Search PubMed⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “Thermal Diffusion”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 1,099 records · Page 61Linked to original sources

Genotyping on a thermal gradient DNA chip.

Silicon-based chips with discrete, independently temperature-controlled islands have been developed for use in DNA microarray hybridization studies. Each island, containing a heater made of a diffusion layer and a temperature sensor based on a p-n junction, is created on a silicon dioxide/nitride surface by anisotropic etching. Different reactive groups are subsequently added to the surface of the islands, and allele-specific oligonucleotide probes are attached to discrete spots on the chip. Hybridization is performed with Cy5-tagged single-stranded targets derived by PCR from genomic DNA. Results are assessed by measuring fluorescence of bound dye-tagged targets after hybridization and washing. Temperatures at each island can be set at different values to obtain optimal distinction between perfect matches and mismatches. This approach facilitates definition of optimal temperatures for probe/target annealing and for distinction between perfectly matched versus mismatched solution-phase targets. The thermal gradient DNA chips were then tested for genotyping, and the results for four different loci in two genes are presented. Unambiguous typing was achieved for clinically relevant loci within the factor VII and hemochromatosis genes.

Factor VII↗

Anderson localized state as a predissipative state: irreversible emission of thermalized quanta from a dynamically delocalized state.

It was shown that localization in one-dimensional disordered (quantum) electronic system is destroyed against coherent harmonic perturbations and the delocalized electron exhibits an unlimited diffusive motion [Yamada and Ikeda, Phys. Rev. E 59, 5214 (1999)]. The appearance of diffusion implies that the system has potential for irreversibility and dissipation. In the present paper, we investigate dissipative property of the dynamically delocalized state, and we show that an irreversible quasistationary energy flow indeed appears in the form of a "heat" flow when we couple the system with another dynamical degree of freedom. In the concrete we numerically investigate dissipative properties of a one-dimensional tight-binding electronic system perturbed by time-dependent harmonic forces, by coupling it with a quantum harmonic oscillator or a quantum anharmonic oscillator. It is demonstrated that if the on-site potential is spatially irregular an irreversible energy transfer from the scattered electron to the test oscillator occurs. Moreover, the test oscillator promptly approaches a thermalized state characterized by a well-defined time-dependent temperature. On the contrary, such a relaxation process cannot be observed at all for periodic potential systems. Our system is one of the minimal quantum systems in which a distinct nonequilibrium statistical behavior is self-induced.

Journal Article↗

Measuring concentrations of volatile organic compounds in vinyl flooring.

The initial solid-phase concentration of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is a key parameter influencing the emission characteristics of many indoor materials. Solid-phase measurements are typically made using solvent extraction or thermal headspace analysis. The high temperatures and chemical solvents associated with these methods can modify the physical structure of polymeric materials and, consequently, affect mass transfer characteristics. To measure solid-phase concentrations under conditions resembling those in which the material would be installed in an indoor environment, a new technique was developed for measuring VOC concentrations in vinyl flooring (VF) and similar materials. A 0.09-m2 section of new VF was punched randomly to produce -200 0.78-cm2 disks. The disks were milled to a powder at -140 degrees C to simultaneously homogenize the material and reduce the diffusion path length without loss of VOCs. VOCs were extracted from the VF particles at room temperature by fluidized-bed desorption (FBD) and by direct thermal desorption (DTD) at elevated temperatures. The VOCs in the extraction gas from FBD and DTD were collected on sorbent tubes and analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Seven VOCs emitted by VF were quantified. Concentration measurements by FBD ranged from 5.1 microg/g VF for n-hexadecane to 130 microg/g VF for phenol. Concentrations measured by DTD were higher than concentrations measured by FBD. Differences between FBD and DTD results may be explained using free-volume and dual-mobility sorption theory, but further research is necessary to more completely characterize the complex nature of a diffusant in a polymer matrix.

Air Pollution, Indoor↗

Morphological stabilization, destabilization, and open-end closure during carbon nanotube growth mediated by surface diffusion.

In this paper, the growth stability of open-ended carbon nanotubes mediated by surface diffusion on the lateral surface of the nanotube is considered in detail. Nanotube growth and destabilization is viewed as a competition of two processes at the open growth edge: (i) hexagon formation sustaining the continuous growth of the regular hexagonal network, and (ii) thermally activated pentagon formation, which causes inward bending of the nanotube wall resulting in end closure, i.e., growth termination. The edge of the open-ended nanotube, if it is fed by a sufficiently large surface diffusion flux, may remain stable even without extrinsic stabilizing effects. The closure of the open end of the growing nanotube is shown to happen whenever a change in the growth conditions (temperature, carbon vapor pressure, or surface area from which the open end is fed) decreases the surface diffusion flux, and the characteristic time for new atom arrival on the edge becomes larger than the characteristic time for pentagon defect formation. These kinetic effects are also shown to define the transition from single wall to multiwall nanotube growth. Additionally, the effect of surface diffusion feeding nanotube growth from behind the growth interface is shown to stabilize open edge morphology, effectively smoothing the growth perturbations which may be caused by diffusion-limited aggregation at the edge.

Journal Article↗

Thermal inactivation of staphylococcal enterotoxin B in veronal buffer.

The times and temperatures required to inactivate staphylococcal enterotoxin B were studied by use of the double-gel-diffusion technique to assay enterotoxin. Enterotoxin B (99 +% pure) was suspended in 0.04 M Veronal buffer, dispensed into borosilicate vials, and the vials were sealed and heated in an oil bath. An amount of 30 mug/ml of this toxin was reduced to less than 0.7 mug/ml in 103.0, 87.1, 70.5, 57.2, 39.1, 27.6, 16.4, and 12.0 min, respectively, at temperatures of 96, 99, 101.7, 104.4, 110, 115.6, 121, and 126.7 C. The end point for enterotoxin inactivation by gel diffusion was identical to that by intravenous injection of cats. Limited studies with crude enterotoxin B showed that the crude preparation was slightly more thermostable. The respective D values of crude and purified enterotoxin B were 64.5 and 52.3, 40.5 and 34.4, 29.7 and 23.5, 18.8 and 16.6, and 11.4 and 9.9 min at temperatures of 99, 104.4, 110, 115.6, and 121 C. The z value for purified enterotoxin B was 32.4 C. The experimental activation energy was 20,700 cal/g mole, standard enthalpy of activation at 120 C was 19,900 cal/g mole, standard entropy of activation at 120 C was -21.4 cal/g mole K, and the standard free energy of activation at 120 C was 28,200 cal/g mole.

Barbiturates↗

Thermal analysis of laser interstitial thermotherapy in ex vivo fibro-fatty tissue using exponential functions.

A therapeutic procedure to treat small, surface breast tumours up to 10 mm in radius plus a 5 mm margin of healthy, surrounding tissue using laser interstitial thermotherapy (LITT) is currently being investigated. The purpose of this study is to analyse and model the thermal and coagulative response of ex vivo fibro-fatty tissue, a model for breast tissue, during experimental laser interstitial thermotherapy at 980 nm. Laser radiation at 980 nm was delivered interstitially through a diffusing tip optical fibre inserted into a fibro-fatty tissue model to produce controlled heating at powers ranging from 3.2 to 8.0 W. Tissue temperature was measured with thermocouples placed at 15 positions around the fibre. The induced coagulation zone was measured on gross anatomical sections. Thermal analysis indicates that a finite sum of exponential functions is an approximate solution to the heat conduction equation that more accurately predicts the time-temperature dependence in tissue prior to carbonization (T < 100 degrees C) during LITT than the traditional model using a single exponential function. Analysis of the ellipsoid coagulation volume induced in tissue indicates that the 980 nm wavelength does not penetrate deep enough in fibro-fatty tissue to produce a desired 30 mm diameter (14.1 x 10(3) mm3) coagulation volume without unwanted tissue liquefaction and carbonization.

Adipose Tissue↗

Absence of kinetic thermal stabilization in a hyperthermophile rubredoxin indicated by 40 microsecond folding in the presence of irreversible denaturation.

The striking kinetic stability of many proteins derived from hyperthermophilic organisms has led to the proposal that such stability may result from a heightened activation barrier for unfolding independent of a corresponding increase in the thermodynamic stability. This in turn implies a corresponding retardation of the folding reaction. A commonly cited model for kinetic thermal stabilization is the rubredoxin from Pyrococcus furiosus (Pf), which exhibits an irreversible denaturation lifetime at 100 degrees C of nearly a week. Utilizing protein resonances shifted well outside of the random coil chemical shift envelope, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) chemical exchange measurements on Pf rubredoxin as well as on the mesophile Clostridium pasteurianum (Cp) rubredoxin demonstrate reversible thermal transition temperatures of 144 degrees C (137 degrees C for the N-terminal modified A2K variant) and 104 degrees C, respectively, with similar (un)folding rates of approximately 25,000 s(-1), only modestly slower than the diffusion controlled rate. The absence of a substantial activation barrier to rubredoxin folding as well as the similar folding kinetics of the mesophile protein indicate that kinetic stabilization has not been utilized by the hyperthermophile rubredoxin in achieving its extreme thermal stability. The two-state folding kinetics observed for Pf rubredoxin contradict a previous assertion of multiphasic folding based on hydrogen exchange data extrapolated to an estimated midpoint of transition temperature (T(m)) of nearly 200 degrees C. This discrepancy is resolved by the observation that the base-catalyzed hydrogen exchange of the model dipeptide (N-acetyl-L-cysteine-N-methylamide)4-Cd2+ is 23-fold slower than that of the free cysteine model dipeptide used to normalize the Pf rubredoxin hydrogen exchange data.

Amino Acid Substitution↗

Effect of the crosslinking degree and the nickel salt load on the thermal decomposition of poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) hydrogels and on the metal release from them.

Polymeric matrices of poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) crosslinked with different percentages of ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) as well as different loads of nickel salt were synthesized. Nickel release from the polymeric systems, and their thermal stability were analyzed. A high percentage of the nickel loaded was released, although strong interactions between the polymeric matrices and the nickel ion must be established since a total nickel release did not take place. The values of the diffusion coefficients showed that nickel release depended on the amount of nickel salt loaded in the polymeric matrix and also on the crosslinking degree of the gels. On the other hand, the presence of nickel salt induced an evident thermal instability in the polymeric matrices, although all the polymeric systems can be considered thermally stable.

Cross-Linking Reagents↗

Experimental assessment of non-treated bentonite as the buffer material of a radioactive waste repository.

The bentonite-based material being evaluated in several countries as potential barriers and seals for a nuclear waste disposal system is of mostly sodium type, whereas most bentonite available in Korea is known to be of calcium type. In order to investigate whether local Korean bentonite could be useful as a buffer or sealing material in an HLW repository system, raw bentonites sampled from the south-east area of Korea were examined in terms of their physicochemical properties such as surface area, CEC, swelling rate, and distribution coefficient. The diffusion behavior of some radionuclides of interest in compacted bentonite was also investigated. Considering that HLW generates decay heat over a long time, the thermal effect on the physicochemical properties of bentonite was also included. Four local samples were identified as Ca-bentonite through XRD and chemical analysis. Of the measured values of surface area, CEC and swelling rate of the local samples, Sample-A was found to have the greatest properties as the most likely candidate barrier material. The distribution coefficients of Cs-137, Sr-85, Co-60 and Am-241 for Sample-A sample were measured by the batch method. Sorption equilibrium was reached in around 8 to 10 days, but that of Sr was found to be reached earlier. Comparing the results of this study with the reference data, domestic bentonite was found to have a relatively high sorption ability. For the effect of varying concentration on sorption, the values of Kd peaked at 10(-9)-10(-7) mol/l of radionuclide concentration. In XRD analysis, the (001) peak of Sample-A was fully collapsed above 200 degrees C. The shoulder appearing at about 150 degrees C in the DSC curve was found to be evidence that Sample-A is predominated by Ca-montmorillonite. The loss of swelling capacity and CEC of Sample-A started at about 100 degrees C. The swelling data and the (001) peak intensity of the heat-treated sample showed that they were linearly interrelated. The measured Kd values of Co-60, Cs-137 and Am-241 for the samples heat-treated at various temperature showed that the domestic bentonite still retained sorption capacity below 100 degrees C. In addition to such findings of thermal effects, it was found that the presence of calcium in bentonite may help to assure long-term stability under the expected thermo-hydro conditions. The Da values of Sr-85, Cs-137, Co-60, Am-241 and Cl-36 were measured to be 1.073 x 10(1), 6.705 x 10(-1), 1.226 x 10(-1), 1.310 x 10(-2) and 9.490 x 10(1) microns 2/sec, respectively, which could be arranged with the magnitude of their distribution coefficients, i.e. Cl > Sr > Cs > Co > Am. As the as-pressed density of bentonite increasing from 1.8 to 2.0 g/cm3, the Da-value of Cs-137 decreased by 25%. From the analyses of the diffusion mechanism of radionuclides in compacted bentonite, the surface diffusion due to the concentration gradients of radionuclide sorbed on the bentonite particles was found to be a dominating transport process of radionuclides in compacted bentonite with 1.8 g/cm3. Bases on these results, it was identified that domestic bentonite has potential as a chemical barrier material in a repository system. Some data obtained in the results could contribute to the engineering parameters to design a waste package and engineered barrier or to develop an appropriate disposal concept satisfying the safety requirements.

Bentonite↗

Effect of the thermodynamics of an infant plethysmograph on the measurement of thoracic gas volume.

Adult plethysmographs have frequency responses that are essentially flat over the range of frequencies encountered in the measurement of thoracic gas volume (TGV). An infant plethysmograph is necessarily much smaller than an adult model. This means that there is a smaller mean distance over which heat diffusion must occur between the air in the plethysmograph and its walls. This in turn leads to a much reduced thermal time constant. We examined the effects of thermal time constant of a 60 L infant plethysmograph on measurements of TGV in infants. The thermal time constant was measured by rapidly injecting 20 mL of air into the plethysmograph, and found to be 0.16 +/- 0.09s when the box was empty. We calculated from this time constant that measurements of TGV should be quite dependent on the frequency at which the associated panting maneuvers are performed. TGV was measured in 5 infants less than 6 months old in the recovery phase following acute viral bronchiolitis. When we performed a digital correction of the measurements, to compensate for the thermal time constant of the plethysmograph, the TGV values decreased by a mean of 12%. Agitating the air in the plethysmograph with a fan decreased the thermal time constant of the box and reduced measured TGV by a mean of 8.4%. These results indicate that thermodynamics of infant plethysmographs can be an important source of error in TGV measurements.

Algorithms↗

In vivo and in vitro studies of the cellular defense system of the human lung.

Magnetic microparticles were used to investigate the defence system of the human lungs against foreign material. About 0.5 mg of spherical monodisperse magnetite particles were deposited in the alveolar region of the human lung by voluntary inhalation. After primary magnetization a remanent magnetic field (RMF) of the lung can be measured that allows estimation of the amount of dust retained in the lung. The decay of this RMF, called relaxation, results from a misalignment of the dipole particles due to the activity of pulmonary macrophages. This macrophage activity was characterized by a cell energy Ez. With a secondary magnetization the lung can be remagnetized by rotation of the dipole particles. This allows estimation of the intracellular viscosity and the motility of the alveolar macrophages in vivo. The macrophage cell-line J774 was used to verify the dynamic processes of the magnetic particles within the cells in vitro. In vitro and in vivo relaxation curves of polydisperse and of spherical monodisperse magnetite particles are presented. Thermal relaxation of mono-disperse and polydisperse particles within a viscous standard could be verified with the Brownian rotary diffusion model. Relaxation with monodisperse particles was double exponential in vivo as well as in vitro, suggesting that 2 different viscous compartments of the cytoplasm should be considered. Relaxation in the macrophage cell-line J774 was particle-size-dependent.

Administration, Inhalation↗

Temperature effect during humid ageing on interfaces of glass and carbon fibers reinforced epoxy composites.

Weight change behavior of fiber-reinforced polymer composites in humid and thermal environments appears to be a complex phenomena. The state of fiber/matrix interface is believed to influence the nature of diffusion modes. A significant weakening often appears at the interface during the hygrothermal ageing. It effects the moisture uptake kinetics and also the reduction of mechanical properties. The importance of temperature at the time of conditioning plays an important role in environmental degradation of such composite materials. An attempt has been made here to evaluate the deleterious effect of temperature on shear strength of carbon/epoxy and glass/epoxy composites during hygrothermal conditionings. Mechanical tests were conducted at room temperature to assess the effectiveness of the relaxation process in the nullification of environmentally-induced damage in the composites.

Journal Article↗

Formation of the surface NO during N2O interaction at low temperature with iron-containing ZSM-5.

Interaction of N2O at low temperatures (473-603 K) with Fe-ZSM-5 zeolites (Fe, 0.01-2.1 wt %) activated by steaming and/or thermal treatment in He at 1323 K was studied by the transient response method and temperature-programmed desorption (TPD). Diffuse reflectance infrared fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS) of NO adsorbed at room temperature as a probe molecule indicated heterogeneity of surface Fe(II) sites. The most intensive bands were found at 1878 and 1891 cm(-1), characteristic of two types mononitrosyl species assigned to Fe2+(NO) involved in bi- and oligonuclear species. Fast loading of atomic oxygen from N2O on the surface and slower formation of adsorbed NO species were observed. The initial rate of adsorbed NO formation was linearly dependent on the concentration of active Fe sites assigned to bi- and oligonuclear species, evolving oxygen in the TPD at around 630-670 K. The maximal coverage of a zeolite surface by NO was estimated from the TPD of NO at approximately 700 K. This allowed the simulation of the dynamics of the adsorbed NO formation at 523 K, which was consistent with the experiments. The adsorbed NO facilitated the atomic oxygen recombination/desorption, the rate determining step during N2O decomposition to O2 and N2, taking place at temperatures > or =563 K.

Journal Article↗

Statistics of defect motion in spatiotemporal chaos in inclined layer convection.

We report experiments on defect-tracking in the state of undulation chaos observed in thermal convection of an inclined fluid layer. We characterize the ensemble of defect trajectories according to their velocities, relative positions, diffusion, and gain and loss rates. In particular, the defects exhibit incidents of rapid transverse motion which result in power law distributions for a number of quantitative measures. We examine connections between this behavior and Levy flights and anomalous diffusion. In addition, we describe time-reversal and system size invariance for defect creation and annihilation rates.

Diffusion↗

Properties of branched confined polymers.

A model of star-branched polymer chains confined in a slit formed by two parallel surfaces was studied. The chains were embedded to a simple cubic lattice and consisted of f=3 branches of equal length. The macromolecules had the excluded volume and the confining surfaces were impenetrable for polymer segments. No attractive interactions between polymer segments and then between polymer segments and the surfaces were assumed and therefore the system was a thermal. Monte Carlo simulations were carried out employing the sampling algorithm based on chain's local changes of conformation. Lateral diffusion of star-branched chains was studied. Dynamic properties of star-branched chains between the walls with impenetrable rod-like obstacles were also studied and compared to the previous case. The density profiles of polymer segments on the slit were determined. The analysis of contacts between the polymer chain and the surfaces was also carried out.

Journal Article↗

Ammonia adsorption on and diffusion into thin ice films grown on Pt(111).

Ammonia adsorption on and diffusion into thin ice films grown on a Pt(111) surface were studied using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thermal desorption spectroscopy. After exposing the crystalline ice film to ammonia molecules at 45 K (ammonia/ice film), we have detected an intriguing feature at 1470 cm(-1) in the FTIR spectra, which is derived from the adsorption of ammonia on the ice with a characteristic structure which appears in thin film range. The peak intensity of this feature decreases gradually as the thickness of the substrate ice increases. In addition, we have detected a feature at 1260 cm(-1) which appears after annealing the ammonia/ice film. The feature corresponds to the ammonia molecules which reach the ice/Pt(111) interface through the ice film. Intriguingly, the intensity of this feature decreases with the ice thickness and there is a linear relation of the peak intensity of the features at 1470 and 1260 cm(-1). We propose a model in which the solubility of the ammonia molecules is much higher for the thin ice film than that for the ideal ice.

Journal Article↗

Molecular dynamics simulation on devitrification: isothermal devitrification and thermodynamics of PbF2 glasses.

The vitrification and devitrification features of lead fluoride are investigated by means of molecular dynamic simulations. The influence of heating rate on the devitrification temperature as well as the dependence of the glass properties on its thermal history, i.e., the cooling rate employed, is identified. As expected, different glasses are obtained when the cooling rates differ. Diffusion coefficient analysis during heating of glass and crystal, indicates that the presence of defects on the glassy matrix favors the transition processes from the ionic to a superionic state, with high mobility of fluorine atoms, responsible for the high anionic conduction of lead fluoride. Nonisothermal and isothermal devitrification processes are simulated in glasses obtained at different cooling rates and structural organizations occurring during the heat treatments are clearly observed. When a fast cooling rate is employed during the glass formation, the devitrification of a single crystal (limited by the cell dimensions) is observed, while the glass obtained with slower cooling rate, allowing relaxations and organization of various regions on the glass bulk during the cooling process, devitrifies in more than one crystalline plane.

Journal Article↗

Controlled release of a poorly water-soluble drug from hot-melt extrudates containing acrylic polymers.

Controlled release tablets containing a poorly water-soluble drug, indomethacin (IDM), acrylic polymers (Eudragit RD 100, Eudragit L 100, or Eudragit S 100), and triethyl citrate (TEC) were prepared by hot-melt extrusion. The physicochemical and IDM release properties of the controlled release hot-melt extrudates were investigated. Indomethacin (IDM) was found to be both thermally and chemically stable following hot-melt extrusion processing and displayed a plasticizing effect on Eudragit RL PO as demonstrated by a decrease in the glass transition temperatures of the polymer. The inclusion of either Pluronic F68, Eudragit L 100, or Eudragit S 100 in the powder blend containing Eudragit RD 100 prior to processing increased the rate of release of the IDM from the extrudates. An increase in the media pH and a decrease in the granule particle size also increased the rate of release of IDM. The inclusion of TEC up to 8% in the granule formulation or compressing the granules into tablets had no significant effect on the drug release rate. Indomethacin (IDM) was transformed from a crystalline Form I into an amorphous form in the Eudragit RD 100 granules following hot-melt extrusion. The thermal processing facilitated the formation of a solid solution with a continuous matrix structure that was shown to control drug diffusion from the extrudates.

Acrylic Resins↗