The dehydration of copper(II) acetate monohydrate

The thermal dehydration of copper(II) acetate hydrate has been studied between 353 and 406 K, over a range of humidities. The dehydration is controlled by nucleation-and-growth kinetics at low temperatures, with an activation energy of 154 kJ·mol⁻¹, which changes to contracting-disc kinetics at higher temperatures with a lower activation energy of 76 kJ·mol⁻¹. Frequency factors have also been derived; the value for the high temperature process is low (10⁷s⁻¹) and that for the low temperature step is high (10¹⁷s⁻¹). Optical microscopy has been used to clarify the bulk kinetics; there is evidence for a reactive layer at the surface of the decomposing solid. In celebration of the 60^th birthday of Dr Andrew K. Galwey     

Effect of carbon content on the microstructure and the cracking susceptibility of Fe-based laser-clad layer

The laser cladding of Fe-based alloys on a medium carbon steel substrate was performed using a CO₂ laser and Ar shielding gas that was blown into a molten pool. The microstructure and cracking susceptibility of the laser-clad layers were studied in terms of carbon additions. Results show that the small change of the carbon content in the alloy powders can obviously change the microstructure and properties of the layers. When the carbon content is in the range of 0.3–0.4 wt.%, the decrease of the carbon content in alloy powders will increase the hardness and toughness of the layers simultaneously under the same process parameters. As a result, crack-free coatings with high hardness can be obtained. As the carbon content increases from 0.2 wt.% to 0.4 wt.%, the segregation ratio of chromium increases, while the segregation ratios of nickel, manganese, and silicon first decrease and then increase. At the same time, a new designing principle concerning the composition and microstructure has been put forward, and the principal mechanisms of strengthening and toughening of the layers are fine-grain strengthening and low carbon martensitic phase transformation strengthening.     

Crystalline structure of polyamide 12 as revealed by solid‐state 13C NMR and synchrotron WAXS and SAXS

The crystalline structure of polyamide‐12 (PA12) was studied by solid‐state ¹³C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) as well as by synchrotron wide‐ and small‐angle X‐ray scattering (WAXS and SAXS). Isotropic and oriented PA12 showed different NMR spectra ascribed to γ‐ and γ′‐crystalline modifications, respectively. On the basis of the position of the first diffraction peak, the isotropic γ‐form and the oriented γ′‐form were shown to be with hexagonal crystalline lattice at room temperature. When heated, the two PA12 polymorphs demonstrated different behaviors. Above 140 °C, the isotropic γ‐PA12 partially transformed into α‐modification. No such transition was observed with the oriented γ′‐PA12 phase even after annealing at temperatures close to melting. A γ′–γ transition was observed here only after isotropization by melting point. Various structural parameters were extracted from the WAXS and SAXS patterns and analyzed as a function of temperature and orientation: the degree of crystallinity, the d‐spacings, the Bragg's long spacings, the average thicknesses of the crystalline (l_c) and amorphous (l_a) phases, and the linear crystallinity x_cl within the lamellar stacks. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 43: 3720–3733, 2005     

Photonic crystals--a step towards integrated circuits for photonics.

The field of photonic crystals has, over the past few years, received dramatically increased attention. Photonic crystals are artificially engineered structures that exhibit a periodic variation in one, two, or three dimensions of the dielectric constant, with a period of the order of the pertinent light wavelength. Such structures in three dimensions should exhibit properties similar to solid-state electronic crystals, such as bandgaps, in other words wavelength regions where light cannot propagate in any direction. By introducing defects into the periodic arrangement, the photonic crystals exhibit properties analogous to those of solid-state crystals. The basic feature of a photonic bandgap was indeed experimentally demonstrated in the beginning of the 1990s, and sparked a large interest in, and in many ways revitalized, photonics research. There are several reasons for this attention. One is that photonic crystals, in their own right, offer a proliferation of challenging research tasks, involving a multitude of disciplines, such as electromagnetic theory, nanofabrication, semi-conductor technology, materials science, biotechnology, to name a few. Another reason is given by the somewhat more down-to-earth expectations that photonics crystals will create unique opportunities for novel devices and applications, and contribute to solving some of the issues that have plagued photonics such as large physical sizes, comparatively low functionality, and high costs. Herein, we will treat some basics of photonic crystal structures and discuss the state-of-the-art in fabrication as well give some examples of devices with unique properties, due to the use of photonic crystals. We will also point out some of the problems that still remain to be solved, and give a view on where photonic crystals currently stand.     

Solid state NMR characterization of formation of poly(ϵ‐caprolactone)/maghnite nanocomposites by in situ polymerization

Results of multinuclear MAS NMR spectroscopy are reported for poly (ε‐caprolactone)/maghnite nanocomposite formation, with ε‐caprolactone in situ polymerized in the presence of maghnite, a proton exchanged montmorillonite clay. Exfoliated and intercalated materials with different maghnite loading in the range 3–15 wt % were investigated. ¹H NMR evidences Brønsted acid hydroxyl groups in the silicate layers and shows that their broad signal at 7.6 ppm present in the parent clay disappears in the nanocomposite material. ²⁷Al MAS NMR results show that beside the hexacoordinated aluminum signal, two additional peaks corresponding to two different tetrahedral Al sites are present in the clay framework. The NMR signal intensity of only one of them was found to be affected in the nanocomposites compared with the parent maghnite, suggesting that these specific aluminum sites are the reactive ones at the initial stages of the polymerization. However almost no changes occurred in the ²⁹Si NMR spectra, confirming that the polymer grafting, as indicated earlier by atomic force microscopy, took place on the aluminum tetracoordinated sites rather than on the silicon sites. A mechanism of maghnite surface catalyzed polymerization of ε‐caprolactone was proposed, involving Brønsted and Lewis acid sites. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 45: 3060–3068, 2007     

Sn/Ge(1 1 1) α-phase: characterization of image resonances by specular electron reflection and selective electron scattering

Image potential resonances on the Sn/Ge(1 1 1) α-phase are investigated by two closely related methods: specular electron reflection and so-called selective electron scattering. Electrons from image resonances are detected on this surface at 120 and 300 K, i.e. below and above the phase transition at about 200 K. The dispersion of the image resonances reveals at these two temperatures equivalent effective electron masses, which are characteristic for this type of electronic surface states. The results of the two methods are consistent according to the similarity of the scattering processes. Changes in the loss peak intensity with the annealing temperature are assigned to the surface quality and are reflected by characteristic photoemission intensities.     

Effect of External Acidity of Mordenite-Supported Catalysts on the 2,2-Dimethylbutane Content in Hydroisomerization Products of n-Hexane

We have used potentiometric titration with tetrabutylammonium hydroxide to determine the acid center content on the outer surface of dealuminated natural and synthetic mordenites. We have established a symbatic relationship between the 2,2-dimethylbutane content in the hydroisomerization products of n-hexane on dealuminated palladium-containing mordenites and the number of their external acid centers. We have studied the possibility of partial deactivation of such centers during ion-exchange deposition of palladium on the catalysts, using a tetraammine palladium solution.     

应用无衍射贝塞尔光束的固体线膨胀系数测量系统

测量固体线膨胀系数是工程设计中的一项重要工作。这套非接触固体线膨胀系数测量系统利用激光三角法进行了设计。通过采用线阵CCD作为信号传感器来实现自动化测量。通过采用无衍射贝塞尔光束来提高测量精度和增大测量范围。     

多棒串接固体激光器谐振腔的研究

运用矩阵光学的方法对多棒串接固体激光器的谐振腔参数及其在平平腔时的热稳条件进行了研究，并计算了六棒串接平平腔固体激光器的稳定区.结果证明：多棒串接固体激光器的稳定区和非稳区相互间隔，在平平腔总腔长、激光棒数量n和棒间距L一定的条件下，当采用对称结构时(L₁=L₂)，则谐振腔的每段稳定区均达到最大；且只要 平平腔满足L₁=L₂=L/2以及热焦距f在大于某个下限值f_m时，稳定性条件01< 关键词： 多棒串接固体激光器 稳定区 热稳条件