Production Performance Index Research Articles

Life prediction of highly reliable products based on wiener process based on random shock response

Aiming at the life prediction problem of high reliability products with random shock response, this paper analyzes the two-dimensional degradation of highly reliable products, the nonlinear Wiener process model was used to analyze the degradation process of the product performance index, and the multivariate nonlinear Wiener process model was established. Based on the sliding window mechanism and the variable step length method, a dynamic variable step size nonlinear Wiener process degradation model was established by dynamically evaluating the parameters of the degradation model. The approximate expression of the probability density function of the residual life was further given. Finally, the validity and practicability of the proposed model and method were verified by an example.

Lojistik Faaliyetlerin Akdeniz Ülke Ekonomileri ile İlişkisi

In order to examine the economic magnitude of countries and the effect of logistics activities on the economic magnitude of the countries concerned, The impact of the logistics sector on the economies of the 15 Mediterranean coasts was analyzed for the period 1980-2018 using the logistics performance index and gross domestic product values with panel data analysis. In the study, it is concluded that the positive performance and the changes in the gross domestic product are explained by the logistic performance index with the fact that there are differences over the years. The strongest relationship between the gross domestic product and logistics performance index is observed in Turkey and Albania. This result shows the importance of logistic activities in the economic size of each country. <br>

A Simplified and Efficient Method for Water Flooding Production Index Calculations in Low Permeable Fractured Reservoir

Presently, predicting the production performance of fractured reservoirs is often challenging because of the following two factors: one factor such as complicatedly connected and random distribution nature of the fractures and the other factor includes the limitations of the understanding of reservoir geology, deficient fracture-related research, and defective simulators. To overcome the difficulties of simulating and predicting fractured reservoir under complex circumstances of cross flow, a simplified model, which assumes cross flow only exists in the oil phase segment, is constructed. In the model, the pressure distribution of a single fracture can be described by solving an analytical mathematical model. In addition, due to research and field experience which indicate that cross flow also exists in the mixed-phase segment after water injection, the simplified model is modified to consider cross flow in the whole phase. The model constructed here is applicable for fractured reservoirs especially for a low-permeability fracture reservoir, and it moderately predicts future production index. By using iterative methods, the solution to the model can be feasibly obtained and related production performance index formulas can be derived explicitly. A case study was performed to test the model, and the results prove that it is good.

Reuse of water from biofloc technology for intensive culture of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus): effects on productive performance, organosomatic indices and body composition

During a growout period of 14 weeks, the productive performance, organosomatic indices and body composition of the Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus cultivated at high density reusing the water from systems with biofloc technology (BFT) were evaluated. Two treatments: tilapia cultured in biofloc (TB) and tilapia cultured in reused water biofloc (RW) were established. Mixed sex, juvenile Nile tilapia (average weight and length: 79.28 ± 14.44 g and 12.44 ± 0.70 cm) were stocked into 6 experimental units (0.2 m3) at a density of 100 fish/m3. Temperature, dissolved oxygen, total dissolved salts, pH, NH4–N, NH3–N and NO3–N were recorded daily, while NO2–N, general hardness, carbonate hardness and settleable solids were recorded weekly. The weight and length of the tilapias were recorded biweekly. Survival, productive performance, proximal composition and organosomatic indices of Nile tilapia were evaluated. The water parameters in RW treatment such as pH, total dissolved salts, NO2–N, NO3–N and carbonate hardness were significantly greater (p < 0.05), when compared to those obtained in TB treatment. Survival rate was > 98% under both treatments. The final weight (TB = 163.09 ± 42.34 g, RW = 159.23 ± 39.92 g), protein (19.1%) and lipid (2.2%) content of the tilapia were non-significantly different between treatments. In addition, no significant differences in the gonadosomatic and hepatosomatic indices were observed either between tilapia sex or between the treatments. The results suggest that the intensive cultivation of Nile tilapia in biofloc can be established using reuse water from BFT systems, without adverse effects on their survival, productive performance, proximal composition and gonadal development.

Benchmarking the performance of dairy products in Chinese dairy industry

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a review of the main factors that are important to consumers of dairy products and develop a new product performance index for evaluating and benchmarking the performance of dairy products. This helps dairy product companies understand their dairy products’ overall performance level, relative to other dairy products in the market.Design/methodology/approachA new product performance index is developed for evaluating and benchmarking the performance of dairy products with respect to multiple criteria. Seven important criteria are identified for evaluating and benchmarking the performance of dairy products. To deal with the subjective assessments of qualitative performance measures, linguistic terms approximated by fuzzy numbers are used. Based on the concept of the degree of dominance, a fuzzy multicriteria group decision-making approach is developed to obtain a product performance index for each dairy product.FindingsThe proposed multicriteria group decision-making approach is found to be useful and effective in evaluating and benchmarking the performance of dairy products. The approach is capable of adequately considering the presence of multiple decision makers, the multi-dimensional nature of the performance evaluation problem, and modeling the subjectiveness and imprecision of the performance evaluation process.Research limitations/implicationsThe outcome of the multicriteria group decision-making approach is dependent on the subjective inputs provided by the decision makers.Practical implicationsThis product performance index will provide useful insights for companies understand their strengths and weaknesses in terms of their products’ performance criteria, and identify relevant areas for continuous improvement. This product performance index is also applicable for dealing with the general multicriteria decision-making problems.Social implicationsThe proposed multicriteria group decision-making approach can be used as a decision-making tool for providing various decision makers in dairy product companies and general consumers with useful information regarding the performance of different dairy products.Originality/valueThis paper highlights the important factors for evaluating and benchmarking dairy products and develops a new product performance index for evaluating and benchmarking the performance of dairy products in China.

Effect of Low Protein Diets on Production Performance, Egg Quality and Serum Biochemical Indices of Vanaraja Laying Hens

The effect of feeding low protein diets on production performance, egg quality and serum biochemical parameters were evaluated in Vanaraja laying hens (35–46 weeks). A total of 108, Vanaraja laying hens were randomly distributed into four treatment with three replicates of nine birds in each replicate pen in a complete randomized design. Four different diets were formulated containing different levels of protein (13, 14.5, 16 and 17.5% CP) with similar energy (2, 600 ME kcal/kg) and the ratio of lysine and methionine to CP were kept constant in all the diets. Each dietary group were offered a measured quantity of feed daily. The body weight gain was significantly higher (P<0.05) in birds fed 13% CP diet compared to birds fed 16 and 17.5% CP diets. The hen-housed egg production, egg weight, egg mass per day and feed efficiency (g egg/g feed) were not influenced by variation in CP contents of the diet. There was no influence of dietary protein levels on egg quality parameters like albumin%, yolk%, haugh unit and egg shell thickness except egg shell%. Significantly higher (P<0.05) egg shell percentage was noticed in 16% CP diet (P<0.05) compared to either 13 and 14.5% CP diet. Serum biochemical parameters like concentration of total protein, globulin, calcium, cholesterol, creatinine and alkaline phosphatase were influenced significantly (P<0.05) by dietary protein levels at 46 weeks of age. From the overall findings, it is concluded that diet containing 13% CP is adequate for optimum production performance and egg quality in Vanaraja laying hens during 35 to 46 week of age.

Research on Scheduling of Iron and Steel Scrap Steelmaking and Continuous Casting Process Aiming at Power Saving and Carbon Emissions Reducing

Iron and steel scrap could substitute ironstone as the raw material for steelmaking and continuous casting (CC) production, and effectively reduce emissions of waste gas, water, and residue. The iron and steel scrap steelmaking and continuous casting (ISSSC) process is a compact production process involving scrap steel as a raw material, electric arc furnace, refining (RH/CAS/KIP/LF), and CC. Traditional scheduling of ISSSC has emphasized production performance indexes without considering energy and environmental factors. This study presents a new mathematical programming model for the scheduling of ISSSC that considers energy consumption with time-of-use electricity price and associated carbon emissions in addition to production performance indexes. The complexity of the multiobjective mixed-integer programming problem increases if the interval of the time-of-use electricity price is enlarged, the main and accessorial equipment is considered separately, and the flexible processing time is controllable. Under the linearization augmented Lagrangian relaxation framework, a solution methodology, based on controllable direction and a step surrogate subgradient Lagrangian algorithm, is developed according to the charge-based subproblem splitting policy. This solution could keep a smaller intersection angle between the gradient and the optimal direction, damping the zigzag, reducing the number of iterations, and ensuring the optimization efficiency for the scheduling of ISSSC. Numerical testing results show that the method generates high quality schedules in a timely fashion, while considering the time-of-use electricity price and associated carbon emissions.

Metabolic Engineering of Escherichia coli for Efficient Production of 2-Pyrone-4,6-dicarboxylic Acid from Glucose.

2-Pyrone-4,6-dicarboxylic acid (PDC) is a pseudoaromatic dicarboxylic acid and is a promising biobased building block chemical that can be used to make diverse polyesters with novel functionalities. In this study, Escherichia coli was metabolically engineered to produce PDC from glucose. First, an efficient biosynthetic pathway for PDC production from glucose was suggested by in silico metabolic flux simulation. This best pathway employs a single-step biosynthetic route to protocatechuic acid (PCA), a metabolic precursor for PDC biosynthesis. On the basis of the selected PDC biosynthetic pathway, a shikimate dehydrogenase (encoded by aroE)-deficient E.coli strain was engineered by introducing heterologous genes of different microbial origin encoding enzymes responsible for converting 3-dehydroshikimate (DHS) to PDC, which allowed de novo biosynthesis of PDC from glucose. Next, production of PDC was further improved by applying stepwise rational metabolic engineering strategies. These include elimination of feedback inhibition on 3-deoxy-d-arabino-heptulosonate-7-phosphate synthase (encoded by aroG) by overexpressing a feedback-resistant variant, enhancement of the precursor phosphoenolpyruvate supply by changing the native promoter of the ppsA gene with the strong trc promoter, and reducing accumulation of the major byproduct DHS by overexpression of a DHS importer (encoded by shiA). Furthermore, cofactor (NADP+/NADPH) utilization was manipulated through genetic modifications of the E.coli soluble pyridine nucleotide transhydrogenase (encoded by sthA), and the resultant impact on PDC production was investigated. Fed-batch fermentation of the final engineered E.coli strain allowed production of 16.72 g/L of PDC from glucose with the yield and productivity of 0.201 g/g and 0.172 g/L/h, respectively, representing the highest PDC production performance indices reported to date.

Maternal restraint stress during pregnancy negatively affects behaviors and antioxidant capacity of offspring rats (Rattus norvegicus)

This study evaluated the effect of maternal restraint stress during the gestation period on behaviors, biochemical parameters, and antioxidant capacities of offspring rats (Rattus norvegicus (Berkenhout,1769)) at weaning age. Behaviors, plasma biochemical indices, and antioxidant ability of the liver, soleus muscle, and gastrocnemius muscle of mother and (or) offspring rats were analyzed. Significant increases were found in the immobility and swinging behavior frequencies of offspring male rats; no difference was found in behaviors of female rats. The antioxidant indices including superoxide dismutase, nitric oxide synthase, and total antioxidant capacity in the soleus muscle of offspring male rats were significantly decreased in the restraint group. Female offspring rats showed significant lower glutathione and higher malondialdehyde levels in the gastrocnemius muscle and liver, respectively. No difference was found in the productive performance and plasma biochemical indices of maternal rats, nor in the biochemical parameters of the two groups of weaning rats. The results suggested that maternal chronic stresses negatively affected the behaviors and antioxidant abilities of offspring rats, and that these effects possibly have a greater impact on offspring male rats than on female rats.

EFFECT OF DIFFERENT DIETARY SELENIUM SOURCES SUPPLEMENTATION ON NUTRIENT DIGESTIBILITY, PRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE AND SOME SERUM BIOCHEMICAL INDICES IN SHEEP

A total number of 32 of Ossimi lambs averaged 29.25 ± 2.02 kg and 4 months old were used in this experiment to compare the effects of dietary supplementation of inorganic selenium (sodium selenite), organic selenium (Se-yeast) and Nano-Se particles on nutrients digestibility, nutritive value, productive performance and serum biochemical indices of lambs. The animals were allocated into four equal groups (8 lambs each). The lambs of control group were fed on basal diet containing 0.17 mg Se/kg dry matter (DM). The treated lamb groups fed on the same basal diet, in which Se at 0.30 mg/kg DM was provided as sodium selenite (SS), selenium yeast (SY) and Nano-Se particles (NS). The results showed that digestibility of DM was higher (P<0.05) for lambs fed SS, SY and NS than those fed control. Digestibility of OM, CP, CF, EE, NFE and the values of digestible crude protein (DCP) and total digestible nutrients (TDN) were increased (P<0.05) for lambs fed SY and NS compared with those fed SS or control. Averages of final body weight (FBW) were increased (P<0.05) for lambs fed SY and NS compared with those fed SS and control. Average of FBW was greater (P<0.05) for lambs fed NS than those fed SY. The averages of daily gain (ADG) were increased (P<0.05) for lambs fed SS, SY and NS vs. those fed control with significant (P<0.05) differences among treatments. No significant differences were detected in averages of feed intakes of Alfalfa, DM and total DM (TDM) for lambs fed SS, SY and NS vs. control. While, the intakes of DCP and TDN were greater (P<0.05) for lambs fed SS, SY and NS vs. those fed control with significant (P<0.05) differences among treatments. The averages of feed conversion (FC) of DM (FC-DM), DCP (FC-DCP) and TDN (FC-TDN) were improved (P<0.05) for lambs fed SS, SY and NS vs. those fed control. The highest values of productive performance parameters (FBW, ADG, DCPI, TDNI, FC-DCP and FC-TDN) were noticed for lambs fed NS followed by those fed SY and then SS and control. Lambs fed SY and NS had higher (P<0.05) values of serum total protein and globulin than those fed SS or control. Also, there was an increase (P<0.05) in serum glucose concentrations for lambs fed diets SS, SY and NS vs. control, with higher levels (P<0.05) in NS than in SS and SY. No significant differences were noticed in serum concentrations of albumin, cholesterol, alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST) enzyme activities. Serum total antioxidant capacity (TAC) concentrations, glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity and testosterone levels were increased (P<0.05) for lambs fed SS, SY and NS vs. control. Higher (P<0.05) levels of TAC, GSH-Px and testosterone levels were observed for lambs fed NS than those fed SS and SY. It could be concluded that dietary supplementation of Nano-Se was more effective than sodium selenite and Se-yeast to improve nutrients digestibility, feeding values, growth performance, some serum metabolic indices, antioxidant status and reproductive efficiency of male lambs.

Rosmarinic acid: modes of action, medicinal values and health benefits.

The supplementation of livestock rations with herbs containing bioactive components, such as rosmarinic acid (RA), have shown promising results as a natural feed additive in promoting growth, productive and reproductive performance, feed utilization, fertility, anti-oxidant status and immunologic indices. Furthermore, RA reportedly reduces the risks of various animal diseases and mitigates side effects of chemical and synthetic drugs. RA is a natural polyphenol present in several Lamiaceae herbs like Perilla frutescens, and RA is becoming an integral component of animal nutrition as it counters the effect of reactive oxygen species induced in the body as a consequence of different kinds of stressors. Studies have further ascertained the capability of RA to work as an anti-microbial, immunomodulatory, anti-diabetic, anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, hepato- and renal-protectant agent, as well as to have beneficial effects during skin afflictions. Additionally, RA is favored in meat industries due to enhancing the quality of meat products by reportedly improving shelf-life and imparting desirable flavor. This review describes the beneficial applications and recent findings with RA, including its natural sources, modes of action and various useful applications in safeguarding livestock health as well as important aspects of human health.

Productive performance and economic evaluation of tilapia stocked in different times of the year

ABSTRACT This study aimed to determine production cycles based on the stocking period and the influence of the cycles on productive performance indices, production costs, and profitability. The present study was carried out on a fish farm located in Palmital – SP, Brazil, which consists of 2706 m3 of net cages with an annual production of 400 tons of tilapia and regular harvests throughout the year. Production data, investment and expenditures were obtained by using a semi-structured questionnaire to calculate [...]

Sea lice infestation levels decrease with deeper 'snorkel' barriers in Atlantic salmon sea-cages.

Salmon lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) are the most important parasites of farmed salmon. Infective larvae position themselves in the upper part of the water column to increase encounter probabilities with potential hosts. Previous studies have shown that a 'snorkel' sea-cage technology protects salmon from infection in surface waters. We tested whether deep snorkels would more effectively reduce lice infestation than shallow snorkels and still uphold adequate conditions for the fish. Five sea-cages (12 m × 12 m) each holding approximately 3000 Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) (53 ± 10 g) were fitted with snorkels that gave protection from infection for 0, 4, 8, 12 or 16 m. We tested whether reductions in the settlement of new salmon lice copepodids were consistent among four separate infection periods. Lice infestation decreased exponentially with depth in all time periods. Infection levels in shallow snorkels (0 and 4 m) were consistently 4-10 times higher than those in deep snorkels (12 and 16 m). Key welfare and production performance indices were similar across all snorkel depths. Deeper snorkels dramatically and consistently reduced infection levels of salmon lice compared with shallow snorkels, without consequences for fish welfare and production performance. Therefore, reducing salmon sea lice encounters using a depth-based barrier is a powerful management tool for salmon farming. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

The Influence of Lot Size on Production Performance in Wafer Fabrication Based on Simulation

Semiconductor manufacturing has been a significant change over the past decades. Nevertheless, from production efficiency point of view, it should be argued with validity whether 25-wafer is an adaptive lot size in the future to fulfill the manufacturing processes. In this work, a simulation model to study the relationship between lot size and the performances of wafer fabrication is proposed. Three production performance indices are taken into account in this model including cycle time of products, total throughput and the waiting time of WIP by workstation. Based on the simulation result, it reveals that the cycle time of products is synchronously decreased when the lot size is shrunk. However, the waiting time of WIP is not coincident with lot downsizing. From these results, the model of this study can provide a trend to establish the best lot size to fulfill the current and future wafer fabrication.

Measuring business performance in a SCN using Six Sigma methodology - a case study

The purpose of this study is to propose a methodology based upon Six Sigma to improve the business performance in terms of: 1) perfect order fulfilment (POF); 2) quality level (QL) in a supply chain network (SCN) encompassing various entities such as suppliers, manufacturer, warehouse, distributors, retailers etc. POF is measured in terms of: 1) no of orders delivered in full; 2) delivery on customer commits date; 3) accurate documentation; 4) perfect condition of the product and QL is measured in terms of: 1) supplier satisfaction index; 2) production performance index; 3) warehousing performance index; 4) customer satisfaction index. From the results, it is observed that with the application of the DMAIC methodology in a SCN helps to improve POF and QL. The imperfect condition of POF in network has been reduced to 1.03 from 11.75 orders respectively and on the quality front an improvement of about 53% in DPMO level.

Measuring business performance in a SCN using Six Sigma methodology - a case study

The purpose of this study is to propose a methodology based upon Six Sigma to improve the business performance in terms of: 1) perfect order fulfilment (POF); 2) quality level (QL) in a supply chain network (SCN) encompassing various entities such as suppliers, manufacturer, warehouse, distributors, retailers etc. POF is measured in terms of: 1) no of orders delivered in full; 2) delivery on customer commits date; 3) accurate documentation; 4) perfect condition of the product and QL is measured in terms of: 1) supplier satisfaction index; 2) production performance index; 3) warehousing performance index; 4) customer satisfaction index. From the results, it is observed that with the application of the DMAIC methodology in a SCN helps to improve POF and QL. The imperfect condition of POF in network has been reduced to 1.03 from 11.75 orders respectively and on the quality front an improvement of about 53% in DPMO level.

Effects of different methionine sources on production and reproduction performance, egg quality and serum biochemical indices of broiler breeders.

ObjectiveThe study was conducted to evaluate the effects of different methionine (Met) sources on production performance, reproduction performance, egg quality and serum biochemical indices in broiler breeders.MethodsAfter receiving a basal diet (containing 0.25% Met) for a 2-wk pretreatment period, a total of 360 39-wk-old Lingnan yellow broiler breeders were randomly allocated to four treatments with six replicates each (15 birds per replicate). Breeders were fed with basal diets (control) or diets supplemented with DL-methionine (DLM), DL-2-hydroxy-4-methylthio butytric calcium (MHA-Ca) and coated DL-Met (CME) respectively.ResultsThe results showed that CME supplementation promoted laying rate and decreased feed-to-egg ratio (F/E) (p<0.05), DLM and MHA-Ca supplementation decreased F/E (p<0.05) when compared with control group. The rate of fertility, hatchability and birthrate were higher (p<0.05) in DLM, MHA-Ca, and CME groups than control group. Compared with control group, CME increased the eggshell thickness (p<0.05); MHA-Ca improved the eggshell thickness, shell ratio and eggshell strength (p<0.05). Results also showed that CME elevated the concentration of total protein in serum (p<0.05); MHA-Ca improved the concentration of calcium in serum (p<0.05). The concentration of serum uric acid in DLM, MHA-Ca, and CME groups was lower than that in control group (p<0.05). Besides, CME had higher concentrations of serum taurine, cysteine and cystanthionine (p<0.05) while MHA-Ca and DLM promoted the serum taurine concentration (p<0.05) compared with control group.ConclusionBased on the results, it was concluded that Met supplementation could enhance the production and reproduction performance as well as the antioxidant status and egg quality of broiler breeders. In terms of improving the production performance, reproduction performance and antioxidant performance, CME was superior to DLM and MHA-Ca; but in regard to the enhancement of eggshell quality and serum Ca concentration, MHA-Ca was superior to DLM and CME.

Best Capacity Scale of Wafer Fabrication Based on Production Performance and Cost

Semiconductor manufacturing companies have constructed large fabs to enhance their competitive advantage. A large fab has many advantages, such as low cost, short cycle time and flexibility. Nevertheless, the advantages from the expansion of production capacity are not infinite, and a large fab scale increases the risk of production management. This work presents a model to determine the best capacity scale, where the production performance and cost are the major factors. Previous simulation experiments demonstrated that increasing the capacity scale improves the production cycle time significantly only when the utilization of the bottleneck machine is fixed. Therefore, the product cycle time is the major production performance index to determine the capacity scale of a fab. The GI/G/m queuing model is applied to build up the queue time equations of the bottleneck machine. Moreover, differentiation is used to find the number of bottleneck machines with queue times below the minimum required. The optimal number of bottleneck machines can be set based on the calculation result. Based on the performance result, the equipment cost per wafer can be taken into account for the final capacity scale determination. Additionally, an example is described and a simulation model is developed to validate the proposed model.

PRODUCTIVE PEFORMANCE, NUTRIENTS DIGESTIBILITY AND SOME SERUM METABOLIC INDICES AS AFFECTED BY DIEATARY SUPPLEMENTATION OF COPPER AND ZINC IN EGYPTIAN BUFFALO CALVES

This study was designed to evaluate the effects of dietary supplementation of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) on productive performance, nutrients digestibility and some serum metabolic indices in Egyptian buffalo calves. A total number of 32 calves averaged 278.8 ± 5.40 kg and 18 months old were divided into four equal groups (8 calves / each). Animals were fed on basal diet containing 4.38 mg Cu and 6.30 mg Zn/kg DM (control) supplemented with 10 mg Cu (T1), 30 mg Zn (T2) and 10 mg Cu plus 30 mg Zn (T3) /kg DM for 120 days. Digestibility of DM, NDF and ADF was higher (P<0.05) for calves fed T2 and T3 vs. T1 or control. The OM digestibility increased (P<0.05) for calves fed T1, T2 and T3 vs. control. Calves fed on T1, T2 and T3 had higher (P<0.05) digestibility of CP and CF than those fed control. Digestibility of CP and CF increased (P<0.05) with feeding T3 ration vs. each of T1 or T2 alone. The digestibility of EE increased (P<0.05) for calves fed T3 vs. those fed T1 or control rations. The digestible crude protein values were greater (P<0.05) with feeding T1, T2 and T3 than control. The total digestible nutrients values increased (P<0.05) for calved fed on T3 when compared to control or T1. Results showed significant (P<0.05) increasing in final body weight for calves fed T2 and T3 vs. control or T1. The averages daily gain (ADG) increased (P<0.05) for calves fed T1, T2 and T3 vs. control. Also, ADG improved (P<0.05) for calves fed T3 vs. those of T1 and T2. In the same time, no significant changes were noticed in feed intakes (rice straw,concentrate feed mixture and total dry matter) among treatments vs. control, while digestible crude protein intake increased (P<0.05) for calves fed T1, T2 and T3 vs. control. The total digestible nutrients intake increased (P<0.05) with T3 compared to control. Feed conversion was improved (P<0.05) for calves fed T2 and T3 vs. control. The T2 and T3 recorded higher (P<0.05) levels of serum total protein, albumin and globulin vs. control or T1. Serum globulin levels increased (P<0.05) in calves fed T1 vs. control. Feeding T1 decreased (P<0.05) serum cholesterol, but increased (P<0.05) HDL-cholesterol concentrations vs. control. The differences in serum glucose and triglycerides concentrations were not significant among calves in T1, T2 and T3 vs. control. The present study indicated that dietary supplemental Cu plus Zn showed beneficial additive effects to improve nutritive values, productive performance and blood metabolic indices in buffalo calves.

Q&amp;A with Mikhail Chertenkov, Deputy CEO of Field Development Technology, Lukoil-Engineering

Q&amp;A The Yarega heavy oil field is an example of Russia’s technical advancements in heavy oil and bitumen production. Describe the technologies deployed in the field and their effects on production. Due to the requirements for high oil production rates and final oil recovery factors, we applied a counterflow steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) technology in Yarega, which resulted in even reservoir coverage by thermal exposure, higher oil production rates, and lower steam/oil ratio values. Modeling results also had shown higher expected final oil recovery factors. A surface/underground thermal oil mining field development method is in common use in the Yarega field. The oil production performance indices of the oil mining method were significantly improved by the following measures: The lengths of horizontal wells drilled from underground mines were tripled due to new directional drilling systems, thus oil rates from new wells were increased. An upgrade of a surface steam generation unit raised the steam pumping pressure. By implementing counterflow SAGD technology, we increased horizontal well length, reduced operational expenses, eliminated adverse working conditions from the processes, and significantly improved workplace health and safety protection. The counterflow SAGD also allowed us to develop new areas in the Yarega field that were not prepared by functioning mines. What are the benefits of using thermal production technologies? In the Yarega field, there is no alternative to thermal methods for oil production. The majority of the nonthermal development technologies for heavy oil fields are known to be economically inefficient. Lukoil is working on improving thermal methods for production in its heavy oil fields. We have set a goal to increase oil production rates by 40% and final recovery factors by 10% by developing the currently employed methods and applying new approaches and technologies in pilot project programs.