Hydrodynamic study of gas-solid flow in an internally circulating fluidized bed (ICFB) using experimental and CFD techniques

Circulating fluidized bed (CFB) solid circulation systems are widely used in the process of catalyst regeneration, coal gasification, coking, thermal cracking, drying, incineration of solids waste as well as many other applications. However, conventional circulating fluidized beds require a tall tower as a solids riser and externally circulation of solids with the help of cyclones. Therefore to alleviate such problems encounter with CFB, several new generations fluidized beds have been developed. A circulating fluidized bed called as an internally circulating fluidized bed (ICFB) with a draft tube is one of the novel design. An ICFB is a type of fluidized bed with centrally located draft tube, which divides the bed into two sections called as annular section and draft tube riser. Because of simple and flexibility of operation have its own advantages. Literature review shows that there is still considerable uncertainty in establishing complete hydrodynamics of ICFB. Only few computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation studies were reported on ICFB and that to most of them considered 2D geometry of ICFB. Moreover, in all CFD simulations, particles were assumed to mono sized particles

Wound healing activity of topical application of Aloe vera gel in experimental animal models

Aloe vera gel of 50% and 96.4% were tested for its wound healing activity by topical application in experimental rats. The effect of Aloe vera gel on wound healing was evaluated by wound excision model and histopathology was used to study the effect on wound healing. The effect produced by Aloe vera gel with reference to wound contraction, wound closure, decrease in surface area of wound, tissue regeneration at the wound site and histopathological characteristics were significant in treated rats. The effect of Aloe vera gel on biochemical studies revealed significant increase in collagen and decreased hexosamine content and malondialdehyde levels when compared with control. The present study thus provided scientific rationale for the traditional use of Aloe vera gel for management of wounds

Development of a new AgriSeq 4K mid-density SNP genotyping panel and its utility in pearl millet breeding

Pearl millet is a crucial nutrient-rich staple food in Asia and Africa and adapted to the climate of semi-arid topics. Since the genomic resources in pearl millet are very limited, we have developed a brand-new mid-density 4K SNP panel and demonstrated its utility in genetic studies. A set of 4K SNPs were mined from 925 whole-genome sequences through a comprehensive in-silico pipeline. Three hundred and seventy-three genetically diverse pearl millet inbreds were genotyped using the newly-developed 4K SNPs through the AgriSeq Targeted Genotyping by Sequencing technology. The 4K SNPs were uniformly distributed across the pearl millet genome and showed considerable polymorphism information content (0.23), genetic diversity (0.29), expected heterozygosity (0.29), and observed heterozygosity (0.03). The SNP panel successfully differentiated the accessions into two major groups, namely B and R lines, through genetic diversity, PCA, and structure models as per their pedigree. The linkage disequilibrium (LD) analysis showed Chr3 had higher LD regions while Chr1 and Chr2 had more low LD regions. The genetic divergence between the B- and R-line populations was 13%, and within the sub-population variability was 87%. In this experiment, we have mined 4K SNPs and optimized the genotyping protocol through AgriSeq technology for routine use, which is cost-effective, fast, and highly reproducible. The newly developed 4K middensity SNP panel will be useful in genomics and molecular breeding experiments such as assessing the genetic diversity, trait mapping, backcross breeding, and genomic selection in pearl millet

Computational and experimental study of the effect of inclination on hydrocyclone performance

In this paper, the effect of inclination on hydrocyclone performance is studied using both computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and experimental methods. Experiments with water medium and the corresponding water-air two-phase CFD simulations in a 75 mm diameter cyclone are carried out at various inclined positions to the vertical plane. The two-phase CFD flow analysis shows that the water split to underflow decreases as the inclination increases, which is consistent with the experiments. The predicted flow velocity profiles were analyzed for different inclinations. An increase in the inclination results the air-core size reduction and reduced pressure drop profiles. Experimental classification also performed using the silica slurry. The experimental analysis shows the increased cut-size and the reduced water split with the inclination. Cross validation of inclined cyclone's CFD data is attempted with Electrical Resistance Tomography (ERT) and High speed video imaging experiments. The inclination effect on hydrocyclone flow field is further analyzed in terms of turbulence parameters; turbulent intensities, and radial RMS velocities. Turbulent dispersion of the particles is calculated using the CFD data and plotted by using a dispersion index formulation. Fish hook phenomena and possible mechanism of particle classification under the influence of inclination is also explained. Experimentally measured cut size and water recovery to underflow for 10 wt% silica slurry at various inclinations are compared with numerical predictions. Predicted efficiency curves are found in a close agreement with experiments for all the inclinations

The Effect of Platelet-Rich Fibrin on Soft Tissue and Crestal Bone in One-Stage Implant Placement in Fresh Extraction Sockets: A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial

Introduction: The goal of modern dentistry is to prevent tooth loss and provide a healthy dentition with optimal functional efficiency, structural balance, and aesthetic harmony. The placement of an implant immediately after tooth extraction helps to maintain the bone crest and leads to ideal implant positioning from a prosthetic point of view and has the potential of decreasing the total treatment time for patients. Aim and Objective: To evaluate the platelet rich fibrin with or without bone ceramic on soft issue and crestal bone in one stage implant placement in fresh extraction socket. Materials and Methods: A total of 30 patients were randomly assigned into two groups—each group comprising 15 patients based on platelet-rich fibrin with and without bone ceramic and one-stage implant placement in fresh extraction socket. All patients were prospectively evaluated clinically and radiographically. All the data were analyzed using a software statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 11.5 (Chicago, Illinois, USA). Results: During the 6-month interval, no implant was lost; the mean bone level at the implants increased in platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) with bone ceramic group and decreased in PRF group and papillary index increased in both the groups, whereas modified sulcus bleeding index and probing pocket depth (PPD) decreased in both the groups. Conclusion: It can be concluded that mean crestal bone levels increased in PRF with bone ceramic group, whereas decrease in PRF group and both the groups are statistically significant. When the papillary levels are compared between the two groups, there was no statistical significance, but increased papillary levels were found in both the groups. The mean PPD was decreased in both the groups, but there was no statistical significance between the two groups