Opportunistic Routing Protocol Based EPO–BES in MANET for Optimal Path Selection

Wireless Personal Communications - Despite its various benefits, the Mobile Ad-hoc Network (MANET) has a number of obstacles due to its mobility, unstable topology, energy efficiency, and other...     

Effect of heat treatment and zircon addition on the properties of low-cement castables based on recycled alumina grog

In this investigation, low-cement castables were prepared using 70% alumina grog aggregates obtained from crushed alumina brick waste. The aggregates were thermally treated at 1550 °C for 3 h. Four types of low-cement castables were prepared with various types of aggregates (alumina grog with or without thermal treatment) and fillers (with or without zircon addition), and they were evaluated in terms of their physical, thermal, and chemical properties. Microstructural analysis via scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was performed on the castables before and after slag attack. Compared to the other fabricated castables, the thermally treated alumina grog castables with zircon showed better physical properties, such as a higher bulk density, cold crushing strength, and modulus of rupture and a lower apparent porosity and water absorption. In addition, they had a higher positive linear thermal expansion, refractoriness under load, permanent linear change, and hot modulus of rupture. The results of the SEM with energy dispersive X-ray analysis of the prepared castables confirmed that the mullite and anorthite phases were predominant when zircon was not added and the zircon–mullite phase additionally appeared upon the incorporation of zircon. A quantitative elemental analysis via X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy was employed to determine the composition of the castables. X-ray diffraction analysis showed that the alumina grog castables had a high mullite and low anorthite content, and the thermally treated alumina grog had a high anorthite, low mullite, and high zircon content. The improvement in the mechanical and thermo-mechanical properties of the castables with thermally treated alumina grog and added zircon can be attributed to the formation of the zircon–mullite phase with a low mullite phase content.     

Ageing studies of pineapple leaf fiber–reinforced polyester composites

This experimental study evaluated the water absorption characteristics of pineapple leaf fiber (PALF)–polyester composites of different fiber content. The degree of water absorption was found to increase with fiber loading. The mechanism of diffusion was analyzed and the effect of fiber loading on the sorption kinetics was studied. The diffusion coefficient was calculated and found to increase with fiber content. Studies were also made to correlate water absorption with the cross‐sectional areas of the specimens. The effects of ageing on the tensile properties and dimensional stability of PALF polyester composites were studied under two different ageing conditions. Ageing studies showed a decrease in tensile strength of the composites. The composite specimens subjected to thermal ageing showed only a slight deterioration in strength. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 94: 503–510, 2004     

Genetic based sensorless hybrid intelligent controller for strip loop formation control between inter-stands in hot steel rolling mills

Safe operating environment is essential for all complex industrial processes. The safety issues in steel rolling mill when the hot strip passes through consecutive mill stands have been considered in this paper. Formation of sag in strip is a common problem in the rolling process. The excessive sag can lead to scrap runs and damage to machinery. Conventional controllers for mill actuation system are based on a rolling model. The factors like rise in temperature, aging, wear and tear are not taken into account while designing a conventional controller. Therefore, the conventional controller cannot yield a requisite controlled output. In this paper, a new Genetic-neuro-fuzzy hybrid controller without tension sensor has been proposed to optimize the quantum of excessive sag and reduce it. The performance of the proposed controller has been compared with the performance of fuzzy logic controller, Neuro-fuzzy controller and conventional controller with the help of data collected from the plant. The simulation results depict that the proposed controller has superior performance than the other controllers.     

Organometallic L-Alanine Cadmium Iodide Crystals for Optical Device Fabrication

Single crystals of L-alanine cadmium iodide (LACI) were grown by the slow evaporation technique at room temperature. A single-crystal X-ray diffraction (SXRD) model was used to evaluate the crystal structure of the as-grown LACI crystal. The energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis and ultraviolet-visible-near infrared (UV-vis-NIR) transmittance studies were carried out, and the results reveal the presence of elements in the title compound. From the transmittance data, the optical bandgap as a function of photon energy was estimated, and the different optical constants were calculated. A fluorescence study was performed for the LACI crystal. Thermogravimetric and differential thermal analyses have also been studied to investigate the thermal property of the LACI crystal. The efficiency of the second harmonic generation (SHG) of the title crystal was investigated. The magnetic and electrical properties were estimated by the vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) analysis and impedance study, respectively.     

Design and analysis of text document clustering using salp swarm algorithm

The Journal of Supercomputing - In the technological era, exponential increase of unorganized text documents offers increased difficulties retrieving the most relevant data. The document clustering...     

Cost Effective Optimal Task Scheduling Model in Hybrid Cloud Environment

In today’s world, Cloud Computing (CC) enables the users to access computing resources and services over cloud without any need to own the infrastructure. Cloud Computing is a concept in which a network of devices, located in remote locations, is integrated to perform operations like data collection, processing, data profiling and data storage. In this context, resource allocation and task scheduling are important processes which must be managed based on the requirements of a user. In order to allocate the resources effectively, hybrid cloud is employed since it is a capable solution to process large-scale consumer applications in a pay-by-use manner. Hence, the model is to be designed as a profit-driven framework to reduce cost and make span. With this motivation, the current research work develops a Cost-Effective Optimal Task Scheduling Model (CEOTS). A novel algorithm called Target-based Cost Derivation (TCD) model is used in the proposed work for hybrid clouds. Moreover, the algorithm works on the basis of multi-intentional task completion process with optimal resource allocation. The model was successfully simulated to validate its effectiveness based on factors such as processing time, make span and efficient utilization of virtual machines. The results infer that the proposed model outperformed the existing works and can be relied in future for real-time applications.     

Efficacy of biogenic silver nanoparticles against clinical isolates of fungi causing mycotic keratitis in humans

Mycotic keratitis is mainly responsible for vision loss caused by various fungi. Sometimes, proper treatment of such infection is not possible due to unavailability of effective antifungal agents and development of resistance of such fungi to antimycotic drugs. Hence, it is necessary to search for potential antifungal agents, which can effectively eradicate fungal infection of eyes. Nanoparticles‐based antifungal drugs overcome this problem by increasing permeability and properties of drug molecules. In the present study, silver nanoparticles were synthesised by using Helminthosporium sp. and Chaetomium sp. following sequential reduction technique. The synthesised silver nanoparticles were detected primarily by UV‐visible spectrophotometer showing absorption spectra at 424 and 433 nm, respectively. Nanoparticles tracking analysis confirmed the mean particle size of silver nanoparticles as 45 and 55 nm. The synthesised AgNPs showed significant antifungal activity against fungi causing mycotic keratitis, when used alone and in combination with ketoconazole and amphotericin B in the range of 30–70 microgram per millilitre of minimum inhibitory concentration. Thus, the synthesised AgNPs can be used to enhance the activities of ketoconazole and amphotericin B.Inspec keywords: silver, nanoparticles, nanomedicine, antibacterial activity, diseases, permeability, ultraviolet spectra, visible spectra, particle sizeOther keywords: biogenic silver nanoparticles, fungi, mycotitic keratitis, vision loss, infection, antifungal agents, antimycotic drugs, antifungal drugs, permeability, Helminthosporium sp, Chaetomium sp, sequential reduction technique, UV‐visible spectrophotometer, mean particle size, ketoconazole, amphotericin B, wavelength 424 nm, wavelength 433 nm, size 45 nm, size 55 nm, Ag