On the continuity of the state constrained minimal time function

We obtain results on the propagation of the (Lipschitz) continuity of the minimal time function associated with a finite dimensional autonomous differential inclusion with state constraints and a closed target. To this end, we first obtain new regularity results of the solution map with respect to initial data

Different routes of MgAl–LDH synthesis for tailoring the adsorption of Pb(II) pollutant from water

In this study, new adsorbents based on MgAl–LDHs were synthesized using combined precipitation (co-precipitation) route by modifying temperature and ageing time synthesis parameters, thus tailoring the adsorption capacity of Pb(II) ions from water. The synthesized materials were characterized by SEM, FTIR, XRD and $\text{N}_2$ adsorption–desorption techniques, highlighting the specific lamellar structure of layered double hydroxides (LDHs), as well as the functional groups present on the adsorbent’s surface. The maximum adsorption capacity for Pb(II) ions was 1151.97 mg/g for the MgAl–LDH synthesized at 55 °C and aged for 24 h. Sorption of Pb(II) ions occurs not only through co-precipitation in the form of characteristic compounds, $\text{Pb(OH)}_2$, $\text{PbCO}_3$ or $\text{Pb}_3(\text{CO}_3)_2(\text{OH})_2$, but also by complexation with surface hydroxyl groups

Different routes of MgAl–LDH synthesis for tailoring the adsorption of Pb(II) pollutant from water

In this study, new adsorbents based on MgAl–LDHs were synthesized using combined precipitation (co-precipitation) route by modifying temperature and ageing time synthesis parameters, thus tailoring the adsorption capacity of Pb(II) ions from water. The synthesized materials were characterized by SEM, FTIR, XRD and $\text{N}_2$ adsorption–desorption techniques, highlighting the specific lamellar structure of layered double hydroxides (LDHs), as well as the functional groups present on the adsorbent’s surface. The maximum adsorption capacity for Pb(II) ions was 1151.97 mg/g for the MgAl–LDH synthesized at 55 °C and aged for 24 h. Sorption of Pb(II) ions occurs not only through co-precipitation in the form of characteristic compounds, $\text{Pb(OH)}_2$, $\text{PbCO}_3$ or $\text{Pb}_3(\text{CO}_3)_2(\text{OH})_2$, but also by complexation with surface hydroxyl groups

Efficient degradation and mineralization of diclofenac in water on ZnMe (Me: Al; Co; Ga) layered double hydroxides and derived mixed oxides as novel photocatalysts

The removal of diclofenac (DCF) from aqueous solutions was attempted using photocatalytic processes, involving a series of novel photocatalysts based on ZnMe (Me: Al; Co; Ga) layered double hydroxides (LDHs) and their derived mixed oxides. The catalysts were characterized using specific techniques. Under solar light, ZnCo and ZnGa catalysts degraded almost completely DCF from water, while the mineralization, expressed by total organic carbon removal, reached $\sim$85%. The degradation mechanisms of DCF photolysis and photocatalytic degradation under solar and UV irradiation were investigated

mQC : a post-mapping data exploration tool for ribosome profiling

Background and objective: Ribosome profiling is a recent next generation sequencing technique enabling the genome-wide study of gene expression in biomedical research at the translation level. Too often, researchers precipitously start trying to test their hypotheses after alignment of their data, without checking the quality and the general features of their mapped data. Despite the fact that these checks are essential to prevent errors and ensure valid conclusions afterwards, easy-to-use tools for visualizing the quality and overall outlook of mapped ribosome profiling data are lacking. Methods: We present mQC, a modular tool implemented as a Bioconda package and also available in the Galaxy tool shed. Herewith both bio-informaticians as well as non-experts can easily perform the indispensable visualization of both the quality and the general features of their mapped P-site corrected ribosome profiling reads. The user manual, the raw code and more information can be found on its GitHub repository (https://github.com/Biobix/mQC). Results: mQC was tested on multiple datasets to assess its general applicability and was compared to other tools that partly perform similar tasks. Conclusions: Our results demonstrate that mQC can accomplish an unfilled but essential position in the ribosome profiling data analysis procedure by performing a thorough RIBO-Seq-specific exploration of aligned and P-site corrected ribosome profiling data

On the Synergistic Catalytic Properties of Bimetallic Mesoporous Materials Containing Aluminum and Zirconium: The Prins Cyclisation of Citronellal

Bimetallic three-dimensional amorphous mesoporous materials, Al-Zr-TUD-1 materials, were synthesised by using a surfactant-free, one-pot procedure employing triethanolamine (TEA) as a complexing reagent. The amount of aluminium and zirconium was varied in order to study the effect of these metals on the Brønsted and Lewis acidity, as well as on the resulting catalytic activity of the material. The materials were characterised by various techniques, including elemental analysis, X-ray diffraction, high-resolution TEM, N2 physisorption, temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) of NH3, and 27Al MAS NMR, XPS and FT-IR spectroscopy using pyridine and CO as probe molecules. Al-Zr-TUD-1 materials are mesoporous with surface areas ranging from 700–900 m2 g−1, an average pore size of around 4 nm and a pore volume of around 0.70 cm3 g−1. The synthesised Al-Zr-TUD-1 materials were tested as catalyst materials in the Lewis acid catalysed Meerwein–Ponndorf–Verley reduction of 4-tert-butylcyclohexanone, the intermolecular Prins synthesis of nopol and in the intramolecular Prins cyclisation of citronellal. Although Al-Zr-TUD-1 catalysts possess a lower amount of acid sites than their monometallic counterparts, according to TPD of NH3, these materials outperformed those of the monometallic Al-TUD-1 as well as Zr-TUD-1 in the Prins cyclisation of citronellal. This proves the existence of synergistic properties of Al-Zr-TUD-1. Due to the intramolecular nature of the Prins cyclisation of citronellal, the hydrophilic surface of the catalyst as well as the presence of both Brønsted and Lewis acid sites synergy could be obtained with bimetallic Al-Zr-TUD-1. Besides spectroscopic investigation of the active sites of the catalyst material a thorough testing of the catalyst in different types of reactions is crucial in identifying its specific active sites

Prolate spheroidal hematite particles equatorially belt with drug-carrying layered double hydroxide disks: Ring Nebula-like nanocomposites

A new nanocomposite architecture is reported which combines prolate spheroidal hematite nanoparticles with drug-carrying layered double hydroxide [LDH] disks in a single structure. Spindle-shaped hematite nanoparticles with average length of 225 nm and width of 75 nm were obtained by thermal decomposition of hydrothermally synthesized hematite. The particles were first coated with Mg-Al-NO3-LDH shell and then subjected to anion exchange with salicylate ions. The resulting bio-nanohybrid displayed a close structural resemblance to that of the Ring Nebula. Scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscopy images showed that the LDH disks are stacked around the equatorial part of the ellipsoid extending along the main axis. This geometry possesses great structural tunability as the composition of the LDH and the nature of the interlayer region can be tailored and lead to novel applications in areas ranging from functional materials to medicine by encapsulating various guest molecules