Relationship between the component synthesis order of zinc ferrite–titania nanocomposites and their performances as visible light-driven photocatalysts for relevant organic pollutant degradation

The main objective of this work was to investigate the influence of the order of component synthesis of zinc ferrite–titania nanocomposites on their structural, morphologic, textural, light absorption properties, and performances as photocatalysts. In this respect, nanocomposite materials with 10ZnFe₂O₄90TiO₂ (wt %) composition were prepared via a two-step synthesis procedure by alternating the order of the component addition during the preparation protocol and characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray, small-angle X-ray scattering, nitrogen sorption, and UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The photocatalytic activity of nanocomposites was evaluated on Rhodamine 6G degradation under visible light illumination. The photocatalytic performances of nanocomposites were clearly superior to the classical TiO₂. Nevertheless, preparing titania in the presence of a presynthesized zinc ferrite led to superior characteristics in terms of band gap value, specific surface area, and grain sizes crucial for the enhancement of the photocatalytic performances.     

Sol-gel route for obtaining bismuth high T c superconducting oxide compounds

Bismuth high T _c superconducting oxide compounds were obtained by sol-gel method using acetate precursors. A study of the decomposition of quasi-amorphous acetates has been carried out to establish the conditions of superconducting phase formation. A comparison of the acetate sol-gel route with the oxalate coprecipitation method (previously used by the authors) reveals comparable results. Both methods require much shorter periods of thermal treatment for the formation of superconducting phases, as compared with the solid state reactions. The sol-gel route leads to better results from this point of view.     

Stable reconstruction of the T(2) distribution by low-resolution NMR measurements and the classical markov and hausdorf momentum problem

Assuming that an original distribution is a probabilistic measure and the Laplace transforms are known only for a finite number of points that are affected by errors, we develop a method for reconstructing weak-sense mean values obtained by integrating smooth functions with the measure. Our method is useful in NMR if the NMR signal can be represented as a superposition of exponential terms. In these circumstances, we show how the data processing can be related to the classical Hausdorf momentum problem. First, we clarify the meaning of stable spectrum reconstruction, and then develop stable filtering and a mean value reconstruction algorithm. Our method has been tested on both simulated and real sets of spin–spin relaxation curves with noise. In view of this, our method could provide an efficient and accurate reconstruction of spin–spin relaxation data. For any reader interested in applications, a “practical recipe” that is almost self-consistent has been included.     

Complex dynamics in a simple model of pulsations for super-asymptotic giant branch stars

When intermediate mass stars reach their last stages of evolution they show pronounced oscillations. This phenomenon happens when these stars reach the so-called asymptotic giant branch (AGB), which is a region of the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram located at about the same region of effective temperatures but at larger luminosities than those of regular giant stars. The period of these oscillations depends on the mass of the star. There is growing evidence that these oscillations are highly correlated with mass loss and that, as the mass loss increases, the pulsations become more chaotic. In this paper we study a simple oscillator which accounts for the observed properties of this kind of stars. This oscillator was first proposed and studied in Icke et al. [Astron. Astrophys. 258, 341 (1992)] and we extend their study to the region of more massive and luminous stars -the region of super-AGB stars. The oscillator consists of a periodic nonlinear perturbation of a linear Hamiltonian system. The formalism of dynamical systems theory has been used to explore the associated Poincare map for the range of parameters typical of those stars. We have studied and characterized the dynamical behavior of the oscillator as the parameters of the model are varied, leading us to explore a sequence of local and global bifurcations. Among these, a tripling bifurcation is remarkable, which allows us to show that the Poincare map is a nontwist area preserving map. Meandering curves, hierarchical-islands traps and sticky orbits also show up. We discuss the implications of the stickiness phenomenon in the evolution and stability of the super-AGB stars. (c) 2002 American Institute of Physics.     

Creation of twistless circles in a model of stellar pulsations

In the present paper, we study the Poincaré map associated to a periodic perturbation, both in space and time, of a linear Hamiltonian system. The dynamical system embodies the essential physics of stellar pulsations and provides a global and qualitative explanation of the chaotic oscillations observed in some stars. We show that this map is an area preserving one with an oscillating rotation number function. The nonmonotonic property of the rotation number function induced by the triplication of the elliptic fixed point is superposed on the nonmonotonic character due to the oscillating perturbation. This superposition leads to the co-manifestation of generic phenomena such as reconnection and meandering, with the nongeneric scenario of creation of vortices. The nonmonotonic property due to the triplication bifurcation is shown to be different from that exhibited by the cubic Hénon map, which can be considered as the prototype of area preserving maps which undergo a triplication followed by the twistless bifurcation. Our study exploits the reversibility property of the initial system, which induces the time-reversal symmetry of the Poincaré map.     

Olefin isomerisation versus hydrozirconation: a case of a stable beta-hydrogen-containing Zr-alkyl derivative

Details of the olefin isomerisation mechanism followed by monohydride constrained-geometry zirconium complexes have been clarified using the allyldimethylsilylcyclopentadienyl zirconium hydride model compound. DFT calculations on the model systems agree with the experimental results.     

Plasma generation in liquid as a new efficient synthesis approach of titania–zinc ferrite nano(photo)catalyst

In the past years, an important problem that requires solutions at the global scale is the environmental pollution. This work describes a possible approach toward finding such solutions based on nanophotocatalysts with improved activity. Thus, the present study reports a new and efficient synthesis procedure for titania–zinc ferrite nanocomposite with enhanced photodegradation activity. The method is based on the liquid phase plasma technique and follows a bottom-up scheme. The resulted materials have been compared with those synthesized by the ultrasound-assisted method. Using the plasma-assisted procedures in the fabrication of an efficient nano(photo)catalyst decreases considerably the reaction time. The liquid phase plasma generates nanoparticles with enhanced structural, textural, and morphological properties as demonstrated by X-ray diffraction, nitrogen sorption, transmission electron microscopy, and small-angle X-ray scattering.     

Designing Medical Devices Based on Silicon Polymeric Material with Controlled Release of Local Anesthetics

The drug delivery systems that are the object of this article take the form of a polymer matrix made of silicone containing a drug. These devices can be used as patches for local dermal applications releasing the drug in a controlled manner. The model active agent, lidocaine hydrochloride was chosen from the range of local anesthetics. When the drug is restricted to the surface, it is released more rapidly than when it is allowed to spread evenly throughout the silicon structure. When hydrophilic polymers such as PVA and HEC are mixed in with the lidocaine hydrochloride and deposited on the surface of the polymer matrix, we observed that the burst effect was eliminated without modifying the overall quantity of lidocaine hydrochloride released.     

Synthesis, crystal structure and thermal decomposition study of a new barium acetato-propionate complex

The present study reports on a novel barium acetato-propionate complex, obtained by the reaction of barium acetate with propionic acid, used as an oxide precursor with applications in superconducting thin films deposition. The molecular structure has been determined by X-ray diffraction on single crystals and demonstrated to be [Ba₇(CH₃CH₂COO)₁₀(CH₃COO)₄·5H₂O]. The barium acetato-propionate is a three-dimensional channel-type polymer. The thermal decomposition of the barium precursor has been studied by simultaneous differential thermal analysis-thermogravimetry-mass spectrometry (DTA-TG-MS) in air at a heating rate of 10 °C/min. Based on these analyses, infrared spectroscopy was further used to characterize the precursor solution by the step-wise addition of the reagents. The X-ray diffraction on the precursor powder at different temperatures was performed.