Carboxybetaine methacrylate polymers offer robust, long-term protection against cell adhesion

Films of poly(carboxybetaine methacrylate), poly(CBMA), grafted onto microetched gold slides are effective in preventing nonspecific adhesion of cells of different types. The degree of adhesion resistance is comparable to that achieved with the self-assembled monolayers, SAMs, of oligo(ethylene glycol) alkanethiolates. In sharp contrast to the SAMs, however, substrates protected with poly(CBMA) can be stored in dry state without losing their protective properties for periods up to 2 weeks.     

Non-isothermal flow through a rotating straight duct with wide range of rotational and pressure driven parameters

Numerical study is performed to investigate the Non-isothermal flow in a rotating straight duct under various flow conditions. Spectral method is applied as a main tool for the numerical technique, where the Chebyshev polynomial, the Collocation methods, the Arc-length method and the Newton-Raphson method are also used as secondary tools. The characteristics of the flow mentioned above are described here. The incompressible viscous steady Non-isothermal flow through a straight duct of rectangular cross-section rotating at a constant angular velocity about the center of the duct cross-section is investigated numerically to examine the combined effects of Rotation parameter (Coriolis force), Grashof number (parameter which is used in heat, transfer studies involving free, forced or natural convection and is equql to \(\frac{{L^3 g\beta \Delta {\rm T}}}{{v^2 }}\), where L is the characteristic length, ρ the density, g the acceleration due to gravity, β the thermal expansion coefficient, ΔT the temperature difference, μ the viscosity and ν the kinematic viscosity of the fluid. The expansion coefficient β is a measure of the rate at which the volume V of the fluid changes with temperature at a given pressure P), Prandtl number, aspect ratio and Pressure-driven parameter (centrifugal force) on the flow. We examine the structures in case of rotation of the duct axis and the Pressure-driven parameter with large aspect ratio where other parameters are fixed. The calculations are carried out for 0 ≤ T _r ≤ 300, 2 ≤ γ ≤ 6, G _r = 100, P _r = 7.0 and 0 ≤ P _r ≤ 800 by applying the Spectral method. When Ω > 0 and the rotation is in the same direction as the Coriolis force enforces the centrifugal force, multiple solutions of Non-symmetric the secondary flow patterns with 10-vortex (maximum) are obtained in case of T _r = 100 and 150 with large aspect ratio. The intense of the temperature field is very strong near the heated wall in all cases. Finally, the overall solutions of the problems considered in conclusion.     

Primitive digraphs with the largest scrambling index

The scrambling index of a primitive digraph D is the smallest positive integer k such that for every pair of vertices u and v, there is a vertex w such that we can get to w from u and v in D by directed walks of length k; it is denoted by k(D). In [M. Akelbek, S. Kirkland, Coefficients of ergodicity and the scrambling index, preprint] we gave the upper bound on k(D) in terms of the order and the girth of a primitive digraph D. In this paper, we characterize all the primitive digraphs such that the scrambling index is equal to the upper bound.     

Polymerization of vinylpyridinium salts. XII. Occurrence of radical polymerization in spontaneous reactions

There has been considerable disagreement regarding the mechanism of the spontaneous polymerization of vinylpyridinium salts in aqueous or acidic solution above 1.0 mol L^?1 in monomer concentration. In this report the position of Ringsdorf and co-workers is substantiated with regard to the existence of a free-radical reaction, but the kinetic results obtained differ. In particular, it is shown that a lack of spontaneous polymerization below 1.0 mol L^?1 is not due to a nonexistence of-a critical monomer concentration for aggregation, but is instead a kinetic phenomenon of R_p ～ [M]^2.7.     

Temperature dependence of AC-photoconductivity of HgI2 crystal

An ac impedance method has been used to study the electrical properties of an illuminated HgI₂ crystal as a function of temperature [10–350 K] and frequency [1–10₄ Hz]. The complex impedance plane plots enabled us to determine the bulk resistance of the crystal as a function of temperature. Activation energies of [0.08±0.005 eV] and [0.25 ±0.01eV] are then found; they are attributed to acceptor and donor trapping levels, respectively. At temperatures lower than 230 K, a weak temperature dependence of the bulk resistance is observed. This weak dependence is supposed to be due to photoconductivity.     

The effect of Er doping on the spin reorientation transition in Ho1−xErxAl2

The magnetothermal properties of pseudo binary Ho_1−xEr_xAl₂ alloys have been investigated by heat capacity measurements. Two anomalies are observed in the heat capacity of HoAl₂. A sharp peak at 20 K represents the first order spin reorientation transition, and a second order anomaly occurs in the vicinity of the ferromagnetic transition at 32 K. As Ho is partially replaced by Er in Ho_1−xEr_xAl₂ the sharpness of the first order heat capacity peak diminishes with increasing Er concentration, while the temperature of this transition remains practically unaffected. The second order ferromagnetic transition shifts to higher temperature region with increasing Er concentration. The observed behaviors are explained considering the geometry of 4f charge densities of Ho³⁺ and Er³⁺ and the easy magnetization directions of HoAl₂ and ErAl₂.     

AC electrical behaviour of a Pb2CrO5 ceramic sample with surface electrodes

ac measurements (1 Hz–10 kHz) have been carried out on a Pb₂CrO₅ ceramic sample (with surface electrodes) at room temperature as a function of voltage and intensity of visible light illuminating the sample. Cole-Cole complex impedance plots show that the electrical behaviour of Pb₂CrO₅ is strongly modified when the sample is illuminated. The bulk conductance of the sample is found to increase with increasing light intensity indicating that this dielectric material becomes semiconducting due to the photogeneration of free charge carriers in the conduction band. The dielectric constant of the sample is enhanced by illumination probably due to light-dependent space charge effects in a manner where the dielectric's relaxation time (=RC=0.7 ms) remains constant with light intensity. On the other hand, both the bulk conductance and geometrical capacitance of the sample have been found to be almost independent of the applied voltage.     

The effect of curvature of Li-doped polycyclic hydrocarbon on its interaction energy with H<Subscript>2</Subscript> and H<Subscript>2</Subscript>O: DF-SAPT (DFT) calculation

In this work, the interaction of three Li⁺-doped polycyclic hydrocarbons (Li⁺-DPH) with H₂ and H₂O was calculated to investigate the effect of curvature of substrate on the interaction energy (E_int). For this purpose, the E_int and its decomposed energy components (electrostatic (E_elec), exchange (E_exch), induction (E_ind), and dispersion energy (E_disp)) were calculated using DF-SAPT (DFT) methodology for the selected systems (Li⁺-(3,3) carbon nanotube (Li⁺-CNT33), Li⁺-(6,6) carbon nanotube (Li⁺-CNT66), and Li⁺-graphene). According to the results, E_int does not change significantly with curvature for the interaction between both H₂ and H₂O gases and the selected Li⁺-DPH. Since the variation of the E_int with the curvature of Li⁺-DPH is not significant, the selection of a planar Li⁺-DPH is a trustworthy model to develop a general force field for describing the interaction between a Li⁺-DPH and adsorbed gases. The results reveal that, in the case of the H₂, the components E_elect, E_exch, E_ind, and E_disp have shown a decreasing trend with Li⁺-DPH’s curvature decrement. However, for the H₂O, E_elect, E_exch, and E_ind decrease from the Li⁺-CNT33 to the Li⁺-CNT66 while they increase from the Li⁺-CNT66 to the Li⁺-graphene. In this case, the E_disp increases with a decrease of the curvature of Li⁺-DPH. Finally, it can be seen that although the variation of the E_int with the curvature of Li⁺-DPH is not significant, the variation trend of the interaction energy components and the amount of variation depend on the gas molecule and in some cases are not negligible.     

Plasma activated water: the next generation eco-friendly stimulant for enhancing plant seed germination,vigor and increased enzyme activity,a study on black gram (Vigna mungo L.)

Plasma Chemistry and Plasma Processing - Chemical fertilization in agriculture is threatening to the ecosystem. Therefore, the use of eco-friendly stimulant for crop revolution is highly desirable....     

Diastereoselective aziridination of 2-B(pin)-substituted allylic alcohols: an efficient approach to novel organoboron compounds

We report that 2-B(pin)-substituted allylic alcohols are good substrates for diastereoselective aziridinations in the presence of PhI(OAc)(2) and N-aminophthalimide. Under the aziridination conditions, the valuable B-C bond remains intact, affording a variety of novel boron-substituted aziridines in good yields and excellent diastereoselectivities. Oxidation of the aziridine B-C bond enables generation of syn-1,3-aminohydroxy-2-ketones with high diastereoselectivity.