Microchemical Investigation of Archaeological Copper Based Artefacts Disclosing an Ancient Witness of the Transition from the Value of the Substance to the Value of the Appearance

In many Italian archaeological sites dated between the sixth and third centuries BC, unworked lumps of Cu-based materials are sometimes found, the so called Aes Rude, which according to archaeological considerations were appreciated as currency, as a medium of exchange and as a form of saving. The microchemical investigation of these ancient artefacts discloses their nature as apparently not usable for any functional applications or possible use. Indeed, Aes Rude resemble ordinary copper material, but microchemical results indicate that they are constituted by highly ferruginous leaded copper, making them useless for producing other metal objects by means of casting or hot and cold working. Notwithstanding this intrinsic negative feature, the production of these intractable Cu-based alloys was deliberately carried out to maximise the process yield in terms of produced metal from an impure and unselected metal ore by tailoring the smelting process parameters. With these considerations in mind, the microchemical investigation of these ancient iron–copper alloys gives evidence of the passage from the acceptance of an artefact value based on its true nature or potential use to the acceptance of the value based only on its appearance or form irrespective of its present or future use. This information could contribute to a better understanding of the evolution of human thought and economic and social interactions.     

Pressure-temperature phase diagrams of smectogenic 4'-alkyl-4-cyanobiphenyls (9CB, 10CB, 11CB and 12CB)

The pressure-temperature ( p - T ) phase diagrams for four smectogenic members of the 4'-alkyl-4-cyanobiphenyl homologous series ( n CB, n =9, 10, 11 and 12) over the temperature range 320-410 K and pressure range 0.1-300 MPa (3 kbar) were constructed using DTA. At 1 atm 9CB exhibits nematic and smectic A d phases, while the other members show only the smectic A d phase. However, at elevated pressures the clearing line splits in the case of 10CB and 11CB which indicates the induction of a nematic phase. It was found that the triple point, where the isotropic, nematic and smectic phases coexist, is strongly shifted to higher pressures with increasing chain length. This was interpreted as being caused by a loss of the rod-like shape of the molecules containing longer alkyl tails which explore a range of conformations. The slope of the clearing line, d T /d p , depends strongly on the length of the alkyl chain for the n CB series, but does not show a step-wise change between the nematogenic and smectogenic members.     

An interior estimate for a nonlinear parabolic equation

In this paper the derivatives of the solution of an initial boundary value problem for a nonlinear uniformly parabolic equation in the interior with the total variation of the boundary data and the L^∞-norm of the initial condition are estimated.     

Bounds for non‐periodic mixtures of infinitely many materials

We prove bounds on the homogenized coefficients for general non‐periodic mixtures of an arbitrary number of isotropic materials, in the heat conduction framework. The component materials and their proportions are given through the Young measure associated to the sequence of coefficient functions. Upper and lower bounds inequalities are deduced in terms of algebraic relations between this Young measure and the eigenvalues of the H‐limit matrix. The proofs employ arguments of compensated compactness and fine properties of Young measures. When restricted to the periodic case, we recover known bounds. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of alcohols on micellization and on the reaction methyl 4‐nitrobenzenesulfonate + Br− in cetyltrimethylammonium bromide aqueous micellar solutions

The effects of n‐hexanol, n‐pentanol, and n‐butanol on the critical micelle concentration (cmc), on the micellar ionization degree (α), and on the rate of the reaction methyl 4‐nitrobenzenesulfonate + Br^? have been investigated in cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) aqueous solutions. An increase in the alcohol concentration present in the solution produces a decrease in the cmc and an increase in the micellar ionization degree. Kinetic data show that the observed rate constant decreases as alcohol concentration increases. This result was rationalized by considering variations in the equilibrium binding constant of the methyl 4‐nitrobenzenesulfonate molecules to the micelles, variations in the interfacial bromide ion concentration, and variations in the characteristics of the water–alcohol bulk phase provoked by the presence of alcohols. When these operative factors are considered, kinetic data in this and other works show that the second‐order rate constants in the micellar pseudophases of water–alcohol micellar solutions are quite similar to those estimated in the absence of alcohols. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 36: 634–641, 2004     

Enzymatic synthesis of 3-hydroxybutyramides and their conversion to optically active 1,3-aminoalcohols

3-Hydroxybutyramides are obtained in high optical yield from ethyl (±)-3-hydroxybutyrate and aliphatic amines when the reaction is catalyzed by Candida antartica lipase. The chemical reduction of these 3-hydroxybutyramides yields the corresponding 1,3 -aminoalcohols.     

Equisingularity classes of birational projections of normal singularities to a plane

Given a birational normal extension O of a two-dimensional local regular ring (R,m), we describe all the equisingularity types of the complete m-primary ideals J in R whose blowing-up X=BlJ(R) has some point Q whose local ring OX,Q is analytically isomorphic to O.     

Magnetic silica colloids for catalysis

Monodisperse magnetizable colloidal silica particles in a stable dispersion have been functionalized with a homogeneous catalyst: a PCP–pincer Pd-complex. In a proof-of-principle experiment we demonstrate the catalytic activity of the colloids in a C–C bond formation reaction. Advantages of the magnetic silica carriers are the large surface-to-volume ratio and the easy recovery by magnetic separation. After magnetic separation, the catalyst-loaded particles are readily redispersed for further use.