Empirical Method for the Prediction of Heat of Formation of Organic High Energy Molecules

An empirical method based on additive procedures is proposed for estimating the heats offormation of aliphatic, aromatic, and ring molecules containing nitro and other energetic groupsat standard state. The method uses only molecular structural information. Calculation of heatof formation is carried out in three stages, first the heat of formation for gaseous state is calculated,followed by incorporation of heat of vapourisation/sublimation, and finally, corrections are donefor interactions. Some interaction terms, based on hydrogen bonding strength for variouscompounds and experimental heat of formation of isomeric compounds, are also proposed. Theresults are in good agreement with the experimentally determined values. The method providesquick and sufficiently accurate values of heat of formation of organic high energy molecules

Role of Emblica officinalis (amla) in the prophylaxis of hepatic injury by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) in albino rats

Background: The objective of the study was to evaluate the hepatoprotective activity of fruits extract of Emblica officinalis on carbon tetrachloride induced hepatotoxicity in Albino rats. Liver is vulnerable to wide variety of metabolic, toxic, microbial, circulatory and neoplastic insults. The dominant primary diseases of the liver are viral hepatitis, alcoholic liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma. Due to absence of reliable drugs management of liver ailments in the modern medicine, plants and natural products are providing to be good hepatoprotectants as evident from voluminous published work on their hepatoprotective potentials.Methods: The required amount of fresh fruits of Emblica officinalis was collected and dried at room temperature. The dried fruit ground into powdered and was prepared by percolation method using 95% ethanol. Acute oral toxicity test of the fruits extract was performed as per OECD 423 guidelines. Carbon tetrachloride was used as the hepatotoxin. Silymarin suspension 100mg was used as a standard drug in this study.Results: The study was carried out with an attempt to evaluate the hepatoprotective activity of Emblica officinalis in carbon tetrachloride induced hepatic injury in albino rats. The results were analysed by using one way ANOVA followed by Dunnett’s test and (p <0.05) was considered significant.Conclusions: The present study shows that the Emblica officinalis has significant hepatoprotective activity in rats with carbon tetrachloride induced liver injury. Emblica officinalis is a commonly used traditional herb, which is safe, cost effective and grows widely in India and used by different ethnic groups for various diseases. That is why Emblica officinalis, a commonly used natural herb, deserve further consideration in order to establish its potential as safe economical hepatoprotective agent

Statistical Evaluation of Burning Rate Data of Composite Propellants Obtained from Acoustic Emission Technique

The acoustic emission technique has been considered to be one of the most reliable and robust methods for the measurement of the steady burning rate of composite propellants. In this work, attempts were made to quantify the measurement variability of the burning rate of composite solid propellants by acoustic emission method using statistical tools. A total of 1100 individual measurements were subjected to statistical treatment. The combination of confidence interval and repeatability limit delineated the extent of natural dispersion in the burning rate measurement data. The very high coefficient of variation values for the propellant compositions, having a burning rate of more than 25 mm s–1 raised concerns about the suitability of the acoustic emission method for high burning rate compositions. The Reliability interval approach was employed to determine the statistically significant sample size for different composite propellants having a burning rate range of 5–31 mm s–1. The entire set of data was screened for identification of outlying observation using the Dixon Q test, and the extent of contamination was quantified. Moreover, the application of statistical techniques could have far-reaching implications for quality control perspectives of burning rate measurement by acoustic emission and could be implemented as reference tolerance limits and preventive measures for ensuring the good health of the instrument as well as propellant processing

Study on Friction Sensitivity of Passive and Active Binder based Composite Solid Propellants and Correlation with Burning Rate

&nbsp; &nbsp;Friction sensitivity of composite propellants and their ingredients is of significant interest to mitigate the risk associated with the accidental initiation while processing, handling, and transportation. In this work, attempts were made to examine the friction sensitivity of passive binder: Hydroxy Terminated Polybutadiene/Aluminium/Ammonium Perchlorate and active binder: (Polymer + Nitrate Esters)/Ammonium Perchlorate/Aluminium/Nitramine based composite propellants by using BAM Friction Apparatus. As per the recommendation of NATO standard STANAG–4487, the friction sensitivity was assessed by two methods: Limiting Frictional load and Frictional load for 50% probability of initiation (F50). The test results showed that the active binder based formulations were more vulnerable to frictional load as compared to the formulations with passive binders. Examination of a comprehensive set of propellant compositions revealed that the particle size distribution of Ammonium Perchlorate and burn rate catalysts were the most influential factors in dictating the friction sensitivity for HTPB/Al/AP composite propellants. For active binder/AP/Al/Nitramine composite propellants, the formulation with RDX was found more friction sensitive with a sensitivity value of 44 N as compared to its HMX analog (61 N). The correlation studies of friction sensitivity, burning rate, and thermal decomposition characteristics of HTPB/Al/AP composite propellants is described

A CASE REPORT ON WILSON’S DISEASE: A RARE CLINICAL CONDITION OF COPPER DEPOSITION IN LIVER

Wilson’s disease is a rare inherited disorder and is characterized by the accumulation of copper in various tissues and also in organs like the liver, brain, kidneys and cornea. Symptoms in paediatrics characteristically appear with hepatic involvement. In this case we have discussed about an eleven-year-old male child, who was presented to the Paediatric department in a tertiary care hospital with chief complaints of yellowish discoloration of eyes, dark coloured urine and high grade fever. Due to the accumulation of copper there were decreased levels of ceruloplasmin and there was an increased 24 hour urinary copper, which confirms the Wilson’s disease in this child. Child was treated with Cephalosporin antibiotics, vitamins, laxative, and bile acid sequestrants. Child showed gradual improvement in clinical symptoms and got discharged without any further event. Quality of evidence was assessed according to the GRADE system. Early diagnosis and management helped to prevent serious complications

Maculopapular skin rash due to amoxicillin tri-hydrate hypersensitivity reaction: a case report

Amoxicillin tri-hydrate (AMT) is a commonly used penicillin group of antibacterial agent to combat various bacterial infections. Penicillin group of drugs are known to cause cutaneous drug eruptions as a hypersensitivity reaction. Most of the time, these eruptions are mild in nature, however, sometimes they represent the early manifestation of rare and severe drug-induced cutaneous reactions, such as; Stevens–Johnson syndrome and toxic epidermal necrolysis. Here, we report a case of maculopapular skin rash developed due to AMT hypersensitivity reaction in a 48-year-old Indian male patient. Pheniramine maleate, hydrocortisone and skin protecting lotion were prescribed to manage the situation. This case is being reported to emphasize the need for reporting of drug induced complications and their management procedures

Developing regional soil micronutrient management strategies through ensemble learning based digital soil mapping

Mapping of soil micronutrient variability is critical for improving agronomic biofortification. This study used 1778 surface soil samples collected from four agro-climatic regions of the Indo-Gangetic Plain of India to produce digital soil maps of available Zn, Cu, Fe, and Mn using 52 environmental covariates at a resolution of 150 m. The micronutrient prediction accuracy was compared for 14 machine learning approaches and their ensemble model. The hybrid ensemble model outperformed all 14 base learners and was subsequently used for producing micronutrient maps. All four micronutrients exhibited sufficient spatial variability. Both available Zn and Fe maps exhibited lower prediction uncertainties. Moreover, the inter-relationship between micronutrient concentration in soil and rice grain was explored to understand the Zn and Fe biofortification potential. The linear regression models revealed moderate agreement between soil available and grain micronutrient concentrations, with R2 values of 0.52–0.63 for Zn and Fe, respectively. The developed models were used to predict grain Zn and Fe content from their respective soil concentrations, indicating the potential of the tested approach to identify specific pockets where rice varieties with biofortification potential can be planted. In the future, the digital soil mapping approach tested herein can help policymakers with regional decision-making, encouraging nutrient-based subsidy and investment opportunities and sustainable micronutrient recommendations toward micronutrient-enriched food. Further research is needed to develop a digital soil intelligence platform using micronutrient DSM products in resource-poor countries