Thermodynamics and Spectroscopy of Halogen- and Hydrogen-Bonded Complexes of Haloforms with Aromatic and Aliphatic Amines

Similarities and differences of halogen and hydrogen bonding were explored via UV–Vis and ¹H NMR measurements, X-ray crystallography and computational analysis of the associations of CHX₃ (X=I, Br, Cl) with aromatic (tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine) and aliphatic (4-diazabicyclo[2,2,2]octane) amines. When the polarization of haloforms was taken into account, the strengths of these complexes followed the same correlation with the electrostatic potentials on the surfaces of the interacting atoms. However, their spectral properties were quite distinct. While the halogen-bonded complexes showed new intense absorption bands in the UV–Vis spectra, the absorptions of their hydrogen-bonded analogues were close to the superposition of the absorption of reactants. Additionally, halogen bonding led to a shift in the NMR signal of haloform protons to lower ppm values compared with the individual haloforms, whereas hydrogen bonding of CHX₃ with aliphatic amines resulted in a shift in the opposite direction. The effects of hydrogen bonding with aromatic amines on the NMR spectra of haloforms were ambivalent. Titration of all CHX₃ with these nucleophiles produced consistent shifts in their protons’ signals to lower ppm values, whereas calculations of these pairs produced multiple hydrogen-bonded minima with similar structures and energies, but opposite directions of the NMR signals’ shifts. Experimental and computational data were used for the evaluation of formation constants of some halogen- and hydrogen-bonded complexes between haloforms and amines co-existing in solutions.     

Synthesis and barrier properties of poly(ε-caprolactone)-layered silicate nanocomposites

A new polymer-ceramic nanocomposite has been synthesized consisting of well-dispersed, two-dimensional layers of an organically modified mica-type silicate (MTS) within a degradable poly(ε-caprolactone) matrix. A protonated amino acid derivative of MTS was used to promote delamination/dispersion of the host layers and initiate ring-opening polymerization of ε-caprolactone monomer, resulting in poly(ε-caprolactone) chains that are ionically bound to the silicate layers. The polymer chains can be released from the silicate surface by a reverse ion-exchange reaction and were shown to be spectroscopically similar to pure poly(ε-caprolactone). Thick films of the polymer nanocomposite exhibit a significant reduction in water vapor permeability that shows a linear dependence on silicate content. The permeability of nanocomposite containing as low as 4.8% silicate by volume was reduced by nearly an order of magnitude compared to pure poly(ε-caprolactone). © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

On the characterization of disordered and heterogeneous carbonaceous materials by Raman spectroscopy

The applicability of Raman spectroscopy to characterize disordered and heterogeneous carbonaceous materials (CM) is discussed, by considering both natural and synthetic CM. First, different analytical mismatches during the measurement are discussed and technical indications are provided in order to eliminate them. Second, the accuracy and relevance of the different parameters obtained by the decomposition of spectra by conventional fitting procedure, is reviewed. Lastly, a new Raman technique (Raman area mode microspectroscopy) giving an homogeneous repartition of power within a large laser beam is presented, this technique being powerful to study strongly heterogeneous CM and/or photosensitive samples.     

Continuous time random walks and heat transfer in porous media

An approach to describe heat transfer in porous media is presented on the basis of the continuous time random walk (CTRW) framework. CTRW is capable of quantifying both local equilibrium and non-equilibrium heat transfer in heterogeneous domains, and is shown here to match published experimental data of non-equilibrium thermal breakthrough. It is argued that CTRW will be particularly applicable to the quantification of heat transfer in naturally heterogeneous geological systems, such as soils and geothermal reservoirs.     

Deintercalation of a chemically switchable polymer from a layered silicate nanocomposite

The phenomenon of intercalation is widely known as a key process in the area of polymer/layered silicate nanocomposites. In the formation of such nanocomposites, a polymer chain is intercalated between the layers of a layered (silicate) host, typically giving a well-ordered multilayered stack with a repeat distance of only a few nanometers. Intercalated systems are excellent models for studies of confined geometries, and they often display enhanced material properties as well. In this study, we examined a series of polymers in which it was possible to reverse the intercalation process (i.e., to achieve deintercalation). Homopolymers and copolymers of poly(methyl methacrylate) and poly(tetrahydropyranyl methacrylate) (PTHPMA) were intercalated into an organically modified synthetic fluoromica. Thermally induced deprotection of the tetrahydropyranyl group resulted in the transformation of PTHPMA into poly(methacrylic acid), which was then observed to deintercalate from the silicate host. X-ray diffraction and thermogravimetric analysis were used to study the deintercalation process. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 41: 3151–3159, 2003     

Adaptive mesh refinement for the control of cost and quality in finite element analysis

Adaptive strategies are a necessary tool to make finite element analysis applicable to engineering practice. In this paper, attention is restricted to mesh adaptivity. Traditionally, the most common mesh adaptive strategies for linear problems are used to reach a prescribed accuracy. This goal is best met with an h-adaptive scheme in combination with an error estimator. In an industrial context, the aim of the mechanical simulations in engineering design is not only to obtain greatest quality but more often a compromise between the desired quality and the computation cost (CPU time, storage, software, competence, human cost, computer used). In this paper, we propose the use of alternative mesh refinement criteria with an h-adaptive procedure for 3D elastic problems. The alternative mesh refinement criteria (MR) are based on: prescribed number of elements with maximum accuracy, prescribed CPU time with maximum accuracy and prescribed memory size with maximum accuracy. These adaptive strategies are based on a technique of error in constitutive relation (the process could be used with other error estimators) and an efficient adaptive technique which automatically takes into account the steep gradient areas. This work proposes a 3D method of adaptivity with the latest version of the INRIA automatic mesh generator GAMHIC3D.     

Construction of new soliton-like solutions of the (2 + 1) dimensional dispersive long wave equation

By using a improved extended tanh method with the aid of symbolic computation system, some new soliton-like solutions of the (2 + 1) dimensional spaces long wave equation are obtained.     

Coulomb interaction symmetries and the Mayer series in the two-dimensional dipole gas

We study the Mayer series of the two-dimensional dipole gas in the high-temperature, low-density regime. Without performing any multiscale analysis, we obtain bounds showing that the Mayer coefficients are finite in the thermodynamic limit. These bounds are obtained by exploiting a particular partial symmetry of the interaction (which we nameO-symmetry), already used in some problems related to the two-dimensional Coulomb gas. By direct bounds on some Mayer graphs we also conjecture that any technique based uniquely on theO-symmetry will not be sufficient to prove analyticity of the series.