Association of German Engineers

Mit dem EcoSolve‐Prozess präsentiert die TU Dresden eine Lösung für das Recycling glasfaserverstärkter Kunststoffe aus Windkraftanlagen. Das Verfahren nutzt Mikrowellen‐Solvolyse, um Glasfasern und Epoxidharz chemisch zurückzugewinnen. So entstehen neue Produkte wie Sportprotektoren und ein Beitrag zur Kreislaufwirtschaft bei gleichzeitigem CO₂‐Einsparpotenzial.

Purpose Vibrations are transmitted through the ground surface to building foundations, causing distress to structures and their occupants. Installing a wave barrier between the vibration source and buildings is a suitable method to mitigate ground vibration. However, the complexity arises in selecting the right trench design due to various influencing parameters. This paper aims to present a novel method to predict the efficiency of a geofoam-filled trench in mitigating ground vibrations within layered soil using an artificial neural network (ANN). Design/methodology/approach This study extends a parametric investigation conducted by Naghizadeh (Naghizadehrokni, 2022), where they identified key parameters influencing the trench’s efficiency. A multilayered feedforward neural network using the back-propagation training method was developed for the prediction task. The ANN model comprises input variables, including location, depth, width of the trench, thickness and shear wave velocity of the first layer as well as geofoam type. With a total of 18,750 data points from the parametric study, the network was trained and validated. Findings The accuracy of the trained model was evaluated using separate training, validation and testing data sets. Different neural network configurations were evaluated by comparing the coefficient of determination (R2) and mean square error. The optimal architecture was used to predict previous results, revealing the accuracy and effectiveness of the ANN approach. Furthermore, the ANN’s predictive performance was compared with finite element model results. The results indicate a high level of accuracy, with a regression R-value of 0.98 for the regression analysis of the entire data set. Originality/value After studying previous research, the author identified a need for a prediction model to evaluate the efficiency of geofoam-filled trenches. To meet this requirement, an ANN model was developed using data collected from Naghizadeh (Naghizadehrokni, 2022) to precisely predict the performance of these trenches.

BackgroundHealthcare for people with somatic and comorbid mental diseases can pose a challenge to the healthcare system. The aim of the SoKo study (the Somatic care of patients with mental Comorbidity) is to assess the current state of care and the facilitators and barriers of somatic care of people with somatic disorders and comorbidity of a mental disorder.MethodsThe study is conducted as a mixed-methods approach and will include (a) descriptive and inferential analysis of secondary claims data of persons insured by a German statutory health insurance company in North Rhine-Westphalia (Techniker Krankenkasse, TK-NRW), (b) qualitative individual interviews and group discussions, and (c) based on (a) and (b), quantitative surveys of both patients and physicians. We intend to analyse a sample of claims data of about 2.6 million persons insured by TK-NRW (group comparisons between TK-NRW insured persons with a diagnosis of a prevalent somatic disease [ICD-10-GM E01–E07, E11, E66, I10–I15, I20–I25, I60–I64] with and without comorbidity of a mental disorder [F00–F99]), in order to assess the uptake of somatic care by people with mental and somatic comorbidity. In addition, primary data from patients with the aforementioned somatic illnesses and a mental comorbidity as well as primary data from physicians (general practitioners and medical specialists) will be collected. The focus here will be on support factors and barriers in the somatic care of people with mental comorbidity.DiscussionUp to now, there have been no published results of a systematic collection of both secondary and primary data on the utilisation of different care services of somatically ill patients with mental comorbidity for Germany. The present mixed-methods study aims to address this gap.Trial registrationThe trial is registered with the German Clinical Trials Register DRKS: DRKS00030513. The trial was registered on 3rd February 2023.

Abstract In 2022, highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A(H5N1) virus clade 2.3.4.4b became enzootic and caused mass mortality in Sandwich terns and other seabird species across northwestern Europe. We present data on characteristics of the spread of the virus between breeding colonies and the number of dead adult Sandwich terns recorded at breeding sites throughout northwestern Europe. Within two months after the first mortalities were reported, in total 20,531 adult Sandwich terns were found dead, which is >17% of the total northwestern European breeding population. Losses are likely higher, as we expect that many victims were not found (mortality rate might be up to 74% of the breeding population). Inside the colonies almost all chicks died. After the peak of the outbreak, in a colony established by late breeders, 25.7% of adults showed immunity against HPAI subtype H5. Removal of carcasses helped in reducing the spread of the disease and consequently total mortality. More research on the sources and modes of transmission, incubation times, effective containment and immunity is urgently needed to combat this major threat for colonial seabirds.

Die Gewinner des Studierenden-Wettbewerbs ChemPLANT der kreativen jungen Verfahrensingenieure (KJVI) der VDI-Gesellschaft Verfahrenstechnik und Chemieingenieurwesen (GVC) kommen wie im Vorjahr auch diesmal vom Karlsruher Institut für Technologie KIT.

Auf dem 13. Jahrestreffen der Betriebsingenieure am 11. November 2022 stehen wieder aktuelle Themen aus der Praxis auf dem Programm. Darunter die Betreiberpflichten und die neue TA Luft im betrieblichen Alltag sowie “BIM für BING”: Building Information Modelling – vom Modell in die Praxis. Außerdem werden zentrale Themen aus dem betrieblichen Alltag wie Inbetriebnahme, Turnaround Management sowie Remote Unterstützung und digitale Tools diskutiert.

Based on the origin, we can classify different types of stress. Environmental factors, such as high light intensity, adverse temperature, drought, or soil salinity, are summarized as abiotic stresses and discriminated from biotic stresses that are exerted by pathogens and herbivores, for instance. It was an unexpected observation that overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is a common response to all kinds of stress investigated so far. With respect to applied aspects in agriculture and crop breeding, this observation allows using ROS production as a measure to rank the stress perception of individual plants. ROS are important messengers in cell signaling, but exceeding a concentration threshold causes damage. This requires fine-tuning of ROS production and degradation rates. In general, there are two options to control cellular ROS levels, (I) ROS scavenging at the expense of antioxidant consumption and (II) enzyme-controlled degradation of ROS. As antioxidants are limited in quantity, the first strategy only allows temporarily buffering of a certain cellular ROS level. This way, it prevents spells of eventually damaging ROS concentrations. In this review, we focus on the second strategy. We discuss how enzyme-controlled degradation of ROS integrates into plant metabolism. Enzyme activities can be continuously operative. Cellular homeostasis can be achieved by regulation of respective gene expression and subsequent regulation of the enzyme activities. A better understanding of this interplay allows for identifying traits for stress tolerance breeding of crops. As a side effect, the result also may be used to identify cultivation methods modifying crop metabolism, thus resulting in special crop quality.

Abstract Kunststoffe sind vor allem als Verpackungen aus dem Alltag nicht wegzudenken. Die teilweise unkontrolliert in die Biosphäre gelangenden oder sonst zumeist verbrannten Abfälle stellen eine große Belastung des Ökosystems dar. Im Rahmen des 4. chemPLANT‐Wettbewerbs 2021 der kreativen jungen Verfahrensingenieure (kjVI) der VDI‐Gesellschaft Verfahrenstechnik und Chemieingenieurwesen (VDI‐GVC) mit Fokus auf “Zirkuläre Wertschöpfung” präsentierten elf Teams aus acht Hochschulen moderne Recyclingverfahren. Das Team des Karlsruher Instituts für Technologie (KIT) überzeugte mit einer Kombination aus ganzheitlichem Recycling und nachhaltiger Produktentwicklung.

Industry 4.0 is currently considered the structural implementation of networked and cooperative digitalisation and the next step in technological and social development. The aim of this paper is to examine how these structures are also suitable for agriculture and whether there are already approaches to this. Therefore, the main aspects of Industry 4.0 will be analysed and compared with agricultural examples from arable farming and livestock farming. The study shows that the approaches of Industry 4.0 are also useful for agriculture. However, they must be adapted to agriculture, as it has a different basic structure. As in industry, it is also evident in agriculture that there is still a need for action in the organisational and technical networking of systems.