24,769 research outputs found
Synergistic Adsorption of Heavy Metal Ions and Organic Pollutants by Supramolecular Polysaccharide Composite Materials from Cellulose, Chitosan and Crown Ether
We have developed a simple one-step method to synthesize novel supramolecular polysaccharide composites from cellulose (CEL), chitosan (CS) and benzo-15-crown 5 (B15C5). Butylmethylimidazolium chloride [BMIm+Clâ], an ionic liquid (IL), was used as a sole solvent for dissolution and preparation of the composites. Since majority of [BMIm+Clâ] used was recovered for reuse, the method is recyclable. The [CEL/CS + B15C5] composites obtained retain properties of their components, namely superior mechanical strength (from CEL), excellent adsorption capability for heavy metal ions and organic pollutants (from B15C5 and CS). More importantly, the [CEL/CS + B15C5] composites exhibit truly supramolecular properties. By itself CS, CEL and B15C5 can effectively adsorb Cd2+, Zn2+ and 2,4,5-trichlorophenol. However, adsorption capability of the composite was substantially and synergistically enhanced by adding B15C5 to either CEL and/or CS. That is, the adsorption capacity (qe values) for Cd2+ and Zn2+ by [CS + B15C5], [CEL + B15C5] and [CEL + CS + B15C5] composites are much higher than combined qe values of individual CS, CEL and B15C5 composites. It seems that B15C5 synergistically interact with CS (or CEL) to form more stable complexes with Cd2+ (or Zn2+), and as a consequence, the [CS + B15C5] (or the [CEL + B15C5]) composite can adsorb relatively larger amount Cd2+ (or Zn2+). Moreover, the pollutants adsorbed on the composites can be quantitatively desorbed to enable the [CS + CEL + B15C5] composites to be reused with similar adsorption efficiency
Keck Observations of the Hidden Quasar IRAS P09104+4109
We present imaging and spectro- polarimetric observations of the
ultraluminous infrared galaxy IRAS P09104+4109 using the Keck 10-m Telescope.
We detect the clear presence of broad Hb, Hg, and MgII 2800 emission lines in
the polarized flux spectra of the nucleus and of an extranuclear emission
region ~ 4" away, confirming the presence of a hidden central quasar. The
polarization of the broad Mg II emission line is high (~ 29%), consistent with
the remarkably high polarization (~ 30%-40%) observed in the extended continuum
emission. The narrow emission lines are polarized in a stratified fashion, with
the high ionization lines being polarized 0.7%-1.7% and [O II] essentially
unpolarized. The line polarizations are positively correlated with critical
density, ionization potential, and velocity width of the emission lines. This
indicates that the NLR may be partially shadowed by the putative torus, with
the higher ionization lines originating closer to the nucleus. One notable
characteristic of the extranuclear knot is that all species of Fe are markedly
absent in its spectrum, while they appear prominently in the nucleus. Our
favored interpretation is that there is a large amount of dust in the
extranuclear regions, allowing gaseous refractory metals to deposit. The
extended emission regions are most likely material shredded from nearby cluster
members and not gas condensed from the cooling flow or expelled from the
obscured quasar. Our data provide strong evidence for matter-bounded clouds in
addition to ionization-bounded clouds in the NLR. Ionization by pure velocity
shocks can be ruled out. Shocks with photoionizing precursors may be present,
but are probably not a dominant contributor to the energy input.Comment: 32 pages, including 9 figs and 2 tables, to be published in the
Astronomical Journa
Facile Synthesis, Characterization, and Antimicrobial Activity of Cellulose-Chitosan-Hydroxyapatite Composite Material: A Potential Material for Bone Tissue Engineering
Hydroxyapatite (HAp) is often used as a bone-implant material because it is biocompatible and osteoconductive. However, HAp possesses poor rheological properties and it is inactive against disease-causing microbes. To improve these properties, we developed a green method to synthesize multifunctional composites containing: (1) cellulose (CEL) to impart mechanical strength; (2) chitosan (CS) to induce antibacterial activity thereby maintaining a microbe-free wound site; and (3) HAp. In this method, CS and CEL were co-dissolved in an ionic liquid (IL) and then regenerated from water. HAp was subsequently formed in situ by alternately soaking [CEL+CS] composites in aqueous solutions of CaCl2 and Na2HPO4. At least 88% of IL used was recovered for reuse by distilling the aqueous washings of [CEL+CS]. The composites were characterized using FTIR, XRD, and SEM. These composites retained the desirable properties of their constituents. For example, the tensile strength of the composites was enhanced 1.9 times by increasing CEL loading from 20% to 80%. Incorporating CS in the composites resulted in composites which inhibited the growth of both Gram positive (MRSA, S. aureus and VRE) and Gram negative (E. coli and P. aeruginosa) bacteria. These findings highlight the potential use of [CEL+CS+HAp] composites as scaffolds in bone tissue engineering
Anomalous dephasing of bosonic excitons interacting with phonons in the vicinity of the Bose-Einstein condensation
The dephasing and relaxation kinetics of bosonic excitons interacting with a
thermal bath of acoustic phonons is studied after coherent pulse excitation.
The kinetics of the induced excitonic polarization is calculated within
Markovian equations both for subcritical and supercritical excitation with
respect to a Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC). For excited densities n below
the critical density n_c, an exponential polarization decay is obtained, which
is characterized by a dephasing rate G=1/T_2. This dephasing rate due to phonon
scattering shows a pronounced exciton-density dependence in the vicinity of the
phase transition. It is well described by the power law G (n-n_c)^2 that can be
understood by linearization of the equations around the equilibrium solution.
Above the critical density we get a non-exponential relaxation to the final
condensate value p^0 with |p(t)|-|p^0| ~1/t that holds for all densities.
Furthermore we include the full self-consistent Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov (HFB)
terms due to the exciton-exciton interaction and the kinetics of the anomalous
functions F_k= . The collision terms are analyzed and an
approximation is used which is consistent with the existence of BEC. The
inclusion of the coherent x-x interaction does not change the dephasing laws.
The anomalous function F_k exhibits a clear threshold behaviour at the critical
density.Comment: European Physical Journal B (in print
Hidden Broad Line Seyfert 2 Galaxies in the CfA and 12micron Samples
We report the results of a spectropolarimetric survey of the CfA and 12micron
samples of Seyfert 2 galaxies (S2s). Polarized (hidden) broad line regions
(HBLRs) are confirmed in a number of galaxies, and several new cases
(F02581-1136, MCG -3-58-7, NGC 5995, NGC 6552, NGC 7682) are reported. The
12micron S2 sample shows a significantly higher incidence of HBLR (50%) than
its CfA counterpart (30%), suggesting that the latter may be incomplete in
hidden AGNs. Compared to the non-HBLR S2s, the HBLR S2s display distinctly
higher radio power relative to their far-infrared output and hotter dust
temperature as indicated by the f25/f60 color. However, the level of
obscuration is indistinguishable between the two types of S2. These results
strongly support the existence of two intrinsically different populations of
S2: one harboring an energetic, hidden S1 nucleus with BLR, and the other, a
``pure S2'', with weak or absent S1 nucleus and a strong, perhaps dominating
starburst component. Thus, the simple purely orientation-based unification
model is not applicable to all Seyfert galaxies.Comment: 5 pages with embedded figs, ApJ Letters, in pres
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