Hexaaquacobalt(II) and hexaaquanickel(II) bis(μ‐pyridine‐2,6‐dicarboxylato)bis[(pyridine‐2,6‐dicarboxylato)bismuthate(III)] dihydrate

The title complexes, hexaaquacobalt(II) bis(μ‐pyridine‐2,6‐dicarboxylato)bis[(pyridine‐2,6‐dicarboxylato)bismuthate(III)] dihydrate, [Co(H₂O)₆][Bi₂(C₇H₄NO₄)₄]·2H₂O, (I), and hexaaquanickel(II) bis(μ‐pyridine‐2,6‐dicarboxylato)bis[(pyridine‐2,6‐dicarboxylato)bismuthate(III)] dihydrate, [Ni(H₂O)₆][Bi₂(C₇H₄NO₄)₄]·2H₂O, (II), are isomorphous and crystallize in the triclinic space group P. The transition metal ions are located on the inversion centre and adopt slightly distorted MO₆ (M = Co or Ni) octahedral geometries. Two [Bi(pydc)₂]⁻ units (pydc is pyridine‐2,6‐dicarboxylate) are linked via bridging carboxylate groups into centrosymmetric [Bi₂(pydc)₄]²⁻ dianions. The crystal packing reveals that the [M(H₂O)₆]²⁺ cations, [Bi₂(pydc)₄]²⁻ anions and solvent water molecules form multiple hydrogen bonds to generate a supramolecular three‐dimensional network. The formation of secondary Bi...O bonds between adjacent [Bi₂(pydc)₄]²⁻ dimers provides an additional supramolecular synthon that directs and facilitates the crystal packing of both (I) and (II).     

Optimized absorption imaging of mesoscopic atomic clouds

We report on the optimization of high-intensity absorption imaging for small Bose–Einstein condensates. The imaging calibration exploits the linear scaling of the quantum projection noise with the mean number of atoms for a coherent spin state. After optimization for atomic clouds containing up to 300 atoms, we find an atom number resolution of $\varDelta_{\rm det}= 3.7$ atoms, mainly limited by photon shot noise and radiation pressure.     

Process of drying a polymeric paint by diffusion-evaporation and shrinkage. Determination of the concentration-dependent diffusivity

The process of drying a paint made of a dispersion of a polymer in a solvent is experimentally and theoretically studied at various constant temperatures. The diffusion of the solvent through the paint and evaporation from the surface is considered, as well as the subsequent shrinkage. From measurements made at the beginning and at the end of the drying operation on the kinetics of drying, the diffusivity is found to largely depend on the solvent concentration. An exponential relationship of the diffusivity versus the concentration is thus found and successfully tested for the whole process of drying, the diffusivity increasing with the solvent concentration.     

Experimental evidence for dual diffractive resonances in pion-nucleus scattering

Experimental data on the pion-nucleus total cross sections are analysed in terms of the dual diffractive resonance (DDR) mechanism. The DDR predictions are found to agree well with the actual experimental data in the region corresponding to the Δ(1236) resonance in elementary πN scattering.     

Effect of Phosphorus-Nitrogen Intumescent Flame Retardant on Structure and Properties of Poly(propylene)

Summary : Phosphorus-nitrogen intumescent product (R₂₀₀₀) was filled into polypropylene (PP) as a flame retardant. The neat PP and flame-retarded PP blends were studied for their structural and mechanical properties after verification of the flame retardancy character of blends. In this paper, the influence of incorporation of different amount (5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, and 25%) of R₂₀₀₀ was studied. The flame retardancy is evaluated by limiting oxygen index (LOI) value, which is enhanced from 17.5 for pure PP to 22.7 for the blend comprising 15% intumescent product, phosphorus-nitrogen based (R₂₀₀₀). The thermal degradation behaviour of the PP/R₂₀₀₀ blends was investigated using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) under nitrogen (N₂) and oxygen (O₂) atmospheres. The influence of the R₂₀₀₀ on the PP crystallization was examined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Further, the mechanical properties of the materials were studied by dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). The incorporation of the flame retardant had no effect on the crystallization of the neat polymer and the mechanical properties of the materials remained unaffected.     

Synthesis of novel pentafluorosulfanylfurans. Two retro-Diels-Alder approaches

The first examples of furan substituted with an SF5 group are reported. 3-pentafluorosulfanylfurans were prepared from their respective 2-pentafluorosulfanyl-5-cyano-7-oxabicyclo[2.2.1]hept-2-ene precursors via retro-Diels-Alder reactions. Also, a tandem cycloaddition/retrocycloaddition reaction between 4-phenyloxazole and 1-pentafluorosulfanylhex-1-yne was used to prepare 3-pentafluorosulfanyl-4-butylfuran. [reaction: see text].     

Polyhydroxy fullerenes

Characterization of C₆₀ polyhydroxyfullerenes (PHF) prepared in alkaline media, preparation facilitated by phase-transfer catalyst, presents challenges in determining the chemical structure resulting from the possibility of multiple isomers or analogs with greater or fewer hydroxyl groups from a single reaction mixture. This paper presents the utilization of analytical methods employed in tandem, especially X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy for semi-quantitative analysis on the number of hydroxyl groups present in PHF. Capillary Electrophoresis was used for purity estimation of the material. Multiple spectra and electropherograms were analyzed using a new simultaneous curve fitting method. The most accurate estimate of hydroxyl groups for C₆₀ polyhydroxy fullerenes obtained is between 16 and 18 allylic hydroxyl groups by combining analytical methods’ results with 5 % accuracy. High precision (reproducibility) of the experiments is observed. Purity of 98 % is estimated by capillary electrophoresis. The size of PHF nanoparticles or aggregates has been determined by atomic force microscopy to be 7.4–14.2 nm. According to the elemental analysis the average probable empirical formula for the most pure PHF at pH 7.1 is C₆₀O₁₇H₁₂Na₅(NaHCO₃)₃(H₂O)₁₃ and the average formula weight is 1,605.9 g/mol. This is the first thorough characterization of PHF in terms of purity.     

Cramér large deviation expansions for martingales under Bernstein’s condition

An expansion of large deviation probabilities for martingales is given, which extends the classical result due to Cramér to the case of martingale differences satisfying the conditional Bernstein condition. The upper bound of the range of validity and the remainder of our expansion is the same as in the Cramér result and therefore are optimal. Our result implies a moderate deviation principle for martingales.