Halide glasses based on chlorides, bromides and iodides

There is relatively little information on glasses based on chlorides, bromides and iodides. Because of the recent interest in fluoride it is the objective of this paper to evaluate the potential for preparing new halide glasses and to offer some predictions on the properties of glasses based on chlorides, bromides and iodides. The predictions of glass-forming tendency, viscosity, chemical durability and structures are discussed.     

Displays and formal p-divisible groups

Over p-adic Nagata rings, formal p-divisible groups are classified by nilpotent displays according to T. Zink. We extend this result to arbitrary p-adic rings. The proof uses the Grothendieck–Illusie deformation theory of truncated p-divisible groups.     

Efficient algorithms for machine scheduling problems with earliness and tardiness penalties

In this paper, we study the multi-machine scheduling problem with earliness and tardiness penalties and sequence dependent setup times. This problem can be decomposed into two subproblems—sequencing and timetabling. Sequencing focuses on assigning each job to a fixed machine and determine the job sequence on each machine. We call such assignment a semi-schedule. Timetabling focuses on finding an executable schedule from the semi-schedule via idle-time insertion. Sequencing is strongly NP-hard in general. Although timetabling is polynomial-time solvable, it can become a computational bottleneck if the procedure is executed many times within a larger framework. This paper makes two contributions. We first propose a quantum improvement to the computational efficiency of the timetabling algorithm. We then apply it within a squeaky wheel optimization framework to solve the sequencing and overall problem. Finally, we demonstrate the strength of our proposed algorithms by experiments.     

X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopic chemical state quantification of mixed nickel metal,oxide and hydroxide systems

Quantitative chemical state X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopic analysis of mixed nickel metal, oxide, hydroxide and oxyhydroxide systems is challenging due to the complexity of the Ni 2p peak shapes resulting from multiplet splitting, shake‐up and plasmon loss structures. Quantification of mixed nickel chemical states and the qualitative determination of low concentrations of Ni(III) species are demonstrated via an approach based on standard spectra from quality reference samples (Ni, NiO, Ni(OH)₂, NiOOH), subtraction of these spectra, and data analysis that integrates information from the Ni 2p spectrum and the O 1s spectra. Quantification of a commercial nickel powder and a thin nickel oxide film grown at 1‐Torr O₂ and 300 °C for 20 min is demonstrated. The effect of uncertain relative sensitivity factors (e.g. Ni 2.67 ± 0.54) is discussed, as is the depth of measurement for thin film analysis based on calculated inelastic mean free paths. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Quantitative analysis of MWCNT agglomeration in polymeric‐based membranes using atomic force microscope

In this work, we performed an analysis on the surface properties of polyethersulfone (PES)‐based ultrafiltration membranes that were prepared by incorporating acid functionalized multiwalled carbon nanotube (f‐MWCNT) and polyvinylpyrrolidone into membrane matrix via simple blending method. The bonding‐chemistry of the nanocomposites implanted within the PES membrane was investigated by Fourier transform infrared spectrometer while atomic force microscope was employed to observe the distribution of f‐MWCNT in the membrane matrix and further measured its agglomeration quantitatively. The resultant 3D atomic force microscope images provided the most satisfactory way to examine the distribution of nanomaterials in the membranes, and with the help of ‘point profile data’ the maximum height and width of the agglomerated cluster could be quantitatively calculated. Moreover, the surface profile studies of the membrane surface provided the information about the length, volume, area, perimeter, radius and diameter of grains. It was observed that PES/nanocomposite blended membranes were held together via strong hydrogen bonding, but poor dispersion of MWCNT in the membrane matrix reduced the membrane performance in terms of protein (pepsin and bovine albumin serum) rejection and increased the surface roughness. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ammonia Fiber Expansion (AFEX) Pretreatment,Enzymatic Hydrolysis,and Fermentation on Empty Palm Fruit Bunch Fiber (EPFBF) for Cellulosic Ethanol Production

Empty palm fruit bunch fiber (EPFBF), a readily available cellulosic biomass from palm processing facilities, is investigated as a potential carbohydrate source for cellulosic ethanol production. This feedstock was pretreated using ammonia fiber expansion (AFEX) and enzymatically hydrolyzed. The best tested AFEX conditions were at 135 °C, 45 min retention time, water to dry biomass loading of 1:1 (weight ratio), and ammonia to dry biomass loading of 1:1 (weight ratio). The particle size of the pretreated biomass was reduced post-AFEX. The optimized enzyme formulation consists of Accellerase (84 μL/g biomass), Multifect Xylanase (31 μL/g biomass), and Multifect Pectinase (24 μL/g biomass). This mixture achieved close to 90% of the total maximum yield within 72 h of enzymatic hydrolysis. Fermentation on the water extract of this biomass affirms that nutrients solely from the pretreated EPFBF can support yeast growth for complete glucose fermentation. These results suggest that AFEX-treated EPFBF can be used for cellulosic biofuels production because biomass recalcitrance has been overcome without reducing the fermentability of the pretreated materials.     

Acute oral toxicity and brine shrimp lethality of Elaeis guineensis Jacq., (oil palm leaf) methanol extract

Elaeis guineensis (Arecaceae) is widely used in West African traditional medicine for treating various ailments. An evaluation on the toxicity of extracts of this plant is crucial to support the therapeutic claims. The acute oral toxicity and brine shrimp lethality of a methanolic extract of this plant was tested. Oral administration of crude extract at the highest dose of 5,000 mg/kg resulted in no mortalities or evidence of adverse effects, implying that E. guineensis is nontoxic. Normal behavioral pattern, clinical signs and histology of vital organs confirm this evidence. The E. guineensis extracts screened for toxicity against brine shrimp had 50% lethal concentration (LC??) values of more than 1.0 mg/mL (9.00 and 3.87 mg/mL, at 6 and 24 h, respectively), confirming that the extract was not toxic. Maximum mortalities occurred at 100 mg/mL concentration while the least mortalities happened to be at 0.195 mg/mL concentration. The results of both tests confirm that E. guineensis is nontoxic and hence safe for commercial utilization.     

Electrochemical codeposition of nickel oxide and polyaniline

Nickel oxide (NiO_x) and polyaniline (PAni) were electrocodeposited from NiSO₄ and aniline through cyclic voltammetric scans to afford PAni–NiO_x composite film at controlled pH environment. The electrochemical activities of the film were investigated by cyclic voltammetry in 0.1 M NaOH and 0.1 M H₂SO₄, respectively. Typical redox couples of PAni in 0.1 M H₂SO₄ appeared at approximately 0.2 and 0.4 V vs. saturated calomel electrode (SCE); Ni(II)/Ni(III) redox couple was observed at approximately 0.4 V vs. SCE in 0.1 M NaOH. The morphologies and elemental components of the films were inspected by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray diffraction. The stability of nickel oxide in the films was found to be enhanced against acidic environments. Electrochemical catalytic behavior of NiO_x within the composite film was conserved and demonstrated by catalytic oxidation of methanol and ethanol.