Diamine-Crosslinked and Blended Polyimide Membranes: An Emerging Strategy in Enhancing H/CO Separation.

The increasing demand for high-purity hydrogen (H) as renewable energy sources is driving advancements in membrane technology, which is essential for achieving efficient gas separation. Polyimide (PI) membranes have become an emerging option for H/CO separation due to its excellent thermal stability and stability under harsh conditions. However, the neat PI membrane suffers performance loss due to CO plasticization effect and an encountered trade-off limit between permeability and selectivity.

Innovative solutions for the removal of emerging microplastics from water by utilizing advanced techniques.

Microplastic pollution is one of the most pressing global environmental problems due to its harmful effects on living organisms and ecosystems. To address this issue, researchers have explored several techniques to successfully eliminate microplastics from water sources. Chemical coagulation, electrocoagulation, magnetic extraction, adsorption, photocatalytic degradation, and biodegradation are some of the recognized techniques used for the removal of microplastics from water.

Unveiling the unique potential of MXene with and without graphene nanoplatelet for thermal energy storage applications.

Solar thermal energy storage (TES) is an outstanding innovation that can help solar technology remain relevant during nighttime and cloudy days. TES using phase change material (PCM) is an avant-garde solution for a clean and renewable energy transition. The present study unveils the unique potential of MXene as a performance enhancer in lauric acid (LA), which functions as a base PCM.

Moisture Adsorption-Desorption Behaviour in Nanocomposite Copolymer Films.

Dehumidifying air via refrigerant cooling method consumes a tremendous amount of energy. Independent humidity control systems using desiccants have been introduced to improve energy efficiency. This research aimed to find an alternative to the commonly used solid desiccant, silica gel, which has weak physical adsorption properties.

An efficient and biodegradable alginate-gelatin hydrogel beads as bait against Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus.

The effective control of Aedes mosquitoes using traditional control agents is increasingly challenging due to the presence of insecticide resistance in many populations of key mosquito vectors. An alternative strategy to insecticides is the use of toxic sugar baits, however it is limited due to short-term efficacy. Alginate-Gelatin hydrogel beads (AGHBs) may be an effective alternative by providing longer periods of mosquito attraction and control, especially of key vectors of dengue viruses such as Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus.

On the use of virtual reality for individuals with upper limb loss: a systematic scoping review.

Introduction: Virtual reality has recently become a popular application for rehabilitation and motor control research. This technology has emerged as a valid addition to conventional therapy and promises a successful rehabilitation. This study describes recent research related to the use of virtual reality applications in the rehabilitation of individuals with upper limb loss and to see whether this technology has enough proof of its applicability.

Flower Mimics Roll Out Multicolored Carpets to Lure and Kill the House Fly.

Flowers and their spatial clustering are important parameters that mediate the foraging behavior and visitation rate of pollinating insects. Visual stimuli are crucial for triggering behavioral changes in the house fly, , which regularly visits plants for feeding and reproduction. The success of bait technology, which is the principal means of combatting flies, is adversely affected by reduced attractiveness and ineffective application techniques.

The electronic song "Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites" reduces host attack and mating success in the dengue vector Aedes aegypti.

Sound and its reception are crucial for reproduction, survival, and population maintenance of many animals. In insects, low-frequency vibrations facilitate sexual interactions, whereas noise disrupts the perception of signals from conspecifics and hosts. Despite evidence that mosquitoes respond to sound frequencies beyond fundamental ranges, including songs, and that males and females need to struggle to harmonize their flight tones, the behavioral impacts of music as control targets remain unexplored.

Co-breeding Association of (Skuse) and (Linnaeus) (Diptera: Culicidae) in Relation to Location and Container Size.

The occurrence of major outbreaks of dengue, and other vector borne diseases such as chikungunya and zika in tropical and subtropical regions has rendered control of the diseases a top-priority for many affected countries including Malaysia. Control of the mosquito vectors and through the reduction of breeding sites and the application of insecticides to kill immature forms and adults are the main control efforts to combat these diseases. The present study describes the association between and in shared breeding sites.

Improvement on upper limb body-powered prostheses (1921-2016): A systematic review.

Body-powered prostheses are known for their advantages of cost, reliability, training period, maintenance, and proprioceptive feedback. This study primarily aims to analyze the work related to the improvement of upper limb body-powered prostheses prior to 2016. A systematic review conducted via the search of the Web of Science electronic database, Google Scholar, and Google Patents identified 155 papers from 1921 to 2016.

Investigation on the effect of sintering temperature on kaolin hollow fibre membrane for dye filtration.

Despite its extraordinary price, ceramic membrane can still be able to surpass polymeric membrane in the applications that require high temperature and pressure conditions, as well as harsh chemical environment. In order to alleviate the high cost of ceramic material that still becomes one of the major factors that contributes to the high production cost of ceramic membrane, various attempts have been made to use low cost ceramic materials as alternatives to well-known expensive ceramic materials such as alumina, silica, and zirconia in the fabrication of ceramic membrane. Thus, local Malaysian kaolin has been chosen as the ceramic material in this study for the preparation of kaolin hollow fibre membrane since it is inexpensive and naturally abundant in Malaysia.

Analysis of voluntary opening Ottobock Hook and Hosmer Hook for upper limb prosthetics: a preliminary study.

There are a number of prosthetic terminal devices which offer functional restoration to individuals with upper limb deficiencies. Hosmer and Ottobock are major commercial hook providers for prosthetic terminal devices. The concern of this paper is to analyse the voluntary opening (VO) Ottobock model 10A18 and Hosmer model 99P hooks (one band) during opening operation and to find out favourable features in the design.

High Thermal Gradient in Thermo-electrochemical Cells by Insertion of a Poly(Vinylidene Fluoride) Membrane.

Thermo-Electrochemical cells (Thermocells/TECs) transform thermal energy into electricity by means of electrochemical potential disequilibrium between electrodes induced by a temperature gradient (ΔT). Heat conduction across the terminals of the cell is one of the primary reasons for device inefficiency. Herein, we embed Poly(Vinylidene Fluoride) (PVDF) membrane in thermocells to mitigate the heat transfer effects - we refer to these membrane-thermocells as MTECs.

Coffee and its waste repel gravid Aedes albopictus females and inhibit the development of their embryos.

Background: Dengue is a prevalent arboviral disease and the development of insecticide resistance among its vectors impedes endeavors to control it. Coffee is drunk by millions of people daily worldwide, which is associated with the discarding of large amounts of waste. Coffee and its waste contain large amounts of chemicals many of which are highly toxic and none of which have a history of resistance in mosquitoes.

Anticholinesterase and antityrosinase activities of ten piper species from malaysia.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate acetylcholinesterase (AChE), butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) and antityrosinase activities of extracts from ten Piper species namely; P. caninum, P. lanatum, P.

Occurrence of a mosquito vector in bird houses: Developmental consequences and potential epidemiological implications.

Even with continuous vector control, dengue is still a growing threat to public health in Southeast Asia. Main causes comprise difficulties in identifying productive breeding sites and inappropriate targeted chemical interventions. In this region, rural families keep live birds in backyards and dengue mosquitoes have been reported in containers in the cages.

Indirect effects of cigarette butt waste on the dengue vector Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae).

Despite major insecticide-based vector control programs, dengue continues to be a major threat to public health in urban areas. The reasons for this failure include the emergence of insecticide resistance and the narrowing of the spectrum of efficient products. Cigarette butts (CBs), the most commonly discarded piece of waste, also represent a major health hazard to human and animal life.

(E)-3-(2H-1,3-Benzodioxol-5-yl)-1-(7-hy-droxy-5-meth-oxy-2,2-dimethyl-chroman-8-yl)prop-2-en-1-one.

The reaction of 5,6-(2,2-dimethyl-chromane)-2-hy-droxy-4-meth-oxy-acetophenone and 3,4-methlene-dioxy-benzaldehyde affords the title chalcone derivative, C(22)H(22)O(6). The two benzene rings are connected through a -C(=O)-CH=CH- (propenone) unit, which is in an E conformation; the ring with the hy-droxy substitutent is aligned at 6.2 (1)° with respect to this unit, whereas the ring with the methyl-enedi-oxy substituent is aligned at 8.

(E)-3-[3,4-Bis(meth-oxy-methoxy)phen-yl]-1-(7-hy-droxy-5-meth-oxy-2,2-dimethyl-chroman-8-yl)prop-2-en-1-one.

The reaction of 5,6-(2,2-dimethyl-chroman-yl)-2-hy-droxy-4-meth-oxy-acetophenone and 3,4-bis-(meth-oxy-meth-yloxy)benzaldehyde affords the intense orange title chalcone derivative, C(25)H(30)O(8). The two benzene rings are connected through a -C(=O)-CH=CH- (propenone) unit, which is in an E conformation; the ring with the hy-droxy substitutent is aligned at 19.5 (2)° with respect to this unit, whereas the ring with the meth-oxy-meth-yloxy substituent is aligned at 9.

Life tables study of immature Aedes albopictus (Skuse) (Diptera : Culicidae) during the wet and dry seasons in Penang, Malaysia.

Life tables were constructed for twelve cohorts of immature stages of the dengue vector Ae. albopictus in a wooded area of Penang, Malaysia. The development time of Ae.