Étude de l'oxydation de triphénylamines par voltammétrie à variation linéaire de tension en couche mince

The mechanism of the oxidation of substituted triphenylamines R₁R₂R₃N (R₂=R₃=C₆H₅, R₁=p-OCH₃C₆H₄ (1) or p-CH₃C₆H₄ (2); R₁=R₂=R₃=p-OCH₃C₆H₄ (3) or C₆H₅ (4)) has been investigated by using thin layer linear potential sweep voltammetry. The tetraphenylbenzidine which is formed during the oxidation results from a dimerization of two cation radicals. The rate constants are calculated for (1) and (2).     

Photon channelling in foams

Experiments by Gittings, Bandyopadhyay and Durian (Europhys. Lett. 65, 414 (2004)) demonstrate that light possesses a higher probability to propagate in the liquid phase of a foam due to total reflection. The authors term this observation photon channelling which we investigate in this article theoretically. We first derive a central relation in the work of Gitting et al. without any free parameters. It links the photon's path-length fraction f in the liquid phase to the liquid fraction ɛ. We then construct two-dimensional Voronoi foams, replace the cell edges by channels to represent the liquid films and simulate photon paths according to the laws of ray optics using transmission and reflection coefficients from Fresnel's formulas. In an exact honeycomb foam, the photons show superdiffusive behavior. It becomes diffusive as soon as disorder is introduced into the foams. The dependence of the diffusion constant on channel width and refractive index is explained by a one-dimensional random-walk model. It contains a photon channelling state that is crucial for the understanding of the numerical results. At the end, we shortly comment on the observation that photon channelling only occurs in a finite range of ɛ.     

Effects of thermal treatment of biaxially oriented poly(ethylene terephthalate)

Two distinguishable effects of thermal exposure of biaxially oriented poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) have been observed in the temperature range from room temperature to 140°C. Upon heating above the glass transition temperature T_g of the film an irreversible shrinkage of a few percent occurred with a concomitant decrease in the rate of creep. Some loss of orientation in the noncrystalline phase with an attendant slight increase in density is believed to be responsible. Since the film was anisotropic in its plane, different amounts and rates of shrinkage were observed along with differing thermal expansion coefficients in various directions relative to the primary optic axis. Upon cooling the 50% crystalline PET from above T_g to lower temperatures, reversible “physical aging” was observed. Creep rates were found to decrease with the residence time below T_g. As with purely amorphous polymers, the effects of the aging are removed by heating the specimen above T_g where the density of the amorphous phase achieves equilibrium values.     

Effects of thermal treatment on biaxially oriented poly(ethylene terephthalate). II. The anisotropic glass temperature

Thermal properties of an anisotropic biaxially oriented Poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) were determined before and after further deformation of the Mylar film. Film shrinkage in different planar directions was monitored during and following initial heating. After stabilization for three days at 140°C, glass temperatures T_g were determined from the decrease in length of film strips and were found to vary in the different in-plane directions. An increase in anisotropy brought about by additional deformation in the direction of the greatest orientation enhanced the T_g difference from 8 to 16°C. T_g is highest in the direction of greatest orientation.     

Crystalline and relaxation properties of ethylene copolymer films inserted between two steel sheets

The relaxation and crystalline properties of ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) co-polymers inserted in steel/polymer/steel assemblies were studied. To investigate the properties of the interfacial region, polymers of different thickness inserted in the assemblies were analyzed. The studied EVA copolymers are semicrystalline polymers. The relaxation properties of the amorphous phase were investigated by dynamic mechanical measurements performed on the steel/polymer/steel assemblies, and the crystalline properties were studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The results indicate that, for low polymer thicknesses, the mobility of the amorphous phase is significantly reduced. Significant changes in the crystalline organization also were observed when the polymer thickness decreased, with the presence of more numerous disorganized crystals for thin EVA layers. These crystals can act as physical ties that reduce the mobility of the neighboring amorphous chains. These results indicate the formation of an interphase layer of reduced mobility.     

Stability of Plasma Treated Non-vulcanized Polybutadiene Surfaces: Role of Plasma Parameters and Influence of Additives

Surface modification studies of non-vulcanized BR elastomers (butadiene rubber) by low-pressure air plasma treatment and the effect on ageing and adhesion performances are presented in this paper. In particular, the influence of discharge power and distance from the glow discharge, and impact of antioxidant molecules in the BR formulation were examined. To characterize the changes to the BR surface, XPS spectroscopy, contact angle measurements, AFM nanoindentation experiments and tack measurements were utilized. Oxidation and crosslinking were the main mechanisms observed on the polymer chains regardless of the plasma conditions used. Beyond a certain threshold of plasma energy (in our case, discharge power of ~60 W and exposure time of ~30 s), a steady state was reached irrespective of the distance from the glow discharge. The presence of antioxidant molecules considerably reduced crosslinking phenomena while maintaining oxidation processes on polymer chains and increasing the nitrogen content in the near surface region. The mechanisms responsible for these differences have been identified. Interestingly, the COOH/C=O ratio changed according to the balance between oxidation and crosslinking. The hydrophobic recovery rate was mainly driven by temperature-dependent dynamics and varied according to the degree of crosslinking in the surface region. It was found to be lower in air atmosphere in the presence of antioxidant molecules. Finally, the presence of antioxidant molecules in the BR formulation allowed the adhesion performances after plasma exposure to significantly increase.     

Changes in silicon elastomeric surface properties under stretching induced by three surface treatments

Poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) substrates are used in many applications where the substrates need to be elongated and various treatments are used to regulate their surface properties. In this article, we compare the effect of three of such treatments, namely, UV irradiation, water plasma, and plasma polymerization, both from a molecular and from a macroscopic point of view. We focus our attention in particular on the behavior of the treated surfaces under mechanical stretching. UV irradiation induces the substitution of methyl groups by hydroxyl and acid groups, water plasma leads to a silicate-like layer, and plasma polymerization causes the formation of an organic thin film with a major content of anhydride and acid groups. Stretching induces cracks on the surface both for silicate-like layers and for plasma polymer thin coatings. This is not the case for the UV irradiated PDMS substrates. We then analyzed the chemical composition of these cracks. In the case of water plasma, the cracks reveal native PDMS. In the case of plasma polymerization, the cracks reveal modified PDMS. The contact angles of plasma polymer and UV treated surfaces vary only very slightly under stretching, whereas large variations are observed for water plasma treatments. The small variation in the contact angle values observed on the plasma polymer thin film under stretching even when cracks appear on the surface are explained by the specific chemistry of the PDMS in the cracks. We find that it is very different from native PDMS and that its structure is somewhere between Si(O2) and Si(O3). This is, to our knowledge, the first study where different surface treatments of PDMS are compared for films under stretching.     

High precision delta(17)O isotope measurements of oxygen from silicates and other oxides: method and applications

The use of infrared laser-assisted fluorination to release oxygen from milligram quantities of silicates or other oxide mineral grains is a well-established technique. However, relatively few studies have reported the optimisation of this procedure for oxygen-17 isotope measurements. We describe here details of an analytical system using infrared (10 μm) laser-assisted fluorination, in conjunction with a dual inlet mass spectrometer of high resolving power ( approximately 250) to provide (17)O and (18)O oxygen isotope measurements from 0.5-2 mg of silicates or other oxide mineral grains. Respective precisions (1) of typically 0.08 and 0.04 per thousand are obtained for the complete analytical procedure. Departures from the mass-dependent oxygen isotope fractionation line are quantified by Delta(17)O; our precision (1) of such measurements on individual samples is shown to be +/-0.024 per thousand. In turn, this permits the offset between parallel, mass-dependent fractionation lines to be characterised to substantially greater precision than has been possible hitherto. Application of this system to investigate the (17)O versus (18)O relationship for numerous terrestrial whole-rock and mineral samples, of diverse geological origins and age, indicates that the complete data set may be described by a single, mass-dependent fractionation line of slope 0.5244+/- 0.00038 (standard error). Copyright 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Copper and iron interactions with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors. A study by fast-atom bombardment tandem mass spectrometry

Fast atom bombardment, combined with high-energy collision-induced tandem mass spectrometry, has been used to investigate gas-phase metal-ion interactions with captopril, enalaprilat and lisinopril, all angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors.Suggestions for the location of metal-binding sites are presented. For captopril, metal binding occurs most likely at both the sulphur and the nitrogen atom. For enalaprilat and lisinopril, binding preferably occurs at the amine nitrogen. Copyright 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Über Umlagerungen bei der Cyclialkylierung von Arylpentanolen zu 2,3‐Dihydro‐1H‐inden‐Derivaten, 1. Mitteilung

On Rearrangements by Cyclialkylations of Arylpentanols to 2,3‐Dihydro‐1 H ‐indene Derivatives. Part 1. An Unexpected Rearrangement by the Acid‐Catalyzed Cyclialkylation of 4‐(2‐Chlorophenyl)‐2,4‐dimethyl pentan‐2‐ol under Formation of trans ‐4‐Chloro‐2,3‐dihydro‐1,1,2,3‐tetramethyl‐1 H ‐indene The acid‐catalyzed cyclialkylation of 2,4‐dimethyl‐4‐phenylpentan‐2‐ol led exclusively to the expected product, 2,3‐dihydro‐1,1,3,3‐tetramethyl‐1H‐indene. However, analogous cyclialkylation of 4‐(2‐chlorophenyl)‐2,4‐dimethylpentan‐2‐ol ( 1 ) gave a ca. 1 : 1 mixture of 4‐chloro‐2,3‐dihydro‐1,1,3,3‐tetramethyl‐1H‐indene ( 2 ) and of trans‐4‐chloro‐2,3‐dihydro‐1,1,2,3‐tetramethyl‐1H‐indene ( 3 ; Scheme 1). The specific action of the Cl substituent is investigated and a mechanism for this unexpected frame‐work transposition proposed.