Measurement of the size, shape and orientation of convex bodies

Different types of solid bodies (particles) with specific shape and size are needed for industrial processes. For spherical particles, ‘sizer’ measurements are usually reported as sphere diameters. For non-spherical particles, particle shape and especially orientation must be taken into account. Particles of a specific shape will present different views when looked at from different directions.We have employed a Camsizer^® instrument to measure the distribution of projected area under different physical conditions for solid cylindrical particles:

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Under ‘ideal’ conditions, corresponding to a uniform distribution of particle orientation, measurements agreed with predictions. The celebrated theorem of Cauchy applies only to this case.

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For two other situations, measured and predicted results differed. However, from the experimental data it was possible to infer the particle orientations and hence theoretically predict the projected area distribution. Excellent agreement between theory and practice was then restored.

     

Carbonization and liquid-crystal (mesophase) development. 8. The co-carbonization of coals with acenaphthylene and decacyclene

Several coals of different rank have been carbonized singly and also co-carbonized with acenaphthylene and decacyclene. The resultant cokes were mounted in resin and polished surfaces were examined for optical texture using a polarized-light optical microscope fitted with a half-wave retarder plate. The optical texture can be assessed qualitatively (visually) or quantitatively by a point-counting technique in terms of size and shape of constituent isochromatic anisotropic units. Some cokes from coals were Isotropic. Acenaphthylene was only able to exert a smaller influence than decacyclene on the optical texture of the resultant cokes from co-carbonizations. Decacyclene was able to modify the optical texture for both the low-rank non-fusible and the caking coals. The effects of changing the proportions of coal to additive were examined. Results are interpreted in terms of ‘depolymerization’ of the coal by the action of the additive (as solvent) and also by the action of the additive in modifying the processes of formation of semi-coke via nematic liquid crystals.     

Influence of alginite on the reflectance of vitrinite from Joadja,NSW, and some other coals and oil shales containing alginite

Reflectance data for vitrinite occurring in torbanites indicate that the mean maximum reflectance and the range of reflectance values are significantly lowered by the presence of alginite. This is the probable cause of apparently anomalous rank gradients in some deep oil exploration wells. Intermaceral effects need to be considered in assessing rank or maturity from vitrinite reflectance, and by inference, in most other methods. The interpretation of the cause of the effect is open to further study but the findings are highly significant in relation to coal utilization, oil and gas exploration, and studies of oil shales.     

Synthetic hydrogels 3. Solvent effects on poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) networks

Poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) networks were synthesized in aqueous solutions of propylene glycol, ethylene glycol, ethylene glycol monomethyl ether, or ethylene glycol dimethyl ether and the influences of solvent on phase separation during the polymerization process studied. Results from conversion-phase diagrams, turbidity measurements, swelling studies, and viscosity measurements show that the phase separation process is dependent upon the solubility parameter of the organic solvent, the instantaneous monomer concentration at each stage of the gel formation process, and the crosslinker content of the reaction mixture.     

SOLUBILITY OF CO2 AND H2S IN A HINDERED AMINE SOLUTION

The solubility of H₂S and CO₂ in aqueous solutions of the sterically hindered amine, 2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol (AMP), was determined at 40 and 100°C. Partial pressures of C)₂ ranged from approximately 2 to 6000 kPa and of H₂S from 2 to 2200 kPa. The solubility results were compared with previously reported acid gas solubilities in aqueous monoethanolamine (MEA) solutions.     

Brillouin-Scattering Study of the Elastic Constants of ErVO4

The room-temperature elastic constants of ErVO₄ were considerably smaller than those of isostructural silicate and phosphate analogs. The generally "less-rigid" crystalline lattice and weaker metal-oxygen bond-strength in the RVO₄ (R = rare earth elements) phases indicates that these materials are of interest for potential applications as an interphase component in toughened oxide ceramic composites.     

Solubility of Propane in Sulpholane at Elevated Pressures

The solubility of propane in sulpholane has been determined at temperatures in the range 298‐403 K at pressures up to 17.6 MPa. The experimental results were correlated by the Peng‐Robinson equation of state, and binary interaction parameters have been obtained for this system. The parameters in the Krichevsky‐Ilinskaya equation were calculated from these interaction parameters.     

A New Indole Synthesis Promoted by Metal Triflates

A new synthesis of 4- and 7-carbon-substituted indoles is described. The overall sequence involves the addition of a nitrile oxide to 1 carboethoxy-2-(or 3-) allylpyrrole, hydrogenation of the intermediate isoxazoline to β-hydroxy ketone and cyclization of the ketol using magnesium or zinc triflate to the substituted indole. This new indole-forming strategy can also accommodate the introduction of oxygen functionality into the indole 6-position. Possible mechanistic aspects of the reaction are detailed.     

Spectral Ray Differentials

Light refracted by a dispersive interface leads to beautifully colored patterns that can be rendered faithfully with spectral Monte‐Carlo methods. Regrettably, results often suffer from chromatic noise or banding, requiring high sampling rates and large amounts of memory compared to renderers operating in some trichromatic color space. Addressing this issue, we introduce spectral ray differentials, which describe the change of light direction with respect to changes in the spectrum. In analogy with the classic ray and photon differentials, this information can be used for filtering in the spectral domain. Effectiveness of our approach is demonstrated by filtering for offline spectral light and path tracing as well as for an interactive GPU photon mapper based on splatting. Our results show considerably less chromatic noise and spatial aliasing while retaining good visual similarity to reference solutions with negligible overhead in the order of milliseconds.     

Surface properties of surfactants derived from natural products. Part 1: Syntheses and structure/property relationships—Solubility and emulsification

Several novel and some previously known, mostly sugar-based, surfactants have been synthesized and some of their surface properties have been characterized and compared with those of commercial nonylphenol ethoxylates. The surfactant solubility in water, ethanol, and dodecane was studied. The properties of these compounds as emulsification agents in systems composed of the surfactant with water/isopropyl myristate, water/rapeseed oil, and water/dodecane are presented. The aqueous solubility of the surfactants follows the general trend expected from their hydrophilic-lipophilic balance according to Griffin (HLBG), but it is also clear that the nature of the headgroup and the structure of the nonpolar part affect the solubility in a manner not aptured in the standard HLBG concept. An ester or amine group as the connecting unit between the hydrophile and the hydrophobe produces a more water-soluble surfactant than the corresponding amide derivative. Some effective emulsifiers were found. For instance, the surfactants with a dehydroabietic nonpolar group appear to be promosing emulsifiers. Most sugar-based surfactants were able to form macroemulsions of up to around 2 wt/vol% of oil. The stability of many of these amulsions was very high, extending for months.