Hydraulic reactivity and cement formation of baghdadite

In this study, the hydraulic reactivity and cement formation of baghdadite (Ca₃ZrSi₂O₉) was investigated. The material was synthesized by sintering a mixture of CaCO₃, SiO₂, and ZrO₂ and then mechanically activated using a planetary mill. This leads to a decrease in particle and crystallite size and a partial amorphization of baghdadite as shown by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and laser diffraction measurements. Baghdadite cements were formed by the addition of water at a powder to liquid ratio of 2.0 g/ml. Maximum compressive strengths were found to be ~2 MPa after 3-day setting for a 24-h ground material. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) measurements showed an incongruent dissolution profile of set cements with a preferred dissolution of calcium and only marginal release of zirconium ions. Cement formation occurs under alkaline conditions, whereas the unground raw powder leads to a pH of 11.9 during setting, while prolonged grinding increased pH values to approximately 12.3.     

Effect of chlormequat and alar on some biochemical constituents in tomato plants and fruits

The field experiment was conducted to study the effect of various levels of chlormequat (CCC) and alar on the biochemical changes in tomato plants and fruits at different stages of growth. This experiment included spraying with chlormequat and alar separately in two equal doses (250, 500 and 1000 ppm CCC or alar 25 and 40 days after transplanting). The different levels of chlormequat decreased the accumulation of dry matter in tomato plants, but alar increased it. Chlorophyll a, b, total chlorophyll and carotenoids content of tomato plants increased by the application of CCC or alar. The highest increase of concentration of chlorophyll a, b and carotenoids in tomato plants were found by spraying with 500 ppm alar or CCC. The application of CCC and alar declined the percentage of carbohydrates and the highest decrease resulted by adding of 1000 ppm alar or CCC. Alar caused an increase in the percentage of total nitrogen at the different stages of growth. The concentration of P, K, Ca and Mg increased by the foliar spray of all treatments. Alar application at all used levels significantly increased the yield and also the weight of fruits. Highest plant productivity was obtained by using alar and CCC at 250 ppm, followed by 500 ppm. However, the highest concentration (1000 ppm) depressed the plant productivity. The concentration of juice, total soluble solids and vitamin C in tomato fruits increased at most of the levels added. But the percentage of total sugars and total acidity seemed to exert another trend. The highest concentration of N, P, K, Ca and Mg in fruits was obtained by foliar application of 500 ppm CCC or alar.     

Commenting in the Online Arab Public Sphere: Debating the Swiss Minaret Ban and the “Ground Zero Mosque” Online

This article focuses on the emerging online Arab public sphere that the web has enabled. It explores how the “local” interacts with the “global,” critically examining their implications on global politics. Specifically looking at online readers' comments about the Swiss minaret ban the so‐called “Ground Zero Mosque,” how does the Arab online public sphere respond to and frame these issues? What implications do these reader frames portend locally and globally? The study analyzes online comments and responses that readers of Al Arabiya.net and Al Jazeera.net posted on related news articles. The article concludes that the new online public sphere does make it possible for Arab citizens to circumvent and challenge traditional authoritarian controls.     

THE ESTIMATION AND PREDICTION OF SUBSET BILINEAR TIME SERIES MODELS WITH APPLICATIONS

Abstract. In this paper we define subset bilinear time series models, and then describe an algorithm for the estimation of these models. It is also pointed out that for this class of non-linear time series models, it is possible to obtain optimal several step predictors. The estimation technique of these models is illustrated with respect to three time series, and the optimal several steps ahead forecasts of these time series models are calculated. A comparison of these forecasts is made with the forecasts obtained by the best linear autoregressive and threshold autoregressive models. The residuals obtained from the models are tested for independence and Gaussianity using higher order moments.     

Morphology and microstructure of autoclaved clinker and slag-lime pastes in presence and in absence of silica sand

Development of microstructure in four hydrothermal reactions has been undertaken using scanning electron microscopy. These are clinker, clinker-sand, slag-lime and slag-lime-sand hydrothermal reactions. The microstructure of clinker hydration products displayed crumpled foils and tabular masses of calcium silicate hydrates; few cubic crystals of hydrogarnet appeared only during the initial stage of the reaction. In clinker-sand mixture the C-S-H phase was the only product identified. In slag-lime hydration the microstructure displayed both of the hydrogarnet crystals and the C-S-H phase. The hydration of slag-lime-sand mixture (an optimum composition) was associated with the formation of ill-crystallized tobermorite and crystalline 11A tobermorite as the main products.     

Internal electrical fault detection techniques in DFIG-based wind turbines: a review

The keys factor in making wind power one of the main power sources to meet the world’s growing energy demands is the reliability improvement of wind turbines (WTs). However, the eventuality of fault occurrence on WT com ponents cannot be avoided, especially for doubly-fed induction generator (DFIG) based WTs, which are operating in severe environments. The maintenance need increases due to unexpected faults, which in turn leads to higher operating cost and poor reliability. Extensive investigation into DFIG internal fault detection techniques has been carried out in the last decade. This paper presents a detailed review of these techniques. It discusses the methods that can be used to detect internal electrical faults in a DFIG stator, rotor, or both. A novel sorting technique is presented which takes into consideration different parameters such as fault location, detection technique, and DFIG modelling. The main mathematical representation used to detect these faults is presented to allow an easier and faster under standing of each method. In addition, a comparison is carried out in every section to illustrate the main differences, advantages, and disadvantages of every method and/or model. Some real monitoring systems available in the market are presented. Finally, recommendations for the challenges, future work, and main gaps in the field of internal faults in a DFIG are presented. This review is organized in a tutorial manner, to be an effective guide for future research for enhancing the reliability of DFIG-based WTs.     

Rapid real-time generation of super-resolution hyperspectral images through compressive sensing and GPU

Recently, compressive sensing (CS) has offered a new framework whereby a signal can be recovered from a small number of noisy non-adaptive samples. This is now an active area of research in many image-processing applications, especially super-resolution. CS algorithms are widely known to be computationally expensive. This paper studies a real time super-resolution reconstruction method based on the compressive sampling matching pursuit (CoSaMP) algorithm for hyperspectral images. CoSaMP is an iterative compressive sensing method based on the orthogonal matching pursuit (OMP). Multi-spectral images record enormous volumes of data that are required in practical modern remote-sensing applications. A proposed implementation based on the graphical processing unit (GPU) has been developed for CoSaMP using computed unified device architecture (CUDA) and the cuBLAS library. The CoSaMP algorithm is divided into interdependent parts with respect to complexity and potential for parallelization. The proposed implementation is evaluated in terms of reconstruction error for different state-of-the-art super-resolution methods. Various experiments were conducted using real hyperspectral images collected by Earth Observing-1 (EO-1), and experimental results demonstrate the speeding up of the proposed GPU implementation and compare it to the sequential CPU implementation and state-of-the-art techniques. The speeding up of the GPU-based implementation is up to approximately 70 times faster than the corresponding optimized CPU.     

A green approach for modification and functionalization of wool fabric using bio- and nano-technologies

In the present work, we propose a green and sustainable strategy for eco-friendly surface modification of wool structure using biosynthesized kerationlytic proteases, from C4-ITA-EGY, Streptomyces harbinensis S11-ITA-EGY and Streptomyces carpaticus S33-ITA-EGY, followed by subsequent environmentally sound functionalization of the bio-treated substrates using ZnONPs, ZrO₂NPs, ascorbic acid and vanillin, individually, to provide durable antibacterial as well as UV-protection properties. Both surface modification changes and the extent of functionalization of the final products were characterized by SEM, EDX, antibacterial efficacy, UV-blocking ability, loss in weight, nitrogen content and durability to washing analysis. The obtained data reveal that the developed green wool fabrics exhibit outstanding durable antibacterial activity and UV-blocking ability for fabricating multi-functional textile products that can be utilized in a wide range of sustainable protective textiles, irrespective of the used post-finishing formulation ingredients. The results also show that both modification and functionalization processes are governed by the type of enzyme and kind of active material respectively. Moreover, the biosynthesized kerationlytic proteases could be accessibly used to remove protein-based stains like blood and egg.

Graphical abstract

     

EAPB0503, an Imidazoquinoxaline Derivative Modulates SENP3/ARF Mediated SUMOylation,and Induces NPM1c Degradation in NPM1 Mutant AML

Nucleophosmin-1 (NPM1) is a pleiotropic protein involved in numerous cellular processes. NPM1 shuttles between the nucleus and the cytoplasm, but exhibits a predominant nucleolar localization, where its fate and functions are exquisitely controlled by dynamic post-translational modifications (PTM). Sentrin/SUMO Specific Peptidase 3 (SENP3) and ARF are two nucleolar proteins involved in NPM1 PTMs. SENP3 antagonizes ARF-mediated NPM1 SUMOylation, to promote ribosomal biogenesis. In Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), NPM1 is frequently mutated, and exhibits an aberrant cytoplasmic localization (NPM1c). NPM1c mutations define a separate AML entity with good prognosis in some AML patients, rendering NPM1c as a potential therapeutic target. SENP3-mediated NPM1 de-SUMOylation induces resistance to therapy in NPM1c AML. Here, we demonstrate that the imidazoquinoxaline EAPB0503 prolongs the survival and results in selective reduction in the leukemia burden of NPM1c AML xenograft mice. Indeed, EAPB0503 selectively downregulates HDM2 expression and activates the p53 pathway in NPM1c expressing cells, resulting in apoptosis. Importantly, we unraveled that NPM1c expressing cells exhibit low basal levels of SUMOylation paralleled with high SENP3 and low ARF basal levels. EAPB0503 reverted these molecular players by inducing NPM1c SUMOylation and ubiquitylation, leading to its proteasomal degradation. EAPB0503-induced NPM1c SUMOylation is concurrent with SENP3 downregulation and ARF upregulation in NPM1c expressing cells. Collectively, these results provide a strong rationale for testing therapies modulating NPM1c post-translational modifications in the management of NPM1c AML.