Analysis method of the angiotensin-I converting enzyme inhibitory activity based on micellar electrokinetic chromatography.

A micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) method was developed for estimating the angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory activity by separating the hippuric acid liberated in the ACE reaction mixture in the presence of an inhibitor, captopril. The hippuric acid was successfully separated and detected by MEKC with a 25 mM sodium dodecyl sulfate solution in a 25 mM phosphate-50 mM borate buffer at pH 7.0; the total analysis took about 5 min. A good linear relationship was observed between the inhibitor and the peak area of hippuric acid release. No significant difference in the ACE inhibitory activity (IC50) of captopril (an antihypertensive medicine) or autolyzed-mushrooms (functional foods) was observed between the conventional method and the MEKC method. The MEKC method was found to be a useful technique for a rapid assay of the ACE inhibitory activity.     

Investigations of low- and high-spin states of <Superscript>132</Superscript>La

The fusion evaporation reaction ¹²²Sn(¹⁴N, 4n)¹³²La was used to populate the high-spin states of ¹³²La at the beam energy of 60 MeV. A new band consisting of mostly E2 transitions has been discovered. This band has the interesting links to the ground state 2^- and the isomeric state 6^-. A new transition of energy 351 keV connecting the low-spin states of the positive-parity band based on the πh _11/2 ⊗ νh _11/2 particle configuration, has been found. This has played a very important role in resolving the existing ambiguities and inconsistencies in the spin assignment of the band head. Received: 12 August 2002 / Accepted: 18 March 2003 / Published online: 7 May 2003     

Spectral features of laser induced plasma from YBa2Cu3O7 and GdBa2Cu3O7 highT c superconductors

Laser induced plasma emission spectra from highT _c superconducting samples of YBa₂Cu₃O₇ and GdBa₂Cu₃O₇ obtained with 1.06μm radiation from a Q switched Nd:YAG laser beam has been analysed. The results clearly show the presence of diatomic oxides in addition to ionized species of the constituent metals in the plasma thus produced.     

In-Situ Intrinsic Interface Strength Measurement at Elevated Temperatures and its Relationship to Interfacial Structure

A previously developed laser spallation technique has been modified to measure the tensile strength of thin film interfaces in-situ at temperatures up to 1100°C. Tensile strengths of Nb/A-plane sapphire, FeCrAl/A-plane sapphire and FeCrAlY/A-plane sapphire were measured up to 950°C. The measured strengths at high temperatures were substantially lower compared with their corresponding strengths at ambient temperature. For example, at 850°C, the interface tensile strength for the Nb/sapphire (151 ± 17 MPa), FeCrAl/sapphire (62 ± 8 MPa) and FeCrAlY/sapphire (82 ± 11 MPa) interface systems were lower by factors of approximately, 3, 5, and 8, respectively, over their corresponding ambient values. These results underscore the importance of using such in-situ measured values under operating conditions as the failure criterion in any life prediction or reliability models of such coated systems where local interface temperature excursions are expected. The results on alloy film interfaces also demonstrate that the presence of Y increases the strength of FeCrAl/Al₂O₃ interfaces.     

Vanadium(III) chloride catalyzed Biginelli condensation: solution phase library generation of dihydropyrimidin-(2H)-ones

The three component condensation of an aldehyde, a β-keto ester and urea (thiourea) in the presence of a catalytic amount of VCl₃ is disclosed for the solution phase synthesis of dihydropyrimidinones. The ease of synthesis and work-up allowed the parallel synthesis of a 48-membered library of dihydropyrimidinones quickly and efficiently in good yields.     

A numerical and experimental investigation of the interactions between a non‐uniform planar array of incompressible free jets

The interaction between multiple incompressible air jets has been studied numerically and experimentally. The numerical predictions have been first validated using experimental data for a single jet configuration. The spreading features of five unequal jets in the configuration of one larger central jet surrounded by four smaller equi‐distant jets, have been studied, for different lateral spacing ratios of 1.5, 2.0 and 2.5 and a central jet Reynolds number of 1.24×105 (corresponding to a Mach number of 0.16). Flow of five equal jets has also been simulated, for the sake of comparison. The jet interactions commence at an axial distance of about 3–4 diameters and complete by an axial distance of about 10 diameters for the lowest spacing ratio of 1.5. For larger spacing ratios, the length required for the start and completion of jet interaction increase. Peripheral jets bend more towards the central jet and merge at a smaller distance, when their sizes are smaller than that of the central jet. The entrainment ratio for multiple jets is higher than that for a single jet. Excellent agreement is observed between the experimental data and theoretical predictions for both mean flow field and turbulent quantities, at regions away from the jet inlet. The potential core length and initial jet development, however, are not predicted very accurately due to differences in the assumed and actual velocity profiles at the jet inlet. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Highly strained InxGa(1−x)As−InyAl(1−y)As (x>0.8,y<0.3) layers for short wavelength QWIP and QCL structures grown by MBE

Highly strained quantum cascade laser (QCL) and quantum well infrared photodetector (QWIPs) structures based on In_xGa_(1−x)As−In_yAl_(1−y)As (x>0.8,y<0.3) layers have been grown by molecular beam epitaxy. Conditions of exact stoichiometric growth were used at a temperature of 420°C to produce structures that are suitable for both emission and detection in the 2–5 μm mid-infrared regime. High structural integrity, as assessed by double crystal X-ray diffraction, room temperature photoluminescence and electrical characteristics were observed. Strong room temperature intersubband absorption in highly tensile strained and strain-compensated In_0.84Ga_0.16As/AlAs/In_0.52Al_0.48As double barrier quantum wells grown on InP substrates is demonstrated. Γ–Γ intersubband transitions have been observed across a wide range of the mid-infrared spectrum (2–7 μm) in three structures of differing In_0.84Ga_0.16As well width (30, 45, and 80 Å). We demonstrate short-wavelength IR, intersubband operation in both detection and emission for application in QC and QWIP structures. By pushing the InGaAs–InAlAs system to its ultimate limit, we have obtained the highest band offsets that are theoretically possible in this system both for the Γ–Γ bands and the Γ–X bands, thereby opening up the way for both high power and high efficiency coupled with short-wavelength operation at room temperature. The versatility of this material system and technique in covering a wide range of the infrared spectrum is thus demonstrated.     

TSL and EPR studies of SrBPO5 doped with CeO2and co-doped with CeO2 and Sm2O3

Thermally stimulated luminescence (TSL) and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) investigations were carried out on gamma irradiated SrBPO₅ samples doped with CeO₂ and co-doped with CeO₂ and Sm₂O₃. On gamma-irradiation at room temperature, BO₃ ^2–, O₂ ^– and O^– radicals were produced. It was seen that the O^– radical ion disappeared in the sample annealed at 500 K. It is proposed that the recombination between trapped electrons and O^– radical ions results in transfer of recombination energy to the impurity centre Ce³⁺ resulting in TSL glow peak at 485 K. In the case of co-doped samples energy transfer occurs between Ce³⁺ to Sm³⁺ resulting in increase in the intensity of glow peak at 485 K.The authors are grateful to Dr. V. K. Manchanda, Head, Radiochemistry Division, BARC for his keen interest and encouragement during the course of this work.     

New liquid‐crystalline poly(ester amide)s: The role of nitro groups in the phase behavior

New hydrogen‐bonded liquid‐crystalline poly(ester amide)s (PEA)s were obtained from 1,4‐terephthaloyl[bis‐(3‐nitro‐N‐anthranilic acid)] (5) or 1,4‐terephthaloyl[bis‐(N‐anthranilic acid)] (6), with or without nitro groups, respectively, through the separate condensation of each with hydroquinone or dihydroxynaphthalene. The dicarboxylic monomers were synthesized from 2‐aminobenzoic acid. The phase behavior of the monomers and polymers were studied with differential scanning calorimetry, polarized light microscopy, and wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction methods. Monomer 5, containing nitro groups, exhibited a smectic liquid‐crystalline phase, whereas the texture of monomer 6 without nitro groups appeared to be nematic. The PEAs containing nitro groups exhibited polymorphism (smectic and nematic), whereas those without nitro groups exhibited only one phase transition (a nematic threaded texture). The changes occurring in the phase behavior of the polymers were explained by the introduction of nitro groups. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 1289–1298, 2004