Transport of water and anions (OH super(-), HCO sub(3) super(-), F super(-), Cl super(-), Br super(-), and I super(-)) in a model poly(arylene ether) anion exchange membrane (AEM) with quaternary ...ammonium (QA) functional groups is studied for water volume fractions of Phi sub(water)=5-99.9% Phi water=5-99.9%. At elevated water content, OH super(-) conductivity recorded under CO sub(2) free conditions occurs mainly through structural diffusion, approaching half of the H super(+) conductivities of Nafion. Severe conductivity decrease at low hydration suggests incomplete dissociation of NR sub(4) super(+) OH super(-) and inferior percolation within the aqueous domain of the AEM compared to Nafion. Further conductivity decrease result from CO sub(2) contamination, forming carbonates which are less mobile, less hydrated and also less dissociated from the QA compared to OH super(-) at a given relative humidity (RH). For other anions, conductivity decreases in the order F super(-)>Cl super(-)>Br super(-)>I super(-)F->Cl->Br->I- for a given RH and also for the same hydration number lambda =H sub(2)O/QA. These trends correlate with both decreasing water uptake and degree of dissociation, which is incomplete for some anions even at very high levels of hydration. Consequently, the functional groups in their halide forms display weak electrolyte behavior in contrast to the corresponding salts. Varying degrees of dissociation of different anions are held responsible for distinct variations of the nano-morphology of hydrated membranes.
Abstract James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) observations have been demonstrated to be efficient in detecting multiple stellar populations in globular clusters (GCs) in the low-mass regime of M dwarfs. ...We present an overview, and first results, of different projects that can be explored by using the JWST observations gathered under program GO2560 for 47 Tucanae, the first program entirely devoted to the investigation of multiple populations in very-low-mass stars, which includes spectroscopic data for the faintest GC stars for which spectra are available. Our color–magnitude diagram (CMD) shows some substructures for ultracool stars, including gaps and breaks in slope. In particular, we observe both a gap and a minimum in the F322W2 luminosity function less than 1 mag apart, and discuss which it could be associated with the H-burning limit. We detect stars fainter than this minimum, very likely brown dwarfs. We corroborate the ubiquity of the multiple populations across different masses, from ∼0.1 M ⊙ up to red giants (∼0.8 M ⊙ ). The oxygen range inferred for the M dwarfs, both from the CMD and from the spectra of two M dwarfs associated with different populations, is similar to that observed for giants. We have not detected any difference between the fractions of stars in distinct populations across stellar masses ≳ 0.1 M ⊙ . This work demonstrates the JWST's capability in uncovering multiple populations within M dwarfs and illustrates the possibility to analyze very-low-mass stars in GCs approaching the H-burning limit and the brown-dwarf sequence.
Resolved observations of millimeter-sized dust, tracing larger planetesimals, have pinpointed the location of 26 Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt analogs. We report that a belt's distance R to its host star ...correlates with the star's luminosity L , following with a low intrinsic scatter of ∼17%. Remarkably, our Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt in the solar system and the two CO snow lines imaged in protoplanetary disks lie close to this R-L relation, suggestive of an intrinsic relationship between protoplanetary disk structures and belt locations. To test the effect of bias on the relation, we use a Monte Carlo approach and simulate uncorrelated model populations of belts. We find that observational bias could produce the slope and intercept of the R-L relation but is unable to reproduce its low scatter. We then repeat the simulation taking into account the collisional evolution of belts, following the steady-state model that fits the belt population as observed through infrared excesses. This significantly improves the fit by lowering the scatter of the simulated R-L relation; however, this scatter remains only marginally consistent with the one observed. The inability of observational bias and collisional evolution alone to reproduce the tight relationship between belt radius and stellar luminosity could indicate that planetesimal belts form at preferential locations within protoplanetary disks. The similar trend for CO snow line locations would then indicate that the formation of planetesimals or planets in the outer regions of planetary systems is linked to the volatility of their building blocks, as postulated by planet formation models.
We report on several features in the energy spectrum from an ultralow-noise germanium detector operated deep underground. By implementing a new technique able to reject surface events, a number of ...cosmogenic peaks can be observed for the first time. We discuss an irreducible excess of bulklike events below 3 keV in ionization energy. These could be caused by unknown backgrounds, but also dark matter interactions consistent with DAMA/LIBRA. It is not yet possible to determine their origin. Improved constraints are placed on a cosmological origin for the DAMA/LIBRA effect.
Fifteen months of cumulative CoGeNT data are examined for indications of an annual modulation, a predicted signature of weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP) interactions. Presently available ...data support the presence of a modulated component of unknown origin, with parameters prima facie compatible with a galactic halo composed of light-mass WIMPs. Unoptimized estimators yield a statistical significance for a modulation of ∼2.8σ, limited by the short exposure.
The inclination distribution of the Kuiper Belt provides unique constraints on its origin and dynamical evolution, motivating vertically resolved observations of extrasolar planetesimal belts. We ...present ALMA observations of millimeter emission in the near edge-on planetesimal belt around β Pictoris, finding that the vertical distribution is significantly better described by the sum of two Gaussians compared to a single Gaussian. This indicates that, as for the Kuiper Belt, the inclination distribution of β Pic's belt is better described by the sum of dynamically hot and cold populations, rather than a single component. The hot and cold populations have rms inclinations of and degrees. We also report that an axisymmetric belt model provides a good fit to new and archival ALMA visibilities, and confirm that the midplane is misaligned with respect to β Pic b's orbital plane. However, we find no significant evidence for either the inner disk tilt observed in scattered light and CO emission or the southwest/northeast asymmetry previously reported for millimeter emission. Finally, we consider the origin of the belt's inclination distribution. Secular perturbations from β Pic b are unlikely to provide sufficient dynamical heating to explain the hot population throughout the belt's radial extent, and viscous stirring from large bodies within the belt alone cannot reproduce the two populations observed. This argues for an alternative or additional scenario, such as planetesimal being born with high inclinations, or the presence of a "β Pic c" planet, potentially migrating outward near the belt's inner edge.
Abstract We present the first spectroscopic estimates of the chemical abundance of M dwarf stars in a globular cluster (GC), namely 47 Tucanae. By exploiting NIRSpec on board the James Webb Space ...Telescope, we gathered low-resolution spectra for 28 stars with masses in the range ∼0.4–0.5 M ⊙ . The spectra are strongly affected by the H 2 O water vapor bands, which can be used as indicators of oxygen abundance. The spectral analysis reveals that the target stars feature a different O abundance, with a difference of ∼0.40 dex between the first and the most polluted second population. The observed range is similar to that observed among red giant stars. This result reinforces previous findings based on the analysis of photometric diagrams, including the “chromosome maps,” providing a first, and more direct, evidence of light element variations in the M dwarfs’ mass regime. The observation that the multiple populations, with their variations in light elements, exhibit the same patterns from the lower main sequence all the way to the red giant branch further strengthens the notion that multiple stellar populations in GCs formed in a series of bursts of star formation.
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