Enhanced removal of Methylene Blue by electrocoagulation using iron electrodes

The removal of pollutants from effluents by electrocoagulation has become an attractive method in recent years. The study deals with the enhancement of removal of Methylene Blue dye by using an electromagnetic field during the electrocoagulation process. Effects of electrolyte concentration, dye concentration, intensity and the direction of the electromagnet on the decolorization efficiency have been investigated. The formed ferric hydroxide flocs trap colloidal particles and make solid–liquid separation easier during the next stage. The electrocoagulation stages must be optimized in order to design an economically feasible process. The results showed that the optimum electrolysis was 10–20 min at a current density of 8 mA/cm², while the optimum concentration of the electrolyte (NaOH) was found to be 2 wt.% when the dye concentration was 50 mg/L. The utilization of an electromagnetic field enhanced the dye removal due to the induced motion of paramagnetic ions inside the solution. The power consumption required to remove the dye was reduced by 45% in the case of applying an electromagnetic field.     

Dielectric relaxation dynamics in liquid crystal – dye composites

Dielectric relaxation spectroscopic studies were undertaken to investigate the role of the resistivity of a host liquid crystal in the relaxation dynamics of dyed systems. Two different types of liquid crystal mixture were used, namely, one that was characterized by high ion contamination and low resistivity and the other which was of high resistivity and virtual ion-free; both types were doped using an azo or anthraquinone dye. Dielectric spectra of both the pristine liquid crystals and their composites at different external fields were measured in homogenously-aligned cells. The use of both dyes on an ion-enriched liquid crystal not only enhanced ion concentration but also slowed down the relaxation process. In contrast, the relaxation process for composites with a high-resistivity liquid crystal host was faster than that of the pristine liquid crystal.     

Small-scale households renewable energy usage intention: Theoretical development and empirical settings

The slow growth of acceptance is a major barrier to small-scale renewable energy development. This study examines the determinants of acceptance of small-scale renewable energy in Malaysia. The research model for this study was developed based on the theory of planned behaviour, the technology acceptance model, the diffusion of innovation theory and the existing literature on technology adoption. This study tested five hypotheses based on a survey, of 200 Malaysian urban residents and which used structured questionnaires. Multiple regression analysis results reveal that perceived ease of use, perceived behavioural control, awareness, relative advantage and cost reduction have significant impact on small-scale renewable energy usage intention. This study not only contributes to and extends our understanding of small-scale renewable energy purchasing behaviour, it also identifies the rationales for purchasing small-scale renewable energy. From a managerial viewpoint, the findings not only provide support for investment decisions but also take into consideration the concerns and needs of businesses and Malaysian government agencies.     

The presence,genetic diversity and behaviour of Listeria monocytogenes in blue-veined cheese rinds during the shelf life

Blue-veined cheeses may allow Listeria monocytogenes survival and multiplication due to the biochemical characteristics of the cheese and the growth characteristics of the pathogen. Because of the availability of a considerable number of samples, we wanted this study to take a large view of the microbiota and of the incidence and genetic diversity of L. monocytogenes in blue-veined cheese rinds. Moreover, we wanted to determine if the pathogen present on the rinds at the end of ripening represented a risk to the consumer if the cheese should exceed the domestic storage limit imposed by Commission Regulation (EC) No 2073/2005 for food safety criteria.The rind microflora showed a high level of heterogeneity, and the incidence of L. monocytogenes (never found in the paste samples) was 55%, with an increased presence and concentration associated with a longer ripening time. Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism (AFLP) was used to characterise L. monocytogenes isolated from blue-veined cheese rinds and highlighted the heterogeneity among the strains, demonstrating its suitability for studying the biodiversity of the pathogen in this environment. L. monocytogenes was able to grow during the shelf life of the cheese and was influenced by the refrigeration temperatures and the physicochemical characteristics of the cheese.     

Bistable cholesteric-blue phase liquid crystal using thermal hysteresis

The study investigates the thermal hysteresis in the phase transition between the cholesteric liquid crystal and the blue phase of liquid crystal. Both the CLC phase and the blue phase can stably exist at room temperature and be switched to each other using temperature-controlled processes. Two sets of bistable conditions are demonstrated using various surface treatments. In a homogeneous aligned sample, two stable states, CLC with a planar alignment and blue phase with a uniform lattice distribution, reflect light of wavelengths 480-510 nm and 630 nm, respectively, as determined by the corresponding Bragg’s reflection conditions. In the untreated sample, the CLC phase with a focal conic texture can scatter light and the blue phase with a non-uniform lattice distribution provides high isotropic optical transparency.     

Brilliant Cresyl Blue – Fructose for enhancement of solar energy conversion and storage capacity of photogalvanic solar cells

The Brilliant Cresyl Blue dye as photosensitizer, Fructose as reductant and NaOH as alkaline medium have been studied for enhancing the solar energy conversion and storage capacity of the photogalvanic solar cells. In this study, the observed values of electrical parameters like maximum potential, maximum photocurrent, short-circuit current, power at power point, and conversion efficiency are 1115 mV, 785 μA, 590 μA, 183.3 μW, and 1.9586%, respectively. In dark, the cell performance in terms of storage capacity (as half change time) was 228 min. The obtained results are highly encouraging as they are radically higher than results reported so far in the field of photogalvanics. We conclude that Brilliant Cresyl Blue – Fructose system significantly enhances the performance of the photogalvanic solar cells and this system may be the basis for further advancement of this technology.     

Peptides from fish and crustacean by-products hydrolysates stimulate cholecystokinin release in STC-1 cells

Fish protein hydrolysates (FPH) are of significant interest, due to their potential application as a source of bioactive peptides in nutraceutical and pharmaceutical domains. Here, we investigated the action of FPH from blue whiting (Micromesistius poutassou) and brown shrimp (Penaeus aztecus) on cholecystokinin release from intestinal endocrine cells (STC-1). We demonstrated for the first time that FPH were able to highly stimulate CCK-releasing activity from STC-1 cells and that this stimulation was mainly due to peptide molecules. The partial purification of CCK-stimulating peptides showed that their apparent molecular weight ranged between 1000 and 1500 Da for fish and crustacean FPH, respectively. Finally, in an aim to industrially produce hydrolysates enriched in CCK-stimulating molecules, we tested the effects of membrane processes (ultrafiltration and nanofiltration) on active peptide enrichments.     

High efficient organic light emitting diodes using new 9,10-diphenylanthracene derivatives containing bulky substituents on 2,6-positon

Novel blue emitters with two bulky substituents on the 2,6-position of 9,10-diphenylanthracene (DPAN), which can provide effective hindrance to the intermolecular packing, were synthesized, characterized, and used in the fabrication of organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs). DSC thermograms and theoretical calculations of 3-dimensional structures of Ph-DPAN, Flu-DPAN and TPA-DPAN, support that they have an amorphous and non-coplanar structure. With application of these newly non-doped, blue emitting materials in a multilayer device structure, it is possible to achieve a current efficiency of 4.6–5.8 cd/A for DPAN derivatives.     

The operating voltage behavior of green fluorescent organic light emitting diode with blue common layer structure during laser imaging process

The blue common layer (BCL) approach has become very useful methodology to reduce the process steps which may increase the production yield of active matrix organic light emitting diode (AMOLED) fabrication. From this approach, we can reduce one step (from 5 to 4) for fine metal masking (FMM) method as a current mass-production technology to form a common thick-microcavity structure. Moreover, we can reduce the patterning steps from 5 to 2 if we use a laser induced thermal imaging (LITI) technology for the same structure. Nevertheless, we still prefer to apply the FMM technology for the mass production because there are lots of problematic issues on LITI process such as an operating voltage increase (by 0.5–1.0 V), efficiency drop (by ∼10%), shorter lifetime, etc. Here, we report about the fundamental causes of these problems during LITI processes.     

烟草霜霉病

烟草霜霉病是具有高度破坏性和异常的传播能力的外来危险性病害,自本世纪60年代以来,病菌曾两度造成洲际性流行,迄今此病在我国尚未发生。本文将就烟草霜霉病的危害性、历史、地理分布、病原、生物特性及植物检疫检验、防治等方面进行评述,以期有利于防止此危险病害传入我国,保护我国烟草业的发展。