An Investigation into Fiber Dispersion Behavior in Water with Reference to Wet-Lay Nonwoven Technology

This article reports on fiber dispersion behavior in water with reference to wet-lay nonwoven technology. The effects of fiber material characteristics and dispersion process conditions on the quality of the nonwoven webs were examined. The webs were characterized for their area-based uniformity by means of an imaging system in conjunction with quadrat analysis. It was found that the area occupied by the fibers in the webs followed the lognormal probability distribution and the angular orientation of the fibers in the webs followed the bimodal distribution. The web prepared by using scoured fibers was almost equally uniform as compared to the web prepared by using bleached fibers. The web made up of shorter and coarser fibers was more uniform than that made up of longer and finer fibers. The higher concentration of cationic surfactant resulted in more uniform webs. It was observed that the webs prepared at optimum stirring rate and dispersion time were found to possess the highest uniformity.     

Antimony potassium tartrate

Single source precursor, antimony potassium tartrate, was used for the preparation of Sb₂O₃, KSb₃O₅, K_0.51Sb _0.67 ^III Sb ₂ ^V O_6.26, and KSbO₃. Antimony trioxide (Sb₂O₃) was prepared by hydrothermal method, while potassium antimony oxides (KSbO₃, K_0.51Sb _0.67 ^III Sb ₂ ^V O_6.26, and KSbO₃) were obtained from the thermal decomposition of antimony potassium tartrate. All the compounds were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TG), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectra, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The decomposition process of antimony potassium tartrate with temperature was given. The product formation at different temperatures of thermal decomposition was monitored by PXRD and FT-IR. The TG profile of antimony potassium tartrate shows mass loss at three regions. The infrared spectra of parent and decomposed products gave characteristic Sb-O bands. The band gap energy of decomposed products was obtained. The SEM diagrams of Sb₂O₃ show different morphologies. Direct solid state preparation of KSb₃O₅ and K_0.51Sb _0.67 ^III Sb ₂ ^V O_6.26 under identical experimental conditions was unsuccessful.     

Quantitative chiral analysis of phthaloylglutamic acid and related analogs by a single ratio kinetic method using electrospray ionization and matrix-assisted laser desorption techniques

A rapid method for quantitative chiral analysis of phthaloylglutamic acid and its dimethyl ester by Cook's kinetic method is demonstrated using electrospray ionization (ESI) and matrix-assisted laser desorption techniques. Transition-metal-bound complex ions containing the chiral phthaloylglutamic acid and its dimethyl ester are generated by ESI mass spectrometry and subjected to collision-induced dissociation. The ratio of the two competitive dissociation rates is related to the enantiomeric composition of the drug mixture. A seven-point calibration curve, derived from the kinetic method, allowed rapid quantitation of the enantiomeric excess of drug mixtures. In this paper, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) coupled with the linear ion trap (LIT) technique is evaluated for its applicability as a complementary technique to ESI for chiral discrimination and quantitation.     

Preparation, characterization and ESR studies of bulk and nano sized pyrochlore La2-xGdxZr2O7 (x=0.025, 0.05, 0.075 and 0.1)

Bulk and nano sized pyrochlore of composition La(2-x)Gd(x)Zr(2)O(7) (x=0.025, 0.05, 0.075 and 0.1) have been prepared by sol-gel method. They are characterized by powder X-ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy. The sintering temperature influences the particle size of the sample. The room temperature powder ESR of La(1.95)Gd(0.05)Zr(2)O(7) gave characteristic "U" spectrum. The influence of particle size on the ESR of Gd(3+) is investigated. Possible reason for the disappearance of "U" spectrum with increase in the particle size is given.     

Gender justice,human rights and measurement in the mathematics classroom

In line with international trends, the new South African mathematics curriculum implores mathematics educators to realize a pedagogy in their classrooms that is more practical, activity-oriented, and connected to their learners' lives. Drawing on data from a larger study that explores theory–practice relations in mathematics education, this paper shows how such progressive practices, when interpreted with respect to the teaching of measurement which required learners to use different measuring instruments for measuring the school grounds in learning about length and perimeter, were found to be deeply gendered. In two different contexts of an ‘African' township school and a predominantly ‘Indian' suburban school, girls in a grade 6 mathematics classroom faced direct sexism as they struggled to take the opportunity to participate in the activity and learn how to measure – an important mathematical competence and everyday knowledge and skill. The article analyses the data with reference to the human rights imperatives of the new national curricula and approaches to addressing disadvantage and discrimination for girls in mathematics classrooms.     

Synthesis,growth and optical properties of semi organic non linear optical single crystal: l-Arginine acetate

In the recent past, nonlinear optical materials are getting attention in the field fibre optic communication and optical signal processing. In the present study, the title compound was successfully synthesized by conventional chemical reaction and then the single crystal was grown by slow evaporation solution growth technique. l-Arginine acetate (LAA) is semi organic non linear optical single crystal and crystallizes in noncentrosymmetric space group. The grown good quality single crystals have been analyzed by different characterization analyses such as powder X-ray diffraction, high resolution X-ray diffraction (HRXRD), Raman spectroscopy, photoluminescence, SEM, micro-hardness, thermal and birefringence analyses.     

Performance analysis of traffic groomed optical network

In this paper we carry out the performance analysis of traffic groomed multilayer optical networks. It is seen that the number of wavelength channels required decreases as the wavelength grooming factor increases. We have evaluated blocking probability for different load and grooming factor. The performance of the network has been evaluated for different conditions; first for fixed number of links with grooming factor set to 3 and subsequently with increase in grooming factor up to 18 in steps. The load on each link is selected as 2, 5, 9, 12, 15 and 20 Erlangs and the blocking probability as function of number of optical channels has been evaluated. In this work the effect of number of wavelength channels, traffic load and grooming factor on network blocking probability has been studied. The investigation reveals that the blocking probability decreases with increase in wavelength channels. Similarly we found that the blocking probability increases with increase in traffic load which is quite evident. Further it is shown that when the grooming factor is increased to significant value (16), the number of wavelengths requirement (8) becomes relatively stable.     

Ferulic Acid: A Natural Phenol That Inhibits Neoplastic Events through Modulation of Oncogenic Signaling

Despite the immense therapeutic advances in the field of health sciences, cancer is still to be found among the global leading causes of morbidity and mortality. Ethnomedicinally, natural bioactive compounds isolated from various plant sources have been used for the treatment of several cancer types and have gained notable attention. Ferulic acid, a natural compound derived from various seeds, nuts, leaves, and fruits, exhibits a variety of pharmacological effects in cancer, including its proapoptotic, cell-cycle-arresting, anti-metastatic, and anti-inflammatory activities. This review study presents a thorough overview of the molecular targets and cellular signaling pathways modulated by ferulic acid in diverse malignancies, showing high potential for this phenolic acid to be developed as a candidate agent for novel anticancer therapeutics. In addition, current investigations to develop promising synergistic formulations are also discussed.