Electrochemically deposited sol-gel-derived silicate films as a viable alternative in thin-film design

Sol-gel-derived silicate films were electrochemically deposited on conducting surfaces from a sol consisting of tetramethoxysilane (TMOS). In this method, a sufficiently negative potential is applied to the electrode surface to reduce oxygen to hydroxyl ions, which serves as the catalyst for the hydrolysis and condensation of TMOS. The electrodeposition process was followed by the electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance and cyclic voltammetry. The electrodeposited films were characterized for their surface morphology, porosity, and film thickness using atomic force microscopy, electrochemical probe techniques, surface area and pore size analysis, and profilometry. The electrodeposited films were found to have a completely different surface structure and to be significantly rougher relative to spin-coated films. This is likely due in part to the separation of the gelation and evaporation stages of film formation. The electrodeposited films were found to be permeable to simple redox molecules, such as ruthenium(III) hexaammine and ferrocene methanol. Film thickness can be easily varied from < 75 nm to > 15 microm by varying the electrode potential from -600 mV to more than -1000 mV, respectively. The electrodeposition process was further applied for the electroencapsulation of redox molecules and organic dyes within the silicate network. Cyclic voltammograms for the gel-entrapped ferrocene methanol (FcCH2OH) and ruthenium(II) tris(bipyridine) (Ru(bpy)3(2+)) exhibited the characteristic redox behavior of the molecules. The electroencapsulation of organic dyes in their "native" form proved to be more difficult because these species typically contain reducible functionalities that change the structure of the dye.     

Effects of carbon dioxide on bacterial growth parameters in milk as measured by conductivity

Inhibition of bacterial growth by dissolved carbon dioxide (CO2) has been well established in many foods including dairy foods. However, the effects of dissolved CO2 on specific growth parameters such as length of lag phase, time to maximum growth rate, and numbers of organisms at the stationary phase have not been quantified for organisms of concern in milk. The effect of dissolved CO2 concentrations of 0.6 to 61.4 mM on specific bacterial growth parameters in raw or single organism inoculated sterile milk was determined at 15 degrees C by conductance. Commingled raw or sterile milks were amended to a final concentration of 0.5 mg/ml each of urea and arginine HCl. Sterile milks were inoculated singly with one of six different microorganisms to a final concentration of approximately 10(2) to 10(3) cfu/ml; raw milk was adjusted to a final indigenous bacterial population of approximately 10(3) cfu/ml. Conductivity of the milk was recorded every 60 s over 4 to 5 d in a circulating apparatus at 15 degrees C. Conductivity values were fit to Gompertz equations and growth parameters calculated. Conductance correlated with plate counts and was satisfactory for monitoring microbial growth. Data fit the Gompertz equation with high correlation (R2 = 0.96 to 1.00). In all cases, dissolved CO2 significantly inhibited growth of raw milk bacteria, influencing lag, exponential, and stationary growth phases as well as all tested monocultures.     

Cognitive and learning difficulties and how they affect access to IT systems

In October 2005, the IBM Human Ability and Accessibility Center and T.J. Watson Research Center hosted a symposium on “cognitive and learning difficulties and how they affect access to IT systems”. The central premise of the symposium was the recognition that cognitive and learning difficulties have a profound impact on a person’s ability to interact with information technology (IT) systems, but that little support is currently being offered by those systems. By bringing together internationally renowned experts from a variety of different, but complementary, research fields, the symposium aimed to provide a complete overview of the issues related to this topic. This paper summarises the discussions and findings of the symposium.     

移动WiMAX竞技于边缘市场

经过多年的酝酿,移动WiMAX终于成为一种为网络运营商提供高速数据传输服务的可行方式。近几个月来,一些运营商开始部署这种技术,但是语音服务的欠缺很可能会降低移动WiMAX短期内对客户的吸引力。另外,一些长期性问题依旧悬而未决。例如,运营商将怎样在移动语音技术环境下提供基于移动WiMAX的数据服务?发展     

Synthesis of SiC nanorods from bleached wood pulp

Unbleached and bleached soft wood pulps have been used as templates and carbon precursors to produce SiC nanorods. Hydrolyzed tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS), silicic acid was infiltrated into the pulps followed by a carbothermal reduction to form SiC nanorods at 1400 °C in Ar. Residual carbon formed along with SiC was removed by gasification at 700 °C in air. The SiC materials prepared from unbleached pulp were non-uniform SiC with a thick SiO₂ coating, while the SiC nanorods prepared from the bleached pulp were uniform and straight with dimensions of 250 nm in diameter and 5.0 mm long. The formation of uniform camelback structure of SiC in the reaction between silica and bleached pulp is attributed to more silica deposited in the amorphous region of cellulose.     

Growth and feeding efficiency of wild and aquaculture genotypes of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) common to Lake Huron,Canada

Selective breeding of salmonid fishes for the purpose of commercial aquaculture has resulted in domesticated strains possessing a divergent physiological and behavioral phenotype from that of wild conspecifics. Freshwater production of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) has been occurring in regions of Lake Huron, Canada, for decades yet the growth and performance of domestic (aquaculture) versus wild (naturalized) strains are poorly understood. We conducted two trials to examine growth differences between size-matched wild and domestic strains of juvenile rainbow trout: (1) reared separately and fed to satiation; and (2) reared together and fed a reduced ration to induce competition. Additionally, we used bioenergetics models to assess strain-specific growth rates across a range of water temperatures (5, 10, 15 and 18 °C) as well as Lake Huron temperatures during the open-water season. Domestic rainbow trout showed a growth advantage throughout the 102 d trials, and by the end of the study had achieved a mass > two-fold that of the wild strain and had greater fork length, condition, and thermal growth coefficient (TGC) under both treatments. Rapid growth of domestic strain fish was achieved through the combination of enhanced feed consumption (by ~ 40%) and feeding efficiency (up to 60% lower feed conversion ratio) relative to wild fish. Divergence in growth rates between strains was most pronounced (> 3 ×) when modeled with Lake Huron open-water temperatures. We demonstrate that the growth and feed-conversion efficiency differ significantly between these two strains of rainbow trout under laboratory conditions, suggesting that differences could be even greater in nature.     

Comparative performance analysis of PEM and solid oxide steam electrolysers

This paper presents a comprehensive overview of comparative performance characteristics of proton exchange membrane (PEM) and solid oxide steam (SOS) electrolysers based on a thermodynamic analysis. The main factors which influence electrolyser energy and exergy efficiencies were temperature, summation of overpotentials, applied voltage, and to a lesser extent pressure. It is found that anodic overpotentials make up a majority of the total overpotentials in both electrolyser types studied and therefore further development of catalysts to reduce the overpotentials was recommended.     

Measurement of activation yields for platinum group elements using Bremsstrahlung radiation with end-point energies in the range 11-14 MeV

Activation yields have been measured for (γ,n) reactions of the elements Ru, Rh, Pd, Ir and Pt. Metallic foils of natural isotopic composition were irradiated using Bremsstrahlung radiation produced from an electron linear accelerator operated with electron beam energies in the range 11-14 MeV. Activation products, including both unstable ground states and metastates were measured using a high-purity germanium detector. Cross-sections were estimated from the yield data by assuming a simple two-parameter model for the shape of the cross-section with energy.