Study of structural changes and mesomorphic transitions of oriented poly(ethylene therephthalate) fibers in supercritical CO2

Supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO₂), an environmentally friendly solvent, can change the fine structure of fibers depending on treatment temperature and pressure. Samples of partially oriented yarn (POY) PET fibers were uniaxially drawn below the glass transition temperature (T_g) and then exposed to scCO₂ under tension to induce morphological changes in them. The effects of draw ratio and scCO₂ exposure on the structural changes and mesomorphic transitions were evaluated. For this purpose, thermal characteristics of the structure, especially the rearrangement of polymer chains in the amorphous phase induced by cold-drawing and exposure to scCO₂, were evaluated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR). The orientation factor of the fibers was measured using a polarizing microscope. The paracrystalline portion and the crystallite sizes of exposed samples were estimated by wide-angle X-ray diffraction. To evaluate the solubility of CO₂ molecules in the samples, density and fractional free volumes were also measured. A good correlation was obtained between the results obtained from various measurement techniques. Results showed that cold-drawing of PET fibers leads to a strain-induced crystallization and that exposure to scCO₂ changes the structure of the oriented PET samples. To investigate mesophase transitions, percentage of extended chains in the amorphous regions was calculated by analyzing the results of DSC and FTIR. Results showed that the amount of extended chains developing during cold-drawing in the amorphous regions decreased when exposed to scCO₂.     

Aryl diazonium nanomagnetic sulfate and potassium iodide: an iodination process

A simple and efficient procedure for the synthesis of iodoarenes is developed which involves the sequential diazotization–iodination of aromatic amines with sodium nitrite, nanomagnetic supported sulfonic acid, and potassium iodide under solvent-free conditions at room temperature.     

Turbulent Convective Heat Transfer and Pressure Drop of Graphene–Water Nanofluid Flowing Inside a Horizontal Circular Tube

Turbulent convective heat transfer of graphene–water nanofluids with various concentrations inside a uniformly heated circular tube is studied experimentally. For this purpose, experiments are conducted to measure thermal conductivity, viscosity, pressure drop, and heat transfer coefficient. Results show enhancement of thermal conductivity and moderate increment of viscosity with addition of low amounts of nanoparticles. Moreover, heat transfer coefficient shows relatively high augmentation, and pressure drop remains unchanged. The maximum enhancements are 10.30%, 4.95%, and 6.04% for thermal conductivity, viscosity, and heat transfer coefficient, respectively. UV–Vis spectroscopy results show that the nanofluids are highly stable.     

Synthesis and evaluation of antiproliferative activity of substituted N-(9-oxo-9H-xanthen-4-yl)benzenesulfonamides

Several novel N-(9-oxo-9H-xanthen-4-yl)benzenesulfonamide derivatives were prepared as potential antiproliferative agents. The in vitro antiproliferative activity of the synthesized compounds was investigated against a panel of tumor cell lines including breast cancer cell lines (MDA-MB-231, T-47D) and neuroblastoma cell line (SK-N-MC) using MTT colorimetric assay. Etoposide, a well-known anticancer drug, was used as a positive standard drug. Among synthesized compounds, 4-methoxy-N-(9-oxo-9H-xanthen-4-yl)benzenesulfonamide (5i) showed the highest antiproliferative activity against MDA-MB-231, T-47D, and SK-N-MC cells. Furthermore, pentafluoro derivatives 5a and 6a exhibited higher antiproliferative activity than doxorubicin against human leukemia cell line (CCRF-CEM) and breast adenocarcinoma (MDA-MB-468) cells. Structure–activity relationship studies revealed that xanthone benzenesulfonamide hybrid compounds can be used for the development of new lead anticancer agents.     

Radical of filters in BL‐algebras

In this paper, the notion of the radical of a filter in BL‐algebras is defined and several characterizations of the radical of a filter are given. Also we prove that A/F is an MV‐algebra if and only if D_s(A) ? F. After that we define the notion of semi maximal filter in BL‐algebras and we state and prove some theorems which determine the relationship between this notion and the other types of filters of a BL‐algebra. Moreover, we prove that A/F is a semi simple BL‐algebra if and only if F is a semi maximal filter of A. © 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim     

Selective extraction of clonazepam from human plasma and urine samples by molecularly imprinted polymeric beads

A molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) based on free‐radical polymerization was prepared with 1‐(N,N‐biscarboxymethyl)amino‐3‐allylglycerol and N,N‐dimethylacrylamide as functional monomers, N,N‐methylene diacrylamide as the cross‐linker, copper ion‐clonazepam as the template and 2,2‐azobis(2‐methylbutyronitrile) as the initiator. The imprinted polymer was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, elemental analysis, thermogravimetric analysis, and SEM. The MIP of agglomerated microparticles with multipores was used for SPE. The imprinted polymer sorbent was selective for clonazepam. The optimum pH and sorption capacity were 5 and 0.18 mg/g at 20°C, respectively. The profile of the drug uptake by the sorbent reflects good accessibility of the active sites in the imprinted polymer sorbent. The MIP‐SPE was the most feasible technique for the extraction of clonazepam with a high recovery from human plasma and urine samples.     

Excluded volume effects and fractional viscoelasticity in polymers

Meccanica - The excluded volume effect is added to a fractional viscoelastic model for modeling fractal polymers. This reveals a physical connection between the fractional time derivative, fractal...     

Voltammetric paracetamol sensor using a gold electrode made from a digital versatile disc chip and modified with a hybrid material consisting of carbon nanotubes and copper nanoparticles

A composite consisting of carbon nanotubes (CNT) and copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) was prepared by a chemical reduction method, and its structure characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy energy dispersive spectroscopy and FT-IR spectrometry. The hybrid composite was deposited on the surface of a disposable gold electrode that was manufactured from a commercial digital versatile gold disc by a drop casting method. The electrochemical properties of the modified electrode were investigated by cyclic voltammetry and differential pulse voltammetry. The sensor showed an excellent electrocatalytic activity towards oxidation of paracetamol (PA). The calibration plot (with current typically measured at 0.41 V vs. Ag/AgCl) is linear in the 0.5 to 80 μM concentration range, and the detection limit is as low as 10 nM. The sensor was successfully applied to the determination of PA in spiked water and tablet samples where it gave recoveries ranging between 95.25 and 100.5 %.

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Graphical abstract Carbon nanotubes (CNT) -copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) hybrid composite was synthesized by a facile method then the nanohybrid was used as a modifier for the DVD gold electrode for improving its performance toward paracetamol electrooxidation. Cyclic voltammetry and differential pulse voltammetry were used for characterization and determination of paracetamol, respectively.

     

Parametric study of plasma active medium and gain saturation region in a Ne-like soft X-ray laser

Plasmas created by the interaction of high power optical laser with a target surface can be used as a source of soft X-ray lasers. Plasma and pump laser characteristics play significant role in achieving high gain coefficient for such plasma based on soft X-ray lasers. In the present work, the plasma active medium parameters for germanium element at a wavelength of 19.6 nm irradiated by a double-pulse pump laser have been studied using MED103 hydrodynamic code. For this purpose, first, the effects of laser intensity, pulse width and delay time of two pulses on the gain coefficient have been investigated and the optimum conditions for the maximum gain extent of Ne-like germanium soft X-ray laser are obtained. Then, in order to calculate the intensity of such high gain lasers in which Linford equation is invalid, we have adopted the general formula of amplified spontaneous emission intensity, which is valid in all range of intensities even at much higher intensities than saturation intensity. Finally, the soft X-ray laser intensities in the saturated areas for different plasma lengths have been calculated. The results show that the output of soft X-ray laser intensity with 294 cm⁻¹ gain coefficient can reach to about several times saturated intensity by applying a 1–2 mm plasma length as the active medium.