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Byline: Aniket Kumar,Robello Samuel,Scott Granger After detailed analysis of shale well designs and drilling operations in the Bakken, a new drill pipe was introduced to reduce the wear on the [...]

With the ever-growing demand for clean and viable energy sources, the possibility and need to use a multifunctional energy system having integrated energy storage and conversion capacity has been intensified in current times. To fulfill this requirement, a search for an active material having an efficient bifunctional capacity of both hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and supercapacitor is an essential requirement. The metal polyphosphate with the advantage of abundance, environmental friendliness, low cost, and reliable activity make it an emerging class of novel material for the present research. Herein, for the first time, the comparison of the amorphous and crystalline form of tin polyphosphate-based electrode was assessed toward hydrogen evolution reaction and supercapacitor. Considering the synergistic influence of abundant tin polyphosphate and the three-dimension structure of nickel substrate, we unswervingly deposited well-defined hierarchical in-situ amorphous SnPxOyand ex-situ crystalline SnPxOyover Ni foam using the one-step hydrothermal route. Impressively, amorphous SnPxOy/NF electrode required less over the potential of the only 100 mV with Tafel slope of 50 mV dec−1to attain a current density of 10 mA cm−2in comparison to crystalline SnPxOy/NF electrode showing over the potential of the only 170 mV with Tafel slope of 80 mV dec−1to attain the same current density in 1 M KOH. Additionally, we investigated this electrode in a supercapacitor and found that amorphous SnPxOy/NF delivers a good specific capacitance of 580 F g−1at a current density of 1 A g−1, greater rate capability, and cyclic stability. Hopefully, this study may demonstrate a promising technique for the preparation of ample, low-cost electrodes for future applications in both HER and supercapacitors applications.

AbstractThe proposed optimized SMART MOBILE TOILET is an innovative sanitation model which is based on emerging technologies (Automation and Sensors based monitoring), Renewable integration (PV Pumps & Solar panels) and provides for efficient Waste management techniques. It is an interdisciplinary research model which is designed keeping in view of the national flagship programs like “Swachh Bharat”, ”Swasth Bharat” and “Make In India”. It involves continual and unmanned operations of the toilets, hygienic facilities, automated doors, remote monitoring through SMT App and provides for a self sustainable ecosystem. Basically, the project’s goal is to Create “Smart Slums” or “Smart Villages” just like Smart cities. This working model focuses on self-sustainability, energy efficiency, hygienic factors, water and land resources conservation, Maximum Power Point Tracking.

Multi-drug resistant tuberculosis is on the rise, resulting in treatment failure. One potential reason for drug resistance is the substandard quality of manufactured antituberculous drugs. This study aims at finding out the difference in the quantity of isoniazid between government-supplied tablets and commercially available tablets.

In this study, hydroxyapatite decorated with zirconia nanoparticle (HAp-ZrO2) was prepared using sonochemical method and characterized by various techniques such as BET, TEM, XRD, FTIR, FESEM-EDX, XPS, Raman spectroscopy, finding that the nanoparticles were uniformly distributed on the surface of hydroxyapatite with a mean size of 10 ± 5 nm. It was used as photocatalyst for degradation of phenols and its derivatives under UV light irradiation. The coupling of the ZrO2and HAp significantly enhanced the separation efficiency of the photogenerated electron–hole pairs and then promoted the activity for the photodegradation of phenolic compounds. The estimation of reactive species involves in the degradation process was done by scavenger study. To determine the degradation efficiency, effect of various parameters such as catalyst dose, pH, and temperature has been investigated. Furthermore, the photoelectricalchemical study was carried out to provide further insight into the photocatalyst activity, which further confirmed the superiority of the HAp-ZrO2in photocurrent generation. Results found no cytotoxic effects on the THP-1 cell-lines even after 72 h, confirming their excellent biocompatibility and biodegradable nature. High reactive sites on the HAp-ZrO2made it an effective photocatalyst for degradation of phenols (above 95%). The nanocomposites show good stability without loss of their degradation capacity up to 4 cycle, confirming their practical use in water purification.

Functionalized Guar gum (GG) on the surface of iron oxide (Fe3O4) nanoparticles was synthesized via conventional co-precipitation method. The nanocomposite was characterized by Fourier transform infrared, X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, BET, vibrating sample magnetometer and zeta potential measurement. The efficiency of the nanocomposite was investigated towards the adsorption of different dyes such Congo red (CR), malachite green, methylene blue, methyl orange, Eriochrome Black T, methyl blue and Rhodamine B. Among which CR dye shows adsorption efficiency of 97% using the prepared nanocomposite. The presence of –NH2in the CR dye was responsible for the efficient adsorption, as it easily forms hydrogen bonding with the surface hydroxyl group of Fe3O4-GG. The optimum condition for dye removal efficiency using Fe3O4-GG was investigated by varying different factors such as the influence of pH, the initial concentration of dye, adsorbent dose and influence of contact time. Moreover, the adsorption procedure was studied with various adsorption isotherms (Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin, Dubinin–Radushkevich and Elovich) and Langmuir isotherm was best fitted to the experimental data for CR removal with maximum adsorption capacity of 60.24 mg/g. The CR adsorption rate follows the pseudo-second order and within just 5 min maximum adsorption occurred. This material can be effectively used up to five consecutive runs. Hence, the synthesized Fe3O4-GG can be used as a good adsorbent for CR removal and reduce the pollution load in waste water.

ABSTRACTObjectives: This retrospective study was performed to determine the incidence, demographic distribution, types and outcomes across various non-drug related poisonings among children attending a tertiary care center in south India.Methods: All children from 0-16 years who presented to the Paediatric Emergency Department, Christian Medical College, Vellore with non-drug related poisoning from October 2004 to September 2013 were included.Results: Out of the total 997 cases of poisoning, 629 (63.1%) cases were contributed by chemicals and plants: mainly hydrocarbons (kerosene) 309 (49.1%); organophosphates 72 (11.5%); corrosive acids and alkalis 57 (9.1%); insecticides 51 (8.1%); and plant poisons 20 (3.2%). Males (62.79%) and children < 5 years (77.42%) were mostly affected. Although many children developed complications requiring intensive care unit admissions, the total mortality was only 9 (1.4%). The incidence of poisoning showed a decreasing trend over the last 4 years.Conclusion: This study for the first time gives an elaborative insight on non-drug related pediatric poisoning from a tertiary care center in south India for almost a decade.

ABSTRACTObjectives:This study was performed to determine the incidence, demographic distribution, types and outcomes across various drug poisonings among children from south India.Methods:This retrospective study included children less than 16 years who presented to the Pediatric Emergency Department with drug poisoning from the 1st of October 2004 to the 30th of September 2013.Results:Out of the total 997 poisoning cases, 366 (36.71%) were contributed by drugs; mainly antiepileptics, central nervous system depressants, psychotropics, analgesic-antipyretics and natural drugs. Males and children of < 5 years were mostly affected. Although many children developed complications and required intensive care unit admissions, the total mortality rate was less than 1%. The incidence of drug poisoning showed a decreasing trend over the last 4 years.Conclusion:This study for the first time gives an elaborative insight into pediatric drug poisoning over a nine-year period from a Pediatric Emergency Department tertiary care center in south India.

Background:Antituberculosis (ATT) drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is a common and serious adverse effect of tuberculosis (TB) treatment. This retrospective study was carried out to study the prevalence of DILI among patients who had received anti-TB medications and to study some of the known risk factors responsible for causing DILI. Materials and Methods:This longitudinal descriptive study was performed to evaluate cases of DILI with predefined criteria. Patients of all ages, diagnosed and treated for smear positive pulmonary TB from January 1, 2008 to December 31, 2012 and those who came for regular follow-up were included in the study. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to determine the association of different risk factors and DILI. The confounders considered were age, sex, weight, body mass index, doses of drugs (fixed or per kg), ATT regimens (daily or intermittent), and treatment categories. Results:Of the 253 patients analyzed, 24 (9.48%) developed DILI. Associations of different risk factors were insignificant; including chronic alcohol consumption, hepatitis B infection, hepatitis C infection, HIV infection, and existing chronic TB. Conclusion:DILI was not significantly associated with known risk factors in our settings.

Background:During delivery, drugs being prescribed cause concerns due to their harmful effects on lactation as well as potential adverse reactions on the mother. This retrospective study was performed to evaluate the drug prescribing pattern during normal delivery in a secondary care hospital in India. Materials and Methods:This cross-sectional retrospective study included 3 months of patient’s medical records. Results:A total of 2222 drugs, comprising 51 different types of drugs were prescribed to 313 mothers undergoing normal delivery. Most of these drugs are safe in lactation. Ten types of drugs would have been better avoided, but they possibly did not cause harm because of their limited short-term use only during the intranatal period. Conclusion:This study reflects a good, safe, and rational medication practice during normal delivery for various common ailments in a secondary care hospital and can be cited as an example for similar settings.

To assess the prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors by socio-economic position (SEP) in rural and peri-urban Indian population. Cross-sectional survey of 3,948 adults (1,154 households) from Telangana (2010–2012) was conducted to collect questionnaire-based data, physical measurements and fasting blood samples. We compared the prevalence of risk factors and their clustering by SEP adjusting for age using the Mantel Hansel test. Men and women with no education had higher prevalence of increased waist circumference (men: 8 vs. 6.4 %, P< 0.001; women: 20.9 vs. 12.0 %, P= 0.01), waist-hip ratio (men: 46.5 vs. 25.8 %, P= 0.003; women: 58.8 vs. 29.2 %, P= 0.04) and regular alcohol intake (61.7 vs. 32.5 %, P< 0.001; women: 25.7 vs. 3.8 %, P< 0.001) than educated participants. Unskilled participants had higher prevalence of regular alcohol intake (men: 57.7 vs. 38.7 %, P= 0.001; women: 28.3 vs. 7.3 %, P< 0.001). In contrast, participants with a higher standard of living index had higher prevalence of diabetes (top third vs. bottom third: men 5.2 vs. 3.5 %, P= 0.004; women 5.5 vs. 2.4 %, P= 0.003), hyperinsulinemia (men 29.5 vs. 16.3 %, P= 0.002; women 31.1 vs. 14.3 %, P< 0.001), obesity (men 23.3 vs. 10.6 %, P< 0.001; women 25.9 vs. 12.8 %, P< 0.001), and raised LDL (men 16.8 vs. 11.4 %, P= 0.001; women 21.3 vs. 14.0 %, P< 0.001). Cardiometabolic risk factors are common in rural India but do not show a consistent association with SEP except for higher prevalence of smoking and regular alcohol intake in lower SEP group. Strategies to address the growing burden of cardiometabolic diseases in urbanizing rural India should be assessed for their potential impact on social inequalities in health.

AbstractIn the present study, ‘sex preference’ and its effects on fertility were studied among the Ansaris of rural part of Meerut district, Uttar Pradesh. Using interview schedules, the data on fertility and related aspects was collected from 296 ever married women (15-49 years of age) and their husbands. The study confirms the presence of son preference among the members of the community. Most of the respondents (both women and men) expressed a desire for more number of sons as compared to daughters. Almost 62% women and 56% men prefer a son as the first child. Similarly, a large number of respondents expressed a preference of son for any new born child. The reasons that were traditionally responsible for preference of sons over daughters still continue to be the guiding force behind such a perception in present context. The preference for sons over daughters has resulted in an increased level of fertility. However this effect has been found to be modest.

This paper reports a systematic investigation of the radical scavenging behaviour of ceria with different morphological shapes inside Nafion membrane. All the ceria nanostructure is synthesized using a template-free hydrothermal route. Distinct crystal planes of CeO2have different numbers of broken bonds and reaction sites having different surface energies. So, the preparation of CeO2with various uncovered planes may enhance its scavenging activity. The crystal structure, morphology, and lattice structure are investigated using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and x-ray diffraction (XRD). The results show that the radical scavenging efficiency of ceria strongly depends on the active surface plane, and decreases in the following order: nanorods > nanocube > nanosphere. Furthermore, the concentrations of surface oxygen vacancies and lattice cerium (III) are correlated with the morphology of the nanoparticles. This relationship clarifies the vital scavenging mechanism of CeO2that mitigates degradation inside the polymer electrolyte membrane. This is because the inherent lattice strain on the active planes of nanosized ceria with different shapes affects their surficial reactions. The existence of prominent concentration of oxygen vacancy in the nanometric dimension of ceria leading to greater Ce3+generation by exposed active phase CeO2nanoparticles is key to achieve a durable hybrid Nafion membrane.