Data of physical and electrochemical characteristics of calendered NMC622 electrodes and lithium-ion cells at pilot-plant battery manufacturing.

The data reported here was prepared to study the effects of calendering process on NMC622 cathodes using a 3-3-2 full factorial design of experiments. The data set consists of 18 unique combinations of calender roll temperature (85 °C, 120 °C, or 145 °C), electrode porosity (30%, 35%, or 40%), and electrode mass loading (120 g/m² or 180 g/m²). The reported physical characteristics of the electrodes include thickness, coating weight, maximum tensile strength, and density.

Laboratory Performance Testing of Aqueous Nasal Inhalation Products for Droplet/Particle Size Distribution: an Assessment from the International Pharmaceutical Aerosol Consortium on Regulation and Science (IPAC-RS).

Although nasal inhalation products are becoming more and more important for the delivery of medicines, characterization of these products for quality control and assessment of bioequivalence is complicated. Most of the problems encountered are associated with the assessment of aerodynamic droplet/particle size distribution (APSD). The droplets produced by the various nasal devices are large, and for suspension products, individual droplets may contain multiple drug particles or none at all.

Cross-sectional analysis of lithium ion electrodes using spatial autocorrelation techniques.

Join counting, a standard technique in spatial autocorrelation analysis, has been used to quantify the clustering of carbon, fluorine and sodium in cross-sectioned anode and cathode samples. The sample preparation and EDS mapping steps are sufficiently fast for every coating from two Design of Experiment (DoE) test matrices to be characterised. The results show two types of heterogeneity in material distribution; gradients across the coating from the current collector to the surface, and clustering.

Internal Volumes of Pharmaceutical Compendial Induction Port, Next-Generation Impactor With and Without Its Pre-separator, and Several Configurations of the Andersen Cascade Impactor With and Without Pre-separator.

Determination of aerosol aerodynamic particle size distributions (APSD) from dry-powder inhalers (DPIs), following quality control procedures in the pharmacopeial compendia, requires that the flow through the measurement apparatus, comprising induction port, optional pre-separator, and cascade impactor, starts from zero on actuation of the inhaler, using a solenoid valve to apply vacuum to the apparatus exit. The target flow rate, governed by the inhaler resistance, is reached some time afterward. Understanding the behavior of the DPI design-specific flow rate-rise time curve can provide information about the kinetics of the initial powder dispersion in the inhaler and subsequent transport through the APSD measurement equipment.

Electronic and Geometric Structures of Rechargeable Lithium Manganese Sulfate LiMn(SO) Cathode.

Here, we report the use of LiMn(SO) as a potential energy storage material and describe its route of synthesis and structural characterization over one electrochemical cycle. LiMn(SO) is synthesized by ball milling of MnSO·HO and LiSO·HO and characterized using a suite of techniques, in particular, ex situ X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy on the Mn and S K-edges to investigate the electronic and local geometry around the absorbing atoms. The prepared LiMn(SO) electrodes undergo electrochemical cycles to different potential points on the charge-discharge curve and are then extracted from the cells at these points for ex situ structural analysis.

Investigation of dry powder inhaler (DPI) resistance and aerosol dispersion timing on emitted aerosol aerodynamic particle sizing by multistage cascade impactor when sampled volume is reduced from compendial value of 4 L.

Compendial methods determining dry powder inhaler (DPI)-emitted aerosol aerodynamic particle size distribution (APSD) collect a 4-L air sample containing the aerosol bolus, where the flow, which propagates through the cascade impactor (CI) measurement system from the vacuum source, is used to actuate the inhaler. A previous article described outcomes with two CIs (Andersen eight-stage cascade impactor (ACI) and Next-Generation Pharmaceutical Impactor (NGI)) when the air sample volume was ≤4 L with moderate-resistance DPIs. This article extends that work, examining the hypothesis that DPI flow resistance may be a factor in determining outcomes.

Adapting the Abbreviated Impactor Measurement (AIM) concept to make appropriate inhaler aerosol measurements to compare with clinical data: a scoping study with the "Alberta" idealized throat (AIT) inlet.

Background: The Abbreviated Impactor Measurement (AIM) concept simplifies determination of aerodynamic size metrics for inhaler quality control testing. A similar approach is needed to compare in vitro particle size distribution metrics with human respiratory tract (HRT) deposition.

Methods: An abbreviated impactor based on the Andersen eight-stage cascade impactor (ACI) was developed having two size-fractionating stages with cut-points at 4.

Effect of sampling volume on dry powder inhaler (DPI)-emitted aerosol aerodynamic particle size distributions (APSDs) measured by the Next-Generation Pharmaceutical Impactor (NGI) and the Andersen eight-stage cascade impactor (ACI).

Current pharmacopeial methods for testing dry powder inhalers (DPIs) require that 4.0 L be drawn through the inhaler to quantify aerodynamic particle size distribution of "inhaled" particles. This volume comfortably exceeds the internal dead volume of the Andersen eight-stage cascade impactor (ACI) and Next Generation pharmaceutical Impactor (NGI) as designated multistage cascade impactors.

Unusual magnetism in templated NiS nanoparticles.

Nanostructured NiS was prepared by inclusion into anodic alumina templates. The resultant particles were found to be stoichiometric and highly crystalline. The particles displayed small particle superparamagnetism, and a low temperature (at 48 K (T(sg))) spin-freezing phenomenon (a spin-glass) and higher temperature (170 K) thermal blocking of small particle magnetic moment fluctuations were both observed for the first time for a sulfide material.

Development of chemically engineered porous metal oxides for phosphate removal.

In this study, the application of ordered mesoporous silica (OMS) doped with various metal oxides (Zr, Ti, Fe and Al) were studied for the removal of (ortho) phosphate ions from water by adsorption. The materials were characterized by means of N(2) physisorption (BET), powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The doped materials had surface areas between 600 and 700 m(2)g(-1) and exhibited pore sizes of 44-64 Å.

Swelling of ionic and nonionic surfactant micelles by high pressure gases.

The influence of different solvent environments on the size, shape, and characteristics of surfactant micelles of Pluronic F127 and CTAB was investigated by small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). SANS experiments were undertaken on dilute micellar surfactant solutions of F127 and CTAB that between them were exposed to liquid and supercritical carbon dioxide, liquid propane, ethane, and heptane under various pressures and temperatures. Swelling of the surfactant micelles could be directly related to the solubility of the solvents within the micelles, especially within their cores.

Earliest date for milk use in the Near East and southeastern Europe linked to cattle herding.

The domestication of cattle, sheep and goats had already taken place in the Near East by the eighth millennium bc. Although there would have been considerable economic and nutritional gains from using these animals for their milk and other products from living animals-that is, traction and wool-the first clear evidence for these appears much later, from the late fifth and fourth millennia bc. Hence, the timing and region in which milking was first practised remain unknown.

Supercritical fluid swelling of liquid crystal films.

The influence of liquid and supercritical carbon dioxide and liquid propane on the structural properties of both ionic and nonionic surfactant-based liquid crystal films is discussed in this paper. Swelling of the films, measured using in situ small-angle neutron scattering (SANS), was found to be dependent on the solubility of the propane/carbon dioxide in the micelles of the respective liquid crystals. Additionally, under certain pressure conditions the structural properties of some of the films were observed to change, ultimately leading to a loss of order in the micellar arrays of the liquid crystals.

Pore size engineering in mesoporous silicas using supercritical CO2.

In this paper we investigate the use of supercritical carbon dioxide (sc-CO(2)) for synthesizing calcined mesoporous silicas with tunable pore sizes, wall thickness, and d spacings. Small angle neutron scattering was used to probe the controlled swelling of the triblock copolymer surfactant templating agents, P123 (PEO(20)PPO(69)PEO(20)), P85 (PEO(26)PPO(39)PEO(26)), and F127 (PEO(106)PPO(70)PEO(106)), as a function of CO(2) pressure. The transition from the liquid crystal phase to the calcined mesoporous silicas, formed upon condensation and drying, was also studied in detail.

Characterisation of "bog butter" using a combination of molecular and isotopic techniques.

The chemical analyses of "bog butters" recovered from peat bogs of Scotland were performed with the aim of determining their origins. Detailed compositional information was obtained from "bog butter" lipids using high temperature gas chromatography (HTGC) and GC-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The results indicate the degree to which "bog butters" have undergone diagenetic alterations during burial to form an adipocere like substance, consisting predominantly of hexadecanoic (palmitic) and octadecanoic (stearic) acids.

Effects of hydrolysis on the delta13C values of individual amino acids derived from polypeptides and proteins.

This study investigates the effects of hydrolysis on the delta13C values of individual amino acids (IAAs) derived from polypeptide standards, and modern and ancient bone collagen. All IAAs were derivatised to their trifluoroacetyl/isopropyl (TFA/IP) esters for delta13C determination using gas chromatography/combustion/isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC/C/IRMS). Firstly, authentic single poly amino acid standards (SPAAs; n = 5) were hydrolysed for 4, 10, 24 and 48 h.

Chemistry of archaeological animal fats.

Animal fats are preserved at archaeological sites in association with unglazed pottery, human and animal remains, and other deposits or hoards. High-temperature gas chromatography (HT-GC) and combined HT-GC/mass spectrometry (HT-GC/MS) has confirmed the presence of animal fats in lipid extracts of artifacts. Degradation products and pathways have been discerned through the analyses of archaeological finds and the products of laboratory and field-based decay experiments.

Screening for Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia trachomatis at entertainment venues among men who have sex with men.

Background: To assess the prevalence and increase awareness of Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia trachomatis infections among men who have sex with men, a screening program was conducted at three inner-city homosexual entertainment venues and one community function.

Study Design: Each venue was accessed twice over a 3-month period between March and June 2000. First-catch urine specimens were collected for analysis by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and throat swabs were collected for culture and PCR.