024010   Jan S;Khan R U;Ahmad S;Amjad M;Badshah S; Ahmad M (Mechanical Engineering Dep, International Islamic Univ, Islamabad, Pakistan, Email: sakhi.jan@iju.edu.pk) : Flexural strength of honey comb sandwich structures. Int J appl Sci Engng Res 2015, 4(1), 86-93.

In this paper the flexure behavior of the honeycomb sandwich panels are experimentally and analytically investigated. Aluminum honeycomb core and glass fiber composite face sheets were utilized for the manufacture of the test specimens. The tests were performed on three point bend test bench in MTS machine. The experimental and analytical results are compared in the study.

7 illus, 3 tables, 16 ref

024009   Indumathy R;Maheswari S U;Subashini G (Electronics and Communication Engineering Dep, Coimbatore Institute of Technology, Coimbatore-641 014, Email: indumathy.rajagopal@gmail.com) : Nature-inspired novel cuckoo search algorithm for genome sequence assembly. Sadhana 2015, 40(1), 1-14.

This study aims to produce a novel optimization algorithm, called the Cuckoo Search Algorithm (CS), for solving the genome sequence assembly problem. Assembly of genome sequence is a technique that attempts to rebuild the target sequence from the collection of fragments. This study is the first application of the CS for DNA sequence assembly problem in the literature. The algorithm is based on the levy flight behaviour and brood parasitic behaviour. The CS algorithm is employed to maximize the overlap score by reconstructing the original DNA sequence. Experimental results show the ability of the CS to find better optimal genome assembly. To check the efficiency of the proposed technique the results of the CS is compared with one of the well known evolutionary algorithms namely, particle swarm optimization (PSO) and its variants.

8 illus, 1 table, 25 ref

024008   Hazari M R;Mannan M A;Murata T;Tamura J (NO, , ) : Design and simulation of discrete time optimal seed control for an induction motor taking core loss and stray load losses into account. J Pwr Elect Pwr Syst 2014, 4(3), 46-56.

Generally, the core loss and stray load loss are neglected in the mathematical model of induction motor (IM) to design the decoupling torque and flux control strategy. In order to precisely control the torque and flux, core loss and stray load loss, which are generally neglected, should be considered in the mathematical model of IM to design the controller. Some of literatures have shown how the detuning can be done in the rotor field oriented (RFO) control system to compensate the effects of core loss and stray load loss. But the mathematical modeling of detuning process is very complex which makes the complexity in the case of implementation. A state space model of IM taking core loss and stray load loss imto account is developed to design controller. In this paper, a discrete-time multi-input and multi-output (MIMO) optimal regulator based speed controller is proposed based on the developed state space model. The performances of the design control system has been verified by the simulation work which has been done by using Matlab/Simulink. The proposed controller is robust under the variation of load torue and parameters. The simulation results also show the good performance of speed control system to reduce the overshoot and steady-state error.

024007   Ghosh S;Shaurov M D I;Dip S R;Kabir M A;Upal W R (NO, , ) : Small scale horizontal axis wind turbine. J Pwr Elect Pwr Syst 2014, 4(3), 26-32.

In this work, the performance analysis of a designed small scale horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) has been presented and optimized by varying span length and chord length. The HAWT blades are shaped to generate maximum power from the wind at minimum cost. The blades are designed by using QBlade software and simulated in blade element method (BEM).The values of tip speed ratio and power coefficient have been obtained as 6 and 0.45 respectively. The power is 230 W and wind speed is 6 m/s at a span length 0.9 m. By increasing the span length up to 1.3 m, the power is obtained as 430 W and wind speed is taken as 6 m/s. The power is 170 Wand wind speed is 6 m/s at a chord length 0.15 m. By increasing the chord length up to 0.21 m the power is obtained as 250 W and wind speed is taken as 6 m/s. Thus a better performance of the designed HAWT has been achieved by varying span length and chord length.

024006   Ghosh S;Muley A (School of Studies in Physics, Vikram Univ, Ujjain-456 010, Email: apurva.muley.a@gmail.com) : Convective instability of longitudinal electro-kinetic waves in magnetised semiconductor quantum electron plasmas. Int J appl Sci Engng Res 2015, 4(1), 122-34.

The spectrum (dispersion and gain characteristics) of longitudinal electro-kinetic waves have been reported for semiconductor quantum plasma embedded in transverse magnetostatic field. The dispersion relation has been derived using well known magnetic field modified QHD model of plasmas. We found that the classical plasma supports the propagation of only four modes whereas quantum plasma supports six modes of propagation. The magnetic field strongly modifies the spectra of all six possible modes and smooths the propagation through the media. It is found that the modes which are contra-propagating are always growing in nature and vice versa. The characteristics conversion from contra- to co- propagation is caused by the presence of magnetic field in most of the cases. The numerical appreciations are made for n-InSb at liquid helium temperature.

12 illus, 14 ref

024005   Ebhodaghe O M (Mechanical Engineering Dep, Lagos Univ, Akoka, Yaba, Lagos State, Nigeria, Email: ofeimun2011@gmail.com) : Design and development of solar panel optimizer. Int J appl Sci Engng Res 2015, 4(1), 22-30.

This research work developed a proposed small-scale solar panel optimizer based on some assumptions. The device is powered by visible light rays from the sun and channeled for electricity generation by convex lens and plane mirrors inclined at 450 to the plane of the solar panel. The capacity of this proposed device is to be able to fully charge a Lead-Acid battery within few hours. The objective is to drastically reduce fossil fuel consumption that leads to environmental pollutions, global warming with the greatest perspective. The cost for electricity generation is not left out in the objectives of this proposed device. This is with a view to encouraging the mass production of this device thereby solving the world's energy crisis. It is with confidence that it can be stated that the device as designed will yield to its desired objective and be an improvement to the conventional methods of using the solar panel in the past. The world population is growing at an alarming rate and so is the energy demand and the need to solve the energy crisis experienced today.

8 illus, 12 ref

024004   Dwivedi R D;Singh M;Viladkar M N;Goel R K (NO, CSIR-Central Institute of Mining and Fuel Research, Regional Centre, Roorkee, Email: rddwivedi@hotmail.com) : Parametric analysis of an empirical correlation predicting support pressure in squeezing ground. J Rock Mech Tunnelling Technol 2014, 20(2), 131-8.

Himalayan region is full of geological surprises when it comes to the underground construction activities due to fragile nature and frequent variations. The region is tectonically highly active and squeezing of rock mass around underground structures has been a major problem faced by geologists and engineers during the construction of many hydroelectric projects. It is because of this reason, the region has been a study centre for many research workers. The underground excavations have to be made structurally stable by installing appropriate support systems of appropriate stiffness at appropriate times. As the rock mass surrounding the excavation continues to deform, even after installation of the supporting system, it exerts large pressure on it. Therefore, it is essential to have a proper knowledge of the high support pressures exerted. Hence, an empirical correlation was developed by Dwivedi et al. (2014) for prediction of support pressure in squeezing ground condition. In the present study, an attempt has been made to analyse the influence of parameters involved in the aforementioned empirical correlation.

7 illus, 1 table, 13 ref

024003   Dhanamurugan A;Subramanian R (Mechanical Engineering & Department of Aeronautical Engineering Dep, Nehru Institute of Technology, Coimbatore-641 105, Email: 1973dha@gmail.com) : Effect of injection timing on a diesel engine fueled with bael biodiesel. J scient ind Res 2015, 74(4), 232-5.

This study presents effect of injection timing on performance, combustion and emission characteristics of Bael (Aegle marmelos) biodiesel and its blend on a single cylinder direct injection diesel engine. Standard injection pressure (22° bar) is maintained throughout the experiment. Injection timings (22°, 23° and 24° bTDC) were considered under steady state conditions of the engine. At injection timing of 22° bTDC, blend B20 (20% biodiesel + 80% diesel, by volume) gave optimum performance. Thus B20 fuel can be effectively used in a diesel engine as an alternative fuel without any modification in the engine.

2 illus, 12 ref

024002   Dev H;Jagota R K;Singh R (NO, Central Soil and Materials Research Station, Hauz Khas, New Delhi, Email: haridev65@gmail.com) : Steel liners for pressure shafts - hydrostatic pressure testing and other quality control aspects. J Rock Mech Tunnelling Technol 2014, 20(2), 93-107.

Support requirements for underground excavation are governed by the nature and use of the structure apart from the basic requirement concerning the geological conditions. Pressure shaft is an important part of the water conveyance system designed to bear the high internal water pressures. Further, pressure shaft manifolds or the penstocks have to be designed to bear the gross head of water. The fabrication and erection of these steel liners is a challenging task. The thickness of the steel liners has to be varied in accordance with the variation in internal water pressure. Since, the liners are subjected to abrasion under high velocity and silt laden water; the inner surfaces need to be painted with abrasion resistant epoxy paint. Apart from the fabrication and erection, testing of these liners also require utmost attention. Quality of liners has to be maintained starting with the materials, fabricated pieces in the workshop and field testing of all the welds including joints and grout plugs. Hydrostatic testing of fabricated pipes is mandatory. Manifolds or the Y-pieces need special attention as these are subjected to maximum pressure and cumbersome field weld joints. This paper discusses various tests and measures adopted for assuring the quality of the steel liners for pressure shafts of a hydroelectric project.

11 illus, 3 tables, 4 ref

024001   Deshmukh A A;Ray K P (Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering Dep, D. J. Sanghvi College of Engineering, Vile-Parle (W), Mumbai-400 056) : Proximity fed gap-coupled half E-shaped microstrip antenna array. Sadhana 2015, 40(1), 75-87.

Broadband gap-coupled array configuration of proximity fed rectangular microstrip antenna with half E-shaped microstrip antennas are proposed. The rectangular slot in half E-shaped patch reduces the orthogonal TM₀₁ mode resonance frequency of equivalent rectangular patch and along with TM₁₀ modes of fed and parasitic rectangular patches, yields broader bandwidth of more than 470 MHz (> 45%). An improvement in radiation pattern and gain characteristics over the bandwidth is obtained by gap-coupling half E-shaped patches along all the edges of proximity fed rectangular patch, which yields bandwidth of nearly 510 MHz (<126> 49%). Further to enhance the gain, a gap-coupled 3 x 3 array configuration of half E-shaped patches with proximity fed rectangular microstrip antenna is proposed. The gap-coupled array configuration yields bandwidth of more than 530 MHz (<62> 50%) with broadside radiation pattern and peak gain of 11 dBi.

8 illus, 1 table, 16 ref

024000   Das P;Majumder S;Saha D;Mandal A (NO, , ) : Hydrodynamic study of turbulent fluid flow in an axi- symmetric duct with crescent. J expl appl Mech 2015, 6(2), 57-69.

In this article, the fluid flow analysis in an axi-symmetric duct with and without crescent hasbeen studied numerically. Fluent 6.3 based on finite volume method have been used to analyzethe flow problem. The parameters varied are non-dimensional crescent length1 (/) C L S R of 0.9 to 0.5 and Reynolds number of 7.5 X 104 to 3.5 X 105 respectively. An experiment has beencarried out in a straight sudden expansion pipe without crescent for same Reynolds numbers.The numerically achieved results have been compared with the experimental results thusobtained for different Reynolds numbers for the case of without crescent only. The resultshave been found to match reasonably. The main objective of this study is to find out thefriction factor in an axi-symmetric sudden expansion duct with crescent. The results show thatthe friction factor decreases with increase in Reynolds number and crescent lengthrespectively.Keywords: Axi-symmetric sudden expansion, crescent, finite volume method, experiment, friction factorCite this Article:Pritam Das, Snehamoy Majumder, Debajit Saha et al. Hydrodynamic Study of Turbulent Fluid Flow in an Axi-Symmetric Duct with Crescent. Journal of Experimental & Applied Mechanics. 2015; 6(2): 57-69p.

023999   Choudhary B N;Roy B N;Vaish A K;Singh S D (NO, R.V.S. College of Engineering and Technology, Jamshedpur Univ) : Smelting of sponge iron fines for the production of steel grade iron. J Metall Mater Sci 2014, 56(2), 107-16.

India is the largest producer of sponge iron for last few years. Presently its contribution to world production is more than 25% mainly by rotary kiln coal based process. In India coal based production of sponge iron is about 76% of its total production. The present investigation to smelt sponge iron fines in bench scale furnace is of great significance from industrial point of view. These fines were smelted in 50KVA submerged arc furnace (SAF) using the fines of petro-coke as reductant and that of lime stone as flux for the production of steel grade iron. The hot metal so produced was having low percentage of phosphorus, sulphur and manganese and the silicon content in the hot metal was found to be comparable with that of hot metal produced by Indian blast furnaces. The power consumption in 50 KVA sub- merged arc furnace was on much higher side compared to commercial plant.

023998   Chatterjee P P (Metallurgical & Material Engineering Dep, Jadavpur Univ, Kolkata-700 032, Email: cppartho@yahoo.co.in) : Embryonic improvements of solar photovoltaics. J Metall Mater Sci 2014, 56(1), 67-72.

Direct normal irradiance (DNI), ambient temperature, latitude effect, wind velocity, air quality, etc. are various external-natural factors that influence efficiency of solar photovoltaics (SPV), whereas materials used, technology adopted, etc. are important internal design parameters that enhance efficiency of SPV. The recent development in the field of materials engineering and technology may create a revolution in the field of SPV if harnessed techno-economically. In the back drop of these developments, this article dwells upon the material issues like aluminium (Al) nano particles, birefringent liquid crystal polymer homeotropic films, and technological issues like utilisation of acoustic vibrations using piezo-electric material, radiative recombination, generation of pulses using pyroelectric materials, etc. to enhance efficiency and the effectiveness of SPV. The article is followed by suggestions and possible applications in real life situations and concluding lines. The article is just a humble attempt from the academic point of view in the field of SPV.

023997   Chaitra K;Thomas V R;Santosh M S;Srivastava C;Nagaraju N;Kathyayini H (Nanobiosciences Dep, Centre for Emerging Technologies, Jain Global Campus, Jain Univ, Jakkasandra post, Kanakapura Taluk, Ramanagara District, Bangalore Rural-562 112, Email: nkathyayini45@gmail.com) : Comparative study on electrochemical behaviour of Co₃O₄ and Co₃O₄- MWCNTs for supercapacitors. J scient ind Res 2015, 74(4), 202-8.

Co₃O₄ and Co₃O₄/MWCNTs were prepared by hydrothermal process under autogenous pressure in Teflon lined autoclave and calcined at 250°. Both samples were characterized by PXRD, FT-IR, SEM-EDS, TEM & FT-Raman to evaluate their surface and bulk properties. The PXRD pattern of the materials indicated the formation of cubic phase of Co₃O₄. FT-IR results showed the presence of metal oxygen bond in the samples. The SEM and TEM images of the Co₃O₄ / MWCNTs indicated spherical and cubic aggregates of metal oxide particles (10-30 nm) decorated both on the surface and inside the tubes of carbon nanotubes. The characteristic Ig and Id (graphitic and defects) Raman bands indicated the retention of tubular structure of MWCNTs even after the deposition of Co₃O₄. The calcined Co₃O₄-MWCNTs composites and Co₃O₄ exhibited specific capacitance of 284 & 205 F/g at a sweep rate of 2mVs-1 in 6M KOH by cyclic voltammetry. The psuedocapacitance performances of calcined Co₃O₄-MWCNTs were found to be better than Co₃O₄. Chronopotentiometric studies made for the materials at a current density of 500mA/g indicated 100% columbic efficiency at 2000th cycle for Co₃O₄ / MWCNTs which is a better electrode material than Co₃O₄.

4 illus, 2 tables, 36 ref

023996   Bose S;Raychowdhury A;Nair A B J;Jatolia M; Bhattacharyya T K (NO, , ) : Design of feedback loop for ultra-sensitive nano-G resolution mems tunneling accelerometer. J Nanosci Nanoengng Applic 2014, 4(3), 39-46.

The tunneling accelerometer often used for attitude control of micro and nano satellite can be operated both in open loop circuit as well as close loop circuit. Closed-loop operation improves the overall sensor linearity, dynamic range, and bandwidth. The interface circuitry in a closed-loop device reads the sensor signal and uses feedback to maintain the proof mass in a null position in a stable manner. In this paper we present a design and modeling of a PID (Proportional Integral Derivative) Controller for the feedback control of an ultra-sensitive MEMS (Microelectromechanical System) Tunneling Accelerometer to operate in constant current mode which will reduce the system response time, the fatigue of the accelerometer and increase the system stability.

023995   Bhattacharyya A S (Centre for Nanotechnology, Central Univ of Jharkhand, Ranchi-835 205, Email: 2006asb@gmail.com) : Computational studies of the nanoindentation load depth curves. J scient ind Res 2015, 74(4), 223-4.

The load depth curves obtained during nanoindentation depends on several factors. Load depth curves were generated computationally and an insight in the different parameters have been presented in this article.

3 illus, 3 tables, 15 ref

023994   Bhalla S K;Jarial R K;Sood Y R (NO, , ) : Mitigation of flicker and harmonics in grid connected DFIG for power quality improvement. J Pwr Elect Pwr Syst 2014, 4(2), 12-23.

This paper focuses on the mitigation of voltage harmonics and flicker of a grid connected doubly fed induction generator for wind energy conversion system. The harmonics have been mitigated by an active series filter and flicker levels have been minimized by optimal control of wind turbine output reactive power. The effectiveness of the proposed mitigation strategies has been analyzed for various grid conditions and different wind speeds. The flicker levels and voltage harmonics have been successfully reduced as per prescribed standards. The proposed system thus ensures that voltage impurity is not passed on to the grid and high power quality is maintained.

023993   Bhagat R P;Nayak B;Bhattacharyya K K;Goswami M C (NO, CSIR-National Metallurgical Laboratory, Jamshedpur-831 007, Email: rpb@nmlindia.org) : Mineralogy of iron ore pellet and its correlation with crushing strength. J Metall Mater Sci 2014, 56(2), 117-23.

Mineralogical investigation of typical indurated pellets, which were generated through the pelletisation experiments of the concentrate from dump fines of Gua Iron Ore mines of SAIL, has been reported in the present paper. Pelletisation experiments were conducted with the iron ore concentrates (Fe = 65.1%) of varying mesh of grind having the -45 micron size constituents 71, 81 and 93 wt.% respectively. The crushing strength (CS) of the green pellets as well as heat hardened ones was determined. The CS of heat hardened pellets improved considerably with the concentrate which has undergone very fine mesh of grind even at lower bentonite consumption. Besides, minor amount of flux and coke could be incorporated during the course of pelletisation. Further grinding of bentonite did help in the improvement of CS. The crushing strength of the heat hardened pellet was correlated with its mineralogy. Typically a significant change in the mineralogy was observed with reference to core, intermediate and outer layers of the pellet which signifies a heterogeneous and, in some cases, a weaker pellet.

023992   Beg F (NO, , ) : DC power flow analysis as a tool for the study and design of multi-terminal electrical grids. J Pwr Elect Pwr Syst 2014, 4(3), 1-11.

The development and deployment of high voltage power electronic apparatus for the support and functioning of optimal operation and management of electrical grid networks is dependent on the progress of high power capacity semiconductor technology that has seen a rising trend over the past few years. These grids have certain different characteristics such as full or partial deregulation of their networks. These characteristics have advanced their application in many HVDC transmission networks as well as their use in the flexible AC transmission network technology's i.e., the FACTS. DC power flow finds its use for the study of almost all analysis of power systems for macroeconomic purposes. DC power flow analysis can be done by simplifying the full power flow of AC networks and taking only the active power losses into consideration. Voltage control and support as well as the management of reactive power do not come under this domain. These simplifications cannot be considered realistic even though they simplify the power flow process to a large extent. The various assumptions of DC power flow have been analyzed in this paper and efforts have been made to quantify them. This paper examines the DC power flow as a power system analysis tool and its utility for multiterminal HVDC connected with AC grids. The method is increasingly used for techno-economic studies by power delivery companies in electricity markets. In this paper the assumptions of DC power flow are reviewed and its application for the multinode DC grids is reviewed. The proposed methodology is then applied to analyze the arbitrary draft models of an interconnected Supergrid in the Indian subcontinent.

023991   Bansal U;Kamaldeep Kaur (ECE Dep, BBSBEC, Fatehgarh Sahib, Email: heena.urvashi@gmail.com) : Capacity enhancement of DWDM system using EDFA and DCF with narrow channel spacing. Int J appl Sci Engng Res 2015, 4(1), 147-50.

It is proposed to simulate the DWDM system of 1.6 Tb/s ultra high capacity using MDRZ (modified duobinary return to zero) modulation format with EDFA and symmetrical dispersion compensation scheme. Comparison of 40 channel 40Gb/s DWDM system is made at different channel spacing's of 50GHz, 75GHz and 100Ghz to find optimum spacing at this high bit rate optical system.Duo binary format is used as it is suitable for high spectral efficiency at large transmission distance.DWDM is analyzed using symmetrical dispersion compensation scheme for 40 channels. The effects of variation of channel spacing on transmission distance are observed in terms of Q value and eye opening keeping BER in acceptable range. The non linear effects are limiting factors in narrow channel spaced system and in order to reduce their effects duo binary format is used and attenuation in the fiber is minimized by EDFA.

1 illus, 10 ref

023990   Azadi S;Moradi M;Esmaili A (Electrical & Mechanical Engineering Dep, Semnan Univ, Semnan, Iran, Email: sazadi@semnan.ac.ir) : Optimal balancing of PUMA-like robot in predefined path. J scient ind Res 2015, 74(4), 209-11.

The balancing of the manipulators is an important subject in the different industries, because with the balancing of manipulators, their consumed energy is reduced and it leads to actuators' size reduction. But the relation between of balancing and energy consumption was unclear until the optimal balancing method became introduced. On the other hand, Different tasks for instance, welding and gluing are devoted to manipulators that in them, path coordinate is predefined and it can have certain tolerance. Previous works on the optimal balancing subject, was further on the static balancing that path was not considered. In this paper, optimal balancing approach is applied on open-chain manipulator for predefined path. It is an optimal control problem for given desired trajectory where states, controls and all the unknown parameters must be determined simultaneously to minimize the given performance index for a predefined path task. Necessary conditions based on Pontryagin's minimum principle and an additional condition associated with the constant parameters is solved for predefined path. Finally the efficiency of the suggested approach is illustrated by simulation for a PUMA like robot.

2 illus, 1 table, 9 ref

023989   Attia H A;Abbas W;Abdeen M A M;Said A A M (Engineering Mathematics and Physics Dep, Faculty of Engineering, El-Fayoum Univ, El-Fayoum 63514, Egypt, Email: ah1113@yahoo.com) : Heat transfer between two parallel porous plates for couette flow under pressure gradient and hall current. Sadhana 2015, 40(1), 183-97.

Aim of the present paper is to study the unsteady magneto-hydro-dynamic viscous Couette flow with heat transfer in a Darcy porous medium between two infinite parallel porous plates considering Hall effect, and temperature dependent physical properties under constant pressure gradient. The parallel plates are assumed to be porous and subjected to a uniform suction from above and injection from below while the fluid is flowing through a porous medium that is assumed to obey Darcy's law. A numerical solution for the governing nonlinear partial differential equations coupled with set of momentum equations and the energy equation including the viscous and Joule dissipations is adopted. The effect of the porosity of the medium, the Hall current and the temperature dependent viscosity and thermal conductivity on both the velocity and temperature distributions are investigated. It is found that the porosity number M has a marked effect on decreasing the velocity distribution (owing to a simultaneous increase in Darcy porous drag). Also the temperature T is decreased considerably with increasing porosity number. With increasing Hall current parameter m, the velocity component u (x-direction) is considerably increased, whereas velocity component w (z-direction) is reduced. Temperatures are decreased in the early stages of flow but effectively increased in the steady state with increasing m.

11 illus, 2 tables, 27 ref

023988   Aswathy V G;Rajeev N;Vijayan K (Mechanical Engineering Dep, NSS College of Engineering, Palakkad, Kerala-678 008, Email: aswathyvg24@gmail.com) : Effect of machining parameters on surface roughness, material removal rate and roundness error during the wet turning of Ti-6Al-4V alloy. Int J appl Sci Engng Res 2015, 4(1), 1-10.

Turning process is one of the most fundamental machining processes used in the manufacturing industry. The process of turning is influenced by many factors such as cutting velocity, feed rate, depth of cut, geometry of cutting tool, and cutting conditions etc., to name a few. In machining operations, achieving the desired surface quality of the machined product is really a challenging job. This is due to the fact that quality are highly influenced by process parameters directly or indirectly. However, the extent of significant influence of the process parameters are different for different responses. The main objective of this work is to investigate the effects of machining parameters, especially tool nose radius, on surface finish, Material Removal Rate (MRR) and Roundness error during the wet turning of Ti-6Al-4V. The selection of Ti-6Al-4V is due to the reason that it offers a unique combination of high strength, light weight and corrosion resistance which have made it an important material in aerospace applications. Despite its advantages the machinability of Ti-6Al-4V possesses many challenges such as its low thermal conductivity and work hardening effect reduces the tool life and quality of the product. The proposed experimental study focuses on the turning process of Ti-6Al-4V using Chemical vapour deposition (CVD) coated carbide tools. Four different parameters are chosen as process variables: cutting speed, feed rate, depth of cut and tool nose radius. In this study analysis is done based on Taguchi method of optimization and the experimental design and further analysis carried out with the help of statistical software Minitab16. The results obtained from the analysis is validated with mathematical software PYTHON.

4 illus, 6 tables, 11 ref

023987   Arisa I R (NO, , ) : Thermo-physical properties of asphalt predicted using molecular dynamics simulation. J Nanosci Nanoengng Applic 2014, 4(3), 13-22.

This study is an essential step to get thermo-physical properties of asphalt using molecular dynamics simulation. It deals with the validity of dreiding force field for asphalt binder model. Both all atom and united atom models of asphalt are considered in my study to find the better model for MD simulation applying dreiding force field potential function. The potential energy values at different time steps are compared to get the appropriate number of time steps for which the system reaches equilibrium. It is found that the cutoff radius exceeding 6 Angstrum does not significantly improve the accuracy. Molecular dynamics method is employed here to compute the density, glass transition temperature, heat of vaporization, and cohesive energy density of asphalt model at different temperatures varying from 218.15 to 358.15 K. With increase in temperature, density, heat of vaporization, and cohesive energy density of asphalt model decrease. From the simulation outputs, density vs. temperature graph is plotted. The graph shows a sharp change in the slope at 258.15 K (-15°C) which proves the presence of glass transition temperature in asphalt.

023986   Amit Kumar;Dubey A;Gaur M K;Samadhiya V (NO, , ) : Analysis of injection moulding process parameters on PVC material via taguchi-anova. J expl appl Mech 2015, 6(2), 13-21.

This paper deals with the development of prediction model for injection moulding machine using Taguchi. In this work, all the process parameters namely filling time (FT), refill time (RFT), tonnage time (TT) and ejector retraction time (ERT) are modeled using Taguchi method. PVC (polyvinylchloride) taken as process material in this experimental work under optimal working conditions. The influence of filling time (FT), refill time (RFT), tonnage time (TT) and ejector retraction time (ERT) on cycle time (CT) is examined in the process. The experimented result is examined through ANOVA. From the basis of experimented result via Taguchi method, it is found that filling time (FT=23 sec) and tonnage time (TT=.68 sec) have significant effect on output parameter (CT) and the other parameters refill time (RFT) and ejector retraction time (ERT) have insignificant effect.

023985   Al-Obaydi M A;Al-Jobory Y H (Civil Engineering Dep, College of Engineering, Mosul Univ, Mosul, Iraq, Email: dralobaydi@yahoo.com) : Behaviour of limestone rock with opening under confining pressures. J Rock Mech Tunnelling Technol 2014, 20(2), 83-92.

Many factors may affect the stability of rock mass in terms of strength and deformability. Such factors are the loading conditions, presence of natural weakening features and manmade openings. In the present study, an evaluation of stresses and deformations is carried out through experimental and numerical analyses for plane-strain and plane-stress conditions. The study includes the effect of circular opening on strength, deformation and failure mode of limestone rock under various confining pressures (σ₃=0, 1, 2 and 3 MPa). The results show that the opening causes a reduction in strength of rock but the effect of the presence of the opening reduces with the increasing the confining pressure from 1MPa to 3MPa. Samples tested under plane-strain condition give strength higher than those tested under plane-stress condition. The differences between both cases reduce under high confining pressure 3MPa. Failure pattern showed splitting type failure in an unconfined case (σ₃=0) and changes to shear type associated with cracks inclined at 15°-30° in solid sample; while cracks inclined at 45° in sample with opening as the confining pressure increases. The presence of opening resulted in an increase in the deformation of the sample. The deformation of opening increases with increasing confining pressure to IMPa, thereafter, it reduces. Numerical analysis gives higher results than experimental tests.

13 illus, 2 tables, 17 ref

023984   Adeoti M O;Bongfa B;Olaiya K A (Mechanical Engineering Dep, The Federal Polytechnic, Bida, Niger State, Nigeria, Email: engrbinfabongfa@gmail.com) : Microstructural analysis of sand and gravity die cast aluminium scraps. Int J appl Sci Engng Res 2015, 4(1), 57-67.

Scraps of locally sourced aluminium pistons and of aluminium pots, were separately melted and casted using Sand and gravity die casting methods. The cast specimens were machined to standard testing dimensions grounded and polished on B.G - 20 belt grinder having abrasive papers lubricated by a gentle flow of water, polished, etched by immersing in a chemical reagent of 0.5% hydrofluoric acid. The microstructural examinations showed that in unetched condition the main structure contains large quantity of relatively coarse silicon crystals (clearly visible in the polished state) set in an aluminium matrix; that the main structure contains large quantity of silicon magnesium crystal in an aluminium matrix, and that the microstruture of the material greatly affects its mechanical properties as seen on the responses of the materials to applied loads; that scraps from aluminium pistons and pots when recycled can be re-used for Engineering applications that require lesser strength and hardness. The grain size measurement shows that specimen from permanent mould casting process either etched or unetched are made up of closely packed grains 43mm2, 38mm2 and 40mm2 respectively (larger than sand cast specimen), hence better mechanical properties and good surface finish of the specimen compared with sand cast samples.

8 illus, 5 tables, 12 ref

023983   Abdesselam Z (Civil Engineering Dep, Univ of Constantine 1, Constantine, Algeria, Email: zergua.abdesselam@umc.edu.dz) : Interfacial stresses in strengthened beam with shear cohesive zone model. Sadhana 2015, 40(1), 235-48.

Failure of strengthened beams with fibre-reinforced polymer (FRP) materials is due to high stress concentration of FRP-concrete interface. Understanding the cause and mechanism of the debonding of the FRP plate and the prediction of the stress distribution at the concrete-FRP interface are important for more effective strengthening technique. This paper presents an analytical solution, based on Smith and Teng's equations, for interfacial shear and normal stresses in reinforced concrete (RC) beams strengthened with a fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) plate. However, the shear stress-strain relationship is considered to be bilinear curve. The effects of the shear deformations are calculated in an RC beam, an adhesive layer, and an FRP plate. The results of parametric study are compared with those of Smith and Teng. They confirm the accuracy of the proposed approach in predicting both interfacial shear and normal stresses.

11 illus, 1 table, 23 ref

023982   Abdellahi M (NO, , ) : Minimizing the synthesis time of nanostructured powders in planetary mills using biogeography-based optimization (BBO) algorithm. J Nanosci Nanoengng Applic 2014, 4(1), 6-18.

Key objective in processing of nanostructured powders via high-energy ball milling is to minimize the synthesis time. This paper presents the application of biogeography-based algorithm for optimization of milling parameters in order to minimize the synthesis time of nanostructured powders in planetary mills. At first a direct relationship between the inverse of the milling time and the power of the planetary mill was established, which allows the validation of theoretical models proposed in the literature for the energy transfer in milling devices and the comparison of milling equipment efficiencies. Afterwards, based on the obtained relation, eight design parameters in milling, namely, number of balls, ball diameter, vial radius, vial height, ball diameter distribution coefficient, plate spinning rate, vial spinning rate and distance between the center of the plate and the center of the vial were optimized. Using these optimized variables in milling process the energy transferred to the raw materials was maximized or in the equivalent expression the synthesis time of nanostructured powders was minimized. At the end, a test case was solved to demonstrate the effectiveness and accuracy of the proposed design. Computational results showed that the proposed optimization algorithm is quite effective and powerful in optimizing the planetary mills.

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023041   Yardimci M Y;Baradan B;Tasdemir M A (Civil Engineering Dep, Gediz Univ, Seyrek 35665 Izmir, Turkey, Email: myyardimci@gmail.com) : Effect of fine to coarse aggregate ratio on the rheology and fracture energy of steel fibre reinforced self-compacting concretes. Sadhana 2014, 39(6), 1447-69.

In this study, the influence of aggregate grading and steel fibre properties on the flow properties and fracture energy of steel fibre reinforced self-compacting concrete (SFRSCC) has been investigated. Two types of hooked-end steel fibres at three different dosages (20, 40 and 60 kg/m^{3) were incorporated into self-compacting mixtures having similar paste contents but different fine to coarse aggregate (FA/CA) ratios (0.94, 1.72 and 2.50 by weight). Besides the flowability and passing ability of fresh concrete, the mechanical properties of hardened concrete including the fracture energy have also been investigated. The relations between flexural parameters and fibre orientation were established by image analysis technique. Test results showed that hooked-end steel fibre inclusion into the plain self-compacting concrete negatively affects the flowability and passing ability of the mixture. Increasing FA/CA ratio enhances these rheological parameters and provides better fibre orientation. On the other hand, increasing FA/CA ratio decreases the fracture energy of plain SCC mixtures and the fibre incorporated series which were less affected from fibre inclusion follow the same trend with the plain SCC. The proper FA/CA ratio for the best rheological and mechanical performance depends on the fibre content, aspect ratio and their influence on the flowability of the mixture. In order to obtain better fibre orientation and hence higher fracture energy, relatively higher FA/CA ratios should be used when the fibre content and aspect ratio are relatively high.}

15 illus, 4 tables, 44 ref

023040   Xiao Y;Qin R S;Mahalingam M (Research School of Engineering, Australian National Univ, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia, Email: yi.xiao@anu.edu.au) : Effects of geometry and properties of fibre and matrix on overall composite parameters. Int J appl Sci Engng Res 2014, 3(4), 792-803.

To determine the overall material properties, E1, E2 and G12, of a composite lamina, a finite element (FE) simulation approach is presented and its results are compared with those from mechanics of materials. To investigate the effect of fibre's geometry on the overall composite properties, three different fibre's geometries are considered, in conjunction with two matrix materials and four fibre materials. Strand 7, the commercial FE analysis software, is employed to conduct FE simulation. The FE results of the overall material properties of the composite, for different matrix's and fibre's geometries, and material properties, are compared with those from mechanics of materials approach.

8 illus, 11 tables, 24 ref

023039   Vikas Kumar;Gaur P;Mittal A P (Instrumentation and Control Engineering Div, Netaji Subhas Institute of Technology, New Delhi-110 078, Email: sainivika@gmail.com) : High performance predictive current control of a three phase VSI: an experimental assessment. Sadhana 2014, 39(6), 1295-1310.

Delay has a significant role to play in the implementation of the predictive current control scheme as large amount of calculations are involved. Compensating delay in the predictive current controller design can lead to an improved load current total harmonic distortion (THD) and also an increased switching frequency. Minimization of switching frequency while maintaining the lower value of load current THD requires multiple objective optimization which is achieved by optimizing a single objective function, constructed using weighting factors as a linear combination of individual objective function. The effect of weighting factor on the switching frequency minimization and the current tracking error with delay compensation for the two level voltage source inverter (VSI) are investigated in this paper. The outcomes of the predictive current control using an optimized weighting factor which is calculated using branch and bound algorithm with the delay compensation are compared with the PWM based current control scheme. The experimental tests are conducted on a 2.2 kW VSI to verify the simulation observations.

15 illus, 2 tables, 16 ref

023038   Vijay Shankar G R;Suji D (Civil Engineering Dep, Karpagam Univ, Coimbatore-641 021, Email: girivijayshankar@gmail.com ) : Static and cyclic behaviour of high performance concrete beams using metakaolin and partial replacement with quarry dust. J Ind Pollut Control 2014, 30(1), 153-62.

This paper presents an investigation on the flexural behaviour of High Performance concrete beams produced from metakaolin and quarry dust. The quarry dust be an economic alternative to the river sand. In this investigations Metakaolin as partial cement replacement and Quarry dust as partial fine aggregate replacement. A total of 8 specimens were considered and there reinforcement ratios are uniform (0.75%) were fabricated and tested under both static and cyclic loading. It was observed that the deflection characteristics, crack Patten, ductility indices, compressive strain, tensile strain, ultimate load carrying, moment wise curvature of the beam the results were compared with Conventional Concrete beams.

20 illus, 5 tables, 19 ref

023037   Vasudevan M;Suresh Kumar G;Nambi I M (Environmental and Water Resources Engineering, Civil Engineering Dep, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai-600 036, Email: devamv@gmail.com) : Numerical modelling of multicomponent LNAPL dissolution kinetics at residual saturation in a saturated subsurface system. Sadhana 2014, 39(6), 1387-1408.

Characterization of aquifers contaminated by petroleum hydrocarbons is limited by the use of dissolution mass transfer correlations developed for single compounds without considering the effects of the mass transfer limitations in presence of other components. A one-dimensional implicit numerical model is developed for the coupled mass transfer and transport processes and the results are analysed using existing mass transfer correlations for better understanding of the single and multicomponent dissolution processes. The mass transfer coefficient in the multicomponent system is found to be more nonlinear and extending with changing slope, unlike the exponential reduction for single compound system. During the initial phase, the dissolution rate of a soluble compound is very high due to the high concentration gradient, and as dissolution progresses, its effective solubility decreases with change in mole fraction. At higher pore volumes, the mole fractions of lower solubility fractions increase which can result in higher effective solubility. The kinetics of interphase mass transfer by dissolution and sorption is favoured by coupled biodegradation. However, mass transfer limitation for more soluble compounds under the conditions of low residual saturation and low mole fraction is observed to be due to low dissolution rate coefficient rather than decreasing concentration gradient.

9 illus, 5 tables, 64 ref

023036   Swami D;Sharma P K;Ojha C S P (Civil Engineering Dep, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee-247 667, Email: drpksharma07@gmail.com) : Simulation of experimental breakthrough curves using multiprocess non-equilibrium model for reactive solute transport in stratified porous media. Sadhana 2014, 39(6), 1425-46.

In this paper, we have studied the behaviour of reactive solute transport through stratified porous medium under the influence of multi-process nonequilibrium transport model. Various experiments were carried out in the laboratory and the experimental breakthrough curves were observed at spatially placed sampling points for stratified porous medium. Batch sorption studies were also performed to estimate the sorption parameters of the material used in stratified aquifer system. The effects of distance dependent dispersion and tailing are visible in the experimental breakthrough curves. The presence of physical and chemical non-equilibrium are observed from the pattern of breakthrough curves. Multi-process non-equilibrium model represents the combined effect of physical and chemical non-ideality in the stratified aquifer system. The results show that the incorporation of distance dependent dispersivity in multi-process non-equilibrium model provides best fit of observed data through stratified porous media. Also, the exponential distance dependent dispersivity is more suitable for large distances and at small distances, linear or constant dispersivity function can be considered for simulating reactive solute in stratified porous medium.

15 illus, 6 tables, 39 ref

023035   Singh S;Talwar R (Electronics Engineering Dep, Punjab Technical Univ, Kapurthala-144 601, Email: sartajvir.dhillon@gmail.com) : Comparative study oon change vector analysis based change detection techniques. Sadhana 2014, 39(6), 1311-1331.

Detection of Earth surface changes are essential to monitor regional climatic, snow avalanche hazard analysis and energy balance studies that occur due to air temperature irregularities. Geographic Information System (GIS) enables such research activities to be carried out through change detection analysis. From this viewpoint, different change detection algorithms have been developed for land-use land-cover (LULC) region. Among the different change detection algorithms, change vector analysis (CVA) has level headed capability of extracting maximum information in terms of overall magnitude of change and the direction of change between multispectral bands from multi-temporal satellite data sets. Since past two-three decades, many effective CVA based change detection techniques e.g., improved change vector analysis (ICVA), modified change vector analysis (MCVA) and change vector analysis posterior-probability space (CVAPS), have been developed to overcome the difficulty that exists in traditional change vector analysis (CVA). Moreover, many integrated techniques such as cross correlogram spectral matching (CCSM) based CVA. CVA uses enhanced principal component analysis (PCA) and inverse triangular (IT) function, hyper-spherical direction cosine (HSDC), and median CVA (m-CVA), as an effective LULC change detection tools. This paper comprises a comparative analysis on CVA based change detection techniques such as CVA, MCVA, ICVA and CVAPS. This paper also summarizes the necessary integrated CVA techniques along with their characteristics, features and shortcomings. Based on experiment outcomes, it has been evaluated that CVAPS technique has greater potential than other CVA techniques to evaluate the overall transformed information over three different MODerate resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite data sets of different regions. Results of this study are expected to be potentially useful for more accurate analysis of LULC changes which will, in turn, improve the utilization of CVA based change detection techniques for such applications.

9 illus, 16 tables, 52 ref

023034   Shankar R;Srinivas T (Energy Div, CO2 Research and Green Technologies Centre, School of Mechanical and Building Sciences, VIT Univ, Vellore-632 014, Email: srinivastpalli@yahoo.co.in) : Development and analysis of a new integrated power and cooling plant using LiBr-H₂O mixture. Sadhana 2014, 39(6), 1547-62.

Cooling needs are increasing rapidly at hot climatic countries with increased global warming. The existed vapour compression refrigeration (VCR) system demands electricity for its operation which is more expensive. The concept of a newly proposed cooling cogeneration cycle has been developed by clubbing the power and cooling processes. It consists of characteristics of Rankine cycle and vapour absorption refrigeration (VAR) system and can be developed at hot climatic conditions with LiBr-water mixture as a working fluid. The results show that increase in heat source temperature is boosting power with a drop in cooling. The resulted cooling is seven times more than the power generation. The separator temperature has been recommended from 140 to 150°C to maximize the total output.

7 illus, 3 tables, 22 ref

023033   Senthil Kumar A;Keerthi V;Dadhwal V K;Kiran Kumar A S (Geophysical and Special Products Group, National Remote Sensing Centre (ISRO), Balanagar, Hyderabad-500 037, Email: senthil@iirs.gov.in) : Algorithms to improve spectral discrimination from Indian hyperspectral sensors data. Curr Sci 2015, 108(5), 842-7.

With the inclusion of a hyperspectral imager (HySI) sensor on the Indian Mini Satellite (IMS-1) Earth observation mission and subsequently near identical hyperspectral sensor on the Chandrayaan-1 lunar mission, 64-band hyperspectral data from both these missions have provided the user community rich information to explore new algorithms to exploit sensor-specific parameters and to interpret and/or classify the features in multi-resolution frame. In this article, methods to improve spectral uniqueness present in the HySI by analysing adjacent bands' spectral overlaps, by implementing spectral deconvolution and reconstruction techniques are presented. Similarly, the use of multi-resolution approach for fast searching of standard spectral library end-members for better discrimination of hyperspectral pixel data are also discussed along with applications in Earth and lunar surface hyperspectral image interpretation. These spectral analyses techniques are useful in discriminating subtle differences in spectral signatures that help study the origin of secondary craters and gullies/ landslides on the lunar surface.

5 illus, 30 ref

023032   Saxena A;Tirth V;Srivasatava G (School of Engineering and Applied Science, Himalayan Univ, Andhra Pradesh, Email: culturebeat94@yahoo.com) : Thermal performance studies of a low cost hybrid solar air heater. Int J appl Sci Engng Res 2014, 3(4), 804-15.

The use of solar energy for, heating, distillation, cooking, drying, refrigeration and air conditioning and power generation is increasing day by day because of a high consumption rate of fossil fuels, round the globe. For the said purposes, numerous systems are there which performs on solar energy to fulfill the demand of, cooking, distillation, water heating, etc. Among them, a solar air heater (SAH) is a device which is generally used for agriculture drying, timber seasoning and space heating. The present article focuses on the experimental studies of a hybrid SAH, which can perform on individual source energy (either solar energy or auxiliary power) or dual energy source (i.e., solar energy and auxiliary power, both). The quality feature of the SAH is that it can perform in any type of ambient conditions by consuming only 640 W of electricity. An attempt has been made to improve the thermal performance of the SAH by placing two halogen lamps (300 W, each) in its outlet and inlet ducts. The experiments have been carried out natural and forced convection. The maximum thermal efficiency was observed around 53.1% on natural convection and 61.53% on forced convection.

4 illus, 2 tables, 28 ref

023031   Sanjeev N K;Malik V;Suresh Hebbar H (Mechanical Engineering Dep, National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal, Email: sanjeevkumaraswamy@gmail.com) : Effect of coefficient of friction in finite element modeling of friction stir welding and its importance in manufacturing process modeling applications. Int J appl Sci Engng Res 2014, 3(4), 755-62.

Friction Stir Welding (FSW) is a relatively new joining process which is gaining significance in many joining applications. The development in Finite element (FE) modeling is also aiding in widening the applicability of FSW by simulating the process for better understanding. The success of modeling of FSW depends on selection of suitable techniques and models/laws irrespective of FE package used for simulation. The principal equations that govern modeling of FSW are the material model and the friction model. This paper aims at discussing the effect of variation in Coefficient of Friction (COF) on simulation outputs. It also highlights the modification required in friction model to get the realistic results from FSW simulations using ABAQUS.

6 illus, 1 table, 23 ref

023030   Sangavai K;Porkodi C (NO, , PSG College of Technology, Email: sks@mat.psgtech.ac.in) : Energy-balance, cluster based routing algorithm using vertex subset degree preserving spanning tree for wireless sensor network. Curr Trends Technol Sci 2015, 4(1), 441-5.

The past few years have witnessed increased interest in the potential use of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) in a wide range of applications and it has become a hot research area. Based on network structure, routing protocols in WSNs can be divided into two categories: flat routing and hierarchical or clustering routing. Owing to a variety of advantages, clustering is becoming an active branch of routing technology in WSNs. Other than this energy conservation is more important in most applications in that all sensor nodes are constrained with energy which is directly related to network lifetime. In this paper, we propose a cluster based routing algorithm using vertex subset degree preserving spanning trees in which energy is also taken into account for the formation of clusters & heads after the first round of transmission. We describe and analyze the algorithm. Finally, we conclude the paper with some future directions.

4 illus, 16 ref

023029   Roy S C D (NO, , 164, Hauz Khas Apartments (SFS), Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi-110 016) : Some recent work on lattice structures for digital signal processing. Sadhana 2014, 39(6), 1271-94.

This paper is concerned with a review of some recent work on derivation and synthesis of lattice structures for digital signal processing (DSP). In particular, synthesis of canonical structures for both finite impulse response (FIR) and infinite impulse response (IIR) transfer functions is presented in detail. This has been an outstanding problem in DSP, and I demonstrate here how the solution came through very simple ideas and reasoning. Besides a consolidation of results published earlier in various papers, some new results containing refinements and simplifications in the synthesis procedures have also been presented.

20 illus, 22 ref

023028   Reddy H P;Chaudhry M H;Imran J (Civil Engineering Dep, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Kharagpur 721302, Email: hpr@civil.iitkgp.ernet.in) : Computation of gradually varied flow in compound open chanel networks. Sadhana 2014, 39(6), 1523-45.

Although, natural channels are rarely rectangular or trapezoidal in cross section, these cross sections are assumed for the computation of steady, gradually varied flow in open channel networks. The accuracy of the computed results, therefore, becomes questionable due to differences in the hydraulic and geometric characteristics of the main channel and floodplains. To overcome these limitations, an algorithm is presented in this paper to compute steady, gradually varied flow in an open-channel network with compound cross sections. As compared to the presently available methods, the methodology is more general and suitable for application to compound and trapezoidal channel cross sections in series channels, tree-type or looped networks. In this method, the energy and continuity equations are solved for steady, gradually varied flow by the Newton-Raphson method and the proposed methodology is applied to tree-type and looped-channel networks. An algorithm is presented to determine multiple critical depths in a compound channel. Modifications in channel geometry are presented to avoid the occurrence of multiple critical depths. The occurrence of only one critical depth in a compound cross section with modified geometry is demonstrated for a tree-type channel network.

7 illus, 7 tables, 21 ref

023027   Rathi S;Gupta R (Civil Engineering Dep, Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology, Nagpur, Email: shwetanabira12345@rediffmail.com) : Locations of sampling stations for water quality monitoring in water distribution networks. J envir Sci Engng 2014, 56(2), 169-78.

Water quality is required to be monitored in the water distribution networks (WDNs) at salient locations to assure the safe quality of water supplied to the consumers. Such monitoring stations (MSs) provide warning against any accidental contaminations. Various objectives like demand coverage, time for detection, volume of water contaminated before detection, extent of contamination, expected population affected prior to detection, detection likelihood and others, have been independently or jointly considered in determining optimal number and location of MSs in WDNs. "Demand coverage" defined as the percentage of network demand monitored by a particular monitoring station is a simple measure to locate MSs. Several methods based on formulation of coverage matrix using pre-specified coverage criteria and optimization have been suggested. Coverage criteria is defined as some minimum percentage of total flow received at the monitoring stations that passed through any upstream node included then as covered node of the monitoring station. Number of monitoring stations increases with the increase in the value of coverage criteria. Thus, the design of monitoring station becomes subjective. A simple methodology is proposed herein which priority wise iteratively selects MSs to achieve targeted demand coverage. The proposed methodology provided the same number and location of MSs for illustrative network as an optimization method did. Further, the proposed method is simple and avoids subjectivity that could arise from the consideration of coverage criteria. The application of methodology is also shown on a WDN of Dharampeth zone (Nagpur city WDN in Maharashtra, India) having 285 nodes and 367 pipes.

7 illus, 10 tables, 13 ref

023026   Ramesh M;Karthikeyan T;Kumaravel A (Mechatronics Engineering Dep, K.S. Rangasamy College of Technology, Tiruchengode, Tamil Nadu, Email: rmsvijay@gmail.com) : Effect of reinforcement of natural residue (quarry dust) to enhance the properties of aluminium metal matrix composites. J Ind Pollut Control 2014, 30(1), 109-16.

Metal matrix composites (MMCs) have superior mechanical strength and wear resistance as compared to base alloy. Aluminium matrix reinforced with low density discontinuous particulate composites has good potential in automobile and aerospace applications. The main challenge is to produce the light weight composite in a cost effective way to achieve the greater properties. In the present study, aluminium( A356) alloy is reinforced with quarry dust (QD) particulates using modified stir casting and the effect of quarry dust on the composites are investigated. Aluminium metal matrix composites (AMCs) have been successfully produced with different weight percentages (0, 5, 7.5 and 10) of quarry dust. Macrohardness and ultimate tensile strength of the composites have improved with the addition of reinforced particulates in the base matrix alloy. Dry sliding wear behavior of AMCs is examined with the help of a pin on disc wear testing machine. It is found that the addition of quarry dust reinforcements increases the wear resistance of the composites. Optical and SEM images revealed the homogeneous distribution of reinforcement particles in the composites.

8 illus, 2 tables, 22 ref

023025   Raju G;Moni B S;Nair M S (Information Technology Dep, Kannur Univ, Kannur-670 567, Email: kurupgraju@rediffmail.com) : Novel handwritten character recognition system using gradient based features and run length count. Sadhana 2014, 39(6), 1333-55.

In this paper, authors propose a novel hand written character recognition system using a combination of gradient-based features and run length count (GBF-RLC). The performance of the proposed method has been tested on Malayalam script, a South Indian language. The gradient of image is the intensity at each point, giving the direction of the largest possible increase from light to dark and the rate of change in that direction. RLC is the count of contiguous group of 1's encountered in a left to right/top to bottom scan of a character image or block of an image. Classification was carried out with a Simplified Quadratic Classifier (SQDF) and Multi Layer Perceptron (MLP). A database containing 19,800 isolated handwritten characters pertaining to 44 classes was used for the study. The feature vector is augmented by including aspect ratio, position of centroid and ratio of pixels on the vertical halves of a character image. The recognition accuracy of 99.78% was achieved with minimum computational and storage requirement.

15 illus, 8 tables, 32 ref

023024   Rajaji L;Kumar C (NO, Sathyabama Univ, Chennai, Tamil Nadu) : Doubly fed induction generator using neural network controller for wind turbine applications. Int J Comp Applic 2014, 9(2), 165-75.

Variable speed wind turbines play vital role in wind energy market globally. That too, pitch regulated wind turbines with doubly fed induction generator (DFIG) systems more popular and well proven technology across the world. This paper presents the simulation and analysis of stand-alone wind driven doubly fed induction generator using neural network controller. The machine shows the ability to generate constant voltage with constant frequency irrespective of the machine speed or load variations.

16 illus, 8 ref

023023   Prakash Chauhan;Prabhjot Kaur;Srivastava N; Sinha R K;Jain N;Murty S V S (NO, Space Applications Centre, (ISRO), Ahmedabad-380 015, Email: prakash@sac.isro.gov.in) : Hyperspectral remote sensing of planetary surfaces: an insight into composition of inner planets and small bodies in the solar system. Curr Sci 2015, 108(5), 915-.

Space exploration missions of planetary bodies in our solar system have provided new insights to understand their formation and evolutionary processes that such bodies have undergone leading to their current geological state. Remote sensing from orbiter mission has helped in identifying surface features, delineating surface topography, mapping surface composition and deriving reliable age estimates of different planetary surfaces. In particular, high spatial and spectral resolution spacecraft observations have significantly contributed to our current understanding of the geological, physical and chemical processes that resulted in divergent evolutionary paths undertaken by different planetary objects such as inner and outer planets, dwarf planets, the moons and small solar system bodies (asteroids and comets). Hyperspectral remote sensing has been an emerging field of space-based reflectance spectroscopy and in recent years many imaging spec-troscopy instruments have flown on different planetary missions, e.g. Moon Mineralogy Mapper on-board Chandrayaan-1, VIMS on Cassini mission, CRISM on Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) mission, etc. This article provides a review on imaging reflectance spectroscopy for understanding the surface composition through mineralogy for different planetary bodies.

3 illus, 1 table, 99 ref

023022   Patnaik P R (Chemical Engineering Dep, Gharda Institute of Technology, Lavel, District Ratnagiri-415 708, Email: prpatnaik@git-india.edu.in) : Do biologists and engineers (still) make strange bedfellows?. Proc Indian Natn Sci Acad 2014, 80(5), 915-17.

10 ref

023021   Pandey S;Srivastava A;Sharma A K;Srivastava J K (Chemical Engineering Dep, Ujjain Engineering College, Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, Email: sudeshana1pandey@gmail.com) : Modeling of ambient for RSPM and SPM pollutants through artifical neural network in sensitive area of Ujjain city. J Ind Pollut Control 2014, 30(1), 73-8.

This paper aims to analyze the pollutant level of the sensitive area in Ujjain. Application of Artificial Neural Network analyzes the pollutant RSPM and SPM. The result reported pertains to a site successive preliminary air sampling excessive carried out at selected location in Ujjain mahakal temple. The Artificial neural network system was run by giving the inputs of meteorological data's and giving the outputs of concentration of various pollutants and accordingly the estimation of Errors was done by this study. Analysis of consecutive four years of data from the sensitive area through ANNS has been found, the concentrations of RSPM = 53.91 and SPM = 195. High volume sampler was used to measure the concentration of critical pollutants RSPM and SPM. This model calculates pollution concentrations due to observed traffic, meteorological and pollution data after an appropriate relationship has been obtained empirically between these parameters. The system is made of various devices which have to be chosen based on the characteristics of the pollutant: aerosol, solid particles, and droplets or gaseous. The chosen framework and facilities depend on the type of the pollutant: aerosol, solid particles, and droplets or gaseous. There are a number of basic parameters which have to be considered in order to define air pollution control devices. This study represents a modeling of the named parameters which are related to the framework and facilities of air pollution control. In order to set the optimal parameters of a purification device, a deterministic model of the process of purification should be determined.

5 illus, 1 table, 13 ref