Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Numerical simulation of substrate impact and freezing of droplets in plasma spray processes

In the present study, deformation, interaction and freezing during substrate impact of molten droplets in plasma spray processes are numerically investigated. The numerical simulation is conducted on the basis of the full Navier-Stokes equations and the volume of fluid (VOF) function by using a two-domain method for the thermal field and freezing problem and a two-phase flow continuum model for the flow problem with a growing solid layer. Important processing parameters, such as droplet temperature, substrate temperature and droplet velocity are considered and their effects on flattening and freezing are discussed. The numerical results reveal that a droplet spreads and solidifies into a splat of diameter 1.6 to 3.8 times the initial droplet diameter within a time of 0.12 to 0.44 mu s. The droplet liquid separates from the solid/liquid interface when freezing occurs. Increasing initial droplet velocity and enhancing substrate temperature can significantly enhance the flattening extent of droplet. A fully liquid droplet impinging on a solid substrate may generate good contact between the splat and the substrate; a fully liquid droplet striking on another flattening splat produces ejection of the liquid; a fully liquid ring colliding with a flattening splat causes bounce of the liquid and formation of voids. A combination of a liquid droplet condition at a high initial velocity with a semi-solid or solid surface condition may produce good adhesion in sprayed deposits or coatings.
Soil‐aggregate formation as influenced by clay content and organic‐matter amendment

Naturally occurring wetting-and-drying cycles often enhance aggregation and give rise to a stable soil structure. In comparatively dry regions, such as large areas of Australia, organic-matter (OM) contents in topsoils of arable land are usually small. Therefore, the effects of wetting and drying are almost solely reliant on the clay content. To investigate the relations between wetting-and-drying cycles, aggregation, clay content, and OM in the Australian environment, an experiment was set up to determine the relative influence of both clay content (23%, 31%, 34%, and 38%) and OM amendments of barley straw (equivalent to 3.1 t ha–1, 6.2 t ha–1, and 12.4 t ha–1) on the development of water-stable aggregates in agricultural soil. The aggregate stability of each of the sixteen composite soils was determined after one, three, and six wet/dry cycles and subsequent fast and slow prewetting and was then compared to the aggregate stabilities of all other composite soils. While a single wet/dry cycle initiated soil structural evolution in all composite soils, enhancing macroaggregation, the incorporation of barley straw was most effective for the development of water-stable aggregates in those soils with 34% and 38% clay. Repeated wetting-and-drying events revealed that soil aggregation is primarily based on the clay content of the soil, but that large straw additions also tend to enhance soil aggregation. Relative to untreated soil, straw additions equivalent to 3.1 t ha–1 and 12.4 t ha–1 increased soil aggregation by about 100% and 250%, respectively, after three wet/dry cycles and fast prewetting, but were of less influence with subsequent wet/dry cycles. Straw additions were even more effective in aggregating soil when combined with slow prewetting; after three wet/dry cycles, the mean weight diameters of aggregates were increased by 70% and 140% with the same OM additions and by 160% and 290% after six wet/dry cycles, compared to samples without organic amendments. We suggest that in arable soils poor in OM and with a field texture grade of clay loam or finer, the addition of straw, which is often available from preceding crops, may be useful for improving aggregation. For a satisfactory degree of aggregate stability and an improved soil structural form, we found that straw additions of at least 6.2 t ha–1 were required. However, rapid wetting of straw-amended soil will disrupt newly formed aggregates, and straw has only a limited ability to sustain structural improvement.
Vibrational overtones of gaseous alcohols

Overtone absorption spectra are reported for gaseous 1-propranol, 2-propranol, and tert-butyl alcohol measured with intracavity photoacoustic and FT-IR spectroscopy. Prominent features in the spectra are assigned as O-H and C-H stretching overtones within the local mode (LM) model of loosely coupled, anharmonic vibrations. Remaining features are assigned as combinations involving an LM overtone and lower frequency motions of molecules. In contrast to C-H and N-H overtones of molecules with comparable sizes, the O-H overtones are considerably narrower and show both rotational and conformational structures. This implies a more isolated nature of the O-H stretching vibration, which leads to possible slower intramolecular vibrational relaxation than other C-H or N-H oscillators. The relatively broad C-H overtones also show evidence of conformationally nonequivalent sites for methyl groups in an anisotropic environment.
Thermodynamics of Lipid Organization and Domain Formation in Phospholipid Bilayers

Abstract Lipid organization and domain formation in phospholipid membranes has a large impact on a number of physical membrane properties such as membrane elasticity, lipid lateral diffusion, permeability, and binding properties for peptides and proteins. The mixing behavior of lipids can be deduced from the binary phase diagram, i.e. temperature versus mole fraction diagram, describing the temperature induced phase transition behavior of lipid mixtures. An easy way to obtain experimental data to construct a binary phase diagram is differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) of aqueous dispersions of liposomes of lipid mixtures. The temperatures that correspond to points on the liquidus and solidus curves of the phase diagram are determined from the DSC thermograms, e.g. the experimental heat capacity curves. The main problem to solve is the correct determination of the onset and end of the melting curve for every single transition curve in a standardized manner, because of the lack of theoretically justified methods. To avoid this subjective procedure, we have developed a method for the simulation of heat capacity curves that are obtained by DSC. Our model uses a thermodynamic approach for the description of the miscibility of phospholipids, which is based on regular solution theory with an incorporation of a broadening function, taking into account the reduced cooperativity in mixed lipid bilayer systems. The output parameters of these simulations are nonideality parameters describing nonideal mixing in the gel and liquid crystalline phase, the temperature set describing the onset and end of melting, respectively, and a value for the cooperative unit size. These temperature data are then used for the construction and simulation of the phase diagrams. A four parameter model was used, taking into account the asymmetry of the mixing behavior, yielding two nonideality parameters for each phase. These nonideality parameters describe the interaction of both components in the single phase regions. We have employed this procedure to describe the mixing behavior of various binary phospholipid systems. We will show how the mixing behavior is influenced by changing the hydrocarbon chain length of one of the component, by changing the lipid-lipid head group interaction, or the pH and ionic strength of the dispersion. Examples of binary lipid mixtures in which domain formation in the liquid crystalline phase is observed, are presented.
The investigation of Ni(OH)2/Ni as anodes for high performance Li-ion batteries

Ni(OH)2 nanowalls were prepared via a novel hydrothermal method, which show excellent cycling stability as anodes for Li-ion batteries. The initial discharge and charge capacities are 0.63 and 0.49 mA h cm−2, respectively, showing no evident capacity attenuation over 100 cycles.
Studies on Volatile Characteristics of Middle Distillates and Their Interdependency

Abstract Standard test methods such as those published in American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM)/Institute of Petroleum/Universal Oil Product are often used to characterize the fuel's properties. However, these chemical/physical characterization methods are not only expensive and protracted but also require a large quantity of samples. Every flammable liquid has vapor pressure, which is a function of its boiling point. The distillation and flash point are volatility-dependent characteristics; therefore, these properties are temperature dependent. Most researchers have derived the correlation of flash point with boiling point and vapor pressure for pure organic compounds. The present study proposes a user-friendly empirical model with a correlation technique to predict flash point using ASTM distillation data of middle distillates. In this study, 47 middle distillate samples were taken to predict the flash point with 5 and 10% volume recovery temperature of ASTM D-86 and volume average boiling point (VABP) separately. It was observed that the most appropriate prediction of flash point was with 5% recovery temperature of ASTM D-86 with an R2 0.997. This correlation model was compared with different models and found to be comparatively better and user friendly.
Factors That Affect the Content of Heterocyclic Aromatic Amines in Foods

Abstract: This review compiles the contents of heterocyclic aromatic amines (HAAs) in foods and beverages, collected from literature data along the period from 1992 up to 2009. Also, it describes the factors that affect the formation of HAAs in foods, such as the cooking method, including temperature, time, and frequency of turning of meat, during cooking. Other factors depending on the type of food and the recipe followed are pH, amounts of HAA precursors, types of amino acids, presence of certain divalent ions, and content of substances with enhancing or inhibiting effects on the formation of HAAs. In addition, there are other factors, which depend on the type of food, such as muscle tissue and the presence of certain genes, since the RN− allele in pigs increases the glycogen content of muscle. The dispersion of the bibliographic data is evident, and there are scarce data, even no data, referred to individual HAAs. Considering that the diverging results can be due to several causes, possible recommendations are given in order to prevent the dispersion of the results and to achieve more valuable information, applied to determine the HAAs exposure. Although there are not direct indications that HAAs represent a serious health risk to the population, and common cancers are produced by many factors including xenobiotics, all measures to minimize the formation of HAAs should be foreseen, some of which are indicated.
Luminescence of Phosphors Based on Host Lattices ABO4 (A is Sc, In; B is P, V, Nb)

The luminescence of the unactivated and Bi3+- and Eu3+-activated compounds ABO4 (A is Sc, In; B is P, V, Nb) is reported and compared with the luminescence of the corresponding rare-earth and yttrium compounds. The ScNbO4 shows a weak, blue emission, ScVO4 a blue-green, and InVO4 a green emission. The other host lattices show no or only a very weak emission at room temperature. The color of the vanadate emission depends strongly on the choice of A. This was studied by replacing part of the A ions by other ions or a combination of ions. The shift of the vanadate emission is ascribed to two effects, viz., metal–metal interaction (e.g., Bi3+–VO4) and the effect of the size of the metal ions at the A sites (e.g., Sc3+). The Eu3+-activated phosphors show some interesting features. The intensity of the forced electric dipole emission from the Eu3+ ion seems to depend strongly on the position of the lowest strong absorption band. In the zircon structure the 5D0−7F2 emission is hypersensitive to the surroundings,.
Effect of processing and cooking on total and soluble oxalate content in frozen root vegetables prepared for consumption

The oxalate content of beetroot, carrot, celeriac and parsnip after freezing by traditional and modified methods (the latter resulting in a convenience food product), and after the preparation of frozen products for consumption was evaluated. The highest content of total and soluble oxalates (105 and 82 mg 100 g-1 fresh matter) was found in beetroot. The lowest proportion (55%) of soluble oxalates was noted in celeriac; this proportion was higher in the remaining vegetables, being broadly similar for each of them. Blanching brought about a significant decrease in total and soluble oxalates in fresh vegetables. Cooking resulted in a higher loss of oxalates. The level of oxalates in products prepared for consumption directly after freezing approximated that before freezing. Compared with the content before freezing, vegetables prepared for consumption by cooking after frozen storage contained less oxalates, except for total oxalates in parsnip and soluble oxalates in beetroot and celeriac. The highest ratio of oxalates to calcium was found in raw beetroot; it was two times lower in raw carrot; five times lower in raw celeriac; and eight times lower in raw parsnip. These ratios were lower after technological and culinary processing. The percentage of oxalate bound calcium depended on the species; this parameter was not significantly affected by the procedures applied. The true retention of oxalates according to Judprasong et al. (2006) was lower than retention calculated taking its content in 100 g fresh matter into account. ;
Effect of salt on the phase behavior of the ternary system water-pentanol-sodium dodecylsulfate

A detailed study of the effects of varying temperature and salt concentration on the phase behavior of the water-pentanol-sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) system is presented. By addition of salt the lamellar phase extends well into the water-rich region and occurs at water contents exceeding 95%. The isotropic mixtures close in composition to the more dilute lamellar phase strongly scatter light and exhibit streaming birefringence. It seems that the isotropic-lamellar phase transition becomes less first order as the salt content increases. Moreover, this work provides evidence that in the water (salt)-pentanol-SDS system two mechanisms are involved to produce three-phase equilibria. Indeed, the authors results clearly show that three-phase regions arise from either a critical end point or an indifferent state.
The NH4+ – NO3– – Cl– – SO42– – H2O aerosol system and its gas phase precursors at a pasture site in the Amazon Basin: How relevant are mineral cations and soluble organic acids?

Real-time measurements of ammonia, nitric acid, hydrochloric acid, sulfur dioxide and the water-soluble inorganic aerosol species, ammonium, nitrate, chloride, and sulfate were performed at a pasture site in the Amazon Basin (Rondonia, Brazil). The measurements were made during the late dry season (biomass burning), the transition period, and the onset of the wet season (clean conditions) using a wet-annular denuder (WAD) in combination with a Steam-Jet Aerosol Collector (SJAC). Measurements were conducted from 12 September to 14 November 2002 within the framework of LBA-SMOCC (Large-Scale Biosphere Atmosphere Experiment in Amazonia - Smoke Aerosols, Clouds, Rainfall, and Climate: Aerosols From Biomass Burning Perturb Global and Regional Climate). Real-time data were combined with measurements of sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and low-molecular weight (LMW) polar organic acids determined on 12-, 24-, and 48-hours integrated filter samples. The contribution of inorganic species to the fine particulate mass (Dp = 2.5 µm) was frequently below 20% by mass, indicating the preponderance of organic matter. The measured concentration products of NH3 × HNO3 and NH3 × HCl persistently remained below the theoretical equilibrium dissociation constants of the NH3/HNO3/NH4NO3 and NH3/HCl/NH4Cl systems during daytime (RH 90%) fine-mode NH4NO3 and NH4Cl are predicted to be formed in the aqueous aerosol phase. Probably, Cl- was driven out of the aerosol phase largely by reaction of pyrogenic KCl with HNO3 and H2SO4. As shown by an updated version of the equilibrium simplified aerosol model (EQSAM2), which incorporates mineral aerosol species and lumped LMW polar organic acids, daytime aerosol NH4 + was mainly balanced by organic compounds.
Cement: Its Chemistry and Properties

Cement is a paste of calcium silicate hydrates, polymerized into a densely cross-linked matrix. Although cement has been known and used for two thousand years, even today its chemistry is not fully understood. This paper addresses several aspects of the chemistry of cement and modern characterization of the processes of cement formation and degradation.
Kinetic study of wood pyrolysis in presence of metal halides

The purpose of this work was to study the kinetics of wood pyrolysis in the presence of inorganic salts, representatives of classes of alkali and alkaline earth metal halides (NaCl, KCl, KBr, CaCl2, BaCl2·2H2O) and Lewis acids (AlCl3·6H2O, FeCl3·6H2O, CuCl2, CuBr2, ZnCl2·1.5H2O, NiCl2·6H2O, SnCl2·2H2O) using TG-DSC. The activity of these catalysts was estimated by the temperature of the beginning of pyrolysis, charcoal yield and kinetic parameters, such as energy of activation and reaction order. Using the Lewis acids as catalysts for pyrolysis leads to a decrease in the temperature of the process beginning and the activation energy. In the presence of other catalysts activation energy does not significantly change. The increase of a seeming reaction order in the presence of Lewis acids possibly is a consequence of complication of the thermodestruction mechanism, with the appearance of new parallel competing stages.
Optimal performance of a thermoelectric refrigerator

By employing an externally and internally irreversible Carnot-like reversed heat engine model, the coefficient of performance and maximum cooling rate have been determined for a thermoelectric refrigerator. The irreversibilities can be characterized by a single parameter called the device-design parameter. The coefficient of performance and the cooling rate increase with an increase of the device-design parameter, which appears in the equations for maximum cooling rate and coefficient of performance.
Brief and vigorous N2O production by soil at spring thaw

SUMMARY In an acid sandy loam soil (pH 3.8), field production of N2O was two orders of magnitude higher at thaw in the spring than at any time during the rest of the year. Soil thaw in midwinter did not result in any increase in N2O flux. Soil water content remained at, or above field capacity during measurements; nitrate was added in excess. This effect could be reproduced in the laboratory: thawing soil cores at controlled temperature, nitrate and moisture yielded a large flush of N2O compared to an unfrozen control. The results indicate the importance of microbial N2O production during thaw for total annual N2O-emission.
Polypyrrole-hemin-reduce graphene oxide: rapid synthesis and enhanced electrocatalytic activity towards the reduction of hydrogen peroxide

An efficient and eco-friendly microwave-assistant method is developed to synthesize a ternary composite of polypyrrole-hemin-reduced graphene oxide (PPY-He-RGO). The polymerization of the pyrrole monomer and the reduction of graphene oxide are performed simply by microwave heating without using a strong reducing or oxidizing agent in an isopropanol/H2O mixed medium. Hemin molecules are immobilized on reduced graphene oxide (RGO) sheets and can still retain high electrocatalytic activity toward the reduction of H2O2 in the final composite. The conducting RGO and polypyrrole with a well-controlled nanostructure provide a highly conductive network to the ternary composite, which can promote the electron transfer between hemin, analytes and electrodes, leading to an improved electrocatalytic activity. The PPY-He-RGO can act as a third-generation mediator and mimic enzyme for the fabrication of a hydrogen peroxide biosensor. The as-prepared PPY-He-RGO electrode exhibits a high sensitivity to H2O2 with a low detection limit of 0.13 μm. The efficient microwave heating provides an opportunity for large-scale production of PPY-He-RGO ternary nanocomposites as a kind of mimic enzyme for biosensors.
Water-Soluble Fractions of Heavy Metals during Composting of Municipal Solid Waste

This study was done to determine the water-extractable fractions of Cd, Zn, Cu, and Pb and investigate changes in water-soluble organic C during the complete composting of a pile of ground municipal solid waste. No relationship was found between pH and extractable fractions of all metals, even if higher amounts of Pb and Zn were extracted when the pH of the composting material was below neutrality. The degree of stabilization reached by organic matter appears to be important in determining potential mobility of heavy metals
Pk/PD evaluations of the novel atypical opioid tapentadol in red-eared slider turtles

The aim of this study was to evaluate the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of tapentadol (TAP) in red-eared slider turtles after a single intramuscular injection of 5 mg/kg. Turtles (n = 9) were randomly assigned to two treatment groups, according to an open, single-dose, single-treatment, unpaired, two-period crossover design. Group A (n = 5) received a single IM dose of TAP (5 mg/mL) at 5 mg/kg. Group B (n = 4) received a single IM injection of saline (equivalent to the opioid in volume). After a one-month wash-out period, the groups were rotated, and the experiment was repeated. TAP plasma concentrations were evaluated by a validated HPLC-FL method, while an infrared thermal stimulus was applied to the plantar surface of the turtles' hind limbs to evaluate the thermal withdrawal latency (TWL). TAP plasma concentrations were detectable between 1 and 24 h (2141 42 ng/mL, respectively). The TAP-treated group showed a dramatic increase in TWL one hour after drug administration (15.31 +/- 4.73 s). Subsequently, TWL decreased with time. Significant differences between the treatment and control groups were apparent up to 10 h following treatment. A linear relationship (r(2) = 0.98) between the TAP plasma concentration and effect was found. Given these qualities, TAP appears to be an attractive option for antinociception in turtles because of its rapid onset and acceptable duration of effect.
Effects of media and plant selection on biofiltration performance

AbstractThe goal of this research was to compare the pollutant removal effectiveness of biofiltration systems containing different media and plant species. A laboratory column study was conducted by using three media and two plant species, each with and without a submerged zone intended to promote denitrification. Twenty experiments were run by using synthetic storm water over the course of nine months, and ten of them were analyzed. The three media used were concrete sand, masonry sand, and a medium that meets the City of Austin’s biofiltration specifications. The plant species were Buffalograss 609 and Big Muhly, both commonly found in Texas. The results of this study showed a significant improvement in nutrient removal with the presence of these plants in the filter. The columns without plants were found to export substantial amounts of nitrate/nitrite, whereas the columns with the plants demonstrated a substantial removal of nutrients (59–79% of the total nitrogen and 77–94% of the total phosphorus).