On the Orbit of an m-Isometry

A bounded linear operator T on a Hilbert space H is called an m-isometry for a positive integer m if . We prove some properties concerning the behaviour of the orbit of an m-isometry. For example, every orbit of an m-isometry is eventually norm increasing and some m-isometries can not be N-supercyclic, that is, there does not exist an N-dimensional subspace E_N such that the orbit of T at E_N is dense in H.

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To Professor José Rodríguez Expósito on his 60th birthday     

Preparation of nanostructured porous SiO2-Al2O3 oxycarbonitride materials obtained by a new chemical precursor method

Nanostructured hybrid materials containing Al₂O₃ were synthesized via a sol-gel method through hydrolysis and co-condensation reactions using trimethylsilyl isocyanate (TMSI) as a new silica source in the presence of tetramethoxysilane (TMOS) and three different quantities (10, 20 and 30 wt.%) of aluminum sec-butoxide (Al(OBu^sec)₃ as a modifying agent. The xerogel nanostructured materials are pyrolyzed in nitrogen atmosphere in the temperature range from 400°C to 1100°C. The transformation of the xerogel hybrid networks into Al-Si oxycarbonitride materials has been investigated by XRD, FTIR, SEM, AFM, and ²⁹Si MAS-NMR. To the best of our knowledge, the work reported here is the first synthesis of porous di-urethanesils modified with aluminum and one of the few examples of alumosilica oxycarbonitride materials      

Chiral synthetic pseudopeptidic derivatives as triplet excited state quenchers

The behavior of 6 pseudopeptidic models, synthesized by connecting different protected amino acids (Trp, Tyr, Phe, and Lys) with various diamino spacers, as quenchers of the triplet excited state of tiaprofenic acid (and its methyl ester), has been investigated. A series of quenching constants have been determined, which depend on the nature of the quencher and on the stereochemistry of the excited drug. A significant degree of stereodifferentiation has been found for the peptidomimetic synthesized with Phe and Tyr linked by a piperazine bridge. The obtained results support the utility of laser flash photolysis (LFP) as a tool to investigate the interactions between photoexcited drugs and simple models of binding sites in proteins.     

Reactor decay heat in 239Pu: solving the γ discrepancy in the 4-3000-s cooling period

The β feeding probability of (102,104,105,106,107)Tc, 105Mo, and 101Nb nuclei, which are important contributors to the decay heat in nuclear reactors, has been measured using the total absorption technique. We have coupled for the first time a total absorption spectrometer to a Penning trap in order to obtain sources of very high isobaric purity. Our results solve a significant part of a long-standing discrepancy in the γ component of the decay heat for 239Pu in the 4-3000 s range.     

The scattering matrix for size distributions of irregular particles: An application to an olivine sample

We have compared simulated and measured scattering matrices of a size distribution of olivine particles at wavelengths of 633 and 442 nm. The computations were carried out for size distributions of irregularly-shaped compact particles with different average projected areas using the discrete-dipole approximation (DDA). The results of the comparison show that the model of irregularly-shaped particles mimic the observations far better than the results given by spheres, spheroids or rectangular prisms having a wide range in aspect ratios. The computed scattering matrices for size distributions of irregularly-shaped particles do not depend very strongly on the precise particle shape assumed, providing a method to infer certain physical properties of an ensemble of natural dust particles, such as the refractive index, when some information on the sample, as the size distribution, is known a priori.     

A Fast and Simple Ozone‐mediated Method towards Highly Activated Screen Printed Carbon Electrodes as Versatile Electroanalytical Tools

A facile and effective electrochemical activation method of screen printed carbon electrodes (SPCEs) has been performed using ozone gas. Activated SPCEs showed relevant improvements in the electrochemical properties such as an impedance reduction and better electroanalytical outcomes. Such improved properties were attributed to the increase of the electroactive surface area and the functionalization of the electrode surface with carbon‐oxygen groups onto the carbonaceous ink surface. The optimized activation method consisted in the performance of a voltammetric cycle between ?2 and 2 V at 10 mV s^?1 in 0.1 M NaOH solution with constant ozone gas bubbling. This activation procedure takes 12 min, which allows its use routinely prior to the electrode modifications and electroanalytical measurements. The resulting activated SPCEs exhibited superior sensitivities towards hydrogen peroxide, acetaminophen, hydroquinone and dopamine. This methodology might be considered as a strategy to attain SPCEs with improved electroanalytical properties for multiple applications.     

Design and synthesis of methyl 2‐{[4‐phenyl‐5‐(pyridin‐2‐yl)‐4H‐1,2,4‐triazol‐3‐yl]sulfanyl}acetate (phpy2NS) as a ligand for complexes of Group 12 elements: structural assessment and hydrogen‐bonded supramolecular assembly analysis

The reaction of 2‐cyanopyridine with N‐phenylthiosemicarbazide afforded 2‐[amino(pyridin‐2‐yl)methylidene]‐N‐phenylhydrazine‐1‐carbothioamide (Ham4ph) and crystals of 4‐phenyl‐5‐(pyridin‐2‐yl)‐2,4‐dihydro‐3H‐1,2,4‐triazole‐3‐thione (pyph3NS, 1 , C₁₃H₁₀N₄S). Crystals of methyl 2‐{[4‐phenyl‐5‐(pyridin‐2‐yl)‐4H‐1,2,4‐triazol‐3‐yl]sulfanyl}acetate (phpy2NS, 2 , C₁₆H₁₄N₄O₂S), derived from 1 , were obtained by the reaction of Ham4ph with chloroacetic acid, followed by the acid‐catalyzed esterification of the carboxylic acid with methyl alcohol. Crystals of bis(methanol‐κO)bis(methyl 2‐{[4‐phenyl‐5‐(pyridin‐2‐yl)‐4H‐1,2,4‐triazol‐3‐yl‐κ²N¹,N⁵]sulfanyl}acetato)zinc(II)/cadmium(II) hexabromidocadmate(II), [Zn_0.76Cd_0.24(C₁₆H₁₄N₄O₂S)₂(CH₃OH)₂][Cd₂Br₆] or [Zn_0.76Cd_0.24(phpy2NS)₂(MeOH)₂][Cd₂Br₆], 3 , and dichlorido(methyl 2‐{[4‐phenyl‐5‐(pyridin‐2‐yl)‐4H‐1,2,4‐triazol‐3‐yl‐κ²N¹,N⁵]sulfanyl}acetato)mercury(II), [HgCl₂(C₁₆H₁₄N₄O₂S)] or [Hg(phpy2NS)Cl₂], 4 , were synthesized using ligand 2 and CdBr₂ or HgCl₂, respectively. The molecular and supramolecular structures of the compounds were studied by X‐ray diffractometry. The asymmetric unit of 3 is formed from CdBr₃ and M(phpy2NS)(MeOH) units, where the metal centre M has a 76% occupancy of Zn^II and 24% of Cd^II. The M²⁺ centre of the cation, located on a crystallographic inversion centre, is hexacoordinated and appears as a slightly distorted octahedral [MN₄O₂]²⁺ cation. The Cd centre of the anion is coordinated by two terminal bromide ligands and two bridging bromide ligands that generate [Cd₂Br₆]^2? cadmium–bromide clusters. These clusters display crystallographic inversion symmetry forming two edge‐shared tetrahedra and serve as agents that direct the structure in the formation of supramolecular assemblies. In mononuclear complex 4 , the coordination geometry around the Hg²⁺ ion is distorted tetrahedral and comprises two chloride ligands and two N‐atom donors from the phpy2NS ligand, viz. one pyridine N atom and the other from triazole. In the crystal packing, all four compounds exhibit weak intermolecular interactions, which facilitate the formation of three‐dimensional architectures. Along with the noncovalent interactions, the structural diversity in the complexes can be attributed to the metal centre and to the coordination geometry, as well as to its ionic or neutral character.     

Palladium nanoparticles supported on phosphorus-doped carbon for ethanol electro-oxidation in alkaline media

Palladium nanoparticles supported on carbon Vulcan XC72 (Pd/C) and on phosphorus-doped carbon (Pd/P-C) were prepared by an alcohol reduction process. X-ray diffractograms of Pd/C and Pd/P-C showed the typical face-centered cubic (fcc) structure of Pd. The crystallite sizes of Pd fcc phase were around 8 nm for both samples. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed to Pd/C and Pd/P-C that Pd was found predominantly in the metallic state and to Pd/P-C, the presence of P increases the amount of oxygen on the electrocatalyst surface. The activity and stability of the electrocatalyts for ethanol electro-oxidation in alkaline medium was investigated by cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry experiments. The peak current density on Pd/P-C was 50% higher than on Pd/C, while the current density measured after 30 min at ? 0.35 V vs. Hg/HgO was 65% higher on Pd/P-C than on Pd/C. The enhancement of the catalytic activity of Pd/P-C electrocatalyst might be related to the presence of higher amounts of oxygen species on the surface, which could contribute to the oxidation of intermediates formed during ethanol electro-oxidation process.