Damage evolution in polymer due to exposure to high-pressure hydrogen gas

The use of hydrogen as a fuel is increasing exponentially, and the most economical way to store and transport hydrogen for fuel use is as a high-pressure gas. Polymers are widely used for hydrogen distribution and storage systems because they are chemically inert towards hydrogen. However, when exposed to high-pressure hydrogen, some hydrogen diffuses through polymers and occupies the preexisting cavities inside the material. Upon depressurization, the hydrogen trapped inside polymer cavities can cause blistering or cracking by expanding these cavities. A continuum mechanics–based deformation model was deployed to predict the stress distribution and damage propagation while the polymer undergoes depressurization after high-pressure hydrogen exposure. The effects of cavity size, cavity location, and pressure inside the cavity on damage initiation and evolution inside the polymer were studied. The stress and damage evolution in the presence of multiple cavities was also studied, because interaction among cavities alters the damage and stress field. It was found that all these factors significantly change the stress state in the polymer, resulting in different paths for damage propagation. The effect of adding carbon black filler particles and plasticizer on the damage was also studied. It was found that damage tolerance of the polymer increases drastically with the addition of carbon black fillers, but decreases with the addition of the plasticizer.     

Electrical and optical properties of MoO3-V2O5 mixed oxide films

Vacuum deposited MoO₃-V₂O₅ films of different molar concentrations have been used for DC electrical conductivity studies at different temperatures. The optical absorption spectra of MoO₃-V₂O₅ films of different molar concentrations have been measured. From these measurements it is found that optical band gap and activation energy vary with molar concentration of MoO₃-V₂O₅ films.     

Tyrosine kinase inhibition produces specific alterations in axon guidance in the grasshopper embryo

Tyrosine kinase signaling pathways are essential for process outgrowth and guidance during nervous system development. We have examined the roles of tyrosine kinase activity in programming growth cone guidance decisions in an intact nervous system in which neurons can be individually identified. We applied the tyrosine kinase inhibitors herbimycin A and genistein to whole 40% grasshopper embryos placed in medium, or injected the inhibitors into intact grasshopper eggs. Both inhibitors caused interneuronal axons that normally would grow along the longitudinal connectives to instead leave the central nervous system (CNS) within the segmental nerve root and grow out toward the body wall muscles. In addition, herbimycin A produced pathfinding errors in which many longitudinal axons crossed the CNS midline. To study how this drug affected guidance decisions made by individual growth cones, we dye-filled the pCC interneuron, which normally extends an axon anteriorly along the ipsilateral longitudinal connective. In the presence of herbimycin A, the pCC growth cone was redirected across the anterior commissure. These phenotypes suggest that tyrosine kinase inhibition blocks a signaling mechanism that repels the growth cones of longitudinal connective neurons and prevents them from crossing the midline.     

Soluble Prokaryotic Overexpression and Purification of Human GM-CSF Using the Protein Disulfide Isomerase b′a′ Domain

Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is a member of the colony-stimulating factor (CSF) family, which functions to enhance the proliferation and differentiation of hematopoietic stem cells and other hematopoietic lineages such as neutrophils, dendritic cells, or macrophages. These proteins have thus generated considerable interest in clinical therapy research. A current obstacle to the prokaryotic production of human GM-CSF (hGM-CSF) is its low solubility when overexpressed and subsequent complex refolding processes. In our present study, the solubility of hGM-CSF was examined when combined with three N-terminal fusion tags in five E. coli strains at three different expression temperatures. In the five E. coli strains BL21 (DE3), ClearColi BL21 (DE3), LOBSTR, SHuffle T7 and Origami2 (DE3), the hexahistidine-tagged hGM-CSF showed the best expression but was insoluble in all cases at each examined temperature. Tagging with the maltose-binding protein (MBP) and the b′a′ domain of protein disulfide isomerase (PDIb′a′) greatly improved the soluble overexpression of hGM-CSF at 30 °C and 18 °C. The solubility was not improved using the Origami2 (DE3) and SHuffle T7 strains that have been engineered for disulfide bond formation. Two conventional chromatographic steps were used to purify hGM-CSF from the overexpressed PDIb′a′-hGM-CSF produced in ClearColi BL21 (DE3). In the experiment, 0.65 mg of hGM-CSF was isolated from a 0.5 L flask culture of these E. coli and showed a 98% purity by SDS-PAGE analysis and silver staining. The bioactivity of this purified hGM-CSF was measured at an EC₅₀ of 16.4 ± 2 pM by a CCK8 assay in TF-1 human erythroleukemia cells.     

A study on the deposition of pyrolytic carbons from hydrocarbons

A new method for forming isotropic, laminar, and columnar pyrolytic carbons is proposed. For this, a low RPM (below 2.4 rpm) tumbling bed has been used to deposit pyrolytic carbons from hydrocarbon gases. All deposits were made on graphite substrates from propane and methane at a constant temperature of 1200°C. The microstructures of the pyrolytic carbons deposited were dependent on the flow pattern of the reactant gas, the rpm of the reactor, the hydrocarbon concentration, the nature of the hydrocarbon, and the geometry of the bed. Isotropic pyrolytic carbon is formed under deposition conditions where homogeneous nucleation occurs in the gas phase and at the gas flow conditions where the gas-borne droplets can collide on the substrate. Laminar carbon is formed under deposition conditions where homogeneous nucleation does not occur in the gas phase and at gas flow conditions where the carbon species existing in the bulk of the gas phase can collide on the substrate. Columnar carbon is formed when any carbon products existing in the bulk of the gas phase cannot collide on the substrate. The suggested deposition mechanism can also be applied to pyrolytic carbons deposited in a fluidized bed or in a stationary bed. In particular, isotropic carbon can be obtained even in a stationary bed if the requirements for the deposition of the isotropic carbon described above are satisfied.     

Catalytic Materials for High-Temperature Combustion

Catalytic combustion, as an alternative to conventional thermal combustion, has received considerable attention during the past decade. Research efforts have been promoted by the need to meet governmental demands concerning pollution and the wish to use energy sources more efficiently. The two main advantages offered by catalytic combustors over flame combustors apply to these goals:

1. Catalytic combustion can be carried out over a wide range of fuel concentrations in air and at low temperatures.
2. These low temperatures result in attaining NO, emission levels substantially lower than possible with conventional combustors.