The ultrasound application does not affect to the thermal properties and chemical composition of virgin olive oils

In this work, the effects of high power ultrasound treatment (40 kHz) on virgin olive oil (VOO) for different times (0, 15, 30 min) were studied, in order to verify if extent modifications in their chemical composition and thermal properties. The effects of the different ultrasound treatments on VOOs were determined considering the following parameters: quality index (free acidity, K₂₃₂ and K₂₇₀), lipid profile (fatty acids and triglycerides composition) minor components (phenols, tocopherols, pigments and volatiles) and thermal properties (crystallization and melting) by Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC).During the ultrasound treatments, bubbles growth was present in the VOO due to the phenomenon of cavitation and a slight increase of the temperature was observed. In general, the ultrasound treatments did not cause alterations on VOO parameters evaluated (oxidation state, lipid profile, minor components and thermal profiles). However, a slight decrease was observed in some volatile compounds.     

Short-term exposure to a 1.5 tesla static magnetic field does not affect somato-sensory-evoked potentials in man

The literature is contradictory regarding the effect of static magnetic fields on the function of the central nervous system of mammals. Since human subjects are exposed to intense static magnetic fields during magnetic resonance imaging, it is important to determine if the static magnetic field adversely affects the nervous system of man. Therefore, somato-sensory evoked potentials (SEPs) elicited from median nerve stimulation were measured in 11 normal subjects before and during short-term exposure to a 1.5 Tesla static magnetic field. Specially modified instrumentation was used to record SEPs that were unperturbed by the static magnetic field. There were no statistically significant differences in the N20 or P25 latencies or in the amplitude from N20 negative peak to P25 positive peak of the SEPs obtained before compared to those recorded during exposure to the static magnetic field. In addition, there were no changes in the waveforms associated with exposure to the static magnetic field. We conclude that short-term exposure to a 1.5 Tesla static magnetic field does not affect SEPs (i.e., nerve conduction and synaptic transmission were within normal limits) in normal human subjects.     

On the coverage dependence of the surface diffusion constant

The coverage dependence of the surface diffusion constant (DC) of adsorbates is examined statistical-mechanically from the viewpoint of mutual interactions between adsorbates in the one-dimensional lattice gas model. The change in the DC with the coverage is found to become drastic near the half coverage due to the second nearest neighbor attractive interaction between adsorbates. Horiuti-Polanyi's rule concerning the crossing of potential curves does not lead to a large maximum of the DC in the middle range of the coverage.     

Sulci density map to aid in use of apparent diffusion coefficient for therapy evaluation

In order to more accurately asses variations in the apparent diffusion coefficient used for therapy evaluation, we have studied the variation in sulci density in the human brain. Sagittal, axial and coronal magnetic resonance imaging scans have been analyzed to determine the change of the coefficient of variance of pixel intensity as a function of position. In the sagittal direction, relative to the 50% most medial slices, we find an 11.0%+/-4.8% (S.D.) decrease in the next 25% (12.5% on each side) of the slices. The most lateral 25% of the slices had less of a decrease and more variation: 7.0%+/-12.2%. Similar variations were observed in axial and coronal scans.     

How to measure diffusion constant and absolute susceptibility of charge carriers at the same time

Multiple spin echos can be excited for spin-1/2 systems by two radiofrequency pulses with tipping angles unequal to 180°, if the absolute magnetization is sufficiently large. If a magnetic field gradient is applied, the attenuation of the primary echo reveals the diffusion constant of these spins, whereas the ratio of primary and secondary echo amplitudes indicates the absolute magnetic susceptibility of the resonating spins. This potentiality is examined here numerically and by application of nuclear magnetic resonance to liquid samples containing protons. We analyse the complications that have to be overcome, if this technique is used for the study of the charge and spin carriers in low-symmetry quasi-one-dimensional organic conductors. Reasonable accuracy is obtained for the parameters derived for the conduction electrons of perylene radical cation salts.     

Association between visual degeneration of intervertebral discs and the apparent diffusion coefficient

The value of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) measurements in intervertebral disc has been studied because ADC provides an estimate of free diffusion of unbound water and could be used as a quantitative tool to estimate degenerative changes. However, the challenging nature of diffusion imaging of spine and limited numbers of subjects in earlier studies has produced contradictory findings. We aimed to determine the relation between ADC and visual degenerative changes in lumbar intervertebral discs in a sufficiently large homogeneous study group. Lumbar spines of 228 volunteer middle-aged men were MR imaged at 1.5 T including anatomic and diffusion-weighted imaging. ADC values, T2 signal intensity and height, and width of the three lowest lumbar intervertebral discs were measured and disc degeneration visually graded. The calculated average ADC of 530 measured discs was 2.01×10⁻³ mm²/s±0.29 (±S.D.). The reduction in ADC between visually normal and moderately degenerated discs was 4%. Severely degenerated discs showed 5% larger ADC values than normal discs, presumably due to free water in cracks and fissures of those discs. T2 signal intensity of the disc was significantly correlated with the ADC values, whereas other measured parameters did not show correlation. There was no evident difference in ADC between the studied anatomic lumbar levels. Because there is considerable overlap between ADC values of normal and degenerated discs, we conclude that ADC measurements of intervertebral discs, at least with current technology, have limited clinical value.     

On the definition of a diffusion constant in a nonequilibrium system

A diffusion constant for electrons in a current-carrying semiconductor can be unambiguously defined in nearly uniform systems. For frequency-dependent density gradients it is $$D_{\alpha \beta } (\omega ) \equiv \int\limits_0^\infty {dt e^{i\omega t} \overline {\Delta \upsilon _\alpha (t)\Delta \upsilon _\beta (0),} } $$ where \(\overline {\Delta \upsilon _\alpha (t)\Delta \upsilon _\beta (0)} \) is the velocity correlation function with respect to the steady state in a bias field. This result has been elucidated in the relaxation approximation by different approaches to the diffusion problem. Essential for its derivation is a statistical independence assumption of space and velocities, and in order to get a classical diffusion law of Fick's type certain velocities have to be distributed according to the steady state in a bias field. Diffusion constant and noise temperature are discussed for a few band structures in the relaxation approximation.     

Exceptional reduction of the diffusion constant in partially disordered photonic crystals

In real photonic crystals light is scattered by the imperfections of the periodic potential. We study experimentally the propagation of diffused light in silicon inverse opals and report an exceptionally reduced diffusion constant of 3.0+/-0.7 m(2)/s, in samples which are only partially disordered. Waves scattered both by the lattice planes and by their imperfections interfere and light is efficiently trapped in this hybrid scattering regime. Not only higher quality crystals, but also random materials present an order of magnitude bigger diffusion constant and hence weaker scattering.     

Relationship between the diffusion rate constant and rate constant of triplet-triplet annihilation for porphyrins in liquid solutions

Institute of Molecular and Atomic Physics, Academy of Sciences of Belarus, 70. F. Skorina Ave., Minsk, 220072, Belarus. Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 63, No. 4, pp. 613–621, July–August, 1996.     

The density dependence of the diffusion constant in interacting lattice gases: Application to surface diffusion of 0 onW(110)

The influence of interactions between adsorbed particles on their diffusion constant is investigated by kinetic Ising models with independent nearest neighbour hops. This leads to expressions for the ratio of the diffusion constant at arbitrary coverage to its value at =0 as a function of the interaction energies relative to temperature. It is shown that under certain conditions this quantity obeys a particle-hole symmetry. Exact results in the whole range of densities are given in one dimension for nearest neighbour interaction. They already yield a qualitative agreement with experimental results and are also compared to corresponding numerical simulations. The introduction of a next nearest neighbour interaction is shown to produce drastic changes in the density dependence of the diffusion constant in some of the cases. A generalized quasichemical approximation and a virial expansion are made in two dimensions, leading to a better agreement with the measurements.     

The effect of impermeable boundaries of arbitrary geometry on the apparent diffusion coefficient

The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) obtained from NMR measurements is modelled for diffusion in a compartment restricted by an impermeable boundary. For a given pulse sequence, the ADC can be determined from the connected velocity autocorrelation function (the second-order velocity cumulant), which we show can be expressed as a double surface integral over the boundary, involving the probability for molecules to diffuse from one boundary point to another. There is no restriction on the geometry of the boundary. This result allows a fast calculation of the ADC for an arbitrary time course of the diffusion-sensitizing gradient. Explicit examples are given for diffusion within three basic geometries for different pulse sequences. The ADCs measured with the Stejskal-Tanner pulse sequence and a more realistic pulse sequence with slice selection gradient and eddy current compensation are found to yield almost identical results. The application of the results are discussed in relation to determination of the microscopic structure of brain white matter.     

Optimal least-squares estimators of the diffusion constant from a single Brownian trajectory

Modern developments in microscopy and image processing are revolutionising areas of physics, chemistry, and biology as nanoscale objects can be tracked with unprecedented accuracy. However, the price paid for having a direct visualisation of a single particle trajectory with high temporal and spatial resolution is a consequent lack of statistics. This naturally calls for reliable analytical tools which will allow one to extract the properties specific to a statistical ensemble from just a single trajectory. In this article we briefly survey different analytical methods currently used to determine the ensemble average diffusion coefficient from single particle data and then focus specifically on weighted least-squares estimators, seeking the weight functions for which such estimators are ergodic. Finally, we address the question of the effects of disorder on such estimators.     

Concentration dependence of the spin diffusion constant for a diluted Heisenberg magnet

The concentration dependence of the diffusion constant for a dilute isotropic Heisenberg magnet in the high temperature limit is examined in the cases of simple cubic, body-centered cubic and face-centered cubic lattices with nearest-neighbour exchange.     

Reasons for the difference between the rate constant of quenching of the triplet state and the diffusion rate constant of chlorophyll-like molecules

Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 50, No. 1, pp. 110–116, January, 1989.     

The Tail does not Determine the Size of the Giant

The size of the giant component in the configuration model, measured by the asymptotic fraction of vertices in the component, is given by a well-known expression involving the generating function of the degree distribution. In this note, we argue that the distribution over small degrees is more important for the size of the giant component than the precise distribution over very large degrees. In particular, the tail behavior of the degree distribution does not play the same crucial role for the size of the giant as it does for many other properties of the graph. Upper and lower bounds for the component size are derived for an arbitrary given distribution over small degrees \(d\le L\) and given expected degree, and numerical implementations show that these bounds are close already for small values of L. On the other hand, examples illustrate that, for a fixed degree tail, the component size can vary substantially depending on the distribution over small degrees.     

Solution of a diffusion equation of smoke molecules due to constant point source in gravitational field

From both the Langevin equation, including a gravitational term, the Fokker-Planck equation based on the dynamical behavior of Brownian particles, and equation of smoke molecular diffusion due to a constant point source is introduced and is solved by applying the Laplace transformation with the convolution theorem.The solution is expressed by the complementary error function with a mean pathway of smoke molecules affected by gravity and is proved to be reduced to conventional forms by a certain restriction neglecting gravity without any forced term.