Effective cut-offs for modes on helical fibres

Every mode of a single-mode or multimode helical fibre is always leaky but, for practical purposes, can be treated as being bound with an effective cut-off wavelength. The leakage loss for each mode is quantified, showing that, for fixed core offset and source wavelength, the cut-off pitch increases with increasing mode order. The value of the cut-off pitch for each mode is in agreement with experimental measurements.     

Fouling behavior of microstructured hollow fiber membranes in dead-end filtrations: critical flux determination and NMR imaging of particle deposition

The fouling behavior of microstructured hollow fibers was investigated in constant flux filtrations of colloidal silica and sodium alginate. It was observed that the fouling resistance increases faster with structured fibers than with round fibers. Reversibility of structured fibers' fouling was similar during silica filtrations and better in sodium alginate filtrations when compared with round fibers. The deposition of two different silica sols on the membranes was observed by NMR imaging. The sols had different particle size and solution ionic strength and showed different deposition behaviors. For the smaller particle-sized sol in deionized solution (Ludox-TMA), there was more deposition within the grooves of the structured fibers and much less on the fins. For the alkali-stabilized sol Bindzil 9950, which had larger particles, the deposition was homogeneous across the surface of the structured fiber, and the thickness of the deposit was similar to that on the round fiber. This difference between the deposition behavior of the two sols is explained by differences in the back diffusion, which creates concentration polarization layers with different resistances. The Ludox sol formed a thick polarization layer with very low resistance. The Bindzil sol formed a slightly thinner polarization layer; however, its resistance was much higher, of similar magnitude as the intrinsic membrane resistance. This high resistance of the polarization layer during the Bindzil sol filtration is considered to lead to quick flow regulation toward equalizing the resistance along the fiber surface. The Ludox particles were trapped at the bottom of the grooves as a result of reduced back diffusion. The fouling behavior in sodium alginate filtrations was explained by considering the size-dependent deposition within the broad alginate size distribution. The better reversibility of fouling in the structured fibers is thought to be the result of a looser deposit within the grooves, which is more easily removed than a compressed deposit on the round fibers.     

EPR and optical studies of vanadium doped potassium dihydrogen citrate (C6H7KO7) single crystal

An EPR and optical studies of VO2+ doped potassium dihydrogen citrate (PDHC) single crystals have been carried out at room temperature. It crystallizes in triclinic symmetry with the unit cell dimensions: a=11.343?, b=13.078?, c=6.272?, α=89.79°, β=94.36°, γ=104.2°. The angular variation of EPR spectra have shown that two different VO2+ complexes are located in different chemical environments and each environment contains one magnetically VO2+ site occupying substitutional position in the lattice and show very high angular dependence.     

Orbits and Test Elements in Free Leibniz Algebras of Rank Two

Let F be the free Leibniz algebra of rank two over a field K of characteristic zero freely generated by x ₁ and x ₂. In this article we show that an endomorphism of F which preserves the orbit of a nontrivial element of F is an automorphism. Using this result, we determine some test elements of F.     

Solvothermal synthesis of WO3/TiO2/carbon fiber composite photocatalysts for enhanced performance under sunlight illumination

Carbon fiber (CF)‐based WO₃/TiO₂ composite catalysts (WO₃/TiO₂/CF) were successfully synthesized by solvothermal method. The catalysts were characterized by XPS, SEM, BET, XRD, FTIR, Raman and UV–Vis. The analyses confirmed the WO₃/TiO₂ nanoparticles with high crystallinity deposited on the carbon structure. The photocatalytic degradation of Orange II azo dye under UV and sunlight illumination with the synthesized catalyst was explored. The composite catalyst displayed high performance (85%) for Orange II degradation while that of for WO₃/TiO₂ was found as 76%. The effects of CF amount, solution pH, initial dye concentration and catalyst dose on photocatalytic performance were studied. It was found that the degradation efficiency increased from 68% to 90% with the increasing CF amount from 3 wt% to 5 wt%, while the further increase in CF amount (7–10 wt%) decreased the photodegradation due to the blocking the active sites of WO₃/TiO₂. The enhanced photocatalytic efficiency was mainly attributed to the electrical properties of the CF and reduced bandgap.     

Biodegradation of Tetracycline Under Various Conditions and Effects on Microbial Community

Five hundred tons of antibiotics are consumed yearly in the world. In this study, the biodegradation characteristics of tetracycline (TET) under nitrate-reducing, sulfate-reducing, and methanogenic conditions were determined by batch tests. Also, effects of TET on mixed microbial cultures were revealed by microbiological analysis. In this scope, gas generation and composition, dissolved organic carbon, and electron acceptor concentrations were monitored during 120 days. Additionally, changes on quantities of specific microbial groups were determined by Q-PCR. TET showed non-biodegradable behavior under nitrate- and sulfate-reducing conditions, whereas slightly biodegradable behavior under methanogenic conditions approximately 46 % degradation. The effects of TET on the abundance of mixed culture varied according to taxonomic units. Sulfate-reducing bacteria were inhibited by TET, while archaeal, bacterial, and methanogenic populations were not affected significantly.     

Synthesis and structure of 2-[(5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-5,5,8,8-tetramethyl-2-naphthalene)]-5-benzimidazole ethylcarboxylate monohydrate

As part of a program investigating the conformations of potential anticarcinogens and antioxidants, the structure of the title compound C₂₄H₂₈N₂O₂·H₂O is reported. The monohydrate crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2/c with unit cell parameters a = 16.184(1),b = 7.937(1), c = 16.968(1), = 92.788(7)°, and Z = 4. The benzimidazole and tetrahydrotetramethylnaphthalene ring systems are inclined to one another by approximately 26°. The water molecule plays an important role in the crystal structure by hydrogen bonding to different functional groups of three organic moieties. Additional crystal stabilization is dueto – stacking of benzimidazole rings.     

The affinity of histamine to serum albumin: Capillary electrophoresis-frontal analysis and in-silico molecular docking approaches

Histamine is a biogenic amine found in various body tissues and responsible for many critical vital activities. It is also responsible for allergic reactions in the body. Ingestion of foods containing high amounts of histamine can cause fatal allergic reactions. Albumin in plasma controls drugs and free concentrations of bioactive constituents taken to the body with food. Hence, this study aimed to characterise the interactions of histamine with bovine serum albumin. Capillary electrophoresis in the frontal analysis mode was employed in this study as a practical approach for assessing histamine-bovine serum albumin affinity. The plateau-shaped free histamine peak was well separated from the bovine serum albumin (BSA)-histamine complex peak. The free histamine concentration was obtained by following the height of the free histamine peak. Whereas the bound histamine concentrations were obtained by calculating the difference between the height of total and free histamine peaks. Histamine bound to BSA at one independent site with a K_b value of 2.50 × 10³ L/mol. Moreover, an in-silico molecular docking method was performed, and it was revealed that the binding site of histamine was located closer to Lysine-131 in subdomain IIA of bovine serum albumin.