A Fundamental Study of Boundary Layer Diffusion Flames

Modeling the realistic burning behavior of condensed-phase fuels has remained out of reach, in part because of an inability to resolve complex interactions at the interface between gas-phase flames and condensed-phase fuels. This interaction is even more complex as scales increase, because realistic fires occur under fully turbulent conditions which have yet to be fully replicated or understood at the bench scale, where detailed measurements can be conducted. The current research explores the dynamic relationship between combustible condensed fuel surface and gas-phase flames in laminar boundary layers, representing the small scales in which materials are tested (where much of today’s theoretical knowledge is also isolated) to realistic large-scale turbulent flames present in almost all unwanted fires, hybrid rocket motors and other similar combustion phenomena. A thorough numerical and experimental investigation of laminar boundary-layer diffusion flames established over the surface of a condensed fuel is presented. By extension of the Reynold’s Analogy, it is hypothesized that the non-dimensional temperature gradient at the surface of a condensed fuel is related to the local mass-burning rate through some constant of proportionality. First, this proportionality is tested by using a validated numerical model for a steady flame established over a condensed fuel surface, under free and forced convective conditions. Second, the relationship is tested by conducting experiments in a free and forced convective environment using methanol and ethanol as liquid fuels and PMMA as a solid fuel, where a detailed temperature profile is mapped during steady burning using fine-wire thermocouples mounted to a precision two-axis traverse mechanism. The results from the present study suggests that there is indeed a unique correlation between the mass burning rates of liquid/solid fuels and the temperature gradients at the fuel surface. The correlating factor depends upon the Spalding mass transfer number and gas-phase thermo-physical properties and works in the prediction of both integrated as well as local variations of the mass burning rate as a function of non-dimensional temperature gradient. Convective and radiative heat feedback from the flames were also measured both in the pyrolysis and plume regions by using temperature gradients near the wall. Additional results from precise measurements of the thermal field are also presented

A Novel Approach for Speech to Text Recognition System Using Hidden Markov Model

Speech recognition is the application of sophisticated algorithms which involve the transforming of the human voice to text. Speech identification is essential as it utilizes by several biometric identification systems and voice-controlled automation systems. Variations in recording equipment, speakers, situations, and environments make speech recognition a tough undertaking. Three major phases comprise speech recognition: speech pre-processing, feature extraction, and speech categorization. This work presents a comprehensive study with the objectives of comprehending, analyzing, and enhancing these models and approaches, such as Hidden Markov Models and Artificial Neural Networks, employed in the voice recognition system for feature extraction and classification

Intelligent Trust based Security Framework for Internet of Things

Trust models have recently been proposed for Internet of Things (IoT) applications as a significant system of protection against external threats. This approach to IoT risk management is viable, trustworthy, and secure. At present, the trust security mechanism for immersion applications has not been specified for IoT systems. Several unfamiliar participants or machines share their resources through distributed systems to carry out a job or provide a service. One can have access to tools, network routes, connections, power processing, and storage space. This puts users of the IoT at much greater risk of, for example, anonymity, data leakage, and other safety violations. Trust measurement for new nodes has become crucial for unknown peer threats to be mitigated. Trust must be evaluated in the application sense using acceptable metrics based on the functional properties of nodes. The multifaceted confidence parameterization cannot be clarified explicitly by current stable models. In most current models, loss of confidence is inadequately modeled. Esteem ratings are frequently mis-weighted when previous confidence is taken into account, increasing the impact of harmful recommendations.                In this manuscript, a systematic method called Relationship History along with cumulative trust value (Distributed confidence management scheme model) has been proposed to evaluate interactive peers trust worthiness in a specific context. It includes estimating confidence decline, gathering & weighing trust      parameters and calculating the cumulative trust value between nodes. Trust standards can rely on practical contextual resources, determining if a service provider is trustworthy or not and does it deliver effective service? The simulation results suggest that the proposed model outperforms other similar models in terms of security, routing and efficiency and further assesses its performance based on derived utility and trust precision, convergence, and longevity

Influence of sewage sludge and saline water irrigation on soil soluble ions and nutrient uptake under Pearl millet-Wheat cropping system in semi-arid region

450-457Salinity is the most common problem in arid and semi-arid regions hindering nutrient accumulation in plants. A field trial (2017-18) was carried out to study the effect of sewage sludge (SS) and saline water irrigation on nutrient uptake under the pearl millet-wheat system and soluble ions in the soil. The experiment consisted of three irrigation levels (canal water, 8 and 10 dS/m ECiw saline water) and five fertilizer treatments i.e., control, sewage sludge (SS)- 5 t/ha, SS (5 t/ha) + 50% recommended dose of fertilizer (RDF), SS (5 t/ha) + 75% RDF and 100% RDF where sewage sludge was applied in rabi season only. The results indicated that the saline water irrigation significantly increased the concentrations of soluble ions (Na+, K+, Ca2++Mg2+, HCO3-, SO42- and Cl-) in the soil, and also the increase was non-significant under sewage sludge application. Na+ and Cl- ions were dominated under saline conditions among the soluble ions in the soil. The nutrient (N, P and K) uptake by grain and stover/straw of pearl millet and wheat crops were significantly reduced under saline environment. However, the maximum uptake in both crops was obtained under canal water irrigation (0.35 dS/m). Among fertilizer treatments, the maximum uptake (NPK) in both crops was attained under RDF being at par with SS (5 t/ha) + 75 RDF except K uptake in pearl millet crop, where the highest K uptake was obtained with SS (5 t/ha) + 75 RDF which was remained statistically at par with RDF treatment. The interactive effect was however non-significant. It is concluded that incorporating SS would enhance nutrient uptake in crops under saline conditions besides solving its dumping problem

Host genetics impact on SARS-CoV-2 vaccine-induced immunoglobulin levels and dynamics: The role of TP53, ABO, APOE, ACE2, HLA-A, and CRP genes

Background: Development and worldwide availability of safe and effective vaccines against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) to fight severe symptoms of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and block the pandemic have been a great achievement and stimulated researchers on understanding the efficacy and duration of different vaccine types. Methods: We investigated the levels of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies (IgG) and neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) in 195 healthy adult subjects belonging to the staff of the University-Hospital of Ferrara (Italy) starting from 15 days up to 190 days (about 6 months) after the second dose of the BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech) mRNA-based vaccine (n = 128) or ChAdOx1 (AstraZeneca) adenovirus-based vaccine (n = 67) using a combined approach of serological and genomics investigations. Results: A strong correlation between IgG and NAb levels was detected during the 190 days of follow-up (r 2 = 0.807; p < 0.0001) and was confirmed during the first 90 days (T1) after vaccination (r 2 = 0.789; p = 0.0001) and 91-190 days (T2) after vaccination (r 2 = 0.764; p = 0.0001) for both vaccine types (r 2 = 0.842; p = 0.0001 and r 2 = 0.780; p = 0.0001 for mRNA- and adenovirus-based vaccine, respectively). In addition to age (p < 0.01), sex (p = 0.03), and type of vaccine (p < 0.0001), which partially accounted for the remarkable individual differences observed in the antibody levels and dynamics, interesting genetic determinants appeared as significant modifiers of both IgG and NAb responses among the selected genes investigated (TP53, rs1042522; APOE, rs7412/rs429358; ABO, rs657152; ACE2, rs2285666; HLA-A rs2571381/rs2499; CRP, rs2808635/rs876538; LZTFL1, rs35044562; OAS3, rs10735079; SLC6A20, rs11385942; CFH, rs1061170; and ACE1, ins/del, rs4646994). In detail, regression analysis and mean antibody level comparison yielded appreciable differences after genotype stratification (P1 and P2, respectively, for IgG and NAb distribution) in the whole cohort and/or in the mRNA-based vaccine in the following genes: TP53, rs1042522 (P1 = 0.03; P2 = 0.04); ABO, rs657152 (P1 = 0.01; P2 = 0.03); APOE, rs7412/rs429358 (P1 = 0.0018; P2 = 0.0002); ACE2, rs2285666 (P1 = 0.014; P2 = 0.009); HLA-A, rs2571381/rs2499 (P1 = 0.02; P2 = 0.03); and CRP, rs2808635/rs876538 (P1 = 0.01 and P2 = 0.09). Conclusion: High- or low-responsive subjects can be identified among healthy adult vaccinated subjects after targeted genetic screening. This suggests that favorable genetic backgrounds may support the progression of an effective vaccine-induced immune response, though no definite conclusions can be drawn on the real effectiveness ascribed to a specific vaccine or to the different extent of a genotype-driven humoral response. The interplay between data from the polygenic predictive markers and serological screening stratified by demogeographic information can help to recognize the individual humoral response, accounting for ethnic and geographical differences, in both COVID-19 and anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations

Protocol for the mWellcare trial: a multicentre, cluster randomised, 12-month, controlled trial to compare the effectiveness of mWellcare, an mHealth system for an integrated management of patients with hypertension and diabetes, versus enhanced usual care in India.

INTRODUCTION: Rising burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and diabetes is a major challenge to the health system in India. Innovative approaches such as mobile phone technology (mHealth) for electronic decision support in delivering evidence-based and integrated care for hypertension, diabetes and comorbid depression have potential to transform the primary healthcare system. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: mWellcare trial is a multicentre, cluster randomised controlled trial evaluating the clinical and cost-effectiveness of a mHealth system and nurse managed care for people with hypertension and diabetes in rural India. mWellcare system is an Android-based mobile application designed to generate algorithm-based clinical management prompts for treating hypertension and diabetes and also capable of storing health records, sending alerts and reminders for follow-up and adherence to medication. We recruited a total of 3702 participants from 40 Community Health Centres (CHCs), with ≥90 at each of the CHCs in the intervention and control (enhanced care) arms. The primary outcome is the difference in mean change (from baseline to 1 year) in systolic blood pressure and glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) between the two treatment arms. The secondary outcomes are difference in mean change from baseline to 1 year in fasting plasma glucose, total cholesterol, predicted 10-year risk of CVD, depression, smoking behaviour, body mass index and alcohol use between the two treatment arms and cost-effectiveness. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The study has been approved by the institutional Ethics Committees at Public Health Foundation of India and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Findings will be disseminated widely through peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations and other mechanisms. TRIAL REGISTRATION: mWellcare trial is registered with Clinicaltrial.gov (Registration number NCT02480062; Pre-results) and Clinical Trial Registry of India (Registration number CTRI/2016/02/006641). The current version of the protocol is Version 2 dated 19 October 2015 and the study sponsor is Public Health Foundation of India, Gurgaon, India (www.phfi.org)

Effectiveness of an mHealth-Based Electronic Decision Support System for Integrated Management of Chronic Conditions in Primary Care: The mWellcare Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: The burden of noncommunicable diseases and their risk factors has rapidly increased worldwide, including in India. Innovative management strategies with electronic decision support and task sharing have been assessed for hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and depression individually, but an integrated package for multiple chronic condition management in primary care has not been evaluated. METHODS: In a prospective, multicenter, open-label, cluster-randomized controlled trial involving 40 community health centers, using hypertension and diabetes mellitus as entry points, we evaluated the effectiveness of mWellcare, an mHealth system consisting of electronic health record storage and an electronic decision support for the integrated management of 5 chronic conditions (hypertension, diabetes mellitus, current tobacco and alcohol use, and depression) versus enhanced usual care among patients with hypertension and diabetes mellitus in India. At trial end (12-month follow-up), using intention-to-treat analysis, we examined the mean difference between arms in change in systolic blood pressure and glycated hemoglobin as primary outcomes and fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol, predicted 10-year risk of cardiovascular disease, depression score, and proportions reporting tobacco and alcohol use as secondary outcomes. Mixed-effects regression models were used to account for clustering and other confounding variables. RESULTS: Among 3698 enrolled participants across 40 clusters (mean age, 55.1 years; SD, 11 years; 55.2% men), 3324 completed the trial. There was no evidence of difference between the 2 arms for systolic blood pressure (Δ=-0.98; 95% CI, -4.64 to 2.67) and glycated hemoglobin (Δ=0.11; 95% CI, -0.24 to 0.45) even after adjustment of several key variables (adjusted differences for systolic blood pressure: - 0.31 [95% CI, -3.91 to 3.29]; for glycated hemoglobin: 0.08 [95% CI, -0.27 to 0.44]). The mean within-group changes in systolic blood pressure in mWellcare and enhanced usual care were -13.65 mm Hg versus -12.66 mm Hg, respectively, and for glycated hemoglobin were -0.48% and -0.58%, respectively. Similarly, there were no differences in the changes between the 2 groups for tobacco and alcohol use or other secondary outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: We did not find an incremental benefit of mWellcare over enhanced usual care in the management of the chronic conditions studied. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: URL: https://www. CLINICALTRIALS: gov. Unique identifier: NCT02480062