Emulsion copolymerization of tribromophenyl maleimide with styrene

Emulsion copolymerization of Tribromophenyl Maleimide (TBPMI) and styrene was conducted by semi-batch and batch processes. The effects of monomer composition and copolymerization method on copolymerization rate, molecular weight and molecular weight distribution, latex particle size and size distribution, glass transition temperature (T_g), thermal stability and mechanical properties were investigated. A kinetic study has shown that the rate of copolymerization in the batch process increased with increasing TBPMI content in the monomer feed. For the semi-batch polymerized samples, molecular weight decreased and molecular weight distribution increased with increasing TBPMI content in the monomer feed. For the batch polymerized samples, molecular weight also decreased but no obvious tendency was observed for the molecular weight distribution when TBPMI content increased. Compared with the batch copolymers, the semi-batch copolymers have a higher molecular weight at the same initial monomer mixture composition. Latex particle size decreased, while particle size distribution slightly increased with increasing TBPMI content in both semi-batch and batch latices. The semi-batch samples exhibit only a single T_g, the value of which increses linearly with increasing TBPMI content. For the batch copolymers, two T_gs were found, reflecting a mixture of styrene-rich and TBPMI-rich copolymer chains. TGA results indicate that the thermal stability of the semi-batch copolymers increased with increasing TBPMI concentration. Young's and flexural moduli increased, while tensile and flexural strengths decreased by increasing the TBPMI content for both the semi-batch and batch specimens. The semi-batch specimens have higher tensile and flexural strenghts than the batch ones.     

Y-梯度广义最小二乘加权校正的土壤速效氮野外原位光谱预测

土壤速效氮是影响作物生长发育的重要养分指标。野外原位可见近红外光谱(VIS-NIR)分析技术具有快速无损等特点,对速效氮的定量预测具有较好的应用前景。野外条件下进行原位光谱采集更节省人力物力,且为土壤养分实时传感器的开发提供了数据基础。但由于野外原位光谱中通常存在大量的无关环境因子干扰信息,易导致回归模型预测精度降低,达不到实用要求。针对位于以色列中部和北部的两个试验点共76个样本开展研究,提出利用Y-梯度广义最小二乘加权算法(Y-GLSW)对样本的野外原位VIS-NIR反射率光谱(350～2 500 nm)进行滤波校正,以提高回归模型的预测能力。首先使用SG平滑、一阶导数变换、标准正态变换等常规方法对原始光谱进行预处理和变换;在此基础上再使用Y-GLSW构建滤波模型对变换后的光谱进行滤波校正;最后使用偏最小二乘回归算法(PLS-R)分别结合原始光谱RW、预处理变换后的光谱PPT和滤波校正后的光谱Y-GLSW建立回归分析模型对速效氮进行定量预测。结果表明：利用RW光谱建立的回归预测模型是不可靠的;利用PPT光谱建立的回归模型在测试集的相对分析误差(RPD)为1.41,解释总方差占实际总方差之比(SSR/SST)为0.57,模型具有一定的可靠性;Y-GLSW光谱建立的回归模型在测试集的RPD和SSR/SST分别为2.07和0.69,相对于PPT模型分别提高了46.81%和21.05%。因此,利用Y-GLSW对野外原位VIS-NIR光谱进行滤波校正,能够有效去除光谱中的无关信息数据,提高模型的预测精度和解释能力。     

A theory of cosmic rays

We present a theory of non-solar cosmic rays (CRs) in which the bulk of their observed flux is due to a single type of CR source at all energies. The total luminosity of the Galaxy, the broken power-law spectra with their observed slopes, the position of the ‘knee(s)’ and ‘ankle’, and the CR composition and its variation with energy are all predicted in terms of very simple and completely ‘standard’ physics. The source of CRs is extremely ‘economical’: it has only one parameter to be fitted to the ensemble of all of the mentioned data. All other inputs are ‘priors’, that is, theoretical or observational items of information independent of the properties of the source of CRs, and chosen to lie in their pre-established ranges. The theory is part of a ‘unified view of high-energy astrophysics’ — based on the ‘Cannonball’ model of the relativistic ejecta of accreting black holes and neutron stars. The model has been extremely successful in predicting all the novel properties of Gamma Ray Bursts recently observed with the help of the Swift satellite. If correct, this model is only lacking a satisfactory theoretical understanding of the ‘cannon’ that emits the cannonballs in catastrophic processes of accretion.     

Characterization of an orphan Ra–Be neutron source

Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry - An orphan radium-beryllium (Ra–Be) neutron source (Nuclear Chicago Corporation) detected inside a scrap metal shipping container, was seized...     

Comparison of UV-absorbing Nets in Pepper Crops: Spectral Properties,Effects on Plants and Pest Control

In horticultural crops, the use of screens to protect plants is the usual strategy in the Mediterranean area. Screen manufacturers offer a range of netting that vary in their UV-absorbing properties. We compared the photoeffects of seven different screens. Sweet pepper trials were conducted at the Gilat Research Center, Israel, where the spectral properties of the nets and their influence on pest infestation and crop development were evaluated. UV transmittance varied among the materials studied ranging from 40% to 70% of the incident radiation. BioNet white and P-Optinet, which absorbed and reflected the highest amount of UV radiation, performed the best protection against the main pepper pest (thrips, whiteflies and broad mites). Spectral measurements also showed that the photosynthetically active radiation differentially penetrated the nets, which together with the amount of UV absorbed by the screenings, resulted in a range of plant height and chlorophyll content. A global understanding of the UV-absorbing nets’ effect on pepper crops and their pests was evaluated in this work because of the importance of these screens to integrated pest management and sustainable agriculture production.     

Constraint classification in mathematical programming

Consider a set of algebraic inequality constraints defining either an empty or a nonempty feasible region. It is known that each constraint can be classified as either absolutely strongly redundant, relatively strongly redundant, absolutely weakly redundant, relatively weakly redundant, or necessary. We show that is is worth making a distinction between weakly necessary constraints and strongly necessary constraints. We also present afeasible set cover method which can detect both weakly and strongly necessary constraints.The main interest in constraint classification is due to the advantages gained by the removal of redundant constraints. Since classification errors are likely to occur, we examine how the removal of a single constraint can affect the classification of the remaining constraints.     

A Distributed and Collaborative Beamforming algorithm for a self-organizing Wireless Sensor Network

In this paper the scenario where sensors of a Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) are able to process and transmit monitored data to a far collector is considered. The far collector may be a Base Station (BS) that gathers data from a certain number of deployed WSNs, in applications such as earthquake, tsunami, or pollution monitoring. In this paper, the possible use of Distributed and Collaborative BeaMForming (DC-BMF) technique is analyzed, with the goal of enhancing the capability of a single sensor to communicate its data to the far collector. This technique considers nodes as elements of a phased array, where the phases of the signals at each antenna node are linearly combined in order to adjust the directional gain of the whole array. In particular, a novel self-localization technique for WSNs performing DC-BMF is studied, a closed form solution for beamforming gain degradation is derived and the evaluation of the power consumption of the proposed DC-BMF algorithm is provided.     

Band gap of carbon-sulfur [N]helicenes

Asymmetric synthesis of (-)-[9]helicene, as well as preparation of its lower homologues, completes the series of carbon-sulfur [5]-, [7]-, [9]-, and [11]helicenes. Spectroscopic and electrochemical studies of this series provide an absorption onset-based band gap, E(g) = 3.40 eV, for a cross-conjugated (C(2)S)(n) helix; this value may be compared to E(g) = 3.59 eV obtained from TD-DFT computed excitation energies for a series of dimethyl-substituted [n]helicenes (n ≤ 31).