E. A. Belyaeva

Thermodynamics of the clusterization process of cis isomers of unsaturated fatty acids at the air/water interface.

In the framework of the semiempirical PM3 method, the thermodynamic parameters of cis isomers of unsaturated carboxylic acids at the air/water interface are studied. The model systems used are unsaturated cis fatty acid of the composition Delta = 12-15 and omega = 6-11, where Delta and omega refer to the number of carbon atoms between the functional group and double bond, and that between the double bond and methyl group, respectively. For dimers, trimers, and tetramers of the four acid series, the thermodynamic parameters of clusterization are calculated. It is shown that the position of the double bond does not significantly affect the values of thermodynamic parameters of formation and clusterization of carboxylic acids for equal chain lengths (n = Delta + omega). The calculated results show that for cis unsaturated fatty acid with odd Delta values the spontaneous clusterization threshold corresponds to n = 17-18 carbon atoms in the alkyl chain, while for monounsaturated acids with even Delta values this threshold corresponds to n = 18-19 carbon atoms in the alkyl chain. These differences in the clusterization threshold between the acids with even and odd Delta values are attributed to the formation of additional intermolecular hydrogen bonds between the ketonic oxygen atom of one monomer and the hydrogen atom linked to the alpha-carbon atom of the second monomer for the acids with odd Delta values or between the hydroxyl oxygen atom of one monomer and hydrogen atom linked to the alpha-carbon atom of the second monomer for the acids with even Delta values. The results obtained in the study agree satisfactorily with our experimental data for cis unsaturated nervonic (Delta15, omega9) and erucic acids (Delta13, omega9), and published data for some fatty acids, namely cis-16-heptadecenoic (Delta16, omega1), cis-9-hexadecenoic (Delta7, omega9), cis-11-eicosenoic (Delta11, omega9) and cis-9-octadecenoic acid (Delta9, omega9).

Temperature Effect on the Monolayer Formation of Substituted Alkanes at the Air/Water Interface: A Quantum Chemical Approach

An approach to calculation of the threshold temperature for spontaneous clusterization of substituted alkanes (amines, nitriles, alcohols, thioalcohols, saturated and unsaturated carboxylic acids, α-amino acids, carboxylic acid amides, and melamine derivatives) at the air/water interface with dependence on the alkyl chain length was developed. In the framework of this approach, four schemes for the description of the temperature dependencies of the thermodynamic parameters of clusterization of the concerned amphiphilic compounds were proposed. They use the data obtained previously in the framework of quantum chemical semiempirical PM3 method and differ from each other by the degree of their theoretical accuracy. It was shown that the threshold temperature for spontaneous clusterization of the regarded classes of substituted alkanes can be described using a fractionally linear function in dependence on the alkyl chain length. It was found that, in agreement with the presented experimental data, the effect of the alkyl chain elongation of the substituted alkanes by two methylene units correlates with the decrease of the subphase temperature (ΔT) by 10-20 K. The general shape of the obtained dependencies indicates that the difference in the ΔT values for the amphiphilic molecules decreases with increasing alkyl chain length. This implies that the contribution of the intermolecular CH···HC interactions between the alkyl chains of monolayer molecules should be a decisive factor.

EMI MOOCS FOR UNIVERSITY LECTURERS

English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) at higher education institutions (HEIs) is gradually becoming more and more important and has a unique range of issues clearly different from those of EAP and ESP. EMI in higher education can facilitate the growth of the National Higher Education export potential and help each and every HEI move up the university rankings due to the growing numbers of international students. There is clearly a need for more university courses taught in English and EMI in higher education has already been discussed extensively in a number of international scholarly journals promoting globalization and internationalization of higher education. A small-scale investigation has been made to find out what kind of professional support is currently available for university faculty teaching and lecturing in English. This investigation has been limited to massive open online course (MOOC) platforms and international teaching qualifications providers. A brief outline of the research findings with an overview of the EMI-related MOOCs targeted at university faculty is offered with a detailed comparative analysis of the following MOOCs: “English as a Medium of Instruction for Academics” developed by the University of Southampton on the FutureLearn platform and “English for Teaching Purposes” developed by the Open University of Barcelona on the Coursera platform. The comparative analysis will cover the following variables: syllabus statement, course content, methods and techniques, assessment, resources and some learning outcomes. This paper is aimed at the university faculty who are already teaching their disciplines through English or will be working in academic international contexts in English with international cohorts of students in a global classroom.