Outdoor Use Research Articles

Wearable bead-based triboelectric nanogenerator with dual-mode operation for monitoring abnormal behavior in dementia patients

A bead-based TENG (BB-TENG) that operates in dual-mode, contact-separation (CS) and free-standing (FS), is demonstrated as a two-in-one device. It serves both as an energy harvester and a sensor. This BB-TENG was designed to collect kinetic energy from two prevalent human movements: pressing related to the CS mode and walking linked to the FS mode. This functionality enables it to detect two typical behaviors of dementia patients while simultaneously harvesting energy: accidental falls corresponding to pressure and aimless wandering associated with walking, thereby enhancing its potential applications. The output characteristics from the BB-TENG was evaluated in terms of open-circuit voltage, short-circuit current and total transferred charge. The flexibility of the BB-TENG, which can be easily attached to a part of the body, gives it superior adaptability compared to other conventional TENGs. Furthermore, its sealed structure provides improved robustness against environmental factors such as humidity, making it suitable for outdoor use. A two-in-one module to enclose a wearable sensor and a flexible energy harvester can immediately alert the caregivers when a dementia patient wanders aimlessly and falls accidentally.

Investigation of color parameters in pine, limba, sapele, iroko, oak, and beech wood species exposed to outdoor conditions in Van city, Turkey

Sapele, pine, limba, iroko, beech, and oak wood species are important species used indoors and outdoors, as supplied by furniture companies. It is known that the color changes in wood material when exposed to the external environment. This is an important factor for the outdoor use of wood material. In this study, the color parameters of Scotch pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), oriental beech (Fagus orientalis L.), limba (Terminalia superba Engl. et Diels), sapele (Entandrophragma cylindricum), sessile oak (Quercus petraea L.), and iroko (Milicia excelsa) wood species, which are used in both indoor and outdoor woodworking industries in Van city, Turkey were investigated after exposing them to natural weather conditions for 9 months in outdoor conditions. Each type of wood exhibited a different color behavior in outdoor conditions. In sapele and limba wood species, b* and a* values increased and L* values decreased with increasing weathering time. It was observed that ∆E* increased with increasing time of exposure in all tree species. At the end of 9 months of weathering, the highest ∆E* value was determined in pine wood, followed by beech, sapele, limba, iroko, and oak wood species, respectively.

Urban Residential Water Demand and Household Size: A Robust Meta‐Regression Analysis*

We present the results of a meta‐analysis of household‐size water demand elasticity. The analysis is based on 75 primary studies. As there is evidence of publication bias, publication bias–corrected estimates are reported. For indoor water use, we find that in countries with gross domestic product (GDP) per capita below $10,000, the household‐size elasticity is approximately 0.4–0.5, and in countries with GDP per capita above $10,000, it is approximately 0.5–0.6. For outdoor water use, we find that there is no increase in water use as household size increases, at low incomes (GDP less than $5000 per capita), but the effect becomes positive at higher incomes. In countries with a GDP per capita between $5000 and $15,000, the household‐size outdoor water use elasticity is approximately 0.1, and in countries with a GDP per capita above $15,000, it is approximately 0.2. The positive household‐size elasticity implies that the cost of meeting basic water needs, per person, increases with household size in countries that use increasing block pricing for water. The use of a single volumetric price, equal to marginal cost, combined with a fixed charge, would lessen this effect and also improve system efficiency.

Surface protection of wood using cerium oxide nanoparticles dispersed paraffin wax nanoemulsion

Exposure to solar UV radiation and other environmental factors promotes the degradation and reduces the serviceability of the wood material under outdoor use. Oils and waxes have been found to be promising solutions for wood protection. This study elucidates the use of paraffin wax based emulsions incorporated with cerium oxide nanoparticles to improve weathering performance of wood. For this purpose, paraffin wax nanoemulsions were prepared by ultrasonication method using tween 80 as surfactant. Cerium oxide nanoparticles (conc. 0.5- to 2%) were added to provide protection against degradation caused by solar UV radiation. The storage stability of nano emulsion was assessed over a period of 30 days by measuring effective particle size and zeta potential. The microstructure of nanoemulsions was observed by optical microscopy and distribution of CeO2 nanoparticles on coated wood was observed through scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The chemical changes were analyzed by Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Wood specimens of Pinus radiata coated with nanoemulsions were subjected to the accelerated weathering tests for 500h. The time dependent changes in surface color of uncoated and coated wood samples were examined. Moreover, the chemical changes on exposed wood surfaces were analyzed by ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. Stable and homogenous nanoemulsions with particle diameter between 200 and 400 nm were formed and exhibited excellent storage stability. Results of color changes showed that maximum degradation was observed in uncoated wood whereas wood coated with paraffin wax nanoemulsion alone could not improve the UV resistance. However, the addition of cerium oxide nanoparticles proved to be efficient in controlling the color changes on wood surfaces. The degradation of wood components reduced significantly in cerium oxide coated wood which was confirmed by FTIR results.

MXene@Hydrogel composite nanofibers with the photo-stimulus response and optical monitoring functions for on-demand drug release

The photo-stimulus response has the advantage of non-invasiveness, which could be used to control the “on” and “off” of drug release achieving on-demand release. Herein, we design a heating electrospray during electrospinning to prepare photo-stimulus response composite nanofibers consisting of MXene@Hydrogel. This heating electrospray enables to spray MXene@Hydrogel during the electrospinning process, and the hydrogel is uniformly distributed which cannot be achieved by the traditional soaking method. In addition, this heating electrospray can also overcome the difficulty that hydrogels are hard to be uniformly distributed in the inner fiber membrane.The “on” and “off” state of drug release could be controlled by light. Not only near infrared (NIR) light but also sunlight could trigger the drug release, which could benefit outdoor use when cannot find NIR light. Evidence by hydrogen bond has been formed between MXene and Hydrogel, the mechanical property of MXene@Hydrogel composite nanofibers is significantly enhanced, which is conducive to the application of human joints and other parts that need to move. These nanofibers also possess fluorescence property, which is further used to real-time monitor the in-vivo drug release. No matter the fast or slow release, this nanofiber can achieve sensitive detection, which is superior to the current absorbance spectrum method.

Polarization characteristics of human body scattering in THz waves

As the 6th generation mobile communication system is expected to use the terahertz wave band, it is essential to clarify the human body blocking and scattering characteristics as many small cells for indoor and outdoor use will be needed. In addition, since it is important to use high-gain antennas with orthogonal polarization to realize efficient MIMO transmission, it is necessary to clarify the polarization characteristics of human body blocking and scattering. Experiments conducted to investigate human body scattering in the terahertz wave band show that the scattering characteristics are polarization dependent.

46‐2: Invited Paper: Outdoor Displays for Industrial and Digital Signage Applications

Outdoor applications integrating displays have expanded significantly during the past few years, as people want information in real‐time regardless of location or weather conditions. However, outdoor use comes with its own set of challenges.

Intelligent Blind-User Navigational Device Utilizing Image Processing

There are many thousands of blind people in the world who frequently require support. Since the white cane has long been known as an essential component of blind people's navigation, efforts have been made to enhance it by adding new sensors. Blind people are relatively comfortable inside their homes because they can pinpoint where things are, but in the outside world, as the objects are in motion, they face difficulties in locating the objects without an assistance. The research put forth strives to develop a sound navigation and range system for blind people. A real-time obstacle identification has been accomplished using ultrasonic sensors. In order to create a safe path for navigation to a destination, image processing in real-time is used for providing the blind person's perception of the size and distance of the obstacle utilizing raspberry pi for object detection. The suggested method makes use of a camera for recording the video sequence of surroundings, which it subsequently processes using a vocal input from a person who is visually impaired. It takes the location data while taking the (GPS) module for outdoor use. The location detail gathered is transported to the cloud.

ToF 거리 센서로 주행 모드 전환 인터랙션이 가능한 실내용 스마트 모빌리티 앙고(AngGo) 개발

Many shared mobility services, such as electric scooters and bicycles, are available for outdoor use. However, finding a suitable shared mobility vehicle for indoor environments still presents a significant challenge. In this paper, we propose AngGo, a shared indoor smart mobility vehicle that can move conveniently in indoor spaces and communicate user intentions through interactions. AngGo is a chair-shaped mobility vehicle that has four modes: semi-autonomous driving mode, footplate manual driving mode, joystick manual driving mode, and standby mode. In the semi-autonomous mode, AngGo can search for potential users and navigate indoor spaces using six time-of-flight (ToF) distance sensors. Upon noticing that it was difficult for a user to board a moving AngGo, we developed a two-way mode switching interaction using ToF distance sensors: following and blocking. This allows AngGo to change its mode to the standby mode through certain movements of the user. In the standby mode, when the user boards the AngGo, it switches to the footplate manual driving mode. Thereafter, the user can change AngGo’s mode to the joystick manual mode by pressing a joystick button. We also conducted a user experiment to evaluate the workload of the two methods in terms of switching mode interaction. The results showed no significant difference in workloads. However, based on the interviews, users preferred the following methods to blocking method.

EPA proposes to allow chlormequat on food

US grain producers may soon have a new tool to help improve crop yields in the face of increasingly severe weather events related to climate change. Against the wishes of environmental groups, the US Environmental Protection Agency is proposing to allow outdoor use of the plant growth regulator chlormequat chloride on barley, oat, triticale, and wheat. Taminco US, a subsidiary of Eastman Chemical, petitioned the EPA to allow such uses in 2021. Regulators did not find any risks of concern to human health, including to infants and children, but they did identify risks to workers who handle the pesticide and to some wildlife. Chlormequat is currently allowed on ornamentals in greenhouses and nurseries in the US. The chemical blocks hormones that stimulate growth, resulting in shorter and thicker stems that are less prone to breaking and bending. Earlier this year, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) sounded the alarm after finding

Water Absorption Characteristics of Two Rattan Species (Laccosperma Secundiflorum and Eremospatha Macrocarpa) from Fresh Water Swamp, Lagos State and Rain Forest, Edo State, Nigeria

Water Absorption is one of the properties that determine the suitability of rattan canes as structural material especially for outdoor use. This study therefore evaluated the water absorption characteristics of two rattan species (laccosperma secundiflorum and eremospatha macrocarpa) from a fresh water swamp, Arapagi village, Lagos state and rain forest-Nicholas village, Edo state in Nigeria by collecting three matured wild rattan species from each ecological location and the water absorption carried out after 24 hours and 48 hours respectively. The results show that, water absorption after 24 hours ranged from 39.63 % to 82.51%. However, water absorption after 48hours increased from 44.53 % to 93.74 %. It was also observed that water absorption after 24 hours and 48 hours increased along the axial direction from base to top. Meanwhile, the samples of the two rattan species sourced from Rain forest had lower water absorption values than Fresh water swamp. In conclusion, the two rattan species had different levels of water affinity, however, samples obtained at the base from Rain forest absorbed less water.

WALKING FRAME DESIGN RECOMMENDATION BASED ON EXPERIENCE OF ELDERLY USER, CARER, AND THE INDUSTRY IN KUALA LUMPUR & SELANGOR, MALAYSIA

Previous studies have found several discrepancies regarding walking frames/walkers. The purpose of this study was to investigate the issues and challenges that the elderly face when using a walking frame/walker, as well as to identify potential solutions and considerations. The Focus Group Discussion (FGD) and the Quality Function Deployment (QFD) sessions were conducted in this study which involved seventeen respondents from various parties, including people aged 60 and above (current users of walking frames/walkers), their caregivers, industry people involved in the marketing and selling of walking frames/walkers and experts/researchers. Interview data as verbatim transcripts were analyzed thematically and gathered systematically into a specific classification according to the House of Quality (HoQ) for technical analysis. Findings on FGD showed that quality, design, and cost were key issues raised by respondents. Based on the HoQ analysis, it’s indicated that the highest rank of customer requirements (CRs) for a new walking frames/walkers design requirement was safety (rank 1), stable (rank 2), suitable for outdoor use (rank 3), user-friendly (rank 4) and comfort design (rank 5). Meanwhile, the highest rank of technical requirements (TRs) are adjustable height and width (rank 1), design two-level handle walking frames/walkers and design ‘R’ shape walking frames/walkers (rank 2 & 3), design with ABS castor wheel (rank 4) which provided functional accessories such as seat, bucket, and pocket (rank 5). The information acquired would be useful as references for further studies on the development of suitable walking frames/walkers for the Malaysian elderly in the future.

First step for hand-held NIRS instrument field use: Table grape quality assessment consideration of temperature and sunlight chemometrics correction

Changes of temperature and sunlight disturb the spectra and furtherly influence the prediction outcome of near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in assessment of fruit quality during field measurement. The hand-held NIRS device combination of chemometrics method was investigated for correcting the influence of temperature and sunlight to the grape spectra. The distribution of the soluble solids content (SSC) within one bunch was analyzed, and the middle region of the bunch was recommended for NIRS sampling position. Chemometrics algorithms of global model, external parameter orthogonalisation (EPO) and generalised least square weighting (GLSW) were employed to correct the influence of temperature and sunlight. Comparison of global model and GLSW, EPO improved the performance of the partial least square regression (PLSR) models with coefficient of determination (Rp2) of 0.88–0.90, root mean square error of prediction (RMSEPiv) in the internal validation set of 0.89–0.94% and ratio of standard deviation (SD) to RMSEPiv (RPD) of 3.27–3.14 in predicting the samples at three temperatures and Rp2 of 0.98, RMSEPiv of 0.50% and RPD of 7.00 outdoor measurement. The results suggested that it was feasibility for correcting the influence of temperature and sunlight to the hand-held NIRS device to assess the grape bunch quality for outdoor use.

Photodegradation risk evaluation of polyurethane gluelines in wood products by infrared spectroscopy and mechanical tests

During outdoor use, glued wood products are exposed to rather harsh conditions, which involve moisture and temperature fluctuations, attacks by microorganism, UV radiation etc. For some risks, the effect on glued wood products are already known, however less investigated are the risks concerning UV radiation. It has been established that weathering affects only the surface of the wood without influencing the mechanical properties. However, polyurethanes are known to undergo more significant degradation with structural changes, strength reduction and surface erosion. The objective of the study was to investigate whether photodegradation caused by UV irradiation can impair the bond quality of glued wood products bonded with one-component polyurethane adhesives. In the study, considerable attention was attributed to the investigation of the chemical changes by FTIR methods focusing on the differences as well as normalisation possibilities of the spectra. The results showed that UV significantly degraded the chemical structure and mechanical properties of the one-component polyurethane films as well as introduced a number of microcracks in the gluelines. Despite that, glued wood products after UV irradiation showed only minor or none at all reduction in the bond quality characterised by wood failure percentage. The only identified aspect that had some effect was the thickness of glueline, which should be kept at minimum. The chemical analysis revealed two stable bands, which could be used for normalisation of polyurethanes FTIR spectra during weathering investigations. The corresponding bands are attributed to the aromatic and isocyanurate ring structures.

Corrosion Protection and Heat Resistance of Paints for Outdoor Use.

Innovative heat- and corrosion-resistant coating approaches, applicable in indirect-food-contact outdoor environments, have been developed. Two systems, a direct-to-metal single-layer, polysiloxane-based, oven-dried system and a bilayer, zinc phosphate active pigment-containing, ambient-cured system were developed to overcome the shortcomings of the traditional bilayer, zinc-rich primer-based heat-resistant surface-protective solutions for outdoor cooking equipment, such as barbecue grills. This case study aims to optimize the application conditions, measure and evaluate the impact of surface preparation and compare thermo-resistant and anticorrosive properties of different coating systems focusing on eco-efficiency. The anticorrosion efficiency of the coatings was characterized using salt-spray chamber corrosion tests and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The thermo-resistant character of the coatings was tested by cyclic and constant heat treatment, after which the physical integrity of the coatings was evaluated by optical microscopy. In the overall performance of the coatings, the roughening of the steel substrate surface and the thickness of the coatings were also considered as influential parameters. The study revealed that the newly developed coatings have superior anticorrosion performance to the usually applied Zn-rich coating. The Single-layered Coating has excellent corrosion resistance under certain conditions and has the advantage of fast layer application. The Bilayered Coating showed excellent heat- and corrosion-resistance properties even on a surface without sand-blasting.

Performance of ultrathin K2O·nSiO2 based laminated anti-fire glass: Influence of viscosity and morphology

The ultrathin K2O·nSiO2 based laminated anti-fire glass with super-multilayer morphology is prepared by a gradient heating method using a high SiO2 content (55 wt%) and low viscosity (684.5mPa.s ± 43.8mPa.s, 48 rpm) SiO2 core-shell emulsion. Meanwhile, K2O·nSiO2 with uniform morphology as a comparison sample is prepared by a thermostatic method using the same SiO2 emulsion. This article systemically characterized and analyzed the viscosity, morphology, hardness, ultraviolet (UV), and fire-resistant performance. The mechanism of shear-thinning characteristics is obtained by monitoring the viscosities of these SiO2 core-shell emulsions. The super-multilayer and uniform morphology are shown in SEM micrographs, and the UV-resistant capacity is more than 3000 h for outdoor use. Still, the hardness of the former is more than the latter. The foaming expansion layer has ensured window integrity under the fire. This work has provided a new simple routine for preparing ultrathin K2O·nSiO2 based laminated anti-fire glass for architectural safety applications.

How much water am I using for my yard?

This publication provides context and motivation for reducing outdoor water use. This is done by providing the estimated gallons of water used per irrigation cycle in Florida and then comparing the water used for irrigation to the water used for common indoor activities like showering or washing dishes.

U.S. Public Water Supply Is a Local Source of Phosphorus Pollution

Excess phosphorus may reach U.S. rivers, lakes, and groundwater through water main leaks and outdoor water use.

Trooping the (School) Colour

Trooping the (School) Colour

Ultrafine V2O5-anchored 3D N-doped carbon nanocomposite with augmented dual-enzyme mimetic activity for evaluating total antioxidant capacity

Total antioxidant capacity (TAC) can be evaluated by detecting the content of antioxidants, such as ascorbic acid, based on the enzyme-mimetic activity of nanomaterials. Herein, we fabricated a 3D-V2O5/NC nanocomposite using a self-templating strategy, which achieved ultrafine particles (∼2.5 nm), a porous carbon layer, large specific surface area (152.4 m2/g), N-doping and heterogeneous structure. The strong catalytic activity of 3D-V2O5/NC resulted from the integrated effect between the ultrafine structure of V2O5 nanoparticles and the 3D porous nitrogen-doped carbon framework, effectively increasing the number of active sites. This nanozyme presented a higher catalytic activity than its components or precursors in the nanocomposite (e.g., VN/NC, NC, V2O5, and VO2/g-C3N4). ROS scavenging experiments confirmed that the dual enzyme-like activity of 3D-V2O5/NC (catalase-like and oxidase-like) resulted from their co-participation of ‧O2−, h+ and ‧OH, among which ‧O2− played a crucial role in the catalytic color reaction. By virtue of the 3D-V2O5/NC nanoenzyme activity and TMB as a chromogenic substrate, the mixed system of 3D-V2O5/NC + TMB + H2O2 provided a low detection limit (0.03 μM) and suitable recovery (93.0–109.5%) for AA. Additionally, a smartphone-based colorimetric application was developed employing "Thing Identify" software to evaluate TAC in beverages. The colorimetric sensor and smartphone-detection platform provide a better or comparable analytical performance for TAC assessment in comparison to commercial ABTS test kits. The newly developed smartphone-based colorimetric platform presents several prominent advantageous, such as low cost, simple/rapid operation, and feasibility for outdoor use.