Sharif Digital Repository

Robot navigation is a challenging problem in robotics, which involves determining of robot positioning relative to objects in the environment, and also the mobility of robot through obstacles without colliding into them. The former is known as localization, while the latter is called motion planning. This paper introduces a roadmap method for solving motion planning problem in a dynamic environment based on Generalized Voronoi Diagram (GVD). The efficiency of the proceeding work is verified by examining it in a sample home environment. © 2008 Springer-Verlag  

For the present article, a pulsating heat pipe (PHP) is fabricated and tested experimentally by bending a copper tube. The effects of working fluid, heat input, charging ratio, inclination angle, magnets location, and ferrofluid (magnetic nanofluid) volumetric concentration have been investigated on the thermal performance of this PHP. Experimental results show that using ferrofluid as a working fluid improves the thermal performance of the PHP significantly. Moreover, applying a magnetic field on a ferrofluidic PHP reduces its thermal resistance. By changing the inclination angle of the PHP from vertical mode to angles close to the horizontal mode, the present PHP has a constant and... 

The preparation of composite manganese dioxide (MnO2) nanoparticles in an ordered mesoporous carbon (CMK-3) matrix and its use for constructing a new wide-potential-window supercapacitor is reported. CMK-3 is prepared using mesoporous silica as a hard template and sucrose as carbon source. The different ratios of MnO2/CMK-3 composite is synthesized by impregnating CMK-3 with a Mn(NO3)2·4H 2O solution followed by annealing in nitrogen. Physical properties, morphology, and specific surface area were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and nitrogen sorption measurements, respectively. The electrochemical properties of the composite were studied by cyclic... 

Various hybrid EMG-assisted optimization (EMGAO) approaches are commonly used to estimate muscle forces and joint loads of human musculoskeletal systems. Use of EMG data and optimization enables the EMGAO models to account for inter- and intra-individual variations in muscle recruitments while satisfying equilibrium requirements. Due to implications in ergonomics/prevention and rehabilitation/treatment managements of low-back disorders, there is a need to evaluate existing approaches. The present study aimed to compare predictions of three different EMGAO and one stability-based optimization (OPT) approaches for trunk muscle forces, spinal loads, and stability. Identical measured... 

In a competitive electricity market, a generation company (GenCo) optimizes its operation schedules, referred to as self-scheduling, in order to maximize its profit. However, various sources of uncertainty, such as market price fluctuations or forced outage of generating units, may impact the GenCo's profit. In this paper, a non-probabilistic information-gap model is proposed to model the uncertainties in short-term scheduling of a GenCo. The self-scheduling problem is formulated for risk-neutral, risk-averse, and risk-seeker GenCos. Robustness of the decisions against low market prices are evaluated using a robustness model. Furthermore, windfall higher profit due to unpredicted higher... 

This paper studies the economic impact of using inaccurate price forecasts on self-scheduling of generation companies (GenCos) in a competitive electricity market. Four alternative sets of price forecasts are used in this study which have different levels of accuracy. The economic impact of price forecast inaccuracies is calculated by comparing the economic benefits of the GenCos in two self-scheduling scenarios. In the first scenario, electricity market price forecasts are used to optimally schedule the GenCos' next day operation. In the second scenario, perfect price forecasts, i.e., actual market prices, are used for self-scheduling of the GenCos. Two indices are utilized to quantify the... 

Just a few investigations have been conducted to study the mixed nanofluids(MNs), which contain more than one type of nanoparticles, despite considerable advances in the field of nanofluids thermal conductivity. In present research, by combining different volume fractions of various nanoparticles, the variation of mixed nanofluids thermal conductivity was considered. The mentioned nanofluids have different fabrication cost. First, the effect of each specific nanoparticle presence in the base fluid on the thermal conductivity of nanofluid was surveyed both experimentally and theoretically. Then, the thermal conductivities of two MNs, one consisted of a metallic nanoparticle (high thermal... 

Herein, we report a modified two-step method to construct a uniform and pinhole-free polycrystalline perovskite film with large grains up to the microscale using lead mixed-halide (PbI2-PbCl2) precursor solutions to guarantee the device functioning. Commonly used sequential deposition methods based on dip- and spin-coatings are combined with a vapor-assisted solution process to improve the perovskite morphology and tune the residual lead mixed-halides. These can enhance the optical absorption and efficiency of perovskite solar cell (PSC) devices. The impact of the Cl content in the lead mixed-halide precursors and the employed preparation methods on the photovoltaic performance of PSCs are... 

Electricity load forecasting plays an important role for optimal power system operation. Accordingly, short term load forecast (STLF) is also becoming an important task by researchers to tackle the mentioned problem. As a consequence of the highly non-smooth and volatile trend of the load time series specially in building levels, its STLF is even a more complex procedure than that of a power system. For this purpose, in this paper we proposed a new prediction model based on a new feature selection algorithm and hybrid forecast engine of enhanced version of empirical mode decomposition named sliding window EMD bundled with an intelligent algorithm. The proposed forecast engine is combined... 

Electricity load forecasting plays an important role for optimal power system operation. Accordingly, short term load forecast (STLF) is also becoming an important task by researchers to tackle the mentioned problem. As a consequence of the highly non-smooth and volatile trend of the load time series specially in building levels, its STLF is even a more complex procedure than that of a power system. For this purpose, in this paper we proposed a new prediction model based on a new feature selection algorithm and hybrid forecast engine of enhanced version of empirical mode decomposition named sliding window EMD bundled with an intelligent algorithm. The proposed forecast engine is combined... 

A key direction toward enhancing the long term and outdoor stability of the perovskite solar cells is encapsulation. As a result, a suitable encapsulation package is required to prevent moisture and oxygen penetration toward the perovskite solar cells. In this work, a low-cost commercially available bilayer structure of poly (methyl methacrylate)/ room-temperature vulcanizing silicone rubber (RTV) encapsulation package for enhancing the long term stability of the perovskite solar cells has been investigated. Encapsulated cells retained more than 80% of the initial efficiency at the environmental condition of 50% moisture, and room temperature after 1000 h, however reference cell efficiency... 

Pulsating heat pipes (PHPs) are interesting heat transfer devices. Their simple, high maintaining, and cheap arrangement has made PHPs very efficient compared to conventional heat pipes. Rotating closed loop PHP (RCLPHP) is a novel kind of them, in which the thermodynamic principles of PHP are combined with rotation. In this paper, effect of rotational speed on thermal performance of a RCLPHP is investigated experimentally. The research was carried out by changing input power (from 25. W to 100. W, with 15. W steps) and filling ratio (25%, 50%, and 75%) for different rotational speeds (from 50. rpm to 800. rpm with an increment of 125. rpm). The results presented that at a fixed filling... 

In the present study, a novel strategy based on particle motion mode is introduced to control the manipulation process of a bio-particle using trolling mode atomic force microscope. To achieve this goal, the reduced governing partial differential equations and the standard form of the system are used as a model for the system dynamic behavior. The governing equations take 6 degrees of freedom into account including extension, torsion, and two lateral bendings of the microcantilever as well as two lateral bendings of the nanoneedle. Manipulation process of the 500 nm radius particle on the substrate includes two phases named sticking and sliding. Sticking of the particle to the substrate... 

A key direction toward managing extrinsic instabilities in perovskite solar cells (PSCs) is encapsulation. Thus, a suitable sealing layer is required for an efficient device encapsulation, preventing moisture and oxygen ingression into the perovskite layer. In this work, a solution-based, low-cost, and commercially available bilayer structure of poly(methyl methacrylate)/styrene-butadiene (PMMA/SB) is investigated for PSCs encapsulation. Encapsulated devices retained 80% of the initial power conversion efficiency (PCE) at 85 °C temperature and 85% relative humidity after 100 h, while reference devices without SB (only PMMA) suffer from rapid and intense degradation after only 2 h, under the... 

Herein, we report a new strategy for improving the efficiency and reducing the fabrication cost of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) by elimination of the three- or four-fold layer deposition of TiO2. This is performed by replacing a single layer deposition of mesoporous TiO2 beads, with sub-micrometer size, high surface area and tunable pore size, synthesized by a combination of sol-gel and solvothermal methods. Furthermore, superior electronic properties gained by a reduction in electronic trap states are achieved through doping of pristine TiO2 beads with lithium. The beads have a spherical shape with monodispersed texture consisting of anatase-TiO2 nanocrystals and ultra-fine pores. The... 

Systematic delivery of therapeutic agents to specific sites, with a stimulus-responsive drug release profile is currently a rapidly growing area. Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) are the useful platforms as drug/gene delivery systems due to their unique properties including the ability to control the pore size, high porosity, and morphology, which can directly affect the mechanism and profile of drug release. The appropriate fabrication strategy can tailor the particle shape and size, leading to enhanced delivery and release mechanisms. The MSN surface can be modified by using either organic or inorganic molecules to induce smart and site-specific drug delivery and release.... 

The aim of this research is the study of hexyltriphenylphosphonium bromide (HTPB) ionic liquid as a bifunctional promoter (solvent and catalyst) in the presence of cerium(IV) ammonium nitrate as a single electron oxidant for the Michael reaction at room temperature and solvent-free conditions. A novel, one-pot and environmentally benign the process to achieve the chemoselective of 2-(3-oxo-1,3-diarylpropyl)malononitrile derivatives instead of 2-(1,3-diarylallylidene)malononitriles using a three-component reaction involving acetophenone derivatives, various aromatic aldehydes and malononitrile was developed. This protocol is simple and provides biologically interesting products in good... 

In this study, a general 3D distributed modeling of Trolling-Mode AFM (TR-AFM) as a nanorobot is presented to analyze the 2D manipulation process of a spherical cell. To this aim, the analysis is categorized into 3 sections. In the first section, 6 deformations of TR-AFM are taken into account, and the standard model of the system is obtained. Moreover, the system is simulated in ANSYS Workbench. The results of modal and transient analyses of the system from both analytical and software methods reveal high agreement, which confirms the accuracy of the presented analytical model. In the second section, by utilizing the 3D derived model, displacement of a spherical yeast single cell (W303)... 

The anatase phase of titania was stabilised with physically modifying particulate sol-gel process. Two major parameters, peptisation temperature and drying temperature, were identified which were responsible for retarding the anatase to rutile phase transformation, crystal growth and packing of primary particles. The critical nucleus size of transformation was controlled by natural (at 25 °C) and artificial (at 50 and 70 °C) peptisation techniques. Moreover, sintering of primary particles was controlled by cool (at 0 and 5 °C) and normal (at 25 °C) drying techniques. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) analysis confirmed that a full conversion of titanium isopropoxide is obtained... 

In this study, a reliable and predictive model namely, least-squares support vector machine (LS-SVM) was developed to predict dye removal efficiency. Four LS-SVM models have been developed and tested using more than 630 series of experimental data which were obtained from our previous paper. These data consist of adsorbate type, adsorbent dosage, initial dye concentration, salt, absorbance time and dye removal efficiency. Direct Red 31 (DR31), Direct Green 6 (DG6) and Acid Blue (AB92) were used as a model dyes. The results show that the developed model is more accurate and reliable with the average absolute relative deviation of 0.678%, 0.877%, 0.581% and 0.978% for single systems and...