Nonlinear optical studies on new conjugated poly{2,2l‐(3,4‐ dialkoxythiophene‐2,5‐diyl) bis[5‐(2‐thienyl)‐1,3,4‐oxadiazole]}s

Three new donor–acceptor type poly{2,2^l‐(3,4‐ dialkoxythiophene‐2,5‐diyl)bis[5‐(2‐thienyl)‐1,3,4‐oxadiazole]}s ( P1, P2, and P3 ) were synthesized starting from thiodiglycolic acid and diethyl oxalate through multistep reactions. The polymerization was carried out using chemical polymerization technique. The optical and charge‐transporting properties of the polymers were investigated by UV‐visible, fluorescence emission spectroscopic and cyclic voltammetric studies. The polymers showed bluish‐green fluorescence in solutions. The electrochemical band gaps were determined to be 2.03, 2.09, and 2.17 eV for P1 , P2, and P3, respectively. The nonlinear optical properties of new polymers were investigated at 532 nm using single beam Z‐scan and degenerate four‐wave mixing (DFWM) techniques with nanosecond laser pulses. The polymers exhibited strong optical limiting behavior due to “effective” three‐photon absorption. Values of the effective three‐photon absorption ( 3PA ) coefficients, third‐order nonlinear susceptibilities (χ⁽³⁾), and figures (F) of merit were calculated. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010     

Modelling non-Newtonian two-phase flow in conventional and helical-holding tubes

Summary The research described in this communication was undertaken to test the hypothesis that the fluid mechanics and heat-transfer aspects involved in aseptic processing could be modelled. In order to do this, a finite difference FORTRAN program (using the fourth-order, four-stage explicit Runge–Kutta method) was written by the authors to compute the velocity of fluid elements and particles during fully 3-dimensional flow in conventional and helical-holding tubes. The effect of particles on the fluid-flow field and the interaction between particles was taken into account during the modelling. Simulation results showed that an increase in specific gravity, tube diameter or coil diameter resulted in an increase in the residence time of the particles, while an increase in the flow rate decreased the residence time of the particles. An increase in the particle diameter or the flow rate narrowed the Residence Time Distribution (RTD) of the particles, while an increase in specific gravity or the tube diameter increased the RTD of the particles.     

Conservative interpolation on unstructured polyhedral meshes: An extension of the supermesh approach to cell-centered finite-volume variables

A method is presented for conservatively transferring, or remapping, cell-centered variable fields from one mesh to another with second-order accuracy. The method is generally applicable to any polyhedral source or target mesh. Like the work of Farrell et al. [1], which was designed for finite-element computations, the proposed methodology uses a logical supermesh consisting of the intersections of polyhedra from both meshes. The resulting transfer process is well-suited for finite-volume methods that rely on cell-centered variables. The accuracy and efficacy of the new remapping process is demonstrated with numerical experiments and a computational fluid dynamics test.     

Dialysis patients treated with Epoetin α show improved exercise tolerance and physical function: A new analysis of the Canadian Erythropoietin Study Group trial

The risks/benefits of anemia treatment in dialysis patients have been redefined in the US Epoetin α label. This analysis was carried out to determine if increasing hemoglobin (Hb) levels improve exercise tolerance and physical function in anemic dialysis patients. This is a new analysis of the Canadian Erythropoietin Study Group trial, a double‐blind, randomized, placebo‐controlled trial in dialysis patients. Subjects were 18 to 75 years old, on hemodialysis for >3 months, and had a baseline Hb <9.0 g/dL. Patients with a history of diabetes mellitus, ischemic heart disease, or severe/uncontrolled hypertension were excluded. Patients were randomized to receive Epoetin α to a target Hb of 9.5 to 11.0 g/dL (n=40) or a target of 11.5 to 13.0 g/dL (n=38), or receive placebo (n=40). Results from patients in the Epoetin‐α–treated arms were combined for this analysis. Hb level, exercise tolerance (Treadmill Stress Test and 6‐Minute Walk Test) and patient‐reported physical function measures (Physical Summary domain from the Kidney Disease Questionnaire, and 4 domains from the Sickness Impact Profile) were reported at baseline and months 2, 4, and 6. Differences in measures were statistically significant for exercise tolerance (Treadmill Stress, P=0.0001) and patient‐reported physical function (Kidney Disease Questionnaire Physical, P=0.0001; Sickness Impact Profile Physical, P=0.0015) across all time points for Epoetin‐α–treated patients compared with placebo. Improvements were seen at 2 months and were maintained through months 4 and 6. Dialysis patients receiving Epoetin α showed improved exercise tolerance and physical function. These findings should be considered as physicians weigh the risks and benefits of treatment.     

A second generation wavelet based finite elements on triangulations

In this paper we have developed a second generation wavelet based finite element method for solving elliptic PDEs on two dimensional triangulations using customized operator dependent wavelets. The wavelets derived from a Courant element are tailored in the second generation framework to decouple some elliptic PDE operators. Starting from a primitive hierarchical basis the wavelets are lifted (enhanced) to achieve local scale-orthogonality with respect to the operator of the PDE. The lifted wavelets are used in a Galerkin type discretization of the PDE which result in a block diagonal, sparse multiscale stiffness matrix. The blocks corresponding to different resolutions are completely decoupled, which makes the implementation of new wavelet finite element very simple and efficient. The solution is enriched adaptively and incrementally using finer scale wavelets. The new procedure completely eliminates wastage of resources associated with classical finite element refinement. Finally some numerical experiments are conducted to analyze the performance of this method.     

Effect of Zr on dielectric, ferroelectric and impedance properties of BaTiO3 ceramic

A polycrystalline sample of Zr-doped barium titanate (BaTiO₃) was prepared by conventional solid state reaction method. The effect of Zr (0·15) on the structural and microstructural properties of BaTiO₃ was investigated by XRD and SEM. The electrical properties (dielectric, ferroelectric and impedance spectroscopy) were measured in wide range of frequency and temperature. With substitutions of Zr, the structure of BaTiO₃ changes from tetragonal to rhombohedral. Lattice parameters were found to increase with substitution. The room temperature dielectric constant increases from ～ 1675 to ～ 10586 and peak dielectric constant value increases from ～ 13626 to ～ 21023 with diffuse phase transition. Impedance spectroscopy reveals the formation of grain and grain boundary in the material and found to decrease with increase in temperature.     

Relationship between physicochemical and rheological properties of starches from Indian wheat lines

Starches from nine Indian wheat lines were evaluated to study the relationships between physicochemical and rheological properties. Large granules (>15 μm) were present in the highest proportion followed by medium (5–15 μm) and small granules (<5 μm). Amylose content ranged between 27.4 and 37.2%. Starch with the highest proportion of large granules (68.9%) showed higher values of G′_peak (576 Pa) and G′_final (432 Pa). Amylose content showed positive relationships with retrogradation, gel firmness, gumminess and adhesiveness while negative with springiness. Cooked starch pastes with the highest amylose content (37.2%) had higher ΔH_ret (0.88 J g^?1), G′_ret (361 Pa), adhesiveness (1.48 Ns), firmness (0.45 N) gumminess (0.22 N) and the lowest springiness (0.88). Amylose–lipid complex (AML) dissociation showed negative relations with swelling power, G′_peak, G′_breakdown and breakdown viscosity (r = ?0.779, ?0.66, ?0.771 & ?0.775, respectively, P < 0.05) while positive relationship with pasting temperature (r = 0.775, P < 0.05).     

Novel defects in Al–Pd–Fe complex metallic alloys: A micromechanical modelling approach

Transmission electron microscopy investigations have revealed that in the face centred complex metallic alloy of C₂–Al–Pd–Fe, the dislocations mediating plastic flow are decorated by localized regions of body centred structure in the compressive part of their strain field thus forming composite defects. We calculated the properties of these defects using a micromechanical model. The Eshelby method was employed to estimate the energies involved in the formation of such defects in the face-centred C₂ phase. We could reproduce the experimentally observed features of the defects in terms of their size and spatial configuration. The model describes a unique mechanism of a non-equilibrium defect, i.e., a dislocation, being stabilized by the formation and interaction with another non-equilibrium defect, i.e., a nanometre sized inclusion of different structure.