An Approximate Approach for Systems of Singular Volterra Integral Equations Based on Taylor Expansion

In this article, an extended Taylor expansion method is proposed to estimate the solution of linear singular Volterra integral equations systems. The method is based on combining the m-th order Taylor polynomial of unknown functions at an arbitrary point and integration method, such that the given system of singular integral equations is converted into a system of linear equations with respect to unknown functions and their derivatives. The required solutions are obtained by solving the resulting linear system. The proposed method gives a very satisfactory solution, which can be performed by any symbolic mathematical packages such as Maple, Mathematica, etc. Our proposed approach provides a significant advantage that the m-th order approximate solutions are equal to exact solutions if the exact solutions are polynomial functions of degree less than or equal to m. We present an error analysis for the proposed method to emphasize its reliability. Six numerical examples are provided to show the accuracy and the efficiency of the suggested scheme for which the exact solutions are known in advance.     

Design and optimization of thin film polarizer at the wavelength of 1540 nm using differential evolution algorithm

In this paper, a thin film polarizer at the wavelength of 1540 nm in infrared region was designed and optimized using differential evolution method. It is shown how the algorithm’s parameters can change the output result to obtain the best consequence of optimization. This polarizer consists of a few pairs of high and low refractive index dielectric materials, titanium dioxide and silicon dioxide, respectively, with \(BK_{7}\) glass substrate and the angle of incident light was supposed 56° that is the Brewster angle for \(BK_{7}\) glass. Our final optimized polarizer has 91.20 and 0.336% transmittance for P and S polarization, respectively, and a 271 ratio of \(\frac{{T_{P} }}{{T_{S} }}\) which has high significance for this polarizer. It consists of eight pairs of layers with low and high refractive index materials and 3369.1 nm physical thickness which is used to separate S and P polarized light for Q-switching process.     

Nontrivial tensile behavior of rutile TiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> nanowires: a molecular dynamics study

In this paper, we study the tensile behavior of cylindrical rutile TiO₂ nanowires, employing molecular dynamics (MD) simulation technique. The third-generation charge optimized many-body (COMB3) has been used for interatomic potential modeling. The influence of temperature and nanowire diameter on Young’s modulus is investigated. Our simulations exhibit the anisotropic behavior of Young’s modulus as a function of diameter for different crystallographic orientations. Although our results are in good accord with the existing results in [1 0 0] direction, Young’s modulus adds up monotonically with increasing the cross-sectional diameter of nanowire in [0 0 1] direction. It is found that Young’s modulus of the nanowires are lower (higher) than the bulk value for [0 0 1] ([1 0 0]) direction. Furthermore, simulation results also indicate that Young’s modulus of rutile TiO₂ nanowire increases as a function of temperature for a given diameter, unexpectedly. The obtained results may be useful in the field of nanotechnology for optimizing mechanical performance to gain specific applications.     

Effect of temperature on $$\mathbf{In}_{{\varvec{x}}} \mathbf{Ga}_{1-{{\varvec{x}}}} \mathbf{As}/\mathbf{GaAs}$$ quantum dots

Analytical solution of the Dirac equation for the modified Pöschl–Teller potential and trigonometric Scarf II non-central potential for spin symmetry is studied using asymptotic iteration method. One-dimensional Dirac equation consisting of the radial and angular parts can be obtained by the separation of variables. By using asymptotic iteration method, the relativistic energy equation and orbital quantum number (l) equation can be obtained, where both are interrelated. Relativistic energy equation is calculated numerically by the Matlab software. The increase in the radial quantum number n _r causes a decrease in the energy value, and the wave functions of the radial and the angular parts are expressed in terms of hypergeometric functions. Some thermodynamical properties of the system can be determined by reducing the relativistic energy equation to the non-relativistic energy equation. Thermodynamical properties such as vibrational partition function, vibrational specific heat function and vibrational mean energy function are expressed in terms of error function.     

Feasibility study on optimization of a typical solar chimney power plant

The solar chimney which has been built in Kerman (Kerman city-Iran) is a small scale electrical power plant. The chimney of this unit has 60 m height and 3 m diameter. The collector of this unit is 40 m × 40 m square. To reach nominal power of this unit of power plant, parameters which are effective in optimization are studied. In this regard, we deliberate and propose suggestions to maximize usage of solar energy and kinetic energy. The calculation of maximum power is one of the objectives of this study, so the paper present economic analysis for Kerman solar chimney. A home code has been written for this modeling, in MATLAB.     

Improved photocatalytic degradation of reactive blue 81 using NiO-doped ZnO–ZrO2 nanoparticles

In this study, the photocatalytic degradation of Reactive Blue 81 (RB81) using synthesized NiO-doped ZnO–ZrO₂ nanoparticles under UV irradiation was investigated. Then, the products were characterized by Scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). The removal rate of RB81 using ZnO–ZrO₂ after 180?min of irradiation was 96.7%. Nickel oxide (NiO) was used as an additive to ZnO–ZrO₂ for improvement of RB81 degradation via photocatalysis process. Photodegradation of RB81 was achieved to 100% using ZnO–ZrO₂–NiO nanoparticles with ratio of 1:2:0.3 after 180?min of irradiation. There was a red shift in absorption bands (from 410?nm to 435?nm) observed in increasing of NiO to ZnO–ZrO₂ nanoparticle, that it might lead to a higher photocatalytic activity under visible light. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used for optimization of experimental and these results were obtained: solution pH = 3, ZnO–ZrO₂–NiO dosage = 15?mg/L, and the initial RB81 concentration = 5?mg/L. The photodegredation of RB81 followed pseudo-first order kinetic according to the Langmuir–Hinshelwood model.     

Hydrothermal Syntheses of NiO−GO Nanocomposite on 3D Nickel Foam as a Support for Pt Nanoparticles and its Superior Electrocatalytic Activity towards Methanol Oxidation

In this project, Pt/NiO?GO nanocatalyst is grown on nickel foam (NF) and, its catalytic activity towards electrochemical oxidation of methanol in acidic media is studied. The first step is devoted to the synthesis of NiO?GO support by a hydrothermal method. Then Pt nanoparticles (～34.3 nm) are electrodeposited on this supporting material. Hydrothermal and electrochemical deposition conditions are optimized. Surface of modified NF was inspected for physical characterization and Chemical composition by some techniques such as field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectra (EDS), and X‐ray diffraction (XRD). In the electrochemical section, the catalytic performance of Pt/NiO?GO/NF towards methanol oxidation is investigated by cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry measurements. The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) is elected to deliberate charge transfer resistance on the catalyst surface. Mass activity, electrochemical surface area (ECSA) and durability of prepared catalysts are compared with commercial Pt/C. Deliberations prove the superiority of Pt/NiO?GO/NF towards methanol oxidation in acidic media. The Superior quality of synthesized nanocatalyst that is attributed to the synergetic effect of the NiO?GO support material and Pt nanoparticles, indicate that Pt/NiO?GO/NF can be successfully used as the anode in the direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC).     

Poly(lactic acid)/coplasticized thermoplastic starch blend: Effect of plasticizer migration on rheological and mechanical properties

Polylactic acid (PLA) and thermoplastic starch (TPS) are known as bio‐based and biodegradable thermoplastic polymers that can be used in different applications owing to their inherent physical and mechanical properties. In order to reduce the higher costs of PLA and tuning its physical and mechanical properties suitable for short life packaging applications, blending of PLA with the TPS, more economical biodegradable polymer, has been considered in academic and industrial researches. However, melt blending of PLA with TPS without compatibilization process caused some drawbacks such as coarsening morphology and declining mechanical properties and ductility because of thermodynamic immiscibility, which may restrict its usage in packaging applications. Subsequently, our approach in this research is compatibilization of PLA/TPS blends by utilization of primary well tuning of TPS formulation with a combination of sorbitol and glycerol plasticizers. In this work, the wide composition range of melt mixed PLA/TPS blends was prepared using a laboratory twin screw extruder. The effects of microstructure on the rheological and mechanical properties of PLA/TPS blends were studied using different methods such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images, contact angle, oscillatory shear rheological measurements, and tensile and impact strength mechanical tests. The rheological and mechanical properties were interpreted according to the morphological features and considering the possibility of plasticizer migration from TPS to PLA phase during melt blending. Reduction in complex viscosity and storage modulus of PLA matrix samples indicates the improved melt processability of blends. Finally, in comparison with mechanical results reported in literature, our simple approach yielded the blends with elastic modulus and ductility comparable with those of chemically compatibilized PLA/TPS blends.     

Immobilization of cytochrome c on polyaniline/polypyrrole/carboxylated multi-walled carbon nanotube/glassy carbon electrode: biosensor fabrication

Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry - A modified electrode PAN/PPY/cMWCNTs composed of polyaniline/polypyrrole (PAN/PPY) bilayer conducting polymer film, carboxylated multi-walled carbon...     

A product of varieties in relation to Baer invariants

The concept of the Baer invariant is useful in classifying groups into isologism classes. In this paper two sequences of varieties {^rV_n}n∈N₀ and {^lV_n}n∈N₀, are considered from a given variety V. The structure of Baer invariants of some groups with respect to these varieties, are determined for some specific V.