Printer Cartridges Research Articles

Prediction of laser printers and cartridges based on three-dimensional profiles via discrimination analysis

Printer source prediction is an important task when examining questioned documents. While some research has provided methods to predict the source printer of documents, with the advent of compatible consumables, printer prediction could become more complex and difficult. Predicting the source printer after replacing cartridges and identifying the source of printer cartridges are unresolved issues that are rarely addressed in current research. Herein, we introduce a novel technique to predict the manufacturer, model, and cartridges of laser printers (i.e., compatible, and original cartridges) used to produce a given document. Document samples produced using eight laser printers and 247 cartridges were collected to establish a dataset. Common manufacturers included HP, Canon, Lenovo, and Epson. After obtaining white-light images and three-dimensional profile images of printed characters, a morphological analysis was conducted by questioned document examiners (QDEs) using microscopy. Microscopic image features across a series of images were also extracted and analyzed using algorithms. Then, six high-dimensional reduction algorithms were used to obtain between- and within-printer variations as well as between- and within-cartridge variations. Finally, we conducted principal component analysis (PCA) and discriminant analysis. For 40 % of the samples, mixed discrimination analysis (MDA) and fixed discrimination analysis (FDA) were employed to predict the manufacturer, model and cartridge of laser printers used to produce the questioned printed document; the remaining 60 % samples comprised the training dataset. In the prediction of manufacturer, model and cartridge, our method achieved mean accuracies of 95.5 %, 97.5 %, and 90.2 %, respectively. Hence, this technique could reasonably aid in predicting the manufacturer, model, and cartridge of a laser printer, even if different cartridges are loaded into printers.

Recycling of waste toner derived from exhausted printer cartridges as adsorbent for defluoridation of water

Due to the broad adoption of electronic and electrical equipment and the quick advancement of contemporary innovations in this domain, significant amounts of electronic waste have been produced. This category of waste includes the toner powder used by printers, copiers, and fax machines to print text and images. This paper describes a sustainable and environmentally friendly method of recycling waste toner powder. The chemical composition of this printer cartridge toner (PCt) powder is carbon, Fe3O4, polypropylene (polymeric resin), and SiO2 composite. Toner powder from exhausted printer cartridges was utilized as an adsorbent to remove fluoride from water. It has a fluoride adsorption capacity of 60 mg/g and a specific surface area of 20 m2/g. X-ray diffraction and electron microscopic investigations were used to investigate the chemical composition, structure, and surface morphology of the material. To analyze the collected experimental data, the Freundlich and Langmuir adsorption isotherm models were used. Time-dependent kinetic experiments were conducted to determine the mechanism of the adsorption process using pseudo-first-order kinetics, pseudo-second-order kinetics, and intraparticle diffusion kinetic models. The fluoride adsorption process was shown to be feasible and spontaneous (ΔG < 0) based on calculated thermodynamic characteristics, which included enthalpy, Gibbs free energy, entropy (ΔS > 0), and adsorption activation energy. The study also discussed its reusability as an adsorbent and examined its functioning capability in actual water.

Fabrication of supercapacitor electrode material using carbon derived from waste printer cartridge

Fabrication of supercapacitor electrode material using carbon derived from waste printer cartridge

Sustainable large-scale Fe3O4/carbon for enhanced polystyrene nanoplastics removal through magnetic adsorption coagulation

The omnipresence of nanoplastics in natural water sources raises significant environmental and health concerns due to their challenging removal and potential to transport harmful pollutants. These particles pose threats to terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, as well as human health, inducing inflammation and oxidative stress. In response, this study focused on an innovative Fe3O4/C nano-adsorbent, derived from discarded printer cartridge toner, for tackling the removal of polystyrene nanoplastics (PS-NPs) through magnetic adsorption coagulation (MAC) with polyaluminum chloride (PACl) as a coagulant. Extensive experimentation achieved a remarkable 99 % removal efficiency at a desirability function value of 0.868 under optimum conditions (pH = 8, adsorbent dosage 2.5 mg, contact time 2 min, PACl concentration 17.5 mg/L, PS-NPs concentration 75 mg/L) with an R2 = 0.9997, a CV% = 0.730 and an Adeq Precision = 122.837. The dominant removal mechanism involved adsorption bridging and electrostatic interaction between PS-NPs and Fe3O4/C in the presence of PACl. Findings covered adsorption kinetics, isotherms, and thermodynamics, adhering to the pseudo-second-order model (R2 = 0.996), Langmuir (R2 = 0.9912) isotherm and negative value of ΔG° (−8.899) as an endothermic adsorption process. The results demonstrated a maximum adsorption capacity of 523 mg/g, showcasing the effectiveness of the approach. Furthermore, the Fe3O4/C material exhibited robust reusability and stability, owing to its magnetite properties. The primary goal was to engineer a magnetic recoverable nano-adsorbent from discarded toner, contributing to cost reduction, streamlined coagulation processes, reduced coagulant consumption, and significantly improved micro/nanoplastics removal.

Reliability of ordinal outcomes in forensic black-box studies

Forensic science disciplines such as latent print examination, bullet and cartridge case comparisons, and shoeprint analysis, involve subjective decisions by forensic experts throughout the examination process. Most of the decisions involve ordinal categories. Examples include a three-category outcome for latent print comparisons (exclusion, inconclusive, identification) and a seven-category outcome for footwear comparisons (exclusion, indications of non-association, inconclusive, limited association of class characteristics, association of class characteristics, high degree of association, identification). As the results of the forensic examinations of evidence can heavily influence the outcomes of court proceedings, it is important to assess the reliability and accuracy of the underlying decisions. “Black box” studies are the most common approach for assessing the reliability and accuracy of subjective decisions. In these studies, researchers produce evidence samples consisting of a sample of questioned source and a sample of known source where the ground truth (same source or different source) is known. Examiners provide assessments for selected samples using the same approach they would use in actual casework. These studies often have two phases; the first phase comprises of decisions on samples of varying complexities by different examiners, and the second phase involves repeated decisions by the same examiner on a (usually) small subset of samples that were encountered by examiners in the first phase. We provide a statistical method to analyze ordinal decisions from black-box trials with the objective of obtaining inferences for the reliability of these decisions and quantifying the variation in decisions attributable to the examiners, the samples, and statistical interaction effects between examiners and samples. We present simulation studies to judge the performance of the model on data with known parameter values and apply the model to data from a handwritten signature complexity study, a latent fingerprint examination black-box study, and a handwriting comparisons black-box study.

Characterization and Validation of a New 3D Printing Ink for Reducing Therapeutic Gap in Pediatrics through Individualized Medicines.

3D printing technology can be used to develop individualized medicines in hospitals and pharmacies, allowing a high degree of personalization and the possibility to adjust the dose of the API based on the quantity of material extruded. The main goal of incorporating this technology is to have a stock of API-load print cartridges that could be used at different storage times and for different patients. However, it is necessary to study the extrudability, stability, and buildability of these print cartridges during storage time. A paste-like formulation containing hydrochlorothiazide as a model drug was prepared and distributed in five print cartridges, each of which was studied for different storage times (0 h-72 h) and conditions, for repeated use on different days. For each print cartridge, an extrudability analysis was performed, and subsequently, 100 unit forms of 10 mg hydrochlorothiazide were printed. Finally, various dosage units containing different doses were printed, taking into account the optimized printing parameters based on the results of the extrudability analysis carried out previously. An appropriate methodology for the rapid development of appropriate SSE 3DP inks for pediatrics was established and evaluated. The extrudability analysis and several parameters allowed the detection of changes in the mechanical behavior of the printing inks, the pressure interval of the steady flow, and the selection of the volume of ink to be extruded to obtain each of the required doses. The print cartridges were stable for up to 72 h after processing, and orodispersible printlets containing 6 mg to 24 mg of hydrochlorothiazide can be produced using the same print cartridge and during the same printing process with guaranteed content and chemical stability. The proposed workflow for the development of new printing inks containing APIs will allow the optimization of feedstock material and human resources in pharmacy or hospital pharmacy services, thus speeding up their development and reducing costs.

Intoxicación en cachorra tras ingesta accidental de tinta de imprenta: Reporte de caso

Several cases of exogenous poisoning in pets or wild animals are treated in veterinary clinics and hospitals each year. Whether accidental or intentional, they occur mainly in the domestic environment and are associated with various toxic substances. The present study aimed to report a case of exogenous intoxication in a 4-month-old female German shepherd dog after accidental ingestion of printing ink. To aid and develop this work, an integrative literature review study was also used to list the main heavy metals that make up the pigments and structure of printer cartridges: arsenic, barium, cadmium, lead, chromium, silver and selenium, their respective mechanisms of action and clinical signs in intoxicated animals. In that report, topics were included about the initial clinical picture, the clinical procedure performed with the patient, the anamnesis, the therapy (Ornitil, Ringer Lactate and Furosemide), the evolution of the case and the discharge of the patient with guidance to the tutor. The databases established for the research were BVS, PubMed and Google Scholar from March to June 2022. The work was a case report, in which the databases established for the research were BVS, PubMed and Google Scholar from March to June 2022. The descriptors used were cão (dog), intoxicação (intoxication) and tinta (ink), with a defined time frame from 2000 to 2020.

Current status of household e-waste management in Jakarta, Indonesia

Managing electronic waste or e-waste in Jakarta Province, Indonesia, is essential to support sustainable development goals (SDGs). E-waste contains toxic materials and is harmful to the environment while having the potential for a circular economy if appropriately managed. This study aims to analyze electronic waste management, formally originating from households in Jakarta Province, from the aspects of the e-waste collection mechanism, the type of e-waste, the amount of e-waste, and the flow of e-waste information using a descriptive method. The research findings are that the Jakarta Regional Government collects e-waste through three mechanisms: e-waste direct pickup (35.5%), e-waste drop box (0.6%), and e-waste temporary garbage collection (63.9%). The total amount of e-waste managed formally was 33,289 kg in 2021. In practice, there are five types of e-waste: television, lights, batteries, printer cartridges, and other e-waste. The effectiveness of the e-waste collection process needs improving. The amount of e-waste collected can be increased. One of the robust recommendations for improving e-waste management in Jakarta is integrating innovative digital platform-based technology and multi-actor collaboration. This research supports preliminary data and information on the circular economy’s potential and the formulation of specific regulations on e-waste in Indonesia.

Methods of implementation and operation of hardware DRM protection on the example of printer cartridges

The subject of this paper is to analyze the way of implementation and operation of hardware DRM protection systems on the example of selected printer cartridges. Thanks to the analysis, it is possible to understand the way of operation of typical security chips used in printer cartridges. Using the knowledge gained, it becomes possible to modify the data on the security chips and thus reset the protection, so that the printer sees the chip with the modified data as a new one. However, the process itself was difficult due to the lack of publicly available materials on this topic. In this paper, different approaches to DRM security analysis have been used, so that the reader can try to perform the described steps to analyze other hardware DRM systems by himself. In addition, devices called resetters have been designed and fabricated to quickly reset the analyzed security chips. Their design and documentation is available on the author's Github.

Novel inkjet direct printing technology based on thermosensitive sol–gel transition inks

Biodegradable poly( ε-caprolactone-co-lactide)- b-poly(ethylene glycol)- b-poly( ε-caprolactone- co-lactide) (PCLA-PEG-PCLA) triblock copolymer was developed to prepare thermosensitive inks for digital fiber printing applications. The thermosensitive inks can be printed on any textile or fiber that does not need to go through the pretreatment and soaping procedure like traditional inks. This copolymer aqueous solution has a reversible sol–gel transition property, which can be used to prepare thermosensitive sol–gel inks. PCLA-PEG-PCLA had little effect on the physical properties of the inks, including the average particle size, conductivity, and surface tension at room temperature. However, the viscosity of the thermosensitive inks can increase dramatically under high temperature. This was due to the inks undergoing a sol–gel transition with an increase of temperature. The inks were in the sol state in the printer cartridge at room temperature and when the ink drops fell on the heated fiber or textile, a sol–gel transition occurred and turned them into a gel immediately. The high viscosity prevented the ink from spreading around on the fabrics, thus giving a sharp edge. The study indicated that the line width printed by thermosensitive inks was reduced to 266.35 μm from 464.08 μm in the weft direction (reduced by 43%), and the line width in the warp direction was reduced to 264.35 μm from 385.76 μm (reduced by 32%). The polyester fabric printed by thermosensitive ink has a higher color strength ( K/ S) at 47–50°C with excellent colorfastness. Thermosensitive ink is a type of innovative ink, in line with the concept of green ecological textile manufacturing.

Inkjet-Printed Functionalization of CMUT-Based CO2 Sensors.

The trade-off between the functionalization shift of the informative parameters and sensitivity of capacitive micromachined ultrasound transducers (CMUT)-based CO2 sensors is addressed, and the CMUT surface modification process by thin inkjet-printed polyethyleneimine (PEI) films is optimized. It was shown that by the proper preparation of the active CMUT surface and properly diluted PEI solution, it is possible to minimize the functionalization shift of the resonance frequency and the quality of the resonance and preserve the sensitivity potential. So, after optimization, we demonstrated 23.2 kHz frequency shift readings of the sensor with 16 MHz nominal frequency while in the gas chamber and switching between pure N2 and CO2. After testing the sensors with different PEI film thickness, it was confirmed that a 200 nm average thickness of a PEI film is an optimum, because this is the practical limit of CO2 absorption depth at given conditions. Additionally, we note that modification of the hydrophilic/hydrophobic properties of the CMUT surface allows changing the nanoscale surface roughness of the printed PEI film and controlling the area resolution of the inkjet functionalization by reducing the diameter of a single dot down to 150 μm by a commercially available printer cartridge.

Direct liquefaction of discarded printer cartridge plastics and its Kinetic Modelling

Electronic waste is growing at an alarming rate in the modern world. Disposal of the plastic materials from discarded electronic items is a major environmental concern and thermochemical recycling has gained lots of attention to effectively convert them into valuable products. In this paper, direct liquefaction of discarded printer cartridge plastic (DPCP) was conducted without using commercial solvent and catalyst and the experiments were carried out under nitrogen atmosphere replacing costly hydrogen. The effect of temperature and residence time on DPCP liquefaction has been assessed. Oil yield increased significantly with temperature and the maximum oil yield of 48.66 wt% was achieved at 400 °C in 15 min. Reaction kinetics of DPCP liquefaction were studied by developing kinetic model with proposed reaction mechanism and the kinetic parameters were evaluated. GC–MS analysis of the oil confirmed the presence of compounds having a carbon chain length in the range of C8- C31, approachable to the carbon chain length of C8- C25 in the diesel fuel. Higher H/C ratio (>1) and comparable physical properties of DPCP liquefied oil with other transportation liquid fuels signify its possible blending with commercial grade fuels after downstream upgrading processes.

Photovoltaic green application of waste toner carbon on fully printable mesoscopic perovskite solar cells

With the growing demand of print and copy in modern society, waste toner carbon from printer cartridges causes serious environmental pollution. Herein, we innovatively attempt to apply it directly to the assembly of carbon electrodes for the fully printable mesoscopic perovskite solar cell (FP-PSCs). Its morphology, conductivity, work function, charge recombination, hydrophobicity and other characteristics of electrodes can be controlled through optimizing its usage, which greatly improves the photoelectric conversion performance, and the best power conversion efficiency reaches 11.78%. It opens up a new way for the green recycling application of waste toner carbon powder.

Supervised learning vs. unsupervised learning: A comparison for optical inspection applications in quality control

For the establishment of a successful quality management system in companies, the quality control of e.g. newly produced goods or the return of old and used parts is an essential component. One solution for this is the optical inspection of the surface of objects with the help of image processing algorithms. Using the case study of printer cartridges, this paper evaluates the extent to which different methods of machine learning can contribute to a successful quality control. Established methods of supervised learning have the advantage that they are already proven in many applications and have a very high detection accuracy. However, they require a lot of labelled training data and this high effort also means high integration costs. A new approach is a data-reduced variant from unsupervised learning. Here, the algorithm is trained only with defect free objects, for example as they come to a large extent from the production. If the objects are defective, the method from the field of anomaly detection or even novelty detection detects something that is different from the learned norm. This has the advantage that not all defects have to be known beforehand. And this in turn avoids acquiring a large amount of training data for each of these defects. This paper compares the effort required to acquire training data and compares it with the detection accuracy of the different methods in order to give an assessment of the extent to which the use of unsupervised learning methods is beneficial. Newly produced and used printer cartridges are used for this purpose. Image data is acquired from 18 different printer cartridge models. Afterwards they are fully annotated (labelled). A smart separation into training, validation and test data allows the training of supervised and unsupervised methods as well as a complete evaluation regarding the effort for data acquisition, annotation and detection accuracy of the defects. Finally, an outlook for chances and risks of the respective procedures is given.

Your dinner is printed [Food - 3D Printing

AT ITS SIMPLEST, the 3D printing of food takes the form of extruding purees through nozzles that consider the viscosity of the original feedstock, and printing it in additive layers onto a platform. The end result is often dried or baked into a biscuit form. The cognoscenti actually call this 2.5D, as the process involves many 2D layers and only the final product is itself a 3D object. Another approach is to load up a printer with capsules of ingredients, like inkjet printer cartridges. Supply water, oil and heat and the printer can then combine these ingredients into a finished meal. Indeed, food printers could potentially prepare a wide range of meals from a handful of basic ingredients.

Zero E-waste: Regulatory impediments and blockchain imperatives

The concept of zero waste is an ideal situation that will require different solutions for different categories of waste. Electronic waste (E-waste), the fastest growing category of solid hazardous waste presents various unique challenges. Electronic product repair, reuse and remanufacture (3re) are crucial for effective source reduction of E-waste and the integration of the electronics industry into a circular or zero-waste economy framework. Increasingly, 3re implementation is restricted by regulatory difficulties, particularly the invocation of copyright laws. Here, we use the examples of electronic printer cartridges and restored compact discs (CDs) to identify the challenges and to explore solutions for managing the risks associated with E-waste through circular economy and the opportunities presented by innovative Blockchain solutions. A set of international consensuses on judicial definitions, such as 3re, refurbish fake/counterfeit product and copyright exhaustion, are proposed to accelerate source reduction in E-waste management toward the goal of zero waste.

Impact of cell density on the bioprinting of gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) bioinks

3D printing of cell laden bioinks has the potential to recapitulate the hierarchical and spatial complexity of native tissues. However, the addition of cells can alter physical properties of printable resins, which in turn may impede or induce cellular sedimentation or affect the printability and shape fidelity of the final construct. In this study we investigated these considerations by bioprinting gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) bioinks, loaded with various concentrations of mouse fibroblast cells (L929), using extrusion-based direct-write 3D printing (EDP). The impact of various cellular concentrations on viscosity, and temperature-driven gelation of GelMA was examined with a rheometer. The effect of cell concentration on quality of 3D printed GelMA hydrogels was investigated by analyzing the geometric compliance of the 3D printed scaffolds to the theoretical model, and by studying compressive properties of the 3D printed scaffolds. The addition of cells did not significantly affect GelMA zero-shear viscosity or viscosity at shear rates associated with EDP (>102 s−1). While quality and resolution of cell-laden 3D scaffolds of GelMA hydrogel were slightly better than that of GelMA hydrogels without cells, there were no significant differences due to various cell concentrations. The cellular sedimentation in GelMA bio-inks within the printer cartridge was evaluated using DNA quantification. Sedimentation was not statistically significant at the studied cell concentrations of up to 10 ​× ​106 ​cells/ml. Immunofluorescent imaging indicated improved cell spreading and more uniform scaffold coverage over time for higher cell densities. This study provides insights into the effect of cell density on the rheology, and 3D printability of GelMA bioinks which will assist in the designing and standardizing bioprinting of high-quality 3D bioengineered structures.

Study on Efficient Electrode from Electronic waste renewed carbon material for sodium battery applications

The present work enlightens the preparation of anode material for sodium battery by utilizing the powder from exhausted printer cartridges (pEPC). Herein, the toner powder was heat treated to obtain carbon-ferric (C/Fe3O4) composite. The obtained composite’s structure, surface morphology were analyzed using X-ray diffraction, and electron microscopic analyses. The electrochemical performance of composite material was examined by using this material as anode for sodium ion battery. The composite material delivered an initial discharge capacity of 410 m Ah g−1 in the range 0.1–3.0 V with 93% coulombic efficiency; Even after 100 cycles, the material delivered 280 m Ah g−1. This work proposes the potentiality of recycling the waste toner as anode materials for sodium ion batteries. By this way, the environmental issues can be minimized from the hazardous e-waste and renewed it for energy storage application.

Protein Staining and Analysis with Artificial Intelligence Color Algorithm Analysis with 2-Dimensional Inkjet Printer to Identify Covid-19 Adhesion and Infected Properties on Artificial Body Fluid

In this study, the predictive modeling of Covid-19 viral contamination on artificial body fluids (simulated lung fluid, perspiration, saliva, and urine) was done by colorimetric analysis of protein staining on paper ground with henna ethanolic extract loaded on a 2-dimensional printer cartridge. The purchased artificial body fluids were left in the open-air atmosphere of sterile containers to the public places of pandemic hospitals, pharmacies, which are the most frequent places of Covid-19 patients for 2 weeks. These body fluids, which were then thought to be Covid-19 adsorption, were safely collected and placed in the cartridge chambers of the 2-D printer. The mixtures of artificial body fluids and henna plant extract in the cartridges were sprayed on the paper floor by ink painting. The algorithmic matrix code system was created by colorimetric predictive scaling between +1 and -1 about the images of viral transmission to artificial body fluids taken with a smartphone.

DEVELOPMENT OF AN INTEGRATED SUSTAINABLE ELECTRONIC WASTE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR HIGHER INSTITUTIONS IN RIVERS STATE

High obsolescence rate and end-of-life of electronic equipment resulting in high generation of electronic waste remains the biggest challenge with use of ICT in higher institutions. This study evaluated and developed an environmentally sound E-waste management system for higher institutions in Rivers State. The study employed research surveys in data acquisition through questionnaires, interviews and observation. Hypotheses were postulated to test areas of interest. Study indicated that institutions generate a reasonably amount of electronic/ICT wastes that are poorly managed. Desktop computers, printers, laptops, UPSs, old CRT monitors, and printer cartridges are the majority generated and available E-waste in storage in these institutions. Results revealed that the level of awareness on hazardous nature of E-waste among the sampled population was significant. The level awareness on E-waste recycling among sampled population was also significant. There are no accurate records or inventory of ICT equipment procurement and E-waste generation and disposal in the institutions. Policies and programs on source reduction E-waste segregation and handling, facilities for E-waste recovery, recycling and reuse are practically not available in the institutions. The study concluded that there is no proper management and disposal of electronic/ICT waste in higher institutions in Rivers State. Significant numbers of respondents expressed the need for the institutions to establish an integrated electronic/ICT waste recycling center. An Integrated E-waste management system that will not only address the current poor E-waste management practices in the institutions but also achieve environmentally sound management of E-wastes in the institutions has been developed in the study.