Flow of a viscous incompressible fluid of temperature dependent viscosity past a permeable wedge with uniform surface heat flux

 The effect of uniform suction on the steady two-dimensional laminar forced flow of a viscous incompressible fluid of temperature dependent viscosity past a wedge with uniform surface heat flux is considered. The governing equations for the flow are obtained by using suitable transformations and are solved by using an implicit finite difference method. Perturbation solutions are also obtained near the leading edge and in the downstream regime. The results are obtained in terms of the local skin friction coefficient and the rate of heat transfer for various values of the pertinent parameters, such as the Prandtl number, Pr, the velocity gradient parameter, m, the local suction parameter, ξ, and the viscosity variation parameter, ɛ. Perturbation solutions are compared with the finite difference solutions and are found to be in excellent agreement. The effect of ξ, m and ɛ on the dimensionless velocity profiles and viscosity distribution are also presented graphically for Pr = 0.7 and 7.0, which are the appropriate values for gases and water respectively. Received on 22 July 1999     

A probabilistic model of quantum states for classical data security

The phenomenal progress of quantum information theory over the last decade has substantially broadened the potential to simulate the superposition of states for exponential speedup of quantum algorithms over their classical peers. Therefore, the conventional and modern cryptographic standards (encryption and authentication) are susceptible to Shor’s and Grover’s algorithms on quantum computers. The significant improvement in technology permits consummate levels of data protection by encoding classical data into small quantum states that can only be utilized once by leveraging the capabilities of quantum-assisted classical computations. Considering the frequent data breaches and increasingly stringent privacy legislation, we introduce a hybrid quantum-classical model to transform classical data into unclonable states, and we experimentally demonstrate perfect state transfer to exemplify the classical data. To alleviate implementation complexity, we propose an arbitrary quantum signature scheme that does not require the establishment of entangled states to authenticate users in order to transmit and receive arbitrated states to retrieve classical data. The consequences of the probabilistic model indicate that the quantum-assisted classical framework substantially enhances the performance and security of digital data, and paves the way toward real-world applications.     

System for <Emphasis Type="Italic">In Situ</Emphasis> Characterization of Nanoparticles Synthesized in a Thermal Plasma Process

We have designed a particle diagnostic system that is able to measure particle size and charge distributions from low stagnation pressure (≥746 Pa) and high temperature (2000–4000 K) environments in near real time. This system utilizes a sampling probe interfaced to an ejector to draw aerosol from the low pressure chamber. Particle size and charge distributions are measured with a scanning mobility particle sizer. A hypersonic impactor is mounted in parallel with the scanning mobility particle sizer to collect particles for off-line microscopic analysis. This diagnostic system has been used to measure size and charge distributions of nanoparticles (Si, Ti, Si–Ti–N, etc.) synthesized with our thermal plasma reactor. We found that the mean particle size increases with operating pressure and reactant flow rates. We also found that most particles from our reactor are neutral for particles smaller than 20 nm, and that the numbers of positively and negatively charged particles are approximately equal.     

Electrode effects on the electrical properties of chalcogenide films

The effect of Al, Ag and Cr metal electrodes on the electrical properties of CeSeTe films was studied. The relative ease of the diffusion of metallic atoms and the accompanied tendency to nucleation leads to irreversible changes of the film resistivity while annealing. The recrystallization temperature of the chalcogenide film depends strongly on the type of the metal electrode. The observed increase in the values of resistivity after annealing, was interpreted on the basis of charged dangling bond theory.     

Biodegradation of Herbicides by a Plant Nonheme Iron Dioxygenase: Mechanism and Selectivity of Substrate Analogues

Aryloxyalkanoate dioxygenases are unique herbicide biodegrading nonheme iron enzymes found in plants and hence, from environmental and agricultural point of view they are important and valuable. However, they often are substrate specific and little is known on the details of the mechanism and the substrate scope. To this end, we created enzyme models and calculate the mechanism for 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid biodegradation and 2-methyl substituted analogues by density functional theory. The work shows that the substrate binding is tight and positions the aliphatic group close to the metal center to enable a chemoselective reaction mechanism to form the C²-hydroxy products, whereas the aromatic hydroxylation barriers are well higher in energy. Subsequently, we investigated the metabolism of R- and S-methyl substituted inhibitors and show that these do not react as efficiently as 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid substrate due to stereochemical clashes in the active site and particularly for the R-isomer give high rebound barriers.     

Activated Anilide in Heterocyclic Synthesis: Synthesis of New Dihydropyridines,Dihydropyridazines and Thiourea Derivatives

A series of new dihydropyridines, butanamide, dihydropyridazines and thiourea derivatives have been prepared through the reactions of 3‐aminopyridine ( 1 ) and N‐(pyridin‐3‐yl)‐3‐(pyridin‐3‐ylimino)butanamide 3 with some electrophilic reagents, aryl diazonium salts and isothiocyanates. Elementary analysis, MS, IR, and ¹H NMR spectra confirmed the identity of the products.     

Hollow BiOBr/reduced graphene oxide hybrids encapsulating hemoglobin for a mediator-free biosensor

Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry - For the construction of a mediator-free biosensor, hollow BiOBr microspheres (H-BiOBr MS) were hydrothermally synthesized and combined with reduced...     

Current Status,Distribution, and Future Directions of Natural Products against Colorectal Cancer in Indonesia: A Systematic Review

In 2020, an estimated 19.3 million new cancer cases and nearly 10 million cancer deaths have occurred worldwide, with colorectal cancer ranking as the third most frequently diagnosed (10.0%). Several attempts have been conducted against cancer, including surgery, radiation, monoclonal antibodies, and chemotherapy. Many people choose natural products as alternatives against cancer. These products will not only help in human life preservation but also work as a source of up-to-date information, leading people away from incorrect information. We discuss the current status, distribution, and future implications of protecting populations with natural products as an alternative against colorectal cancer in Indonesia. Thirty-eight studies were included in this review for data extraction. The distribution of natural products in Indonesia that have potential activity against colorectal cancer cells was predominated by terpenoids, followed by phytosterols, phenolics, alkaloids, and polyisoprenoids. The type of cell line utilized in the cytotoxic activity analysis of natural products was the WiDr cell line, followed by HT-29 cells and HCT-116 cells. This review showed that MTT in vitro assay is a general method used to analyze the cytotoxic activity of a natural product against colorectal cancer cells, followed by other in vitro and in vivo methods. The systematic review provided predictions for several secondary metabolites to be utilized as an alternative treatment against colorectal cancer in Indonesia. It also might be a candidate for a future co-chemotherapy agent in safety, quality, and standardization. In addition, computational methods are being developed to predict the drug-likeness of compounds, thus, drug discovery is already on the road towards electronic research and development.     

What Determines the Selectivity of Arginine Dihydroxylation by the Nonheme Iron Enzyme OrfP?

The nonheme iron enzyme OrfP reacts with l -Arg selectively to form the 3R,4R-dihydroxyarginine product, which in mammals can inhibit the nitric oxide synthase enzymes involved in blood pressure control. To understand the mechanisms of dioxygen activation of l -Arg by OrfP and how it enables two sequential oxidation cycles on the same substrate, we performed a density functional theory study on a large active site cluster model. We show that substrate binding and positioning in the active site guides a highly selective reaction through C³−H hydrogen atom abstraction. This happens despite the fact that the C³−H and C⁴−H bond strengths of l -Arg are very similar. Electronic differences in the two hydrogen atom abstraction pathways drive the reaction with an initial C³−H activation to a low-energy ⁵σ-pathway, while substrate positioning destabilizes the C⁴−H abstraction and sends it over the higher-lying ⁵π-pathway. We show that substrate and monohydroxylated products are strongly bound in the substrate binding pocket and hence product release is difficult and consequently its lifetime will be long enough to trigger a second oxygenation cycle.     

Effect of dual flow arrangements on the performance of mini-channel heat sink: numerical study

Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry - Water-cooled heat sinks now gained the popularity due to increased heat generation inside the microprocessor. The generated high heat flux should be...