Selective Aerobic Oxidation of Benzyl Alcohols with Palladium(0) Nanoparticles Suspension in Water

Catalysis Letters - This study concerns one of the rare applications of a suspension of palladium nanoparticles in water for oxidation reactions. The aqueous suspension containing well dispersed...     

Cone penetration tests in dry and saturated Ticino sand

Bulletin of Engineering Geology and the Environment - It is commonly assumed that dry and saturated sands exhibit similar cone resistance–relative density relationships. Some studies pointed...     

Feasibility of on-line speed policies in real-time systems

Real-Time Systems - We consider a real-time system where a single processor with variable speed executes an infinite sequence of sporadic and independent jobs. We assume that job sizes and relative...     

Conformable Hybrid Systems for Implantable Bioelectronic Interfaces

Conformable bioelectronic systems are promising tools that may aid the understanding of diseases, alleviate pathological symptoms such as chronic pain, heart arrhythmia, and dysfunctions, and assist in reversing conditions such as deafness, blindness, and paralysis. Combining reduced invasiveness with advanced electronic functions, hybrid bioelectronic systems have evolved tremendously in the last decade, pushed by progress in materials science, micro- and nanofabrication, system assembly and packaging, and biomedical engineering. Hybrid integration refers here to a technological approach to embed within mechanically compliant carrier substrates electronic components and circuits prepared with traditional electronic materials. This combination leverages mechanical and electronic performance of polymer substrates and device materials, respectively, and offers many opportunities for man-made systems to communicate with the body with unmet precision. However, trade-offs between materials selection, manufacturing processes, resolution, electrical function, mechanical integrity, biointegration, and reliability should be considered. Herein, prominent trends in manufacturing conformable hybrid systems are analyzed and key design, function, and validation principles are outlined together with the remaining challenges to produce reliable conformable, hybrid bioelectronic systems.     

Soil Nitric Oxide Emissions from Nitrification and Denitrification

A silty loam soil treated with 1-allyl-2-thiourea as an inhibitor of autotrophic nitrification, and sulfide as an inhibitor of nitric oxide reductase in respiratory denitrification, was studied to evaluate the respective contribution of these two microbial processes to the nitric oxide (NO) flux from the soil. Soil samples were either unamended or amended with ammoniated fertilizer or biosolids from a wastewater treatment plant at an application rate of 100 lb-nitrogen∕acre. Water-filled pore space and temperature were maintained within respective ranges of 22 ± 2% and 22 ± 1°C. NO fluxes from unamended, chemically fertilized, and biosolids-amended soil samples increase in that order, and autotrophic nitrification accounts for 80, 84, and 92% of the NO flux, respectively. The suggested Jousset-Peirce index Ψ, which shows the contribution of respiratory denitrification with respect to heterotrophic nitrification and chemodenitrification, decreases by a factor of 3.3 and 5.6 from unamended to chemically fertilized soil samples and from unamended to biosolids-amended soil samples, respectively. An ancillary finding reveals the dramatic sensitivity of denitrification to the presence of sulfide.     

A Practical Modular Course of Combinatorial and High‐Throughput Methods for Use in Academic Teaching Laboratories

Combinatorial and high‐throughput methods are increasingly common in industrial research. Academic institutions are often unable to afford the equipment necessary and to provide the maintenance required for permanent operation. Teaching is often more constrained by budget than by research topics. This article describes a modular course that has been designed to allow an affordable implementation of combinatorial and high‐throughput experiments in academic teaching laboratories. Currently, the course consists of five experimental modules and has already been successfully taught on two occasions.