Compile-time copy elimination

Single-assignment and functional languages have value semantics that do not permit side-effects. This lack of side-effects makes automatic detection of parallelism and optimization for data locality in programs much easier. However, the same property poses a challenge in implementing these languages efficiently. This paper describes an optimizing compiler system that solves the key problem of aggregate copy elimination. The methods developed rely exclusively on compile-time algorithms, including interprocedural analysis, that are applied to an intermediate data flow representation. By dividing the problem into update-in-place and build-in-place analysis, a small set of relatively simple techniques—edge substitution, graph pattern matching, substructure sharing and substructure targeting—was found to be very powerful. If combined properly and implemented carefully, the algorithms eliminate unnecessary copy operations to a very high degree. No run-time overhead is imposed on the compiled programs.     

An electron microscopic investigation of oxides related to ß-alumina

High resolution electron microscopic (HREM) investigation of potassium-alumina and the related gallate and ferrite has revealed that whereas the aluminate and gallate are highly disordered, consisting of random sequence of and units, the ferrite is more ordered. The aluminate and gallate are sensitive to electron beam irradiation exhibiting beam-induced damage similar to sodium-alumina. Significantly, the ferrite is beamstable, the difference in behaviour amongst these related oxides arising from the different mechanisms by which alkali metal nonstoichiometry is accommodated. Barium hexaaluminate and hexaferrite are both highly ordered; specimens prepared by the barium borate flux method exhibit a new 3a×3a superstructure of the hexagonal magnetoplumbite cell.Contribution No. 241 from the Solid State and Structural Chemistry Unit.     

Interprocedural optimization: Experimental results

The problem of tracking data flow across procedure boundaries has a long history of theoretical study by people who believed that such information would be useful for code optimization. Building upon previous work, an algorithm for interprocedural data flow analysis has been implemented. The algorithm produces three flow-insensitive summary sets: MOD, USE and ALIASES. The utility of the resulting information was investigated using an optimizing Pascal compiler. Over a sampling of 27 bench-marks, new optimizations performed as a result of interprocedural summary information contributed almost nothing to program execution speed. Finally, related optimization techniques of possibly greater potential are discussed.     

Linear free flexural vibration of cracked functionally graded plates in thermal environment

In this paper, the linear free flexural vibrations of functionally graded material plates with a through center crack is studied using an 8-noded shear flexible element. The material properties are assumed to be temperature dependent and graded in the thickness direction. The effective material properties are estimated using the Mori–Tanaka homogenization scheme. The formulation is developed based on first-order shear deformation theory. The shear correction factors are evaluated employing the energy equivalence principle. The variation of the plates natural frequency is studied considering various parameters such as the crack length, plate aspect ratio, skew angle, temperature, thickness and boundary conditions. The results obtained here reveal that the natural frequency of the plate decreases with increase in temperature gradient, crack length and gradient index.     

Conservative Approximation–Based Full‐Search Block Matching Algorithm Architecture for QCIF Digital Video Employing Systolic Array Architecture

This paper presents a power‐efficient hardware realization for a motion estimation technique that is based on the full‐search block matching algorithm (FSBMA). The considered input is the quarter common intermediate format of digital video. The mean of absolute difference (MAD) is the distortion criteria employed for the block matching process. The conventional architecture considered for the hardware realization of FSBMA is that of the shift register–based 2‐D systolic array. For this architecture, a conservative approximation technique is adapted to eliminate unnecessary MAD computations involved in the block matching process. Upon introducing the technique to the conventional architecture, the power and complexity of its implantation is reduced, while the accuracy of the motion vector extracted from the block matching process is preserved. The proposed architecture is verified for its functional specifications. A performance evaluation of the proposed architecture is carried out using parameters such as power, area, operating frequency, and efficiency.     

Synthesis,sinterability and ionic conductivity of nanocrystalline Pr-doped La2Mo2O9 fast oxide-ion conductors

A new series of nanocrystalline La_2−xPr_xMo₂O₉ (0.2 ≤ x ≤ 0.8) powders are synthesized through the pyrolysis of polyacrylate salt precursors prepared via in situ polymerization of the metal salts and acrylic acid. The polymeric precursors are characterized by thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis (TG/DTA) to determine the thermal decomposition and crystallization temperature, which is found to be at 510 °C. X-ray diffraction analysis indicates that the substitution of La by Pr preserves the single-phase La₂Mo₂O₉ structure up to a Pr dopant concentration of x ≤ 0.7. The particle size and the α → β phase transition of the Pr-doped La₂Mo₂O₉ samples are studied by using a transmission electron microscope (TEM) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), respectively. The sintering behaviour of the Pr-doped samples are examined via isothermal and non-isothermal experiments. It demonstrates that the synthesized nanocrystalline powders have good sinterabilty and a relatively low sintering temperature of 800 °C for 4 h is sufficient to reach ∼99% of the theoretical density with good microstructures. Furthermore, the oxide-ion conductivity increases with increasing Pr content and the maximum conductivity is attained at x = 0.5 in La_2−xPr_xMo₂O_9.     

Hypoglycaemic and Hypolipidaemic Effects of Withania somnifera Root and Leaf Extracts on Alloxan-Induced Diabetic Rats

Withania somnifera is an important medicinal plant, which is used in traditional medicine to cure many diseases. Flavonoids were determined in the extracts of W. somnifera root (WSREt) and leaf (WSLEt). The amounts of total flavonoids found in WSREt and WSLEt were 530 and 520 mg/100 g dry weight (DW), respectively. Hypoglycaemic and hypolipidaemic effects of WSREt and WSLEt were also investigated in alloxan-induced diabetic rats. WSREt and WSLEt and the standard drug glibenclamide were orally administered daily to diabetic rats for eight weeks. After the treatment period, urine sugar, blood glucose, haemoglobin (Hb), glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1C), liver glycogen, serum and tissues lipids, serum and tissues proteins, liver glucose-6-phosphatase (G6P) and serum enzymes like aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT), acid phosphatase (ACP) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) levels were determined. The levels of urine sugar, blood glucose, HbA1C, G6P, AST, ALT, ACP, ALP, serum lipids except high density lipoprotein-bound cholesterol (HDL-c) and tissues like liver, kidney and heart lipids were significantly (p < 0.05) increased, however Hb, total protein, albumin, albumin:globulin (A:G) ratio, tissues protein and glycogen were significantly (p < 0.05) decreased in alloxan-induced diabetic rats. Treatment of the diabetic rats with WSREt, WSLEt and glibenclamide restored the changes of the above parameters to their normal level after eight weeks of treatment, indicating that WSREt and WSLEt possess hypoglycaemic and hypolipidaemic activities in alloxan-induced diabetes mellitus (DM) rats.     

Surface Protection and Morphological Study of Copper by Green Corrosion Inhibitor: 8QSC in HNO<Subscript>3</Subscript> Medium

The inhibition performance and surface protection of green corrosion inhibitor 8-quinoline sulphonyl chloride (8QSC) on copper (Cu) was evaluated by chemical (weight loss) method in 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 M HNO₃ solutions and by electrochemical methods such as potentiodynamic polarization (PDP), AC-impedance spectroscopy (AC-IS) and linear polarization resistance in 1.0 M HNO₃ solution at room temperature. Both chemical and electrochemical techniques showed that 8QSC is an efficient green corrosion inhibitor for copper and the efficiency reached 90.4% by weight loss method and 88.4% by AC-IS method at optimum concentration of (300 ppm) 8QSC. The adsorption behavior of 8QSC on copper metal in acid medium obeyed the Langmuir isotherm. The thermodynamic parameters of the adsorption processes were calculated and discussed. AC-IS technique exhibits one capacitive loop, indicating that the corrosion reaction was controlled by charge transfer process. The PDP curves revealed that 8QSC acts as a mixed-type inhibitor. Protective layer of 8QSC on copper surface was examined by SEM, AFM and FT-IR techniques. The experimental results corroborated with results obtained from theoretical DFT studies.     

Surface protection of mild steel in acidic chloride solution by 5-Nitro-8-Hydroxy Quinoline

The effect of commercially available quinoline nucleus based pharmaceutically active compound 5-Nitro-8-Hydroxy Quinoline (NHQ) against the corrosion of mild steel (MS) in 1 M acidic chloride (HCl) solution was investigated by chemical (weight loss – WL) and electrochemical (Tafel polarization, Linear polarization and Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy) techniques. From all the four methods, it is inferred that the percentage of inhibition efficiency increases with increasing the inhibitor concentration from 50 to 300 ppm. The adsorption behavior of inhibitor obeyed through Langmuir isotherm model. Thermodynamic parameters were also calculated and predict that the process of inhibition is a spontaneous reaction. EIS technique exhibits one capacitive loop indicating that, the corrosion reaction is controlled by charge transfer process. Tafel polarization studies revealed that the investigated inhibitor is mixed type and the mode of adsorption is physical in nature. The surface morphologies were examined by FT-IR, SEM and EDX techniques. Theoretical quantum chemical calculations were performed to confirm the ability of NHQ to adsorb onto mild steel surface.