Activation of magnesia by hydrogen spillover

Magnesia aerogel activated by hydrogen spillover at 430 °C or at 200 °C becomes a catalyst for the hydrogenation of ethylene. This catalytic activity, observed already at 50 °C, is further enhanced by a treatment in oxygen at 430 °C.

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, 430 200°C, . 50°C 430°C.

     

Expansion on free-space modes for fast and accurate evaluation of vectorial modes of arbitrary waveguides

A novel method of expansion of the mode of an arbitrary waveguide on the modes of free space based on coupled-mode theory is presented. We propose a detailed algorithm based on this expansion to solve efficiently waveguide problems. We call this method Vectorial Free-Space Mode Expansion Method (VFSMEM). It is shown to have the potential to deliver precise fields and effective indices of arbitrary waveguides in a short computation time. Several possible improvements on our current implementation are also presented.     

On radiative transfer in water spray curtains using the discrete ordinates method

Radiative transfer through water spray curtains has been presently addressed in conditions similar to devices used in fire protection systems. The radiation propagation from the heat source through the medium is simulated using a 2D Discrete Ordinates Method. The curtain is treated as an absorbing and anisotropically scattering medium, made of droplets injected in a mixing of air, water vapor and carbon dioxide. Such a participating medium requires a careful treatment of its spectral response in order to model the radiative transfer accurately. This particular problem is dealt with using a correlated-K method. Radiative properties for the droplets are calculated applying the Mie theory. Transmissivities under realistic conditions are then simulated after a validation thanks to comparisons with some experimental data available in the literature. Owing to promising results which are already observed in this case of uncoupled radiative problem, next step will be to combine the present study with a companion work dedicated to the careful treatment of the spray dynamics and of the induced heat transfer phenomena.     

Magnetic properties of the Kondo lattice

We review the magnetic properties of the Konso lattice model using the functional integral technique: we discuss the magnetic and non-magnetic phases, and some properties of these phases. Comparison with other calculations is also made. Finally some open questions are discussed.     

Novel zinc (II)-mediated epimerization of 2'-carbonylalkyl-alpha-C-glycopyranosides to their beta-anomers

2'-Aldehydes and 2'-ketones of alpha-C-glycosides, including the gluco-, galacto-, and manno- series, were epimerized exclusively to their beta-anomers in good-to-excellent yields under basic conditions and in the presence of zinc acetate. The beta-stereoselectivity is independent of the neighboring group at 2-O-substitution of sugar substrates. Therefore, this provides a particularly useful method for the preparation of manno-beta-C-glycosides. The epimerization is likely initiated by the formation of Zn-enolate that is stabilized by intramolecular chelation to the pyranose ring-oxygen to form a syn chair-boat structure. Due to the activation generated by the Zn-O coordination, fission of the C1-O bond occurs, leading to opening of the pyranose ring, which is spontaneously followed by a change in conformation. The more stable anti chair-boat transition state is favored, and the subsequent hetero-intramolecular Michael addition results in the formation of beta-C-glycoside in a ring-closure step.     

Assessing cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhea: a two-dimensional electrophoresis approach.

Assessment of nasal cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) fistula commonly relies on the determination of CSF markers in an aqueous rhinorrhea, such as the beta2-transferrin immunofixation assay. While generally reliable, false positive and false negative results have been reported for most of the laboratory tests yet available. Based on the hypothesis that the simultaneous assessment of several CSF markers may yield an increased sensitivity and specificity, we used a proteomics, two-dimensional electrophoresis 2-DE based approach to study samples of nasal secretions obtained from 18 patients suspected of CSF rhinorrhea. Since CSF, nasal mucus and plasma may coexist in the nasal cavities, we first defined five specific markers for each of these biological fluids (transferrin, prostaglandin-D synthase, transthyretin, and two unknown trains of spots for CSF, immunoglobulin A (IgA) S-chain, lipocortin-1, lipocalin-1, prolactine-inducible protein and palatal lung nasal epithelium clone protein for mucus, haptoglobin alpha1/2- and beta-chains, fibrinogen alpha-, beta- and gamma-chains for plasma). Gels from the rhinorrhea patients were then compared to these 2-DE reference maps to determine the presence or absence of the defined markers, and clinical data were independently compared to the results of the 2-DE study. In all cases, the biological fluid(s) anticipated to be present in the nasal secretions based on clinical data were correctly identified by 2-DE. Moreover, an excellent correlation was found in nine patients who underwent extensive workup for suspected CSF rhinorrhea, since CSF was found by the 2-DE method in four patients in whom a CSF fistula was confirmed, whereas the test was negative in five patients in whom a CSF fistula was excluded. In the remaining patients, mucus, sometimes contamined with blood, was found to be the major component of the nasal secretions, confirming that clear mucus may mimick CSF rhinorrhea. These preliminary results suggest that a 2-DE-based multimarker approach is a valid, sensitive, and specific method to assess the presence of CSF in occult rhinorrhea.     

Impact of coated calcium carbonate nanofillers and annealing treatments on the microstructure and gas barrier properties of poly(lactide) based nanocomposite films

Amorphous poly(lactide) (PLA) and nanocomposite films were prepared from melt‐blending with precipitated calcium carbonate nanofillers (PCC). Nanocomposites based on uncoated PCC (PCC‐UT), stearic acid coated PCC (PCC‐S), and poly(ε‐caprolactone) coated PCC (PCC‐P) were investigated for an inorganic content fixed to 8 wt %. Using coated nanofillers allowed preserving both PLA average molar mass and thermal stability while enhancing the nanofiller dispersion state. Poly(ε‐caprolactone) was identified as the best coating for optimized morphology and thermal properties. Maxwell law accurately described the increase in oxygen barrier properties observed for the nanocomposites based on PCC‐S. A modified Maxwell law was proposed to take account of the additional increase in barrier properties evidenced for the PLA/PCC‐P nanocomposites and assigned to the particularly strong compatibility between PCL and PLA. Different annealing conditions were investigated to respectively study the impact of physical ageing and PLA crystallization on gas permeability. Different extents of physical ageing did not significantly modify the oxygen transport properties. However, a high permeability decrease was observed for the semicrystalline nanocomposites with respect to the amorphous reference PLA film. Finally, the gain in barrier properties was shown to result from both contribution of the nanofillers and the crystalline phase. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2016 , 54, 649–658     

Synthesis of anionic amphiphilic diblock copolymers of poly(styrene) and poly(acrylic acid) by reverse iodine transfer polymerization (RITP) in solution and emulsion

Reverse iodine transfer polymerization (RITP), offering the appealing potential of the in situ generation of transfer agents out of molecular iodine I₂, is employed in the synthesis of anionic amphiphilic diblock copolymers of poly(styrene) and poly(acrylic acid). Starting with well‐characterized poly(styrene) as macro‐transfer agents synthesized by RITP, diblock copolymers poly(styrene)‐b‐poly(tert‐butyl acrylate) of various lengths are successfully yielded in solution with a good architectural control. These blocks are then subjected to acid deprotection and subsequent pH control to give rise to anionic amphiphilic poly(styrene)‐b‐poly(acrylic acid). Besides, homopolymers of tert‐butyl acrylate are produced by RITP both in solution and in emulsion. Furthermore, a fruitful trial of the synthesis of diblock copolymers poly(tert‐butyl acrylate)‐b‐poly(styrene) is carried out through chain extension of the poly(tert‐butyl acrylate) latex as a macro‐transfer agent in seeded emulsion polymerization of styrene. Finally, the prepared block copolymer is deprotected to bring about its amphiphilic nature and a pH control caters for its anionic character. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2013, 51, 4389–4398     

Surface modification of calcium carbonate nanofillers by fluoro- and alkyl-alkoxysilane: Consequences on the morphology,thermal stability and gas barrier properties of polyvinylidene fluoride nanocomposites

Nano-sized precipitated silica coated calcium carbonate fillers (PCC-Si) were modified by an alkyl- and a fluoro-alkoxysilane derivative, respectively. PCC-Si surface modification was characterized by elemental analysis, Fourier transform infrared analysis and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The modification conditions used for surface treatment led to a similar grafting density (around 3.2 μmol m^?2) for the two alkoxysilane derivatives. A significant decrease of filler hydrophilicity was observed after the alkoxysilane treatment. Nanocomposites prepared by melt mixing the modified fillers (10 wt.%) with polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) depicted no color change, an enhanced filler dispersion state with an homogeneous dispersion of very small filler aggregates (less than 150 nm diameter size), an increase of the thermal stability at high temperature and no change of the PVDF crystalline morphology. The oxygen permeability decrease measured on the nanocomposite prepared from the perfluorooctyltriethoxysilane modified filler was in good agreement with Maxwell law. The permeability increase evidenced for the nanocomposite based on the octyltriethoxysilane modified PCC suggested the formation of weak interfaces in this system.