Study of gamma radiation shielding on tellurite glass containing TiO2 and Al2O3 nanoparticles.

Radiation shielding incorporates material between the radioactive source and environment to decrease exposure to hazardous radiation. It remains to be seen whether the addition of nanoparticles effectively increases the protection of tellurite glass system from further degradation under irradiation conditions. This study revealed the gamma radiation effects on tellurite glass. The tellurite glass samples were irradiated with 50 kGy and 100 kGy gamma ray, and subsequently analysed using X-ray diffractometer (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis). Gamma radiation increased the creation of non-bridging oxygen (NBO) and caused colour change on TZNETi and TZNETiAl glasses. Consequently, the addition of aluminium oxides (Al2O3) was found to lower the density of glass systems. The glass samples surface roughness increased, while the optical transmission spectra decreased after 50 kGy of gamma ray irradiation. Nevertheless, the glass system maintained its transparency even after irradiation. The mass attenuation coefficient (MAC) values represented the shielding effectiveness demonstrated by the investigated glass with the addition of Al2O3. The physical, structural, optical, and radiation shielding properties showed that 69.1TeO2-20ZnO-9Na2O-1Er2O3-0.3TiO2-0.6Al2O3 (TZNETiAl) sample exhibited strong shielding properties amongst the fabricated tellurite samples.

A systematic review on physical mutagens in rice breeding in Southeast Asia.

In the 1920s, Lewis Stadler initiated the introduction of permanent improvements to the genetic makeup of irradiated plants. Since then, studies related to breeding mutations have grown, as efforts have been made to expand and improve crop productivity and quality. Stadler's discovery began with x-rays on corn and barley and later extended to the use of gamma-rays, thermal, and fast neutrons in crops. Radiation has since been shown to be an effective and unique method for increasing the genetic variability of species, including rice. Numerous systematic reviews have been conducted on the impact of physical mutagens on the production and grain quality of rice in Southeast Asia. However, the existing literature still lacks information on the type of radiation used, the rice planting materials used, the dosage of physical mutagens, and the differences in mutated characteristics. Therefore, this article aims to review existing literature on the use of physical mutagens in rice crops in Southeast Asian countries. Guided by the PRISMA Statement review method, 28 primary studies were identified through a systematic review of the Scopus, Science Direct, Emerald Insight, Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing, and MDPI journal databases published between 2016 and 2020. The results show that 96% of the articles used seeds as planting materials, and 80% of the articles focused on gamma-rays as a source of physical mutagens. The optimal dosage of gamma-rays applied was around 100 to 250 Gy to improve plant development, abiotic stress, biochemical properties, and nutritional and industrial quality of rice.

Data Acquisition System for In Situ Monitoring of Chemoelectrical Potential in Living Plant Fuel Cells.

Photosynthesis process in plants generates numerous sources of bioenergy. However, only a small fraction is readily exploited for electrical energy. The impact of environmental factors is one of the significant physiological influences on the electrical potential of the plants. Hence, we developed a data acquisition (DAQ) system for instantaneous monitoring of electrical potential in plants and Aloe vera was used as a plant sample. The static response characterization, capability index (P/T), and Pearson's coefficient of correlation procedures were applied to assess the reliability of the obtained data. This developed system offers the capability of in situ monitoring and detecting gradual changes in the electrical potential of plants up to a correlational strength of greater than 0.7. Interpretation of the electrical signal mechanisms in the Aloe vera plant and the optimization of the electricity can be achieved through the application of this monitoring system. This system, therefore, can serve as a tool to measure and analyze the electrical signals in plants at different conditions.

Mode shape reconstruction of an impulse excited structure using continuous scanning laser Doppler vibrometer and empirical mode decomposition.

For vibration testing, discrete types of scanning laser Doppler vibrometer (SLDV) have been developed and have proven to be very useful. For complex structures, however, SLDV takes considerable time to scan the surface of structures and require large amounts of data storage. To overcome these problems, a continuous scan was introduced as an alternative. In this continuous method, the Chebyshev demodulation (or polynomial) technique and the Hilbert transform approach have been used for mode shape reconstruction with harmonic excitation. As an alternative, in this paper, the Hilbert-Huang transform approach is applied to impact excitation cases in terms of a numerical approach, where the vibration of the tested structure is modeled using impulse response functions. In order to verify this technique, a clamped-clamped beam was chosen as the test rig in the numerical simulation and real experiment. This paper shows that with additional innovative steps of using ideal bandpass filters and nodal point determination in the postprocessing, the Hilbert-Huang transformation can be used to create a better mode shape reconstruction even in the impact excitation case.