Stiffness and stability of bamboo stem- A optimal design perspective.

During the evolution process, a bamboo stem achieves a significant height (up to 20 m) to fulfil its phototropic requirements. While on land, the stem is mostly subjected to bending load which makes it liable to fail by uprooting. However, this failure is prohibited by smart structure of bamboo stem which includes graded arrangement of fibre bundles in the cross-section and a tapered cantilever form of the stem.

Degradation of magenta dye using cavitation-based transducers to glass marble: Lab to semi-pilot scale operations.

In the present work, the degradation of magenta dye has been investigated using ultrasonic (US) and ultraviolet (UV) irradiation at a laboratory scale. Additionally, the investigation was conducted at a semi-pilot scale by employing hydrodynamic cavitation and a novel air-marble cavitation reactor. Initially, optimization studies such as the effect of initial dye concentration and catalyst loading of TiO and MnO followed by the effect of combined catalyst loading (TiO /MnO ) on the extent of degradation have been studied at a capacity of 3 L.

Study on combustion, performance and exhaust emissions of bioethanol-gasoline blended spark ignition engine.

This work focusses on a novel technique of producing bioethanol from fermented pomegranate fruits waste by using , commonly known as baker's yeast. Four different blends of bioethanol, namely PE10, PE15, PE20, and PE25 were experimented at various operating speeds. It was inferred that the addition of ethanol enhanced the consumption of fuel as well as braking capacity.

Degradation of magenta dye using different approaches based on ultrasonic and ultraviolet irradiations: Comparison of effectiveness and effect of additives for intensification.

The conventional chemical oxidation methods have not been very successful for the treatment of dyes due to higher stability against the oxidizing agents. The present work investigates the application of an improved treatment approach based on the ultrasonic and ultraviolet irradiations for treatment of dye containing wastewaters. Magenta dye, which is commonly used in textile industries, has been used as a model compound.

Cavitation assisted synthesis of fatty acid methyl esters from sustainable feedstock in presence of heterogeneous catalyst using two step process.

The present work reports the intensification aspects for the synthesis of fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) from a non-edible high acid value Nagchampa oil (31 mg of KOH/g of oil) using two stage acid esterification (catalyzed by H₂SO₄) followed by transesterification in the presence of heterogeneous catalyst (CaO). Intensification aspects of both stages have been investigated using sonochemical reactors and the obtained degree of intensification has been established by comparison with the conventional approach based on mechanical agitation. It has been observed that reaction temperature for esterification reduced from 65 to 40 °C for the ultrasonic approach whereas there was a significant reduction in the optimum reaction time for transesterification from 4h for the conventional approach to 2.

Sonocatalytic and sonophotocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine 6G containing wastewaters.

The present work deals with degradation of aqueous solution of Rhodamine 6G (Rh 6G) using sonocatalytic and sonophotocatalytic treatment schemes based on the use of cupric oxide (CuO) and titanium dioxide (TiO2) as the solid catalysts. Experiments have been carried out at the operating capacity of 2 L and constant initial pH of 12.5.

Sonochemical degradation of chlorobenzene in the presence of additives.

The present work deals with establishing the pathway for the selection of additives for intensification of the sonolytic degradation of chlorobenzene. The degradation of chlorobenzene has been investigated in the presence of different additives such as CuO, TiO2, nano-TiO2 and NaCl. The reaction has been monitored in terms of the concentration of the parent pollutant as well as the extent of mineralization.

Ultrasound-based treatment approaches for intrinsic viscosity reduction of polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP).

The present work deals with achieving viscosity reduction in polymer solutions using ultrasound-based treatment approaches. Use of simple additives such as salts, or surfactants and introduction of air at varying flow rates as process intensifying parameters have been investigated for enhancing the degradation of polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) using ultrasonic irradiation. Sonication is carried out using an ultrasonic horn at 36 kHz frequency at an optimized concentration (1%) of the polymer.