Since 1982 standard calibration materials recommended for respirable crystalline silica analysis by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) P7 Infrared Method and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) X-ray Diffraction (XRD) Analytical Method 7500 have undergone minor changes in size distribution. However, a critical assumption has been made that the crystal...

Nano-hybrid hydrogels were prepared by cross-linking polymerization of N,N-dimethylacrylamide (DMA) within a dispersion of silica nano-particles. Working at constant polymer/water ratio, the mechanical properties of hydrogels can be finely tuned by changing either the level of covalent cross-linker and/or the amount of particles that act as physical cross-linkers through specific adsorption of ...

A new method was developed for the preparation of highly monodisperse isotopically enriched Si-29 silica nanoparticles ((29)Si-silica NPs) with the purpose of using them as spikes for isotope dilution mass spectrometry (IDMS) quantification of silica NPs with natural isotopic distribution. Si-29 tetraethyl orthosilicate ((29)Si-TEOS), the silica precursor was prepared in two steps starting from...

A green analytical method was developed for separation and preconcentration of trace amounts of copper from aqueous samples using aurin tricarboxylic acid-immobilized silica gel (ATA-SG). This was done by determining chemical speciation and stability constant of Cu-ATA complex. The pH-metric studies indicate strong complexation of Cu with ATA (log βCu2ATA = 19.56). Species distribution curve fo...

A silica gel medium was developed for the enumeration of petroleumlytic microorganisms in the marine environment. The medium was satisfactorily used for the investigation of the vertical distribution of bacteria in seawater from the surface to 1,000 m depth of western north Pacific central water as well as the neritic region of Japan.

To improve the mechanical properties of tires, silica granules can be incorporated into the elastomer as well as carbon black. Ideally, the fragmentation of the granules in the elastomer must be obtained with low mechanical stresses and lead to very small fragments distributed homogeneously in the material. On the other hand, granules must present a sufficient cohesion, in order to avoid the ge...

Interactions between polymers and inorganic surfaces are present in a series of phenomena involving processes such as coagulation and deffloculation of ceramic powder and adsorption of organic macromolecules on the surface of implants, among others. In this work, Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) was modified to allow the evaluation of interactions between polymeric chains and inorganic surfaces (s...