Interlaboratory comparisons and improvements of methods for acid number determination in used motor oils

The results of two interlaboratory comparisons of acid number determinations in used motor oils are discussed. It is shown that the comparability of the measurement results is not as good as that required by known standards for petroleum products. The problem is motor oil contaminants which accumulated during use, and which are the source of a matrix effect in the acid number determination. The standard methods’ drawbacks are analyzed and some improvements are proposed. Repeatability and accuracy of the improved methods are evaluated. Received: 11 December 2001 Accepted: 15 February 2002     

Mathematical Modeling, Control, Computer Simulation and Laboratory Experiments of a Spatial Servopneumatic Parallel Robot

In this paper, the special construction of a parallel robot, called spatial servopneumatic multi-axis test facility, will be discussed. The investigations include the following aspects: (i) the laboratory set-up of the robot, (ii) various results obtained in laboratory experiments, taking into account quite different control algorithms and command-input signals, (iii) a comparison of the laboratory experiments with the computer simulations of Part I of this paper, and ({vi}) a quality check of the results compared with the cost of the different controller realizations. The results of both the computer simulations and the laboratory experiments show: (i) The dynamic behavior of the parallel structure can be tremendously improved by using sophisticated nonlinear control algorithms. (ii) This improvement has to be paid by a drastically increased amount of work for deriving the model equations and control algorithms, and by augmented hardware cost of the sensing elements and controller electronics. (iii) Carefully developed model equations and identified model parameters provide theoretical models of the complex parallel structure that are very close to reality. This enables the design engineer to systematically investigate constructive alternatives of the design parameters, sensor and actuator concepts, and control strategies of the MAP prior to their hardware realization.This work has been supported by the German Science Foundation (DFG) under Contract No. Ha 1666/6-3.     

Liquid-liquid phase equilibria of aqueous two-phase systems containing salts and polyethylene glycol

Liquid-liquid phase equilibria of the ternary systems: (a) polyethylene glycol - ammonium sulfate- water and (b) polyethylene glycol - sodium carbonate -water have been determined experimentally at 15°, 25°, 35° and 45°C and for two different molecular weights of the polymer (Avg. M.W. 1000 and 2000). Details of the glass cell and of the equilibration and analytical procedures used are described. Equilibrium data along with phase diagrams are presented. Finally the effect of temperature and of the molecular weight of the polymer are also discussed.     

改革物理实验课教学,提高实验课的教学质量

根据多年的物理实验教学经验，阐明了物理实验教学改革应重视的问题，并提出了几点改进措施。     

What is Erased in the Quantum Erasure?

In this paper, we re-examine a series of gedanken welcher Weg (WW) experiments introduced by Scully, Englert and Walther that contain the essential ideas underlying the quantum eraser. For this purpose we use the Bohm model which gives a sharp picture of the behaviour of the atoms involved in these experiments. This model supports the thesis that interference disappears in such WW experiments, even though the centre of mass wave function remains coherent throughout the experiment. It also shows exactly what it means to say ‘that the interference can be restored by manipulating the WW detectors long after the atoms have passed’. It does not support Wheeler’s notion that ‘the past is undefined and undefinable without the observation (in the present)’.     

超细Sr2CeO4 粉体微乳液-高温法制备条件的正交试验及其发光性能研究

本文首先利用正交试验确定了微乳液-高温法合成蓝色发光Sr₂CeO₄超细粉体的最佳制备条件。接着研究了最佳条件下制备的Sr₂CeO₄超细粉体的性能。场发射扫描电镜(FE-SEM)显示，在850 ℃、900 ℃、1 000 ℃或者更高温度下退火4 h制备的粉体的形状分别呈球状、梭状和球状，平均粒径分别在100 nm左右和1 μm以内。X射线粉末衍射数据分析表明，该超细粉体属于正交晶系。室温下的光致发光光谱显示，该粉体的激发光谱有3个激发峰，主峰分别位于262 nm、281 nm和341 nm，而其发射光谱只呈现出1个发射峰，主峰位于约470 nm。与高温固相制备方法相比，微乳液-高温法可以在较低温度下制备出超细的粉体，而且它不但在262 nm处出现了一个新的激发峰，主激发峰和发射峰的位置也分别蓝移了大约30 nm和12 nm。     

Importance of the isopropylidene terminal of geranylgeranyl group for the formation of tetraether lipid in methanogenic archaea

Labeling experiments using several deuterated lipids were pursued to study the biosynthesis of macrocyclic isoprenoidal lipids of thermophilic methanogenic archaea, Methanothermobacter thermautotrophicus. The isopropylidene terminal of geranylgeranyl group of monomeric precursor appeared to be important for the CC bond formation at the hydrophobic end in the macrocyclic lipids. A mechanism involving a radical trigger at the allylic methyl group is proposed for this CC bond formation.     

SYNTHESIS, CHARACTERIZATION, METAL-UPTAKE BEHAVIOR OF BIS（BENZIMIDAZOLE） RESIN SUPPORTED ON EPOXIDE POLYMER

The new chelate resins, abbreviated as PNBMZs and PBBMZs based on epoxide polymer, were synthesized by polycondensation of N,N-diglycidyl-4-glycidyloxyaniline or 1,4-bis（2,3-epoxypropyl）benzene with the primary amine group of 1,3-bis（benzimidazol-2yl）propylamine （BBPAH）. The ion exchangers contain 2.71-3.23 mmol of the ligand contents per gram of the resin. Batch extraction capacities were determined for the metal chloride salts in buffer solutions in the pH range from -1 to 6.0. The chelate resins were very selective for Cu^2＋, Zn^2＋, Cd^2＋ in the presence of other divalent transition metal ions. The maximum uptake capacities of PNBMZ （synthetic molar ratio = 1：1.5） under non-competitive condition were found to be 0.94 mmol/g for Cu^2＋ at pH = 2, 1.3 mmol/g for Cd^2＋ at pH = 1 and 1.75 mmol/g for Zn^2＋ at pH = -1 respectively. While in the case of PBBMZ, it was 1.39 mmol/g for Cd〉 at pH = 1. The metal-uptake behaviors for both of them showed strong pH dependence, and their extraction capacities increase with decreasing pH. The uptake of Cu^2＋ by the resin PNBMZs at pH = 1 was found to be rather fast with t1/2 = 18 min. Metal-uptake experiments under competitive conditions also confirm that the chelate resins have a high selectivity for Cu^2＋, Zn^2＋, Cd^2＋ and the contrary pH dependence.     

A model for the etching of Si in CF4 plasmas: Comparison with experimental measurements

A model has been developed to describe the chemistry which occurs in CF₄ plasmas and the etching of Si both in the plasma and downstream. One very important feature of this model is that for discharge residence times which vary by more than an order of magnitude, the amount of CF₄ consumed is low and relatively constant. This is because the gas-phase combination reactions between F and both CF₃ and CF₂ lead to the rapid reforming of CF₄. The model predicts that CF₂ is a major species in the gas phase and that the [F] detected as a sample point downstream is a very sensitive function of [CF₂]/[F] in the discharge. Even though the calculations show that [F] in the discharge varies only slightly over the wide range of experimental conditions considered, large variations in [F] at the sample point occur because the [CF₂]/[F] ratio in the discharge changes. The concentrations of C₂F₆ and SiF₄ are predicted to within a factor of 2 over a very wide range of experimental conditions. This confirms the importance of gas-phase free radical reactions in the etching of Si.