Preparation and electrical properties of dense micro-cermets made of nickel ferrite and metallic copper

Dense micro-cermets made of nickel ferrites and copper micrometric particles were obtained from partial reduction under hydrogenated atmosphere at 350 °C of mixed copper nickel ferrites, and sintering in nitrogen at 980 °C. The small copper particles are homogeneous in size and well dispersed in the spinel oxide matrix. No exudation of copper metal was observed after sintering. The micro-cermets prepared are semi-conducting materials with electrical conductivity lying from 44 to 130 S/cm at 980 °C. Their overall characteristics make them interesting for inert anodes dedicated to aluminium electrolysis in melted cryolite.     

An efficient synthesis of new thiazolopyrimidinones under microwave irradiation

7‐Chloromethyl‐6‐nitro‐5H‐thiazolo[3,2‐a]pyrimidin‐5‐one ( 2 ) is obtained by cyclocondensation of 2‐aminothiazole with ethyl 4‐chloroacetoacetate. This product was shown to react with various nitronate or malonate anions under microwave irradiation to give potentially bioactive 6‐nitro‐5H‐thiazolo[3,2‐a]pyrimidin‐5‐ones. Extension to other anions centered on S atom allows for the generalization this synthetic procedure.     

Photocatalytic properties of Ta-doped TiO2

Ionics - This work reports the effect of tantalum (0.1–1 at.% Ta) on the photocatalytic performance of TiO2 annealed at 1373 and 1673 K in air. It was shown that addition of...     

Are the Interactions between Recombinant Prion Proteins and Polymeric Surfaces Related to the Hydrophilic/Hydrophobic Balance?

New non‐fouling tubes are developed and their influence on the adhesion of neuroproteins is studied. Recombinant prion proteins are considered as a single component representative of hydrophobic proteins. Samples are stored for 24 h at 4 °C in tubes coated with two different coatings: poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) as a hydrophilic surface and a plasma‐fluorinated coating as a hydrophobic one. The protein adhesion is monitored by ELISA tests, XPS and confocal microscopy. It appears that the highest recovery of recombinant prion protein in the liquid phase is obtained with the hydrophilic surface while the hydrophobic character of the storage tube induces an important amount of biological loss. However, the recovery is not complete even for tubes coated with poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide).

     

Novel pseudo-delocalized anions for lithium battery electrolytes

A novel anion concept of pseudo-delocalized anions, anions with distinct positive and negative charge regions, has been studied by a computer aided synthesis using DFT calculations. With the aim to find safer and better performing lithium salts for lithium battery electrolytes two factors have been evaluated: the cation-anion interaction strength via the dissociation reaction LiAn ? Li(+) + An(-) and the anion oxidative stability via a vertical ionisation from anion to radical. Based on our computational results some of these anions have shown promise to perform well as lithium salts for modern lithium batteries and should be interesting synthetic targets for future research.     

Balanced fuzzy particle swarm optimization

In the present study an extension of particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm which is in conformity with actual nature is introduced for solving combinatorial optimization problems. Development of this algorithm is essentially based on balanced fuzzy sets theory. The classical fuzzy sets theory cannot distinguish differences between positive and negative information of membership functions, while in the new method both kinds of information “positive and negative” about membership function are equally important. The balanced fuzzy particle swarm optimization algorithm is used for fundamental optimization problem entitled traveling salesman problem (TSP). For convergence inspecting of new algorithm, method was used for TSP problems. Convergence curves were represented fast convergence in restricted and low iterations for balanced fuzzy particle swarm optimization algorithm (BF-PSO) comparison with fuzzy particle swarm optimization algorithm (F-PSO).     

Global phenotypic screening for antimalarials

Malaria, a devastating infectious disease caused by Plasmodium spp., leads to roughly 655,000 deaths per year, mostly of African children. To compound the problem, drug resistance has emerged to all classical antimalarials and may be emerging for artemisinin-based combination therapies. To address the need for new antimalarials with novel mechanisms, several groups carried out phenotypic screening campaigns to identify compounds inhibiting growth of the blood stages of Plasmodium falciparum. In this review, we describe the characterization of these compounds, explore currently ongoing strategies to develop lead molecules, and endorse the concept of a "malaria box" of publicly accessible active compounds.     

Flow-induced polymer degradation probed by a high throughput microfluidic set-up

A complex fluid submitted to strong flows can endure irreversible changes in its structure. This is the case for long chain polymer additives that are commonly used as viscosity enhancers in industry, notably for oil recovery. These polymers break in solution when submitted to high deformation rates, eventually causing a serious viscosity loss. This problem of practical importance is though difficult to handle from a fundamental point of view given its complexity. We introduce here a new tool, based on microfluidic technology, for the screening of the degradation of solutions in the model situation of the flow through a constriction. We integrate two functions in a single set-up, a micro-fabricated constriction and an on-chip viscosimeter. This tool enables us to probe rapidly the viscosity loss imparted by flowing through the constriction at a given flow rate. Thanks to microfluidics, the sample preparation and measurement time are significantly lower than those implied by classical measurement protocols (reduction by up to two orders of magnitude). In addition, confinement provides control of the flow in terms of inertia. To illustrate the potential of this approach in a screening perspective, we use this tool to study the degradation of a series of semi-dilute aqueous solutions of PEO of varying molecular weights and concentrations. For each solution we identify a threshold flow rate for polymer degradation. The corresponding critical deformation rate decreases with molecular weight and concentration, as expected (the mass dependence is in line with previous reports and theories for dilute solutions). In addition we characterize the viscosity loss for larger deformation rates and find that, despite the polydispersity of our solutions, the observations for the various solutions can be roughly recast on a master curve by renormalization of the imposed deformation rates according to a law $M_w^{?1.7\pm 03}{c}^{?0.7\pm 03}$.     

Low n-6/n-3 Gestation and Lactation Diets Influence Early Performance,Muscle and Adipose Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Content and Deposition,and Relative Abundance of Proteins in Suckling Piglets

Elevated omega-6 (n-6) and omega-3 (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) ratios in swine diets can potentially impose a higher risk of inflammatory and metabolic diseases in swine. A low ratio between the two omega PUFAs has beneficial effects on sows’ and piglets’ production performance and immunity status. At present, there are few studies on how sow nutrition directly affects the protein and fat deposition in suckling piglets. Two groups of sows were fed diets with high or low n-6/n-3 polyunsaturated ratios of 13:1 (SOY) and 4:1 (LIN), respectively, during gestation and lactation. Longissimus dorsi muscle and adipose tissue from newborn piglets, nourished only with sow’s milk, were subjected to fatty acid profiling by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and to proteomics assays based on nano-liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry (nLC-HRMS). Fatty acid profiles on both muscle and adipose tissues resembled the magnitude of the differences between fatty acid across diets. Proteomic analysis revealed overabundance of 4 muscle and 11 adipose tissue proteins in SOY compared to LIN in both piglet tissues. The detected overabundance of haptoglobin, an acute-phase protein, and the stimulation of protein-coding genes and proteins related to the innate immune response and acute inflammatory response could be associated with the pro-inflammatory role of n-6 PUFAs.