Clove oil prevents glycyrrhizin gel formation in aqueous solution

One persistent problem with using therapeutic concentrations of glycyrrhizin (GZ) is that, at these high concentrations, it forms a gel in an aqueous solution. We previously solved this problem by dissolving GZ in a highly concentrated phosphate buffer. Unfortunately, the resulting GZ solution has a hyperosmotic pressure that renders it unsuitable for use in patients. The aim of this study was to prepare a highly concentrated GZ solution having an osmotic pressure ratio of 1 and a pH of 7.4. By adding small amounts of oil and using a 100 mM phosphate buffer, we achieved an emulsified GZ solution that is stable at room temperature and has a physiological osmotic pressure and pH. When clove oil was used as an emulsifier, the gel formation temperature of GZ solution decreased appreciably compared to that of GZ solution without clove oil. Using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), we examined the detailed characteristics of GZ gels prepared from solutions with or without clove oil. SEM of cross sections of GZ gels revealed an irregular structure in gels prepared with clove oil, indicating that clove oil prevented the formation of the intermolecular GZ networks typically characterized by gels derived from pure GZ solutions.     

Remote asymmetric induction with vinylketene silyl n,o-acetal

A highly regio- and diastereoselective TiCl4-mediated vinylogous Mukaiyama aldol reaction using the chiral vinylketene silyl N,O-acetal has been developed. The present vinylogous Mukaiyama aldol reaction provides a unique and effective means of controlling remote asymmetric induction. The methyl group at the alpha-position is important in achieving a high level of stereoselectivity. From a synthetic point of view, this methodology can provide a one-step construction of delta-hydroxy-alpha,gamma-dimethyl-alpha,beta-unsaturated carbonyl unit that is seen in many natural polyketide products.     

Tritium recovery from co-deposited layers using 193-nm laser

Recovery of tritium from co-deposited layers formed in deuterium–tritium plasma operations of the TFTR (Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor) was investigated by the use of an ArF excimer laser operating at the wavelength of 193 nm. At the laser energy density of 0.1 J/cm², a transient spike of the tritium-release rate was observed at initial irradiation. Hydrogen isotopes were released in the form of hydrogen-isotope molecules during the laser irradiation in vacuum, suggesting that tritium can be recovered readily from the released gases. In a second experiment, hydrogen (tritium) recovery from the co-deposited layers on JT-60 tiles that had experienced hydrogen-plasma operations was investigated by laser ablation with a focused beam of the excimer laser. The removal rate of the co-deposited layers was quite low when the laser energy density was smaller than the ablation threshold (1.0 J/cm²), but reached 1.1 μm/pulse at the laser energy density of 7.6 J/cm². The effective absorption coefficient in the co-deposited layers at the laser wavelength was determined to be 1.9 μm^-1. The temperature of the surface during the irradiation at the laser energy density of 0.5 J/cm² was measured on the basis of Planck’s law of radiation, and the maximum temperature during the irradiation decreased from 3570 K at the initial irradiation to 2550 K at the 1000th pulse of the irradiation. Received: 5 August 2002 / Accepted: 7 August 2002 / Published online: 28 October 2002 RID="*" ID="*"Corresponding author. Fax: +81-29/2825917, E-mail: shu@tpl.tokai.jaeri.go.jp     

Anomalous temperature dependence of the magnetic field induced antiferromagnetic moment in the antiferroquadrupolar ordered state of CeB6

The magnetic field induced antiferromagnetic moment M(AF) at low magnetic fields in the antiferroquadrupolar (AFQ) ordered phase of CeB6 was investigated by elastic neutron diffraction experiments for H parallel [110]. The peak intensity at the AF magnetic reciprocal point (1 / 2,1 / 2,1 / 2) corresponding to M(2)(AF) increases with decreasing temperature below the AFQ ordering temperature T(Q), and exhibits a broad maximum at T approximately 3 K and decreases with a further decrease of temperature. This unusual behavior of M(AF) at low fields is explained as a result of the competition between the AF-octupolar and AF-exchange interactions in the O(xy) type AFQ ordered state.     

Improved surface morphology of flow-modulated MOVPE grown AIN on sapphire using thin medium-temperature AIN buffer layer

High-temperature (HT) AIN films were grown on (0 0 0 1) sapphire by low-pressure flow-modulated (FM) metal organic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE) with and without inserting a thin medium-temperature (MT) AIN layer. To suppress parasitic reactions between the sources of trimethylaluminum (TMA) and ammonia (NH₃), TMA and NH₃ was introduced to the reactor of MOVPE by alternating supply way. Surface morphology and crystalline quality were characterized by a scanning electronic microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and X-ray rocking curve (XRC) measurements of (0 0 0 2) and (10-12) diffractions. The AFM and SEM measurements indicated that the thin MT-AIN layer had a strong influence on the surface morphology of the HT-AIN films. The surface morphology became quite smooth by inserting the thin MT-AIN layer and surface RMS roughness values were 0.84 nm and 13.4 nm for the HT-AIN films with and without inserting the thin MT-AIN buffer layer, respectively. By etching the samples in aqueous KOH solution, it was found that the polarity of AIN films was different, the HT-AIN film with the thin MT-AIN layer could not be etched, indicating that the film had an Al-polar surface; however, the film without the MT-AIN layer was etched, which was explained that that film had a N- or mixed-polar surface. The mechanism for the origin of the different polarity of HT-AIN with and without the thin MT-AIN layer was proposed and discussed in detail.     

Thermogravimetric analysis in steam and oxygen with gas chromatograph mass spectrometry for basic study of biomass gasification

We modified a commercially available thermogravimetric analyzer to introduce helium alone or with steam, oxygen or both, atmosphere of which was controllable to be similar to that in a fixed-bed or an entrained-flow type gasifier, for studying basic properties of biomass gasification. We also connected it to a gas chromatograph-mass selective detector for identifying materials produced during the thermogravimetric analyses. Thermogravimetric analyses of Japanese cedar wood and identifications of the produced materials at around 365 °C were measured as demonstrations.     

Selective separation of water–ethanol mixture through synthetic polymer membranes having carboxylic acid as a functional group

Separation of water–ethanol mixture through a membrane was carried out by pervaporation using a membrane which provided a hydrogen-bonding interaction. A membrane obtained from poly(acrylic acid-co-acrylonitrile) was effective for a selective separation of water from aqueous ethanol solution by pervaporation technique. Spectroscopic and flux analyses verified that this high selectivity toward water was attributed to the hydrogen-bonding interaction between water and acrylic acid (carboxylic acid) unit in the membrane. On the other hand, a membrane from poly(acrylic acid-co-styrene) preferentially permeated ethanol in the low water feed concentration region.     

Acid anhydrides as alternatives to acid chlorides in the palladium‐catalyzed reaction with silacyclobutanes

The palladium‐catalyzed reaction of acid anhydrides with silacyclobutane gives a mixture of cyclic silyl enol ether, carboxy(propyl)silane, and 3‐(carboxysilyl)ketone. In the presence of N,N‐dicyclohexylcarbodiimido (DCC), the reaction preferentially provides a cyclic silyl enol ether in a good yield. In addition, the palladium‐catalyzed reaction of benzoic acid with silacyclobutane in the presence of two equivalents of DCC also affords a cyclic silyl enol ether in a moderate yield. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A noncontact atomic force microscope in air using a quartz resonator and the FM detection method

Noncontact imaging was successfully performed with the quartz resonator in air by using the FM detection method. A constant frequency shift mode was used. The frequency shift was about -30 mHz, which was induced by the attractive force gradient. A noncontact image of the Si(111) atomic step was obtained with vertical and lateral resolutions of 0.8 Å and 60 Å.