In-house contamination of potable water in urban slum of Kolkata, India: a possible transmission route of diarrhea

We have investigated and determined the potentiality of different water sources, both for drinking and domestic purposes, in diarrheal disease transmission in diarrhea endemic foci of urban slums in Kolkata, India in a one and half year prospective study. Out of 517 water samples, collected from different sources, stored water (washing) showed higher prevalence of fecal coliforms (58%) (p < 0.0001) in comparison with stored (drinking) samples (28%) and tap/tubewell water (8%) respectively. Among different sources, stored water (washing) samples had the highest non-permissible range of physico-chemical parameters. Fecal coliform levels in household water containers (washing) were comparatively high and almost 2/3 of these samples failed to reach the satisfactory level of residual chlorine. Interestingly, 7% stored water (washing) samples were found to be harboring Vibrio cholerae Improper usage of stored water and unsafe/poor sanitation practices such as hand washing etc. are highlighted as contributory factors for sustained diarrheal episodes. Vulnerability of stored water for domestic usage, a hitherto unexplored source, at domiciliary level in an urban slum where enteric infections are endemic, is reported for the first time. This attempt highlights the impact of quality of stored water at domiciliary level for fecal-oral contamination vis-à-vis disease transmission.     

Pinch Roller Failure Analysis and Resulting Enhancement of Rebar Mechanical Properties

Reinforcing bars, popularly termed “rebars,” are used to impart tensile strength to concrete structures. Concrete has high resistance to weathering and fire and high compressive strength but almost no tensile strength, hence rebars are used to provide the latter to concrete. Property consistency along the length of rebars is an important prerequisite. When the finished product is subjected to thermomechanical treatment (TMT), proper control of rolling and water box parameters and efficient pinch rolling are needed to achieve acceptable properties. Variation of yield strength (YS) along TMT bars from the front to back end has been observed within the same heat treatment. In the presented investigation, it was observed that pinch rolling ineffectiveness is the main reason for the poor mechanical properties at the back end. The pinch roller was unable to support the back end of the TMT bars properly to maintain the speed and tension of the bars, resulting in nonuniform cooling of the back end through the water box and subsequent mechanical property failure. Due to the substandard material of the pinch roller, it was unable to hold the back end of the bar properly. Based on analysis of the roller it was concluded that it failed due to improper microstructure, resulting in inadequate hardness and toughness for the stringent operating conditions. AISI H13 is a better material to use in such high-service-temperature conditions. Moreover, proper heat treatment is needed to achieve adequate hardness and microstructure properties. After proper heat treatment of pinch rollers, their service life was increased twofold, minimizing the YS variation along the rebars.     

Effect of microstructure on non-linear behavior of ultrasound during low cycle fatigue of pearlitic steels

Influence of microstructural changes on the second harmonics of sinusoidal ultrasonic wave during low cycle fatigue (LCF) deformation in pearlitic steel was studied. Fatigue tests were interrupted and at every interruption, non-linear ultrasonic (NLU) parameter (β) was determined. Microstructures of cyclically deformed specimens at various cycles were examined by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The variation of β with fatigue cycles was correlated with the microstructural changes and the results were explained through the variation in dislocation morphology and carbon content of the steel.     

Sustainable model for financial viability of decentralized biomass gasifier based power projects

This paper made a modest attempt for designing a sustainable model for financial viability of biomass gasifier power projects for enhancing electricity access in India and other developing countries. For long term sustainability of distributed generation projects in remote rural areas, viability from both project implementing agency (PIA) and the end-users need to be ensured. The minimum required prices of electricity from both PIA and end-user perspective have been estimated. While for PIA the cost recovery is the key for viability, the affordability to pay the electricity cost is crucial for the end users. Analysis carried out in this paper on the basis of data obtained from operational projects implemented in India reveal that it is essential to operate the system at a higher capacity utilization factor. While this can be achieved though creating convergence with locally relevant economic activity, it is also observed that micro-enterprises cannot pay beyond a certain price of electricity to keep it sustainable. This paper sets forth a case for developing a regulatory mechanism to extend the tariff fixation for the projects and providing cross-subsidies to ensure long term sustainability of off-grid project.     

Crystallography of solid–liquid interface and evolution of texture during directional solidification of Tb0.3Dy0.7Fe1.95 alloy

The effect of growth texture on the magnetostriction of ternary Tb_0.3Dy_0.7Fe_1.95 was studied by conducting unidirectional solidification experiments using a zoning set-up. Detailed texture evolutions were studied using X-ray diffraction on samples obtained by varying growth rates from 18 to 72 cm/h, under a temperature gradient of 100 °C/cm. The estimated texture co-efficient and pole figures of the samples indicate that during the onset of the solidification, <110> and <331>/‘rotated <110>’ texture components nucleate and grow in all the samples. However, as the solidification progresses, <112> texture component becomes dominant at higher growth rate. This results in an improvement of magnetostriction from 1000 to 1300 microstrains for samples grown at growth rates of 18 and 72 cm/h respectively. The transition of preferred growth direction occurs through intermediate orientations <123>. An attempt has been made in this paper to explain the occurrence of different growth texture by considering the stability of growing interface, its planar packing fraction and atomic stacking sequence of several low index planes.     

Reaction kinetics and mechanical properties in the reactive brazing of copper to aluminum nitride

Aluminum nitride (AlN) is an attractive substrate material for electronic packaging applications because of its high thermal conductivity and electrical resistivity. However, improved metallization of aluminum nitride is required for reliable conductivity and good adhesion to the ceramic substrate. In this study, the kinetics, microstructure, and mechanical strength of Ag–Cu–Ti/AlN reaction couples have been studied in the temperature range of 900–1,050 °C and hold time range of 0–1.44 × 10⁴ s using a eutectic silver–copper filler alloy containing titanium within the range of 2–8 wt%. The product layer thickening kinetics has been observed to change from a linear to non-linear thickening mechanism with the increase in holding time and temperature. At shorter hold times at a fixed temperature, the interfacial product layer followed a linear thickening kinetics. With the increase in the hold time, the thickening kinetics of the interface followed a non-linear thickening behavior. The non-linear thickening mechanism has been approximated as a parabolic thickening mechanism. The interface has been found to be rich in the reactive metal (Ti) content. The mechanical strength of the brazed joints has been analyzed using four-point bend tests. The strength of the brazed joints initially increased and then decreased with an increase in the hold time at a fixed temperature. A maximum strength of 196 MPa has been obtained for a brazed joint heated at 1,000 °C for 2,700 s containing 2 wt% Ti in the filler alloy. It was observed that the sample with the maximum strength had a discontinuous interface.     

On the opening of two coplanar griffith cracks

The problem of opening two coplanar Griffith cracks in an infinite elastic medium has been considered in this note. The application of Somigliana's method to this mixed boundary value problem leads to a Föppl integral equation, whose solution has been derived in closed form with the help of a convolution theorem connected with finite Hilbert transforms.

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Résumé On a considéré, dans ce mémoire, le problème de l'ouverture de 2 fissures coplanaires de Griffith dans un milieu élastique infini. L'application de la méthode de Somigliana au problème de la valeur de la frontière indéfinie conduit à une équation intégrale de Föppl dont la solution a été dérivée sous une forme fermée en utilisant un théorème de convolution connecté à une transformée finie de Hilbert.

     

High-pressure synthesis of ethyl benzoate from chloro- and bromobenzene

When chlorobenzene was reacted with ethyl alcohol and carbon monoxide under pressure, the conversions of chlorobenzene to ethyl benzoate and benzoic acid under optimum reaction conditions were 31.3% and 30.1% respectively, with nickel naphthenate supported on silica gel (Ni:SiO₂ = 50:50) as the best catalyst. When bromobenzene was used instead of chlorobenzene, the best catalyst was found to be nickel iodide supported on silica gel (Ni:SiO₂ = 50:50), and the above conversions were 74.7% and 25.1% respectively under optimum reaction conditions.     

Electrical conductivity and luminescence of 9-chloro-10,10′-bis-(dichloromethyleno)-(9′H)-10,10′-dihydro-9,9′-bianthryl (CDDB)

The absorption and fluorescenc of 9-chloro-10,10′-bis-(dichloromethyleno)-(9′H)-10,10′-dihydro-9,9′-bianthryl (CDDB) has been studied in polar and nonpolar solvents and also in microcrystal. In polar solvents CDDB emits from two molecular forms, the normal charge transfer form (locally excited, LE form) and the solvent-induced twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) form. Electrically, CDDB possesses semiconducting property with conductivity approximately 10⁻⁹ S cm⁻¹ and this conductivity further increases to 10⁻⁷ S cm⁻¹ on photoexcitation. Intramolecular charge transfer by hopping mechanism is assumed to be the main process for controlling activation energy and electronic conduction.