Liquid mixtures involving fluorinated alcohols: The equation of state (p, r, T, x) of (Ethanol + Trifluoroethanol) Experimental and Simulation

Liquid mixtures involving fluorinated alcohols: The equation of state (p, r, T, x) of (Ethanol + Trifluoroethanol) Experimental and Simulation Pedro Duartea, Djêide Rodriguesa, Marcelo Silvaa, Pedro Morgadoa, Luís Martinsa,b and Eduardo J. M. Filipea* aCentro de Química Estrutural, Instituto Superior Técnico, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal bCentro de Química de Évora, Universidade de Évora, 7000-671 Évora, Portugal Fluorinated alcohols are substances with unique properties and high technological value in the pharmaceutical and chemical industries. Trifluoroethanol (TFE), in particular, displays a number of unusual properties as a solvent. For example, it dissolves nylon at room temperature and is effectively used as solvent in bioengineering. The presence of the three fluorines atoms gives the alcohol a high ionization constant, strong hydrogen bonding capability and stability at high temperatures. In the pharmaceutical industry, TFE finds use as the major raw material for the production of inhalation anesthetics. Mixtures of TFE and water (known as Fluorinols®) are used as working fluids for Rankine cycle heat engines for terrestrial and space applications, as a result of a unique combination of physical and thermodynamic properties such as high thermal efficiency and excellent turbine expansion characteristics. Environmentally, TFE is a CFC substitute with an acceptable short lifetime and with small ozone depletion potential. Additionally, TFE is known to induce conformational changes in proteins and it is used as a co-solvent to analyze structural features of partially folded states. The (ethanol + TFE) system displays an interesting and peculiar behaviour, combining a negative azeotrope with high positive excess volumes. In this work, liquid mixtures of (ethanol + TFE) were investigated. The densities of the mixtures were measured as a function of composition between 278K and 338K and at pressures up to 700 bar. The corresponding excess volumes as a function of temperature and pressure, the isothermal compressibilities and thermal expansivities were calculated from the experimental results. The mixtures are highly non-ideal with excess volumes ranging from 0.8 - 1.0 cm3mol-1. Finally, molecular dynamic simulations were performed to model and interpret the experimental results. The Trappe force field was used to simulate the (TFE + ethanol) mixtures and calculate the corresponding excess volumes. The simulation results are able to reproduce the correct sign and order of magnitude of the experimental VE without fitting to the experimental data. Furthermore, the simulations suggest the presence of a particular type of hydrogen bridge between ethanol and TFE, that can help to rationalize the experimental results

Method of producing a storage bulb for an atomic hydrogen maser

A storage bulb for an atomic hydrogen maser is produced by coating its internal surface with an emulsion containing both TFE and FEP particles. The emulsion is produced by mixing a first quantity of TFE in an aqueous dispersion with a second quantity of FEP in an aqueous dispersion, with a third quantity of distilled water. The emulsion is poured into the bulb to coat it uniformly so as to form a thin film of emulsion on the bulb's internal surface. After excess emulsion is drained out of the bulb the emulsion in the bulb is dried to remove the water and most of the aqueous matter therefrom. The remaining emulsion is then cured by heating the bulb to a temperature of at least 380 C

Improved correction for the tissue fraction effect in lung PET/CT imaging

Recently, there has been an increased interest in imaging different pulmonary disorders using PET techniques. Previous work has shown, for static PET/CT, that air content in the lung influences reconstructed image values and that it is vital to correct for this 'tissue fraction effect' (TFE). In this paper, we extend this work to include the blood component and also investigate the TFE in dynamic imaging. CT imaging and PET kinetic modelling are used to determine fractional air and blood voxel volumes in six patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. These values are used to illustrate best and worst case scenarios when interpreting images without correcting for the TFE. In addition, the fractional volumes were used to determine correction factors for the SUV and the kinetic parameters. These were then applied to the patient images. The kinetic parameters K1 and Ki along with the static parameter SUV were all found to be affected by the TFE with both air and blood providing a significant contribution to the errors. Without corrections, errors range from 34-80% in the best case and 29-96% in the worst case. In the patient data, without correcting for the TFE, regions of high density (fibrosis) appeared to have a higher uptake than lower density (normal appearing tissue), however this was reversed after air and blood correction. The proposed correction methods are vital for quantitative and relative accuracy. Without these corrections, images may be misinterpreted

High-temperature ferroelectric order and magnetic field-cooled effect driven magnetoelectric coupling in R2BaCuO5 (R= Er, Dy, Sm)

The high-temperature ferroelectric order and a remarkable magnetoelectric effect driven by the magnetic field cooling are reported in R2BaCuO5 (R = Er, Dy, Sm) series. The ferroelectric (FE) orders are observed at much higher temperatures than their magnetic orders for all three members. The value of FE Curie temperature (TFE) is considerably high as ~ 235 K with the polarization value (P) of ~ 1410 {\mu}C/m2 for a 4 kV/cm poling field in case of Er2BaCuO5, whereas the values of TFE and P are also promising as ~ 232 K and ~ 992 {\mu}C/m2 for Dy2BaCuO5, and ~ 184 K and ~ 980 {\mu}C/m2 for Sm2BaCuO5. The synchrotron diffraction studies of Dy2BaCuO5 confirm a structural transition at TFE to a polar Pna21 structure, which correlates the FE order. An unusual magnetoelectric coupling is observed below the R order for Er and Dy compounds and below the Cu order for Sm compound, when the pyroelectric current is recorded only with the magnetic field both in heating and cooling cycles i.e. typical magnetic field cooled effect. The magnetic field cooled effect driven emergence of polarization is ferroelectric in nature, as it reverses due to the opposite poling field. The unexplored R2BaCuO5 series attracts the community for large TFE, high P value, and strange magnetoelectric consequences.Comment: 9 figures and 2 supporting figure

The Carboxyl-Terminal Segment of Apolipoprotein A-V Undergoes a Lipid-Induced Conformational Change

Apolipoprotein (apo) A-V is a 343-residue, multidomain protein that plays an important role in regulation of plasma triglyceride homeostasis. Primary sequence analysis revealed a unique tetraproline sequence (Pro293-Pro296) near the carboxyl terminus of the protein. A peptide corresponding to the 48-residue segment beyond the tetraproline motif was generated from a recombinant apoA-V precursor wherein Pro295 was replaced by Met. Cyanogen bromide cleavage of the precursor protein, followed by negative affinity chromatography, yielded a purified peptide. Nondenaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis verified that apoA-V(296-343) solubilizes phospholipid vesicles, forming a relatively heterogeneous population of reconstituted high-density lipoprotein with Stokes’ diameters\u3e17 nm. At the same time, apoA-V(296-343) failed to bind a spherical lipoprotein substrate in vitro. Far-UV circular dichroism spectroscopy revealed the peptide is unstructured in buffer yet adopts significant R-helical secondary structure in the presence of the lipid mimetic solvent trifluoroethanol (TFE; 50% v/v). Heteronuclear multidemensional NMR spectroscopy experiments were conducted with uniformly 15N- and 15N/13C-labeled peptide in 50% TFE. Peptide backbone assignment and secondary structure prediction using TALOSþ reveal the peptide adopts R-helix secondary structure from residues 309 to 334. In TFE, apoA-V(296-343) adopts an extended amphipathic R-helix, consistent with a role in lipoprotein binding as a component of full-length apoA-V

TFE coating extends life of flexible metal compressor diaphragm

Tetrafluoroethylene /TFE/ aerosol sprayed onto entire surface of diaphragm acts as film lubricant and permits diaphragm to slide between upper and lower plates in a reciprocating compressor. Flexing occurs over an area rather than about a single line of action and operating life of diaphragm is more than quadrupled

Diffusely reflecting paints including polytetrafluoroethylene and method of manufacture

The invention pertains to a high diffuse, reflective paint comprising an alcohol soluble binder, polytetrafluoroethylene (TFE) and an alcohol for coating a substrate and forming an optical reference with a superior Lambertian characteristic. A method for making the paint by first mixing the biner and alcohol, and thereafter by mixing in outgassed TFE is described. A wetting agent may be employed to aid the mixing process

Structure of hen egg-white lysozyme solvated in TFE/water: a molecular dynamics simulation study based on NMR data

Various experimental studies of hen egg white lysozyme (HEWL) in water and TFE/water clearly indicate structural differences between the native state and TFE state of HEWL, e.g. the helical content of the protein in the TFE state is much higher than in the native state. However, the available detailed NMR studies were not sufficient to determine fully a structure of HEWL in the TFE state. Different molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, i.e. at room temperature, at increased temperature and using proton-proton distance restraints derived from NMR NOE data, have been used to generate configurational ensembles corresponding to the TFE state of HEWL. The configurational ensemble obtained at room temperature using atom-atom distance restraints measured for HEWL in TFE/water solution satisfies the experimental data and has the lowest protein energy. In this ensemble residues 50-58, which are part of the β-sheet in native HEWL, adopt fluctuating α-helical secondary structur

Validade e sensibilidade do texto foneticamente equilibrado para o Português-Europeu “O Sol”

Face ao crescente índice de envelhecimento e às alterações motoras da fala decorrentes, torna-se emergente a validação de instrumentos de recolha e análise das características da produção dos sons da fala de adultos. Os objetivos deste estudo foram verificar se o texto foneticamente equilibrado (TFE) “O Sol” contém os fone(ma)s na mesma frequência de ocorrência do discurso espontâneo, recorrendose aos corpus PF_fone e FrePOP e determinar a sensibilidade do TFE “O Sol” às variações dialetais do português-europeu (PE). Uma população de 55 sujeitos normofalantes, com uma média de idades de 29 anos num intervalo entre [18 – 58] anos, leram em voz alta o TFE “O Sol”. As amostras foram recolhidas com um gravador Sony linear PCM-D50 (96KHz/24bit). A frequência relativa (Fr) dos fones do TFE “O Sol” foi comparada com a Fr dos dois corpus de referência, sendo o limiar de aceitação estabelecido, maior ou igual a -0,05. A frequência absoluta (Fa) dos fones do TFE “O Sol” foi comparada em função do dialeto dos sujeitos. Verificou-se que a Fr de 30 dos 38 fones do TFE “O Sol” são iguais ou superiores ao limiar de aceitação. A Fa de 6 dos 38 fones foi diferente significativamente (p<0,05) nos três dialetos. Concluindo, o TFE “O Sol” apresenta todos os fones do PE, sendo 78.9% numa frequência de ocorrência próxima à do discurso espontâneo, estando assim asseguradas as validades de conteúdo, de construção e concorrente. O TFE “O Sol” pode ser aplicado em sujeitos dos três dialetos do PE por apresentar sensibilidade a estes