A compact microstrip six-port reflectometer (SPR) with extended bandwidth is proposed in this paper. The design is based on using 16-dB multi-section coupled line directional couplers and a multi-section 3-dB Wilkinson power divider operating from 1 to 6 GHz. The proposed SPR employs only two calibration standards: a matched load and an open load. As compared to other dielectric substrates, fabricating the proposed SPR involves using a low-cost (FR4) substrate. A novel algorithm is also proposed to estimate the complex reflection coefficient over the frequency ranges at which the standard performance of the circuit components is not fully satisfied. The new algorithm is based on the circles’ intersection points, which have been derived from basic SPR equations, to estimate the complex reflection coefficient. To validate the SPR performance, a multiband microstrip patch antenna has been measured and the resulted reflection coefficient is compared with those obtained using a vector network analyzer (VNA). Results show that the proposed SPR provides a good estimation of the complex reflection coefficient within the frequency range of 1 GHz to 8 GHz. Owing to its compact size and ease of fabrication, the proposed reflectometer is suitable for various microwave broadband applications.
This study explores the barriers to adopting green environmental criteria in Supplier Selection (SS) within the Iraqi food industry. It aims to enhance the understanding of sustainable supply chain management in developing nations, with a particular focus on the Iraqi context. A case study approach was utilized to identify eleven key green environmental criteria and 54 sub-criteria, alongside seven major barriers to their adoption. The Best–Worst Method (BWM) was employed to rank the criteria, and Fuzzy Stepwise Weight Assessment Ratio Analysis (SWARA) was used to prioritize the barriers. The analysis revealed that Environmental Management Systems are the most critical criterion for SS. On the other hand, legislation and policies emerged
... Show MoreSolar activity monitoring is important in our life because of its direct or indirect influence on our life, not only on ionospheric communications. To study solar activity, researchers need measuring and monitoring instruments, these instruments are mostly expensive and are not available in all universities. In this paper, a very low frequency radio receiver had been designed and implemented with components available in most markets to support the researchers, college students, and radio astronomy amateurs with a minimum input voltage less than 100µV, an output voltage less than 135 m V with no distortion and an overall gain of 34dB. A comparison had been done between two circuit structures using a workbench software program and experim
... Show MoreIn this paper a new structure for the AVR of the power system exciter is proposed and designed using digital-based LQR. With two weighting matrices R and Q, this method produces an optimal regulator that is used to generate the feedback control law. These matrices are called state and control weighting matrices and are used to balance between the relative importance of the input and the states in the cost function that is being optimized. A sample power system composed of single machine connected to an infinite- bus bar (SMIB) with both a conventional and a proposed Digital AVR (DAVR) is simulated. Evaluation results show that the DAVR damps well the oscillations of the terminal voltage and presents a faster respo
... Show MoreLowering the emission, fuel economy and torque management are the essential
requirements in the recent development in the automobile industry. The main engine control
input that satisfies the above requirements is the throttling angle which adjusts the air mass
flow rate to the engine port. Due to the uncertainty and the presence of the nonlinear
components in its dynamical model, the sliding mode control theory is utilized in this work
for the throttle valve angle control system to design a robust controller for this system in the
presence of a nonlinear spring and Coulomb friction. A continuous sliding mode control law
which consists of a saturation function, instead of a signum function, and the integral of
ano
This paper proposes a new structure for a Fractional Order Sliding Mode Controller (FOSMC) to control a Twin Rotor Aerodynamic System (TRAS). The new structure is composed by defining two 3-dimensional sliding mode surfaces for the TRAS model and introducing fractional order derivative integral in the state variables as well as in the control action. The parameters of the controller are determined so as to minimize the Integral of Time multiplied by Absolute Error (ITAE) performance index. Through comparison, this controller outperforms its integer counterpart in many specifications, such as reducing the delay time, rise time, percentage overshoot, settling time, time to reach the sliding surface, and amplitude of chattering in control inpu
... Show MoreAsthma is a chronic respiratory disease highly prevalent worldwide. Recent studies have suggested a role for microbiome-associated gut–lung axis in asthma development. In the current study, we investigated if Resveratrol (RES), a plant-based polyphenol, can attenuate ovalbumin (OVA)-induced murine allergic asthma, and if so, the role of microbiome in the gut–lung axis in this process. We found that RES attenuated allergic asthma with significant improvements in pulmonary functions in OVA-exposed mice when tested using plethysmography for frequency (F), mean volume (MV), specific airway resistance (sRaw), and delay time(dT). RES treatment also suppressed inflammatory cytokines in the lungs. RES modulated lung microbiota and cause
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