Preparation of New Fibers on the Basis of Codeine Imprinted Polymer

A monolithic copolymer of methacrylic acid-ethylene glycol dimathacrylate as a fiber with 2 cm length and 0.3 mm diameter, containing codeine (CO) template was prepared through thermal radical co-polymerization procedure. This fiber is a robust recognition material capable of mimicking natural systems, combined with solid-phase micro-extraction (SPME) and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry for the extraction of trace CO from various street-drug samples. Effective experimental parameters such as Methacrylic Acid (MAA), Ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EDMA), and CO proportions, nature, and dimension of mold, copolymerization time and temperature were optimized. Experimental studies such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM) reveal that highly homogenate fiber was achieved that can preciously be used for the above mentioned goals.     

The influence of different single dietary sources on moult induction in laying hens

An investigation was carried out to assess the possibility of using single dietary sources as alternatives to feed deprivation for the induction of moult in commercial laying hens. The study involved six dietary groups of 29 laying hens: unmoulted, dried tomato pomace, alfalfa meal, rice bran, cumin seed meal and feed withdrawal. The birds received the above diets during the moulting period (11 days), and body weight loss and ovary weight regression were measured. Post‐moult production parameters (number of eggs produced per hen per day, egg weight, shell weight, yolk colour and Haugh unit) were measured for 12 weeks. Results showed that all dietary sources were as effective as feed withdrawal in causing ovary weight regression in birds. Birds provided with tomato pomace or alfalfa showed lower weight losses than feed‐deprived birds at the end of the moulting period. Hens moulted by tomato pomace or alfalfa exhibited post‐moult levels of egg production over a 12 week period that were superior to those of hens moulted by feed withdrawal. Post‐moult eggs laid by hens moulted by all dietary sources were of comparable quality to eggs from feed‐deprived hens and superior to those from unmoulted hens. As fibrous feeds with low metabolisable energy and an appreciable amount of protein, dried tomato pomace and alfalfa meal may be fed to hens on an ad libitum basis for effective moult induction while reducing the stress of severe starvation and retaining comparable egg quality and production. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry     

Modeling of Mechanical Characteristics in Hot Deformation of 4130 Steel

In this investigation, hot compression tests were performed at 900 °C ? 1100 °C and strain rate of 0.001 ? 0.1 s^?1 to study hot deformation behavior and flow stress model of 4130 steel. Based on the classical stress–dislocation relations and the kinematics of the dynamic recrystallization, the flow stress constitutive equations of the work hardening‐dynamical recovery period and dynamical recrystallization period were established for 4130 steel, respectively. The validity of the model was demonstrated by comparing the experimental data with the numerical results. The agreement of this comparison is quite reasonable.     

Plasma surface modification and characterization of collagen‐based artificial cornea for enhanced epithelialization

Argon plasma treatment enhanced the attachment of epithelial cells to a collagen‐based artificial cornea crosslinked using glutaraldehyde (GA) and glutaraldehyde‐polyethylene oxide dialdehyde (GA‐PEODA) systems. The epithelialization of untreated and treated surfaces was evaluated by the seeding and growth of human corneal epithelial cells. Characterization of polymer surface properties such as surface hydrophilicity and roughness was also made by contact angle measurement and atomic force microscopy, respectively. Contact angle analysis revealed that the surface hydrophilicity significantly increased after the treatment. In addition, AFM characterization showed an increase in surface roughness through argon plasma treatment. Based on the biological and surface analysis, argon plasma treatment displays promising potential for biocompatibility enhancement of collagen‐based artificial corneas. It was also found that the cell attachment to artificial cornea surfaces was influenced by the combined effects of surface chemistry (i.e., surface energy), polymer surface morphology (i.e., surface roughness), and polar interactions between functional groups at the polymer surface and cell membrane proteins. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 2007     

On the stability of power systems containing doubly fed induction generator-based generation

This article is concerned with the impact of large-scale wind farms utilising doubly fed induction generators on the stability of a general power system. Inspection of the eigenstructure of the power system provides a foundation for assessing the impact, which is then quantified by means of detailed numerical simulations.     

Dynamic Speed Harmonization in Connected Urban Street Networks

Connected vehicle technology, the Internet of Things, and other advanced communication technologies create possibilities to facilitate the movement of vehicles through transportation networks and reduce their travel time. Harmonizing the speed of vehicles in different network links not only yields a more efficient network capacity utilization, but also regulates the movement of vehicles to achieve a “smoother” flow of traffic. This study develops a mathematical nonlinear formulation for dynamic speed harmonization in urban street networks aiming at improving traffic operations. We have converted the nonlinear problem into a linear program utilizing the fundamental flow–density relationship and developed a model predictive control approach to account for stochastic changes in traffic demand and further improve the efficiency of the developed solution algorithm. Results showed that the algorithm efficiently found dynamic optimal advisory speeds on various network links, and speed harmonization significantly reduced the travel time (up to 5.4%), speed variance (19.8%–29.4%), and the number of stops (8.3%–18.5%), while increasing the average speed (up to 5.9%) and the number of completed trips (up to 4%) in our case study network under all tested demand patterns.     

Effect of the Hierarchical Structure in Poly(propylene)/Clay Composites on their Thermal Stability: From Single‐ to Multi‐Step Degradation Processes

Composites with several hierarchical structures were prepared by using different clays, compatibilizers, and PPs. TGA showed that the thermal stability of the composites can be strongly improved, under either inert or thermo‐oxidative conditions, depending on the type of clay and its morphology. Drastic increases in the temperature of the maximum rate of weight loss (ΔT_peak ≈ 170 °C) under thermo‐oxidative conditions were observed depending on the clay dispersion. Furthermore, some composites had a complex multi‐step degradation behavior instead of a single‐step process related with different clay morphologies that can be present simultaneously. Finally, it was concluded that the TGA has a higher sensitivity toward the composite morphology than the mechanical properties.

     

Role of nano‐size SiO2 additive on the thermal behavior of cyanoacrylate nanocomposite

Nowadays, solvent‐free, one‐part cyanoacrylate adhesive is widely used in medicine and dentistry. According to a literature survey done by the authors, there are few papers concentrated on the role of nano‐sized particles on the thermal behavior of cyanoacrylate glue. Thus the main goal of the current research focused on clarifying the role of nano‐sized SiO₂ on the thermal behavior of cyanoacrylate. Thermal behavior of all materials including cyanoacrylate and its nanocomposites was studied by using Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) methods. The results of DSC analysis showed that an increase in the amount of nano‐sized SiO₂ results in decreases in the duration of cyanoacrylate curing, energy release during polymerization, and incubation time of polymerization. Furthermore, the results of TGA tests illustrated that the weight loss of cyanoacrylate strongly depends on the contents of both caffeine and SiO₂. In fact, an increase in nano‐sized SiO₂ content increases the degradation temperature of cyanoacrylate. J. VINYL ADDIT. TECHNOL., 2010. © 2010 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Remineralization effects of self-assembling peptide P11-4 associated with three materials on early enamel carious lesions: An in vitro study

The aim of this study was to assess the remineralization of enamel caries lesions using the self-assembling peptide P₁₁-4 associated with different materials. Artificial early enamel lesions were prepared on 154 primary teeth. The samples were randomly divided into eight groups: (1) control, (2) P₁₁-4, (3) fluoridate toothpaste (FT), (4) P₁₁-4 + FT, (5) casein phosphopeptide–amorphous calcium phosphate (CPP–ACP), (6) P₁₁-4 + CPP–ACP, (7) fluoridate bioactive glass toothpaste (BT), and (8) P₁₁-4 + BT. The surface enamel microhardness (EMH) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) of the teeth were then measured at the baseline, after demineralization, and after 28 days of remineralization. The enamel surfaces were assessed by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The data were analyzed with one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) (p < .05). EMH after demineralization was significantly lower than the baseline value (p < .001). The interventions led to an enhanced percentage of EMH recovery (%REMH), which was higher in Groups 6 and 7. There was no significant difference between Groups 3 and 4. Groups 1 and 2 had the lowest %REMH. The mean calcium/phosphate weight percentage ratio of P₁₁-4 was significantly lower than the others (p < .001). The FESEM and AFM images revealed mineral deposition on the eroded enamel and reductions in surface roughness in Groups 5 and 7.