Assessment of proteolysis in ultra‐high temperature milk using attenuated total reflectance–Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy

This study investigated the suitability of attenuated total reflectance–Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR‐FTIR) as an alternative technique to assess proteolysis in ultra‐high temperature (UHT) milk. Commercial UHT milk samples were stored (5 and 30 °C) and analysed for four months. Milk samples were treated with acetic acid and trichloroacetic acid to obtain milk extracts containing peptides. The concentrated extracts were subjected to ATR‐FTIR, and the spectrum was obtained. Results were compared with techniques like high‐performance liquid chromatography, fluorescamine and 2,4,6‐trinitrobenzenesulphonic acid. The present study indicated that ATR‐FTIR‐based method can be used as an alternative method for assessing proteolysis in UHT milk.     

Computer simulation of membrane processes: ultrafiltration and dialysis units

An algorithm for computer simulation of membrane processes such as ultrafiltration and dialysis has been developed using a simplified finite volume approach. The technique used is slightly different from the standard finite difference, finite volume and finite element methods where all the parameters are considered at fixed nodal points. In the present approach the entire flow chamber is divided into a large number of volume elements and each element is considered to be an independent unit (similar to finite volume method). All mass flux and velocity components are calculated at the boundaries whereas concentration is considered at the center of the element. Thus, unlike FDM, FVM, and FEM, in the present approach nodal points for velocity and concentration are different. It has been observed that this method is more accurate and fast and requires less computational effort.     

How crucial is back gate misalignment/oversize in double gate MOSFETs for ultra-low-voltage analog/rf applications?

In the present work, by investigating the influence of source/drain (S/D) extension region engineering (also known as gate-underlap architecture) in planar Double Gate (DG) SOI MOSFETs, we offer new design insights to achieve high tolerance to gate misalignment/oversize in nanoscale devices for ultra-low-voltage (ULV) analog/rf applications. Our results show that (i) misaligned gate-underlap devices perform significantly better than DG devices with abrupt source/drain junctions with identical misalignment, (ii) misaligned gate underlap performance (with S/D optimization) exceeds perfectly aligned DG devices with abrupt S/D regions and (iii) 25% back gate misalignment can be tolerated without any significant degradation in cut–off frequency (f_T) and intrinsic voltage gain (A_VO). Gate-underlap DG devices designed with spacer-to-straggle ratio lying within the range 2.5 to 3.0 show best tolerance to misaligned/oversize back gate and indeed are better than self-aligned DG MOSFETs with non-underlap (abrupt) S/D regions. Impact of gate length and silicon film thickness scaling is also discussed. These results are very significant as the tolerable limit of misaligned/oversized back gate is considerably extended and the stringent process control requirements to achieve self-alignment can be relaxed for nanoscale planar ULV DG MOSFETs operating in weak-inversion region. The present work provides new opportunities for realizing future ULV analog/rf design with nanoscale gate–underlap DG MOSFETs.     

Antifertility effects of neem (Azadirachta indica) oil in male rats by single intra-vas administration: an alternate approach to vasectomy

An alternate approach to vasectomy for long-term male contraception following a single intra-vas application of a traditional plant (Azadirachta indica) product having immunomodulatory properties is described. Male Wistar rats of proven fertility were given a single dose (50 microliters) of neem oil in the lumen of the vas deferens on each side; control animals received the same volume of peanut oil. Animals were put on continuous mating 4 weeks after the treatment, with females of proven fertility. While the control animals impregnated the female partners, all males treated with neem oil remained infertile throughout the 8 months of observation period. Epididymal and vas histology were normal without any inflammatory changes or obstruction. The intra-vas administration of neem oil resulted in a block of spermatogenesis without affecting testosterone production; the seminiferous tubules, although reduced in diameter, appeared normal and contained mostly early spermatogenic cells. No anti-sperm antibody could be detected in the serum. Unilateral administration of neem oil in the vas resulted in a significant reduction of testicular size and spermatogenic block only on the side of application; the draining lymph node cells of the treated side also showed enhanced proliferative response to in vitro mitogen challenge. These results indicate that the testicular effects following intra-vas application of neem oil may possibly be mediated by a local immune mechanism.     

Flow‐assisted corrosion of API X‐52 steel in 3.5% NaCl solution

Corrosion behaviour of API X‐52 grade High Strength Low Alloy (HSLA) steel in 3.5% NaCl solution under flow conditions was studied. Rotating cylinder‐, rotating disk‐ and flat plate‐type rotors were used to observe the effect of rotor geometry. The empirically obtained mass transfer correlations are in agreement with those for standard geometry. An empirical relation between Reynolds number (Re) and weight loss has also been developed for the parallel disk rotor. Scanning electron microscopy of the corroded surface revealed that corrosion proceeds through an initiation of pit‐like regions and their subsequent growth.     

Synthesis and performance evaluation of vegetable oil polymer as a multifunctional lube oil additive

Abstract

The development and utilization of vegetable oils for polymeric materials are currently in the spotlight of the polymer and chemical industry. In this work homopolymer of palm oil and copolymer of it’s with decyl acrylate was prepared and their characterisation was carried out by spectral method, thermogravimitric analysis and gel permeation chromatography method. Performance of these polymers was evaluated by standard ASTM method in base oil. Biodegradability test of polymers was also carried out and shows excellent positive results. A comparison of their performances has also been evaluated and reported.     

Milk production in lactating buffalo receiving recombinantly produced bovine somatotropin

Thirty healthy Murrah buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) in their second to fourth lactations were selected from the herd at the National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal, Haryana, India, for use in a 35-d study to determine the effects of recombinantly produced bovine somatotropin on milk production, milk composition, and dry matter intake. Treatments were daily injections of 0, 25, or 50 mg somatotropin per animal for 14 d. All buffalo consumed green chopped fodder ad libitum plus a predetermined quantity of concentrate mixture to each animal, based on individual milk production during the 14-d pretreatment period. The quantity of concentrate mixture fed to each buffalo was not altered during the study. Net increase in milk volume for groups receiving 25 and 30 mg somatotropin was 16.8 and 29.5% over controls. Milk composition, DM intake, and body weights were not affected by treatment.     

Bayesian shrinkage estimation of reliability in parallel system with exponential failure of the components

The paper presents a Bayesian shrinkage method of estimating the reliability of a parallel system with identical exponential distribution of failure times. Data is available from type II censored samples. Thompson (J. Am. Statist. Ass.63, 113–123, 1968) proposed the ordinary shrunken estimator ?θ + (1-?)θ₀, with ? a constant (0 ? ? ? 1) and θ₀ the prior or guess value of θ, which is more efficient than the unbiased estimator θ if θ is close to θ₀ and is less efficient otherwise. Here we postulate a prior distribution of θ around θ₀ and use an ordinary Bayes estimator of θ instead of θ₀ in the ordinary shrunken estimator. The Bayesian shrinkage estimator of parallel system reliability has thus been obtained and Monte Carlo study of its efficiency with respect to unbiased and maximum likelihood estimators (mles) was conducted. It was found that the proposed estimator is better.     

Photo and thermoluminescence of Eu doped ZnO nanophosphors

The photoluminescence (PL) and thermoluminescence (TL) studies of un-doped and Eu doped zinc oxide (ZnO) nanophosphors are presented in this paper. The paper also includes characterization by XRD and SEM for structural and morphological studies of chemically synthesized ZnO nanoparticles by using zinc acetate and ammonia solution. Thiourea was used for capping. The hexagonal structure of the undoped and Eu doped ZnO nanoparticles was observed. The XRD of rare earth doped sample showed an extra peak attributed to Europium oxide. The sizes of samples were ranging from 55 to 80 nm. SEM image of undoped ZnO nanoparticle showed flower like structure, whereas, no such shape was found for Eu doped ZnO nanoparticles. The excitation wavelength dependent PL and colour chromaticity diagram for both undoped and Eu doped ZnO was studied. Five samples of Eu doped ZnO, with 0.5%, 1%, 2.5%, 3% and 3.5% molar concentration of Eu were prepared. The variations in PL and TL with different concentrations of Eu were also studied. The Maximam PL and TL intensity was recorded for the samples containing 3% of Eu. The increase in the TL intensity for both the samples was found with increasing γ dose (100–1500 Gy) without any saturation sign. The variations in TL intensity with changing heating rate (5–12 °C/s) were also studied. No change of TL glow peak position was seen for Eu doped sample. A linear increase of TL peak intensity with γ dose suggests that, this phosphor could be used for dosimetry.

     

Investigation on energy storage properties and thermally stable dielectric constant for high temperature electronic device applications in the holmium substituted Na0.5Bi0.5TiO3

Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics - In the recent time, technological advancements in high temperature devices lead to demand of dielectric ceramics with stable dielectric...