Lactic acid fermentation of anthocyanin-rich sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) into lacto-juice

Sweet potato (SP) is an important root crop grown all over the world and consumed as a vegetable, boiled, baked or often fermented into food and beverages. The grated SP roots [non- boiled and fully boiled (boiled in water at 100 °C for 15 min) were treated with 0.05% of commercial pectinase enzyme (Pectinex, Novoenzyme) in order to extract the juice. The fresh juice was inoculated with Lactobacillus plantarum MTCC 1407 culture at 28 ± 2 °C for 48 h to produce lacto-juice (LJ). The anova analysis of analytical data revealed that there was significant effect of boiling conditions (fully boiled and non-boiled) on pH [ F (1, 4) = 220.5, P  < 0.001), TA [ F (1, 4) = 78.89, P  < 0.01], starch [ F (1, 4) = 26.63, P  < 0.01), total sugar [ F (1, 4) = 61.36, P  < 0.01) and anthocyanin [ F (1, 4) = 32.86, P  < 0.01) but not on reducing sugar [ F (1, 4) = 2.48, P  = 0.19). Sensory evaluation rated the SP LJ acceptable based on texture, taste, aroma, flavour and after taste. LJ prepared from fully boiled roots with 10% cane sugar was most preferred by a consumer's panelist based on Linear Discriminant Analysis. Principal component analyses (PCA) reduced the seven original analytical variables to three independent components (factors), which accounted for 99.9% of the total variations. Similarly, six original sensory variables were reduced to two independent components, which accounted for 65.7% of the total variations.     

Design and development of long-period grating sensors for temperature monitoring

Long Period Gratings (LPGs) have been developed using carbon dioxide laser in a standard optical fibre. LPGs with a periodicity of 600 μm and grating length of 24 mm have been inscribed on standard single mode fibre. Such gratings have been used in designing temperature sensors and temperature is monitored up to 80°C. The sensitivity of such type of sensor is 0·06 nm/°C where as for standard Fibre Bragg Grating (FBG) it is 0·011 nm/°C. The LPG performance is also evaluated after γ-ray irradiation for total dose of 5 KGy and has not shown any effect on transmission spectrum.     

A dual voltage-frequency VLSI chip for image watermarking in DCT domain

In this brief, we present a new VLSI architecture that can insert invisible or visible watermarks in images in the discrete cosine transform domain. The proposed architecture incorporates low-power techniques such as dual voltage, dual frequency, and clock gating to reduce the power consumption and exploits pipelining and parallelism extensively in order to achieve high performance. The supply voltage level and the operating frequency are chosen for each module so as to maintain the required bandwidth and throughput match among the different modules. A prototype VLSI chip was designed and verified using various Cadence and Synopsys tools based on TSMC 0.25-/spl mu/m technology with 1.4 M transistors and 0.3 mW of estimated dynamic power.     

Classification and assessment of power system static security using decision tree and random forest classifiers

The power system static security classification and assessment is essential in order to identify the post‐contingency problems and take corrective measures and to protect the system from blackout. In this paper, application of two data mining classifiers have been proposed for the security classification and assessment of a multiclass security problem. To design the security problem, contingency analysis is carried out under N‐1 line outage, and static severity index (SSI) is computed, which is a function of the line overload and the voltage deviation using Newton–Raphson load flow method, considering the variable load and generating conditions. Corresponding to the computed values of SSI, the voltage, phase angle, Mega Volt Ampere line flow and so on, a 1 × 7 pattern vector is generated. The generated pattern vectors are used to design a multiclass security problem. The designed security pattern vectors are given as inputs to the decision tree (DT) and random forest (RF) model in order to classify the security status of the power system. The proposed classifiers are investigated on an IEEE 30‐bus test system. The classification accuracy of the DT and the RF are compared with state‐of‐the‐art classifier models, namely, multilayer perceptron (MLP), radial basis function (RBF), and support vector machine (SVM).The simulation results clearly indicate that the proposed DT and RF classifiers are more efficient, reliable, and out performs MLP, RBF, and SVM classifiers for the assessment of the security status of the power system. Hence, DT and RF classifiers are found to be suitable for online implementation. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Preparation and performance evaluation of castor oil-based polyurethane prepolymer/polylactide blends

Polylactide (PLA) is an important biodegradable polymer, used for numerous applications ranging from industrial packaging to tissue engineering. However, its inherent brittleness and limited thermal stability have restricted its penetration to niche markets. In this communication, the authors demonstrate that blending of PLA with castor oil-based polyurethane prepolymer (COPUP), with the addition of COPUP, dispersed in the PLA matrix can overcome the inherent brittleness of the matrix polymer. NCO-terminated COPUP was successfully synthesized and subsequently mixed with variable concentration of PLA matrix using melt blending technique. The interfacial compatibilization between COPUP and PLA phase happened by the reaction of ?NCO groups with terminal hydroxyl groups of PLA was confirmed by FT-IR peak deconvolution technique. As indicated by the results of DMA and DSC, the glass transition temperature (T _g) of both PLA and COPUP shifted closer together, indicating that the blend compatibility increased. The tensile properties and notched Izod impact strength of the PLA and toughened PLA are also investigated. With the addition of 30 % COPUP concentration, the elongation at break of the blend reached 377.46 %, and a notched Izod impact 269.62 J m^?1. With improved toughness, the PLA/COPUP blends could be used as replacements for some traditional petroleum-based polymers.     

Electrospinning highly oriented and crystalline poly(lactic acid) fiber mats

In recent years, there has been an increased focus on sustainable, green alternatives with similar properties to conventional petroleum-based polymers. Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) is a biodegradable biopolymer which exhibits mild piezoelectric properties and has good processability which gives it potential for use in numerous existing and novel applications. The purpose of this study was to produce highly oriented and crystalline PLA electrospun fiber mats for piezoelectric applications. In order to yield a high piezoelectric constant, high crystallinity and fiber orientation are necessary. A two parallel collector set up was used to mechanically orient the fibers in the space between two copper electrodes. Voltage and feed rate were adjusted to produce smooth, oriented fibers with average diameters ranging 0.73–1.19 μm. Crystallinity and orientation were increased via hot drawing of the fiber mats and were maximized between 40 and 50 % and greater than 50 %, respectively.     

Dielectric and electrical properties of 0.5(BiGd0.05Fe0.95O3)-0.5(PbZrO3) composite

The 0.5(BiGd_0.05Fe_0.95O₃)-0.5(PbZrO₃) composite was synthesized by means of a high temperature solid-state reaction technique using high purity ingredients. Preliminary X-ray structural analysis confirms the formation of the composite. The dielectric constant and loss tangent have been studied. The impedance parameters have been measured using an impedance analyzer in a wide range of frequency (10²–10⁶ Hz) at different temperatures. The Nyquist plot suggests the contribution of bulk effect only and the bulk resistance decreases with a rise in temperature. Electrical impedance confirms the presence of grain effect and hopping mechanism in the electrical transport of the material. The dc conductivity increases with a rise of temperature. The frequency variation of ac conductivity shows that the compound obeys Jonscher’s universal power law and from Jonscher’s power law fit confirms the Small Polaron (SP) tunneling effect. Temperature dependence of dc and ac conductivity indicates that electrical conduction in the material is a thermally activated process.     

Investigation on Some Machinability Aspects of Inconel 825 During Dry Turning

In the current study, attempt has been made to investigate the influence of cutting speed (Vc) (51, 84, and 124 m/min) on various machining characteristics like chip morphology, chip thickness ratio, tool wear, surface, and sub-surface integrity during dry turning of Inconel 825. Comparable study was carried out using uncoated and commercially available chemical vapor deposition multilayer coated (TiN/TiCN/Al₂O₃/ZrCN) cemented carbide (ISO P30 grade) insert. Chip morphology consists of chip forms obtained at different cutting conditions. Serrated chips were observed when machining Inconel 825 with both types of tool with more serration in case of uncoated insert. The chip thickness ratio increased as cutting speed was increased. Use of multilayer coated tool also resulted in increase in chip thickness ratio. Rake and flank surfaces were examined with scanning electron microscope and optical microscope. Abrasion, adhesion, and diffusion wears were found to be dominating tool wear mechanism during dry machining of Inconel 825. The beneficial effect of coated tool over its uncoated counterpart was most prominent during machining at high cutting speed (Vc = 124 m/min). The surface and sub-surface integrity obtained with coated tool were superior to that while machining Inconel 825 with uncoated tool.     

Dissemination of an effective inpatient tobacco use cessation program.

The present study aimed to determine whether tobacco use cessation rates observed in controlled trials of a hospital-based tobacco use cessation program could be replicated when the program was disseminated to a wide range of hospitals in a two-stage process including implementation and institutionalization phases. Using a nonrandomized, observational design, we recruited six hospitals to participate in the study. The research team helped implement the program during the first year of participation (implementation) and then withdrew from active involvement during the second year (institutionalization). The mean 6-month self-reported cessation rates were 26.3% (range = 17.6%-52.8%) for the implementation phase and 22.7% (range = 12.9%-48.2%) for the institutionalization phase. Hospitals with paid professionals providing the program had the best outcomes. Inpatient tobacco use cessation programs are feasible to implement and should target a 6-month self-reported cessation rate of at least 25%.     

Effect of chemical modification on FTIR spectra. I. Physical and chemical behavior of coir

Coir fibers were chemically modified through alkali treatment, and crosslinking with formaldehyde, para-phenylene diamine, phthalic anhydride, and combined crosslinking-cyanoethylation reactions in appropriate solvent and catalyst. The parent and chemically modified coir were characterized by FTIR spectra. The percent moisture regain, tensile strength, and behavior toward some chemical reagents (solubility %) of parent and chemically modified fibers have also been evaluated. The modified fibers showed significant hydrophobicity, improved tensile strength, and good chemical resistance. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.