Sample preparation procedure for the determination of sulphur and trace metals in oil products by the ICP with a minitorch using emulsions

A quick sample preparation method was used for the determination of sulphur and trace metals in oil and oily products by the ICP with a minitorch. Stable aqueous emulsions of oils and oil products were made by using two kinds of emulsifiers (one with low sulphur content, the other sulfonated). Aqueous standard solutions can be used for the preparation of calibration solutions. The contents of S, Al, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mg, Ni and Pb in aqueous emulsions were determined and the results were in good agreement with the composition of oil standard solutions used for control analysis procedure.     

Oxidative dehydrogenation of crotonaldehyde overK2HPMo12O40catalyst

Summary The oxidative dehydrogenation of crotonaldehyde to furan and maleic anhydride was carried out over K₂HPMo₁₂O₄₀catalyst. A positive effect of water vapor on furan formation is explained by ability of the catalyst to isomerize 2E- to 2Z-crotonaldehyde.</o:p>     

Compatibility and Marginality

We present a way of introducing joint distibution function and its marginal distribution functions for non-compatible observables. Each such marginal distribution function has the property of commutativity. Models based on this approach can be used to better explain some classical phenomena in stochastic processes.     

Low noise optical receiver with multi-octave bandwidth

Optical and Quantum Electronics - A new approach for the design and construction of low noise broadband optical receivers is presented utilizing distributed amplification based on hybrid integrated...     

The surface electronic structure of Ag8Au4 superlattice

We present the calculations of electronic structure and photoemission spectra for a lattice-matched Ag-Au(111) superlattice. The selfconsistent band structure exhibits a superlattice gap at about 1 eV below the Fermi level. A surface state is found in this gap and its dispersion properties are investigated. Its energy location is varied with location of surface terminating plane within the superlattice period. The calculated normal photoemission spectra explain well available experimental data.     

Newtonian limits of warp drive spacetimes

We find a class of warp drive spacetimes possessing Newtonian limits, which we then determine. The same method is used to compute Newtonian limits of the Schwarzschild solution and spatially flat Friedmann-Robertson-Walker cosmological models. This work was partially supported by FCT/POCTI/FEDER.     

A SAXS study of the nanostructural characteristics of TEOS-derived sonogels upon heat treatment up to 1100 °C

Xerogels obtained from the acid-catalyzed and ultrasound stimulated hydrolysis of TEOS were submitted to heat treatment at temperatures ranging from 60 to 1100 °C and studied by small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). The SAXS intensity as a function of the modulus of the scattering vector q was obtained in the range from q₀=0.19 to q_m=4.4 nm⁻¹. At 60 °C the xerogels exhibit an apparent surface fractal structure with a fractal dimension D_S∼2.5 in a length scale ranging from 1/q₁∼1 to 1/q_m∼0.22 nm. This structure becomes extremely rough at 120 °C (D_S∼3) and at 150 °C, it apparently converts to a mass fractal with a fractal dimension D∼2.4. This may mean an emptying of the pores with preservation of a share of the original mass fractal structure of the wet aged gel, for it had presented a mass fractal dimension D∼2.2. A well characterized porous structure formed by 2.0 nm mean size pores with smooth surface of about 380 m²/g is formed at 300 °C and remains stable until approximately 800 °C. At 900 °C the SAXS intensity vanishes indicating the disappearance of the pores in the probed length scale. The elimination of the nanopores occurs by a mechanism in which the number of pores diminishes keeping constant their mean size. The xerogels exhibit a foaming phenomenon above 900 °C and scatter following Porod's law as does a surface formed by a coarse structure.     

Zeroth and second laws of thermodynamics simultaneously questioned in the quantum microworld

A new and rather trivial model is suggested with mechanism that implies simultaneous violation of the zeroth and the second laws of thermodynamics. Mathematically rigorous quantum theory reduces to a trivial application of the Golden rule formula. It yields exciton on-energy-shell diffusion caused by bath-nonassisted excitation hopping between tails of different exciton site levels ε₁ < ε₂ broadened by bath-assisted finite life-time effects. The elastic character of the hopping implies 1 ↔ 2-symmetric transfer rate W. Thus the net diffusion exciton flow W(P ₁ - P ₂) and also, as argued, the net energy flow are possible due to different near-to-equilibrium exciton populations P ₁ > P ₂. As the sites are provided with two different baths, the population imbalance and the flows survive even for slightly different local bath temperatures T ₁ < T ₂ < T ₁ε₂/ε₁. Thus spontaneous exciton and also energy flows against temperature step become possible, in contradiction with the Clausius form of the second law. Violations of both the laws disappear in the high-temperature, i.e. classical limit Received 16 May 2001 and Received in final form 20 September 2001