Supercomputing of reducing sequenced bases in de novo sequencing of the human genome

The Journal of Supercomputing - DNA sequencing is one of the important sub-disciplines of bioinformatics, which has various applications in medicine, history, demography, and archaeology. De...     

Cloud point extraction for determination of Diazinon: Optimization of the effective parameters using Taguchi method

Since Diazinon is one of the organophosphorous compounds which are harmful for human organisms, a simple, sensitive and accurate testing method for extraction and determination of this pesticide is mandatory. In this project, Cloud Point Extraction (CPE) method was developed for determination of Diazinon in aqueous samples. CTAB (cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide) was used as cationic surfactant to extract and preconcentrate of Diazinon at the same time and the extracted Diazinon was determined by UV spectrophotometery. Taguchi L₉ array was employed for design of experiments to investigate influences of surfactant concentration, salt concentration, temperature and incubation time as effective parameters. According to the analysis of variance (ANOVA) results, the most effective parameter of the process is incubation time. The results show that a surfactant concentration of 10^− 5% (w/v), an incubation time of 30 min, a KI concentration of 10^− 6 mol L^− 1 and a temperature of 35 °C are the best operating conditions. Also, the linear calibration graph in the range of 0.02-24 ng ml^− 1 of Diazinon with r = 0.999 was obtained. The limit of detection (LOD) was 0.02 ng ml^− 1 and relative standard deviation (RSD) for 15 ng ml^− 1 of Diazinon was 0.76%.     

Enhanced performance through a dual isolation seismic protection system

While base isolation successfully decreases the accelerations transmitted to a structure, a tradeoff is large unfavorable displacements in the isolation layer. This study investigates an innovative system, termed ‘dual isolation’, which applies two layers of isolation at the base and at mid‐story to resolve this issue. A linear analytical solution for the equation of motion of the proposed system is developed on the basis of linear isolation theory. This creates a foundation to assess the behavior of various types of seismic protection systems and to select the damping and mass ratio that optimizes the performance of the proposed method. Dynamic response of an example dual isolated system to selected suites of ground motions is then examined. In addition to decreasing the displacement of the first isolation layer, the dual isolation system can greatly decrease floor accelerations of the upper portion of the building, further protecting building components and enhancing the comfort and safety of residents. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Investigation of membrane preparation condition effect on the PSD and porosity of the membranes using a novel image processing technique

A totally computerized image processing program package is developed to analyze the SEM images of membrane surface and cross‐section. Pore size distribution and porosity of the fabricated membranes are determined using the proposed image processing procedure. Furthermore, effect of coagulation bath temperature on the morphology and mechanical properties (such as tensile strength, strain break, tensile energy absorbent, and tensile stiffness) of Polysulfone (PSf) membranes are investigated. The results reveal that the mechanical properties are higher when N‐methyl‐2‐pyrrolidone (NMP) is used as solvent. Also, an increase in the coagulation bath temperature caused a monotonous increase in the mean pore size value of Dimethylformamide (DMF)‐based membranes. However, mean pore size curve has a maximum when NMP is used as solvent. Also, porosity of the fabricated membranes increased when coagulation bath temperature increased. For the NMP‐base membranes, pore's diameter was in the range of 0–5 μm. However, DMF‐based membranes have pore size value of smaller than 1 μm when the precipitation medium is kept at 8°C. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 39899.     

Power-Law Relationship Between Critical Current Density,Microstructure, and the n-Value in MgB2 Superconductor Wires

Dissipation-free MgB₂ superconducting wires are valuable in terms of practical applications. Herein, we have found a strong correlation between critical current density (J _c ) and the n-value extracted from the electric field versus current density characteristic. The power-law relationship (m) between the J _c and the n-value, \(n \propto J_{c}^{m}\) , represents a critical index which is strongly dependent on operating temperatures.     

Effect of Pulsed Current Frequency on Morphology and Corrosion Behavior of Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation on Aluminum

Protection of Metals and Physical Chemistry of Surfaces - Protective oxide coatings are developed on aluminum substrate through plasma electrolytic oxidation using a pulsed current and within the...     

Nanocrystalline Nickel Deposition on the Titanium Alloys Using High Solution Flow Velocity

An innovative process has been developed for electroplating of nickel on titanium surface using fast solution flow technique. Nickel was directly deposited on a titanium alloy without using any pre-treatment process. Level of adhesion was determined using quantitative peel test and characterization of the deposition was performed by scanning electron microscopy. Results showed that the rate of nickel deposition at 60 °C was higher than that of the rate of nickel deposition at 40 °C. Moreover, Watts solution provided higher rate of nickel deposition compared to the sulfate-based nickel solution. The rate of deposition increased with increasing the solution flow velocity from 1.5 to 3 m/s and raising current density from 0.4 × 10⁴ to 1.6 × 10⁴ A/m² for both solution baths. Adhesion test indicated good level of adhesion between the deposited nickel and titanium surface. The bonding toughness increased to 4 J/m² for 1.2 × 10⁴ A/m² as a result of higher deposition rate. However, the mechanism responsible for the coating process was discussed in detail.     

A simple,low cost,and template-free method for synthesis of boron nitride using different precursors

In this research, hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) was synthesized using a simple, low cost, and template-free method with urea-boric acid (UB), melamine-boric acid (MB), and melamine-urea and boric acid (MUB) precursors, followed by the pyrolysis and heat treatment in a nitrogen atmosphere at 1050 °C. Samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Raman Spectroscopy, Fourier transform IR (FT-IR), and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) techniques. The specific surface areas obtained for h-BN synthesized by UB, MB, and MUB precursors were 87.43, 573.07, and 1005.7 m²/g, respectively. The average diameters of the pores using the Barrett, Joyner, and Halenda (BJH) model were 37.78, 3.68, and 2.13 nm, respectively. A thermogravimetric analysis showed a wider range of decomposition temperatures after using three precursors for synthesizing h-BN. Crumpled, whisker, and flower-like morphologies for UB, MB, and MUB precursors were respectively found using FESEM investigations. The formation of h-BN within the MUB sample was confirmed using the XPS analysis with measured peaks of 398.5 and 190.6 eV belonging to N 1s and B 1s, respectively. Raman spectroscopy revealed a high-intensity peak in 1366 cm^?1 related to the E_2g mode for h-BN synthesized with MUB. Therefore, the results demonstrate that the employed method can increase the potential of using the h-BN porous powder with a high specific surface area as a lubricant, thermal insulation filler, anti-corrosion filler in paint coatings, adsorption of various gas and hydrocarbon molecules as well as its application in drug-delivery nanocarriers.     

Physicomechanical and antimicrobial characteristics of hydrogel based on poly(vinyl alcohol): Performance improvement via inclusion of chitosan-modified nanoclay

The effect of a chitosan-modified nanoclay (CMNC) on the physical, mechanical, and antimicrobial properties of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) hydrogels prepared by the electron beam irradiation method is reported in comparison with pristine nanoclay (PNC). The X-ray diffraction (XRD) results confirm that the chitosan modification process of nanoclay led to an enhancement in the clay gallery spacing. The inclusion of nanoclays in the PVA matrix decreased the gel content while it increased the swelling degree of the hydrogels. Both PNC and CMNC played a role, depending on their amounts, in swelling of the hydrogel. The swelling kinetic studies revealed a diffusion-controlled swelling process. The diffusion coefficient of water molecules in hydrogels was decreased in the presence of PNC, while it increased with CMNC. Rheological investigations verified the influential role of nanoclays in decreasing the chemical crosslink density of the hydrogel. CMNC exhibited a higher reinforcing effect on hydrogel mechanical properties than PNC did, although the rheological analysis, in agreement with the XRD results, indicated a better dispersion of PNC in the PVA matrix. According to the antimicrobial tests, perfect inhibition of bacteria growth was obtained only for the hydrogels with CMNC. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 47444.