Spatial prediction of landslide-susceptible zones in El-Qaá area,Egypt, using an integrated approach based on GIS statistical analysis

Bulletin of Engineering Geology and the Environment - The spatial prediction of landslide susceptibility locations is a crucial task to support risk management and development plans in mountainous...     

Extraction optimisation,antioxidant activity and inhibition on α-amylase and pancreatic lipase of polyphenols from the seeds of Syzygium cumini

The objectives of this study were to determine the optimal extraction conditions of polyphenols from Syzygium cumini seeds by response surface methodology and investigate their antioxidant activity and inhibition on α-amylase and pancreatic lipase. As results, the optimal extraction conditions in the ultrasonic extraction process which maximised total polyphenols content, minimised the IC₅₀ values of α-amylase and pancreatic lipase were determined as follows: extraction time 60 min, ethanol concentration 63% and solvent/solid ratio 44 mL g⁻¹. The main phenolic compounds in partially purified fraction of Syzygium cumini seeds were catechin, epicatechin, kaempferol, gallic, 5-caffeoylquinic, caffeic and ferulic acids. In addition, the partially purified fraction inhibited 87.66 ± 5.55 and 86.61 ± 3.15% of α-amylase and pancreatic lipase, respectively. The results suggested that Syzygium cumini seeds could be explored as a natural antioxidant and could be used as a source of highly antidiabetic and anti-obesity bioactive compounds.     

Pressure-driven reverse-phase liquid chromatography separations in ordered nonporous pillar array columns

Building upon the micromachined column idea proposed by the group of Regnier in 1998, we report on the first high-resolution reversed-phase separations in micromachined pillar array columns under pressure-driven LC conditions. A three component mixture could be separated in 3 s using arrays of nonporous silicon pillars with a diameter of approximately 4.3 microm and an external porosity of 55%. Under slightly retained component conditions (retention factor k' = 0.65-1.2), plate heights of about H = 4 microm were obtained at a mobile phase velocity around u = 0.5 mm/s. In reduced terms, such plate heights are as low as hmin = 1. Also, since the flow resistance of the column is much smaller than in a packed column (mainly because of the higher external porosity of the pillar array), the separation impedance of the array was as small as E = 150, i.e., of the same order as the best currently existing monolithic columns. At pH = 3, yielding very low retention factors (k' = 0.13 and 0.23), plate heights as low as H = 2 microm were realized, yielding a separation of the three component mixture with an efficiency of N = 4000-5000 plates over a column length of 1 cm. At higher retention factors, significantly larger plate heights were obtained. More experimental work is needed to investigate this more in depth. The study is completed with a discussion of the performance limits of the pillar array column concept in the frame of the current state-of-the-art in microfabrication precision.     

Investigation on the resistance spot-welded austenitic/ferritic stainless steel

In this work, the effect of weld current on joining capability of austenitic stainless steel (AISI 304) and ferritic stainless steel (AISI 430) sheets with application of resistance spot welding process was investigated. Macrostructure, microstructure, microhardness, tensile shear strength, and failure mode of welded materials were evaluated for different weld currents. The values of weld current were 2.5, 3.75, and 5 kA. It was found that when the weld current increased, the nugget size and the weld strength were increased. Two distinct failure modes including interfacial and pullout were observed during tensile shear test. Finally, an adequate weld current was obtained.     

Experimental investigation of liquid–liquid flow in an inclined pipe using dimensionless numbers

Two-phase flow is a common phenomenon in the energy industry, where flow patterns significantly affect heat transfer and pressure drop in different systems. However, there is no unique or comparable flow map because of its dependency on dimensional parameters. Therefore, an analysis using dimensionless numbers makes the results comprehensive. To do so, a series of liquid–liquid flow experiments (1296 experiments) were conducted in a transparent pipe at the different velocities of the phases. The flow patterns were captured using a high-speed camera. The experiments were performed at eight different inclinations within the range of −20 to +20 degrees. Six flow patterns are observed at different inclinations; stratified flow with mixing at the interface (STMI), dispersion of water in oil (Dw/o), dispersion of oil in water (Do/w), dual continuous (DC), slug, and wavy stratified (WST), where the first five flow patterns are presented in the upward flow and the two last flow patterns disappear in some of the downward flow. The pattern of boundaries for each flow pattern in the upward flow shows dependency on inclination, while in the downward flow condition, a rather general format can be applied to most of the patterns. The analysis illustrates that gravity and buoyancy forces are the dominating forces in the system compared to other forces, such as viscous, inertia, and interfacial tension, which are due to the inclination of the pipe.     

Effect of pre‐germination time of brown rice on serum cholesterol levels of hypercholesterolaemic rats

BACKGROUND: Brown rice is unpolished rice with immeasurable benefits for human health. Brown rice (BR) and pre‐germinated brown rice (PGBR) are known to contain various functional compounds such as γ‐oryzanol, dietary fibre and γ‐aminobutyric acid (GABA). In the present study, the experimental diets containing BR and PGBR (24, 48 h pre‐germination) were used to investigate the influence of pre‐germination time of brown rice on blood cholesterol in Sprague–Dawley male rats. RESULTS: Hypercholesterolaemia and elevation of LDL‐cholesterol were successfully ameliorated by the experimental diets containing BR and PGBR (24 and 48 h pre‐germination). As compared to the control sample, the pre‐germination time had a significant (P < 0.05) effect on blood cholesterol of Sprague–Dawley male rats. It was also found that the significantly (P < 0.05) better effect on lipid profile of hypercholesterolaemic rats was observed by prolonging the pre‐germination time. As compared to non‐germinated brown rice, the germinated brown rice showed the higher cardio‐protective effect on hypercholesterolaemic Sprague–Dawley male rats. CONCLUSION: The present study suggests that the changes of blood cholesterol can be mainly modulated by using the PGBR rather than BR. The prolonging of pre‐germination time led to an increase in the bioactive components, thereby providing a more efficient functional diet affecting the high blood cholesterol. This study suggests that PGBR can be used instead of BR and polished rice in the human diet. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry     

Fabricating and robust artificial neural network modeling nanoscale polyurethane fiber using electrospinning method

With regard to the fact that currently there is no comprehensive method to predict diameter of polyurethane/solvent fiber from electrospinning, in this study, diameter prediction of polyurethane/solvent fiber was conducted using neural networks and an error of 166 nm was observed. This error shows that artificial neural networks (ANNs) can predict diameter of electrospinning polyurethane fibers well. Then, considering weak repeatability nature of electrospinning in fabricating fibers with desired diameter, least mean square is used to improve stability of neural network model that shows an error of 113 nm, which represented better results compared to common ANN. To investigate the effect of each one of parameters affecting fiber diameter, sensitivity analysis was conducted. Along with this predicting model, sensitivity analysis can be used to reduce parameters space before conducting future studies. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2017 , 134, 45116.     

Synthesis,Surface-Active Properties,and Emulsification Efficiency of Trimeric-Type Nonionic Surfactants Derived From Tris(2-aminoethyl)amine

Trimeric-type nonionic surfactants based on tris(2-aminoethyl)amine were prepared. N-alkyl chloride (namely, octanoyl chloride, n-decanoyl chloride, n-dodecanoyl chloride) was reacted with tris(2-aminoethyl)amine in the presence of toluene and triethylamine. The products were partially reduced and then ethoxylated by poly(ethylene glycol) of molecular weights 400, 1,000, and 2,000 g mol⁻¹. The structures were confirmed by infrared (IR) and ¹HNMR spectroscopy. The molecular weights of the surfactants were measured by gel permeation chromatography (GPC). The properties of the prepared compounds were investigated by the surface tension, interfacial tension, and cloud point. The emulsification power of the prepared surfactants for oil-in-water emulsions was also studied and the emulsion stability was monitored by an optical microscope and the bottle testing method. Some factors affecting the emulsion stability were investigated