Rotational analysis ofA 1Π-X 1Σ+ bands of P14N and P15N: Perturbatio studies in theA 1Π state

The ultraviolet band systemsA ¹Π-X ¹Σ⁺ of P¹⁴N and P¹⁵N were excited in an electrodeless tube containing traces of phosphorus specpure nitrogen and neon using a microwave discharge (2450 MHz). Bands of the isotopic species, P¹⁵N, were obtained using¹⁵N₂ enriched to 95.5%. Rotational analyses of eleven bands of P¹⁴N and sixteen bands of P¹⁵N were carried out. Three perturbing statese ³Σ⁻,d ³Δ andb ³Π, arising from the lower valence configurations were identified from the observed perturbations in thev′=0–4 levels of theA ¹Π state. Deperturbation studies led to the determination of molecular constants of the perturbing states. Vibrational assignments of the perturbing states were made from isotope shift studies.     

Detecting instabilities in flows of viscoelastic fluids

There is a growing interest in developing numerical tools to investigate the onset of physical instabilities observed in experiments involving viscoelastic flows, which is a difficult and challenging task as the simulations are very sensitive to numerical instabilities. Following a recent linear stability analysis carried out in order to better understand qualitatively the origin of numerical instabilities occurring in the simulation of flows viscoelastic fluids, the present paper considers a possible extension for more complex flows. This promising method could be applied to track instabilities in complex (i.e. essentially non‐parallel) flows. In addition, results related to transient growth mechanism indicate that it might be responsible for the development of numerical instabilities in the simulation of viscoelastic fluids. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Crystal and Molecular Structure of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bis</Emphasis>(2,3-pentamethylene-3,4-dihydro-4-oxoquinazolinium) Tetrachlorocuprate(II) Sesquihydrate

The structure of bis-(2,3-pentamethylene-3,4-dihydro-4-oxoquinazolinium) tetrachlorocuprate (II) sesquihydrate, (C₁₃H₁₅N₂O)₂[CuCl₄]·1.5H₂O, was determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction. In contrast to the previously studied analogs, the compound contains crystallization water molecules.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2004 by K. K. Turgunov, B. Tashkhodzhaev, L. V. Molchanov, and Kh. M. Shakhidoyatov__________Translated from Zhurnal Strukturnoi Khimii, Vol. 45, No. 5, pp. 955–959, September–October, 2004.     

Synthesis and conformational investigation of tetrapeptide analogues of the fragment B23-B26 of insulin

Tetrapeptides containing one of a set of four different α,α-dialkyl glycines at the C-terminus were synthesized by conventional methods in solution and their conformational behavior investigated by ¹H NMR spectroscopy in connection with molecular mechanics calculations. The results were consistent with conformations stabilized by a γ-turn in the case of compounds with alkyl groups larger than methyl, while the corresponding Aib derivative did not exhibit intramolecular hydrogen bonding.     

Numerical simulations of a filament in a flowing soap film

Experiments concerning the properties of soap films have recently been carried out and these systems have been proposed as experimental versions of theoretical two‐dimensional liquids. A silk filament introduced into a flowing soap film, was seen to demonstrate various stable modes, and these were, namely, a mode in which the filament oscillates and one in which the filament is stationary and aligns with the flow of the liquid. The system could be forced from the oscillatory mode into the non‐ oscillatory mode by varying the length of the filament. In this article we use numerical and computational techniques in order to simulate the strongly coupled behaviour of the filament and the fluid. Preliminary results are presented for the specific case in which the filament is seen to oscillate continuously for the duration of our simulation. We also find that the filament oscillations are strongly suppressed when we reduce the effective length of the filament. We believe that these results are reminiscent of the different oscillatory and non‐oscillatory modes observed in experiment. The numerical solutions show that, in contrast to experiment, vortices are created at the leading edge of the filament and are preferentially grown in the curvature of the filament and are eventually released from the trailing edge of the filament. In a similar manner to oscillating hydrofoils, it seems that the oscillating filaments are in a minimal energy state, extracting sufficient energy from the fluid to oscillate. In comparing numerical and experimental results it is possible that the soap film does have an effect on the fluid flow especially in the boundary layer where surface tension forces are large. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Free boundary viscous flows at micro and mesolevel during liquid composites moulding process

Numerical simulation aspects, related to low Reynolds number free boundary viscous flows at micro and mesolevel during the resin impregnation stage of the liquid composite moulding process (LCM), are presented in this article. A free boundary program (FBP), developed by the authors, is used to track the movement of the resin front accurately by accounting for the surface tension effects at the boundary. Issues related to the global and local mass conservation (GMC and LMC) are identified and discussed. Unsuitable conditions for LMC and consequently GMC are uncovered at low capillary numbers, and hence a strategy for the numerical simulation of such flows is suggested. FBP encompasses a set of subroutines that are linked to modules in ANSYS. FBP can capture the void formation dynamics based on the analysis developed. We present resin impregnation dynamics in two dimensions. Extension to three dimensions is a subject for further research. Several examples are shown and efficiency of different stabilization techniques are compared. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Modeling Media with Oriented Structures

Heterogeneity is typically the result of space variability of soil parameters at different scales. Soil anisotropy may be defined as the spatial persistence in some direction only, across coarse-grid elements, of heterogeneous structures with different characteristic lengths in different directions. One can account for the effect of these structures by upscaling soil properties. Analyzing flow in a strongly anisotropic structured soil at different scales evidences how transverse dispersion reduces to a subscale process, leading to mixing within the conductive structures.     

Nano-tribological study on a super-hydrophobic film formed on rough aluminium substrates

A novel super-hydrophobic stearic acid (STA) film with a water contact angle of 166^o was prepared by chemical adsorption on aluminum wafer coated with polyethyleneimine (PEI) film. The micro-tribological behavior of the super-hydrophobic STA monolayer was compared with that of the polished and PEI-coated Al surfaces. The effect of relative humidity on the adhesion and friction was investigated as well. It was found that the STA monolayer showed decreased friction, while the adhesive force was greatly decreased by increasing the surface roughness of the Al wafer to reduce the contact area between the atomic force microscope (AFM) tip and the sample surface to be tested. Thus the friction and adhesion of the Al wafer was effectively decreased by generating the STA monolayer, which indicated that it could be feasible and rational to prepare a surface with good adhesion resistance and lubricity by properly controlling the surface morphology and the chemical composition. Both the adhesion and friction decreased as the relative humidity was lowered from 65% to 10%, though the decrease extent became insignificant for the STA monolayer. The project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (50375151, 50323007, 10225209) and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (KJCX-SW-L2)     

Classical in-plane negative magnetoresistance and quantum positive magnetoresistance in undoped InSb thin films on GaAs (1 0 0) substrates

Magnetoresistance (MR) effects have been investigated in perpendicular and parallel magnetic fields at 300, 80 K and liquid He temperatures for undoped InSb thin films 0.1–2.3 μm thick grown on GaAs(1 0 0) substrates by MBE. At high temperatures, the intrinsic carriers show the parabolic negative MR observable only in magnetic fields parallel to the film. The skipping-orbit effect due to surface boundary scattering in the classical orbits in the plane vertical to the film has been argued to be responsible for the negative MR. At low temperatures (T=80 K), the transport is dominated by the two-dimensional (2D) electrons in the accumulation layers at the InSb/GaAs(1 0 0) hetero interface; MR is positive and shows a logarithmic increase with anisotropy between parallel and perpendicular field orientation, arising from the 2D weak anti-localization (WAL) that reflects the interplay between the spin-Zeeman effect and strong spin–orbit interaction caused by the asymmetric potential at the interface (Rashba term). The zero-field spin splitting energy of Δ₀13 meV, the electron effective mass of m^*0.10m₀ seven times of the band edge mass in bulk InSb and the effective g-factor of |g^*|15 in the accumulation layer have been inferred from fits of MR for the 0.1 μm thick film to the 2D WL theory.     

Synthesis and characterization of new segmented polyurethanes with side‐chain,liquid‐crystalline chain extenders

Liquid‐crystalline, segmented polyurethanes with methoxy–biphenyl mesogens pendant on the chain extender were synthesized by the conventional prepolymer technique and esterification reaction. Two, side‐chain, liquid‐crystalline (SCLC) polyurethanes with mesogens having spacers of six and eight methylene units were prepared. The structures of the mesogenic units and SCLC polyurethanes were confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and ¹H NMR. Polymer properties were also examined by solubility tests, water uptakes, and inherent viscosity measurements. Differential scanning calorimetry studies indicated that the transition temperature of the isotropic to the liquid‐crystalline phase decreased with increasing spacer length. Wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction (WAXD) studies revealed the existence of liquid‐crystalline phases for both SCLC polyurethanes. Polarized optical microscopic investigations further confirmed the thermotropic liquid‐crystalline behaviors and nematic mesophases of both samples. Thermogravimetric analysis displayed better thermal stabilities for both SCLC polymers and indicated that the presence of mesogenic side chains may increase the thermal stability of segmented polyurethanes. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 290–302, 2004