Factors affecting the optical properties of Pd-free Au–Pt-based dental alloys

The optical properties of experimental Au-Pt-based alloys containing a small amount of In, Sn, and Zn were investigated by spectrophotometric colorimetry to extract factors affecting color of Au-Pt-based high-karat dental alloys. It was found that the optical properties of Au-Pt-based alloys are strongly affected by the number of valence electrons per atom in an alloy, namely, the electron:atom ratio, e/a. That is, by increasing the e/a-value, activities of reflection in the long-wavelength range and absorption in the short-wavelength range in the visible spectrum apparently increased. As a result, the maximum slope of the spectral reflectance curve at the absorption edge, which is located near 515 nm (approximately 2.4 eV), apparently increased with e/a-value. Due to this effect, the b*-coordinate (yellow-blue) in the CIELAB color space considerably increased and the a*-coordinate (red-green) slightly increased with e/a-value. The addition of a third element with a higher number of valence electrons to the binary Au-Pt alloy is, therefore, effective in giving a gold tinge to the parent Au-Pt alloy. This information may be useful in controlling the color of Au-Pt-based dental alloys.     

Mesoporous activated carbon as electrode for electric double layer capacitor

Mesoporous activated carbon with high surface area (AC-Y-A) was prepared by carbonization followed by activation of vinylidene chloride copolymer containing yttrium acetylacetonate. Their performances as electrodes for electric double layer capacitor (EDLC) in tetraalkylammonium tetrafluoroborate (R₄NBF₄)/propylene carbonate (PC) or acetonitrile (AN) solutions were evaluated and compared with those of microporous activated carbons [AC and AC(CO₂)]. The specific EDLC capacitances of the mesoporous AC-Y-A are almost the same as those of microporous AC at low discharge current. However, at high discharge current, the specific capacitance of AC-Y-A is much higher than those of both AC and AC(CO₂) in PC and AN solutions. The capacitances decreased with increasing alkyl chain length of R₄ N⁺ ions and discharge current. These results suggest that EDLC capacitance depends on pore size of activated carbons and smooth movement of R₄ N⁺ ions in pores.     

Nondestructive readout of a photorefractive hologram by phase-conjugate copying in a one-crystal configuration

We propose a novel phase-conjugate copying method for nondestructive readout of a volatile photorefractive hologram. In the one-crystal configuration, two holographic memories and a mutually pumped phase conjugator (MPPC) are formed within a single photorefractive crystal, instead of using multiple crystals. Two memories share the same hologram and complement each other in refreshing the hologram. A MPPC suppresses fanning noise and automatically aligns the wavefront of the reference and readout beams. We found the optimum configuration to achieve nondestructive readout from calculations and geometric consideration. In the experiments with a BaTiO(3) crystal, a continuous readout of 20 times longer than the recording time was achieved.     

Synthesis of calcium phosphate hydrogel from waste incineration fly ash and bone powder

Waste incineration fly ash and bone powder could be successfully recycled into calcium phosphate hydrogel, a type of fast proton conductor. Various properties of the intermediate and calcium phosphate hydrogel from them were characterized and compared with that from calcium carbonate reagent. It was found that the intermediate from the incineration fly ash and calcium phosphate glass was more brittle than that from bone powder and calcium carbonate reagent. The electric conductivity of crystallized hydrogel obtained from all raw materials increases exponentially with temperature. However, the crystallized hydrogel from incineration fly ash has lower electric conductivity and lower crystallinity than that from bone powder and the reagent. Moreover, the difference in electric conductivity between these crystallized hydrogels decreases with temperature. Compared with using the reagent as a raw material, bone powder provides a 25% reduction in the usage of H(3)PO(4) to acquire the crystallized hydrogel which has the highest conductivity. These experimental results suggest that the incineration fly ash and bone powder are useful calcium sources for the synthesis of calcium phosphate hydrogel.     

Critical current test results of 13 T-46 kA Nb3Al cable-in-conduit conductor

In the framework of ITER-EDA, a 13 T-46 kA Nb₃Al conductor with stainless steel jacket has been developed in order to demonstrate applicability of an Nb₃Al conductor with react-and-wind technique to ITER-TF coils. Using a 3.5 m sample consisting of a pair of conductors with 0% and 0.4% bending strain, the critical current performances of the Nb₃Al conductors were studied to verify that the conductor achieves the expected performance and the bending strain of 0.4% does not originate degradation. The critical currents were measured at background magnetic fields of 7, 9, 10 and 11 T at temperatures from 6 to 9 K. The expected critical currents were evaluated taking into account the variation of the strain in the cross-section due to the bending strain as well as self-field and non-uniform current distribution as results of an imbalance in the joint resistance and inductances. The calculation results indicate that the current distribution is almost uniform and the experimental results showed good agreement with the expected critical currents. Accordingly, we can conclude that the fabrication process of this conductor is appropriate and the react-and-wind technique using the Nb₃Al conductor is applicable to ITER-TF coils. In addition, the critical current of the Nb₃Al conductor is expected to be 108 kA at 13 T and 4.5 K, resulting in a sufficient margin against the nominal current of 46 kA. Furthermore, it was found that the decrease in the critical current by thermal strain can be made small by applying the bending strain to the conductor so as to reduce the compressive strain at higher fields, i.e. inner side of the coil, in the conductor cross-section.     

Analysis of current and voltage distribution in the first Japanese qualification sample of an ITER TF conductor

The critical currents of the Japanese ITER TF conductors made through an internal-tin and bronze process were preliminarily estimated to be about 5.7 K, which approximates the design value of 5.7 K, and about 6.1 K, respectively, at 68 kA and 11.8 T using a short conductor sample. To investigate the influence of the current distribution in the sample conductor, a simulation was performed using a lumped circuit model of a cable and static electrical field model for jackets. The simulation results show that a large, non-uniform current distribution is established due to magneto-resistance of the copper in the joint and an imbalance of contact resistance of the strands to the copper and by poor soldering between the copper shoes, results which make a precise evaluation of the critical current performance difficult. The analytical results indicate that the current sharing temperature of the internal-tin and bronze process conductors is expected to be 6.0 K and 6.7 K, respectively, when the current distribution is uniform. In addition, solder filling of the joints makes the current distribution uniform due to the normal resistance in the high field zone, and the current sharing temperature can be estimated as almost the same as when the current distribution is uniform. The other possible solution is to use a thin copper plate with a low RRR to reduce the influence of magneto-resistance and any non-uniformity in contact resistance. Conductor performance is under-estimated in this case because the non-uniform current distribution still remains. However, the reduction in the estimated current sharing temperature is expected to be a few hundred milli-Kelvins, which seems acceptable as a margin in a qualification trial.     

Estimation of the global net primary productivity using NOAA images and meteorological data: changes between 1988 and 1993

A model for net primary productivity (NPP) estimation was developed based on a relationship between NPP estimated by the Chikugo model and the intensity-sum of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) multiplied by the solar radiation during growth periods. There was a clear linear relationship between the estimated NPP and the intensity-sum (R ²=0.845), whose slope indicated the average light use efficiency (LUE) of global plants. The NPP estimation model (NDVI-based model), which included growth multipliers of optimum air temperature and soil water stress on vegetation growth with LUE, was developed. NDVI anomalies caused by scattering of volcanic ash from Mt Pinatubo were reduced by a correction based on intensity matching of channels 1 and 2 individually. NDVI retrieved a seasonal change pattern in 1991 and 1992 after the correction. Global NPP between 1988 and 1993 was estimated using the NDVI-based model, corrected NDVI, air temperature and soil water content data. There was a linear relationship between the estimated NPP and NPP observed in forests in China. The average global NPP during the 6 years was about 123?Pg dry weight per year, and the maximum and minimum NPP appeared in 1991 and 1988, respectively.     

Theoretical calculation of uncertainty region based on the general size distribution in the preparation of standard reference particles for particle size measurement

In order to confirm the reliability of particle size measurement technique and to prepare standard reference particles for calibrating particle size measurement devices, experimental and theoretical studies have been conducted about the uncertainty region of particle size measurement for the general particle size distribution. A new theoretical equation to calculate fundamental uncertainty region in the case that the maximum and minimum particle sizes are known, is derived based on Tschebyscheff theory. The uncertainty regions calculated based on the proposed method are applied to poly-disperse particles and a picket-fence distribution composed of two kinds of nearly mono-disperse particles.For the poly-disperse particles, the uncertainty region increases with the increase in particle diameter. For the picket-fence distribution composed of two kinds of nearly mono-disperse particles, the uncertainty region increases around the intermediate particle diameters between the two kinds of particles.Numerical simulation of uncertainty region for the picket-fence distribution has also been carried out. The uncertainty region decreases with the increase in sample size or the decrease in geometric standard deviation.     

Quinine Actinometry as a Method for Calibrating Ultraviolet Radiation Intensity in Light-Stability Testing of Pharmaceuticals

A collaborative study was carried out by seven different laboratories to evaluate quinine actinometry as a universal, standardized method for calibrating UV radiation intensity from light sources used in light-stability testing of pharmaceutical products. Near UV fluorescent lamps, white fluorescent lamps, metal halide lamps and xenon arc lamps were employed as light sources. The increase in absorbance at 400 nm of aqueous quinine solutions was found to be proportional to the integrated UV energy emitted from the light sources. The linearity observed between absorbance and integrated UV energy indictates that quinine actinometry can be used to measure the intensity of UV radiation at wavelengths around 330 nm. The slopes of regression curves of absorbance vs integrated UV energy varied among the lamps used due to differing spectral distributions. Light degradation of nifedipine, a model photosensitive drug, was studied based on quinine actinometry.