Point load determination of static elastic moduli using laser speckle interferometry

Electronic speckle interferometry (ESPI) is used to determine the Young's modulus E and Poisson ratio ν of an isotropic material. Micron scale deformations of the surface of the block of polymethyl-methacrylate (PMMA) are induced by normal application of a known near-point force. These deformations are recorded in speckle interferometric fringe patterns. An iterative minimum error inversion technique is developed to obtain the elastic properties from the positions of fringe peaks and troughs observed in the fringe patterns. Sensitivity tests of the method on calculated fringe patterns using measured experimental uncertainties suggest the technique will provide measures of the elastic moduli to better than 5%. In an experimental test on a bloc of PMMA (acrylic) the technique gave values of E and ν that differed from corresponding measures obtained using more conventional strain-gauge methods by less than 4%.     

Finite element modeling of contact conditions in multibody system dynamics

In this paper a new method is developed for the dynamic analysis of contact conditions in flexible multibody systems undergoing a rolling type of motion. The relative motion between the two contacting bodies is treated as a constraint condition describing their kinematic and geometric relations. Equations of motion of the system are presented in a matrix form making use of Kane's equations and finite element method. The method developed has been implemented in a general purpose program called DARS and applied to the simulation and analysis of a rotating wheel on a track. Both the bodies are assumed flexible and discretized using a three dimensional 8-noded isoparametric elements. The time variant constraint conditions are imposed on the nodal points located at the peripheral surfaces of the bodies under consideration. The simulation is carried out under two different boundary conditions describing the support of the track. The subsequent constraint forces associated with the generalized coordinates of the system are computed and plotted. The effects of friction are also discussed.     

Organocatalyzed highly efficient synthesis of densely functionalized pyrrole-fused 1,4-dihydropyridine derivatives

Abstract

An organo base catalyzed diverse pyrrole-fused 1,4-dihydropyridines were synthesized. This one-pot, three-component domino reaction of enamino imides, aromatic aldehydes, and malononitrile/ethyl cyanoacetate was achieved by 10?mol% of DMAP under refluxing ethanol. In addition, novel bis-pyrrole-fused 1,4-dihydropyridine derivatives were also prepared by using terephthalaldehyde as a linker instead of simple aromatic aldehydes. This transformation proceeds via Knoevenagel condensation/Michael addition and N-cyclization reaction sequence and have some salient features including the use of a cost-effective catalyst, short reaction time and high atom economy. Moreover, the reusability of the catalyst was also performed up to five runs without any significant loss in activity.     

Sorption of bisphenol A, 17alpha-ethynylestradiol and estrone to mineral surfaces

Sorption of the endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) bisphenol A (BPA), 17alpha-ethynylestradiol (EE2) and estrone (E1) from 3 microM aqueous solutions in 10 mM KNO3 to goethite, kaolinite and montmorillonite was investigated at 25 degrees C. Uptake of the EDCs by goethite and kaolinite suspensions was <20%, and little affected by pH. Sorption by montmorillonite was greater, ranging from 20 to 60%, and steadily increased from about pH 7. The amount of EDC sorbed to the mineral phases generally increased in the order of decreasing solubility (BPA相似文献   

Optimization of silylation using N-methyl-N-(trimethylsilyl)-trifluoroacetamide, N,O-bis-(trimethylsilyl)-trifluoroacetamide and N-(tert-butyldimethylsilyl)-N-methyltrifluoroacetamide for the determination of the estrogens estrone and 17alpha-ethinylestradiol by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

This paper reports an improved silylation procedure for simultaneous determination of the steroid hormones 17alpha-ethinylestradiol (EE2) and estrone (E1) using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). This follows a re-assessment of some of the popular silylation procedures using N-methyl-N-trimethylsilyltrifluoroacetamide (MSTFA), N-O-bis-(trimethylsilyl)-trifluoroacetamide (BSTFA) and N-(tert-butyldimethylsilyl)-N-methyltrifluoroacetamide (MTBSTFA), which lead to the formation of trimethylsilyl (TMS) and tert-butyldimethylsilyl (TBS) derivatives. Silylation of EE2 using MSTFA or BSTFA+1% TMCS in ethyl acetate, acetonitrile and dichloromethane solvents produced multiple peaks corresponding to TMS-E1, and 3-mono-TMS-EE2 and/or 3,17-di-TMS-EE2 in variable proportions depending on the solvent used. When pyridine or dimethyl formamide solvents were used in the silylation of EE2 under the same reaction conditions, only 3,17-di-TMS-EE2 derivative was formed. Derivatization using MTBSTFA reagents using ethyl acetate, acetonitrile, dichloromethane, pyridine and dimethyl formamide resulted in almost 100% conversion of mono-TBS-EE2 to the TBS-E1. Therefore, typical methods used in some previous GC-MS determinations of E1 and EE2 in environmental water and/or sediment samples are subject to speculation. However, we can confirm that any of the TMS reagents can be used with either pyridine or dimethyl formamide under suitable reaction conditions.     

An analysis of pressure-induced phase transition and elastic properties of neodymium monopnictides

We have predicted the phase transition pressures and corresponding relative volume changes of two neodymium monopnictides (NdAs and NdSb) having NaCl-type structure at ambient conditions, using an improved interaction potential model (IIPM) approach. Both the compounds have been found to undergo from their initial NaCl(B1) phase to a body centered tetragonal (BCT) phase at high pressure. Our calculated results of phase transitions, volume collapses and elastic behavior of these compounds are found to be close to the experimental results. This shows that the inclusion of the three-body interaction and polarizability effect makes the present model suitable for high pressure studies.     

Acyl-CoA subunit selectivity in the pikromycin polyketide synthase PikAIV: steady-state kinetics and active-site occupancy analysis by FTICR-MS

Polyketide natural products generated by type I modular polyketide synthases (PKSs) are vital components in our drug repertoire. To reprogram these biosynthetic assembly lines, we must first understand the steps that occur within the modular "black boxes." Herein, key steps of acyl-CoA extender unit selection are explored by in?vitro biochemical analysis of the PikAIV PKS model system. Two complementary approaches are employed: a fluorescent-probe assay for steady-state kinetic analysis, and Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance-mass spectrometry (FTICR-MS) to monitor active-site occupancy. Findings from five enzyme variants and four model substrates have enabled a model to be proposed involving catalysis based upon acyl-CoA substrate loading followed by differential rates of hydrolysis. These efforts suggest a strategy for future pathway engineering efforts using unnatural extender units with slow rates of hydrolytic off-loading from the acyltransferase domain.     

Simultaneous determination of benzotriazoles and ultraviolet filters in ground water, effluent and biosolid samples using gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

A new method using gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) was developed for the determination of four benzotriazoles, i.e. benzotriazole (BT), 5-methylbenzotriazole (5-TTri), 5-chlorobenzotriazole (CBT), 5,6-dimethylbenzotriazole (XTri), and six UV filters, i.e. benzophenone-3 (BP-3), 3-(4-methylbenzylidene)camphor (4-MBC), octyl 4-methoxycinnamate (OMC), 2-(3-t-butyl-2-hydroxy-5-methylphenyl)-5-chloro benzotriazole (UV-326), 2-(2'-hydroxy-5'-octylphenyl)-benzotriazole (UV-329), and octocrylene (OC) in ground water, effluent and biosolid samples. Solid phase extraction (SPE) and pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) were applied as the preconcentration method for water samples (ground water and effluent) and biosolid samples, respectively. The optimized method allowed us to quantify all target compounds with the method detection limits ranging from 0.29 to 11.02 ng/L, 0.5 to 14.1 ng/L and 0.33 to 8.23 ng/g in tap water, effluent and biosolid samples, respectively. The recoveries of the target analytes in tap water, effluent and biosolid samples were 70-150%, 82-127% and 81-133%, respectively. The developed analytical method was applied in the determination of these target compounds in ground water, effluent and biosolid samples collected from Bolivar sewage treatment plants in South Australia. In effluent samples, the target compounds BT, 5-TTri, CBT, XTri and BP-3 tested were detected with the maximum concentration up to 2.2 μg/L for BT. In biosolid samples, eight out of ten compounds tested were found to be present at the concentrations ranging between 18.7 ng/g (5-TTri) and 250 ng/g (4-MBC).     

Dose identification of triamcinolone acetonide for noninvasive pre-corneal administration in the treatment of posterior uveitis using a rapid,sensitive HPLC method with photodiode-array detector

Triamcinolone acetonide (TAA) is the drug of choice in the management of ocular inflammations due to its anti-inflammatory and immuno-suppressant activity. Available marketed formulations (Triesence, Trivaris, Kenalog) are in the suspension form recommended to be administered via intravitreal injection, which has many major complications. In the present study, we have designed and evaluated Hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD),) based conventional formulations of TAA (aqueous suspensions) with different dose strengths to identify the dose strength required for achieving the effective concentrations in vitreous humor following pre-corneal administration of the formulations. Ocular pharmacokinetic studies of conventional formulations of triamcinolone acetonide (TAA) with different dose strengths (1 mg/30µL, 2 mg/30µL, 4 mg/30µL) were performed to identify the dose strength required to produce effective concentrations of TAA in the aqueous and vitreous humor. A rapid, sensitive, selective, accurate and precise bioanalytical method utilizing a small sampling volume (<45 µL) was developed and validated for quantification of TAA in the samples obtained from the ocular pharmacokinetic studies. Aqueous suspensions of TAA with 20% HP-β-CD produced time course profiles in the aqueous humor at all the dose strengths. However, measurable concentrations and time course of TAA in vitreous humor were achieved only with 4 mg/30µL dose strength.     

Implementation of 3-D isoparametric finite elements on supercomputer for the formulation of recursive dynamical equations of multi-body systems

Kinematic formulation of the versatile three-dimensional isoparametric eight-noded brick element with six degrees of freedom at each node (three-translational and three-rotational), suitable for the discretization of flexible bodies with intricate geometric configurations, has been developed and implemented on the supercomputer IBM-3090 for the simulation of dynamical mechanical systems. The pipelining feature of the above vector-processor has been exploited for achieving a significant order of magnitude in computational efficiency. The concepts of indexed reference arrays have been utilised in the development of dynamical equations of motion, eliminating expensive Boolean matrix multiplication operations. The algorithm developed is an improvement and extension of [7], with the implementation of the brick element formulation. The recursive Kane's equations, modal analysis technique and strain energy principles are integrated into the procedure. The above technique is also applied to the constrained multi-body systems. An illustrative example of an spin-up maneuver of a space robot with three flexible links carrying a solar panel is presented. The prediction of dynamic behaviour of the system is carried out under a constrained environment and the effects of geometric stiffening and its subsequent restoring elastic forces are demonstrated.