STEAM DRYING OF SINTERED SPHERES OF GLASS BEADS

ABSTRACT

Superheated steam drying of sintered spheres of glass beads with different diameters is investigated to reveal the effects of the gravitational force on drying rates. In a previous study, the drying rate curves of small samples with coarse glass beads in which the frictional resistance to flow of water and the effect of the gravitational force are negligible, were predicted by an evaporation zone model.In the present investigation, the drying rate curves of sintered spheres of glass beads with diameters ranging from 1.53×10^-2m to 4.99×lO^-2m are experimentally and theoretically obtained, and also the capillary pressure curves are measured by use of Haines' apparatus. The drying rate curves of large samples in which the effect of the gravitational force can not be negligible, are compared with those for small samples and the difference among these curves is discussed in terms of the moisture distributions which are estimated from the evaporation zone model with the observed capillary pressure curves.     

POROSITY AND RESIDUAL EQUILIBRIUM SATURATION OF SINTERED SPHERES OF GLASS BEADS

Sintered spheres(made of glass beads) were simply produced with a definite diameter, with a precision of ±0·5 mm in diameter, for a wide range of sintered angles (0-27°). The experimental values of the porosity of the sintered spheres were consistent with the calculated results for the coordination number N ≠ 8. The residual equilibrium saturation, as one of the basic physical properties of sintered glass beads was investigated experimentally and theoretically, resulting in the presence of a distribution in the angle of pendular ring.     

Laser-induced shockwave chromatography: a separation and analysis method for nanometer-sized particles and molecules

A microscopic chromatography has been developed where nanometer-size molecules or particles are separated according to their size by the laser-induced shockwave in a water-filled capillary. As the shockwave passed through the mixture of molecules/particles in solution, they move to the direction of the propagation of the shockwave. The distance from the point of shockwave generation depends on the particle size or molecular weight. This technique has some advantages compared to conventional chromatography, in terms of quick analysis of molecular weight and applicability to sticky and adsorbing polymers. Experimental results obtained for proteins, their aggregates, and inorganic nanoparticles are presented.     

The granaticin biosynthetic gene cluster of Streptomyces violaceoruber Tü22: sequence analysis and expression in a heterologous host

BACKGROUND: The granaticins are members of the benzoisochromanequinone class of aromatic polyketides, the best known member of which is actinorhodin made by Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2). Genetic analysis of this class of compounds has played a major role in the development of hypotheses about the way in which aromatic polyketide synthases (PKSs) control product structure. Although the granaticin nascent polyketide is identical to that of actinorhodin, post-PKS steps involve different pyran-ring stereochemistry and glycosylation. Comparison of the complete gene clusters for the two metabolites is therefore of great interest. RESULTS: The entire granaticin gene cluster (the gra cluster) from Streptomyces violaceoruber T-22 was cloned on either of two overlapping cosmids and expressed in the heterologous host, Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2), strain CH999. Chemical analysis of the recombinant strains demonstrated production of granaticin, granaticin B, dihydrogranaticin and dihydrogranaticin B, which are the four known metabolites of S. violaceoruber. Analysis of the complete 39,250 base pair sequence of the insert of one of the cosmids, pOJ466-22-24, revealed 37 complete open reading frames (ORFs), 15 of which resemble ORFs from the act (actinorhodin) gene cluster of S. coelicolor A3(2). Among the rest, nine resemble ORFs potentially involved in deoxysugar metabolism from Streptomyces spp. and other bacteria, and six resemble regulatory ORFs. CONCLUSIONS: On the basis of these resemblances, putative functional assignments of the products of most of the newly discovered ORFs were made, including those of genes involved in the PKS and tailoring steps in the biosynthesis of the granaticin aglycone, steps in the deoxy sugar pathway, and putative regulatory and export functions.     

A study of peripheral airway findings using an ultrathin bronchofiberscope and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid with diffuse panbronchiolitis

A simple analytical model is proposed here that captures to a large extent the kinematic structure of rat exploratory behavior. Previous studies have shown that such behavior consists of regular excursions into the environment from a preferred place termed a home base. In the first part of this study, we showed that with time and repeated exposure to the same large environment, there is a gradual increase in the length of excursions. Concurrently, the rat's velocity pattern changes in a complex yet structured way, which is correlated with the exposure (= familiarity) to places. In this part, we show that the complex pattern described there might be explained by an analytic model, in terms of a simple dynamical system, with few assumptions concerning motivation and learning. The model is studied both by analysis and simulation. The theoretical examination of the dynamics of excursion length suggests that excursion length increases as a linear function of two system parameters, one governing the rate of motivation loss, and the other the rate of (location-specific) familiarization. Combining this theoretical finding with the empirical results suggests that the two theoretical parameters are linearly related: the less confident the rat, the slower its familiarization rate, and thus differences in patterns of movement between rats can be explained using one rat-specific parameter. Furthermore, the more complex velocity pattern of the rat can then be easily captured by the same model. The analyzed behavior of the rat suggests that the locale sensory information that the rat collects has a gradient towards the home base, with decreasing information input away from home base. This sensory pattern emerges from the simple set of rules and restrictions on the rat's exploratory behavior. Thus, instead of imposing a set of ad hoc restrictions on a simulated rat so that its spatial learning is similar to that of a real rat, the model suggests a set of simple intrinsic constraints to govern the exploratory behavior.     

Development of a deep-hole, laser-guide boring tool: the boring of workpieces with a thin wall and an inclined prebored hole

A laser-guided BTA tool has been developed to prevent axial hole deviations. Four kinds of experiments were conducted to examine the performance of this tool in detail and to determine its practical application using a duralumin (A2017-T4) workpiece with a prebored 108-mm diameter hole. The first experiment was performed to examine the conditions of the hole deviation in the case of normal deep-hole boring. The second was to examine whether the tool corrects for the stated hole deviation. The third was to examine whether the tool can go straight through to the target without shifting toward a thin wall (t = 0.7 mm) on one side of the workpiece. The fourth was to examine whether the tool can be guided toward the target without affecting a prebored hole, which was inclined to radial direction at 100 μm for a hole length of 100 mm. The experiments were performed with a rotating tool-stationary workpiece system. Rotational speed was 270 rpm and feed ws 0.125 mm/rev. Tool diameter was 110 mm. The results show that the tool can be guided to go straight through toward the target despite the disturbances.     

Determination of 2,2,2-trichloroethanol in plasma and urine by ion-exclusion chromatography

A simple and rapid chromatographic method has been developed for the determination of 2,2,2-trichloroethanol (TCEOH) and its glucuronide in plasma and urine. A glass column (150 x 6.6 mm i.d.) packed with Aminex A-5 cation-exchange resin (potassium form) following the slurry method was used as the analytical column, and an admixture of 10 mmol l-1 potassium sulfate and 10 mmol l-1 potassium hydroxide solution as the eluent (pH 12.2). Diluted plasma samples and urine samples were directly injected into the chromatograph through a 0.45 micron membrane filter without deproteinization. The amount of TCEOH conjugated to glucuronide was determined following treatment with beta-glucuronidase (200 U) for 30 min at 37 degrees C. This allowed the concentration of free, total, and conjugated TCEOH to be determined. The calibration graph was rectilinear from 5 to 500 mg l-1 of TCEOH, with a detection limit of 3 mg l-1, 2 sigma, being the signal-to-noise ratio. The analytical recovery of TCEOH, obtained by analysing spiked plasma and urine samples, was in the range 98.4-102% and the relative standard deviation was less than 3.5%.     

Concentration distribution of antioxidant additive BHT in polypropylene after heating

The concentration distribution of an antioxidant 2,6-di-tert-butyl-p-cresol (BHT) in the polypropylene (PP) after heating the film containing BHT for a long period of time in succession was studied with use of the rolled film method. The film of 0.003 cm in thickness containing uniformly 710 mg kg^?1 of BHT was wound tightly around a glass tube. At the beginning, BHT was distributed uniformly in all layers, and after a given time of the heat treatment at 70–100°C, a remarkable alteration of the concentration distribution of BHT in PP took place. The relations between BHT concentration and the distance from the surface were shown by parabolic curves after heating. The BHT concentration was always kept at almost zero concentration at the surface layer of the rolled film. Assuming that the diffusion obeys Fick's law, the diffusion coefficients at 70, 80, 90, and 100°C were estimated to be 1.05, 4.17, 8.69, and 24.7 × 10^?9 cm² s^?1, respectively. The activation energy was calculated as 105 kJ mol^?1.