Beam-quality factor of single-mode gain-guided fiber lasers

The beam-quality factor M(2) for the fundamental LP01 mode of a step-index fiber is calculated in the presence of gain, in a closed form, as a function of the complex generalized V number. It is shown that the M(2) value of a single-mode gain-guided fiber laser can be arbitrarily large. The results are important for the interpretation of the beam-quality measurements in recent experiments on single-mode gain-guided fiber lasers.     

Elemental content of aerosol particles in an underground tram station

Particulate matter is an important air pollutant, especially in closed environments like a tunnel. The aim of this study was to determine the mass, black carbon, and elemental concentrations of particulate matter of two size fractions at an underground tram station in Hammarkullen, Gothenburg, Sweden. Samples were collected during June 2007 using a dichotomous virtual impactor separating the sampled aerosol particles into coarse (PM_(2.5–10)) and fine (PM_2.5) fractions. To minimize the possible influence of waiting passengers, the platform for trams going towards the suburb Angered was chosen. The elemental analysis of the samples, collected on Teflon filters, was carried out using energy dispersive x‐ray fluorescence (EDXRF) spectrometry, resulting in concentrations of 14 elements in most of the samples. Principal component analysis (PCA) was applied to identify possible sources for the elements in the particles. Owing to the tunnel environment, the elemental difference between the fine and coarse particle fractions was not as large as that in similar particles collected under normal outdoor ambient conditions. Likewise, the influence of the local weather situation was not significant. Particle content from the tram traffic was identified by PCA, with Fe being the major element in both coarse and fine particles. The particle mass concentration was higher in the tunnel compared to the ambient concentration at the monitoring station Femman in downtown Gothenburg. In some days, the mass concentration exceeded the Swedish daily ambient air quality standard of 50 µg m^?3, but it was lower than the limits in the environmental work act, 5 mg m^?3. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ultrasonic induced photoluminescence decay in sonochemically obtained cauliflower-like ZnO nanostructures with surface 1D nanoarrays

Cauliflower-like ZnO nanostructures with average crystallite size of about 55 nm which have surface one dimensional (1D) nanoarrays with 10 nm diameter were successfully fabricated through a simple sonochemical route. X-ray diffractometry (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and room temperature photoluminescence (PL) characterizations were performed to investigate the morphological and structural properties of the obtained nanostructures. It has been shown that the synthesized cauliflower-like ZnO nanostructures irradiated UV luminescence and a green peak in visible band. Ultrasonic post-treatment of the particles for about 2 h increased the density of surface defects resulted in an increase in the green emission intensity.     

Widening basins of attraction of optimal iterative methods

In this work, we analyze the dynamical behavior on quadratic polynomials of a class of derivative-free optimal parametric iterative methods, designed by Khattri and Steihaug. By using their parameter as an accelerator, we develop different methods with memory of orders three, six and twelve, without adding new functional evaluations. Then a dynamical approach is made, comparing each of the proposed methods with the original ones without memory, with the following empiric conclusion: Basins of attraction of iterative schemes with memory are wider and the behavior is more stable. This has been numerically checked by estimating the solution of a practical problem, as the friction factor of a pipe and also of other nonlinear academic problems.     

Asphaltene precipitation modeling through ACE reaping of scaling equations

Precipitation and deposition of asphaltene have undesirable effects on the petroleum industry by increasing operational costs due to reduction of well productivity as well as catalyst poisoning.Herein we propose a reliable model for quantitative estimation of asphaltene precipitation.Scaling equation is the most powerful and popular model for accurate prediction of asphaltene precipitated out of solution in crudes without regard to complex nature of asphaltene.We employed a new mathematical-based approach known as alternating conditional expectation(ACE)technique for combining results of different scaling models in order to increase the accuracy of final estimation.Outputs of three well-known scaling equations,including Rassamdana(RE),Hu(HU),and Ashoori(AS),are input to ACE and the final output is produced through a nonlinear combination of scaling equations.The proposed methodology is capable of significantly increasing the precision of final estimation via a divide-andconquer principle in which ACE functions as the combiner.Results indicate the superiority of the proposed method compared with other individual scaling equation models.     

Supercritical fluid extraction followed by supramolecular solvent microextraction as a fast and efficient preconcentration method for determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in apple peels

In this work, reverse micelle‐based supramolecular solvent microextraction method coupled with supercritical fluid extraction and used for determining trace amounts of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in apple peels. The extract was analyzed by high‐performance liquid chromatography equipped with a fluorescence detector. Coupling supramolecular solvent microextraction with supercritical fluid extraction method, resolve low preconcentration factor of supercritical fluid extraction method, improved limit of detection of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and allow the use of supramolecular solvent microextraction in solid matrices. The effective parameters on the supramolecular solvent microextraction and supercritical fluid extraction efficiency were optimized using one variable at a time and face centered design methods, respectively. Under the optimum condition, the limits of detection and limits of quantifications were in the range of 0.34–1.27 and 1.03–3.82 µg/kg, respectively. Analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in apple peels showed that the supercritical fluid extraction/ supramolecular solvent microextraction method provide great potential for trace analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in fruit samples (RSDs < 7.7%).     

CFD modeling of convection heat transfer using 1.7 MHz and 24 kHz ultrasonic waves: a comparative study

The effects of 24 kHz and 1.7 MHz ultrasonic waves on heat transfer from a thin platinum wire are investigated. The results revealed that the 1.7 MHz ultrasound waves could increase the heat transfer rate more efficiently than the lower frequency one. The CFD modeling of ultrasonication was performed to compare heat transfer, predict fluid flow patterns. The CFD results were validated by the experimental results with an excellent agreement.     

Catalytic behavior of nickel nanoparticles: gasborne vs. supported state

To study the pure catalytic activity of metallic nanoparticles, the formation of methane on gasborne Ni nanoparticles, so called aerosol catalysis experiments, were performed. Beside effects typical for the methanation such as poisoning of the particle surface at temperatures above 385°C, the maximum of the catalytic activity was observed for Ni particles of about 14 nm, i.e. in a size range, which is quite uncommon for typical nanoeffects of metallic particles. To clarify, which catalytic phenomena are related to the aerosol state, the same reaction was performed on supported Ni nanoparticles, which were also generated and conditioned in the gas phase and deposited on a SiO₂ surface by thermophoresis. For these supported particles, the same reaction conditions were established as before for the gasborne Ni nanoparticles. However, differences in the mass transport characteristics of educt and product molecules to the particles were encountered and led to lower overall reaction rates. While qualitatively poisoning kinetics and activation energies agreed for both cases, significant differences were observed for the size dependence of the catalytic activity and for the sintering kinetics. The observed shift of the optimum size for the methanation from 14 nm (aerosol) to 25 nm (on support) can be explained by different adsorption enthalpies of the educt gases on aerosol and supported Ni nanoparticles, respectively.     

l-Arginine as a base and ligand for the palladium-catalyzed C-C and C-N cross-coupling reactions in aqueous media

l-Arginine (2-amino-5-guanidinopentanoic acid) acts as a base and ligand in reaction medium, exhibits a very high activity and recyclability to palladium-catalyzed C-C and C-N cross-coupling reactions in aqueous media. The corresponding Suzuki products were obtained in good to excellent yields by using various aryl halides (I, Br, Cl). Also, the cross coupling reactions of arylboronic acids with various amines in aqueous medium proceed in good to excellent yield under same conditions. Furthermore, the catalyst could be easily separated from the reaction mixture and could be recycled several times without significant loss in its catalytic activity.