Characterization and electrochemical properties of CF4 plasma-treated boron-doped diamond surfaces

The effect of CF₄ plasma etching on diamond surfaces, with respect to treatment time, was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and electrochemical measurements. SEM observations and Raman spectra indicated an increase in surface roughening on a scale of 10–20 nm, and an increase in crystal defect density was apparent with treatment time in the range of 10 s to 30 min. In contrast, alteration of the diamond surface terminations from oxygen to fluorine was found to be rather rapid, with saturation of the F/C atomic ratio estimated from XPS analysis after treatment durations of 1 min and more. The redox kinetics of Fe(CN)₆^3−/4− was also found to be significantly modified after 10 s of CF₄ plasma treatment. This behavior shows that C–F terminations predominantly affect the redox kinetics compared to the effect on the surface roughness and crystal defects. The double-layer capacitance (C_dl) of the electrolyte/CF₄ plasma-treated boron-doped diamond interface was found to show a minimum value at 1 min of treatment. These results indicate that a short-duration CF₄ plasma treatment is effective for the fabrication of fluorine-terminated diamond surfaces without undesirable surface damage.     

Extended AB Period Study of the Electron Pairing Transition int-J Ladders

The extended Aharonov-Bohm period test, recently proposed by the present authors, is used to study the electron pairing transition in the t-J ladders. The critical point is detected as a gap opening in the extended spectral flow. The result suggests a pairing prior to the onset of a phase separation, which is consistent with a recent Tomonaga-Luttinger analysis.     

Induced-fit association between DNA and esperamicin. Importance of structural flexibility in host DNA duplex

In this study, a series of synthetic oligonucleotide duplexes are tested as a substrate for esperamicin. The duplexes contain a typical binding sequence of esperamicin, 5'-GGA/TCC, but have different flexibilities in helix structure from each other. When cleavage activities of these oligonucleotides by esperamicin were estimated by using DNA sequencing method, a substantial increase of the cleavage at 3'-NAGG was observed with increasing the helix flexibility. This observation indicates that structural flexibility of host DNA duplex is important in an induced-fit association between esperamicin and DNA.     

Preparation of γ-alumina thin membrane by sol-gel processing and its characterization by gas permeation

-alumina porous membranes without pinholes or cracks were prepared by the sol-gel process. The boehmite sol obtained from hydrolysation of aluminium isopropoxide was applied to the inner surface of a porous supporting tube by a dipping procedure. The effects of sol concentration and the repetition number of dipping-drying-firing procedure on the membrane performance were investigated by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller method in connection with the micro-structure of the membrane. Gas permeation measurements were also conducted. The gas permeation through the thin membranes is well explained by Knudsen's flow, indicating the pores are controlled finely and homogeneously.     

A novel method for three-dimensional observation of the vascular networks in the whole mouse brain

A novel method for acquiring serial images suitable for three-dimensional reconstruction of vascular networks in the whole brain of mouse was developed. The brain infused with a White India ink-gelatin solution was fixed and embedded in paraffin containing Sudan Black B through xylene also containing Sudan Black B. Each sliced surface of the paraffin block was coated with liquid paraffin and its image was serially acquired. Coating with liquid paraffin extremely improved the quality of the image. The series of serial images was free of distortion and a three-dimensional image was reconstructed without the problem of the alignment and registration of adjacent images. The volume-rendered image indicated three-dimensional distribution of blood vessels in a whole brain. No ghost or shadow was observed on a volume-rendered image of the White India ink-gelatin infused brain. The z-axial resolution examined on the orthogonal sections reconstituted from serial images obtained at an interval of 5 mum showed no cross talk, indicating that the z-axial resolution was no larger than 5 mum. A proper understanding of the vascular system in a whole brain is indispensable to reveal the development of the vascular system in the brain of normal and genetically manipulated mouse and vascular alterations in pathological situation, such as stroke and neurodegenerative disease. Although simple and inexpensive, this method will provide fundamental information on the vascular system in a whole brain.     

Nonlinear adaptive control system design and experiment for a 3-DOF model helicopter

This paper deals with model following control of a model helicopter with three degree-of-freedom. Since the decoupling matrix is singular, a nonlinear structure algorithm is used to design the controller. Furthermore, since the model dynamics are described linearly by unknown system parameters, a well-known parameter estimation technique is introduced. The integral type of estimation model is proposed here since the use of the derivative type of model cannot obtain the desired estimation result. The experimental results show the effectiveness of the proposed method. This work was presented in part at the 13th International Symposium on Artificial Life and Robotics, Oita, Japan, January 31–February 2, 2008     

Reappraisal of loading rate effects on sand behavior in view of seismic design for pile foundation

This study re-visits the effects of loading rate on sand behavior in view of seismic design of pile foundation. Based on an extensive literature review covering both element testing and model testing, the paper summarizes the current understanding of the loading rate effects. The paper then describes the development of test apparatus used in this study and presents the data obtained from a series of monotonically increasing triaxial compression tests on Toyoura sand, varying the strain rate in the range of 0.005%/s to 250%/s. A total of 36 tests were conducted on dry and saturated sand, both under drained and undrained conditions with two confining pressures. The experimental results confirm that the soil strength and the soil stiffness increase as the strain rate increase. This paper also concludes that the internal friction angle and deformation modulus increase when the strain rate is high. The implications of the loading rate effect on pile foundation design are then presented.     

大孔树脂D380固定化橄榄绿链霉菌E-86来源木聚糖酶的研究

选择有代表性的 1 4种吸附和离子交换树脂进行了橄榄绿链霉菌E 86来源的木聚糖酶固定化试验 ,筛选出固定化效果较好的 72 4和D3 80两种树脂 ;对含伯氨基的离子交换树脂D3 80采用戊二醛进行交联固定化 ,研究了其固定化条件。结果表明 ,戊二醛浓度为1 % ,处理 3 0min ,加酶量为 0 8～ 1mL ,酶液pH 5 8,2 5℃ ,5～ 1 0h固定化处理效果最好 ,获得的固定化酶活力可达 64U/ g(载体 )。     

Foundations

Foundation engineering emerged as a discipline of modern engineering science in 1940s. Design and analysis as well as practice of foundation engineering have made a significant progress up to the present time. This paper gives an overview of the development of foundation engineering, mainly referring to papers published in Soils and Foundations. The paper describes the theoretical development of foundation analysis and a recent increasing trend of foundation practice of adopting various hybrid foundations. The paper points out the importance of environmental considerations in foundation design and practice, including low noise and vibration reduction, reuse of existing foundations and use of natural energy through foundation elements. The paper then provides authors’ views of future directions in foundation studies and practice.     

Cloning and characterization of a β-N-acetylglucosaminidase (BmFDL) from silkworm Bombyx mori

In insects, β-N-acetylglucosaminidase (GlcNAcase) participates in critical physiological processes such as fertilization, metamorphosis, and glycoconjugate degradation. Insects produce glycoproteins carrying paucimannosidic-type N-glycans, the terminal GlcNAc residue of which is cleaved by a GlcNAc-linkage specific GlcNAcase, also known as the fused lobes (FDL) protein. To obtain information on the structure of GlcNAcases and insight into their contribution to physiological processes, we cloned Bombyx mori FDL (BmFDL) from silkworm larvae. The full-length cDNA (1.9 kb) encoded a protein of 633 amino acids with 42% amino acid sequence identity to Drosophila melanogaster FDL (DmFDL). Recombinant BmFDL cleaved only β-1,2-linked GlcNAc residues from the α-1,3 branch of biantennary N-glycan. This substrate specificity was similar to that of DmFDL. Microsomal FDL activity was inhibited by anti-BmFDL antibodies. Taken together, our results suggest that BmFDL is a N-glycan-processing GlcNAcase in B. mori.