Comparative Study and Optimization of Process Parameters of Dissimilar metal Weld Joints by GTAW Process

ABSTRACT Industries are focusing on various cost reduction initiatives by choosing alternative material without compromising quality. The main aim of this paper is to identify such an alternate material for Duplex Stainless Steel/Duplex Stainless Steel (DSS/DSS) similar metal weld joint. Similar and various dissimilar metal weld joints like DSS/DSS, DSS/Corten-A, DSS/Cold Rolled Steel and DSS/Hot Rolled Steel were assessed in this paper and the results have been compared to find out the superior dissimilar metal in terms of Tensile strength. Objective of this work is to optimize the process parameters for the best superior dissimilar metal weld joint by using Taguchi method. Voltage, Current and filler feed rate were chosen as a control factors considering the impact on the input variables. Ultimate tensile strength has been taken as response variable to calculate the signal-to-noise ratio. Analysis of variance (Anova) was used in order to identify the percentage contribution for all the factors as well as high significant factor which is contributing for the optimum resul

The role of advocacy in promoting better child health

Child health professionals play a crucial role in advocating for children and it is incumbent on all who work with them to observe and enforce the maintenance of children's rights. In this article we summarise what advocacy is, its importance for child health and briefly how to go about it. Finally, we provide three differing examples of how advocacy has been used to improve the health of children

The long-term effects of antenatal multiple micronutrient supplementation in Nepal

The PhD thesis investigates the long-term effects of antenatal multiple micronutrient (MMN) supplementation. A growing body of evidence suggests that changes in early-life environment can have lasting effects on health and disease. To investigate this, we followed up children from a double-blind randomised controlled trial of MMN in pregnancy. The trial found that the intervention group were a mean 77 g heavier at birth and 204 g at 2.5 years, with a 2.5 mmHg lower mean blood pressure. The project described in the thesis set out to investigate the role of antenatal MMN intervention in the programming of future health and disease risk factors in mid-childhood. It sought to determine whether the differences in anthropometry previously present were sustained into mid-childhood and if this was due to an increase in lean mass or fat mass. It also looked at whether antenatal MMN supplementation resulted in an improvement in lung function in the children. Finally, two secondary analyses were conducted to investigate the association between socioeconomic status and growth, and air pollution and asthma. We measured anthropometry, body composition using bioelectrical impedance (with population specific isotope calibration), blood pressure, kidney dimensions by ultrasound and lung function. Data were also collected on potential confounders: socieconomic status, food security and personal air pollution exposure estimates. We assessed 841 children (422 controls, 419 intervention) at a mean age 8.5 years. Other than maternal education and residence, children lost to follow-up were no different. The unadjusted differences (intervention minus control), were 0.05 z-scores (95% CI -0.09, 0.19) for weight-for-age, 0.02 z-scores (95% CI -0.10, 0.15) for height, -0.08 z scores (95% CI - 0.19, 0.04) for forced expiratory volume in the first second, and -0.05 (95% CI -0.17, 0.06) for forced vital capacity. There was no difference in blood pressure, body circumferences, lean mass, skinfold thicknesses or kidney measurements. The adjusted differences were similar for all outcomes. When considered together, just over half the children had low weight-for-age, and approximately one-third had stunting and low body mass index. Only 1.4% of the children were overweight and mean fat mass proportion was 14.5%. When lung function was expressed in relation to predicted values for Caucasian children, FEV1 was 14% lower and FVC 12% lower. Our measures of socioeconomic status produced a multidimensional poverty index score of 0.155 and approximately one in ten households were considered food insecure in the previous year. The air pollution data showed a mean 24 hour time-weighted average of 168 μg/m3. We found an overall low prevalence of asthma, with air pollution associated with cough at night in boys only (odds ratio 1.15 per 10 μg/m3 increase in air pollution; 95% CI 1.05, 1.26). Socioeconomic status was associated with the growth of children when families owned more expensive assets and appeared to have the greatest effect on skeletal growth in early life. Differences in phenotype, body composition and lung function between children born to mothers who received antenatal MMN supplements and children whose mothers received iron and folate were not apparent at 8.5 years. While generally poor, households were comparable to those in more affluent regions of the country and were relatively food secure. The air pollution data showed that the children were exposed to levels much higher than national and international recommendations

Body composition in Nepalese children using isotope dilution: the production of ethnic-specific calibration equations and an exploration of methodological issues.

Background. Body composition is important as a marker of both current and future health. Bioelectrical impedance (BIA) is a simple and accurate method for estimating body composition, but requires population-specific calibration equations. Objectives. (1) To generate population specific calibration equations to predict lean mass (LM) from BIA in Nepalese children aged 7-9 years. (2) To explore methodological changes that may extend the range and improve accuracy. Methods. BIA measurements were obtained from 102 Nepalese children (52 girls) using the Tanita BC-418. Isotope dilution with deuterium oxide was used to measure total body water and to estimate LM. Prediction equations for estimating LM from BIA data were developed using linear regression, and estimates were compared with those obtained from the Tanita system. We assessed the effects of flexing the arms of children to extend the range of coverage towards lower weights. We also estimated potential error if the number of children included in the study was reduced. Findings. Prediction equations were generated, incorporating height, impedance index, weight and sex as predictors (R (2) 93%). The Tanita system tended to under-estimate LM, with a mean error of 2.2%, but extending up to 25.8%. Flexing the arms to 90° increased the lower weight range, but produced a small error that was not significant when applied to children <16 kg (p 0.42). Reducing the number of children increased the error at the tails of the weight distribution. Conclusions. Population-specific isotope calibration of BIA for Nepalese children has high accuracy. Arm position is important and can be used to extend the range of low weight covered. Smaller samples reduce resource requirements, but leads to large errors at the tails of the weight distribution

Intersectional tension: a qualitative study of the effects of the COVID-19 response on survivors of violence against women in urban India

OBJECTIVES: There is a concern worldwide that efforts to address the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic have affected the frequency and intensity of domestic violence against women. Residents of urban informal settlements faced particularly stringent conditions during the response in India. Counsellors spoke with registered survivors of domestic violence in Mumbai, with two objectives: to understand how the pandemic and subsequent lockdown had changed their needs and experiences, and to recommend programmatic responses. DESIGN: Qualitative interviews and framework analysis. SETTING: A non-government support programme for survivors of violence against women, providing services mainly for residents of informal settlements. PARTICIPANTS: During follow-up telephone counselling with survivors of violence against women who had previously registered for support and consented to the use of information in research, counsellors took verbal consent for additional questions about the effects of COVID-19 on their daily life, their ability to speak with someone, and their counselling preferences. Responses were recorded as written notes. RESULTS: The major concerns of 586 clients interviewed between April and July 2020 were meeting basic needs (financial stress, interrupted livelihoods and food insecurity), confinement in small homes (family tensions and isolation with abusers) and limited mobility (power imbalances in the home and lack of opportunity for disclosure and stress relief). A major source of stress was the increased burden of unpaid domestic care, which fell largely on women. CONCLUSION: The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the burden of poverty and gendered unpaid care. Finance and food security are critical considerations for future response, which should consider inequality, financial support, prioritising continued availability of services for survivors of violence and expanding access to social networks. Decision-makers must be aware of the gendered, intersectional effects of interventions and must include residents of informal settlements who are survivors of domestic violence in the planning and implementation of public health strategies

Tracking sickness through social networks - the practical use of social network mapping in supporting the management of an E. coli O157 outbreak in a primary school in London.

This paper describes the practical use of social network diagrams in the management of an outbreak of Escherichia coli O157 (VTEC) in a primary school in London. The diagrams were created during the outbreak to establish the extent and nature of person-to-person transmission in the cases and their contacts. The diagrams supported a tailored public health action, and hence aided in the control of the outbreak. We conclude that for selected infectious diseases, social network diagrams can provide a valuable tool in the management of an outbreak