Synthetic resins. V. Preparation and properties of substituted benzoic acid,hydroxyacetophenone and aniline/formaldehyde resins

A number of resin copolymers have been prepared by condensation of substituted aromatic compounds with formaldehyde in the presence of different acid catalysts. The resin copolymers were characterized by IR, thermal, X-ray diffraction, and by their reactivity ratios. The resins were found to possess high thermal stability. Activation energies of resin degradation were computed using the Freeman–Anderson method. The antifungal activities of several previously synthesized resins were studied.     

Growth of titanium oxide overlayers by thermal oxidation of titanium

This paper describes a theoretical model for the growth of titanium oxide by thermal oxidation of titanium. It is shown that this model can explain the formation of layers of different oxides of titanium and the changes in these layers with variations in the conditions of oxidation. Some experimental X-ray diffraction results which support the model are also given.     

Transformations of DHEA and its metabolites by rat liver

Because dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) has a wide variety of weak beneficial effects in experimental animals and humans, we searched for metabolites of this steroid in the hope of finding more active compounds that might qualify for the title "steroid hormone." Incubation of DHEA with rat liver homogenate fortified with energy-yielding substrates resulted in rapid hydroxylation at the 7alpha-position of the molecule and subsequent conversion to other 7-oxygenated steroids in the sequence DHEA --> 7alpha-hydroxyDHEA --> 7-oxoDHEA --> 7beta-hydroxyDHEA, with branching to diols, triols, and sulfate esters. The ability of these metabolites to induce the formation of liver thermogenic enzyme activity increased from left to right in that sequence. A total of 25 different steroids were characterized, and at least six additional structures that are currently under study were produced from DHEA. 7-OxoDHEA is more effective than DHEA in enhancing memory performance in old mice and in reversing the amnesic effects of scopolamine.     

Situation awareness of cancelable biometric system

Recently, cancelable biometrics emerged as one of the highly effective methods of template protection. The concept behind the cancelable biometrics or cancelability is a transformation of a biometric data or extracted feature into an alternative form, which cannot be used by the imposter or intruder easily, and can be revoked if compromised. In this paper, we present a novel architecture for template generation in the context of situation awareness system in real and virtual applications. We develop a novel cancelable biometric template generation algorithm utilizing random biometric fusion, random projection and selection. Proposed random cross-folding method generate cancelable biometric template from multiple biometric traits. We further validate the performance of the proposed algorithm using a virtual multimodal face and ear database.     

Synthesis, characterization, sintering and dielectric properties of nanostructured perovskite-type oxide, Ba2GdSbO6

Nanoparticles of barium gadolinium antimonate (Ba₂GdSbO₆), a complex perovskite-type oxide, has been synthesized using an auto ignition combustion process for the first time. The nanoparticles thus obtained have been characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis, differential thermal analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The XRD studies have shown that the as-prepared powder is phase pure Ba₂GdSbO₆ and has a complex cubic perovskite (A₂BB′O₆) crystalline structure with lattice constant, a = 8·449 Å. The TEM image reveals that the particle size of the as-prepared nano powder was in the range 30–60 nm. The nanocrystals of Ba₂GdSbO₆ synthesized by the combustion technique could be sintered to 96% of the theoretical density by heating at a temperature of 1560°C for a short duration of 3 h. The surface morphology of the sintered pellet has been studied by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The dielectric constant (? _r) was 20 and the loss factor (tanδ) was 0·03 at 3 MHz. By the present combustion technique a phase pure nanopowder of Ba₂GdSbO₆ could be obtained by a single step process without the need of any calcination step.     

A study on the critical factors of ISO 9001:2000 and organizational performance of Indian manufacturing firms

This study explores the critical factors of ISO 9001:2000 and investigates the effect of ISO certification on organizational performance, as perceived by the management. In order to gain more insight into the investigation, the study also analyses the relationship between the firm attributes and the critical factors, as well as the relationship between firm attributes and the indicators of organizational performance.     

Resource settings have a major influence on the outcome of maintenance hemodialysis patients in South India

Chronic kidney disease is reaching epidemic proportions and the number of patients on renal replacement therapy (RRT) is increasing worldwide and also in developing countries. To meet the challenge of providing RRT, a few charity organizations provide hemodialysis units for underprivileged patients, as the private hospitals are unaffordable for the majority. There is a paucity of information on the outcome of dialysis in these patients. Here, we describe the outcome of hemodialysis patients comparing the middle‐ and upper‐class income group with the lower class income group. A retrospective analysis was carried out in 558 CKD patients initiated on maintenance hemodialysis in two different dialysis facilities. Group A (n=247) included those who belonged to the lowermost socioeconomic status and were undergoing dialysis in two nonprofit, charity (TANKER)‐run dialysis units, and Group B (n=311) was undergoing dialysis in a nonprofit hospital setting where no subsidy was given. Those patients of a low socioeconomic status, especially those who are diabetics, have a higher death rate (Group A‐38.1%, Group B‐4.2%) and loss to follow‐up (Group A‐25.9%, Group B‐0.3%) compared with those who are in the middle‐ and high‐income group. Higher EPO use and hence higher hemoglobin levels (Group A‐6.4±1.2, Group B‐8.9±1.5 P<0.001) were observed in those who were in the middle and the higher income group. Lower serum phosphorus level was observed in the low‐socioeconomic group (Group A‐4.7±1.5, Group B‐5.5±1.9, P<0.001). Patients belonging to the middle and higher socioeconomic group undergo more transplantations compared with the lower socioeconomic group (Group A‐2.4%, Group B‐65.6%).