Effect of Fe doping concentration on optical and magnetic properties of ZnO nanorods

Herein, a facile low temperature, aqueous solution-based chemical method has been demonstrated for large-scale fabrication of Fe doped ZnO nanorods (ZnO:Fe) with a series percentage of Fe dopant. Interestingly, the SEM results reveal a uniform well dispersed synthesis of ZnO:Fe nanorods throughout the substrate. The x-ray diffraction result suggests that Fe substitutes Zn in the ZnO matrix and rules out the formation of any secondary phase. Selected area electron diffraction investigation verifies the single crystal, hexagonal wurtzite structure of the ZnO:Fe nanorods. Energy dispersive spectroscopy data confirm Fe doping of the ZnO nanorods with a concentration ranging from 0.9 to 2.2 at.%. The photoluminescence spectrum reveals a continuous suppression of defect related broad-band emission (I(D)/I(UV) = 1-0.11) by increasing the concentration of the dopant ion, which produces the quenching of surface defects present in the nanostructures. An enhancement in ferromagnetism (M = 0.15 × 10?2-0.24 × 10?1 emu g?1 at 2000 Oe) is found in doped ZnO nanorods.     

Effect of temperature on fatty acid composition in the Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus): A temperature dependent nutritive lipid profile

In this study, the effects of temperature on the fatty acids profile and the effects of temperature on the degree of unsaturation of fatty acids of Oreochromis niloticus were investigated. The analysis was performed by gas chromatography. The study showed that there were large temperature variations (10.0–32.0°C) during the study period (January–December). The highest crude fat content was found in January (3380 mg/100 g) and the lowest in June (2050 mg/100 g). The fatty acids profile showed significantly different diversity (p < 0.05). Total saturated fatty acid (∑SFA) content ranged from 409.54 to 1297.61 mg/100 g, monounsaturated fatty acid (∑MUFA) from 207.68 to 665.81 mg/100 g, and polyunsaturated fatty acid (∑PUFA) from 175.12 to 972.23 mg/100 g. The ∑MUFA and ∑PUFA concentrations were highest in January and lowest in June, and the ∑SFA concentration was lowest in January and highest in June. EPA and DHA contents were highest in January (198.96 mg/100 g) and lowest in June (48.76 mg/100 g). The contents of omega-3 (653.17 mg/100 g) and omega-6 fatty acids (252.54 mg/100 g) were highest in January and lowest in June (ω-3; 106.43 and ω-6; 60.91 mg/100 g). It concluded that the degree of unsaturation of fatty acids increases with decreasing temperature. In this study, the nutritional quality of the FAs profile was assessed using lipid quality indices. The indices indicating dietary quality of lipids by their values: Atherogenic index (0.47), thrombogenic index (0.38), hypocholesterolemic to hypercholesterolemic (3.00), meat fat quality (6.78), ω6/ω3 ratio (0.39), PUFA/SFA (2.37), MUFA/SFA (1.62), PUFA/MUFA (1.46), and PUFA + MUFA/SFA (3.99). These values are within the recommended range, indicating that the lipid profile of O. niloticus has high nutritional quality, which can be further improved by harvesting the fish during the winter season. Due to the nutritional importance of O. niloticus, the culture of this species could have significant interest to the people of Karachi, especially the coastal communities. To promote the nutritional diet in local population, the government should support the aquaculture of Nile tilapia.     

Purification and identification of kokumi-enhancing peptides from chicken protein hydrolysate

The Maillard reaction products (MRPs) from chicken protein hydrolysate were demonstrated to have intense umami and kokumi-enhancing effects. To find the main flavour-enhancing compounds in the chicken protein hydrolysate, the fractions with different molecular weights were obtained by ultrafitration. The evaluation of taste characteristics revealed that the fractions with molecular weights ranging from 1000 to 5000 Da predominantly contributed to the umami and kokumi-enhancing effects. After further purification by using ultrafiltration, gel filtration chromatography, and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) in combination with sensory evaluation, three peptides were identified, an octapeptide (WVNEEDHL), a nonapeptide (NSLEGEFKG) and a decapeptide (KDLFDPVIQD). Sensory evaluation results showed that all three peptides could significantly enhance the meat flavour, umami taste and thickness of the chicken powder solution. The results indicate that the peptides have potential application as effective chicken flavour-enhancing ingredients in the food industry.     

Bio-inspired computational heuristics for parameter estimation of nonlinear Hammerstein controlled autoregressive system

In this study, strength of evolutionary computational intelligence based on genetic algorithms (GAs) is exploited for parameter identification of nonlinear Hammerstein controlled autoregressive (NHCAR) systems. The fitness function is constructed for the NHCAR system by defining an error function in the mean square sense. Unknown adjustable weights of the system are optimized with GAs, used as an effective tool for effective global search. Comparative analysis of the proposed scheme is made from true parameters of the systems for a number of scenarios based on different levels of signal-to-noise ratios. The validation of the performance is made through statistics based on sufficiently large number of runs using indices of mean absolute error, variance account for, and Thiel’s inequality coefficient as well as their global versions.

     

Energy and flux measurements of laser-induced silver plasma ions by using Faraday cup

Silver(Ag)plasma has been generated by employing Nd∶YAG laser(532 nm,6 ns)laser irradiation.The energy and flux of ions have been evaluated by using Faraday cup(FC)using time of flight(TOF)measurements.The dual peak signals of fast and slow Ag plasma ions have been identified.Both energy and flux of fast and slow ions tend to increase with increasing irradiance from 7 GW cm-2 to 17.9 GW cm-2 at all distances of FC from the target surface.Similarly a decreasing trend of energies and flux of ions has been observed with increasing distance of FC from the target.The maximum value of flux of the fast component is 21.2×1010cm-2,whereas for slow ions the maximum energy and flux values are 8.8 keV,8.2×1012 cm-2 respectively.For the analysis of plume expansion dynamics,the angular distribution of ion flux measurement has also been performed.The overall analysis of both spatial and angular distributions of Ag ions revealed that the maximum flux of Ag plasma ions has been observed at an optimal angle of～15°.In order to confirm the ion acceleration by ambipolar field,the self-generated electric field(SGEF)measurements have also been performed by electric probe;these SGEF measurements tend to increase by increasing laser irradiance.The maximum value of 232 V m-1 has been obtained at a maximum laser irradiance of 17.9 GW cm-2.     

Threshold voltage control of 2,3 benzanthracene organic thin-film transistor by visible light for integration of transistors into electronic circuits

The organic field-effect transistor having 2,3 benzanthracene as active layer grown on SiO₂ dielectric layer was fabricated. AFM results indicate that 2,3 benzanthracene thin film is formed from homogeneous small crystal grains with an average diameter about 200 nm. The electrical parameters such as mobility, threshold voltage, I_on/I_off ratio and SS value were determined. The obtained I_on/I_off and S values increase with visible light illumination due to more photogenerated charges. The mobility and threshold values were changed by visible light illumination. The organic thin film transistor exhibits a photovoltaic effect in turn-on state. The control of the threshold voltage of 2,3 benzanthracene-based organic thin film transistor was achieved by visible light illumination. The change in the threshold voltage is enough for the electronic technology applications of organic thin film transistors.     

Estimation of Aluminium in HTPB Based Composite Solid Propellants by hydrogen evolution method

Hydrogen gas evolution method has been applied to determine the percentage of aluminium (Al) in hydroxy-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB) based composite solid propellants premix/pastes. The determination is not effected by the presence of Zn, Fe, Cu or small amounts of silicon but magnesium has been found to interfere in the analysis. The results are obtained with remarkable accuracy and reproducibility.