Phosphorus‐containing epoxy resins: Thermal characterization

Three novel aromatic phosphorylated diamines, i.e., bis N,N′‐{3‐[(3‐aminophenyl)methyl phosphinoyl] phenyl} pyromellitamic acid (AP), 4,4′‐oxo bis N,N′‐{3‐[(3‐aminophenyl)methyl phosphinoyl] phenyl}phthalamic acid (AB) and 4,4′‐hexafluoroisopropylidene‐bis N,N′‐{3‐[(3‐aminophenyl)methyl phosphinoyl] phenyl}phthalamic acid (AF) were synthesized and characterized. These amines were prepared by solution condensation reaction of bis(3‐aminophenyl)methyl phosphine oxide (BAP) with 1,2,4,5‐benzenetetracarboxylic acid anhydride (P)/3,3′,4,4′‐benzophenonetetracarboxylic acid dianhydride (B)/4,4′‐(hexafluoroisopropylidene)diphthalic acid anhydride (F), respectively. The structural characterization of amines was done by elemental analysis, DSC, TGA, ¹H‐NMR, ¹³C‐NMR and FTIR. Amine equivalent weight was determined by the acetylation method. Curing of DGEBA in the presence of phosphorylated amines was studied by DSC and curing exotherm was in the temperature range of 195–267°C, whereas with conventional amine 4,4′‐diamino diphenyl sulphone (D) a broad exotherm in temperature range of 180–310°C was observed. Curing of DGEBA with a mixture of phosphorylated amines and D, resulted in a decrease in characteristic curing temperatures. The effect of phosphorus content on the char residue and thermal stability of epoxy resin cured isothermally in the presence of these amines was evaluated in nitrogen atmosphere. Char residue increased significantly with an increase in the phosphorus content of epoxy network. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 84: 2235–2242, 2002     

Geometric discord and measurement-induced nonlocality for well known bound entangled states

We employ geometric discord and measurement induced nonlocality to quantify quantumness of some well-known bipartite bound entangled states, namely the two families of Horodecki’s ( $2\otimes 4, 3\otimes 3$ and $4\otimes 4$ dimensional) bound entangled states and that of Bennett et al.’s in $3\otimes 3$ dimension. In most of the cases our results are analytic and both the measures attain relatively small value. The amount of quantumness in the $4\otimes 4$ bound entangled state of Benatti et al. and the $2\otimes 8$ state having the same matrix representation (in computational basis) is same. Coincidently, the $2m\otimes 2m$ Werner and isotropic states also exhibit the same property, when seen as $2\otimes 2m^2$ dimensional states.     

Elimination of current non-uniformity in carbon nanotube field emitters

Activation of abnormal emitting sites in Carbon Nano Tube (CNT) field emitters and their elimination is reported. CVD grown, patterned CNT was used as cathode for field emission studies. We encountered the problem of current non-uniformity in CNT cathode. This non-uniformity was attributed to abnormally active emitting sites during voltage ramp-up. The sudden increase in current resulted in region of positive slope in F–N curve, which can’t be explained by conventional F–N theory. Also the grown CNTs can be a mixture of metallic and semi conducting nature, which may cause deviation from the conventional F–N theory. We could eliminate abnormally active sites by electric field treatment, thereby increasing current uniformity and stability. The work is underway to understand the deviation in FN curve at high fields.     

An exact solution to the unsteady free-convection boundary-layer flow past an impulsively started vertical surface with newtonian heating

An exact solution of the unsteady free-convection boundary-layer flow of an incompressible fluid past an infinite vertical plate with the flow generated by Newtonian heating and impulsive motion of the plate is presented. The resulting governing equations are nondimensionalized and their solutions are obtained in a closed form with the help of the Laplace transform technique. A parametric study of the roles of all involved parameters is conducted and a representative set of numerical results for the velocity, temperature, and skin friction is illustrated graphically. The physical aspects of the problem are discussed. Published in Inzhenerno-Fizicheskii Zhurnal, Vol. 80, No. 5, pp. 102–107, September–October, 2007.     

Detailed surface reaction mechanism for reduction of NO by CO

In order to meet the stringent regulatory norms of NO_x and CO emitted by automobiles, reduction of these pollutants has become an intense field of research. Various catalysts like Pt, Rh, Ir, Cu, and Fe have been found to possess high activity for the reduction of NO. However, the available detailed surface reaction mechanisms are not satisfactory in clarifying all the aspects of the simultaneous reduction of NO and oxidation of CO. Here we have developed a quantitative surface reaction mechanism based on elementary steps, in order to comprehend the phenomena of catalytic reduction of NO by CO. Eleven elementary steps are proposed for the NO–CO and NO–CO–O₂ systems on Pt group catalysts. The elementary reaction mechanism is coupled with the continuously stirred tank reactor/packed bed reactor models and the simulation results are validated against literature experiments for the NO–CO reaction on Pt, and the NO–CO–O₂ reaction on Ir catalyst. Despite the simplicity, the CSTR model is able to capture the observed phenomena well on Pt and Ir catalysts. The effect of O₂ on the activity of CO for NO reduction is also analysed in detail through the simulations.     

Microstructural,Optical and Magnetic Study of Ni–Zn Nanoferrites

Journal of Superconductivity and Novel Magnetism - NixZn1-xFe2O4 (x?=?0.0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 0.8 and 1.0) nanoferrites were synthesized using the citrate precursor method with...     

Hypolipidemic effect of blends of coconut oil with soybean oil or sunflower oil in experimental rats

Blended oils, consisting of coconut oil with sunflower oil or soybean oil, were prepared (22–24% linoleic acid) to provide higher amounts of PUFA to coconut oil consumers. Animal experiments were carried out to find the effects of coconut oil blends, using weanling rats, by feeding native and blends of oils at 10% level in the diet for 60 days. Serum cholesterol levels were reduced by 5% and 21%, respectively, in rats given blended oils containing CNO/SFO and CNO/SBO while liver cholesterol did not show a significant change when rats were given blends in comparison with rats given CNO. Serum and liver lipid analyses also showed significant change in TG concentration in rats fed blended oils compared with rats given CNO. These studies indicated that the atherogenic potentials of a saturated fatty acid-rich CNO can be significantly decreased by blending with an oil rich in unsaturated lipids in appropriate amounts.     

Biohydrogen production from Enterobacter cloacae IIT-BT 08 using distillery effluent

Distillery effluent poses severe environmental pollution problem mainly due to its high organic content. During alcohol fermentation, most of the essential macro- and micro-nutrients get utilized. Therefore, supplementation of these nutrients becomes imperative for the improvement of biohydrogen production. In the present study, starch based distillery effluent was used for dark fermentative hydrogen production using Enterobacter cloacae IIT-BT 08. Hence, this study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of supplementation of yeast extract, malt extract, Fe⁺⁺, Cu⁺⁺ and Mg⁺⁺ on biohydrogen production. The interaction among supplements and their mutual effect on the hydrogen production was studied using five factor–five level central composite design). Optimum hydrogen yield of 7.4 mol H₂/kg COD_reduced was predicted by the model, which showed an excellent correlation with experimental hydrogen yield of 7.38 ± 0.24 mol H₂/kg COD_reduced. An average hydrogen production rate of 80 mL/L h was achieved after supplementation, having 2.2 times higher hydrogen yield as compared to non-supplemented distillery effluent.     

Enhanced performance of DMFC prepared by 10Cu/CeO2 catalyst and nanocomposite SPVA membranes with layer-by-layer coating of polyacrylic acid and chitosan

In the present study, TiO₂ nanoparticles are used as inorganic nanofiller material to prepare nanocomposite proton exchange membrane (PEM). Sulfonated polyvinyl alcohol (SPVA) is synthesized by 4-formylbenzene-1,3-disulfonic acid disodium salt hydrate and water. The cross-linking reaction is performed by glutaraldehyde. These membranes were then dip coated with polyacrylic acid and chitosan alternately and one layer-by-layer (LBL), two LBL and three LBL membranes were prepared. The chemical structure evaluation of SPVA membrane is performed using FTIR. The direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) catalysts of 10Cu/CeO₂ and 10 Pt-10 CeO₂/C were prepared by reduction reaction and hydrothermal technique. Thus obtained material was spin coated on 2 × 2 cm² carbon paper to prepare catalyst anode/cathode. The morphology, size, and purity of catalyst particles are analysed by SEM, UV–visible spectroscopy, FTIR and EDS. Electrochemical analysis is also done to test the performance. Results show that Cu/CeO₂ catalyst shows excellent catalysis towards methanol oxidation, which is better than 10 Pt-10 CeO₂/C particles. The 10Cu/CeO₂ catalyst gives peak voltage of 915 mV for infinite resistance, which is higher than the reported value of the conventional 20 Pt/C catalyst (810 mV).     

An extended ECC‐based anonymity‐preserving 3‐factor remote authentication scheme usable in TMIS

A telecare medicine information system (TMIS) helps in providing an efficient communication platform to patients from home to consult doctors at a clinical center. In TMIS, the patient's confidentiality, security, and mutual authentication are very crucial; so remote authentication plays a vital role for verifying the legitimacy of patients. Recently, Amin and Biswas have devised a remote authentication protocol for TMIS, claiming it to be secured from various malicious vulnerabilities. We examine this protocol and find that it is not able to withstand many attacks that include off‐line and online password‐guessing, identity‐guessing, user impersonation, privileged insider, and known session key temporary information attacks. We propose a 3‐factor–based authentication protocol for TMIS by overcoming these security shortcomings. We present its security verification in formal and informal ways, which assert its resistivity against various security threats. We use the Burrows‐Abadi‐Needham logic for validating it, and with the Automated Validation of Internet Security Protocols and Applications tool, it is simulated. Further, the performance evaluation and the security functionalities justify high degree of security with efficient complexity.