Influence of acid treatment on structure of clinoptilolite tuff and its adsorption of methane

This study presents the results of the methane adsorption properties of clinoptilolite tuff from Bigadic, Turkey and that of acid treated forms at 273 and 293 K up to 100 kPa using volumetric apparatus. In order to assess changes in structural and gas adsorption properties of clinoptilolite, zeolite sample was treated with acid solutions of varying concentrations (0.1, 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 M) at 70 °C during 3 h. Structural and thermal characterization of natural and acid treated clinoptilolite samples were carried out using a combination of techniques such as X-ray diffraction, X-ray fluorescence, thermogravimetric, differential thermal analysis and nitrogen adsorption methods. At both temperatures, uptake of methane (CH₄) increased in the following order: CLN < CLN-H2 < CLN-H1 < CLN-H05 < CLN-H01. CH₄ adsorption capacities of the original and acid treated clinoptilolites were found in the range of 0.476–0.910 mmol/g and 0.398–0.691 mmol/g at 273 and 293 K, respectively.     

Investigation of heat transfer by means of pool film boiling on vertical cylinders in gravity

In this study, the heat transfer by means of pool film boiling on immersed vertical cylindrical rods was investigated. For this purpose, the rods with various dimensions, which have been heated up to 600°C, were immersed in a pure water pool in the different temperatures. The centre temperature and water temperature versus operation time were measured by K type thermocouples at the atmospheric pressure. After experimental studies, the surface temperatures of rods and heat transfer coefficients were calculated by means of Lumped method from the measured temperatures. Consequently, an empirical equation was developed between the Nusselt, Grashof, Prandtl and Jakob numbers. The experimental results showed that the specimens having the same characteristic lengths exhibited the same heat transfers performance although the specimen’s diameters and lengths differed considerably.     

Two-dimensional transient dynamic response of orthotropic layered media

In this study, two-dimensional transient dynamic response of orthotropic plane layered media is investigated. The plane multilayered media consist of N different generally orthotropic, homogeneous and linearly elastic layers with different ply angles. In the generally orthotropic layer, representing a ply reinforced by unidirectional fibers with an arbitrary orientation angle, the principal material directions do not coincide with body coordinate axes. The solution is obtained by employing a numerical technique which combines the use of Fourier transform with the method of characteristics. The numerical results are displayed in curves denoting the variations of stress and displacement components with time at different locations. These curves clearly reveal, in wave profiles, the scattering effects caused by the reflections and refractions of waves at the boundaries and at the interfaces of the layers, and also the effects of anisotropy caused by fiber orientation angle. The curves properly predict the sharp variations in the response at the neighborhood of the wave fronts, which shows the power of the numerical technique employed in the study. By suitably adjusting the elastic constants, the results for multilayered media with transversely isotropic layers, or layers with cubic symmetry, or isotropic layers can easily be obtained from the general formulation. Furthermore, solutions for some special cases, including Lamb’s problem for an elastic half-space, are obtained and compared with the available solutions in the literature and very good agreement is found. Preliminary version presented at the Second International Congress on Mechatronics (MECH2K3), Graz, Austria, July 14-17, 2003.     

Influence of biological media on the structure and behavior of ferrocene-containing cationic lipid/DNA complexes used for DNA delivery

Biological media affect the physicochemical properties of cationic lipid-DNA complexes (lipoplexes) and can influence their ability to transfect cells. To develop new lipids for efficient DNA delivery, the influence of serum-containing media on the structures and properties of the resulting lipoplexes must be understood. To date, however, a clear and general picture of how serum-containing media influences the structures of lipoplexes has not been established. Some studies suggest that serum can disintegrate lipoplexes formed using certain types of cationic lipids, resulting in the inhibition of transfection. Other studies have demonstrated that lipoplexes formulated from other lipids are stable in the presence of serum and are able to transfect cells efficiently. In this article, we describe the influence of serum-containing media on lipoplexes formed using the redox-active cationic lipid bis(n-ferrocenylundecyl)dimethylammonium bromide (BFDMA). This lipoplex system promotes markedly decreased levels of transgene expression in COS-7 cells as serum concentrations are increased from 0 to 2, 5, 10, and 50% (v/v). To understand the cause of this decrease in transfection efficiency, we used cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM) and measurements of zeta potential to characterize lipoplexes in cell culture media supplemented with 0, 2, 5, 10, and 50% serum. Cryo-TEM revealed that in serum-free media BFDMA lipoplexes form onionlike, multilamellar nanostructures. However, the presence of serum in the media caused disassociation of the intact multilamellar lipoplexes. At low serum concentrations (2 and 5%), DNA threads appeared to separate from the complex, leaving the nanostructure of the lipoplexes disrupted. At higher serum concentration (10%), disassociation increased and bundles of multilamellae were discharged from the main multilamellar complex. In contrast, lipoplexes characterized in serum-free aqueous salt (Li(2)SO(4)) medium and in OptiMEM cell culture medium (no serum) did not exhibit significant structural changes. The zeta potentials of lipoplexes in serum-free media (salt medium and cell culture medium) were similar (e.g., approximately -35 mV). Interestingly, the presence of serum caused the zeta potentials to become less negative (about -20 mV in OptiMEM and -10 mV in Li(2)SO(4)), even though serum contains negatively charged entities that have been demonstrated to lead to more negative zeta potentials in other lipoplex systems. The combined measurements of zeta potential and cryo-TEM are consistent with the proposition that DNA threads separate from the lipoplex in the presence of serum, resulting in a decrease in the net negative charge of the surface of the lipoplex.     

SERS-based sandwich immunoassay using antibody coated magnetic nanoparticles for Escherichia coli enumeration

A method combining immunomagnetic separation (IMS) and surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) was developed to enumerate Escherichia coli (E. coli). Gold-coated magnetic spherical nanoparticles were prepared by immobilizing biotin-labeled anti-E. coli antibodies onto avidin-coated magnetic nanoparticles and used in the separation and concentration of the E. coli cells. Raman labels have been constructed using rod shaped gold nanoparticles coated with 5,5-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB) and subsequently with a molecular recognizer. Then DTNB-labeled gold nanorods were interacted with gold-coated magnetic spherical nanoparticle-antibody-E. coli complex. The capture efficiency and calibration graphs were obtained and examined in different E. coli concentrations (10(1)-10(7) cfu mL(-1)). The correlation between the concentration of bacteria and SERS signal was found to be linear within the range of 10(1)-10(4) cfu mL(-1) (R(2) = 0.992). The limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) values of the developed method were found to be 8 and 24 cfu mL(-1), respectively. The selectivity of the developed immunoassay was examined with Enterobacter aerogenes, Enterobacter dissolvens, and Salmonella enteriditis which did not produce any significant response. The ability of the immunoassay to detect E. coli in real water samples was also investigated and the results were compared with the experimental results from plate-counting methods. There was no significant difference between the methods that were compared (p > 0.05). This method is rapid and sensitive to target organisms with a total analysis time of less than 70 min.     

An in-service primary teacher’s implementation of mathematical tasks: the case of length measurement and perimeter instruction

The purpose of this paper is to examine the cognitive demand levels of tasks used by an in-service primary teacher during length measurement and perimeter instruction and to examine a possible link between these tasks and the teacher’s mathematical knowledge in teaching. For this purpose, a case study approach was used and the data was drawn from classroom observations, semi-structured interviews, and field notes. Specific tasks from length measurement and perimeter instruction were presented and analyzed according to the Mathematical Tasks Framework. Then, how these tasks gave information about the teacher’s mathematical knowledge in teaching in the length measurement and perimeter topics was examined according to the Knowledge Quartet model. According to the findings of the study, the tasks used during length measurement and perimeter instruction were mostly categorized as low-level tasks. In addition, teacher’s mathematical knowledge in teaching affected the implementation of the tasks.     

Synthesis,crystal structure and biological activity of the nickel(II) complex of 2,6-diacetylpyridinedihydrazone

A complex of Ni^II with 2,6-diacetylpyridinedihydrazone (L) towards nickel(II) has been prepared and characterized by means of elemental analyses, IR, electronic spectra and single crystal X-ray analyses. [NiL₂](NO₃) was crystallized in the tetragonal space group P-4 21 c. The complex exhibits the expected coordination sphere with six nitrogen atoms coordinated to the central Ni^II with a deformation from pseudo-octahedral geometry. Antimicrobial activities of the ligand and its complex were investigated.     

Meta-heuristic approaches with memory and evolution for a multi-product production/distribution system design problem

We consider a multi-product two-stage production/distribution system design problem (PDSD) where a fixed number of capacitated distribution centers are to be located with respect to capacitated suppliers (plants) and retail locations (customers) while minimizing the total costs in the system. We present a mixed-integer problem formulation that facilitates the development of efficient heuristic procedures. We provide meta-heuristic procedures, including a population-based scatter search with path relinking and trajectory-based local and tabu search, for the solution of the problem. We also develop efficient construction heuristics and transshipment heuristics that are incorporated into the heuristic procedures for the solution of subproblems. We present extensive computational results that show the high performance of the solution approaches. We obtain smaller than 1.0% average optimality gaps with acceptable runtimes, even for relatively large problems. The computational results also demonstrate the effectiveness of the construction and transshipment heuristics that impact the solution quality and overall runtimes.