A structure-aware algorithm for fault-tolerant scheduling of scientific workflows

The Journal of Supercomputing - Here, we propose a fault-tolerant workflow scheduling algorithm that combines basic redundancies to reduce execution time through minimizing the redundancy overhead....     

Hydrogenation of Carbon Dioxide into Formic Acid by Aluminum Ligated NNN Pincer Fullerene Through Metal–Ligand H2O-Assisted Pathway: A Computational Study

Catalysis Letters - The AlH2-catalyzed hydrogenation of carbon dioxide into formic acid by a novel catalyst of aluminum ligated NNN pincerfullerene, AlH2-bis(imino)pyrollidinofullerene, was...     

Design of Zn1−xCuxO Nanocomposite Ag-Doped as an Efficient Antimicrobial Agent

Journal of Inorganic and Organometallic Polymers and Materials - This study aims at the preparation of antimicrobial nanoparticles hybrid based on silver (Ag) doped Zn1?xCuxO. Zn1?xCuxO...     

Fabrication and evaluation studies of novel polyvinylpyrrolidone and 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulphonic acid-based crosslinked matrices for controlled release of acyclovir

Polymer Bulletin - The aim of the present study was to fabricate chemically crosslinked matrix system of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)-co-poly 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulphonic acid (AMPS)...     

A Comparative Analysis of Data-Driven Models (SVR,ANFIS, and ANNs) for Daily Karst Spring Discharge Prediction

Water Resources Management - Spring discharge always illustrates the groundwater-flux and aquifer storage oscillations. Because of inherent heterogeneity in karst environments, it is essential to...     

Influence of interfaces on impedance response and breakdown of oxide-metal multilayer structures

We report on the enhancement in impedance and the break-down behavior of room temperature deposited single and multi-layer metal/oxide films of comparable thicknesses. Aluminum-alumina and chromium-chrome oxide thin film structures grown by sputtering were explored as model systems in this study. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements showed that the resistance of the structure increases with an increase in the number of metal/oxide bi-layers while the total thickness was kept constant. The resistance of the multi-layer system was over an order of magnitude higher than the single bi-layer for an equivalent total thickness for the case of thin film Al-Al₂O₃. In addition, potentiodynamic polarization measurements exhibited a consistent and reproducible improvement in the break-down potential with an increase in the number of layers. Similar results are obtained for the case of the chromium-chromium oxide bi-layer system as well. Combination of interfaces and lateral current spreading in the multi-layer structure leads to superior overall break-down resistance suggesting the concept of in-situ sacrificial layers for corrosion protection.     

Investigating the effect of power/time in the wettability of Ar and O2 gas plasma-treated low-density polyethylene

Low-pressure glow discharges of Ar or O₂ gas plasmas were used to increase the wettability of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) films in order to improve their adhesion properties hence making them useful in technical applications. Surface free energies of such films were estimated by the aid of contact angle measurements at different exposure power/time combinations for a series of test liquids. Additionally, plasma-treated samples were subjected to several aging processes to determine the durability of different plasma treatments. Characterization of the surface changes due to plasma treatments were carried out by means of attenuated total reflectance, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR) to determine the presence of polar species such as hydroxyl, carbonyl, carboxyl, etc. groups. Furthermore, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to evaluate changes in surface morphology and roughness. Considering the semi-crystalline nature of the LDPE film, XRD studies were also carried out to determine changes in the percentage of crystalinity. The results showed that all low-pressure Ar or O₂ gas plasmas improve the wettability properties of LDPE films. Contact angles decreased significantly depending on the discharge powers and exposure times. Surface morphology was also found to vary with plasma discharge powers, exposure times, and the type of gas being used. Ar gas plasmas comparatively produced superior results.     

The Effects of Microwave Frying on Physicochemical Properties of Frying and Sunflower Oils

Deep fat frying is a method of food preparation which has been popular for quite a number of years. During deep frying, the quality of oil and the finished product decreases as the result of heat treatment of the oil exposed to air at high temperature. Application of heat by microwave as an alternative to the conventional method of frying has become popular in recent years. In this research, the effects of microwave frying on the changes in the quality indices of used oil have been investigated. To achieve this, potato slices were fried in both frying and sunflower oils by application of medium power microwave (550 W) for 20 min, three times a day, for five consecutive days, and oils were sampled for analysis. The results obtained from the chemical tests demonstrated that used frying oil had lower polar compounds, a higher induction period, and more saturated fatty acids than sunflower oil. The interesting point observed was that peroxides formed as the result of oxidation chain reactions were not broken down and were built up due to the lower temperature and shorter period of frying. Therefore microwave frying might be considered as a suitable alternative to the conventional frying due to less degradation of the oil and consequently a lower production of artifacts.     

Simultaneous Prediction of the Density,Viscosity and Electrical Conductivity of Pyridinium-Based Hydrophobic Ionic Liquids Using Artificial Neural Network

Silicon - An Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model is presented for the Simultaneous prediction of density, viscosity and electrical conductivity of pyridinium-based hydrophobic ionic liquids. Data...