Is bismuth subsalicylate an effective nontoxic catalyst for plga synthesis?

Poly(d,l ‐lactide‐co‐glycolide) (PLGA) copolyesters are commonly used in biomedical applications. Researches were carried out on nontoxic or low‐toxic catalysts that are enough efficient to provide short polymerization times, adequate microstructure chains and similar properties than the commercial PLGA materials. In this study, PLGA were synthesized by ring‐opening copolymerization (ROP) using three different catalysts. Stannous octoate is the first catalyst we used, as it is very efficient, even its toxicity is still on debate. Two others low‐toxic catalysts [zinc lactate and bismuth subsalicylate (BiSS)] were also evaluated. The comparison of these ROP was realized in terms of kinetics and control of the polymerization. Then, the influence of the catalyst on the PLGA microstructure chains is reported. Finally, abiotic hydrolytic degradation rate is studied. Results described in this article show that BiSS is one very attractive catalyst to produce low toxic PLGA for biomedical applications. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2014 , 52, 1130–1138     

Radionuclides in biota collected near a dicalcium phosphate plant, southern Catalonia, Spain

Industrial waste containing radioactive U-decay series isotopes was released into the Ebro River, Spain, over a period of >20 years from a dicalcium phosphate (DCP) plant. This release raised activities of several natural radionuclides (e.g. ²³⁸U, ²³⁴U, ²³⁰Th, ²³²Th and ²²⁶Ra) in biota taken from the area near the DCP plant. Plants and animals selected for this study included the green algae (Cladophora glomerata), the blue mussel (Mytilus edulis), the zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) and the scavenger catfish (Silurus glanis) because they are all common in the area. Multiple sampling points were chosen for this study: (1) a site in the Riba-Roja Reservoir, above the DCP plant’s area of influence, (2) four sites in the area surrounding the DCP plant, close to the town of Flix, and (3) a location in the Ebro Delta Estuary in Fangar Bay. Significant differences in the activities (in Bq kg^?1 of dry weight) for the radioisotopes included in this study among samples were attributed to sample location and the species evaluated. For instance, relatively high activities for uranium and radium were obtained in algae collected around the DCP plant, compared to results obtained for algae samples taken from the unimpacted Riba-Roja Reservoir. In contrast, for zebra mussels, enhanced activities were observed for all radionuclides and, in particular, for thorium and radium isotopes within the area of influence. Among catfish samples, activity values from different locations were not significantly different, though slightly higher activities were observed at the sampling point just downstream of the DCP factory.     

Significant change in water contact angle of electrospray‐synthesized SiO2 films depending on their surface morphology

Amorphous SiO₂ films were deposited by means of an electrospray technique. The relation between the water contact angle (WCA) of the deposited SiO₂ films and the surface morphology is investigated. The feeding rate of the electrospray process greatly affects the morphology of the synthesized SiO₂ films. There is also a significant change in the WCA on the surface of the films: the rougher the surface, the greater the WCA. A model based on the Cassie–Baxter formulation is used to explain the change observed in the WCA on the SiO₂ films. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A quasi‐dynamic procedure for coupled thermal simulations

This paper outlines the development and adaptation of a coupling strategy for transient temperature analysis in a solid via a conjugate heat transfer method. This study proposes a quasi‐dynamic coupling procedure to bridge the temporal disparities between the fluid and the solid. In this approach, dynamic thermal modeling in the solid is coupled with a sequence of steady states in the fluid. This quasi‐dynamic algorithm has been applied to the problem of convective heat transfer over, and transient conduction heat transfer within, a flat plate using the severe thermal conditions of a solid propellant rocket. Two different coupled thermal computations have been performed. In the first one—referred to as the reference computation—the coupling period is equal to the smallest solid time constant. In the second one, a very large coupling period is used. The results show that the procedure can predict accurate transient temperature fields at a reasonable computational cost. The simulation CPU time is approximately reduced by up to 90%, while maintaining a very good accuracy. All the details of the numerical test case are given in the paper. This application illustrates the capabilities and the overall efficiency of this coupled approach in a solid transient problem using long term simulations of time dependent flows. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.