Sample records for desulfurization ced phase

  1. Desulfurization of dibenzothiophene (DBT) by a novel strain Lysinibacillus sphaericus DMT-7 isolated from diesel contaminated soil.

    PubMed

    Bahuguna, Ashutosh; Lily, Madhuri K; Munjal, Ashok; Singh, Ravindra N; Dangwal, Koushalya

    2011-01-01

    A new bacterial strain DMT-7 capable of selectively desulfurizing dibenzothiophene (DBT) was isolated from diesel contaminated soil. The DMT-7 was characterized and identified as Lysinibacillus sphaericus DMT-7 (NCBI GenBank Accession No. GQ496620) using 16S rDNA gene sequence analysis. The desulfurized product of DBT, 2-hydroxybiphenyl (2HBP), was identified and confirmed by high performance liquid chromatography analysis and gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy analysis respectively. The desulfurization kinetics revealed that DMT-7 started desulfurization of DBT into 2HBP after the lag phase of 24 hr, exponentially increasing the accumulation of 2HBP up to 15 days leading to approximately 60% desulfurization of the DBT. However, further growth resulted into DBT degradation. The induced culture of DMT-7 showed shorter lag phase of 6 hr and early onset of stationary phase within 10 days for desulfurization as compared to that of non-induced culture clearly indicating the inducibility of the desulfurization pathway of DMT-7. In addition, Lysinibacillus sphaericus DMT-7 also possess the ability to utilize broad range of substrates as sole source of sulfur such as benzothiophene, 3,4-benzo DBT, 4,6-dimethyl DBT, and 4,6-dibutyl DBT. Therefore, Lysinibacillus sphaericus DMT-7 could serve as model system for efficient biodesulfurization of diesel and petrol.

  2. Quantifying intermolecular interactions of ionic liquids using cohesive energy densities.

    PubMed

    Lovelock, Kevin R J

    2017-12-01

    For ionic liquids (ILs), both the large number of possible cation + anion combinations and their ionic nature provide a unique challenge for understanding intermolecular interactions. Cohesive energy density, ced , is used to quantify the strength of intermolecular interactions for molecular liquids, and is determined using the enthalpy of vaporization. A critical analysis of the experimental challenges and data to obtain ced for ILs is provided. For ILs there are two methods to judge the strength of intermolecular interactions, due to the presence of multiple constituents in the vapour phase of ILs. Firstly, ced IP , where the ionic vapour constituent is neutral ion pairs, the major constituent of the IL vapour. Secondly, ced C+A , where the ionic vapour constituents are isolated ions. A ced IP dataset is presented for 64 ILs. For the first time an experimental ced C+A , a measure of the strength of the total intermolecular interaction for an IL, is presented. ced C+A is significantly larger for ILs than ced for most molecular liquids, reflecting the need to break all of the relatively strong electrostatic interactions present in ILs. However, the van der Waals interactions contribute significantly to IL volatility due to the very strong electrostatic interaction in the neutral ion pair ionic vapour. An excellent linear correlation is found between ced IP and the inverse of the molecular volume. A good linear correlation is found between IL ced IP and IL Gordon parameter (which are dependent primarily on surface tension). ced values obtained through indirect methods gave similar magnitude values to ced IP . These findings show that ced IP is very important for understanding IL intermolecular interactions, in spite of ced IP not being a measure of the total intermolecular interactions of an IL. In the outlook section, remaining challenges for understanding IL intermolecular interactions are outlined.

  3. Quantifying intermolecular interactions of ionic liquids using cohesive energy densities

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    For ionic liquids (ILs), both the large number of possible cation + anion combinations and their ionic nature provide a unique challenge for understanding intermolecular interactions. Cohesive energy density, ced, is used to quantify the strength of intermolecular interactions for molecular liquids, and is determined using the enthalpy of vaporization. A critical analysis of the experimental challenges and data to obtain ced for ILs is provided. For ILs there are two methods to judge the strength of intermolecular interactions, due to the presence of multiple constituents in the vapour phase of ILs. Firstly, cedIP, where the ionic vapour constituent is neutral ion pairs, the major constituent of the IL vapour. Secondly, cedC+A, where the ionic vapour constituents are isolated ions. A cedIP dataset is presented for 64 ILs. For the first time an experimental cedC+A, a measure of the strength of the total intermolecular interaction for an IL, is presented. cedC+A is significantly larger for ILs than ced for most molecular liquids, reflecting the need to break all of the relatively strong electrostatic interactions present in ILs. However, the van der Waals interactions contribute significantly to IL volatility due to the very strong electrostatic interaction in the neutral ion pair ionic vapour. An excellent linear correlation is found between cedIP and the inverse of the molecular volume. A good linear correlation is found between IL cedIP and IL Gordon parameter (which are dependent primarily on surface tension). ced values obtained through indirect methods gave similar magnitude values to cedIP. These findings show that cedIP is very important for understanding IL intermolecular interactions, in spite of cedIP not being a measure of the total intermolecular interactions of an IL. In the outlook section, remaining challenges for understanding IL intermolecular interactions are outlined. PMID:29308254

  4. Desulfurization from Bauxite Water Slurry (BWS) Electrolysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gong, Xuzhong; Ge, Lan; Wang, Zhi; Zhuang, Siyuan; Wang, Yuhua; Ren, Lihui; Wang, Mingyong

    2016-02-01

    Feasibility of high-sulfur bauxite electrolysis desulfurization was examined using the electrochemical characterization, XRD, DTA, and FTIR. The cyclic voltammetry curves indicated that bauxite water slurry (BWS) electrolysis in NaOH system was controlled by diffusion. Additionally, the desulfurization effect of NaCl as the electrolyte was significantly better than that of NaOH as an electrolyte. As the stirring rate increased, the desulfurization ratio in NaCl system was not increased obviously, while the desulfurization ratio in NaOH system increased significantly, indicating further that electrolysis desulfurization in NaOH solution was controlled by diffusion. According to XRD, DTA, and FTIR analysis, the characteristic peaks of sulfur-containing phase in bauxite after electrolysis weakened or disappeared, indicating that the pyrite in bauxite was removed from electrolysis. Finally, the electrolytic desulfurization technology of bauxite was proposed based on the characteristics of BWS electrolysis.

  5. Flue Gas Desulfurization at Navy Bases, Navy Energy Guidance Study. Phase IV.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1980-08-01

    WA08O9 146 BECHTEL NATIONAL INC SAN FRANCISCO CA FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION AT NAVY BASES, NAVY ENERGY GUIDANCE ST-ETC(U) AUG 80 A I MCCONE N68305-77C... Flue gas desulfurization 10. ABSTRACT (C lno d. It -.4..,.d id-1, by 61-hb n-.1..) A study o e availability, costs, and operating perfor- nce of...industral-sized flue gas desulfurization (FGD) systems or coal-fired boilers 4...- mrfmmed for-the Civil Englneering- , - boratory at the Naval Construction

  6. Programmed Cell Death During Caenorhabditis elegans Development

    PubMed Central

    Conradt, Barbara; Wu, Yi-Chun; Xue, Ding

    2016-01-01

    Programmed cell death is an integral component of Caenorhabditis elegans development. Genetic and reverse genetic studies in C. elegans have led to the identification of many genes and conserved cell death pathways that are important for the specification of which cells should live or die, the activation of the suicide program, and the dismantling and removal of dying cells. Molecular, cell biological, and biochemical studies have revealed the underlying mechanisms that control these three phases of programmed cell death. In particular, the interplay of transcriptional regulatory cascades and networks involving multiple transcriptional regulators is crucial in activating the expression of the key death-inducing gene egl-1 and, in some cases, the ced-3 gene in cells destined to die. A protein interaction cascade involving EGL-1, CED-9, CED-4, and CED-3 results in the activation of the key cell death protease CED-3, which is tightly controlled by multiple positive and negative regulators. The activation of the CED-3 caspase then initiates the cell disassembly process by cleaving and activating or inactivating crucial CED-3 substrates; leading to activation of multiple cell death execution events, including nuclear DNA fragmentation, mitochondrial elimination, phosphatidylserine externalization, inactivation of survival signals, and clearance of apoptotic cells. Further studies of programmed cell death in C. elegans will continue to advance our understanding of how programmed cell death is regulated, activated, and executed in general. PMID:27516615

  7. Politics and its intersection with coverage with evidence development: a qualitative analysis from expert interviews.

    PubMed

    Bishop, Danielle; Lexchin, Joel

    2013-03-09

    Pressures on health care budgets have led policy makers to discuss how to balance the provision of costly technologies to populations in need and making coverage decisions under uncertainty. Coverage with evidence development (CED) is being employed to meet these challenges. Twenty-four interviews were carried out between June 2009 and December 2010 with researchers, decision makers and policy makers from Australia, Canada, United Kingdom and United States. Three phases of coding occurred, the first being manual coding where the interviews were read and notes were taken and nodes were extracted and imputed. NVIVO coding was applied to the interview transcripts, with both broad general searches for word usages and imputed nodes. Four overarching thematic areas emerged out of contextual analysis of the interviews - (1) what constitutes CED; (2) the lack of a systematic approach/governance structure; (3) the role of the pharmaceutical industry and overt political considerations in CED; and (4) alternatives and barriers to CED. We explore these themes and then use concrete examples of CED projects in each of the four countries to illustrate the political issues that our interviewees raised. Until the underlying political nature of CED is recognized then fundamental questions about its usefulness and operation will remain unresolved.

  8. Politics and its intersection with coverage with evidence development: a qualitative analysis from expert interviews

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Pressures on health care budgets have led policy makers to discuss how to balance the provision of costly technologies to populations in need and making coverage decisions under uncertainty. Coverage with evidence development (CED) is being employed to meet these challenges. Methods Twenty-four interviews were carried out between June 2009 and December 2010 with researchers, decision makers and policy makers from Australia, Canada, United Kingdom and United States. Three phases of coding occurred, the first being manual coding where the interviews were read and notes were taken and nodes were extracted and imputed. NVIVO coding was applied to the interview transcripts, with both broad general searches for word usages and imputed nodes. Results Four overarching thematic areas emerged out of contextual analysis of the interviews – (1) what constitutes CED; (2) the lack of a systematic approach/governance structure; (3) the role of the pharmaceutical industry and overt political considerations in CED; and (4) alternatives and barriers to CED. We explore these themes and then use concrete examples of CED projects in each of the four countries to illustrate the political issues that our interviewees raised. Conclusion Until the underlying political nature of CED is recognized then fundamental questions about its usefulness and operation will remain unresolved. PMID:23497271

  9. Synthesis and structural characterization of CdS nanoparticles using nitrogen adducts of mixed diisopropylthiourea and dithiolate derivatives of Cd(II) complexes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Osuntokun, Jejenija; Ajibade, Peter A.

    2015-07-01

    [Cd(diptu)2(ced)], [Cd(diptu)2(ced)(bpy)], [Cd(diptu)2(ced)(phen)], (where diptu = diisopropyl thiourea; ced = 1-cyano-1-carboethoxylethylene-2,2‧-dithiolate; bpy = 2,2‧-bipyridine and phen = 1,10-phenanthroline) have been prepared and used as single source precursors for the preparation of hexadecylamine capped CdS nanoparticles. The precursor complexes were characterized by elemental analysis, FTIR and TGA. The structural properties of the nanoparticles were investigated using powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy techniques (SEM). The optical properties of the nanoparticles were studied using UV-Visible and photoluminescence spectroscopy. The XRD analysis showed that the nanoparticles were indexed to the hexagonal phase of CdS and the TEM results showed CdS nanoparticles with average crystallite sizes of 4.00-8.80 nm.

  10. Convection enhanced delivery of carboplatin in combination with radiotherapy for the treatment of brain tumors.

    PubMed

    Yang, Weilian; Huo, Tianyao; Barth, Rolf F; Gupta, Nilendu; Weldon, Michael; Grecula, John C; Ross, Brian D; Hoff, Benjamin A; Chou, Ting-Chao; Rousseau, Julia; Elleaume, Hélène

    2011-02-01

    The purpose of this study was to further evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of convection enhanced delivery (CED) of carboplatin in combination with radiotherapy for treatment of the F98 rat glioma. Tumor cells were implanted stereotactically into the brains of syngeneic Fischer rats, and 13 or 17 d. later carboplatin (20 μg/10 μl) was administered by either CED over 30 min or by Alzet osmotic pumps (0.5 μg/μl/h for 168 h.) beginning at 7 d after tumor implantation. Rats were irradiated with a 15 Gy fractionated dose (5 Gy × 3) of 6 MV photons to the whole brain beginning on the day after drug administration. Other groups of rats received either carboplatin or X-irradiation alone. The tumor carboplatin concentration following CED of 20 μg in 10 μl was 10.4 μg/g, which was equal to that observed following i.v. administration of 100 mg/kg b.w. Rats bearing small tumors, treated with carboplatin and X-irradiation, had a mean survival time (MST) of 83.4 d following CED and 111.8 d following pump delivery with 40% of the latter surviving >180 d (i.e. cured) compared to 55.2 d for CED and 77.2 d. for pump delivery of carboplatin alone and 31.8 d and 24.2 d, respectively, for X-irradiated and untreated controls. There was no microscopic evidence of residual tumor in the brains of all long-term survivors. Not surprisingly, rats with large tumors had much shorter MSTs. Only modest increases in MSTs were observed in animals that received either oral administration or CED of temozolomide plus X-irradiation (23.2 d and 29.3 d) compared to X-irradiation alone. The present survival data, and those previously reported by us, are among the best ever obtained with the F98 glioma model. Initially, they could provide a platform for a Phase I clinical trial to evaluate the safety and potential therapeutic efficacy of CED of carboplatin in patients with recurrent glioblastomas, and ultimately a Phase II trial of carboplatin in combination with radiation therapy.

  11. Convection-enhanced delivery for the treatment of glioblastoma

    PubMed Central

    Vogelbaum, Michael A.; Aghi, Manish K.

    2015-01-01

    Effective treatment of glioblastoma (GBM) remains a formidable challenge. Survival rates remain poor despite decades of clinical trials of conventional and novel, biologically targeted therapeutics. There is considerable evidence that most of these therapeutics do not reach their targets in the brain when administered via conventional routes (intravenous or oral). Hence, direct delivery of therapeutics to the brain and to brain tumors is an active area of investigation. One of these techniques, convection-enhanced delivery (CED), involves the implantation of catheters through which conventional and novel therapeutic formulations can be delivered using continuous, low–positive-pressure bulk flow. Investigation in preclinical and clinical settings has demonstrated that CED can produce effective delivery of therapeutics to substantial volumes of brain and brain tumor. However, limitations in catheter technology and imaging of delivery have prevented this technique from being reliable and reproducible, and the only completed phase III study in GBM did not show a survival benefit for patients treated with an investigational therapeutic delivered via CED. Further development of CED is ongoing, with novel catheter designs and imaging approaches that may allow CED to become a more effective therapeutic delivery technique. PMID:25746090

  12. Biodesulfurization of refractory organic sulfur compounds in fossil fuels.

    PubMed

    Soleimani, Mehran; Bassi, Amarjeet; Margaritis, Argyrios

    2007-01-01

    The stringent new regulations to lower sulfur content in fossil fuels require new economic and efficient methods for desulfurization of recalcitrant organic sulfur. Hydrodesulfurization of such compounds is very costly and requires high operating temperature and pressure. Biodesulfurization is a non-invasive approach that can specifically remove sulfur from refractory hydrocarbons under mild conditions and it can be potentially used in industrial desulfurization. Intensive research has been conducted in microbiology and molecular biology of the competent strains to increase their desulfurization activity; however, even the highest activity obtained is still insufficient to fulfill the industrial requirements. To improve the biodesulfurization efficiency, more work is needed in areas such as increasing specific desulfurization activity, hydrocarbon phase tolerance, sulfur removal at higher temperature, and isolating new strains for desulfurizing a broader range of sulfur compounds. This article comprehensively reviews and discusses key issues, advances and challenges for a competitive biodesulfurization process.

  13. Safety of intraparenchymal convection-enhanced delivery of cintredekin besudotox in early-phase studies.

    PubMed

    Kunwar, Sandeep; Chang, Susan M; Prados, Michael D; Berger, Mitchel S; Sampson, John H; Croteau, David; Sherman, Jeffrey W; Grahn, Amy Y; Shu, Vince S; Dul, Jeanne L; Husain, Syed R; Joshi, Bharat H; Pedain, Christoph; Puri, Raj K

    2006-04-15

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is an increasingly used novel local/regional delivery method targeted directly to tissue. It relies on a continuous pressure gradient for distribution of therapeutic agents into the interstitial space, with administration of the infusate over a few days. Cintredekin besudotox (also known as IL13- PE38QQR) is a recombinant chimeric cytotoxin consisting of interleukin-13 and a truncated exotoxin produced by the Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacterium, which targets malignant glioma cells. Cintredekin besudotox was administered via intraparenchymal CED after resection of supratentorial recurrent malignant glioma. The safety and toxicity profile was reviewed for 53 patients in whom infusion catheters had been placed; 51 of them received CED of the study drug. Adverse events were categorized based on time of onset in relation to CED, and the causal relationship with catheter placement or delivery of cintredekin besudotox. Catheters were placed in 53 patients, although only 51 of them received cintredekin besudotox. Most adverse events related to catheter placement or the study drug originated from the central nervous system. Three symptomatic windows were defined: the first one was between surgical procedure and CED; the second was during CED and up to 1 week after its completion; and the third window was 2 to 10 weeks after treatment. Those windows generally reflected adverse events related to surgical procedures, mass effect from infusate, and drug effect on tumor-infiltrated and normal brain parenchyma, respectively. The symptomatic windows identified in this study apply to any CED clinical trials, particularly those in which chimeric cytotoxins are used, and will help to determine the most likely underlying pathophysiological process causing symptoms. This information, in turn, will help to prevent adverse events or minimize their severity. Those events also have implications for dose escalation and outcome measures.

  14. Analysis on the Oversize Blast Furnace Desulfurization and a Sulfide Capacity Prediction Model Based on Congregated Electron Phase

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhenyang, Wang; Jianliang, Zhang; Gang, An; Zhengjian, Liu; Zhengming, Cheng; Junjie, Huang; Jingwei, Zhang

    2016-02-01

    Through analyzed and regressed the actual productive desulfurization data from the oversize blast furnace (5500 m3) in north China, the relationship between the sulfur distribution parameters and the slag composition in actual production situation was investigated. As the slag and hot metal phases have their own balance sulfur content or sulfur partial pressure in gas phase, respectively, the non-equilibrium of sulfur among gas, slag, and metal phases leads to the transmission and distribution of sulfur. Combined with sulfur transmission reactions between gas, slag and metal phases, C/CO pairs equilibrium, and Wagner model, the measured sulfide capacity can be acquired using sulfur distribution ratio, sulfur activity coefficient, and oxygen activity in hot metal. Based on the theory of congregated electron phase, a new sulfide capacity prediction model (CEPM) has been developed, which has a good liner relationship with the measured sulfide capacity. Thus, using the burden structure for BF, the ironmaking slag composition can be obtained simply and can be used to reliably predict the ironmaking slag desulfurization ability a few hours later after charging under a certain temperature by CEPM.

  15. Convection-enhanced delivery for the treatment of glioblastoma.

    PubMed

    Vogelbaum, Michael A; Aghi, Manish K

    2015-03-01

    Effective treatment of glioblastoma (GBM) remains a formidable challenge. Survival rates remain poor despite decades of clinical trials of conventional and novel, biologically targeted therapeutics. There is considerable evidence that most of these therapeutics do not reach their targets in the brain when administered via conventional routes (intravenous or oral). Hence, direct delivery of therapeutics to the brain and to brain tumors is an active area of investigation. One of these techniques, convection-enhanced delivery (CED), involves the implantation of catheters through which conventional and novel therapeutic formulations can be delivered using continuous, low-positive-pressure bulk flow. Investigation in preclinical and clinical settings has demonstrated that CED can produce effective delivery of therapeutics to substantial volumes of brain and brain tumor. However, limitations in catheter technology and imaging of delivery have prevented this technique from being reliable and reproducible, and the only completed phase III study in GBM did not show a survival benefit for patients treated with an investigational therapeutic delivered via CED. Further development of CED is ongoing, with novel catheter designs and imaging approaches that may allow CED to become a more effective therapeutic delivery technique. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Neuro-Oncology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  16. Carbonate Minerals with Magnesium in Triassic Terebratula Limestone in the Term of Limestone with Magnesium Application as a Sorbent in Desulfurization of Flue Gases

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stanienda-Pilecki, Katarzyna

    2017-09-01

    This article presents the results of studies of Triassic (Muschelkalk) carbonate rock samples of the Terebratula Beds taken from the area of the Polish part of the Germanic Basin. It is the area of Opole Silesia. The rocks were studied in the term of possibility of limestone with magnesium application in desulfurization of flue gases executed in power plants. Characteristic features of especially carbonate phases including magnesium-low-Mg calcite, high-Mg calcite, dolomite and huntite were presented in the article. They were studied to show that the presence of carbonate phases with magnesium, especially high-Mg calcite makes the desulfurization process more effective. Selected rock samples were examined using a microscope with polarized, transmitted light, X-ray diffraction, microprobe measurements and FTIR spectroscopy. The results of studies show a domination of low magnesium calcite in the limestones of the Terebratula Beds. In some samples dolomite and lower amounts of high-Mg calcite occurred. Moreover, huntite was identified. The studies were very important, because carbonate phases like high-Mg calcite and huntite which occurred in rocks of the Triassic Terebratula Beds were not investigated in details by other scientists but they presence in limestone sorbent could influence the effectiveness of desulfurization process.

  17. An integrated biodesulfurization process, including inoculum preparation, desulfurization and sulfate removal in a single step, for removing sulfur from oils.

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Tangaromsuk, Jantana; Borole, Abhijeet P; Kruatrachue, Maleeya

    2008-01-01

    BACKGROUND: A single-stage reactor, in which the growth of bacterial culture, induction of desulfurizing enzymes, and desulfurization reaction are carried out in a single step, was adopted to investigate desulfurization of DBT at high cell densities. IGTS8 was used as the biocatalyst. Optimal condition for the bacterial growth and DBT desulfurization were also investigated. RESULTS: Optimization of fermentation conditions was necessary to obtain high cell densities including controlling accumulation of acetate. Under optimal operating conditions, the maximum OD600 was measured to be 26.6 at 118 h of cultivation. When biodesulfurization of DBT in model oil with a high cell densitymore » culture of IGTS8 was investigated, accumulation of sulfate was found to limit the extent of desulfurization. A sulfate removal step was added to obtain a single-stage integrated biodesulfurization process. Sulfate removal was achieved via an aqueous bleed stream and use of a separation unit to recycle the organic phase. CONCLUSION : A proof of principle of a complete system capable of biocatalyst growth, induction, desulfurization and by-product separation was demonstrated. This system enables simplification of the biodesulfurization process and has potential to lower the operating cost of the bioprocess.« less

  18. Effect of Silicon on Desulfurization of Aluminum-killed Steels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Roy, Debdutta

    Recent reports have suggested that silicon has a beneficial effect on the rate of desulfurization of Al-killed steel. This effect is difficult to understand looking at the overall desulfurization reaction which does not include silicon. However an explanation is proposed by taking into account the (SiO2)/[Si] equilibrium in which some Al reaching the slag-metal interface is used in reducing the SiO2 in the slag. This reaction can be suppressed to some extent if the silicon content of the metal is increased and in doing so, more Al will be available at the slag-metal interface for the desulfurization reaction and this would increase the rate of the desulfurization reaction. A model was developed, assuming the rates are controlled by mass transfer, taking into account the coupled reactions of the reduction of silica, and other unstable oxides, namely iron oxide and manganese oxide, in the slag and desulfurization reaction in the steel by aluminum. The model predicts that increasing silicon increases the rate and extent of desulfurization. Plant data was analyzed to obtain rough estimates of ladle desulfurization rates and also used to validate the model predictions. Experiments have been conducted on a kilogram scale of material in an induction furnace to test the hypothesis. The major conclusions of the study are as follows: The rate and extent of desulfurization improve with increasing initial silicon content in the steel; the effect diminishes at silicon contents higher than approximately 0.2% and with increasing slag basicity. This was confirmed with kilogram-scale laboratory experiments. The effects of the silicon content in the steel (and of initial FeO and MnO in the slag) largely arise from the dominant effects of these reactions on the equilibrium aluminum content of the steel: as far as aluminum consumption or pick-up is concerned, the Si/SiO2 reaction dominates, and desulfurization has only a minor effect on aluminum consumption. The rate is primarily controlled by mass transfer in the metal and slag phase mass transfer has a minor effect on the overall desulfurization kinetics. The model results are in agreement with the experimental data for the change in sulfur, silicon and aluminum contents with time which renders credibility to the underlying hypothesis of the kinetic model. Although the change of sulfur content with time is not very sensitive to the activity data source, the change of aluminum and silicon contents with time depend on the activity data source. The experimental results demonstrate that if the silicon content in the steel is high enough, the silicon can reduce the alumina from the slag and thus the steel melt will pick up aluminum. This can cause significant savings in aluminum consumption. For most of the slag compositions used in the experiments, the overall mass transfer is only limited by the steel phase and the slag phase mass transfer can be neglected for most practical cases. Mass balance calculations in the experiments support the basis of the model and also show that with respect to aluminum consumption, silica reduction is the main aluminum consuming (or production) reaction and the desulfurization reaction is only a secondary consumer of aluminum. Results from the plant trials conducted to test the effect of silicon on ladle desulfurization show that the rate and extent of desulfurization increase with the increase of the initial Si content, so in the ladle refining process, adding all the silicon in the beginning with the aluminum and the fluxes will be beneficial and could save considerable processing time at the ladle. The aluminum consumption for the heats with silicon added in the beginning (both in terms of the Al added to the steel and as slag deoxidants) is considerably lower compared to the cases where the silicon is added at the end. However, on a relative cost term, aluminum and silicon are similarly priced so substitution would not offer a major cost advantage.

  19. Electrochemical generation of sulfur vacancies in the basal plane of MoS2 for hydrogen evolution

    PubMed Central

    Tsai, Charlie; Li, Hong; Park, Sangwook; Park, Joonsuk; Han, Hyun Soo; Nørskov, Jens K.; Zheng, Xiaolin; Abild-Pedersen, Frank

    2017-01-01

    Recently, sulfur (S)-vacancies created on the basal plane of 2H-molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) using argon plasma exposure exhibited higher intrinsic activity for the electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction than the edge sites and metallic 1T-phase of MoS2 catalysts. However, a more industrially viable alternative to the argon plasma desulfurization process is needed. In this work, we introduce a scalable route towards generating S-vacancies on the MoS2 basal plane using electrochemical desulfurization. Even though sulfur atoms on the basal plane are known to be stable and inert, we find that they can be electrochemically reduced under accessible applied potentials. This can be done on various 2H-MoS2 nanostructures. By changing the applied desulfurization potential, the extent of desulfurization and the resulting activity can be varied. The resulting active sites are stable under extended desulfurization durations and show consistent HER activity. PMID:28429782

  20. Electrochemical generation of sulfur vacancies in the basal plane of MoS2 for hydrogen evolution

    DOE PAGES

    Tsai, Charlie; Li, Hong; Park, Sangwook; ...

    2017-04-21

    Recently, sulfur (S)-vacancies created on the basal plane of 2H-molybdenum disulfide (MoS 2) using argon plasma exposure exhibited higher intrinsic activity for the electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction than the edge sites and metallic 1T-phase of MoS 2 catalysts. But, a more industrially viable alternative to the argon plasma desulfurization process is needed. In this work, we introduce a scalable route towards generating S-vacancies on the MoS 2 basal plane using electrochemical desulfurization. We found that they can be electrochemically reduced under accessible applied potentials, even though sulfur atoms on the basal plane are known to be stable and inert. Thismore » can be done on various 2H-MoS 2 nanostructures. Furthermore, by changing the applied desulfurization potential, the extent of desulfurization and the resulting activity can be varied. The resulting active sites are stable under extended desulfurization durations and show consistent HER activity.« less

  1. CED-10/Rac1 Regulates Endocytic Recycling through the RAB-5 GAP TBC-2

    PubMed Central

    Sun, Lin; Liu, Ou; Desai, Jigar; Karbassi, Farhad; Sylvain, Marc-André; Shi, Anbing; Zhou, Zheng; Rocheleau, Christian E.; Grant, Barth D.

    2012-01-01

    Rac1 is a founding member of the Rho-GTPase family and a key regulator of membrane remodeling. In the context of apoptotic cell corpse engulfment, CED-10/Rac1 acts with its bipartite guanine nucleotide exchange factor, CED-5/Dock180-CED-12/ELMO, in an evolutionarily conserved pathway to promote phagocytosis. Here we show that in the context of the Caenorhabditis elegans intestinal epithelium CED-10/Rac1, CED-5/Dock180, and CED-12/ELMO promote basolateral recycling. Furthermore, we show that CED-10 binds to the RAB-5 GTPase activating protein TBC-2, that CED-10 contributes to recruitment of TBC-2 to endosomes, and that recycling cargo is trapped in recycling endosomes in ced-12, ced-10, and tbc-2 mutants. Expression of GTPase defective RAB-5(Q78L) also traps recycling cargo. Our results indicate that down-regulation of early endosome regulator RAB-5/Rab5 by a CED-5, CED-12, CED-10, TBC-2 cascade is an important step in the transport of cargo through the basolateral recycling endosome for delivery to the plasma membrane. PMID:22807685

  2. a Numerical Model for Flue Gas Desulfurization System.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, Sung Joon

    The purpose of this work is to develop a reliable numerical model for spray dryer desulfurization systems. The shape of the spray dryer requires that a body fitted orthogonal coordinate system be used for the numerical model. The governing equations are developed in the general orthogonal coordinates and discretized to yield a system of algebraic equations. A turbulence model is also included in the numerical program. A new second order numerical scheme is developed and included in the numerical model. The trajectory approach is used to simulate the flow of the dispersed phase. Two-way coupling phenomena is modeled by this scheme. The absorption of sulfur dioxide into lime slurry droplets is simulated by a model based on gas -phase mass transfer. The program is applied to a typical spray dryer desulfurization system. The results show the capability of the program to predict the sensitivity of system performance to changes in operational parameters.

  3. Investigations in physical mechanism of the oxidative desulfurization process assisted simultaneously by phase transfer agent and ultrasound.

    PubMed

    Bhasarkar, Jaykumar B; Chakma, Sankar; Moholkar, Vijayanand S

    2015-05-01

    This paper attempts to discern the physical mechanism of the oxidative desulfurization process simultaneously assisted by ultrasound and phase transfer agent (PTA). With different experimental protocols, an attempt is made to deduce individual beneficial effects of PTA and ultrasound on the oxidative desulfurization system, and also the synergy between the effects of PTA and ultrasound. Effect of PTA is more marked for mechanically stirred system due to mass transfer limitations, while intense emulsification due to ultrasound helps overcome the mass transfer limitations and reduces the extent of enhancement of oxidation by PTA. Despite application of PTA and ultrasound, the intrinsic factors and properties of the reactants such as polarity (and hence partition coefficient) and diffusivity have a crucial effect on the extent of oxidation. The intrinsic reactivity of the oxidant also plays a vital role, as seen from the extent of oxidation achieved with performic acid and peracetic acid. The interfacial transport of oxidant in the form of oxidant-PTA complex reduces the undesired consumption of oxidant by the reducing species formed during transient cavitation in organic medium, which helps effective utilization of oxidant towards desulfurization. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. Convection-enhanced delivery for the treatment of brain tumors

    PubMed Central

    Debinski, Waldemar; Tatter, Stephen B

    2013-01-01

    The brain is highly accessible for nutrients and oxygen, however delivery of drugs to malignant brain tumors is a very challenging task. Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) has been designed to overcome some of the difficulties so that pharmacological agents that would not normally cross the BBB can be used for treatment. Drugs are delivered through one to several catheters placed stereotactically directly within the tumor mass or around the tumor or the resection cavity. Several classes of drugs are amenable to this technology including standard chemotherapeutics or novel experimental targeted drugs. The first Phase III trial for CED-delivered, molecularly targeted cytotoxin in the treatment of recurrent glioblastoma multiforme has been accomplished and demonstrated objective clinical efficacy. The lessons learned from more than a decade of attempts at exploiting CED for brain cancer treatment weigh critically for its future clinical applications. The main issues center around the type of catheters used, number of catheters and their exact placement; pharmacological formulation of drugs, prescreening patients undergoing treatment and monitoring the distribution of drugs in tumors and the tumor-infiltrated brain. It is expected that optimizing CED will make this technology a permanent addition to clinical management of brain malignancies. PMID:19831841

  5. A recyclable ionic liquid-oxomolybdenum(vi) catalytic system for the oxidative desulfurization of model and real diesel fuel.

    PubMed

    Julião, Diana; Gomes, Ana C; Pillinger, Martyn; Valença, Rita; Ribeiro, Jorge C; Gonçalves, Isabel S; Balula, Salete S

    2016-10-14

    The oxidative desulfurization of model and real diesel has been studied using the complex [MoO2Cl2(4,4'-di-tert-butyl-2,2'-bipyridine)] as (pre)catalyst, aq. H2O2 as oxidant, and an ionic liquid as extraction solvent. Under moderate conditions (50 °C) and short reaction times (<3 h), dibenzothiophene, 4-methyldibenzothiophene and 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene could be completely removed from the model diesel. The (pre)catalyst 1 was transformed in situ to the active catalyst [MoO(O2)2(di-tBu-bipy)]. By sequentially performing extractive desulfurization and ECODS steps, 76% sulfur removal was achieved for a real diesel (Sinitial = 2300 ppm). For both the model and real diesels, the catalyst/IL phase could be easily recycled and reused with no loss of desulfurization efficiency.

  6. Coal desulfurization by low temperature chlorinolysis, phase 3

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kalvinskas, J. J.; Rohatgi, N. K.; Ernest, J.

    1981-01-01

    Laboratory scale, bench scale batch reactor, and minipilot plant tests were conducted on 22 bituminous, subbituminous, and lignite coals. Chemical pretreatment and post treatment of coals relative to the chlorination were tried as a means of enhancing desulfurization by the chlorinolysis process. Elevated temperature (500-700 C) hydrogen treatment of chlorinolysis-processed coal at atmospheric pressure was found to substantially increase coal desulfurization up to 90 percent. Sulfur forms, proximate and ultimate analyses of the processed coal are included. Minipilot plant operation indicates that the continuous flow reactor provides coal desulfurization results comparable to those obtained in the batch reactor. Seven runs were conducted at coal feed rates of 1.5 to 8.8 kg per hour using water and methylchloroform solvents, gaseous chlorine feed of 3 to 31.4 SCFH at 21 to 70 C, and atmospheric pressure for retention times of 20 to 120 minutes.

  7. Volatile Organic Carbon Emissions. Phase 2.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1987-02-01

    on sulfur (S IV) species *0. B. Nurmi, et al, "Sulfite Oxidation in Organic Acid Solutions," Flue Gas Desulfurization , American Chemical Society, 1982...in Organic Acid Solutions," Flue Gas Desulfurization , American Chemical Society, 1982, pp. 173-189. 8. Experimental Statistics; Handbook 91, United...Analysis of percentage solvent removal from absorber 49 inlet gas by Yates’ method 12. Analysis of weight percent solvent in recycle column 50 absorber

  8. Time-reversal Techniques in Ultrasound-assisted Convection-enhanced Drug Delivery to the Brain: Technology Development and In Vivo Evaluation

    PubMed Central

    Lewis, George K.; Guarino, Sabrina; Gandhi, Gaurav; Filinger, Laurent; Lewis, George K.; Olbricht, Willam L.; Sarvazyan, Armen

    2011-01-01

    We describe a drug delivery method that combines Time-Reversal Acoustics (TRA) with Convection-Enhanced Delivery (CED) to improve the delivery of therapeutics to the interstitium of the brain. The Ultrasound-assisted CED approach (UCED) circumvents the blood-brain barrier by infusing compounds through a cannula that is inserted into the brain while simultaneously delivering ultrasound to improve the penetration of pharmaceuticals. CED without ultrasound-assistance has been used to treat a variety of neural disorders, including glioblastoma multiforme, a malignancy that presents a very poor prognosis for patients. We describe a novel system that is used to infuse fluids into the brain parenchyma while simultaneously exposing the tissue to safe levels of 1-MHz, low intensity, ultrasound energy. The system includes a combined infusion needle-hydrophone, a 10-channel ultralow-output impedance amplifier, a broad-band ultrasound resonator, and MatLab®-based TRA control and user-interface. TRA allows easy coupling of ultrasound therapy through the skull without complex phase-correction and array design. The smart targeting UCED system has been tested in vivo and results show it provides 1.5-mm spatial resolution for UCED and improves tracer distribution in the brain over CED alone. PMID:21881622

  9. Installation Restoration Program. Phase I. Records Search, Reese, AFB, Texas.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1984-06-01

    engineering in flue - gas desulfurization plants, and corrosion asaessinnto of hazardous waste handling systems. Mr. Ellis is or has been an active participant...provean to evaluate lime- stones as wet scrubbers in flue gas desulfurisatios (VS) system. She vas task leader for the chemical ad physical analysis...11109163A-15 Debra L. lichmann PUBLIC&TIOUSIlEPOITS: lichmann, D.L., K.V. Luke, end J.C. Terry, " Flue Gas Desulfurization Chemistry Studies

  10. Desulfurization of Dibenzothiophene and Diesel Oils by a Newly Isolated Gordona Strain, CYKS1

    PubMed Central

    Rhee, Sung-Keun; Chang, Je Hwan; Chang, Yong Keun; Chang, Ho Nam

    1998-01-01

    A dibenzothiophene (DBT)-desulfurizing bacterial strain was isolated and identified as Gordona strain CYKS1. Strain CYKS1 was found to transform DBT to 2-hydroxybiphenyl via the 4S pathway and to be able to also use organic sulfur compounds other than DBT as a sole sulfur source. Its desulfurization activity was susceptible to sulfate repression. Active resting cells for desulfurization could be prepared only in the early growth phase. When two types of diesel oils, middle distillate unit feed (MDUF) and light gas oil (LGO) containing various organic sulfur compounds including DBT, were treated with resting cells of strain CYKS1 for 12 h, the total sulfur content significantly decreased, from 0.15% (wt/wt) to 0.06% (wt/wt) for MDUF and from 0.3% (wt/wt) to 0.25% (wt/wt) for LGO. The newly isolated strain CYKS1 is considered to have good potential for application in the biodesulfurization of fossil fuels. PMID:9603863

  11. Poor drug distribution as a possible explanation for the results of the PRECISE trial.

    PubMed

    Sampson, John H; Archer, Gary; Pedain, Christoph; Wembacher-Schröder, Eva; Westphal, Manfred; Kunwar, Sandeep; Vogelbaum, Michael A; Coan, April; Herndon, James E; Raghavan, Raghu; Brady, Martin L; Reardon, David A; Friedman, Allan H; Friedman, Henry S; Rodríguez-Ponce, M Inmaculada; Chang, Susan M; Mittermeyer, Stephan; Croteau, David; Puri, Raj K

    2010-08-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is a novel intracerebral drug delivery technique with considerable promise for delivering therapeutic agents throughout the CNS. Despite this promise, Phase III clinical trials employing CED have failed to meet clinical end points. Although this may be due to inactive agents or a failure to rigorously validate drug targets, the authors have previously demonstrated that catheter positioning plays a major role in drug distribution using this technique. The purpose of the present work was to retrospectively analyze the expected drug distribution based on catheter positioning data available from the CED arm of the PRECISE trial. Data on catheter positioning from all patients randomized to the CED arm of the PRECISE trial were available for analyses. BrainLAB iPlan Flow software was used to estimate the expected drug distribution. Only 49.8% of catheters met all positioning criteria. Still, catheter positioning score (hazard ratio 0.93, p = 0.043) and the number of optimally positioned catheters (hazard ratio 0.72, p = 0.038) had a significant effect on progression-free survival. Estimated coverage of relevant target volumes was low, however, with only 20.1% of the 2-cm penumbra surrounding the resection cavity covered on average. Although tumor location and resection cavity volume had no effect on coverage volume, estimations of drug delivery to relevant target volumes did correlate well with catheter score (p < 0.003), and optimally positioned catheters had larger coverage volumes (p < 0.002). Only overall survival (p = 0.006) was higher for investigators considered experienced after adjusting for patient age and Karnofsky Performance Scale score. The potential efficacy of drugs delivered by CED may be severely constrained by ineffective delivery in many patients. Routine use of software algorithms and alternative catheter designs and infusion parameters may improve the efficacy of drugs delivered by CED.

  12. Mineralogical Associations of Mercury in FGD Products

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Beatty, William Lee; Schroeder, Karl; Beatty, Candace L. Kairies

    2012-06-21

    The natural mode of retention of mercury in flue gas desulfurization gypsum used in wallboard manufacturing has been investigated using a series of phase-targeted reagents. Results indicate that mercury was associated with two distinct phases.

  13. Superoxide radical and UV irradiation in ultrasound assisted oxidative desulfurization (UAOD): A potential alternative for greener fuels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chan, Ngo Yeung

    This study is aimed at improving the current ultrasound assisted oxidative desulfurization (UAOD) process by utilizing superoxide radical as oxidant. Research was also conducted to investigate the feasibility of ultraviolet (UV) irradiation-assisted desulfurization. These modifications can enhance the process with the following achievements: (1) Meet the upcoming sulfur standards on various fuels including diesel fuel oils and residual oils; (2) More efficient oxidant with significantly lower consumption in accordance with stoichiometry; (3) Energy saving by 90%; (4) Greater selectivity in petroleum composition. Currently, the UAOD process and subsequent modifications developed in University of Southern California by Professor Yen's research group have demonstrated high desulfurization efficiencies towards various fuels with the application of 30% wt. hydrogen peroxide as oxidant. The UAOD process has demonstrated more than 50% desulfurization of refractory organic sulfur compounds with the use of Venturella type catalysts. Application of quaternary ammonium fluoride as phase transfer catalyst has significantly improved the desulfurization efficiency to 95%. Recent modifications incorporating ionic liquids have shown that the modified UAOD process can produce ultra-low sulfur, or near-zero sulfur diesels under mild conditions with 70°C and atmospheric pressure. Nevertheless, the UAOD process is considered not to be particularly efficient with respect to oxidant and energy consumption. Batch studies have demonstrated that the UAOD process requires 100 fold more oxidant than the stoichiometic requirement to achieve high desulfurization yield. The expected high costs of purchasing, shipping and storage of the oxidant would reduce the practicability of the process. The excess use of oxidant is not economically desirable, and it also causes environmental and safety issues. Post treatments would be necessary to stabilize the unspent oxidant residual to prevent the waste stream from becoming reactive or even explosive. High energy consumption is another drawback in the UAOD process. A typical 10 minutes ultrasonication applied in the UAOD process to achieve 95% desulfurization for 20g of diesel requires 450 kJ of energy, which is equivalent to approximately 50% of the energy that can be provided by the treated diesel. This great expenditure of energy is impractical for industries to adopt. In this study, modifications of the UAOD process, including the application of superoxide and selection of catalysts, were applied to lower the oxidant dosage and to improve the applicability towards heavy-distillates such as residual oil. The results demonstrated that the new system required 80% less oxidant as compared to previous generations of UAOD process without the loss of desulfurization efficiency. The new system demonstrated its suitability towards desulfurizing commercial mid-distillates including jet fuels, marine gas oil and sour diesel. This process also demonstrated a new method to desulfurize residual oil with high desulfurization yields. The new process development has been supported by Eco Energy Solutions Inc., Reno, Nevada and Intelligent Energy Inc., Long Beach, California. A feasibility study on UV assisted desulfurization by replacing ultrasound with UV irradiation was also conducted. The study demonstrated that the UV assisted desulfurization process consumes 90% less energy than the comparable process using ultrasonication. These process modifications demonstrated over 98% desulfurization efficiency on diesel oils and more than 75% on residual oils with significantly less oxidant and energy consumption. Also the feasibility to desulfurize commercial sour heavy oil was demonstrated. Based on the UAOD process and the commercialized modifications by Wan and Cheng, the feasible applications of superoxide and UV irradiation in the UAOD process could provide deep-desulfurization on various fuels with practical cost.

  14. CED-9 and mitochondrial homeostasis in C. elegans muscle

    PubMed Central

    Tan, Frederick J.; Husain, Michelle; Manlandro, Cara Marie; Koppenol, Marijke; Fire, Andrew Z.; Hill, R. Blake

    2009-01-01

    Summary Mitochondrial homeostasis reflects a dynamic balance between membrane fission and fusion events thought essential for mitochondrial function. We report here that altered expression of the C. elegans BCL2 homolog CED-9 affects both mitochondrial fission and fusion. Although striated muscle cells lacking CED-9 have no alteration in mitochondrial size or ultrastructure, these cells appear more sensitive to mitochondrial fragmentation. By contrast, increased CED-9 expression in these cells produces highly interconnected mitochondria. This mitochondrial phenotype is partially suppressed by increased expression of the dynamin-related GTPase DRP-1, with suppression dependent on the BH3 binding pocket of CED-9. This suppression suggests that CED-9 directly regulates DRP-1, a model supported by our finding that CED-9 activates the GTPase activity of human DRP1. Thus, CED-9 is capable of regulating the mitochondrial fission-fusion cycle but is not essential for either fission or fusion. PMID:18827010

  15. Convection-enhanced Delivery of Therapeutics for Malignant Gliomas.

    PubMed

    Saito, Ryuta; Tominaga, Teiji

    2017-01-15

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) circumvents the blood-brain barrier by delivering agents directly into the tumor and surrounding parenchyma. CED can achieve large volumes of distribution by continuous positive-pressure infusion. Although promising as an effective drug delivery method in concept, the administration of therapeutic agents via CED is not without challenges. Limitations of distribution remain a problem in large brains, such as those of humans. Accurate and consistent delivery of an agent is another challenge associated with CED. Similar to the difficulties caused by immunosuppressive environments associated with gliomas, there are several mechanisms that make effective local drug distribution difficult in malignant gliomas. In this review, methods for local drug application targeting gliomas are discussed with special emphasis on CED. Although early clinical trials have failed to demonstrate the efficacy of CED against gliomas, CED potentially can be a platform for translating the molecular understanding of glioblastomas achieved in the laboratory into effective clinical treatments. Several clinical studies using CED of chemotherapeutic agents are ongoing. Successful delivery of effective agents should prove the efficacy of CED in the near future.

  16. Convection-enhanced Delivery of Therapeutics for Malignant Gliomas

    PubMed Central

    SAITO, Ryuta; TOMINAGA, Teiji

    2017-01-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) circumvents the blood–brain barrier by delivering agents directly into the tumor and surrounding parenchyma. CED can achieve large volumes of distribution by continuous positive-pressure infusion. Although promising as an effective drug delivery method in concept, the administration of therapeutic agents via CED is not without challenges. Limitations of distribution remain a problem in large brains, such as those of humans. Accurate and consistent delivery of an agent is another challenge associated with CED. Similar to the difficulties caused by immunosuppressive environments associated with gliomas, there are several mechanisms that make effective local drug distribution difficult in malignant gliomas. In this review, methods for local drug application targeting gliomas are discussed with special emphasis on CED. Although early clinical trials have failed to demonstrate the efficacy of CED against gliomas, CED potentially can be a platform for translating the molecular understanding of glioblastomas achieved in the laboratory into effective clinical treatments. Several clinical studies using CED of chemotherapeutic agents are ongoing. Successful delivery of effective agents should prove the efficacy of CED in the near future. PMID:27980285

  17. Preparation of AAO-CeO2 nanotubes and their application in electrochemical oxidation desulfurization of diesel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Du, Xiaoqing; Yang, Yumeng; Yi, Chenxi; Chen, Yu; Cai, Chao; Zhang, Zhao

    2017-02-01

    The coaxial arrays of AAO-CeO2 NTs have been successfully galvanostatically deposited on an anode, characterized and adopted as a catalyst for removing organic sulfurs from diesel. The influence of the main electrochemical oxidation factors on the efficiency of desulfurization have also been investigated. The results show that the fabrication process of AAO-CeO2 NTs is accompanied by the formation of a new phase, namely Al3Ce, and the main oxidation products of the diesel are soluble inorganic sulphides, especially Ce2(SO4)3. When compared with dibenzothiophene and 4, 6-dimethyldibenzothiophene, benzothiophene is much more easily removed, with a removal efficiency that reaches 87.2%. Finally, a possible electrochemical oxidation desulfurization pathway for diesel is proposed.

  18. 3D CFD Modeling of the LMF System: Desulfurization Kinetics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cao, Qing; Pitts, April; Zhang, Daojie; Nastac, Laurentiu; Williams, Robert

    A fully transient 3D CFD modeling approach capable of predicting the three phase (gas, slag and steel) fluid flow characteristics and behavior of the slag/steel interface in the argon gas bottom stirred ladle with two off-centered porous plugs (Ladle Metallurgical Furnace or LMF) has been recently developed. The model predicts reasonably well the fluid flow characteristics in the LMF system and the observed size of the slag eyes for both the high-stirring and low-stirring conditions. A desulfurization reaction kinetics model considering metal/slag interface characteristics is developed in conjunction with the CFD modeling approach. The model is applied in this study to determine the effects of processing time, and gas flow rate on the efficiency of desulfurization in the studied LMF system.

  19. A New Dry Flue Gas Desulfurization Process-Underfeed Circulating Spouted Bed

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tao, M.; Jin, B. S.; Yang, Y. P.

    Applying an underfeed system, the underfeed circulating spouted bed was designed as a desulfurization reactor. The main objective of the technology is to improve the mixing effect and distribution uniformity of solid particles, and therefore to advance the desulfurization efficiency and calcium utility. In this article, a series of experimental studies were conducted to investigate the fluidization behavior of the solid-gas two-phase flow in the riser. The results show that the technology can distinctly improve the distribution of gas velocity and particle flux on sections compared with the facefeed style. Analysis of pressure fluctuation signals indicates that the operation parameters have significant influence on the flow field in the reaction bed. The existence of injecting flow near the underfeed nozzle has an evident effect on strengthening the particle mixing.

  20. Radiation exposure from diagnostic imaging in young patients with testicular cancer.

    PubMed

    Sullivan, C J; Murphy, K P; McLaughlin, P D; Twomey, M; O'Regan, K N; Power, D G; Maher, M M; O'Connor, O J

    2015-04-01

    Risks associated with high cumulative effective dose (CED) from radiation are greater when imaging is performed on younger patients. Testicular cancer affects young patients and has a good prognosis. Regular imaging is standard for follow-up. This study quantifies CED from diagnostic imaging in these patients. Radiological imaging of patients aged 18-39 years, diagnosed with testicular cancer between 2001 and 2011 in two tertiary care centres was examined. Age at diagnosis, cancer type, dose-length product (DLP), imaging type, and frequency were recorded. CED was calculated from DLP using conversion factors. Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS. In total, 120 patients with a mean age of 30.7 ± 5.2 years at diagnosis had 1,410 radiological investigations. Median (IQR) surveillance was 4.37 years (2.0-5.5). Median (IQR) CED was 125.1 mSv (81.3-177.5). Computed tomography accounted for 65.3 % of imaging studies and 98.3 % of CED. We found that 77.5 % (93/120) of patients received high CED (>75 mSv). Surveillance time was associated with high CED (OR 2.1, CI 1.5-2.8). Survivors of testicular cancer frequently receive high CED from diagnostic imaging, mainly CT. Dose management software for accurate real-time monitoring of CED and low-dose CT protocols with maintained image quality should be used by specialist centres for surveillance imaging. • CT accounted for 98.3 % of CED in patients with testicular cancer. • Median CED in patients with testicular cancer was 125.1 mSv • High CED (>75 mSv) was observed in 77.5 % (93/120) of patients. • Dose tracking and development of low-dose CT protocols are recommended.

  1. Self-reported dietary adherence, disease-specific symptoms, and quality of life are associated with healthcare provider follow-up in celiac disease.

    PubMed

    Hughey, Jacob J; Ray, Bonnie K; Lee, Anne R; Voorhees, Kristin N; Kelly, Ciaran P; Schuppan, Detlef

    2017-12-11

    The only treatment for celiac disease (CeD) is a lifelong gluten-free diet (GFD). The restrictive nature of the GFD makes adherence a challenge. As an integral part of CeD management, multiple professional organizations recommend regular follow-up with a healthcare provider (HCP). Many CeD patients also participate in patient advocacy groups (PAGs) for education and support. Previous work found that follow-up of CeD patients is highly variable. Here we investigated the self-reported factors associated with HCP follow-up among individuals diagnosed with CeD who participate in a PAG. We conducted a survey of members of Beyond Celiac (a PAG), collecting responses from 1832 U.S. adults ages 19-65 who reported having CeD. The survey queried HCP follow-up related to CeD and included validated instruments for dietary adherence (CDAT), disease-specific symptoms (CSI), and quality of life (CD-QOL). Overall, 27% of respondents diagnosed with CeD at least five years ago reported that they had not visited an HCP about CeD in the last five years. The most frequent reason for not visiting an HCP was "doing fine on my own" (47.6%). Using multiple logistic regression, we identified significant associations between whether a respondent reported visiting an HCP about CeD in the last five years and the scores for all three validated instruments. In particular, as disease-specific symptoms and quality of life worsened, the probability of having visited an HCP increased. Conversely, as dietary adherence worsened, the probability decreased. Our results suggest that many individuals with CeD manage their disease without ongoing support from an HCP. Our results thus emphasize the need for greater access to high quality CeD care, and highlight an opportunity for PAGs to bring together patients and HCPs to improve management of CeD.

  2. Memory and Coping with Stress: The Relationship Between Cognitive-Emotional Distinctiveness, Memory Valence, and Distress

    PubMed Central

    Boals, Adriel; Rubin, David C.; Klein, Kitty

    2011-01-01

    Cognitive-emotional distinctiveness (CED), the extent to which an individual separates emotions from an event in the cognitive representation of the event, was explored in four studies. CED was measured using a modified multidimensional scaling procedure. The first study found that lower levels of CED in memories of the September 11 terrorist attacks predicted greater frequency of intrusive thoughts about the attacks. The second study revealed CED levels are higher in negative events, in comparison to positive events and that low CED levels in emotionally intense negative events are associated with a pattern of greater event-related distress. The third study replicated the findings from the previous study when examining CED levels in participants’ memories of the 2004 Presidential election. The fourth study revealed that low CED in emotionally intense negative events is associated with worse mental health. We argue that CED is an adaptive and healthy coping feature of stressful memories. PMID:18569690

  3. CEDS Addresses: Rubric Elements

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    US Department of Education, 2015

    2015-01-01

    Common Education Data Standards (CEDS) Version 4 introduced a common data vocabulary for defining rubrics in a data system. The CEDS elements support digital representations of both holistic and analytic rubrics. This document shares examples of holistic and analytic project rubrics, available CEDS Connections, and a logical model showing the…

  4. Multiphase Modeling of Bottom-Stirred Ladle for Prediction of Slag-Steel Interface and Estimation of Desulfurization Behavior

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Singh, Umesh; Anapagaddi, Ravikiran; Mangal, Saurabh; Padmanabhan, Kuppuswamy Anantha; Singh, Amarendra Kumar

    2016-06-01

    Ladle furnace is a key unit in which various phenomena such as deoxidation, desulfurization, inclusion removal, and homogenization of alloy composition and temperature take place. Therefore, the processes present in the ladle play an important role in determining the quality of steel. Prediction of flow behavior of the phases present in the ladle furnace is needed to understand the phenomena that take place there and accordingly control the process parameters. In this study, first a mathematical model is developed to analyze the transient three-phase flow present. Argon gas bottom-stirred ladle with off-centered plugs has been used in this study. Volume of fluid method is used in a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model to capture the behavior of slag, steel, and argon interfaces. The results are validated with data from literature. Eye opening and slag-steel interfacial area are calculated for different operating conditions and are compared with experimental and simulated results cited in literature. Desulfurization rate is then predicted using chemical kinetic equations, interfacial area, calculated from CFD model, and thermodynamic data, obtained from the Thermo-Calc software. Using the model, it is demonstrated that the double plug purging is more suitable than the single plug purging for the same level of total flow. The advantage is more distinct at higher flow rates as it leads higher interfacial area, needed for desulfurization and smaller eye openings (lower oxygen/nitrogen pickup).

  5. Small GTPase CDC-42 promotes apoptotic cell corpse clearance in response to PAT-2 and CED-1 in C. elegans

    PubMed Central

    Neukomm, L J; Zeng, S; Frei, A P; Huegli, P A; Hengartner, M O

    2014-01-01

    The rapid clearance of dying cells is important for the well-being of multicellular organisms. In C. elegans, cell corpse removal is mainly mediated by three parallel engulfment signaling cascades. These pathways include two small GTPases, MIG-2/RhoG and CED-10/Rac1. Here we present the identification and characterization of CDC-42 as a third GTPase involved in the regulation of cell corpse clearance. Genetic analyses performed by both loss of cdc-42 function and cdc-42 overexpression place cdc-42 in parallel to the ced-2/5/12 signaling module, in parallel to or upstream of the ced-10 module, and downstream of the ced-1/6/7 module. CDC-42 accumulates in engulfing cells at membranes surrounding apoptotic corpses. The formation of such halos depends on the integrins PAT-2/PAT-3, UNC-112 and the GEF protein UIG-1, but not on the canonical ced-1/6/7 or ced-2/5/12 signaling modules. Together, our results suggest that the small GTPase CDC-42 regulates apoptotic cell engulfment possibly upstream of the canonical Rac GTPase CED-10, by polarizing the engulfing cell toward the apoptotic corpse in response to integrin signaling and ced-1/6/7 signaling in C. elegans. PMID:24632947

  6. Small GTPase CDC-42 promotes apoptotic cell corpse clearance in response to PAT-2 and CED-1 in C. elegans.

    PubMed

    Neukomm, L J; Zeng, S; Frei, A P; Huegli, P A; Hengartner, M O

    2014-06-01

    The rapid clearance of dying cells is important for the well-being of multicellular organisms. In C. elegans, cell corpse removal is mainly mediated by three parallel engulfment signaling cascades. These pathways include two small GTPases, MIG-2/RhoG and CED-10/Rac1. Here we present the identification and characterization of CDC-42 as a third GTPase involved in the regulation of cell corpse clearance. Genetic analyses performed by both loss of cdc-42 function and cdc-42 overexpression place cdc-42 in parallel to the ced-2/5/12 signaling module, in parallel to or upstream of the ced-10 module, and downstream of the ced-1/6/7 module. CDC-42 accumulates in engulfing cells at membranes surrounding apoptotic corpses. The formation of such halos depends on the integrins PAT-2/PAT-3, UNC-112 and the GEF protein UIG-1, but not on the canonical ced-1/6/7 or ced-2/5/12 signaling modules. Together, our results suggest that the small GTPase CDC-42 regulates apoptotic cell engulfment possibly upstream of the canonical Rac GTPase CED-10, by polarizing the engulfing cell toward the apoptotic corpse in response to integrin signaling and ced-1/6/7 signaling in C. elegans.

  7. Interplay between CedA, rpoB and double stranded DNA: A step towards understanding CedA mediated cell division in E. coli.

    PubMed

    Sharma, Pankaj; Tomar, Anil Kumar; Kundu, Bishwajit

    2018-02-01

    Cell division is compromised in DnaAcos mutant E. coli cells due to chromosome over-replication. In these cells, CedA acts as a regulatory protein and initiates cell division by a hitherto unknown mechanism. CedA, a double stranded DNA binding protein, interacts with various subunits of RNA polymerase complex, including rpoB. To reveal how this concert between CedA, rpoB and DNA brings about cell division in E. coli, we performed biophysical and in silico analysis and obtained mechanistic insights. Interaction between CedA and rpoB was shown by circular dichroism spectrometry and in silico docking experiments. Further, CedA and rpoB were allowed to interact individually to a selected DNA and their binding was monitored by fluorescence spectroscopy. The binding constants of these interactions as determined by BioLayer Interferometry clearly show that rpoB binds to DNA with higher affinity (K D2 =<1.0E-12M) as compared to CedA (K D2 =9.58E-09M). These findings were supported by docking analysis where 12 intermolecular H-bonds were formed in rpoB-DNA complex as compared to 4 in CedA-DNA complex. Based on our data we propose that in E. coli cells chromosome over-replication signals CedA to recruit rpoB to specific DNA site(s), which initiates transcription of cell division regulatory elements. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. JP8 Reformation for Combat Vehicles

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2007-08-07

    phase (fuel), and a gas phase (hydrogen) at elevated pressures. • Trickle - bed configuration is difficult to model and scale down—not practical for...gases output from HDS reactor are used to fuel the reformer. Current Technology Status: •Integrated desulfurization/reforming system successfully

  9. Convection-enhanced drug delivery of interleukin-4 Pseudomonas exotoxin (PRX321): increased distribution and magnetic resonance monitoring.

    PubMed

    Mardor, Y; Last, D; Daniels, D; Shneor, R; Maier, S E; Nass, D; Ram, Z

    2009-08-01

    Convection-enhanced drug delivery (CED) enables achieving a drug concentration within brain tissue and brain tumors that is orders of magnitude higher than by systemic administration. Previous phase I/II clinical trials using intratumoral convection of interleukin-4 Pseudomonas exotoxin (PRX321) have demonstrated an acceptable safety and toxicity profile with promising signs of therapeutic activity. The present study was designed to assess the distribution efficiency and toxicity of this PRX321 using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and to test whether reformulation with increased viscosity could enhance drug distribution. Convection of low- [0.02% human serum albumin (HSA)] and high-viscosity (3% HSA) infusates mixed with gadolinium-diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid and PRX321 were compared with low- and high-viscosity infusates without the drug, in normal rat brains. MRI was used for assessment of drug distribution and detection of early and late toxicity. Representative brain samples were subjected to histological examination. Distribution volumes calculated from the magnetic resonance images showed that the average distribution of 0.02% HSA was larger than that of 0.02% HSA with PRX321 by a factor of 1.98 (p < 0.02). CED of 3.0% HSA, with or without PRX321, tripled the volume of distribution compared with 0.02% HSA with PRX321 (p < 0.015). No drug-related toxicity was detected. These results suggest that the impeded convection of the PRX321 infusate used in previous clinical trials can be reversed by increasing infusate viscosity and lead to tripling of the volume of distribution. This effect was not associated with any detectable toxicity. A similar capability to reverse impeded convection was also demonstrated in a CED model using acetic acid. These results will be implemented in an upcoming phase IIb PRX321 CED trial with a high-viscosity infusate.

  10. Desulfurization kinetics of molten copper by gas bubbling

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fukunaka, Y.; Nishikawa, K.; Sohn, H. S.; Asaki, Z.

    1991-02-01

    Molten copper with 0.74 wt pct sulfur content was desulfurized at 1523 K by bubbling Ar-O2 gas through a submerged nozzle. The reaction rate was significantly influenced not only by the oxygen partial pressure but also by the gas flow rate. Little evolution of SO2 gas was observed in the initial 10 seconds of the oxidation; however, this was followed by a period of high evolution rate of SO2 gas. The partial pressure of SO2 gas decreased with further progress of the desulfurization. The effect of the immersion depth of the submerged nozzle was negligible. The overall reaction is decomposed to two elementary reactions: the desulfurization and the dissolution rate of oxygen. The assumptions were made that these reactions are at equilibrium and that the reaction rates are controlled by mass transfer rates within and around the gas bubble. The time variations of sulfur and oxygen contents in the melt and the SO2 partial pressure in the off-gas under various bubbling conditions were well explained by the mathematical model combined with the reported thermodynamic data of these reactions. Based on the present model, it was anticipated that the oxidation rate around a single gas bubble was mainly determined by the rate of gas-phase mass transfer, but all oxygen gas blown into the melt was virtually consumed to the desulfurization and dissolution reactions before it escaped from the melt surface.

  11. Ralstonia eutropha as a biocatalyst for desulfurization of dibenzothiophene.

    PubMed

    Dejaloud, Azita; Vahabzadeh, Farzaneh; Habibi, Alireza

    2017-07-01

    The potential of Ralstonia eutropha as a biocatalyst for desulfurization of dibenzothiophene (DBT) was studied in growing and resting cell conditions. The results of both conditions showed that sulfur was removed from DBT which accompanied by the formation of 2-hydroxybiphenyl (2-HBP). In growing cell experiments, glucose was used as an energy supplying substrate in initial concentrations of 55 mM (energy-limited) and 111 mM (energy-sufficient). The growing cell behaviors were quantitatively described using the logistic equation and maintenance concept. The results indicated that 2-HBP production was higher for the energy-sufficient cultures, while the values of the specific growth rate and the maintenance coefficient for these media were lower than those of the energy-limited cultures. Additionally, the kinetic studies showed that the half-saturation constant for the energy-limited cultures was 2 times higher than the energy-sufficient ones where the inhibition constant (0.08 mM) and the maximum specific DBT desulfurization rate (0.002 mmol g cell -1  h -1 ) were almost constant. By defining desulfurizing capacity (D DBT ) including both the biomass concentration and time to reach a particular percentage of DBT conversion, the best condition for desulfurizing cell was determined at 23% g cell L -1  h -1 which corresponded with the resting cells that were harvested at the mid-exponential growth phase.

  12. Identification of functional interactome of a key cell division regulatory protein CedA of E.coli.

    PubMed

    Sharma, Pankaj; Tomar, Anil Kumar; Kundu, Bishwajit

    2018-01-01

    Cell division is compromised in DnaAcos mutant Escherichia coli cells that results in filamentous cell morphology. This is countered by over-expression of CedA protein that induces cytokinesis and thus, regular cell morphology is regained; however via an unknown mechanism. To understand the process systematically, exact role of CedA should be deciphered. Protein interactions are crucial for functional organization of a cell and their identification helps in revealing exact function(s) of a protein and its binding partners. Thus, this study was intended to identify CedA binding proteins (CBPs) to gain more clues of CedA function. We isolated CBPs by pull down assay using purified recombinant CedA and identified nine CBPs by mass spectrometric analysis (MALDI-TOF MS and LC-MS/MS), viz. PDHA1, RL2, DNAK, LPP, RPOB, G6PD, GLMS, RL3 and YBCJ. Based on CBPs identified, we hypothesize that CedA plays a crucial and multifaceted role in cell cycle regulation and specific pathways in which CedA participates may include transcription and energy metabolism. However, further validation through in-vitro and in-vivo experiments is necessary. In conclusion, identification of CBPs may help us in deciphering mechanism of CedA mediated cell division during chromosomal DNA over-replication. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  13. Energy and sports drinks in children and adolescents.

    PubMed

    Pound, Catherine M; Blair, Becky

    2017-10-01

    Sports drinks and caffeinated energy drinks (CEDs) are commonly consumed by youth. Both sports drinks and CEDs pose potential risks for the health of children and adolescents and may contribute to obesity. Sports drinks are generally unnecessary for children engaged in routine or play-based physical activity. CEDs may affect children and adolescents more than adults because they weigh less and thus experience greater exposure to stimulant ingredients per kilogram of body weight. Paediatricians need to recognize and educate patients and families on the differences between sport drinks and CEDs. Screening for the consumption of CEDs, especially when mixed with alcohol, should be done routinely. The combination of CEDs and alcohol may be a marker for higher risk of substance use or abuse and for other health-compromising behaviours.

  14. The Air Quality Model Evaluation International Initiative ...

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    This presentation provides an overview of the Air Quality Model Evaluation International Initiative (AQMEII). It contains a synopsis of the three phases of AQMEII, including objectives, logistics, and timelines. It also provides a number of examples of analyses conducted through AQMEII with a particular focus on past and future analyses of deposition. The National Exposure Research Laboratory (NERL) Computational Exposure Division (CED) develops and evaluates data, decision-support tools, and models to be applied to media-specific or receptor-specific problem areas. CED uses modeling-based approaches to characterize exposures, evaluate fate and transport, and support environmental diagnostics/forensics with input from multiple data sources. It also develops media- and receptor-specific models, process models, and decision support tools for use both within and outside of EPA.

  15. Conducted energy devices: pilot analysis of (non-)attributability of death using a modified Naranjo algorithm.

    PubMed

    Fox, Anthony W; Payne-James, J Jason

    2012-11-30

    Alleged fatalities associated with conductive-energy devices (CEDs) are similar to alleged serious adverse events (SAEs) after the use of pharmaceutical products: both types of case arise rarely, in complex (if not unique) combinations of circumstances, frequently when there are multiple concomitant putative aetiologies for the injury, and after the suspected product has been previously well-designed and tested. Attribution (or otherwise) of SAEs to pharmaceutical products is often assessed by use of the Naranjo algorithm. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether an adapted Naranjo algorithm could be used to assess alleged CED-associated fatalities. Unique cases had four independent identifiers. Prospectively, 7 (of the 10) Naranjo algorithm questions were chosen as being potentially applicable to CED use. These had maximum score 9, and the associated ordinal probability scale (doubtful, possible, probable, and definite) was retained by linear proportion to the integral scores. An arbitrary requirement was for database sufficiency≥50%=([n unique cases×7 questions answerable]×0.5); a pilot sample (n=29 unique cases) suggested feasibility (see below). One hundred and seventy-five unique cases were found, with a data sufficiency of 56.8%. Modified Naranjo algorithm scores had an unequally bimodal distribution. CED-attributability was suggested in 21 (12% of 175) cases. Substantial numbers of concomitant conditions existed among cases with low algorithm scores, all being potentially lethal under field conditions without CED exposure. The number of CED-administered shocks sustained was unrelated to CED-attributability of fatality. Two of the Naranjo questions (regarding dechallenge and the effects of challenge with a non-identical but similar agent) proved to be non-contributory. An algorithmic approach to assessment of CED-associated fatality seems feasible. By these pharmacovigilance standards, some published case fatality rates attributable to CED exposure seem exaggerated. CED-attributable deaths have close similarity to Type-B SAEs. The latter are rare, unpredictable, and usually due to a patient idiosyncrasy. In the person being restrained, such idiosyncratic factors may be unavoidable by law enforcement officers (LEO) in the field. These are unlike predictable (Type-A) SAEs, which have their corollary amongst secondary CED-associated deaths, e.g., head injury among cyclists or ignition of an inflammable atmosphere by the CED, and are identifiable risk factors for which LEO can train. Regardless, absolute CED tolerability is obviously greater than that for firearms. A prospective registry of CED deployments would measure this more precisely. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Convection-Enhanced Delivery (CED) in an Animal Model of Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumors and Plexiform Neurofibromas

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2011-09-01

    with an accelerated schedule Convection-Enhanced Delivery ( CED ), Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath ( MPNST ), Plexiform Neurofibromas (PN...the distribution of macromolecules delivered to intraneural PNs and MPNST via CED . Design: Orthotopic xenograft models of sciatic intraneural NF1...determine the efficacy CED of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitor erlotinib in animal models of intraneural PNs and MPNST

  17. Coal desulfurization by low temperature chlorinolysis, phase 1

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kalvinskas, J. J.; Hsu, G. C.; Ernest, J. B.; Andress, D. F.; Feller, D. R.

    1977-01-01

    The reported activity covers laboratory scale experiments on twelve bituminous, sub-bituminous and lignite coals, and preliminary design and specifications for bench-scale and mini-pilot plant equipment.

  18. Concentration rather than dose defines the local brain toxicity of agents that are effectively distributed by convection-enhanced delivery.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Rong; Saito, Ryuta; Mano, Yui; Kanamori, Masayuki; Sonoda, Yukihiko; Kumabe, Toshihiro; Tominaga, Teiji

    2014-01-30

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) has been developed as a potentially effective drug-delivery strategy into the central nervous system. In contrast to systemic intravenous administration, local delivery achieves high concentration and prolonged retention in the local tissue, with increased chance of local toxicity, especially with toxic agents such as chemotherapeutic agents. Therefore, the factors that affect local toxicity should be extensively studied. With the assumption that concentration-oriented evaluation of toxicity is important for local CED, we evaluated the appearance of local toxicity among different agents after delivery with CED and studied if it is dose dependent or concentration dependent. Local toxicity profile of chemotherapeutic agents delivered via CED indicates BCNU was dose-dependent, whereas that of ACNU was concentration-dependent. On the other hand, local toxicity for doxorubicin, which is not distributed effectively by CED, was dose-dependent. Local toxicity for PLD, which is extensively distributed by CED, was concentration-dependent. Traditional evaluation of drug induced toxicity was dose-oriented. This is true for systemic intravascular delivery. However, with local CED, toxicity of several drugs exacerbated in concentration-dependent manner. From our study, local toxicity of drugs that are likely to distribute effectively tended to be concentration-dependent. Concentration rather than dose may be more important for the toxicity of agents that are effectively distributed by CED. Concentration-oriented evaluation of toxicity is more important for CED. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. Convection-Enhanced Delivery (CED) in an Animal Model of Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath (MPNST) Tumors and Plexiform Neurofibromas (PN)

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2012-09-01

    TITLE: Convection-Enhanced Delivery ( CED ) in an Animal Model of Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath ( MPNST ) Tumors and Plexiform Neurofibromas (PN...within the sciatic nerve. 15. SUBJECT TERMS Convection-Enhanced Delivery ( CED ), Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath ( MPNST ), Plexiform Neurofibromas...determine the distribution of macromolecules delivered to intraneural PNs and MPNST via CED . Design: Orthotopic xenograft models of sciatic intraneural

  20. Perceptions and Knowledge of Caffeinated Energy Drinks: Results of Focus Groups With Canadian Youth.

    PubMed

    McCrory, Cassondra; White, Christine M; Bowman, Carolyn; Fenton, Nancy; Reid, Jessica L; Hammond, David

    2017-04-01

    To examine use, knowledge, and perceptions of caffeinated energy drinks (CEDs) among youth. Qualitative research using focus group discussions (n = 4). Two Canadian cities (Toronto and Montreal). Youth aged 12-18 years (n = 41). Perceived definitions of CEDs, reasons for use, knowledge of health effects, use with alcohol, marketing perceptions, and use and understanding of cautionary statements on packaging. Data were analyzed using a modified grounded-theory approach. Youth identified CEDs as products that provide energy and contain caffeine and sugar. Compared with mainstream CED brands and energy shots, youth were less likely to perceive Gatorade, Coca-Cola, and a Starbucks beverage as energy drinks, despite some ambiguity. The majority of participants believed that CEDs, including mixed with alcohol, were not necessarily harmful in moderation and that marketing was targeted toward older youth and young adults. Awareness of cautionary statements on CEDs was low; cautionary statements were perceived as difficult to find and read owing to the design and small font. Findings suggest a need to increase public education regarding the potential risks of CED consumption, including enhancements to the mandated cautionary statements, with greater attention to the impact of CED marketing on youth. Copyright © 2016 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. Mathematical Modeling Of Production Of Bio-surfactant Through Bio-desulfurization Of Hydrotreated Diesel In A Fermenter

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bandyopadhyay, Sujaya; Chowdhury, Ranjana; Bhattacharjee, Chiranjib

    2010-10-01

    The conventional deep desulfurization must be followed by a suitable desulfurization process to achieve ultra low sulfur diesel (ULSD) with 10-15 ppm sulfur level which satisfies the strict environmental regulations. Bio-desulfurization is one of the potential routes for the above mentioned purpose. In this present investigation our major concern is production of Ultra Low sulfur diesel (ULSD) and production of biosurfactant simultaneously using Rhodococcus sp. The substituted benzothiophenes (BTs) and dibenzothiophenes (DBTs) get converted to 2-hydroxy biphenyl, which is a potential bio-surfactant. Kinetics of biodesulfurisation of deep desulfurized diesel using Rhodococcus sp. has been studied with special reference to removal of organo-sulfur compounds in diesel and production of 2-hydroxy biphenyl. The sulfur concentration of feed diesel is in the range of 200-540 mg/L. Aqueous phase to diesel ratios have been varied in the range of 9:1 to 1:9. The optimum ratio has been found to be 1:4 and the maximum conversion of sulfur of 95% has been achieved. The values of Monod kinetic parameters, μmax, maximum specific growth rate and Ks, saturation constant of the microbial growth and Yield coefficient of surfactant have been measured to be 0.096 h-1, 71 mg/L, and 17 μmol/g dry cell weights respectively by conducting batch type experiments. A deterministic mathematical model has been developed using the kinetic parameters and the experimental data have been compared with simulated ones satisfactorily.

  2. Convection-Enhanced Delivery (CED) in an Animal Model of Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumors and Plexiform Neurofibromas

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-02-01

    successfully establish the xenograft within the sciatic nerve. Convection-Enhanced Delivery ( CED ), Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath ( MPNST ), Plexiform...intraneural PNs and MPNST via CED . Design: Orthotopic xenograft models of sciatic intraneural NF1 MPNST and PNs in scid mice as described by Perrin et...using convection-enhanced delivery ( CED ). Relative Growth of MPNST cells in vivo treated with rapamycin, imatinib or erlotinib: Elotinib

  3. Excess male chronic energy deficiency among adolescents: a cross-sectional study in the context of patrilineal and matrilineal societies in Northeast India.

    PubMed

    Khongsdier, R; Varte, R; Mukherjee, N

    2005-09-01

    To determine the sex differences in chronic energy deficiency (CED) among adolescents in the context of patrilineal and matrilineal societies in Northeast India. Cross-sectional, community-based study of the Hmar patrilineal society and the Khasi (War and Khynriam) matrilineal society. Mizoram and Meghalaya in Northeast India. In total, 1733 adolescent boys and girls aged 9-16 y: Khynriam Khasis (n = 1005), War Khasis (n = 305) and Hmars (n = 423). Weight, height, and socio-economic characteristics. Body mass index (weight in kg/height in m2) was used for assessing CED relative to the international reference values. The overall prevalence of CED was significantly greater in boys than in girls. The sex differences in the prevalence of CED were 5, 10 and 6% points in the Khynriam Khasis, War Khasis and Hmars, respectively. Allowing for age and socio-economic variables, the risks of CED were about 1.82 (95% CI 1.14-2.90), 1.83 (95% CI 1.19-3.33) and 1.78 (95% CI 1.10-3.25) times greater in boys than in girls among the Khynriam Khasis, War Khasis and Hmars, respectively. Using logistic regression analysis, the prevalence of CED was negatively associated with family income across study populations. No significant association was found between CED and religion. Patrilineal and matrilineal forms of society were not reflected in the prevalence of CED among adolescents. Subject to further studies of the research problems concerning the nutritional status of adolescents, girls fare better than boys with respect to the prevalence of CED.

  4. Convection enhanced delivery of carmustine to the murine brainstem: a feasibility study.

    PubMed

    Sewing, A Charlotte P; Caretti, Viola; Lagerweij, Tonny; Schellen, Pepijn; Jansen, Marc H A; van Vuurden, Dannis G; Idema, Sander; Molthoff, Carla F M; Vandertop, W Peter; Kaspers, Gertjan J L; Noske, David P; Hulleman, Esther

    2014-12-30

    Systemic delivery of therapeutic agents remains ineffective against diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), possibly due to an intact blood-brain-barrier (BBB) and to dose-limiting toxicity of systemic chemotherapeutic agents. Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) into the brainstem may provide an effective local delivery alternative for DIPG patients. The aim of this study is to develop a method to perform CED into the murine brainstem and to test this method using the chemotherapeutic agent carmustine (BiCNU). To this end, a newly designed murine CED catheter was tested in vitro and in vivo. After determination of safety and distribution, mice bearing VUMC-DIPG-3 and E98FM-DIPG brainstem tumors were treated with carmustine dissolved in DW 5% or carmustine dissolved in 10% ethanol. Our results show that CED into the murine brainstem is feasible and well tolerated by mice with and without brainstem tumors. CED of carmustine dissolved in 5% DW increased median survival of mice with VUMC-DIPG-3 and E98FM-DIPG tumors with 35% and 25% respectively. Dissolving carmustine in 10% ethanol further improved survival to 45% in mice with E98FM-DIPG tumors. Since genetically engineered and primary DIPG models are currently only available in mice, murine CED studies have clear advantages over CED studies in other animals. CED in the murine brainstem can be performed safely, is well tolerated and can be used to study efficacy of chemotherapeutic agents orthotopically. These results set the foundation for more CED studies in murine DIPG models. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Analysis of Dibenzothiophene Desulfurization in a Recombinant Pseudomonas putida Strain▿

    PubMed Central

    Calzada, Javier; Zamarro, María T.; Alcón, Almudena; Santos, Victoria E.; Díaz, Eduardo; García, José L.; Garcia-Ochoa, Felix

    2009-01-01

    Biodesulfurization was monitored in a recombinant Pseudomonas putida CECT5279 strain. DszB desulfinase activity reached a sharp maximum at the early exponential phase, but it rapidly decreased at later growth phases. A model two-step resting-cell process combining sequentially P. putida cells from the late and early exponential growth phases was designed to significantly increase biodesulfurization. PMID:19047400

  6. Exploration of resistive targets within shallow marine environments using the circular electrical dipole and the differential electrical dipole methods: a time-domain modelling study

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Haroon, Amir; Mogilatov, Vladimir; Goldman, Mark; Bergers, Rainer; Tezkan, Bülent

    2016-05-01

    Two novel transient controlled source electromagnetic methods called circular electrical dipole (CED) and differential electrical dipole (DED) are theoretically analysed for applications in shallow marine environments. 1-D and 3-D time-domain modelling studies are used to investigate the detectability and applicability of the methods when investigating resistive layers/targets representing hydrocarbon-saturated formations. The results are compared to the conventional time-domain horizontal electrical dipole (HED) and vertical electrical dipole (VED) sources. The applied theoretical modelling studies demonstrate that CED and DED have higher signal detectability towards resistive targets compared to TD-CSEM, but demonstrate significantly poorer signal amplitudes. Future CED/DED applications will have to solve this issue prior to measuring. Furthermore, the two novel methods have very similar detectability characteristics towards 3-D resistive targets embedded in marine sediments as VED while being less susceptible towards non-verticality. Due to the complex transmitter design of CED/DED the systems are prone to geometrical errors. Modelling studies show that even small transmitter inaccuracies have strong effects on the signal characteristics of CED making an actual marine application difficult at the present time. In contrast, the DED signal is less affected by geometrical errors in comparison to CED and may therefore be more adequate for marine applications.

  7. Coverage with Evidence Development: applications and issues.

    PubMed

    Trueman, Paul; Grainger, David L; Downs, Kristen E

    2010-01-01

    The aim of this study was to describe the current issues surrounding Coverage with Evidence Development (CED). CED is characterized by restricted coverage for a new technology in parallel with targeted research when the stated goal of the research or data collection is to provide definitive evidence for the clinical or cost-effectiveness impact of the new technology. Presented here is information summarized and interpreted from presentations and discussions at the 2008 Health Technology Assessment International (HTAi) meeting and additional information from the medical literature. This study describes the differences between CED and other conditional coverage agreements, provides a brief history of CED, describes real-world examples of CED, describes the areas of consensus between the stakeholders, discusses the areas for future negotiation between stakeholders, and proposes criteria to assist stakeholders in determining when CED could be appropriate. Payers could interpret the evidence obtained from a CED program either positively or negatively, and a range of possible changes to the reimbursement status of the new technology may result. Striking an appropriate balance between the demands for prompt access to new technology and acknowledging that some degree of uncertainty will always exist is a critical challenge to the uptake of this innovative form of conditional coverage. When used selectively for innovative procedures, pharmaceuticals, or devices in the appropriate disease areas, CED may provide patients access to promising medicines or technologies while data to minimize uncertainty are collected.

  8. Functional analysis of CedA based on its structure: residues important in binding of DNA and RNA polymerase and in the cell division regulation

    PubMed Central

    Abe, Yoshito; Fujisaki, Naoki; Miyoshi, Takanori; Watanabe, Noriko; Katayama, Tsutomu; Ueda, Tadashi

    2016-01-01

    DnaAcos, a mutant of the initiator DnaA, causes overinitiation of chromosome replication in Escherichia coli, resulting in inhibition of cell division. CedA was found to be a multi-copy suppressor which represses the dnaAcos inhibition of cell division. However, functional mechanism of CedA remains elusive except for previously indicated possibilities in binding to DNA and RNA polymerase. In this study, we searched for the specific sites of CedA in binding of DNA and RNA polymerase and in repression of cell division inhibition. First, DNA sequence to which CedA preferentially binds was determined. Next, the several residues and β4 region in CedA C-terminal domain was suggested to specifically interact with the DNA. Moreover, we found that the flexible N-terminal region was required for tight binding to longer DNA as well as interaction with RNA polymerase. Based on these results, several cedA mutants were examined in ability for repressing dnaAcos cell division inhibition. We found that the N-terminal region was dispensable and that Glu32 in the C-terminal domain was required for the repression. These results suggest that CedA has multiple roles and residues with different functions are positioned in the two regions. PMID:26400504

  9. The Use of Surrogate and Patient-Relevant Endpoints in Outcomes-Based Market Access Agreements : Current Debate.

    PubMed

    Toumi, Mondher; Jarosławski, Szymon; Sawada, Toyohiro; Kornfeld, Åsa

    2017-02-01

    The high cost of novel treatments is the major driver of negative or restricted reimbursement decisions by healthcare payers in many countries. Costly drugs can be subject to Market Access Agreements (MAAs), which are financial (Commercial Agreements [CAs]) or outcomes-based (Payment for Performance Agreements [P4Ps] or Coverage with Evidence Development agreements [CEDs]). Outcomes in outcomes-based MAAs are assessed through changes in surrogate endpoints (SEPs) or patient-relevant endpoints (PEPs). In May 2015, we reviewed published and grey literature on MAAs between manufacturers and large, institutionalised payers from all geographical areas, and classified the schemes into CAs, P4Ps and CEDs, as well as by therapeutic area and country. Outcomes-based MAAs were further categorized by the endpoint used. Overall, we identified 143 MAAs, 56 (39.2 %) of which were pure CAs, 53 (37.1 %) were CEDs, and 34 (23.8 %) were P4Ps. Among the CEDs, 49 were PEP CEDs and four were SEP CEDs; of the 34 P4Ps, 29 were SEP P4Ps for 30 drugs, and five were PEP P4Ps for at least six drugs; and among 87 outcomes-based MAAs (CEDs + P4Ps), PEP CEDs were the most common (56.3 %), followed by SEP P4Ps (34.1 %). The high proportion of SEPs used in P4Ps contrasts with the high proportion of PEPs used in CEDs. CEDs employ PEPs and it appears that they are used to reduce uncertainty about a drug's clinical outcomes and/or real-life use, and thus allow payers to align a product's value with price. We argue that P4Ps do not reduce uncertainty about real-life effectiveness and can only constitute an outcome guarantee for payers if they are based on PEPs or validated SEPs.

  10. The distribution and mortality impact of chronic energy deficiency among adult Nigerian men and women.

    PubMed

    Rotimi, C; Okosun, I; Johnson, L; Owoaje, E; Lawoyin, T; Asuzu, M; Kaufman, J; Adeyemo, A; Cooper, R

    1999-09-01

    To determine the prevalence of chronic energy deficiency (CED) and associated mortality risk in a cohort of adult Nigerians followed from 1992 to 1997. The data for this investigation were derived from an international collaborative study on chronic diseases in populations of the African diaspora. Body mass index (BMI) was used to define three grades of CED in 4061 men and women aged 25 years and older: Grade I (mild CED) as BMI 17.5-18.4, Grade II (moderate CED) as BMI 16.0-17.4, and Grade III (severe CED) as BMI < 16.0 and BMI > or = 18.5 was considered normal. The odds of mortality associated with differing grades of CED was estimated with logistic regression analysis. The prevalence of CED (BMI < 18.5) increased from 14.3% in 1992 to 19.6% in 1997, both genders combined. The prevalence of CED was similar for both sexes in 1992 (14%) but increased to 22.4% in men and 17.4% in women by 1997. The prevalence of CED was 8.5%, 7.6 and 3.4 for Grades I, II and III, respectively. Two hundred and seven deaths occurred during the follow-up period. The mortality rate for the 5.5 y of follow-up was 5.1% (207/4061). The odds ratios (95% CIs) for all cause mortality were 1.4 (0.5, 3.8), 2.4 (1.2, 4.9) and 2.5 (1.0, 6.2), respectively, for CED grades I, II and III adjusting for age and sex. Under nutrition is an increasing problem in Nigerian men and women. The economic reforms (structural adjustment program (SAP)) introduced in 1986 in combination with the continued economic woes brought on by political instability, corruption and nepotism have been advanced by several investigators as the main factors in the growing problem of inadequate calorie intake. Intervention strategies both at the government and private sectors are urgently needed to increase food availability.

  11. Efficient H2O2/CH3COOH oxidative desulfurization/denitrification of liquid fuels in sonochemical flow-reactors.

    PubMed

    Calcio Gaudino, Emanuela; Carnaroglio, Diego; Boffa, Luisa; Cravotto, Giancarlo; Moreira, Elizabeth M; Nunes, Matheus A G; Dressler, Valderi L; Flores, Erico M M

    2014-01-01

    The oxidative desulfurization/denitrification of liquid fuels has been widely investigated as an alternative or complement to common catalytic hydrorefining. In this process, all oxidation reactions occur in the heterogeneous phase (the oil and the polar phase containing the oxidant) and therefore the optimization of mass and heat transfer is of crucial importance to enhancing the oxidation rate. This goal can be achieved by performing the reaction in suitable ultrasound (US) reactors. In fact, flow and loop US reactors stand out above classic batch US reactors thanks to their greater efficiency and flexibility as well as lower energy consumption. This paper describes an efficient sonochemical oxidation with H2O2/CH3COOH at flow rates ranging from 60 to 800 ml/min of both a model compound, dibenzotiophene (DBT), and of a mild hydro-treated diesel feedstock. Four different commercially available US loop reactors (single and multi-probe) were tested, two of which were developed in the authors' laboratory. Full DBT oxidation and efficient diesel feedstock desulfurization/denitrification were observed after the separation of the polar oxidized S/N-containing compounds (S≤5 ppmw, N≤1 ppmw). Our studies confirm that high-throughput US applications benefit greatly from flow-reactors. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. Convection-enhanced delivery of a hydrophilic nitrosourea ameliorates deficits and suppresses tumor growth in experimental spinal cord glioma models.

    PubMed

    Ogita, Shogo; Endo, Toshiki; Sugiyama, Shinichiro; Saito, Ryuta; Inoue, Tomoo; Sumiyoshi, Akira; Nonaka, Hiroi; Kawashima, Ryuta; Sonoda, Yukihiko; Tominaga, Teiji

    2017-05-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is a technique allowing local infusion of therapeutic agents into the central nervous system, circumventing the blood-brain or spinal cord barrier. To evaluate the utility of nimustine hydrochloride (ACNU) CED in controlling tumor progression in an experimental spinal cord glioma model. Toxicity studies were performed in 42 rats following the administration of 4 μl of ACNU CED into the mid-thoracic spinal cord at concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 10 mg/ml. Behavioral analyses and histological evaluations were performed to assess ACNU toxicity in the spinal cord. A survival study was performed in 32 rats following the implantation of 9 L cells into the T8 spinal cord. Seven days after the implantation, rats were assigned to four groups: ACNU CED (0.25 mg/ml; n = 8); ACNU intravenous (i.v.) (0.4 mg; n = 8); saline CED (n = 8); saline i.v. (n = 8). Hind limb movements were evaluated daily in all rats for 21 days. Tumor sizes were measured histologically. The maximum tolerated ACNU concentration was 0.25 mg/ml. Preservation of hind limb motor function and tumor growth suppression was observed in the ACNU CED (0.25 mg/ml) and ACNU i.v. groups. Antitumor effects were more prominent in the ACNU CED group especially in behavioral analyses (P < 0.05; log-rank test). ACNU CED had efficacy in controlling tumor growth and preserving neurological function in an experimental spinal cord tumor model. ACNU CED can be a viable treatment option for spinal cord high-grade glioma.

  13. Convection-enhanced delivery of SN-38-loaded polymeric micelles (NK012) enables consistent distribution of SN-38 and is effective against rodent intracranial brain tumor models.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Rong; Saito, Ryuta; Mano, Yui; Sumiyoshi, Akira; Kanamori, Masayuki; Sonoda, Yukihiko; Kawashima, Ryuta; Tominaga, Teiji

    2016-10-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) of therapeutic agents is a promising local delivery technique that has been extensively studied as a treatment for CNS diseases over the last two decades. One continuing challenge of CED is accurate and consistent delivery of the agents to the target. The present study focused on a new type of therapeutic agent, NK012, a novel SN-38-loaded polymeric micelle. Local delivery profiles of NK012 and SN-38 were studied using rodent brain and intracranial rodent brain tumor models. First, the cytotoxicity of NK012 against glioma cell lines was determined in vitro. Proliferations of glioma cells were significantly reduced after exposure to NK012. Then, the distribution and local toxicity after CED delivery of NK012 and SN-38 were evaluated in vivo. Volume of distribution of NK012 after CED was much larger than that of SN-38. Histological examination revealed minimum brain tissue damage in rat brains after delivery of 40 µg NK012 but severe damage with SN-38 at the same dose. Subsequently, the efficacy of NK012 delivered via CED was tested in 9L and U87MG rodent orthotopic brain tumor models. CED of NK012 displayed excellent efficacy in the 9L and U87MG orthotopic brain tumor models. Furthermore, NK012 and gadolinium diamide were co-delivered via CED to monitor the NK012 distribution using MRI. Volume of NK012 distribution evaluated by histology and MRI showed excellent agreement. CED of NK012 represents an effective treatment option for malignant gliomas. MRI-guided CED of NK012 has potential for clinical application.

  14. An integrated evaluation for the performance of clinical engineering department.

    PubMed

    Yousry, Ahmed M; Ouda, Bassem K; Eldeib, Ayman M

    2014-01-01

    Performance benchmarking have become a very important component in all successful organizations nowadays that must be used by Clinical Engineering Department (CED) in hospitals. Many researchers identified essential mainstream performance indicators needed to improve the CED's performance. These studies revealed mainstream performance indicators that use the database of a CED to evaluate its performance. In this work, we believe that those indicators are insufficient for hospitals. Additional important indicators should be included to improve the evaluation accuracy. Therefore, we added new indicators: technical/maintenance indicators, economic indicators, intrinsic criticality indicators, basic hospital indicators, equipment acquisition, and safety indicators. Data is collected from 10 hospitals that cover different types of healthcare organizations. We developed a software tool that analyses collected data to provide a score for each CED under evaluation. Our results indicate that there is an average gap of 67% between the CEDs' performance and the ideal target. The reasons for the noncompliance are discussed in order to improve performance of CEDs under evaluation.

  15. The Conservation Efforts Database: Improving our knowledge of landscape conservation actions

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Heller, Matthew M.; Welty, Justin; Wiechman , Lief A.

    2017-01-01

    The Conservation Efforts Database (CED) is a secure, cloud-based tool that can be used to document and track conservation actions across landscapes. A recently released factsheet describes this tool ahead of the rollout of CED version 2.0. The CED was developed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the USGS, and the Great Northern Landscape Conservation Cooperative to support the 2015 Endangered Species Act status review for greater sage-grouse. Currently, the CED accepts policy-level data, such as Land Use Plans, and treatment level data, such as conifer removals and post-fire recovery efforts, as custom spatial and non-spatial records. In addition to a species assessment tool, the CED can also be used to summarize the extent of restoration efforts within a specific area or to strategically site conservation actions based on the location of other implemented actions. The CED can be an important tool, along with post-conservation monitoring, for implementing landscape-scale adaptive management.

  16. Functional analysis of CedA based on its structure: residues important in binding of DNA and RNA polymerase and in the cell division regulation.

    PubMed

    Abe, Yoshito; Fujisaki, Naoki; Miyoshi, Takanori; Watanabe, Noriko; Katayama, Tsutomu; Ueda, Tadashi

    2016-02-01

    DnaAcos, a mutant of the initiator DnaA, causes overinitiation of chromosome replication in Escherichia coli, resulting in inhibition of cell division. CedA was found to be a multi-copy suppressor which represses the dnaAcos inhibition of cell division. However, functional mechanism of CedA remains elusive except for previously indicated possibilities in binding to DNA and RNA polymerase. In this study, we searched for the specific sites of CedA in binding of DNA and RNA polymerase and in repression of cell division inhibition. First, DNA sequence to which CedA preferentially binds was determined. Next, the several residues and β4 region in CedA C-terminal domain was suggested to specifically interact with the DNA. Moreover, we found that the flexible N-terminal region was required for tight binding to longer DNA as well as interaction with RNA polymerase. Based on these results, several cedA mutants were examined in ability for repressing dnaAcos cell division inhibition. We found that the N-terminal region was dispensable and that Glu32 in the C-terminal domain was required for the repression. These results suggest that CedA has multiple roles and residues with different functions are positioned in the two regions. © The Authors 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Japanese Biochemical Society. All rights reserved.

  17. Convection-Enhanced Delivery for Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma Treatment.

    PubMed

    Zhou, Zhiping; Singh, Ranjodh; Souweidane, Mark M

    2017-01-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is a technique designed to deliver drugs directly into the brain or tumors. Its ability to bypass the blood-brain barrier (BBB), one of the major hurdles in delivering drugs to the brain, has made it a promising drug delivery method for the treatment of primary brain tumors. A number of clinical trials utilizing CED of various therapeutic agents have been conducted to treat patients with supratentorial high-grade gliomas. Significant responses have been observed in certain patients in all of these trials. However, the insufficient ability to monitor drug distribution and pharmacokinetics hampers CED from achieving its potentials on a larger scale. Brainstem CED for diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) treatment is appealing because this tumor is compact and has no definitive treatment. The safety of brainstem CED has been established in small and large animals, and recently in early stage clinical trials. There are a few current clinical trials of brainstem CED in treating DIPG patients using targeted macromolecules such as antibodies and immunotoxins. Future advances for CED in DIPG treatment will come from several directions including: choosing the right agents for infusion; developing better agents and regimen for DIPG infusion; improving instruments and technique for easier and accurate surgical targeting and for allowing multisession or prolonged infusion to implement optimal time sequence; and better understanding and control of drug distribution, clearance and time sequence. CED-based therapies for DIPG will continue to evolve with new understanding of the technique and the disease.

  18. Convection-Enhanced Delivery for Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma Treatment

    PubMed Central

    Zhou, Zhiping; Singh, Ranjodh; Souweidane, Mark M.

    2017-01-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is a technique designed to deliver drugs directly into the brain or tumors. Its ability to bypass the blood-brain barrier (BBB), one of the major hurdles in delivering drugs to the brain, has made it a promising drug delivery method for the treatment of primary brain tumors. A number of clinical trials utilizing CED of various therapeutic agents have been conducted to treat patients with supratentorial high-grade gliomas. Significant responses have been observed in certain patients in all of these trials. However, the insufficient ability to monitor drug distribution and pharmacokinetics hampers CED from achieving its potentials on a larger scale. Brainstem CED for diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) treatment is appealing because this tumor is compact and has no definitive treatment. The safety of brainstem CED has been established in small and large animals, and recently in early stage clinical trials. There are a few current clinical trials of brainstem CED in treating DIPG patients using targeted macromolecules such as antibodies and immunotoxins. Future advances for CED in DIPG treatment will come from several directions including: choosing the right agents for infusion; developing better agents and regimen for DIPG infusion; improving instruments and technique for easier and accurate surgical targeting and for allowing multisession or prolonged infusion to implement optimal time sequence; and better understanding and control of drug distribution, clearance and time sequence. CED-based therapies for DIPG will continue to evolve with new understanding of the technique and the disease. PMID:27306036

  19. Hydrotreating of coal liquids, Phase Two. Final report

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Wilson, D.B.; Bogdanor, J.M.

    1982-06-01

    The purpose of this study was to determine the kinetic parameters for the pseudo first-order denitrogenation and desulfurization of an SASOL coal naphtha. Only the fraction boiling over 95/sup 0/C (at 25.8 mmHg) was hydrotreated due to the high volatility of the whole naphtha. Dodecane was used as a diluent to further reduce the volatility of the hydrotreated naphtha bottoms. A commercial Ni-Mo catalyst (HDS9A) was employed. Based on chromatographic results, nitrogen and sulfur were successfully removed from the naphtha bottoms. The mathematical model developed to describe the pseudo first-order denitrogenation and desulfurization of the naphtha bottoms in the semi-batch,more » slurry reactor was adequate to explain the experimental results. The Arrhenius plot of the rate constants, determined by fitting the data to the model equation, for the desulfurization of the naphtha bottoms, yielded a straight line for the three temperatures used, 221, 235, and 251/sup 0/C at a pressure of 800 psig. This indicates that the assumption of a pseudo first-order reaction for the desulfurization of the naphtha bottoms is valid. The estimate of the activation energy, 8558 cal/g mole, for the desulfurization is consistent with the literature. The desulfurizationwas much faster than the denitrogenation reaction. This observation is also consistent with the literature. The estimate of the activation energy, 4560 cal/g mole, for the denitrogenation of the naphtha bottoms, was lower than expected for the reaction occurring in the kinetic regime. Two possible explanations for this are discussed.« less

  20. Ultrasound-assisted oxidative desulfurization of liquid fuels and its industrial application.

    PubMed

    Wu, Zhilin; Ondruschka, Bernd

    2010-08-01

    Latest environmental regulations require a very deep desulfurization to meet the ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD, 15 ppm sulfur) specifications. Due to the disadvantages of hydrotreating technology on the slashing production conditions, costs and safety as well as environmental protection, the ultrasound-assisted oxidative desulfurization (UAOD) as an alternative technology has been developed. UAOD process selectively oxidizes sulfur in common thiophenes in diesel to sulfoxides and sulfones which can be removed via selective adsorption or extractant. SulphCo has successfully used a 5000 barrel/day mobile "Sonocracking" unit to duplicate on a commercial scale its proprietary process that applies ultrasonics at relatively low temperatures and pressures. The UAOD technology estimate capital costs less than half the cost of a new high-pressure hydrotreater. The physical and chemical mechanisms of UAOD process are illustrated, and the effective factors, such as ultrasonic frequency and power, oxidants, catalysts, phase-transfer agent, extractant and adsorbent, on reaction kinetics and product recovery are discussed in this review. Copyright 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. 13 CFR 303.6 - EDA-funded CEDS process.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... PLANNING INVESTMENTS AND COMPREHENSIVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES § 303.6 EDA-funded CEDS process. If EDA awards Investment Assistance to a Planning Organization to develop, revise or replace a CEDS, the... must appoint a Strategy Committee. The Strategy Committee must represent the main economic interests of...

  2. Instructional Design Issues in a Distributed Collaborative Engineering Design (CED) Instructional Environment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Koszalka, Tiffany A.; Wu, Yiyan

    2010-01-01

    Changes in engineering practices have spawned changes in engineering education and prompted the use of distributed learning environments. A distributed collaborative engineering design (CED) course was designed to engage engineering students in learning about and solving engineering design problems. The CED incorporated an advanced interactive…

  3. 12 CFR 28.15 - Capital equivalency deposits.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... provided by the OCC, a foreign bank's capital equivalency deposits (CED) must consist of: (i) Investment... increase its CED above the minimum amount. For example, the OCC may require an increase if a Federal branch... arrangements. A foreign bank should require its depository bank to segregate its CED on the depository bank's...

  4. 12 CFR 28.15 - Capital equivalency deposits.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... provided by the OCC, a foreign bank's capital equivalency deposits (CED) must consist of: (i) Investment... increase its CED above the minimum amount. For example, the OCC may require an increase if a Federal branch... arrangements. A foreign bank should require its depository bank to segregate its CED on the depository bank's...

  5. 12 CFR 28.15 - Capital equivalency deposits.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... provided by the OCC, a foreign bank's capital equivalency deposits (CED) must consist of: (i) Investment... or agency in a state, it shall determine the CED and the amount of liabilities requiring capital... cases or otherwise, that a foreign bank increase its CED above the minimum amount. For example, the OCC...

  6. 12 CFR 28.15 - Capital equivalency deposits.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... provided by the OCC, a foreign bank's capital equivalency deposits (CED) must consist of: (i) Investment... or agency in a state, it shall determine the CED and the amount of liabilities requiring capital... cases or otherwise, that a foreign bank increase its CED above the minimum amount. For example, the OCC...

  7. 12 CFR 28.15 - Capital equivalency deposits.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... provided by the OCC, a foreign bank's capital equivalency deposits (CED) must consist of: (i) Investment... increase its CED above the minimum amount. For example, the OCC may require an increase if a Federal branch... arrangements. A foreign bank should require its depository bank to segregate its CED on the depository bank's...

  8. CEDS Addresses: Virtual and Blended Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    US Department of Education, 2015

    2015-01-01

    The Common Education Data Standards (CEDS) common data vocabulary supports the collection and use of information about virtual and blended learning. The data element "Virtual Indicator", introduced in version 3 of CEDS, supports a range of virtual learning-related use cases. The Virtual Indicator element may be related to a Course…

  9. CHEMICALLY ACTIVE FLUID-BED PROCESS FOR SULPHUR REMOVAL DURING GASIFICATION OF HEAVY FUEL OIL - SECOND PHASE

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report describes the second phase of studies on the CAFB process for desulfurizing gasification of heavy fuel oil in a bed of hot lime. The first continuous pilot plant test with U.S. limestone BCR 1691 experienced local stone sintering and severe production of sticky dust du...

  10. IER 203 CED-2 Report: LLNL Final Design for BERP Ball With a Composite Reflector of Thin Polyethylene Backed by Nickel

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Percher, C. M.; Heinrichs, D. P.; Kim, S. K.

    2016-07-18

    This report documents the results of final design (CED-2) for IER 203, BERP Ball Composite Reflection, and focuses on critical configurations with a 4.5 kg α-phase plutonium sphere reflected by a combination of thin high-density polyethylene (HDPE) backed by a thick nickel reflector. The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s (LLNL’s) Nuclear Criticality Safety Division, in support of fissile material operations, calculated surprisingly reactive configurations when a fissile core was surrounded by a thin, moderating reflector backed by a thick metal reflector. These composite reflector configurations were much more reactive than either of the single reflector materials separately. The calculated findings havemore » resulted in a stricter-than-anticipated criticality control set, impacting programmatic work. IER 203 was requested in response to these seemingly anomalous calculations to see if the composite reflection effect could be shown experimentally. This report focuses on the Beryllium Reflected Plutonium (BERP) ball as a fissile material core reflected by polyethylene and nickel. A total of four critical configurations were designed as part of CED-2. Fabrication costs are estimated to be $98,500, largely due to the cost of the large nickel reflectors. The IER 203 experiments could reasonably be expected to begin in early FY2017.« less

  11. Ore sintering flue gas desulfurization and its resoureilization by using pyrolusite

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, S. E.; Long, Z. G.; Wu, F. Z.; Li, H. Y.; Cui, T. M.; Zhou, X. Z.

    2017-11-01

    Flue gas desulfurization (FGD) has been implemented for sulfur dioxide gas emission reduction by pyrolusite in iron ore sintering. However, the mechanism of SO2 reduction through FGD is still not fully clear. And in present work, the effects of operating conditions on desulfurization rate and Mn2+ leaching rate of pyrolusite were investigated. Six hours later, the desulfurization rate and Mn2+ leaching rate all can be higher than 70%. And a higher absorption temperature was good for desulfurization rate, while a middle temperature was good for Mn2+ leaching rate. A higher manganese ore granularity and SO2 concentration were good for desulfurization rate and Mn2+ leaching rate. However, a higher liquid-solid rate was only good for desulfurization rate, but Mn2+ leaching rate. The results demonstrate that the pyrolusite is a kind of very promising adsorbent in industrial flue gas desulfurization application due to its low cost and good desulfurization capacity.

  12. Convection-enhanced delivery of maghemite nanoparticles: Increased efficacy and MRI monitoring

    PubMed Central

    Perlstein, Benny; Ram, Zvi; Daniels, Dianne; Ocherashvilli, Aharon; Roth, Yiftach; Margel, Shlomo; Mardor, Yael

    2008-01-01

    Convection-enhanced drug delivery (CED) is a novel approach to delivering drugs into brain tissue. Drugs are delivered continuously via a catheter, enabling large volume distributions of high drug concentrations with minimum systemic toxicity. Previously we demonstrated that CED formation/extent of small molecules may be significantly improved by increasing infusate viscosities. In this study we show that the same methodology can be applied to monodispersed maghemite nanoparticles (MNPs). For this purpose we used a normal rat brain model and performed CED of MNPs over short infusion times. By adding 3% sucrose or 3%–6% polyethylene glycol (PEG; molecular weight 400) to saline containing pristine MNPs, we increased infusate viscosity and obtained increased CED efficacy. Further, we show that CED of dextran-coated MNPs (dextran-MNPs) resulted in increased efficacy over pristine MNPs (p < 0.007). To establish the use of MRI for reliable depiction of MNP distribution, CED of fluorescent dextran-MNPs was performed, demonstrating a significant correlation between the distributions as depicted by MRI and spectroscopic images (r2 = 0.74, p < 0.0002). MRI follow-up showed that approximately 80%–90% of the dextran-MNPs were cleared from the rat brain within 40 days of CED; the rest remained in the brain for more than 4 months. MNPs have been tested for applications such as targeted drug delivery and controlled drug release and are clinically used as a contrast agent for MRI. Thus, combining the CED method with the advantages of MNPs may provide a powerful tool to treat and monitor brain tumors. PMID:18316474

  13. 7 CFR 1221.232 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... summaries. Such records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of FSA CED for a period of not... FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Sorghum Checkoff... the Administrator, FSA, by the end of the 12 month period as described above, the CED or designee...

  14. 7 CFR 1221.232 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... summaries. Such records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of FSA CED for a period of not... FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Sorghum Checkoff... the Administrator, FSA, by the end of the 12 month period as described above, the CED or designee...

  15. 7 CFR 1221.232 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... summaries. Such records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of FSA CED for a period of not... FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Sorghum Checkoff... the Administrator, FSA, by the end of the 12 month period as described above, the CED or designee...

  16. 7 CFR 1221.232 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... summaries. Such records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of FSA CED for a period of not... FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Sorghum Checkoff... the Administrator, FSA, by the end of the 12 month period as described above, the CED or designee...

  17. Fiscal Models as Reflections of Institutional Philosophies toward Continuing Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thompson, Gordon

    Throughout the existence of the Continuing Education Division (CED) at the University of Manitoba, three different fiscal models were applied by University Administration to the CED: the traditional model; the income-target model; and the subsidy model. (1) The traditional model paralleled that applied to faculties and schools. The CED was…

  18. Application of corona electrical discharge plasma on modifying the physicochemical properties of banana starch indigenous to Taiwan.

    PubMed

    Wu, Tsung-Yen; Sun, Nan-Nong; Chau, Chi-Fai

    2018-01-01

    Corona electrical discharge (CED) belongs to an atmospheric pressure cold plasma. In this study, raw banana starch (indigenous to Taiwan), which contained resistant starch and amylose at a level of 58.4 g/100 g and 14.5 g/100 g, respectively, was treated by CED at 30 kV/cm, 40 kV/cm, and 50 kV/cm for 3 minutes. After the CED treatment, starch analyses showed that there were no apparent changes in the resistant starch and amylose contents. Only surface and nonpenetrative damage caused by plasma etching at different voltage strengths were observed on the starch granules. The CED treatments reduced the total area of diffraction peak, gelatinization enthalpy (by -21% to -38%), and different pasting behaviors including peak viscosity, breakdown, final viscosity, and setback. The CED treatments were capable of increasing relative crystallinity and gelatinization temperature. This study revealed the potential of CED plasma technology as a tool to modify the characteristics of banana starch. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  19. Convection-enhanced drug delivery to the brain: therapeutic potential and neuropathological considerations.

    PubMed

    Barua, Neil U; Gill, Steven S; Love, Seth

    2014-03-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) describes a direct method of drug delivery to the brain through intraparenchymal microcatheters. By establishing a pressure gradient at the tip of the infusion catheter in order to exploit bulk flow through the interstitial spaces of the brain, CED offers a number of advantages over conventional drug delivery methods-bypass of the blood-brain barrier, targeted distribution through large brain volumes and minimization of systemic side effects. Despite showing early promise, CED is yet to fulfill its potential as a mainstream strategy for the treatment of neurological disease. Substantial research effort has been dedicated to optimize the technology for CED and identify the parameters, which govern successful drug distribution. It seems likely that successful clinical translation of CED will depend on suitable catheter technology being used in combination with drugs with optimal physicochemical characteristics, and on neuropathological analysis in appropriate preclinical models. In this review, we consider the factors most likely to influence the success or failure of CED, and review its application to the treatment of high-grade glioma, Parkinson's disease (PD) and Alzheimer's disease (AD). © 2013 International Society of Neuropathology.

  20. A Mathematical Model for the Multiphase Transport and Reaction Kinetics in a Ladle with Bottom Powder Injection

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lou, Wentao; Zhu, Miaoyong

    2017-12-01

    A computation fluid dynamics-population balance model-simultaneous reaction model (CFD-PBM-SRM) coupled model has been proposed to study the multiphase flow behavior and refining reaction kinetics in a ladle with bottom powder injection, and some new and important phenomena and mechanisms are presented. For the multiphase flow behavior, the effects of bubbly plume flow, powder particle motion, particle-particle collision and growth, particle-bubble collision and adhesion, and powder particle removal into top slag are considered. For the reaction kinetics, the mechanisms of multicomponent simultaneous reactions, including Al, S, Si, Mn, Fe, and O, at the multi-interface, including top slag-liquid steel interface, air-liquid steel interface, powder droplet-liquid steel interface, and bubble-liquid steel interface, are presented, and the effect of sulfur solubility in the powder droplet on the desulfurization is also taken into account. Model validation is carried out using hot tests in a 2-t induction furnace with bottom powder injection. The result shows that the powder particles gradually disperse in the entire furnace; in the vicinity of the bottom slot plugs, the desulfurization product CaS is liquid phase, while in the upper region of the furnace, the desulfurization product CaS is solid phase. The predicted sulfur contents by the present model agree well with the measured data in the 2-t furnace with bottom powder injection.

  1. Magnetic Resonance Imaging-Based Assessment of Gadolinium-Conjugated Diethylenetriamine Penta-Acetic Acid Test-Infusion in Detecting Dysfunction of Convection-Enhanced Delivery Catheters.

    PubMed

    van Putten, Erik H P; Wembacher-Schröder, Eva; Smits, Marion; Dirven, Clemens M F

    2016-05-01

    In a phase 1 trial conducted at our institute, convection-enhanced delivery (CED) was used to administrate the Delta-24-RGD adenovirus in patients with a recurrent glioblastoma multiforme. Infusion of the virus was preceded by a gadolinium-conjugated diethylenetriamine penta-acetic acid (Gd-DTPA) test-infusion. In the present study, we analyzed the results of Gd-DTPA test infusion through 50 catheters. Thirteen adults with a recurrent glioblastoma multiforme were enrolled in a larger phase 1 multicenter, dose-finding study, in which a conditionally replication-competent adenovirus was administered by CED. Up to 4 infusion catheters per patient were placed intra- and/or peritumorally. Before infusion of the virus, a Gd-DTPA infusion was performed for 6 hours, directly followed by a MRI scan. The MRIs were evaluated for catheter position, Gd-DTPA distribution outcome, and contrast leakage. Leakage of Gd-DTPA into the cerebrospinal fluid was detected in 17 of the 50 catheters (34%). Sulcus crossing was the most frequent cause of leakage. In 8 cases, leakage could only be detected on the fluid-attenuated inversion recovery sequence. Nonleaking catheters showed a significantly larger Gd-DTPA distribution fraction (volume of distribution/volume of infusion) than leaking catheters (P = 0.009). A significantly lower volume of distribution/volume of infusion was observed in intratumoral catheters, compared with peritumoral catheters (P = 0.004). Gd-DTPA test infusion did not result in significant changes in Karnofsky Performance Score and Neurological Status. Pre-CED treatment infusion of Gd-DTPA is an adequate and safe method to identify dysfunctional catheters. The use of an optimized drug delivery catheter is necessary to reduce leakage and improve the efficacy of intracerebral drug infusion. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Gas cleaning and hydrogen sulfide removal for COREX coal gas by sorption enhanced catalytic oxidation over recyclable activated carbon desulfurizer.

    PubMed

    Sun, Tonghua; Shen, Yafei; Jia, Jinping

    2014-02-18

    This paper proposes a novel self-developed JTS-01 desulfurizer and JZC-80 alkaline adsorbent for H2S removal and gas cleaning of the COREX coal gas in small-scale and commercial desulfurizing devices. JTS-01 desulfurizer was loaded with metal oxide (i.e., ferric oxides) catalysts on the surface of activated carbons (AC), and the catalyst capacity was improved dramatically by means of ultrasonically assisted impregnation. Consequently, the sulfur saturation capacity and sulfur capacity breakthrough increased by 30.3% and 27.9%, respectively. The whole desulfurizing process combined selective adsorption with catalytic oxidation. Moreover, JZC-80 adsorbent can effectively remove impurities such as HCl, HF, HCN, and ash in the COREX coal gas, stabilizing the system pressure drop. The JTS-01 desulfurizer and JZC-80 adsorbent have been successfully applied for the COREX coal gas cleaning in the commercial plant at Baosteel, Shanghai. The sulfur capacity of JTS-01 desulfurizer can reach more than 50% in industrial applications. Compared with the conventional dry desulfurization process, the modified AC desulfurizers have more merit, especially in terms of the JTS-01 desulfurizer with higher sulfur capacity and low pressure drop. Thus, this sorption enhanced catalytic desulfurization has promising prospects for H2S removal and other gas cleaning.

  3. 77 FR 45599 - CED Rock Springs, Inc.; Supplemental Notice That Revised Market-Based Rate Tariff Filing Includes...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-08-01

    ... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket Nos. ER02-2546-000; ER02-2546-001] CED Rock Springs, Inc.; Supplemental Notice That Revised Market- Based Rate Tariff Filing...-referenced proceeding of CED Rock Springs, Inc.'s tariff revision filing, noting that such filing includes a...

  4. Undernutrition in the Kora Mudi tribal population, West Bengal, India: a comparison of body mass index and mid-upper-arm circumference.

    PubMed

    Bisai, Samiran; Bose, Kaushik

    2009-03-01

    Undernutrition among adult tribal women is a major health problem in India. To compare the utility of two different anthropometric indicators of chronic energy deficiency (CED) among tribal Kora Mudi women and to determine which of these two is a better indicator of undernutrition. A cross-sectional study of 123 individuals was conducted. The body mass index (BMI) and mid-upper-arm circumference (MUAC) were used to evaluate CED. The prevalence of CED based on BMI less than 18.5 was 55.3%, and the prevalence of CED based on MUAC less than 22.0 cm was 51.2%. Both of these prevalence rates are classified in the very high-prevalence category (> or = 40%) and indicate a critical situation according to World Health Organization recommendations. Mean BMI increased significantly with higher quartile of MUAC. There was a significant difference in the prevalence of CED between the MUAC quartiles. The risk ratio for CED for women in the lowest quartile of MUAC was 9.33 compared with those in the highest quartile. There was a significant positive association between MUAC and BMI. Regression analysis demonstrated that MUAC had a significant positive impact on BMI; the percentage of the variation in BMI explained by MUAC was 52%. Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that overall, 82.11% of cases of CED were correctly classified with the use of MUAC. The use of MUAC correctly diagnosed 82.35% of cases of CED and 81.82% of women with normal nutritional status. This population was facing severe nutritional stress. With limited resources and in the absence of skilled manpower, it may be more appropriate to use MUAC for human population surveys, particularly among tribal populations of developing countries.

  5. Convection-enhanced delivery of a synthetic retinoid Am80, loaded into polymeric micelles, prolongs the survival of rats bearing intracranial glioblastoma xenografts.

    PubMed

    Yokosawa, Michiko; Sonoda, Yukihiko; Sugiyama, Shin-ichiro; Saito, Ryuta; Yamashita, Yoji; Nishihara, Masamichi; Satoh, Taku; Kumabe, Toshihiro; Yokoyama, Masayuki; Tominaga, Teiji

    2010-08-01

    Prognosis for the patients with glioblastoma, the most common malignant brain tumor, remains dismal. A major barrier to progress in treatment of glioblastoma is the relative inaccessibility of tumors to chemotherapeutic agents. Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is a direct intracranial drug infusion technique to deliver chemotherapeutic agents to the central nervous system, circumventing the blood-brain barrier and reducing systemic side effects. CED can provide wider distribution of infused agents compared to simple diffusion. We have reported that CED of a polymeric micelle carrier system could yield a clinically relevant distribution of encapsulated agents in the rat brain. Our aim was to evaluate the efficacy of CED of polymeric micellar Am80, a synthetic agonist with high affinity to nuclear retinoic acid receptor, in a rat model of glioblastoma xenografts. We also used systemic administration of temozolomide, a DNA-alkylating agent, which has been established as the standard of care for newly diagnosed malignant glioma. U87MG human glioma cells were injected into the cerebral hemisphere of nude rats. Rats bearing U87MG xenografts were treated with CED of micellar Am80 (2.4 mg/m(2)) on day 7 after tumor implantation. Temozolomide (200 mg/m(2)/day) was intraperitoneally administered daily for 5 days, starting on day 7 after tumor implantation. CED of micellar Am80 provided significantly longer survival than the control. The combination of CED of micellar Am80 and systemic administration of temozolomide provided significantly longer survival than single treatment. In conclusion, temozolomide combined with CED of micellar Am80 may be a promising method for the treatment of malignant gliomas.

  6. Continuous-flow ultrasound assisted oxidative desulfurization (UAOD) process: An efficient diesel treatment by injection of the aqueous phase.

    PubMed

    Rahimi, Masoud; Shahhosseini, Shahrokh; Movahedirad, Salman

    2017-11-01

    A new continuous-flow ultrasound assisted oxidative desulfurization (UAOD) process was developed in order to decrease energy and aqueous phase consumption. In this process the aqueous phase is injected below the horn tip leading to enhanced mixing of the phases. Diesel fuel as the oil phase with sulfur content of 1550ppmw and an appropriate mixture of hydrogen peroxide and formic acid as the aqueous phase were used. At the first step, the optimized condition for the sulfur removal has been obtained in the batch mode operation. Hence, the effect of more important oxidation parameters; oxidant-to-sulfur molar ratio, acid-to-sulfur molar ratio and sonication time were investigated. Then the optimized conditions were obtained using Response Surface Methodology (RSM) technique. Afterwards, some experiments corresponding to the best batch condition and also with objective of minimizing the residence time and aqueous phase to fuel volume ratio have been conducted in a newly designed double-compartment reactor with injection of the aqueous phase to evaluate the process in a continuous flow operation. In addition, the effect of nozzle diameter has been examined. Significant improvement on the sulfur removal was observed specially in lower sonication time in the case of dispersion method in comparison with the conventional contact between two phases. Ultimately, the flow pattern induced by ultrasonic device, and also injection of the aqueous phase were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively by capturing the sequential images. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  7. WRF/CMAQ AQMEII3 Simulations of US Regional-Scale ...

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Chemical boundary conditions are a key input to regional-scale photochemical models. In this study, performed during the third phase of the Air Quality Model Evaluation International Initiative (AQMEII3), we perform annual simulations over North America with chemical boundary conditions prepared from four different global models. Results indicate that the impacts of different boundary conditions are significant for ozone throughout the year and most pronounced outside the summer season. The National Exposure Research Laboratory (NERL) Computational Exposure Division (CED) develops and evaluates data, decision-support tools, and models to be applied to media-specific or receptor-specific problem areas. CED uses modeling-based approaches to characterize exposures, evaluate fate and transport, and support environmental diagnostics/forensics with input from multiple data sources. It also develops media- and receptor-specific models, process models, and decision support tools for use both within and outside of EPA.

  8. Apparatus and method for the desulfurization of petroleum by bacteria

    DOEpatents

    Lizama, H.M.; Scott, T.C.; Scott, C.D.

    1995-10-17

    A method is described for treating petroleum with anaerobic microorganisms acting as biocatalysts that can remove sulfur atoms from hydrocarbon molecules, under anaerobic conditions, and then convert the sulfur atoms to hydrogen sulfide. The microorganisms utilized are from the family known as the ``Sulfate Reducing Bacteria``. These bacteria generate metabolic energy from the oxidation of organic compounds, but use oxidized forms of sulfur as an electron acceptor. Because the biocatalyst is present in the form of bacteria in an aqueous suspension, whereas the reacting substrate consists of hydrocarbon molecules in an organic phase, the actual desulfurization reaction takes place at the aqueous-organic interphase. To ensure adequate interfacial contacting and mass transfer, a biphasic electrostatic bioreactor system is utilized. The bioreactor is utilized to disperse and recoalesce a biocatalyst contained in the aqueous liquid phase into the organic liquid phase containing the sulfur. High-intensity electrical fields rupture the aqueous drops into a plurality of microdroplets and induce continuous coalescence and redispersion as the microdroplets travel through the organic phase, thus increasing surface area. As the aqueous microdroplets progress through the organic phase, the biocatalyst then reacts with the sulfur to produce hydrogen sulfide which is then removed from the bioreactor. The organic liquid, now free of the sulfur, is ready for immediate use or further processing. 5 figs.

  9. Apparatus and method for the desulfurization of petroleum by bacteria

    DOEpatents

    Lizama, Hector M.; Scott, Timothy C.; Scott, Charles D.

    1995-01-01

    A method for treating petroleum with anaerobic microorganisms acting as biocatalysts that can remove sulfur atoms from hydrocarbon molecules, under anaerobic conditions, and then convert the sulfur atoms to hydrogen sulfide. The microorganisms utilized are from the family known as the "Sulfate Reducing Bacteria." These bacteria generate metabolic energy from the oxidation of organic compounds, but use oxidized forms of sulfur as an electron acceptor. Because the biocatalyst is present in the form of bacteria in an aqueous suspension, whereas the reacting substrate consists of hydrocarbon molecules in an organic phase, the actual desulfurization reaction takes place at the aqueous-organic interphase. To ensure adequate interfacial contacting and mass transfer, a biphasic electrostatic bioreactor system is utilized. The bioreactor is utilized to disperse and recoalesce a biocatalyst contained in the aqueous liquid phase into the organic liquid phase containing the sulfur. High-intensity electrical fields rupture the aqueous drops into a plurality of microdroplets and induce continuous coalescence and redispersion as the microdroplets travel through the organic phase, thus increasing surface area. As the aqueous microdroplets progress through the organic phase, the biocatalyst then reacts with the sulfur to produce hydrogen sulfide which is then removed from the bioreactor. The organic liquid, now free of the sulfur, is ready for immediate use or further processing.

  10. Ultrasound-assisted oxidative desulfurization and denitrogenation of liquid hydrocarbon fuels: A critical review.

    PubMed

    Ja'fari, Mahsa; Ebrahimi, Seyedeh Leila; Khosravi-Nikou, Mohammad Reza

    2018-01-01

    Nowadays, a continuously worldwide concern for development of process to produce ultra-low sulfur and nitrogen fuels have been emerged. Typical hydrodesulfurization and hydrodenitrogenation technology deals with important difficulties such as high pressure and temperature operating condition, failure to treat some recalcitrant compounds and limitations to meet the stringent environmental regulations. In contrary an advanced oxidation process that is ultrasound assisted oxidative desulfurization and denitrogenation satisfies latest environmental regulations in much milder conditions with more efficiency. The present work deals with a comprehensive review on findings and development in the ultrasound assisted oxidative desulfurization and denitrogenation (UAOD) during the last decades. The role of individual parameters namely temperature, residence time, ultrasound power and frequency, pH, initial concentration and types of sulfur and nitrogen compounds on the efficiency are described. What's more another treatment properties that is role of phase transfer agent (PTA) and solvents of extraction step, reaction kinetics, mechanism of the ultrasound, fuel properties and recovery in UAOD are reviewed. Finally, the required future works to mature this technology are suggested. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. Evaluation of a novel sodium borocaptate-containing unnatural amino acid as a boron delivery agent for neutron capture therapy of the F98 rat glioma.

    PubMed

    Futamura, Gen; Kawabata, Shinji; Nonoguchi, Naosuke; Hiramatsu, Ryo; Toho, Taichiro; Tanaka, Hiroki; Masunaga, Shin-Ichiro; Hattori, Yoshihide; Kirihata, Mitsunori; Ono, Koji; Kuroiwa, Toshihiko; Miyatake, Shin-Ichi

    2017-01-23

    Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is a unique particle radiation therapy based on the nuclear capture reactions in boron-10. We developed a novel boron-10 containing sodium borocaptate (BSH) derivative, 1-amino-3-fluorocyclobutane-1-carboxylic acid (ACBC)-BSH. ACBC is a tumor selective synthetic amino acid. The purpose of this study was to assess the biodistribution of ACBC-BSH and its therapeutic efficacy following Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) of the F98 rat glioma. We evaluated the biodistribution of three boron-10 compounds, ACBC-BSH, BSH and boronophenylalanine (BPA), in vitro and in vivo, following intravenous (i.v.) administration and intratumoral (i.t.) convection-enhanced delivery (CED) in F98 rat glioma bearing rats. For BNCT studies, rats were stratified into five groups: untreated controls, neutron-irradiation controls, BNCT with BPA/i.v., BNCT with ACBC-BSH/CED, and BNCT concomitantly using BPA/i.v. and ACBC-BSH/CED. In vitro, ACBC-BSH attained higher cellular uptake F98 rat glioma cells compared with BSH. In vivo biodistribution studies following i.v. administration and i.t. CED of ACBC-BSH attained significantly higher boron concentrations than that of BSH, but much lower than that of BPA. However, following convection enhanced delivery (CED), ACBC-BSH attained significantly higher tumor concentrations than BPA. The i.t. boron-10 concentrations were almost equal between the ACBC-BSH/CED group and BPA/i.v. group of rats. The tumor/brain boron-10 concentration ratio was higher with ACBC-BSH/CED than that of BPA/i.v. group. Based on these data, BNCT studies were carried out in F98 glioma bearing rats using BPA/i.v. and ACBC-BSH/CED as the delivery agents. The corresponding mean survival times were 37.4 ± 2.6d and 44.3 ± 8.0d, respectively, and although modest, these differences were statistically significant. Our findings suggest that further studies are warranted to evaluate ACBC-BSH/CED as a boron delivery agent.

  12. Development of a portable, modular unit for the optimization of ultrasound-assisted oxidative desulfurization of diesel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wan, Meng-Wei

    Due to the stringent rules requiring ultra-low sulfur content in diesel fuels, it is necessary to develop alternative methods of desulfurization of fossil fuel derived oil, such as diesel. Current technology is not sufficient to solve this problem. Ultrasound applied to oxidative desulfurization which combined three complementary techniques: ultrasonication, phase transfer catalysis (PTC) and transition metal catalyzed oxidation, has accomplished high sulfur removal in a short contact time at ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure. This research has successfully demonstrated that the higher oxidation efficiency of BT to BTO and free of any by-products by using tetraoctylammonium fluoride as phase transfer agent. The oxidation rate of BT to BTO increased with increasing the carbon chain length of QAS cations. Under the same length of carbon chain, the oxidation rate of BT to BTO increased with decreasing the molecular size of QAS anions. Moreover, for diesel fuels containing various levels of sulfur content, UAOD process followed by solvent extraction has demonstrated that the sulfur reduction can reach above 95 % removal efficiency or final sulfur content below 15 ppm in mild condition. For large-scale commercial production, this research has successfully developed and operated a continuous desulfurization unit, which consists of a sonoractor, an RF amplifier, a function generator, a pretreatment tank, and a pipeline system. A single unit only needed 2' x 4' x 1' space for installation. The results indicated that the remarkable 92% removal efficiency for the sulfur in marine logistic diesel, even at a treatment rate as high as 25 lb/hour which is approximately 2 barrels per day. Therefore, this sonoreactor demonstrated the feasibility of large-scale operation even in a relatively small installation with low capital investment and maintenance cost. It also ensures the safety considerations by operating with diluted hydrogen peroxide under ambient temperature and pressure.

  13. Solution structure and interactions of the Escherichia coli cell division activator protein CedA.

    PubMed

    Chen, Ho An; Simpson, Peter; Huyton, Trevor; Roper, David; Matthews, Stephen

    2005-05-10

    CedA is a protein that is postulated to be involved in the regulation of cell division in Escherichia coli and related organisms; however, little biological data about its possible mode of action are available. Here we present a three-dimensional structure of this protein as determined by NMR spectroscopy. The protein is made up of four antiparallel beta-strands, an alpha-helix, and a large unstructured stretch of residues at the N-terminus. It shows structural similarity to a family of DNA-binding proteins which interact with dsDNA via a three-stranded beta-sheet, suggesting that CedA may be a DNA-binding protein. The putative binding surface of CedA is predominantly positively charged with a number of basic residues surrounding a groove largely dominated by aromatic residues. NMR chemical shift perturbations and gel-shift experiments performed with CedA confirm that the protein binds dsDNA, and its interaction is mediated primarily via the beta-sheet.

  14. Are we there yet? A Practitioner's View of DO-178C/ED-12C

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Daniels, Dewi

    RTCA DO-178B/EUROCAE ED-12B is the industry-accepted guidance for determining that the software aspects of airborne systems and equipment comply with airworthiness requirements. DO-178B/ED-12B, published in 1992, is being updated to DO-178C/ED-12C. Nearly six years in the making, DO- 178C/ED-12C is expected to be completed in December 2010. It will be accompanied by a new set of supplements providing additional and much-needed guidance on tool qualification, model based development and verification, objectoriented technologies, and formal methods. Written by a member of the DO-178C/ED-12C editorial team who is also a practising software developer and verifier, this paper provides a practitioner's view of the new standard and its supplements. It explains how they will affect your organisation, focusing on the practical implications of the many changes between DO-178B/ED-12B and DO-178C/ED-12C.

  15. Hypothalamic amenorrhea in a Camurati-Engelmann disease--a case report.

    PubMed

    Meczekalski, Blazej; Czyzyk, Adam; Podfigurna-Stopa, Agnieszka; Rydzewski, Bogdan; Sroczynski, Jakub; Lipinska, Małgorzata; Sokalski, Jerzy; Krawczynski, Maciej; Jamsheer, Aleksander; Katulski, Krzysztof; Genazzani, Alessandro

    2013-05-01

    A case report of a patient diagnosed with Camurati-Engelmann Disease (CED) in association with the functional hypothalamic amenorrhea disturbances. CED is a very rare genetically determined disorder classified as a type of bone dysplasia. Case report. Department of Gynecological Endocrinology, 3rd grade Medical University Hospital. Twenty-one years old female patient with CED admitted to the hospital because of primary amenorrhea. Her history revealed skeletal deformities and hearing impairment. Clinical examination, ultrasound, laboratory evaluations (including serum gonadotropins (FSH, LH) at basal state and after stimulation with gonadotropin-releasing hormone, serum basal estradiol) radiological studies (X-ray of the head, the lumbar spine and lower extremities; a computed tomography of the head), G-banding karyotype, polymerase chain reaction and DNA sequencing. Hormonal serum evaluations were made using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The exon 4 of the transforming growth factor beta 1 gene was amplified by a polymerase chain reaction and the product was directly sequenced. The hormonal analysis was characteristic for the hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. Radiological and molecular analyses confirmed CED diagnosis. The hypothalamic amenorrhea in a patient with CED may be explained as a consequence of fat hypotrophy and very low body mass index. Therefore, impairment within hypothalamic-pituitary axis in patients with CED should be treated with special attention.

  16. Association between Farming and Chronic Energy Deficiency in Rural South India

    PubMed Central

    Subasinghe, Asvini K.; Walker, Karen Z.; Evans, Roger G.; Srikanth, Velandai; Arabshahi, Simin; Kartik, Kamakshi; Kalyanram, Kartik; Thrift, Amanda G.

    2014-01-01

    Objective To examine factors associated with chronic energy deficiency (CED) and anaemia in disadvantaged Indian adults who are mostly involved in subsistence farming. Design A cross-sectional study in which we collected information on socio-demographic factors, physical activity, anthropometry, blood haemoglobin concentration, and daily household food intake. These data were used to calculate body mass index (BMI), basal metabolic rate (BMR), daily energy expenditure, and energy and nutrient intake. Multivariable backward stepwise logistic regression was used to assess socioeconomic and lifestyle factors associated with CED (defined as BMI<18 kg/m2) and anaemia. Setting The study was conducted in 12 villages, in the Rishi Valley, Andhra Pradesh, India. Subjects Individuals aged 18 years and above, residing in the 12 villages, were eligible to participate. Results Data were available for 1178 individuals (45% male, median age 36 years (inter quartile range (IQR 27–50)). The prevalence of CED (38%) and anaemia (25%) was high. Farming was associated with CED in women (2.20, 95% CI: 1.39–3.49) and men (1.71, 95% CI: (1.06–2.74). Low income was also significantly associated with CED, while not completing high school was positively associated with anaemia. Median iron intake was high: 35.7 mg/day (IQR 26–46) in women and 43.4 mg/day (IQR 34–55) in men. Conclusions Farming is an important risk factor associated with CED in this rural Indian population and low dietary iron is not the main cause of anaemia. Better farming practice may help to reduce CED in this population. PMID:24475286

  17. Uric acid is associated with inflammation, coronary microvascular dysfunction, and adverse outcomes in postmenopausal women

    PubMed Central

    Prasad, Megha; Matteson, Eric L.; Herrmann, Joerg; Gulati, Rajiv; Rihal, Charanjit S.; Lerman, Lilach O.; Lerman, Amir

    2016-01-01

    Uric acid is a risk factor for coronary artery disease (CAD) in postmenopausal women but the association with inflammation and coronary microvascular endothelial dysfunction (CED) is not well-defined. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship of serum uric acid (SUA), inflammatory markers and CED. In this prospective cohort study, serum uric acid, hsCRP levels, and neutrophil count were measured in 229 postmenopausal women who underwent diagnostic catheterization, were found to have no obstructive CAD and underwent coronary microvascular function testing, to measure coronary blood flow (CBF) response to intracoronary acetylcholine. The average age was 58 years (IQR 52, 66) years. Hypertension was present in 48%, type 2 diabetes mellitus in 5.6%, and hyperlipidemia in 61.8%. CED was diagnosed in 59% of postmenopausal women. Mean uric acid level was 4.7 ± 1.3 mg/dL. Postmenopausal women with CED had significantly higher SUA compared to patients without CED (4.9 ± 1.3 vs. 4.4 ± 1.3 mg/dL; p=0.02). There was a significant correlation between SUA and % change in CBF to acetylcholine (p=0.009), and this correlation persisted in multivariable analysis. SUA levels were significantly associated with increased neutrophil count (p=0.02) and hsCRP levels (p=0.006) among patients with CED, but not those without CED. Serum uric acid is associated with coronary microvascular endothelial dysfunction in postmenopausal women and may be related to inflammation. These findings link serum uric acid levels to early coronary atherosclerosis in postmenopausal women. PMID:27993955

  18. Effects of Colored Enrichment Devices on Circadian Metabolism and Physiology in Male Sprague-Dawley Rats.

    PubMed

    Wren-Dail, Melissa A; Dauchy, Robert T; Ooms, Tara G; Baker, Kate C; Blask, David E; Hill, Steven M; Dupepe, Lynell M; Bohm, Rudolf P

    2016-01-01

    Environmental enrichment (EE) gives laboratory animals opportunities to engage in species-specific behaviors. However, the effects of EE devices on normal physiology and scientific outcomes must be evaluated. We hypothesized that the spectral transmittance (color) of light to which rats are exposed when inside colored enrichment devices (CED) affects the circadian rhythms of various plasma markers. Pair-housed male Crl:SD rats were maintained in ventilated racks under a 12:12-h light:dark environment (265.0 lx; lights on, 0600); room lighting intensity and schedule remained constant throughout the study. Treatment groups of 6 subjects were exposed for 25 d to a colored enrichment tunnel: amber, red, clear, or opaque. We measured the proportion of time rats spent inside their CED. Blood was collected at 0400, 0800, 1200, 1600, 2000, and 2400 and analyzed for plasma melatonin, total fatty acids, and corticosterone. Rats spent more time in amber, red, and opaque CED than in clear tunnels. All tubes were used significantly less after blood draws had started, except for the clear tunnel, which showed no change in use from before blood sampling began. Normal peak nighttime melatonin concentrations showed significant disruption in the opaque CED group. Food and water intakes and body weight change in rats with red-tinted CED and total fatty acid concentrations in the opaque CED group differed from those in other groups. These results demonstrate that the color of CED altered normal circadian rhythms of plasma measures of metabolism and physiology in rats and therefore might influence the outcomes of scientific investigations.

  19. Oxidative desulfurization of fuel oil by pyridinium-based ionic liquids.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Dishun; Wang, Yanan; Duan, Erhong

    2009-10-28

    In this work, an N-butyl-pyridinium-based ionic liquid [BPy]BF(4) was prepared. The effect of extraction desulfurization on model oil with thiophene and dibenzothiophene (DBT) was investigated. Ionic liquids and hydrogen peroxide (30%) were tested in extraction-oxidation desulfurization of model oil. The results show that the ionic liquid [BPy]BF(4) has a better desulfurization effect. The best technological conditions are: V(IL)/V(Oil) /V(H(2)O(2)) = 1:1:0.4, temperature 55 degrees C, the time 30 min. The ratio of desulfurization to thiophene and DBT reached 78.5% and 84.3% respectively, which is much higher than extraction desulfurization with simple ionic liquids. Under these conditions, the effect of desulfurization on gasoline was also investigated. The used ionic liquids can be recycled up to four times after regeneration.

  20. [Domestication study about desulfuration microorganism from oxidation ditch by low concentration SO2].

    PubMed

    Huang, Bing; Shi, Zhe; Wang, Yan-Yan; Zhang, Shi-Ling

    2010-06-01

    An excellent desulfuration microorganism with a quick growth and propagation, high activation, high efficiency of removing SO2 is obtained from oxidation ditch of a city sewage treatment plant by inductive acclimatization over 6 d with low concentration SO2 gas (100-2 000 mg/m3). The desulfurition microorganism get their energy sources for growth from transforming SO2 (SO3(2-)) to SO4(2-). The predominant bacterium of the desulfuration microorganism has the same characteristic with Thiobacillus ferrooxidans (T. ferrooxidans), which showed that it was Gram negative, short rod bacteria with a single polar flagellum under a microscopic examination, and obtained its nourishment through the oxidation of inorganic compounds. The technology process condition of domestication and desulfuration of microorganism are particular studied, and the results showed that aerating time, SO2 flux and time to provide nutriment contained N, P, K to microorganism were very important. They have an ability with degradation rate of 160g/ (m3 x h) and degradation efficiency over 50% to transform sulfite to sulfate in liquid phase. The bacteria have a 98% of removing efficiency and over 80% of biodegradation efficiency for the 5 500 mg/m3 SO2 gas and the outlet concentration of SO2 is lower than 100 mg/m3, and also have a 95% of removing efficiency for 15 000 mg/m3 SO2 gas in the packed tower reactor with Raschig ring at 3s contact time.

  1. The Use of Convection-Enhanced Delivery with Liposomal Toxins in Neurooncology

    PubMed Central

    Fiandaca, Massimo S.; Berger, Mitchel S.; Bankiewicz, Krystof S.

    2011-01-01

    Liposomes have long been effective delivery vehicles for transport of toxins to peripheral cancers. The combination of convection-enhanced delivery (CED) with liposomal toxins was originally proposed to circumvent the limited delivery of intravascular liposomes to the central nervous system (CNS) due to the blood-brain-barrier (BBB). CED offers markedly improved distribution of infused therapeutics within the CNS compared to direct injection or via drug eluting polymers, both of which depend on diffusion for parenchymal distribution. This review examines the basis for improved delivery of liposomal toxins via CED within the CNS, and discusses preclinical and clinical experience with these therapeutic techniques. How CED and liposomal technologies may influence future neurooncologic treatments are also considered. PMID:22069714

  2. Larazotide acetate for persistent symptoms of celiac disease despite a gluten-free diet: a randomized controlled trial.

    PubMed

    Leffler, Daniel A; Kelly, Ciaran P; Green, Peter H R; Fedorak, Richard N; DiMarino, Anthony; Perrow, Wendy; Rasmussen, Henrik; Wang, Chao; Bercik, Premysl; Bachir, Natalie M; Murray, Joseph A

    2015-06-01

    Celiac disease (CeD) is a prevalent autoimmune condition. Recurrent signs and symptoms are common despite treatment with a gluten-free diet (GFD), yet no approved or proven nondietary treatment is available. In this multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, we assessed larazotide acetate 0.5, 1, or 2 mg 3 times daily to relieve ongoing symptoms in 342 adults with CeD who had been on a GFD for 12 months or longer and maintained their current GFD during the study. The study included a 4-week placebo run-in, 12 weeks of treatment, and a 4-week placebo run-out phase. The primary end point was the difference in average on-treatment Celiac Disease Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale score. The primary end point was met with the 0.5-mg dose of larazotide acetate, with fewer symptoms compared with placebo by modified intention to treat (n = 340) (analysis of covariance, P = .022; mixed model for repeated measures, P = .005). The 0.5-mg dose showed an effect on exploratory end points including a 26% decrease in celiac disease patient-reported outcome symptomatic days (P = .017), a 31% increase in improved symptom days (P = .034), a 50% or more reduction from baseline of the weekly average abdominal pain score for 6 or more of 12 weeks of treatment (P = .022), and a decrease in the nongastrointestinal symptoms of headache and tiredness (P = .010). The 1- and 2-mg doses were no different than placebo for any end point. Safety was comparable with placebo. Larazotide acetate 0.5 mg reduced signs and symptoms in CeD patients on a GFD better than a GFD alone. Although results were mixed, this study was a successful trial of a novel therapeutic agent targeting tight junction regulation in patients with CeD who are symptomatic despite a GFD. Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT01396213. Copyright © 2015 AGA Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Cumulative alkylating agent exposure and semen parameters in adult survivors of childhood cancer: a report from the St Jude Lifetime Cohort Study.

    PubMed

    Green, Daniel M; Liu, Wei; Kutteh, William H; Ke, Raymond W; Shelton, Kyla C; Sklar, Charles A; Chemaitilly, Wassim; Pui, Ching-Hon; Klosky, James L; Spunt, Sheri L; Metzger, Monika L; Srivastava, DeoKumar; Ness, Kirsten K; Robison, Leslie L; Hudson, Melissa M

    2014-10-01

    Few data define the dose-specific relation between alkylating agent exposure and semen variables in adult survivors of childhood cancer. We undertook this study to test the hypothesis that increased exposure to alkylating agents would be associated with decreased sperm concentration in a cohort of adult male survivors of childhood cancer who were not exposed to radiation therapy for their childhood cancer. We did semen analysis on 214 adult male survivors of childhood cancer (median age 7·7 years [range 0·01-20·3] at diagnosis, 29·0 years [18·4-56·1] at assessment, and a median of 21·0 years [10·5-41·6] since diagnosis) who had received alkylating agent chemotherapy but no radiation therapy. Alkylating agent exposure was estimated using the cyclophosphamide equivalent dose (CED). Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% CIs for oligospermia (sperm concentration >0 and <15 million per mL) and azoospermia were calculated with logistic regression modelling. Azoospermia was noted in 53 (25%) of 214 participants, oligospermia in 59 (28%), and normospermia (sperm concentration ≥15 million per mL) in 102 (48%) participants. 31 (89%) of 35 participants who received CED less than 4000 mg/m(2) were normospermic. CED was negatively correlated with sperm concentration (correlation coefficient=-0·37, p<0·0001). Mean CED was 10 830 mg/m(2) (SD 7274) in patients with azoospermia, 8480 mg/m(2) (4264) in patients with oligospermia, and 6626 mg/m(2) (3576) in patients with normospermia. In multivariable analysis, CED was significantly associated with an increased risk per 1000 mg/m(2) CED for azoospermia (OR 1·22, 95% CI 1·11-1·34), and for oligospermia (1·14, 1·04-1·25), but age at diagnosis and age at assessment were not. Impaired spermatogenesis was unlikely when the CED was less than 4000 mg/m(2). Although sperm concentration decreases with increasing CED, there was substantial overlap of CED associated with normospermia, oligospermia, and azoospermia. These data can inform pretreatment patient counselling and use of fertility preservation services. US National Cancer Institute, American Lebanese Syrian Associated Charities. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Celiac disease and other autoimmune diseases in patients with collagenous colitis.

    PubMed

    Vigren, Lina; Tysk, Curt; Ström, Magnus; Kilander, Anders F; Hjortswang, Henrik; Bohr, Johan; Benoni, Cecilia; Larson, Lasse; Sjöberg, Klas

    2013-08-01

    Collagenous colitis (CC) is associated with autoimmune disorders. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between CC and autoimmune disorders in a Swedish multicenter study. Patients with CC answered questionnaires about demographic data and disease activity. The patient's files were scrutinized for information about autoimmune diseases. A total number of 116 CC patients were included; 92 women, 24 men, median age 62 years (IQR 55-73). In total, 30.2% had one or more autoimmune disorder. Most common were celiac disease (CeD; 12.9%) and autoimmune thyroid disease (ATD, 10.3%), but they also had Sjögren's syndrome (3.4%), diabetes mellitus (1.7%) and conditions in skin and joints (6.0%). Patients with associated autoimmune disease had more often nocturnal stools. The majority of the patients with associated CeD or ATD got these diagnoses before the colitis diagnosis. Autoimmune disorders occurred in one-third of these patients, especially CeD. In classic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), liver disease is described in contrast to CC where no cases occurred. Instead, CeD was prevalent, a condition not reported in classic IBD. Patients with an associated autoimmune disease had more symptoms. Patients with CC and CeD had an earlier onset of their colitis. The majority of the patients with both CC and CeD were smokers. Associated autoimmune disease should be contemplated in the follow-up of these patients.

  5. Application of the desulfurization of phenothiazines for a sensitive detection method by high-performance liquid chromatography.

    PubMed

    Shimada, K; Mino, T; Nakajima, M; Wakabayashi, H; Yamato, S

    1994-11-04

    A simple and sensitive high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for the determination of phenothiazine (PHE) is described. PHE is converted to diphenylamine (DIP) by desulfurization with Raney nickel catalyst. DIP is highly sensitive to electrochemical detection. The calibration graph for PHE quantification after desulfurization was linear between 0.1 and 2.0 ng per injection. The detection limit (signal-to-noise ratio = 3) of PHE after desulfurization was 10 pg, which is twenty times higher than that of the parent compound PHE. The proposed desulfurization technique was applied to other PHE-related compounds. The structural confirmation of the desulfurized product of PHE was carried out by LC-MS using atmospheric pressure chemical ionization.

  6. Factors associated with nutritional status among adult women in urban India, 1998-2006.

    PubMed

    Rai, Rajesh Kumar

    2015-03-01

    This study attempts to understand the factors associated with chronic energy deficiency (CED) and overweight/obesity together with change in CED and overweight/obesity among urban Indian women during 1998-2006. Both National Family Health Survey (NFHS) 1998-1999 and NFHS 2005-2006 data sets were used. The standard cutoff points for both CED (BMI < 18.5 kg/m(2)) and overweight/obesity (BMI ≥ 23 kg/m(2)) were considered. The Phi and Cramer's V tests and predicted probabilities were used to fulfill the study objective. Results indicate an almost 3% reduction in CED and a 6% increase in overweight/obesity during 1998-2006. The probability of CED has reduced among nonliterate women and women belonging to the poorest wealth quintile; on the other hand, the likelihood of being overweight/obese has increased among women with high school education and above and women belonging to the richest wealth quintile. Interventions to promote physical activities and nutritional awareness programs, which are effective in addressing nutritional problems, have been proposed. © 2012 APJPH.

  7. Safety of real-time convection-enhanced delivery of liposomes to primate brain: a long-term retrospective.

    PubMed

    Krauze, Michal T; Vandenberg, Scott R; Yamashita, Yoji; Saito, Ryuta; Forsayeth, John; Noble, Charles; Park, John; Bankiewicz, Krystof S

    2008-04-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is gaining popularity in direct brain infusions. Our group has pioneered the use of liposomes loaded with the MRI contrast reagent as a means to track and quantitate CED in the primate brain through real-time MRI. When co-infused with therapeutic nanoparticles, these tracking liposomes provide us with unprecedented precision in the management of infusions into discrete brain regions. In order to translate real-time CED into clinical application, several important parameters must be defined. In this study, we have analyzed all our cumulative animal data to answer a number of questions as to whether real-time CED in primates depends on concentration of infusate, is reproducible, allows prediction of distribution in a given anatomic structure, and whether it has long term pathological consequences. Our retrospective analysis indicates that real-time CED is highly predictable; repeated procedures yielded identical results, and no long-term brain pathologies were found. We conclude that introduction of our technique to clinical application would enhance accuracy and patient safety when compared to current non-monitored delivery trials.

  8. Coal-Fired Boilers at Navy Bases, Navy Energy Guidance Study, Phase II and III.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1979-05-01

    several sizes were performed. Central plants containing four equal-sized boilers and central flue gas desulfurization facilities were shown to be less...Conceptual design and parametric cost studies of steam and power generation systems using coal-fired stoker boilers and stack gas scrubbers in

  9. FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION: THE STATE OF THE ART

    EPA Science Inventory

    Coal-fired electricity-generating plants may use SO2 scrubbers to meet the requirements of Phase II of the Acid Rain SO2 Reduction Program. Additionally, the use of scrubbers can result in reduction of Hg and other emissions from combustion sources. It is timely, therefore, to ex...

  10. Complications associated with cervical endoscopic discectomy with the holmium laser.

    PubMed

    Haufe, Scott M W; Mork, Anthony R

    2004-02-01

    Our aim was to determine the rate of surgical complications associated with cervical endoscopic discectomy (CED). There are no studies that state the degree of complications after CED. Forty-one patients underwent CED with holmium laser. Two out of 41 patients incurred vascular compromise during the procedure. One patient developed recurrent laryngeal nerve damage. One patient developed discitis, and two patients complained of a "clicking" sensation postoperatively. Although CED has a relatively high success rate, there is a 15% rate of complications associated with the procedure. Most of the complications were minor (such as vascular compromise, recurrent laryngeal nerve injury, and postoperative "clicking" sensations), but there was one case of severe discitis, and there is the potential of serious complication from both vascular compromise and neural injury.

  11. 13 CFR 307.5 - Application requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... ECONOMIC ADJUSTMENT ASSISTANCE INVESTMENTS General § 307.5 Application requirements. (a) Each application... EDA) a CEDS, except that a CEDS is not required when applying for a Strategy Grant; and (2) Explain...

  12. CedA is a novel Escherichia coli protein that activates the cell division inhibited by chromosomal DNA over-replication.

    PubMed

    Katayama, T; Takata, M; Sekimizu, K

    1997-11-01

    We isolated and characterized a new gene related to the control of cell division regulation in Escherichia coli. At 30 degrees C, the dnaAcos mutant causes over-replication of the chromosome, and colony formation is inhibited. We found that, at this temperature, the dnaAcos cells form filaments; therefore, septum formation is inhibited. This inhibition was independent of SfiA, an inhibitor of the septum-forming protein, FtsZ. To identify factors involved in this pathway of inhibition, we isolated seven multicopy suppressors for the cold-sensitive phenotype of the dnaAcos mutant. One of these proved to be a previously unknown gene, which we named cedA. This gene encoded a 12 kDa protein and resided at 38.9min on the E. coli genome map. A multicopy supply of the cedA gene to the dnaAcos cells did not repress over-replication of the chromosome but did stimulate cell division of the host, the result being growth of cells with an abnormally elevated chromosomal copy number. Therefore, the expression level of the cedA gene seems to be important for inhibiting cell division of the dnaAcos mutant at 30 degrees C. We propose that over-replication of the chromosome activates a pathway for inhibiting cell division and that the cedA gene modulates this division control. In the dnaA+ background, cedA also seems to affect cell division.

  13. Antenatal and Postnatal Psychopathology Among Women with Current and Past Eating Disorders: Longitudinal Patterns

    PubMed Central

    Easter, Abigail; Solmi, Francessca; Bye, Amanda; Taborelli, Emma; Corfield, Freya; Schmidt, Ulrike; Treasure, Janet; Micali, Nadia

    2015-01-01

    This study aims to investigate longitudinal patterns of psychopathology during the antenatal and postnatal periods among women with current (C-ED) and past (P-ED) eating disorders. Women were recruited to a prospective longitudinal study: C-ED (n = 31), P-ED (n = 29) and healthy control (HC; n = 57). Anxiety, depression and ED symptoms were measured at four time points: first/second trimester, third trimester, 8 weeks and 6 months postpartum. Linear mixed effects models were used to test for group differences. Women with C-ED and P-ED, in all diagnostic categories, had significantly higher levels of psychopathology at all time points. ED symptoms decreased in the C-ED group, compared with an overall increase in the other two groups but subsequently increased after pregnancy. Overall, depression and state and trait anxiety scores decreased in the C-ED group compared with the HC group throughout the antenatal and postnatal periods. High levels of psychopathology are common throughout the antenatal and postnatal periods among women with current and past ED, and despite some overall reductions, symptoms remain clinically significant. © 2014 The Authors. European Eating Disorders Review published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. PMID:25345371

  14. New French Coverage with Evidence Development for Innovative Medical Devices: Improvements and Unresolved Issues.

    PubMed

    Martelli, Nicolas; van den Brink, Hélène; Borget, Isabelle

    2016-01-01

    We describe here recent modifications to the French Coverage with Evidence Development (CED) scheme for innovative medical devices. CED can be defined as temporary coverage for a novel health product during collection of the additional evidence required to determine whether definitive coverage is possible. The principle refinements to the scheme include a more precise definition of what may be considered an innovative product, the possibility for device manufacturers to request CED either independently or in partnership with hospitals, and the establishment of processing deadlines for health authorities. In the long term, these modifications may increase the number of applications to the CED scheme, which could lead to unsustainable funding for future projects. It will also be necessary to ensure that the study conditions required by national health authorities are suitable for medical devices and that processing deadlines are met for the scheme to be fully operational. Overall, the modifications recently applied to the French CED scheme for innovative medical devices should increase the transparency of the process, and therefore be more appealing to medical device manufacturers. Copyright © 2016 International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. Effect of calcium formate as an additive on desulfurization in power plants.

    PubMed

    Li, Zhenhua; Xie, Chunfang; Lv, Jing; Zhai, Ruiguo

    2018-05-01

    SO 2 in flue gas needs to be eliminated to alleviate air pollution. As the quality of coal decreases and environmental standard requirements become more stringent, the high-efficiency desulfurization of flue gas faces more and more challenges. As an economical and environmentally friendly solution, the effect of calcium formate as an additive on desulfurization efficiency in the wet flue gas desulfurization (WFGD) process was studied for the first time. Improvement of the desulfurization efficiency was achieved with limited change in pH after calcium formate was added into the reactor, and it was found to work better than other additives tested. The positive effects were further verified in a power plant, which showed that adding calcium formate could promote the dissolution of calcium carbonate, accelerate the growth of gypsum crystals and improve the efficiency of desulfurization. Thus, calcium formate was proved to be an effective additive and can potentially be used to reduce the amount of limestone slurry required, as well as the energy consumption and operating costs in industrial desulfurization. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  16. Effect of Silicon on the Desulfurization of Al-Killed Steels: Part II. Experimental Results and Plant Trials

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Roy, Debdutta; Pistorius, Petrus Christiaan; Fruehan, Richard J.

    2013-10-01

    Recent observations suggest that increased silicon levels improve ladle desulfurization of aluminum-killed steel. A kinetic model was developed and presented in part I of this paper, demonstrating that increased silicon levels in steel suppress the consumption of aluminum by parasitic reactions like silica reduction and FeO/MnO reduction, thus making more aluminum available at the interface for desulfurization. The results are increases in the rate and the extent of desulfurization. Predictions were compared with laboratory induction furnace melts using 1 kg of steel and 0.1 kg slag. The experimental results demonstrate the beneficial effect of silicon on the desulfurization reaction and that alumina can be reduced out of the slag and aluminum picked up by the steel, if the silicon content in the steel is high enough. The experimental results are in close agreement with the model predictions. Plant trials also show that with increased silicon content, both the rate and extent of desulfurization increase; incorporating silicon early into the ladle desulfurization process leads to considerable savings in aluminum consumption.

  17. Sequential testing with different tissue transglutaminase antibodies, a new approach for diagnosis of celiac disease.

    PubMed

    Venugopal, Giriprasad; Mechenro, John; Makharia, Govind; Singh, Alka; Pugazhendhi, Srinivasan; Balamurugan, Ramadass; Ramakrishna, Balakrishnan S

    2017-11-01

    The diagnosis of celiac disease (CeD) in clinical practice relies on serological testing for IgA antibodies to human tissue transglutaminase (anti-tTG) which diagnose CeD autoimmunity. We compared three kits for their performance in diagnosis of the disease and evaluated the point prevalence of CeD autoimmunity in a South Indian urban population. In the first part of the study, sera from 90 patients with documented CeD and 92 healthy controls were tested for anti-tTG using three different kits. One thousand nine hundred and seventeen healthy adults residing in urban areas of Vellore and Kancheepuram districts were tested for CeD autoimmunity using a sequential two-test strategy. The sensitivity, specificity, false positivity, false negativity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value for the three assays respectively were as follows: 95.5%, 82.6%, 17.3%, 4.4%, 84.3%, and 95% for the Aeskulisa New Generation Assay; 85.5%, 100%, 0%, 14.4%, 100%, and 87.6% for Quanta Lite; and 71.1%, 100%, 0%, 28.8%, 100%, and 71% for Celiac Microlisa. The ROC curves showed good discrimination for all three ELISAs with an AUC of 0.947, 0.950, and 0.886 for the Aeskulisa, Quanta Lite, and Celiac Microlisa, respectively. Of 1917 (males 908, females 1009) healthy adults, 113 (5.89%) were seropositive for IgA anti-htTG in the Aeskulisa test. Two of the latter tested positive in the Quanta Lite assay and/or the Celiac Microlisa assay. The CeD autoimmunity prevalence in this urban population was 1.0 per thousand (95% confidence interval 0.3 to 3.7 per thousand). Sequential testing for anti-tTG using first a highly sensitive assay followed by a very specific assay is a new strategy for screening for CeD in clinical practice.

  18. Corneal endothelial cell loss and corneal biomechanical characteristics after two-step sequential or combined phaco-vitrectomy surgery for idiopathic epiretinal membrane.

    PubMed

    Hamoudi, Hassan; Christensen, Ulrik Correll; La Cour, Morten

    2017-08-01

    To assess the impact of sequential and combined surgery [cataract surgery and 23-gauge pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) with peeling] on corneal endothelium cell density (CED) and corneal biomechanical characteristics. Phakic eyes with epiretinal membrane (ERM) were prospectively allocated to (i) cataract surgery and subsequent PPV (CAT group), (ii) PPV and subsequent cataract surgery (VIT group) or (iii) phacovitrectomy (COMBI group). Eyes were examined at baseline, 1 month after each surgery, and at 3 and 12 months follow-up. Corneal endothelium cell density (CED) was assessed with non-contact specular microscopy. Pachymetry [central cornea thickness (CCT)], keratometry and cornea volume (CV) were measured with Pentacam Scheimpflug camera. Primary outcome was change in CED after 12 months; secondary outcomes were changes in CCT and CV after 12 months. Sixty-two eyes were enrolled and allocated to the three groups. The mean preoperative CED was 2776, 2794 and 2653 cells/mm 2, which decreased significantly at 12 months by 15.3, 20.0 and 19.3% in the CAT, VIT and COMBI group. There was no significant difference in percentage cell loss between the groups at final follow-up. The CED decreased significantly after cataract surgery, but was unaffected by PPV. Central cornea thickness (CCT) increased by 10 μm (p = 0.005) and CV by 1.38 mm 3 (2.3%, p < 0.001) in the COMBI group. There were no significant differences in CCT or CV between the groups at final follow-up. Combined and sequential surgery in ERM leads to a small decrease in CED. Performing cataract surgery before, after or in combination with vitrectomy did not make any significant difference with respect to final CED, CCT or CV. © 2017 Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  19. Experimental Study on Semi-Dry Flue Gas Desulfurization Ash Used in Steel Slag Composite Material

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lu, Lijun; Fang, Honghui

    This article carried out the experimental study on using desulfurization ash in steel slag composite material. This was done by investigating the desulfurization ash content in formula one and formula two samples on the influence of setting time and strength of mortar. Through this study the following conclusions were reached for formula one: (1) a setting time of more than 10 hours is required, (2) a dosage of desulfurization ash of 1 2% is optimal, where flexural strength is reduced by 10% 23% and compressive strength reduced by 5.7% 16.4%. The conclusions of formula two were: (1) when the dosage of desulfurization ash is within 5%, the setting time is within 10 hours; (2) when the dosage of desulfurization ash is 1 2%, the flexural strength is increased by 5 7% and the compressive strength is reduced by 1 2%. The results show that the formula two is better.

  20. Convection Enhanced Delivery of Recombinant Adeno-associated Virus into the Mouse Brain.

    PubMed

    Nash, Kevin R; Gordon, Marcia N

    2016-01-01

    Recombinant adeno-associated virus (rAAV) has become an extremely useful tool for the study of gene over expression or knockdown in the central nervous system of experimental animals. One disadvantage of intracranial injections of rAAV vectors into the brain parenchyma has been restricted distribution to relatively small volumes of the brain. Convection enhanced delivery (CED) is a method for delivery of clinically relevant amounts of therapeutic agents to large areas of the brain in a direct intracranial injection procedure. CED uses bulk flow to increase the hydrostatic pressure and thus improve volume distribution. The CED method has shown robust gene transfer and increased distribution within the CNS and can be successfully used for different serotypes of rAAV for increased transduction of the mouse CNS. This chapter details the surgical injection of rAAV by CED into a mouse brain.

  1. Removal and recovery of inhibitory volatile fatty acids from mixed acid fermentations by conventional electrodialysis.

    PubMed

    Jones, Rhys Jon; Massanet-Nicolau, Jaime; Guwy, Alan; Premier, Giuliano C; Dinsdale, Richard M; Reilly, Matthew

    2015-08-01

    Hydrogen production during dark fermentation is inhibited by the co-production of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) such as acetic and n-butyric acid. In this study, the effectiveness of conventional electrodialysis (CED) in reducing VFA concentrations in model solutions and hydrogen fermentation broths is evaluated. This is the first time CED has been reported to remove VFAs from hydrogen fermentation broths. During 60 min of operation CED removed up to 99% of VFAs from model solutions, sucrose-fed and grass-fed hydrogen fermentation broths, containing up to 1200 mg l(-1) each of acetic acid, propionic acid, i-butyric acid, n-butyric acid, i-valeric acid, and n-valeric acid. CED's ability to remove VFAs from hydrogen fermentation broths suggests that this technology is capable of improving hydrogen yields from dark fermentation. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Chemical profiling in Moutan Cortex after sulfuring and desulfuring processes reveals further insights into the quality control of TCMs by nontargeted metabolomic analysis.

    PubMed

    Zhan, Zhi-Lai; Deng, Ai-Ping; Kang, Li-Ping; Tang, Jin-Fu; Nan, Tie-Gui; Chen, Tong; He, Ya-Li; Guo, Lan-Ping; Huang, Lu-Qi

    2018-05-01

    As a traditional processing method, sulfuring has been used in the processing of many traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs). Desulfuring, which has emerged in recent years, is a new method applied to sulfured herbs so they can comply with regulations regarding residual SO 2 . Due to the chemical transformations and the residual SO 2 in the herbs, both sulfuring and desulfuring have negative effects on the safety and therapeutic effects of TCMs, and Moutan Cortex is one of the TCMs most susceptible to these effects. Here, a new strategy was developed to differentiate normal, sulfured and desulfured Moutan Cortex, and the transformations of compounds in sulfuring and desulfuring processes were analyzed using ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC/Q-TOF-MSE) method based on metabolomic analysis. Our findings were as follows: (1) a total of 119 compounds were identified or tentatively identified, including 9 compounds that are being reported for the first time as natural products; (2) 15 sulfocompounds were generated during the sulfuring process; (3) these sulfocompounds could not be converted back into their corresponding glycosides by the desulfuring process, and the desulfuring decreased the residual SO 2 ,while also removing some soluble compounds in the sulfured Moutan Cortex; and (4) 28 compounds were screened and tentatively identified as markers for distinguishing normal, sulfured and desulfured Moutan Cortex. Our findings provide a new practical strategy for evaluating how sulfuring and desulfuring affect the quality of TCMs. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. Undernutrition among adult Bengalees of Dearah, Hooghly District, West Bengal, India: relationship with educational status and food habit.

    PubMed

    Bose, Kaushik; Bisai, Samiran; Sadhukhan, Sanjay; Mukhopadhyay, Ashish; Bhadra, Mithu

    2009-06-01

    A cross-sectional study of 1203 adult (> 18 years of age) Bengalees of Dearah, Hooghly District, West Bengal, India, was undertaken to evaluate the prevalence of undernutrition and the relationship of educational level and food habit with undernutrition. Height and weight were measured and body mass index (BMI) computed following the standard equation. A BMI < 18.5 kg/m2 was classified as undernutrition or chronic energy deficiency (CED) as per World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations. The public health problem of low BMI in this population was classified according to the WHO criteria. Educational status was coded as: no formal education, 1-8 years of schooling and > 8 years of schooling. Food habit was recorded as vegetarian or non-vegetarian. The mean ages of males and females were (39.6 +/- 15.0 years) and (39.6 +/- 15.0 years), respectively. There were significant (p < 0.001) sex differences in mean height and weight; both sexes had a similar BMI. The overall (sex combined) prevalence of undernutrition was 27.7%. The frequency of undernutrition was significantly (p < 0.001) higher among females (31.7%) compared to males (23.6%). According to the WHO classification of low BMI, the prevalence of CED was high (20-39%) indicating a serious situation. There existed a significant (p < 0.001) relationship between the level of formal education and nutritional status. Overall, the frequencies of CED (43.5%) were much higher than overweight (7.0%) among subjects with no formal education. The frequencies of CED and overweight among subjects with 1-8 years of formal education were 25.7% and 9.7%, respectively. Similarly, significantly (p < 0.001) higher rates of CED were found among subjects with no formal education in both sexes (males = 39.5%; females = 45.6%) compared to the presence of overweight (males = 1.8%; females = 9.8%). Sex-combined frequency of undernutrition was significantly (p < 0.001) higher among vegetarians (48.3%) compared with non-vegetarians (25.5%). The respective frequencies of overweight were 1.7% and 12.8%. This significant (p < 0.001) trend existed in both sexes with 46.9% male and 49.3% female vegetarians having CED. The corresponding figures for overweight among vegetarians were 0.0% and 2.9%, respectively. The rates of CED were significantly (p < 0.001) lower among non-vegetarians (males = 21.5%; females = 29.6%). Non-vegetarians had significantly higher rates of overweight in both males (8.7%) and females (16.9%). Multiple regression analysis revealed that both educational status as well as food habit had significant effect on BMI in both sexes. In general, the educational status had a stronger impact (males: t = 6.356, females: t = 5.017) than food habit (males: t = 3.373; females: t = 2.763) on BMI. This significant impact remained even after controlling for the effect of age. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that adult Bengalees of Dearah were under serious nutritional stress indicating a public health problem. In addition, a strong inverse relationship existed between educational level and CED. Moreover, vegetarianism was significantly associated with CED. Urgent public health measures are required, particularly among females, to reduce the high prevalence of CED in this population. Similar studies should be conducted in other parts of West Bengal before any general conclusions can be inferred about the relationship between educational status, food habit and CED in the state.

  4. Detection of infusate leakage in the brain using real-time imaging of convection-enhanced delivery.

    PubMed

    Varenika, Vanja; Dickinson, Peter; Bringas, John; LeCouteur, Richard; Higgins, Robert; Park, John; Fiandaca, Massimo; Berger, Mitchel; Sampson, John; Bankiewicz, Krystof

    2008-11-01

    The authors have shown that convection-enhanced delivery (CED) of gadoteridol-loaded liposomes (GDLs) into different regions of normal monkey brain results in predictable, widespread distribution of this tracking agent as detected by real-time MR imaging. They also have found that this tracking technique allows monitoring of the distribution of similar nanosized agents such as therapeutic liposomes and viral vectors. A limitation of this procedure is the unexpected leakage of liposomes out of targeted parenchyma or malignancies into sulci and ventricles. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of CED after the onset of these types of leakage. The authors documented this phenomenon in a study of 5 nonhuman primates and 7 canines, comprising 54 CED infusion sessions. Approximately 20% of these infusions resulted in leakage into cerebral ventricles or sulci. All of the infusions and leakage events were monitored with real-time MR imaging. The authors created volume-distributed versus volume-infused graphs for each infusion session. These graphs revealed the rate of distribution of GDL over the course of each infusion and allowed the authors to evaluate the progress of CED before and after leakage. The distribution of therapeutics within the target structure ceased to increase or resulted in significant attenuation after the onset of leakage. An analysis of the cases in this study revealed that leakage undermines the efficacy of CED. These findings reiterate the importance of real-time MR imaging visualization during CED to ensure an accurate, robust distribution of therapeutic agents.

  5. Convection-enhancement delivery of platinum-based drugs and Lipoplatin™ to optimize the concomitant effect with radiotherapy in F98 glioma rat model

    PubMed Central

    Shi, Minghan; Fortin, David; Sanche, Léon; Paquette, Benoit

    2015-01-01

    The prognosis for patients with glioblastoma remains poor with current treatments. Although platinum based drugs are sometimes offered at relapse, their efficacy in this setting is still disputed. In this study, we use convection-enhanced delivery (CED) to deliver the platinum-based drugs (cisplatin, carboplatin, and Lipoplatin™-liposomal formulation of cisplatin) directly into the tumor of F98 glioma-bearing rats that were subsequently treated with γ radiation (15 Gy). CED increased by factors varying between 17 and 111, the concentration of these platinum-based drugs in the brain tumor compared to intra-venous (i.v.) administration, and by 9- to 34-fold, when compared to intra-arterial (i.a.) administration. Furthermore, CED resulted in a better systemic tolerance to platinum drugs compared to their i.a. injection. Among the drugs tested, carboplatin showed the highest maximum tolerated dose (MTD). Treatment with carboplatin resulted in the best median survival time (MeST) (38.5 days), which was further increased by the addition of radiotherapy (54.0 days). Although the DNA-bound platinum adduct were higher at 4 h after CED than 24 h for carboplatin group, combination with radiotherapy led to similar improvement of median survival time. However, less toxicity was observed in animals irradiated 24 h after CED-based chemotherapy. In conclusion, CED increased the accumulation of platinum drugs in tumor, reduced the toxicity, and resulted in a higher median survival time. The best treatment was obtained in animals treated with carboplatin and irradiated 24 h later. PMID:25784204

  6. New configuration for efficient and durable copper coating on the outer surface of a tube

    DOE PAGES

    Ahmad, Irfan; Chapman, Steven F.; Velas, Katherine M.; ...

    2017-03-27

    A well-adhered copper coating on stainless steel power coupler parts is required in superconducting radio frequency (SRF) accelerators. Radio frequency power coupler parts are complex, tubelike stainless steel structures, which require copper coating on their outer and inner surfaces. Conventional copper electroplating sometimes produces films with inadequate adhesion strength for SRF applications. Electroplating also requires a thin nickel strike layer under the copper coating, whose magnetic properties can be detrimental to SRF applications. Coaxial energetic deposition (CED) and sputtering methods have demonstrated efficient conformal coating on the inner surfaces of tubes but coating the outer surface of a tube ismore » challenging because these coating methods are line of sight. When the substrate is off axis and the plasma source is on axis, only a small section of the substrate’s outer surface is exposed to the source cathode. The conventional approach is to rotate the tube to achieve uniformity across the outer surface. This method results in poor film thickness uniformity and wastes most of the source plasma. Alameda Applied Sciences Corporation (AASC) has developed a novel configuration called hollow external cathode CED (HEC-CED) to overcome these issues. HEC-CED produces a film with uniform thickness and efficiently uses all eroded source material. Furthermore, the Cu film deposited on the outside of a stainless steel tube using the new HEC-CED configuration survived a high pressure water rinse adhesion test. HEC-CED can be used to coat the outside of any cylindrical structure.« less

  7. Convection-enhancement delivery of platinum-based drugs and Lipoplatin(TM) to optimize the concomitant effect with radiotherapy in F98 glioma rat model.

    PubMed

    Shi, Minghan; Fortin, David; Sanche, Léon; Paquette, Benoit

    2015-06-01

    The prognosis for patients with glioblastoma remains poor with current treatments. Although platinum-based drugs are sometimes offered at relapse, their efficacy in this setting is still disputed. In this study, we use convection-enhanced delivery (CED) to deliver the platinum-based drugs (cisplatin, carboplatin, and Lipoplatin(TM) - liposomal formulation of cisplatin) directly into the tumor of F98 glioma-bearing rats that were subsequently treated with γ radiation (15 Gy). CED increased by factors varying between 17 and 111, the concentration of these platinum-based drugs in the brain tumor compared to intra-venous (i.v.) administration, and by 9- to 34-fold, when compared to intra-arterial (i.a.) administration. Furthermore, CED resulted in a better systemic tolerance to platinum drugs compared to their i.a. injection. Among the drugs tested, carboplatin showed the highest maximum tolerated dose (MTD). Treatment with carboplatin resulted in the best median survival time (MeST) (38.5 days), which was further increased by the addition of radiotherapy (54.0 days). Although the DNA-bound platinum adduct were higher at 4 h after CED than 24 h for carboplatin group, combination with radiotherapy led to similar improvement of median survival time. However, less toxicity was observed in animals irradiated 24 h after CED-based chemotherapy. In conclusion, CED increased the accumulation of platinum drugs in tumor, reduced the toxicity, and resulted in a higher median survival time. The best treatment was obtained in animals treated with carboplatin and irradiated 24 h later.

  8. New configuration for efficient and durable copper coating on the outer surface of a tube

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ahmad, Irfan; Chapman, Steven F.; Velas, Katherine M.

    A well-adhered copper coating on stainless steel power coupler parts is required in superconducting radio frequency (SRF) accelerators. Radio frequency power coupler parts are complex, tubelike stainless steel structures, which require copper coating on their outer and inner surfaces. Conventional copper electroplating sometimes produces films with inadequate adhesion strength for SRF applications. Electroplating also requires a thin nickel strike layer under the copper coating, whose magnetic properties can be detrimental to SRF applications. Coaxial energetic deposition (CED) and sputtering methods have demonstrated efficient conformal coating on the inner surfaces of tubes but coating the outer surface of a tube ismore » challenging because these coating methods are line of sight. When the substrate is off axis and the plasma source is on axis, only a small section of the substrate’s outer surface is exposed to the source cathode. The conventional approach is to rotate the tube to achieve uniformity across the outer surface. This method results in poor film thickness uniformity and wastes most of the source plasma. Alameda Applied Sciences Corporation (AASC) has developed a novel configuration called hollow external cathode CED (HEC-CED) to overcome these issues. HEC-CED produces a film with uniform thickness and efficiently uses all eroded source material. Furthermore, the Cu film deposited on the outside of a stainless steel tube using the new HEC-CED configuration survived a high pressure water rinse adhesion test. HEC-CED can be used to coat the outside of any cylindrical structure.« less

  9. Analysis of Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) Processes for Potential Use on Army Coal-Fired Boilers

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1980-09-01

    TECHNICAL REPORT N-93 September 1980 ANALYSIS OF FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION (FGD) PROCESSES FOR POTENTIAL USE ON ARMY COAL-FIRED BOILERS TECHNICAL LIBRARY...REFERENCE: Technical Report N-93, Analysis of Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) Ppooesses for Potential Use on Army Coal-Fired Boilers Please take a few...REPORT DOCUMENTATION PAGE 1. REPORT NUMBER CERL-TR-N-93 2. GOVT ACCESSION NO «. TITLE (end Subtitle) ANALYSIS OF FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION (FGD

  10. Numerical Simulation of Desulfurization Behavior in Gas-Stirred Systems Based on Computation Fluid Dynamics-Simultaneous Reaction Model (CFD-SRM) Coupled Model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lou, Wentao; Zhu, Miaoyong

    2014-10-01

    A computation fluid dynamics-simultaneous reaction model (CFD-SRM) coupled model has been proposed to describe the desulfurization behavior in a gas-stirred ladle. For the desulfurization thermodynamics, different models were investigated to determine sulfide capacity and oxygen activity. For the desulfurization kinetic, the effect of bubbly plume flow, as well as oxygen absorption and oxidation reactions in slag eyes are considered. The thermodynamic and kinetic modification coefficients are proposed to fit the measured data, respectively. Finally, the effects of slag basicity and gas flow rate on the desulfurization efficiency are investigated. The results show that as the interfacial reactions (Al2O3)-(FeO)-(SiO2)-(MnO)-[S]-[O] simultaneous kinetic equilibrium is adopted to determine the oxygen activity, and the Young's model with the modification coefficient R th of 1.5 is adopted to determine slag sulfide capacity, the predicted sulfur distribution ratio LS agrees well with the measured data. With an increase of the gas blowing time, the predicted desulfurization rate gradually decreased, and when the modification parameter R k is 0.8, the predicted sulfur content changing with time in ladle agrees well with the measured data. If the oxygen absorption and oxidation reactions in slag eyes are not considered in this model, then the sulfur removal rate in the ladle would be overestimated, and this trend would become more obvious with an increase of the gas flow rate and decrease of the slag layer height. With the slag basicity increasing, the total desulfurization ratio increases; however, the total desulfurization ratio changes weakly as the slag basicity exceeds 7. With the increase of the gas flow rate, the desulfurization ratio first increases and then decreases. When the gas flow rate is 200 NL/min, the desulfurization ratio reaches a maximum value in an 80-ton gas-stirred ladle.

  11. Review of desulfurization process for biogas purification

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xiao, Cong; Ma, Yunqian; Ji, Dandan; Zang, Lihua

    2017-12-01

    Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is a toxic and odorous compound present in biogas produced by the anaerobic digestion of biosolids and other organic materials. Elimination of H2S is necessary as it is extremely hazardous to human health, poisonous to process catalysts and corrosive to equipment. The desulfurization technology is an important part for efficient utilization of biogas. In this paper, the traditional wet and dry desulfurization technology for biogas was reviewed, and the new research progress of biological desulfurization technologies are also introduced.

  12. 75 FR 52007 - Proposed Information Collection Activity; Comment Request

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-08-24

    ...) Community Economic Development (CED) and Job Opportunities for Low-Income Individuals (JOLI) Standard... key information about projects funded through the Community Economic Development (CED) and Job... previously approved questionnaire, Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Control Number: 0970-0317. Questions...

  13. Antenatal and postnatal psychopathology among women with current and past eating disorders: longitudinal patterns.

    PubMed

    Easter, Abigail; Solmi, Francessca; Bye, Amanda; Taborelli, Emma; Corfield, Freya; Schmidt, Ulrike; Treasure, Janet; Micali, Nadia

    2015-01-01

    This study aims to investigate longitudinal patterns of psychopathology during the antenatal and postnatal periods among women with current (C-ED) and past (P-ED) eating disorders. Women were recruited to a prospective longitudinal study: C-ED (n = 31), P-ED (n = 29) and healthy control (HC; n = 57). Anxiety, depression and ED symptoms were measured at four time points: first/second trimester, third trimester, 8 weeks and 6 months postpartum. Linear mixed effects models were used to test for group differences. Women with C-ED and P-ED, in all diagnostic categories, had significantly higher levels of psychopathology at all time points. ED symptoms decreased in the C-ED group, compared with an overall increase in the other two groups but subsequently increased after pregnancy. Overall, depression and state and trait anxiety scores decreased in the C-ED group compared with the HC group throughout the antenatal and postnatal periods. High levels of psychopathology are common throughout the antenatal and postnatal periods among women with current and past ED, and despite some overall reductions, symptoms remain clinically significant. © 2014 The Authors. European Eating Disorders Review published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. © 2014 The Authors. European Eating Disorders Review published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  14. Special funding schemes for innovative medical devices in French hospitals: the pros and cons of two different approaches.

    PubMed

    Martelli, Nicolas; van den Brink, Hélène

    2014-07-01

    Financing innovative medical devices is an important challenge for national health policy makers, and a crucial issue for hospitals. However, when innovative medical devices are launched on the European market there is generally little clinical evidence regarding both efficacy and safety, both because of the flaws in the European system for regulating such devices, and because they are at an early stage of development. To manage the uncertainty surrounding the reimbursement of innovation, several European countries have set up temporary funding schemes to generate evidence about the effectiveness of devices. This article explores two different French approaches to funding innovative in-hospital devices and collecting supplementary data: the coverage with evidence development (CED) scheme introduced under Article L. 165-1-1 of the French Social Security Code; and national programs for hospital-based research. We discuss pros and cons of both approaches in the light of CED policies in Germany and the UK. The CED policies for devices share common limitations. Thus, transparency of CED processes should be enhanced and decisions need to be made in a timely way. Finally, we think that closer collaboration between manufacturers, health authorities and hospitals is essential to make CED policies more operational. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  15. Synthesis and application of different phthalocyanine molecular sieve catalyst for oxidative desulfurization

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Zhao, Na; Li, Siwen; Wang, Jinyi

    2015-05-15

    M{sub 2}(PcAN){sub 2} (M=Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn and Mn) anchored onto W-HZSM-5 (M{sub 2}(PcAN){sub 2}–W-HZSM-5) or the M{sub 2}(PcTN){sub 2} doping W-HZSM-5 (M{sub 2}(PcTN){sub 2}/W-HZSM-5) were prepared and their catalytic performances were tested for oxidative desulfurization in the presence of oxygen. Thiophene (T), benzothiophene (BT), and dibenzothiophene (DBT) were considered as sulfur compounds. Among zeolite-based catalysts, the Cu{sub 2}(PcAN){sub 2}–W-HZSM-5 and Cu{sub 2}(PcTN){sub 2}/W-HZSM-5 showed superior desulfurization performance and the activity of selectivity followed the order: T>BT>DBT. The effects of phthalocyanine concentration were studied by UV–Vis and calcination temperature was obtained by TG-DSC for Cu{sub 2}(PcTN){sub 2}/W-HZSM-5. Catalysts weremore » characterized by EA, IR, XRD, SEM, TEM, ICP, and N{sub 2} adsorption. Reaction time, temperature and the amount of catalyst were investigated as the important parameters for optimization of the reaction. Furthermore, a possible process of oxidative desulfurization and the reaction products were proposed. - Graphical abstract: The ODS reaction schematic shows the reaction mechanism of ultra-deep desulfurization. The sulfur compounds are oxidized to their corresponding sulfoxides or sulfones through the use of oxygen and catalysts. The reaction process of ultra-deep desulfurization. - Highlights: • A kind of novel catalyst for deep desulfurization was synthesized. • Cu{sub 2}(PcAN){sub 2}–W-HZSM-5 exhibits excellent catalytic performance for desulfurization. • The reaction conditions that affect desulfurization efficiency are investigated. • The reaction process of model sulfur compounds is proposed.« less

  16. Mid-temperature deep removal of hydrogen sulfide on rare earth (RE = Ce, La, Sm, Gd) doped ZnO supported on KIT-6: Effect of RE dopants and interaction between active phase and support matrix

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Lu; Zhou, Pin; Zhang, Hongbo; Meng, Xianglong; Li, Juexiu; Sun, Tonghua

    2017-06-01

    Rare earth oxides (RE = Ce, La, Sm and Gd) doped ZnO supported on KIT-6 sorbents (RE-ZnO/KIT-6) were synthesized by sol-gel method and their performance for deep removal of H2S (bellow 0.1 ppmv) from gas stream at medium temperature was tested. The RE dopants (except Ce) significantly enhance the deep desulfurization capacity of ZnO/KIT-6 sorbent and maintained higher sulfur uptake capacities upon multiple cycles of regeneration by a simple thermal oxidation in 10 v% of O2 in N2 atmosphere. The results of SAXS, XRD, N2 physisorption, TEM, FIIR, and XPS implied that the KIT-6 structure of loading metal oxides remained intact. It was found that RE could hinder the ZnO crystal ripening during calcination resulted in smaller ZnO particles, enhance the interaction of ZnO and silica matrix to improve the dispersion of active phase on KIT-6. Furthermore, by increasing the outlayer electron density of Zn atom and oxygen transfer ability, the synergistic effect considered to be favorable for RE-ZnO/KIT-6 sulfidation. Even though the performance of improving ZnO dispersion was weaker than that of Sm and Gd, La-ZnO/KIT-6 performs the best deep desulfurizers by changing the surface chemical atmosphere for ZnO. Steam in the gas stream inhibited the capture of H2S by ZnO in the sorbents, in the case of La-ZnO/KIT-6, the steam content should control as lower as 5 v% to ensure the desulfurization efficiency and precision.

  17. The S02 Concern in Developed Nations

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Environmental Science and Technology, 1976

    1976-01-01

    Delegates of a working group on air pollution problems of the Economic Commission for Europe discussed the status of advanced technologies for controlling man-made emissions of sulfur dioxide. Technologies discussed included: coal washing, oil desulfurization, flue gas desulfurization, scrubbing, residual oil desulfurization, fluidized bed…

  18. Pressurized fluidized-bed hydroretorting of Eastern oil shales -- Sulfur control. Topical report for Subtask 3.1, In-bed sulfur capture tests; Subtask 3.2, Electrostatic desulfurization; Subtask 3.3, Microbial desulfurization and denitrification

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Roberts, M.J.; Abbasian, J.; Akin, C.

    1992-05-01

    This topical report on ``Sulfur Control`` presents the results of work conducted by the Institute of Gas Technology (IGT), the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), and the Ohio State University (OSU) to develop three novel approaches for desulfurization that have shown good potential with coal and could be cost-effective for oil shales. These are (1) In-Bed Sulfur Capture using different sorbents (IGT), (2) Electrostatic Desulfurization (IIT), and (3) Microbial Desulfurization and Denitrification (OSU and IGT). The objective of the task on In-Bed Sulfur Capture was to determine the effectiveness of different sorbents (that is, limestone, calcined limestone, dolomite, and siderite)more » for capturing sulfur (as H{sub 2}S) in the reactor during hydroretorting. The objective of the task on Electrostatic Desulfurization was to determine the operating conditions necessary to achieve a high degree of sulfur removal and kerogen recovery in IIT`s electrostatic separator. The objectives of the task on Microbial Desulfurization and Denitrification were to (1) isolate microbial cultures and evaluate their ability to desulfurize and denitrify shale, (2) conduct laboratory-scale batch and continuous tests to improve and enhance microbial removal of these components, and (3) determine the effects of processing parameters, such as shale slurry concentration, solids settling characteristics, agitation rate, and pH on the process.« less

  19. 77 FR 38580 - Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-06-28

    ... CEDS planning process and resulting CEDS is designed to guide the economic growth of an area and...: Economic Development Administration (EDA). Title: Comprehensive Economic Development Strategies. OMB... and Economic Adjustment programs, applicants must undertake a planning process that results in a...

  20. Radiation methods for demercaptanization and desulfurization of oil products

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zaykina, R. F.; Zaykin, Yu. A.; Mamonova, T. B.; Nadirov, N. K.

    2002-03-01

    A two-stage method for the desulfurization of oil is presented. The first stage strongly oxidizes sulfuric material to do away with its chemical aggressiveness and promote its removal. Desulfurization of the overall product is reached at the second stage by means of conventional methods.

  1. The Core Molecular Machinery Used for Engulfment of Apoptotic Cells Regulates the JNK Pathway Mediating Axon Regeneration in Caenorhabditis elegans.

    PubMed

    Pastuhov, Strahil Iv; Fujiki, Kota; Tsuge, Anna; Asai, Kazuma; Ishikawa, Sho; Hirose, Kazuya; Matsumoto, Kunihiro; Hisamoto, Naoki

    2016-09-14

    The mechanisms that govern the ability of specific neurons to regenerate their axons after injury are not well understood. In Caenorhabditis elegans, the initiation of axon regeneration is positively regulated by the JNK-MAPK pathway. In this study, we identify two components functioning upstream of the JNK pathway: the Ste20-related protein kinase MAX-2 and the Rac-type GTPase CED-10. CED-10, when bound by GTP, interacts with MAX-2 and functions as its upstream regulator in axon regeneration. CED-10, in turn, is activated by axon injury via signals initiated from the integrin α-subunit INA-1 and the nonreceptor tyrosine kinase SRC-1 and transmitted via the signaling module CED-2/CrkII-CED-5/Dock180-CED-12/ELMO. This module is also known to regulate the engulfment of apoptotic cells during development. Our findings thus reveal that the molecular machinery used for engulfment of apoptotic cells also promotes axon regeneration through activation of the JNK pathway. The molecular mechanisms of axon regeneration after injury remain poorly understood. In Caenorhabditis elegans, the initiation of axon regeneration is positively regulated by the JNK-MAPK pathway. In this study, we show that integrin, Rac-GTPase, and several other molecules, all of which are known to regulate engulfment of apoptotic cells during development, also regulate axon regeneration. This signaling module activates the JNK-MAPK cascade via MAX-2, a PAK-like protein kinase that binds Rac. Our findings thus reveal that the molecular machinery used for engulfment of apoptotic cells also promotes axon regeneration through activation of the JNK pathway. Copyright © 2016 the authors 0270-6474/16/369710-12$15.00/0.

  2. Convection enhanced delivery of panobinostat (LBH589)-loaded pluronic nano-micelles prolongs survival in the F98 rat glioma model.

    PubMed

    Singleton, W G; Collins, A M; Bienemann, A S; Killick-Cole, C L; Haynes, H R; Asby, D J; Butts, C P; Wyatt, M J; Barua, N U; Gill, S S

    2017-01-01

    The pan-histone deacetylase inhibitor panobinostat is a potential therapy for malignant glioma, but it is water insoluble and does not cross the blood-brain barrier when administered systemically. In this article, we describe the in vitro and in vivo efficacy of a novel water-soluble nano-micellar formulation of panobinostat designed for administration by convection enhanced delivery (CED). The in vitro efficacy of panobinostat-loaded nano-micelles against rat F98, human U87-MG and M059K glioma cells and against patient-derived glioma stem cells was measured using a cell viability assay. Nano-micelle distribution in rat brain was analyzed following acute CED using rhodamine-labeled nano-micelles, and toxicity was assayed using immunofluorescent microscopy and synaptophysin enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. We compared the survival of the bioluminescent syngenic F98/Fischer344 rat glioblastoma model treated by acute CED of panobinostat-loaded nano-micelles with that of untreated and vehicle-only-treated controls. Nano-micellar panobinostat is cytotoxic to rat and human glioma cells in vitro in a dose-dependent manner following short-time exposure to drug. Fluorescent rhodamine-labelled nano-micelles distribute with a volume of infusion/volume of distribution (Vi/Vd) ratio of four and five respectively after administration by CED. Administration was not associated with any toxicity when compared to controls. CED of panobinostat-loaded nano-micelles was associated with significantly improved survival when compared to controls (n=8 per group; log-rank test, P <0.001). One hundred percent of treated animals survived the 60-day experimental period and had tumour response on post-mortem histological examination. CED of nano-micellar panobinostat represents a potential novel therapeutic option for malignant glioma and warrants translation into the clinic.

  3. A novel implantable catheter system with transcutaneous port for intermittent convection-enhanced delivery of carboplatin for recurrent glioblastoma.

    PubMed

    Barua, Neil U; Hopkins, Kirsten; Woolley, Max; O'Sullivan, Stephen; Harrison, Rob; Edwards, Richard J; Bienemann, Alison S; Wyatt, Marcella J; Arshad, Azeem; Gill, Steven S

    2016-01-01

    Inadequate penetration of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) by systemically administered chemotherapies including carboplatin is implicated in their failure to improve prognosis for patients with glioblastoma. Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) of carboplatin has the potential to improve outcomes by facilitating bypass of the BBB. We report the first use of an implantable CED system incorporating a novel transcutaneous bone-anchored port (TBAP) for intermittent CED of carboplatin in a patient with recurrent glioblastoma. The CED catheter system was implanted using a robot-assisted surgical method. Catheter targeting accuracy was verified by performing intra-operative O-arm imaging. The TBAP was implanted using a skin-flap dermatome technique modeled on bone-anchored hearing aid surgery. Repeated infusions were performed by attaching a needle administration set to the TBAP. Drug distribution was monitored with serial real-time T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). All catheters were implanted to within 1.5 mm of their planned target. Intermittent infusions of carboplatin were performed on three consecutive days and repeated after one month without the need for further surgical intervention. Infused volumes of 27.9 ml per day were well tolerated, with the exception of a single seizure episode. Follow-up MRI at eight weeks demonstrated a significant reduction in the volume of tumor enhancement from 42.6 ml to 24.6 ml, and was associated with stability of the patient's clinical condition. Reduction in the volume of tumor enhancement indicates that intermittent CED of carboplatin has the potential to improve outcomes in glioblastoma. The novel technology described in this report make intermittent CED infusion regimes an achievable treatment strategy.

  4. Application of Factor Analysis to Identify Dietary Patterns and Use of Factor Scores to Study Their Relationship with Nutritional Status of Adult Rural Populations

    PubMed Central

    Brahmam, G.N.V.; Vijayaraghavan, K.

    2011-01-01

    The prevalence of chronic energy deficiency (CED) among one-third of the Indian population is attributed to inadequacy of consumption of nutrients. However, considering the complexity of diets among Indians, the relationship between a particular dietary pattern and the nutritional status of the population has not been established so far. A community-based cross-sectional study was undertaken to assess estimates, at district level, of diet and nutritional status in Orissa State, India. Factor analysis was used for exploring the existence of consumption pattern of food and nutrients and their relationship with the nutritional status of rural adult population. Data on 2,864 adult men and 3,525 adult women in Orissa state revealed that there exists six patterns among food-groups explaining 59% of the total variation and three patterns among nutrients that explain 73% of the total variation among both adult men and women. The discriminant function analysis revealed that, overall, 53% of the men were correctly classified as either with chronic energy deficiency (CED) or without CED. Similarly, overall, 54% of the women were correctly classified as either with CED or without CED. The sensitivity of the model was 65% for both men and women, and the specificity was 46% and 41% respectively for men and women. In the case of classification of overweight/obesity, the prediction of the model was about 75% among both men and women, along with high sensitivity. Using factor analysis, the dietary patterns were identified from the food and nutrient intake data. There exists a strong relationship between the dietary patterns and the nutritional status of rural adults. These results will help identify the community people with CED and help planners formulate nutritional interventions accordingly. PMID:21957671

  5. Low temperature aqueous desulfurization of coal

    DOEpatents

    Slegeir, W.A.; Healy, F.E.; Sapienza, R.S.

    1985-04-18

    This invention describes a chemical process for desulfurizing coal, especially adaptable to the treatment of coal-water slurries, at temperatures as low as ambient, comprising treating the coal with aqueous titanous chloride whereby hydrogen sulfide is liberated and the desulfurized coal is separated with the conversion of titanous chloride to titanium oxides.

  6. Low temperature aqueous desulfurization of coal

    DOEpatents

    Slegeir, William A.; Healy, Francis E.; Sapienza, Richard S.

    1985-01-01

    This invention describes a chemical process for desulfurizing coal, especially adaptable to the treatment of coal-water slurries, at temperatures as low as ambient, comprising treating the coal with aqueous titanous chloride whereby hydrogen sulfide is liberated and the desulfurized coal is separated with the conversion of titanous chloride to titanium oxides.

  7. Flue gas desulfurization gypsum agricultural network alabama (cotton)

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Flue gas desulfurization gypsum (FGDG) is an excellent source of gypsum (CaSO4•2H2O) that can be beneficially used in agriculture. Research was conducted as part of the Flue Gas Desulfurization Gypsum Agricultural Network program sponsored by the Electric Power Research Institute in collaboration wi...

  8. Use of Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) Gypsum as a Heavy Metal Stabilizer in Contaminated Soils

    EPA Science Inventory

    Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) gypsum is a synthetic by-product generated from the flue gas desulfurization process in coal power plants. It has several beneficial applications such as an ingredient in cement production, wallboard production and in agricultural practice as a soil...

  9. Isatis indigotica induces hepatocellular cancer cell death via caspase-independent apoptosis-inducing factor translocation apoptotic pathway in vitro and in vivo.

    PubMed

    Chung, Ying-Cheng; Tang, Feng-Yao; Liao, Jiunn-Wang; Chung, Chia-Hua; Jong, Ting-Ting; Chen, Shih-Shiung; Tsai, Ching-Hsiu; Chiang, En-Pei

    2011-06-01

    Isatis indigotica is a biennial herbaceous cruciferous medical herb with antipyretic, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and anti-endotoxin activity. This study explored the chemotherapeutic potential of I indigotica on human hepatoma cells and investigated the mechanism by which metabolites from I indigotica inhibit hepatoma cell growth. Antitumor activity was discovered in dried I indigotica leaf chloroform extracts (CEDLI). In nude mice xenotransplanted with human hepatoma cells, CEDLI supplementation inhibited tumor growth by ~40% compared with nonsupplemented animals without affecting body weight/food intake. CEDLI induced sub-G1 cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in hepatoma cells. Furthermore, CEDLI activates p53 and Bax, reduces Bcl-2 expression, and causes mitochondrial stress and the release of apoptosis-inducing factor into the cytosol followed by its translocation into the nucleus, resulting in hepatoma cell apoptosis. This study provides novel in vivo evidence of I indigotica's antitumor activity. The chemotherapeutic activity against human hepatoma tumorigenesis was because of a distinguished caspase-independent apoptotic pathway.

  10. The effect of less-lethal weapons on injuries in police use-of-force events.

    PubMed

    MacDonald, John M; Kaminski, Robert J; Smith, Michael R

    2009-12-01

    We investigated the effect of the use of less-lethal weapons, conductive energy devices (CEDs), and oleoresin capsicum (OC) spray on the prevalence and incidence of injuries to police officers and civilians in encounters involving the use of force. We analyzed data from 12 police departments that documented injuries to officers and civilians in 24,380 cases. We examined monthly injury rates for 2 police departments before and after their adoption of CEDs. Odds of injury to civilians and officers were significantly lower when police used CED weapons, after control for differences in case attributes and departmental policies restricting use of these weapons. Monthly incidence of injury in 2 police departments declined significantly, by 25% to 62%, after adoption of CED devices. Injuries sustained during police use-of-force events affect thousands of police officers and civilians in the United States each year. Incidence of these injuries can be reduced dramatically when law enforcement agencies responsibly employ less-lethal weapons in lieu of physical force.

  11. The Integration of Emotions in Memories: Cognitive-Emotional Distinctiveness and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

    PubMed Central

    Boals, Adriel; Rubin, David C.

    2013-01-01

    The current study examined cognitive-emotional distinctiveness (CED), the extent to which emotions are linked with event information, in memories associated with PTSD. Participants either with PTSD (n=68) or without PTSD (n=40) completed a modified multidimensional scaling technique to measure CED for their most negative and most positive events. The results revealed that participants in the PTSD group evidenced significantly lower levels of CED. This group difference remained significant when we limited the analysis to traumatic events that led to a PTSD diagnosis (n=33) in comparison to control participants who nominated a traumatic event that did not result in PTSD (n=32). Replicating previous findings, CED levels were higher in memories of negative events, in comparison to positive events. These results provide empirical evidence that memories associated with PTSD do contain special organizational features with respect to the links between emotions and memory. Implications for understanding and treating PTSD are discussed. PMID:23436960

  12. Convection-Enhanced Delivery.

    PubMed

    Mehta, A M; Sonabend, A M; Bruce, J N

    2017-04-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is a promising technique that generates a pressure gradient at the tip of an infusion catheter to deliver therapeutics directly through the interstitial spaces of the central nervous system. It addresses and offers solutions to many limitations of conventional techniques, allowing for delivery past the blood-brain barrier in a targeted and safe manner that can achieve therapeutic drug concentrations. CED is a broadly applicable technique that can be used to deliver a variety of therapeutic compounds for a diversity of diseases, including malignant gliomas, Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's disease. While a number of technological advances have been made since its development in the early 1990s, clinical trials with CED have been largely unsuccessful, and have illuminated a number of parameters that still need to be addressed for successful clinical application. This review addresses the physical principles behind CED, limitations in the technique, as well as means to overcome these limitations, clinical trials that have been performed, and future developments.

  13. Sequence and molecular characterization of a DNA region encoding the dibenzothiophene desulfurization operon of Rhodococcus sp. strain IGTS8.

    PubMed Central

    Piddington, C S; Kovacevich, B R; Rambosek, J

    1995-01-01

    Dibenzothiophene (DBT), a model compound for sulfur-containing organic molecules found in fossil fuels, can be desulfurized to 2-hydroxybiphenyl (2-HBP) by Rhodococcus sp. strain IGTS8. Complementation of a desulfurization (dsz) mutant provided the genes from Rhodococcus sp. strain IGTS8 responsible for desulfurization. A 6.7-kb TaqI fragment cloned in Escherichia coli-Rhodococcus shuttle vector pRR-6 was found to both complement this mutation and confer desulfurization to Rhodococcus fascians, which normally is not able to desulfurize DBT. Expression of this fragment in E. coli also conferred the ability to desulfurize DBT. A molecular analysis of the cloned fragment revealed a single operon containing three open reading frames involved in the conversion of DBT to 2-HBP. The three genes were designated dszA, dszB, and dszC. Neither the nucleotide sequences nor the deduced amino acid sequences of the enzymes exhibited significant similarity to sequences obtained from the GenBank, EMBL, and Swiss-Prot databases, indicating that these enzymes are novel enzymes. Subclone analyses revealed that the gene product of dszC converts DBT directly to DBT-sulfone and that the gene products of dszA and dszB act in concert to convert DBT-sulfone to 2-HBP. PMID:7574582

  14. High performance electrode material for supercapacitors based on α-Co(OH)2 nano-sheets prepared through pulse current cathodic electro-deposition (PC-CED)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Aghazadeh, Mustafa; Rashidi, Amir; Ganjali, Mohammad Reza

    2018-01-01

    In this paper, the well-defined nano-sheets of α-Co(OH)2 were prepared through the cathodic electrosynthesis from an additive-free aqueous cobalt nitrate bath. The pulse current cathodic electro-deposition (PC-CED) was used as the means for the controlling the OH- electrogeneration on the cathode surface. The characteristics and electrochemical behavior of the prepared cobalt hydroxide were also assessed through SEM, TEM, XRD, BET, and IR. The results proved the product to be composed of crystalline pure α phase of cobalt hydroxide with sheet-like morphology at nanoscale. Evaluations of the electrochemical behaviour of the α-Co(OH)2 nano-sheets revealed that they are capable to delivering the specific capacitance of 1122 F g-1 at a discharge load of 3 A g-1 and SC retention of 84% after 4000 continues discharging cycles, suggesting the nano-sheets as promising candidates for use in electrochemical supercapacitors. Further, the method used for the preparation of the compounds enjoys the capability of being scaled up. [Figure not available: see fulltext.

  15. Surface characterization of adsorbents in ultrasound-assisted oxidative desulfurization process of fossil fuels.

    PubMed

    Etemadi, Omid; Yen, Teh Fu

    2007-09-01

    Surface properties of two different phases of alumina were studied through SEM images. Characterization of amorphous acidic alumina and crystalline boehmite by XRD explains the differences in adsorption capacities of each sample. Data from small angle neutron scattering (SANS) provide further results regarding the ordering in amorphous and crystalline samples of alumina. Quantitative measurements from SANS are used for pore size calculations. Higher disorder provides more topological traps, irregularities, and hidden grooves for higher adsorption capacity. An isotherm model was derived for adsorption of dibenzothiophene sulfone (DBTO) by amorphous acidic alumina to predict and calculate the adsorption of sulfur compounds. The Langmuir-Freundlich model covers a wide range of sulfur concentrations. Experiments prove that amorphous acidic alumina is the adsorbent of choice for selective adsorption in the ultrasound-assisted oxidative desulfurization (UAOD) process to produce ultra-low-sulfur fuel (ULSF).

  16. PET-modified red mud as catalysts for oxidative desulfurization reactions.

    PubMed

    do Prado, Nayara T; Heitmann, Ana P; Mansur, Herman S; Mansur, Alexandra A; Oliveira, Luiz C A; de Castro, Cinthia S

    2017-07-01

    This work describes the synthesis of catalysts based on red mud/polyethylene terephthalate (PET) composites and their subsequent heat treatment under N 2 atmosphere. The materials were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), temperature programmed reduction (TPR), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric (TG) analysis and N 2 adsorption/desorption. The catalysts were evaluated in the oxidative desulfurization reaction of dibenzothiophene (DBT) in a biphasic system. The results indicated that the PET impregnation on red mud increased the affinity of the catalyst with the nonpolar phase (fuel), in which the contaminant was dissolved, allowing a higher conversion (up to 80%) and selectivity to the corresponding dibenzothiophene sulfone. The sulfone compound is more polar than DBT and diffused into the polar solvent as indicated by the data obtained via gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  17. The Importance of Being a Complement: CED Effects Revisited

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jurka, Johannes

    2010-01-01

    This dissertation revisits subject island effects (Ross 1967, Chomsky 1973) cross-linguistically. Controlled acceptability judgment studies in German, English, Japanese and Serbian show that extraction out of specifiers is consistently degraded compared to extraction out of complements, indicating that the Condition on Extraction domains (CED,…

  18. 7 CFR 1220.623 - Canvassing requests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... designate the County Executive Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the... CONSUMER INFORMATION Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1220.623 Canvassing requests. (a... for this function is impractical, and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office...

  19. 7 CFR 1220.623 - Canvassing requests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... designate the County Executive Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the... CONSUMER INFORMATION Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1220.623 Canvassing requests. (a... for this function is impractical, and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office...

  20. 7 CFR 1220.623 - Canvassing requests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... designate the County Executive Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the... CONSUMER INFORMATION Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1220.623 Canvassing requests. (a... for this function is impractical, and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office...

  1. 7 CFR 1220.623 - Canvassing requests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... designate the County Executive Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the... CONSUMER INFORMATION Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1220.623 Canvassing requests. (a... for this function is impractical, and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office...

  2. 75 FR 81614 - Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-12-28

    ... (CED) and Job Opportunities for Low-Income Individuals (JOLI) Standard Reporting Format. OMB No.: New... funded through the Community Economic Development (CED) and Job Opportunities for Low-Income Individuals... Report (PPR) is a new proposed reporting format that will collect information concerning the outcomes and...

  3. 7 CFR 1220.623 - Canvassing requests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... designate the County Executive Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the... CONSUMER INFORMATION Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1220.623 Canvassing requests. (a... for this function is impractical, and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office...

  4. Clinical and molecular characterization of 40 patients with classic Ehlers–Danlos syndrome: identification of 18 COL5A1 and 2 COL5A2 novel mutations

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Classic Ehlers–Danlos syndrome (cEDS) is a rare autosomal dominant connective tissue disorder that is primarily characterized by skin hyperextensibility, abnormal wound healing/atrophic scars, and joint hypermobility. A recent study demonstrated that more than 90% of patients who satisfy all of these major criteria harbor a type V collagen (COLLV) defect. Methods This cohort included 40 patients with cEDS who were clinically diagnosed according to the Villefranche nosology. The flowchart that was adopted for mutation detection consisted of sequencing the COL5A1 gene and, if no mutation was detected, COL5A2 analysis. In the negative patients the presence of large genomic rearrangements in COL5A1 was investigated using MLPA, and positive results were confirmed via SNP-array analysis. Results We report the clinical and molecular characterization of 40 patients from 28 families, consisting of 14 pediatric patients and 26 adults. A family history of cEDS was present in 9 patients. The majority of the patients fulfilled all the major diagnostic criteria for cEDS; atrophic scars were absent in 2 females, skin hyperextensibility was not detected in a male and joint hypermobility was negative in 8 patients (20% of the entire cohort). Wide inter- and intra-familial phenotypic heterogeneity was observed. We identified causal mutations with a detection rate of approximately 93%. In 25/28 probands, COL5A1 or COL5A2 mutations were detected. Twenty-one mutations were in the COL5A1 gene, 18 of which were novel (2 recurrent). Of these, 16 mutations led to nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD) and to COLLV haploinsufficiency and 5 mutations were structural. Two novel COL5A2 splice mutations were detected in patients with the most severe phenotypes. The known p. (Arg312Cys) mutation in the COL1A1 gene was identified in one patient with vascular-like cEDS. Conclusions Our findings highlight that the three major criteria for cEDS are useful and sufficient for cEDS clinical diagnosis in the large majority of the patients. The borderline patients for whom these criteria fail can be diagnosed when minor signs of connective tissue diseases and family history are present and when genetic testing reveals a defect in COLLV. Our data also confirm that COL5A1 and COL5A2 are the major, if not the only, genes involved in cEDS. PMID:23587214

  5. Desulfurization of phosphorothioate oligonucleotides via the sulfur-by-oxygen replacement induced by the hydroxyl radical during negative electrospray ionization mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Wu, Lianming; White, David E; Ye, Connie; Vogt, Frederick G; Terfloth, Gerald J; Matsuhashi, Hayao

    2012-07-01

    While the occurrence of desulfurization of phosphorothioate oligonucleotides in solution is well established, this study represents the first attempt to investigate the basis of the unexpected desulfurization via the net sulfur-by-oxygen (S-O) replacement during negative electrospray ionization (ESI). The current work, facilitated by quantitative mass deconvolution, demonstrates that considerable desulfurization can take place even under common negative ESI operating conditions. The extent of desulfurization is dependent on the molar phosphorothioate oligonucleotide-to-hydroxyl radical ratio, which is consistent with the corona discharge-induced origin of the hydroxyl radical leading to the S-O replacement. This hypothesis is supported by the fact that an increase of the high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) flow rate and the on-column concentration of a phosphorothioate oligonucleotide, as well as a decrease of the electrospray voltage reduce the degree of desulfurization. Comparative LC-tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) sequencing of a phosphorothioate oligonucleotide and its corresponding desulfurization product revealed evidence that the S-O replacement occurs at multiple phosphorothioate internucleotide linkage sites. In practice, the most convenient and effective strategy for minimizing this P = O artifact is to increase the LC flow rate and the on-column concentration of phosphorothioate oligonucleotides. Another approach to mitigate possible detrimental effects of the undesired desulfurization is to operate the ESI source at a very low electrospray voltage to diminish the corona discharge; however this will significantly compromise sensitivity when analyzing the low-level P = O impurities in phosphorothioate oligonucleotides. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  6. Convection-enhanced delivery of a topoisomerase I inhibitor (nanoliposomal topotecan) and a topoisomerase II inhibitor (pegylated liposomal doxorubicin) in intracranial brain tumor xenografts1

    PubMed Central

    Yamashita, Yoji; Krauze, Michal T.; Kawaguchi, Tomohiro; Noble, Charles O.; Drummond, Daryl C.; Park, John W.; Bankiewicz, Krystof S.

    2007-01-01

    Despite multimodal treatment options, the response and survival rates for patients with malignant gliomas remain dismal. Clinical trials with convection-enhanced delivery (CED) have recently opened a new window in neuro-oncology to the direct delivery of chemotherapeutics to the CNS, circumventing the blood-brain barrier and reducing systemic side effects. Our previous CED studies with liposomal chemotherapeutics have shown promising antitumor activity in rodent brain tumor models. In this study, we evaluated a combination of nanoliposomal topotecan (nLs-TPT) and pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD) to enhance efficacy in our brain tumor models, and to establish a CED treatment capable of improving survival from malignant brain tumors. Both liposomal drugs decreased key enzymes involved in tumor cell replication in vitro. Synergistic effects of nLs-TPT and PLD on U87MG cell death were found. The combination displayed excellent efficacy in a CED-based survival study 10 days after tumor cell implantation. Animals in the control group and those in single-agent groups had a median survival of less than 30 days, whereas the combination group experienced a median survival of more than 90 days. We conclude that CED of two liposomal chemotherapeutics (nLs-TPT and PLD) may be an effective treatment option for malignant gliomas. PMID:17018695

  7. Microbial desulfurization of coal

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Stevens, S.E. Jr.; Burgess, W.D.

    This patent describes a process for the microbial desulfurization of solid carbonaceous solids. The process comprising subjecting an aqueous slurry of carbonaceous solids to the desulfurizing action of microorganisms selected from the group consisting of Hansenula sydowiorum, Hansenula ciferii, Hansenula lynferdii, Cryptococcus albidus and mixtures thereof. Also described is the same process wherein the carbonaceous solids is coal.

  8. Bicarbonate-induced activation of H₂O₂ for metal-free oxidative desulfurization.

    PubMed

    Bokare, Alok D; Choi, Wonyong

    2016-03-05

    Efficient oxidative desulfurization (ODS) of model oil containing dibenzothiophene (DBT) and aromatic thiophenic derivatives has been achieved at room temperature using hydrogen peroxide activation by inorganic bicarbonate (HCO3(-)). Using in-situ formation of peroxymonocarbonate as oxidant, the transformation of main model substrate DBT to corresponding DBT-sulfone was easily accomplished in biphasic reaction conditions. In the presence of water-acetonitrile polar phase, increasing the water content upto 50% decreased the extraction capacity more than 3 times, but ∼ 90% DBT oxidation was still achieved. The oxidizing capacity of bicarbonate catalyst was maintained during repeated ODS cycles, but DBT removal efficiency was critically dependent on the extraction capacity of the polar phase. Under heterogeneous reaction conditions, bicarbonate-modified ion-exchange resin achieved similar ODS activity compared to the homogeneous catalytic system. Additionally, the efficient formation of peroxymonocarbonate using gaseous CO2 precursor in alkaline conditions was also utilized for DBT oxidation. The present study proposes the NaHCO3/H2O2 catalytic system as an efficient and cheap metal-free alternative for the oxidative removal of aromatic sulfur compounds from fuel oil. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  9. [Effects of desulfurization waste on calcium distribution, Ca(2+)-ATPase activity, and antioxidant characteristics of rice leaf under alkali stress].

    PubMed

    Mao, Gui-Lian; Xu, Xing; Zeng, Jin; Yue, Zi-Hui; Yang, Shu-Juan

    2012-02-01

    To approach the action mechanisms of desulfurization waste on alleviating alkali stress-induced injury of rice, a pot experiment was conducted to study the variations of leaf total calcium content, calcium distribution, plasma membrane Ca(2+)-ATPase activity, and reactive oxygen content of rice seedlings under alkali stress after the application of desulfurization waste. In the control, a few calcium particulates scattered in the cell wall and chloroplasts, while applying desulfurization waste or CaSO4 increased the calcium particulates in the plasma membrane, intercellular space, cell wall, and vacuole significantly. With the increasing application rate of desulfurization waste or CaSO4, the leaf total calcium content increased, Ca(2+)-ATPase activity in plasma membrane and tonoplast presented an increasing trend, plasma membrane relative permeability, MDA content, and O2 production rate decreased, and SOD and POD activities increased. The desulfurization waste could relieve the alkali stress to rice in some extent, and the main reactive compound in the waste could be CaSO4.

  10. Differential desulfurization of dibenzothiophene by newly identified MTCC strains: Influence of Operon Array

    PubMed Central

    Bhanjadeo, Madhabi M.; Rath, Kalyani; Gupta, Dhirendra; Pradhan, Nilotpala; Biswal, Surendra K.; Mishra, Barada K.

    2018-01-01

    Since the sulfur specific cleavage is vital for the organic sulfur removal from fossil fuel, we explored potential bacterial strains of MTCC (Microbial Type Culture Collection) to desulfurize the Dibenzothiophene (DBT) through C-S bond cleavage (4-S pathway). MTCC strains Rhodococcus rhodochrous (3552), Arthrobacter sulfureus (3332), Gordonia rubropertincta (289), and Rhodococcus erythropolis (3951) capable of growing in 0.5 mM DBT were examined for their desulfurization ability. The presence of dsz genes as well as the metabolites was screened by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and HPLC, respectively. All these strains showed > 99% DBT desulfurization with 10 days of incubation in minimal salt medium. From the HPLC analysis it was further revealed that these MTCC strains show differences in the end metabolites and desulfurize DBT differently following a variation in the regular 4-S pathway. These findings are also well corroborating with their respective organization of dszABC operons and their relative abundance. The above MTCC strains are capable of desulfurizing DBT efficiently and hence can be explored for biodesulfurization of petrochemicals and coal with an eco-friendly and energy economical process. PMID:29518089

  11. Plane flame furnace combustion tests on JPL desulfurized coal

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Reuther, J. J.; Kim, H. T.; Lima, J. G. H.

    1982-01-01

    The combustion characteristics of three raw bituminous (PSOC-282 and 276) and subbituminous (PSOC-230) coals, the raw coals partially desulfurized (ca -60%) by JPL chlorinolysis, and the chlorinated coals more completely desulfurized (ca -75%) by JPL hydrodesulfurization were determined. The extent to which the combustion characteristics of the untreated coals were altered upon JPL sulfur removal was examined. Combustion conditions typical of utility boilers were simulated in the plane flame furnace. Upon decreasing the parent coal voltaile matter generically by 80% and the sulfur by 75% via the JPL desulfurization process, ignition time was delayed 70 fold, burning velocity was retarded 1.5 fold, and burnout time was prolonged 1.4 fold. Total flame residence time increased 2.3 fold. The JPL desulfurization process appears to show significant promise for producing technologically combustible and clean burning (low SO3) fuels.

  12. Removal of Sulfur from CaF2 Containing Desulfurization Slag Exhausted from Secondary Steelmaking Process by Oxidation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hiraki, Takehito; Kobayashi, Junichi; Urushibata, Satomi; Matsubae, Kazuyo; Nagasaka, Tetsuya

    2012-08-01

    The oxidation behavior of sulfur in desulfurization slag generated from the secondary steelmaking process with air has been investigated in the temperature range of 973 K to 1373 K (700 °C to 1100 °C). Although a high removal rate of sulfur is not achieved at temperatures lower than 1273 K (1000 °C) because of the formation of CaSO4, most of the sulfur is rapidly removed from slag as SO2 gas in the 1273 K to 1373 K (700 °C to 1100 °C) range. This finding indicates that the desulfurization slag generated from the secondary steelmaking process can be reused as a desulfurized flux through air oxidation, making it possible to reduce significantly the amount of desulfurization slag for disposal.

  13. Study of Cleanliness of High Nitrogen Steel in ESR

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xuwei, Tang; Rong, Zhu

    This paper compares inclusions in high nitrogen steel before and after ESR process, analyzes the influence of slag systems and total oxygen content in consumable ingots. The total oxygen content is reduced apparently during ESR process, which indicates good effects on removal of inclusions. In the experiment, it shows that different slag systems will affect the result of inclusions removal significantly; proper w(CaO/Al2O3) will reduce the level of inclusions and total oxygen content in ESR ingots. In ESR process, the type and chemical composition of inclusions have no difference when oxygen content in consumable ingots is different, which means O content in consumable ingots have no direct relationship with cleanliness of ESR ingots. In typical inclusions, w(MnO)/w(MnO+Al2O3)≈0.23 0.32. The total oxygen content of ESR ingots keeps between 20 30ppm when the oxygen contents in consumable ingots are diverse from 40 to 100ppm. Meanwhile, this paper studies desulfurization process of high nitrogen steel in ESR, analyzes the influence of slag systems a nd remelting rates on desulfurization efficiency. The results indicate that the average size and quant ity of sulfide inclusion decrease after ESR process. The typical inclusion after ESR process is MnS+Al2O3. Slag system with proper CaO content has higher sulfur partition ratio, which leads to better desulfurization effect. The desulfurization rate changes greatly with different remelting rates, which indicates the kinetic parameter has more influence in desulfurization. The reason of this phenomenon is that the process of desulfurization can be considered as a non-equilibrium reaction, which differs with thermodynamic equilibrium. In kinetic study, it is founded that the desulfurization efficiency increases with higher remelting area, sulfur partition and lower remelting rate, which is different from experiment. The desulfurization efficiency decreases firstly and then recovers when remelting rate drops. The enrichment of sulfide in slag results in resulfurization in steel, which leads to lower desulfurization efficiency.

  14. Numerical Investigation of Desulfurization Kinetics in Gas-Stirred Ladles by a Quick Modeling Analysis Approach

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cao, Qing; Nastac, Laurentiu; Pitts-Baggett, April; Yu, Qiulin

    2018-03-01

    A quick modeling analysis approach for predicting the slag-steel reaction and desulfurization kinetics in argon gas-stirred ladles has been developed in this study. The model consists of two uncoupled components: (i) a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model for predicting the fluid flow and the characteristics of slag-steel interface, and (ii) a multicomponent reaction kinetics model for calculating the desulfurization evolution. The steel-slag interfacial area and mass transfer coefficients predicted by the CFD simulation are used as the processing data for the reaction model. Since the desulfurization predictions are uncoupled from the CFD simulation, the computational time of this uncoupled predictive approach is decreased by at least 100 times for each case study when compared with the CFD-reaction kinetics fully coupled model. The uncoupled modeling approach was validated by comparing the evolution of steel and slag compositions with the experimentally measured data during ladle metallurgical furnace (LMF) processing at Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa, Inc. Then, the validated approach was applied to investigate the effects of the initial steel and slag compositions, as well as different types of additions during the refining process on the desulfurization efficiency. The results revealed that the sulfur distribution ratio and the desulfurization reaction can be promoted by making Al and CaO additions during the refining process. It was also shown that by increasing the initial Al content in liquid steel, both Al oxidation and desulfurization rates rapidly increase. In addition, it was found that the variation of the initial Si content in steel has no significant influence on the desulfurization rate. Lastly, if the initial CaO content in slag is increased or the initial Al2O3 content is decreased in the fluid-slag compositional range, the desulfurization rate can be improved significantly during the LMF process.

  15. Numerical Investigation of Desulfurization Kinetics in Gas-Stirred Ladles by a Quick Modeling Analysis Approach

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cao, Qing; Nastac, Laurentiu; Pitts-Baggett, April; Yu, Qiulin

    2018-06-01

    A quick modeling analysis approach for predicting the slag-steel reaction and desulfurization kinetics in argon gas-stirred ladles has been developed in this study. The model consists of two uncoupled components: (i) a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model for predicting the fluid flow and the characteristics of slag-steel interface, and (ii) a multicomponent reaction kinetics model for calculating the desulfurization evolution. The steel-slag interfacial area and mass transfer coefficients predicted by the CFD simulation are used as the processing data for the reaction model. Since the desulfurization predictions are uncoupled from the CFD simulation, the computational time of this uncoupled predictive approach is decreased by at least 100 times for each case study when compared with the CFD-reaction kinetics fully coupled model. The uncoupled modeling approach was validated by comparing the evolution of steel and slag compositions with the experimentally measured data during ladle metallurgical furnace (LMF) processing at Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa, Inc. Then, the validated approach was applied to investigate the effects of the initial steel and slag compositions, as well as different types of additions during the refining process on the desulfurization efficiency. The results revealed that the sulfur distribution ratio and the desulfurization reaction can be promoted by making Al and CaO additions during the refining process. It was also shown that by increasing the initial Al content in liquid steel, both Al oxidation and desulfurization rates rapidly increase. In addition, it was found that the variation of the initial Si content in steel has no significant influence on the desulfurization rate. Lastly, if the initial CaO content in slag is increased or the initial Al2O3 content is decreased in the fluid-slag compositional range, the desulfurization rate can be improved significantly during the LMF process.

  16. 7 CFR 1221.227 - Canvassing voting ballots.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the ballots and report the results... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures for the Conduct of Referenda Procedures § 1221.227 Canvassing voting ballots. (a..., and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office employee to canvass requests in any...

  17. 7 CFR 1221.227 - Canvassing voting ballots.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the ballots and report the results... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures for the Conduct of Referenda Procedures § 1221.227 Canvassing voting ballots. (a..., and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office employee to canvass requests in any...

  18. 7 CFR 1221.227 - Canvassing voting ballots.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the ballots and report the results... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures for the Conduct of Referenda Procedures § 1221.227 Canvassing voting ballots. (a..., and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office employee to canvass requests in any...

  19. 7 CFR 1280.627 - Canvassing voting ballots.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... Executive Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the ballots and report the... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1280.627 Canvassing voting ballots. (a... impractical, and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office employee to canvass requests in...

  20. 7 CFR 1280.627 - Canvassing voting ballots.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... Executive Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the ballots and report the... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1280.627 Canvassing voting ballots. (a... impractical, and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office employee to canvass requests in...

  1. 7 CFR 1280.627 - Canvassing voting ballots.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... Executive Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the ballots and report the... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1280.627 Canvassing voting ballots. (a... impractical, and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office employee to canvass requests in...

  2. 7 CFR 1221.227 - Canvassing voting ballots.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the ballots and report the results... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures for the Conduct of Referenda Procedures § 1221.227 Canvassing voting ballots. (a..., and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office employee to canvass requests in any...

  3. 7 CFR 1280.627 - Canvassing voting ballots.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... Executive Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the ballots and report the... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1280.627 Canvassing voting ballots. (a... impractical, and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office employee to canvass requests in...

  4. 7 CFR 1280.627 - Canvassing voting ballots.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... Executive Director (CED) and a county or State FSA office employee to canvass the ballots and report the... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1280.627 Canvassing voting ballots. (a... impractical, and designate the CED and/or another county or State FSA office employee to canvass requests in...

  5. Hydrodesulfurization of chlorinized coal

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kalvinskas, J. J.; Rohatgi, N. K. (Inventor)

    1983-01-01

    A method of desulfurization is described in which high sulfur coals are desulfurized by low temperature chlorinolysis of coal in liquid media, preferably water, followed by hydrodesulfurization at a temperature above 500 C. The coals are desulfurized to an extent of up to 90% by weight and simultaneously dechlorinated to a chlorine content below 0.1% by weight. The product coals have lower volatiles loss, lower oxygen and nitrogen content and higher fixed carbon than raw coals treated with hydrogen under the same conditions. Heating the chlorinated coal to a temperature above 500 C. in inert gas such as nitrogen results in significantly less desulfurization.

  6. Deep catalytic oxidative desulfurization (ODS) of dibenzothiophene (DBT) with oxalate-based deep eutectic solvents (DESs).

    PubMed

    Lü, Hongying; Li, Pengcheng; Deng, Changliang; Ren, Wanzhong; Wang, Shunan; Liu, Pan; Zhang, Han

    2015-07-07

    An oxalate-based DES with a tetrabutyl ammonium chloride and oxalate acid molar ratio of 1/2 (TBO1 : 2) exhibited high activity in oxidative desulfurization (ODS) of dibenzothiophene (DBT) under mild reaction conditions. It is potentially a promising and highly environmentally friendly approach for desulfurization of fuels.

  7. Deep oxidative desulfurization of dibenzothiophene in simulated oil and real diesel using heteropolyanion-substituted hydrotalcite-like compounds as catalysts.

    PubMed

    Yu, Fengli; Wang, Rui

    2013-11-05

    Three heteropolyanion substituted hydrotalcite-like compounds (HPA-HTLcs) including Mg₉Al₃(OH)₂₄[PW₁₂O₄₀](MgAl-PW₁₂), Mg₉Al₃(OH)₂₄[PMo₁₂O₄₀] (MgAl-PMo₁₂) and Mg₁₂Al₄(OH)₃₂[SiW₁₂O₄₀] (MgAl-SiW₁₂), were synthesized, characterized and used as catalysts for the oxidative desulfurization of simulated oil (dibenzothiophene, DBT, in n-octane). MgAl-PMo₁₂ was identified as an effective catalyst for the oxidative removal of DBT under very mild conditions of atmospheric pressure and 60 °C in a biphasic system using hydrogen peroxide as oxidant and acetonitrile as extractant. The conversion of DBT was nearly 100%. As a result, because of the influence of the electron density and the space steric hindrance, the oxidation reactivity of the different sulfur compounds in simulated oil followed the order DBT > 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene (4,6-DMDBT) > benzothiophene (BT) > thiophene (TH). When the reaction is finished, the catalysts can be recovered from the acetonitrile phase by filtration. The recovered MgAl-PMo₁₂ retains nearly the same catalytic activity as the fresh material. Moreover, MgAl-PMo₁₂ was found to exhibit an ideal catalytic activity in the oxidative desulfurization of real diesel resulting in a total remaining sulfur content of 9.12 ppm(w).

  8. Removal of hazardous gaseous pollutants from industrial flue gases by a novel multi-stage fluidized bed desulfurizer.

    PubMed

    Mohanty, C R; Adapala, Sivaji; Meikap, B C

    2009-06-15

    Sulfur dioxide and other sulfur compounds are generated as primary pollutants from the major industries such as sulfuric acid plants, cupper smelters, catalytic cracking units, etc. and cause acid rain. To remove the SO(2) from waste flue gas a three-stage counter-current multi-stage fluidized bed adsorber was developed as desulfurization equipment and operated in continuous bubbling fluidization regime for the two-phase system. This paper represents the desulfurization of gas mixtures by chemical sorption of sulfur dioxide on porous granular calcium oxide particles in the reactor at ambient temperature. The advantages of the multi-stage fluidized bed reactor are of high mass transfer and high gas-solid residence time that can enhance the removal of acid gas at low temperature by dry method. Experiments were carried out in the bubbling fluidization regime supported by visual observation. The effects of the operating parameters such as sorbent (lime) flow rate, superficial gas velocity, and the weir height on SO(2) removal efficiency in the multistage fluidized bed are reported. The results have indicated that the removal efficiency of the sulfur dioxide was found to be 65% at high solid flow rate (2.0 kg/h) corresponding to lower gas velocity (0.265 m/s), wier height of 70 mm and SO(2) concentration of 500 ppm at room temperature.

  9. Study of variation grain size in desulfurization process of calcined petroleum coke

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pintowantoro, Sungging; Setiawan, Muhammad Arif; Abdul, Fakhreza

    2018-04-01

    Indonesia is a country with abundant natural resources, such as mineral mining and petroleum. In petroleum processing, crude oil can be processed into a source of fuel energy such as gasoline, diesel, oil, petroleum coke, and others. One of crude oil potentials in Indonesia is petroleum coke. Petroleum coke is a product from oil refining process. Sulfur reducing process in calcined petroleum cokes can be done by desulfurization process. The industries which have potential to become petroleum coke processing consumers are industries of aluminum smelting (anode, graphite block, carbon mortar), iron riser, calcined coke, foundry coke, etc. Sulfur reducing process in calcined petroleum coke can be done by thermal desulfurization process with alkaline substance NaOH. Desulfurization of petroleum coke process can be done in two ways, which are thermal desulfurization and hydrodesulphurization. This study aims to determine the effect of various grain size on sulfur, carbon, and chemical bond which contained by calcined petroleum coke. The raw material use calcined petroleum coke with 0.653% sulfur content. The grain size that used in this research is 50 mesh, then varied to 20 mesh and 100 mesh for each desulfurization process. Desulfurization are tested by ICP, UV-VIS, and FTIR to determine levels of sulfur, carbon, chemical bonding and sulfur dissolved water which contained in the residual washing of calcined petroleum coke. From various grain size that mentioned before, the optimal value is on 100 mesh grain size, where the sulfur content in petroleum coke is 0.24% and carbon content reaches the highest level of 97.8%. Meanwhile for grain size 100 mesh in the desulfurization process is enough to break the chemical bonds of organic sulfur in petroleum coke.

  10. Desulfurization of Saudi Arabian crudes by oxidation-extraction method.

    PubMed

    Al Otaibi, Raja L; Liu, Dong; Hou, Xulian; Song, Linhua; Li, Qingyin; Li, Mengfei; Almigrin, Hamid O; Yan, Zifeng

    The oxidation-extraction desulfurization of Saudi Arabian crudes was conducted with hydrogen peroxide-acetic acid oxidation system. The selection of extractant, the optimization of oxidation-extraction conditions, and the exploration of desulfurization mechanism were studied. As DMF was used as the extractant, the optimal desulfurization rate of 35.11 % and oil recovery of 95 % were obtained at 70 °C with the molar ratio of peracetic acid to sulfur of 8:1, the molar ratio of acetic acid to hydrogen peroxide of 2:1 and the volume ratio of extractant to oil of 1:1. The desulfurization effect of different fractions in the treated Saudi Arabian crudes was found to obey the following order: gasoline-diesel fraction >VGO fraction >VR fraction, due to different types and structures of sulfur compounds. The oil quality was less affected and most sulfides were mainly extracted via DMF.

  11. 7 CFR 1220.629 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of the FSA CED for a period of not less than... CONSUMER INFORMATION Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1220.629 Disposition of records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Request for Soybean...

  12. 7 CFR 1230.637 - Disposition of ballots and records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... Disposition of ballots and records. (a) Producer ballots and records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed... summaries. Such records will be placed under lock in a safe place under the custody of the FSA CED for a..., South Agriculture Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC. A Marketing Programs Branch...

  13. 7 CFR 1230.637 - Disposition of ballots and records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... Disposition of ballots and records. (a) Producer ballots and records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed... summaries. Such records will be placed under lock in a safe place under the custody of the FSA CED for a..., South Agriculture Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC. A Marketing Programs Branch...

  14. 7 CFR 1230.637 - Disposition of ballots and records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... Disposition of ballots and records. (a) Producer ballots and records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed... summaries. Such records will be placed under lock in a safe place under the custody of the FSA CED for a..., South Agriculture Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC. A Marketing Programs Branch...

  15. 7 CFR 1220.629 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of the FSA CED for a period of not less than... CONSUMER INFORMATION Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1220.629 Disposition of records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Request for Soybean...

  16. 7 CFR 1220.629 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of the FSA CED for a period of not less than... CONSUMER INFORMATION Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1220.629 Disposition of records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Request for Soybean...

  17. 7 CFR 1230.637 - Disposition of ballots and records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... Disposition of ballots and records. (a) Producer ballots and records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed... summaries. Such records will be placed under lock in a safe place under the custody of the FSA CED for a..., South Agriculture Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC. A Marketing Programs Branch...

  18. 7 CFR 1230.637 - Disposition of ballots and records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... Disposition of ballots and records. (a) Producer ballots and records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed... summaries. Such records will be placed under lock in a safe place under the custody of the FSA CED for a..., South Agriculture Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC. A Marketing Programs Branch...

  19. 7 CFR 1220.629 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of the FSA CED for a period of not less than... CONSUMER INFORMATION Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1220.629 Disposition of records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Request for Soybean...

  20. 7 CFR 1280.632 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of FSA CED for a period of not less than 12... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1280.632 Disposition of records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Lamb Checkoff Program...

  1. 7 CFR 1280.632 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of FSA CED for a period of not less than 12... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1280.632 Disposition of records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Lamb Checkoff Program...

  2. 7 CFR 1220.629 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of the FSA CED for a period of not less than... CONSUMER INFORMATION Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1220.629 Disposition of records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Request for Soybean...

  3. 7 CFR 1280.632 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of FSA CED for a period of not less than 12... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1280.632 Disposition of records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Lamb Checkoff Program...

  4. 7 CFR 1280.632 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of FSA CED for a period of not less than 12... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1280.632 Disposition of records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Lamb Checkoff Program...

  5. 7 CFR 1280.632 - Disposition of records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... records will be placed in a secure location under the custody of FSA CED for a period of not less than 12... INFORMATION ORDER Procedures To Request a Referendum Definitions § 1280.632 Disposition of records. Each FSA CED will place in sealed containers marked with the identification of the “Lamb Checkoff Program...

  6. 78 FR 5176 - CED White River Solar, LLC; Supplemental Notice That Initial Market-Based Rate Filing Includes...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-01-24

    ... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. ER13-764-000] CED White River Solar, LLC; Supplemental Notice That Initial Market-Based Rate Filing Includes Request for Blanket... River Solar, LLC's application for market-based rate authority, with an accompanying rate schedule...

  7. Humility pills: building an ethics of cognitive enhancement.

    PubMed

    Goodman, Rob

    2014-06-01

    The use of cognition-enhancing drugs (CEDs) appears to be increasingly common in both academic and workplace settings. But many universities and businesses have not yet engaged with the ethical challenges raised by CED use. This paper considers criticisms of CED use with a particular focus on the Accomplishment Argument: an influential set of claims holding that enhanced work is less dignified, valuable, or authentic, and that cognitive enhancement damages our characters. While the Accomplishment Argument assumes a view of authorship based on individual credit-taking, an impersonal or collaborative view is just as possible. This paper considers the benefits of this view-including humility, a value often claimed by critics of enhancement-and argues that such a view is consistent with open CED use. It proposes an ethics of cognitive enhancement based on toleration, transparency, and humility, and it discusses how institutions and individuals can build a culture of open cognitive enhancement. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press, on behalf of the Journal of Medicine and Philosophy Inc. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  8. The Effect of Less-Lethal Weapons on Injuries in Police Use-of-Force Events

    PubMed Central

    Kaminski, Robert J.; Smith, Michael R.

    2009-01-01

    Objectives. We investigated the effect of the use of less-lethal weapons, conductive energy devices (CEDs), and oleoresin capsicum (OC) spray on the prevalence and incidence of injuries to police officers and civilians in encounters involving the use of force. Methods. We analyzed data from 12 police departments that documented injuries to officers and civilians in 24 380 cases. We examined monthly injury rates for 2 police departments before and after their adoption of CEDs. Results. Odds of injury to civilians and officers were significantly lower when police used CED weapons, after control for differences in case attributes and departmental policies restricting use of these weapons. Monthly incidence of injury in 2 police departments declined significantly, by 25% to 62%, after adoption of CED devices. Conclusions. Injuries sustained during police use-of-force events affect thousands of police officers and civilians in the United States each year. Incidence of these injuries can be reduced dramatically when law enforcement agencies responsibly employ less-lethal weapons in lieu of physical force. PMID:19846686

  9. Software Development for Decision Analysis

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1975-03-01

    to p Pollution Cost/lb Sulfur Emitted ( Flue Gas Desulfurization ) 178 3.11 Sensitivity of Total Societal Cost/KWH to...34 and "FGD ( flue gas desulfurization ) technology" have all been represented. The branching structure shown in Figure 3.7 (and for that matter each... Gas Desulfurization ) technol- ogy" are decision variables representing possible means of sulfur oxide emission control avallabie for the electric

  10. Method and apparatus for enhancing the desulfurization of hot coal gas in a fluid-bed coal gasifier

    DOEpatents

    Grindley, T.

    1988-04-05

    A process and apparatus for providing additional desulfurization of the hot gas produced in a fluid-bed coal gasifier, within the gasifier is described. A fluid-bed of iron oxide is located inside the gasifier above the gasification bed in a fluid-bed coal gasifier in which in-bed desulfurization by lime/limestone takes place. The product gases leave the gasification bed typically at 1600 to 1800 F and are partially quenched with water to 1000 to 1200 F before entering the iron oxide bed. The iron oxide bed provides additional desulfurization beyond that provided by the lime /limestone. 1 fig.

  11. Method for enhancing the desulfurization of hot coal gas in a fluid-bed coal gasifier

    DOEpatents

    Grindley, Thomas

    1989-01-01

    A process and apparatus for providing additional desulfurization of the hot gas produced in a fluid-bed coal gasifier, within the gasifier. A fluid-bed of iron oxide is located inside the gasifier above the gasification bed in a fluid-bed coal gasifier in which in-bed desulfurization by lime/limestone takes place. The product gases leave the gasification bed typically at 1600.degree. to 1800.degree. F. and are partially quenched with water to 1000.degree. to 1200.degree. F. before entering the iron oxide bed. The iron oxide bed provides additional desulfurization beyond that provided by the lime/limestone.

  12. Simultaneous recovery and desulfurization of bitumen from oil sand using ultrasound irradiation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Okawa, Hirokazu; Kamal, Wan Mohamad Ikhwan bin Wan; Akazawa, Nobuyuki; Kato, Takahiro; Sugawara, Katsuyasu

    2018-07-01

    Oil sand contains bitumen, which includes a high percentage of sulfur. Before using bitumen as a fuel, it must be recovered from oil sand and desulfurized. Currently, bitumen is recovered from oil sand using hot water (<100 °C), and sulfur is removed via hydrodesulfurization (>300 °C). Both of these processes consume significant amounts of energy. In this study, we demonstrate the simultaneous recovery and desulfurization of bitumen from oil sand using oxidative desulfurization with ultrasonic irradiation and tetrahydrofuran at 20 °C. We successfully recovered 88% of the bitumen from oil sand and removed 42% of the sulfur from the bitumen.

  13. Multi-objective optimization of oxidative desulfurization in a sono-photochemical airlift reactor.

    PubMed

    Behin, Jamshid; Farhadian, Negin

    2017-09-01

    Response surface methodology (RSM) was employed to optimize ultrasound/ultraviolet-assisted oxidative desulfurization in an airlift reactor. Ultrasonic waves were incorporated in a novel-geometry reactor to investigate the synergistic effects of sono-chemistry and enhanced gas-liquid mass transfer. Non-hydrotreated kerosene containing sulfur and aromatic compounds was chosen as a case study. Experimental runs were conducted based on a face-centered central composite design and analyzed using RSM. The effects of two categorical factors, i.e., ultrasound and ultraviolet irradiation and two numerical factors, i.e., superficial gas velocity and oxidation time were investigated on two responses, i.e., desulfurization and de-aromatization yields. Two-factor interaction (2FI) polynomial model was developed for the responses and the desirability function associate with overlay graphs was applied to find optimum conditions. The results showed enhancement in desulfurization ability corresponds to more reduction in aromatic content of kerosene in each combination. Based on desirability approach and certain criteria considered for desulfurization/de-aromatization, the optimal desulfurization and de-aromatization yields of 91.7% and 48% were obtained in US/UV/O 3 /H 2 O 2 combination, respectively. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Oxidative degradation stability and hydrogen sulfide removal performance of dual-ligand iron chelate of Fe-EDTA/CA.

    PubMed

    Miao, Xinmei; Ma, Yiwen; Chen, Zezhi; Gong, Huijuan

    2017-09-05

    Catalytic oxidation desulfurization using chelated iron catalyst is an effective method to remove H 2 S from various gas streams including biogas. However, the ligand of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), which is usually adopted to prepare chelated iron catalyst, is liable to be oxidative degraded, and leads to the loss of desulfurization performance. In order to improve the degradation stability of the iron chelate, a series of iron chelates composed of two ligands including citric acid (CA) and EDTA were prepared and the oxidative degradation stability as well as desulfurization performance of these chelated iron catalysts were studied. Results show that the iron chelate of Fe-CA is more stable than Fe-EDTA, while for the desulfurization performance, the situation is converse. For the dual-ligand iron chelates of Fe-EDTA/CA, with the increase of mol ratio of CA to EDTA in the iron chelate solution, the oxidative degradation stability increased while the desulfurization performance decreased. The results of this work showed that Fe-EDTA/CA with a mol ratio of CA:EDTA = 1:1 presents a relative high oxidative degradation stability and an acceptable desulfurization performance with over 90% of H 2 S removal efficiency.

  15. Liposomal temozolomide drug delivery using convection enhanced delivery.

    PubMed

    Nordling-David, Mirjam M; Yaffe, Roni; Guez, David; Meirow, Hadar; Last, David; Grad, Etty; Salomon, Sharona; Sharabi, Shirley; Levi-Kalisman, Yael; Golomb, Gershon; Mardor, Yael

    2017-09-10

    Even though some progress in diagnosis and treatment has been made over the years, there is still no definitive treatment available for Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). Convection-enhanced delivery (CED), a continuous infusion-mediated pressure gradient via intracranial catheters, studied in clinical trials, enables in situ drug concentrations several orders of magnitude greater than those achieved by systemic administration. We hypothesized that the currently limited efficacy of CED could be enhanced by a liposomal formulation, thus achieving enhanced drug localization to the tumor site with minimal toxicity. We hereby describe a novel approach for treating GBM by CED of liposomes containing the known chemotherapeutic agent, temozolomide (TMZ). A new technique for encapsulating TMZ in hydrophilic (PEGylated) liposomes, characterized by nano-size (121nm), low polydispersity index (<0.13) and with near-neutral charge (-ʒ,0.2mV), has been developed. Co-infusion of PEGylated Gd-DTPA liposomes and TMZ-liposomes by CED in GBM bearing rats, resulted in enhanced tumor detection with longer residence time than free Gd-DTPA. Treatment of GBM-bearing rats with either TMZ solution or TMZ-liposomes resulted in greater tumor inhibition and significantly higher survival. However, the longer survival and smaller tumor volumes exhibited by TMZ liposomal treatment in comparison to TMZ in solution were insignificant (p<0.053); and only significantly lower edema volumes were observed. Thus, there are no clear-cut advantages to use a liposomal delivery system of TMZ via CED over a drug solution. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. Consumption of Probiotic Lactobacillus fermentum MTCC: 5898-Fermented Milk Attenuates Dyslipidemia, Oxidative Stress, and Inflammation in Male Rats Fed on Cholesterol-Enriched Diet.

    PubMed

    Yadav, Radha; Khan, Suhail Hakeem; Mada, Sanusi Bello; Meena, Sunita; Kapila, Rajeev; Kapila, Suman

    2018-05-13

    There is a growing and alarming prevalence that increased serum cholesterol is closely related to increased cardiovascular disease risk. Probiotic consumption could be a safe and natural strategy to combat. Therefore, we sought to examine the cholesterol-lowering potential of co-supplementation of probiotic bacteria Lactobacillus fermentum MTCC: 5898-fermented buffalo milk (2.5% fat) in rats fed cholesterol-enriched diet. Male Wistar rats were divided into three groups on the basis of feed, viz. group 1, fed standard diet (SD); group 2, fed cholesterol-enriched diet (CED); and group 3, fed cholesterol-enriched diet along with L. fermentum MTCC: 5898-fermented milk (CED+LF) for 90 days. At the endpoint, significantly higher levels of serum total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triacylglycerols, very low density lipoprotein cholesterol, atherogenic index, coronary artery risk index, hepatic lipids, lipid peroxidation, and mRNA expression of inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α and IL-6) in the liver while significantly lower levels of serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and anti-oxidative enzyme activities, catalase, superoxide dismutase, and glutathione peroxidase in the liver and kidney were observed in the CED group compared to the SD group. Compared to the CED group, these adverse physiological alterations were found significantly improved in the CED+LF group. Hence, this study proposes that L. fermentum MTCC: 5898 is a potential probiotic bacteria that can be consumed to tackle hypercholesterolemia. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  17. Traditional food consumption and nutritional status of Dalit mothers in rural Andhra Pradesh, South India.

    PubMed

    Schmid, M A; Egeland, G M; Salomeyesudas, B; Satheesh, P V; Kuhnlein, H V

    2006-11-01

    To describe prevalence of malnutrition and their correlates of nutrient and traditional food consumption in rural Dalit mothers. In a cross-sectional study, we used socio-cultural questionnaires, anthropometric measurements and clinical eye examinations during the rainy season in 2003. Food frequency questionnaires and 24-h recalls were conducted during both summer and rainy seasons. Dalit mothers with young children were recruited from 37 villages in the Medak District of rural Andhra Pradesh, India. Dalit mothers (n = 220) participated. The prevalence of chronic energy-deficient (CED) mothers (body mass index <18.5 kg/m2) was 58%. Illiterate women and active women were more likely to have CED than those literate and non-active (relative risks (RR) = 1.6 and 1.4, respectively, P < or = 0.05), but literacy and activity level were not significant in multivariable analyses including sanitation and number of children < or =5 years of age. Increasing levels of fat intake, as a percent of total energy, was significantly associated with lower risk of CED (RR of the lowest 25th percentile compared to those in the 75th percentile or above was 1.6, P < or = 0.05), findings that remained significant in multivariable analyses. Consumption of pulses (g/day) was also inversely related to CED in univariate and multivariable analyses. Carbohydrate intake, as a percent of total energy, was inversely related to percent energy from fat (r = -0.96, P < or = 0.01), and, although positively related to CED in univariate analyses, carbohydrate consumption was not significant in multivariable analyses. Mothers' age in years and income was positively related to vitamin A deficiency. These results confirm that CED and vitamin A malnutrition among Dalit women are predominant problems in this area. Increased consumption of local traditional Dalit food (particularly sorghum, pulses, vegetables and animal source food) should be incorporated as an important component of intervention strategies to improve nutritional status.

  18. Convection enhanced delivery of panobinostat (LBH589)-loaded pluronic nano-micelles prolongs survival in the F98 rat glioma model

    PubMed Central

    Singleton, WG; Collins, AM; Bienemann, AS; Killick-Cole, CL; Haynes, HR; Asby, DJ; Butts, CP; Wyatt, MJ; Barua, NU; Gill, SS

    2017-01-01

    Background The pan-histone deacetylase inhibitor panobinostat is a potential therapy for malignant glioma, but it is water insoluble and does not cross the blood–brain barrier when administered systemically. In this article, we describe the in vitro and in vivo efficacy of a novel water-soluble nano-micellar formulation of panobinostat designed for administration by convection enhanced delivery (CED). Materials and methods The in vitro efficacy of panobinostat-loaded nano-micelles against rat F98, human U87-MG and M059K glioma cells and against patient-derived glioma stem cells was measured using a cell viability assay. Nano-micelle distribution in rat brain was analyzed following acute CED using rhodamine-labeled nano-micelles, and toxicity was assayed using immunofluorescent microscopy and synaptophysin enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. We compared the survival of the bioluminescent syngenic F98/Fischer344 rat glioblastoma model treated by acute CED of panobinostat-loaded nano-micelles with that of untreated and vehicle-only-treated controls. Results Nano-micellar panobinostat is cytotoxic to rat and human glioma cells in vitro in a dose-dependent manner following short-time exposure to drug. Fluorescent rhodamine-labelled nano-micelles distribute with a volume of infusion/volume of distribution (Vi/Vd) ratio of four and five respectively after administration by CED. Administration was not associated with any toxicity when compared to controls. CED of panobinostat-loaded nano-micelles was associated with significantly improved survival when compared to controls (n=8 per group; log-rank test, P<0.001). One hundred percent of treated animals survived the 60-day experimental period and had tumour response on post-mortem histological examination. Conclusion CED of nano-micellar panobinostat represents a potential novel therapeutic option for malignant glioma and warrants translation into the clinic. PMID:28260886

  19. Determination of glycated nucleobases in human urine by a new monoclonal antibody specific for N2-carboxyethyl-2'-deoxyguanosine.

    PubMed

    Schneider, Marc; Thoss, Gerlinde; Hübner-Parajsz, Christa; Kientsch-Engel, Rose; Stahl, Peter; Pischetsrieder, Monika

    2004-10-01

    Sugars and sugar degradation products react in vivo readily with proteins (glycation) resulting in the formation of a heterogeneous group of reaction products, which are called advanced glycation end products (AGEs). AGEs notably change the structure and function of proteins so that extended protein-AGE formation is linked to complications such as nephropathy, atherosclerosis, and cataract. DNA can be glycated in vitro in a similar way as proteins, and the two diastereomers of N(2)-carboxyethyl-2'-deoxyguanosine (CEdG(A,B)) were identified as major DNA AGEs. It was postulated that DNA AGEs play an important role in aging, diabetes, and uremia. However, at the moment, sensitive methods to measure the extent and impact of DNA AGEs in vivo do not exist. In this study, we developed a monoclonal antibody, which recognized CEdG(A,B) with high affinity and specificity (MAb M-5.1.6). The I(50) value for CEdG(A,B) was 2.1 ng/mL, whereas other modified nuclueobases and AGE proteins showed negligible cross-reactivity. Unmodified 2'-deoxyguanosine was only weakly recognized with an I(50) value > 600,000 ng/mL, which is the limit of solubility. MAb M-5.1.6 was then used to measure the urinary excretion of AGE-modified nucleobases in a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The recovery of CEdG(A,B) from human urine was between 87.4 and 99.7% with coefficients of variations between 8.0 and 22.2%. The detection limit was 0.06 ng/mL, and the determination limit was 0.15 ng/mL with a linear range between 0.3 and 100 ng/mL. CEdG equivalents were analyzed in urine samples from 121 healthy volunteers, and concentrations between 1.2 and 117 ng CEdG equiv/mg creatinine were detected.

  20. Repeat Intracranial Expansion After Skull Regrowth in Hyperostotic Disease: Technical Note.

    PubMed

    Wong, Timothy; Herschman, Yehuda; Patel, Nitesh V; Patel, Tushar; Hanft, Simon

    2017-06-01

    Camurati-Engelmann disease (CED) is a rare, autosomal-dominant genetic disorder resulting in hyperostosis of the long bones and skull. Patients often develop cranial nerve dysfunction and increased intracranial pressure secondary to stenosis of nerve foramina and hyperostosis. Surgical decompression may provide symptomatic relief in select patients; however, a small number of reports document the recurrence of symptoms due to bony regrowth. We present a patient who had been treated previously with bilateral frontal and parietal craniotomy who experienced recurrence of symptoms due to reossification of her cranial bones. This report underscores the progressive nature of CED and its influence on surgical management. Furthermore, we propose a novel surgical approach with multiple craniectomies and titanium mesh cranioplasties that could potentially offer long-term symptomatic relief. A 46-year-old female patient with CED who was treated with ventriculoperitoneal shunting, posterior fossa decompression, and multiple craniotomies 2 decades prior presented with signs and symptoms of increased intracranial pressure. Studies of the skull at presentation demonstrated rethickening of cranial bones that resulted in severely decreased intracranial volume. A radical craniectomy, requiring 4 separate bone flaps made up of bilateral frontal and parietal bones, was performed. The remaining coronal and sagittal bony struts were drilled to approximately 1 cm thick. Cranioplasties with 4 separate titanium meshes were performed to preserve the natural contour of the patient's skull. Although surgical decompression could provide some patients with CED symptomatic relief, clinicians should consider managing CED as a chronic condition. To the authors' knowledge, this is one of few case reports documenting the recurrence of symptoms in a patient with CED treated by surgical intervention. Furthermore, we propose that multiple craniectomies with titanium mesh cranioplasties confer more permanent symptomatic control, and, more importantly, lower the risk of recurrence secondary to cranial hyperostosis. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. Necrotic Cells Actively Attract Phagocytes through the Collaborative Action of Two Distinct PS-Exposure Mechanisms

    PubMed Central

    Li, Zao; Venegas, Victor; Nagaoka, Yuji; Morino, Eri; Raghavan, Prashant; Audhya, Anjon; Nakanishi, Yoshinobu; Zhou, Zheng

    2015-01-01

    Necrosis, a kind of cell death closely associated with pathogenesis and genetic programs, is distinct from apoptosis in both morphology and mechanism. Like apoptotic cells, necrotic cells are swiftly removed from animal bodies to prevent harmful inflammatory and autoimmune responses. In the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, gain-of-function mutations in certain ion channel subunits result in the excitotoxic necrosis of six touch neurons and their subsequent engulfment and degradation inside engulfing cells. How necrotic cells are recognized by engulfing cells is unclear. Phosphatidylserine (PS) is an important apoptotic-cell surface signal that attracts engulfing cells. Here we observed PS exposure on the surface of necrotic touch neurons. In addition, the phagocytic receptor CED-1 clusters around necrotic cells and promotes their engulfment. The extracellular domain of CED-1 associates with PS in vitro. We further identified a necrotic cell-specific function of CED-7, a member of the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter family, in promoting PS exposure. In addition to CED-7, anoctamin homolog-1 (ANOH-1), the C. elegans homolog of the mammalian Ca2+-dependent phospholipid scramblase TMEM16F, plays an independent role in promoting PS exposure on necrotic cells. The combined activities from CED-7 and ANOH-1 ensure efficient exposure of PS on necrotic cells to attract their phagocytes. In addition, CED-8, the C. elegans homolog of mammalian Xk-related protein 8 also makes a contribution to necrotic cell-removal at the first larval stage. Our work indicates that cells killed by different mechanisms (necrosis or apoptosis) expose a common “eat me” signal to attract their phagocytic receptor(s); furthermore, unlike what was previously believed, necrotic cells actively present PS on their outer surfaces through at least two distinct molecular mechanisms rather than leaking out PS passively. PMID:26061275

  2. Analysis of environmental and general science efficacy among instructors with contrasting class ethnicity distributions: A four-dimensional assessment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Taylor, Bryan Keith

    Scope and method of study. The context and nature of self-efficacy beliefs provides a vector upon which to explore science instructors' perceptions of their own competence, self beliefs, and beliefs concerning their students as a function of ethnicity (Pajares, 1996). Currently, available cross-sectional data that concomitantly compares efficacy for environmental and general science curricula among instructors with contrasting class ethnicity distributions (CED) (minority vs. non-minority) is diminutive. Here, a modified research instrument that incorporates the Environmental Education Efficacy Belief Instrument (Sia, 1992), the Science Teaching Efficacy Beliefs Instrument (Riggs & Enochs, 1990), and factors 2 & 3 from the Ohio State Teacher Efficacy Scale (Tschannen-Moran & Hoy, 2001) is employed to create a bi-disciplinary four dimensional assessment that measures personal teacher efficacy (PTE), outcome expectancy (OE), classroom management (CM), and student engagement (SE). Instructors' willingness to, and utilization of, practical instruction to reinforce science learning is also assessed. Findings and conclusions. Overall, efficacy levels for environmental and general science curriculum among instructors with high minority CED (n=22) were consistently lower than that of instructors with high non-minority CED (n = 18); consistently diminished efficacy levels were evidenced upon analysis of CED and all independent variables analyzed. While all four dimensions of efficacy were consistently low for instructors with high minority CED, markedly low mean CM and SE responses were evidenced. A link exists between teacher self-efficacy and the conditions present that impinge on the successful completion of work goals (Metz, 1978). Many studies have examined the lowered-level of minority involvement in environmental careers, issues, and concerns (Taylor, 1989). While all science instructors were willing to utilize outdoor classrooms, markedly lower outdoor classroom utilization was evidenced among instructors with high minority CED. The consistently low efficacy scores referenced herein for science instructors with high minority CED can be utilized to highlight science teacher efficacy as a critical point of concern as well as a crucial factor in tracing the genesis of the minority achievement gap in science. This research provides for the determination of efficacy as a contributive factor within the pathway for substantive rationale underlying the lack of minority representation and achievement within the many disciplines of science.

  3. Survey of Microcleaning Methods for Application to Army Coal-Fired Plants

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1989-02-01

    Authority (TVA) has successfully reduced its cost of controlling SOX by combining postcombustion flue gas desulfurization equipment with precombustion coal...effective way of meeting the new standards for SOl Several options are available, in- cluding flue gas desulfurization , fluidized bed combustors, and...are available, including flue gas desulfurization , fluidized bed combustors, and precombustion cleaning. This report (Cont’d.) 20 DISTRIBUTION

  4. Cumulative energy demand and global warming potential of a building-integrated solar thermal system with/without phase change material.

    PubMed

    Lamnatou, Chr; Motte, F; Notton, G; Chemisana, D; Cristofari, C

    2018-04-15

    Building-integrated solar thermal (BIST) systems are a specific type of solar thermal systems which are integrated into the building and they participate in building functionality. The present article is about the life-cycle assessment of different options of a BIST system (Mediterranean climatic conditions: Ajaccio, France). The environmental profile of the studied configurations is assessed by means of CED (cumulative energy demand), GWP (global warming potential) and EPBT (energy payback time). The proposed configurations (for the collector) include: i) a system without PCM (phase change material) using only rock wool as insulation and ii) a system with PCM (myristic acid) and rock wool. Concerning life-cycle results based on CED and GWP 100a (scenario without recycling), the configuration without PCM shows 0.67 MJ prim /kWh and 0.06 kg CO 2.eq /kWh while the configuration with PCM presents 0.74 MJ prim /kWh and 0.08 kg CO 2.eq /kWh. Regarding EPBT, if the inputs for pumping/auxiliary heating are not taken into account, both configurations (with/without PCM) have almost the same EPBT (about 1.3 years). On the other hand, if the inputs for pumping/auxiliary heating are considered, EPBT is lower for the system with PCM. In addition, scenarios with recycling have been examined and the results demonstrate that recycling considerably improves the environmental profile of the studied configurations. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. A New Partnership: Reshaping the Federal and State Commitment to Need-Based Aid

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Doyle, William R.

    2013-01-01

    The Committee for Economic Development (CED) is pleased to present these research findings regarding ways to reform student financial aid. In 2012, CED released "Boosting Postsecondary Education Performance"--calling on business to become active advocates at the state level for broad-access institutions that are so vital to the nation's…

  6. Convection-enhanced delivery in glioblastoma: a review of preclinical and clinical studies

    PubMed Central

    Jahangiri, Arman; Chin, Aaron T.; Flanigan, Patrick M.; Chen, Rebecca; Bankiewicz, Krystof; Aghi, Manish K.

    2017-01-01

    Glioblastoma is the most common malignant brain tumor, and it carries an extremely poor prognosis. Attempts to develop targeted therapies have been hindered because the blood-brain barrier prevents many drugs from reaching tumors cells. Furthermore, systemic toxicity of drugs often limits their therapeutic potential. A number of alternative methods of delivery have been developed, one of which is convection-enhanced delivery (CED), the focus of this review. The authors describe CED as a therapeutic measure and review preclinical studies and the most prominent clinical trials of CED in the treatment of glioblastoma. The utilization of this technique for the delivery of a variety of agents is covered, and its shortcomings and challenges are discussed in detail. PMID:27035164

  7. Medical regulation of cognitive enhancement devices: some concerns

    PubMed Central

    King, Mike; Gavaghan, Colin; McMillan, John

    2014-01-01

    The authors present a cogent and detailed case for altering the Medical Devices Directive to allow regulation of cognitive enhancement devices (CEDs). Protection against significant risk of harm, especially for the vulnerable, and promotion of benefit through informed use of CEDs are all good features of the proposal. However, the pre-market approval process has limitations, which we explore. We raise the possibility of ‘risk compensation’ in response to the introduction of safety measures, which could alter its effectiveness. The proposal alludes to use of ‘formally trained practitioners,’ which provide a further tier of regulation for CEDs within the proposal. We consider some positive and negative implications of this aspect of the proposal that might warrant further consideration. PMID:27774173

  8. Biomedical study on combined effects of simulated weightlessness and emergent depressurization of spacecraft

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, T. D.; Zhang, R. G.; Wang, C. M.; Fu, H. W.; Zhang, B. L.; Zhang, J. X.

    1999-01-01

    Cabin emergent depressurization (CED) may occur in spacecraft during manned space flight. The purpose of this paper was to study the combined effects of simulated weightlessness (SW) and CED factors on humans and animals. It was found that the amplitude of T wave of human electrocardiograms (ECG) significantly decreased in bed rest and hypoxia compared with the control condition (P<0.05), and that suspension with pure O2 induced severer edema in the lungs of rats than that in only a pure O2 environment. SW and pure O2 caused middle ear congestion and decreased the barofunction during pressure changes. These results indicate that human response to CED factors become more serious under SW because of the blood redistribution.

  9. [Pay attention to the corneal epithelial cell dysfunction after cataract surgery].

    PubMed

    Sun, Xuguang; Wang, Sen

    2015-03-01

    Corneal epithelial dysfunction ( CED ) is the abnormality of the regeneration, conjunction, adhesion and immigration of the corneal epithelium cells without the decompensation of the corneal limbal cells. Due to the affection resulting from the systemic problems of patients and the management in the preoperative period, some of the patients at one to two weeks after cataract surgery will present the edema and fluorescein staining of the corneal epithelium. Without correct therapy, the defect of the epithelium, or even persisting ulceration of the cornea will occur. The key points of the management for CED are the early diagnosis and reasonable therapy. We suggest paying special attention to CED in the patients with metabolism diseases, abnormality of the tear film and long-term blepharitis.

  10. Central Heating Plant Coal Use Handbook. Volume 1: Technical Reference.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1996-11-01

    variation of a dry desulfurization system simply uses dry calcium hydroxide that is injected into the flue gas stream before entry to a fabric filter...97/14, Voll 173 competitive capital and operating costs compared with conventional technology using flue gas desulfurization reduced NOx emissions...ferric iron in slag, expressed as a percentage of the total iron calculated as ferric iron FGD: Flue gas desulfurization filter: A device for

  11. Coal Liquids: Manufacture and Properties. A Review.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1982-09-01

    a conventional furnace with flue gas desulfurization ; however, its use as a boiler fuel is not economical at present. Research continues on...J.B., "The Shell Flue Gas Desulfurization Process," Universal Oil Products Process Division, Universal Oil Products, Inc., Des Plaines, IL, presented...in 1980, H-Coal and EDS process, gasification obstacles. 187. Salmeczi, J.G., " Flue Gas Desulfurization by the ThiosorbicC Process," Dravo Time Company

  12. JPRS Report, Science & Technology. China: Energy.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1992-12-24

    desulfurization tech- nology at the present time. The wet method technology accounts for 86 percent of all of the world’s flue gas desulfurization facilities...Limestone-gypsum wet method desulfurization tech- nology Huaneng’s Luohuang Power Plant has already imported two sets of 360MW generator boiler flue gas ...Circulating Fluidized-Bed Technology Development [LinZhaokui, Wang Dun’en, et al; DONGLIGONGCHENG, 15 Oct 92] 27 Selection of Flue

  13. East Europe Report, Economic and Industrial Affairs

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1984-08-20

    plant with wet desulfurization of flue gas . This method was pre- viously only successful with hard coal. Before the end of this year a large- scale...REPUBLIC DM 40 Million Euro Credit to Foreign Trade Organization (HANDELSBLATT, 2 Jul 84) 21 Minister Interested in Flue Gas Desulfurization Equipment...Zurich and the Rhein-Saar-Lux AG. 12644 CSO: 2300/565 21 GERMAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC MINISTER INTERESTED IN FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION EQUIPMENT

  14. Fuel-Burning Technology Alternatives for the Army.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1985-01-01

    control 0.85 2,287,000 Flue gas desulfurization 0.68 3,410,000 Total 12,478,000 *Capital cost estimate...34......... . . Particulate and sulfur dioxide control are needed. A baghouse and flue gas desulfurization (FD) scrubber system must be installed. Each item’s cost in...direct cost) Contingency (20% of 1,253,000 direct and indirect costs) Subtotal 7,518,000 Particulate control 1,342,000 Flue gas desulfurization

  15. Conversion of Army Heating Plants to Coal: Three Case Studies

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1982-03-01

    compared to the 50% wet sludge flue gas desulfurized product. All fly ash produced is collected without further processing. The product can be used to...Existing Turbine Generators 26 11 Picatinny Arsenal -- Summary of Capital Costs for Stoker Boilers, Flue Gas Desulfurization . New Turbine Generators...27 12 Picatinny Arsenal -- Summary of Operating Costs for Stoker Boilers, Flue Gas Desulfurization . New Turbine Generators 28 13 Picatinny Arsenal

  16. Pressurized fluidized-bed hydroretorting of Eastern oil shales -- Sulfur control

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Roberts, M.J.; Abbasian, J.; Akin, C.

    1992-05-01

    This topical report on Sulfur Control'' presents the results of work conducted by the Institute of Gas Technology (IGT), the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), and the Ohio State University (OSU) to develop three novel approaches for desulfurization that have shown good potential with coal and could be cost-effective for oil shales. These are (1) In-Bed Sulfur Capture using different sorbents (IGT), (2) Electrostatic Desulfurization (IIT), and (3) Microbial Desulfurization and Denitrification (OSU and IGT). The objective of the task on In-Bed Sulfur Capture was to determine the effectiveness of different sorbents (that is, limestone, calcined limestone, dolomite, and siderite)more » for capturing sulfur (as H{sub 2}S) in the reactor during hydroretorting. The objective of the task on Electrostatic Desulfurization was to determine the operating conditions necessary to achieve a high degree of sulfur removal and kerogen recovery in IIT's electrostatic separator. The objectives of the task on Microbial Desulfurization and Denitrification were to (1) isolate microbial cultures and evaluate their ability to desulfurize and denitrify shale, (2) conduct laboratory-scale batch and continuous tests to improve and enhance microbial removal of these components, and (3) determine the effects of processing parameters, such as shale slurry concentration, solids settling characteristics, agitation rate, and pH on the process.« less

  17. Characteristics and reactivity of rapidly hydrated sorbent for semidry flue gas desulfurization.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Jie; You, Changfu; Zhao, Suwei; Chen, Changhe; Qi, Haiying

    2008-03-01

    Semidry flue gas desulfurization with a rapidly hydrated sorbent was studied in a pilot-scale circulating fluidized bed (CFB) experimental facility. The desulfurization efficiency was measured for various operating parameters, including the sorbent recirculation rate and the water spray method. The experimental results show that the desulfurization efficiencies of the rapidly hydrated sorbent were 1.5-3.0 times higher than a commonly used industrial sorbent for calcium to sulfur molar ratios from 1.2 to 3.0, mainly due to the higher specific surface area and pore volume. The Ca(OH)2 content in the cyclone separator ash was about 2.9% for the rapidly hydrated sorbent and was about 0.1% for the commonly used industrial sorbent, due to the different adhesion between the fine Ca(OH)2 particles and the fly ash particles, and the low cyclone separation efficiency for the fine Ca(OH)2 particles that fell off the sorbent particles. Therefore the actual recirculation rates of the active sorbent with Ca(OH)2 particles were higher for the rapidly hydrated sorbent, which also contributed to the higher desulfurization efficiency. The high fly ash content in the rapidly hydrated sorbent resulted in good operating stability. The desulfurization efficiency with upstream water spray was 10-15% higher than that with downstream water spray.

  18. The perspective of celiac disease patients on emerging treatment options and non-celiac gluten sensitivity.

    PubMed

    Greuter, Thomas; Schmidlin, Sandra; Lattmann, Jaqueline; Stotz, Matthias; Lehmann, Romina; Zeitz, Jonas; Scharl, Michael; Misselwitz, Benjamin; Pohl, Daniel; Fried, Michael; Tutuian, Radu; Fasano, Alessio; Schoepfer, Alain M; Rogler, Gerhard; Biedermann, Luc; Vavricka, Stephan R

    2017-03-01

    Non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS) and emerging treatment options are hot topics in the celiac disease (CeD) scientific literature. However, very little is known about the perspective on these issues of CeD patients. We performed a large patient survey among unselected CeD patients in Switzerland. A total of 1689 patients were analyzed. 57.5% have previously heard of NCGS. 64.5% believe in the existence of this entity. Regarding a potential influence of NCGS on CeD awareness, 31.7% show a positive and 27.5% a negative perception. Patients with prior use of alternative medicine and women more often have heard of and believe in the existence of NCGS vs. those never having used alternative methods and men, respectively (66.9 vs. 56.9%, p=0.001 and 78.5 vs. 69.0%, p=0.001; 60.7 vs. 44.2%, p<0.001 and 71.0 vs. 60.8%, p=0.002). Women and patients ≥30 years more often show a negative attitude towards NCGS (32.2% vs. 24.8%, p=0.024 and 32.2% vs. 24.2%, p=0.018). With regard to emerging treatment options for CeD, 43.3% have previously heard of novel agents, more women than men (46.0 vs. 38.0%, p=0.019). Perception of and attitude towards NCGS differ depending on sex, age and prior use of alternative medicine. Knowledge of the progress towards emerging treatment options is currently limited. Copyright © 2016 Editrice Gastroenterologica Italiana S.r.l. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. New insights into apoptosome structure and function.

    PubMed

    Dorstyn, Loretta; Akey, Christopher W; Kumar, Sharad

    2018-05-15

    The apoptosome is a platform that activates apical procaspases in response to intrinsic cell death signals. Biochemical and structural studies in the past two decades have extended our understanding of apoptosome composition and structure, while illuminating the requirements for initiator procaspase activation. A number of studies have now provided high-resolution structures for apoptosomes from C. elegans (CED-4), D. melanogaster (Dark), and H. sapiens (Apaf-1), which define critical protein interfaces, including intra and interdomain interactions. This work also reveals interactions of apoptosomes with their respective initiator caspases, CED-3, Dronc and procaspase-9. Structures of the human apoptosome have defined the requirements for cytochrome c binding, which triggers the conversion of inactive Apaf-1 molecules to an extended, assembly competent state. While recent data have provided a detailed understanding of apoptosome formation and procaspase activation, they also highlight important evolutionary differences with functional implications for caspase activation. CARD/CARD interactions in the CED-4, Dark and Apaf-1 apoptosomes. Type I, II and III interfaces that stabilize CARD-CARD interactions are indicated (left column). Note that the Type I interface appears to be unique to Apaf-1/pc-9 CARD interactions. Middle column shows cartoons of the active states of the CARD-CARD disks, illustrating the two CED-4 tetrameric ring layers (top) and the recruitment of 8 Dronc CARDs and between 3-4 pc-9 CARDs, to the Dark and Apaf-1 apoptosomes respectively (middle and lower panels). Ribbon diagrams of the CED-4, Dark and Apaf-1 apoptosomes are shown (right column).

  20. Synthesis and photocatalytic studies of ZnS nanoparticles from heteroleptic complex of Zn(II) 1-cyano-1-carboethoxy-2,-2-ethylenedithiolato diisopropylthiourea and its adducts with N-donor ligands

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Osuntokun, Jejenija; Ajibade, Peter A.; Onwudiwe, Damian C.

    2016-12-01

    Zinc complexes of the type [Zn(diptu)2(ced)] (1), [Zn(diptu)2(ced)py] (2), [Zn(diptu)2(ced)bpy] (3), and [Zn(diptu)2(ced)phen] (4), (where (diptu)2(ced) = 1-cyano-1-carboethoxyethylene-2,2-dithiolato-κS,S‧-bis(N,N-diisopropyllthiourea), py = pyridine, bpy = 2, 2‧ bipyridine and phen = 1, 10 phenanthroline have been synthesized and characterized by elemental analyses, Fourier transform infra-red (FTIR) and Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopies. The parent complex (1) was formulated as four coordinate species, which gave rise to 5 coordinate complex in (2) and six coordinate compounds in (3) and (4), with the dithiolate acting as bidentate chelating ligand. The complexes were used as single-source precursors for the synthesis of HDA-capped ZnS nanoparticles. The nanoparticles gave different morphologies with sizes in the range of 1.92-4.72 nm as observed from the TEM analysis and supported by XRD. The UV-vis spectroscopy showed that all the ZnS nanoparticles are blue shifted, with respect to the bulk, which confirmed quantum confinement. The photoluminescence spectra showed narrow and broad emission peaks around 290 and 360 nm which are ascribed to spontaneous emission peaks from band to band transition and surface states respectively. Photocatalytic activities of all the nanoparticles were investigated with methylene blue (MB) acting as the organic dye, and the UV-vis spectral revealed a gradual decrease in absorption peak that confirmed the degradation of the MB.

  1. Developing clean fuels: Novel techniques for desulfurization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nehlsen, James P.

    The removal of sulfur compounds from petroleum is crucial to producing clean burning fuels. Sulfur compounds poison emission control catalysts and are the source of acid rain. New federal regulations require the removal of sulfur in both gasoline and diesel to very low levels, forcing existing technologies to be pushed into inefficient operating regimes. New technology is required to efficiently produce low sulfur fuels. Two processes for the removal of sulfur compounds from petroleum have been developed: the removal of alkanethiols by heterogeneous reaction with metal oxides; and oxidative desulfurization of sulfides and thiophene by reaction with sulfuric acid. Alkanethiols, common in hydrotreated gasoline, can be selectively removed and recovered from a hydrocarbon stream by heterogeneous reaction with oxides of Pb, Hg(II), and Ba. The choice of reactive metal oxides may be predicted from simple thermodynamic considerations. The reaction is found to be autocatalytic, first order in water, and zero order in thiol in the presence of excess oxide. The thiols are recovered by reactive extraction with dilute oxidizing acid. The potential for using polymer membrane hydrogenation reactors (PEMHRs) to perform hydrogenation reactions such as hydrodesulfurization is explored by hydrogenating ketones and olefins over Pt and Au group metals. The dependence of reaction rate on current density suggests that the first hydrogen addition to the olefin is the rate limiting step, rather than the adsorption of hydrogen, for all of the metals tested. PEMHRs proved unsuccessful in hydrogenating sulfur compounds to perform HDS. For the removal of sulfides, a two-phase reactor is used in which concentrated sulfuric acid oxidizes aromatic and aliphatic sulfides present in a hydrocarbon solvent, generating sulfoxides and other sulfonated species. The polar oxidized species are extracted into the acid phase, effectively desulfurizing the hydrocarbon. A reaction scheme is proposed for this system and is justified with a thermodynamic analysis and an experimental determination of the reaction rate law.

  2. Perspectives on a Policy That Never Was: Trying To Enhance Multiculturalism in a University Setting.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Greenwald, Beatrice

    This paper discusses the failure of the University of Washington to formulate a policy regarding the establishment of a Cultural and Ethnic Diversity (CED) course requirement for undergraduates despite nine years of efforts to do so, tracing the efforts to establish a CED requirement, along with the arguments for and against such a requirement. It…

  3. Correlated electronic decay in expanding clusters triggered by intense XUV pulses from a Free-Electron-Laser

    PubMed Central

    Oelze, Tim; Schütte, Bernd; Müller, Maria; Müller, Jan P.; Wieland, Marek; Frühling, Ulrike; Drescher, Markus; Al-Shemmary, Alaa; Golz, Torsten; Stojanovic, Nikola; Krikunova, Maria

    2017-01-01

    Irradiation of nanoscale clusters and large molecules with intense laser pulses transforms them into highly-excited non- equilibrium states. The dynamics of intense laser-cluster interaction is encoded in electron kinetic energy spectra, which contain signatures of direct photoelectron emission as well as emission of thermalized nanoplasma electrons. In this work we report on a so far not observed spectrally narrow bound state signature in the electron kinetic energy spectra from mixed Xe core - Ar shell clusters ionized by intense extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) pulses from a free-electron-laser. This signature is attributed to the correlated electronic decay (CED) process, in which an excited atom relaxes and the excess energy is used to ionize the same or another excited atom or a nanoplasma electron. By applying the terahertz field streaking principle we demonstrate that CED-electrons are emitted at least a few picoseconds after the ionizing XUV pulse has ended. Following the recent finding of CED in clusters ionized by intense near-infrared laser pulses, our observation of CED in the XUV range suggests that this process is of general relevance for the relaxation dynamics in laser produced nanoplasmas. PMID:28098175

  4. Convection-enhanced delivery of nanoliposomal CPT-11 (irinotecan) and PEGylated liposomal doxorubicin (Doxil) in rodent intracranial brain tumor xenografts

    PubMed Central

    Krauze, Michal T.; Noble, Charles O.; Kawaguchi, Tomohiro; Drummond, Daryl; Kirpotin, Dmitri B.; Yamashita, Yoji; Kullberg, Erika; Forsayeth, John; Park, John W.; Bankiewicz, Krystof S.

    2007-01-01

    We have previously shown that convection-enhanced delivery (CED) of highly stable nanoparticle/liposome agents encapsulating chemotherapeutic drugs is effective against intracranial rodent brain tumor xenografts. In this study, we have evaluated the combination of a newly developed nanoparticle/liposome containing the topoisomerase I inhibitor CPT-11 (nanoliposomal CPT-11 [nLs-CPT-11]), and PEGylated liposomal doxorubicin (Doxil) containing the topoisomerase II inhibitor doxorubicin. Both drugs were detectable in the CNS for more than 36 days after a single CED application. Tissue half-life was 16.7 days for nLs-CPT-11 and 10.9 days for Doxil. The combination of the two agents produced synergistic cytotoxicity in vitro. In vivo in U251MG and U87MG intracranial rodent xenograft models, CED of the combination was also more efficacious than either agent used singly. Analysis of the parameters involved in this approach indicated that tissue pharmacokinetics, tumor microanatomy, and biochemical interactions of the drugs all contributed to the therapeutic efficacy observed. These findings have implications for further clinical applications of CED-based treatment of brain tumors. PMID:17652269

  5. Drug-carrying microbubbles as a theranostic tool in convection-enhanced delivery for brain tumor therapy.

    PubMed

    Chen, Pin-Yuan; Yeh, Chih-Kuang; Hsu, Po-Hung; Lin, Chung-Yin; Huang, Chiung-Yin; Wei, Kuo-Chen; Liu, Hao-Li

    2017-06-27

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is a promising technique for infusing a therapeutic agent through a catheter with a pressure gradient to create bulk flow for improving drug spread into the brain. So far, gadopentetate dimeglumine (Gd-DTPA) is the most commonly applied surrogate agent for predicting drug distribution through magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). However, Gd-DTPA provides only a short observation duration, and concurrent infusion provides an indirect measure of the exact drug distribution. In this study, we propose using microbubbles as a contrast agent for MRI monitoring, and evaluate their use as a drug-carrying vehicle to directly monitor the infused drug. Results show that microbubbles can provide excellent detectability through MRI relaxometry and accurately represent drug distribution during CED infusion. Compared with the short half-life of Gd-DTPA (1-2 hours), microbubbles allow an extended observation period of up to 12 hours. Moreover, microbubbles provide a sufficiently high drug payload, and glioma mice that underwent a CED infusion of microbubbles carrying doxorubicin presented considerable tumor growth suppression and a significantly improved survival rate. This study recommends microbubbles as a new theranostic tool for CED procedures.

  6. The CEBAF Element Database

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Theodore Larrieu, Christopher Slominski, Michele Joyce

    2011-03-01

    With the inauguration of the CEBAF Element Database (CED) in Fall 2010, Jefferson Lab computer scientists have taken a step toward the eventual goal of a model-driven accelerator. Once fully populated, the database will be the primary repository of information used for everything from generating lattice decks to booting control computers to building controls screens. A requirement influencing the CED design is that it provide access to not only present, but also future and past configurations of the accelerator. To accomplish this, an introspective database schema was designed that allows new elements, types, and properties to be defined on-the-fly withmore » no changes to table structure. Used in conjunction with Oracle Workspace Manager, it allows users to query data from any time in the database history with the same tools used to query the present configuration. Users can also check-out workspaces to use as staging areas for upcoming machine configurations. All Access to the CED is through a well-documented Application Programming Interface (API) that is translated automatically from original C++ source code into native libraries for scripting languages such as perl, php, and TCL making access to the CED easy and ubiquitous.« less

  7. The U.S. Energy Dilemma: The Gap between Today’s Requirements and Tomorrow’s Potential.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1973-07-01

    Possible Solutions . ........ .. 142 Use of Low-Sulfur Coal ................ 43 Flue - Gas Desulfurization ................ 43 Coal Cleaning...1) use of low-sulfur coal, (2) flue - gas desulfurization , (3) coal cleaning, (4) coal refining, and (5) coal conversion. Use of Low-Sulfur Coal The...to the same point (Skillings Mining Rev., 1973). Flue - Gas Desulfurization With standards based on sulfur dioxide emissions per million Btu, rather than

  8. Crude oil desulfurization

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kalvinskas, J. J.; Hsu, G. C.; Ernest, J. B. (Inventor)

    1982-01-01

    High sulfur crude oil is desulfurized by a low temperature (25-80 C.) chlorinolysis at ambient pressure in the absence of organic solvent or diluent but in the presence of water (water/oil=0.3) followed by a water and caustic wash to remove sulfur and chlorine containing reaction products. The process described can be practiced at a well site for the recovery of desulfurized oil used to generate steam for injection into the well for enhanced oil recovery.

  9. Air Emissions Inventory Guidance Document for Stationary Sources at Air Force Installations.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1999-05-01

    small stoker-fired boilers). sox Change to lower sulfur coal, Coal Cleaning, Flue Gas Desulfurization (e.g., wet scrubbing, spray drying, furnace...Multiclone Collector. SOx Flue Gas Desulfurization (e.g., wet , semi-dry, or dry scrubbers) NOx Low Excess Air, Burners out of Service, Biased Burner...both flue gas desulfurization spray dryer adsorber (FGD-SDA) and a fabric filter (FF). d Factors apply to boilers equipped with an electrostatic

  10. Sulfur-selective desulfurization of dibenzothiophene and diesel oil by newly isolated Rhodococcus sp. strains.

    PubMed

    Castorena, Gladys; Suárez, Claudia; Valdez, Idania; Amador, Guadalupe; Fernández, Luis; Le Borgne, Sylvie

    2002-09-24

    New desulfurizing bacteria able to convert dibenzothiophene into 2-hydroxybiphenyl and sulfate were isolated from contaminated soils collected in Mexican refineries. Random amplified polymorphic DNA analysis showed they were different from previously reported Rhodococcus erythropolis desulfurizing strains. According to 16S rRNA gene sequencing and fatty acid analyses, these new isolates belonged to the genus Rhodococcus. These strains could desulfurize 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene which is one of the most difficult dibenzothiophene derivatives to remove by hydrodesulfurization. A deeply hydrodesulfurized diesel oil containing significant amounts of 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene was treated with Rhodococcus sp. IMP-S02 cells. Up to 60% of the total sulfur was removed and all the 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene disappeared as a result of this treatment.

  11. Periodic Application of Concurrent Error Detection in Processor Array Architectures. PhD. Thesis -

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Chen, Paul Peichuan

    1993-01-01

    Processor arrays can provide an attractive architecture for some applications. Featuring modularity, regular interconnection and high parallelism, such arrays are well-suited for VLSI/WSI implementations, and applications with high computational requirements, such as real-time signal processing. Preserving the integrity of results can be of paramount importance for certain applications. In these cases, fault tolerance should be used to ensure reliable delivery of a system's service. One aspect of fault tolerance is the detection of errors caused by faults. Concurrent error detection (CED) techniques offer the advantage that transient and intermittent faults may be detected with greater probability than with off-line diagnostic tests. Applying time-redundant CED techniques can reduce hardware redundancy costs. However, most time-redundant CED techniques degrade a system's performance.

  12. Irradiation pretreatment for coal desulfurization

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hsu, G. C.

    1979-01-01

    Process using highly-penetrating nuclear radiation (Beta and Gamma radiation) from nuclear power plant radioactive waste to irradiate coal prior to conventional desulfurization procedures increases total extraction of sulfur.

  13. Desulfurization: Critical step towards enhanced selenium removal from industrial effluents.

    PubMed

    Staicu, Lucian C; Morin-Crini, Nadia; Crini, Grégorio

    2017-04-01

    Selenium (Se) removal from synthetic solutions and from real Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) wastewater generated by a coal-fired power plant was studied for the first time using a commercial iron oxide impregnated strong base anion exchange resin, Purolite ® FerrIX A33E. In synthetic solutions, the resin showed high affinity for selenate and selenite, while sulfate exhibited a strong competition for both oxyanions. The FGD wastewater investigated is a complex system that contains Se (∼1200 μg L -1 ), SO 4 2- (∼1.1 g L -1 ), Cl - (∼9.5 g L -1 ), and Ca 2+ (∼5 g L -1 ), alongside a broad spectrum of toxic trace metals including Cd, Cr, Hg, Ni, and Zn. The resin performed poorly against Se in the raw FGD wastewater and showed moderate to good removal of several trace elements such as Cd, Cr, Hg, and Zn. In FGD effluent, sulfate was identified as a powerful competing anion for Se, having high affinity for the exchange active sites of the resin. The desulfurization of the FGD effluent using BaCl 2 led to the increase in Se removal from 3% (non-desulfurized effluent) to 80% (desulfurized effluent) by combined precipitation and ion exchange treatment. However, complete desulfurization using equimolar BaCl 2 could not be achieved due to the presence of bicarbonate that acts as a sulfate competitor for barium. In addition to selenium and sulfate removal, several toxic metals were efficiently removed (Cd: 91%; Cr: 100%; Zn: 99%) by the combined (desulfurization and ion exchange) treatment. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Unfinished Business: Continued Investment in Child Care and Early Education is Critical to Business and America's Future

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Committee for Economic Development, 2012

    2012-01-01

    The Committee for Economic Development (CED) has a decades-old commitment to quality early childhood education. CED Trustees have always been in the forefront of the effort to promote early learning and development for all children. Over recent years, the case for investment in the early years of childhood has become stronger and more urgent.…

  15. Economic Analysis of Coal-Fired Cogeneration Plants for Air Force Bases

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1990-10-01

    control . However, the existing stoker boilers at Griffiss AFB use lime scrubbers for flue gas desulfurization . The following input parameters were used to...boiler plant was newly installed in 1985 and is in excellent condition. Spray dryer scrubbers are used for flue gas desulfurization . 32 5.3.2 Heating Fuel...for stoker boilers in the previous heating plant studies, 1 ,3 and for sites that require flue gas desulfurization , an efficiency of 80% was used

  16. Production of Jet Fuels from Coal Derived Liquids. Volume 10. Jet Fuels Production By-Products, Utility and Sulfur Emissions Control Integration Study

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1989-06-01

    FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION EVALUATION A-1/A-2 3-1. 3 BOILER STACK EMISSION CONTROL WITH...Appendices A - BACT Flue Gas Desulfurization Evaluation B - BACT Off- Gas Refrigeration Evaluation v LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Material Balance for...2. Desulfurize the flue gases from the Riley boilers when firing with high sulfur oils or lignite. Options in this category include commercial wet

  17. The anticholinergic and antiglutamatergic drug caramiphen reduces seizure duration in soman-exposed rats: Synergism with the benzodiazepine diazepam

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Schultz, M.K.; Wright, L.K.M.; Stone, M.F.

    2012-03-15

    Therapy of seizure activity following exposure to the nerve agent soman (GD) includes treatment with the anticonvulsant diazepam (DZP), an allosteric modulator of γ-aminobutyric acid A (GABA{sub A}) receptors. However, seizure activity itself causes the endocytosis of GABA{sub A} receptors and diminishes the inhibitory effects of GABA, thereby reducing the efficacy of DZP. Treatment with an N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptor antagonist prevents this reduction in GABAergic inhibition. We examined the efficacy of the NMDA receptor antagonist caramiphen edisylate (CED; 20 mg/kg, im) and DZP (10 mg/kg, sc), administered both separately and in combination, at 10, 20 or 30 min followingmore » seizure onset for attenuation of the deleterious effects associated with GD exposure (1.2 LD{sub 50}; 132 μg/kg, sc) in rats. Outcomes evaluated were seizure duration, neuropathology, acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity, body weight, and temperature. We also examined the use of the reversible AChE inhibitor physostigmine (PHY; 0.2 mg/kg, im) as a therapy for GD exposure. We found that the combination of CED and DZP yielded a synergistic effect, shortening seizure durations and reducing neuropathology compared to DZP alone, when treatment was delayed 20–30 min after seizure onset. PHY reduced the number of animals that developed seizures, protected a fraction of AChE from GD inhibition, and attenuated post-exposure body weight and temperature loss independent of CED and/or DZP treatment. We conclude that: 1) CED and DZP treatment offers considerable protection against the effects of GD and 2) PHY is a potential therapeutic option following GD exposure, albeit with a limited window of opportunity. -- Highlights: ► Soman (GD) produced seizure activity resulting in neuropathology in rats. ► Tx: caramiphen (CED) and/or diazepam (DZP) @ 10, 20 or 30 min after seizure onset. ► CED/DZP showed superior anticonvulsant and neuroprotective capacity. ► Physostigmine (PHY) was examined as an adjunct post-exposure therapy. ► PHY attenuated GD-induced seizure development, but not seizure duration.« less

  18. Ultrasound-assisted oxidative desulfurization process of liquid fuel by phosphotungstic acid encapsulated in a interpenetrating amine-functionalized Zn(II)-based MOF as catalyst.

    PubMed

    Afzalinia, Ahmad; Mirzaie, Abbas; Nikseresht, Ahmad; Musabeygi, Tahereh

    2017-01-01

    In this work, ultrasound-assisted oxidative desulfurization (UAOD) of liquid fuels performed with a novel heterogeneous highly dispersed Keggin-type phosphotungstic acid (H 3 PW 12 O 40 , PTA) catalyst that encapsulated into an amino-functionalized MOF (TMU-17-NH 2 ). The prepared composite exhibits high catalytic activity and reusability in oxidative desulfurization of model fuel. Ultrasound-assisted oxidative desulfurization (UAOD) is a new way to performed oxidation reaction of sulfur-contain compounds rapidly, economically, environment-friendly and safely, under mild conditions. Ultrasound waves can be apply as an efficient tool to decrease the reaction time and improves oxidative desulfurization system performance. PTA@TMU-17-NH 2 could be completely performed desulfurization of the model oil by 20mg of catalyst, O/S molar ratio of 1:1 in presence of MeCN as extraction solvent. The obtained results indicated that the conversions of DBT to DBTO 2 achieve 98% after 15min in ambient temperature. In this work, we prepared TMU-17-NH 2 and PTA/TMU-17-NH 2 composite by ultrasound irradiation for first time and employed in UAOD process. Prepared catalyst exhibit an excellent reusability without PTA leaching and loss of activity. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. H2S adsorption and decomposition on the gradually reduced α-Fe2O3(001) surface: A DFT study

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lin, Changfeng; Qin, Wu; Dong, Changqing

    2016-11-01

    Reduction of iron based desulfurizer occurs during hot gas desulfurization process, which will affect the interaction between H2S and the desulfurizer surface. In this work, a detailed adsorption behavior and dissociation mechanism of H2S on the perfect and reduced α-Fe2O3(001) surfaces, as well as the correlation between the interaction characteristic and reduction degree of iron oxide, have been studied by using periodic density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Results demonstrate that H2S firstly chemisorbs on surface at relatively higher oxidation state (reduction degree χ < 33%), then dissociative adsorption occurs and becomes the main adsorption type after χ > 33%. Reduction of iron oxide benefits the H2S adsorption. Further, dissociation processes of H2S via molecular and dissociative adsorption were investigated. Results show that after reduction of Fe2O3 into the oxidation state around FeO and Fe, the reduced surface exhibits very strong catalytic capacity for H2S decomposition into S species. Meanwhile, the overall dissociation process on all surfaces is exothermic. These results provide a fundamental understanding of reduction effect of iron oxide on the interaction mechanism between H2S and desulfurizer surface, and indicate that rational control of reduction degree of desulfurizer is essential for optimizing the hot gas desulfurization process.

  20. Coal desulfurization by chlorinolysis production and combustion test evaluation of product coals

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kalvinskas, J. J.; Daly, D.

    1982-01-01

    Laboratory-scale screening tests were carried out on coal from Harrison County, Ohio to establish chlorination and hydrodesulfurization conditions for the batch reactor production of chlorinolysis and chlorinolysis-hydrodesulfurized coals. In addition, three bituminous coals, were treated on the lab scale by the chlorinolysis process to provide 39 to 62% desulfurization. Two bituminous coals and one subbituminous coal were then produced in 11 to 15 pound lots as chlorinolysis and hydrodesulfurized coals. The chlorinolysis coals had a desulfurization of 29-69%, reductions in voltatiles and hydrogen. Hydrodesulfurization provided a much greater desulfurization (56-86%), reductions in volatiles and hydrogen. The three coals were combustion tested in the Penn State ""plane flame furnace'' to determine ignition and burning characteristics. All three coals burned well to completion as: raw coals, chlorinolysis processed coals, and hydrodesulfurized coals. The hydrodesulfurized coals experienced greater ignition delays and reduced burning rates than the other coals because of the reduced volatile content. It is thought that the increased open pore volume in the desulfurized-devolatilized coals compensates in part for the decreased volatiles effect on ignition and burning.

  1. Deep desulfurization by amphiphilic lanthanide-containing polyoxometalates in ionic-liquid emulsion systems under mild conditions.

    PubMed

    Xu, Junhua; Zhao, Shen; Ji, Yuanchun; Song, Yu-Fei

    2013-01-07

    Amphiphilic lanthanide-containing polyoxometalates (POMs) were prepared by surfactant encapsulation. Investigation of these lanthanide-containing POMs in oxidative desulfurization (ODS) showed that highly efficient deep desulfurization could be achieved in only 14 min with 100% conversion of dibenzothiophene under mild conditions by using (DDA)(9)LaW(10)/[omim]PF(6) (DDA=dimethyldioctadecylammonium, omim=1-octyl-3-methyl-imidazolium) in the presence of H(2) O(2) . Furthermore, deep desulfurization proceeds smoothly in model oil with an S content as low as 50 ppm. A scaled-up experiment in which the volume of model oil was increased from 5 to 1000 mL with S content of 1000 ppm indicated that about 99% sulfur removal can be achieved in 40 mins in an ionic-liquid emulsion system. To the best of our knowledge, the (DDA)(9)LaW(10)/[omim]PF(6) catalyst system with H(2)O(2) as oxidant is one of the most efficient desulfurization systems reported so far. Copyright © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  2. Design and experimental study on desulphurization process of ship exhaust

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Han, Mingyang; Hao, Shan; Zhou, Junbo; Gao, Liping

    2018-02-01

    This desulfurization process involves removing sulfur oxides with seawater or alkaline aqueous solutions and then treating the effluent by aeration and pH adjustment before discharging it into the ocean. In the desulfurization system, the spray tower is the key equipment and the venturi tubes are the pretreatment device. The two stages of plates are designed to fully absorb sulfur oxides in exhaust gases. The spiral nozzles atomize and evenly spray the desulfurizers into the tower. This study experimentally investigated the effectiveness of this desulfurization process and the factors influencing it under laboratory conditions, with a diesel engine exhaust used to represent ship exhaust. The experimental results show that this process can effectively absorb the SO2 in the exhaust. When the exhaust flow rate was 25 m3/h and the desulfurizer flow rate was 4 L/min, the sulfur removal efficiency (SRE) reached 99.7%. The flow rate, alkalinity, and temperature of seawater were found to have significant effects on the SRE. Adjusting seawater flow rate (SWR) and alkalinity within certain ranges can substantially improve the SRE.

  3. Recovery of lead from lead paste in spent lead acid battery by hydrometallurgical desulfurization and vacuum thermal reduction.

    PubMed

    Ma, Yunjian; Qiu, Keqiang

    2015-06-01

    Lead sulfate, lead oxides and lead metal are the main component of lead paste in spent lead acid battery. When lead sulfate was desulfurized and transformed into lead carbonate by sodium carbonate, lead metal and lead oxides remained unchanged. Lead carbonate is easily decomposed to lead oxide and carbon dioxide under high temperature. Namely, vacuum thermal process is the reduction reaction of lead oxides. A compatible environmental process consisted of hydrometallurgical desulfurization and vacuum thermal reduction to recycle lead was investigated in this research. Lead paste was firstly desulfurized with sodium carbonate, by which, the content of sulfur declined from 7.87% to 0.26%. Then, the desulfurized lead paste was reduced by charcoal under vacuum. Under the optimized reaction conditions, i.e., vacuum thermal reduction at temperature 850°C under 20 Pa for 45 min, a 22.11×10(-2) g cm(-2) min(-1) reduction rate, and a 98.13% direct recovery ratio of fine lead (99.77%) had been achieved, respectively. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. L-proline-based deep eutectic solvents (DESs) for deep catalytic oxidative desulfurization (ODS) of diesel.

    PubMed

    Hao, Lingwan; Wang, Meiri; Shan, Wenjuan; Deng, Changliang; Ren, Wanzhong; Shi, Zhouzhou; Lü, Hongying

    2017-10-05

    A series of L-proline-based DESs was prepared through an atom economic reaction between L-proline (L-Pro) and four different kinds of organic acids. The DESs were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), H nuclear magnetic resonance ( 1 HNMR), cyclic voltammogram (CV) and the Hammett method. The synthesized DESs were used for the oxidative desulfurization and the L-Pro/p-toluenesultonic acid (L-Pro/p-TsOH) system shows the highest catalytic activity that the removal of dibenzothiophene (DBT) reached 99% at 60°C in 2h, which may involve the dual activation of the L-Pro/p-TsOH. The acidity of four different L-proline-based DESs was measured and the results show that it could not simply conclude that the correlation between the acidity of DESs and desulfurization capability was positive or negative. The electrochemical measurements evidences and recycling experiment indicate a good stability performance of L-Pro/p-TsOH in desulfurization. This work will provide a novel and potential method for the deep oxidation desulfurization. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Enhancement of Oxidative Desulfurization Performance over UiO-66(Zr) by Titanium Ion Exchange.

    PubMed

    Ye, Gan; Qi, Hui; Li, Xiaolin; Leng, Kunyue; Sun, Yinyong; Xu, Wei

    2017-07-19

    Oxidative desulfurization is considered to be one of the most promising methods for producing ultra-low-sulfur fuels because it can effectively remove refractory sulfur-containing aromatic compounds under mild conditions. In this work, the oxidative desulfurization performance over UiO-66(Zr) is greatly enhanced by Ti ion exchange. This strategy is not only efficient for UiO-66(Zr) with crystal defects but also for UiO-66(Zr) with high crystallinity. In particular, the performance of UiO-66(Zr) with high crystallinity in the oxidative desulfurization of dibenzothiophene can be improved more than 11-fold, which can be mainly attributed to the introduction of active Ti sites. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  6. Monitoring of sulfur dioxide emission resulting from biogas utilization on commercial pig farms in Taiwan.

    PubMed

    Su, Jung-Jeng; Chen, Yen-Jung

    2015-01-01

    The objective of this work tends to promote methane content in biogas and evaluate sulfur dioxide emission from direct biogas combustion without desulfurization. Analytical results of biogas combustion showed that combustion of un-desulfurized biogas exhausted more than 92% of SO₂ (P < 0.01). In the meantime, more than 90% of hydrogen sulfide was removed during the combustion process using un-desulfurized biogas (P < 0.01). Those disappeared hydrogen sulfide may deposit on the surfaces of power generator's engines or burner heads of boilers. Some of them (4.6-9.1% of H₂S) were converted to SO₂ in exhaust gas. Considering the impacts to human health and living environment, it is better to desulfurize biogas before any applications.

  7. Cumulative radiation dose caused by radiologic studies in critically ill trauma patients.

    PubMed

    Kim, Patrick K; Gracias, Vicente H; Maidment, Andrew D A; O'Shea, Michael; Reilly, Patrick M; Schwab, C William

    2004-09-01

    Critically ill trauma patients undergo many radiologic studies, but the cumulative radiation dose is unknown. The purpose of this study was to estimate the cumulative effective dose (CED) of radiation resulting from radiologic studies in critically ill trauma patients. The study group was composed of trauma patients at an urban Level I trauma center with surgical intensive care unit length of stay (LOS) greater than 30 days. The radiology records were reviewed. A typical effective dose per study for each type of plain film radiograph, computed tomographic scan, fluoroscopic study, and nuclear medicine study was used to calculate CED. Forty-six patients met criteria. The mean surgical intensive care unit and hospital LOS were 42.7 +/- 14.0 and 59.5 +/- 28.5 days, respectively. The mean Injury Severity Score was 32.2 +/- 15.0. The mean number of studies per patient was 70.1 +/- 29.0 plain film radiographs, 7.8 +/- 4.1 computed tomographic scans, 2.5 +/- 2.6 fluoroscopic studies, and 0.065 +/- 0.33 nuclear medicine study. The mean CED was 106 +/- 59 mSv per patient (range, 11-289 mSv; median, 104 mSv). Among age, mechanism, Injury Severity Score, and LOS, there was no statistically significant predictor of high CED. The mean CED in the study group was 30 times higher than the average yearly radiation dose from all sources for individuals in the United States. The theoretical additional morbidity attributable to radiologic studies was 0.78%. From a radiobiologic perspective, risk-to-benefit ratios of radiologic studies are favorable, given the importance of medical information obtained. Current practice patterns regarding use of radiologic studies appear to be acceptable.

  8. Health technology assessment in Switzerland: a descriptive analysis of “Coverage with Evidence Development” decisions from 1996 to 2013

    PubMed Central

    Brügger, Urs; Horisberger, Bruno; Ruckstuhl, Alexander; Plessow, Rafael; Eichler, Klaus; Gratwohl, Alois

    2015-01-01

    Objectives To identify factors associated with the decisions of the Federal Department of Home Affairs concerning coverage with evidence development (CED) for contested novel medical technologies in Switzerland. Design Quantitative, retrospective, descriptive analysis of publicly available material and prospective, structured, qualitative interviews with key stakeholders. Setting All 152 controversial medical services decided on by the Federal Commission on Health Insurance Benefits within the framework of the new federal law on health insurance in Switzerland from 1997 to 2013, with focus on 33 technologies assigned initially to CED and 33 to evidence development without coverage. Main outcome measures Factors associated with numbers and type of contested services assigned to CED per year, the duration and final outcome of the evaluations and perceptions of key stakeholders. Results The rate of CED decisions (82 total; median 1.5/year; range 0–9/year), the time to final decision (4.5 years median; 0.75 to +11 years) and the probability of a final ‘yes’ varied over time. In logistic regression models, the change of office of the commission provided the best explanation for the observed outcomes. Good intentions but absence of scientific criteria for decisions were reported as major comments by the stakeholders. Conclusions The introduction of CED enabled access to some promising technologies early in their life cycle, and might have triggered establishment of registries and research. Impact on patients’ outcome and costs remain unknown. The primary association of institutional changes with measured end points illustrates the need for evaluation of the current health technology assessment (HTA) system. PMID:25818273

  9. Infusion-line pressure as a real-time monitor of convection-enhanced delivery in pre-clinical models.

    PubMed

    Lam, Miu Fei; Foo, Stacy W L; Thomas, Meghan G; Lind, Christopher R P

    2014-01-15

    Acute convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is a neurosurgical delivery technique that allows for precise and uniform distribution of an infusate to a brain structure. It remains experimental due to difficulties in ensuring successful delivery. Real-time monitoring is able to provide immediate feedback on cannula placement, infusate distribution, and if the infusion is proceeding as planned or is failing due to reflux or catheter obstruction. Pressure gradient is the driving force behind CED, with the infusion pressure being directly proportional to the flow-rate. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of using infusion-line pressure profiling to distinguish in real-time between succeeding and failing CED infusions. To do so we delivered cresyl violet dye at 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 μl/min via CED in vitro using 0.6% agarose gel and in vivo to the rat striatum. Infusions that failed in agarose gel models could only be differentiated late during the procedures. In the rat in vivo model, the infusion-line profiles of obstructed infusions were not distinctive from those of successful infusions. Intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is used for real-time visualisation of cannula placement and infusate distribution. Particularly for animal pre-clinical work, it would be advantageous to supplement MRI with a cheap, accessible technique to monitor infusions and provide a real-time measure of infusion success or failure. Infusion-line pressure monitoring was of limited value in identifying successful CED with small volume infusions, whilst its utility for large volume infusion remains unknown. Crown Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. Convection-enhanced delivery of sorafenib and suppression of tumor progression in a murine model of brain melanoma through the inhibition of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3.

    PubMed

    Zou, Zhaoxia; Yin, Yufang; Lin, Jenny; Hsu, Li-Chen J; Brandon, Vanessa L; Yang, Fan; Jove, Richard; Jandial, Rahul; Li, Gang; Chen, Mike Y

    2016-05-01

    OBJECT Despite recent advances, metastatic melanoma remains a terminal disease, in which life-threatening brain metastasis occurs in approximately half of patients. Sorafenib is a multikinase inhibitor that induces apoptosis of melanoma cells in vitro. However, systemic administration has been ineffective because adequate tissue concentrations cannot be achieved. This study investigated if convection-enhanced delivery (CED) of sorafenib would enhance tumor control and survival via inhibition of the signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (Stat3) pathway in a murine model of metastatic brain melanoma. METHODS Melanoma cells treated with sorafenib in vitro were examined for signaling and survival changes. The effect of sorafenib given by CED was assessed by bioluminescent imaging and animal survival. RESULTS The results showed that sorafenib induced cell death in the 4 established melanoma cell lines and in 1 primary cultured melanoma cell line. Sorafenib inhibited Stat3 phosphorylation in HTB65, WYC1, and B16 cells. Accordingly, sorafenib treatment also decreased expression of Mcl-1 mRNA in melanoma cell lines. Because sorafenib targets multiple pathways, the present study demonstrated the contribution of the Stat3 pathway by showing that mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF) Stat3 +/+ cells were significantly more sensitive to sorafenib than MEF Stat3 -/- cells. In the murine model of melanoma brain metastasis used in this study, CED of sorafenib increased survival by 150% in the treatment group compared with animals receiving the vehicle control (p < 0.01). CED of sorafenib also significantly abrogated tumor growth. CONCLUSIONS The data from this study indicate that local delivery of sorafenib effectively controls brain melanoma. These findings validate further investigation of the use of CED to distribute molecularly targeted agents.

  11. A locus at 7p14.3 predisposes to refractory celiac disease progression from celiac disease.

    PubMed

    Hrdlickova, Barbara; Mulder, Chris J; Malamut, Georgia; Meresse, Bertrand; Platteel, Mathieu; Kamatani, Yoichiro; Ricaño-Ponce, Isis; van Wanrooij, Roy L J; Zorro, Maria M; Jan Bonder, Marc; Gutierrez-Achury, Javier; Cellier, Christophe; Zhernakova, Alexandra; Nijeboer, Petula; Galan, Pilar; Withoff, Sebo; Lathrop, Mark; Bouma, Gerd; Xavier, Ramnik J; Jabri, Bana; Bensussan, Nadine C; Wijmenga, Cisca; Kumar, Vinod

    2018-05-21

    Approximately 5% of patients with celiac disease (CeD) do not respond to a gluten-free diet and progress to refractory celiac disease (RCD), a severe progression that is characterized by infiltration of intraepithelial T lymphocytes. Patients with RCD type II (RCDII) show clonal expansions of intraepithelial T lymphocytes that result in a poor prognosis and a high mortality rate through development of aggressive enteropathy-associated T-cell lymphoma. It is not known whether genetic variations play a role in severe progression of CeD to RCDII. We performed the first genome-wide association study to identify the causal genes for RCDII and the molecular pathways perturbed in RCDII. The genome-wide association study was performed in 38 Dutch patients with RCDII, and the 15 independent top-associated single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) variants (P<5×10) were replicated in 56 independent French and Dutch patients with RCDII. After replication, SNP rs2041570 on chromosome 7 was significantly associated with progression to RCDII (P=2.37×10, odds ratio=2.36) but not with CeD susceptibility. SNP rs2041570 risk allele A was associated with lower levels of FAM188B expression in blood and small intestinal biopsies. Stratification of RCDII biopsies based on rs2041570 genotype showed differential expression of innate immune and antibacterial genes that are expressed in Paneth cells. We have identified a novel SNP associated with the severe progression of CeD to RCDII. Our data suggest that genetic susceptibility to CeD might be distinct from the progression to RCDII and suggest a role for Paneth cells in RCDII progression.

  12. Mutagenesis and repair induced by the DNA advanced glycation end product N2-1-(carboxyethyl)-2'-deoxyguanosine in human cells.

    PubMed

    Tamae, Daniel; Lim, Punnajit; Wuenschell, Gerald E; Termini, John

    2011-03-29

    Glycation of biopolymers by glucose-derived α-oxo-aldehydes such as methylglyoxal (MG) is believed to play a major role in the complex pathologies associated with diabetes and metabolic disease. In contrast to the extensive literature detailing the formation and physiological consequences of protein glycation, there is little information about the corresponding phenomenon for DNA. To assess the potential contribution of DNA glycation to genetic instability, we prepared shuttle vectors containing defined levels of the DNA glycation adduct N(2)-(1-carboxyethyl)-2'-deoxyguanosine (CEdG) and transfected them into isogenic human fibroblasts that differed solely in the capacity to conduct nucleotide excision repair (NER). In the NER-compromised fibroblasts, the induced mutation frequencies increased up to 18-fold relative to background over a range of ∼10-1400 CEdG adducts/10(5) dG, whereas the same substrates transfected into NER-competent cells induced a response that was 5-fold over background at the highest adduct density. The positive linear correlation (R(2) = 0.998) of mutation frequency with increasing CEdG level in NER-defective cells suggested that NER was the primary if not exclusive mechanism for repair of this adduct in human fibroblasts. Consistent with predictions from biochemical studies using CEdG-substituted oligonucleotides, guanine transversions were the predominant mutation resulting from replication of MG-modified plasmids. At high CEdG levels, significant increases in the number of AT → GC transitions were observed exclusively in NER-competent cells (P < 0.0001). This suggested the involvement of an NER-dependent mutagenic process in response to critical levels of DNA damage, possibly mediated by error-prone Y-family polymerases.

  13. The roles of DNA damage-dependent signals and MAPK cascades in tributyltin-induced germline apoptosis in Caenorhabditis elegans.

    PubMed

    Wang, Yun; Wang, Shunchang; Luo, Xun; Yang, Yanan; Jian, Fenglei; Wang, Xuemin; Xie, Lucheng

    2014-08-01

    The induction of apoptosis is recognized to be a major mechanism of tributyltin (TBT) toxicity. However, the underlying signaling pathways for TBT-induced apoptosis remain unclear. In this study, using the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, we examined whether DNA damage response (DDR) pathway and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling cascades are involved in TBT-induced germline apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. Our results demonstrated that exposing worms to TBT at the dose of 10nM for 6h significantly increased germline apoptosis in N2 strain. Germline apoptosis was absent in strains that carried ced-3 or ced-4 loss-of-function alleles, indicating that both caspase protein CED-3 and Apaf-1 protein CED-4 were required for TBT-induced apoptosis. TBT-induced apoptosis was blocked in the Bcl-2 gain-of-function strain ced-9(n1950), whereas TBT induced a minor increase in the BH3-only protein EGL-1 mutated strain egl-1(n1084n3082). Checkpoint proteins HUS-1 and CLK-2 exerted proapoptotic effects, and the null mutation of cep-1, the homologue of tumor suppressor gene p53, significantly inhibited TBT-induced apoptosis. Apoptosis in the loss-of-function strains of ERK, JNK and p38 MAPK signaling pathways were completely or mildly suppressed under TBT stress. These results were supported by the results of mRNA expression levels of corresponding genes. The present study indicated that TBT-induced apoptosis required the core apoptotic machinery, and that DDR genes and MAPK pathways played essential roles in signaling the processes. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Benchmarking the ERG valve tip and MRI Interventions Smart Flow neurocatheter convection-enhanced delivery system's performance in a gel model of the brain: employing infusion protocols proposed for gene therapy for Parkinson's disease

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sillay, Karl; Schomberg, Dominic; Hinchman, Angelica; Kumbier, Lauren; Ross, Chris; Kubota, Ken; Brodsky, Ethan; Miranpuri, Gurwattan

    2012-04-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is an advanced infusion technique used to deliver therapeutic agents into the brain. CED has shown promise in recent clinical trials. Independent verification of published parameters is warranted with benchmark testing of published parameters in applicable models such as gel phantoms, ex vivo tissue and in vivo non-human animal models to effectively inform planned and future clinical therapies. In the current study, specific performance characteristics of two CED infusion catheter systems, such as backflow, infusion cloud morphology, volume of distribution (mm3) versus the infused volume (mm3) (Vd/Vi) ratios, rate of infusion (µl min-1) and pressure (mmHg), were examined to ensure published performance standards for the ERG valve-tip (VT) catheter. We tested the hypothesis that the ERG VT catheter with an infusion protocol of a steady 1 µl min-1 functionality is comparable to the newly FDA approved MRI Interventions Smart Flow (SF) catheter with the UCSF infusion protocol in an agarose gel model. In the gel phantom models, no significant difference was found in performance parameters between the VT and SF catheter. We report, for the first time, such benchmark characteristics in CED between these two otherwise similar single-end port VT with stylet and end-port non-stylet infusion systems. Results of the current study in agarose gel models suggest that the performance of the VT catheter is comparable to the SF catheter and warrants further investigation as a tool in the armamentarium of CED techniques for eventual clinical use and application.

  15. Ferrite Research Aimed at Improving Induction Linac Driven FEL performance. Phase 2

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1992-10-01

    energy costs and decrease our dependence on foreign energy sources. SO 2 control has used flue gas desulfurization scrubbers after combustion, coal...minimizing operating costs. . Dry Mode of Operation Conventional flue - gas treatment processes are generally wet systems which generate waste water and wet ...energy source in the United States. So reducing the SO 2 and NOx emission from flue gas will allow use of abundant, high-sulphur coal resources, lower

  16. Development and application of air quality models at the US ...

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Overview of the development and application of air quality models at the U.S. EPA, particularly focused on the development and application of the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model developed within the Computation Exposure Division (CED) of the National Exposure Research Laboratory (NERL). This presentation will provide a simple overview of air quality model development and application geared toward a non-technical student audience. The National Exposure Research Laboratory (NERL) Computational Exposure Division (CED) develops and evaluates data, decision-support tools, and models to be applied to media-specific or receptor-specific problem areas. CED uses modeling-based approaches to characterize exposures, evaluate fate and transport, and support environmental diagnostics/forensics with input from multiple data sources. It also develops media- and receptor-specific models, process models, and decision support tools for use both within and outside of EPA.

  17. Capturing CO2 from Coal-Fired Power Plants: Challenges for a Comprehensive Strategy

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2008-08-15

    efficient flue gas desulfurization (FGD) or selective catalytic reduction (SCR) devices (or none), requiring either upgrading of existing FGD and SCR...saturated flue Figure 6. CO2 Price Projections CRS-16 42 Donald Shattuck, et al., A History of Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) — The Early Years, UE Technical...available in both the eastern and western parts of the United States, or by the use of emerging flue gas desulfurization (FGD) devices.46 At the time

  18. Voxelized Computational Model for Convection-Enhanced Delivery in the Rat Ventral Hippocampus: Comparison with In Vivo MR Experimental Studies

    PubMed Central

    Kim, Jung Hwan; Astary, Garrett W.; Kantorovich, Svetlana; Mareci, Thomas H.; Carney, Paul R.; Sarntinoranont, Malisa

    2012-01-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is a promising local delivery technique for overcoming the blood–brain barrier (BBB) and treating diseases of the central nervous system (CNS). For CED, therapeutics are infused directly into brain tissue and the drug agent is spread through the extracellular space, considered to be highly tortuous porous media. In this study, 3D computational models developed using magnetic resonance (MR) diffusion tensor imaging data sets were used to predict CED transport in the rat ventral hippocampus using a voxelized modeling previously developed by our group. Predicted albumin tracer distributions were compared with MR-measured distributions from in vivo CED in the ventral hippocampus up to 10 μL of Gd-DTPA albumin tracer infusion. Predicted and measured tissue distribution volumes and distribution patterns after 5 and 10 μL infusions were found to be comparable. Tracers were found to occupy the underlying landmark structures with preferential transport found in regions with less fluid resistance such as the molecular layer of the dentate gyrus. Also, tracer spread was bounded by high fluid resistance layers such as the granular cell layer and pyramidal cell layer of dentate gyrus. Leakage of tracers into adjacent CSF spaces was observed towards the end of infusions. PMID:22532321

  19. Caspase-8 Deficiency Presenting as Late-Onset Multi-Organ Lymphocytic Infiltration with Granulomas in two Adult Siblings.

    PubMed

    Niemela, Julie; Kuehn, Hye Sun; Kelly, Corin; Zhang, Mingchang; Davies, Joie; Melendez, Jose; Dreiling, Jennifer; Kleiner, David; Calvo, Katherine; Oliveira, João B; Rosenzweig, Sergio D

    2015-05-01

    Caspase-8 deficiency (CED) was originally described in 2002 in two pediatric patients presenting with clinical manifestations resembling autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome (ALPS) accompanied by infections, and T, B and NK cell defects. Since then, no new CED patients were published. Here we report two adult siblings (Pt1 and Pt2) presenting in their late thirties with pulmonary hypertension leading to lung transplant (Pt1), and a complex neurological disease leading to multiple cranial nerves palsies (Pt2) as their main manifestations. A thorough clinical and immunological evaluation was performed at the Primary Immunodeficiency Clinic at NIH, followed by whole exome sequencing. The patients had multiorgan lymphocytic infiltration and granulomas, as well as clinical signs of immune deficiency/ immune dysregulation. Both siblings carried homozygous mutations in CASP8, c.1096C > T, p.248R > W. This was the same mutation described on the previously published CED patients, to whom these new patients were likely distantly related. We report two new CED patients presenting during adulthood with life-threatening end-organ lymphocyte infiltrates affecting the lungs, liver, spleen, bone marrow and central nervous system. This phenotype broadens the clinical spectrum of manifestations associated with this disease and warrants the search of CASP8 mutations in other cohorts of patients.

  20. Determinants of Cancer Early Detection Behaviors:Application of Protection Motivation Theory.

    PubMed

    Rahaei, Zohreh; Ghofranipour, Fazlollah; Morowatisharifabad, Mohammad Ali; Mohammadi, Eesa

    2015-01-01

    Cancer is account for 13% of all deaths around the world and is the third cause of mortality in Iran. More than one third of these cases are pre-ventable and about 33% are curable with early detection. The aim of this study was to determine the predictors of cancer early detection (CED) behaviors applying Protection Motivation Theory (PMT). In this cross-sectional study, cluster sampling method was employed to recruit 260 individuals of above 20 years old in Yazd, Iran and a researcher designed questionnaire was completed through interviews for each of the respondents. PMT theoretical variables and CED behaviors were the basis of data collection procedure. Participants acquired 64.47% of the protection motivation, 30.97% of the passive and 45.64% of the active behaviors‟ possible scores. Theory constructs predicted 19.8%, 15.6% and 9.6% of the variations for protection motivation, passive and active behavior respectively. Protection motivation was responsible for 3.6% of passive and 8% of active behaviors‟ variations. Considering the scarceness of CED behaviors and the applicability of PMT in predicting these behaviors, utilization of the PMT‟s constructs in any interventional programs to accelerate CED behaviors could be an alternate methodological choice in the cancer control initiatives.

  1. Distribution of polymer nanoparticles by convection-enhanced delivery to brain tumors.

    PubMed

    Saucier-Sawyer, Jennifer K; Seo, Young-Eun; Gaudin, Alice; Quijano, Elias; Song, Eric; Sawyer, Andrew J; Deng, Yang; Huttner, Anita; Saltzman, W Mark

    2016-06-28

    Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a fatal brain tumor characterized by infiltration beyond the margins of the main tumor mass and local recurrence after surgery. The blood-brain barrier (BBB) poses the most significant hurdle to brain tumor treatment. Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) allows for local administration of agents, overcoming the restrictions of the BBB. Recently, polymer nanoparticles have been demonstrated to penetrate readily through the healthy brain when delivered by CED, and size has been shown to be a critical factor for nanoparticle penetration. Because these brain-penetrating nanoparticles (BPNPs) have high potential for treatment of intracranial tumors since they offer the potential for cell targeting and controlled drug release after administration, here we investigated the intratumoral CED infusions of PLGA BPNPs in animals bearing either U87 or RG2 intracranial tumors. We demonstrate that the overall volume of distribution of these BPNPs was similar to that observed in healthy brains; however, the presence of tumors resulted in asymmetric and heterogeneous distribution patterns, with substantial leakage into the peritumoral tissue. Together, our results suggest that CED of BPNPs should be optimized by accounting for tumor geometry, in terms of location, size and presence of necrotic regions, to determine the ideal infusion site and parameters for individual tumors. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. ISO observations of the reflection nebula Ced 201: evolution of carbonaceous dust

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cesarsky, D.; Lequeux, J.; Ryter, C.; Gérin, M.

    2000-02-01

    We present spectrophotometric imaging mid-IR observations of the reflection nebula Ced 201. Ced 201 is a part of a molecular cloud illuminated by a B9.5V star moving through it at more than 12 km s-1. The spectra of Ced 201 give evidence for transformation of very small carbonaceous grains into the carriers of the Aromatic Infrared Bands (AIBs), due to the radiation field of the illuminating star and/or to shock waves created by its motion. These very small grains emit mainly very broad bands and a continuum. We suggest that they are present everywhere in the interstellar medium but can only be detected in the mid-IR under special circumstances such as those prevailing in this reflection nebula. The efficiency of energy conversion of stellar light into mid-infrared emission is 7.5% for both the very small grains and the AIB carriers, and the fraction of interstellar carbon locked in these emitters is approximately 15%. Based on observations at the Cal Tech submillimeter observatory (CSO) and with ISO, an ESA project with instruments funded by ESA member states (especially the PI countries: France, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom) and with the participation of ISAS and NASA.

  3. Real-time imaging of perivascular transport of nanoparticles during convection-enhanced delivery in the rat cortex.

    PubMed

    Foley, Conor P; Nishimura, Nozomi; Neeves, Keith B; Schaffer, Chris B; Olbricht, William L

    2012-02-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is a promising technique for administering large therapeutics that do not readily cross the blood brain barrier to neural tissue. It is of vital importance to understand how large drug constructs move through neural tissue during CED to optimize construct and delivery parameters so that drugs are concentrated in the targeted tissue, with minimal leakage outside the targeted zone. Experiments have shown that liposomes, viral vectors, high molecular weight tracers, and nanoparticles infused into neural tissue localize in the perivascular spaces of blood vessels within the brain parenchyma. In this work, we used two-photon excited fluorescence microscopy to monitor the real-time distribution of nanoparticles infused in the cortex of live, anesthetized rats via CED. Fluorescent nanoparticles of 24 and 100 nm nominal diameters were infused into rat cortex through microfluidic probes. We found that perivascular spaces provide a high permeability path for rapid convective transport of large nanoparticles through tissue, and that the effects of perivascular spaces on transport are more significant for larger particles that undergo hindered transport through the extracellular matrix. This suggests that the vascular topology of the target tissue volume must be considered when delivering large therapeutic constructs via CED.

  4. Ultrasound-assisted oxidative desulfurization of bunker-C oil using tert-butyl hydroperoxide.

    PubMed

    Tang, Qiong; Lin, Song; Cheng, Ying; Liu, Sujun; Xiong, Jun-Ru

    2013-09-01

    This work investigated the ultrasonic assisted oxidative desulfurization of bunker-C oil with TBHP/MoO3 system. The operational parameters for the desulfurization procedure such as ultrasonic irradiation time, ultrasonic wave amplitude, catalyst initial concentration and oxidation agent initial concentration were studied. The experimental results show that the present oxidation system was very efficient for the desulfurization of bunker-C oil and ~35% sulfur was removed which was dependent on operational parameters. The application of ultrasonic irradiation allowed sulfur removal in a shorter time. The stronger the solvent polarity is, the higher the sulfur removal rate, but the recovery rate of oil is lower. The sulfur compounds in bunker-C oil reacted with TBHP to produce corresponding sulfoxide, and further oxidation produced the corresponding sulfone. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Spray-dry desulfurization of flue gas from heavy oil combustion.

    PubMed

    Scala, Fabrizio; Lancia, Amedeo; Nigro, Roberto; Volpicelli, Gennaro

    2005-01-01

    An experimental investigation on sulfur dioxide removal in a pilot-scale spray dryer from the flue gas generated by combustion of low-sulfur (S) heavy oil is reported. A limewater slurry was sprayed through an ultrasonic two-fluid atomizer in the spray-dry chamber, and the spent sorbent was collected downstream in a pulse-jet baghouse together with fly ash. Flue gas was sampled at different points to measure the desulfurization efficiency after both the spray-dry chamber and the baghouse. Parametric tests were performed to study the effect of the following variables: gas inlet temperature, difference between gas outlet temperature and adiabatic saturation temperature, lime-to-S ratio, and average size of lime particles in the slurry. Results indicated that spray drying is an effective technology for the desulfurization of low-S fuel oil flue gas, provided operating conditions are chosen carefully. In particular, the lowest gas inlet and outlet temperatures compatible with baghouse operation should be selected, as should a sufficiently high lime-to-S ratio. The attainment of a small lime particle size in the slurry is critical for obtaining a high desulfurization efficiency. A previously presented spray-dry flue gas desulfurization model was used to simulate the pilot-scale desulfurization tests, to check the ability of the model to predict the S capture data and its usefulness as a design tool, minimizing the need for pilot-scale experimentation. Comparison between model and experimental results was fairly good for the whole range of calcium/S ratios considered.

  6. [Diversity analysis of desulfuration bacterium from the oxidation ditch of city sewage treatment plant with SO2 gas].

    PubMed

    Huang, Bing; Zhang, Shi-Ling; Zhang, Jiang-Hong; Ao, Yong; Shi, Zhe

    2011-07-01

    A group of removing SO2 bacterium was obtained from the oxidation ditch of city sewage treatment plant by inductive domestication over 6 d with low concentration SO2 gas, and they have an ability with biodegradation rate of 888 mg x (L x h)(-1) and a degradation efficiency of 85% during 1.5 h for SO2 dissolved in water with their synergy. The clone library and two phylogenetic trees of the removing SO2 bacterium communities were obtained based on 16S rRNA DNA comparison by DNA extraction of the sample and in situ polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The phylogenetic analysis showed that 8 dominant desulfuration bacterium occupy about 69% of all removing SO2 bacterium, and some of them have a kindred with discovered desulfuration bacterium but not homogeneity, and there are four belong to alpha-Proteobacteria, another four belong to beta-Proteobacteria in them. The gene information about 16S rRNA sequence of the dominant desulfuration bacteria and domestication method provide a basic of looking for or domesticating removing SO2 bacterium for development microbial desulfurization technology of contained SO2 tail gas.

  7. Synthesis, Characterization and Application of 1-Butyl-3 Methylimidazolium Chloride as Green Material for Extractive Desulfurization of Liquid Fuel

    PubMed Central

    Dharaskar, Swapnil A.; Varma, Mahesh N.; Shende, Diwakar Z.; Yoo, Chang Kyoo; Wasewar, Kailas L.

    2013-01-01

    The possible application of imidazolium ionic liquids as energy-efficient green material for extractive deep desulfurization of liquid fuel has been investigated. 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride [BMIM]Cl was synthesized by nucleophilic substitution reaction of n-methylimidazolium and 1-chlorobutane. Molecular structures of the ILs were confirmed by FTIR, 1H-NMR, and 13C-NMR. The thermal properties, conductivity, solubility, water content and viscosity analysis of [BMIM]Cl were carried out. The effects of reaction time, reaction temperature, sulfur compounds, and recycling of IL without regeneration on dibenzothiophene removal of liquid fuel were presented. In the extractive desulfurization process, the removal of dibenzothiophene in n-dodecane using [BMIM]Cl was 81% with mass ratio of 1 : 1, in 30 min at 30°C under the mild reaction conditions. Also, desulfurization of real fuels with IL and multistage extraction were studied. The results of this work might offer significant insights in the perceptive use of imidazoled ILs as energy-efficient green material for extractive deep desulfurization of liquid fuels as it can be reused without regeneration with considerable extraction efficiency. PMID:24307868

  8. Synthesis and application of different phthalocyanine molecular sieve catalyst for oxidative desulfurization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhao, Na; Li, Siwen; Wang, Jinyi; Zhang, Ronglan; Gao, Ruimin; Zhao, Jianshe; Wang, Junlong

    2015-05-01

    M2(PcAN)2 (M=Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn and Mn) anchored onto W-HZSM-5 (M2(PcAN)2-W-HZSM-5) or the M2(PcTN)2 doping W-HZSM-5 (M2(PcTN)2/W-HZSM-5) were prepared and their catalytic performances were tested for oxidative desulfurization in the presence of oxygen. Thiophene (T), benzothiophene (BT), and dibenzothiophene (DBT) were considered as sulfur compounds. Among zeolite-based catalysts, the Cu2(PcAN)2-W-HZSM-5 and Cu2(PcTN)2/W-HZSM-5 showed superior desulfurization performance and the activity of selectivity followed the order: T>BT>DBT. The effects of phthalocyanine concentration were studied by UV-Vis and calcination temperature was obtained by TG-DSC for Cu2(PcTN)2/W-HZSM-5. Catalysts were characterized by EA, IR, XRD, SEM, TEM, ICP, and N2 adsorption. Reaction time, temperature and the amount of catalyst were investigated as the important parameters for optimization of the reaction. Furthermore, a possible process of oxidative desulfurization and the reaction products were proposed. The reaction process of ultra-deep desulfurization.

  9. Experimental research on bypass evaporation tower technology for zero liquid discharge of desulfurization wastewater.

    PubMed

    Ma, Shuangchen; Chai, Jin; Wu, Kai; Xiang, Yajun; Jia, Shaoguang; Li, Qingsong

    2018-03-20

    Zero liquid discharge (ZLD) of wastewater has become the trend of environmental governance after the implementation of 'The Action Plan for Prevention and Treatment of Water Pollution' in China, desulfurization wastewater has gained more attention due to its complex composition and heavy metals. However, current technologies for ZLD have some shortcomings such as high cost and insufficient processing capacity, ZLD cannot be achieved actually. This paper proposes a new evaporation drying technology. An independent bypass evaporation tower was built, part of the hot flue gas before the air preheater was introduced into the evaporation tower for desulfurization wastewater evaporation, and the generated dust after evaporation was discharged back to the flue duct before electrostatic precipitator. This paper reports on the performance of desulfurization wastewater evaporation and the characteristics of evaporation products in depth and makes a comprehensive discussion of the impact on the existing equipment based on the self-designed evaporation tower. Research suggests that this technology has high system reliability and little effect on subsequent equipment and provides theoretical and practical data. Due to environmental policies and huge market demand for ZLD of desulfurization wastewater, bypass evaporation tower technology has a great application prospect in the future.

  10. Hearing loss: terminology and classification. Joint Committee of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and the Council on Education of the Deaf.

    PubMed

    1998-01-01

    The following position statement and technical report were developed by the Joint Committee of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) and the Council on Education of the Deaf (CED) and approved as Association policy by the ASHA Legislative Council in November 1997 (LC 6-97). CED member organizations are reviewing the document for approval in 1998. Joint Committee members responsible for the development of this document include (from ASHA) Joan Marttila, chair 1996-97; Linda Seestedt-Stanford, chair 1994-95; Evelyn Cherow, ex official; Donald Goldberg; Dawna Lewis; Leslie Ann McMillian; Jane Seaton; Alicia Stewart; and Larry Higdon, vice president for professional practices in audiology and monitoring vice president; and (from CED) Kathee Christensen; Steve Nover; Marilyn Sass-Lehrer; and Patrick Stone. This document supersedes ASHA policy: Definitions of Communication Disorders and Variations: Hearing Disorders section.

  11. The regulation of cognitive enhancement devices: extending the medical model

    PubMed Central

    Maslen, Hannah; Douglas, Thomas; Cohen Kadosh, Roi; Levy, Neil; Savulescu, Julian

    2014-01-01

    This article presents a model for regulating cognitive enhancement devices (CEDs). Recently, it has become very easy for individuals to purchase devices which directly modulate brain function. For example, transcranial direct current stimulators are increasingly being produced and marketed online as devices for cognitive enhancement. Despite posing risks in a similar way to medical devices, devices that do not make any therapeutic claims do not have to meet anything more than basic product safety standards. We present the case for extending existing medical device legislation to cover CEDs. Medical devices and CEDs operate by the same or similar mechanisms and pose the same or similar risks. This fact coupled with the arbitrariness of the line between treatment and enhancement count in favour of regulating these devices in the same way. In arguing for this regulatory model, the paper highlights potential challenges to its implementation, and suggests solutions. PMID:25243073

  12. Red soil as a regenerable sorbent for high temperature removal of hydrogen sulfide from coal gas.

    PubMed

    Ko, Tzu-Hsing; Chu, Hsin; Lin, Hsiao-Ping; Peng, Ching-Yu

    2006-08-25

    In this study, hydrogen sulfide (H(2)S) was removed from coal gas by red soil under high temperature in a fixed-bed reactor. Red soil powders were collected from the northern, center and southern of Taiwan. They were characterized by XRPD, porosity analysis and DCB chemical analysis. Results show that the greater sulfur content of LP red soils is attributed to the higher free iron oxides and suitable sulfidation temperature is around 773K. High temperature has a negative effect for use red soil as a desulfurization sorbent due to thermodynamic limitation in a reduction atmosphere. During 10 cycles of regeneration, after the first cycle the red soil remained stable with a breakthrough time between 31 and 36 min. Hydrogen adversely affects sulfidation reaction, whereas CO exhibits a positive effect due to a water-shift reaction. COS was formed during the sulfidation stage and this was attributed to the reaction of H(2)S and CO. Results of XRPD indicated that, hematite is the dominant active species in fresh red soil and iron sulfide (FeS) is a product of the reaction between hematite and hydrogen sulfide in red soils. The spinel phase FeAl(2)O(4) was found during regeneration, moreover, the amount of free iron oxides decreased after regeneration indicating the some of the free iron oxide formed a spinel phase, further reducting the overall desulfurization efficiency.

  13. Fabrication of magnetically responsive HKUST-1/Fe3O4 composites by dry gel conversion for deep desulfurization and denitrogenation.

    PubMed

    Tan, Peng; Xie, Xiao-Yan; Liu, Xiao-Qin; Pan, Ting; Gu, Chen; Chen, Peng-Fei; Zhou, Jia-Yu; Pan, Yichang; Sun, Lin-Bing

    2017-01-05

    Selective adsorption by use of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) is an effective method for purification of hydrocarbon fuels. In consideration that the adsorption processes proceed in liquid phases, separation and recycling of adsorbents should be greatly facilitated if MOFs were endowed with magnetism. In the present study, we reported for the first time a dry gel conversion (DGC) strategy to fabricate magnetically responsive MOFs as adsorbents for deep desulfurization and denitrogenation. The solvent is separated from the solid materials in the DGC strategy, and vapor is generated at elevated temperatures to induce the growth of MOFs around magnetic Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles. This strategy can greatly simplify the complicated procedures of the well-known layer-by-layer method and avoid the blockage of pores confronted by introducing magnetic Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles to the pores of MOFs. Our results show that the adsorbents are capable of efficiently removing aromatic sulfur and nitrogen compounds from model fuels, for example removing 0.62mmolg -1 S and 0.89mmolg -1 N of thiophene and indole, respectively. In addition, the adsorbents are facile to separate from liquid phases by use of an external field. After 6 cycles, the adsorbents still show a good adsorption capacity that is comparable to the fresh one. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Fluidized bed coal desulfurization

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ravindram, M.

    1983-01-01

    Laboratory scale experiments were conducted on two high volatile bituminous coals in a bench scale batch fluidized bed reactor. Chemical pretreatment and posttreatment of coals were tried as a means of enhancing desulfurization. Sequential chlorination and dechlorination cum hydrodesulfurization under modest conditions relative to the water slurry process were found to result in substantial sulfur reductions of about 80%. Sulfur forms as well as proximate and ultimate analyses of the processed coals are included. These studies indicate that a fluidized bed reactor process has considerable potential for being developed into a simple and economic process for coal desulfurization.

  15. Properties of Semi-dry Flue Gas Desulfurization Ash and Used for Phosphorus Removal

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yu, Y. P.; Fang, Y.; Chai, S. Y.; Zhuang, Z. Z.

    2018-05-01

    The composition of Semi-dry Flue Gas Desulfurization ash was as follows: CaSO3 · 0.5H2O and Ca(OH)2. Most of the particle size was about 8 µm particles were irregular and small, while the other part was rough and globular. CaSO3 strongly oxidized at about 466°C and Ca(OH)2 decomposed at ∼ 662°C. The maximum amount of phosphorus removal in Semi-dry Flue Gas Desulfurization ash was 79.898 mg/g.

  16. Simultaneous removal of SO2 and NOx from flue gas by wet scrubbing using a urea solution.

    PubMed

    Li, Ge; Wang, Baodong; Xu, Wayne Qiang; Li, Yonglong; Han, Yifan; Sun, Qi

    2018-03-27

    Nitrogen oxides (NO x ) and sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ) are major air pollutants, so simultaneously removing them from gases emitted during fossil fuel combustion in stationary systems is important. Wet denitrification using urea is used for a wide range of systems. Additives have strong effects on wet denitrification using urea, and different mechanisms are involved and different effects found using different additives. In this study, the effects of different additives, initial urea concentrations, reaction temperatures, initial pH values, gas flow rates, and reaction times on the simultaneous desulfurization and denitrification efficiencies achieved using wet denitrification using urea were studied in single factor experiment. The optimum reaction conditions for desulfurization and denitrification were found. Desulfurization and denitrification efficiencies of 97.5% and 96.3%, respectively, were achieved at a KMnO 4 concentration 5 mmol/L, a reaction temperature of 70°C, initial urea solution pH 8, a urea concentration of 9%, and a gas flow rate of 40 L/h. The concentrations of the desulfurization and denitrification reaction products in the solution were determined. NO x was mainly transformed into N 2 , and the [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] concentrations in the solution became very low. The reactions involved in SO 2 and NO x removal using urea were analyzed from the thermodynamic viewpoint. Increasing the temperature was not conducive to the reactions but increased the rate constant, so an optimum temperature was determined. The simultaneous desulfurization and denitrification kinetics were calculated. The urea consumption and [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], and [Formula: see text] generation reactions were all zero order. The [Formula: see text] generation rate was greater than the [Formula: see text] generation rate. The simultaneous desulfurization and denitrification process and mechanism were studied. The results provide reference data for performing flue gas desulfurization and denitrification in factories.

  17. [Investigation of bacterial diversity in the biological desulfurization reactor for treating high salinity wastewater by the 16S rDNA cloning method].

    PubMed

    Liu, Wei-Guo; Liang, Cun-Zhen; Yang, Jin-Sheng; Wang, Gui-Ping; Liu, Miao-Miao

    2013-02-01

    The bacterial diversity in the biological desulfurization reactor operated continuously for 1 year was studied by the 16S rDNA cloning and sequencing method. Forty clones were randomly selected and their partial 16S rDNA genes (ca. 1,400 bp) were sequenced and blasted. The results indicated that there were dominant bacterias in the biological desulfurization reactor, where 33 clones belonged to 3 different published phyla, while 1 clone belonged to unknown phylum. The dominant bacterial community in the system was Proteobacteria, which accounted for 85.3%. The bacterial community succession was as follows: the gamma-Proteobacteria(55.9%), beta-Proteobacteria(17.6%), Actinobacteridae (8.8%), delta-Proteobacteria (5.9%) , alpha-Proteobacteria(5.9%), and Sphingobacteria (2.9%). Halothiobacillus sp. ST15 and Thiobacillus sp. UAM-I were the major desulfurization strains.

  18. Experimental Study on Hot Metal Desulfurization Using Sintered Red Mud-Based Flux

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Fengshan; Zhang, Yanling; Guo, Zhancheng

    2017-09-01

    This research presents the results of laboratory and pilot-scale tests conducted on the use of sintered red mud (RM)-based flux in the hot metal desulfurization (HMD) process. Al2O3/Na2O in RM can decrease the melting point of lime-based slag and can work as a flux in the HMD process. Good slag fluidity was observed throughout the process, and high desulfurization rates ( 80%) with a low final S content (<0.02%) were experimentally obtained when the RM:CaO ratio was between 1.2:1 and 2.4:1. The pilot-scale test results indicated that a desulfurization rate as high as 91% and a S content <0.0099% could be acquired when RM:lime = 1:1, verifying the feasibility of using sintered RM-based flux in HMD. The data obtained provide important information for promoting the large-scale application of sintered RM in steelmaking.

  19. Convection enhanced delivery of boronated EGF as a molecular targeting agent for neutron capture therapy of brain tumors

    PubMed Central

    Yang, Weilian; Wu, Gong; Huo, Tianyao; Tjarks, Werner; Ciesielski, Michael; Fenstermaker, Robert A.; Ross, Brain D.; Wikstrand, Carol J.; Riley, Kent J.; Binns, Peter J.

    2010-01-01

    In the present study, we have evaluated a boronated dendrimer-epidermal growth factor (BD-EGF) bioconjugate as a molecular targeting agent for boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) of the human EGFR gene-transfected F98 rat glioma, designated F98EGFR. EGF was chemically linked to a heavily boronated polyamidoamine dendrimer (BD) by means of the heterobifunctional reagent, mMBS. Biodistribution studies were carried out at 6 h and 24 h following intratumoral (i.t.) injection or intracerebral (i.c.) convection enhanced delivery (CED) of 125I-labeled or unlabeled BD-EGF (40 μg 10B/10 μg EGF) to F98 glioma bearing rats. At 24 h. there was 43% more radioactivity in EGFR(+) tumors following CED compared to i.t. injection, and a doubling of the tumor boron concentration (22.3 μg/g vs. 11.7 μg/g). CED of BD-EGF resulted in a 7.2× increase in the volume of distribution within the infused cerebral hemisphere and a 1.9× increase in tumor uptake of BD-EGF compared with i.t. injection. Based on these favorable bio-distribution data, BNCT was carried out at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology nuclear reactor 14 days following i.c. tumor implantation and 24 h. after CED of BD-EGF. These animals had a MST of 54.1 ± 4.7 days compared to 43.0 ± 2.8 days following i.t. injection. Rats that received BD-EGF by CED in combination with i.v. boronophenylalanine (BPA), which has been used in both experimental and clinical studies, had a MST of 86.0 ± 28.1 days compared to 39.8 ± 1.6 days for i.v. BPA alone (P < 0.01), 30.9 ± 1.4 days for irradiated controls and 25.1 ± 1.0 days for untreated controls (overall P < 0.0001). These data have demonstrated that the efficacy of BNCT was significantly increased (P < 0.006), following i.c CED of BD-EGF compared to i.t injection, and that the survival data were equivalent to those previously reported by us using the boronated anti-human-EGF mAb, C225 (cetuximab). PMID:19588228

  20. Preclinical evaluation of convection-enhanced delivery of liposomal doxorubicin to treat pediatric diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma and thalamic high-grade glioma.

    PubMed

    Sewing, A Charlotte P; Lagerweij, Tonny; van Vuurden, Dannis G; Meel, Michaël H; Veringa, Susanna J E; Carcaboso, Angel M; Gaillard, Pieter J; Peter Vandertop, W; Wesseling, Pieter; Noske, David; Kaspers, Gertjan J L; Hulleman, Esther

    2017-05-01

    OBJECTIVE Pediatric high-grade gliomas (pHGGs) including diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas (DIPGs) are primary brain tumors with high mortality and morbidity. Because of their poor brain penetrance, systemic chemotherapy regimens have failed to deliver satisfactory results; however, convection-enhanced delivery (CED) may be an alternative mode of drug delivery. Anthracyclines are potent chemotherapeutics that have been successfully delivered via CED in preclinical supratentorial glioma models. This study aims to assess the potency of anthracyclines against DIPG and pHGG cell lines in vitro and to evaluate the efficacy of CED with anthracyclines in orthotopic pontine and thalamic tumor models. METHODS The sensitivity of primary pHGG cell lines to a range of anthracyclines was tested in vitro. Preclinical CED of free doxorubicin and pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD) to the brainstem and thalamus of naïve nude mice was performed. The maximum tolerated dose (MTD) was determined based on the observation of clinical symptoms, and brains were analyzed after H & E staining. Efficacy of the MTD was tested in adult glioma E98-FM-DIPG and E98-FM-thalamus models and in the HSJD-DIPG-007-Fluc primary DIPG model. RESULTS Both pHGG and DIPG cells were sensitive to anthracyclines in vitro. Doxorubicin was selected for further preclinical evaluation. Convection-enhanced delivery of the MTD of free doxorubicin and PLD in the pons was 0.02 mg/ml, and the dose tolerated in the thalamus was 10 times higher (0.2 mg/ml). Free doxorubicin or PLD via CED was ineffective against E98-FM-DIPG or HSJD-DIPG-007-Fluc in the brainstem; however, when applied in the thalamus, 0.2 mg/ml of PLD slowed down tumor growth and increased survival in a subset of animals with small tumors. CONCLUSIONS Local delivery of doxorubicin to the brainstem causes severe toxicity, even at doxorubicin concentrations that are safe in the thalamus. As a consequence, the authors could not establish a therapeutic window for treating orthotopic brainstem tumors in mice. For tumors in the thalamus, therapeutic concentrations to slow down tumor growth could be reached. These data suggest that anatomical location determines the severity of toxicity after local delivery of therapeutic agents and that caution should be used when translating data from supratentorial CED studies to treat infratentorial tumors.

  1. Development of a portable quality control application using a tablet-type electronic device.

    PubMed

    Ono, Tomohiro; Miyabe, Yuki; Akimoto, Mami; Mukumoto, Nobutaka; Ishihara, Yoshitomo; Nakamura, Mitsuhiro; Mizowaki, Takashi

    2018-03-01

    Our aim was to develop a portable quality control (QC) application using a thermometer, a barometer, an angle gauge, and a range finder implemented in a tablet-type consumer electronic device (CED) and to assess the accuracies of the measurements made. The QC application was programmed using Java and OpenCV libraries. First, temperature and atmospheric pressure were measured over 30 days using the temperature and pressure sensors of the CED and compared with those measured by a double-tube thermometer and a digital barometer. Second, the angle gauge was developed using the accelerometer of the CED. The roll and pitch angles of the CED were measured from 0 to 90° at intervals of 10° in the clockwise (CW) and counterclockwise (CCW) directions. The values were compared with those measured by a digital angle gauge. Third, a range finder was developed using the tablet's built-in camera and image-processing capacities. Surrogate markers were detected by the camera and their positions converted to actual positions using a homographic transformation method. Fiducial markers were placed on a treatment couch and moved 100 mm in 10-mm steps in both the lateral and longitudinal directions. The values were compared with those measured by the digital output of the treatment couch. The differences between CED values and those of other devices were compared by calculating means ± standard deviations (SDs). The means ± SDs of differences in temperature and atmospheric pressure were -0.07 ± 0.25°C and 0.05 ± 0.10 hPa, respectively. The means ± SDs of the difference in angle was -0.17 ± 0.87° (0.15 ± 0.23° degrees excluding the 90° angle). The means ± SDs of distances were 0.01 ± 0.07 mm in both the lateral and longitudinal directions. Our portable QC application was accurate and may be used instead of standard measuring devices. Our portable CED is efficient and simple when used in the field of medical physics. © 2018 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

  2. Rate-limiting step analysis of the microbial desulfurization of dibenzothiophene in a model oil system

    PubMed Central

    Abin-Fuentes, Andres; Leung, James C.; Mohamed, Magdy El-Said; Wang, Daniel IC; Prather, Kristala LJ

    2014-01-01

    A mechanistic analysis of the various mass transport and kinetic steps in the microbial desulfurization of dibenzothiophene (DBT) by Rhodococcus erythropolis IGTS8 in a model biphasic (oil-water), small-scale system was performed. The biocatalyst was distributed into three populations, free cells in the aqueous phase, cell aggregates and oil-adhered cells, and the fraction of cells in each population was measured. The power input per volume (P/V) and the impeller tip speed (vtip) were identified as key operating parameters in determining whether the system is mass transport controlled or kinetically controlled. Oil-water DBT mass transport was found to not be limiting under the conditions tested. Experimental results at both the 100 mL and 4L (bioreactor) scales suggest that agitation leading to P/V greater than 10,000 W/ m3 and/or vtip greater than 0.67 m/s is sufficient to overcome the major mass transport limitation in the system, which was the diffusion of DBT within the biocatalyst aggregates. PMID:24284557

  3. Formation of (FexMn(2-x))O3 solid solution and high sulfur capacity properties of Mn-based/M41 sorbents for hot coal gas desulfurization.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Y; Liu, B S; Zhang, F M; Zhang, Z F

    2013-03-15

    Several MCM-41 materials were synthesized at different conditions by hydrothermal procedure using cheap and easily available industrial water glass as silica source. Fe doped manganese-based oxide/MCM-41 sorbents were prepared by a sol-gel method. The effects of loadings of metal oxide, Fe/Mn molar ratios over MCM-41 and reaction temperature on the performance of sorbent for hot coal gas desulfurization were investigated. Various techniques such as BET, XRD, XPS, LRS and HRTEM were used to characterize the sorbents. The result indicated Fe(3+) ions could occupy a position of Mn(3+) in cubic lattice of Mn2O3 and the (FexMn2-x)O3 solid solution is mainly active phase of sorbent. Moreover, the result of nine successive sulfurization-regeneration cycles of sorbent showed high sulfur adsorption capacity and endurable stability of FeMn4Ox/MCM-41 for H2S removal. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. Experimental study of the combined calcination and hydrodesulfurization of high-sulfur green petroleum coke

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kilic, Saliha Meltem

    The primary production of aluminum is done by means of the Hall-Heroult process where large amounts of carbon anodes are required and consumed. The quality of carbon anodes used in electrolysis is one of the most important parameters affecting the production of primary aluminum. The anode quality widely depends on the raw materials, one of which is the petroleum coke. Green petroleum coke is produced from the heavy residual fractions of petroleum. Petroleum cokes produced from sour crude oil sources contain high quantity of sulfur. A certain level of sulfur is needed to reduce the anode reactivities; however, the demand for anode-grade coke with acceptable sulfur content is increasing faster than the available supply. High sulfur levels in carbon anodes would have an adverse effect on environment; hence, the desulfurization of high sulfur green petroleum cokes is necessary. There are different ways of desulfurizing green petroleum cokes: solvent extraction, thermal desulfurization, and hydrodesulfurization. Coke produced by solvent extraction is prone to contamination. The thermal approach requires greater energy consumption and causes an increase in coke porosity. The global objective of this master project is to find an alternative solution for desulfurization that will produce quality calcined coke with minimum impact on environment. Hydrodesulfurization seems to be a viable option and was investigated in this study. Water was used for the hydrodesulfurization of commercially available high sulfur green petroleum coke. Different experimental systems were tried during the hydrodesulfurization experiments. A systematic approach was used to investigate the influence of hydrodesulfurization parameters including water injection temperature, duration, and water flow rate as well as coke particle size on the hydrodesulfurization of green petroleum coke. In addition to hydrodesulfurization, a number of thermal desulfurization experiments were carried out with the same green petroleum coke in this study. Sulfur removal as well as weight loss results which were obtained from the two methods were compared. The petroleum coke sulfur content as well as its structure were characterized using C-S analysis equipment, SEM-EDX, XPS, FT-IR, XRD, and helium pycnometer prior to the experiments. Hydrodesulfurized cokes which gave maximum sulfur removal were compared with thermally desulfurized cokes in terms of the degree of desulfurization and coke structure by using the above characterization techniques. This study has indicated that different parameters affect the rate of desulfurization to different extents. Maximum sulfur removal was obtained when the water was injected to coke surface at 1 ml/min flow rate for 60 min at 650°C and 850°C resulting in the removal of 22.87% and 22.60% sulfur, respectively. Weight loss percentages were 26.07% and 24.34%, respectively, under these conditions. Hydrodesulfurization involves the loss of a small quantity of carbon due to gasification of coke by water. The characterization of hydrodesulfurized coke with the highest desulfurization rate showed similar structure with its counterpart which was thermally desulfurized to the same maximum temperature. This result, thus, reveals that the hydrodesulfurization does not create a more porous calcined coke compared to that of thermal desulfurization. Therefore, it seems to be a promising method to produce anode-grade calcined coke with lower sulfur content and suitable structure for carbon anode production.

  5. Market Access Agreements for pharmaceuticals in Europe: diversity of approaches and underlying concepts.

    PubMed

    Jarosławski, Szymon; Toumi, Mondher

    2011-10-08

    Market Access Agreements (MAA) between pharmaceutical industry and health care payers have been proliferating in Europe in the last years. MAA can be simple discounts from the list price or very sophisticated schemes with inarguably high administrative burden. We distinguished and defined from the health care payer perspective three kinds of MAA: Commercial Agreements (CA), Payment for Performance Agreements (P4P) and Coverage with Evidence Development (CED). Apart from CA, the agreements assumed collection and analysis of real-life health outcomes data, either from a cohort of patients (CED) or on per patient basis (P4P). We argue that while P4P aim at reducing drug cost to payers without a systematic approach to addressing uncertainty about drugs' value, CED were implemented provisionally to reduce payer's uncertainty about value of a medicine within a defined time period. We are of opinion that while CA and P4P have a potential to reduce payers' expenditure on costly drugs while maintaining a high list price, CED address initial uncertainty related to assessing the real-life value of new drugs and enable a final HTA recommendation or reimbursement and pricing decisions. Further, we suggest that real cost to health care payers of drugs in CA and P4P should be made publicly available in a systematic manner, to avoid a perverse impact of these MAA types on the international reference pricing system.

  6. Expression of animal anti-apoptotic gene Ced-9 enhances tolerance during Glycine max L.-Bradyrhizobium japonicum interaction under saline stress but reduces nodule formation.

    PubMed

    Robert, Germán; Muñoz, Nacira; Melchiorre, Mariana; Sánchez, Federico; Lascano, Ramiro

    2014-01-01

    The mechanisms by which the expression of animal cell death suppressors in economically important plants conferred enhanced stress tolerance are not fully understood. In the present work, the effect of expression of animal antiapoptotic gene Ced-9 in soybean hairy roots was evaluated under root hairs and hairy roots death-inducing stress conditions given by i) Bradyrhizobium japonicum inoculation in presence of 50 mM NaCl, and ii) severe salt stress (150 mM NaCl), for 30 min and 3 h, respectively. We have determined that root hairs death induced by inoculation in presence of 50 mM NaCl showed characteristics of ordered process, with increased ROS generation, MDA and ATP levels, whereas the cell death induced by 150 mM NaCl treatment showed non-ordered or necrotic-like characteristics. The expression of Ced-9 inhibited or at least delayed root hairs death under these treatments. Hairy roots expressing Ced-9 had better homeostasis maintenance, preventing potassium release; increasing the ATP levels and controlling the oxidative damage avoiding the increase of reactive oxygen species production. Even when our results demonstrate a positive effect of animal cell death suppressors in plant cell ionic and redox homeostasis under cell death-inducing conditions, its expression, contrary to expectations, drastically inhibited nodule formation even under control conditions.

  7. The Plant Cuticle Is Required for Osmotic Stress Regulation of Abscisic Acid Biosynthesis and Osmotic Stress Tolerance in Arabidopsis[W

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Zhen-Yu; Xiong, Liming; Li, Wenbo; Zhu, Jian-Kang; Zhu, Jianhua

    2011-01-01

    Osmotic stress activates the biosynthesis of abscisic acid (ABA). One major step in ABA biosynthesis is the carotenoid cleavage catalyzed by a 9-cis epoxycarotenoid dioxygenase (NCED). To understand the mechanism for osmotic stress activation of ABA biosynthesis, we screened for Arabidopsis thaliana mutants that failed to induce the NCED3 gene expression in response to osmotic stress treatments. The ced1 (for 9-cis epoxycarotenoid dioxygenase defective 1) mutant isolated in this study showed markedly reduced expression of NCED3 in response to osmotic stress (polyethylene glycol) treatments compared with the wild type. Other ABA biosynthesis genes are also greatly reduced in ced1 under osmotic stress. ced1 mutant plants are very sensitive to even mild osmotic stress. Map-based cloning revealed unexpectedly that CED1 encodes a putative α/β hydrolase domain-containing protein and is allelic to the BODYGUARD gene that was recently shown to be essential for cuticle biogenesis. Further studies discovered that other cutin biosynthesis mutants are also impaired in osmotic stress induction of ABA biosynthesis genes and are sensitive to osmotic stress. Our work demonstrates that the cuticle functions not merely as a physical barrier to minimize water loss but also mediates osmotic stress signaling and tolerance by regulating ABA biosynthesis and signaling. PMID:21610183

  8. The mammalian Ced-1 ortholog MEGF10/KIAA1780 displays a novel adhesion pattern

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Suzuki, Emiko; Nakayama, Manabu

    2007-07-01

    Ced-1 protein is a Caenorhabditis elegans cell surface receptor involved in phagocytosis of dead cells. The gene encoding the mammalian ortholog of Ced-1 is yet to be identified. Here, we describe a potential candidate: human MEGF10. MEGF10 has the overall domain organization of Ced-1, containing a signal peptide, a EMI domain, 17 atypical EGF-like repeats, a transmembrane domain, and a cytoplasmic domain with NPXY and YXXL motifs. MEGF10-EGFP fusion protein expressed in HEK293 cells produced an irregular, mosaic-like pattern on the surface of coated glass. Protruded MEGF10 bound tightly to the glass, in effect 'pinning' the cytoplasmic membrane firmly ontomore » the glass, thereby restricting cell motility. These cells also took on a flat appearance. Although MEGF10-EGFP localized throughout the cytoplasmic membrane, no MEGF10-EGFP was found in lamellipodia. The MEGF10-EGFP signal was surrounded by a 1-2-{mu}m-wide dark strip lacking EGFP. Expression analyses of various MEGF10 deletion mutants revealed that the irregular, mosaic-like adhesion pattern characteristic of MEGF10 family members is due to concerted interactions between the EMI and 17 atypical EGF-like domains. Co-culturing of MEGF10-EGFP-expressing cells with apoptotic cells revealed that MEGF10 protein accumulated around the contact region during engulfment of apoptotic cells.« less

  9. Low-Cost Aqueous Coal Desulfurization

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kalvinskas, J. J.; Vasilakos, N.; Corcoran, W. H.; Grohmann, K.; Rohatgi, N. K.

    1982-01-01

    Water-based process for desulfurizing coal not only eliminates need for costly organic solvent but removes sulfur more effectively than an earlier solvent-based process. New process could provide low-cost commercial method for converting high-sulfur coal into environmentally acceptable fuel.

  10. Sulfation of K-based Lean NOx Trap while Cycling Between Lean and Rich Conditions: I. Microreactor Study

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Toops, Todd J; Pihl, Josh A

    2008-01-01

    Exposure of Pt/K/Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} to 15 ppm SO{sub 2} reduces the NOx activity at 200, 300, and 400 C at significantly different rates--1.5, 8.5, and 18.0 {micro}mol NOx/(h g{sub cat}), respectively. During the initial sulfation, NOx conversion is directly linked to lean phase storage capacity, and sulfation does not impact the reduction kinetics since the amount of unconverted NOx was constant or decreased with increasing sulfation time. A portion of sulfur stored at 200 C desorbs upon mild heating to 400 C while cycling between lean and rich conditions. This apparently is a result of sulfur being released frommore » Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}; however, performance is not significantly recovered as much of the sulfur is re-adsorbed on the K-phase. This is apparent from analysis of the NOx storage and release profiles. Additional analysis of these profiles suggests that SO{sub 2} initially adsorbs near Pt before interacting with other sites further away from Pt at 300 C. At 400 C, it appears that SO{sub 2} either preferentially adsorbs near Pt and then quickly diffuses along the surface to other less proximal sites, or it directly adsorbs on sites further away from Pt. De-sulfurization up to 800 C using a temperature programmed reduction (TPR) procedure and rich conditions with both CO{sub 2} and H{sub 2}O restored 73=94% of the LNT performance at 300 and 400 C. However, the recovered performance measured at 200 C was only 34-49% of the original NOx reduction activity. H{sub 2}S and SO{sub 2} were the primary de-sulfurization products with H{sub 2}S having a maximum release between 690 and 755 C, while SO{sub 2} had a peak release between 770 and 785 C. The sulfation temperature does not have a significant impact on the recovered performance, the de-sulfurization products or the sulfur release temperature.« less

  11. Nonaqueous System of Iron-Based Ionic Liquid and DMF for the Oxidation of Hydrogen Sulfide and Regeneration by Electrolysis.

    PubMed

    Guo, Zhihui; Zhang, Tingting; Liu, Tiantian; Du, Jun; Jia, Bing; Gao, Shujing; Yu, Jiang

    2015-05-05

    To improve the hydrogen sulfide removal efficiency with the application of an iron-based imidazolium chloride ionic liquid (Fe(III)-IL) as desulfurizer, Fe(II) and N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) are introduced to Fe(III)-IL to construct a new nonaqueous desulfurization system (Fe(III/II)-IL/DMF). Following desulfurization, the system can be regenerated using the controlled-potential electrolysis method. The addition of Fe(II) in Fe(III)-IL is beneficial for the hydrogen sulfide removal and the electrochemical regeneration of the desulfurizer. The addition of DMF in Fe(III/II)-IL does not change the structure of Fe(III/II)-IL but clearly decreases the acidity, increases the electrolytic current, and decreases the stability of the Fe-Cl bond in Fe(III/II)-IL. Fe(III/II)-IL/DMF can remove hydrogen sulfide and can be regenerated through an electrochemical method more efficiently than can Fe(III/II)-IL. After six cycles, the desulfurization efficiency remains higher than 98%, and the average conversion rate of Fe(II) is essentially unchanged. No sulfur peroxidation occurs, and the system remains stable. Therefore, this new nonaqueous system has considerable potential for removing H2S in pollution control applications.

  12. Numerical Study on the Effect of Electrode Polarity on Desulfurization in Direct Current Electroslag Remelting Process

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Qiang; Liu, Yu; Wang, Fang; Li, Guangqiang; Li, Baokuan; Qiao, Wenwei

    2017-10-01

    In order to clarify the influence of electrode polarity on desulfurization in direct current (DC) electroslag remelting process, a transient three-dimensional coupled mathematical model has been established. The finite volume method was invoked to simultaneously solve the mass, momentum, energy, and species conservation equations. The Joule heating and Lorentz force were fully coupled through calculating Maxwell's equations with the assistance of the magnetic potential vector. The motion of the metal-slag interface was described by using the volume of fluid approach. An auxiliary metallurgical kinetics module was introduced to determine the thermochemical and the electrochemical reaction rates. A reasonable agreement between the measured data and the simulated results are observed. A longer time and a larger area for the desulfurization can be provided by the metal pool-slag interface when compared with the metal droplet-slag interface. The electrochemical transfer rate at the metal pool-slag interface is positive in the DC reverse polarity (DCRP) remelting, while in the DC straight polarity (DCSP) remelting, the electrochemical transfer rate is negative at this interface. The desulfurization progress in the DCSP remelting thus is fall behind that in the DCRP remelting. The desulfurization rate of the DCRP remelting is around 70 pct and the rate of the DCSP remelting is about 40 pct.

  13. Deep Desulfurization of Diesel Fuels with Plasma/Air as Oxidizing Medium, Diperiodatocuprate (III) as Catalyzer and Ionic Liquid as Extraction Solvent

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ban, Lili; Liu, Ping; Ma, Cunhua; Dai, Bin

    2013-12-01

    In this paper, the oxidative desulfurization (ODS) system is directly applied to deal with the catalytic oxidation of sulfur compounds of sulfur-containing model oil by dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma in the presence of air plus an extraction step with the oxidation-treated fuel put over ionic liquid [BMIM]FeCl4 (1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrachloroferrate). This new system exhibited an excellent desulfurization effect. The sulfur content of DBT in diesel oil decreased from 200 ppm to 4.92 ppm (S removal rate up to 97.5%) under the following optimal reaction conditions: air flow rate (ν) of 60 mL/min, amplitude of applied voltage (U) on DBD of 16 kV, input frequency (f) of 79 kHz, catalyst amount (ω) of 1.25 wt%, reaction time (t) of 10 min. Moreover, a high desulfurization rate was obtained during oxidation of benzothiophene (BT) or 4,6-DMDBT (4,6-dimethyl-dibenzothiophene) under the aforementioned conditions. The oxidation reactivity of different S compounds was decreased in the order of DBT, 4,6-DMDBT and BT. The remarkable advantage of the novel ODS system is that the desulfurization condition applies in the presence of air at ambient conditions without peroxides, aqueous solvent or biphasic oil-aqueous solution system.

  14. Energy Conversion Alternatives Study (ECAS), Westinghouse phase 1. Volume 3: Combustors, furnaces and low-BTU gasifiers. [used in coal gasification and coal liquefaction (equipment specifications)

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hamm, J. R.

    1976-01-01

    Information is presented on the design, performance, operating characteristics, cost, and development status of coal preparation equipment, combustion equipment, furnaces, low-Btu gasification processes, low-temperature carbonization processes, desulfurization processes, and pollution particulate removal equipment. The information was compiled for use by the various cycle concept leaders in determining the performance, capital costs, energy costs, and natural resource requirements of each of their system configurations.

  15. Experimental hookworm infection and gluten microchallenge promote tolerance in celiac disease.

    PubMed

    Croese, John; Giacomin, Paul; Navarro, Severine; Clouston, Andrew; McCann, Leisa; Dougall, Annette; Ferreira, Ivana; Susianto, Atik; O'Rourke, Peter; Howlett, Mariko; McCarthy, James; Engwerda, Christian; Jones, Dianne; Loukas, Alex

    2015-02-01

    Celiac disease (CeD) is a common gluten-sensitive autoimmune enteropathy. A gluten-free diet is an effective treatment, but compliance is demanding; hence, new treatment strategies for CeD are required. Parasitic helminths hold promise for treating inflammatory disorders, so we examined the influence of experimental hookworm infection on the predicted outcomes of escalating gluten challenges in CeD subjects. A 52-week study was conducted involving 12 adults with diet-managed CeD. Subjects were inoculated with 20 Necator americanus larvae, and escalating gluten challenges consumed as pasta were subsequently administered: (1) 10 to 50 mg for 12 weeks (microchallenge); (2) 25 mg daily + 1 g twice weekly for 12 weeks (GC-1g); and (3) 3 g daily (60-75 straws of spaghetti) for 2 weeks (GC-3g). Symptomatic, serologic, and histological outcomes evaluated gluten toxicity. Regulatory and inflammatory T cell populations in blood and mucosa were examined. Two gluten-intolerant subjects were withdrawn after microchallenge. Ten completed GC-1g, 8 of whom enrolled in and completed GC-3g. median villous height-to-crypt depth ratios (2.60-2.63; P = .98) did not decrease as predicted after GC-1g, and the mean IgA-tissue transglutaminase titers declined, contrary to the predicted rise after GC-3g. quality of life scores improved (46.3-40.6; P = .05); celiac symptom indices (24.3-24.3; P = .53), intra-epithelial lymphocyte percentages (32.5-35.0; P = .47), and Marsh scores were unchanged by gluten challenge. Intestinal T cells expressing IFNγ were reduced following hookworm infection (23.9%-11.5%; P = .04), with corresponding increases in CD4(+) Foxp3(+) regulatory T cells (0.19%-1.12%; P = .001). Necator americanus and gluten microchallenge promoted tolerance and stabilized or improved all tested indices of gluten toxicity in CeD subjects. Copyright © 2014 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  16. Intrinsic and scattering attenuation of high-frequency S-waves in the central part of the External Dinarides

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Majstorović, Josipa; Belinić, Tena; Namjesnik, Dalija; Dasović, Iva; Herak, Davorka; Herak, Marijan

    2017-09-01

    The central part of the External Dinarides (CED) is a geologically and tectonically complex region formed in the collision between the Adriatic microplate and the European plate. In this study, the contributions of intrinsic and scattering attenuation ( Q i - 1 and Q sc - 1 , respectively) to the total S-wave attenuation were calculated for the first time. The multiple lapse-time window analysis (MLTWA method), based on the assumptions of multiple isotropic scattering in a homogeneous medium with uniformly distributed scatterers, was applied to seismograms of 450 earthquakes recorded at six seismic stations. Selected events have hypocentral distances between 40 and 90 km with local magnitudes between 1.5 and 4.7. The analysis was performed over 11 frequency bands with central frequencies between 1.5 and 16 Hz. Results show that the seismic albedo of the studied area is less than 0.5 and Q i - 1 > Q sc - 1 at all central frequencies and for all stations. These imply that the intrinsic attenuation dominates over scattering attenuation in the whole study area. Calculated total S-wave and expected coda wave attenuation for CED are in a very good agreement with the ones measured in previous studies using the coda normalization and the coda-Q methods. All estimated attenuation factors decrease with increasing frequency. The intrinsic attenuation for CED is among the highest observed elsewhere, which could be due to the highly fractured and fluid-filled carbonates in the upper crust. The scattering and the total S-wave attenuation for CED are close to the average values obtained in other studies performed worldwide. In particular, good agreement of frequency dependence of total attenuation in CED and in the regions that contributed most strong-motion records for ground motion prediction equations used in PSHA in Croatia indicates that those were well chosen and applicable to this area as far as their attenuation properties are concerned.

  17. Prolonged Attenuation of Amygdala-Kindled Seizure Measures in Rats by Convection-Enhanced Delivery of the N-Type Calcium Channel Antagonists ω-Conotoxin GVIA and ω-Conotoxin MVIIA

    PubMed Central

    Gasior, Maciej; White, Natalie A.; Rogawski, Michael A.

    2008-01-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) permits the homogeneous distribution of therapeutic agents throughout localized regions of the brain parenchyma without causing tissue damage as occurs with bolus injection. Here, we examined whether CED infusion of the N-type calcium channel antagonists ω-conotoxin GVIA (ω-CTX-G) and ω-conotoxin MVIIA (ω-CTX-M) can attenuate kindling measures in fully amygdala-kindled rats. Rats were implanted with a combination infusion cannula-stimulating electrode assembly into the right basolateral amygdala. Fully kindled animals received infusions of vehicle, ω-CTX-G (0.005, 0.05, and 0.5 nmol), ω-CTX-M (0.05, 0.15, and 0.5 nmol), proteolytically inactivated ω-CTX-M (0.5 nmol), or carbamazepine (500 nmol) into the stimulation site. CED of ω-CTX-G and ω-CTX-M over a 20-min period resulted in a dose-dependent increase in the afterdischarge threshold and a decrease in the afterdischarge duration and behavioral seizure score and duration during a period of 20 min to 1 week after the infusion, indicating an inhibitory effect on the triggering and expression of kindled seizures. The protective effects of ω-conotoxins reached a maximum at 48 h postinfusion, and then they gradually resolved over the next 5 days. In contrast, carbamazepine was active at 20 min but not at 24 h after the infusion, whereas CED of vehicle or inactivated ω-CTX-M had no effect. Except for transient tremor in some rats receiving the highest toxin doses, no adverse effects were observed. These results indicate that local CED of high-molecular-weight presynaptic N-type calcium channel blockers can produce long-lasting inhibition of brain excitability and that they may provide prolonged seizure protection in focal seizure disorders. PMID:17717191

  18. Convection-enhanced delivery of etoposide is effective against murine proneural glioblastoma.

    PubMed

    Sonabend, Adam M; Carminucci, Arthur S; Amendolara, Benjamin; Bansal, Mukesh; Leung, Richard; Lei, Liang; Realubit, Ronald; Li, Hai; Karan, Charles; Yun, Jonathan; Showers, Christopher; Rothcock, Robert; O, Jane; Califano, Andrea; Canoll, Peter; Bruce, Jeffrey N

    2014-09-01

    Glioblastoma subtypes have been defined based on transcriptional profiling, yet personalized care based on molecular classification remains unexploited. Topoisomerase II (TOP2) contributes to the transcriptional signature of the proneural glioma subtype. Thus, we targeted TOP2 pharmacologically with etoposide in proneural glioma models. TOP2 gene expression was evaluated in mouse platelet derived growth factor (PDGF)(+)phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN)(-/-)p53(-/-) and PDGF(+)PTEN(-/-) proneural gliomas and cell lines, as well as human glioblastoma from The Cancer Genome Atlas. Correlation between TOP2 transcript levels and etoposide susceptibility was investigated in 139 human cancer cell lines from the Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia public dataset and in mouse proneural glioma cell lines. Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) of etoposide was tested on cell-based PDGF(+)PTEN(-/-)p53(-/-) and retroviral-based PDGF(+)PTEN(-/-) mouse proneural glioma models. TOP2 expression was significantly higher in human proneural glioblastoma and in mouse proneural tumors at early as well as late stages of development compared with normal brain. TOP2B transcript correlated with susceptibility to etoposide in mouse proneural cell lines and in 139 human cancer cell lines from the Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia. Intracranial etoposide CED treatment (680 μM) was well tolerated by mice and led to a significant survival benefit in the PDGF(+)PTEN(-/-)p53(-/-) glioma model. Moreover, etoposide CED treatment at 80 μM but not 4 μM led to a significant survival advantage in the PDGF(+)PTEN(-/-) glioma model. TOP2 is highly expressed in proneural gliomas, rendering its pharmacological targeting by intratumoral administration of etoposide by CED effective on murine proneural gliomas. We provide evidence supporting clinical testing of CED of etoposide with a molecular-based patient selection approach. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Neuro-Oncology 2014. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US.

  19. Convection-enhanced delivery of an anti-miR is well-tolerated, preserves anti-miR stability and causes efficient target de-repression: a proof of concept.

    PubMed

    Halle, Bo; Marcusson, Eric G; Aaberg-Jessen, Charlotte; Jensen, Stine S; Meyer, Morten; Schulz, Mette K; Andersen, Claus; Kristensen, Bjarne W

    2016-01-01

    Over-expressed microRNAs (miRs) are promising new targets in glioblastoma (GBM) therapy. Inhibition of over-expressed miRs has been shown to diminish GBM proliferation, invasion and angiogenesis, indicating a significant therapeutic potential. However, the methods utilized for miR inhibition have had low translational potential. In clinical trials convection-enhanced delivery (CED) has been applied for local delivery of compounds in the brain. The aim of this study was to determine if safe and efficient miR inhibition was possible by CED of an anti-miR. We used a highly invasive GBM orthotopic xenograft model and targeted a well-validated miR, let-7a, with a 2'-O-methoxyethyl anti-miR with a combined phosphodiester/phosphorothioate backbone to establish an initial proof of concept. In vitro, anti-let-7a was delivered unassisted to the patient-derived T87 glioblastoma spheroid culture. In vivo, anti-let-7a or saline were administered by CED into orthotopic T87-derived tumors. After 1 month of infusion, tumors were removed and tumor mRNA levels of the target-gene High-mobility group AT-hook 2 (HMGA2) were determined. In vitro, 5 days inhibition was superior to 1 day at de-repressing the let-7a target HMGA2 and the inhibition was stable for 24 h. In vivo, anti-miR integrity was preserved in the pumps and no animals showed signs of severe adverse effects attributable to the anti-miR treatment. HMGA2 tumor level was significantly de-repressed in the anti-miR treated animals. The results showed-as an initial proof of concept-that miRs can be efficiently inhibited using CED delivery of anti-miR. The next step is to apply CED for anti-miR delivery focusing on key oncogenic miRs.

  20. DEEP DESULFURIZATION OF DIESEL FUELS BY A NOVEL INTEGRATED APPROACH

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Xiaoliang Ma; Uday Turaga; Shingo Watanabe

    2004-05-01

    The overall objective of this project is to explore a new desulfurization system concept, which consists of efficient separation of the refractory sulfur compounds from diesel fuel by selective adsorption, and effective hydrodesulfurization of the concentrated fraction of the refractory sulfur compounds in diesel fuels. Our approaches focused on (1) selecting and developing new adsorbents for selective adsorption of sulfur or sulfur compounds in commercial diesel fuel; (2) conducting the adsorption desulfurization of model fuels and real diesel fuels by the selective-adsorption-for-removing-sulfur (PSUSARS) process over various developed adsorbents, and examining the adsorptive desulfurization performance of various adsorbents; (3) developing andmore » evaluating the regeneration methods for various spent adsorbent; (4) developing new catalysts for hydrodesulfurization of the refractory sulfur existing in the commercial diesel fuel; (5) on the basis of the fundamental understanding of the adsorptive performance and regeneration natures of the adsorbents, further confirming and improving the conceptual design of the novel PSU-SARS process for deep desulfurization of diesel fuel Three types of adsorbents, the metal-chloride-based adsorbents, the activated nickel-based adsorbents and the metal-sulfide-based adsorbents, have been developed for selective adsorption desulfurization of liquid hydrocarbons. All of three types of the adsorbents exhibit the significant selectivity for sulfur compounds, including alkyl dibenzothiophenes (DBTs), in diesel fuel. Adsorption desulfurization of real diesel fuels (regular diesel fuel (DF), S: 325 ppmw; low sulfur diesel fuel (LSD-I), S: 47 ppmw) over the nickel-based adsorbents (A-2 and A-5) has been conducted at different conditions by using a flowing system. The adsorption capacity of DF over A-2 corresponding to an outlet sulfur level of 30 ppmw is 2.8 mg-S/g-A. The adsorption capacity of LSD-I over A-5 corresponding to the break-through point at 5.0 ppmw sulfur level is 0.35 mg-S/g-A. The spent A-5 can be regenerated by using H2 gas at a flowing rate of 40-50 ml/min, 500 C, and ambient pressure. Adsorption desulfurization of model diesel fuels over metal-sulfide-based adsorbents (A-6-1 and A-6-2) has been conducted at different temperatures to examine the capacity and selectivity of the adsorbents. A regeneration method for the spent metal-sulfide-based adsorbents has been developed. The spent A-6-1 can be easily regenerated by washing the spent adsorbent with a polar solvent followed by heating the adsorbent bed to remove the remainder solvent. Almost all adsorption capacity of the fresh A-6-1 can be recovered after the regeneration. On the other hand, a MCM-41-supported HDS catalyst was developed for deep desulfurization of the refractory sulfur compounds. The results show that the developed MCM-41-supported catalyst demonstrates consistently higher activity for the HDS of the refractory dibenzothiophenic sulfur compounds than the commercial catalyst. On the basis of the fundamental understanding of the adsorptive performance and regeneration natures of the adsorbents, the conceptual design of the novel PSU-SARS process for deep desulfurization of diesel fuel is confirmed and improved further.« less

  1. SHAWNEE FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION COMPUTER MODEL USERS MANUAL

    EPA Science Inventory

    The manual describes a Shawnee flue gas desulfurization (FGD) computer model and gives detailed instructions for its use. The model, jointly developed by Bechtel National, Inc. and TVA (in conjunction with the EPA-sponsored Shawnee test program), is capable of projecting prelimin...

  2. FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION: THE STATE OF THE ART

    EPA Science Inventory

    The paper gives results of a review of commercially available flue gas desulfurization (FGD) technologies that have an established record of full-scale performance. (NOTE: Sulfur dioxide (SO2) scrubbers may be used by coal-fired electrcity generating units to meet the requiremen...

  3. PROCEEDINGS: SYMPOSIUM ON FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION - NEW ORLEANS, MARCH 1976, VOLUME I

    EPA Science Inventory

    The proceedings document the presentation made during the symposium, which dealt with the status of flue gas desulfurization technology in the United States and abroad. Subjects considered included: regenerable, nonregenerable, and advanced processes; process costs; and by-produc...

  4. PROCEEDINGS: SYMPOSIUM ON FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION-NEW ORLEANS, MARCH 1976. VOLUME II

    EPA Science Inventory

    The proceedings document the presentations made during the symposium, which dealt with the status of flue gas desulfurization technology in the United States and abroad. Subjects considered included: regenerable, non-regenerable, and advanced processes; process costs; and by-prod...

  5. CURRENT STATUS OF ADVACATE PROCESS FOR FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION

    EPA Science Inventory

    The following report discusses current bench- and pilot-plant advances in preparation of ADVAnced siliCATE (ADVACATE) calcium silicate sorbentsfor flue gas desulfurization. It also discusses current bench- and pilot-plant advances in sorbent preparation. Fly ash was ground in a l...

  6. Dealing with methionine/homocysteine sulfur: cysteine metabolism to taurine and inorganic sulfur

    PubMed Central

    Ueki, Iori

    2010-01-01

    Synthesis of cysteine as a product of the transsulfuration pathway can be viewed as part of methionine or homocysteine degradation, with cysteine being the vehicle for sulfur conversion to end products (sulfate, taurine) that can be excreted in the urine. Transsulfuration is regulated by stimulation of cystathionine β-synthase and inhibition of methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase in response to changes in the level of S-adenosylmethionine, and this promotes homocysteine degradation when methionine availability is high. Cysteine is catabolized by several desulfuration reactions that release sulfur in a reduced oxidation state, generating sulfane sulfur or hydrogen sulfide (H2S), which can be further oxidized to sulfate. Cysteine desulfuration is accomplished by alternate reactions catalyzed by cystathionine β-synthase and cystathionine γ-lyase. Cysteine is also catabolized by pathways that require the initial oxidation of the cysteine thiol by cysteine dioxygenase to form cysteinesulfinate. The oxidative pathway leads to production of taurine and sulfate in a ratio of approximately 2:1. Relative metabolism of cysteine by desulfuration versus oxidative pathways is influenced by cysteine dioxygenase activity, which is low in animals fed low-protein diets and high in animals fed excess sulfur amino acids. Thus, desulfuration reactions dominate when cysteine is deficient, whereas oxidative catabolism dominates when cysteine is in excess. In rats consuming a diet with an adequate level of sulfur amino acids, about two thirds of cysteine catabolism occurs by oxidative pathways and one third by desulfuration pathways. Cysteine dioxygenase is robustly regulated in response to cysteine availability and may function to provide a pathway to siphon cysteine to less toxic metabolites than those produced by cysteine desulfuration reactions. PMID:20162368

  7. DISPOSAL OF BY-PRODUCTS FROM NONREGENERABLE FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION SYSTEMS

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report gives results of a 4-year study to determine environmentally sound methods for disposing of wastes from nonregenerable flue gas desulfurization (FGD) systems. Data presented incorporates results obtained during the fourth year with material from report EPA-600/7-77-052...

  8. STATUS OF COMMERCIAL UTILITY FGD (FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION) TECHNOLOGY

    EPA Science Inventory

    The paper summarizes the status of FGD technology as of March 1983 and highlights recent trends in process selection, design, and performance of FGD systems. The information collected in the program is stored in the Flue Gas Desulfurization Information System (FGDIS), a collectio...

  9. PROCEEDINGS: SYMPOSIUM ON FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION HELD AT HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA, NOVEMBER 1977. VOLUME II

    EPA Science Inventory

    The proceedings document presentations made during the symposium, which dealt with the status of flue gas desulfurization technology in the United States and abroad. Subjects considered included: regenerable, non-regenerable, and advanced processes; process costs; and by-product ...

  10. PROCEEDINGS: SYMPOSIUM ON FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION HELD AT HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA, NOVEMBER 1977. VOLUME I

    EPA Science Inventory

    The proceedings document presentations made during the symposium, which dealt with the status of flue gas desulfurization technology in the United States and abroad. Subjects considered included: regenerable, non-regenerable, and advanced processes; process costs; and by-product ...

  11. MARKETING OF BYPRODUCT GYPSUM FROM FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report gives results of an evaluation of the 1985 marketing potential of byproduct gypsum from utility flue gas desulfurization (FGD), for the area east of the Rocky Mountains, using the calculated gypsum production rates of 14 selected power plants. The 114 cement plants and...

  12. Application study of Bio-FGD based on environmental safety during the coal combustion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Pin

    2018-05-01

    Coal combustion produces a large amount of acidic gas, which is the main cause of acid rain and other natural disasters. Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) is a necessary requirement for clean coal combustion. Compared with the traditional chemical desulfurization technology, biological desulfurization has the advantages of low operating cost, without secondary pollution, low carbon emission and the additional economic benefits. The process and structure of BioDeSOx which as one of Bio-FGD technology is introduced. The major factors that influent BioDeSOx Bio- FGD system is the pH, oxidation reduction potential (-300 MV to -400MV), electrical conductivity, the adding amount of nutrient and temperature (30°C-40°C). Taking the Bio- FGD project of Yixing xielian thermal power plant as an example, the BioDeSOx technology was applied in this project. The environmental and economic benefits of the project were greater than the traditional desulfurization technology. With the continuous improvement of environmental safety standards, Bio- FGD technology will have broad application prospects.

  13. Peroxide-mediated desulfurization of phosphorothioate oligonucleotides and its prevention.

    PubMed

    Krotz, Achim H; Mehta, Rahul C; Hardee, Gregory E

    2005-02-01

    Desulfurization at the internucleotide phosphorothioate linkage of antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) in dermatological formulations has been investigated using strong ion exchange chromatography and mass spectroscopy. The formation of phosphate diester linkages appeared to arise from a reaction between the phosphorothioate oligonucleotide and a potent oxidizing agent. Screening of excipients used in the formulation indicated that the cause of desulfurization was related to the presence of polyethylene glycol-derived nonionic surfactants MYRJ 52 or BRIJ 58. Autoxidation of the polyethylene glycol chain is suggested as the probable origin for the observed incompatibility. The ability of various antioxidants to prevent oxidative degradation of ASO-1 in simple test systems and in oil-in-water emulsions is described. It is found that in test systems both lipophilic and hydrophilic antioxidants are effective. However, in cream formulation (oil-in-water emulsions) of ASO-1 the addition of hydrophilic antioxidants L-cysteine or DL-alpha-lipoic acid has been shown to be superior in protecting the oligonucleotide from desulfurization upon storage. Copyright 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  14. Philippine refiner completes diesel desulfurization project

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Candido, S.S.; Crisostomo, E.V.

    1997-01-27

    In anticipation of tightening sulfur specifications on diesel fuel, Petron Corp. built a new 18,000 b/sd gas oil desulfurization unit (GODU) at its refinery in Bataan, Philippines. The GODU gives Petron sufficient diesel oil desulfurization capacity to meet demand for lower-sulfur diesel in the country. The project places the refinery in a pacesetter position to comply with the Philippine government`s moves to reduce air pollution, especially in urban centers, by reducing the sulfur specification for diesel to 0.5 wt% in 1996 from 0.7 wt% at the start of the project. Performance tests and initial operations of the unit have revealedmore » a desulfurization efficiency of 91% vs. a guaranteed efficiency of 90%. A feed sulfur content of 1.33 wt% is reduced to 0.12 wt% at normal operating conditions. Operating difficulties during start-up were minimized through use of a detailed prestartup check conducted during the early stages of construction work.« less

  15. Reusing pretreated desulfurization slag to improve clinkerization and clinker grindability for energy conservation in cement manufacture.

    PubMed

    Chen, Ying-Liang; Chang, Juu-En; Shih, Pai-Haung; Ko, Ming-Sheng; Chang, Yi-Kuo; Chiang, Li-Choung

    2010-09-01

    The purpose of this study was to combine the physical pretreatments of grinding, sieving, and magnetic-separation processes to reclaim iron-rich materials from the desulfurization slag, and to use the remainder for cement clinker production. The iron-rich materials can be separated out efficiently by grinding for 30 min and sieving with a 0.3 mm mesh. The non-magnetic fraction of the particles smaller than 0.3 mm was in the majority, and proved to be suitable for use as a cement raw material. The raw mixes prepared with a pretreated desulfurization slag had a relatively high reactivity, and the temperature at which alite forms was significantly reduced during the clinkerization process. The clinkers produced with 10% desulfurization slag had a high level of alite and good grindability. Generally, the improvements in clinkerization and clinker grindability are beneficial to energy conservation in cement manufacture. 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Combined prevalence of inherited skeletal disorders in dog breeds in Belgium.

    PubMed

    Coopman, F; Broeckx, B; Verelst, E; Deforce, D; Saunders, J; Duchateau, L; Verhoeven, G

    2014-01-01

    Canine hip dysplasia (CHD), canine elbow dysplasia (CED), and humeral head osteochondrosis (HHOC) are inherited traits with uneven incidence in dog breeds. Knowledge of the combined prevalence of these three disorders is necessary to estimate the effect of the currently applied breeding strategies, in order to improve the genetic health of the population. Official screening results of the Belgian National Committee for Inherited Skeletal Disorders (NCSID) revealed that an average of 31.8% (CHD, CED, or both; n = 1273 dogs) and 47.2% (CHD, CED, HHOC, or a combination of these three diseases; n = 250 dogs) of dogs are mildly to severely affected by at least one skeletal disorder. According to the current breeding recommendations in some dog breeds in Belgium, these animals should be restricted (mild signs) or excluded (moderate to severe signs) from breeding. The introduction of genetic parameters, such as estimated breeding values, might create a better approach to gradually reduce the incidence of these complex inherited joint disorders, without compromising genetic population health.

  17. IER-297 CED-2: Final Design for Thermal/Epithermal eXperiments with Jemima Plates with Polyethylene and Hafnium

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Nelson, A. J.; Percher, C. M.; Zywiec, W. J.

    This report presents the final design (CED-2) for IER-297, and focuses on 15 critical configurations using highly enriched uranium (HEU) Jemima plates moderated by polyethylene with and without hafnium diluent. The goal of the U.S. Nuclear Criticality Safety Program’s Thermal/Epithermal eXperiments (TEX) is to design and conduct new critical experiments to address high priority nuclear data needs from the nuclear criticality safety and nuclear data communities, with special emphasis on intermediate energy (0.625 eV – 100 keV) assemblies that can be easily modified to include various high priority diluent materials. The TEX (IER 184) CED-1 Report [1], completed in 2012,more » demonstrated the feasibility of meeting the TEX goals with two existing NCSP fissile assets, plutonium Zero Power Physics Reactor (ZPPR) plates and highly enriched uranium (HEU) Jemima plates. The first set of TEX experiments will focus on using the plutonium ZPPR plates with polyethylene moderator and tantalum diluents.« less

  18. Mapping Urban Risk: Flood Hazards, Race, & Environmental Justice In New York”

    PubMed Central

    Maantay, Juliana; Maroko, Andrew

    2009-01-01

    This paper demonstrates the importance of disaggregating population data aggregated by census tracts or other units, for more realistic population distribution/location. A newly-developed mapping method, the Cadastral-based Expert Dasymetric System (CEDS), calculates population in hyper-heterogeneous urban areas better than traditional mapping techniques. A case study estimating population potentially impacted by flood hazard in New York City compares the impacted population determined by CEDS with that derived by centroid-containment method and filtered areal weighting interpolation. Compared to CEDS, 37 percent and 72 percent fewer people are estimated to be at risk from floods city-wide, using conventional areal weighting of census data, and centroid-containment selection, respectively. Undercounting of impacted population could have serious implications for emergency management and disaster planning. Ethnic/racial populations are also spatially disaggregated to determine any environmental justice impacts with flood risk. Minorities are disproportionately undercounted using traditional methods. Underestimating more vulnerable sub-populations impairs preparedness and relief efforts. PMID:20047020

  19. Process for production desulfurized of synthesis gas

    DOEpatents

    Wolfenbarger, James K.; Najjar, Mitri S.

    1993-01-01

    A process for the partial oxidation of a sulfur- and silicate-containing carbonaceous fuel to produce a synthesis gas with reduced sulfur content which comprises partially oxidizing said fuel at a temperature in the range of 1900.degree.-2600.degree. F. in the presence of a temperature moderator, an oxygen-containing gas and a sulfur capture additive which comprises a calcium-containing compound portion, a sodium-containing compound portion, and a fluoride-containing compound portion to produce a synthesis gas comprising H.sub.2 and CO with a reduced sulfur content and a molten slag which comprises (1) a sulfur-containing sodium-calcium-fluoride silicate phase; and (2) a sodium-calcium sulfide phase.

  20. Advanced fuel gas desulfurization (AFGD) demonstration project. Technical progress report No. 19, July 1, 1994--September 30, 1994

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    NONE

    1995-12-01

    The {open_quotes}Advanced Flue Gas Desulfurization (AFGD) Demonstration Project{close_quotes} is a $150.5 million cooperative effort between the U.S. Department of Energy and Pure Air, a general partnership of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries America, Inc. The AFGD process is one of several alternatives to conventional flue gas desulfurization (FGD) being demonstrated under the Department of Energy`s Clean Coal Technology Demonstration Program. The AFGD demonstration project is located at the Northern Indiana Public Service Company`s Bailly Generating Station, about 12 miles northeast of Gary, Indiana.

  1. Ultrasound-assisted oxidative desulfurization of bitumen

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kamal, Wan Mohamad Ikhwan bin Wan; Okawa, Hirokazu; Kato, Takahiro; Sugawara, Katsuyasu

    2017-07-01

    Bitumen contains a high percentage of sulfur (about 4.6 wt %). A hydrodesulfurization method is used to remove sulfur from bitumen. The drawback of this method is the requirement for a high temperature of >300 °C. Most of the sulfur in bitumen exists as thiophene. Oxidative desulfurization (ODS), involving oxidizing sulfur using H2O2, then removing it using NaOH, allows the removal of sulfur in thiophene at low temperatures. We removed sulfur from bitumen using ODS treatment under ultrasound irradiation, and 52% of sulfur was successfully removed. Additionally, the physical action of ultrasound assisted the desulfurization of bitumen, even at low H2O2 concentrations.

  2. Design and Implementation of the CEBAF Element Database

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Theodore Larrieu, Christopher Slominski, Michele Joyce

    2011-10-01

    With inauguration of the CEBAF Element Database (CED) in Fall 2010, Jefferson Lab computer scientists have taken a first step toward the eventual goal of a model-driven accelerator. Once fully populated, the database will be the primary repository of information used for everything from generating lattice decks to booting front-end computers to building controls screens. A particular requirement influencing the CED design is that it must provide consistent access to not only present, but also future, and eventually past, configurations of the CEBAF accelerator. To accomplish this, an introspective database schema was designed that allows new elements, element types, andmore » element properties to be defined on-the-fly without changing table structure. When used in conjunction with the Oracle Workspace Manager, it allows users to seamlessly query data from any time in the database history with the exact same tools as they use for querying the present configuration. Users can also check-out workspaces and use them as staging areas for upcoming machine configurations. All Access to the CED is through a well-documented API that is translated automatically from original C++ into native libraries for script languages such as perl, php, and TCL making access to the CED easy and ubiquitous. Notice: Authored by Jefferson Science Associates, LLC under U.S. DOE Contract No. DE-AC05-06OR23177. The U.S. Government retains a non-exclusive, paid-up, irrevocable, world-wide license to publish or reproduce this manuscript for U.S. Government purposes.« less

  3. Induction of cap-independent BiP (hsp-3) and Bcl-2 (ced-9) translation in response to eIF4G (IFG-1) depletion in C. elegans

    PubMed Central

    Morrison, J Kaitlin; Friday, Andrew J; Henderson, Melissa A; Hao, Enhui; Keiper, Brett D

    2014-01-01

    During apoptosis, activated caspases cleave the translation initiation factor eIF4G. This cleavage disrupts cap-dependent mRNA translation initiation within the cell. However, a specific subset of mRNAs can still be recruited for protein synthesis in a cap-independent manner by the residual initiation machinery. Many of these mRNAs, including cell death related mRNAs, contain internal ribosome entry sites (IRESes) that promote their enhanced translation during apoptosis. Still other mRNAs have little dependence on the cap recognition mechanism. The expression of the encoded proteins, both anti- and pro-apoptotic, allows for an initial period of attempted cell survival, then commitment to cell death when damage is extensive. In this study we address the translational regulation of the stress and apoptosis-related mRNAs in C. elegans: BiP (hsp-3) (hsp-4), Hif-1 (hif-1), p53 (cep-1), Bcl-2 (ced-9) and Apaf-1 (ced-4). Altered translational efficiency of these messages was observed upon depletion of cap-dependent translation and induction of apoptosis within the C. elegans gonad. Our findings suggest a physiological link between the cap-independent mechanism and the enhanced translation of hsp-3 and ced-9. This increase in the efficiency of translation may be integral to the stress response during the induction of physiological apoptosis. PMID:26779406

  4. Investigation Of A Mercury Speciation Technique For Flue Gas Desulfurization Materials

    EPA Science Inventory

    Most of the synthetic gypsum generated from wet flue gas desulfurization (FGD) scrubbers is currently being used for wallboard production. Because oxidized mercury is readily captured by the wet FGD scrubber, and coal-fired power plants equipped with wet scrubbers desire to bene...

  5. Recombinant DNA encoding a desulfurization biocatalyst

    DOEpatents

    Rambosek, John; Piddington, Chris S.; Kovacevich, Brian R.; Young, Kevin D.; Denome, Sylvia A.

    1994-01-01

    This invention relates to a recombinant DNA molecule containing a gene or genes which encode a biocatalyst capable of desulfurizing a fossil fuel which contains organic sulfur molecules. For example, the present invention encompasses a recombinant DNA molecule containing a gene or genes of a strain of Rhodococcus rhodochrous.

  6. FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION: THE STATE OF THE ART: JOURNAL ARTICLE

    EPA Science Inventory

    Srivastava*, R.K., and Jozewicz, W. Flue Gas Desulfurization: The State of the Art. Journal of Air and Waste Management Association (Air & Waste Management Asiciation) 51 (12):1676-88 (2001). EPA/600/J-01/391, Available: Journal of Air and Waste Management Association (journal)...

  7. let-7 miRNA controls CED-7 homotypic adhesion and EFF-1–mediated axonal self-fusion to restore touch sensation following injury

    PubMed Central

    Basu, Atrayee; Dey, Shirshendu; Puri, Dharmendra; Das Saha, Nilanjana; Sabharwal, Vidur; Thyagarajan, Pankajam; Srivastava, Prerna; Koushika, Sandhya Padmanabhan

    2017-01-01

    Neuronal injury often leads to devastating consequences such as loss of senses or locomotion. Restoration of function after injury relies on whether the injured axons can find their target cells. Although fusion between injured proximal axon and distal fragment has been observed in many organisms, its functional significance is not clear. Here, using Caenorhabditis elegans mechanosensory neurons, we address this question. Using two femtosecond lasers simultaneously, we could scan and sever posterior lateral microtubule neurons [posterior lateral microtubules (PLMs)] on both sides of the worm. We showed that axotomy of both PLMs leads to a dramatic loss of posterior touch sensation. During the regenerative phase, only axons that fuse to their distal counterparts contribute to functional recovery. Loss of let-7 miRNA promotes functional restoration in both larval and adult stages. In the L4 stage, loss of let-7 increases fusion events by increasing the mRNA level of one of the cell-recognition molecules, CED-7. The ability to establish cytoplasmic continuity between the proximal and distal ends declines with age. Loss of let-7 overcomes this barrier by promoting axonal transport and enrichment of the EFF-1 fusogen at the growing tip of cut processes. Our data reveal the functional property of a regenerating neuron. PMID:29109254

  8. MODELING OF SO2 REMOVAL IN SPRAY-DRYER FLUE-GAS DESULFURIZATION SYSTEM

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report presents a comprehensive mathematical model of the SO2 removal process in a spray-dryer flue-gas desulfurization system. Simultaneous evaporation of a sorbent droplet and absorption/reaction of SO2 in the droplet are described by the corresponding heat- and mass-transf...

  9. Effect of Flue Gas Desulfurization Waste on Corn Plants

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Flue gas desulfurization gypsum (FGDG) is a by-product of conversion of sulfur dioxide into solid waste from coal combustion power generation plant. This by-product is rich in calcium, magnesium, and contains various other essential plant nutrients. The beneficial use of application of this waste as...

  10. Impact of Leaching Conditions on Constituents Release from Flue Gas Desulfurization Gypsum (FGDG) and FGDG-Soil Mixture

    EPA Science Inventory

    The interest in using Flue Gas Desulfurization Gypsum(FGDG) has increased recently. This study evaluates the leaching characteristics of trace elements in "modern" FGDG (produced after fly ash removal) and FGDG-mixed soil (SF) under different environmental conditions using rece...

  11. Highly flexible sub-1 nm tungsten oxide nanobelts as efficient desulfurization catalysts.

    PubMed

    He, Jie; Liu, Huiling; Xu, Biao; Wang, Xun

    2015-03-01

    Ultrathin tungsten oxide nanobelts are successfully synthesized via a facile solvothermal method. Sub-1 nm thickness and hydrophobic surface property endow the nanobelts with flexibility, viscosity, gelation, and good catalytic performance in oxidative desulfurization. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  12. Results using flue gas desulfurization gypsum in soilless substrates for greenhouse crops

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Recent availability of Flue Gas Desulfurization gypsum (FGDG) has led to interested in its possible use in horticulture greenhouse production. Three studies were conducted to determine the effects of increasing rates of FGDG on six greenhouse crops. In the first study, substrates (6:1 pine bark:san...

  13. Recombinant DNA encoding a desulfurization biocatalyst

    DOEpatents

    Rambosek, J.; Piddington, C.S.; Kovacevich, B.R.; Young, K.D.; Denome, S.A.

    1994-10-18

    This invention relates to a recombinant DNA molecule containing a gene or genes which encode a biocatalyst capable of desulfurizing a fossil fuel which contains organic sulfur molecules. For example, the present invention encompasses a recombinant DNA molecule containing a gene or genes of a strain of Rhodococcus rhodochrous. 13 figs.

  14. SURVEY OF FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION SYSTEMS: ST. CLAIR STATION, DETROIT EDISON CO

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report gives results of a survey of the flue gas desulfurization (FGD) system retrofitted on Unit 6 of Detroit Edison Co.'s St. Clair Station. The experimental FGD system, which operated through a 2-month (October 1976-January 1977) demonstration program, utilized a limestone...

  15. Hydrologic transport of fecal bacteria attenuated by flu gas desulfurized (FGD) gypsum

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Background Flue gas desulfurized (FGD) gypsum is a byproduct of coal-fired power plants. As a soil amendment for crop production it has the potential of improving soil water infiltration, soil conservation, and decreasing nutrient losses from broiler litter applications. Because broiler litter is a ...

  16. Hydrologic transport of fecal bacteria attenuated by flue gas desulfurization gypsum

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Flue gas desulfurization (FGD) gypsum is a byproduct of coal-fired power plants. As a soil amendment for crop and pasture production it may increase water infiltration, reduce soil erosion, and decrease nutrient losses from applications of animal manures. Broiler litter is used as a source of plan...

  17. Flue gas desulfurization gypsum: Its effectiveness as an alternative bedding material for broiler production

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Flue gas desulfurization gypsum (FGDG) may be a viable low-cost alternative bedding material for broiler production. In order to evaluate FGD gypsum’s viability, three consecutive trials were conducted to determine its influence on live performance (body weight, feed consumption, feed efficiency, an...

  18. Decreasing phosphorus loss in tile-drained landscapes using flue gas desulfurization gypsum

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Elevated phosphorus (P) loading from agricultural non-point source pollution continues to impair inland waterbodies throughout the world. The application of flue gas desulfurization (FGD) gypsum to agricultural fields has been suggested to decrease P loading because of its high calcium content and P...

  19. Kinetics and Mechanism of Bioactivation via S-Oxygenation of Anti-Tubercular Agent Ethionamide by Peracetic Acid.

    PubMed

    Chipiso, Kudzanai; Logan, Isabelle E; Eskew, Matthew W; Omondi, Benard; Simoyi, Reuben H

    2016-10-11

    The kinetics and mechanism of the oxidation of the important antitubercular agent, ethionamide, ETA (2-ethylthioisonicotinamide), by peracetic acid (PAA) have been studied. It is effectively a biphasic reaction with an initial rapid first phase of the reaction which is over in about 5 s and a second slower phase of the reaction which can run up to an hour. The first phase involves the addition of a single oxygen atom to ethionamide to form the S-oxide. The second phase involves further oxidation of the S-oxide to desulfurization of ETA to give 2-ethylisonicotinamide. In contrast to the stability of most organosulfur compounds, the S-oxide of ETA is relatively stable and can be isolated. In conditions of excess ETA, the stoichiometry of the reaction was strictly 1:1: CH 3 CO 3 H + Et(C 5 H 4 )C(═S)NH 2 → CH 3 CO 2 H + Et(C 5 H 4 )C(═NH)SOH. In this oxidation, it was apparent that only the sulfur center was the reactive site. Though ETA was ultimately desulfurized, only the S-oxide was stable. Electrospray ionization (ESI) spectral analysis did not detect any substantial formation of the sulfinic and sulfonic acids. This suggests that cleavage of the carbon-sulfur bond occurs at the sulfenic acid stage, resulting in the formation of an unstable sulfur species that can react further to form more stable sulfur species. In this oxidation, no sulfate formation was observed. ESI spectral analysis data showed a final sulfur species in the form of a dimeric sulfur monoxide species, H 3 S 2 O 2 . We derived a bimolecular rate constant for the formation of the S-oxide of (3.08 ± 0.72) × 10 2 M -1 s -1 . Oxidation of the S-oxide further to give 2-ethylisonicotinamide gave zero order kinetics.

  20. Stability of lanthanum oxide-based H 2S sorbents in realistic fuel processor/fuel cell operation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Valsamakis, Ioannis; Si, Rui; Flytzani-Stephanopoulos, Maria

    We report that lanthana-based sulfur sorbents are an excellent choice as once-through chemical filters for the removal of trace amounts of H 2S and COS from any fuel gas at temperatures matching those of solid oxide fuel cells. We have examined sorbents based on lanthana and Pr-doped lanthana with up to 30 at.% praseodymium, having high desulfurization efficiency, as measured by their ability to remove H 2S from simulated reformate gas streams to below 50 ppbv with corresponding sulfur capacity exceeding 50 mg S g sorbent -1 at 800 °C. Intermittent sorbent operation with air-rich boiler exhaust-type gas mixtures and with frequent shutdowns and restarts is possible without formation of lanthanide oxycarbonate phases. Upon restart, desulfurization continues from where it left at the end of the previous cycle. These findings are important for practical applications of these sorbents as sulfur polishing units of fuel gases in the presence of small or large amounts of water vapor, and with the regular shutdown/start-up operation practiced in fuel processors/fuel cell systems, both stationary and mobile, and of any size/scale.

  1. Radiation-induced desulfurization of Arabian crude oil and straight-run diesel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Basfar, A. A.; Mohamed, K. A.

    2011-11-01

    Radiation-induced desulfurization of four types of Arabian crude oils (heavy, medium, light and extra light) and straight-run diesel (SRD) was investigated over the range of 10-200 kGy. Results show that gamma radiation processing at absorbed doses up to 200 kGy without further treatment is not sufficient for desulfurization. However, the combination of gamma-irradiation with other physical/chemical processes (i.e. L/L extraction, adsorption and oxidation) may be capable of removing considerable levels of sulfur compounds in the investigated products. Currently, this approach of combined radiation/physical/chemical processes is under investigation. The findings of these attempts will be reported in the future.

  2. Installation Restoration Program. Phase II. Confirmation/Quantification. Stage 1 for Carswell AFB, Texas. Volume 3. Appendices B-L.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1986-10-01

    investigate the environ- mental feasibility of disposing of flue gas desulfurization (FGD) wastes, ash ’’p and sludge, from a mine mouth power plant by...Department of Defense o EMP - Electromagnetic Profiling o EPA - Environmental Protection Agency o GC - Gas Chromatography o GC-MS - Gas Chromatography-Mass...IN ITEM NO.) ADDITION 01 DELETION CODES: 0 -INTERMEDIATE CIRR: CONTROLLED ITEM RPT ROMT AFSC oRM 705 PREVOIJ EOTO’ , RE U C-4 4rsc-Aad.r IF ,,d 0,P E

  3. PROCEEDINGS: SYMPOSIUM ON FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION HELD AT LAS VEGAS, NEVADA, MARCH 1979; VOLUME II

    EPA Science Inventory

    The publication, in two volumes, contains the text of all papers presented at EPA's fifth flue gas desulfurization (FGD) symposium, March 5-8, 1979, at Las Vegas, Nevada. A partial listing of papers in Volume 2 includes the following: Basin Electric's involvement with dry flue ga...

  4. COMPARISON OF WEST GERMAN AND U.S. FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION AND SELECTIVE CATALYTIC REDUCTION COSTS

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report documents a comparison of the actual cost retrofitting flue gas desulfurization (FGD) and selective catalytic reduction (SCR) on Federal Republic of German (FRG) boilers to cost estimating procedures used in the U.S. to estimate the retrofit of these controls on U.S. b...

  5. DEVELOPMENT OF INFRARED METHODS FOR CHARACTERIZATION OF INORGANIC SULFUR SPECIES RELATED TO INJECTION DESULFURIZATION PROCESSES

    EPA Science Inventory

    Current methods designed to control and reduce the amount of sulfur dioxide emitted into the atmosphere from coal-fired power plants and factories rely upon the reaction between SO2 and alkaline earth compounds and are called flue gas desulfurization (FGD) processes. Of these met...

  6. SURVEY OF FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION SYSTEMS: WILL COUNTY STATION, COMMONWEALTH EDISON CO

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report gives results of a second survey of the flue gas desulfurization (FGD) system on Unit 1 of Commonwealth Edison Co.'s Will County Station. The FGD system, started up in February 1972, uses a limestone slurry in two parallel scrubbing trains. Each train includes a ventur...

  7. THE EFFECT OF FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION AVAILABILITY ON ELECTRIC UTILITIES. VOLUME II. TECHNICAL REPORT

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report gives results of an analysis of the effect of the availability of a flue gas desulfurization system on the ability of an individual power plant to generate electricity at its rated capacity. (The availability of anything is the fraction of time it is capable of service...

  8. THE EFFECT OF FLUE GAS DESULFURIZATION AVAILABILITY ON ELECTRIC UTILITIES. VOLUME I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report gives results of an analysis of the effect of the availability of a flue gas desulfurization system on the ability of an individual power plant to generate electricity at its rated capacity. (The availability of anything is the fraction of time it is capable of service...

  9. Desulfurization of Hydrocarbon Fuels at Ambient Conditions Using Supported Silver Oxide-Titania Sorbents

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2010-12-13

    required as a dopant in a two- component active metal matrix to generate surface defects. The use of high surface area supports has been demonstrated...B. S., Burton, J. F., Cullo, A. L. Supported cobalt sulfate desulfurization catalyst. US Patent No 74-483982 [110] Sivaraj, C., Contescu, C

  10. Removal of polychlorinated naphthalenes by desulfurization and emissions of polychlorinated naphthalenes from sintering plant

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Mengjing; Liu, Wenbin; Hou, Meifang; Li, Qianqian; Han, Ying; Liu, Guorui; Li, Haifeng; Liao, Xiao; Chen, Xuebin; Zheng, Minghui

    2016-01-01

    The sintering flue gas samples were collected at the inlets and outlets of the desulfurization systems to evaluate the influence of the systems on PCNs emission concentrations, profiles, and emission factors. The PCNs concentrations at the inlets and outlets were 27888–153672 pg m−3 and 11988–42245 pg m−3,respectively. Desulfurization systems showed excellent removal for PCNs, and the removal efficiencies of PCNs increase with increasing chlorination level. Lower chlorinated homologs are more sensitive to the desulfurization process than higher ones. High levels of PCNs were also detected in the gypsum (11600–29720 pg g−1) and fly ash samples (4946–64172 pg g−1). The annual total emissions of PCNs released to flue gas and gypsum from the sintering plants were about 394 kg, 48.5% of which was in gypsum. The surface area of the fly ash samples increased significantly from the first to the fourth stage of the series-connected electrostatic precipitator, accompanying obvious rising of concentration of PCNs in the fly ash samples. PMID:27197591

  11. Theoretical investigation of the interaction between aromatic sulfur compounds and [BMIM](+)[FeCl4](-) ionic liquid in desulfurization: A novel charge transfer mechanism.

    PubMed

    Li, Hongping; Zhu, Wenshuai; Chang, Yonghui; Jiang, Wei; Zhang, Ming; Yin, Sheng; Xia, Jiexiang; Li, Huaming

    2015-06-01

    In this work, interaction nature between a group of aromatic sulfur compounds and [BMIM](+)[FeCl4](-) have been investigated by density functional theory (DFT). A coordination structure is found to be critical to the mechanism of extractive desulfurization. Interaction energy and extractive selectivity follow the order: thiophene (TH)

  12. Properties of Controlled Low Strength Material with Circulating Fluidized Bed Combustion Ash and Recycled Aggregates

    PubMed Central

    Weng, Tsai-Lung; Cheng, An; Chao, Sao-Jeng; Hsu, Hui-Mi

    2018-01-01

    This study aims to investigate the effect of adding circulating fluidized bed combustion (CFBC) ash, desulfurization slag, air-cooled blast-furnace slag and coal bottom ash to the controlled low-strength material (CLSM). Test methods include slump flow test, ball drop test, water soluble chloride ion content measurement, compressive strength and length change measurement. The results show that (1) the use of CFBC hydration ash with desulfurization slag of slump flow is the best, and the use of CFBC hydration ash with coal bottom ash and slump flow is the worst; (2) CFBC hydration ash with desulfurization slag and chloride ion content is the highest; (3) 24 h ball drop test (diameter ≤ 76 mm), and test results are 70 mm to 76 mm; (4) CFBC hydration ash with desulfurization slag and compression strength is the highest, with the coal bottom ash being the lowest; increase of CFBC hydration ash can reduce compressive strength; and (5) the water-quenched blast furnace slag and CFBC hydration ash would expand, which results in length changes of CLSM specimens. PMID:29724055

  13. Delineation of Ehlers-Danlos syndrome phenotype due to the c.934C>T, p.(Arg312Cys) mutation in COL1A1: Report on a three-generation family without cardiovascular events, and literature review.

    PubMed

    Colombi, Marina; Dordoni, Chiara; Venturini, Marina; Zanca, Arianna; Calzavara-Pinton, Piergiacomo; Ritelli, Marco

    2017-02-01

    Classical Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (cEDS) is a rare connective tissue disorder primarily characterized by hyperextensible skin, defective wound healing, abnormal scars, easy bruising, and generalized joint hypermobility; arterial dissections are rarely observed. Mutations in COL5A1 and COL5A2 encoding type V collagen account for more than 90% of the patients so far characterized. In addition, cEDS phenotype was reported in a small number of patients carrying the c.934C>T mutation in COL1A1 that results in an uncommon substitution of a non-glycine residue in one Gly-Xaa-Yaa repeat of the pro-α1(I)-chain p.(Arg312Cys), which leads to disturbed collagen fibrillogenesis due to delayed removal of the type I procollagen N-propeptide. This specific mutation has been associated with propensity to arterial rupture in early adulthood; indeed, in literature the individuals harboring this mutation are also referred to as "(classic) vascular-like" EDS patients. Herein, we describe a three-generation cEDS family with six adults carrying the p.(Arg312Cys) substitution, which show a variable and prevalent cutaneous involvement without any major vascular event. These data, together with those available in literature, suggest that vascular events are not a diagnostic handle to differentiate patients with the p.(Arg312Cys) COL1A1 mutation from those with COL5A1 and COL5A2 defects, and highlight that during the diagnostic process the presence of at least the p.(Arg312Cys) substitution in COL1A1 should be investigated in cEDS patients without type V collagen mutations. Nevertheless, for these patients, as well as for those affected with cEDS, a periodical vascular surveillance should be carried out together with cardiovascular risk factors monitoring. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  14. 188Re-loaded lipid nanocapsules as a promising radiopharmaceutical carrier for internal radiotherapy of malignant gliomas

    PubMed Central

    Allard, Emilie; Hindré, François; Passirani, Catherine; Lemaire, Laurent; Lepareur, Nicolas; Noiret, Nicolas; Menei, Philippe; Benoit, Jean-Pierre

    2008-01-01

    Purpose Lipid nanocapsules (LNC) entrapping lipophilic complexes of 188Re (188Re(S3CPh)2(S2CPh) [188Re-SSS]) were investigated as a novel radiopharmaceutical carrier for internal radiation therapy of malignant gliomas. The present study was designed to evaluate the efficacy of intracerebral administration of 188Re-SSS LNC by means of convection-enhanced delivery (CED) on a 9L rat brain tumour model. Methods Female Fischer rats with 9L glioma were treated with a single injection of 188Re-SSS LNC by CED 6 days after cell implantation. Rats were put into random groups according to the dose infused: 12, 10, 8, and 3 Gy in comparison with blank LNC, perrhenate solution (4Gy) and non-treated animals. The radionuclide brain retention level was evaluated by measuring 188Re elimination in faeces and urine over 72h after the CED injection. The therapeutic effect of 188Re-SSS LNC was assessed based on animal survival. Results CED of 188Re perrhenate solution resulted in rapid drug clearance with a brain T1/2 of 7h. In contrast, when administered in LNC, 188Re tissue retention was greatly prolonged, with only 10% of the injected dose being eliminated at 72h. Rat median survival was significantly improved for the group treated with 8Gy 188Re-SSS LNC compared to the control group and blank-LNC treated animals. The increase in the median survival time (ISTmedian) was about 80% compared to the control group; 33% of the animals were long-term survivors. The dose of 8Gy proved to be a very effective dose, between toxic (10–12Gy) and ineffective (3–4Gy) doses. Conclusions These findings show that CED of Rhenium-188-loaded lipid nanocapsules is a safe and potent antitumour system for treating malignant gliomas. Our data are the first to show the in vivo efficacy of Rhenium-188 internal radiotherapy for the treatment of brain malignancy. PMID:18465130

  15. Effective Drug Delivery in Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma: A Theoretical Model to Identify Potential Candidates

    PubMed Central

    El-Khouly, Fatma E.; van Vuurden, Dannis G.; Stroink, Thom; Hulleman, Esther; Kaspers, Gertjan J. L.; Hendrikse, N. Harry; Veldhuijzen van Zanten, Sophie E. M.

    2017-01-01

    Despite decades of clinical trials for diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), patient survival does not exceed 10% at two years post-diagnosis. Lack of benefit from systemic chemotherapy may be attributed to an intact bloodbrain barrier (BBB). We aim to develop a theoretical model including relevant physicochemical properties in order to review whether applied chemotherapeutics are suitable for passive diffusion through an intact BBB or whether local administration via convection-enhanced delivery (CED) may increase their therapeutic potential. Physicochemical properties (lipophilicity, molecular weight, and charge in physiological environment) of anticancer drugs historically and currently administered to DIPG patients, that affect passive diffusion over the BBB, were included in the model. Subsequently, the likelihood of BBB passage of these drugs was ascertained, as well as their potential for intratumoral administration via CED. As only non-molecularly charged, lipophilic, and relatively small sized drugs are likely to passively diffuse through the BBB, out of 51 drugs modeled, only 8 (15%)—carmustine, lomustine, erlotinib, vismodegib, lenalomide, thalidomide, vorinostat, and mebendazole—are theoretically qualified for systemic administration in DIPG. Local administration via CED might create more therapeutic options, excluding only positively charged drugs and drugs that are either prodrugs and/or only available as oral formulation. A wide variety of drugs have been administered systemically to DIPG patients. Our model shows that only few are likely to penetrate the BBB via passive diffusion, which may partly explain the lack of efficacy. Drug distribution via CED is less dependent on physicochemical properties and may increase the therapeutic options for DIPG. PMID:29164054

  16. DPL-1 DP, LIN-35 Rb and EFL-1 E2F act with the MCD-1 zinc-finger protein to promote programmed cell death in Caenorhabditis elegans.

    PubMed

    Reddien, Peter W; Andersen, Erik C; Huang, Michael C; Horvitz, H Robert

    2007-04-01

    The genes egl-1, ced-9, ced-4, and ced-3 play major roles in programmed cell death in Caenorhabditis elegans. To identify genes that have more subtle activities, we sought mutations that confer strong cell-death defects in a genetically sensitized mutant background. Specifically, we screened for mutations that enhance the cell-death defects caused by a partial loss-of-function allele of the ced-3 caspase gene. We identified mutations in two genes not previously known to affect cell death, dpl-1 and mcd-1 (modifier of cell death). dpl-1 encodes the C. elegans homolog of DP, the human E2F-heterodimerization partner. By testing genes known to interact with dpl-1, we identified roles in cell death for four additional genes: efl-1 E2F, lin-35 Rb, lin-37 Mip40, and lin-52 dLin52. mcd-1 encodes a novel protein that contains one zinc finger and that is synthetically required with lin-35 Rb for animal viability. dpl-1 and mcd-1 act with efl-1 E2F and lin-35 Rb to promote programmed cell death and do so by regulating the killing process rather than by affecting the decision between survival and death. We propose that the DPL-1 DP, MCD-1 zinc finger, EFL-1 E2F, LIN-35 Rb, LIN-37 Mip40, and LIN-52 dLin52 proteins act together in transcriptional regulation to promote programmed cell death.

  17. Feasibility of liquid nitrogen cryotherapy after failed radiofrequency ablation for Barrett's esophagus.

    PubMed

    Trindade, Arvind J; Inamdar, Sumant; Kothari, Shivangi; Berkowitz, Joshua; McKinley, Matthew; Kaul, Vivek

    2017-09-01

    Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for dysplastic Barrett's esophagus (BE) is highly effective. RFA failures are infrequent but can be a challenging cohort to manage. There are limited data on the feasibility of liquid nitrogen cryospray ablation for complete eradication of dysplasia (CE-D) and/or intestinal metaplasia (CE-IM) after RFA has failed to achieve CE-IM in patients with dysplastic BE. This is a retrospective review from two medical centers of prospectively maintained databases looking at patients that underwent liquid nitrogen cryospray ablation for refractory intestinal metaplasia post failed RFA. Eighteen patients were identified that met inclusion criteria. Eleven patients had persistent dysplasia and IM following RFA and seven had persistent non-dysplastic IM. More than 80% of patients were male with long-segment BE (median length 8 cm). Seventy two percent of patients with dysplasia achieved CE-D after cryotherapy. Fifty percent (9/18) of all RFA failures achieved CE-IM with cryotherapy. In comparison, RFA has a CE-IM of 78% in a less challenging treatment naïve cohort from a large-scale meta-analysis of 3802 patients. No adverse events occurred in our cohort. Cryospray ablation is feasible and safe for achieving CE-D and CE-IM after RFA failure. The CE-D rates are high with cryotherapy in this population. CE-IM with cryotherapy is acceptable in this difficult-to-treat cohort when compared to CE-IM rates with RFA in dysplastic BE treatment naïve patients (50% vs 78%). © 2017 Japan Gastroenterological Endoscopy Society.

  18. Backflow-free catheters for efficient and safe convection-enhanced delivery of therapeutics.

    PubMed

    Lueshen, Eric; Tangen, Kevin; Mehta, Ankit I; Linninger, Andreas

    2017-07-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is an invasive drug delivery technique used to target specific regions of the brain for the treatment of cancer and neurodegenerative diseases while bypassing the blood-brain barrier. In order to prevent the possibility of backflow, low volumetric flow rates are applied which limit the achievable drug distribution volumes from CED. This can render CED treatment ineffective since a small convective flow produces narrow drug distribution inside the treatment region. Novel catheter designs and CED protocols are needed to improve the drug distribution inside the treatment region. This is especially important when administering toxic chemotherapeutics which could adversely affect other organs if backflow occurred and these drugs entered the circulating blood stream. In order to help elucidate the causes of backflow and to design backflow-free catheters, we have studied the impact that microfluid flow has on deformable brain phantom gels experimentally as well as numerically. We found that fluid injections into porous media have considerable effects on local transport properties such as porosity and hydraulic conductivity. These phenomena not only alter the bulk flow velocity distribution of the microfluid flow due to the changing porosity, but significantly modify flow direction and even volumetric flow distribution due to induced local hydraulic conductivity anisotropy. These studies led us to the development of novel backflow-free catheters with safe volumetric flow rates up to 10 µL/min. The catheter designs, numerical simulations and experimental results are described throughout this article. Copyright © 2017 IPEM. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Intraneural convection enhanced delivery of AAVrh20 for targeting primary sensory neurons.

    PubMed

    Pleticha, Josef; Jeng-Singh, Christian; Rezek, Rahaf; Zaibak, Manal; Beutler, Andreas S

    2014-05-01

    Gene therapy using adeno-associated virus (AAV) is an attractive strategy to treat disorders of the peripheral nervous system (PNS), such as chronic pain or peripheral neuropathies. Although intrathecal (IT) administration of AAV has been the standard in the field for targeting the PNS, it lacks anatomical specificity and results in wide rostro-caudal distribution of the vector. An alternative approach is to deliver AAV directly to the peripheral nerve axon. The present study employed convection-enhanced delivery (CED) of a novel AAV serotype, AAVrh20, expressing enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) into rat sciatic nerve investigating its efficacy, anatomical selectivity, and safety, compared to the IT route. Intraneural CED resulted in transduction confined to the ipsilateral L4 and L5 DRG while IT administration led to promiscuous DRG transduction encompassing the entire lumbar region bilaterally. The transduction rate for intraneural AAV administration was similar to IT delivery (24% for L4 and 31.5% for L5 DRG versus 50% for L4 and 19.5% for L5 DRG). The use of hyperosmotic diluent did not further improve the transduction efficiency. AAVrh20 was superior to reference serotypes previously described to be most active for each route. Intraneural CED of AAV was associated with transient allodynia that resolved spontaneously. These findings establish intraneural CED as an alternative to IT administration for AAV mediated gene transfer to the PNS and, based on a reference rodent model, suggest AAVrh20 as a superior serotype for targeting the PNS. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. The cyclophosphamide equivalent dose as an approach for quantifying alkylating agent exposure: a report from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study.

    PubMed

    Green, Daniel M; Nolan, Vikki G; Goodman, Pamela J; Whitton, John A; Srivastava, DeoKumar; Leisenring, Wendy M; Neglia, Joseph P; Sklar, Charles A; Kaste, Sue C; Hudson, Melissa M; Diller, Lisa R; Stovall, Marilyn; Donaldson, Sarah S; Robison, Leslie L

    2014-01-01

    Estimation of the risk of adverse long-term outcomes such as second malignant neoplasms and infertility often requires reproducible quantification of exposures. The method for quantification should be easily utilized and valid across different study populations. The widely used Alkylating Agent Dose (AAD) score is derived from the drug dose distribution of the study population and thus cannot be used for comparisons across populations as each will have a unique distribution of drug doses. We compared the performance of the Cyclophosphamide Equivalent Dose (CED), a unit for quantifying alkylating agent exposure independent of study population, to the AAD. Comparisons included associations from three Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (CCSS) outcome analyses, receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curves and goodness of fit based on the Akaike's Information Criterion (AIC). The CED and AAD performed essentially identically in analyses of risk for pregnancy among the partners of male CCSS participants, risk for adverse dental outcomes among all CCSS participants and risk for premature menopause among female CCSS participants, based on similar associations, lack of statistically significant differences between the areas under the ROC curves and similar model fit values for the AIC between models including the two measures of exposure. The CED is easily calculated, facilitating its use for patient counseling. It is independent of the drug dose distribution of a particular patient population, a characteristic that will allow direct comparisons of outcomes among epidemiological cohorts. We recommend the use of the CED in future research assessing cumulative alkylating agent exposure. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  1. A Pilot Study: Cardiac Parameters in Children Receiving New-Generation Antidepressants.

    PubMed

    Uchida, Mai; Spencer, Andrea E; Kenworthy, Tara; Chan, James; Fitzgerald, Maura; Rosales, Ana Maria; Kagan, Elana; Saunders, Alexandra; Biederman, Joseph

    2017-06-01

    Because of concerns about potential associations between high doses of citalopram and QTc prolongation in adults, this study examined whether such associations are operant in children. We hypothesized that therapeutic doses of nontricyclic antidepressant medications (non-TCAs) prescribed to children would be cardiovascularly safe. The sample consisted of 49 psychiatrically referred children and adolescents 6 to 17 years old of both sexes treated with a non-TCA (citalopram, escitalopram, fluoxetine, paroxetine, sertraline, bupropion, duloxetine, venlafaxine, mirtazapine). To standardize the doses of different antidepressants, we converted doses of individual medicines into "citalopram equivalent doses" (CEDs) based on dosing recommendation for individual antidepressants. Correlation analysis was carried out to compare the continuous and weight-based CED to variables of interest. A QTc grouping was defined as normal, borderline, or abnormal, and CED was compared across QTc groupings using linear regression. An antidepressant dosage group was defined as low or high dose, and a t test compared variables of interest across dosage groups. No significant associations were found between total or weight-corrected CEDs of any antidepressant examined and QTc or any other electrocardiogram or blood pressure parameters. In patients taking citalopram or escitalopram, a significant correlation was found between PR interval and total daily dose, which disappeared when weight-based doses were used or when corrected by age. Although limited by a relatively small sample size, these results suggest that therapeutic doses of non-TCA antidepressants when used in children do not seem to be associated with prolonged QTc interval or other adverse cardiovascular effects.

  2. Selective hydrodesulfurization of 4,6-dimethyl-dibenzothiophene in the dominant presence of naphthalene over hybrid CoMo/Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} and Ru/Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} catalysts

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Isoda, Takaaki; Nagao, Shinichi; Ma, Xiaoliang

    1995-12-31

    It has been revealed that significant desulfurization of refractory 4-methyldibenzothiophene and 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene (4,6-DMDBT) is very essential to achive the low sulfur level of gas oil requested by the current regulation. Their direct desulfurization through the interaction of their sulfur atom with the catalyst surface is sterically hindered by its neighbouring methyl groups. The substrate is found kinetically to be hydrogenated at one of its phenyl rings prior to the desulfurization in order to reduce the steric hindrance through non-planaring configuration (2-4). NiMo / Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} was reported to be superior to CoMo / Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} in the deepmore » desulufurization, because of its higher hydrogenation activity. However, such a hydrogenation route suffers severe inhibition by aromatic species in their dominant presence, because 4,6-DMDBT must compete with the aromatic species to the hydrogenation sites on the catalysts. The aromatic species up to 30 wt % in the gas oil was that completely stop the desulfurization of the particular substrate. The catalyst for the selective hydrogenation of 4,6-DMDBT in the dominant aromatic partners is most wanted to achive its extensive desulfurization in the gas oil, although there have been reported activities of various transition metal sulfides for HDS of dibenzothiophene, and hydrogenation of aromatic hydrocarbons.« less

  3. Oxidative desulfurization of dibenzothiophene from model oil using ionic liquids as extracting agent

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Taha, Mohd F.; Atikah, N.; Chong, F. K.; Shaharun, Maizatul S.

    2012-09-01

    The oxidative desulfurization of dibenzothiophene (DBT) from model oil (in n-dodecane) was carried out using ionic liquid as the extractant and catalyst, and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) in combination with acetic acid (CH3COOH) and sulphuric acid (H2SO4) as the oxidant. The ionic liquids used were 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium octyl sulphate ([Bmim][OcSO4]) and 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate ([Bmim][Ac]). The effect of the amounts of H2O2 on oxidative desulphurization of model oil was first investigated without the usage of ionic liquids at room temperature. The results indicate that greater amount of H2O2 give higher desulfurization and the maximum desulfurization in this study, i.e. 34 %, was occurred when the molar ratio of H2O2 to sulfur was 5:1. With the usage of ionic liquid and the molar ratio of 5:1 (H2O2:sulfur), the efficiency of DBT removal from model oil was increased significantly in terms of percent removal and removal time. Ionic liquid of [Bmim][OcSO4] performed better than [Bmim][Ac] with 72 % DBT removal. When molar ratio of H2O2 to sulphur was 5:1, volume ratio of ionic liquid to model oil was 1:1 and mixing time was 60 min at room temperature. The results indicate the potential of ionic liquids as the extractant and catalyst for oxidative desulfurization of hydrocarbon fuels.

  4. Desulfurization characteristics of rapidly hydrated sorbents with various adhesive carrier particles for a semidry CFB-FGD system.

    PubMed

    You, Changfu; Li, Yuan

    2013-03-19

    Semidry flue gas desulfurization (FGD) experiments were conducted using rapidly hydrated sorbents with four different adhesive carrier particles: circulation ash from a circulating fluidized bed boiler (CFBB circulation ash), fly ash from the first electrical field of the electrostatic precipitator of a circulating fluidized bed boiler (CFBB ESP ash), fly ash from a chain boiler (chain boiler ash), and river sand smaller than 1 mm. The influences of various adhesive carrier particles and operating conditions on the desulfurization characteristics of the sorbents were investigated, including sprayed water, reaction temperature, and the ratio of calcium to sulfur (Ca/S). The experimental results indicated that the rapidly hydrated sorbents had better desulfurization characteristics by using adhesive carrier particles which possessed better pore, adhesion, and fluidization characteristics. The desulfurization efficiency of the system increased as the reaction temperature decreased, it improved from 35% to 90% as the mass flow rate of the sprayed water increased from 0 to 10 kg/h, and it increased from 65.6% to 82.7% as Ca/S increased from 1.0 to 2.0. Based on these findings, a new semidry circulating fluidized bed (CFB)-FGD system using rapidly hydrated sorbent was developed. Using the rapidly hydrated sorbent, this system uses a cyclone separator instead of an ESP or a bag filter to recycle the sorbent particles, thereby decreasing the system flow resistance, saving investment and operating costs of the solids collection equipment.

  5. Convection-enhanced delivery of cetuximab conjugated iron-oxide nanoparticles for treatment of spontaneous canine intracranial gliomas.

    PubMed

    Freeman, A Courtenay; Platt, Simon R; Holmes, Shannon; Kent, M; Robinson, Kelsey; Howerth, Elizabeth; Eagleson, Joe; Bouras, Alexandros; Kaluzova, Milota; Hadjipanayis, Constantinos G

    2018-05-01

    Cetuximab conjugated iron-oxide nanoparticles (cetuximab-IONPs) have shown both in-vitro and in-vivo anti-tumor efficacy against gliomas. The purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate the safety and potential efficacy of cetuximab-IONPs for treatment of spontaneously occurring intracranial gliomas in canines after convection-enhanced delivery (CED). The use of CED allowed for direct infusion of the cetuximab-IONPs both intratumorally and peritumorally avoiding the blood brain barrier (BBB) and limiting systemic effects. A total of eight dogs participated in the study and only two developed mild post-operative complications, which resolved with medical therapy. All canines underwent a single CED treatment of the cetuximab-IONPs over 3 days and did not receive any further adjuvant treatments. Volumetric analysis showed a median reduction in tumor size of 54.9% by MRI at 1-month (4-6 weeks) follow-up. Five dogs were euthanized due to recurrence of neurological signs other than seizures, two due to recurrent seizures, and one dog died in his sleep. Median survival time after surgery was 248 days (mean 367 days).

  6. Mercury emission and plant uptake of trace elements during early stage of soil amendment using flue gas desulfurization materials.

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    A pilot-scale field study was carried out to investigate the distribution of Hg and other selected elements in the three potential mitigation pathways, i.e., emission to ambient air, uptake by surface vegetation (i.e., grass), and rainfall infiltration, after flue gas desulfurization (FGD) material ...

  7. A green surfactant-assisted synthesis of hierarchical TS-1 zeolites with excellent catalytic properties for oxidative desulfurization.

    PubMed

    Du, Shuting; Li, Fen; Sun, Qiming; Wang, Ning; Jia, Mingjun; Yu, Jihong

    2016-02-25

    Hierarchical TS-1 zeolites with uniform intracrystalline mesopores have been successfully synthesized through the hydrothermal method by using the green and cheap surfactant Triton X-100 as the mesoporous template. The resultant materials exhibit remarkably enhanced catalytic activity in oxidative desulfurization reactions compared to the conventional TS-1 zeolite.

  8. A template-free solvent-mediated synthesis of high surface area boron nitride nanosheets for aerobic oxidative desulfurization.

    PubMed

    Wu, Peiwen; Zhu, Wenshuai; Chao, Yanhong; Zhang, Jinshui; Zhang, Pengfei; Zhu, Huiyuan; Li, Changfeng; Chen, Zhigang; Li, Huaming; Dai, Sheng

    2016-01-04

    Hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets (h-BNNs) with rather high specific surface area (SSA) are important two-dimensional layer-structured materials. Here, a solvent-mediated synthesis of h-BNNs revealed a template-free lattice plane control strategy that induced high SSA nanoporous structured h-BNNs with outstanding aerobic oxidative desulfurization performance.

  9. 40 CFR 420.12 - Effluent limitations representing the degree of effluent reduction attainable by the application...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... for by-product coke plants which have wet desulfurization systems but only to the extent such systems... limitations, are allowed for by-product coke plants which include indirect ammonia recovery systems but only..., are allowed for by-product coke plants which have wet desulfurization systems but only to the extent...

  10. 40 CFR 420.12 - Effluent limitations representing the degree of effluent reduction attainable by the application...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... for by-product coke plants which have wet desulfurization systems but only to the extent such systems... limitations, are allowed for by-product coke plants which include indirect ammonia recovery systems but only..., are allowed for by-product coke plants which have wet desulfurization systems but only to the extent...

  11. 40 CFR 420.12 - Effluent limitations representing the degree of effluent reduction attainable by the application...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... for by-product coke plants which have wet desulfurization systems but only to the extent such systems... limitations, are allowed for by-product coke plants which include indirect ammonia recovery systems but only..., are allowed for by-product coke plants which have wet desulfurization systems but only to the extent...

  12. 40 CFR 420.12 - Effluent limitations representing the degree of effluent reduction attainable by the application...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... for by-product coke plants which have wet desulfurization systems but only to the extent such systems... limitations, are allowed for by-product coke plants which include indirect ammonia recovery systems but only..., are allowed for by-product coke plants which have wet desulfurization systems but only to the extent...

  13. Evaluation of flue-gas desulfurization gypsum in poultry litter as a substrate component for greenhouse horticultural crops

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    A study was conducted to evaluate the growth response and consumer preference of three plant species to substrate blends containing flue gas desulfurization gypsum (FGDG). Substrate blends used in this study were derived from a previous experiment that evaluated the use of FGD Gas a bedding material...

  14. 40 CFR 63.9991 - What emission limitations, work practice standards, and operating limits must I meet?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... Pollutants: Coal- and Oil-Fired Electric Utility Steam Generating Units Emission Limitations and Work... this subpart only if your EGU: (1) Has a system using wet or dry flue gas desulfurization technology... operate the wet or dry flue gas desulfurization technology installed on the unit consistent with § 63...

  15. 40 CFR 63.9991 - What emission limitations, work practice standards, and operating limits must I meet?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... Pollutants: Coal- and Oil-Fired Electric Utility Steam Generating Units Emission Limitations and Work... this subpart only if your EGU: (1) Has a system using wet or dry flue gas desulfurization technology... operate the wet or dry flue gas desulfurization technology installed on the unit consistent with § 63...

  16. 40 CFR 63.9991 - What emission limitations, work practice standards, and operating limits must I meet?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... Pollutants: Coal- and Oil-Fired Electric Utility Steam Generating Units Emission Limitations and Work... this subpart only if your EGU: (1) Has a system using wet or dry flue gas desulfurization technology... operate the wet or dry flue gas desulfurization technology installed on the unit consistent with § 63...

  17. Gas-exfoliated porous monolayer boron nitride for enhanced aerobic oxidative desulfurization performance.

    PubMed

    Wu, Yingcheng; Wu, Peiwen; Chao, Yanhong; He, Jing; Li, Hongping; Lu, Linjie; Jiang, Wei; Zhang, Beibei; Li, Huaming; Zhu, Wenshuai

    2018-01-12

    Hexagonal boron nitride has been regarded to be an efficient catalyst in aerobic oxidation fields, but limited by the less-exposed active sites. In this contribution, we proposed a simple green liquid nitrogen gas exfoliation strategy for preparation of porous monolayer nanosheets (BN-1). Owing to the reduced layer numbers, decreased lateral sizes and artificially-constructed pores, increased exposure of active sites was expected, further contributed to an enhanced aerobic oxidative desulfurization (ODS) performance up to ∼98% of sulfur removal, achieving ultra-deep desulfurization. This work not only introduced an excellent catalyst for aerobic ODS, but also provided a strategy for construction of some other highly-efficient monolayer two-dimensional materials for enhanced catalytic performance.

  18. Gas-exfoliated porous monolayer boron nitride for enhanced aerobic oxidative desulfurization performance

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wu, Yingcheng; Wu, Peiwen; Chao, Yanhong; He, Jing; Li, Hongping; Lu, Linjie; Jiang, Wei; Zhang, Beibei; Li, Huaming; Zhu, Wenshuai

    2018-01-01

    Hexagonal boron nitride has been regarded to be an efficient catalyst in aerobic oxidation fields, but limited by the less-exposed active sites. In this contribution, we proposed a simple green liquid nitrogen gas exfoliation strategy for preparation of porous monolayer nanosheets (BN-1). Owing to the reduced layer numbers, decreased lateral sizes and artificially-constructed pores, increased exposure of active sites was expected, further contributed to an enhanced aerobic oxidative desulfurization (ODS) performance up to ˜98% of sulfur removal, achieving ultra-deep desulfurization. This work not only introduced an excellent catalyst for aerobic ODS, but also provided a strategy for construction of some other highly-efficient monolayer two-dimensional materials for enhanced catalytic performance.

  19. Preparation of low-sulfur platinum and platinum aluminide layers in thermal barrier coatings

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Spitsberg, Irene T. (Inventor); Walston, William S. (Inventor); Schaeffer, Jon C. (Inventor)

    2003-01-01

    A method for preparing a coated nickel-base superalloy article reduces the sulfur content of the surface region of the metallic coating layers to low levels, thereby improving the adhesion of the coating layers to the article. The method includes depositing a first layer of platinum overlying the surface of a substrate, depositing a second layer of aluminum over the platinum, and final desulfurizing the article by heating the article to elevated temperature, preferably in hydrogen, and removing a small amount of material from the surface that was exposed during the step of heating. A ceramic layer may be deposited over the desulfurized article. The article may also be similarly desulfurized at other points in the fabrication procedure.

  20. Guidance for Using Formal Methods in a Certification Context

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Brown, Duncan; Delseny, Herve; Hayhurst, Kelly; Wiels, Virginie

    2010-01-01

    This paper discusses some of the challenges to using formal methods in a certification context and describes the effort by the Formal Methods Subgroup of RTCA SC-205/EUROCAE WG-71 to propose guidance to make the use of formal methods a recognized approach. This guidance, expected to take the form of a Formal Methods Technical Supplement to DO-178C/ED-12C, is described, including the activities that are needed when using formal methods, new or modified objectives with respect to the core DO-178C/ED-12C document, and evidence needed for meeting those objectives.

  1. A simulation study to quantify the impacts of exposure ...

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    A simulation study to quantify the impacts of exposure measurement error on air pollution health risk estimates in copollutant time-series models The National Exposure Research Laboratory (NERL) Computational Exposure Division (CED) develops and evaluates data, decision-support tools, and models to be applied to media-specific or receptor-specific problem areas. CED uses modeling-based approaches to characterize exposures, evaluate fate and transport, and support environmental diagnostics/forensics with input from multiple data sources. It also develops media- and receptor-specific models, process models, and decision support tools for use both within and outside of EPA.

  2. Next-generation concurrent engineering: developing models to complement point designs

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Morse, Elizabeth; Leavens, Tracy; Cohanim, Babak; Harmon, Corey; Mahr, Eric; Lewis, Brian

    2006-01-01

    Concurrent Engineering Design (CED) teams have made routine the rapid development of point designs for space missions. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Team X is now evolving into a 'next-generation CED; in addition to a point design, the Team develops a model of the local trade space. The process is a balance between the power of a model developing tools and the creativity of humal experts, enabling the development of a variety of trade models for any space mission. This paper reviews the modeling method and its practical implementation in the ED environment. Example results illustrate the benefit of this approach.

  3. Metals in soil and runoff from a piedmont hayfield amended with broiler litter and flue gas desulfurization gypsum

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Flue gas desulfurization gypsum (FGDG) from coal-fired power plants is available for agricultural use in many US regions. Broiler litter (BL) provides plant available N, P, and K but may be a source of unwanted arsenic (As), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn). FGDG provides Ca and S and can reduce runoff lo...

  4. A non-chemically selective top-down approach towards the preparation of hierarchical TS-1 zeolites with improved oxidative desulfurization catalytic performance.

    PubMed

    Du, Shuting; Chen, Xiaoxin; Sun, Qiming; Wang, Ning; Jia, Mingjun; Valtchev, Valentin; Yu, Jihong

    2016-02-28

    Hierarchical TS-1 zeolites with secondary macropores have been successfully prepared by using two different fluoride-containing chemical etching post-treated routes. Hierarchical TS-1 zeolites exhibited a chemical composition similar to that of the parent material and showed remarkably enhanced catalytic activity in oxidative desulfurization reaction.

  5. Deep Desulfurization of Extensively Hydrodesulfurized Middle Distillate Oil by Rhodococcus sp. Strain ECRD-1

    PubMed Central

    Grossman, M. J.; Lee, M. K.; Prince, R. C.; Minak-Bernero, V.; George, G. N.; Pickering, I. J.

    2001-01-01

    Dibenzothiophene (DBT), and in particular substituted DBTs, are resistant to hydrodesulfurization (HDS) and can persist in fuels even after aggressive HDS treatment. Treatment by Rhodococcus sp. strain ECRD-1 of a middle distillate oil whose sulfur content was virtually all substituted DBTs produced extensive desulfurization and a sulfur level of 56 ppm. PMID:11282654

  6. Microbial desulfurization of coal

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Dastoor, M. N.; Kalvinskas, J. J.

    1978-01-01

    Experiments indicate that several sulfur-oxidizing bacteria strains have been very efficient in desulfurizing coal. Process occurs at room temperature and does not require large capital investments of high energy inputs. Process may expand use of abundant reserves of high-sulfur bituminous coal, which is currently restricted due to environmental pollution. On practical scale, process may be integrated with modern coal-slurry transportation lines.

  7. Three annual flue gas desulfurization gypsum applications on macronutrient and micronutrient losses in runoff from bermudagrass fertilized with poultry litter

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Considerable amounts of flue gas desulfurization (FGD) gypsum are being produced as a by-product of generating electricity. As a result, beneficial reuse of this by-product is being sought to reduce landfilling and its associated cost. The use of this byproduct as a low-cost soil amendment for suppl...

  8. A template-free solvent-mediated synthesis of high surface area boron nitride nanosheets for aerobic oxidative desulfurization

    DOE PAGES

    Wu, Peiwen; Zhu, Wenshuai; Chao, Yanhong; ...

    2015-10-16

    Hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets (h-BNNs) with rather high specific surface area (SSA) are important two-dimensional layer-structured materials. Here in this study, a solvent-mediated synthesis of h-BNNs revealed a template-free lattice plane control strategy that induced high SSA nanoporous structured h-BNNs with outstanding aerobic oxidative desulfurization performance.

  9. Guide to Technical Documents. Volume 2. January 1983 through December 1983

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1983-12-01

    4) inclu- sion of the fluid-structural interaction. CR 80.023 Flue Gas Desulfurization at Navy Bases, Navy Energy Guidance...availability, costs, and operating performance of industrial-sized flue gas desulfurization (FGD) systems for coal-fired boilers was performed for...to close visual inspection. N-1658 Control Strategies for Reducing Heating, Ventilating, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) Energy Consumption in Single

  10. JPRS Report, Environmental Issues

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1990-06-13

    in settlements in valley locations, with the simultaneous application of efficient waste- gas purification proce- dures (dedusting, desulfurization ...Slaughtered [RUDE PRAVO 1 JunJ 17 Power Plant Desulfurization Technology, Funding Explored [ZEMEDELSKE NOVINY 29 Apr] . 17 GERMAN DEMOCRATIC...the Soviet Union, it is a question of money and a shortage of foreign currency but apparently also an attempt to develop its own pollution control

  11. Core-in-shell sorbent for hot coal gas desulfurization

    DOEpatents

    Wheelock, Thomas D.; Akiti, Jr., Tetteh T.

    2004-02-10

    A core-in-shell sorbent is described herein. The core is reactive to the compounds of interest, and is preferably calcium-based, such as limestone for hot gas desulfurization. The shell is a porous protective layer, preferably inert, which allows the reactive core to remove the desired compounds while maintaining the desired physical characteristics to withstand the conditions of use.

  12. Two-stage coal gasification and desulfurization apparatus

    DOEpatents

    Bissett, Larry A.; Strickland, Larry D.

    1991-01-01

    The present invention is directed to a system which effectively integrates a two-stage, fixed-bed coal gasification arrangement with hot fuel gas desulfurization of a first stream of fuel gas from a lower stage of the two-stage gasifier and the removal of sulfur from the sulfur sorbent regeneration gas utilized in the fuel-gas desulfurization process by burning a second stream of fuel gas from the upper stage of the gasifier in a combustion device in the presence of calcium-containing material. The second stream of fuel gas is taken from above the fixed bed in the coal gasifier and is laden with ammonia, tar and sulfur values. This second stream of fuel gas is burned in the presence of excess air to provide heat energy sufficient to effect a calcium-sulfur compound forming reaction between the calcium-containing material and sulfur values carried by the regeneration gas and the second stream of fuel gas. Any ammonia values present in the fuel gas are decomposed during the combustion of the fuel gas in the combustion chamber. The substantially sulfur-free products of combustion may then be combined with the desulfurized fuel gas for providing a combustible fluid utilized for driving a prime mover.

  13. Highly efficient extraction and oxidative desulfurization system using Na7H2LaW10O36⋅32 H2O in [bmim]BF4 at room temperature.

    PubMed

    Xu, Junhua; Zhao, Shen; Chen, Wei; Wang, Miao; Song, Yu-Fei

    2012-04-10

    Highly efficient, deep desulfurization of model oil containing dibenzothiophene (DBT), benzothiophene (BT), or 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene (4,6-DMDBT) has been achieved under mild conditions by using an extraction and catalytic oxidative desulfurization system (ECODS) in which a lanthanide-containing polyoxometalate Na(7)H(2)LnW(10)O(36)⋅32 H(2)O (LnW(10); Ln = Eu, La) acts as catalyst, [bmim]BF(4) (bmim = 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium) as extractant, and H(2)O(2) as oxidant. Sulfur removal follows the order DBT>4,6-DMDBT>BT at 30 °C. DBT can be completely oxidized to the corresponding sulfone in 25 min under mild conditions, and the LaW(10)/[bmim]BF(4) system could be recycled for ten times with only slight decrease in activity. Thus, LaW(10) in [bmim]BF(4) is one of the most efficient systems for desulfurization using ionic liquids as extractant reported so far. Copyright © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  14. Enhancing mercury removal across air pollution control devices for coal-fired power plants by desulfurization wastewater evaporation.

    PubMed

    Bin, Hu; Yang, Yi; Cai, Liang; Yang, Linjun; Roszak, Szczepan

    2017-10-09

    Desulfurization wastewater evaporation technology is used to enhance the removal of gaseous mercury (Hg) in conventional air pollution control devices (APCDs) for coal-fired power plants. Studies have affirmed that gaseous Hg is oxidized and removed by selective catalytic reduction (SCR), an electrostatic precipitator (ESP) and wet flue gas desulfurization (WFGD) in a coal-fired thermal experiment platform with WFGD wastewater evaporation. Effects of desulfurization wastewater evaporation position, evaporation temperature and chlorine ion concentration on Hg oxidation were studied as well. The Hg 0 oxidation efficiency was increased ranging from 30% to 60%, and the gaseous Hg removal efficiency was 62.16% in APCDs when wastewater evaporated before SCR. However, the Hg 0 oxidation efficiency was 18.99% and the gaseous Hg removal efficiency was 40.19% in APCDs when wastewater evaporated before ESP. The results show that WFGD wastewater evaporation before SCR is beneficial to improve the efficiency of Hg oxidized and removed in APCDs. Because Hg 2+ can be easily removed in ACPDs and WFGD wastewater in power plants is enriched with chlorine ions, this method realizes WFGD wastewater zero discharge and simultaneously enhances Hg removal in APCDs.

  15. Effects of magnetic fields on improving mass transfer in flue gas desulfurization using a fluidized bed

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Qi; Gui, Keting; Wang, Xiaobo

    2016-02-01

    The effects of magnetic fields on improving the mass transfer in flue gas desulfurization using a fluidized bed are investigated in the paper. In this research, the magnetically fluidized bed (MFB) is used as the reactor in which ferromagnetic particles are fluidized with simulated flue gas under the influence of an external magnetic field. Lime slurry is continuously sprayed into the reactor. As a consequence, the desulfurization reaction and the slurry drying process take place simultaneously in the MFB. In this paper, the effects of ferromagnetic particles and external magnetic fields on the desulphurization efficiency are studied and compared with that of quartz particles as the fluidized particles. Experimental results show that the ferromagnetic particles not only act as a platform for lime slurry to precipitate on like quartz particles, but also take part in the desulfurization reaction. The results also show that the specific surface area of ferromagnetic particles after reaction is enlarged as the magnetic intensity increases, and the external magnetic field promotes the oxidation of S(IV), improving the mass transfer between sulphur and its sorbent. Hence, the efficiency of desulphurization under the effects of external magnetic fields is higher than that in general fluidized beds.

  16. Improving the desulfurization performance of CaCO3 with sodium humate

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feng, Run; Sun, Zhiguo; Zhang, Wenqing; Huang, Hao; Hu, Haihang; Zhang, Li; Xie, Hongyong

    2018-02-01

    The influence of these factors on desulphurization efficiency was studied by changing the amount of calcium carbonate, the concentration of sulfur dioxide, the liquid flow rate of absorbent and the air flow rate, the optimum working condition was determined by the research of limestone-gypsum desulphurization process commonly used in industry. By changing the amount of calcium carbonate, we conclude that the volume of water in the desulfurization efficiency does not increase with the adding amount of calcium carbonate. The optimum conditions were determined : at the condicion of the concentration of 500ppm of sulfur dioxide, 10g calcium carbonate, 150L/h liquid flow and the minimum air flow rate of 6.75m3/h, the highest desulfurization efficiency was close to 100% when sodium humate was not added, but the holding time was only about 5 minutes. After adding 3g of humic acid, the desulfurization efficiency was improved obviously, and the instantaneous efficiency of 100% lasting for about 40 minutes. It can be seen that, calcium carbonate in the addition of humic acid sodium can significantly improve the absorption of calcium carbonate performance of SO2.

  17. Microbial Desulfurization of Gasoline in a Mycobacterium goodii X7B Immobilized-Cell System

    PubMed Central

    Li, Fuli; Xu, Ping; Feng, Jinhui; Meng, Ling; Zheng, Yuan; Luo, Lailong; Ma, Cuiqing

    2005-01-01

    Mycobacterium goodii X7B, which had been primarily isolated as a bacterial strain capable of desulfurizing dibenzothiophene to produce 2-hydroxybiphenyl via the 4S pathway, was also found to desulfurize benzothiophene. The desulfurization product was identified as o-hydroxystyrene by gas chromatography (GC)-mass spectrometry analysis. This strain appeared to have the ability to remove organic sulfur from a broad range of sulfur species in gasoline. When Dushanzi straight-run gasoline (DSRG227) containing various organic sulfur compounds was treated with immobilized cells of strain X7B for 24 h, the total sulfur content significantly decreased, from 227 to 71 ppm at 40°C. GC flame ionization detection and GC atomic emission detection analysis were used to qualitatively evaluate the effects of M. goodii X7B treatment on the contents of gasoline. In addition, when immobilized cells were incubated at 40°C with DSRG275, the sulfur content decreased from 275 to 54 ppm in two consecutive reactions. With this excellent efficiency, strain X7B is considered a good potential candidate for industrial applications for the biodesulfurization of gasoline. PMID:15640198

  18. Regional convection-enhanced delivery of gadolinium-labeled albumin in the rat hippocampus in vivo.

    PubMed

    Astary, Garrett W; Kantorovich, Svetlana; Carney, Paul R; Mareci, Thomas H; Sarntinoranont, Malisa

    2010-03-15

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) has emerged as a promising method of targeted drug delivery for treating central nervous system (CNS) disorders, but the influence of brain structure on infusate distribution is unclear. We have utilized this approach to study extracellular transport and distribution of a contrast agent in the hippocampus, a complex structure susceptible to CNS disorders. The magnetic resonance (MR) contrast agent diethylene triamene penta-acetic acid chelated gadolinium-labeled albumin (Gd-albumin), tagged with Evans blue dye, was directly infused (V(i)=5 microl) into the dorsal and ventral hippocampus of seven male Sprague-Dawley rats. The final distribution profile of the contrast agent, a product of CED and limited diffusion, was observed in vivo using high-resolution T1-weighted MR imaging at 11.1T. Dense cell layers, such as the granule cell layer of the dentate gyrus and the pyramidal cell layer of CA1, appeared to be barriers to transport of the tracer. Three-dimensional distribution shape and volume (V(d)) differences, between the dorsal and ventral hippocampus infusions, were determined from the MR images using a semi-automatic segmentation routine (dorsal V(d)=23.4+/-1.8 microl, ventral V(d)=36.4+/-5.1 microl). Finer structural detail of the hippocampus was obtained using a combination of histological analysis and fluorescence imaging. This study demonstrates that CED has the potential to target all regions of the hippocampus and that tracer distribution is influenced by infusion site, underlying structure and circuitry, and extent of backflow. Therefore, CED, combined with high-resolution MR imaging, may be a useful strategy for delivering therapeutics for the treatment of CNS disorders affecting the hippocampus. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  19. Cumulative effective dose associated with computed tomography examinations in adolescent trauma patients.

    PubMed

    Choi, Seung Joon; Kim, Eun Young; Kim, Hyung Sik; Choi, Hye-Young; Cho, Jinseong; Yang, Hyuk Jun; Chung, Yong Eun

    2014-07-01

    The aims of this study were to analyze cumulative effective dose (cED) and to assess lifetime attributable risk (LAR) of cancer due to radiation exposure during computed tomography (CT) examinations in adolescent trauma patients. Between January 2010 and May 2011, the adolescent patients with trauma were enrolled in this study. Numbers of CT examinations and body regions examined were collated, and cEDs were calculated using dose-length product values and conversion factors. Lifetime attributable risk for cancer incidence and cancer-associated mortality were quantified based on the studies of survivors of the atomic bombs on Japan. Data were stratified according to severity of trauma: minor trauma, injury severity score of less than 16; and major trauma, injury severity score of 16 or greater. A total of 698 CT scans were obtained on the following regions of 484 adolescent patients: head CT, n = 647; rest of the body, n = 41; and thorax, n = 10. Mean cED per patient was 3.4 mSv, and mean LARs for cancer incidence and mortality were 0.05% and 0.02%, respectively. The majority of patients (98.4%) experienced minor trauma, and their mean cED and LARs for cancer incidence and mortality (3.0 mSv and 0.04% and 0.02%, respectively) were significantly lower than those of patients with major trauma (24.3 mSv and 0.31% and 0.15%, respectively, all P values < 0.001). The overall radiation-induced cancer risk due to CT examinations performed for the initial assessment of minor trauma was found to be relatively low in adolescent patients. However, adolescent patients with major trauma were exposed to a substantial amount of radiation during multiple CT examinations.

  20. Frameless multimodal image guidance of localized convection-enhanced delivery of therapeutics in the brain

    PubMed Central

    van der Bom, Imramsjah M J; Moser, Richard P; Gao, Guanping; Sena-Esteves, Miguel; Aronin, Neil

    2013-01-01

    Introduction Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) has been shown to be an effective method of administering macromolecular compounds into the brain that are unable to cross the blood-brain barrier. Because the administration is highly localized, accurate cannula placement by minimally invasive surgery is an important requisite. This paper reports on the use of an angiographic c-arm system which enables truly frameless multimodal image guidance during CED surgery. Methods A microcannula was placed into the striatum of five sheep under real-time fluoroscopic guidance using imaging data previously acquired by cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) and MRI, enabling three-dimensional navigation. After introduction of the cannula, high resolution CBCT was performed and registered with MRI to confirm the position of the cannula tip and to make adjustments as necessary. Adeno-associated viral vector-10, designed to deliver small-hairpin micro RNA (shRNAmir), was mixed with 2.0 mM gadolinium (Gd) and infused at a rate of 3 μl/min for a total of 100 μl. Upon completion, the animals were transferred to an MR scanner to assess the approximate distribution by measuring the volume of spread of Gd. Results The cannula was successfully introduced under multimodal image guidance. High resolution CBCT enabled validation of the cannula position and Gd-enhanced MRI after CED confirmed localized administration of the therapy. Conclusion A microcannula for CED was introduced into the striatum of five sheep under multimodal image guidance. The non-alloy 300 μm diameter cannula tip was well visualized using CBCT, enabling confirmation of the position of the end of the tip in the area of interest. PMID:22193239

  1. Development of coverage with evidence development for medical technologies in Switzerland from 1996 to 2012.

    PubMed

    Brügger, Urs; Ruckstuhl, Andreas; Horisberger, Bruno; Gratwohl, Alois

    2014-07-01

    The aim of this study was to assess incidence, time frame, and outcome of "Coverage with Evidence Development" (CED) decisions in the Swiss Basic Health Insurance scheme. Analysis of all controversial medical technologies submitted to review by the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) from 1996 to 2012 with focus on decisions with constraints. Description of types of technology, type of initial decision, duration of evaluation period, final decision, and search for potential factors associated with changes over time. Forty-five (37.5 percent) of 120 controversial health technologies were classified as "yes, in evaluation, reimbursed" for a certain period of time and thirty-five (29.2 percent) as "no, in evaluation, not reimbursed" by the Federal Department of Home Affairs from 1996 to 2012. The rate of CED decisions ranged between zero and nine per year and was influenced by type of technology and calendar year. Forty-four of forty-five decisions were subject to further restrictions, to a "center or a specialist" (76 percent), "indications" (49 percent), "registry" (31 percent), or "other" (49 percent). The time to a final decision ranged from 1.5 to 11 years (median, 6 years). No factors associated with initial decision and final outcome could be identified. CED as a reality in Switzerland might have enabled patients to obtain access to promising technologies early in their life cycle. CED might have acted as a trigger to a successful implementation of a comprehensive national registry. The lack of qualitative data stresses the urgent need for evaluation of the HTA decisions and their impact on patient outcome and costs.

  2. Additive Neuroprotective Effects of the Multifunctional Iron Chelator M30 with Enriched Diet in a Mouse Model of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

    PubMed

    Golko-Perez, Sagit; Mandel, Silvia; Amit, Tamar; Kupershmidt, Lana; Youdim, Moussa B H; Weinreb, Orly

    2016-02-01

    Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is the most common degenerative disease of the motoneuron system, involving various abnormalities, such as mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress, transitional metal accumulation, neuroinflammation, glutamate excitotoxicity, apoptosis, decreased supply of trophic factors, cytoskeletal abnormalities, and extracellular superoxide dismutase (SOD)-1 toxicity. These multiple disease etiologies implicated in ALS gave rise to the perception that future therapeutic approaches for the disease should be aimed at targeting multiple pathological pathways. In line with this view, we have evaluated in the current study the therapeutic effects of low doses of the novel multifunctional monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitor/iron-chelating compound, M30 in combination with high Calorie Energy supplemented Diet (CED) in the SOD1-G93A transgenic mouse model of ALS. Our results demonstrated that the combined administration of M30 with CED produced additive neuroprotective effects on motor performance and increased survival of SOD1-G93A mice. We also found that both M30 and M30/CED regimens caused a significant inhibition of MAO-A and -B activities and decreased the turnover of dopamine in the brain of SOD1-G93A mice. In addition, M30/CED combined treatment resulted in a significant increase in mRNA expression levels of various mitochondrial biogenesis and metabolism regulators, such as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ)-co activator 1 alpha (PGC-1α), PPARγ, uncoupling protein 1, and insulin receptor in the gastrocnemius muscle of SOD1-G93A mice. These results suggest that a combination of drug/agents with different, but complementary mechanisms may be beneficial in the treatment of ALS.

  3. Poor diagnostic accuracy of a single fasting plasma citrulline concentration to assess intestinal energy absorption capacity.

    PubMed

    Peters, Job H C; Wierdsma, Nicolette J; Teerlink, Tom; van Leeuwen, Paul A M; Mulder, Chris J J; van Bodegraven, Ad A

    2007-12-01

    Our aim was to explore the diagnostic value of fasting citrulline concentrations to detect decreased intestinal energy absorption in patients with recently diagnosed celiac disease (CeD), refractory celiac disease (RCeD), and short bowel syndrome (SBS). Decreased intestinal energy absorption is regarded a marker of intestinal failure. Fasting plasma citrulline concentrations were determined by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) in a prospective study of 30 consecutive adult patients (15 CeD, 9 RCeD, and 16 SBS) and 21 healthy subjects. Intestinal energy absorption capacity using bomb calorimetry was determined in all patients and healthy subjects and was regarded as the gold standard for intestinal energy absorption function. The mean fasting plasma citrulline concentration was lower in RCeD patients than in healthy subjects (28.5+/-9.9 vs 38.1+/-8.0 micromol/L, P<0.05) and CeD patients (28.5+/-9.9 vs 38.1+/-6.4 micromol/L, P<0.05), however, clearly within reference values. The mean intestinal energy absorption capacity was lower in SBS patients than in healthy subjects (64.3+/-18.2 vs 90.3+/-3.5%, P<0.001), CeD patients (64.3+/-18.2 vs 89.2+/-3.4%, P<0.001), and the RCeD group (64.3+/-18.2 vs 82.3+/-11.7%, P<0.01). No relation was observed between fasting plasma citrulline concentration and intestinal energy absorption capacity (Pearson r=0.09, P=0.56). The area under the ROC curve for fasting plasma citrulline to detect decreased intestinal energy absorption capacity (i.e., <85%) was 0.50. Fasting plasma citrulline concentrations have poor test characteristics for detection of decreased intestinal energy absorption capacity in patients with enterocyte damage.

  4. Unraveling heavy oil desulfurization chemistry: targeting clean fuels.

    PubMed

    Choudhary, Tushar V; Parrott, Stephen; Johnson, Byron

    2008-03-15

    The sulfur removal chemistry of heavy oils has been unraveled by systematically investigating several heavy oils with an extremely wide range of properties. The heavy oil feed and product properties have been characterized by advanced analytical methods, and these properties have been related to the sulfur conversion data observed in pilot hydrotreating units. These studies coupled with kinetic treatment of the data have revealed that the desulfurization chemistry of heavy oils is essentially controlled by the strongly inhibiting three and larger ring aromatic hydrocarbon content and surprisingly not by the content of the "hard-to-remove" sulfur compounds. Such enhanced understanding of the heavy oil sulfur removal is expected to open new avenues for catalyst/process optimization for heavy oil desulfurization and thereby assist the efficent production of clean transporation fuels.

  5. Role of oil derived carbonaceous phase in the performance of sewage sludge-based materials as media for desulfurizaton of digester gas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kante, Karifala; Qiu, Jieshan; Zhao, Zongbin; Chang, Yu; Bandosz, Teresa J.

    2008-02-01

    Desulfurization adsorbents for purification of digester gas were prepared by pyrolysis of sewage sludge impregnated with spent mineral oil. To evaluate the changes in the structural and chemical properties the pyrolysis time and temperature varied. The materials were characterized using adsorption of nitrogen, FTIR, XRD, ICP, SEM and thermal analysis. Their catalytic activity was tested in the removal of hydrogen sulfide from simulated mixture of digester gas. The results indicated the importance of new carbon phase from the oil precursor. It provided mesoporosity, which increased the dispersion of catalytic phase and space for storage of surface reaction products. The results indicated that the adsorbents obtained at 950 °C are much more active in the process of hydrogen sulfide oxidation than those obtained at 650 °C. Moreover, longer heat treatment is also beneficial for the development of surface catalytic properties. Extensive pyrolysis stabilizes carbon phase via increasing its degree of aromatization and provides activation agents for this phase coming from decomposition and rearrangement of inorganic phase.

  6. Determination of diphenylarsinic acid, phenylarsonic acid and inorganic arsenic in drinking water by graphite-furnace atomic-absorption spectrometry after simultaneous separation and preconcentration with solid-phase extraction disks.

    PubMed

    Hagiwara, Kenta; Inui, Tetsuo; Koike, Yuya; Nakamura, Toshihiro

    2013-01-01

    A simple method of graphite-furnace atomic-absorption spectrometry (GFAAS) after solid-phase extraction (SPE) was developed for the determination of diphenylarsinic acid (DPAA), phenylarsonic acid (PAA), and inorganic arsenic (iAs) in drinking water. This method involves the simultaneous collection of DPAA, PAA, and iAs using three stacked SPE disks, i.e., an Empore SDB-XD disk (the upper layer), an activated carbon disk (the middle layer), and a Cation-SR disk loaded with Zr and Ca (ZrCa-CED; the lower layer). A 200-mL aqueous sample was adjusted to pH 3 with nitric acid and passed through the SPE disks at a flow rate of 15 mL min(-1), to concentrate DPAA on the SDB-XD disk, PAA on the activated carbon disk, and iAs on the ZrCa-CED. The As compounds were eluted from the disks with 10 mL of ethanol containing 0.5 mol L(-1) ammonia solution for DPAA, 20 mL of 1 mol L(-1) ammonia solution for PAA, and 20 mL of 6 mol L(-1) hydrochloric acid for iAs. The eluates of DPAA, PAA, and iAs were diluted to 20, 25, and 25 mL, respectively, with deionized water, and then analyzed by GFAAS. The detection limits of As (three-times the standard deviation (n = 3) of the blank values) were 0.13 and 0.16 μg L(-1) at enrichment factors of 10 and 8, respectively, using a 200-mL water sample. Spike tests with 2 μg (10 μg L(-1)) of DPAA, PAA, and iAs in 200 mL of tap water and bottled drinking water showed good recoveries (96.1-103.8%).

  7. AmeriFlux US-Ced Cedar Bridge

    DOE Data Explorer

    Clark, Ken [USDA Forest Service

    2016-01-01

    This is the AmeriFlux version of the carbon flux data for the site US-Ced Cedar Bridge. Site Description - Wildfires and prescribed fires are a common occurrence in the NJ Pinelands. Prior to a 1995 nonstand replacing wildfire, the stand was last burned in the very large wildfire in 1963. Plow lines were installed for fire control in December of 2007, followed by a prescribed burns in 2008 and 2013, conducted by the New Jersey Forest Fire Service. Pine looper defoliated the stand in 1998, and Gypsy moth defoliated the understory and deciduos oaks in 2007. Pitch Pines are largely unaffected by defoliation by Gypsy moth.

  8. Supporting clinical engineering in Italy: results of a survey conducted by the AIIC.

    PubMed

    Faggiano, Francesco; Ritrovato, Matteo; Freda, Paola; Vivo, Liliana; D'Alessandro, Luigi; Derrico, Pietro

    2012-01-01

    This article presents the outcomes of a survey developed and conducted by the Italian Association of Clinical Engineers (AIIC) in 2010 [1]. The AIIC, affiliated with the International Federation for Medical and Biological Engineering (IFMBE) since 2003, conducted this in-depth survey to investigate the educational profile of clinical engineers (CEs) as well as the activities and organization of clinical engineering departments (CEDs) in Italy. The survey consisted of a six-section questionnaire designed by the AIIC Board, which was based on other previous international surveys of CEDs. The questionnaire was sent to the AIIC members and to the most important Italian health-care organizations.

  9. Copper-catalyzed oxidative desulfurization-oxygenation of thiocarbonyl compounds using molecular oxygen: an efficient method for the preparation of oxygen isotopically labeled carbonyl compounds.

    PubMed

    Shibahara, Fumitoshi; Suenami, Aiko; Yoshida, Atsunori; Murai, Toshiaki

    2007-06-21

    A novel copper-catalyzed oxidative desulfurization reaction of thiocarbonyl compounds, using molecular oxygen as an oxidant and leading to formation of carbonyl compounds, has been developed, and the utility of the process is demonstrated by its application to the preparation of a carbonyl-18O labeled sialic acid derivative.

  10. Application Potential of Energy Systems at Navy Sites. Volume I. Methodology and Results.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1980-01-01

    see Table 5-4). Flue gas desulfurization (FGD), electrostatic precipitators (ESP), and staged combustion (SC) were selected to control SOX...energy sources are required to meet proposed Federal Stationary Source Standards. Flue gas desulfurization (FGD), electrostatic precipitators (ESP...pollution control equipment follows: * FGD -- Flue gas from the furnace is passed counter-currently through a limestone (CaCO3) slurry which reacts with

  11. Reaction of. beta. -propiolactone with derivatives of adenine and with DNA

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Chen, R.; Mieyal, J.J.; Goldthwait, D.A.

    1982-01-01

    The reaction of deoxyadenosine with ..beta..-propiolactone produces two derivatives. One is 1-(2-carboxyethyl)-2-deoxyadenosine (CEdA). The proposed structure for the other is 3-(..beta..-D-2-deoxyribosyl)-7,8-dihydropyrimido-(2,l-i)purine-9-one (dDPP). Spectral characteristics of both compounds are presented. These include u.v. spectra of each in acidic, neutral and alkaline solutions, i.r. spectra, fluorescence spectra, and n.m.r. spectra. The dDPP can be converted to CEdA by mild acid hydrolysis, and the CEdA can be converted to dDPP by reaction with a carbodiimide derivative. When poly A was reacted with ..beta..-propiolactone, the yield of dDPP in the polymer was 7-9%. When double-stranded DNA was alkylated by (/sup 3/H)..beta..-propiolactone at relatively highmore » concentrations and then acid hydrolyzed to separate 1-(2-carboxyethyl)adenine (CEA) and 7-(2-carboxyethyl)guanine (CEG), and CEA to CEG ratio of up to 0.62 was obtained. With relatively low concentrations of (/sup 3/H)..beta..-propiolactone, the yield of CEA was low with double-stranded DNA but was 5-6 fold greater with single-stranded DNA.« less

  12. Toxicity evaluation of convection-enhanced delivery of small-molecule kinase inhibitors in naïve mouse brainstem.

    PubMed

    Zhou, Zhiping; Ho, Sharon L; Singh, Ranjodh; Pisapia, David J; Souweidane, Mark M

    2015-04-01

    Diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas (DIPGs) are inoperable and lethal high-grade gliomas lacking definitive therapy. Platelet-derived growth factor receptor (PDGFR) and its downstream signaling molecules are the most commonly overexpressed oncogenes in DIPG. This study tested the effective concentration of PDGFR pathway inhibitors in cell culture and then toxicity of these small-molecule kinase inhibitors delivered to the mouse brainstem via convection-enhanced delivery (CED) for potential clinical application. Effective concentrations of small-molecule kinase inhibitors were first established in cell culture from a mouse brainstem glioma model. Sixteen mice underwent CED, a local drug delivery technique, of saline or of single and multidrug combinations of dasatinib (2 M), everolimus (20 M), and perifosine (0.63 mM) in the pons. Animals were kept alive for 3 days following the completion of infusion. No animals displayed any immediate or delayed neurological deficits postoperatively. Histological analysis revealed edema, microgliosis, acute inflammation, and/or axonal injury in the experimental animals consistent with mild acute drug toxicity. Brainstem CED of small-molecule kinase inhibitors in the mouse did not cause serious acute toxicities. Future studies will be necessary to evaluate longer-term safety to prepare for potential clinical application.

  13. Using additional external inputs to forecast water quality with an artificial neural network for contamination event detection in source water

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schmidt, F.; Liu, S.

    2016-12-01

    Source water quality plays an important role for the safety of drinking water and early detection of its contamination is vital to taking appropriate countermeasures. However, compared to drinking water, it is more difficult to detect contamination events because its environment is less controlled and numerous natural causes contribute to a high variability of the background values. In this project, Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) and a Contamination Event Detection Process (CED Process) were used to identify events in river water. The ANN models the response of basic water quality sensors obtained in laboratory experiments in an off-line learning stage and continuously forecasts future values of the time line in an on-line forecasting step. During this second stage, the CED Process compares the forecast to the measured value and classifies it as regular background or event value, which modifies the ANN's continuous learning and influences its forecasts. In addition to this basic setup, external information is fed to the CED Process: A so-called Operator Input (OI) is provided to inform about unusual water quality levels that are unrelated to the presence of contamination, for example due to cooling water discharge from a nearby power plant. This study's primary goal is to evaluate how well the OI fits into the design of the combined forecasting ANN and CED Process and to understand its effects on the online forecasting stage. To test this, data from laboratory experiments conducted previously at the School of Environment, Tsinghua University, have been used to perform simulations highlighting features and drawbacks of this method. Applying the OI has been shown to have a positive influence on the ANN's ability to handle a sudden change in background values, which is unrelated to contamination. However, it might also mask the presence of an event, an issue that underlines the necessity to have several instances of the algorithm run in parallel. Other difficulties addressed in this study include the source and the format of the OI. This project tries to add to the ongoing research into algorithms for CED. It provides ideas for how results from the binary classification of time series could be evaluated in a more realistic fashion and shows what the advantages and limitations of such a method would be.

  14. Proteomics and Metabolomics Analyses to Elucidate the Desulfurization Pathway of Chelatococcus sp.

    PubMed Central

    Chaudhuri, Mihir K.

    2016-01-01

    Desulfurization of dibenzothiophene (DBT) and alkylated DBT derivatives present in transport fuel through specific cleavage of carbon-sulfur (C-S) bonds by a newly isolated bacterium Chelatococcus sp. is reported for the first time. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis of the products of DBT degradation by Chelatococcus sp. showed the transient formation of 2-hydroxybiphenyl (2-HBP) which was subsequently converted to 2-methoxybiphenyl (2-MBP) by methylation at the hydroxyl group of 2-HBP. The relative ratio of 2-HBP and 2-MBP formed after 96 h of bacterial growth was determined at 4:1 suggesting partial conversion of 2-HBP or rapid degradation of 2-MBP. Nevertheless, the enzyme involved in this conversion process remains to be identified. This production of 2-MBP rather than 2-HBP from DBT desulfurization has a significant metabolic advantage for enhancing the growth and sulfur utilization from DBT by Chelatococcus sp. and it also reduces the environmental pollution by 2-HBP. Furthermore, desulfurization of DBT derivatives such as 4-M-DBT and 4, 6-DM-DBT by Chelatococcus sp. resulted in formation of 2-hydroxy-3-methyl-biphenyl and 2-hydroxy –3, 3/- dimethyl-biphenyl, respectively as end product. The GC and X-ray fluorescence studies revealed that Chelatococcus sp. after 24 h of treatment at 37°C reduced the total sulfur content of diesel fuel by 12% by per gram resting cells, without compromising the quality of fuel. The LC-MS/MS analysis of tryptic digested intracellular proteins of Chelatococcus sp. when grown in DBT demonstrated the biosynthesis of 4S pathway desulfurizing enzymes viz. monoxygenases (DszC, DszA), desulfinase (DszB), and an NADH-dependent flavin reductase (DszD). Besides, several other intracellular proteins of Chelatococcus sp. having diverse biological functions were also identified by LC-MS/MS analysis. Many of these enzymes are directly involved with desulfurization process whereas the other enzymes/proteins support growth of bacteria at an expense of DBT. These combined results suggest that Chelatococcus sp. prefers sulfur-specific extended 4S pathway for deep-desulphurization which may have an advantage for its intended future application as a promising biodesulfurizing agent. PMID:27100386

  15. Adsorptive Desulfurization of Model Gasoline by Using Different Zn Sources Exchanged NaY Zeolites.

    PubMed

    Rui, Jingwei; Liu, Fei; Wang, Rijie; Lu, Yanfei; Yang, Xiaoxia

    2017-02-17

    A series of Zn-modified NaY zeolites were prepared by the liquid-phase ion-exchange method with different Zn sources, including Zn(NO₃)₂, Zn(Ac)₂ and ZnSO₄. The samples were tested as adsorbents for removing an organic sulfur compound from a model gasoline fuel containing 1000 ppmw sulfur. Zn(Ac)₂-Y exhibited the best performance for the desulfurization of gasoline at ambient conditions. Combined with the adsorbents' characterization results, the higher adsorption capacity of Zn(Ac)₂-Y is associated with a higher ion-exchange degree. Further, the results demonstrated that the addition of 5 wt % toluene or 1-hexene to the diluted thiophene (TP) solution in cyclohexane caused a large decrease in the removal of TP from the model gasoline fuel. This provides evidence about the competition through the π-complexation between TP and toluene for adsorption on the active sites. The acid-catalyzed alkylation by 1-hexene of TP and the generated complex mixture of bulky alkylthiophenes would adsorb on the surface active sites of the adsorbent and block the pores. The regenerated Zn(Ac)₂-Y adsorbent afforded 84.42% and 66.10% of the initial adsorption capacity after the first two regeneration cycles.

  16. Exploring the Mechanism of Biocatalyst Inhibition in Microbial Desulfurization

    PubMed Central

    Abin-Fuentes, Andres; Mohamed, Magdy El-Said; Wang, Daniel I. C.

    2013-01-01

    Microbial desulfurization, or biodesulfurization (BDS), of fuels is a promising technology because it can desulfurize compounds that are recalcitrant to the current standard technology in the oil industry. One of the obstacles to the commercialization of BDS is the reduction in biocatalyst activity concomitant with the accumulation of the end product, 2-hydroxybiphenyl (HBP), during the process. BDS experiments were performed by incubating Rhodococcus erythropolis IGTS8 resting-cell suspensions with hexadecane at 0.50 (vol/vol) containing 10 mM dibenzothiophene. The resin Dowex Optipore SD-2 was added to the BDS experiments at resin concentrations of 0, 10, or 50 g resin/liter total volume. The HBP concentration within the cytoplasm was estimated to decrease from 1,100 to 260 μM with increasing resin concentration. Despite this finding, productivity did not increase with the resin concentration. This led us to focus on the susceptibility of the desulfurization enzymes toward HBP. Dose-response experiments were performed to identify major inhibitory interactions in the most common BDS pathway, the 4S pathway. HBP was responsible for three of the four major inhibitory interactions identified. The concentrations of HBP that led to a 50% reduction in the enzymes' activities (IC50s) for DszA, DszB, and DszC were measured to be 60 ± 5 μM, 110 ± 10 μM, and 50 ± 5 μM, respectively. The fact that the IC50s for HBP are all significantly lower than the cytoplasmic HBP concentration suggests that the inhibition of the desulfurization enzymes by HBP is responsible for the observed reduction in biocatalyst activity concomitant with HBP generation. PMID:24096431

  17. Oxidative desulfurization of fuels catalyzed by Fenton-like ionic liquids at room temperature.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Yunqing; Zhu, Wenshuai; Li, Huaming; Yin, Sheng; Liu, Hua; Xie, Qingjie

    2011-03-21

    Oxidation of the sulfur-containing compounds benzothiophene (BT), dibenzothiophene (DBT), and 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene (4,6-DMDBT) has been studied in a desulfurization system composed of model oil, hydrogen peroxide, and different types of ionic liquids [(C(8)H(17))(3)CH(3)N]Cl/FeCl(3), [(C(8)H(17))(3)CH(3)N]Cl/CuCl(2), [(C(8)H(17))(3)CH(3)N]Cl/ZnCl(2), [(C(8)H(17))(3)CH(3)N]Cl/SnCl(2), [(C(4)H(9))(3)CH(3)N]Cl/FeCl(3), [C(10)H(21)(CH(3))(3)N]Cl/FeCl(3), [(C(10)H(21))(2)(CH(3))(2)N]Cl/FeCl(3). Deep desulfurization is achieved in the Fenton-like ionic liquid [(C(8)H(17))(3)CH(3)N]Cl/FeCl(3) at 25 °C for 1 h. The desulfurization of DBT reaches 97.9%, in consuming very low amount of [(C(8)H(17))(3)CH(3)N]Cl/FeCl(3) (only 0.702 mmol). The reaction conditions, for example, the amount of [(C(8)H(17))(3)CH(3)N]Cl/FeCl(3) or H(2)O(2), the temperature, and the molar ratio of FeCl(3) to [(C(8)H(17))(3)CH(3)N]Cl, are investigated for this system. The oxidation reactivity of the different sulfur-containing compounds is found to decrease in the order of DBT>BT>4,6-DMDBT. The desulfurization system can be recycled six times without significant decrease in activity. The sulfur level of FCC gasoline could be reduced from 360 ppm to 110 ppm. Copyright © 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  18. Self-sustained operation of a kW e-class kerosene-reforming processor for solid oxide fuel cells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yoon, Sangho; Bae, Joongmyeon; Kim, Sunyoung; Yoo, Young-Sung

    In this paper, fuel-processing technologies are developed for application in residential power generation (RPG) in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). Kerosene is selected as the fuel because of its high hydrogen density and because of the established infrastructure that already exists in South Korea. A kerosene fuel processor with two different reaction stages, autothermal reforming (ATR) and adsorptive desulfurization reactions, is developed for SOFC operations. ATR is suited to the reforming of liquid hydrocarbon fuels because oxygen-aided reactions can break the aromatics in the fuel and steam can suppress carbon deposition during the reforming reaction. ATR can also be implemented as a self-sustaining reactor due to the exothermicity of the reaction. The kW e self-sustained kerosene fuel processor, including the desulfurizer, operates for about 250 h in this study. This fuel processor does not require a heat exchanger between the ATR reactor and the desulfurizer or electric equipment for heat supply and fuel or water vaporization because a suitable temperature of the ATR reformate is reached for H 2S adsorption on the ZnO catalyst beds in desulfurizer. Although the CH 4 concentration in the reformate gas of the fuel processor is higher due to the lower temperature of ATR tail gas, SOFCs can directly use CH 4 as a fuel with the addition of sufficient steam feeds (H 2O/CH 4 ≥ 1.5), in contrast to low-temperature fuel cells. The reforming efficiency of the fuel processor is about 60%, and the desulfurizer removed H 2S to a sufficient level to allow for the operation of SOFCs.

  19. Nitrification in a completely stirred tank reactor treating the liquid phase of digestate: The way towards rational use of nitrogen.

    PubMed

    Svehla, Pavel; Radechovska, Helena; Pacek, Lukas; Michal, Pavel; Hanc, Ales; Tlustos, Pavel

    2017-06-01

    The nitrification of the liquid phase of digestate (LPD) was conducted using a 5L completely stirred tank reactor (CSTR) in two independent periods (P1 - without pH control; P2 - with pH control). The possibility of minimizing nitrogen losses during the application of LPD to the soil as well as during long-term storage or thermal thickening of LPD using nitrification was discussed. Moreover, the feasibility of applying the nitrification of LPD to the production of electron acceptors for biological desulfurization of biogas was assessed. Despite an extremely high average concentration of ammonia and COD in LPD reaching 2470 and 9080mg/L, respectively, nitrification was confirmed immediately after the start-up of the CSTR. N-NO 3 - concentration reached 250mg/L only two days after the start of P1. On the other hand, P1 demonstrated that working without pH control is a risk because of the free nitrous acid (FNA) inhibition towards nitrite oxidizing bacteria (NOB) resulting in massive nitrite accumulation. Up to 30.9mg/L of FNA was present in the reactor during P1, where the NOB started to be inhibited even at 0.15mg/L of FNA. During P2, the control of pH at 7.0 resulted in nitrogen oxidation efficiency reaching 98.3±1.5% and the presence of N-NO 3 - among oxidized nitrogen 99.6±0.4%. The representation of volatile free ammonia within total nitrogen was reduced more than 1000 times comparing with raw LPD under these conditions. Thus, optimum characteristics of the tested system from the point of view of minimizing the nitrogen losses as well as production of electron acceptors for the desulfurization of biogas were gained in this phase of reactor operation. Based on the results of the experiments, potential improvements and modifications of the tested system were suggested. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. System for adding sulfur to a fuel cell stack system for improved fuel cell stability

    DOEpatents

    Mukerjee, Subhasish [Pittsford, NY; Haltiner, Jr., Karl J; Weissman, Jeffrey G [West Henrietta, NY

    2012-03-06

    A system for adding sulfur to a fuel cell stack, having a reformer adapted to reform a hydrocarbon fuel stream containing sulfur contaminants, thereby providing a reformate stream having sulfur; a sulfur trap fluidly coupled downstream of the reformer for removing sulfur from the reformate stream, thereby providing a desulfurized reformate stream; and a metering device in fluid communication with the reformate stream upstream of the sulfur trap and with the desulfurized reformate stream downstream of the sulfur trap. The metering device is adapted to bypass a portion of the reformate stream to mix with the desulfurized reformate stream, thereby producing a conditioned reformate stream having a predetermined sulfur concentration that gives an acceptable balance of minimal drop in initial power with the desired maximum stability of operation over prolonged periods for the fuel cell stack.

  1. Sulfur transfer in the distillate fractions of Arabian crude oils under gamma-irradiation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Basfar, Ahmed A.; Soliman, Yasser S.; Alkhuraiji, Turki S.

    2017-05-01

    Desulfurization of light distillation fractions including gasoline, kerosene and diesel obtained from the four Arabian crude oils (heavy, medium, light and extra light) upon γ-rays irradiation to different doses was investigated. In addition, yields vol%, FTIR analysis, kinematic viscosity and density of all distillation fractions of irradiated crude oils were evaluated. Limited radiation-induced desulfurization of those fractions was observed up to an irradiation dose of 200 kGy. FTIR analysis of those fractions indicates the absence of oxidized sulfur compounds, represented by S=O of sulfone group, indicating that γ-irradiation of the Arabian crude oils at normal conditions does not induce an oxidative desulfurization in those distillation fractions. Radiation-induced sulfur transfer decreases by 28.56% and increases in total sulfur by 16.8% in Arabian extra light oil and Arabian medium crude oil respectively.

  2. Simple biogas desulfurization by microaeration - Full scale experience.

    PubMed

    Jeníček, P; Horejš, J; Pokorná-Krayzelová, L; Bindzar, J; Bartáček, J

    2017-08-01

    Hydrogen sulfide in biogas is common problem during anaerobic treatment of wastewater with high sulfate concentration (breweries, distilleries, etc.) and needs to be removed before biogas utilization. Physico-chemical desulfurization methods are energetically demanding and expensive compare to biochemical methods. Microaeration, i.e. dosing of small amount of air, is suitable and cost effective biochemical method of sulfide oxidation to elemental sulfur. It has been widely used in biogas plants, but its application in anaerobic reactors for wastewater treatment has been rarely studied or tested. The lack of full-scale experience with microaeration in wastewater treatment plants has been overcome by evaluating the results of seven microaerobic digesters in central Europe. The desulfurization efficiency has been more than 90% in most of the cases. Moreover, microaeration improved the degradability of COD and volatile suspended solids. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Coal Liquefaction desulfurization process

    DOEpatents

    Givens, Edwin N.

    1983-01-01

    In a solvent refined coal liquefaction process, more effective desulfurization of the high boiling point components is effected by first stripping the solvent-coal reacted slurry of lower boiling point components, particularly including hydrogen sulfide and low molecular weight sulfur compounds, and then reacting the slurry with a solid sulfur getter material, such as iron. The sulfur getter compound, with reacted sulfur included, is then removed with other solids in the slurry.

  4. o-Iodoxybenzoic acid mediated oxidative desulfurization initiated domino reactions for synthesis of azoles.

    PubMed

    Chaudhari, Pramod S; Pathare, Sagar P; Akamanchi, Krishnacharaya G

    2012-04-20

    A systematic exploration of thiophilic ability of o-iodoxybenzoic acid (IBX) for oxidative desulfurization to trigger domino reactions leading to new methodologies for synthesis of different azoles is described. A variety of highly substituted oxadiazoles, thiadiazoles, triazoles, and tetrazoles have been successfully synthesized in good to excellent yields, starting from readily accessible thiosemicarbazides, bis-diarylthiourea, 1,3-disubtituted thiourea, and thioamides. © 2012 American Chemical Society

  5. Polymeric carbon nitride nanomesh as an efficient and durable metal-free catalyst for oxidative desulfurization.

    PubMed

    Shen, Lijuan; Lei, Ganchang; Fang, Yuanxing; Cao, Yanning; Wang, Xinchen; Jiang, Lilong

    2018-03-06

    We report the first use of polymeric carbon nitride (CN) for the catalytic selective oxidation of H 2 S. The as-prepared CN with unique ultrathin "nanomeshes" structure exhibits excellent H 2 S conversion and high S selectivity. In particular, the CN nanomesh also displays better durability in the desulfurization reaction than traditional catalysts, such as carbon- and iron-based materials.

  6. Review of Facility Technology Options and their Development Status

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1989-06-01

    added to these commercial technologies, such as flue gas desulfurization and low-NO x burners. " New coal-fired power technologies, such as AFBC, CFBC...Issues When compared to conventional technologies with pollution control equipment (such as pulverized coal/ flue gas desulfurization ), AFBC/CFBC systems...performance trade- offs exist. Since less energy is available in the flue gas as a result of heating water, less refrigerant vapor will be

  7. JPRS Report, East Europe.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1989-12-28

    place not given; first paragraph is BERLINER ZEI- TUNG introduction] [Text] It would appear farfetched to find a common denominator for a flue gas ... desulfurization plant and a cordless electric shaver. The power plant construction combine constitutes a bridge between the two, because both items... desulfurizing and denitrogenation of a 500 megawatt power plant. During the last few years, they have spent a total of M 20 billion to protect the air from

  8. Environmental Compliance Assessment System (ECAS). Kentucky Supplement (Revised)

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1994-02-01

    vehicles or vehicle bodies. "* FGD - Flue Gas Desulfurization . "* Field-Erected - assembled from components at a final site of operation. "* Flare - a...34* Spare Flue Gas Desulfurization System Module - a separate system of sulfur dioxide emission con- trol equipment capable of treating an amount of flue ...Carryover - particulate matter which is passed from the primary chamber of an incinerator into the flue gas stream. " Particulate Matter Emissions

  9. BMDO Technology and the Electric Utility Industry

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1997-01-01

    use flue gas desulfurization systems, called scrubbers, to control the emissions of S02. In general, such systems allow combustion gases to pass...M) of flue gas desulfurization systems were about .0114 cents per kilowatt-hour. This small fraction of a penny translates to hundreds of millions...diluent gas , and opacity of units (the percentage of light that one can see through the flue gas ). According to requirements, CEM equipment must be

  10. A Procedure for Determining the Resource Utilization Potential of Coal Ash.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1981-09-01

    48 V Chapter Page Lime Replacement for Flue - Gas Desulfurization Ujnits . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . .48 Refuse Pile Fire Abatemnent...exceeds the capability of a vacuum system to attain a satisfactory conveying rate. If thenfy ash is removed from the flue gas stream by a wet collector...the mixture some fertilizer value (21:44-45). Lime Replacement for Flue - Gas Desulfurization Units For conventional SO, lime-based removal systems

  11. Resource Management Technology: Los Alamos Technical Capabilities for Emergency Management,

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1983-07-18

    synthetic fuels from coal (analogous to the Fischer-Tropsch process), olefin polymerization, and flue - gas desulfurization . In order to successfully...world. It has been a major research effort here for decades. Also, in the area of desulfurization of flue gases, Los Alamos scientists have been...Tectonic and Geochemical Controls on Copper-Molybdenum Porphyry Mineralization in the Southwestern United States (M. J. Aldrich and A. W. Laughlin) 1.0.6

  12. Experimental study on removals of SO2 and NOX using adsorption of activated carbon/microwave desorption.

    PubMed

    Ma, Shuang-Chen; Yao, Juan-Juan; Gao, Li; Ma, Xiao-Ying; Zhao, Yi

    2012-09-01

    Experimental studies on desulfurization and denitrification were carried out using activated carbon irradiated by microwave. The influences of the concentrations of nitric oxide (NO) and sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ), the flue gas coexisting compositions, on adsorption properties of activated carbon and efficiencies of desulfurization and denitrification were investigated. The results show that adsorption capacity and removal efficiency of NO decrease with the increasing of SO 2 concentrations in flue gas; adsorption capacity of NO increases slightly first and drops to 12.79 mg/g, and desulfurization efficiency descends with the increasing SO 2 concentrations. Adsorption capacity of SO 2 declines with the increasing of O 2 content in flue gas, but adsorption capacity of NO increases, and removal efficiencies of NO and SO 2 could be larger than 99%. Adsorption capacity of NO declines with the increase of moisture in the flue gas, but adsorption capacity of SO 2 increases and removal efficiencies of NO and SO 2 would be relatively stable. Adsorption capacities of both NO and SO 2 decrease with the increasing of CO 2 content; efficiencies of desulfurization and denitrification augment at the beginning stage, then start to fall when CO 2 content exceeds 12.4%. The mechanisms of this process are also discussed. [Box: see text].

  13. (18)O(2) label mechanism of sulfur generation and characterization in properties over mesoporous Sm-based sorbents for hot coal gas desulfurization.

    PubMed

    Liu, B S; Wan, Z Y; Wang, F; Zhan, Y P; Tian, M; Cheung, A S C

    2014-02-28

    Using a sol-gel method, SmMeOx/MCM-41 or SBA-15 (Me=Fe, Co and Zn) and corresponding unsupported sorbents were prepared. The desulfurization performance of these sorbents was evaluated over a fixed-bed reactor and the effects of reaction temperature, feed and sorbent composition on desulfurization performance were studied. Samarium-based sorbents used to remove H2S from hot coal gas were reported for the first time. The results of successive sulfidation/regeneration cycles revealed that SmFeO3/SBA-15 sorbent was suitable for desulfurization of hot coal gas in the chemical industry. The formation of elemental sulfur during both sulfidation and regeneration processes depended strongly on the catalytic action of Sm2O2S species, which was confirmed for the first time via high sensitive time of flight mass spectrometer (TOF-MS) using 6%vol(18)O2/Ar regeneration gas and can reduce markedly procedural complexity. The sorbents were characterized using N2-adsorption, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), temperature-programmed reduction of H2 (H2-TPR), thermogravimetry (TG) and time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOF-MS) techniques. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Desulfurization of benzonaphthothiophenes and dibenzothiophene with a Raney nickel catalyst and its relationship to the. pi. -electron density

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Nagai, M.; Urimoto, H.; Uetake, K.

    The hydrodesulfurization of heavy petroleum feedstocks and coal-derived liquids requires the conversion of high molecular weight compounds like dibenzothiophene and benzonaphthothiophenes. There are several studies in the literature which deal with the mechanism of the hydrodesulfurization of multi-ring thiophenic compounds on cobalt or nickel molybdenum catalysts at high pressure. However, there are only a few studies which relate the chemical reactivity of these compounds to their electronic structure. The reactivity of a multi-ring sulfur-containing compound is not determined solely by the size of the molecule. In addition, others studied the relationship between the first step in the hydrotreating reaction ofmore » benzonaphthothiophene and the Coulombic interaction term of the compounds using the CNDO/S method. Because there is competition between the different processes (hydrogenation and desulfurization) during reaction, it is difficult to understand the relationship between desulfurization and the electronic properties of the compounds under reaction conditions. The calculation of electronic structures necessarily involves many sigma bonds of hydrogenated aromatic rings as well as many electrons of high molecular weight compounds. For this reason, it is best to select a catalyst and reaction conditions under which desulfurization takes place without hydrogenation.« less

  15. NCSP IER 422 CED-3b Documentation

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Hutchinson, Jesson D.; Cutler, Theresa Elizabeth; Bahran, Rian Mustafa

    2017-11-22

    A Subcritical Copper-Reflected α-phase Plutonium (SCRαP) integral benchmark experiment has been designed and measured. In this experiment, multiplication is approximated using correlated neutron data from a detector system consisting of 3He tubes inside high density polyethylene (HDPE). Measurements were performed on various subcritical experimental configurations consisting of a weapons-grade plutonium sphere surrounded by different Cu thicknesses. In addition to the proposed base experimental configurations with Cu, additional configurations were performed with the plutonium ball nested in various thicknesses of interleaved HDPE spherical shells mixed in with the Cu shells. The HDPE is intended to provide fast neutron moderation and reflection,more » resulting in additional measurements with differing multiplication, spectra, and nuclear data sensitivity.« less

  16. Environmental Life Cycle Assessment Model for Soil Bioengineering Measures on Infrastructure Slopes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hoerbinger, Stephan; Obriejetan, Michael

    2015-04-01

    Soil bioengineering techniques can be a helpful instrument for civil engineers taking into account not only technical but also ecological, socio-economic and sustainability aspects. Environmental Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) models can serve as supplementary evaluation methods to economic analyses, taking into account the resource demand and environmental burdens of engineering structures. The presented LCA model includes the functional grade of structures in addition to environmental aspects. When using vegetation as living construction material, several factors have to be considered. There is the provision of ecosystem services of plants, such as the stabilization of the slope through its root-system, CO2 sequestration through biomass production et cetera. However, it must be noted that vegetation can cause security issues on infrastructure facilities and entail costs through the necessity of maintenance works. For this reason, it is necessary to already define the target systems during the planning phase of a soil bioengineering structure. In this way, necessary measures can be adapted in all life cycles of a structure. The objective of the presented LCA model is to serve as a basis for the definition of target systems. In the designed LCA model the soil bioengineering structures are divided into four life phases; construction phase, operational phase, end of life phase and subsequent use phase. A main objective of the LCA model is the understanding of the "Cumulative Energy Demand" (CED) and "Global Warming Potential" (GWP) of soil bioengineering structures during all life cycle phases. Additionally, the biomass production and the CO2 sequestration potential of the used plants are regarded as well as the functional integrity of the soil bioengineering system. In the life phase of soil bioengineering structures, a major part of the energy input is required during the construction phase. This is mainly due to the cumulative energy demand of the inert materials used. The principle of biological engineering constructions is based on the combination of dead and living materials and the emerging positive synergistic effects. The dead auxiliaries (stone, wood, etc.) protect the living plants until they undertake technical functions. During the operational phase of the structure, maintenance work has to be done in order to maintain the protective properties of the used plants. Through measures like cutting the vegetation back to the trunk, energy will be put into the system (e.g. through machine use), but will also be put out in form of biomass. Additionally, carbon is sequestered by the biomass production of the plants. The end of life phase is reached after the projected lifetime of a structure. Outside of zones with plant growth restrictions like within a clearance gauge, soil bioengineering approaches are designed to have a subsequent use phase. That means, that after the actual lifespan of the construction, a forest should have developed and maintain its balance by natural succession. The LCA model aims at supporting sustainable management strategies for CED and GWP as a base for Green Public Procurement and eco- friendly implementation and maintenance of soil bioengineering structures on infrastructure slopes.

  17. Convection-enhanced delivery to the central nervous system.

    PubMed

    Lonser, Russell R; Sarntinoranont, Malisa; Morrison, Paul F; Oldfield, Edward H

    2015-03-01

    Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) is a bulk flow-driven process. Its properties permit direct, homogeneous, targeted perfusion of CNS regions with putative therapeutics while bypassing the blood-brain barrier. Development of surrogate imaging tracers that are co-infused during drug delivery now permit accurate, noninvasive real-time tracking of convective infusate flow in nervous system tissues. The potential advantages of CED in the CNS over other currently available drug delivery techniques, including systemic delivery, intrathecal and/or intraventricular distribution, and polymer implantation, have led to its application in research studies and clinical trials. The authors review the biophysical principles of convective flow and the technology, properties, and clinical applications of convective delivery in the CNS.

  18. Can microbes economically remove sulfur

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Fox, J.L.

    Researchers have reported that refiners who now rely on costly physic-chemical procedures to desulfurize petroleum will soon have an alternative microbial-enzyme-based approach to this process. This new approach is still under development and considerable number chemical engineering problems need to be solved before this process is ready for large-scale use. This paper reviews the several research projects dedicated solving the problems that keep a biotechnology-based alternative from competing with chemical desulfurization.

  19. Low temperature oxidative desulfurization with hierarchically mesoporous titaniumsilicate Ti-SBA-2 single crystals.

    PubMed

    Shi, Chengxiang; Wang, Wenxuan; Liu, Ni; Xu, Xueyan; Wang, Danhong; Zhang, Minghui; Sun, Pingchuan; Chen, Tiehong

    2015-07-21

    Hierarchically porous Ti-SBA-2 with high framework Ti content (up to 5 wt%) was firstly synthesized by employing organic mesomorphous complexes of a cationic surfactant (CTAB) and an anionic polyelectrolyte (PAA) as templates. The material exhibited excellent performance in oxidative desulfurization of diesel fuel at low temperature (40 °C or 25 °C) due to the unique hierarchically porous structure and high framework Ti content.

  20. Study on optimum technological conditions of ore sintering flue gas desulfurization by using poor manganese

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, H. Y.; Li, S. E.; Long, Z. G.; Wu, F. Z.; Cui, T. M.; Zhou, X. Z.

    2017-11-01

    Orthogonal experiments were conducted to study the effect of each single factor on the desulfurization rate and leaching rate of Mn2+ to obtain improved process parameters. The results showed that the use of pyrolusite flue gas and the process method of by-product MnSO4 can not only effectively remove the sulfur in the gas, thereby controlling environmental pollution, but can also recover sulfur.

  1. Planar Solid-Oxide Fuel Cell System Demonstration at UT SimCenter

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-12-09

    including metals, carbon, and zeolites , have been proposed for sulfur adsorption performances [9-13]. Nickel and copper supported on activated carbon and... zeolite exhibited effective desulfurization effects for jet fuels [14,15]. Muzic et al. [16] examined the adsorptive desulfurization of three...sulfur by using a nanoporous Ni loaded, Y-type zeolite at ambient conditions. The adsorption capacity of Ni-Y zeolite was 0.84 and 2.31 mg S/g

  2. U. S. (United States) Air Force Fuel Cell Application Analysis.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1982-01-01

    Desulfurizer and shift cata- lyst temperatures are maintained by controlling the amount of gas entering or by-passing the external water vaporizer. If...rich gas . The sul- fur content of the desulfurized fuel gas must be less than 1 ppm. Reforming takes place in a nickel catalyst bed, operating at... Control Supplemental Firing Fuel Cell Temperature Recirculation Air Temperature Control via Cooler Fan Speed Exhaust Gas Water Load Following damper

  3. Environmental Assessment of a Central Heating Plant.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1983-02-01

    control equipment will be required. One proven system for SO2 control is flue gas desulfurization (FGt). A variety of systems are currently in use on...low sulfur coal, but it could be further reduced by flue gas desulfur - ization. This option, however, entails greater capital and operating costs and an... wet or dry. Wet processes involve contacting the flue gas with aqueous slurries or solutions of absorbents and produce liquid wastes for direct

  4. Desulfurization by MOFs as Sorbents for Thiophene Sulfides

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xin, Chunling; Wang, Suqing

    2018-01-01

    Metal-organic frameworks UMCM-150 [Cu3(BHTC)2] and its heterobimetallic analogue Co1Cu2(BHTC)2 based on an asymmetrical ligand, biphenyl-3,4’,5-tricarboxylate (H3BHTC), were studied for desulfurization of model oils. The adsorption experiments were conducted under room temperature and atmospheric pressure. The total sulfur concentration of model oils was 250 ppmw determined by WK-2D coulomb integrated micro-analyzer through adding benzothiophene (BT) and dibenzothiophene (DBT) into liquid alkanes. Adsorptive desulfurization experiments were conducted in a consecutive fixed bed adsorption system. The results indicate that Cu3(BHTC)2 has a higher sulfur-capacity than Co1Cu2(BHTC)2. Taking DBT as an example, Cu3(BHTC)2 and Co1Cu2(BHTC)2 have breakthrough adsorption capacities of 10.6 and 5.8 g S/kg of sorbent for model oils.

  5. Synthesis of geminal difluorides by oxidative desulfurization-difluorination of alkyl aryl thioethers with halonium electrophiles in the presence of fluorinating reagents and its application for 18F-radiolabeling.

    PubMed

    Hugenberg, Verena; Wagner, Stefan; Kopka, Klaus; Schober, Otmar; Schäfers, Michael; Haufe, Günter

    2010-09-17

    Various ω-substituted 1,1-difluoroalkanes are synthesized in good yields from alkyl aryl thioethers by a new oxidative desulfurization-difluorination protocol with the reagents combination of 1,3-dibromo-5,5-dimethylhydantoin (DBH) as an oxidizer and pyridine·9HF (Py·9HF) as a fluoride source. The reaction proceeds via a fluoro-Pummerer-type rearrangement followed by an oxidative desulfurization-fluorination step. Starting from α-fluorinated thioethers, this reaction is promising for (18)F-labeling (τ(1/2) = 110 min) of ligands applicable for positron emission tomography (PET). Using the combination of DBH and carrier-added Py·9H[(18)F]F, an (18)F-labeled difluoride was synthesized from the corresponding α-fluoro thioether with a radiochemical yield of 9%.

  6. Photooxidative desulfurization for diesel using Fe / N - TiO2 photocatalyst

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Khan, Muhammad Saqib; Kait, Chong Fai; Mutalib, Mohd Ibrahim Abdul

    2014-10-01

    A series of N - TiO2 with different mol% N was synthesized via sol-gel method and characterized using thermal gravimetric analyzer and raman spectroscopy. 0.2 wt% Fe was incorporated onto the calcined (200°C) N - TiO2 followed by calcination at 200°C, 250°C and 300°C. Photooxidative desulfurization was conducted in the presence of 0.2wt% Fe / N - TiO2 with different mol% N with and without oxidant (H2O2). Oxidative desulfurization was only achieved when H2O2 was used while without H2O2 no major effect on the sulfur removal. 0.2Fe -30N - H2O2 photocatalysts showed best performance at all calcination temperatures as compared to other mol% N - H2O2 photocatalysts. 16.45% sulfur removal was achieved using photocatalysts calcined at 300 °C.

  7. Silver nanocrystal-decorated polyoxometalate single-walled nanotubes as nanoreactors for desulfurization catalysis at room temperature.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Hao; Xu, Xiaobin; Lin, Haifeng; Ud Din, Muhammad Aizaz; Wang, Haiqing; Wang, Xun

    2017-09-14

    Ultrathin nanocrystals generally provide a remarkable catalytic performance due to their high specific surface area and exposure of certain active sites. However, deactivation caused by growth and gathering limits the catalytic application of ultrathin nanocrystals. Here we report Ag nanocrystal-decorated polyoxometalate (Ag-POM) single-walled nanotubes assembled via a concise, surfactant-free soaking method as a new kind of well-defined core-sheath nanoreactor. The diameter of Ag nanocrystals inside polyoxometalate nanotubes can be controlled via simply adjusting the reactant concentration. Ag-POM provided outstanding oxidative desulfurization (ODS) catalytic performance for aromatic sulfocompounds at room temperature. It was suggested that Ag nanocrystals decorated on the inner surface played a key role in adjusting the electronic distribution and enhancing the catalytic activity. The as-prepared Ag-POM nanotubes are promising candidate catalysts with enhanced performance for practical catalytic applications in the gasoline desulfurization industry.

  8. Oxidative desulfurization of model diesel via dual activation by a protic ionic liquid.

    PubMed

    Lü, Hongying; Wang, Shunan; Deng, Changliang; Ren, Wanzhong; Guo, Baocun

    2014-08-30

    A novel and green carboxylate-anion-based protic ionic liquid (PIL), [Hnmp]HCOO, was prepared through a simple and atom economic neutralization reaction between N-methyl-2-pyrrolidonium (NMP) and formic acids. Both FT-IR spectra and (1)H NMR confirmed its simple salt structure. [Hnmp]HCOO exhibited so high catalytic activity that the dibenzothiophene (DBT) removal reached 99% at 50°C in 3h under conditions of VPIL/Vmodel oil=1:10 and H2O2/DBT (O/S, molar ratio)=5. The catalytic oxidation reactivity of S-compounds was found to be in the order of DBT>4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene (4,6-DMDBT)>benzothiophene (BT). The investigation on mechanism showed that oxidative desulfurization was realized through dual activation of PIL. Moreover, [Hnmp]HCOO can be recycled for five times with an unnoticeable decrease in desulfurization activity. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  9. Hydrogen generation having CO2 removal with steam reforming

    DOEpatents

    Kandaswamy, Duraiswamy; Chellappa, Anand S.; Knobbe, Mack

    2015-07-28

    A method for producing hydrogen using fuel cell off gases, the method feeding hydrocarbon fuel to a sulfur adsorbent to produce a desulfurized fuel and a spent sulfur adsorbent; feeding said desulfurized fuel and water to an adsorption enhanced reformer that comprises of a plurality of reforming chambers or compartments; reforming said desulfurized fuel in the presence of a one or more of a reforming catalyst and one or more of a CO2 adsorbent to produce hydrogen and a spent CO2 adsorbent; feeding said hydrogen to the anode side of the fuel cell; regenerating said spent CO2 adsorbents using the fuel cell cathode off-gases, producing a flow of hydrogen by cycling between said plurality of reforming chambers or compartments in a predetermined timing sequence; and, replacing the spent sulfur adsorbent with a fresh sulfur adsorbent at a predetermined time.

  10. Natural desulfurization in coal-fired units using Greek lignite.

    PubMed

    Konidaris, Dimitrios N

    2010-10-01

    This paper analyzes the natural desulfurization process taking place in coal-fired units using Greek lignite. The dry scrubbing capability of Greek lignite appears to be extremely high under special conditions, which can make it possible for the units to operate within the legislative limits of sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions. According to this study on several lignite-fired power stations in northern Greece, it was found that sulfur oxide emissions depend on coal rank, sulfur content, and calorific value. On the other hand, SO2 emission is inversely proportional to the parameter gammaCO2(max), which is equal to the maximum carbon dioxide (CO2) content by volume of dry flue gas under stoichiometric combustion. The desulfurization efficiency is positively correlated to the molar ratio of decomposed calcium carbonate to sulfur and negatively correlated to the free calcium oxide content of fly ash.

  11. Experimental Determination of Sulfur Partition Ratio in the CaO-Al2O3-SiO2-CaF2-MgO Slag and Liquid Iron

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jinzhu, Z.; Yunsheng, Y.; Wei, F.; Jialiang, Z.; Yi, Z.

    2017-09-01

    The external desulphurization of molten iron has become an important step in the production of steel and iron. The desulfurization degree of the high calcium slag, which was mainly taken from Shougang Shuicheng Iron and Steel (Group) Co. Limited, was investigated on basis of the fundamental theory of slag metal equilibrium reaction. The initial content of sulfur in the slag was adjusted to 2.60% mass perdent by adding analytical reagent CaS. The results show that the desulfurization degree of the high calcium slag increases obviously with the increase of temperature in the range 1593-1743K, and so the sulfur partition ratio. When the holding time of the hot metal and slag at controlled temperature was extended from 120 min to 180 min in the furnace, both the sulfur partition ratio and the desulfurization degree increased markedly.

  12. A novel magnetic resonance imaging segmentation technique for determining diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma tumor volume.

    PubMed

    Singh, Ranjodh; Zhou, Zhiping; Tisnado, Jamie; Haque, Sofia; Peck, Kyung K; Young, Robert J; Tsiouris, Apostolos John; Thakur, Sunitha B; Souweidane, Mark M

    2016-11-01

    OBJECTIVE Accurately determining diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) tumor volume is clinically important. The aims of the current study were to 1) measure DIPG volumes using methods that require different degrees of subjective judgment; and 2) evaluate interobserver agreement of measurements made using these methods. METHODS Eight patients from a Phase I clinical trial testing convection-enhanced delivery (CED) of a therapeutic antibody were included in the study. Pre-CED, post-radiation therapy axial T2-weighted images were analyzed using 2 methods requiring high degrees of subjective judgment (picture archiving and communication system [PACS] polygon and Volume Viewer auto-contour methods) and 1 method requiring a low degree of subjective judgment (k-means clustering segmentation) to determine tumor volumes. Lin's concordance correlation coefficients (CCCs) were calculated to assess interobserver agreement. RESULTS The CCCs of measurements made by 2 observers with the PACS polygon and the Volume Viewer auto-contour methods were 0.9465 (lower 1-sided 95% confidence limit 0.8472) and 0.7514 (lower 1-sided 95% confidence limit 0.3143), respectively. Both were considered poor agreement. The CCC of measurements made using k-means clustering segmentation was 0.9938 (lower 1-sided 95% confidence limit 0.9772), which was considered substantial strength of agreement. CONCLUSIONS The poor interobserver agreement of PACS polygon and Volume Viewer auto-contour methods highlighted the difficulty in consistently measuring DIPG tumor volumes using methods requiring high degrees of subjective judgment. k-means clustering segmentation, which requires a low degree of subjective judgment, showed better interobserver agreement and produced tumor volumes with delineated borders.

  13. A community-based event delivery protocol in publish/subscribe systems for delay tolerant sensor networks.

    PubMed

    Liu, Nianbo; Liu, Ming; Zhu, Jinqi; Gong, Haigang

    2009-01-01

    The basic operation of a Delay Tolerant Sensor Network (DTSN) is to finish pervasive data gathering in networks with intermittent connectivity, while the publish/subscribe (Pub/Sub for short) paradigm is used to deliver events from a source to interested clients in an asynchronous way. Recently, extension of Pub/Sub systems in DTSNs has become a promising research topic. However, due to the unique frequent partitioning characteristic of DTSNs, extension of a Pub/Sub system in a DTSN is a considerably difficult and challenging problem, and there are no good solutions to this problem in published works. To ad apt Pub/Sub systems to DTSNs, we propose CED, a community-based event delivery protocol. In our design, event delivery is based on several unchanged communities, which are formed by sensor nodes in the network according to their connectivity. CED consists of two components: event delivery and queue management. In event delivery, events in a community are delivered to mobile subscribers once a subscriber comes into the community, for improving the data delivery ratio. The queue management employs both the event successful delivery time and the event survival time to decide whether an event should be delivered or dropped for minimizing the transmission overhead. The effectiveness of CED is demonstrated through comprehensive simulation studies.

  14. Immunocontraceptive efficacy of synthetic peptides corresponding to major antigenic determinants of chicken riboflavin carrier protein in the female rats.

    PubMed

    Subramanian, S; Karande, A A; Adiga, P R

    2000-09-01

    Earlier studies have demonstrated that antibodies directed towards the N-terminal (residues 10-17) and C-terminal (residues 200-207) regions on chicken riboflavin carrier protein (RCP; 219 AA) are effective in pregnancy termination in rodents and sub-human primates. In the present study, the immunocontraceptive potential of three additional immunodominant sequences comprising of residues 33-49, 64 83 and 130-147 (CYA, CED and CGE peptides, respectively) of chicken RCP was investigated. The three antigenic peptides were synthesized by using Fmoc chemistry. Oligoclonal antibodies were generated in rabbits. Bioneutralizing capacity of these peptides was assessed by passive and active immunoneutralization studies. All the three peptides-specific antisera recognized their cognate epitopes on native RCP. When the affinity purified peptide IgG were administered on three consecutive days to pregnant rats (on days 10, 11 and 12), it was observed that the rats injected with CED and CGE-IgG failed to deliver any pups whereas the animals which received CYA IgG delivered normal pups. Active immunization of fertile female rats with CED or CGE peptide conferred protection from pregnancy. These results demonstrate the presence of two additional stretches in chicken RCP which can serve as mini-vaccines.

  15. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Klumpp, John Allan; Bertelli, Luiz; Waters, Tom L.

    For radionuclides such as plutonium and americium, detection of removable activity in the nose (i.e., nasal swab measurements) are frequently used to determine whether follow-up bioassay measurements are warranted following a potential intake. For this paper, the authors analyzed 429 nasal swab measurements taken following incidents or suspicious circumstances (such as an air monitor alarming) at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) for which the dose was later evaluated using in vitro bioassay. Nasal swab measurements were found to be very poor predictors of dose and should not be used as such in the field. However, nasal swab measurements can bemore » indicative of whether a reliably detectable committed effective dose (CED) occurred. About 14% of nasal swab measurements between 1.25 and 16.7 Bq corresponded to CEDs greater than 1 mSv, so in general, positive nasal swabs always indicate that follow-up bioassay should be performed (positive nasal swabs less than 1.25 Bq are considered separately). This probability increased significantly for nasal swabs greater than 16.7 Bq. Only about 3% of nasal swabs with no detectable activity (NDA) corresponded to reliably detectable CEDs. As a result, a nasal swab with NDA is therefore necessary, but not sufficient, to negate the need for a follow-up bioassay if it was collected following other workplace indicators of a potential intake.« less

  16. Cumulative effective radiation dose received by blunt trauma patients arriving to a military level I trauma center from point of injury and interhospital transfers.

    PubMed

    Van Arnem, Kerri A; Supinski, David P; Tucker, Jonathan E; Varney, Shawn

    2016-12-01

    Trauma patients sustaining blunt injuries are exposed to multiple radiologic studies. Evidence indicates that the risk of cancer from exposure to ionizing radiation rises in direct proportion to the cumulative effective dose (CED) received. The purpose of this study is to quantify the amount of ionizing radiation accumulated when arriving directly from point of injury to San Antonio Military Medical Center (SAMMC), a level I trauma center, compared with those transferred from other facilities. A retrospective record review was conducted from 1st January 2010 through 31st December 2012. The SAMMC trauma registry, electronic medical records, and the digital radiology imaging system were searched for possible candidates. The medical records were then analyzed for sex, age, mechanism of injury, received directly from point of injury (direct group), transfer from another medical facility (transfer group), computed tomographic scans received, dose-length product, CED of radiation, and injury severity score. A diagnostic imaging physicist then calculated the estimated CED each subject received based on the dose-length product of each computed tomographic scan. A total of 300 patients were analyzed, with 150 patients in the direct group and 150 patients in the transfer group. Both groups were similar in age and sex. Patients in the transfer group received a significantly greater CED of radiation compared with the direct group (mean, 37.6 mSv vs 28 mSv; P=.001). The radiation received in the direct group correlates with a lifetime attributable risk (LAR) of 1 in 357 compared with the transfer group with an increase in LAR to 1 in 266. Patients transferred to our facility received a 34% increase in ionizing radiation compared with patients brought directly from the injury scene. This increased dose of ionizing radiation contributes to the LAR of cancer and needs to be considered before repeating imaging studies. III. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  17. Determination of Chromium(III), Chromium(VI), and Chromium(III) acetylacetonate in water by ion-exchange disk extraction/metal furnace atomic absorption spectrometry

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kamakura, Nao; Inui, Tetsuo; Kitano, Masaru; Nakamura, Toshihiro

    A new method for the separate determination of Chromium(III) (Cr(III)), Chromium(VI) (Cr(VI)), and Cr(III) acetylacetonate (Cr(acac)3) in water was developed using a cation-exchange extraction disk (CED) and an anion-exchange extraction disk (AED) combined with metal furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (MFAAS). A 100-mL water sample was adjusted to pH 5.6 and passed through the CED placed on the AED. Cr(acac)3 and Cr(III) were adsorbed on the CED, and Cr(VI) was adsorbed on the AED. The adsorbed Cr(acac)3 was eluted with 50 mL of carbon tetrachloride, followed by the elution of Cr(III) with 50 mL of 3 mol L- 1 nitric acid. Cr(VI) was eluted with 50 mL of 3 mol L- 1 nitric acid. The chemical species of Cr eluted from the CED with carbon tetrachloride was identified as Cr(acac)3 using infrared spectroscopy. The eluate of Cr(acac)3 was diluted to 100 mL with carbon tetrachloride, and those of Cr(III) and Cr(VI) were diluted to 100 mL with deionized water. All of the solutions were subsequently analyzed by MFAAS. The calibration curve for the Cr(acac)3 aqueous solutions exhibited good linearity in the range of 0.1 to 1 ng. The detection limit of Cr, which corresponded to three times the standard deviation (n = 10) of the blank values, was 20 pg. The recovery test for Cr(III), Cr(VI), and Cr(acac)3 exhibited desirable results (96.0%-107%) when 5 μg of each species (50 μg L- 1) was added to 100 mL water samples (i.e., tap water, rainwater, and bottled drinking water). In a humic acid solution, Cr(acac)3 was quantitatively recovered (103%), but Cr(III) and Cr(VI) exhibited poor recoveries (i.e., 84.8% and 78.4%, respectively).

  18. Minimally invasive convection-enhanced delivery of biologics into dorsal root ganglia: validation in the pig model and prospective modeling in humans. Technical note.

    PubMed

    Pleticha, Josef; Maus, Timothy P; Christner, Jodie A; Marsh, Michael P; Lee, Kendall H; Hooten, W Michael; Beutler, Andreas S

    2014-10-01

    Dorsal root ganglia (DRG) are critical anatomical structures involved in nociception. Intraganglionic (IG) drug delivery is therefore an important route of administration for novel analgesic therapies. Although IG injection in large animal models is highly desirable for preclinical biodistribution and toxicology studies of new drugs, no method to deliver pharmaceutical agents into the DRG has been reported in any large species. The present study describes a minimally invasive technique of IG agent delivery in domestic swine, one of the most common large animal models. The technique utilizes CT guidance for DRG targeting and a custom-made injection assembly for convection enhanced delivery (CED) of therapeutic agents directly into DRG parenchyma. The DRG were initially visualized by CT myelography to determine the optimal access route to the DRG. The subsequent IG injection consisted of 3 steps. First, a commercially available guide needle was advanced to a position dorsolateral to the DRG, and the dural root sleeve was punctured, leaving the guide needle contiguous with, but not penetrating, the DRG. Second, the custom-made stepped stylet was inserted through the guide needle into the DRG parenchyma. Third, the stepped stylet was replaced by the custom-made stepped needle, which was used for the IG CED. Initial dye injections performed in pig cadavers confirmed the accuracy of DRG targeting under CT guidance. Intraganglionic administration of adeno-associated virus in vivo resulted in a unilateral transduction of the injected DRG, with 33.5% DRG neurons transduced. Transgene expression was also found in the dorsal root entry zones at the corresponding spinal levels. The results thereby confirm the efficacy of CED by the stepped needle and a selectivity of DRG targeting. Imaging-based modeling of the procedure in humans suggests that IG CED may be translatable to the clinical setting.

  19. Earthquake Energy Dissipation in Light of High-Velocity, Slip-Pulse Shear Experiments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Reches, Z.; Liao, Z.; Chang, J. C.

    2014-12-01

    We investigated the energy dissipation during earthquakes by analysis of high-velocity shear experiments conducted on room-dry, solid samples of granite, tonalite, and dolomite sheared at slip-velocity of 0.0006-1m/s, and normal stress of 1-11.5MPa. The experimental fault were loaded in one of three modes: (1) Slip-pulse of abrupt, intense acceleration followed by moderate deceleration; (2) Impact by a spinning, heavy flywheel (225 kg); and (3) Constant velocity loading. We refer to energy dissipation in terms of power-density (PD=shear stress*slip-velocity; units of MW/m^2), and Coulomb-energy-density (CED= mechanical energy/normal stress; units of m). We present two aspects: Relative energy dissipation of the above loading modes, and relative energy dissipation between impact experiments and moderate earthquakes. For the first aspect, we used: (i) the lowest friction coefficient of the dynamic weakening; (ii) the work dissipated before reaching the lowest friction; and (iii) the cumulative mechanical work during the complete run. The results show that the slip-pulse/impact modes are energy efficient relatively to the constant-velocity mode as manifested by faster, more intense weakening and 50-90% lower energy dissipation. Thus, for a finite amount of pre-seismic crustal energy, the efficiency of slip-pulse would amplify earthquake instability. For the second aspect, we compare the experimental CED of the impact experiments to the reported breakdown energy (EG) of moderate earthquakes, Mw = 5.6 to 7.2 (Chang et al., 2012). In is commonly assumed that the seismic EG is a small fraction of the total earthquake energy, and as expected in 9 out of 11 examined earthquakes, EG was 0.005 to 0.07 of the experimental CED. We thus speculate that the experimental relation of Coulomb-energy-density to total slip distance, D, CED = 0.605 × D^0.933, is a reasonable estimate of total earthquake energy, a quantity that cannot be determined from seismic data.

  20. Desulfurizing Coal With an Alkali Treatment

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ravindram, M.; Kalvinskas, J. J.

    1987-01-01

    Experimental coal-desulfurization process uses alkalies and steam in fluidized-bed reactor. With highly volatile, high-sulfur bituminous coal, process removed 98 percent of pyritic sulfur and 47 percent of organic sulfur. Used in coal liquefaction and in production of clean solid fuels and synthetic liquid fuels. Nitrogen or steam flows through bed of coal in reactor. Alkalies react with sulfur, removing it from coal. Nitrogen flow fluidizes bed while heating or cooling; steam is fluidizing medium during reaction.

Top