PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Smart carts could detect fire hazards in nuclear facilities

UTA team developing automated FireWatch system under Department of Energy grant

Smart carts could detect fire hazards in nuclear facilities
2023-09-26
(Press-News.org) A University of Texas at Arlington researcher is working with a not-for-profit cooperative to develop and test a smart, automated cart that could replace humans who conduct fire hazard safety checks in nuclear power facilities.

Chan Kan, a UT Arlington assistant professor in the Department of Industrial, Manufacturing and Systems Engineering (IMSE), will lead the $250,000 project with the cooperative Utilities Service Alliance.

“We will develop and build a cart with state-of-the-art equipment that could replace human testing of nuclear facilities,” Kan said.

Currently, when the primary fire-sensing system fails or is under maintenance, human operators must enter and inspect each room in the plant every hour around the clock to ensure all potential fire hazards are identified and addressed properly. Kan said his team will design two FireWatch carts with state-of-the-art sensing, computing and communication devices.

Kan’s colleagues on the project include Brian Huff, associate professor in IMSE, Victoria Chen, professor in IMSE, Jay Rosenberger, professor and interim chair in IMSE and three graduate students. Th U.S. Department of Energy is funding their work.

Kan said fire incidents are extremely dangerous in nuclear facilities, given the potential for catastrophic consequences like a damaged reactor that could release radioactive materials.

“The industry has embraced machine learning for the potential of this technology,” Kan said. “However, there’s a critical research gap in developing a FireWatch system that integrates hardware and software components in a unified framework. We will pilot test the system under real-world settings to assess its usability and effectiveness.”

The proposed carts will include smoke detectors, infrared cameras, multi-gas sensors, Amazon Web Services/Internet of Things-edge computing devices and uninterruptible power supply battery systems.

“Results of pilot testing will be used to refine the cart and enhance its usability and effectiveness,” Kan said. “That will pave the way for practical implementation and potential future scalability.”

Rosenberger said the technology could help the nuclear energy sector operate more efficiently.

“This technology has the means to ensure better operation,” Rosenberger said. “We want to make sure the public sees this as better accountability of nuclear energy.”

 

END

[Attachments] See images for this press release:
Smart carts could detect fire hazards in nuclear facilities Smart carts could detect fire hazards in nuclear facilities 2

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Understanding of mechanisms behind post-exercise lack of appetite can open new paths to obesity treatment

2023-09-26
The complex relationship between physical activity and energy balance – food intake versus energy expenditure – is still a challenge for science, especially in light of the rising worldwide prevalence of overweight and obesity. Some of the medications available on the market to combat obesity work analogously to hormones associated with appetite control, and for some time researchers have focused on understanding how processes involving metabolites (products of cell metabolism) affect hunger and satiety. A ...

Living donor liver transplant access is optimal for high-risk waitlisted cirrhosis patients

Living donor liver transplant access is optimal for high-risk waitlisted cirrhosis patients
2023-09-26
“Access to LDLT in a transplant program can optimize the timing of transplant for the increasingly older, frail patient population [...]” BUFFALO, NY- September 26, 2023 – A new research paper was published in Aging (listed by MEDLINE/PubMed as "Aging (Albany NY)" and "Aging-US" by Web of Science) Volume 15, Issue 17, entitled, “Availability of living donor optimizes timing of liver transplant in high-risk waitlisted cirrhosis patients.” Liver transplant (LT) candidates have become older and frailer. Growing non-alcoholic steatohepatitis ...

ACC releases guide to home-based cardiac care

2023-09-26
The health care landscape has undergone rapid changes in recent years, requiring clinicians and stakeholders to consider innovative ways to provide care in traditional and non-traditional settings. The American College of Cardiology has released a workbook on home-based cardiac care that provides the cardiovascular care team with tools and resources to incorporate high-quality, patient-centered care in the home setting. Home-based care is defined as any form of medical care that takes place in the home of the patient; this includes the acceleration of virtual ...

Transgenic T cells against malignant brain tumors

2023-09-26
Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the University Medical Center Mannheim (UMM) successfully tested a new form of cellular immunotherapy against brain tumors in mice for the first time. Glioblastomas are the most aggressive of all brain tumors. They spread diffusely in the brain and are difficult to remove completely by surgery. Chemotherapy or radiation therapy also often have limited effectiveness. To find new, more effective treatment options for those affected, doctors and scientists are testing numerous immunotherapeutic approaches, including so-called "adoptive" T-cell therapies: This involves isolationg ...

Aston University research pioneers making renewable hydrogen and propane fuel gases from glycerol

Aston University research pioneers making renewable hydrogen and propane fuel gases from glycerol
2023-09-26
  Research shows way forward for making renewable hydrogen from glycerol Crude glycerol from biodiesel production plants cheap and abundant Could benefit the environment and reduce reliance on fuel imports.   26 September 2022 | Birmingham, UK   Aston University research has shown the way forward for making renewable hydrogen and propane fuel gases from glycerol. An organic compound, glycerol is produced mainly from fats and oils and is often used in health and beauty products. With crude glycerol from biodiesel production plants cheap and abundant the researchers have ...

SRI spins off AI-powered drug discovery platform Synfini, Inc.

SRI spins off AI-powered drug discovery platform Synfini, Inc.
2023-09-26
SRI International announced today it is spinning off Synfini, a biosciences platform that accelerates the process by which pharmaceutical and other companies can design, synthesize, and bring to market molecules for drug development. The technology brings together a suite of software and hardware solutions developed at SRI through a significant, multi-year development effort. The suite includes a neuro-symbolic AI molecule designer, a computational synthetic planning tool, a high-throughput automated chemistry system, and a flow chemistry hardware platform that reliably performs multi-step synthesis. “At SRI we are always tremendously excited to ...

Research reveals why our skin feels ‘tight’

2023-09-26
When we wash our face with a cleanser, our skin can start to feel tight. With the application of a favorite moisturizer, that feeling often goes away. This perception of our skin might seem subjective, but researchers at Stanford recently revealed the mechanism behind these feelings. Their work, published this week in PNAS Nexus, demonstrates how mechanical changes at the outer surface of our skin translate into sensations and provides a quantitative approach for determining how people will perceive their skin after using a moisturizer or cleanser. “This work provides ...

World-class neutron source takes a break for major Proton Power Upgrade

World-class neutron source takes a break for major Proton Power Upgrade
2023-09-26
The Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory — already the world’s most powerful accelerator-based neutron source — will be on a planned hiatus through June 2024 as crews work to upgrade the facility.  Much of the work — part of the facility’s Proton Power Upgrade project — will involve building a connector between the accelerator and the planned Second Target Station at SNS. When complete, the PPU project will bring the accelerator up to 2.8 megawatts from its current record-breaking ...

Study sheds new light on strange lava worlds

2023-09-26
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Lava worlds, massive exoplanets home to sparkling skies and roiling volcanic seas called magma oceans, are distinctly unlike the planets in our solar system.   To date, nearly 50% of all rocky exoplanets yet discovered have been found capable of maintaining magma on their surfaces, likely because these planets are so close to their host stars they orbit in fewer than 10 days. Being so close causes the planet to be bombarded by harsh weather and forces surface temperatures to the extreme, making it all but completely inhospitable to life as we know it today.  Now, in a new study, scientists have ...

Latest version of the Healthy Eating Index covers toddler diet quality

Latest version of the Healthy Eating Index covers toddler diet quality
2023-09-26
Philadelphia, September 26, 2023 – In four articles in the Journal of Nutrition and Dietetics, published by Elsevier, leading nutrition experts describe and evaluate the latest versions of the Healthy Eating Index (HEI), issued to correspond to the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA). For the first time, there are two new HEIs, one for children and adults 2 years and older, and one for young children aged 12 through 23 months. The Call to Action of the ninth edition of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans is “Make Every Bite Count.” These guidelines form the basis of nutrition policy ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Biodegradable PET alternative bioproduced at unprecedented levels

NTU Singapore scientists develop cooling sunscreen from pollen

Efficient ethane separation from natural gas using ZIF-8 slurry

Flying blind: aviation experts call for more pilot training amid poor general aviation safety record

Unraveling the complex relationship between trade openness and carbon emissions in Asia

Towards a new era of global agricultural ecology and environmental science

Durham University scientists pioneer new drone swarm technology

New research reveals insights into linkage between menopause and cardiovascular health

Durham University scientists map stress response system in plants

Weight-loss drug semaglutide reduces cocaine use in rats: Suggests possible first pharmacological treatment for human cocaine dependency

Are probiotics worth the cost to prevent infection after a colon removal surgery?

Mizzou at the forefront of using hydrogen energy safely

New design framework makes it easier to create custom shock-absorbing materials

Ochsner Health honored by AMA for Joy in Medicine

New meta-analysis demonstrates that access to the GeneSight test can significantly improve response and remission rates for patients with depression

UCLA receives $7.1M federal grant to expand psychotherapy treatment for chronic pain

One dose of antibiotic treats early syphilis as well as three doses

Researchers identify single antibody behind life-threatening reaction to common blood thinner

Don’t sweat it: New device detects sweat biomarker at minimal perspiration rate

Not so sweet: Some sugar substitutes linked to faster cognitive decline

Antibody-making cells reveal new function in response to flu infection

CCNY physicists make quantum emitter discovery in diamonds

SwRI and Copeland win R&D 100 Award for innovative oil-free compressor

Loneliness is bad for health and wealth in the U.K.

Oral health treatment in patients due for surgery is associated with significantly lower rates of postoperative pneumonia and shorter hospital stays, per observational study in one Japanese hospital,

Oxygen came late to ocean depths during Paleozoic

Among women suffering hyperemesis (extreme nausea and vomiting) in pregnancy, half report considering terminating their pregnancy, and 9 in 10 have considered having no more children

Loneliness is bad for health and wealth in the UK

Climate change is making rollercoaster harvests the new normal

Misdirected: Increased dementia risk associated with errors of the 'brain’s compass'

[Press-News.org] Smart carts could detect fire hazards in nuclear facilities
UTA team developing automated FireWatch system under Department of Energy grant