Two Prototypes of Transversely Excited at atmospheric pressure (TEA) Nitrogen laser systems (One Stage Blumlein Circuit and Two Stage Blumlein Circuit) were fabricated and operated. High voltage power supply with variable operating voltage (0-20 kv) and operating current (1-3A) was built and tested successfully. The gas flow rate of 15 L/ min and 10 L/ min for OSBC and TSBC was used. The performance of the fabricated systems was studied extensively reaching to the optimum operating conditions. The obtained laser output energy for the first system has linear relationship with the applied voltage. The maximum output energy was about (1.14 mJ) with (10.40) ns pulse duration and the half-wave divergence angle was about (0.1455 m rad). In the

The increasing drinking water demand in many countries leads to an increase in the use of desalination plants, which are considered a great solution for water treatment processes. Reverse osmosis (RO) and electro-dialysis (ED) systems are the most popular membrane processes used to desalinate water at high salinity. Both systems work by separating the ionic contaminates and disposing of them as a brine solution, but ED uses electrical current as a driving force while RO uses osmotic pressure. A direct comparison of reverse osmosis and electro-dialysis systems is needed to highlight process development similarities and variances. This work aims to provide an overview of previous studies on reverse osmosis and electro-dial

Dandruff and seborrheic dermatitis (SD) are common skin disorders affecting the scalp and extending to other body sites in the case of SD. They are associated with pruritus and scaling, causing an esthetical disturbance in the population affected.   Treatment of such conditions involves using a variety of drugs for long terms, thus optimizing drug formulation is essential to improve therapeutic efficacy and patient compliance. Conventional topical formulations like shampoos and creams have been widely used but their use is associated with disadvantages. To overcome such effects, novel topical nanotechnology-based formulations are currently under investigation. In the following article, we highlight recently published formulatio

The compounds 3-[4̄-(4˭-methoxybenzoyloxy) benzylideneamino]-2-thioxo-imidazolidine-4-one(3)aand 4-(1-(5-oxo- 2-thioxoimidazolidin-1-ylimino)ethyl)phenyl acetate(3)b were prepared from the reaction of aromatic aldehyde or ketone(1)a,bwith thiosemicarbazide to give aryl thiosemicarbazones(2)a,b ,followed by cyclization with ethylchloroacetate in the presence of fused sodium acetate. Treatment the compounds(3)a,bwith 4- hydroxybenzenediazoniumchloride yielded the correspondings4-((4-((4-hydroxyphenyl)diazenyl)-5-oxo-2- thioxoimidazolidin-1-ylimino)methyl)phenyl 4-methoxybenzoate(4)aand4-(1-(4-((4-hydroxyphenyl)diazenyl)-5-oxo-2- thioxoimidazolidin-1-ylimino)ethyl)phenyl acetate(4)b.The new 2-thioxo-imidazolidin-4-one with esters (5-7)a,b sy

In this paper, variable gain nonlinear PD and PI fuzzy logic controllers are designed and the effect of the variable gain characteristic of these controllers is analyzed to show its contribution in enhancing the performance of the closed loop system over a conventional linear PID controller. Simulation results and time domain performance characteristics show how these fuzzy controllers outperform the conventional PID controller when used to control a nonlinear plant and a plant that has time delay.

BACKGROUND: HLA-B27 can effect clinical presentation and course of ankylosing spondylitis. Different detection techniques of HLA-B27 are available with variable sensitivities and specificities. OBJECTIVE: To compare serologic and molecular diagnostic techniques of detecting HLA-B27 status and to correlate it with some clinical variables among ankylosing spondylitis patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 83 Iraqi patients with ankylosing spondylitis. Clinical and laboratory evaluations were reported. HLA-B27 status was determined in all patients by real-time PCR using HLA-B27 RealFast™ kit; ELISA method was used as well to detect soluble serum HLA-B27 antigens using Human Leukocyte Antigen® kit. RESULTS:

β-Adrenergic blocking agents, mostly comprising of β-amino alcohols, are of pharmaceutical significance and have received major attention due to their utility in the management of cardiovascular disorders including hypertension, angina pectoris, cardiac arrhythmias and other disorders related to the sympathetic nervous system. Most compounds available for clinical use belong to the aryloxypropanolamine series, which is considered the second generation of β-blocking agents. The present study includes the synthesis of compounds with an N-substituted oxypropanolamine moiety attached to the 1, 3, 4-thiadiazole derivatives. According to this information, eight compounds were synthesized and characterized by IR spectra and elemental m