Why hybrid porous solids capture greenhouse gases?

Hybrid porous solids, with their tunable structures, their multifunctional properties and their numerous applications, are currently topical, particularly in the domain of adsorption and storage of greenhouse gases. Most of the data reported so far concern the performances of these solids in this domain, particularly in terms of adsorbed amounts of gas but do not explain at the atomic level why and how adsorption and storage occur. From a combination of structural, spectroscopic, thermodynamic experiments and of molecular simulations, this tutorial review proposes answers to these open questions with a special emphasis on CO(2) and CH(4) storage by some rigid and flexible hybrid porous materials.     

SASKTRAN: A spherical geometry radiative transfer code for efficient estimation of limb scattered sunlight

The inversion of satellite-based observations of limb scattered sunlight for the retrieval of constituent species requires an efficient and accurate modelling of the measurement. We present the development of the SASKTRAN radiative transfer model for the prediction of limb scatter measurements at optical wavelengths by method of successive orders along rays traced in a spherical atmosphere. The component of the signal due to the first two scattering events of the solar beam is accounted for directly along rays traced in the three-dimensional geometry. Simplifying assumptions in successive scattering orders provide computational optimizations without severely compromising the accuracy of the solution. SASKTRAN is designed for the analysis of measurements from the OSIRIS instrument and the implementation of the algorithm is efficient such that the code is suitable for the inversion of OSIRIS profiles on desktop computers. SASKTRAN total limb radiance profiles generally compare better with Monte-Carlo reference models over a large range of solar conditions than the approximate spherical and plane-parallel models typically used for inversions.     

Raman microspectroscopic mapping: a tool for the characterisation of polymer surfaces

Raman mapping by point illumination of polymer surfaces is discussed with examples taken from the plasma treatment of polypropylene (PP) and subsequent grafting of polystyrene (PS). Maps can be constructed for surface properties such as crystallinity, blend components and distribution of grafted PS. The Raman sampling volume was estimated for confocal operation using a 50x objective lens.