Synthesis and thermomechanical characterization of polyurethane elastomers extended with α,ω‐alkane diols

A series of polyurethane (PU) elastomers was prepared by the reaction of poly(?‐caprolactone) and 4,4′‐diphenylmethane diisocyanate, which was extended with a series of chain extenders (CEs) having 2–10 methylene units in their structure. The completion of the reaction was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The chemical structures of the synthesized PU samples were characterized with Fourier transform infrared, ¹H‐NMR, and ¹³C‐NMR spectroscopy, and the thermal properties were determined by thermogravimetric analysis, DSC, and dynamic mechanical thermal analysis techniques. The mechanical properties were also studied and are discussed. The thermogravimetric analysis and DSC analysis showed that CE length had a considerable effect on the thermal properties of the prepared samples. The dynamic mechanical thermal analysis and damping peaks were also affected by the number of methylene units in the CE length. The elastomer extended with 1,2‐ethane diol exhibited optimum thermal properties, whereas the elastomer based on 1,10‐decane diol displayed the worst thermal properties. Tensile strength and elongation at break decreased with increasing CE length, whereas hardness showed the opposite trend. The glass‐transition temperature moved toward lower temperatures with increasing CE length. The decrease in the glass‐transition temperature and tensile properties were interpreted in terms of decreasing hard segments and increasing chain flexibility. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

Hero Wavelength Spectral Sampling

We present a spectral rendering technique that offers a compelling set of advantages over existing approaches. The key idea is to propagate energy along paths for a small, constant number of changing wavelengths. The first of these, the hero wavelength, is randomly sampled for each path, and all directional sampling is solely based on it. The additional wavelengths are placed at equal distances from the hero wavelength, so that all path wavelengths together always evenly cover the visible range. A related technique, spectral multiple importance sampling, was already introduced a few years ago. We propose a simplified and optimised version of this approach which is easier to implement, has good performance characteristics, and is actually more powerful than the original method. Our proposed method is also superior to techniques which use a static spectral representation, as it does not suffer from any inherent representation bias. We demonstrate the performance of our method in several application areas that are of critical importance for production work, such as fidelity of colour reproduction, sub‐surface scattering, dispersion and volumetric effects. We also discuss how to couple our proposed approach with several technologies that are important in current production systems, such as photon maps, bidirectional path tracing, environment maps, and participating media.     

On a new class of analytic functions associated with conic domain

The aim of this paper is to generalize the conic domain defined by Kanas and Wisniowska, and define the class of functions which map the open unit disk E onto this generalized conic domain. A brief comparison between these conic domains is the main motivation of this paper. A correction is made in selecting the range interval of order of conic domain.     

Chitosan/CNTs nanocomposite as green carrier material for pesticides controlled release

Chitosan-based nanocomposites containing gamma-treated carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were developed for controlled release of pesticide. The CNTs were irradiated under gamma irradiation in air at different doses. The transmission electron microscopic images of gamma-treated CNTs showed disentanglement of the tubes without distorting their tubular structure which effectively increased the dispersion properties of CNTs in nanocomposites. X-ray diffraction analysis of CNTs showed some structural changes, and an irradiation dose of 150 kGy is the most effective. Azinphos methyl (AZM) was selected as a model drug, and its release was studied using HPLC technique. Controlled release response of CNTs-based nanocomposites opens a new avenue for pesticides applications because it requires less quantity of pesticides. As a result, the side effects of pesticide in our environment are minimized.     

A Study on the FTIR Spectroscopy of Polylactide Doped with Nano-Aluminium Oxide and Nano-Cupric Oxide

Elucidation of the structure of naturally existing or synthesized substances is an important criterion in the study of materials to predict the application of the substance. In this study, polylactide was doped with nano-aluminium oxide and nano-cupric oxide with 1 and 3 mg of concentration variants. The interaction between the polymer matrix and the nanoparticles has been studied using Fourier transform infrared. Successful doping of the polymer has been observed. Attention has been drawn to check the intermolecular bonding in films having varying thicknesses, films prepared at higher sonication temperatures, and chemical homogeneity of the doped polymer films.     

Heterogeneous Reactor Modeling of an Industrial Multitubular Packed‐Bed Ethylene Oxide Reactor

The one‐dimensional heterogeneous model of an industrial multitubular packed‐bed ethylene oxide (EO) reactor was developed using the equation‐oriented platform Aspen Custom Modeler. Reactor operation was optimized in terms of maximized EO production and selectivity and enhanced safety related to the presence of oxygen in the EO reactor. Good agreement was found between the model results during validation against the available information under identical operating conditions. The model predicts the behavior of the EO reaction and demonstrates the extent of catalyst utilization with product distribution, product yield, by‐product formation, temperature and concentration profiles, over time and along the length of the reactor or catalyst bed. The model sensitivity studies compute the optimum feed flow, oxygen concentration, feed pressure, etc. and suggest the best operational philosophy.     

Preparation and characterization of aluminum oxide–poly(ethylene-co-butyl acrylate) nanocomposites

This article describes the preparation and characterization of composites containing poly(ethylene-co-butyl acrylate) (EBA–13 and EBA–28 with 13 and 28 wt % butyl acrylate, respectively) and 2–12 wt % (0.5–3 vol %) of aluminum oxide nanoparticles (two types differing in specific surface area and hydroxyl-group concentration; uncoated and coated with, respectively, octyltriethoxysilane and aminopropyltriethoxysilane). A greater surface coverage was obtained with aminopropyltriethoxysilane than with octyltriethoxysilane. An overall good dispersion was obtained in the EBA-13 composites prepared by extrusion compounding. Composites with octyltriethoxysilane-coated nanoparticles showed the best dispersion. The addition of the nanoparticles to EBA–28 resulted in poor dispersion, probably due to insufficiently high shear forces acting during extrusion mixing which were unable to break down nanoparticle agglomerates. The nanoparticles had no effect on the crystallization kinetics in the EBA–13 composites, but in the EBA–28 composites the presence of the nanoparticles led to an increase in the crystallization peak temperature, suggesting that the nanoparticles had a nucleating effect in this particular polymer. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

Polyoxymethylene dimethyl ethers synthesis from methanol and formaldehyde solution over one-pot synthesized spherical mesoporous sulfated zirconia

The synthesis of polyoxymethylene dimethyl ethers as an ideal diesel fuel additive is the current hot topic of modern petrochemical industry for their expedient properties in mitigating air pollutants emission during combustion. In this work, a series of spherical sulfated zirconia catalysts were prepared by a one-pot hydrothermal method assisted with surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). The prepared sulfated zirconia catalysts were used to catalyze PODE_n synthesis from methanol and formaldehyde solution. Various characterization (XRD, BET, SEM, TGA, NH₃-TPD, FTIR, and Py-IR) were employed to elaborate the structure–activity relationship of the studied catalytic system. The results demonstrated that S/Zr molar ratio in precursor solution played an effective role on catalyst morphology and acidic properties, where the weak Brønsted acid sites and strong Lewis acid sites were favorable to the conversion of methanol and formation of long-chain PODE_n, respectively. The reaction parameters such as catalyst amount, molar ratio of FA/MeOH, reaction time, temperature and pressure were optimized. The speculated reaction pathway for PODE_n synthesis was proposed based on the synergy of Brønsted and Lewis acid sites, which suggested that Brønsted and Lewis acid sites might be advantageous to the activation of polyoxymethylene hemiformals [CH₃(OCH₂)_nOH] and methylene glycol (HOCH₂OH), respectively.