Creep Response of Rotating Composite Discs having Exponential Hyperbolic Linear and Constant Thickness Profiles

The study compares the steady state creep response of rotating Al-SiC discs having constant, linear, hyperbolic and exponential thickness with different thickness profiles. All the discs are assumed to have equal volume with the same average thickness. The creep behaviour of the disc material is described by threshold stress based law while the yielding is assumed to follow Tresca criterion. The variable thickness disc is observed to have superior creep response, expressed in terms of stresses and strain rates, to a constant thickness disc. Amongst variable thickness discs, the creep response is observed to be superior for linear thickness disc, when the inner thickness of all the discs is kept the same. However, for the same outer thickness, the disc having hyperbolic thickness profile exhibits the best creep response

Creep Analysis of a Variable Thickness Rotating FGM Disc using Tresca Criterion

The study investigates steady-state creep in a rotating Al-SiCp disc having different thickness profiles and reinforcement (SiCp) gradients. The disc material is assumed to creep according to threshold-stress based law and yield following Tresca criterion. The stresses and strain rates in the disc are estimated by solving the disc equilibrium equation along with creep constitutive equations. It was observed that on increasing the disc thickness gradient, the radial stress decreases towards the inner radius but increases towards the outer radius, whereas the tangential stress decreases over the entire radius. With the increase in SiCp gradient in the FGM disc, the radial stress increases significantly throughout, however, the tangential stress increases towards the inner radius but decreases towards the outer radius. The strain rates in the disc reduce significantly over the entire disc radius and become relatively uniform with the increase in either disc thickness gradient or reinforcement gradient. Thus, the composite disc having higher thickness and higher reinforcement gradients exhibits lesser distortion.Defence Science Journal, Vol. 65, No. 2, March 2015, pp.163-170, DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.14429/dsj.65.804

Bio Characterization via FTIR and GCMS Analysis of Cucurbita variety (Yellow and White Pumpkin)

The current study aimed to conduct phytochemical screening, FTIR, and GCMS analysis in squash (Cucurbita pepo L.,) also known as a yellow and white selected pumpkin. It’s one of the dicotyledonous vegetables consumed in daily diets that imparts high inhibitor properties of inflammation, cancer, and diabetes. Traditionally it is used as an anti-helminthic remedy. The phytochemical characterization can facilitate seeking out the substance with a therapeutic property. The peel, flesh, and seed sample of each pumpkin variety were used as sources and extracted consecutively with ethyl acetate and acetonitrile using the maceration method. Phytochemical screening and quantification were carried out by standard analytical methods. The functional groups of the sample extracts were analyzed using FT-IR methods. Further, phytochemical profiling was carried out utilizing the GCMS technique to identify the therapeutically important chemicals contained in the sample. Phytochemical analysis of ethyl acetate and acetonitrile extracts showed the presence of major components like alkaloids, phenol, carbohydrate, and proteins. The farthest alkaloid, phenol, carbohydrate, and protein varied consequently for different parts like peel, flesh, and seed. The FT-IR analysis of each extract in the peel, flesh, and seed revealed that the ethyl acetate extract had the most functional groups. The major peak was characterized at wavelength 3004.24 to 3421.05 nm which indicates O-H functional group. Further quantification and GC-MS analysis were performed in ethyl acetate extract. Remarkably, GC-MS analysis of yellow and white pumpkin ethyl acetate extracts showed the utmost 6 - 8 compounds within the flesh part. Further, employing these compounds for anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial assays may aid in the discovery of new drugs for therapeutic applications

Amplification of Fluctuations in Unstable Systems with Disorder

We study the early-stage kinetics of thermodynamically unstable systems with quenched disorder. We show analytically that the growth of initial fluctuations is amplified by the presence of disorder. This is confirmed by numerical simulations of morphological phase separation (MPS) in thin liquid films and spinodal decomposition (SD) in binary mixtures. We also discuss the experimental implications of our results.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figure

Evolution of the electronic structure of Be clusters

Using a modified symbiotic genetic algorithm approach and many-body interatomic potential derived from first principles, we have calculated equilibrium geometries and binding energies of the ground-state and low-lying isomers of Be clusters containing up to 41 atoms. Molecular-dynamics study was also carried out to study the frequency of occurrence of the various geometrical isomers as these clusters are annealed during the simulation process. For a selected group of these clusters, higher-energy isomers were more often found than their ground-statestructures due to large catchment areas. The accuracy of the above ground-stategeometries and their corresponding binding energies were verified by carrying out separate ab initio calculations based on molecular-orbital approach and density-functional theory with generalized gradient approximation for exchange and correlation. The atomic orbitals were represented by a Gaussian 6-311G** basis, and the geometry optimization was carried out using the GAUSSIAN 98 code without any symmetry constraint. While the ground-stategeometries and their corresponding binding energies obtained from ab initio calculations do not differ much from those obtained using the molecular-dynamics approach, the relative stability of the clusters and the energy gap between the highest occupied and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals show significant differences. The energy gaps, calculated using the density-functional theory, show distinct shell closure effects, namely, sharp drops in their values for Be clusters containing 2, 8, 20, 34, and 40 electrons. While these features may suggest that small Be clusters behave free-electron-like and, hence, are metallic, the evolution of the structure, binding energies, coordination numbers, and nearest-neighbor distances do not show any sign of convergence towards the bulk value. We also conclude that molecular-dynamics simulation based on many-body interatomic potentials may not always give the correct picture of the evolution of the structure and energetics of clusters although they may serve as a useful tool for obtaining starting geometries by efficiently searching a large part of the phase space

The structure of black hole magnetospheres. I. Schwarzschild black holes

We introduce a multipolar scheme for describing the structure of stationary, axisymmetric, force-free black-hole magnetospheres in the ``3+1'' formalism. We focus here on Schwarzschild spacetime, giving a complete classification of the separable solutions of the stream equation. We show a transparent term-by-term analogy of our solutions with the familiar multipoles of flat-space electrodynamics. We discuss electrodynamic processes around disk-fed black holes in which our solutions find natural applications: (a) ``interior'' solutions in studies of the Blandford-Znajek process of extracting the hole's rotational energy, and of the formation of relativistic jets in active galactic nuclei and ``microquasars'', and, (b) ``exterior'' solutions in studies of accretion disk dynamos, disk-driven winds and jets. On the strength of existing numerical studies, we argue that the poloidal field structures found here are also expected to hold with good accuracy for rotating black holes, except for maximum possible rotation rates. We show that the closed-loop exterior solutions found here are not in contradiction with the Macdonald-Thorne theorem, since these solutions, which diverge logarithmically on the hole's horizon $\cal H$, apply only to those regions which exclude $\cal H$.Comment: 6 figures. Accepted for publication by MNRA

Imaging algorithm for COVID-19: A practical approach

© 2020 Elsevier Inc. The global pandemic of COVID-19 pneumonia caused by the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) has strained healthcare resources across the world with emerging challenges of mass testing, resource allocation and management. While reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test is the most commonly utilized test and considered the current gold standard for diagnosis, the role of chest imaging has been highlighted by several studies demonstrating high sensitivity of computed tomography (CT). Many have suggested using CT chest as a first-line screening tool for the diagnosis of COVID-19. However, with advancement of laboratory testing and challenges in obtaining a CT scan without significant risk to healthcare providers, the role of imaging in diagnosis has been questioned. Several imaging societies have released consensus statements and guidelines on utilizing imaging resources and optimal reporting. In this review, we highlight the current evidence on various modalities in thoracic imaging for the diagnosis of COVID-19 and describe an algorithm on how to use these resources in an optimal fashion in accordance with the guidelines and statements released by major imaging societies

A generalized Pancharatnam geometric phase formula for three level systems

We describe a generalisation of the well known Pancharatnam geometric phase formula for two level systems, to evolution of a three-level system along a geodesic triangle in state space. This is achieved by using a recently developed generalisation of the Poincare sphere method, to represent pure states of a three-level quantum system in a convenient geometrical manner. The construction depends on the properties of the group SU(3)\/ and its generators in the defining representation, and uses geometrical objects and operations in an eight dimensional real Euclidean space. Implications for an n-level system are also discussed.Comment: 12 pages, Revtex, one figure, epsf used for figure insertio

Biological responses of the rat to polychlorinated biphenyls

A commercial polychlorinated biphenyl mixture (PCBs), Aroclor 1242, was administered to rats po by intubation in order to determine toxic manifestations of acute and subacute ingestion. In addition, the effect of PCBs on hepatic microsomal enzyme systems in rats was evaluated. The oral, 14-day LD50 was determined to be approximately 4.25 g/kg. Major toxic signs observed upon administration of high doses of PCBs included diarrhea, chromodacryorrhea, loss of body weight, unusual stance and gait, lack of response to pain stimuli, and terminal ataxia. Progressive dehydration and CNS depression appeared to be contributing factors in each fatality. Histopathologic alterations were evident only in the liver and kidneys, manifest as foci of sudanophilic vacuolation. Rats maintained on an oral dosage regimen of 100 mg/kg every other day for 3 weeks exhibited similar histopathologic changes, but no overt signs of toxicity. Serum GOT activities were elevated over controls in both the acute and subacute groups. A single ip injection (100 mg/kg) increased liver weight, total hepatic microsomal enzyme activity (measured as hydroxylation of acetanilide and N-demethylation of aminopyrine), and hepatic cytochrome P450 and b5 levels. Hepatic microsomal enzyme activity remained elevated 10 days after a single dose of PCBs, suggesting that PCBs may play an important role in altering biologic responses of mammals subjected to environmental chemical stress.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/33934/1/0000201.pd