4,721 research outputs found
Direct observation of a hydrophobic bond in loop-closure of a capped (-OCH2CH2-)n oligomer in water
The small r variation of the probability density P(r) for end-to-end
separations of a -CH2CH3 capped (-OCH2CH2-)n oligomer in water is computed to
be closely similar to the CH4 ... CH4 potential of mean force under the same
circumstances. Since the aqueous solution CH4 ... CH4 potential of mean force
is the natural physical definition of a primitive hydrophobic bond, the present
result identifies an experimentally accessible circumstance for direct
observation of a hydrophobic bond which has not been observed previously
because of the low solubility of CH4 in water. The physical picture is that the
soluble chain molecule carries the capping groups into aqueous solution, and
permits them to find one another with reasonable frequency. Comparison with the
corresponding results without the solvent shows that hydration of the solute
oxygen atoms swells the chain molecule globule. This supports the view that the
chain molecule globule might have a secondary effect on the hydrophobic
interaction which is of first interest here. The volume of the chain molecule
globule is important for comparing the probabilities with and without solvent
because it characterizes the local concentration of capping groups. Study of
other capping groups to enable X-ray and neutron diffraction measurements of
P(r) is discussed.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Antimicrobial activity of Xylopia aethiopica, Aframomum melegueta and Piper guineense ethanolic extracts and the potential of using Xylopia aethiopica to preserve fresh orange juice
Antimicrobial activity of ethanolic extracts of Xylopia aethiopica, Aframomum melegueta and Piper guineense fruits were assayed against fourteen (14) microorganisms commonly associated with foodpoisoning and/or food spoilage. The microorganisms were Bacillus subtilis IAM1069, Bacillus cereus IFO 13494, Staphylococcus aureus FDA 209p, Escherichia coli NRIC 1023, Salmonella typhimurium IFO12529, Lactobacillus plantarum IAM 1041, Pediococcus acidilactici-M, Leuconostoc mesenteroides- M, Lactobacillus casei TISTR390, Saccharomyces cerevisiae OC-2, Hansenula anomala IFO 0140 (p), Pichia memb.IFO 0128, Penicillium funiclosum NBRC 6345 and Candida species. All the plant extracts exhibited selective antimicrobial activities on the test organisms. X. aethiopica extract exhibited the highest antimicrobial activity on the organisms with a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 50 ppm on Bacillus species and S. aureus. S. cerevisiae (MIC = 300 ppm), P. funiclosum NBRC 6345 and L. mesenteroides (MIC = 500 ppm) were also susceptible to X. aethiopica fruit extract but the MIC values for the other tested microorganisms were higher than 1000 ppm. This was followed by A. melegueta fruit extract with MIC of 100 ppm for B. cereus and S. aureus. Although P. guineense fruit extract inhibited the growth of B. cereus and S. aureus (MIC = 300 ppm); and B. subtilis (MIC = 1000), the MIC for the other microorganisms were higher than 5000 ppm. On the whole, all the plant extracts exhibited the least antimicrobial activities on Lactobacilli and fungi species. X. aethiopica fruit extract was used to preserve fresh orange juice. The ability of 100 and 1000 ppm extract to preserve the orange juice was significantly greater (p<0.05) than 50 ppm. The microbial concentration in orange juice containing 100 ppm of X. aethiopica extract was 4 cfu/mL after 28 days of storage at room temperature.Keywords: Food spoilage, food poisoning, microorganisms, spices, ethanolic extract, natural preservatives, orange juiceAfrican Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(16), pp. 1993-199
Ac conductivity and dielectric properties of CuFe1−xCrxO2 : Mg delafossite
The electrical and dielectric properties of CuFe(1−x)Cr(x)O(2) (0 ≤ x ≤ 1) powders, doped with 3% of Mg and prepared by solid-state reaction, were studied by broadband dielectric spectroscopy in the temperature range from −100 to 150 °C. The frequency-dependent electrical and dielectric data have been discussed in the framework of a power law conductivity and complex impedance and dielectric modulus. At room temperature, the ac conductivity behaviour is characteristic of the charge transport in CuFe1−xCrxO2 powders. The substitution of Fe3+ by Cr3+ results in an increase in dc conductivity and a decrease in the Cu+–Cu+ distance. Dc conductivity, characteristic onset frequency and Havriliak–Negami characteristics relaxation times are thermally activated above −40 °C for x = 0.835. The associated activation energies obtained from dc and ac conductivity and from impedance and modulus losses are similar and show that CuFe1−xCrxO2 delafossite powders satisfy the BNN relation. Dc and ac conductivities have the same transport mechanism, namely thermally activated nearest neighbour hopping and tunnelling hopping above and below −40 °C, respectively
Crossover behavior and multi-step relaxation in a schematic model of the cut-off glass transition
We study a schematic mode-coupling model in which the ideal glass transition
is cut off by a decay of the quadratic coupling constant in the memory
function. (Such a decay, on a time scale tau_I, has been suggested as the
likely consequence of activated processes.) If this decay is complete, so that
only a linear coupling remains at late times, then the alpha relaxation shows a
temporal crossover from a relaxation typical of the unmodified schematic model
to a final strongly slower-than-exponential relaxation. This crossover, which
differs somewhat in form from previous schematic models of the cut-off glass
transition, resembles light-scattering experiments on colloidal systems, and
can exhibit a `slower-than-alpha' relaxation feature hinted at there. We also
consider what happens when a similar but incomplete decay occurs, so that a
significant level of quadratic coupling remains for t>>tau_I. In this case the
correlator acquires a third, weaker relaxation mode at intermediate times. This
empirically resembles the beta process seen in many molecular glass formers. It
disappears when the initial as well as the final quadratic coupling lies on the
liquid side of the glass transition, but remains present even when the final
coupling is only just inside the liquid (so that the alpha relaxation time is
finite, but too long to measure). Our results are suggestive of how, in a
cut-off glass, the underlying `ideal' glass transition predicted by
mode-coupling theory can remain detectable through qualitative features in
dynamics.Comment: 14 pages revtex inc 10 figs; submitted to pr
Two dimensionality in quasi one-dimensional cobalt oxides
By means of muon spin rotation and relaxation (SR) techniques, we have
investigated the magnetism of quasi one-dimensional (1D) cobalt oxides
CoO (=Ca, Sr and Ba, =1, 2, 3, 5 and
), in which the 1D CoO chain is surrounded by six equally spaced
chains forming a triangular lattice in the -plane, using polycrystalline
samples, from room temperature down to 1.8 K. For the compounds with =1 - 5,
transverse field SR experiments showed the existence of a magnetic
transition below 100 K. The onset temperature of the transition () was found to decrease with ; from 100 K for =1 to 60 K for
=5. A damped muon spin oscillation was observed only in the sample with
=1 (CaCoO), whereas only a fast relaxation obtained even at 1.8
K in the other three samples. In combination with the results of susceptibility
measurements, this indicates that a two-dimensional short-range
antiferromagnetic (AF) order appears below for all
compounds with =1 - 5; but quasi-static long-range AF order formed only in
CaCoO, below 25 K. For BaCoO (=), as decreased
from 300 K, 1D ferromagnetic (F) order appeared below 53 K, and a sharp 2D AF
transition occurred at 15 K.Comment: 12 pages, 14 figures, and 2 table
Synthetic biodegradable polymers as drug delivery systems for bone morphogenetic proteins
ArticleAdvanced Drug Delivery Reviews. 57(7): 1037-1048 (2005)journal articl
Solitary waves of nonlinear nonintegrable equations
Our goal is to find closed form analytic expressions for the solitary waves
of nonlinear nonintegrable partial differential equations. The suitable
methods, which can only be nonperturbative, are classified in two classes.
In the first class, which includes the well known so-called truncation
methods, one \textit{a priori} assumes a given class of expressions
(polynomials, etc) for the unknown solution; the involved work can easily be
done by hand but all solutions outside the given class are surely missed.
In the second class, instead of searching an expression for the solution, one
builds an intermediate, equivalent information, namely the \textit{first order}
autonomous ODE satisfied by the solitary wave; in principle, no solution can be
missed, but the involved work requires computer algebra.
We present the application to the cubic and quintic complex one-dimensional
Ginzburg-Landau equations, and to the Kuramoto-Sivashinsky equation.Comment: 28 pages, chapter in book "Dissipative solitons", ed. Akhmediev, to
appea
Flagellate green algae from four water bodies in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Southeast Brazil
Magnetic Ordering in V-Layers of the Superconducting System of Sr2VFeAsO3
Results of transport, magnetic, thermal, and 75As-NMR measurements are
presented for superconducting Sr2VFeAsO3 with an alternating stack of FeAs and
perovskite-like block layers. Although apparent anomalies in magnetic and
thermal properties have been observed at ~150 K, no anomaly in transport
behaviors has been observed at around the same temperature. These results
indicate that V ions in the Sr2VO3-block layers have localized magnetic moments
and that V-electrons do not contribute to the Fermi surface. The electronic
characteristics of Sr2VFeAsO3 are considered to be common to those of other
superconducting systems with Fe-pnictogen layers.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, To appear in JPSJ 79 (2010) 12371
On elliptic solutions of the cubic complex one-dimensional Ginzburg-Landau equation
The cubic complex one-dimensional Ginzburg-Landau equation is considered.
Using the Hone's method, based on the use of the Laurent-series solutions and
the residue theorem, we have proved that this equation has neither elliptic
standing wave nor elliptic travelling wave solutions. This result amplifies the
Hone's result, that this equation has no elliptic travelling wave solutions.Comment: LaTeX, 12 page
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