A microspectroscopic study of the electronic homogeneity of ordered and disordered Sr2FeMoO6

Disordered Sr₂FeMoO₆ shows a drastic reduction in saturation magnetization compared to highly ordered samples, moreover magnetization as a function of the temperature for different disordered samples shows qualitatively different behaviours. We investigate the origin of such diversity by performing spatially resolved photoemission spectroscopy on various disordered samples. Our results establish that e_xtensive electronic inhomogeneity, arising most probably from an underlying chemical inhomogeneity in disordered samples, is responsible for the observed magnetic inhomogeneity. It is further pointed out that these inhomogeneities are connected with composition fluctuations of the type Sr₂Fe_1+x Mo_1-x O₆ with Fe-rich (x > 0) and Mo-rich (x < 0) regions. Dedicated to Prof J Gopalakrishnan on his 62nd birthday.     

Transport of surface-modified iron nanoparticle in porous media and application to arsenic(III) remediation

The surface-modified iron nanoparticles (S-INP) were synthesized, characterized and tested for the remediation of arsenite (As(III)), a well known toxic groundwater contaminant of concern. The S-INP material was fully dispersed in the aqueous phase with a particle size distribution of 2–10 nm estimated from high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) revealed that an Fe(III) oxide surface film was present on S-INP in addition to the bulk zero-valent Fe⁰ oxidation state. Transport of S-INP through porous media packed in 10 cm length column showed particle breakthroughs of 22.1, 47.4 and 60 pore volumes in glass beads, unbaked sand, and baked sand, respectively. Un-modified INP was immobile and aggregated on porous media surfaces in the column inlet area. Results using S-INP pretreated 10 cm sand-packed columns containing ∼2 g of S-INP showed that 100 % of As(III) was removed from influent solutions (flow rate 1.8 mL min⁻¹) containing 0.2, 0.5 and 1.0 mg L⁻¹ As(III) for 9, 7 and 4 days providing 23.3, 20.7 and 10.4 L of arsenic free water, respectively. In addition, it was found that 100% of As(III) in 0.5 mg/L solution (flow rate 1.8 mL min⁻¹) was removed by S-INP pretreated 50 cm sand packed column containing 12 g of S-INP for more than 2.5 months providing 194.4 L of arsenic free water. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) showed S-INP had transformed to elongated, rod-like shaped corrosion product particles after reaction with As(III) in the presence of sand. These results suggest that S-INP has great potential to be used as a mobile, injectable reactive material for in-situ sandy groundwater aquifer treatment of As(III).     

Working group report: Neutrino and astroparticle physics

This is the report of neutrino and astroparticle physics working group at WHEPP-7. Discussions and work on CP violation in long baseline neutrino experiments, ultra high energy neutrinos, supernova neutrinos and water Cerenkov detectors are discussed.     

Magnetized cosmological model

The object of this paper is to investigate the behavior of the magnetic field in a cosmological model for perfect fluid distribution. The magnetic field is due to an electric current produced along thex axis. It is assumed that expansion () in the model is proportional to ₁ ¹ , the eigenvalue of the shear tensor _i ^j . The behavior of the model when the magnetic field tends to zero and other physical properties are also discussed.     

Thermal conductivity measurements on ferrofluids

The thermal conductivity of a number of ferrofluids consisting of colloidally dispersed Fe₃O₄ particles in diester, hydrocarbon, water and fluorcarbon carriers have been measured at 38°C. The variation in thermal conductivity with particle concentration is well described by Tareef's equation (1940). This has enabled the ratio of the physical to magnetic size to be determined and compared with estimates of the ratio obtained from electron micrographs and magnetic measurements.The fit between theory and experiment is particularly good for hydrocarbon carrier fluids giving the ratio of solid to magnetic radiusR _i/R _m=1.24±0.03 compared with the value obtained from magnetic data and electron micrographs of 1.19±0.07. The corresponding value from the fluids with a diester carrier ranges between 1.1<R _d/R _m<1.3 which is again consistent with microscopy and magnetic data.The application of a magnetic field of 0.1 T had no noticeable effect on the thermal conductivities of ferrofluids.     

Novel solid-phase extraction and preconcentration technique coupled with ICP-AES for the determination of Cr(III), Ni(II), and Zn(II) in various water samples

Newly synthesized 2-propylpiperidine-1-carbodithioate (2-PPC) was used for the extraction of Cr(III), Ni(II), and Zn(II) from various water samples. In the present investigation, the use of a syringe loaded with sorbent for the separation and enrichment of Cr(III), Ni(II), and Zn(II) prior to their determination by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) was proposed to substitute the batch and column techniques. The described method was compared with the column technique with respect to fastness, simplicity, recovery, and risk of contamination. The syringe was loaded with 1.0 g of sorbent in order to retain the analyte elements. Next, 7.0 mL of sample solution (pH 5.0 ± 0.2) was drawn into the syringe in 15 s and discharged over 15 s. Then, an eluent (3.0 M HCl) was drawn into the syringe and ejected back to desorb the analyte elements. At the optimum conditions, the percentage recoveries of Cr(III), Ni(II), and Zn(II) were in the range of 94.50 to 99.62% with a standard deviation (S.D.) of 0.03%. The elements could be concentrated by drawing and discharging several portions of sample successively and eluting only one time. The detailed study of various interferences proved the method to be highly selective. The risk of contamination is less than that with the column technique. The method was successfully applied to the determination of Cr(III), Ni(II), and Zn(II) in spiked and natural water samples. The results obtained are in good agreement with those obtained by the reported methods at the 95% confidence level. The text was submitted by the authors in English.     

Effect of heavy quark symmetry on the mass difference ofB-system in minimal left right symmetric model

An estimation of the mass difference of system with heavy quark symmetry formalism is presented. The effective Hamiltonian describing the transition (whereh=b forB _d ⁰ -system) is considered in a manifest left right symmetric (MLRS) model along with contribution from neutral Higgs boson. We use the spin and flavor symmetry for heavy quarks to obtain the transition matrix element 〈B _d ⁰ |ℋ_eff(x)| _d ⁰ 〉 in terms of Isgur-Wise function. Assuming thatB _d ⁰ and states are at rest, we find that Isgur-Wise function turns out to be unity. However using the experimental values of ΔM _K and as input, we find thatM _R=835 GeV andM _H⩾2·9 TeV.     

Molecular constants of substituted ethylene-type molecules: IV. Inertia defects and rotational constants of vinyl halides and their deuterated derivatives

The inertia defects of some vinyl halides and their deuterated derivatives have been calculated on the basis of the general formulation developed by Oka and Morino. The initial sets of Urey-Bradley force constants, based on published data, were adjusted by a least squares procedure until they reproduced the fundamental vibrational frequencies satisfactorily. The Coriolis coupling constants which satisfy the sum rules derived were evaluated and used to calculate the inertia defect in the ground vibrational state. The theoretical values of the inertia defect are used to determine the rotational constant A which cannot otherwise be accurately determined from an “a” type transition.