A thiol‐ene clickable hyperbranched polyester via a simple single‐step melt trans‐esterification process

Self‐condensation of AB₂ type monomers (containing one A‐type and two B‐type functional groups) generates hyperbranched (HB) polymers that carry numerous B ‐type end‐groups at their molecular periphery; thus, development of synthetic methods that directly provide quantitatively transformable peripheral B groups would be of immense value as this would provide easy access to multiply functionalized HB systems. A readily accessible AB₂ monomer, namely diallyl, 5‐(4‐hydroxybutoxy)isophthalate was synthesized, which on polymerization under standard melt‐transesterfication conditions yielded a peripherally clickable HB polyester in a single step; the allyl groups were quantitatively reacted with a variety of thiols using the facile photoinitiated “thiol‐ene” reaction to generate a wide range of derivatives, with varying solubility and thermal properties. Furthermore, it is shown that the peripheral allyl double bonds can also be readily epoxidized using meta‐chloroperoxybenzoic acid to yield interesting HB systems, which could potentially serve as a multifunctional cross‐linking agent in epoxy formulations. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 40248.     

Quantifying arsenic-induced morphological changes in spinach leaves: implications for remote sensing

Arsenic (As) is a common soil contaminant that can be accumulated into plant parts. The ability to detect As in contaminated plants is an important tool to minimize As-induced health risks in humans. Near-infrared (NIR) spectra are strongly affected by leaf structural characteristics. Therefore, quantitative analyses of structural changes in the arrangement of mesophyll cells caused by As will help to explain spectral responses to As. The objectives of this study were to use stereological methods to quantify internal structural changes in leaves with As treatment in spinach plants, and to relate these changes to leaf spectral properties in NIR spectra. Hydroponically grown spinach was treated with 0, 5, 10 and 20 μmol l^?1 for four weeks in a growth chamber. Spectral properties of leaves were obtained for visible and infrared frequencies. Leaf structural properties, such as mesophyll thickness and mesophyll surface area, were measured using stereological methods. Quantitative analysis of leaf structure showed that total leaf thickness and intercellular spaces in spongy mesophyll cells decreased with increasing As treatment. Changes in leaf reflectance in NIR wavelengths were strongly correlated with leaf As concentration and leaf structural changes. Multiple linear regression of leaf reflectance values at the highest correlated wavelengths (1048, 1098 and 1080 nm) generated an R ² value of 0.69. Results from this study support the hypothesis that relationships between leaf structure and reflectance may be useful in the interpretation of spectral data to detect plant leaf As concentration.     

Correlating the phenotypic and molecular diversity in Jatropha curcas L.

Thirty four Jatropha germplasm accessions, selected based on unique phenotypic traits from 180 accessions collected from diverse geographical regions were subjected to field evaluation and molecular analysis. The field evaluation using eight quantitative traits showed significant variation among the germplasm. The molecular analysis using 56 RAPD and 40 ISSR primers resulted in 7 and 8 clusters, respectively. The accession IC541633 from Bastar (Chattisgarh) emerged as the most diverse accession. An attempt has been made to correlate the clustering based on molecular data with the quantitative traits. There was partial correlation between the quantitative traits and molecular data. Interestingly, the diverse accessions according to molecular diversity were characterized by unique phenotypes. Time of flowering, inflorescence type and number, leaf colour and texture were the traits contributing to variation. These traits may be used in identification of diverse accessions during germplasm exploration surveys or short listing of accessions for crossing in Jatropha improvement programmes.     

Flexible,hard, and tough biobased polyurethane thermosets from renewable materials: glycerol and 10-undecenoic acid

The main theme of this work is to develop 100% biobased low viscous polyols from renewable resources. An epoxide compound (UA-GLY-E) was synthesized through esterification of glycerol and 10-undecenoic acid preceded by peroxidation. For the first time, UA-GLY-E was utilized as a building block in the generation of low viscous polyols and polyurethanes therefrom. The biobased polyols were synthesized by epoxide ring opening of UA-GLY-E with different nucleophiles, namely glycerol, water, and methanol. The advantage of these biobased polyols is their low viscosity and at the same time high functionality. These biobased polyols were further converted into poly(urethane–urea) coatings by reacting with methylene diphenyl diisocyanate. The impact of peripheral structural change in the polyols on the properties of polyols and their polyurethane coatings was studied. Flexible, hard, and tough thermosets have been prepared successfully from the same epoxy compound by altering the peripheral moiety in the polyol structure. Biobased polyurethanes prepared from glycerol and water-based polyols have shown better crosslinking density over the methanol-based polyol. Moreover, these biobased polyurethane films have shown good thermal stability, mechanical strength, and chemical resistance as well.     

Analysis of hard turning process:thermal aspects

In manufacturing sector,hard turning has emerged as a vital machining process for cutting hardened steels.Besides many advantages of hard turning operations,one has to implement to achieve close tolerances in terms of surface finish,high product quality,reduced machining time,low operating cost and environmental friendly characteristics.In the study,three dimensional(3D) computer aided engineering(CAE) based simulation of hard turning by using commercial software DEFORM 3D has been compared to the experimental results of stresses,temperatures and tool forces in machining of AISI D3 and AISI H13 steel using mixed ceramic inserts(CC6050).In the following analysis,orthogonal cutting models are proposed,considering several processing parameters such as cutting speed,feed and depth of cut.An exhaustive friction modelling at the tool-work interface is carried out.Work material flow around the cutting edge is carefully modelled with adaptive re-meshing simulation capability of DEFORM 3D.The process simulations are performed at constant feed rate(0.075 mm/r) and cutting speed(155 m/min),and analysis is focused on stresses,forces and temperatures generated during the process of machining.Close agreement is observed between the CAE simulation and experimental values.     

Finite element simulation of internal flows with heat transfer using a velocity correction approach

This paper enumerates finite-element based prediction of internal flow problems, with heat transfer. The present numerical simulations employ a velocity correction algorithm, with a Galerkin weighted residual formulation. Two problems each in laminar and turbulent flow regimes are investigated, by solving full Navier-Stokes equations. Flow over a backward-facing step is studied with extensive validations. The robustness of the algorithm is demonstrated by solving a very complex problem viz. a disk and doughnut baffled heat exchanger, which has several obstructions in its flow path. The effect of wall conductivity in turbulent heat transfer is also studied by performing a conjugate analysis. Temporal evolution of flow in a channel due to circular, square and elliptic obstructions is investigated, to simulate the vortex dynamics. Flow past an in-line tube bank of a heat exchanger shell is numerically studied. Resulting heat and fluid flow patterns are analysed. Important design parameters of interest such as the Nusselt number, Strouhal number, skin friction coefficient, pressure drop etc. are obtained. It is successfully demonstrated that the velocity correction approach with a Galerkin weighted residual formulation is able to effectively simulate a wide range of fluid flow features.     

123 oxide in double layer microwave absorber

The 123 oxide conductor incorporated with short brass fibers was used as the absorber matrix in the double layer design of the microwave absorber paint. The absorber layer was covered with another layer of transforming paint that contain a ferrite - resin mixture for efficient microwave absorption. Enhanced microwave absorption of about 10-20 dB was observed with the 123 oxide conductor in the absorber matrix at ambient temperature. The absorption was ascribed to the possibility of a rotational mode arising out of the rotation of the group of octahedra surrounding the Barium site in the perovskite lattice.     

Microstructure Control of L10-Ordered FePt Granular Film for Heat-Assisted Magnetic Recording (HAMR) Media

L1₀-ordered FePt nanogranular film is one of the promising candidates for the next-generation high areal density media for heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR). To realize a suitable microstructure for the HAMR media, the granular structure composed of uniformly dispersed L1₀-FePt nanoparticles with various segregants has been optimized using various combinations of segregants and seed layer materials. Although the microstructure of FePt-C came so close to the ideal one for HAMR, it would not be the final answer as the growth of the columnar grain structure is not possible due to too strong phase separation between FePt and C. In this article, we review recent investigations aiming at achieving the ideal microstructure for HAMR media.     

Synthesis and characterization of hydrogel‐silver nanoparticle‐curcumin composites for wound dressing and antibacterial application

Hydrogel silver nanocomposites are found to be excellent materials for antibacterial applications. To enhance their applicability novel hydrogel‐silver nanoparticle‐curcumin composites have been developed. For developing, these composites, the hydrogel matrices are synthesized first by polymerizing acrylamide in the presence of poly(vinyl sulfonic acid sodium salt) and a trifunctional crosslinker (2,4,6‐triallyloxy 1,3,5‐triazine, TA) using redox initiating system (ammonium persulphate/TMEDA). Silver nanoparticles are generated throughout the hydrogel networks using in situ method by incorporating the silver ions and subsequent reduction with sodium borohydride. Curcumin loading into hydrogel‐silver nanoparticles composite is achieved by diffusion mechanism. A series of hydrogel‐silver nanoparticle‐curcumin composites are developed and are characterized by using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and UV–visible (UV–vis) spectroscopy, X‐ray diffraction, thermal analyses, as well as scanning and transmission electron microscopic (SEM/TEM) methods. An interesting arrangement of silver nanoparticles i.e., a shining sun shape (ball) (～ 5 nm) with apparent smaller grown nanoparticles (～ 1 nm) is observed by TEM. The curcumin loading and release characteristics are performed for various hydrogel composite systems. A comparative antimicrobial study is performed for hydrogel‐silver nanocomposites and hydrogel‐silver nanoparticle‐curcumin composites. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011     

Fabrication of Au and Ag Bi-metallic nanocomposite for antimicrobial applications

Hydrogel silver nanocomposites have shown immense potential in many biomedical applications, specifically wound healing. The combination of bi-metallic (Ag, Au) hydrogel nanocomposites are developed to enhance their antimicrobial activity. This paper presents the fabrication of bi-metallic nanocomposites obtained from the synthesis of acrylamide (AM) and 2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonic acid (AMPS) based hydrogels for antimicrobial applications. The nanocomposite formation was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermal analysis (TGA/DSC), as well as X-ray diffraction (XRD) methods. The bi-metallic nanocomposite hydrogel has shown significant antibacterial activity on bacillus. Therefore, these bi-metallic antibacterial materials are promising candidates for a wide range of biomedical applications. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012