The synthesis of single phase WC nanoparticles/C composite by solid state reaction involving nitrogen-rich carbonized polyaniline

Single phase tungsten carbide nanoparticles (WC-NPs), (mean particle diameter 5.4 nm), distributed over carbonized polyaniline (C-PANI) nanotubes/nanosheets were synthesized by a solid state reaction between WO₃ and nitrogen-rich carbonized polyaniline at 1000 °C in a reducing atmosphere. The resulting composite was characterized by X-ray diffractometry, electron microscopy, thermogravimetry in oxidizing and reduction atmospheres and elemental analysis. We suggested that the synthesis of WC as a single phase was facilitated by reactive C atoms with dangling bonds, formed upon nitrogen removal.     

Strength degradation and failure limits of dense and porous ceramic membrane materials

Thin dense membrane layers, mechanically supported by porous substrates, are considered as the most efficient designs for oxygen supply units used in Oxy-fuel processes and membrane reactors. Based on the favorable permeation properties and chemical stability, several materials were suggested as promising membrane and substrate materials: Ba_0.5Sr_0.5Co_0.8Fe_0.2O_3?δ, La_0.6?xSr_0.4Co_0.2Fe_0.8O_3?δ (x = 0, 0.02) and Ce_0.9Gd_0.1O_1.95?δ. Although membranes operate at elevated temperatures, the ends of tubes in certain three-end concepts remain almost at room temperature. The current work concentrates on the failure potential of these membrane parts, where in a complex device also the highest residual stresses should arise due to differences in thermal expansion. In particular, sensitivity of the materials to subcritical crack growth was assessed since the long-term reliability of the component does not only depend on its initial strength, but also on strength degradation effects. The results were subsequently used as a basis for a strength–probability–time lifetime prediction.     

The influence of Ce-based coatings as pretreatments on corrosion stability of top powder polyester coating on AA6060

Cerium-based conversion coatings (CeCCs) are one of the most prospective alternatives to the widely used chromate conversion coatings (CCCs) due to their anticorrosion efficiency, environmentally friendly nature and low cost. In this work, the CeCCs on AA6060 were prepared by immersion into aqueous cerium salt solutions at room temperature, and subsequently post-treated in heated phosphate solution. The effect of counter ion (nitrate and chloride) on the coating properties was studied testing CeCCs as sole or conversion layers for the top polyester coating. Since the 60 μm thick polyester coating was applied, an artificial defect of 0.8 mm hole was introduced to faster assess the differences between pretreatments. The system with CCC pretreatment was used as reference. Corrosion properties were investigated in 0.5 M NaCl solution by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy while the adhesion strength was measured by NMPR (N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone) and pull-off tests. As shown, the post-treated chloride-based CeCC offered better protection than crack-free thin nitrate-based CeCC, when used as sole coatings. On the other hand, it was brought to evidence that in combination with top powder polyester coating, the CeCC deposited from nitrate solution exhibited better protection compared to protective system pretreated with chloride-based one. Excellent polyester coating adhesion was found independently on aluminium surface pretreatment.     

Fully-Naphthalenoid Hydrocarbons and their Conjugation Modes

Abstract

A fully-naphthalenoid hydrocarbon (FUN) is a benzenoid hydrocarbon whose all π-electrons can be (formally) grouped into disjoint naphthalene-units. The cyclic conjugation in FUNs is studied by means of the energy-effects of their various cycles. It is found that the dominant conjugation modes in FUNs are those involving the 6- and 10-membered cycles of the “full” naphthalene fragments. The cycles belonging to the “empty” domains of a FUN have significantly smaller energy-effects.     

Chemical stability and electrical properties of Nb doped BaCe0.9Y0.1O3−δ as a high temperature proton conducting electrolyte for IT-SOFC

BaCe_0.9?xNb_xY_0.1O_3?δ (where x=0, 0.01, 0.03 and 0.05) powders were synthesized by solid-state reaction to investigate the influence of Nb concentration on chemical stability and electrical properties of the sintered samples. The dense electrolyte pellets were formed from the powders after being uniaxially pressed and sintered at 1550 °C. The electrical conductivities determined by impedance measurements in temperature range of 550–750 °C in different atmospheres (dry argon and wet hydrogen) showed a decreasing trend with an increase of Nb content. For all samples higher conductivities were observed in the wet hydrogen than in dry argon atmosphere. The chemical stability was enhanced with increasing of Nb concentration. It was found that BaCe_0.87Nb_0.03Y_0.1O_3?δ is the optimal composition that satisfies the opposite demands for electrical conductivity and chemical stability, reaching 0.8×10^?2 S cm^?1 in wet hydrogen at 650 °C compared to 1.01×10^?2 S cm^?1 for undoped electrolyte.     

Simultaneous oxidation of aromatic compounds using Sr-doped lanthanum manganites as catalysts

Strontium-doped lanthanum manganites, La_1-xSr_xMnO₃ (LSMO), are promising and affordable catalysts for oxidative degradation of volatile organic compounds. LSMO catalysts (x = 0, .1, .2, and .3) were prepared by the citrate-nitrate autocombustion (CNA) and coprecipitation synthesis. The phase composition was confirmed by X-ray diffraction and Rietveld refinement analysis, while the oxygen content was determined by Mohr's salt permanganate titration. Morphology and porosity of prepared catalysts was correlated to catalytic oxidation of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and o-xylene. It was observed that both synthesis methods yielded catalysts of similar average pore size diameter and specific surface area, but the pore size distribution differed: CNA-prepared catalysts had a multimodal pore size distribution, while the coprecipitated ones had a single maximum at 4 nm. Catalysts prepared by the CNA method have shown a higher catalytic activity in the temperature range 373–723 K, as the presence of Mn³⁺/Mn⁴⁺ mixed valences increased their reducibility.     

Borcalein: a Carborane-Based Analogue of Baicalein with 12-Lipoxygenase-Independent Toxicity

12-Lipoxygenase is crucial for tumour angiogenesis. 5,6,7-Trihydroxy-2-phenyl-4H-1-benzopyran-4-one (baicalein) is a suitable inhibitor for this enzyme but is rapidly metabolised in vivo. Thus, an improvement of the metabolic stability is necessary to enhance the therapeutic efficiency. An emerging approach to enhance metabolic stability of carbon-based pharmaceuticals is the use of metabolically stable, non-toxic boron clusters, such as dicarba-closo-dodecaborane(12)s (carboranes) as phenyl mimetics. Therefore, the unsubstituted phenyl ring of baicalein was replaced by meta-carborane, resulting in borcalein, the carborane analogue of baicalein. This substitution resulted in a decreased inhibitory activity toward 12-lipoxygenase, but led to increased toxicity in melanoma (A375, B16, B16F10) and colon cancer cell lines (SW480, HCT116, CT26CL25) with decreased tumour selectivity in comparison to baicalein. Surprisingly, borcalein displays a different mechanism of cytotoxicity with increased intracellular production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), reactive nitrogen species (RNS) and nitric oxide (NO).     

Recovery of flavonoids from grape skins by enzyme-assisted extraction

Grape skin contains large amounts of different flavonoids so it can be used for their recovery. Optimization of enzyme-assisted extraction of flavonoids was conducted using oenological enzyme preparations with respect to enzyme dosage, temperature, extraction time, pH, and enzyme preparation. Optimal conditions were obtained using enzyme preparation Lallzyme EX-V, at the temperature of 45°C, time of 3 h, pH 2.0, and enzyme dosage of 10.52 mg/g. The new optimized extraction method is less expensive, simple, accurate, and selective for the recovery of simple flavonoids. It is based on an environmentally-friendly extraction solvent which may provide a valuable alternative to conventional methods.     

One-step decomposition method for numerical integration of short- and long-term dynamics

A mathematical model is derived and disdussed that represents the structural properties of the alternative linearity and of the triangular block structural connectivity of the sets of differential equations, associated with the machines in the numerical integration of short- and long-term dynamics. In order to take into consideration the structural properties of the model, a one-step decomposition method for the numerical integration of short- and long-term dynamics is proposed. The method can be applied not only to the numerical integration of short- and long-term dynamics but also to all other cases when the model of the dynamic system is alternative-linear and triangular block connected. Numerical stability, accuracy and computation speed are the major advantages of this method, making it suitable for many applications, including the dynamic security analysis of power systems.