The unusual tribological behavior of diamond-like carbon films under high vacuum

We fabricate F-doped and F-S-codoped diamond-like carbon (DLC) films using plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition system. The hardness, Raman spectra, and high-vacuum tribological behaviors indicate that the films are DLC films. The hardness is close related to the tribological properties of DLC films under high vacuum. The high hardness of DLC films would be helpful for obtaining the long lifetime under high vacuum. The lifetimes of F-S-codoped DLC films are about 120 and 140 seconds, which is attributed to the fast graphitization under high vacuum. The lifetime of F-doped DLC films is prolonged to the value of around 300 and 440 seconds, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis exhibits the existence of the “adsorption” F, and transmission electron microscopy analysis shows that the “adsorption” F could react with Fe to form layered FeF₂ nanocrystal at the initial sliding, which could be helpful for prolonging the lifetime of F-doped DLC films under high vacuum. This investigation opens a new window to overcome the disadvantage of F, S-doped DLC films under high vacuum.     

Breakthrough of 2- to 3-μm scale U–Pb zircon dating using Cameca IMS-1280HR SIMS

A zircon U–Pb dating method with a high spatial resolution of 2- to 3-μm was successfully implemented by using Cameca IMS-1280HR SIMS in this study. Homemade cathode and modified intermediate pole were used to improve the intrinsic performance of duoplasmatron ion source. An O⁻ primary beam with intensity of approximately 3 μA and stability of 0.68% over 40 minutes was achieved and could be used continuously for more than 240 hours under high current conditions. Under Gaussian illumination mode, a 2- to 3-μm O⁻ primary beam was obtained with an intensity of approximately 200 pA. Four standard zircons, namely, 91500, Temora, Plešovice, and Qinghu, were dated using the 2- to 3-μm high spatial resolution U–Pb isotopic analysis, yielding U–Pb ages consistent with their recommended values, within errors. Our work shows that zircon U–Pb dating with high accuracy and spatial resolution can be achieved, on the basis of a series of duoplasmatron modification and instrumental optimization.     

Analysis and fate of the hindered amine light stabilizer Tinuvin 622 in polyester powder coatings using high performance liquid chromatography / time of flight mass spectrometry

Hindered amine light stabilizers are used to protect polymers from heat- and light-induced degradation. In this study the oligomeric stabilizer Tinuvin 622 was analysed in-depth employing high performance liquid chromatography/time of flight mass spectrometry (HPLC/TOF-MS) to differentiate products of different manufacturers in respect of their terminating groups and oligomer length. Additionally, the behaviour of the stabilizer in uncured and cured polyester powder coatings was investigated regarding its interaction with the other coating components and chemical changes during the crosslinking process. The extraction efficiency was determined as a function of oligomer length and coating colour.     

Crystal Structure of LiRh-type IrZn Determined by Powder X-ray and Selected Area Electron Diffraction

The LiRh-type crystal structure of the equiatomic intermetallic compound IrZn turns out to be a competitor to the otherwise energetically favored CsCl-type structures of congeneric transition metal zinc phases, thus enlightening the structural impact of element-specific factors beyond the Hume-Rothery concept.     

通过不对称氢转移/动态动力学拆分合成碳环N^3-嘌呤核苷

N^3-嘌呤核苷由于可能同时被嘌呤和嘧啶代谢酶识别,因而有望作为双靶点药物应用于抗病毒治疗.报道了一种以α-(N^3-嘌呤)取代的环烷酮为原料,通过不对称氢转移反应实现动态动力学拆分,高收率高立体选择性地合成系列碳环N^3-嘌呤核苷化合物.该催化体系也适用于α-嘧啶取代的环烷酮底物,且产物通过进一步衍生,合成了2’-F-,Ac S-,N^3-修饰的碳环嘧啶核苷.     

Nano-polycrystalline diamond anvils: key devices for XAS at extreme conditions: their use,scientific impact,present status and future needs

ABSTRACT

Nano-polycrystalline diamonds (NPDs) have become fundamental tools for cutting-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) studies at high P/T conditions that opened up new research directions by overcoming previous limitations. Indeed, NPDs yield a continuous and weak X-ray background signal which enables the collection of high-quality XAS data of materials compressed in diamond anvil cells. This is a critical advantage over the classically used single-crystal diamonds that generate strong parasitic signals (glitches) which render the analysis of XAS data in many cases impossible. In this contribution we give an overview of the impact and the scientific opportunities that NPDs opened up for extreme condition XAS spectroscopy at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility and discuss future needs.     

Mass spectrometry imaging of latent fingerprints using titanium oxide development powder as an existing matrix

Recent research has focused on increasing the evidentiary value of latent fingerprints through chemical analysis. Although researchers have optimized the use of organic and metal matrices for matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization‐mass spectrometry imaging (MALDI‐MSI) of latent fingerprints, the use of development powders as matrices has not been fully investigated. Carbon forensic powder (CFP), a common nonporous development technique, was shown to be an efficient one‐step matrix; however, a high‐resolution mass spectrometer was required in the low mass range due to carbon clusters. Titanium oxide (TiO₂) is another commonly used development powder, especially for dark nonporous surfaces. Here, forensic TiO₂ powder is utilized as a single‐step development and matrix technique for chemical imaging of latent fingerprints without the requirement of a high‐resolution mass spectrometer. All studied compounds were successfully detected when TiO₂ was used as the matrix in positive mode, although, generally, the overall ion signals were lower than the previously studied CFP. TiO₂ provided quality mass spectrometry (MS) images of endogenous and exogenous latent fingerprint compounds. The subsequent addition of traditional matrices on top of the TiO₂ powder was ineffective for universal detection of latent fingerprint compounds. Forensic TiO₂ development powder works as an efficient single‐step development and matrix technique for MALDI‐MSI analysis of latent fingerprints in positive mode and does not require a high‐resolution mass spectrometer for analysis.     

Simultaneous determination of novel β-lactamase inhibitor WCK 4234 and Meropenem in dog plasma by LC–MS/MS and its application to preclinical pharmacokinetic study

A precise and accurate liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometric (LC–MS/MS) bioanalytical method has been developed and validated for the simultaneous quantification of WCK 4234 and meropenem (MEM) in dog plasma. Protein precipitation using acetonitrile was employed as a sample preparation approach. Cefepime was used as an internal standard. The developed method was selective, sensitive (limit of quantification, 0.075 μg/ml for both drugs), accurate (recovery > 90%), precise (CV < 10%) and linear (r² ≥ 0.99, concentration range 0.075–120 μg/ml for both analytes). The developed method was successfully applied for the determination of both drugs in plasma to assess the pharmacokinetics in beagle dogs. WCK 4234 + MEM in a 1:1 ratio at 15 + 15 and 30 + 30 mg/kg doses were administered by the intravenous route. The mean plasma concentration and area under the concentration–time curve of WCK 4234 ranged from 38.3 to 77.4 μg/ml and from 47.8 to 77.1 μg h/ml, respectively, and the values for MEM ranged from 52.2 to 115.3 μg/ml and 70.5 to 133.6 μg h/ml respectively. The elimination half-life of WCK 4234 and MEM was around 0.8 h.     

一种提高极值点处收敛精度的三阶WENO-Z格式

为了提高三阶WENO-Z格式在极值点处的计算精度，通过理论推导给出三阶WENO格式满足收敛精度的充分条件。采用泰勒级数展开的方式，推导给出所构造格式非线性权重的计算公式，并综合权衡计算精度和计算稳定性确定所构造格式的参数。通过两个典型的精度测试，验证了改进格式在光滑流场极值点区域逼近三阶精度。进一步选用激波与熵波相互作用和Richtmyer-Meshkov不稳定性等经典算例，证实了本文提出的改进格式WENO-PZ3相较其他格式（WENO-JS3和WENO-Z3）不仅具有较高的精度，而且降低了格式的耗散，提高了对流场结构的分辨率。     

Research Progress and Application of Ion Funnel Technique

Ion funnel is a new-style ion guider which can reduce spatial divergence and energy dispersity of the transmission ions by using radio frequency (RF) electric field to confine the ions radially and the direct current (DC) axial electric field to move the ions toward the exit, and thus it can greatly increase the ion transmission efficiency and improve the sensitivity of the mass spectrometry. Since ion funnel was invented in 1997, it has attracted a close attention of mass spectrometry scientists all over the world. Ion funnel has been used in various kinds of mass spectrometry, and built a bridge with high efficiency ion transmission between low vacuum ionization source and high vacuum mass analyzer. In this paper, the principle, technology development, and application progress of ion funnel are reviewed, and the future prospects are prospected.