Bücher veröffentlicht von Mdpi AG

Research on intelligent agents and multi-agent systems has matured during the past decade, and many effective applications of this technology are currently being deployed. Although computational approaches for multi-agent systems have mainly emerged in the past few decades, scholars have been prolific with regard to the variety of methods proposed to solve this paradigm. Different communities have emerged with multi-agent systems as their main research topic. Multi-agent systems allow the development of distributed and intelligent applications in complex and dynamic environments. Systems of this kind play a crucial role in life, evidenced by the broad range of applied areas involved in their use, including manufacturing, management sciences, e-commerce, and biotechnology. There are many reasons for the interest of researchers in this new discipline. Firstly, computational systems have gradually shifted towards a distributed paradigm where heterogeneous entities with different goals can enter and leave the system dynamically and interact with each other. Secondly, new computational systems should be able to negotiate with one another, typically on the behalf of humans, in order to come to mutually acceptable agreements. As a consequence, autonomy, interaction, mobility, and openness are key concepts studied in the area. The purpose of this book is to document some of the advances made in this paradigm and attempt to show the current state of this technology by analyzing different aspects in addition its possible application in various domains. This review of the current state-of-the-art does not intend to make an exhaustive exploration of all the current existing works but, rather, to try to give an overview of the research in agent technology, showing the high level of activity of this area.

Mycotoxins represent a significant issue for the feed industry and the safety of the feed supply chain, with an impact on human health, animal health and production, economies, and international trade. The globalization of the trade in agricultural commodities and the lack of legislative harmonization have contributed significantly to the discussion about the awareness of mycotoxins entering the feed/food supply chain. The feed industry is a sustainable outlet for food processing industries, converting byproducts into high-quality animal feed. Mycotoxin occurrence in food byproducts from different technological processes is a worldwide topic of interest for the feed industry, aiming to increase the marketability and acceptance of these products as feed ingredients and include them safely in the feed supply chain. Since mycotoxin contamination cannot be completely prevented pre- or post-harvest, the modern feed industry needs new tools for monitoring and managing the risk of mycotoxins and strategies to prevent and reduce mycotoxins in compound feed manufacturing. The aim of this Special Issue book was to bring together a collection of valuable articles with innovative ideas for a sustainable and competitive feed industry.

The global electric car fleet exceeded 7 million battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles in 2019, and will continue to increase in the future, as electrification is an important means of decreasing the greenhouse gas emissions of the transportation sector. The energy storage system is a very central component of the electric vehicle. The storage system needs to be cost-competitive, light, efficient, safe, and reliable, and to occupy little space and last for a long time. It should also be produced and disposed of in an environmentally friendly manner. This leaves many research challenges, and the purpose of this book is therefore to provide a platform for sharing the latest findings on energy storage systems for electric vehicles (electric cars, buses, aircraft, ships, etc.) Research in energy storage systems requires several sciences working together, and this book therefore include contributions from many different disciplines; this covers a wide range of topics, e.g. battery-management systems, state-of-charge and state-of-health estimation, thermal-battery-management systems, power electronics for energy storage devices, battery aging modelling, battery reuse and recycling, etc.

Climate change is altering agricultural production and ecosystems around the world. Future projections indicate that additional change is expected in the coming decades, forcing individuals and communities to respond and adapt. Frequently, agriculture and ecosystems are seen as separate entities, resulting in entity-specific solutions in response to threats. Anthropogenic climate change simultaneously stresses both agriculture and ecosystems (AE) along with their interactions, and current research efforts examining climate change effects and possible adaptations fail to integrate agriculture and ecosystems. Research has quantified many AE impacts of climate change, and yet greater impacts are anticipated as climate change proceeds. Thus, an understanding of the implications for changing AE systems is crucial. AE function, health and productivity depend heavily on climatic characteristics. Failure to jointly consider these systems and the associated externalities may underestimate the impacts of climate change or cause adaptation implementation surprises such as the worsening of the adaptation status of some groups or ecosystems. This collection of papers draws on specific studies to explain why ecosystem and agriculture adaptation requires an integrated analytical approach. A synthesis of current literature is used, as well as examples from around the world to help explain concepts and current challenges. Researchers are encouraged to adopt integrated modeling as a means of avoiding implementation challenges and surprises when formulating and implementing adaptations. Failure to incorporate the overlapping effects of agriculture and ecosystems could lead to maladaptation and greater long-term damage under climate change. The papers in this volume address several aspects of these challenges.

This book compiles four review articles and four research papers that highlight recent developments in the field of peptide nucleic acid (PNA) chemistry and biomedicine. The review articles encompass a variety of fields related to PNA, emphasizing the versatility of this DNA mimic. Two excellent reviews detail the use of PNA for molecular diagnostics of miRNAs and genetic point mutations (SNPs). Another review provides a comprehensive analysis of the various approaches for gene editing using chemically modified PNA molecules. Lastly, PNA molecules are elegantly described as effective (antisense) antimicrobial agents in the final review. The high binding affinity of PNA to complementary DNA and RNA is highlighted in three research articles. Two articles show how PNA molecules act as splice modulating and RNA masking molecules, separately. In another contribution, the high affinity and achiral characteristics of PNAs are used to developed a stable L-DNA-based catalytic hairpin assembly. Lastly, chemically-modified PNA molecules are shown to be superior probes for SNP detection. Altogether, these studies illustrate how PNA molecules may be useful for a variety of biomedical applications as either therapeutic or diagnostic agents.

The relationship of oral disease to overall disease is certainly not a new concept. For centuries, the role of oral infection and inflammation in contributing to diseases elsewhere in the body has been studied and reported. During the last few decades, a series of intriguing reports from many countries have increased the current interest in the role of oral health and disease in contributing to general health and systemic conditions. Is it possible that oral and periodontal disease is a risk factor for cardiovascular and other systemic diseases? Since this question was first posed, a phenomenal body of work has been directed at understanding how oral periodontal disease might affect distant sites and organs and, thus, have an effect on overall health. Recent studies of the human microbiome using DNA sequencing technologies have revealed new insights into the possible mechanisms that help to explain how oral infections can occur in distinct sites such as atheromas, the colon, and reproductive tissues.

This book comprises research articles contributed to the Special Issue on "ERP and EEG Markers of Brain Visual Attentional Processing" of the Brain Sciences journal by a panel of authoritative international cognitive neuroscientists and electrophysiologists. All articles present state-of-the-art knowledge on the relationships between visuospatial attentional processing and the brain in humans as investigated by means of EEG and ERPs from the perspective of cognitive neuroscience. All the articles compare overt behavioral data obtained in universally renowned visual selective attention protocols with the electrophysiological data obtained in these same protocols aimed at investigating different facets of visuospatial attentional processing. The research presented is interdisciplinary, ranging across visual selective processing mechanisms in health, the effects of psychological attentional dysfunctions and brain damage, and functional imaging of the human brain. The Preface of the book provides an overall theoretical introduction to the field and to the contents of each of the remaining articles. In this introductory Editorial, a framework is presented in which to consider EEG and ERPs as research tools able to contribute to both cognitive and brain sciences, putting together new knowledge about humans as integrated sociobiological individuals. This book may provide a useful starting point and reference for researchers and students of cognitive neuroscience, psychology, philosophy, or cognitive science who have an interest in mind and brain visual attentional processing.

Advances in immunosuppression and kidney transplant techniques have led to significant improvements in the short-term survival of the renal allograft. Long-term graft survival, however, has relatively lagged behind and has now become one of the main problems in kidney transplantation. In this Special Issue, we discuss the recent research developments in kidney transplants that may affect long-term allografts, as well as the survival of the patient. The latest developments in living kidney donation are also explored.

This book, Green Concrete for a Better Sustainable Environment, aims to cover recent advances in the development of green concrete solutions and discuss the best ways to leverage opportunities in this domain. Concrete can be described as green concrete if it has one of the following features; it uses waste material as at least one of its components, its production process does not lead to environmental destruction, or it has high performance and life cycle sustainability. At present, natural resources are running out. Cement and concrete made from industrial and construction waste can be regarded as valuable resources for civil infrastructure construction. Green concrete will not only contribute to a circular economy, but can also help to reduce the amount of embodied energy and CO2 emissions associated with cement manufacturing and aggregate quarrying. Using green concrete can also mitigate the environmental threats associated with industrial waste materials. This book covers the theoretical, experimental, applied and modelling research studies on the materials, products and structures related to sustainable cement-based composites.

Advances in immunosuppression and kidney transplant techniques have led to significant improvements in the short-term survival of the renal allograft. Long-term graft survival, however, has relatively lagged behind and has now become one of the main problems in kidney transplantation. In this Special Issue, we discuss the recent research developments in kidney transplants that may affect long-term allografts, as well as the survival of the patient. The latest developments in living kidney donation are also explored.

Coatings offer the unique opportunity to create architectures that combine the functionality of two or more materials, conferring unique properties to objects with an extremely large palette of solutions. For this flexibility, thick and thin films have terrific impacts on the most relevant societal challenges. Computers, food packaging, airplanes, and cars, to mention a few familiar objects from everyday life, rely heavily on coatings. To celebrate the key role that coatings have in society, and in science and technology, this book collects a selection of relevant reviews and original research articles published in "Coatings" in 2017 and 2018. Papers have been selected based on their broad impact and balancing between the two major aspects of coatings science and technology: deposition and characterization.

This book focuses on the intelligent processing of images and optical information acquired by various imaging methods. Intelligent image and optical information processing have paved the way for the recent epoch of new intelligence and information era. Certainly, information acquired by various imaging techniques is of tremendous value; thus, an intelligent analysis of them is necessary to make the best use of it. A broad range of research fields is included in this book. Many studies focus on object classification and detection. Registration, segmentation, and fusion are performed between a series of images. Many valuable and up-to-most recent technologies are provided to solve the real problems in selected papers.

The Special Issue, "Architectural Structure," aims to gather general advances in human-made constructions which simultaneously are driven by aesthetic and structural engineering considerations. This Special Issue brings together twelve contributions covering the following topics: analysis of architectural typologies; the study of the mechanical performance of structural materials, structural systems and components; and the proposal of techniques to evaluate the mechanical performance in existing structures and new construction techniques.

The rapid increasing of concentrations of anthropologically generated greenhouse gases (primarily CO2) in the atmosphere is responsible for global warming and ocean acidification. The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) indicates that carbon capture and storage (CCS) techniques are a necessary measure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the short-to-medium term. One of the technological solutions is the long-term storage of CO2 in appropriate geological formations, such as deep saline formations and depleted oil and gas reservoirs. Promising alternative options that guarantee the permanent capture of CO2, although on a smaller scale, are the in-situ and ex-situ fixation of CO2 in the form of inorganic carbonates via the carbonation of mafic and ultramafic rocks and of Mg/Ca-rich fly ash, iron and steel slags, cement waste, and mine tailings. According to this general framework, this Special Issue collects articles covering various aspects of recent scientific advances in the geological and mineralogical sequestration of CO2. In particular, it includes the assessment of the storage potential of candidate injection sites in Croatia, Greece, and Norway; numerical modelling of geochemical-mineralogical reactions and CO2 flow; studies of natural analogues providing information on the processes and the physical-chemical conditions characterizing serpentinite carbonation; and experimental investigations to better understand the effectiveness and mechanisms of geological and mineralogical CO2 sequestration.

In recent years, a considerable volume of technical literature has been published on flood hazard analysis, and more recently, on flood vulnerability and resilience. Nevertheless, there is still a shortage of scientific studies and practical experience of real flood risk assessment (both social and economic), including hazard, exposure and vulnerability analyses and their integration. As there are so few references available, applications of flood risk assessment to the design of preventive measures and early warning systems, landscape and urban planning, civil protection, insurance systems, and risk-based information and education, cannot reach their full potential development. This is because the research products available, such as hazard data and maps, do not serve to ensure the efficient prioritization of mitigation measures or communities at risk. Meanwhile, flooding is the natural disaster that causes the greatest loss on a global scale, and due to climate change, this situation is expected to continue. The research manuscripts involved in this book try to offer flood risk managers new tools, data and maps to improve risk mitigation, both preventive and corrective. A wide variety of topics have been covered, including: flood risk data sources; techniques and methodologies for flood risk analysis; flood risk mapping; or flood risk analysis calibrations.

The sustainability of the built environment can only be achieved through the maintenance planning of built facilities during their lifecycle while also considering social, economic, functional, technical, and ecological aspects. Stakeholders should be conscious of the existing tools and knowledge for the optimization of maintenance and rehabilitation actions in consideration of the degradation mechanisms and the risk of failure over time. Knowledge concerning the service life prediction of building elements is crucial to the definition, in a rational and technically informed way, of a set of maintenance strategies over the building''s life cycle. Service life prediction methodologies provide a better understanding of the degradation phenomenon of the analyzed elements, enabling the relation of the characteristics of these elements and their exposure, use, and maintenance conditions with their performance over time. This SI intends to provide an overview of the existing knowledge related to various aspects of "Life Cycle Prediction and Maintenance of Buildings". Relevant topics to this Special Issue include: Methodologies for service life prediction of buildings and components; Maintainability of buildings and components; Serviceability of building elements; Maintenance and repair actions of buildings and components; Definition and optimization of maintenance policies; Financial analysis of various maintenance plans; Whole life cycle costing; Life cycle assessment.

Laser shock processing (LSP) is a continuously developing effective technology used to improve surface and mechanical properties for metallic alloys. LSP is in direct competition with other established technologies, such as shot peening, both in preventive manufacturing treatments and maintenance/repair operations. The level of LSP maturity has increased in recent years and several thematic international conferences have been organized (i.e., the 7th ICLPRP held in Singapore, June 17-22, 2018) to discuss different developments of a number of key aspects. These aspects include: fundamental laser interaction phenomena; material behavior at high deformation rates/under intense shock waves; laser sources and experimental process implementation; induced microstructural/surface/stress effects; mechanical and surface properties with experimental characterization and testing; numerical process simulation; development and validation of applications; comparison of LSP to competing technologies; and novel related processes. All of these aspects have been recursively treated by well-renowned specialists, providing a firm basis for the further development of the technology in its path to industrial penetration. However, the application of LSP (and related technologies) on different types of materials with different applications (such as the always demanding aeronautical/aerospatial field or the energy generation, automotive, and biomedical fields) still requires extensive effort to elucidate and master different critical aspects. Thus, LSP deserves a great research effort as a necessary step prior to its industrial readiness level. The present Special Issue of Metals in the field of "Laser Shock Processing and Related Phenomena" aims, from its initial launching date, to collect (especially for the use of LSP application developers in different target sectors) a number of high-quality and relevant papers representing state-of-the-art technology that is useful to newcomers in realizing its wide and relevant prospects as a key manufacturing technology. Consequently, in an additional and complementary way, papers were presented at the thematic ICLPRP conferences, and a call was made to authors willing to prepare high-quality and relevant papers to the journal, with the confidence that their work would become part of a fundamental reference collection regarding the present state-of-the-art LSP technology. The Special Issue includes two reviews and nine research papers. Each contribution adds to the reference knowledge of LSP technology and covers the practical totality of open issues, which will lead to present-day research at worldwide universities, research centers, and industrial companies.

Renewable energies are becoming a must to counteract the consequences of the global warming. More efficient devices and better control strategies are required in the generation, transport, and conversion of electricity. Energy is processed by power converters that are currently the key building blocks in modern power distribution systems. The associated electrical architecture is based on buses for energy distribution and uses a great number of converters for interfacing both input and output energy. This book shows that sliding-mode control is contributing to improve the performances of power converters by means of accurate theoretical analyses that result in efficient implementations. The sliding-mode control of power converters for renewable energy applications offers a panoramic view of the most recent uses of this regulation technique in practical cases. By presenting examples that range from dozens of kilowatts to only a few watts, the book covers control solutions for AC-DC and DC-AC generation, power factor correction, multilevel converters, constant-power load supply, wind energy systems, efficient lighting, digital control implementation, multiphase converters, and energy harvesting. The selected examples developed by recognized specialists are illustrated by means of detailed simulations and experiments to help the reader to understand the theoretical approach in each case considered in the book.

Adolescents in many countries consume poor quality diets that include high intakes of sugary drinks and fast food and low intakes of vegetables. The aims of this Special Issue on adolescent dietary behavior were to identify methods and approaches for successful interventions to improve diet quality in this age group and identify at-risk subgroups that need particular attention. In total, 11 manuscripts were published in this Special Issue: three qualitative studies that included a systematic review, five cross-sectional studies, and three quantitative evaluations of interventions. This Special Issue discusses the contribution of the studies and provides suggestions to improve the success of future interventions in adolescents. It is important that adolescents are involved in the design of interventions to improve social and cultural acceptability and relevance. Interventions targeting schools or communities framed within a larger food system, such as issues around climate change and the carbon footprint of food, may improve engagement. Targeting adolescents in areas of deprivation is a priority where diet quality is particularly poor. Potentially successful interventions also include environmental policies that impact the cost and marketing of food and drinks, although evaluations of these were not included in this Special Issue.

This Special Issue covers solution synthesis, processing, and applications of non-metallic nanomaterials. Zhang et. al. and Jiang et. al. focus on synthesis of kesterite materials, and Wu et. al. and Zhang et. al. focus on synthesis of copper chromium oxide delafossite nanomaterials. Three of these papers discuss solar cell applications using these materials. Yun and Park''s review paper explores the self-assembly of complex nanostructures. Bhalothia et al. show enhanced catalytic activity for NiOx@Pt nanostructures and Wu et. al. report high-sensitivity ammonia sensors made from SnO nanoshells. On flexible electronics, Nakamura et. al. developed Cu nitride ink for rapid photonic processing of conducting lines, Liu et. al. made Au/HfO2/Pt resistive random access memory devices, and Moreira et al. fabricated solution combustion oxide thin film transistors.

Iodine, a key component of thyroid hormones, is considered an essential micronutrient for proper health at all life stages. Indeed, an inadequate dietary intake of iodine is responsible for several functional and developmental abnormalities. The most serious consequences of iodine deficiency include hypothyroidism, early abortion, low birth weight, preterm delivery, neurocognitive impairment, and mental retardation. On the other hand, the consequences of mild-to-moderate iodine deficiency, such as goiter, are less well understood but represent an important priority for research and public health practice. Over the last several decades, many countries across the globe have introduced mandatory salt iodization programs, which have dramatically reduced the number of iodine-deficient countries. However, despite substantial progress worldwide, mild-to-moderate deficiency is still prevalent even in many developed countries. Thus, the ongoing monitoring of the population iodine status remains crucially important, and attention may need to be paid to vulnerable life stage groups.

The food packaging industry is experiencing one of the most relevant revolutions associated with the transition from fossil-based polymers to new materials of renewable origin. However, high production costs, low performance, and ethical issues still hinder the market penetration of bioplastics. Recently, coating technology was proposed as an additional strategy for achieving a more rational use of the materials used within the food packaging sector. According to the packaging optimization concept, the use of multifunctional thin layers would enable the replacement of multi-layer and heavy structures, thus reducing the upstream amount of packaging materials while maintaining (or even improving) the functional properties of the final package to pursue the goal of overall shelf life extension. Concurrently, the increasing requirements among consumers for convenience, smaller package sizes, and for minimally processed, fresh, and healthy foods have necessitated the design of highly sophisticated and engineered coatings. To this end, new chemical pathways, new raw materials (e.g., biopolymers), and non-conventional deposition technologies have been used. Nanotechnology, in particular, paved the way for the development of new architectures and never-before-seen patterns that eventually yielded nanostructured and nanocomposite coatings with outstanding performance. This book covers the most recent advances in the coating technology applied to the food packaging sector, with special emphasis on active coatings and barrier coatings intended for the shelf life extension of perishable foods.

The next healthcare revolution will apply regenerative medicines using human cells and tissues. The aim of the regenerative medicine approach is to create biological therapies or substitutes in vitro for the replacement or restoration of tissue function in vivo lost through failure or disease. However, whilst science has revealed the potential, and early products have shown the power of such therapies, there is an immediate and long-term need for expertise with the necessary skills to face the engineering and life science challenges before the predicted benefits in human healthcare can be realized. Specifically, there is a need for the development of bioprocess technology for the successful transfer of laboratory-based practice of stem cell and tissue culture to the clinic as therapeutics through the application of engineering principles and practices. This Special Issue of Bioengineering on Stem Cell Bioprocessing and Manufacturing addresses the central role in defining the engineering sciences of cell-based therapies, by bringing together contributions from worldwide experts on stem cell biology and engineering, bioreactor design and bioprocess development, scale-up, and manufacturing of stem cell-based therapies.

Even in ancient times, semi-solid preparations for cutaneous application, popularly known as ointments, played an important role in human society. An advanced scientific investigation of "ointments" as dosage forms was initiated in the 1950s. It was only from then on that the intensive physico-chemical characterization of ointments as well as the inclusion of dermatological aspects led to a comprehensive understanding of the various interactions between the vehicle, the active ingredient and the skin. From then on, many researchers were involved in optimizing semi-solid formulations with respect to continuously changing therapeutic and patient needs. Aspects that have been dealt with were the optimization of dermato-biopharmaceutical properties and many different issues related to patient compliance, such as skin tolerance, applicability, and cosmetic appeal. Moreover, processing technology has been improved and analytical techniques were developed and refined in order to enable the improved characterization of the formulation itself as well as its interaction with the skin. This Special Issue serves to highlight and capture the contemporary progress and current research on semi-solid formulations as dermal drug delivery systems. We invite articles on all aspects of semi-solid formulations, highlighting the research currently undertaken to improve and better understand these complex drug delivery systems with respect to their formulation, processing and characterization issues.

Health is defined as "the state of the organism when it functions optimally without evidence of disease". Surprisingly, the words "microbes" or "microorganism" are missing in this definition. The regulation of gut microbiota is mediated by an enormous quantity of aspects, such as microbiological factors, host characteristics, diet patterns, and environmental variables. Some protective, structural, and metabolic functions have been reported for gut microbiota, and these functions are related to the regulation of homeostasis and host health. Host defense against pathogens is, in part, mediated through gut microbiota action and requires intimate interpretation of the current microenvironment and discrimination between commensal and occasional bacteria. The present Special Issue provides a summary of the progress on the topic of intestinal microbiota and its important role in human health in different populations. This Special Issue will be of great interest from a clinical and public health perspective. Nevertheless, more studies with more samples and comparable methods are necessary to understand the actual function of intestinal microbiota in disease development and health maintenance.

Five years of Separations are celebrated by a collection of ten feature articles: one review and nine research articles on topics of current interest. Applications of Gas Chromatography for the Analysis of Tricyclic Antidepressants in Biological Matrices are presented focusing on novel extraction techniques and novel materials used for sample preparation due to the great demand for method development for the determination of TCAs in biofluids, especially for therapeutic drug monitoring. Original research articles include the following: 1. Insights into the Mechanism of Separation of Bisphosphonates by Zwitterionic Hydrophilic Interaction Liquid Chromatography: Application to the Quantitation of Risedronate in Pharmaceuticals. 2. A method based on micro-matrix solid-phase dispersion (μ-MSPD) followed by gas-chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS), developed to analyze UV filters in personal care products. 3. The performance of a vibratory shear-enhanced process (VSEP) combined with an appropriate membrane unit for the treatment of simulated or industrial tannery wastewaters. 4. A method for the analysis of thyroid hormones by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry that was used for the dissolution testing of single- and dual-component thyroid hormone supplements via a two-stage biorelevant dissolution procedure. 5. A method involving the collection and determination of organic and inorganic gunshot residues on hands using online in-tube solid-phase microextraction (IT-SPME) coupled to miniaturized capillary liquid chromatography with diode array detection (CapLC-DAD) and scanning electron microscopy coupled to energy dispersion X-ray (SEM-EDX), respectively, for quantifying both residues. 6. The gas chromatographic retention behavior of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and alkylated PAHs on a new ionic liquid stationary phase, 1,12-di(tripropylphosphonium) dodecane bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide (SLB®-ILPAH) intended for the separation of PAH mixtures, which was compared with the elution pattern on more traditional stationary phases: a non-polar phenyl arylene (DB-5ms) and a semipolar 50% phenyl dimethyl siloxane (SLB PAHms) column. 7. The Multiple-Stage Precursor Ion Separation and High Resolution Mass Spectrometry toward Structural Characterization of 2,3-Diacyltrehalose Family from Mycobacterium tuberculosis 8. The use of micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) for studying the hydrophobic character of modified Monomethyl Auristatin E derivatives, as Novel Candidates for the Design of Antibody-Drug Conjugates, which are promising state-of-the-art biopharmaceutical drugs for selective drug-delivery applications and the treatment of diseases such as cancer. 9. The use of recycled diatomaceous earth as the extraction phase in solid phase microextraction (SPME) technique for the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in river water samples, with separation/detection performed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS).

The sustainable development of our planet depends on the use of energy. The growing population of the world inevitably causes an increase in the demand for energy, which, on the one hand, threatens the potential for shortages of energy supply, and, on the other hand, causes the deterioration of the environment.Therefore, our task is to reduce this demand through different innovative solutions (i.e., both technological and social). Social marketing and economic policies can also play a role in affecting the behavior of households and companies, by causing behavioral change oriented to energy stewardship, and an overall switch to renewable energy resources. This book provides a platform for the exchange of a wide range of ideas, which, ultimately, would facilitate the driving of societies to long-term energy efficiency.

This volume consists of a collection of 14 accepted submissions (including several invited feature articles) to the Special Issue of MDPI''s journal Symmetry on the general subject area of integral transformations, operational calculus and their applications from many different parts around the world. The main objective of the Special Issue was to gather review, expository, and original research articles dealing with the state-of-the-art advances in integral transformations and operational calculus as well as their multidisciplinary applications, together with some relevance to the aspect of symmetry. Various families of fractional-order integrals and derivatives have been found to be remarkably important and fruitful, mainly due to their demonstrated applications in numerous diverse and widespread areas of mathematical, physical, chemical, engineering, and statistical sciences. Many of these fractional-order operators provide potentially useful tools for solving ordinary and partial differential equations, as well as integral, differintegral, and integro-differential equations; fractional-calculus analogues and extensions of each of these equations; and various other problems involving special functions of mathematical physics and applied mathematics, as well as their extensions and generalizations in one or more variables.

This book presents collective works published in the recent Special Issue (SI) entitled "Aero/Hydrodynamics and Symmetry". These works address the existence of symmetry and its breakdown in aero-/hydro-dynamics and their related applications. The presented problems are complex nonlinear, non-Newtonian fluid flow problems that are (in some cases) coupled with heat transfer, phase change, nanofluidic, and magnetohydrodynamics phenomena. The applications vary and range from polymer chain transfer in micro-channel to the evaluation of vertical axis wind turbines, as well as autonomous underwater hovering vehicles. Recent advances in numerical, theoretical, and experimental methodologies, as well as finding new physics, new methodological developments, and their limitations are presented within the scope of the current book. Among others, in the presented works, special attention is paid to validation and improving the accuracy of the presented methodologies. This book brings together a collection of inter-/multi-disciplinary works applied to many engineering applications in a coherent manner.

Advances in miniaturization of sensors, actuators, and smart systems are receiving substantial industrial attention, and a wide variety of transducers are commercially available or with high potential to impact emerging markets. Substituting existing products based on bulk materials, in fields such as automotive, environment, food, robotics, medicine, biotechnology, communications, and other technologies, with reduced size, lower cost, and higher performance, is now possible, with potential for manufacturing using advanced silicon integrated circuits technology or alternative additive techniques from the mili- to the nano-scale. In this Special Issue, which is focused on piezoelectric transducers, a wide range of topics are covered, including the design, fabrication, characterization, packaging, and system integration or final applications of mili/micro/nano-electro-mechanical systems based transducers.