Novel positive‐working aqueous‐base developable photosensitive polyimide precursors based on diazonaphthoquinone‐capped polyamic esters

Novel positive‐working aqueous‐base developable photosensitive polyimide (PSPI) precursors based on partially diazonaphthoquinone (DNQ)‐capped polyamic esters bearing phenolic hydroxyl groups and a DNQ photosensitive compound (PIC‐3) were developed. The partially DNQ capped polyamic esters were prepared from an esterification reaction of 1,2‐naphthoquinone diazide‐5‐sulfonyl chloride with the polyamic esters. The partially DNQ capped polyamic esters decreased the dark film loss effectively in the aqueous‐base developer and were able to make thicker film resists compared to the uncapped polyamic esters. The 25 mol % DNQ‐capped BisAPAF–PMDA polyamic ester and BisAPAF–ODPA polyamic ester containing 25 wt % PIC‐3 photosensitive compound showed a sensitivity of 176 and 185 mJ/cm², and a contrast of 1.68 and 1.02, respectively, in a 3‐μm film with 1.25 wt % tetramethylammonium hydroxide developer. A pattern with a resolution of 5 μm was obtained from both PSPI precursor compositions. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 90: 2293–2300, 2003     

Mechanical properties of wollastonite‐reinforced polypropylene composites modified with SEBS and SEBS‐g‐MA elastomers

Mechanical properties of isotactic polypropylene/wollastonite/styrene rubber block copolymers (iPP/wollastonite/SRBC) composites were studied as a function of elastomeric poly(styrene‐b‐ethylene‐co‐butylene‐b‐styrene) triblock copolymer (SEBS) and SEBS grafted with maleic anhydride (SEBS‐g‐MA) content from 0 to 20 vol%. Microphase morphology was stronger influenced by SRBC elastomers than by different wollastonite types. Higher encapsulation ability of SEBS‐g‐MA than SEBS caused more expressive core‐shell morphology and consequently higher notched impact strength as well as yield parameters, but lower Young's modulus. Higher ductility of the composites with SEBS than with SEBS‐g‐MA has been primarily caused by better miscibility of the polypropylene chains with SEBS molecules. Surface properties of components and adhesion parameters also indicated that adhesion at SEBS‐g‐MA/wollastonite interface, which was stronger than the one at the SEBS/wollastonite interface, influenced higher encapsulation of wollastonite particles by SEBS‐g‐MA. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 47:1873–1880, 2007. © 2007 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Exploring the Interactions of Storylines from Informative News Events

Today＇s news readers can be easily overwhelmed by the numerous news articles online. To cope with information overload, online news media publishes timelines for continuously developing news topics. However, the timeline summary does not show the relationship of storylines, and is not intuitive for readers to comprehend the development of a complex news topic. In this paper, we study a novel problem of exploring the interactions of storylines in a news topic. An interaction of two storylines is signified by informative news events that play a key role in both storylines. Storyline interactions can indicate key phases of a news topic, and reveal the latent connections among various aspects of the story. We address the coherence between news articles which is not considered in traditional similarity-based methods, and discover salient storyline interactions to form a clear, global picture of the news topic. User preference can be naturally integrated into our method to generate query-specific results. Comprehensive experiments on ten news topics show the effectiveness of our method over alternative approaches.     

Enabling customers engagement and collaboration for small and medium-sized enterprises in ubiquitous multi-channel ecosystems

Over the last few years, we have encountered an exponential growth in online communication opportunities. Organizations have more and more ways to connect and engage with their current or future customers. The existence of more opportunities in connecting to people can be both an enabler and a burden. Being present at a multitude of different channels requires the effective management of a very large number of adapted contents, formats, and interaction patterns fulfilling the communication and cooperation needs of distributed target groups. In this respect, we integrate existing fragmented communication and monitoring approaches into a full-fledged communication model as a basis for an adequate engagement approach. We describe applications of our approach in both the eTourism and manufacturing domain. In this paper, we introduce an approach that will enable communication, collaboration and value exchange of users through a multitude of online interaction possibilities based on the use of semantic technology. Finally, we also compare our approach with existing solutions with respect to the identified challenges in this subject.     

Photocatalytic degradation rate of oxalic acid on the semiconductive layer of n-TiO2 particles in the batch mode plate reactor Part I: Mass transfer limits

Organic compounds dissolved in water can be decomposed on a layer of n-TiO2 particles irradiated by u.v. light, which generates holes and electrons in the TiO2 material. Dissolved oxygen was used as electron scavenger and holes reacted with water to give OH radicals. The rate of degradation of the dissolved organic compounds by OH radicals is limited by the transfer of either oxygen or of theorganic compounds to the surface of n-TiO2 particles. The consequence of these limits is that, in the batch mode reactor with recirculation of the liquid, the dependence of the concentration of an organic compound on time has either a linear or an exponential form. Experiments with decomposition of oxalic acid in aqueous solutions using a plate reactor (60 cm × 120 cm) confirmed the analysis. Equations for evaluation of the mass transfer coefficient of the dissolved species to the surface of the plate reactor with a moving liquid fil m were developed for the case of the thickness of the Nernst diffusion layer being thinner than the thickness of the liquid. The experimentally obtained decomposition rate of oxalic acid was about 60 to 80% of the theoretical decomposition rate limited by oxygen flux through the film of a moving liquid. The present theory neglects the diffusion of oxygen into the porous layer of n-TiO2.     

Tocopherol oil concentration in field-grown sunflower is accounted for by oil weight per seed

Tocopherols are natural antioxidants that increase the stability of fat-containing foods and perform important biological activities. Significant variations (389 to 1873 μg g oil⁻¹) in the total tocopherol concentration of sunflower seed oil have been reported. The main objectives of this work were to determine the influence of intercepted photosynthetically active radiation on tocopherol concentration during seed filling and to establish and validate relationships between tocopherol concentration in oil and other quality variables of the seed. Seven sunflower hybrids were grown under good water and nutritional conditions in two similar experiments carried out in two contrasting environments. Treatments were applied to modify the amount of radiation intercepted per plant during seed filling in order to obtain a range in oil yield per plant and its components. Greater per plant intercepted radiation decreased the tocopherol concentration in oil. Tocopherol concentration decreased when oil weight per seed increased. Tocopherol concentration stabilized for oil weight per seed higher than 23 mg oil seed⁻¹. This exponential relationship accounted for 73% of the variability in tocopherol concentration (507 to 1203 μg g oil⁻¹) despite differences in hull type, locations, hybrids, and radiation treatments. The proposed relationship acceptably predicted independent results. Crop management techniques could lead to seeds with greater concentrations of tocopherols.     

Theory of porous electrodes—XI. The positive plate of the lead-acid battery

Partial differential equations describing the transport of mass and electricity in the pores of the positive electrode of a lead acid battery were derived. The theory is based on exact transport equations and on the assumption that the solid porous matrix has a metallic conductivity. Volume changes in both phases are taken into account. Numerical solutions obtained on a computer are presented for the case where the influence of electrolyte between the electrodes can be neglected. The solutions depend on the product of electrode thickness times current density, and on the initial porosity.     

Properties and pervaporation separation of hydroxyl‐terminated polybutadiene‐based polyurethane/poly(methyl metharcylate) interpenetrating networks membranes

Hydroxyl‐terminated polybutadiene (HTPB), 4,4′‐dicyclohexyl methane diiscyanate (H₁₂MDI), and 1,4‐butane diol are used to synthesize polyurethane (PU) solutions by two‐stage process. Interpenetrating networks (IPNs) of HTPB‐based PU and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) with HTPB/MMA (wt/wt % ratio) = 2.0, 1.5, 1.0, 1.5, 0.8, and 0.6, which are designated as IPN1 to IPN5, respectively, are synthesized by sequential polymerization technique. Thermal properties, tensile strength, and contact angle of membranes increase with the increase of MMA content, while the elongation of membranes show the reverse trend. Characterization of membranes are investigated by C?C/C?O absorption ratio and infrared absorption frequency shiftment. These PU and IPN membranes are used for the separation of ethanol/water and isopropanol/water solution by pervaporation test. IPN3 membrane possesses the largest pervaporation permeability and the separation factor. The pervaporation results of ethanol/water feed has the same trend as that of isopropyl alcohol (IPA)/water solution. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 2007     

Very long chain PUFA in murine testicular triglycerides and cholesterol esters

Very long chain (VLC) PUFA of the n−6 and n−3 series are known to occur in mammalian testis. The aim of this work was to characterize further two testicular lipid classes with VLCPUFA, cholesterol esters (CE) and total triglycerides (TG) in rat and mouse testis. The VLCPUFA predominating in these lipids were a series of n−6 pentaenes and tetraenes with 24 to 32 carbons, including small amounts of odd-chain PUFA, 28∶5n−6 and 24∶5n−6 prevailing in CE and TG, respectively. Most of the VLCPUFA of TG were concentrated in a small fraction of TG, made up by 1-O-alkyl-2,3-DAG. This TG subclass was absent altogether from the TG of sexually immature testis. The TG and the CE with VLCPUFA only occurred in testis of adult fertile animals. The proportion of VLCPUFA in total TG and CE was higher in rodents than in other mammals. In the n−6 PUFA-rich adult mouse testis, the amounts of testicular triacylglycerols decreased significantly after consumption of fish oil for 2 wk. Whereas 18∶2n−6 was significantly reduced, the amounts of 22∶5n−6 and longer n−6 PUFA were less affected in all mamor testicular lipids including PC and PE, where they were unchanged. The 1-O-alkyl-2,3-DAG and their n−6 VLCPUFA were virtually unaffected by the diet. The VLCPUFA-containing molecular species of CE and TG may represent a form of storage of cholesterol and polyenoic FA required to sustain spermatogenesis. Via chain-shortening, VLCPUFA stored in the neutral lipids may serve as precursors of the major C₂₂ PUFA typical of cell membrane glycerophospholipids, protecting testicular cells against shifts in FA composition induced by dietary changes.     

Synthesis and characterization of a positive‐working,aqueous‐base‐developable photosensitive polyimide precursor

A positive‐working, aqueous‐base‐developable photosensitive polyimide precursor based on poly(amic ester)‐bearing phenolic hydroxyl groups and a diazonaphthoquinone photosensitive compound was developed. The poly(amic ester) was prepared from a direct polymerization of 2,2′‐bis‐(3‐amino‐4‐hydroxyphenyl)hexafluoropropane and bis(n‐butyl)ester of pyromellitic acid in the presence of phenylphosphonic dichloride as an activator. Subsequently, the thermal imidization of the poly(amic ester) precursor at 300°C produced the corresponding polyimide. The inherent viscosity of the precursor polymer was 0.23 dL/g. The cyclized polyimide showed a glass‐transition temperature at 356°C and a 5% weight loss at 474°C in nitrogen. The structures of the precursor polymer and the fully cyclized polymer were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and ¹H‐NMR. The photosensitive polyimide precursor containing 25 wt % diazonaphthoquinone photoactive compound showed a sensitivity of 150 mJ/cm² and a contrast of 1.65 in a 3 μm film with 1.25 wt % tetramethylammonium hydroxide developer. A pattern with a resolution of 10 μm was obtained from this composition. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 86: 352–358, 2002