Electron Microscopy of Annealed (Ni,Zn,Co)Fe2O4

( Ni,Zn)Fe₂O₄ samples containing small amounts of Co were characterized in a transmission electron microscope to ascertain the micro structural changes accompanying low-temperature oxidation of the samples. Although no new features resulting from oxidation were observed, prominent surjace reduction occurred in the thin foil specimens. Formation and growth of Ni particles on the ferrite surface are explained using the heats of formation of the oxides.²     

Polymers from renewable resources. VIII. Thermal properties of the interpenetrating polymer networks derived from castor oil–isophorone diisocyanate–polyacrylamides

Castor oil was reacted with isophorone diisocyanate varying the isocyanate/hydroxyl ratio to produce a number of polyurethanes (PUs). All the PUs were reacted with acrylamide and methacrylamide using ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as the crosslinker and benzoyl peroxide as the initiator. Thermogravimetric analysis of the polymers was conducted using a computer analysis method for assigning the kinetic mechanism. The degradation steps have been discussed in the light of the kinetic parameters. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Enhancement in magnetic permeability of Ni-Co-Zn ferrites using CuO doping for RF and microwave devices

Novel soft magnetic ferrite materials will play a crucial role in next-generation trillion-dollar sensor technologies related to 5G communications and internet of things as these materials can achieve improved wireless power/signal transfer efficiency with high operation frequency. In this work, Ni_0.4Co_0.25Zn_0.35Fe₂O₄ ferrites with high permeability and low magnetic loss were prepared for RF and microwave device applications. Composition and microstructure control is crucial to obtain the desired magnetic and loss properties. CuO dopant (x = 0 wt% to 20 wt%) were employed during the synthesis of Ni_0.4Co_0.25Zn_0.35Fe₂O₄ ferrite specimens to modify the microstructures, thus improving the magnetic properties of the ferrites. High value of measured relative permeability (μ’ of 4-10) and relatively low magnetic loss tangent ( of 0.01-0.1) has been achieved at frequency range between 100 and 800 MHz. Addition of CuO, especially up to 3 wt%, can cause a significant increase in permeability. Real part of the permeability of 3.87 and 10.9 has been achieved for undoped and 3 wt% CuO doped specimens, while noticeable reduction in magnetic losses has been observed for the doped sample measured at 400 MHz. The resonance frequency of synthesized ferrites has also been shifted into GHz range, when higher concentration of CuO dopants (>5 wt%) were employed.     

Reduced order modeling & controller design for mass transfer in a grain storage system

This paper considers the problem of simulating the humidity distributions of a grain storage system. The distributions are described by partial differential equations (PDE). It is quite difficult to obtain the humidity profiles from the PDE model. Hence, a discretization method is applied to obtain an equivalent ordinary differential equation model. However, after applying the discretization technique, the cost of solving the system increases as the size increases to a few thousands. It may be noted that after discretization, the degree of freedom of the system remain the same while the order increases. The large dynamic model is reduced using a proper orthogonal decomposition based technique and an equivalent model but of much reduced size is obtained. A controller based on optimal control theory is designed to obtain an input such that the output humidity reaches a desired profile and also its stability is analyzed. Numerical results are presented to show the validity of the reduced model and possible further extensions are identified.     

Grafting vinyl monomers into nylon-6. II. Graft copolymerization of methyl methacrylate onto nylon-6 by hexavalent chromium ion

The feasibility of chromium(VI) to induce graft copolymerization of methyl methacrylate onto nylon-6 was investigated in the presence of nitrogen. The rate of grafting was determined by varying monomer concentration, chromium(VI) concentration, temperature, acidity of the medium, solvents, inorganic salts, and redox system. The graft yield increases significantly by increasing the monomer concentration. The graft yield increases with increase of [Cr(VI)] up to 0.025 mole/liter. With further increase of [Cr(VI)], the graft yield decreases. The increase of acid concentration up to 0.395 mole/liter results the increase in graft yield. Beyond this concentration the graft yield decreases. The graft yield increases with increase in temperature up to 55°C and thereafter it decreases. The graft yield is medium dependent. The graft yield increases with increasing thiourea concentration upto 0.0025 mole/liter but beyond this concentration, the percentage graft yield decreases. A suitable kinetic scheme has been proposed and the rate equation has been evaluated.     

Effect of flow rate and temperature on crystallization kinetics,crystallinity index,and elastic modulus of PEEK

Dynamic, in situ wide angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) studies of the melt crystallization of injection-molded poly(ether ether ketone) (PEEK) have been carried out using an X-ray diffractometer and a position-sensitive detector. A test cell has been fabricated to fit inside the diffractometer and yet work as a complete injection molding apparatus. The rate of crystallization has been shown to increase with decreasing crystallization temperature and/or increasing flow rate in the mold. The crystallization rate decreases dramatically with increase in melt soak time at 400°C. The crystallinity index, which affects the stiffness, toughness, and fracture behavior of PEEK, has been measured under various processing conditions, by wide angle X-ray scattering, so as to optimize the process parameters: molding time, mold temperature, melt temperature, soak time at melt temperature, and flow rate. It has been shown that the crystallinity and hence the elastic modulus increase with increase in crystallization temperature and/or flow rate. Chain orientation has been shown to be absent in the bulk of the injection-molded specimens under normal molding conditions.     

Production of agrochemical from waste polyesters

In this study, agrochemical was produced from waste polyesters. Reactions of waste polyesters [poly (ethylene terephthalate) (PET) and poly (butylene terephthalate) (PBT)] powder with ethylene glycol (EG) in the presence of tetrahydrofurane (THF) using 0.003 mol lead acetate as a catalyst were carried out in a batch reactor at 470 K and at atmospheric pressure conditions. Reactions were undertaken with various particle size ranges from 50 to 512.5 μm, and reaction time from 30 to 70 min for reactions of polyesters. Low molecular weight product of polyester was obtained during this process. In the next stage, hydroxylamine hydrochloride (HAHC), cyclohexylamine (CHA), and potasium hydroxide (KOH) solution were introduced to convert low molecular weight product of polyester into terephthalohydroxamic acid (TPHA) by introduction of HCl (Hydrochloric Acid) as per stoichiometric requirement. TPHA can be used as an agrochemical (insecticide) with appreciable efficiency. To increase the polyester conversion rate, external catalyst (0.003 mol lead acetate) was introduced during the reaction. The product was deposited on the surface of unreacted polyester, which was removed from the surface by introducing dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). To accelerate the reaction rate, DMSO, CHA, and THF were introduced during the reaction, which has an industrial significance. Depolymerization of polyester was proportional to the reaction time. Depolymerization of polyester was inversely proportional to the particle size of polyester. Analyses of value‐added product (TPHA) and byproducts [EG and BD (1,4‐butanediol)] as well as polyesters were undertaken. A kinetic model is developed, and experimental data simulated with it, which was consistent with the model. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 100: 2504–2510, 2006     

Vibrational dynamics and heat capacity in syndiotactic poly(propylene) form I

Normal modes of vibration of syndiotactic polypropylene (sPP) and their dispersion are obtained in the reduced zone scheme for helical form I having the conformational sequence (t₂g₂) using Urey-Bradley force field and Wilson's GF matrix method as modified by Higgs. Optically active frequencies corresponding to the zone center and zone boundary are assigned and characteristic features of the dispersion curves are discussed. In general the dispersion in the helical form is less as compared to the planar form. Heat capacity has been calculated via density-of-states using Debye relation in the temperature range 10-460 K and compared with the experimental measurements.     

Design of a password-based authenticated key exchange protocol for SIP

The Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) is a signaling communications protocol, which has been chosen for controlling multimedia communication in 3G mobile networks. In recent years, password-based authenticated key exchange protocols are designed to provide strong authentication for SIP. In this paper, we address this problem in two-party setting where the user and server try to authenticate each other, and establish a session key using a shared password. We aim to propose a secure and anonymous authenticated key exchange protocol, which can achieve security and privacy goal without increasing computation and communication overhead. Through the analysis, we show that the proposed protocol is secure, and has computational and computational overheads comparable to related authentication protocols for SIP using elliptic curve cryptography. The proposed protocol is also provably secure in the random oracle model.     

Design and performance of a punch mechanism based pellet injector for alternative injection in the large helical device

A low speed single barrel pellet injector, using a mechanical punch device has been developed for alternative injection in the large helical device. A pellet is injected by the combined operation of a mechanical punch and a pneumatic propellant system. The pellet shape is cylindrical, 3 mm in diameter and 3 mm in length. Using this technique the speed of the pellet can be controlled flexibly in the range of 100-450 m/s, and a higher speed can be feasible for a higher gas pressure. The injector is equipped with a guide tube selector to direct the pellet to different injection locations. Pellets are exposed to several curved parts with the curvature radii R(c) = 0.8 and 0.3 m when they are transferred in guided tubes to the respective injection locations. Pellet speed variation with pressure at different pellet formation temperatures has been observed. Pellet intactness tests through these guide tubes show a variation in the intact speed limit over a range of pellet formation temperatures from 6.5 to 9.8 K. Pellet speed reduction of less than 6% has been observed after the pellet moves through the curved guide tubes.