THE APPLICATIONS OF A GENERALIZED EQUATION OF STATE TO THE CORRELATION AND PREDICTION OF PHASE EQUILIBRIA*

Two methods of generalizing an equation of state are demonstrated and their limitations are outlined. One method involves the correlation of the equation of state constants and the second method involves a recently proposed Generalized Corresponding States Principle based on the properties of two (nonspherical) reference fluids. The PVT properties of pure fluids are represented by a new cubic equation of slate with four parameters which are obtained from vapor pressure and saturated liquid density data. It is demonstrated how a limited amount of data on key components may be used to obtain phase equilibria in mixtures.     

Fate of Fertilizer15N applied as urea and ammonium sulphate in opium poppy (Papaver somniferum L.) grown under greenhouse conditions

Laboratory incubation and greenhouse experiments were conducted to investigate the comparative effectiveness of urea and ammonium sulphate in opium poppy (Papaver somniferum L.) using¹⁵N dilution techniques. Fertilizer treatments were control (no N), 600 mg N pot^–1 and 1200 mg N pot^–1 (12 kg oven dry soil) applied as aqueous solution of urea or ammonium sulphate. Fertilizer rates, under laboratory incubation study were similar to that under greenhouse conditions. A fertilizer¹⁵N balance sheet reveals that N recovery by plants was 28–39% with urea and 35–45% with ammonium sulphate. Total recovery of¹⁵N in soil-plant system was 77–82% in urea. The corresponding estimates for ammonium sulphate were 89–91%. Consequently the unaccounted fertilizer N was higher under urea (18–23%) as compared to that in ammonium sulphate (9–11%). The soil pH increased from 8.2 to 9.4 with urea whereas in ammonium sulphate treated soil pH decreased to 7.3 during 30 days after fertilizer application. The rate of NH₃ volatilization, measured under laboratory conditions, was higher with urea as compared to the same level of ammonium sulphate. The changes in pH of soil followed the identical trend both under laboratory and greenhouse conditions.     

Fabrication, nanostructure evaluation, 3D electrical transport and electrochemical capacitance of PEDOT–Ti(IV)-doped iron(III) oxide nanocomposite

Poly[3,4-(ethylenedioxy)thiophene] (PEDOT) nanocomposites (NCs) reinforced by varying titanium(IV)-doped iron(III) nano oxide (NITO) particles have been fabricated in dodecylbenzene sulphonic acid by in situ polymerization process using ammonium perdisulfate as initiator. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, electron microscopy, BET surface analysis etc. followed by subsequent evaluation of thermal properties, temperature-dependent 3D electrical transport. Thermal stability of the NCs increased with increasing NITO amount in PEDOT matrix. Electrical conductivity of the NCs increased significantly with increasing NITO content (0.45–67.73 S cm^?1) and also with the temperature (50–300 K). 3D variable range hopping conduction mechanism explained the conduction pathways. Specific capacitance of NCs are enhanced with higher NITO content in polymer from 107 F g^?1 (pristine PEDOT) to 158 F g^?1 (NC) owing to the development of mesoporous (pore size: 4.1 nm and cylindrical pore volume: 0.103 cm³ g^?1) structure and high specific surface area (~104 m² g^?1).     

Design and simulation of RF MEMS shunt capacitive switch with non-uniform meanders for C-band applications

Microsystem Technologies - This paper presents, the design and simulation of RF MEMS shunt capacitive switch. The electromechanical and electromagnetic analysis of the switch has been done using...     

An optimal high capacity reversible data hiding scheme using move to front coding for LZW codes

Reversible Data hiding techniques reduce transmission cost as secret data is embedded into a cover image without increasing its size in such a way that at the receiving end, both secret data and the cover image can be extracted and recovered, respectively, to their original form. To further reduce the transmission cost, the secret data can be embedded in the compression codes by some popular reversible data hiding schemes. One of the popular and important reversible data hiding method is high- performance data-hiding Lempel–Ziv–Welch (HPDH-LZW) scheme which hides the secret data in LZW codes. In this paper, the HPDH-LZW scheme is modified in order to increase its hiding capacity and compression ratio. First, the proposed work modifies the Move to Front (MTF) encoding technique to hide the secret data and also to increase the similarity among the element of the cover media. Then, LZW encoding technique is applied on the resultant cover data to obtain LZW codes, which are used to hide further secret data. Experimental results show that the proposed scheme has significantly increased the data hiding capacity and have good embedding and extraction speed in comparison to other state of the art schemes.

     

Bi-objective approach for computer-aided diagnosis of schizophrenia patients using fMRI data

Multimedia Tools and Applications - Computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) of schizophrenia based on the analysis of brain images, captured using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) technique, is...     

Oxidation of styrene over polymer‐ and nonpolymer‐anchored Cu(II) and Mn(II) complex catalysts

Catalytic oxidation of styrene was investigated over polymer‐ and nonpolymer‐anchored Cu(II) and Mn(II) complex catalysts prepared by schiff base tridentate ligands. The effect of temperature, styrene to H₂O₂ mole ratio and catalyst amount on the catalytic activity and product selectivity was investigated. Further, the catalysts were characterized by various techniques, such as elemental analysis, atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS), FTIR, FE‐SEM, EDAX, TGA, and UV–vis spectrophotometer. The elemental analysis, EDAX and AAS results confirmed the formation of Cu(II) and Mn(II) complexes, and it was found that the metal loading in the polymer‐anchored complex catalysts were in the range of 0.53–3.74 %. FTIR results showed the co‐ordination bond formation between the polymer ligands and metal ion. The catalytic data showed that, over all the catalysts, the main reaction products were benzaldehyde, styrene oxide, and benzoic acid. The polymer‐anchored complex catalysts were found to be much more active when compared with nonpolymer‐anchored catalysts. The maximum conversion of styrene (92.3%) was obtained over PS‐[Cu(Hfsal‐aepy)Cl] catalyst with benzaldehyde selectivity to 69% at the styrene to H₂O₂ mole ratio of 1 : 4 at 75°C. Although the PS‐[Mn(Hfsal‐aepy)Cl] catalyst was less active, it was highly selective to benzaldehyde. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013     

Diffusion of Cd And Zn In InP between 550 and 650°C

A large number of diffusions have been carried out in sealed quartz ampoules in the temperature range 550–650°C using Zn and Cd in InP. Three-fronted profiles were observed at 650°C for both Cd and Zn and the diffused samples were extensively analysed using Hall measurements, electron beam induced current, electrochemical carrier concentration profiling and thermal probing. These electrical measurements identified the p/n junction unambiguously and indicated a region of high compensation between the p/n junction and the third line. The weight of P added to the ampoule had little effect up to 0.4mg in 0.75cm³ volume at which point a dramatic reduction in diffusion depth for all fronts occurred for increasing P. Diffusion coefficients for Cd and Zn were estimated and plotted as a function of temperature.     

Selenium-Containing π-Conjugated Polymers for Organic Solar Cells

Organic solar cell research has attracted scientific and commercial interest in the last decade due to a rapid increase in power conversion efficiencies (PCEs). Today, PCEs in the range of 8–10 % have been obtained using conjugated polymers as electron-donor materials in combination with fullerene/other acceptors. However, to enable commercial applications, the efficiencies and lifetimes of organic solar cells still need to be improved significantly. In recent years, due to the potential advantages of Se-containing conjugated materials, namely, lower band gaps, rigidity, and strong Se⋅⋅⋅Se integration, have attracted surprising attention for use in organic solar cells. In this review, we focus on the synthesis and applications of Se-containing conjugated polymers for organic solar cells and throughout compare them with S- and O-containing analogues where applicable. The relationships between the chemical structures and properties, such as absorptions, energy levels, mobilities, and photovoltaic behavior, are also discussed.     

In situ formation of silver nanoparticles in poly(methacrylic acid) hydrogel for antibacterial applications

In this study, silver nanoparticles‐loaded poly(methacrylic acid) (PMAAc) hydrogels (HGs) have been produced by using a novel approach that involves equilibration of PMAAc HGs in aqueous solution of Ag(I) ions, followed by their reduction with borohydride. The AgNP/PMAAc composite, so produced, was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X‐ray diffraction, Fourier‐transform infrared, surface plasmon resonance, and differential scanning colorimetry analysis. The composite demonstrated pH‐dependent swelling behavior. The AgNP/PMAAc composites demonstrated fair antibacterial action against Escherichia coli. Their biocidal action was found to depend on the concentration of silver present within the HG and degree of crosslinking of HGs. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2013. © 2013 Society of Plastics Engineers