Preparation and properties of polyrotaxane from α-cyclodextrin and poly(ethylene glycol) with poly(vinyl alcohol)

α–Cyclodextrin (α-CD) was found to form inclusion complexes with poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) having a crystalline state in high yields, which have been investigated extensively in the past. Formation of an inclusion complex depends strongly on structure, molecular weight and geometry of the polymer. Development of a dicomponent inclusion complex (DIC) of PEG and α-CD in the presence of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and initiation of hexagonal crystals upon sonication have exhibited various microstructures. Formation of the new inclusion complex in PVA heavily depends on the concentration of PVA, temperature and sonication time. The complexes produced are characterized by FTIR, HNMR spectra and powder X-ray. ¹HNMR of the complexes demonstrate that their stoichiometric ratio is 2:1 (two ethylene glycol units and one α-CD). X-ray patterns of PEG–α-CD complex indicate that the α-CD forms channels whereas PEG/α-CD/PVA creates cage-type structures.     

Performance of fixed beam without interacting bars

Increasing the bending capacity of reinforced concrete (RC) elements is one of important topics in structure engineering. The goal of this study is to develop a transferred stress system (TSS) on longitudinal reinforcement bars for increasing the bending capacity of RC frames. The study is divided into two parts, i.e., experimental tests and nonlinear FE analysis. The experiments were carried out to determine the load-deflection curves and crack patterns of the ordinary and TSS fixed frame. The FE models were developed for simulating the fixed frames. The obtained load-deflection results and the observed cracks from the FE analysis and experimental tests are compared to evaluate the validation of the FE nonlinear models. Based on the validated FE models, the stress distribution on the ordinary and TSS bars were evaluated. We found the load carrying capacity and ductility of TSS fixed beam are 29.39% and 23.69% higher compared to those of the ordinary fixed beams. The crack expansion occurs on the ordinary fixed beam, although there are several crack openings at mid-span of the TSS fixed beam. The crack distribution was changed in the TSS fixed frame. The TSS fixed beam is proposed to employ in RC frame instead of ordinary RC beam for improving the performance of RC frame.     

Polymer–clay nanocomposites via chemical grafting of polyacrylonitrile onto cloisite 20A

The synthesis and characterization of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) nanocomposites through grafting the polymer onto organophilic montmorillonite have been reported. Cloisite 20A reacted with vinyltrichlorosilane to replace the edge hydroxyl groups of the clay with a vinyl moiety. Because the reaction liberates HCl, it was performed in the presence of sodium hydrogen carbonate to prevent the exchange of quaternary alkylammonium cations with H^?+? ions. Only the silanol groups on the edge of the clay reacted with vinyltrichlorosilane. The radical polymerization of the product with acrylonitrile (AN) as a vinyl monomer leads to chemical grafting of polyacrylonitrile onto montmorillonite surface. The homopolymer formed during polymerization was separated from the grafted organoclay by Soxhlet extraction. Chemical grafting of the polymer onto Cloisite 20A was confirmed by infrared spectroscopy. The prepared nanocomposite materials and grafted nanoparticles were studied by XRD and TEM. Exfoliated nanocomposites were obtained for 0·5–7 wt% clay content. The nanocomposites were studied by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMTA).     

On some controllability aspects of discrete-time systems by matrix generalized inverse

The simplest matrix generalized inverse is used to obtain some necessary and sufficient conditions for state and output controllability or servomechanism controllability of linear time-invariant discrete systems. The nulling-output problem as a very special case of output controllability in the servomechanism sense gives rise to different controllability spaces (Molinari 1976 a, b) that can be explicitly described with the aid of a {l}-inverse of a matrix. In relation to the nulling-output problem, a method of finding zeros and zero directions for discrete systems is also presented.     

The effect of Lallemantia royleana (Balangu) seed, palmate-tuber salep and carboxymethylcellulose gums on the physicochemical and sensory properties of typical soft ice cream

This study was aimed primarily at determining the suitability of two Iranian sources of hydrocolloid, Balangu seed and palmate-tuber salep (PTS), for the production of ice cream mix. For this purpose, the effect of these gums and carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) on some physicochemical and sensory characteristics of a typical soft ice cream was investigated. In comparison with carboxymethylcellulose, Balangu seed did not make a significant difference ( P  > 0.05) to most characteristics and could be used as a suitable stabiliser. Although products prepared using only the palmate-tuber salep showed more differences from the corresponding ones with carboxymethylcellulose, the variations were not significant.     

Influence of some polyvalent organic acids and salts on the colloidal stability of milk

Fifteen polyvalent organic salts and acids increased, some very markedly, the heat stability of milk progressively with increasing concentration; acetate and mesaconic acid had no effect, and maleate caused destabilization. Citrate, oxalate and EDTA markedly reduced the [Ca⁺] in the milk and increased its ethanol stability by shifting the ethanol/pH profile to lower pH values. These additives ≥ 20 mmol/l prevented the coagulation of milk by rennet, but the other additives caused only slight increases in RCT .
Citrate, EDTA and oxalate disrupted casein micelles and would therefore not be suitable additives: however, the other acids and salts did not alter the appearance of the milk and might be recommended as suitable additives to improve the heat stability. In terms of the response to the level of Ca²⁺ and colloidal calcium phosphate in milk, there appeared to be a correlation between ethanol stability and rennet coagulation time.     

Influence of gum tragacanth,Astragalus gossypinus,addition on stability of nonfat Doogh,an Iranian fermented milk drink

In this study, the stabilising property of various concentrations of gum tragacanth in nonfat doogh, an Iranian fermented milk drink, was investigated by measuring phase separation, particle size, flow behaviour and viscoelastic properties. Moreover, light microscopy was used to get more insight into morphological characteristic of protein–polysaccharide complexes in doogh samples. The addition of gum tragacanth improved stabilisation of doogh samples which was associated with an increase in apparent viscosity and storage modulus. Furthermore, the particle size distribution showed an increase in polydispersity and a pronounced reduction in median diameter of protein–polysaccharide complexes which was accompanied by no phase separation at 0.3% concentration of gum tragacanth.