India Science Wire - highlighting Indian science in Indian ...

India Science Wire - highlighting Indian science in Indian media
The coverage of science and technology particularly relating to research done in
Indian research institutions, is generally very poor in Indian media. There are
several reasons for this situation, one of them being the lack of credible and
relevant science content. In order to bridge this gap, Vigyan Prasar launched a
unique initiative - India Science Wire (ISW) – in January 2017.
The news service is dedicated to developments in Indian research laboratories,
universities and academic institutions. Almost all news stories released by this
service are based on research papers by Indian scientists published in leading
Indian and foreign journals. All news stories and features are written and edited by
a team of professional science journalists with decades of experience in science
journalism.
News stories based on happenings in Indian research labs are released to media
houses on a daily basis. These stories are also uploaded on ISW website and are
simultaneously promoted though social media – Twitter and Facebook. At present,
the service is available in English and Hindi.
Reach out ISW Editor with story ideas, comments and suggestions at
[email protected]
S. No. Story title Date of
release
Launch Analytical Toxicology
IICT Scientist
3.

Aug 04 Umashankar Mishra
4. -19 ,

5. /

6.

crop productivity
towards improving wave forecasts
Aug 07 Bhavya Khanna

LEDs
11.
‘’
in pharma sector
13. India’s Fisheries Ocean Research
Vessel (Forv) Sagar Sampada
4
release
Islands
15. Researchers Explain Disordered
Proteins In COVID-19 Virus
Aug 11 Jyoti Singh
16. An App based science talent Hunt Aug 12 Jyoti Singh
17. Arctic sea ice is melting faster than
ever: Study
18.

populations
Aug 13 Sunderarajan Padmanabhan
20. -19

21.
, -

scientifically document a tornado’s
path
23.
,

aerospace engineering start-ups
26. Understanding Antarctic lacustrine
systems through marine aerosols
5
release
the actual extent of COVID-19
spread
solar energy
prevention
31. Mathematical Modelling for
Complex Role of Aerosols in
Global Climate and Local Weather
Aug 25 Mohammad Faiyaz Anwar
33. A novel approach to separate chiral
molecules
pregnancy drugs
Aug 26 Jyoti Singh
35.
,
36. EEG to minimize human error Aug 31 India Science Wire (ISW)
37. -

CSIR and University of Delhi Launch Analytical Toxicology
NEP approach towards skill-based learning will help individuals identify skill sets much earlier, thereby fostering a strong culture for innovation and empowering students to be future ready.
By ISW Desk On Aug 4, 2020
The New Education Policy – 2020 lays emphasis on strengthening the link between research and
teaching at the undergraduate level. It is believed that this approach towards skill-based learning
will help individuals identify skill sets much earlier, thereby fostering a strong culture for
innovation and empowering students to be future ready.
These were thoughts that echoed during the inauguration of the Add-on Course on “Analytical
Toxicology” being offered jointly by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Indian
Institute of Toxicology Research (CSIR-IITR), Lucknow and Hindu College, University of
Delhi, under the umbrella of CSIR Integrated Skill Development Initiative.
In his presidential address, Chief Guest, Dr Shekhar C. Mande, Director General, CSIR and
Secretary, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), emphasized the role of
institutions of the country.
Prof. Alok Dhawan, Director, CSIR–IITR shared the salient features of the field of toxicology
and its scope for various avenues in the real world.
Also Read : Robotic Sapper: Disruptive Innovation for Coconut and Palm Farmers
He highlighted that toxicology has always been a translational science which defines the
domains of safety.
Dr Anju Srivastava, Principal, Hindu College, Delhi, reiterated that the college has always
striven for providing learning experience beyond the curriculum and it is another such attempt in
this direction.
The inaugural event also included an interactive question and answer Session in which DG,
CSIR and Director, CSIR-IITR responded to the queries of students.Earlier, Dr D Parmar, Chief
Scientist, CSIR-IITR spoke about the genesis of the online analytical toxicology programme.
(India Science Wire)
Hyderabad: CRSI Bronze Medal for IICT Scientist
The IICT scientist will receive the coveted medal in the 27th CRSI-RSC joint symposium being organised by
CRSI and Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) at IIT Guwahati, scheduled to be held in February, 2021.
By TelanganaToday | Published: 1st Aug 2020 12:33 pm
Hyderabad: Senior Principal Scientist in the department of Organic Synthesis and Process
Chemistry (OSPC), CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, (CSIR-IICT), Dr. Srihari Pabbaraja, has
been selected for the Chemical Research Society of India (CRSI) Bronze medal 2021 for his contributions in
the field of total synthesis of natural products and method development for new chemical entities,
according to a press release.
The IICT scientist will receive the coveted medal in the 27th CRSI-RSC joint symposium being organised by
CRSI and Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) at IIT Guwahati, scheduled to be held in February, 2021.
Dr. Srihari is associated with the backward integration of Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), the well-known
repurposed drug for Covid-19, and synthesis of its key intermediates from indigenously available raw
materials.
He is also involved in the application of flow chemistry technology for the synthesis of Active
Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), has supervised 12 students for Ph.D, published 115 articles in reputed
international journals and has filed 10 patents to his credit.
Dr. Srihari is also a recipient of several awards including the CSIR Young Scientist Award in 2009 and the
OPPI Young Scientist Award in the same year. He also received the AVRA Young Scientist Award-2014, Dr.
A. K. Singh Memorial Young Scientist Award-2016 and CDRI Award for Excellence in Drug Research-2018,
among others.
9

, , 04, 2020
( ) -

,

, ,
60% , ,
,
-

, - ,
,
, ,
, ( )
,

‘ ’ ,

‘ ’
, -
10
‘ ’

‘ ’ ,
-
‘ ’

,
,

, -
,
,
, "
‘ ’ ,
"
,

“ ,
- ”
,

. ., , .

News 09, 2020
) (.
)(
() -19 -
)-( - )SAANS(
-19 - ,

-19 - ,
,,
, / ,

. “ - -
3-4 , 60-70%
0.3 95-98
30 -
,
”
. . '-
, , '

.

- .
-19
-
- -19
, “ -19
-

”
13
/

, , 05, 2020

( /) ( ) ( )
2020
14
20 ,
,

– “
, -
-19 ,

”
, -

( ) ( - ) .
" . 2013 /
.
, ,
” ,

, , . .
, -

ISW/USM/05-08-2020
15

Admin 9 August 2020
()
(), ()

,
.

16
, , -
,
,
,
, ()
, ,

,

, -

,

. “

.
15
( )
17
AGRICULTURE
productivity
The purpose is to enhance the crop yield in lesser time
By Jyoti Singh Published: Thursday 06 August 2020
Microbes always exist in communities. They are also used in commercial applications. In industries like probiotics and biofuels, co-cultivations of these microbes are performed under controlled conditions for improved yield and productivity of the given product. These co-cultures are designed randomly based on hit and trial methods.
To quickly ascertain the right combination and to understand how these microbes interact with in a co-culture, researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras have developed and demonstrated an effective method.
The study applies computer-based modelling to develop novel algorithms to identify metabolic interactions between bacteria. This understanding may help in identifying the perfect combination for a co-culture.
“There is no rational way to identify the co-culture to begin with. This is a more rational way of designing the co-cultures. We will extend the applications to plants productivity too. The purpose is to enhance the crop yield in lesser time,” Smita Srivastava, associate professor, Department of Biotechnology, IIT Madras, said.
The research shows that many metabolites act as messengers between the microbes. These messengers are critical to define how bacteria associate with one another and what combination is best suited for co-cultures. The interactions also play a significant role in a wide variety of applications ranging from probiotic design to biofuel production.
According to the researchers, one of the applications is focused on the agriculture industry. It might be able to get certain metabolites which may be utilised by the plants for its growth. “How the plant can interact with certain organisms which are known in nature to live with the plant when we try to exploit that in reactor system, it will help in over producing that product from the plant,” Srivastava said.
The team plans to extend the findings of this study to investigate interactions in the human gut. Their work was also a part of a recent collaborative project with Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A-STAR), Singapore, where their approach provided insights into the metabolic underpinnings of how the gut recovers following antibiotic treatment.
The algorithm is based on the popular computer science area called network theory, where the interactions between different elements define their associations. “Here, we systematically navigate through the metabolic networks to identify the possible metabolites that can be exchanged between the bacteria. We then define the associations based on these metabolic exchanges,” Karthik Raman, associate professor, Department of Biotechnology, IIT Madras, said.
These metabolites define the kind of relationship between the bacteria. The team devised a new metric called ‘Metabolic Support Index (MSI)’, which helps to quantify the benefits that an organism receives in a microbial community.
The research work has been published in Computational and Structural Biotechnology Journal. The research team comprises Smita Srivastava, Karthik Raman and Aarthi Ravikrishnan.
improving wave forecasts
Researchers at the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS),
Hyderabad, have found a method of improving wave forecasts. They have ascertained
that certain phases of boreal summer intra seasonal oscillation or BSISO induce high-
wave activity in the northern Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea. The finding will help to
improve wave forecasts in the Indian coastal region and help mitigate the adverse
impacts of high waves such as coastal flooding and erosion. It will also aid better
planning of sea navigation routes in the northern Indian Ocean waters.
Boreal Summer Intra-Seasonal Oscillation (BSISO) is the movement of convection
(heat) from the Indian Ocean to the western Pacific in roughly every 10–50 days of
20
the monsoon season from June to September. BSISOs represent monsoon’s ‘active’
and ‘break’ periods, in which weeks of heavy rainfall give way to brilliant sunshine
before starting all over again. The active phase also enhances monsoon winds and
hence the surface waves.
BSISOs represent monsoon’s ‘active’ and ‘break’ periods, in which weeks of heavy
rainfall give way to brilliant sunshine before starting all over again.
The team worked with data on Indian ocean waves such as their height, period, and
surface winds over a span of 38 years from 1979-2017. By using mathematical data
analysis models, the research team studied the relationship between various phases of
BSISO and the height of waves in the Indian Ocean. They found that waves induced
by active phases of BSISO are nearly 0.5 meters higher than those which occur during
other phases of BSISO. The active phases of BSISO occur between June to August
which are the monsoon summer months. “This finding has a great significance in
developing seasonal and climate forecast service for waves and coastal erosion for
India. Under the Deep Ocean Mission of the Ministry of Earth Sciences, we will be
initiating work on this very soon”, said DrBalakrishna Nair, Director of INCOIS,
Hyderabad, who led the study. The findings were published in a recent issue of the
journal Scientific Reports.
“Wave forecast advisories based on the BSISO would be more useful for efficient
coastal and marine management”, he added. His team included DrGangiredlaSrinivas
and Dr P G Remya, scientists at INCOIS, Hyderabad and S Malvika, a masters
student at the Cochin University of Sciences and Technology, Kerala.
India Science Wire
Indian researchers take a step towards
improving wave forecasts Updated At: Aug 09, 2020 11:59 AM (IST)
Impact of BSISO on high waves and coastal erosion.(Photo: Dr B Nair, INCOIS)
22
student at the Cochin University of Sciences and Technology, Kerala. India Science
Wire
23
Article By : India Science Wire
Category : AI | 2020-08-07
Researchers at the INCOIS, Hyderabad have found a method of improving wave forecasts. It will help
to improve wave forecasts in the Indian coastal region and help mitigate the adverse impacts of high
waves such as coastal flooding and erosion...
Researchers at the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad have
found a method of improving wave forecasts. They have ascertained that certain phases of boreal
summer intra seasonal oscillation or BSISO induce high wave activity in the northern Indian Ocean
and Arabian Sea. The finding will help to improve wave forecasts in the Indian coastal region and
help mitigate the adverse impacts of high waves such as coastal flooding and erosion. It will also aid
better planning of sea navigation routes in the northern Indian Ocean waters.
Boreal Summer Intra-Seasonal Oscillation (BSISO) is the movement of convection (heat) from the
Indian Ocean to the western Pacific in roughly every 10–50 days of the monsoon season from June
to September. BSISOs represent monsoon’s ‘active’ and ‘break’ periods, in which weeks of heavy
rainfall give way to brilliant sunshine before starting all over again. The active phase also enhances
monsoon winds and hence the surface waves.
The team worked with data on Indian ocean waves such as their height, period, and surface winds
over a span of 38 years from 1979-2017. By using mathematical data analysis models, the research
team studied the relationship between various phases of BSISO and the height of waves in the Indian
Ocean. They found that waves induced by active phases of BSISO are nearly 0.5 meters higher than
those which occur during other phases of BSISO. The active phases of BSISO occur between June to
August which are the monsoon summer months. “This finding has a great significance in developing
seasonal and climate forecast service for waves and coastal erosion for India. Under the Deep Ocean
Mission of the Ministry of Earth Sciences, we will be initiating work on this very soon”,
said Dr BalakrishnaNair, Director of INCOIS, Hyderabad, who led the study. The findings were
published in a recent issue of the journal Scientific Reports.
“Wave forecast advisories based on the BSISO would be more useful for efficient coastal and marine
management”, he added. His team included Dr Gangiredla Srinivas and Dr P G Remya, scientists at
INCOIS, Hyderabad and S Malvika, a masters student at the Cochin University of Sciences and
Technology, Kerala.
Impact of BSISO on high waves and coastal erosion. (Photo: DrB Nair, INCOIS)
25
Indian researchers take a step towards improving wave forecasts By Indus Scrolls Bureau - August 9, 2020
Researchers at the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services
(INCOIS), Hyderabad have found a method of improving wave forecasts. They have ascertained that certain phases of boreal summer intra seasonal oscillation
or BSISO induce high wave activity in the northern Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea. The finding will help to improve wave forecasts in the Indian coastal region
and help mitigate the adverse impacts of high waves such as coastal flooding and erosion. It will also aid better planning of sea navigation routes in the northern Indian Ocean waters.
Boreal Summer Intra-Seasonal Oscillation (BSISO) is the movement of
convection (heat) from the Indian Ocean to the western Pacific in roughly every 10–50 days of the monsoon season from June to September. BSISOs represent
monsoon’s ‘active’ and ‘break’ periods, in which weeks of heavy rainfall give way to brilliant sunshine before starting all over again. The active phase also enhances monsoon winds and hence the surface waves.
mathematical data analysis models, the research team studied the relationship between various phases of BSISO and the height of waves in the Indian Ocean.
They found that waves induced by active phases of BSISO are nearly 0.5 meters higher than those which occur during other phases of BSISO. The active
phases of BSISO occur between June to August which are the monsoon summer months. “This finding has a great significance in developing seasonal and
climate forecast service for waves and coastal erosion for India. Under the Deep Ocean Mission of the Ministry of Earth Sciences, we will be initiating work on
this very soon”, said Dr Balakrishna Nair, Director of INCOIS, Hyderabad, who led the study. The findings were published in a recent issue of the journal Scientific Reports.
“Wave forecast advisories based on the BSISO would be more useful for efficient coastal and marine management”, he added. His team included Dr
Gangiredla Srinivas and Dr P G Remya, scientists at INCOIS, Hyderabad and S Malvika, a masters student at the Cochin University of Sciences and Technology, Kerala.
27
Researchers at the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services
(INCOIS), Hyderabad have found a method of improving wave forecasts. They
have ascertained that certain phases of boreal summer intra seasonal oscillation
or BSISO induce high wave activity in the northern Indian Ocean and Arabian
Sea. The finding will help to improve wave forecasts in the Indian coastal region
and help mitigate the adverse impacts of high waves such as coastal flooding and
erosion. It will also aid better planning of sea navigation routes in the northern
Indian Ocean waters.
Boreal Summer Intra-Seasonal Oscillation (BSISO) is the movement of convection (heat) from the Indian Ocean to the western Pacific in
roughly every 10–-50 days of the monsoon season from June to September.
BSISOs represent monsoon’s ‘active’ and ‘break’ periods, in which weeks of heavy rainfall give way to brilliant sunshine before starting all over again. The active phase also enhances monsoon winds and hence the surface waves.
The team worked with data on Indian ocean waves such as their height, period, and surface winds over a span of 38 years from 1979–2017. By using mathematical data analysis models, the research team studied the relationship between various phases of BSISO and the height of waves in the Indian Ocean. They found that waves induced by active phases of BSISO are nearly 0.5 meters higher than those which occur during other phases of BSISO. The active phases of BSISO occur between June to August which are the monsoon summer months. “This finding has a great significance in developing seasonal and climate forecast service for waves and coastal erosion for India. Under the Deep Ocean Mission of the Ministry of Earth Sciences, we will be initiating work on this very soon”, said Dr Balakrishna Nair, Director of INCOIS, Hyderabad, who led the study. The findings were published in a recent issue of the journal Scientific Reports.
“Wave forecast advisories based on the BSISO would be more useful for efficient coastal and marine management”, he added. His team included Dr Gangiredla Srinivas and Dr P G Remya, scientists at INCOIS, Hyderabad and S Malvika, a masters student at the Cochin University of Sciences and Technology, Kerala. (India Science wire)
Team DP
improving wave forecasts Updated At: Aug 09, 2020 11:59 AM (IST)
Impact of BSISO on high waves and coastal erosion.(Photo: Dr B Nair, INCOIS)
30
student at the Cochin University of Sciences and Technology, Kerala. India Science
Wire
31

, , 07, 2020
( ) ( )
( )
-
,

, ( Binary Adder),
, -

,
32
,

, -- ( )

( ) ,
( )

“ - ( Ferromagnetic)

- - ,
, ”
“
-

”

ISW/USM/07-08-2020
33
Shinier, robust and pinchpenny LEDs By Indus Scrolls Bureau - August 9, 2020
Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) have replaced the ordinary bulbs and they can
further reduce the energy needs on large scale. Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati and Imperial College London, UK, have
developed a tailored ‘meta-grid’ of nanoparticles that could make light-emitting diodes (LEDs) even brighter, energy-efficient and durable. ‘Meta-grid’ or
‘metamaterial grid’ is a specifically patterned array (grid) of nanoparticles acting as metamaterials, capable of exhibiting extraordinary optical properties.
Over the years, a significant research drive towards this objective is in exploring
new materials for LED-chip encapsulation, mostly by deploying either higher refractive index glasses or epoxy materials incorporated with filler powders or
nanoparticle-loaded-epoxy or engineered epoxy resins, etc. However, these techniques either make the LED chips bulkier or their fabrication becomes more challenging and less economically viable for mass production.
To meet the goals the research team has developed a nanoparticle ‘meta-grid’, which can be placed at an appropriate location within the epoxy casing of the
LEDs, for improving light output from LEDs. A ‘meta-grid’ is a specially- designed, optimised, two-dimensional array of specific nanoparticles, of size much smaller than the wavelength of light.
While prescribing minimal changes to the manufacturing process, the research
team has developed this novel scheme of boosting transmission of light generated inside an LED chip across the LED-chip/encapsulant interface. This is
achieved by reducing the Fresnel reflection loss at the chip/encapsulant interface, within a fixed photon escape cone, based on tuning the destructive
output over any narrow/broadband emission spectrum, besides boosting LEDs’ lifetime by eliminating heating of the chip from unwanted reflections within the chip.
Dr. Debabrata Sikdar, Assistant Professor, Department of Electronics and Electrical Engineering, IIT Guwahati said, “In this invention, the effects of the
‘meta-grid’ on the standard commercial LEDs, based on group III–V materials are demonstrated. However, the proposed concept of enhancing light
transmission from an emissive layer to its encapsulant casing can be extended to other types of light emitting devices hosting an emissive-layer/encapsulant
interface. Generally, our nanoparticle ‘meta-grid’ scheme for enhanced light extraction could potentially cater to a wider range of optical gadgets, not just semiconductor LEDs.”
Talking about their work, Prof. Sir John B. Pendry, Department of Physics, Imperial College London, said, “The simplicity of the proposed scheme and the
clear physics underpinning it should make it robust and, hopefully, easily adaptable to the existing LED manufacturing process. It is obvious that with larger light extraction efficiency, LEDs will provide greater energy savings as well as longer lifetimes of the devices”.
The research team includes Dr Debabrata Sikdar, Prof Sir John B. Pendry and Prof Alexei A. Kornyshev from Imperial College, London. The findings have been published in Light: Science & Applications journal. (India Science Wire)
35
Research Stash | News | Aug 9, 2020
Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) have replaced the ordinary bulbs and they can further reduce the energy needs on large scale. Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati, and Imperial College London, UK, have developed a tailored ‘meta-grid’ of nanoparticles that could make light-emitting diodes (LEDs) even brighter, energy-efficient and durable.
‘Meta-grid’ or ‘metamaterial grid’ is a specifically patterned array (grid) of nanoparticles acting as metamaterials, capable of exhibiting extraordinary optical properties.
Over the years, a significant research drive towards this objective is in exploring new materials for LED-chip encapsulation, mostly by deploying either higher refractive index glasses or epoxy materials incorporated with filler powders or nanoparticle-loaded-epoxy or engineered epoxy resins, etc. However, these techniques either make the LED chips bulkier or their fabrication becomes more challenging and less economically viable for mass production.
To meet the goals the research team has developed a nanoparticle ‘meta-grid’, which can be placed at an appropriate location within the epoxy casing of the LEDs, for improving light output from LEDs. A ‘meta-grid’ is a specially-designed, optimized, two-dimensional array of specific nanoparticles, of size much smaller than the wavelength of light.
While prescribing minimal changes to the manufacturing process, the research team has developed this novel scheme of boosting the transmission of light generated inside an LED chip across the LED-chip/encapsulant interface. This is achieved by reducing the Fresnel reflection loss at the chip/encapsulant interface, within a fixed photon escape cone, based on tuning the destructive interference phenomena with help of the ‘meta-grid’.
The technique has revealed optimal design parameters for such meta-grids to produce greater light output over any narrow/broadband emission spectrum, besides boosting LEDs’ lifetime by eliminating heating of the chip from unwanted reflections within the chip.
Dr. Debabrata Sikdar, Assistant Professor, Department of Electronics and Electrical Engineering, IIT Guwahati said, “In this invention, the effects of the ‘meta-grid’ on the standard commercial LEDs, based on group III–V materials are demonstrated. However, the proposed concept of enhancing light transmission from an emissive layer to its encapsulant casing can be extended to other types of light-emitting devices hosting an emissive- layer/encapsulant interface. Generally, our nanoparticle ‘meta-grid’ scheme for enhanced light extraction could potentially cater to a wider range of optical gadgets, not just semiconductor LEDs.”
Talking about their work, Prof. Sir John B. Pendry, Department of Physics, Imperial College London, said, “The simplicity of the proposed scheme and the clear physics underpinning it should make it robust and, hopefully, easily adaptable to the existing LED manufacturing process. It is obvious that with larger light extraction efficiency, LEDs will provide greater energy savings as well as longer lifetimes of the devices”. The research team includes Dr. Debabrata Sikdar, Prof Sir John B. Pendry, and Prof Alexei A. Kornyshev from Imperial College, London. The findings have been published in Light: Science & Applications journal. (ISW)
‘’
11, 2020
’

()
() ‘’

38
,

‘’

, 500 , 200
100

, -

pharma sector
Department of Pharmaceuticals will come forward to support CSIR-IICT in
developing and transferring indigenous technologies for some of these materials
By India Science Wire | Published: 10th Aug 2020 6:16 pm
Hyderabad: In the wake of the novel coronavirus outbreak, the pharmaceutical industries and
the academic institutions are more eager than ever to collaborate. In an important
development, Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) and Department of
Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers have joined hands to embolden India’s
efforts of self-reliance in pharma sector.
The announcement came following an appeal of Dr P D Vaghela, Secretary, Department of
Pharmaceuticals (DOP), Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers urging CSIR-IICT to champion
industry-academia partnership, while speaking on the occasion of the 77th Foundation day
celebration of IICT.
Dr Vaghela invited IICT help DOP to establish Centres of Excellence in bulk-drug research in
three National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) institutes, identified
for the purpose. He also requested Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and CSIR-
IICT in particular to play a dominant role in preparing a comprehensive Research and
Development policy for the pharmaceutical sector.
Currently, critically important KSMs (Key Starting Materials) and APIs (Active Pharma
Ingredients) are mostly imported. DOP will come forward to support CSIR-IICT in developing
and transferring indigenous technologies for some of these materials. Dr Vaghela emphasised
that the need of the hour is to reduce the dependence on imports of critical chemicals, and
expects CSIR-IICT to take significant role in making India self-reliant in pharmaceutical sector.
The department is planning to allot Rs 1000 crores to develop pharma parks in various states.
The companies setting up their units in these parks will be eligible for incentives from the state
and central governments. Dr Vaghela felt the need of seamless procedures required in
providing skilled staff, scientists, academia-industry relationship for a continuous research in
the country.
Such a process can make pharma products competitive and reduce the dependence on imports.
“DOP will look upon Institutes like CSIR-IICT in helping the State governments develop common
utilities like, Steam generation, analytical facilities, pilot plants etc” said Dr Vaghela.
Dr Shekhar C. Mande, Director General, CSIR said that industry-academia relationship is very
important and CSIR will extend all possible collaboration in making India an ‘Atmanirbhar
Bharat’ by actively participating in R & D Programmes and in building industry-academia
relationships.
41
42
43
found in Andaman and Nicobar Islands
These crabs help “clean up” the sea bottom by harvesting decomposing plants and animals, thus
helping in detritus formation, nutrient recycling, and dynamics of the marine ecosystem
Jyoti Singh New Delhi, 6:30 AM, 12 August, 2020
Crabs are used to cure different ailments like stomach ache, liver and lung diseases,
and heal wounds, osteoporosis, epilepsy, and reproductive malfunction in women,
among others. Representational image: iStock
The Andaman and Nicobar Islands have been found to be home to different species of
deep-water Brachyuran crabs, a recent survey carried out by Center for Marine Living
Resources Ecology (CMLRE) noted.
Brachyuran crabs bear immense ecological and economic significance. They are not
only an important source of protein but also a rich source of carbohydrates, lipids,
vitamins and minerals, helping the fisheries industry flourish.
The deep-water survey, carried out with the help of Fisheries Ocean Research Vehicle
Sagar Ratna, has revealed the presence of seventeen species of Brachyuran crabs,
including three species which were recorded for the first time in the area.
Most importantly, the CMLRE survey spotted the seventeen crab species in newer
areas of the ocean. These crabs are ecologically important for being both a predator
and prey in the marine food web.
Brachyuran crabs also play a key role in the deep-water ecosystem. They help “clean
up” the sea bottom by harvesting decomposing plants and animals, thus helping in
detritus formation, nutrient recycling, and dynamics of the ecosystem. Crabs are also
used to cure different ailments like stomach ache, liver and lung diseases, and heal
wounds, osteoporosis, epilepsy, and reproductive malfunction in women, among others.
The research team, for the first time, found a rare porter crab ‘Homolochunia valdiviae
Doflein, 1904’, inhabiting a wide depth of 395-1000 metres in the Northern Indian
Ocean, previously known only to be in the Western Indian and Western Pacific Ocean
regions.
Another species of deep-water elbow crab ‘Dairoides seafdeci Takeda and
Ananpongsuk’, 1991, which is endemic to the Andaman Sea, was found for the first time
in the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) with a relatively narrow depth range of
299–633 meters.
A third species of deep-water pebble crab ‘Parilia pattersoni PKL Ng, Devi and AB
Kumar’, 2018, earlier found in western Bay of Bengal, got recorded by the CMLRE
research team for the first time in both the Andaman Sea and Arabian Sea.
The research team comprised Sherine Sonia Cubelio, VP Padate, Narayanane
Saravanane, and Maruthadu Sudhakar of CMLRE, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Cochin,
besides KM Amritha of Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS) and
eminent carcinologist Professor PKL Ng of the National University of Singapore.
The research paper is published in the Journal of Regional Studies in Marine Science.
(With inputs from India Science Wire)
45
COVID-19 Virus Through Computational
Research Stash News Aug 12, 2020
Novel Coronavirus has devastated the whole world. Numerous research groups are racing against
time to decode the COVID-19 virus, in order to find cures for the catastrophic pandemic. A
research team from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Mandi, in collaboration with
researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of South Florida, USA,
has used computational tools to understand an important part of the viral proteome called
Intrinsically Disordered Protein Regions (IDPRs).
The COVID-19 virus essentially consists of the genetic molecule, RNA, enclosed in an envelope
made of lipids and proteins. Once in the host, the virus overpasses the host defense mechanisms
and inserts its RNA into the host cells. Then, the virus hijacks the host cell machinery to use the
viral RNA for the production of viral proteins in a process called ‘translation’, and the infected
cell starts generating toxic viral proteins, which leads to various conditions and symptoms. It is
known that proteins provide both structural and functional characteristics to living things and
extraneous (viral) proteins can take over the functions of human cells.
“In COVID-19, the RNA is translated first into proteins that perform a wide range of functions.
Since protein functions depend both on ordered and disordered regions, it is important to
understand the whole proteome considering both ordered and disordered proteins”, explains Dr.
Rajanish Giri, Assistant Professor, School of Basic Sciences, IIT Mandi. The set of proteins or
proteome comprises both ordered regions and disordered regions in proteins.
“Intrinsically Disordered Proteins (IDPs), and IDPRs are gaining attention in recent times
because they have been discovered to play vital roles in various biological processes”, said Dr.
Giri.
The IDP and IDPRs have been strongly correlated with the virulence of viruses. Deciphering
their structure and functions in COVID-19 can help find ways to mitigate the effects of the
infection. Both the protein structure and non-structure are fundamental things and their
knowledge is paramount to understand the virus pathogenesis. With computational tools it’s
possible to investigate the propensities of the proteins and regions, that may or may not form the
structure.
“We have investigated the disordered side of SARS-CoV-2 proteome using a complementary set
of computational approaches to check the prevalence of IDPRs in its proteins and to shed some
light on their disorder-related functions, besides their disorder-based binding motifs, known as
molecular recognition features”, Observed Dr. Giri.
The studies have shown the crucial role of IDPRs in the maturation of individual proteins. It is
found that many of these proteins contain disorder-based binding motifs. “Since many
IDPs/IDPRs undergo structural changes upon association with their physiological partners, our
study generates important grounds for better understanding of the functionality of these proteins,
their interactions with other viral proteins, as well as interaction with host proteins in different
physiological conditions”, Dr. Giri observed.
He further adds, “The process of rational drug design is currently limited since it mostly ignores
the presence of intrinsic disorder in target proteins. The understanding of the structure of these
regions in the COVID-19 proteome is valuable to structural biologists involved in high
throughput and structure-based screening for drug development”.
The IIT Mandi team has also compared IDPRs among the closely related viruses, human SARS,
and bat SARS-like CoVs. Such comparisons aid a better understanding of the sequence and
structural peculiarities of the evolution of the virus and its virulence.
The IIT Mandi researchers plan to conduct more in-depth studies to establish structure-function
relationships for a better understanding of the functioning of SARS-CoV-2 proteins. ‘Currently,
we are also performing experiments to further investigate the disordered proteins in SARS-CoV-
2’, Dr. Giri concluded.
The research team includes Dr. Rajanish Giri, Taniya Bhardwaj, Meenakshi Shegane,
Bhuvaneshwari R. Gehi, Prateek Kumar, and Kundlik Gadhave from IIT Mandi, Dr. Christopher
J. Oldfield, Virginia Commonwealth University and Dr. Vladimir N. Uversky, University of
South Florida. The results have been published in the journal Cellular and Molecular Life
Sciences. (ISW)
An App based science talent Hunt
VVM is an app based, science talent search examination conducted online. The
students may register individually or through schools against payment of a
registration fees of Rs. 100.
By India Science Wire | Published: 13th Aug 2020 5:20 pm
Hyderabad: While the fear of spread of novel Coronavirus has forced formal
schools and colleges to operate virtually, Vijnana Bharati (VIBHA), in collaboration
with Vigyan Prasar (VP) and National Council of Educational Research and Training
(NCERT), has come up with a unique program in a virtual mode, for science
popularization among school students from class VI to XI. The program titled
“Vidharthi Vigyan Manthan (VVM)” is a national level program conceptualised to
identify young bright minds with a scientific aptitude among the students at
secondary level.
VVM is an app based, science talent search examination conducted online. The
students may register individually or through schools against payment of a
registration fees of Rs. 100. Four days before the date of exam, the student will
receive an SMS and Email notification to download the latest App. The download
must be done at least three days prior to the exam date.The exam will be
conducted on windows and android platforms only. VVM App will be available for
download (link will be enabled), post 25th November 2020. Preliminary level
examination will be conducted on 29th and/or 30th November, 2020.
“The mandate of VVM matches with that of Vigyan Prasar (VP). Creating interest
in science at school level through such a wide competition fosters the scientific
awareness in a child. With this converging ideology, VP has always felt that there
is a much bigger need of similar competition-based programs in science” said Dr
Nakul Parashar, Director, VP.
48
Under this program various hands-on workshop and competitions will be held to
make aware successful students about India’s contributions, from traditional to
the modern world of science and technology. These competitions will be helpful
in identifying students that can be taken to the State and National level. The
bright students would be felicitated and visits would be organised for the winners
to various research and development institutions in the country. VVM will also
provide mentors for selected students to carry forward their education in the field
of science.
On answering how such competitions make the students future ready, Dr
Parashar observed that Indian science needs to be brought to the fore and VVM
has a dedicated section that deals with it. “At the school level, this helps a
youngster to know more about our Indian Science, its rich past and how it has
come of age. With the introduction of Indian Science at an early age through
competition like this, a greater awareness and interest for science amongst
children is generated” he told.
Registration will be available only through online mode on VVM’s website
https://www.vvm.org.in. from 01 August, 2020 to 30 September, 2020.
49
than ever: Study
The study also showed that the September of 2018 was the third warmest on record
By India Science Wire Published: Wednesday 12 August 2020
A recent study from the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR) in
Goa has pointed out that Arctic sea ice is melting at an alarming rate, especially
during the boreal or northern hemisphere summer.
The study, published in the journal Heliyon, highlighted the increasing decline of the
Arctic sea ice due to climate change. It reported that September sea ice declined to
its lowest extent of 4.71 million square kilometeres in 2018, its lowest in the past four
decades.
The study to measure the extent of Arctic sea ice loss was led by Avinash Kumar
and his team of scientists comprising Juhi Yadav and Rahul Mohan from NCPOR.
“The minimum extent of seasonal sea ice for 2018 was recorded between
September 19 and 23. Prior to September 19, 2018, sea ice extent had declined at a
rate of nearly 14,000 square kilometres per day that was significantly faster than in
most previous years,” Kumar observed.
The study also showed that the September of 2018 was the third warmest on record,
with temperature differences of the air above the Arctic Ocean (~3.5°C) to be slightly
higher than that of the Arctic land (~2.8°C).
The decline in sea ice can lead to accelerated global warming and climate changes.
“The faster loss of sea-ice for the whole Arctic Ocean during September
demonstrates that there are substantial variations in surface air temperature and
there is a correspondence between the fluctuations in surface air temperature in the
Arctic and global regions,” Kumar added.
The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the rest of the globe, a phenomenon known
as arctic amplification. Arctic sea ice loss is attributed to several factors such as
rising global temperatures. The study suggests that due to more open seas in
winters, the growth of sea ice is delayed, leading to disproportionate loss of sea ice
occurring during summer.
For the study, researchers obtained data of Arctic ice extent, thickness, and volume
from 1979-2018 from globally-available satellite data and applied modelling
techniques. They also studied its correlations with atmospheric and surface
temperatures and sea pressure.
As a result, they were able to see how ice in the Arctic region has changed over the
last four decades. It also helped them to predict the possible sea ice scenario in the
coming years. The group is now planning to expand their work to study how sea ice
melting and intrusion of warm ocean waters are related.
51

14, 2020
,
100
-19
, ,
()
()
,
,
100

52
25 2020
29-30 2020

“ 2016
,
,
”
() “

, , , , ,

”

,

“ -

-
”
,
“
, ,

”
https://www.vvm.org.in 30 2020

https://www.vvm.org.in/
53
54
55
-19
Last Updated: , 16 2020 (12:43 IST)
, -19
,

- ()
- -
- , ()

, -

56
() ,

(Heat Inaction) 98
-
“
-
”
-
, ?
()

12 100 12
,
( )
57
, -

Publish Date:Mon, 17 Aug 2020 09:22 PM (IST)Author:
-
,
- ,
, ! ,
- ()
- , -

-
58
-
. í , , ,
- -
-
-2 (2) () ,

- ,
,
,
-
, -

, ,
, ,
,
,
, , ,
, -

,

12-14
12-14 , 58
-
-

tornado’s path
18-Aug-2020
Pandua in Hugli, West Bengal where the tornado occurred in 1865 (L), Chatterjee’s sketch of
the tornado track and rotation which crossed a railway track at Pandua (R).The sketch figure
was reconstructed. (Courtesy: Rajanikant Shinde, IT Engineer, IITM).
(India Science Wire): Babu ChunderSikur Chatterjee, an Indian scientist employed with the
Surveyor General of India during the British colonial era, was likely the first person to
scientifically document a tornado’s path in 1865, claims a study from the Indian Institute of
Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune. By carefully searching and analysing papers about tornados,
Saumyendu De and Dr A K Sahai, scientists at IITM Pune, concluded that Chatterjee’s paper is
the earliest record of a tornado’s dynamics in the history of meteorology.
Chatterjee had published his findings in a journal named Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of
Bengal, in a paper titled ‘Note on a whirlwind at Pundooah’. The paper described tornado’s
dynamics in meticulous detail and was accompanied by a sketch that mathematically depicted
the tornado’s scale,track androtation. “There is a legacy of meteorological research in India. We
find that it is Chatterjee’s brilliance and nature’s assistance that helped him decode tornado’s
60
scale and dynamics with such scientific rigor that his conclusions are relevant even today, that
is, more than a century later”, said Saumyendu De.
At the time when Chatterjee published his paper, records of extreme weather events in India
existed as eye witness accounts or entries in ships’ logbooks. This remained the situation for
most of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. But Chatterjee did it differently. He
quantitatively mapped the entire trail of tornado’s destruction. He benefited from the rare
opportunity to observe tornado passing through a railway track where there were conveniently
placed markers at predefined locations like railway line mileposts and telegraph posts that
enabled him to observe and make clear measurements of tornado’s direction, dynamics, and
path.
A tornado appears as a strong whirlwind, which is a rapidly rotating column of air with a
suction spot at its centre that is in contact with both the Earth’s surface and a thunderhead
cloud. It is generally accompanied by extreme weather such as heavy downpours, hail storms,
and lightning. The tornado documented by Chatterjee had occurred on 5 May 1865 at 18:00
hours in Pandua, located in the Hooghly district of West Bengal. Pundooah is a railway station in
Pandua area of Hooghly.
“It is interesting to establish the length of time for which society has had an affinity for a given
subject. Our study provides a means by which one compares the development of scientific
knowledge at different periods in time across the world”, observed Dr Sahai.
Saumyendu De and Dr A K Sahai have published the evidence piece in a recent issue of the
journal ‘Weather’ of the Royal Meteorological Society. IITM Pune is under the Ministry of Earth
Sciences, Government of India. (India Science Wire)
(The writers are researchers in IITM, Pune)
61

,
Aug 19, 2020, 2:02 PM
, 19 (..)

() ()
- ()
.

,
-
-
. . , . .

-
.
,

simplification and handholding. Another important aspect of start-ups is industry-academia partnership
and incubation. Looking at these aspects National Research Development Corporation (NRDC) and
Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-National Aerospace Laboratories (CSIR-NAL) have joined
hands to establish an Innovation-cum-Incubation Centre with external private funding to promote start-ups
in the emerging area of aerospace technologies.
NRDC and CSIR-NAL have joined hands to establish an Innovation cum Incubation Centre to promote start-ups in the emerging area of aerospace technologies
Under this programme, start-ups in the area of aerospace engineering would be incubated, mentored and supported for product and prototype development and their validation.
“It is a historical day as NRDC and CSIR-NAL forged an innovative partnership to promote Start-ups in the niche high tech area of Aerospace engineering and this partnership may pave a way for establishing Innovation cum Incubation Centres in other CSIR laboratories which are working in different thematic areas” said Dr. H. Purushotham, Chief Managing Director, NRDC. He also said that this partnership will help to create employment opportunities to the youth of our country as it is the need of the hour.
The agreement was signed by Dr. H. Purushotham and Dr. Jitendra J. Jadhav, Director, CSIR-NAL and was exchanged by the representatives of both the organisations in the presence of Dr. Shekhar C Mande, Secretary Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) and Director General CSIR, Mr R Vaidheeswaran, Joint Secretary, DSIR and other senior officials of CSIR and NAL at CSIR Head Quarters, New Delhi.
63

24, 2020
(-)
,
200
, 10
,
,
,
,
' ' ( )
-273
-93.2
64
(-)
, ,

-
( 0-1
) ,
()
, ‘ ’ , , ()
,

, ,
-
,
, ‘’ ,
, "
"

, ,

,

, " ,
"
"
, " ,
,

India Science Wire
66
A recent study from The National Center for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR) has
revealed valuable insights on the functioning of major biogeochemical cycles, by understanding
the chemical composition of lake waters in Antarctica, which play a vital role in assessing the
solute dynamics.
Climate systems depend on marine biogeochemical processes that produce organic compounds
in ocean waters, emissions from the ocean, marine aerosol formation, and transition of the
subsets of aerosol populations to cloud droplets and ice crystals.
Marine aerosols are important drivers of climate that affect the planetary radiation balance
directly by scattering and absorbing direct sunlight, and indirectly by modifying cloud
microphysical properties. The primary aerosol components are produced from the interaction of
wind stress at the sea surface that results in the production of sea spray. The sea spray is enriched
with inorganic sea salt and organic matter that interact with the freshwater lacustrine systems and
alters the lake biogeochemistry.
Marine aerosols are important drivers of climate that affect the planetary radiation
balance directly by scattering and absorbing direct sunlight, and indirectly by
modifying cloud microphysical properties.
NCPOR scientists revealed that rock-water interactions are the primary source for dissolved
metals in lake water, followed by sea spray and long-distance atmospheric transport in the form
of aeolian dust. Mineral groups such as sulfate, carbonate, metal oxides, and hydroxides are
responsible for the dissolution of metal complexes in lake water. In addition, lakes falling within
a micro basin have shown to increase concentrations of major ions due to sea spray cycling
through catchment effect.
NCPOR also found that rock dominance, precipitation and evaporation/sea spray via marine
aerosols are important hydrogeochemical processes that control the water composition of the
lacustrine systems in Antarctica. Silicate weathering, evaporation and carbonate dissolution also
contribute ionic loads to lake water. Increased knowledge of rock-water interaction would help in
better understanding of the hydrogeochemical characteristics of lakes that can help in effective
management and utilization of lake water resources too.
The ions are associated with silicate rock forming minerals and interact with melt water, thereby
affecting the overall aquatic ecosystem of the lakes. Similarly, trace metals are associated with
major elements and they play an important role in the carbon and nitrogen cycles.
Led by N.S. Magesh and Anoop Tiwari, the research team comprised of Sathish Mohan Botsa,
Soniya Dessai, Mamta Mestry and Tara Da Lima Leitao of NCPOR, Ministry of Earth Sciences,
Goa. The research paper has been published in the Journal ‘Science of the Total Environment’.
India Science Wire
VS/MoES/MFA/17-08-2020
67
Sewage holds the key to measure the actual extent of COVID-19
spread
Center of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) institutions Centre for Cellular and
Molecular Biology (CCMB) and Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) in a joint
study have harvested the sewage samples to estimate the number of potentially infected
individuals in the city of Hyderabad
By BioVoice News Desk - August 24, 2020
New Delhi: Various studies have demonstrated that faeces can harbour SARS-CoV-2. Center of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) institutions Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) and Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) in a joint study have harvested the sewage samples to estimate the number of potentially infected individuals in the city of Hyderabad.
The novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) in sewage samples is found to be non-infectious, thus it can be easily taken for epidemiological studies. Estimating the spread is very important in identifying the affected areas and controlling the pandemic. Since an infected person sheds viral material in faecal samples for up to ~35 days, these studies will provide an overall estimate of the situation in a window of one month.
To carry out the studies sewage samples from major Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) were processed for detecting presence of SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA. While viral RNA is detectable in the inlet samples, the outlet (after treatment) samples of STP were largely clean (free from viral RNA)in this regard, indicating efficient treatment practices at STP.
Of the 1800 million litres water used daily in Hyderabad, 40% is processed at different STPs.This study covers about 80% of the STPs in Hyderabad revealed that there are around 2 lakh people who are shedding viral materials. Since only 40% of the Hyderabad sewage reaches STPs, this data can be used to extrapolate the overall number of potentially infected people, which turned out to be approximately 6lakhs, that is, around 6% of the city’s population. The number includes symptomatic, asymptomatic, and also recently recovered individuals in a time window of about 35 days. A conservative estimate of the number of active cases who are shedding the virus may be around 2 lakhs.
“Our finding clearly indicates that a large proportion of the affected individuals are asymptomatic and did not need hospitalization. This is also in agreement with the observation that hospitalization rush or mortality is way lower than otherwise expected with such a large infection rates at a given time. It explains why our healthcare system has been able to handle reasonably well the situation during the pandemic. Such studies if carried out in coordination with civic bodies to identify the hotspots in the city and monitor the dynamics of the infection rate can assist the system in taking necessary measures”, explained, Dr Rakesh Mishra, Director, CCMB.
The findings are posted on preprint server, MedRxiv, which is yet to be peer reviewed. All the experiments were conducted at the CSIR-CCMB COVID-19 testing facility and the teams included HemalathaManupati, KopperiHarishankar and S.Venkata Mohan from CSIR-IICT and Uday Kiran, C.G. Gokulan, Santosh Kumar Kuncha and Rakesh K Mishra from CSIR-CCMB.
The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) is committed for development of
affordable and effective biopharmaceutical products and services. DBT’s Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (DBT-BIRAC) is
implementing the Department’s Industry-Academia Collaborative Mission to accelerate discovery research to early development for biopharmaceuticals.
The mission was approved by the Union Cabinet, with a total cost US$ 250 million, with 50% co-funding by the World Bank.
Also known as the National Biopharma Mission (NBM), this program supports establishment of Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs) that are
critical for value realization of biotech innovation for inclusive growth. The TTOs facilitate translation of publicly funded research results into products
and their delivery to markets by licensing innovation to enterprises. They also facilitate inter-institutional collaborations by collectively engaging them
in creating market presence for their innovations.
70
Indian research results have significant potential to transform markets and
this under-realized prospect is addressed by providing strong impetus to the technology transfer process with TTOs created and managed by
professionals having skills in technology management. Technology transfer strengthening is a long-time commitment and for the first time the NBM has
committed significant resources for creation of technology transfer office framework and strengthening technology transfer professionals for the
advancement of publicly funded research.
The TTOs identify inventions, protect them with due assessment of patentability, shape commercialization strategy and identify enterprises for
licensing innovations for accelerated delivery to markets. With a vibrant
start-up ecosystem emerging in the country, they have potential to create and nurture spinouts too that can support the inventors to create their own
enterprises for commercialization.
Five TTOs have already been established across the country with a view to strengthen the technology transfer capacity, evenly in India. These are
located at: the National Biopharma Mission (NBM), this program supports establishment of Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs) that are critical for
value realization of biotech innovation for inclusive growth.
The findings are posted on preprint server, MedRxiv, which is yet to be peer
reviewed. All the experiments were conducted at the CSIR-CCMB COVID-19 testing facility and the teams included HemalathaManupati,
KopperiHarishankar and S.Venkata Mohan from CSIR-IICT and Uday Kiran, C.G. Gokulan, Santosh Kumar Kuncha and Rakesh K Mishra from CSIR-
CCMB.
• KIIT Technology Business incubator, Bhubaneswar
• Biotechnology Business Incubation Facility (BBIF), Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer (FITT), New Delhi and
• Entrepreneurship Development Center (EDC), Pune
Two other TTOs are in the process of being created within the aegis of the Mission. The TTOs have necessary digital tools for patent analysis and
management, licensing transactions management and post-license
71
monitoring. The new ones will bring under their fold more institutions that
need professional support for advancing their research results to markets.
The TTOs established with NBM support have made significant progress in the recent past. TECHEX.IN is a Technology Transfer Hub operated by EDC
at Venture Center, Pune, that aims to help technology developers and technology commercialization entities find each other, forge partnerships
and advance the technology closer to the market in a win-win partnership.
It has recently conducted many important trainings: an online session on
‘Negotiation Techniques for Technology Entrepreneurs and Innovation Managers’ was conducted on 30th May 2020, another on ‘COVID-19 drug
candidates: Understanding patent landscapes and navigating patent barriers’ on 8th June 2020 and a third online training programme on ‘Understanding
and Negotiating Non-disclosure Agreements (NDAs) and Material Transfer Agreements (MTAs)’on 13th June 2020. Further training sessions on
‘Ideating and evaluating commercializable R&D: Thinking frameworks and examples’ and ‘basics of IP and filing of patents’ were conducted on 17th
July and 8th Aug 2020 respectively.
IKP-PRIME, at IKP, Hyderabad also conducted online training sessions on ‘an
insight into IP management’ and ‘scope of patenting AI inventions’ on 24th and 31st July 2020 respectively. ‘Need for IP protection’ and ‘Creating value
from your invention’ were dealt with in training sessions conducted on the 5th and 19th of Aug 2020.
Another NBM supported TTO at Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
transferred a technology titled "Unique C1-C2 spacers with occipital-cervical fixation", developed by Prof. Sarat Chandra, to Med Solutions, New Delhi
under BIRAC's BIG grant.
Research Stash | News | Aug 24, 2020
The world will need a significantly increased clean energy supply in the future. Solar energy is a viable solution but there are certain limitations. Solar energy conversion to electricity and its storage at a low cost is an integral part of renewable energy research.
Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) researchers have discovered a new material to effectively split water into Hydrogen and Oxygen using solar power. This research is expected to create a renewed interest in the Solar fuels’ domain, for its scope of conversion and storage in a single system. The method can significantly reduce the cost per kilowatt-hour (kWh) of solar energy.
https://www.researchstash.com/?s=ISW
Touching upon the applied aspects of the research, Dr. Aravind Kumar Chandiran, Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, IIT Madras said, “Storing solar energy in batteries is an expensive business for large scale implementation. A single photoelectrochemical (PEC) system that can harness and store solar energy in the form of chemical fuels can potentially reduce the cost per kWh of energy.
Ideally, seawater splitting using PEC to generate clean hydrogen should be serious research, if India should remain committed to green energy and avoid potential consequences of continued carbon emission. In our recent work, we attempted to make a first successful demonstration of water splitting using the best photovoltaic material.”
One of the laboratory equipment used by Solar Energy Research Group
In 2009, the research community employed a new class of semiconducting materials, called ‘halide perovskites’ with formula CH3NH3PbI3, for solution processible solar cells. In less than a decade the efficiency of these devices improved from 3% to over 25%. For comparison, the conventional silicon-based solar cells took nearly three decades to reach
74
25%, since the establishment of certification standards by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
This fast growth of the perovskite-based solar cells, however, is significantly limited for commercial scale-up due to the presence of the toxic lead and instability of these devices in ambient conditions. The entire device fabrication has to be carried out in the inert atmosphere, literally under zero oxygen and water to avoid degradation, and they have to be encapsulated to avoid ambient exposure.
To take this technology up for commercialization, efforts from research groups across the world have been focused on non-lead and ambient stable halide perovskite absorbers. Several hundreds of research papers have been published on improving the robustness of this material in oxygen and humid conditions, by selectively tuning the constituent atoms. However, only partial ambient stability is achieved and these state-of-the-art materials still decompose instantly when they come in contact with water.
Another team member of the research group Muhammed Hamdan, while investigating materials for solar cells, discovered a ‘halide perovskite’ (Cs2PtI6), which completely absorbs the entire visible light and remains extremely stable in ambient. This material is also found to be stable in strong acids and bases.
Mr. Hamdan combined solar energy conversion and storage in the form of chemical fuels by utilizing this material’s record stability. Using sunlight, and with a photoelectrochemical device made with Cs2PtI6, the team was able to successfully split water into hydrogen and oxygen.
The generation of solar fuels is not only restricted to water splitting to generate hydrogen fuel, but the perovskite semiconductors can also be used in carbon dioxide conversion to get useful hydrocarbon fuels. In the long run, the design principles of this material, platinum in Cs2PtI6, can be replaced with other low-cost transition elements to reduce the costs further. Dr.Chandiran observed, “To date, in the world of halide perovskites, this is the only material that shows such extraordinary stability in a harsh environment.” The paper co- authored by Dr. Aravind Kumar Chandiran and research scholar Muhammed Hamdan has been published in the journal Angewandte Chemie. (ISW)
75
Researchers find way to cheaper solar energy By Indus Scrolls Bureau - August 22, 2020
The world will need significantly increased clean energy supply in the future. Solar energy is a viable solution but there are certain limitations. Solar energy conversion to
electricity and its storage at a low cost is an integral part of renewable energy research. Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) researchers have discovered a new material to effectively split water into Hydrogen and Oxygen using solar power. This
research is expected to create a renewed interest in Solar fuels’ domain, for its scope of conversion and storage in a single system. The method can significantly reduce the cost per kilowatthour (kWh) of solar energy.
Touching upon the applied aspects of the research, Dr. Aravind Kumar Chandiran,
Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, IIT Madras said, “Storing solar energy in batteries is an expensive business for large scale implementation. A single photoelectrochemical (PEC) system that can harness and store solar energy in
the form of chemical fuels can potentially reduce the cost per kWh of energy. Ideally, seawater splitting using PEC to generate clean hydrogen should be a serious research, if India should remain committed to green energy and avoid potential consequences of
continued carbon emission. In our recent work, we attempted to make a first successful demonstration of water splitting using the best photovoltaic material.”
In 2009, research community employed a new class of semiconducting materials, called ‘halide perovskites’ with formula CH3NH3PbI3, for solution processible solar cells. In
less than a decade the efficiency of these devices improved from 3% to over 25%. For comparison, the conventional silicon based solar cells took nearly three decades to reach 25%, since the establishment of certification standards by National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
This fast growth of the perovskite based solar cells, however, is significantly limited for commercial scale-up due to the presence of the toxic lead and instability of these devices in ambient conditions. The entire device fabrication has to be carried out in the
inert atmosphere, literally under zero oxygen and water to avoid degradation, and they have to be encapsulated to avoid ambient exposure.
To take this technology up for commercialization, efforts from research groups across the world have been focused on non-lead and ambient stable halide perovskite absorbers. Several hundreds of research papers have been published on improving the
robustness of this material in oxygen and humid conditions, by selectively tuning the constituent atoms. However, only a partial ambient stability is achieved and these state-of-the-art materials still decompose instantly when they come in contact with water.
Another team member of the research group Muhammed Hamdan, while investigating materials for solar cells, discovered a ‘halide perovskite’ (Cs2PtI6), which completely absorbs the entire visible light and remains extremely stable in ambient. This material is also found to be stable in strong acids and bases.
Mr. Hamdan combined solar energy conversion and storage in the form of chemical fuels by utilizing this material’s record stability. Using sunlight, and with a photoelectrochemical device made with Cs2PtI6, the team was able to successfully split water into hydrogen and oxygen.
The generation of solar fuels is not only restricted to water splitting to generate
hydrogen fuel, but the perovskite semiconductors can also be used in carbon dioxide conversion to get useful hydrocarbon fuels. In the long run, the design principles of this material, platinum in Cs2PtI6, can be replaced with other low-cost transition elements to reduce the costs further.
Dr.Chandiran observed, “To date, in the world of halide perovskites, this is the only material that shows such an extraordinary stability in a harsh environment.”
The paper co-authored by Dr. Aravind Kumar Chandiran and research scholar Muhammed Hamdan, has been published in the journal AngewandteChemie. (India Science Wire)
77
22-Aug-2020
-Dr Aravind Kumar Chandiran and Muhammed Hamdan
One of the laboratory equipment used by Solar Energy Research Group
India Science Wire: The world will need significantly increased clean energy supply in the
future. Solar energy is a viable solution, but there are certain limitations. Solar energy conversion
to electricity and its storage at a low cost is an integral part of renewable energy research. Indian
Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) researchers have discovered a new material to split
water into Hydrogen and Oxygen using solar power effectively. This research is expected to
create a renewed interest in Solar fuels’ domain, for its scope of conversion and storage in a
single system. The method can significantly reduce the cost per kilowatt-hour (kWh) of solar
energy.
Touching upon the applied aspects of the research, Dr Aravind Kumar Chandiran, Assistant
Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, IIT Madras said, “Storing solar energy in
batteries is an expensive business for large scale implementation. A single photoelectrochemical
(PEC) system that can harness and store solar energy in the form of chemical fuels can
78
potentially reduce the cost per kWh of energy. Ideally, seawater splitting using PEC to generate
clean hydrogen should be serious research, if India should remain committed to green energy and
avoid potential consequences of continued carbon emission. In our recent work, we attempted to
make a first successful demonstration of water splitting using the best photovoltaic material.”
In 2009, research community employed a new class of semiconducting materials, called ‘halide
perovskites’ with formula CH3NH3PbI3, for solution processible solar cells. In less than a
decade, the efficiency of these devices improved from 3% to over 25%. For comparison, the
conventional silicon-based solar cells took nearly three decades to reach 25%, since the
establishment of certification standards by National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
This fast growth of the perovskite-based solar cells, however, is significantly limited for
commercial scale-up due to the presence of the toxic lead and instability of these devices in
ambient conditions. The entire device fabrication has to be carried out in the inert atmosphere,
literally under zero oxygen and water to avoid degradation, and they have to be encapsulated to
prevent ambient exposure.
To take this technology up for commercialisation, efforts from research groups across the world
have been focused on non-lead and ambient stable halide perovskite absorbers. Several hundreds
of research papers have been published on improving the robustness of this material in oxygen
and humid conditions, by selectively tuning the constituent atoms. However, only partial ambient
stability is achieved, and these state-of-the-art materials still decompose instantly when they
come in contact with water.
Another team member of the research group Muhammed Hamdan, while investigating materials
for solar cells, discovered a ‘halide perovskite’ (Cs2PtI6), which completely absorbs the entire
visible light and remains extremely stable in ambient. This material is also found to be stable in
strong acids and bases.
Mr Hamdan combined solar energy conversion and storage in the form of chemical fuels by
utilising this material’s record stability. Using sunlight, and with a photoelectrochemical device
made with Cs2PtI6, the team was able to split water into hydrogen and oxygen successfully.
The generation of solar fuels is not only restricted to water splitting to generate hydrogen fuel,
but the perovskite semiconductors can also be used in carbon dioxide conversion to get useful
hydrocarbon fuels. In the long run, the design principles of this material, platinum in Cs2PtI6,
can be replaced with other low-cost transition elements to reduce the costs further.
Dr Chandiran observed, “To date, in the world of halide perovskites, this is the only material that
shows such extraordinary stability in a harsh environment.”
79
80
81
Research Stash
News Aug 25, 2020
It is generally noticed that image quality is not the same when clicked with the camera in flash mode.
The quality of images generated using some activ

India Science Wire - highlighting Indian science in Indian ...

Documents

Transcript of India Science Wire - highlighting Indian science in Indian ...