Nanostructuring of single-crystal silicon carbide by femtosecond laser irradiation in a liquid

The formation of nanostructures on the surface of single-crystal silicon carbide under ablation by femtosecond laser pulses in liquid ethanol has been experimentally investigated. A 800-nm Ti:sapphire laser with a pulse duration of 210 fs was used as a radiation source. Single-scan irradiation of SiC surface leads to the formation of periodic grooves with a period of about 200 nm. Double exposure with a sample rotation by 90° between the scans gives rise to a regular array of nanostructures with average lateral size of 10 to 15 nm. It is determined that the wettability of nanostructured SiC surface is improved in comparison with the initial surface. It is shown that nanostructuring of SiC surface leads to an increase in the red light transmission by a factor of more than 60.     

Loss compensated negative index material at optical wavelengths

We present a computational approach, allowing for a self-consistent treatment of three-dimensional (3D) fishnet metamaterial operating at 710 nm wavelength coupled to a gain material incorporated into the nanostructure. We show numerically that loss-free negative index material is achievable by incorporating gain material inside the fishnet structure. The effective gain coefficient of the combined fishnet-gain system is much larger than its bulk counterpart and the figure-of-merit (FOM = | Re(n)/Im(n) |) increases dramatically with gain. Transmission, reflection, and absorption data, as well as the retrieved effective parameters, are presented for the fishnet structure with and without gain.     

Neck propagation in polyethylene

Intrinsic true stress–true strain response was evaluated at room temperature for three linear polyethylene samples deformed in conventional tensile tests. It was observed that high crystallinity is associated with a low rate of strain hardening that results in a sharp neck and a large drop in nominal stress. The maximum and minimum deformation loads are accounted for by Considère's analysis of neck initiation and stabilization, respectively. Following stabilization, neck propagation occurs at a load or nominal stress that is lower than the yield stress. The jump analysis of Ericksen and Hutchinson/Neale predicts steady state neck propagation stresses that are in very good (ca. 10%) agreement with experiment. Although the jump analysis is done in terms of uniaxial stress, the actual value of the propagation stress is established by the triaxial stress state in the neck shoulders. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 2081–2091, 2004     

Equation of state molecular parameters for a theory of pure r-mer fluids in the liquid phase

Costas, M. and Sanctuary, B.C., 1984. Equation of state molecular parameters for a theory of pure r-mer fluids in the liquid phase. Fluid Phase Equilibria, 18: 47–60.Equation of state parameters for a theory of pure r-mers (Costas and Sanctuary, 1981) are presented for sixty common substances. The equation of state is tested for its ability to reproduce and predict thermodynamic data in the liquid phase. The theory has only two adjustable parameters: ν^*, the close-packed volume of the r-mer, and ?^* = z?/2, where ? is the nonbonded mer-mer attractive interaction energy and z is the lattice coordination number, set to be a constant equal to 12. The number of r-mers per molecule, r, is also fixed for a given liquid to be equal to the number of atoms in the molecule other than hydrogen. The fitting proceduce is fast and simple. The adjustment only involves the use of widely available density data. Comparisons between experimental and calculated first- and second-order thermodynamic properties are shown for several substances. A comparison with the equation of state due to Jain and Simha (1981) for PVT data for n-dodecane is presented. The theory qualifies as a useful tool, especially in engineering applications, for estimating thermodynamic properties in the liquid phase.     

Another designer steroid: discovery, synthesis, and detection of 'madol' in urine

Madol (17alpha-methyl-5alpha-androst-2-en-17beta-ol) was identified in an oily product received by our laboratory in the context of our investigations of designer steroids. The product allegedly contained an anabolic steroid not screened for in routine sport doping control urine tests. Madol was synthesized by Grignard methylation of 5alpha-androst-2-en-17-one and characterized by mass spectrometry and NMR spectroscopy. We developed a method for rapid screening of urine samples by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) of trimethylsilylated madol (monitoring m/z 143, 270, and 345). A baboon administration study showed that madol and a metabolite are excreted in urine. In vitro incubation with human liver microsomes yielded the same metabolite. Madol is only the third steroid never commercially marketed to be found in the context of performance-enhancing drugs in sports.     

Electrosorption of ions from aqueous solutions by nanostructured carbon aerogel

Electrosorption is generally defined as potential-induced adsorption on the surface of charged electrodes. After polarization of the electrodes, ions are removed from the electrolyte solution by the imposed electric field and adsorbed onto the surface of the electrodes. Experimental and modeling studies were conducted using two types of carbon aerogel composites of different surface areas to provide a better understanding on the mechanisms of electrosorption. The experimental results revealed that no significant specific adsorption of F- ions occurred, while strong specific adsorption was observed for NO3- and Cu2+ ions. In addition, although the two types of carbon aerogel electrodes had different surface areas, their capacities were found to be very similar because of the electrical double-layer overlapping effect in micropores. An electrical double-layer model developed in our previous work (16), in which the electrical double-layer overlapping correction is included, is expanded in the present work by considering the effect of the specific adsorption on the electrosorption process. Modeling results were compared with experimental data obtained under various conditions. When the overlapping effect and specific adsorption were considered, the model provided results that were in good agreement with experimental data.     

The effect of pressure on order destruction and order creation in linear or branched alkane mixtures

The pressure dependence of the excess enthalpy H ^E , dH ^E /dP, has been calculated from experimental excess volumes V ^E and dV ^E /dT using dH ^E /dP=V ^E –TdV ^E /dT. dH ^E /dP at zero pressure are reported at 25°C and equimolar concentration for the mixtures: cyclohexane with the series of normal alkanes (n-C _n , where n=6,8,10,12,14 and 16) and with the series of highly branched alkanes (br-C _n , where n=6,8,12 and 16), benzene, toluene and p-xylene +n-C _n and 1-chloronaphthalene +n-C _n and br-C _n . Experimental and Flory theory dH ^E /dP values are in good agreement for the whole cyclohexane +br-C _n series. For the n-C _n series, dH ^E /dP becomes increasingly positive deviating from the Flory predictions. This discrepancy is due to the presence of short-range orientational order in the higher n-C _n pure liquids which makes dH/dP more negative and which, upon mixing, is destroyed producing a positive contribution to dH ^E /dP not accounted for by the theory. The discrepancy between theoretical and experimental dH ^E /dP is large for benzene, but progressively smaller for toluene, p-xylene and 1-chloronaphthalene. These results are consistent with creation of order between the aromatic plate-like molecule and the long n-C _n in solution. For 1-chloronaphthalene +n-C _n , this order creation process produces a negative contribution to dH ^E /dP which balances the positive order-destruction contribution originated by the rupture, upon mixing, of short-range orientational order in pure n-C _n .     

Bridging electrochemistry and heterogeneous catalysis

The discovery of the effect of the electrochemical promotion of catalysis (EPOC) or non-Faradaic electrochemical modification of catalytic activity (NEMCA effect) is described together with the key steps of its exploration at high pressure and high vacuum and its rationalization via electrochemical and surface science techniques. Recent attempts for its practical utilization are also surveyed.     

Thermodynamic characterization of poly(2,2,3,3,3‐pentafluoropropyl methacrylate)

The thermodynamic characterization of a fluorinated methacrylic homopolymer was conducted by means of inverse gas chromatography (IGC), at infinite dilution. The homopolymer under study, poly(2,2,3,3,3‐pentafluoropropyl methacrylate) (PPFPMA), was synthesized via a free radical polymerization reaction and was characterized by the employment of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and size exclusion chromatography (SEC) techniques. The specific retention volume of 15 solvents, used as probes, was used for the assessment of the Flory–Huggins interaction parameter, the weight fraction activity coefficient, the molar heat, energy and entropy of sorption, the partial heat of mixing of the probes, as well as the solubility parameter of the polymer. The results demonstrate that PPFPMA is insoluble in most organic solvents even at increased temperatures, with the exception of solvents like 2‐Butanone. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 48: 1826–1833, 2010