The polyol process: a unique method for easy access to metal nanoparticles with tailored sizes, shapes and compositions.

After about three decades of development, the polyol process is now widely recognized and practised as a unique soft chemical method for the preparation of a large variety of nanoparticles which can be used in important technological fields. It offers many advantages: low cost, ease of use and, very importantly, already proven scalability for industrial applications. Among the different classes of inorganic nanoparticles which can be prepared in liquid polyols, metals were the first reported. This review aims to give a comprehensive account of the strategies used to prepare monometallic nanoparticles and multimetallic materials with tailored size and shape. As regards monometallic materials, while the preparation of noble as well as ferromagnetic metals is now clearly established, the scope of the polyol process has been extended to the preparation of more electropositive metals, such as post-transition metals and semi-metals. The potential of this method is also clearly displayed for the preparation of alloys, intermetallics and core-shell nanostructures with a very large diversity of compositions and architectures.

Mandibular lymphoma.

INTRODUCTION: B-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (B-LBL) rarely occurs in the oral cavity (3.5% of all intra-oral malignant tumors). Few cases of B-LBL mandibular bone involvement have been reported. OBSERVATION: We report the case of a 30-year-old female patient presenting with a single swelling of the left mandibular region, having grown for several weeks. Maxillo-facial CT and MRI showed inflammation of soft tissues and muscles without initial signs of osteitis, thus noncontributive to the diagnosis. A biopsy allowed diagnosing an intra-oral bone lymphoblastic lymphoma. The patient was referred to the hematooncology unit for treatment. DISCUSSION: Jaw localization of non Hodgkin's lymphoma is rare. Clinical symptomatology and radiological signs are poorly contributive. The diagnosis relies on a histopathological analysis.

Fast microstructure and phase analyses of nanopowders using combined analysis of transmission electron microscopy scattering patterns.

The full quantitative characterization of nanopowders using transmission electron microscopy scattering patterns is shown. This study demonstrates the feasibility of the application of so-called combined analysis, a global approach for phase identification, structure refinement, characterization of anisotropic crystallite sizes and shapes, texture analysis and texture variations with the probed scale, using electron diffraction patterns of TiO2 and Mn3O4 nanocrystal aggregates and platinum films. Electron diffraction pattern misalignments, positioning, and slight changes from pattern to pattern are directly integrated and refined within this approach. The use of a newly developed full-pattern search-match methodology for phase identification of nanopowders and the incorporation of the two-wave dynamical correction for diffraction patterns are also reported and proved to be efficient.