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In agricultural commodities, the occurrence of deoxynivalenol (DON) has been reported all over the world, with levels varying among grain types and years of production. The grain supply chain, including growers, buyers, and end users, have effectively managed DON with strategies to control this issue systematically. The safety of consumers is ensured through use of these management strategies. This is observed in this review of the North American systems. This article describes the occurrence and management of DON in North America, which is accomplished by 1) a review of the toxicological effects of DON; 2) a review of publically available data and introduction of new information regarding the occurrence of DON in wheat, maize, and barley in North America, including variability due to growing regions, grain varieties, and year of production; 3) an overview of industry practices to reduce DON contamination from field through milling when necessary; 4) a review of how all in the value chain, including growe...

Applying non-aflatoxin-producing Aspergillus flavus isolates to the soil has been shown to be effective in reducing aflatoxin levels in harvested crops, including peanuts, cotton and corn. The aim of this study was to evaluate the possibility of controlling aflatoxin contamination using a novel sprayable formulation consisting of a partially gelatinized starch-based bioplastic dispersion embedded with spores of biocontrol A. flavus strains, which is applied to the leaf surfaces of corn plants.The formulation was shown to be adherent, resulting in colonization of leaf surfaces with the biocontrol strain of A. flavus, and to reduce aflatoxin contamination of harvested kernels by up to 80% in Northern Italy and by up to 89% in the Mississippi Delta. The percentage of aflatoxin-producing isolates in the soil reservoir under leaf-treated corn was not significantly changed, even when the soil was amended with additional A. flavus as a model of changes to the soil reservoir that occur in no-till agriculture.This study indicated that it is not necessary to treat the soil reservoir in order to achieve effective biocontrol of aflatoxin contamination in kernel corn. Spraying this novel bioplastic-based formulation to leaves can be an effective alternative in the biocontrol of A. flavus in corn. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.

Interest in industrial and domestic applications of biodegradable plastics from renewable sources is increasing, but their use in agriculture is still limited (e.g., mulching films, plant pots, and plant clips). However, a sprayable liquid bioplastic formulation was recently evaluated for application of microbial biocontrol agents to agricultural and horticultural crops. In this study bioplastic formulation has been evaluated for use in film-coating seeds of two agronomic species, corn and canola. Bioplastic seed coating was achieved using procedures and equipment designed for commercial polymer film-coating of tablets. Germination of both species was unaffected by the thin bioplastic coating. Bioplastic coatings containing spores of the plant-growth promoting fungus, Trichoderma harzianum , significantly stimulated the growth of corn and canola seeds. In corn seedlings, shoot and root lengths were 29% and 44% longer, respectively, in seeds coated with T. harzianum -containing bioplastic than in uncoated seeds. Similarly, in canola seedlings shoot and root lengths were 19% and 20% longer, respectively, in seeds coated with T. harzianum -containing bioplastic than in uncoated seeds. In a paper-roll assay, including T. harzianum spores prevented reduced germination caused by a mixture of the insecticide imidacloprid and the fungicide metalaxyl-M in bioplastic seed coatings. The adhesive and plastic properties of bioplastic reduced dust-off from bioplastic-coated seeds by 96% in corn and 99% in canola compared to seeds coated with a commercial polymer.

Colletotrichum truncatum, grown on rice grain (3 to 4 weeks, 22°C to 24°C) produced a fungus-infested rice mixture of microsclerotia and conidia (spores) in a ratio of ~9:1, respectively. Greenhouse tests of this formulation (0.4 to 50 mg finely-ground fungus-rice product) which applied pre-emergence to 5 cm2 of soil surface, caused 22% to 96% hemp sesbania plant mortality, after 14 days. Post-emergence treatment (fungus-rice aqueous formulation; 2.4 × 105 microsclerotia ml-1, 30% unrefined corn oil and 0.2% Silwet L-77 surfactant) of weeds surviving the pre-emergence application, resulted in 93% mortality, after 14 days. Based on greenhouse results, field tests were undertaken: 1) pre-emergence treatment (fungus-rice formulation at 2.4 × 105 microsclerotia cm-2), 2) post-emergence (fungus-rice product in 30% unrefined corn oil, 0.2% Silwet) only treatment, applied 15 days after planting and 3) pre-emergence treatment followed by post-emergence treatment (fungus-rice product in 30% unrefined corn oil, 0.2% Silwet) applied 15 days after planting to surviving weeds. Control treatments were: 1) autoclaved rice product sans fungus, 2) unrefined corn oil (30% unrefined corn oil, 0.2% Silwet in water) and 3) untreated plants. Planting dates were: early season (April-May), early-mid season (June-July), late-mid season (July-August), and late season (September-October). Weed mortality was recorded at 15 days for the pre-plus post-treatment, and at 30 days after planting for the pre-emergence only and the post-treatment only. The early season, pre-emergence treatment caused 67% hemp sesbania mortality (3-yr average) within 15 days and the post-emergence treatment caused 91% mortality of the surviving weeds. In the late-mid-season, pre-emergence treatment caused minimal (80%. Results suggest that seasonal environmental conditions are important in the efficacy of this C. truncatum-rice product formulation when applied pre- or post-emergence to this onerous weed.

Cool, wet conditions in the southern US during the maturing stages of rice in 1998 contributed to outbreaks of false smut caused by Ustilaginoidea virens. Water extracts of false smut galls in Asia have been reported to contain ustiloxin toxins, cyclic peptide antibiotics that interfered with microtubule function and caused “lupinosis”-like lesions in mice. Cell-free extracts from false smut galls on rice grown in Arkansas were fractionated by a published procedure for the purification of ustiloxins. The ustiloxin fraction was phytotoxic to Lemnapausicostata (duckweed) at ≥19 μg/ml, but the host plant, rice, was much less susceptible, exhibiting phytotoxic effects in germinating seeds at ≥1000 μg/ml. The aqueous extract of rice false smut galls showed no cytotoxicity to mammalian cell cultures at 200 μg/ml, but the ustiloxin fractionwas cytotoxic at 10 - 100 μg/ml. However, rice false smut galls were not toxic when fed to mice at 10% of chow, but caused feed refusal at higher concentrations. We conclude that for 1) the U. virens which causes false smut in southern USA differs from Asian isolates in that does not produce detectable ustiloxins; and 2) false smut affects the appearance, but not the food safety of rice in the United States.

Soybean seed is a major source of phytochemical compounds that impact human health nutrition and livestock meal. Charcoal rot is a disease caused by the fungus Macrophomina phaseolina (Tassi) Goid, and thought to infect the plants through roots by a toxin-mediated mechanism, resulting in yield loss and poor seed quality, especially under drought conditions. Limited information is available on the effect of charcoal rot on seed phytochemical compounds and mineral nutrition in soybean. Therefore, the objective of this research was to investigate the effect of charcoal rot infection on seed phenol, seed coat lignin, isoflavones, and minerals using susceptible (S) (DK 3964) and moderately resistant (MR) (AG 3905) maturity group (MG)III soybean cultivars to charcoal rot. A two-year field experiment was conducted, and infested soil with charcoal rot (infested soil conditions, INF) or control (non-infested soil conditions, NINF) was used. The results showed that the moderately resistant genotype had higher concentrations of seed phenolics, total isoflavones, and seed coat lignin under infested and non-infested conditions and under irrigated or non-irrigated conditions compared with the susceptible genotype. The same general trend was found for seed K, Ca, P, Mn, Zn, B, and Cu concentrations in the moderately resistant genotype compared with the susceptible genotype. Our research demonstrated that these seed phytochemical constituents may explain the differences between susceptible and moderately resistant cultivars and may play an important role in the resistance to charcoal rot.

Application of a developed methodology for characterization of distributed contaminant sources in a contaminated mine site aquifer involving complex geochemical processes is presented. Linked simulation-optimization models are widely used as efficient tools for identifying unknown groundwater pollution sources. This is an essential first step in determining effective and reliable groundwater management and remediation strategies for a polluted aquifer. However, linking robust numerical models to simulate the transport processes of reactive chemical contaminant species in aquifers involving complex and highly nonlinear physical and geochemical process increases the computational burden extensively, and may affect the feasibility and efficiency of the methodology. To overcome this computational limitation and improve the computational feasibility by avoiding the necessity of repeated numerical simulations, genetic programming-based trained surrogate models are developed to approximately simulate suc...

The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of an antimalarial drug for a particular infection is the drug level associated with a net parasite multiplication rate of one per asexual cycle. To ensure cure of malaria the MIC must be exceeded until all parasites have been eliminated. The development of highly sensitive and accurate polymerase chain reaction quantitation of low-density malaria parasitemia enables prospective pharmacokinetic–pharmacodynamic (PK–PD) characterization of antimalarial drug effects, and now allows identification of the in-vivo MIC. An adaptive design and PK–PD modeling approach was used to determine prospectively the MIC of the new antimalarial cipargamin (KAE609) in adults with uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria, in an open-label, dose-ranging phase 2a study. Vietnamese adults with acute P. falciparum malaria were allocated sequentially to treatment with single 30 mg (n = 6), 20 mg (n = 5), 10 mg (n = 7), or 15 mg (n = 7) doses of cipargamin. Artemisinin-based combination therapy was given after parasite densities had fallen and then risen as cipargamin levels declined below the MIC, but before a return of signs or symptoms. The rates of parasite clearance were dose-dependent with near saturation of effect at an adult dose of 30 mg. The developed PK–PD model accurately predicted the therapeutic responses in 23/25 patients. The predicted median in-vivo MIC was 0.126 ng/mL (range 0.038–0.803 ng/mL). Pharmacometric characterization of the relationship between antimalarial drug concentrations and parasite clearance rates following graded sub-therapeutic antimalarial drug dosing is safe, and provides a rational framework for dose-finding in antimalarial drug development.

Two important mycotoxins, aflatoxin and fumonisin, are among the most potent naturally occurring carcinogens, contaminating maize ( Zea mays ) and affecting crop yield and quality. Resistance of maize to pre-harvest mycotoxin contamination, specifically aflatoxin produced by Aspergillus flavus and fumonisin produced by Fusarium verticillioides , is a goal in breeding programs that screen for these important traits with the aim of developing resistant commercial hybrids. We conducted two years of field evaluations on 87 inbred lines originating primarily in China and Mexico and not previously screened for resistance. The objectives of our study were to identify resistant germplasm for breeding purposes and to examine possible relationships between resistances to the two mycotoxins. Aflatoxin and fumonisin were present in samples harvested from all lines in both years. Concentrations of total aflatoxin ranged from 52.00 ± 20.00 to 1524.00 ± 396.00 μg kg − 1 , while those of fumonisin ranged from 0.60 ± 0.06 to 124.00 ± 19.50 mg kg − 1 . The inbred lines TUN15, TUN61, TUN37, CY2, and TUN49 showed the lowest aflatoxin accumulation and CN1, GT601, TUN09, TUN61, and MP717 the lowest fumonisin accumulation. TUN61 showed the lowest accumulation of both mycotoxins. This study confirmed previous observations that high levels of aflatoxin can coexist with fumonisin, with 55 maize lines showing a positive correlation coefficient between the concentrations of aflatoxin and fumonisin and 32 lines showing a negative correlation coefficient. These selected lines, particularly TUN61, may provide sources of resistance to mycotoxin contamination in breeding programs. However, the mechanism of resistance in this germplasm remains to be identified. Future research should also address factors that influence the fungus–plant interaction, such as herbivory and environmental stress.

The fungus Aspergillus flavus (Link:Fr) causes ear rot of maize (Zea mays L.) and produces the toxic metabolic product aflatoxin. One particularly effective method of controlling the fungus is via host plant resistance, but while several resistant breeding lines have been identified, transferring the resistance genes from these lines into elite cultivars has been less effective than needed. A high number of genes involved with resistance, each with a small effect, and some only found under certain environmental conditions, has hampered resistance breeding. The identification of markers linked to genomic regions associated with resistance would aid in this effort. The goals of this study were to identify and characterize quantitative trait loci (QTL) conferring resistance to aflatoxin accumulation from resistant maize donor Mp313E in a background of the susceptible inbred line Va35; to compare them to the QTL identified from Mp313E in a background of B73; and to test the stability of the QTL identified in Mp313E × Va35 in multiple environments by remapping the phenotypic tails of the Mp313E × Va35 mapping population in new locations. Twenty different QTL were found in this study, 11 of which were also found in different environments using the phenotypic tail subset mapping population, and five of which were likely the same as those reported in the Mp313E × B73 mapping population. This indicates that many of the QTL are stable over the environments and genetic backgrounds tested, which will make them more valuable in breeding efforts.

Ethyl acetate extracts of Armillaria tabescens (strain JNB-OZ344) showed significant fungistatic and bacteristatic activities against several major human pathogens including Candida albicans, Cryptococcus neoformans, Escherichia coli and Mycobacterium intracellulare. Chemical analysis of these extracts led to the isolation and identification of four new compounds, emestrin-F (1), emestrin-G (2), 6-O-(4-O-methyl-β-D-glucopyranosyl)-8-hydroxy-2,7-dimethyl-4H-benzopyran-4-one (3) and cephalosporolide-J (4), along with five other previously known compounds, emestrin (5), cephalosporolide-E (6), decarestrictine-C2 (7), ergosterol and brassicasterol. Structural elucidation of all compounds was carried out by NMR and MS analyses. Antimicrobial assays revealed that compounds 1 and 5 were responsible for the observed growth inhibitory activities of the fungal extracts against the human pathogens tested.

Increased aflatoxin contamination in corn by the fungus Aspergillus flavus is associated with frequent periods of drought and heat stress during the reproductive stages of the plants. The objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between aflatoxin contamination and physiological responses of corn plants under drought and heat stress. The study was conducted in Stoneville, MS, USA under irrigated and non-irrigated conditions. Five commercial hybrids, P31G70, P33F87, P32B34, P31B13 and DKC63-42 and two inbred germplasm lines, PI 639055 and PI 489361, were evaluated. The plants were inoculated with Aspergillus flavus (K-54) at mid-silk stage, and aflatoxin contamination was determined on the kernels at harvest. Several physiological measurements which are indicators of stress response were determined. The results suggested that PI 639055, PI 489361 and hybrid DKC63-42 were more sensitive to drought and high temperature stress in the non-irrigated plots and P31G70 was the most tolerant among all the genotypes. Aflatoxin contamination was the highest in DKC63-42 and PI 489361 but significantly lower in P31G70. However, PI 639055, which is an aflatoxin resistant germplasm, had the lowest aflatoxin contamination, even though it was one of the most stressed genotypes. Possible reasons for these differences are discussed. These results suggested that the physiological responses were associated with the level of aflatoxin contamination in all the genotypes, except PI 639055. These and other physiological responses related to stress may help examine differences among corn genotypes in aflatoxin contamination.

Since graphene nanoplatelet (GNP) is a promising material due to desirable thermal properties, this paper is related to the thermophysical and heat transfer performance of covalently functionalized GNP-based water/ethylene glycol nanofluid through an annular channel. After experimentally measuring thermophysical properties of prepared samples, a computational fluid dynamics study has been carried out to examine the heat transfer and pressure drop of well-dispersed and stabilized nanofluids. The effect of concentration of GNP and Reynolds number at constant wall temperature boundary condition under turbulent flow regime on convective heat transfer coefficient has been investigated. Based on the results, for different Reynolds numbers, the convective heat transfer coefficient of the prepared nanofluid is higher than that of the base fluid. Also, the enhancement of convective heat transfer coefficient and thermal conductivity increase with the increase of GNP concentration in base-fluid. Based on the results of this investigation, there is a significant enhancement on the heat transfer rate associated with loading well-dispersed GNP in base-fluid., {"references":["Mohammed, H.A., Laminar mixed convection heat transfer in a vertical circular tube under buoyancy-assisted and opposed flows. Energy Conversion and Management, 2008. 49(8): p. 2006-2015.","Abu-Nada, E. and H.F. Oztop, Effects of inclination angle on natural convection in enclosures filled with Cu–water nanofluid. International Journal of Heat and Fluid Flow, 2009. 30(4): p. 669-678.","Duka, B., et al., Non-linear approximations for natural convection in a horizontal annulus. International Journal of Non-Linear Mechanics, 2007. 42(9): p. 1055-1061.","Passerini, A., C. Ferrario, and G. Thäter, Natural convection in horizontal annuli: a lower bound for the energy. Journal of Engineering Mathematics, 2008. 62(3): p. 247-259.","Kashani, A., D. Jalali-vahid, and S. Hossainpour, Numerical study of laminar forced convection of water/Al2O3 nanofluid in an annulus with constant wall temperature. IIUM Engineering Journal, 2013. 14(1).","Amiri, A., et al., Microwave-assisted direct coupling of graphene nanoplatelets with poly ethylene glycol and 4-phenylazophenol molecules for preparing stable-colloidal system. Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects, 2015. 487: p. 131-141.","Shanbedi, M., et al., Optimization of the thermal efficiency of a two-phase closed thermosyphon using active learning on the human algorithm interaction. Numerical Heat Transfer, Part A: Applications, 2014. 66(8): p. 947-962.","Solangi, K., et al., A comprehensive review of thermo-physical properties and convective heat transfer to nanofluids. Energy, 2015. 89: p. 1065-1086.","Toghraie, D., V.A. Chaharsoghi, and M. Afrand, Measurement of thermal conductivity of ZnO–TiO2/EG hybrid nanofluid. J Therm Anal Calorim, 2016: p. 1-9.\n[10]\tArzani, H.K., et al., Toward improved heat transfer performance of annular heat exchangers with water/ethylene glycol-based nanofluids containing graphene nanoplatelets. Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry: p. 1-10.\n[11]\tAmiri, A., et al., Backward-facing step heat transfer of the turbulent regime for functionalized graphene nanoplatelets based water–ethylene glycol nanofluids. International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 2016. 97: p. 538-546.\n[12]\tAmiri, A., et al., Laminar convective heat transfer of hexylamine-treated MWCNTs-based turbine oil nanofluid. Energy Conversion and Management, 2015. 105: p. 355-367.\n[13]\tArzani, H.K., et al., Experimental and numerical investigation of thermophysical properties, heat transfer and pressure drop of covalent and noncovalent functionalized graphene nanoplatelet-based water nanofluids in an annular heat exchanger. International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer, 2015. 68: p. 267-275.\n[14]\tArzani, H.K., et al., Experimental investigation of thermophysical properties and heat transfer rate of covalently functionalized MWCNT in an annular heat exchanger. International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer, 2016. 75: p. 67-77.\n[15]\tS. Zeinali Heris, M.N.E., S.Gh. Etemad, Experimental investigation of convective heat transferof Al2O3/water nanofluid in circular tube. International Journal of Heat and Fluid Flow, 2007. 28: p. 203-210.\n[16]\tHeris, S.Z., S.G. Etemad, and M.N. Esfahany, Experimental investigation of oxide nanofluids laminar flow convective heat transfer. International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer, 2006. 33(4): p. 529-535.\n[17]\tShanbedi, M., et al., Thermal performance prediction of two-phase closed thermosyphon using adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system. Heat Transfer Engineering, 2015. 36(3): p. 315-324.\n[18]\tShanbedi, M., et al., Prediction of temperature performance of a two-phase closed thermosyphon using Artificial Neural Network. Heat and Mass Transfer, 2013. 49(1): p. 65-73.\n[19]\tEsfe, M.H. and S. Saedodin, Turbulent forced convection heat transfer and thermophysical properties of Mgo–water nanofluid with consideration of different nanoparticles diameter, an empirical study. J Therm Anal Calorim, 2015. 119(2): p. 1205-1213.\n[20]\tBeheshti, A., M. Shanbedi, and S.Z. Heris, Heat transfer and rheological properties of transformer oil-oxidized MWCNT nanofluid. Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry, 2014. 118(3): p. 1451-1460.\n[21]\tBahiraei, M., A numerical study of heat transfer characteristics of CuO–water nanofluid by Euler–Lagrange approach. J Therm Anal Calorim, 2016. 123(2): p. 1591-1599.\n[22]\tKumar, B.R., et al., Thermal-lens probing of the enhanced thermal diffusivity of gold nanofluid-ethylene glycol mixture. 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Laur, Investigating the diameter of solid particles effects on a laminar nanofluid flow in a curved tube using a two phase approach. International Journal of Heat and Fluid Flow, 2009. 30(4): p. 706-714.\n[33]\tTalebi, F., A.H. Mahmoudi, and M. Shahi, Numerical study of mixed convection flows in a square lid-driven cavity utilizing nanofluid. International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer, 2010. 37(1): p. 79-90.\n[34]\tShahi, M., A.H. Mahmoudi, and F. Talebi, Numerical study of mixed convective cooling in a square cavity ventilated and partially heated from the below utilizing nanofluid. International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer, 2010. 37(2): p. 201-213.\n[35]\tSundar, L.S. and K. Sharma, Turbulent heat transfer and friction factor of Al 2 O 3 nanofluid in circular tube with twisted tape inserts. 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A sprayable liquid biodegradable formulation comprising biocontrol microorganisms imbedded in a dispersed starchbased bioplastic is effective for delivering biocontrol microorganisms and bioactive compounds to soil, crops and seeds and facilitating positioning of biocontrol agents in close proximity to target pests. After application with conventional spray equipment, water evaporates rapidly and the dispersed bioplastic formula remains, serving as a prolonged growth substrate for the biocontrol microorganisms. Application of the bioplastic dispersion formulation comprising Beauveria bassiana significantly reduced damages caused by the European Corn Borer in corn and the Tarnished Plant Bug in cotton. Applying a formulation of spores of a non-aflatoxigenic A. flavus isolate resulted in a 97% reduction of aflatoxin contamination of corn. The bioplastic dispersion formulation is effective in delivering crystal Bacillus thuringiens endotoxins to European Corn Borer larvae, causing 72% mortality. The sprayable bioplastic formulation protects seeds from soil-borne pathogens, thereby reducing damping-off in tomato plants by up to 85%.

Numerical investigation into convective heat transfer of CuO-Water based nanofluid in a pipe with return bend under laminar flow conditions has been done. The impacts of Reynolds number and the volume concentration of nanoparticles on the flow and the convective heat transfer behaviour are investigated. The results indicate that the increase in Reynolds number leads to the enhancement of average Nusselt number, and the increase in specific heat in the presence of the nanofluid results in improvement in heat transfer. Also, the presence of the secondary flow in the curve plays a key role in increasing the average Nusselt number and it appears higher than the inlet and outlet tubes. However, the pressure drop curve increases significantly in the tubes with the increase in nanoparticles concentration., {"references":["Prasher, R., et al., Measurements of nanofluid viscosity and its implications for thermal applications. Applied Physics Letters, 2006. 89(13): p. 133108.","Heris, S.Z., M.N. Esfahany, and S.G. Etemad, Experimental investigation of convective heat transfer of Al 2 O 3/water nanofluid in circular tube. International Journal of Heat and Fluid Flow, 2007. 28(2): p. 203-210.","Chon, C.H., et al., Empirical correlation finding the role of temperature and particle size for nanofluid (Al2O3) thermal conductivity enhancement. Applied Physics Letters, 2005. 87(15): p. 153107-153107.","Nguyen, C., et al., Viscosity data for Al 2 O 3–water nanofluid—hysteresis: is heat transfer enhancement using nanofluids reliable? International Journal of Thermal Sciences, 2008. 47(2): p. 103-111.","Yu, W., et al., Review and comparison of nanofluid thermal conductivity and heat transfer enhancements. Heat Transfer Engineering, 2008. 29(5): p. 432-460.","Chol, S., Enhancing thermal conductivity of fluids with nanoparticles. ASME-Publications-Fed, 1995. 231: p. 99-106.","Lotfi, R., Y. Saboohi, and A. Rashidi, Numerical study of forced convective heat transfer of nanofluids: comparison of different approaches. International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer, 2010. 37(1): p. 74-78.","Oztop, H.F. and E. Abu-Nada, Numerical study of natural convection in partially heated rectangular enclosures filled with nanofluids. International Journal of Heat and Fluid Flow, 2008. 29(5): p. 1326-1336.","Jou, R.-Y. and S.-C. Tzeng, Numerical research of nature convective heat transfer enhancement filled with nanofluids in rectangular enclosures. International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer, 2006. 33(6): p. 727-736.\n[10]\tHo, C.-J., M. Chen, and Z. Li, Numerical simulation of natural convection of nanofluid in a square enclosure: effects due to uncertainties of viscosity and thermal conductivity. 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Mohammadi, Simulation of subcritical flow pattern in 180 uniform and convergent open-channel bends using SSIIM 3-D model. 2011. 4(3)."]}

The new design of heat exchangers utilizing an annular distributor opens a new gateway for realizing higher energy optimization. To realize this goal, graphene nanoplatelet-based water nanofluids with promising thermophysical properties were synthesized in the presence of covalent and noncovalent functionalization. Thermal conductivity, density, viscosity and specific heat capacity were investigated and employed as a raw data for ANSYS-Fluent to be used in two-phase approach. After validation of obtained results by analytical equations, two special parameters of convective heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop were investigated. The study followed by studying other heat transfer parameters of annular pass in the presence of graphene nanopletelesbased water nanofluids at different weight concentrations, input powers and temperatures. As a result, heat transfer performance and friction loss are predicted for both synthesized nanofluids.