Sur Les Groupes D’Homotopie Des Espaces Dont La Cohomologie Modulo 2 Est Nilpotente

The main object of this note is to prove the following generalisation of a theorem of Serre. A simply connected space of finite type whose mod. 2 cohomology is nilpotent (and non-trivial) has infinitely many homotopy groups which are not of odd torsion. Incidentally we show that for every fibrationF( _→ ^ί )E ( _→ ^p )B, satisfying certain mild conditions, the following holds. If a classx in the mod. 2 cohomology ofE belongs to the kernel ofi*, then some power ofx belongs to the ideal generated by the image underp* of the mod. 2 reduced cohomology ofB.      

On Non-Continuous Dirichlet Processes

We introduce here some Itô calculus for non-continuous Dirichlet processes. Such calculus extends what was known for continuous Dirichlet processes or for semimartingales. In particular we prove that non-continuous Dirichlet processes are stable under C ¹ transformation.     

An Application of Branch and Cut to Open Pit Mine Scheduling

The economic viability of the modern day mine is highly dependent upon careful planning and management. Declining trends in average ore grades, increasing mining costs and environmental considerations will ensure that this situation will remain in the foreseeable future. The operation and management of a large open pit mine having a life of several years is an enormous and complex task. Though a number of optimization techniques have been successfully applied to resolve some important problems, the problem of determining an optimal production schedule over the life of the deposit is still very much unresolved. In this paper we will critically examine the techniques that are being used in the mining industry for production scheduling indicating their limitations. In addition, we present a mixed integer linear programming model for the scheduling problems along with a Branch and Cut solution strategy. Computational results for practical sized problems are discussed.     

Robust Speed Control of a Low Damped Electromechanical System Based on CRONE Control: Application to a Four Mass Experimental Test Bench

Robust speed control of a low damped electromechanical system with backlash is studied, controlled load angular speed being not measured. The proposed control strategy combines a Luenberger observer (load angular speed and load torque disturbance estimations) and a robust CRONE controller. The observer provides estimation of the load angular speed and of the disturbance torque applied on the load. Through the computation of only three independent parameters (as many as a PID controller), the CRONE controller permits to ensure the robust speed control of the load in spite of plant parametric variations and speed observation errors. The proposed control strategy is applied to a four mass experimental test bench.     

Controlled synthesis of amphiphilic biodegradable polylactide‐grafted dextran copolymers

The whole controlled synthesis of novel amphiphilic polylactide (PLA)‐grafted dextran copolymers was achieved. The control of the architecture of such biodegradable and potentially biocompatible copolymers has required a three‐step synthesis based on the “grafting from” concept. The first step consisted of the partial silylation of the dextran hydroxyl groups. This protection step was followed by the ring‐opening polymerization of D ,L ‐lactide initiated from the remaining OH functions of the partially silylated polysaccharide. The third step involved the silylether group deprotection under very mild conditions. Based on previous studies, in which the control of the first step was achieved, this study is focused on the last two steps. Experimental conditions were investigated to ensure a controlled polymerization of D ,L ‐lactide, in terms of grafting efficiency, graft length, and transesterification limitation. After polymerization, the final step was studied in order to avoid degradation of both polysaccharide backbone and polyester grafts. The chemical stability of dextran backbone was checked throughout each step of the synthesis. PLA‐grafted dextrans and PLA‐grafted (silylated dextrans) were proved to adopt a core‐shell conformation in various solvents. Furthermore, preliminary experiments on the potential use of these amphiphilic grafted copolymers as liquid/liquid interface stabilizers were performed. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 2577–2588, 2004     

Metallo‐supramolecular block copolymer micelles: Improved preparation and characterization

Micelles prepared from amphiphilic block copolymers in which a poly(styrene) segment is connected to a poly(ethylene oxide) block via a bis‐(2,2′:6′,2″‐terpyridine‐ruthenium) complex have been intensely studied. In most cases, the micelle populations were found to be strongly heterogeneous in size because of massive micelle/micelle aggregation. In the study reported in this article we tried to improve the homogeneity of the micelle population. The variant preparation procedure developed, which is described here, was used to prepare two “protomer”‐type micelles: PS₂₀‐[Ru]‐PEO₇₀ and PS₂₀‐[Ru]‐PEO₃₇₅. The dropwise addition of water to a solution of the compounds in dimethylformamide was replaced by the controlled addition of water by a syringe pump. The resulting micelles were characterized by sedimentation velocity and sedimentation equilibrium analyses in an analytical ultracentrifuge and by transmission electron microscopy of negatively stained samples. Sedimentation analysis showed virtually unimodal size distributions, in contrast to the findings on micelles prepared previously. PS₂₀‐[Ru]‐PEO₇₀ micelles were found to have an average molar mass of 318,000 g/mol (corresponding to 53 protomers per micelle, which is distinctly less than after micelle preparation by the standard method) and an average hydrodynamic diameter (d_h) of 18 nm. For PS₂₀‐[Ru]‐PEO₃₇₅ micelles, the corresponding values were M = 603,000 g/mol (31 protomers per micelle) and d_h = 34 nm. The latter particles were found to be identical to the “equilibrium” micelles prepared in pure water. Both micelle types had a very narrow molar mass distribution but a much broader distribution of s values and thus of hydrodynamic diameters. This indicates a conformational heterogeneity that is stable on the time scale of sedimentation velocity analysis. The findings from electron microscopy were in disagreement with those from the sedimentation analysis both in average micelle diameter and in the width of the distributions, apparently because of imperfections in the staining procedure. The preparation procedure described also may be useful in micelle formation from other types of protomers. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 4458–4465, 2004     

Incomplete data problems in X-ray computerized tomography

Summary In the present paper we study truncated projections for the fanbeam geometry in computerized tomography. First we derive consistency conditions for the divergent beam transform. Then we study a singular value decomposition for the case where only the interior rays in the fan are provided, as for example in region-of-interest tomography. We show that the high angular frequency components of the searched-for densities are well determined and we present reconstructions from real data where the missing information is approximated based on the singular value decomposition.The work of the authors was supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft under grant Lo 310/2-4     

Surface and interfacial properties of PVDF/acrylic copolymer blends before and after UV exposure

Morphological and chemical properties of both the surface and interface of poly(vinylidene fluoride)/poly(methyl methacrylate)-co-poly(ethyl acrylate) (PVDF/PMMA-co-PEA) blend films have been investigated before and after the samples were exposed to ultraviolet (UV) irradiation using a xenon arc lamp at 50 °C and 9% relative humidity (RH) for 7 months. Surface and interfacial morphologies were studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM). Chemical composition information was obtained by confocal Raman microscopy, attenuated total reflection-FTIR spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and contact angle measurements. Results show an enrichment of the PVDF material at the air surface, while the acrylic copolymer enriches the interface. Blends having greater than 50% mass fraction of PVDF show little change in the surface morphology after UV exposure for 7 months. However, for a lower PVDF content, blends exhibit significant degradation of PMMA-co-PEA copolymer and a much rougher surface after UV exposure. Microstructural changes in the PVDF spherulites are also observed after UV degradation. It is found that the surface and interfacial morphologies are correlated with the chemical properties.     

Convenient preparation of 5-ethynyl-octaethylporphyrin free base and zinc complex

A method leading to the preparation of the free base or zinc meso-ethynyl functionalized octaethylporphyrin has been developed, which will open the access to various meso-ethynyl metalloporphyrins.