Effect of EM propagation medium on electrorheological characteristics of dielectric nanofluids

The effect of dielectric loss on the electrorheological (ER) characteristic of dielectric nanofluids under shear was studied. When nanofluids are activated by an applied electric field, it behaves like a non-Newtonian fluid under ER effect by creating the chains of nanoparticles. ER characteristics of ZnO and Al₂O₃ nanofluids with various nanoparticles concentration (0.1, 0.05, 0.01 wt%) were measured. For this purpose, a solenoid-based electromagnetic (EM) transmitter was used under different propagation media including air, tap water, and salt water. The result shows that all the nanofluids exhibit pseudo-plastic behavior, while the electric field causes a significant increase in viscosity in the presence of tap water, followed by salt water. Additionally, the viscosity of nanofluid shows a high dependence on particle loading. A possible mechanism was also proposed to describe the effect of dielectric properties on the ER behavior of dielectric nanofluids.     

Optimization of double chamber microbial fuel cell for domestic wastewater treatment and electricity production

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) represent a new approach for treating waste water along with electricity production. The present study addressed electricity production from domestic wastewater using a mediator-less double chamber MFC. The electricity production was monitored under different operational conditions for both summer and winter samples. Optimization of the anodic and cathodic chambers resulted in a maximal current of 0.784 and 0.645 mA with the maximal power intensity of 209 and 117 mW/m² in power duration of 24 h for the summer and winter samples, respectively. Scanning electron microscopy showed that the bacterial biofilm formation on the anode was denser for the summer sample than that when the winter sample was used, so was the total bacterial count. Therefore, samples taken during summer were considered better in electricity production and waste water treatment than those taken during winter basically because of the high microbial load during the hot season. In parallel, there was a decrease in both biological oxygen demand (BOD₅) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) values which reached 71.8% and 72.85%, respectively at the end of the operation process for the summer sample, while there was no evident decrease for the winter sample. Optimizing the operating conditions not only increased the potential of using domestic waste water in microbial fuel cells to produce electricity, but also improved the quality of the domestic waste water.     

The Multi-Step Differential Transform Method and Its Application to Determine the Solutions of Non-Linear Oscillators

In this paper, a reliable algorithm based on an adaptation of the standard differential transform method is presented, which is the multi-step differential transform method (MSDTM). The solutions of non-linear oscillators were obtained by MSDTM. Figurative comparisons between the MSDTM and the classical fourth-order Runge-Kutta method (RK4) reveal that the proposed technique is a promising tool to solve non-linear oscillators.     

Adaptive feedback control and synchronization of non-identical chaotic fractional order systems

This paper addresses the reliable synchronization problem between two non-identical chaotic fractional order systems. In this work, we present an adaptive feedback control scheme for the synchronization of two coupled chaotic fractional order systems with different fractional orders. Based on the stability results of linear fractional order systems and Laplace transform theory, using the master-slave synchronization scheme, sufficient conditions for chaos synchronization are derived. The designed controller ensures that fractional order chaotic oscillators that have non-identical fractional orders can be synchronized with suitable feedback controller applied to the response system. Numerical simulations are performed to assess the performance of the proposed adaptive controller in synchronizing chaotic systems.     

A study on the convergence of homotopy analysis method

In this study, a reliable approach for convergence of the homotopy analysis method when applied to nonlinear problems is discussed. First, we present an alternative framework of the method which can be used simply and effectively to handle nonlinear problems. Then, mainly, we address the sufficient condition for convergence of the method. The convergence analysis is reliable enough to estimate the maximum absolute truncated error of the homotopy series solution. The analysis is illustrated by investigating the convergence results for some nonlinear differential equations. The study highlights the power of the method.     

Correction to: Optimization along families of periodic and quasiperiodic orbits in dynamical systems with delay

Nonlinear Dynamics - The article Optimization along families of periodic and quasiperiodic orbits in dynamical systems with delay, written by Zaid Ahsan, Harry Dankowicz, and Jan Sieber, was...     

A linearization‐based approach of homotopy analysis method for non‐linear time‐fractional parabolic PDEs

In this paper, a novel approach, namely, the linearization‐based approach of homotopy analysis method, to analytically treat non‐linear time‐fractional PDEs is proposed. The presented approach suggests a new optimized structure of the homotopy series solution based on a linear approximation of the non‐linear problem. A comparative study between the proposed approach and standard homotopy analysis approach is illustrated by solving two examples involving non‐linear time‐fractional parabolic PDEs. The performed numerical simulations demonstrate that the linearization‐based approach reduces the computational complexity and improves the performance of the homotopy analysis method.     

On the optimality of inventory models with deteriorating items for demand and on-hand inventory dependent production rate

In this paper we present two flexible production lot size inventorymodels for deteriorating items in which the production rateat any instant depends on the demand and the on-hand inventorylevel at that instant. Each of demand and deterioration rateare general continuous functions of time. For one model, shortagesare allowed but are partially backordered. Also, all cost componentsare affected by inflation and the time value of money. For eachmodel, a closed form of the per unit time total relevant costis derived and sufficient conditions that minimize this totalcost are built. Then, mathematical methods are used to showthat, under certain conditions, each of the underlying inventorysystem can attain a unique global optimal solution.     

Synthesis and in vitro Antibacterial Activity of Some Novel Fused Pyridopyrimidine Derivatives

Pyridopyrimidine derivatives 2 , 5 and 7 , 8 , 9 were furnished by the reaction of compound 1 with a variety of reagents, namely, formic acid, acetic anhydride, phenyl isothiocyanate, phenyl isocyanate, carbon disulfide, acetamide and thioacetamide, which in turn were treated with hydrazine to give pyrazolopyridopyrimidine derivatives 4 , 6 and 11 , 12 , 13 . The potency of the results as antibacterial agents has been evaluated. Most of the tested products showed a highly inhibition zone against the two bacterial strains. All compounds have been characterized based on their IR, ¹H‐NMR and Mass spectra.