A rotating disc electrode study of oxygen reduction at platinised nickel and cobalt coatings

Platinized nickel and cobalt coatings, Pt(Ni) and Pt(Co), have been prepared on glassy carbon, GC, rotating disc electrode substrates by a two-step room temperature procedure that involved the electrodeposition of nickel and cobalt layers and their spontaneous partial replacement by platinum (“transmetalation”) when immersed into a chloroplatinic acid solution. By tuning the quantity of initially deposited nickel and cobalt, Pt(Ni) and Pt(Co) bimetallic coatings having a 26% atom Ni and 30% atom Co composition have been prepared. For both materials typical Pt surface electrochemistry was recorded during fast voltammetry in deaerated acid, pointing to the existence of a continuous Pt skin over a Pt–Ni and Pt–Co core. Oxygen reduction at the Pt(Ni)/GC and Pt(Co)/GC electrodes was studied by means of steady-state voltammetry at a rotating disc electrode and the construction of Tafel plots from corresponding voltammetric data. It was found that, when the initial potential of the voltammetric sweep allowed the formation of a complete Pt oxide monolayer, then oxygen reduction was hindered for low overpotentials at Pt(Ni) and Pt(Co), compared to pure bulk Pt. On the other hand, when the initial potential was less positive (thus leading to the formation of a fraction of surface oxide monolayer) the presence of Ni and Co enhanced the kinetics of oxygen reduction. The former behaviour is attributed to a decrease in oxide reduction ability of Pt in the presence of Ni and Co, while the latter to an increase in dissociative oxygen chemisorption due to Ni and Co.     

Microstructure of Polyelectrolyte Nanoaggregates Studied by Fluorescence Probe Method

The microstructure of water soluble nanoaggregates based on polyelectrolyte complex formed by the cationic comb-type copolymer poly(acrylamide -co-[3- (methacryloyl-amino)propyl] trimethylammonium chloride)-graft- polyacrylamide [P(AM-co-MAPTAC)-g-PAM] and the anionic linear polyelectrolyte sodium polyacrylate (NaPA) was investigated using the fluorescence probe technique. The fluorescence probe were 1-anilinonaphthalene-8-sulfonic acid (ANS), pyrene (Py) and 1,10-bis(1-pyrene) decane (PD). The fluorescence properties in polyelectrolyte complex solutions, which are sensitive to either micropolarity (ANS, Py) or microviscosity (PD), were related to the quantities obtained in different pure or mixed solvents. Micropolarities were quantified utilizing the polarity common index (Reichardt) E _T(30). ANS and Py showed a variation of the micropolarity with the charge ratio of the two polymers, with the lowest polarity reached at the complex neutralization. The PD probe, by its excimer-to-monomer fluorescence intensities ratio, enabled us to evidence the effect of the composition and the comb-type copolymer grafting density on the microviscosity of the interpolyelectrolytes aggregates. It has been found that the microviscosity increased with the density of the grafting PAM chains.     

Bragg scattering as a probe of atomic wave functions and quantum phase transitions in optical lattices

We have observed Bragg scattering of photons from quantum degenerate ^{87}Rb atoms in a three-dimensional optical lattice. Bragg scattered light directly probes the microscopic crystal structure and atomic wave function whose position and momentum width is Heisenberg limited. The spatial coherence of the wave function leads to revivals in the Bragg scattered light due to the atomic Talbot effect. The decay of revivals across the superfluid to Mott insulator transition indicates the loss of superfluid coherence.     

磁性纳米结构中由激光引起的超快自旋动力学研究

以单个磁性中心的NiO以及由Co和Ni等元素构成的双磁性中心的纳米结构为例,总结了近年所做的主要工作.为了在理论上实现磁性纳米结构中的超快自旋翻转和转移,提出了一种称为Λ进程(Λ process)的超快自旋转换机理.在实际计算中,首先采用量子化学第一性原理计算得到磁性纳米结构中精确的隙间d电子态,然后考虑外加磁场和自旋轨道耦合分析磁性原子中的自旋局域化程度,最后引入激光脉冲项,研究在其作用下材料的自旋态经由Λ进程实现转换的时间历程.研究结果表明自旋翻转和转移可以在线偏振光的作用下在亚皮秒的时间尺度内完成. 关键词： 超快自旋动力学 第一性原理计算 Λ进程 磁性纳米结构     

Mathematical and physical modelling of the dynamic fluidic impedance of arteries using electrical impedance equivalents

In this work, a detailed mathematical and physical model for calculating the fluidic impedance of an artery is developed. Initially, the model calculates the impedance of a healthy artery, and then, it compares this with the alteration in the impedance of an artery with atherosclerosis. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Rotating waves within a hollow vortex core

The rotating waves within a hollow vortex core (polygonal patterns) are generated under shallow water conditions inside a cylindrical tank by a revolving disk at its bottom. We previously reported some basic features of these polygonal patterns during transition and at the equilibrium states. The present paper includes a more comprehensive investigation into the transition process of these polygonal patterns and expands the recent partial results that have been previously reported. We show that the parent wave (or the N-gon pattern) to disk frequencies ratio is around one-third (1/3) regardless of the flow conditions. A detailed insight into the transition process from the parent wave N-gon to daughter wave (N + 1)-gon is provided, which consists of two regimes, quasi-periodic and synchronized. Based on these observations, we explained the shrinking of the disk speed subintervals over which the N-gon patterns occur, when N increases.     

Novel diblock copolymer‐grafted multiwalled carbon nanotubes via a combination of living and controlled/living surface polymerizations

Diels–Alder cycloaddition reactions were used to functionalize multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) with 1‐benzocylcobutene‐1′‐phenylethylene (BCB‐PE) or 4‐hydroxyethylbenzocyclobutene (BCB‐EO). The covalent functionalization of the nanotubes with these initiator precursors was verified by FTIR and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). After appropriate transformations/additions, the functionalized MWNTs were used for surface initiated anionic and ring opening polymerizations of ethylene oxide and ε‐caprolactone (ε‐CL), respectively. The OH‐end groups were transformed to isopropylbromide groups by reaction with 2‐bromoisobutyryl bromide, for subsequent atom transfer radical polymerization of styrene or 2‐dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate to afford the final diblock copolymers. ¹H NMR, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), TGA, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were used for the characterization of the nanocomposite materials. TEM images showed the presence of a polymer layer around the MWNTs as well as the dissociation of MWNT bundles. Consequently, this general methodology, employing combinations of different polymerization techniques, increases the diversity of diblocks that can be grafted from MWNTs. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 48: 1104–1112, 2010     

On the origin of the substrate-induced oxidation of Ni/NiO(001) studied by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy and Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Metallic Ni, vapor-deposited on NiO(001) near room temperature, could be gradually oxidised upon annealing between 800 K and 940 K in Ultra High Vacuum (UHV), as evidenced by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy for initial Ni coverage of 1.6, 3.8 and 7.5 equivalent monolayers (ML). The time dependence of the oxidation process was consistent with a diffusion mechanism, supplying oxygen via the NiO crystal to a coalesced particulate deposit and resulting in an oxide shell, which grew over the entire surface and enclosed a shrinking metallic core. Similar to the well known behaviour upon gas phase oxidation, the process was fast within a depth of two atomic layers of Ni, limited by the diffusive supply of oxygen from the substrate. Molecular Dynamics Simulations for 0.06, 0.11 and 0.22 ML of Ni ions deposited on a model NiO(001) substrate indicated the formation of NiO islands via oxygen ions transferred from the surface and near-surface layers of the crystal. A significant atomic concentration of oxygen vacancies of the order of 10 to 20% could be created in each underneath layer, before the next one started donating lattice anions. This suggests a possible explanation for the aforementioned NiO-substrate-induced oxidation of deposited Ni, whereby the formation of oxygen vacancies inside the crystal supplies the necessary oxygen.     

Singular finite elements for the sudden-expansion and the die-swell problems

The singular finite element method is used to solve the sudden-expansion and the die-swell problems in order to improve the accuracy of the solution in the vicinity of the singularity and to speed up the convergence. The method requires minor modifications to standard finite element schemes, and even coarse meshes give more accurate results than refined ordinary finite element meshes. Improved normal stress results for the sudden-expansion problem have been obtained for various Reynolds numbers up to 100 using the singular elements constructed for the creeping flow problem. In addition, the normal stresses at the walls appear to be insensitive to the singularity powers used in the construction of the singular basis functions. The die-swell problem is solved using the singular elements constructed for the stick–slip problem. The singular elements accelerate the convergence of the free surface dramatically.     

The Method of Fundamental Solutions for Stokes flows with a free surface

We investigate the use of the Method of Fundamental Solutions (MFS) for solving Stokes flow problems with a free surface. We apply the method to the creeping planar Newtonian extrudate-swell problem and study the effect of the surface tension on the free surface. The results are in good agreement with existing finite element and boundary element solutions. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Numer Methods Partial Differential Eq 14: 667–678, 1998