Small-angle X-ray scattering of air-dried kangaroo tail tendon

Air-dired kangaroo tail tendon (KTT) is a protein sample similar to collagen and has been investigated by small-angle x-ray scattering treating it as a densely packed colloidal system which belongs to a general micelle system. Pore analysis of the substance yields a specific inner surface of 0.6282 × 10^?5 Å^?1, a range of inhomogeneity of 69.11 Å, a length of coherence of 248.2 Å, and air-fraction percentage of 0.011. A Kratky camera of the latest design has been used for experimental measurements. As the log? vs. logX curve gives a slope of ?3, KTT belongs to a densely packed two-phase system. Here the theory of small-angle scattering by densely packed systems as developed by Porod has been applied to find different physical parameters of KTT.     

Phase transfer of gold nanoparticles from aqueous to organic solution containing resorcinarene

Citrate-capped gold nanoparticles (NPs) in aqueous solution were transferred directly into the organic solution mesitylene containing C-undecylcalix[4]-resorcinarene (C11-resorcinarene). C11-resorcinarene, which has long hydrophobic tails and phenolic hydroxyl groups, acted as both a phase-transfer and a capping agent. The C11-resorcinarene-capped gold particles could be isolated and dispersed in different organic solvents. Optical absorption spectra corresponding to surface plasmon resonance provided a broad band centered at 534 nm for C11-resorcinarene-capped gold NPs in mesitylene. High-resolution transmission electron micrograph images revealed that the average particle diameter of C11-resorcinarene-capped gold NPs is approximately 12 nm.     

Fabrication and characterization of epoxy/silica functionally graded composite material

Increased use of composites in aerospace and defense application induces the search for heat resistant material. In present study silica reinforced epoxy functionally graded material using quartz fabric is prepared with different thickness. The gradation in silica : epoxy matrix is maintained with one side pure epoxy to opposite side pure silica. Thermal and mechanical behaviour of the composites were studied. It was found that the temperature gradient of 350°C to 950°C could be maintained for 2 to 5 min if the thickness of insulating silica layer is increased from 0.5 mm to 16 mm. Mechanical properties such as flexural modulus and strength of FGM composites were also evaluated. Strength and modulus decreased with increase of insulating layer.     

An efficient highly regioselective synthesis of 2,3,4-trisubstituted pyrroles by cycloaddition of polarized ketene S,S- and N,S-acetals with activated methylene isocyanides

An efficient route for regioselective synthesis of 2,3,4- substituted pyrroles allowing precise control over the introduction of a number of substituents and functionalities (tosyl, carbalkoxy, aryl, cyano, nitro, acetyl, benzoyl, cyclic amines, etc.) at the three positions of the pyrrole ring has been developed via 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of readily accessible polarized ketene S,S- and N,S-acetals with carbanions derived from activated methylene isocyanides.     

Near-IR Intramolecular Charge Transfer in Strongly Interacting Diphenothiazene-TCBD and Diphenothiazene-DCNQ Push-Pull Triads

Three types of phenothiazines dimers (PTZ-PTZ, 1 – 3 ), covalently linked with one or two acetylene linkers, were synthesized by copper-mediated Eglinton and Pd-catalyzed Sonogashira coupling reactions in excellent yields. The dimers 1 – 3 were further engaged in [2+2] cycloaddition-retroelectrocyclization reactions with strong electron acceptors, tetracyanoethylene (TCNE) and 7,7,8,8-tetracyanoquinodimethane (TCNQ) to yield tetracyanobutadiene (TCBD, 1 a – 3 a ), and dicyanoquinodimethane (DCNQ, 1 b – 3 b ) functionalized donor-acceptor (D-A) conjugates, respectively. The conjugates were examined by a series of spectral, computational, and electrochemical studies. Strong ground state polarization leading to new optical transitions was witnessed in both series of D-A conjugates. In the case of DCNQ derived D-A system 1 b , the optical coverage extended until 1200 nm in benzonitrile, making this a rare class of D-A ICT system. Multiple redox processes were witnessed in these D-A systems, and the frontier orbitals generated on DFT optimized structures further supported the ICT phenomenon. Photochemical studies performed using femtosecond pump-probe studies confirmed solvent polarity dependent excited state charge transfer and separation in these novel multi-modular D-A conjugates. The charge-separated states lasted up to 70 ps in benzonitrile while in toluene slightly prolonged lifetime of up to 100 ps was witnessed. The significance of phenothiazine dimer in wide-band optical capture all the way into the near-IR region and promoting ultrafast photoinduced charge transfer in the D-A-D configured multi-modular systems, and the effect of donor-acceptor distance and the solvent polarity was the direct outcome of the present study.     

Effect of chamber pressure on spreading and splashing of liquid drops upon impact on a dry smooth stationary surface

Liquid drop impacts on a smooth surface were studied at elevated chamber pressures to characterize the effect of gas pressure on drop spreading and splashing. Five common liquids were tested at impact speeds between 1.0 and 3.5 m/s and pressure up to 12 bars. Based on experiments at atmospheric pressure, a modification to the “free spreading” model (Scheller and Bousfield in AIChE Paper 41(6):1357–1367, 1995) has been proposed that improves the prediction accuracy of maximum spread factors from an error of 15–5%. At high chamber pressures, drop spreading and maximum spread factor were found to be independent of pressure. The splash ratio (Xu et al. in Phys Rev Lett 94:184505, 2005) showed a non-constant behavior, and a power-law model was demonstrated to predict the increase in splash ratio with decreasing impact speed in the low impact speed regime. Also, drop shape was found to affect splash promotion or suppression for an asymmetry greater than 7–8% of the equivalent drop diameter. The observations of the current work could be especially useful for the study of formation of deposits and wall combustion in engine cylinders.     

Micromechanical model for cohesive materials based upon pseudo-granular structure

A micromechanical model for cohesive materials is derived by considering their underlying microstructure conceptualized as a collection of grains interacting through pseudo-bonds. The pseudo-bond or the inter-granular force–displacement relations are formulated taking inspiration from the atomistic-level particle interactions. These force–displacement relationships are then used to derive the incremental stiffnesses at the grain-scale, and consequently, obtain the sample-scale stress–strain relationship of a representative volume of the material. The derived relationship is utilized to study the stress–strain and failure behavior including the volume change and “brittle” to “ductile” transition behavior of cohesive materials under multi-axial loading condition. The model calculations are compared with available measured data for model validation. Model predictions exhibit both quantitative and qualitative consistency with the observed behavior of cohesive material.     

Effects of suction or blowing on the velocity and temperature distribution in the flow past a porous flat plate of a power-law fluid

An analysis is made of the steady flow of a non-Newtonian fluid past an infinite porous flat plate subject to suction or blowing. The incompressible fluid obeys Ostwald-de Waele power-law model. It is shown that steady solutions for velocity distribution exist only for a pseudoplastic (shear-thinning) fluid for which the power-law index n satisfies 0<n<1 provided that there is suction at the plate. Velocity at a point is found to increase with increase in n. No steady solution for velocity distribution exists when there is blowing at the plate. The solution of the energy equation governing temperature distribution in the flow of a pseudoplastic fluid past an infinite porous plate subject to uniform suction reveals that temperature at a given point near the plate increases with n but further away, temperature decreases with increase in n. A novel result of the analysis is that both the skin-friction and the heat flux at the plate are independent of n.