INSAT-2A and 2B development mechanisms

The Indian National Satellite (INSAT) 2A and 2B have deployment mechanisms for deploying the solar array, two C/S band antenna reflectors and a coilable lattice boom with sail. The mechanisms have worked flawlessly on both satellites. The configuration details, precautions taken during the design phase, the test philosophy, and some of the critical analysis activities are discussed

Fate and Uptake of Pharmaceuticals in Soil–Plant Systems

Pharmaceuticals have been detected in the soil environment where there is the potential for uptake into crops. This study explored the fate and uptake of pharmaceuticals (carbamazepine, diclofenac, fluoxetine, propranolol, sulfamethazine) and a personal care product (triclosan) in soil–plant systems using radish (Raphanus sativus) and ryegrass (Lolium perenne). Five of the six chemicals were detected in plant tissue. Carbamazepine was taken up to the greatest extent in both the radish (52 μg/g) and ryegrass (33 μg/g), whereas sulfamethazine uptake was below the limit of quantitation (LOQ) (<0.01 μg/g). In the soil, concentrations of diclofenac and sulfamethazine dropped below the LOQ after 7 days. However, all pharmaceuticals were still detectable in the pore water at the end of the experiment. The results demonstrate the ability of plant species to accumulate pharmaceuticals from soils with uptake apparently specific to both plant species and chemical. Results can be partly explained by the hydrophobicity and extent of ionization of each chemical in the soil

Simultaneous quantitative determination of Sudan dyes using liquid chromatography-atmospheric pressure photoionization-tandem mass spectrometry

Atmospheric pressure photoionization-tandem mass spectrometry (APPI-MS/MS) method has been developed for quantitative determination of Sudan I to IV dyes. This study demonstrates the applicability of a simple isocratic normal phase HPLC method using isopropanol (0.3%) in n-hexane as the mobile phase for the separation of these dyes. A simple extraction procedure using n-hexane has been applied for the extraction of these dyes from spiked samples of chilli powder and tomato sauce. The quantitative determination of Sudan I to IV is obtained from the spiked tomato sauce and chilli powder samples by external standard method under single reaction monitoring (SRM) mode. The study includes a detailed investigation on LOD, LOQ, linearity and recovery of Sudan I to IV dyes. The LOD ranged from 5-18 μg/l and LOQ ranged from 10-24 μg/l. The present method can be a powerful analytical tool for the simultaneous quantitative determination of Sudan dyes present in food products

Human health risk assessment due to dietary intake of heavy metals through rice in the mining areas of Singhbhum Copper Belt, India

The study was intended to investigate heavy metal contamination levels in the rice grown in the vicinity of the mining areas of Singhbhum Copper Belt, India. The concentrations of the metals were below the Indian maximum allowable concentrations for food except for Pb, Ni, and Zn at some locations. Principal component analysis extracted three factors explaining 79.1% of the data variability. The extracted factors suggested that the sources of metals in the rice can be attributed to soil, irrigating water, and atmospheric dust deposition. High potential health risks of metal exposure from rice consumption were illustrated based on estimated daily intake (EDI) and target hazard quotient (THQ). The daily intakes of heavy metals for local adults were higher than the tolerable daily intakes provided by WHO in some samples for Cr, Fe, Ni, and V. Considering the geometric mean of the metals in rice samples of the study area, the hazard index (HI) for adult was above unity (3.09). Pb, Cu, and Cr were the key components contributing to potential non-carcinogenic risk. The HI varied from 2.24 to 12.7 among the locations indicating an appreciable heath risk to the consumers of the locally grown rice around the mining areas