Search

The catalytic system consisting of a cationic Ru–H complex 1and 3,4,5,6-tetrachloro-1,2-benzoquinone (L1) was found to be highly effective for the dehydrative sp3C–H coupling reaction of 2-alkyl substituted indoles with enones to form 2,4-disubstituted carbazole products. The analogous coupling reaction of 2-alkylindoles with linear enones bearing the cyclic olefinic group afforded tetracyclic carbazole products. A normal deuterium kinetic isotope effect was measured from the coupling reaction of 1,2-dimethylindole versus 1-methyl-2-(methyl-d3)indole with (E)-3-penten-2-one (kH/kD= 2.5). The Hammett plot was constructed from the reaction of para-substituted indoles 5-X-1,2-dimethylindole (X = OMe, Me, H, F, and Cl) with 4-phenyl-3-buten-2-one (ρ = −1.6 ± 0.2). The density functional theory (DFT) calculations were performed to obtain a complete energy profile for the coupling reaction. The combined experimental and DFT computational data revealed a detailed mechanistic path that features an initial coupling of indole and enone substrates, the turnover-limiting heterolytic sp3C–H activation step, and the subsequent cyclization and dehydration steps. The catalytic method provides an efficient synthesis of carbazole derivatives from the dehydrative sp3C–H coupling reaction of readily available indole with enone substrates without employing any reactive reagents or forming wasteful byproducts.

We describe the first investigations on the influence of an imposed network on the photonic band gap (PBG) structure of the liquid crystal (LC) phase through the polymer template technique. The technique consists of using a cholesteric (Ch) phase as a base for photopolymerizing a difunctional monomer, which is then removed after polymerization, leaving only the polymer scaffold template. The templated structure obtained is utilized to adjust the PBG structure of the filled LC material, exhibiting both a one-dimensional PBG (Ch phase) and a three-dimensional PBG structure (TGBC* phase with smectic C* blocks). Selective reflection measurements indicate that the imprint polymer network of the template impacts the pitch of the Ch and TGBC* phases. The absorption peaks are visible because of two distinct twisted arrangements, one originating from the template and the other from the refilled chiral substance. In the templated cell, the central wavelength (λmin) of PBG of the refilled sample red-shifts, as well as the width of the PBG gets enhanced compared to that for the sample in the regular (nontemplated) cell. For example, in the TGBC* phase, the λminvalue red-shifts by 369 nm, and the width of the PBG enlarges by 50%. Additionally, the lattice spacing arising due to the periodicity of the SmC* helix in 2-dimension in the TGBC* phase gets enhanced. These findings demonstrate the polymer template method’s effectiveness in tuning the mesophase’s PBG in all three dimensions.

Sports develop both physical and mental growth of an individual. In order to enhance the physical and mental health effectively and effortlessly, swimming is considered to be one of the healthier activities, in developing the metabolism via flexibility, weight loss, reducing asthma and enhancing the fitness levels of the body. In most of the cases, existing studies provide the current status of the swimmer by delivering details like time taken by the swimmers to finish the lap or location of the swimmer, however they lack in identifying the calorie level reduction of the swimmer during the swimming, as, the detection of calories burnt by the swimmer helps in overcoming issues like loss of weight and other health risk rates. Therefore, proposed study intensifies in achieving the prediction of the fitness of a swimmer as the primitive activity in view of reducing the calories by using PSO algorithm using resilient based techniques for enhanced exploration ability and using modified resilient PSO in order to tune the hyper parameter of the random forest for better optimization outcome. Modified resilient PSO helps in preventing the over-fitting of the model and delivering enhanced global solutions. Besides, hyper parameter are tuned in the Random Forest (RF), Decision Tree (DT), AdaBoost and Support Vector Machine (SVM) regression model for an error free outcome and with satisfactory performance analytical values. Finally, the performance of the proposed model is assessed using performance metrics such as R-square, RMSE, MSE and MAE, unveiling the effectiveness of the projected approach MPSO-XG-Boost. The projected model has achieved effectual outcomes encompassing less error rate based outcomes in ranges of 0.037, 0.191, 0.059, 0.9. Further, the proposed is compared with the existing models in order to determine the efficiency of the proposed framework.

Understanding how doping influences physicochemical properties of ABO3perovskite oxides is critical for tailoring their functionalities. In this study, SrFe0.67Cr0.33O3−δepitaxial thin films were used to examine the effects of Fe and Cr competition on structure and B-site cation oxidation states. The films exhibit a perovskite-like structure near the film/substrate interface, while a brownmillerite-like structure with horizontal oxygen vacancy channels predominates near the surface. Electron energy loss spectroscopy shows Fe remains Fe3+, while Cr varies from ∼Cr3+(tetrahedral layers) to ∼Cr4+(octahedral layers) within brownmillerite phases and becomes ∼Cr4.5+in perovskite-like phases. Theoretical simulations indicate that Cr–O bond arrangements and the way oxygen vacancies interact with Cr and Fe drive Cr charge disproportionation. High-valent Cr cations introduce additional densities of states near the Fermi level, reducing the optical bandgap from ∼2.0 eV (SrFeO2.5) to ∼1.7 eV (SrFe0.67Cr0.33O3−δ). These findings offer insights into B-site cation doping in the perovskite oxide framework.

Li-excess Mn-based disordered rock salt oxides (DRX) are promising Li-ion cathode materials owing to their cost-effectiveness and high theoretical capacities. It has recently been shown that Mn-rich DRX Li1+xMnyM1–x–yO2(y≥ 0.5, M are hypervalent ions such as Ti4+and Nb5+) exhibit a gradual capacity increase during the first few charge–discharge cycles, which coincides with the emergence of spinel-like domains within the long-range DRX structure coined as “δ phase”. Here, we systematically study the structural evolution upon heating of Mn-based DRX at different levels of delithiation to gain insight into the structural rearrangements occurring during battery cycling and the mechanism behind δ phase formation. We find in all cases that the original DRX structure relaxes to a δ phase, which in turn leads to capacity enhancement. Synchrotron X-ray and neutron diffraction were employed to examine the structure of the δ phase, revealing that selective migration of Li and Mn/Ti cations to different crystallographic sites within the DRX structure leads to the observed structural rearrangements. Additionally, we show that both Mn-rich (y≥ 0.5) and Mn-poor (y< 0.5) DRX can thermally relax into a δ phase after delithiation, but the relaxation processes in these distinct compositions lead to different domain structures. Thermochemical studies and in situ heating XRD experiments further indicate that the structural relaxation has a larger thermodynamic driving force and a lower activation energy for Mn-rich DRX, as compared to Mn-poor systems, which underpins why this structural evolution is only observed for Mn-rich systems during battery cycling.

The emerging moiré superstructure of twisted transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) leads to various correlated electronic and optical properties compared to those of twisted bilayer graphene. In such a versatile architecture, phonons can also be renormalized and evolve due to atomic reconstruction, which, in turn, depends on the twist angle. However, observing this reconstruction and its relationship to phonon behavior with conventional, cost-effective imaging methods remains challenging. Here, we used noninvasive Raman spectroscopy on twisted WSe2/WSe2(t-WSe2) homobilayers to examine the evolution of phonon modes due to interlayer coupling and atomic reconstruction. Unlike in the natural bilayer (NB), ∼0° as well as ∼60° t-WSe2samples, the nearly degenerate A1g/E2gmode in the twisted samples (1–7°) split into a doublet in addition to the nondegenerate B2gmode, and the maximum splitting is observed around 2–3°. Our detailed theoretical calculations qualitatively capture the splitting and its dependence as a function of the twist angle and highlight the role of the moiré potential in phonon hybridization. Additionally, we found that around the 2° twist angle, the anharmonic phonon–phonon interaction is higher than the natural bilayer and decreases for larger twist angles. Interestingly, we observed anomalous Raman frequency softening and line-width increase with the decreasing temperature below 50 K, pointing to the combined effect of enhanced electron–phonon coupling and cubic anharmonic interactions in moiré superlattice.

Lignocellulose biomass is being used as starting material for wide range of applications. In this study, lignocellulose biomass obtained from Sterculia villosa(Roxb.), a traditionally important fibrous plant, was processed chemo-mechanically to get cellulose sheet. The sheet was then doped with Ag and ZnO nanoparticles following single-pot hydrothermal synthesis. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of the mat showed uniform distribution of the nanoparticles. The characteristic features of Ag and ZnO nanoparticles were observed in UV–Vis, XRD, and SEM–EDX data. These features were also found in the sonicated sample suggesting stable doping of the nanoparticles in the mat. Antimicrobial activity of the mat was tested for two bacterial (Escherichia coliand Bacillus subtilis) strains and a fungal (Candida albicans) strain, and showed good antimicrobial activity against E. coli. The mat also showed excellent photocatalytic property tested for degradation of methylene blue under UV irradiation. These findings suggested that multifunctional nanocomposite mat can be fabricated using Sterculia villosalignocellulose biomass which can be potentially used for antimicrobial packaging and water purification applications.

Gilteritinib fumarate (GTB) is an anti-cancer drug belonging to the class of tyrosine kinase inhibitors used for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia. It has been designated as an orphan drug by the US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA). The present research focused on carrying out the forced degradation studies of GTB and developing a UHPLC-PDA stability indicating method capable of separating GTB and its degradation products. The degradation studies were carried out under hydrolytic (acid, base, and neutral), oxidative, thermal, and light conditions. The drug degraded under hydrolytic and oxidative conditions whereas it was found to be stable under thermal and light exposure. The separation of the components was achieved on an Acquity BEH C18 column (2.1 × 100 mm; 1.7μ) and a mobile phase comprising ammonium acetate and acetonitrile eluting in gradient mode at a flow rate of 0.3 mL min−1. A total of five degradation products were obtained and were structurally characterized with the help of accurate mass and tandem mass experiments performed on LC-QTOF-MS equipment and DP-1 was isolated and characterized using 1D and 2D NMR experiments. The UHPLC-PDA method was validated as per the ICH Q2 (R1) guidelines for its accuracy, precision, linearity, and specificity. The method was found to be appropriate for its intended purpose and can be effectively used in the determination of GTB and its degradation products and/or impurities in bulk drugs as well as formulations.

Digital assessment has been gaining momentum in educational institutions throughout the world. Considering the practice and preference of digital assessment, this study explores how students of higher education of Nepal perceive the digital assessment system implemented in higher education. The study was conducted among 422 students from Bachelor to MPhil levels of Nepal Open University applying a cross-sectional survey design. A questionnaire including the factors of support system, practicality, fairness, and preferences of digital assessment was developed and shared online to collect the responses. The factors were confirmed by the factor analysis. Then, mean, standard deviation, and structural equation modelling were used to analyse the data obtained from the questionnaire. The findings show that the overall perception of students towards the digital assessment system is positive, and the support system is effective in practicality and fairness, and largely the factors are interdependent to enhance the quality.

PPR is an economically important trans-boundary disease of sheep and goats. Nepal had experienced several episodes of PPR outbreaks in the past. Although severity and frequency of outbreaks have decreased due to strenuous effort of Government of Nepal, it has been rather endemic. National PPR Control Program 2001, and PPR Control Program Implementation Working Guidelines, 2013, the legal documents guiding PPR control activities, have not been effective as expected due to multifactorial reasons. Thus, a critical analysis of the program with emphasis on impeding factors is must. In this review, we attempted to analyse and suggest more effective strategies considering geopolitical, social and cultural context of Nepal.

The Government of India introduced the National Trust Act (NTA) in 1999 for persons with autism, mental retardation [intellectual developmental disability (IDD)], cerebral palsy and multiple disabilities. There are ten schemes under the NTA. The current study focuses on understanding the barriers for family caregivers of persons with IDD in utilizing NTA schemes. A purposively selected sample of 10 caregivers of persons with IDD where qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted. Caregivers’ awareness of the NTA was poor. They were aware of only the Niramaya scheme and were not aware of the Niramaya scheme by name but rather as an insurance scheme. Among the various Government-funded welfare schemes, the respondents were aware of the disability pension. There is a need for intense focus and drive towards creating awareness of NTA schemes among families of persons with intellectual disabilities.

Recently, there has been a great deal of interest in devices which effectively shield near-infrared light with an additional feature of external field tunability, particularly for energy-saving applications. This article demonstrates an approach for fabricating a highly efficient near-infrared regulating device based on a polymer network liquid crystal reinforced with nanosheets of hexagonal-boron nitride (BN). The device achieves ∼84% IR scattering capability over a wavelength range of 800–2300 nm, and can also be regulated by an electric field. Interestingly, the observed high IR regulation is despite individual components of the composite being IR transparent, in stark contrast to earlier attempted incorporation of IR-absorbing/scattering particles. Detailed experimental characterization methods including FESEM corroborated with EDS and Raman spectroscopy suggest that the preferential positioning of the BN nanosheets, a consequence of the photo-polymerization process, is responsible for the observed feature. The IR reflectivity/back scattering that is doubled upon incorporation of the nanosheets results in an enhanced convective/radiative heat barrier capability, as evidenced by thermal imaging and significant (2 °C) reduction in ambient temperature upon one-Sun illumination. Numerical simulation results are also found to be in good agreement with the observed enhanced reflectance values for the BN-incorporated case. The presence of BN augments the mechanical rigidity of the system by a factor of 6.8 without compromising on the device operating voltage. The protocol employed is quite general and thus advantageous with far-reaching applications in passive cooling of buildings and structures, in thermal camouflaging, and in overall energy management.

Oxides with a face-centred cubic (fcc) anion sublattice are generally not considered as solid-state electrolytes as the structural framework is thought to be unfavourable for lithium (Li) superionic conduction. Here we demonstrate Li superionic conductivity in fcc-type oxides in which face-sharing Li configurations have been created through cation over-stoichiometry in rocksalt-type lattices via excess Li. We find that the face-sharing Li configurations create a novel spinel with unconventional stoichiometry and raise the energy of Li, thereby promoting fast Li-ion conduction. The over-stoichiometric Li–In–Sn–O compound exhibits a total Li superionic conductivity of 3.38 × 10−4S cm−1at room temperature with a low migration barrier of 255 meV. Our work unlocks the potential of designing Li superionic conductors in a prototypical structural framework with vast chemical flexibility, providing fertile ground for discovering new solid-state electrolytes.

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive irreversible neurological disorder with abnormal extracellular deposition of amyloid β (Aβ) peptides in the brain. We have carried out atomistic molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the size-dependent conformational properties of aggregated Aβ oligomers of different orders, namely, pentamer [O(5)], decamer [O(10)], and hexadecamer [O(16)] in aqueous solutions containing the ionic liquid (IL) 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate ([BMIM][BF4]). The calculations revealed reduced peptide conformational fluctuations in O(5) and O(10) in the presence of the IL. In contrast, the higher order oligomer [O(16)] has been found to exhibit greater structural distortion due to enhanced flexibilities of its peptide units in the presence of the IL. Based on the distributions of the solvent (water) and the cosolvent (IL) components, it is demonstrated that exchange of water by the IL ion pairs at the exterior surface of the oligomers primarily occurs beyond the first layer of surface-bound water molecules. Importantly, a reduced number of relatively weaker peptide salt bridges have been found in O(16) in binary water-IL solution as compared to the other two smaller-sized oligomers [O(5) and O(10)]. Such differential influence of the IL on peptide salt bridges results in less favorable binding free energies of peptide monomers to O(16), which leads to its greater structural distortion and reduced stability compared to those of O(5) and O(10).

In the present work, Al-2.5Cu-1.5 Mg-1Ni (AA2618) aluminium alloy with the incorporation of Cr3C2reinforcement at 2, 3, 4 and 5 wt.% was systematically investigated. The composite powders were initially ball-milled and cold-compacted at 400 and 450 MPa. The pressure-less sintering was done at 550 and 600 °C for a holding time of 60 and 90 min under vacuum atmosphere. The experiments are implemented in accordance with Taguchi L8OA with four process factors and four response characteristics. The results indicate that significant microstructural refinement with the precipitation of new Al-Cr-C compound was noticed up to 4 wt.% of Cr3C2reinforcement, leading to tensile strength improvement at 28 and 200 °C. However, the strength was decreased at 5 wt.% Cr3C2reinforcement, which could be attributed to the presence of coarse grain structure and agglomerated large GB precipitate.

Ionic liquids (ILs) are known to stabilize protein conformations in aqueous medium. Importantly, ILs can also act as refolding additives in urea-driven denaturation of proteins. However, despite the importance of the problem, detailed microscopic understanding of the counteraction effects of ILs on urea-induced protein denaturation remains elusive. In this work, atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of the protein α-lactalbumin have been carried out in pure aqueous medium, in 8 M binary urea–water solution and in ternary urea–IL–water solutions containing ammonium-based ethyl ammonium acetate (EAA) as the IL at different concentrations (1–4 M). Attempts have been made to quantify detailed molecular-level understanding of the origin behind the counteraction effects of the IL on urea-induced partial unfolding of the protein. The calculations revealed significant conformational changes of the protein with multiple free energy minima due to its partial unfolding in binary urea–water solution. The counteraction effect of the IL was evident from the enhanced structural rigidity of the protein with propensity to transform into a single native free energy minimum state in ternary urea–IL–water solutions. Such an effect has been found to be associated with preferential direct binding of the IL components with the protein and simultaneous expulsion of urea from the interface, thereby providing additional stabilization of the protein in ternary solutions. Most importantly, modified rearrangement of the hydrogen bond network at the interface due to the formation of stronger protein–cation (PC) and protein–anion (PA) hydrogen bonds by breaking relatively weaker protein–urea (PU) and protein–water (PW) hydrogen bonds has been recognized as the microscopic origin behind the counteraction effects of EAA on urea-induced partial unfolding of the protein.

Cobalt-free cation-disordered rocksalt (DRX) cathodes are a promising class of materials for next-generation Li-ion batteries. Although they have high theoretical specific capacities (>300 mA h/g) and moderate operating voltages (∼3.5 V vs Li/Li+), DRX cathodes typically require a high carbon content (up to 30 wt %) to fully utilize the active material which has a detrimental impact on cell-level energy density. To assess pathways to reduce the electrode’s carbon content, the present study investigates how the carbon’s microstructure and loading (10–20 wt %) influence the performance of DRX cathodes with the nominal composition Li1.2Mn0.5Ti0.3O1.9F0.1. While electrodes prepared with conventional disordered carbon additives (C65 and ketjenblack) exhibit rapid capacity fade due to an unstable cathode/electrolyte interface, DRX cathodes containing 10 wt % graphite show superior cycling performance (e.g., reversible capacities ∼260 mA h/g with 85% capacity retention after 50 cycles) and rate capability (∼135 mA h/g at 1000 mA/g). A suite of characterization tools was employed to evaluate the performance differences among these composite electrodes. Overall, these results indicate that the superior performance of the graphite-based cathodes is largely attributed to the: (i) formation of a uniform graphitic coating on DRX particles which protects the surface from parasitic reactions at high states of charge and (ii) homogeneous dispersion of the active material and carbon throughout the composite cathode which provides a robust electronically conductive network that can withstand repeated charge–discharge cycles. Overall, this study provides key scientific insights on how the carbon microstructure and electrode processing influence the performance of DRX cathodes. Based on these results, exploration of alternative routes to apply graphitic coatings is recommended to further optimize the material performance.

The relationship between the state and Madheshi Dalit Womans (MDWs) with reference to the latter’s exercise of citizenship right has long been a contested issue in Nepal due to the latter’s alleged immigrant history and cultural and familial connection with the Dalits of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh of India. The MDWs who are at the lowest social order in Nepal because of their intersecting subordinate identities based on gender, caste, ethnic and class have been systematically excluded from the domain of Nepali citizenship during due course of hill-based national identity formation. Consequently, large number of the MDWs, their spouses and children have remained stateless or struggled hard to obtain citizenship owing to ethnic, caste, gender and class-based exclusion even after insertion of jus soliprovisos for a brief period in the 2006 Citizenship Act. On this backdrop, this article, based on qualitative field study in the eastern Tarai, is an effort to explore the intricacies of the citizenshiplessness of the MDWs of Nepal’s eastern Tarai from their subjective experiences. The findings reveal a disappointing picture of citizenshiplessness of the MDW families by virtue of multiple forms of exclusion and also a sustained hierarchy within themselves based on access to different types of citizenship.

In this study, we have investigated the heterogeneous dynamical environment around an ensemble of full-length amyloid-β (Aβ42) peptide monomers in binary aqueous solution containing the ionic liquid (IL) 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate [BMIM][BF4] as a co-solvent. Atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have been employed with the aim of understanding the effect of the IL on the distribution of water molecules and IL components around distinct segments of the peptide. As compared to pure aqueous medium, locally heterogeneous restricted water motions at the interface have been spotted in the presence of the IL. Our calculations revealed faster diffusion of water molecules hydrating hydrophilic segments (N-term and turn) as opposed to that around hydrophobic segments (hp1, hp2, and C-term). The extent of non-uniform restriction on the center-of-mass motions as well as the reorientation of water molecules and IL ions have been similarly affected in the binary IL–water solution. The effects of IL on the formation of hydrogen bond networks have been evident from the longer hydrogen bond relaxation time scales of peptide–water, with only a small fraction of peptide–anion hydrogen bonds contributing to the structural relaxation. Due to the size and shape factors, the increasingly sluggish dynamics of the IL components in the solvation shell can be attributed to a longer time scale for the onset of maximum dynamic heterogeneity. Interestingly, the water molecules around the polar segments of the peptide take longer to attain dynamic heterogeneity, which intensifies in the presence of IL. These calculations clearly suggest that electrostatic interaction plays a crucial role in water-mediated peptide–IL interaction, thereby shielding the surface from hydrophobic collapse and preventing possible further growth of the monomers into fibrils at higher peptide concentrations.

Mn-based cation-disordered rocksalt oxides (Mn-DRX) are emerging as promising cathode materials for next-generation Li-ion batteries due to their high specific capacities and cobalt- and nickel-free characteristic. However, to reach the usable capacity, solid-state synthesized Mn-DRX materials require activation via postsynthetic ball milling, typically incorporating more than 20 wt % conductive carbon that adversely reduces the electrode-level gravimetric capacity. To address this issue, we first deposit amorphous carbon on the surface of the Li1.2Mn0.4Ti0.4O2(LMTO) particles to increase the electrical conductivity by 5 orders of magnitude. Although the cathode material gravimetric first charge capacity reaches 180 mAh/g, its highly irreversible behavior leads to a first discharge capacity of 70 mAh/g. Subsequently, to ensure a good electrical percolation network, the LMTO material is ball-milled with a multiwall carbon nanotube (CNT) to obtain a 78.7 wt % LMTO active material loading in the cathode electrode (LMTO-CNT). As a result, a 210 mAh/g cathode electrode gravimetric first charge and 165 mAh/g first discharge capacity values are obtained, compared to the respective capacity values of 222 and 155 mAh/g for the LMTO material ball-milled with 20 wt % SuperP C65 electrode (LMTO-SP). After 50 cycles, LMTO-CNT delivers a 121 mAh/g electrode gravimetric discharge capacity, largely outperforming the value of 44 mAh/g of LMTO-SP. Our study demonstrates that while ball milling is necessary to achieve a significant amount of capacity of LMTO, a careful selection of additives, such as CNT, effectively reduces the required carbon quantity to achieve a higher electrode gravimetric discharge capacity.

The recently emerged metal-halide hybrid perovskite (MHP) possesses superb optoelectronic features, which have obtained great attention in solid-state lighting, photodetection, and photovoltaic applications. Because of its excellent external quantum efficiency, MHP has promising potential for the manifestation of ultralow threshold optically pumped laser. However, the demonstration of an electrically driven laser remains a challenge because of the vulnerable degradation of perovskite, limited exciton binding energy (Eb), intensity quenching, and efficiency drop by nonradiative recombinations. In this work, based on the paradigm of integration of Fabry–Perot (F–P) oscillation and resonance energy transfer, we observed an ultralow-threshold (∼250 μWcm–2) optically pumped random laser from moisture-insensitive mixed dimensional quasi-2D Ruddlesden–Popper phase perovskite microplates. Particularly, we demonstrated an electrically driven multimode laser with a threshold of ∼60 mAcm–2from quasi-2D RPP by judicious combination of a perovskite/hole transport layer (HTL) and an electron transport layer (ETL) having suitable band alignment and thickness. Additionally, we showed the tunability of lasing modes and color by driving an external electric potential. Performing finite difference time domain (FDTD) simulations, we confirmed the presence of F–P feedback resonance, the light trapping effect at perovskite/ETL, and resonance energy transfer contributing to laser action. Our discovery of an electrically driven laser from MHP opens a useful avenue for developing future optoelectronics.

Background: Among persons with schizophrenia (PwS), tobacco use is higher in comparison to the general population, contributing to greater morbidity and mortality. Pharmacological interventions combined with psychosocial interventions are effective in tobacco cessation. While the effectiveness of extant psychosocial interventions—when used in isolation—seems limited, developing better combinations of interventions could help treatment providers deliver tobacco cessation services to PwS at different stages of motivation to quit. We aimed to develop a personalized tobacco cessation intervention package (PTCIP) for PwS.Methods: The stage-based intervention package was developed through a systematic review of interventions for tobacco cessation, the authors’ clinical experience, and expert validation. The components of the intervention package, developed for PwS visiting the outpatient psychiatric department, were retained, removed, or added based on the content validity ratio (CVR).Results: The final components included brief advice, principles of motivational interviewing, psychoeducation, decisional balance matrix, positive reinforcement, offering various treatment options, personalized feedback using a smoking-risk calculator, and prediction of cardiovascular risk using the WHO package of essential noncommunicable disease (PEN). The delivery of the intervention package was refined based on pilot testing in eight participants.Conclusion: The tailored package was designed to be delivered by a mental health professional as a single comprehensive 40 min to 45 min face-to-face session, integrated with routine follow-up visits, followed by two telephonic conversations in the second and third week of the initial session. The package needs to be tested in a randomized controlled trial for its effectiveness.

Ionic liquids (ILs) are known to modify the structural stability of proteins. The modification of the protein conformation is associated with the accumulation of ILs around the amino acid (AA) side chains and the nature of interactions between them. To understand the microscopic picture of the structural arrangements of ILs around the AA side chains, room temperature molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have been carried out in this work with a series of hydrophobic, polar and charged AAs in aqueous solutions containing the IL 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate ([BMIM][BF4]) at 2 M concentration. The calculations revealed distinctly nonuniform distribution of the IL components around different AAs. In particular, it is demonstrated that the BMIM+cations preferentially interact with the aromatic AAs through favorable stacking interactions between the cation imidazolium head groups and the aromatic AA side chains. This results in preferential parallel alignments and enhanced population of the cations around the aromatic AAs. The potential of mean force (PMF) calculations revealed that such favorable stacking interactions provide greater stability to the contact pairs (CPs) formed between the aromatic AAs and the IL cations as compared to the other AAs. It is further quantified that for most of the AAs (except the cationic ones), a favorable enthalpy contribution more than compensates for the entropy cost to form stable CPs with the IL cations. These findings are likely to provide valuable fundamental information toward understanding the effects of ILs on protein conformational stability.

High Utility Item-set Mining (HUIM) is the futuristic remodel version of Frequent Item-set Mining (FIM). It discovers customer purchase trends in the retail market. This knowledge is useful to retailers to incorporate various innovative schemes in their businesses to attract the customers such as discounts, cross-marketing, seasonal sale offers…etc. Even though many HUIM algorithms are available to detect profitable patterns, most of them cannot apply to all kinds of retail market data sets due to certain assumptions. The first assumption is that the items always produce a positive profit. Even though purchased items’ overall profit could be positive, few items may have negative profit. Another assumption is they are built for static transactional data. The data is gathered up to the point of time and is used for analysis. It is helpful to make decisions at some intervals like quarterly, half-yearly, yearly. But, to take decisions at any time by analyzing the present sales trend, it is required to process the data stream. This paper presents an innovative idea named Extended Global Utility Item-sets Tree(EGUI-tree) to extract High utility item-sets in the retail market data stream with positive and negative profit items. The sliding window-based technique is applied to the data stream to pick up the very recent data to process. An experimental study on real-world datasets shows that the proposed EGUI-tree algorithm is faster and scalable.

In the limit of very low Reynolds numbers, the steady translation of a fluid sphere situated at a non‐concentric position in a second immiscible fluid bounded by spherical cavity is investigated using boundary collocation technique. The flow inside and outside the fluid sphere is governed by Stokes equations. Boundary conditions at the fluid sphere are continuity of velocity and shear stress. Zero shear stress and zero vorticity are used on spherical cavity. By using superposition principle, a general solution is constructed from the basic solutions in the two spherical coordinate systems based on both the fluid sphere and spherical cavity. The normalized drag force exerted on the fluid sphere contained in a cavity is depended on the ratio of fluid sphere and cavity radii, viscosity ratio of fluid sphere and cavity, relative distance between the centers of fluid sphere and cavity. The results are in good agreement with previously published work in the limiting cases. The numerical results of the drag force are good agreement with the solutions of the translation of the fluid sphere in a concentric cavity and the translation of a solid sphere in a non‐concentric cavity. The drag force is increasing function of the viscosity ratio, volume fraction, and the relative distance. This work is extension of the previous work of Keh and Lee for the fluid sphere using Happel's and Kuwabara's models.

ABSTRACTRice production in Ghana is limited by low varietal choices, which puts farmers at a disadvantage in meeting the market demand for consumers. The objectives of this study were to (i) assess the yield potentials of improved rice varieties developed by the Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice), and (ii) to allow farmers to select improved varieties of their choice based on growth and yield, as observed in the field, in order to ensure a high adoption rate, increase productivity and food security. Two seasons (i.e. 2020 major and 2020–2021 minor) field experiments were conducted at two lowland within the Mankran watershed in the Ashanti region of Ghana. The experiment comprised thirteen (13) improved varieties and two local checks and was conducted using recommended good agronomic practices. The key findings of the study showed that growth and yield parameters vary significantly between varieties across locations. The biplot analysis showed that varieties FARO 66, SAHEL 317, and Amankwatia are the best in the major season while WITA 9, GT 11, ARS-957-BGJ-171-15-D-B, NERICA L36, and AGRA were the best in the minor season at both locations. Farmers’ preference for the varieties was based not only on growth and yield but on resistance to lodging, pests, and diseases. In conclusion, the best performing varieties have demonstrated yield potential which is about 92% higher than the yield of the local checks and can be recommended for adoption by farmers. Future breeding programs on these varieties should include the most preferred attributes by farmers in this study.

A one-dimensional model, LOGEcat is used to develop a detailed surface reaction mechanism for modeling the steam reforming of methane over a nickel-based catalyst. The focus of the paper is to develop a kinetically consistent surface reaction mechanism. The two terms, kinetically and thermodynamically consistent mechanisms, will be used frequently in this article. Note that when the mechanism is thermodynamically consistent then the thermodynamic data or the thermochemistry of the species is not used and all the reactions in the mechanism are forward reactions (no backward reactions included) which need the Arrhenius parameters (pre-exponential factor, Ar; activation energy, Er; temperature exponent, βr) explicitly for each reaction. The kinetically consistent mechanisms need Arrhenius parameters only for the forward reactions and does not need these parameters for backward reactions making the backward reactions independent of the kinetics. The rate for the backward reactions is calculated with the help of thermochemistry of the intermediate species involved in the reaction mechanism. Since the thermochemistry of the intermediate species are not easily available, this makes such studies much more complex. The original multi-step reaction mechanism consists of 42 reactions which are thermodynamically consistent. In this study we have modified this reaction mechanism from literature and used only 21 (reversible) direct reactions. This aspect is important because by using only 21 reactions, we use the thermochemistry of the species to achieve thermodynamic equilibrium instead of providing the Arrhenius parameters for forward and backward reactions. We use the same Ar, Erand βrvalues as used in the reference paper for the considered 21 reactions which are in equilibrium. However, the value of Ar, Erand βrfor the inverse/backward reactions are not given in the mechanism and the reverse rates are calculated by using the equilibrium and forward rate. Therefore, a sensitivity analysis on thermochemistry of the species is performed for a better agreement with the literature data. The method is presented for ensuring kinetic consistency and bringing thermochemistry of species in play while developing a surface reaction mechanism. The applicability of the mechanism is tested for two different simulation set-ups available in literature considering various reactor conditions in terms of parameters given as temperature and steam-to-carbon (S/C) ratio. Several chemical reaction terms, such as, selectivity, conversion and H2/COratio are shown for different parameters in comparison with the available reference data. The detailed mechanism developed in this study is able to accurately express the steam reforming of methane over the nickel catalyst for complete ranges of temperature for both the set-ups and within acceptable limit for S/C ratio considered for the analysis.

Room temperature molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of the globular protein α-lactalbumin in aqueous solutions containing BMIM (1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium) based ionic liquids (ILs) with a series of Hofmeister anions have been carried out. In particular, effects of anions of different shapes/sizes and hydrophobic/hydrophilic characters, namely, thiocyanate (SCN–), dicyanamide (DCA–), methyl sulfate (MS–), triflate (TFO–), and bis(trifluoromethane) sulfonimide (TF2N–) on the heterogeneous dynamic environment at the interface around the protein have been explored. The calculations revealed exchange of population between water and IL cation–anion components beyond the first layer of bound water molecules at the protein surface. Further, increasingly restricted diffusivity of the IL components and water around the protein has been found to be associated with a longer time scale for the onset of dynamic heterogeneity at the interface. Restricted diffusivity of water molecules at the interface in the presence of the ILs has been found to be correlated with the longer time scale of structural relaxations of protein–water hydrogen bonds at the interface. More importantly, the time scale associated with the reorientations of the anions has been found to be anticorrelated with their translational diffusivity, with the effect being more at the interface as compared to the bulk IL solutions. It is demonstrated that the nonuniform ability of the anions to form hydrogen bonds with water due to their differential shapes and hydrophilic characters is the origin of such anticorrelation.

The decomposition process in the forest ecosystem is regulated by environmental conditions, the chemical nature of litters, and microbial activities. We aim this study to understand the weight loss rate, nutrient release, and controlling factors of fine root decomposition in lower tropical forest (LTF) and upper tropical forest (UTF) of Nepal Himalaya. The nylon net bag technique was used to determine the decomposition rate of the fine root. Five gram air dried samples of < 2 mm and 2–5 mm size class fine roots were kept in nylon net bags and buried at 0–10 cm soil depth in each forest. Bags were recovered from both forests after 60, 120, 180, 240, 300, 365, 425, 485, and 545 days of sample placement and preceded for the estimation of weight loss and nutrient analysis. Initially, the weight loss was fast up to 120 days followed by a slow decomposition rate from the middle to the last phase of the experiment in both forests. At the 365 days of experiment, weight loss in < 2 mm fine root was 12.67% faster in LTF than UTF, while that in 2–5 mm sized root was 21.05% faster in LTF than UTF. An increase in nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations in the residual materials is accompanied with weight loss of fine root. At the end of experiment, the release of nitrogen (N), phosphorous (P), and potassium (K) in both sized roots was faster in LTF than UTF. The N, P, and K release rates in LTF were 11.36, 8.88, and 3.09% faster than UTF in less than 2 mm root size, and 17.10, 10.25, and 6.38% faster in 2–5 mm root size, respectively. The belowground input of nutrients through fine root plays a significant role in nutrient accumulation in soil which contributes to increase the entire forest production.

Krishna Prasad Acharyaand Sarita Phuyalargue that while low‐ to middle‐income countries may have some rabies control initiatives in place, these are not fully effective and strategies must be improved to reach the global goal of eliminating human deaths from dog‐transmitted rabies by 2030.

The present study concentrates on the flow of 2 immiscible fluids through space between 2 coaxial cylinders filled with 2 different layers of anisotropic porous mediums. The inner cylinder is impermeable, and we assumed that its surface is slippery. The permeability of both porous regions is different and depends on anisotropic parameters. The flow in porous regions is due to the applied pressure gradient and the movement of the outer cylinder in the axial direction with a constant speed. Velocity profiles of Couette flow, Poiseuille flow, and Couette-Poiseuille of the present problem are analytically obtained using appropriate boundary conditions. Further, the impacts of anisotropic parameters and other physical parameters are studied and graphically presented. It is found that increasing permeability ratio and anisotropic angles have increasing and decreasing impacts on velocity profiles, respectively and strongly influence the skin friction. In the no-slip case, there is greater skin friction on the surface of the inner cylinder than in the slip case. We found that a difference in the viscosities slows the velocity of the fluids, but a slippery surface enhances the velocity. Current findings about anisotropic permeability, viscosity ratio, and slip are used to study the flow mechanism in various industrial and engineering problems involving artificial porous materials.

Melt pool (MP) temperature is one of the determining factors and a key signature for evaluating the properties of printed components in metal additive manufacturing (AM). The state-of-the-art measurement systems are hindered, primarily by the large-scale data acquisition and processing demands. In this work, we introduce a novel coaxial, high-speed, single-camera two-wavelength imaging pyrometer (STWIP) system as opposed to the typical utilization of multiple cameras for measuring MP temperature profiles in laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) processes. Developed on a commercial LPBF machine (EOS M290), the STWIP system demonstrated its ability to quantitatively monitor the MP temperature and its variation for 50 layers at high framerates (>30,000 fps) for a real-world application (standard fatigue specimens) print. High performance computing is employed to analyze the acquired big data(MP images), for determining each MP's average temperature and 2D temperature profile. The MP temperature evolution in the gage section of a fatigue specimen is also examined at a temporal resolution of 1 ms, by evaluating the MP temperatures in the samples' first, middle, and last layers. This paper is first of its kind on monitoring MP temperature distribution and evolution at such a large, detailed scale for longer durations in practical applications.