Novel compositions of methylcellulose in ethylene, propylene and butylene glycol were investigated for their thermal gel formation. These compositions have previously been found useful for inkjet-printing-based additive manufacturing processes as support materials. Experimental techniques such as viscosity measurements between 20 °C–150 °C–20 °C, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were used and the results showed that the gel formation upon cooling is caused by polymer–polymer association. The results also show that, for methylcellulose, propylene glycol is a better solvent than ethylene glycol and butylene glycol. Since no chemical reaction is involved, these gels can be used as support materials for jetting-based additive manufacturing processes.

Additive manufacturing (AM) has a greater potential to construct lighter parts, having complex geometries with no additional cost, by embedding cellular lattice structures within an object. The geometry of lattice structure can be engineered to achieve improved strength and extra level of performance with the advantage of consuming less material and energy. This paper provides a systematic experimental evaluation of a series of cellular lattice structures, embedded within a cylindrical specimen and constructed according to terms and requirements of ASTMD1621-16, which is standard for the compressive properties of rigid cellular plastics. The modeling of test specimens is based on function representation (FRep) and constructed by fused deposition modeling (FDM) technology. Two different test series, each having eleven test specimens of different parameters, are printed along with their replicates of 70% and 100% infill density. Test specimens are subjected to uniaxial compressive load to produce 13% deformation to the height of the specimen. Comparison of results reveals that specimens, having cellular lattice structure and printed with 70% infill density, exhibit greater strength and improvement in strength to mass ratio, as compared to the solid printed specimen without structure.

Population explosion, industrialization, and urbanization have accelerated energy requirements across the globe. This has led to the human quest to find simple and cost-effective energy solutions. A promising solution is the revival of the Stirling engine with the addition of Shape Memory Alloy NiTiNOL in it. The experimental results reveal that the addition of a NiTiNOL spring at the base plate of the Stirling engine enhances the overall efficiency of the engine, demonstrating some impact of the shape memory alloy toward the performance output of the Stirling engine. The newly modified engine has been named the STIRNOL ENGINE. The comparative study of Stirling and Stirnol engines reveals a minuscule efficiency improvement, yet there is a furtherance that opens a window for future researchers to get a lead and venture into this new field. We are confident that with more complex designs and better Stirling and NiTiNOL combinations, more efficient engines can be invented in the future. This research focuses on changing the material of the base plate of the Stirnol engine and ascertaining its performance differential through the integration of the NiTiNOL spring. A minimum of four types of materials are utilized for experimentation.

The topic of representing the offset of a 2D B-spline curve in the same form has been a topic of research for a long time, and it has many industrial applications, especially in NC tool path generation for pocketing. For B-spline tool paths, it is often required that the tool paths have fewer control points, lower base function degree, and the approximation error is guaranteed within a given tolerance over the entire curve. However, the existing methods utilising global error control approximate the offsets of 2D free-form curves with high function degree and many control points. Although these offsets are useful in computer-aided design, they are inappropriate for the use of CNC machining. To address the problems in order to generate high quality B-spline tool paths, this original work formulates an error function of the offset approximation and then constructs a NURBS curve to globally bound the errors. By checking the maximum coefficient of the bounding curve, the upper bound of all the approximated offset errors is found and the errors can be reduced by segmenting the curve at appropriate knot values. The proposed new approach is more efficient, and the resulting offset approximations are more accurate, with fewer control points and lower function degree. It is useful to generate B-spline tool paths for CNC pocketing, which have the potential for other applications in industry.

Background/Aims: Polyethylene glycol (PEG)-3350, approved by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) only for constipation, combined with 1.9 L of sports drink (SD) (Gatorade®) and bisacodyl (B) is commonly used in outpatient practice for bowel preparation due to cited patient satisfaction and tolerability of this specific regimen. We aim to compare PEG-3350 (Miralax®) with PEG-AA-based (MoviPrep®) in terms of efficacy, patient satisfaction, and the effects of these two regimen on serum electrolytes. Materials and Methods: This study is a prospective, single-blinded, block randomized trial comparing single-dose PEG-3350+SD+B to split-dose 2-L PEG-AA in the outpatient endoscopy unit in patients undergoing colonoscopy. Basic metabolic profiles were checked on the day of randomization and on the day of procedure. Patients completed a survey on the day of procedure. Bowel preparation quality was assessed using the Boston Bowel Preparation Scale (BBPS) by two endoscopists and a nurse present during the procedure. Results: We randomized 150 patients (74 PEG-3350+SD+B and 76 PEG-AA). The PEG-AA group had significantly higher BBPS scores in the right colon by Endoscopist 1, Nurse, and Endoscopist 2 (p 0.005, Conclusion: Use of single-dose PEG-3350+SD+B results in inferior bowel preparation for colonoscopy compared with split-dose PEG-AA and does not provide any advantage in regards to patient satisfaction. We therefore recommend discontinuing the use of PEG 3350 for bowel preparation. Cite this article as: Khan MA, Patel KB, Nooruddin M, et al. Polyethylene Glycol-3350 (Miralax®)+1.9-L sports drink (Gatorade®)+2 tablets of bisacodyl results in inferior bowel preparation for colonoscopy compared with Polyethylene Glycol-Ascorbic Acid (MoviPrep®). Turk J Gastroenterol 2018; 29: 64-70.