A programmable molecular diode driven by charge-induced conformational changes

The 3-nitro-2-(3'-nitro-2'-ethynylpyridine)-5-thiopyridine molecule shows charge-induced conformational switching and a rectifying behavior with a charge-induced controllable switching. This device can be used as a memory operated with an external field interacting with one of the rings local dipole. Alternatively, the molecule can be used as a nano-actuator controlling the rotation of the ring by charging the molecule with a bias voltage.     

Synthesis and antimicrobial studies of pyrazolyl oxadiazoles and thiadiazoles

A new class of bis heterocycles—sulfone linked pyrazolyl oxadiazoles thiadiazoles were prepared from E‐phenylsulfonylethenesulfonylacetic acid and studied their antimicrobial activities. J. Heterocyclic Chem., (2011).     

Aspect-ratio dependent oscillatory thermocapillary convection in the floating half zone

The dependency of the critical Marangoni number on the geometrical aspect ratio of the floating half zone is essential to predict the onset of oscillatory thermocapillary convection.The experimental studies in the microgravity conditions on floating half zones of several centimeters in diameter have predicted that the critical Marangoni number increases with the increasing aspect ratio,and the terrestrial experimental studies have predicted the contradictory conclusion for floating half zones of several mil...     

Non-Gravitational Effects with Density-Matching in Evaluating the Influence of Sedimentation on Colloidal Coagulation

The method of density matching between the solid and liquid phases is often adopted to effectively eliminate the effect of sedimentation of suspensions in studies on dynamic behaviour of a colloidal system. However, the associated changes in the solvent composition may bring side effects to the properties investigated and therefore might lead to a faulty conclusion if the relevant correction is not made. To illustrate the importance of this side effect, we present an example of the sedimentation influence on the coagulation rate of suspensions of 2μm （diameter） polystyrene. The liquid mixtures, in the proper proportions of water （H2O）, deuterium oxide （D2O） and methanol （MeOH） as the liquid phase, density-matched and unmatched experiments are performed. Besides the influence of viscosity, the presence of methanol in solvent media, used to enhance the sedimentation effect, causes significant changes （reduction） in rapid coagulation rates compared to that in pure water. Without the relevant corrections for those non-gravitational factors it seems that gravitational sedimentation would retard the coagulation. The magnitude of the contribution from the non-gravitational factor is quantitatively determined, making the relevant correction possible. After necessary the influence of the sedimentation on coagulation rates at corrections for all factors, our experiments show that the initial stage of the coagulation is not observable.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">In situ</Emphasis> analysis of the formation steps of gold nanoparticles by oleylamine reduction

A colloidal solution of gold nanoparticles is synthesized with the use of sodium tetrachloroaurate(III) as a precursor, oleylamine as a reducer and surfactant, and 1-octadecene as a solvent. Reaction stages are analyzed in situ by optical (UV-vis) absorption spectroscopy with a simultaneous analysis of particle sizes by dynamic light scattering and X-ray absorption near edge spectroscopy for the analysis of the gold oxidation state. After the synthesis the size of obtained nanoparticles is determined by transmission electron microscopy. The analysis of the obtained experimental data reveals the presence of three main steps in the reduction reaction mechanism, corresponding to Au³⁺, Au⁺, Au⁰, which enables the construction of the reaction model. The reaction mechanism involves the formation of gold(I) complexes with oleylamine, followed by polymerization and the formation of gold nanoclusters coated with oleylamine.     

The coupled problem of a solid oscillating in a viscous fluid under the action of an elastic force

The torsional oscillations are studied of a solid of revolution under the action of elastic torque inside a container with a viscous incompressible fluid. We prove the asymptotic stability of the static equilibrium. We use the two approaches: the direct Lyapunov and linearization methods. The global asymptotic stability is established using a one-parameter family of Lyapunov functionals. Then small oscillations are studied of the fluid-solid system. The linearized operator of the problem of a solid oscillating in a fluid can be realized as an operator matrix obtained by appending two scalar rows and two columns to the Stokes operator. This operator is therefore a two-dimensional bordering of the Stokes operator and inherits many properties of the latter; in particular, the spectrum is discrete. The eigenvalue problem for the linearized operator is reduced to solving a dispersion equation. Inspection of the equation shows that all eigenvalues lie inside the right (stable) half-plane. Basing on this, we justify the linearization. Using an abstract theorem of Yudovich, we prove the asymptotic stability in a scale of function spaces, the infinite differentiability of solutions, and the decay of all their derivatives in time.