ALBERT

Description: This work analyses the effect of the receiver movement on the detection by pulse compression of different families of codes characterizing the emissions of an Ultrasonic Local Positioning System. Three families of codes have been compared: Kasami, Complementary Sets of Sequences and Loosely Synchronous, considering in all cases three different lengths close to 64, 256 and 1,024 bits. This comparison is first carried out by using a system model in order to obtain a set of results that are then experimentally validated with the help of an electric slider that provides radial speeds up to 2 m/s. The performance of the codes under analysis has been characterized by means of the auto-correlation and cross-correlation bounds. The results derived from this study should be of interest to anyone performing matched filtering of ultrasonic signals with a moving emitter/receiver.

Description: Sustainability, Vol. 10, Pages 2446: Effect of Operating Parameters on the Performance Evaluation of Benthic Microbial Fuel Cells Using Sediments from the Bay of Campeche, Mexico Sustainability doi: 10.3390/su10072446 Authors: Nancy González-Gamboa Xochitl Domínguez-Benetton Daniella Pacheco-Catalán Sathish Kumar-Kamaraj David Valdés-Lozano Jorge Domínguez-Maldonado Liliana Alzate-Gaviria Benthic microbial fuel cells (BMFC) are devices that remove organic matter (OM) and generate energy from sediments rich in organic nutrients. They are composed of electrodes with adequate different distances and floating air cathodes in an aqueous medium with saturated oxygen. In this study we proposed to design, build, analyze and evaluate a set of BMFCs with floating air cathodes to test the optimal distance between the electrodes, using sediment from the Bay of Campeche as a substrate. For the analysis of OM removal, COD tests, volatile solids (VS), E4/E6 study and FTIR analysis were performed. Power generation was evaluated through polarization curves, cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). We achieved a current density and power density at 10 cm depth of 929.7 ± 9.5 mA/m2 and 109.6 ± 7.5 mW/m2 respectively, with 54% removal of OM from the sediment, obtaining formation of aliphatic structures. BMFCs are proposed as adequate systems for bioremediation and power generation. The system at 10 cm depth and 100 cm distance between sediment and the floating air cathode had a good performance and therefore the potential for possible scaling.

Description: We present the development and testing of a web application called the historical validation tool (HVT) that processes and visualizes observed and simulated historical stream discharge data from the global GEOGloWS ECMWF streamflow services (GESS), performs seasonally adjusted bias correction, computes goodness-of-fit metrics, and performs forward bias correction on subsequent forecasts. The HVT corrects GESS output at a local scale using a technique that identifies and corrects model bias using observed hydrological data that are accessed using web services. HVT evaluates the performance of the GESS historic simulation data and provides more accurate historic simulation and bias-corrected forecast data. The HVT also allows users of the GEOGloWS historical streamflow data to use local observed data to both validate and improve the accuracy of local streamflow predictions. We developed the HVT using Tethys Platform, an open-source web application development framework. HVT presents data visualization using web mapping services and data plotting in the web map interface while functions related to bias correction, metrics reporting, and data generation for statistical analysis are computed by the back end. We present five case studies using the HVT in Australia, Brazil, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, and Peru. In these case studies, in addition to presenting the application, we evaluate the accuracy of the method we implemented in the HVT for bias correction. These case studies show that the HVT bias correction in Brazil, Colombia, and Peru results in significant improvement in historic simulation across the countries, while bias correction only resulted in marginal historic simulation improvements in Australia and the Dominican Republic. The HVT web application allows users to use local data to adjust global historical simulation and forecasts and validate the results, making the GESS modeling results more useful at a local scale.