Control of an oscillating water column wave energy converter based on dielectric elastomer generator

This paper introduces a model-based control strategy for a wave energy converter (WEC) based on dielectric elastomer generators (DEGs), i.e. a device that can convert the energy of ocean waves into electricity by employing deformable elastomeric transducers with variable capacitance. The analysed system combines the concept of oscillating water column WEC with an inflated circular diaphragm DEG (ICD-DEG). The device features strongly nonlinear dynamics due to the ICD-DEG electro-hyperelastic response and the compressibility of the air volume comprised between the water column and the ICD-DEG, while the hydrodynamic loads can be approximated as linear. The optimal control solution that maximises the power extraction of the device is numerically investigated in the case of monochromatic waves over the typical frequency and amplitude ranges of sea waves. The more realistic case of panchromatic waves is also analysed through the implementation, in simulation environment, of a real-time controller. This regulator is based on a simple sub-optimal control logic that is deduced from the monochromatic case. The performance of the proposed control strategy is illustrated in comparison with unoptimised algorithms.     

Stereocomplexed Poly(Limonene Carbonate): A Unique Example of the Cocrystallization of Amorphous Enantiomeric Polymers

We report the cocrystallization of the regio‐ and stereoregular chiral copolymer poly(limonene carbonate). To the best of our knowledge, this marks the first example of an amorphous, enantiomerically pure polymer that becomes crystalline upon stereocomplexation with its complementary enantiomer. By analyzing X‐ray powder diffraction data, we propose a packing model in which sheets of enantiopure chains interdigitate with layers of the opposite enantiomer, forming a “steric zipper”.     

A Computational Protocol Combining DFT and Cheminformatics for Prediction of pH-Dependent Redox Potentials

Discovering new materials for energy storage requires reliable and efficient protocols for predicting key properties of unknown compounds. In the context of the search for new organic electrolytes for redox flow batteries, we present and validate a robust procedure to calculate the redox potentials of organic molecules at any pH value, using widely available quantum chemistry and cheminformatics methods. Using a consistent experimental data set for validation, we explore and compare a few different methods for calculating reaction free energies, the treatment of solvation, and the effect of pH on redox potentials. We find that the B3LYP hybrid functional with the COSMO solvation method, in conjunction with thermal contributions evaluated from BLYP gas-phase harmonic frequencies, yields a good prediction of pH = 0 redox potentials at a moderate computational cost. To predict how the potentials are affected by pH, we propose an improved version of the Alberty-Legendre transform that allows the construction of a more realistic Pourbaix diagram by taking into account how the protonation state changes with pH.     

Analysis of paint cross-sections: a combined multivariate approach for the interpretation of μATR-FTIR hyperspectral data arrays

The present research is aimed at introducing a suitable approach for the exploitation of the hyperspectral data obtained by μATR-FTIR analyses of paint cross-sections. The application of principal component analysis for chemical mapping is well-established, even if a very limited number of applications to μFTIR data have been reported so far in the field of analytical chemistry for cultural heritage. Moreover, in many cases, chemometric tools are under-utilized and the outcomes under-interpreted. As a consequence, results and conclusions may be considerably compromised. In an attempt to overcome such drawbacks, the present work is proposing a comprehensive and efficient procedure based on an interactive brushing approach, which combines the structural information of the score scatter plots and the spatial information of the principal component (PC) score maps. In particular, the study demonstrates not only how the multivariate approach may provide more information than the univariate one, but also how the integration of different chemometric tools may allow a more comprehensive interpretation of the results with respect to the studies up to now reported in the literature. The examination of the average spectral profile of each score cluster, jointly with the loading analysis, is functional to characterize each area investigated on the basis of its spectral features. A multivariate comparison with spectra of standard compounds, projected in the PC score space, helps in supporting the chemical identification. The approach was validated on two real case studies.     

Experimental and ab initio structural study of the ketotin compounds,X3SnCR2CH2COMe: crystal structures of X3SnCMe2CH2COMe (X = Cl and I)

The MeCOCH₂CMe₂ ligand in X₃SnCMe₂CH₂COMe ( 2 ; X = halide) acts as a C,O‐chelating group both in the solid state and in non‐coordinating solutions. The intramolecular Sn? O bond lengths in trigonal bipyramidal 2 (X = Cl and I), as determined by X‐ray crystallography, indicate that the stronger interaction occurs in 2 X = Cl. Comparisons with the Sn? O bond lengths in the estertin trihalides, X₃SnCH₂CH₂CO₂R ( 1 ; R = Me), suggest that the latter form stronger chelates than do 2 . In chlorocarbon solution, 2 (X = Cl, I) undergoes exchange reactions, as shown by NMR spectra, to give all possible halide derivatives, ∑(Cl_nI_3?nSnCMe₂CH₂COMe) (n = 0–3). Various ab initio calculations on 2 and X₃SnCH₂CH₂COMe ( 3 ) have been carried out. Comparisons of the theoretical and experimental structures of 2 for X = Cl or I are reported. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A structure-guided approach for protein pocket modeling and affinity prediction

Binding affinity prediction is frequently addressed using computational models constructed solely with molecular structure and activity data. We present a hybrid structure-guided strategy that combines molecular similarity, docking, and multiple-instance learning such that information from protein structures can be used to inform models of structure–activity relationships. The Surflex-QMOD approach has been shown to produce accurate predictions of binding affinity by constructing an interpretable physical model of a binding site with no experimental binding site structural information. We introduce a method to integrate protein structure information into the model induction process in order to construct more robust physical models. The structure-guided models accurately predict binding affinities over a broad range of compounds while producing more accurate representations of the protein pockets and ligand binding modes. Structure-guidance for the QMOD method yielded significant performance improvements, both for affinity and pose prediction, especially in cases where predictions were made on ligands very different from those used for model induction.     

Synthesis,Complexation and Photophysics of 1,3-alternate Calix[4]arene-crowns-6 Bearing Fluorophoric Units on the Bridge

Abstract

Three new calix[4]arene-crown-6 derivatives bearing a fluorophoric unit on the ether bridge were synthesized. All these compounds complex alkali metal picrates in chloroform, and the naphthocrown (2) shows the highest efficiency for cesium ion binding among the calix-crown-6 known so far. Cesium over sodium selectivity is remarkably higher in acetonitrile than in chloroform solution. ¹H NMR studies, carried out in CDCl₃ on the cesium picrate complex of ligand 2, show that the anion is involved in a π-π stacking with the naphthyl unit The lariat calix[4]-crown-6 (4) does not show any relevant change in absorption and fluorescence spectra upon cesium binding, thus indicating that the dansyl unit is not perturbed by metal ion complexation. On the contrary, for ligands 2 and 3 a luminescence intensity decrease is observed upon cation binding, which allows an easy detection of cesium even at very low concentrations (10^?7M).