Synthesis and characterization of poly(vinyl alcohol)-β-cyclodextrin copolymer

A poly(vinyl alcohol)-β-cyclodextrin (PVA-BCD) copolymer was prepared by successive reaction of BCD with toluylene diisocyanate and PVA. Copolymer formation was evidenced by infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry and gel permeation chromatography. Scanning electron micrographs show morphological differences between PVA and the copolymer. The copolymer, being almost insoluble in common solvents with an equilibrium swelling in water of 50%, is a potential membrane material.     

I-convergence in probabilistic n-normed space

In this article we introduce the notion of I-Cauchy sequence and I-convergent sequence in probabilistic n-normed space. The concept of I*-Cauchy sequence and I*-convergence in probabilistic n-normed space are also introduced and some of their properties related to these notions have been established.     

Entropy based spatial domain image watermarking and its performance analysis

Digital image watermarking technique based on LSB Substitution and Hill Cipher is presented and examined in this paper. For better imperceptibility watermark is inserted in the spatial domain. Further the watermark is implanted in the Cover Image block having the highest entropy value. To improve the security of the watermark hill cipher encryption is used. Both subjective and objective image quality assessment technique has been used to evaluate the imperceptibility of the proposed scheme.Further, the perceptual perfection of the watermarked pictures accomplished in the proposed framework has been contrasted and some state-of-art watermarking strategies. Test results demonstrates that the displayed method is robust against different image processing attacks like Salt and Peppers, Gaussian filter attack, Median filter attacks, etc.

     

Objective Oriented Multistage Ring Shear Test for Shear Strength of Landslide Soil

Ring shear tests were conducted on five samples of different nature with a modified Imperial College type ring shear machine. The three different testing methods used, (1) individual sample testing for each normal stress, (2) increasing load multistage ring shear test, and (3) reducing load multistage ring shear test, all showed similar effective residual internal friction angle for the samples, irrespective of testing method. However, effective residual shear intercept was different according to the testing methodology. The internal friction angle did not vary, particularly after the first minimum point in the stress displacement curve, although the residual shear intercept decreased with increase in the displacement. The thickness of the shearing zone increased along with the displacement. The remolded peak shear strength for saturated conditions at field dry density varied with the consolidation history. Measurement of remolded peak shear strength was possible in a single sample using the increasing load multistage ring shear test at normal consolidation. The equilibrium water content of the sample after the ring shear test was nearly equal to the plastic limit.     

B-GWO based multi-UAV deployment and power allocation in NOMA assisted wireless networks

Wireless Networks - Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) deployed as flying base stations is a promising technology for enhancing the quality of service (QoS) and quick recovery from unexpected damages...     

Molecular Cross-Talk between Gravity- and Light-Sensing Mechanisms in Euglena gracilis

Euglena gracilis is a photosynthetic flagellate. To acquire a suitable position in its surrounding aquatic environment, it exploits light and gravity primarily as environmental cues. Several physiological studies have indicated a fine-tuned relationship between gravity sensing (gravitaxis) and light sensing in E. gracilis. However, the underlying molecular mechanism is largely unknown. The photoreceptor photoactivated adenylyl cyclase (PAC) has been studied for over a decade. Nevertheless, no direct/indirect interaction partner (upstream/downstream) has been reported for PAC. It has been shown that a specific protein, kinase A (PKA), showed to be involved in phototaxis and gravitaxis. The current study reports the localization of the specific PKA and its relationship with PAC.     

Redox State of Iron and Its Related Effects in the CaO–P2O5–Fe2O3 Glasses

Iron exists in Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ states in CaO–P₂O₅–Fe₂O₃ glasses and they impart characteristic optical absorption bands that allow analysis of relative proportion of the two species. This communication reports the redox states of glasses melted under air, argon, and oxygen atmospheres and relates them to the dissolution rates. The dissolution rate was found to be related to the redox state and it is lowered if the glass is melted under oxidizing atmospheres.     

Molecular Epidemiological Study of Pyrazinamide-Resistance in Clinical Isolates of Mycobacterium tuberculosis from South India

Pyrazinamide (PZA) has been in use for almost 50 years as a first-line drug for short-course chemotherapy against Mycobacterium tuberculosis. In this study, PCR mediated automated DNA sequencing is used to check the prevalence of PZA resistance among treatment failure cases of pulmonary tuberculosis. Out of 50 clinical isolates examined, 39 had mutations in the pncA gene that encodes Pyrazinamidase, an enzyme required to activate PZA. Of these, 31 (79.5%) were localized to three regions of pncA. We found two isolates with hitherto unreported mutation at amino acid 26 (Ala→Gly) of pncA.     

Plastic <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-factor for three-point bend specimens: Analysis of instrumented Charpy impact test results for AISI 308 weld and AISI 316 stainless steels

In this paper, instrumented impact test results obtained using V-notch and precracked Charpy specimens of AISI 308 weld and AISI 316 stainless steels are analysed for determining the plastic -factor for three-point bend specimens used in J-integral evaluation. Tested 316 stainless steel specimens were in various thermal aging/cold-work conditions whereas 308 weld specimens were in the as-welded condition. The results are analysed using the various procedures proposed in the literature and compared with experimental and finite element results reported in the literature. Based on our analysis, two polynomial expressions of a/W for _pl are presented: one gives a sort of upper-bound in the a/W range 0.05–1.0 while the other gives conservative values (i.e., use of this results in J-R curves and J sufficiently conservative for engineering purposes). Both provide a smooth variation of _pl over the entire a/W range unlike some of the expressions given in the literature which show a discontinuous change at an intermediate a/W.     

Determination of K Id at or below NDTT using instrumented drop-weight testing

Two kinds of surface cracked specimens are numerically analyzed by the three dimensional elastic-plastic FEM. Near tip regions are divided into fine elements, and the stress and displacement fields at the crack tip are compared with HRR solutions.At first, surface cracked specimens subjected to bending are analyzed by changing the aspect ratio and depth/thickness ratio. The effect of the loading condition, crack shape and the crack depth on the stress and displacement fields are discussed. Then the pipe with surface crack subjected to bending is analyzed and the availability of the J-integral concept to the LBB analysis is discussed.In every specimen, it is shown that in the regions very near to the crack tip, the displacement field is similar to HRR solutions of plane strain. In the outer regions, however, the stress and displacement fields depend strongly on the shape, thickness, and loading conditions.