Synthesis of magnesium and Mg@Ni core-shell nanoparticles by microemulsion for hydrogen storage applications

Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics - In the present work magnesium nanoparticles (MgNPs) and Mg@Ni core-shell nanoparticles has been synthesized first time by microemulsion...     

Charge transport in a single superconducting tin nanowire encapsulated in a multiwalled carbon nanotube

The charge transport properties of single superconducting tin nanowires encapsulated by multiwalled carbon nanotubes have been investigated by multiprobe measurements. The multiwalled carbon nanotube protects the tin nanowire from oxidation and shape fragmentation and therefore allows us to investigate the electronic properties of stable wires with diameters as small as 25 nm. The transparency of the contact between the Ti/Au electrode and nanowire can be tuned by argon ion etching the multiwalled nanotube. Application of a large electrical current results in local heating at the contact which in turn suppresses superconductivity.     

Oxidation of atmospheric humic like substances by ozone: a kinetic and structural analysis approach

This work explores the heterogeneous reaction between HUmic-LIke Substances (so-called HULIS) and ozone. Genuine atmospheric HULIS were extracted from aerosol samples collected in Chamonix (France) in winter and used in coated flow tube experiments to evaluate heterogeneous uptake of O? on such mixtures. The uptake coefficient (γ) was investigated as a function of pH (from 2.5 to 10), O? concentration (from 8 to 33 × 1011 molecules cm?3), relative humidity (20 to 65%) and photon flux (from 0 to 1.66 × 101? photons cm?2 s?1). Reactive uptake was found to increase in the irradiated experiment with pH, humidity and photon flux. The extract was characterized before and after exposure to O? and/or UV light in the attempt to elucidate the effect of the photochemical aging. Carbon content measurements, UV-vis spectroscopy and functional groups analysis revealed a decrease of the UV absorbance as well as of the carbon mass content, while the functionalization rate (COOH and C═O) and therefore the polarity increased during the simulated photochemical exposure.     

Date consumption and dietary significance in the United Arab Emirates

Date consumption in the United Arab Emirates was determined among different subgroups of the nation's society. Adult consumers of both sexes and different age groups (18–30 and 30–60) and occupations (students, workers, at home) were surveyed for information on their daily consumption of six date food groups (rutab, tamr, seh, debbs, batheeth and madlouj). Percentage distribution of portion size, frequency of consumption and season, over different consumer groups per date food group, were determined. Differences in the daily consumption of every date food group within and among the different population groups were tested. The most consumed date food groups were rutab and tamr, with rutab being more frequently consumed than tamr during the summer season. Overall, no major differences were observed in average daily consumption per capita of most of the date food groups between males and females, between employed and home‐based consumers, and between students and individuals of 18–30 years old. On average, daily consumption of dates per capita was 114.3 g, equivalent to 10 date fruits. However, it was noted that the younger population does not consume dates as much as the older population does. Nevertheless, data obtained highlighted the significance of dates in the UAE nation's diet considering the relatively high average consumption of dates per capita. Copyright © 2006 Society of Chemical Industry     

Some Selected Physicochemical Properties of Buffalo Gourd (Cucurbita foetidissima HBK) Root Starch

The starch granules of buffalo gourd contained 30.5% apparent amylose, showed a high swelling power and gelatinised over 57-70.8°C with an enthalpy of 4.26cal·g⁻¹. The starch pastes had a stable peak viscosity with a resistance to fragmentation intermediate to those of cassava and potato starches during holding at 95°C. The starch gels displayed a higher storage modulus (G′) than that of corn starch and a viscous character similar to that of potato starch. These properties differ from the maize-like characteristics reported for this type of starch.