Biomimetic Synthesis of Gelatin Polypeptide-Assisted Noble-Metal Nanoparticles and Their Interaction Study

Herein, the generation of gold, silver, and silver–gold (Ag–Au) bimetallic nanoparticles was carried out in collagen (gelatin) solution. It first showed that the major ingredient in gelatin polypeptide, glutamic acid, acted as reducing agent to biomimetically synthesize noble metal nanoparticles at 80°C. The size of nanoparticles can be controlled not only by the mass ratio of gelatin to gold ion but also by pH of gelatin solution. Interaction between noble-metal nanoparticles and polypeptide has been investigated by TEM, UV–visible, fluorescence spectroscopy, and HNMR. This study testified that the degradation of gelatin protein could not alter the morphology of nanoparticles, but it made nanoparticles aggregated clusters array (opposing three-dimensional α-helix folding structure) into isolated nanoparticles stabilized by gelatin residues. This is a promising merit of gelatin to apply in the synthesis of nanoparticles. Therefore, gelatin protein is an excellent template for biomimetic synthesis of noble metal/bimetallic nanoparticle growth to form nanometer-sized device.     

ChronoCorrelator: Enriching Events with Time Series

Event sequences and time series are widely recorded in many application domains; examples are stock market prices, electronic health records, server operation and performance logs. Common goals for recording are monitoring, root cause analysis and predictive analytics. Current analysis methods generally focus on the exploration of either event sequences or time series. However, deeper insights are gained by combining both. We present a visual analytics approach where users can explore both time series and event data simultaneously, combining visualization, automated methods and human interaction. We enable users to iteratively refine the visualization. Correlations between event sequences and time series can be found by means of an interactive algorithm, which also computes the presence of monotonic effects. We illustrate the effectiveness of our method by applying it to real world and synthetic data sets.     

Effects of displays on a direct reaching task: A comparative study of head mounted display and stereoscopic widescreen display

This study was conducted to investigate the virtual display effects on direct interaction performance metrics such as accuracy, task completion time, and comfort. Eighteen participants performed tapping (pointing) tasks in the coronal plane by directly reaching for tapping targets at three egocentric distance levels, with three indices of difficulty at each egocentric distance. The position data and severity of cybersickness symptoms were collected with a motion system and a symptom questionnaire, respectively. The results indicated that accuracy was higher with the stereoscopic widescreen display than with the head mounted display. However, no significant differences in task completion time, throughput, and cybersickness were observed between the two VR displays. In addition, increasing the egocentric distance improved accuracy and lengthened the task completion time, whereas increasing the task difficulty lengthened the task completion time but did not affect the accuracy. The findings are important and informative for users in choosing between the two virtual reality displays. Generally, the stereoscopic widescreen display can be recommended for tasks requiring high egocentric distance accuracy in the coronal plane. Furthermore, developers may refer to these findings in designing interfaces that allow a more natural way of interaction for users.     

Interaction of Water-Soluble CdTe Quantum Dots with Bovine Serum Albumin

Semiconductor nanoparticles (quantum dots) are promising fluorescent markers, but it is very little known about interaction of quantum dots with biological molecules. In this study, interaction of CdTe quantum dots coated with thioglycolic acid (TGA) with bovine serum albumin was investigated. Steady state spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering methods were used. It was explored how bovine serum albumin affects stability and spectral properties of quantum dots in aqueous media. CdTe–TGA quantum dots in aqueous solution appeared to be not stable and precipitated. Interaction with bovine serum albumin significantly enhanced stability and photoluminescence quantum yield of quantum dots and prevented quantum dots from aggregating.     

Adsorptive interaction of bisphenol A with mesoporous titanosilicate/reduced graphene oxide nanocomposite materials: FT-IR and Raman analyses

Nanocomposite materials containing graphene oxide have attracted tremendous interest as catalysts and adsorbents for water purification. In this study, mesoporous titanosilicate/reduced graphene oxide composite materials with different Ti contents were employed as adsorbents for removing bisphenol A (BPA) from water systems. The adsorptive interaction between BPA and adsorption sites on the composite materials was investigated by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) and Raman spectroscopy. Adsorption capacities of BPA at equilibrium, q _e (mg/g), decreased with increasing Ti contents, proportional to the surface area of the composite materials. FT-IR observations for fresh and spent adsorbents indicated that BPA adsorbed onto the composite materials by the electrostatic interaction between OH functional groups contained in BPA and on the adsorbents. The electrostatic adsorption sites on the adsorbents were categorized into three hydroxyl groups: Si-OH, Ti-OH, and graphene-OH. In Raman spectra, the intensity ratios of D to G band were decreased after the adsorption of BPA, implying adsorptive interaction of benzene rings of BPA with the sp² hybrid structure of the reduced graphene oxide.     

The study of the influence of binder systems in an Y2O3–ZrO2 facecoat material on the investment casting slurries and shells properties

In order to reduce the interaction between the Ti alloys and ceramic shell during the casting, materials with high thermal and chemical inertness were used in investment casting. An investigation was undertaken to analyze the influence of the change of binder systems on the slurries, facecoats and the thermo-chemical properties of the facecoat systems using an Y₂O₃–ZrO₂ filler material. The results showed that, using alumina-sol as the binder in the slurry gave the longest life of around three days followed by that using the commercially available zirconia-sol at around 6 h, and the yttria sol based slurry giving a shortest life of around 1.5 h. Meanwhile using the alumina-sol can also enhance the facecoat sintering properties. There was no obvious evidence observed that the change of the binder system influenced the facecoat chemical inertness.     

Micellar and Interfacial Behavior of Mixed Systems Containing Glycoside‐Based Surfactant and Cationic Didecyldimethylammonium Chloride

The behavior of binary mixtures of glycoside‐based surfactants in combination with didecyldimethylammonium chloride (DDAC) has been studied using surface tension measurements. The three glycoside‐based surfactants are nonionic decyl glycoside (APG), nonionic dodecyl ethoxy glycoside (AEG) and anionic disodium dodecyl ethoxy glycoside citrate (AEG‐EC). Lower critical micelle concentrations (CMC) and minimum molecular area (A_min) values were obtained for all the mixed systems. The pC₂₀ values of APG/DDAC and AEG‐EC/DDAC mixtures are larger than pure surfactants, while the values of AEG/DDAC are between those of AEG and DDAC. Interactions between the monomers have also been investigated by determining the interaction parameters. Negative β_m and β_s values indicate synergistic effects in both the mixed micelle and monolayer formation. For different mixed systems, interaction in the mixed micelle formation becomes stronger in the order: AEG/DDAC < AEG‐EC/DDAC < APG/DDAC. The degree of synergism in the mixed monolayer formation follows the order: AEG/DDAC < APG/DDAC < AEG‐EC/DDAC.     

Microstructure of Pd/CeO2 catalyst: Effect of high temperature reduction in hydrogen

The effect of high temperature reduction (HTR) in hydrogen (up to 1180 K) on the microstructure of 9 wt.-% Pd/CeO₂ catalyst was studied by HRTEM and XRD methods. Reduction of the catalyst at or above 973 K caused severe recrystallization of CeO₂ and Pd with simultaneous strong interaction between the two components appearing as three phenomena: epitaxial growth of small Pd particles on CeO₂ (most frequently with [111]Pd[111]CeO₂); decoration of large Pd particles with ordered CeO₂ overlayer and expansion of the lattice parameter of Pd (by 2.1%). The origin of the Pd lattice expansion is discussed and diffusion of Ce species into the Pd lattice seems to be the most probable one. HTR caused also phase transformations in the ceria support. At 973 K and 1100 K, whole CeO₂ was transformed into oxygen deficient CeO_x phase exhibiting the same or similar structure but with expanded lattice parameter (by 2.8%). At 1180 K most ceria was transformed into hexagonal A-Ce₂₃. The CeO_x phase appeared to be stable in hydrogen and in vacuum at room temperature, but upon exposure to air at room temperature it rapidly reoxidised to CeO₂. Ce₂O₃ also reoxidised to CeO₂ but much slower. Another consequence of HTR at or above 773 K was formation of pits in CeO₂ crystallites, mainly on (112)-type crystal faces. The pits (1–10 nm) exhibited well defined walls parallel to CeO₂ lattice fringes and they could possibly constitute nucleation sites for strongly bonded, epitaxial oriented Pd particles.     

Extraction of proteins and polymers using reverse micelles and percolation process

Specific interfacial properties, which affect protein extraction in AOT and AOT-lecithin reverse micellar systems (RVMS), have been studied by using their percolation processes. Solubilization of proteins or synthetic polymers into RVMS by the injection method and its effect on the percolation processes could be easily evaluated by the measurement of electrical conductivity. The percolation process is found to be a sensitive and convenient measure of micro-interface of RVMS solubilizing various polymers or proteins, which clearly reflects the polymer(protein)-micellar and micellar-micellar interactions. The stability of RVMS or micellar-micellar interaction was dependent on the kinds, concentration and molecular weight of solubilized polymers. The value of p, defined as the variation of percolation threshold with the concentration of solubilized polymers, can be utilized to evaluate the stability of RVMS solubilizing polymers or micellar-micellar interactions. The values of Β are affected by the hydrophobicity, molecular weight and absolute value of the net charge of the polymers solubilized into the AOT reverse micelles, which were evaluated by using Aqueous Two-Phase Systems (ATPS).     

天然沸石和乙烯炉渣双掺制备复合水泥的试验研究

针对茂名市乙烯生产基地大量排放沸腾炉渣却得不到妥善处理,同时结合当地沸石资源丰富,进行了沸石和沸腾炉渣制备复合水泥的实验。实验主要对沸石和炉渣的化学成分进行了分析,用激光粒度仪表征了原料粉体的粒度分布,通过单掺和双掺的方式研究了沸石和炉渣对水泥强度、需水量、凝结时间和安定性的影响,并对作用机理进行了讨论。研究表明,沸石和炉渣单掺或双掺掺量达到40％时都能配制合格的P·C32．5级水泥。由于两种混合材粒度不同而存在交互作用,双掺效果比单掺更好。