The effect of rib shape on the behavior of laminar flow of oil/MWCNT nanofluid in a rectangular microchannel

Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry - In this research, the laminar and forced flow and heat transfer of oil/multi-walled carbon nanotubes nanofluid in a microchannel have been numerically...     

Simple and mild procedures for synthesis of benzimidazole derivatives using heterogeneous catalyst systems

TsOH/graphite and N,N‐dimethylaniline/graphite were found to be catalyst systems for condensation reaction of o‐phenylendiamine with different aldehydes to form benzimidazole derivatives under mild and simple conditions. The graphite was easily recovered by a simple extraction and could be reused without decrease of activity in the presence of fresh TsOH and N,N‐dimethylaniline.     

Cr(VI) ion removal from artificial waste water using supported liquid membrane

In this study, a novel flat-type synergic-supported liquid membrane was evaluated with a mixture of N-methyl-N,N,N-trioctylammonium chloride (Aliquat 336) and tributyl phosphate (TBP) as the carrier and kerosene as the diluent to remove Cr(VI) from synthetic waste water. The main parameters involved in the process were identified and optimised. The parameters were divided into two groups, those that were independent and those having an interaction. The parameters of the carrier/kerosene volumetric proportion and stirring rate were optimised individually due to their nature. The optimal values of these parameters were 0.5 and 500 min^?1, respectively, for a constant carrier/kerosene ratio and stirring rate in the designed experiments using the response surface method (RSM). The four parameters of TBP/Aliquat 336, chromium concentration in the feed phase, feed and product pH were optimised using RSM; it was observed that the TBP/Aliquat 336 ratio, feed pH, pH of the stripping phase and interaction of this parameter with feed concentration have the most important effects on the removal of Cr(VI). The optimal levels of these parameters were 0.61, 71.75 mg L^?1, 3.5 and 12.66 for the ratio of TBP/Aliquat 336, feed chromium concentration, pH of the feed and pH of the product, respectively. An experimental removal rate of 94.63 % at the optimized levels was obtained.     

Macrocyclic beta-sheet peptides that mimic protein quaternary structure through intermolecular beta-sheet interactions

This paper reports the design, synthesis, and characterization of a family of cyclic peptides that mimic protein quaternary structure through beta-sheet interactions. These peptides are 54-membered-ring macrocycles comprising an extended heptapeptide beta-strand, two Hao beta-strand mimics [JACS 2000, 122, 7654] joined by one additional alpha-amino acid, and two delta-linked ornithine beta-turn mimics [JACS 2003, 125, 876]. Peptide 3a, as the representative of these cyclic peptides, contains a heptapeptide sequence (TSFTYTS) adapted from the dimerization interface of protein NuG2 [PDB ID: 1mio]. 1H NMR studies of aqueous solutions of peptide 3a show a partially folded monomer in slow exchange with a strongly folded oligomer. NOE studies clearly show that the peptide self-associates through edge-to-edge beta-sheet dimerization. Pulsed-field gradient (PFG) NMR diffusion coefficient measurements and analytical ultracentrifugation (AUC) studies establish that the oligomer is a tetramer. Collectively, these experiments suggest a model in which cyclic peptide 3a oligomerizes to form a dimer of beta-sheet dimers. In this tetrameric beta-sheet sandwich, the macrocyclic peptide 3a is folded to form a beta-sheet, the beta-sheet is dimerized through edge-to-edge interactions, and this dimer is further dimerized through hydrophobic face-to-face interactions involving the Phe and Tyr groups. Further studies of peptides 3b-3n, which are homologues of peptide 3a with 1-6 variations in the heptapeptide sequence, elucidate the importance of the heptapeptide sequence in the folding and oligomerization of this family of cyclic peptides. Studies of peptides 3b-3g show that aromatic residues across from Hao improve folding of the peptide, while studies of peptides 3h-3n indicate that hydrophobic residues at positions R3 and R5 of the heptapeptide sequence are important in oligomerization.     

Using a Natural Surfactant for Synthesize of NiO and CuO Nanostructures via Simple and Fast Microwave Approach

NiO and CuO nanostructures were synthesized successfully via simple and fast microwave approach. Olive oil was chose as surfactant for stabilizing nanostructures. Different parameters such as microwave time and power and olive oil concentration were investigated on product size and morphology. The products were characterized with X-ray diffraction pattern, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectrometry analysis.     

Preparation,characterization, and use of poly(vinylpyrrolidonium) hydrogen phosphate ([PVP-H]H2PO4) as a new heterogeneous catalyst for efficient synthesis of 2-amino-tetrahydro-4H-pyrans

Research on Chemical Intermediates - A novel Brønsted solid acid named poly(vinylpyrrolidonium) hydrogen phosphate ([PVP-H]H2PO4) has been prepared by using H3PO4 and poly(vinylpyrrolidone) as...     

Fracture Micromechanisms of Polypropylene/Polycarbonate/Poly(styrene-b-(ethylene-co-butylene)-b-styrene) (PP/ PC/SEBS) Ternary Blends: The Effects of SEBS Content

Ternary blends of polypropylene/polycarbonate/poly(styrene-b-(ethylene-co-butylene)-b-styrene) (PP/PC/SEBS) with varying SEBS contents were produced via melt blending in a co-rotating twin-screw extruder. The phase morphology of the resulting ternary blends and its relationship with bending and impact behaviors were studied. Transmission optical microscopy (TOM) of the crack tip damage zone and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of impact fractured surfaces were performed to characterize the fracture mechanism. With increasing SEBS content in the PP/PC/SEBS ternary blends, the number of PC/SEBS core-shell particles increased and the size of the core-shell particles enlarged. It was shown that with an SEBS content of 5%, the crack initiation resistance decreased and then was almost unchanged with further increase of SEBS content, while resistance to crack growth increased continuously with increasing of SEBS content. Preliminary analysis of the micromechanical deformation suggested that the high impact toughness observed for samples containing 20 and 30 wt% of SEBS could be attributed to cavitation of the rubbery shell and, consequently, shear yielding of the matrix. This plastic deformation absorbed a tremendous amount of energy. Due to low interfacial adhesion between PC particles and PP matrix in samples containing 5 and 10 wt% of SEBS, debonding occurred too early, so the occurrence of matrix shear yielding was delayed and resulted in premature interfacial failure and, hence, rapid crack propagation.     

Thermo-oxidative degradation kinetics and mechanism of the system epoxy nanocomposite reinforced with nano-Al2O3

We have synthesized epoxy nanocomposites with various percents of nanoalumina by using ultrasonic dispersion treatment. Scanning calorimetry studies revealed that the composition having 1% nanoalumina results in the highest value of cross-link density as evidenced by the glass transition temperature (T _g). Thermal degradation of the systems consisting of diglycidyl ether bisphenol A (DGEBA)/1,3-Poropane diamine and with 1% and without nanoalumina were studied by thermogravimetry analysis to determine the reaction mechanism in air. The obtained results indicated that a relatively low concentration of nanoalumina led to an impressive improvement of thermal stability of epoxy resin. The Coats?CRedfern, Van Krevelen, Horowitz?CMetzger, and Criado methods were utilized to find the solid state thermal degradation mechanism. Analysis of our experimental results suggests that the reaction mechanism is depending on the applied thermal history. For the nanocomposite, the mechanism was recognized to be one-dimensional diffusion (D₁) reaction at low heating rates and it changes to be a random nucleation process with one nucleus on the individual particle (F₁) at high heating speeds. The results also indicated that the degradation mechanism of organic phase is influenced by the presence of inorganic nanofiller.