Directed flow from global symmetry and initial state Fluctuations

Collective flow is studied in a 3+1D fluid dynamical model with globally symmetric, peripheral initial conditions, taking into account the shear flow. At $\sqrt {s_{NN} } $ = 2.76 TeV in semi-peripheral Pb+Pb collisions this leads to rotation, while at more peripheral collisions with high resolution and low numerical viscosity, the initial development of a Kelvin-Helmholz instability is observed. This effect provides a precision tool for studying the viscosity of Quark-Gluon Plasma.     

The Socle and Semisimplicity of a Kumjian–Pask Algebra

The Kumjian–Pask algebra KP(Λ) is a graded algebra associated to a higher-rank graph Λ and is a generalization of the Leavitt path algebra of a directed graph. We analyze the minimal left ideals of KP(Λ), and identify its socle as a graded ideal by describing its generators in terms of a subset of vertices of the graph. We characterize when KP(Λ) is semisimple, and obtain a complete structure theorem for a semisimple Kumjian–Pask algebra. As a consequence of this structure theorem, every semisimple Kumjian–Pask algebra can be obtained as a Leavitt path algebra of a directed graph.     

Stable polymethacrylate nanocapsules from ultraviolet light-induced template radical polymerization of unilamellar liposomes

We employed UV-induced template polymerization to create hollow nanometer-sized polymer capsules. Homogeneous, unilamellar liposomes served as a two-dimensional template for the cross-linking of either butyl methacrylate or hydroxyethyl methacrylate with the bifunctional ethyleneglycol dimethacrylate. Different molar ratios of lipid/hydrophobic monomer/bifunctional monomer/photoinitiator were tested and dynamic light scattering revealed negligible changes of size at a defined molar ratio of 2/1/10/20, respectively. Cryo-transmission electron microscopy provided clear evidence that incorporation of the methacrylate monomers into and polymerization in the hydrophobic bilayer phase does not disrupt vesicle integrity. Moreover, after solubilization of the lipids, the polymethacrylate nanocapsules were stable at conditions needed for negative staining and could be visualized by atomic force microscopy. In contrast to previous findings, the nanocapsule size and shape did not change considerably after removal of the template phase, and the size distribution remained strictly monomodal. The employed method is not only an advance to fortify liposomes, but the nanocapsules themselves can be functionalized.     

A key step in the formation of acrylic acid from CO2 and ethylene: the transformation of a nickelalactone into a nickel-acrylate complex

The reaction of a nickelalactone with dppm, resulting in the formation of a stable binuclear Ni(I) complex with an acrylate, a Ph2P- and a dppm bridge, models a key step in the formation of acrylic acid from CO2 and ethylene.     

Kinetics and dynamics of the S(1D2) + H2 → SH + H reaction at very low temperatures and collision energies

We report combined studies on the prototypical S(1D2) + H2 insertion reaction. Kinetics and crossed-beam experiments are performed in experimental conditions approaching the cold energy regime, yielding absolute rate coefficients down to 5.8 K and relative integral cross sections to collision energies as low as 0.68 meV. They are supported by quantum calculations on a potential energy surface treating long-range interactions accurately. All results are consistent and the excitation function behavior is explained in terms of the cumulative contribution of various partial waves.     

Stacey Crossed Products Associated to Exel Systems

There are many different crossed products by an endomorphism of a C*-algebra, and constructions by Exel and Stacey have proved particularly useful. Here we consider Exel crossed products associated to transfer operators which extend to be unital on the multiplier algebra. We show that every Exel crossed product is isomorphic to a Stacey crossed product, though by a different endomorphism of a different C*-algebra. We apply this result to a variety of Exel systems, including those associated to shifts on the path spaces of directed graphs.     

Self-assembled molecular rafts at liquid|liquid interfaces for four-electron oxygen reduction

The self-assembly of the oppositely charged water-soluble porphyrins, cobalt tetramethylpyridinium porphyrin (CoTMPyP(4+)) and cobalt tetrasulphonatophenyl porphyrin (CoTPPS(4-)), at the interface with an organic solvent to form molecular "rafts", provides an excellent catalyst to perform the interfacial four-electron reduction of oxygen by lipophilic electron donors such as tetrathiafulvalene (TTF). The catalytic activity and selectivity of the self-assembled catalyst toward the four-electron pathway was found to be as good as that of the Pacman type cofacial cobalt porphyrins. The assembly has been characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy, Surface Second Harmonic Generation, and Scanning Electron Microscopy. Density functional theory calculations confirm the possibility of formation of the catalytic CoTMPyP(4+)/ CoTPPS(4-) complex and its capability to bind oxygen.     

Kinetic aspects of hollow fiber liquid-phase microextraction and electromembrane extraction

In this paper, extraction kinetics was investigated experimentally and theoretically in hollow fiber liquid-phase microextraction (HF-LPME) and electromembrane extraction (EME) with the basic drugs droperidol, haloperidol, nortriptyline, clomipramine, and clemastine as model analytes. In HF-LPME, the analytes were extracted by passive diffusion from an alkaline sample, through a (organic) supported liquid membrane (SLM) and into an acidic acceptor solution. In EME, the analytes were extracted by electrokinetic migration from an acidic sample, through the SLM, and into an acidic acceptor solution by application of an electrical potential across the SLM. In both HF-LPME and EME, the sample (donor solution) was found to be rapidly depleted for analyte. In HF-LPME, the mass transfer across the SLM was slow, and this was found to be the rate limiting step of HF-LPME. This finding is in contrast to earlier discussions in the literature suggesting that mass transfer across the boundary layer at the donor–SLM interface is the rate limiting step of HF-LPME. In EME, mass transfer across the SLM was much more rapid due to electrokinetic migration. Nevertheless, mass transfer across the SLM was rate limiting even in EME. Theoretical models were developed to describe the kinetics in HF-LPME, in agreement with the experimental findings. In HF-LPME, the extraction efficiency was found to be maintained even if pH in the donor solution was lowered from 10 to 7–8, which was below the pK_a-value for several of the analytes. Similarly, in EME, the extraction efficiency was found to be maintained even if pH in the donor solution increased from 4 to 11, which was above the pK_a-value for several of the analytes. The two latter experiments suggested that both techniques may be used to effectively extract analytes from samples in a broader pH range as compared to the pH range recommended in the literature.