Calorimetric study and thermal analysis of Al–Sn system

The results of calorimetric study and thermal analysis of binary Al–Sn system are presented in this paper. The Oelsen calorimetry was used in thermodynamic analysis. Following thermodynamic properties were determined at 727 °C: activities, activity coefficients, partial/integral molar Gibbs excess, and mixing energies. The energetics of mixing in liquid Al–Sn alloys has been analyzed through the study of concentration fluctuation in the long-wavelength limit. Thermal analysis of selected alloys in Al–Sn system was done using differential thermal analysis. Defined characteristic phase transition temperatures were used for comparison with calculated phase diagram of investigated system. Good agreement with available literature data was obtained. Structural analysis of selected alloys was done using optic microscopy.     

Parallel Interactions at Large Horizontal Displacement in Pyridine–Pyridine and Benzene–Pyridine Dimers

A study of crystal structures from the Cambridge Structural Database (CSD) and DFT calculations reveals that parallel pyridine–pyridine and benzene–pyridine interactions at large horizontal displacements (offsets) can be important, similar to parallel benzene–benzene interactions. In the crystal structures from the CSD preferred parallel pyridine–pyridine interactions were observed at a large horizontal displacement (4.0–6.0 Å) and not at an offset of 1.5 Å with the lowest calculated energy. The calculated interaction energies for pyridine–pyridine and benzene–pyridine dimers at a large offset (4.5 Å) are about 2.2 and 2.1 kcal mol^?1, respectively. Substantial attraction at large offset values is a consequence of the balance between repulsion and dispersion. That is, dispersion at large offsets is reduced, however, repulsion is also reduced at large offsets, resulting in attractive interactions.     

Quantitative Analysis of Coal by Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy Using TEA CO2 Laser as the Excitation Source

Plasma Chemistry and Plasma Processing - This work presents a study of the applicability of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy based on infrared transversally excited atmospheric CO2 pulsed laser...     

Preparation and Antimicrobial Activity of Chitosan and Its Derivatives: A Concise Review

Despite the advantages presented by synthetic polymers such as strength and durability, the lack of biodegradability associated with the persistence in the environment for a long time turned the attention of researchers to natural polymers. Being biodegradable, biopolymers proved to be extremely beneficial to the environment. At present, they represent an important class of materials with applications in all economic sectors, but also in medicine. They find applications as absorbers, cosmetics, controlled drug delivery, tissue engineering, etc. Chitosan is one of the natural polymers which raised a strong interest for researchers due to some exceptional properties such as biodegradability, biocompatibility, nontoxicity, non-antigenicity, low-cost and numerous pharmacological properties as antimicrobial, antitumor, antioxidant, antidiabetic, immunoenhancing. In addition to this, the free amino and hydroxyl groups make it susceptible to a series of structural modulations, obtaining some derivatives with different biomedical applications. This review approaches the physico-chemical and pharmacological properties of chitosan and its derivatives, focusing on the antimicrobial potential including mechanism of action, factors that influence the antimicrobial activity and the activity against resistant strains, topics of great interest in the context of the concern raised by the available therapeutic options for infections, especially with resistant strains.     

Application of Novel Zn‐Ferrite Modified Glassy Carbon Paste Electrode as a Sensor for Determination of Cd(II) in Waste Water

This paper describes the preparation of a new sensor based on Zn‐ferrite modified glassy carbon paste electrode and its electrochemical application for the determination of trace Cd(II) ions in waste waters using differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry (DPASV). Different Zn/Ni ferrite nanoparticles were synthesized and characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X‐ray powder diffraction (XRPD). The prepared ferrite nanoparticles were used for the preparation of Zn‐ferrite‐modified glassy carbon paste electrode (ZnMGCPE) for determination of Cd(II) at nanomolar levels in waste water at pH 5. The different parameters such as conditions of preparation, Zn²⁺/Ni²⁺/Fe²⁺ ratio and electrochemical parameters, percentage of modifier, accumulation time, pH and accumulation potential were investigated. Besides, interference measurements were also evaluated under optimized parameters. The best voltammetric response was observed for ZnFe₂O₄ modifier, when the percentage of modifier was 3 %, accumulation time 9 min, pH of supporting electrolyte 5 and accumulation potential ?1.05 V. Thus prepared electrode displays excellent response to Cd(II) with a detection limit of 0.38 ppb, and selective detection toward Cd(II) was achieved.     

Studies on thermal,spectral, magnetic and biological properties of new Ni(II), Cu(II) and Zn(II) complexes with a bismacrocyclic ligand bearing an aromatic linker

Novel complexes of M₂LCl₄·nH₂O type (M:Ni, n = 4; M:Cu, n = 3 and M:Zn, n = 0; L: ligand resulted from 1,4-phenylenediamine, 3,6-diazaoctane-1,8-diamine and formaldehyde one-pot condensation) were synthesized and characterised by microanalytical, ESI–MS, IR, UV–Vis, ¹H NMR and EPR spectra, magnetic data at room temperature and molar conductivities as well. The electrochemical behaviour of complexes was investigated by cyclic voltammetry. Simultaneous TG/DTA measurements were performed in order to evidence the thermal behaviour of the obtained complexes. Processes such as water elimination, fragmentation and oxidative degradation of the organic ligand as well as chloride elimination occurred during thermal decomposition. The antimicrobial assays demonstrate that the compounds exhibited good antibacterial activity, especially against S. aureus and E. coli strains, the most active being the copper(II) complex, which also exhibited the most prominent anti-biofilm effect, suggesting its potential use for the development of new antimicrobial agents. The biological activity was correlated with log P _ow values. All complexes disrupt the membrane integrity of HCT 8 tumour cells.     

Study on metal complexes of chelating resins bearing iminodiacetate groups

Cu(II), Co(II) and Ni(II) complexes of chelating resins (CR) bearing iminodiacetate (IDA) ligands were prepared. The CR-metal complexes were characterized by FT-IR spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermal behavior (TG and DTG) under nitrogen atmosphere, and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR). FT-IR spectra of the CR-metal complexes showed the characteristic bands of CR were still present but red-shifted after the metal complexation, and new bands assigned to Me-N bonds were observed. Thermal behavior of the metal-CR complexes supported the metal complexation, metal complexation leading to the decrease of the thermal stability of the CR, the lowest thermal stability being found when the highest amount of Cu(II) was loaded. Based on the EPR results and the thermal behavior of Cu(II)-CR complexes, the scheme for the complexation of Cu(II) on the CR was suggested.     

High diffusion barrier and piezoelectric nanocomposites based on polyvinylidene fluoride‐trifluoroethylene copolymer and hydrophobized clay

Nanocomposites based on polyvinylidene fluoride–trifluoroethylene copolymer and up to 4 vol % of hydrophobized clay nanoparticles are investigated. The structure, piezoelectric properties, and oxygen permeability of solvent cast films are analyzed before and after annealing above the Curie temperature of the polymer. Exfoliation of the clay takes place at concentrations up to 1 vol %, beyond which it rapidly drops and is absent at a concentration of 4 vol %. The presence of clay does not change the crystallinity of the polymer, but leads to a threefold decrease of the oxygen permeability at a concentration of 0.5 vol %. Annealing at 130 °C increases the crystallinity, the proportion of β phase up to 94%, and the piezoelectric coefficient by 20–40% at clay fractions below 1 vol %. Annealing also leads to a remarkable 3‐ to 10‐fold decrease of O₂ permeability and to intriguing changes of the activation energy for O₂ transport, which decreases from 56 kJ/mol for the as‐cast polymer to below 10 kJ/mol for the polymer and exfoliated composite. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2017 , 55, 1828–1836     

Factors that influence the tribo-charging of insulating ducts in suction-type dilute-phase pneumatic transport systems

The aim of this study is to refine the understanding of the tribo-electrostatic phenomena that can affect the efficiency of suction-type dilute-phase transport systems. The study was conducted with mm-size ABS-PC particles, a granular material originating from genuine information technology wastes. The tribo-charging process was modelled using the response surface method of experimental design. The controlled variables were the granular material feed rate and the aspirating air speed rate. The monitored variable was the charge imparted to a well-defined section of the duct and which is equal to the charge transferred to the particles passing through that section of the pneumatic transport system. An induction type sensor connected to an electrometer has been employed for the measurements. The data were processed by a virtual instrument developed in LabView. A commercial software package was employed for estimating the effects of the various factors and predicting the optimum operating conditions, which were then confirmed by a final experiment.     

Hamiltonian circuits in Cayley graphs

The following result is proved: If either G is a finite abelian group or a semidirect product of a cyclic group of prime order by a finite abelian group of odd order, then every connected Cayley graph of G is hamiltonian.