MICROENCAPSULATED LEMONGRASS OIL FOR MOSQUITO REPELLENT FINISHING OF KNITTED COTTON WEAR

Objective: This study was conducted to design the textile structure with mosquito repellent behavior using microencapsulated lemongrass extract.Methods: Lemongrass oil extracted from Cymbopogon citratus by a hydro distillation process, which was used as core and gum acacia was used as wall material. About 10% W/V gum acacia was allowed to swell with hot water and stirred well with a temperature of 50°C. Further to this mixture 10 ml of lemongrass extract was mixed and stirred around 400 rpm for 15 minutes. Subsequent with this process, 20% V/V sodium sulfate was added then the stirrer speed was reduced 80 rpm, and then 5 ml of 17% formaldehyde was added along with this mixture. Finally, the microcapsules were obtained. Then, this lemongrass extract capsule mixture was coated on the fabric through pad dry cure method.Results: Mosquito repellent study was carried out through the excito chamber method and assessed the mosquito repellency percentage. The maximum mosquito repellency percentage was obtained around 90%. Wash durability, abrasion resistance, air permeability, and bursting strength of the coated textiles were also studied. Scanning electron microscopy analysis and gas chromatography analysis were also performed for the samples.Conclusion: It was proved that lemongrass microencapsulated textiles provide good resistance against mosquito bites and also concluded that this process is one of eco-friendl

Social VR: A new medium for remote communication and collaboration

There is a growing need for effective remote communication, which has many positive societal impacts, such as reducing environmental pollution and travel costs, supporting rich collaboration by remotely connecting talented people. Social Virtual Reality (VR) invites multiple users to join a collaborative virtual environment, which creates new opportunities for remote communication. The goal of social VR is not to completely replicate reality, but to facilitate and extend the existing communication channels of the physical world. Apart from the benefits provided by social VR, privacy concerns and ethical risks are raised when the boundary between the real and the virtual world is blurred. This workshop is intended to spur discussions regarding technology, evaluation protocols, application areas, research ethics and legal regulations for social VR as an emerging immersive remote communication tool

Talk to the Virtual Hands: Self-Animated Avatars Improve Communication in Head-Mounted Display Virtual Environments

Background When we talk to one another face-to-face, body gestures accompany our speech. Motion tracking technology enables us to include body gestures in avatar-mediated communication, by mapping one's movements onto one's own 3D avatar in real time, so the avatar is self-animated. We conducted two experiments to investigate (a) whether head-mounted display virtual reality is useful for researching the influence of body gestures in communication; and (b) whether body gestures are used to help in communicating the meaning of a word. Participants worked in pairs and played a communication game, where one person had to describe the meanings of words to the other. Principal Findings In experiment 1, participants used significantly more hand gestures and successfully described significantly more words when nonverbal communication was available to both participants (i.e. both describing and guessing avatars were self-animated, compared with both avatars in a static neutral pose). Participants ‘passed’ (gave up describing) significantly more words when they were talking to a static avatar (no nonverbal feedback available). In experiment 2, participants' performance was significantly worse when they were talking to an avatar with a prerecorded listening animation, compared with an avatar animated by their partners' real movements. In both experiments participants used significantly more hand gestures when they played the game in the real world. Conclusions Taken together, the studies show how (a) virtual reality can be used to systematically study the influence of body gestures; (b) it is important that nonverbal communication is bidirectional (real nonverbal feedback in addition to nonverbal communication from the describing participant); and (c) there are differences in the amount of body gestures that participants use with and without the head-mounted display, and we discuss possible explanations for this and ideas for future investigation

Influence of fiber surface modifications on the mechanical behavior of Vetiveria zizanioides reinforced polymer composites

The natural fiber is pretreated with chemicals namely, alkali, peroxide, and benzoyl chloride. Composites are prepared using chemically treated fibers as reinforcements and mechanical characteristics are tested. The results confirmed that, benzoylation improved the tensile, compressive, and impact strengths of the composite by 113%, 56.78%, and 95%, respectively. Peroxide treatment has improved the flexural strength by 56.13% and improved the elongation of the composite during tension, flexure, and compression tests. The surface morphology showed minimal defects in the benzoylated composite and hence, benzoylation is suggested for the best overall behavior and peroxidation for enhanced bending and elongation

Trends and Challenges on the Development of Hybridized Natural Fiber Composites

Fiber reinforced composites are majorly used as structural components in industries and also as a replacement for wood. Fiber reinforced composites are manufactured by reinforcing fibers in the polymeric matrix in appropriate shapes. At the inception, man-made fibers like carbon, glass, and kevlar are used as reinforcements and are proven to be the best in respect to the properties, reinforcing ability and usability. On the other hand, natural fibers like jute, sisal, flax, hemp, vetiver, etc., are nowadays widely used as reinforcements and they are on par with the behavior of artificial fibers. Research studies also confirm that when both man-made and natural reinforcements are used in hybrid form, the composite properties are improved to a greater extent. Under this combination, the composite material gains all the superior properties of individual fibers and when the composite is subjected to different loading, each fiber offers its own maximum resistance. Hence, the composite would be superior in all the properties. The present article gives a detailed insight on the various issues related to synthesis, mechanical characterization and machining of natural fiber reinforced hybrid composites

Parametric Optimization on Multi-Objective Precision Turning Using Grey Relational Analysis

AbstractThe quality of a machined surface is becoming more and more important to satisfy the increasing demands of sophisticated component performance, longevity, and reliability. The objective of this paper is to analyze the performance of precision turning of using conventional lathe on Ti-6Al-4V under dry working conditions. Various parameters that affect the machining processes were identified and a consensus was reached regarding its values. The proposed work is to perform machining under the selected levels of conditions and parameters and to estimate the, cutting temperature and surface roughness generated as the result of the machining process. Based upon the experimental values, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was conducted to understand the influence of various cutting parameters on, surface roughness, cutting force, tool ware and cutting tool temperatures during precision turning of titanium alloy. Optimal levels of parameters were identified using grey relational analysis, and significant parameter was determined by analysis of variance

Prevalence and determinants of metabolic syndrome among the rural adult population of Puducherry

Background: Burden of metabolic syndrome (MS) is rising. There were many previous studies conducted in India on MS, yet it is less studied in Puducherry which has embraced modern culture and lifestyle. Hence, we aimed to study the prevalence and predictors of MS. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was undertaken on a representative sample of 489 adults of age 30 years and above over the period of 18 months. MS was defined according to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) criteria. Data on sociodemography, lifestyle characteristics, and biochemical parameters were collected by a well-trained health professional using standard methods. Generalized linear models with Poisson distribution and log link function were used to calculate the adjusted prevalence ratio (PR). Results: The prevalence of MS was 39.7% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 35.3–44.1) among the study participants. The most commonly deranged component of MS was central obesity (63.6%). Increasing age, upper socioeconomic status, low fruit intake, physical inactivity, use of refined sunflower oil (PR: 1.40, 95% CI: 1.07–1.83) for cooking, and high perceived stress (PR: 1.77, 95% CI: 1.32–2.37) were found to be associated with MS. Conclusion: The prevalence of MS in Puducherry was high as per the IDF criteria. Usage of refined sunflower oil for cooking and perceived stress was independently associated with an increased risk of MS along with other routinely studied risk factors