Initiation of localized shear bands in plane strain

This study is concerned with the initiation of localized shear bands in plane-strain tension and compression. A theoretical framework which views the initiation of such shear bands as a bifurcation phenomenon from a homogeneous equilibrium field in an elastic-plastic body is first briefly reviewed, and then the predictions of the theory are compared with some experimental observations on an aged maraging steel. The experiments support the physical relevance of the theory within the framework of continuum mechanics.Specifically, the comparison between theory and experiment is concerned with the critical strains to localization and the orientation of the shear bands relative to the load axis. The theoretical predictions are only in qualitative agreement with the experimental observations. A better agreement is obtained with use of the constitutive equations corresponding to the classical deformation theory (a simple vertex model) than with use of the constitutive equations of the classical flow theory. It is concluded that better constitutive equations for elastic-plastic materials are needed before theoretical predictions can be obtained which might be expected to be in closer quantitative accord with experiment.     

Base catalyzed multicomponent synthesis of spiroheterocycles with fused heterosystems

Structurally diverse spiroheterocycles incorporating medicinally privileged heterosystems have been synthesized by a simple and convenient synthesis involving triethylamine catalyzed multicomponent domino reaction of 2-aminobenzothiazoles with isatin and cyclic 1,3-diketones.     

Tunable optofluidic aperture configured by a liquid-core/liquid-cladding structure

Miniaturized and tunable optical components, such as the waveguide, lens, and prism, have been of great interest for lab-on-chip systems. This Letter reports an optofluidic aperture stop formed by the liquid-core/liquid-cladding flow. The aperture size can be tuned accordingly by adjusting the flow rates. Manipulation of the aperture size allows control of the amount of light passing through the corresponding optical system as well as the angular aperture on the image side. This optofluidic aperture enables lab-on-chip optical systems to have a greater flexibility and more functionalities.     

Interpreting axiomatic (decision) theory

A study is made of the use of axiomatic methods in theories of social phenomena.     

One-dimensional colloidal gold and silver nanostructures

One-dimensional (1-D) metallic nanoscale materials have long been of interest to many groups of scientists. Within the last 2 decades, great advances in the synthesis of metallic nanorods and nanowires have been made, with a variety of templating methods. More recently, bottom-up chemical syntheses of these materials have become increasingly reported in the literature. This Forum Article describes the synthesis, physical properties, and potential applications of 1-D metals, with an emphasis on silver and gold derived from studies in the authors' laboratories.     

Bioligninolysis: Recent Updates for Biotechnological Solution

Bioligninolysis involves living organisms and/or their products in degradation of lignin, which is highly resistant, plant-originated polymer having three-dimensional network of dimethoxylated (syringyl), monomethoxylated (guaiacyl), and non-methoxylated (p-hydroxyphenyl) phenylpropanoid and acetylated units. As a major repository of aromatic chemical structures on earth, lignin bears paramount significance for its removal owing to potential application of bioligninolytic systems in industrial production. Early reports illustrating the discovery and cloning of ligninolytic biocatalysts in fungi was truly a landmark in the field of enzymatic delignification. However, the enzymology for bacterial delignification is hitherto poorly understood. Moreover, the lignin-degrading bacterial genes are still unknown and need further exploration. This review deals with the current knowledge about ligninolytic enzyme families produced by fungi and bacteria, their mechanisms of action, and genetic regulation and reservations, which render them attractive candidates in biotechnological applications.     

Second harmonic generation in elastic surface waves on an isotropic solid

A procedure for solving the problem of non-linear propagation of elastic surface waves is given. An expression for the particle displacement of the second harmonic is obtained. It is shown that the amplitude of the harmonic increases linearly with distance and time and is proportional to the square of the amplitude of the fundamental frequency wave.     

Heptaphyrins: Expanded porphyrins with seven heterocyclic rings

Expanded porphyrins containing seven pyrrole/heterocyclic rings linked in a cyclic fashion are termed heptaphyrins. The number ofπ-electrons in heptaphyrins depends on the number ofmeso carbon bridges used to link the heterocyclic rings, accordingly heptaphyrins with 28π-electrons and 30π-electrons are reported to date. Both condensation reactions of the appropriate precursors and acid-catalysed oxidative coupling reactions have been utilized to synthesise the heptaphyrins. The 30π heptaphyrins exhibit rich structural diversity where some of the heterocyclic rings in the macrocycle undergo a 180° ring flipping. An overview of the synthetic methods employed for the synthesis of heptaphyrins, their spectroscopic properties, structural behaviour and aromatic properties are highlighted in this paper. Dedicated to Professor C N R Rao on his 70th birthday     

TDI CAMERA APPLICATION IN DYNAMIC PHOTOMECHANICS

Optical methods for dynamic stress analysis require fast recording of the fringe patterns representing the stress distribution. Various recording techniques exist using fast framing cameras and short light pulse systems.¹ In all of these techniques the wet film processing is tedious and time consuming. Manual data analysis from the fringe patterns is cumbersome. Also, optical processing of the photographs for extracting further information requires complicated optical hardware. Hence, there were efforts from researchers to record the patterns in computer memories. The software image processing methods ease the data analysis and contrast enhancement.^2,3 Here we report the use of a special type CCD camera for dynamic applications. Details of the CCD camera operation are discussed. Application of the camera for dynamic problems is illustrated by performing a simple experiment.