30 AUGUST 2009 229 - NISCAIR€¦ · (-15 dB height) was obtained when ... prilling towers,...

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R&D HighlightsR&D HighlightsR&D HighlightsR&D HighlightsR&D Highlights

Fig. 3: Visible spectrum generated from the PCF through femtosecond pulse pumping

A 28 cm long piece of PCF wasbroken off from the main 20 m longfiber, cleaved and tested. The Fig-ure 4 shows the spectra collected fora range of pulse energies. Each

R&D Highlights on Building Materials at CBRI, Roorkee

Development of New Composite Materials for Building ApplicationsUsing Plywood-Veneer and Vermiculite Waste

The charm of synthetic polymers and their productsused in diverse applications is fading because these

products are not biodegradable and they pollute theenvironment. In contrast, natural polymers aregenerally biodegradable but they do not possessdesirable thermal and mechanical properties.Mechanical properties of the developed compositeshould be comparable with the properties ofcomposites with synthetic resins and it must becapable of being processed by the established methods.

The starting raw material i.e. wood waste fromveneer and plywood industries (Figure 1) is selectedbecause its present price is very low (Rs 1.25 per kgcontaining higher lignin content up to 35% by wt.)while its availability is very large. The generated waste

Fig.1: Plywood - Veneer Waste

spectrum was corrected and thennormalized (max point set to 0 dB).For ease of viewing the spectra, thefigures were offset by multiples of5 dB. Using this fiber length, con-

tinuum spanning from 491-2060 nm(-15 dB height) was obtained whenpumped with 800 nJ pulses.

Fig. 4: Continuum spectra for 800, 400, 200 and110 nJ incident pulse energy

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is around 10% of the total woodprocessed in the plants. The otherproposed starting material isbagasse whose availability is alsovery substantial. Its cost is aroundRs 1.00 per kg while lignin contentis substantially low (up to 25% bywt.) and the fibre strength is alsocomparably low. Efforts will bemade to convert lignin of woodwaste of plywood/ veneer industriesinto an adhesive for makingcomposites of a new class ofcomposites replacing syntheticresins mostly derived frompetroleum.

The exfoliation of vermiculitegenerates powdered by-product(waste shown in Figure 2), which isseldomly used for converting into avalue added product for buildingapplications. This by-product can beeasily converted into roofing tiles for

Fig. 2: Different Exfoliated Vermiculite Flake Wastes

thermal insulation along withpolymer modified cementitiousbinder. Substantial amount ofexfoliated vermiculite is available(around 400 MT/year) in India.Exploratory experiments havealready strengthened the objectiveand lead to conceive a project for

the development of roofing tile forthermal insulation (a composite).

The envisaged impact of theoutcome of the R&D work is toprovide better alternative buildingmaterials using low value downstream products of agro-industriesthrough value addition.

Development of Polymer-based High Performance Repair Materials

The polymeric mortars haveemerged as an important class ofrepair materials in civil engineeringapplications. Polymers are known todegrade at elevated temperaturesbut cement does not loose strengthbelow 100°C. Higher temperatureconditions prevail in severalindustrial buildings and structuressuch as coke handling plants,thermal power plants, prillingtowers, chimneys, furnaces, heattreatment plants etc. This study isdevoted to understand the influenceof temperature and chemicals on theperformance of polymeric modifiedmortars and to formulate suitablecomposition for such higher Fig. 3: Polymer modified Repair Material under Test

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temperature exposure conditions.Figure shows the bond testing of onetypical formulation of repairmaterial under slant shear test inUTM (Figure 3).

Studies are being carried out onthe developed repair materials toassess the effect of thermal cycles,fire, acidic environment on themortar samples. Influence ofthermal cycles on bondcharacteristics is studied by using

Fig. 4: Effect of number of thermal cycles oncompressive strength of repair mortars

Fig. 5: Testing of repair mortars at higher temperature (a) Thermostaticchamber (b) Compression test specimen inside the thermostatic chamber

Fig. 6: Change in compressive strength of repair mortars tested at highertemperature (85°C) in comparison to those tested at RT

Fig. 7: Change in compressive strength and weight ofrepair mortars after 180 days exposure to acidic solution

slant shear test specimens and onflexural behaviour for 60 and 120cycles. To understand the influenceof exposure to acidic environment,the specimens were submerged ina sulphuric acid solution (5%) andthe changes in weight, shape, colourand compressive strength arerecorded at various intervals ofexposure time. The effect of thermalcycles on compressive strength ofvarious repair mortars is shown in

Fig. 4. The results of change incompressive strength of the repairmortar specimens tested at 85±2 °C(Fig. 5) in comparison to those testedat RT are shown in Fig. 6. Thechanges in properties of differentmortar specimens dipped in anacidic solution for 180 days is shownin Fig. 7. Studies regarding firebehaviour of the above mentionedmortars is in progress.

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Development of Coating Systems for Fertilizer Industries Based on Modified Epoxy

The demand for coatings for theprotection of structures exposed tochemicals and higher temperatureis huge. The coatings in the fertilizerplants, chemical industries, powerplants etc. especially in thechimneys, prilling towers, etc. areexposed to higher temperatures in

the range of 50-70°C and verylimited coatings are commerciallyavailable for protecting thestructures. The coatings based onmodified epoxy resin, developed,earlier in the institute, showed verygood performance when exposed toa variety of exposure environments.

This has been undertaken as thebasic starting material fordeveloping a new class of coatingwhich would be useful for protectingthe steel and concrete structures.Fig. 8 shows the coated panels withdeveloped formulations under test.

Fig. 8: Coated panels with developed formulations under test

Strategic Work for Health Monitoring and Preventive Measuresfor Deteriorated Concrete Structures in Thermal Power Plants

Concrete structures in theexisting thermal power plantsdeteriorate at an alarming rate. Theperformances of the structures areaffected by various factors such astemperature, humidity, water andairborne pollutants, and mechanicaldamages. In coal based powerplants the burning of coal producesa very corrosive atmosphere. Theexposure conditions vary fromacidic to very alkaline. Materialslike cement, fibres, latexes, alkyds,epoxies, urethanes, and others areused in a suitable combination,depending on the type of power

plant and the specific location andexposure to prevent them fromfurther deterioration. The repairand maintenance of different typesof structures require materials andprotective coatings havingsubstantial resistance to thedetrimental elements.

Presently the installed capacityof power generating units in Indiais about 145,588 MW, out of whichthe share of thermal power is around66.6%. Coal-based thermal powerplants alone are sharing around 80%of this thermal power generation inthe country. Out of it the

contribution of the thermal powergenerating units is 66.6 %. Furthercapacity addition of 78,000 MW isplanned in the Eleventh Plan, inwhich coal based thermal powercapacity will be 52905 MW (NTPC,2007). Presently, there are about 120coal based thermal power plants inIndia. With further addition of newpower plants the maintenance of theinfrastructures will be a huge taskin future.

Organic Building MaterialsDivision (OBM Division) isassociated with number of projectson health assessment and repair of

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thermal power plantstructures throughoutthe country e.g. NTPC,Badapur; Kanti BijleeUtpadan Nigam Ltd.,Muzzaffarpur; NTPC,Thalchar, Orissa;NTPC, Simadri,Visakhapatnam etc. Insuch assignmentspreventive measuresand repairs aresuggested after carryingout rigorous non-destructive testing(NDT) of differentdeteriorated structures.This knowledge ofproject works has greateconomic impact as thecost of the replacementsor construction of suchstructures need a hugeamount of wealth.Besides these, theinstitute has developedvarious patchingmaterials, reinforcementcoatings and groutingmaterials, repair mortarand coatings for steeland concrete structuresover the years and areunder commercialproduction aftertransferring the know-how. Various projectshave been undertakenby CBRI to study thedeterioration ofstructures in thethermal power plantsand to recommendsuitable repair schemes.The repair schemes inthese plant structures

Fig. 9: Typical deteriorated concrete structures ofthermal power plants

Deteriorated ColumnDeteriorated Wagon Tippler

A Deteriorated Cooling Tower wall

Deteriorated Chimney and ChimneyPlatform

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R&D FacilitiesR&D FacilitiesR&D FacilitiesR&D FacilitiesR&D Facilities

generally use thematerials developed byCBRI. The coatingsdeveloped by CBRIhave been applied onsome importantcommercial buildings,flyovers and railwaybridges including theMTP Railway Bridge inChennai. Besides these,corrosion resistantcoatings developed byCBRI have been used tocoat reinforcement steelin number of structuresthroughout India. A fewdeteriorated structuresare shown in Figure 9and the repairedchimney is shown inFigure 10.

These preventivemeasures enhanced theservice life of suchstructures substantiallyand help in saving croresof rupees of the country.

Fig. 10: A Chimney afterrepair & coating

Launch of JCCC@INSTIRC -CSIR-DST’s Journal Access Gateway

JCCC, a single point access to CSIRand DST’s e-journal collection was

launched at the National AerospaceLaboratories, (NAL), Bangalore, on 30July 2009. JCCC - J-Gate CustomContent for Consortia is a customizedweb portal developed for the benefit ofscientists in CSIR and DST Labs toaccess all e-journals subscribed by theConsortium and additionally access andshare journals subscribed by each of theCSIR and DST Labs.

An excellent tool with Browse andSearch facility, JCCC covers researchpapers from 6700+ journals withmillions of articles. Allows ‘Table ofContents’ browsing with links to full-textif already subscribed or link to generaterequest for articles not available online.One can also create alerts for favouritejournals.

The Scientific and L & ISprofessionals from NAL, RamanResearch Institute (RRI), IndianInstitute of Astrophysics(IIAP), IndianAcademy of Science (IASc), JawaharlalNehru Centre for Advanced ScientificResearch (JNCR), and Centre for LiquidCrystal Research (CLCR) participatedin the programme.

Dr Poornima Narayana, Head,ICAST, welcomed and briefed about theCSIR journal consortium. Whileexplaining the reasons for subscribingto JCCC, she said that apart from costescalation of journals, the non-availability of e-journals especially thoseheld by M/S Elsevier, the most popularand sought after journals, were themain causes of concern. Dr Y.M. Patil,Head, Library RRI and Co-ordinator ofDST Consortium, briefed the audience

about the DST consortium andhighlighted the benefits of CSIR andDST Consortium access.

Dr A. R. Upadhya, Director, NAL,e-launched the product. Shri N.V.Satyanarayana, CMD, M/S InformaticsPvt Ltd, Bangalore (the developers ofJCCC) who was overwhelmed by theresponse of scientist community, brieflyspoke about the J-Gate and thecustomized Content being offeredthrough the Consortium. Shri ShyamChetty, Chairman Library AdvisoryCommittee and Head, FlightMechanics Division appreciated theservices, support and new initiativestaken by ICAST and added that thescientists are always looking forward tomany more such innovative servicesfrom ICAST.

Dr A.R. Upadhya, Director, NAL,in his address showed his concern aboutescalating prices of journalssubscription and how this consortiumlevel approach can solve the problem tosome extent. He expressed hiscontentment about NAL taking a majorstep in this direction at the initial stageof forming CSIR L & IS Consortium.He hoped that during the 12th five yearplan many more high Impact Factorjournals including M/S Elsevier ’sScience Direct would be given access to.

The vote of thanks was proposed byShri Amit Verma of Informatics.

The training session was attended bymany scientists and Shri Ravishankar ofInformatics described about all the featuresof the tool with live examples. He alsoexplained the advantages of creating useraccounts and personalizing the tool for thebenefit of scientists.

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R&D Facilities/ WorkshopsR&D Facilities/ WorkshopsR&D Facilities/ WorkshopsR&D Facilities/ WorkshopsR&D Facilities/ Workshops

Dr T. Ramasami, Secretary, DST, visitedthe National Geophysical Research

Institute (NGRI), Hyderabad, on 6 May 2009,and inaugurated Microbiology Lab. DrRamasami, delivered a lecture on the topic“Science of managing creative people”discussing about the management of creativeminds and public-private partnership at theoccassion. He narrated the role played bydifferent laboratories in improving R&D statusof the country with notable examples such asGreen revolution, Atomic energy, Spacesciences, Leather technology, Desalination ofwater and Groundwater Management. Hemainly emphasized on the management of waterresources in which NGRI has to play a vitalrole. He had a special meeting with thescientists working on ground water to chalk outa holistic approach to meet the water demandsof the country.

After his lecture, Dr Ramasami inauguratedthe microbiology lab in the campus which wasestablished as a part of the National facility forsurface geochemical prospecting forhydrocarbon research under the vision 2025.

Dr T. Ramasami inaugurates Microbiology Lab at NGRI

International Workshop onNanotechnology and AdvancedFunctional Materials at NCL

The InternationalWorkshop on Nano-

technology and Advan-cedFunctional Materials (NTAFM)was held at National ChemicalLaboratory (NCL), Pune,during 9-11 July 2009. It wasorganized jointly withMaterials Research Societyof India (MRSI, PuneChapter), and the IndianInstitute of Science andEducation Research (IISER),Pune. This workshop was oneof the many that NCL hadplanned as part of itsdiamond jubilee celebrationsthat aimed to bring togethermany practitioners,scientists and academicianswho understand the need andare willing to share theknowledge of science.

The workshop mainlyaimed at highlighting howthe fields of nanotechnologyand functional materials that

are the vehicles for theimplementations of novel andfuturistic applications relateand reinforce one another.This effort synergisticallycovered a broad range ofmultidisciplinary activitiesencompassing a spectrum ofsize, shape and functionintegrations over nano tomacro scale. The workshopbrought together experts,post-docs and studentsworking in this field with aview to capture the spirit ofthis field and to unravel itspromise. The workshop wasattended by more than 350participants including tenfrom industries, five eachfrom USA and S. Korea, oneeach from Singapore andAustralia, and about fortystudents from NCL. Prof. C.N. R. Rao, Director,Jawaharlal Nehru Centre forAdvanced Scientific

Prof. C. N. R. Rao delivering his talk

Dr T. Ramasami, delivering his lecture

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Research (JNCASR), Bangalore,Scientific Advisor to the PrimeMinister and Chairman NanoMission, DST, New Delhi,inaugurated the workshop.

Plenary talks were delivered bydistinguished Professors includingProf. C. N. R. Rao; Prof. Paul Weiss,Pennsylvania State University; Prof.Anupam Madhukar, University ofSouthern California; and Prof. AjaySood, Indian Institute of Science,Bangalore. Other invited speakersincluded Prof. Nitin Padture, OhioState University; Prof. Haiwon Leeand Prof. Sung-Hwan Han ofHanyang University, Korea; DrSupratik Guha, Head PhotovoltaicsDivision, IBM, USA; Prof. D. D.Sarma, IISc, Bangalore; DrRajeswaran of Moser Bear, NewDelhi, etc. There were 15 oralpresentations and about 200 posterpresentations in two sessions.

Prof. Rao said that area ofliquid-liquid interface innanomaterials has many researchopportunities since the interfacebetween water and an organic liquidhad not been investigatedadequately for preparingnanocrystals and thin film ofmaterials. He said this whiledelivering a plenary talk on ‘theliquid-liquid interface as a mediumto generate materials’. He said thatthe air-water interface is generallyemployed to prepare particleassemblies and films of metals andsemiconductors. The liquid-liquidinterface provides an excellentmedium for preparing ultrathinnanocrystalline films of metals,metal chalcogenides and oxides. Themethod involves reaction at theinterface between a metal-organic

compound in the organic layer andan appropriate reagent forreduction, sulfidation, selenidationetc. in the aqueous layer. Theformation of ordered thin films ofnanocrystals at the interface hasbeen examined by diffuse x-rayscattering and in-situ atomic forcemicroscopy. Rheologicalmeasurements have also beencarried out at the interface. Someof the two-dimensionalnanomaterials so obtained are of Au,Ag, Pd, Au-Ag alloys, CuS, ZnS, PbS,CuSe, CdSe, CuO, ZnO andCu(OH)2. Interestingly, many of thefilms are single crystalline. Theresults demonstrated the versatilityand potential of the liquid-liquidinterface for preparingnanomaterials and ultrathin filmsand therefore encourage furtherresearch in this area. It can bestated as a significant developmentin the field of nanomaterials. Resultsof studies on the effect of thiols aswell as surfactants on the structureand the surface plasmon band ofmetal films were also presented.

Dr Sivaram, Director NCLwhile introducing Prof. Rao saidthat he is the leading face ofscientific research in India and aperson that symbolises the hopesand aspirations of Indian science. DrSivaram said it was very difficult tointroduce and speak of Prof. Rao’snumerous credentials under whomhe learned chemistry. Prof. Rao’sidentity in the minds of people isremembered often for his caringhuman nature. His influence inchemical science is unmatched, invarious capacities for example inbeing a spokesman in public policiesand for taking science to its highest

level in the country. The stupendousheight that Prof. Rao has acclaimedin India is something to take seriousnote of. Indeed, Prof. Rao has setan example to India at a time whenthere were not as many facilitiesavailable and made the saying truethat ‘where there is a will there is away’.

Prof. Y. Chae, former Ministerof Science and Technology, SouthKorea, congratulated the organizingcommittee for successfullyorganzing the workshop andthanked the Asian ResearchNetwork. He said it was his first visitto India and he had in mind Indiato be having brilliant ancientculture. He was eager to meet thescholars in India and discuss aboutthe possible future cooperation. Hesaid that new discoveries are beingmade everyday and the brightscholars were pressing thesediscoveries into new products inimaginative ways. This is an excitingarea to explore. In order to explicitthis kind of progress it is mostimportant to share the kind of

Dr Sivaram giving welcome remarks

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problems that are facedand discuss the onesneeded to be solved. Hebelieved that this workshopwould provide vehicularground to share thewisdom to solve it. Finallyhe thanked the members ofthe committee.

Earlier, Dr SatishchandraOgale, Scientist, NCL andConvenor of the workshopwelcomed the distinguishedguest and the audience. Hebriefed the purpose and thecontents of the workshop.The areas covered includedNanotechnology, Nano-composites, Hybridmaterials, Materials forenergy applications,Molecular and flexibleelectronics, Materials forbiomedical applicationsand Soft functionalmaterials.

Dr Ogale thanked thejoint organizers andacknowledged withgratitude the sponsorshipof CSIR; Department ofScience and Technology(DST); Department ofInformation Technology(DIT); Department ofAtomic Energy (BRNS);NCL; IISER; C-MET aswell as Industrial companysponsors M/s IconAnalytical; M/s Pfeiffer;M/S Laser Science,M/s Excel Industries; andM/S Toshniwal Brothers.

Workshop on Nanomaterials and their Applications

A joint workshop on Nanomaterials and Their Applications was held

during 24-27 March 2009, at theCentral Glass and Ceramic ResearchInstitute (CGCRI), Kolkata, under acollaborative agreement betweenIndia’s Council of Scientific andIndustrial Research (CSIR) andChina’s National Science FoundationCouncil (NSFC). The workshopfocused on the important areas ofnanoscience and technology. Theseareas were Nano-photonics, Synthesisand characterization of nanomaterials,Bio-materials, Hybrid composites,Energy materials, Functionalmaterials and Nano-carbon.

Dr H. S. Maiti, Director, CGCRIand joint coordinator of this workshopwelcomed the Chinese and CSIRdelegates representing the Chineseand the CSIR laboratories. Prof. Jian-Guo Han, Director General, Bureauof International Cooperation, NationalNatural Science Foundation of Chinaexpressed his pleasure to be in India

and indicated that he would be veryhappy if some collaborative researchactivities between Chinese and CSIRscientists follow up in the area ofnanoscience and technology. In all, 17Chinese and 27 Indian scientistsparticipated in the workshop. A totalof 32 lectures (17 from India and 15from China) were presented in theworkshop.

In the Nano photonics area, DrSuresh Das of National Iinstitute forInterdisciplinary Science andTechnology, Thiruvananthapuram,spoke on the design and study ofphotoresponsive materials such asliquid crystals, gels and luminescentsolids. Dr R. Debnath of CGCRIdescribed the luminescence of Eu3+

and Er3+ ions in nano-structured glassand ceramics. Dr S. N. Sharma ofNPL, New Delhi, presented work oncore/shell quantum dots.

In the area of Synthesis andCharacterization of Nanomaterials,Prof. L. Guo of Beijing University of

Dr H. S. Maiti, Director, CGCRI, delivering welcome address.Seated on the dais (from left) are: Dr Goutam De, Prof. C.-R. Wang,

Prof. J.-G. Han, Shri A. Chakraborty and Dr P. Rupal


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Aeronautics and Astronautics, spokeon the synthesis, characterizationand properties of one-dimensional(1D) nanomate-rials (wires, rodsand tubes). Dr K. G. K. Warrier ofNIIST, demonstrated the synthesisof photocatalytic titanium oxidenanoparticles (NPs) by sol-gel whichhas been scaled up to semi-industrialscales. Prof. Q. Liu of NationalCenter for Nano Science andTechnology, Beijing, presenteddifferent technologies ofnanofabrication in order to developnano-devices. Dr R. Mukherjee ofCGCRI presented work on selforganized meso and nano patterningof thin polymer films. Prof. G. -W.Meng, Director, Laboratory ofNanomaterials and Nano-structures, Chinese Academy ofSciences (CAS), reported a genericsynthetic approach of 1-D branchedand hetero-nano-structures viaaluminum oxide templates. Dr R. K.Rana of IICT presented the bio-inspired synthesis of nanostructuredmaterials having potentialapplications incatalysis andencapsulation of othernanoparticles. Prof. Z.Zhang of TsinghuaUniversity, Beijing,presented work onglancing angle depo-sition to grow 1Dnanostructures ofseveral metal oxidesand metals.

In the area of Bio-materials, Dr X. -Y.Jiang of NationalCenter for Nano-Science and Techno-logy, Beijing, describedthe micro/nano scale

tools for biomolecular analysis usefulfor molecular diagnostics, analysisof food and environmentalmonitoring. Dr (Ms) Archana ofIGIB, New Delhi, described theinteraction of polyethyleneimine-NP-neuclic acid and cell toxicity. Dr(Ms) S. Nayer of NML, Jamshedpur,presented work on biomimeticallysynthesized hydroxyapatite nano-composites. Dr N. M. Rao ofCCMB, Hyderabad, described theimmobilization of enzyme moleculeson NPs leading to biosensing. Dr S.Maiti of IGIB reported the toxiceffects of metal NPs of specific sizein living cells.

The session on HybridComposites started with thepresentation of Prof. J. Xu ofInstitute of Chemistry, CAS whopresented work on the developmentof polyurethane-clay(montmorillonite) nanocomposites.Dr G. De of CGCRI, organizer ofthis workshop from CSIR side,presented the work on thedevelopment of inorganic-organic

hybrid nanocomposite coatingsincluding the metal and oxidenanoparticles doped hybrids. Hementioned that one of the CGCRIinventions, hard-coatings on plasticophthalmic lenses is beingcommercially utilized in India. Prof.L.-W. Yin of Shandong University,Jinan, said that the atomic levelhybrids of Boron-Carbon-Nitrogen(BC1-xNx) are expected to havevarious band gap energiescontrolled by their composition andcould find applications as a newlight-emitting material, bio-sensorsand nanodevices. Dr (Ms) Bharathiand B. J. Basu of NAL, Bangalore,presented their work on thedevelopment of superhydrophobiccoatings based on organic-inorganichybrids.

In the area of Energy Materials,Dr R. N. Basu of CGCRI reportedwork on La1-xSrxFe1-yCoyO3 (LSCF)-based nanostructured cathodes forsolid oxide fuel cell applications.Prof. R.-F. Peng of SouthwestUniversity of Science and

Participants of CSIR-NSFC joint workshop

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Training ProgrammeTraining ProgrammeTraining ProgrammeTraining ProgrammeTraining Programme

Technology, Mianyang, described the synthesis energeticfullerene derivatives and their applications. Dr A. Das ofCSMCRI, Bhavnagar, described the photo induced interfacialelectron transfer dynamics on Dye sensitized electron injectionto the titania nanoparticles. Dr S. Kurungot of NCL, Pune,reported the development of electro catalysts and membraneelectrode assemblies for polymer electrolyte membrane fuelcells (PEMFC).

The session on Functional Materials started with thepresentation of Prof. J.-C. Hao of Shandong University, Jinan.He described the self assembly of hybrid materials at the waterair/water interface leading to the formation of highly orderedhoneycomb architectures. Prof. W.-G. Song of Institute ofChemistry, CAS, Beijing, described the development of nano-structured materials (metal oxides, metal NPs) applicable forcatalysis and water treatment. Dr (Ms) P. S. Devi of CGCRIreported the new synthetic strategies to prepare nanomaterials(oxides and metal NPs) exhibiting functional properties. Prof.C.-Z. Gu of Institute of Physics, CAS, Beijing, reported themagnetic logic gate fabricated by metal nanostructures whichcould lead to development of spin device. Dr A. Mitra presentedthe overview of NML’s activities on nanostructured functionaland structural materials. Prof. D.-P. Yu of Peking University,Beijing, presented work on the development of varieties of 1DZnO (including doped) nanowires applicable for nanodevices.

The last session on Nano-Carbon began with a lecture ofProf. Y. Li of Peking University, Beijing. She described thesynthesis of high-density arrays of perfectly aligned singlewalled carbon nanotubes (semiconducting) on ST-cut singlecrystal quartz substrates. Prof. C.-R. Wang (joint coordinatorfrom NSFC) of Institute of Chemistry, CAS, Beijing, reportedtheir work on the development of different types fullerenes suchas unconventional fullerenes, fullerenes and endohedralmetallofullerenes, and their applications including magneticresonance imaging (MRI). Prof. J. Zhang of Peking Universitydescribed the controlled CVD growth of single walled carbonnanotubes.

A panel discussion session followed the technical sessions.Some areas identified by the panel were: carbon nanotubes/fullerenes, nanomaterials for water purification, health careand drug delivery, nanoelectronics, nanoporous materials forCO2 absorber, mesoporous solids and hybrid nanocomposites.The panel recommended greater focus on the said areas in thefuture NSFC-CSIR collaborations and in the subsequentworkshops. Both NSFC and CSIR delegates agreed to speedup the collaboration between suitable partners and submit jointprojects.

The Central Institute of Medicinal andAromatic Plants (CIMAP), Lucknow,

organized a training programme on ‘AdvancedInstrumentation and Analytical Techniquesfor Natural Products’ during 10-16 June 2009.The programme was attended by seventeenparticipants representing industries,universities and research organizations fromdifferent states like Assam, Maharashtra,Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Delhi andUttar Pradesh. The participants were fromDefence Institute of Bio-Energy Research(DIBER), Uttarakhand; CIMAP, Lucknow;DRL, Tejpur; North Eastern Hill University,Shilong; Punjab University, Chandigarh;Department of Zoology, Lucknow University;Saroj Institute of Technology, Lucknow; DelhiUniversity; Maharastra AgricultureUniversity; and Banasthali University,Rajasthan.

A hands-on training was given toparticipants on different modern instrumentslike Gas Chromatograph (GC), GC-Massspectrometer (GC-MS), Liquidchromatography equipments NMR, FTNIRand ICP etc. The instruments are used inthe analysis of natural products for gettingqualitative results. The participants wereexposed to the latest techniques used in theanalysis of natural products.

In the feedback given by the participants,most of them were of the opinion that thetraining will really be helpful to the students.They learnt about a number of advancedinstruments and techniques, specially thoseused in the pharmaceutical field. They feltthat these will be very useful for pursuingtheir career in field of pharmaceuticals.

In view of its utility this specializedtraining programme organized by CIMAPonce every year is becoming very popularamong the researchers and the academician.

Training Programme onAdvanced Instrumentation

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NTD CelebrationsNTD CelebrationsNTD CelebrationsNTD CelebrationsNTD Celebrations

Technology Day Celebrations at CLRI, CSIO and NGRI

An account of the National Technology Day Celebrations at the Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI),Chennai; Central Scientific Instruments Organisation (CSIO), Chandigarh, and National Geophysical

Research Institute (NGRI), Hyderabad, is given here:

Central Leather Research Institute, Chennai

Environment friendly bio-processing of hides and skinto leather using enzymes inthe pre-tanning process, atechnology that can makeIndia a world leader, isnearing commercializa-tion. The Central LeatherResearch Institute (CLRI),Chennai, the lead institutein the development of thenew technology is in talkswith tanneries to field testthe new process, and withleather chemical manu-facturers for the large-scaleproduction of the new bio-process materials.

Speaking on the occasion ofTechnology Day on 11 May 2009, DrA. B. Mandal, Director, CLRI, saidthat transfer of technologydeveloped by scientists at CLRIshould be utilized by entrepreneursproperly. A collaborative effort by adozen research institutes anduniversities in the country under theNew Millennium TechnologyLeadership Initiative (NMITLI) ofCSIR resulted in this break-through,said Dr Mandal, Director, CLRI,which is one of the nodal agency forNMITLI for leather. He added thatthe NMITLI network developed 18technology leads and short-listed sixcombinations of about 40 enzymes.

CLRI scientists, in partnership

with tanneries in different regions,would undertake field trials to assessthe technical feasibility of theseenzymes in processing leather. Thegreatest challenge for the scientists,he said would be changing themindset of the tanners andconvincing them that quality leathercould be produced using enzymes.The use of enzymes will have a dualeffect. On the one hand, it wouldeliminate the environmentalproblems associated with the solidand liquid wastes. On the other, itwould avoid chemical pollution ofthe tannery wastes that can beprocessed into useful materials.

According to a CLRI data, theamount of waste discharged fromprocessing a tonne of leather

includes about 750 kg ofsolid waste. Of this, about350 kg would be lime-sulphide , 40,000 liters ofliquid waste and 450 kg oftotal dissolved solids. DrMandal said when thebioprocess technology isoperated the leatherindustry would be able tomeet the Pollution ControlBoard norms on totaldissolved solids in effluentsand on solid waste inleather production.

Dr Mandal said thatthe development of the

bioprocess of hides under theNMITLI was conducted in threephases. The first phase comprisedof the research and developmentwork. The technology wasdeveloped in the second phase andnow it is ready for the third phaseof commercialization.

Earlier, R. Krishna Kumar,Managing Director of Salem-basedShervaroys Health Care Products,said that despite manufacturing acollagen-based, superior wound andburn care management product,marketing it was a big challenge.According to him, the singleapplication of the collagen-basedproduct was far superior to existingones. The collagen sheets producedfrom bovine tissues, collected from

Dr A. B. Mandal, Director, CLRI, addressing the distinguishedgathering during NTD Celebrations

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Central Scientific Instruments Organisation, Chandigarh

At CSIO, Technology Day wascelebrated by organizingBrainstorming Session on Bio NanoPhotonics for Healthcare andAgriculture on 11 May 2009. DrR.K. Khandal, Director, ShriramInstitute for Industrial Research,Delhi, inaugurated the event. In hisaddress, he stressed on how to relatethe academic research to industrialproduct development under globalcompetitiveness. He highlighted onthe need of finding simple scientificand marketable solutions to complexproblems. He opined that the recentprogress in Bio Nano Technologyand Photonics can be converged todevise various highly sensitivesensors for disease and pathogendetection.

Earlier, Dr Pawan Kapur,Director, CSIO, while welcomingthe Chief Guest and other eminentscientists, highlighted the

importance of the Technology Day.It was on 11 May in the year 1998that Pokharan-II Nuclear tests-Shakti were carried out successfully.Besides this, on this day the secondprototype of the HANSA-3 had itssuccessful inaugural flight whichmarked a major milestone in theHANSA programme and the Trishulmissile were field successfully fromthe ITR, Balasore, Orissa. He, inhis address, termed Bio NanoPhotonics as Golden Jubilee Projectof CSIO as the institute has strongfoundation in optics and photonics.He expressed hope that thecombination of Bio NanoTechnologies will lead to creation ofa new knowledge and innovation forthe benefit of society.

Dr Lalit M. Bharadwaj, theConvenor of the event gave anoutline of the programme andemphasized on the need for

innovation in achieving sizedleimpact on the economy.

The panel discussion waschaired by Dr Pawan Kapur. Thepanel expressed the need of anetwork of the specialists andlaboratories working in this area tofocus on the product orientedresearch. An urgent need of havingincubation facility for close public-private partnership in everylaboratory was also realized duringthe discussion.

Dr S. Arora of PGI, Chandigarh;Dr Harsh of Solid State PhysicalLaboratory, Delhi; Prof B.R. Mehtaof Indian Institute of Technology,Delhi; Dr S. Mokkapati of IndianCouncil of Medical Research, Delhi;and Dr G.V. Ramaraju ofDepartment of InformationTechnology, Delhi, were alsopresent on the occasion.

At NGRI, the Technology DayLecture was delivered by Shri D.K.Pande, Director (Exploration),ONGC, New Delhi, who wasintroduced to the audience by DrB. Rajendra Prasad, Scientist,NGRI. Speaking on ‘HydrocarbonExploration – Riding TechnologyWave’, Shri Pande narrated thelatest technology development in oil

National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad

exploration and exploitation. Hestressed the need for utilization ofnon-conventional sources such ascoal bed methane, shale gas and gashydrates and also environmentfriendly and perennial energyresources such as wind energy andsolar energy. He answered all thequeries made by a large number ofstudents present in the audience.

Earlier, Dr V.P. Dimri, Director,while welcoming the distinguishedgathering gave a glimpse of the latestachievements of the institute withspecial reference to publicationsand patents.

Dr Y.J. Bhaskara Rao,Scientist, NGRI, proposed a vote ofthanks.

NTD CelebrationsNTD CelebrationsNTD CelebrationsNTD CelebrationsNTD Celebrations

slaughter houses, is a cost-effectiveand affordable material to treatwounds, burns and ulcers. Thisimport-substitute materialdeveloped and patented by CLRI

was being produced in a world-classfacility and marketed in India andabroad.

CLRI was in talks with aMalaysian company for the transfer

of the collagen technology, DrMandal informed.

Certificates and performanceawards for CLRI staff were givenaway on the occasion.

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Prof. Paul Weiss delivers Prof. McBain Memorial Lecture at NCL

Prof. Paul Weiss, Professor ofChemistry and Physics and

Founding Director of the Center forMolecular Nanofabrication andDevices at the Pennsylvania StateUniversity, USA, delivered theEighth Prof. J.W. McBain MemorialLecture on ‘Designing, Measuringand Controlling Molecular andSupramolecular Scale Properties forMolecular Devices’ at the NationalChemical Laboratory (NCL), Pune,on 9 July 2009. This lecture was partof the international workshop on‘NanoTechnology and AdvancedFunctional Materials’ organized byNCL jointly with MaterialsResearch Society of India (MRSI,Pune Chapter), and the IndianInstitute of Science and EducationResearch (IISER), Pune held during9-11 July 2009.

Prof. Weiss in his lecturedescribed the studies performed byhim and his team on moleculardevices. He exemplified the use ofmolecular design, tailoredsyntheses, intermolecularinteractions and selective chemistryto direct molecules into desiredpositions to create nanostructuresand to serve as test structures formeasurements of single or bundledmolecules. He showed that theinteractions within and betweenmolecules can be designed, directed,measured, understood and exploitedat unprecedented scales. Theinteractions that influence thechemistry, dynamics, structure,electronic function and otherproperties were examined and usedadvantageously to form precisemolecular assemblies, nano-

structures, and patterns, and tocontrol and stabilize function. Thesenanostructures can be taken all theway down to atomic-scale precisionor can be used at larger scales. Heshowed how molecules can beselected and tailored to exhibitprecise intermolecular interactions.His work has led to proposals ofmechanisms for electronic switchingand driven motions by varyingmolecular design and chemicalenvironment. Critical tounderstanding of these variationshas been developing the means tomake tens to hundreds of thousandsof independent single-moleculemeasurements in order to developsufficiently significant statisticaldistributions, comparable to thosefound in ensemble-averagingmeasurements, while retaining theheterogeneity of the measurements.The conductances of molecule-substrate junctions arequantitatively compared. It is foundthat the contacts and substrate playcritical roles in switching. Switchingof rigid, conjugated molecules isowing to changes in the molecule-

substrate bonds, which involvesmotion of the molecules and ofsubstrate atoms. He demonstratedthat his team is capable of measuringthe coupling of the electrons of themolecules and substrate bymeasuring the polarizabilities of theconnected functional molecules inhigh and low conductance states.These polarizabilities are comparedto those of other families ofmolecules and to detailedcalculations.

Prof. Weiss’s lecture was anexquisite illustration of how withmodern tools one can preciselycontrol structure-functionrelationships and make precisemeasurements of properties at amolecular as well as molecularensemble levels. Dr S. Sivaram,Director, NCL, welcomed theaudience and presented thereminiscences of Prof. McBain whowas the first Director at NCL. Hesaid, Prof. McBain was a surfaceand colloid chemist of greatdistinction and the one whointroduced the word ‘sorption’ intothe lexicon of science. Dr Sivaramsaid that Prof. McBain visualizedthe laboratory as being a serviceinstitution that would makespecialized knowledge available toanyone for the development andadvancement of India. In orderthat the scientists would notforget this objective, Prof. McBainworded it into a motto for all to readas they enter the hall of NCL ‘Thepurpose of this laboratory is toadvance knowledge and to applychemical science for the good of thepeople’.

Prof. Paul Weiss delivering Prof. McBainMemorial Lecture

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Honours & Awards/AppointmentsHonours & Awards/AppointmentsHonours & Awards/AppointmentsHonours & Awards/AppointmentsHonours & Awards/Appointments

Prof. Samir K. Brahmacharichosen as One of 25 Most Valuable Indians

Prof. Samir K. Brahmachari, Director General, CSIR, has been chosen asone of the 25 most Valuable Indians by The Week magazine (see issue dated

16 August 2009 which is an “ode to …visionaries”). Prof. Brahmachari joins illustriouspeers such as Shri Ratan Tata, Shri Nandan Nilekani, Dr A. R. Rahman, Shri WajahatHabibullah, Prof. Ashis Nandy, Shri O.P. Bhatt, Shri E. Sreedharan, Shri Rahul Gandhi,Ms Vandana Shiva, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan and others.

This special Independence Day issue of The Week features men and women whowill “play a role in dealing with …demons of our democracy.”

In the Editorial of the Independence Day issue of The Week, Managing Editor,Philip Mathew has lauded Prof. Brahmachari’s work in genomics which “… could leadto new treatments for a range of disorders that afflict millions of Indians.” In addition, he has praised CSIR’s“…new project which aims at making available drugs for tuberculosis at an affordable price.” In the Editorial,Philip Mathew says that “Progress emerges from such dreams, and their relentless pursuit.”

Dr Krishnananda Chattopadhyay,Scientist E-I, Indian Institute

of Chemical Biology (IICB),Kolkata, has received the prestigiousIndo-US Research FellowshipAward for the Year 2009 inrecognition of his outstandingcontribution to the field of LifeSciences.

The award provides an excellentopportunity to young Indianscientists and technologists of alldisciplines, under the age of 40 yearsto interact with the Americanscientific community and acquaintthemselves with new scientificresearch methods and enable them

Dr Krishnananda Chattopadhyay, IICB, receivesIndo-US Research Fellowship Award

to carry out aclearly definedr e s e a r c hproject at aplace of theirchoice in USAupto a period of12 months.

S c i e n c eand Engineering Research Council(SERC) of Department of Scienceand Technology, Government ofIndia, and Indo-US Science &Technology Forum (IUSSTF) havejointly launched the Indo-USResearch Fellowship Program forIndian Researchers.

After receiving his Ph. D. fromTata Institute of FundamentalResearch in 2000, DrChattopadhyay moved toWashington University School ofMedicine for his post doctoralstudies with Prof. Carl Friedenwhere he has developed the firstapplication of FluorescenceCorrelation Spectroscopy to studyprotein folding dynamics. Hesubsequently joined Pfizer GlobalBiologics as a senior scientist in thebiologics formulation developmentgroup prior to joining IndianInstitute of Chemical Biology.

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