Competition between Osmotic Squeezing versus Friction-Driven Swelling of Gels

Some types of hydro-gels have almost the same equilibrium swelling volume in water and in ethylene glycol (EG), a highly viscous liquid completely miscible with water. Experiments showed that when a gel fully swollen with EG is immersed into a large amount of water, it temporarily swells up and then relaxes to the equilibrium volume in water. The temporary swelling is explained by the friction force exerted on the gel network from the outward EG flux In this paper, we experimentally show that the temporary swelling is suppressed by adding linear PEG (polyethylene glycol) in the outer water. Although the suppression seems to be explained by the osmotic pressure (i.e., by the same mechanism as the conventional osmotic squeezing), our theoretical analysis reveals that the effect of PEG is much stronger than that expected from the equilibrium osmotic pressure, implying that the PEG chains are condensed on the gel surface.

GlacierMIP3 global glacier mass change equilibration experiments - rationale and experimental design

<p>Glaciers outside the ice sheets are major contributors to today’s sea-level rise and are projected to remain so in the coming century. With the goal to better assess the future sea-level contribution from glaciers and to quantify related uncertainties, the Glacier Model Intercomparison Project (GlacierMIP) has set out to develop a series of coordinated experiments to be run as a community-wide effort.</p><p>The first two phases of the GlacierMIP have focused on the evolution of glaciers throughout the 21<sup>st</sup> century (Hock et al., 2019; Marzeion et al., 2020). In the third phase of GlacierMIP (GlacierMIP3 – equilibration), a new set of experiments has been designed to investigate the equilibration of glaciers under constant climate conditions. These experiments will allow us to answer the following fundamental questions:</p><p>1. What would be the equilibrium volume and area of all glaciers outside the ice sheets if global mean temperatures were to stabilize at present-day levels?</p><p>2. What would be the equilibrium volume and area of all glaciers outside the ice sheets if global mean temperatures were to stabilize at different temperature levels (e.g. +1.5, +2, relative to pre-industrial)?</p><p>3. For each of these global mean temperature stabilization scenarios, how much time would the glaciers need to reach their new equilibrium?</p><p>In this contribution, we present the experimental design of GlacierMIP3 and open up the floor for ideas and discussions about possible processing of these experiments. We also invite interested individuals and groups to join us to discuss the possibility of their model to be included in the newest phase of GlacierMIP.</p><p> </p><p><strong>References</strong></p><p><strong>GlacierMIP1</strong>: Hock, R., Bliss, A., Marzeion, B., Giesen, R.H., Hirabayashi, Y., Huss, M., Radic, V., Slangen, A.B.A. (2019), GlacierMIP – A model intercomparison of global-scale glacier mass-balance models and projections, Journal of Glaciology 65(251), 453-467, doi: 10.1017/jog.2019.22</p><p><strong>GlacierMIP2</strong>: Marzeion, B., Hock, R., Anderson, B., Bliss, A., Champollion, N., Fujita, K., Huss, M., Immerzeel, W., Kraaijenbrink, P., Malles, J-H., Maussion, F., Radic, V., Rounce, D.R., Sakai, A., Shannon, S., van de Wal, R., Zekollari, H. (2020), Partitioning the Uncertainty of Ensemble Projections of Global Glacier Mass Change, Earth’s Future 8(7), e2019EF001470, doi: 10.1029/2019EF001470</p>

Assessment of the radiation situation and distribution of radionuclides in the air of the uranium protoxide-oxide calcination shop

The exposure dose rates, the equivalent equilibrium volume activity of radon, and the activity of long-lived alpha-nuclides in the air of the uranium protoxide-oxide calcination shop were determined. Annual effective doses for workers were calculated. Through the use of nuclear-based polietilentereftalata and chemical filters, the disperse composition of particles in the air was studied. The effectiveness of filters in sampling was evaluated for the uranium content. The kinetics of distribution of uranium in various fractions was studied. The quality coefficients of filters that accumulate uranium relative to its norm in various working places of the shop were estimated.

Trade clustering and power laws in financial markets

This study provides an explanation for the emergence of power laws in asset trading volume and returns. We consider a two‐state model with binary actions, where traders infer other traders' private signals regarding the value of an asset from their actions and adjust their own behavior accordingly. We prove that this leads to power laws for equilibrium volume and returns whenever the number of traders is large and the signals for asset value are sufficiently noisy. We also provide numerical results showing that the model reproduces observed distributions of daily stock volume and returns.

Расслаивающиеся полимерные растворы в микроразмерных порах: фазовые переходы, индуцированные деформацией пористого материала

The influence of pore morphology on phase equilibria in stratifying polymer solutions within porous matrices has been simulated by means of equilibrium chemical thermodynamics. Using the example of liquid stratifying polybutadiene-polystyrene oligomer mixtures, we have shown that deformation of a matrix which influences on pore shapes, determines mutual solubilities of components within a pore, equilibrium volume ratios of co-existing phases and their thermodynamic stability. The change in the geometric characteristics of a pore is simulated in general by introducing a parameter corresponding to the degree of deviation of the shape of the pore walls from the spherical one. The dependences of mutual solubilities of components on pore volume within pores of different shapes are different which has been explained by the existence of several mechanisms of lowering the free energy of the system. Severe deformations of a matrix lead to suppressing the stratification in microsized pores while every composition up to the equimolar one becomes thermodynamically stable.

Electronic Structure of Intermetallic Antiferromagnet GdNiGe

The electronic structure of the GdNiGe ternary intermetallic compound was investigated in this work. We carried out the spin-polarized DFT+U calculations of its band structure within generalized gradient approximation accounting for strong electronic correlations in the 4f-shell of gadolinium ions. The antiferromagnetic ordering was reproduced in the calculations, in agreement with experimental data. The calculated equilibrium volume is within 2% accuracy to the experimental crystal structure data, which demonstrates the reliability of the method chosen. The 4f-shell of Gd was demonstrated to substantially contribute to the spectral and magnetic properties of the GdNiGe compounds, whereas other ions were found nonmagnetic, in agreement with experimental data.

Особенности фазовых превращений растворов полимеров в деформируемых пористых матрицах

The influence of geometric characteristics (size and shape) of a pore on phase equilibria in stratifying polymer solutions within porous matrices have been simulated by means of equilibrium chemical thermodynamics. Using the example of liquid stratifying polybutadiene-polystyrene mixtures, we have shown that a strain of a matrix which influences on pore shapes, determines mutual solubilities of components within a pore, equilibrium volume ratios of co-existing phases and their thermodynamic stability. High strains of a matrix lead to suppressing the stratification while every composition up to the equimolar one becomes thermodynamically stable.

Dynamic Evolution of Traveler’s Bounded-Rational Route Choice Behavior

Travelers’ route choice shows bounded-rationality because of different perceptions of route attributes. Based on the bounded-rationality, the paper proposes the dynamic evolution rules and route choice model, and simulation method is applied to study the evolution process and results. The model includes three parameters reflecting the bounded-rationality of travelers. First, simulation results show that the bounded-rationality affects the evolution process. The switching threshold or the perception deviance is larger, convergence rate is faster, and shorter time is needed to reach equilibrium state. Also, fewer perfect rational travelers will lead to similar results. Second, the system can reach equilibrium and the final equilibrium volume of every route is almost unaffected by bounded-rationality. The equilibrium volume of every route is an approximately fixed value under all simulation scenes. At last, it is found that equilibrium volume of every route obeys normal distribution. That is, bounded-rationality affects the equilibrium convergence rate, but volume equilibrium results will not be influenced.

Effect of alloying elements on the stacking fault energies of dilute al-based alloys

A systematic study of the stacking fault energy (?SF) for the dilute Al-based alloys (Al23X, Al47X and Al71X, where X = Al, Ag, Be, Ca, Cd, Co, Cu, Cr, Fe, Ga, Ge, Hf, In, K, La, Li, Mn, Mg, Ni, Na, Pb, Sc, Sn, Sr, Si, Ti, V, Zn, and Zr) has been performed by means of first-principles calculations. Alias shear deformation is adopted in the present investigations. The presently calculated ?SF for Al is in favorable accordance with experimental and other theoretical data. For the targeted elements, the calculations indicate that Na, Si, K, Ca, Sc, Ga, Ge, Sr, Zr, In, Sn, La, Hf, and Pb, in any concentration we considered, decrease the ?SF of Al, while Ag, Be, Cd, Co, Cu, Cr, Fe, Li, Mn, Mg, Ni, Ti, V, and Zn increase the ?SF of Al, when the concentration of alloying elements is 1.39 at. % in the system. With increasing concentration of alloying elements, Li, Mg, V, Ti, and Cd change from increasing the ?SF of Al to decreasing it, based on present investigations. Among the alloying elements, which decrease the ?SF of Al, La decreases the ?SF most significantly. It is also found that the ?SF of Al-X generally decreases with the increase of equilibrium volume. The results obtained in the present work provide an insight into the design of Al based alloys.