Free vibration analysis of curved nanotube structures

In reality, nanotubes may not be straight structures. In this work, we study free vibration analysis of curved nanotubes based on a proposed nonlocal shell model. The free vibration of curved single-walled nanotubes (SWNTs), double-walled nanotubes (DWNTs) and multi-walled nanotubes (MWNTs) is analyzed. The governing equations of a curved nanotube are developed using the proposed nonlocal shell model based on elasticity theory of Eringen. Governing differential equations of motion are simplified to the ordinary differential equations using Fourier series expansion. And solutions are obtained by applying Galerkin method. Results obtained by the present model are verified by those presented in the literature. The numerical results demonstrate the effects of the curved nanotube length, thickness, bend angle and nonlocal parameter on the natural fundamental frequency.     

Porous sol gel silica films doped with crystalline NiO nanoparticles for gas sensing applications

A reliable sol gel route to synthesize NiO doped SiO₂ films with different NiO content is here described. The films showed detectable and reversible changes in both optical and electrical properties when exposed to some reducing/oxidizing gaseous species at temperatures in the 250°C–350°C range. A functional characterization protocol has been designed and some of the sensing properties of the materials have been investigated for detecting NO₂, CH₄, CO and H₂. An optical transmittance increase up to 2% has been detected for 1% CO in dry air atmospheres, while relative resistance response (R _R = R _gas/R _air) values up to 4.97 for 850 ppm H₂/air mixtures have been registered for conductometric gas sensing. Films at all NiO molar concentrations in the 10% NiO - 40% range showed an optical response to the target gas, while only 30% and 40% NiO films provided a detectable gas induced resistance change.     

Tandem mass spectra of tryptic peptides at signal-to-background ratios approaching unity using electrospray ionization high-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry/hybrid quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry

High-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry (FAIMS) has been coupled to a quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometer for the tandem mass spectrometric analysis of tryptic peptides of pig hemoglobin. Using FAIMS, low levels (fmol/microL) of multiply charged tryptic peptides were separated from relatively intense chemical background such that their tandem mass spectra (MS/MS) lacked many background-related fragment ions observed using a conventional ESI-QqTOFMS instrument. Substantial improvements in both first-order and tandem mass spectra were realized while maintaining approximately the same absolute intensities.     

Strong expansion–contraction of a cavity in a fluid under acoustic action

The simplest model of the strong expansion–contraction of a spherical evacuated cavity in an unbounded ideal incompressible fluid under acoustic action is constructed. It is assumed that the cavity is formed at the instant of maximum dilatation of the fluid as the result of the breakdown in its continuity by elementary particles, and the amplitude of the induced acoustic oscillations exceed the mean pressure in the fluid by an order of magnitude or more. The trajectory of the motion of the interface is divided into three stages, in each of which it is assumed that there is a certain constant value of the pressure. This enables an approximate analytical solution of the problem to be obtained. It is shown that there is an agreement with the numerical solution of the initial problem that is sufficient for qualitative estimates. The solution obtained enables a parametric analysis of the expansion–contraction processes of a cavity to be carried out and enables the volume of calculations in the numerical modelling to be reduced when taking account of additional factors.     

Multiwafer zinc diffusion in an OMVPE reactor

We study diffusion of zinc into InP in a multiwafer OMVPE reactor using dimethylzinc as the diffusant source. The resulting diffusion profiles are measured by electrochemical capacitance–voltage profiling and by secondary ion mass spectrometry and compared with cleaved cross-sections imaged by scanning electron microscopy. Very good uniformity of the diffusion profile is achieved, with variation across a 3 in. wafer as little as 5%. The dependence of the diffusion depth and Zn concentration on the diffusion temperature, partial pressure of dimethylzinc, and diffusion time are reported. We observe an enhancement of the diffusion depth in area-selective diffusion of planar devices, compared to the depth obtained for blanket diffusion.     

The preparation of 3,6‐bis(3‐hexylthien‐2‐yl)‐s‐tetrazine and its conjugated polymers

We demonstrated, for the first time, that 3,6‐bis(3‐hexylthien‐2‐yl)‐s‐tetrazine (TTz) with hexyl group at the 3‐position of thiophene rings can be prepared using a modified sulfur‐assisted Pinner synthesis. Although the hexyl group creates large steric hindrance to the tetrazine ring formation reaction, and the reaction under a traditional condition only produces trace amount of the target product, the yield of this reaction under a modified reaction condition using anhydrous hydrazine at 68 °C can reach 65%. Two new copolymers of the resulting TTz and hexyl‐ or 2‐ethylhexyl‐substituted cyclepentadithiophene have been prepared. The polymers show a broader light absorption in film than in solution attributing to the large distribution of effective conjugation length of polymer chain due to the existence of both cis‐ and trans‐orientations of the 3‐hexylthiophene units in the planar polymer chain in solid state. Although the polymers show a narrow band gap and a deep HOMO level, which are desirable for generating an efficient light absorption and a larger open circuit voltage (V_oc) of the resulting solar cell devices, the device performance is not as good as expected. It is attributed to the random distribution of the cis‐ and trans‐conformations along the polymer chain. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011.     

Determination of S-nitrosoglutathione and other nitrosothiols by p-hydroxymercurybenzoate derivatization and reverse phase chromatography coupled with chemical vapor generation atomic fluorescence detection

S-Nitrosoglutathione (GSNO) reacts with the organic mercurial probe, p-hydroxymercury benzoate (PHMB, HO-Hg-(C₆H₄)-COO⁻Na⁺) giving the complex GS-Hg(C₆H₄)COOH (GS-PHMB). This reaction has been studied by UV measurements at 334 nm also in the presence of ascorbic acid and the product of reaction, the GS-PHMB complex, characterized by Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry (ESI-MS) and by Reversed Phase Chromatography (RPLC) coupled on-line and sequentially with a UV-visible diode array detector (DAD) followed by a cold vapor generation atomic fluorescence spectrometer (CVGAFS). The simultaneous presence of PHMB and ascorbate produced a synergistic effect on GSNO decomposition rate that can be observed only above a given concentration threshold of ascorbate (ascorbate/GSNO molar ratio ≥ 180). The results indicated that the formation of GS-PHMB, both in the presence and the absence of ascorbic acid, does not involve the formation of free thiolic species but it takes place through a more complex mechanism. The PHMB derivatives of GSH and GSNO obtained by the present method were found to be identical by ESI-MS. GSSG did not interfere because it was not reduced and derivatized to GS-PHMB. Once complexed by the alkylating agent N-ethylmaleimide (NEM), GSH did not interfere with the derivatization reaction. This ensured a good selectivity of the developed PHMB derivatization system for RSNO determination. Thus, we have optimized the operating conditions for the selective reaction of PHMB with GSNO and other nitrosothiols (RSNOs) in order to determinate RSNOs in human plasma. LODc for RSNOs in plasma ultrafiltrate was 30 nM (injected concentration, 50 μL loop), the DLR ranged between 0.08 and 50 μM and the CV% was 6.5% at 300 nM concentration level. Reduced and oxidized thiols spiked to plasma did not interfere with the measurement of RSNOs. We found that the sampling procedure was critical for the recovery of endogenous and spiked RSNOs. The ultrafiltrate samples of plasma of 8 healthy humans contained 1460 ± 310 CysNO, 1000 ± 330 nM HCysNO and 320 ± 60 nM GSNO if blood was sampled in a mixture NEM/ethylendiaminotetracetic acid (EDTA)/serine-borate complex (SBC), where serine-borate complex is a potent inhibitor of γ-glutamyltransferase, an enzyme involved in the conversion of GSNO into CysGlyNO. In the absence of SBC during the sampling of blood GSNO concentration found in the ultrafiltrate was lower (at level of the determination limit in plasma ultrafiltrate, i.e. 75 nM) and the peak of CysGlyNO appeared, which corresponded to a concentration of 200 ± 60 nM (N = 4 blood samples).