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The aim of the present work is to develop novel hybrid composites using areca, kenaf, and snake grass fibers as reinforcement and epoxy as the matrix. The areca, kenaf, and snake grass fibers were extracted from Catechu Linnaeus, Hibiscus cannabinus, and Sansevieria Ehrenbergii plants, respectively, and treated with 5% NaOH to improve the interfacial adhesion between the hydrophilic fiber and the hydrophobic matrix. Hybrid composites were developed by the compression molding technique and formulated based on the weight fraction of fibers. Tensile, flexural, and impact strength and hardness samples were prepared as per ASTM D 3039, ASTM D 790, ASTM D 256, and ASTM D 2240, respectively. The effects of alkaline treatment on developed hybrid composites were investigated. The developed hybrid composites with 20% wt. snake grass and 10% wt. areca fiber present interesting mechanical properties with a tensile strength of 58 MPa, flexural strength of 124 MPa, impact strength of 5.24 kJ/m2, and hardness of 88. The results indicate that maximum mechanical properties were obtained for alkaline-treated fiber composites with 20% wt. snake grass fiber compared to untreated fiber composites owing to better adhesion between the treated fiber and the matrix. The effect of alkaline treatment was analyzed by Fourier transform infrared. The fractured surfaces of tested samples were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy.

In a groundwater regime, the unsaturated zone acts as a complex system, for the simulation of subsurface water movement. Numerous attempts have been made in the field of hydrology, during the recent past in modeling the subsurface flow dynamics. Recharge through vadose zone takes place through three distinct parts viz. upper (recharge area), middle and lower (discharge parts). In order to understand the characteristic behavior of vadose zone over the infiltrating water front, an integrated approach of infiltration test and resistivity survey was attempted at 6 different sites with distinct geomorphology, in a semi-arid granite terrain. In this paper the authors have documented the compilation of double ring infiltration test results and its impact on shallow subsurface transient resistivity signature. Similar attempt can be extended in different geological terrain, wherein it would be helpful to ascertain the spatial distribution of recharge with limited spot recharge measurements. Keywords: Infiltration test, Resistivity survey, Vadose zone, Natural recharge

To assess the shallow subsurface conditions in a granitic terrain, Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) and double ring infiltrometer studies were conducted in Hyderabad city, India. Electrical Resistivity Tomography responses were monitored continuously with, Wenner and Schlumberger array with an electrode spacing of 1 and 5 m. Double ring infiltrometer hydrogeological test was equally done on the same ERT profile to image the subsurface resistivity distribution for shallow depths only. ERT has exemplified highly weathered and weathered zones and the infiltrometer study illustrated, the rate at which the water is infiltrating from the topsoil to the subsurface weathered zone. The data acquired from ERT and infiltration tests were analyzed and it is depicted that the rate of infiltration is increasing gradually concerning time i.e. at the 100th minute there is an anomaly showing a rapid increase in the rate of infiltration and the same is revealed in its depth calculation graph. Results indicating that the infiltrated water is tending to flow laterally rather than vertical, up to a depth of 17 m, thus concluding that this zone might be dominated by sheeting joints which play a vital role as a water carrier to enhance groundwater quality as well as quantity. These sheeting zones are generally flat, sometimes curved and nearly parallel to the topographic level which is formed mainly in granitoid rocks. A comprehensive study reveals the near surface information and its potentiality in terms of groundwater recharge. The findings and approach has implication towards selecting suitable sites and implementing best recharge techniques to improve the aquifer condition in all the sectors and can be upscale on a regional level in granitic terrain. Keywords: ERT, Double ring infiltrometer, Sheeting joints, Unsaturated zones, Hyderabad, India

Groundwater recharge sustains groundwater discharge, including natural discharge through springs and the base flow to surface water as well as anthropogenic discharge through pumping wells. Here, for the first time, we compute long-term (1996–2015) groundwater recharge rates using data retrieved from several groundwater-level monitoring locations across India (3.3 million km2 area), the most groundwater-stressed region globally. Spatial variations in groundwater recharge rates (basin-wide mean: 17 to 960 mm yr−1) were estimated in the 22 major river basins across India. The extensive plains of the Indus–Ganges–Brahmaputra (IGB) river basins are subjected to prevalence of comparatively higher recharge. This is mainly attributed to occurrence of coarse sediments, higher rainfall, and intensive irrigation-linked groundwater-abstraction inducing recharge by increasing available groundwater storage and return flows. Lower recharge rates ( mm yr−1) in most of the central and southern study areas occur in cratonic, crystalline fractured aquifers. Estimated recharge rates have been compared favorably with field-scale recharge estimates (n=52) based on tracer (tritium) injection tests. Results show that precipitation rates do not significantly influence groundwater recharge in most of the river basins across India, indicating human influence in prevailing recharge rates. The spatial variability in recharge rates could provide critical input for policymakers to develop more sustainable groundwater management in India.

As the feature size is continuously decreasing and integration density is increasing, interconnections have become a dominating factor in determining the overall quality of a chip. Due to the limited scalability of system bus, it cannot meet the requirement of current System-on-Chip (SoC) implementations where only a limited number of functional units can be supported. Long global wires also cause many design problems, such as routing congestion, noise coupling, and difficult timing closure. Network-on-Chip (NoC) architectures have been proposed to be an alternative to solve the above problems by using a packet-based communication network. In this paper, the Circuit-Switched (CS) Router was designed and analysed the various parameters such as power, timing and area. The CS router has taken more number of cycles to transfer the data from source to destination. So the pipelining concept was implemented by adding registers in the CS router architecture. The proposed architecture increases the speed of operation and reduces the critical path of the circuit. The router has been implemented using Verilog HDL. The parameters area, power and timing were calculated in 130 nm CMOS technology using Synopsys tool with nominal operating voltage of 1V and packet size is 39 bits. Finally power, area and time of these two routers have been analysed and compared.

There have been no published recommendations for the management of low-risk chest pain in emergency departments (EDs) across India. This is despite the fact that chest pain continues to be one of the most common presenting complaints in EDs. Risk stratification of patients utilizing an accelerated diagnostic protocol has been shown to decrease hospitalizations by approximately 40% with a low 30-day risk of major adverse cardiac events. The experts group of academic leaders from the Indian College of Cardiology and Academic College of Emergency Experts in India partnered with academic experts in emergency medicine and cardiology from leading institutions in the UK and USA collaborated to study the scientific evidence and make recommendations to guide emergency physicians working in EDs across India.

Heart is one of the most frequently affected organs in electrocution. Electrical injury can cause life-threatening cardiac complications such as asystole, ventricular fibrillation, and myocardial rupture. In this case report, we describe a 22-yr-old male patient who sustained electric burn injury and presented with electrocardiogram showing transient Brugada type pattern.