Modification of Polylactide Nonwovens with Carbon Nanotubes and Ladder Poly(silsesquioxane)

Electrospun nonwovens of poly(L-lactide) (PLLA) modified with multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) and linear ladder-like poly(silsesquioxane) with methoxycarbonyl side groups (LPSQ-COOMe) were obtained. MWCNT and LPSQ-COOMe were added to the polymer solution before the electrospinning. In addition, nonwovens of PLLA grafted to modified MWCNT were electrospun. All modified nonwovens exhibited higher tensile strength than the neat PLA nonwoven. The addition of 10 wt.% of LPSQ-COOMe and 0.1 wt.% of MWCNT to PLLA increased the tensile strength of the nonwovens 2.4 times, improving also the elongation at the maximum stress.     

Mono-Aryl/Alkylthio-Substituted (Hetero)acenes of Exceptional Thermal and Photochemical Stability by the Thio-Friedel–Crafts/Bradsher Cyclization Reaction

The highly substituted mono-aryl/alkylthio-(hetero)acenes prepared in this study have been found to be thermally more stable (T_decomp.=331–354 °C) than the known di-aryl/alkylthio-substituted acenes by an average of 25 °C. They are also much more photostable at 254 and 365 nm (in both argon and air) than the parent anthracene and other reported anthracenes. The most photostable aryl/alkylthio-anthracenes at 254 nm were found to be 60–70 (in air) and 130 (in argon) times more stable in solution than the unsubstituted anthracene, and much more stable than known EDG/EWG-substituted anthracenes (EDG=electron-donating group, EWG=electron-withdrawing group) with an extended aromatic core. Furthermore, the acenes showed significantly higher photostability at 365 nm in both air and argon. The anthracenes were obtained by the novel thio-Friedel–Crafts/Bradsher cyclization reaction of hitherto unknown [o-(1,3-dithian-2-yl)aryl](aryl)methyl thioethers. The developed approach provides a general access to mono-aryl/alkylthio-substituted (hetero)acene frameworks containing at least three fused (hetero)aromatic rings. The characteristic feature of this approach, which leads to highly substituted acenes, is that the substituents, unlike in other methods, may be introduced at an early stage of the synthesis. DFT and TD-DFT calculations confirmed the stabilizing role of the aryl/alkylthio substituent in the mono-aryl/alkylthio-substituted anthracenes, which are the most stable anthracenes prepared to date. Their high photostability is mainly due to the quenching of singlet oxygen by the acene and the quenching of the acene S₁ state by molecular oxygen.     

Efficient Collocation Schemes for Singular Boundary Value Problems

We discuss an error estimation procedure for the global error of collocation schemes applied to solve singular boundary value problems with a singularity of the first kind. This a posteriori estimate of the global error was proposed by Stetter in 1978 and is based on the idea of Defect Correction, originally due to Zadunaisky. Here, we present a new, carefully designed modification of this error estimate which not only results in less computational work but also appears to perform satisfactorily for singular problems. We give a full analytical justification for the asymptotical correctness of the error estimate when it is applied to a general nonlinear regular problem. For the singular case, we are presently only able to provide computational evidence for the full convergence order, the related analysis is still work in progress. This global estimate is the basis for a grid selection routine in which the grid is modified with the aim to equidistribute the global error. This procedure yields meshes suitable for an efficient numerical solution. Most importantly, we observe that the grid is refined in a way reflecting only the behavior of the solution and remains unaffected by the unsmooth direction field close to the singular point.     

Angle theorems for the Lagrangian mean curvature flow

We prove that symplectic maps between Riemann surfaces L, M of constant, nonpositive and equal curvature converge to minimal symplectic maps, if the Lagrangian angle for the corresponding Lagrangian submanifold in the cross product space satisfies . If one considers a 4-dimensional K?hler-Einstein manifold of nonpositive scalar curvature that admits two complex structures J, K which commute and assumes that is a compact oriented Lagrangian submanifold w.r.t. J such that the K?hler form w.r.t.K restricted to L is positive and , then L converges under the mean curvature flow to a minimal Lagrangian submanifold which is calibrated w.r.t. . Received: 11 April 2001 / Published online: 29 April 2002     

Tracing Possible Structural Asymmetry of Silica Gel Used for Precoating Thin-Layer Chromatography Plates

JPC – Journal of Planar Chromatography – Modern TLC - We have previously described unexpected two-dimensionality in the thin-layer chromatographic separation of pairs of enantiomers of...     

Orbital formal normal forms for general Bogdanov-Takens singularity

We solve completely the problem of classification of germs of complex planar vector fields with nilpotent singularity with respect to formal orbital equivalence.     

Synthesis and antibody conjugation of magnetic nanoparticles with improved specific power absorption rates for alternating magnetic field cancer therapy

Bionized nanoferrite (BNF) particles with high specific power absorption rates were synthesized in the size range of 20–100 nm by high-pressure homogenization for targeted cancer therapy with alternating magnetic fields. Several strategies were used to conjugate antibodies to the BNF particles. These strategies were compared using an immunoassay to find optimal conditions to reach a high immunoreactivity of the final antibody–particle conjugate.     

Deposition of boron nitride on graphite at 1300 K

A method for the deposition of BN onto graphite and other substrates is described. Boron trichloride (BCl₃) and ammonia (NH₃) diluted with Ar were used as reacting gases. The deposition process was carried out at 1300 K as well as lower temperatures in an open system at pressures of 1 atm. The consequences of the introduction of hydrogen to the system were considered. It was demonstrated that the replacement of argon with hydrogen increases the efficiency of the process as well as the theoretical rate of BN deposition. However, the acceleration of the deposition seems to be unprofitable, because the resulting supersaturation leads to the formation of an amorphous phase. The modification of the experimental conditions were proposed.Dedicated to Professor Dr. rer. nat. Dr. h.c. Hubertus Nickel on the occasion of his 65th birthday     

Determination of Emodin and Phenolic Acids in the Petioles of Rheum undulatum and Rheum rhaponticum

JPC – Journal of Planar Chromatography – Modern TLC - Emodin and twelve phenolic acids (ellagic, gallic, protocatechuic, homoprotocatechuic, caffeic, p-hydroxybenzoic, p-coumaric,...     

The course scheduling problem at Lufthansa Technical Training

Lufthansa Technical Training GmbH (LTT) performs training courses for Lufthansa Technik AG as well as for several other international airlines. Courses of about 670 different types are offered of which several hundred take place each year. The course scheduling problem faced by LTT is to construct a yearly schedule which maximizes the profit margin incurred while meeting a variety of complex precedence, temporal, and resource-related constraints. A “good” operational schedule should also meet a number of additional subordinate objectives. We formalize the problem and develop a heuristic scheme along with several priority rules, as well as a local search algorithm to determine well-suited weights for weighted composite rules. The operational planning situation of 1996 served as our major test instance; additional test instances were constructed by modifying this data. Several computational experiments were carried out to evaluate the performance of the algorithms. It turned out that the best so-found schedule is substantially better in terms of the profit margin incurred than the solution manually constructed by LTT.