Determination of Phenolic Compounds Based on Co‐Immobilization of Methylene Blue and HRP on Multi‐Wall Carbon Nanotubes

This work evaluated an amperometric biosensor based on multi‐wall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT), chemically modified with methylene blue (Met) and horseradish peroxidase (HRP), for detection of phenolic compounds. The dependences of the biosensor response due to the enzyme immobilization procedure, HRP amounts, pH and working potential were investigated. The amperometric response for catechol using the proposed biosensor showed a very wide linear response range (1 to 150 μmol L^?1), good sensitivity (50 nA cm^?2 μmol^?1 L), excellent operational stability (after 300 determinations the response remained at 97%) and very good storage stability (lifetime>3 months). Based on all these characteristics, it is possible to affirm that the material is promising for phenol detection due to its good electrochemical response and enzyme stabilization. The biosensor response for various phenolic compounds was investigated.     

Reaching the core of the marriage market through a non-revelation matching mechanism

Each woman indicates a set of acceptable men. Following a line, each man selects his favorite woman among those available to him and to whom he is acceptable. Roth (1982) imposes that women select the whole set of men and Alcalde et al (2000) restrict the choices of women to singleton. We relax these restrictions by allowing women to select any set of men and investigate how this change affects the strategic structure of the games induced by the old procedures.     

A new oxovanadium(IV)–cucurbit[6]uril complex: Properties and potential for confined heterogeneous catalytic oxidation reactions

This work presents a new oxovanadium(IV)–cucurbit[6]uril complex, which combines the catalytic properties of the metal ion with the size-excluding properties of the macrocycle cavity. In this coordination compound, the VO²⁺${\text{VO}}^{2+}$ ions are coordinated to the oxygen atoms located at the rim of the macrocycle in slightly distorted square-pyramidal configurations, which are in fact _C2v$C_{2v}$ symmetries. This combination results in a size-selective heterogeneous catalyst, which is able to oxidize linear alkanes like n-pentane at room temperature, but not styrene, cyclohexane or z-cyclooctene, which are too big to enter the cucurbit[6]uril cavity. The results presented here contribute to understanding the mechanism of alkane catalytic oxidation by oxovanadium(IV) complexes.     

Inversion of smooth mappings

Summary A method based on differential equations to evaluate the inverse mapping as well as to estimate the extension of its maximal star shaped domain is proposed here. The size of the domain of univalence, restricted to which the mapping is a diffeomorphism, is also estimated.     

Resonant photoluminescence from modulation-doped InAs –GaAs quantum dots

Resonant luminescence studies of InAs quantum dots (QDs) embedded in a GaAs matrix grown by molecular beam epitaxy are presented, showing marked differences for modulation-doped and undoped QDs and indicating that the doping leads to different exciton formation and carrier relaxation mechanisms. The LO-phonon assisted relaxatioin of excitons between sub-levels is identified for the modulation-doped QDs.     

On the manipulability of competitive equilibrium rules in many-to-many buyer–seller markets

We analyze the manipulability of competitive equilibrium allocation rules for the simplest many-to-many extension of Shapley and Shubik’s (Int J Game Theory 1:111–130, 1972) assignment game. First, we show that if an agent has a quota of one, then she does not have an incentive to manipulate any competitive equilibrium rule that gives her her most preferred competitive equilibrium payoff when she reports truthfully. In particular, this result extends to the one-to-many (respectively, many-to-one) models the Non-Manipulability Theorem of the buyers (respectively, sellers), proven by Demange (Strategyproofness in the assignment market game. École Polytechnique, Laboratoire d’Économetrie, Paris, 1982), Leonard (J Polit Econ 91:461–479, 1983), and Demange and Gale (Econometrica 55:873–888, 1985) for the assignment game. Second, we prove a “General Manipulability Theorem” that implies and generalizes two “folk theorems” for the assignment game, the Manipulability Theorem and the General Impossibility Theorem, never proven before. For the one-to-one case, this result provides a sort of converse of the Non-Manipulability Theorem.     

Fast synthesis employing a microwave assisted neat protocol of new monomers potentially useful for the preparation of PDLC films

It has been reported that the length of the molecular chain and the rigidity of molecules influence the structure of the polymer network in PDLC films and hence the electro-optical properties of the composites. Herein, a series of new aromatic monomeric monomethacrylates, bismethacrylates and monovinylbenzene derivatives with a mesogenic core were successfully synthesized under microwave irradiation. The microwave assisted synthesis resulted in decreased reaction times, reduced solvent requirement, increased operational simplicity, and in most cases, improved yields and selectivity.      

The pareto-stability concept is a natural solution concept for discrete matching markets with indifferences

In a decentralized setting the game-theoretical predictions are that only strong blockings are allowed to rupture the structure of a matching. This paper argues that, under indifferences, also weak blockings should be considered when these blockings come from the grand coalition. This solution concept requires stability plus Pareto optimality. A characterization of the set of Pareto-stable matchings for the roommate and the marriage models is provided in terms of individually rational matchings whose blocking pairs, if any, are formed with unmatched agents. These matchings always exist and give an economic intuition on how blocking can be done by non-trading agents, so that the transactions need not be undone as agents reach the set of stable matchings. Some properties of the Pareto-stable matchings shared by the Marriage and Roommate models are obtained.