Surface segregation of poly(2-methoxyethyl acrylate) in a mixture with poly(methyl methacrylate)

Poly(2-methoxyethyl acrylate) (PMEA) exhibits excellent blood compatibility. To understand why such a surface functionality exists, the surface of PMEA should be characterized in detail, structurally and dynamically, under not only ambient conditions, but also in water. However, a thin film of PMEA supported on a solid substrate can be easily broken, namely it is dewetted. Our strategy to overcome this difficulty is to mix PMEA with poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA). Differential scanning calorimetry and cloud point measurements revealed that the PMEA/PMMA blend has a phase diagram with a lower critical solution temperature. The blend surface was also characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy in conjunction with microscopic observations. Although PMEA is preferentially segregated over PMMA at the blend surface due to its lower surface free energy, the extent of segregation in the as-prepared films was not sufficient to cover the surface. Annealing the blend film at an appropriate temperature, higher than the glass transition temperature and lower than the phase-separation temperature of the blend, enabled us to prepare a stable and flat surface that was perfectly covered with PMEA.     

Prediction method for sound from passing vehicle transmitted through building façade

This study proposes a prediction method for assessing the sound of a passing vehicle that is transmitted through a glass plate, which employs the vibro-acoustic finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method. The noise that is transmitted through the glass in a building façade, which is affected by the sound-insulation characteristics of its glass plates, can have a psychological influence such as a sleep disorder on the residents. In this study, a prediction method for the spectral characteristics of the transmitting sound through glass plates is proposed. The sound-insulation characteristics of glass plates are obtained using a vibro-acoustic FDTD method, and are then synthesized with the sound of passing vehicles obtained by in situ measurement. Firstly, the sound transmitted through several kinds of glass plates is simulated using the proposed method. Then, in order to confirm the validity of this method, the simulated results are compared to measured sounds transmitted by passing vehicles into a room near the street.     

Reduction of dislocation density and improvement of optical quality in ZnO layers by MgO-buffer annealing

Optical properties of ZnO thin films with/without MgO-buffer annealing were investigated by low and room temperature photoluminescence measurements. The ZnO films were grown on c-sapphire substrates by plasma-assisted molecular-beam epitaxy employing a thin MgO-buffer layer. Dislocation density of ZnO layer was reduced from 5.3 × 10⁹ to 1.9 × 10⁹ cm⁻² by annealing MgO-buffer prior to the growth of ZnO. The intensity of free exciton emission from the sample with MgO-buffer annealing was almost twice of that from the sample without annealing, while the deep level emission from the sample with MgO-buffer annealing was about 1/3 of that without annealing. The MgO-buffer annealing improves optical quality of overgrown ZnO films.     

Unsaturated bond existing in tetrafluoroethylene-propylene-vinylidene fluoride terpolymer

Infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopies have been applied for quantitative comparison on unsaturated bonds in tetrafluoroethylene (TFE)-propylene (P)-vinylidene fluoride (VdF) terpolymers. These spectroscopies have led to consistent results while they are based on completely different principles. It is shown that the absolute concentration can be evaluated from NMR measurements. The behavior of unsaturation has been discussed in terms of after-treatment such as wet and dry treatments. The result obtained here can give the important information to improve the performance of fluoroelastomer based on TFE-P-VdF terpolymers.     

Equazioni monodimensionali di un gas viscoso barotropico con una perturbazione poco regolare

The equations for a barotropic viscous gas in one space dimensiondν=(μ(?ν_ε)_ε?p _ε)dt+dG,? _t +?²ν_ε=0,p=?^γ with a perturbationdG are considered under the assumption thatG is only a function of bounded variation inL ²(Θ) orH ₀ ¹ (Θ) (Θ=]0, α[) and the esistence and the uniqueness of the global solution in a class of solutions of «strong type» as well as in a class of solutions of «weak type» are proved. This result constitutes a generalization of the result of Kazhikhov [8] and that of Shelukhin [10] and contains preliminary considerations for the corrisponding stochastic equations.     

Reactivities of Stable Rotamers: XLIV. Ring-Opening Reactions of 1-(9-Fluorenyl)-2-(2-methyl-2-oxiranyl)naphthalene Rotamers With Acids and the Structure of Oxiranes

X-ray crystallography of the ap-form of the 1-(9-fluorenyl)-2-(2-methyl-2-oxiranyl)naphthalene has revealed that the carbon atom of the oxirane which is connected to the naphthyl group in this compound is almost planar. The specific structural features of the epoxy ring in this compound are caused by sterical effects and by the presence of a -system in the immediate vicinity of the oxirane ring. Certain differences have been found also in reactivity of rotational isomers of 2-X-substituted 1-[1-(9-fluorenyl)-2-naphthyl]ethyl cations (X = O, S, Se). At X = O arose more deprotonation product from the -position of the oxygen than in reactions of sulfur and selenium-containing analogs. Reactions of epoxides with zinc chloride almost exclusively gave the corresponding aldehydes.     

Alternative copolymerization of aziridines and carbon monoxide by γ-ray irradiation

The copolymerization of carbon monoxide and aziridines such as ethylenimine and propylenimine was carried out by γ-ray irradiation. Aziridines and carbon monoxide were allowed to copolymerize under γ-ray irradiation from a Co⁶⁰ source and gave a crystalline solid copolymer. The yield of the copolymer increased with reaction temperature. The composition of copolymers obtained did not depend on the feed ratio of monomers and was found to be almost equimolar. The copolymer of ethylenimine and carbon monoxide melted at about 322–335°C. with decomposition and has an infrared spectrum identical with that of poly-β-alanine obtained by the hydrogen-migration polymerization of acrylamide. The hydrolyzed product of the ethylenimine–carbon monoxide copolymer was confirmed to be β-alanine by paper chromatography. These results lead to the conclusion that the copolymerization of aziridines and carbon monoxide took place alternatively by γ-ray irradiation, and produced crystalline poly-β-alanines.     

Electronic structure analysis of iron(III)-porphyrin complexes by X-ray absorption spectra at the C, N and Fe K-edges.

X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) measurements at the C, N, and Fe K absorption edges were performed for iron(III)-tetraphenylporphyrin (FeTPP), iron(III)-tetrakis(p-carboxyphenyl)porphyrin (FeTCPP), and iron(III)-tetrakis(p-sulfonatophenyl)porphyrin (FeTSPP). The spectral shapes differ in the Fe K XANES, but not in C and N K XANES among FeTPP, FeTCPP, and FeTSPP. Crosschecks of XANES data for C, N, and Fe K absorption edges in combination with discrete variational (DV)-Xalpha molecular orbital (MO) calculations indicate that each p-electron-withdrawing group on four meso-phenyl substitutes in an Fe(III)-porphyrin complex brings about a unique electron state through the complex because of the electron-withdrawal strength, itself. Consequently, they affect the positive charge of the center Fe(III) ion.     

Local structure of nitrogen atoms in a porphine ring of mesophenyl substituted porphyrin with an electron-withdrawing group using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray absorption spectroscopy.

This study investigated the protonation of nitrogen atoms in porphyrins with meso-phenyl p-substituted by an electron-withdrawing group using N 1s X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), the N K X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES), and the discrete variational (DV)-Xalpha molecular orbital (MO) method. Both tetraphenylporphyrin (TPP) and tetrakis(p-sulfonatophenyl)porphyrin (TSPP) have a single structure: the former has two protonated and two non-protonated N atoms in the porphine ring; the latter has four protonated N atoms in the porphine ring. In contrast, a combination of XPS, XANES, and DV-Xalpha MO calculations shows that tetrakis(p-carboxyphenyl)porphyrin (TCPP) has a dual structure: one structure has two protonated and two non-protonated N atoms; the other has four protonated N atoms. Furthermore, this result was also considered based on the protonation constants of N atoms in the porphyrins. The correlation between the strength of electron-withdrawing groups and protonation to N atoms in porphyrins can be described using the spectral patterns of the N 1s XPS and N K XANES spectra.     

Photoluminescence characteristics of nitrogen atomic-layer-doped GaAs grown by MOVPE

Nitrogen atomic-layer-doped and uniformly doped GaAs were grown by MOVPE using dimethylhydrazine on a (001) plane. They showed several sharp photoluminescence lines with a full width at half maximum less than 1 meV at 8 K. Compared with uniformly doped GaAs, the photoluminescence intensity of the nitrogen-related line at the longest wavelength is enhanced in nitrogen atomic-layer-doped GaAs, suggesting that it is easier to form nitrogen pairs during atomic layer doping. To investigate the sharp nitrogen-related lines, we also grew GaAs with double atomic-layer-doped planes and varied the distance between the two planes. When the two planes are brought close to 1 nm, two new lines, NN_C and NN_D, appear between the two nitrogen-related lines, NN_A and NN_B, observed in a single nitrogen atomic-layer-doped GaAs. The NN_C and NN_D lines are also observed in uniformly doped GaAs. Therefore, NN_A and NN_B originate from excitons bound to pairs of nitrogen atoms, both of which are in the (001) plane, while NN_C and NN_D originate from those bound to pairs of nitrogen atoms, of which pairing directions are not included in the (001) plane. From the photoluminescence characteristics, distances between nitrogen atoms of a pair are estimated for each line.