Energy Conservation Method Combining Anti spray Rail and Wedge Flap for High speed Displacement Hulls

The hydrodynamic mechanism and parametric influences of the wedge flap and the anti-spray rail in combination is investigates. A methodology with specific guidelines for incorporating these appendages with significant drag reduction is provided. Small crafts designs frequently require interventional changes to realise the desired guaranteed speed with their installed engine power. The appendages namely, the wedge, flap and anti-spray rails are used as retrofit measures or adapted in new hull forms, in isolation or in combination, to improve the drag and bring down the power requirement. A judicious combination of different appendages can result in significantly reduced drag and therefore power saving. The methodology combines the results of numerical and experimental investigations. The systematic study identifies the parameters for control namely, wedge flap size in terms of the chord length, its orientation vide the angle of the wedge flap, and the anti-spray rail location with respect to the water surface. The choice of the size of the wedge flap is a constrained problem since excessive wedge flap can cause problems related to length and hydrodynamic loading. This study establishes a solution by combination of a minimum integrated wedge flap with properly located anti-spray rail to reduce the drag. The study shows favourable influences due to local pressure and numerical results using a RANSE solver show good comparison with experimental test results. The methodology is a new approach towards drag reduction in new designs as well as drag control by retrofit

Effective and economic ecological weed management approaches for managing weeds in rice in the era of climate change

Rice will continue to be one of the major staple food expected 9 billion global population by 2050. Weeds are major constraints in limiting rice productivity to meet the increasing food demand. Weeds are more severe constraints in dry-direct-seeded with lower environmental foot print. Climate resilient rice cultivars, with greater competitiveness against weeds, play a key role in ecologically managing weeds

Simultaneous Determination of Simvastatin and Ezetimibe in Tablets by HPLC

Abstract: A reverse phase high performance liquid chromatographic method was developed for the simultaneous determination of simvastatin and ezetimibe in tablet dosage forms. The separation was effected on a C18 Supelcosil column (250 mm x 4.6 mm; 5µ) using a mobile phase consisting of 0.01 M ammonium acetate buffer and acetonitrile (35:65 v/v) at a flow rate of 1 mL/min. The detection was made at 240 nm. The retention times for ezetimibe and simvastatin were 5.9 and 8.5 min respectively. Calibration curves were linear over the ranges of 0.5-40 µg/mL for simvastatin and 2.5-50 µg/mL for ezetimibe. The proposed method was validated as per the ICH and USP guidelines. The method is accurate and precise and found to be suitable for the quantitative analysis of both the drugs individually and in combination in tablet dosage forms

From synthesis to bioactivity: A comprehensive study of Cu-based biocidal tool

The present study reports on the biogenic synthesis of a copper-based biocidal material through the fermentation of gruel, a traditional non-alcoholic beverage. This process may involve a bio-beneficiation mechanism, in which the indigenous microorganisms in the ferment interact with the material. X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed the powder's crystalline copper composition. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy revealed the crucial role of organic acids in the capping process. Transmission electron microscopy, ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, and antimicrobial susceptibility tests were conducted to characterize the powder. Furthermore, the biocidal material was combined with the anticancer drug curcumin to explore its additional anti-proliferative effects, including apoptosis, on human hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines in vitro. These findings highlight the potential of this biogenic copper material as a promising candidate for biomedical applications

Super-reflection of light from a random amplifying medium with disorder in the complex refractive index : Statistics of fluctuations

The probability distribution of the reflection coefficient for light reflected from a one-dimensional random amplifying medium with {\it cross-correlated} spatial disorder in the real and the imaginary parts of the refractive index is derived using the method of invariant imbedding. The statistics of fluctuations have been obtained for both the correlated telegraph noise and the Gaussian white-noise models for the disorder. In both cases, an enhanced backscattering (super-reflection with reflection coefficient greater than unity) results because of coherent feedback due to Anderson localization and coherent amplification in the medium. The results show that the effect of randomness in the imaginary part of the refractive index on localization and super-reflection is qualitatively different.Comment: RevTex 6 pages, 3 figures in ps file

Sustainable intensification opportunities for Alfisols and Vertisols landscape of the semi-arid tropics

Land and water management interventions are key to achieving sustainable intensification in the drylands. This study explores opportunities for doing so in Vertisols and Alfisols using 34-year (1976–2009) long-term experimental data. Four cropping systems were evaluated in each soil types with two land form management interventions, i.e., raised beds and flat beds. Surface runoff generated and soil water content in each system were monitored along with crop yields. In Vertisols, maize-chickpea sequential cropping and sorghum+pigeon pea intercropping on raised beds representing an improved practice was followed for 34 years (1976–2009). Sole chickpea and sole sorghum were grown on flat beds as a traditional system during the same period. In Alfisols, groundnut/pigeon pea intercrop and sole sorghum were grown for 5 years (2002–2006) and sorghum/pigeon pea intercrop and sole castor were grown for 3 years (2007–2009) under raised bed and flat bed conditions, respectively. The use of improved practices in Vertisols produced 3–5 times higher yield compared to traditional practices with net returns estimated at US$800–1300/ha/year compared to US$ 90–350/ha/year under the traditional practice. Despite growing an additional crop, chickpea yield under the improved practice was close to the yield obtained from the traditional practice. In Alfisols, raised beds improved crop yields by 15–20% compared to the flat bed method, leading to an additional net return of US$ 80–100/ha/year. Sorghum/pigeon pea intercrop was found to be superior followed by sole castor, groundnut/pigeon pea intercrop and sole sorghum in Alfisols. Hydrological monitoring revealed opportunities to harvest surface runoff, especially in Alfisols, by building low-cost rainwater harvesting structures that can provide life-saving irrigation during dry spells. An interpretive machine learning (IML) approach was used to estimate four response variables (Sorghum equivalent yield; Net Income; Technical Water Productivity, and Economic Water Productivity) using five different predictor variables (i.e., cropping systems, land form, soil order, effective rainfall (Reff= rainfall-runoff), and water regimes (dry, wet, and normal). Results showed that cropping system is the highest mean feature importance for all the productivity parameters followed by effective rainfall. This paper also discusses soil water dynamics, production functions and technical and economic water productivity which could aid in resource optimization and in developing strategies for land, water and crop management interventions with the aim of bridging yield gaps in the semi-arid tropics

Coronin 1B Regulates S1P-Induced Human Lung Endothelial Cell Chemotaxis: Role of PLD2, Protein Kinase C and Rac1 Signal Transduction

Coronins are a highly conserved family of actin binding proteins that regulate actin-dependent processes such as cell motility and endocytosis. We found that treatment of human pulmonary artery endothelial cells (HPAECs) with the bioactive lipid, sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) rapidly stimulates coronin 1B translocation to lamellipodia at the cell leading edge, which is required for S1P-induced chemotaxis. Further, S1P-induced chemotaxis of HPAECs was attenuated by pretreatment with small interfering RNA (siRNA) targeting coronin 1B (∼36%), PLD2 (∼45%) or Rac1 (∼50%) compared to scrambled siRNA controls. Down regulation PLD2 expression by siRNA also attenuated S1P-induced coronin 1B translocation to the leading edge of the cell periphery while PLD1 silencing had no effect. Also, S1P-induced coronin 1B redistribution to cell periphery and chemotaxis was attenuated by inhibition of Rac1 and over-expression of dominant negative PKC δ, ε and ζ isoforms in HPAECs. These results demonstrate that S1P activation of PLD2, PKC and Rac1 is part of the signaling cascade that regulates coronin 1B translocation to the cell periphery and the ensuing cell chemotaxis

Impact of soil and water conservation measures on farm productivity and income in the semi-arid tropics of Bundelkhand, central India

Soil and water are crucial resources for agriculture, especially in arid and semi-arid rain-fed areas, yet farm-level economic impacts and the factors influencing the adoption of measures for their conservation are little studied. The present study used data from 400 farm households to assess factors influencing the adoption of soil and water conservation measures (SWCMs) and their impacts on farm productivity and income in a semi-arid region of central India. We employed a probit model to determine the factors influencing the on-farm adoption of SWCMs and a propensity score matching technique for assessing their impacts. The findings indicate that farmer age and education, off-farm income, farm size and land ownership and access to training are key drivers of the adoption of SWCMs. SWCMs accentuated the input costs by INR 1689–2847 per ha during the rabi cropping season (October–February), but also increased crop productivity and net revenue from farming. The impact in the rabi season was less sensitive to the unobserved confounders than in the kharif season (June–September). Therefore, SWCMs could represent an important strategy for unlocking the cultivation potential of large rain-fed areas and for sustaining the livelihoods of farm households in the ecologically fragile arid and semi-arid tropics

Transforming livestock productivity through watershed interventions: A case study of Parasai-Sindh watershed in Bundelkhand region of Central India

CONTEXT: Global experiences reveal the positive impact of watershed-based interventions in improving livelihoods and environmental security. In the drylands, increasing forage resources and improving livestock productivity is a critical challenge. OBJECTIVES: The overarching aim of this paper is to analyse the impact of watershed-based interventions on livestock population, productivity, fodder resources, and biomass availability. The paper describes the interrelationship between land, water, crop, and livestock and how the gap in forage deficit can be bridged through a range of watershed interventions