Degradative Effects of Ultraviolet Light and Acid Rain on Wood Surface Quality

Wood surface quality deteriorated when wood was exposed to ultraviolet light, acid rain, and the combination of these two elements. When wood surfaces were exposed to ultraviolet light, carbonyl group content increased and lignin content decreased simultaneously. These changes were accelerated when they were also exposed to a dilute sulfuric acid solution—a laboratory simulation of acid rain — especially at 65 C and 65% relative humidity. Experimental results showed that ultra violet light changed the surface quality by generating oxidized products, and the sulfuric acid contributed to the deterioration of tensile strength

Encapsulated fertilizers and pesticides and process

A slow release fertilizer or pesticide composition and a method for making the same is provided. The composition is made by combining thermoplastic resin with cellulosic material and then adding a fertilizer or pesticide. The thermoplastic resin and the cellulosic material preferably come from the solid waste stream. The resulting composition can be molded into various articles or ground into a granular powder

Pre-treated cellulosic materials for producing molded composite articles therefrom and process

A fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composition for producing composite structural members and a method for making same is provided. The composition is made by combining a thermoplastic resin with pre-treated high moisture cellulosic materials, such as discarded newspaper, having lignin contained therein. Moisture treatment of the cellulosic materials exhibit improvements over composites using dry cellulosic materials. The composite composition may then be extruded or compression molded into various articles of manufacture

Training Young Lawyers to be Conservators of Legal Institutions & the Rule of Law

Article published in the Michigan State Law Review

Stabilization of Wood Color: Is Acetylation Blocking Effective?

The color of acetylated wood was assessed by studying its response to ultraviolet light during a 56-day exposure. Change in color and reduction of reflectance signaled an interaction of acetylated wood with electromagnetic energy. Acetylated wood exhibited a color stabilization effect better than did unacetylated wood after the initial 28 days of irradiation. Its stabilization effect thereafter steadily diminished and discoloration started. Electron spin resonance (ESR) studies of photoirradiated acetylated wood and milled wood lignin divulged the generation of an active methyl radical and stable phenoxy radicals during irradiation, contributing to a quartet and a singlet signal. These free radicals originated from deacetylation and demethoxylation reactions to lignin. Moreover, ESR studies of the acetylated model compound, (4'-methyl-2'-methoxy phenoxy)-β-hydroxypropiovanillone, also divulged the cleavage of the β-0-4 linkage in lignin. It is concluded that these photo-induced degradative reactions led to the formation of phenoxy radicals which were the principal intermediates leading to the subsequent chromophoric group formations in acetylated wood

The Independence of the Judiciary as the Base of Business and Economic Development

The rapid nature of information exchange, the increasingly porous nature of international boundaries through electronic communications and the movement of capital and labour have presented a range of new issues in the administration of justice. These have major implications for the Courts and the role of the Courts, particularly in newly liberalised economies. International trade has raised issues concerning both substantive law and procedure. Foreign investment in the Asia Pacific region and the increasing affluence of particular socio-economic groups in countries throughout Asia and the Pacific has seen increasing demands for the reform of the law and the methods of its enforcement in order to provide consistency and coherency in commercial relationships

At the Cutting Edge: Therapeutic Jurisprudence

In the last decade or so, a series of specialised or problem-solving Courts or court processes have evolved in Australia. These courts are based upon the principles of therapeutic jurisprudence which regard the law, court procedures and rules, as a social force whose goal is to produce therapeutic consequences to the participants in the legal proceedings and to society at large. Taking a holistic approach to an offender and the offenders problematic history is not an altogether new concept, as this is usually taken into account during sentencing. The ideal of tailoring sentences and having options available for treatment of an underlying problem however is one which marks a departure from simply imposing a sanction by way of sentence. This can only improve the state of our criminal justice system. In my experience, one can often feel hamstrung when dealing with offenders whose life has been ravaged by drug abuse, but will appear before the Court as an accused, most often on charges of assault, burglary or in some cases what might be an armed robbery on the lower end of the scale. If we as a community wait to provide assistance to individuals until they offend and are imprisoned, I would suggest, it is frequently too late for both the community and the offender

The Independence of the Judiciary in the Asia-Pacific Region

It is almost universally acknowledged that one of the hallmarks of a democracy is the independence of the Judiciary. A Judiciary which exists merely to do a Government\u27s bidding or to implement Government policy provides no guarantee of liberty. What do we mean by independence of the Judiciary? The former Chief Justice of Tasmania, Sir Guy Green has defined it as the capacity of the courts to perform their constitutional function free from actual or apparent interference by, and to the extent that it is constitutionally possible, free from actual or apparent dependence upon, any persons or institutions, including, in particular, the executive arm of government, over which they do not exercise direct control. The maintenance of public confidence in the impartiality of Judges is essential to public acceptance of the law and the legal system. A loss of that public confidence can lead to instability and even a threat to the very existence of society. In the late seventeenth century in England, the politicisation of the Judiciary and its subservience to the Crown was a material factor in the Revolution of 1688. One of the complaints against George III recited in the American Declaration of Independence was that, He has made Judges dependent on his will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries