Current Scenario in Associating Clinical COVID-19 Biomarkers for Developing Surveillance Platforms.

The novel coronavirus that caused the epidemic and pandemic resulting in the acute respiratory illness known as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has plagued the world. This is unlike other coronavirus outbreaks that have occurred in the past, such as Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) or severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). COVID-19 has spread more quickly and posed special challenges due to the lack of appropriate treatments and vaccines.

Assessing the concentration, distribution and characteristics of suspended microplastics in the Malaysian indoor environment.

This study examines the concentration, distribution, and characteristics of suspended microplastics (MPs) across various indoor environments in Malaysia, including offices, classrooms, landed homes, and apartments. Over a six-week period, MPs were collected using a vacuum pump and analyzed through gravimetric analysis, stereomicroscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The results revealed significant variability in MPs concentrations among different locations, with fibers identified as the predominant morphological type.

Ag@WO core-shell nanocomposite for wide range photo detection.

This study successfully synthesized high-performance photodetectors based on Ag-WO3 core-shell heterostructures using a simple and economical two-step pulsed laser ablation in water method and has investigated the electrical characteristics of the Ag@WO3 nanocomposite heterojunction. The Hall effect tests indicate that the synthesized Ag@WO exhibits n-type conduction with a Hall mobility of 1.25 × 10 cmVS.

Integrating the quintuple helix approach into atmospheric microplastics management policies for planetary health preservation.

Microplastic pollution has become a major global environmental issue, negatively impacting terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems as well as human health. Tackling this complex problem necessitates a multidisciplinary approach and collaboration among diverse stakeholders. Within this context, the Quintuple Helix framework, which highlights the involvement of academia, government, industry, civil society, and the environment, provides a comprehensive and inclusive perspective for formulating effective policies to manage atmospheric microplastics.

Exploring ethynyl-based chalcones as green semiconductor materials for optical limiting interests.

The fabrication of molecular electronics from non-toxic functional materials which eventually would potentially able to degrade or being breaking down into safe by-products have attracted much interests in recent years. Hence, in this study, the introduction of mixed highly functional substructures of chalcone (-CO-CH=CH-) and ethynylated (C≡C) as building blocks has shown ideal performance as solution-processed thin film candidatures. Two types of derivatives, (MM-3a) and (MM-3b) repectively, showed a substantial Stokes shifts at 75 nm and 116 nm, in which such emission exhibits an intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) state and fluoresce characteristics.

Stability Analysis of Plate-Screw Fixation for Femoral Midshaft Fractures.

An understanding of the biomechanical characteristics and configuration of flexible and locked plating in order to provide balance stability and flexibility of implant fixation will help to construct and promote fast bone healing. The relationship between applied loading and implantation configuration for best bone healing is still under debate. This study aims to investigate the relationship between implant strength, working length, and interfragmentary strain (εIFM) on implant stability for femoral midshaft transverse fractures.

A review of plastic waste circular actions in seven developing countries to achieve sustainable development goals.

Plastic waste circularity is a priority at a global level. Sustainable development goals (SDGs) set the ways to go, and the circular economy principles underlined the 'green' strategies to be employed. However, in practice, there is still much to do, especially in developing countries, where open burning and open dumping still represent the common way of plastic waste disposal.

Effects of Multiple Reflow on the Formation of Primary Crystals in Sn-3.5Ag and Solder Joint Strength: Experimental and Finite Element Analysis.

The growth and formation of primary intermetallics formed in Sn-3.5Ag soldered on copper organic solderability preservative (Cu-OSP) and electroless nickel immersion gold (ENIG) surface finish after multiple reflows were systematically investigated. Real-time synchrotron imaging was used to investigate the microstructure, focusing on the in situ growth behavior of primary intermetallics during the solid-liquid-solid interactions.

Efficiency of Fabricated Adsorptive Polysulfone Mixed Matrix Membrane for Acetic Acid Separation.

The ultrafiltration mixed matrix membrane (UF MMMs) process represents an applicable approach for the removal of diluted acetic acid at low concentrations, owing to the low pressures applied. The addition of efficient additives represents an approach to further improve membrane porosity and, subsequently, enhance acetic acid removal. This work demonstrates the incorporation of titanium dioxide (TiO) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) as additives into polysulfone (PSf) polymer via the non-solvent-induced phase-inversion (NIPS) method to improve the performance of PSf MMMs performance.

A gold nanoparticles coated unclad single mode fiber-optic sensor based on localized surface plasmon resonance.

In the last few decays, the fiber-optic was employed in the field of sensing because of its benefits in contrast to other types of sensors such as small size, easy to fabricate, high response, and flexibility. In this study, unclad single mode fiber-optic sensor is proposed to operate at 650 nm wavelength. COMSOL Multiphysics 5.

Review of microplastics in the indoor environment: Distribution, human exposure and potential health impacts.

The emergence of microplastics (MPs) pollution as a global environmental concern has attracted significant attention in the last decade. The majority of the human population spends most of their time indoors, leading to increased exposure to MPs contamination through various sources such as settled dust, air, drinking water and food. Although research on indoor MPs has intensified significantly in recent years, comprehensive reviews on this topic remain limited.

Sustainable Packaging Design for Molded Expanded Polystyrene Cushion.

A molded expanded polystyrene (EPS) cushion is a flexible, closed-cell foam that can be molded to fit any packing application and is effective at absorbing shock. However, the packaging waste of EPS cushions causes pollution to landfills and the environment. Despite being known to cause pollution, this sustainable packaging actually has the potential to reduce this environmental pollution because of its reusability.

Advanced Time-Frequency Methods for ECG Waves Recognition.

ECG wave recognition is one of the new topics where only one of the ECG beat waves (P-QRS-T) was used to detect heart diseases. Normal, tachycardia, and bradycardia heart rhythm are hard to detect using either time-domain or frequency-domain features solely, and a time-frequency analysis is required to extract representative features. This paper studies the performance of two different spectrum representations, iris-spectrogram and scalogram, for different ECG beat waves in terms of recognition of normal, tachycardia, and bradycardia classes.

Rapid Detection of Fraudulent Rice Using Low-Cost Digital Sensing Devices and Machine Learning.

Rice fraud is one of the common threats to the rice industry. Conventional methods to detect rice adulteration are costly, time-consuming, and tedious. This study proposes the quantitative prediction of rice adulteration levels measured through the packaging using a handheld near-infrared (NIR) spectrometer and electronic nose (e-nose) sensors measuring directly on samples and paired with machine learning (ML) algorithms.

GGA and GGA + U Study of ThMnSi and ThMnGe Compounds in a Body-Centered Tetragonal Ferromagnetic Phase.

Our study used the full-potential linearized augmented plane waves (FP-LAPW) method to conduct a first-principles evaluation of the structural, electronic, and magnetic properties of ThMnX (X = Si and Ge) compounds. To establish theoretical dependability with the currently available experimental results, computations for the structural findings of ternary intermetallic thorium (Th)-based compounds were achieved using the generalized gradient approximation in the scheme of Perdew-Burke-Ernzerhof (PBE-GGA) potential, while the generalized gradient approximation plus the Hubbard U (GGA + U) approach was employed to improve the electrical and magnetic properties. In contrast with both the paramagnetic (PM) and antiferromagnetic (AFM) phases, the ThMnX compounds were optimized in a stable ferromagnetic (FM) phase, which was more suited for studying and analyzing magnetic properties.

Electric Discharge Machining on Stainless Steel Using a Blend of Copper and Fly Ash as the Electrode Material.

In the current work, several composites made with fly ash reinforcements are used to conduct electrical discharge machining (EDM) on stainless steel that is commercially accessible. Four composites were prepared with 2.5 to 10% reinforcement of fly ash with steps of 2.

Spin-Dependent First-Principles Study on Optoelectronic Properties of Neodymium Zirconates Pyrochlores NdZrO in Fd-3m and Pmma Phases.

Rare-earth zirconate pyrochlores (REZrO) are of much fundamental and technological interest as optoelectronic, scintillator and thermal barrier coating materials. For the first time, we report the detailed optoelectronic properties of rare-earth zirconates NdZrO in both, i.e.

Recent Trends in Advanced Radiation Shielding Concrete for Construction of Facilities: Materials and Properties.

Nuclear energy offers a wide range of applications, which include power generation, X-ray imaging, and non-destructive tests, in many economic sectors. However, such applications come with the risk of harmful radiation, thereby requiring shielding to prevent harmful effects on the surrounding environment and users. Concrete has long been used as part of structures in nuclear power plants, X-ray imaging rooms, and radioactive storage.

Rapid Assessment of Rice Quality Traits Using Low-Cost Digital Technologies.

Aroma and other physicochemical parameters are important attributes influencing consumer perception and acceptance of rice. However, current methods using multiple instruments and laboratory analysis make these assessments costly and time-consuming. Therefore, this study aimed to assess rice quality traits of 17 commercial rice types using a low-cost electronic nose and portable near-infrared spectrometer coupled with machine learning (ML).

Characteristics of the Surface Topography and Tribological Properties of Reinforced Aluminum Matrix Composite.

Due to their excellent synergistic properties, Aluminum Matrix Composites (AMC) have achieved a high degree of prominence in different industries. In addition to strength, the wear resistance of materials is also an important criterion for numerous applications. The wear resistance depends on the surface topography as well as the working conditions of the interacting parts.

Discrete flower pollination algorithm for patient admission scheduling problem.

This paper aims to tackle the Patient Admission Scheduling Problem (PASP) using the Discrete Flower Pollination Algorithm (DFPA), a new, meta-heuristic optimization method based on plant pollination. PASP is one of the most important problems in the field of health care. It is a highly constrained and combinatorial optimization problem of assigning patients to medical resources in a hospital, subject to predefined constraints, while maximizing patient comfort.

Computer Vision and Machine Learning Analysis of Commercial Rice Grains: A Potential Digital Approach for Consumer Perception Studies.

Rice quality assessment is essential for meeting high-quality standards and consumer demands. However, challenges remain in developing cost-effective and rapid techniques to assess commercial rice grain quality traits. This paper presents the application of computer vision (CV) and machine learning (ML) to classify commercial rice samples based on dimensionless morphometric parameters and color parameters extracted using CV algorithms from digital images obtained from a smartphone camera.

Larvicidal efficacy of temephos impregnated onto kenaf cellulose nanofibre to control Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae) larvae.

Larviciding is an effective control method in managing mosquito-borne diseases. However, most of the current larvicide formulations have raised environmental concerns due to the presence of non-biodegradable inert or carrier materials. Therefore, the utilisation of biodegradable natural cellulosic fibres has created much attention.

The Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Poly(ethylene--vinyl acetate) (PECoVA) Composites with Pristine Dolomite and Organophilic Microcrystalline Dolomite (OMCD).

Poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) (PECoVA) composite containing organophilic microcrystalline dolomite (OMCD) was studied to replace the non-recyclable silicone elastomer in biomedical application. Pristine dolomite (DOL) is an inorganic mineral filler and is hydrophilic in nature, hence incompatible with most polymers and limits its use in biomedical applications. DOL was subjected to a combination of size reduction, tip sonication and a surface modification process to obtain a more effective dolomite filler, known as OMCD, as reinforcement material in the PECoVA copolymer matrix.

Infection-Mediated Clinical Biomarkers for a COVID-19 Electrical Biosensing Platform.

The race towards the development of user-friendly, portable, fast-detection, and low-cost devices for healthcare systems has become the focus of effective screening efforts since the pandemic attack in December 2019, which is known as the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Currently existing techniques such as RT-PCR, antigen-antibody-based detection, and CT scans are prompt solutions for diagnosing infected patients. However, the limitations of currently available indicators have enticed researchers to search for adjunct or additional solutions for COVID-19 diagnosis.