Mass transfer in polycrystalline ytterbium monosilicate under oxygen potential gradients at high temperatures

Mass transfer in polycrystalline Yb₂SiO₅ wafers with precise composition control was evaluated and analyzed by oxygen permeation experiments at high temperatures using an oxygen tracer. Oxygen permeation proceeded due to mutual grain boundary diffusion of oxide ions and Yb ions without synergistic effects such as acceleration or suppression. The oxygen shielding properties of Yb₂SiO₅ were compared with those of the other line compounds such as Yb₂Si₂O₇ and Al₂O₃ based on the determined mass transfer parameters. It was found that the more preferentially an oxide ion diffuses in the grain boundary compared to the interior of the grain, the greater the effect of suppressing the movement of the oxide ion by applying an oxygen potential gradient becomes.     

The role of Mn2+-rich hydrous manganese oxide in the accumulation of arsenic in lake sediments

Arsenic is present at high concentrations in the upper layer of Lake Biwa sediments and shows a depth profile similar to that of Mn. Adsorption experiments of As onto synthetic hydrous Mn oxide (HMO) in the presence of Mn²⁺ and the speciation of Mn in the sediment cores, suggest that the accumulation of As at the sediment surface results from post-depositional migration of arsenite in the sediment pore water followed by oxidation to arsenate at the sediment surface and adsorption onto Mn²⁺-rich HMO.     

Boronic acid‐based thin films that show saccharide‐responsive multicolor changes

A novel saccharide sensor that displays a distinct color change resembling a “traffic signal” was developed. By copolymerizing boronic acid and amine monomers on a glass plate, a boronic acid‐containing thin film was obtained. Anionic blue and yellow dyes were adsorbed on the thin film, and the film was immersed in aqueous saccharide solutions containing a cationic red dye. With increase in the saccharide concentration in the solution, the thin film changes color from green to red via yellow. The observed distinct changes in color were attributed to a stepwise release and binding of dyes. The sensitivity of the saccharide sensor was dependent on the monomer composition of the thin film and increased with increasing the boronic acid content. The pH of the saccharide solution was another key factor affecting the sensing behavior, and glucose‐responsive color changes were significantly enhanced at pH 7.8. By optimizing these conditions, significant color changes in response to glucose were achieved. Saccharide selectivity was found to be in the following order: fructose > glucose > galactose = mannose > sucrose. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 42679.     

Supramolecular Ligands for Histone Tails by Employing a Multivalent Display of Trisulfonated Calix[4]arenes

Post‐translational modification of histone tails plays critical roles in gene regulation. Thus, molecules recognizing histone tails and controlling their epigenetic modification are desirable as biochemical tools to elucidate regulatory mechanisms. There are, however, only a few synthetic ligands that bind to histone tails with substantial affinity. We report CA2 and CA3, which exhibited sub‐micromolar affinity to histone tails (especially tails with a trimethylated lysine). Multivalent display of trisulfonated calix[4]arene was important for strong binding. CA2 was applicable not only to synthetic tail peptides but also to endogenous histone proteins, and was successfully used to pull‐down endogenous histones from nuclear extract. These findings indicate the utility of these supramolecular ligands as biochemical tools for studying chromatin regulator protein and as a targeting motif in ligand‐directed catalysis to control epigenetic modifications.     

Analysis of Energy Saving and Environmental Characteristics of Electric Vehicles in Regionally Disaggregated World Energy Model

This paper investigates the impact of an extensive introduction of electric vehicles (EV) and plug‐in hybrid vehicles (PHEV) into the global energy system by 2050. The significant growth of automobile ownership in emerging countries is likely to increase world oil demand and the associated carbon dioxide emissions. In order to address these energy, security, and environmental concerns, the deployment of clean energy vehicles, such as EV and PHEV, is expected to play a crucial role due to their high fuel efficiency. Consequently, we develop both a global energy system model and a world vehicle penetration model, which can explicitly analyze the impact of EV introduction into the seasonal daily electric load curve, with consideration of the specific electricity charging profile through 2050. The simulation results confirm that EV deployment contributes to energy conservation, because oil demand reduction outstrips the growth in electricity demand and the associated fuel input into the power generation mix. Concerning carbon dioxide abatement, the magnitude of the impact relies on the carbon intensity of the power generation mix. If the intensity is low enough to guarantee a carbon mitigation effect due to EV fuel saving, emissions reduction is well assured. It should be noted, however, that in regions with high carbon intensity in the power generation mix, carbon emissions per mileage of EVs is almost equivalent to that of efficient gasoline vehicles such as hybrid vehicles, and the figure for PHEV is slightly higher than for hybrid vehicles. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 186(4): 20–36, 2014; Published online in Wiley Online Library ( wileyonlinelibrary.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.22373     

Study on FBR core concepts to increase proliferation resistance of plutonium in LWR–FBR transition period

The possibility to enhance proliferation resistance of discharged plutonium in fast breeder reactor (FBR) has been investigated in terms of reactor core-design aspects. The provisional target for proliferation resistance measures based on Saito's attractiveness (ATTR) is defined. It is found that a few percent of plutonium loading and/or Am/Cm loading, which come from various types of spent fuel, might satisfy the provisional target with a minimum impact on the core neutronic performances. On Am/Cm loading core, decay heat constraints for fuel-handling aspects are found to be important and should be considered in design. There is not significant change on the current developing scenarios for light water reactor–FBR transition period by applying the measures based on Saito's ATTR. It is found that applying Kimura's proposal, 15% ²³⁸Pu content requires about 7% MA loading fraction both in the core and the blanket, and it only can be applied at limited case. The period to consume minor actinides is shorter than to consume plutonium.     

Total-reflection active-mirror amplifier for high pulse energy and high average power by using a composite ceramic

A total-reflection active-mirror (TRAM) amplifier is functionally designed by using a composite ceramic for high pulse energy and high average power. A chirped-pulse regenerative amplifier with a cryogenic TRAM has been successfully demonstrated as a feasibility study. A 3.5 mJ pulse energy is obtained at a repetition rate of 100 Hz. The corresponding energy fluence on the TRAM is as high as 1.5 J/cm² for 0.46 ns short pulses. The M²-factor is below 1.1 and no significant beam distortion is observed.