Investigation into the dielectric relaxation of vinylidene fluoride copolymers with hexafluoropropylene

Four relaxation processes and one ferroelectric-paraelectric phase transition are revealed in vinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene copolymers with different ratios of the components in the temperature range from ?100 to 150°C. The relaxation process occurring at the lowest temperature is associated with the local mobility of the chains, whereas the relaxation process at a higher temperature is due to micro-Brownian motion of segments in the amorphous phase in the glass transition range. A smeared relaxor phase transition from the polar modification of the α phase of vinylidene fluoride units to the paraelectric phase is observed in the temperature range 50–70°C. At higher temperatures, there occurs an intensive relaxation process that can be attributed to space-charge relaxation or manifestation of the normal relaxation mode.     

A graph-theoretic approach to quantitative structure—activity/reactivity studies

Characterization of molecular species based on the use of suitable graph invariants (graph paths, in particular) can provide a quantitative means of encoding structure; the technique is complementary to commoner approaches to studies of quantitative structure— activity relationships. Graph path encoding is here applied to quantitative studies of relationships between molecular structures and biological activity; the examples are the rates of various substrate reactions with hexoldnase, and the potential opiate-like activity of enkephalin analogs.     

Adsorption-induced Depression of the Strength of Potassium Chloride Grains under the Action of Fatty Amines and Water

The surface activity of higher aliphatic amines and their salts at the interface between their solutions and air, oil, and KCl grains and their influence on the strength characteristics, moisture absorption, and caking of the grains were studied.     

Thermodynamics of dimethylene urethane and poly(dimethylene urethane) in the range from T → 0 to 490 K at standard pressure

By high-precision dynamic calorimetry the temperature dependences of heat capacity of dimethylene urethane (DMU) between 320 and 370 K and partially crystalline poly(dimethylene urethane) (PDMU) in the range 326-490 K at standard pressure have been determined within ±1.5%. The thermodynamic characteristics of fusion of the substances, namely the temperature interval of melting, temperature, enthalpy and entropy of fusion, as well as the characteristics of devitrification and glassy state for poly(dimethylene urethane) have been estimated. The first and the second cryoscopic constants have been calculated for dimethylene urethane. The experimental data obtained in the present work and literature findings on the heat capacity of the substances were used to calculate their thermodynamic functions: the heat capacity C°_p (T), enthalpy H°(T)−H°(0), entropy S°(T) and Gibbs function G°(T)−H°(0) over the range from T→0 to (370-480) K. Based on the data, the thermodynamic characteristics of polymerization process with five-membered ring opening Δ_polH°, Δ_polS° and Δ_polG° of dimethylene urethane with the formation of linear partially crystalline poly(dimethylene urethane) have been evaluated.     

Adsorption at liquid interfaces: The generalized Frumkin isotherm and interfacial structure

The thermodynamics of adsorption of amphiphilic surface-active compounds at the interface between two immiscible liquids is considered. At the interface, these molecules are supposed to replace a few of the adsorbed molecules of both solvents. Classical isotherms of adsorption (Frumkin, Frumkin-Damaskin, Langmuir, Henry) were based on the model of non-penetrable interface, where an adsorbate can substitute only molecules of one solvent. At the interface between two immiscible electrolytes, nonpolar oil/water interfaces, and liquid membranes amphiphilic molecules can substitute molecules of both solvent and classic isotherms cannot be used. The generalization of Frumkin isotherm for permeable and non-permeable interfaces, known as the Markin-Volkov isotherm, gives the possibility to analyze adsorption in a general case. The adsorption isotherms of pentafluorobenzoic acid at the octane/water interface at different pHs were measured by the drop-weight method. The thermodynamic parameters of pentafluorobenzoic acid (PFBA) adsorption at octane/water interface were determined. From the measurements of PFBA adsorption, the structure of the octane/water interface was determined. Substitution of one adsorbed octane molecule requires approximately three adsorbed PFBA molecules. This result shows that the orientation of solvent molecules at the interface is different from the bulk. Adsorbed octane molecules have a lateral orientation with respect to the interface. Gibbs free energy of adsorption equilibrium and thermodynamic parameters of PFBA adsorption show that the adsorption of PFBA at the octane/water interface is accompanied by a reduction in the attraction between adsorbed PFBA molecules as the pH decreases to the acidic region. Published in Russian in Elektrokhimiya, 2006, Vol. 42, No. 10, pp. 1194–1200. The text was submitted by the authors in English.     

Methods of obtaining lignin-carbohydrate compounds from chemically modified plant raw materials

Chemical modification of plant raw materials aimed at obtaining new valuable products and materials is described. Methods of preliminary treatment and modification of biopolymers (cavitation, microwave irradiation, and application of cross-linking and delignification reagents) making it possible to reduce decomposition of all major components are considered. Modified products can be used as sorbents of heavy metal salts, additives to drilling fluids in drilling of oil and gas wells, in the construction industry etc.     

Thermodynamics of hard poly(phenylene-pyridyl) dendrimers

The temperature dependences of heat capacity C ^○ _p = f(T) of hard poly(phenylene-pyridyl) dendrimers of the first and the second generations based on 1,3,5-triethynylbenzene were studied over the temperature range from 7–180 to 455–470 K for the first time. Over the range 290–350 K, the relaxation transition supposedly caused by sample devitrification was detected and characterized for the dendrimer of the first generation. The experimental results were used to calculate the standard thermodynamic functions, namely, heat capacity, enthalpy, entropy, and change in the Gibbs energy on heating. The standard entropy of formation of the compounds under study was determined at T = 298.15 K. The qualitative and quantitative dependences of the thermodynamic properties of the poly(phenylene-pyridyl) dendrimers on their composition and structure were revealed by comparison of the determined parameters with similar data for the earlier studied dendrimers of this series.     

Standard thermodynamic functions of CaNi0.5Zr1.5(PO4)3 crystalline phosphate in the range of T → 0 to 640 K

The temperature dependence of the heat capacity C _p ^○ = f(T) of CaNi_0.5Zr_1.5(PO₄)₃ crystalline phosphate is studied by precision adiabatic vacuum and differential scanning calorimetry over the temperature range of 7–640 K. Its standard thermodynamic functions C _p ^○ (T), H ^○(T)-H ^○(0), S ^○(T), and G ^○(T)-H ^○(0) for the region T → 0 to 640 K and the standard entropy of formation at T = 298.15 K are calculated from the obtained experimental data. Using data on the low-temperature (30–50 K) heat capacity, the D fractal dimension of phosphate is determined and conclusions about the character of the topology of its structure have been made. The final results are compared to data from thermodynamic investigations of the structurally related crystalline phosphates Zr₃(PO₄)₄, Ni_0.5Zr₂(PO₄)₃, and Ca_0.5Zr₂(PO₄)₃.     

Synthesis of block copolymers from polyvinyl chloride prepared in the presence of nitroxyl radicals of the imidazoline series

Specific features of radical polymerization of vinyl chloride in the presence of nitroxyl radicals of the imidazoline series (2-methyl-2,3-diphenyl-1,4-diazaspiro[4,5]dec-3-ene-1-oxyl, 2,2,5,5-tetramethyl-4-phenyl-2,5-dihydroimidazole-1-oxyl, 2,2,5-trimethyl-4,5-diphenyl-2,5-dihydroimidazole-1-oxyl) were studied. The possibility of preparing vinyl chloride-styrene block copolymers in the presence of these nitroxyl radicals was demonstrated, suggesting the occurrence of the polymerization by the reversible inhibition mechanism. The molecular-mass characteristics and the glass transition points of the synthesized samples were determined.