Matrix‐grafted multiwalled carbon nanotubes/poly(methyl methacrylate) nanocomposites synthesized by in situ RAFT polymerization: A kinetic study

A new approach was developed to functionalize multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with a polymerizable methyl methacrylate (MMA) groups, and the structure of functionalized MWCNTs were characterized by FTIR, Raman, XPS, and TEM. Using the strategy of “grafting through,” poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) chains were grafted onto the surface of MWCNTs during the in situ synthesis of MWCNT/PMMA nanocomposites over reversible addition‐fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. Kinetics of RAFT‐mediated polymerization of MMA in the presence of MMA‐grafted MWCNTs was studied by using gas chromatography and gel permeation chromatography. To further study, attached polymers were detached and their molecular characteristics were compared to freely formed chains. Results of kinetic studies showed that the utilized commercial chain transfer agent strictly reduced the rate of polymerization as well as relatively controlled molecular weights and narrow molecular weight distributions of free chains. MWCNTs showed a radical activity, retarding the polymerization and reducing the rate of reaction. The effect of MWCNTs concentrations on molecular weights and polydispersity indexes (PDI) was different at the surface and in the bulk. The molecular weights of free chains increased, and the PDI was decreased with increasing MWCNTs. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 44: 555–569, 2012     

Palladium(II) Immobilized Onto the Glucose Functionalized Magnetic Nanoparticle as a New and Efficient Catalyst for the One‐pot Synthesis of Benzoxazoles

Palladium(II) have been immobilized into the nano magnetic Fe₃O₄ which was functionalized with glucose in order to achieve a one‐pot synthesis of 2‐substituted benzoxazole derivatives with high yields in the diverse range of organic solvents. The nano catalyst is highly dispersive in polar solvents and can be easily recovered and reused for 6 runs without significant loss of its activity. Finally, the catalyst was fully characterized by FT‐IR, TGA, CHN, SEM, EDX and atomic absorption spectroscopy.     

Vitamin B12 supported on graphene oxide: As a bio‐based catalyst for selective aerobic oxidation of alcohols

The environmental impact of chemical processes has now opened new windows of opportunity for bio‐based catalysts. In this paper a highly active bio‐based catalyst of vitamin B₁₂ supported on graphene oxide nanosheets is reported for the selective aerobic oxidation of alcohols to the corresponding carbonyl compounds. Operational simplicity, mild reaction conditions, high yield and selectivity, non‐hazardous nature, commercial availability and affordability are the main advantages of this novel catalytic system.     

Four-channel optical demultiplexer based on hexagonal photonic crystal ring resonators

In this paper, photonic crystal ring resonators with hexagonal lattice structure are used to design a four-channel optical demultiplexer. The structure size, the average transfer coefficient, the quality factor, and the channel spacing are equal to 424.5 µm², 95.8%, 1943, and 2 nm, respectively. The average crosstalk is also computed to be ?18.11 dB. In this study, the plane wave expansion (PWE) and finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) methods are used, respectively, to characterize the photonic bandgap and to investigate the optical behavior of the structure. The proposed design can be used in dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) systems.     

A shock-detecting sensor for filtering of high-order compact finite difference schemes

A new shock-detecting sensor for properly switching between a second-order and a higher-order filter is developed and assessed. The sensor is designed based on an order analysis. The nonlinear filter with the proposed sensor ensures damping of the high-frequency waves in smooth regions and at the same time removes the Gibbs oscillations around the discontinuities when using high-order compact finite difference schemes. In addition, a suitable scaling is proposed to have dissipation proportional to the shock strength and also to minimize the effects of the second-order filter on the very small scales. Several numerical experiments are carried out and the accuracy of the nonlinear filter with the proposed sensor is examined. In addition, some comparisons with other filters and sensors are made.     

Optimal adaptation of acoustic black holes by evolutionary optimization algorithms

The interest of engineers is focusing increasingly on a reduced sound radiation of constructions. In particular, structures with a large surface, such as cabin linings of airplanes as well as a roof or a bottom plate of cars, tend to be good acoustic radiators and lead to an annoyance of passengers. As countermeasures, often complex and time consuming design changes or expensive active measures are used. In many cases, a more elegant and cheaper option is to improve the acoustic properties by using passive measures. Acoustic black holes are an innovative passive method which combine two advantages: A material reduction by improving acoustic properties is performed. The main idea is to guide and to focus acoustically critical bending waves by a specific wall thickness diminution. Through targeted local damping placement in the middle of an acoustic black hole, a structure can be globally damped in a very efficient way. The efficiency depends on the position and size of the acoustic black holes [1]. Finding the optimal size and position on the structure is therefore an important challenge. This paper introduces a new strategy to find an optimal position of acoustic black holes to reduce the sound radiation of plane structures by using evolutionary optimization algorithms. Numerical calculations are exemplarily shown on a rectangular plate. (© 2016 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

An efficient algorithm for structured sparse quantile regression

An efficient algorithm is derived for solving the quantile regression problem combined with a group sparsity promoting penalty. The group sparsity of the regression parameters is achieved by using a \(\ell _{1,\infty }\) -norm penalty (or constraint) on the regression parameters. The algorithm is efficient in the sense that it obtains the regression parameters for a wide range of penalty parameters, thus enabling easy application of a model selection criteria afterwards. A Matlab implementation of the proposed algorithm is provided and some applications of the methods are studied.     

新型磺酸功能化吡啶盐酸盐离子液体催化剂用于六氢喹啉合成(英文)

Sulfonic acid functionalized pyridinium chloride [pyridine-SO3 H]Cl has been synthesized as a novel Brnsted acidic ionic liquid and characterized on the basis of its FT-IR,1H and 13C NMR,MS,ther-mogravimetry,and derivative thermogravimetry data.The material has also been used as a highly efficient,homogeneous,and reusable catalyst for the preparation of hexahydroquinolines according to the one-pot multi-component condensation of arylaldehydes,dimedone(5,5-dimethylcyclohexane-1,3-dione),β-ketoesters,and ammonium acetate under solvent-free conditions.     

Miniaturized instrumentation for field applications: general considerations for environmental sensor networks

Various aspects of chemical instrument miniaturizing are explored. The limitations imposed by scaling laws are discussed, and the influences of system dynamics on chemical and physical behaviour of molecules in microsystems are presented. The complexity of chemical systems, as defined by intra- and intermolecular forces, influencing minimum device dimensions is illustrated for solution and gas-phase species. The basic concepts for environmental sensor networks are presented for a hypothetical system.