Effect of Pregnancy on the Speaking Voice

The study aims to investigate the vocal symptoms and acoustic changes in pregnant women pre- and postpartum in comparison to the controls. A total of 25 pregnant women who presented for delivery were enrolled in this study. Twenty-one nonpregnant women were matched as controls. Vocal symptoms such as hoarseness, vocal fatigue, and aphonia were assessed. Acoustic analysis included fundamental frequency (F₀), habitual pitch, relative average perturbation (RAP), shimmer, noise-to-harmony ratio (NHR), and maximum phonation time (MPT). There were no significant differences in the incidence of vocal symptoms in pregnant women versus controls. However, vocal fatigue was more prevalent in the pregnant group. With respect to the acoustic parameters, there was a significant decrease in the MPT at term. The rest of the variables were comparable. Postpartum, the MPT significantly increased and there was an increase in F₀ and a significant decrease in the voice turbulence index (VTI). Pregnant women have more vocal fatigue and a reduction in MPT compared to the controls. Immediately after delivery, there is a significant increase in MPT.     

The role of Fe–X···X–Fe contacts in the crystal structures of [(2-iodopyridinium)2FeX4]X (X = Cl, Br)

The analogy of chloride–chloride contacts in compounds containing Fe–Cl1···Cl2–Fe synthons with well-studied organic C–Cl1···Cl2–C interactions has been investigated. The crystal structures of the two tetrahaloferrate(III) salts, [(2-iodopyridinium)₂FeX₄]X (X = Cl, Br) have been determined. Analysis of these two isomorphous structures and related published structures shows that the arrangement of Fe–Cl1···Cl2–Fe synthons is similar to that of C–Cl1···Cl2–C with the Fe–Cl1···Cl2 and Cl1···Cl2–Fe angles being ~150°. While inter-chlorine distances are less than the sum of van der Waals radii in C–Cl1···Cl2–C units, they are equal to, or longer, than the sum of van der Waals radii in the corresponding Fe–Cl1···Cl2–Fe contacts. This might indicate that the arrangement of Fe–Cl1···Cl2–Fe synthons occurs predominately to reduce repulsive forces rather than as a result of attractive forces. However, it is observed that the halide–halide distance in [(2-iodopyridinium)₂FeBr₄]Br is shorter than in the isostructural chloride species, which can be explained by the fact that bromine is softer than chlorine. Several intermolecular forces unite the cations and anions within the crystalline lattice of [(2-iodopyridinium)₂FeX₄]X including N–H···X^?, C–I···X–Fe, N(π)···X–Fe, N(π)···I–C, and Fe–X1···X2–Fe contacts. The calculated electron density and electrostatic potential of the [FeX₄]^? anions and the organic iodopyridinium cations was used to describe the arrangement of these synthons and the hierarchy of the strengths of the respective contacts.     

The Use of Porous Fins for Heat Transfer Augmentation in Parallel-Plate Channels

In this study, a steady, fully developed laminar forced convection heat augmentation via porous fins in isothermal parallel-plate duct is numerically investigated. High-thermal conductivity porous fins are attached to the inner walls of two parallel-plate channels to enhance the heat transfer characteristics of the flow under consideration. The Darcy–Brinkman–Forchheimer model is used to model the flow inside the porous fins. This study reports the effect of several operating parameters on the flow hydrodynamics and thermal characteristics. This study demonstrates, mainly, the effects of porous fin thickness, Darcy number, thermal conductivity ratio, Reynolds number, and microscopic inertial coefficient on the thermal performance of the present flow. It is found that the highest Nusselt number is achieved at fully filled porous duct which requires the highest pumping pressure. The results show that using porous fins requires less pumping pressure with comparable high heat augmentation weight against fully filled porous duct. It is found that higher Nusselt numbers are achieved by increasing the microscopic inertial coefficient (A), the Reynolds number (Re), and the thermal conductivity of the porous substrate k ₂. The results show that heat transfer can be enhanced (1) with the use of high thermal conductivity fins, (2) by decreasing the Darcy number, and (3) by increasing microscopic inertial coefficient.     

On forced convection in channels partially filled with porous substrates

 This paper numerically simulates the forced convection flow in the developing region of a parallel-plate channel partially filled with two porous substrates of equal thickness deposited at the inner walls of the channel. The major objective of the present work is to investigate the impact of several operating and design parameters on the thermal performance of the channel under consideration. The physical problem is simulated by using Darcy–Brinkman–Forchheimer model. For a prescribed amount of porous material, the current investigation discusses the comparison between inserting this entire amount at one side of the channel and inserting half of this amount at each side of the channel. Received on 25 May 2000 / Published online: 29 November 2001     

Spectroscopic Study of Solvent Polarity on the Optical and Photo-Physical Properties of Novel 9,10-bis(coumarinyl)anthracene

Novel 7,7′-((anthracene-9,10-diylbis(methylene))bis(oxy))bis(4-methyl-2H-chromen-2-one) (BisCA) was prepared as fluorescent probe. The chemical structure of the novel BisCA was confirmed by spectroscopic data as well as elemental analyses. The solvatochromic characteristics of the new proble and its precursors were investigated in different solvents including, ethanol, DMF and toluene as protic polar, aprotic polar and non-polar solvents, respectively. Photo-physical parameters of probes, such as fluorescence quantum yields, fluorescence lifetime of excited state, radiative and non-radiative decay, were assessed in different media. The intermolecular H-bond effect on absorption and excitation spectra of the novel probe was reported in different solvents. Also, Onsager cavity radius and dipole moment of ground state and excited state of the probe were calculated as described by Bakhshiev and Reichardt methods.