Effect of New Axle Load Regulation on Commercial Vehicle Occupant Safety

Commercial vehicle industry is the wheel of Indian economy and gives the maximum support to our GDP. Although safety of Indian truck drivers had been the least considered parameter till the AIS-029 regulation has forced in. with the norm came into picture OEM needs to ensure the measures for the safety of the drivers during accidents. This regulation talks about the cabin strength to absorb energy generated during accident due to impact and same depends upon vehicle gross vehicle weight (GVW), front axle weight (FAW) and vehicle payload. All the OEMs have ensured truck driver or truck occupants safety by means of cabin strength and safety measures during the regulation implementation. Now with the new vehicle weight norm, again the safety is in doubt. Government has implemented the regulation without mentioning anything about cabin crash and occupant safety. Even existing vehicles are also allowed to load up to the new maximum limit. This paper reviews in detail, the effect of new vehicle load regulation on cabin crash safety test norms and occupant safety and also recommends the methodology to save both time and cost involved in new cabin development by means of current design optimization. Keywords: Truck occupant safety, axle load regulation, cabin crash test norm, effect of nor

On the Role of Constraints in Optimization under Uncertainty

This thesis addresses the problem of industrial real-time process optimization that suffers from the presence of uncertainty. Since a process model is typically used to compute the optimal operating conditions, both plant-model mismatch and process disturbances can result in suboptimal or, worse, infeasible operation. Hence, for practical applications, methodologies that help avoid re-optimization during process operation, at the cost of an acceptable optimality loss, become important. The design and analysis of such approximate solution strategies in real-time optimization (RTO) demand a careful analysis of the components of the necessary conditions of optimality. This thesis analyzes the role of constraints in process optimality in the presence of uncertainty. This analysis is made in two steps. Firstly, a general analysis is developed to quantify the effect of input adaptation on process performance for static RTO problems. In the second part, the general features of input adaptation for dynamic RTO problems are analyzed with focus on the constraints. Accordingly, the thesis is organized in two parts: For static RTO, a joint analysis of the model optimal inputs, the plant optimal inputs and a class of adapted inputs, and For dynamic RTO, an analytical study of the effect of local adaptation of the model optimal inputs. The first part (Chapters 2 and 3) addresses the problem of adapting the inputs to optimize the plant. The investigation takes a constructive viewpoint, but it is limited to static RTO problems modeled as parametric nonlinear programming (pNLP) problems. In this approach, the inputs are not limited to being local adaptation of the model optimal inputs but, instead, they can change significantly to optimize the plant. Hence, one needs to consider the fact that the set of active constraints for the model and the plant can be different. It is proven that, for a wide class of systems, the detection of a change in the active set contributes only negligibly to optimality, as long as the adapted solution remains feasible. More precisely, if η denotes the magnitude of the parametric variations and if the linear independence constraint qualification (LICQ) and strong second-order sufficient condition (SSOSC) hold for the underlying pNLP, the optimality loss due to any feasible input that conserves only the strict nominal active set is of magnitude O(η2), irrespective of whether or not there is a change in the set of active constraints. The implication of this result for a static RTO algorithm is to prioritize the satisfaction of only a core set of constraints, as long as it is possible to meet the feasibility requirements. The second part (Chapters 4 and 5) of the thesis deals with a way of adapting the model optimal inputs in dynamic RTO problems. This adaptation is made along two sets of directions such that one type of adaptation does not affect the nominally active constraints, while the other does. These directions are termed the sensitivity-seeking (SS) and the constraint-seeking (CS) directions, respectively. The SS and CS directions are defined as elements of a fairly general function space of input variations. A mathematical criterion is derived to define SS directions for a general class of optimal control problems involving both path and terminal constraints. According to this criterion, the SS directions turn out to be solutions of linear integral equations that are completely defined by the model optimal solution. The CS directions are then chosen orthogonal to the subspace of SS directions, where orthogonality is defined with respect to a chosen inner product on the space of input variations. It follows that the corresponding subspaces are infinite-dimensional subspaces of the function space of input variations. It is proven that, when uncertainty is modeled in terms of small parametric variations, the aforementioned classification of input adaptation leads to clearly distinguishable cost variations. More precisely, if η denotes the magnitude of the parametric variations, adaptation of the model optimal inputs along SS directions causes a cost variation of magnitude O(η2). On the other hand, the cost variation due to input adaptation along CS directions is of magnitude O(η). Furthermore, a numerical procedure is proposed for computing the SS and CS components of a given input variation. These components are projections of the input variation on the infinite-dimensional subspaces of SS and CS directions. The numerical procedure consists of the following three steps: approximation of the optimal control problem by a pNLP problem, projection of the given direction on the finite-dimensional SS and CS subspaces of the pNLP and, finally, reconstruction of the SS and CS components of the original problem from those of the pNLP

Evaluation of Some Hydrobiological Parameters in River Asan in Morena District

Industrialization, urbanization, population explosion and green revolution have deteriorated the various sources of water. The industrial effluents, sewage and polluted water from other sources when discharged into any stream or river not only cause pollution but drastically disturb the fauna & flora. The same is true for Asan River flowing in Madhya Pradesh. It, therefore, becomes a must to assess water quality of Asan at the downstream site (D) and upstream site (A) throughout its entire length in Morena district. It was since the beginning of 1970's that environmental pollution became a serious problem in India. Because of the rapid increase of population and concentration of factories around the coastal region of Asan. Significant alterations in hydrobiological parameters were observed

Heavy metal, salinity and azo dye tolerant, Cr (VI) reducing, plant growth-promoting Pseudomonas aeruginosa R32 reverses Cr (VI) biotoxic effects in Vigna mungo

Hexavalent chromium [Cr (VI)], derived from various industries, including fly ash from coal-based Thermal Power Plants, can be a source of toxic pollution of land and water bodies. This study aimed to bioremediation of such pollutant dump sites using bacteria capable of both Cr(VI) reduction and plant growth-enhancing substance production. The bacteria were isolated from the rhizospheric fly ash of a Thermal Power Plant, Kanpur. One of the rhizospheric isolate, Pseudomonas aeruginosa R32 showed high minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) for Cr(VI) (1250 µg/ml), heavy metal tolerance (ZnCl2, CdCl2, Pb(NO3)2) up to 100 µg/ml, Acid Red 249 (AR) tolerance and halotolerance (6% NaCl). The isolate R32 also produces plant growth-promoting (PGP) hormones in the absence or presence of Cr (VI). R32 could completely reduce Cr(VI) at a tested dose of 100 and 500 μg/ml after 24h and 72h, respectively. However, decolorization of AR was observed after 48 hours at an initial concentration of 100 µg/ml and confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis. Vigna mungo seed inoculation with isolate R32 showed increased rootling growth compared to shoot after 7 d treatment with 0, 100, 500, and 1000 μg/ml of Cr(VI) concentrations, respectively. Root length tolerance index in Cr(VI) treated V. mungo seedlings was reduced to 56%, 35%, and 29%, respectively, when treated with 100, 500, and 1000 μg/ml Cr(VI) in comparison to control. Cr(VI) sub-MIC concentrations can affect the plant growth-promoting properties of rhizospheric bacteria. Herein, we report the isolation of rhizospheric bacteria P. aeruginosa R32 showing concurrent PGP substance production and Cr(VI) bioreduction capabilities in the presence of PGP inhibitory Cr(VI) concentrations.

Four new lithophilic species of \u3cem\u3eScorpiops\u3c/em\u3e Peters, 1861 (Scorpiones: Scorpiopidae) from peninsular India

Four new lithophilic species of Scorpiops Peters, 1861 (Scorpiopidae) have been described from peninsular India using an integrated taxonomic approach. Three species Scorpiops vrushchik sp. n., S. nagphani sp. n. and S. neera sp. n. have been described from northern Western Ghats and S. lioneli sp. n. is described from Deccan Plateau. S. vrushchik sp. n. is closely related to S. tenuicauda and S. telbaila and differs by a raw genetic divergence of 9.6-9.8% from S. tenuicauda and 11% from S. telbaila. S. nagphani sp. n. is closely related to S. lioneli sp. n. and S. maharashtraensis and differs by a raw genetic divergence of 6.7% from S. lioneli sp. n. and 9.6% from S. maharashtraensis. S. neera sp. n. is closely related to S. deccanensis, S. satarensis and S. phaltanensis and differs by a raw genetic divergence of 6.1–7.1% from S. deccanensis, 7.3% from S. satarensis and 9.6–9.8% from S. phaltanensis. S. lioneli sp. n. is closely related to S. nagphani sp. n. and S. maharashtraensis and differs by a raw genetic divergence of 6.7% from S. nagphani sp. n. and 11% from S. maharashtraensis. Hemispermatophore morphology of all the new species is described with photographs. A taxonomic key to all species of Scorpiops from peninsular India is provided. This study elevates the number of species of Scorpiops found in India to 27, out of which 11 are found in peninsular India

ENDOCRINOLOGICAL ROLE OF LEPTIN IN OBESITY AND ASTHMA

Objective: Role of leptin resistance in correlation between obesity and asthma. Methods: High-caloric diet was given for 8 weeks to induce obesity. Ovalbumin followed by aluminum hydroxide was given to induce asthma. The animal was treated with leptin analog (0.4 mg/kg, i.p. for 7 days) and leptin antagonist (3 mg/kg, p.o., for 7 days). Biochemical parameters such as serum leptin, ghrelin, and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and physical parameters such as tidal volume and airflow rate were estimated to confirm the state of asthma and obesity, respectively. Results: It was found that leptin and ghrelin were elevated in obese and obese asthmatic condition, responsible for leptin resistance. Treatment with leptin analog and leptin antagonist significantly increases and decreases serum leptin levels, respectively. There was no significant change in TNF-α and ghrelin level after leptin analog treatment. The result of respiratory parameters improved with leptin analog. From our study, we found beneficial role of leptin analog in obese asthmatic condition. Conclusion: Leptin is an alternative treatment approach to treat obese asthmatic condition

A new cryptic species of \u3cem\u3eScorpiops\u3c/em\u3e Peters, 1861 (Scorpiones: Scorpiopidae) from the northern Western Ghats, India

A new cryptic species of Scorpiops (Scorpiopidae) is described from northern Western Ghats of India with integrated taxonomic approach. Scorpiops telbaila sp. n. is closely related to S. tenuicauda and differs from all species of Scorpiops in morphological features and raw genetic divergence of 5.4-14.1 %