Superparamagnetic particle dynamics and mixing in a rotating capillary tube with a stationary magnetic field

The dynamics of superparamagnetic particles subject to competing magnetic and viscous drag forces have been examined with a uniform, stationary, external magnetic field. In this approach, competing drag and magnetic forces were created in a fluid suspension of superparamagnetic particles that was confined in a capillary tube; competing viscous drag and magnetic forces were established by rotating the tube. A critical Mason number was determined for conditions under which the rotation of the capillary prevents the formation of chains from individual particles. The statistics of chain length was investigated by image analysis while varying parameters such as the rotation speed and the viscosity of the liquid. The measurements showed that the rate of particle chain formation was decreased with increased viscosity and rotation speed; the particle dynamics could be quantified by the same dimensionless Mason number that has been demonstrated for rotating magnetic fields. The potential for enhancement of mixing in a bioassay was assessed using a fast chemical reaction that was diffusion-limited. Reducing the Mason number below the critical value, so that chains were formed in the fluid, gave rise to a modest improvement in the time to completion of the reaction.     

A new approach for the hybrid element method

A new functional which forms the basis of an improved hybrid element formulation is proposed. The variables for the functional include stresses, strains and displacements, and the displacements and stresses are further decomposed into two parts respectively. The proposed new formulation appears to be particularly suitable for improving conforming models. Based on this formulation, a new four-node plane hybrid element Q_cs6 can be developed, and the conforming element Q₄ and the non-conforming Wilson element Q and modified Wilson element Qm₆ can also be derived directly by this hybrid approach. It should be noted that more accurate stresses can be obtained from this element which utilizes the concept of two stress components.     

Regulatory Light Chains in Cardiac Development and Disease

The role of regulatory light chains (RLCs) in cardiac muscle function has been elucidated progressively over the past decade. The RLCs are among the earliest expressed markers during cardiogenesis and persist through adulthood. Failing hearts have shown reduced RLC phosphorylation levels and that restoring baseline levels of RLC phosphorylation is necessary for generating optimal force of muscle contraction. The signalling mechanisms triggering changes in RLC phosphorylation levels during disease progression remain elusive. Uncovering this information may provide insights for better management of heart failure patients. Given the cardiac chamber-specific expression of RLC isoforms, ventricular RLCs have facilitated the identification of mature ventricular cardiomyocytes, opening up possibilities of regenerative medicine. This review consolidates the standing of RLCs in cardiac development and disease and highlights knowledge gaps and potential therapeutic advancements in targeting RLCs.     

An apparent double glass transition of polyphenylene sulfide in blends with polyarylate

Summary Injection molded blends of polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) and polyarylate (PAR) are phase separated as evidenced by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) micrographs and the existence of glass transition temperatures (T_g's) near 100 °C (PPS) and 190 °C (PAR). Upon annealing, blends that contain 15% to 40% by weight PPS exhibited unusual double glass transition temperatures (aside from PAR's T_g at 190 °C) at ca. 88 °C and 110 °C. These transitions coincide, respectively, with the T_g's of amorphous and crystalline PPS homopolymer. PPS crystallinity and average domain size distribution were found to be larger in the skin region than in the core region. It is believed that the double T_g's are brought about by different PPS domains with two types of amorphous material.     

Miscibility and morphology in crystalline/amorphous blends of poly(caprolactone)/poly(4-vinylphenol) as studied by DSC, FTIR, and C solid state NMR

The miscibility and morphology of poly(caprolactone) (PCL) and poly (4-vinylphenol) (PVPh) blends were investigated by using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and ¹³C solid state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The DSC results indicate that PCL is miscible with PVPh. FTIR studies reveal that hydrogen bonding exists between the hydroxyl groups of PVPh and the carbonyl groups of PCL. ¹³C cross polarization (CP)/magic angle spinning (MAS)/dipolar decoupling (DD) spectra of the blends show a 1 ppm downfield shifting of ¹³C resonance of PVPh hydroxyl-substituted carbons and PCL carbonyl carbons with increasing PCL content. Both FTIR and NMR give evidence of inter-molecular hydrogen bonding within the blends. The proton spin-lattice relaxation in the laboratory frame, T₁(H), and in the rotating frame, T_1ρ(H), were studied as a function of the blend composition. The T₁(H) results are in good agreement with thermal analysis; i.e. the blends are completely homogeneous on the scale of 50-80 nm. The T_1ρ(H) results indicate that PCL in the blends has both crystalline and amorphous phases. The amorphous PCL phase is miscible with PVPh, but the PCL crystal domain size is probably larger than the spin-diffusion path length within the T_1ρ(H) time-frame, i.e. larger than 2-4 nm. The mobility differences between the crystalline and amorphous phases of PCL are clearly visible from the T_1ρ(H) data.     

Production of human normal adult and fetal hemoglobins in Escherichia coli

A hemoglobin expression system in Escherichia coli is described. In order to produce authentic human hemoglobin, we need to co-express both methionine aminopeptidase and globin genes under the control of a strong promoter. We have constructed three plasmids, pHE2, pHE4 and pHE7, for the expression of human normal adult hemoglobin and a plasmid, pHE9, for the expression of human fetal hemoglobin, in high yields. The globin genes can be derived from either synthetic genes or human globin cDNAs. The extra amino-terminal methionine residues of the expressed globins can be removed by the co-expressed methionine aminopeptidase. The heme is inserted correctly into the expressed alpha- globin from our expression plasmids. A fraction (approximately 25%) of the heme is not inserted correctly into the expressed beta- or gamma- globin. However, the incorrectly inserted hemes can be converted into the correct conformation by carrying out a simple oxidation-reduction process on the purified hemoglobin molecule. We have investigated the functional properties of the expressed hemoglobins by measuring their oxygen-binding properties and their structural features by obtaining their 1H-NMR spectra. Our results show that authentic human normal adult and fetal hemoglobins can be produced from our expression plasmids in E. coli and in high yields. Our expression system allows us to design and to produce any recombinant hemoglobins needed for our research on the structure-function relationship in hemoglobin.      

Hydrogen bonding,miscibility, crystallization,and thermal stability in blends of biodegradable polyhydroxyalkanoates and polar small molecules of 4‐tert‐butylphenol

The hydrogen bonding, miscibility, crystallization, and thermal stability of poly(3‐hydroxybutyrate) (PHB)/4‐tert‐butylphenol (BOH) blends and poly(3‐hydroxybutyrate‐co‐3‐hydroxyhexanoate) [P(3HB‐3HHx)]/BOH blends were investigated by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, solid‐state¹³C‐NMR, differential scanning calorimetry, wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction (WAXD), and thermogravimetric analysis. The results of FTIR spectroscopy and solid‐state¹³C‐NMR show that intermolecular hydrogen bonds existed between the two components in the blends and that the interaction was caused by the carbonyl groups in the amorphous phase of both polyesters and the hydroxyl groups of BOH. With increasing BOH content, the chain mobility of both the PHB and P(3HB‐3HHx) components was improved. After the samples were quenched, the detected single glass‐transition temperatures decreased with composition, indicating that both PHB/BOH and P(3HB‐3HHx)/BOH were miscible blends in the melt. Moreover, as BOH content increased, the melting temperatures of PHB and P(3HB‐3HHx) clearly decreased, which implied that their crystallization was suppressed by the addition of BOH. Although the crystallinity of PHB and P(3HB‐3HHx) components decreased with increasing BOH content in the blends, their crystal structures were hardly affected after they were blended with BOH, which was further proven by WAXD results. In addition, the thermal stability of PHB was improved by a smaller amount of BOH.     

A study of cell nucleation in the extrusion of polypropylene foams

An investigation has been performed of the cell nucleation and initial growth behaviors in the foam processing of polypropylene (PP) in both the linear and branched forms. These materials were foamed in extrusion with the two blowing agents, CO₂ and isopentane. The cell density generally increased with an increased content of the blowing agent, for both CO₂ and isopentane. The effect of processing pressure on the cell density was distinct when CO₂ was used, whereas no pressure effect was observed in the foam processing with isopentane. The cell morphologies for the two PPs were found to be significantly different. A slightly lower nuclei density was observed in the branched PP foams than in the linear PP foams. However, the phenomenon of cell coalescence was observed much less in the branched PP foams. Most cells in the branched PP foams were closed, whereas in the linear PP foams they were connected to each other. The experimental results indicated that the branched structure played an important role in determining the cell morphologies through its effects on the melt strength and/or melt elasticity.     

TESTS FOR FRACTIONAL INTEGRATION:A MONTE CARLO INVESTIGATION

Abstract. The performance of the Geweke-Porter-Hudak (GPH) test, the modified rescaled range (MRR) test and two Lagrange multiplier (LM) type tests for fractional integration in small samples is examined using Monte Carlo methods. Both the GPH and MRR tests are found to be robust to moderate autoregressive moving-average components, autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity effects and shifts in the variance. However, these two tests are sensitive to large autoregressive moving-average components and shifts in the mean. It is also found that the LM tests are sensitive to deviations from the null hypothesis. As an illustration, the GPH test is applied to two economic data series.     

Polysulphone and poly(phenylene sulphide) blends: 1. Thermal characterization and phase morphology

The phase behaviour and morphology of injection moulded specimens of polysulphone (PSF) and poly(phenylene sulphide) (PPS) blends were studied by differential scanning calorimetry (d.s.c.), dynamical mechanical thermal analysis (d.m.t.a.) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The blends are phase separated regardless of the blend composition as revealed by d.s.c., d.m.t.a. and TEM. Upon annealing at 160°C for 2 h, d.m.t.a. results indicate that the PPS phase remains in the amorphous state at compositions <10%. At compositions between 20 and 35%, the PPS appears to be dispersed in a mixed mode of amorphous and crystalline domains. Above 35% the PPS phase appears to become fully crystallized upon annealing of the blends. At 10% PPS, TEM results showed 35–200 nm size dispersion both in the as-moulded and in the annealed specimens. At 20% the PPS phase varied widely in size, from 35 nm to tens of micrometres but remained as an included phase. TEM also revealed a compound morphology of the included phase at a composition of 50 wt% of each component.