Showing posts with label document delivery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label document delivery. Show all posts

Monday, March 31, 2014

Now That I’ve Found It … How Do I Get It?

“Whoever said money can't buy happiness simply didn't know where to go shopping.” -- Bo Derek (American Actress, b.1956)
 
 
Searching for useful articles is one thing.  Shopping for them is another.
 
To put it another way, just because you can FIND an article on the Web doesn’t mean you can read it.  Most of the time you have to pay for that privilege.
 
If you are a solo act, this is not much of a problem.  You just enter your credit card number and download the article.
 
If, however, you operate within a corporate structure, the process becomes more complicated.  In this post, we offer some shopping tips for your situation.  But first, here is a concrete example of what you no doubt have encountered.
 
A Google® Scholar search for biodesulfurization produces the following four results, among others:
 
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Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, March 2013, Volume 97, Issue 5, pp 2193-2200
Kinetic analysis of biodesulfurization of model oil containing multiple alkyl dibenzothiophenes
 
Shi-Han Zhang, Han Chen, Wei Li
Institute of Environmental Engineering, Zhejiang University, Zijingang Campus, Hangzhou, 310058, China
Purchase on Springer.com: $39.95
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Advanced Materials Research, 825, 508 (2013), Pages 508-511, DOI 10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMR.825.508
Influences of pH Buffers on the Growth of Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans and Biodesulfurization Efficiency
 
Xiao Rong Liu, Chang Su, Sheng Cai Jiang, Yan Jun Liu, Hui Li
Purchase on www.scientific.net: $28.00
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International Biodeterioration & Biodegradation, Volume 86, Part C, January 2014, Pages 343–348
Taguchi optimization of dibenzothiophene biodesulfurization by Rhodococcus erythropolis R1 immobilized cells in a biphasic system
 
P. Derikvand (a), Z. Etemadifar (a), D. Biria (b)
a Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Isfahan, Hezarjarib St., 81746-73441 Isfahan, Iran
b Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Advanced Sciences and Technology, University of Isfahan, Hezarjarib St., 81746-73441 Isfahan, Iran
Purchase on ScienceDirect: $35.95
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Petroleum Science and Technology, Volume 31, Issue 21, 2013, pages 2250-2257
A Two-stage Immobilized Cell Bioreactor With Bacillus subtilis and Rhodococcus erythropolis for the Simultaneous Production of Biosurfactant and Biodesulfurization of Model Oil
 
A. Amin (a), S. A. Bazaid (b) & M. Abd El-Halim (c)
a Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Science , Taif University , Taif , Saudi Arabia
b Department of Biology, Faculty of Science , Taif University , Taif , Saudi Arabia
c Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science , Taif University , Taif , Saudi Arabia
Purchase on Taylor & Francis: $46.00
 
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Here we have four articles from four different vendors requiring four different transactions.  Again, if you are working solo, this is not such a problem.  But if you are working in a corporate environment, you have to contend with two conflicting imperatives.  They are:
 
  • Cost control
  • Efficient delivery
 
Here is a structure which works well in many corporations …
 
To ensure cost control, designate two individuals within your corporate unit to act as gatekeepers for document acquisition. One of the two individuals can serve as the primary approver.  The other can serve as an alternate in case the primary is not available for some reason.  A researcher who needs an article can contact one or the other of these two individuals to request purchase of an article.  The request can be approved or denied. If approved, the approver forwards the request for purchase.
 
To ensure efficient delivery, two individuals should be designated as authorized users of one (or two) corporate credit cards.  One of the two individuals can serve as the primary purchaser. The other can serve as an alternate in case the primary is not available for some reason.
 
And here’s another tip: As time goes on, it may become apparent that one or more vendors receive the bulk of article purchase requests.  At this point, it would be worthwhile to consider a subscription that would (a) reduce the time involved in multiple individual purchases, and (b) reduce the cost per item purchased.
 
 

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Fetch! How To Get The Articles You Need

“A child of five would understand this. Send someone to fetch a child of five.” -- Groucho Marx (American Comedian, Actor and Singer, 1890-1977)
Organizations of all types, including yours, seek ways to automate the process of fetching the information your people need to do their work.

Vendors are responding to the demand with a fetching array of fetching solutions.  Now you are left with another problem ... how to select the vendor solution that is best for your organization.

Let's say, for example, that one of your researchers needs the full text of the following article ...

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Direct JP-8 Conversion Using a Liquid Tin Anode Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (LTA-SOFC) for Military ApplicationsJ. Fuel Cell Sci. Technol.  -- August 2011 --  Volume 8,  Issue 4, 041007 (5 pages)
W. A. G. McPhee, L. Bateman, M. Koslowske, M. Slaney, Z. Uzep, J. Bentley, and T. Tao
CellTech Power LCC, 131 Flanders Road, Westborough, MA 01581
A liquid tin anode solid oxide fuel cell (LTA-SOFC) is actively being developed for direct utilization of JP-8 logistic fuel. Since its invention in 1998, the LTA-SOFC has demonstrated the ability to operate on various carbonaceous fuels including hydrocarbons, alcohols, carbon, biomass, and coal without fuel reforming or reprocessing to remove known impurities such as sulfur. Natural gas fueled 1  kW stand alone prototypes for distributed power generation and have previously demonstrated over 2000  h of continuous operation. The aim is to develop simple and reliable portable power that operates directly off JP-8 and other carbonaceous fuels. The current program focuses on improvement of power density and cell manufacturability. Cell geometry was modified from the previous design to optimize power density while minimizing cell weight and volume. The cell construction is a liquid tin anode housed in a porous separator, an 8  mol  % yttria stabilized electrolyte, and a strontium doped lanthanum magnate cathode. Experimentation was conducted on single cells at 1000°C. The JP-8 fuel used for experimentation contained a sulfur content of 1400  ppm. The direct JP-8 conversion in a LTA-SOFC demonstrated up to 41% efficiency. The LTA-SOFC was also capable of maintaining greater than 30% efficiency at 70% of maximum power output at a JP-8 flow rate of 10  µl  min-1. Continuous operation with direct conversion of JP-8 was sustained for over 100  h with efficiencies of 41–17%. A maximum power density of 120  mW  cm-2 was sustainable on a JP-8 flow rate of 50  µl  min-1. The current Gen 3.1 cell design can sustain a maximum power of 120  mW  cm-2 by direct conversion of JP-8 without fuel processing, reforming, or sulfur removal. Efficiencies of up to 41% were sustained for a minimum of 1  h, with continuous operation on JP-8 for over 100  h. Further performance improvements are anticipated, thereby facilitating LTA-SOFCs use for military and civilian applications that demand flexible fuel.
source: http://scitation.aip.org/getabs/servlet/GetabsServlet?prog=normal&id=JFCSAU000008000004041007000001&idtype=cvips&gifs=yes&ref=no
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Another researcher needs the following article ...

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Fuel, Article in Press, Corrected Proof - Note to users
Desulfurization behavior of zinc oxide based sorbent modified by the combination of Al2O3 and K2CO3 Ju Shangguan (a), Yousheng Zhao (a), Huiling Fan (a), Litong Liang (a), Fang Shen (a) and Maoqian Miao (a)
a Key Laboratory of Coal Science and Technology, Taiyuan University of Technology, Ministry of Education and Shanxi Province, Taiyuan 030024, Shanxi, China
Received 19 October 2010;  revised 10 April 2011;  accepted 14 April 2011.  Available online 24 April 2011.
shanggj62@163.com
Abstract
In order to reduce the unfavorable effect of carbon oxide on desulfurization efficiency for zinc oxide based sorbent and decrease the concentration of carbonyl sulfide in effluent gas during desulfurization process, the modification of zinc oxide based sorbent is necessary in the preparation of zinc oxide based desulfurization sorbent. In this paper, the modified ZnO based desulfurization sorbents were obtained by mixing of active zinc oxide with different additives, which include graphite, Al2O3 and K2CO3, then shaping at ambient temperature, drying at 120 °C and calcinating at 550 °C. The desulfurization performances for the prepared ZnO based desulfurization sorbents were tested in a quartz upflow fixed-bed reactor under the condition of 300 °C, 2000 h-1 and simulated coal-derived gas. The phases of sorbents before and after desulfurization were characterized by X-ray diffractometer, and their pore structures were measured by N2 adsorption–desorption method. The experimental results show that COS was present in effluent gas for ZnO based sorbent while removing H2S from simulated coal-derived gas at experimental condition. ZnO based desulfurization sorbent modified by the combination of K2CO3 and Al2O3 achieves obvious improvements in the desulfurization performance, and H2S and COS concentrations in exit gas are below 0.1 mgS/m3 before breakthrough point as well as the accumulated breakthrough sulfur capacity reaches 14 wt.%. Adding Al2O3 can improve the pore structure of ZnO based desulfurization sorbent, which benefits H2S to diffuse in the pore of sorbent and improves desulfurization performance. Loading K2CO3 can increase the basicity of ZnO based desulfurization sorbent, which raises the COS catalytic hydrolysis rate on sorbent and decreases concentration of COS present in exit gas.
source: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0016236111002183
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And two other researchers need two other articles from two other sources.  So how can you make it possible for each of your people to get the full text of the articles they need to do their work?

(1) Do you give all your researchers company cards and trust them to make good purchasing decisions?
(2) Do you hire someone to make those purchases for them?
(3) Or do you find a vendor who can automate the purchase of articles no matter what the source?

Most organizations are gravitating toward the third option.  Which brings us to the problem of choosing the right vendor.

Here's a tip ... read "Document Delivery - Best Practices and Vendor Scorecard", produced by Outsell Inc. (www.outsellinc.com).  Joanne Lustig (jlustig@outsellinc.com), Outsell Vice President & Lead Analyst, presents charts, tables, and analysis that will provide the framework you need to evaluate the plethora of vendor solutions.

The Outsell briefing provides background on the things professional information managers look for in a vendor, as well as tables listing typical vendors, their services, fees, and copyright policies.

It also ranks the vendors, based on the results of a survey of professional information managers.
Visit the Outsell Web to learn how to get a copy of the briefing.

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Here's another tip ... place a feed of the Desulfurization Blog (http://www.desulf.blogspot.com/) on your Intranet.  It will provide a continuing series of tips to help your people optimize their online research techniques, no matter what technology they are researching.

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Thursday, June 9, 2011

Sourcing Checklist for Desulfurization

“For light I go directly to the Source of light, not to any of the reflections.” -- Peace Pilgrim (American Teacher and Spiritual leader and Peace Prophet, 1908-1981)

Searching for and finding what you want on the Web is great … sourcing the full text of what you find is greater.  Let’s say you find the following article and you want to read the full text …

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Journal of Catalysis, Volume 279, Issue 2, 25 April 2011, Pages 269-275
Oxidative desulfurization of dibenzothiophene and diesel over [Bmim]3PMo12O40
Jian Zhang, Anjie Wang, Xiang Li and Xuehu Ma
Abstract
A hybrid material ([Bmim]3PMo12O40) was synthesized by reacting H3PMo12O40 with the ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium bromide. SiO2-supported [Bmim]3PMo12O40 showed a high catalytic activity in the oxidation of dibenzothiophene (DBT) with 29% H2O2 aqueous solution as the oxidant. Maximum activity was observed at a loading of 20 wt.% [Bmim]3PMo12O40 on SiO2, and 100% DBT conversion was achieved at 60 °C, atmospheric pressure, and an oxygen to sulfur (O/S) molar ratio of 3.0 in 100 min. The high performance of [Bmim]3PMo12O40/SiO2 might be attributable to its amphiphilicity, which enhances adsorption of both H2O2 and sulfur-containing compounds. [Bmim]3PMo12O40/SiO2 could be easily separated by centrifugation and reused without deactivation after seven runs. Quinoline and carbazole had slightly positive effects on DBT oxidation, whereas indole had a negative effect. The high performance of [Bmim]3PMo12O40 was verified in the sulfur removal from a real diesel by means of oxidation followed by dimethylformamide extraction.
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How do you get the full text?  Here is a checklist that may help …

·         Your organization’s librarian …  Your librarian is well versed in sourcing full text
·         Subscribed databases like ScienceDirect (www.sciencedirect.com) … Many organizations, even those that choose not to fund a library, subscribe to one or more databases like ScienceDirect and EbscoHost Academic.  Subscription terms vary, but many times you can find the full text of an article of interest in your subscribed database(s)
·         Google® the title … For recent articles this will provide a source where you can purchase a copy for download.  Once in a while, you can even find a free copy.
·         Document delivery specialists like Ingenta (http://www.ingentaconnect.com) or Linda Hall Library (http://www.lindahall.org/services/document_delivery/index.shtml) … for when you can’t find a source on the Web

When it comes to sourcing online research tips and tricks in bite size chunks, I humbly suggest the Desulfurization Blog (www.desulf.blogspot.com) … tell your colleagues about it.  They’ll appreciate the favor.