On some global well-posedness and asymptotic results for quasilinear parabolic equations

We prove that the quasilinear parabolic initial-boundary value problem (1.1) below is globally well-posed in a class of high order Sobolev solutions, and that these solutions possess compact, regular attractors ast+.     

Electronic properties of aluminum clusters compared with the jellium model

The experimental polarizabilities, ionization potentials and electron affinities of aluminum clusters are compared with jellium predictions. It is found that the clusters have radii and work functions which are close to the jellium model predictions for clusters with more than 13 atoms. The polarizabilities of Al _n correspond with the jellium only forn>40 and the shell structure features in the ionization potentials are anomalous up to 37. We conclude that nonjellium effects are important up ton=40.     

Flexible polyfluorinated bis-diazirines as molecular adhesives

Motivated by a desire to develop flexible covalent adhesives that afford some of the same malleability in the adhesive layer as traditional polymer-based adhesives, we designed and synthesized two flexible, highly fluorinated bis-diazirines. Both molecules are shown to function as effective crosslinkers for polymer materials, and to act as strong adhesives when painted between two polymer objects of low surface energy, prior to thermal activation. Data obtained from lap-shear experiments suggests that greater molecular flexibility is correlated with improved mechanical compliance in the adhesive layer.

Flexible, highly fluorinated covalent adhesives are synthesized, and are shown to afford comparable C–H insertion efficiency and adhesion strength relative to a rigid analogue, while providing improved mechanical compliance in the adhesion layer.     

Retracted: A new class of copper(I) complexes with imine-containing chelators which show potent anticancer activity

Seven novel complexes (C₁–C₇) were synthesized by the interaction between Cu(I) metal cation, L₁, L₂, L₃, X and PPh₃, where L₁–L₃ are derivatives of ((pyridine-2-ylmethylene)amino)phenol imine ligands and X = Cl⁻, Br⁻, I⁻, NCS⁻. All the complexes were characterized using infrared, ¹H NMR and ³¹P NMR spectroscopies. The crystal structures of C₁–C₇ were also determined using single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The organization of the crystal structures and the intermolecular interactions are discussed. The supramolecular assemblies are driven by cooperative π…π interactions and hydrogen bonds, followed by CH…π linkages. The potential anticancer effect of C₁–C₇ was assessed for human glioblastoma cells using several anticancer experiments, which showed that these complexes have marked anticancer property against U87 cells. It was also found that the minimum and maximum anticancer effects are shown by C₃- and C₄-treated samples, respectively. Furthermore, theoretical approaches were used to investigate the nature of metal–ligand interactions which suggest a closed-shell and electrostatic character for Cu…N, Cu…P and Cu…X bonds.     

Differential model accounting for reversion for EPDM vulcanized with peroxides

One of the main drawbacks of EPM/EPDM rubber vulcanization by peroxides is the lack of selectivity, which leads to a number of side reactions. The reaction mechanisms at the base of peroxides crosslinking are generally known and include the formation of alkyl and allyl (in the EPDM case) macro-radicals through H-abstraction from the macromolecular chains and the combination of these macro-radicals, which macroscopically is known with the term “vulcanization”. In the paper, a simple but effective mathematical model having kinetic base, to predict the vulcanization degree of rubber vulcanized with peroxides, is presented. The approach takes contemporarily into consideration, albeit within a simplified scheme, the actual reactions occurring during peroxidic curing, namely initiation, H-abstraction, combination and addition, and supersedes the simplified approach used in practice, which assumes for peroxidic curing a single first order reaction. After a suitable re-arrangement of the first order system of differential equations obtained from the actual kinetic system adopted, a single second order non-linear differential equation is obtained and numerically solved by means of a Runge–Kutta approach. Kinetic parameters to set are evaluated by means of a standard least squares procedure where target data are represented by experimental values available, i.e. normalized rheometer curves or percentage crosslink density experimentally evaluated by means of more sophisticated procedures. In order to have an insight into the reliability of the numerical approach proposed, two cases of technical interest are investigated in detail: the first is an EPDM crosslinked with two different peroxides, whereas the second is a compound with high level of unsaturation, showing reversion at medium-high vulcanization temperature ( $175^\circ \text{ C}$ ).     

Competitive evaluation of threshold functions in the priced information model

In Charikar et al. (J. Comput. Syst. Sci. 64(4):785–819, 2002) the authors proposed a new model for studying the function evaluation problem based on a variant of the classical decision tree problem for Boolean functions. In this variant each variable of the function to evaluate has an associated cost which has to be paid in order to read the value of the variable. Given a function f and an assignment σ to the variables of f, the performance of an algorithm for evaluating f is measured via the competitive ratio, i.e., the ratio of the total cost spent by the algorithm and the cost of the cheapest set of variables constituting a certificate for the value of the function on the given assignment.     

Flexible conducting polymer transistors with supercapacitor function

Planar organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) using PEDOT:PSS as the channel material and nanostructured carbon (nsC) as the gate electrode material and poly(sodium 4‐styrenesulfonate (PSSNa) gel as the electrolyte were fabricated on flexible polyethylene terephthalate (Mylar^®) substrates. The nsC was deposited at room‐temperature by supersonic cluster beam deposition (SCBD). Interestingly, the OECT acts as a hybrid supercapacitor (to give a device that we indicate as transcap). The energy storage ability of transcaps has been studied with two cell configurations: one featuring PEDOT:PSS as the positive electrode and nsC as the negative electrode and another configuration with reversed electrode polarity. Potentiostatic charge/discharge studies show that both supercapacitors show good performance in terms of voltage retention, in particular, when PEDOT:PSS is used as the positive electrode. Galvanostatic charge–discharge characteristics show typical symmetric triangular shape, indicating a nearly ideal capacitive behavior with a high columbic efficiency (close to 100%). © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2017 , 55, 96–103     

Simulation on the Effect of Brownian Motion on Nanoparticle Trajectories in a Pulsed Microplasma Cluster Source

We describe a simulation of the nanoparticle trajectories in a pulsed cluster beam source. Clusters, formed by condensation of atomic vapor in a helium bath, and considered here as rigid spheres having a diameter of 1.5nm, were tracked during their travel inside the source cavity, an aerodynamic lens, and a cylindrical nozzle. Steady state supersonic laminar flow of helium is considered in an axi-symmetric geometry aiming to simulate, within some limitations, the conditions under which cluster formation takes place in a pulsed microplasma cluster source. In spite of the unsteady nature of the pulsed source, the time scale characterizing particle motion in the flow field is significantly smaller than the characteristic time constant for the evolution of gas pressure in the source. For this reason, a steady simulation can shed some light on the understanding of processes governing nanoparticle motion in a pulsed vaporization source. The extent to which the Brownian diffusion can affect the particle extraction from the source is investigated. Simulations have shown that the Brownian motion perturbs the clusters from the trajectories dictated by the carrier gas and increases the rate of cluster deposition on the source internal walls. However, it does not hinder the aerodynamic focalization produced by the lens even in nano-size cluster regime. This result is qualitatively confirmed by experiment.