Insight into the Heparin–Toluidine Blue (C.I. Basic Blue 17) interaction

Heparin–Toluidine Blue (C.I. Basic Blue 17) interaction was studied using UV–vis spectroscopic analysis of the titration of the functional groups present on the polyanion chain. The study took into consideration both the pH and relative amount of the dye as a function of the Heparin repeat unit number; formation of a dye/polysaccharide aggregate was studied under the same conditions and structural models of the two types of aggregates were proposed. As a consequence of such an investigation a new Heparin determination methodology was developed.     

Epoxy networks based on solutions of silsesquioxanes functionalized with 3-glycidoxypropyl groups in diglycidylether of bisphenol A (DGEBA)

Summary In previous publications we reported the synthesis and characterization of silsesquioxanes derived from the hydrolytic condensation of (3-glycidoxypropyl) trimethoxysilane (GPMS) using diglycidylether of bisphenol A (DGEBA) as a solvent [1,2]. The reaction product has aliphatic epoxy groups supplied by the silsesquioxane and aromatic epoxy groups supplied by the solvent. Solutions containing 0, 25 and 50% aliphatic epoxy groups, were cured with different hardeners: methyltetrahydrophthalic anhydride (MTHPA), ethylenediamine (EDA) and benzyldimethylamine (BDMA). Silsesquioxane-modified epoxy networks showed a significant increase in the elastic modulus in the rubbery state, the abrasion resistance and the development of strain hardening in uniaxial compression tests. Received: 28 September 2000/Accepted: 27 October 2000     

Effects of drying conditions on some physical properties of soy protein films

The influence of drying conditions (air temperature and relative humidity) on mechanical properties, solubility in water, and color of two kinds of soy protein isolate film: a commercial one (CSPI) and other obtained under laboratory conditions (LSPI) were evaluated using the response surface methodology (RSM). Soy protein films were prepared by casting using glycerol as plasticizer. The films were dried in a chamber with air circulation under controlled conditions of relative humidity (24%, 30%, 45%, 60%, 66%) and air temperature (34, 40, 55, 70, 76 °C). It was verified that mechanical properties of films made from LSPI and CSPI are influenced in a very different way by the drying conditions due to a diverse initial protein conformation in both materials, as was revealed by DSC and SDS–Page studies. The solubility of the LSPI film was affected by temperature and relative humidity, being lowest (～50%) for films obtained at high RH and temperatures ranging from 45 to 76 °C. For CSPI films, in contrast, solubility did not depend on the drying process and it remained relatively constant (～40%). The optimal drying conditions determined by RSM were: 70 °C and 30% RH for CSPI films and 60 °C and 60% RH for LSPI films. Dried under these conditions, CSPI films presented a higher tensile strength, lower elongation at break, lower solubility and better water and oxygen permeability than LSPI ones.     

Evaluation of thermal parameters and simulation of a solar-powered,solid-sorption chiller with a CPC collector

A model is presented to simulate the operation of a solid-sorption chiller using the methanol-activated carbon pair and a CPC (compound parabolic concentrator) solar collection system. The model is based on assigning constant thermal exchange parameters to all the main elements (generator/reactor, condenser, evaporator and cold box) of a previously tested unit. In particular, the generator is assigned a collector heat-removal factor and an overall heat-loss coefficient. The way in which experimental records have been used to obtain these and the other parameters is explained in detail, and can be adapted to many other configurations of solar cooling units. A validation of the model is carried out for various cycles of operation, showing good agreement between calculated and experimental records. Finally, the model has been used to estimate the chiller performance under conditions that differ from those encountered experimentally.     

TRANSIENT NATURAL DRYING-INDUCED BOUNDARY LAYERS

This work presents a methodology far obtaining heat and mass transfer coefficients for problems involving natural convection along a flat plate. In order to simulate drying conditions, a set of data has been obtained for the temperature range between 20 and 98° C and for various absolute humidities, both of the wall and ambient. It is shown that for drying at temperatures above 80° C, Nusselt and Sherwood numbers change very appreciably with respect to values obtained at smaller temperatures. The simulated results show that even for very low temperature differences, the transient period in natural convection along a flal vertical plate is smaller than 3s.     

THERMOCAPILLARY MIGRATION IN DILUTE POLYDISPERSE SUSPENSIONS OF BUBBLES

The thermocapillary velocity of a dilute, polydisperse, random but statistically homogeneous suspension of spherical bubbles is calculated applying a simplified renormalization technique and using well-known effective media results. This method avoids the classical difficulties associated with solving a two-sphere problem, which typically leads to conditionally converging integrals, but nevertheless yields values of the thermocapillary velocity which are in excellent agreement with the exact calculation by Wang, Mauri and Acrivos (1994).     

Microencapsulation of casein hydrolysate by complex coacervation with SPI/pectin

The aim of this work was to encapsulate casein hydrolysate by complex coacervation with soybean protein isolate (SPI)/pectin. Three treatments were studied with wall material to core ratio of 1:1, 1:2 and 1:3. The samples were evaluated for morphological characteristics, moisture, hygroscopicity, solubility, hydrophobicity, surface tension, encapsulation efficiency and bitter taste with a trained sensory panel using a paired comparison test. The samples were very stable in cold water. The hydrophobicity decreased inversely with the hydrolysate content in the microcapsule. Encapsulated samples had lower hygroscopicity values than free hydrolysate. The encapsulation efficiency varied from 91.62% to 78.8%. Encapsulated samples had similar surface tension, higher values than free hydrolysate. The results of the sensory panel test considering the encapsulated samples less bitter (P < 0.05) than the free hydrolysate, showed that complex coacervation with SPI/pectin as wall material was an efficient method for microencapsulation and attenuation of the bitter taste of the hydrolysate.     

Modeling nand Flash Memories for IC Design

In this letter, we present a compact model of NAND flash memory strings for circuit simulation purposes. This model is modular and easy to be implemented, and its parameters can be extracted through a simple procedure. It allows accurate simulation of NAND flash memories with a limited computational effort, taking into account capacitive coupling effects which will become extremely important in future technology generations. This model is a very valuable tool for IC designers to optimize NVM circuits, particularly in multilevel applications.