A sector finite element for dynamic analysis of thick plates

A 24 degree of freedom sector finite element is developed for the static and dynamic analysis of thick circular plates. The element formulation is based on Reissner's thick plate theory. The convergence characteristic of the elements is first studied in a static example of an unsymmetrically loaded annular plate. The obvious advantageous effect of including the twist derivatives of deflection as degrees of freedom is shown. The elements are then used to analyze the natural frequencies of an annular plate with various ratios of inner to outer radius. The results are in good agreement with an alternative solution in which thick plate theory is used. The versatility of this finite element is finally demonstrated by performing free vibration analysis of an example of clamped sector plates with various thicknesses and different sectorial angles.     

Synthesis and Antimicrobial Evaluation of Novel N-Substituted β-Hydroxy Benzimidazole Sulfone Fluoroquinolones by Selective Oxidation Using Ticl4-H2O2

Abstract

The synthesis of N-substituted β-hydroxy benzimidazole sulfones containing 8-methoxy fluoroquinolone has been described and they were evaluated for antimicrobial activities. The compounds of N-substituted β-hydroxy benzimidazole sulfides (4a–e) and N-substituted β-hydroxy benzimidazole sulfones (5a–e) at C-7 of fluoroquinoline exhibited superior activity in vitro. 8-Methoxy fluoroquinolone carboxylic acid (1), reaction with piperizine in acetonitrile in presence of triethylamine under reflux gives 7-piperazinyl-8-methoxyfluoroquinolone (2). The latter is reacted with epichlorohydrine in presence of NaOH in acetone yielded N-substituted epoxide (3), which on treatment with 5-substituted-2-mercaptobenzimidazoles gives N-substituted β-hydroxy benzimidazole sulfides (4). Further, 4 on treatment with TiCl₄-H₂O₂ and in DCM yielded the corresponding N-substituted β-hydroxy benzimidazole sulfone (5).     

Ordering and magnetostriction in Fe alloy single crystals

Short-range and long-range ordering in α-Fe terminal solid solution phase (A2 phase with bcc structure) influences its physical, mechanical, magnetic and magnetostrictive behavior. Single crystal sample forms are ideal for examining order in these alloys using X-ray and neutron scattering techniques. Limited structural information available suggests that the lattice of A2 phase at room temperature contains a mixture of regions with local atomic environments similar to those expected in the long-range ordered structures in stable/metastable equilibrium with the A2 phase. The nature and extent of these regions are sensitive to alloy composition and the thermal history. The lattice strain modulations result from the nature of solute atom distribution (short-range ordering) in each region and impact the physical, mechanical, corrosion and magnetic behaviors. A need for a fundamental understanding of ordering in Fe and other alloys through structural evaluations of local atomic environments in alloy single crystals is suggested in this review.     

Serial and parallel simulated annealing and tabu search algorithms for the traveling salesman problem

This paper describes serial and parallel implementations of two different search techniques applied to the traveling salesman problem. A novel approach has been taken to parallelize simulated annealing and the results are compared with the traditional annealing algorithm. This approach uses abbreviated cooling schedule and achieves a superlinear speedup. Also a new search technique, called tabu search, has been adapted to execute in a parallel computing environment. Comparison between simulated annealing and tabu search indicate that tabu search consistently outperforms simulated annealing with respect to computation time while giving comparable solutions. Examples include 25, 33, 42, 50, 57, 75 and 100 city problems.     

Multiple topologies from glycopolypeptide-dendron conjugate self-assembly: nanorods, micelles, and organogels

Glycopolypeptides (GPs) were synthesized by ring-opening polymerization of glycosylated N-carboxyanhydride monomer and attached to hydrophobic dendrons at one chain end by "click" reaction to obtain amphiphilic anisotropic macromolecules. We show that by varying polypeptide chain length and dendron generation, an organogel was obtained in dimethylsulfoxide, while nanorods and micellar aggregates were observed in aqueous solutions. Assemblies in water were characterized by electron microscopy and dye encapsulation. Secondary structure of the GP chain was shown to affect the morphology, whereas the chain length of the poly(ethylene glycol) linker between the GP and dendron did not alter rod-like assemblies. Bioactive surface chemistry of these assemblies displaying carbohydrate groups was demonstrated by interaction of mannose-functionalized nanorods with ConA.     

Layered inorganic-organic clay-like nanocomposites rearrange to form silsesquioxanes on acid treatment

The formation of talc-like compounds by the condensation of organotrialkoxy silanes with magnesium hydroxide has been recently reported. These represent layered hybrid nanomaterials that have a layer thickness of around 1 nm, have organic moieties covalently linked to the layer surfaces, and are called "organoclays." We show that such compounds are sensitive to acid treatment. When a phenylclay is treated with hydrochloric acid, magnesium leaches out, destroying the layered structure. The extent to which magnesium is leached out is a function of the time of the acid treatment and the concentration of the acid used. Magnesium leaches out rapidly when the concentration of acid used to treat the phenyl-clay is higher, and the extent of structural magnesium that is leached out is also higher for higher acid concentrations. Removal of the magnesium rearranges the structure of the phenyl-clay to form oligomeric phenylsilsesquioxanes. FTIR and NMR suggest that the silsesquioxanes formed by acid treatment of the phenyl-clay comprise a mixture of ladderlike and cagelike structures.     

Synthesis of poly-L-glutamic acid grafted silica nanoparticles and their assembly into macroporous structures

Polypeptide-coated silica nanoparticles represent an interesting class of organic-inorganic hybrids since the ordered secondary structure of the polypeptide grafts imparts functional properties to these nanoparticles. The synthesis of a poly-l-glutamic acid (PLGA) silica nanoparticle hybrid by employing N-carboxyanhydride (NCA) polymerization to synthesize the polypeptide chains and Cu catalyzed azide alkyne cycloaddition reaction to graft these chains onto the silica surface is reported. This methodology enables the synthesis of well-defined polypeptide chains that are attached onto the silica surface at high surface densities. The PLGA-silica conjugate particles are well dispersed in water, and have been thoroughly characterized using multinuclear ((13)C, (29)Si) solid state NMR, thermogravimetric analysis, Fourier transform infrared, dynamic light scattering, and transmission electron microscopy. The pH-dependent reversible aggregation of the PLGA-silica particles, driven by the change in PLGA structure, has also been studied. Preliminary results on the use of aqueous dispersions of silica-PLGA for the preparation of three-dimensional macroporous structures with oriented pores by ice templating methodology are also demonstrated. These macroporous materials, comprising a biocompatible polymer shell covalently attached to rigid inorganic cores, adopts an interesting lamellar structure with fishbone-type architecture.     

Light‐Triggered,Spatially Localized Chemistry by Photoinduced Electron Transfer

It is of immense interest to exert spatial and temporal control of chemical reactions. It is now demonstrated that irradiation can trigger reactions specifically at the surface of a simple colloidal construct, obtained by adsorbing polyethyleneimine on fluorescent colloidal particles. Exciting the fluorescent dye in the colloid affords photoinduced electron transfer to spatially proximal amine groups on the adsorbed polymer to form free radical ions. It is demonstrated that these can be harnessed to polymerize acrylic acid monomer at the particle surface, or to break up colloidal assemblies by cleaving a cross‐linked polymer mesh. Formation of free radical ions is not a function of the size of the colloid, neither is it restricted to a specific fluorophore. Fluorophores with redox potentials that allow photoinduced electron transfer with amine groups show formation of free radical ions.