Effect of Types of Fluids on Fluid Flow Characteristics in Bifurcated Vessel using CFD Simulation

The present study focuses on the CFD analysis of bifurcated blood vessel using ABAQUS /CFD 6.14 software in order to investigate the effect of types of fluids on resultant velocity and axial velocities of flow. It has been found that out of resultant velocity and axial velocity in three mutually perpendicular directions, types of fluids have significant influence on velocity in z-direction. A significant increment of nearly 45 % in maximum velocity in z-direction has been obtained from benzene to Newtonian blood

Effects of Row Spacings and Varieties on Grain Yield and Economics of Maize

Maize is the second most important crop of Nepal. The yield of the crop is low due to lack of appropriate plant density for the varieties. The field experiment was carried out to study the effect of different row spacings on different maize varieties at Deupur, Lamahi municipality of the dang district in province No. 5, Nepal during the rainy season from June to September, 2018. Four levels of spacings (boardcasting and three row spacings of 45, 60 and 75 cm) and two maize varieties (Rampur Composite and Arun-2) were evaluated using randomized complete block design with three replications. The highest grain yield was found in Rampur Composite and Arun-2 while they were planted with row spacing of 60 cm with plant to plant spacing of 25 cm. The highest grain yield, cob length, cob circumference, number of rows per cob, thousand grain weight  were reported when maize was planted in the  row spacing 60×25cm. Among the maize varieties, Rampur Composite produced the highest grain yield, cob length, cob circumference, number of rows per cob as compared to Arun-2. This study suggested that maize production can be maximized by cultivating maize varieties with row spacing of 60 cm with plant to plant spacing of 25 cm

Influence of pH adjustment on physicochemical properties of microfiltration retentates of skim milk and rehydration properties of resulting powders

Effects of pH adjustment on physicochemical properties of microfiltration retentates of skim milk and rehydration of resulting micellar casein concentrate (MCC) powders were investigated. Aliquots of retentate (pH 6.9) were adjusted to pH 7.3, 7.6 or 7.6 followed by readjustment to pH 6.9 (6.9R) prior to powder preparation. The retentates with pH 6.9, 7.3, and 7.6 had casein micelle size of 179, 189 and 197 nm, respectively, while sample 6.9R had size of 183 nm, similar to retentate at pH 6.9. Higher retentate pH resulted in lower ionic calcium and higher conductivity, with sample 6.9R having higher values for both parameters than the pH 6.9 sample. The MCC powders displayed poorer wettability and enhanced dispersibility with increasing retentate pH. Interestingly, the 6.9R powder had the best wettability and dispersibility. This study demonstrated that pH-mediated modifications of the physicochemical properties of retentates improve the rehydration properties of resultant MCC powders

Pilot-scale production and physicochemical characterisation of spray-dried nanoparticulated whey protein powders

Spray-dried whey protein isolate (WPI) powders were prepared at pilot-scale from solutions without heat (WPIUH), heated (WPIH) or heated with calcium (WPIHCa), which were analysed and compared with a control sample (WPIC). WPIC, WPIUH, WPIH and WPIHCa solutions had whey protein denaturation levels of 0.0, 3.2, 64.4 and 74.4%, respectively. Computerised tomography scanning showed that 52.6, 84.0, 74.5 and 41.9% of WPIC, WPIUH, WPIH and WPIHCa powder particles had diameters of ≤30 µm. WPIHCa and WPIH powders were cohesive, while WPIC and WPIUH powders were easy flowing. Marked differences in microstructure were observed between WPIH and WPIHCa. There were no measured differences in wall friction, bulk density or colour

Rehydration Properties of Whey Protein Isolate Powders Containing Nanoparticulated Proteins

peer-reviewedThe rehydration properties of original whey protein isolate (WPIC) powder and spray-dried WPI prepared from either unheated (WPIUH) or nanoparticulated WPI solutions were investigated. Nanoparticulation of whey proteins was achieved by subjecting reconstituted WPIC solutions (10% protein, w/w, pH 7.0) to heat treatment at 90 °C for 30 s with no added calcium (WPIH) or with 2.5 mM added calcium (WPIHCa). Powder surface nanostructure and elemental composition were investigated using atomic force microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, followed by dynamic visualisation of wetting and dissolution characteristics using environmental scanning electron microscopy. The surface of powder particles for both WPIUH and WPIC samples generally appeared smooth, while WPIH and WPIHCa displayed micro-wrinkles with more significant deposition of nitrogen and calcium elements. WPIH and WPIHCa exhibited lower wettability and solubility performance than WPIUH and WPIC during microscopic observation. This study demonstrated that heat-induced aggregation of whey proteins, in the presence or absence of added calcium, before drying increases aggregate size, alters the powder surface properties, consequently impairing their wetting characteristics. This study also developed a fundamental understanding of WPI powder obtained from nanoparticulated whey proteins, which could be applied for the development of functional whey-based ingredients in food formulations, such as nanospacers to modulate protein–protein interactions in dairy concentrates.Food Institutional Research Measur

Barriers to Treatment and Control of Hypertension among Hypertensive Participants: A Community-Based Cross-sectional Mixed Method Study in Municipalities of Kathmandu, Nepal

AbstractIntroduction: Despite the established evidence on benefits of controlling raised blood pressure and development of several guidelines on detection and management of hypertension, people often have untreated or uncontrolled hypertension. In this context, we undertook this study to identify the barriers existing in hypertension treatment and control in the municipalities of Kathmandu district in Nepal. Methods: This was a community based, cross-sectional mixed method study conducted in the municipalities of Kathmandu district in Nepal between January and July 2015. Among 587 randomly selected participants, the aware hypertensive participants were further assessed for the treatment and control of hypertension. For qualitative component, 20 participants having uncontrolled hypertension took part in two focused group discussions and two cardiac physicians participated in in-depth interviews.Results: Out of 587 participants screened, 191 (32.5%) were identified as hypertensive. Among 191 hypertensive participants, 118 (61.8%) were aware of their problem. Of the 118 aware hypertensive participants, 93 (78.8%) were taking medicines, and among those treated, 46 (49.6%) had controlled hypertension. Proportions of participants taking anti-hypertensive medications varied significantly with age groups, ethnicity, occupation and income. Hypertension control was significantly associated with use of combination therapy, adherence to medication, follow-up care, counseling by healthcare providers and waiting time in hospital. Being worried that the medicine needs to be taken life-long, perceived side effects of drugs, non-adherence to medication, lost to follow-up, inadequate counseling from physician, and lack of national guidelines for hypertension treatment were the most commonly cited barriers for treatment and control of hypertension in qualitative component of the research.Conclusion: Large proportion of the hypertensive population has the untreated and the uncontrolled hypertension. Efforts to dispel and dismantle the myths and barriers related to hypertension treatment and control are warranted to reduce the consequences of uncontrolled hypertension

Dry and Humid Periods Reconstructed from Tree Rings in the Former Territory of Sogdiana (Central Asia) and Their Socio-economic Consequences over the Last Millennium

One of the richest societies along the Silk Road developed in Sogdiana, located in present-day Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan. This urban civilisation reached its greatest prosperity during the golden age of the Silk Road (sixth to ninth century ce). Rapid political and economic changes, accelerated by climatic variations, were observed during last millennium in this region. The newly developed tree-ring-based reconstruction of precipitation for the pastmillennium revealed a series of dry and wet stages. During the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA), two dry periods occurred (900–1000 and 1200–1250), interrupted by a phase of wetter conditions. Distinct dry periods occurred around 1510–1650, 1750–1850, and 1920–1970, respectively. The juniper tree-ring record of moisture changes revealed that major dry and pluvial episodes were consistent with those indicated by hydroclimatic proxy data from adjacent areas. These climate fluctuations have had longand short term consequences for human history in the territory of former Sogdiana