Development of water-, oil-repellent and flame-retardant cotton fabrics by organic-inorganic hybrid materials

In this study, water-repellent, oil-repellent and flame-retardant cotton fabrics were developed by solgel technique. With this aim, nanosols were prepared using tetraethylorthosilicate and hexadecyltrimethoxysilane as precursors, guanidine dihydrogen phosphate as flame-retardant agent and Guard AFB as conventional water–oil-repellent agent, solvents and chelating agents. Then, to AC105, VA7110, PU1110 and FC9005 as polymeric additives, with/without FX8000 or urea and formaldehyde as cross-linking agents, were added some nanosols to improve washing fastness of the fabric samples. Cotton fabrics were treated with nanosols without polymeric additives by pad–dry–cure process, while they were coated with nanosols containing polymeric additives by knife-over-roll coating. Water–oil-repellent properties, flame-retardant properties, washing fastness, contact angle, whiteness, tear strength and add-on values of the coated fabric samples were determined. It was found that the cotton fabrics with good water–oil-repellence and flame-retardant properties with relatively durable properties could be produced using nanosols containing guanidine dihydrogen phosphate and urea, together with tetraethylorthosilicate and hexadecyltrimethoxysilane as precursors, and lower concentrations of Guard AFB as commercial water–oil-repellent agent. However, the fabric samples were still not sufficiently durable when washed. It was deduced that the durability of cotton fabric during washing is developed by means of treatment with nanosols containing polyvinyl acetate-based polymer.     

The effects of the addition of corn husk fibre,kaolin and beeswax on cross-linked corn starch foam

Significant efforts have recently been made to improve the physical properties of starch foams formed using baking processes. For example, cross-linking starch with 0.126 g/kg glyoxal considerably reduces the baking time, density and water absorption of starch foams. In this study, we attempted to further develop the physical properties of glyoxal cross-linked starch foam by adding corn husk fibre, kaolin, beeswax and combinations of these products. We also studied the effects of these components on the microstructure and physicochemical and mechanical properties of trays. Starch-based trays in which additives were used showed improved water resistance. The water absorption capacities of the trays were 13%, 14% and 9% when combinations of kaolin/beeswax, fibre/beeswax and fibre/kaolin/beeswax were added, respectively.     

Incidence and antibiotic resistance of Salmonella spp. on raw chicken carcasses

The current study was carried out to detect Salmonella spp. contamination on chicken carcasses and to determine the antibiotic susceptibility profiles and serotype distribution of the isolates. A total of 200 packaged fresh raw chicken samples sold at retail in different markets in central Anatolia were analysed between April 2005 and March 2006. Salmonella spp. was detected in 34% (68/200) of samples using cultural technique and were confirmed by PCR. Ten Salmonella serovars were identified; predominant ones included Typhimurium, Infantis and Heidelberg. All of the Salmonella spp. isolates tested, exhibited resistance to one or more antimicrobial agents used. Resistance to penicillin, oxacillin, clindamycin, vancomycin, erythromycin and ampicillin were evident 100%, 97%, 97%, 92.6%, 89.7% and 85.2%, respectively. Also resistance to tetracycline (67.6%), streptomycin (61.7%), neomycin (55.8%) and cephalothin (52.9%) was observed but a small percentage of the isolates demonstrated resistance to gentamicin (14.7%), chloramphenicol (10.2%), cefotaxime (2.9%) and amikacin (2.9%). As a result, high prevalence of Salmonella spp. and the relatively high resistance among the bacteria tested could pose public health and therapeutic problems in consumers as potential vehicle of resistant Salmonella foodborne infections. To avoid Salmonella contamination, hygienic rules of slaughter and poultry meat processing must be rigorously observed and antibiotic use must be controlled by governmental agencies to prevent increased resistance of antibiotics.     

Development of flame retardancy properties of new halogen‐free phosphorous doped SiO2 thin films on fabrics

In this study, flame retardancy properties of fabrics treated with phosphorous (P) doped and undoped SiO₂ thin films were developed by sol–gel technique. As to this aim, P‐doped and undoped SiO₂ film were coated on cotton fabric from the solutions prepared from P, Si‐based precursors, solvent, and chelating agent at low temperature in air using sol–gel technique. To determine solution characteristics, which affect thin film structure, turbidity, pH values, and rheological properties of the prepared solutions were measured using a turbidimeter, a pH meter, and a rheometer machines before coating process. The thermal, structural, and microstructural characterization of the coating were done using differential thermal analysis/thermograviometry, fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X‐ray diffractometry, and scanning electron microscopy. In addition, tensile strength, wash fastness, flame retandancy, and lightness properties of the coated fabrics were determined. To compensate the slight loss of tensile strength of samples, which occurred at the treated fabrics with P‐doped Si‐based solutions, the cotton fabrics were coated with polyurethane films during second step. In conclusion, the flame retardant cotton fabric with durability of washing as halogen‐free without requiring after treatment with formaldehyde was fabricated using sol–gel processing for the first time. Moreover the cotton fabrics, which were treated with P‐doped Si‐based solutions and then coated with polyurethane at second step, still has got nonflammable property. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2007     

Adaptive filtering noisy transcranial Doppler signal by using artificial bee colony algorithm

Computerized processes are supportive in the new age of medical treatment. Biomedical signals which are collected from the human body supply or important useful data that are related with the biological actions of human body organs. However, these signals may also contain some noise. Heart waves are commonly classified as biomedical signals and are non-stationary due to their statistical specifications. The probability distributions of the noise are very different, and for this reason there is no common method to remove the noise. In this study, adaptive filters are used for noise elimination and the transcranial Doppler signal is analyzed. The artificial bee colony algorithm was employed to design the adaptive IIR filters for noise elimination on the transcranial Doppler signal and the results were compared to those obtained by the methods based on popular and recently introduced evolutionary algorithms and conventional methods.     

Synthesis and characterization of neodymium doped ceria nanocrystalline ceramic structures

In this study, a new method to synthesize neodymium doped ceria ceramic nanopowders by the electrospinning of the hybrid polymers solution of their composite precursor was put forward. Calcined and sintered nanopowders were characterized by FT-IR, XRD, BET, SEM, and AFM techniques. According to the XRD analysis, the obtained powders are single phase and independent of the dopant concentration in the range investigated. The crystallite sizes were calculated using Scherrer equation. Moreover, lattice parameters, dislocation densities and microstrain values were calculated. BET results show that the increase of the neodymium doped content decrease the surface area of the composite powders, confirming the highly ordered micro and mesostructure. SEM and AFM results show that the samples have spherical grains. According to the surface roughness measurements, the increase in the amount of neodymium and the decrease in the amount of cerium decreased the surface roughness.