Abrasive Wear Characteristics of Silicon Carbide Particle Reinforced Zinc Based Composite

Herein, abrasive wear characteristics of SiCp dispersed zinc-aluminum based composites have been analyzed under high-stress condition. The wear tests were conducted on a Pin-on-Disc machine at a constant linear velocity of 1.57 m/s in the applied load range of 1-7 N while the abrasive platform used is 600 grit emery paper. A matrix alloy was also characterized under identical conditions to assess the influence of the dispersoid (SiC) particle on the wear behaviour. Wear rate, frictional heating and friction coefficient are the focused parameters of the study. The base alloy used has a dendrite structure comprising of α-dendrites surrounded by an α + η eutectoid and metastable ε phase in interdendritic regions. The composite shows similar features to those of the base alloy except the additional presence of the reinforcing SiC particles. The wear rate and friction coefficient decrease with increase in abrading distance while a reverse trend was observed in the case of frictional heating which gradually increases with the increase in abrading distance. Incorporation of SiC particles improves the wear resistance of the matrix alloy and increasing the percentage of SiC increases the frictional heating and reduces the friction coefficient of the test material. The wear mechanism has been understood through SEM examination of wear surface, subsurface, debris particles and degraded abrasive grit papers.     

Comparative study of polystyrene/chemically modified wheat straw composite for green packaging application

The recalcitrant nature of native wheat straw (WS) biomass results from cellulose, lignin, hemicellulose and some amount of protein embedded together in a composite structure causing poor adhesion to a polymer matrix composite. Adequate pre-treatment can curtail the recalcitrance structure of WS and enhance the susceptible cellulose area to synthesize a green composite. This paper examined the effect of various chemical pre-treatment procedures in improving surface morphology of wheat straw. Moreover, polystyrene (PS), PS (60 wt%)/native WS (40 wt%), PS (60 wt%)/NaOH-treated WS (40 wt%), PS (60 wt%)/HCl-treated WS (40 wt%), and PS (60 wt%)/H2SO4-treated WS (40 wt%) composite films were prepared using solution casting method. The changes in crystalline structure, hydrophobicity, water vapor migration rate, and thermal and mechanical stabilities of synthesized bio-composites were examined. From the results it can be concluded that the alkali-treated WS is highly compatible with the PS and can be used to synthesize a biodegradable composite film for various industrial green packaging applications.     

Investigation of solid supported dendrimers for water disinfection

Polystyrene copolymer beads supported dendrimer was synthesized and investigated for its biological applications. Macroporous cross‐linked polystyrene copolymer beads were synthesized using suspension polymerization. Two successive generations of di(chloroethyl) amine‐type end group functionality was formed on the polystyrene copolymer beads. Elemental analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectra, and solid state ¹³C NMR spectra were employed to characterize the polymer bound dendrimer. The polymer bound dendrimer was tested for antibacterial action against both Gram‐positive and Gram‐negative bacteria. The activity against both types of organism increased with an increase in the nitrogen atoms in the polymer back bone. The dendritic structure containing both amino and di(chloroethyl) groups showed significant reduction in the bacterial count when kept in 20 mL autoclaved water with bacterial cultures having an initial count in the range of 12–83 × 10⁶ CFU/mL. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

Flow structure of gas-liquid two-phase flow in an annulus

The flow structure of gas-liquid two-phase flow in vertical annulus channel has been investigated. The inner and outer diameters of the annular channel were 19.1 and 38.1 mm, respectively. The total height of the test section was 4.37 m. Nineteen inlet flow conditions were selected, which cover bubbly, cap-slug, and churn-turbulent flows. The local flow parameters, such as void fraction, interfacial area concentration (IAC), and bubble interface velocity, were measured at nine radial positions within the gap of the annulus at z/D_h=230 of the test section. The flow regimes of the flow conditions, which were based on visual observations, were compared with several flow regime maps. In addition, the local measurements were used to calculate distribution parameter, C₀ in drift-flux model, and area-averaged IAC. A new correlation of C₀ was proposed based on the experimentally obtained C₀ values. This correlation was tested in the drift-flux model successfully along with Ishii's drift velocity correlations. The area-averaged IAC values were compared with the most widely used models. The advantages and drawbacks of these models were highlighted.     

Src-like adaptor protein (Slap) is a negative regulator of mitogenesis

The Src-like adaptor protein (Slap) is a recently identified adaptor protein containing Src homology 3 (SH3) and SH2 domains. Slap is found in a wide range of cell types and was shown to interact with the Eck receptor tyrosine kinase in a yeast two-hybrid interaction screen [1]. Here, we found that Slap is expressed in NIH3T3 cells and could associate with the activated platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) receptor. Using mutated versions of the PDGF receptor and phosphopeptide competition experiments, we determined that Slap has the highest affinity for the Src-binding site of the PDGF receptor. Our inability to produce cell lines that stably expressed Slap suggested that Slap inhibited cell growth. We further investigated this issue by transiently expressing Slap by microinjection. Overexpression of Slap by this method inhibited DNA synthesis induced by PDGF and serum, whereas overexpression of the adaptor proteins Grb2 and Shc did not. Finally, microinjection of a Slap antibody into NIH3T3 cells that had been stimulated with suboptimal doses of growth factors potentiated the effects of the growth factors. These data suggest that, unlike other adaptor proteins, Slap is a negative regulator of signalling initiated by growth factors.     

Minimal state space search in parallel production systems

A methodology for transforming the original search space into an equivalent but minimal search space is proposed. First, the concept of dependences leads to a procedure for reduction of the search space. The search procedure using this method can produce a minimal and complete search space. It is shown that this method is applicable to parallel search as well. An added advantage of this method is that it does not exclude the use of heuristics. π-λ transformation is introduced to reduce the parallel search space     

Hypocholesterolemic activity of nut shell extract of Semecarpus anacardium (Bhilawa) in cholesterol fed rabbits

In 60 patients with non-seminomatous testicular germ cell tumours in clinical stages I, IIa and IIb inguinal orchiectomy was performed as primary treatment, followed by modified retroperitoneal lymphadenectomy (RLA). In stage II disease chemotherapy was given in addition. After a follow-up period of at least 24 months only 5% of the patients showed progression of disease. Normal ejaculatory function was preserved in 88% of our patients. Modified RLA seems to be a safe procedure with an acceptably low rate of complications not only in stage I disease, but also in metastatic stages IIa and IIb.     

Effect of Size,Content and Shape of Reinforcements on the Behavior of Metal Matrix Composites (MMCs) Under Tension

Journal of Materials Engineering and Performance - The objective of this research was to investigate the mechanical behavior of metal matrix composites (MMCs) 6061 aluminum, reinforced with silicon...     

Theoretical calculation of hydrogen desorption energies of calcium hydride clusters

Recently calcium hydride has attracted attention as a possible component in ternary complex hydrides such as Ca(AlH₄)₂, Ca₂SiH_x and quaternary complex hydrides of the type Li–B–Ca–H. Although in bulk form CaH₂ decomposes reversibly above 600° centigrade we were motivated to see whether calcium hydride in cluster form has properties suitable for hydrogen storage. We report here the results of DFT calculations using VASP^® package for clusters Ca_nH_2n with n = 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 20 to get the ground state geometries, energies, bond lengths, and desorption energies, after molecular dynamics optimization. The desorption energy vs. cluster size n curve showed that the desorption energy goes up sharply to ∼1.4 eV per H₂ for n up to 4, followed by a broad maximum of ∼1.8 eV per H₂ around n = 12–14, and then tapers off to a nearly constant value of 1.6 eV per H₂ approximating bulk behavior, which compares favorably with previously reported results. Comparison of these results with those of Mg_nH_2n shows that Ca_nH_2n has a lesser potential as a hydrogen storage medium.