Study on phenol adsorption from aqueous solutions on exfoliated graphitic nanoplatelets

In this study we report first data on exfoliated graphitic nanoplatelets (xGnPs) as a sorbent for phenol removal and preliminary evaluated the ability of different type of natural organic matter (NOM) to effectively disperse exfoliated graphitic nanoplatelets.     

Experimental Study of Ferrous Calcium Silicate Slags: Phase Equilibria at {text{P}}_{{{text{O}}_{2} }} Between 10?5?atm and 10?7?atm

Ferrous calcium silicate slags, whose principal components are “FeO _x ”-CaO-SiO₂, are widely used in copper smelting and converting operations. In the current study, high-temperature equilibration and rapid quenching techniques were used to study the phase equilibria of the ferrous calcium silicate slags. The compositions of phases in the slags were measured accurately using electron probe X-ray microanalysis (EPMA). The phase equilibria of the system have been characterized at oxygen partial pressures between 10⁻⁵ atm and 10⁻⁷ atm at selected temperatures between 1473 K and 1623 K (1200 °C and 1350 °C). The effects of oxygen partial pressure and temperature on the compositions of phases in the slags are presented.     

Gangliosides as Biomarkers of Human Brain Diseases: Trends in Discovery and Characterization by High-Performance Mass Spectrometry

Gangliosides are effective biochemical markers of brain pathologies, being also in the focus of research as potential therapeutic targets. Accurate brain ganglioside mapping is an essential requirement for correlating the specificity of their composition with a certain pathological state and establishing a well-defined set of biomarkers. Among all bioanalytical methods conceived for this purpose, mass spectrometry (MS) has developed into one of the most valuable, due to the wealth and consistency of structural information provided. In this context, the present article reviews the achievements of MS in discovery and structural analysis of gangliosides associated with severe brain pathologies. The first part is dedicated to the contributions of MS in the assessment of ganglioside composition and role in the specific neurodegenerative disorders: Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. A large subsequent section is devoted to cephalic disorders (CD), with an emphasis on the MS of gangliosides in anencephaly, the most common and severe disease in the CD spectrum. The last part is focused on the major accomplishments of MS-based methods in the discovery of ganglioside species, which are associated with primary and secondary brain tumors and may either facilitate an early diagnosis or represent target molecules for immunotherapy oriented against brain cancers.     

Controlled Solidification of Liquids Within the SFC Primary Phase Field of the “Fe2O3”-CaO-SiO2 System in Air

Metallurgical and Materials Transactions B - To provide fundamental information on the phases and microstructures formed during sintering, a liquid with a bulk composition within the silico ferrite...     

Experimental Liquidus Study of the Ternary CaO-ZnO-SiO2 System

Metallurgical and Materials Transactions B - Phase equilibria of the ternary CaO-ZnO-SiO2 system have been investigated at 1170 °C to 1691 °C for oxide liquid in equilibrium...     

Digital pulse processor for ion beam microprobe imaging

Capabilities of spectroscopic ion beam analysis (IBA) techniques that are available in ion microprobe facilities can be greatly improved by the use of digital pulse processing. We report here development of a digital multi parameter data acquisition system suitable for IBA imaging applications. Input signals from charge sensitive preamplifier are conditioned by using a simple circuit and digitized with fast ADCs. The digitally converted signals are processed in real time using FPGA. Implementation of several components of the system is presented.     

Empirical approach to the description of spectral performance degradation of silicon photodiodes used as particle detectors

The spectral deterioration of Hamamatsu S5821 silicon photodiodes for ion types and energies frequently used in Ion Beam Analysis was investigated. Focused proton beams with energies 430 keV and 2 MeV were applied to generate radiation damage via an area selective ion implantation in unbiased diodes at room temperature. The variations of spectroscopic features were measured “in situ” by Ion Beam Induced Current (IBIC) method as a function of fluence, within the 10⁹–5 × 10¹² ion/cm² range and diode bias voltages, between 0 and 100 V.An empirical model has been developed to describe the radiation damage. Equations are derived for the variations of the normalized peak position and peak width. The derived empirical equations are physically correct, as far as they account for the superposition of the influence of charge carrier trapping by native and radiation-induced defects and for the effect of charge carrier velocity saturation with electric field strength, as well.     

Effect of ball milling on the thermal conductivity and viscosity of Indian coal fly ash nanofluid

The present study investigates the effect of ball milling on thermal conductivity and viscosity of stable nanofluid of fly ash from Indian coal. The particle size of fly ash decreased from micron size to 89, 55.5, and 11.5 nm with reduction by 55, 90, and 434 times, respectively, due to ball milling for 30, 40, and 60 hours. The surfactant Triton X-100 was used to attain stability of 0.1% and 0.5% volume concentration of fly ash nanofluid. The samples were characterized by using scanning electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, and zeta potential analysis. The outcome reveals that the thermal conductivity of fly ash nanofluid increases with temperature, volume concentration, and reduction in particle size. A maximum enhancement in thermal conductivity of 11.9% with 11.5-nm nanofluid sample and 5.4% with 89-nm nanofluid sample for 0.5% concentration at 60°C is observed. The viscosity of fly ash nanofluid increases with concentration and varies inversely with particle size and temperature. A difference of 1.6% in viscosity is observed between the values obtained with 11.5 and 89 nm nanofluid samples for 0.5% concentration at 30°C.