bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mechanical power flow from trunk and lower limb joint power to external horizontal power in the track and field block start
Authors: Sado Natsuki , Yoshioka Shinsuke , Fukashiro Senshi
Published: August 2022

Sprint start performance is measured as the horizontal external power, the time‐average rate of horizontal kinetic energy generation. Although joint powers have been examined, not all segment rotations on which positive powers are exerted necessarily contribute to forward propulsion; details regarding horizontal power remain unclear. Here we show the contributions of segment rotations to the forward and upward propulsion. We calculated the joint power exerted on each segment and the contributions from segment rotations to the normalised average horizontal and vertical external powers ( and ) during the sprint start by 12 male sprinters. Over half (55 ± 6%) is due to the front thigh rotation (0.30 ± 0.04), on which the hip and knee exert positive power. Pelvic rotation does not contribute to (0.00 ± 0.01). This highlights the importance of the hip‐extensors strength and the need for it accompanied by the lumbar‐extensors strength cancelling out the hip‐extensors action on the pelvis and promoting hip‐extensor‐induced thigh rotation. The front thigh rotation decreases (−0.08 ± 0.02). is primarily induced by rotations of the thorax (0.04 ± 0.01), lumbar region (0.06 ± 0.02), and pelvis (0.04 ± 0.01). Rotations of the lower‐limb segments did not contribute to upward propulsion. Therefore, the front thigh induces downward movement, which is counterbalanced by the trunk segments. We bridge the gap in the current understanding from joint power to . We present a case involving segments on which positive joint powers are exerted similarly but play different roles: forward or upward propulsion, thereby providing insights into directional control mechanisms in explosive initiation of motion.
Finite Capacitive Response at the Quantum Hall Plateau
Authors: Zhao Lili , Lin Wenlu , Chung Y. J. , Baldwin K. W. , Pfeiffer L. N. , Liu Yang
Published: August 2022

We study ultra-high-mobility two-dimensional (2D) electron/hole systems with high precision capacitance measurement. It is found that the capacitance charge appears only at the fringe of the gate at high magnetic field when the 2D conductivity decreases significantly. At integer quantum Hall effects, the capacitance vanishes and forms a plateau at high temperatures T ≳ 300 mK, which surprisingly disappears at T ≲ 100 mK. This anomalous behavior is likely a manifestation that dilute particles/vacancies in the top-most Landau level form Wigner crystals, which have finite compressibility and can host polarization current.
Optical conductivity of ultrathin Floquet topological insulators
Authors: Shah Muzamil , Khan Niaz Ali , Sajid Muhammad
Published: August 2022

In this paper, we theoretically investigate the topological aspects of a 3D ultrathin topological insulator in the presence of an irradiated off-resonant circularly-polarized light field. Based on the Floquet formalism we treat the light field as an external perturbation which introduces an effective energy term in the system Hamiltonian and hence, gives mass to the massless Dirac fermions at the surfaces of the Floquet topological insulators (FTIs). By controlling the strength of the off-resonant light field we manipulate the interplay between the hybridization energies of the top and bottom surface states (SSs), and the effective energies induced by the irradiated light field to open and close band gaps of the SSs Dirac electrons. This gives rise to topologically nontrivial and trivial phases. We calculate the longitudinal and transverse conductivities of the FTI thin film and show that these strongly depend on the strength of the irradiated light field. The behavior of conductivities signatures TQPTs between distinct topological insulating phases.
Porous MCo2O4 (M = Zn, Cu, Fe, Mn) as high efficient bi-functional catalysts for oxygen reduction and oxygen evolution reaction
Authors: Kang Shengkai , Li Sirong , Xiao Xuechun , Zhang Zhanyu , Shi Yang , Zhao Mengyao , Wang Yude
Published: August 2022

High-efficiency bi-functional electrocatalysts with long-term stability are critical to the development of many kinds of fuel cells, because that the performance of battery is limited by the slow kinetics of oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER). In this work, porous MCo2O4 (M = Zn, Cu, Fe, Mn) were prepared by hydrothermal method with NH4F and urea as surfactants. FeCo2O4with porous structure has more oxygen defects and the larger specific surface area than other MCo2O4 (M = Zn, Cu, Mn), and it not onlysupplies more active sites but also avails the transmission of electrolyte and O2 in the process of ORR and OER in 0.1 M KOH aqueous solution. Porous FeCo2O4 electrode material produces less intermediate H2O2, and its ORR is mainly controlled by a 4e− reaction path. Compared with commercial Pt/C, the prepared FeCo2O4 has comparable ORR activity and excellent OER activity. At the same time, the stability of FeCo2O4 to ORR is significantly higher than that of commercial Pt/C. The porous FeCo2O4 was prepared by facile synthesis procedure could be a potential promising bi-functional catalyst due to its high electrocatalytic activities and long-term stability for both the ORR and OER.
Influence of process parameters on energetic properties of sputter-deposited Al/CuO reactive multilayers
Authors: Singh Vidushi , Julien Baptiste , Salvagnac Ludovic , Pelloquin Sylvain , Hungria Teresa , Josse Claudie , Belhaj Mohamed , Rossi Carole
Published: August 2022

In this study, we demonstrate the effect of change of the sputtering power and the deposition pressure on the ignition and the combustion properties of Al/CuO reactive thin films. A reduced sputtering power of Al along with the deposition carried out at a higher-pressure result in a high-quality thin film showing a 200% improvement in the burn rate and a 50% drop in the ignition energy. This highlights the direct implication of the change of the process parameters on the responsivity and the reactivity of the reactive film while maintaining the Al and CuO thin-film integrity both crystallographically and chemically. Atomically resolved structural and chemical analyzes enabled us to qualitatively determine how the microstructural differences at the interface (thickness, stress level, delamination at high temperatures and intermixing) facilitate the Al and O migrations and impact the overall nano-thermite reactivity. We found that the deposition of CuO under low pressure produces well-defined and similar Al-CuO and CuO-Al interfaces with the least expected intermixing. Our investigations also showed that the magnitude of residual stress induced during the deposition plays a decisive role in influencing the overall nano-thermite reactivity. Higher is the magnitude of the tensile residual stress induced, stronger is the presence of gaseous oxygen at the interface. By contrast, high compressive interfacial stress aids in preserving the Al atoms for the main reaction while not getting expended in the interface thickening. Overall, this analysis helped in understanding the effect of change of deposition conditions on the reactivity of Al/CuO nanolaminates and several handles that may be pulled to optimize the process better by means of physical engineering of the interfaces.
ASCOT5 simulations of neutral beam heating and current drive in the TJ-II stellarator
Authors: Mulas S. , Cappa Á. , Kontula J. , López-Bruna D. , Calvo I. , Parra F.I. , Liniers M. , Kurki-Suonio T. , Mantsinen M.
Published: August 2022

The TJ-II stellarator neutral-beam injection (NBI) system, vacuum vessel and magnetic configuration have been included in the orbit-following Monte Carlo code ASCOT5 to simulate neutral-beam heating and current drive for high-density NBI plasmas. Co- and counter-injection beams are simulated separately. A scan in both electron density and temperature is carried out within the range of values corresponding to realistic high-density NBI plasmas, for which a low level of fast-ion losses due to charge-exchange reactions is expected, since the version of ASCOT5 used in the paper does not include such processes. The rest of the kinetic profiles (ion temperature, radial electric field and effective charge) are kept fixed. The initial distribution of markers shows that the amount of available power in the plasma carried by the beam ions depends slightly on the electron temperature and on the injection direction (co/counter). The steady-state fast-ion distribution function is obtained and used to calculate the three-dimensional fast-ion density, the neutral-beam driven current and the amount of power deposited to the plasma in the two injection scenarios. These three quantities are higher in the counter-injected case due to a lower amount of promptly lost particles. The neutral-beam current drive (NBCD) has been calculated using the fast-ion beam current given by ASCOT5 and the electron return current, which is computed with the analytic solution of the drift kinetic equation for electrons in the presence of fast ions in the low-collisionality regime. Neither the calculated fast-ion density nor the NBCD are flux functions, in consistency with the fact that fast-ion drift surfaces and flux surfaces are generally not aligned.
Bread Waste and Mitigation Strategies: A Review
Authors: Soni Rachit , Bhardwaj Arvind , Singh Jarangal Lakhwinder Pal
Published: August 2022

Bread has played an integral part in people’s life for a long period of time. It plays an important role in our daily eating lives. It has its period of usa-bility and from that point forward, the bread waste is produced. However, the causes of bread waste and mitigation strategy for reducing waste at various levels of the supply chain are still being studied. This study examines recent literature on the major cause of bread waste and its percentage in the bread supply chain. There are various waste mitigation measures that have been evaluated in order to tackle the loss rate at the supplier-retailer interaction. This research contributes to a better understanding of the most effective strategy for reducing supply chain losses. It may help managers, decision-makers, and practitioners to identify the sources of waste in their supply chain and make effective decisions to decrease waste percentage.
Synthesis of Graphene-based Polymer Nanocomposites and comparison of properties
Authors: Daya Gireesh T. K. , Anzila V. I , Litha T. T. , Nair Praseetha P.
Published: August 2022

Biodegradable polymers promise a more sustainable future. Among a wide range of biopolymers utilized, Poly Lactic Acid (PLA) possess better biomechanical and functional characteristics and is used in various level of applications. However, to have better suitability for biomedical applications, it is necessary to enhance the overall performance of PLA such as biodegradability, porosity, and mechanical properties. Reinforcement of the matrix material with nanofiller is a commonly used method to achieve this. Graphene is the most versatile material with exotic mechanical, electrical, and thermal properties. Its combination with polymers can create wonders. Graphene-based polymer composites exhibit potential use in various fields that include energy storage, biomedical use, and environmental applications. In this work, nanocomposites of PLA with graphene derivatives like Graphene Oxide (GO) and reduced Graphene Oxide (rGO) were fabricated by the solvent casting method. The composites' biological and mechanical properties were investigated and compared. Results demonstrate that the incorporation of GO and rGO enhanced the properties of PLA. The mechanical parameters of the composites with rGO were higher than those of the composites with GO in terms of tensile strength and Young's modulus. A reduction in elongation at break was observed for composites reinforced with rGO. PLA/rGO composites exhibit higher mechanical and biological properties than PLA/GO composites. The developed nanocomposite will be a promising competitor in the research arena with potential applications.
Molecular Interactions Studies of Phenol Based Terpolymer Using Ultrasonic Techniques
Authors: Surjushe Amit M. , Bhalerao Pravin N.
Published: August 2022

Ultrasonic velocity, density, and viscosity measurements for o-APUF (o-aminophenol, urea and formaldehyde) terpolymer in DMSO were collected throughout a concentration range of (0.5 to 3.0) mol.Kg-1. From viscosity, velocity, and density measurements, derived metrics such as adiabatic compressibility (s), free length (Lf), Relative Association (RA), and Acoustic Impedance (Z) were determined. The knowledge concerning solute-solvent interactions comes from the fluctuations of these properties with concentration.
Investigating the effects of chevron-textures on the performance of a porous journal bearing
Authors: Godase Ajay Laxman , Arif Mohammad , Sharma Nitin , Kango Saurabh
Published: August 2022

The present article aimed for investigating the fluid-film pressures for chevron-textured porous journal bearing. The Reynolds equation for porous bearing has been adopted as governing equation, we took the Reynolds boundary conditions into account. The numerical computation has been performed with the help of finite difference methods. The numerical model is well validated with the previous work of researchers. The calculated results revealed that the incorporation of chevron-textures in the convergent zone significantly increase the film pressures as compared to smooth bearing case which ultimately lead to improve the tribological performance. Moreover, permeability play a detrimental role in enhancement of film pressure but incorporation of texture definitely compensate to these effects up to some extent.
Mechanical ANSYS Parametric Design Language Friction Stir Welding Simulation of AZ31B-H24 alloy
Authors: Sati Pooja , Shukla Dinesh Kumar , Tiwari S K
Published: August 2022

This paper presents a numerical simulation of temperature distribution in magnesium alloy AZ31B-H24 plates due to Friction Stir Welding. For this aim, a model based on finite elements, using Lagrangian formulation is implemented in Ansys Parametric Design Language. Temperature-dependent material characteristics and a temperature-dependent coefficient of friction are implied by the model, using theoretical mathematical formulae. In addition to this, heat generation is also considered. This model is validated with the experiment and showed a good agreement. The maximum temperature results obtained are at the rotational speeds of 1500 and 1600 rpm with feed rates varying as 80,100,120 mm/min. The deviation between experimental maximum temperature and theoretical was observed as an average value of 4 per cent. The maximum temperatures are lesser than the melting point temperature of AZ31B alloy.
FEA of friction stir welding of AA1100 and parametric optimization using genetic algorithm
Authors: Gulve Dhiraj Vishwanath , Shukla Dinesh Kumar
Published: August 2022

3D uncoupled thermo-mechanical analysis of friction stir welding (FSW) of aluminum alloy AA1100 was carried out using FEM. The heat generated in the FSW process is applied via DFLUX subroutine of ABAQUS. Simulations with different process parameters such as welding speed and rotational speed were performed for the estimation of temperature generated during the FSW process. Thermal analysis’s output is applied as thermal loads during mechanical analysis. Subsequently, residual stress developed during the FSW process was found out. Residual stresses were measured along the selected path, which included node to node stress variations in longitudinal directions. Maximum temperature appears to occur at the center of the weld pool and decreases away from the weld line towards the base metal. The numerical and experimental results were successfully validated with error in the range of 0.5 - 6%. Then, a semi-analytical equation for temperature distribution considering moving point heat source is proposed to carry out single objective unconstrained optimization of process parameters (welding speed and rotational speed). Finally, optimization was carried out to estimate the maximum temperature generated during the FSW process using a genetic algorithm in MATLAB.
A study of the effect of hydrogen on the fatigue behaviour of metals
Authors: Lokhande Kartik , Vishwakarma Manish
Published: August 2022

Hydrogen Embrittlement is a phenomenon in which the presence of hydrogen can lead to various detrimental effects on the mechanical properties of the material. These effects include reduction in ductility, delayed fracture under constant loading, increase in fatigue crack initiation and growth rates, and subcritical cracking even below the threshold fracture toughness of the material. Fatigue is one of the most common modes of material nature during the operation of components during their service life. Hence it is very important to study the effect of hydrogen on the fatigue behaviour of steel and find methods for their prevention. This paper deals with the study of hydrogen on various types of fatigue in materials, various factors that affect the susceptibility to HE in fatigue, the effect on the microscopic morphology of the fatigue crack generated and the methods suggested for the prevention of HE in fatigue.
Process improvement of hardening furnace (mapping) in tool industry – A case study
Authors: Saraswat Ashish , Gupta Dr. Ajay
Published: August 2022

The aim of this paper is to identify the temperature variation within a furnace and also find the variation of hardness in a tool after quenching. The paper takes a case study approach, demonstrating how theory has been used in practise and using one way ANOVA to estimate the optimum number of tool grinding required before inspection. The case study was carried out at a leading hand tool manufacturer in India. Lean Six Sigma (LSS) is found to work very well in the tool manufacturing industry for improvement the process. The LSS strategy for manufacturing industries shows how merging statistical and analytical tools helps to improve process efficiency. Our primary constraint was the measurement instrument, which was a thermal laser gun that could only correctly measure one metre values. This study shows an application of one-way ANOVA and lean/six-sigma concepts to process improvement. The major goal of this study is to show how combining Lean concepts/techniques with one-way ANOVA and Six-Sigma methodology can help solve problems faster.
Experimental study of the effect of oxygen in argon as a shielding gas on corrosion behaviour of dissimilar weld joints of austenitic and ferritic stainless steels
Authors: Bakhla Markush , Yadav Ajaykumar Udayraj , Kumar Binod
Published: August 2022

In this study, Austenitic AISI 304L stainless steel was welded with Ferritic AISI430 stainless steel by MIG–welding using welding electrode ER347 and pure Ar and Ar+2%O2 as the shielding gases. The welded samples were polished and dipped into different concentration of HCL solutions of 0.1M, 0.2M, 0.3M and 0.5M concentrations. Weight change of the samples per week in different concentration of HCL solution was noted for 4 weeks and with the help of weight loss, corrosion rate was calculated. The percentage weight loss was observed to be more when welding was done using pure-Ar as a shielding gas compared to Ar+2%O2. Welded samples were also characterized by means of microscopic and electrochemical investigation.
Impact of ogival nosed Projectiles on Al 1100 H-12 thin Plates : Numerical Study
Authors: Kumari Nidhi , Kumar Manoj
Published: August 2022

This study examines the ability of thin metallic aluminium 1100-H12 targets to absorb energy in various deformation modes during perforation. The targets are impacted with hard steel cylindrical projectiles having a diameter of 19 mm with ogival nosed profile. At oblique angles of 0°, 15°, 30°, and 45°, the target plate is impacted at different velocities varies from 124.00 m/s to 500.00 m/s. The simulations are conducted in ABAQUS/Explicit solver with the Johnson-Cook elasto-viscoplastic material model for each target plates. It is observed that the ballistic performance of target used in simulation study and experimental study is approximately equal. The main purpose of this research is to find out how the velocity drop for the target plate and projectile is influenced by the angle corresponding to impact at different incidence velocity. This study also determined the temperature generated at the target surface during impact.
Prediction of Machining Characteristics of Wire Electrical Discharge Machined Hastelloy-X using Artificial Neural Network
Authors: Parmar Santosh , Narendranath S , Balaji V , Manoj IV , Jatakar Keshav H
Published: August 2022

Due to extensive mechanical load bearing capability under high temperature and pressure, Nickel based super alloys are widely incorporated in aerospace and aviation industries in various sections like chemical, fuselage, engine, combustor components, etc. Hastelloy-X is a Ni-based super alloy consisting mainly Ni, Cr, Fe, Mo and Co, which has good corrosion and heat resistance capacity. Since Hastelloy-X is a difficult-to-machine material, a non-conventional Wire Electric Discharge Machining is used. This work aims at machining characteristics study of WEDM of Hastelloy-X and prediction of major machining performances using Artificial Neural Network (ANN). At first, full factorial design of experiments was set using Minitab which includes four input machining parameters namely pulse-on time (T-on), pulse-off time (T-off), wire feed (WF) and servo voltage (SV); kept at three levels; high, medium and low. Total 81 experimental runs were performed. After machining on WEDM, machining performances MRR (material removal rate) and SR (surface roughness) were measured. There after the neural network is trained in nntool in MATLAB to predict the MRR and SR. The predicted model has mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) of 6.371% for MRR prediction and 5.92% for SR prediction while the MSE (Mean Square Error) was found to be 0.389 and 0.129 for MRR and SR respectively. The trained network has training, validation and testing regression coefficient (R) values of 0.9756, 0.9916 and 0.9662 respectively. And the overall R value was 0.97746. After prediction, the samples with extreme values of actual and predicted outputs were studied for other machining responses like recast layer, surface cracks and kerf width. Out-turn of this research can be utilized for machining hard to machine materials in a high precision WEDM for different applications.
Atmospheric corrosion rate prediction of low-alloy steel using machine learning models
Authors: Thanush A A , Chitra P , Kasinath J , Surya Prakash R
Published: August 2022

Corrosion mitigation is one of the indispensable needs in many industries and is currently being pursued by various methods like surface modification, corrosion inhibitor addition, and cathodic protection systems. Corrosion rate prediction can help in designing alloys with an optimized composition of materials such that it has a lower corrosion rate in the environment where they are exposed. Corrosion rate prediction can also help the manufacturers to plan the replacement of the sample used in advance. Machine learning, which is the science of making machines learn without being explicitly programmed and without using pre-determined equations, can help overcome challenges in predicting corrosion of various materials under a variety of environmental conditions. In this paper, three machine learning algorithms namely Support Vector Regression, Multiple Linear Regression, and Random Forest Regression are used to develop a Hybrid model to predict the corrosion rate of materials. Feature reduction is performed after feature importance calculation using Random Forest Regression model. The accuracy of the developed models were calculated using r2 scores as an evaluation metric for different train-test split ratios. The input data for various conditions such as open, sheltered, coastal. Etc. are fed to the model and the performance was evaluated. The results show that the proposed Hybrid model outperforms the other baseline approaches with an accuracy of 91.46%, for predicting corrosion rate of materials.
Influence of excess bismuth oxide on the structural and dielectric characteristics of textured Bi4Ti3O12 ceramics
Authors: Mitra Priyanka , Venkataraman B Harihara
Published: August 2022

Bismuth titanate (Bi4Ti3O12), an Aurivillius family of ferroelectric oxide, has been widely investigated due to its large remnant polarization, high Curie temperature, high dielectric constant and relatively low tangent for the application in information memory storage devices. In this work, polycrystalline bismuth titanate ceramics samples with different amounts of excess Bi2O3 (3 and 5 wt%) were prepared using a low temperature, cost-effective molten salt synthesis method. The structural, microstructural and dielectric properties depend on the addition of excess Bi2O3 and the sintering duration of Bi4Ti3O12 ceramics. Moreover, the X-ray diffraction studies revealed the effect of excess bismuth oxide on the formation of preferential orientation along the c-axis. It is also observed that the orientation factor along the c-axis increases with an increase in the sintering duration for different content of bismuth oxide. The morphological studies revealed the oriented plate-like structure of bismuth titanate ceramics associated with the enhanced growth of grains. It is noticed from the EDAX analysis that the addition of excess bismuth oxide compensated the volatilization of bismuth ions in the crystal lattice of Bi4Ti3O12 ceramics. The dielectric property studies have exhibited a high value of dielectric constant (εr ~ 190), and low tangent loss factor (tanδ ~ 0.08) for the optimum bismuth oxide content of 5 wt% added Bi4Ti3O12 ceramics. Hence, we suggest that these materials could be utilized for the high energy storage capacity of non-volatile memory devices.
Environmental - friendly Al2O3 based Hydroelectric cells for green energy production
Authors: Kumar Parveen , Kumar Pradumn , Kansal Manish , Verma Vivek
Published: August 2022

In recent times, it was observed that green electrical power can be generated using Hydroelectric Cells (HEC), which can be alternative of solar and fuel cell for future energy generation systems. This hydroelectric cell uses few drops of water to produce efficient, safe and eco-friendly green power. HEC working process depends upon the splitting of H2O molecules with different metal oxides. Low-cost Al2O3 based hydroelectric cell has been fabricated to generate green electrical energy. Solid state sintering method was adopted for the preparation of Al2O3 sample for hydroelectric cell. Phase formation and structural information of the sample were investigated by X-ray diffraction analysis and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. A circular pellet of diameter 2-inch was prepared to examine hydroelectric properties and a circular pellet of diameter 10 mm was prepared for the study of conduction phenomenon of dissociated ions in the cell. The maximum voltage ~ 0.925 V, maximum current ~ 8.02 mA, and maximum power ~ 7.42 mW was obtained for the low-cost Al2O3 based hydroelectric cell. DC conductivity measurement confirmed the dissociation of water molecules and their conduction phenomenon. Al2O3 based hydroelectric cell provides us green energy with eco-friendly byproducts without any usage of acid/alkali/photocatalytic activity/electrolyte. Moreover, presented Al2O3 based hydroelectric cell can resolve the problem of industrial waste containing of alumina.
Molecular Dynamics Simulation of Carbon Nanotube Reinforced Rubber Composites
Authors: Singaravel D K , Sharma S , Kumar P
Published: August 2022

The mechanical characteristics of nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) and carbon nanotube (CNT) nanocomposites were investigated using molecular dynamics (MD) simulations in this study. The crystal with CNT is created with a volume fraction of about 2.47% and 4.86%. The constant strain method was used to calculate the young's modulus, shear modulus, and bulk modulus of the nanocomposite. The integration of CNT inside the rubber composite matrices increased the mechanical properties. The simulation results show that the young’s, bulk, and shear modulus of NBR 2-CNT were enhanced by about 47.10%, 28.39 %, and 17.86 % respectively when compared to the pure NBR.
Molecular dynamics simulation of mechanical properties of graphene reinforced natural rubber composites
Authors: Hussain Syed Asad , Sharma Sumit
Published: August 2022

Molecular dynamics simulation has been performed to compare the properties of graphene (GE) sheet reinforced natural rubber (NR) nanocomposites with pristine natural rubber. Three different molecular level models have been prepared, one for pristine natural rubber and the other two for 3.6% and 7.8% volume fraction of graphene in rubber nanocomposite. The Constant strain minimization approach is used to predict the mechanical properties of the developed molecular models. It has been observed that there is a significant increment of up to 83.37% in Young’s modulus, 40.06% in bulk modulus, and 23.24% in shear modulus by the addition of 7.8% volume fraction of graphene in NR nanocomposite, respectively.
Comparative Study and Analysis of Structural and Optical Properties of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles using Neem and Mint Extract prepared by Green synthesis method
Authors: Koli Kartikey , Rohtela Kartik , Meena Deshraj
Published: August 2022

This work reports the comparative analysis and study of synthesis of Zinc oxide (ZnO) Nanoparticles by using Neem and Mint leaves’ extract by green synthesis method. Green synthesis is a non-toxic, eco-friendly, and low-cost approach to synthesize Nanoparticles. Leaves of Neem and Mint are used for synthesis of ZnO Nanoparticles by boiling at temperature 60°C. The synthesized ZnO NPs (of both extracts) are then characterized separately by using XRD (X-Ray diffraction) confirms the hexagonal (wurtzite) structure of the ZnO nanoparticles with crystalline size 25.51 nanometer and 26.29 nanometer for Neem and Mint respectively, FTIR (Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy) shows the highest peak at 1047cm-1and 3295cm-1for Mint and Neem respectively. UV spectroscopy shows the absorption peak for ZnO nanoparticles at 366 nm and 356 nm for Mint and Neem respectively.
Finite element analysis of U-frame of robotic gait trainer for rehabilitation
Authors: Thakur K , Banwait S S , Bedi R
Published: August 2022

The use of robotic trainers in the medical field for rehabilitation has increased in recent years due to the results they can achieve compared to conventional therapy methods. This study proposes the design of a U-frame and handrail assembly in a dynamic bodyweight support system of a robotic trainer and provides the static structural analysis of the model. Von Mises stress distribution and fatigue life of the components have been provided to ensure the safety of the model during the rehabilitation process. The material considered for the simulation on the Ansys workbench is mild steel. The peak stress value observed is 96.64 MPa. In case of fatigue failure, the model provided is safe for the infinite cycle with a safety factor of 2.5.
Study of Effect of Carbon nanotube on Tensile, Impact and Flexural properties of Carbon fibre/epoxy reinforcement polymer
Authors: Praneeth H R , Patil Shreekant , Budavi Prajwal , Srinivas G S , Usman Mohammed , Pasha Sarjil
Published: August 2022

Aircraft is highly efficient man-made flying machine, despite its complexity. One of the most essential considerations in the design and development of an aircraft is the structure's weight. This work is concerned with fabrication and experimental investigations of the mechanical properties of Carbon fiber Reinforcement Polymers (CFRP) along with Carbon Nanotubes (CNT) as additives. The usage of high-performance polymeric composites is a valuable alternative to conventional materials due to their high mechanical properties, stiffness to weight ratio and damage tolerance. The present work evaluates mechanical properties of CNT added CFRP’s and compares it with the CFRP alone. Samples of carbon reinforced composites added with CNT are fabricated by hand lay-up process and their mechanical properties such as tensile strength, flexural strength and impact strength are investigated by the experimental study. The CNT with 0.5wt. %, 1 wt.%, and 2 wt.% are added to the carbon fiber reinforcement polymer. The addition of CNT to CFRP resulted in improvement of tensile strength by 27.5 %, 53.25 %, and 40 % respectively. The tested specimens were observed by SEM which showcased the phenomenon of fibre breakage and pull out under loading conditions.
Flexural response of glass/epoxy composites to thermal shocks and conditioning environment in varying loading rate
Authors: Shrivastava Ruchir , Singh K. K.
Published: August 2022

The structural integrity of composites faces severe challenge in the form of environmental extremes. Therefore, its performance in those cases were of great interest. In the present work, flexural strength of glass/epoxy composites were analysed in the environment of thermal shock generated by cryogenic exposure as well by thermal conditioning. Four cases were chosen, room temperature (RT), cryogenic conditioning (LN), thermal conditioning below (BG) and above glass transition temperature (AG). The exposure time for all the environments was kept constant at 24 hours. These responses are investigated with two sets of loading rates (i) 1 mm/minute and (ii) 10 mm/min. The experimental results indicate that; all three scenarios deeply impact the flexural response of the specimen. The first set experiences changes in flexural strength, strain, and chord modulus by (2.75, -8.52, 11.32), (21.36, 39.75, -6.47), (-35.8, -11.37, -22.94) % with LN, BG and AG condition respectively. Moreover, with high rate of loading these responses change by (-23.89, -28.41, -5.17), (-37.45, -43.56, -1.86), (-19.4, -27.46, 16.37) % respectively. The prolonged exposure indicates a strain hardening phenomenon in LN specimen, which improves the flexural strength with a 1 mm/min loading rate. However, this plasticization of the specimen was unable to bear the load at an elevated rate of loading, and therefore a loss in all the properties is seen with a 10 mm/min loading rate. Therefore, it is anticipated that the properties will further deteriorate with a higher rate of loadings.
Assessment of ply sequencing on the mechanical performance of hybrid composite materials
Authors: Suresh Arjun P , Budhe S , Sekar K
Published: August 2022

The importance of natural fiber composites (NFC) has been growing day by day owing to their lower cost and biodegradable nature. The hybridization of Natural fiber with another natural or synthetic fiber helps obtain combined advantages. In the present paper, an investigation of ply sequencing with combination of natural and synthetic fiber layer studied under tensile and flexural loading. The natural fibers used in the study are Jute (J) and Flax (F) and synthetic fiber is Glass (G). The matrix used is Epoxy with hardener. The six layer of ply sequences studied are JJJJJJ, JJFFJJ, JJGGJJ and GJJJJG. Fabrication of Composite specimen is conducted using Hand lay- up Method. The composite specimen is subjected to tensile and flexural loading at room temperature. Elastic modulus and Flexural modulus are assessed using the theoretical model Classical Lamination Theory (CLT). The results showed that hybridization has improved mechanical properties significantly. The sequence GJJJJG exhibited extremely higher flexural strength compared to sequence JJGGJJ, this shows the ply sequence optimally helps to achieve properties as desired in a particular application with the same cost. Theoretical model predicts the properties with reasonable error limit of 10-12%.
Development of Eco-Friendly Composite Brake Pad Lining Material by Using Agave Fiber
Authors: Gunjal Samir S. , Chougule Nagesh K.
Published: August 2022

A brake is the most critical safety and important performance component in vehicles. Brake pads were formerly manufactured mainly using asbestos as the friction material (30-70%). Thermally stable temperature for asbestos is up to the 500°C. Asbestos is strong, flexible & available at a reasonable cost but is carcinogenic in nature. This causes serious health problems like lung cancer hence it got banned in India on 21 January 2011. Recently some alternatives are used like low-metallic, semi- metallic, non-asbestos organic & ceramic brake pads but none of these are as good as asbestos in function. So, the purpose of the study is come with a new eco-friendly material. As per the study, it is found that Agave fiber is the right alternative material to asbestos since agave fiber has high strength, is readily available & economical. Further experimentation was done by performing various tests like hardness test, oil socking test, water socking test, Flame resistance test, compression test, pin on disc, and specific gravity to prove that brake Pads manufactured using Agave fiber as the brake material passes through variable testing as per required Standard & the confirms with the standard reference. And the outcomes of this research show that Agave powder can be used supplant for asbestos in brake pad liner material manufacturing.
Parametric multi-objective optimization of fused deposition modelling (FDM) with biopolymer using Grey-Taguchi method
Authors: Sharma Kuldeep , Kumar Kapil
Published: August 2022

For ecological sustainability, the synthetic polymers are being continuously replaced by biopolymers due to their unique properties of biocompatibility and biodegradability. Ploy-lactic acid (PLA) is a well-known engineering biopolymer because of its versatile use in bioengineering, textile and packing industries. For the customized engineering applications, the mechanical properties, namely tensile strength and shore hardness of PLA specimens printed by FDM which is an economical 3D printed technique has been investigated in this article. Taguchi’s L9 orthogonal array (OA) is used as a design of experiment. The influence of process parameters namely layer height, nozzle temperature, raster angle and surrounding pressure on mechanical properties of 3D printed specimens has been analysed by using Analysis of variance (ANOVA). ANOVA is employed to identify the significance and percent contribution of a particular process parameter on each mechanical property separately. In the end, grey relational analysis (GRA) is used as a multi-objective optimization tool to fabricate a better specimen with comprehensive mechanical properties.
Development of Eco-Friendly Bricks for Sustainable Construction
Authors: Puri Dr. Vishal , Kumar Satyam , Grover Khushi , Sharma Mukul
Published: August 2022

Plastic and stubble are some of the industrial and agricultural wastes whose disposal has become a menace over the last decade. Their extreme production has impacted their disposal which in turn is deteriorating the environment. This study presents four different brick development methodologies utilizing plastic and stubble wastes in building bricks. First brick was developed using the application of stubble having a 1:5 cement to sand ratio. The second had the application of PET bottle with 1:3 cement to sand ratio. The third and fourth bricks were developed using waste plastic polybags. The study further evaluated the performance analysis, energy efficiency along with a comparative cost analysis. A comparative analysis was also carried out with the conventional fly ash bricks. Study observed that the energy efficiency of such bricks is significantly higher and their application potential as building bricks is immense. However, the strength of such bricks was observed to be lower. This further requires optimization of design mix and plastic waste. For stubble-based bricks further long term, durability analysis is required.
Color Vision Deficiency Survey in Anatomic Pathology
Authors: Flotte Thomas J , Cornell Lynn D
Published: August 2022

Objectives

To learn what color vision–deficient pathologists and cytotechnologists consider their most significant problems and advantages as well as any accommodations.

Methods

An anonymous online survey developed for practicing pathologists and cytotechnologists regarding their experiences with stains was sent to the members of 4 national societies.

Results

We received 377 responses. Twenty-three people, all men, identified themselves as color vision deficient, with 22 reporting red-green color vision deficiency and 1 reporting uncertain type. Eight pathologists and cytotechnologists indicated that they thought that their color vision deficiency conferred advantages to them, including a greater appreciation of morphology, with less confusion resulting from variations in stain quality or intensity. Nineteen pathologists and cytotechnologists thought that their color vision deficiency conferred disadvantages; the most common disadvantages stated were the identification of eosinophils and acid-fast bacilli. Other difficulties included interpretation of RBCs and nucleoli and sometimes Alcian blue, Brown and Brenn, Congo red, crystal violet, Fite, Giemsa, mucicarmine, periodic acid–Schiff, and fluorescence in situ hybridization stains. Only 2 of the color vision–deficient pathologists and cytotechnologists found digital slides more difficult than glass slides.

Conclusions

Color vision–deficient pathologists and cytotechnologists report that they have developed approaches to viewing slides that do not compromise their interpretations. Digital pathology may provide several approaches for aiding color vision–deficient pathologists with the interpretation of certain stains.
Professional capital and social work futures: Contemporary challenges for Australian social work
Authors: Papadopoulos Angelika , Egan Ronnie
Published: August 2022

The future of social work preoccupies scholars and educators in the field, with consideration periodically extending beyond ‘trends’ to the fundamental question of whether social work per se even has a future. A recurring theme in these debates concerns social work’s professional project, and whether professionalisation enhances or undermines social work’s values and aims. Whilst contributing to the conceptual articulation of a social work habitus, few of these contributions are informed by the views of practitioners in the field. This article analyses 122 practitioners’ perspectives on current issues for social work, through data taken from a survey conducted in Victoria, Australia in 2018. Practitioners’ perspectives are analysed in relation to the theoretical construct of professional capital. In contrast to modernist interpretations of professionalisation-as-status typical of polemical works, a professional capital perspective construes social work’s professional project as a legitimation strategy, the primary aim of which is to secure recognition of the unique view of the social world which informs social work practice. From that perspective, arguments against professionalisation misrecognise the role professionalisation plays in securing social work’s future, unwittingly placing its future in jeopardy.
Development and Validation of Green Chromatographic Approaches for Simultaneous Determination of Aspirin, Rosuvastatin and Clopidogrel in their Tertiary Mixture
Authors: Youssrey Aya , Hegazy Maha A , Morsi Amani , Essam Hebatallah M
Published: August 2022

Reduction of environmental pollution sources is the main target of green chemistry; it is applied across the life cycle of a chemical product. Scientists try to switch to eco-friendly practices to diminish the negative impact of chemicals and solvents on the environment. Analytical chemistry is one of the main fields that mounted green chemistry approach. In this work, sensitive and selective green chromatographic methods with UV detection are described for the simultaneous determination of aspirin, rosuvastatin and clopidogrel. The first proposed method is an RP-HPLC one, which was described and successfully validated for the simultaneous separation and determination of the three components on Prontosil Hyperchom C18 (250 × 4.6 mm, 5 μm) column using an isocratic elution. The second method was a TLC spectrodensitometry in which the three components were separated, identified and quantified. The drugs were applied on silica gel plates, and developed using n-heptane: acetone: glacial acetic acid (60:40:0.4, by volume). The three drugs resolved bands were quantified by spectrodensitometric scanning at 240 nm. Both methods were validated according to ICH, statistically compared to the official methods with full greenness investigation to confirm that the proposed methods are viable alternatives for quality assessment of this combination.
High prevalence of abdominal obesities and metabolically unhealthy individuals in a highly urbanized district of India: findings of a cross-sectional survey in Puducherry
Authors: Sivanantham Parthibane , Sahoo Jaya Prakash , Lakshminarayanan Subitha , Bobby Zachariah , Kar Sitanshu Sekhar
Published: August 2022

Background

Abdominal obesities are better markers for predicting cardiovascular abnormalities than risk stratification based only on body mass index (BMI). We aimed to estimate the prevalence of abdominal adiposities using predictive equations for Asian Indian adults and to determine the prevalence of metabolically healthy subjects among those overweight/obese and with normal BMI.

Methods

A community-based survey was conducted among those aged 18–69 years in the district of Puducherry between February 2019 and February 2020. We surveyed 2,560 individuals selected through multi-stage cluster random sampling from urban and rural areas (50 wards and 50 villages, respectively) of the district. Anthropometric measurements, such as height, weight, waist circumference, and blood pressure were recorded from each participant. Fasting blood sample was collected from each alternate participant to estimate metabolic risk factors.

Results

Over four-fifths (85.6%; 95% CI: 84.2–86.9) and two-thirds (69.7%; 95% CI: 67.9–71.6) of the population in the district had high levels of intra-abdominal adipose tissue (IAAT) and total abdominal fat (TAF), respectively. Both the risk factors were significantly higher among women and urban population. About 43% (95% CI: 41–44.9) of the population had high abdominal subcutaneous adipose tissue (SCAT) with a significantly higher prevalence among the urban population. Among those overweight/obese (n = 773), almost all 99.4% (95% CI: 98.7–99.9) were metabolically unhealthy. Among subjects with normal BMI (n = 314), only about 2.9% (95% CI: 1.3–4.8) were metabolically healthy.

Conclusion

We highlight the substantially high prevalence of IAAT, TAF, and SCAT in the district of Puducherry. Almost all the study population was metabolically unhealthy irrespective of their BMI levels.