Economics of Flower Cultivation with Special Reference to Orchid in Hilly Areas of West Bengal

The present study is an attempt to assess the cost of cultivation and economic viability of orchid cultivation in the hilly area of West Bengal with a unique set of primary data collected purposively during 2017-18 from the farm level. Based on farm size, farmers were categorised into three i.e. category-I (500 ft2), category-II (640 ft2) and category-III (1000 ft2). Returns from different categories were found to increase with the time as Orchid usually shows significant boost in yield with time. The estimated costs of establishment of orchid farm for Category- I (500 sq. ft), Category- II (640 sq ft) and Category-III (1000 sq ft) were ` 67117.89, ` 69870.67 and ` 159746.51 respectively. The average net income in absolute term had been worked out to be ` 46,354.2, ` 34,143.2 and ` 1, 97,760 respectively. The values of financial feasibility analysis with Net Present Value (` 97,971.3), Benefit-Cost Ratio (1.76) and Internal Rate of Return (25.38%) also proved that Orchid was a financially viable enterprise. Pay-back-period (3 to 5 years) was also reliable for investment though it varied little with size of farm. Keeping the commercial prospect of Orchid, it may be suggested for concerted efforts and more investment towards R&D, infrastructure, extension for further development in this sector

Precursor-Derived Rare Earth Metal Pyrochlores: Nd2Sn2O7 Nanofibers and Thin Films As Efficient Photoabsorbers

Single phase rare earth pyrochlores, Ln(2)M(2)O(7), were produced as nanofibers and thin films by electrospinning and spin-coating of chemical sols obtained from bimetallic metalorganic precursors, Ln(III)M(II)((OBu)-Bu-t)(5)Py (Ln(III) = La, Pr, Nd, Sm, Er, Yb; M-II = Ge, Sn, Pb; Py = pyridine). Compatibility of the metal ratio in the single-source compounds was confirmed by single crystal X-ray diffraction analyses and the ratio was preserved during the processing as the crystalline pyrochlore materials originated from an amorphous preceramic aggregate as confirmed by powder XRD and TEM studies. The photocatalytic activity of the Nd2Sn2O7 nanofibers was found to be significantly higher than that of TiO2. Nd2Sn2O7 thin films deposited on F:SnO2 as bilayered Nd2Sn2O7//Fe2O3 photoanodes showed superior photoelectrochemical (PEC) efficiency for water splitting reaction with an over 3-fold higher photocurrent density than bare Fe2O3 photoanodes

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Not AvailableExponential autoregressive (EXPAR) and generalized autoregressive conditional heteroscedastic (GARCH) models are usually employed for fitting of cyclical and volatile data respectively. However, in practical situations, there may be data which embodies both this phenomena at the same time. To tackle such situations, a new form of parametric nonlinear time-series model, EXPAR-GARCH is proposed. Methodology for estimation of parameters of this model is developed by using a powerful optimization technique called Genetic Algorithm (GA). Entire data analysis is carried out using SAS and MATLAB software packages. For illustration, monthly price series of edible oils in domestic and international markets is considered. The individual models as well as the proposed model were assessed on their ability to predict the correct change of direction in future values as well as by computing various measures of goodness-of-fit and forecast performance.Not Availabl

Exploring the studies of charge transportation of an aromatic acid based Co(II)-Metallogel scaffold fabricated Schottky device

An efficient supramolecular metallogel of Cobalt(II) has been synthesized through the ultra-sonication technique. Cobalt(II)-salt (Cobalt acetate tetrahydrate), organic acid like terephthalic acid along with N,N-dimethyl formamide solvent are the key ingredients of the Co(II)-metallogel. The rheology-based experimental values of storage and loss modulus of the Co(II)-metallogel prove the mechanical efficiency of the metallogel-material. The chemical compositions are found through elemental investigations. The infrared spectral results help to realize the metallogel formation strategy. The electrical characteristics of the synthesized metallogel have been properly investigated. The semiconducting feature of the metallogel-material has been experimentally verified. The measured current-voltage characteristics of Cobalt(II)-metallogel (Co-TA) based thin film type metal-semiconductor (MS) junction-device shows a non-linear rectifying behaviour, representing a Schottky diode (SD) performance with promising electronic charge transport property. © 2021 Elsevier Lt

Bulk detection of explosives and development of customized metal oxide semiconductor gas sensors for the identification of energetic materials

Based on previous work, a setup allowing discrimination between energetic and non-energetic materials was developed. In order to cover novel materials not yet included in databases, a library free approach was chosen. The evaluation of explosion hazards for solid and liquid samples in the lowest milligram range was carried out by relying on the response of the substances towards thermal activation rather than on their chemical nature. The reaction was monitored by a combination of metal oxide semiconductor (MOX) gas sensors, photodiodes and a pressure sensor. Utilization of ambient air as a carrier gas and indirect control over sample weight by the geometry of the heater allow uncomplicated handling under real working conditions. In the first phase readily available physical and chemical sensors were applied. The rate of correct assignments was 99.8% with no false negatives and only 1 false positive out of 475 experiments. The possibility of library free operation was also confirmed by an additional series of experiments on materials not used for training the system. In the second phase the readily available MOX gas sensors were replaced by custom designed ones, which allowed single substances and classes of energetic materials by means to be discriminated by means of principal component analysis (PCA). (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved