Experience in feeding coal into a liquefaction process development unit

A system for preparing coal slurry and feeding it into a high pressure liquefaction plant is described. The system was developed to provide supporting research and development for the Bureau of Mines coal liquefaction pilot plant. Operating experiences are included

The use of modern tools for modelling and simulation of UAV with Haptic

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) is a research field in robotics which is in high demand in recent years, although there still exist many unanswered questions. In contrast, to the human operated aerial vehicles, it is still far less used to the fact that people are dubious about flying in or flying an unmanned vehicle. It is all about giving the control right to the computer (which is the Artificial Intelligence) for making decisions based on the situation like human do but this has not been easy to make people understand that it’s safe and to continue the enhancement on it. These days there are many types of UAVs available in the market for consumer use, for applications like photography to play games, to map routes, to monitor buildings, for security purposes and much more. Plus, these UAVs are also being widely used by the military for surveillance and for security reasons. One of the most commonly used consumer product is a quadcopter or quadrotor. The research carried out used modern tools (i.e., SolidWorks, Java Net Beans and MATLAB/Simulink) to model controls system for Quadcopter UAV with haptic control system to control the quadcopter in a virtual simulation environment and in real time environment. A mathematical model for the controlling the quadcopter in simulations and real time environments were introduced. Where, the design methodology for the quadcopter was defined. This methodology was then enhanced to develop a virtual simulation and real time environments for simulations and experiments. Furthermore, the haptic control was then implemented with designed control system to control the quadcopter in virtual simulation and real time experiments. By using the mathematical model of quadcopter, PID & PD control techniques were used to model the control setup for the quadcopter altitude and motion controls as work progressed. Firstly, the dynamic model is developed using a simple set of equations which evolves further by using complex control & mathematical model with precise function of actuators and aerodynamic coefficients Figure5-7. The presented results are satisfying and shows that flight experiments and simulations of the quadcopter control using haptics is a novel area of research which helps perform operations more successfully and give more control to the operator when operating in difficult environments. By using haptic accidents can be minimised and the functional performance of the operator and the UAV will be significantly enhanced. This concept and area of research of haptic control can be further developed accordingly to the needs of specific applications

The use of modern tools for modelling and simulation of UAV with Haptic

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) is a research field in robotics which is in high demand in recent years, although there still exist many unanswered questions. In contrast, to the human operated aerial vehicles, it is still far less used to the fact that people are dubious about flying in or flying an unmanned vehicle. It is all about giving the control right to the computer (which is the Artificial Intelligence) for making decisions based on the situation like human do but this has not been easy to make people understand that it’s safe and to continue the enhancement on it. These days there are many types of UAVs available in the market for consumer use, for applications like photography to play games, to map routes, to monitor buildings, for security purposes and much more. Plus, these UAVs are also being widely used by the military for surveillance and for security reasons. One of the most commonly used consumer product is a quadcopter or quadrotor. The research carried out used modern tools (i.e., SolidWorks, Java Net Beans and MATLAB/Simulink) to model controls system for Quadcopter UAV with haptic control system to control the quadcopter in a virtual simulation environment and in real time environment. A mathematical model for the controlling the quadcopter in simulations and real time environments were introduced. Where, the design methodology for the quadcopter was defined. This methodology was then enhanced to develop a virtual simulation and real time environments for simulations and experiments. Furthermore, the haptic control was then implemented with designed control system to control the quadcopter in virtual simulation and real time experiments. By using the mathematical model of quadcopter, PID & PD control techniques were used to model the control setup for the quadcopter altitude and motion controls as work progressed. Firstly, the dynamic model is developed using a simple set of equations which evolves further by using complex control & mathematical model with precise function of actuators and aerodynamic coefficients Figure5-7. The presented results are satisfying and shows that flight experiments and simulations of the quadcopter control using haptics is a novel area of research which helps perform operations more successfully and give more control to the operator when operating in difficult environments. By using haptic accidents can be minimised and the functional performance of the operator and the UAV will be significantly enhanced. This concept and area of research of haptic control can be further developed accordingly to the needs of specific applications

A review on removal of pharmaceuticals from water by adsorption

Pharmaceuticals and personal care products are recognized as emerging pollutants in water resources. Various treatment options have been investigated for the removal of pharmaceuticals that include both conventional (e.g., biodegradation, adsorption, activated sludge) and advanced (e.g., membrane, microfiltration, ozonation) processes. This article reviews literature for adsorptive removal of pharmaceuticals from water sources. Adsorbents from various origins were reviewed for their capacity to remove pharmaceuticals from water. These adsorbents include carbonaceous materials, clay minerals, siliceous adsorbents, and polymeric materials. The adsorption capacity of adsorbents to adsorb pharmaceuticals from water is discussed in this study. The review discusses the mechanism for adsorption of pharmaceuticals onto adsorbents as well. Finally, effectiveness of processing parameters during adsorption processes is presented

Enhanced production of subtilisin of Pyrococcus furiosus expressed in Escherichia coli using autoinducing medium

A subtilisin gene identified in the reported genome sequence of Pyrococcus furiosus was amplified and inserted in pET-22b(+) vector to produce the recombinant plasmid pET-SB. Escherichia coli BL-21 (DE3)CodonPlus was transformed with this plasmid and the enzyme was expressed up to 30% of the total cell protein on induction with IPTG. The expressed protein appeared at a position corresponding to ~20 kDaon SDS-PAGE as compared to theoretical molecular mass of 17.6 kDa. This aberrant electrophoresis mobility could be due to specific amino acid composition of the protein. Auto-induction with lactose also produced a similar level of expression but the total amount of the enzyme produced was 2.4 foldgreater than that when produced with IPTG induction. This was due to a higher cell density obtainable in the auto-inducing medium. The enzyme expressed in the insoluble state could be partially refolded after denaturation with urea at high pH. This study reports for the first time high-level expression ofsubtilisin of P. furiosus in E. coli using an auto-inducing medium

Genotoxic damage in cultured human peripheral blood lymphocytes of oral contraceptive users

Synthetic progestins and estrogens have been reported to be toxic in various experimental models. Their prolonged use has been reported to induce cancer in humans. In the present study the effects of oral contraceptives were studied among users using chromosomal aberrations, sister chromatid exchanges and DNA damage as a parameter, in cultured human peripheral blood lymphocytes. The study was performed on 25 women (users) and 25 age match controls. No significant difference was observed in chromosomal aberrations and DNA damage. A significant increase was observed in sister chromatid exchanges (SCEs) Cell among users. The results obtained and the risk of oral contraceptives (OCs) genotoxicity have been discussed.Keywords: Oral contraceptives; Chromosomal aberrations; DNA damage; Sister chromatid exchanges; Human lymphocyte

Linking entrepreneurial orientation with innovation performance in SMEs; the role of organizational commitment and transformational leadership using smart PLS-SEM

Entrepreneurial orientation has become an enormously significant construct in the innovation studies literature. Predominantly for SMEs, its role has been widely recognized in almost all regional contexts across the globe. The present study is aimed at investigating the effects of entrepreneurial orientation, transformational leadership and organizational commitment on innovation performance. The data for the present study were collected from 1095 employees working at various levels in SMEs. The present study used partial least square structural equation modeling to examine the constructed hypotheses. The findings suggested the significantly positive direct relationships among entrepreneurial orientations, organizational commitment and innovation performance. Besides, organizational commitment positively mediated the relationships between entrepreneurial orientation and innovation performance. Additionally, this study also found the significant moderation of transformational leadership among entrepreneurship orientation and organizational commitment. Leaders of small and medium-sized enterprises should practice entrepreneurial orientation (innovativeness, proactiveness, and risk-taking) and transformation leadership (articulating a compelling vision, focus on goal achievement, and creative problem solving) to enhance the innovation performance of their firms. Moreover, this study provides a robust mechanism for leaders at SMEs to develop strategies for enhancing the willingness of the firms to bring innovation and offer new products and services. The policymakers should enhance the emotional attachment of employees with their firms, sense of moral obligation to remain with the firm which will, in turn, increase the organizational commitment of employees for innovation performance. The study provides empirical evidence to the resource-based view in the context of SMEs. The study delivers solid theoretical and practical implications to experts, leaders and policymakers.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

False-positive troponin elevation due to an immunoglobulin-G-cardiac troponin T complex: a case report.

Background: Troponin is a crucial biomarker for the diagnosis of an acute coronary syndrome (ACS). It rises in response to myocardial injury from significant acute myocardial ischaemia caused by obstructive coronary artery disease ['classical' myocardial infarction (MI)]. However, raised levels have also been noted in conditions not recognized as classical ACS. This may include MI with non-obstructed coronary arteries such as takotsubo cardiomyopathy and other acute or chronic conditions such as pulmonary embolus or chronic kidney disease. This is commonly labelled as a 'falsely elevated' troponin although there is some myocardial strain to explain the rise, such as an increase in cardiac oxygen demand. True 'falsely elevated' troponin, characterized by a persistent elevation in the absence of cardiac injury does occur and thought to be secondary to an immunoglobulin-troponin complex (macrotroponin). Case summary: A 53-year-old gentleman with a background of diabetes, hypertension, hypercholesterolaemia, and hepatitis B was admitted with chest pain and persistently elevated cardiac troponin T (cTnT) levels. Investigations revealed unobstructed coronary arteries and a structurally normal, well-functioning heart. Subsequent biochemical analysis found the persistently elevated cTnT secondary to macrotroponin T. Discussion: Macrotroponin, an immunoglobulin-troponin bound complex should be considered as a differential diagnosis when the biochemistry is not reflective of the clinical picture. Early recognition requires effective collaboration with the biochemistry laboratory for accurate diagnosis

COMPARATIVE PRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE AND EGG CHARACTERISTICS OF PULLETS AND SPENT LAYERS

Production performance and egg quality characteristics of pullets and spent layers were compared in this study. Forty birds, each from the flocks of pullets (24 weeks old) and spent layers (76 weeks old) were selected as experimental birds. The birds from each age group were divided into five replicates, each comprising of eight birds. All the experimental birds were fed a commercial layer ration @ 110g/bird/day for 12 weeks. The data on egg production, feed consumption, egg weight and egg quality characteristics viz. shell thickness, shell weight, breaking strength, albumen diameter, albumen weight and yolk weight were recorded. The data thus collected were utilized for calculation of FCR, Haugh unit and yolk index values. The results revealed that pullets produced more eggs and utilized their feed more efficiently than spent layers. However, egg weight in spent layers was higher than in their counterparts. Pullets also produced eggs with thicker shell and higher Haugh unit values when compared to the spent layers. Feed consumption and yolk index values remained unaffected due to the age. Pullets also had better egg quality characteristics than those of spent layers