Binding of hydrogen on benzene, coronene, and graphene from quantum Monte Carlo calculations

Quantum Monte Carlo calculations with the diffusion Monte Carlo (DMC) method have been used to compute the binding energy curves of hydrogen on benzene, coronene, and graphene. The DMC results on benzene agree with both M?ller-Plessett second order perturbation theory (MP2) and coupled cluster with singles, doubles, and perturbative triples [CCSD(T)] calculations, giving an adsorption energy of ～25 meV. For coronene, DMC agrees well with MP2, giving an adsorption energy of ～40 meV. For physisorbed hydrogen on graphene, DMC predicts a very small adsorption energy of only 5 ± 5 meV. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations with various exchange-correlation functionals, including van der Waals corrected functionals, predict a wide range of binding energies on all three systems. The present DMC results are a step toward filling the gap in accurate benchmark data on weakly bound systems. These results can help us to understand the performance of current DFT based methods, and may aid in the development of improved approaches.     

Raman spectroscopic study of tungsten(VI) oxosulfato complexes in WO3-K2S2O7-K2SO4 molten mixtures: stoichiometry, vibrational properties, and molecular structure

The dissolution reaction of WO3 in pure molten K2S2O7 and in molten K2S2O7-K2SO4 mixtures is studied under static equilibrium conditions in the XWO3(0) = 0-0.33 mol fraction range at temperatures up to 860 °C. High temperature Raman spectroscopy shows that the dissolution leads to formation of W(VI) oxosulfato complexes, and the spectral features are adequate for inferring the structural and vibrational properties of the complexes formed. The band characteristics observed in the W=O stretching region (band wavenumbers, intensities, and polarization characteristics) are consistent with a dioxo W(=O)2 configuration as a core unit within the oxosulfato complexes formed. A quantitative exploitation of the relative Raman intensities in the binary WO3-K2S2O7 system allows the determination of the stoichiometric coefficient, n, of the complex formation reaction WO3 + nS2O7(2-) --> C(2n-). It is found that n = 1; therefore, the reaction WO3 + S2O7(2-) > WO2(SO4)2(2-) with six-fold W coordination is proposed as fully consistent with the observed Raman features. The effects of the incremental dissolution and presence of K2SO4 in WO3-K2S2O7 melts point to a WO3 · K2S2O7 · K2SO4 stoichiometry and a corresponding complex formation reaction in the ternary molten WO3-K2S2O7-K2SO4 system according to WO3 + S2O7(2-) + SO4(2-) --> WO2(SO4)3(4-). The coordination sphere of W in WO2(SO4)2(2-) (binary system) is completed with two oxide ligands and two chelating sulfate groups. A dimeric [{WO2(SO4)2}2(μ-SO4)2](8-) configuration is proposed for the W oxosulfato complex in the ternary system, generated from inversion symmetry of aWO2(SO4)3(4-) moiety resulting in two bridging sulfates. The most characteristic Raman bands for the W(VI) oxosulfato complexes pertain to W(=O)2 stretching modes (i) at 972 (polarized) and 937 (depolarized) cm(-1) for the ν(s) and ν(as) W(=O)2 modes of WO2(SO4)2(2-), and (ii) at 933 (polarized) and 909 (depolarized) cm(-1) for the respective modes of [{WO2(SO4)2}2(μ-SO4)2](8-).     

Trends in water monomer adsorption and dissociation on flat insulating surfaces

The interaction of water with solid surfaces is key to a wide variety of industrial and natural processes. However, the basic principles that dictate how stable and in which state (intact or dissociated) water will be on a given surface are not fully understood. Towards this end, we have used density functional theory to examine water monomer adsorption on the (001) surfaces of a broad range of alkaline earth oxides, alkaline earth sulfides, alkali fluorides, and alkali chlorides. Some interesting general conclusions are arrived at: (i) on all the surfaces considered only a few specific adsorption structures are favoured; (ii) water becomes more stable upon descending the oxide and fluoride series but does not vary much upon going down the chloride and sulfide series; (iii) water is stabilised both by an increase in the lattice constant, which facilitates hydrogen bonding to the substrate, and by the flexibility of the substrate. These are also factors that favour water dissociation. We hope that this study is of some value in better understanding the surface science of water in general, and in assisting in the interpretation and design of future experiments.     

Cytoprotective Mechanisms of DJ-1: Implications in Cardiac Pathophysiology

DJ-1 was originally identified as an oncogene product while mutations of the gene encoding DJ-1/PARK7 were later associated with a recessive form of Parkinson’s disease. Its ubiquitous expression and diversity of function suggest that DJ-1 is also involved in mechanisms outside the central nervous system. In the last decade, the contribution of DJ-1 to the protection from ischemia-reperfusion injury has been recognized and its involvement in the pathophysiology of cardiovascular disease is attracting increasing attention. This review describes the current and gaps in our knowledge of DJ-1, focusing on its role in regulating cardiovascular function. In parallel, we present original data showing an association between increased DJ-1 expression and antiapoptotic and anti-inflammatory markers following cardiac and vascular surgical procedures. Future studies should address DJ-1’s role as a plausible novel therapeutic target for cardiovascular disease.     

Reactions in microemulsion media. Nucleophilic displacement reaction of benzyl chloride with bromide ion

A kinetic and synthetic study of the reaction of benzyl chloride with bromide ion has been performed in microemulsions composed of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, 1-butanol, water, potassium bromide, and hexane; rates and yields of benzyl bromide formation decreased with increasing hexane content.     

Control policies for single-stage production systems with perishable inventory and customer impatience

We consider problems of inventory and admission control for make-to-stock production systems with perishable inventory and impatient customers. Customers may balk upon arrival (refuse to place orders) and renege while waiting (withdraw delayed orders) during stockouts. Item lifetimes and customer patience times are random variables with general distributions. Processing, setup, and customer inter-arrival times are however assumed to be exponential random variables. In particular, the paper studies two models. In the first model, the system suspends its production when its stock reaches a safety level and can resume later without incurring any setup delay or cost. In the second model, the system incurs setup delays and setup costs; during stockouts, all arriving customers are informed about anticipated delays and either balk or place their orders but cannot withdraw them later. Using results from the queueing literature, we derive expressions for the system steady-state probabilities and performance measures, such as profit from sales and costs of inventory, setups, and delays in filling customer orders. We use these expressions to find optimal inventory and admission policies, and investigate the impact of product lifetimes and customer patience times on system performance.     

Dispersion Characteristics of Arbitrary Periodic Structures with Rectangular Grooves

The dispersion characteristics of a circular cylindrical waveguide with periodic surface corrugations consisting of rectangular grooves with smoothing are examined using the Space Harmonic Method (SHM). The whole structure is divided into two regions, one describing the propagation volume and one inside the grooves. In the first region, the Floquet theorem is applicable and the field distribution is expressed as a summation of spatial Bloch components, whereas in the second one an appropriate Fourier expansion of standing waves is used. Applying the boundary conditions an infinite system of equations is obtained, which is solved numerically by truncation. Several cases are considered, including the limiting cases of a sinusoidal and a rectangular corrugation profile, to check the accuracy of the method proposed as well as its dependence on the corrugation profile. Numerical results are presented only for transverse magnetic modes, although the formalism can be easily extended to include all kinds of waves that can in principle propagate in such a structure.     

The decision rule approach to optimization under uncertainty: methodology and applications

Computational Management Science - Dynamic decision-making under uncertainty has a long and distinguished history in operations research. Due to the curse of dimensionality, solution schemes that...     

Global approximation to arbitrary cost functions: A Bayesian approach with application to US banking

This paper proposes and estimates a globally flexible functional form for the cost function, which we call Neural Cost Function (NCF). The proposed specification imposes a priori and satisfies globally all the properties that economic theory dictates. The functional form can be estimated easily using Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) techniques or standard iterative SURE. We use a large panel of U.S. banks to illustrate our approach. The results are consistent with previous knowledge about the sector and in accordance with mathematical production theory.     

Transition Metal-Mediated Separation of Isomeric Pneumocandins by Capillary Electrochromatography

The novel separation of a 3-hydroxyproline containing a semi-synthetic macrocyclic antifungal agent from its structurally related 4-hydroxyproline isomer using capillary electrochromatography (CEC) is described. The molecular weight of the two compounds is 1093 Daltons and they differ only in the placement of a proline -OH group. The separation is achieved using capillaries packed or coated with ODS particles (C18) or with glycerol bound to silica through a carbon chain linker. The presence of a transition metal (Ni(II), Ag(I), Zn(II), or Cu(II)) as buffer additive in the phosphate buffer (pH=2.5):CH₃CN (75:25, v/v) is essential to achieve a baseline separation. HPLC columns packed with similar ODS particles showed no selectivity. Capillaries packed or coated with C18 material under similar conditions showed partial selectivity compared to the glycerol capillaries. Some fundamental aspects of CEC, such as capillary temperature, applied voltage, and buffer composition were varied in order to study the mechanism of the separation. This mechanistic study included the testing of first and second row transition metal ions (individually or in combination), the use of organic solvents, the use of an ion pair reagent, and the use of β- and γ-cyclodextrin to assess the impact on the separation. The resolution was dependent on the metal ion concentration and is consistent with a mechanism of metal-oxygen complexation through the hydroxyl groups of the two isomers and glycerol.