Polyphenol oxidase potentials of three wild mushroom species harvested from Lişer High Plateau,Trabzon

Crude enzyme extracts were prepared from Armillaria mellea (A. mellea), Lepista nuda (L. nuda) and Hypholoma fasciculare (H. fasciculare), which were harvested from the Li?er High Plateau-Maçka (Trabzon, Turkey). The crude polyphenol oxidase (PPO) extracts from each mushroom were highly active against 4-methylcatechol. Native polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, stained by L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine, showed the polyphenol oxidase potentials. The optimum pH value, for each enzyme, was 7.0. When enzyme extracts were incubated at pH 7.0 for 24 h at 4 °C, it was observed that L. nuda and H. fasciculare enzyme activities decreased by about 26% and 18%, respectively, but, A. mellea enzyme activity increased by about 11%. The temperature optima of A. mellea, L. nuda and H. fasciculare were, respectively, 30, 30 and 20 °C. Cr³⁺ and Cu²⁺ ions inhibited each activity. Also, sodium metabisulphite and ascorbic acid were strong inhibitors of the enzyme activities.     

Dimensionality reduction in conic section function neural network

This paper details how dimensionality can be reduced in conic section function neural networks (CSFNN). This is particularly important for hardware implementation of networks. One of the main problems to be solved when considering the hardware design is the high connectivity requirement. If the effect that each of the network inputs has on the network output after training a neural network is known, then some inputs can be removed from the network. Consequently, the dimensionality of the network, and hence, the connectivity and the training time can be reduced. Sensitivity analysis, which extracts the cause and effect relationship between the inputs and outputs of the network, has been proposed as a method to achieve this and is investigated for Iris plant, thyroid disease and ionosphere databases. Simulations demonstrate the validity of the method used.     

Analog active filter component selection with nature inspired metaheuristics

The most crucial design step for analog active filter design is the optimal selection of passive component values due to manufactured constants. Since the search on possible combinations in preferred values for capacitors and resistors is an exhaustive process, it has to be automated with high accuracy within short computation time. In this work, two nature inspired metaheuristics, differential evolution (DE) and harmony search (HS) algorithms are utilized for optimal filter design considering different topologies and manufacturing series. Simulation results show that as global optimization methods both DE and HS minimize the total design error and reduce the elapsed time with respect to previously utilized methods.     

Removal of Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli O157:H7 biofilms on stainless steel using scallop shell powder

Biofilms on steel surfaces containing Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli O157:H7 continue to threaten dairy and meat processors. In this study, the ability of scallop shell powder (SSP) to remove biofilms formed by these three pathogens on stainless steel plates was examined. Whey powder solution (WPS) and bench wash water (BWW) provided by dairy and meat factories, respectively, were inoculated with L. monocytogenes, S. aureus or E. coli O157:H7 (9 log₁₀ CFU/ml). Stainless steel plates (10 cm²) were placed in the inoculated fluids and incubated at 20 °C at 48 h to form biofilms. After drying and washing in sterile water, the plates were treated with 0.0, 0.25, or 0.50% (w/v) SSP slurries for 1, 5, or 10 min and then quantitatively examined for the three pathogens. Both 0.25 and 0.50% SSP reduced L. monocytogenes on the plates by 4 log CFU/cm² with a 1 min exposure to 0.50% SSP decreasing S. aureus by 5 logs CFU/cm². After 1 min in 0.25 and 0.50% SSP, E. coli O157:H7 populations in WPS and BWW biofilms decreased 4 and 6 log CFU/cm² and 3 and 5 log CFU/cm², respectively. Increasing the concentration of SSP led to significantly increased efficacy against the tested pathogens (P < 0.05). In conclusion, this study showed that SSP slurries could significantly reduce the numbers of L. monocytogenes, S. aureus and E. coli O157:H7 in biofilms on stainless steel surfaces.     

Free Vibration Characteristics of Composite Barrel and Hyperboloidal Coil Springs

The first six resonance frequencies of unidirectional composite noncylindrical helical springs (barrel and hyperboloidal types) made of carbon-epoxy (T300/N5208) material are determined theoretically based on the transfer matrix method. The rotary inertia, shear, and axial deformation effects are considered with the first-order shear deformation theory. The overall transfer matrix is obtained by integrating the 12 scalar ordinary differential equations with variable coefficients governing the free-vibration behavior of noncylindrical helical springs made of an anisotropic material. Numerical results are verified with the reported values for isotropic noncylindrical helices. A parametric study is performed to investigate the effects of the number of active coils (n = 5-10), the helix pitch angle ( f = 5° and 25°), the ratio of the minimum to maximum cylinder radii ( R min/ R max = 0.1 and 0.9), and the ratio of the maximum cylinder diameter to the wire diameter ( D max/ d = 5 and 15) on the free-vibration frequencies of constant-pitch composite barrel and hyperboloidal helical springs with circular sections and fixed-fixed ends.     

EDGE CRACK PROBLEMS IN HOMOGENOUS AND FUNCTIONALLY GRADED MATERIAL THERMAL BARRIER COATINGS UNDER UNIFORM THERMAL LOADING

In this study the axisymmetric crack problem for thermal barrier coatings under a uniform temperature change is considered. Modes I and II stress intensity factors and the strain energy release rate are calculated for various sizes and locations of the crack. The main variables in the problem are the material inhomogeneity parameter of the functionally graded material coating, the size and the location of the crack, and the relative dimensions of the specimen. The effect of the temperature dependence of the material properties on the stress intensity factors and the strain energy release rate is also investigated. The finite element method is used to solve the problem. The material property grading is accounted for by developing special inhomogeneous elements and the stress intensity factors are calculated by using enriched crack tip elements.     

Computational Methods for Inclined Cracks in Orthotropic Functionally Graded Materials Under Thermal Stresses

This article sets forth two different computational methods developed to evaluate fracture parameters for inclined cracks lying in orthotropic functionally graded materials, that are under the effect of thermal stresses. The first method is based on the J _k -integral, whereas the second entails the use of the J ₁-integral and the asymptotic displacement fields. The procedures introduced are implemented by means of the finite element method and integrated into a general purpose finite element analysis software. Numerical results are generated for an inclined edge crack in an orthotropic functionally graded layer subjected to steady-state thermal stresses. Comparisons of the mixed-mode stress intensity factors computed by the use of the proposed methods to those calculated by the displacement correlation technique point out that both approaches lead to numerical results of high accuracy. Further results are provided in order to illustrate the influences of inclination angle, material property gradation, and crack length upon the thermal fracture parameters.     

Breaking point of the harmony between Gd diffused Bi-2223 slabs with diffusion annealing temperature

This comprehensive study reports the role of annealing temperature on the microstructural, superconducting and mechanical characteristics of the Gd diffused Bi-2223 superconducting ceramics produced by the conventional solid-state reaction route at 840 °C for the annealing duration of 48 h. For the material characterization, the standard experimental methods such as dc resistivity (ρ-T), transport critical current density, X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and Vickers microhardness measurements are performed systematically. All the results obtained show that all the measured characteristic properties, being in charge of the applications in the industry, engineering and technology, improve until a certain diffusion annealing temperature of 800 °C beyond which they tend to degrade considerably. The increase in the properties is mostly related to the transition from the inherent overdoped state of the pure Bi-2223 material to optimum doped state with the diffusion annealing temperature, confirming the penetration of the sufficient Gd nanoparticles into the crystal structure. On the other hand, the suppression in the superconducting properties stems from the appearance of the porosity, defects, disorder and localization problem in the polycrystalline Bi-2223 superconducting matrix. This is attributed to the decrement of the average crystallite size and mobile hole concentration in the Cu–O₂ layers and especially the retrogression of the crystallinity in the system. As for the mechanical characteristics, Vickers microhardness measurements exerted in the applied indentation test load range of 0.245–2.940 N indicate that the Gd diffused bulk superconducting samples exhibit the typical indentation size effect behavior. With the enhancement in the annealing temperature up to 800 °C, the significant increase in the elastic modulus, yield strength and fracture toughness is one of the most striking points in the paper. The long and short of it is that the excess diffusion annealing temperature damages the fundamental characteristics of the Bi-2223 system.