Toughening of epoxies via craze-like damage

The fracture behavior of a core-shell rubber (CSR) modified epoxy is investigated using both fracture mechanics and microscopy tools. The CSR-modified epoxy is found to be toughened via numerous line-array cavitations of the CSR particles, followed by plastic flow of the epoxy matrix. The toughening effect via the above craze-like damage process is found to be as effective as that of the well-known widespread rubber cavitation/matrix shear yielding mechanisms. The conditions for triggering the craze-like damage appear to be both stress state and rubber concentration dependent. The type of rubber tougheners utilized also plays a critical role in triggering this rather unusual craze-like damage in epoxy systems. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Electron-transfer kinetics and activation barriers for the reductions of nitrosonium and nitronium ions in aprotic solvents

Using the cyclic voltammetry (CV), the electron-transfer kinetics for the reductions of NO⁺ and NO₂⁺ cations have been studied at the Pt electrode in nitromethane, sulfolane, and propylene carbonate. The heterogeneous rate constants have been determined by two independent procedures from the transfer coefficient α, the diffusion coefficient D, from a detailed examination of the CV-peak separations, and from an inspection of the values of the cathodic peak potentials at different scan rates. The results have been compared to those reported in the literature, and discussed. In the classical model, outer-sphere electron-transfer reactions are considered subject to an activation energy arising from solvent reorganization and bond reorganization processes. The solvent and molecular reorganizational barriers for these electroreductions have been assessed in aprotic media. The Marcus-Hush theory has been applied to the self-exchange reactions of the NO₂⁺/NO₂ and NO⁺/NO couples in an attempt to predict the rate of electron transfer. The findings indicate some improvement between theory and experiment. However, it should be noted that the experimental values of k_s found for the NO₂⁺ reduction in the solvents used are still too high in comparison with those determined theoretically. In view of the fairly strong coordination of the solvent molecule(s) as ligand(s) to NO₂⁺ and NO⁺ cations, we believe that such discrepancies should stem, to some extent, from the involvement of an inner-sphere pathway by generation of an activated complex on the surface of the Pt electrode. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Orbifolds, Sheaves and Groupoids

We characterize orbifolds in terms of their sheaves, and show that orbifolds correspond exactly to a specific class of smooth groupoids. As an application, we construct fibered products of orbifolds and prove a change-of-base formula for sheaf cohomology.     

Chemical composition and reaction analysis of single aerosol particles

In situ measurements of gas-liquid surface reactions of single aerosol microdroplets are presented. By means of optical levitation in combination with elastic (Mie) and inelastic (Raman) light scattering it is possible to get information on the chemistry of e.g. acid/base reactions as well as the physical behavior of single microparticles.     

Selective saturation and inversion of multiple resonances in high-resolution solid-state 13C experiments using slow spinning CP/MAS and tailored DANTE pulse sequences.

Taking advantage of the long 13C T1 values generally encountered in solids, selective saturation and inversion of more than one resonance in 13C CP/MAS experiments can be achieved by sequentially applying several DANTE pulse sequences centered at different transmitter frequency offsets. A new selective saturation pulse sequence is introduced composed of a series of 90 degrees DANTE sequences separated by interrupted decoupling periods during which the selected resonance is destroyed. Applications of this method, including the simplification of the measurement of the principal values of the 13C chemical shift tensor under slow MAS conditions, are described. The determination of the aromaticity of coal using a relatively slow MAS rate is also described.     

Expression of theSU(2) rotation matrices D( j ) in terms of normalized irreducible tensorial matrices

TheSU(2) rotation matricesD ^(j), specified in terms of axis and angle of rotation, are expressed as linear combination of normalized irreducible tensorial matricces (NITM) of rankl = 0 to 2j rotated to the polar angles of the axis. The rotated NITM are constructed from spherical harmonics of the same rank. Since this formulation requires no matrix products, it may be computationally more efficient than Euler angle formulas, particularly for largej. Rotated NITM and formulas for theD ^(j) withj = 1/2 andj = 1 are written out explicitly. A formula for the structure constants of the products of conformable NITM is also given in terms of 3-j and 6-j symbols.     

On the existence of <Emphasis Type="Bold">1, 3</Emphasis>P <Emphasis Type="Bold">o</Emphasis> resonances in H<Superscript>-</Superscript> between n = 2 and 3 H thresholds

We examine the influence of relativistic and QED effects on the existence of the ^1,3P ^o H^- resonances between n = 2 and 3 hydrogen thresholds, the relativistic and QED corrections and the coupling effects between the high singlet and triplet states are considered as first-order perturbations. We firstly obtain accurate non-relativistic resonant energies and widths of fifteen ¹P ^o resonances, and fifteen ³P ^o resonances. The fifteen ¹P ^o resonances are classified to be ₃ (2, 0) ^- _n ( 4 ? n ? 12) and ₃ (1, 1) ⁺ _n ( 3 ? n ? 8). The fifteen ³P ^o resonances are classified to be ₃ (2, 0) ⁺ _n ( 3 ? n ? 12) and ₃ (1, 1) ^- _n ( 4 ? n ? 8). We found there exist six Feshbach resonances for ₃ (2, 0) ^- _n (¹P ^o ) series, four Feshbach resonances for ₃ (1, 1) ⁺ _n (¹P ^o ) series, seven Feshbach resonances for ₃ (2, 0) ⁺ _n (³P ^o ) series, and three Feshbach resonances for ₃ (1, 1) ^- _n (¹P ^o ) series. Received 22 February 2002 Published online 24 September 2002     

On finite element approximation and stabilization methods for compressible viscous flows

This work is devoted to the numerical solution of the Navier–Stokes equations for compressible viscous fluids. Finite element approximations and stabilization techniques are addressed. We present methods to implement discontinuous approximations for the pressure and the density. An upwinding methodology is being investigated which combines the ideas behind the stream line Petrov–Galerkin method and the flux limiter methods aiming to introduce numerical diffusion only where it is necessary.     

Aqueous solution and solid state interactions of lanthanide ions with a methacrylic ester polymer bearing pendant 15‐crown‐5 moieties

The interaction between trivalent lanthanide ions and poly(1,4,7,10,13‐pentaoxacyclopentadecan‐2‐yl‐methyl methacrylate), PCR5, in aqueous solution and in the solid state have been studied. In aqueous solution, evidence of a weak interaction between the lanthanides and PCR5 comes from the small red shift of the Ce(III) emission spectra and the slight broadening of the Gd(III) EPR spectra. From the Tb(III) lifetimes in the presence of H₂O and D₂O the loss of one or two water coordinated molecules is confirmed when Tb(III) is bound to PCR5. An association constant of the order of 200 M^?1 was obtained for a 1:1 (lanthanide:15‐crown‐5) complex from the shift of the polymer NMR signals induced by Tb(III). A similar association constant is obtained from the differences of the molar conductivity of Ce(III) solution at various concentrations in presence and absence of PCR5. When Tb(III) is adsorbed on PCR5 membranes, lifetime experiments in H₂O and D₂O confirm the loss of 5 or 6 water coordinated molecules indicating that in solid state the lanthanide(III)‐PCR5 interaction is stronger than in solution. The adsorption of Ce(III) in PCR5 membranes shows a Langmuir type isotherm, from which an equilibrium constant of 39 M^?1 has been calculated. SEM shows that the membrane morphology is not much affected by lanthanide adsorption. Support for lanthanide ion–crown interactions comes from ab initio calculations on 15‐crown‐5/La(III) complex. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 1788–1799, 2007