmetrical six-phase induction machine (IM), which ensures zero current drawn from NPs (at any given instant). Since no current is drawn from NPs, the single dc-link operation with stacked capacitors is also possible. The scheme is suitable for applications, where low-voltage dc sources and batteries are stacked to form a dc link. A variable-speed operation is done using a seven-level inverter scheme for a symmetrical six-phase IM, which is formed by three dc-link stacked capacitors cascaded with two low-voltage-capacitor-fed CHBs per phase. Furthermore, the method is extended for an open-end IM to obtain a seven-level common-mode eliminated space vector structure using a single dc link. The generalization of this method for any stacked $n$ -level inverter without NP voltage deviation is also presented in this paper. The experimental results and analysis are included to validate the proposed method.

Conventional two-level as well as multilevel voltage-source-inverter topologies with a hexagonal voltage-space vector structure generate low-order harmonics in the machine terminal voltages when operated beyond the linear modulation range in variable speed drive application. Progressing from hexagonal to a higher sided polygonal voltage-space-vector structure (VSVS) suppresses significant low-order harmonics throughout the modulation range. In addition, the linear modulation range will also be enhanced very near to the base speed. In this paper, for the first time, the generation of a multilevel 24-sided VSVS using a single dc source for induction-motor drives is proposed. A cascaded topology with a dc-source-fed flying-capacitor inverter and two low-voltage capacitor-fed H-bridge cells forms the power circuit. The features and advantages of the proposed scheme are validated through experimental results and discussions.

Indianapolis, E-scooters are ubiquitous and their number keeps escalating, increasing their interactions with other vehicles on the road. E-scooter riders have an atypical behavior that varies enormously from other vulnerable road users, creating new challenges for vehicle active safety systems and automated driving functionalities. The detection of e-scooter riders by other vehicles is the first step in taking care of the risks. This research presents a novel vision-based system to differentiate between e-scooter riders and regular pedestrians and a benchmark dataset for e-scooter riders in natural environments. An efficient system pipeline built using two existing state-of-the-art convolutional neural networks (CNN), You Only Look Once (YOLOv3) and MobileNetV2, performs detection of these vulnerable e-scooter riders.

In this paper, a step-down wireless architecture is proposed for low voltage and high current applications. In this scheme, the wireless stage employs a wireless DC-DC converter, which is cascaded with a buck converter to achieve necessary step-down ratio. Multiple compensation networks are analyzed and a network with load independent gain characteristic is identified, which enables the use of same topology for a wide voltage range from 24V to 48V. Further, a gain estimation for different stages to achieve minimum loss operation is also carried out. A 900W laboratory prototype is developed to verify the power transfer over an air gap of 100mm. At full load and fully aligned condition, system achieves an end to end (AC-DC) efficiency of nearly 87.5% at 24V and 91.2% at 48V.

Landfills are highly engineered waste containment systems, designed to minimize the impact of waste on the environment. In modern landfills, the waste is contained by liner and cover systems. Due to the scarcity of natural clay, the commercially available bentonite is often used in the construction of liners. The bentonite layer generally shrinks during the summer, and therefore, severe cracks are formed; thus, it fails to control the migration of leachate. In the past, various additives have been used to stabilize bentonite. In recent years, studies have been focused on using reactive materials as additives so that they can stabilize bentonite, and also, it can adsorb the heavy metals from the leachates. The sugar industry produces fly ash, known as the bagasse ash, which causes a disposal problem. This bagasse ash is found to be a good absorbent material. Hence, a study was carried out to assess the stabilization of compacted clay liner blended with bagasse ash. Several tests, including consistency limits and hydraulic conductivity tests, have been performed by blending different contents of bagasse ash. From the test results and their analysis, it is observed that 40% of bagasse ash can be mixed with bentonite so that the essential requirements of the liner are maintained.

The effects of polydispersity on radiative and interfacial convective heat transfer are investigated in particle–gas two-phase media for solar particle receiver applications. Non-grey radiative transfer is analysed using the collision-based Monte Carlo ray-tracing method. The Mie theory is employed to calculate radiative properties of particles. The finite volume method and the explicit Euler time integration scheme are used to solve the transient energy equations for the particle and gas phases. Three alternative approaches to modelling particle properties and thermal conditions are employed: (i) a novel discrete size model, in which particle groups within discrete size intervals are assigned individual properties and temperatures locally; (ii) a lumped size model, in which integral properties and a single temperature are assigned to the particle phase locally; and (iii) a monodisperse size model, in which properties are evaluated for the Sauter mean diameter of the polydispersion and a single temperature is assigned to the particle phase locally. Strongly size-dependent radiation absorption and interfacial convective heat transfer are predicted with the discrete size model for alumina particles. Particles smaller than 27.4 μ m located near the aperture absorb the solar irradiation and transfer heat to the gas phase most effectively. The angular spread of the incident solar radiation is found to have a negligible effect on the overall absorption, although the most uniform thermal conditions occur for the solar irradiation with the smallest confinement angle. The overall absorptance of alumina particles is higher by 3.4% and 2.7% than that of iron (III) oxide and mullite particles, respectively. The lumped and monodisperse size models allow for reduction of the computational time at the expense of lower accuracy and limited information about particle properties and thermal conditions.

This paper proposes generation of a 15-level (14 concentric) dodecagonal voltage space vector structure (DVSVS) for a star connected induction motor drive. The proposed multilevel DVSVS is obtained by cascading two inverters, namely a primary and secondary inverter. The primary inverter is a five-level (5L) structure formed by stacking two three-level flying capacitors with individual reduced dc sources and the secondary inverter is also a 5L structure formed by cascading two capacitor-fed cascaded H-bridges (CHB). The active power is supplied by the primary inverter, while the secondary inverter acts as switched capacitor harmonics filter, and capacitors in the secondary inverter are balanced naturally irrespective of load power factor for entire modulation index. The high-voltage dc supply fed primary inverter is operated in quasi-square wave mode, while the high frequency switching is applied to low voltage CHBs, thus, reducing the overall switching loss. The proposed scheme gives the advantages of both DVSVS and multilevel structure, thus, making it one of the solutions for battery or stacked dc-fed applications. The paper also presents the experimental results as well as comparison study with the existing topologies to support the advantages of proposed scheme.