A note on the long-run elasticities from the energy consumption–GDP relationship

The goal of this paper is to examine the long-run elasticities of the impacts of energy consumption on GDP and GDP on energy consumption. The energy consumption–GDP relationship is amongst the most popular relationships examined in the energy economics literature. The bulk of the extant literature has assumed a positive relationship between energy consumption and real GDP. Our analysis shows that in only around 60% of the countries considered the relationship is positive.     

Hybrid photovoltaic devices from regioregular polythiophene and ZnO nanoparticles composites

The nano size zinc oxide (ZnO) was successfully synthesized at low temperature solution method. The structural characterization, size and distribution of synthesized ZnO particles were performed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and neutron scattering technique. The hybrid polymer-metal oxide bulk heterojunction solar cell has been fabricated by blending of ZnO and regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) through solution process and flow coating on the flexible substrate. The decrease in the photoluminescence (PL) emission intensity more than 79% for ZnO:P3HT composites film indicates high charge generation efficiency. The cell shows the V_oc and I_sc of 0.33 V and 6.5 mA/cm², respectively. The performance and stability of cell were investigated using UV illumination of white light.     

Membrane degumming of crude rice bran oil: Pilot plant study

The procedure for the classical chemical refining of vegetable oils consists of degumming, alkali neutralization, bleaching, and deodorization. Conventional refining of rice bran oil using alkali gives oil of acceptable quality, but the refining losses are very high. A critical work has been carried out to study the application of membrane technology in the pretreatment of crude rice bran oil. Oils intended for physical refining should have a low phosphorus content, and this is not readily achievable by the conventional acid/water degumming process. The application of membrane technology for the pretreatment of rice bran oil has been investigated. The process has already been successfully applied to other vegetable oils. Ceramic membranes, which are important from the commercial point of view, were examined for this purpose. The results showed that the membrane‐filtered oils met the requirements of physical refining, with a substantial reduction in color. It was observed that most of the waxy material was also rejected. Experiments were carried out to establish the relationship between permeate flux and rejection with membrane pore size, trans‐membrane pressure and micellar solute concentration.     

A bi-objective task scheduling approach in fog computing using hybrid fireworks algorithm

The Journal of Supercomputing - With the rapid increase in the functionality of IoT applications, the services provided by edge/IoT devices have surged in the recent past. Fog computing is gaining...     

Survey on various architectures of preamplifiers for electroencephalogram (EEG) signal acquisition

Microsystem Technologies - Modern-day biomedical science and technology have progressed with implantable neural recording systems. There is a demand for miniaturised devices that can be emplaced...     

Direct ink writing of vancomycin-loaded polycaprolactone/ polyethylene oxide/ hydroxyapatite 3D scaffolds

Novel inks were formulated by dissolving polycaprolactone (PCL), a hydrophobic polymer, in organic solvent systems; polyethylene oxide (PEO) was incorporated to extend the range of hydrophilicity of the system. Hydroxyapatite (HAp) with a weight ratio of 55–85% was added to the polymer-based solution to mimic the material composition of natural bone tissue. The direct ink writing (DIW) technique was applied to extrude the formulated inks to fabricate the predesigned tissue scaffold structures; the influence of HAp concentration was investigated. The results indicate that in comparison to other inks containing HAp (55%, 75%, and 85%w/w), the ink containing 65% w/w HAp had faster ink recovery behavior; the fabricated scaffold had a rougher surface as well as better mechanical properties and wettability. It is noted that the 65% w/w HAp concentration is similar to the inorganic composition of natural bone tissue. The elastic modulus values of PCL/PEO/HAp scaffolds were in the range of 4–12 MPa; the values were dependent on the HAp concentration. Furthermore, vancomycin as a model drug was successfully encapsulated in the PCL/PEO/HAp composite scaffold for drug release applications. This paper presents novel drug-loaded PCL/PEO/HAp inks for 3D scaffold fabrication using the DIW printing technique for potential bone scaffold applications.     

A Brief Review on the Biology and Effects of Cellular and Circulating microRNAs on Cardiac Remodeling after Infarction

Despite advances in diagnostic, prognostic, and treatment modalities, myocardial infarction (MI) remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality. Impaired cellular signaling after an MI causes maladaptive changes resulting in cardiac remodeling. MicroRNAs (miRNAs/miR) along with other molecular components have been investigated for their involvement in cellular signaling in the pathogenesis of various cardiac conditions like MI. miRNAs are small non-coding RNAs that negatively regulate gene expression. They bind to complementary mRNAs and regulate the rate of protein synthesis by altering the stability of their targeted mRNAs. A single miRNA can modulate several cellular signaling pathways by targeting hundreds of mRNAs. This review focuses on the biogenesis and beneficial effects of cellular and circulating (exosomal) miRNAs on cardiac remodeling after an MI. Particularly, miR-1, -133, 135, and -29 that play an essential role in cardiac remodeling after an MI are described in detail. The limitations that will need to be addressed in the future for the further development of miRNA-based therapeutics for cardiovascular conditions will also be discussed.     

Effect of oxygen and fluorine plasma surface treatment of silicon-incorporated diamond-like carbon coatings on cellular responses of mouse fibroblasts

The surface chemistry of silicon-incorporated diamond-like carbon (Si-DLC) was tailored utilizing oxygen and fluorine plasma treatments. Successful anchoring of oxygen and fluorine functional groups to the surface of Si-DLC was verified using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The impact of surface modification of Si-DLC on hydrophobicity was correlated with the viability of L929 mouse fibroblasts. The confocal microscopy and viability results indicated that oxygen-treated Si-DLC showed increased cell viability compared to untreated Si-DLC and fluorine-treated Si-DLC samples 5 days after seeding. The increased cell viability was correlated with the conversion of the hydrophobic surface of Si-DLC into a hydrophilic surface by oxygen plasma treatment.