The role of the surface free energy in the selection of a suitable excipient in the course of a wet-granulation method

Pellets containing metronidazole were produced in a centrifugal granulator, with hydroxypropylcellulose (Klucel LF®) as binding agent, and corn starch, microcrystalline cellulose (Vivapur 101®) and lactose as excipients. The wettability of the pharmaceutical powders was assessed by means of contact angle measurements, and the dispersive and polar surface energies were determined. The spreading coefficients, the work of adhesion and the work of cohesion were calculated and correlated with the pellet properties (friability, bulk and tapped density, and porosity). The aim was to investigate the role of the surface free energy of one- and two-component powder compositions in pellet production. The interactions between the particles were found to be connected with the measured pellet parameters. It was concluded that, in the course of the growth of the pellets, the particle sizes of the pharmaceutical powders and the interactions between them are important. If the work of cohesion of the binder is lower than the work of cohesion of the substrate and the work of adhesion, then the optimal amount of the binding agent is that which coats the particles uniformly in minimal quantity and in continuous layer.     

THE IRREVERSIBLE ADSORPTION OF PLUTONIUM HEXAFLUORIDE†

The room temperature adsorption of PuF_6(g) on a solid substrate was compared to the adsorption of UF6(g) on the same surface. Significantly more PuF_6(g) was adsorbed at pressures in the range of 1.2 to 0.2torr, accompanied by the evolution of molecular fluorine. The adsorbed UF₆ was easily desorbed by reducing the pressure. Most of the adsorbed PuF₆ remained on the surface when subjected to the same treatment.     

Experimental Investigation of Epoxy Bonded Polymethylmethacrylate Joints

This paper presents an experimental investigation into various aspects of epoxy-bonded polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) and PMMA-to-aluminium joints. The effects of adhesive thickness, overlap area, surface roughness, and environmental exposure on the joint strength were studied. Results indicated that the joint strength was not directly proportional to the overlap area, while sanding had a positive effect on the joint strength. A negative effect was observed when adhesive thickness was increased. The fatigue behaviour of adhesively-bonded joints under dynamic loading was found to be independent of frequency, for the range of values tested; however, it was dependent on the test temperature with greater reduction in fatigue life observed in PMMA-to-aluminium joints at higher temperature. Empirical equations from which the fatigue life of joints can be predicted were obtained by regression analysis. Intermittent fatigue testing of the joints was also performed. The epoxy adhesive tested proved to be a satisfactory choice for outdoor exposure. The rate of degradation of the adhesive was slow with the adherend itself degrading at a faster rate than the adhesive or the bondline.     

Transformation of β-Ni(OH)2 to NiO nano-sheets via surface nanocrystalline zirconia coating: Shape and size retention

Shape and size of the synthesized NiO nano-sheets were retained during transformation of sheet-like β-Ni(OH)₂ to NiO at elevated temperatures via nano-sized zirconia coating on the surface of β-Ni(OH)₂. The average grain size was 6.42 nm after 600 °C treatment and slightly increased to 10 nm after 1000 °C treatment, showing effective sintering retardation between NiO nano-sheets. The excellent thermal stability revealed potential application at elevated temperatures, especially for high temperature catalysts and solid-state electrochemical devices.     

NBR／EPDM的增容共混研究

本文采用第三组份增容途径,改善了NBR/EPDM并用胶的相容性、加工性和力学性能。通过对不同增容体系的研究对比,发现不同增容剂的增容效果差异很大,其巾以EVA-14增容效果最为显著,加入该增容剂的并用胶,在适当的工艺条件及硫化体系下,可获得最佳力学性能。本文还研究了不同增容剂对并用炭黑胶各种性能的影响,可以做到在不降低并用胶的力学性能的同时,提高并用胶的耐热空气老化、耐大气老化和耐臭氧老化性能.透射电镜实验和动态力学谱图证明了加与未加增容剂时,NBR/EPDM并用胶均为两相结构,增容剂起表面活性剂的作用,加强了两相界面间的相互作用,使分散相EPDM细微化和均匀化。     

PVA-based activated carbon fibers with lotus root-like axially porous structure

A novel method was developed for the fabrication of activated carbon fiber (ACF) with wet spinning polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) fibers as the precursors. Through a combination of preoxidation, dehydration, carbonization and activation under a certain tension, PVA-based ACFs (PVA-ACFs) with high yields and good mechanical properties were obtained. The surface and cross-section morphologies, pore structures, surface geometries, surface functional groups and crystal structures of the PVA-ACFs were characterized using field emission scanning electron microscopy, low temperature nitrogen adsorption, Fourier transformed infrared spectrophotometry, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray power diffraction. All the PVA-ACF samples prepared had lotus root-like axially meso- and macroporous structures with the domination of micropores. Fractal geometries of PVA-ACFs deduced from nitrogen adsorption isotherms indicates that capillary force dominated in the interactions between nitrogen and the PVA-ACFs. The surface functional groups of the PVA-ACFs depend on the activating agents. Graphitoidal crystal structures were observed for the PVA-ACFs. The small crystal size and short range ordering between the crystallites ensured a high specific surface area of the PVA-ACFs.     

New software developments for quality mesh generation and optimization from biomedical imaging data

In this paper we present a new software toolkit for generating and optimizing surface and volumetric meshes from three-dimensional (3D) biomedical imaging data, targeted at image-based finite element analysis of some biomedical activities in a single material domain. Our toolkit includes a series of geometric processing algorithms including surface re-meshing and quality-guaranteed tetrahedral mesh generation and optimization. All methods described have been encapsulated into a user-friendly graphical interface for easy manipulation and informative visualization of biomedical images and mesh models. Numerous examples are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of the described methods and toolkit.     

A PRACTICAL METHOD FOR RECTIFYING INTERFACIAL TENSION DATA TO PREDICT THE SHAPE OF INTERFACES IN AN IMMISCIBLE LIQUID/LIQUID/GAS SYSTEM

The shape of interfaces formed by the contact of two liquid phases, immiscible with each other, and a gaseous phase can be predicted on the condition that the tension to work at each interface is known with a sufficient accuracy. In general, interfacial tension data available are not so accurate, however, as to be useful as they are in predicting the shape of interfaces, particularly when the spreading coefficient of either liquid (liquid 1) on the other (liquid 2) has a negative value of a small magnitude. Presented in this note is a simple method to rectify the interfacial tension data, with the aid of a measurement of the radius of a lens of liquid 1 of a known volume placed on the horizontal surface of liquid 2, and thereby make them usable for predicting interfacial geometries. The method is tested by applying it to benzene/water and n-pentane/water systems.     

An Experimental Study of Fatigue Strength for Adhesively Bonded Tubular Single Lap Joints

In this paper, manufacturing technology of the tubular single lap adhesive joint was studied to obtain reliable and optimal joint quality. In addition, a surface preparation method and a bonding process for the joint were devised. The effect of the adhesive thickness and the adherend roughness on the fatigue strength of the joint was experimentally investigated. From experiments, it has been found that the fatigue strength of the joint increased as the adhesive thickness decreased and the optimal arithmetic surface roughness of the adherends was about 2 μm.     

基于自旋图和ICP算法的3D实体签名算法

针对已有的3D实体真实性认证方法中实体的标识不与实体自身绑定且难以验证的问题,提出了一种面向3D实体的签名算法。给出了3D实体签名算法的设计思想、签名产生算法以及签名验证算法。在粗配准和精匹配阶段分别通过自旋图(Spin Image)和ICP(Iterative Closest Point)算法对签名表面和待测表面进行匹配,从而提高了验证的准确率。对所设计的签名算法进行了实验仿真,所获得的迭代误差和匹配率表明该算法可以区分原始和伪造的签名表面,进而证明了算法的有效性。