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Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) was melt-blended separately with low concentrations of polypropylene (PP) and low-density polyethylene (LDPE) that maintained the total biopolymer content above 89 wt%. Additionally, a multifunctional reactive chain extender was also incorporated to assess the potential compatibility among the constituents. The blends were exposed up to five reprocessing cycles to simulate recycling, with material collection occurring at one and three recycling stages for characterization. Rheology, thermal, and mechanical properties were then evaluated to assess the processing – properties of the resulting materials. In addition, wood flour powder (≤ 250 μm) was compounded into two different system types (PLA: PP and PLA: LDPE) at 30 and 40 wt% to fabricate high-biopolymer content wood-plastic composites (WPCs). The entire composite was then subjected to up to five recycling cycles to elucidate the effects of recycling on different systems. The simulated recycling process induced crosslinking reactions in the case of LDPE, evidenced by an increase in melt viscosity and changes to the zero-shear viscosity ratio of the blended polymers. In the case of PP, recycling led to reduced viscosity likely attributed to temperature and shear mediated chain scission inducing changes in both the matrix and dispersed phase's viscosity. The study provided valuable insights into the behavior of the materials and composites undergoing through recycling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work aimed to explore the composition, thermal characteristics, and morphological properties of binary blends composed of bambangan kernel fat stearin and palm stearin. Various attributes, including the fatty acid composition, triglyceride profile, solid fat content, and crystal microstructure, were assessed through gas chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography, pulsed nuclear magnetic resonance, and polarization microscopy. Five binary mixtures were prepared using bambangan kernel fat stearin and palm stearin in varying ratios (g/100 g), with palm stearin content incrementally increasing by 5%. Among these blends, SS5, comprising 70% bambangan kernel fat stearin and 30% palm stearin, demonstrated properties on par with cocoa butter. It contained 21.73% palmitic, 38.92% stearic, and 31.12% oleic acids, along with 1,3-dipalmitate-2-oleate-glycerol, 1-palmitate-2-oleate-3-stearate-glycerol and 1,3-distearate-2-oleate-glycerol values of 10.35%, 10.95%, and 30.22%, respectively. When SS5 was blended with cocoa butter in proportions less than 40%, no tripalmitin was observed, and the thermal and morphological behaviour closely resembled that of cocoa butter. Therefore, SS5 (70:30, bambangan kernel fat stearin: palm stearin) presents a viable alternative due to its comparable properties and compatibility with cocoa butter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a typical biodegradable material, poly(lactic acid) (PLA) has great development potential in fields such as packaging, textiles and biomedical applications due to its high modulus and strength as well as excellent biocompatibility. However, the inherent brittleness and poor toughness of PLA significantly limit its widespread application. In this study, a biodegradable aliphatic–aromatic copolyester called poly(ethylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PEAT) was synthesized using the industrially well-established direct esterification method. PEAT demonstrated excellent flexibility and extremely high fracture elongation. Its fracture elongation exceeded 900%, making it a highly ductile material with exceptional toughness. Given the complementary nature of PLA and PEAT, blending PLA with PEAT becomes a natural choice for improving the performance of PLA. The influence of the addition of PEAT on the mechanical properties, thermal performance, crystallization, phase morphology and rheological behavior of the blends was thoroughly investigated. With the addition of PEAT, the fracture mode changed from brittle fracture of the neat PLA to ductile fracture of the blends as illustrated by tensile test. The best toughening effect on PLA was achieved at a PEAT content of 30 wt%, with the elongation at break increasing from 6.7% for neat PLA to 359% for the binary blend, an improvement of 53 times. Additionally, the impact strength also increased from 4.4 kJ/m2 to 10.5 kJ/m2, an increase of 138%. DSC revealed that PEAT had a certain influence on the crystallization behavior of PLA. SEM showed that the PEAT toughening mechanism was primarily attributed to a shear yielding mechanism triggered by debonding cavitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) especially Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) have gained much attention as an environmentally benign alternative to petroleum-derived plastics. However, path to a bright future of sustainable production and development has been hampered by their dubious quality. PHAs are biodegradable, biocompatible, and non-toxic which make them excellent choices for packaging, agriculture, and medicine. Despite having such great scope, PHAs have a number of disadvantages, including a high cost, brittleness, thermal instability, and poor mechanical properties. Thus, PHAs need to be upgraded to enhance its inherent qualities. This upgradation can be primarily achieved by blending PHAs either with natural or synthetic bio-based polymers and adding reinforcements to develop novel PHAs-based biocomposites and blends. Keeping the view of future PHAs multi-dimensional applications, the present study provides an extensive understanding of the blending of PHAs to enhance their physico-chemical traits. Additionally, a number of state-of-the-art processing methods are also discussed in the present study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The synergistic effect that arises from blending functional agents with ordered fiber orientated structures is a noteworthy strategy to improve the mechanical properties, flexibility and waterproof performance of polylactic acid microfibrous fabrics. A promising polylactic acid/polyethylene glycol@erucamide (PLA/PEG@Era) microfibrous fabric with an ordered fiber orientation was successfully prepared by blending Era with PLA, followed by composite preparation processes of melt blowing and stretching. The results of the study revealed that the blended PLA/PEG@Era polymer with an Era mass ratio of 1.5% exhibited a higher relative degree of crystallinity of about 18.64% in comparison to the PLA/PEG polymer with a crystallinity degree of 2.24%. Moreover, the prepared fabrics exhibited a pleasant microfibrous nonwoven structure with an ordered, regular and a compensating fiber distribution, obtained by facile tailing of the stretching ratio. Also, the samples showed a high tensile breaking strength of 41.1 N with a good vapor permeability, ranging from 2537.2 g/(m2·day) to 2136.9 g/(m2·day), in addition to its excellent waterproof performance and softness. The study provides sufficient evidence that the developed PLA/PEG@Era microfibrous fabrics are extremely suitable candidates for packaging and outdoor clothing applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heterogeneously catalyzed transesterification reaction is known to be the most appropriate process for producing biodiesel from triglyceride-containing feedstock as it ensures catalyst reusability and easy product separation, lowers production costs, and makes biodiesel affordable. This work investigates the influence of calcination temperature (700–1000 °C) on the performance of CaO catalyst obtained from eggshells for biodiesel synthesis from waste frying oil (WFO). The prepared CaO catalyst was characterized using various techniques (TGA/DTA, N2 adsorption–desorption isotherm (BET), FTIR, CO2-TPD, XRF, XRD, and SEM). Taguchi optimization method with an orthogonal array was used to investigate the effect of process parameters (time, catalyst amount, methanol/oil ratio, and temperature). Reaction time was observed to be the most influential variable according to the design. Under the optimal transesterification conditions (i.e., at 50 °C for 3 h using WFO/methanol molar ratio of 1:10 with catalyst dosage of 0.75 wt.%), the biodiesel yield attained 90.81% when eggshell derived-catalyst calcined at 850 °C (CEG-850) was used. The remarkable performance of the CEG-850 could be attributed to its high basic strength (749 μ mol/g), improved surface area (15.4 m2/g), and dominance of basic sites on its surface. The blended fuel with 10% by volume biodiesel (B10) exhibited improved fuel properties compared to blended fuel with 50% by volume biodiesel (B50), which confirmed the suitability of a low-level biodiesel blend in the diesel engine. More than 54% biodiesel yield was achieved after the seventh cycle, depicting better stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The majority of lubricants used around the world are mineral oil-based, which causes environmental and health risks. The industry is under pressure to develop eco-friendly and biodegradable lubricants due to poor degradability and the depletion of mineral oil resources. Vegetable oils (VO) are being considered as an alternative source of lubricants due to their biodegradability, renewability, low toxicity, and good lubricating characteristics. The VO also suffers few drawbacks such as limited oxidation stability and poor low-temperature performance. Blending, chemical modification, and additives can improve the oil's lubricating properties. The objective of the study is to formulate bio-lubricants from vegetable oils such as rice bran oil (RBO), jatropha oil (JO), and a blend of RBO and JO. Transesterification was performed on the vegetable oils, and all samples were assessed for tribological characteristics, oxidative stability, corrosion, and emulsion stability using ASTM and international standards. A lathe machine with a tool dynamometer was used to test the performance of the formulated cutting fluid. Cutting forces were assessed and compared to those of a commercial cutting fluid. Machine learning algorithms were also used to forecast cutting forces, which were then compared to experimental values. The 1:1 ratio of transesterified RBO and JO has shown a better coefficient of friction and superior oxidative stability. Also, the 40% emulsifier in the oil has shown good stability. The cutting forces were found to be lower for wet machining when compared with dry machining and vegetable oil-based cutting fluid has shown similar performance to that of commercial cutting fluid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to climatic change, a variation in meteorological aspects influences the water requirement for crops, evapotranspiration, and water allocation of agro-meteorological and agriculture. Accurate estimation of Evapotranspiration ( ET o ) has great importance to improve the utilization of water efficiently and irrigation scheduling. The main overarching goal of this paper is to investigate the abilities and applicability of three supervised machine learning models: Extreme Machine Learning ( ELM 1 , ELM 2 , ELM 3 , ELM 4 ), Multi-layer Perceptrons-Neural Network ( MLP 1 , MLP 2 , MLP 3 , MLP 4 ), Support Vector Machine ( SVM 1 , SVM 2 , SVM 3 , and, SVM 4 ) to modeling the daily ET o . Further, a three-layer multi-model ensemble machine learning approach is presented to predict evapotranspiration ET o . The first layer consists of different statistical models to produce individual forecasts. The blending approach is employed to create an ensemble of the forecasts generated by the initial layer to produce probabilistic forecasts. In the second layer, three ensemble models ( Ensemble ELM , Ensemble MLP , Ensemble SVM ) are trained for prediction of ET o by using the previous layer predictions and training data. In the third-layer, accuracy of the ( ET o ) is estimated by tuning the parameters of second layer ensemble model. It has been analyzed that all statistical models showed effectiveness in high performance for modeling everyday ET o (e.g. Nash-Sutchliffe efficiency (NSE)= 0.93-0.99, coefficient of determination (r 2 ) = 0.93-0.99, Accuracy (ACC) = 80-99, Mean Square error (MSE) = 0.0103-0.1516). Particularity, the ensemble method with SVM achieved good accuracy (99.46% to 99.72%) to predict the daily ET o and correlation coefficient is closed to 1 on training, validation, and testing datasets. Its root means square error (RMSE) (0.0085 to 0.0935) and Mean Absolute Error (MAE) (0.0614 to 0.0639) are minimum as compared to other ensemble machine learning models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of thermoplastic polyimide resins with a low coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) were prepared by blending a rigid resin system 3,3′,4,4′-biphenyltetracarboxylic dianhydride (BPDA)/p-phenylenediamine (PDA) with a flexible resin system 4,4′-[isopropylidenebis(p-phenyleneoxy)]diphthalic anhydride (BPADA)/PDA. The effects of the blending ratio on the macromolecular coil size, free volume, and CTE of the mixed system were studied. The mixing is carried out in the prepolymer poly(amide acid) (PAA) stage, which makes the two systems more compatible and is conducive to the formation of a semi-interpenetrating network structure between the rigid molecular chains and flexible molecular chains. The flexible structure of the BPADA/PDA system is used to ensure the melt processing performance. The rigid characteristics of the BPDA/PDA system can inhibit the movement of molecular chains and reduce the free volume fraction, thereby reducing the CTE value. When the rigid system content reaches 30%, the CTE can be reduced to 38 ppm/K. This method provides a new approach for studying low CTE thermoplastic polyimide resins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rubber blending has been widely used to improve various properties in finished rubber products. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of filler size, type, concentration, and surface treatment on the mechanical, swelling, dielectric, and morphology properties of ethylene propylene diene rubber (EPDM)/styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) rubber blend nanocomposites filled with alumina (Al2O3) nanoparticles. Bis-(3-(triethoxysilyl)-propyl)-tetrasulfide (TESPT) was used as a silane coupling agent. Rubber blend nanocomposites containing Al2O3 nanoparticles were compared to carbon black (CB). The results indicate that the nanocomposites prepared, in particular with the TESPT, had better properties than the composites without the TESPT. Mechanical properties of the CB-filled EPDM/SBR rubber blend were noticeably improved, indicating CB's inherent reinforcing potential. We found that rubber nanocomposites' crosslink density and filler–rubber interaction increase, and the swelling coefficient decreases with increasing filler content. The dielectric properties of the nanocomposites showed a significant enhancement with fillers. SEM images showed that the CB sample had a higher distribution than Al2O3 due to good interaction and dispersion. This study's experimental data will help design and manufacture outdoor insulators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presently, society needs an eco-friendlier alternative for non-biodegradable polymers, nonetheless, synthetic polymers have established the market because of cost and easy to manufacture. To address the challenge of reducing the lifetime of degradation of these polymers, the scope of blending natural biopolymers is effective. This paper focuses on confirming the effectiveness of biodegradation in the molecular level of polymer blends between synthetic polymers and biopolymers. The synthetic polymers such as poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and poly (vinyl chloride) (PVC) were blended with varying compositions of biodegradable cellulose acetate butyrate (CAB). Using dimethylformamide (DMF) the films of PMMA/CAB, PVC/CAB blends were prepared by the solution casting method. Four different methods for studying biodegradability of these blends, namely soil burial test, enzymatic degradation, activated sludge degradation followed by microbial degradation were performed. The confirmation of degradation was done by NMR, FTIR, and Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC) studies. Moreover, degradation analyses were determined by the weight loss method. Sufficient biodegradability was shown with an increase in CAB content in the blend. This work provides an approach for bringing about the degradation of synthetic polymers without much compromise on their properties. Also, the type of microorganisms that effectively degrades these polymer bends can be known. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study proposed and experimentally investigated a novel approach to hydrogenation of light cycle oil (LCO) into components of winter and arctic diesel fuels (DF) environmentally classified as K5 as per the Technical Regulation of the Customs Union (TR CU) 013/2011 "On the requirements for automotive and aviation gasoline, diesel and marine fuels, jet fuels, and heating oils". The process design involves atmospheric distillation of LCO with EBP 300˚C followed by hydrotreating. Hydrogenates with low concentrations of total sulfur (<10 mg/kg) and arenes (28.6–38.0 wt %) and adequate low-temperature properties (CFPP≤–43˚C) were produced. An assessment of the physicochemical properties of the hydrogenates against applicable regulations for DF properties suggested that these hydrogenates can be effectively used as components of winter and arctic fuels by blending them into hydroisomerization diesel fractions (HIDF) and winter diesel fuels (WDF). An analysis of the main quality characteristics confirmed the feasibility of blending the LCO-derived hydrogenates into winter and arctic diesel fuels. Using GC×GC/MS examination, correlations were found between the hydrogenation process conditions, the physicochemical properties of the hydrogenates, and their detailed hydrocarbon compositions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper studies the nanofiller effectiveness of polymer/carbon nanotube nanocomposites produced by different methods, namely: mixing in the melt, mixing in the solution and in situ polymer matrix polymerization. It is found that the nominal elastic modulus of carbon nanotubes used as a reinforcing material of nanocomposites, does not affect their efficiency. Two testing parameters for carbon nanotubes are the polymer matrix stiffness and the content of carbon nanotube fibers in the nanocomposite. Notably, the effective elastic modulus of carbon nanotubes can be both lower and higher than its nominal value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) is a promising alternative to petroleum-based polymers, however its high brittleness limits its practical applicability. In this study, two polyurethane elastomers (PUa and PUb) containing poly (ε-caprolactone) or poly(ε-caprolactone)/poly(butylene adipate) as soft segment and different hard segments content (38.16% for PUa and 53.12% for PUb) were synthesized and melt blended with PHBV in various proportions. The addition of 5–15 wt% PU elastomers to PHBV did not significantly change its thermal stability; however, the presence of PUs decreased the crystallization temperature of PHBV by up to 9 °C, and the crystallinity of PHBV decreased from 48.2% to 42.2 or 43.6% in the blends with 15% PUa or PUb, indicating the development of some interactions between PHBV and PUa/PUb. The addition of PUa to PHBV increased its elongation at break by up to 70%, a weaker effect being observed with PUb. Remarkably, a slight variation in the tensile strength and modulus, which remained close to those of neat PHBV, was concomitant with the increased ductility. The fatigue resistance of the selected blends was estimated by a DMA cyclic test under controlled force from − 20 to 70 °C, this test clearly differentiating the blends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The study aims to evaluate the color adjustment potential (CAP-I, CAP-V) of different single-shade resin composites. Materials and methods: The shades of 40 human incisors were determined using a spectrophotometer, with the teeth divided into four groups of the same shade (n = 10). The following single-shade resin composites were tested: Omnichroma, Charisma Diamond One, Vittra Unique, and Essentia Universal. The specimens were prepared as "dual" and "single." Standardized cavity preparations (diameter, 7 mm; depth, 2 mm) were prepared in human incisor teeth and then restored for dual specimens. Composite duplicates of human incisors were prepared with resin composites for single specimens (n = 10). The color match of these specimens to that of unrestored human incisors was compared, and the color difference (ΔE*) was calculated. Independent observers conducted a visual evaluation of the specimens and scored them. CAP-I and CAP-V values were determined. A one-way analysis of variance test was used for statistical analysis (p < 0.05). Results: There was no statistically significant difference between the CAP-V and CAP-I values of the tested single-shade resin composites (p > 0.05). All the materials tested had acceptable color-matching potential. Conclusions: In terms of color matching, there were no significant differences between the different tooth shades of all the tested resin composites. Clinical relevance: Single-shade resin composites have acceptable CAP. The use of single-shade resin composites can reduce in-chair clinical times by minimizing the time spent on shade selection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Virgin coconut oil (VCO) and cod liver oil (CLO) possess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory effects. The objective of the study was to test the ability of a blend (BLO) of VCO and CLO to improve endurance performance in the mouse model. The nutritional profile, viscosity, and free fatty acid (FFA) content were analysed. Mice were randomly divided into the four groups: control, VCO, CLO, and BLO group. Endurance studies were carried out for 4 weeks. The endurance potential was investigated based on exhaustive swimming, forelimb grip strength test, biochemical, histological, and molecular analyses. As expected, the BLO contained essential fatty acids such as polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), Vitamin A, and Vitamin E. The viscosity, triglyceride, and FFA content were 54mPas, 95%, and 0.6%, respectively. Animal studies showed no toxicity in tissues. The BLO-supplemented group demonstrated substantially higher score in exhaustive swimming and forelimb grip strength test, a decrease in the serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), malondialdehyde (MDA), and creatine kinase (CK) levels, a substantial decrease in fibrotic changes in the liver, skeletal muscle, and heart, with more glycogen deposits in the skeletal muscle and elevated expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ) coactivator (PGC)-1α compared to the controls. These results suggest that, the BLO improves the endurance potential via activation of PGC-1α signalling and may be used as a food supplement to improve an athlete's endurance potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The support material for cellulose-insulating paper is usually phenolic resin, which can no longer meet the mechanical characteristics, flame-retardant performance, and heat resistance requirements of insulating paper as the market evolves. In this article, the modified ammonium polyphosphate (APP) particles with excellent flame retardant and hydrophobic properties were prepared by the sol–gel method, which was applied to cellulose paper by compounding them with aqueous boron phenolic resin (BPF). The performance of the insulating paper had been significantly improved by evaluating the various properties of the paper, its breakage resistance and stiffness retention rates were 60.1% ~ 77.5% and 39.9% ~ 50.4%, respectively. With conductivity and breakdown voltage of 8.76 × 10–14 ~ 1.01 × 10–11 S/cm and 8.28 ~ 9.81 kW/mm, respectively. The introduction of Si elements on the surface of APP for surface coating improved the insulation performance of the insulating paper. According to the results of the cone calorimeter, the insulating paper fulfilled the UL-94 standard V-0 level with a maximum LOI value of 32.5%, which was a flame-retardant grade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The integration of hydrogen into natural gas infrastructure presents a viable strategy for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and advancing toward carbon neutrality. This study investigates the combustion characteristics and emissions profiles of hydrogen-enriched natural gas mixtures, specifically focusing on the composition of Russian pipeline natural gas. A comprehensive mathematical model was developed to predict emission concentrations and simulate fuel mixture combustion using MATLAB Simulink software. This versatile model facilitates further analysis within the MATLAB ecosystem. The simulation results demonstrate a significant correlation between the hydrogen content in the natural gas mixture and the resulting heat power output. With a constant fuel consumption rate, a notable decrease in heat power was observed as the hydrogen concentration increased, reaching a maximum reduction of 44.9% at a 45% hydrogen content. These findings underscore the feasibility of partially substituting natural gas with hydrogen, while also highlighting the necessity for increased fuel flow rates to maintain equivalent power output levels. This poses additional challenges for natural gas grid operators, necessitating infrastructure adaptations to accommodate higher fuel demands. The insights gained from this research contribute to the growing body of knowledge surrounding hydrogen integration in the energy sector, offering valuable implications for decarbonization strategies and the optimization of natural gas infrastructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessment of consistency in seasonal variability of CO2 fluxes between GOSAT-IM, NASA-GEOS, and NOAA-CT databases was carried out over major biogeographic regions across the globe. A blended data product was composited through a linear least square error optimization procedure from the weighted mean of the three datasets. The blended-product is in closer agreement with GOSAT-IM followed by NOAA-CT and NASA-GEOS for most parts of the globe; however, the blended-product was found to be closer to NASA-GEOS for the Arabian Sea and India. Comparison with limited in-situ FLUXNET observations shows NASA-GEOS has a better agreement for India, and NOAA-CT is better for Europe, Africa, and the US. The mean climatology of these datasets exhibits spatially distinct and coherent patterns of positive and negative fluxes that characterize the source and sink of atmospheric CO2 across the globe. The tropical oceanic and terrestrial regions and the southern circumpolar oceans have been playing as the sources, whereas the temperate oceanic and terrestrial ecosystems and the Eurasian Boreal are the sinks. The seasonal cycles of the fluxes are intense over the northern temperate and boreal terrestrial and oceanic regions; wherein annual amplitudes dominate over the semi-annual amplitudes. The mean climatology varies in the range of −6 to 6 gC m−2 month−1 for oceans as well as continents; however, amplitudes of the seasonal cycle are one order higher for the continents (>20 gC m−2 month−1) than that of the oceans (<1 gC m−2 month−1). The tropical desert tracts, especially Sahara and Thar, and the equatorial oceans show minima in their climatological mean with the reduced seasonal cycle. All these data, however, depict a broad agreement in their seasonal cycle and mean climatology; they exhibit significant differences in their annual budgets, amplitude, and phases of annual and semi-annual harmonics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plasticised poly(lactic acid) (PLA)-based antimicrobial films were successfully produced via solvent-casting method. For this purpose, PLA copolymer-bearing quaternary ammonium salt in rate of 5 mol% was successfully fabricated through a two-step reaction procedure, i.e. combination of ring-opening copolymerization and copper(I)-catalysed azide–alkyne cycloaddition click reactions. The synthesized polymer was blended at three different amounts (5, 20 and 30% w/w) with commercial PLA which was plasticized with PEG-1000. After the blending process, antimicrobial activity of all the composite films was investigated against Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) and Gram-negative (Escherichia coli) bacteria via contact-active method. It was determined that the films blended with polymer containing quaternary ammonium salt on its backbone had a highly effective antimicrobial activity against both bacteria, even at the lowest blending rate. Besides, the thermo-mechanical behaviours of obtained films were analysed. Thermal property of films was not changed significantly after blending process of antimicrobial polymer. As a result, it can be said that the film which contains antimicrobial polymer at the lowest amount provides the purpose of this work with the highly effective antimicrobial activity and better mechanical properties compared to other films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study shows the application of pyrolytic oil derived from waste engine oil (WEOPO) as an alternative fuel by blending with ethanol. For this, the effect of blending of ethanol at 5 %, 10 %, 15 %, 20 %, 25 %, and 30 % on the compositions and fuel properties were analyzed. The utmost blending was established based on the higher heating value. The pyrolytic oil used for this study was produced at 550 °C which was the optimum pyrolytic temperature. A comparison study of the blended oil was performed with commercially available gasoline to observe the similarities in their fuel properties and composition. The study confirmed that ethanol can be blended with WEOPO at 20 % by volume to obtain a fuel of a higher heating value of about 44.24 MJ/kg that can be used as fuel. Since WEOPO contains 65.80 % of C4–C12 (gasoline range), hydrocarbon compounds and the rest 31.48 % C11–C15, 11.84 % C15–C19, and 6.94 % > C19 compounds, it can be used as a future fuel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Present work attempted to manufacture kenaf/PLLA/HDPE blended composites using a novel technique of microwave-assisted compression molding (MACM). Since the manufacturing of pure PLLA composite is costly as well as its structural instability while manufacturing via MACM. Therefore, blending of HDPE in PLLA was done for structural stability as well as cost reduction purpose. Influence of microwave power and HDPE blend ratio on thermal and mechanical properties of 20 wt.% kenaf/PLLA/HDPE blended composites were investigated. Effect of various microwave power levels (i.e., 180 W, 360 W, and 540 W) and different HDPE blend percentages (i.e., 0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, and 40%) on mechanical properties of PLLA-based composites studied. Composites fabricated at 180 W and 30% HDPE blend exhibited the highest tensile strength. Elongation of composites decreased at higher microwave power due to decreased relaxation time of molecules. Furthermore, the crystallinity of the composites increased with increasing wt.% of the HDPE blend. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mineral oils used in the heat treatment industry are derivatives of non-renewable petroleum fuel and are toxic and non-biodegradable. Vegetable oils are an ideal substitute for mineral oil due to their superior heat transfer characteristics and eco-friendliness. However, the initial cost of vegetable oils is very high. In addition, the maintenance cost of vegetable oils would be higher due to their poor thermal and oxidative stability than mineral oil. In this context, recycling and reusing waste cooking oil could be a cheaper and eco-friendly alternative. In this study, the fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) produced from the waste sunflower cooking oil through transesterification was blended with sunflower and mineral oils at various proportions. The cooling characteristics of the FAME/oil blends were assessed using the cooling curve analysis according to ASTM D6200 and ISO9950 standards. A solution to the inverse heat conduction problem was used to estimate the spatiotemporal metal/quenchant interfacial heat flux. The uniformity of heat flux was analyzed. The results indicated that blending waste cooking oil-derived FAME in sunflower oil up to 60 vol.% and mineral oil up to 50 vol.% provided comparable cooling characteristics to pure oils. The estimated heat flux transients showed a marginal decrease in peak heat flux for FAME blends in sunflower oil, whereas an increased peak heat flux with mineral oil. The FAME blends less than 60 vol.% in sunflower oil showed higher cooling uniformity. With mineral oil, the blend proportion of up to 50 vol.% increased cooling uniformities compared to pure oil. The characteristic cooling time (t85) increased with the increase in FAME blends in oils. However, the distribution of t85 in the quench probe was uniform for FAME/oil blends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A large amount of data available today and the complex situations present in the industry make decision support systems increasingly necessary. This work deals with a problem of a mining-metallurgical industry in which the production of products used to feed arc furnaces must be sequenced in work shifts. There is a due date and a quality specification for each product. These products are generated from raw materials available in a set of silos and must satisfy the required quality specifications. The aim is to minimize the total production time and the total tardiness. To solve it, we developed a decision support system that applies a matheuristic algorithm to do the product schedule and determine the amount of raw material to produce each product. In the proposed algorithm, the products generated in each work shift are chosen through a dispatch heuristic rule based on the shortest production time. In turn, the amount of raw material to be used is calculated by solving a goal linear programming formulation of a blending problem. We generate instances that simulate real cases to evaluate the developed algorithm. The results show a good performance of the proposed algorithm, validating its use as a tool to support decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We discuss Geiogamah's dramatic depiction of the evolving train of thought within the indigenous society through a joined study of his Body Indian, Foghorn, and 49—three full-length, independent works. Application of cognitive poetics strategies highlights the potential within these plays to enlighten the immediate past and contemporary indigenous society and illustrates how storytelling functions as a resuscitating tool within indigenous communities. If read together as a trilogy, these plays reveal Geiogamah's artistic maneuvers: having depicted the historical trauma which has afflicted the contemporary indigenous society through the textual actual world of Body Indian, he exposes the long-established ideologies at work for Indigenous peoples' subjugation through spatio-temporal re-locations and 'conceptual blends' in Foghorn and, finally, puts forward a sketch of the ideal indigenous possible world in 49. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, to improve the thermo-mechanical properties of glycidyl azide polymer (GAP)-based elastomers, polyethylene adipate (PEA) with different molecular weights was successfully synthesized using a solvent-free method. GAP was synthesized by cationic ring-opening polymerization of epichlorohydrin and then azidation. The structure of PEA and GAP was characterized by FTIR, 1HNMR, and GPC. The compatibility of GAP/PEA at various weight ratio blends was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry. The result indicated GAP/PEA is compatible, and addition of PEA to GAP leads to the decrease in glass transition temperature. The copolyurethane elastomers were prepared by cross-linking GAP and PEA at various weight ratios using isophorone diisocyanate and N100 as curing agent. The thermo-mechanical properties were evaluated by dynamic mechanical analysis and tensile test. Based on the results, with increasing weight ratios of PEA, the copolyurethane elastomers displayed an increase in tensile strength (6.97 MPa) and elongation (792%) in comparison with GAP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effectiveness of the rice flour blends (RFB) for improving the processing suitability of Dodamssal rice flour (DD), a functional rice variety with a relatively high amylose and resistance starch content, was investigated. Physicochemical properties and freeze–thaw stability of RFB composed of DD and four rice flour (RF) samples with different amylose contents were measured at different DD ratios. DD, which has low swelling power and low pasting viscosity properties, has improved some quality in terms of physicochemical properties by blending with other RF. Especially, non-additive behavior was observed in the blend with Geonyang No.2 RF (GY), a medium waxy variety, due to water competition caused by the difference in pasting temperature. The syneresis of DD was reduced by blending with 75% Hanareum No. 4 RF, with a gradual reduction effect observed following a repeated freeze–thaw cycle. GY significantly improved the low freeze–thaw stability of DD with only a 25% blend. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Popular translators such as Google, Bing, etc., perform quite well when translating among the popular languages such as English, French, etc.; however, they make elementary mistakes when translating the low-resource languages such as Bengali, Arabic, etc. Google uses Neural Machine Translation (NMT) approach to build its multilingual translation system. Prior to NMT, Google used Statistical Machine Translation (SMT) approach. However, these approaches solely depend on the availability of a large parallel corpus of the translating language pairs. As a result, a good number of widely spoken languages such as Bengali, remain little explored in the research arena of artificial intelligence. Hence, the goal of this study is to explore improvized translation from Bengali to English. To do so, we study both the rule-based translator and the corpus-based machine translators (NMT and SMT) in isolation, and in combination with different approaches of blending between them. More specifically, first, we adopt popular corpus-based machine translators (NMT and SMT) and a rule-based machine translator for Bengali to English translation. Next, we integrate the rule-based translator with each of the corpus-based machine translators separately using different approaches. Besides, we perform rigorous experimentation over different datasets to report the best performance score for Bengali to English translation till today by revealing a comparison among the different approaches in terms of translation performance. Finally, we discuss how our different blending approaches can be re-used for other low-resource languages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dialdehyde hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (DHPMC)/Collagen (DHPMC/COL) solutions were prepared with different DHPMC contents (0–70 wt%). According to the viscosimetric method, all samples were compatible. The compatibility was related to Schiff's base, which formed between the amino groups of collagen and the dialdehyde groups of DHPMC. When DHPMC content increased, the cross-linking degree increased, and the synchronous negative cross-peaks between the C-O(H) of DHPMC at 1031 cm−1 and amide bands of collagen at 1623 cm−1, 1523 cm−1, and 1238 cm−1 indicated that hydrogen bonds mainly formed between DHPMC and collagen. As a result, the thermal stability improved. The morphology showed more sheet-like structures than collagen. When the DHPMC content was 50 wt%, the thermal denaturation temperature (Td) and residual weight% were 8.5 °C and 10.22%, respectively, higher than other samples. However, the cross-linking degree decreased as the DHPMC content increased further. The intensity of negative cross-peak was decreased in synchronous correlation spectra, while the intensity of cross-peak at 1031 cm−1 was enhanced, indicating that hydrogen bonds formed between the C–O and C–O(H) of the DHPMC were enhanced. Consequently, the thermal stability decreased and more porous structures were observed compared to those when DHPMC content was 50 wt%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Results of our research on crosslinked latexes and polymer nanoparticles will be reported. Goals of this long-term program have been: comparing precoalescence and post-coalescence crosslinking; synthesizing polymer nanoparticle latexes (~ 20 to 25 nm) from a variety of acrylic monomers, including crosslinking and crosslinkable monomers; and blending nanoparticle latexes with compatible conventional (~ 120 to 130 nm) latexes and understanding their effects on film formation and on fundamental and empirical film properties. As we previously reported, blending conventional and nanolatexes in an 85/15 ratio (w/w of polymer solids) effects substantial changes of fundamental film properties. Best results included reducing minimum filming temperatures (MFT) while increasing Young's moduli by factors of two to 17. Substantial improvements in empirical film properties such as gloss (up to 97 at 60°), hardness (increased by 2–5 pencils), block resistance, and adhesion to aluminum were also found. The previous report covered only a single blend ratio. Here we report studies of blends with ratios of conventional to nanoparticle latexes ranging from 92.5/7.5 to 30/70 (w/w). As before, the latexes and nanolatexes are BMA/BA copolymers with 0–4 wt.% of 1,3-butylene glycol dimethacrylate (precoalescence crosslinker) and 0–5 wt.% of diacetone acrylamide (for post-coalescence crosslinking with adipic dihydrazide). Films cast from these blends are subjected to everyday empirical coatings tests and are characterized using instrumental tests including dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and modulated differential scanning calorimetry (MDSC). Film formation and film morphology are studied using atomic force microscopy (AFM). The results confirm that blending nanoparticles at ratios up to 50/50 (w/w of polymer solids) can substantially improve certain properties of conventional latex films. For many properties, the optimum ratio is around 85/15 conventional/nano; a 92.5/7.5 ratio also affords substantial improvements. As coatings, the blends have near-zero VOC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The partial cycle (PC) strategy has been used in many rapid refresh cycle systems (RRC) for regional short-range weather forecasting. Since the strategy periodically reinitializes the regional model (RM) from the global model (GM) forecasts to correct the large-scale drift, it has replaced the traditional full cycle (FC) strategy in many RRC systems. However, the extra spin-up in the PC strategy increases the computer burden on RRC and generates discontinuous small-scale systems among cycles. This study returns to the FC strategy but with initial fields generated by dynamic blending (DB) and data assimilation (DA). The DB ingests the time-varied large-scale information from the GM to the RM to generate less-biased background fields. Then the DA is performed. We applied the new FC strategy in a series of 7-day batch forecasts with the 3-hour cycle in July 2018, and February, April, and October 2019 over China using a Weather Research and Forecast (WRF) model-based RRC. A comparison shows that the new FC strategy results in less model bias than the PC strategy in most state variables and improves the forecast skills for moderate and light precipitation. The new FC strategy also allows the model to reach a balanced state earlier and gives favorable forecast continuity between adjacent cycles. Hence, this new FC strategy has potential to be applied in RRC forecast systems to replace the currently used PC strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Liquid electrolytes in commercial lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries are corrosive, volatile and flammable. For these reasons, solid polymer electrolyte membranes are used to replace liquid electrolytes. This research focused on the fabrication of biopolymer blend electrolyte (BBE) membranes by blending commercial methylcellulose (MC) and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC). CMC was synthesized by using microwave-assisted organic synthesis method at the optimum condition of 50°C, 60 min, 100 watts, and BBE membranes were prepared by casting solution technique at room temperature with various compositions. BBE membranes were characterized by Fourier transform infrared, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, tensile tester, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and thermogravimetry analysis/differential thermogravimetry/differential thermal analysis to analyse functional groups, ionic conductivities, mechanical properties, crystallinities, morphological and thermal stability, respectively. The blend membrane polymer host with a composition of MC/CMC (50/50) and 10% LiClO4 salt, which shows a good ionic conductivity, tensile strength, elongation at break and thermal decomposition temperature, i.e., 1.20 × 10−2 S cm−1; 11.02 MPa; 17.33% and 202.84°C, respectively. These characteristics of BBE membranes have potential to be applied as Li-batteries separator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A common difficulty in introducing reading instruction involves teaching students to blend letter sounds to form words. Often, this difficulty can occur with and without textual stimuli. In 2 experiments, we tested the effects of behavioral momentum blending on acquisition of textual and spelling responses with 11 preschool students. The 3- and 4-year-old participants presented with language and social delays and were selected due to their explicit difficulty in blending as beginning readers. Prior to intervention, we taught participants to rapidly respond to mastered words with up to 5 phoneme–grapheme correspondences. During intervention, textual responses to mastered words were followed by the presentation of a novel word. Participants heard vocal models of component phonemes prior to requiring a blended textual response; models and the behavioral momentum antecedents were faded within sessions. Dependent measures consisted of novel textual and spelling responses and vocally blended responses. In Experiment 2, we added a response-to-extinction measure to compare the reinforcing value of observing text prior to and following intervention. Increases in textual and spelling responses occurred for all participants as well as a shift in reinforcement value in Experiment 2. Results highlight the educational significance of blending when establishing textual responding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is of great industrial importance to produce multicomponent mixtures with a high degree of uniformity. The uniformity of the mixture affects the characteristics and external appearance of the final product. Mixers are mainly used in mixture preparation. The pneumatic mixer is a complex system for blending fine dry powders and has not been extensively studied. These devices are fully compliant with environmental and production standards, do not pose health hazards, and match the performance of mechanical mixers. The mixture uniformity and mixing time achieved for fine materials in pneumatic systems are calculated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, conventional diesel fuel, pure Jatropha biodiesel, Jatropha-butanol blended fuel, and Jatropha biodiesel with fumigated butanol were tested in a single-cylinder direct-injection four-stroke diesel engine. The engine performance, combustion, and emissions were measured at 3600 rpm and brake power of 4.4 kW. For Jatropha, tests revealed that brake thermal efficiency was reduced by 5% and brake-specific fuel consumption was increased by 17% relative to diesel. An overall reduction in exhaust emissions (oxides of nitrogen, unburned hydrocarbons, and smoke opacity) was observed with the exceptions of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. For Jatropha-butanol blended fuel, the efficiency was increased by 2% relative to Jatropha; however, it was still 3% less than that of diesel. The fuel consumption was increased relative to both Jatropha and diesel. In terms of emissions, oxides of nitrogen and smoke opacity were reduced by 12.3% and 72%, respectively, with increased carbon monoxide and unburned hydrocarbon emissions compared to diesel fuel. For Jatropha with fumigated butanol, the efficiency was increased by 4% relative to Jatropha and decreased by mere 1% when compared to diesel. The fuel consumption showed a reduction of 1.4% when compared to Jatropha. A substantial decrease in opacity (85%), oxides of nitrogen (12.7%), and carbon dioxide (4%) emissions was recorded relative to diesel; however, carbon monoxide and unburned hydrocarbons were increased. It was concluded that butanol fumigation successfully improved the properties of Jatropha biodiesel and provided an overall better performance relative to blended fuel and neat Jatropha biodiesel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extensive research on coal, coking batch, and coke has shown the broad utility of reflectogram analysis in coke chemistry—for example, in distinguishing between concentrates with broadly similar properties (twins), in producing coke of high quality, and in predicting the jamming and drilling of coke ovens. The interactions in coking batch that contains petrographically nonuniform coal are analyzed. The coking index proposed considerably simplifies and improves the model for predicting coke quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work presents a new strategy for dealing with blending requirements in the composite structures design. Firstly, new analytical expressions of blending constraints, in the polar parameters space, are derived. Secondly, a dedicated numerical strategy for the recovery of blended stacking sequences is presented. The proposed approach is implemented in the framework of the multi-scale two-level optimisation strategy (MS2LOS) for composite laminates design. The theoretical aspects of this work are supported by the application of the proposed methodology to a numerical benchmark taken from the literature. The results obtained by means of the MS2LOS based on the polar formalism outperform those reported in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to their inherent biocompatibility and biodegradability, biopolymer-based materials are a good replacement for synthetic materials. We prepared cellulose-based films blended with various biopolymers by co-dissolution in 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate followed by regeneration in ethanol. Cellulose was blended with bacterial cellulose, β-cyclodextrin, dextran, starch, agarose, agar, arabic gum, κ-carrageenan, chitosan, tragacanth gum, xanthan gum, xylan, lignin, gelatin, collagen, and silk. Physicochemical properties including surface morphology, thermal properties, optical properties, and hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity of the blended films were highly dependent on the biopolymer types. The altered properties of the blended films influenced the adsorption capacity for dyes and proteins and cytotoxicity. The adsorption capacity of a cellulose/chitosan film for methyl orange was 9.1-fold higher, that of a cellulose/silk film for crystal violet was 7.9-fold higher, and that of a cellulose/chitosan film for lysozyme was 7.9-fold higher than that of cellulose film. Gelatin as a blending biopolymer most efficiently enhanced cell viability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In aircraft design, proper tailoring of composite anisotropic characteristics allows to achieve weight saving while maintaining good aeroelastic performance. To further improve the design, dynamic loads and manufacturing constraints should be integrated in the design process. The objective of this paper is to evaluate how the introduction of continuous blending constraints affects the optimum design and the retrieval of the final stacking sequence for a regional aircraft wing. The effect of the blending constraints on the optimum design (1) focuses on static and dynamic loading conditions and identifies the ones driving the optimization and (2) explores the potential weight saving due to the implementation of a manoeuvre load alleviation (MLA) strategy. Results show that while dynamic gust loads can be critical for wing design, in the case of a regional aircraft, their influence is minimal. Nevertheless, MLA strategies can reduce the impact of static loads on the final design in favour of gust loads, underlining the importance of considering such load-cases in the optimisation. In both cases, blending does not strongly affect the load criticality and retrieve a slightly heavier design. Finally, blending constraints confirmed their significant influence on the final discrete design and their capability to produce more manufacturable structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ensemble learning helps improve machine learning results by combining several models and allows the production of better predictive performance compared to a single model. It also benefits and accelerates the researches in quantitative structure–activity relationship (QSAR) and quantitative structure–property relationship (QSPR). With the growing number of ensemble learning models such as random forest, the effectiveness of QSAR/QSPR will be limited by the machine's inability to interpret the predictions to researchers. In fact, many implementations of ensemble learning models are able to quantify the overall magnitude of each feature. For example, feature importance allows us to assess the relative importance of features and to interpret the predictions. However, different ensemble learning methods or implementations may lead to different feature selections for interpretation. In this paper, we compared the predictability and interpretability of four typical well-established ensemble learning models (Random forest, extreme randomized trees, adaptive boosting and gradient boosting) for regression and binary classification modeling tasks. Then, the blending methods were built by summarizing four different ensemble learning methods. The blending method led to better performance and a unification interpretation by summarizing individual predictions from different learning models. The important features of two case studies which gave us some valuable information to compound properties were discussed in detail in this report. QSPR modeling with interpretable machine learning techniques can move the chemical design forward to work more efficiently, confirm hypothesis and establish knowledge for better results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stock-market prediction using machine-learning technique aims at developing effective and efficient models that can provide a better and higher rate of prediction accuracy. Numerous ensemble regressors and classifiers have been applied in stock market predictions, using different combination techniques. However, three precarious issues come in mind when constructing ensemble classifiers and regressors. The first concerns with the choice of base regressor or classifier technique adopted. The second concerns the combination techniques used to assemble multiple regressors or classifiers and the third concerns with the quantum of regressors or classifiers to be ensembled. Subsequently, the number of relevant studies scrutinising these previously mentioned concerns are limited. In this study, we performed an extensive comparative analysis of ensemble techniques such as boosting, bagging, blending and super learners (stacking). Using Decision Trees (DT), Support Vector Machine (SVM) and Neural Network (NN), we constructed twenty-five (25) different ensembled regressors and classifiers. We compared their execution times, accuracy, and error metrics over stock-data from Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE), Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE-SENSEX) and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), from January 2012 to December 2018. The study outcome shows that stacking and blending ensemble techniques offer higher prediction accuracies (90–100%) and (85.7–100%) respectively, compared with that of bagging (53–97.78%) and boosting (52.7–96.32%). Furthermore, the root means square error (RMSE) recorded by stacking (0.0001–0.001) and blending (0.002–0.01) shows a better fit of ensemble classifiers and regressors based on these two techniques in market analyses compared with bagging (0.01–0.11) and boosting (0.01–0.443). Finally, the results undoubtedly suggest that an innovative study in the domain of stock market direction prediction ought to include ensemble techniques in their sets of algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A reactive diluent (ODA-PEPA) and a flexible phenylethynyl-terminated imide oligomer (PEI-PEPA) were designed and synthesized based on the 2,3,3',4'-diphenyl ether tetracarboxylic acid dianhydride (a-ODPA), 3,4'-oxydianiline (3,4'-ODA), and 4-phenylethynylphthalic anhydride (PEPA). Solution blended systems with the addition of 5, 10, and 15 wt% ODA-PEPA to PEI-PEPA oligomer and their cured resin systems were prepared. Results showed that ODA-PEPA is semi-crystalline in nature. The Tg values of cured resins were improved from 273 °C to 280 °C by the addition of ODA-PEPA, due to the higher crosslink densities. In addition, rheological properties of blends showed lower melt viscosity and wider processing window, revealing improved melt processabilities for potential application in making advanced composites. The isothermal viscosity in 280 °C of PEI-PEPA containing 15 wt% ODA-PEPA reactive diluent decreased by two thirds, due to the low molecular weight of ODA-PEPA. The cured blends demonstrated high thermal stability and heat resistance. 5 wt% thermal decomposition temperatures (Td5) of the cured blends were above 549 °C and 547 °C in N2 and air atmosphere, respectively. The char yield reported at 800 °C in N2 atmosphere increased from 58.8% to 63.7 % with the addition of ODAPEPA. Meanwhile, the cured polyimides blends possessed good bond strength (> 9.3 MPa). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The modern concepts of crude oils and refinery products as petroleum disperse systems are surveyed, as well as the related possibilities of optimizing crude oil refining processes. Through the optimal blending of components, it is possible to increase the yield of desired products in the primary and secondary processing of petroleum feedstock. Examples of increasing the yield of distillate fractions during the distillation of blended feedstock of optimal composition are shown. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The work studied a non-catalytic upgrading of fast pyrolysis bio-oil by blending under supercritical conditions using methanol, ethanol and isopropanol as solvent and hydrogen donor. Characterisation of the bio-oil and the upgraded bio-oils was carried out including moisture content, elemental content, pH, heating value, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GCMS), Fourier transform infrared radiation, 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis to evaluate the effects of blending and supercritical reactions. The GCMS analysis indicated that the supercritical methanol reaction removed the acids in the bio-oil consequently the pH increased from 2.39 in the crude bio-oil to 4.04 after the supercritical methanol reaction. The ester contents increased by 87.49% after the supercritical methanol reaction indicating ester formation could be the major deacidification mechanism for reducing the acidity of the bio-oil and improving its pH value. Simply blending crude bio-oil with isopropanol was effective in increasing the C and H content, reducing the O content and increasing the heating value to 27.55 from 17.51 MJ·kg−1 in the crude bio-oil. After the supercritical isopropanol reaction, the heating value of the liquid product slightly further increased to 28.85 MJ·kg−1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate the suitability of refined bleached deodorized palm olein oil (RBD POO) and Macadamia integrifolia oil (MO) blend as deep-fat frying substitute. Oxidative and hydrolytic stability of MO, POO and blends during 15 days of storage under accelerated oxidation condition (65 °C ± 1) studied by assessing free fatty acids (FFA), peroxide (PV), anisidine (AV) and TOTOX (TV) values. Blends formulated with POO: MO at 100:0, 75:25, 50:50, 25:75 and 0:100. Blending significantly affected the fatty acid profile, smoke point, FFA, PV, AV and TV of all samples (p < 0.05). Both independent variables (storage time and type of oil) and their interaction had significant effect on FFA, PV, AV and TV (p < 0.05). On day 15, the highest and the lowest FFA observed for MO and POO, respectively. The significant difference between FFA of MO and POO before incubation and day 15th was due to role of refining process in elimination of initial FFAs from POO. Results of PV, AV and TV showed that the highest and least changes were presented by POO and MO, respectively. Oil blends containing higher proportions of MO with a great percentage of monounsaturated and less polyunsaturated fats were more stable against oxidation. Also, presence of antioxidants played significant role against MO oxidation. From this research, blending POO with MO improved induction period of the blends and inhibited primary and secondary oxidation products formation. Blend 25:75 met the qualitative and nutritional criteria and suggested for formulation of a functional oxidative stable frying medium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motion trajectory commands are usually generated using CAD/CAM software and a specified motion controller. At the CAD/CAM stage, the motion commands are generated with respect to the constrains on the contouring error and the application. These commands are also related to the motion controller, which incorporates an advanced blending interpolation method in its function core. Although, high-speed motion can be achieved using blending interpolation, the accuracy of the trajectory is decreased. This study proposes a new blending method that uses a predefined absolute accuracy to optimize both the speed and the accuracy of the generated motion trajectory. The proposed method uses two strategies: the first accelerates or decelerates the velocity profile and the second inserts an arc trajectory command and the corresponding blending accuracy in a critical segment, in order to achieve the speed and the contouring error that is predefined by the user. Four cases are used to determine the performance of the proposed method: (a) line-to-line, (b) line-to-arc, (c) arc-to-arc, and (d) arc-to-line interpolations. The experiments use a predefined speed and accuracy for the motion trajectory. The results demonstrate that the proposed motion trajectory planning process satisfies the needs of industrial applications such as laser cutting and dispensing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Engineering of ductile, tough and thermal resistant PLA-based materials requires blending of PLA with other constituents by reactive twin-screw co-rotating extrusion to achieve compounds with adequate thermo-mechanical properties. Then, the compound of the polymeric blends must be melt processed to the final shape with an additional technology, namely the injection molding. The two-stage process the polymeric blends must undergo and the different rheological properties the blends must feature to be suitable to the different processing steps make extremely difficult to engineer the material. Extrusion compounding requires high viscous materials low melt flow index (MFI), while injection molding requires materials with low viscosity (high MFI). To overcome these shortcomings, this manuscript deals with the design of novel biodegradable PLA-based blends that rely on mixing PLA grades with different MFI (i.e. very low for extrusion and high for injection molding), each chosen to feature the rheological characteristics needed for each step of the two-stage transformation process. The ratio of the two PLA-grades inside the blends was the matter of the present investigation. The blends were subsequently tested for the manufacturing of single-use biodegradable and thermal resistant injection molded small cups, specifically designed for brewing of hot beverages. Lastly, the thermo-mechanical performance of the as-is and annealed cups were studied. Experimental evidences show blending of two-different grades of PLA is a promising route to formulate low impact polymeric materials suitable for demanding packaging solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an approach to design composite panels via multiple stacking sequence tables (SST) such that the continuity constraints between adjacent regions are maintained. Traditional SST methods determine all the stacking sequences with only one SST, but this simplification limits the design option space. To increase the design freedom, this research utilizes multiple SSTs to blend the stacking sequences of a laminated structure. In the design process of the proposed approach, the monotonicity property of predicted laminate thicknesses is employed to determine the number of SSTs, and an SST rebuilding method is developed to satisfy the blending constraints. In the implementation of the simulated annealing algorithm for solving the optimal design problem, an SST difference code is introduced to represent feasible solutions, and a particular neighborhood structure is proposed to sufficiently explore the solutions in design space. Finally, the 18-region benchmark problem is chosen to validate the efficiency and accuracy of the proposed method. The results reveal that, compared with other existing methods, the proposed method can generate manufacturable solutions with lower weights under the symmetry and balance constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Core–shell natural rubber (CSNR), or encapsulated NR, was obtained by admicellar polymerization of poly(methyl methacrylate)-co-poly(3-trimethoxy silylpropyl methacrylate) (PMMA-co-PMPS) covering onto the NR particles. The core–shell structure was clearly observed in TEM micrographs. The presence of siloxane crosslinks in the shell was confirmed by FT-IR spectra. The obtained CSNR (containing NR core 70.85 wt% and polymeric shell 29.15 wt%) at 1–10 wt% loading was used to improve toughness and mechanical properties of PMMA. SEM micrographs revealed that the CSNR had excellent compatibility and good interfacial adhesion to the PMMA matrix. The impact strength of CSNR-PMMA blends increased with CSNR content having the maximum at about 5.85 kJ/m2, which is 23% higher than neat PMMA (4.58 kJ/m2). The elongation at break clearly improved to the maximum at 5 wt% CSNR, and tensile toughness was about 219% higher than for neat PMMA, while elongation was about 91% higher than for neat PMMA. Several toughening mechanisms (rubber cavitation, plastic yielding of the matrix, and partial pull-out of rubber) appeared in the impact test, while the mechanisms for tensile toughening included rubber cavitation and crazing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]