Analytical and semi-analytical solutions to flows of two immiscible Maxwell fluids between moving plates

Unsteady flows of two immiscible Maxwell fluids in a rectangular channel bounded by two moving parallel plates are studied. The fluid motion is generated by a time-dependent pressure gradient and by the translational motions of the channel walls in their planes. Analytical solutions for velocity and shear stress fields have been obtained by using the Laplace transform coupled with the finite sine-Fourier transform. These analytical solutions are new in the literature and the method developed in this paper can be generalized to unsteady flows of n-layers of immiscible fluids. By using the Laplace transform and classical method for ordinary differential equations, the second form of the Laplace transforms of velocity and shear stress are determined. For the numerical Laplace inversion, two accuracy numerical algorithms, namely the Talbot algorithm and the improved Talbot algorithm are used.     

Differential equation approach for the energy average of the scattering function

An exact differential equation is given to evaluate the energy average of the scattering function. The advantage of the differential equation as compared to the earlier methods based on series expansion is that one has to evaluate only single sums over the complex poles of the S-matrix. Using Wigner’s semicircle law for the distribution of the real parts of the poles of the scattering matrix, the earlier expression for the energy average of the scattering function is rederived.     

Core-shell microgel stabilized silver nanoparticles for catalytic reduction of aryl nitro compounds

Silver nanoparticles loaded into shell of poly (styrene-N-isopropylmethacrylamide-co-acrylic acid) core shell [P (SNA-CS)] gel particles were synthesized and analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy (UV–vis) and dynamic light scattering (DLS). Catalytic activity of Ag@P (SNA-CS) particles was investigated by reducing p-nitroaniline (p-NA) into p-aminoaniline (p-AA) in the presence of sodium borohydride (NaBH₄) reductant. Molecules of the substrate adsorbed on the surface of silver nanoparticles interact with borohydride ions (BH₄⁻) to form p-AA. Other nitroarenes like o-nitroaniline (o-NA), p-nitrophenol (p-NP) o-nitrophenol (o-NP), 2,4-dinitrophenol(2,4-DNP) were also reduced into their corresponding aryl amines using Ag@P (SNA-CS) composite microgels as catalyst. Reported catalyst efficiently reduced the nitro aromatic compounds individually as well as simultaneously at ambient temperature. Effect of different reaction conditions (catalyst dose, concentration of NaBH₄ and concentration of p-NA) on reaction completion time, value of apparent rate constant (k_app) and reduction efficiency of the catalyst for reduction of p-NA was also demonstrated. Ag@P (SNA-CS) catalyst was found to be able to retain activity up to four cycles.     

Tris(2‐aminoethyl)amine‐based ferrocene‐terminated dendrimers as burning rate catalysts for ammonium perchlorate‐based propellant decomposition

Ferrocene‐based derivatives show potential application as burning rate catalysts (BRCs) for solid composite propellants. However, migration problems of simple ferrocene‐based derivatives limit their application as BRCs in solid composite propellants. To overcome the migration problems of ferrocene‐based BRCs and to enhance the burning rate of ammonium perchlorate (AP)‐based propellants, zero‐ to second‐generation tris(2‐aminoethyl)amine‐based ferrocene‐terminated dendrimers (G0, G1 and G2) were synthesized. The structures of G0, G1 and G2 were confirmed using ¹H NMR, Fourier transform infrared and UV–visible spectroscopies. The electrochemical behavior of G0, G1 and G2 was investigated using cyclic voltammetry. It was found that G0, G1 and G2 showed redox behavior due to the presence of ferrocene and this redox behavior was diffusion controlled over the investigated scan range. The burning rate catalytic effect of G0, G1 and G2 on thermal decomposition of AP was investigated using thermogravimetry and differential thermogravimetry. G0, G1 and G2 showed good catalytic effect on the thermal decomposition of AP. Anti‐migration studies showed that migration of G0, G1 and G2 was much slower than that of 2,2‐bis(ethylferrocenyl)propane (catocene) and ferrocene.     

Preparation of highly efficient Al-doped ZnO photocatalyst by combustion synthesis

Novel Al-doped ZnO (AZO) photocatalysts with different Al concentrations (0.5–6.0 mol%) were prepared through a facile combustion method and followed by calcination at 500 °C for 3 h. The obtained nanopowders were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) combined with EDX, transmission electron microscope (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), UV–vis spectroscopy and photoluminescence spectroscopy. The XRD patterns of AZO nanopowders were assigned to wurtzite structure of ZnO with the smallest crystallite size about 11 nm consistent with the results from TEM. The doping of Al in ZnO crystal structure successfully suppressed the growth of ZnO nanoparticles confirmed by XRD patterns. The absorption spectra analysis showed that the optical band gap energy (E_g) for the AZO nanopowders were in the range of 3.12–3.21 eV and decreased with increasing of Al dopant. The photocatalytic activities of the samples were evaluated by photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange under visible light (λ ≥ 420 nm) and sunlight irradiation. The results showed that the AZO photocatalyst doped with 4.0 mol% Al exhibited five times enhanced photocatalytic activity compared to pure ZnO. The enhanced photocatalytic activity could be attributed to extended visible light absorption, inhibition of the electron–hole pair's recombination and enhanced adsorptivity of MO dye molecule on the surface of AZO nanopowders.     

Four-dimensional parameter estimation of plane waves using swarming intelligence

This paper proposes an efficient approach for four-dimensional(4D) parameter estimation of plane waves impinging on a 2-L shape array. The 4D parameters include amplitude, frequency and the two-dimensional(2D) direction of arrival,namely, azimuth and elevation angles. The proposed approach is based on memetic computation, in which the global optimizer, particle swarm optimization is hybridized with a rapid local search technique, pattern search. For this purpose,a new multi-objective fitness function is used. This fitness function is the combination of mean square error and the correlation between the normalized desired and estimated vectors. The proposed hybrid scheme is not only compared with individual performances of particle swarm optimization and pattern search, but also with the performance of the hybrid genetic algorithm and that of the traditional approach. A large number of Monte–Carlo simulations are carried out to validate the performance of the proposed scheme. It gives promising results in terms of estimation accuracy, convergence rate, proximity effect and robustness against noise.     

Magnetohydrodynamic Stagnation Point Flow of a Maxwell Nanofluid with Variable Conductivity

This article reports the simultaneous properties of variable conductivity and chemical reaction in stagnation point flow of magneto Maxwell nanofluid.The Buongiorno's theory has been established to picture the inducement of Brownian and thermophrotic diffusions effects.Additionally,the aspect of heat sink/source is reported.The homotopic analysis method(HAM) has been worked out for the solution of nonlinear ODEs.The behavior of inferential variables on the velocity,temperature,concentration and local Nusselt number for Maxwell nanofluid are sketched and discussed.The attained outcomes specify that both the temperature and concentration of Maxwell fluid display analogous behavior,while the depiction of Brownian motion is quite conflicting on both temperature and concentration fields.It is further noted that the influence of variable thermal conductivity on temperature field is similar to that of Brownian motion parameter.Moreover,for the confirmation of our study comparison tables are reported.     

Creeping flow analysis of slightly non-Newtonian fluid in a uniformly porous slit

This paper provides the analysis of the steady, creeping flow of a special class of slightly viscoelastic, incompressible fluid through a slit having porous walls with uniform porosity. The governing two dimensional flow equations along with non-homogeneous boundary conditions are non-dimensionalized. Recursive approach is used to solve the resulting equations. Expressions for stream function, velocity components, volumetric flow rate, pressure distribution, shear and normal stresses in general and on the walls of the slit, fractional absorption and leakage flux are derived. Points of maximum velocity components are also identified. A graphical study is carried out to show the effect of porosity and non-Newtonian parameter on above mentioned resulting expressions. It is observed that axial velocity of the fluid decreases with the increase in porosity and non-Newtonian parameter. The outcome of this theoretical study has significant importance both in industry and biosciences.     

Improving image quality of diagnostic ultrasound by using the safe use time model with the dynamic safety factor and the effect of the exposure time on the image quality

Resolution and penetration are primary criteria for image quality of diagnostic ultrasound. In theory (and usually in practice), the maximum depth of imaging in a tissue increases as power (pressure) is increased. Alternatively, at a particular effective penetration, an increased power may be used to allow a higher ultrasound frequency for higher resolution and tissue contrast. Recently, Karagoz and Kartal [29] proposed a safety parameter for thermal bioeffects of diagnostic ultrasound; that is, SUT (safe use time). The SUT model is constructed to determine how long one piece of tissue can be insonated safely according to a threshold exposure. Also, Karagoz and Kartal [29] suggested that an increase in acoustic intensity beyond the current US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) limit of intensity can be theoretically possible by using SUT model while staying within the safe limit. The present study was motivated particularly by the goals of higher resolution and/or deeper penetration by using SUT model. The results presented here suggest that the safe use of higher exposure levels than currently allowed by the FDA may be possible for obtaining substantial improvements in penetration depth and/or resolution. Also, the study reveals that image quality can be functionally related to exposure time in addition to acoustic energy and frequency.