Structural change of water by gelation of curdlan suspension

Phase transition of water restrained by curdlan suspension annealed at a temperature from 20 to 110°C was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The melting temperature of water restrained by annealed curdlan discontinuously decreased at around 60°C, while the amount of bound water calculated from enthalpy of melting increased at 60°C, regardless of water content. Using a highly sensitive DSC, curdlan suspension with various concentrations was studied. It was found that an endothermic transition was observed at ca. 58°C in a wide range of concentrations. The transition observed at 60°C is thermo-reversible and both temperature and transition enthalpy are constant even after gel formation. Well equilibrated suspension at a temperature lower than 60°C formed no gel.     

Water-Nafion equilibria. absence of Schroeder's paradox

Water-Nafion phase equilibria and proton conductivities were measured in two ways. First, Nafion was in contact with saturated water vapor. Second, Nafion was in contact with liquid water at the same temperature. At 29 degrees C, for preboiled, vapor-equilibrated Nafion exposed to water with an activity = 1 and air pressures ranging from 0 to 0.96 bar, the water content was lambda = 23 +/- 1 mol H(2)O/mol SO3-. For the preboiled, liquid-equilibrated membrane, lambda = 24 +/- 2. At 100% relative humidity (RH), the water content of preboiled Nafion decreased as the temperature rose from 30 to 80 degrees C but did not recover its initial water content when the temperature returned to 30 degrees C. The water content of predried Nafion at 1 atm and 30 degrees C was lambda = 13.7 +/- 0.2 when vapor-equilibrated and lambda = 13.1 +/- 0.5 when liquid-equilibrated. A Nafion membrane originally boiled in water had much higher liquid- and 100% RH vapor-equilibrated proton conductivities than the same membrane originally dried at 110 degrees C with a RH less than 2%. The liquid-equilibrated and 100% RH vapor-equilibrated membrane conductivities were the same when the membrane had the same thermal history. The conductivity data was fit to a model, and the water content was determined at different temperatures. The predried membrane water content increased with temperature, and the preboiled membrane's water content changed slightly with temperature. Both water sorption and proton-conductivity data do not exhibit Schroeder's paradox. These studies and previous results suggest that Schroeder's paradox is resolved when attention is given to the thermal history of the absorbing polymer.     

Mechanism of freezing of water in contact with mesoporous silicas MCM-41, SBA-15 and SBA-16: role of boundary water of pore outlets in freezing

The freezing mechanism of water contacted with mesoporous silicas with uniform pore shapes, both cylindrical and cagelike, was studied by thermodynamic and structural analyses with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) together with adsorption measurements. In the DSC data extra exothermic peaks were found at around 230 K for water confined in SBA-15, in addition to that due to the freezing of pore water. These peaks are most likely to be ascribed to the freezing of water present over the micropore and/or mesopore outlets of coronas in SBA-15. Freezing of water confined in SBA-16 was systematically analysed by DSC with changing the pore size. The freezing temperature was found to be around 232 K, close to the homogeneous nucleation temperature of bulk water, independent of the pore size when the pore diameter (d) < 7.0 nm. Water confined in the cagelike pores of SBA-16 is probably surrounded by a water layer (boundary water) at the outlets of channels to interconnect the pores and of fine corona-like pores, which is similar to that present at the outlet of cylindrical pores in MCM-41 and of cylindrical channels in SBA-15. The presence of the boundary water would be a key for water in SBA-16 to freeze at the homogeneous nucleation temperature. This phenomenon is similar to those well known for water droplets in oil and water droplets of clouds in the sky. The XRD data showed that the cubic ice I(c) was formed in SBA-16 as previously found in SBA-15 when d < 8.0 nm.     

水合物生成条件下甲烷在水中的吸附

采用悬滴法系统地测定了温度274.2 ~ 282.2 K、压力0.1 ~ 10.1 MPa下甲烷/纯水间界面张力。实验结果表明在恒定温度下界面张力随压力的增加而增大。在高压条件下,压力对界面张力有很大的影响。不同温度和压力下计算出的甲烷在水中的表面过剩浓度结果表明,压力越高,温度越低,甲烷在水溶液中的吸附浓度越高。同时,计算出的甲烷在水溶液中的表面吸附自由能结果表明,在水合物生成条件下,甲烷在水中的吸附比298.2 K更容易。     

Study of process parameters for starch,gluten, and glycerol mixtures

This work involved a study of the effect of processing variables (temperature, water content, rotor speed, and time) on the mechanical properties of starch:gluten:glycerol mixtures in the weight ratio of 40:40:20. The properties of the materials were affected by the processing variables. The torque decreased with water content, indicating that water facilitates the plasticization of mixtures, whereas the increase in temperature accelerated the evaporation of water, thus increasing the torque. Ultimate tensile strength was achieved at the lowest temperature (110°C) and the highest water content (20%), whereas maximum elongation was achieved for the material processed at the highest temperature, 150°C, and the fastest rotor speed, 70 rpm. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of Surfactant Concentration and Operating Temperature on the Drop Size Distribution of Silicon Oil Water Dispersion

The effect of sodium lauryl sulphate (SLES) surfactant and the operating temperature on the drop size distribution of a 350 cSt Dow Corning 200 series oil water dispersion was successfully studied. The dispersion was prepared in a standard 6 litres mixing tank at different impeller speeds. A measurement of the SLES critical micelle concentration (CMC) at 25°C was carried out. The interfacial tension of silicon oil water under various SLES concentration at a temperature range of 25 to 80°C was accomplished. Results showed that the interfacial tension of the silicon oil water decreased as the operating temperature increased and as the surfactant concentration increased. When the operating temperature was increased at the highest SLES concentration tested, a decrease of d ₃₂ was observed. This was attributed to the possibility of hydration of the surfactant at high temperature. Same behavior was observed when measuring the drop size distribution at constant temperature but different SLES concentration. It was found that the mean drop size decreases with mixing time. Different slopes of the change of the median drop size with time were obtained for different SLES concentration. For the same concentration, the slope changes after 1 hour. The degree change of the slope is due to the change of interfacial area of the oil water as mixing time elapsed and the depletion of the surfactant concentration.     

Water-carbon dioxide mixtures at high temperatures and pressures: local order in the water rich phase investigated by vibrational spectroscopy

Raman scattering combined with near- and mid-infrared absorption spectroscopies was used to investigate the evolution of the local order in the water rich phase of water-CO(2) mixtures under isobaric heating (T=40-360 degrees C, P=250 bars). The quantitative analysis of the spectra shows that tetramers and larger oligomers are the main constituents of water at moderate temperatures below 80 degrees C. As the temperature increases, the dimer and trimer concentrations considerably increase at the expense of larger oligomers. Finally, water dimers are predominant at the highest temperature investigated close to the temperature of total miscibility of the mixture (T=366 degrees C, P=250 bars). This result is consistent with our previous investigation [R. Oparin T. Tassaing, Y. Danten, and M. Besnard, J. Chem. Phys. 120, 10691 (2004)] on water dissolved in the CO(2) rich phase where we found that close to the temperature of total miscibility water also exists mainly under dimeric form. The current study combined with that mentioned above provides a model investigation of the evolution of the state of aggregation of water molecules in binary mixture involving a hydrophobic solvent in a wide range of temperature.     

Water flow in poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) gels

Friction between a polymer network of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) gels and solvent water was investigated. The gel was mechanically constrained in a glass capillary at gelation, and hydrostatic pressure was directly applied to the cross section of the cylinder. The temperature dependence of the flow velocity was extensively measured in the vicinity of the transition temperature for gels with different lengths, l(0), at gelation. As the temperature increased, the friction slightly decreased at the transition point and increased rapidly in the collapsed phase. Although the flow velocity depended on l(0), the friction in the vicinity of the transition point was well scaled by l(0) based on the Hagen-Poiseuille equation for the flux of water flow in a capillary. The results suggested that the assumption that the gel is a bundle of microcapillaries was applicable to the water flow through the hydrogel, which was largely deformed not only by the pressure applied to the solvent but also by the shrinking force caused by the temperature increment. Macroscopic deformation did not affect the friction between the three-dimensional polymer network and water.     

采用流变学方法研究聚酰胺酸6FDA-TFDB溶液的降解行为

合成了一种聚酰胺酸6FDA-TFDB溶液,利用流变仪研究其在不同影响因素(如:温度、升温速率、溶剂含水量等)下的流变行为,发现聚酰胺酸溶液的降解在高温区和低温区存在不同的行为.通过Andrade公式获得不同条件下聚酰胺酸溶液的黏流活化能,并比较其差异,同时对溶剂水含量在不同温度区域下对聚酰胺酸降解速率的影响也进行了深入的分析,从而建立一种半定量比较不同条件下聚酰胺酸溶液降解速率的方法.     

Temperature-induced reversible morphological changes of polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) micelles in solution

Temperature-induced reversible morphological changes of polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) micelles with degrees of polymerization of 962 for the PS and 227 for the PEO blocks (PS962-b-PEO227) in N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF)/water, in which water is a selective solvent for the PEO block, were observed. For a system with 0.2 wt % copolymer concentration and 4.5 wt % water concentration in DMF/water, the micelle morphology observed in transmission electron microscopy changed from vesicles at room temperature to worm-like cylinders and then to spheres with increasing temperature. Mixed morphologies were also formed in the intermediate temperature regions. Cooling the system back to room temperature regenerated the vesicle morphology, indicating that the morphological changes were reversible. No hysteresis was observed in the morphological changes during heating and cooling. Dynamic light scattering revealed that the hydrodynamic radius of the micelles decreased with increasing temperature. Combined static and dynamic light scattering results supported the change in morphology with temperature. The critical micellization temperatures and critical morphological transition temperatures were determined by turbidity measurements and were found to be dependent on the copolymer and water concentrations in the DMF/water system. The morphological changes were only possible if the water concentration in the DMF/water system was low, or else the mobility of the PS blocks would be severely restricted. The driving force for these morphological changes was understood to be mainly a reduction in the free energy of the corona and a minor reduction in the free energy of the interface. Morphological observations at different time periods of isothermal experiments indicated that in the pathway from one equilibrium morphology to another, large compound micelles formed as an intermediate or metastable stage.     

纤维素中空纤维膜气体加湿性能的研究

采用纤维素N甲基吗啉N氧化物(NMMO)水三元纺丝体系,以去离子水为芯液,自来水为凝胶浴,湿法纺制了纤维素中空膜.经自然干燥后该膜的轴向、径向都明显收缩,断面呈现均质致密结构.干膜在水中会明显溶胀,重新润湿后具有气密性.考察了加湿水温、水气压力差等因素对膜的水渗透通量的影响,并初步测试了膜对质子交换膜燃料电池(PEMFC)反应气体H2和O2的加湿性能.实验结果表明该膜透水性能较优,气体加湿效果明显,具有应用于PEMFC反应气体加湿系统的潜力.     

Effect of temperature on the interfacial behavior of a polystyrene-b-poly(methyl methacrylate) diblock copolymer at the air/water interface

Monolayers of a polystyrene-poly(methyl methacrylate) (PS-PMMA) diblock copolymer at the air-water interface were studied by measuring the surface pressure-area isotherms at several temperatures. Langmuir film balance experiments and atomic force microscopy showed that the diblock copolymer molecules formed surface micelles. In the plot of the surface pressure versus surface area per repeating unit, the monolayer changed from the gas phase to the liquid expanded phase at lower surface pressure for systems at low temperature compared to those at high temperature. In addition, a plateau, corresponding to the transition from the liquid expanded to liquid condensed phase, appeared in that plot at lower surface pressure for systems with a higher subphase (water) temperature. Hysteresis was observed in the compression-expansion cycle process. Increasing the subphase temperature alleviated this hyteresis gap, especially at low surface pressures. The minimum in the plot of the surface pressure versus surface area per repeating unit in the expansion process (which arises from the transition) and the transition plateau appeared more vividly at higher water temperature. These dynamic experimental results show that PS-PMMA diblock copolymers, in which both blocks are insoluble in water, do not form complicated entanglements in two-dimensional space. Although higher water temperature provided more entropy to the chains, and thus more conformational freedom, it did not change the surface morphology of the condensed film because both blocks of PS-PMMA are insoluble in water.     

Rheological and DSC changes in poly(vinyl alcohol) gels induced by immersion in water

Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) gels were prepared by freezing and thawing aqueous solutions at temperatures from ?20 to 15°C. The temperature was varied periodically by use of a computer. The endothermic DSC peak was observed for the PVA gels at about 60°C for five specimens of different degrees of saponification (DS). Another endothermic peak was also observed in the range 67–80°C, and this peak shifted to higher temperature with increasing DS. These endothermic peaks shifted to lower temperature on immersion of the PVA gels in water. The dynamic Young's modulus E′ at room temperature was also decreased by immersion of PVA gels in water; E′ decreased monotonically with increasing temperature for PVA gels without immersion in water, while it increased up to a certain temperature and then decreased with increasing temperature for PVA gels in water. The X-ray diffraction showed a characteristic crystalline pattern for PVA gels of higher DS, and this peak was intensified by stretching the gel.     

Transient hydroxyl formation from water on oxygen-covered Au(111)

We present evidence for the formation of transient hydroxyls from the reaction of water with atomic oxygen on Au(111) and investigate the effect of adsorbed oxygen on the hydrogen bonding of water. Water is evolved in peaks at 175 and 195 K in temperature programed reaction experiments following adsorption of water on oxygen-covered Au(111). The peak at 175 K is ascribed to sublimation of multilayers of water, whereas the peak at 195 K is associated with oxygen-stabilized water or a water-hydroxyl surface complex. Infrared reflection absorption spectra are consistent with the presence of molecular water over the entire range of coverages studied, indicating that isolated stable hydroxyls are not formed. Isotopic exchange of adsorbed (16)O with H(2)(18)O following adsorption and subsequent temperature programed reaction, however, indicates that transient OH species are formed. The extent of oxygen exchange was considerable--up to 70%. The degree of oxygen exchange depends on the initial coverage of oxygen, the surface temperature when preparing oxygen adatoms, and the H(2)(18)O coverage. The hydroxyls are short-lived, forming and disproportionating multiple times before water desorption during temperature programed reaction. It was also found that chemisorbed oxygen is critical in the formation of hydroxyls and stabilizing water, whereas gold oxide does not contribute to these effects. These results identify transient hydroxyls as species that could play a critical role in oxidative chemical reactions on gold, especially in ambient water vapor. The crystallinity of adsorbed water also depended on the degree of surface ordering and chemical modification based on scanning tunneling microscopy and infrared spectra. These results demonstrate that oxidation of interfaces has a major impact on their interaction with water.     

Dynamics of water in partially crystallized polymer/water mixtures studied by dielectric spectroscopy

The dielectric relaxation process of water was investigated for polymer/water mixtures containing poly(vinyl methyl ether), poly(ethyleneimine), poly(vinyl alcohol), and poly(vinylpyrrolidone) with a polymer concentration of up to 40 wt % at frequencies between 10 MHz and 10 GHz in subzero temperatures down to -55 degrees C. These polymer/water mixtures have a crystallization temperature TC of water at -10 to -2 degrees C. Below TC, part of the water crystallized and another part of the water, uncrystallized water (UCW), remained in a liquid state with the polymer in an uncrystallized phase. The dielectric relaxation process of UCW was observed, and reliable dielectric relaxation parameters of UCW were obtained at temperatures of -26 to -2 degrees C. At TC, the relaxation strength, relaxation time, and relaxation time distribution change abruptly, and their subsequent changes with decreasing temperature are larger than those above TC. The relaxation strength of UCW decreases, and the relaxation time and dynamic heterogeneity (distribution of relaxation time) increase with decreasing temperature. These large temperature dependences below TC can be explained by the increase in polymer concentration in the uncrystallized phase C(p,UCP) with decreasing temperature. C(p,UCP) is independent of the initial polymer concentration. In contrast to the relaxation times above TC, which vary with the chemical structure of the polymer and its concentration, the relaxation times of UCW are independent of both of them. This indicates that the factor determining whether the water forms ice crystals or stays as UCW is the mobility of the water molecules.     

Study on the wettability of polyethylene film fabricated at lower temperature

Polyethylene films were prepared with phase separation at lower temperatures. The wettability of such films varied from hydrophobicity to superhydrophobicity as the processing temperature decreased owing to the increase of surface roughness. Storing the as-prepared films at subzero temperature (-15 °C), it was found that the water contact angle of the film decreased obviously, and the decrease depended on the corresponding roughness. Further keeping the as-prepared films at room temperature for 30 min, the water contact angle would return to the normal value, which indicated that the reversible switching of surface wettability can be controlled by the environmental temperature.     

Phase Transformation During the Heat Treatment of Sol-Gel Mullite

The mechanism of mullite formation depends upon the method of combining the silica and alumina-containing reactants. In this work, the effects of the processing variables (dilution, pH, gelling temperature and water content) on mullite formation were investigated. Monophasic gel was synthesized from aluminium nitrate nanohydrate dissolved in an absolute ethyl alcohol and silica sol mixture. The gelling was performed at room temperature and at 60°C. It was found experimentally that the temperature of mullite formation depends on the microstructure of the gel. The lowest temperature of mullite formation (970°C) was observed when the mullite gel was prepared at low pH (pH=1), low water content and high gelling temperature. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Factors affecting H2O absorption of the epoxy tetraglycidyl-4,4′-diaminodiphenyl methane cured with diaminodiphenyl sulfone

It was found that the amount of water absorbed at room temperature in cured tetraglycidyl-4,4′-diaminodiphenyl methane/diaminodiphenyl sulfone epoxy resins increases as the curing time or temperature increases while the amount of tetrahydrofuran-soluble extractables and the room temperature density decreases. These data suggest that the free volume increases with the extent of cure and the resins become more accessible to water. While the driving force for water absorption is the electrostatic attraction between water and the functional groups in the epoxy, the results suggest that equilibrium H₂O absorption is determined primarily by unoccupied volume of the epoxy resin.     

液态水的分子动力学模拟

用分子动力学(MD)模拟方法在150~376K的温度范围内对液态水的微正则系统进行了研究。考察了液态水的结构及其性质。模拟采用了由从头算得出的柔性水-水相互作用势MCYL。对时间和空间的平均得出了液态中水分子几何构型及温度改变所引起的液态水结构变化。对径向分布函数gOH, gOO, gHH及配位数的分析表明, 在所考察的温度范围内, 每个水分子与相邻分子形成的氢键数为2~3, 水分子在参与的2个氢键中同时作为授受体。结合对振动谱的研究表明在低温时液态水形成的网络结构可能随温度的升高而形成小的簇结构。