Comparative evaluation of extraction of tetra- and hexa-valent neptunium ions by CMPO in a room temperature ionic liquid

ABSTRACT

Solvent extraction studies were performed to understand the extraction behavior of Np⁴⁺ and NpO₂ ²⁺ from acidic feeds with CMPO (octyl (phenyl)-N,N-diisobutyl carbamoyl methyl phosphine oxide) dissolved in 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethane sulfonyl)imide, a water immiscible ionic liquid. Slope analyses on the distribution data revealed the extraction of ML₂ type species, where M = Np⁴⁺ or NpO₂ ²⁺, and L = CMPO. Studies were also carried out with Pu⁴⁺ and UO₂ ²⁺ under identical conditions. The nature of the extracted species was found to vary with the nature of the ionic species.     

Surface Integrity Assessment Upon Electric Discharge Machining of Die Steel Using Non-Destructive Magnetic Barkhausen Noise Technique

Surface integrity characterization of manufactured component is very important as it significantly affects the in-service performance of the component. Till now, surface integrity was evaluated using conventional measurement technique like microhardness tester, X-ray diffraction, optical microscopy and surface roughness tester. But, this technique being laboratory based cannot be used for in-service monitoring of the surface integrity. The present study focuses on the characterization of surface integrity upon electric discharge machined sample using non-destructive magnetic Barkhausen noise technique. Electric discharge machining was performed in die-sinking mode on die steel using copper–tungsten electrode (negative polarity). Experiment was performed by selecting different levels of peak current, gap voltage and pulse on time. Surface integrity characteristics like microhardness change, residual stress, microstructural alteration and surface roughness were analysed using microhardness tester, X-ray diffraction, optical microscopy and surface roughness tester, respectively, and were then correlated with magnetic parameter like root mean square value and peak value obtained from Barkhausen noise signal. The results show a good correlation between magnetic parameter (RMS and Peak value) of Barkhausen noise with the microhardness and surface roughness of the machined sample.

     

An energy-efficient cloud system with novel dynamic resource allocation methods

The Journal of Supercomputing - In the last decade, cloud computing has brought enormous changes to people’s lives. Cloud computing gives a client-driven computational model. In this case,...     

Escherichia coli,Salmonella spp., and Staphylococcus aureus susceptibility to antimicrobials of human and veterinary importance in poultry sector of India

In India, little attention has been paid on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the context of developing “One Health” approach. Hence, utilizing multi-disciplinary approach, we assess the AMR level and dynamics/pattern of multi-drug resistance (MDR) in Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp., and Staphylococcus aureus circulating over the different stages of poultry in India. A total of 342 isolates including E. coli (n = 143), Salmonella spp. (n = 104), and S. aureus (n = 95) were recovered from fecal (n = 80) and cecal (n = 80) samples of chicken, collected across the different poultry-retail shops and poultry-farms located at urban and rural areas of Rajasthan, India, respectively. High rates of AMR to drugs that are critically/highly important both in human and veterinary medicine were observed among all the isolates. Upward trends in AMR prevalence was observed in poultry-retail shops than in poultry-farms. Notably, >90% of all the isolates were MDR, of particular, pattern/prevalence of MDR was substantially varied across the poultry-farms vs. poultry-retail shops. Our results indicate AMR including MDR to be common in E. coli, Salmonella spp., and S. aureus distributed frequently in poultry. The study encourages the formulation of national policy, programmes and further research with a “One Health” approach that can benefits to the human/animal and the environment.     

Efficiency and effectiveness enhancement of an intercooler of two‐stage air compressor by low‐cost Al2O3/water nanofluids

The present study was aimed to utilize low‐cost alumina (Al₂O₃) nanoparticles for improving the heat transfer behavior in an intercooler of two‐stage air compressor. Experimental investigation was carried out with three different volume concentrations of 0.5%, 0.75%, and 1.0% Al₂O₃/water nanofluids to assess the performance of the intercooler, that is, counterflow heat exchanger at different loads. Thermal properties such as thermal conductivity and overall heat transfer coefficient of nanofluid increased substantially with increasing concentration of Al₂O₃ nanoparticles. Specific heat capacity of nanofluids were lower than base water. The intercooler performance parameters such as effectiveness and efficiency improved appreciably with the employment of nanofluid. The efficiency increased by about 6.1% with maximum concentration of nanofluid, that is, 1% at 3‐bar compressor load. It is concluded from the study that high concentration of Al₂O₃ nanoparticles dispersion in water would offer better heat transfer performance of the intercooler.     

The hot blow forming of AZ31 Mg sheet: Formability assessment and application development

The hot blow forming of magnesium sheet offers significant opportunity for forming complex, lightweight parts for automotive applications. This paper characterizes the elevated-temperature formability of AZ31 magnesium sheet materials and the effect of processing conditions on the performance of these materials. In addition, magnesium sheet application development at General Motors Corporation is reviewed.     

Micro- and nanofabrication processes for hybrid synthetic and biological system fabrication

The application of micro- and nanofabrication processes to the development of hybrid synthetic and biological systems may enable the production of new devices such as controllable transporters, gears, levers, micropumps, or microgenerators powered by biological molecular motors. However, engineering these hybrid devices requires fabrication processes that are compatible with biological materials such as kinesin motor proteins and microtubules. In this paper, the effects of micro- and nanofabrication processing chemicals and resists on the functionality of casein, kinesin, and microtubule proteins are systematically examined to address the important missing link of the biocompatibility of micro- and nanofabrication processes needed to realize hybrid system fabrication. It is found that both casein, which is used to prevent motor denaturation on surfaces, and kinesin motors are surprisingly tolerant of most of the processing chemicals examined. Microtubules, however, are much more sensitive. Exposure to the processing chemicals leads to depolymerization, which is partially attributed to the pH of the solutions examined. When the chemicals were diluted in aqueous buffers, a subset of them no longer depolymerized microtubules and in their diluted forms still worked as resist removers. This approach broadens the application of micro- and nanofabrication processes to hybrid synthetic and biological system fabrication.     

Practical Equivalent Continuum Model for Simulation of Jointed Rock Mass Using FLAC3D

A simple practical equivalent continuum numerical model for simulating the behavior of jointed rock mass has been extended to three-dimensional using FLAC3D. This model estimates the properties of jointed rock mass from the properties of intact rock and a joint factor (Jf), which is the integration of the properties of joints to take care of the effects of frequency, orientation, and strength of joint. A new FISH function has been written in FLAC3D specifically for modeling jointed rocks using the Duncan and Chang hyperbolic model. This model has been validated first with simple element tests at different confining pressures for different rocks with different joint configurations. Explicit modeling of the joints has also been done in element tests and results obtained compare well with the results of equivalent continuum model and also with experimental results. Further, this has been applied for a case study of a large underground power house cavern in the Himalayas. The analysis has been done under various stages of excavation, assigning a null model available in FLAC3D for simulating the excavation.     

Progress in deep-UV photoresists

Higher resolution can be achieved in lithography by decreasing the wavelength of the exposure source. However, resist material and their processing are also important when we move to a shorter wavelength lithography technology. This paper reviews the recent development and challenges of deep-UV photoresists and their processing technology.