Efficient Beamformer for Low Mobility Indoor Communication Using Sparse Adaptive Algorithm

Wireless Personal Communications - The proposed beamforming model exploits the underlying sparseness of the adaptive filter as impulse response of wireless channel shows some extent of sparse...     

Nitrogen utilization by lowland rice as affected by fertilization with urea and green manure

Field studies were conducted during two consecutive wet seasons in flooded rice (Oryza sativa L.) to determine the effect of green manure on urea utilization in a rice-fallow-rice cropping sequence. Replicated plots were fertilized with 60 to 120 kg of urea N ha^–1 in three split applications (50, 25 and 25%) with or without incorporation of dhaincha (Sesbania aculeata L.) (100 kg N ha^–1). During the first crop only 31 to 44% of the urea added was used by the rice. Incorporatingin situ grown dhaincha (GM) into the soil at transplanting had little effect on urea utilization. Forty-four to 54% of the N added was not recovered in the soil, rice crop, or as nitrate leachate during the first cropping season. Incorporation of GM had no effect on fertilizer N recovery. Only about 2% of the urea N added to the first rice crop was taken up by the second rice crop and, as in the first crop, the GM had little effect on residual N, either in amount or utilization.     

Electrodeposition of nickel in the presence of Al<Superscript>3+</Superscript> from sulfate baths

The effect of Al³⁺ on the cathodic current efficiency, deposit morphology, crystallographic orientations and polarisation behaviour of the cathode during electrodeposition of nickel from acidic sulfate solutions was investigated. Higher concentration of Al³⁺ (>10 mg dm^–3) significantly deteriorated the surface quality of the nickel deposit as well as the current efficiency. X-ray diffraction studies revealed that the (200) plane was the most preferred crystal plane and was not affected by the presence of varying concentration of Al³⁺ in the electrolytic bath. The presence of Al³⁺ caused polarisation of the cathode, which increased with increasing Al³⁺ concentration. The effect of Al³⁺ on the electrokinetic parameters: Tafel slope (b), transfer coefficient () and exchange current density (i₀) were also investigated.     

Surface modification of coir fibers. II. Cu(II)‐ IO initiated graft copolymerization of acrylonitrile onto chemically modified coir fibers

A study of the graft copolymerization of acrylonitrile (AN) onto chemically modified coir fibers was carried out using a CuSO₄ and NaIO₄ combination as the initiator in an aqueous medium in a temperature range of 50–70°C. The graft yield was influenced by the reaction time, temperature, concentration of CuSO₄, concentration of NaIO₄, and monomer concentration. Grafting was also carried out in the presence of inorganic salts and organic solvents. A combination of copper(II) and sodium periodate (Cu²⁺‐IO) in an aqueous medium with an IO concentration of 0.005 mol L^?1 and a Cu²⁺ concentration of 0.004 mol L^?1 produced optimum grafting. The chemically modified and AN grafted fibers were characterized by FTIR and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The SEM studies revealed that grafting not only takes place on the surface of the fibers but also penetrates the fiber matrix. The tensile properties like the maximum stress at break and extension at break of untreated, chemically modified, and AN grafted coir fibers were evaluated and compared. The extent of absorption of water of untreated, chemically modified, and grafted coir fibers was determined. It was found that grafting of AN imparts hydrophobicity onto coir fibers. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 84: 75–82, 2002; DOI 10.1002/app.10221     

Characterization of Friction-Surfaced SS316 Overlaid on Medium-Carbon Steel

In this paper, a study has been done on the solid-state coating of SS316 over medium-carbon steel EN8. The objective is to determine the characterization of friction-surfaced joints with process parameters such as axial load, traverse speed and rotational speed. Coating thickness and coating width depend on the traverse and rotational speeds, which decrease with the increase in axial load. A maximum bending strength of 134 MPa was obtained for the sample with highest axial load of 9 kN, rotational speed of 1600 rpm and traverse speed of 2.2 mm/s. The XRD peaks of SS316-coated EN08 sample show a considerable shift, indicating martensite (α ^′) formation. It has been observed that strong bonding could be obtained under specific conditions, as the substrate bonding materials are metallurgically inconsistent and have a tendency to form brittle compounds. External degradation occurred when the specimen was exposed to elevated temperatures. The results were analyzed statistically. To access its potential application corrosion studies were carried out, which shows SS316 overlaid EN8 exhibits better corrosion resistance than the substrate EN8 sample.     

Biodegradable biocomposites from poly(butylene adipate‐co‐terephthalate) and miscanthus: Preparation,compatibilization, and performance evaluation

Miscanthus fibers reinforced biodegradable poly(butylene adipate‐co‐terephthalate) (PBAT) matrix‐based biocomposites were produced by melt processing. The performances of the produced PBAT/miscanthus composites were evaluated by means of mechanical, thermal, and morphological analysis. Compared to neat PBAT, the flexural strength, flexural modulus, storage modulus, and tensile modulus were increased after the addition of miscanthus fibers into the PBAT matrix. These improvements were attributed to the strong reinforcing effect of miscanthus fibers. The polarity difference between the PBAT matrix and the miscanthus fibers leads to weak interaction between the phases in the resulting composites. This weak interaction was evidenced in the impact strength and tensile strength of the uncompatibilized PBAT composites. Therefore, maleic anhydride (MAH)‐grafted PBAT was prepared as compatibilizer by melt free radical grafting reaction. The MAH grafting on the PBAT was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The interfacial bonding between the miscanthus fibers and PBAT was improved with the addition of 5 wt % of MAH‐grafted PBAT (MAH‐g‐PBAT) compatibilizer. The improved interaction between the PBAT and the miscanthus fiber was corroborated with mechanical and morphological properties. The compatibilized PBAT composite with 40 wt % miscanthus fibers exhibited an average heat deflection temperature of 81 °C, notched Izod impact strength of 184 J/m, tensile strength of 19.4 MPa, and flexural strength of 22 MPa. From the scanning electron microscopy analysis, better interaction between the components can be observed in the compatibilized composites, which contribute to enhanced mechanical properties. Overall, the addition of miscanthus fibers into a PBAT matrix showed a significant benefit in terms of economic competitiveness and functional performances. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2017 , 134, 45448.     

Insight on Castor Oil Based Polyurethane and Nanocomposites: Recent Trends and Development

Castor oil has gained momentous attention as a valuable bio-based monomer and a potential alternative to the current petrobased polyol for synthesizing polyurethane due to the presence of inherent hydroxyl group. In spite of its huge potentiality very little has been reviewed regarding the development of polyurethane from castor oil. This review thus highlights the recent trends and development in the field of polyurethane and its nanocomposite based on castor oil including its biodegradability and weatherability studies. Further, this review also provides an insight regarding the utilization of castor oil based polyurethane and its nanocomposite for coating application.     

Numerical investigation of blasting-induced crack initiation and propagation in rocks

To investigate the dynamic fracture mechanism related to blast-induced borehole breakdown and crack propagation, circular rock models containing a single centrally located source of explosive were numerically blasted using the AUTODYN 2D code. According to the material properties and loading conditions, four kinds of equations of state, linear, shock, compaction and ideal gas, are used. A modified principal stress failure criterion is applied to determining material status. The dynamic stresses at the selected target points in a rock sample are computed as a function of time following application of explosive load. It is shown that shear stress (resulting from intense compressive stress) causes a crushed zone near the borehole, the major tensile principal stress causes radial cracks, and the reflected stress wave from free boundary causes circumferential cracks some distance away from the free boundary. The influences of the factors of boundary condition, coupling medium, borehole diameter, decoupling and joint on rock dynamic fracture are discussed.     

Mechanical response and multilevel structure of biomimetic hydroxyapatite/polygalacturonic/chitosan nanocomposites

Using an in situ mineralization process that is biomimetic we have synthesized new nanocomposites of chitosan/hydroxyapatite in 50–50 ratio(ChiHAP50), polygalacturonic acid/hydroxyapatite in 50–50 ratio (PgAHAP50) and Chitosan/hydroxyapatite/Polygalacturonic acid (ChiPgAHAP50). Polygalacturonic acid (PgA) is electrostatically complementary to chitosan, and thus is expected to provide stronger interfacial interactions and improve mechanical response. Atomic force imaging of fractured and polished surfaces suggests a multilevel organization in the hydroxyapatite/biopolymer nanocomposite. The AFM images of ChiPgAHAP50 nanocomposite display presence of chitosan rich and polygalacturonic rich domains. These chitosan rich and PgA rich domains are made of smaller globular shaped particles in which, hydroxyapatite nano-particles are embedded in the biopolymer matrix. The average size of the hydroxyapatite particles in PgAHAP50, ChiHAP50 and ChiPgAHAP50 were found to be 25, 42 and 34 nm respectively. The elastic moduli determined from nanoindentation of PgAHAP50, ChiHAP50 and ChiPgAHAP50 composites are 29.81, 17.56 and 23.62 GPa respectively. Hardness values of the three composites in the same order were found to be 1.56, 0.65 and 1.14 GPa respectively. Macro-mechanical tests showed significant enhancement in elastic moduli, strain to failure and compressive strength of ChiPgAHAP50 composites over ChiHAP50 and PgAHAP50.