Novel multiple function analog filter structures and a dual-mode multifunction filter

This paper reports three multi-function filters each of which realizes at least three basic functions without any external passive elements. Depending on the circuit, from one to four operational transconductance amplifiers (OTAs), and two operational amplifiers (OPAMPs) are employed. All three circuits are transimpedance-mode circuits; one of them can also operate as a current-mode filter. Therefore this filter represents a dual-mode, multifunction filter. The presented theory is verified with macro models in simulation program with integrated circuit emphasis (SPICE) simulations and post layout simulations, which are carried out with parasitics extracted from the layouts of the filter chips.     

An approximate dynamic programming approach for a product distribution problem

This paper proposes an approximate dynamic programming-based method for optimizing the distribution operations of a company manufacturing a certain product in numerous plants and distributing it to different regional markets for sale. The production at each plant and in each time period follows a nonstationary stochastic process. The product can be stored at the plants or be shipped to a regional market to serve the random demand. The proposed solution method formulates the problem as a dynamic program and uses approximations of the value function. We develop a tractable procedure to compute the marginal worth of a unit of inventory at a production plant. This quantity is used to update the value function approximations in an iterative improvement scheme. We numerically show that our method yields high quality solutions.     

Optical properties of heavily doped GaAs nanowires and electroluminescent nanowire structures

We present GaAs electroluminescent nanowire structures fabricated by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy. Electroluminescent structures were realized in both axial pn-junctions in single GaAs nanowires and free-standing nanowire arrays with a pn-junction formed between nanowires and substrate, respectively. The electroluminescence emission peak from single nanowire pn-junctions at 10 K was registered at an energy of around 1.32 eV and shifted to 1.4 eV with an increasing current. The line is attributed to the recombination in the compensated region present in the nanowire due to the memory effect of the vapor-liquid-solid growth mechanism. Arrayed nanowire electroluminescent structures with a pn-junction formed between nanowires and substrate demonstrated at 5 K a strong electroluminescence peak at 1.488 eV and two shoulder peaks at 1.455 and 1.519 eV. The main emission line was attributed to the recombination in the p-doped GaAs. The other two lines correspond to the tunneling-assisted photon emission and band-edge recombination in the abrupt junction, respectively. Electroluminescence spectra are compared with the micro-photoluminescence spectra taken along the single p-, n- and single nanowire pn-junctions to find the origin of the electroluminescence peaks, the distribution of doping species and the sharpness of the junctions.     

Polybutylene Succinate (PBS) – Polycaprolactone (PCL) Blends Compatibilized with Poly(ethylene oxide)-block-poly(propylene oxide)-block-poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO-PPO-PEO) Copolymer for Biomaterial Applications

This study reports the preparation and characterization of Polybutylene Succinate (PBS)-Polycaprolactone (PCL) melt blends (10–40 wt.% PCL) in the presence of a compatibilizer, in order to explore their potential use as a biomaterial. The thermal transitions, as well as the crystallinity of the polymer blends were analyzed by Differential Scanning Calorimetry, the thermomechanical properties were analyzed via Dynamic Mechanical Analysis and phase morphologies were characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy. Degradation profiles of the blends were analyzed in PBS buffer solution at pH 7.4 at 37°C via pH measurements. Cytotoxicity of the PBS/PCL films were tested by MTS assay.     

An investigation of lithium ion conductivity of copolymers based on P(AMPS-co-PEGMA)

In this work, a series of novel lithium ion-conducting copolymer electrolytes based on 2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propane sulfonic acid (AMPS) and poly(ethyleneglycol) methacrylate (PEGMA) were produced and characterized. The copolymers were synthesized by free-radical polymerization of the corresponding monomers with three different feed ratios to form P(AMPS-co-PEGMA)-based electrolytes. After the polymerization, AMPS units of the copolymers were lithiated via ion exchange. The characterization of the electrolytes was done by ¹H-NMR, FTIR, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and impedance analyzer. The copolymers were thermal stable approximately to 200 °C. Single T_g transitions in DSC curves verified the homogeneity as well as amorphous characteristics. SEM further confirmed the homogeneity of the electrolytes. The lithium ion conductivity of these new polymer electrolytes was studied by impedance dielectric impedance analyzer and the effect of PEGMA contents onto the ionic conductivity of these copolymer electrolytes were investigated. It was observed that the temperature dependence of ionic conductivity was interpreted over Vogel Tammann Fulcher model. The Li ion conductivity increased by PEGMA content and S3 has maximum conductivity of 3 × 10⁻³ mS cm⁻¹ at 100 °C. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 47798.     

Three-input single-output second-order filters using current-feedback amplifiers

In this study, a novel second order universal filter using current-feedback amplifier, commercially available active component, is presented. The signal-flow graph method is used to synthesize the filter. The proposed filter has three high impedance input and one output, (multiple input single output (MISO) configuration). It can generate all biquadratic filtering functions namely: low-pass (LP), band-pass (BP), high-pass (HP), band-reject (BR) and all-pass (AP) at the output terminal by selecting different input signal combinations. The validity of the proposed circuits is demonstrated by simulations.     

Electrochemical determination of urea using a gold nanoparticle-copolymer coated-enzyme modified gold electrode

A new amperometric urea biosensor based on gold nanoparticle embedded poly(propylene-co-imidazole) was developed for the determination of urea. The urease adsorbed on the polymeric film catalyzed the hydrolysis of urea to ammonium and bicarbonate ions and the ammonium was then electrooxidized on the gold electrode with the aid of gold nanoparticles at +0.2?V versus Ag/AgCl using differential pulse voltammetry. The biosensor provided a linear current response to urea concentration from 0.1 to 30?mM, a detection limit of 36?µM, a relative standard deviation of 2.43% (n?=?18), and excellent storage stability, as the current decrease was only 3% after 75 days. The operation of the biosensor was evaluated by the analysis of municipal sewage wastewater collected from the inlet pipe of the treatment plant of Zonguldak City in Turkey. The effects of possible interferants were also characterized.     

A modified shifting bottleneck heuristic for the reentrant job shop scheduling problem with makespan minimization

This paper proposes a modified shifting bottleneck heuristic (MSBH) for the reentrant job shop scheduling problem (RJSSP) with makespan minimization objective. Recently, the reentrant job shop has come into prominence as a new type of manufacturing shop. The principle characteristic of a reentrant job shop is that a job may visit certain machines more than once during the process flow, whereas in the classic job shop, each job visits a machine only once. The shifting bottleneck heuristic (SBH) is one of the most successful heuristic approaches for the classical job shop scheduling problem, which decomposes the problem into a number of single-machine subproblems. This paper adapts the SBH for the RJSSP and proposes a new sequencing heuristic for the single-machine maximum lateness subproblem considering the reentrant jobs in order to handle large-size RJSSPs. It also uses a subproblem criticality measure that further shortens the implementation time. The proposed MSBH is tested by using instances up to 20 machines and 100 jobs, and it is illustrated that good quality solutions can be obtained in reasonable computational times. A real-life application of the MSBH is also given as a case study to evaluate its performance.     

The effect of Fe3O4 nanoparticles on the thermal conductivities of various base fluids

Conventional heat transfer fluids have intrinsically poor heat transfer properties compared to solids. Enhancing the efficiency of heat transfer is of great interest for various industrial applications. Suspending solid particles in a fluid increases the thermal conductivity of the resulting suspension and enhances the heat transfer properties. In this work, changes in thermal conductivities of fluids upon the addition of magnetic nanoparticles have been investigated. Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles are synthesized using different synthesis methods and are suspended in various oils. The effect of the base fluid and the type of magnetic particle on the thermal conductivity is investigated in detail. Up to 28% increase in the thermal conductivity is obtained with 2.5 wt% magnetic particles in hexane. The thermal conductivity enhancement is found to depend on the particle concentration, method of preparation and base fluid. The enhancements obtained are higher than those estimated using any theoretical model present in the literature.