22 research outputs found
Exploration of croconic acid disodium salt as an organic battery electrode material
No full textWe investigated croconic acid disodium salt for potential use as Li-ion battery material. The crystal was shown to be a promising electrode material with a medium to short battery cycle lifetime. We embarked in a thorough computational study based on classical molecular dynamics simulations to characterize this system and identify optimization strategies to improve battery lifetime. Through long-timescale molecular dynamics simulations in the Canonical Ensemble and Isothermal-Isobaric ensembles, we first established that the custom force field that we generated for this system reproduces the known thermodynamics of the Croconic acid disodium salt dihydrate crystal. In a second step, we predict the existence of a quasi-degenerate denser polymorph which is slightly less stable at room temperature and becomes more stable starting T=420K compared to the known crystal structure as determined by X-Ray crystallography. Interestingly, we find that upon adding lithium the system chooses the denser phase even at room temperature. Lithiation of the denser phase leads to moderate volume increases of about 0.75% for each additional 1% lithiation. By extrapolation of the results of the simulations, we conjecture that a phase transition takes place in the very first stages of lithiation. This should initially reduce the volume, resulting in the formation of cracks in the material contributing to a short battery cycle lifetime. We thus propose to assemble batteries based on croconate at an elevated temperature.M.S.Includes bibliographical referencesby Rupali Chawl
Efficient Sunflower Solar Power Tracking and Monitoring System
No full textThe amplified need for renewable energy sources has increased the demand for efficient solar energy systems. This paper brings forth an inspiration of a sunflower-solar power tracking and monitoring system. In this approach, the optimum capturing of energy has been achieved by tracking the movement of a natural sunflower as it follows the movement of the sun. It consists of miniature solar panels, N2O gear motors, Li-Po batteries, MG 996 R servo motors, limit switches, light-dependent resistors (LDRs), and an Arduino Nano 328P microcontroller, integrated along with an L293D motor driver. Integration of proactive sensing and real-time tracking capabilities into the proposed system heavily improves the generation of solar energy, thus significantly reducing energy wastage. Experimental results confirm that this new design is effective and promising in improving the efficiency of solar energy
Gene diversity among some endogamous population of Amravati District, Maharashtra, India.
No full textThe present work deals with the distribution of ABO, Rh and sickling alleles as markers to study the genetic structure and micro-demarcation among castes and tribal populations from the Amravati district of Maharashtra. Three loci namely, ABO, Rh and sickling were selected to measure the relative frequency of respective alleles in ten (10) endogamous populations inhabiting the Amravati District. The ABO locus was found to be less polymorphic when compared with other loci. On the other hand, Rh and sickling loci were found to be more polymorphic. Construction of a dendrogram using allele frequency data reveals an interesting relationship among the caste and tribe. An analysis shows three major clades comprising A, B and C. Clade A comprises Islamic Dawoodi Bohra and Hindu Gujrati. Clade B comprises the upper castes, Brahmin, Jain, Kashmiris and Kunbis, while Clade C shows Gonds and Katchhi. This study is a first attempt to provide a genetic landscape of castes and tribes inhabiting the Vidarbha region. The findings are discussed in light of the historical, anthropological and genetic data available for the studied group
Image Steganography Based on Complemented Message and Inverted Bit LSB Substitution
No full textAbstractSteganography is the art of encoding/embedding secret information in cover media in such a way so as not to provoke an eavesdropper's suspicion. The primary purpose of this paper is to provide three levels of security, first is provided by complementing the secret message, second by hiding complemented secret message in cover image pixels that are selected randomly by using pseudo random number generator, third by using inverted bit LSB method2 as stegnographic technique rather than simple LSB, thus, reduces the chance of the hidden message being detected. MSE (Mean Square Error) and PSNR (Peak Signal to Noise Ratio) are two common quality measurements to measure the difference between the cover-image and the stego-image. Results showed that the proposed method gives better results than simple LSB and inverted LSB with higher PSNR and lower MSE
Perspectives on sexual minority mental health in India
No full textA higher mental health burden for non-heterosexual individuals has been consistently demonstrated in the literature, though most of this research has focused on high income countries where homosexuality is considered more socially acceptable (Blondeel et al., 2016; Chakraborty et. al, 2011; Kohut et. al, 2013). The decriminalization of homosexuality in India in 2018 signifies an important legal and social change for sexual minority Indians. However, research on sexual minority adults in India has largely focused on HIV status and risk rather than the experiences and specific mental health needs of this population. Similarly, existing research on mental health treatment in India is limited and largely based on task-shifting to less qualified healthcare workers, primary care integration, and availability of resources.This study aims to contribute to this limited body of research by developing an understanding of the specific mental health needs and experiences of sexual minority adults in Delhi, NCR. Additionally, this study examines perceptions and training gaps of the mental healthcare providers (MHPs) working with sexual minority individuals. An interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) approach was used to analyze data from two virtual focus groups – one with sexual minority (SM) adults (n = 8), and the second with mental healthcare providers (n = 7). Six superordinate themes emerged from each focus group discussion. For the SM group, these included the consequences of coming out, the psychological impact of queerness, mental health care experiences, experiences of the self and identity, ecological experiences in the Indian context, and the arc of resilience. For the MHP group these included presenting problems, barriers to care, ecological experiences in the Indian context, provider training issues, therapist growth, and responsibility and accountability. These findings present several implications for understanding the unique experiences and mental health needs of urban sexual minority Indians as well as recommendations for the improvement of MHP training. Strengths and limitations of the current study are discussed and suggestions for further research and policy changes are presented.Psy.D.Includes bibliographical reference
Influence of ice rheology and dust content on the dynamics of north-polar cap of Mars
No full textThe evolution and dynamics of the north-polar cap (residual-ice-cap/layered-deposits complex) of Mars is simulated with a thermomechanical ice-sheet model. We consider a scenario with ice-free initial conditions at 5 Ma before present due to the large obliquities which prevailed prior to this time. The north-polar cap is then built up to its present shape, driven by a parameterized climate forcing (surface temperature, surface mass balance) based on the obliquity and eccentricity history. The effects of different ice rheologies and different dust contents are investigated. It is found that the build-up scenarios require an accumulation rate of approximately 0.15–0.2 mm a−1 at present. The topography evolution is essentially independent of the ice dynamics due to the slow ice flow. Owing to the uncertainties associated with the ice rheology and the dust content, flow velocities can only be predicted within a range of two orders of magnitude. Likely present values are of the order of 0.1–1 mm a−1, and a strong variation over the climatic cycles is found. For all cases, computed basal temperatures are far below pressure melting
IJCM_404A: Newborn deaths in Maharashtra: A qualitative thematic analysis of newspaper articles
No full textBackground:
As per statistics on infant mortality, the State of Maharashtra has done well in bringing down IMR from 33 to 16 per 1000 live births. However, in recent years many incidents come to light, especially in the case of institutional deliveries where newborns die either due to infrastructure failure or dysfunctional equipment. On a programmatic level, this has serious implications. Schemes such as Janani Suraksha Yojana promote institutional deliveries, but the institutes are unable to tend to the patient load efficiently. Analysing newspaper articles covering such incidents will throw light on actionable points for policy change. Experts from various fields tend to author such articles. Therefore it’s imperative to search every source available to bottleneck the areas for improvement.
Objective:
1. To understand the perspectives of authors about newborn deaths in Maharashtra 2. To derive major areas of concern raised by such articles possibly causing newborn deaths in Maharashtra
Methodology:
All newspaper articles published in the last 2 years about newborn deaths in Maharashtra were identified. They were segregated according to the Name of the newspaper, author, incident, period etc. A thematic analysis was performed on 12 such articles to uncover different themes and sub themes.
Results:
Major themes that emerged were related to infrastructure issues and equipment failure. Another important theme was the higher patient load on secondary care due to excessive referrals from primary health facilities. The schemes promoting institutional deliveries did not anticipate the additional workload on district and subdistrict hospitals. Strengthening primary care remains the major area of concern.
Conclusion:
Lack of quality assurance is the major bottleneck at the infrastructure level. Strengthening primary care will reduce the excessive workload on district and subdistrict hospitals. All these are part of the same chain of events
Temperature Stratification Induced Ignition Regimes for Gasoline Surrogates at Engine-Relevant Conditions
No full textFunding Information: Open Access funding enabled and organized by CAUL and its Member Institutions. The author received logistical and laboratory support from the Caribbean Research and Management of Biodiversity (CARMABI) Foundation and its director Mark Vermeij whilst employed by the Western Australian Museum which funded some travel expenses. All data generated and analysed during this study are included in the published article. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.End-gas auto-ignition leading to knocking combustion is one of the major barriers to achieving higher thermal efficiencies in downsized boosted spark-ignition engines. Despite the available framework addressing hotspot-induced ignition (detonation peninsula), a quantitative investigation on hotspot-induced auto-ignition of gasoline surrogates is yet to be done. In particular, the effect of negative temperature coefficient (NTC) chemistry on the distribution of the ignition modes in the detonation peninsula is still missing. Using the established one-dimensional (1D) theoretical and computational framework, the effect of average temperature (including NTC range), initial pressure, and ethanol addition are investigated. Moreover, appearance of NTC chemistry-related events i.e. coolspots, secondary ignition kernels, and off-centered ignition are analyzed using 1D simulations. The results are as follows. 1) NTC chemistry affects the distribution of ignition regimes in detonation peninsula and the dynamics of the front propagation via altering the reactivity gradient. 2) NTC chemistry increases the temperature gradient range associated with the detonation regime. 3) NTC may inhibit detonation development by simultaneously promoting the spontaneous/supersonic ignition modes. 4) An ethanol blend decreases the knock propensity; however, lower ignitability may promote detonation development and the appearance of strong shock waves. 5) Finally, detonation may result in a normal knock at lower initial pressures (20 bar). However, at elevated initial pressures (50 bar), detonation is noted to yield pressure intensities resembling super-knock.Peer reviewe
