A Novel Self-Organizing Approach to Automatic Traffic Light Management System for Road Traffic Network

Wireless Personal Communications - Traffic network is basically a “network of networks” consisting of mainly two types of networks: road network and a travel network. Due to drastic...     

Biodegradation of gelatin–g-poly(ethyl acrylate) copolymers

Gelatin-g-poly(ethyl acrylate) copolymers were prepared in an aqueous medium, using K₂S₂O₈ initiator. The composition of the graft copolymers was dependent upon temperature and duration of the reaction. The number of grafting sites was small and molecular weight of the grafted poly(ethyl acrylate) branches was high. Three copolymer samples with grafting efficiencies of 33.3%, 61.0%, and 84.0%, were tested for their microbial susceptibility in a synthetic medium employing a mixed inoculum of Bacillus subtilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Serratia marcescens and the percent weight losses were 12%, 10.1%, and 6.0%, respectively, after 6 weeks of incubation. The extent of degradation seems to decrease with increasing grafting efficiency. There was initial rapid weight loss accompanied by the exponential increase in bacterial population and pH of the culture medium during the first week. The nitrogen analysis also showed the utilization of the polymer. A parallel set of experiments, carried out by employing the samples as the only source of both carbon and nitrogen, showed a marginal but definite increase in the utilization of the polymer.     

Plant‐mediated synthesis of silver and gold nanoparticles and their applications

Nanobiotechnology deals with the synthesis of nanostructures using living organisms. Among the use of living organisms for nanoparticle synthesis, plants have found application particularly in metal nanoparticle synthesis. Use of plants for synthesis of nanoparticles could be advantageous over other environmentally benign biological processes as this eliminates the elaborate process of maintaining cell cultures. Biosynthetic processes for nanoparticles would be more useful if nanoparticles were produced extracellularly using plants or their extracts and in a controlled manner according to their size, dispersity and shape. Plant use can also be suitably scaled up for large‐scale synthesis of nanoparticles. In view of this, we have reviewed here the use of plants or their extracts in the synthesis of silver and gold nanoparticles for various human applications. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Pulsed laser action in Tm,Ho:LuLiF/sub 4/ and Tm,Ho:YLiF/sub 4/ crystals using a novel quasi-end-pumping technique

A number of good quality thulium and holmium-codoped LuLiF/sub 4/ and YLiF/sub 4/ single crystals were successfully grown by the Czochralski crystal growth method under a CF/sub 4/ atmosphere. Using a novel diode-pumped, quasi-end-pump scheme incorporating two lens ducts, pulsed laser action is achieved in 5%Tm, 0.5% Ho:LuLiF/sub 4/ and 5%Tm, 0.5% Ho:YLiF/sub 4/ crystals, at various pulse repetition frequencies and temperatures. At 10 Hz and at an operating temperature of 273 K, slope efficiencies (optical to optical efficiencies) with respect to the incident pump energies of 12.9% (9.2%) and 7.4% (5.2%) were demonstrated in the grown Tm, Ho:LuLiF/sub 4/ and Tm, Ho:YLiF/sub 4/ crystals, respectively. Free running laser output energies in excess of 30 mJ (LuLiF/sub 4/) and 17 mJ (YLF) were measured.     

Performance study of horizontal branch in building drainage system

Self-siphonage of traps of sanitary appliances caused by full-bore water discharge affects the performance of horizontal branches in building drainage sustems. Relationships have been established correlating flow, diameter and slope of branch pipes connected to main drainage stack for permissible loss of water seal with recourse to an experimental investigation in the laboratory on a range of wash-basins, as is usual in office buildings, with a view to developing a performance oriented design procedure. A measure has also been suggested to control development of negative pressure caused by self-siphonage.     

Lipid production by Lipomyces starkeyi using sap squeezed from felled old oil palm trunks

1. Download : Download high-res image (272KB)
2. Download : Download full-size image

     

Synthesis of Triphenylethylene-Naphthalimide Conjugates as topoisomerase-IIα inhibitor and HSA binder

A series of triphenylethylene-naphthalimide (TPE-naph) conjugates was synthesized by a molecular hybridization technique, and their anticancer activity was evaluated in vitro on 60 human cancer cell lines through their cytotoxicity. The ratios of E and Z isomers were determined on the basis of HPLC methodology and NMR spectroscopy. The structure-activity relationship for anticancer activity was deduced on the basis of the nature and bulkiness of the amine attached to the C-4 position of the naphthalene ring. Experimental and molecular modeling studies of the most active TPE-naph conjugate bearing a morpholinyl group showed that it was able to inhibit topoisomerase-II (TOPO-II) as a possible intracellular target. Moreover, the transportation behavior of TPE-naph conjugate towards human serum albumin (HSA) indicated efficient binding affinity. The steady-state and time-dependent fluorescent results suggested that this conjugate quenched HSA significantly through static as well as dynamic quenching. Thus, this report discloses the scope of triphenylethylene-naphthalimide (TPE-naph) conjugates as efficient anticancer agents.     

Pain detection from facial expressions using domain adaptation technique

Pattern Analysis and Applications - Pain management is gaining the attention of clinical practitioners to relieve patients from pain in an effective manner. Pain management is primarily dependent...     

Synthesis of poly(4, 4′-biphenylene sulfonyl succinamide)-polysulfone blend membranes for removal of toxic metal ions from water

A novel polymer poly(4,4′-biphenylene sulfonyl succinamide) (PBSS) was synthesized via polycondensation reaction. Succinyl chloride and 4-aminophenyl sulfone were used as reactive monomers and anhydrous AlCl₃ was used as a catalyst. Both polysulfone (PSf) and PBSS were dissolved in N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) at different compositions to obtain a homogeneous solution to fabricate PSf-PBSS blend membranes. The structure of PBSS was characterized by ATR-IR and ¹H-NMR spectroscopy. Thermal properties of PBSS were analyzed by TGA-DTA. Mechanical properties and morphology of blend membranes were analyzed by universal testing machines and field emission scanning electron microscope, respectively. The hydrophilicity of blend membranes with respect to the concentration of PBSS was studied by contact angle and water uptake studies. Upon blending, the hydrophilicity of PSf-PBSS membranes drastically increased due to the presence of large number of amide and sulfonyl groups in the matrix. The blend membranes exhibited significant increase in water flux from 100 L m⁻² h to 650 L m⁻² h⁻¹, and rejection of 100% for Pb(II) and 80% for both Cd(II) and As(III) toxic heavy metal ions. The hydrophilic nature of  CO NH and inter and intramolecular hydrogen bonding among PBSS polymer chains dispersed within rigid PSf matrix imparts softness, amide and sulfonyl groups enhance interconnected porosity and hydrophilicity of blend membranes. Hence, PBSS may serve as a low-cost novel polymeric additive for water purification and separation membrane applications. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 48254.