Effect of investments on fundamentals and market reaction on pre-operational and operational Brazilian companies for the period 2006-2012

ABSTRACT This paper provides evidence on the market reaction to corporate investment decisions whose shareholder value is largely attributed to growth options. The exploratory research raised pre-operational companies and their operational pairs on the same economy segments. It had the purpose of investigating the existence of statistical differentiation from financial indicators that reflect the installed assets and growth assets, and then study the market reaction to changes in fixed assets as a signaling element about investment decisions. The formation process of operational assets and shareholder value almost exclusively dependent on asset growth stands out in the pre-operational companies. As a result, differentiation tests confirmed that the pre-operational companies had their value especially derived on growth options. The market reaction was particularly bigger in pre-operational companies with abnormal negative stock returns, while the operational companies had positive returns, which may indicate that the quality of the investment is judged based on the financial disclosure. Additionally, operational companies' investors await the disclosure to adjust their prices. We conclude that the results are consistent with the empirical evidence and the participants in financial markets to long-term capital formation investments should give that special attention.

Fundamentals of beer and hop chemistry

Beer brewing is an intricate process encompassing mixing and further elaboration of four essential raw materials, including barley malt, brewing water, hops and yeast. Particularly hops determine to a great extent typical beer qualities such as bitter taste, hoppy flavour, and foam stability. Conversely, hop-derived bitter acids account for an offending lightstruck flavour, which is formed on exposure of beer to light. These various processes are presented in detail, while due emphasis is placed on state-of-the-art hop technology, which provides brewers with efficient means to control bitterness, foam, and light-stability thereby allowing for the production of beers with consistent quality.

Fundamentals and applications of spectroscopic ellipsometry

This paper describes the use of ellipsometry as a precise and accurate technique for characterizing substrates and overlayers. A brief historical development of ellipsometry and the basic principles necessary to understand how an ellipsometer works are presented. There are many examples of studies performed in addressing materials science issues, and several are presented here: measurements of thickness, optical properties, and modeling of surface roughness. These selected results obtained in our laboratory for substrates, Si/SiO2 interfaces, and polymers provide evidence that ellipsometry can play a critical role in characterizing different types of materials.

Electrocatalysis and electrocatalysts for low temperature fuel cells: fundamentals, state of the art, research and development

This article deals with electrocatalysis and electrocatalysts for low temperature fuel cells and also with established means and methods in electrocatalyst research, development and characterization. The intention is to inform about the fundamentals, state of the art, research and development of noble metal electrocatalysts for fuel cells operating at low temperatures.

Long term evaluation of etiological treatment of Chagas disease with benznidazole

The aim of this article is to present an investigation of cure rate, after long follow up, of specific chemotherapy with benznidazole in patients with both acute and chronic Chagas disease, applying quantitative conventional serological tests as the base of the criterion of cure. Twenty one patients with the acute form and 113 with one or other of the various chronic clinical forms of the disease were evaluated, after a follow up period of 13 to 21 years, for the acute, and 6 to 18 years, for the chronic patients. The duration of the acute as well as the chronic disease, a condition which influences the results of the treatment, was determined. The therapeutic schedule was presented, with emphasis on the correlation between adverse reactions and the total dose of 18 grams, approximately, as well as taking into consideration precautions to assure the safety of the treatment. Quantitative serological reactions consisting of complement fixation, indirect immunofluorescence, indirect hemagglutination, and, occasionally, ELISA, were used. Cure was found in 76 per cent of the acute patients but only in 8 per cent of those with chronic forms of the disease. In the light of such contrasting results, fundamentals of the etiological therapy of Chagas disease were discussed, like the criterion of cure, the pathogenesis and the role of immunosuppression showing tissue parasitism in long standing chronic disease, in support of the concept that post-therapeutic consistently positive serological reactions mean the presence of the parasite in the patient's tissues. In relation to the life-cycle of T. cruzi in vertebrate host, there are still some obscure and controversial points, though there is no proof of the existence of resistant or latent forms. However, the finding over the last 15 years, that immunosuppression brings about the reappearance of acute disease in long stand chronic patients justifies a revision of the matter. Facts were quoted in favor of the treatment of chronic patients.

Recomendações para calibração em química analítica: parte I. Fundamentos e calibração com um componente (calibração univariada)

This paper is a translation from IUPAC nomenclature document by K. Danzer and L. A. Currie (Pure Appl. Chem., 1998, 70(4), 993-1014). Its goal is to establish an uniform and meaningful approach to terminology (in Portuguese), notation, and formulation for calibation in analytical chemistry. In this first part, general fundamentals of calibration are presented, namely for both relationships of qualitative and quantitative variables (relations between variables characterizing certain types analytes of the measured function on the other hand and between variables characterizing the amount or concentration of the chemical species and the intensities of the measured signals, on the other hand). On this basis, the fundamentals of the common single component calibration (Univariate Calibration) which models the relationship y = f(x) between the signal intensities y and the amounts or concentrations x of the analyte under given conditions are represented. Additional papers will be prepared dealing with extensive relationships between several intensities and analyte contents, namely with multivariate calibrations and with optimization and experimental design.

Electrochemistry and green chemical processes: electrochemical ozone production

After an introductory discussion emphasising the importance of electrochemistry for the so-called Green Chemical Processes, the article presents a short discussion of the classical ozone generation technologies. Next a revision of the electrochemical ozone production technology focusing on such aspects as: fundamentals, latest advances, advantages and limitations of this technology is presented. Recent results about fundamentals of electrochemical ozone production obtained in our laboratory, using different electrode materials (e.g. boron doped diamond electrodes, lead dioxide and DSAÒ-based electrodes) also are presented. Different chemical processes of interest to the solution of environmental problems involving ozone are discussed.

Um experimento de análise em fluxo envolvendo reações enzimáticas e quimiluminescência

An experiment is proposed to introduce some fundamentals of flow analysis, chemiluminescence and kinetic monitoring of enzymatic reactions in undergraduate courses. Chemiluminescence detection is performed with a simple spectrophotometer equipped with a lab-made spiral flow cell constructed from a polyethylene tube. The hydrogen peroxide produced by the glucose oxidation in the presence of glucose oxidase is continuously monitored by the reaction with luminol in alkaline media in a flow injection system. The exercise allows also the discussion of important analytical features and the comparison with different optical methods of analysis.

Métodos imunoquímicos para análise de contaminantes ambientais: conceitos, estado da arte e perspectivas

Immunoassay techniques provide simple, powerful and inexpensive methods for analysis of environmental contaminants. However, the acceptance of immunoassays is dependent on the clear demonstration of quality and validity compared to more traditional techniques. In this review, primarily, the understanding and the fundamentals of immunoassay methods are given in order to make good use of immunoassays, especially of EIA tests. Special attention is given to the concepts related to the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) formats, such as inhibition concentration at 50% (IC50), detection limit (LOD), cross-reactivity (CR %). It is also explained why some immunoassays are quantitative methods whereas others can only be used as screening methods. A list of main commercial kits for detection of priority pollutants is given in order to help analysts. Others formats, such as flow-injection immunoassay analysis (FIIA), immunoassay chromatography and immunosensors are also cited.

A destilação simulada na indústria do petróleo

One of the most widely used physico-chemical characterizations of hydrocarbon mixtures is the determination of their boiling point distribution. Knowledge of the boiling range of crude oils and petroleum products is essential to ensure the correct specification of final products and to control refinery processes. Simulated distillation, a GC based process, has been playing this role for the past decades in the petroleum industry. The main purpose of this work is to show the fundamentals of this technique as well as its present trends.

Química combinatória de materiais com análise por microdifração de raios X. Primeira parte: fundamentos

Combinatorial chemistry refers to techniques to rapidly fabricate tens, hundreds or even thousands of different micro samples. The analysis of the large number of samples generated by combinatorial methods requires highly efficient analytical methods. In this case, the challenges are due not only to the large number of samples to be analyzed, but also to the small amount of sample available for analysis. This paper describes the fundamentals of combinatorial chemical methods applied to discover of materials and the development in x-ray diffraction to analyze micro samples.

Trends and strategies of ozone application in environmental problems

Efforts presented by the scientific community in recent years towards the development of numerous green chemical processes and wastewater treatment technologies are presented and discussed. In the light of these approaches, environmentally friendly technologies, as well as the key role played by the well-known advanced oxidation processes, are discussed, giving special attention to the ones comprising ozone applications. Fundamentals and applied aspects dealing with ozone technology and its application are also presented.

A pirólise como técnica analítica

In this paper historical aspects of analytical pyrolysis, the equipment used, the fundamentals and the mechanisms of pyrolysis of different polymeric materials are discussed. The latest work on analytical pyrolysis applied to various types of synthetic and natural samples is reviewed. Current applications of this technique that are discussed include identification of microorganisms, analysis of trace compounds by forensic laboratories, investigation of food and agricultural products, study of the chemical composition of wood, authentication and conservation of artworks, and the study of environmental and geochemical samples.

Investigando cinza da casca do arroz como fase estacionária em cromatografia: uma proposta de aula experimental nos cursos de graduação

This article describes an experiment that involves the extraction and separation of the pigments of spinach extract by column chromatography using the silica obtained from rice husk ash as a stationary phase. The experimental procedure is very simple to apply in the chemistry laboratory, and allowed to illustrate some concepts of organic chemistry: structure of organic molecules, solubility, polarity, extraction, partition coefficient, adsorption and retention factor (Rf), as well as objectives and fundamentals of chromatographic methods. The experiment can be carried out in a 4 h period.