Comparing the lubricity of biofuels obtained from pyrolysis and alcoholysis of soybean oil and their blends with petroleum diesel

A diesel-like fuel, pyrodiesel (PD), was synthesized by a pyrolysis method using soybean oil as starting material. Some physical properties of the material were studied, both neat and in blends with high-sulfur (HSD) and low-sulfur (LSD) diesel fuels, and compared with blends of biodiesel (BD) in fossil fuels. It was observed using different methods that the lubricity of biobased fuels obtained after the transesterification or pyrolysis of soybean oil is superior to LSD and HSD and also that the lubricity of diesel fuels are enhanced when either BD or PD are added. Based on the results reported herein, PD is a viable alternative to BD for use in compression-ignition engines.     

Discovery of Riociguat (BAY 63‐2521): A Potent,Oral Stimulator of Soluble Guanylate Cyclase for the Treatment of Pulmonary Hypertension

Direct stimulation of soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC) represents a promising therapeutic strategy for the treatment of a range of diseases, including the severely disabling pulmonary hypertension (PH). Optimization of the unfavorable DMPK profile of previous sGC stimulators provided riociguat, which is currently being investigated in phase III clinical trials for the oral treatment of PH.

     

Biocompatibility of Lithium Disilicate and Zirconium Oxide Ceramics with Different Surface Topographies for Dental Implant Abutments

Gingivafibroblasts were cultured on lithium disilicate, on zirconia dioxide, and on titanium with two different surface roughnesses (0.2 µm and 0.07 µm); Proliferation (MTT), Living/Dead staining, cytotoxicity (LDH), proliferation (FGF2), and inflammation (TNFα) were analyzed after 1 day and 21 days. Furthermore, alteration in cell morphology (SEM) was analyzed. The statistical analysis was performed by a Kruskal–Wallis test. The level of significance was set at p < 0.05. There were no distinct differences in cellular behavior between the tested roughness. There were slight differences between tested materials. Cells grown on zirconia dioxide showed higher cytotoxic effects. Cells grown on lithium disilicate showed less expression of TNFα compared to those grown on zirconia dioxide or titanium. These effects persisted only during the first time span. The results indicate that the two tested high-strength ceramics and surface properties are biologically suitable for transmucosal implant components. The findings may help clinicians to choose the most appropriate biomaterial as well as the most appropriate surface treatment to use in accordance with specific clinical dental applications.     

Geographical origin classification of olive oils by PTR-MS

The volatile compositions of 192 olive oil samples from five different European countries were investigated by PTR-MS sample headspace analysis. The mass spectra of all samples showed many masses with high abundances, indicating the complex VOC composition of olive oil. Three different PLS-DA models were fitted to the data to classify samples into ‘country’, ‘region’ and ‘district’ of origin, respectively. Correct classification rates were assessed by cross-validation. The first fitted model produced an 86% success rate in classifying the samples into their country of origin. The second model, which was fitted to the Italian oils only, also demonstrated satisfactory results, with 74% of samples successfully classified into region of origin. The third model, classifying the Italian samples into district of origin, yielded a success rate of only 52%. This lower success rate might be due to either the small class set, or to genuine similarities between olive oil VOC compositions on this tight scale.     

Transparente leitfähige Nitride

Transparent conductive nitrides – New perspectives in device design More than 20 years after the pioneer of the GaN LED Nobel laureate Shuji Nakamura published that germanium is an inferior dopand for GaN when compared to silicon we showed that the opposite is true in regard of achievable n-type doping concentration. With Ge-doped GaN now device performance can be improved and new device structures realized. As transparent highly conductive nitride (TCN) new application fields emerge for GaN, in particular the replacement of ITO. Besides many potential applications Ge-doped GaN layers also show interesting physics as a new quasiparticle, the Collexon.     

The IPCS Collaborative Study on Neurobehavioral Screening Methods: II. Protocol design and testing procedures

This paper describes the development of the protocol for the International Programme on Chemical Safety (IPCS)-sponsored Collaborative Study on Neurobehavioral Screening Methods, including background on the methods and chemicals selected, as well as details concerning the conduct of the collaborative study, including proficiency testing, range-finding and main study. Participating laboratories in the collaborative study received training in the conduct and scoring of the behavioral tests and each laboratory received a video training film to train additional personnel as needed. Each of the eight laboratories that chose to participate in the study completed proficiency testing and assessed seven representative chemicals using a functional observational battery and automated motor activity assessment. The seven chemicals studied were acrylamide, bis-acrylamide, p,p'-DDT, lead acetate, parathion, toluene, and triethyl tin. Participants received coded samples of the chemicals from a common source. Each laboratory derived doses for single and repeated administration based on the determination of a within-laboratory acute "top dose." Animal strains were not standardized and laboratory conditions were standardized to a limited degree in order to judge the general utility and robustness of these procedures in a diversity of testing situations.     

Spatial Charge Separation as the Origin of Anomalous Stark Effect in Fluorous 2D Hybrid Perovskites

2D hybrid perovskites (2DP) are versatile materials, whose electronic and optical properties can be tuned through the nature of the organic cations (even when those are seemingly electronically inert). Here, it is demonstrated that fluorination of the organic ligands yields glassy 2DP materials featuring long‐lived correlated electron–hole pairs. Such states have a marked charge‐transfer character, as revealed by the persistent Stark effect in the form of a second derivative in electroabsorption. Modeling shows that electrostatic effects associated with fluorination, combined with the steric hindrance due to the bulky side groups, drive the formation of spatially dislocated charge pairs with reduced recombination rates. This work enriches and broadens the current knowledge of the photophysics of 2DP, which will hopefully guide synthesis efforts toward novel materials with improved functionalities.     

大功率二氧化碳压缩机运行效率的实验研究

本文在不同压力和转速工况下,对一台由挪威科技大学与Sintef联合研发的大功率单级活塞式二氧化碳制冷压缩机进行了实验测试,得出压缩机效率、容积效率以及油循环率随压缩比和转速的变化曲线,以及效率最优时各参数的范围。结果表明：当压缩比为2.1、转速为2 500 r/min时,油循环率达到最大值2.84%;当压缩比为1.88,转速为1000 r/min时,容积效率达到最大值85.8%;当压缩比为1.5~2.5,转速约为1 500 r/min时,压缩机效率最优;当转速为1500 r/min,压缩比为2.0时,可达到最大值79.1%。针对压缩机效率的实验数据进行了数学拟合,并与两台同类压缩机的产品效率作对比分析,结果表明：大功率压缩机当压缩比为1.5~3.2时的效率比同类压缩机约高11.5%。