Melting behaviors,crystallization kinetics,and spherulitic morphologies of poly(butylene succinate) and its copolyester modified with rosin maleopimaric acid anhydride

This article investigated the melting behaviors, crystallization kinetics, and spherulitic morphologies of poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) and its copolyester (PBSR) modified with rosin maleopimaric acid anhydride, using wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction, differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), and polarized optical microscope. Subsequent DSC scans of isothermally crystallized PBS and PBSR exhibited two melting endotherms, respectively, which was due to the melt‐recrystallization process occurring during the DSC scans. The equilibrium melting point of PBSR (125.9 °C) was lower than that of PBS (139 °C). The commonly used Avrami equation was used to describe the isothermal crystallization kinetics. For nonisothermal crystallization studies, the model combining Avrami equation and Ozawa equation was employed. The result showed a consistent trend in the crystallization process. The crystallization rate was decreased, the perfection of crystals was decreased, the recrystallization was reduced, and the spherulitic morphologies were changed when the huge hydrogenated phenanthrene ring was added into the chain of PBS. The activation energy (ΔE) for the isothermal crystallization process determined by Arrhenius method was 255.9 kJ/mol for PBS and 345.7 kJ/mol for PBSR. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 900–913, 2006     

Reinforcement effect of MAA on nano‐CaCo3‐filled EPDM vulcanizates and possible mechanism

Methacrylic acid (MAA) was used as in situ surface modifier to improve the interface interaction between nano‐CaCO₃ particle and ethylene–propylene–diene monomer (EPDM) matrix, and hence the mechanical properties of nano‐CaCO₃‐filled EPDM vulcanizates. The results showed that the incorporation of MAA improved the filler–matrix interaction, which was proved by Fourier transformation infrared spectrometer (FTIR), Kraus equation, crosslink density determination, and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The formation of carboxylate and the participation of MAA in the crosslinking of EPDM indicated the strong filler–matrix interaction from the aspect of chemical reaction. The results of Kraus equation showed that the presence of MAA enhanced the reinforcement extent of nano‐CaCO₃ on EPDM vulcanizates. Crosslink density determination proved the formation of the ionic crosslinks in EPDM vulcanizates with the existence of MAA. The filler particles on tensile fracture were embedded in the matrix and could not be observed obviously, indicating that a strong interfacial interaction between the filler and the matrix had been achieved with the incorporation of MAA. Meanwhile, the presence of MAA remarkably increased the modulus and tensile strength of the vulcanizates, without negative effect on the high elongation at break. Furthermore, the ionic bond was thought to be formed only on filler surface because of the absolute deficiency of MAA, which resulted in the possible structure where filler particles were considered as crosslink points. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 1226–1236, 2006     

Enhanced sensitivity in flow injection analysis using a long pathlength liquid waveguide capillary flow cell for spectrophotometric detection.

Incorporation of a liquid waveguide capillary flow cell into a flow injection instrument enhances the sensitivity of flow injection analysis with spectrophotometric detection by two orders of magnitude. Nitrite determination at nM levels has been used to demonstrate the feasibility of this novel technique for trace analysis. Combining the long pathlength spectrophotometry with flow injection analysis, this technique has advantages of low detection limit, good precision and high sample throughput.     

Selective and simultaneous determination of phosphate and silicate ions in leaching process waters for ceramics glaze raw materials of narutal origin by ion-exclusion chromatography coupled with UV-detection after postcolumn derivatization.

The selective and simultaneous ion-exclusion chromatography (IEC) with UV-detection on a weakly acidic cation-exchange resin column in the H+ -form (TSKgel Super IC-A/C) was developed and applied for the simultaneous determination of phosphate and silicate ions as the water quality parameters required for optimizing the water-leaching process for ceramics glaze raw materials of natural origin including feldspar, woods-ash, and straw-ash. Phosphate and silicate ions in these water-leaching process water samples were separated selectively from the coexisting anions such as sulfate, chloride, nitrate and carbonate ions, based on the ion-exclusion separation mechanism. They were detected selectively and simultaneously by a postcolumn derivatization with molybdenum-yellow using the UV-detector. Under the optimized separation and detection conditions (eluent, 0-1 mM sulfuric acid; reactant, 10 mM sodium molybdate-25 mM sulfuric acid; detector, UV at 370 nm; temperature, 45 degrees C), the linearity of calibration was in the range 0.1 - 10 ppm for both phosphate and silicate ions, and the detection limits at S/N = 3 were 2.58 ppb for silicate ions and 4.75 ppb for phosphate ions. The effectiveness of this method was demonstrated in practical applications to the water-leaching process for some ceramics glaze raw materials.     

Pyraflufen-ethyl residues in soil by solid phase extraction and high-performance liquid chromatography with UV detection.

Solid-phase extraction (SPE) procedure for cleanup followed by HPLC-UV method has been investigated for the determination of pyraflufen-ethyl residues in soil. The pesticide is extracted from the sample with acetone-water (80:20, v/v) and the extract is loaded onto an octadecyl (C(18)) column. The pesticide is eluted with acetonitrile and determined by HPLC with a UV detector. Using an acetone-water extraction followed by a C(18) cleanup, this method is characterized by recovery >90.1%, precision <5.8% RSD and sensitivity of 0.01 mg/kg. The proposed method has been successfully employed for the determination of the degradation dynamics of pyraflufen-ethyl in four agricultural soil samples under laboratory conditions.     

Chiral separation of synthetic vicinal diol compounds by capillary zone electrophoresis with borate buffer and beta-cyclodextrin as buffer additive.

The investigation on capillary electrophoretic enantioseparation of six synthetic compounds containing vicinal diol groups has been undertaken to acquire the optimum conditions using native beta-cyclodextrin (beta-CD) as chiral selector and borate as a background electrolyte. The separation was carried out in an uncoated capillary (58.5 cm x 75 microm i.d., effective length 48.5 cm) and the effects of several important factors were investigated in detail. The results showed that beta-CD as a chiral selector exhibited good enantioselectivity and that the enantioseparation was greatly influenced by the structure of the diols, the borate concentration and the buffer pH. The optimum performance was obtained for the chiral vicinal diols under the conditions of 200 mM borate buffer of pH 9.8 containing 1.7% beta-CD at an applied voltage of 15 kV and a capillary temperature of 20 degrees C. Under the conditions, four diols were baseline separated with fast analysis time and the good theoretical plate numbers (above 10 x 10(4)) and favorable migration-time reproducibilities (RSDs below 3.0%) were obtained. The separation results were satisfactory.     

Effects of microstructure on the temperature dependence of relative initial permeability of NiCuZn ferrites

In the present work, ferrites with compositions of (Ni_0.27Zn_0.64Cu_x)Fe_1.98O₄ (x=0.1, 0.2) were prepared by conventional ceramic methods. The relationship between the microstructure and the temperature dependence of relative initial permeability was investigated. It was found that intergranular pores in the ferrites generate large demagnetizing fields, reducing the temperature dependence of the effective anisotropy field H_eff, and decreasing the temperature dependence of the relative initial permeability accordingly. However, intragranular pores pin the movement of domain walls. Compared with the permeability induced by domain wall motion, the permeability that resulted from the spin rotation is more sensitive to temperature. As a result, the relative initial permeability of ferrites becomes more sensitive to temperature with increasing micropores within grains.     

Tunable negative refraction by electro-optical control in two-dimensional photonic crystal

This paper describes a simple hydrothermal procedure for high-yield synthesis of single-crystalline ZnO hexagonal nanoplates in a surfactant-free system at 70 °C. The structures and morphologies of the synthesized ZnO nanoplates are derived from characterisation by X-ray diffraction, and scanning and transmission electron microscopy. Their optical properties are recorded by Raman and photoluminescence spectroscopy. These ZnO hexagonal nanoplates exhibit the enhanced photocatalytic activity of phenol photodecomposition, suggesting that they could be served as an active system for the treatment of the waste water, in addition to their common applications. PACS 81.10.Dn; 61.10.Nz; 68.37.Hk; 78.55.Hx     

电荷量子比特与量子化光场之间的纠缠

研究了初态为混合态的电荷量子比特与量子化光场之间的纠缠.通过求解系统的concurrence下限, 研究初态的混合度λ和失谐量Δ对系统纠缠随时间演化的影响. 在弱场中, 电荷量子比特初始是激发态的系统, 其纠缠度远远大于电荷量子比特初始是基态的系统, 并且Δ对系统的纠缠有明显的抑制作用. 在强场中, 电荷量子比特初始分别为激发态和基态时系统的纠缠演化接近一致, 初态混合度最高时系统的纠缠度最小, 并且Δ对系统纠缠的影响变弱. 关键词： 约瑟夫森结 纠缠 混合态 concurrence下限     

Rebuilding of metal components with laser cladding forming

Laser cladding forming (LCF) is a novel powerful tool for the repairing of metal components. Rebuilding of V-grooves on medium carbon steel substrates has been carried out with laser cladding forming technique using stainless steel powder as the cladding material. Microstructure of the deposited layers has been characterized using optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDAX), electron probe microanalysis (EPMA) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Mechanical properties of the rebuilt V-groove samples have been evaluated by tensile and impacting tests and microhardness measurement. Experimental results show that good fusion bonding between the rebuilt layers and the substrate has been formed, and the microstructure of the cladding layers is mainly composed of fine, dense and defect-free epitaxial columnar dendrites. Due to the effect of grain size refinement, the tensile strength, impacting toughness, elongation and microhardness of the rebuilt samples have been greatly enhanced compared to those of the substrate. Microhardness is also very uniform throughout the rebuilt regions. With the growth of the deposited layers, the microhardness increases gradually. The good ductility of the deposited regions is verified by the SEM fracture analysis.