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Alcohol-based fuels have shown high compatibility with spark-ignition (SI) engines, which require improvements in fuel efficiency and emissions reduction to meet modern environmental standards. While extensive research has been conducted on ethanol and other lower-order alcohols, there has been comparatively limited investigation into higher-order alcohols like butanol and pentanol as fuel alternatives. Previous studies on pentanol-gasoline blends in SI engines have demonstrated improved engine performance and reduced emissions. Building on this, the present study focuses on analyzing the flame characteristics—specifically speed and distribution—of pentanol-gasoline blends within the engine. In this study, pentanol was blended with gasoline by the volume of 10%, 20%, and 30%, namely 1-PNL10, 1-PNL20, and 1-PNL30, and tested in a twin-cylinder gasoline engine with an MPFI system at various load conditions. The study has focused on investigating the flame propagation of gasoline-pentanol blends by examining the in-cylinder flame image. The in-cylinder combustion evolution was visualized and captured by using an AVL Visio scope camera. Flame characteristics such as spatial flame distribution and flame speed were evaluated from the captured flame images for pentanol–gasoline blends and compared with sole gasoline. The flame study indicates that the addition of pentanol favored to increase in the flame speed, which in turn improved the combustion rate. The flame intensity and distribution area increased with the addition of pentanol in gasoline, demonstrating improved in-cylinder combustion with increased peak in-cylinder pressure and heat release rate. The insights on the flame characteristics of pentanol–gasoline blends were used to rationalize the discussion on engine performance and emissions. The performance of the engine was enhanced while increasing the proportion of Pentanol in the gasoline. The 30% Pentanol gasoline blend showed 5.71% higher BTE than gasoline at full load condition. Emissions like CO and HC also decreased at the same time, and NO emission increased. From the test results, it can be concluded that Pentanol can be blended with gasoline up to 30% without any engine modifications.

This study explored the recovery of oil from lemon peel biomass and then tested it in a spark ignition as a substitute for gasoline. The study adopted the micro-arc oxidation coating technique, intending to improve the engine performance of the lemon peel oil-gasoline blends. The oil was recovered from discarded lemon peel biomass using steam distillation and then tested in the engine as a fuel by blending it with gasoline at volume ratios of 10, 20, and 30%. An endoscopic visualization approach was employed in this research work to assess the combustion initiation and flame characteristics of gasoline and lemon peel oil blends under different test conditions. Compared to gasoline and blends comprising 20 and 30% lemon peel oil, the 10% lemon peel oil mix produced higher thermal efficiency and lower emissions. The optical analysis demonstrated that premixed combustion with the 10% blend was found to be the highest, resulting in improved combustion and subsequently increased cylinder pressure. To improve the engine performance of the lemon peel oil blends with higher substitution (20 and 30%), the piston was coated with a ceramic coating. A novel technique, namely the micro-arc oxidation technique, was utilized for the coating. The coated piston engine fueled with a 20% lemon peel oil blend showed a 3% and 4.69% increase in thermal efficiency compared to the uncoated piston fueled with a 20% blend and sole gasoline, respectively. The hydrocarbon and carbon monoxide emissions of the engine with a coated piston fueled by the 20% lemon peel oil blend were reduced by 12.7% and 12%, respectively, as compared to gasoline operation in the engine with an uncoated piston.

In the present study, experiments were conducted to compare the effect of oxide layer formation on the piston crown coated using Micro-Arc Oxidation (MAO) with uncoated piston on the combustion and emission characteristics of the port injected Spark Ignition engine fueled by gasoline. The micro-arc oxidation (MAO) coating technique is the modern process to form a ceramic oxide layer on the reactive metal substrate (base metal) by electrochemical and electro-thermal oxidation in an alkaline electrolytic solution. Using MAO technique, an oxide layer of thickness 72 μm was formed on the piston crown. This oxide layer acts as a thermal barrier to reduce the in-cylinder heat rejection and increase the durability of the piston by withstanding high temperature and pressure produced during combustion. Combustion flames have been captured using the AVL combustion analyzer to analyze the development and propagation of flames within the engine cylinder. From the flame images, it was observed that propagation of flame was faster in MAO coated piston compared to uncoated piston. This is because of higher local temperature inside the combustion chamber that was resulted due to low thermal conductivity of MAO layer. It was also found that carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrocarbon (HC) emissions were reduced as a result of efficient fuel combustion, while NOx emissions increased because of increased combustion temperatures for MAO coated pistons. Keywords: Electro-thermal oxidation, Flame propagation, Micro-arc oxidation, Piston crown, Thermal barrie

Sustainable development becomes the significant tool of planning and design of building structures and infrastructures in this decade. The land use development for neighbourhood construction should be protected from being overused and devastated. Malaysia must starts to incorporate sustainable neighbourhood planning and design so that the future generation can be benefited from this type of development. However less focus is being paid to this type of development which needs attention to be given especially on small-scale green areas. The main concern of this paper is to address the practice of sustainable neighbourhood planning and design in Malaysia as it gives much impact to the living environment of a group of community. The issues pertaining Malaysian sustainable development planning and sustainable neighbourhood design were discussed in this paper. Results from the Malaysian Local Council Structure Plan review were discussed to highlight the sustainable neighbourhood importance. The result indicates that the sustainable neighbourhood planning and design in Malaysia needs to be improved over the current practices to create more environmental-friendly neighbourhood.

Dam provides many benefits to the society, but it can also cause extensive damage to downstream area when it fails. Dam failure can cause extensive damage to properties and loss of human life due to short warning time available. In general, dam spillway was designed to drain the maximum discharge from the dam during the Probable Maximum Flood (PMF). The spillway is functioned to prevent the dam from failure due to overtopping, which can lead to the dam failure. Dam failure will result in large volume of water travelling at very high velocity to the downstream area of the dam. It can cause extensive property damage, destruction of important facilities, and significant loss of human life along the way. Due to the potential of high hazard it poses to the downstream area, a dam break analysis is considered very essential. This paper focuses into the dam failure analysis for Kahang Dam by prediction of breach flow hydrographs and generation of inundation map at downstream area. From the PMF scenario simulation, the maximum inflow is 525.12 m3/s and peak discharge from the dam during dam failure is 6188m3/s. The results are able to provide information for preparation of Emergency Response Plan (PMF), in which appropriate steps can be taken by relevant authorities to avoid significant loss of human lives.

Background Heart failure (HF) leads to venous congestion (VC), leading to organ dysfunction. Traditional VC assessments include pulmonary artery catheterization and IVC ultrasound. Newer tools like venous excess ultrasound (VExUS) and femoral venous doppler (FVD) quantify VC severity. We aimed to compare FVD with VExUS score to predict organ dysfunction and its progression in acute HF patients. Methods We conducted a 6-month prospective study in a 36-bed Cardiac ICU, enrolling 111 adults with acute decompensated HF. We evaluated FVD and VExUS to predict organ dysfunction and its progression. Key parameters were recorded on ICU admission and Day 3. We followed up patients at 90-days using the MAKE-90 criteria. Sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values of FVD and VExUS were calculated and compared using McNemar’s test. Results VC was higher in the organ dysfunction group, with higher VExUS scores (55% vs. 31%, p  = 0.018) and FVD-defined congestion (85% vs. 57%, p  = 0.002). This group also revealed worse LUS, lower TAPSE:PASP ratios, more severe AKI, higher creatinine, and increased use of non-invasive ventilation (all p  < 0.01). Mortality (39% vs. 24%) and MAKE-90 events (56% vs. 39%) were higher but not statistically significant. FVD had higher sensitivity but lower specificity than VExUS in detecting AKI, and lung congestion. VExUS had higher specificity for RV coupling and organ dysfunction; FVD correlated more with organ dysfunction. Conclusion FVD and VExUS provide complementary insights into venous congestion, reinforcing the need for an integrated approach rather than reliance on a single modality. A multimodal strategy combining these tools with clinical and biochemical markers may offer a more precise framework for guiding management in acute heart failure. Trial registration This trial was registered with Clinical Trial Registry-India ( https://www.ctri.nic.in/ ), Trial No—CTRI/2023/10/058186 on 3/10/2023.

Verapamil is a calcium channel blocker and highly effective in the treatment of hypertension, angina pectoris, and other diseases. However, the drug has a low bioavailability of 20 to 35% due to the first pass effect. The main objective of this study was to develop hybrid verapamil-dextran nanostructured lipid carriers (HVD-NLCs) in an attempt to increase verapamil cellular uptake. The formulations were successfully prepared by a high-shear homogenization method and statistically optimized using 2 4 full factorial design. The HVD-NLCs formulations were freeze-dried using trehalose as a cryoprotectant. The results showed that the optimized formula (VER-9) possessed a particle size (PS), polydispersity index (PDI), and the percentage of entrapment efficiency (%EE) of 192.29 ± 2.98, 0.553 ± 0.075, and 93.26 ± 2.66%, respectively. The incorporation of dextran sulfate in the formulation had prolonged the release of verapamil (~ 85% in 48 h) in the simulated gastric fluid (pH 1.2) and simulated intestinal fluid (pH 6.8). The differential scanning calorimetry analysis showed no chemical interaction between verapamil and the excipients in the formulation. While wide-angle X-ray scattering studies demonstrated the drug in the amorphous form after the incorporation in the NLCs. The transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy images revealed that the nanoparticles had spherical shape. The cellular uptake study using Caco-2 cell line showed a higher verapamil uptake from HVD-NLCs as compared to verapamil solution and verapamil-dextran complex. The optimized formulation (VER-9) stored in the refrigerated condition (5 °C ± 3 °C) was stable for 6 months. In conclusion, the HVD-NLCs were potential carriers for verapamil as they significantly enhanced the cellular uptake of the drug.

Background: The star fruit [ Averrhoa carambola L (Oxalidaceae)] is traditionally used in the treatment of many ailments in many countries. It possesses several pharmacological activities, including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. However, it contains the neurotoxic caramboxin and its high content of oxalic acid limits its consumption by individuals with compromised kidney function. This study assessed the anti-hyperlipidemic and antioxidant activities of different fractions of the methanolic extract of A. carambola leaves (MEACL). Methods: The antioxidant activity was investigated using FRAP, and ABTS and DPPH radical-scavenging assays and the inhibitory activity toward pancreatic lipase (PL) and HMG-CoA reductase was assayed in vitro . Acute hyperlipidemia was induced by poloxamer-407 (P-407) in rats and different fractions of MEACL ( n -hexane, chloroform, n -butanol, ethyl acetate (EA), water, and chloroform) were orally administered. Cholesterol and triglycerides were determined at 0, 12, 24, and 48 h and LDL-C, vLDL-C, HDL-C, lipid peroxidation (LPO) and antioxidants were assayed after 48 h. The expression of ABCA1, ABCG5, ABCG8, LDL-R, SREBP-1, and SREBP-2 and the activity of HMG-CoA reductase were assayed in the liver of P-407-administered rats treated with the EA fraction. Results: The in vitro data revealed potent radical-scavenging activities of MEACL fractions with the most potent effect showed by the EA fraction that also suppressed the activities of HMG-CoA reductase and PL. In P-407-induced hyperlipidemic rats, all fractions prevented dyslipidemia as shown by the decrease in total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL-C, vLDL-C and atherogenic index. MEACL and its fractions prevented LPO and boosted GSH, superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, and catalase in P-407-administered rats. The EA fraction showed more effective anti-hyperlipidemic and antioxidant effects than other fractions and downregulated SREBP-2 while upregulated ABCA1 and LDL-R and ameliorated LPL and HMG-CoA reductase in hyperlipidemic rats. Conclusion: MEACL showed in vitro and in vivo antioxidant activity and the EA fraction significantly ameliorated dyslipidemia in a rat model of P-407-induced acute hyperlipidemia by modulating LPL, PL, HMG-CoA reductase, and cholesterolgenesis-related factors. Therefore, the leaves of A. carambola represent a safe alternative for the star fruit particularly in kidney disease patients, and the EA is the most effective anti-hyperlipidemic and antioxidant fraction.

The present study explored the antihyperlipidemic potential of a standardized methanolic extract of Averrhoa carambola (A. carambola) leaf (MEACL) in high-fat diet (HFD)-fed rats. The standardized MEACL was orally administered at different doses (250, 500, and 1000 mg/kg) to HFD-induced hyperlipidemic rats for five weeks. Serum lipid profile, body weight changes, body mass index (BMI), daily food intake, relative organ weight, and histology of the liver were evaluated. In addition, the effect of MEACL on HMG-CoA reductase and pancreatic lipase activities as well as hepatic and fecal lipids was demonstrated. MEACL supplementation reduced serum lipids in HFD-fed rats in a dose-dependent manner. Histopathological scores revealed that 1000 mg/kg MEACL restored the damage to liver tissue in hyperlipidemic rats. MEACL decreased the body mass index (BMI), atherogenic index, and hepatic cholesterol and triglycerides and increased fecal cholesterol and bile acids in HFD-fed rats. Also, MEACL ameliorated lipid peroxidation and improved antioxidant defenses in the liver of HFD-fed rats. Furthermore, HMG-CoA reductase and lipase were suppressed by MEACL. In conclusion, this study shows the potential effect of MEACL to ameliorate hyperlipidemia and oxidative stress in HFD-fed rats. It prevented hepatic lipid accumulation and exerted an inhibitory effect on HMG-CoA reductase and lipase.

: Kratom has a long history of traditional medicine use in Southeast Asia. Consumption of kratom products has also been reported in the US and other regions of the world. Pain relief is among many self-reported kratom effects but have not been evaluated in controlled human subject research. : Kratom effects on pain tolerance were assessed in a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study. During a 1-day inpatient stay, participants received a randomized sequence of kratom and placebo decoctions matched for taste and appearance. Pain tolerance was measured objectively in a cold pressor task (CPT) as time (seconds) between the pain onset and the hand withdrawal from the ice bath. Health status, vital signs, objective, and subjective indicators of withdrawal symptoms, self-reported data on lifetime kratom use patterns, and assessments of blinding procedures were also evaluated. : Twenty-six males with the mean (SD) age 24.3 (3.4) years were enrolled. They reported the mean (SD) 6.1 (3.2) years of daily kratom consumption. Pain tolerance increased significantly 1 hour after kratom ingestion from the mean (SD) 11.2 (6.7) seconds immediately before to 24.9 (39.4) seconds 1 hour after kratom consumption (F(2,53.7)=4.33, p=0.02). Pain tolerance was unchanged after consuming placebo drinks: 15.0 (19.0) seconds immediately before and 12.0 (8.1) seconds 1 hour after consumption of placebo (F(2,52.8)=0.93, p=0.40). No discomfort or signs of withdrawal were reported or observed during 10-20 hours of kratom discontinuation. : Kratom decoction demonstrated a substantial and statistically significant increase in pain tolerance. Further rigorous research on kratom pain-relieving properties and a safety profile is needed.