Modifiers such as fibers, fillers, natural and synthetic polymer extenders, oxidants and anti-oxidants, and anti-stripping agents are added to produce modified asphalt. However, polymers are the most widely utilized modifiers to enhance the function of asphalt mixtures. The objective of this research was to evaluate the mechanical properties and durability of epoxidized natural rubber (ENR)-modified asphalt mix under short- and long-term aging conditions. The physical and rheological characteristics of the base asphalt and ENR-modified asphalt (ENRMA) were tested. In order to evaluate the mechanical properties and durability of the modified mixtures, the resilient modulus of the ENR–asphalt mixtures under unaged, and short- and long-term aging conditions at various temperatures and frequencies was obtained. Furthermore, the resistance to moisture damage of asphalt mixtures was investigated. The findings showed that the stiffness of the ENR–asphalt mixes increased because of the mutual influence of short- and long-term aging on the mixes. In addition, ENR reduced the susceptibility to moisture damage. The stiffness of the mixes was influenced by the temperature and frequencies. By using mathematical modelling via the multivariable power least squares method, it was found that temperature was the dominant factor among all other factors. The results suggested that the durability of asphalt pavements is improved by using ENR.

Lignin is the complex organic polymers contain in lignocellulosic biomass, acting as structural support of the biomass. Its presence making the biomass recalcitrance to bioprocessing. Therefore, pretreatment is essential in removing the lignin content to enhance the sugar extraction and bioethanol production from lignocellulosic biomass. In this work, pretreatment of oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) using ultrasound-assisted deep eutectic solvents (DESs) was performed. Three types of DESs, namely choline chloride-lactic acid (ChCl-LA), choline chloride-glycerol (ChCl-G) and choline chloride-urea (ChCl-U) in delignification were studied. The pretreatment was conducted with the presence of ultrasonication. The DESs recyclability were also performed in this work. ChCl-LA exhibited the best delignification properties, in which ChCl-LA pretreated OPEFB had the lowest total lignin content of 18.8%, followed by ChCl-U (19.4%) and ChCl-G (21.2%). All the three DESs were successfully recycled with slight decrement in delignification performance after two recycles. The recyclability of the DESs would improve the economic feasibility of the pretreatment process.

The concise review systematically summarises the state-of-the-art variants of Moving Least Squares (MLS) method. MLS method is a mathematical tool which could render cogent support in data interpolation, shape construction and formulation of meshfree schemes, particularly due to its flexibility to form complex arithmetic equation. However, the conventional MLS method is suffering to deal with discontinuity of field variables. Varied strategies of overcoming such shortfall are discussed in current work. Although numerous MLS variants were proposed since the introduction of MLS method in numerical/statistical analysis, there is no technical review made on how the methods evolve. The current review is structured according to major strategies on how to improvise MLS method: the modification of weight function, the manipulation of discrete norms, the inclusion of iterative feature for residuals minimising and integration of these strategies for more robust computation. A wide range of advanced MLS variants have been compiled, summarised, and reappraised according to its underlying principle of improvement. In addition, inherent limitation of MLS method and its possible strategy of improvement is discussed too in this article. The current work could render valuable reference to implement and develop advanced MLS schemes, whenever complexity of the specific scientific problems arose.

Cellulose fibers isolated from oil palm empty fruit bunches (OPEFB) have been studied as a potential reinforcement for polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) biocomposite. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that all three parameters—hydrolysis temperature, time and acid concentration, as well as their interactions—significantly affected the yield of cellulose. Moving Least Squares (MLS) and Multivariable Power Least Squares (MPLS) models demonstrated good fitness. The model also proved that acid concentration was the dominant parameter, supported by the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis. Hydrolysis using 54% acid at 35 °C and 15 min achieved the highest cellulose yield of 80.72%. Cellulose-reinforced PVA biocomposite films demonstrated better mechanical strength, elongation at break, moisture barrier properties, thermal stability and poorer light transmission rate compared to neat PVA due to the high aspect ratio, crystallinity and good compatibility of cellulose fibers. These findings suggested the potential of cellulose fibers-reinforced PVA biocomposite film as water-soluble detergent capsules.

Element-free Galerkin (EFG) method was formulated to simulate elastic fracture in structural mechanics and it possesses great advantages by allowing more flexible numerical treatment on moving interface without mesh regeneration. It has become the research interest of scientific computing to transplant the EFG algorithm into Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) whenever deforming boundaries set in. However, compared with Arbitrary-Lagrangian-Eulerian method and Immersed Boundary method, the development and application of EFG method in CFD is still in infancy. The goal of the review paper is to systematically bridge the current development of EFG methods with its future applications in CFD.