Reliability, Risk, and Uncertainty Analysis Using Generic Expectation Functions

In engineering design and analysis, mathematical models that generally involve a number of uncertain parameters are frequently employed for decision making. Over the years, a number of techniques have been developed to quantify model output uncertainty contributed by uncertain input parameters. Typically, the methods that are easy to apply may give inaccurate estimates of model output uncertainty. Other methods that reliably produce very accurate results are either difficult to apply or require intensive computational effort. This paper describes the development of generic expectation functions as a function of means and coefficients of variation of input random variables. The generic expectation functions are straightforward to develop, and apply to problems related to reliability, risk, and uncertainty analysis. Several expectation functions based on commonly used probability distributions have been developed. Using them, any order of moment can be estimated exactly. It is found that if exact moments of the model output are available, one can find a good estimate of reliability, risk, and uncertainty of a system without knowing its model output distribution exactly. This technique is applicable when an output variable is a function of several independent random variables in multiplicative, additive, or combined (multiplicative and additive) forms. A practical example is presented to demonstrate the application of generic expectation functions.     

Efficient centrifugal recovery of Bacillus thuringiensis biopesticides from fermented wastewater and wastewater sludge

Studies were conducted on harvesting of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt)-based biopesticides from fermented broths of starch industry wastewater (SIW), wastewater sludge (raw and hydrolyzed-NH and TH, respectively) and semi-synthetic soyameal to enhance entomotoxicity (Tx) by centrifugation. Pertinent factors influencing Tx, solids concentration, pH, temperature and centrifugal force were investigated. The centrifugate solids concentration beyond 100 g/l did not enhance Tx, instead caused pellet formation. Centrifugation efficiency (Tx recovery) was higher at pH 4, and temperature 20 degrees C for starch wastewater (98%), wastewater sludge (98% and 97.8% for non-hydrolyzed and hydrolyzed, respectively) and soya broth (83%). For maximum Tx recovery (SIW-95%; NH-90%; TH-98% and soya-78%), the centrifugal force and time required was 48,000 g and 30 min, respectively. Losses in recovery efficiency were lower for SIW and wastewater sludge in comparison to soya on adopting commercially recommended centrifugal force of 9000 g. The settling velocity computations for different fermented broths enabled calculation of Sigma factor for continuous commercial centrifuge of a given capacity and hence simulation of power requirements. It was established that power requirements for a given Tx recovery efficiency were highest for conventional medium (soya) in comparison to other waste-based fermented broths.     

Effect of tanniniferous Terminalia chebula extract on rumen biohydrogenation, ∆(9)-desaturase activity, CLA content and fatty acid composition in longissimus dorsi muscle of kids

Conjugated linoleic acid, a fatty acid found in milk fat and ruminant meat is one of the functional food components. Modifying fatty acid composition so as to increase CLA and other beneficial PUFA/MUFA level and reducing SFA levels might be a key to enhance the neutraceutical and therapeutic value of ruminant-derived food products. In the present experiment, the effect of supplementation of polyphenol rich Terminalia chebula plant extract at different concentrations (1.06 g/kg and 3.18 g/kg of body weight in T1 and T2 groups, respectively) was investigated on fatty acid composition of rumen fluid, plasma, intramuscular fat and Δ9-desaturase activity in longissimus dorsi muscle of crossbred kids. Total MUFA and PUFA content in muscle were enhanced by 25 and 35%, respectively, whereas SFA was reduced by 20% thereby improving the desaturation index. Δ9-desaturase activity also increased by 47% resulting in an enhancement of total CLA content (58.73%) in muscle.     

Differential scanning calorimetric studies on structured lipids from coconut oil triglycerides containing stearic acid

Triglycerides from coconut oil contain high levels of lauric acid. They were replaced by incremental amounts of stearic acid by interesterification reactions catalyzed by immobilized lipase (IM 60 from Rhizomucor miehei). The reactions were carried out in organic solvents such as hexane. Maximum incorporation of stearic acid was observed by 4 h at 37vv°C or by 2 h at 60vv°C when triglycerides to fatty acid (stearic acid) ratio was maintained at 1v:Ң. The stearic acid level in coconut oil triglycerides was increased from an initial value of 2% to 60% under these conditions. The stearic acid replaced lauric, myristic, and palmitic acids in unmodified triglycerides. A major portion of stearic acid incorporated was found in positions 1 and 3 of triglycerides. Differential scanning calorimetry indicated that stearic acid enrichment increased the solid fat content and also the higher melting polymorphs in modified lipids. The studies also indicated that low melting polymorphic forms of coconut oil triglycerides are converted to higher melting forms by stearic acid enrichment. The modified lipids thus obtained can find use in various food applications.     

Assessing Mobile Technology Usage for Knowledge Dissemination among Farmers in Punjab

Agriculture-based precise and accurate information needs to be disseminated promptly to farmers so that better decisions such as managing farm fields, making continuous and scientific changes in their production systems and grabbing advantage of market opportunities can be made. In this paper, mobile technology is assessed for the agriculture information dissemination system. A survey has been conducted to find out potential technology, related to the use of the Internet and mobile among farmers in the state of Punjab in India, to deliver agriculture-related information to them. Results show that agricultural information system needs to be developed based on the mass communication technology such as mobile systems. It is also noted that localization and native language of farmers are the concerns to be incorporated into the systems. It has been focused that the use of soft-computing techniques in conjunction with communication networks, for inferring the decision regarding best practices for agricultural activities, is helpful in the development of these systems.     

E3 Ubiquitin Ligase APC/CCdh1 Regulation of Phenylalanine Hydroxylase Stability and Function

Phenylketonuria (PKU) is an autosomal recessive metabolic disorder caused by the dysfunction of the enzyme phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH). Alterations in the level of PAH leads to the toxic accumulation of phenylalanine in the blood and brain. Protein degradation mediated by ubiquitination is a principal cellular process for maintaining protein homeostasis. Therefore, it is important to identify the E3 ligases responsible for PAH turnover and proteostasis. Here, we report that anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome-Cdh1 (APC/C)^Cdh1 is an E3 ubiquitin ligase complex that interacts and promotes the polyubiquitination of PAH through the 26S proteasomal pathway. Cdh1 destabilizes and declines the half-life of PAH. In contrast, the CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knockout of Cdh1 stabilizes PAH expression and enhances phenylalanine metabolism. Additionally, our current study demonstrates the clinical relevance of PAH and Cdh1 correlation in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Overall, we show that PAH is a prognostic marker for HCC and Cdh1 could be a potential therapeutic target to regulate PAH-mediated physiological and metabolic disorders.     

Optimized performance of nickel in crystal-layered arrangement of NiFe2O4/rGO hybrid for high-performance oxygen evolution reaction

To rescue the future from the global energy crisis and to ensure it with clean and economical hydrogen energy, it is an urgency to develop an efficient OER catalyst, which intensely sluggish the kinetic process of hydrogen production. Herein, we have precisely synthesized an efficient, stable, earth-abundant metal-based NiFe₂O₄/rGO hybrid OER electrocatalysts by a simple solvothermal method. The measurements including XRD, FTIR, XPS, EDS, SEM, and TEM revealed the prominent structural integrity of catalyst with crystal-layered structure. The rich oxidation chemistry of transition metals and substantially active carbon substrate allows tuning of their electronic properties concerning their concentration, composition, and morphology. The effect of different Ni wt.% (0%, 2%, 4%, and 6%) on the morphology of hybrid as well as on electrochemical performance investigated. The protocols like overpotential required to achieve a current density of 10 mA/cm², Tafel slope, ECSA, RF, EIS, stability was utilized to examine the overall abilities of electrocatalyst in alkaline 1 M KOH solution. The optimized NiFe₂O₄/rGO hybrid with 2 wt % Ni exhibited the excellent OER performance, which delivers a current density of 10 mA/cm² at an overpotential of only 302 mV with a small Tafel slope of 63 mV/dec. The high activity of the catalyst is attributed to the synergistic effect of the crystal-layered structure as well as rapid mass-charge transfer. Such, rational design concept of anchoring non-precious metal on carbon in a controlled manner, offering splendid flexibility to tailor electrochemical OER performance. The optimized variations in metal concentration and morphologies, providing a promising route to develop a cost-effective catalyst for advanced energy conversion applications.     

Energy-Aware Fault-Tolerant Dynamic Task Scheduling Scheme for Virtualized Cloud Data Centers

Mobile Networks and Applications - As clouds have been implemented and widely used in various fields, both the size and the number of cloud data centers (CDCs) are growing rapidly. Serious problems...