Pyrolysis of black cumin seed: Significance of catalyst and temperature product yields and chromatographic characterization

In this study, black cumin seed cake was transformed into liquid and solid products via pyrolysis method at 300, 400 and 500?°C with Ca(OH)₂, Al₂O₃, SnCl₄.5H₂O catalysts and without catalyst. The obtained liquid and solid products were examined with GC-MS, Elemental, FT-IR, ¹H NMR and SEM analysis methods. The highest liquid product yield was obtained as 30% in the presence of Al₂O₃ catalyst. All catalysts were found to be effective on conversion. According to the results of the elemental analysis of the liquid products obtained at the end of the experiments, HHV values were found between 32.44 and 36.19?Mj/kg. According to the results of GC-MS analysis of the liquid products, in total, 77, 61 and 66 pieces of compounds consist of monoaromatics, aliphatics, oxygenated compounds with different properties were obtained at 300, 400 and 500?°C reaction temperatures respectively. The results of the FT-IR and ¹H NMR that are used to examine the liquid products support the results of GC-MS.     

On the convergence of primal-dual interior-point methods with wide neighborhoods

We study primal-dual interior-point methods for linear programs. After proposing a new primaldual potential function we describe a new potential reduction algorithm. We make connections between the new potential function and primal-dual interior-point algorithms with wide neighborhoods. Then we describe an algorithm that is a slightly modified version of existing primal-dual algorithms using wide neighborhoods. Assuming the optimal solution is non-degenerate, the algorithm is 1-step Q-quadratically convergent. We also study the degenerate case and show that the neighborhoods of the central path stay large as the iterates approach the optimal solutions.Research performed while the author was a Ph.D. student at Cornell University and was supported in part by the United States Army Research Office through the Army Center of Excellence for Symbolic Methods in Algorithmic Mathematics (ACSyAM), Mathematical Sciences Institute of Cornell University, Contract DAAL03-91-C-0027 and also by NSF, AFOSR and ONR through NSF Grant DMS-8920550.     

A note on a problem of Abramovich,Aliprantis and Burkinshaw

Let B and T be two positive operators on a Banach lattice such that B is compact-friendly and T is locally quasi-nilpotent. Introducing the concept of positive quasi-similarity, we prove that T has a non-trivial closed invariant subspace provided B is positively quasi-similar to T. This gives an affirmative answer to a problem of Abramovich, Aliprantis and Burkinshaw with the commutativity condition replaced by the positive quasi-similarity of the corresponding operators. The notion of strong compact-friendliness is also introduced and relevant facts about it are discussed.     

Mn3TeO6 – a new multiferroic material with two magnetic substructures

From magnetic susceptibility, dielectric permittivity, electric polarization and specific heat measurements we discover spin‐induced ferroelectricity and magnetoelectric coupling in Mn₃TeO₆ and observe two successive magnetic transitions at low temperatures. A non‐ferroelectric intermediate magnetic state occurs below 23 K and a multiferroic ground state emerges below 21 K. Moreover, Mn₃TeO₆ is a candidate for a multiferroic material where two types of incommensurate spin structures, cycloidal and helical, coexist. Theoretically, both spin substructures may contribute to the macro electric polarization via different mechanisms. This could open new ways of manipulating the ferroelectric polarization in a multiferroic material. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH &Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

ROS Scavenging Graphene-Based Hydrogel Enhances Type H Vessel Formation and Vascularized Bone Regeneration via ZEB1/Notch1 Mediation

The regeneration strategy for bone defects is greatly limited by the bone microenvironment, and excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) seriously hinder the formation of new bone. Reduced graphene oxide (rGO) is expected to meet the requirements because of its ability to scavenge free radicals through electron transfer. Antioxidant hydrogels based on gelatine methacrylate (GM), acrylyl-β-cyclodextrin (Ac-CD), and rGO functionalized with β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) are developed for skull defect regeneration, but the mechanism of how rGO-based hydrogels enhance bone repair remains unclear. In this work, it is confirmed that the GM/Ac-CD/rGO hydrogel has good antioxidant capacity, and promotes osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) and angiogenesis of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). The rGO-based hydrogel affects ZEB1/Notch1 to promote tube formation. Furthermore, two-photon laser scanning microscopy is used to observe the ROS in a skull defect. The rGO-based hydrogel promotes type H vessel formation in a skull defect. In conclusion, the hydrogel neutralizes ROS in the vicinity of a skull defect and stimulates ZEB1/Notch1 to promote the coupling of osteogenesis and angiogenesis, which may be a possible approach for bone regeneration.     

Existence and Uniqueness of Solutions for Homogeneous Cone Complementarity Problems

We consider existence and uniqueness properties of a solution to homogeneous cone complementarity problem. Employing an algebraic characterization of homogeneous cones due to Vinberg from the 1960s, we generalize the properties of existence and uniqueness of solutions for a nonlinear function associated with the standard nonlinear complementarity problem to the setting of homogeneous cone complementarity problem. We provide sufficient conditions for a continuous function so that the associated homogeneous cone complementarity problems have solutions. In particular, we give sufficient conditions for a monotone continuous function so that the associated homogeneous cone complementarity problem has a unique solution (if any). Moreover, we establish a global error bound for the homogeneous cone complementarity problem under some conditions.     

New oscillation theorems for a class of second-order damped nonlinear differential equations

Some new oscillation criteria are established for the nonlinear damped differential equation

Anion-Regulated Hierarchical Self-Assembly and Chiral Induction of Metallo-Tetrahedra

The precise control over hierarchical self-assembly of superstructures relying on the elaboration of multiple noncovalent interactions between basic building blocks is both elusive and highly desirable. We herein report a terpyridine-based metallo-cage T with a tetrahedral motif and utilized it as an efficient building block for the controlled hierarchical self-assembly of superstructures in response to different halide ions. Initially, the hierarchical superstructure of metallo-cage T adopted a hexagonal close-packed structure. By adding Cl⁻/Br⁻ or I⁻, drastically different hierarchical superstructures with highly-tight hexagonal packing or graphite-like packing arrangements, respectively, have been achieved. These unusual halide-ion-triggered hierarchical structural changes resulted in quite distinct intermolecular channels, which provided new insights into the mechanism of three-dimensional supramolecular aggregation and crystal growth based on macromolecular construction. In addition, the chiral induction of the metallo-cage T can be realized with the addition of chiral anions, which stereoselectively generated either PPPP- or MMMM-type enantiomers.