Kinetics of methane reforming over Ru/γ-Al2O3-catalyzed metallic foam at 650-900 °C for solar receiver-absorbers

The kinetics of methane reforming over Ru/γ-Al₂O₃-catalyzed high porosity Ni-Cr-Al foam were examined at temperatures of 650-900 °C in a quartz tubular reactor using an electric furnace. The kinetic data were analyzed by four different types of kinetic models based on the basic, Eley-Rideal, Langmuir-Hinshelwood, and stepwise mechanisms. Validation of the kinetic models was carried out by calculating the determination coefficient r² between the predicted and the experimental results for each model. The absolute average deviation percentage (AAD%) between the predicted and the experimental results was also estimated for each model. The kinetic model based on the reversible stepwise mechanism provided the best prediction of the experimental reforming rates with an AAD value of 6% in the range 650-850 °C.     

Simplified protocol for detection of protein-ligand interactions via surface-enhanced resonance Raman scattering and surface-enhanced fluorescence

A simple and effective protocol for detections of protein-protein and protein-small molecule interactions has been developed. After interactions between proteins and their corresponding ligands, we employed colloidal silver staining for producing active substrates for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and surface-enhanced fluorescence (SEF). Tetramethylrhodamine isothiocyanate (TRITC) and Atto610 were used for both Raman and fluorescent probes. We detected interactions between human IgG and TRITC-anti-human IgG, and those between avidin and Atto610-biotin by surface-enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS) and SEF. The detection limits of the proposed SERRS-based method are comparable to those of the proposed SEF-based one, 0.9 pg/mL for anti-human IgG and 0.1 pg/mL for biotin. This protocol exploits several advantages of simplicity over other SERS and SEF-based related methods because of the protein staining-based strategy for silver nanoparticle assembling, high sensitivity from SERRS and SEF, and high stability in photostability comparing to fluorescence-based protein detections. Therefore, the proposed method for detection of protein-ligand interactions has great potential in high-sensitivity and high-throughput chip-based protein function determination.     

Time-lapse analysis of laser phase shift for noninvasive discrimination of human normal cells and malignant tumor cells

Time-lapse analysis of phase shift using phase-shifting laser microscopy (PLM) revealed that the laser phase shifts of primary normal human prostate epithelial cells (PRECs) and human prostatic carcinoma epithelial cell line (PC-3) cells during the mitotic phase were markedly higher than those in the interphase. The phase shift of PC-3 cells during the interphase was markedly lower than that of PRECs throughout the cell cycle. In conclusion, it was proposed that adherent PC-3 cancer cells could be noninvasively discriminated from normal adherent PRECs by the periodical measurement of phase shift using PLM during culture.     

Analysis of locality of early-stage maturation in confluent state of human retinal pigment epithelial cells

Retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells were cultured on the laminin-coated and plain surfaces. The measurement of local nucleus density in non-stratified region, which correlated with formation of tight junction, is the indicator of the maturation, and the parameters can be applied to the evaluation of the early-stage maturation of RPE cells in culture.     

Simultaneous Oxidization of NOx and SO2 by a New Non-thermal Plasma Reactor Enhanced by Catalyst and Additive

The non-thermal plasma as one of the most promising technologies for removing NOx and SO2 has attrm~ted much attention. In this study, a new plasma reactor combined with catalyst and additive was developed to effectively oxidize and remove NOx and SO2 in the flue gas. The experimental results showed that TiO2 could improve the oxidation efficiency of SO2 in the case of applying plasma while having a negative effect on the oxidation process of NO and NOx. With the addition of NH3, the oxidation rates of NOx, NO and SO2 were slightly increased. However, the effect of adding NH3 on NOx oxidation was negative when the temperature was above 200℃.     

Out‐of‐Plane Strain Induced in a Moiré Superstructure of Monolayer MoS2 and MoSe2 on Au(111)

Making contact of transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) with a metal surface is essential for fabricating and designing electronic devices and catalytic systems. It also generates strain in the TMDCs that plays significant role in both electronic and phonon structures. Therefore, detailed understanding of mechanism of the strain generation is important to fully comprehend the modulation effect for the electronic and phonon properties. Here, MoS₂ and MoSe₂ monolayers are grown on Au surface by chemical vapor deposition and it is demonstrated that the contact with a crystalline Au(111) surface gives rise to only out‐of‐plane strain in both MoS₂ and MoSe₂ layers, whereas no strain generation is observed on polycrystalline Au or SiO₂/Si surfaces. Scanning tunneling microscopy analysis provides information regarding consequent specific adsorption sites between lower S (Se) atoms in the S? Mo? S (Se? Mo? Se) structure and Au atoms via unique moiré superstructure formation for MoS₂ and MoSe₂ layers on Au(111). This observation indicates that the specific adsorption sites give rise to out‐of‐plane strain in the TMDC layers. Furthermore, it also leads to effective modulation of the electronic structure of the MoS₂ or MoSe₂ layer.     

Effect of defects on the fatigue limit of Ni‐based superalloy 718 with different grain sizes

Tension‐compression fatigue tests were performed on two types of Ni‐based superalloy 718 with different microstructures in which small artificial defects of various sizes and shapes were introduced. The susceptibility of the fatigue strength to the defects varied significantly with the microstructure morphology, ie, a smaller grain size made the alloy more susceptible to defects. The fatigue limit as a small‐crack threshold was successfully predicted using the parameter model. The evaluation of the fatigue limit was classified into the following three stages depending on the defect size: (a) harmless defect regime, (b) small‐crack regime, and (c) large‐crack regime. Such a classification enabled comprehensive evaluation of the fatigue limit in a wide range of defect size, considering (a) defect size over a range of small crack to large crack and (b) characteristics of matrix represented by grain size and hardness.     

Recovery oriented phosphorus adsorption process in decentralized advanced Johkasou

Decentralized advanced wastewater treatment using adsorption and desorption process for recovery and recycling oriented phosphorus removal was developed. Adsorbent particles made of zirconium were set in a column, and it was installed as subsequent stage of BOD and nitrogen removal type Johkasou, a household domestic wastewater treatment facility. The water quality of the effluent of adsorption column in a number of experimental sites was monitored. The effluent phosphorus concentration was kept below 1 mg l(-1) during 90 days at all the sites. Furthermore, over 80% of the sites achieved 1 mg l(-1) of T-P during 200 days. This adsorbent was durable, and deterioration of the particles was not observed over a long duration. The adsorbent collected from each site was immersed in alkali solution to desorb phosphorus. Then the adsorbent was reactivated by soaking in acid solution. The reactivated adsorbent was reused and showed almost the same phosphorus adsorption capacity as a new one. Meanwhile, the desorbed phosphorus was recovered with high purity as trisodium phosphate by crystallization. It is proposed as a new decentralized system for recycling phosphorus that paves the way to high-purity recovery of finite phosphorus.     

Significance of attached cyanobacteria relevant to the occurrence of musty odor in Lake Kasumigaura

The microorganisms and compounds causing musty odor in the second largest lake in Japan, Lake Kasumigaura, where the water is used for drinking, fisheries and agricultural purposes, were examined during the severe occurrence of musty odor in 1989 and 1990. This study was undertaken to determine the microorganisms and their metabolites responsible for the musty odor. Phormidium tenue, which has been reported to be the main contributor of the odor in Lake Kasumigaura, was isolated. Furthermore, four monoxenic strains of the odor producing attached cyanobacteria, Phormidium viscosum, Lyngbya allorgei, Oscillatoria splendida and Phormidium uncinatum, were isolated from submerged rocks and sediments in the lake. All of the four attached strains produced only geosmin, which was confirmed by gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer analysis, in the monoxenic cultures. In particular, we confirmed for the first time that P. viscosum, L. allorgei and P. uncinatum produced geosmin. Both the planktonic Phormidium tenue, a well known 2-methylisoborneol (MIB) producer and geosmin-producing attached cyanobacteria were closely associated with the occurrence of musty odor in Lake Kasumigaura.