Novel approach for the development of dietary fibre-anthocyanin enriched functional bread from culinary banana bract

Dietary fibre (DF)-anthocyanin formulation was incorporated in bread to develop anthocyanin rich DF powder (ARDFP) fortified bread. Prior to incorporation of DF-anthocyanin formulation in bread preparation, the cytotoxicity of DF and anthocyanin extracts was assessed. The effect of incorporation of different level of ARDFP with moisture on bread quality characteristics such as specific volume, textural, colour, sensory properties and starch digestibility was studied. The results revealed that extracted DF and anthocyanin of culinary banana bracts were nontoxic towards peripheral blood mononuclear cell and cytotoxic towards HT29 cancerous cell line. Incorporation of 2% ARDFP with 68% moisture was rated as best with higher specific volume (5.50 cm³ g⁻¹), improved textural properties (high springiness and cohesiveness), anthocyanin content (9.08 mg per 100 g), colour characteristics and sensory acceptability next to control. The in vitro digestibility study suggested increased incorporation of ARDFP in bread flour reduced the rate of starch digestibility (0.0035 min⁻¹).     

Mutual Coupling Reduction in a Multi-band MIMO Antenna Using Meta-Inspired Decoupling Network

Wireless Personal Communications - This article presents a unique meta-inspired decoupling method to reduce the isolation in a multi-band MIMO antenna. The proposed textile-based antenna is...     

White-light emission from a blend of CdSeS nanocrystals of different Se:S ratio

CdSeS nanocrystals with different bandgap energies have been synthesized by the colloidal method. The solution blend of blue-, green-?and red-emitting CdSeS nanocrystals, in appropriate proportions, showed strong white emission of different shades on excitation with a UV source. We observed that the CIE coordinate of the spectrum of a particular blend is independent of excitation wavelength. We also observed that the contribution of self-absorption in energy loss in the blend of CdSeS nanocrystals is not very significant. A white-light-emitting LED has been fabricated by coating a blend mixed with polymethylmethacrylate on a commercial UV-LED.     

Influence of chromium and impurities on the grain- refining behavior of aluminum

The grain-refining behavior of high purity aluminum (HPA1) and commercial purity aluminum (CPA1) containing Fe and Si as impurities (<0.2 wt pct each) has been studied with and without the presence of Cr in small and large quantities (0.2 and 2 wt pct). The Al-5Ti-lB master alloy ingot (0.2 wt pct) was used as a grain refiner. The emphasis was on the influence of individual elements and their interactions with the other elements on the grain-refining behavior of Al. Good grain refinement with insignificant fading in CPA1 was observed in comparison to HPA1. Similar results were obtained with a small concentration of Cr in HPA1 in HPA1-0.2 wt pct Cr alloy. The CPA1 and HPA1-0.2 wt pct Cr alloy have given the best grain-refining results among all the cases studied. A combination of small quantities of Fe, Si, and Cr (CPA1-0.2 wt pct Cr) has shown early and significant fading. A large concentration of Cr (2 wt pct) has shown a poisoning effect irrespective of the presence or absence of impurities such as Fe and Si in Al. Thus, Cr was found to be beneficial for grain refinement at smaller concentrations in the absence of impurities. But at higher concentrations of Cr, it had an adverse effect,i.e., led to coarser grain sizes both in the presence and absence of impurities.     

Large-eddy simulation of laser-induced surface-tension-driven flow

The turbulent flow inside a laser-generated molten pool is investigated by an adapted large-eddy simulation (LES) model that incorporates physical considerations pertaining to the solid-liquid phase change. A single-domain, fixed-grid enthalpy-porosity approach is utilized to model the phase-change phenomena in the presence of a continuously evolving solid/liquid interface. The governing transport equations are simultaneously solved by employing a control-volume formulation, in conjunction with an appropriate enthalpy-updating closure scheme. To demonstrate the performance of the present model in the context of phase-change materials processing, simulation of a typical high-power laser melting process is carried out, where effects of turbulent transport can actually be realized. It is found that the present LES-based model is more successful in capturing the experimental trends, in comparison to the k-ε-based turbulence models often employed to solve similar problems in contemporary research investigations.     

Effects of alkalization and fiber loading on the mechanical properties and morphology of bamboo fiber composites. II. Resol matrix

Resol resin composites reinforced with alkali‐treated bamboo strips were fabricated with a hand‐lay‐up technique. This study was aimed at the evaluation of the influence of the caustic concentration on the mechanical properties of bamboo‐strip‐reinforced resol composites with a constant 50% loading of the reinforcement. The treatment of bamboo fiber in a solution of sodium hydroxide with increasing concentration percentages resulted in more and more rigid composites; as a result, the strength and modulus values exhibited improvements. The maximum improvement in the properties was possibly achieved with 20% caustic treated reinforcements. An infrared study indicated the formation of aryl alkyl ether with ? OH groups of cellulose and methylol groups of resol. Beyond 20%, there was degradation in all the strength properties due to the failure of the mechanical properties of the reinforcement itself. A correlation was found to exist between the mechanical properties and the morphology that developed. Another set of composites with variable loadings of 20% alkali treated fiber (40, 50, and 60%) was fabricated, and a 60% fiber loading showed the best mechanical properties. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009