The vertical axis wind turbines are simple in construction, self-starting, inexpensive and can accept wind from any direction without orientation. A combined Savonius-Darrieus type vertical axis wind rotor has got many advantages over individual Savonius or individual Darrieus wind rotor, such as better efficiency than Savonius rotor and high starting torque than Darrieus rotor. But works on the combined Savonius-Darrieus wind rotor are very scare. In view of the above, two types of models, one simple Savonius and the other combined Savonius-Darrieus wind rotors were designed and fabricated. The Savonius rotor was a three-bucket system having provisions for overlap variations. The Savonius-Darrieus rotor was a combination of three-bucket Savonius and three-bladed Darrieus rotors with the Savonius placed on top of the Darrieus rotor. The overlap variation was made in the upper part, i.e. the Savonius rotor only. These were tested in a subsonic wind tunnel available in the department. The various parameters namely, power coefficients and torque coefficients were calculated for both overlap and without overlap conditions. From the present investigation, it is seen that with the increase of overlap, the power coefficients start decreasing. The maximum power coefficient of 51% is obtained at no overlap condition. However, while comparing the power coefficients (C p ) for simple Savonius-rotor with that of the combined configuration of Savonius-Darrieus rotor, it is observed that there is a definite improvement in the power coefficient for the combined Savonius-Darrieus rotor without overlap condition. Combined rotor without overlap condition provided an efficiency of 0.51, which is higher than the efficiency of the Savonius rotor at any overlap positions under the same test conditions. r

The current review focuses on the studies conducted on the colonization of microorganisms on orthodontic ligatures during orthodontic treatment. The fixed orthodontic appliances have long been associated with an increase in plaque accumulation, bacterial colonization, and resultant enamel decalcification. Voluminous research has been carried out on the microbial colonization of even newer orthodontic materials such as elastomeric ligatures with an evidence of variably increased microbial counts during orthodontic treatment. However, conclusive material-based data for minimal microbial colonization to establish acceptance criteria for the use of elastomeric ligatures are hardly available. Thus, there is a need for further studies with dual emphasis on exploring microbial associations based on surface chemistries of different elastomers and their requisite modifications for hampering microbial biofilms to evolve efficacious oral health friendly orthodontic ligatures.

Streptococcus gordonii and Streptococcus mutans avidly colonize teeth. S. gordonii glucosyltransferase (GtfG) and amylase-binding proteins (AbpA/AbpB), and S. mutans glucosyltransferase (GtfB), affect their respective oral colonization abilities. We investigated their interrelationships and caries association in a rat model of human caries, examining the sequence of colonization and non- vs. high-sucrose diets, the latter being associated with aggressive decay in humans and rats. Virulence-characterized wild-types of both species and well-defined mutants of S. gordonii with interrupted abpA and gtfG genes were studied. While both S. gordonii and S. mutans were abundant colonizers of rat’s teeth in the presence of either diet, if inoculated singly, S. mutans always out-competed S. gordonii on the teeth, independent of diet, strain of S. mutans, simultaneous or sequential inoculation, or presence/absence of mutations of S. gordonii’s abpA and gtfG genes known to negatively or positively affect its colonization and to interact in vitro with S. mutans GtfB. S. mutans out-competed S. gordonii in in vivo plaque biofilm. Caries induction reflected S. mutans or S. gordonii colonization abundance: the former highly cariogenic, the latter not. S. gordonii does not appear to be a good candidate for replacement therapy. These results are consistent with human data.

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