Enhanced percutaneous permeability of diclofenac using a new U-type dilutable microemulsion

Enhanced systemic absorption in vivo and percutaneous penetration in vitro was demonstrated after transdermal administration of diclofenac sodium formulated in U-type microemulsion. Diclofenac sodium was solubilized in a typical four-component system consisting of an oil, polyoxyethylene-10EO-oleyl alcohol (Brij 96V) as the surfactant, and 1-hexanol along water dilution line W46 (40 wt % surfactant and 60 wt % oil phase before water titration).Viscosity and small angle X-ray scattering measurements have evidenced bicontinuous structures within water fractions of 0.25 and 0.5 along the dilution line. Self-diffusion NMR studies showed that drug molecules accumulated in the interfacial film and, to some extent, dissolved in the oil. Relative to a commercial macro-emulsion cream (Voltaren® Emulgel®), microemulsions containing paraffin oil or isopropyl myristate increased the in vivo transdermal penetration rate of diclofenac by two order of magnitude, whereas the rat plasma levels were increased by one order of magnitude. The in vitro data obtained from excised rat skin were comparable to the in vivo results, but suffered from discrepancies from the ideal in vivo-in vitro correlation, which might be explained by optimal in vitro conditions of perfusion and hydration. It has also been found that when jojoba oil is formulated as the oil phase in the microemulsion, the penetration rate of the drug decreases significantly. Based on the three-dimensional structure of jojoba oil, the wax is presumed to prevent the drug from being freely diffused into the skin while migrating from the interfacial film into the continuous oil phase.     

Analysis of the performance of a wireless optical multi-input to multi-output communication system

We investigate robust optical wireless communication in a highly scattering propagation medium using multielement optical detector arrays. The communication setup consists of synchronized multiple transmitters that send information to a receiver array and an atmospheric propagation channel. The mathematical model that best describes this scenario is multi-input to multi-output communication through stochastic slow changing channels. In this model, signals from m transmitters are received by n receiver-detectors. The channel transfer function matrix is G, and its size is n x m. G(i,j) is the transfer function from transmitter i to detector j, and m > or = n. We adopt a quasi-stationary approach in which the channel time variation has a negligible effect on communication performance over a burst. The G matrix is calculated on the basis of the optical transfer function of the atmospheric channel (composed of aerosol and turbulence elements) and the receiver's optics. In this work we derive a performance model using environmental data, such as documented turbulence and aerosol models and noise statistics. We also present the results of simulations conducted for the proposed detection algorithm.     

Flexible ordered bundles of infrared transmitting silver-halide fibers: design, fabrication, and optical measurements

Ordered bundles of silver-halide fibers, which are highly transparent in the middle infrared, are fabricated by multiple extrusions from single crystals. We fabricate and characterize the optical properties of thin and flexible bundles of diameters of 0.7-2.0 mm that incorporate 100 individual fibers. The measurements include attenuation, resolution, cross talk, near-field scanning of single fibers in the bundle, and bending losses. Bundles of lengths of several meters transmit thermal images of bodies whose temperature is near room temperature. These bundles would be useful for medical, industrial, and military applications, and in particular for endoscopic thermal imaging.     

Performance analysis of satellite link using Gaussian mixture model under rain

The evolution of communication systems to the next generation, for example, B5G and 6G, demands an ultrareliable performance regardless of weather conditions. Such ultrareliable system design will require that the effects of adverse weather events on the communication system have to be computed more accurately so that physical layer compensation should be optimally and dynamically adaptive to such events. The performance of satellite links is severely affected by dynamic rain attenuation, and thus, accurate and reliable modeling of performance parameters is essential for dynamic fade countermeasures, especially above 10 GHz. In this work, we model the energy per bit to noise spectral density ratio ( $E_b/N_0$) using Gaussian mixture (GM) model during rainy events. The developed mathematical expression is used to accurately model the average $E_b/N_0$, bit error rate (BER), outage probability, and ergodic channel capacity of the link. The average BER, upper bound on BER, and average ergodic capacity of an M-ary phase shift keying scheme (MPSK) using the GM model of $E_b/N_0$ are derived to evaluate the performance of the link under such weather impairments. We then show the numerical results and analysis using the GM model of the measured $E_b/N_0$ data obtained with the AMoS-7 satellite at a site located in Israel.     

Concerning the relationship between clear‐sky,global and direct‐beam,solar spectra

Clear‐sky direct‐beam and normal global solar spectra were measured with a spectroradiometer with and without a collimating tube. The ratio of the two spectra was found to be well approximated by a simple two‐parameter formula suggested by Rayleigh scattering. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Particulate multi‐phase polymeric nanocomposites

The present research focuses on a model system of a blend of two immiscible polymers containing an inorganic nanofiller, exploring the effect of various melt processing procedures on structuring and on the resulting properties. Binary polypropylene/alumina and ternary polypropylene/nylon/alumina composites were produced by batch compounding under various processing conditions and compositions. Several types of polypropylene and alumina grades were examined. The alumina nanoparticles vary primarily in their mean particle size (13, 50, 500 nm). The morphology of the nanocomposites produced and their thermal, and rheological properties were studied. It was found that under certain processing conditions the nanoparticles significantly affect the morphology of the polypropylene/nylon polymer blend causing compatibilization. Also, the alumina nanoparticles affect the melt viscosity of the polypropylene/nylon blends, whereas their effect on either polypropylene or nylon melts was found insignificant. POLYM. COMPOS., 27:425–430, 2006. © 2006 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Mode I interlaminar fracture toughness of Nylon 66 nanofibrilmat interleaved carbon/epoxy laminates

Carbon/epoxy laminates interleaved with laboratory scale electrospun Nylon 66 nanofibrilmat and spunbonded nonwoven mats were investigated. The effect of the nanoscale fibers on the fracture toughness of the composite under pure Mode I loading was evaluated. It was shown that the nanofibrilmat is responsible for a major interlaminar fracture toughness improvement, as high as 255–322%, compared to a noninterleaved carbon/epoxy reference laminate. We further studied the improvement mechanism of the electrospun nanofibrilmat compared to a commercial spunbonded nonwoven Nylon 66 mat. A combination of two interlayer fracture mechanisms responsible for the toughness improvement is suggested: the first is related to the high energy dissipated by bridged thermoplastic nanofibers and the second is attributed to the generation of a plastic zone near the crack tip. The interlaminar fracture mechanisms of both electrospun nanofibrilmat and the nonwoven mat interleaving was analyzed and discussed. POLYM. COMPOS., 2011. © 2011 Society of Plastics Engineers