Preparation and characterization of polyacrylamide cryogels produced from a high‐molecular‐weight precursor. II. The influence of the molecular weight of the polymeric precursor

Polyacrylamide gels and cryogels were prepared by the crosslinking reaction of polyacrylamide (a polymeric precursor) with glutaric aldehyde (a crosslinking agent) in liquid and moderately frozen aqueous media, respectively. Polymeric precursors of different viscosity‐ averagemolecular weights (0.3, 1, 3, and 9 MDa) were used. The molecular weight of the precursors, as well as the reaction temperature and concentration of the crosslinking agent, exerted a pronounced influence on the efficiency of gelation (gel fraction yield) and on the properties (swelling capability) and structural peculiarities of the resulting gels (reference samples) and cryogels. The highest efficacy was inherent in the cryotropic gelation process when the polymeric precursor had a molecular weight of about 3 MDa, whereas the implementation of polyacrylamides of lower (0.3 or 1 MDa) or higher (9 MDa) molecular weights diminished the gel formation efficiency. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

Nanostructured Ti-doped hematite (α-Fe2O3) photoanodes for efficient photoelectrochemical water oxidation

We present a form of hematite (α-Fe₂O₃) nanostructured architecture suitable for photoelectrochemical water oxidation that is easily synthesized by a pulsed laser deposition (PLD) method. The architecture is a column-like porous nanostructure consisting of nanoparticles 30–50 nm in size with open channels of pores between the columns. This nanostructured film is generated by controlling the kinetic energy of the ablated species during the pulsed laser deposition process. In a comparison with the nanostructured film, hematite thin film was also synthesized by PLD. All of the developed films were successfully doped with 1.0 at% of titanium. X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and UV–visible spectroscopy were used to characterize the films. To fabricate the photoelectrochemical (PEC) cell, Ti-doped hematite films were used as the working electrode, Ag/AgCl as the reference electrode, platinum wire as the counter electrode and an aqueous solution of 1 M NaOH as the electrolyte. The photovoltaic characteristics of all cells were investigated under AM 1.5G sunlight illumination of 100 mW/cm². The photocurrent density was enhanced by approximately 220% using nanostructured film at 0.7 V versus Ag/AgCl compared to hematite thin film, and the highest photocurrent density of 2.1 mA/cm² at 0.7 V/Ag/AgCl was obtained from the 1.0 at% Ti-doped hematite nanostructured film. The enhanced photocurrent density is attributed to its effective charge collection due to its unique column-like architecture with a large surface area.     

Optimization of a gravity‐driven membrane (GDM) system operated with simple manual cleanings for household drinking water treatment

Manual cleaning protocols were developed for a gravity‐driven membrane (GDM) module. Such a module is a promising solution for household water treatment in low‐ and middle‐income countries. A filtration system equipped with the GDM module was tested in a batchwise manner using three different feed water solutions. Two types of manual cleaning protocols were performed to delay the permeability decrease, namely cleaning between batches and long‐term cleaning (every 15 batches). The optimized protocol for cleaning between batches consisted of 3 twisting and 10 vertical shaking movements; the optimized long‐term cleaning protocol consisted of 70 vertical shaking movements for both the middle region of the module and the module header. These cleaning protocols allowed the filtration system to produce sufficient water to meet the minimum requirements for a five person family using all three kinds of feed water solutions. The module produced water without Escherichia coli, even for the wastewater influent.     

Stereospecific Positional Distribution of Fatty Acids of Camellia (Camellia japonica L.) Seed Oil

Abstract: The stereospecific positional distribution of fatty acids of camellia seed oil (also called camellia oil) was determined. The camellia oil was mainly composed of neutral lipids (88.2%), and the oleic acid (86.3%) was found to be a major fatty acid of neutral lipids. In the glycolipids and phospholipids, the oleic acid was also found to be a major fatty acid at 62.5% and 54.2%, respectively. The oleic acid was distributed abundantly in all sn‐1, 2, and 3 positions. It was found that the oleic acid was present more at sn‐2 (93.6%) and 3 positions (94.7%), than at sn‐1 position (66.0%). Practical Application: The information of stereospecific positional distribution of fatty acids in the camellia oil can be used for the development of the structured lipids for food, pharmaceutical, and medical purposes.     

Enhanced production of oceanic dimethylsulfide resulting from CO₂-induced grazing activity in a high CO₂ world

Oceanic dimethylsulfide (DMS) released to the atmosphere affects the Earth's radiation budget through the production and growth of cloud condensation nuclei over the oceans. However, it is not yet known whether this negative climate feedback mechanism will intensify or weaken in oceans characterized by high CO(2) levels and warm temperatures. To investigate the effects of two emerging environmental threats (ocean acidification and warming) on marine DMS production, we performed a perturbation experiment in a coastal environment. Two sets of CO(2) and temperature conditions (a pCO(2) of ～900 ppmv at ambient temperature conditions, and a pCO(2) of ～900 ppmv at a temperature ～3 °C warmer than ambient) significantly stimulated the grazing rate and the growth rate of heterotrophic dinoflagellates (ubiquitous marine microzooplankton). The increased grazing rate resulted in considerable DMS production. Our results indicate that increased grazing-induced DMS production may occur in high CO(2) oceans in the future.     

Sulfuric acid decomposition on the Pt/n-SiC catalyst for SI cycle to produce hydrogen

The sulfuric acid decomposition should be performed in the wide temperature ranges from 550 °C to 950 °C to absorb the sensible heat of He in SI process. Therefore, the catalysts for the reaction should be stable even in the very corrosive reaction condition of 650 °C. Here, the Pt/n-SiC catalyst was prepared for the purpose and compared with the Pt/SiC catalyst. The both catalysts showed the high stability in the temperature ranges from 650 to 850 °C. The n-SiC with the surface area of 187.1 m²/g was prepared using nano-sized SiO₂, which resulted in amorphous SiC phase. The SiC support with the surface area of 19.2 m²/g for the comparison showed the well crystalline structure. In spite of the large surface area differences between the n-SiC and SiC support, the Pt particle sizes of the Pt/n-SiC (average Pt size: 26.4 nm) catalyst were not so much different from those of the Pt/SiC (average Pt size: 26.1 nm) catalyst after the calcination at 1000 °C for 3 h. However, the catalytic activity of the Pt/n-SiC was much higher than that of the Pt/SiC. XRD analysis indicated that the Pt particles on the Pt/n-SiC was more stable than those of the Pt/SiC in the sulfuric acid decomposition and XPS analysis showed that the Pt valence state on the Pt/n-SiC was higher than that on the Pt/SiC. The surface analysis showed that the surface of the n-SiC particles was covered by SiO₂ and Si₄C_4−xO₄. These experimental results indicate that the Pt metal particles on n-SiC were stabilized on the oxidized Si surface. Therefore, it is suggested that the Pt particles stabilized on the oxidized Si surface can be a reason for the higher activity of the Pt/n-SiC catalyst as compared with the Pt/SiC catalyst.     

Effects of carbon content on the photocatalytic activity of C/BiVO4 composites under visible light irradiation

Carbon-loaded BiVO₄ composite photocatalysts were prepared using an impregnation method, and their ability to photocatalytically degrade Rhodamine B dye solution under visible light irradiation was investigated. The prepared composite photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field-emission electron microscopy (FESEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area measurements, and UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectra. We found that the carbon was well-dispersed on the surface of BiVO₄. The photocatalytic activity of the composite photocatalysts for the degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) in aqueous solution under visible light irradiation (>420 nm) was higher than that of pure BiVO₄. Moreover, the degradation efficiency increased as the carbon content increased up to 3 wt%. The mechanism of enhanced photocatalytic activity is discussed with reference to surface area, optical absorption properties, and charge separation.     

Rheology of blends of a thermotropic liquid crystalline polymer with polyphenylene sulfide

Blends of thermotropic liquid crystalline polymer (LCP) and polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) were studied over the entire composition range using Rheometrics Stress Rheometer, capillary rheometer, and differential scanning calorimeter. There is no molecular scale mixing or chemical reaction between the components, as evidenced by melting and crystallization points in the PPS phase. From the strain scaling transients test at low‐rate, LCP and the blends require approximately 60 strain units to obtain steady stale shearing results. The large recoveries in the strain recovery test, magnitude 3 to 3.3 strain unit, are likely the results of texture present in LCPs. With increasing PPS content in LCP/PPS blends, the total recovery declines. Scaling of the transient strain rate remains, but the magnitude of the transients is reduced. At low‐rate, when the LCP is added to the PPS, the pure melts have similar visosity: 500 Pa · s for LCP and 600 Pa · s for PPS, but the viscosity of the blends goes through a maximum with concentration that is nearly three times the viscosity of the individual melts. At high‐rate, a significant depression of the viscosity is observed in the PPS‐rich compositions and this may be due to the fibrous structure of the LCP at high shear rates.     

Noise Whitening‐Based Pitch Detection for Speech Highly Corrupted by Colored Noise

Pitch estimation is important in various speech research areas, but when the speech is noisy, accurate pitch estimation with conventional pitch detectors is almost impossible. To solve this problem, we propose a new pitch detection algorithm for noisy speech using a noise whitening technique on the background noise and obtain successful results.     

Microstructural factors of electrodes affecting the performance of anode-supported thin film yttria-stabilized zirconia electrolyte (∼1 μm) solid oxide fuel cells

The effects of the microstructural factors of electrodes, such as the porosity and pore size of anode supports and the thickness of cathodes, on the performance of an anode-supported thin film solid oxide fuel cell (TF-SOFC) are investigated. The performance of the TF-SOFC with a 1 μm-thick yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) electrolyte is significantly improved by employing anode supports with increased porosity and pore size. The maximum power density of the TF-SOFCs increases from 370 mW cm⁻² to 624 mW cm⁻² and then to over 900 mW cm⁻² at 600 °C with increasing gas transport at the anode support. Thicker cathodes also improve cell performance by increasing the active reaction sites. The maximum power density of the cell increases from 624 mW cm⁻² to over 830 mW cm⁻² at 600 °C by changing the thickness of the lanthanum strontium cobaltite (LSC) cathode from 1 to 2-3 μm.