NITROGEN AND SULFUR– DOPED CARBON NANOFIBER MIXED OXIDES COMPOSITES FOR SUPERCAPACITOR APPLICATIONS

Energy storage devices including supercapacitor are among the rapidly growing field of alternatives for rechargeable batteries due to its high energy density and long life cyclability performance. Electrospinning is a versatile process that produces polymer fibers. The diameter of these fibers ranges from micrometers to few nanometers. In this work, we aimed to synthesize Carbon nanofibers (CNF) from these polymer fibers by employing annealing (high temperature heat treatment). The fibers were doped with nitrogen (N) and/or sulfur (S) source during electrospun fibers fabrication. Later, the N and/or S doped CNF were loaded with mixed metal oxide e.g. Ni, Sn, and Ru by microwave technique. We characterized and investigated these materials and measured their performance for supercapacitor applications. Metal loaded 1 wt. % Thiourea doped sample electrodes showed a high specific capacitance value of 207.29 F.g-1 at scan rate of 10 mVs-1. This was ascribed to improved electrical conductivity and ion permittivity of carbon materials due to the presence of graphitic-nitrogen on carbon ring structure and nature of catalyst used. Hence, the synthesized materials represents as suitable electrode materials for high-performance supercapacitors

Role of business process models in requirements engineering

The goal of requirements engineering is to create a complete, consistent requirements specification of a desired system in order to establish the requirements at an abstract level.Business process modeling in the early phases of requirement engineering is rather useful.This paper examines business process modeling for the development of information systems.It presents the role of Business Process Model in Requirements Engineering.The process of Requirements Engineering is highlighted in this paper.It explains thoroughly the groundwork, requirements elicitation and business process model. Several Business Process Models are discussed at later part and how they are related to Requirements Engineering.It is enlightened the importance of Business Process Models in Requirements Engineering to get more precise and accurate requirements

Examining the impact of FinTechs in extending capital access to MSMEs

The advancement in technology in the finance sector has given birth to FinTech. South Asia will be witnessing the highest FinTech growth rate in the next five years. Indian MSMEs have been seen to be riding this tide, and FinTechs are well aware of that. This study aims to examine the role of Fintech-based microfinancing in the growth and sustainability of MSMEs. We have followed qualitative methodology to understand the impact of FinTech services on the MSMEs\u27 overall development. Insights from interviews revealed many problems, especially credit-related, faced by MSMEs. The participants accepted that FinTechs have helped them overcome the problems by offering quick and customized short-term loans. The study establishes that the support from FinTech has made the MSMEs more financially stable, resulting in their growth. This study will be the first to investigate this relationship between Fintech and MSMEs. The evidence found in our work points towards the overarching effect of such ecosystems on the nation\u27s economy

The establishment of marine cadastre infrastructure in Malaysia from the legal and technical perspectives / Ashraf Abdullah

Marine cadastre involves the governing of 3R concepts (right, restrictions and responsibility) in the marine area. Legal and technical issues are the most crucial to drive the implementation of marine cadastre. In Malaysia, the use of the National Land Code 1965 is for land cadastre purposes but it does not cover marine situations. The various marine legal matters that currently exist mainly focus on enforcement and do not emphasize marine spatial issues. The current existing provisions, such as the National Land Code 1965, define the terms used and the concept of cadastre in water body situations. However, they do not specifically discuss marine alienation. Furthermore, the current practice of marine space data acquisition also follows the land standard operations, including types of data used and data presentation. This research is to investigate, establish and propose relevant legal and technical aspects for the establishment of a marine cadastre standard of practice in Malaysia. Various methods have been used in the investigation, particularly through literature reviews on the National Land Code 1965 and other related written acts, rules, regulations and procedures. In addition, personal and group interviews and discussions through a formed focus group involving multi stakeholders such as the Department of Survey Malaysia and the Land and Mine Office were carried out

Regulating the molar fraction of 4-hydroxybutyrate in Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-4-hydroxybutyrate) by biological fermentation and enzymatic degradation

The regulation of 4-hydroxybutyrate (4HB) molar fraction in the poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-4-hydroxybutyrate) [P(3HB-co-4HB)] of a local isolate Cupriavidus sp. USMAA1020 was attempted by employing a feeding strategy through fed-batch fermentation in 100-L fermenter. The growth of Cupriavidus sp. USMAA1020 was enhanced by frequently feeding carbon and nitrogen at a ratio of 5 (C/N 5) using a DO-stat with cascade mode at 20% (v/v) dissolved oxygen (DO). The feeding of C/N 5 and the use of the DOstat mode were able to regulate the 4HB composition from 0–67 mol% by sequential feeding of c-butyrolactone and supplementing oleic acid. A high 4HB molar fraction of 67 mol% with a PHA concentration of 5.2 g/L was successfully obtained by employing this feeding strategy. Notably, enzymatic degradation carried out enhanced the 4HB composition of the copolymer synthesized. PHB depolymerase enzyme from Acidovorax sp. was used to degrade this P(3HB-co-70-mol%4HB) copolymer and the 4HB composition could be increased up to 83 mol%. The degradation process was observed by monitoring the timedependent change in the weight loss of copolymer films. The percentage of weight loss of solvent-cast film increased proportionally up to 19% within 3 h, whereas salt-leached films showed 90% of weight loss within 3 h of incubation and were completely degraded by 4 h. The molecular weight (Mn) of the films treated with enzyme demonstrated a slight decrease. SEM observation exhibited a rough surface morphology of the copolymer degraded with depolymerase enzyme

Accessibility-Based Approach: Shaping Travel Needs in Pandemic Situation for Planners’ Perspectives

The outbreak of acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-Cov-2) causing coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has affected travel behaviors and lifestyles in a matter of days and weeks. In transport planning process, the concept of accessibility is usually interpreted as an acronym of mobility. For decades, researchers have been advocating to interlink the mobility-based approach with accessibility-based approach. Despite considerable research work has been done for the development of accessibility measures, yet its effective use in transport planning is not very pervasive. In this research study, stress is emphasized to reflect on why significant progress for adopting accessibility-based approach has been difficult to accomplish especially in planning practices. Some of the promising efforts made so far have been highlighted. This study provides insights on the power of accessibility-based approach in urban settings and discussed why planners should adopt this approach to reshape safe travel behaviors in uncertain pandemic situations like COVID-19

Preparation and characterization of polyhydroxyalkanoates macroporous scaffold through enzyme-mediated modifications

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are hydrophobic biodegradable thermoplastics that have received considerable attention in biomedical applications due to their biocompatibility, mechanical properties, and biodegradability. In this study, the degradation rate was regulated by optimizing the interaction of parameters that influence the enzymatic degradation of P(3HB) film using response surface methodology (RSM). The RSM model was experimentally validated yielding a maximum 21 % weight loss, which represents onefold increment in percentage weight loss in comparison with the conventional method. By using the optimized condition, the enzymatic degradation by an extracellular PHA depolymerase from Acidovorax sp. DP5 was studied at 37 °C and pH 9.0 on different types of PHA films with various monomer compositions. Surface modification of scaffold was employed using enzymatic technique to create highly porous scaffold with a large surface to volume ratio, which makes them attractive as potential tissue scaffold in biomedical field. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the surface of salt-leached films was more porous compared with the solvent-cast films, and hence, increased the degradation rate of salt-leached films. Apparently, enzymatic degradation behaviors of PHA films were determined by several factors such as monomer composition, crystallinity, molecular weight, porosity, and roughness of the surface. The hydrophilicity and water uptake of degraded salt-leached film of P(3HB-co-70%4HB) were enhanced by incorporating chitosan or alginate. Salt-leached technique followed by partial enzymatic degradation would enhance the cell attachment and suitable for biomedical as a scaffold