Clathrate formation in water-cyclic ether systems at high pressures

Experimental data on the investigation of the water-trimethyleneoxide system,P, t, x phase diagram (up to 6 kbar) are presented. The results are compared with those on water systems with ethyleneoxide, 1,3- and 1,4-dioxane, 1,3-dioxolane and tetrahydrofuran, on the basis of which a summarizedP, t, x diagram is plotted for water-cyclic ether systems. It is shown that in all the systems in which a cubic structure II hydrate forms at 1 bar, it eventually turns to cubic structure I under pressure. The nature of high pressure hydrates is discussed.Dedicated to the memory of D. W. Davidson.     

Decomposition of EuPdIn and EuPtIn at high temperature and high pressure—formation of the hexagonal Laves phases EuPd0.72In1.28 and EuPt0.56In1.44

EuPd_0.72In_1.28 and EuPt_0.56In_1.44 were prepared under multianvil high-pressure (10.5 GPa) high-temperature (1500 and 1400 K) conditions from the precursor compounds EuPdIn and EuPtIn. They were investigated by X-ray diffraction on both powders and single crystals: MgZn₂-type, space group P6₃/mmc, a=578.7(1) pm, c=944.9(3) pm, wR2=0.0734, 263 F² values for EuPd_0.72In_1.28 and a=591.1(2) pm, c=933.8(2) pm, wR2=0.0853, 151 F² values for EuPt_0.56In_1.44 with 13 variable parameters per refinement. Both structures are built up from face- and corner-sharing tetrahedra of palladium (platinum) and indium atoms. The europium cations are located in cavities within the three-dimensional [Pd_0.72In_1.28] and [Pt_0.56In_1.44] networks. The 2a and 6 h positions of the tetrahedral networks show mixed Pd/In and Pt/In occupancy in EuPd_0.72In_1.28 and EuPt_0.56In_1.44, respectively. The crystal chemistry of these indides is briefly discussed.     

Characterization of some essential oils and their key components: Thermoanalytical techniques

The present study was aimed at determining the kinetics of evaporation and establishing vapor pressure curves for both single and multi-component systems by thermogravimetry (TG) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Essential oils (e.g. lavender oil, orange oil, clove oil and eucalyptus oil, etc.) are typically multi-component systems consisting of various volatile pure components (e.g. linalyl acetate, limonene, cinnamaldehyde, etc.) which resemble single component systems. In this study linalyl acetate was taken as the calibration compound for TG. The vapor pressure curves for the pure substances were plotted using TG and vapor pressure plots for clove oil and eucalyptus oil were constructed using DSC. The thermodynamic and kinetic parameters of the pure compounds were compared to that of the multi-component systems to quantitatively and qualitatively measure the influence of different compounds on each other. The k-value from the vapor pressure data for linalyl acetate was calculated as 112006 Pa kg^0.5mol^0.5s^-1 m^-2 K^-0.5. The vapor pressure values were used to determine the Antoine constants using the SPSS 10.0 software.This revised version was published online in November 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Multivariate calibration of near infrared spectra by orthogonal WAVElet correction using a genetic algorithm

Orthogonal WAVElet correction (OWAVEC) is a pre-processing method aimed at simultaneously accomplishing two essential needs in multivariate calibration, signal correction and data compression, by combining the application of an orthogonal signal correction algorithm to remove information unrelated to a certain response with the great potential that wavelet analysis has shown for signal processing. In the previous version of the OWAVEC method, once the wavelet coefficients matrix had been computed from NIR spectra and deflated from irrelevant information in the orthogonalization step, effective data compression was achieved by selecting those largest correlation/variance wavelet coefficients serving as the basis for the development of a reliable regression model. This paper presents an evolution of the OWAVEC method, maintaining the first two stages in its application procedure (wavelet signal decomposition and direct orthogonalization) intact but incorporating genetic algorithms as a wavelet coefficients selection method to perform data compression and to improve the quality of the regression models developed later. Several specific applications dealing with diverse NIR regression problems are analyzed to evaluate the actual performance of the new OWAVEC method. Results provided by OWAVEC are also compared with those obtained with original data and with other orthogonal signal correction methods.     

高聚物固体电解质聚氧化乙烯－溴化铜复阻抗谱及介电常数的静水压效应

采用分子量５００万的聚氧化乙烯和无水溴化铜，通过混溶蒸发法制备成高聚物固体电解质Ｐ（ＥＯ）ｎ－ＣｕＢｒ２薄膜，并在０．１～３００ＭＰａ范围不同的流体静水压下详细测量其复平面阻抗谱，分别得到在不同压力下离子电导率和介电常数与测量频率的关系．进一步解谱准确地求出Ｐ（ＥＯ）ｎ－ＣｕＢｒ２（ｎ＝１２、１６）薄膜离子电导率和介电常数的静水压效应，并结合Ｘ－光物相分析，根据离子迁移通道的物理图象和高聚物的极化机构进行了初步的讨论．添加２０％的增塑剂碳酸丙烯酯，较大改进了压力下的导电性．１２０～３００ＭＰａ的离子电导率提高一个数量级     

Development of a new analytical method for the evaluation of hazards from slow decomposition of waste streams and process solutions

A wide variety of liquid streams are generated as part of the process research and development effort. Frequently these streams are drummed off, either as intermediates that must be held for processing or as wastes that must be sent off-site for disposal. Because of the long times and low concentrations often involved, current thermoanalytical techniques were inadequate to detect the potential of streams to generate gas. A custom-made apparatus, the gas evolution test cell (GETC), was developed in the Merck Research Laboratories to measure the gas generation potential of various streams under precisely defined conditions, is the key innovation for the development of a quantitative gas-generation test method.     

Oxidative coupling of methane over Na-Mn-W/SiO2 catalyst at higher pressure

Na-Mn-W/SiO₂ catalysts were prepared and their catalytic performance for oxidative coupling of methane (OCM) was evaluated in a stainless-steel microreactor at elevated pressure. The results show that a CH₄ conversion of 15.1% with a C₂₊ selectivity of 71.8% was obtained under 750^oC, 1.0×10⁵h^-1 GHSV, CH₄/O₂ ratio of 8 and 1.0 MPa. Moreover, 17.3% CH₄ conversion with 51.6% C₂ selectivity and 23.6% C₃-C₄ selectivity was obtained under 750^oC, 2.0×10⁵h^-1 GHSV, CH₄/O₂ ratio of 8 and 1.0 MPa.     

Magnetic phase transitions in nanostructures induced by shear stress under high pressure

Magnetic phase transitions of the first and second order were revealed by Mössbauer spectroscopy in nanosystems of - and -ferric oxides and metallic europium subjected to shear stress (240°) under high pressure (20 kbar). For - and -ferric oxide nanoclusters, the Curie (Neel) points decreased to 300 K, whereas for nanostructured europium the Neel point increased from 90 to 100 K. The thermodynamic model of magnetic phase transitions predicting a change in the character of magnetic phase transitions and a decrease (increase) in the critical Neel (Curie) points in nanoclusters was developed. The type of magnetic phase transitions and the change in the critical points were caused by defects in nanoclusters, whose maximum concentration was observed for the clusters with the 20—50 nm size range.     

An application of the modified Poisson- Boltzmann equation in studies of osmotic properties of micellar solutions

The spherical cell model of colloidal solutions is applied in calculations of the osmotic pressure of micellar systems. The predictions of the nonlinear Poisson-Boltzmann equation (MPB) and of the Modified Poisson-Boltzmann equation (MPB) containing the leading terms of the fluctuation potential and the exclusion volume corrections to the mean potential acting on simple ions are compared with the results of recent computer simulations. Both PB and MPB seem satisfactory for solutions with monovalent counterions while the MPB is preferable for studies of the solutions containing divalent countenons.On leave from the University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Yugoslavia     

Vapor pressure,speciation, and chemical activities in highly concentrated sodium borate solutions at 277 and 317°C

The system H₂O-B₂O₃-Na₂O has been studied experimentally at 277 and 317°C. The activities of water and boric acid have been determined at mole ratios Na/B from 0 to 1.5, and total dissolved solids 3 to 80 weight percent. The activity of boric acid has been fitted to within experimental error using a speciation model with eight complex species. This model is consistent with the model previously published by Mesmer et al. The electrolyte properties of the liquid are modeled using the Pitzer-Simonson model of very concentrated electrolyte solutions. The calculated values of water activity agree with experiment, and the activity of NaOH and pOH have also been calculated. The potassium borate system also was briefly studied at 317°C, and is adequately described by a model with five complex species. The potassium borate liquid is more alkaline at K/B= 1 than a sodium borate liquid at the same mole ratio, but pOH in the two systems is the same at lower mole ratios.