A palladium catalyzed conversion of halohydrins to ketones

Pd(OAc)₂ combined with P(o-Tol)₃ catalyzes the conversion of halohydrins to ketones in the presence of K₂CO₃. Various halohydrins, which are easily available from olefins, can be converted to ketones in high yields.     

Emulsifier-free emulsion polymerization of tetrafluoroethylene by radiation. II. Effects of reaction conditions on polymer particle size and number

The size, distribution, and number of PTFE particles formed by radiation-induced emulsifier-free polymerization were measured by electron microscope and automatic particle analyzer (centrifugation method). From the electron micrographs we found that the particles are formed within 5 min. The change in the number of polymer particles (n_p) with reaction time (t) depends on the relative concentration of growing polymer chains to stabilizing species produced by the radiolysis of water and monomer; that is, it was governed by TFE pressure/dose rate ratio and classified into three cases: case I, dn_p/dt = 0 (e.g., at 3 × 10⁴ rad/hr and 20 kg/cm²); case II, dn_p/dt < 0 (e.g., at dose rate below 1.9 × 10⁴ rad/hr and 20 kg/cm²); case III, dn_p/dt > 0 (e.g., at 3 × 10⁴ rad/hr and 2 kg/cm²). The polymer molecular weight above 10⁶ is almost independent of the particle size. The polymerization loci are mainly on the surface of polymer particles dispersed in the aqueous phase in cases I and II except in the initial stage. In case III new particles are formed successively during polymerization. Therefore the polymerization loci are mainly in the aqueous phase. Especially in case I, we concluded that after the generation of particles the propagation proceeds mainly on the surface of polymer particles like the core shell model proposed by Granico and Williams.     

Interaction of a three-mass system with gravitational waves

The interaction of a harmonically bound three-mass system with gravitational waves is analyzed in detail. The system resonantly responds to two polarization states of gravitational waves at a given frequency and transforms the two polarization states into two kinds of vibrations which can be clearly distinguished. The averaged cross section and maximum cross section also are given. As compared with a two-mass system under the same conditions, the three-mass system is at the maximum 1.2 times as large as the averaged cross section of the two-mass system, and its maximum cross section is at the maximum 1.5 times as large as that of the two-mass system.     

Measurements of the displacements of spherical caps during snap-through buckling

Measurements were made of the dynamic buckling displacements of the surfaces of spherical caps during buckling under uniform external pressure. Relationships between shell geometry and the magnitude of the surface displacements, velocities and accelarations during buckling were obtained. The use of a displacement transducer whose sensing element is a photovoltaic cell is described.     

Sleep disturbance by traffic noise: an experimental study in subjects' own houses using a portable CD player

The current study investigated the effect of noise on sleep in subjects' own houses using recorded traffic noises. A railway noise and two kinds of road traffic noise differing in level-fluctuations were used as stimuli. Subjects were exposed all night to the artificially controlled stimuli for 10 days through a portable compact disc (CD) player. The effect of noise on sleep was judged in three ways, namely whether the subject had switched off the CD player, a self-declaration of the subject based on a questionnaire, and the amount of arm movement of the subject during the night as measured by an actigraph. The results of the analysis of the self-declaration data showed that the thresholds where sleep disturbance began were 40-45 dB in for road traffic noise and about 35 dB for railway noise, which corresponded to 50-55 dB in L_A,Fmax of each train noise event. The results of the analysis of the actigraphy data showed a rapid increase in the incidence of mid-sleep awakening at sound pressure levels higher than 50 dB, for railway noise. However, neither of the road traffic noises showed such a tendency, as long as the sound pressure level was less than 55 dB, .     

Quantitative determination of paclitaxel and its metabolites, 6α‐hydroxypaclitaxel and p‐3′‐hydroxypaclitaxel,in human plasma using column‐switching liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

A column‐switching liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry to determine paclitaxel and its metabolites, 6α‐hydroxypaclitaxel and p‐3′‐hydroxypaclitaxel, in human plasma was developed. The analytical system had a Shim‐Pack MAYI‐ODS (10 × 4.6 mm i.d.) trapping column with deproteinization ability that concentrates analytes and removes water‐soluble components. This method covered a linearity range of 5–5000 ng/mL of concentrations in plasma for paclitaxel, a range of 0.87–870 ng/mL for 6α‐hydroxypaclitaxel and a range of 0.87–435 ng/mL for p‐3′‐hydroxypaclitaxel. The intra‐day precision and inter‐day precision of analysis were less than 11.1%, and the accuracy was within ±14.4% at concentrations of 5, 50, 500 and 5000 ng/mL for paclitaxel, 0.87, 8.7, 87 and 870 ng/mL for 6α‐hydroxypaclitaxel, and 0.87, 8.7, 87 and 435 ng/mL for p‐3′‐hydroxypaclitaxel. The total run time was 30 min. Our method was successfully applied to clinical pharmacokinetic investigation. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.