This research paper presents major barriers to implement quality in IT sector of Pakistan. The paper not only explores (exploration w.r.t quality management covering discussion like what is done, what is not done, what are the loopholes, what must be done and / or what must not be done), but also presents detailed explanation of the main highlights by performing necessary qualitative analysis. In addition to exploration and explanation of barriers (the paper specifically talks of barriers concerning behavior, management and culture) to quality within IT sector of Pakistan, the paper also explains all the important issues arising due to the deprived quality management. As a result of detailed analysis performed, the paper finally identifies important remedies for revitalization of quality management function as recommendations. Mainly, exploration, explanation and analysis of reasons and remedial actions are focused. Discussion and analysis is limited to behavioral, cultural and managerial perspective.

A Monte Carlo program has been developed to investigate the electron emission from 5000 Å thick MgO film for impact of Ar⁺ ions having energies in the range of 50 to 1000 eV. The program incorporates the excitation of target electrons by projectile ions, recoiling target atoms and fast primary electrons. It can be used to calculate the kinetic electron yield, distribution of the electron excitation points in the solid and other physical parameters of the emitted electrons. The calculated electron emission yield is compared with the available experimental data, considering the effect of potential emission a good agreement is found. In addition, the effect of projectile energy and incident angle on the longitudinal distribution of the excitation points of electrons emitted from MgO thin film is investigated.

Zr-based amorphous alloys are novel materials having wide range of applications. Melt spun amorphous ribbon with composition (Zr_0.645Ni_0.155Al_0.115Cu_0.085)₉₈Si₂ of 50 mm thickness was synthesized to investigate the thermal properties and activation energy. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was used to investigate these properties. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were employed for phase analysis and microstructural study. Thermal parameters were derived from DSC measurements. Phases like NiZr₂, CuZr₂ and SiZr₂ were identified in the samples annealed at various temperatures. It was found that Si addition had positive effect on most of the thermal parameters.

GAMMACAL is a computer program with graphical user interface for the calculation of radionuclide activity of gamma emitting radionuclides and elemental concentration using neutron activation analysis data. The software has been tested and is in use for the last ten years. It provides not only concentrations but also quality control data. The program is available for free of cost on writing request to the author.

In the first part of this paper, the data submitted in the proficiency test (PT) conducted under the IAEA co-ordinated research project has been statistically evaluated. The data contains elemental concentrations determined in the IAEA-CU-2006-06 (ancient Chinese ceramic) powder by different laboratories using various analytical techniques. The analysis has been performed by using relative deviation and relative standard deviation. The use of rescaled sum of z-score, sum of square of z-score and principal component analysis has been suggested to determine the overall laboratory performance. The second part of the paper provides elemental concentrations of four elements (Eu, Lu, Sr and Zr) determined by our laboratory by k₀-INAA. Finally, principal component analysis has been applied to get inter-laboratories patterns on the scores plot. The overall analysis reveals that INAA produces results with high accuracy and precision and with good sensitivity for a large number of elements.

Milk and milk products constitute an important ingredient of human nutrition all over the world. Macro mineral contents like sodium, potassium, calcium, phosphorus and micro mineral contents like iron, copper, zinc, manganese of some varieties of powder milk available in the local market have been investigated by Proton Induced X-Ray Emission (PIXE). These elements are essential for the optimal functioning of various chemical processes taking place in the human body. Any toxic element present in milk can also be detected simultaneously. PIXE is a powerful and universal elemental analysis technique with high detection sensitivity for elements with Z> 11 in the periodic table. The technique is non-destructive and may be applied to samples as small as a cell to a large painting.

At present acquiring safe drinking water in rural or remote areas of Pakistan is a challenging task for dwellers. Coast line of Karachi is a sporadic habitat of villages not having access to safe drinking water. Many incidents of waterborne diseases have been reported in that area and attributed to contaminated municipal water supply. Solution of the problem is disinfection however, general methods of water disinfection such as boiling, UV-lamp, ozonation and chemical additive are costly or require skilled manpower. Present study investigates the solar disinfection method to treat municipal water supply at Karachi Institute of Power Engineering (KINPOE) located at the costal belt of Karachi. Effect of exposure time, bottle material and turbidity of water on the process performance was evaluated. Model indicator bacteria total coliform (TC) was used to evaluate the solar disinfection process. Study revealed that in order to disinfect the municipal water, samples should be filled in PET transparent bottles, having turbidity below 23 NTU, and expose to solar radiation in the study area at least for one hour. Study shows that solar disinfection may provide safe drinking water meeting national and international water quality standards at minimum cost and effort in sunshine rich areas and not having access to other water purification systems.