The density and composition of polyimide surface layers

Density measurements as a function of polyimide film thickness have revealed that the surface layers, each 1.5 μm in thickness, have a density lower than that of the bulk by a statistically significant 1%. Infrared measurements have confirmed that this is due to the presence of isoimide in these surface layers: because of its nonlinear nature, this impurity structure causes a decrease in the measured density.     

Thallium-201 retention in focal intracranial lesions for differential diagnosis of primary lymphoma and nonmalignant lesions in AIDS patients

Skeletal metastatic lesions arising from gastric cancer are uncommon and usually of the osteolytic type. In order to gain a better understanding of its radiological spectrum, we report two atypical cases of skeletal metastases from gastric adenocarcinoma presenting with unusual radiographic, CT and scintigraphic features. In one patient multiple ossifying skeletal muscle metastases and bone metastases with spiculated periosteal reaction occurred as a presenting manifestation of the malignant disease. The other patient developed widespread osteosclerotic metastases with a superscan pattern on bone scintigraphy.     

The Effect of Conditioning on Adhesion to Human Dentin

The effect of conditioning dentin was investigated using ethyleneglycol bis(aminoethylether) tetraacetic acid (EGTA) and three proprietary agents containing ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA), maleic acid and dipentaerythritol pentaacrylate phsophoric acid ester (PENTA). Ground dentin was treated with EGTA or one of the three proprietary agents. After adhering composite resin to treated surfaces, the shear bond strength (SBS) was determined with and without thermal stress. Scanning electron and atomic force microscopies were used to assess morphological effects of each of the agents, while low resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was employed to evaluate elemental changes due to treatment. Mean bond strength was greatest for the PENTA-conditioned surfaces. EDTA and maleic acid demineralized the dentin surface while the agent containing PENTA produced an adherent surface film. The XPS survey showed a reduction in Ca and an increase in N for agents containing EGTA, EDTA and maleic acid, while a simultaneous reduction in both these species was observed for PENTA. EGTA did not improve adhesion for systems which were based on smear layer removal and substrate demineralization. For the PENTA-based system, which relied on the development of a molecular overlayer, EGTA degraded bond strength.     

A classification approach to efficient global optimization in presence of non-computable domains

Gaussian-Process based optimization methods have become very popular in recent years for the global optimization of complex systems with high computational costs. These methods rely on the sequential construction of a statistical surrogate model, using a training set of computed objective function values, which is refined according to a prescribed infilling strategy. However, this sequential optimization procedure can stop prematurely if the objective function cannot be computed at a proposed point. Such a situation can occur when the search space encompasses design points corresponding to an unphysical configuration, an ill-posed problem, or a non-computable problem due to the limitation of numerical solvers. To avoid such a premature stop in the optimization procedure, we propose to use a classification model to learn non-computable areas and to adapt the infilling strategy accordingly. Specifically, the proposed method splits the training set into two subsets composed of computable and non-computable points. A surrogate model for the objective function is built using the training set of computable points, only, whereas a probabilistic classification model is built using the union of the computable and non-computable training sets. The classifier is then incorporated in the surrogate-based optimization procedure to avoid proposing new points in the non-computable domain while improving the classification uncertainty if needed. The method has the advantage to automatically adapt both the surrogate of the objective function and the classifier during the iterative optimization process. Therefore, non-computable areas do not need to be a priori known. The proposed method is applied to several analytical problems presenting different types of difficulty, and to the optimization of a fully nonlinear fluid-structure interaction system. The latter problem concerns the drag minimization of a flexible hydrofoil with cavitation constraints. The efficiency of the proposed method compared favorably to a reference evolutionary algorithm, except for situations where the feasible domain is a small portion of the design space.     

The Structure of the Irreversibly Bound Adhesion Promoter-Substrate Interfacial Layer of γ-Aminopropylsilanetriol on Crystalline Si,as Measured by XPS and FTIR

The irreversibly bound interfacial layer deposited by the γ-aminopropysilanetriol adhesion promoter onto a crystalline silicon substrate, which remains even after profuse washing, was found by XPS to have resulted from the fragmentation and rearrangement of the original γ-aminopropylsilanetriol molecule. A mechanism is proposed, involving the homolytic scission of the terminal N-C bond. One of the subsequent reactions is believed to involve hydrogen loss by abstraction and the formation of a terminal vinyl group, which bonds to the substrate. Support for this mechanism is found in IR spectroscopy of this layer.     

Excimer Laser Induced Removal of Particles from Hydrophilic Silicon Surfaces

A pulsed KrF excimer laser was used to remove several types of submicron-sized particles from silicon surfaces. Polystyrene latex particles, 0.1 μm and larger, were removed from silicon surfaces by dry laser cleaning (no water layer condensed on the surface) but SiO₂ particles could not be so removed. However, during steam laser cleaning, in which a thin film of water is deposited on the surface as both an energy transfer medium and an adhesion force reduction agent, these 0.1–0.2 μm SiO₂ particles were almost entirely removed. Calculations of the various forces contributing to adhesion indicate that hydrogen bonds are the major contributor to the adhesion of inorganic particles to substrate surfaces. Photoacoustic detection, using piezoelectric transducers, monitored the surface vibrations induced by the laser pulses.     

Picosecond pulse generation in a GaAs/GaAlAs single-quantum-welllaser at the first and second subband transition

Picosecond optical pulses are generated in a single-quantum-well laser at the n=2 or n=1 quantized transition by tuning the optical gain spectra via the intracavity losses. The results for the generated pulses are discussed with respect to the influence of differential gain (dg/dN) and nonlinear gain saturation (∈) effects     

Photo-oxidation and photoprotection of the surface resin of a glass fiber–epoxy composite

The rapid photo-oxidation of the surface epoxy resin of a commercial seven-ply laminate (Scotchply 1009-26) is due principally to the epoxy novolac resin component. The photo-oxidation rate of this resin is eight times that of the other component, a bisphenol A epoxy resin. This rate depends on the conditions of cure, and photo-initiation occurs in part through aromatic carbonyl groups formed by oxidation of the methylene linkages of the novolac at the cure temperature (160–180°C). Inhibition of this thermal oxidation by vacuum cure or a chain-terminating antioxidant increases the photostability. Photoprotection of thin resin sections by the UV stabilizer 2-hydroxy-4-isooctoxybenzophenone and an epoxidized analog is assessed.     

Genetic relation of life span to metabolic rate for inbred mouse strains and their hybrids

Average life spans were estimated for the male progeny from 21 of the 25 possible matings of 5 inbred mouse strains. Oxygen consumption was measured in an open system over a 48-hour interval. Resting metabolism, Mre, and average metabolism, Mav, were determined at 6-8 months of age, and at 24-34 months. Body weight, W, was determined at the time metabolism was measured. Life span, L, is negatively correlated with Mre and Mav, and positively correlated with W at both ages of measurement. This is in accord with the metabolic wear factor that had previously been established among 85 different species of mammals. A new metabolism variable, the energy partition coefficient, defined as the ratio of average to resting metabolic rate, Mav/Mre, has a parabolic relation to body weight, i.e., is maximal at an intermediate body size. The squared body weight deviation in turn has a negative correlation with life span. The correlation of L with Mav/Mre is positive, as expected, but not significant. These data suggest the existence of a longevity factor dependent on the partition of energy between the phasic metabolism of activity and the continuous maintenance metabolism.     

Mechanochemical aspects of repetitive impacts and sliding on polymers

Scattered data exist in the literature on the chemical reactions which occur during mechanical contact. It is our contention that these reactions occur as a direct result of the high temperatures generated at the contact interface, due to the dissipation of mechanical energy. A theoretical analysis is used to identify and rank the various sources of heat generation during repetitive impact or sliding. New data, on both filled and unfilled polymers and elastomers, supported by data from the literature, are used to show that the resultant temperature rise causes reactions at the interface; the extents of these reactions depend on the polymer structure and the magnitude of the temperature rise. Several ways of reducing the magnitude of this temperature rise are discussed.