AGET ATRP in water and inverse miniemulsion: A facile route for preparation of high‐molecular‐weight biocompatible brush‐like polymers

Activators generated by electron transfer for atom transfer radical polymerization (AGET ATRP) of oligo(ethylene glycol) monomethyl ether methacrylate (OEOMA) was investigated in homogeneous aqueous solution targeting DP = 1000, and in inverse miniemulsion targeting DP = 600, at 30 °C. Several reaction parameters were examined in the preparation of biocompatible, brush‐like, high‐molecular‐weight, water‐soluble polymers. They include concentration of ascorbic acid (AscA), ratio of water to OEOMA, mode of addition of AscA, and ratio of initiator to Cu(II) complex. The results obtained in these studies indicate that AGET ATRP retains all of the benefits of normal ATRP and, additionally, provides a facile route for the preparation of well‐controlled high‐molecular‐weight polymers because of the use of oxidatively stable catalyst precursors. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 1771–1781, 2009     

Patterned immobilization of biomolecules by using ion irradiation‐induced graft polymerization

A new method for biomolecular patterning based on ion irradiation‐induced graft polymerization was demonstrated in this study. Ion irradiation on a polymer surface resulted in the formation of active species, which was further used for surface‐initiated graft polymerization of acrylic acid. The results of the grafting study revealed that the surface graft polymerization using 20 vol % of acrylic acid on the poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE) film irradiated at the fluence of 1 × 10¹⁵ ions/cm² for 12 h was the optimum graft polymerization condition to achieve the maximum grafting degree. The results of the fluorescence microscopy also revealed that the optimum fluence to achieve the maximum fluorescence intensity was 1 × 10¹⁵ ions/cm². The grafting of acrylic acid on the PTFE surfaces was confirmed by a fluorescence labeling method. The grafted PTFE films were used for the immobilization of amine‐functionalized p‐DNA, followed by hybridization with fluorescently tagged c‐DNA. Biotin‐amine was also immobilized on the acrylic acid grafted PTFE surfaces. Successful biotin‐specific binding of streptavidin further confirmed the potential of this strategy for patterning of various biomolecules. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 6124–6134, 2009     

Synthesis and characterization of an ionic conjugated polymer: Poly[2‐ethynyl‐N‐(2‐thiophenecarbonyl) pyridinium chloride]

The activated polymerization of 2‐ethynylpyridine by using 2‐thiophenecarbonyl chloride yielded the corresponding conjugated ionic polymer, poly[2‐ethynyl‐N‐(2‐thiophenecarbonyl)pyridinium chloride] (PETCPC). The polymerization proceeded well to give high yield of polymer without any additional initiator or catalyst. The instrumental analysis data on polymer structure indicated that the present ionic polymer have a conjugated polymer backbone system having N‐(2‐thiophenecarbonyl)pyridinium chloride as substituents. The photoluminescence maximum peak of PETCPC was located at 573 nm, which corresponds to the photon energy of 2.16 eV. The aromatic functional substituents in the conjugated backbone system shift PL maximum values because it makes different molecule arrangement. The cyclovoltamograms of PETCPC exhibited the electrochemically stable window at ?1.24 to 1.80 V region. It was found that the kinetics of the redox process of polymer might be controlled by the reactant diffusion process from the experiment of the oxidation current density of polymer versus the scan rate. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 6153–6162, 2009     

Study on the reentering rates of individual cooling towers installed on a building roof

In this paper, the averaged reentering rates of the densely built cooling towers, which form banks on the building roof in Seoul, Korea have been predicted by a numerical method according to various summer wind conditions and roof wall types. The averaged reentering rates of all the cooling towers are compared according to two wall types to study the effect of the intake outdoor air louver on the reentering rates. Consequently, two findings are drawn as follows. (1) With a curtain wall, the averaged reentering rates of the total cooling towers against the west and the south wind at ν = 5 m/s are 13.3 and 24.4%, respectively. Therefore, it is strongly needed to find a method to reduce the reentering of the discharged air from the cooling towers. (2) In the case of a louver wall, the averaged reentering rates of the cooling towers with the west and south wind at ν = 5 m/s are 2.5 and 9.74%, respectively, which have been estimated to be lower than those of the curtain wall. Therefore, the louver wall can be suitably adopted to reduce the reentering of the discharged air from the cooling towers in the present study.     

Measurements of turbulent flow in axially finned rod bundles

The hydraulic characteristics in subchannels of axially finned rod bundles installed in the Korea Multipurpose Research Reactor (KMRR) were measured using one-component laser-Doppler velocimetry (LDV). Pressure drops for each component, time mean axial velocity, and axial turbulent intensity were measured. Then the friction factors in rod bundles were estimated from the measured pressure drops. The turbulent crossflow mixing rate between neighboring subchannels was evaluated from the measured data. The results show that (1) the friction factors for axially finned rod bundles are less than those given by Moody's correlation for smooth tubes, and (2) as the flow develops, the turbulent crossflow mixing rate between neighboring subchannels decreases and, in the developed region, the values level out.     

Concurrent crystallization in polypropylene/nylon-6 blends using maleic anhydride grafted polypropylene as a compatibilizing agent

This paper describes the nonisothermal crystallization of molten blends of two semicrystalline polymers, polypropylene (PP) and Nylon-6 (N6). A discussion details the effect of the concentration of the compatibilizing agent, maleic anhydride grafted polypropylene (MAH-g-PP), on the crystallization behavior. The crystallization thermograms showed one crystallization peak or two crystallization peaks, which were significantly affected by the presence of MAH-g-PP. The crystallization temperature of N6 levels off down as the concentration of MAH-g-PP increases, whereas that of PP stays at a roughly constant temperature. These blends containing the compatibilizing agent exhibited concurrent crystallization at the crystallization temperature of PP. The crystallization behavior are also studied by optical microscopy under crossed polarizers. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Exponential Stability for Time-Delay Systems with Interval Time-Varying Delays and Nonlinear Perturbations

In this paper, the problem of an exponential stability for time-delay systems with interval time-varying delays and nonlinear perturbations is investigated. Based on the Lyapunov method, a new delay-dependent criterion for exponential stability is established in terms of LMI (linear matrix inequalities). Numerical examples are carried out to support the effectiveness of our results.