Kinetik der polykondensation von natriumsulfidhydrat und 1,4-dichlorbenzol zu poly(thio-1,4-phenylen)

The kinetics of the polycondensation of sodium sulfide hydrate and 1,4-dichlorobenzene to poly(thio-1,4-phenylene) in 1-methyl-2-pyrrolidone as solvent was studied in a differential scanning calorimeter at temperatures between 220 and 280°C. This polycondensation shows an autocatalytic behavior and the kinetics can be modelled by a first order reaction up to complete conversion. This is explained by the low solubility of sodium sulfide in l-methyl-2-pyrrolidone. The concentration of sodium sulfide is regarded as being constant during the whole course of the reaction. The autocatalytic effect can be explained by the increase of the condensation rate constant at the beginning of polycondensation due to the higher reactivity of the oligomers compared to the monomers. The number- and the weight-average molecular weight of the products formed during the course of the polycondensation can be modelled by means of stochastic methods. A simple model with only two different rate constants of the condensation process is assumed. The concentration of sodium sulfide in the reactive phase is found to be 2–5% of the value of dichlorobenzene at the beginning of the reaction and remains constant nearly until the end of polycondensation.     

Quality of subcutaneous,intermuscular and intramuscular fat tissue using elevated quantities of medium chain fatty acids in pig fattening

The present study comprised fat tissue samples of 46 (partly 23) pig carcasses randomly obtained from each one of four production systems: common fattening, pigs fattened on a low-fat diet and pigs grown on diets enriched with medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) in low or high amounts (0.3% and 3.6% C₈ with C₁₄, respectively). As models for subcutaneous, intermuscular and intramuscular fat tissues, back fat, dissected belly fat tissue and belly meat were used. In all fat tissues, the contents of MCFA were significantly elevated only with the high dietary content of MCFA, with a preferential retention of the MCFA in the storage tissues. In the MCFA supplemented groups, linoleic acid contents were slightly lower in subcutaneous and intermuscular fat as compared to the control group, in the group with the low-fat diet linoleic acid was considerably lower in all tissues. In spite of the only marginal differences in fatty acid pattern, the penetrometrically assessed firmness of backfat as well as the oxidative resistance of back and belly fat were almost twice as high in the high-MCFA group as in the other groups. In the low-fat group, water content of the back fat (16.9%) was higher than the average of the other groups (14.5%). The implications for routing assessment of fat tissue properties at slaughter plants are discussed.     

Nonnegative integral subset representations of integer sets

We consider an integer-subset representation problem motivated by a medical application in radiation therapy. We prove NP-completeness, derive nontrivial bounds, and report on the performance of a greedy heuristic.     

An empirical InSAR-optical fusion approach to mapping vegetation canopy height

Exploiting synergies afforded by a host of recently available national-scale data sets derived from interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) and passive optical remote sensing, this paper describes the development of a novel empirical approach for the provision of regional- to continental-scale estimates of vegetation canopy height. Supported by data from the 2000 Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), the National Elevation Dataset (NED), the LANDFIRE project, and the National Land Cover Database (NLCD) 2001, this paper describes a data fusion and modeling strategy for developing the first-ever high-resolution map of canopy height for the conterminous U.S. The approach was tested as part of a prototype study spanning some 62,000 km² in central Utah (NLCD mapping zone 16). A mapping strategy based on object-oriented image analysis and tree-based regression techniques is employed. Empirical model development is driven by a database of height metrics obtained from an extensive field plot network administered by the USDA Forest Service-Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program. Based on data from 508 FIA field plots, an average absolute height error of 2.1 m (r = 0.88) was achieved for the prototype mapping zone.     

Volumetric three‐dimensional up‐conversion display medium

Abstract— Several rare‐earth‐doped fluoride crystals that are excited to emit visible light by sequential two‐photon absorption have been investigated as display‐medium candidates for static volumetric three‐dimensional displays. Dispersion of powders of these materials in a refractive‐index‐matched polymer is reported because such a medium may result in a scalable display. The scattering problem in such a medium is greatly reduced by index‐matching the polymer to the crystalline particles. An index‐matching condition that optimizes the performance is identified.     

An Improved Model for the Longitudinal Peak Strain in the Flange of a Roll Formed U‐Channel developed by FE‐Analyses

Today one can find cold roll forming (CRF) products in many applications, for example vehicles, furniture and in the building industry. Though CRF is a well known sheet metal process, it is still not entirely understood due to the geometrically complex forming. There are several computer aided engineering (CAE) programs on the market that can assist the tool maker when designing a new CRF machine. However, they are often based on simple formulas when predicting the stress and the strain in the strip. The main objective of this study is to improve formulas for the longitudinal peak membrane strain and the deformation length when a U‐channel is formed. These are important since they can be used to determine the number of forming steps and the distance between them. A two‐level factorial design is done using the finite element analysis to investigate which parameters affect the peak strain and the deformation length. The parameters are then used to build models for the peak strain and the deformation length.     

Train Tracks and Confluent Drawings

Confluent graphs capture the connection properties of train tracks, offering a very natural generalization of planar graphs, and—as the example of railroad maps shows—are an important tool in graph visualization. In this paper we continue the study of confluent graphs, introducing strongly confluent graphs and tree-confluent graphs. We show that strongly confluent graphs can be recognized in NP (the complexity of recognizing confluent graphs remains open). We also give a natural elimination ordering characterization of tree-confluent graphs, and we show that this class coincides with the (6,2)-chordal bipartite graphs. Finally, we define outerconfluent graphs and identify the bipartite permutation graphs as a natural subclass.     

The Geography of Opportunity and Unemployment: An Integrated Model of Residential Segregation and Spatial Mismatch

Abstract: This article combines the neighborhood effects and spatial mismatch frameworks into a single model explaining how geographic factors contribute to unemployment. Using National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (1979) data, I estimate a two‐step model that separately models the effects of segregation and spatial mismatch. The first model predicts educational attainment as a function of exposure to residential segregation as a youth. The second model predicts unemployment probability as an adult as a function of educational attainment and spatial mismatch. The empirical results show that segregation does have discernable effects on educational attainment for blacks, but not for whites. I also find that spatial mismatch affects unemployment probability for blacks, but such an effect is hardly present for whites. A partial equilibrium analysis using predictions from the models shows that large changes in either segregation levels or the central city/suburban distribution of the black population would yield only moderate decreases in unemployment probability for the black population overall. Yet despite small predicted effects, these results should be viewed with caution because the general equilibrium effects of a large scale movement of blacks and whites across metropolitan space are largely impossible to predict with current data.     

Policy Analysis, Peer Reviewed: Evaluation of Bioaccumulation Factors in Regulating Metals

Regulations.