Size effect on creep energy dissipation during stable crack growth

Creep energy dissipation (CED) due to crack tip creep zone is determined under steady state conditions for centre cracked thin specimen of 1.25CrO.5Mo steel, with different widths and crack length to width ratios. The creep energy rate increases when the increment in crack length Δa increases and the slope increases with increase in aspect ratio a/W and decreases with increase in width W.     

Selenium-mediated differential response of beta-glucosidase and beta-galactosidase of germinating Trigonella foenum-graecum

Beta-glucosidase and beta-galactosidase activity profile tested in different seeds during 24 h germination revealed reasonably high levels of activity in Vigna radiata, Cicer arietinum, and Trigonella foenum-graecum. In all seeds tested, beta-galactosidase activity was, in general, higher than that of beta-glucosidase. T. foenum-graecum seedlings exhibited maximal total and specific activities for both the enzymes during 72 h germination. Se supplementation as Na2SeO3 up to 0.75 ppm was found to be beneficial to growth and revealed selective enhancement of beta-galactosidase activity by 40% at 0.5 ppm Se. The activities of both the enzymes drastically decreased at 1.0 ppm level of Se supplementation. On the contrary, addition of Na2SeO3 in vitro up to 1 ppm to the enzyme extracts did not influence these activities. Hydrolytic rates of beta-glucosidase in both control and Se-supplemented groups were enhanced by 20% with 0.05 M glycerol in the medium and 30% at 0.1 M glycerol. The rates were marginally higher in Se-supplemented seedlings than the controls, irrespective of added glycerol in the medium. In contrast, hydrolysis by beta-galactosidase showed a trend of decrease in Se-supplemented seedlings compared to the control, when glycerol was present in the medium. Addition of Se in vitro in the assay medium showed no difference in the hydrolytic rate by beta-galactosidase when compared to control, while the activity of beta-glucosidase declined by 50%. Se-grown seedlings showed an enhancement of transglucosidation rate by 40% in the presence of 0.1 M glycerol. The study reveals a differential response to Se among the beta-galactosidase and beta-glucosidase of T. foenum-graecum with increase in the levels of beta-galactosidase activity.     

Unital Design Based Location Service for Subterranean Network Using Long Range Topology

Wireless Personal Communications - Wireless Underground Networks comprise the ability to constantly monitor several physical parameters such as ground temperature, water level and soil condition,...     

Thermal depolarization and electromechanical hardening in Zn2+-doped Na1/2Bi1/2TiO3-BaTiO3

Na_1/2Bi_1/2TiO₃-based materials have been earmarked for one of the first large-volume applications of lead-free piezoceramics in high-power ultrasonics. Zn²⁺-doping is demonstrated as a viable route to enhance the thermal depolarization temperature and electromechanically harden (1-y)Na_1/2Bi_1/2TiO₃-yBaTiO₃ (NBT100yBT) with a maximum achievable operating temperature of 150 °C and mechanical quality factor of 627 for 1 mole % Zn²⁺-doped NBT6BT. Although quenching from sintering temperatures has been recently touted to enhance T_F-R, with quenching the doped compositions featuring an additional increase in T_F-R by 17 °C, it exhibits negligible effect on the electromechanical properties. The effect is rationalized considering the missing influence on conductivity and therefore, negligible changes in the defect chemistry upon quenching. High-resolution diffraction indicates that Zn²⁺-doped samples favor the tetragonal phase with enhanced lattice distortion, further corroborated by ²³Na Nuclear Magnetic Resonance investigations.     

Large electrocaloric effect with ultrawide temperature span in Na1/2Bi1/2TiO3-based lead-free ceramics

Innovative cooling technologies are recognized by many industries as a crucial part of their system design. A large electrocaloric effect (ECE) and extended working temperature are the key issues hindering the realization of electrocaloric refrigeration technology. In this work, large ECE (ΔT = 0.8–0.9°C @ 4 kV/mm) with an ultrawide temperature span from 30 to 120°C is noted for lead-free (Na_1/2Bi_1/2)_0.80Sr_0.20(Zn_1/3Nb_2/3)_xTi_1-xO₃ ceramics. The excellent ECE performance can be ascribed to the evolution of polar nanoregions. Our work suggests that this material is promising for applications in solid-state refrigeration systems with a broad range of operating temperatures.     

8 MeV electron irradiation effects in silicon photo-detectors

Results of investigations on the electrical properties of n⁺-p-p⁺ silicon (Si) photo-detectors irradiated with 8 MeV electrons are presented. The photo-detectors were irradiated with electrons of doses up to 100 kGy. Current-voltage (I-V) and capacitance-voltage (C-V) characteristics under dark conditions were measured as a function of dose. A significant change in the diffusion component of the saturation current is observed after irradiation, while the generation-recombination component of the saturation current remains almost unchanged. The series resistance is found to increase with increasing dose while the shunt resistance and carrier concentration decrease with dose. Optoelectronic properties, namely short circuit current I_sc, open circuit voltage V_oc under air mass zero illumination and spectral response, were measured at various doses. From the spectral responses of the devices, the minority carrier diffusion length was estimated.     

Serotyping of Streptococcus pneumoniae by coagglutination with 12 pooled antisera

We report on the performance of a recently introduced commercial chessboard method using 12 antisera, in comparison with that of the 55-antiserum panel used in determining the serogroups and types (SGTs) of Streptococcus pneumoniae, both of which were carried out by a coagglutination technique. Of a total of 150 strains of S. pneumoniae studied, 135 (90%) belonged to the SGTs represented in the 23-valent pneumococcal vaccine; of these, 130 (96.3%) were identified as the same SGTs by both typing methods. The remaining five strains showed cross-reactivity with more than two pools by the chessboard method, but could be assigned to a single SGT by the Quellung test. The 96.3% concordance of the chessboard method suggests it can be adopted for determination of the SGTs of S. pneumoniae in laboratories.     

PHYSIOLOGICAL AND MORPHOLOGICAL CHANGES IN IMMOBILIZED L. PLANTARUM NCIM 2084 CELLS DURING REPEATED BATCH FERMENTATION FOR PRODUCTION OF LACTIC ACID

L. Plantarum NCIM 2084 cells are homofermentative, essentially producing lactic acid as the main end product of glucose fermentation. Prolonged use through repeated batch fermentation with the cells of L. plantarum immobilized on chitosan treated polypropylene matrix showed a shift in the metabolic pathway from the homofermentative to heterofermentative, accompanied by morphological changes in immobilized cells from the normal rod shape to the coccoid shape. These changes appear to be related to a shift in the bacterial cell metabolism, resulting in a decrease in lactic acid yields.     

Detection and identification of genetically modified EE‐1 brinjal (Solanum melongena) by single,multiplex and SYBR® real‐time PCR

BACKGROUND: Brinjal is an important vegetable crop. Major crop loss of brinjal is due to insect attack. Insect‐resistant EE‐1 brinjal has been developed and is awaiting approval for commercial release. Consumer health concerns and implementation of international labelling legislation demand reliable analytical detection methods for genetically modified (GM) varieties. RESULTS: End‐point and real‐time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods were used to detect EE‐1 brinjal. In end‐point PCR, primer pairs specific to 35S CaMV promoter, NOS terminator and nptII gene common to other GM crops were used. Based on the revealed 3′ transgene integration sequence, primers specific for the event EE‐1 brinjal were designed. These primers were used for end‐point single, multiplex and SYBR‐based real‐time PCR. End‐point single PCR showed that the designed primers were highly specific to event EE‐1 with a sensitivity of 20 pg of genomic DNA, corresponding to 20 copies of haploid EE‐1 brinjal genomic DNA. The limits of detection and quantification for SYBR‐based real‐time PCR assay were 10 and 100 copies respectively. CONCLUSION: The prior development of detection methods for this important vegetable crop will facilitate compliance with any forthcoming labelling regulations. Copyright © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry     

8 MeV electron irradiation studies on electrical characteristics of Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells

Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ (CIGS) solar cells are gaining considerable interest due to their high optical absorption coefficient and adjustable band gap, which enables them to achieve high conversion efficiency and also present many promising applications in space power systems. In this paper we report the results of the effect of temperature and 8 MeV electron irradiation on the electrical characteristics of ZnO/CdS/Cu(In,Ga)Se₂/Mo polycrystalline thin-film solar cells under forward and reverse bias studied in the temperature range 270-315 K. The solar cells were subjected to 8 MeV electron irradiation from the Microtron accelerator and were exposed to graded doses of electrons up to 75 kGy. I-V characteristics of the cells under dark and AM 1.5 illumination condition were studied before and after the irradiation. Capacitance measurements were also carried out at various frequencies before and after irradiation. In the measured temperature range, the dark current contribution is due to the generation-recombination of the minority carriers in the depletion region. The ideality factor is found to decrease with increase in temperature. It seems that electron irradiation has not altered the dark current conduction mechanism significantly. The effect of electron irradiation on the solar cell parameters such as fill factor (FF), conversion efficiency (η), saturation current (I_o), short circuit current (I_sc), open circuit voltage (V_oc), and ideality factor (n) was studied. They were found to be stable up to 75 kGy of electron dose as only small changes were observed in the solar cell parameters.