Automatic generation control of a hydro - thermal and thermal - thermal systems in a deregulated environment

This paper deals with the applications of automatic generation control (AGC) of a hydro —thermal and thermal—thermal systems in a power system deregulated environment and makes an attempt to provide a new practical AGC model to fulfill the needs of a modern restructured hydro-thermal and thermal -thermal power system. Several Distribution Company, distribution Participation Matrix,and area participation factor have been tried out and dynamic responses for frequency, tie line flow and power generations are obtained to examine the performance of the system in deregulated environment considering integral controllers. Investigations have been also carried out to study the effect of generation rate constraint and the importance of APF in deregulated environment. Study also reveals that the conventional integral controllers are quite robust than PI and PID controllers and the optimum integral gains once set for nominal condition need not be changed for +25% variations in system parameters and +20% variations in operating load condition from their nominal values

Role of mi-RNAs in Respiratory Diseases

Ever since the initial discovery in the early 1990s, microRNAs have become the focus of a multitude of conditions from basic biology to clinical applications in both diagnostic and prognostic strata. Previously they were believed to be of no biological relevance. Even in diseases of the lung, microRNAs have been analyzed in the pathophysiology, as drivers of disease, potential treatment targets, and serum biomarkers; however, much is yet to be understood about these non-coding RNAs for us to fully realize their potential therapeutic use. Here, we give a brief insight into their role in major respiratory diseases unearthed so far and the road ahead to better understand this potential biomarker

A rare complication of pulmonary tuberculosis - Pulmonary venous thrombosis with atrial extension

Pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) is serious public health problem in India and worldwide. The mortality rate in pulmonary TB is high in those with advanced disease and in presence of complications. It presents with wide variety of complications of which haematological complications are rare. Many cases were reported pulmonary TB associated with deep venous thrombosis, hepatic and portal venous thrombosis, central retinal venous thrombosis and sagittal sinus thrombosis in TB meningitis. We report a rare case of pulmonary TB with pulmonary venous thrombosis and atrial extension. To our best knowledge, this is the first case reported of its kind

Weathering induced morphological modification on the thermal diffusivity of natural pyrrhotite

Natural pyrrhotites have gained significant attention due to their interesting electronic, antimicrobial, and chemical properties. The present work attempts to explore the morphology-induced modifications in the thermal characteristics of natural pyrrhotite due to ageing. The morphological, elemental, structure, optical, and thermal characterisations help in understanding the effect of ageing. The effects of five years of ageing of the sample are (i) Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopic analysis reveals a morphological transformation from flakes to agglomerated powder, (ii) elemental analyses suggest the ageing induced compositional modification (iii) the Tauc plot analysis shows a bandgap energy modification from 1.46 eV to 1.92 eV, (iv) X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic studies affirm the formation of oxy-hydroxides (v) the XRD data indicates an increase of dislocation density, and (vi) Photoluminescence study shows a deep violet emission evidenced through the CIE plot. The study by the thermal lens technique shows a lowering of thermal diffusivity study by 23%, due to the morphological modifications, adsorbed/chemisorbed hydroxyl groups, and the formation of secondary compounds due to oxidation and weathering. The phonon boundary scattering, weathering induced smaller grain size, reduced phonon mean free path, and point defects also account for the lowering of the thermal diffusivity value and thereby influencing its properties

Speckle interferometric investigation of argon pressure-induced surface roughness modifications in RF-sputtered MoO[sub]3 film

Film quality analysis is of more considerable signifcance due to its diversifed applications in various felds of technology. The present work reports the speckle interferometric analysis of the argon pressure-induced surface roughness modifcations of RF sputtered MoO3 flms. The paper suggests a new method of surface quality analysis of thin flms through a parameter δ, which is the diference between the initial and fnal inertia moment values in the study of the thermal-induced dynamic speckle pattern. The limitations of root mean square surface roughness analysis of the atomic force microscopic image of the flms is also exemplifed. The research suggests that argon pressure plays a vital role in the surface property of RF sputtered flms and also that the dynamic speckle analysis can give precise information about the quality of flms. The contour plot of particle displacement vector under thermal stress, suggests the degree of uniformity in the distribution of particles in the flm

Homologous microscopic agglutinating antibodies after natural infection with leptospires – results from a long term follow up of a cohort living in an endemic area

Homologous microscopic agglutinating antibodies after natural infection with leptospires – results from a long term follow up of a cohort living in an endemic are

GC/MS profiling, <i>in vitro</i> anti-leptospiral and haemolytic activities of <i>Boesenbergia rotunda</i> (L.) Mansf. used as a medicinal plant by Nicobarese of Andaman and Nicobar Islands

<p>Leaves of the plant <i>Boesenbergia rotunda</i> are used by the Nicobarese tribe of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India, to prepare traditional medicine for treating fever, headache and body ache. In the present investigation, methanol fraction of these leaves were analysed by GC/MS that revealed the presence of 25 compounds. The anti-leptospiral activity of methanol crude extract was determined by both microdilution and macrodilution methods. The MICs of the extract were tested against 24 pathogenic leptospiral strains and ranged between 62.5–125 μg/mL in both microdilution and macrodilution. The range of MBCs was 250 and 500 μg/mL in macrodilution and microdilution respectively. The crude extract was subjected to cytotoxic studies and found to have negligible or no haemolytic activity, exhibiting IC₅₀ values of greater than 4 mg/mL. Further <i>in vivo</i> studies are needed to investigate the pharmacological and toxicological properties of <i>Boesenbergia rotunda</i>, before it can be considered as a new anti-leptospiral agent.</p

Quantitative computed tomography–derived clusters : Redefining airway remodeling in asthmatic patients

Background Asthma heterogeneity is multidimensional and requires additional tools to unravel its complexity. Computed tomography (CT)–assessed proximal airway remodeling and air trapping in asthmatic patients might provide new insights into underlying disease mechanisms. Objectives The aim of this study was to explore novel, quantitative, CT-determined asthma phenotypes. Methods Sixty-five asthmatic patients and 30 healthy subjects underwent detailed clinical, physiologic characterization and quantitative CT analysis. Factor and cluster analysis techniques were used to determine 3 novel, quantitative, CT-based asthma phenotypes. Results Patients with severe and mild-to-moderate asthma demonstrated smaller mean right upper lobe apical segmental bronchus (RB1) lumen volume (LV) in comparison with healthy control subjects (272.3 mm3 [SD, 112.6 mm3], 259.0 mm3 [SD, 53.3 mm3], 366.4 mm3 [SD, 195.3 mm3], respectively; P = .007) but no difference in RB1 wall volume (WV). Air trapping measured based on mean lung density expiratory/inspiratory ratio was greater in patients with severe and mild-to-moderate asthma compared with that seen in healthy control subjects (0.861 [SD, 0.05)], 0.866 [SD, 0.07], and 0.830 [SD, 0.06], respectively; P = .04). The fractal dimension of the segmented airway tree was less in asthmatic patients compared with that seen in control subjects (P = .007). Three novel, quantitative, CT-based asthma clusters were identified, all of which demonstrated air trapping. Cluster 1 demonstrates increased RB1 WV and RB1 LV but decreased RB1 percentage WV. On the contrary, cluster 3 subjects have the smallest RB1 WV and LV values but the highest RB1 percentage WV values. There is a lack of proximal airway remodeling in cluster 2 subjects. Conclusions Quantitative CT analysis provides a new perspective in asthma phenotyping, which might prove useful in patient selection for novel therapies