Comprehensive structural characterization of MCM-41: From mesopores to particles

In the present work the meso- and macro-structural characteristics of the mesoporous adsorbent MCM-41 have been estimated with the help of various techniques. The structure is found to comprise four different length scales: that of the mesopores, the crystallites, the grains and of the particles. It was found that the surface area estimated by the use of small angle scattering techniques is higher, while that estimated by mercury porosimetry is much lower, than that obtained from gas adsorption methods. Based on the macropore characterization by mercury porosimetry, and the considerable macropore area determined, it is seen that the actual mesopore area of MCM-41 may be significantly lower than the BET area. TEM studies indicated that MCM-41 does not have an ideal mesopore structure; however, it may still be treated as a model mesoporous material for gas adsorption studies because of the large radius of curvature of the channels

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Not AvailableLivestock is an integral component of agriculture in India and help to improve food and nutritional security, generate income, employment, act as a cushion against crop failure, and contribute to foreign exchange through export of livestock products. The livestock sector is both expanding and adapting to changing economic, technological, and environmental factors. In this context, the institute has been serving as the national hub for research to develop important veterinary diagnostics, vaccines and biological products for successful control and management of major livestock and poultry diseases and raise the productivity of the livestock species. In addition, the institute contributes to the development of trained human resource through quality education at the post-graduation level. The ICAR-IVRI, since its establishment in 1889, has been a torch-bearer for advanced scientific and technological research, education and extension activities in Veterinary Science in India. Since its inception, the institute has laid a balanced emphasis on the pursuit of basic, applied, and translational research in veterinary science. Frontier areas of research include development of new generation vaccines, nanotechnology-based diagnostics and biosensors, host-pathogen interaction, advanced clinical research and therapeutics including ethno-veterinary medicine, antimicrobial peptides, clinical applications of stem cells; rumen microbiology, genetic studies on livestock health and production, augmentation of reproductive efficiency, cancer biology etc. The institute actively pursues a policy of true academic freedom in all the areas of its activities. The faculty, numbering about 236, is active in a broad spectrum of research and maintains a high annual publication output. Serving as a national centre for excellence in R&D in veterinary science, the institute has handled 163 research projects, including 79 institute-funded and 84 externally-funded projects during the year. The faculty of the Institute continues to attract a large number of research projects funded by various agencies, including the ICAR; Department of Science and Technology (DST); Department of Biotechnology (DBT); DBT - BBSRC; Dept of Health Research, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare; CSIR; ICMR; CZA, Ministry of Environment and Forests; UPCAR; Ministry of food Processing and Industries etc. The research accomplishments of the scientists and students are reflected in 405 quality research papers besides several books, invited paper/lectures, training manual/compendia, monographs and extension bulletins. It is noteworthy to mention that the scientists of the institute have been publishing in international journals of repute and this has brought more visibility to the research output. Research publication trend analysis revealed that since 2013-14, the total impact factor from research publications in peer reviewed journals has jumped from 231.56 to 350. In pursuance to the identified thrust areas of research, and targets set by the GoS and the Council; the institute continued research to develop Thermotolerant FMD vaccine and other new generation vaccines with long duration immunity, combination vaccines to save cost of vaccination and diagnosis, etc. The products ready for transfer include: the Subviral particle-based vaccine against Gumboro diseases of poultry (the first recombinant vaccine for livestock/poultry in the country to reach to the farmers in very near future), improved PPR diagnostic kit, serodiagnostic kits for bluetongue disease of sheep and Japanese encephalitis of pigs. Institute-industry interface meetings were organized to popularize the developed technologies and their transfer to interested manufacturers in the country. The Institute has been encouraging its faculty and students to protect their intellectual property, and convert the results of some of their scientific investigations to practice via technology transfer and entrepreneurship development. During this reporting period, the institute generated revenue to the tune of Rs. 92.25 lakh from sale of technologies and royalties accrued from technologies transferred in the preceding years. The Institute IPR portfolio includes grant of two patents, one design registration, four copy rights and filing of one new patent during the reporting period. On the basis of All India Entrance Examination, 181 students (98 M.V.Sc. and 83 Ph.D.) were admitted to post-graduate programmes of the Deemed University during the academic year and currently, a total of 243 M.V.Sc. and 406 Ph.D. students are on roll. The Division of Physiology & Climatology as well as Division of Nutrition – functioning as Centres for Advanced Faculty Training recognized by ICAR –contributed to the capacity building of faculties in the SAUs and Veterinary Universities. The institute also conducted several in-house training to upgrade the skills of scientists, students and all categories of technical and administrative staff. The institute also strengthened its linkages with various SAUs / Veterinary universities such as Assam Agricultural University (Jorhat), Kamdhenu University (Gandhinagar, Gujarat), Chhattishgarh Kamdhenu University (Durg), Rajasthan University of Veterinary & Animal Sciences (Bikaner), Maharashtra Animal & Fishery Sciences University (Nagpur), and Bihar Agriculture Sciences University (Patna). This is expected to raise the standard of higher education across the NARS system. The post graduate students are being encouraged to take up twinning PG program at reputed foreign universities for advanced research exposures. The farmer welfare schemes of the government were implemented through organizing Sankalp Se Siddhi, Sansad Adarsha Gram Yojana and Farm Women Day. Several other important extension activities were carried out at the headquarter, campuses and regional stations of the institute in the form of Kisan Melas, exhibitions, animal health and infertility camps, soil health camps, awareness camps on hygiene and zoonoses, Jai Kisan Jai Vigyan week and Mera Gaon Mera Gaurav programme, etc. Further, the institute has organized training courses to farmers/farmwomen in Precision Livestock Farming, Dairy and Animal Husbandry and Unnat Pashupalan. Rural youth were trained and assisted for establishing entrepreneurship Tribal families were assisted for establishment of piggery, poultry and goatry. More than 2000 farm families benefitted under the Tribal sub-plan program (TSP) being implemented in Karnataka, West Bengal, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Maharashtra. A number of mobile apps are being developed and some have been released for use by the stakeholders. The use of such user-friendly apps will certainly enhance the spread of developed technologies among the farming community.Not Availabl

Modeling of adsorption in finite cylindrical pores by means of density functional theory

Adsorption of argon at its boiling point infinite cylindrical pores is considered by means of the non-local density functional theory (NLDFT) with a reference to MCM-41 silica. The NLDFT was adjusted to amorphous solids, which allowed us to quantitatively describe argon adsorption isotherm on nonporous reference silica in the entire bulk pressure range. In contrast to the conventional NLDFT technique, application of the model to cylindrical pores does not show any layering before the phase transition in conformity with experimental data. The finite pore is modeled as a cylindrical cavity bounded from its mouth by an infinite flat surface perpendicular to the pore axis. The adsorption of argon in pores of 4 and 5 nm diameters is analyzed in canonical and grand canonical ensembles using a two-dimensional version of NLDFT, which accounts for the radial and longitudinal fluid density distributions. The simulation results did not show any unusual features associated with accounting for the outer surface and support the conclusions obtained from the classical analysis of capillary condensation and evaporation. That is, the spontaneous condensation occurs at the vapor-like spinodal point, which is the upper limit of mechanical stability of the liquid-like film wetting the pore wall, while the evaporation occurs via a mechanism of receding of the semispherical meniscus from the pore mouth and the complete evaporation of the core occurs at the equilibrium transition pressure. Visualization of the pore filling and empting in the form of contour lines is presented