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The difference in the chemical compositions between Neolithic pottery from the eastern and western ends of the northern Chinese Loess Plateau has been known for some time, and a number of possible explanations have been proposed. However, a full understanding of the difference is yet to be achieved. Based on recent geological studies of the Tianshui‐Qin'an area on the western Loess Plateau, the present study establishes a logical connection between the chemical characteristics of Neolithic pottery from the western Loess Plateau and the primary sediments available in the area. Moreover, this study reveals that the chemical compositions of clay used for fine wares and coarse wares at Dadiwan also bear some clear differences. Based on these findings, the paper discusses possible clay selection methods by potters in the Neolithic western Loess Plateau to make their different wares based on the locales where suitable raw materials are available. The paper demonstrates that the raw materials available for pottery making on the eastern and western Loess Plateau differ significantly and this explains the marked difference in ceramic composition between the two locations.

BACKGROUND Although methyl acrylate has been graft polymerized from cellulose and functionalized with hydrazine and hydroxylamine for removal of copper and nickel ions, the adsorption capacity was less than 80 mg g−1. The present work reported hydrazinolysis of cellulose-graft-polymethyl acrylate and remarkably improved adsorption capacity for Cu(II) and Ni(II) in aqueous solution. RESULTS Hydrazinolyzed cellulose-graft-polymethyl acrylate (Cell-g-PMA-HZ) has been prepared by ceric salt-initiated graft polymerization of methyl acrylate from microcrystalline cellulose surface and subsequent hydrazinolysis with hydrazine hydrate. The successful synthesis was confirmed by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, 13C-NMR, elemental analysis, scanning electron microscopy and thermogravimetric analysis. Adsorption behavior of Cell-g-PMA-HZ for Cu(II) and Ni(II) were studied through batch static adsorption processes and column chromatography methods. The influences of graft yield, initial pH, contact time and temperature on adsorption capacity of Cell-g-PMA-HZ as well as adsorption equilibrium, kinetic and thermodynamic properties were studied in detail. Kinetic adsorption can be explained by pseudo-second-order and adsorption isotherms fitted with Langmuir isotherm model, from which maximum equilibrium adsorption capacity can be derived as 229.36 mg g−1 for Cu(II) and 173.91mg g−1 for Ni(II) at 28°C. Further thermodynamic investigation indicated that adsorption of Cu(II) and Ni(II) by adsorbent Cell-g-PMA-HZ was exothermic and spontaneous under the studied conditions. CONCLUSIONS Hydrazinolysis of cellulose-graft-polymethyl acrylate has been accomplished. As an adsorbent, the prepared Cell-g-PMA-HZ was reusable and fairly efficient for removal of Cu(II) and Ni(II) from aqueous solution. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry

Two ancient green Chinese Pb-Ba glass (Qin and Han dynasties) were studied with Raman microspectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry. Some needlelike silicates were found in the samples and inferred as BaSiO3, BaSi2O5, and PbSiO3 according to the results of energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry analysis. Then BaSiO3, BaSi2O5, and PbSiO3 were synthetized in laboratory in order to obtain their Raman spectra. Through comparative study, the needlelike silicates in the ancient Pb-Ba glass samples were proved to be PbSiO3, BaSiO3, and Al2O3. According to the ternary phase diagram analysis, a mechanism of local element enrichment was put forward for the barium silicate needlelike silicates (by-products) formation in the ancient Pb-Ba glass. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

This study focuses on an improved synthesis of a branched poly (ethylene imine) (PEI)-modified cellulose-based adsorbent (Cell-g-PGMA-PEI). We aim to improve the adsorbent capacity by reducing side reaction of epoxide ring opening during graft copolymerization of glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) onto cellulose which increases the content of epoxy groups, anchors to immobilize branched PEI moieties. FTIR spectra provided the evidence of successful graft copolymerization of GMA onto cellulose initiated by benzoyl peroxide (BPO) and modification with PEI. The amount of epoxy groups of Cell-g-PGMA was 4.35 mmol g−1 by epoxy titration. Subsequently, the adsorption behavior of Cu(II) on cell-g-PGMA-PEI in aqueous solution has been investigated. The data from the adsorption kinetic experiments agreed well with pseudo-second-order model. The adsorption isotherms can be interpreted by the Langmuir model with the maximum adsorption capacity of 102 mg g−1 which was largely improved compared with the similar adsorbent reported. The dynamic adsorption capacity obtained from the column tests was 119 mg g−1 and the adsorbent could be regenerated by HCl of 0.1 mol L−1. Results indicate that the novel pathway for the synthesis of Cell-g-PGMA-PEI exhibits significant potential to improve the performance of adsorbents in removal and recovery of Cu(II) from aqueous solution. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013

Five resinous incense materials excavated from the underground palace of Bao'en Temple, Nanjing, were studied by a multianalytical approach of near infrared, midinfrared, and Fourier transform Raman spectroscopies. By comparing the multispectroscopic features of five specimens, these incense materials were identified to the same substance. Subsequent analysis and comparison of the ancient incense materials and three modern reference specimens were carried out, and the results indicated that the excavated incense materials were frankincense, with its major component of triterpenoids. This work performs, for the first time, a comprehensive spectroscopic study for the Chinese excavated incense materials, demonstrating that a combined use of near infrared, midinfrared, and Fourier transform Raman spectroscopies is an efficient technique to identify an excavated incense. Copyright (c) 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.