Hydrogen chemisorption on ferromagnetic metals

The problem of hydrogen chemisorption on ferromagnetic substrates is studied using the Anderson-Newns Hamiltonian with the explicit inclusion of the substrate magnetization. A model density of states is used to approximate the particular case of nickel. A polarized solution is obtained for the adatom, which can also explain the rather large width of the photoemission peak observed for hydrogen chemisorbed on nickel.     

Multiplicity and pseudorapidity distributions of photons in Au+Au collisions at square root of (S(NN)) = 62.4 GeV

We present the first measurement of pseudorapidity distribution of photons in the region 2.3 < or = eta < or = 3.7 for different centralities in Au+Au collisions at square root of (S(NN)) = 62.4 GeV. We find that the photon yield scales with the number of participating nucleons at all collision centralities studied. The pseudorapidity distribution of photons, dominated by pi0 decays, has been compared to those of charged pions, photons, and inclusive charged particles from heavy-ion and nucleon-nucleon collisions at various energies. The photon production has been shown to be consistent with the energy and centrality independent limiting fragmentation scenario.     

Elliptic flow in Au+Au collisions at square root(S)NN = 130 GeV

Elliptic flow from nuclear collisions is a hadronic observable sensitive to the early stages of system evolution. We report first results on elliptic flow of charged particles at midrapidity in Au+Au collisions at square root(S)NN = 130 GeV using the STAR Time Projection Chamber at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider. The elliptic flow signal, v2, averaged over transverse momentum, reaches values of about 6% for relatively peripheral collisions and decreases for the more central collisions. This can be interpreted as the observation of a higher degree of thermalization than at lower collision energies. Pseudorapidity and transverse momentum dependence of elliptic flow are also presented.     

Use of isothermal microcalorimetry to characterize the behavior of the microencapsulated biocontrol agent Meyerozyma guilliermondii

Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry - The effect of the microencapsulation by spray drying of the biocontrol agent Meyerozyma guilliermondii was evaluated by isothermal microcalorimetry...     

Molecularly imprinted polymers for selective solid-phase extraction of phospholipids from human milk samples

Microchimica Acta - The authors describe a method for the extraction and determination of phospholipids (PLs) from human milk fat by using a molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) as the sorbent...     

A Universal Geochemical Scenario for Formamide Condensation and Prebiotic Chemistry

The condensation of formamide has been shown to be a robust chemical pathway affording molecules necessary for the origin of life. It has been experimentally demonstrated that condensation reactions of formamide are catalyzed by a number of minerals, including silicates, phosphates, sulfides, zirconia, and borates, and by cosmic dusts and meteorites. However, a critical discussion of the catalytic power of the tested minerals, and the geochemical conditions under which the condensation would occur, is still missing. We show here that mineral self-assembled structures forming under alkaline silica-rich solutions are excellent catalysts for the condensation of formamide with respect to other minerals. We also propose that these structures were likely forming as early as 4.4 billion years ago when the whole earth surface was a reactor, a global scale factory, releasing large amounts of organic compounds. Our experimental results suggest that the conditions required for the synthesis of the molecular bricks from which life self-assembles, rather than being local and bizarre, appears to be universal and geologically rather conventional.     

Cu(II) adsorption from aqueous solutions using the inner and outer portions of sugarcane bagasse

In the present work, the adsorption capacity of internal and external portions of treated sugarcane bagasse (SCB) to remove Cu(II) from aqueous solution was evaluated. In order to reuse this solid waste as an effective adsorption material, both portions were treated with three different solutions (hot water, ethanol and NaOH) to remove sugar, external gummy tissue and impurities. Adsorption experiments were carried out in a batch system at room temperature. The kinetic data were fitted to pseudo-second order and Elovich models for the internal portion, and to the Elovich model for the external portion reaching equilibrium times from 8 to 24 h. Freundlich and Langmuir–Freundlich models described well the adsorption behavior of all systems. The compositional differences of the two portions of SCB and the surface chemistry were analyzed. Material characterization by scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy demonstrated morphologic and chemical modifications of the material after each treatment. Results showed that external SCB treated with a sodium hydroxide solution and internal SCB treated with ethanol solution were the best adsorbent materials, and provided a surface with more affinity to remove Cu(II).     

Introducing a low-cost tool for 3D characterization of pitting corrosion in stainless steel

Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry - Herein, we propose an approach to three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction of corroded samples to have access to information about the shape, diameter,...