Linking territorial and coastal planning: the Venezuelan experience

Venezuela is located in central northern South America, with some 4 000 km of coastline and near 700 000 km2 of marine and submarine areas. The Venezuelan coastal zone is characterized by serious problems of land use and utilisation of its natural resources, caused by a generally anarchical spatial occupation and lack of sufficient legal and administrative means for control. In this paper, a synthesis of the Venezuelan approach to attaining a sustainable development of its marine and coastal zones is presented. This means the accomplishment of the social and economic development of the Venezuelan population in general, and specifically the coastal inhabitants, taking into account the legal and administrative patterns that govern land use planning and the utilisation of natural resources, particularly in marine and coastal areas. The paper is organised in three parts: (1) the diagnosis of the current situation; (2) the presentation of a hypothesis based on present trends (trend scenario); and (3) the statement and application of a sound and adequate solution (desirable and possible scenario).

Estimation of wind erosion rates by using Cs-137 tracing technique: A case study in Tariat-Xilin Gol transect, Mongolian Plateau

Wind erosion is one of the major environmental problems in semi-arid and arid regions. Here we established the Tariat-Xilin Gol transect from northwest to southeast across the Mongolian Plateau, and selected seven sampling sites along the transect. We then estimated the soil wind erosion rates by using the Cs-137 tracing technique and examined their spatial dynamics. Our results showed that the Cs-137 inventories of sampling sites ranged from 265.63 +/- 44.91 to 1279.54 +/- 166.53 Bq.m(-2), and the wind erosion rates varied from 64.58 to 419.63 t.km(-2).a(-1) accordingly. In the Mongolia section of the transect (from Tariat to Sainshand), the wind erosion rate increased gradually with vegetation type and climatic regimes; the wind erosion process was controlled by physical factors such as annual precipitation and vegetation coverage, etc., and the impact of human activities was negligible. While in the China section of the transect (Inner Mongolia), the wind erosion rates of Xilin Hot and Zhengxiangbai Banner were thrice as much as those of Bayannur of Mongolia, although these three sites were all dominated by typical steppe. Besides the physical factors, higher population density and livestock carrying level should be responsible for the higher wind erosion rates in these two regions of Inner Mongolia.

Glass formation ability and mechanical properties of Ti40Cu40Zr10Ni10 alloy

Melt-spun ribbon and bulk samples in cylindrical rod form with diameter ranging from 2 mm to 4 mm of Ti40Cu40Zr10Ni10 alloy were prepared by melt-spinning technique and copper mould casting method, respectively. The microstructure, thermal stability and mechanical properties of the bulk samples were investigated. A completely glassy single phase is formed in the 2 mm rod sample. Increasing the diameter of the rod samples resulted in the formation of CuTi crystalline phase in the 3 mm and 4 mm rod samples.

Structure and mechanical properties of extruded Mg-Gd based alloy sheet

The Mg-8Gd-2Y-1Nd-0.3Zn-0.6Zr (wt.%) alloy sheet was prepared by hot extrusion technique, and the structure and mechanical properties of the extruded alloy were investigated. The results show that the alloy in different states is mainly composed of alpha-Mg solid solution and secondary phases of Mg5RE and Mg24RE5 (RE = Gd, Y and Nd). At aging temperatures from 200 degrees C to 300 degrees C the alloy exhibits obvious age-hardening response. Great improvement of mechanical properties is observed in the peak-aged state alloy (aged at 200 degrees C for 60 h), the ultimate tensile strength (sigma(b)), tensile yield strength (sigma(0.2)) and elongation (epsilon) are 376 MPa, 270 MPa and 14.2% at room temperature (RT), and 206 MPa. 153 MPa and 25.4% at 300 degrees C, respectively, the alloy exhibits high thermal stability.

Silver nanoparticles coated with adenine: preparation, self-assembly and application in surface-enhanced Raman scattering

We describe herein the preparation of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using nucleobase adenine as protecting agent through the in situ chemical reduction of AgNO3 with NaBH4 in an aqueous medium at room temperature. As-prepared AgNPs were characterized by UV-visible spectra, transmission electron microscopy and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. All these data confirmed the formation of AgNPs. On the basis of electrostatic interactions between as-prepared AgNPs and anionic polyelectrolyte poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) (PSS), we successfully fabricated (PSS/AgNP)n (n = 0-9) multilayers on a 3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane/AgNP functionalized indium tin oxide (ITO) substrate via the layer-by-layer self-assembly technique and characterized as-formed multilayers with UV-visible spectra. Furthermore, these ITO substrates coated with multilayers of different thickness were investigated as surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS)-active substrates using p-aminothiophenol as a probe molecule, implying that these multilayers substrates may be promising for a new type of SERS-active substrate.

Preparation of DNA - Silver nanohybrids in multilayer nanoreactors by in situ electrochemical reduction, characterization, and application

Novel nanocomposite films containing DNA-silver nanohybrids have been successfully fabricated by combined use of the layer-by-layer self-assembly technique and an in situ electrochemical reduction method with the DNA-Ag+ complex as one of the building blocks. UV-vis absorption spectroscopy was employed to monitor the buildup of the multilayer films, which suggested a progressive deposition with almost an equal amount of the DNA-Ag+ complex in each cycle. The following electrochemical reduction of silver resulted in the formation of metal nanoparticles in the film, which was evidenced by the evolution of the intense plasmon absorption band originating from silver. Scanning electron microscopy indicated that the particles formed in the multilayer films possessed good monodispersity and stability, thanks to the surrounding polymers. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy further confirmed the presence of the main components (such as DNA and metallic silver) of the nanocomposite films. In addition, we show that the size of the metal nanoparticles and the optical property of the film could be readily tuned by manipulating the assembly conditions.

Long lasting phosphorescence in Eu3+ and Ce3+ co-doped strontium borate glasses

Long lasting phosphorescence (LLP) was observed in Eu2+, Ce3+ co-doped strontium borate glasses prepared under the reducing atmosphere due to the emission of both Eu2+ and Ce3+. The methods of photoluminescence, thermoluminescence and phosphorescence were used to study the samples, and possible mechanism was suggested. The co-doping of Ce3+ ions poisoned the phosphorescence emission of Eu2+ because of the competition to obtain the trapped electron. The phosphorescence of Ce3+ in the sample decays more quickly than that of Eu2+, which is suggested for the reason that the emission energy of Ce3+ is higher or the distance between Ce3+ and electron traps of the glasses is longer.

Synthesis and properties of a novel isomeric polyimide/SiO2 hybrid material

A novel isomeric polyimide/SiO2 hybrid material was successfully prepared through sol-gel technique, and its structure, thermal properties and nano-indenter properties were investigated. First, 3-[(4-phenylethynyl)phthalimide]propyl triethoxysilane (PEIPTES) was successfully synthesized, its structure was characterized by elemental analysis, FT-IR and C-13 NMR. The researches on solubility and thermal properties of PEIPTES show that it can be used for modifying nano-SiO2 precursor. Nano-SiO2 precursor was synthesized by tetraethoxysilane (TECS) through sol-gel technique. Then the PEIPTES solution and the nano-SiO2 precursor were mixed for 6 h to let the PEIPTES molecules react with the nano-SiO2 precursor, and modified nano-SiO2 precursor was obtained. The modified reaction was confirmed by the analyses of FT-IR. At last, isomeric polyimide/SiO2 hybrid material was produced by using isomeric polyimide resin solution and the modified nano-SiO2 precursor after heat treatment process. The structure analysis by SEM indicated that SiO2 particles dispersed in isomeric polyimide matrix homogeneously with nanoscale. Thermogravimetric analyzer, dynamic mechanical thermal analyzer and nano-indenter XP was employed to detect the properties of the materials, the results demonstrated that isomeric polyimide/SiO2 hybrid material has much better thermal properties and nano-indenter properties than those of isomeric polyimide.

Didodecyldimethylammonium bromide lipid bilayer-protected gold nanoparticles: Synthesis, characterization, and self-assembly

Didodecyldimethylammonium bromide (DDAB) lipid bilayer-protected gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), which were stable and hydrophilic, were synthesized by in situ reduction of HAuCl4 with NaBH4 in an aqueous medium in the presence of DDAB. As-prepared nanoparticles were characterized by UV-vis spectra, transmission electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering analysis, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. All these data supported the formation of AuNPs. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and differential thermal analysis/thermogravimetric analysis data revealed that DDAB existed in a bilayer structure formed on the particle surface, resulting in a positively charged particle surface. The FTIR spectra also indicated that the DDAB bilayer coated on the surface of AuNPs was probably in the ordered gel phase with some end-gauche defects. On the basis of electrostatic interactions between such AuNPs and anionic polyelectrolyte poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) (PSS), we successfully fabricated (PSS/AuNP)(n) multilayers on a cationic polyelectrolyte poly(ethylenimine) coated indium tin oxide substrate via the layer-by-layer self-assembly technique and characterized as-formed multilayers with UV-vis spectra and atomic force microscopy.

Morphology and structure of nylon-2,14 single crystals from dilute solution

A perfect single crystal of nylon-2,14 was prepared from 0.02% (w/v) 1,4-butanediol solution by a "self-seeding" technique and isothermal crystallization at 120 and 145 degreesC. The morphology and structure features were examined by transmission electron microscopy with both image and diffraction modes, atomic force microscopy, and wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD). The nylon-2,14 single crystal grown from 1,4-butanediol at 145 degreesC inhabited a lathlike shape with a lamellar thickness of about 9 nm. Electron diffraction and WAXD data indicated that nylon-2,14 crystallized in a triclinic system with lattice dimensions a = 0.49 nm, b = 0.51 nm, c = 2.23 nm, alpha = 60.4degrees, beta = 77degrees, and gamma = 59degrees. The crystal structure is different from that of nylon-6,6 but similar to that of other members of nylon-2Y.

Determination of rare and rare earth elements in soils and sediments by ICP-MS using Ti(OH)(4)-Fe(OH)(3) co-precipitation preconcentration

A method was developed for the determination of trace and ultratrace amounts of REE. Cd. In. Tl. Th. Nb, Ta. Zr and Hf in soils and sediments. With NaOH-Na2O2 as the flux. Ti(OH)(4)-Fe(OH)(3) co-precipitation as the preconcentration technique and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) for measurement, the whole procedure was concise and suitable for batch analysis of multi-element solutions. An investigation was carried out of the Ti(OH)(4)-Fe(OH)(3) co-precipitation system, and the results obtained showed that the natural situation of Ti tightly coexisting with Nb. Ta, Zr and Hf in geological samples plays a very important role in the complete co-precipitation of the four elements. The accuracy of this procedure was established using six Chinese soil and sediment certified reference materials (GSS and GSD). and the relative errors between the found and certified values were mostly below 10%.

Construction of CdS nanostructures on DNA template by LB technique

Mixed monolayer films of octadecylamine (ODA) and oligo-DNA were prepared by Langmuir-Blodgett technique and the monolayer films were used as template to direct the formation of different CdS nanostructures. It was found that CdS nanowire was observed when the monolayer film prepared at low surface pressure was used as template, and aggregate of CdS spheres was obtained when the monolayer film deposited at high surface pressure was used as template.

Preparation, structure, and properties of three-dimensional ordered alpha-Fe2O3 nanoparticulate film

alpha-Fe2O3 nanoparticulate films could be formed on the surface of alpha-Fe2O3 hydrosol after aging of the hydrosol or by compressing of the nanoparticles on the sol surface, in. which a three-dimensional ordered structure was constructed by the Langmuir-Blodgett; technique and colloid chemical methods. The structure of the LB film was characterized by AFM, TEM, XPS, and UV-vis spectra and small-angle X-ray diffraction. Gas-sensing measurement shows that the LB film has good sensitivity to alcohols at room temperature,

Preparation of SnO2 thin films with extremely preferred orientation along (101) plane by LB deposition technique

SnO2 thin films with extremely preferred orientation along (101) plane were made by LB technique and characterized by FTIR,, UV-visible, X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and SEM.

Orientation and electrocatalysis of riboflavin adsorbed on carbon substrate surfaces

Based on scanning tunnelling microscopy and electrochemical measurements, orientation and electrocatalytic function of riboflavin adsorbed on carbon substrates have been described for the first time. Scanning tunnelling micrographs show clearly that tip induction may result in an orientation change of the adsorbed riboflavin molecule on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite from the initially vertical orientation to the stable flat form. The adsorbed riboflavin as an effective mediator can accelerate the reduction of dioxygen which accepts two electrons from the reduced riboflavin to generate hydrogen peroxide. The rate constants of the electrocatalytic reaction in various pH solutions were determined using a rotating disc electrode modified with riboflavin. The pH effect and possible catalytic mechanism are discussed in detail.