Volume 3, Issue 11, Novebmer 2012


Software Development (PAKPAVE) for Flexible Pavement Design

Rafi Ullah Khan, Muhammad Imran Khan and Afed Ullah Khan

Department of Civil Engineering, University of Engineering and Technology Bannu Campus, Pakistan
Department of Civil Engineering, King Faisal University Saudi Arabia

Abstract– In today’s world, the road and surface failure of the flexible pavement has become the most important and attention diverting problem, which may be due to the low quality of materials used, less and inadequate experience of the technical staff, and errors that may occur during the designing of the pavement. The design of thickness of the flexible pavement has taken the backbone place in determining the overall performance and providing high level of serviceability of the pavement structure for the heavy traffic loads under the adverse climatic conditions, during the expected design period. The aim of this research is to develop software for the flexible pavement design based on the AASHTO, Group Index, and CBR. This software can be used to determine the thickness of each layer, design life evaluation, knowing the relative damage factor, finding the various design variables like calculating the structural number and equivalent single axle load etc and climatic effects. The results obtained from this software were analyzed and compared with the theoretical (manual) design and with the DARWin, a design software of AASHTO, and were found absolutely feasible and accurate. This flexible Pavement software can save the precious time and avoid the errors and difficulties occurring during the conventional methods of design.

Keywords— PAKPAVE, AASHTO, CBR, Group Index, Flexible Pavement Design Software, PAKPAVE for Flexible Pavement Design

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Solving Probation and Change-of-Major Issues in Higher Education Using Data Mining Techniques

Marie Khair, Walid Zakhem and Chady El Moucary

Notre Dame University - Louaize, North Lebanon Campus, Barsa, El Koura, North, Lebanon

Abstract– the rate of success in higher education is of utmost importance for both students and academic institutions. Indeed, it is a turning point in the students’ life and a prerequisite for entering the professional world and/or developing a career. Additionally, higher-education institutions are competing in keeping a high retention rate and adequate transcripts with high students’ performance. Admissions’ entrance exams, school grades and SATs are some of the screening procedures that institutions exercise in order to monitor students through different programs of studies. Nonetheless, students are not usually fully aware of their choice when they apply for a major in terms of the requirements it shall imply, namely regarding special skills, which reveal only at advanced stages of their studies. In many cases, students fall under probation, face suspension and eventually have to change their major. The objective of this paper is to draft a clear and accurate assessment procedure that shall anticipate the aforementioned predicaments. The procedure will be developed using Educational Data Mining techniques and Neural Networks with the perspective of endowing both students and advisors the capacity of an early-stage decision-making tool based on the performance during the first year of studies and using specific courses, “relieffed” as indicators. Simulation results show the effectiveness of the suggested approach in terms of predicting academic issues at very early stages and offering pertinent guidelines and solutions thus, sustaining a higher retention rate in the different programs and majors.

Keywords— Component, Educational Data Mining, Neural Networks, Clustering, Relief, Probation, Change-of-Major and Students’ Performance

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Implementation of Optical Performance Monitor Module Interfacing in DWDM system

Chittajit Sarkar

Swami Vivekananda Institute of Science and Technology, West Bengal University of Technology, India

Abstract– Purpose of this paper is to describe the hardware design interfacing of the Optical Performance Monitor Module (OPM) for 80/88 channel DWDM system operating at discrete wavelengths in the C-band (1530nm-1565nm) centered around 193.1 THz frequency as per ITU-T Rec.G.694.1 grid, at 50 GHz channel spacing.The Optical Performance Monitor Module is used to monitor and supervise the Optical signal performance. Optical signal performance includes actual values of OSNR, channel power and optical frequency.

Keywords— DCM, DWDM, ITU-T, OPM, OBA, ILA, OPA and OSC

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To Know the Short and Long Term Improvement Works Required for the Bannu D.I. Khan Road

Afed Ullah Khan, Rafi Ullah Khan, Mohammad Imran Khan, Attiqurehman and Umar Nawaz Khan

Department of Civil Engineering, University of Engineering and Technology Bannu Campus, Pakistan
Department of Civil Engineering, King Faisal University Saudi Arabia

Abstract– Bannu is one of the most important districts of Province Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on the basis of its geographical location and strategic values. It serves as a gateway to the neighboring country Afghanistan and hence to the Russian federation and other linked countries. With the passage of time it has shown substantial economic, social, and industrial growth. As it works as a trade centre between the established areas & federally administrated tribal areas of Pakistan, and Afghanistan so its roads gets very congested. The main D.I Khan Road which connects it to the important and main trade zones of the country was reconstructed in 2003, and now the fast economic development, increase in population, and change in land use patterns has made it heavily congested. The length of road under observation has been divided into residential, commercial, and industrial areas according to its surrounding. From 2003 to 2011, the number of vehicles has increased by 51%, so the level of service it provides in all the three zones lies in category “F” of the HCM. As Pakistan is a developing country and its authorities don’t have enough funds to provide congestion free “A” level services, so this research was conducted to know short term policies to cope the problem, and according to results the level of service can be improved somehow by removing the encroachment and on-street parking specially in the residential area. But on the basis of existing situation, and keeping in view the building up peace in Afghanistan and the rapidly developing infrastructure in the tribal areas, the road passing through commercial and industrial areas would require extra widening.

Keywords— Bannu, Bannu D.I. Khan Road, Short Term and Long Term Improvement Works for Bannu D.I. Khan Road

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Reduction of Power Loss of Distribution System by Distribution Network Management

Sarang Pande and Dr. J.G. Ghodekar

Department of Electrical Engineering, K.K. Wagh Institute of Engineering & Research, Nashik, India

Abstract– Reducing the losses of power distribution systems (technical and non-technical losses) is an absolutely necessary objective in the sound management of any electrical utility. The transmission & distribution losses in Indian power system are high. Recent progress in optimization practices and computer technology has made it possible to perform accurate analysis of the distribution system and distribution losses. Most of the efforts of power planners concentrate on augmenting supply by building new power plants. But saving is possible by improving operating conditions for the distribution network. Due to inadequate planning and methods adopted for load shuffling, some networks are under loaded while others are overloaded. Thus there is some scope for improvement in operating strategies. Network reconfiguration in distribution system is realized by changing the status of the sectionalizing switches and is usually done for loss reduction and avoids overloading. In primary distribution system (11KV), the need for reconfiguration occurs in emergency condition following the fault to isolate faulted section and in normal condition to reduce system losses or to avoid overloading of network. The main objective of the paper is to outline a methodology for management of distribution system for loss reduction by network reconfiguration.

Keywords— Line Loss, Network Reconfiguration, Optimization, Distribution System and Power Loss

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Time Domain Chatter Stability Comparison of Turning and Milling Processes

Chigbogu G. Ozoegwu and Sam N. Omenyi

Department of Mechanical Engineering, Nnamdi Azikiwe University PMB 5025, Awka, Nigeria

Abstract– The delay differential equations describing the turning and milling processes are solved using MATLAB and results compared. The same set of parameter combinations are used for turning tool, one tooth, three tooth and six tooth milling tools in generating graphical trajectories of cutting process. This resulted in the comparison that gave rise to the conclusion that under full-immersion conditions milling stability characteristics get closer to that of turning as the number of teeth of milling tool increases.

Keywords— Turning Process, Milling Process, Method of Steps and Trajectories

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Serum Enzyme Activities in Patients with vivax malaria and falciparum malaria

Mohammad Ali Pir, Bikha Ram Devrajani, Saira Baloch and Marya Baloch

Department of Community Medicine & Public Health, Liaquat University of Medical & Health, Sciences, Jamshoro, Sindh, Pakistan
Medical Research Center, Liaquat University of Medical & Health Sciences, Jamshoro, Sindh, Pakistan
Institut Sciences Chimiques de Rennes, UMR 6226 CNRS Université de Rennes

Abstract– Background: Malaria is the most serious tropical diseases in the world and health risk to humans for many generations. Enzyme activity plays vital roles in metabolic pathways are expected to be severely disturbed in malarial patients. Methods: In the present study, blood serum levels of Enzyme Activities were determined in patients with vivax malaria and falciparum Malaria as compared to the Healthy Control Subjects. Creatine phosphokinase (CPK), Alkaline phosphatase (AKP), Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and Glutamine oxalotransaminase (S-GOT) activity were evaluated Thirty intravenous blood samples each from referred vivax malarial and falciparum malarial patients and a group of Healthy Control Subjects. The blood samples were centrifuged at 1500 rpm for 20 minutes; the serum was separated and immediately used for the determination of the enzyme activity by kit method using software controlled system on MicroLab300........

Keywords— Vivax Malaria, Falciparum Malaria, Serum, Enzyme Activity and Microlab300

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