Structural and nanomechanical properties of porous silicon: Cheap substrate for CMOS process industry

The surface topology of porous silicon (PSi) is a relevant parameter that decides the compatibility of such substrate with CMOS process. Using standard resistivity (1–10 Ω·cm) of Si substrate to fabricate PSi-S is a low cost solution for the industry. In this paper, through an atomic force microscopy (AFM) analysis, the root mean square (RMS) roughness, the power spectral density and the correlation length were determined for different PSi layers. Furthermore, the measured hardness, Young's modulus, and stress have been made for different thicknesses of PSi: 5, 10, 50, and 200 μm. The obtained results demonstrated that very interesting properties have been achieved with the 50 μm-thick PSi-S layer with a maximum porosity around 65%, a surface roughness less than 1 nm and a hardness value of (~1 GPa). The realized results encourage the utilization the PSi-based substrate into the industry process and thus the development of a Systems-on-Chip (SoC).     

Volatile oils from the plant and hairy root cultures of Ageratum conyzoides L

Two lines of hairy root culture of Ageratum conyzoides L. induced by Agrobacterium rhizogenes ATCC 15834 were established under either complete darkness or 16 h light/8 h dark photoperiod conditions. The volatile oil yields from aerial parts and roots of the parent plant, the hairy root culture photoperiod line and the hairy root culture dark line were 0.2%, 0.08%, 0.03% and 0.02%, (w/w), respectively. The compositions of the volatiles from the hairy roots, plant roots and aerial parts were analysed by GC and GC-MS. The main components of the volatiles from the hairy root cultures were β-farnesene, precocene I and β-caryophyllene, in different amounts, depending on light conditions and also on the age of cultures. Precocene I, β-farnesene, precocene II and β-caryophyllene were the main constituents of the volatile oils from the parent plant roots, whereas precocene I, germacrene D, β-caryophyllene and precocene II were the main constituents of the aerial parts of the parent plant. Growth and time-course studies of volatile constituents of the two hairy root lines were compared. Qualitative and quantitative differences were found between the volatile oils from the roots of the parent plant and those from the hairy roots.     

Comparative Baeyer-Villiger oxidation of cyclohexanone on Fe-pillared clays and iron tetrasulfophthalocyanine covalently supported on silica

The Baeyer-Villiger oxidation of cyclohexanone to caprolactone has been investigated at room temperature over AlFe-pillared clays, using oxygen as oxidant in the presence of benzaldehyde. A nearly complete conversion is observed with a selectivity into caprolactone above 80%. The observation of an induction period in the kinetics, of high activity of the non-pillared clay, and the detection of Fe traces in the reaction medium, suggest a process involving homogenous catalysis. The reaction is indeed catalysed in homogeneous phase by a few ppm of Fe. By contrast, iron phthalocyanine covalently supported on silica appears as a true heterogeneous catalyst, giving a selectivity above 95% to caprolactone at 61% conversion.     

Calibration transfer of near‐IR partial least squares property models of fuels using virtual standards

Partial least squares (PLS) models of 10 important jet and diesel fuel properties were built using spectra from a master near‐IR dispersive instrument and then subsequently transferred to a secondary dispersive instrument via a novel calibration transfer method using virtual standards and a slope‐bias correction. Implementation of the transfer requires that only seven spectra of neat solvents be acquired on the master and secondary instruments. The spectra of the neat solvents are then used to digitally replicate spectra from the calibration set to generate virtual standards. Comparison of PLS predictions for the master and secondary instrument virtual standards provides a simple but effective slope‐bias correction for transfer. The transferred fuel properties include American Petroleum Institute gravity, % aromatics, cetane index, flashpoint, hydrogen content, % saturates, and distillation temperatures at 10%, 20%, 50%, and 90% volume recovered. Transfer error was lower than using either the pure solvents with a slope‐bias correction or than using a piecewise direct standardization calibration transfer using fuel spectra. Transfer error was higher than when using actual fuels to transfer the calibration. The use of virtual standards eliminates the need to maintain either complex fuel standards or the master instrument for future instrument calibration transfers. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Modelling NASDAQ Series by Sparse Multifractional Brownian Motion

The objective of this paper is to compare the performance of different estimators of Hurst index for multifractional Brownian motion (mBm), namely, Generalized Quadratic Variation (GQV) Estimator, Wavelet Estimator and Linear Regression GQV Estimator. Both estimators are used in the real financial dataset Nasdaq time series from 1971 to the 3rd quarter of 2009. Firstly, we review definitions, properties and statistical studies of fractional Brownian motion (fBm) and mBm. Secondly, a numerical artifact is observed: when we estimate the time varying Hurst index H(t) for an mBm, sampling fluctuation gives the impression that H(t) is itself a stochastic process, even when H(t) is constant. To avoid this artifact, we introduce sparse modelling for mBm and apply it to Nasdaq time series.     

A Novel Curcumin Arginine Salt: A Solution for Poor Solubility and Potential Anticancer Activities

Curcumin is a natural polyphenolic compound with well-known anticancer properties. Poor solubility and permeability hamper its use as an anticancer pharmaceutical product. In this study, L-arginine, a basic amino acid and a small hydrophilic molecule, was utilized to form a salt with the weak acid curcumin to enhance its solubility and potentiate the anticancer activities of curcumin. Two methods were adopted for the preparation of curcumin: L-arginine salt, namely, physical mixing and coprecipitation. The ion pair or salt was characterized for docking, solubility, DSC, FTIR, XRD, in vitro dissolution, and anticancer activities using MCF7 cell lines. The molecular docking suggested a salt/ion-pair complex between curcumin and L-arginine. Curcumin solubility was increased 335- and 440-fold by curcumin in L-arginine, physical, and co-precipitated mixtures, respectively. Thermal and spectral analyses supported the molecular docking and formation of a salt/ion pair between curcumin and L-arginine. The cytotoxicity of curcumin L-arginine salt significantly improved (p < 0.05) by 1.4-fold, as evidenced by the calculated IC_50%, which was comparable to Taxol (the standard anticancer drug but with common side effects).     

Nanocrystalline MgO samples (11.5 and 12.6 nm) derived from two different precursors: characterization and catalytic activity

Decanoic acid/expanded graphite composite phase change materials (DA/EG-PCMs) with high stability and excellent thermal conductivity were fabricated by blending expanded graphite (EG) and decanoic acid (DA). The structure, thermo-physical properties, and the formation mechanism of DA/EG-PCMs were investigated. The obtained results demonstrate that EG exhibits a network-like porous structure, which is superimposed of 10–50 μm thick graphite sheet. Therefore, DA can be effectively encapsulated through the binding between micropores and the surface adsorption of EG resulting in a relatively smaller DA/EG-PCMs particle with better dispersibility. In addition, adding EG into DA also increased both the thermal stability and the thermal conductivity while decreasing the charging and discharging time, which resulted in improved thermal efficiencies. Although adding EG can negatively influence the phase change behavior of DA, the temperature and enthalpy of phase change were still as high as 34.9 °C and 153.1 J g^?1, respectively. Based on a combination of experimental results and a comprehensive analysis of the phase transformation kinetics, it is concluded that DA/EG-PCMs with 10 mass% EG with improved thermal properties can meet the requirements for efficient temperature control in low-to-medium environments.     

Influence of pH and cationic surfactant on stability and interfacial properties of Algerian bitumen emulsion

The influence of water pH and cationic surfactant content on the interfacial properties and stability of an Algerian bitumen aqueous emulsion were investigated. While the stability was quantified by both the test-bottle method and size distribution measurements, the interfacial properties of the water-bitumen interface were assessed using interfacial tension measurements. Optical microscopy was also used to visualise the dispersed water droplets in the oil phase. The results showed that addition of the cationic surfactant at a concentration of 25 mmol L^?1 in acidic water (pH 2) improves the bitumen emulsion stability and effectively decreases the interfacial tension.     

Electrochemical determination of Cd<Superscript>2+</Superscript> at a titanium electrode modified with a lead film by square wave anodic stripping voltammetry

The modified titanium electrode with lead film (PbTiE) was used for determination of trace levels of cadmium using square wave anodic stripping voltammetry (SWASV). The measurement of cadmium on the PbTiE has the best reply under the following conditions of PbTiE preparation: 10^–3 mol L^–1 Pb²⁺ in HCl (pH 1.0), deposition potential of–1.40 V vs. Ag/AgCl/KCl_sat and deposition time of 300 s. The PbTiE reveals highly linear behavior in the concentration range 5 × 10^–8 to 10^–6 mol L^–1, with a limit of detection of 2 × 10^–9 mol L^–1. Interference of nine ionic species was evaluated. The measurements were carried out without removing dissolved oxygen from the solution.