Lowering the outdoor temperature in high-rise high-density residential developments of coastal Hong Kong: The vegetation influence

This paper investigates the impact of on-site variables on the influence of vegetation in lowering outdoor temperature. The study uses six critical on-site variables such as surface albedo, sky view factor, altitude, shrub cover, tree cover and average height to floor area ratio to carry out analysis in five data sets. The climatic parameters and physical characteristics were measured and surveyed, respectively in 216 stations in high-rise high-density residential developments of coastal Hong Kong. The data set is mainly categorised into peak summer clear sky days (PSCS-days), peak summer partially cloudy days (PSPC-days) and late summer days to address the issues related to cloudy sky conditions in Hong Kong. The trend analysis shows that at a lower sky view factor, ranging from 0.1 to 0.25, shrub cover as low as 10–15% in a 1000 m² open area is more effective in reducing outdoor temperature than the same level of tree cover in a location with a higher sky view factor (0.4 or above). The regression models used in this study were able to explain the influence of on-site variables on vegetation in lowering the outdoor temperature within the respective urban settings. In high-rise high-density environments, on-site variables such as sky view factor and altitude have a substantial impact on the influence of vegetation in lowering outdoor temperature. However, off-site variables such as high urban density and anthropogenic heat could negate the behaviour of sky view factor and altitude. The study suggests that increasing the tree cover from 25% to 40% in the pocket parks in coastal area residential developments of Hong Kong could reduce daytime urban heat island intensity (UHI) by further 0.5 °C.     

Nanoparticle formation by swift heavy ion irradiation of indium oxide thin film

In this study, a novel approach for the formation of indium oxide (IO) nanoparticles by irradiating IO thin film using 100?MeV Ag(8+) ions has been reported. High resolution transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive x-ray analysis confirm the presence of single-crystalline IO nanoparticles after irradiation. The electronic excitations induced by 100?MeV Ag(8+) ions followed by thermal relaxation of the energy spike in IO thin film is responsible for the formation of latent tracks in the film. The electronic energy loss (S(e)) of 100?MeV Ag(8+) ions in IO is greater than the threshold electronic energy loss (S(eth)) required for the track formation in IO film, but is less than S(eth) required for crystalline silicon. Therefore, the tracks are formed in the IO film and not in the silicon substrate. This results in a stress induced at the IO film and silicon substrate interface which is responsible for dewetting of the tracks and the formation of nanoparticles. The theoretically calculated value of nanoparticle diameter using the thermal spike model is found to be in good agreement with the experimentally observed value of 30?nm.     

Complete 'melting' of charge order in hydrothermally grown Pr0.57Ca0.41Ba0.02MnO3 nanowires

Nanowires of Pr0.57Ca0.41Ba0.02MnO3 (PCBM) (diameter approximately 80-90 nm and length approximately 3.5 microm) were synthesized by a low reaction temperature hydrothermal method. Single-phase nature of the sample was confirmed by XRD experiments. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were used to characterize the morphology and microstructures of the nanowires. While the bulk PCBM is known to exhibit charge order (CO) below 230 K along with a ferromagnetic transition at 110 K, SQUID measurements on the nanowires of PCBM show that the charge order is completely absent and a ferromagnetic transition occurs at 115 K. However, the magnetization in the nanowires is observed to be less compared to that in the bulk. This observation of the complete 'melting' of the charge order in the PCBM nanowires is particularly significant in view of the observation of only a weakening of the CO in the nanowires of Pr0.5Ca0.5MnO3. Electron paramagnetic resonance experiments were also carried out on the PCBM nanowires using an X-band EPR spectrometer. Characteristic differences were observed in the line width of nanowires when compared with that of the bulk.     

Analysis of machining of FRPs using FEM

An initial attempt has been made to develop a mathematical model for machining of FRPs. The anisotropic theory of plasticity has been utilized. The analysis is carried out for four different FRP materials and for four different fibre orientation angles. A total Lagrangian formulation-based transient elasto-plastic finite element analysis has been adopted.     

Removal of N‐butanol from aqueous solutions by ion–exchange membranes containing organic counterions

The pervaporation of aqueous butanol solutions was investigated using thin‐film composite membranes composed of a poly(vinylidene fluoride) substrate coated with a sulfonated poly(2,6‐dimethyl‐1,4‐phenelene oxide) polymer. The polymer was ion‐exchanged with quaternary ammonium cations having aliphatic substituents of various chain lengths. The pervaporation of aqueous n‐butanol solutions using these membranes gave a permeate more concentrated in n‐butanol; therefore, they were alcohol‐selective. The separation factor increased and the permeate flux decreased as the chain lengths of the aliphatic substituents were increased. Hence, the mass‐transport properties of such membranes can be controlled or altered to yield some desired permselectivity by the introduction of a proper counterion. It was observed that the n‐butanol flux was small relative to the total flux and, therefore, the water flux dominated the total permeate flux. The degree of swelling of the membranes and its effect on membrane performance was investigated as well. As the n‐butanol content was increased, the swelling of the membranes increased greatly. High membrane swelling caused a reduction in the separation factor. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 74: 47–58, 1999     

Aedes aegypti Piwi4 Structural Features Are Necessary for RNA Binding and Nuclear Localization

The PIWI-interacting RNA (piRNA) pathway provides an RNA interference (RNAi) mechanism known from Drosophila studies to maintain the integrity of the germline genome by silencing transposable elements (TE). Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which are the key vectors of several arthropod-borne viruses, exhibit an expanded repertoire of Piwi proteins involved in the piRNA pathway, suggesting functional divergence. Here, we investigate RNA-binding dynamics and subcellular localization of A. aegypti Piwi4 (AePiwi4), a Piwi protein involved in antiviral immunity and embryonic development, to better understand its function. We found that AePiwi4 PAZ (Piwi/Argonaute/Zwille), the domain that binds the 3′ ends of piRNAs, bound to mature (3′ 2′ O-methylated) and unmethylated RNAs with similar micromolar affinities (K_D = 1.7 ± 0.8 μM and K_D of 5.0 ± 2.2 μM, respectively; p = 0.05) in a sequence independent manner. Through site-directed mutagenesis studies, we identified highly conserved residues involved in RNA binding and found that subtle changes in the amino acids flanking the binding pocket across PAZ proteins have significant impacts on binding behaviors, likely by impacting the protein secondary structure. We also analyzed AePiwi4 subcellular localization in mosquito tissues. We found that the protein is both cytoplasmic and nuclear, and we identified an AePiwi4 nuclear localization signal (NLS) in the N-terminal region of the protein. Taken together, these studies provide insights on the dynamic role of AePiwi4 in RNAi and pave the way for future studies aimed at understanding Piwi interactions with diverse RNA populations.     

Comparative stability of aspartame and neotame in yoghurt

The comparative stability of aspartame and neotame was monitored in yoghurt during its processing, fermentation and storage. A solid‐phase extraction method was suggest changing it to developed for the isolation of aspartame and neotame. Pasteurisation (85 °C/30 min) resulted in approximately 47% and 3% loss of aspartame and neotame, respectively. During fermentation, 3% loss of aspartame was observed, but no loss of neotame. There was no significant effects on the stability of either aspartame or neotame during storage (4–7 °C/15 days). The results indicated that neotame was more stable than aspartame under both pasteurisation and fermentation conditions; however, during storage, both sweeteners exhibited excellent stability.     

Dielectric properties of DC reactive magnetron sputtered Al2O3 thin films

Alumina (Al₂O₃) thin films were sputter deposited over well-cleaned glass and Si < 100 > substrates by DC reactive magnetron sputtering under various oxygen gas pressures and sputtering powers. The composition of the films was analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and an optimal O/Al atomic ratio of 1.59 was obtained at a reactive gas pressure of 0.03 Pa and sputtering power of 70 W. X-ray diffraction results revealed that the films were amorphous until 550 °C. The surface morphology of the films was studied using scanning electron microscopy and the as-deposited films were found to be smooth. The topography of the as-deposited and annealed films was analyzed by atomic force microscopy and a progressive increase in the rms roughness of the films from 3.2 nm to 4.53 nm was also observed with increase in the annealing temperature. Al-Al₂O₃-Al thin film capacitors were then fabricated on glass substrates to study the effect of temperature and frequency on the dielectric property of the films. Temperature coefficient of capacitance, AC conductivity and activation energy were determined and the results are discussed.     

Defect Sizing Simulation Studies for the Tone-Burst Eddy Current Thermography Using Genetic Algorithm Based Inversion

In this paper, the results of the simulation study to reconstruct the size of the defects from the data obtained using the active thermography technique based on transient induction heating will be presented. Simulations were performed using the finite element model to obtain the temperature data which are then used to reconstruct the radius (r _d ) and depth (d _d ) of the wall thinning defects in aluminum plate using inversion method. Two cases, coil inner radius less than the defect radius (r _c <r _d ) and coil inner radius greater than the defect radius (r _c >r _d ), were considered. The analysis of the sensitivity of coil dimensions to the calculated peak temperature at the observation point was carried out.