Electro-osmotic flow of a viscoelastic fluid in a channel : Applications to physiological fluid mechanics

The paper presents a comprehensive theoretical study on the electro-osmotic flow of a viscoelastic fluid past a channel having stretching walls. An attempt has been made to investigate the effect of rheological and electro-osmotic parameters on the kinematics of the fluid. Results presented here pertain to the case where the channel height is much greater than the thickness of electrical double layer comprising the Stern and diffuse layers. The study reveals that an increase in electro-osmotic parameter leads to an increase in the axial velocity throughout the channel for a fluid having viscoelastic coefficient equal to that of blood. This aspect provides a source of novel insight into the process of designing bio-sensing and micro-fluidic devices.     

Vickrey–Dutch procurement auction for multiple items

We consider a setting where there is a manufacturer who wants to procure multiple items from a set of suppliers each of whom can supply one or more of these items (bundles). We design an ascending price auction for such a setting which implements the Vickrey–Clarke–Groves outcome and truthful bidding is an ex post Nash equilibrium. Our auction maintains non-linear and non-anonymous prices throughout the auction. This auction has a simple price adjustment step and is easy to implement in practice. As offshoots of this auction, we also suggest other simple auctions (in which truthful bidding is not an equilibrium by suppliers) which may be suitable where incentives to suppliers are not a big concern. Computer simulations of our auction show that it is scalable for the multi-unit case, and has better information revelation properties than its descending auction counterpart.     

Luminescence characteristics and X‐ray crystal structure of [Cd(bipy)3][PF6]2 (bipy = 2,2′‐bipyridine)

The photoluminescence characteristics of the [Cd(bipy)₃][PF₆]₂ complex are reported. A moderately large quantum yield (φ) of 1.07 × 10^?2 is exhibited in acetonitrile solution at 298 K. Crystallography shows the dication to have a distorted octahedral geometry and the crystal structure to be stabilized by C? H···π and C? H···F interactions. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Anomalous temperature dependence of elastic constants in the nematic phase of binary mixtures made of rodlike and bent-core molecules

We report on two anomalous trends in the temperature dependences of the splay (K11) and bend (K33) elastic constants in the nematic (N) phase of mixtures of compounds with rodlike (R) and bent-core (BC) molecules: As the sample is cooled from the isotropic to N transition point, (i) K33 increases, attains a maximum value and then decreases, and (ii) close to the N to smectic A (SmA) transition point, K11 decreases sharply. At higher temperatures the bow axes of BC molecules are aligned along the director n, strongly favoring a bend distortion of n as the orientational order parameter is increased. Close to the N-SmA transition point the smecticlike short-range order builds up, and the arrow axes of BC molecules are aligned along n, facilitating a splay distortion of n. A simple model calculation brings out the anomalous trend in K33.     

DPSM technique for ultrasonic field modelling near fluid-solid interface

Distributed point source method (DPSM) is gradually gaining popularity in the field of non-destructive evaluation (NDE). DPSM is a semi-analytical technique that can be used to calculate the ultrasonic fields produced by transducers of finite dimension placed in homogeneous or non-homogeneous media. This technique has been already used to model ultrasonic fields in homogeneous and multi-layered fluid structures. In this paper the method is extended to model the ultrasonic fields generated in both fluid and solid media near a fluid-solid interface when the transducer is placed in the fluid half-space near the interface. Most results in this paper are generated by the newly developed DPSM technique that requires matrix inversion. This technique is identified as the matrix inversion based DPSM technique. Some of these results are compared with the results produced by the Rayleigh-Sommerfield integral based DPSM technique. Theory behind both matrix inversion based and Rayleigh-Sommerfield integral based DPSM techniques is presented in this paper. The matrix inversion based DPSM technique is found to be very efficient for computing the ultrasonic field in non-homogeneous materials. One objective of this study is to model ultrasonic fields in both solids and fluids generated by the leaky Rayleigh wave when finite size transducers are inclined at Rayleigh critical angles. This phenomenon has been correctly modelled by the technique. It should be mentioned here that techniques based on paraxial assumptions fail to model the critical reflection phenomenon. Other advantages of the DPSM technique compared to the currently available techniques for transducer radiation modelling are discussed in the paper under Introduction.     

Lanthanide‐Doped Nanocrystals: Strategies for Improving the Efficiency of Upconversion Emission and Their Physical Understanding

The fundamental understanding of lanthanide‐doped upconverted nanocrystals remains a frontier area of research because of potential applications in photonics and biophotonics. Recent studies have revealed that upconversion luminescence dynamics depend on host crystal structure, size of the nanocrystals, dopant concentration, and core–shell structures, which influence site symmetry and the distribution and energy migration of the dopant ions. In this review, we bring to light the influences of doping/co‐doping concentration, crystal phase, crystal size of the host, and core–shell structure on the efficiency of upconversion emission. Furthermore, the lattice strain, due to a change in the crystal phase and by the core–shell structure, strongly influences the upconversion emission intensity. Analysis suggests that the local environment of the ion plays the most significant role in modification of radiative and nonradiative relaxation mechanisms of overall upconversion emission properties. Finally, an outlook on the prospects of this research field is given.     

Influence of Size and Shape on the Photocatalytic Properties of SnO2 Nanocrystals

Tuning the functional properties of nanocrystals is an important issue in nanoscience. Here, we are able to tune the photocatalytic properties of SnO₂ nanocrystals by controlling their size and shape. A structural analysis was carried out by using X‐ray diffraction (XRD)/Rietveld and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results reveal that the number of oxygen‐related defects varies upon changing the size and shape of the nanocrystals, which eventually influences their photocatalytic properties. Time‐resolved spectroscopic studies of the carrier relaxation dynamics of the SnO₂ nanocrystals further confirm that the electron–hole recombination process is controlled by oxygen/defect states, which can be tuned by changing the shape and size of the materials. The degradation of dyes (90 %) in the presence of SnO₂ nanoparticles under UV light is comparable to that (88 %) in the presence of standard TiO₂ Degussa P‐25 (P25) powders. The photocatalytic activity of the nanoparticles is significantly higher than those of nanorods and nanospheres because the effective charge separation in the SnO₂ nanoparticles is controlled by defect states leading to enhanced photocatalytic properties. The size‐ and shape‐dependent photocatalytic properties of SnO₂ nanocrystals make these materials interesting candidates for photocatalytic applications.     

Surface and Structural Investigation of a MnOx Birnessite‐Type Water Oxidation Catalyst Formed under Photocatalytic Conditions

Catalytically active MnO_x species have been reported to form in situ from various Mn‐complexes during electrocatalytic and solution‐based water oxidation when employing cerium(IV) ammonium ammonium nitrate (CAN) oxidant as a sacrificial reagent. The full structural characterization of these oxides may be complicated by the presence of support material and lack of a pure bulk phase. For the first time, we show that highly active MnO_x catalysts form without supports in situ under photocatalytic conditions. Our most active ⁴MnO_x catalyst (～0.84 mmol O₂ mol Mn^?1 s^?1) forms from a Mn₄O₄ bearing a metal–organic framework. ⁴MnO_x is characterized by pair distribution function analysis (PDF), Raman spectroscopy, and HR‐TEM as a disordered, layered Mn‐oxide with high surface area (216 m²g^?1) and small regions of crystallinity and layer flexibility. In contrast, the ^SMnO_x formed from Mn²⁺ salt gives an amorphous species of lower surface area (80 m²g^?1) and lower activity (～0.15 mmol O₂ mol Mn^?1 s^?1). We compare these catalysts to crystalline hexagonal birnessite, which activates under the same conditions. Full deconvolution of the XPS Mn2p_3/2 core levels detects enriched Mn³⁺ and Mn²⁺ content on the surfaces, which indicates possible disproportionation/comproportionation surface equilibria.     

Asymptotic behavior and finite element error estimates of Kelvin-Voigt viscoelastic fluid flow model

In this article, the convergence of the solution of the Kelvin-Voigt viscoelastic fluid flow model to its steady state solution with exponential rate is established under the uniqueness assumption. Then, a semidiscrete Galerkin method for spatial direction keeping time variable continuous is considered and asymptotic behavior of the semidiscrete solution is derived. Moreover, optimal error estimates are achieved for large time using steady state error estimates. Based on linearized backward Euler method, asymptotic behavior for the fully discrete solution is studied and optimal error estimates are derived for large time. All the results are even valid for κ→0, that is, when the Kelvin-Voigt model converges to the Navier-Stokes system. Finally, some numerical experiments are conducted to confirm our theoretical findings.     

Three component tandem reactions involving protected 2-amino indoles, disubstituted propargyl alcohols, and I2/ICl: iodo-reactant controlled synthesis of dihydro-α-carbolines and α-carbolines via iodo-cyclization/iodo-cycloelimination

Two simple, highly efficient three component tandem reactions for the synthesis of diversified N^aN^b di-carbamate-4,9-dihydro-3-iodo-α-carbolines and N^a-carbamate-3-iodo-α-carbolines have been described. The strategy involves one-pot condensation of bis-carbamate protected 2-amino indoles with disubstituted propargyl alcohols and I₂/ICl. The salient feature of the reaction involves iodocyclo-elimination of N^b-linked carbamate under mild condition in the final step.