A comparative analysis of unsteady and steady Buongiorno's Williamson nanoliquid flow over a wedge with slip effects

Comparison between unsteady and steady MHD Buongiorno's model Williamson nanoliquid flow through a wedge with slip effects, chemical reaction and radiation is made in this analysis. Thermophoresis and Brownian motion are also considered in this study. Appropriate similarity variables are presented to transmute the governing PDEs into the set of non-linear ODEs. The most widely authenticated finite element method is implemented to analyze these set of ODEs numerically. The behavior of concentration, temperature and velocity sketches for varied values of relevant parameters is numerically calculated and the outcomes are plotted through graphs. The numerical values of dimensionless rates of mass transfer, heat and velocity are also evaluated and depicted through tables. It is noted that with upsurging values of angle of wedge parameter, the distributions of temperature of the liquid intensify in both steady and unsteady cases.     

Gestational Exposure to Bisphenol A Affects Testicular Morphology,Germ Cell Associations,and Functions of Spermatogonial Stem Cells in Male Offspring

Exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) in the gestational period damages the reproductive health of offspring; detailed evidence regarding BPA-induced damage in testicular germ cells of offspring is still limited. In this study, pregnant mice (F0) were gavaged with three BPA doses (50 μg, 5 mg, and 50 mg/kg body weight (bw)/day; tolerable daily intake (TDI), no-observed-adverse-effect-level (NOAEL), and lowest-observed-adverse-effect level (LOAEL), respectively) on embryonic days 7 to 14, followed by investigation of the transgenerational effects of such exposure in male offspring. We observed that the NOAEL- and LOAEL-exposed F1 offspring had abnormalities in anogenital distance, nipple retention, and pubertal onset (days), together with differences in seminiferous epithelial stages and testis morphology. These effects were eradicated in the next F2 and F3 generations. Moreover, there was an alteration in the ratio of germ cell population and the apoptosis rate in germ cells increased in F1 offspring at the LOAEL dose. However, the total number of spermatogonia remained unchanged. Finally, a reduction in the stemness properties of spermatogonial stem cells in F1 offspring was observed upon LOAEL exposure. Therefore, we provide evidence of BPA-induced disruption of physiology and functions in male germ cells during the gestational period. This may lead to several reproductive health issues and infertility in offspring.     

Novel approach for the development of dietary fibre-anthocyanin enriched functional bread from culinary banana bract

Dietary fibre (DF)-anthocyanin formulation was incorporated in bread to develop anthocyanin rich DF powder (ARDFP) fortified bread. Prior to incorporation of DF-anthocyanin formulation in bread preparation, the cytotoxicity of DF and anthocyanin extracts was assessed. The effect of incorporation of different level of ARDFP with moisture on bread quality characteristics such as specific volume, textural, colour, sensory properties and starch digestibility was studied. The results revealed that extracted DF and anthocyanin of culinary banana bracts were nontoxic towards peripheral blood mononuclear cell and cytotoxic towards HT29 cancerous cell line. Incorporation of 2% ARDFP with 68% moisture was rated as best with higher specific volume (5.50 cm³ g⁻¹), improved textural properties (high springiness and cohesiveness), anthocyanin content (9.08 mg per 100 g), colour characteristics and sensory acceptability next to control. The in vitro digestibility study suggested increased incorporation of ARDFP in bread flour reduced the rate of starch digestibility (0.0035 min⁻¹).     

A Polyallylamine Anchored Amine‐Rich Laser‐Ablated Graphene Platform for Facile and Highly Selective Electrochemical IgG Biomarker Detection

Current immunosensors have an insufficient number of binding sites for the recognition of biomolecules, which leads to false positive or negative results. In this research, a facile, cost‐effective, disposable, and highly selective electrochemical immunosensing platform is developed based on cationic polyelectrolyte polyallylamine (PAAMI) anchored laser‐ablated graphene (LAG). Here, for the first time, PAAMI is introduced to stabilize LAG flakes, while retaining the intrinsic thermal and electronic properties of the substrate by noncovalent π–π interaction and electrostatic physical absorption. The sensing platform offers a suitable number of anchoring sites for the immobilized antibodies by providing ? NH₂ functional groups. The proper grafting of PAAMI is confirmed through X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy. The immunosensing platform is applied to detect immunoglobulin (IgG) biomarkers as a proof of concept. Under optimized conditions, the sensing platform exhibits a linear range of 0.012–15 and 15–352 ng mL^?1 with a limit of detection of 6 pg mL^?1 for IgG detection with high selectivity. Based on the analysis, the developed immunosensing platform can be used for point‐of‐care detection of IgG in clinical diagnostic centers. Furthermore, the developed strategy is well suited for the detection of other cancer biomarkers after immobilizing the relevant antibodies.     

Heat transfer analysis of receiver for large aperture parabolic trough solar collector

Parabolic trough solar collector (PTSC) is one of the most proven technologies for large‐scale solar thermal power generation. Currently, the cost of power generation from PTSC is expensive as compared with conventional power generation. The capital/power generation cost can be reduced by increasing aperture sizes of the collector. However, increase in aperture of the collector leads to higher heat flux on the absorber surface and results in higher thermal gradient. Hence, the analysis of heat distribution from the absorber to heat transfer fluid (HTF) and within the absorber is essential to identify the possibilities of failure of the receiver. In this article, extensive heat transfer analysis (HTA) of the receiver is performed for various aperture diameter of a PTSC using commercially available computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software ANSYS Fluent 19.0. The numerical simulations of the receiver are performed to analyze the temperature distribution around the circumference of the absorber tube as well as along the length of tube, the rate of heat transfer from the absorber tube to the HTF, and heat losses from the receiver for various geometric and operating conditions such as collector aperture diameter, mass flow rate, heat loss coefficient (HLC), HTF, and its inlet temperature. It is observed that temperature gradient around the circumference of the absorber and heat losses from the receiver increases with collector aperture. The temperature gradient around the circumference of the absorber tube wall at 2 m length from the inlet are observed as 11, 37, 48, 74, and 129 K, respectively, for 2.5‐, 5‐, 5.77‐, 7.5‐, and 10‐m aperture diameter of PTSC at mass flow rate of 1.25 kg/s and inlet temperature of 300 K for therminol oil as HTF. To minimize the thermal gradient around the absorber circumference, HTFs with better heat transfer characteristics are explored such as molten salt, liquid sodium, and NaK78. Liquid sodium offers a significant reduction in temperature gradient as compared of other HTFs for all the aperture sizes of the collector. It is found that the temperature gradient around the circumference of the absorber tube wall at a length of 2 m is reduced to 4, 8, 10, 13, and 18 K, respectively, for the above‐mentioned mass flow rate with liquid sodium as HTF. The analyses are also performed for different HTF inlet temperature in order to study the behavior of the receiver. Based on the HTA, it is desired to have larger aperture parabolic trough collector to generate higher temperature from the solar field and reduce the capital cost. To achieve higher temperature and better performance of the receiver, HTF with good thermophysical properties may be preferable to minimize the heat losses and thermal gradient around the circumference of the absorber tube.     

Oxime-Modified Aluminum(III) Isopropoxide: A Promising Sol–Gel Precursor for Corrosion Resistive Nano-Alumina Coating on an Aluminum Alloy

Protection of Metals and Physical Chemistry of Surfaces - Dense alumina coatings were fabricated over aluminum alloy via dip coating method using oxime-modified aluminum(III) isopropoxide as a...     

Design and construction of lightweight EPS geofoam embedded geomaterial embankment system for control of settlements

This paper presents a research study on a bridge site located along US highway 67 over SH 174 in Cleburne, Texas, where bridge approach slabs have experienced more than 0.4 m (17 in.) of settlement within a span of 16 years after construction. Many treatment methods attempted to mitigate this problem had proven to be ineffective. As part of novel rehabilitation works, the top of existing fill soil on the embankment was replaced with lightweight expanded polystyrene (EPS) geofoam blocks to alleviate the approach slab settlements. This paper describes initial design and construction details of the rehabilitation works performed on the embankment system along with a focus on the early performance details. Field monitoring studies were conducted for almost three years to study the bump/settlements under the EPS geofoam embankment system. Short term measured settlement data was analyzed with hyperbolic model to predict the long term settlements. Numerical finite element studies attempted in this study showed that settlements could be reasonably predicted by modeling these geofoam embankments. Based on the monitoring and modeling studies, the effectiveness of utilizing EPS geofoam as an embankment fill material was addressed to mitigate the differential settlements under a bridge approach slab.