Nano-electrochemical detection of hydrogen or protons using palladium nanoparticles: distinguishing surface and bulk hydrogen.

The benefits of using nanoparticle-modified electrodes are exemplified through the electrochemical detection of protons and/or hydrogen. It is shown that a palladium-nanoparticle-modified boron-doped diamond allows voltammetric information relating to the relative roles played by the surface and the bulk metal to be obtained for the proton-hydrogen system at palladium surfaces which is not accessible using palladium macroelectrodes or microelectrodes.     

Transport properties of polyphenylquinoxalines

The correlation between chemical structure and gas transport properties is considered for a new class of membrane materials based on structurally similar polyphenylquinoxalines that are characterized by different numbers of flexible-O-ether bonds in the repeating unit and different chain rigidities. Permeability, diffusion, and solubility coefficients have been estimated for the gases H₂, He, O₂, N₂, CO, CO₂, and CH₄; separation factors for various gas pairs have been determined. For the materials with a similar level of cohesive energy density, which characterizes interchain interactions, permeability decreases with a decrease in chain rigidity, whereas selectivity of gas separation increases.     

The effect of gamma irradiation and shelf aging in air on the oxidation of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene

This study has investigated the effect of shelf aging, for up to one year in air, on the properties of gamma-irradiated ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE). A variety of techniques were used to characterize the properties of treated samples. Differential scanning calorimetery (DSC) was used to characterize the morphology. The extent of cross-linking in a polymer network was detected by swelling measurements. The durometer hardness test was used to measure the relative hardness of this material, and changes in density were also measured. Results from all these measurements were combined to explain the changes in the microstructure of the aged, irradiated UHMWPE. This study shows that crystallinity is increased with radiation dose and with aging due to chain scission, which leads to a reduction in the molecular weight of the material. This allows the chains to rearrange to form crystalline regions. Positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy confirms these conclusions. Fractional free volumes have been deduced from lifetime parameters, which correlate with the data obtained by the other techniques.     

Influence of octupole interactions on the behavior of negative-parity states at low spins

The energies of negative-parity levels based on two-particle states exhibit a nonlinear behavior at low spins versus the core-rotation energy because the alignment process has not yet been completed for them. This behavior of negative-parity levels in the low-spin region is satisfactorily described upon the inclusion of octupole-octupole interactions. This is demonstrated within the rotational model involving the Coriolis mixing of states for the even-even isotopes ^162–168Hf.     

Propagation of a focused light beam in a circuital system of tunnel-coupled waveguides

The propagation of a pencil beam in a circuital system of tunnel-coupled waveguides is considered. It is shown that the beam periodically focuses into a point when moving along the trajectory. A maximal number of waveguides supporting the propagation of the beam can be estimated in simple terms. The cross-sectional area of the waveguides can be subdivided into three zone with the beam pulsing only in the central one.     

Structure of (Ba0.7Sr0.3)TiO3 films prepared by chemical solution deposition during crystallization on a sublayer

Barium strontium titanate (BST) films on Si-SiO₂-Ti-Pt substrates are prepared by chemical solution deposition upon crystallization on a sublayer. The structure of the BST films is investigated using transmission electron microscopy, high-resolution electron microscopy, and x-ray diffraction analysis.     

Nonlinear-optical and micro-Raman diagnostics of thin films and nanostructures of ABO3 ferroelectrics

Ferroelectric composite two-dimensional ferroelectric/aluminum oxide nanostructures were studied. A porous aluminum oxide matrix was used as a template into which a ferroelectric precursor was introduced, followed by annealing. The prepared nanostructures were studied using optical second harmonic generation and micro-Raman scattering.     

On the quantization of solid body rotation

A general method for solving the problem of quantization of a top is proposed that allows for finding the Hamiltonian eigenfunctions in the form of polynomials of various degree n in the Cartesian coordinates with the use of the Lamé functions. All three coordinates x, y, and z are equivalently involved in computations, as well as their relations with ellipsoidal coordinates, which makes the computations symmetric.     

Polymeric derivatives of dipterocarpol, a dammarane triterpenoid

Polymeric derivatives of dammarane triterpenoids with both labile and strong (covalent) polymer-triterpenoid bonds were prepared from N-vinylpyrrolidone copolymers.     

Electricity price forecasting through transfer function models

Forecasting electricity prices in presentday competitive electricity markets is a must for both producers and consumers because both need price estimates to develop their respective market bidding strategies. This paper proposes a transfer function model to predict electricity prices based on both past electricity prices and demands, and discuss the rationale to build it. The importance of electricity demand information is assessed. Appropriate metrics to appraise prediction quality are identified and used. Realistic and extensive simulations based on data from the PJM Interconnection for year 2003 are conducted. The proposed model is compared with naïve and other techniques.