Structural studies on γ-MnO2 by transmission electron microscopy

Single-crystal electron diffraction patterns were obtained on five specimens of -MnO₂: one natural, two electrolytical (EMD) and two chemical (CMD) samples. EMDs are best described by the orthorhombic structure proposed by De Wolff which is derived from the ramsdellite structure. A CMD prepared from MnCO₃ fits the hexagonal cell of -MnO₂. Flaky grains from the natural sample and fibres from a CMD prepared from Mn(NO₃)₂ are hexagonal with a new cell:a 0.494,c 0.539 nm. No simple relation between chemical composition, morphology and structure could be found.     

SOLUBILITY AND DIFFUSIVITY OF GASES IN AN ORGANIC SOLUTION OF AMINE

Solubilities and diffusivities of carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide in a mixture of toluene and isopropanol organic solution of cyclohexylamine were measured at 20°C in the range of pressures of solute from 1 to 3 bars. This was performed with an original chromatographic technique taking into account the presence of the product of the reaction.     

Applying storm water management in Greek cities: learning from the European experience

This paper is based on the studies forming part of the European research project DayWater, which aims at the promotion of stormwater source control (participating countries: UK, France, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, The Netherlands and Greece). Source control techniques include all techniques (e.g. retention, infiltration, reuse) of stormwater treatment near its source, in contrast to end-of-pipe. In this paper we present: the different stormwater management issues across Europe; the specific stormwater management issues in Greece; source control techniques applied in European cities; Public policies for promoting source control techniques; Strategies of application of the aforementioned techniques and policies in Greek cities. In Greece, the question of stormwater treatment has not yet attracted a lot of attention. Wastewater management, flood prevention and fresh water scarcity issues are given priority instead. However source control stormwater management can contribute to the solution of all these problems. In many European cities source control techniques have been chosen for stormwater treatment because: a) they are less expensive than massive end-of-pipe treatment installations, b) they are more compatible with the natural water cycle, c) they reduce the overall stormwater flow and thus permit the expansion of cities without requesting reconstruction of the existing sewer networks. Different policy instruments (taxes, specific regulations and controls, information campaigns) have been applied in order to promote source control techniques. The main objective of this work is to discuss the possibility of applying similar techniques and policies in Greek cities.     

Plasma modification of cellulose derivatives as biomaterials

A film of cellulose acetate was submitted to a cold plasma of tetrafluoromethane or of sulfur hexafluoride. The interactions of these cold plasmas and cellulose acetate lead to a material whose surface has been modified by fluorination. Comparison of CF₄ or SF₆ plasma treatment shows that fluorine atoms provided by each kind of plasma induce degradation and grafting of fluorocarbon radicals on the surface. As a consequence, the surface energy decreases and offers the possibility of a better response of plasma-modified cellulose derivatives used as biomaterials (e.g. hemodialysis membrane).     

Reducing control points in lofted B-spline surface interpolation using common knot vector determination

A new algorithm for reducing control points in lofted surface interpolation to rows of data points is presented in this paper. The key step of surface lofting is to obtain a set of compatible B-spline curves interpolating each row. Given a set of points and their parameterization, a necessary and sufficient condition is proposed to determine the existence of interpolating B-spline curves defined on a given knot vector. Based on this condition, we first properly construct a common knot vector that guarantees the existence of interpolating B-spline curves to each row of points. Then we calculate a set of interpolating B-spline curves defined on the common knot vector by energy minimization. Using this method, fewer control points are employed while maintaining a visually pleasing shape of the lofted surface. Several experimental results demonstrate the usability and quality of the proposed method.     

Engineering of protein epitopes: a single deletion in a snake toxin generates full binding capacity to a previously unrecognized antibody

Structural features associated with the ability of a monoclonalantibody (mAb) to discriminate between protein variants areidentified and engineered. The variants are the curaremimetictoxin from Naja nigricollis and erabutoxin a or b from Laticaudasemifasciata which differ from each other by 16 substitutionsand one insertion. The neutralizing mAb M1 recognizes with highaffinity a topographical epitope on the surface of toxin , butfails to recognize the erabutoxins although they possess mostof the residues forming the presumed epitope. Examinations ofthe toxin and erabutoxin 3-D structures and molecular dynamicssimulations reveal several differences between the variants.In particular, the region involving the ß-turn 17–24is organized differently. Analysis of the differences foundin this region suggests that the insertion (or deletion) atposition 18 of the variant amino add sequences is particularlyimportant in determining the differential cross-reactivity.To test this proposal, residue 18 was deleted in one erabutoxinusing sitedirected mutagenesis, and the biological propertiesof the resulting mutant were examined. We found that full antigenicitywas restored in the previously unrecognized variant. The implicationsof this finding are discussed.     

Effect of porosity and hydrostatic pressure on water absorption in a semicrystalline fluoropolymer

This paper discusses the effect of porosity and hydrostatic pressure on diffusion kinetics and equilibrium water uptake in a semicrystalline fluoropolymer. Water sorption experiments at atmospheric pressure and under water pressures up to 250 MPa were carried out during 18 months at 40 °C on reference and porous samples. Porosity of samples was induced due to a cavitation process occurring at the highest triaxiality area of waisted and notched specimens during tensile tests. Water uptake was found to be very sensitive to porosity, showing an increase in samples with a high void fraction. On the other hand, water content decreased with increasing pressure suggesting a compaction of the porous space in which water can be stored. Two models describing this water uptake behaviour were considered. The first is a classical model which assumes that sorption occurs only by diffusion following Fick’s law. Fick’s model was found to be in agreement with the experimental results. A “Langmuir-type” sorption model was also proposed to describe water uptake in porous samples, considering a two-phase water transport mechanism: one portion of the absorbed water diffuses through the polymer matrix and the other portion is stored in voids. This model was implemented in a user subroutine using ABAQUS? software and simulations were confronted to experimental sorption curves showing satisfactory agreements. The potential of the Langmuir-type sorption model resides on its availability to be coupled to a poro-mechanical model, in order to improve the understanding of coupling between the mechanical behaviour and water sorption mechanism in a porous polymer.     

A new method for identifying and validating features from 2D sectional views

Feature identification is one of the key steps for 3D solids reconstruction from 2D vector engineering drawings using the volume-based method. In this paper, we propose a novel method to identify and validate features from sectional views. First, features are classified as explicit features (EPFs) and implicit features (IPFs), which are then identified in an order of priority using heuristic hints. We show that the problem of constructing EPFs can be formulated as a 0-1 integer linear program (ILP), and the IPFs are generated based on the understanding of semantic information of omitted projections in sectional views. Then, the Loop-Relation Graph (LRG) is introduced as a multi-connected-subgraph representation for describing the relations between loops and features. According to the LRG, a reasoning technique based on confidence is implemented to interactively validate features. This method can recover features without complete projections, and the level of understanding sectional views is improved. Full sections, partial sections, offset sections as well as revolved sections can be handled by our method. Several examples are provided to demonstrate the practicability of our approach.     

A mass spectrometric strategy for profiling glycoproteinoses, Pompe disease, and sialic acid storage diseases

Glycoproteinoses, Pompe disease, and sialic acid storage diseases are characterized by a massive accumulation of unprocessed oligosaccharides and/or glycoconjugates in urine. The identification of these glycocompounds is essential for a proper diagnosis. In this study, we investigated the potential of MALDI‐TOF‐MS to identify glycocompounds present in urine from patients with different inborn errors of glycan metabolism. Urinary glycocompounds were permethylated, and analyzed using GC‐MS and MALDI‐TOF‐MS. In order to confirm tentative assignments, a second aliquot of urine was purified on a C18 Sep‐Pak cartridge and glycocompounds were desalted on a column of nonporous graphitized carbon. The glycocompounds were then sequentially on‐plate digested using an array of exoglycosidases. A range of disease‐specific oligosaccharides as well as glycopeptides was identified for all oligosacchariduria models. In addition, free sialic acid accumulated in urine from a patient suffering from French‐type sialuria, has been detected by a GC‐MS approach, which could be applied to other sialic acid storage diseases. This procedure is simple, and can be performed in few simple steps in less than 24 h. This current method can be applied for newborn screening for other inherited metabolic diseases as well as for assessing treatments in clinical trials.