Filters
total: 1118
filtered: 811
Search results for: FT-IR SPECTRA
-
Comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography for determination of the terpenes profile of blue honeysuckle berries
PublicationTerpenes are the main group of secondary metabolites, which play essential role in human. The establishment of the terpenes profile of berries of different blue honeysuckle cultivars was achieved by headspace solid-phase microextraction coupled with comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography with time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HS-SPME/GCGC-TOFMS). The berries were found to contain 44 terpenes identified by GCGC-TOFMS....
-
Luminescence recognition material as an INHIBIT logic gate in presence of Pb2+ and Cu2+ ions in aqueous solutions
PublicationA recognition material consisting of silica xerogel with amino-modified surface selectively recognizes Pb2+ and Cu2+ (but only in presence of Pb2+ ions) in aqueous solutions of other metal ions. The analytical action of the material is based on a significant change in luminescence emission spectra of the material after chemisorption of Pb2+ ions. In the presence of Pb2+ in octahedral coordination environment, a new broad and strong...
-
Behavior Based Complete Coverage Task of Unknown Area by an Autonomous Mobile Robot SCORPION with Static Obstacles in Environment
PublicationIn the paper the behavior based control system of an autonomous mobile robot SCORPION is presented to execute the one of the most difficult navigation task, which is the complete coverage task of unknown area with static obstacles in the environment. The main principle assumed to design control system was that the robot should cover all area only once, if it possible, to optimize the length of path and energy consumption. All commercial...
-
Thermal and Mechanical Behavior of Elastomers Incorporated with Thermoregulating Microcapsules
PublicationPolyurethane (PU) is one of the principal polymers in the global plastic market thanks to its versatility and continuous improvement. In this work, PU elastomeric materials having thermoregulating properties through the incorporation of microcapsules (mSD-(LDPE·EVA-RT27)) from low-density polyethylene and vinyl acetate containing paraffin®RT27 as PCM were produced. Elastomers were synthesized while varying the molar ratio [NCO]/[OH]...
-
Effect of composition on the thermal properties and structure of M-Al-Si-O-N glasses, M = Na, Mg, Ca
PublicationThe primary objective of this study is to explore the relationship between the composition, structure, and thermal characteristics of M-Al-Si-O-N glasses, with M representing sodium (Na), magnesium (Mg), or calcium (Ca). The glasses were prepared by melting in a quartz crucible at 1650 °C and AlN precursor (powder) was utilized as a nitrogen source. The measured thermal properties studied were glass transition temperature (Tg),...
-
Diphosphinoboranes as Intramolecular Frustrated Lewis Pairs: P–B–P Bond Systems for the Activation of Dihydrogen, Carbon Dioxide, and Phenyl Isocyanate
PublicationHerein, we present the first example of the activation of small molecules by P-B-P bond systems. The reactivity study involves reactions of two selected diphosphinoboranes, (tBu2P)2BPh (1’) and (Cy2P)2BNiPr2 (2), that differ in terms of their structural and electronic properties for the activation of dihydrogen, carbon dioxide, and phenyl isocyanate. Diphosphinoborane 1’ activates H2 under very mild conditions in the absence of...
-
Color prediction from first principle quantum chemistry computations: a case of alizarin dissolved in methanol
PublicationThe electronic spectrum of alizarin (AZ) in methanol solution was measured and used as reference data for color prediction. The visible part of the spectrum was modelled by different DFT functionals within the TD-DFT framework. The results of a broad range of functionals applied for theoretical spectrum prediction were compared against experimental data by a direct color comparison. The tristimulus model of color expressed in terms...
-
Engineering Au nanoparticle arrays on SiO2 glass by pulsed UV laser irradiation
PublicationWe study semi-regular arrays of Au nanoparticles (NP) obtained via UV laser irradiation of thin Au films on glass substrate. The NP structures are prepared from films of a thickness up to 60 nm produced by discharge sputtering or pulsed laser deposition, and annealed by nanosecond laser pulses at 266 or 308 nm, respectively, at fluencies in the range of 60-410 mJ/cm2. For the rare- and close-packed NP structures, consistent description...
-
Sample preparation procedure for the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in petroleum vacuum residue and bitumen
PublicationThis paper describes a novel method of samplepreparation for the determination of trace concentrations ofpolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in high-boilingpetroleum products. Limits of quantitation of the investigatedPAHs in materials of this type range from tens ofnanograms per kilogram to <20 μg/kg. The studies revealedthat in order to separate most of interferences from theanalytes without a significant loss of PAHs, it...
-
Theoretical studies of fragmentation processes of neutral and ionized furan molecule
PublicationThis PhD thesis focuses on the fragmentation mechanism of the furan molecule in the gas phase. The approach taken in this work comprised of three theoretical methodologies considering the dynamical, energetical and entropic aspects of the studied process. First, molecular dynamics simulations were performed. Next, the potential energy surfaces were explored at the DFT/B3LYP level of theory. Finally, a new statistical Microcanonical...
-
Wavelet filtering of signals without using model functions
PublicationThe effective wavelet filtering of real signals is impossible without determining their shape. The shape of a real signal is related to its wavelet spectrum. For shape analysis, a continuous color wavelet spectrogram of signal level is often used. The disadvantage of continuous wavelet spectrogram is the complexity of analyzing a blurry color image. A real signal with additive noise strongly distorts the spectrogram based on continuous...
-
Probing Local Structural Changes by Sharp Luminescent Infrared Nanophosphor for Application in Light-Emitting Diodes
PublicationCr3+-doped infrared phosphors are promising candidates for next-generation phosphor-converted infrared light-emitting diodes (LEDs) because they can, in principle, tune and convert the luminescence spectra from an LED chip. However, most studies focus on broad-band Cr3+-doped phosphors, and the control mechanism of Cr3+-doped phosphors with sharp line emissions remains ambiguous. Here, we report LiGa5(1–x)Al5xO8:Cr3+ phosphors...
-
Electrical properties of Na2O-CaO-P2O5 glasses doped with SiO2 and Si3N4
PublicationSodium-calcium-phosphate glasses doped with SiO2 or Si3N4 having similar sodium ion concentrations were prepared by melt quenching. The conductivity was measured by impedance spectroscopy under nitrogen atmosphere in a wide frequency range (10 mHz–1 MHz) and wide temperature range (153–473 K). At 36.6 °C, DC conductivities of all glasses vary between 1.1 ∗ 10−12 and 8.9 ∗ 10−12 S cm−1 and have similar activation energies (between...
-
Comparison of simplified sum-over-state expressions to calculate resonance Raman intensities including Franck-Condon and Herzberg-Teller effects
PublicationSum-over-state (SOS) expressions to simulate absorption spectroscopy and resonance Raman (RR) scattering including Franck-Condon (FC) and Herzberg-Teller (HT) effects are described. Starting from the general SOS method, several simplified SOS formulae are derived. In particular, within the so-called independent mode displaced harmonic oscillator model, it is shown that including the vibronic structure in the absorption and RR spectra...
-
Local Structure and Stability of SEI in Graphite and ZFO Electrodes Probed by As K-edge Absorption Spectroscopy
PublicationThe evolution of the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) during the first Li uptake in advanced Li-ion electrodes is studied by X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS). The As atoms present in the electrolyte solution were used as a local probe for monitoring the SEI growth on different electrodes. High-quality As K-edge spectra were collected in fluorescence mode for a set of graphite and carbon-coated ZnFe2O4 electrodes. XAS measurements...
-
Smart acoustic band structures
PublicationSmart acoustic band structures exhibit very interesting and non-standard physical properties due to the periodic nature of their certain characteristic on different scale levels. They manifest mostly in their frequency spectra as socalled frequency band-gaps or stop-bands, what has a great impact on the behaviour of these structures in relation to the propagation of vibro-acoustic signals that can be transmitted through the structures...
-
Structure and hyperfine interactions in Bi1−xNdxFeO3 solid solutions prepared by solid-state sintering
PublicationThe series of polycrystalline ceramic powders, Bi1xNdxFeO3 (x = 0.11) was successfully synthesized by mixed oxide method followed by pressureless sintering. X-ray diffraction and Mössbauer spectroscopy were used as complementary methods to study structure and hyperfine interactions of the samples. It was found that with an increase of Nd content, within the range of x = 0.20.3 a structural phase transition from rhombohedral to...
-
A white phosphor based on oxyfluoride nano-glass-ceramics co-doped with Eu3+ and Tb3+: Energy transfer study
PublicationStrontium fluoride nanocrystals doped separately with Ln3+ = Eu3+ or Tb3+ ions (95SrF2·5LnF2), as well as co-doped with both the ions (95SrF2·Eu4Tb) were synthesized for comparison. Then, glass-ceramics consisting of the mono-doped or di-doped SrF2 nanocrystals incorporated into amorphous silica (90SiO2·9.5SrF2·0.5Ln or 90SiO2·9.5SrF2·0.1EuF3·0.4Tb) were prepared by sol-gel procedure. The studied materials were characterized by...
-
Effect of sisal fiber filler on thermal properties of bio-based polyurethane composites
PublicationThis work is mainly focused on study of thermal and thermomechanical properties of obtained bio-based polyurethane (coded as bio-PU) composites via using different types of bio-components (bio-glycol, modified soybean oil and sisal fiber) in the procedure. The chemical structure, morphology and mechanical properties were also investigated and described in this manuscript in order to know more perfect characterization of produced...
-
Examination of Spectral Properties of Medicinal Plant Leaves Grown in Different Lighting Conditions Based on Mint Cultivation
PublicationCultivation in controlled environmental conditions can provide good quality medicinal herbs with consistent properties. A sensing system that can determine the contents of medicinal substances in plants using spectral characteristics of leaves would be a valuable tool. Viability of such sensing approach for mint had to be confirmed experimentally, as no data correlating contents of medicinal substances with spectral characteristics...
-
Generation-recombination and 1/f noise in carbon nanotube networks
PublicationThe low-frequency noise is of special interest for carbon nanotubes devices, which are building blocks for a variety of sensors, including radio frequency and terahertz detectors. We studied noise in as-fabricated and aged carbon nanotube networks (CNNs) field-effect transistors. Contrary to the majority of previous publications, as-fabricated devices demonstrated the superposition of generation-recombination (GR) and 1/f noise...
-
An Improved Method of Minimizing Tool Vibration during Boring Holes in Large-Size Structures
PublicationThe paper presents a thoroughly modified method of solving the problem of vibration suppression when boring large-diameter holes in large-size workpieces. A new approach of adjusting the rotational speed of a boring tool is proposed which concerns the selection of the spindle speed in accordance with the results of the simulation of the cutting process. This streamlined method focuses on phenomenological aspects and involves the...
-
Density functional LCAO calculations of vibrational modes and phonon density of states in the strained single-layer phosphorene
PublicationThe paper presents an investigation of phosphorene under axial strain on the phonon density of states and vibrational modes. The studies were performed by means of density functional theory (DFT) within the linear combination of atomic orbitals (LCAO). The strained models were constructed using optimised supercell techniques. The vibrational mode spectra were estimated for strains applied for both the zigzag and armchair directions...
-
ATTEMPTS OF THERMAL IMAGING CAMERA USAGE IN ESTIMATIONS OF THE CONVECTIVE HEAT LOSS FROM A VERTICAL PLATE
PublicationIn this paper a new method for determining heat transfer coefficients using a gradient method has been developed. To verify accuracy of the proposed method vertical isothermal heating plate with natural convection mechanism has been examined. This configuration was deliberately chosen, because of the fact that such case is historically the earliest and most thoroughly studied and its rich scientific documentation - the most reliable....
-
Cadmium complex possessing simultaneously silanethiolato- and dithiocarbamato-ligands. A novel single-source precursor of cadmium sulfide
PublicationThermal decomposition of suitable coordination compounds may be used as efficient route for fabrication of semiconducting layers. A new potential CdS precursor—a cadmium complex with all-sulfur Cd-coordination sphere [Cd{l-SSi(OBut)3}(S2CNC4H8)]2 (1) —has been prepared and its properties are investigated. The complex was obtained in the reaction between dimeric bis(tri-tert-butoxysilanethiolato) cadmium(II) [Cd{SSi(OBut)3}2]2 and...
-
Synthesis, Characterization and Biological Investigations of Half-Sandwich Ruthenium(II) Complexes Containing Benzimidazole Moiety
PublicationHalf-sandwich Ru(II) complexes belong to group of biologically active metallo-compounds with promising antimicrobial and anticancer activity. Herein, we report the synthesis and characteri- zation of arene ruthenium complexes containing benzimidazole moiety, namely, [(η6-p-cymene)RuC l(bimCOO)] (1) and [(η6-p-cymene)RuCl2(bim)] (2) (where bimCOO = benzimidazole-2-carboxylate and bim = 1-H-benzimidazole). The compounds were characterized...
-
Structural motifs in the Cu(II), Mn(II) and Zn(II) complexes based on N,N,N-donor dipodal or N,N,N,N-donor tripodal ligands obtained in situ: Synthesis, crystal structures and xanthine oxidase inhibition properties
PublicationA series of four novel transition metal complexes, [Cu(NCS)2L1] (1), [Mn(NCS)2L1] (2) where L1 = bis(1-(3,5-dimethylpyrazolyl)methyl)amine, [Mn(NCS)2L2] (3) and [Zn(NCS)L2]2[Zn(NCS)4] (4) where L2 = tris(1-(3,5-dimethylpyrazolyl)methyl)amine, has been obtained in situ by a one-step, one-pot synthetic path starting from 1-hydroxymethyl-3,5-dimethylpyrazole (L). The isolated complexes were fully characterised by elemental analysis,...
-
Synthesis, structure, DNA binding and anticancer activity of mixed ligand ruthenium(II) complex
PublicationIn order to obtain a potential chemotherapeutic which is not affected on the normal BALB/3T3 cell line, a new arene ruthenium(II) complex {[RuCl(L1)(η6-p-cymene)]PF6}2 · H2O has been synthesized by a direct reaction of precursor, [{(η6-p-cymene)Ru(μ-Cl)}2Cl2], with N,N-chelating ligand (L1 - 2,2′-bis(4,5-dimethylimidazole). The compound has been fully characterized by elemental analysis, X-ray diffraction, IR, UV–Vis and 1H, 13C...
-
Structure, Physicochemical and Biological Properties of an Aqua (2,2′,2′′-Nitrilotriacetato)-oxidovanadium(IV) Salt with 4-Methylpyridinium Cation
PublicationThe crystal structure of a nitrilotriacetate (nta) oxidovanadi-um(IV) salt with 4-methylpyridinium cation, [4-Me(Py)H]+, of [4-Me(Py)H][VO(nta)(H2O)] stoichiometry was determined. The com-plex comprises a discrete mononuclear [VO(nta)(H2O)]–coordinationentity that can be rarely found among other known compounds con-taining nitrilotriacetate oxidovanadium(IV) moieties. The complex wascharacterized by spectroscopic (IR and EPR) methods,...
-
Iridium 5d -electron driven superconductivity in ThIr3
PublicationA polycrystalline sample of superconducting ThI r 3 was obtained by arc-melting Th and Ir metals. Powder x-ray diffraction revealed that the compound crystalizes in a rhombohedral crystal structure (R-3m, s.g. #166) with the lattice parameters: a = 5.3394 ( 1 ) Å and c = 26.4228 ( 8 ) Å . Normal and superconducting states were studied by magnetic susceptibility, electrical resistivity, and heat capacity measurements. The results...
-
Spectroscopic and photophysical properties of ZNTPP in a room temperature ionic liquid
PublicationThe steady-state absorption and emission spectra and the time-resolved Soret- and Q-band excited fluorescence profiles of the model metalloporphyrin, ZnTPP, have been measured in a highly purified sample of the common room temperature ionic liquid, [bmim][PF(6)]. S(2)-S(0) emission resulting from Soret-band excitation behaves in a manner completely consistent with that of molecular solvents of the same polarizability. The ionic...
-
O 1s excitation and ionization processes in the CO2 molecule studied via detection of low-energy fluorescence emission
PublicationOxygen 1s excitation and ionization processes in the CO2 molecule have been studied with dispersed and non-dispersed fluorescence spectroscopy as well as with the vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) photon-photoion coincidence technique. The intensity of the neutral O emission line at 845 nm shows particular sensitivity to core-to-Rydberg excitations and core-valence double excitations, while shape resonances are suppressed. In contrast,...
-
Evaluating Gelatin-Based Films with Graphene Nanoparticles for Wound Healing Applications
PublicationIn this study, gelatin-based films containing graphene nanoparticles were obtained. Nanoparticles were taken from four chosen commercial graphene nanoplatelets with different surface areas, such as 150 m2/g, 300 m2/g, 500 m2/g, and 750 m2/g, obtained in different conditions. Their morphology was observed using SEM with STEM mode; porosity, Raman spectra and elemental analysis were checked; and biological properties, such as hemolysis...
-
Collision Strengths of Astrophysical Interest for Multiply Charged Ions
PublicationThe electron impact excitation and ionization processes are crucial for modeling the spectra of different astrophysical objects, from atmospheres of late-type stars to remnants of supernovae and up to the light emission from neutron star mergers, to name just a few. Despite their signifi- cance, however, little is known quantitatively about these processes for low- and medium-impact energies of, say, Ekin . 5000 eV of the free...
-
Protective and Suppressing Electromagnetic Interference Properties of Epoxy Coatings Containing Nano-Sized NiZn Ferrites
PublicationNano-crystalline ferrites with the chemical formula NixZn(1−x)Fe2O4, where x = 0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, 1.0, were synthesized using a co-precipitation method. The obtained ferrites were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD). The corrosion inhibiting behavior of nano-sized ferrites was tested using carbon steel samples and 10% aqueous ferrite extracts. Results were compared with previous data obtained for micro-sized ceramic ferrites....
-
Biomolecular influenza virus detection based on the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy using the nanocrystalline boron-doped diamond electrodes with covalently bound antibodies
PublicationNew rapid pathogen detection methods with improved cost-effectiveness and efficiency are currently in the focus of the scientists from all over the world. Based on the experiences from the rapid spread of the influenza virus pandemic in 2009 it is clear that the development of the system for early diagnosis of this infection is essential. The crucial stage of the treatment is the detection of the viral infection during its initial...
-
Evaluation of organic coatings condition with AFM-based method
PublicationThe paper presents an atomic force microscopy (AFM)-based approach to evaluation of local protective properties of organic coatings. Apart from topography, it provides local ac and dc characteristics of examined coating. The method consists in application of ac voltage perturbation signal between conductive AFM tip and coated metal substrate. The resulting current is used to determine local impedance characteristics. Both impedance...
-
Ion conduction in beryllium-alumino-silicate glasses doped with sodium or sodium and lithium ions
PublicationElectrical properties of beryllium-alumino-silicate glasses containing sodium ions or sodium and lithium ions were studied with impedance spectroscopy technique over a frequency range from 10 mHz to 1 MHz and at temperature range from 213 to 473 K. The frequency- and temperature-dependent conductivity spectra of individual single alkali glasses were superimposed by means of the Summerfield scaling. Mixed-alkali glasses do not overlap...
-
Impedance evaluation of coatings from biobased material
PublicationThe authors propose a modification of sodium caseinate edible coating for foodstuff protection. The aim was to improve the film’s barrier properties. It was achieved by the addition of propolis, which is a natural, environmentally friendly product known from its intrinsic sealing action. In the next step, propolis-admixed sodium caseinate films were exposed to elevated temperature for 10 min. This approach was meant to improve...
-
Analysis
PublicationNew food products and diverse formulations containing the regulated steviol glycoside(s) as well as Stevia extracts or Stevia leaves have been brought on the global market. The upcoming multitude of such food products, but also their falsification and adulteration, does have impact on food analysis. Robust high-throughput methods that cope with different food matrices are required for food control to ensure food safety. The analysis...
-
Structural and spectroscopic investigation of new luminescent hybrid materials based on calix[4]arene-tetracarboxylate and Ln 3+ ions (Ln = Gd, Tb or Eu)
PublicationLanthanide-calixarene hybrid materials are of particular interest due to the combination of the interesting properties of the ligand cavity-like structure and the luminescent features of lanthanides. The aim of this study was to synthesize and investigate the photophysical properties of Eu3+, Tb3+ and Gd3+ hybrids based on calix[4]arene-tetracarboxylate. The preparation of two structurally different...
-
Tyre/road noise reduction of poroelastic road surface tested in a laboratory
PublicationA so-called poroelastic road surface (PERS) is being developed in Europe. This contains a large percentage of rubber particles mixed with hard aggregate (stone and sand) and bound with polyurethane. This gives high air void content (around 30 %), high elasticity and smooth texture, all of which should give low noise properties. Inthis experiment anominally 30 mm thick sample of PERS was mounted on a steel drum. Various car tyres...
-
Au-RE-TiO2 nanocomposites: Surface characteristics and photoactivity
PublicationThe photocatalysts based on TiO2 co-doped with rare earth metal (RE) and gold nanoparticles have been prepared using a sol-gel method and followed by gold reduction. Specific surface areas of the modified photocatalysts were calculated by the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller method (BET). Diffuse reflectance spectra of the obtained photocatalysts were recorded in a UV-Vis spectrophotometer (DRS UV-Vis). The influence of the type of rare...
-
The protective properties of graphene oxide coatings functionalized with phosphorus atoms.
PublicationRecently, electrophoretically deposited graphene oxide coatings are commonly applied as an anti-corrosion layer. However, improper adjustment of electrophoretic deposition (EPD) parameters as well as the hydrophilic nature of graphene oxide contribute to the formation of defects in the coatings and the increase in the wetting properties, respectively, and thus lead to a reduction of protective properties. The growth of wetting...
-
Visible light activity of rare earth metal doped (Er3+, Yb3+ or Er3+/Yb3+) titania photocatalysts
PublicationA series of Er3+-TiO2, Yb3+-TiO2 and Er3+/Yb3+-TiO2 photocatalysts were obtained via sol-gel method, using rare earth metal (RE) precursor ranging from 0.25 to 10 mol%. The experiments demonstrated that phenol in aqueous solutions was successfully degraded under visible light (> 450 nm) using RE3+-TiO2. The as-prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron emission spectroscopy (XPS), UV-Vis...
-
Dynamic mass measurement in checkweighers using a discrete time-variant low-pass filter
PublicationConveyor belt type checkweighers are complex mechanical systems consisting of a weighing sensor (strain gauge load cell, electrodynamically compensated load cell), packages (of different shapes, made of different materials) and a transport system (motors, gears, rollers). Disturbances generated by the vibrating parts of such a system are reflected in the signal power spectra in a form of strong spectral peaks, located usually in...
-
Analysis of airborne metal containing particles with EDX/EDS detectorsin electron microscopes
PublicationIn years 2006-2010 particulate matter analysis was undertaken for dust samples collected from Gdansk and London area in orderto compare their morphology and composition. Part of those studies was devoted to analysis of particulate matter (PM) bearingmetals. Characterization of the morphology and size of the particles collected onto the filters was performed using a scanning electronmicroscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope...
-
Preparation and characterization of TiO2 nanostructures for catalytic CO2 photoconversion
PublicationThe titanium dioxide target (99.7%) of 1 cm in dia was ablated in vacuum by laser pulses(6 ns) at 266 nm and at repetition rate of 10 Hz. During deposition the laser fluence between 1 and 3.5 J/cm2 and the O2 pressure from the range of 10-2 - 1 Pa were applied. The thin TiO2 films were deposited on glass substrate (1 × 1 cm2) heated up to 500 °C. The chemical composition of the film and samples produced by annealing were investigated...
-
Structure and properties of the exopolysaccharides produced by Pseudomonas mutabilis T6 and P. mutabilis ATCC 31014
PublicationThis paper presents a study on the purification, primary structure, and rheological properties of exopolysaccharides isolated from cultures of Pseudomonas mutabilis T6 and P. mutabilis ATCC 31014. Both polymers are exopolysaccharides of D-mannose. The mannan isolated from P. mutabilis T6 contains on average about 5% of residual b-D-glucose, in contrast to the mannan from P. mutabilis ATCC 31014, which contained only trace amounts...
-
Molecular hydrogen solvated in water – A computational study
PublicationThe aqueous hydrogen molecule is studied with molecular dynamics simulations at ambient temperature and pressure conditions, using a newly developed flexible and polarizable H2 molecule model. The design and implementation of this model, compatible with an existing flexible and polarizable force field for water, is presented in detail. The structure of the hydration layer suggests that first-shell water molecules accommodate the...