Measurement and correlation of mutual diffusion coefficients for styrene-butadiene rubber(SBR)-n-nonane systems

The mutual diffusion coefficients for styrene-butadiene rubber(SBR)-n-nonane systems were measured using a sorption apparatus with a quartz spring at 100 and 130°C for mass fractions of n-nonane ranging from 0 to 0.16. The mutual diffusion coefficients were correlated with good agreement by the free-volume theory.     

Input system for part model in CAD from coloured hand-written illustration with use of ITV

An input system for CAD is developed to construct a part model within a computer from a hand-written sketch. The sketch is drawn based on the technical illustration method. The shape of the input part is constructed by the combination of cuboids and cylinders at present. A coloured illustration is adopted for the ease of the shape recognition and for the input of the technological information.

The illustration is fed into the computer via a black and white ITV. Colours are identified referring to the brightness of the input image. The constitutive bodies, the geometric element with the technological information and the content of the technological information are recognized through image processing such as noise filtering, thinning of the contours, detection of lines and so on. The input system outputs a set of commands to the modelling system. The integrated part model which includes not only the geometrical information but also the technological information of the part is constructed by the connected modelling system CIMS/MODE.

The combination of the input system and the modelling system can support the designer to construct the detailed part model within the computer effectively. It is expected to extend the ability of the input system to identify general hand-written illustrations so that the input method will be more practical and useful.     

DRYING OF OPTICALLY SEMITRANSPARENT MATERIALS BY COMBINED RADIATIVE-CONVECTIVE HEATING

The objective of this work has been to basically elucidate the drying characteristics of an optically semitransparent material by combined radiative and convective heating. The experiments were conducted for a graphite suspension, a slurry of surplus activated sludge and a wet silica sand. The time-change of the drying rate as well as of the surface temperature of the brimfully wet material layer were measured under the step heating conditions using an infrared lamp bundle and a blast of hot air heated by an electric heater.

The experimental data obtained show satisfactory agreement with the calculated results from unsteady heat and mass transfer equations derived on the basis of a semitransparent drying model during the preheating and the constant drying rate periods.     

Variation of amplitudes of thermo-acoustical waves of arbitrary form in isotropic linear thermo-elastic materials

Summary The growth and decay of the amplitudes of a thermo-longitudinal coupling wave of arbitrary form are investigated theoretically for isotropic linear thermo-elastic materials. As heat conduction law Vernotte's formula is adopted. Thomas' compatibility conditions of the second order for a singular surface of arbitrary form are used and the global behavior of the amplitude of the wave is analyzed. The geometrical effect of the wave front for the variation of amplitude depends upon the path length and the initial values of the mean and Gaussian curvatures. The thermal decay effect for the coupling wave is expressed as an exponential function of time and the damping factor is proportional to the thermal conductivity.     

On the formation of solid solution in Co3−xMnxO4 system

The formation of solid solution in the Co_3−xMn_xO₄ system in atmospheres of oxygen, air and argon was examined at a constant temperature of 1000 °C. In oxygen, a small amount of the NaCl-type compound was found to co-exist with the cubic spinel in the composition rangex≤0.1. A single phase of the cubic spinel was found in the range 0.1 to 1.3 and the tetragonal spinel above 1.9. In the rangex=1.3 to 1.9 where the cubic and tetragonal spinels co-exist they both have very broadened diffraction line profiles. In air, the identified phases and the changes in their lattice constants with composition were very similar to those in oxygen, except that the NaCl-type compound and the cubic spinel co-existed over a larger range. In argon, the cubic spinel was not observed over any of the composition range and the NaCI-type compound and the tetragonal spinel co-existed in the wide range of 1.1 to 2.3. The experimental results are discussed with regard to the cation distribution in the spinel and also to the relative stability of Co³⁺- and Mn³⁺-ions under the low partial pressure of oxygen.     

Factors affecting the oxidative activity of laccase towards biphenyl derivatives in homogeneous aqueous-organic systems

Catalytic oxidation of biphenyl derivatives was investigated using laccase in a homogeneous aqueous-organic system. A thermostable laccase from Trametes sp. showed the highest catalytic activity for the oxidation of 4-hydroxybiphenyl (4-HB) at a reaction temperature of 60 degrees C when dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) was employed as a co-solvent. Furthermore, the catalytic performance was successfully enhanced by the incorporation of a laccase mediator system (LMS) into the aqueous-DMSO media. The catalytic performance strongly depended on the type of mediator, and the highest activity was observed with 2,2'-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) as mediator, suggesting the importance of the selection of a suitable mediator. It was verified that this mediator system is applicable to the oxidation of several biphenyl derivatives with hydroxyl groups.     

The kinetics of hydrolytic polymerization of ε-caprolactam. II. Determination of the kinetic and thermodynamic constants by least-squares curve fitting

The kinetic and thermodynamic constants of the hydrolytic polymerization of ?-caprolactam were determined by least-squares curve fitting. The calculations were carried out using observed kinetic data such as concentration of ?-caprolactam ([CL]), endgroup ([EG]), and ?-aminocaproic acid ([ACA]) and time derivatives of each concentration (rates) ?[CL]/?t, ?[EG]/?t, and ?[ACA]/?t. The sets of the converged constants are obtained for the initial water concentrations of 0.42, 0.82, and 1.18 mole/kg. An averaged set of the constants applicable for this range of the initial composition was also evaluated. The compatibility between observed and calculated concentration and rate curves was improved by the use of the newly developed sets of the constants. The mechanism of the polycondensation reaction is also discussed, based on the rate and kinetic constants obtained by this work.