Multi-laboratory simulator studies on effects of serum proteins on PTFE cup wear

A multi-laboratory, simulator study investigated the wear of polytetrafluorethylene (PTFE) cups run in bovine serum. Each laboratory used its own test protocol with a variety of simulator types. Our wear model incorporated 32 mm dia CoCr heads matched to PTFE cups run with serum protein-concentrations in the range 17–69 mg/ml. The multi-lab data demonstrated that protein-concentration had the most significant effect on wear performance. Both inverted and anatomical cups followed the same trend with first a rapid increase in wear-rates apparent for the initially low-protein levels and then a wear-rate reduction effect becoming apparent beyond 17 mg/ml of proteins. The results showed that as the protein concentration increased from 17 to 69 mg/ml, the magnitude of the wear-rates increased 200% but the protein wear-rate gradient decreased 24–60% with “inverted” and “anatomical” cups, respectively. This effect was more pronounced with ‘anatomical” than “inverted” cups. Thus, the wear-trends with “inverted” cups were generally the more consistent, particularly at the low-protein levels. Increasing the serum volume by two-fold in one study increased the PTFE wear-magnitudes approximately 40% and the protein-wear gradient by 30%. These PTFE wear phenomena were consistent with the concept that low-concentrations of proteins promoted polymer wear but high-protein concentrations resulted in a protein-degradation phenomenon which progressively masked the actual polymer wear. In the selected protein range 17–69 mg/l, the multi-laboratory simulator data consistently overestimated the average clinical wear-rate by at least 50–100% depending on protein range. It would, therefore, appear clinically relevant to study PTFE wear with an inverted-cup model using a large volume of serum but only in low-protein concentrations. The protein-related wear phenomena observed with PTFE cups in this multi-laboratory project may also have relevance for wear-simulation of UHMWPE cups.     

Error Propagation in a Practical Six-Port Device

In this contribution the various influences on the accuracy of the phase measurement unit of a near range precision radar are investigated. The front-end is a monostatic design operating at 34–36.2 GHz. The hardware configuration enables different modes of operation including FM-CW and a single frequency mode with phase and frequency measurement. To achieve a highly accurate distance measurement, attention must be paid to various error sources. Due to the use of a six-port it is rather complicated to determine the corresponding error propagation. In the following the results of investigations on how to achieve an exceptional accuracy of 0.1 mm are described. Especially the error propagation through the six-port is analyzed in detail.     

Development of a statistical method to formulate high‐VI hydraulic oils

Mobile hydraulic equipment is often subjected to a wide range of operating temperatures, and so must be lubricated with oils with a high viscosity index (VI) in order to maximise efficiency. Formulating high‐VI hydraulic oils is a complex task that requires testing numerous intermediate blends in order to achieve the desired viscosity at both low and high temperatures. With the introduction of the ASTM D 6080 hydraulic oil classification, which defines a separate grade at low and high temperature for high‐VI oils, and further includes VI and viscosity measurements after the sonic shear test, formulating high‐VI hydraulic oils has become even more complex. In order to determine the most effective VI improver to meet a given set of viscosity requirements, a large statistically designed experiment has been carried out. Empirical equations have been obtained that can be used to model the blending efficiency of VI improvers at different temperatures and to estimate their shear stability. This paper shows how the results obtained for 42 hydraulic oils have been used to develop a computer program aimed at facilitating the formulation of high‐VI hydraulic oils.     

Transition metal catalysis in fluorous media: application of a new immobilization principle to rhodium-catalyzed hydrogenation of alkenes

Biphase systems were generated by combining toluene solutions of alkenes (2-cyclohexen-1-one, 1-dodecene, cyclododecene, 4-bromostyrene) and CF₃C₆F₁₁ solutions of the pre-catalyst ClRh[P(CH₂CH₂(CF₂)₅CF₃)₃]₃ ((1); 1.1–0.8 mol%) and placed under 1 atm of H₂. The perfluoroalkyl segments in (1) confer high affinities for fluorocarbons. After 8–26 h at 45°C, the CF₃C₆F₁₁ phases were separated, and extracted with an equal volume of toluene. GLC analyses of the toluene solutions showed 98–87% yields of the hydrogenation products cyclohexanone, dodecane, cyclododecane, and 4-bromoethylbenzene (turnover numbers 120–87). The CF₃C₆F₁₁ phases were charged with new toluene solutions of 2-cyclohexen-1-one or 1-dodecene, and similarly treated with H₂. There was no significant loss of catalyst activity over three cycles. A preparative reaction gave cyclohexanone in 89% yield. Some C=C isomerization could be detected during the course of 1-dodecene hydrogenation, and (1) gave a dihydride complex in the absence of alkene.     

CO hydrogenation over Co/SiO2: catalytic tests and surface analysis of adsorbed hydrocarbons

We have studied the CO hydrogenation over a Co/SiO₂ catalyst under mild reaction conditions (up to 4.4 bar total pressure, H₂/CO = 2,T = 483K) and performed a post-reaction analysis of the chemical surface composition by means of secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) and temperature-programmed reaction (TPR) in hydrogen gas. A hydrocarbon chain growth probability α = 0.78 was found in the catalytic studies. The SIMS analysis revealed the existence of individually adsorbed C_xH_y species up to C₈H_y, in accordance with end-on bonding to the catalyst surface. These species were removed from the catalyst surface in the subsequent H₂-TPR experiment. Significant methane desorption occurred at temperatures (⩾500 K) well above those of the longer-chain hydrocarbons indicating either an increasing hydrogenolysis activity of Co metal during H₂-TPR or the presence of a more tightly bound “carbidic” adsorbate under FT conditions. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The cholesterol-lowering effect of guar gum in rats is not accompanied by an interruption of bile acid cycling

A viscous hydrocolloid (guar gum, GG; 2.5% of the diet) or a steroid sequestrant (cholestyramine; 0.5% of the diet) was included in semipurified diets containing 0.2% cholesterol to compare the cholesterol-lowering effects of each agent in rats. In the present model, GG significantly lowered plasma cholesterol (−25%), especially in the density <1.040 kg/L fraction, whereas cholestyramine was less potent. Bile acid fecal excretion significantly increased only in rats fed cholestyramine, similar to the cecal bile acid pool; the biliary bile acid secretion was accelerated by GG, but not their fecal excretion, whereas GG effectively enhanced neutral sterol excretion. As a result, the total steroid balance (+13 μmol/d in the control) was shifted toward negative values in rats fed the GG or cholestyramine diets (−27 or −50 μmol/d, respectively). Both agents induced liver 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase, but cholestyramine was more potent than GG in this respect. The present data suggest that, at a relative low dose in the diet, GG may be more effective than cholestyramine in lowering plasma cholesterol by impairing cholesterol absorption and by accelerating the small intestine/liver cycling of bile acids, which is interestingly, accompanied by reduction of bile acid concentration in the large intestine.     

A multiscale model for polymer crystallization. I: Growth of individual spherulites

In this two-part paper, we present a model for the solidification of semicrystalline thermoplastic polymers that links the microscopic and macroscopic length scales. The model accounts for the important physical phenomena occurring during spherulitic cyrstallization and predicts microstructural evolution. In this first part, we concentrate on the growth of individual spherulites. We present a fast and accurate model that predicts the shape of a spherulite as well as the path of its constitutive lamellae in any thermal situation. In part II of this paper we shall couple this new model for spherulite growth with a nucleation law and a macroscopic heat flow computation, thus enabling us to model realistic crystallization conditions.     

A tensile test device for in situ atomic force microscope mechanical testing

The microstructure and mechanical behavior of polymeric-based materials can be controlled at the micro- and nanometer length scales through blending, copolymerization, and the incorporation of micro- and nanometer particles. To facilitate the study of morphology, deformation mechanisms, and mechanical properties of micro- and nanocomposite materials, a tensile testing machine with an integral commercial atomic force microscope (AFM) was designed and built. This testing machine determines the macroscopic stress–strain behavior of materials under different controlled loading conditions, and simultaneously allows the microscopic structure changes to be observed using the AFM.     

Mapping the field of psychology: Trends in research topics 1995–2015

Scientometrics - We map the topic structure of psychology utilizing a sample of over 500,000 abstracts of research articles and conference proceedings spanning two decades (1995–2015). To do...