New hockey stick compounds with a lateral methyl group showing nematic,synclinic and anticlinic smectic C phases

New hockey stick-shaped mesogens with a lateral methyl group inserted between the m-alkyloxy-chain and the azomethine connecting group, 4-(3-n-alkyloxy-2-methyl-phenyliminomethyl) phenyl-4-n-alkyloxycinnamates have been synthesised. The interesting feature of these hockey stick-shaped mesogens is the appearance of the nematic phase in addition to two polymorphic tilted smectic phases – the synclinic smectic C (SmC_s) and the anticlinic SmC_a phase. Physical characterisation of these mesogens has been carried out using polarising optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, optical birefringence, X-ray diffraction (XRD), electro–optical and dielectric spectroscopy measurements. The SmC_s–SmC_a phase transition is accompanied by only a small calorimetric signal but causes a pronounced change in the optical textures. Orientational order parameters determined from the birefringence measurements have been compared with those estimated from XRD patterns. Dielectric measurements point to the formation of small ‘soft’ ferroelectric clusters responsible for a low frequency absorption range.     

Biotechnological and Molecular Approaches for Vanillin Production: a Review

Vanillin is one of the most widely used flavoring agents in the world. As the annual world market demand of vanillin could not be met by natural extraction, chemical synthesis, or tissue culture technology, thus biotechnological approaches may be replacement routes to make production of bio-vanillin economically viable. This review’s main focus is to highlight significant aspects of biotechnology with emphasis on the production of vanillin from eugenol, isoeugenol, lignin, ferulic acid, sugars, phenolic stilbenes, vanillic acid, aromatic amino acids, and waste residues by applying fungi, bacteria, and plant cells. Production of biovanillin using GRAS lactic acid bacteria and metabolically engineered microorganisms, genetic organization of vanillin biosynthesis operons/gene cassettes and finally the stability of biovanillin generated through various biotechnological procedures are also critically reviewed in the later sections of the review.     

Density dynamics in some quantum systems

The quantum domain behavior of classical nonintegrable systems is well‐understood by the implementation of quantum fluid dynamics and quantum theory of motion. These approaches properly explain the quantum analogs of the classical Kolmogorov–Arnold–Moser type transitions from regular to chaotic domain in different anharmonic oscillators. Field‐induced tunneling and chaotic ionization in Rydberg atoms are also analyzed with the help of these theories. Quantum fluid density functional theory may be used to understand different time‐dependent processes like ion‐atom/molecule collisions, atom‐field interactions, and so forth. Regioselectivity as well as confined atomic/molecular systems and their reactivity dynamics have also been explained. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Statistical Analysis of Scalar Dissipation Rate Transport in Turbulent Partially Premixed Flames: A Direct Numerical Simulation Study

Statistically planar turbulent premixed and partially premixed flames for different initial turbulence intensities are simulated for global equivalence ratios ??>?=?0.7 and ??>?=?1.0 using three-dimensional Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS) with simplified chemistry. For the simulations of partially premixed flames, a random distribution of equivalence ratio following a bimodal distribution of equivalence ratio is introduced in the unburned reactants ahead of the flame. The simulation parameters in all of the cases were chosen such that the combustion situation belongs to the thin reaction zones regime. The DNS data has been used to analyse the behaviour of the dissipation rate transports of both active and passive scalars (i.e. the fuel mass fraction Y _F and the mixture fraction ξ) in the context of Reynolds Averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) simulations. The behaviours of the unclosed terms of the Favre averaged scalar dissipation rates of fuel mass fraction and mixture fraction (i.e. \(\widetilde {\varepsilon }_Y =\overline {\rho D\nabla Y_F^{\prime \prime } \cdot \nabla Y_F^{\prime \prime } } /\overline{\rho }\) and \(\widetilde {\varepsilon }_\xi =\overline {\rho D\nabla \xi ^{\prime \prime }\cdot \nabla \xi ^{\prime \prime }} /\overline {\rho })\) transport equations have been analysed in detail. In the case of the \(\widetilde {\varepsilon }_Y \) transport, it has been observed that the turbulent transport term of scalar dissipation rate remains small throughout the flame brush whereas the terms due to density variation, scalar–turbulence interaction, reaction rate and molecular dissipation remain the leading order contributors. The term arising due to density variation remains positive throughout the flame brush and the combined contribution of the reaction and molecular dissipation to the \(\widetilde {\varepsilon }_Y \) transport remains negative throughout the flame brush in all cases. However, the behaviour of scalar–turbulence interaction term of the \(\widetilde {\varepsilon }_Y \) transport equation is significantly affected by the relative strengths of turbulent straining and the straining due to chemical heat release. In the case of the \(\widetilde {\varepsilon }_\xi \) transport, the turbulent transport term remains small throughout the flame brush and the density variation term is found to be negligible in all cases, whilst the reaction rate term is exactly zero. The scalar–turbulence interaction term and molecular dissipation term remain the leading order contributors to the \(\widetilde {\varepsilon }_\xi \) transport throughout the flame brush in all cases that have been analysed in the present study. Performances of existing models for the unclosed terms of the transport equations of \(\widetilde {\varepsilon }_Y \) and \(\widetilde {\varepsilon }_\xi \) are assessed with respect to the corresponding quantities obtained from DNS data. Based on this exercise either suitable models have been identified or new models have been proposed for the accurate closure of the unclosed terms of both \(\widetilde {\varepsilon }_Y \) and \(\widetilde {\varepsilon }_\xi \) transport equations in the context of Reynolds Averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) simulations.     

Scattering of water waves by a submerged thin vertical elastic plate

The problem of water wave scattering by a thin vertical elastic plate submerged in infinitely deep water is investigated here assuming linear theory. The boundary condition on the elastic plate is derived from the Bernoulli–Euler equation of motion satisfied by the plate. This is converted into the condition that the normal velocity of the plate is prescribed in terms of an integral involving the difference in velocity potentials (unknown) across the plate multiplied by an appropriate Green’s function. The reflection and transmission coefficients are obtained in terms of integrals involving combinations of the unknown velocity potential on the two sides of the plate and its normal derivative on the plate, which satisfy three simultaneous integral equations, solved numerically. These coefficients are computed numerically for various values of different parameters and are depicted graphically against the wave number for different situations. The energy identity relating these coefficients is also derived analytically by employing Green’s integral theorem. Results for a rigid plate are recovered when the parameters characterizing the elastic plate are chosen negligibly small.