Search results for: surface plasmon resonance

Authors: Pamela R. Jackson, Andrea Hawkins-Daarud, Cassandra R. Rickertsen, Kamala Clark-Swanson, Scott A. Whitmire, Kristin R. Swanson

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Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM), the most common primary brain tumor, often presents with hyperintensity on T2-weighted or T2-weighted fluid attenuated inversion recovery (T2/FLAIR) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). This hyperintensity corresponds with vasogenic edema, however there are likely many infiltrating tumor cells within the hyperintensity as well. While MRIs do not directly indicate tumor cells, MRIs do reflect the microenvironmental water abnormalities caused by the presence of tumor cells and edema. The inherent heterogeneity and resulting MRI features of GBMs complicate assessing disease response. To understand how hyperintensity on T2/FLAIR MRI may correlate with edema in the extracellular space (ECS), a multi-compartmental MRI signal equation which takes into account tissue compartments and their associated volumes with input coming from a mathematical model of glioma growth that incorporates edema formation was explored. The reasonableness of two possible extracellular space schema was evaluated by varying the T2 of the edema compartment and calculating the possible resulting T2s in tumor and peripheral edema. In the mathematical model, gliomas were comprised of vasculature and three tumor cellular phenotypes: normoxic, hypoxic, and necrotic. Edema was characterized as fluid leaking from abnormal tumor vessels. Spatial maps of tumor cell density and edema for virtual tumors were simulated with different rates of proliferation and invasion and various ECS expansion schemes. These spatial maps were then passed into a multi-compartmental MRI signal model for generating simulated T2/FLAIR MR images. Individual compartments’ T2 values in the signal equation were either from literature or estimated and the T2 for edema specifically was varied over a wide range (200 ms – 9200 ms). T2 maps were calculated from simulated images. T2 values based on simulated images were evaluated for regions of interest (ROIs) in normal appearing white matter, tumor, and peripheral edema. The ROI T2 values were compared to T2 values reported in literature. The expanding scheme of extracellular space is had T2 values similar to the literature calculated values. The static scheme of extracellular space had a much lower T2 values and no matter what T2 was associated with edema, the intensities did not come close to literature values. Expanding the extracellular space is necessary to achieve simulated edema intensities commiserate with acquired MRIs.

Keywords: extracellular space, glioblastoma multiforme, magnetic resonance imaging, mathematical modeling

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Authors: Najla M. Salkho, Vinod Paul, Pierre Kawak, Rute F. Vitor, Ana M. Martin, Nahid Awad, Mohammad Al Sayah, Ghaleb A. Husseini

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Liposomes are popular lipid bilayer nanoparticles that are highly efficient in encapsulating both hydrophilic and hydrophobic therapeutic drugs. Liposomes promote a low risk controlled release of the drug avoiding the side effects of the conventional chemotherapy. One of the great potentials of liposomes is the ability to attach a wide range of ligands to their surface producing ligand-mediated active targeting of cancer tumour with limited adverse off-target effects. Ultrasound can also aid in the controlled and specified release of the drug from the liposomes by breaking it apart and releasing the drug in the specific location where the ultrasound is applied. Our research focuses on the synthesis of PEGylated liposomes (contain poly-ethylene glycol) encapsulated with the model drug calcein and studying the effect of low frequency ultrasound applied at different power densities on calcein release. In addition, moieties are attached to the surface of the liposomes for specific targeting of the cancerous cells which over-express the receptors of these moieties, ultrasound is then applied and the release results are compared with the moiety free liposomes. The results showed that attaching these moieties to the surface of the PEGylated liposomes not only enhance their active targeting but also stimulate calcein release from these liposomes.

Keywords: active targeting, liposomes, moieties, ultrasound

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Authors: Ece A. Irmak, Amdulla O. Mekhrabov, M. Vedat Akdeniz

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There is a growing interest in the modeling and simulation of magnetic nanoalloys by various computational methods. Magnetic crystalline/amorphous nanoparticles (NP) are interesting materials from both the applied and fundamental points of view, as their properties differ from those of bulk materials and are essential for advanced applications such as high-performance permanent magnets, high-density magnetic recording media, drug carriers, sensors in biomedical technology, etc. As an important magnetic material, Fe-Ni based nanoalloys have promising applications in the chemical industry (catalysis, battery), aerospace and stealth industry (radar absorbing material, jet engine alloys), magnetic biomedical applications (drug delivery, magnetic resonance imaging, biosensor) and computer hardware industry (data storage). The physical and chemical properties of the nanoalloys depend not only on the particle or crystallite size but also on composition and atomic ordering. Therefore, computer modeling is an essential tool to predict structural, electronic, magnetic and optical behavior at atomistic levels and consequently reduce the time for designing and development of new materials with novel/enhanced properties. Although first-principles quantum mechanical methods provide the most accurate results, they require huge computational effort to solve the Schrodinger equation for only a few tens of atoms. On the other hand, molecular dynamics method with appropriate empirical or semi-empirical inter-atomic potentials can give accurate results for the static and dynamic properties of larger systems in a short span of time. In this study, structural evolutions, magnetic and electronic properties of Fe-Ni based nanoalloys have been studied by using molecular dynamics (MD) method in Large-scale Atomic/Molecular Massively Parallel Simulator (LAMMPS) and Density Functional Theory (DFT) in the Vienna Ab initio Simulation Package (VASP). The effects of particle size (in 2-10 nm particle size range) and temperature (300-1500 K) on stability and structural evolutions of amorphous and crystalline Fe-Ni bulk/nanoalloys have been investigated by combining molecular dynamic (MD) simulation method with Embedded Atom Model (EAM). EAM is applicable for the Fe-Ni based bimetallic systems because it considers both the pairwise interatomic interaction potentials and electron densities. Structural evolution of Fe-Ni bulk and nanoparticles (NPs) have been studied by calculation of radial distribution functions (RDF), interatomic distances, coordination number, core-to-surface concentration profiles as well as Voronoi analysis and surface energy dependences on temperature and particle size. Moreover, spin-polarized DFT calculations were performed by using a plane-wave basis set with generalized gradient approximation (GGA) exchange and correlation effects in the VASP-MedeA package to predict magnetic and electronic properties of the Fe-Ni based alloys in bulk and nanostructured phases. The result of theoretical modeling and simulations for the structural evolutions, magnetic and electronic properties of Fe-Ni based nanostructured alloys were compared with experimental and other theoretical results published in the literature.

Keywords: density functional theory, embedded atom model, Fe-Ni systems, molecular dynamics, nanoalloys

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Authors: Rashad Al-Gaashani

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The physicochemical activation method was used to produce high-quality activated carbon (AC) with a large surface area of about 2000 m2/g from low-cost and abundant biomass wastes in Qatar, namely date seeds. X-Ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron spectroscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-Ray spectroscopy (EDS), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area analysis was used to evaluate the AC samples. AC produced from date seeds has a wide range of pores available, including micro- and nano-pores. This type of AC with a well-developed pore structure may be very attractive for different applications, including air and water purification from micro and nano pollutants. Heavy metals iron (III) and copper (II) ions were removed from wastewater using the AC produced using a batch adsorption technique. The AC produced from date seeds biomass wastes shows high removal of heavy metals such as iron (III) ions (100%) and copper (II) ions (97.25%). The highest removal of copper (II) ions (100%) with AC produced from date seeds was found at pH 8, whereas the lowest removal (22.63%) occurred at pH 2. The effect of adsorption time, adsorbent dose, and pH on the removal of heavy metals was studied.

Keywords: activated carbon, date seeds, biomass, heavy metals removal, water treatment

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Authors: Utsav Swarnkar, Rabi Pathak, Rina Maiti

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This study aims to investigate the thermoregulatory role of sweating by comprehensively analyzing the evaporation process and its thermal cooling impact on local skin temperature at various time intervals. Traditional experimental methods struggle to fully capture these intricate phenomena. Therefore, numerical simulations play a crucial role in assessing sweat production rates and associated thermal cooling. This research utilizes transient computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to enhance our understanding of the evaporative cooling process on human skin. We conducted a simulation employing the k-w SST turbulence model. This simulation includes a scenario where sweat evaporation occurs over the skin surface, and at particular time intervals, temperatures at different locations have been observed and its effect explained. During this study, sweat evaporation was monitored on the skin surface following the commencement of the simulation. Subsequent to the simulation, various observations were made regarding temperature fluctuations at specific points over time intervals. It was noted that points situated closer to the periphery of the droplets exhibited higher levels of heat transfer and lower temperatures, whereas points within the droplets displayed contrasting trends.

Keywords: CFD, sweat, evaporation, multiphase flow, local heat loss

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Authors: Wiwat Chumai, Perawit Boonsomchua, Kanjana Ongkasin

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The ball bouncing problem is a well-known problem in physics involving a ball dropped from a height to the ground. In this paper, the work investigates the theoretical and experimental setup that describes the dynamics of a rigid body on a chaotic elastic surface under air-damp conditions. Examination of four different types of balls is made, including marble, metal ball, tennis ball, and ping-pong ball. In this experiment, the effect of impact velocities is not considered; the ball is dropped from a fixed height. The method in this work employs the Rayleigh Dissipation Function to specify the effects of dissipative forces in Lagrangian mechanics. Our discoveries reveal that the dynamics of the ball exhibit horizontal motion while damping oscillation occurs, forming the destabilization in vertical pinch-off motion. Moreover, rotational motion is studied. According to the investigation of four different balls, the outcomes illustrate that greater mass results in more frequent dynamics, and the experimental results at some points align with the theoretical model. This knowledge contributes to our understanding of the complex fluid system and could serve as a foundation for further developments in water droplet simulation.

Keywords: droplet, damping oscillation, nonlinear damping oscillation, bouncing ball problem, elastic surface

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Authors: Saad Bin Ismail, Muhammad Ateeq Qureshi, Rao Muhammad Zahid Khalil

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In the last few decades, urbanization worldwide has been sprawled manifold, which is denunciated in the growth of urban infrastructure and transportation. Urban Heat Island (UHI) can induce deterioration of the living environment, disabilities, and rises in energy usages. In this study, the prevalence/presence of Surface Urban Heat Island (SUHI) effect in major cities of Pakistan, including Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Karachi, Quetta, and Peshawar has been investigated. Landsat and SPOT satellite images were acquired for the assessment of urban sprawl. MODIS Land Surface Temperature product MOD11A2 was acquired between 1000-1200 hours (local time) for assessment of urban heat island. The results of urban sprawl informed that the extent of Islamabad and Rawalpindi urban area increased from 240 km2 to 624 km2 between 2000 and 2016, accounted 24 km2 per year, Lahore 29 km2, accounted 1.6 km2 per year, Karachi 261 km2, accounted for 16 km2/ per year, Peshawar 63 km2, accounted 4 km2/per year, and Quetta 76 km2/per year, accounted 5 km2/per year approximately. The average Surface Urban Heat Island (SUHI) magnitude is observed at a scale of 0.63 ᵒC for Islamabad and Rawalpindi, 1.25 ᵒC for Lahore, and 1.16 ᵒC for Karachi, which is 0.89 ᵒC for Quetta, and 1.08 ᵒC for Peshawar from 2000 to 2016. The pixel-based maximum SUHI intensity reaches up to about 11.40 ᵒC for Islamabad and Rawalpindi, 15.66 ᵒC for Lahore, 11.20 ᵒC for Karachi, 14.61 ᵒC for Quetta, and 15.22 ᵒC for Peshawar from the baseline of zero degrees Centigrade (ᵒC). The overall trend of SUHI in planned cities (e.g., Islamabad) is not found to increase significantly. Spatial and temporal patterns of SUHI for selected cities reveal heterogeneity and a unique pattern for each city. It is well recognized that SUHI intensity is modulated by land use/land cover patterns (due to their different surface properties and cooling rates), meteorological conditions, and anthropogenic activities. The study concluded that the selected cities (Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Karachi, Quetta, and Peshawar) are examples where dense urban pockets observed about 15 ᵒC warmer than a nearby rural area.

Keywords: urban heat island , surface urban heat island , urbanization, anthropogenic source

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Authors: Fatiha Aouabed, Abdelhafid Bayadi, Rabah Boudissa

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Nowadays, silicone rubber insulation materials are widely used in high voltage outdoor insulation systems as they can combat pollution flashover problems. The difference in pollution flashover performance of silicone rubber and other insulating materials is due to the way that water wets their surfaces. It resides as discrete drops on silicone rubber, and the mechanism of flashover is due to the breakdown of the air between the water drops and the distortion of these drops in the direction of the electric field which brings the insulation to degradation and failure. The main objective of this work is to quantify the effect of different types of water drops arrangements, their position and dry bands width on the flashover voltage of the silicone insulating surface with non-uniform electric field systems. The tests were carried out on a rectangular sample under AC voltage. A rod-rod electrode system is used. The findings of this work indicate that the performance of the samples decreases with the presence of water drops on their surfaces. Further, these experimental findings show that there is a limiting number of rows from which the flashover voltage of the insulation is minimal and constant. This minimum is a function of the distance between two successive rows. Finally, it is concluded that the system withstand voltage increases when the row of droplets on the electrode axis is removed.

Keywords: contamination, flashover, testing, silicone rubber insulators, surface wettability, water droplets

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Authors: Rio Hirakawa, Christian Gundlach, Sven Hartwig

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Aluminium has been used in a wide range of industrial applications due to its numerous advantages, including excellent specific strength, thermal conductivity, corrosion resistance, workability and recyclability. The automotive industry is increasingly adopting multi-materials, including aluminium in structures and components to improve the mechanical usability and performance of individual components. A common method for assembling dissimilar materials is mechanical joining, but mechanical joining requires multiple manufacturing steps, affects the mechanical properties of the base material and increases the weight due to additional metal parts. Fusion bonding is being used in more and more industries as a way of avoiding the above drawbacks. Infusion bonding, and surface pre-treatment of the base material is essential to ensure the long-life durability of the joint. Laser surface treatment of aluminium has been shown to improve the durability of the joint by forming a passive oxide film and roughening the substrate surface. Infusion bonding, the polymer bonds directly to the metal instead of the adhesive, but the sensitivity to interfacial contamination is higher due to the chemical activity and molecular size of the polymer. Laser-treated surfaces are expected to absorb impurities from the storage atmosphere over time, but the effect of such changes in the treated surface over time on the durability of fusion-bonded joints has not yet been fully investigated. In this paper, the effect of the ageing of laser-treated surfaces of aluminum alloys on the corrosion resistance of fusion-bonded joints is therefore investigated. AlMg3 of 1.5 mm thickness was cut using a water-jet cutting machine, cleaned and degreased with isopropanol and surface pre-treated with a pulsed fiber laser at a wavelength of 1060 nm, maximum power of 70 W and repetition rate of 55 kHz. The aluminum surfaces were then stored in air for various periods of time and their corrosion resistance was assessed by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). For the aluminum joints, induction heating was employed as the fusion bonding method and single-lap shear specimens were prepared. The corrosion resistance of the joints was assessed by measuring the lap shear strength before and after neutral salt spray. Cross-sectional observations by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were also carried out to investigate changes in the microstructure of the bonded interface. Finally, the corrosion resistance of the surface and the joint were compared and the differences in the mechanisms of corrosion resistance enhancement between the two were discussed.

Keywords: laser surface treatment, pre-treatment, bonding, corrosion, durability, interface, automotive, aluminium alloys, joint, fusion bonding

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Authors: Pedro M. A. Vitoriano, Tito. G. Amaral

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Automated Optical Inspection (AOI) Systems are commonly used on Printed Circuit Boards (PCB) manufacturing. The use of this technology has been proven as highly efficient for process improvements and quality achievements. The correct extraction of the component for posterior analysis is a critical step of the AOI process. Nowadays, the Pattern Matching Algorithm is commonly used, although this algorithm requires extensive calculations and is time consuming. This paper will present an improved algorithm for the component localization process, with the capability of implementation in a parallel execution system.

Keywords: AOI, automated optical inspection, SMD, surface mounting devices, pattern matching, parallel execution

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Authors: Panagiotis Kyratsis, Konstantinos Kakoulis

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Nowadays, the rapid development of CAD systems’ programming environments results in the creation of multiple downstream applications, which are developed and becoming increasingly available. CAD based manufacturing simulations is gradually following the same trend. Drilling is the most popular hole-making process used in a variety of industries. A specially built piece of software that deals with the drilling kinematics is presented. The cutting forces are calculated based on the tool geometry, the cutting conditions and the tool/work piece materials. The results are verified by experimental work. Finally, the response surface methodology (RSM) is applied and mathematical models of the total thrust force and the thrust force developed because of the main cutting edges are proposed.

Keywords: CAD, application programming interface, response surface methodology, drilling, RSM

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Authors: Pinki Sharma, Himanshu Joshi

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Distillery spentwash contains high chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand (BOD), color, total dissolved solids (TDS) and other contaminants even after biological treatment. The effluent can’t be discharged as such in the surface water bodies or land without further treatment. Reverse osmosis (RO) treatment plants have been installed in many of the distilleries at tertiary level. But at most of the places these plants are not properly working due to high concentration of organic matter and other contaminants in biologically treated spentwash. To make the membrane treatment proven and reliable technology, proper pre-treatment is mandatory. In the present study, ultra-filtration (UF) as pre-treatment of RO at tertiary stage was performed. Operating parameters namely initial pH (pHo: 2–10), trans-membrane pressure (TMP: 4-20 bars) and temperature (T: 15- 43°C) used for conducting experiments with UF system. Experiments were optimized at different operating parameters in terms of COD, color, TDS and TOC removal by using response surface methodology (RSM) with central composite design. The results showed that removal of COD, color and TDS by 62%, 93.5% and 75.5%, with UF, respectively at optimized conditions with increased permeate flux from 17.5 l/m2/h (RO) to 38 l/m2/h (UF-RO). The performance of the RO system was greatly improved both in term of pollutant removal as well as water recovery.

Keywords: bio-digested distillery spentwash, reverse osmosis, response surface methodology, ultra-filtration

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Authors: A. Hegazy, Ahmed Elsayed, Essam El Shenawy, N. Allam, Hala Handal, K. R. Mahmoud

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Highly crystalline, TiO₂ pristine sub-10 nm anatase nanocrystals were fabricated at low temperatures by post hydrothermal treatment of the as-prepared TiO₂ nanoparticles. This treatment resulted in bandgap narrowing and increased photocurrent density value (3.8 mA/cm²) when this material was employed in water splitting systems. The achieved photocurrent values are among the highest reported ones so far for the fabricated nanoparticles at this low temperature. This might be explained by the increased surface defects of the prepared nanoparticles. It resulted in bandgap narrowing that was further investigated using positron annihilation experiments by measuring positron lifetime and Doppler broadening. Besides, homogeneous spherical TiO₂ nanoparticles were synthesized in large diameter and high surface area and the high percentage of (001) facet by sol-gel method using potassium persulfate (K₂S₂O₈) as an oxidizing agent. The fabricated particles exhibited high exposed surface area, high photoactivity and reduced band gap. Enhanced performance for water splitting applications was displayed by formed TiO₂ nanoparticles. Their morphological and structural properties were studied to optimize their synthesis parameters in an attempt to construct more applicable fuel cells in the industry for hydrogen fuel production.

Keywords: positron annihilation, solar energy, TiO2 nanoparticles, water splitting

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Authors: Hossein Arfaeinia, Ahmad Jonidi Jafari, Sina Dobaradaran, Sadegh Niazi, Mojtaba Ehsanifar, Amir Zahedi

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Street dust and surface soil samples were collected from very heavy, heavy, medium and low traffic areas and natural site in Tehran, Iran. These samples were analyzed for some physical–chemical features, total and chemical speciation of selected metals and metalloids (Zn, Al, Sr, Pb, Cu, Cr, Cd, Co, Ni, and V) to study the effect of traffic on their mobility and accumulation in the environment. The pH, electrical conductivity (EC), carbonates and organic carbon (OC) values were similar in soil and dust samples from similar traffic areas. The traffic increases EC contents in dust/soil matrixes but has no effect on concentrations of metals and metalloids in soil samples. Rises in metal and metalloids levels with traffic were found in dust samples. Moreover, the traffic increases the percentage of acid soluble fraction and Fe and Mn oxides associated fractions of Pb and Zn. The mobilization of Cu, Zn, Pb, Cr in dust samples was easier than in soil. The speciation of metals and metalloids except Cd is mainly affected by physicochemical features in soil, although total metals and metalloids affected the speciation in dust samples (except chromium and nickel).

Keywords: street dust, surface soil, traffic, metals, metalloids, chemical speciation

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Authors: Elham Mahdian, Reza Karazhian, Rahele Dehghan Tanha

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Pepper (Capsicum annum L.) which belong to the family Solananceae, are known for their versatility as a vegetable crop and are consumed both as fresh vegetables or dehydrated for spices. Pepper is considered an excellent source of bioactive nutrients. Ascorbic acid, carotenoids and phenolic compounds are its main antioxidant constituents. Ultrasound assisted extraction is an inexpensive, simple and efficient alternative to conventional extraction techniques. The mechanism of action for ultrasound-assisted extraction are attributed to cavitations, mechanical forces and thermal impact, which result in disruption of cells walls, reduce particle size, and enhance mass transfer across cell membranes. In this study, response surface methodology was used to optimize experimental conditions for ultrasonic assisted extraction of carotenoid compounds from Chili peppers. Variables were included extraction temperatures at 3 levels (30, 40 and 50 °C), extraction times at 3 levels (10, 25 and 40 minutes) and power at 3 levels (30, 60 and 90 %). It was observed that ultrasound waves applied at temperature of 49°C, time of 10 minutes and power 89 % resulted to the highest carotenoids contents (lycopene and β-carotene), while the lowest value was recorded in the control. Thus, results showed that ultrasound waves have strong impact on extraction of carotenoids from pepper.

Keywords: carotenoids, optimization, pepper, response surface methodology

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Authors: Xin Chen, Moxiao Li, Xuechao Sun, Fei Ti, Shaobao Liu, Feng Xu, Tian Jian Lu

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The composite materials with pores have the characteristics of light weight, sound insulation, and heat insulation, and have broad prospects in many fields, including aerospace. In general, the stiffness of such composite is less than the stiffness of the matrix material, limiting their applications. In this paper, we establish a theoretical model to analyze the deformation mechanism of a nano-pore. The interface between the pores and matrix material is described by the Gurtin-Murdoch model. By considering scale effect related with current deformation, we estimate the effective mechanical properties (e.g., effective shear modulus and bulk modulus) of a composite with nano-pores. Due to the scale effect, the elastic field in the composite was changed and local hardening was observed around the nano-pore, and the effective shear modulus and effective bulk modulus were found to be a function of the surface energy. The effective shear modulus increase with the surface energy and decrease with the size of the nano-pores, and the effective bulk modulus decrease with the surface energy and increase with the size of the nano-pores. These results have potential applications in the nanocomposite mechanics and aerospace field.

Keywords: composite mechanics, nano-inhomogeneity, nano-pores, scale effect

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Authors: Adel Belayadi, Ahmed Mougari, Boualem Bourahla

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Molecular junctions are currently considered a promising style in the miniaturization of electronic devices. In this contribution, we provide a tight-binding model to investigate the quantum transport properties across-molecular junctions sandwiched between 2D-graphene nanoribbons in the zigzag direction. We investigate, in particular, the effect of embedded atoms such as Gold and Silicon across the molecular junction. The results exhibit a resonance behavior in terms of incident Fermi levels, depending on the molecular junction type. Additionally, the transport properties under a perpendicular magnetic field exhibit an oscillation for the transmittance versus the magnetic field strength.

Keywords: molecular junction, 2D-graphene nanoribbons, quantum transport properties, magnetic field

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Authors: Huanru Wang, Jianzhun Jiang

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At present, the preparation of the catalyst by carbon carrier is one of the improvement directions of the C₂ pre-hydrogenation catalyst. Carbon materials can be prepared from coal direct liquefaction residues, coconut shells, biomass, etc., and the pore structure of carbon carrier materials can be adjusted through the preparation process; at high temperatures, the carbon carrier itself also shows certain catalytic activity. Therefore, this paper mainly selected typical activated carbon and coconut shell carbon as carbon carrier materials, studied their microstructure and surface properties, prepared a series of carbon-based catalysts loaded with Pd, and investigated the effects of the content of promoter Ag and the concentration of reductant on the structure and performance of the catalyst and its catalytic performance for the pre hydrogenation of C₂. In this paper, the carbon supports from two sources and the catalysts prepared by them were characterized in detail. The results showed that the morphology and structure of different supports and the performance of the catalysts prepared were also obviously different. The catalyst supported on coconut shell carbon has a small specific surface area and large pore diameter. The catalyst supported on activated carbon has a large specific surface area and rich pore structure. The active carbon support is mainly a mixture of amorphous graphite and microcrystalline graphite. For the catalyst prepared with coconut shell carbon as the carrier, the sample is very uneven, and its specific surface area and pore volume are irregular. Compared with coconut shell carbon, activated carbon is more suitable as the carrier of the C₂ hydrogenation catalyst. The conversion of acetylene, methyl acetylene, and butadiene decreased, and the ethylene selectivity increased after Ag was added to the supported Pd catalyst. When the amount of promoter Ag is 0.01-0.015%, the catalyst has relatively good catalytic performance. Ag and Pd form an alloying effect, thus reducing the effective demand for Ag. The Pd Ag ratio is the key factor affecting the catalytic performance. When the addition amount of Ag is 0.01-0.015%, the dispersion of Pd on the carbon support surface can be significantly improved, and the size of active particles can be reduced. The Pd Ag ratio is the main factor in improving the selectivity of the catalyst. When the additional amount of sodium formate is 1%, the catalyst prepared has both high acetylene conversion and high ethylene selectivity.

Keywords: C₂ hydrogenation, activated carbon, Ag promoter, Pd catalysts

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Authors: K. A. D. D. Kuruppu, R. M. De Silva, K. M. N. De Silva

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This research work was based on developing a solar responsive aircraft window panel which can be used as a self-cleaning surface and also a surface which degrade Volatile Organic compounds (VOC) available in the aircraft cabin areas. Further, this surface has the potential of harvesting energy from Solar. The transparent inorganic nano sol solution was prepared. The obtained sol solution was characterized using X-ray diffraction, Particle size analyzer and FT-IR. The existing nano material which shows the similar characteristics was also used to compare the efficiencies with the newly prepared nano sol. Nano sol solution was coated on cleaned four aircraft window pieces separately using a spin coater machine. The existing nano material was dissolved and prepared a solution having the similar concentration as nano sol solution. Pre-cleaned four aircraft window pieces were coated with this solution and the rest cleaned four aircraft window pieces were considered as control samples. The control samples were uncoated from anything. All the window pieces were allowed to dry at room temperature. All the twelve aircraft window pieces were uniform in all the factors other than the type of coating. The surface morphologies of the samples were analyzed using SEM. The photocatalytic degradation of VOC was determined after incorporating gas of Toluene to each sample followed by the analysis done by UV-VIS spectroscopy. The self- cleaning capabilities were analyzed after adding of several types of stains on the window pieces. The self-cleaning property of each sample was analyzed using UV-VIS spectroscopy. The highest photocatalytic degradation of Volatile Organic compound and the highest photocatalytic degradation of stains were obtained for the samples which were coated by the nano sol solution. Therefore, the experimental results clearly show that there is a potential of using this nano sol in aircraft window pieces which favors the self-cleaning property as well as efficient photocatalytic degradation of VOC gases. This will ensure safer environment inside aircraft cabins.

Keywords: aircraft, nano, smart windows, solar

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Authors: Marina Bubalo, Davor Romić, Stjepan Husnjak, Helena Bakić

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Even though European Council Directive 91/676/EEC known as Nitrates Directive was adopted in 1991, the issue of water quality preservation in areas of intensive agricultural production still persist all over Europe. High nitrate nitrogen concentrations in surface and groundwater originating from diffuse sources are one of the most important environmental problems in modern intensive agriculture. The fate of nitrogen in soil, surface and groundwater in agricultural area is mostly affected by anthropogenic activity (i.e. agricultural practice) and hydrological and climatological conditions. The aim of this study was to identify impact of land use, soil type, soil vulnerability to pollutant percolation, and natural aquifer vulnerability to nitrate occurrence in surface and groundwater within an intensive agricultural area. The study was set in Varaždin County (northern Croatia), which is under significant influence of the large rivers Drava and Mura and due to that entire area is dominated by alluvial soil with shallow active profile mainly on gravel base. Negative agricultural impact on water quality in this area is evident therefore the half of selected county is a part of delineated nitrate vulnerable zones (NVZ). Data on water quality were collected from 7 surface and 8 groundwater monitoring stations in the County. Also, recent study of the area implied detailed inventory of agricultural production and fertilizers use with the aim to produce new agricultural land use database as one of dominant parameters. The analysis of this database done using ArcGIS 10.1 showed that 52,7% of total County area is agricultural land and 59,2% of agricultural land is used for intensive agricultural production. On the other hand, 56% of soil within the county is classified as soil vulnerable to pollutant percolation. The situation is similar with natural aquifer vulnerability; northern part of the county ranges from high to very high aquifer vulnerability. Statistical analysis of water quality data is done using SPSS 13.0. Cluster analysis group both surface and groundwater stations in two groups according to nitrate nitrogen concentrations. Mean nitrate nitrogen concentration in surface water – group 1 ranges from 4,2 to 5,5 mg/l and in surface water – group 2 from 24 to 42 mg/l. The results are similar, but evidently higher, in groundwater samples; mean nitrate nitrogen concentration in group 1 ranges from 3,9 to 17 mg/l and in group 2 from 36 to 96 mg/l. ANOVA analysis confirmed statistical significance between stations that are classified in the same group. The previously listed parameters (land use, soil type, etc.) were used in factorial correspondence analysis (FCA) to detect importance of each stated parameter in local water quality. Since stated parameters mostly cannot be altered, there is obvious necessity for more precise and more adapted land management in such conditions.

Keywords: agricultural area, nitrate, factorial correspondence analysis, water quality

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Authors: Soufiene Ilahi

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Photothermal effect occurs when absorbed light energy that generate a thermal wave that propagate into the sample and surrounding media. Subsequently, the propagation of the vibration of phonons or electrons causes heat transfer. In fact, heat energy is provided by non-radiative recombination process that occurs in semiconductors sample. Three heats sources are identified: surface recombination, bulk recombination and carrier thermalisation. In the last few years, Photothermal Deflection Technique PTD is a nondestructive and accurate technique that prove t ability for electronics properties investigation. In this paper, we have studied the influence of doping on minority carrier lifetime, i.e, nonradiative lifetime, surface and diffusion coefficient. In fact, we have measured the photothermal signal of two sample of GaAs doped with C et Cr.In other hand , we have developed a theoretical model that takes into account of thermal and electronics diffusion equations .In order to extract electronics parameters of GaAs samples, we have fitted the theoretical signal of PTD to the experimental ones. As a results, we have found that nonradiative lifetime is around of 4,3 x 10-8 (±11,24%) and 5 x 10-8 (±14,32%) respectively for GaAs : Si doped and Cr doped. Accordingly, the diffusion coefficient is equal 4,6 *10-4 (± 3,2%) and 5* 10-4 (± 0,14%) foe the Cr, C and Si doped GaAs respectively.

Keywords: nonradiative lifetime, mobility of minority carrier, diffusion length, surface and interface recombination in GaAs

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Authors: Mahmud Gungor, Ali Aydin, Erdal Akyol, Suat Tasdelen

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The understanding of geotechnical characteristics of near-surface material and the effects of the groundwater is very important problem in such as site studies. For showing the relations between seismic data and groundwater we selected about 25 km2 as the study area. It has been presented which is a detailed work of seismic data and groundwater depths of Gokpinar Damp area. Seismic waves velocity (Vp and Vs) are very important parameters showing the soil properties. The seismic records were used the method of the multichannel analysis of surface waves near area of Gokpinar Damp area. Sixty sites in this area have been investigated with survey lines about 60 m in length. MASW (Multichannel analysis of surface wave) method has been used to generate one-dimensional shear wave velocity profile at locations. These shear wave velocities are used to estimate equivalent shear wave velocity in the study area at every 2 and 5 m intervals up to a depth of 45 m. Levels of equivalent shear wave velocity of soil are used the classified of the study area. After the results of the study, it must be considered as components of urban planning and building design of Gokpinar Damp area, Denizli and the application and use of these results should be required and enforced by municipal authorities.

Keywords: seismic data, Gokpinar Damp, urban planning, Denizli

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Authors: Yohei Saika

Abstract:

On the basis of Bayesian inference using the maximizer of the posterior marginal estimate, we carry out phase unwrapping using multiple interferograms via generalized mean-field theory. Numerical calculations for a typical wave-front in remote sensing using the synthetic aperture radar interferometry, phase diagram in hyper-parameter space clarifies that the present method succeeds in phase unwrapping perfectly under the constraint of surface- consistency condition, if the interferograms are not corrupted by any noises. Also, we find that prior is useful for extending a phase in which phase unwrapping under the constraint of the surface-consistency condition. These results are quantitatively confirmed by the Monte Carlo simulation.

Keywords: Bayesian inference, generalized mean-field theory, phase unwrapping, multiple interferograms, statistical mechanics

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Authors: J. L. Chukwuneke, C. H. Achebe, S. N. Omenyi

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This research work presents the surface thermodynamics approach to M-TB/HIV-Human sputum interactions. This involved the use of the Hamaker coefficient concept as a surface energetics tool in determining the interaction processes, with the surface interfacial energies explained using van der Waals concept of particle interactions. The Lifshitz derivation for van der Waals forces was applied as an alternative to the contact angle approach which has been widely used in other biological systems. The methodology involved taking sputum samples from twenty infected persons and from twenty uninfected persons for absorbance measurement using a digital Ultraviolet visible Spectrophotometer. The variables required for the computations with the Lifshitz formula were derived from the absorbance data. The Matlab software tools were used in the mathematical analysis of the data produced from the experiments (absorbance values). The Hamaker constants and the combined Hamaker coefficients were obtained using the values of the dielectric constant together with the Lifshitz equation. The absolute combined Hamaker coefficients A132abs and A131abs on both infected and uninfected sputum samples gave the values of A132abs = 0.21631x10-21Joule for M-TB infected sputum and Ã132abs = 0.18825x10-21Joule for M-TB/HIV infected sputum. The significance of this result is the positive value of the absolute combined Hamaker coefficient which suggests the existence of net positive van der waals forces demonstrating an attraction between the bacteria and the macrophage. This however, implies that infection can occur. It was also shown that in the presence of HIV, the interaction energy is reduced by 13% conforming adverse effects observed in HIV patients suffering from tuberculosis.

Keywords: absorbance, dielectric constant, hamaker coefficient, lifshitz formula, macrophage, mycobacterium tuberculosis, van der waals forces

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Authors: A. O. Ogunkeyede, D. Amuchi, A. A. Adebayo

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Heavy metal contaminations in soil have received great attention. Anthropogenic activities such as vehicular emission, industrial activities and constructions have resulted in elevated concentration of heavy metals in the surface soils. The metal particles can be free from the surface soil when they are disturbed and re-entrained in air, which necessitated the need to investigate surface soil at market environment where adults and children are present on daily basis. This study assesses concentration of heavy metal pollution, ecological and health risk factors in surface soil at Effurun market. 8 samples were collected at household material (EMH), fish (EMFs), fish and commodities (EMF-C), Abattoir (EMA 1 & 2), fruit sections (EMF 1 & 2) and lastly main road (EMMR). The samples were digested and analyzed in triplicate for contents of Lead (Pb), Nickel (Ni), Cadmium (Cd) and Copper (Cu). The mean concentration of the Pb mg/kg (112.27 ± 1.12) and Cu mg/kg (156.14 ± 1.10) were highest in the abattoir section (EMA 1). The mean concentrations of the heavy metal were then used to calculate the ecological and health risk for people within the market. Pb contamination at EMMR, EMF 2, EMFs were moderately while Pb shows considerable contamination at EMH, EMA 1, EMA 2 and EMF-C sections of the Effurun market. The ecological risk factor varies between low to moderate pollution for Pb and EMA 1 has the highest potential ecological risk that falls within moderate pollution. The hazard quotient results show that dermal exposure pathway is the possible means of heavy metal exposure to the traders while ingestion is the least sources of exposure to adult. The ingestion suggested that children around the EMA 1 have the highest possible exposure to children due to hand-to-mouth and object-to-mouth behaviour. The results further show that adults at the EMA1 will have the highest exposure to Pb due to inhalation during burning of cow with tyre that contained Pb and Cu. The carcinogenic risk values of most sections were higher than acceptable values, while Ni at EMMR, EMF 1 & 2, EMFs and EMF-C sections that were below the acceptable values. The cancer risk for inhalation exposure pathway for Pb (1.01E+17) shows a significant level of contamination than all the other sections of the market. It suggested that the people working at the Abattoir were very prone to cancer risk.

Keywords: carcinogenic, ecological, heavy metal, risk

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Authors: Yi Zheng

Abstract:

Improving formability and mechanical properties have always been one of the challenges in the field of additive manufacturing (AM) of nickel-based superalloys. In this work, the effect of a coaxially coupled alternating magnetic field (AMF) on surface morphology and mechanical properties of plasma arc-based additive manufactured Inconel 718 deposit were investigated. Results show that the Lorentz force induced by AMF strongly alters the flow behavior of the plasma jet and the molten pool, suppressing the tendency of the liquid metal in the molten pool to flow down on the two sides face of the deposit, which in turn remarkably improved the surface accuracy of the thin-walled deposit. Furthermore, the electromagnetic stirring induced by AMF can effectively enhance the convection between the dendrites, which could not only contribute to the formation of finer dendrites but also alleviate the enrichment of the elements (i.e., Nb and Mo) at the solid-liquid interface and inhibits the precipitation of Laves phase. The smallest primary dendritic arm spacing (~13 μm) and lowest Laves phases area fraction (3.12%) were witnessed in the bottom region of the AMF-assisted deposit. The mechanical test confirmed that the deposit's micro-hardness and tensile properties were moderately improved compared with the counterpart without AMF.

Keywords: additive manufacturing, inconel 718, alternating magnetic field, laves phase

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Authors: Ahmed Jarray, Vanessa Magnanimo, Stefan Luding

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Granular avalanches are ubiquitous in nature and occur in numerous industrial processes associated with particulate systems. When a small amount of liquid is added to a pile of particles, pendular bridges form and the particles are attracted by capillary forces, creating complex structure and flow behavior. We have performed an extensive series of experiments to investigate the effect of capillary force and particle size on wet granular avalanches, and we established a methodology that ensures the control of the granular flow in a rotating drum. The velocity of the free surface and the angle of repose of the particles in the rotating drum are determined using particle tracking method. The capillary force between the particles is significantly reduced by making the glass beads hydrophobic via chemical silanization. We show that the strength of the capillary forces between two adjacent particles can be deliberately manipulated through surface modification of the glass beads, thus, under the right conditions; we demonstrate that the avalanche dynamics can be controlled. The results show that the avalanche amplitude decreases when increasing the capillary force. We also find that liquid-induced cohesion increases the width of the gliding layer and the dynamic angle of repose, however, it decreases the velocity of the free surface.

Keywords: avalanche dynamics, capillary force, granular material, granular flow

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Authors: Joseph C. Chen, Venkata Mohan Kudapa

Abstract:

Development of two real-time surface roughness (Ra) prediction systems for milling operations was attempted. The systems used not only cutting parameters, such as feed rate and spindle speed, but also the cutting current generated and corrected by a clamp type energy sensor. Two different approaches were developed. First, a fuzzy inference system (FIS), in which the fuzzy logic rules are generated by experts in the milling processes, was used to conduct prediction modeling using current cutting data. Second, a neuro-fuzzy system (ANFIS) was explored. Neuro-fuzzy systems are adaptive techniques in which data are collected on the network, processed, and rules are generated by the system. The inference system then uses these rules to predict Ra as the output. Experimental results showed that the parameters of spindle speed, feed rate, depth of cut, and input current variation could predict Ra. These two systems enable the prediction of Ra during the milling operation with an average of 91.83% and 94.48% accuracy by FIS and ANFIS systems, respectively. Statistically, the ANFIS system provided better prediction accuracy than that of the FIS system.

Keywords: surface roughness, input current, fuzzy logic, neuro-fuzzy, milling operations

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Authors: Rym Taktak, Achwek Elghazel, Jamel Bouaziz

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In the present work, we explored the potential of tribological behavior of tricalcium phosphate-Fluorapatite (β Tcp-Fap) bioceramic which has attracted considerable attention for orthopedics and dental applications. The approximate representatives Fap-βTcp were respectively [{13.26 wt%, 86.74 wt%} {19.9 wt%, 80.1 wt%},{ 26.52 wt%, 73.48 wt%}, {33.16 wt%, 66.84 wt%} and {40 wt%, 60 wt%}. The effects of Fluorapatite additives on friction and wear behavior were studied and discussed. The wear test was conducted using pion-disk tribometer at room temperature under dry condition using a constant sliding speed of 0,063 m/s, and three loads 3, 5 and 8 N. The wear rate and friction coefficient of β Tcp with different additive amounts were compared. An Alumina ball specimens were used as the pin and flat surface β Tcp-Fap specimens as the antagonist counterface. The results show a huge difference between the wear rate of β TCP samples and the other β TCP-Fap composites for all normal forces applied. This result shows the beneficial effect of fluorapatite on the tribological behavior of the β TCP. Moreover, we note that β Tcp-26% Fap specimens exhibit, under dry condition, the lower friction coefficient and the smaller wear rate than other biocomposites. Thereby, the friction and wear behavior is influenced by the addition of fluorapatite, the applied normal force, and the sliding velocity. To extend the understanding of the wear process, the surface topography of β Tcp-26% Fap specimens and the wear track obtained during the wear tests were studied using a surface profilometer, optical microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy.

Keywords: alumina, bioceramic, friction and wear test, tricalcium phosphate

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Authors: Zhenyu Yang, Qiunan Chen, Xiaocheng Huang

Abstract:

Reliable prediction of tunnel collapse remains a prominent challenge in the field of civil engineering. In this study, leveraging the nonlinear Hoek-Brown failure criterion and the upper-bound theorem, an analytical solution for the collapse surface of shallowly buried circular tunnels was derived, taking into account the coupled effects of surface loads and pore water pressures. Initially, surface loads and pore water pressures were introduced as external force factors, equating the energy dissipation rate to the external force, yielding our objective function. Subsequently, the variational method was employed for optimization, and the outcomes were juxtaposed with previous research findings. Furthermore, we utilized the deduced equation set to systematically analyze the influence of various rock mass parameters on collapse shape and extent. To validate our analytical solutions, a comparison with prior studies was executed. The corroboration underscored the efficacy of our proposed methodology, offering invaluable insights for collapse risk assessment in practical engineering applications.

Keywords: tunnel roof stability, analytical solution, hoek–brown failure criterion, limit analysis

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