Influence of Different Additives on the Interaction of Quinolone Antibiotic Drug with Surfactant: Conductivity and Cloud Point Measurement Study

Conductometric and cloud point (CP) measurement studies have been performed to investigate the interaction of tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide (TTAB) and Triton® X-100 (TX-100) with ciprofloxacin hydrochloride (CFH) in different solvents over the temperature range of 295.15–315.15 K. CFH is used for the treatment of various bacterial infections. The observed critical micelle concentration (CMC) values of TTAB were found to be reduced in the presence of electrolytes (Na₂SO₄/Na₃PO₄), and this reduction proceeds with the elevation of salt concentration. The order of the CMC of TTAB follows the trend: > >. The observed CMC values of TTAB were found to increase with increasing temperature and decrease with increasing concentration of CFH in aqueous medium. The values of Gibbs free energy of micellization () for the TTAB/TTAB + CFH mixture were found to be negative, implying spontaneous micellization. The estimated CP of TX-100 decreases with increasing concentration of TX-100 in aqueous medium. The CP values first decrease with increasing concentration of CFH and then increase at higher concentration of CFH almost in all cases investigated. The values of free energy of clouding were found to be positive in all cases studied implying that phase separation of TX-100 was nonspontaneous. The other thermodynamic parameters associated with the micellization of TTAB and the phase separation of TX-100 were estimated and explained.     

Kinetic analysis of magnesium aluminate spinel formation: Effect of MgO:Al2O3 ratio and titania dopant

The mechanistic pathway of MgO-Al₂O₃ reaction in solid state to form MgAl₂O₄ spinel was investigated to correlate the kinetic parameters with ratio of reactants (MgO:Al₂O₃) and with the presence of a doping agent, TiO₂. The time-temperature-expansion data of oxide compacts was analyzed using several model free analyses and model based (linear and non-linear) kinetic algorithms. These indicated that spinel formation process can be best described by single step with n-dimensional Avrami equation for every MgO:Al₂O₃ ratio, irrespective of titania dopant. The activation energy (E_a) of the process was proportional to % spinel formed in each system and validated with quantitative XRD analysis. The higher value of Avrami coefficient (n) in 90 wt% Al₂O₃ compositions has been explained with geometric considerations of powder packing. Incorporations of 1% TiO₂ in the MgO: Al₂O₃ oxide compact did not markedly affect the reaction model, frequency factor and Activation energy.     

Profile of Triacylglycerols,Phenols, and Vitamin E of Manjari Medika Grape Seed Oil and Cake: Introducing a Novel Indian Variety

The aim of the study is to investigate the biochemical composition of grapeseed oil and cake from an unexplored Indian grape‐juice cultivar, Manjari Medika (MM). The composition of oil and residual seed cake is evaluated using various chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques. The findings demonstrate that the vitamin E content of MM‐seed oil (1.15–1.35 g kg^?1) is distinctively higher than the Codex standard, suggesting its superior quality as an edible oil. The predominant triacylglycerols include trilinolein (LLL, 43%), dilinoleoyl‐stearylglycerol (LSL, 19%), and dilinoleoyl‐palmitoylglycerol (LLP, 11%), which are earlier recognized as natural antioxidants. The seed‐cake is rich in polyphenols including acylated anthocyanins (e.g., pelargonidin‐3‐O‐coumaroyl glucoside) and certain other flavonoids (e.g., catechin). The profile of phytonutrients in MM seed‐oil and cake is significantly superior to its seeded female parent and two other widely cultivated wine‐grape varieties. In brief, the studied by‐products of this new grape‐juice cultivar can be an important source of high‐value ingredients for use in food supplements, nutraceuticals, and functional foods. Practical applications: This study reports the phytochemical profile of the seed‐oil and seed cake derived from a newly developed grape variety, Manjari Medika. High contents of selective antioxidants: lipids, vitamin E, and phenols in the seed‐oil and cake with health benefits suggest their potential for use in nutraceutical and functional foods. These byproducts can be utilised as ingredients of functional foods and nutraceuticals (e.g., grape seed oil capsule) and also as raw materials in food supply chains (e.g., for production of grape cookies or cake). MM can also be utilized as a colorant in the food industry.     

TRISO fuel volume fraction and homogeneity:a nondestructive characterization

A new nondestructive method to estimate the volume fraction and homogeneity of tristructural isotropic(TRISO)-coated fuel particles in fuel compacts designed for high-temperature reactors has been developed using image analysis of conventional X-radiographs. The method is demonstrated on surrogate fuel compacts containing TRISO-coated particles with kernels made of zirconium dioxide. The methodology incorporates a correction for superimposed images of TRISO particles such that a single X-ray image obtained in any one random orientation is sufficient to characterize the fuel compact in terms of volume fraction and homogeneity. The method is based on the virtual segregation of images of each particle inside the compact with the aid of a calibration standard.     

On the Hybrid Optimal Control Problem: Theory and Algorithms

A class of hybrid optimal control problems (HOCP) for systems with controlled and autonomous location transitions is formulated and a set of necessary conditions for hybrid system trajectory optimality is presented which together constitute generalizations of the standard Maximum Principle; these are given for the cases of open bounded control value sets and compact control value sets. The derivations in the paper employ: (i) classical variational and needle variation techniques; and (ii) a local controllability condition which is used to establish the adjoint and Hamiltonian jump conditions in the autonomous switching case. Employing the hybrid minimum principle (HMP) necessary conditions, a class of general HMP based algorithms for hybrid systems optimization are presented and analyzed for the autonomous switchings case and the controlled switchings case. Using results from the theory of penalty function methods and Ekeland's variational principle the convergence of these algorithms is established under reasonable assumptions. The efficacy of the proposed algorithms is illustrated via computational examples.     

Kinetics of oxygen absorption in aqueous sodium dithionite solutions

The absorption and reaction of oxygen in aqueous alkaline solutions of sodium dithionite has been experimentally investigated in a novel gas-liquid contactor. The novel gas-lift bubble column contactor was used to study the kinetics over wide ranges of reactant concentrations, temperature, and pH. The oxygen-sodium dithionite reaction was found to be first-order with respect to dithionite in the range of dithionite concentration < 0.1 M, and second-order in the range of dithionite concentration > 0.1 M. The reaction with respect to oxygen was found to be zero-order for all dithionite concentrations. These results and experimental investigations of the effect of solution alkalinity and temperature on the reaction rate are consistent with previous findings obtained in different gas-liquid contactors. The results thus confirm the feasibility of using the gas-lift bubble column for the kinetics of gas-liquid reactions.     

Destination-driven routing for low-cost multicast

We present a destination-driven algorithm that optimizes for applications, such as group video or teleconferencing, that require multicast trees with low total cost. The destination-driven algorithm uses a greedy strategy based on shortest-path trees and minimal spanning trees but biases routes through destinations. The performance of the algorithm is analyzed through extensive simulation and compared with several Steiner tree heuristics and the popular shortest-path tree (SPT) method. The algorithm is found to produce trees with significantly lower overall cost than the SPT while maintaining reasonable per-destination performance. Its performance also compares well with other known Steiner heuristics. Moreover, the algorithm does not suffer from high complexity common to most Steiner tree heuristics and builds a route by querying only incident links for cost information