Synthesis of the [Ga]-MFI under atmospheric pressure

The crystallization of the [Ga]-MFI was investigated as a function of synthesis time under atmospheric pressure. The molar composition of the reactants was 100SiO₂-Ga₂O₃-llNa₂O-llTPABr-3500H₂O. The crystallinity of the [Ga]-MFT was examined by using several analytical instruments, such as XRD, XPS, XRF, FT-IR, solid-statemas-NMR, DTG/DTA, and SEM. The [Ga]-MFI was successfully synthesized under atmospheric pressure at 97 ‡C in 72 h. It was found that the nucleation of the [Ga]-MFI took a quite long time, but the crystallization took place very fast. It is supposed that nucleation is the rate-controlling step in the [Ga]-MFI synthesis under atmospheric pressure. Consequently, if the induction period of the nucleation can be shortened, it would be possible to synthesize the [Ga]-MFI commercially under atmospheric pressure.     

Blends of a thermotropic liquid crystalline polymer and some flexible chain polymers and the determination of the polymer-polymer interaction parameter of the two polymers

Summary Blends of a thermotropic liquid crystalline polymer (LCP) with poly(ether imide) (PEI), poly(ether ether ketone) (PEEK), polysulfone (PSF) and polyarylsulfone (PAS) prepared by screw extrusion have been investigated by differential scanning calorimeter and dynamic mechanical thermal analysis. From the measured glass transition temperature (T_g) and specific heat increment (ΔC_p) at the T_g, it appears that the LCP dissolves more in the PEI- and PEEK-rich phases than does the PEI and PEEK in the LCP-rich phase. From the DSC study of PSF-LCP and PAS-LCP blends, the T_g(PSF) and T_g(PAS) of each blends are almost constant with blend composition. Therefore, it is concluded that PSF and PAS are immiscible with LCP. The polymer-polymer interaction parameter (χ₁₂) and the degree of disorder (y/x₁) of LCP have been investigated using the Flory lattice theory in which the anisotropy of LCP is considered. The χ₁₂ values have been calculated from the T_g data and found to be 0.181 ± 0.004 at 593 K for the PEI-LCP blends and 0.069 ± 0.006 at 623 K for the PEEK-LCP blends. Using the previously presented method, the χ₁₂ and y/x₁ in partially miscible systems have been determined. Received: 6 April 1998/Revised version: 8 June 1998/Accepted: 17 June 1998     

Crystallization of [Ga]-MFI Under Atmospheric Pressure

The crystallization of [Ga]-MFI was investigated as a function of synthesis time under atmospheric pressure. The molar composition of the reactants was 100SiO₂–Ga₂O₃–11Na₂O–11TPABr–3500H₂O. The crystallinity of [Ga]-MFI was examined using several analytical instruments, such as XRD, XPS, XRF, FT-IR, solid state MAS-NMR, and DTG/DTA. [Ga]-MFI was successfully synthesized under atmospheric pressure at 97°C in 72 h. It was found that the nucleation of [Ga]-MFI took quite a long time, but the crystallization took place very fast. It is supposed that the nucleation is the rate-controlling step in [Ga]-MFI synthesis under atmospheric pressure. Consequently, if the induction period of the nucleation can be shortened, it would be possible to synthesize [Ga]-MFI commercially under atmospheric pressure.     

The analysis of ultrasonic signals by partial discharge and noise from the transformer

This paper presents the analysis of ultrasonic signals by the partial discharge in a model transformer as well as by corona in the air at a shielded high-voltage laboratory. In addition, various noises onsite, a 345-kV substation, were measured and analyzed, for example, the vibration by core magnetostriction, cooling pump, cooling fan, onload tap changer (OLTC) operation, OLTC filtering unit operation, and air discharge pulse by corona on the transmission line. Therefore, electrical and mechanical noises onsite were removed using the proper narrow bandpass filter and the noise discrimination algorithm. Also, the developed online ultrasonic detector was applied to detect partial discharge in a 154-kV transformer with a warning level in C/sub 2/H/sub 2/ gas. As a result of an internal inspection, the source of partial discharge was found at the estimated position based on ultrasonic detection and its reliability was verified.     

A novel retrieval approach reflecting variability of syntactic phrase representation

In this paper, we introduce variability of syntactic phrases and propose a new retrieval approach reflecting the variability of syntactic phrase representation. With variability measure of a phrase, we can estimate how likely a phrase in a given query would appear in relevant documents and control the impact of syntactic phrases in a retrieval model. Various experimental results over different types of queries and document collections show that our retrieval model based on variability of syntactic phrases is very effective in terms of retrieval performance, especially for long natural language queries.     

Empirical correlations between test methods of measuring formaldehyde emission of plywood, particleboard and medium density fiberboard

Since different test methods of measuring the formaldehyde emission (FE) from wood-based composite panels have been used for different countries and regions, this study attempted to establish empirical correlations between three test methods (i.e., 24-hour desiccator, 1 m³ chamber, and perforator) for plywood (PLW), particleboard (PB), and medium density fiberboard (MDF), particularly emphasizing on correlations between the 24-hour desiccator and the 1 m³ chamber method. The desiccator method found statistically high correlations with other two methods, resulting in regression coefficient values ranging from 0.96 to 0.88 for PLW, PB, and MDF samples. In particular, the desiccator method had an empirically high correlation with the 1 m³ chamber method that had been adopted as the reference method of comparing regionally different test methods of measuring the FE of wood-based composite panels by the ISO/TC89.     

Surface modification of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) induced proliferation and neural-like cells differentiation of umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells

Stem cell-based therapy has recently emerged for use in novel therapeutics for incurable diseases. For successful recovery from neurologic diseases, the most pivotal factor is differentiation and directed neuronal cell growth. In this study, we fabricated three different widths of a micro-pattern on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS; 1, 2, and 4 microm). Surface modification of the PDMS was investigated for its capacity to manage proliferation and differentiation of neural-like cells from umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells (UCB-MSCs). Among the micro-patterned PDMS fabrications, the 1 microm-patterned PDMS significantly increased cell proliferation and most of the cells differentiated into neuronal cells. In addition, the 1 microm-patterned PDMS induced an increase in cytosolic calcium, while the differentiated cells on the flat and 4 microm-patterned PDMS had no response. PDMS with a 1 microm pattern was also aligned to direct orientation within 10 degrees angles. Taken together, micro-patterned PDMS supported UCB-MSC proliferation and induced neural like-cell differentiation. Our data suggest that micro-patterned PDMS might be a guiding method for stem cell therapy that would improve its therapeutic action in neurological diseases.     

Metabolic interactions of magnolol with cytochrome P450 enzymes: uncompetitive inhibition of CYP1A and competitive inhibition of CYP2C

Magnolol (MAG; 5,5′-diallyl-2,2′-biphenyldiol) is a major bioactive component of Magnolia officinalis. We investigated the metabolic interactions of MAG with hepatic cytochrome P450 monooxygenase (CYP) through in vitro microsomal metabolism study using human (HLM) and rat liver microsomes (RLM). CYP2C and 3A subfamilies were significantly involved in the metabolism of MAG, while CYP1A subfamily was not in HLM and RLM. The relative contribution of phase I enzymes including CYP to the metabolism of MAG was comparable to that of uridine diphosphate glucuronosyltransferase (UGT) in RLM. Moreover, MAG potently inhibited the metabolic activity of CYP1A (IC₅₀ of 1.62?μM) and 2C (IC₅₀ of 5.56?μM), while weakly CYP3A (IC₅₀ of 35.0?μM) in HLM and RLM. By the construction of Dixon plot, the inhibition type of MAG on CYP activity in RLM was determined as follows: uncompetitive inhibitor for CYP1A (K_i of 1.09–12.0?μM); competitive inhibitor for CYP2C (K_i of 10.0–15.2?μM) and 3A (K_i of 93.7–183?μM). Based on the comparison of the current IC₅₀ and K_i values with a previously reported liver concentration (about 13?μM) of MAG after its seven times oral administration at a dose of 50?mg/kg in rats, it is suggested that MAG could show significant inhibition of CYP1A and 2C, but not CYP3A, in the in vivo rat system. These results could lead to further studies in clinically significant metabolism-mediated MAG–drug interactions.     

Reaction mechanism of partial oxidation of methane to synthesis gas over supported ni catalysts

A mechanistic study on the partial oxidation of methane to synthesis gas (H₂ and CO) was conducted with supported nickel catalysts. To investigate the reaction mechanism, pulse experiments, O₂-TPD, and a comparison of the moles of reactants and products were carried out. From the O₂-TPD experiment, it was observed that the active catalyst in the synthesis gas production desorbed oxygen at a lower temperature. In the pulse experiment, the temperature of the top of the catalyst bed increased with the pulses, whereas the temperature of the bottom decreased. This suggests that there are two kinds of reactions, that is, the total oxidation of methane (exothermic) at the top and reforming reactions (endothermic) at the bottom. From the comparison of the moles of reactants and products, it was found that the moles of CO₂, CH₄ and H₂O decreased as the moles of H₂ and CO increased. The results support the mechanism that synthesis gas is produced through a two-step reaction mechanism: the total oxidation of methane to CO₂ and H₂O takes place first, followed by the reforming reaction of the produced CO₂ and H₂O with residual CH₄ to form synthesis gas. This paper is dedicated to Professor Hyun-Ku Rhee on the occasion of his retirement from Seoul National University.     

Physiological concentrations of trans-11 18:1 vaccenic acid suppress pro-inflammatory markers under acute inflammation in isolated ICR mice splenocytes

Food Science and Biotechnology - Direct influences of dietary trans-11 18:1 vaccenic acid (TVA) at physiological concentrations of 50-200 μM were evaluated for cell growth, cytotoxic activity,...