Application of automated blind for daylighting in tropical region

This paper reports an experimental and simulation study on application of automated Venetian blind for daylighting in tropical climate. A horizontal blind system operating automatically under programmed control was constructed and integrated onto the glazed windows to form a window system with an automated blind in a room of a laboratory building. A dimming controller was also integrated to the lighting system of the room. Different operation schemes of the window system were devised and tested in the attempt to maximize energy savings while maintaining the quality of the visual environment in the room. Intensive measurement of illuminance of the interior space was undertaken during the experiments. A methodology for calculation of interior daylight illuminance and associated glare corresponding to the configurations of the experiments was adopted. The method was coded into a computer program. Results of calculation from the program agree well with those from experiments for all the schemes of operation conducted. The program was used to simulate the situation when each scheme of operation was implemented for a whole year. It was found that such window system with automated blind enabled energy savings of 80%, but a more sophisticated scheme also helped maintain the interior visual quality at high level.     

Bioconversion of hydrocortisone to prednisolone by immobilized bacterial cells in a two-liquid-phase system

Bioconversion of hydrocortisone to prednisolone by free, immobilized and reused immobilized cells of three bacterial strains (Bacillus sphaericus ATCC 13805, Bacillus sphaericus SRP III and Arthrobacter simplex 6946) in an aqueous and a two-liquid-phase system using different organic solvents was investigated. The experiments were carried out in a 125 cm³ shake flask at 27±2°C, 220 rpm for 96 h. The contents of prednisolone and hydrocortisone in samples taken at 0, 3, 6, 24, 48, 72, 96 and 144 h were determined by HPLC analysis. The immobilized bacterial cells showed higher prednisolone yield than the free form in an aqueous system. In the two-phase systems, the butyl acetate to aqueous media ratio of 1: 30 for all three bacterial strains in immobilized forms gave the highest prednisolone yields, at an incubation time of 144 h, of 87·6, 70·6 and 88·3% respectively. For an n-decane to aqueous ratio of 1: 6, moderate prednisolone yields of 81·8, 47·9 and 71·4% were obtained with shorter incubation times of 72, 96 and 6 h respectively. For cyclohexane and other alcohols, the organisms produced low yields of prednisolone (0–30%). Single reuse of all three immobilized bacterial cells gave a 3–20% lower yield of prednisolone than the non-reused cells. The increase in hydrocortisone concentration decreased the prednisolone production whereas increasing the n-decane to aqueous ratio from 1: 6 to 1: 3 caused no significant change in the productivity. © 1998 Society of Chemical Industry     

Bioequivalence Evaluation of Two Formulations of Doxazosin Tablet in Healthy Thai Male Volunteers

ABSTRACT

The bioequivalence of two doxazosin 2 mg tablets was determined in 24 healthy Thai male volunteers after one single dose in a randomized cross-over study with a one week washout period. The study was conducted at Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Health Sciences Research Institute, Naresuan University, Phitsanulok, Thailand. Reference (Cardura®, Heinrich Mack Nachf. GmbH & Co. GK, Illertissen, Germany) and test (Dozozin-2®, Umeda Co., Ltd., Bangkok Thailand) were administered to volunteers after overnight fasting. Blood samples were collected at specified time intervals and plasma was separated. The validated HPLC method with fluorescence detection was used for quantification of doxazosin in plasma samples. The pharmacokinetic parameters, T_max, C_max, AUC_t, AUC_∞, T_1/2, λ_z, Cl and V_d, were determined from plasma concentration time profile of both formulations by using non-compartment analysis. The calculated pharmacokinetic parameters were compared statistically to evaluate bioequivalence between the two brands. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) using log-transformed C_max, AUC_t, and AUC_∞ did not show any significant difference between two formulations. The point estimates and 90% confidence intervals for C_max, AUC_t and AUC_∞ were within the acceptance range (0.80–1.25), satisfying the bioequivalence criteria of the Thailand Food and Drug Administration Guidelines. These results indicate that Dozozin-2® is bioequivalent to Cardura® and, thus, may be prescribed interchangeably.     

Bioequivalence evaluation of two formulations of doxazosin tablet in healthy thai male volunteers

The bioequivalence of two doxazosin 2 mg tablets was determined in 24 healthy Thai male volunteers after one single dose in a randomized cross-over study with a one week washout period. The study was conducted at Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Health Sciences Research Institute, Naresuan University, Phitsanulok, Thailand. Reference (Cardura®, Heinrich Mack Nachf. GmbH & Co. GK, Illertissen, Germany) and test (Dozozin-2®, Umeda Co., Ltd., Bangkok Thailand) were administered to volunteers after overnight fasting. Blood samples were collected at specified time intervals and plasma was separated. The validated HPLC method with fluorescence detection was used for quantification of doxazosin in plasma samples. The pharmacokinetic parameters, T_max, C_max, AUC_t, AUC_∞, T_1/2, λ_z, Cl and V_d, were determined from plasma concentration time profile of both formulations by using non-compartment analysis. The calculated pharmacokinetic parameters were compared statistically to evaluate bioequivalence between the two brands. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) using log-transformed C_max, AUC_t, and AUC_∞ did not show any significant difference between two formulations. The point estimates and 90% confidence intervals for C_max, AUC_t and AUC_∞ were within the acceptance range (0.80-1.25), satisfying the bioequivalence criteria of the Thailand Food and Drug Administration Guidelines. These results indicate that Dozozin-2® is bioequivalent to Cardura® and, thus, may be prescribed interchangeably.     

Effects of Coir Fiber and Maleic Anhydride Modification on the Properties of Thermoplastic Starch/PLA Composite Laminates

Coir fiber reinforced composite laminates made of poly(lactic acid) (PLA) with a thermoplastic starch (TPS) were fabricated. Modified thermoplastic starch (MTPS) was prepared by reactive blending of TPS with maleic anhydride (MA). The effect of coir fibers was of our main interest. The tensile properties, water absorption, and morphological properties of the fabricated composite laminates were investigated. The composite laminates between PLA and starch TPS were prepared using coir fiber as reinforcing core, and the physical, mechanical, and morphological properties were studied. The results suggested that the optimum fiber contents for maximum tensile strength for TPS/PLA and MTPS/PLA composites were 20 and 30 wt%, respectively. Using MA for chemical modification of TPS for PLA composites could reduce the PLA content of about 10 wt%, and improve the tensile about 20%. The volume swelling for the MTPS/PLA composites was much lower than that for the TPS/PLA composites, and the swelling reduced with increasing coir fiber content. Based on compressive strength, the pallets produced using MTPS/PLA composites showed a high potential to replace the commercial urea-formaldehyde/PLA composites. It clearly appeared that MA modification to TPS not only improve the mechanical properties of fiber reinforced PLA composites, but also made the PLA composites bio-degrade more quickly.     

Comparative study on the bioequivalence of two formulations of pioglitazone tablet in healthy Thai male volunteers

The bioequivalence study of two 30 mg pioglitazone formulations was determined in healthy Thai male volunteers after a single dose administration in a randomized cross-over study with a 1-week washout period. Due to the high variability of the rate and extent of absorption of pioglitazone, an add-on subject study was required to assess bioequivalence. Reference product (Actos®, Takeda Chemical Industries, Ltd., Osaka, Japan) and test product (Glubosil®, Silom Medical Co. Ltd., Bangkok, Thailand) were given to 35 volunteers after overnight fasting. Blood samples were collected at specified time intervals. Plasma was analyzed for pioglitazone concentration using a validated HPLC method. Pharmacokinetic parameters were compared between test and reference products from plasma concentration-time profile by using non-compartment analysis. The statistical comparison of C_max and AUC_0-t, AUC_t-∞ clearly indicated that no significant difference in two products of pioglitazone tablets in add-on subject study. The 90% confidence intervals for the mean ratio (test/reference) of C_max and AUC_0-t, AUC_t-∞ were within the Thailand Food and Drug Administration acceptance range. Based on the pharmacokinetic and statistical results of this study, we can conclude that Glubosil® is bioequivalent to Actos®, and that two products can be considered interchangeable in medical practice.     

Improvement of the mechanical and thermal properties of silica‐filled polychloroprene vulcanizates prepared from latex system

In this work, well‐dispersed silica suspension having excellent storage stability was prepared by using an ultrasonic probe. The obtained silica suspension and curatives were added into the polychloroprene (CR) latex for preparing silica‐filled CR latex compounds having various silica loadings. Then, the silica‐filled CR vulcanizates were prepared via a dipping process. The thermal and mechanical properties of the dipped CR vulcanizates containing silica dispersed by using an ultrasonic probe were compared with those of the dipped CR vulcanizates containing silica dispersed by using a mechanical stirrer. By using thermogravimetric analysis, it could be seen that thermal resistance of the dipped CR films having silica prepared by ultrasonic probe is greater than that prepared by using the mechanical stirrer. This result corresponds well with their tensile strength after aging in the hot‐air oven. In addition, modulus, tensile strength, and tear strength of the vulcanizates prepared from CR latex compounds containing silica prepared by using the ultrasonic probe are obviously greater than those prepared by using the mechanical stirrer, especially at high silica loading. This is because the silica prepared using the ultrasonic probe is uniformly distributed and dispersed throughout the CR matrix, as can be observed in the scanning electron microscope micrographs. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

Comparative Study on the Bioequivalence of Two Formulations of Pioglitazone Tablet in Healthy Thai Male Volunteers

The bioequivalence study of two 30 mg pioglitazone formulations was determined in healthy Thai male volunteers after a single dose administration in a randomized cross-over study with a 1-week washout period. Due to the high variability of the rate and extent of absorption of pioglitazone, an add-on subject study was required to assess bioequivalence. Reference product (Actos®, Takeda Chemical Industries, Ltd., Osaka, Japan) and test product (Glubosil®, Silom Medical Co. Ltd., Bangkok, Thailand) were given to 35 volunteers after overnight fasting. Blood samples were collected at specified time intervals. Plasma was analyzed for pioglitazone concentration using a validated HPLC method. Pharmacokinetic parameters were compared between test and reference products from plasma concentration-time profile by using non-compartment analysis. The statistical comparison of C_max and AUC_0?t, AUC_t?∞ clearly indicated that no significant difference in two products of pioglitazone tablets in add-on subject study. The 90% confidence intervals for the mean ratio (test/reference) of C_max and AUC_0?t, AUC_t?∞ were within the Thailand Food and Drug Administration acceptance range. Based on the pharmacokinetic and statistical results of this study, we can conclude that Glubosil® is bioequivalent to Actos®, and that two products can be considered interchangeable in medical practice.     

A novel aeration strategy in repeated-batch fermentation for efficient ethanol production from sweet sorghum juice

To improve the efficiency of ethanol production in a batch fermentation from sweet sorghum juice under a very high gravity(VHG) condition(～ 290 g/L of total sugar) by Saccharomyces cerevisiae NP01, repeatedbatch fermentation under an aerated condition(2.5 vvm for the first 4 h during every cycle) was done in a5-L fermenter. The average ethanol concentration(P), productivity(Qp) and yield(Yp/s) for five successive cycles were 112.31 g/L, 1.55 g/L·h~(-1) and 0.44, respectively with 80.97% sugar consumption. To complete sugar consumption, the total sugar of the juice was reduced to a high gravity(HG) level(～240 g/L). The results showed that yeast extract was not necessary for ethanol production, and aeration during every other cycle i.e., alternating cycles, was sufficient to promote both yeast growth and ethanol production.The average P, Qpand Yp/svalues for eight successive cycles with aeration during alternating cycles were97.58 g/L, 1.98 g/Láh and 0.41, respectively with 91.21% sugar consumption. The total fatty acids in the yeast cells under the aerated condition were ～ 50% higher than without aeration, irrespective the initial sugar concentration, whereas the ergosterol contents under aeration condition were ～ 29% to 49% higher than those without aeration.