Cu,Zn,Al layered double hydroxides as precursors for copper catalysts in methanol steam reforming – pH-controlled synthesis by microemulsion technique

By co-precipitation inside microemulsion droplets a Cu-based catalyst precursor was prepared with a Cu:Zn:Al ratio of 50:17:33. A pH-controlled synthesis was applied by simultaneous dosing of metal solution and precipitation agent. This technique allows for continuous operation of the synthesis and enables easy and feasible up-scaling. For comparison conventional co-precipitation was applied with the same composition. Both techniques resulted in phase pure layered double hydroxide precursors and finally (after calcination and reduction) in small Cu nanoparticles (8 nm) and ZnAl2O4. By applying the microemulsion technique smaller Cu/ZnAl2O4 aggregates with less embedded Cu particles were obtained. The microemulsion product exhibited a higher BET and specific Cu surface area and also a higher absolute catalytic activity in methanol steam reforming. However, the Cu surface area-normalized, intrinsic activity was lower. This observation was related to differences in interactions of Cu metal and oxide phase

Correlated EoM and Distributions for A=6 Nuclei

Energy spectra and electromagnetic transitions of nuclei are strongly depending from the correlations of the bound nucleons. Two particle correlations are responsible for the scattering of model particles either to low momentum- or to high momentum-states. The low momentum states form the model space while the high momentum states are used to calculate the G-matrix. The three and higher order particle correlations do not play a role in the latter calculation especially if the correlations induced by the scattering operator are of sufficient short range. They modify however, via the long tail of the nuclear potential, the Slater determinant of the A particles by generating excited Slater's determinants. In this work the influence of the correlations on the level structure and ground state distributions of even open shell nuclei is analyzed via the boson dynamic correlation model BDCM. The model is based on the unitary operator $e^S$ ({\it S} is the correlation operator) formalism which in this paper is presented within a non perturbative approximation. The low lying spectrum calculated for $^6$Li reproduce very well the experimental spectrum while for $^6$He a charge radius slightly larger than that obtained within the isotopic-shift (IS) theory has been calculated. Good agreement between theoretical and experimental results has been obtained without the introduction of a genuine three body force.Comment: 25 pages 4 figures. To be published in the Progress Theoretical Physic

Extended Cluster Model for Light, and Medium Nuclei

The structures, the electromagnetic transitions, and the beta decay strengths of exotic nuclei are investigated within an extended cluster model. We start by deriving an effective nuclear Hamiltonian within the $S_2$ correlation operator. Tensor forces are introduced in a perturbative expansion which includes up to the second order terms. Within this Hamiltonian we calculate the distributions and the radii of A=3,~4 nuclei. For exotic nuclei characterized by n valence protons/neutrons we excite the structure of the closed shell nuclei via mixed modes formed by considering correlations operators of higher order. Good results have been obtained for the calculated transitions and for the beta decay transition probabilities.Comment: 8-pages, 5-figure

Ground state hyperfine splitting of high Z hydrogenlike ions

The ground state hyperfine splitting values of high Z hydrogenlike ions are calculated. The relativistic, nuclear and QED corrections are taken into account. The nuclear magnetization distribution correction (the Bohr-Weisskopf effect) is evaluated within the single particle model with the g_{S}-factor chosen to yield the observed nuclear moment. An additional contribution caused by the nuclear spin-orbit interaction is included in the calculation of the Bohr-Weisskopf effect. It is found that the theoretical value of the wavelength of the transition between the hyperfine splitting components in ^{165}Ho^{66+} is in good agreement with experiment.Comment: 12 pages, Late

Embolization in an adrenocortical carcinoma as palliative therapy

Background: With an annual incidence of 0.2% of new cases per 100,000 inhabitants, adrenocortical carcinoma is rare. In advanced tumor only palliative treatment modalities are practicable. Because of scarcity of the tumor, standard treatment has not been defined. The decision on therapy frequently depends on the individual situation. Tumor embolization and chemotherapy are amongst the possible options. Patient and Methods: We report on a case of a 32-year-old female patient with a large-volume hormonally active adrenocortical carcinoma and hematogenous liver metastases. This carcinoma was confirmed histologically by means of liver biopsy. Owing to the large tumor extent and metastatic spreading and also in view of the poor general condition of the patient, curative surgical therapy was not possible. For this reason, a local approach was chosen primarily with transarterial tumor embolization at the capillary level. Systemic chemotherapy was given afterwards. Results: Improvement of the patient's general condition, especially the pronounced pain symptoms, could be achieved for a short time by the embolization: both, the patient's clinical condition and the laboratory test parameters improved. However, a rapid tumor progression occured under chemotherapy, which was started after embolization. Conclusion: In advanced adrenocortical carcinoma, tumor embolization can lead to a stabilization of the disease and improvement of the symptoms as appraised by palliative criteria in some patients

Microsensor measurements of hydrogen gas dynamics in cyanobacterial microbial mats

© 2015 Nielsen, Revsbech and Kühl. We used a novel amperometric microsensor for measuring hydrogen gas production and consumption at high spatio-temporal resolution in cyanobacterial biofilms and mats dominated by non-heterocystous filamentous cyanobacteria (Microcoleus chtonoplastes and Oscillatoria sp.). The new microsensor is based on the use of an organic electrolyte and a stable internal reference system and can be equipped with a chemical sulfide trap in the measuring tip; it exhibits very stable and sulfide-insensitive measuring signals and a high sensitivity (1.5-5 pA per μmol L-1 H2). Hydrogen gas measurements were done in combination with microsensor measurements of scalar irradiance, O2, pH, and H2S and showed a pronounced H2 accumulation (of up to 8-10% H2 saturation) within the upper mm of cyanobacterial mats after onset of darkness and O2 depletion. The peak concentration of H2 increased with the irradiance level prior to darkening. After an initial build-up over the first 1-2 h in darkness, H2 was depleted over several hours due to efflux to the overlaying water, and due to biogeochemical processes in the uppermost oxic layers and the anoxic layers of the mats. Depletion could be prevented by addition of molybdate pointing to sulfate reduction as a major sink for H2. Immediately after onset of illumination, a short burst of presumably photo-produced H2 due to direct biophotolysis was observed in the illuminated but anoxic mat layers. As soon as O2 from photosynthesis started to accumulate, the H2 was consumed rapidly and production ceased. Our data give detailed insights into the microscale distribution and dynamics of H2 in cyanobacterial biofilms and mats, and further support that cyanobacterial H2 production can play a significant role in fueling anaerobic processes like e.g., sulfate reduction or anoxygenic photosynthesis in microbial mats

Photosynthetic acclimation of Symbiodinium in hospite depends on vertical position in the tissue of the scleractinian coral Montastrea curta

© 2016 Lichtenberg, Larkum and Kühl. Coral photophysiology has been studied intensively from the colony scale down to the scale of single fluorescent pigment granules as light is one of the key determinants for coral health. We studied the photophysiology of the oral and aboral symbiont band of scleractinian coral Montastrea curta to investigate if different acclimation to light exist in hospite on a polyp scale. By combined use of electrochemical and fiber-optic microsensors for O2, scalar irradiance and variable chlorophyll fluorescence, we could characterize the physical and chemical microenvironment experienced by the symbionts and, for the first time, estimate effective quantum yields of PSII photochemistry and rates of electron transport at the position of the zooxanthellae corrected for the in-tissue gradient of scalar irradiance. The oral- and aboral Symbiodinium layers received ~71% and ~33% of surface scalar irradiance, respectively, and the two symbiont layers experience considerable differences in light exposure. Rates of gross photosynthesis did not differ markedly between the oral- and aboral layer and curves of PSII electron transport rates corrected for scalar irradiance in hospite, showed that the light use efficiency under sub-saturating light conditions were similar between the two layers. However, the aboral Symbiodinium band did not experience photosynthetic saturation, even at the highest investigated irradiance where the oral layer was clearly saturated. We thus found a different light acclimation response for the oral and aboral symbiont bands in hospite, and discuss whether such response could be shaped by spectral shifts caused by tissue gradients of scalar irradiance. Based on our experimental finding, combined with previous knowledge, we present a conceptual model on the photophysiology of Symbiodinium residing inside living coral tissue under natural gradients of light and chemical parameters

Fiber‐optic oxygen microsensors, a new tool in aquatic biology

A new fiber-optic oxygen microsensor (microoptrode) based on dynamic fluorescence quenching has been developed to measure oxygen gradients in marine sediments and microbial mats. The microoptrodes are fabricated by immobilizing an oxygen-quenchable fluorophore at the tapered tip of an optical fiber. A special optoelectronic system has been designed to measure oxygen with these microoptrodes. It is based on small and cheap optical components and can easily be miniaturized for field applications. In contrast to oxygen microelectrodes, the new oxygen microoptrodes are easy to make, do not consume oxygen, and show no stirring dependence of the signal. In addition, they show excellent long-term stability and storage stability. Hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide, and other relevant chemical parameters do not interfere with the measurement. Oxygen profiles in marine sediments obtained from measurements with microoptrodes show good correlation to profiles measured with oxygen microelectrodes