Sugar palm fiber/polyester nanocomposites: Influence of adding nanoclay fillers on thermal,dynamic mechanical,and physical properties

In this research, nanoclay used as filler in sugar palm‐reinforced composites was investigated by the physical, thermal, and dynamic mechanical properties. Various concentrations of nanoclay were used to fabricate composites by using hand lay‐up technique, followed by hot compression molding with naturally woven sugar palm fiber‐reinforced in polyester matrix. Among various weight concentrations such as 1–5% of nanoclay, it was found that 2% nanoclay‐filled composite (NC) demonstrated the best balance of thermomechanical properties and significantly enhanced the composite. DMA demonstrated that 2% nanoclay content resulted in improved viscoelastic behavior and higher glass transition temperature (T_g) of the composites. TGA also showed improvement in properties, whereas 3% nanoclay‐filled composite showed superior onset temperature, and 5% nanoclay‐filled composite exhibited highest remaining residue. The nanoclay filler was very effective to fill the porous structure and maintain the thickness stability. The thickness swelling was reduced with increasing amount of nanoclay in composites. Overall, the addition of nano clay improved thermal and physical properties of sugar palm‐reinforced polyester composite. J. VINYL ADDIT. TECHNOL., 26:236–243, 2020. © 2019 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Corrosion and wear behavior of TiN PVD coated 304 stainless-steel

Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology - Ti/TiN multilayered physical vapor deposition (PVD) coatings were deposited on stainless-steel by cathodic arc deposition method. Bare sample of...     

Effect of propylation of starch with different degrees of substitution on the properties and characteristics of starch‐low density polyethylene blend films

Corn starch was modified by propylation and degree of substitution (DS) of four starch modifications were 0.61, 1.56, 2.27, and 2.51. Different films were prepared by blending native and propylated starch with low‐density polyethylene (LDPE). The mechanical properties, thermal properties, water absorption capacity, and biodegradability of the blend films varied with the quantity of starch as well as DS. Tensile strength, elongation, and melt flow index of propylated starch blend films were higher compared to the corresponding native starch blend film. These properties improved with increase in DS from 1.56 to 2.51. Propylated starch blend films were found thermally stable than native starch blend films. There was a decrease in water absorption capacity for the films containing propylated starch at high DS. Enzymatic and soil burial degradation results showed that biodegradability of starch‐LDPE films increased with the increase in the starch concentration but it decreased with increase in the DS. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011.     

Detection of Salmonella in Shellfish Using SYBR Green™ I-Based Real-Time Multiplexed PCR Assay Targeting invA and spvB

A SYBR Green? I-based real-time multiplexed PCR assay was developed targeting invA and spvB for the detection of Salmonella strains in shellfish after both hns and invA genes were identified in all Salmonella strains. Simultaneously, the 16S rRNA gene was used as a PCR internal amplification control (IAC). All 89 Salmonella strains tested in this study exhibited amplification of invA, whereas only 21 (23.6 %) were PCR positive for spvB. The sensitivity of detection of all three targeted genes was 1 ng, which is equivalent to approximately 10⁵ colony-forming unit (CFU) of Salmonella enterica. The analysis showed specific PCR products that were identified by reproducible melt temperature profiles (invA, 84.27?±?1.7 °C; spvB, 88.76?±?1.0 °C; and 16S rRNA gene, 87.16?±?0.8 °C).The sensitivity of detection was 10 pg purified DNA (invA) or 10⁵?CFU in 1 mL pure culture of S. enterica ATCC 14028. The above molecular detection method for Salmonella strains was successfully applied to the oyster homogenates (food matrix). An initial inoculum of 10⁶ and 10²?CFU Salmonella in 1 ml seeded oyster tissue homogenate was detected by multiplexed PCR for all three genes after 5 and 24 h of enrichment, respectively. Natural oysters isolated from Gulf of Mexico during the winter months exhibited negative PCR amplification results suggesting the absence of Salmonella. In contrast to conventional PCR, real-time multiplex PCR assay developed in this study is rapid and sensitive and will help Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference undertake appropriate measures to monitor Salmonella in oysters, thereby preventing disease outbreaks and consequently protecting consumer health.     

Design of NS3 VLC module and performance analysis of ad hoc network under VLC and Wi‐Fi layers

Visible light communication (VLC) is the branch of optical wireless communications that uses light‐emitting diodes for the dual purpose of illumination and very‐high‐speed data communication. The main motivation behind the current work is finding alternatives to the saturated radio frequency spectrum, radio frequency security issue, and vulnerability to interferences. The current work is aimed at developing a module for the physical layer of a VLC‐based ad hoc network in network simulation 3. The VLC physical layer module is developed by using the optical signal modules available in the network simulator. The work also includes modelling of VLC‐based transmitter, wireless optical channel, and the optical receiver. Furthermore, the implementation and evaluation of the VLC‐based physical layer is carried out over a typical ad hoc network under different performance metrics. The designed ad hoc network is also tested under Wi‐Fi module followed by its comparison with corresponding ad hoc network under VLC module. The comparison is based on bit error rate curves, system throughput, and gain in received signal‐to‐noise ratio mainly. Finally, the suitability of different modulation schemes is also investigated in the current work for both Wi‐Fi– and VLC‐based ad hoc networks.     

Host-Assisted Delivery of a Model Drug to Genomic DNA: Key Information from Ultrafast Spectroscopy and in silico Study

Drug delivery to a target without adverse effects is one of the major criteria for clinical use. Herein, we have made an attempt to explore the delivery efficacy of SDS surfactant in a monomer and micellar stage during the delivery of the model drug, Toluidine Blue (TB) from the micellar cavity to DNA. Molecular recognition of pre-micellar SDS encapsulated TB with DNA occurs at a rate constant of k₁ ∼652 s⁻¹. However, no significant release of encapsulated TB at micellar concentration was observed within the experimental time frame. This originated from the higher binding affinity of TB towards the nano-cavity of SDS at micellar concentration which does not allow the delivery of TB from the nano-cavity of SDS micelles to DNA. Thus, molecular recognition controls the extent of DNA recognition by TB which in turn modulates the rate of delivery of TB from SDS in a concentration-dependent manner.     

Hybrid Androgen Receptor Inhibitors Outperform Enzalutamide and EPI-001 in in vitro Models of Prostate Cancer Drug Resistance

Androgen receptor targeted therapies for prostate cancer have serious limitations in advanced stages of the disease. While resistance to the FDA-approved enzalutamide is extensively documented, novel therapies based on epichlorohydrin scaffolds (EPI) are currently in clinical trials, but display suboptimal pharmacokinetics. Herein, we report the synthesis and biological characterisation of a novel class of compounds designed through covalently linking enzalutamide and EPI-001 through various triazole based linkers. The compounds display an 18 to 53 fold improvement in the cell killing potency towards C4-2b prostate cancer (PCa) cells compared to the gold standards of therapy, enzalutamide and EPI-001. The most promising compounds were proven to exhibit their toxicity exclusively through androgen receptor (AR) mediated pathways. This work sets the basis for the first class of hybrid AR inhibitors which successfully combine two drug moieties – EPI-001 and enzalutamide – into the same molecule.     

Mesoporous Zn–Ti Mixed Oxide Nanostructure: A New Bifunctional Catalyst for Partial Oxidation and Bezylation Reactions

Here, we report a facile synthesis of porous zinc-titanium oxide based mixed oxide nanoparticles having Zn/Ti molar ratio 1:2 based on evaporation-induced sol–gel route using Pluronic triblock copolymer P123 as a template. Use of volatile ethanolic media during the evaporation-induced self-assembly (EISA) method facilitates the formation of Zn–Ti mixed oxide heterostructure. Powder XRD data reveals that the composite material displayed ZnTiO₃/TiO₂ phases. Morphology, composition, porosity, nanostructure and thermal stability have been systematically investigated using small angle powder XRD, FE SEM-EDS, TEM, N₂ sorption, FT IR and TG-DTA techniques. The observed BET surface area of Zn–Ti mixed oxide was 231 m² g^?1 with a typical mesopore diameter (~?5 nm) mostly arising from interparticle void space. The Zn–Ti mixed oxide catalyst showed bifunctional activity for Friedel–Craft benzylation of aromatics using benzyl chloride as well as partial oxidation of olefins under mild reaction conditions using dilute aqueous H₂O₂ as oxidant.

Graphical Abstract

Zn–Ti based porous nanoparticles synthesized using Pluronic P123 copolymer surfactant via EISA method has shown a very high surface area of 231 m² g^?1 and a significant bifunctional role for liquid phase oxidation and benzylation reaction.

     

Post-disaster damage classification based on deep multi-view image fusion

This study aims to facilitate a more reliable automated postdisaster assessment of damaged buildings based on the use of multiple view imagery. Toward this, a Multi-View Convolutional Neural Network (MV-CNN) architecture is proposed, which combines the information from different views of a damaged building, resulting in 3-D aggregation of the 2-D damage features from each view. This spatial 3-D context damage information will result in more accurate and reliable damage quantification in the affected buildings. For validation, the presented model is trained and tested on a real-world visual data set of expert-labeled buildings following Hurricane Harvey. The developed model demonstrates an accuracy of 65% in predicting the exact damage states of buildings, and around 81% considering ±1 class deviation from ground-truth, based on a five-level damage scale. Value of information (VOI) analysis reveals that the hybrid models, which consider at least one aerial and ground view, perform better.     

磁流变弹性体的性能研究

以天然橡胶为基体制备磁流变弹性体（MRE），研究MRE的Payne效应及磁感应强度和磁流变效应。电子显微镜分析得出，对于羰基铁粉质量分数最大（81.67%）的MRE，羰基铁粉分布密集，出现羰基铁粉团聚现象。流变仪测试结果表明：随着羰基铁粉质量分数的增大，MRE的Payne效应和磁流变效应增强；随着应变的增大，MRE的储能模量减小，损耗因子增大。