Lanthanides and actinides among other groups of elements of the periodic table

The extent to which actinides (An) are similar to other elements of the periodic table is discussed. Actinides show certain similarity with transition metals in trends in variation of the stability of the highest and lowest oxidation states with increasing atomic number. Similarity between elements of the first half of the lanthanide (Ln) family and those of the second half of the An family is demonstrated. In the lowest oxidation states, An and Ln are analogs of alkali and alkaline-earth elements, and in the tetravalent state they start to exhibit noticeable similarity with d elements. The formation of Pu(VIII) is suggested on the basis of essentially similar volatility of oxides ot Os and Ru with that of Pu. Of particular interest are bivalent An and Ln ions with one d electron. Being analogs of bivalent elements, they form various types of clusters.     

Kinetics of aerosol formation in gas flows

Discrete and continual versions of the rate equation for the size distribution function of primary aerosol particles were formulated. With the CsI aerosol as example, it was shown that coarsening of primary aerosol particles can be described in terms of both discrete and continual models. This conclusion is based on the results of experiments performed by the procedure that makes it possible to reveal primary particles against the background of their aggregates, ensures complete transfer of primary particles from the aerosol volume to the collector, and allows determination of their size on the collector by electron microscopy. Under the examined conditions, the size distribution of primary particles is described by an exponential function.     

Simple and Efficient Synthesis and Surfactant Properties of <Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>-Alkyl-3-Boronopyridinium Acid Triflates

In this paper, we describe a simple and efficient procedure of original N-alkyl-3-boronopyridinium triflates synthesis and report on the surface properties of these surfactants. Key micellar parameters were obtained, the critical micelle concentrations (CMC values) were determined and compared to conventional ionic surfactants as well as the surface activity of these surfactants (pC ₂₀ value and the surface tension at the CMC). These new boronic functionalized surfactants exhibit a stunning efficiency in their tendency to self-assemble and are significantly more surface active that their conventional analogues. This new family of surfactants represents a new direction in both functionality and performance, and may open perspectives in chemical synthesis and applications.     

DBSC-Based Grayscale Line Image Vectorization

Vector graphics plays an important role in computer animation and imaging technologies. However present techniques and tools cannot fully replace traditional pencil and paper. Additionally, vector representation of an image is not always available. There is not yet a good solution for vectorizing a picture drawn on a paper. This work attempts to solve the problem of vectorizing grayscale line drawings. The solution proposed uses Disk B-Spline curves to represent strokes of an image in vector form. The algorithm builds a vector representation from a grayscale raster image, which can be a scanned picture for instance. The proposed method uses a Gaussian sliding window to calculate skeleton and perceptive width of a stroke. As a result of vectorization, the given image is represented by a set of Disk B-Spline curves.