Isothermal crystallization kinetics of poly(3‐hydroxybutyrate)/layered double hydroxide nanocomposites

Poly(3‐hydroxybutyrate) (PHB)/layered double hydroxides (LDHs) nanocomposites were prepared by mixing PHB and poly(ethylene glycol) phosphonates (PEOPAs)‐modified LDH (PMLDH) in chloroform solution. Both X‐ray diffraction data and TEM micrographs of PHB/PMLDH nanocomposites indicate that the PMLDHs are randomly dispersed and exfoliated into the PHB matrix. In this study, the effect of PMLDH on the isothermal crystallization behavior of PHB was investigated using a differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) and polarized optical microscopy. Isothermal crystallization results of PHB/PMLDH nanocomposites show that the addition of 2 wt % PMLDH into PHB induced more heterogeneous nucleation in the crystallization significantly increasing the crystallization rate and reducing their activation energy. By adding more PMLDH into the PHB probably causes more steric hindrance of the diffusion of PHB, reducing the transportation ability of polymer chains during crystallization, thus increasing the activation energy. The correlation among crystallization kinetics, melting behavior and crystalline structure of PHB/PMLDH nanocomposites can also be discussed. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 3337–3347, 2006     

Measuring length of business cycles across countries using a new non‐stationary unit‐root cyclical approach

This article examines the length of the cycles in the gross domestic product (GDP) real per capita series of 15 countries by means of new statistical techniques based on unit root cycles. We propose tests for unit root cycles at each of the frequencies of the process. Using this approach, we are able to approximate the number of periods per cycle. The results show that the cycles have a periodicity of approximately six years when the disturbances are white noise. However, if we permit autocorrelation, they may also occur at smaller intervals of time. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An implicit method for linear ill‐posed problems with perturbed operators

An implicit iterative method is applied to solving linear ill‐posed problems with perturbed operators. It is proved that the optimal convergence rate can be obtained after choosing suitable number of iterations. A generalized Morozov's discrepancy principle is proposed for the problems, and then the optimal convergence rate can also be obtained by an a posteriori strategy. The convergence results show that the algorithm is a robust regularization method. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Almost global existence for Hamiltonian semilinear Klein‐Gordon equations with small Cauchy data on Zoll manifolds

This paper is devoted to the proof of almost global existence results for Klein‐Gordon equations on Zoll manifolds (e.g., spheres of arbitrary dimension) with Hamiltonian nonlinearities, when the Cauchy data are smooth and small. The proof relies on Birkhoff normal form methods and on the specific distribution of eigenvalues of the Laplacian perturbed by a potential on Zoll manifolds. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Studies on calcium‐containing poly(urethane ether)s

The calcium salt of mono(hydroxyethoxyethyl)phthalate [Ca(HEEP)₂] was synthesized by the reaction of diethylene glycol, phthalic anhydride, and calcium acetate. Calcium‐containing poly(urethane ether)s (PUEs) were synthesized by the reaction of hexamethylene diisocyanate (HMDI) or tolylene 2,4‐diisocyanate (TDI) with a mixture of Ca(HEEP)₂ and poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG₃₀₀ or PEG₄₀₀) with di‐n‐butyltin dilaurate as a catalyst. A series of calcium‐containing PUEs of different compositions were synthesized with Ca(HEEP)₂/PEG₃₀₀ (or PEG₄₀₀)/diisocyanate (HMDI or TDI) molar ratios of 2:2:4, 3:1:4, and 1:3:4 so that the coating properties of the PUEs could be studied. Blank PUEs without calcium‐containing ionic diols were also prepared by the reaction of PEG₃₀₀ or PEG₄₀₀ with HMDI or TDI. The PUEs were well characterized by Fourier transform infrared, ¹H and ¹³C NMR, solid‐state cross‐polarity/magic‐angle‐spinning ¹³C NMR, viscosity, solubility, and X‐ray diffraction studies. The thermal properties of the polymers were also studied with thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry. The PUEs were applied as top coats on acrylic‐coated leather, and their physicomechanical properties were also studied. The coating properties of PUEs, such as the tensile strength, elongation at break, tear strength, water vapor permeability, flexing endurance, cold crack resistance, abrasion resistance, color fastness, and adhesive strength, were better than the standard values. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 41: 2865–2878, 2003