Simulation model for the molecular weight distribution in emulsion polymerization

A Monte Carlo simulation model for the kinetics of emulsion polymerization is proposed. In the present model, the formation of each polymer molecule is simulated by the use of only a couple of probability functions; therefore, the calculation can be handled well even on personal computers. It is straightforward to account for virtually any kinetic event, such as the desorption of oligomeric radicals and chain length dependence of kinetic parameters, and as a consequence very detailed information such as the full distributions of the dead polymer molecular weights and the macroradicals among various polymer particles can be obtained. When bimolecular terminations are the dominant chain stoppage mechanism, the instantaneous molecular weight distribution (produced in a very small time interval) becomes broader than that for homogeneous polymerizations due to a higher possibility that short and long polymer radicals react with each other if bimolecular reactions are fast enough. The increase in the polydispersity of the MWD is fairly large, especially when bimolecular termination by disproportionation is significant; however, the gel permeation chromatography (GPC) may not be a suitable analytical technique to detect such broadening since oligomeric peaks may not be observed in the elution curve. The present simulation method provides greater insight into the complicated phenomena of emulsion polymerizations. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Syntheses of 1,3,6,8,10,11,14-heptaazapentaphene-2,4,7,9(14H,3H,8H, -11H)-tetrones (angular mixed flavins), 1,3,5,6,8,10,11,14-octaazapentaphene-2,4,7,9(14H,3H,8H,11H)-tetrones (angular doubled flavins), and their related compounds

Cyclization of N, N′-dialkyl-N-(3-methyluracil-6-yl)-N′-(5-nitro-3-methyluracil-6-yl)- p-phenylenediamines with the Vilsmeier reagent gives the corresponding 1,3,6,8,10,11,14-heptaazapentaphene-2,4,7,9-(14H,3H,8H,-11H) -tetrones (angular mixed flavins) 2. Cyclization of N, N′-di(5-nitro-3-methyluracil-6-yl)-p-phenylenedi-amines with the Vilsmeier reagent gives the corresponding 1,3,5,6,8,10,11,14-octaazapentaphene-2,4,7,9-(14H,3H,8H,11H)-tetrones (angular doubled flavins) 11 along with the angular mixed flavins 2.     

Formation of Water-Soluble Dye-Doped Silica Particles

Formation mechanism of dye-doped silica particles less than 1 µm in diameters by the Stöber method was investigated. With increasing the content of dyes such as water-soluble porphyrin (TTMAPP) and laser dye (Nile blue), these dye-doped silica particles showed the similar tendency to the following characters: (1) Particle size increased, passed through the maximum at the dye content corresponds to the isoelectric point, and then followed by decrease; (2) Ratio of dimer and monomer of the incorporated dye decreased. In aqueous solution positively charged dyes showed good affinity with negatively charged SiO₂ primary particles from the early stage of the formation. Zeta potential of doped-silica particles was measured against nominal dye content: from non-doped to highly doped particles, their surface charge changed from negative to positive. The similar influence caused by positively charged dyes on the particle formation was also observed by Ca²⁺ doping.     

Prediction of peptide conformation by multicanonical algorithm: New approach to the multiple-minima problem

We apply a recently developed method, the multicanonical algorithm, to the problem of tertiary structure prediction of peptides and proteins. As a simple example to test the effectiveness of the algorithm, metenkephalin is studied and the ergodicity problem, or multiple-minima problem, is shown to be overcome by this algorithm. The lowest-energy conformation obtained agrees with that determined by other efficient methods such as Monte Carlo simulated annealing. The superiority of the present method to simulated annealing lies in the fact that the relationship to the canonical ensemble remains exactly controlled. Once the multicanonical parameters are determined, only one simulation run is necessary to obtain the lowest-energy conformation and further the results of this one run can be used to calculate various thermodynamic quantities at any temperature. The latter point is demonstrated by the calculation of the average potential energy and specific heat as functions of temperature. © John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

THE CHLOROPHYLL a AGGREGATE ABSORBING NEAR 685 nm IS SELECTIVELY FORMED IN AQUEOUS TETRAHYDROFURAN*

An aqueous solution of 2–12% (vol/vol) tetrahydrofuran (THF) induced the selective aggregation of chlorophyll a (Chl a) to form a novel species, A-685, absorbing near 685 nm. The formation of A-685 was closely correlated with a decrease in water activity of the solution. A Raman spectrum of the Chl a species formed in the presence of 6% THF suggests a unique interaction among Chl a, solvent THF and water molecules to give a stacked aggregate (Chl a.THF.H₂O.THF.Chl a). The circular dichroic spectrum of the Chl a species formed in the 6% THF aqueous solution showed an intense signal that had negative and positive wings with about 100-fold larger molar ellipticity for the A-685 than for monomer. However, Chl a', the C10 epimer of Chl a, and chlorophyllide, with a phytyl chain replaced by an ethyl group, did not form A-685 in 6% THF. These clearly indicate that 10-methylcarboxylate and the phytyl chain have a significant role in stabilizing A-685. A possible structure for A-685 is proposed as a novel in vitro model for the P-680 Chl a dimer.     

Flow-injection analysis for hypoxanthine in meat with dissolved oxygen detector and enzyme reactor

A low cost flow-injection analysis (FIA) with a dissolved oxygen (DO) detector and a xanthine oxidase immobilized column for the analysis of hypoxanthine as an index to determine degree of aging in meat was developed for quality control in the food industry. In this system, hypoxanthine is oxidized by an enzyme reaction with xanthine oxidase immobilized on the column to produce xanthine. Then the catalytic reaction between hypoxanthine and DO with xanthine oxidase proceeds with the DO concentration decreasing in the stream of the flow system. Decrease in the DO concentration was monitored by a DO detector located downstream of the flow system. This decrease in DO concentration was proportional to the hypoxanthine concentration. For detecting the decreased DO concentration efficiently a flow-through cell with a polarographic-type DO sensor was specially designed. As a result, a linear working curve was obtained from 3.68 × 10⁻⁵ to 1.84 × 10⁻³ M hypoxanthine concentrations with this FIA system. We applied the present system with a DO detector for the determination of hypoxanthine in meat samples and compared the results with those obtained by the conventional HPLC method. The data obtained with the present FIA method were in fairly good agreement with those obtained by the conventional HPLC method for the meat samples. Correlation factor and regression line between the two methods were 0.998 and Y= 1.51X-32.64 respectively. We concluded that the present FIA system with a DO detector was suitable as a simple, easy to handle and reliable instrument for quality control in the food industry.     

Effect of L-cysteine on plasma concentration and urinary excretion of 1-(tetrahydro-2-furanyl)-5-fluorouracil metabolites

Effects of L-cysteine (CySH) on the plasma concentrations and the urinary excretion of 1-(tetrahydro-2-furanyl)-5-fluorouracil (FT) and its metabolites were studied by high performance liquid chromatography in rats. Significantly higher plasma concentrations of FT, 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and cis-4'-OH-FT were obtained after an oral administration of FT (500 mg/kg) combined orally with CySH (500 mg/kg) when compared to FT alone. The urinary excretions of 5-FU, trans-3'-OH-FT, cis-4'-OH-FT, trans-4'-OH-FT and 4',5'-dehydro-FT significantly decreased up to 12 h but that of alpha-fluoro-beta-alanine significantly increased up to 24 h by the combined administration of CySH. Furthermore, the plasma concentration of 5-FU significantly increased at 0.5 h and its urinary excretion significantly decreased up to 4 h after an intraperitoneal administration of 5-FU (10 mg/kg) combined orally with CySH (500 mg/kg) when compared to 5-FU alone. The urinary pH significantly changed to acidic and the urinary volume significantly increased by the combined administration of CySH, so it was thought that the reabsorption of 5-FU through renal tubules from urine could increase and the increment of the urinary excretion of alpha-fluoro-beta-alanine was caused by this. Then it was suggested that the increase of the plasma concentrations of 5-FU and cis-4'-OH-FT could be attributed to the decrease of their urinary excretions after an administration of FT combined with CySH when compared to FT alone.     

Reaction of glycidyl phenyl ether with imines: A model study of latent hardeners of epoxy resins in the presence of water

The hydrolyses of several imines and their reactions with glycidyl phenyl ether were examined under highly humid conditions as a model study for the development of water‐initiated hardeners for epoxy resins. Diethyl ketone‐based imines were hydrolyzed more efficiently than methyl isobutyl ketone‐based imines. The reactions of glycidyl phenyl ether with the imines depended on their hydrolysis rates and the basicity of the amines generated from them. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 40: 971–975, 2002     

The influence of ligand side chain on the enantioselectivity of Lewis acid catalyzed Diels-Alder reactions

The enantioselective Lewis acid-catalyzed Diels-Alder reaction of 3-(2-propenoyl)-1,3-oxazolidin-2-one 8 with cyclopentadiene was examined using a series of chiral mox ligands 2-6, deferring in the side chain at 2-position of the chiral oxazoline and in the nature of the substituent at the chiral center (4-position) of the oxazoline ring, and a combination of N-[(1R)-2-chloro-1-phenylethyl]-2-[(4R)-4-phenyl-4,5-dihydrooxazol-2-yl]butyramide 2-MgI(2)-I(2) was the most efficient catalyst.