Heat in History The Power Industry's View of Past,Present, and Future Two-Phase Flow Testing

Since 1974, Siemens' Power Generation Group (KWU) has been operating a high-pressure two-phase flow test loop-called the Benson test rig-which offers a range of operating conditions that is unique in the world (1 to 330 bar, 20 to 600°C, and 0 to 2 MW electric heating power). The 25th anniversary of the first tests performed at this test rig presents a good occasion not only for reviewing the past, but also for contemplating the future of two-phase flow experiments. The past was characterized by integral and separate effect tests for power generation using nuclear, fossil, and renewable energy sources as well as for process industries. This article will present examples demonstrating the flexible and broad range of applications for the Benson test rig. The results of the tests have been used to develop algorithms for implementation in computer programs and also for validating such programs. Usually these computer programs-so-called analysis tools-are used for analyzing systems or components. From an analyst's point of view, two-phase flow experiments serve either to verify global flow conditions or to supply inputs such as boundary conditions and material laws and/or initial conditions for the analysis tools. An advanced way of making sure that all available knowledge can be input into the analysis tools is to collect and store it in a program system from which it can be called up, whenever required, according to the task in hand. Siemens' KWU Group has started developing such a system. Apart from integral tests conducted for new power plants, future two-phase flow experiments will probably focus on expanding this program system's database.     

Inhibitors of inducible NO synthase expression: total synthesis of (S)-curvularin and its ring homologues

(S)-Curvularin and its 13-, 14-, and 16-membered lactone homologues were synthesized through a uniform strategy in which a Kochi oxidative decarboxylation and ring-closing metathesis reactions constitute the key processes. In the evaluation of the anti-inflammatory effects of the synthesized compounds in assays using cells stably transfected with a human iNOS promoter-luciferase reporter gene construct, the 14- and 16-membered homologues showed a slightly higher inhibitory effect towards iNOS promoter activity than curvularin itself. However, the larger ring homologues also exhibited higher cytotoxicity, manifest in downregulated eNOS promoter activity. In contrast, the di-O-acetyl and 4-chloro derivatives of (S)-curvularin showed higher inhibitory efficiency towards induction of the iNOS promoter and less negative effect on eNOS promoter activity than curvularin.     

Role of membrane pore size in tertiary flocculation/adsorption/ultrafiltration treatment of municipal wastewater

Flocculation, adsorption onto powered activated carbon (PAC), and ultrafiltration (UF), alone and in combination, were tested for tertiary treatment of the secondary effluent from municipal wastewater treatment at the Ashkelon plant (in southern Israel). Encouraging and reliable results of total organic carbon (TOC) of <3 mg/l were achieved with a combination of 130 mg/l FeCl₃, 0.6 g/l PAC and UF. The relative contribution of the UF membrane to the reduction of TOC changed with the molecular weight cut-off (MWCO) of the membrane, from a negligible 2.9% for a 100-kDa-MWCO membrane to 17% for 10- and 2-kDa membranes. The latter membranes, however, developed significant fouling, with a 35% drop in flux during first 30 min of the filtration cycle. The flux drop for the 50- and 100-kDa membranes was in the low range of 3%. The optimal MWCO interval of 20- to 50-kDa in combination with flocculation/PAC pretreatment gave a significant reduction in organic content with minimal membrane fouling. Detailed GC–MS analysis showed that the combined treatment gave very efficient retention of organic compounds with molecular weights below 800 Da, with the consequent absence of harmful compounds in the tertiary effluent. It was therefore concluded that the recommended flocculation/adsorption protocol constitutes an effective pretreatment for UF and that the obtained tertiary effluent can be used for unrestricted irrigation.     

2-nitroglycals as powerful glycosyl donors: application in the synthesis of biologically important molecules

[Reaction: see text]. The biological significance of oligosaccharides and glycoconjugates is profound and wide-ranging. For example, the mucins have attracted attention because of their role in fundamental cellular processes such as fertilization, parasitic infection, inflammation, immune defense, cell growth, and cell-cell adhesion. Increased expression of mucins is implicated in malignant transformation of cells. Antifreeze glycoproteins also are of interest because they are important for the survival of many marine teleost fishes that live in polar and subpolar waters. The synthesis of glycoconjugates requires methods for glycoside bond formation, the most difficult aspect of which is the assembly of monosaccharide building blocks. This Account discusses a valuable addition to the repertoire of methods for glycoconjugate synthesis: an approach that involves 2-nitroglycal concatenation. For a long time, methods for glycosylation via glycosyl donor generation required either an anomeric oxygen exchange reaction or anomeric oxygen retention. In the case of an anomeric oxygen exchange reaction, activation of the glycosyl donors demands a promoter in at least equimolar amounts. However, anomeric oxygen retention, such as base-catalyzed formation of O-glycosyl trichloroacetimidates, can be activated by catalytic amounts of acid or Lewis acid. Alternatively, glycals, which are readily available from sugars, can be an attractive starting material for glycoside bond formation. Their nucleophilic character at C-2 permits reactions with oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur electrophiles that under high substrate stereocontrol generally lead to three-membered rings; ring opening under acid catalysis furnishes the corresponding glycosides, whichdepending on the electrophile Xare also employed for 2-deoxyglycoside synthesis. Glycals also can be transformed into derivatives that have at C-2 an electron-withdrawing group and are amenable to Michael-type addition. A good example are 2-nitroglycals. In this case, glycoside bond formation is achieved under base catalysis and leads to 2-deoxy-2-nitroglycosides. These intermediates are readily converted into 2-amino-2-deoxyglycosides, which are constituents of almost all glycoconjugates. This 2-nitroglycal concatenation has been extensively investigated with 2-nitrogalactal derivatives. When alcohols are used as nucleophiles and strong bases used as catalysts, the result is primarily or exclusively the alpha-galacto-configured adducts. Some studies show that weaker bases may lead to preferential formation of the beta-galacto-configured products instead. The reaction was very successfully extended to other nucleophiles and also to other 2-nitroglycals that undergo base-catalyzed stereoselective Michael-type additions. Thus, 2-nitroglycals are versatile synthons in glycoconjugate and natural-products synthesis, and it is foreseeable that many more applications will be based on these readily available and highly functionalized skeletons.     

Deeper Insight into Structures of Modified AEROSIL Particles Synthesized via Conventional Heating and Microwave Heating

The contribution deals with the comparison of microwave heating and conventional oil bath heating. Silicon dioxide nanoparticles were grafted with MPTMS under acid conditions. Those particles contain a polysiloxane shell with physically adsorbed and chemically bound fractions which can be separated by Soxhlet extraction. The resulting fractions were analyzed with TGA and MALDI‐TOF MS; one to determine the amount of physically adsorbed and chemically bound fractions and the other to get deeper insight into the polysiloxane structures. Furthermore, it was our aim to clarify which fraction can be visualized using MALDI‐TOF MS. Our results show that the ratio of chemically bound MPTMS is higher when using microwave heating, but the same structures in the physically adsorbed fraction were built in both cases.

     

Polymer/Clay Nanocomposites: Influence of Ionic Strength on the Structure and Adhesion Characteristics in Multilayered Films

The aim of the present contribution is to understand how ionic strength, brought by the addition of salt to laponite/PEO nanocomposite dispersions, influences the texture and adhesion characteristics at nano‐ and microscales in multilayered nanocomposite films prepared from such dispersions. At the nano‐scale, SAXS and XRD measurements indicated that the clay platelets orient parallel to the film plane and that the polymer chains intercalate the clay platelets regardless of salt addition. A gradual transition from an agglomerated structure, containing polymer‐rich and clay‐rich domains, to a fine‐balanced structure with smaller distinct details without excess PEO was observed, via AFM, on the exposed edges of cryo‐microtomed films with increasing ionic strength.

     

Catch strip assay for the relative assessment of two-dimensional protein association kinetics

Accurate interpretation of recruitment rate measurements of microscale particles, such as cells and microbeads, to biofunctional surfaces is difficult because factors such as uneven ligand distributions, particle collisions, variable particle fluxes, and molecular-scale surface separation distances obfuscate the ability to link the observed particle behavior with the governing nanoscale biophysics. We report the development of a hydrodynamically conditioned micropattern catch strip assay to measure microparticle recruitment kinetics. The assay exploited patterning within microfluidic channels and the mechanostability of selectin bonds to create reaction geometries that confined a microbead flux to within 200 nm of the surface under flow conditions. Systematic control of capillary action enabled the creation of homogeneous or gradient ligand distributions. The method enabled the measurement of particle recruitment rates (keff, s-1) that were primarily determined by the interaction of the biomolecular pair being investigated. The method is therefore well suited for relative measurements of delivery vehicle and cellular recruitment potential as governed by surface-bound molecules.     

Two-laser, large-field hyperspectral microarray scanner for the analysis of multicolor microarrays

We describe the development and operation of a two-laser, large-field hyperspectral scanner for analysis of multicolor genotyping microarrays. In contrast to confocal microarray scanners, in which wavelength selectivity is obtained by positioning band-pass filters in front of a photomultiplier detector, hyperspectral microarray scanners collect the complete visible emission spectrum from the labeled microarrays. Hyperspectral scanning permits discrimination of multiple spectrally overlapping fluorescent labels with minimal use of optical filters, thus offering important advantages over standard filter-based multicolor microarray scanners. The scanner uses two-sided oblique line illumination of microarrays. Two lasers are used for the excitation of dyes in the visible and near-infrared spectral regions. The hyperspectral scanner was evaluated with commercially available two-color calibration slides and with in-house-printed four-color microarrays containing dyes with spectral properties similar to their commercial genotyping array counterparts.     

Operation of an X-ray Transition-Edge Sensor Cooled by Tunnel Junction Refrigerators

We demonstrate successful cooling of an X-ray transition-edge sensor (TES) using solid-state refrigerators based on normal-metal/insulator/superconductor (NIS) tunnel junctions. Above the TES transition temperature (T _c ), we use Johnson-noise thermometry to measure the cooling performance. In this regime, the NIS refrigerators cool the TES from 300 mK to 220 mK and from 220 mK to T _c =160 mK. Below T _c , we also observe cooling and demonstrate that the operation of the NIS refrigerators introduces no detectable noise into the TES readout. Contribution of an agency of the U.S. government; not subject to copyright.