Kaolinite nanoscrolls, rolled kaolinite sheets with a tubular form, were prepared by a one-step route in which intercalation of guest species and swelling with solvent proceed at the same time. A methoxy-modified kaolinite was exfoliated by the intercalation of hexadecyltrimethylammonium chloride. The formation of nanoscrolls by the one-step route proceeded only by several alkyltrimethylammonium salts and 1-hexadecyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride. Intercalation of primary amines caused the formation of nanoscrolls by a two-step route in which the intercalation and swelling proceed separately. The successful one-step route is ascribed to the relatively weak interactions between the head groups of guest species and the interlayer surface of methoxy-modified kaolinite, and the interaction is thought to allow the formation of a flexible array of interlayer guest species for swelling. The tubular structure was mostly retained after the heat treatment at 600 °C to form hierarchically porous aluminosilicates with amorphous frameworks. The nanoscrolls intercalated organic guests species, which are not directly intercalated into methoxy-modified kaolinite, between the scrolled layers. The formation route to nanoscrolls is quite dependent not only on the surface modification of kaolinite but also on the structure of guest species.

[structure: see text] A pyrrolic macrocycle, beta-tetrakis(trifluoromethyl)porphycene, is the first example of a fluorine-containing porphycene. Four electron-withdrawing CF(3) substituents provide a highly distorted structure and an attractive electron-deficient nature for the porphycene framework. From the electrochemical study, it is found that the LUMO energy level for the beta-trifluoromethylporphycene is 1.24 V more stabilized compared to that for etioporphyrin. Moreover, the deprotonation of the inner N[bond]H proton in the porphycene was observed upon the addition of DBU.

To establish an efficient design process for centrifugal blood pumps, the results of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis were compared to the results of flow visualization tests and hemolysis tests, using the Nikkiso centrifugal blood pump. CFD analysis revealed that the radial gap greatly affected the shear stress in the outlet diffuser. The hemolysis study also indicated a similar tendency. To see the flow behind the impeller, we conducted a comparative study between models with and without washout holes using the CFD technique. CFD analysis indicated that flow and pressure distributions behind the impeller were different between both models, and a particle was observed to remain longer behind the impeller in the model without washout holes. In the future, CFD analysis could be a useful tool for developing blood pumps in comparison to flow visualization tests and hemolysis tests.

A porphycene having four CF3 groups at the beta-pyrrolic positions affords a stable 20pi-conjugated form in the presence of a 2H+-2e- donor due to the high redox potential of the tetrapyrrole ring framework. No visible band in the UV-vis spectrum and the highly ruffled structure determined by X-ray crystallography support its nonaromatic character. The ethylene bridge moiety in the 20pi-conjugated framework displayed the olefinic reactivities.