Numerical methods for nonlinear partial differential equations of fractional order

In this article, we implement relatively new analytical techniques, the variational iteration method and the Adomian decomposition method, for solving nonlinear partial differential equations of fractional order. The fractional derivatives are described in the Caputo sense. The two methods in applied mathematics can be used as alternative methods for obtaining analytic and approximate solutions for different types of fractional differential equations. In these schemes, the solution takes the form of a convergent series with easily computable components. Numerical results show that the two approaches are easy to implement and accurate when applied to partial differential equations of fractional order.     

Encapsulation of 4,4,4-trifluoro-1-(2-thienyl)-1,3-butanedione into the silica gel matrix for capturing uranium(VI) ion species

Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry - The thenoyl-trifluoro-acetone (tta: 4,4,4-Trifluoro-1-(2-Thienyl)-1,3-butanedione) has been successfully encapsulated into the silica gel matrix...     

Numerical comparison of methods for solving linear differential equations of fractional order

In this article, we implement relatively new analytical techniques, the variational iteration method and the Adomian decomposition method, for solving linear differential equations of fractional order. The two methods in applied mathematics can be used as alternative methods for obtaining analytic and approximate solutions for different types of fractional differential equations. In these schemes, the solution takes the form of a convergent series with easily computable components. This paper will present a numerical comparison between the two methods and a conventional method such as the fractional difference method for solving linear differential equations of fractional order. The numerical results demonstrates that the new methods are quite accurate and readily implemented.     

The application of high frequency ultrasound waves to remove ammonia from simulated industrial wastewater

This article aims at applying the ultrasound technique in the field of clean technology to protect environment. The principle of ultrasound was conducted here to remove and recover ammonia from industrial wastewater. Three different concentrations of ammonia namely 5%, 15% and 25% (vol.%) were used to study the efficiency of removing ammonia from water. These concentrations are exactly similar to what may be found in wastewater resulting from strippers at petroleum refinery. High ultrasound frequency device with 2.4 and 1.7 MHz was conducted to study the effect of waves on the removal of ammonia. It was found that the ultrasound has the ability to remove ammonia with 5% concentration to meet the local standard of treated wastewater within less than 2 h for 0.080 L solution. It was also found that as the concentration of the ammonia increases the removing of ammonia within 2 h decreases, still the concentration of the ammonia meets the standard of the treated wastewater. The ability of the ultrasound to remove the ammonia failed to produce any mist when the height of the liquid solution increased, namely when the height reached (0.0337 m). This is equivalent to liquid volume of 0.150 L. It means that the device capacity to remove ammonia has certain limitations based on liquid heights. The best condition for ammonia removal was obtained at 5% concentration and 0.080 L liquid volume (equivalent to 0.0165 m).     

Gundelia tournefortii: Fractionation,Chemical Composition and GLUT4 Translocation Enhancement in Muscle Cell Line

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a chronic metabolic disease, which could affect the daily life of patients and increase their risk of developing other diseases. Synthetic anti-diabetic drugs usually show severe side effects. In the last few decades, plant-derived drugs have been intensively studied, particularly because of a rapid development of the instruments used in analytical chemistry. We tested the efficacy of Gundelia tournefortii L. (GT) in increasing the translocation of glucose transporter-4 (GLUT4) to the myocyte plasma membrane (PM), as a main strategy to manage T2D. In this study, GT methanol extract was sub-fractionated into 10 samples using flash chromatography. The toxicity of the fractions on L6 muscle cells, stably expressing GLUTmyc, was evaluated using the MTT assay. The efficacy with which GLUT4 was attached to the L6 PM was evaluated at non-toxic concentrations. Fraction 6 was the most effective, as it stimulated GLUT4 translocation in the absence and presence of insulin, 3.5 and 5.2 times (at 250 μg/mL), respectively. Fraction 1 and 3 showed no significant effects on GLUT4 translocation, while other fractions increased GLUT4 translocation up to 2.0 times. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry of silylated fractions revealed 98 distinct compounds. Among those compounds, 25 were considered anti-diabetic and glucose disposal agents. These findings suggest that GT methanol sub-fractions exert an anti-diabetic effect by modulating GLUT4 translocation in L6 muscle cells, and indicate the potential of GT extracts as novel therapeutic agents for T2D.     

Numerical solutions of the space‐time fractional advection‐dispersion equation

Fractional advection‐dispersion equations are used in groundwater hydrologhy to model the transport of passive tracers carried by fluid flow in a porous medium. In this paper we present two reliable algorithms, the Adomian decomposition method and variational iteration method, to construct numerical solutions of the space‐time fractional advection‐dispersion equation in the form of a rabidly convergent series with easily computable components. The fractional derivatives are described in the Caputo sense. Some examples are given. Numerical results show that the two approaches are easy to implement and accurate when applied to space‐time fractional advection‐dispersion equations. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Numer Methods Partial Differential Eq 2008     

Effects of polyvinylpyrrolidone on structural and optical properties of willemite semiconductor nanoparticles by polymer thermal treatment method

Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry - Willemite is an inorganic semiconductor material used for optoelectronic applications. The present study purposes a new polymer thermal treatment...     

Inhibition of UVB-mediated oxidative stress and markers of photoaging in immortalized HaCaT keratinocytes by pomegranate polyphenol extract POMx

In recent years there has been an increase in use of botanicals with antioxidant properties as skin photoprotective agents. Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) fruit possesses strong antioxidant and antiinflammatory properties. Recently, we have shown that pomegranate-derived products rich in anthocyanidins and ellagitannins inhibit UVB-mediated activation of nuclear factor kappa B and modulate UVA-mediated cell proliferation pathways in normal human epidermal keratinocytes. In this study, we evaluated the effect of polyphenol-rich pomegranate fruit extract (POMx) on UVB-induced oxidative stress and photoaging in human immortalized HaCaT keratinocytes. Our data show that pretreatment of HaCaT cells with POMx (10-40 microg mL(-1)) inhibited UVB (15-30 mJ cm(-2))-mediated (1) decrease in cell viability, (2) decrease in intracellular glutathione content and (3) increase in lipid peroxidation. Employing immunoblot analysis we found that pretreatment of HaCaT cells with POMx inhibited UVB-induced (1) upregulation of MMP-1, -2, -7 and -9, (2) decrease in TIMP-1, (3) phosphorylation of MAPKs and (iv) phosphorylation of c-jun, whereas no effect was observed on UVB-induced c-fos protein levels. These results suggest that POMx protects HaCaT cells against UVB-induced oxidative stress and markers of photoaging and could be a useful supplement in skin care products.     

Computing eigenelements of boundary value problems with fractional derivatives

Variational iteration method has been successfully implemented to handle linear and nonlinear differential equations. The main property of the method is its flexibility and ability to solve nonlinear equations accurately and conveniently. In this paper, first, a general framework of the variational iteration method is presented for analytic treatment of differential equations of fractional order where the fractional derivatives are described in Caputo sense. Second, the new framework is used to compute approximate eigenvalues and the corresponding eigenfunctions for boundary value problems with fractional derivatives. Numerical examples are tested to show the pertinent features of this method. This approach provides a new way to investigate eigenvalue problems with fractional order derivatives.     

Synthesis of D-mannitol substituted ether-linked bis-1,2,3-triazoles as models of gemini surfactants

Readily available and low cost D-mannitol was converted into 1,2,5,6-di-O-isopropylidene-D-mannitol (1) in the presence of acetone and zinc chloride. Williamson etherfication of 1 with propargyl bromide afforded the bisalkyne 2 in a very good yield. 1,3-Dipolar cycloaddition of 2 with four different alkyl azides using click conditions gave four novel bistriazoles 3a-d. Removal of the acetal groups of 3a-d afforded the deprotected bistriazoles 4a-d in excellent yields. Products 3 and 4 represent models of gemini surfactants.