A Study of Mutual Coupling between Vertical Grounding Electrodes

This paper investigates the mutual grounding impedance between vertical grounding electrodes based on field measurements and FDTD simulations. In the case of vertical electrodes, the mutual impedance between the electrodes is almost completely independent of the electrode length, and thus the induced voltage is nearly constant as the electrode length becomes longer. This characteristic is different from that of an overhead conductor, where the electromagnetic‐induced voltage is proportional to the conductor length. The greater the separation distance between the electrodes, the smaller the induced voltage, as in the case of an overhead conductor. The propagation speed increases as the separation increases. It is found that the speed is not necessarily proportional to the inverse of the relative permittivity of the earth.     

Effects of various ester groups in γ-radiation degradation of syndiotactic poly(methacrylate)s

The γ irradiation of poly(methacrylate)s with various ester groups at room temperature was investigated by gel permeation chromatography and NMR techniques. The G values for scission and crosslinking for each of the polymers were estimated from the changes in the molecular weights and molecular weight distributions. The new structures formed during γ irradiation were examined by ¹H-NMR spectroscopy. All of the investigated poly(alkanemethacrylate)s were found to produce the alkane formates during γ irradiation, and for poly(2-methyl heptyl methacrylate) G(S) was less than 4G(X), indicating gel formation in this polymer. In the investigation of poly(benzyl methacrylate), no formate ester was found, but some small molecule compounds formed from the benzyl radical were detected. The benzyl group was also found to stabilize the polymer against radiation damage. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Gel permeation chromatography of polyoxymethylene

Gel permeation chromatography of polyoxymethylene has been studied using N,N-dimethylformamide as the solvent. Polyoxymethylene samples used here are a copolymer of tetraoxane with 1,3-dioxolane and a commercial polyoxymethylene whose molecular weight distributions are moderately broad. Their intrinsic viscosities [η] range from 1.4 to 2.8 dl/g. Factors affecting chromatograms are discussed, and the operating conditions were determined by using the analytical scale GPC. On the basis of these operating conditions, the molecular weight fractionation of polyoxymethylene was carried out by using the preparative scale GPC. It was found that polyoxymethylene can be effectively fractionated to give seven to ten fractions each of them containing the fractionated polymer ranging in weight from 0.2 to 8 mg when 40 mg polymer sample was used for a run of the measurement. The fractionated polymers were also found to have a narrow molecular weight distribution within a single peak, and their M_w/M_n values decrease with increasing molecular weight.     

Mechanism of elongation of gold or silver nanoparticles in silica by irradiation with swift heavy ions

It has been reported that elongated Au nanoparticles oriented parallel to one another can be synthesized in SiO₂ by ion irradiation. Our aim was to elucidate the mechanism of this elongation. We prepared Au and Ag nanoparticles with a diameter of 20 nm in an SiO₂ matrix. It was found that Au nanoparticles showed greater elongated with a higher flux of ion beam and with thicker SiO₂ films. In contrast, Ag nanoparticles split into two or more shorter nanorods aligned end to end in the direction parallel to the ion beam. These experimental results are discussed in the framework of a thermal spike model of Au and Ag nanorods embedded in SiO₂. The lattice temperature exceeds the melting temperatures of SiO₂, Au and Ag for 100 ns after one 110 MeV Br¹⁰⁺ ion has passed through the middle of an Au or Ag nanorod.     

Quantitative Visualization of the Interaction between Complement Component C1 and Immunoglobulin G: The Effect of CH1 Domain Deletion

Immunoglobulin G (IgG) adopts a modular multidomain structure that mediates antigen recognition and effector functions, such as complement-dependent cytotoxicity. IgG molecules are self-assembled into a hexameric ring on antigen-containing membranes, recruiting the complement component C1q. In order to provide deeper insights into the initial step of the complement pathway, we report a high-speed atomic force microscopy study for the quantitative visualization of the interaction between mouse IgG and the C1 complex composed of C1q, C1r, and C1s. The results showed that the C1q in the C1 complex is restricted regarding internal motion, and that it has a stronger binding affinity for on-membrane IgG2b assemblages than C1q alone, presumably because of the lower conformational entropy loss upon binding. Furthermore, we visualized a 1:1 stoichiometric interaction between C1/C1q and an IgG2a variant that lacks the entire C_H1 domain in the absence of an antigen. In addition to the canonical C1q-binding site on Fc, their interactions are mediated through a secondary site on the C_L domain that is cryptic in the presence of the C_H1 domain. Our findings offer clues for novel-modality therapeutic antibodies.     

High-throughput immunophenotyping by surface plasmon resonance imaging

Cell binding assays on antibody arrays permit the rapid immunophenotyping of living cells. The throughput of the analysis, however, is still limited due to our inability to perform parallel and quantitative detection of cells captured on the array. To address this limitation, we employed here an imaging technique based on surface plasmon resonance (SPR). SPR has been frequently used to monitor capture of proteins on antibody microarrays, while few cases were reported for capture of cells. Antibody arrays were prepared through the photopatterning of an alkanethiol monolayer on a gold-evaporated glass plate and the subsequent immobilization of various antibodies onto 4-9 separate spots created by photopatterning. A glass slip was mounted onto the array with a thin spacer to construct a parallel-plate chamber. Leukemia cells were injected into the chamber to conduct a binding assay, while refractive index changes at the vicinity of the array surface were monitored by SPR imaging. We observed that SPR signals were intensified on specific antibody spots but not on nonspecific spots. Confocal laser scanning microscopy revealed that the observed SPR signals were attributed to cell deformations caused by multivalent interactions with immobilized antibody, which effectively elevated the refractive index of a medium phase within an evanescent field. This effect could be suitably utilized to monitor quantitatively cell binding to multiple spots from a heterogeneous cell population.     

Oscillation of a tilted circular pad on a droplet for the self-alignment process

The seesaw-oscillation of a small circular pad on a single droplet was studied both numerically and experimentally. The circular pad with a diameter of 2.0–3.8 mm onto a water or glycerol droplet with a volume of 1–10 μL, and a bottom substrate with a smaller diameter than that of the pad were used in the experiment. The pad was then tilted and then the tilting fixture was quickly removed. The pad alternately oscillated and then finally stabilized in a horizontal position. The numerical model considering the surface tension and the viscous force of the droplet was developed and calculated using the same configurations as those in the experiment. The experimental and numerical data showed good agreement not only in terms of the oscillating frequency and damping ratio but the transient motion of the circular pad and instantaneous droplet surface shape.     

Microstructural evolution and mechanism of grain growth in magnesia ceramics prepared by high pressure and temperature with ultra-high heating rate

The fast densification method of combustion reaction plus quick pressing was adopted to prepare nanocrystalline ceramics.The densification process of magnesia compact with a particle size of 100 nm was investigated,under the applied pressure of up to 170 MPa,and the temperature range of 1740–2080 K with ultra-high heating rate(above 1700 K/min).High-purity magnesia ceramics with a relative density of 98.8%and an average grain size of 120 nm was obtained at 1740 K,and the grain growth during the densification process was effectively restrained.The characteristic morphology of evaporation-condensation was observed in the compact prepared at 2080 K,which revealed the actual process of mass transfer by gas diffusion.Moreover,the investigation on the microstructure evolution and mechanism of grain growth was carried out,on the basis of as-preserved nanocrystalline ceramics.The result indicated that the grain growth of the nanocrystalline MgO was controlled by the mechanism of evaporation-condensation rather than surface diffusion.Furthermore,the pressure had an influence of restraining the grain growth based on solid diffusion and strengthening the effect of gas diffusion with the increasing temperature.Under the particular conditions,there existed an appropriate temperature for the densification of nanocrystalline magnesia,while the excessive temperature would exaggerate grain growth and impede densification.     

High temperature catalytic combustion of methane and propane over hexaaluminate catalysts: NOx emission characteristics

Several hexaaluminate-related materials were prepared via hydrolysis of alkoxide and powder mixing method for high temperature combustion of CH₄ and C₃H₈, in order to investigate the effect of the concentration of the fuels, O₂ and H₂O on NO_x emission and combustion characteristics. Among the hexaaluminate catalysts, Sr_0.8La_0.2MnAl₁₁O₁₉₋ prepared by the alkoxide method exhibited the highest activity for methane combustion and low NO_x emission capability. NO_x emission at 1500 °C was increased linearly with O₂ concentration, whereas water vapor addition decreased NO_x emission in CH₄ combustion over the Sr_0.8La_0.2MnAl₁₁O₁₉₋ catalyst. In the catalytic combustion of C₃H₈ over the Sr_0.8La_0.2MnAl₁₁O₁₉₋ catalyst, the amount of NO_x emitted was raised in the temperature range between 1000 and 1500 °C when the C₃H₈ concentration increased from 1 to 2 vol.%. It was found that NO_x emission in this temperature range was reduced effectively by adding water vapor.