And Yet it Moves! Microfluidics Without Channels and Troughs

A simple, versatile, rapid, and inexpensive procedure based on the immersion method is developed to fabricate chemical gradients on chemically activated Si/SiO₂ surfaces by a trichloro (1H,1H,2H,2H‐perfluorooctyl) silane self‐assembly monolayer (SAM). Contact angle measurements, atomic force microscopy, and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy data based on the intensity of the signals of C1s and F1s, which progressively increase, indicate that the surface is characterized by the presence of increasing amounts of the SAM along the gradient direction. Experimental conditions are optimized by maximizing the variation of the contact angle of water drops at the starting and the ending points of the gradient. The application of the chemical gradient to droplet motion is demonstrated. The results are rationalized by dissipative particle dynamics simulations that well match the observed contact angles and the velocities of the drops. The simulations also show that the intrinsic nature of the gradient affects the velocity of the motion.     

Safe operating conditions for semibatch processes involving consecutive reactions with autocatalytic behavior

When strongly exothermic chemical processes are dealt with, safe and productive operating conditions may be difficult to identify; particularly if the reaction scheme is complex and the desired product is an intermediate. In this work, a new procedure for building boundary and temperature diagrams is developed to account for arbitrary kinetic expressions and multiple reactions. Such a procedure has been validated by comparison with literature experimental data involving autocatalytic consecutive reactions.     

Palermo,a City in Transition: Saint Benedict 'The Moor' versus Saint Rosalia

This paper discusses responses of the city council in Palermo to trends in immigration, in the context of the long-term physical decline of the historic centre. The paper describes these trends, the role and needs of ethnic minorities and problems related to their living conditions in the historic centre. It goes on to assess whether the specific issue of planning and ethnic minorities can suggest new approaches to a wider re-analysis of planning practices.     

On the pin-bearing failure load of GFRP bolted laminates: An experimental analysis on the influence of bolt diameter

This paper presents results summary of an experimental investigation aimed at evaluating the influence of the bolt diameter on the bearing failure strength of glass fibre reinforced polymer (GFRP) bolted laminates with epoxy matrix, for different values of fibre-to-load inclination angle. In this study, three different types of laminates were tested: one of them is mono-directional while the other two are bi-directional, with two different stacking sequence. Reductions in the pin-bearing ultimate load was found to be linearly dependent on bolt diameter. A pin-bearing design formula is also proposed based on experimental results.     

Thermodynamics and kinetics of phase transformation in intercalation battery electrodes - phenomenological modeling

Thermodynamics and kinetics of phase transformation in intercalation battery electrodes are investigated by phenomenological models which include a mean-field lattice-gas thermodynamic model and a generalized Poisson-Nernst-Planck equation set based on linear irreversible thermodynamics. The application of modeling to a porous intercalation electrode leads to a hierarchical equivalent circuit with elements of explicit physical meanings. The equivalent circuit corresponding to the intercalation particle of planar, cylindrical and spherical symmetry is reduced to a diffusion equation with concentration dependent diffusivity. The numerical analysis of the diffusion equation suggests the front propagation behavior during phase transformation. The present treatment is also compared with the conventional moving boundary and phase field approaches.     

Selective Aryl α‐Diimine/Palladium‐Catalyzed Bis‐Alkoxy‐ carbonylation of Olefins for the Synthesis of Substituted Succinic Diesters

Aryl α‐diimine derivatives have been used, for the first time, as efficient new ligands for the palladium‐catalyzed oxidative bis‐alkoxycarbonylation reaction of olefins. The most active catalyst was formed in situ from bis(9‐anthryl)‐2,3‐dimethyl‐1,4‐diazabutadiene and palladium(II) trifluoroacetate [Pd(TFA)₂]. This catalytic system was able to selectively convert olefins into succinic diesters in good yields (up to 97%) and low catalyst loading (up to 0.5 mol%) under mild reaction conditions [4 bar of carbon monoxide (CO) at 20 °C in the presence of p‐toluenesulphonic acid as additive and p‐benzoquinone as oxidant]. The optimized conditions could be successfully applied to both aromatic and aliphatic olefins, by using methanol, benzyl alcohol or isopropyl alcohol as nucleophiles.

     

Extraction of metals from automotive shredder residue:Preliminary results of different leaching systems

The study is focused on the extraction of valuable metals from automotive shredder residue (ASR) by different leaching solutions. First, ASR samples were roasted at 600 °C to simulate a thermal treatme...     

Modulation of CD14 and TLR4⋅MD‐2 Activities by a Synthetic Lipid A Mimetic

Monosaccharide lipid A mimetics based on a glucosamine core linked to two fatty acid chains and bearing one or two phosphate groups have been synthesized. Compounds 1 and 2 , each with one phosphate group, were practically inactive in inhibiting LPS‐induced TLR4 signaling and cytokine production in HEK‐blue cells and murine macrophages, but compound 3 , with two phosphate groups, was found to be active in efficiently inhibiting TLR4 signal in both cell types. The direct interaction between compound 3 and the MD‐2 coreceptor was investigated by NMR spectroscopy and molecular modeling/docking analysis. This compound also interacts directly with the CD14 receptor, stimulating its internalization by endocytosis. Experiments on macrophages show that the effect on CD14 reinforces the activity on MD‐2 ? TLR4 because compound 3 's activity is higher when CD14 is important for TLR4 signaling (i.e., at low LPS concentration). The dual targeting of MD‐2 and CD14, accompanied by good solubility in water and lack of toxicity, suggests the use of monosaccharide 3 as a lead compound for the development of drugs directed against TLR4related syndromes.