Quantitative measurements of nanoparticle layer thicknesses near the contact line region after droplet drying-out

Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology - Confocal fringe patterns of evaporating sessile drops have provided initial evidence of the presence of a sub-micron thin liquid film emanating from...     

Succinct Palette and Color Model Generation and Manipulation Using Hierarchical Representation

We propose a new method to obtain the representative colors and their distributions of an image. Our intuition is that it is possible to derive the global model from the local distributions. Beginning by sampling pure colors, we build a hierarchical representation of colors in the image via a bottom‐up approach. From the resulting hierarchy, we can obtain satisfactory palettes/color models automatically without a predefined size. Furthermore, we provide interactive operations to manipulate the results which allow the users to reflect their intention directly. In our experiment, we show that the proposed method produces more succinct results that faithfully represent all the colors in the image with an appropriate number of components. We also show that the proposed interactive approach can improve the results of applications such as recoloring and soft segmentation.     

Dynamic Oscillation via Negative Differential Resistance in Type III Junction Organic/Two-Dimensional and Oxide/Two-Dimensional Transition Metal Dichalcogenide Diodes

Among many of 2D semiconductor-based devices, type III PN junction diodes are given special attentions due to their unique function, negative differential resistance (NDR). However, it has been found uneasy to achieve well-matched type III PN junctions from 2D–2D van der Waals heterojunctions. Here, the authors present other alternatives of type III heterojunctions, using 2D p-MoTe₂/organic n-type dipyrazino[2,3-f:2′,3′-h]quinoxaline-2,3,6,7,10,11-hexacarbonitrile (HAT-CN) and 2D p-WSe₂/n-MoO_x systems. Those junction diodes appear to well-demonstrate static and dynamic NDR behavior via resonant tunneling and electron–hole recombination. Extended to an inverter circuit, p-MoTe₂/n-HAT-CN diode enables multilevel inverter characteristics as monolithically integrated with p-MoTe₂ channel field effect transistor. The same NDR diode shows dynamic LC oscillation behavior under a constant DC voltage, connected to an external inductor. From p-WSe₂/n-MoO_x oxide diode, similar NDR behavior to those of p-MoTe₂/n-HAT-CN is again observed along with LC oscillations. The authors attribute these visible oscillation results to high peak-to-valley current ratios of their organic or oxide/2D heterojunction diodes.     

Nature and etiology of hollow-organ abdominal injuries in frontal crashes

Injuries to the hollow organs of the lower digestive system carry substantial risk of complication due to infection and blood loss, and commonly require invasive abdominal surgery to diagnose and treat. The causes of, and risk factors for, lower abdomen injury in automobile collisions are poorly understood. The goal of this study was to investigate the risk factors and potential mechanisms of hollow-organ, lower abdomen injury in belted automobile occupants in frontal collisions.     

Development of Novel Inhibitors for Histone Methyltransferase SET7/9 based on Cyproheptadine

The histone methyltransferase SET7/9 methylates not only histone but also non‐histone proteins as substrates, and therefore, SET7/9 inhibitors are considered candidates for the treatment of diseases. Previously, our group identified cyproheptadine, used clinically as a serotonin receptor antagonist and histamine receptor (H1) antagonist, as a novel scaffold of the SET7/9 inhibitor. In this work, we focused on dibenzosuberene as a substructure of cyproheptadine and synthesized derivatives with various functional groups. Among them, the compound bearing a 2‐hydroxy group showed the most potent activity. On the other hand, a 3‐hydroxy group or another hydrophilic functional group such as acetamide decreased the activity. Structural analysis clarified a rationale for the improved potency only by tightly restricted location and type of the hydrophilic group. In addition, a SET7/9 loop, which was only partially visible in the complex with cyproheptadine, became more clearly visible in the complex with 2‐hydroxycyproheptadine. These results are expected to be helpful for further structure‐based development of SET7/9 inhibitors.     

Synthesis,aggregation and adsorption behaviour of a thermoresponsive pentablock copolymer

Poly(ethylene oxide)–poly(propylene oxide)–poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO–PPO–PEO) triblock copolymer (Pluronic F127) was modified by introducing poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) at both the PEO ends, and the pentablock copolymer (PNIPAM₄₁–F127–PNIPAM₄₁, PN41) so prepared was characterized using gel permeation chromatography and ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The degree of polymerization of NIPAM blocks at the two ends was 41. The solution behaviour and microstructure of PN41 aggregates in water were examined using UV–visible spectroscopy, micro‐differential scanning calorimetry and small‐angle neutron scattering (SANS) and compared with F127. Two lower critical solution temperatures (LCSTs) were observed for the pentablock copolymer, corresponding to PPO and PNIPAM blocks, respectively. The adsorption of PN41 on thiol‐grafted hydrophobic gold surfaces at various temperatures was investigated using a quartz crystal microbalance. It was found that the adsorption behaviour and mechanism of PN41 were mainly determined by the interactions of the pentablock copolymers with different chain conformations in dilute aqueous solutions at various temperatures. SANS measurements were used to determine the temperature‐dependent structural evolution of polymer micelles in aqueous solution. A NOESY study revealed that above the LSCT of PNIPAM, the interaction of PPO and PNIPAM protons increases and the distance between PPO and PNIPAM decreases. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry     

Highly active and stable electrocatalytic transition metal phosphides (Ni2P and FeP) nanoparticles on porous carbon cloth for overall water splitting at high current density

Highly active and stable hydrogen production at high current densities is required for practical application of electrocatalytic water splitting. In this study, highly active self-supporting electrodes with excellent durability were designed and developed for high-performance overall water splitting at a high current density. First, a colloid-based dip-coating method using porous carbon cloth (PCC) was introduced to obtain uniformly coated Ni and Fe nanoparticles on a conductive substrate. Then, the desired phase transitions of Ni and Fe to Ni₂P and FeP, respectively, proceeded by thermal phosphidation at optimum temperature. The uniformly interconnected Ni₂P layers on the PCC substrate (Ni₂P@PCC) and FeP layers on the PCC substrate (FeP@PCC) exhibited outstanding oxygen and hydrogen evolution reactions, respectively. When each electrode was adopted as an anode and a cathode for the overall water splitting cell, excellent performance was achieved, with a low operational voltage of 1.76 V and high durability for 100 hours at a high current density of 50 mA cm⁻².     

Development of a freshness indicator for monitoring the quality of beef during storage

Food Science and Biotechnology - Quality of beef and detect changes in freshness during storage was evaluated using freshness indicator. The freshness indicator can indicate spoilage or freshness...