Synthesis,thermal, and photo alignment behavior of polyethylene imines having nitro substituent azobenzene side chain group

Polyethylene imines having nitro substituent azobenzene side chain group with different methylene spacer groups (PEImN) were successfully synthesized and characterized by differential scanning calorimetry, polarized optical microscopic, and X‐ray diffraction analysis. All synthesized polyethylene imines showed liquid crystalline properties and the glass transition temperature (Tg) of PEImN decreased as the number of methylene spacers increased. Melting temperatures (Tm) of synthesized PEImN showed an odd‐even effect. Photochemical, thermo‐optical, as well as photo alignment behavior of PEImN were investigated and out‐of‐plane orientational behavior of polymeric films was dependent on number of methylene spacers and polyethylene imines having higher number of methylene spacers (six or more) showed high order parameter values that revealed the well pronounced tendency for the development of out‐of‐plane order from random state on annealing. And the molecular orientation of PEImN between random and out‐of‐plane structures has been achieved by the combination of thermal and photochemical processes. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011     

A model for water sharing in the Ganges River Basin

This study investigates water resources sharing and in particular the impact of the Farakka Barrage in the Ganges River Basin management which has led to conflict between the Ganges states since 1951. A deadlock prevailed between Bangladesh and India during the dry seasons. The 1996 water sharing treaty adopted and the results suggest that availability of flows is crucial during the period 1 March to 31 May. Moreover, the average flow availability at Farakka dam has been gradually declining during the period 1997 to 2007. For 2005 and 2006, it was found that the average flow availability declined by 12 and 25%, respectively. A Stackelberg leader–follower model is described for optimal water allocation in the Ganges River Basin between Bangladesh and India both with and without additional water transfers from Nepal. It is recommended that a market‐based water transfer arrangement from Nepal is implemented for both Bangladesh and India.     

Reduced cytotoxicity of insulin-immobilized CdS quantum dots using PEG as a spacer

Cytotoxicity is a severe problem for cadmium sulfide nanoparticles (CSNPs) in biological systems. In this study, mercaptoacetic acid-coated CSNPs, typical semiconductor Q-dots, were synthesized in aqueous medium by the arrested precipitation method. Then, amino-terminated polyethylene glycol (PEG) was conjugated to the surface of CSNPs (PCSNPs) in order to introduce amino groups to the surface. Finally, insulin was immobilized on the surface of PCSNPs (ICSNPs) to reduce cytotoxicity as well as to enhance cell compatibility. The presence of insulin on the surface of ICSNPs was confirmed by observing infrared absorptions of amide I and II. The mean diameter of ICSNPs as determined by dynamic light scattering was about 38 nm. Human fibroblasts were cultured in the absence and presence of cadmium sulfide nanoparticles to evaluate cytotoxicity and cell compatibility. The results showed that the cytotoxicity of insulin-immobilized cadmium sulfide nanoparticles was significantly suppressed by usage of PEG as a spacer. In addition, cell proliferation was highly facilitated by the addition of ICSNPs. The ICSNPs used in this study will be potentials to be used in bio-imaging applications.     

Development of a neural network based integrated control system of 120 ton/h capacity boiler

An integrated control system based on artificial neural network (ANN) is presented in this paper to control a 120 ton/h capacity boiler of the Zia Fertilizer Company Limited (ZFCL), Ashuganj, Bangladesh. The process inverse dynamic modelling technique is applied to design the proposed controller. A multilayer feed-forward neural network is trained to identify the unknown inverse dynamic model of the boiler plant by a well known learning algorithm called backpropagation. The training data were collected from the history file of ZFCL. A new software controller is then developed for integrated control system of the ZFCL boiler using the weights of the trained network. Both the training mode and running mode of the developed controller are presented in this paper. The controller output is also converted into electrical signal using pulse width control technique. The generated signal is used for on-line regulation of the control valve through the parallel port of the computer. The developed controller is tested by using the boiler input–output data that are not used during the training. The output response and performance of the developed controller is compared with those of the existing PID controller of the plant.     

Structuration and Destructuration Behavior of Cement-Treated Singapore Marine Clay

This paper examines the structuration and destructuration characteristics of cement-treated Singapore marine clay and their relation to the observed microstructural behavior. The pozzolanic reaction is found to be very significant up to curing periods of 1?year, and thus the unconfined compressive strength increases notably leading to the formation of more structured treated clay. Due to the effect of structuration (existing of cementation bond), the yield stress increases resulting in an expansion of the yield surface and failure envelope under compression and shearing. The microstructural observation of treated clay structure at various stress levels from one-dimensional consolidation shows that destructuration (breaking of cementation bond) is progressive; the largest intercluster voids being the first affected. As the consolidation proceeds, both inter and intracluster voids are affected. Consolidated undrained triaxial results reveal that complete destructuration only takes place on the shear plane at which the clay–cement cluster crushes.     

Smart Cities and Mobility: Does the Smartness of Australian Cities Lead to Sustainable Commuting Patterns?

ABSTRACT

Smart cities have become a popular concept because they have the potential to create a sustainable and livable urban future. Smart mobility forms an integral part of the smart city agenda. This paper investigates “smart mobility” from the angle of sustainable commuting practices in the context of smart cities. This paper studies a multivariate multiple regression model within a panel data framework and examines whether increasing access to broadband Internet connections leads to the choice of a sustainable commuting mode in Australian local government areas. In this case, access to the Internet is used as a proxy for determining urban smartness, and the use of different modes of transport including working at home is used to investigate sustainability in commuting behavior. The findings show that an increasing access to broadband Internet reduces the level of working from home, public transport use, and active transport use, but increases the use of private vehicles, perhaps to overcome the fragmentation of work activities the Internet creates. How to overcome the need for car-based travel for fragmented work activities while increasing smartness through the provisioning of broadband access should be a key smart city agenda for Australia to make its cities more sustainable.     

Towards Post-Anthropocentric Cities: Reconceptualizing Smart Cities to Evade Urban Ecocide

ABSTRACT

This short piece acts as a coda to this journal’s special issue on “Smart Cities and Innovative Technologies.” First, it provides a retrospective view of the origins of the smart city concept. The paper, secondly, presents the most recent perspectives on the new interpretations of the smart city notion. It then provides a commentary on the potential directions for a better reconceptualization of smart cities to evade a most likely urban ecocide. Lastly, the short communication concludes by asking two critical questions: (a) Will urban scholars, planners, designers, and activists be able to convince urban policymakers and the general public of the need for a post-anthropocentric urban turnaround? (b) How do the public, private, and academic sectors along with communities pave the way for post-anthropocentric cities and more-than-human futures?