A circuit-level methodology for leakage power reduction of high-efficient compressors in 22-nm CMOS technology

Analog Integrated Circuits and Signal Processing - A new circuit-level methodology called input controlled leakage restrainer transistor (ICLRT) compatible with single threshold CMOS technology is...     

Full-duplex overlay cognitive wireless powered communication network using RF energy harvesting

In this paper, a novel full-duplex overlay cognitive wireless powered communication network (FD-OCWPCN) is proposed where a full-duplex (FD) hybrid-access point (H-AP) supports the full access of all battery-free secondary users (SUs). The H-AP broadcasts wireless power to empower the nearby SUs in the downlink (DL) phase while decoding the information transmitted uplink (UL) phase by the SUs, simultaneously. To overcome the self-interference (SI) phenomenon in FD-OCWPCN, the problem of maximizing the system sum-throughput with optimal UL-DL transmission/reception time and H-AP’s transmit power allocation is considered. This problem is non-convex under perfect/imperfect SI cancelation (SIC), so we employ the active interference temperature control and the gradient projection techniques to effectively reduce it into a convex problem. Closed-form expressions for the perfect/imperfect SIC cases are also derived. To assess the performance of the FD-OCWPCN, a comparison with a half-duplex OCWPCN (HD-OCWPCN) is provided. The achievable average sum-throughput for different FD/HD-OCWPCN is compared in the context of the average and peak transmit power at the H-AP, the number of SUs, path loss exponent and fairness metric. The simulation results depict the superiority of the FD-OCWPCN over the HD-OCWPCN for the perfect SIC and the effective imperfect SIC.

     

Characterization,in vitro bioactivity and biological studies of sol-gel-derived TiO2 substituted 58S bioactive glass

Bioactive glasses (BGs) have been used for bone formation and bone repair processes in recent years. This study investigated the titanium substitution effect on 58S BGs (Ti-BGs) 60SiO₂-(36 − X)CaO-4P₂O₅-XTiO₂ (X = 0, 3, and 5 mol.%) prepared by the sol-gel technique, and the main goal was to find the optimum amount of titanium in Ti-BGs. Synthesized BGs, which were investigated after immersion in simulated body fluid (SBF), were tested by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and scanning electron microscopy. Moreover alkaline phosphate (ALP) activity, 3-(4,5dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, and antibacterial studies were employed to investigate the biological properties of Ti-BGs. According to the FTIR and XRD test results, hydroxyapatite (HA) formation on Ti-BGs surfaces was confirmed. Meanwhile, the presence of 5 mol.% compared to 3 mol.% increased the HA grain distribution and their size on the Ti-BGs surface. Additionally, MTT and ALP results confirmed that the optimal amount of titanium substitution in BG was 5 mol.%. Since 5 mol.% Ti incorporated BG (BG-5) had the highest biocompatibility level, antibacterial properties, maximum cell proliferation, and ALP activity among the synthesized Ti-BGs, it is presented as the best candidate for further in vivo investigations.     

Toward a better understanding of multifunctional cement-based materials: The impact of graphite nanoplatelets (GNPs)

The impact of graphite nanoplatelets (GNPs) on the physical and mechanical properties of cementitious nanocomposites was investigated. A market-available premixed mortar was modified with 0.01% by weight of cement of commercial GNPs characterized by two distinctively different aspect ratios.The rheological behavior of the GNP-modified fresh admixtures was thoroughly evaluated. Hardened cementitious nanocomposites were investigated in terms of density, microstructure (Scanning Electron Microscopy, SEM and micro–Computed Tomography, μ-CT), mechanical properties (three-point bending and compression tests), and physical properties (electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, EIS and thermal conductivity measurements). At 28 days, all GNP-modified mortars showed about 12% increased density. Mortars reinforced with high aspect ratio GNPs exhibited the highest compressive and flexural strength: about 14% and 4% improvements compared to control sample, respectively. Conversely, low aspect ratio GNPs led to cementitious nanocomposites characterized by 36% decreased electrical resistivity combined with 60% increased thermal conductivity with respect to the control sample.     

Study of Corrosion Behavior and In Vitro Bioactivity of Single NbSi2 and Duplex NbSi2/Nb5Si3 Coatings on Nb Substrates for Biomedical Applications

Protection of Metals and Physical Chemistry of Surfaces - Single NbSi2 and duplex NbSi2/Nb5Si3 coatings were successfully applied on Nb substrates using halide activated pack cementation (HAPC)...     

Effect of ultrasonication treatment and fermentation by probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum strains on goat milk bioactivities

In the present research, the effects of continuous ultrasound treatment (100 W, 30 kHz; 0%, 30%, 60% and 90% amplitudes, 15 min) and fermentation process (37°C, 24 h) on the growth of Lactobacillus plantarum LP3 and LU5 strains and bioactive properties (peptide content, α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibition, anticancer and antioxidant activities and exopolysaccharide content) of goat milk were investigated. According to our results, the ultrasonication of milk up to 60% amplitude promoted the growth of Lactobacillus strains and enhanced the bioactive properties compared with control during fermentation, while, the ultrasonication at 90% amplitude had negative effects on the mentioned parameters. Exopolysaccharide content, α-amylase inhibition, α-glucosidase inhibition, antioxidant activity and anticancer activity of treated samples at 60% amplitude at the end of fermentation in comparison to its beginning were increased 18.09, 12.79, 12.44, 9.4 and 1.92 folds, respectively. Also, the increase of assayed characteristics was found strain-dependent, so that L. plantarum LP3 was more effective than LU5 strain.     

A comparative study of landslide susceptibility maps produced using support vector machine with different kernel functions and entropy data mining models in China

Bulletin of Engineering Geology and the Environment - The main objective of the current study is to apply a random forest (RF) data-driven model and prioritization of landslide conditioning factors...     

Investigating the wicking behavior of micro/nanofibrous core-sheath PET–PAN yarn modified by dimethyl 5-sodium sulfoisophthalate

The present research aims at imparting an improved wicking ability to the recycled multifilament yarns by wrapping composite nanofibers to attain an efficient material for filtration purposes. Therefore, polyacrylonitrile nanofibers containing dimethyl 5-sodium sulfoisophthalate nanoparticles were wrapped around the recycled poly(ethylene terephthalate) yarn by means of a novel electrospinning technique. Several tests were performed to investigate the parameters affecting wicking rise and moisture regain of the samples. Taguchi method was used in two separate designs (with or without nanoparticles). Some factors such as polymer solution concentration, mass ratio of nanoparticles, take-up rate, and number of filaments were considered as the variable factors while yarn wicking rate and moisture regain were the response factors. It was found that the hydrophilic nature of nanoparticles together with the ultrafine structure of nanofibers provide yarns with enhanced wicking properties. Although solution concentration is the predominant factor in wicking rate of the yarns containing nanoparticles, the most effective factor in wicking rise and moisture regain for other cases is the number of filaments. The mechanism of nanoparticle effect on fluidic jet during electrospinning process is explained by theory of nanofluids stability which has never been validated experimentally in previous research studies. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 48185.     

Production of calcium nitrate crystals via membrane distillation crystallization using polyvinylidene fluoride/sorbitan trioleate membranes

As an alternative to the energy-intensive evaporation-crystallization method, membrane distillation crystallization (MDC) was applied for the first time to obtain calcium nitrate crystals from its aqueous solution. Calcium nitrate solution was obtained through the reaction between calcium carbonate and nitric acid, and then it was concentrated in the membrane distillation (MD) process and further crystallized. The MD step was conducted using hydrophobic polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)/sorbitan trioleate (Span 85) membranes. Span 85 was incorporated into the membrane structure in various concentrations to improve the hydrophobicity of membranes, and the resultant membranes were characterized via different methods. In addition, the resultant calcium nitrate crystals were characterized by X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy. The MDC results showed that the optimum amount of Span 85 in the polymeric solution was 4%, which led to the formation of a membrane with higher porosity (67.2%) and water contact angle (95.7°) compared to the neat PVDF membrane. The mentioned membrane exhibited the highest water flux in the MD process compared to the other membranes, and also it produced the highest amount of crystals due to its remarkably better performance in the MD step in terms of feed concentration.     

Revamping SiO2 Spheres by Core–Shell Porosity Endowment to Construct a Mazelike Nanoreactor for Enhanced Catalysis in CO2 Hydrogenation to Methanol

Beyond the catalytic activity of nanocatalysts, the support with architectural design and explicit boundary could also promote the overall performance through improving the diffusion process, highlighting additional support for the morphology-dependent activity. To delineate this, herein, a novel mazelike-reactor framework, namely multi-voids mesoporous silica sphere (MVmSiO₂), is carved through a top-down approach by endowing core-shell porosity premade Stöber SiO₂ spheres. The precisely-engineered MVmSiO₂ with peripheral one-dimensional pores in the shell and interconnecting compartmented voids in the core region is simulated to prove combined hierarchical and structural superiority over its analogous counterparts. Supported with CuZn-based alloys, mazelike MVmSiO₂ nanoreactor experimentally demonstrated its expected workability in model gas-phase CO₂ hydrogenation reaction where enhanced CO₂ activity, good methanol yield, and more importantly, a prolonged stable performance are realized. While tuning the nanoreactor composition besides morphology optimization could further increase the catalytic performance, it is accentuated that the morphological architecture of support further boosts the reaction performance apart from comprehensive compositional optimization. In addition to the found morphological restraints and size-confinement effects imposed by MVmSiO₂, active sites of catalysts are also investigated by exploring the size difference of the confined CuZn alloy nanoparticles in CO₂ hydrogenation employing both in-situ experimental characterizations and density functional theory calculations.