Effect of Ge4+ and Mg2+ doping on superconductivity,fluctuation induced conductivity and interplanar coupling of TlSr2CaCu2O7−δ superconductors

Substitution of Ge⁴⁺ in place of Cu in Tl_0.85Cr_0.15Sr₂CaCu_2?xGe_xO_7?δ (x = 0–0.6) showed initial increase in zero critical temperature value, T_{c zero} from 98 K (x = 0) to 100 K (x = 0.1) and in the range of 85–86 K for x = 0.2–0.3. The slow decrease in T_{c zero} is unexpected as tetravalent Ge⁴⁺ substitution is expected to strongly reduce hole concentration in the samples and suppress T_{c zero}. Excess conductivity analyses of resistance versus temperature data based on Asmalazov–Larkin (AL) theory revealed that the substitution induced 2D-to-3D transition of fluctuation induced conductivity with the highest transition temperature, T_2D–3D observed at x = 0.1. FTIR spectroscopy analysis indicates Ge⁴⁺ substitution cause reduction in CuO₂/GeO₂ interplanar distance while our calculation based on Lawrence–Doniach model revealed highest superconducting coherence length, ξ_c(0) and interplanar coupling, J at x = 0.3. On the other hand, substitution of divalent Mg²⁺ for Ca²⁺ in (Tl_0.5Pb_0.5)(Sr_1.8Yb_0.2)(Ca_1?yMg_y)Cu₂O₇ (y = 0–1.0), which is not expected to directly vary hole concentration, surprisingly caused T_{c zero} to increase from 89.6 K (y = 0) to an optimum value of 95.9 K (y = 0.6) before decreasing with further increase in y. Excess conductivity analyses showed 2D-to-3D transition of fluctuation induced conductivity for all samples where the highest T_2D–3D was at y = 0.4. Similar calculation revealed highest values of ξ_c(0) and J also at y = 0.4. FTIR analysis of the samples indicates inequivalent Cu(1)O(2)Pb/Tl lengths and possible tilting of CuO₂ plane as a result of Mg²⁺ substitution. The increased ξ_c(0) and J as a result of the Ge⁴⁺ and Mg²⁺ substitutions are suggested to contributed to sustenance of superconductivity above 80 K in the samples.     

Nonlinear fractional differential equations of Sobolev type

Sobolev type nonlinear equations with time fractional derivatives are considered. Using the test function method, limiting exponents for nonexistence of solutions are found. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Instrumental neutron activation analysis for the elemental analysis of cement

Cement is widely used as a construction material in Libya. Production plants introduce certain contaminants to the environment. The dust from such plants is carried away to neighbouring areas. This dust contains a substantial amount of contaminants depending on the origin of clays used in the production. In this study, a survey of elemental concentration of clay and cement was carried out to assess the environmental impact of such plants, especially those that are situated near residential and agricultural areas. Cement and clay samples, imported and locally produced, were analyzed. Instrumental neutron activation analysis was utilized to determine the elemental concentration of As, Ca, Ce, Co, Cr, Eu, Fe, Hf, La, Na, Rb, Sb, Sc, Sm, Ta, Th, U, Yb and Zn. Elevated concentrations of U and Th were found in a number of cement samples. The two nuclides are part of an elaborate decay scheme producing a range of radioactive elements, which emit alpha-, beta- and gamma-radiation. With ⁴⁰K, they could give elevated levels of background radiation in buildings resulting in higher exposure doses. This could pose a health hazard and a detrimental effect on the well being of residents, especially in poor ventillated buildings. Also, cement is the main component for constructing underground reservoirs for collecting rainwater for drinking in private residences, so some harmful elements could leach into water. This is the first comprehensive survey of commercial cement brands and clays used in Libya. These results are intended to build a database for trace element concentrations using INAA.     

Determination of starane (fluroxypyr) herbicide using flow injection spectrophotometry.

The starane herbicide was spectrophotometrically determined by the diazotization method in a flow injection assembly. Since starane is a substituted pyridyl compound the NH2 group at the p-position was exploited for diazotization. Starane was diazotized with nitrite and the diazotized product is coupled with beta-naphthol. The absorbance of the resulting azo dye was measured at 395 nm with a molar absorptivity of 1.5 x 10(4) L mol(-1) cm(-1). The calibration graph was linear over the range of 0.6 to 10 microg/mL, with a relative standard deviation (RSD) of 1.67% and a sampling through put of 60 samples h(-1). The % recovery for the determination of starane was found to be 96%. The method was successfully applied to the determination of the active ingredient of starane herbicide in its formulation as well as in food samples.     

Synthesis,characterization and thermal degradation kinetics of ferrocene‐containing aramids

Low‐temperature solution‐phase polycondensation of 1,1′‐ferrocenedicarboxylic acid chloride with different aromatic diamines was carried out in tetrahydrofuran in the presence of triethylamine to afford ferrocene‐containing aramids. The products were characterized by their solubilities, inherent viscosities, elemental analysis, FTIR spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetry. All of them were insoluble in common solvents tested, except aramid‐IV (derived from 1,8‐naphthalene diamine), which was slightly soluble in N,N′‐dimethylacetamide, N,N′‐dimethylformamide, dimethylsulfoxide and formic acid. However, all were miscible with concentrated H₂SO₄, forming red‐coloured solutions. These all show a reduction in their solution viscosities at ambient conditions in concentrated H₂SO₄ which may be attributed to their non‐Newtonian behaviour. The glass transition temperature for each aramid was quite high, and stable up to 390 °C. The integral procedural decomposition temperatures for the products were calculated using Doyle's method and were found to be intermediate to that of Nylon 66 (419 °C) and Teflon (555 °C), and the activation energy for decomposition of each product was calculated by the Horowitz and Metzger method. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synthesis,characterization and biological activities of organotin(IV) complexes with l-lysine monohydrate

Russian Journal of General Chemistry - The new organotin(IV) complexes have been synthesized by the reaction of l-lysine monohydrate with CS2 and R2SnCl2/R3SnCl. The organotin(IV) complexes and the...     

Magnetic,Electrical and Thermal Studies of Polypyrrole-Fe<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript> Nanocomposites

This research paper comprises of the synthesis of polypyrrole (PPy)-Fe₂O₃ nanocomposites by employing the in situ chemical oxidative polymerization method. The concentration of the filler material was adjusted between 10–50 wt % of PPy. The synthesized nanocomposites were characterized by using X-ray diffraction (XRD). Magnetic analysis and DC electrical conductivity of the samples were carried out using vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) and two probe DC conductivity method, point towards magnetically active and electrically conductive samples. The magnetic parameters under applied magnetic field demonstrated that the values of coercivity (H _c ), saturation magnetization (M _s ) and remanence (M _r ) can be tailored by carefully controlling the amount of dopant material into the nanocomposites indicating their suitability for controllable switching devices and microwave absorption applications. The DC electrical conductivity showed an increase up to 20 wt % of filler material and thereafter a decrease in the conductivity of nanocomposites with increase in filler content is observed. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) showed an increase in thermal stability with an increase in ferrite content in nanocomposites.     

On Perturbed Fractional Differential Inclusions with Nonlocal Multi-point Erdélyi–Kober Fractional Integral Boundary Conditions

In this paper, by using a nonlinear alternative for a sum of compact upper semicontinuous and contractive multivalued operators, we establish sufficient conditions for the existence of solutions for perturbed fractional differential inclusions with nonlocal multi-point Erdélyi–Kober fractional integral boundary conditions. For the applicability of the main result, we include an example.     

A chitosan–polypyrrole magnetic nanocomposite as μ-sorbent for isolation of naproxen

An extracting medium based on chitosan–polypyrrole (CS–PPy) magnetic nanocomposite was synthesized by chemical polymerization of pyrrole at the presence of chitosan magnetic nanoparticles (CS-MNPs) for micro-solid phase extraction. In this work, magnetic nanoparticles, the modified CS-MNPs and different types of CS–PPy magnetic nanocomposites were synthesized. Extraction efficiency of the CS–PPy magnetic nanocomposite was compared with the CS-MNPs and Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles for the determination of naproxen in aqueous samples, via quantification by spectrofluorimetry. The scanning electron microscopy images obtained from all the prepared nanocomposites revealed that the CS–PPy magnetic nanocomposite possess more porous structure. Among different synthesized magnetic nanocomposites, CS–PPy magnetic nanocomposite showed a prominent efficiency. Influencing parameters on the morphology of CS–PPy magnetic nanocomposite such as weight ratio of components was also assayed. In addition, effects of different parameters influencing the extraction efficiency of naproxen including desorption solvent, desorption time, amount of sorbent, ionic strength, sample pH and extraction time were investigated and optimized. Under the optimum condition, a linear calibration curve in the range of 0.04–10 μg mL⁻¹ (R² = 0.9996) was obtained. The limits of detection (3S_b) and limits of quantification (10S_b) of the method were 0.015 and 0.04 μg mL⁻¹ (n = 3), respectively. The relative standard deviation for water sample spiked with 0.1 μg mL⁻¹ of naproxen was 3% (n = 5) and the absolute recovery was 92%. The applicability of method was extended to the determination of naproxen in tap water, human urine and plasma samples. The relative recovery percentages for these samples were in the range of 56–99%.