Crystal structures and magnetic properties of (m- or p-MPYNN)2 NiII(tdas)2

Novel Ni^II(tdas)₂ complexes, (m- or p-MPYNN)₂Ni(tdas)₂ (MPYNN=N-methylpyridinium α-nitronyl nitroxide and tdas=1,2,5-thiadiazole-3,4-dithiolate), were prepared. The Ni(tdas)₂ anions are located on the lattice points and at the lattice center in the crystal of (m-MPYNN)₂Ni(tdas)₂. The m-MPYNN cations form a centrosymmetric dimer, and the anion is sandwiched by a pair of the dimers, forming alternate stacks along the a axis. In the crystal of the (p-MPYNN)₂Ni(tdas)₂ complex, the Ni(tdas)₂ anions are located on the lattice points and at the center of the bc plane. The anion is surrounded by four p-MPYNN cations. The p-MPYNN cations also form a centrosymmetric dimer. Each cation has a short contact with a different Ni(tdas)₂ anion. The magnetic susceptibilities of both complexes decrease with decreasing temperature, indicating antiferromagnetic interaction within the radicals. The behavior of (m- and p-MPYNN)₂Ni(tdas)₂ was understood with the singlet–triplet model and the Curie–Weiss law.     

Deployment of tensegrity structures

In this paper we present a strategy for tensegrity structures deployment. The main idea is to use a certain set of equilibria to which the undeployed and deployed configurations belong. In the state space this set is represented by an equilibrium manifold. The deployment is conducted such that the deployment trajectory is close to this equilibrium manifold.     

Numerical investigation of powder compaction of gear wheels

A method to judge the porosity distribution within complex powder compacted 3D structures using a dynamic 3D dilatant finite strain finite element program is presented. The method is demonstrated for a gear wheel, using a combined FKM Gurson model with parameters calibrated from experiments to model a ferrous powder. Compaction is pursued until a final average porosity of 3% in the gear. The method is shown successful in judging the influence on local as well as average properties from change in geometrical parameters and compaction speed.     

Application of RANS-based method to predict acoustic noise of chevron nozzles

Passive noise control devices for jet flows, such as chevron nozzles, have been studied for a long time due to their large application in turbofan engines. The main purpose of their usage is the reduction of low-frequency noise generation and thus decreasing the noise perceived at the far field. This work is a numerical study of acoustic noise generated by jet flow operating at Mach number 0.9 and Reynolds number 1.38 × 10⁶, considering two chevron nozzle geometries that differ from each other by the penetration angle into the flow. The main aim was to demonstrate that Reynolds averaged Navier Stokes (RANS)-based methods are reliable means to obtain acoustical noise predictions for the industry with a considerably low computational cost. In order to achieve this objective, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) RANS simulations were performed with a cubic k-ɛ model and the acoustic noise spectrum for different angles of radiation was obtained via the Lighthill ray-tracing (LRT) method. The numerical results for the acoustic and flow fields were seen to be in reasonable agreement with the experimental data, suggesting that this methodology can be used as a fast and useful option to predict acoustic noise of jet flows from chevron nozzles.     

Controllable tomography phase microscopy

Tomography phase microscopy (TPM) is a new microscopic method that can quantitatively yield the volumetric 3D distribution of a sample׳s refractive index (RI), which is significant for cell biology research. In this paper, a controllable TPM system is introduced. In this system a circulatory phase-shifting method and piezoelectric ceramic are used which enable the TPM system to record the 3D RI distribution at a more controllable speed, from 1 to 40 fps, than in the other TPM systems reported. The resolution of the RI distribution obtained by this controllable TPM is much better than that in images recorded by phase contrast microscopy and interference tomography microscopy. The realization of controllable TPM not only allows for the application of TPM to the measurement of kinds of RI sample, but also contributes to academic and technological support for the practical use of TPM.     

The effect of molecular structure on the chiral random grain boundary phase

A chiral random grain boundary (RGB) phase was recently observed in a hockey-stick biphenyl-substituted 1,3,4-oxadiazole derivative. In the RGB phase, achiral molecules self-assemble into randomly oriented blocks of chiral smectic layers and the motif of the unique microstructure is attributed to the similarity of hockey-stick molecules both to bent-core and to rod-like molecules. In order to explore the effect of molecular structure on the RGB phase in detail, we systematically change the molecular design. When the flexible tail decreases, the high-temperature Smectic A (SmA) phase is replaced by a nematic phase, showing a phase sequence of Iso-N-SmA-RGB-Cryst in 2-(4-dodecyloxyphenyl)-5-biphenyl-1,3,4-oxadiazole. However, when we replace the 1,3,4-oxadiazole group by the 1,3,4-thiadiazole group, the bending angle increases in the 1,3,4-thiadiazole derivatives and the RGB phase disappears. Or when the length of the arm becomes short in naphthalene-substituted 1,3,4-oxadiazole, these molecules exhibited only normal rod-like molecules’ mesomorphism. These results will provide deep insights on the relationship of molecular structure and mesophase structural property.     

金属钯纳米颗粒/氮化钛复合材料对水中2,4-二氯苯酚的电催化氢化脱氯（英文）

随着社会经济的快速发展,含氯有机物,特别是含氯苯系物,在农业、化工和医药等领域的使用量逐年增多,而使用过程中不合理的排放和控制致使含氯苯系物对生态环境,特别是水体环境的污染日趋严重.含氯苯系物具有高致毒致癌性,易生物富集,且很难被完全降解矿化,已被国家环保局认定为优先控制污染物.常规的废水处理工艺,如吸附、氧化及生物降解等,效率不高,且具有二次污染风险.电催化氢化脱氯技术是一种新型特别针对废水中含氯有机污染物的处理工艺,是通过在阴极电解还原水,原位生成原子态氢,以进攻苯环上C.Cl键,通过C.Cl键断裂H原子取代,使含氯苯系物完全转化为苯系物,达到去毒去害化的目的,近年来越来越受到研究者的关注.在整个电催化氢化脱氯技术中,高效稳定的电催化剂合成是关键,决定着脱氯效率、脱氯动力学、产物选择性及能量的利用率.本文报道了一种简易、无需添加任何表面活性剂的湿式还原法制备金属钯/氮化钛(Pd/TiN)和金属钯/碳(Pd/C)复合材料.在该复合材料中,金属钯颗粒具有均一的纳米尺寸(约5.0 nm)和球状形貌,且均匀分布在TiN和C载体上.作为针对水体中代表性含氯苯系物2,4-二氯苯酚的电催化氢化脱氯反应催化剂,Pd/TiN所展现的活性和稳定性均优于TiN和Pd/C,这源于TiN载体的促进作用.当TiN与Pd复合时,相应形成的Pd-TiN界面可改变Pd表面的电子结构,进一步优化Pd产活性氢及其吸附活化2,4-二氯苯酚的性能,因而其催化氢化脱氯活性增加.阴极工作电压是该催化反应中一个重要操作参数,决定了电催化氢化脱氯的效率和最终产物的构成.实验表明,.0.80 V vs Ag/AgCl是最佳操作电压,此时2,4-二氯苯酚的电催化氢化脱氯效率最高,可达到93.27%,且可实现最大程度的2,4-二氯苯酚向苯酚转化.脱氯反应路径研究发现,在Pd/TiN催化剂上2,4-二氯苯酚脱氯反应路径为2,4-二氯苯酚→对位一氯苯酚,邻位一氯苯酚→苯酚,但Pd/TiN对邻位和对位的C.Cl键断裂基本没有选择性.本文提供了一种新的有效调控Pd材料电催化氢化脱氯性能的方法,可望用于其他氢化反应体系的高效催化剂的设计合成,同时可推动电催化氢化脱氯技术在环境污染修复中的应用.