Influence of cholesterol on the bilayer properties of monounsaturated phosphatidylcholine unilamellar vesicles

The influence of cholesterol on the structure of unilamellar-vesicle (ULV) phospholipid bilayers is studied using small-angle neutron scattering. ULVs made up of short-, mid- and long-chain monounsaturated phospholipids (diCn :1PC, n = 14 , 18, 22, respectively) are examined over a range (0-45mol %) of cholesterol concentrations. Cholesterol's effect on bilayer structure is characterized through changes to the lipid's transmembrane thickness, lateral area and headgroup hydration. For all three lipids, analysis of the experimental data shows that the addition of cholesterol results in a monotonic increase of these parameters. In the case of the short- and mid-chain lipids, this is an expected result, however, such a finding was unexpected for the long-chain lipid. This implies that cholesterol has a pronounced effect on the lipid's hydrocarbon chain organization.     

Role of nickel and manganese in recovery of resistivity in iron-based alloys after low-temperature proton irradiation

This study investigates the recovery of electric resistivity in pure iron, Fe–0.6Ni and Fe–1.5Mn as related to isochronal annealing following 1 MeV proton irradiation at lower temperature than 70 K, focusing on the relationship between solute atoms and irradiation defects. Both nickel and manganese prevent stage I_D recovery, which corresponds to correlated recombination. Stage II recovery is also changed by the addition of a solute, which corresponds to the migration of small interstitial clusters. In both pure iron and Fe–0.6Ni, no evident difference was observed in the stage III region, which corresponds to the migration of vacancies. In contrast, two substages appeared in the Fe–1.5Mn at a higher temperature than stage III_B appeared in pure iron. These substages are considered to represent the release of irradiation-induced defects, which was trapped by manganese.     

Electron irradiation-enhanced core/shell organization of Al(Cr,Fe, Mn)Si dispersoids in Al–Mg–Si alloys

The age hardening 6061-T6 aluminium alloy has been chosen as structural material for the core vessel of the material testing Jules Horowitz nuclear reactor. The alloy contains incoherent Al(Cr, Fe, Mn)Si dispersoids whose characterization by energy-filtered transmission electron microscopy (EFTEM) analysis shows a core/shell organization tendency where the core is (Mn, Fe) rich, and the shell is Cr rich. The present work studies the stability of this organization under irradiation. TEM characterization on the same particles, before and after 1 MeV electron irradiation, reveals that the core/shell organization is enhanced after irradiation. It is proposed that the high level of point defects, created by irradiation, ensures a radiation-enhanced diffusion process favourable to the unmixing forces between (Fe, Mn) and Cr. Shell formation may result in the low-energy interface segregation of Cr atoms within the (Fe, Mn) system combined with the unmixing of Cr, Fe and Mn components.     

One-dimensional migration of interstitial clusters in SUS316L and its model alloys at elevated temperatures

For self-interstitial atom (SIA) clusters in various concentrated alloys, one-dimensional (1D) migration is induced by electron irradiation around 300 K. But at elevated temperatures, the 1D migration frequency decreases to less than one-tenth of that around 300 K in iron-based bcc alloys. In this study, we examined mechanisms of 1D migration at elevated temperatures using in situ observation of SUS316L and its model alloys with high-voltage electron microscopy. First, for elevated temperatures, we examined the effects of annealing and short-term electron irradiation of SIA clusters on their subsequent 1D migration. In annealed SUS316L, 1D migration was suppressed and then recovered by prolonged irradiation at 300 K. In high-purity model alloy Fe-18Cr-13Ni, annealing or irradiation had no effect. Addition of carbon or oxygen to the model alloy suppressed 1D migration after annealing. Manganese and silicon did not suppress 1D migration after annealing but after short-term electron irradiation. The suppression was attributable to the pinning of SIA clusters by segregated solute elements, and the recovery was to the dissolution of the segregation by interatomic mixing under electron irradiation. Next, we examined 1D migration of SIA clusters in SUS316L under continuous electron irradiation at elevated temperatures. The 1D migration frequency at 673 K was proportional to the irradiation intensity. It was as high as half of that at 300 K. We proposed that 1D migration is controlled by the competition of two effects: induction of 1D migration by interatomic mixing and suppression by solute segregation.     

Electron mobility in poly(3-hexylthiophene) enhanced by gamma-ray irradiation

Gamma-ray irradiation effects on the photoresponsive thin-film devices based on the regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) (RR-P3HT) conjugated polymer have been studied by means of atomic force microscopy, UV–vis absorption, photoluminescence (PL), and time-of-flight measurements. As a result, increased light absorption in the red region and PL quenching induced by the irradiation were observed. Besides, enhancement of the electron/hole mobilities, attributable to improved ordering or increased nanodomain size of the P3HT thin films, was revealed.     

Study of the nanostructure of γ‐irradiated high‐density polyethylene/carbon black composite and its durability as geomembrane

The degradation of the nearby generation of high‐density polyethylene (HDPE) loaded with 2.5% of carbon black (CB) content (ie, HDPE/CB composites) is studied experimentally with the end goal of radiation safety applications. The impact of various γ‐irradiation doses in the air on the nanostructure of free volume and durability has been researched. The free volume was evaluated utilizing the positron annihilation lifetime (PAL) technique while the durability was contemplated by measuring the mechanical properties such as strain, elongation at break, and tear resistance. The electrical conductivity was explored to demonstrate the impact of the irradiation dose on the conductivity of the samples. Surface morphology studies using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) showed the surface fracture of HDPE/CB composites for unirradiated and irradiated samples. The surface roughness of the HDPE/CB GMs increases with increasing the irradiation dose. Among various uses of HDPE/CB composites, sheets are liners of dumps used to dispose of interim storage for Low and Medium Level Waste of NORMs and TENORMs. HDPE Geomembrane liners proved its utilization from the results of present research of electrical, mechanical tests, and SEM morphology to have the required resistance to weather conditions.     

An efficient preparation and characterization of 1-(2-ethoxy-2-oxoethyl)imidazolium based ionic liquids derivatives as potential bioactive agents

A set of new 1-(2-ethoxy-2-oxoethyl)imidazolium-based ionic liquids (1–16) have been prepared via the alkylation reaction of ethyl 2-(1H-imidazol-1-yl)acetate with various type of substituted alkyl halides using a microwave irradiation reaction in yields above 90%. The chemical structures of the manufactured ILs (1–16) were analyzed by mass and NMR spectroscopy. The newly prepared ILs were examined for their in vitro anti-microbial activities towards different types of Gram (+) and Gram (−) bacteria, and also for their antifungal activities. The preliminary tests showed that most of the resultant ILs presented modest activities towards S. aureus and B. subtilis with IZ values ranging between 10 and 14 mm, while the E. coli activities was in the range of 16 and 20 mm. However, ILs (1–16) displayed poor activities against the C. albicans.     

辐照电子在光纤芯处能量沉积的计算

为了用尽可能低的辐照电子能量在光纤芯处形成大的性质改变,模拟了0.1～1 MeV能量的电子辐照二氧化硅.发现每一特定能量的电子辐照二氧化硅时,在其中有个能量沉积最快的位置.计算得到0.447 4 MeV能量的电子在单模光纤中心能量沉积最快,分析发现对于这个能量的电子多数可以穿透到光纤芯处,电子能量在光纤芯处的沉积主要是由于电子能量的减小造成的.这些结果可为用电子辐照光纤制作光器件时的初始电子能量选择提供参考.     

NeuDATool：支持GPU硬件加速和计算机集群跨节点并行的开源中子散射数据分析软件

实验势精修是20世纪80年代英国散裂中子源无定型材料组开发的用于分析中子散射实验数据的软件. 实验势精修的目标是根据中子散射数据重建样品的三维原子结构. 在过去的几十年,实验势精修被广泛用于中子散射实验数据分析,为实验用户提供了可靠的分析结果. 但是实验势精修是基于共享内存并行计算(OpenMP)的Fortran程序,不支持计算机服务器集群跨节点并行加速和GPU加速;这限制了它的分析速度. 随着计算机服务器集群的广泛建设和GPU加速技术的普遍使用,有必要重新编写EPSR程序以提高运算速度. 本文使用面向对象的C++语言,开发了一套实现EPSR算法的开源软件包NeuDATool;软件通过MPI和CUDA C实现了计算机集群跨节点并行和GPU加速. 使用液态水和玻璃态二氧化硅的中子散射实验数据对软件进行了测试. 测试显示软件可以正确重建出样品的三维原子结构;并且模拟体系达到10万原子以上时,使用GPU加速可以比串行的CPU算法提高400倍以上的模拟速度. NeuDATool为中子实验用户尤其是对熟悉C++编程并希望定义特殊分析算法的实验科学家提供了一种新的选择.     

Ultrasonic-assisted synthesis of nano-sized metal-organic framework; a simple method to explore selective and fast Congo Red adsorption

A novel mixed linker Metal-organic Framework, [Co(NH₂IsoBDC)(bpfn)].DMF (TMU-69), with amide and amino functionalized spacers (bpfn = N,N'-(naphthalene-1,5-diyl)diisonicotinamide, NH₂IsoBDCH₂ = 5-Aminoisophthalic acid) was synthesized through both solvothermal and ultrasonic approaches. Applying sonochemical irradiation led to ultrafast formation of Flower-shaped nanoplates of TMU-69 within 15 min with high yield while, solvothermal method takes 3 days to form the framework. Control of size and morphology was also enhanced through applying ultrasonic irradiations. The implication of applied time and concentration of reagents on size and morphology of nano-structured TMU-69 have been optimized. Applying higher concentration of initial material with optimized 60-minute irradiation forms uniform smaller sized nanoplates of TMU-69. Also, the efficiency of TMU-69 bulk and nanoplates toward removal of pollutant dyes from water was investigated. The selective adsorption of Congo Red was observed among other dyes. Also, drastic enhancement in removal kinetic of Congo Red through using ultrasonic assisted nanoplates of TMU-69 was obtained.