014170   Pandiyarasan V;Shanmugapriya P;Thanuja M Y; Anusuya T;Vairavaraja P (Nanotechnology Dep, SRM University, Chennai, Email: 2pandiyarasan@gmail.com) : Synthesis and characterization of zno nanoparticles - a green chemistry approach. Asian J Adv Basic Sci 2014, 3(1), 94-101.

Many green synthesis methods are used for synthesizing the nanoparticles in order not to harm the human kind which makes use of it. Sunscreen is one of the vital products that play a vital role in the human life now-a-days. Sunscreens are generally prepared with titanium dioxide and zinc oxide nanoparticles due to its higher bandgap which helps to protect the skin from UVB and UVA rays respectively. These nanoparticles are chemically prepared as far as now in the case of sunscreen products. Titanium dioxide nanoparticle does not give full protection over UV-A spectrum when compared to Zinc oxide nanoparticle. So sunscreen manufacturers opt for ZnO nanoparticle to give better results. Our motivation is to prepare green synthesized ZnO nanoparticle to use it in the preparation of transparent sunscreen. Here we use Aloe barbadensis leaf extract for the synthesis of ZnO nanoparticle.

24 ref

014169   Pandey S K;Pandey S K;Awasthi V;Ashish Kumar; Deshpande U P;Gupta M;Mukherjee S (Discipline of Electrical Engineering, Hybrid Nanodevice Research Group, Indian Institute of Technology, Indore-453 441, Email: shaibal@iiti.ac.in) : Influence of annealing temperature of ZnO thin films grown by dual ion beam sputtering. Bull Mater Sci 2014, 37(5), 983-9.

Author have investigated the influence of in situ annealing on the optical, electrical, structural and morphological properties of ZnO thin films prepared on p-type Si(100) substrates by dual ion beam sputtering deposition (DIBSD) system. X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements showed that all ZnO films have (002) preferred orientation. Full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) of XRD from the (002) crystal plane was observed to reach to a minimum value of 0.139° from ZnO film, annealed at 600 °C. Photoluminescence (PL) measurements demonstrated sharp near-band-edge emission (NBE) at <126>380 nm along with broad deep level emissions (DLEs) at room temperature. Moreover, when the annealing temperature was increased from 400 to 600 °C, the ratio of NBE peak intensity to DLE peak intensity initially increased, however, it reduced at further increase in annealing temperature. In electrical characterization as well, when annealing temperature was increased from 400 to 600 °C, room temperature electron mobility enhanced from 6.534 to 13.326 cm^{2/V s, and then reduced with subsequent increase in temperature. Therefore, 600 °C annealing temperature produced good-quality ZnO film, suitable for optoelectronic devices fabrication. X-ray photoelectron spectro-scopy (XPS) study revealed the presence of oxygen interstitials and vacancies point defects in ZnO film annealed at 400 °C.}

5 illus, 26 ref

014168   Panda B P;Mohanty S;Nayak S K (Laboratory for Advanced Research in Polymeric Materials (LARPM), Central Institute of Plastics Engineering and Technology, Bhubaneswar-751 024, Email: larpmcipet@gmail.com) : Effects of geometry and temperature on mode I interlaminar fracture of filled polypropylene-elastomer nanocomposite. Bull Mater Sci 2014, 37(5), 1017-29.

In this study, organically modified Na-MMT clay was used for the preparation of blend nanocom-posites containing different ratios of polypropylene (PP) and ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) elastomer in a twin screw extruder. Maleic-grafted PP (MAPP) was used as compatibilizer for making PP hy-drophilic. Surface modification of Na-MMT was made by using amino propyl trimethoxy silane (APS) and trimethyl amine as coupling agent with surface grafting catalyst, respectively. A fracture mechanics approach has been adopted by mode I test and the effects of specimen geometry have been investigated. Increase in interlaminar fracture energy value, G_c, was observed as the crack propagated through the composite, i.e. a rising 'R-curve' for both blend and nanocomposites. Deep fracture studies were carried out at different temperatures (-60 °C to 60 °C) using Izod impact and SENT tests. Fracture energy, fracture stress and brittle ductile transition were determined from crack initiation and propagation process, which showed significant improvement in impact and fracture energy at positive temperature. The wide-angle X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns showed increased d-spacing of clay layers, indicating enhanced compatibility between PP and clay with the addition of maleated polypropylene (MAPP). Morphology/impact property relationships and an explanation of the toughening mechanisms were made by comparing the impact properties with scanning electron micrographs (SEMs) of fracture surfaces. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM) photomicrographs illustrated the intercalated and partially exfoliated structures of the hybrids with clay, MAPP and elastomer.

13 illus, 1 table, 36 ref

014167   Palit S (Chemical Engineering Dep, Univ of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Post Office-Bidholi via Premnagar, Dehradun-248 007, Email: sukanchan68@gmail.com) : New dimensions of sustainable development and disaster risk reduction-an Indian perspective. Pollut Res 2014, 33(1), 89-95.

The world of engineering and technology is surpassing one visionary change over another. The progress of our civilization is inherently dependent on the energy and environmental sustainability. The march of human mankind towards a visionary tomorrow is encountering immense sustainability issues. Decisions from civil society and governments in developed, developing and third world economies are plunged in the deep sea. The vision of successful sustainable development is not a mirage if caution and concern is practiced. Man's as well as scientist's vision is wide, varied and versatile. The subject of sustainable development remains as the most debatable topic in the present century. The question of environmental sustainability and energy sustainability is the targeted vision for the future. The survival of mankind in intricately linked with energy and environmental sustainability. The depletion of fossil fuel and other natural resources has brought the human civilization to a disastrous peril. Here comes the need for holistic approach to sustainable development. Sustainable development cannot be achieved if man does not target the grassroot level of energy scenario. The vision, aim and objective of the paper is to outline the concept of sustainability and sustainable development. An Indian example of the Uttarakhand disaster,2013 is enumerated with the vision of future concern and future caution towards unsuccessful development. The vision of the paper is to touch upon the link between poverty, environmental sustainability and successful sustainable development. In this age of nuclear science and rapid industrialization, this treatise will chart a new course of action towards proper implementation of various governmental projects with regards towards sustainability in both developing and developed economies throughout the world.

10 ref

014166   Okade M;Biswas P K (Electronics and Communication Engineering Dep, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela-769 008) : Improving video stabilization using multi-resolution MSER features. IETE J Res 2014, 60(5), 373-80.

In this paper, authors investigate the application of multi-resolution_maximally stable extremal region (MSER) features for improving the video stabilization performance. MSER features have been used for many computer vision applications like wide baseline stereo, object recognition, video object tracking, and video stabilization with very good results as compared to other features like scale invariant feature transform (SIFT) and Kanade Lucas Tomasi (KLT). However, a limitation of the MSER feature in the stabilization application was observed when the input video frames were severely blurred. The same limitation was also observed when other features like KLT and SIFT were utilized under blurring conditions. In this paper we propose to overcome this drawback for video stabilization application by utilizing MSERs which are extracted and matched in a scale pyramid fashion instead of the MSER features detected and matched on a single image resolution. The duplicate MSERs resulting due to the pyramid style detection are removed followed by MSER feature matching for establishing correspondence between video frames to estimate the global motion parameters. Once the global motion parameters are estimated, the accumulated transformation is smoothed followed by motion compensation to construct the stabilized frame. Comparative analysis with state-of-the-art stabilization methods shows improvement in stabilization performance as well as robustness to blurring degradations. The proposed method can easily be ported to other feature detectors like KLT and SIFT thereby making the proposed method generic to any feature detector.

6 illus, 3 tables, 25 ref

014165   Ohtake Toshihito (Mechanical Systems Engineering Dep, Faculty of Engineering, Aich University of Technology, 50-2 Manori, Nishi-Hasamacho, Gamagori, Aichi 443-0047, Japan, Email: ohtake@aut.ac.jp) : Methyl termination and ATR-FTIR evaluation of n-Si (111) electrode towards photoelectrochemical cell fabrication. J scient ind Res 2014, 73(9), 598-600.

Author confirmed methyl termination on n-Si(111) surface by ATR-FTIR measurement, which was fabricated by a photo chloro-reaction and its methylation. The coverage of the methylation was about 63.7 %, and the surface was not re-terminated by hydrogen. Photoelectrochemical properties of the n-Si(111) was measured as an electrode for a photoelectrochemical cell, and an onset potential obtaining photocurrent for the methyl terminated n-Si(111) electrode was observed as negative shift at 70 mV comparing with that of the hydrogen terminated n-Si(111) electrode. Therefore, the negative shift would be expected for improving open circuit voltage towards solar cell.

3 illus, 1 table, 13 ref

014164   Nayana K O;Venkatesha T V (Chemistry Dep, School of Chemical Sciences, Kuvempu Univ, Shankaraghatta-577 451, Email: drtvvenkatesha@yahoo.co.uk) : Effect of ethyl vanillin on ZnNi alloy electrodeposition and its properties. Bull Mater Sci 2014, 37(5), 1137-46.

The bright ZnNi alloy coating on steel surface was prepared by elctrodepostion technique using brightener ethyl vanillin (EV). To know the influence of brightener on deposition and dissolution behaviour of ZnNi alloy, cyclic voltanimetric studies were carried out. FT-IR spectroscopic evidence was given to confirm selective adsorption of brightener on steel surface. The brightener enhances current efficiency and throwing power of plating bath during coating. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses in presence of brightener confirmed the change in surface morphology, phase composition and preferred orientation of ZnNi coating. In presence of brightener, nickel content of the coating was reduced at higher current density and thickness. In addition, deposit properties like appearances, hardness, adherence, ductility and corrosion resistance of ZnNi alloy deposits were also improved in bright deposit. Simultaneously, effect of deposition current density and thickness on corrosion behaviour of coating was examined.

11 illus, 4 tables, 31 ref

014163   Milinovic M;Petrovic D;Jeremic O;Kovac M (Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Belgrade Univ, Serbia, Email: mmilinovic@mas.bg.ac.rs) : Discrete deterministic modelling of autonomous missiles salvos. Def Sci J 2014, 64(5), 471-6.

Deals with mathematical models of sequent salvos battle, of autonomous flight missiles (AFM) organized in the groups of combatants. Tactical integration of AFM system distance-controlled weapon is considered by performances of simultaneous approaches on targets, and continual battle models of guerilla and direct fire, are redesigned to the discrete-continual mixed model, for checking missiles sudden, and further salvos, attack effects. Superiority parameters, as well as losses and strengths of full, or the part of salvo battle, for the missiles groups as technology sub-systems combatants', is expressed by mathematical and simulation examples. Targets engagements capacities of the missiles battle unit, is conducted through designed scenarios and mathematically derived in the research. Model orientated on answers about employment of rapid reaction defending tactics, by distance missiles attacks.

3 illus, 1 table, 20 ref

014162   Mallakpour S;Zadehnazari A (Chemistry Dep, Organic Polymer Chemistry Research Laboratory, Isfahan Univ of Techno, Isfahan 84156-83111, I.R. Iran, Email: mallak@cc.iut.ac.ir) : Effect of amino acid-functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes on the properties of dopamine-based poly(amide-imide) composites: an experimental study. Bull Mater Sci 2014, 37(5), 1065-77.

In a single-step, rapid microwave-assisted process, multi-walled carbon nanotubes were function-alized by S-valine amino acid. Formation of amino acid on nanotube surface was confirmed by Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning and transmission electron microscopy techniques. The surface-modified nanotubes showed better chemical stability in common solvents such as N,N-dimethylacetamide. The effects of amino acid functionalization of multi-walled carbon nanotubes on the properties of nanotube/poly(amide-imide) nanocomposites were investigated. The functionalized carbon nanotubes (5-15 wt%) were dispersed homogeneously in the poly(amide-imide) matrix, while the structure of the polymer and the nanotubes structure were stable in the preparation process as revealed by microscopic observations. The properties of nanocomposites were characterized extensively using the aforementioned techniques. The composite films have been prepared by casting a solution of precursor polymer containing 5-valine-functionaIized carbon nanotubes into a thin film and its tensile properties were examined. The Young's modulus (elastic modulus) and tensile strength of the composite films were greatly improved by the incorporation of modified nanotubes.

10 illus, 3 tables, 47 ref

014161   Malagaudanavar A;Singh Y;Singh N (NO, Transport Aircraft Research and Design Centre (TAD) Hindustan Aeroanu, Kanpur-208 008, Email: gmaurdc.nsk@hal-india.com) : Use of poke-yoke for right manufacturing and installation. J Aerospace Sci Technol 2014, 66(1), 61-4.

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Transport Aircraft Division, Kanpur manufactures HAL DO-228 a Light Transport Aircraft. Manufacturing of HAL DO-228 commenced as licensed production with Technology transfer from M/s Dornier GmbH, Germany. All the design data for manufacturing of parts, the manufacturing tooling and the processes were given under the agreement for Transfer of Technology. Number of aircraft have been built over a period spreading to more than two decades starting from the year 1984. In the recent years, we faced two distinct problems. One, defect occurred during manufacturing of two wing spar components. Another, operator faced problem due to wrong fitment of a part. Authors present these two interesting cases which were resolved by adopting poka-yoke methods.

^ssc7 illus, ref

014160   Madurwar M V;Mandavgane S A;Ralegaonkar R V (Civil Engineering Dep, Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology, South Ambazari Road, Nagpur-440 010, Email: sanvan28@yahoo.com) : Use of sugarcane bagasse ash as brick material. Curr Sci 2014, 107(6), 1044-51.

Application of bio-fuel by-product sugarcane bagasse ash (SBA) as a principal raw material for the manufacturing of bricks was studied. The bricks were developed using the quarry dust (QD) as a replacement to natural river sand and lime (L) as a binder. SBA as a principal raw material was characterized using X-ray fluorescence (XRF), thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). XRF confirms SBA as a cementi-tious material. TGA confirms thermal stability till 650°C, whereas SEM monograph shows individual ash with a rough surface and numerous fine pores. Elemental analysis of quarry dust and lime was also carried out using XRF and classic wet test. The physical properties of quarry dust and lime were determined using the laboratory test methods. SBA-QD-L combination bricks were designed and developed in different mix proportions. Physico-mechanical properties of the developed bricks were studied according to recommended standards. The results of the SBA-QD-L bricks were compared with physico-mechanical properties of commercially available burnt clay-and-fly-ash bricks. It was observed that SBA-QD-L bricks are lighter in weight, energy efficient and meet com-pressive strength requirements of IS 1077:1992. The bricks also serve the purpose of solid waste management and innovative sustainable construction material. The bricks can be used in local construction especially for non-load-bearing walls.

11 illus, 8 tables, 40 ref

014159   Madan H M;Prabhakar K;Mishra R K (Mechanical Engineering Dep, Acharya Institute of Technology, Bangalore-560 090, Email: rkmishra_gtre@yahoo.com) : Effect of silicon carbide reinforcement on wear properties of a glass epoxy composite for aircraft application. J Aerospace Sci Technol 2014, 66(1), 48-53.

In the present investigation, the tensile and sliding wear properties of silicon carbide filled with glass epoxy polymeric composites were studied. The composites were prepared by dispersing different weight percentage of micro silicon carbide fillers in epoxy matrix and the mixture is then laid up on glass woven fabric by hand layup technique. Specimens were prepared out of the cured laminates and tests were conducted to study their tensile and wear properties. The test matrix for wear tests is defined using Taguchi approach. Sliding wear resistance increased with increase in SiC filler percentage though there has been a marginal decrease in tensile properties.

11 illus, 6 tables, 8 ref

014158   Lucky;Garg R;Suri M (ECE Dep, Yamuna Institute of Engineering & Technology, Gadholi, Yamuna Nagar, Email: bakshi27@gmail.com) : Simulator designed for real time embedded system software based on priority scheduling algorithm. Arya Bhatta J Math Inf 2014, 6(2), 283-8.

Today numerous appliances like digital camera, laser printers, mobile phones and microwave ovens etc are powered by something beneath the sheath that makes them to do what they do. These tiny microcontrollers, working on basic assembly languages and high level languages are the heart of the appliances called Embedded Systems. An RTOS is responsible for managing the resources and hosting the applications that run on the embedded system but is designed specially to run with very precise timing and a high degree of reliability. The objective of this study is to design a simulator for real time embedded system software in stochastic environment. A comparative study is then made in terms of waiting and turnaround times for a number of processes based on two cases of priority scheduling policies used to design the simulator. The policy with minimum of these two parameters is considered the better one.

4 illus, 2 tables, 10 ref

014157   Li Z;Li H;Zhang Z;Luo P (NO, CEEE of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430 074, China, Email: lizhenhual1993@163.com) : Online calibration method for electronic voltage transformers based on IEC 61850-9-2. MAPAN 2014, 29(2), 97-105.

Since electronic voltage transformers (EVTs) based on IEC 61850-9-2 are widely used in the substations, especially in the automating substations, their calibration becomes very important. Generally, the calibration of EVTs needs for the power to be interrupted and causes power outage, and also the faults of the running transformers cannot be found in time. For this reason, an online calibration system is proposed in this paper. By employing a specially designed remote-controlled hoisting unit and standard voltage transformer, the proposed system can calibrate EVTs without interrupting the power service and the power outage can be avoided. A two-order Hanning self-convolution window algorithm is adopted to suppress the influence of spectrum leakage caused by frequency fluctuation and harmonic interference. Tests have been performed in the China Electric Power Research Institute. The results show that the proposed system has good performance and it can reach the accuracy class of 0.05 in complicated electromagnetic fields.

9 illus, 5 tables, 22 ref

014156   Lei X Q;Pan W M;Tu X P;Wang S F (NO, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang, China, Email: ly-lxq@163.com) : Minimum zone evaluation for roundness error based on geometric approximating searching algorithm. MAPAN 2014, 29(2), 143-9.

Considering the characteristics of roundness error, a new method for roundness error evaluation in the rectangular coordinates, named as Geometric Approximation Searching Algorithm, is presented in this paper. The principle and steps of the algorithm are described in detail. The mathematical formulas and program flowchart are given. At first the algorithm allocates a square and predetermines the ideal centre point as the initial reference point. The radius value of all the measured points are calculated by each corresponding vertexes of the square respectively. After each vertex of the square and the initial reference point are used as the ideal centre point to calculate the roundness error, the minimum difference of the radius is obtained. The judgment and arranged square can be done repeatedly. Finally, the roundness error value of the minimum zone circle is determined. The experimental results show that the roundness error can be evaluated effectively and accurately by using this algorithm.

2 illus, 4 tables, 20 ref

014155   Lakshmi C;Raghupathy R;John S K;Mistry S N (NO, Regional Center for Military Airworthiness (Engines) Center for Milita, Bangalore-560 093, Email: ragu.ur@gmail.com) : Reliability analysis of a turboshaft engine. J Aerospace Sci Technol 2014, 66(1), 35-40.

This paper brings out estimation of Average Service Life (ASL) and Mean Life of a turboshaft engine powering a single engined helicopter. This has been carried out through reliability analysis over defect investigation, repair and overhaul data for a period of 5 years. The implication of ASL and Mean life are deliberated. Critical areas for availability improvement for different operators are also highlighted in the paper.

^ssc6 illus, 3 tables, 4 ref

014154   Kumar A R P;Annamalai K;Premkartikkumar S R (Automobile Engineering Dep, Anna University (MIT Campus), Chennai-600 044, Email: dearpradeepkumar@gmail.com) : Adelfa (NOME-Nerium Oil Methyl Ester) with DEE as the fuel additive for NOx reduction in DI Diesel engines-An experimental investigation. J scient ind Res 2014, 73(9), 627-32.

Biodiesel would be a futuristic alternative for compression ignition engines because of its environmental benefits and the source being renewable. Jatropha, Pongamia pinnata, Mahua, cotton seed are the oils being tested by the researchers. In this experimental investigation Adelfa biodiesel (Nerium Oil Methyl Ester - NOME) has been used as the test fuel. The most common method of production of biodiesel is by transesterification. In most of the researches, suggested biodiesel blend was 20% by volume with petroleum diesel. Though biodiesel fuel show an appreciable results on performance and few emission parameters, the penalty being the elevated oxides of nitrogen (NO_x) emission. This problem persists in almost all the biodiesel blends. In this experimental research, Di ethyl ether (DEE) has been used as a fuel additive (20% Adelfa by volume with diesel + DEE) focusing on reducing emission and improving efficiency. Comparison between diesel, A20 and A20 + DEE with various proportions has been analyzed. Measured quantities were within the range of prescribed emission standards.

4 illus, 2 tables, 17 ref

014153   Khobragade C B;Khandetod Y P;Mohod A G;Deepak Kumar (Electrical & Other Energy Sources Dep, College of Agri. Engg. & Technology, Dr. B.S.K.K.V, Dapoli-415 712, Email: khobragadechetan@gmail.com) : Optimization of physical and thermal properties of a biomass briquettes fuel made from carbonized cashew nut shell and rice husk. Green Fmg 2014, 5(4), 670-4.

Biomass of agricultural waste is one of the major sources of fuel in our country. Thus, to increase the calorific value of biomass briquetting is done. In this study, cashew nut shells, rice husk and dry dung were used as raw material to produce a biomass briquette fuel. Waste flour was used as a binding agent for this briquette fuel. For making this briquette fuel, different proportion of all the three raw materials was experimented. Total twenty samples having different composition of all the raw material has been prepared and experimented. For all the twenty samples physical and thermal properties was determined. Bulk density, shatter index, resistance to water, durability index, compressive strength and calorific values are the physical and thermal properties which were tested in this study. It was found that the briquetting sample containing 55% cashew nut shell, 8% rice husk char, 27% dry dung and 10% waste flour has optimal values of physical and thermal properties by using Design expert version. Thus, this composition of carbonized cashew nut shell, carbonized rice husk and dry dung is best for briquetting biomass fuel.

8 ilus, 3 tables, 12 ref

014152   Kazemi S H;Kiani M A;Mohamadi R;Eskandarian L (Chemistry Dep, Institute of Advanced Studies in Basic Sciences (IASBS), Zanjan 45137-66731, Iran, Email: habibkazemi@iasbs.ac.ir) : Metal-polyaniline nanofibre composite for supercapacitor applications. Bull Mater Sci 2014, 37(5), 1001-6.

Aim of the present work is to increase the electrical conductivity and specific capacitance of the polyaniline (PANi) nanofibres by introducing the metallic nanostructures. Herein, metal nanoparticle-incorporated PANi nanofibres were prepared from interfacially synthesized PANi nanofibres as seeds. In the main step of aniline polymerization, the seeds were employed to produce a large amount of PANi nanofibres in the next steps. Also, metal-PANi nanofibres were chemically prepared by adding inorganic salts (nickel and copper salts) which incorporated PANi nanofibres via the self-assembly process. Increased conductivity and good electrochemical behaviour were observed for these metal-PANi nanofibres at room temperature compared with the single PANi nanofibres, which was previously reported. SEM, FT-IR and UV-Vis techniques were applied for characterization of the products. Finally, the potential application of the composites to use as electrode materials for supercapacitor was examined. Elevated specific capacitance in addition to good cycle stability was observed for the metal-PANi nanofibres. Also, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and charge/discharge experiments show that these metal-PANi nanofibres possess the high conductivity and low charge transfer resistance, which make them suitable candidates for high-performance supercapacitors.

8 illus, 36 ref

014151   Karmakar R;Tirumkudulu M S;Venkatesh K V (Chemical Engineering Dep, IIT Bombay, Mumbai, Email: richa_karmakar@iitb.ac.in) : Effect of glucose on trg receptor of Escherichia coli using soft agar experiment. Indian chem Engr 2014, 56(3), 229-34.

Chemotaxis is a phenomenon in which micro-organisms are able to direct their movements in response to chemicals present in their surroundings. Escherichia coli senses its environment with the help of chemotaxis receptors like Tar, Tsr, Trg, Tap and Aer. Different sugars such as glucose, sucrose, ribose, etc. are sensed by the Trg receptor. In this study, we investigate the chemotaxis response of E. coli K12 (wild type) and K12Δtrg to D-glucose. The chemotaxis response of E. coli to glucose is mediated by the Trg chemoreceptor located on the cell membrane and the phosphotransferase (PTS) pathway. Each of these can have crosstalks or work independent of the other. Glucose plates were prepared with 0.35% agar, 1.000 μM of glucose and motility buffer. The cells were introduced at the centre of the plate, consumed glucose and moved outward in the form of a ring. Since the glucose medium was a minimal medium, only one ring was observed. It was seen that the K12 strain moved faster as compared to the K12Δtrg strain. Clearly, the ring for the K12 strain is larger than that for the K12Δtrg, indicating higher drift velocity when both Trg sensing mechanism and PTS pathway are operational.

4 illus, 7 ref

014150   Karimi E Z;Vahdati-Khaki J;Zebarjad S M; Bataev I A;Bannnov A G (Materials and Metallurgical Engineering Dep, Faculty of Engineering, Ferdowsi Univ of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran, Email: ebrahimzk88@gmail.com) : Novel method for fabrication of Fe catalyst used for the synthesis of carbon nanotubes. Bull Mater Sci 2014, 37(5), 1031-8.

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been grown by decomposition of propane over a nanocamposite catalyst by chemical vapour deposition (CVD). The catalyst was prepared from an aluminum/iron oxide/graphite mixture milled in a high-energy ball-milling equipment. Scanning and transmission electron microscopies, Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction measurements have been carried out in order to investigate the catalyst and synthesized CNTs. The results show that iron nanoparticles are produced in an alumina and ball-milled graphite matrix. This produced nanocomposite is used as a catalyst to synthesize CNTs via CVD successfully. The yield of CNTs formation was greatly influenced by the milling time and deposition temperature.

8 illus, 38 ref

014149   Karikalan L;Chandrasekaran M;Sudhagar K (Mechanical Engineering Dep, VELS Univ, Chennai) : Review on waste cooking oil (WCO) based biodiesel and its combustion, performance and emission characteristics. Pollut Res 2014, 33(1), 97-104.

Finding alternate sources to fossil fuels for diesel engines are prime important due to thinning petroleum assets and the environmental consequences of exhaust gases from fossil fuelled engines. Fossil fuel use in transportation is the leading contributor to urban air pollution and to global warming. Renewable fuel sources such as biodiesel can play a modest role in reducing greenhouse gases and other potentially hazardous emission related to fossil fuels. Renewable fuels such as Vegetable oil and Waste cooking oil based biodiesel are impending contributors to solving the energy problem. This article is a literature review on waste cooking oil based biodiesel combustion, performance and emissions. The scientists and researchers conducted tests by using different oils and their blends with diesel. They conducted tests with waste cooking oil, either chemically altered or blended with diesel to prevent the engine failure. It was reported that that torque and brake power reduces due to lower calorific value of WCO biodiesel was about 13% lower than standard diesel and BSFC for WCO biodiesel operation was on an average 11.6% higher than standard diesel operation due to higher fuel density, higher fuel consumption and lower brake power due to lower calorific value. Also reported that the combustion characteristics of WCO biodiesel are similar as diesel and blends were found with shorter ignition delay, higher ignition temperature, higher ignition pressure and peak heat release. Researchers studied that emissions such as HC and CO decreases and NOx increases with WCO biodiesel compared to pure diesel and vast reduction in smoke intensity was observed with increase in percentage in blend especially at higher loads.

14 tables, 18 ref

014148   Kargar F;Laleh M;Shahrabi T;Sabour Rouhaghdam A (Materials Engineering Dep, Faculty of Engineering, Tarbiat Modares Univ, P.O. Box 14115-143, Tehran, Iran, Email: farzad.kargar@gmail.com) : Effect of treatment time on characterization and properties of nanocrystalline surface layer in copper induced by surface mechanical attrition treatment. Bull Mater Sci 2014, 37(5), 1087-94.

Nanocrystalline surface layers were synthesized on pure copper by means of surface mechanical attrition treatment (SMAT) at various treatment times. The microstructural features of the surface layers produced by SMAT were systematically characterized by optical microscopy (OM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. Hardness and surface roughness measurements were also carried out. It is found that the thickness of the deformed layer increased from 50 to 500 μm with increasing treatment time from 10 to 300 min, while the average grain size of the top surface layer decreased from 20 to 7 nm. Hardness of the all SMATed samples decreased with depth. Furthermore, the hardness of the top surface layer of the SMATed samples was at least two times higher than that of the un-treated counterpart. Surface roughness results showed different trend with treatment time. Amounts of PV and R_a values first sharply increased and then decreased.

6 illus, 39 ref

014147   Ji-Feng W;Zhang C;Shu-Shan W (State Key Laboratory of Explosion Science and Technology, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing-100 081, Email: weijifeng@bit.edu.cn) : Detonation output properties of D-shape structure. Def Sci J 2014, 64(5), 484-9.

Detonation wave propagation and output properties have been analyzed for D-shape structure. Four initiation modes were designed to compare wavefront profiles and output pressure distribution. Simulation results show that three-array-nine-point initiation mode (Mode-III) brings about the most match-up wave front for D-shape structure. Detonation output properties; have great influence on fragment ejection velocity and distribution density. The statistical results reveal that fragment parameters of Mode-III are the largest. Compared with Mode-Ill, the kinetic energies of other three modes decrease by 31,6 per cent, 19.6 per cent, 4.5 per cent, respectively. The computational values and normal curve of fragments distribution are obtained. From these analyses, it can be concluded that initiation mode has great influence on output parameters of fragments. With the optimal initiation Mode-III, ideal hitting angle should be within the range of -10° to 10°, the probability of distribution density would be close to 70 per cent.

10 illus, 3 tables, 16 ref

014146   Islam M S;Kishi T (NO, , ) : Method of analysis for chloride distribution in concrete from torrent data. J Constr Engng Technol Mgmt 2014, 4(3), 10-9.

Design w/c ratio becomes less important than achieved cover performance in the case of existing structure. Therefore, inspection data of chloride profile from some real structures do not always obey the rule of Fick's law, suggesting the influence of a new parameter. In this study, chloride ion profiles and behavior of penetrating water for normal, fly ash and slag concrete with w/c ratio as 40, 55, and 70%, respectively, cast in laboratory, were examined. Furthermore, Fick's law is modified based on liquid water front and its variation. It is also shown that the torrent permeability can fix suitable analysis method.

illus

014145   Hosseinzadeh L;Baedi J;Khorsand Zak A (Physics Dep, Hakim Sabzevari Univ, Sbzevar 9617976487, Khorasan Razavi, Iran, Email: alikhorsandzak@gmail.com) : X-ray peak broadening analysis of Fe₅₀Ni₅₀ nanocrystalline alloys prepared under different milling times of BPR using size strain plot (SSP) method. Bull Mater Sci 2014, 37(5), 1147-52.

Fe₅₀Ni₅₀ nanocrystalline alloys were prepared by mechanical alloying method at different milling times of 2, 5, 10, 30, 50 and 70 h and ball powder ratios (BPR) of 10:1, 20:1 and 30:1. The structures of prepared powders were studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD). The broadening of the diffraction peaks were analysed using size strain plot (SSP) method and the lattice strain and crystallite size of the nanocrystals were calculated. In addition, the typical morphological studies were performed by scanning electron and transmission electron microscopies (SEM and TEM). The results showed that the crystallite size of the nanocrystals decreased with the milling time and BPR increases; whereas, the lattice constant (a) increased. Vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) study of the powder prepared at 50 h and BPR 30:1 showed that the sample exhibits both the superparamagnetic and ferromagnetic properties in nanocrystallite size range.

7 illus, 26 ref

014144   Hajizadeh-Oghaz M;Razavi R S;Estarki M L (NO, Maleke Ashtar Univ of Technology, Shahinshahr 831415-115, Iran, Email: morteza_hajizade1367@yahoo.com) : Large-scale synthesis of YSZ nanopowder by pechini method. Bull Mater Sci 2014, 37(5), 969-73.

Yttria-stabilized zirconia nanopowders were synthesized on a relatively large scale using Pechini method. In the present paper, nearly spherical yttria-stabilized zirconia nanopowders with tetragonal structure were synthesized by Pechini process from zirconium oxynitrate hexahydrate, yttrium nitrate, citric acid and ethylene glycol. The phase and structural analyses were accomplished by X-ray diffraction; morphological analysis was carried out by field emission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The results revealed nearly spherical yttria-stabilized zirconia powder with tetragonal crystal structure and chemical purity of 99.1% by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy on a large scale.

5 illus, 1 table, 19 ref

014143   Haijal I;Al Ani R;Al Rawi O (NO, , ) : Proposed management system for efficient construction site productivity. J Constr Engng Technol Mgmt 2014, 4(3), 20-30.

Concept of on-site construction productivity has long been a major concern of researchers and construction companies. The factors that influence construction site productivity vary according to the project environment, project type, staff, management, and other related factors and/or variables. In this study, the main factors that are believed influencing construction site productivity are reviewed as environmental, manpower, management, and site. A field survey has evaluated site productivity of 150 construction projects, including 132 civil and 18 building projects to identify the actual productivity and the factors behind poor productivity. The survey results showed that the most influential manpower factors are the difficulty of finding qualified site supervisors, changing supervisors, changing workers and the lack of skilled workers. The most influential management factors were a lack of motivation and financial incentives, scheduled overtime, stop-work orders as a result of site accidents, rejection of work by the construction supervisory committees, stoppages of work because of disputes with owners/consultants, and poor subcontractor coordination. The study proposes a site management system includes a set of on-site procedures, to be implemented by project managers for improve efficiency of site productivity. Application of the suggested system is expected to assist site management in improving site productivity.

014142   Guanghu J;Xunzhang G;Zhen D (College of Electronic Science and Engineering, National Univ of Defense Technology, Changsha-410 073, Email: kingnudt@163.com) : Two-dimensional length extraction of ballistic target from ISAR images using a new scaling method by affine registration. Def Sci J 2014, 64(5), 458-63.

Length of ballistic target is one of the most important features for target recognition. It can be extracted from ISAR Images. Unlike from the optical image, the length extraction from ISAR image has two difficulties. The first one is that it is hard to get the actual position of scattering centres by the traditional target extraction method. The second one is that the ISAR image's cross scale is not known because of the target's complex rotation. Here we propose two methods to solve these problems. Firstly, we use clustering method to get scattering centers. Secondly we propose to get cross scale of the ISAR images by affine registration. Experiments verified that our approach is realisable and has good performance.

6 illus, 15 ref

014141   Gora A;Prasad G;Nitin Kumar;Malakar S (Agricultural Engineering Dep, C P College of Agriculture, SDAU, S K Nagar-385 506, Email: alok.gora@gmail.com) : Development and testing of rice husk gasifier stove for north east region in India. Green Fmg 2014, 5(4), 678-80.

The developed gasifier stove mainly consists of three units namely, reaction chamber, ash chamber and burner assembly. The diameters of inner and outer cylinder of reaction chamber are 15cm and 17cm respectively and its height is 53 cm. The reaction chamber shall accommodate 1.08 kg of rice husk. The second unit is ash chamber, which is placed below the reaction chamber. The ash chamber has capacity of 0.009 m^{3 and consists of a fan and grate. This whole project involved various method and process such as concept design, analysis process and fabrication process. The developed stove is found to be worked satisfactory with the rice husk having 12% moisture content. The start-up time of the rice husk fuel in the stove is about 3 to 6 minutes, which was found to be lesser for the half load compare to the full load. The time required for the, fuel to produce flammable gas is 40 to 72 seconds. The total operating time was 22 to 27 minutes when the reactor is fully loaded with fuel, while it was 17 to 24 minutes when the reactor is 3/4th loaded with fuel. At half load of the reactor, the total start-up time was 9 to 17 minutes. The fuel consumption rate of the stove was from 2.43 to 2.5 kg per hour. Boiling time for half liter of water (from 27 °C to 100°C) requires 10 to 12 minutes while for a liter of water, it varies from 17 to 20 minutes and for 1.5 lit. of water, it ranges from 28 to 38 minutes. The developed gasifier has many advantages such as low cost, simple operation, energy conservation, effective utilization of biomass, less pollutant, time saving cooking and reducing emission of gases.}

3 tables, 3 ref

014140   Ghahramani H;Barari M;Bastani M H (NO, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Khamir Branch, Islamic Azad Univ, Khamir, Iran) : Maritime radar target detection in presence of strong sea clutter based on blind source separation. IETE J Res 2014, 60(5), 331-44.

Study presented in this paper falls within the scope of the target detection problem in presence of clutter. The authors propose to use the complex-valued spatio-temporal FastICA (CSTFICA), which is categorized in the field of blind source separation (BSS), under the observation of the marine environment by a fixed monostatic maritime radar in order to separate the useful signal (derived from the target) and the resulting noise of the sea clutter. Tests using IPIX radar data and simulated target verify the performance of the method. The results show the efficiency of the method in different situations. Also, the superiority of the method in comparison to other existing methods such as the block adaptive normalized matched filter detector is shown by the result.

6 illus, 3 tables, 30 ref

014139   Fordoei H R A;Gholami A;Fathi S H;Abbasi A (Electrical & Electronic Engineering Dep, Iran Univ of Science and Technology, Tehran-1684613144) : Effect of TCSC on chaotic ferroresonant oscillations in voltage transformer. IETE J Res 2014, 60(5), 345-54.

Ferroresonance is one of the complex phenomena that occur in power system. This can create thermal and insulation problems for power system equipment. It can also cause chaotic oscillations in the power system. One of the factors that influences on the occurrence of ferroresonance in the capacitor voltage transformers (CVTs) is the magnitude of transmission line capacitor. To study the ferroresonance nonlinear dynamics, in this paper, the chaos theory is used. By using this theory, changes in system parameters which cause chaotic ferroresonant oscillations can be better reviewed and analysed. Thyristor-controlled series capacitors (TCSCs) are used for series compensation in the transmission line. Behaviour of the system in ferroresonance occurrence, with TCSC, is shown in bifurcation and phase plane diagrams. By using these diagrams, behavioural changes of the system can be easily seen in this case. The results show that TCSCs lead increasing of ferroresonance in CVT.

16 illus, 49 ref

014138   Farrokhi-Rad M;Shahrabi T;Khanmohammadi S (Materials Science and Engineering Dep, Tarbiat Modares Univ, P.O. Box 14115-143, Tehran, Iran, Email: morteza_farrokhi_rad@yahoo.com) : Electrophoretic deposition of titania nanoparticles: wet density of deposits during EPD. Bull Mater Sci 2014, 37(5), 1039-46.

Electrophoretic deposition (EPD) of titania nanoparticles was performed at different voltages and times. The wet density of deposits was calculated according to the Archimedes' principle. The wet density as well as the electric field over the deposits increased with time and attained the plateau at longer times. The velocity at which particles attach to the deposit, strongly influences its wet density at initial times. However, the effect of electro-osmotic flow is dominant at longer times. The coating with higher wet density had the higher corrosion resistance in Ringer's solution at 37.5 °C due to its closely packed and crack free micro-structure.

7 illus, 2 tables, 22 ref

014137   Dharavath M;Manna P;Chakraborty D (NO, Defence Research and Development Laboratory, Hyderabad-500 258, Email: debasis_cfd@drdl.drdo.in) : Numerical investigation of hydrogen-fuelled scramjet combustor with cavity flame holder. Def Sci J 2014, 64(5), 417-25.

Reacting flow field of a cavity-based hydrogen-fuelled supersonic combustion ramjet (scramjet) combustor has been explored numerically. 3-D RANS equations are solved alongwith k-ε turbulence model and infinitely fast rate kinetics for combustion. The flow field inside the flame holding cavity and its effect on the mixing and reaction are explored in detail by performing simulations of two different combustors (with and without cavities) for which elaborate surface pressure measurements are available for reacting and non-reacting flows. Simulations capture all the finer details of the flow field and good match between computed surface pressures experimental values for different equivalence ratios forms the basis of further analysis. The cavity of the combustor behaves as an open cavity for both non-reacting and reacting flow-even though the flow patterns inside the cavity are quite different for both the cases. Flame-holding cavities are seen to augment mixing and reaction in small sized combustors.

18 illus, 14 ref

014136   Cunha F;Rana S;Fangueiro R;Vasconcelos G (Fibrous Materials Research Group (FMRG), School of Engineering, Minho Univ, Guimaraes 4800-058, Portugal, Email: soheliitd2005@gmail.com) : Excellent bonding behaviour of novel surface-tailored fibre composite rods with cementitious matrix. Bull Mater Sci 2014, 37(5), 1013-16.

Novel composite rods were produced by a special braiding technique that involves braiding of polyester yarns around a core of resin-impregnated carbon fibres and subsequent curing. The surface roughness of these braided rods was tailored by replacing one or two simple yarns in the outer-braided layer with braided yarns (produced from 8 simple yarns) and adjusting the take-up velocity. Pull-out tests were carried out to characterize the bond behaviour of these composite rods with cementitious matrix. It was observed that the rod produced with two braided yarns in the outer cover and highest take-up speed was ruptured completely before pull-out, leading to full utilization of its tensile strength, and exhibited 134% higher pull-out force as compared to the rods produced using only simple braiding yarns.

5 illus, 2 tables, 7 ref

014135   Choudhury K;Ashok Kumar;Nath W (NO, Weapons and Electronic Systems Engineering Establishment, New Delhi-110 066, Email: kishor92@gmail.com) : Designing integration unit to integrate navigational and tactical equipment onboard naval platforms. Def Sci J 2014, 64(5), 445-50.

Typical warship consists of weapons and sensors that are of diverse origins and are generally based on different design standards and philosophies. But to enhance the operation capability of the platform, it is very important that many of the equipment work in tandem. This paper discusses the design of an integration unit that integrates various sensors and equipment onboard a naval platform. It takes a strictly modular approach and is therefore, adaptable to any size and mission requirement. The proposed solution uses commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware and relevant software, to provide the required Quality of Service (QoS) data to the end equipment and systems. This solution provides an efficient and seamless integration of various sensors, weapons and equipment onboard a naval platform.

5 illus, 1 table, 11 ref

014134   Choudhary A;Maheshwari S;Pandit R K (NO, , ) : Smart parking systems: for narrow spaces. J Constr Engng Technol Mgmt 2014, 4(3), 46-53.

With the beginning of the era of "Narrow Spaces," everyone with wheels is facing the problem of parking, may it be for a short duration, while shopping in markets, or even when it comes to parking in residences, etc. The solution to this can be attained, designed and described to user if and only if it is economic, user friendly and safer. To attain the solution we first must observe and understand the current scenario of parking schemes, layouts and a-z of parking, then later to compare it with various standards. Understanding each and every problem and public, social, psychological issues is also very important when it comes to Indian Context. With the elimination of ramps, driving lanes, pedestrians and the reduction in ceiling heights, the SPS requires substantially less structural material than the multi-story parking garage. SPS can be constructed utilizing a steel framework (some use thin concrete slabs) rather than the monolithic concrete design of the multi-story parking garage. These factors contribute to an overall volume reduction and further space savings for the SPS.

014133   Chaudhuri D;Porwal S (NO, DRDO Integration Centre, Panagarh, West Bengal-713 419, Email: deba_chaudhuri@yahoo.co.in) : Frequency and spatial domains adaptive-based enhancement technique for thermal infrared images. Def Sci J 2014, 64(5), 451-7.

Low contrast and noisy image limits the amount of information conveyed to the user. With the proliferation of digital imagery and computer interface between man-and-machine, it is now viable to consider digital enhancement in the image before presenting it to the user, thus increasing the information throughput. With better contrast, target detection and discrimination can be improved. The paper presents a sequence of filtering operations in frequency and spatial domains to improve the quality of the thermal infrared (IR) images. Basically, two filters - homomorphic filter followed by adaptive Gaussian filter are applied to improve the quality of the thermal IR images. We have systematically evaluated the algorithm on a variety of images and carefully compared it with the techniques presented in the literature. We/performed an evaluation of three filter banks such as homomorphic, Gaussian 5x5 and the proposed method, and we have seen that the proposed method yields optimal PSNR for all the therrnal images. The results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm is efficient for enhancement of thermal IR images.

6 illus, 1 table, 21 ref

014132   Chandel R S;Sharma M R (Civil Engineering Dep, Career Point University, Hamirpur-176 041, , Email: mrsharma.cpuh@gmail.com) : Potential and limits of domestic rooftop water harvesting in una area of Shiwalik Hills. Asian J Adv Basic Sci 2014, 3(1), 28-35.

Water is very scarce resource in Shiwalik hills of Himachal Pradesh. It is very important for the survival of every human being but little attention is being paid for its conservation. Due to indiscriminate use of groundwater the water table is going down abnormally. Rainwater is the main source of water and if rainwater is harvested properly the water shortage problem can be eliminated to a large extent. Rainwater is free from organic matter and soft in nature. It is also bacteriologically pure. This is an ideal solution for a water problem, especially related to hilly areas where the ground water table is low and the surface sources are few and that too are found at a very low elevation in the valleys. The water has to be pumped to a high elevation where the habitations are situated. The rainwater harvested from rooftops can be stored in a tank and can be used directly. It can be used indirectly by diverting it to recharge the aquifer. Though Himachal Government has provided piped drinking water facilities to all of its population in state yet there are areas which face acute shortage of water during dry months. The paper aims toward the development of the framework for domestic rooftop harvesting for household use. The paper is based on the analysis of survey record of 40 houses of different roof areas of Una district in Shiwalik hilly region of Himachal Pradesh in India. The estimation of the appropriate size of the water tanks to fulfill the annual drinking water demand through Domestic Rooftop Harvesting has been done. The domestic rainwater Harvesting (DRWH) has been designed considering the existing rainwater outlets and types of roof prevailing in the area.

1 illus, 6 tables, 33 ref

014131   Chakravarty S;Mohanty A;Ghosh B;Tarafdar M; Aggarwal S G;Gupta P K (CSIR-National Metallurgical Laboratory, , Jamshedpur, Jharkhand, Email: sanchita@nmlindia.org) : Proficiency testing in chemical analysis of iron ore: comparison of statistical methods for outlier rejection. MAPAN 2014, 29(2), 87-95.

Participation in proficiency testing (PT) is an important task to meet the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025 in the area of quality assurance of laboratory results. A PT program in the field of chemical analysis of iron ore was organized by CSIR-National Metallurgical Laboratory, Jamshedpur (nodal laboratory) and CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi (PT Coordinator) during November 2011-January 2012. Twenty-two (22) laboratories in India participated in the PT program. The results of participating laboratories were first analyzed to identify the distribution patterns and the presence of outliers. Several parametric and robust statistical methods were used to identify the outliers. Correct outlier rejection is of utmost importance because the choice of the outlier test method influence the consensus value and standard deviation which in turn determine the Z-score of a laboratory result in a PT program. In the present study, five parametric outlier tests were compared: Dixon's Q test, Grubbs single test, double test, t test, and Z-scores. In addition three robust tests as alternative to parametric tests were chosen: box plot, Huber test and MAD-based test. It was observed that multiple outlier test methods should be used to identify the outliers in a PT program especially when the number of participating laboratories is less. They complement each other and helps give diverse information and better overview of the data set. Among the 22 participating laboratories, Z-scores of 4 laboratories for analysis of total iron fall outside the acceptable limit of ñ2. Similarly, for analysis of alumina and silica, five laboratories had unacceptable Z-scores.

5 illus, 6 tables, 14 ref

014130   Chakraborty R;Luharuka P;Sirkar A (Chemical Engineering Dep, Jadavpur Univ, Kolkata-700 032, Email: rajat_chakraborty25@yahoo.com) : Thermal analysis of semicircular fins considering temperature-dependent thermal conductivity and heat transfer coefficient. Indian chem Engr 2014, 56(3), 281-93.

This paper investigates the semicircular fin efficiency considering the fact that both thermal conductivity of the fin material and the heat transfer coefficient for dissipation of heat from the fin surface are temperature dependent and can render changes in fin efficiency for large temperature differences. Based on a steady-state two-dimensional thermal analysis, the non-linear differential equation of semicircular fin model has been solved using finite-difference method. Two-dimensional temperature distribution of the fin surface has been successfully correlated to a third-degree polynomial. Results show that for a cooling fin with increase in tube size fin efficiency remains nearly the same or decreases for a given number of fin depending on whether fin number is large or small and whether tube size is slightly large or much larger. With increase in fin number for a given tube size, efficiency remains nearly the same or increases depending on whether fin numbers are a few more or many more and whether tube size is small or large. The efficiency range is 0.2875-0.311 for aluminium and 0.295-0.308 for copper corresponding to tube size from 0.01 m to 0.09 m and fin number ranging from 4 to 24. As expected, fin efficiency has been found to increase with enhancement in base temperature and reduction in ambient temperature. Results mentioned above are consistent for both copper and aluminium as fin material.

4 illus, 2 tables, 17 ref

014129   Boukhris N;Meradji H;Amara Korba S;Drablia S; Ghemid S;El Haj Hassan F (Laboratoire LPR, Departement de Physique, Faculte des Sciences, Universite Badji Mokhtar, Annaba 23000, Algeria, Email: hmeradji@yahoo.fr) : First principles calculations of structural, electronic and thermal properties of lead chalcogenides PbS, PbSe and PbTe compounds. Bull Mater Sci 2014, 37(5), 1159-66.

The structural, electronic and thermal properties of lead chalcogenides PbS, PbSe and BeTe using full-potential linear augmented plane wave (FP-LAPW) method are investigated. The exchange-correlation energy within the local density approximation (LDA) and the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) are described. The calculated structural parameters are in reasonable agreement with the available experimental and theoretical data. The electronic band structure shows that the fundamental energy gap is direct (L-L) for all the compounds. Thermal effects on some macroscopic properties of these compounds are predicted using the quasi-harmonic Debye model, in which the lattice vibrations are taken into account. The variations of the lattice constant, bulk modulus, heat capacity, volume expansion coefficient and Debye temperature with temperature and pressure are obtained successfully. The effect of spin-orbit interaction is found to be negligible in determining the thermal properties and leads to a richer electronic structure.

5 illus, 1 table, 34 ref

014128   Bhaskaran P K (Ocean Engineering and Naval Architecture Dep, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur-721 302, Email: pkbhaskaran@naval.iitkgp.ernet.in) : Role of gas bubbles in the attenuation of acoustic waves at the air - sea interface. Curr Sci 2014, 107(6), 983-93.

Gas bubbles produced by breaking waves play an important role in acoustic sound transmission. For a wide range of frequencies, the scattering is resonant in nature, and resonant bubbles scatter as well as absorb acoustic energy changing the compressibility of sea-water. The present study deals with gas bubbles at the air-sea interface and their role in the attenuation and scattering of underwater sound propagation. This study leads to development of a damping model for gas bubbles as function of their size and acoustic frequency, including their role at resonance frequency covering aspects on damping mechanism due to thermal, viscous and radiation effects. The damping model estimates the variation of attenuation rate at resonance frequency for high wind speeds utilizing input from bubble population model considering geometrical aspects, and parameterizes bubble distribution at different stages of evolution. The study also estimates attenuation of sound speed in the presence of bubbles using climatology fields from the World Ocean Atlas. Finally, to assess the behaviour of random bubbles on sound attenuation, the statistical distribution function signifies that damping characteristics follows a normal distribution.

7 illus, 30 ref

014127   Benjamin Lazarus S;Vel Murugan V;Saravanan S V (Mechanical Engineering Dep, The Kavery Engineering College, Salem, Tamil Nadu, Email: sblslr24@gmail.com) : Mechanical behaviour of environment friendly compression molded woven plant fibre polyester composite. Pollut Res 2014, 33(1), 171-4.

Commodity driven composites which are categorized as lower price composites are mostly made of natural fibre. Natural fibre composites are mainly price-driven commodity composites, which have useable structural properties at relatively low cost. The manufacture, use and removal of traditional composite structures usually made of glass, carbon and aramid fibres are considered critical because of the growing environmental consciousness. Therefore this research work involves eliminating the problem involved in the existing composite with the help of natural fibres, over traditional reinforcing fibres such as glass and carbon. The following work illustrates the manufacture and tested values of one such composite manufactured from a plant fibre which is used as green manuring plant called Crotalaria juncea. woven orientation of biaxial, biaxially stitched and unidirectional mat, in 2 layers and 3 layers separately are mixed with polyester resin and plates are prepared and the results acquired derive the usefulness of the material for required application.

4 illus, 10 ref

014126   Bandyopadhyay S;Sengupta A;Reddy G R (Civil Engineering Dep, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur-721 302, Email: sengupta@civil.iitkgp.ernet.in) : Natural base isolation system for earthquake protection. Curr Sci 2014, 107(6), 1837-43.

The performance of a well-designed layer of sand, geo-grid, geo-textiles and composites like layer of sand mixed with shredded tyre (rubber) as low-cost base isolators is studied in shake table tests in the laboratory. The building foundation is modelled by a 200 mm x 200 mm and 40 mm thick, rigid plexi-glass block. The block is placed in the middle of a 1 m x 1 m tank filled with sand. The selected base isolator is placed between the block and the sand foundation. Accelerometers are placed on top of the footing and foundation sand layer. The displacement of the footing is also measured by transducers. The whole set-up is mounted on the shake table and subjected to sinusoidal motion with varying amplitude and frequency. Sand is found to be effective only at very high amplitude (<62>0.65g) of motion. Among all the different materials tested, the performance of a composite consisting of sand and 50% shredded rubber tyre placed under the footing is found to be the most promising as a low-cost, effective base isolator.

6 illus, 2 tables, 20 ref

014125   Bamidele A O;Emmanuel Chidi E K E (NO, , ) : Assessment of impacts of motivation on construction worker's productivity in Nigeria. J Constr Engng Technol Mgmt 2014, 4(3), 1-9.

Research work assessed the impact of motivation on construction workers productivity in Nigeria. It also identified the various incentive schemes available to construction workers and assessed the effect of motivation on the productivity of the workers. The research work was carried out through review of related literatures and structured questionnaire on sectional basis in consonance with the objectives of the study. Data collected from questionnaire were analysed using, frequency and percentage as statistical tools. Findings shows that a motivated workforce can exert major influence on the success of the project, supply of information, tools and equipment materials as a result of; detailed planning for the needs of every crew are crucial factor in the smooth performance of worker. It also indicates that organizations' resources are well utilized without wastage, high commitment of workers to work and increased level of productivities are some of the benefits of motivation. Thus, the research recommends that construction workers must be adequately motivated to ensure huge success on project, information, equipment, and tools must be provided for construction. Construction workers must be encouraged to go for vocational training, open communication lines, provide opportunities for recognition and providing good working conditions will be of good practices to motivate construction workers in Nigeria.

014124   Bag J;Roy S;Dutta P K;Sarkar S K (Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering Dep, Jadavpur Univ, Kolkata) : Design of a DPSK modem using CORDIC algorithm and its FPGA implementation. IETE J Res 2014, 60(5), 355-63.

In the present work, a power efficient differential phase shift keying (DPSK) modem has been implemented using coordinate Rotation Digital Computer (CORDIC) algorithm in hardware descriptive language (VHDL) code. Here, CORDIC algorithms are used to generate the carrier in the modulator and to implement the multiplier in the demodulator. Carrier generator on the same chip minimizes the effect of noise significantly. Single-chip implementation provides a low power DPSK modem operating with high frequency which is suitable for wireless communication system. The CORDIC algorithm based DPSK modem is found to be a much efficient system in terms of reduced hardware cost, improved performance, and included flexibility. Importance of portable field programmable gate array (FPGA) based device for wireless communication system and system on single chip is now growing rapidly. In this context, the proposed modem provides an efficient alternative over conventional DPSK modem. Real-time verification is performed using Kintex-7 FPGA board. The performance of the proposed modem has been compared with a normal DPSK modem implemented in software defined radio kit using Xilinx block and Spartan-6 FPGA.

15 illus, 1 table, 16 ref

014123   Arumugam K;Ilangovan R (Civil Engineering Dep, BIT Campus, Anna Univ, Tiruchirappalli, Email: arumugam68@rediffmail.com) : Use of bottom ash as fine aggregate on strength properties of concrete. Pollut Res 2014, 33(1), 61-4.

This Paper examines the possibility of using bottom ash as partial replacement of fine aggregate (FA) in concrete. Super plasticiser is used to increase the workability of concrete with lower water cement ratio. The percentage of bottom ash added by weight was 0, 20, 30, 40 and 50 as replacement of FA used in concrete. Experimental Investigations carried out to a study the effective use of bottom ash which falls into Thermal power plants (Ennore). But in this paper the various strength properties studied consist of compressive strength, split tensile strength, of and flexural strength of concrete were analysed by replacing bottom ash as fine aggregate. The strength development for various percentages (0-50%) of replacement of fine aggregate with bottom ash can easily be equated to the strength development of normal concrete with various ages.

6 illus, 3 tables, 9 ref

014122   Apparao A;Rao C R (NO, High Energy Materials Research Laboratory, DRDO, Pune-411 021, Email: crrcs@uohyd.ernet.in) : TNT equivalency of unconfined aerosols of propylene oxide. Def Sci J 2014, 64(5), 431-7.

Unconfined aerosols of propylene oxide (PO) are formed by dispersing the fuel in air. These aerosols undergo detonation by suitable initiation and produce high impulse blast. Tri-nitro Toluene (TNT) equivalence is an important parameter used to represent the power of explosive materials and compare their relative damage effects wrt TNT. The parameters commonly used for estimation of TNT equivalency are total energy of explosive source and properties of resulting blast wave, viz., blast peak overpressure and positive impulse. In the present study, the unconfined aerosols of 4.2 kg PO were formed by breaking open the cylindrical canister with the help of axially positioned central burster charge and then detonated using a secondary explosive charge after a preset time delay. The resulting blast profiles were recorded and the blast parameters were analysed. Being a non-ideal explosive source, the TNT equivalency depends on fraction of total energy utilised for blast formation, the rate of energy release, cloud dimensions, and concentration of fuel. Hence, various approaches based on energy release, experimental blast profiles, triangulated blast parameters, and ground reflected blast parameters were considered to determine the TNT equivalency of unconfined PO aerosols. It was observed that the TNT equivalency is not a single value but vary with distance. The paper provides various options for weapon designer to choose a suitable approach for considering TNT equivalency. The scaling laws established from the experimental data of unconfined aerosols of PO for blast peak over pressure and scaled impulse help in predicting the performance for different values of fuel weight and distance.

7 illus, 6 tables, 15 ref

014121   Anil C;Sree R P (Chemical Engineering Dep, Anil Neerukonda Institute of Technology and Sciences (ANITS), Visakhapatnam, Email: padvan@rediffmail.com) : Design of optimal PID controllers for integrating systems. Indian chem Engr 2014, 56(3), 215-18.

The optimum tuning rules for various integrating systems with time delay in terms of the process model parameters using Differential Evolution (DE) algorithm are proposed. The objective function is integral performance index (integral time-weighted absolute error, ITAE) for both servo and regulatory problems. The performance and robustness of the proposed optimal controllers are compared with the controllers designed by recently reported methods. Simulation results on various transfer function models are given to show the efficiency of the proposed optimal controllers.

5 illus, 6 tables, 33 ref