Dosimetric evaluation of an indigenously developed 10 MeV industrial electron beam irradiator

The high dose rate electron beams are increasingly being used for radiation processing of various products worldwide. A comprehensive dosimetric evaluation of an in-house developed 10 MeV industrial electron beam irradiator was carried out in static as well as in dynamic mode of irradiations. Radiochromic B3 film and graphite calorimeter were used for dosimetric measurements. The dose rate from the electron beam was also calculated using the empirical relation prescribed in the ASTM report E2232-02. The measured electron beam profile indicates the dose rate variation within 8% in the irradiated product boxes. The most probable energy determined from the depth dose distribution in PMMA, Al and water was found in agreement with the intended energy of the electron beam. Measured dose rate using radiochromic film and graphite calorimeter were found in good agreement with each other and also found comparable with the theoretically estimated dose rates. Experimentally measured dose rates were considered for the trial irradiation of medical and industrial products. Dosimetric data obtained through this study confirms the suitability of the irradiator for routine radiation processing of various products.     

Effect of nitrogen addition on hydrogen incorporation in diamond nanorod thin films

The effect of nitrogen addition in the feed gas on the finally incorporated amount of hydrogen in the diamond nanorods (DNRs) thin films has been investigated. The Raman spectroscopy measurements helped to understand the structural and quality changes with increasing nitrogen gas flow rate during CVD deposition. The hydrogen concentration was measured with 3.0 MeV He²⁺ beam using elastic recoil detection analysis technique and it was found that with the addition of nitrogen, the hydrogen concentration was increased. The results of non-Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (NRBS) used to measure the amount of nitrogen in the DNRs thin films have shown that the incorporated nitrogen is below the detection limit of NRBS technique. Our results suggested that the addition of nitrogen has affected the overall quality of diamond films in two ways; increasing the thickness of diamond films by increasing the non-diamond carbon content and increasing the hydrogen impurity incorporation. The role of nitrogen additive on diamond growth and hydrogen incorporation is discussed.     

Natural flavonoids interact with dinitrobenzene system in aprotic media: an electrochemical probing

Three structurally related natural flavonoids (FlOH), quercetin (Q), rutin (R) and morin (M), were investigated by cyclic voltammetry to probe their interactions with hazardous 1,4-dinitrobenzene (1,4-DNB) using a glassy carbon electrode. Scavenging of 1,4-DNB by FlOH was inferred from a positive shift in reduction potential, decrease in anodic peak current, and irreversible electrochemical behavior of 1,4-DNB on increasing the flavonoid concentration. The homogeneous bi-molecular rate constant (k2) was determined using the Nicholson-Shain equation and found to be higher for the dianion. Morin posed a comparatively higher k2 value for its interaction with the 1,4-DNB electrochemical system owing to its more acidic nature and least intramolecular hydrogen bonding. The cyclic voltammetric (CV) results were further supported by HyperchemPM3 quantum mechanical semi-empirical calculations, which point towards E(r)C(i) interactions between flavonoids and 1,4-DNB. The present investigation is biologically significant in terms of natural flavonoidal scavenging activity toward toxins such as dinitroaromatics.     

Synthesis of 3,7-diiodo-2,6-di(thiophen-2-yl)benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b']difurans: functional building blocks for the design of new conjugated polymers

3,7-Diiodo-2,6-di(thiophen-2-yl)benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b']difurans are efficiently prepared by an iodine-promoted double cyclization. This new heterocyclic core is readily modified by the attachment of alkyl chains for improved solubility. The use of these compounds for the synthesis of new conjugated polymers is also reported.     

Structural and optical characterization of Ag-doped TiO2 nanoparticles prepared by a sol–gel method

Undoped and silver-doped TiO₂ nanoparticles (Ti_1?x Ag _x O₂, where x?=?0.00?C0.10) were synthesized by a sol?Cgel method. The synthesized products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), particle size analyzer (PSA), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and UV?CVisible spectrophotometer. XRD pattern confirmed the tetragonal structure of synthesized samples. Average crystallite size of synthesized nanoparticles was determined from X-ray line broadening using the Debye?CScherrer formula. The crystallite size was varied from 8 to 33?nm as the calcination temperature was increased from 300 to 800?°C. The incorporation of 3 to 5% Ag⁺ in place of Ti⁴⁺ provoked a decrease in the size of nanocrystals as compared to undoped TiO₂. The SEM micrographs revealed the agglomerated spherical-like morphology of particles. SEM, PSA, and XRD measurements show that the particles size of the powder is in nanoscale. Optical absorption measurements indicated a red shift in the absorption band edge upon silver doping. Direct allowed band gap of undoped and Ag-doped TiO₂ nanoparticles measured by UV?CVis spectrometer were 3.00 and 2.80?eV, respectively, at 500?°C.     

Aqua mediated indium(III) chloride catalyzed synthesis of fused pyrimidines and pyrazoles

The utilization of water as solvent and indium trichloride as promoter for the three-component combinatorial synthesis of a variety of bioactive pyrimidine and pyrazole derivatives (2–10) from aldehydes, 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds, and electron-rich amino heterocycles like 6-amino-1,3-dimethyl uracil and 3-methyl-1-phenyl-1H-pyrazol-5-amine catalyzed by indium trichloride under reflux has been studied. A new class of pyrimidine derivatives (2) has also been synthesized and the structure was confirmed by single crystal X-ray analysis. The reactions are environmentally benign, reaction product could be isolated easily and the catalyst could be recycled, which makes it an appealing synthetic protocol.     

Pd-catalyzed amination of 6-halo-2-cyclopropyl-3-(pyridyl-3-ylmethyl) quinazolin-4(3H)-one

6-Halo-2-cyclopropyl-3-(pyridyl-3-ylmethyl) quinazolin-4(3H)-one derivatives have been synthesized and utilized for amination reactions with aryl, heteroaryl and alkyl amines. Optimization of reaction conditions with different catalysts, ligands, bases, and solvents was conducted. The combination of Pd₂(dba)₃ with DavePhos (L3) proved to be best for these conversions in the presence of NaO^tBu in 1,4-dioxane at 100 °C. The relative reactivities of 6-bromo and 6-chloro-2,3-disubstitued quinazolinones with p-toluidine were conducted and as anticipated the 6-bromo analogue was totally consumed and 6-chloro derivative was completely unreactive.     

Robust observer design for nonlinear uncertain switched systems under asynchronous switching

Switching between the system and the associated observer or controller is in fact asynchronous in switched control systems. However, many times we assume it synchronous, for simplicity. In this paper, the robust observer design problems for a class of nonlinear uncertain switched systems for synchronous and asynchronous switching are addressed. At first, a robust observer under synchronous switching is proposed based on average dwell time approach. After that, the results are extended to robust observer design in the asynchronous case. In this case, two working modes are adopted to facilitate the studies on the issue. Finally, an extension case covering more practical applications is investigated under asynchronous switching. The designed observer cannot maintain the asymptotical stability of error state, but the eventual boundness is guaranteed. At the end, a numerical design example is given to illustrate our results.     

化学反应对竖直平板边界磁流体动力学微极流体滑流的影响

Heat and mass transfer effects on the unsteady flow of a micropolar fluid through a porous medium bounded by a semi-infinite vertical plate in a slip-flow regime are studied taking into account a homogeneous chemical reaction of the first order. A uniform magnetic field acts perpendicular to the porous surface absorb micropolar fluid with a suction velocity varying with time. The free stream velocity follows an exponentially increasing or decreasing small perturbation law. Using the approximate method, the expressions for the velocity microrotation, temperature, and concentration are obtained. Futher, the results of the skin friction coefficient, the couple stress coefficient, and the rate of heat and mass transfer at the wall are presented with various values of fluid properties and flow conditions.     

Spectral methods for pantograph-type differential and integral equations with multiple delays

We analyze the convergence properties of the spectral method when used to approximate smooth solutions of delay differential or integral equations with two or more vanishing delays. It is shown that for the pantograph-type functional equations the spectral methods yield the familiar exponential order of convergence. Various numerical examples are used to illustrate these results.