Fabrication of Nonadditive Mica Ceramics by Hot Isostatic Processing

Powder compacts of synthetic mica (fluorphlogopite) encapsulated in a boro–silicate glass tube were isostatically hot–pressed in a Roy–Tuttle–type pressure vessel. Synthetic mica was sintered to a density of 2.60 g/cm³ (91.2% of theoretical density) without additives under 98 MPa of water at 800°C for 45 min.     

Low-temperature selective reduction of NO with propene over alkaline-exchanged mordenites

Partially protonated alkaline mordenites showed higher activity per acid amount below 573 K than acidic zeolites for the selective reduction of NO with C₃H₆ in the presence of O₂, which can be related to a high concentration of NO₃ ^- species in the zeolite channels. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Stimulation of THP-1 Macrophages with LPS Increased the Production of Osteopontin-Encapsulating Exosome

Osteopontin (OPN) mediates bone remodeling and tissue debridement. The OPN protein is cleaved, but it is unclear how full-length (FL)-OPN or its cleaved form perform their biological activities in target cells. We, therefore, performed the molecular characterization of OPN in exosomes (Exo). The Exo were isolated from lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA)-differentiated THP-1 macrophages. The Exo were also isolated from PMA-differentiated THP-1 macrophages. The Exo were identified using the qNano multiple analyzer (diameter 59–315 nm) and western blotting with a CD9 antibody. LPS-stimulated cells produced more particles than non-stimulated cells. The presence of the FL or the cleaved form of OPN was confirmed using western blot analysis. A mixture of FL and cleaved OPN was also measured using an ELISA system (Ud-OPN) and their presence in the Exo was confirmed. Ud/FL ratios became low after LPS stimulation, indicating the enhanced encapsulation of FL-OPN in the Exo by LPS. These findings suggest that LPS stimulation of human macrophages facilitates the synthesis of FL-OPN, which is cleaved in cells or the Exo after release. These findings indicate that Exo is a suitable vehicle to transfer OPN to the target cells.     

Junction properties of polypyrrole containing a small amount of poly(ethylene oxide) with indium

A method to generate a porous region near the surface of a polymer is suggested. In this method the region near the surface is swollen by immersing the polymer for a short time in a solvent. Subsequently, the polymer is introduced in a nonsolvent (for the polymer) that is, however, miscible with the solvent. The formation of the porous region is a result of (1) the swelling accompanied by the disentanglement of the surface molecular chains, and the dissolution of some of them during the immersion in the solvent, and (2) the rapid extraction of the solvent from the swollen region by the nonsolvent. The porous surface provides a matrix into which a second incompatible monomer can be polymerized so that the two otherwise incompatible polymers can adhere to one another.     

Effects of support and additive on oxidation state and activity of Pt catalyst in propane combustion

The effects of support and additive on the oxidation state and catalytic activity of Pt catalyst in the low temperature propane combustion were systematically investigated on Pt/MgO, Pt/Al₂O₃ and Pt/SiO₂–Al₂O₃. The catalytic activity varied much with both support materials and additives. The catalyst on the more acidic support showed higher activity, and the catalytic activity on every support materials increased as the electronegativity of additives increased, while some additives decreased the activity. The oxidation state of platinum, estimated by white line intensity of Pt L_III-edge XANES spectrum, also varied with the support and additives, and additives with higher electronegativity greatly prevented the platinum from its oxidation under oxidising atmosphere. Among almost all the catalysts with various supports and various additives, a clear relationship was observed between the oxidation state of platinum and the catalytic activity; the more metallic platinum showed higher activity. Thus, it was concluded that the total electrophilic/electrophobic property derived from those of the support and additive controls the oxidation state of platinum, which intensively affects the catalytic activity; i.e. higher electrophilic property provides less oxidised platinum, resulting in high catalytic activity. The mechanism of this effect was also discussed on the basis of thermochemical data, and it was proposed that the electrophobic materials promote the noble metal oxidation since the noble metal oxo-anion such as PtO^δ− is more stabilised with electrophobic cation.     

Correlations of Hepatic Hemodynamics,Liver Function,and Fibrosis Markers in Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: Comparison with Chronic Hepatitis Related to Hepatitis C Virus

The progression of chronic liver disease differs by etiology. The aim of this study was to elucidate the difference in disease progression between chronic hepatitis C (CHC) and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) by means of fibrosis markers, liver function, and hepatic tissue blood flow (TBF). Xenon computed tomography (Xe-CT) was performed in 139 patients with NAFLD and 152 patients with CHC (including liver cirrhosis (LC)). The cutoff values for fibrosis markers were compared between NAFLD and CHC, and correlations between hepatic TBF and liver function tests were examined at each fibrosis stage. The cutoff values for detection of the advanced fibrosis stage were lower in NAFLD than in CHC. Although portal venous TBF (PVTBF) correlated with liver function tests, PVTBF in initial LC caused by nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH-LC) was significantly lower than that in hepatitis C virus (C-LC) (p = 0.014). Conversely, the liver function tests in NASH-LC were higher than those in C-LC (p < 0.05). It is important to recognize the difference between NAFLD and CHC. We concluded that changes in hepatic blood flow occurred during the earliest stage of hepatic fibrosis in patients with NAFLD; therefore, patients with NAFLD need to be followed carefully.     

1H NMR,thermal, and conductivity studies on PVAc based gel polymer electrolytes

The lithium‐ion conducting gel polymer electrolytes (GPE), PVAc‐DMF‐LiClO₄ of various compositions have been prepared by solution casting technique. ¹H NMR results reveal the existence of DMF in the gel polymer electrolytes at ambient temperature. Structure and surface morphology characterization have been studied by X‐ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) measurements. Thermal and conductivity behavior of polymer‐ and plasticizer‐salt complexes have been studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), TG/DTA, and impedance spectroscopy results. XRD and SEM analyses indicate the amorphous nature of the gel polymer‐salt complex. DSC measurements show a decrease in T_g with the increase in DMF concentrations. The thermal stability of the PVAc : DMF : LiClO₄ gel polymer electrolytes has been found to be in the range of (30–60°C). The dc conductivity of gel polymer electrolytes, obtained from impedance spectra, has been found to vary between 7.6 × 10^?7 and 4.1 × 10^?4 S cm^?1 at 303 K depending on the concentration of DMF (10–20 wt %) in the polymer electrolytes. The temperature dependence of conductivity of the polymer electrolyte complexes appears to obey the VTF behavior. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

Development of new-concept desk top size machine tool

A desktop multiprocess machinery has been designed that has two concepts: miniaturizing of machine tool and multiprocessing with a same machine tool. The prototype of desktop multiprocess machinery is developed in this study. This is tabletop size machine tool that has five changeable machining heads. Outline of main body and machining head are presented.In order to know the basic accuracy of desktop multiprocess machinery, experimental evaluation is carried out. Machining head setting error, stiffness of multiprocess machinery and straightness of X, Y, Z stage is measured. To study the basic performance of desktop multiprocess machinery, a complex machining experiment is carried out with the developed machine tool. The complex machining consists of three steps: electrode machining by milling, hole shaping by EDM, and hole finishing by ECM. These steps are performed in sequence on the same machine tool. The complex machining is successfully carried out. In order to evaluate the desktop multiprocess machinery from environmental point of view, machining energy, volume of machining liquid, and installation space of desktop multiprocess machinery are measured. The measured values are compared with estimated values with conventional machine tools. The machining energy, the volume of machining liquid, and the installation space of desktop multiprocess machinery are smaller than those of conventional machine tool.