Welding Metallurgy of Corrosion-Resistant Superalloy C-276

Microsegregation occurs during solidification of fusion zone in alloy C-276. The concomitant precipitation of topologically close-packed phases P and μ has been reported to be responsible for the hot cracking observed in this alloy during welding. The clue to preventing hot cracking hence lies in suppressing microsegregation in the fusion zone. An important avenue towards this is the introduction of current pulsing during gas tungsten arc welding. Current pulsing was found to be effective in mitigating microsegregation; it was also found to refine the microstructure in the weld zone and improve the mechanical behavior of weld joints. Judicious choice of filler wire is of paramount importance to get weld joints free from segregation and with a good combination of mechanical properties. Joints made using arc welding methods were found to be highly resistant to corrosion in salt spray tests. Non-arc-based methods—laser welding and electron beam welding—were found to be effective in largely keeping the microsegregation at bay. This chapter elaborates on these issues

Assessment of Solar Dryer Performance for Drying Different Food Materials: A Comprehensive Review

Studying crucial drying parameters, such as activation energy and moisture diffusivity, offers valuable insights for optimizing food safety. Accurate predictions and simulations through mathematical thin-layer models aid in designing, controlling, and optimizing drying operations for various food items. Solar drying presents a viable and eco-friendly solution for food preservation. This chapter critically evaluates solar drying performance for various vegetables, fruits, marine products, and other commodities, providing comprehensive insights into its efficiency. According to the literature, the moisture diffusivity (m2/s) for vegetables has been reported to be within the range of 2.01 × 10−10–1.935 × 10−8. For fruits, the moisture diffusivity varies between 1.33 × 10−10 and 6.98 × 10−9. In the case of marine food products, the range is found to be 2.8 × 10−8–3.408 × 10−7, while for other commodities, it falls between 1.79 × 10−9 and 1.061 × 10−7. The activation energy (kJ/mol) for vegetables has been observed to fall within the range of 24.81–47.19. Similarly, for fruits, the activation energy varies between 2.56 and 45.20. Notably, Ginger demonstrates an activation energy of 35.675 kJ/mol. Experimental results showed that lower activation energy and higher moisture diffusivity accelerate dehydration

Development of strategies to support home-based exercise adherence after stroke: a Delphi consensus

Objective To develop a set of strategies to enhance adherence to home-based exercises after stroke, and an overarching framework to classify these strategies. Method We conducted a four-round Delphi consensus (two online surveys, followed by a focus group then a consensus round). The Delphi panel consisted of 13 experts from physiotherapy, occupational therapy, clinical psychology, behaviour science and community medicine. The experts were from India, Australia and UK. Results In round 1, a 10-item survey using open-ended questions was emailed to panel members and 75 strategies were generated. Of these, 25 strategies were included in round 2 for further consideration. A total of 64 strategies were finally included in the subsequent rounds. In round 3, the strategies were categorised into nine domains - (1) patient education on stroke and recovery, (2) method of exercise prescription, (3) feedback and supervision, (4) cognitive remediation, (5) involvement of family members, (6) involvement of society, (7) promoting self-efficacy, (8) motivational strategies and (9) reminder strategies. The consensus from 12 experts (93%) led to the development of the framework in round 4. Conclusion We developed a framework of comprehensive strategies to assist clinicians in supporting exercise adherence among stroke survivors. It provides practical methods that can be deployed in both research and clinical practices. Future studies should explore stakeholders' experiences and the cost-effectiveness of implementing these strategies

Hollow three-dimensional model for fuel reduction in aviation industry

In the past two years, the pandemic situation has affected the aviation industry drastically. This situation starts to change, gradually, which is about to highly increase the international air travel around the world. Commercial air transport emission contributes a significant amount to global warming. Hence, in this research, to reduce the fuel consumption in commercial aircraft the aerodynamic surface of the wing is improved with the help of a hollow model in three dimensions. This biomimetic model named Raw Riblet was derived from a shark’s skin texture. The cross-section of the wing was (NACA 0012) designed and the Raw Riblet model was implemented in two different ways, computationally, and formulated biomimetic aerofoil models such as BRR and LRR (0.455). All these aerofoil models were analysed in high-speed airflow, computationally, and the aerodynamic performance values were noted. All the computational results were validated, and the result analysis showed a promising decrease in viscous drag of up to 11%. Both biomimetic models performed well in disturbance reduction when compared to the NACA model. This improved aerodynamic surface with reduced drag would decrease the fuel consumption in aircraft. This computational model would help us to fight the war against global warming

Post-stroke gait training practices in a low resource setting: A cross-sectional survey among Indian physiotherapists

BACKGROUND: Independent mobility is the most important determinant of quality of life after stroke and it is vital that training aimed at restoration of gait is based on contemporary evidence. Despite several practice guidelines for gait rehabilitation after stroke existing globally, their feasibility of application in low-resource settings is often questionable. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the current practices in gait training among Indian physiotherapists involved in the rehabilitation of stroke survivors. METHODS: A questionnaire on the various aspects of gait training was developed and the content was validated by experts. The survey was made available online and distributed among Indian physiotherapists working in the field of stroke rehabilitation, using snowball sampling. Frequency distribution was used to summarize responses to each component of the questionnaire. RESULTS: Responses were obtained from 250 practicing physiotherapists. The majority of the respondents (55%) reported that they initiate gait training within seven days after stroke. Gait training sessions ranged from 15-30 minutes (55%), once every day (44%), and the majority (89%) reported use of subjective outcome measures to evaluate gait. Although most respondents agreed on the use of assistive aids, 24% indicated that their use may deter gait, rather than improve it. Nearly 86% of the respondents reported that they do not follow standard guidelines pertaining to gait rehabilitation for stroke survivors. CONCLUSION: The findings of the study point toward a lack of evidence-based practice among Indian physiotherapists while training gait after stroke. This implied the urgent need for development and implementation of country specific guidelines for stroke rehabilitation

Evaluation of Drip Fertigation System for Aerobic Rice in Western Zone of Tamil Nadu

The productivity of rice is in decreasing trend due to non-availability of irrigation water. Hence, rice cultivation with minimum water which paves way for the research on aerobic rice (i.e., growing in the non-flooded and non-puddled situation). Field experiments were conducted at Agricultural Research Station, Bhavanisagar during 2013-14 and 2014-15 to evaluate the drip fertigation system and to work out the economics in aerobic rice at different irrigation and nitrogen levels. The treatments included four irrigation levels (irrigation at 100%, 125%, 150% PE daily and conventional irrigation at IW/CPE = 1.25) with a combination of three fertigation levels (100,150 and 200 kg N ha-1) of nitrogen. The experiment was laid in split plot design replicated thrice. The test variety is PMK 3, with a duration of 130-135 days. Entire quantity of phosphorus and 50 per cent of potassium was applied basally. Different doses of nitrogen and remaining 50 per cent of potassium was applied as fertigation in weekly intervals from 21 days after sowing. Irrigation was given daily basis with daily Pan Evaporation rate. Concerning different irrigation levels, 150 per cent PE on daily basis recorded significantly higher grain yield (5069 kg ha-1), WUE (7.37 kg/ha mm) and net income of Rs. 33607 ha-1 and B:C ratio of 1.88. For nitrogen levels, 150 kg N per ha recorded significantly higher grain yield (4146 kg ha-1), WUE (6.69 kg/ha mm) and net income of Rs. 20464 ha-1 and B:C ratio of 1.53. For aerobic rice, the irrigation at 150 per cent PE on daily basis combined with 150 kg N per ha recorded significantly higher grain (5483 kg ha-1), WUE (8.18 kg/ha mm) and higher net income of Rs. 39448 ha-1 and B:C ratio of 2.03

Exploring short- and long-term meteorological drought parameters in the Vaippar Basin of Southern India

Abstract Evaluating drought parameters at the basin level is one of the fundamental processes for planning sustainable crop production. This study aimed to evaluate both short-term and long-term meteorological drought parameters within the Vaippar Basin, located in southern India, by employing the standardized precipitation index (SPI). Gridded rainfall values developed from 13 rain gauge stations were employed to calculate the SPI values. Drought parameters, encompassing occurrence, intensity, duration, frequency, and trends, were assessed for both short-term and long-term droughts. The study findings indicated that the occurrence of short-term drought was 51.7%, while that of long-term drought was 49.82%. Notably, the basin experienced extreme short-term droughts in 1980, 1998 and 2016 and long-term droughts in 1981, 2013, and 2017. Utilizing an innovative trend identification method for SPI values, a significant monotonic upwards trend was identified in October and December for short-term drought and in December for long-term drought. This study defined the minimum threshold rainfall, which represents the critical amount required to prevent short-term drought (set at 390 mm) and long-term drought (set at 635 mm). The drought severity recurrence curves developed in this study indicate that when the SPI values fall below − 1.0, short-term drought affects 25% of the basin area, while long-term drought impacts 50% of the basin area at a 20-year recurrence interval. Additionally, the drought hazard index (DHI), which combines drought intensity and severity, demonstrated higher values in the northwestern regions for short-term drought and in the southern areas for long-term drought. The study's findings, highlighting areas of drought vulnerability, severity, and recurrence patterns in the basin, direct the attention for timely intervention when drought initiates

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Not AvailableSoil carbon sequestration is one of the potential strategies to mitigate the global warming impacts. Despite the fact that the Asian countries with more than 90% of rice fields are serving as a food basket for the global population, they are being vociferously blamed for their contribution towards methane emission and associated climate change. Major part of rice is being cultivated under continuous submergence that may have an influence on active and passive pools of soil carbon besides methane emission. This paper reviews the carbon sequestration potential of rice soils besides discussing the mechanisms and strategies that promote preferential accumulation of soil carbon while minimizing carbon emissions. Overall, the strategies such as practicing the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) method of cultivation, adoption of Integrated Nutrient Management (INM), promoting mycorrhizal symbiosis in aerobic rice system besides enhancement of phytolith occluded carbon are some of the key areas that offers better carbon sequestration in rice ecosystem.Not Availabl

Gait training interventions for patients with stroke in India: A systematic review

Background: Gait is considered to be the most important determinant of functional independence in activities of daily living. The challenges faced by stroke survivors in India differ from the western population due to economic, cultural, and geographical factors and this, in turn, may influence the choice of intervention. Hence, there is a need to understand the current gait training trends for stroke survivors in low resource settings like India. Research question: To systematically review the literature on interventional strategies for improving gait among stroke survivors in India. Methods: Six databases were searched to identify RCTs delivering gait training to stroke survivors having some gait deficits in terms of speed or any other kinematic parameters. Studies of the English language from India were included. Two independent reviewers screened, extracted data, and assessed the study quality. A descriptive synthesis was undertaken and the data was summarized. Results: Of 2112 potentially relevant articles, 12 studies with a total of 412 participants were included after title, abstract and full-text screening. Studies tested the efficacy of interventions such as mirror therapy, motor imagery, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, strengthening, and task-based training. The outcome measures were kinematic gait-analysis, gait velocity, Functional Ambulation Categories, Timed Up and Go, Fugl-Meyer Assessment. From the results of this review, active task-based gait training and strengthening along with motor priming seems to be the most tested interventions. Future studies may need to design interventions targeting both impairment and function to bring about maximum improvement in gait after stroke. Significance: Reviews addressing gait practices in developing countries for people with stroke are scarce. The present review would assist physiotherapists in developing countries to utilize evidence-based criteria for the selection of gait training approaches post-stroke. Due to the environmental and contextual demands, the effect of interventions for recovery among stroke survivors should be improvised in low resource settings. This review can be a source of recommendation in giving effective strategies for clinical practice