Magnesium, a strong, lightweight metal, could be ideal for making cars and aircraft — except that it is difficult to make anything with the metal. 

This has to do with the arrangement of atoms in it. As such, it has long engaged the attention of researchers in the area of metal forming (casting, forging and sheet-making).

Due to technical reasons, such as formation of dendrites, the traditional method of magnesium casting results in cast materials of doubtful strength.

Now, a group of researchers at IIT-Madras, led by Prof Sushanta Kumar Panigrahi, head of the manufacturing engineering section at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, have developed an innovative casting process for magnesium. 

Their ‘strain integrated gas infusion’ (SIGI) process improves the quality of magnesium alloy casting by refining its internal structure. 

The process involves using horizontal and vertical agitators in the metal pool; the agitators have holes through which argon gas is infused. 

While the agitation prevents the formation of undesirable dendrites, the gas helps in heat removal.

The alloys are “stronger and resistant to wear and corrosion. The billets cast by SIGI process can be used as a high-quality precursor for downstream processes to create industrial components”, says a scientific paper on this subject. 

The process results in a more ‘homogenous’ metal that is more durable. Also, it reduces both production time and manufacturing cost, Panigrahi says.

Tool to detect H pylori

Researchers have developed a cost-effective diagnostic tool using the CRISPR-based FELUDA system to detect Helicobacter pylori infections and associated antibiotic resistance mutations in dyspeptic patients in rural India, where access to diagnostic laboratories is limited.

H pylori infects over 43 per cent of the global population, causing conditions such as peptic ulcers, gastritis, and even gastric cancer. Resistance to clarithromycin, a key antibiotic for treating H pylori, arises from specific mutations in its 23S rRNA gene, complicating eradication efforts and requiring repeated treatments.

A team led by Dr Shraddha Chakraborty at IIT-Delhi and CSIR-IGIB developed a CRISPR-based diagnostic method using an engineered protein with enhanced mutation detection capabilities. This system identifies H pylori and its clarithromycin-resistance mutations in gastric biopsy samples through a lateral flow assay for visual results.