Analysis of Water Consumption in Fruit and Vegetable Processing Plants with the Use of Artificial Intelligence

Fruit and vegetable processing has a significant impact on the environment due to its consumption of a significant amount of water. Water consumption mainly depends on the type of production and the technology used. Water in fruit and vegetable processing plants is used as a raw material, an energy carrier, and in hydro transport, as well as for washing raw materials and maintaining production hygiene. The variety of technological operations carried out in the production process and the seasonality of production make it difficult to objectively assess the use of water in fruit and vegetable processing plants. Few available publications in this field provide numerical values of water unit consumption indices, with none entering into the cause-and-effect relationships of water use in plants in this industry. The aim of this study was to analyze the research to date and to verify the following research hypothesis: the structure of processing and the relationship between the weights of individual products have an impact on water consumption in fruit and vegetable processing plants. For this purpose, neural models of water consumption were developed for the largest agri-food processing plants in Poland that use similar technology. Water consumption was then optimized using genetic algorithms for the processing structure. The results confirmed the hypothesis that production structure has a significant impact on the rationalization of water consumption. The optimization results show that the production of concentrates, juices, and drinks has the greatest impact on water consumption. The lowest water consumption will be achieved when the production of concentrates is at a 2 to 1 ratio to the production of juices and drinks.

TechnoPORTA intelligent, customized technological line for the automated production of technical doors - selected technical and economic indicators

TechnoPORTA. Intelligent, customized technological line for the automated production of technical doors - selected technical and economic indicators. The development and implementation of innovative production of technical doors in a pilot technological line made it possible to automate the production process. It became possible to manufacture doors with dimensions and weight significantly exceeding the current technological capabilities of the company. An additional benefit resulting from the implementation of the TechnoPORTA line is the improvement of technical and economic indicators related to the consumption of basic materials, additional materials and energy. It relates to annual savings of material in the production line, the unit consumption of electricity and the unit application of the adhesive during postforming.

Calculation model of the tractor transport set – Economic and environmental indicators

This contribution presents a calculation method of indicators in agricultural transport. The tractor Zetor Forterra 8641 with a silage trailer was used. Calculations were performed with various weights of transported material: 2.5, 3.6, 5.8, 7.4 and 9.0 tons. The model was created concerning significant parameters of the transport set, engine characteristics and route. It considered splitting of the route into elementary sections, in which important route parameters were regarded as constant. Indicators were defined in every section (fuel consumption, emissions, etc.) and overall values were calculated as a sum. The set with 7.4 t of load reached the lowest unit costs 20.62 CZK·tkm^–1, transport output 79.51 tkm·h^–1 and unit consumption 0.14 L·tkm^–1. The set with the maximum load 9.0 t reached output 86.05 tkm·h^–1 but unit costs were 20.68 CZK·tkm^–1. Using the maximum capacity was not the most effective option. When the weight of a load increased (from 2.5 to 9.0 t), driving time extended from 0.28 to 0.46 h and hourly transportation output increased from 38.60 to 86.05 tkm·h^–1, unit consumption decreased from 0.24 to 0.13 L·tkm^–1. Total emissions significantly increased, but unit emissions decreased in average two times for each pollutant.

The development of electromobility in the aspect of the energy infrastructure condition assessment

Electric vehicles are considered emission-free. However, having high-emission and a high degree of electricity demand coverage infrastructure, these vehicles should be considered as internal combustion cars. The purpose of the analysis carried out in this study is to present the state of energy infrastructure in Poland, to determine losses related to energy transmission and greenhouse gas emissions to the atmosphere in relation to unit consumption. Analyzing the data obtained, the emission of the electric vehicle was compared to that of a vehicle powered by diesel oil and fuel with the addition of a biocomponent.

Possibilities of Using the Type Bypass Air Bleed in a Single-Flow Jet Engine

The paper outlines the analysis dedicated to possibilities of using the type Bypass air bleed in a single-flow jet engine. Attention is focused on development of formulas for key operational parameters of the engine, such as overall work of the thermal cycle, unit thrust and unit consumption of fuel. Simulation and modelling a single-flow jet engine were carried out for the K-15 engine of a Polish make where an air bleeding of that kind is applied. It was confirmed that such engines offer some slight benefits, in particular in terms of cost-efficiency, and such benefits increase in pace with growth of the mass air flow intensity through the bypass channel.

Developing a software calculating fabric consumption of various bathrobe models

Considering the customer requests and speed in the textile sector, very fast and accurate pricing should be done when the customers ask for very urgent prices for different styles. Customers often ask for sample pricing from apparel manufacturers. In this case, the garment manufacturer has to move quickly and accurately in determining the unit consumption of the garment. It is very important to know the correct fabric cost in pricing the garment to be produced. In general, the cost of fabric in garments accounts for 60–70% of the total cost. Manufacturers take risks when pricing the garment with the approximate fabric consumption. Fabric consumption tolerance can be taken higher to be a benefit, but then the order may not be placed by the customer due to high price. In CAD systems, calculation of fabric consumption can not be done easily. In this research, the software has been developed to calculate the unit usage of a garment quickly. Bathrobemodels were selected as a material and the data of a factory that produces bathrobe was used. The results of the program, which is developed with the software, are compared with the experimental figures. As a result, it was possible to determine fabric consumption with a reliability of 98.2% in a very short time by using the developed system (R2 > 0.982).

The Consumption Ratios for Aggregates to Concrete in Single-Family Houses

Natural aggregates are widely used both in ribbon and volumetric construction. In respect of quantitative demand, ribbon construction has been definitely much more receptive in recent years. After completion of implementation of large infrastructural investments, co-financed by EU funds, volumetric construction will become one of major directions of sale of aggregates. Due to a lack of accurate information about consumption of aggregates in this construction segment, it is important to estimate the unit consumption ratios in different types of volumetric structures. The thesis presents the statistical image of demand for aggregates depending on selected features of single-family buildings. The basis assumed for determining unit consumption of aggregates is the amount of concrete juxtaposed in design documentations and average content of aggregates in concrete mix. Consumption of aggregates has been defined in respect of such features of a building as: building area, total area, usable area, volume. Also, consumption was assessed depending on structural solutions of ceilings and major architectonic features: the number of storeys above ground and underground. The conducted analyses imply that consumption of aggregates varies according to not only the size of a house under construction, but also the architectural-constructional type of the building. In most cases, the consumption of aggregates to concrete correlates most favourably with the volume of the buildings. The average value of the aggregates consumption ratio is 0.21 Mg per 1 m3 of building volume, with the standard error of the mean equalling 0.003. As regards particular building types, the obtained mean values have a have a lower coefficient of variation, and similar values standard error, especially for the index calculated relative to the usable area. Therefore, it is justified to use these ratios interchangeably. It is possible to prepare regional demand scenarios for aggregates, especially gravel-sand aggregates which are the primary type used to produce concrete, using statistics of the residential construction market, including detached single-family construction, which have been kept for years, supplemented with the identified aggregate consumption ratios.

Exergetic Analysis For A Complete Node Of Fluidised-Bed Drying Of Poppy Seeds

The article presents an experimental-theoretical analysis of fluidised-bed drying of poppy seeds directed on minimisation of energy. The analysis was performed for a complete drying node incorporating a heat exchanger and a fan. Two complementary factors were used in the exergetic evaluation: exergy efficiency and unit consumption of exergy. An analysis of drying in stationary bed was carried out for comparison purposes. Results of the exergetic analysis can become a basis for innovative works focused on decreasing energy consumption of a technological node being analysed, e.g. by the use of recirculation of fluidising-drying medium.

Research on Optimal Control Model for Ball Mill Based on Genetic Algorithm

As the key equipment in coal-fired power plants, the optimal control problem of ball mill is an important factor affecting the efficient operation of the mill. In this paper, the output model, energy consumption model and unit consumption model of coal pulverizing system are built on the basis of analysis of ball mill running condition. The unit consumption model is used as the genetic algorithm fitness function. The outlet temperature, practical ventilation and coal load of ball mill are chosen as the optimization variables. The algorithm model is built to solve the multi-objective problem of ball mill.