Heritage Institute of Technology

About: Heritage Institute of Technology is a based out in . It is known for research contribution in the topics: Support vector machine & Transconductance. The organization has 581 authors who have published 1045 publications receiving 8345 citations.

Dyeing of sericin-modified cotton with reactive dyes

Abstract: Cotton was modified with hydrolysed sericin fraction of silk in the presence of trisodium citrate as the esterification catalyst following a pad–dry–cure technique. The treatment of cotton fabric with 5% hydrolysed sericin in the presence of 7.5% catalyst followed by drying at 95°C for 5 min and curing at 140°C for 5 min produced optimum results with respect to exhaustion and fixation of reactive dyes having chlorotriaznyle and vinyl sulphone reactive groups when dyeing was accomplished in the absence of salt. Colour fastness to wash, light and rubbing of cotton for the application of reactive dyes remain unaltered for such prior modification with hydrolysed sericin. IR spectroscopy indicated the incorporation of amino acid residues of sericin fraction of silk in polymeric chains of cotton via establishment of ester linkages between carboxylic group of the amino acid moiety and hydroxyl groups of the cotton cellulose on pad–dry–cure.

Nano-indentation and Corrosion Characteristics of Ultrasonic Vibration Assisted Stir-Cast AZ31–WC–Graphite Nano-composites

Abstract: Current study investigates the effect of graphite nanoparticles on nanoindentation behavior and corrosion characteristics of Mg–WC nanocomposites. Composites are developed by ultrasonic treatment associated stir casting method. Typical characterizations of nanocomposites are conducted using optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Compositions of as cast materials are examined using energy dispersive X-ray analysis. Nanoindentation tests are conducted to expose elastic modulus and nanohardness of developed hybrid nanocomposites. Addition of 1 wt% nano Gr as reinforcement in Mg–WC has enhanced both nanohardness and elastic modulus of composites, while further addition include detrimental effects. Corrosion tests are performed with the help of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and potentiodynamic polarization tests. Corrosion study reveals that incorporation of 1 wt% Gr has improved corrosion resistance but further addition of graphite nanoparticles results in decrease in the corrosion resistance. To ascertain corrosion mechanism, corroded surfaces are characterized which discloses that surface of Mg–2WC–1Gr nanocomposite possess less number of cracks collinear with its least corrosion rate among all hybrid nanocomposites.

Remarkable performance of the unique Pd–Fe2O3 catalyst towards EOR and ORR: non-Pt and non-carbon electrode materials for low-temperature fuel cells

Abstract: The present investigation deals with Pd NPs casted over Fe2O3 support in formulating Pd/Fe2O3 catalyst with a complete non-Pt and non-carbon approach toward accomplishing the electrocatalysis of ethanol oxidation reaction (EOR) at the anode and oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) at the cathode in alkaline media for low-temperature fuel cell. The high electrochemical surface area (ECSA) for Pd/Fe2O3 with smart intervention of Fe2O3 directly/indirectly in EOR and ORR sequences makes this distinct catalyst a highly preferred choice in direct ethanol fuel cell with respect to reduced polarization loss, substantial current density output, and greater stability compared to the usual Pt or Pd nano-catalysts supported over carbon. Studies involved morphology, which was determined through electron microscopy and electrochemical characterization with the help of potentiodynamic polarization and RDE-RRDE techniques. The catalytic pre-eminence of the nanostructured Pd/Fe2O3 was manifested by the facile electrode kinetics at the anode and the cathode, low yield of H2O2 in ORR, and appreciable power density output of 36.01 mW cm−2 of the complete cell bearing enormous mass activity for both EOR and ORR. This novel attempt of introducing the same robust catalyst at both ends ensures better catalyst utilization, imparts affordability, and avoids carbon corrosion in the fuel cell environment.

Longterm storage of post-packaged bread by controlling spoilage pathogens using Lactobacillus fermentum C14 isolated from homemade curd.

Abstract: One potent lactic acid bacterial strain C14 with strong antifungal activity was isolated from homemade curd. Based on morphological as well as biochemical characters and 16S rDNA sequence homology the strain was identified as Lactobacillus fermentum. It displayed a wide antimicrobial spectrum against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative pathogenic bacteria, and also against number of food spoilage, plant and human pathogenic fungi. The cell free supernatant (CFS) of the strain C14 was also effective against the fungi tested. Inhibition of radial growth of Penicillium digitatum, Trichophyton rubrum and Mucor sp. was noticed in the presence of CFS of C14 even at low concentration (1%). More than 94.3 ± 1.6% and 91.5 ± 2.2% inhibition of conidial germination of P. digitatum and Mucor sp. were noticed in the presence of 10-fold-concentrated CFS of C14. Massive deformation of the fungal mycelia was observed by SEM studies, and losses of cellular proteins and DNA are also evident upon its treatment with C14. HPLC analysis revealed the presence of phenyl lactic acid, lactic acid along with some unidentified compounds in the antifungal extract. Challenge experiment showed immense potential of the strain C14 in preventing the spoilage of bread samples caused by Mucor sp. and Bacillus subtilis. The bread samples remained fresh upto 25 days even after inoculation with Mucor sp. (3.7 × 104 spores /ml) and B. subtilis (4.6 × 104 CFU /ml). Along with the antifungal properties, the isolated lactic acid bacterial strain also showed very good antioxidant activities. Unchanged level of liver enzymes serum glutamic pyruvic transaminase and serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase in albino mice upon feeding with C14 also suggested non-toxic nature of the bacterial isolate.

A blockchain based incentive scheme for post disaster opportunistic communication over DTN

Abstract: Delay tolerant network (DTN) is successfully proposed for setting up emergency post disaster communication networks when normal communication infrastructure is incapacitated. Performance of such networks get affected by selfish nodes that do not participate in message forwarding. Thus, nodes must receive satisfactory rewards for cooperation. The available incentive schemes either rely on central trusted authorities or do not use an explicit and secure digital currency. Blockchain, a decentralized digital ledger of immutable transactions, is an attractive approach for addressing the incentive challenges in peer-to-peer networks that lack central trusted authorities. Bitcoin, the Blockchain based cryptocurrency, make it possible to devise practical credit based incentive schemes for such networks. In this paper, we propose a Blockchain based incentive scheme for DTN based post disaster communication network that uses Bitcoin to incentivize nodes for cooperation. The scheme uses a novel reward strategy to bring rationality in the incentivizing process.