Investigation of the changes in physical properties of PES/PVC fabrics after aging

The aim of this work was to investigate the physical and mechanical performance of architectural polyester (PES)–poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) membranes exposed to different artificial aging conditions. Two commercially available architectural membranes were chosen as research objects. The durability of the PES/PVC fabrics was evaluated by the loss in mechanical performance, scanning electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction analysis in order to understand the effect of the degradation agents on the surface of the membranes. The mechanical performance of the PES/PVC membranes was unchanged. Scanning electron microscopy images of the tested materials showed initial cracks after aging. The X-ray fluorescence analysis showed that at the time of aging, the amount of Cl and Si decreased slightly, while Ti decreased by half, and Ca by volume increased twice. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 47523.     

Solvent fractionation of hard palm stearin to increase the concentration of tripalmitoylglycerol and dipalmitoyl-stearoyl-glycerol as substrates for synthesis of human milk fat substitute

This research aimed to produce triacylglycerols fraction rich in palmitic acid (PA) at the sn-2 position from hard palm stearin (HPS) through acetone fractionation. Fractionations were done at HPS-to-acetone ratios of 1:3, 1:5 and 1:7 (w/v) and at temperatures of 25, 30 and 35 °C for 3 h. Triacylglycerols with PA at the sn-2 position, such as tripalmitoylglycerol (PPP) and dipalmitoyl-stearoyl-glycerol (PPS), were concentrated in the solid fraction, obtained after separation by filtration. The optimal fractionation conditions were at a HPS-to-acetone ratio of 1:5 (w/v) and 30 °C. The total PPP and PPS content was more than 91%, with a corresponding yield of more than 59%. Triacylglycerols obtained were composed of more than 91% PA in which 88% were at the sn-2 position. Conclusively, the solvent fractionation is a suited alternative method for the preparation of triacylglycerols used for the enzymatic synthesis of 1,3-dioleoyl-2-palmitoylglycerol which is the main triacylglycerol for human milk fat substitute.     

Synthesis of Long-Chain β-Lactones and Their Antibacterial Activities against Pathogenic Mycobacteria

In the quest for new antibacterial agents, a series of novel long- and medium-chain mono- and disubstituted β-lactones was developed. Their activity against three pathogenic mycobacteria—M. abscessus, M. marinum, and M. tuberculosis—was assessed by the resazurin microtiter assay (REMA). Among the 16 β-lactones synthesized, only 3-hexadecyloxetan-2-one (VM005) exhibited promising activity against M. abscessus, whereas most of the β-lactones showed interesting activities against M. marinum, similar to that of the classical antibiotic, isoniazid. Regarding M. tuberculosis, six compounds were found to be active against this mycobacterium, with β-lactone VM008 [trans-(Z)-3-(hexadec-7-en-1-yl)-4-propyloxetan-2-one] being the best growth inhibitor. The promising antibacterial activities of the best compounds in this series suggest that these molecules may serve as leads for the development of much more efficient antimycobacterial agents.     

A globally convergent BFGS method for pseudo-monotone variational inequality problems

In this paper, we propose a globally convergent BFGS method to solve Variational Inequality Problems (VIPs). In fact, a globalization technique on the basis of the hyperplane projection method is applied to the BFGS method. The technique, which is independent of any merit function, is applicable for pseudo-monotone problems. The proposed method applies the BFGS direction and tries to reduce the distance of iterates to the solution set. This property, called Fejer monotonicity of iterates with respect to the solution set, is the basis of the convergence analysis. The method applied to pseudo-monotone VIP is globally convergent in the sense that subproblems always have unique solutions, and the sequence of iterates converges to a solution to the problem without any regularity assumption. Finally, some numerical simulations are included to evaluate the efficiency of the proposed algorithm.     

多分量数据全波形反演在气藏检测中的关键问题——以苏里格气田为例

苏里格气田是中国典型的致密砂岩气藏，构造简单、平缓，横向非均质性强，有效储层与围岩声学特征差别小，地震响应不明显，常规地震监测方法预测难度大，但气田含气砂岩泊松比低，是地震气藏检测的有效参数。利用弹性全波形反演精度高和能处理复杂非均质介质的优势，反演地层拉梅常数、剪切模量和密度，并计算泊松比，从而进行气藏预测。重点阐述了苏里格气田多分量数据全波形反演初始模型建模、先验模型建模和地震数据预处理3个关键问题的处理方法。二维三分量数据反演和"甜点"预测结果表明：①对于具有强非均质性的苏里格气田，利用全波形反演获得精度较高的地层弹性参数能显著提高气藏预测的准确度；②苏里格地区构造简单、平缓，利用常规叠加速度并结合构造解释可以建立比较好的初始模型，从而有效地解决了周波跳跃和局部极小的难题；③先验知识的约束和地震数据的预处理是全波形反演成功应用于苏里格气田气藏检测的关键。     

Evaluation of the effect of processing on cocoa polyphenols: antiradical activity,anthocyanins and procyanidins profiling from raw beans to chocolate

The content and composition of anthocyanins and procyanidins in fermented cocoa beans (from different geographic origins: Ecuador, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana and Nigeria), roasted nibs, cocoa mass and chocolate were determined, beside the determination of the total antiradical capacity. Concerning geographic origin, cocoa beans and processed products from Ecuador showed the highest levels of anthocyanins, followed by Nigeria and Cameroon. Generally, as cocoa beans were further processed, the levels of anthocyanins and flavan‐3‐ols decreased. The largest observed losses of phenolics occurred during roasting. A progressive decreasing trend in polyphenol concentration was observed in the other processed samples as well. Despite the original content of polyphenols in raw cocoa beans, technological processes imply a significant impact on cocoa quality, confirming the need of specific optimisation to obtain high value chocolate.     

X-ray electron spectroscopic investigation of the structure of double lead silicate glasses

The method of x-ray electron spectroscopy is used to investigate lead silicatexPbO(1 -x) · SiO₂ (x - 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.55, 0.667) glasses. The concentration dependences of the spectra of inner Pb4f, Si2p, and Ols levels led to the conclusion that for low contents of PbO, lead is present in the glass in the form of modifying ions, whereas in high concentrations, it plays the role of glass former. Restructuring in the glass occurs for about 50% molar concentration of PbO. The Pb - O bond in the glass is more ionic than in PbO. With an increase in the PbO content in the glass, the Pb - O bond becomes closer to that of lead monoxide, i.e., is more covalent.     

The new intra-urban dynamics: Suburbanisation and functional specialisation in French cities

This article examines the relationships between the employment suburbanisation from central cities towards their suburbs, and the process of intra-urban specialisation that occurred simultaneously in the fifty largest French metropolitan areas. A methodology is proposed to identify urban subcentres and to analyse the effects of the intra-urban specialisations on suburbanisation patterns. We conclude that the specialisation of both subcentres and central cities has a significant effect on suburbanisation rates. Lastly, an intra-metropolitan shift/share analysis provides additional insights into the employment dynamics of central cities and suburbs during the last twenty years. Received: 25 July 2000 / Accepted: 29 May 2001