Characterization of poly(methyl methacrylate) nanoparticles prepared by nanoprecipitation using analytical ultracentrifugation,dynamic light scattering,and scanning electron microscopy

Nanoprecipitation represents an effective method for the production of polymeric nanoparticles. This technique was used to prepare nanoparticles from solutions of poly(methyl methacrylate) and its copolymers. Since the regulation of main parameters like particle size, particle size distribution, and molar particle mass is very important for future applications, the stable nanoparticle dispersions were examined by scanning electron microscopy, velocity sedimentation, and dynamic light scattering, whereby advantages and disadvantages of each characterization techniques are discussed. Polydispersities of particle size distributions are determined by the ratio of d_w/d_n, where d_w and d_n are weight‐ and number‐average diameters, respectively. The particle characteristics strongly depend on the chemical structure of the polymers and the way of preparation and, therefore, vary in the studied cases in the range of 6 < d_w < 680 nm, whereas the polydispersity index d_w/d_n changes in the range of 1.02 to 1.40. It is shown that nanoparticles in a desirable size range can be prepared by solvent–nonsolvent methods (dialysis technique or dropping technique). © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 48: 3924–3931, 2010     

Electrophoresis and Sedimentation of Charged Fibers

The electrophoretic translational and rotational velocities of a fiber are determined in the limitsL/d≥≥ 1 and λ/d≥≥ 1, where λ is the double layer thickness andLanddare the fiber length and diameter, respectively. The fiber translates due to the imposed electric field at a rate that increases with increasing double layer thickness. A nonuniformly charged fiber with a net charge dipole rotates until it becomes aligned with the electric field. The results for the translational and rotational velocities are obtained in a semianalytic form. The effect of the deformation of the ion cloud surrounding a charged sedimenting fiber on the fiber's translational and rotational velocities is also determined. The ion cloud retards the sedimentation velocity relative to that of an uncharged fiber with the same orientation. If the fiber possesses both a net charge and a charge dipole, it will rotate into a vertical alignment in which the end with the larger absolute charge is on top.     

Formation of regular clusters through self-association of intramolecularly hypercrosslinked polystyrene-type nanosponges

Atactic polystyrene of M = 330,000 Da and M_w/M_n = 1.04 was subjected to chloromethylation. By the heating of chloromethylpolystyrene with SnCl₄ in a very dilute solution in ethylene dichloride, the polymeric coils were converted into intramolecularly hypercrosslinked macromolecules, nanosponges, of molecular weight of about 370,000 Da and a diameter of about 17 nm. When in solution, the nanosponges tend to reversibly self-assemble into regular clusters. Size exclusion chromatography and sedimentation analysis corroborate the suggestion that the clusters consist of 13 spherical subunits and thus acquire a molecular weight of about 5.0 × 10⁶ Da and a diameter of about 45 nm. © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 35: 3847–3852, 1997     

Antibacterial Activity of Clay Soils against Food-Borne Salmonella typhimurium and Staphylococcus aureus

Natural clays have recently been proven to possess antibacterial properties. Effective natural antimicrobial agents are needed to combat bacterial contamination on food contact surfaces, which are increasingly more prevalent in the food chain. This study sought to determine the antibacterial activity of clays against the food-borne pathogens Salmonella typhimurium ATCC 14028 and Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 13565. Soils were processed to yield leachates and suspensions from untreated and treated clays. Soil particle size, pH, cation-exchange capacity, metal composition and mineralogy were characterized. Antibacterial screening was performed on six Malaysian soils via the disc diffusion method. In addition, a time-kill assay was conducted on selected antibacterial clays after 6 h of exposure. The screening revealed that Munchong and Carey clays significantly inhibit Salmonella typhimurium (11.00 ± 0.71 mm) and S. aureus (7.63 ± 0.48 mm), respectively. Treated Carey clay leachate and suspension completely kill Salmonella typhimurium, while S. aureus viability is reduced (2 to 3 log₁₀). The untreated Carey and all Munchong clays proved ineffective as antibacterials. XRD analysis confirmed the presence of pyrite and magnetite. Treated Carey clays had a higher soluble metal content compared to Munchong; namely Al (92.63 ± 2.18 mg/L), Fe (65.69 ± 3.09 mg/L) and Mg (88.48 ± 2.29 mg/L). Our results suggest that metal ion toxicity is responsible for the antibacterial activity of these clays.     

Preservation potential of individual couplet and deposition rates on mudflats in the Changjiang Estuary

Non-barrier mudflats in the Changjiang Estuary is examined to obtain preservation potentials and deposition rates over different time scales. The preservation potential of couplet is ca. 46.6% within daily scale and decreases as the time-interval extending, with 9.2% on a semi-lunar scale and 3.7% on a seasonal scale. In the long term, only 1.6% of daily deposition can potentially be preserved in the tidal flat sequence and other 98.4% have been eroded and leave sedimentary discordances, discernable or un-discernable, in the mudflat deposits. A negative log-linear relationship is examined between sedimentation rates and the time spans. The length of sedimentary hiatuses on the mudflat deposition were estimated with considerable uncertainty, but it can provide from an actualistic base some further insights into the nature and origin of ancient mudflat deposits with emphasis on the sedimentary discordances.     

Variational bound finite element methods for three-dimensional creeping porous media and sedimentation flows

We present an analytico-computational methodology for the prediction of the effective properties of two types of three-dimensional particulate Stokes flows: porous media and sedimentation flows. In particular, we determine the permeability and average settling rate of media that consist of non-colloidal monodisperse solid spherical particles immersed in a highly viscous Newtonian fluid. Our methodology recasts the original problem into three scale-decoupled subproblems: the macro-, meso- and microscale subproblems. In the macroscale analysis the appropriate effective property is used to calculate the bulk quantity of interest. The mesoscale problem provides this effective property through the finite element solution of the transport equations in a periodic cell containing many particles distributed according to a prescribed joint probability density function. Finally, the microscale analysis allows us to accommodate mesoscale realizations in which two or more inclusions are in very close proximity; this geometrical stiffness is alleviated by introducing simple domain modifications that relax the mesh generation requirements while simultaneously yielding rigorous bounds for the effective property. Our methodology can treat random particle distributions as well as regular arrays; in the current paper we analyse only the latter. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

柱状粒子沉降的数值模拟

通过对基于柱状粒子振荡频率ω而建立的粒子受力方程和力矩公式修正,得到粒子在静水中沉降的控制方程。用该方程求解长径比在0.1～10范围内沿轴向和垂直轴向运动的粒子的Stokes沉降速度,以及任意初始倾角高频振荡粒子沉降速度和倾角随时间的变化。所得结果与实验数据吻合较好。     

A physical,mechanistic and fully coupled hillslope hydrology model

We present the mathematical development and numerical solution of a new model of flow processes on an infiltrating hillslope. We also present validation and sample applications. The model is a distributed, mechanistic, physically based hillslope hydrologic model. The model describes the small‐scale processes associated with overland flow, erosion, and sediment transport on an infiltrating surface and is capable of capturing small‐scale variations in flow depth, flow velocities, interactive infiltration, erosion rates, and sediment transport. The model couples the fully two‐dimensional hydrodynamic equations for overland flow, the one‐dimensional Richards equation for infiltration, and a sediment detachment and transport model. Two simulations are presented highlighting the model's ability to capture and describe the interaction between precipitation, overland flow, erosion and infiltration at very small scales. Results of the two‐dimensional simulations indicate the system of equations produces hillslopes possessing characteristics of self‐organization as observed in real world systems. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Notice

This paper is concerned with the transport of solid particles in a turbulent fluid flowing through a tank. The movement of the particles is approximated by one-dimensional random walks in both discrete and continuous time. General formulae are derived for the probabilities of sedimentation and exit of the particles, and detailed results obtained for the case where their movement is strictly non-negative. It is shown how Wald's identity can be used to find approximate expressions for these probabilities. Finally, formulae are found for the distribution of the sediment on the bottom of the tank.     

Integrating thermal-concentration smoothed profile with lattice Boltzmann methods for simulating sedimentation of nonisothermal circular particles

A thermal-concentration smoothed profile-lattice Boltzmann method is proposed to study the effect of the concentration field on the dynamic behavior of nonisothermal cylindrical particles during the sedimentation process. The velocity, temperature, and concentration equations are solved using the lattice Boltzmann method. Moreover, the smoothed profile method is employed to enforce the nonslip boundary condition as well as constant temperature and constant concentration boundary conditions at the particles surfaces. Moreover, the Boussinesq approximation is used to couple the velocities, temperatures, and concentrations fields. The proposed combined method is validated by comparing the present numerical results with those found in the literature, showing good consistency. Then, the effect of the concentration buoyancy on the behavior of nonisothermal particles is discussed. In addition, the effect of Prandtl, Schmidt, and thermal Grashof numbers on the settling process is investigated. The results show that, by adding the effect of concentration, the maximum settling velocity of hot particles is reduced more relative to the cold ones; accordingly, the cold particles are settled faster than the hot ones. Finally, the sedimentation of two particles in a container at high thermal Grashof is investigated. It is shown that, at high thermal Grashof, there is an intense competition between the buoyancy force and gravity for the hot particles. The buoyancy flow generated leads to the reversal of the drafting-kissing-tumbling motion of the hot particles, making the particles move upward.