Titanium dioxide coated cementitious materials for air purifying purposes: Preparation,characterization and toluene removal potential

This work presents promising results for air purification by heterogeneous photocatalysis on new titanium dioxide loaded cementitious materials. A set of eight concretes and plasters is enriched with TiO₂ photocatalyst by dip-coating and/or sol–gel methods.     

Analysis and characterization of a mechanical sensor to monitor stress in interconnect features

A mechanical rotating stress sensor fabricated in copper has been characterized in 100 nm single damascene technology. Geometrical variations to the structure produce a distinctive behaviour which can be used to fit the actuating stress. Existing analytical models were tested and shown to be unable to describe the structure due to geometric non-linearities not considered by these one-dimensional solutions. A model based on the large strain finite element method was developed to include this non-linearity and fully describe the sensor design for all geometrical variations. The stress determined from the Cu rotating sensors is comparable to measurements performed using high intensity X-ray diffraction on similar samples. Furthermore, the simulation methodology is validated for calibrated Al sensors. All of the studied samples show an excellent fit with the developed finite element analysis, demonstrating the validity of the model to predict smaller geometries, showing that the sensor can be utilized in future integration schemes and applied to other material systems.     

Importance of crosslinking and disulfide bridge reduction for the mechanical properties of rigid wheat gluten bioplastics compression molded with thiol and/or disulfide functionalized additives

Thiol (SH) containing additives improve the mechanical properties of rigid, glassy gluten materials. However, the underlying molecular mechanism is still unclear. In particular, the importance of the preceding gluten‐additive mixing conditions remains to be investigated. Here, different additives containing either only SH, only disulfide or both SH and disulfide functionalities were synthesized and their impact on the gluten network using different mixing conditions prior to subsequent molding were assessed. All SH containing additives decreased the gluten molecular weight (MW) during mixing to a degree depending on the conditions. Additives with only disulfide functionality did not significantly affect protein size during mixing irrespective of the conditions used. Only when mixing induced sufficient MW reduction did the strength and failure strain of rigid gluten materials increase. This shows that factors other than the degree of cross‐linking affect the strength of rigid gluten materials. These results support our hypothesis that altered molecular conformations and improved molecular entanglements contribute to material strength. The extent to which such conformational changes occur may depend on the additive and the way of mixing. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 41160.     

Place as layered and segmentary commodity: place branding,smart growth and the creation of product and value

Smart growth is a comprehensive version of spatial planning that can guide sustainable development and tackle negative social and environmental consequences of urbanization. In this paper we explore how an integration of spatial planning and place branding strategies can further the concept of smart growth and improve its chance at implementation. A review of the parallel evolutions of place branding and smart growth shows their shared interest in comprehensive visions, sensitivity for narratives of place and self, and the proposed embedding in participatory governance. The concept of layered and segmenatary commodification offers a novel perspective on value creation in smart growth and helps to develop new forms of smart growth, that combine and integrate elements of spatial planning and place branding.     

Discrimination and selection in the Belgian private rental market

In this paper, the results are presented of a study on discrimination and selection in the private rental market in Belgium. In contrast to other studies on the subject, we focus on different grounds of discrimination (ethnicity, disability, and gender) and selection (financial means). Two approaches in the field of behavioral experimental testing were used to measure the degree of discrimination/selection: a telephone and an email approach. In both approaches, a different experimental design was applied, with fictitious applicants for each discrimination ground and the control group. The fictional rental home seekers asked the landlord—by phone or e-mail—if the vacant dwelling was still available and if they could make an appointment for a visit. In the telephone approach, a sample of 684 online ads was used in a paired-testing design, in which the landlords were contacted by both the control and experimental applicant. In the e-mail approach, a random-assignment design with a sample of 1769 online advertisements was used. The analyses revealed that discrimination for getting an appointment is found for each discrimination/selection ground in the email approach (only results for men), whereas people with Moroccan/Turkish names and disabled people were not found to be discriminated in the telephone approach. Furthermore, gender proved to be an important factor, as men with a Moroccan/Turkish background were discriminated in the phone-call approach (in contrast to women), whereas regarding financial means, women were treated more negatively than men.     

Physik und Technik von Radiofrequenz‐Ionentriebwerken

Physics and Technological Aspects of Radio‐Frequency Ion Thrusters Electric space propulsion devices offer a propellant utilization efficiency orders of magnitude higher than chemical ones. This, among other benefits, motivates the usage of electric propulsion for station keeping, attitude and orbit control, orbit raising and interplanetary deep space missions. In particular, radio‐frequency ion thrusters (RIT) offer even higher efficiency than comparable electric thrusters. This is mainly due to electrostatically generated thrust in RITs which is decoupled from plasma generation which again is ultimately necessary for the production of thrust‐generating requency Ion Thrusters ions. This article gives insight into basic physical processes that occur within the thrusters' discharge vessels which lead to highly efficient, highly resolvable thrust generation. Furthermore, a more general systems engineering observation of the complete thruster system is given with special respect to the radio‐frequency generator (RFG) which is essential to take into account when speaking of overall efficiency. Finally, an overview on alternative propellants to possibly increase cost efficiency of a particular mission is proposed.     

Making the right impression: A field study of applicant impression management during job interviews.

Two issues were explored: (a) which impression management (IM) tactics applicants use during actual interviews and (b) whether there is a relationship between applicants' IM tactics and their interview outcomes. The study also examined convergence across different methods and raters when measuring IM. Postinterview survey measures were obtained from applicants and interviewers regarding applicant IM behavior during a specific interview; in addition, a subset (n?=?24) of interviews was audiotaped and analyzed for the presence of IM. Analyses revealed low to moderate convergence across methods and raters, suggesting that IM tactics may be multidimensional constructs. Across methods and raters, there was consistent evidence of greater applicant self-promotion than ingratiation. Similarly, IM tactics significantly predicted interviewers' evaluations and whether applicants later obtained site visits. Implications for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Appraisal-emotion relationships in daily life.

Using a daily process design, the present study examined relationships between momentary appraisals and emotional experience based on Smith and Lazarus' (1993) theory of emotions (1993). Nine times a day for 2 weeks, participants (N = 33, 23 women) recorded their momentary experience of 2 positive emotions (joy, love) and 4 negative emotions (anger, guilt, fear, sadness) and the core relational theme appraisal contents Smith and Lazarus hypothesized as corresponding to these emotions. A series of multilevel modeling analyses found that the hypothesized relationships between appraisal contents and these emotions were stronger than relationships between contents and other emotions, although appraisals were related to other emotions in many cases. Moreover, there were some individual differences in the strength of these relationships. These results suggest that there are no one-to-one relationships between appraisal contents and specific emotional experiences, and that specific emotions are associated with different appraisal contents, and that specific appraisals are associated with different emotions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Active Targeting of Dendritic Polyglycerols for Diagnostic Cancer Imaging

Active tumor targeting involves the decoration of nanomaterials (NMs) with oncotropic vector biomolecules that selectively recognize certain antigens on malignant cells or in the tumor microenvironment. This strategy can facilitate intracellular uptake of NM through specific interactions such as receptor‐mediated endocytosis and can lead to prolonged retention in the malignant tissues by preventing rapid efflux from the tumor. Here, the design of actively targeting, renally excretible bimodal dendritic polyglycerols (dPGs) for diagnostic cancer imaging is described. Single‐domain antibodies (sdAbs) specifically binding to the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) are employed herein as targeting warheads owing to their small size and high affinity for their corresponding antigen. The dPGs equipped with EGFR‐targeting feature are compared head‐to‐head with their nontargeting counterparts in terms of interaction with EGFR‐overexpressing cells in vitro as well as accumulation at receptor‐positive tumors in vivo. Experimental results reveal a higher specificity and preferential tumor accumulation for the α‐EGFR dPGs, resulting from the introduction of active targeting capabilities on their backbone. These results highlight the potential for improving the tumor uptake properties of dPGs by strategic use of sdAb functionalization, which can ultimately prove useful to the development of ultrasmall NM with highly specific tumor accumulation.