Anomalous elastic behaviour of Bi-Pb-Ag composites

Bi-Pb and Bi-Pb-Ag superconducting composites have been prepared by the solid state reaction method. After the usual characterization, ultrasonic longitudinal velocity and attenuation studies have been undertaken over a temperature range 80–300 K by the pulse transmission technique. In contrast to normal solids, the ultrasonic velocities of both the samples in the temperature range 200-100 K are found to decrease with decreasing temperature (softening), followed by a velocity maximum. The samples are also found to exhibit longitudinal attenuation peaks at TEMPERATURES = 260, 160 and 120 K. An attempt has also been made to verify whether the Wachtman's equations can theoretically explain the low-temperature behaviour of the Young's modulus of these materials. A qualitative explanation for both the phenomena of softening of velocity as well as the occurrence of attenuation peaks is given.     

Montmorillonite KSF-catalyzed one-pot synthesis of hexahydro-1H-pyrrolo[3,2-c]quinoline derivatives

Aryl amines react with endocyclic ene-carbamates such as tert-butyl 2,3-dihydro-1H-1-pyrrolecarboxylate and tert-butyl 1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-1-pyridinecarboxylate, on the surface of montmorillonite KSF clay under mild conditions to afford the corresponding 3-aminopropylhexahydropyrrolo[3,2-c]quinoline or 4-aminobutyloctahydrobenzo[h][1,6]naphthyridine derivatives in excellent yields with moderate diastereoselectivity.     

Asymmetric synthesis of 6-(2′,3′,4′,5′,6′-pentafluorophenyl)-δ-lactones via “allyl”boranes: application for the synthesis of fluorinated analog of key pharmacophore of statin drugs

Asymmetric “allyl”boration of pentafluorobenzaldehyde with various α-pinene based “allyl”boranes provides homoallylic alcohols in high de and ee; the alcohols have been converted into δ-lactones via acryloylation, ring-closing metathesis and hydrogenation. Pentafluorophenyl analog of key pharmacophore of statin drugs has been synthesized using diastereoselective epoxidation and regioselective reduction as key steps.     

Heavy metal ion uptake properties of polystyrene-supported chelating polymer resins

Metal ion uptake properties of polystyrene-supported chelating polymer resins functionalized with (i) glycine, (ii) hydroxy benzoic acid, (iii) Schiff base and (iv) diethanol amine have been investigated. The effects of pH, time and initial concentration on the uptake of metal ions have been studied. The uptake of metal ion depends on pH. The resins are more selective at pH 10 for Pb(II) and Hg(II), whereas at pH 6 they are found to be Cd(II) and Cr(VI) selective. Metal ion uptake properties of resins follow Freundlich’s equation. The resins are recyclable and are therefore employed for the removal of heavy metal pollutants from industrial waste water.     

On Totally Ordered Rings Whose Positive Cones are Finitely Generated

This paper is mainly dealt with the structure of totally ordered rings (t.o. rings) whose positive cones are finitely generated as multiplicative right ideals.AMS Subject Classification (1991): 16W80, 13J25     

Baseline studies of radon/thoron concentration levels in and around the Lambapur and Peddagattu areas in Nalgonda district, Andhra Pradesh, India

Studies conducted by Atomic Minerals Directorate of Exploration and Research (AMD) of Hyderabad, India had established the presence of higher concentrations of uranium in Lambapur and Peddagattu areas of Nalgonda district, AP, India and it was estimated that it could be a viable source for commercial extraction. The envisaged extraction process involves dispersion of radioactive particulate matter into atmosphere. Environmental radioactive studies in and around proposed mining areas at this point of time will be extremely useful for establishing base line data before a large scale uranium extraction process comes into existence. To this end, Solid State Nuclear Track Detectors were installed to evaluate indoor radon and thoron concentration levels in the dwellings of the area. The geometric means of radon and thoron concentration levels were found to be (7.1±0.2)×10¹ and (6.7±0.3)×10¹ Bq/m³, respectively. Simultaneously, natural background radiation measurements were also made and these levels are found to vary from 770 to 3995 μGy/y in the spatial distribution.     

Semicontinuity and Quasiconvex Functions

Criteria are derived for quasiconvex functions under lower semicontinuity and upper semicontinuity conditions. The results thus obtained generalize earlier results for convex functions. We also give new conditions under which a given function is r-convex in the sense given by Avriel.     

Synthesis and characterization of poly(dimethylsiloxane‐urethane) elastomers: Effect of hard segments of polyurethane on morphological and mechanical properties

A series of poly(dimethylsiloxane‐urethane) elastomers based on hexamethylenediisocyanate, toluenediisocyanate, or 4,4′‐methylenediphenyldiisocyanate hard segment and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) soft segment were synthesized. In this study, a new type of soft‐segmented PDMS crosslinker was synthesized by hydrosilylation reaction of 2‐allyloxyethanol with polyhydromethylsiloxane, using Karstedt's catalyst. The synthesized soft‐segmented crosslinker was characterized by FT‐IR, ¹H, and ¹³C NMR spectroscopic techniques. The mechanical and thermal properties of elastomers were characterized using tensile testing, thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and dynamical mechanical analysis measurements. The molecular structure of poly(dimethylsiloxane‐urethane) membranes was characterized by ATR‐FTIR spectroscopic techniques. Infrared spectra indicated the formation of urethane/urea aggregates and hydrogen bonding between the hard and soft domains. Better mechanical and thermal properties of the elastomers were observed. The restriction of chain mobility has been shown by the formation of hydrogen bonding in the soft and hard segment domains, resulting in the increase in the glass‐transition temperature of soft segments. DSC analysis indicates the phase separation of the hard and soft domains. The storage modulus (E′) of the elastomers was increasing with increase in the number of urethane connections between the hard and soft segments. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 2980–2989, 2006