Effect of γ-irradiation on the frequency-independent parameters of an equivalent circuit for two-dimensional island platinum films

Four sets (A, B, C and D) of two-dimensional island platinum films [2D-I(Pt)Fs] were prepared by the thermal evaporation technique. The mass thicknesses for the films of such sets are 1, 5, 10 and 20 Å, respectively. The frequency-independent parameters of one of the equivalent circuit for island metal films in general are R _b, R _g and C _g where R _b is the resistance of the islands themselves while R _g is the resistance that accompanies the transfer of electrons across the gaps among islands and C _g is the capacitance that results from the separated metallic islands. The least-square values of R _b, R _g and C _g for our films were deduced via a computerized analysis. The stabilized films were exposed to γ-rays at doses 100, 200, 300, 500 and 700 Gy using ¹³⁷Cs (0.662 MeV) radiation source of dose rate 0.5 Gy/min. It was found that (1) For any particular mass thickness: (a) R _b and R _g decreases with the increase in the dose of γ-rays while C _g increases (b) the absolute value of the fractional change in R _b, R _g and C _g increases with the increase in dose. (2) For any particular dose the increase in the fractional change in R _b, R _g and C _g becomes more pronounced when the mass thickness increases. Qualitative interpretation for our results was given on the ground that γ-rays changed the island’s shape from spherical to prolate spheroid one and this has been checked experimentally via imaging the films by Atomic Force Microscope before and after γ-irradiations.     

Radiation-induced grafting of glycidyl methacrylate onto cotton fabric waste and its modification for anchoring hazardous wastes from their solutions

Ion exchange adsorbents based on cellulosic fabric wastes carrying sulfonic acid and amine functional groups were synthesized by radiation-induced graft polymerization of glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) with subsequent chemical modification of the epoxy groups of poly-GMA graft chains with sodium sulfite/H₂SO₄ and triethylamine, respectively. The conversion of epoxy groups into the functional groups was investigated. Factors affecting on grafting process such as radiation dose, monomer concentration and solvent were studied. The synthesized adsorbent and its applications in the removal of different types of hazardous pollutants e.g. acidic dye, cobalt, dichromate and phenols from aqueous solution were also studied.     

Supramolecular Assembly on Coordination of Azopolymer Complexes: A Review

This review gives an account of the coordination chemistry of supramolecular azopolymer complexes. The syntheses and structures of azomonomers and their azopolymer complexes were described. Spectral techniques such as (IR, ¹H-NMR, ESR) and thermal analysis were investigated. Supramolecular architectures assembled were exhibited through weak interaction including hydrogen bonding and π–π stacking. The spectral data indicate geometry of azopolymer complexes and the orbital reduction factors. ESR spectral data provided information about their structures on the basis of Hamiltonian parameters and degree of covalency. All the azopolymer complexes are ESR active due to the presence of an unpaired electron. The force constant F_U–O(mdyn/Å) and the bond length R_U–O (Å) of the U–O bond were calculated from the IR data and related to the electronic properties of the substituents. Wilson's method, the matrix method, Badger's formula, and the Jones and El-Sonbati equations were used to calculate the U–O bond distances from the values of the stretching and interaction force constants. The most probable correlations between U–O force constant to U–O bond distance were satisfactorily discussed in terms of Badger's rule, and the Jones and El-Sonbati equations. The thermal stability was investigated using thermogravimetric analysis. The results showed that the azopolymer complexes are mostly more stable than the homopolymer. The stability of the proton ligand/metal ligand constants in the monomeric and polymeric forms was studied carefully using potentiometery. Based on the thermodynamic functions, the dissociation process is nonspontaneous, endothermic and entropically unfavorable. The metal complexes that were formed exhibited spontaneous, endothermic and entropically favorable behavior.     

Safety systems for the ESES 2002 wind pump

The ESES 2002 wind pump, a 4.6 m rotor diameter high-performance water pumping windmill, was tested at four different sites (Cairo, Giza, Wadi El Natroun and El-Tor city on the Red Sea coast) from September 1997 to July 1999. These machines utilize a 3:1 gearbox and a hydrodynamic sealing piston pump. These four ESES 2002 wind pumps were tested by pumping from a motionless water depth of 3 m up to an 84 m deep well. A variety of pump diameter sizes varying from 64 to 1400 mm were used. The water pumped was returned to the well after flowing through a settling storage tank having a capacity of 3 m³. The instrumentation provided a 16 channel data acquisition system to accurately measure the machine performance, including rotor rpm, number of stroke, starting wind speed, flow rate, tail furl angle and other variables. The results verify that the ESES 2002 wind pump is a robust machine as two machines have been running for 2 years continuously without requiring any replacement parts or major or minor maintenance.     

Effect of immobilization on skeletal muscle nicotinic cholinergic receptors in the rat

The effect of 4 weeks of hind limb immobilization on nicotinic acetylcholinergic receptors (nAChRs) in the neuromuscular junction of the soleus (SOL) and tibialis anterior (TIB) muscles was studied in rats. Quantitative measurements of the receptors was performed using [3H]alpha-bungarotoxin ([3H]alpha-BTx) receptor autoradiography. Junctional and extrajunctional nAChRs were significantly increased in the SOL and TIB after 4 weeks immobilization. However, a significant decrease in fiber cross-sectional area was observed only in the SOL muscle. Remobilization for 4 weeks reversed the changes in cholinergic receptors and muscle fibers but not in bone. Our findings suggested that lack of nerve impulses are of importance for the events that take place after immobilization leading to muscle atrophy and osteoporosis.     

Super-Thermite (Al/Fe<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript>) Fluorocarbon Nanocomposite with Stimulated Infrared Thermal Signature via Extended Primary Combustion Zones for Effective Countermeasures of Infrared Seekers

Super-thermites can offer large amount of energy up to 16736 J/g. Flares based on super-thermites can offer superior thermal signature to countermeasure infrared (IR) guided missile seekers. This study reports on the sustainable fabrication of mono-dispersed Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles of 3 nm average particle size. Colloidal Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles were harvested from their synthesis medium and re-dispersed in acetone. Fluorocarbon polymers (teflon and viton) as well as aluminum metal fuel were integrated into Fe₂O₃/acetone colloid. The colloid mixture was granulated and mold pressed to develop the desired grain. The impact of Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles on thermal signature was assessed using (FT-MIR 1–6 µm) spectrometer. Flame propagation was investigated by video imaging of combustion wave. Combustion zones were quantified using image analysis. Quantification of flame temperature and main IR emitting species was performed using ICT thermodynamic code (virgin 2008). Nanocomposite flare with 12 wt% Fe₂O₃ offered an increase in the intensity of β band by 230% to that of reference formulation. The primary reaction zone was extended by 164%. Super-thermite particles not only offered superior spectral performance but also altered the combustion mechanism.     

A Dynamic Spark-based Classification Framework for Imbalanced Big Data

Classification of imbalanced big data has assembled an extensive consideration by many researchers during the last decade. Standard classification methods poorly diagnosis the minority class samples. Several approaches have been introduced for solving the problem of class imbalance in big data to enhance the generalization in classification. However, most of these approaches neglect the effect of border samples on classification performance; the high impact border samples might expose to misclassification. In this paper, a Spark Based Mining Framework (SBMF) is proposed to address the imbalanced data problem. Two main modules are designed for this purpose. The first is the Border Handling Module (BHM) which under samples the low impact majority border instances and oversamples the minority class instances. The second module is the Selective Border Instances sampling (SBI) Module, which enhances the output of the BHM module. The performance of the SBMF framework is evaluated and compared with other recent systems. A number of experiments were performed using moderate and big datasets with different imbalanced ratio. The results obtained from SBMF framework, when compared to the recent works, show better performance for the different datasets and classifiers.     

A supply chain model with vendor-managed inventory,consignment, and quality inspection errors

This paper considers the integration between quality control and production inventory control in supply chain management. Specifically, we study the effect of inspection errors on the costs incurred in a supply chain system with a single vendor and multiple buyers. In this system, the vendor enters into a vendor-managed inventory (VMI) and a consignment stock (CS) partnership with several buyers. We assume that the items made by the vendor are not in perfect quality, but they contain a given proportion of defective units. We also assume that quality inspection of these items by the buyers is subject to sampling errors. Three cases indicating to different levels of supply integration are considered: VMI–CS system, traditional system and integrated system. For each case, a mathematical model is formulated, an optimum solution is developed, and a numerical example is solved.     

Enhanced coyote optimizer-based cascaded load frequency controllers in multi-area power systems with renewable

Neural Computing and Applications - Recently, the renewable energy has been occupied a lot of attention around the world since it presents cheap and sustainable energy. Consequently, its presence...