Co-deposition mechanism of nanodiamond with electrolessly plated nickel films

The co-deposition behavior and mechanism of nanodiamond with electrolessly plated nickel films was investigated. Due to the variation of complexing agents, various composite films with 0.9-8.0% nanodiamond were plated from electroless nickel plating baths which contained the same amount of nanodiamond (5.0 g dm⁻³) and sodium hypophosphite. In addition, composite films with 0-14% nanodiamond, semi-brilliant, were successfully fabricated from the bath which contained only citrate as a complexing agent. The plating bath was very simple and was sufficiently stable without any decomposition until termination of the plating reaction occurred due to consumption of the reducing agent. When the adsorbed amount of Ni-complex on the nanodiamond particles was large, a large amount of nanodiamond was co-deposited with the nickel. The results are interpreted to indicate that the adsorbed Ni-complex precipitates the incorporation of nanodiamond particles into the nickel matrix. In addition, incorporation becomes more probable when the adsorbed amount of Ni-complex on the nanodiamond particles was large.     

Vapor-Phase Growth of Transparent Zinc Oxide Ceramics with c-Axis Orientation

Large transparent specimens of polycrystalline zinc oxide with c -axis orientation have been prepared by the vapor transport method. Optical transmittance is 80% to 90% at 800 nm. X-ray diffraction peaks from faces other than (001) are negligible.     

Obstacle avoidance of snake robot by switching control constraint

In this paper, we propose an obstacle avoidance method for autonomous locomotion control of a snake robot. The snake robot consists of rigid links, active joints and passive wheels, and can move only by varying its shape. The pass planning for the obstacle avoidance is a complicated problem because the snake robot has many states, control inputs and the under-actuated property. In our proposed method, the snake motion is restricted to a periodic undulate curve (called a serpenoid curve) by an additional control constraint and the undulate curve is tuned by switching the control constraint in order that the snake robot avoids the obstacle. Therefore, the path planning is simplified and the snake robot will achieve the obstacle avoidance with an efficient path. In this paper, we denote the details of our method and investigate the effectiveness of our strategy by numerical simulations.     

Characterization of Cell Wall α-1,3-Glucan–Deficient Mutants in Aspergillus oryzae Isolated by a Screening Method Based on Their Sensitivities to Congo Red or Lysing Enzymes

We previously reported that sensitivity to Congo Red (CR) or Lysing Enzymes (LE) is affected by the loss of cell-wall α-1,3-glucan (AG) in Aspergillus nidulans. We found that the amount of CR adsorbed to AG was significantly less than the amount adsorbed to β-1,3-glucan (BG) or chitin, suggesting that loss of cell-wall AG would increase exposure of BG on the cell surface, and thereby increase the sensitivity to CR. Generally, fungal BGs are known as biological response modifiers because of their recognition by Dectin-1 receptors in human immune systems. Therefore, isolation of AG-deficient mutants in Aspergillus oryzae has been used in the Japanese fermentation industry to create strains with increased ability to promote immune responses. Here, we aimed to isolate AG-deficient strains by mutagenizing A. oryzae conidia with chemical mutagens. Based on the increased sensitivity to CR in AG-deficient strains of A. nidulans and A. oryzae, we established a screening method for isolation of AG-deficient strains. Several candidate AG-deficient mutants of A. oryzae were isolated using the screening method; these strains showed increased sensitivity to CR and/or LE. Cytokine production was increased in the dendritic cells co-incubated with germinated conidia of the AG-deficient mutants. Furthermore, according to a Dectin-1 NFAT (nuclear factor of activator T cells)-GFP (green fluorescent protein) reporter assay, Dectin-1 response levels in the AG-deficient mutants were higher than those in wild-type A. oryzae. These results suggest that we successfully isolated AG-deficient mutants of A. oryzae with immunostimulatory effects.     

Characteristic and mechanism of pressure fluctuation caused by self-induced oscillation of supersonic impinging jet

When the underexpanded supersonic jet impinges on the obstacle, it is well known that the self-induced flow oscillation occurs. This oscillation depends on the pressure ratio in the flowfield, the position of an obstacle and is related with the noise problems of aeronautical and other industrial engineering. The characteristic and the mechanism of self-induced flow oscillation, have to be clarified to control various noise problems. But, it seems that the characteristics of the oscillated flowfield and the mechanism of an oscillation have to be more cleared to control the oscillation. This paper aims to clarify the effect of the pressure ratio and the obstacle position and the mechanism of self-induced flow oscillation by numerical analysis and experiment, when the underexpanded supersonic jet impinges on the cylindrical body. From the result of this study, it is clear that occurrence of the self-induced flow oscillation depends on the pressure balance in the flowfield.     

New aspects of heterogeneous photocatalysts for water decomposition

Several new photocatalysts for overall water splitting are described. Under UV light irradiation (270 nm), La-doped NaTaO₃ modified with NiO decomposed water into H₂ and O₂ with extremely high quantum efficiency. Under an optimized condition, the apparent quantum efficiency, which was estimated with numbers of irradiated photons and evolved H₂ molecules, reached 56%. New stable photocatalytic materials containing elements with d¹⁰ electronic configuration such as In³⁺ Sn⁴⁺ and Sb⁵⁺ were developed for overall water splitting. Some mesoporous oxides were proved to be effective photocatalysts. (Oxy)nitrides of some early transition metals, i.e., Ta, Nb and Ti, were found to be stable materials having potentials for H₂ and O₂ evolutions under visible light irradiation (⪯600 nm). The electronic structures of these photocatalysts are also discussed based on DFT calculation.     

Ablated mass of PTFE nozzle due to high‐current SF6 arc exposure: Formulation of ablated mass

Characteristics of PTFE ablation due to SF₆ arc exposure were studied to predict the ablated mass of PTFE nozzle in high‐voltage circuit breaker. From the measurement of the ablated mass, the predominant factor of the PTFE ablation was revealed as a radiation power of SF₆ arc. Subsequently, the radiation power absorbed in PTFE was formulated on the basis of the radiation transfer property and the arc physics. The formulation for the prediction of the PTFE ablated mass was established with the formulated radiation power and the measured masses. Finally, the validity of the PTFE ablated mass prediction was shown from the results of the error verification with the measured masses.     

Characterization of an insertion sequence-like element,ISBlo15, identified in a size-increased cryptic plasmid pBK283 in Bifidobacterium longum BK28

The characteristics of mobile genetic elements in bifidobacteria are not well understood. We characterized an insertion sequence-like element of the IS200/IS605 family found in a size-increased cryptic plasmid in Bifidobacterium longum. During a plasmid profile analysis of B. longum BK strains, we encountered a 6.5-kbp cryptic plasmid pBK283 in B. longum BK28, the size of which has not been identified in bifidobacteria. Nucleotide sequence analysis indicated that an insertion sequence-like element was inserted into the 5.0-kbp pKJ50-like plasmid and resulted in a size increase of pBK283. The element, named ISBlo15, was 1593 bp in length and contained a single ORF encoding a putative transposase, which is similar to the transposase OrfB encoded by IS200/IS605 family elements. Several sequence characteristics, including conserved transposase motifs in OrfB and terminal palindromic sequences that differ from the typical terminal inverted repeats, strongly suggested that ISBlo15 is a member of the IS200/IS605 family. Sequences similar to ISBlo15 were widely distributed among the nine Bifidobacterium species tested, and those of highly homologous sequences were detected only in Bifidobacterium gallicum JCM8224^T.     

Involvement of the supramammillary nucleus in aversive conditioning.

Mechanisms for the retention and retrieval of conditioned taste aversions (CTAs) have yet to be fully defined. The authors explored relevant subcortical forebrain regions by tracking the expression of immediate early genes, c-fos and zif268. The supramammillary nucleus (SuM) was activated following both viscerally based CTA and somatically based inhibitory avoidance (IA). Excitotoxic lesions of the SuM before conditioning caused no disruption of acquisition but accelerated the extinction of both the CTA and IA. In contrast, lesions after CTA conditioning did not impair retention or retrieval. The present study indicates that the SuM is activated by memory-elicited discomfort during retrieval, suggesting that it plays a role in resisting the extinction of a long-term aversive memory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)