Power requirement for the mixing of thixotropic liquids

A procedure has recently been proposed by Godfrey et al. [1] for the calculation of the variation of power consumption with time when a thixotropic liquid is agitated from rest using an impeller which rotates at constant speed. This procedure requires a knowledge of the power requirement for Newtonian and time-independent non-Newtonian liquids together with viscometric data for the thixotropic liquid obtained under constant shear rate conditions.Experimental work to test the procedure has been carried out in a 0.126-m-diameter cylindrical vessel with anchor, helical ribbon and helical screw impellers. Power consumption data were obtained for a range of Newtonian and time-independent non-Newtonian liquids and this was then used to make predictions of the measured power input to the thixotropic liquids: salad cream, tomato ketchup, yoghurt, paint and Laponite solutions.The agreement between experiment and theory was usually better than 10%. However, for the case of the helical screws rotating in Laponite it was observed that regions existed close to the vessel wall where there was no fluid circulation. In such cases, the predicted power input was greatly in excess of the measured value. This is not a serious limitation of the predictive procedure since efficient industrial mixers would keep the entire fluid in circulation.     

A crystallographic, EPR and theoretical study of the Jahn-Teller distortion in [CuTp2] (Tp- = tris[pyrazol-1-yl]hydridoborate)

Crystals of the title compound (1) contain two independent, centrosymmetric half-molecules per asymmetric unit. While both of these show Jahn-Teller elongated six-coordinate geometries, the lengths of the elongated Cu-N bonds in the two molecules differ by 0.117(2) A at 30 K. The structure of one of these molecules (molecule A) does not vary with temperature below 350 K. The other molecule (molecule B) shows Cu-N bond lengths that are temperature-dependent between 225 and 375 K, but do not vary further at lower temperature. This indicates a fluxional axis of Jahn-Teller elongation in this molecule at these higher temperatures. Consideration of the thermal parameters in these structures implies that the fluxionality in molecule B is frozen out near 150 K. This conclusion is supported by a Q-band powder EPR study. The d-d transition energies of molecules A and B have been calculated by several density function (DF) methods, including a time-dependent DF calculation. The crystallographic data have been reproduced using the vibronic coupling model of Burgi and Hitchman. This has shown that the different fluxionality regimes for molecules A and B are not a consequence of their different static molecular structures, but rather reflect their different local environments in the crystal.     

Crystal engineering of microporous 'Chinese-lantern' compounds to improve their ability to reversibly adsorb sulfur dioxide

Three new 'Chinese lantern' complexes [XMn(mu-dppO2)4MnX](2+)2X-.4MeOH.Me2CO [X = Cl, Br, I; dppO2 = 1,3-bis(diphenylphosphinoyl)propane], have been structurally characterised using single-crystal X-ray diffraction and shown to have increasing affinity for SO2 across the series Cl < Br < I via thermogravimetric measurements.     

An evolutionary approach for finding optimal trees in undirected networks

In many utilities, such as water and gas, materials are distributed through networks of pipes. For efficiency, many such distribution networks are constructed as trees. The cost of construction and operation of these is generally a complex function of the edges which are used, so that it is impossible to use conventional algorithms for the optimisation of trees. This paper presents a method for identifying a tree which is close to optimal. This evolutionary method is based on ideas from genetic algorithms.     

Crystallographic effects in low energy ion scattering due to local ion-atom neutralisation

New experiments on 1 keV ₄He⁺ ion scattering from Ni {100} and Ni {100} (√2 × √2)R45°?O surfaces show azimuthal anisotropies attributable to variations in ion neutralisation probability for different ion trajectories relative to the position of the surface atoms. These effects are shown to be compatible with a simple localised ion-atom neutralisation mechanism. The results indicate that local neutralization is an important process in substrate shadowing in low energy ion scattering studies of adsorbate structures.     

Effective mass of the 2-dimensional electron gas in an Al0.6Ga0.4Sb/InAs single quantum well

The 2-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) in an Al_0.6Ga_0.4Sb/InAs single quantum well is studied using cyclotron resonance and Shubnikov - de Haas (SdH) techniques. The effective mass (m^*) of the 2DEG was obtained from the peak positions of the cyclotron resonance transmission spectra. The results exhibit oscillatory behavior as a function of the magnetic field strength (B). The m^* value extracted from the temperature dependence of the SdH oscillations is in good agreement with the average value of m^* obtained from cyclotron resonance measurements. The effective mass is calculated as a function of B using an electron self-energy model based on the Hartree-Fock approximation. The calculated m^* values also show oscillatory behavior similar to that of the measured cyclotron resonance m^*. Both experiment and theory show that m^* maxima are shifted from the integral values (both odd and even) of the filling factors.     

Immunoaffinity extraction in veterinary residue analysis--a regulatory viewpoint.

The utility of immunoaffinity chromatography (IAC) for the purification of veterinary drug residues from extracts of foods of animal origin is widely acknowledged. However owing to the unique nature of the specific antibody reagent used when synthesising an immunosorbent, certain reassurances are needed before an IAC process can be considered an acceptable stage in a routine analytical method. European Community legislation requires applicants for Maximum Residue Limits or national Marketing Authorization for veterinary medicinal products, used in food producing animals, to provide a routine analytical method in accordance with Volume VI of the Rules Governing Medicinal Products in the European Community. In order to ensure the continued supply of immunosorbent material, applicants wishing to use IAC sample clean-up procedures should consider generating the following data: a standard operating procedure (SOP) for antibody production (or cell-line maintenance in the case of monoclonal antibodies), a specifications document of antibody characterisation, an SOP for immunosorbent synthesis, validation of immunosorbent operating conditions and an assessment of its performance criteria. This paper aims to introduce analysts to the technique of IAC and to suggest how those areas of concern highlighted above may be addressed.     

The microwave spectrum of urea

The microwave spectrum of urea has been recorded between 5 and 50 GHz. The rotational constants obtained from a least-squares fit of 47 b-type transitions are A = 11233.333, B = 10369.369, C = 5416.668 MHz. Centrifugal distortion constants were evaluated subject to the planarity constraints, giving satisfactory agreement up to at least J = 20. They are: τ_aaaa = ?0.04423, τ_bbbb = ?0.04075, τ_aabb = 0.02268, τ_abab = ?0.02806. The diagonal elements of the nuclear quadrupole coupling tensor are χ_aa = 2.16, χ_bb = 1.88, χ_cc = ?4.04. The dipole moment is μ = μ_b = 3.83 D (12.8 × 10^?30 Cm).