Thermodynamic and kinetic modelling hydrogenation of titanium particles and sheets

Use of hydrogen as a temporary alloying element in Ti alloys is an attractive approach to improve the mechanical properties of the materials, enhance processability and thereby reduce manufacturing costs. In this paper, the hydrogen diffusion process and the phase transformation both between Ti particles and in Ti sheets were simulated to analyze the mechanism of hydrogen diffusion in different phases (α-Ti, β-Ti and TiHx). With the simulation based on the kinetics and thermodynamics, quantitative behaviors of the hydrogen diffusion and the phase transformation were analyzed. The simulation results provide an insight into the diffusion process and improve the fundamental understanding of the mechanism of diffusion and phase transformation.

Dielectrophoresis of micro/nano particles using curved microelectrodes

Dielectrophoresis, the induced motion of polarisable particles in non-homogenous electric field, has been proven as a versatile mechanism to transport, immobilise, sort and characterise micro/nano scale particle in microfluidic platforms. The performance of dielectrophoretic (DEP) systems depend on two parameters: the configuration of microelectrodes designed to produce the DEP force and the operating strategies devised to employ this force in such processes. This work summarises the unique features of curved microelectrodes for the DEP manipulation of target particles in microfluidic systems. The curved microelectrodes demonstrate exceptional capabilities including (i) creating strong electric fields over a large portion of their structure, (ii) minimising electro-thermal vortices and undesired disturbances at their tips, (iii) covering the entire width of the microchannel influencing all passing particles, and (iv) providing a large trapping area at their entrance region, as evidenced by extensive numerical and experimental analyses. These microelectrodes have been successfully applied for a variety of engineering and biomedical applications including (i) sorting and trapping model polystyrene particles based on their dimensions, (ii) patterning carbon nanotubes to trap low-conductive particles, (iii) sorting live and dead cells based on their dielectric properties, (iv) real-time analysis of drug-induced cell death, and (v) interfacing tumour cells with environmental scanning electron microscopy to study their morphological properties. The DEP systems based on curved microelectrodes have a great potential to be integrated with the future lab-on-a-chip systems.

The effect of particles on twins and magnesium

This dataset includes orientation from xray diffraction, electron diffraction, and microstructural characterisation. Some transmission electronmicroscopy is also included.

DNA found in human immunodeficiency virus type 1 particles may not be required for infectivity

We have studied the presence and significance of retroviral genome-derived DNA in the core of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) particles produced from transfections of HXB2 expression vectors in COS-7 cells and from HIV type 1 IIIB chronically infected H9 cells. Viruses purified by sucrose cushion centrifugation and treated with DNase I contained 1000-fold more viral RNA than DNA. However protease-defective viruses that contained only pl60 ga~p°z had less than 100 times the amount of DNA in their cores than wild-type viruses suggesting that the p66/p51 form of reverse transcriptase was responsible for DNA transcription. Viruses produced by transfections in the presence of 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine (AZT) contained the viral RNA genome but only DNA of premature length because of the chain terminating effects of AZT. However such viruses were as infectious for CD4 + cells as wild-type virus. We conclude that retrovirus-derived DNA in HIV-1 particles is not required for infection and does not play a significant role in this process.

Role of Pr160gag-pol in mediating the selective incorporation of tRNA(Lys) into human immunodeficiency virus type 1 particles

COS-7 cells transfected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) proviral DNA produce virus in which three tRNA species are most abundant in the viral tRNA population. These tRNAs have been identified through RNA sequencing techniques as tRNA(3Lys) the primer tRNA in HIV-1, and members of the tRNA(1,2Lys) isoacceptor family. These RNAs represent 60% of the low-molecular-weight RNA isolated from virus particles, while they represent only 6% of the low-molecular-weight RNA isolated from the COS cell cytoplasm. Thus, tRNA(Lys) is selectively incorporated into HIV-1 particles. We have measured the ratio of tRNA(3Lys) molecules to copies of genomic RNA in viral RNA samples and have calculated that HIV-1 contains approximately eight molecules of tRNA(3Lys) per two copies of genomic RNA. We have also obtained evidence that the Pr160gag-pol precursor is involved in primer tRNA(3Lys) incorporation into virus. First, selective tRNA(Lys) incorporation and wild-type amounts of tRNA(3Lys) were maintained in a protease-negative virus unable to process Pr55gag and Pr160gag-pol precursors, indicating that precursor processing was not required for primer tRNA incorporation. Second, viral particles containing only unprocessed Pr55gag protein did not selectively incorporate tRNA(Lys), while virions containing both unprocessed Pr55gag and Pr160gag-pol proteins demonstrated select tRNA(3Lys) packaging. Third, studies with a proviral mutant containing a deletion of most of the reverse transcriptase sequences and approximately one-third of the integrase sequence in the Pr160gag-pol precursor resulted in the loss of selective tRNA incorporation and an eightfold decrease in the amount of tRNA(3Lys) per two copies of genomic RNA. We have also confirmed herein finding of a previous study which indicated that the primer binding site is not required for the selective incorporation of tRNA(Lys).

Performance of columns packed with the new shell particles, Kinetex-C18

The performance of the new Kinetex-C₁₈ column was investigated. Packed with a new brand of porous shell particles, this column has an outstanding efficiency. Once corrected for the contribution of the instrument extra column volume, the minimum values of the reduced plate heights for a number of low molecular weight compounds (e.g., anthracene and naphtho[2,3-a]pyrene) were between 1.0 and 1.3, breaking the legendary record set 3 years ago by Halo-C₁₈ packed columns. The liquid-solid mass transfer of proteins (e.g., insulin and lyzozyme) is exceptionally fast on Kinetex-C₁₈ much faster than on the Halo-C₁₈ column. The different contributions of dispersion and mass transfer resistances to the column efficiency were determined and discussed. The possible reasons for this extremely high column efficiency are discussed.

Structure and biodegradation mechanism of milled Bombyx mori silk particles

The aim of this study was to understand the structure and biodegradation relationships of silk particles intended for targeted biomedical applications. Such a study is also useful in understanding structural remodelling of silk debris that may be generated from silk-based implants. Ultrafine silk particles were prepared using a combination of efficient wet-milling and spray-drying processes with no addition of chemicals other than those used in degumming. Milling reduced the intermolecular stacking forces within the β-sheet crystallites without changing the intramolecular binding energy. Because of the rough morphology and the ultrafine size of the particles, degradation of silk particles by protease XIV was increased by about 3-fold compared to silk fibers. Upon biodegradation, the thermal degradation temperature of silk increased, which was attributed to the formation of tight aggregates by the hydrolyzed residual macromolecules. A model of the biodegradation mechanism of silk particles was developed based on the experimental data. The model explains the process of disintegration of β-sheets, supported by quantitative secondary structural analysis and microscopic images. © 2012 American Chemical Society.

Investigation on localized surface plasmon resonance of different nano-particles for bio-sensor applications

This paper proposes a novel sinusoidal shape nano-particle employed in localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) devices. Numerical modeling demonstrates advantages offered by the proposed nano-sinusoid on LSPR enhancement against other nano-particles including noble nano-triangles and nano-diamonds. Although nano-triangles exhibit high concentration of the electric field near their tips, when illuminated with a light polarized along the tip axis, they present only one hot spot at the vertex along the polarization direction. To create a structure with two hot spots, which is desired in bio-sensing applications, two nano-triangles can be put back-to-back. Therefore, a nano-diamond particle is obtained which exhibits two hot spots and presents higher enhancements than nano-triangles for the same resonant wavelength. The main drawback of the nano-diamonds is the fluctuation in their physical size-plasmon spectrum relationships, due to a high level of singularity as the result for their four sharp tip points. The proposed nano-sinusoid overcomes this disadvantage while maintaining the benefits of having two hot spots and high enhancements.

Computational simulation of the influence of inert particles on incomplete combustion of methane at a low air factor

It is well known that the gas–solid system plays a significant role in many industrial processes. It is a complex physical and chemical process, generally consisting of heat transfer, mass transfer, species diffusion, and chemical reactions. In this paper, the reaction of methane with air at a low air factor and the gas flow in a fluidized bed with 0.1 mm solid particles are computationally simulated to enable the study of the effect of the inert particles on the species diffusion and the chemical reactions. The reaction of methane and air is modeled by a two-step reaction mechanism that produces a continuous fluid phase composed of six gases (CH₄, CO, O₂, CO₂, H₂O, and N₂) and discrete solid particles in the reactor. The simulation results are compared with experiment and show that the finite rate model and the eddy dissipation model can well describe the reactions of gases in high-density gas–solid systems. The distribution of each gas and the particle behaviors are analyzed for incomplete combustion at different concentrations of loaded solid particles. The inert particles change the reactions by enhancing both the chemical kinetics and the species diffusion dynamics.

Nanostructured liquid crystalline particles as an alternative delivery vehicle for plant agrochemicals

Agrochemical spray formulations applied to plants are often mixed with surfactants that facilitate delivery of the active ingredient. However, surfactants cause phytotoxicity and off-target effects in the environment. We propose the use of nanostructured liquid crystalline particles (NLCP) as an alternative to surfactant-based agrochemical delivery. For this, we have compared the application of commercial surfactants, di (2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate and alkyl dimethyl betaine, with NLCP made from phytantriol, at concentrations of 0.1%, 1% and 5% on the adaxial surface of leaves of four plant species Ttriticum aestivum (wheat), Zea mays (maize), Lupinus angustifolius (lupin), and Arabidopsis thaliana. In comparison with the application of surfactants there was less phytotoxicity on leaves of each species following treatment with NLCP. Following treatment of leaves with NLCP analysis of cuticular wax micromorphology revealed less wax solubilization in the monocot species. The results clearly show that there are advantages in the use of NLCP rather than surfactants for agrochemical delivery.