Polarographic determination of acids by means of the reduction wave of quinones in methyl cellosolve solution

Methyl-p-benzoquinone (MQ) gives a single polarographic wave in methyl cellosolve media containing perchlorate as supporting electrolyte, but a prewave corresponding to the reaction Q + 2HA + 2e ái H₂Q + 2A^-, is found when an acid is added. The height of the prewave is proportional to the concentration of added acid. Traces (ca. 0.2%) of free perchloric acid can be determined in crude lithium perchlorate.The half-wave potential of the prewave depends on the pK_a value of the acid; if the dissociation constants of acids differ sufficiently, two prewaves are found and each acid species can be determined simultaneously. This method was applied to the MQ-HClO₄-CH₃COOH, MQ-CCl₃COOH-CH₃COOH and MQ-CHCl₂COOH- CH₃COOH systems.     

Nuclear magnetic resonance of poly-β-alanine

Nuclear magnetic resonance of poly-β-alanine samples differing in solubility in water was studied over a wide temperature range as part of an investigation of their physical properties. Water-soluble poly-β-alanine has more branches and a lower degree of crystallinity than water-insoluble poly-β-alanine. NMR spectra of poly-β-alanine show one component at 77°K. which splits into two components, broad and narrow, at room temperature. Two transition regions were observed in curves for line width and second moment versus temperature. The higher transition temperature, corresponding to the glass transition of the polymer, appears to decrease with increasing water content. The second moment for the water-soluble polymer differs from that of the water-insoluble polymer at 77°K. This is interpreted in terms of the difference in the degree of crystallinity of the polymers.     

Transition Semi–groups on a Local Field Induced by Galois Group and their Representation

For a given map defined on the field of p-adic numbers satisfying

Spatial arrangement of metal nanoparticles supported by porous polymer substrates studied by transmission electron microtomography

Fine metal particles (nanoparticles) stabilized on porous (polymeric) substrates can be considered as a model system of a high-performance catalyst. In the present study, the substrate was made using the periodic microphase-separated structure of a block copolymer as the template, and the Pd nanoparticles were formed inside the porous material by reduction of the Pd2+ ions with 1-propanol as the reductant. The three-dimensional morphology of such a polymer-Pd hybrid material was studied by transmission electron microtomography. The characteristic structural parameters of the hybrid, e.g., the penetration of the Pd nanoparticles into the polymer substrate, number density of the Pd nanoparticles, and size distribution of the Pd nanoparticles, were measured for the first time.     

Extreme fluorescence sensitivity of some aniline derivatives to aqueous and nonaqueous environments: mechanistic study and its implication as a fluorescent probe

Effects of solvent water on the photophysical properties of a series of meta- and para-substituted anilines have been investigated by means of time-resolved fluorescence, transient absorption, and photoacoustic measurements. Some aniline derivatives exhibit extremely short fluorescence lifetime (tau(f)) and small quantum yield (Phi(f)) in water (e.g., tau(f) = 45 ps and Phi(f) = 0.0019 for m-cyanoaniline (m-ANCN) in H(2)O), which is in marked contrast with their much larger values in nonaqueous solvents (tau(f) = 7.3 ns and Phi(f) = 0.14 for m-ANCN in acetonitrile). Photoacoustic and transient absorption measurements show that the remarkable fluorescence quenching of m-ANCN in water is attributed almost exclusively to fast internal conversion. The lifetime measurements of m-ANCN in H(2)O/acetonitrile binary solvent mixtures reveal that the quenching is related to variation of hydrogen-bonding interactions between the amino group and water molecules and the conformational change of the amino group upon electronic excitation. Similar fluorescence quenching due to solvent water is also found for N-alkylated m-ANCNs. The drastic differences in the fluorescence intensity and lifetime of m-ANCNs under hydrophobic and hydrophilic environments and also the large solvent polarity dependence of the fluorescence band position suggest the possibility that they can be utilized as fluorescent probes for investigating the microenvironment of biological systems. In suspensions of human serum albumin (HSA) in water, remarkable enhancement of the fluorescence intensity and lifetime is observed for m-ANCN and its N-alkylated derivatives, demonstrating that m-ANCNs can be a candidate for novel fluorescent probe with small molecular size.     

On an extremal problem of Selberg

We consider the minimum value m_p of the product under the conditions that and . This problem stems from estimation of the Selberg integral appeared in the study of integral-valued entire functions [A. Selberg, Über einen Satz von A. Gelfond, Arch. Math. Naturvid. 44 (1941) 159–170]. We give upper and lower estimates of m_p : . This, in particular, slightly improves the earlier lower estimate given by Selberg: logm_p>p·0.31654924….     

Study of γ d → π + π − d Reaction in an Energy Region of 0.67 ≤ E γ ≤ 1.08 GeV

Double charged pion photoproductions from the deuteron have been studied at Research Center for Electron Photon Science (ELPH), Tohoku University. Tagged photon beams in an energy range of 0.67 ≤ E _γ ≤ 1.08 GeV were impinged on the liquid deuteron target. Produced charged particles were observed with the Neutral Kaon Spectrometer2 (NKS2). The γ d → π ⁺ π ^? d process was clearly separated among the three charged tracks. We obtained the photon energy dependence of the normalized yields of this process.     

Study of Strangeness Photoproduction on the Neutron in the Threshold Region

Photoproduction of the neutral kaon on the deuteron has been investigated at the Research Center for Electron Photon Science, Tohoku University. We constructed the Neutral Kaon Spectrometer-2 for the detection of charged particles from the decay of the neutral kaon and the hyperon. We obtained a momentum distribution of K ⁰ with the inclusive measurement. It was consistent with the previous measurement. The total cross section of γ + d → K ⁰ + Λ + p was estimated from the measured integral cross section of γ + d → Λ + X. The total cross section with respect to the photon energy was compared with the theoretical calculations. It favored the Saclay-Lyon A model calculation with the ratio of the neutral to charged coupling constants of the axial-vector meson, K ₁, as ~ ?1.5. The energy dependence and the magnitude of the total cross section were similar to the total cross section of γ + p → K ⁺ Λ.