Sharif Digital Repository

Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) is a biocompatible polymer which can be physically crosslinked by Borax to form hydrogel. PVA-Borax (PB) hydrogel is a promising candidate for drug delivery system. Therefore, it is necessary to find the quantitative relationship between drug release rate and network structure of PB hydrogels to predict and control drug release rate. In this work, at first step the optimum ratio of Borax: PVA was determined by studying the interactions between PVA chains and Borax molecules by means of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, while viscoelastic properties of prepared PB hydrogels were measured in the oscillatory shear flow field. In the following, curcumin as a... 

This study aims to identify underlying fundamental factors behind high-tech exports by the established and emerging countries, separately. The author also examines whether the two export patterns converge over time. Based on the gravity approach, a generalized method of moments panel estimator is applied to rigorously address the endogeneity problem in both static and dynamic versions of the model. In addition, the nonstationary and cointegrating features of variables are discussed. The author finds that high-tech exports from the emerging countries are mainly based on foreign direct investment inflows and participation in the international production chain, as well as a high degree of... 

Effects of initiator and surfactant concentrations and temperature on styrene conversion and polymer particle size distribution (PSD) in a batch emulsion polymerization are investigated through simulation and experimental studies. The detailed model based on population balance (zero-one model), accounting for nucleation, growth and coagulation phenomena has been used for prediction of particle size distribution. In checking the effect of initiator concentration on final PSD, it was noticed that when critical micelle concentration (CMC) is kept constant, the model cannot predict PSD very well. Thus, a correlation for calculating critical micelle concentration has been proposed and... 

In the past 10 years Iran has been emerging as a major car producer in the world. However, due to delays in economic reforms, Iranian car exports have not increased as much as production. This paper presents a first estimation of the Iranian export potential in the car industry. Based on new theoretical developments of the gravity equation, an empirical bilateral trade model is proposed. It includes sectoral variables (car production, import tariffs), as well as other original variables, such as expectations and hysteresis. We then develop a dataset which includes the 40 major car-exporting countries in the world, 34 importing countries, a 10-year time period as well as four car production... 

In this work, a new control strategy for controlling the particle size distribution (PSD) in emulsion polymerization has been proposed. It is shown that the desired PSD can be achieved by controlling the free surfactant concentration which in turn can be done by manipulating the surfactant feed rate. Simulation results show that the closed-loop control of free surfactant concentration results in a better control of PSD compared to open-loop control strategy, in presence of model mismatch and disturbances. Since the on-line measuring of ionic free surfactant concentration is difficult, conductivity which is related to it is measured instead and used for control purposes. The closed-loop... 

One of the main issues in colour image processing is changing objects' colour due to colour of illumination source. Colour constancy methods tend to modify overall image colour as if it was captured under natural light illumination. Without colour constancy, the colour would be an unreliable cue to object identity. Till now, many methods in colour constancy domain are presented. They are in two categories; statistical methods and learning-based methods. This paper presents a new statistical weighted algorithm for illuminant estimation. Weights are adjusted to highlight two key factors in the image for illuminant estimation, that is contrast and brightness. The focus was on the convex part of... 

Particle size distribution determines the major end-use properties of latex produced by emulsion. Therefore simulation and control of particle size distribution are important in emulsion polymerization. The investigated system is styrene polymerization. The model for determination of particle size distribution is based on population balance, accounting for nucleation and growth phenomena. The population balance equation (PBE) is discretized respect to particle radius. The ordinary differential equations obtained from discretization of PBE, initiator and monomers mass balances and algebraic thermodynamic equations are solved simultaneously via MATLAB programme. The accuracy of the model has... 

One of the main issues in colour image processing is changing objects' colour due to colour of illumination source. Colour constancy methods tend to modify overall image colour as if it was captured under natural light illumination. Without colour constancy, the colour would be an unreliable cue to object identity. Till now, many methods in colour constancy domain are presented. They are in two categories; statistical methods and learning-based methods. This paper presents a new statistical weighted algorithm for illuminant estimation. Weights are adjusted to highlight two key factors in the image for illuminant estimation, that is contrast and brightness. The focus was on the convex part of... 

In this article, two adaptive model predictive controllers (AMPC) are applied to regulate the blood glucose in type 1 diabetic patients. The first controller is constructed based on a linear model, while the second one is designed by using a nonlinear Hammerstein model. The adaptive version of these control schemes is considered to make them more robust against model mismatches and external disturbances. The least squares method with forgetting factor is used to update the model parameters. For simulation study, two well-known mathematical models namely, Puckett and Hovorka which describe the dynamical behavior of patient's body have been selected. The performances and robustness of the...