Recent Patents on Concrete Pavers of Coalmines

Background: Concrete pavers are self-propelled units used in concrete pavement construction that have of paving, vibrating, and leveling functions. The existing concrete pavers have a large size, making it difficult for them to enter underground roadways, and it is difficult to adjust the paving equipment in real time when the width of the underground roadway is deformed. Objective: To realize intelligent concrete paving in coal mine roadways, based on the analysis of recent concrete paver patents, this paper proposes an intelligent virtual paving system based on 3D infrared scanning imaging. Method: The intelligent virtual paving system, which uses multiple groups of 3D infrared scanners and signal processing systems, can collect and analyze 3D images in the roadway and perform virtual paving in the computer. This system can obtain the required parameters of roadway paving, such as the feeding amount, driving speed, limiter height, and width of the synovium, as well as give the initial paving parameters. Results: In the actual paving process, through virtual paving parameters, the feeding amount and accelerator can be regulated in real time, and the difference between the actual paving and virtual paving can be judged to change the paving width in real time. Conclusion: Intelligent virtual paver systems have a guiding significance for the improvement of existing paver systems.

Application of the infrared scanning method for optimizing the microclimate of the winter garden for bees

The article discusses the practical significance of using the infrared scanning method to optimize the microclimate of wintering grounds for bee colonies in extreme conditions of the cryolithozone. When monitoring the microclimate by generally accepted zoohygienic methods, the devices record specific indicators of a particular parameter (temperature, humidity, air velocity, pressure, noise, light), while the reason for the deviation from the standard indicators for optimizing the microclimate is not always possible to find out. When using the infrared scanning method with the Irtis 2000SN thermal imager to determine the reasons for the deviation of the microclimate parameters from the standards, the following results were obtained: defects of enclosing structures were found: joints of walls and floor and joints of floor boards with a minus temperature of up to -21°C; the entrance group with a defect of heat leakage, warming the outdoor air to -36°C at an outdoor temperature of -48°C; the reason for the deviation of the air velocity of 0.18 m/s deviation from the standard by 0.08 m/s are defects of enclosing structures (Fig.7,8,12). The targeted elimination of the defects of the enclosing structures detected by infrared scanning made it possible to quickly optimize the parameters of the microclimate of the winter garden, thereby increasing the results of successful wintering of bee colonies. The analysis of the wintering results showed that the proportion of successful wintering in 2019 was 90%, which is 20% more than in 2018 and 30% more than in 2017

A fast, nondestructive method for the detection of disease-related lesions and wounded leaves

Trypan blue staining is a classic way of visualizing leaf disease and wound responses in plants, but it involves working with toxic chemicals and is time-consuming (2–3 days). Here, the investigators established near-infrared scanning with standard lab equipment as a fast and nondestructive method for the analysis of leaf injuries compared with trypan blue staining. Pathogen-inoculated and wounded leaves from potato, tomato, spinach, strawberry, and arabidopsis plants were used for proof of concept. The results showed that this newly developed protocol with near-infrared scanning gave the same results as trypan blue staining. Furthermore, a macro in FIJI was made to quantify the leaf damage. The new protocol was time-efficient, nondestructive, chemical-free and may be used for high-throughput studies.

Study on Adsorption of Methylene Blue from Aqueous Solution by Biochar Derived from Mimosa Pigra Plant

Biochar from mimosa pigra was studied to remove methylene blue (MB) from aqueous solution. The properties of biochars were determined using Fourier Transform Infrared, scanning electron microscope, and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller. The biochar achieved the yield of 24.62 % at 500 oC pyrolysis. The specific surface area of ​​the biochar is 285.53 m2/g, the total pore size is 0.153 cm3/g and the ash content is 2.79%. The optimal dose of removing MB of the biochar is 5 g/L and the optimal pH is 2 - 10. MB removal reached over 80% in the first 30 min, followed by a stable period of 120 to 360 min reaching over 90% of removal. Maximum adsorption capacity reached 20.18 mg/g at 25 oC. MB adsorption data is suitable for kinetic models in order: Avrami > Elovich > PSO > PFO. The adsorption process may comprise physical and chemical adsorption andmultiple stages.

Innovative method for optimizing the microclimate of the winter hive for bees in the conditions of the cryolithozone

The article discusses the practical significance of the use of infrared scanning method for optimizing the microclimate of winter hives and monitoring bee colonies in extreme conditions of cryolithozone. When monitoring the microclimate by generally accepted zoohygienic methods, the devices record specific indicators of a particular parameter (temperature, humidity, air velocity, pressure, noise, light), while the reason for the deviation from the standard indicators for microclimate optimization is not always possible to find out. When using the infrared scanning method with the Irtis 2000SN thermal imager, it was possible to determine the reasons for the deviation of the parameters of the winter hive microclimate. The targeted elimination of defects in the enclosing structures detected by infrared scanning made it possible to quickly optimize the parameters of the winter hive microclimate. Contactless monitoring of the state of bee colonies during the winter dormancy. This early informative diagnosis without stress allows to identify a problem bee colony and take timely rescue measures. The analysis of the wintering results showed that the proportion of successful wintering in 2019 was 90%, which is 20% more than in 2018 and 30% more than in 2017.

Effects of selected bleaching agents on the functional and structural properties of orange albedo starch-based bioplastics

Recent research has proven that starch offers a wide range of industrial, commercial, and utility applications if they are optimally processed and refined. In this study, the effect of hydrogen peroxide (HP), sodium persulfite, peracetic acid (PAA), and sodium perborate (SPB) bleaching agents on the physiochemical, surface, mechanical, and flow properties were investigated. The various bleached starch bioplastics were characterized using Fourier transform infrared, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and thermogravimetric analysis. Hydroxyl and carbonyl (C=O) stretching were seen for HP- and PAA-bleached starch bioplastics at 3285 and 1736 and 3265 and 1698 cm−1, respectively. The C=O band was absent for SPB-treated starch, whereas the C=S band was seen on sodium hyposulfite (SHS)-treated starch. The morphologies of starch were retained with little agglomerations, except for HP-treated starch bioplastics with a morphology change. HP-treated starch had the highest percentage crystallinity (66%) and the highest thermal stability (74% weight loss), whereas PAA-treated starch had the lowest percentage crystallinity (34%) and the lowest thermal stability (88% weight loss). HP- and SHS-bleached starch bioplastics had the best surface, mechanical, and expansion properties.