Endeavor

The series is the long-awaited revision of the two-volume Le petrole. Raff inage et Genie Chimique" that was first published in 1965 under the direction of Pierre Wuithier. Revision of the original work, which was a highly successful publication, had been under consideration for several years. Jacqueline Funck, then Director of Information and Documentation at the Institut Frangais du Petrole, was instrumental in this endeavor. 

Some of the most interesting and important chemical and physical interactions occur when dissimilar materials meet, i.e. at an interface. The understanding of the physics and chemistry at interfaces is one of the most challenging and important endeavors in modem science. 

In the endeavor to deepen understanding of chemistry, many an experiment has been performed, and many data have been accumulated. Chapter 6, on databases, gives a vivid picture of the enormous amount of data that have been determined and made accessible. The task is then to derive knowledge from these data by inductive learning. In this context we have to define the terms, data, information, and knowledge, and we do so in a generally accepted manner. 

Chemists have formulated a variety of concepts of a physicochemical or theoretical nature in their endeavors to order their observations on chemical reactions and to develop insight into the effects that control the initiation and course of chemical reactions. The main effects (but not the only ones, by far) influencing chemical reactivity are described below. 

With the advent of quantum mechanics, quite early attempts were made to obtain methods to predict chemical reactivity quantitatively. This endeavor has now matured to a point where details of the geometric and energetic changes in the course of a reaction can be calculated to a high degree of accuracy, albeit still with quite some demand on computational resources. 

A proper representation of the molecular structure is crucial for the prediction of spectra. Fragment-based methods, topological descriptors, physicochemical descriptors, and 3D descriptors have been used for this endeavor. 

The chemical synthesis of carbon-containing molecules has been a very important field of scientific work and endeavor for over a centuiy However, the subject is still far aw ay from being fully developed. One of the major reasons for this is the almost unlimited number of organic structures which can exist as discrete compounds. On the other hand there has been a continuing growth in the ability of chemists to construct increasingly complex molecules. 

This is not the place to discuss the frequently reviewed historical and philosophical aspects of alchemy, but it is worthwhile to recall some rather late adherence to the precepts of alchemy by giants of the human intellectual endeavor. Johann Wolfgang Goethe is best known for his poetry and literature as the author of Faust. Tie himself, however, considered some of his major achievements to be in science. His interests were varied but also related to chemistry. He developed an early interest in alchemy, which, however, he overcame in later life. Goethe s classic character Faust reflects his fascination with the alchemist s effort to produce gold but eventually recognizes its futility and failure. 

Every effort has been made to select the most reliable information and to record it with accuracy. Many years of occupation with this type of work bring a realization of the opportunities for the occurrence of errors, and while every endeavor has been made to prevent them, yet it would be remarkable if the attempts towards this end had always been successful. In this connection it is desired to express appreciation to those who in the past have called attention to errors, and it will be appreciated if this be done again with the present compilation for the publishers have given their assurance that no expense will be spared in making the necessary changes in subsequent printings. 

The first syathesis of morphine, and therefore also codeiae, was completed ia 1956 (58). Although an additional twelve or so syntheses have been reported siace then, isolation of morphine remains more important than any synthetic process. However, synthetic endeavors continue to demonstrate new synthetic tools and capabiUties and to conduct the search for modified analogues that retain the analgesic properties of morphine but are nonaddicting. 

Plants, in contrast to animals, have the ability to convert carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and inorganic components of the earth direcdy into high energy carbohydrates (qv), fats, and proteins (qv). These plant materials are absolutely essential to human nutrition as well as to the nutrition of other animal species. Thus consumption of plant matter, either directly or through a food chain, is essential to animal life and humans are totally dependent on agricultural endeavors, ie, the culture and harvesting of plant matter. 

The Standard-Setting Process. The committee has three main lines of endeavor the improvement of existing limits for impurities, the improvement of present test methods, and the development of specifications and testing methods for additional compounds. 

Biorational approaches have proven useful in the development of classes of herbicides which inhibit essential metaboHc pathways common to all plants and thus are specific to plants and have low toxicity to mammalian species. Biorational herbicide development remains a high risk endeavor since promising high activities observed in the laboratory may be nullified by factors such as limitations in plant uptake and translocation, and the instabiHty or inactivity of biochemical en2yme inhibitors under the harsher environmental conditions in the field. Despite these recogni2ed drawbacks, biorational design of herbicides has shown sufficient potential to make the study of herbicide modes of action an important and growing research area. 

Roofs are a basic element of shelter from inclement weather. Natural or hewn caves, including those of snow or ice, ate early evidence of human endeavors for protection from the cold, wind, rain, and sun. Nomadic people, before the benefits of agriculture had been discovered and housing schemes developed, depended on the availabiUty of natural materials to constmct shelters. Portable shelters, eg, tents, probably appeared early in history. Later, more permanent stmctures were developed from stone and brick. SaUent features depended strongly on the avadabihty of natural materials. The Babylonians used mud to form bricks and tiles that could be bonded with mortars or natural bitumen. Ancient buildings in Egypt were characterized by massive walls of stone and closely spaced columns that carried stone lintels to support a flat roof, often made of stone slabs. 

Many companies provide support for both their research personnel and technical service personnel to participate in these types of activities. Even a pohcy of one conference per person per year, if appHed correctiy, provides a great deal of value to the individual and to the organization. The returns on this investment iaclude intangibles such as additional technical contacts and enhancement of the technical reputation of the company, as well as tangibles such as personnel possessing the latest information in their fields of endeavor, allowing them to better address customer concerns and needs, and developing ideas for process and product improvements. 

Although a minimum content of 12wt% Cr is required to impart the stainless characteristic to steels, much effort has been appHed to develop new grades of stainless steel having significantly reduced chromium contents without unacceptable degradation of corrosion resistance and other properties. There has been some modest success in this endeavor (34,53—56). 

Reduced negative environmental impacts. Through an evaluation of pollution-prevention alternatives, which consider a total systems approach, consideration is given to the negative impact of environmental damage to natural resources and species that occur during raw-material procurement and waste disposal. The performance of pollution-prevention endeavors will therefore result in enhanced environmental protection. 

It ean be extremely dangerous to making simple assumptions or endeavor to eonduet separate analyses of the expander and blower. The... 

Many of the steps used in sizing estimates are also useful for checking bids or evaluating existing equipment. In the latter two endeavors, there... 

Comparing compressors by type is a somewhat shaky endeavor, because it involves some opinion, some prejudice, and industry-accepted perceptions. Hopefully, the prejudice has been kept under control and the perceptions of industry are based on knowledge, experience, and, at least, some data. 

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