Validation of the Applied Biosystems Prism 377 automated sequencer for the forensic short tandem repeat analysis

The Applied Biosystems (ABI) Prism 377 DNA sequencer has been evaluated in an attempt to increase the throughput of samples for short tandem repeat (STR) analysis, in both forensic casework and the UK National Criminal Intelligence DNA Database. The gel system assessed consisted of 0.2 mm, 4% acrylamide 6 M urea gels, with a well-to-read distance of 36 cm. Gels were run at a constant voltage of 3 kV and constant temperature of 51 degrees C. The run time of our second generation multiplex (SGM) STR system was achieved in less than 2 h. Rigorous validation has been performed on the instrument hardware and software. Complete resolution of 1 base differences was obtained, up to and beyond 350 bases; sizing precision across gels was more than 2-fold higher than the 373A and the sensitivity was increased by one third.     

The selection and modification of brewer's yeast strains

In order to achieve a beer of high quality, the yeast culture must be effective in removing the desired nutrients from the growth medium (i.e. the wort), it must impart the required flavour to the beer and finally, the micro-organisms themselves must be effectively removed from the fermented wort after they have fulfilled their metabolic role. Brewer's wort contains the sugars sucrose, fructose, glucose, maltose and maltotriose, together with dextrin material. In the normal situation, brewer's yeast strains are incapable of fermenting the dextrin material; however, yeast strains capable of fermenting at least a part of this dextrin material and producing a palatable beer are now available.One of the important factors known to affect the fermentation rate is the intracellular yeast glycogen concentration which has been found to be influenced by storage conditions. The glycogen level at pitching significantly affects the fermentation rate of the yeast culture.     

Analysis of immobilised multi-enzyme reaction systems with Michaelis-Menten kinetics

The consecutive sequence of reactions S → P₁ → P₂ taking place inside a permeable spherical particle is analysed for the case in which the enzyme-catalysed steps in the reaction follow Michaelis-Menten type kinetics. The case in which each step in the reaction is inhibited by its product is also considered. The theoretical analysis takes into account both interparticle and intraparticle diffusional limitations and utilises an orthogonal collocation technique to obtain the effectiveness factor and selectivity of the reaction sequence. The orthogonal collocation method is found to be both convenient and simple and the analysis should prove useful in the design of immobilised multi-enzyme reactors.     

Experimental investigation on the effect of MgO and TiO2 nanoparticles in stepped solar still

This work aims at augmenting the amount of potable water using MgO and TiO₂ in stepped solar still. Experiments were carried out for the climatic conditions of Chennai, India, with two different concentrations of nanofluids inside a stepped basin under three different cases. Results show that there is an improvement in yield of fresh water from stepped solar still by 33.18% and 41.05% using 0.1% and 0.2% volume concentration of TiO₂ nanofluid, respectively, whereas the freshwater yield from stepped still with MgO nanofluids improved by 51.7% and 61.89%. Furthermore, the economic analysis revealed that the cost of potable water from the modified solar still reduced from 0.029 to 0.016 $/kg. Similarly, the useful annual energy, yearly cost per kilogram, and annual cost per kilowatt hour are significantly profitable with the use of MgO nanofluid in the stepped basin and found as 512.46 kWh, 0.025 $/kg, and 0.026 $/kWh, respectively. It is also found that the cost of potable water from the modified still significantly increases as the amount of fresh water produced is decreased with increased fabrication cost of the solar still.     

EHCR-FCM: Energy Efficient Hierarchical Clustering and Routing using Fuzzy C-Means for Wireless Sensor Networks

Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) is a part of Internet of Things (IoT), and has been used for sensing and collecting the important information from the surrounding environment. Energy consumption in this process is the most important issue, which primarily depends on the clustering technique and packet routing strategy. In this paper, we propose an Energy efficient Hierarchical Clustering and Routing using Fuzzy C-Means (EHCR-FCM) which works on three-layer structure, and depends upon the centroid of the clusters and grids, relative Euclidean distances and residual energy of the nodes. This technique is useful for the optimal usage of energy by employing grid and cluster formation in a dynamic manner and energy-efficient routing. The fitness value of the nodes have been used in this proposed work to decide that whether it may work as the Grid Head (GH) or Cluster Head (CH). The packet routing strategy of all the GHs depend upon the relative Euclidean distances among them, and also on their residual energy. In addition to this, we have also performed the energy consumption analysis, and found that our proposed approach is more energy efficient, better in terms of the number of cluster formation, network lifetime, and it also provides better coverage.

     

Effect of Annealing Temperature on Flowerlike Cu<Subscript>3</Subscript>BiS<Subscript>3</Subscript> Thin Films Grown by Chemical Bath Deposition

For widespread application of thin-film photovoltaic solar cells, synthesis of inexpensive absorber material is essential. In this work, deposition of ternary Cu₃BiS₃ absorber material, which contains abundant and environmentally benign elements, was carried out on glass substrate. Flowerlike Cu₃BiS₃ thin films with nanoflakes as building block were formed on glass substrate by chemical bath deposition. These films were annealed at 573 K and 673 K in sulfur ambient for structural improvement. Their structure was characterized using Raman spectroscopy, as well as their surface morphological and optical properties. The x-ray diffraction profile of as-deposited Cu₃BiS₃ thin film revealed amorphous structure, which transformed to orthorhombic phase after annealing. The Raman spectrum exhibited a characteristic peak at 290 cm^?1. Scanning electron microscopy of as-deposited Cu₃BiS₃ film confirmed formation of nanoflowers with diameter of around 1052 nm. Wettability testing of as-deposited Cu₃BiS₃ thin film demonstrated hydrophobic nature, which became hydrophilic after annealing. The measured ultraviolet–visible (UV–Vis) absorption spectra of the Cu₃BiS₃ thin films gave an absorption coefficient of 10⁵ cm^?1 and direct optical bandgap of about 1.42 eV after annealing treatment. Based on all these results, such Cu₃BiS₃ material may have potential applications in the photovoltaic field as an absorber layer.     

Performance analysis of evacuated tubes coupled solar still with double basin solar still and solid fins

ABSTRACT

Experimental set up of double basin solar still with evacuated tubes has been fabricated by locally available materials and then carry out research work by use of solid fins. Here 2.5?cm constant depth of water maintained and 3?cm depth mild steel fins are used. Experimental results have been obtained during month of March and April 2018 during clear sky days. Month of March 2018 is chosen for experiments on double basin solar still with evacuated tubes only and April 2018 is chosen for experiments on double basin solar still with evacuated tubes and fins. After series of experiments, it has been found that, the fins increase 25% distillate output compared with alone double basin solar still with evacuated tubes. It also increases distillate output during sunshine hours as well as off-sunshine hours.