Polarographic Study of Thio-acetic Acid

The polarographic behaviour of thio-acetic acid (RSH) at dropping mercury electrode (d.m.e.) has been investigated in presence of KNO₃ in the pH range 2–10.5 at 30.0 ± 0.2°C in 50% alcoholic medium at 0.2 M ionic strength. Well defined anodic waves were obtained at all pH values in the concentration range studied. At pH < 2.2 and > 10.5 ill defined anodic waves were obtained. The effect of pH, concentration of RSH, temperature, drop time and alcohol on the wave characteristic and the mechanism of the reaction occurring at the surface of the mercury drop have been studied in detail. A small prewave was also observed at pH 9.1 and 10.5, which has been assigned adsorption characteristics. The reversibility of the reaction mechanism was confirmed by a number of methods. The wave is diffusion controlled and reversible involving one electron transfer process: Mathematical and experimental evidence shows that the anodic wave of RSH at. d.m.e. does not correspond to formation of (RSSR) but to a mercury compound RSHg according to the above equation. The diffusion coefficient and temperature coefficient for (30–45°C) of i_d at pH 4.0 and 9.1 have been found to be 1.698; 1.965 × 10⁻⁶ cm²/sec and 1.08%; 1.20% per degree respectively. The dissociation constant pKa was found to be 4.25 by the plot of E_1/2 vs. pH. The linearity of i_d with RSH concentrations provides a rapid and precise method for the determination of RSH down to 0.2 mM.     

Near optimal process plan selection for multiple jobs in networked based manufacturing using multi-objective evolutionary algorithms

The networked manufacturing offers several advantages in current competitive atmosphere by way of reducing the manufacturing cycle time and maintenance of the production flexibility, thereby achieving several feasible process plans. In this paper, we have addressed a Multi Objective Problem (MOP) which covers-minimize the makespan and to maximize the machine utilization while generating the feasible process plans for multiple jobs in the context of network based manufacturing system. A new multi-objective based Territory Defining Evolutionary Algorithm (TDEA) to resolve the above computationally challenge problem have been developed. In particular, with two powerful Multi-Objective Evolutionary Algorithms (MOEAs), viz. Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm (NSGA-II) and Controlled Elitist-NSGA-II (CE-NSGA-II) the performance of the proposed TDEA has been compared. An illustrative example along with three complex scenarios is presented to demonstrate the feasibility of the approach. The proposed algorithm is validated and the results are analyzed and compared.     

Efficiency of Urban Water Supply Utilities in India

The two parameters of services output of water utilities are the per capita water available for consumption and the hours for which water is supplied per day. However, water utilities in India differ on the level of these outputs substantially. This paper uses the data for water utilities in 31 cities to analyse their performance in delivery of services. Using data envelopment analysis, a measure of technical efficiency for various utilities is calculated. The results indicate that water utilities can increase the delivery of water on a per capita basis and increase the hours of supply per day by about 18%. Nearly 37% of the increase in services could result from changing the scale of operation. This paper also discusses if the institutional framework within which these utilities operate has implications on their efficiency.     

Inactivation efficacy of plasma-activated water: influence of plasma treatment time,exposure time and bacterial species

This study aimed to evaluate the influence of plasma treatment time, bacterial exposure time to PAW and bacterial species on the inactivation efficacy of plasma-activated water (PAW), with additional investigation of the inactivation mechanisms of PAW. Six bacterial species, including Listeria innocua, Staphyloccus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Shewanella putrefaciens and Aeromonas hydrophila were selected as the representative bacteria. The initial bacterial concentration was around 7 log CFU ml⁻¹ after mixing with PAW, and the inactivation efficacy was measured after different exposure times during the 4 °C storage. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images of the bacteria after PAW treatment were carried out to inspect the cell structure damage, and physicochemical properties of PAW, including pH, conductivity and long-living reactive species of H₂O₂, , and , were examined. The results showed that the inactivation efficacy of PAW was positively correlated with plasma treatment time and bacterial exposure time, and for the species examined in this study, the Gram-negative species were more sensitive to PAW than the Gram-positive species. Cell structure damage, including shrinkage, distortion, or holes, was observed after PAW treatment. The pH of PAW was acidified to 2.5–2.9, and conductivity was significantly increased to 518.0 μs cm⁻¹. and H₂O₂ were reduced during the 48 h storage, while an increased concentration was observed for . This study demonstrated that the processing parameters of plasma treatment time, exposure time and characteristics of bacteria can significantly affect the inactivation efficacy of PAW.     

Thermal performance and embodied energy analysis of a passive house – Case study of vault roof mud-house in India

This paper investigates thermal performance of an existing eco-friendly and low embodied energy vault roof passive house (or mud-house) located at Solar Energy Park of IIT Delhi, New Delhi (India). Based on embodied energy analysis, the energy payback time for the mud-house was determined as 18 years. The embodied energy per unit floor area of R.C.C. building (3702.3 MJ/m²) is quiet high as compared to the mud-house (2298.8 MJ/m²). The mud-house has three rooms with inverted U-shape roof and remaining three rooms with dome shape roof. A thermal model of the house consisting of six interconnected rooms was developed based on energy balance equations which were solved by using fourth order Runge Kutta numerical method. The predicted six room air temperatures were found in good agreement with the experimental observed data on hourly basis in each month for one year. The annual heating and cooling energy saving potential of the mud-house was determined as 1481 kW h/year and 1813 kW h/year respectively for New Delhi composite climate. The total mitigation of CO₂ emissions due to both heating and cooling energy saving potential was determined as 5.2 metric tons/year. The annual carbon credit potential of mud-house was determined as € 52/year. Similar results were obtained for the different climatic locations in India.     

A monolithically integrated high‐efficiency Cu(In,Ga)Se2 mini‐module structured solely by laser

Monolithically integrated Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ mini‐modules were fabricated in order to reduce the width of patterning related dead area. The Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ layers were prepared on soda‐lime glasses using the multistage process at low substrate temperature below 500 °C. A picosecond laser with a wavelength of 532 nm was used for all of the structuring processes (P1, P2, and P3) for the monolithic integration. A “lift‐off” type structuring was applied for P1 and P3, and an “ablation” type was for P2. The laser structuring was optimized to be minimizing the dead area width, and the width of about 70 µm was successfully achieved. A mini‐module, in which the optimized structuring processes were applied for the integration, demonstrated a certified efficiency of 16.6%. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of glass cover inclination and parametric studies of concentrator-assisted solar distillation system

In this communication, a thermal analysis of concentrator-assisted solar distillation unit has been developed to optimize the glass cover inclination. The thermal energy is based on the energy balance equation for each component of the distillation unit by incorporating the proposed modified Dunckle's relation for internal heat loss. An analytical expression for various parameters, namely the water and glass cover temperatures, hourly and daily yield and an instantaneous thermal efficiency, has been derived. Numerical computations have been carried out and it has been observed that the daily output increases with inclination.     

The Role of Altered Mitochondrial Metabolism in Thyroid Cancer Development and Mitochondria-Targeted Thyroid Cancer Treatment

Thyroid cancer (TC) is the most common type of endocrine malignancy. Tumour formation, progression, and metastasis greatly depend on the efficacy of mitochondria—primarily, the regulation of mitochondria-mediated apoptosis, Ca²⁺ homeostasis, dynamics, energy production, and associated reactive oxygen species generation. Recent studies have successfully confirmed the mitochondrial aetiology of thyroid carcinogenesis. In this review, we focus on the recent progress in understanding the molecular mechanisms of thyroid cancer relating to altered mitochondrial metabolism. We also discuss the repurposing of known drugs and the induction of mitochondria-mediated apoptosis as a new trend in the development of anti-TC therapy.     

Local Accumulation of Lymphocytes in the Intima of Human Aorta Is Associated with Giant Multinucleated Endothelial Cells: Possible Explanation for Mosaicism of Atherosclerosis

Distribution of different types of atherosclerotic lesions in the arterial wall is not diffuse, but is characterized by mosaicism. The causes of such distribution remain to be established. At the early stages of atherogenesis, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) particles and immune cells penetrate into the intimal layer of the arterial wall through the endothelium. In adult humans, the luminal surface of the arterial wall is a heterogeneous monolayer of cells with varying morphology including typical endothelial cells (ECs) and multinucleated variant endothelial cells (MVECs). We hypothesized that distribution of MVECs in the endothelial monolayer can be related to the distribution pattern of early atherosclerotic lesions. We obtained en face preparations of intact adult (22–59 years old) aortic wall sections that allowed us to study the endothelial monolayer and the subendothelial layer. We compared the distribution of MVECs in the endothelial monolayer with the localization of early atherosclerotic lesions in the subendothelial layer, which were characterized by lipid accumulation and immune cell recruitment. In primary culture, MVECs demonstrated increased phagocytic activity compared to mononuclear ECs. Moreover, we have shown that unaffected aortic intima contained associates formed as a result of aggregation and/or fusion of LDL particles that are non-randomly distributed. This indicated that MVECs may be involved in the accumulation of LDL in the subendothelial layer through increased transcytosis. Interaction of LDL with subendothelial cells of human aorta in primary culture increased their adhesive properties toward circulating immune cells. Study of unaffected aortic intima revealed non-random distribution of leukocytes in the subendothelial layer and increased localization of CD45+ leukocytes in the subendothelial layer adjacent to MVECs. Together, our observations indicate that MVECs may be responsible for the distribution of atherosclerotic lesions in the arterial wall by participating in LDL internalization and immune cell recruitment.