Second-harmonic generation of ZnO nanoparticles synthesized by laser ablation of solids in liquids

We report the synthesis of small zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) based colloidal suspensions and the study of second-harmonic generation from aggregated ZnO NPs deposited on glass substrates. The colloidal suspensions were obtained using the laser ablation of solids in liquids technique, ablating a Zn solid target immersed in acetone as the liquid medium, with ns-laser pulses (1064 nm) of a Nd-YAG laser. The per pulse laser fluence, the laser repetition rate frequency and the ablation time were kept constant. The absorption evolution of the obtained suspensions was optically characterized through absorption spectroscopy until stabilization. Raman spectroscopy, SEM and HRTEM were used to provide evidence of the ZnO NPs structure. HRTEM results showed that 5–8 nm spheroids ZnO NPs were obtained. Strong second-harmonic signal is obtained from random ZnO monocrystalline NPs and from aggregated ZnO NPs, suggesting that the high efficiency of the nonlinear process may not depend on the NPs size or aggregation state

Determination of biosorption mechanism in biomass of agave, using spectroscopic and microscopic techniques for the purification of contaminated water

[Abstract] Lead (Pb2+) and copper (Cu2+) are polluting metals due to their toxicity; however, the extraction of these metals is essential for economic development, so it is important to look for efficient and low-cost alternatives that can remove heavy metals from the various bodies of water. One of the alternatives used in this work is biosorption, for which an agroindustrial waste (epidermis from Agave atrovirens) was used to evaluate the affinity of removal of lead and copper in aqueous solutions; in addition, spectroscopy and microscopy techniques were used to elucidate and corroborate the removal and affinity capacity of the agave epidermis for both metals studied. The optimal pH value for the removal of both metals was 3. The adsorption isotherms yielded a qmax of 25.7 and 8.6 mg/g for lead and copper, respectively. Adjusting to the Langmuir-Freundlich model, the adsorption kinetics were pseudo-second order, and it was found that the equilibrium time was at 140 min. The spectroscopy and microscopy analyses corroborated the affinity between metals and functional groups of the agave, as well as with the elemental analysis, which reported 17.38% of lead and 4.25% of copper.[Resumen] El plomo (Pb2+) y el cobre (Cu2+) son metales contaminantes debido a su toxicidad; sin embargo, la extracción de estos metales es indispensable para el desarrollo económico, por lo que es importante buscar alternativas eficientes y de bajo costo que puedan remover metales pesados de los diversos cuerpos de agua. Una de las alternativas utilizadas en este trabajo es la biosorción, para la cual se utilizó un residuo agroindustrial (epidermis de Agave atrovirens), para evaluar la afinidad de remoción del plomo y cobre en soluciones acuosas; adicionalmente, se emplearon técnicas de espesctroscopía y microscopía que permitieron elucidar y corroborar la capacidad de remoción y afinidad que tuvo la epidermis de A. atrovirens para ambos metales estudiados. El valor óptimo de pH para la remoción de ambos metales fue 3. Las isotermas de adsorción arrojaron una qmax de 25.7 y 8.6 mg/g para el plomo y cobre, respectivamente. Ajustando al modelo de Langmuir-Freundlich, las cinéticas de adsorción resultaron de pseudo-segundo orden, se encontró que el tiempo de equilibrio es a los 140 min. El análisis espectroscópico y microscópico, corroboró la afinidad entre metales y grupos funcionales del agave, así como con el análisis elemental, el cual reportó 17.38% de plomo y 4.25% de cobre

Gamma Irradiation of Aqueos Solution of L-Aspartic Acid, L-Aspartic Acid in Solid State, and L-Aspartic Acid Adsorbed into Na-Montmorillonite: Its Relevance in Chemistry Prebiotic

Aspartic acid is an amino acid present in the modern proteins, however, is considered a primitive amino acid hence its importance in prebiotic chemistry experiments studies. In some works of prebiotic chemistry have been studied the synthesis and the stability of organic matter under high energy sources, and the role of clays has been highlighted due to clays that can affect the reaction mechanisms in the radiolytic processes. The present work is focused on the study of the role of Namontmorillonite in the gamma radiolysis processes of L-aspartic acid. Gamma radiolysis processes were carried out in three different systems a) L-aspartic acid in aqueous solution; b) L-aspartic acid in solid-state; and c) L-aspartic acid adsorbed into Na-montmorillonite. L-aspartic acid was analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography−electrospray ionization−mass spectrometry (HPLCESI-MS). The results showed that the decomposition of L-aspartic acid considerably decreased in the presence of clay thus highlighting the protector role of clays and favors the stability of organic matter even under the possible high energy conditions of primitive environments. The principal product ofgamma radiolysis of L-aspartic acid was succinic acid produced by deamination reaction. On the other hand, when aspartic acid was irradiated in solid-state the main product was the L-aspartic acid dimer. Both radiolysis products are important for chemical evolution processes for L-aspartic acid in primitive environments

Capacidad antioxidante de péptidos obtenidos de hidrolizados de tilapia con bromelina y papaína.

Se realizaron hidrolizados con restos del fileteado de tilapia utilizando extractos de piña y papaya como fuente de enzimas proteolíticas (bromelina y papaína). Se obtuvieron muestras de los hidrolizados a diferentes tiempos (30 minutos, 1, 24, 48 y 72 horas) eliminando los sólidos por centrifugación. Los péptidos solubles fueron separados mediante precipitación de proteínas con TCA, y la absorbancia a 280 nm del sobrenadante fue utilizada como medida de su concentración. La capacidad antioxidante de los péptidos obtenidos con bromelina y papaína a diferentes tiempos de hidrólisis fue determinada mediante la prueba de ORAC. Los péptidos obtenidos del hidrolizado elaborado a base de cascara de piña mostraron la mayor actividad antioxidante

Acción protectora del ácido kaurénico en el estrés oxidativo hepático

El ácido kaurénico es un antioxidante extraído del “frailejón”, la planta más representativa de la flora de los páramos andinos de Venezuela, Colombia y norte de Ecuador. Se ha reportado que tal diterpenoide posee efecto protector frente al estrés oxidativo. El objetivo de este estudio fue determinar la acción antioxidante del ácido kaurénico y establecer su efecto protector ante lageneración del hígado graso experimental causado por el tóxico etionina. Se utilizaron 24 ratones hembras NMRI. Al grupo experimental se le administró vía i.p. 20 mg/kg de ácido kaurénico durante 15 días El grupo control sólo recibió vehículo. A los 13 días post-inoculación se les indujo hígado graso a ambos grupos mediante etionina i.p. (7,5 mg/20 g), manteniéndose los animales en ayunas durante 48 horas. En el homogenizado de hígado se determinaron los niveles de triglicéridos, proteínas, malondialdehido y dienos conjugados, así como las actividades de superóxido dismutasa y glutatión peroxidasa. Los resultados fueron analizados mediante la prueba “t” de Student (p<0,05). Los datos sugieren que el ácido kaurénico actúa como antioxidante y disminuye la génesis de lipoperoxidación

Influencia de los signos y síntomas de esquizofrenia en la teoría de la mente

La teoría de la mente propone que los signos y síntomas de la esquizofrenia reflejan una disfunción en el sistema cognitivo dedicado al reconocimiento y control de nuestras propias intenciones y a la atribuci6n de intenciones a otras personas. Nuestra pretensi6n es analizar si' los deficits metarepresentacionales observados en esquizofrénicos se asocian a su sintomatología. 47 sujetos se seleccionaron para el estudio: 27 esquizofrénicos y 20 sujetos control. Las pruebas utilizadas fueron: Test de factor "gn, escala PANSS y tarea extensiva de verbos mentales. Los enfermos se reunieron, según sus signos y síntomas, en los grupos de: signos conductuales, síntomas paranoides, fenómenos de pasividad y otros síntomas menos típicos! remisión. Se encontraron dificultades en TM en pacientes con signos conductuales negativos y positivos. con delirios paranoides y con características de pa$lvidad; dificultades que se plasmarán en su discurso. Asimismo. los pacientes con signos conductuales ejecutaron la tarea peor que los pacientes con delirios paranoides. El grupo con otros síntomas menos típicos y en remisión realizaron la tarea de mentalización normalmente.The theory of mind proposes that the signs and symptoms of schizophrenia reflect. the precise nature of the dysfunction within a cognitive system devoted to the recognition and monitoring of one 's own intentions and the attribution of intentions to others. This study examines the hypothesis that metarepresentational deficits seen in patients with schizophrenia are associated with their symptomatology. Forty- seven people were assessed during this study: twenty- seven patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia and twenty non-psychiatric controls. Measures: Factor -g" test, PANSS scale and mental verbs extension task. The patients were al/ocated to one of four groups according to their current signs and symptoms: behavioural signs, paranoid symptoms. passivity phenomena and other symptoms! remission. We found metarepresentational problems in patients with negative and positive behavioural signs, paranoid delusions and passivity features and associated with speech disorder. Al so, our psychiatric participants with behavioural signs performed the task significan tI Y more poorly than do patients with paranoid delusions; while the group with other symptoms and those in remission performed the task normally

First survey of Wolf-Rayet star populations over the full extension of nearby galaxies observed with CALIFA

The search of extragalactic regions with conspicuous presence of Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars outside the Local Group is challenging task due to the difficulties in detecting their faint spectral features. In this exploratory work, we develop a methodology to perform an automated search of WR signatures through a pixel-by-pixel analysis of integral field spectroscopy (IFS) data belonging to the Calar Alto Legacy Integral Field Area survey, CALIFA. This technique allowed us to build the first catalogue of Wolf-Rayet rich regions with spatially-resolved information, allowing to study the properties of these complexes in a 2D context. The detection technique is based on the identification of the blue WR bump (around He II 4686 {\AA}, mainly associated to nitrogen-rich WR stars, WN) and the red WR bump (around C IV 5808 {\AA} and associated to carbon-rich WR stars, WC) using a pixel-by-pixel analysis. We identified 44 WR-rich regions with blue bumps distributed in 25 galaxies of a total of 558. The red WR bump was identified only in 5 of those regions. We found that the majority of the galaxies hosting WR populations in our sample are involved in some kind of interaction process. Half of the host galaxies share some properties with gamma-ray burst (GRB) hosts where WR stars, as potential candidates to being the progenitors of GRBs, are found. We also compared the WR properties derived from the CALIFA data with stellar population synthesis models, and confirm that simple star models are generally not able to reproduce the observations. We conclude that other effects, such as the binary star channel (which could extend the WR phase up to 10 Myr), fast rotation or other physical processes that causes the loss of observed Lyman continuum photons, are very likely affecting the derived WR properties, and hence should be considered when modelling the evolution of massive stars.Comment: 33 pages, accepted for publication in A&

Case study in failure analysis of accelerated life tests (ALT) on III-V commercial triple-junction concentrator solar cells

In this work the failure analysis carried out in III-V concentrator multijunction solar cells after a temperature accelerated life test is presented. All the failures appeared have been catastrophic since all the solar cells turned into low shunt resistances. A case study in failure analysis based on characterization by optical microscope, SEM, EDX, EQE and XPS is presented in this paper, revealing metal deterioration in the bus bar and fingers as well as cracks in the semiconductor structure beneath or next to the bus bar. In fact, in regions far from the bus bar the semiconductor structure seems not to be damaged. SEM images have dismissed the presence of metal spikes inside the solar cell structure. Therefore, we think that for these particular solar cells, failures appear mainly as a consequence of a deficient electrolytic growth of the front metallization which also results in failures in the semiconductor structure close to the bus bars

Dynamic equivalence between atomic and colloidal liquids

We show that the kinetic-theoretical self-diffusion coefficient of an atomic fluid plays the same role as the short-time self-diffusion coefficient D_S in a colloidal liquid, in the sense that the dynamic properties of the former, at times much longer than the mean free time, and properly scaled with D_S, will indistinguishable from those of a colloidal liquid with the same interaction potential. One important consequence of such dynamic equivalence is that the ratio D_L/ D_S of the long-time to the short-time self-diffusion coefficients must then be the same for both, an atomic and a colloidal system characterized by the same inter-particle interactions. This naturally extends to atomic fluids a well-known dynamic criterion for freezing of colloidal liquids[Phys. Rev. Lett. 70, 1557 (1993)]. We corroborate these predictions by comparing molecular and Brownian dynamics simulations on (soft- and hard-sphere) model systems, representative of what we may refer to as the "hard-sphere" dynamic universality class