Numerical Simulation of the Flow Field and Concentration Distribution in the Bulk Growth of Silicon Carbide Crystals

The physical vapor transport (PVT) method is being widely used to grow large-size single SiC crystals. The growth process is associated with heat and mass transport in the growth chamber, chemical reactions among multiple species as well as phase change at the crystal/gas interface. The current paper aims at studying and verifying the transport mechanism and growth kinetics model by demonstrating the flow field and species concentration distribution in the growth system. We have developed a coupled model, which takes into account the mass transport and growth kinetics. Numerical simulation is carried out by employing an in-house developed software based on finite volume method. The results calculated are in good agreement with the experimental observation.

Quantifying Cell Binding Kinetics Mediated By Surface-Bound Blood Type B Antigen To Immobilized Antibodies

Cell adhesion is crucial to many biological processes, such as inflammatory responses, tumor metastasis and thrombosis formation. Recently a commercial surface plasmon resonance (SPR)-based BIAcore biosensor has been extended to determine cell binding mediated by surface-bound biomolecular interactions. How such cell binding is quantitatively governed by kinetic rates and regulating factors, however, has been poorly understood. Here we developed a novel assay to determine the binding kinetics of surface-bound biomolecular interactions using a commercial BIAcore 3000 biosensor. Human red blood cells (RBCs) presenting blood group B antigen and CM5 chip bearing immobilized anti-B monoclonal antibody (mAb) were used to obtain the time courses of response unit, or sensorgrams, when flowing RBCs over the chip surface. A cellular kinetic model was proposed to correlate the sensorgrams with kinetic rates. Impacts of regulating factors, such as cell concentration, flow duration and rate, antibody-presenting level, as well as pH value and osmotic pressure of suspending medium were tested systematically, which imparted the confidence that the approach can be applied to kinetic measurements of cell adhesion mediated by surface-bound biomolecular interactions. These results provided a new insight into quantifying cell binding using a commercial SPR-based BIAcore biosensor.

Measuring Binding Kinetics Of Surface-Bound Molecules Using The Surface Plasmon Resonance Technique

Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) technology and the Biacore biosensor have been widely used to measure the kinetics of biomolecular interactions in the fluid phase. In the past decade, the assay was further extended to measure reaction kinetics when two counterpart molecules are anchored on apposed surfaces. However, the cell binding kinetics has not been well quantified. Here we report development of a cellular kinetic model, combined with experimental procedures for cell binding kinetic measurements, to predict kinetic rates per cell. Human red blood cells coated with bovine serum albumin and anti-BSA monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) immobilized on the chip were used to conduct the measurements. Sensor-grams for BSA-coated RBC binding onto and debinding from the anti-BSA mAb-immobilized chip were obtained using a commercial Biacore 3000 biosensor, and analyzed with the cellular kinetic model developed. Not only did the model fit the data well, but it also predicted cellular on and off-rates as well as binding affinities from curve fitting. The dependence of flow duration, flow rate, and site density of BSA on binding kinetics was tested systematically, which further validated the feasibility and reliability of the new approach. Crown copyright (c) 2008 Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Semi-gas kinetics model for performance modeling of flowing chemical oxygen-iodine lasers (COIL)

A semi-gas kinetics (SGK) model for performance analyses of flowing chemical oxygen-iodine laser (COIL) is presented. In this model, the oxygen-iodine reaction gas flow is treated as a continuous medium, and the effect of thermal motions of particles of different laser energy levels on the performances of the COIL is included and the velocity distribution function equations are solved by using the double-parameter perturbational method. For a premixed flow, effects of different chemical reaction systems, different gain saturation models and temperature, pressure, yield of excited oxygen, iodine concentration and frequency-shift on the performances of the COIL are computed, and the calculated output power agrees well with the experimental data. The results indicate that the power extraction of the SGK model considering 21 reactions is close to those when only the reversible pumping reaction is considered, while different gain saturation models and adjustable parameters greatly affect the output power, the optimal threshold gain range, and the length of power extraction.

Study on flow characteristics of solid/liquid system in lysozyme crystal growth

During the process of lysozyme protein crystallization with batch method, the macroscopic flow field of solid/liquid system was observed by particle image velocimetry (PIV). Furthermore, a normal growth rate of (110) face and local flow field around a single protein crystal were obtained by a long work distance microscope. The experimental results showed that the average velocity, the maximal velocity of macroscopic solid/liquid system and the velocity of local flow field around single protein crystal were fluctuant. The effective boundary layer thickness delta(eff), the concentration at the interface Q and the characteristic velocity V were calculated using a convection-diffusion model. The results showed that the growth of lysozyme crystal in this experiment was dominated by interfacial kinetics rather than bulk transport, and the function of buoyancy-driven flow in bulk transport was small, however, the effect of bulk transport in crystal growth had a tendency to increase with the increase of lysozyme concentration. The calculated results, also showed that the order of magnitude of shear force was about 10(-21) N, which was much less than the bond force between the lysozyme molecules. Therefore the shear force induced by buoyancy-driven flows cannot remove the protein molecules from the interface of crystal.

Impact of carrier stiffness and microtopology on two-dimensional kinetics of P-selectin and P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1 (PSGL-1) interactions

Mechanics and surface microtopology of the molecular carrier influence cell adhesion, but the mechanisms underlying these effects are not well understood. We used a micropipette adhesion frequency assay to quantify how the carrier stiffness and microtopology affected two-dimensional kinetics of interacting adhesion molecules on two apposing surfaces. Interactions of P-selectin with P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1 (PSGL-1) were used to demonstrate such effects by presenting the molecules on three carrier systems: human red blood cells (RBCs), human promyelocytic leukemia HL-60 cells, and polystyrene beads. Stiffening the carrier alone or in cooperation with roughing the surface lowered the two-dimensional affinity of interacting molecules by reducing the forward rate but not the reverse rate, whereas softening the carrier and roughing the surface had opposing effects in affecting two-dimensional kinetics. In contrast, the soluble antibody bound with similar three-dimensional affinity to surface-anchored P-selectin or PSGL-1 constructs regardless of carrier stiffness and microtopology. These results demonstrate that the carrier stiffness and microtopology of a receptor influences its rate of encountering and binding a surface ligand but does not subsequently affect the stability of binding. This provides new insights into understanding the rolling and tethering mechanism of leukocytes onto endothelium in both physiological and pathological processes.

Numerical Simulation of the Flow Field and Concentration Distribution in the Bulk Growth of Silicon Carbide Crystals

The physical vapor transport (PVT) method is being widely used to grow large-size single SiC crystals. The growth process is associated with heat and mass transport in the growth chamber, chemical reactions among multiple species as well as phase change at the crystal/gas interface. The current paper aims at studying and verifying the transport mechanism and growth kinetics model by demonstrating the flow field and species concentration distribution in the growth system. We have developed a coupled model, which takes into account the mass transport and growth kinetics. Numerical simulation is carried out by employing an in-house developed software based on finite volume method. The results calculated are in good agreement with the experimental observation.

The dependence of GexSi1-x epitaxial growth on GeH4 flow using chemical vapour deposition

GexSi1-x epilayers were grown at 700-900 degrees C by atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition. GexSi1-x, Si and Ge growth rates as functions of GeH4 flow are considered separately to investigate how the growth of the epilayers is enhanced. Arrhenius plots of Si and Ge incorporation in the GexSi1-x growth show the activation energies associated with the growth rates are about 1.2 eV for silicon and 0.4 eV for germanium, indicating that Si growth is limited by surface kinetics and Ge growth is limited by mass transport. A model based on this idea is proposed and used to simulate the growth of GexSi1-x. The calculation and experiment are in good agreement. Growth rate and film composition increase monotonically with growth pressure; both observations are explained by the model.

Influence of shear on polypropylene crystallization kinetics

Isothermal crystallization kinetics under shear in the melt of iPP was investigated by optical microscopy. It appears that shearing from 200 to the crystallization temperatures enhanced the kinetics, but the shear effect was not obvious if the melt of iPP was sheared only at 200. The experiment results show that relaxation plays an important role during crystallization, and that spherulite growth rates increased with shear rates and were governed by relaxation. The effect of flow on the crystallization kinetics can be understood by considering that the increase of the degree of order due to flow results is an effective change of the melt free energy. The Laurizen-Hoffman theory and the DE-IAA model were used to describe the shear-induced crystallization kinetics of iPP excellently.

Crystallization kinetics in shearing-induced oriented and stretched poly(ethylene oxide)

Isothermal crystallization kinetics in the melting of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) were investigated as a function of the shear rate and crystallization temperature by optical microscopy. The radial growth rates of the spherulites are described by a kinetics equation including shearing and relaxation combined effects and the free energy for the formation of a secondary crystal nucleus. The free-energy difference between the liquid and crystalline phases increased slightly with rising shearing rates. The experimental findings showed that the influence of the relaxation of PEO, which is related to the shear-induced orientation and stretch in a PEO melt, on the rate of crystallization predominated over the influence of the shearing. This indicated that the relaxation of PEO should be more important so that the growth rates increase with shearing, but it was nearly independent of the shear rate within the measured experimental range.

Kinetics and mechanism of Yb(III) extraction and separation from Y(III) with mixtures of bis(2,4,4-trimethylpentyl)phosphinic acid and 2-ethylhexyl phosphonic acid mono-2-ethylhexyl ester

The ytterbium(III) extraction kinetics and mechanism with mixtures of bis(2,4,4-trimethylpentyl)phosphinic acid (Cyanex272) and 2-ethylhexyl phosphonic acid mono-2-ethylhexyl ester (P507) dissolved in heptane have been investigated by constant interfacial cell with laminar flow. The effects of the stirring rate, temperature, extractant concentration, and pH on the extraction with mixtures of Cyanex272 and P507 have been studied. The results are compared with those of the system with Cyanex272 or P507 alone. It is concluded that the Yb(III) extraction rate is enhanced with mixtures extractant of Cyanex272 and P507 according to their values of the extraction rate constant, which is due to decreasing the activation energy of the mixtures. At the same time, the mixtures exhibits no synergistic effects for Y(III), which provides better possibilities for Yb(III) and Y(III) separations at a proper conditions than anyone alone. Moreover, thermodynamic extraction separation Yb(III) and Y(III) by the mixtures has been discussed, which agrees with kinetics results. Extraction rate equations have also been obtained, and through the approximate solutions of the flux equation, diffusion parameters and thickness of the diffusion film have been calculated.

Interfacial activity of sec-nonylphenoxy acetic acid and kinetics of yttrium extraction

The interfacial behavior of sec-nonylphenoxy acetic acid (CA-100) at various diluents/(H, Na)Cl interfaces was examined using the Du Nouy ring method. Different adsorption isotherms such as the Gibbs and Szyszkowski were in good agreement with the experimental data. The values of interfacial excess at saturated interface increase in the following order: n-heptane > kerosene > cyclohexane > CCl4 > toluene > benzene > chloroform. The effects of temperature, acidity, and ionic strength of the aqueous phase on the interfacial activity of CA- 100 were also examined. The interfacial-activity data were used to discuss the mechanism and kinetics of yttrium (Y) extraction.

Mass-transfer kinetics of ytterbium extraction with sec-nonylphenoxy acetic acid

The extraction kinetics of ytterbium with sec-nonylphenoxy acetic acid (CA-100) in heptane have been investigated using a constant interfacial area cell with laminar flow. The influence of stirring speed and temperature on the rate indicated that the extraction rate was controlled by the experiment conditions. The plot of interfacial area on the rate showed a linear relationship. This fact together with the low solubility in water and strong surface activity of CA-100 at heptane-water interfaces made the interface the most probable locale for the chemical reactions. The influences of extractant concentration and hydrogen ion concentration on the extraction rate were investigated, and the forward and reverse rate equations for the ytterbium extraction with CA-100 were also obtained. Based on the experimental data, the apparent forward extraction rate constant was calculated. Interfacial reaction models were proposed that agree well with the rate equations obtained from experimental data.

Extraction kinetics of rare earth elements with sec-octylphenoxy acetic acid

The kinetics of RE (La, Gd, Er, Yb and Y) extraction with sec-octylphenoxy acetic acid was investigated using a constant interfacial area cell with laminar flow at 303 K. The natures of the extracted complexes have some effect on the extraction rate which is controlled by the reaction rate of M(III) and extractant molecules at two-phase interface for Er(III), Yb(III) and Y(III), by a mixed chemical reaction-diffusion for Gd(III) and a diffusion for La( III). The extractant molecules tend to adsorb at the interface. So an interfacial extraction reaction model was derived.

Kinetics of cerium(IV) extraction from H2SO4-HF medium with Cyanex 923

Studies of the extraction kinetics of cerium(IV) from H2SO4-HF solutions with Cyanex 923 in n-heptane have been carried out using a constant interfacial area cell with laminar flow. The experimental hydrodynamic conditions were chosen so that the contribution of diffusion to the measured rate of reaction was minimized. The data were analyzed in terms of pseudo-first order constants. The results were compared with those of the system without HF. It was concluded that the addition of HF reduces the activation energy for the forward rate from 46.2 to 36.5 U mol(-1) while it has an opposite effect on the activation energy for the reverse process(the activation energy increased from 23.3 to 90.8 U mol(-1)). Thus, HF can accelerate the rate of cerium(IV) extraction. At the same time, the extraction rate is controlled by a mixed chemical reaction-diffusion rather than by a chemical reaction alone. A rate equation has also been obtained.