Order and disorder in fiction labyrinths: the librarians` representations in some contemporary cultural productions

This paper, first result of a larger research, proposes a query about some aspects of social representation of libraries and librarians, as they appear in literary and cinematographic productions. Little by little, this query, which arose from purposes of organizing catalogues, revealed elements that established different series, in which the narrative genre (literary or cinematographic) has no relevance to either libraries or librarians` representations. The presence of these elements seems to show some expectations and utopias in relation to the common knowledge, independently from narratives being located in the past, in the present or in the future, stimulating reflection on some medieval and baroque traditions about the library universe and its main characters, the librarians. The cinematographic material selected for research was The time machine, Farenheit 451, The day after tomorrow, Star Wars - episode II and the novels Martin Eden, The man without qualities, The time machine and La sombra del viento.

Control and chaos for vibro-impact and non-ideal oscillators

In the paper, we discuss dynamics of two kinds of mechanical systems. Initially, we consider vibro-impact systems which have many implementations in applied mechanics, ranging from drilling machinery and metal cutting processes to gear boxes. Moreover, from the point of view of dynamical systems, vibro-impact systems exhibit a rich variety of phenomena, particularly chaotic motion. In this paper, we review recent works on the dynamics of vibro-impact systems, focusing on chaotic motion and its control. The considered systems are a gear-rattling model and a smart damper to suppress chaotic motion. Furthermore, we investigate systems with non-ideal energy source, represented by a limited power supply. As an example of a non-ideal system, we analyse chaotic dynamics of the damped Duffing oscillator coupled to a rotor. Then, we show how to use a tuned liquid damper to control the attractors of this non-ideal oscillator.

Influence of light guide tip used in the photo-activation on degree of conversion and hardness of one nanofilled dental composite

The aim of this study was to evaluate the degree of conversion and hardness of a dental composite resin Filtek (TM) Z-350 (3M ESPE, Dental Products St. Paul, MN) photo-activated for 20 s of irradiation time with two different light guide tips, metal and polymer, coupled on blue LED Ultraled LCU (Dabi Atlante, SP, Brazil). With the metal light tip, power density was of 352 and with the polymer was of 456 mW/cm(2), respectively. Five samples (4 mm in diameter and 2mm in thickness-ISO 4049), were made for each Group evaluated. The measurements for DC (%) were made in a Nexus-470 FT-IR, Thermo Nicolet, E.U.A. Spectroscopy (FTIR). Spectra for both uncured and cured samples were analyzed using an accessory of reflectance diffuse. The measurements were recorded in absorbance operating under the following conditions: 32 scans, 4 cm(-1) resolution, 300-4000 cm(-1) wavelength. The percentage of unreacted carbon double bonds (% C=C) was determined from the ratio of absorbance intensities of aliphatic C=C (peak at 1637 cm(-1)) against internal standard before and after curing of the sample: aromatic C-C (peak at 1610 cm(-1)). The Vickers hardness measurements (top and bottom surfaces) were performed in a universal testing machine (Buehler MMT-3 digital microhardness tester Lake Bluff, Illinois USA). A 50 gf load was used and the indenter with a dwell time of 30 s. The data were submitted to the test t Student at significance level of 5%. The mean values of degree of conversion for the polymer and metal light guide tip no were statistically different (p = 0.8389). The hardness mean values were no statistically significant different among the light guide tips (p = 0.6244), however, there was difference between top and bottom surfaces (p < 0.001). The results show that so much the polymer light tip as the metal light tip can be used for the photo-activation, probably for the low quality of the light guide tip metal.

Preparation of supported Pt(0) nanoparticles as efficient recyclable catalysts for hydrogenation of alkenes and ketones

A magnetically recoverable Pt(0) catalyst was prepared by in situ H(2) reduction of Pt(2+) species bound to an amino modified silica-coated magnetic nanoparticles. Compared to ordinary silica (maximum uptake Pt 0.03 wt%), the amino-functionalized silica surfaces were loaded with 1.95 wt% of metal. The supported Pt(0) nanoparticles exhibit high catalytic activity in the hydrogenation of alkenes and ketones under solventless mild reaction conditions. Partially hydrogenated products could also be isolated. The magnetic property of the catalyst grants a fast and efficient product isolation compared to traditional methods used in heterogeneous systems that generally make use of time- and solvent-consuming procedures. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Room Temperature, Metal-Free Synthesis of Diaryl Ethers with Use of Diaryliodonium Salts

A fast, high-yielding synthesis of diaryl ethers with use of mild and metal-free conditions has been developed. The scope includes bulky ortho-substituted diaryl ethers, which are difficult to obtain by metal-catalyzed protocols. Halo-substituents, racemization-prone amino acid derivatives, and heteroaromatics are also tolerated. The methodology is expected to be of high utility in the synthesis of complex molecules and in the pharmaceutical industry.

Microstructural, Mechanical and Tribological Characterisation of CVD and PVD Coatings for Metal Cutting Applications

The present thesis focuses on characterisation of microstructure and the resulting mechanical and tribological properties of CVD and PVD coatings used in metal cutting applications. These thin and hard coatings are designed to improve the tribological performance of cutting tools which in metal cutting operations may result in improved cutting performance, lower energy consumption, lower production costs and lower impact on the environment.  In order to increase the understanding of the tribological behaviour of the coating systems a number of friction and wear tests have been performed and evaluated by post-test microscopy and surface analysis. Much of the work has focused on coating cohesive and adhesive strength, surface fatigue resistance, abrasive wear resistance and friction and wear behaviour under sliding contact and metal cutting conditions. The results show that the CVD deposition of accurate crystallographic phases, e.g. α-Al2O3 rather than κ-Al2O3, textures and multilayer structures can increase the wear resistance of Al2O3. However, the characteristics of the interfaces, e.g. topography as well as interfacial porosity, have a strong impact on coating adhesion and consequently on the resulting properties.  Through the deposition of well designed bonding and template layer structures the above problems may be eliminated. Also, the presence of macro-particles in PVD coatings may have a significant impact on the interfacial adhesive strength, increasing the tendency to coating spalling and lowering the surface fatigue resistance, as well as increasing the friction in sliding contacts. Finally, the CVD-Al2O3 coating topography influences the contact conditions in sliding as well as in metal cutting. In summary, the work illuminates the importance of understanding the relationships between deposition process parameters, composition and microstructure, resulting properties and tribological performance of CVD and PVD coatings and how this knowledge can be used to develop the coating materials of tomorrow.

Early and post transition metal complexes as a single of combined components in the ethylene and isoprene polynerization

In this work is reported, in a first step, the effect of different experimental parameters and their relation with polymer properties using the homogeneous binary catalyst system composed by Ni(α-diimine)Cl2 (α-diimine = 1,4-bis(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)- acenaphthenediimine) and {TpMs*}V(Ntbu)Cl2 (TpMs* = hydridobis(3-mesitylpyrazol-1- yl)(5-mesitylpyrazol-1-yl)) activated with MAO. This complexes combination produces, in a single reactor, polyethylene blends with different and controlled properties dependent on the polymerization temperature, solvent and Nickel molar fraction (xNi). In second, the control of linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) production was possible, using a combination of catalyst precursors {TpMs}NiCl (TpMs = hydridotris(3- mesitylpyrazol-1-yl)) and Cp2ZrCl2, activated with MAO/TMA, as Tandem catalytic system. The catalytic activities as well as the polymer properties are dependent on xNi. Polyethylene with different Mw and controlled branches is produced only with ethylene monomer. Last, the application group 3 metals catalysts based, M(allyl)2Cl(MgCl2)2.4THF (M = Nd, La and Y), in isoprene polymerization with different cocatalysts systems and experimental parameters is reported. High yields and polyisoprene with good and controlled properties were produced. The metal center, cocatalysts and the experimental parameters are determinant for the polymers properties and their control. High conversions in cis-1,4- or trans-1,4-polyisoprene were obtained and the polymer microstructure depending of cocatalyst and metal type. Combinations of Y and La precursors were effective systems for the cis/transpolyisoprene blends production, and the control of cis-trans-1,4-microstructures by Yttrium molar fraction (xY) variation was possible.

Study of the innovation management process in the development of a discontinuous product case: Motorola RAZR V3

This study will collaborate by bringing some detailed analysis and findings on a special case study of a discontinuous product development process, trying to answer how the discontinuous product development process takes place and the main factors that influence this process. Additionally, it tried to explore some explanations for the difficulties generally faced by the companies to sustain innovation. The case is about the Motorola cell phone RAZR V3, launched in 2004. RAZR V3 was noted by industry experts as game-changing feat of design and engineering, selling more than 110 million units by end of 2008 and recognized as one of the fastest selling products in the industry. The study uses a single case methodology, which is appropriate given the access to a phenomenon that happened inside corporate dominium and it is not easily accessed for academic studies, besides being a rare case of success in the cellular phone industry. In order to magnify the understanding of the phenomenon, the exploration was extended to contrast the RAZR development process and the standard product development process in Motorola. Additionally, it was integrated a longitudinal reflection of the company product development evolution until the next breakthrough product hitting the cellular phone industry. The result of the analysis shows that discontinuous products do not fit well traditional product development process (in this case, stage-gate). This result reinforces the results obtained on previous studies of discontinuous product development conducted by other authors. Therefore, it is clear that the dynamics of discontinuous product development are different from the continuous product development, requiring different treatment to succeed. Moreover, this study highlighted the importance of the management influence in all the phases of the process as one of the most important factors, suggesting a key component to be carefully observed in future researches. Some other findings of the study that were considered very important for a discontinuous product development process: have champions (who believe and protect the project) and not only one champion; create a right atmosphere to make flow the creative process; question paradigms to create discontinuous products; simple guiding light to focus the team; company culture that accepts and knows how to deal with risks; and undoubtedly, have a company strategy that understands the different dynamics of continuous and discontinuous product development processes and treat them accordingly.

The influence of the supply chain agents on the new product development's performance: an analysis based on the multi-group moderation

Este estudo buscou verificar a influencia dos agentes da cadeia de suprimentos no desempenho do desenvolvimento de novos produtos quando os agentes são analisados em conjunto. A motivação desta pesquisa veio de estudos que alertaram para a consideração da integração da cadeia de suprimentos como um constructo multidimensional, englobando o envolvimento da manufatura, fornecedores e clientes no desenvolvimento de novos produtos; e devido à falta de informação sobre as influencias individuais destes agentes no desenvolvimento de novos produtos. Sob essas considerações, buscou-se construir um modelo analítico baseado na Teoria do Capital Social e Capacidade Absortiva, construir hipóteses a partir da revisão da literatura e conectar constructos como cooperação, envolvimento do fornecedor no desenvolvimento de novos produtos (DNP), envolvimento do cliente no DNP, envolvimento da manufatura no DNP, antecipação de novas tecnologias, melhoria contínua, desempenho operacional do DNP, desempenho de mercado do NPD e desempenho de negócio do DNP. Para testar as hipóteses foram consideradas três variáveis moderadoras, tais como turbulência ambiental (baixa, média e alta), indústria (eletrônicos, maquinários e equipamentos de transporte) e localização (América, Europa e Ásia). Para testar o modelo foram usados dados do projeto High Performance Manufacturing que contém 339 empresas das indústrias de eletrônicos, maquinários e equipamentos de transporte, localizadas em onze países. As hipóteses foram testadas por meio da Análise Fatorial Confirmatória (AFC) incluindo a moderação muti-grupo para as três variáveis moderadoras mencionadas anteriormente. Os principais resultados apontaram que as hipóteses relacionadas com cooperação foram confirmadas em ambientes de média turbulência, enquanto as hipóteses relacionadas ao desempenho no DNP foram confirmadas em ambientes de baixa turbulência ambiental e em países asiáticos. Adicionalmente, sob as mesmas condições, fornecedores, clientes e manufatura influenciam diferentemente no desempenho de novos produtos. Assim, o envolvimento de fornecedores influencia diretamente no desempenho operacional e indiretamente no desempenho de mercado e de negócio em baixos níveis de turbulência ambiental, na indústria de equipamentos de transporte em países da Americanos e Europeus. De igual forma, o envolvimento do cliente influenciou diretamente no desempenho operacional e indiretamente no desempenho de mercado e do negócio em médio nível de turbulência ambiental, na indústria de maquinários e em países Asiáticos. Fornecedores e clientes não influenciam diretamente no desempenho de mercado e do negócio e não influenciam indiretamente no desempenho operacional. O envolvimento da manufatura não influenciou nenhum tipo de desempenho do desenvolvimento de novos produtos em todos os cenários testados.

The transformation between exploration and exploitation applied to inventors of packaging innovations

While the inventor is often the driver of an invention in the early stages, he/she needs to move between different social networks for knowledge in order to create and capture value. The main objective of this research is to propose a literature-based framework based on innovation network theory and complemented with C-K theory, in order to analyze the invention/innovation process of inventors and the product concepts in a packaging industry context. Empirical input from three case studies of packaging inventions and their inventors is used to elaborate the suggested framework.The article identifies important gaps in the literature of innovation networks. This is addressed through a theoretical framework based on network theories, complemented with C-K theory for the product design level. The strength-of-ties dimension of the theoretical framework suggests, in agreement with the mainstream literature and the cases presented, that weak ties are required to access the knowledge related to exploration networks and strong ties are required to utilize the knowledge in the exploitation network. The transformation network is an intermediate step acting as a bridge where entrepreneurs can find required knowledge. The transformation network is also an intermediate step where entrepreneurs find financing and companies interested in commercializing inventions. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Application of the Minimum Quantity Lubrication (MQL) Technique in the Plunge Cylindrical Grinding Operation

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Influence of light guide tip used in the photo-activation on degree of conversion and hardness of one nanofilled dental composite

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Comparison between freeze and spray drying to obtain powder Rubrivivax gelatinosus biomass

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Metallic powder injection molding using low pressure

The demand by high performance materials that have to support severe service conditions at a reasonable cost has been forcing the powder metallurgy to improve constantly. The most recent and more important innovation in the area is the process of powder injection.Powder injection molding (PIM) is a technology capable of producing a new range of components from powders. This advanced technology overcomes the existent limitations in the forming of products with complex geometry. The process presents countless variations which are used in the industry today. Invariably, it consists of mixing the powders and a thermo-plastic binder, injecting the mass in the mold in the wanted form, debinding, sintering and making optional secondary operations, as for example, machinery.The purpose of this work is to review the metal injection molding techniques and apply the low pressure injection molding process to family of parts using metallic powder with 10 mum particle size. This work also comments the design and construction of a low pressure injection machine and injection molds. (C) 2001 Elsevier B.V. B.V. All rights reserved.

Mixed pseudohalide complexes of copper(II). Crystal and molecular structure of [Cu(N-3)(NCS)(tmen)](n) and of [Cu(N-3)(NCO)(tmen)]2 (tmen = N,N,N ',N '-tetramethylethylenediamine)

The compounds [Cu(N-3)(NSC)(tmen)](n) (1), [Cu(N-3)(NCO)(tmen)](n) (2) and [Cu(N-3)(NCO)(tmen)](2) (3) (tmen = N,N,N',N'-tetramethylethylenediamine) were synthesized and studied by i.r. spectroscopy. Single crystals of compounds (1) and (3) were obtained and characterized by X-ray diffraction. The structure of compound (1) consists of neutral chains of copper(II) ions bridged by a single azido ligand showing the asymmetric end-to-end coordination fashion. Each copper ion is also surrounded by the other three nitrogen atoms: two from one N,N,N',N'-tetramethylethylenediamine and one from a terminal bonded thiocyanate group. Compound (2) decomposes slowly in acetone and the product formed [Cu(N-3)(NCO)(tmen)](2) (3) crystallizes in the monoclinic system (P2(1)). The structure of (3) consists of dimeric units in which the Cu atoms are penta-coordinated and connected by p(1,3) bridging azido and cyanate ligands. In both cases the five coordinated atoms give rise to a slightly distorted square-based pyramid coordination geometry at each copper ion. The thermal behavior of [Cu(N-3)(NSC)(tmen)](n) (1) and [Cu(N-3)(NCO)(tmen)](n) (2) were investigated and the final decomposition products were identified by X-ray powder diagrams.