Growth characteristics of agrowaste‐immobilised lactobacilli in soymilk during refrigerated storage

We aimed at evaluating agricultural wastes as solid supports for the immobilisation of lactobacilli in a liquid media, namely soymilk. Lactobacillus acidophilus FTDC 1331, L. acidophilus FTDC 2631, L. acidophilus FTDC 2333, L. acidophilus FTDC 1733 and L. bulgaricus FTCC 0411 were immobilised on solid supports produced from durian (Durio zibethinus), cempedak (Artocarpus champeden) and mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana). The immobilised cells were inoculated into soymilk and stored at 4 °C over 168 h. Soymilk inoculated with non‐immobilised cells was used as the control. Immobilised cells showed higher survivability over 168 h compared to the control, accompanied by higher reduction of simple sugars and oligosaccharides in soymilk. Higher growth and higher utilisation of substrates also led to the higher production of lactic and acetic acids, which lowered the pH in soymilk compared to the control. Our results illustrated that agrowastes could be used as immobilisers to enhance the growth of lactobacilli in a liquid medium.     

POLAROGRAPHIC CHARACTERIZATION OF AROMATIC STRUCTURES IN COAL LIQUID PRODUCTS

Reducible aromatic species in coal liquid products from five major processes (Synthoil, FMC COED, HRI H-Coal, PAMCO SRC, and Catalytic Inc. SRC) together with solvent elution chromatography fractions of a selected asphaltene has been evaluated. The half-wave potentials measurments are found to be consistant with other methods. The total polarographic reduction of measurement per average molecule for Synthoil solvent fractions, as measured by diffusion constant (i_d/C), increases in the following manner: gas oil → resin → asphaltene → carbene → carboid. The same trend was observed when color indices (I) and refractive indices (n₂₅) were individually studied.     

Correlation of material properties to reliability performance of anisotropic conductive adhesive flip chip packages

The anisotropic conductive adhesive (ACA) is a promising solder alternative candidate that shows potential for further pitch reduction. Although much work has been published on ACA joint behavior, study on correlation of material properties with reliability performance is still lacking. The main objective in this study was to identify the impact of material properties on reliability, so as to engineer highly reliable microelectronics assemblies. Four representative ACA materials (both film and paste types) with diverse properties were selected. Material properties were characterized as close as possible to "stress test" conditions so as to allow more accurate correlation predictions. Reliability performance was obtained by assembling test chips of 200-/spl mu/m pitch onto BT-substrates, then subjecting them to reliability tests. Correlation analysis was conducted and key material properties that contributed to good reliability performance were identified. Findings indicated that the best properties for high reliability assemblies were: high adhesion strength after subjecting to "stress aging", low coefficient of moisture expansion (CME) and low elastic modulus (E).     

Sinterability of Forsterite Prepared via Solid‐State Reaction

In this work, the sinterability of forsterite powder synthesized via solid‐state reaction was investigated. X‐ray diffraction (XRD) analyses indicate that the synthesized powder possessed peaks that correspond to stoichiometric forsterite. Scanning electron micrographs revealed that the powders were formed agglomerates, which were made up of loosely packed fine particles. Subsequently, the forsterite powders were cold isostatically pressed into a disk shape under 200 MPa and sintered in air at temperature ranging from 1200°C to 1500°C (interval of 50°C) with ramp rate of 10°C/min and dwelling time of 2 h. The sinterability of each sintered samples was examined in terms of phase stability, relative density, Vickers hardness, fracture toughness, and microstructural examination. XRD examination on all the sintered samples exhibited pure forsterite, in which the generated peaks were found to be in a good agreement with JCPDS card no. 34‐0189. The densification of forsterite progressed to reach a maximum relative density of ~91% at 1500°C. This study also revealed that high‐strength forsterite ceramic can be synthesized via solid‐state reaction as forsterite attained favorable mechanical properties, having fracture toughness of 4.88 MPam^1/2 and hardness of 7.11 GPa at 1400°C.     

Competitive adsorption of nitrogen species in HDS: Kinetic characterization of hydrogenation and hydrogenolysis sites

Through modeling of the transient response of dibenzothiophene (DBT) hydrodesulfurization (HDS) to inhibition by 3-ethylcarbazole (3ECBZ), the hydrogenation (HYA) and hydrogenolysis (HYL) functions of a sulfided CoMo/Al₂O₃–SiO₂ catalyst are characterized. The HYL sites, accounting for about one third of the total active sites, have a lower adsorption affinity for 3ECBZ than for DBT. The opposite is true for the HYA sites. The adsorbed nitrogen species are denitrogenated more rapidly on the HYL sites than on the HYA sites. As a result, the HYL sites are less inhibited by 3ECBZ and drive the HDS of DBT almost single-handedly in the presence of 3ECBZ. The catalyst surface is sparsely occupied by sulfur species because the HDS rate is much faster than the hydrodenitrogenation rate on both HYA and HYL sites. These results give a quantitative understanding of why 3ECBZ is a far weaker inhibitor to the HDS of DBT than it is to the HDS of 4,6-diethyldibenzothiophene. There appears a tradeoff between the HYA and HYL functions, which can be exploited for HDS catalyst and process optimization.     

Analysis of Asynchronous Band-Limited DS-CDMA with MMSE Multiuser Detector over Generalized-<Emphasis Type="Italic">k</Emphasis> Fading Channels

In this paper, we investigate bit-error-rate (BER) performance of a minimum mean-squared error (MMSE) multiuser receiver for asynchronous band-limited direct- sequence code-division multiple-access (DS-CDMA) systems. We focus on the BER performance in the presence of multitone jamming (MTJ) over frequency-selective multipath fading channels. We consider the generalized-K fading model in our analysis, as it can model a large spectrum of fading-channel characteristics. We also analyze the effects of band- limited pulse shape on the BER performance of the system. Multipath diversity based on the maximal-ratio combining (MRC) scheme is employed to combat fading effects. Our analytical expressions are valid for arbitrary diversity levels and fading parameters. Spectrum raised cosine (SRC) and Beaulieu–Tan–Damen (BTD) pulse shapes are employed for numerical analysis. Numerical results show that in the presence of MTJ and under various channel conditions, the MMSE based receiver gives better BER performance than the one without it. Moreover, the system with BTD pulses outperforms the one with SRC pulses.     

Moisture-induced failures of adhesive flip chip interconnects

Adhesive flip chip interconnect has been recognized as a promising substitute for solder interconnection due to its fine-pitch, lead-free, and low-temperature processing capabilities. As adhesives are made of polymers, moisture absorption by the polymeric resin remains as one of the principal contributors to adhesive joint failure mechanisms. In this research, the reliability performance of the adhesive flip chip in the pressure cooker test and moisture sensitivity test conditions was investigated. The failure modes were found to be interfacial delamination and bump/pad opening which may eventually lead to total loss of electrical contact. Different sizes of bump/pad opening in the interconnections were discussed in the context of the significance of mismatch in coefficient of moisture expansion (CME) between adhesive and other components in the package, which induces a hygroscopic swelling stress. The effect of moisture diffusion in the package and the CME mismatch were also evaluated from the standpoint of finite element modeling. In this study, it is concluded that hygroscopic swelling assisted by loss of adhesion strength upon moisture absorption is responsible for the moisture-induced failures in these adhesive flip chip interconnects.     

Isolation of a gene encoding a developmentally regulated T cell-specific protein with a guanine nucleotide triphosphate-binding motif

In this study, we describe a novel full length cDNA clone designated Tgtp that encodes a predicted 415-amino acid a T cell-specific guanine nucleotide triphosphate-binding protein (TGTP) bearing the characteristic motifs of a guanine nucleotide triphosphate (GTP) binding protein. Tgtp is expressed preferentially, if not exclusively, in T cells, and is up-regulated in both unfractionated and in purified CD4+8+ thymocytes upon TCR cross-linking. In contrast, expression of Tgtp is peripheral T cells is maintained at relatively high levels and is not grossly affected by TCR cross-linking. Antiserum generated against synthetic peptides from the predicted TGTP amino acid sequence recognized a single protein with a molecular mass of approximately 50 kDa, corresponding well with the computed molecular mass of 47 kDa. The only known relative of Tgtp is MUSGTP, which is reportedly expressed in B cells and bears a GTP binding motif. Thus, the discovery of Tgtp resolves a subfamily of molecules with GTP binding motifs and apparent lymphoid lineage-restricted expression. Given the restricted expression pattern in T cells, the up-regulated expression observed in response to TCR signaling in immature thymocytes, and the presence of the motifs characteristic of GTP binding proteins, we suggest that TGTP may have an important function in T cell development and/or T cell activation.     

CD28-induced cytokine production and proliferation by thymocytes are differentially regulated by the p59fyn tyrosine kinase

CD28 is a 44-kDa homodimeric receptor that is expressed on the majority of T cells. Engagement of the CD28 receptor by soluble anti-CD28 mAb in conjunction with phorbol ester (PMA) induces the production of cytokines and the proliferation of resting T cells via signal transduction pathways independent of the TCR. Evidence is provided herein that CD28 signals leading to cytokine production do not require the p59fyn (Fyn) tyrosine kinase, whereas CD28-mediated proliferation is dependent on the presence of the Fyn kinase in thymic, but not lymph node, cells. The defect in proliferation is not due to failure of IL-2R signaling, since addition of high concentrations of exogenous IL-2 can overcome the proliferative defect. Analysis of CD28-directed induction of the IL-2R alpha (CD25)-chain, which confers high affinity binding to IL-2, showed that Fyn-deficient thymocytes, but not lymph node cells, failed to up-regulate CD25 expression following anti-CD28 and PMA stimulation. Thus, the Fyn tyrosine kinase is critically required for thymic CD28-mediated CD25 expression and proliferation but not for CD28-mediated cytokine production.     

Point defects and diffusion mechanisms pertinent to the Ga sublattice of GaAs

For the Ga sublattice of GaAs, the recent understanding of the impurity and self-diffusion mechanisms and the nature of the point defects responsible are discussed. Analyses of doping enhanced AlAs/GaAs superlattice disordering data and impurity diffusion data have led to the conclusion that, under thermal equilibrium and intrinsic conditions, the triply-negatively-charged Ga vacancy ((V_Ga³⁻) governs Ga self-diffusion and Al---Ga interdiffusion in As-rich crystals, while the doubly-positively-charged Ga self-interstitial (I_Ga²⁺) dominates in Ga-rich crystals. When doped sufficiently, dominates in n-type crystals, while I_Ga²⁺ dominates in p-type crystals, irrespective of the crystal composition. The V_Ga³⁻ species also contributes to the diffusion of the main donor species Si, while I_Ga²⁺ also governs the diffusion of the main acceptor species Zn and Be via the kick-out mechanism. The thermal equilibrium concentration of V_Ga³⁻ (C_VGa³⁻) has been found to exhibit a temperature independence or even a small negative temperature dependence in that, when the temperature is lowered, C_VGa³⁻; is either unchanged or even slightly increases. This C_VGa³⁻ behavior is consistent with many outstanding experimental results.