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Demand for sustainable and cheaper engineering components as alternatives to more expensive conventionally synthesized products is on the rise. In order to develop a green aluminum composite for indigenous auto-design rather than depending on more expensive imported ceramic reinforcement, this study involved the valorization of three environmentally sourced wastes: copper scrap, glass products, and rice husk into recycled copper particles (RCP), recycled glass powder (RGP), and rice husk ash (RHA), and their utilization in the reinforcement of aluminum-7075. Via mixed design method, composites were developed with varying dosage of the additives, and mechanical properties (yield, ultimate, bending, impact and compressive strengths and hardness) were examined. The outcome revealed that the inclusion of the particles ensued improvement of the performance of the composites. Compositional optimization by statistical analysis presents the combination of 9.0% RCP, 7.1% RGP, and 1.9% RHA for optimal performance of the green trihybrid auto-composite, capable of being a cheaper alternative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water use efficiency (WUE) reflects the quantitative relationship between vegetation gross primary productivity (GPP) and surface evapotranspiration (ET), serving as a crucial indicator for assessing the coupling of carbon and water cycles in ecosystems. As a sensitive region to climate change, the Qinghai Tibetan Plateau's WUE dynamics are of significant scientific interest for understanding carbon water interactions and forecasting future climate trends. However, due to the scarcity of observational data and the unique environmental conditions of the plateau, existing studies show substantial errors in GPP simulation accuracy and considerable discrepancies in ET outputs from different models, leading to uncertainties in current WUE estimates. This study addresses these gaps by first employing a machine learning approach (random forest) to integrate observed GPP flux data with multi-source environmental information, developing a predictive model capable of accurately simulating GPP in the Qinghai Tibetan Plateau (QTP). The accuracy of the random forest simulation results, RF_GPP (R2 = 0.611, RMSE = 69.162 gC·m−2·month−1), is higher than that of the multiple linear regression model, regGPP (R2 = 0.429, RMSE = 86.578 gC·m−2·month−1), and significantly better than the accuracy of the GLASS product, GLASS_GPP (R2 = 0.360, RMSE = 91.764 gC·m−2·month−1). Subsequently, based on observed ET flux data, we quantitatively evaluate ET products from various models and construct a multiple regression model that integrates these products. The accuracy of REG_ET, obtained by integrating five ET products using a multiple linear regression model (R2 = 0.601, RMSE = 21.04 mm·month−1), is higher than that of the product derived through mean processing, MEAN_ET (R2 = 0.591, RMSE = 25.641 mm·month−1). Finally, using the optimized GPP and ET data, we calculate the WUE during the growing season from 1982 to 2018 and analyze its spatiotemporal evolution. In this study, GPP and ET were optimized based on flux observation data, thereby enhancing the estimation accuracy of WUE. On this basis, the interannual variation of WUE was analyzed, providing a data foundation for studying carbon water coupling in QTP ecosystems and supporting the formulation of policies for ecological construction and water resource management in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the environmental impact of glass wine bottles and explores alternative packaging options. It highlights the Sustainable Wine Roundtable's Bottle Weight Accord, aiming to reduce the weight of wine bottles to decrease carbon emissions. The text emphasizes the importance of sustainable practices in the wine industry, such as reuse systems and reducing packaging material, to minimize environmental harm. Additionally, it addresses misconceptions about bottle weight and consumer preferences, advocating for more eco-friendly choices in wine packaging. [Extracted from the article]

The migration of lead and cadmium from ceramic and glassware used for food contact is a significant source of lead and cadmium intake in humans. This study shed light on the analysis carried out to identify the presence of lead and cadmium in samples of ceramic and glassware, which are available on the market in the Republic of North Macedonia. The analysis involved examining 33 samples, consisting of 16 ceramic and 17 glass items that were subsequently categorized into three categories, following the guidelines outlined in Directive 84/500/EC and the Official Gazette of the Republic of Macedonia, no. 1/2013 for ceramics, as well as ISO 7086:2020 1, 2 for glass. An atomic absorption spectrometer (AAS) was used to analyze the concentration of lead and cadmium in samples. The obtained results indicate that the level of Pb concentration in ceramics from the second category exceeds the Maximum Permissible Migration Level (MPML). It is suspected that the lead found may have come from the lead-based paints used on the interior surfaces, as well as from the improperly applied glaze. The results also reveal that the concentration of Pb in the first category of glassware surpasses the Maximum Permissible Migration Level (MPML). It is believed that the migrated lead comes from the full exterior decoration. Upon reviewing the measured and calculated Pb values in the remaining glassware, it is evident that in all the other samples analyzed from each category, it does not surpass the values above the MPML. Additionally, Cd concentrations do not exceed the MPML in all 33 samples. Among the 33 tested samples, 10% of second-category ceramic items were found to be inadequate. This highlights the necessity for ceramics and glassware sold in the market to contain accurate declarations, particularly regarding the levels of lead and cadmium that could migrate into the food. Consumers should pay attention when purchasing such products, especially ceramics, to minimize health risks to the population.

The article introduces a collection of glassware from the First and Second Gostiny excavations in Tobolsk. Its general characteristics, and the interpretation of well-preserved and specifically significant objects and their analogies are presented, and their origin is being determined. Referring to historical data, a brief history of the emergence and development of glass production in the Tobolsk province is shown. As a result, it has been found that the Tobolsk collection contains both products from local enterprises and imported ones — domestic, including those imitating western brands, and imported, European ones; the study also traces the change in the attitude of the urban population to objects made of glass. From high-status and rare, only accessible to well-off segments of the society in the 17th — early 18th century, they turned into everyday objects in the 19th century, widespread in the urban environment. Products of European origin, as more expensive and high-quality ones, continued to represent objects of prestigious consumption, sought after to emphasize the one’s high position in society.

With the vigorous development of the cultural and creative industry, glass products, as an important carrier, have received increasing attention in their innovative design. This study aims to explore the social intervention and cultural strategy integration of cultural heritage elements in glass product innovation. Through the analysis of the Hazel Clark cultural space model, it seeks to find a path to effectively integrate cultural heritage elements into glass product design. This study adopts comparative analysis and case study methods to deeply analyze the inherent relationship between cultural spatial patterns and product attributes, and verify their feasibility in practical applications. The results indicate that cultural heritage spatial analysis and application have significant social intervention effects in glass product innovation, which can enrich the cultural connotation of products and enhance their market competitiveness. Meanwhile, this study also reveals the transformation patterns and value enhancement strategies of cultural heritage elements in glass product innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Aksaray University Faculty of Economics & Administrative Sciences / Aksaray Üniversitesi Iktisadi ve Idari Bilimler Fakültesi Dergisi is the property of Aksaray University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Bioactive glasses are one of the most promising materials for applications in bone tissue engineering. In this study, the focus was on borosilicate bioactive glasses with composition 47.12 SiO2 - 6.73 B2O3 - 21.77-x-y CaO - 22.65 Na2O - 1.72 P2O5 - x MgO - y SrO (mol%). These compositions are based on silicate S53P4 bioactive glass, from where 12.5% of SiO2 is replaced with B2O3, and additionally, part of CaO is substituted for MgO and/or SrO. The impact of ion release, both as extract and in direct contact, on human adipose-derived stem cells' (hADSCs) viability, proliferation, ECM maturation, osteogenic commitment and endothelial marker expression was assessed. Osteogenic media supplements were utilized with the extracts, and in part of the direct cell/material culturing conditions. While it has been reported in other studies that boron release can induce cytotoxicity, the glasses in this study supported cells viability and proliferation. Moreover, borosilicate's, especially with further Mg/Sr substitutions, upregulated several osteogenic markers (such as RUNX2a, OSTERIX, DLX5, OSTEOPONTIN), as well as angiogenic factors (e.g., vWF and PECAM-1). Furthermore, the studied glasses supported collagen-I production even in the absence of osteogenic supplements, when hADSCs were cultured in contact with the glasses, suggesting that while the bioactive glass degradation products are beneficial for osteogenesis, the glasses surface physico-chemical properties play a significant role on hADSCs differentiation. This study brings critical information on the impact of bioactive glass compositional modification to control glass dissolution and the subsequent influence on stem cells proliferation and differentiation. Furthermore, the role of the material surface chemistry on promoting cell differentiation is reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leaf Area Index (LAI), as a pivotal parameter in characterizing the structural properties of vegetation ecosystems, holds significant importance in assessing the carbon sink function. Given the availability of multiple long-term LAI products, validating these LAI products with consideration of topographic factors is a prerequisite for enhancing the quality of LAI products in mountainous areas. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the performance of MODIS LAI and GLASS LAI products from 2001 to 2021 by comparing and validating them with ground-measured LAI data, focusing on the spatio-temporal and topographic aspects in the Qinling Mountains. The results show that the GLASS LAI product is a better choice for estimating LAI in the Qinling Mountains. The GLASS LAI product has better completeness and generally higher values compared to the MODIS LAI product. The time-series curve of the GLASS LAI product is more continuous and smoother than the MODIS LAI product. Both products, however, face challenges in quantifying LAI values of evergreen vegetation during winter. The MODIS and GLASS LAI products exhibit differences between sunny and shady slopes, with mean LAI values peaking on sunny slopes and reaching their lowest on shady slopes. When the slope ranges from 0 to 10°, the mean values of GLASS LAI product show a higher increasing trend compared to the MODIS LAI product. At elevations between 1450 and 2450 m, the mean LAI values of the GLASS LAI product are higher than the MODIS LAI product, primarily in the southern Qinling Mountains. Compared to ground-measured LAI data, the GLASS LAI product (R² = 0.33, RMSE = 1.62, MAE = 0.61) shows a stronger correlation and higher accuracy than the MODIS LAI product (R² = 0.24, RMSE = 1.61, MAE = 0.68). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glass fibre reinforcements form the backbone of the composites industry. Today, glass fibre products account for more than 95% of the fibre reinforcements used in the composites industry. Since the first commercialisation of glass fibres for composite reinforcement in the 1930s, the cross-sectional shape of glass fibres has remained exclusively circular. However, many of the other types of fibre reinforcement have a non-circular cross section (NCCS). This paper reviews the available knowledge on the production of NCCS glass fibres and some of the possibilities that such fibres offer to enhance the performance of glass reinforced polymer composites. The three parts of the review focus on early research work on different shapes of glass fibre, the developments leading to industrial-level production of NCCS glass fibres, and the more recent data available on the influence of the available commercially produced NCCS flat glass fibres on composite performance. It Is concluded that the continued development of NCCS glass fibres may offer interesting potential to generate composites with increased performance and may also enable further tailoring of composite performance to enable new applications to be developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the potential of two quartz vein ores from the Hunza District, Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan, as raw materials to obtain 4N8 high-purity quartz (HPQ) sand. Various quartz purification processes were examined, including ore calcination, water quenching, flotation, sand calcination, acid leaching, and chlorination roasting. Analytical techniques such as optical microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and inductively coupled plasma spectroscopy were employed to analyze the microstructure, inclusion characteristics, and chemical composition of both the quartz raw ore and the processed quartz sand. Microscopic observation reveals that the PK-AML quartz raw ore has relatively high purity, the secondary fluid inclusions are arranged in a directional–linear manner or developed along crystal micro-cracks, and most intracrystalline regions exhibit low inclusion contents, while the PK-JTLT quartz raw ore contains a certain number of melt inclusions. The two processed quartz sand samples exhibit a smooth surface with extremely low fluid inclusion content. A comparative analysis of different purification processes shows that quartz sand calcination has a higher impurity removal rate than ore calcination. After crushing the raw ore into sand, the particles become finer with a larger specific surface area. Quartz sand calcination maximally exposes the inclusions and lattice impurity elements within the quartz, facilitating subsequent impurity removal through acid leaching. Following the processes of crushing, ultrasonic desliming, flotation, sand calcination, water quenching, acid leaching, and chlorination roasting, the SiO2 content of PK-AML processed quartz sand is 99.998 wt.%, with only a small amount of Ti and Li remaining, and a total impurity element content of 20.83 µg·g−1. This meets the standard requirements for crucible preparation in industrial applications, making this vein quartz suitable for producing high-end HPQ products. In contrast, the overall purity of PK-JTLT quartz is lower, and the high contents of impurity elements such as Li, Al, and Ti are difficult to remove via purification experiments. The SiO2 content of PK-JTLT processed quartz sand is 99.991 wt.%, which is applied to higher-quality glass products such as photovoltaic glass, electronic glass, and optical glass, thus presenting broad prospects for application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To effectively manage turbine blade weight and blade deflection under severe weather conditions, longer and stiffer blades are required, fiber glass producers have devoted significant efforts to developing and commercializing high‐modulus (HM) glass fiber products of the first generation. The current focuses aim at the commercialization of the second generation and the development of the third‐generation products. This article briefly reviews four key areas: (a) the benefit of longer blades on wind energy generation, (b) characteristics of HM glass fibers of various generations, (c) fundamental science and understanding behind HM glass fiber development, and (d) finally statistically based composition (C)–property (P) and structure (S)–property (P) modeling approaches in new glass design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contact damage of glass is one of the most crucial issues for glass products. To develop strong and tough glass products and to compare damage resistance among glass compositions, a simple method for evaluating the mechanical response of glass during contact is required not only for glass mechanists but also for glass customers and suppliers. Although it is well known that the quasi‐static Vickers indentation test is one of the simplest and most useful methods to evaluate hardness and brittleness in glass, the indentation response of glass under the indenter at higher impact velocities remains to be quantitively understood because of the difficulty of measurement and limited experimental works. In this study, therefore, the dynamic indentation behavior of soda‐lime glass is evaluated by using a lab‐made free‐drop indentation set‐up with the coils for detecting electromotive forces (EMFs). The cono‐spherical indenter made of tungsten carbide attached with a neodymium magnet was employed to generate the EMFs when the indenter passed through the coils located near the glass sample. The impact load versus indentation depth curve during the impact within a few tens of microseconds was successfully obtained both for an elastic contact and for an inelastic contact. Under an elastic condition, where no residual indent nor any cracks were left on the glass surface after the test, it is confirmed that there is almost no hysteresis in the impact load versus indentation depth curve and that the curve can be reproduced by the Hertzian analytical solution. Under an inelastic condition, on the other hand, it is found that the hysteresis in the impact load versus indentation depth curve stems from inelastic phenomena, such as plastic deformation (shear flow and/or permanent densification) and cracking. These results suggest that the dynamic indentation technique based on electromagnetic induction phenomena is a useful and effective tool for evaluating the mechanical responses of glasses during the impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influences of bubbling tube length, gas volume and position on glass flow are analyzed and optimized by numerical simulation. The results show that the effect of bubbling on the relatively stationary layer in circulation I is related to the tube length and gas volume of bubbling. Larger bubbling gas volume indicates that the range of action below the bubbling nozzle is deeper. Thus, the relationship between gas volume and its action area is established on the basis of the aforementioned observation. In addition, the bubbling position significantly affects the "thermal barrier" on the spring zone. Moreover, bubbling can only play a beneficial role on the glass furnace when appropriate distance is maintained between the bubbling and spring zone. Combined with the simulation optimization results and the bubbling viewpoint proposed in Part 1, the bubbling parameters of a production line in China were optimized, and the stripe images of the glass products with bubbling before and after optimization were compared and verified. The obtained results were consistent with the simulation results. This work provides a valuable reference for the early design and construction of a furnace and its optimization adjustment after production. It also reflects the importance of rational distribution of glass flow with bubbling in the furnace on the quality of the glass product. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A methodology for the analytical calculation of the glass thermal conductivity coefficient is proposed. This methodology allows for the reliable calculation of thermal conductivity coefficients for glass products of varying thicknesses, taking into account the physical essence of the radiation-conductive heat transfer process in semitransparent media. Furthermore, this methodology facilitates the analysis of temperature conditions during glass melting and the operation of glass products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are many factors to consider when selecting a container closure system for parenteral drug products to maintain their quality, efficacy, and safety. One aspect to consider for products stored in glass vials is the glass type. Although the glass vials in which most parenteral products are stored are classified as Type I by the United States Pharmacopoeia, Chapter <660>, not all glass vials that meet the glass performance characteristics of Type I are equivalent. In the study presented here, Type I glass vials from three suppliers of three different Type I glass vials (standard, delamination control, and coated) were investigated to evaluate the impact that each Type I glass vial had on the stability of a drug product under development. To evaluate this impact, a three-phase study was conducted in which the compatibility between the drug product and each vial was assessed through the measurement of the critical quality attributes of the product, extractable and leachable inorganic elements were analyzed for each vial, and finally a stability study under accelerated conditions was conducted for the drug product in the most compatible vial based on the aforementioned experiments. Results from this study demonstrated that there are, in fact, significant differences in glass vials regardless of their classification as Type I. In the study conducted here, delamination control Type I glass vials were found to be superior to both Standard Type I and coated Type I vials for the drug product under investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study introduces the synthesis and detailed characterization of a novel thermochromic material capable of reversible alterations in its thermotropic transmittance. Through an emulsion polymerization process, this newly developed material is composed of 75–85% octadecyl acrylate and 0–7% allyl methacrylate, demonstrating a pronounced discoloration effect across a narrow yet critical temperature range of 24.5–39 °C. The synthesized powder underwent a battery of tests, including differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis, as well as scanning electron microscopy. These comprehensive evaluations confirmed the material's exceptional thermal stability, uniform particle size distribution, and strong anchoring properties. Building upon these findings, we advanced the development of thermochromic polyvinyl butyral films and laminated glass products. By utilizing a coextrusion technique, we integrated these films into laminated glass, setting a new benchmark against existing glass technologies. Remarkably, the incorporation of thermochromic PVB films into laminated glass led to a significant reduction in solar irradiance of 20–30%, outperforming traditional double silver low-emissivity glass. This achievement demonstrates the exceptional shading and thermal insulation properties of the material. The research presented herein not only pioneers a valuable methodology for the engineering of smart materials with tunable thermotropic transmittance but also holds the key to unlocking enhanced energy efficiency across a spectrum of applications. The potential impact of this innovation on the realm of sustainable building materials is profound, promising significant strides toward energy conservation and environmental stewardship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a study of the flammability and thermal decomposition products of glass fiber-reinforced epoxy resin (GFRER) with the addition of cardanol-based phosphorus-containing benzoxazine monomer (CBz) and graphene and their combinations in different proportions (up to 20 wt.%). The addition of CBz alone or in combination with graphene resulted in an increase in the limiting oxygen index (LOI) and self-extinguishing in the UL-94 HB test. The flame-retardant samples had better tensile mechanical properties than the sample without additives. The differential mass-spectrometric thermal analysis (DMSTA) of the thermal decomposition products of GFRER without additives and with the addition of CBz and graphene was carried out. CBz addition promoted the thermal decomposition of high-molecular-weight products of epoxy resin decomposition in the condensed phase and at the same time decreased the time of release of low-molecular-weight thermal decomposition products into the gas phase. Graphene addition resulted in an increase in the relative intensities of high-molecular-mass peaks compared to GFRER without additives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Binder polymerization in the curing oven was investigated experimentally in the glass wool production. First focus was on the measurements of glass wool layer temperature distribution along the curing oven. The different temperature curves were compared with fiber density distribution in a layer of glass wool, measured with the X-ray device. The maximum difference between the temperature curves amounted to 60 °C and fiber density distribution deviated for ±8% according to nominal density. With a near infra-red spectroscopy binder polymerization rate was measured and compared with a set average temperature of curing oven, where the regression model was determined. With temperature reduction for 9 °C and polymerization rate decreasing for 2% were defined optimal product quality. In the next study, binder polymerization rate was predicted with aid of set temperatures and fan rotational frequency as input process parameters and near infra-red spectroscopy as continuous response variable, where the temperature shown bigger impact than fan rotational frequency. Next prediction was done with aid of the input parameters and the magnitude of the fan rotational frequency and temperature as a response variable. In this case, the input quantities represent: a type of product, curing oven saturation, the ambient temperature, micronaire, area weight of the product, and binder amount in the glass wool product. For each zone of the curing oven, an equation was determined to predict the magnitude of the fan rotational frequency and temperature. Regression models results showed high correlation with the determination coefficient, R², higher than 0.85. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A commonly encountered challenge with freeze-dried drug products is glass vial fogging. Fogging is characterized by a thin layer of product deposited upon the inner surface of the vial above the lyophilized cake. While considered to be a routine cosmetic defect in many instances, fogging around the shoulder and neck of the vial may potentially impact container closure integrity and reject rates during inspection. In this work, the influence of processing conditions i.e. vial pre-treatment, lyophilization cycle modifications and filling conditions on fogging was evaluated. A battery of analytical techniques was employed to investigate factors affecting glass vial fogging. A fogging score was used to quantify its severity in freeze-dried products. Additionally, a dye-based method was used to study solution upcreep (Marangoni flow) following product filling. Our lab-scale results indicate measurable improvement in fogging following the addition of an annealing step in the lyophilization cycle. Pre-freeze isothermal holding of the vials (at 5°C on the lyophilizer shelf) for an extended duration indicated a reduction in fogging whereas an increase in the freezing time exhibited no effect on fogging. Vial pre-treatment conditions were critical determinants of fogging for Type 1 vials whereas they had no impact on fogging in TopLyo® vials. The headspace relative humidity (RH) investigation also indicated sufficient increase in the water vapor pressure inside the vial to be conducive to the formulation of a hydration film - the precursor to Marangoni flow. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, there has appeared a tendency to use non-traditional animal raw materials to expand the range of sausages. The purpose of the research is to determine the organoleptic and physico-chemical properties, as well as quality indicators of new sausages with a mass fraction of deer muscle tissue in the recipe (> 60%). An organoleptic evaluation was carried out, then the study of physicochemical parameters, the mass fraction of protein, fat, salt, sodium nitrite, total phosphorus, and residual activity of acid phosphatase was performed. Next there were studied such microbiological indicators as QMAFAnM, BGKP (coliforms), sulfite-reducing clostridia, Staphylococcus aureus, and pathogenic microorganisms: Salmonella, Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes. Safety indicators have been established: the content of toxic elements (mercury, arsenic, cadmium, lead) and quality indicators: the content of nitrosamines, pesticides. The quality control of packaging and labeling was carried out visually in accordance with the requirements of the standard. The temperature is measured inside the product with a glass liquid thermometer. The net weight of consumer packaging was determined gravimetrically by static weighing. It has been proved that all three types of the studied sausages «Zavtrak okhotnika», «Drezdenskiye» and «Oldenburgskiye» corresponded to the normative documentation in terms of organoleptic, physico-chemical properties, quality and safety indicators, nutritional value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

E-glass fibre glass products have found a wide range of applications in composite markets, including automobile parts, printed circuit boards, construction materials, wind turbine blades, pipes, etc. One of the commonly used major ingredients of E-glass batch is kaolin, which provides sources of silica and alumina. This paper focuses on the evaluation of alternative silicate minerals that may benefit the fibre glass production in terms of kinetics of batch-to-melt (BtM) conversion, stable and lower impurity iron, and lower BtM conversion energy. Using kaolin (free quartz less than 1 wt%) as a control, four new natural minerals are investigated, high silica kaolin (quartz greater than 50 wt%), pyrophyllite, anorthosite and wollastonite. In our study, a newly established FTIR protocol has been applied to track intermediate phase formation and final glass melt conversion. Literature reported XRD results and limited XRD analysis are used to support the IR characterization. According to our study, for E-glass of CaO-Al2O3-SiO2 based system, independent of the source of the natural silicate minerals used, BtM kinetics is primarily controlled by the availability of "free silica" to react with "free calcium oxide" derived from limestone in the batch at high temperature above 1000°C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globally, the operational energy usage in buildings accounts for about 30% of the final energy consumption and 26% of the energy‐related emissions. In 2022, the building sector recorded 132 EJ in energy usage and 9.8 Gt of CO2 emissions. Energy‐intensive space heating and air conditioning play a significant role in these statistics, with slightly over half of US home energy usage attributed to them. Thus, energy‐efficient buildings, incorporating effective thermal insulation, are essential for addressing climate change. Fiberglass is the dominant insulation material used in US homes, comprising about 71% of installations. The paper discusses the fundamental aspects of heat transfer in fibrous insulation in general and fiberglass insulation in particular. The thermal performance of a fibrous insulation is characterized by an effective thermal conductivity, which combines conductive and radiative terms. The former represents heat conduction through the gas–fiber network and the latter the absorption and the scattering of thermal radiation by the fibers. The paper describes mathematical formulations for these terms and presents results showing the dependence of the effective conductivity on insulation density, fiber diameter, and temperature. The predicted values of the effective conductivity are found to be in good agreement with the measured ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Net radiation (Rn) is a key component of the Earth's energy balance. With the rise of deep learning technology, remote sensing technology has made significant progress in the acquisition of large-scale surface parameters. However, the generally low spatial resolution of net radiation data and the relative scarcity of surface flux site data at home and abroad limit the potential of deep learning methods in constructing high spatial resolution net radiation models. To address this challenge, this study proposes an innovative approach of a multi-scale transfer learning framework, which assumes that composite models at different spatial scales are similar in structure and parameters, thus enabling the training of accurate high-resolution models using fewer samples. In this study, the Heihe River Basin was taken as the study area and the Rn products of the Global Land Surface Satellite (GLASS) were selected as the target for coarse model training. Based on the dense convolutional network (DenseNet) architecture, 25 deep learning models were constructed to learn the spatial and temporal distribution patterns of GLASS Rn products by combining multi-source data, and a 5 km coarse resolution net radiation model was trained. Subsequently, the parameters of the pre-trained coarse-resolution model were fine-tuned with a small amount of measured ground station data to achieve the transfer from the 5 km coarse-resolution model to the 1 km high-resolution model, and a daily high-resolution net radiation model with 1 km resolution for the Heihe River Basin was finally constructed. The results showed that the bias, R2, and RMSE of the high-resolution net radiation model obtained by transfer learning were 0.184 W/m2, 0.924, and 24.29 W/m2, respectively, which was better than those of the GLASS Rn products. The predicted values were highly correlated with the measured values at the stations and the fitted curves were closer to the measured values at the stations than those of the GLASS Rn products, which further demonstrated that the transfer learning method could capture the soil moisture and temporal variation of net radiation. Finally, the model was used to generate 1 km daily net radiation products for the Heihe River Basin in 2020. This study provides new perspectives and methods for future large-scale and long-time-series estimations of surface net radiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fractional Forest cover holds significance in characterizing the ecological condition of forests and serves as a crucial input parameter for climate and hydrological models. This research introduces a novel approach for generating a 250 m fractional forest cover product with an 8-day temporal resolution based on the updated GLASS FVC product and the annualized MODIS VCF product, thereby facilitating the development of a high-quality, long-time-series forest cover product on a global scale. Validation of the proposed product, employing high spatial resolution GFCC data, demonstrates its high accuracy across various continents and forest cover scenarios globally. It yields an average fit coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.9085 and an average root-mean-square error of 7.22%. Furthermore, to assess the availability and credibility of forest cover data with high temporal resolution, this study integrates the CCDC algorithm to map forest disturbances and quantify the yearly and even monthly disturbed trace area within two sub-study areas of the Amazon region. The achieved sample validation accuracy is over 86%, which substantiates the reliability of the data. This investigation offers a fresh perspective on monitoring forest changes and observing forest disturbances by amalgamating data from diverse sources, enabling the mapping of dynamic forest cover over an extensive time series with high temporal resolution, thereby mitigating data gaps and enhancing the precision of existing products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glass is one of the widely used materials in the construction industry and in everyday life. The year-on-year growing demand for various types of glass products pushes the glass-making industries to increase their production volumes and not to lower their quality levels. The scientific and technical progress in glass extraction has gradually expanded the area of its effective use. In recent years, significant changes have taken place in the glassmaking technique. New production methods and ways of improving existing technological processes appeared, and new areas of glass application began to open. The chemical composition of the product was changed, and different types of glass were made. In this regard, the study of the method of obtaining glass with different properties is one of the most important issues. In order to prepare the composition of colored glass used in the production of various products, colored glass was obtained in laboratory conditions. Physico-chemical properties of the obtained colored glass were studied in order to determine the area of application. Based on the research results, the obtained colored glass can be used for decorative purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Spal: Revista de Prehistoria y Arqueologia de la Universidad de Sevilla is the property of Spal. Revista de Prehistoria y Arqueologia de la Universidad de Sevilla and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This is the fourth in this series of "Lessons Learned and Yet to be Learned" on topics related to glass strength. In this paper we pick up the topic of stronger glass products from our earlier publication and expand to discussing commercial technologies. Included in this discussion are a brief historical perspective of the initial technologies and update to newer technologies with the aim to obtain faster production rates that focus on lightweight glass products and a sustainable future with respect to resource conservation, reduced energy consumption and reduced CO2 emissions. Also included are glass products which focus on safety mostly and less on overall strength. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ancient glass products have suffered from the baptism of time and experienced changes in the burial environment and weathering, resulting in a change in the proportions of their chemical composition and interfering with their accurate identification by later generations. In this paper, the chemical composition of ancient glass products is predicted and identified. First, the multivariate statistical ANOVA test is applied to explore the relationship between whether the cultural relics samples are weathered or not and the glass type, decoration, and color to derive a law of chemical composition of the cultural relics and to analyze the correlation and difference among the four factors. Second, compared with the relevant data of the existing glass products, the missing values are processed by using the method of filling in the plurality. The weathering condition of the sampling points of the samples whose surfaces are not weathered is judged by the "distance discrimination method." Combined with the characteristics of the lead-barium glass and the high-potassium glass, the law of the chemical composition content on the surface of the samples, weathered or not, is explored. The modeling of the gray prediction method was applied again to predict the chemical composition content before weathering. Finally, the generalized Shapley function of fuzzy measurement was used to analyze the correlation between indicators and the chemical compositions and their differences. The scheme proposed in this paper can solve the difficult problem of category judgment in archeology, which is of great significance in promoting the smooth progress of archaeological work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ancient glass artifacts were susceptible to weathering from the environment, causing changes in their chemical composition, which pose significant obstacles to the identification of glass products. Analyzing the chemical composition of ancient glass has been beneficial for evaluating their weathering status and proposing measures to reduce glass weathering. The objective of this study was to explore the optimal machine learning algorithm for glass type classification based on chemical composition. A set of glass artifact data including color, emblazonry, weathering, and chemical composition was employed and various methods including logistic regression and machine learning techniques were used. The results indicated that a significant correlation (p < 0.05) could only observed between surface weathering and the glass types (high-potassium and lead–barium). Based on the random forest and logistic regression models, the primary chemical components that signify glass types and weathering status were determined using PbO, K2O, BaO, SiO2, Al2O3, and P2O5. The random forest model presented a superior ability to identify glass types and weathering status, with a global accuracy of 96.3%. This study demonstrates the great potential of machine learning for glass chemical component estimation and glass type and weathering status identification, providing technical guidance for the appraisal of ancient glass artifacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Featured Application: The roller bearing and the through shaft bearing are the rotating and load-bearing components of the annealing kiln roller system, which operate at different locations and under different working conditions. Their health status is significant for maintaining the stable operation of the glass production line. In order to improve the efficiency of bearing condition monitoring, this paper proposes a variable-scale attention mechanism guided time-frequency feature fusion transfer learning method, which is used for bearing fault diagnoses at different installation locations in the annealing kiln roller system. It effectively achieves the intelligent diagnosis of roller bearing and through shaft bearing faults in the annealing kiln roller system. Effective real-time health condition monitoring of the roller table and through shaft bearings in the annealing kiln roller system of glass production lines is crucial for maintaining their operational safety and stability for the quality and production efficiency of glass products. However, the collected vibration signal of the roller bearing system is affected by the low rotating frequency and strong mechanical background noise, which shows the width impact interval and non-stationary multi-component characteristics. Moreover, the distribution characteristics of monitoring data and probability of fault occurrence of the roller bearing and through shaft bearing improve the difficulty of the fault diagnosis and condition monitoring of the annealing kiln roller system, as well as the reliance on professional experience and prior knowledge. Therefore, this paper proposes a variable-scale attention mechanism guided time-frequency feature fusion transfer learning method for a bearing fault diagnosis at different installation positions in an annealing kiln roller system. Firstly, the instinct time decomposition method and the Gini–Kurtosis composed index are used to decompose and reconstruct the signal for noise reduction, wavelet transform with the Morlet basic function is used to extract the time-frequency features, and histogram equalization is introduced to reform the time-frequency map for the blur and implicit time-frequency features. Secondly, a variable-scale attention mechanism guided time-frequency feature fusion framework is established to extract multiscale time-dependency features from the time-frequency representation for the distinguished fault diagnosis of roller table bearings. Then, for through shaft bearings, the vibration signal of the roller table bearing is used as the source domain and the signal of the through shaft bearing is used as the target domain, based on the feature fusion framework and the multi-kernel maximum mean differences metric function, and the transfer diagnosis method is proposed to reduce the distribution differences and extract the across-domain invariant feature to diagnose the through shaft bearing fault speed under different working conditions, using a small sample. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed method is verified based on the vibration signal from the experimental platform and the roller bearing system of the glass production line. Results show that the proposed method can effectively diagnose roller table and through shaft bearings' fault information in the annealing kiln roller system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The work was devoted to the study of the recycling of household glass waste by the electric pulse method. Cullet and glass containers were considered as the object of research. Cullet and used glass containers are considered suitable for recycling among solid household waste. The treatment of solid household waste was carried out with the formation of electrical discharges in an inhomogeneous environment (glass fragments and glass products in an aqueous environment). The experiments were carried out at different values of pulse discharge voltage (from 12 kV to 37 kV), capacitor bank capacity (from 0.4 to 1.2 µF), number of pulse discharges (from 250 to 1,000) and frequency (from 0.3 Hz to 2 Hz). The dependence of the output of the finished product on the parameters of electric pulse discharges has been revealed from the research results. According to the main results of the research work, it was found that as the parameters of electric pulse discharges increase, the yield of the finished product increases. The data made it possible to assign effective parameters for processing cullet and glass products using the electric pulse method. The granulometric composition of the powder material obtained by this method has been determined. A product with a diameter of the largest fraction of 5-8 mm and a diameter of a small fraction of 0.4 mm and 0.7 mm was obtained. The results of the experiment can be used in research on saving natural resources, energy conservation and solving environmental problems of solid waste recycling. Powdered glass is used as a thermal insulator and decorative material in construction. In addition, crushed glass is used in the production of concrete as an additional raw material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study the glass vessels found during the excavations of Kurul Kalesi in the Eastern Black Sea Region (Ordu Province, Bayadı Village) in the years 2010-2022 will be examined within the context of their typological features and archaeological contexts. Although a couple of small finds dating to earlier times (4th century BC) have been discovered in the fortress, the strongest settlement phase belongs to the reign of Mithradates VI Eupator (120-63 BC) before the town was abandoned after the Roman defeat in c. 65-64 BC. The fact that the settlement had cultic as well as military areas presents a rich collection of small finds including many glass vessels. Among the glass finds found in the fortress, luxury products such as core-formed bottles, undecorated colourless cast bowl/plate (?), opaque blue bowl fragments, reticella and mosaic bowls stand out. However, grooved bowls, which were distributed over a wide geography in the Late Hellenistic Period, are also among the finds as typical forms of the period. It can be concluded that the glass vessels found in the fortress consisting mostly of luxury glasses of their time are the productions of the Eastern Mediterranean and Aegean Islands. The findspots where the glass finds are unearthed can be listed as the Inner Fortress, the Northern Terrace, Storage Rooms, the cultic area where the famous marble statue of Kybele was found representing the goddess sitting on her throne within a niche and its surroundings, Dionysus Sanctuary, the area under a pile of stones (an area covered with stacked stones after losing its cultic function, including votive items inside it) and Administrative Buildings Area. In addition to glass vessels, many glass beads of different colours and shapes are among the glass finds of the fortress. Some of the glass vessels as well as the beads were votive objects offered to Kybele and especially Dionysus. This situation reveals that most of the glass objects found in Kurul Kalesi did not have any function in daily life but were votive objects. These glasses include some vessels that have never been recorded in the Eastern Black Sea coast of Anatolia until the excavations in Kurul Kalesi. For this reason, glass vessel dating back to the Hellenistic period found in the excavations in Kurul Kalesi is extremely important for helping us to determine the distribution areas of these glass products and reveal new information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The article presents materials from the glass-production workshop of the Hunnic times found near Komariv on the middle Dnister, which was the only such workshop on the territory of European Barbaricum. In 2021, we investigated a buried structure, where remains of mostly semi-finished glass products, production waste, and finished vessels were found. Fragments of Cherniakhiv culture wheel-made pottery and hand-made vessels; Roman amphorae; coins; fibulae; a mirror; an arrowhead, etc. also come from the building. The nature of the glass finds indicates that the structure, dated to the mid-5th century AD, was associated with glass production. The workshop, built in the same period as a building on a stone foundation, could have formed a single complex. The finds and the object's dating are evidence that glass processing was practiced also in the Hunnic times in the Cherniakhiv culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thin glass products have a giant field of application in several engineering branches such as for example, electronics, medical equipment, and the automotive industry. The non‐isothermal glass molding is a novel replicative glass processing technology enabling the realization of a cost‐efficient production of surface shapes with high accuracy and complexity. However, the application of this technology to thin glass production still causes shape distortions, cracks, and surface defects in molded parts. Therefore, these glass‐forming processes should be simulated by means of the combination of experimental investigation and mechanical modeling of glass above the glass transition temperature at finite strains. Previous experimental studies have shown that the Maxwell model is a reasonable approach for an appropriate prediction of the material behavior. Based on this viscoelastic formulation, a thermo‐mechanically consistent material law is used enabling the prediction of rheological effects noticed during the experiments. More specifically, the relaxation behavior can be described by a stress‐dependent relaxation time and the dissipation generated is considered as well. Furthermore, isothermal uniaxial compression tests above the glass transition temperature are conducted for different strain rates and temperatures within the experimental investigation. Combining the experimental data with the simulation, a multi‐curve‐fitting leads to suitable material parameters with respect to distinct temperatures employing a nonlinear optimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a new and promising reinforcing filler, electrospun glass nanofibers (EGNFs) have attracted attention in the field of polymer composite materials. However, the reinforcing effectiveness of surface-modified EGNFs using different silane coupling agents in epoxy resin is still not quite clear. In this research, a series of silane coupling agents with increasing chain lengths in the order of methyl trimethoxysilane (MTMS), (3-aminopropyl) triethoxysilane (APTES), (3-glycidyloxypropyl) trimethoxysilane (GPTMS), and dual silane coupling agent APTES–GPTMS were employed to carry out surface treatment on the EGNFs. The pristine and silane functionalized EGNFs were then incorporated into epoxy resin as reinforcing fillers at low loading levels, i.e., 0.25 wt.%, 0.5 wt.%, and 1 wt.%, and the mechanical properties of the resultant epoxy nanocomposites, including strength, stiffness, ductility, and toughness, were evaluated. A commercial product of glass nanoparticles (GNPs) was used as a control to compare the reinforcing effectiveness of the EGNFs and the GNPs. This study revealed that the EGNFs could provide significant reinforcing and toughening effects at ultra-low loading (0.25 wt.%) in epoxy nanocomposite materials. Furthermore, surface modification of the EGNFs with silane coupling agents with long chain lengths, e.g., by using dual silane coupling agents, APTES–GPTMS, could enhance the interfacial bonding between the EGNFs and the epoxy matrix and further increase the mechanical performance of the EGNF-reinforced epoxy nanocomposite materials. Through this research, we realized epoxy nanocomposite materials with much-improved mechanical properties, i.e., 37%, 24%, 18%, 57% improvement in strength, stiffness, ductility, and toughness, respectively, with respect to those of the cured neat epoxy material with an ultra-low loading (0.25 wt.%) of APTES–GPTMS–EGNFs. Our research paves the road for developing lighter and stronger epoxy nanocomposite materials with EGNFs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Author(s): Kadir Küçük (corresponding author) [1] Introduction This is a case of isotretinoin-induced acute eosinophilic pneumonia (AEP). Four case reports in the literature have described this rare adverse event. Drug-induced [...], This is a case of acute eosinophilic pneumonia (AEP) in a 21-year-old woman with acne vulgaris who was treated with isotretinoin. During treatment, her blood tests showed normal results until the third month, when there was a slight increase in eosinophil count. In the fifth month of treatment, the patient presented to the pulmonology outpatient clinic with complaints of shortness of breath. Lung CT imaging revealed infiltration in both lungs characterized by ground glass opacities. AEP was diagnosed based on blood and imaging results. Isotretinoin therapy was terminated, and oral steroids were initiated, resulting in the improvement of the patient's symptoms. The patient had no additional risk factors except for smoking, but she had not started or resumed smoking after quitting. This case report highlights the possibility of hypersensitivity pneumonitis following isotretinoin administration. Keywords: Eosinophilic, isotretinoin, pneumonia