Structure and physico-mechanical properties of CVD diamonds of various crystalline perfections in the hybridite material

A comparison study has been conducted of the substructure of samples of CVD diamonds of various crystalline perfections in the hybridite material produced at high pressures and temperatures. The material thermostability and hardness variation as a result of the formation of a polycrystalline shell of diamond thermostable composite material around a CVD diamond at high pressure and temperature have been examined. Based on the data obtained on the efficiency of tools from hybridite with CVD diamonds of various structural perfections, the most efficient applications of tools have been recommended.     

Stability of citrate, PVP, and PEG coated silver nanoparticles in ecotoxicology media

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are present in the environment and a number of ecotoxicology studies have shown that AgNPs might be highly toxic. Nevertheless, there are little data on their stability in toxicology media. This is an important issue as such dynamic changes affect exposure dose and the nature of the toxicant studied and have a direct impact on all (eco)toxicology data. In this study, monodisperse citrate, PVP, and PEG coated AgNPs with a core size of approximately 10 nm were synthesized and characterized; their behavior was examined in standard OECD media used for Daphnia sp. acute and chronic tests (in the absence of Daphnia). Surface plasmon resonance, size, aggregation, and shape were monitored over 21 days, comparable to a chronic exposure period. Charge stabilized particles (citrate) were more unstable than sterically stabilized particles. Replacement of chloride in the media (due to concerns over chloride-silver interactions) with either nitrate or sulfate resulted in increased shape and dissolution changes. PVP-stabilized NPs in a 10-fold diluted OECD media (chloride present) were found to be the most stable, with only small losses in total concentration over 21 days, and no shape, aggregation, or dissolution changes observed and are recommended for exposure studies.     

Sensory,physical and chemical characteristics of cooked ham manufactured from rapidly chilled and earlier deboned M. semimembranosus

Effects of rapid chilling of carcasses (at − 31 °C in the first 3 h of chilling, and then at 2–4 °C) and earlier deboning (8 h post-mortem), compared to rapid (till 24 h post-mortem) and conventional chilling (at 2–4 °C, till 24 h post-mortem), on quality characteristics of pork M. semimebranosus and cooked ham were investigated. Quality measurements included pH value, colour (CIEL*a*b* values) and total aerobic count of M. semimebranosus, as well as sensory (colour, juiciness, texture, and flavour), physical (pH value, colour – CIEL*a*b* values and texture – Warner–Bratzler shear and penetration forces) and chemical (protein, total fat, and moisture content) characteristics of cooked ham. The cooked ham was manufactured from pieces of M. semimebranosus with ultimate lightness (CIEL* value) lower than 50. Rapid chilling and earlier deboning significantly increased quantity of M. semimebranosus desirable for cooked ham manufacturing. Earlier start of pork fabrication did not affect important quality characteristics of cooked ham.     

The strategic environmental impact assessment of electric wind energy plants: Case study ‘Bavani?te’ (Serbia)

This study presents a methodology of strategic environmental impact assessment that was applied in the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) of the Urban Plan for wind power plants in Bavani?te (Serbia). It deals with the experience in the making of urban planning documentation for the first wind power plant in Serbia from the aspect of possible environmental conflicts related to the utilization of alternative energy sources – preservation of natural resources. SEA is one of the most important instruments for the implementation of the sustainable development strategy in planning. By applying SEA in planning, it is possible to realize the spatial consequences of the proposed changes in space, considering the needs of subject location. Although the general methodology and procedures of SEA design and its adoption, as well as the content of SEA report are defined by the legislation of the European countries, there is no universal methodology for environmental impact assessment study plans. Specific environmental impacts of certain plans require a global perception of planning solutions in the context of realizing the aims of sustainable development.     

TiO2–CeO2 composite coatings for photocatalytic degradation of chloropesticide and organic dye

Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics - Spray pyrolysis was used to deposit CeO2–TiO2 coatings on stainless steel substrates. The addition of CeO2 to TiO2 changes morphology...     

On hierarchically developing reactive systems

The hierarchical development method is one of the most practical and effective methods for designing large reactive systems by allowing a design at different levels of abstraction. Combining hierarchical specification with hierarchical implementation plays a key role in decreasing the complexity of the verification of these systems. But, up to now, little work has been done related to the topic. In this paper, we investigate this issue.     

Involvement of Disulfide Bonds in Bovine β-Lactoglobulin B Gels Set Thermally at Various pH

To obtain information on forces important for maintenance of the structure of heat-set β-lactoglobulin gels, gels set from pure β-lactoglobulin at pH 3.0, 5.0, and 7.0 were solubilized in dissociating buffers, and solubilized material was characterized by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and size exclusion high performance liquid chromatography. The gel formed at pH 7.0 was largely soluble in urea (or SDS), and this gel seemed to be built from covalently linked soluble aggregates, associating into a gel network mainly by strong noncovalent interactions. The gel set at pH 5.0 was solubilized only in the presence of a reducing agent, indicating that this gel structure was supported mainly by covalent disulfide bonds. The gel set at pH 3.0 was almost completely solubilized in SDS or urea without a reducing agent, showing the importance of noncovalent interactions in maintaining the gel structure.     

Role of electrohydraulic extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy (Dornier HM 4) in the treatment of caliceal diverticulum lithiasis

Caliceal diverticula may be congenital or acquired malformations of the collecting system, normally asymptomatic and discovered during an IVP. Indications for treatment included chronic vague flank pain, acute renal colic, urinary tract infection and hematuria. We present the results of 29 patients with symptomatic calculi in caliceal diverticula who were managed by ESWL monotherapy. All treatments were performed with electrohydraulic machine (Dornier HM 4) in ambulatory form. RESULTS: The average followup was 42 months. 12 patients (40%) had passed successfully all of the stone fragments, while 2 patients (7%) had passed more than half and 4 (13.5%) had passed less than half of the fragments. 66 per cent of patients had been rendered free of symptoms. The possibility of producing a satisfactory result (66% free of symptoms and 40% stone free by X ray) and the low morbidity of ESWL suggest that this treatment may be appropriate for majority of calculi in calicea diverticula.     

A bibliometric approach to interdisciplinarity in Japanese rice research and technology development

Research and development of rice, a major crop, has been promoted on an interdisciplinary basis with the involvement of various research fields ranging from natural sciences to socioeconomics in Japan. This paper focuses on the structure of interdisciplinarity in Japanese rice research and technology development by analyzing the relationship among all relevant disciplines with the use of a compiled bibliography of Japanese rice research with 19,389 articles in 1,611 journals in the publishing years of 1990–2000. The relationship among the disciplines was characterized by the frequency distribution of articles among journals classified into 24 categories based on the law of scattering originally identified by Bradford (Engineering 13:785–786, 1934). The 24 journal categories ranked in decreasing order of productivity of articles were divided into 3 zones; the first nuclear zone with a smaller number of highly productive journal disciplines; the second zone with a large number of less productive disciplines; and the last zone with a larger number of the least productive disciplines, which characterized the structure of interdisciplinarity in Japanese rice research and technology development. Other aspects of the interdisciplinarity were further explored with reference to peripheral journals with a minimal number of papers on a certain subject, and the Groos droop phenomenon at the end of Bradford’s S-shape curve that is the region of the least productive journals with only one paper on a certain subject, by analyzing the frequency distribution of articles in journal categories.     

Deadlock-freedom in component systems with architectural constraints

We present a compositional analysis of deadlock-freedom in component systems with multiway cooperation. We require the systems to satisfy an architectural constraint which makes sure that the communication structure between the components is given by a tree. Only pairs of components have to be examined for the analysis, therefore the cost is polynomial in the size of the input. We shortly discuss a prototype algorithm which is based on our results and can be used for the investigation of deadlock-freedom of systems satisfying the architectural constraint.