Osmotic and Activity Coefficients of CH3SO4Na(aq) and CH3SO4K(aq) at 25°C

The osmotic and activity coefficients of aqueous sodium and potassium methyl sulfates have been determined at 25°C by the isopiestic method, in the molality range from ca.0.2 to 25 and 19 mol-kg^–1, respectively. The results have been discussed in terms of the ion–ion and ion–water interactions on the basis of the Pitzer and Mayorga model and a method developed in our laboratory.     

Sustainable Green Processing of Grape Pomace Using Micellar Extraction for the Production of Value-Added Hygiene Cosmetics

This study sought to evaluate the possibility of using grape pomace, a waste material from wine production, for the preparation of cosmetic components. Following the existing clear research trend related to improving the safety of cleansing cosmetics, an attempt was made to determine the possibility of preparing model shower gels based on grape pomace extract. A new method for producing cosmetic components named loan chemical extraction (LCE) was developed and is described for the first time in this paper. In the LCE method, an extraction medium consisting only of the components from the final product was used. Thus, there were no additional substances in the cosmetics developed, and the formulation was significantly enriched with compounds isolated from grape pomace. Samples of the model shower gels produced were evaluated in terms of their basic parameters related to functionality (e.g., foaming properties, rheological characteristics, color) and their effect on the skin. The results obtained showed that the extracts based on waste grape pomace contained a number of valuable cosmetic compounds (e.g., organic acids, phenolic compounds, amino acids and sugars), and the model products basis on them provided colorful and safe natural cosmetics.     

Does local cryotherapy improve thermal diagnosis similar to whole-body cryotherapy in spinal diseases?

Thermal imaging has been used for patients with spinal diseases who were qualified by their physicians for whole-body treatment or local cryotherapy. The experimental groups of patients consisted of 20 males aged 51.6 ± 9.0 (12 treated by whole-body cryotherapy and 8 by local cryotherapy). The distribution of the skin surface temperature was monitored by using a Thermovision Camera E60 before and immediately after body cooling. The chosen spinal region (Th5/Th6–L5/S1) was taken into consideration for all of the research groups. An essential drop in skin temperature and a better differentiation of the body surface temperatures (leading to an increase in the diagnostic value of thermography) was observed after both methods of cold impact. In order to estimate the usefulness of thermovision used after body cooling, the quantitative parameters including temperature contrast—the difference between the maximum and minimum temperatures before and after cold impact and relative contrast ratio (related to the average temperature of the selected area of interest, before and after cooling, respectively)—were compared for both kinds of medical treatment. The statistical analysis proved that significant differences between the parameters obtained before and after body cooling in the case that patients treated by local and whole-body cryotherapy are similar. However, local therapy is cheaper and easy for application while whole-body therapy can give more information about the state of soft tissues for the whole back.     

GC/MS determination of fatty acid picolinyl esters by direct curie-point pyrolysis of whole bacterial cells

A single-step method suitable for cellular fatty acid derivatization to picolinyl esters with the use of a pyrolyzer as a thermochemical micro-reactor was developed for whole bacterial cells. This reduced the preparation time from several hours to less than two minutes. In addition, the minimal bacterial mass required for analysis was reduced from several milligrams to micrograms. The profiling of cellular fatty acids of gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria was achieved using three derivatization methods: preparation of methyl esters, beta-picolinyl esters by Harvey's method and a new method based on pyrolytic derivatization to beta-picolinyl esters. It was shown that there are great similarities between profiles of bacterial fatty acids determined by the pyrolytic derivatization method and traditional preparation methods of picolinyl and methyl esters prior to GC analysis. Results obtained by application of the new technique have immense diagnostic value due to vast similarities between profiles of fatty acids derivatized to either picolinyl and methyl esters. Although the latter are referred to in the literature most often, mass spectra of picolinyl esters contain fragment ions that provide structural information about the chain branching, position of unsaturation, and other substituents.     

The Kuratowski convergence and connected components

We investigate the Kuratowski convergence of the connected components of the sections of a definable set applying the result obtained to semialgebraic approximation of subanalytic sets. We are led to some considerations concerning the connectedness of the limit set in general. We discuss also the behaviour of the dimension of converging sections and prove some general facts about the Kuratowski convergence in tame geometry.     

Synthesis and Structural Studies of [Na(C7H6O4)(H2O)3](C7H5O4)?·?2H2O

Abstract  The mononuclear complex [Na(C₇H₆O₄)(H₂O)₃](C₇H₅O₄) · 2H₂O has been synthesized and characterized by IR, single crystal X-ray and thermal analysis. The compound crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2₁ with a = 3.623(2) ?, b = 15.872(6) ?, c = 15.650(5) ?, β = 93.13(4)°, V = 896.6(7) ?³ and Z = 2. The central sodium ion is six coordinated with distorted octahedral geometry by two oxygen atoms from two bridging 3,5-dihydroxybenzoate ligands and four ones from different water molecules. The notable feature of the title complex is the formation of a three-dimensional network, through the combination of coordination bonds, hydrogen bonds and π···π interactions. There are one-dimensional channels in the structure, filled in by water molecules. The compound dehydrates in the temperature range of 70–125 °C and then is stable up to 230 °C. Index Abstract  The mononuclear complex [Na(C₇H₆O₄)(H₂O)₃](C₇H₅O₄) · 2H₂O has been synthesized and characterized by IR, single crystal X-ray and thermal analysis.      

Nonconscious control of fundamental voice frequency

The aim of this paper is to answer the question whether "perception-action" dissociation, which is well documented in vision, may also be found in auditory information processing. Trained singers were asked to produce vowel sounds into a microphone. The sound that each singer produced was fed back to their ears via headphones. Two seconds after the sound production had begun, the auditory feedback was shifted in pitch by a certain degree (9, 19, 50, or 99 cents in either direction). In every set of sounds, instances without any pitch shifts also appeared. After each trial, participants reported whether they were aware of a pitch change or not. It was found that even though the participants were unaware of subtle pitch changes, the fundamental frequency of their vowel production was found to shift slightly in the opposite direction to the pitch shift. These results show that auditory information is processed by two separate systems: one for perception and one for action. They also show that the function of the auditory control system differs from the visual control system. The latter is used to control bodily movements while the function of the former is a nonconscious, instant control of vocalization.     

Surface characterization of TiO2 thin films obtained by high-energy reactive magnetron sputtering

This paper presents the results of surface characterization of TiO₂ thin films deposited on different substrates by the use of high-energy reactive magnetron sputtering. Structural investigations carried out by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) have shown a strong influence of both the substrate type, and its placement in the deposition chamber (relative to the sputtering target), on the structural properties of the films. In all cases, there is evidence for pseudoepitaxial growth. XRD examination showed existence of TiO₂-rutile phase with preferred (1 1 0) orientation and AFM measurements revealed nanocrystalline structure directly after deposition. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis showed that the TiO₂ films have stoichiometric composition.