Near-infrared spectroscopic study of the physical and mechanical properties of wood with meso- and micro-scale anatomical observation

Estimation of the density along with the tensile strength of wood within both the elastic and plastic deformation ranges, represented as modulus of elasticity (MOE) and ultimate tensile stress (UTS), respectively, were performed using near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. A partial least squares (PLS) analysis was applied to the measurements of density, MOE, and UTS, and resulted in a high accuracy of prediction, independent of wood species. The correlation coefficient between the NIR spectra and criterion variables, and the regression vector resulting from the PLS analysis, suggested that the characteristic absorption bands were strongly related to the predictability of each property. In the case of softwood, absorption bands due to intra-molecular hydrogen-bonded OH groups in the crystalline regions of cellulose, which are oriented preferentially in a direction parallel to the cellulose chain, might strongly affect the tensile strength of softwood. Hardwoods have much more complex and variable structures than softwoods; therefore, it was supposed that the key factor governing the tensile strength in hardwood would be the interaction between the three principal constituents (i. e., cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin) of wood.     

Differential expression of hsp60 and hsp70 associated with cytotoxicity under microgravity conditions

It is known that space flight affects T lymphocyte function in both humans and animals, but there have been no papers dealing with the effect of microgravity conditions for a very short time (i.e., only 10 s). In the present study, the effect of very short time microgravity on the cytotoxicity and surface markers of human activated T lymphocytes, in vitro, was investigated using the drop-shaft type of microgravity experiment system. The levels of heat shock protein 60 and 70 (hsp60 and hsp70) were also quantified in cells exposed to these microgravity conditions. The results showed that not only the cytotoxicity but also the hsp60 levels were remarkably reduced under these conditions.     

Design of novel sheet-shaped chitosan hydrogel for wound healing: A hybrid biomaterial consisting of both PEG-grafted chitosan and crosslinkable polymeric micelles acting as drug containers

In this study, we successfully prepared a novel “sheet-shaped” chitosan hydrogel for wound healing consisting of both PEG-g-chitosan and a crosslinkable polymeric micelle. The study's findings clarify that the PEG modification percentage (PMP) of PEG-g-chitosan increased proportionally as the weight ratio of PEG/chitosan increased. Furthermore, the positive second virial coefficient of PEG-g-chitosans from a Debye plot strongly suggests that the PEG modification greatly improved the solubility of the water-insoluble chitosan. Finally, the “sheet-shaped” “flexible” hydrogel formed by mixing solutions containing either PEG-g-chitosan with moderate PMP or polymeric micelles exhibited the highest storage modulus. The sheet itself exhibited an attractive feature insofar as polymeric micelles, which can act as drug containers facilitating the incorporation and the gradual release of drugs, are covalently immobilized in the polymeric network of the hydrogel. The results obtained in the present study show that the hybrid PEG-g-chitosan hydrogel containing crosslinkable polymeric micelles has the potential to address the need for novel functional biomaterials.     

Direct observation of local atomic order in a metallic glass

The determination of the atomic configuration of metallic glasses is a long-standing problem in materials science and solid-state physics. So far, only average structural information derived from diffraction and spectroscopic methods has been obtained. Although various atomic models have been proposed in the past fifty years, a direct observation of the local atomic structure in disordered materials has not been achieved. Here we report local atomic configurations of a metallic glass investigated by nanobeam electron diffraction combined with ab initio molecular dynamics simulation. Distinct diffraction patterns from individual atomic clusters and their assemblies, which have been theoretically predicted as short- and medium-range order, can be experimentally observed. This study provides compelling evidence of the local atomic order in the disordered material and has important implications in understanding the atomic mechanisms of metallic-glass formation and properties.     

Pesticide adsorption by granular activated carbon adsorbers. 2. Effects of pesticide and natural organic matter characteristics on pesticide breakthrough curves

The principal objective of this study was to elucidate mechanisms by which NOM affects the adsorption of a nonpolar (simazine) and a polar (asulam) herbicide on activated carbon. Experiments were carried out in microcolumns that were continuously fed solutions containing NOM with different molecular weight (MW) distributions and intermittently solutions containing the same NOM plus simazine or asulam. The MW distributions of a groundwater NOM were altered by coagulation and ultrafiltration, which resulted in the preferential removal of high-MW, UV260-absorbing NOM. At a given NOM loading, the simazine removal efficiency was higher in the column that was preloaded with raw groundwater than in columns receiving coagulated or ultrafiltered water. In contrast, the asulam removal efficiency was similar for all three NOM solutions at a given NOM loading. Therefore, the results suggested that low-MW, UV260-absorbing NOM molecules competed directly with strongly adsorbing pesticides, such as simazine, for adsorption sites. For more weakly adsorbing pesticides, such as asulam, direct competition for adsorption sites originated not only from the strongly adsorbing, low-MW NOM, but also from more weakly adsorbing, higher-MW NOM. Consequently, the competing NOM fraction increases as the adsorbability of the SOC decreases, a result that was confirmed by adsorption data for additional pesticides of similar size. However, a smaller pesticide competed more effectively for adsorption sites than a larger pesticide of similar polarity, suggesting that the concentration of competing NOM decreases as the MW of the SOC decreases.     

Effects of exogenous mevalonic acid on sterol lipid classes in Larix kaempferi callus

In Japanese larch (Larix kaempferi (Lamb.) Carr.) calli, free sterol (FS), acylsterol (AS) and glycosylsterol, including the acylated type, were found in the proportion of 1.0:0.1:0.8. When the calli were cultured in the presence of 10 mM mevalonic acid (MVA), the content of AS, but not FS and glycosylsterol, was increased remarkably. The major component sterol in each sterol lipid class was usually sitosterol (more than 90%) with campesterol as a minor one. There were no differences on the sterol compositions between the calli cultured with or without MVA. When the calli cultured with 10 mM MVA for 6 weeks were transferred to the control medium without exogenous MVA, AS contents decreased to the level of the control calli. Thus, it was shown that sterol lipids, such as FS and glycosylsterols, with the structural functions was maintained in the constant content and the excess sterol biosynthesized from exogenous MVA was esterified to form AS for storage of sterol components.     

Promotion effect of molybdate support on Bi2Mo3O12 catalyst in the selective oxidation of propylene

Catalytic behavior of Bi₂Mo₃O₁₂ supported on CoMoO₄ or CO_11/12Fe_1/12MoO _x was investigated in the oxidation of propylene to acrolein. A drastic promotion effect was observed only in the catalyst supported on Co_11/12Fe_1/12MoO _x . but not on CoMoO₄. Promotion effect of cobalt and iron in the multicomponent bismuth molybdate catalyst, Mo-Bi-M^II-M^III-O was discussed.     

Processing and Mechanical Behavior of CrN/ZrO2(2Y) Composites

CrN powder consisting of granular particles of ∼3 μm has been prepared by self-propagating high-temperature synthesis under a nitrogen pressure of 12 MPa using Cr metal. Dense pure CrN ceramics and CrN/ZrO₂(2Y) composites in the CrN-rich region have been fabricated by hot isostatic pressing for 2 h at 1300°C and 196 MPa. The former ceramics have a fracture toughness ( K _IC) of 3.3 MPa ·m^1/2 and a bending strength (σ_b) of 400 MPa. In the latter materials almost all of the ZrO₂(2Y) grains (0.36–0.41 μm) are located in the grain boundaries of CrN (∼4.6 μm). The values of K _IC (6.1 MPa · m^1/2) and σ_b (1070 MPa) are obtained in the composites containing 50 vol% ZrO₂(2Y).