Preparation and characterization of a proton‐exchange membrane by the radiation grafting of styrene onto polytetrafluoroethylene films

Radiation‐induced simultaneous grafting of styrene onto polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) films and the subsequent sulfonation in the chlorosulfonic acid/dichloroethane were investigated. The effects of the main radiation grafting conditions, such as the type of solvents, irradiation dose, dose rate, the styrene concentrations, etc., on the degree of grafting (DOG) were studied. To elucidate the influence of both the grafting and sulfonation conditions on the properties of the PTFE‐g‐polystyrene‐sulfonic acid (PSSA) membranes, the sulfonation conditions, including the sulfonation temperature and the concentration of the ClSO₃H with respect to the DOG, were systematically evaluated. The grafted and sulfonated membranes were characterized by FTIR–ATR spectra, ion‐exchange capacity (IEC), water uptake, thickness measurement, etc. The as‐prepared PTFE‐g‐PSSA membranes in this work showed a good combination of a high IEC (0.85–2.75 meq g^?1), acceptable water uptake (8.86–56.9 wt %), low thickness, and volume expansion and/or contraction. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 99: 1415–1428, 2006     

Synthesis of Biodiesel from Canola Oil Using Heterogeneous Base Catalyst

A series of alkali metal (Li, Na, K) promoted alkali earth oxides (CaO, BaO, MgO), as well as K₂CO₃ supported on alumina (Al₂O₃), were prepared and used as catalysts for transesterification of canola oil with methanol. Four catalysts such as K₂CO₃/Al₂O₃ and alkali metal (Li, Na, K) promoted BaO were effective for transesterification with >85 wt% of methyl esters. ICP-MS analysis revealed that leaching of barium in ester phase was too high (~1,000 ppm) when BaO based catalysts were used. As barium is highly toxic, these catalysts were not used further for transesterification of canola oil. Optimization of reaction conditions such as molar ratio of alcohol to oil (6:1–12:1), reaction temperature (40–60 °C) and catalyst loading (1–3 wt%) was performed for most efficient and environmentally friendly K₂CO₃/Al₂O₃ catalyst to maximize ester yield using response surface methodology (RSM). The RSM suggested that a molar ratio of alcohol to oil 11.48:1, a reaction temperature of 60 °C, and catalyst loading 3.16 wt% were optimum for the production of ester from canola oil. The predicted value of ester yield was 96.3 wt% in 2 h, which was in agreement with the experimental results within 1.28%.     

Changes in the Peeled Surfaces of Copper Thin Films Deposited on Polyimide Substrates After Heat Treatment

Peel strength between a copper (Cu) thin film and a polyimide (pyromellitic dianhydride-oxydianiline, or PMDA-ODA) substrate is reduced by heat treatment at 150°C in air. In this work, we investigated the peel strength, the morphology of the interface between Cu films and polyimide substrates using optical microscopy and electron microscopy, and chemical change of the interface using Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) and micro X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The analysis showed that CuO “lumps” were present on the peeled surface of PMDA-ODA after heat treatment at 150°C in air. The peeled surfaces of other polyimide substrates were also analyzed: biphenyl dianhydride-para phenylene diamine (BPDA-PDA) and biphenyl dianhydride-oxydianiline (BPDA-ODA). CuO lumps were present on the peeled surface of BPDA-ODA after the heat treatment, but not that of BPDA-PDA. Compared with the adhesion strength for the Cu thin film, the adhesion strength was high for the Cu/PMDA-ODA and Cu/BPDA-ODA laminates, but the adhesion strength was very low for the Cu/BPDA-PDA laminate. This low strength is the reason that CuO lumps were not detected on the peeled surface of the BPDA-PDA substrate. These CuO lumps were related to the adhesion degradation of the Cu/polyimide laminates after the heat treatment.     

Films formed from polystyrene latex/clay composites: A fluorescence study

This study reports a steady-state fluorescence (SSF) technique for studying film formation from surfactant-free polystyrene (PS) latex and Na-montmorillonite (SNaM) composites. The composite films were prepared from pyrene (P)-labeled PS particles and SNaM clay at room temperature and annealed at elevated temperatures in 10-min intervals above glass transition temperature (t₃) of polystyrene. During the annealing processes, the transparency of the film improved considerably. Scattered light (I_s) and fluorescence intensity (I_p) from P were measured after each annealing step to monitor the stages of film formation. Evolution of transparency of composite films was monitored by using photon transmission intensity, I_tr. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to detect the variation in physical structure of annealed composite films. Minimum film formation temperature, T_q, and healing temperatures, T_h, were determined. Void closure and interdiffusion stages were modeled and related activation energies were determined. It was observed that both activation energies increased as the percent of SNaM was increased in composite films.     

Sodium molybdate—a possible alternate additive for sodium dichromate in the electrolytic production of sodium chlorate

Sodium dichromate is commonly used in sodium chlorate production to maintain high current efficiency; however, it is also a well documented carcinogen. To reduce the environmental impact, identification of a suitable alternative with similar buffering characteristics to dichromate and without adverse effect on the electrolytic performance of sodium chlorate production is important; sodium molybdate is a good candidate. Molybdate ion and its conjugated acid work as a buffer pair at pH 5–6, a lower and slightly narrower pH window than the typical buffer region of dichromate. Nonetheless, the molybdate buffer works effectively during the electrolytic process by maintaining pH at 5.9. Although the use of molybdate buffer will lower the overpotential of hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) by 100 mV, the average off-gas oxygen content is noticeably compromised at 3.6–4.6%, measured using a pilot cell operated at 3 kA m⁻²and 80 °C during a 3-day trial. The resulting current efficiency of 91 92% is significantly lower than when dichromate is employed as the process additive (> 96%). Mixtures of different dichromate and molybdate ratio were also investigated in terms of the resulting cathode surface potential.     

Developmental variations in plasma leptin,leptin soluble receptor and their molar ratio in healthy infants

Background  

Leptin and its soluble receptor (sOB-R) are important to regulation of body composition but there are no data on the developmental variations in these plasma variables and their relationship with body composition measurements,     

Synthesis of polystyrene/poly(butyl acrylate) core–shell latex and its surface morphology

A polystyrene (PS)/poly(butyl acrylate) (PBA) composite emulsion was produced by seeded emulsion polymerization of butyl acrylate (BA) with PS seed particles which were prepared by emulsifier‐free polymerization of styrene with potassium persulfate (KPS) under a nitrogen atmosphere at 70°C for 24 h with stirring at 60 rpm and swelled with the BA monomer in an ethanol/water medium. The structure of the PS/PBA composite particles was confirmed by the presence of the characteristic absorption band attributed to PS and PBA from FTIR spectra. The particles for pure PS and PS/PBA with a low content of the BA monomer were almost spherical and regular. As the BA monomer content was increased, the particle size of the PS/PBA composite particles became larger, and more golf ball‐like particles were produced. The surface morphology of the PS/PBA composite particles was investigated by AFM and SEM. The T_g's attributed to PS and PBA in the PS/PBA composite particles were found at 110 and ?49°C, respectively. The thermal degradation of the pure PS and PS/PBA composite particles occurred in one and two steps, respectively. With an increasing amount of PBA, the initial thermal decomposition temperature increased. On the contrary the residual weight at 450°C decreased with an increasing amount of PBA. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 88: 595–601, 2003     

Change in the Surface Microstructure of Ti(C0.5N0.5)–20WC–10Ni–10Co Cermets During Sintering in a Nitrogen Atmosphere

Experiments were carried out to determine the effects of introducing nitrogen during sintering on the formation of the surface gradient zone for Ti(C,N)-based cermets. WC was used as a secondary carbide in a Ti(C,N)–Ni/Co system, and processing was carried out in vacuum, and under various nitrogen conditions (at 1torr). Nitrogen was introduced during various stages of the sintering (above 1300°C). The introduction of nitrogen during the heating stage facilitated the formation of a (Ti,W)(C,N)-enriched layer to a greater extent than the vacuum conditions. A thermodynamic calculation revealed that denitrification occurs during sintering, even when nitrogen pressure is applied. A nitrogen atmosphere during the heating stage is effective in retarding the dissolution of WC in the cermet matrix. The introduction of nitrogen during the holding or cooling stages also led to an enrichment in the binder phase near the surface. The thickness of the stratified binder layer was strongly related to the cooling rate.     

Morphology and mechanical properties of blends of thermoplastic polyurethane and polyolefins

Polyolefins (PO) were melt mixed with thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) in a 20 : 80 weight ratio with or without compatibilizer containing 0.5 wt % of maleic anhydride. Effects of component viscosities on morphology and on mechanical properties of the blend were studied by scanning electron microscope (SEM), tensile property analysis, and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). It was found that the disperse particle size of compatibilizer‐free blends decreased with the decreasing viscosity ratio of the disperse phase to TPU. The efficiency of the compatibilizer in reducing the particle size varied with viscosity ratios of the disperse phase to compatibilizer. However, the particle size did not decrease with the decreasing viscosity ratio monotonically. With lower viscosity ratio, addition of 5 wt % compatibilizer resulted in a greater reduction of particle size and less loss in the tensile properties as compared to the TPU matrix. For the polyethene (PE) that has the lowest viscosity value among all the POs, its size in the blend was stabilized with the addition of compatibilizer and no compatibilization was detected by DMA and by tensile property analysis. The mobility of the disperse phase and compatibilizer and the dispersion competition between them seemed important. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 99: 875–883, 2006     

刑满释放重新犯罪人员人格特质调查

采用《中国罪犯心理测试个性分测验》对刑满释放重新犯罪的服刑人员进行心理测试。结果显示,与全国男性罪犯常模比较,重新犯罪的服刑人员性格内向,缺乏自信心和信任感,容易冲动,有较强的攻击性和报复性,具有明显的犯罪思维模式;不同犯罪类型的罪犯在攻击性、报复性、同情心、心理变态倾向方面存在显著差异。