On a construction of Thomassen

Using a construction of Thomassen [Discrete Math. 9, 91–96 (1974)] we prove that for infinitely manyn there is a family _n of triangle-free maximally non-hamiltonian graphs of ordern with | _n | exponentially inn. In particular, for everym 48 we construct such a graph; an infinite number of these provide new almost extremal examples in the sense of minimal size.     

Effect of solidified salts on1 3 7Cs leaching from bituminized products

The leaching rate of^{1 3 7}Cs from bituminized products was studied by leach tests conducted for two years.     

Fluorescence lifetime of Nile Red as a probe for the hydrogen bonding strength with its microenvironment

The fluorescence lifetime of Nile Red (NR) is not sensitive to dielectric solvent–solute interactions but markedly decreases with the increase of the hydrogen bond donating ability in alcohols because vibrations associated with hydrogen bonding are involved in the deactivation process. The negligible viscosity effect indicates that twisting of the diethylamino moiety of NR does not play significant role in the dissipation of the excitation energy.     

A vanadium-51 NMR study of the binding of vanadate and peroxovanadate to proteins

51V quadrupolar central transition NMR spectra of buffered (pH 7.6-8.0) solutions of bovine apo-transferrin (Tf) and bovine prostatic acid phosphatase (Pp) treated with vanadate show normal features (chemical shifts between -515 and -542 ppm) corresponding to the complexation of VO2+ to the Tf binding site and the Pp active centre, respectively. Addition of H2O2 leads to the temporary formation of complexed VO(O2)+ (delta approximately -595). Vanadate-dependent bromoperoxidase from the alga Ascophyllum nodosum exhibits an unusually high shielding both for the native (delta = -931) and the peroxo form (delta = -1135) of the enzyme. A resonance at -471 ppm is traced back to an inactive form with oxovanadium(V) in a trigonal-bipyramidal array.     

Heating rate effect on the DSC kinetics of oil shales

This research was aimed to investigate the combustion and kinetics of oil shale samples (Mengen and Himmetoğlu) by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Experiments were performed in air atmosphere up to 600°C at five different heating rates. The DSC curves clearly demonstrate distinct reaction regions in the oil shale samples studied. Reaction intervals, peak and burn-out temperatures of the oil shale samples are also determined. Arrhenius kinetic method was used to analyze the DSC data and it was observed that the activation energies of the samples are varied in the range of 22.4–127.3 kJ mol⁻¹ depending on the oil shale type and heating rate.     

Cinnamaldehyde hydrogenation using ruthenium-tin catalyst type

Bimetallic ruthenium-tin catalysts were prepared using the sol-gel method and the method of carrier impregnation. Two different procedures were used for their reduction — reduction in hydrogen atmosphere under an increased temperature, and reduction using an aqueous solution of sodium borohydride. Hydrogenation of 3-phenylpropenal (cinnamaldehyde) in tetrahydrofuran at 433 K and the total pressure 7 MPa was used as the model reaction for comparing the catalytic properties of the prepared catalysts. It was demonstrated that a tin addition notably affected catalytic properties of ruthenium in the sense of a selectivity increment related to the production of an unsaturated alcohol.     

Interaction of 2-hydroxy-substituted Nile red fluorescent probe with organic nitrogen compounds

The fluorescent properties of 2-hydroxy Nile red dye (HONR) proved to be highly sensitive to the basicity of hydrogen bond acceptors. Fluorescence quantum yields and fluorescence decay profiles were measured as the function of the concentration of organic nitrogen compounds in solvents of various polarities. The detailed mechanism and the kinetics of the fluorescence quenching were revealed with the combined analysis of the steady-state and time-resolved spectroscopic data. The relative contribution of the competing reaction steps was found to be very sensitive to the basicity of the additive and to solvent polarity. The most profound change appeared in the unimolecular deactivation pathways of the excited hydrogen-bonded HONR, whereas the formation rate of this species varied to a lesser extent. The dissociation into excited HONR and ground-state base was able to compete with the energy dissipation only when 2,4,6-trimethylpyridine was used as hydrogen bond acceptor in toluene. The bimolecular quenching of the excited hydrogen-bonded complex played significant role in apolar solvents. Proton displacement along the hydrogen bond in the excited complex led to excited ion pairs in polar media.     

Surface Characterization of Sepiolite by Inverse Gas Chromatography

Inverse gas chromatography (IGC) was applied to characterize the surface of sepiolite. The adsorption thermodynamic parameters (the standard enthalpy (ΔH ⁰), entropy (ΔS ⁰) and free energy of adsorption (ΔG ⁰)), the dispersive component of the surface energy (γ _S ^d ), and the acid/base character of sepiolite surface were estimated by using the retention time of different non-polar and polar probes at infinite dilution region. The specific free energy of adsorption (ΔG ^sp ), the specific enthalpy of adsorption (ΔH ^sp ), and the specific entropy of adsorption (ΔS ^sp ) of polar probes on sepiolite were determined. ΔH ^sp were correlated with the donor and modified acceptor numbers of the probes to quantify the acidic K _A and the basic K _D parameters of the sepiolite surface. The values obtained for the parameters K _A and K _D indicated an acidic character for sepiolite surface.