MgCu metallic glass

We generate an amorphous MgCu model using the rapid solidification of the melt through a first-principles molecular dynamics approach within a generalised gradient approximation and reveal, for the first time, its structural features and mechanical properties in details. The liquid and glassy MgCu are found to acquire slightly distinct local structures. Yet in both forms of MgCu, most Cu atoms have a tendency to form the ideal and defective icosahedrons while Mg atoms are arranged in complex configurations. The mean coordination number of Cu and Mg at 300 K is 11.31 and 13.73, respectively. The short-range order of MgCu glass is projected to be different than the known crystalline MgCu and Mg₂Cu phases. The mechanical properties of MgCu glass and the CsCl-type MgCu crystal are computed and compared. On the basis of the enthalpy analyses, a possible pressure-induced crystallisation of the MgCu glass into a CsCl-type structure is proposed to occur at around 11 GPa.     

Biological assays and theoretical density functional theory calculations of Rh(I), Ir(III), and Ru(II) complexes of chiral phosphinite ligand

Four metal complexes, IL-OPPh₂-Ru-p-cymene (3) , IL-OPPh₂-Ru-benzene (4) , IL-OPPh₂-Ir-Cp* (5) , IL-OPPh₂-Rh-COD (6) , have been evaluated for in vitro antioxidant activity such as 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging and reducing power activity. Maximum scavenging activity (71.43%) was obtained with IL-OPPh₂-Ru-p-cymene, whereas IL-OPPh₂-Rh-COD showed the highest reducing power ability. The complexes were also studied for their antimicrobial activity against three Gram-positive and three Gram-negative bacteria. In addition, DNA binding of the complexes was evaluated using calf thymus DNA. Both Ru(II) complexes exhibited good DNA-binding activity while the other complexes did not have any activity. Furthermore, ab initio quantum calculations of four complexes were also carried out using density functional theory to better understand their chemical behaviors.     

Amorphous silicon hexaboride at high pressure

ABSTRACT

We investigate the pressure-induced structural phase transformation of amorphous silicon hexaboride (a-SiB₆) using a constant pressure first principles approach. a-SiB₆ is found to undergo a gradual phase transformation to a high-density amorphous phase (HDA) in which the average coordination number of both B and Si atoms is about 6. The HDA phase consists of differently coordinated motifs ranging from 4 to 8. B₁₂ icosahedra are found to persist during compression of a-SiB₆ and the structural modifications primarily occur around Si atoms and in the regions linking pentagonal pyramid-like configurations to each other. Upon pressure release, an amorphous structure, similar to the uncompressed one, is recovered, indicating a reversible amorphous-to-amorphous phase change in a-SiB_6. When the electronic structure is considered, the HDA phase is perceived to have a wider forbidden band gap than the uncompressed one.     

Spectral,electron microscopic and chemical investigations of gamma-induced purple color zonings in amethyst crystals from the Dursunbey-Balıkesir region of Turkey

Amethyst crystals on matrix specimens from the Dursunbey-Bal?kesir region in Turkey have five representative purple color zonings: dark purple, light purple, lilac, orchid, and violet. The purple color zonings have been analyzed with optical absorption spectra in the visible wavelength region, chemical full trace element analyses (inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectroscopy), and scanning electron microscopic images with high magnification. It can be proposed that the production of the purple color in amethyst crystals is due to three dominant absorption bands centered at 375, 530, and 675 nm, respectively. In addition, the purple color zonings are also due to four minor absorption bands centered at 435, 480, 620, and 760 nm. X-ray diffraction graphics of the investigated amethyst crystals indicate that these crystals are composed of a nearly pure alpha-quartz phase and do not include any moganite silica phase and/or other mineral implications. Trace element analyses of the amethyst crystals show five representative purple color zonings, suggesting that the absorption bands can be mainly attributed to extrinsic defects (chemical impurities). However, another important factor that influences all structural defects in amethyst is likely to be the gamma irradiation that exists during amethyst crystallization and its inclusion in host materials. This gamma irradiation originates from the large underlying intrusive granitoid body in the region of amethyst formation. Irradiation modifies the valence values of the impurity elements in the amethyst crystals. It is observed that the violet-colored amethyst crystals have the most stable and the least reversible coloration when exposed to strong light sources. This situation can be related to the higher impurity content of Fe (2.50 ppm), Co (3.1 ppm), Ni (38 ppm), Cu (17.9 ppm), Zn (10 ppm), Zr (3.9 ppm), and Mo (21.8 ppm).     

Pressure-induced phase transition in wurtzite ZnS: An ab initio constant pressure study

We study the pressure-induced phase transition of wurtzite ZnS using a constant pressure ab initio technique. A first-order phase transition into a rocksalt state at 30–35 GPa is observed in the constant pressure simulation. We also investigate the stability of wurtzite (WZ) and zinc-blende (ZB) phases from energy–volume calculations and Gibbs free energies at zero temperature and find that both structures show nearly similar equations of state and transform into a rocksalt structure around 14 GPa, in agreement with experiments. Additionally, we examine the influence of pressure on the electronic structure of the wurtzite and zinc-blende ZnS crystals and find that their band gap energies exhibit similar tendency and increase with increasing pressure. The calculated pressure coefficients and deformation potential are found to be comparable with experiments.     

He's homotopy perturbation method for solving the shock wave equation

In this article, we discuss the analytic solution of the fully developed shock waves. The homotopy perturbation method is used to solve the shock wave equation, which describes the flow of gases. Unlike the various numerical techniques, which are usually valid for short period of time, the solution of the presented equation is analytic for 0 < t < ∞. The results presented converge very rapidly, indicating that the method is reliable and accurate.     

The investigation of 0<Superscript>+</Superscript> ↔ 0<Superscript>−</Superscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">β</Emphasis> decay in some spherical nuclei

The 0⁺ ↔ 0⁻ first-forbidden β decay transitions have been investigated for some spherical nuclei. The theoretical framework is based on a proton-neutron quasiparticle random phase approximation (pnQRPA). The Woods-Saxon potential basis has been used in our calculations. The transition probabilities have been calculated within the ξ approximation. The relativistic β moment matrix element has been calculated both directly without any assumption and assuming that it is proportional to the non-relativistic one.     

Derivation of Korteweg–de Vries flow equations from the short‐wave model equation

We perform a multiple‐time scales analysis and compatibility condition to the short‐wave model equation. We derive Korteweg–de Vries flow equation in the bi‐Hamiltonian form as an amplitude equation. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of heavy metals and oxalate on the zeta potential of magnetite

Zeta potential is a function of surface coverage by charged species at a given pH, and it is theoretically determined by the activity of the species in solution. The zeta potentials of particles occurring in soils, such as clay and iron oxide minerals, directly affect the efficiency of the electrokinetic soil remediation. In this study, zeta potential of natural magnetite was studied by conducting electrophoretic mobility measurements in single and binary solution systems. It was shown that adsorption of charged species of Co(2+), Ni(2+), Cu(2+), Zn(2+), Pb(2+), and Cd(2+) and precipitation of their hydroxides at the mineral surface are dominant processes in the charging of the surface in high alkaline suspensions. Taking Pb(2+) as an example, three different mechanisms were proposed for its effect on the surface charge: if pH<5, competitive adsorption with H(3)O(+); if 56, precipitation of heavy metal hydroxides prevails. Oxalate anion changed the associated surface charge by neutralizing surface positive charges by complexing with iron at the surface, and ultimately reversed the surface to a negative zeta potential. Therefore the adsorption ability of heavy metal ions ultimately changed in the presence of oxalate ion. The changes in the zeta potentials of the magnetite suspensions with solution pH before and after adsorption were utilized to estimate the adsorption ability of heavy metal ions. The mechanisms for heavy metals and oxalate adsorption on magnetite were discussed in the view of the experimental results and published data.