Sample records for penetrators

  1. [Professor WU Zhongchao's experience of penetration needling].

    PubMed

    Zhang, Ning; Wang, Bing; Zhou, Yu

    2016-08-12

    Professor WU Zhongchao has unique application of penetration needling in clinical treatment. Professor WU applies penetration needling along meridians, and the methods of penetration needling include self-meridian penetration, exterior-interior meridian penetration, identical-name meridian penetration, different meridian penetration. The meridian differentiation is performed according to different TCM syndromes, locations and natures of diseases and acupoint nature, so as to make a comprehensive assessment. The qi movement during acupuncture is focused. In addition, attention is paid on anatomy and long-needle penetration; the sequence and direction of acupuncture is essential, and the reinforcing and reducing methods have great originality, presented with holding, waiting, pressing and vibrating. Based on classical acupoint, the acupoint of penetration needling is flexible, forming unique combination of acupoints.

  2. Theory of activated penetrant diffusion in viscous fluids and colloidal suspensions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Rui; Schweizer, Kenneth S.

    2015-10-01

    We heuristically formulate a microscopic, force level, self-consistent nonlinear Langevin equation theory for activated barrier hopping and non-hydrodynamic diffusion of a hard sphere penetrant in very dense hard sphere fluid matrices. Penetrant dynamics is controlled by a rich competition between force relaxation due to penetrant self-motion and collective matrix structural (alpha) relaxation. In the absence of penetrant-matrix attraction, three activated dynamical regimes are predicted as a function of penetrant-matrix size ratio which are physically distinguished by penetrant jump distance and the nature of matrix motion required to facilitate its hopping. The penetrant diffusion constant decreases the fastest with size ratio for relatively small penetrants where the matrix effectively acts as a vibrating amorphous solid. Increasing penetrant-matrix attraction strength reduces penetrant diffusivity due to physical bonding. For size ratios approaching unity, a distinct dynamical regime emerges associated with strong slaving of penetrant hopping to matrix structural relaxation. A crossover regime at intermediate penetrant-matrix size ratio connects the two limiting behaviors for hard penetrants, but essentially disappears if there are strong attractions with the matrix. Activated penetrant diffusivity decreases strongly with matrix volume fraction in a manner that intensifies as the size ratio increases. We propose and implement a quasi-universal approach for activated diffusion of a rigid atomic/molecular penetrant in a supercooled liquid based on a mapping between the hard sphere system and thermal liquids. Calculations for specific systems agree reasonably well with experiments over a wide range of temperature, covering more than 10 orders of magnitude of variation of the penetrant diffusion constant.

  3. Theory of activated penetrant diffusion in viscous fluids and colloidal suspensions

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

    Zhang, Rui; Schweizer, Kenneth S., E-mail: kschweiz@illinois.edu

    2015-10-14

    We heuristically formulate a microscopic, force level, self-consistent nonlinear Langevin equation theory for activated barrier hopping and non-hydrodynamic diffusion of a hard sphere penetrant in very dense hard sphere fluid matrices. Penetrant dynamics is controlled by a rich competition between force relaxation due to penetrant self-motion and collective matrix structural (alpha) relaxation. In the absence of penetrant-matrix attraction, three activated dynamical regimes are predicted as a function of penetrant-matrix size ratio which are physically distinguished by penetrant jump distance and the nature of matrix motion required to facilitate its hopping. The penetrant diffusion constant decreases the fastest with size ratiomore » for relatively small penetrants where the matrix effectively acts as a vibrating amorphous solid. Increasing penetrant-matrix attraction strength reduces penetrant diffusivity due to physical bonding. For size ratios approaching unity, a distinct dynamical regime emerges associated with strong slaving of penetrant hopping to matrix structural relaxation. A crossover regime at intermediate penetrant-matrix size ratio connects the two limiting behaviors for hard penetrants, but essentially disappears if there are strong attractions with the matrix. Activated penetrant diffusivity decreases strongly with matrix volume fraction in a manner that intensifies as the size ratio increases. We propose and implement a quasi-universal approach for activated diffusion of a rigid atomic/molecular penetrant in a supercooled liquid based on a mapping between the hard sphere system and thermal liquids. Calculations for specific systems agree reasonably well with experiments over a wide range of temperature, covering more than 10 orders of magnitude of variation of the penetrant diffusion constant.« less

  4. The effect of welding parameters on penetration in GTA welds

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

    Shirali, A.A.; Mills, K.C.

    1993-07-01

    The effect of various welding parameters on the penetration of GTA welds has been investigated. Increases in welding speed were found to reduce penetration; however, increases in welding current were observed to increase the penetration in high sulfur (HS) casts and decrease penetration in low sulfur (LS) steels. Plots of penetration as a function of increasing linear energy (the heat supplied per unit length of weld) revealed a similar trend with increased penetration in HS casts, but the penetration in LS casts was unaffected by increases in linear energy. These results support the Burgardt-Heiple proposition that changes in welding parametersmore » on penetration can be explained in terms of their effect, sequentially, on the temperature gradient and the Marangoni forces operating in the weld pool. Increases in arc length were found to decrease weld penetration regardless of the sulfur concentration of the steel, and the effects of electrode geometry and welding position on weld penetration were also investigated.« less

  5. Effect of compressibility on the hypervelocity penetration

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Song, W. J.; Chen, X. W.; Chen, P.

    2018-02-01

    We further consider the effect of rod strength by employing the compressible penetration model to study the effect of compressibility on hypervelocity penetration. Meanwhile, we define different instances of penetration efficiency in various modified models and compare these penetration efficiencies to identify the effects of different factors in the compressible model. To systematically discuss the effect of compressibility in different metallic rod-target combinations, we construct three cases, i.e., the penetrations by the more compressible rod into the less compressible target, rod into the analogously compressible target, and the less compressible rod into the more compressible target. The effects of volumetric strain, internal energy, and strength on the penetration efficiency are analyzed simultaneously. It indicates that the compressibility of the rod and target increases the pressure at the rod/target interface. The more compressible rod/target has larger volumetric strain and higher internal energy. Both the larger volumetric strain and higher strength enhance the penetration or anti-penetration ability. On the other hand, the higher internal energy weakens the penetration or anti-penetration ability. The two trends conflict, but the volumetric strain dominates in the variation of the penetration efficiency, which would not approach the hydrodynamic limit if the rod and target are not analogously compressible. However, if the compressibility of the rod and target is analogous, it has little effect on the penetration efficiency.

  6. High-velocity impact loading of thick GFRP blocks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ernst, H.-J.; Merkel, Th.; Wolf, Th.; Hoog, K.

    2003-09-01

    In previous depth of penetration experiments with tungsten long rod projectiles was found that the ballistic resistance of a relatively thick-up to the penetrator length-glass fibre reinforced plastic block grows with increasing penetration depth. This penetration behaviour significantly differs from that of other inert armour materials. Until now, no significant difference between unconfined and totally confined GFRP configurations bas been found. Newest experiments with up to semi-infinite thick GFRP blocks show a change in the penetration process: For thicknesses significantly higher than the penetrator length the protective power may saturate. During the late penetration phase the shortening and deceleration of the projectile induce a change of penetration mechanism from erosion to rigid body penetration. Additionally, the projectile may break into several individually tumbling parts. Reflected tension waves and, probably, pyrolysis effects may cause increasing precursory damage. These effects together are likely to explain the reduction of the ballistic resistance increase during the late penetration phase. Based on these experimental results the published working hypothesis on the governing mechanism of the GFRP penetration behaviour had to be completed. A new approach based on a hyperbolic tangent function seems to satisfactorily describe the observed thickness dependent phenomena.

  7. Interaction of trace elements and welding parameters on GTA weld shape. [Variation with penetration and tip angle

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

    Burgardt, P.; Heiple, C.R.

    1985-01-01

    Good penetration and poor penetration steels have different responses to changes in temperature distribution on the weld pool surface. Penetration of 304 SS was varied using S and Se dopants. The weld parameter investigated was the electrode tip angle. Results of bead-on-plate GTA welds show that there is a difference in response of weld pool shape to tip angle depending on penetration: Low penetration base metal showed no dependence, intermediate penetration steel showed a small linear decrease of weld depth-to-width ratio (d/w) with tip angle, while high penetration steel showed an increase of d/w up to a maximum at aboutmore » 50/sup 0/, followed by a decrease in d/w. (DLC)« less

  8. Bacterial and dye penetration through interim restorations used during endodontic treatment of molar teeth.

    PubMed

    Chailertvanitkul, Pattama; Abbott, Paul V; Riley, Thomas V; Sooksuntisakoonchai, Namchai

    2009-07-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between dye and bacterial penetration through interim restorations used during endodontic treatment. Sixty-four extracted human teeth were used, with 2 teeth each as positive and negative controls. Endodontic access with a mesio-occluso-distal cavity was prepared. Palatal cusps of maxillary molars and buccal cusps of mandibular molars were removed. Cotton was placed over the canals and covered with Cavit. Thirty teeth were restored with Ketac Silver (KS) and 30 with KS reinforced with a stainless steel band (KSSB). Samples were submersed in India ink mixed with brain heart infusion broth containing Streptococcus gordonii. After 3 months of simulated chewing, structural integrity and dye and bacterial penetration were assessed. Positive controls had both dye and bacterial penetration. Negative controls had no dye or bacterial penetration. All KS restorations debonded, whereas 18 KSSB restorations (60%) debonded. KS restorations were 1.67 times more likely to debond than KSSB restorations (Fisher exact test). KS was 1.3 times more likely to have dye penetration than KSSB (Fisher exact test) and 3 times more likely to have bacterial penetration, although not statistically significant (chi(2) test). Overall, 88.3% of specimens had dye penetration, and 20% had bacterial penetration. This 68.3% difference indicated no association between dye and bacterial penetration (exact McNemar test). Stainless steel bands helped maintain structural integrity of KS restorations under masticatory function. Bands helped prevent dye penetration but not bacterial penetration. There was no association between dye and bacterial penetration.

  9. Fibrin sealant for closure of mucosal penetration at the cardia during peroral endoscopic myotomy: A retrospective study at a single center

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Wen-Gang; Linghu, En-Qiang; Li, Hui-Kai

    2017-01-01

    AIM To assess the efficacy and safety of fibrin sealant for closure of mucosal penetration at the cardia during peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM). METHODS Twenty-four patients who underwent POEM and experienced mucosal injury of the cardia during the procedure were retrospectively identified. Of the 24 patients, 21 had mucosal penetration and 3 had only slight mucosal damage without penetration. The 21 patients with mucosal penetration received fibrin sealant for closure at the site of penetration. Penetration-related characteristics, treatment, and recovery were reviewed for all 21 patients to assess the efficacy and safety of fibrin sealant for closure of mucosal penetration at the cardia. Clinical data, including general characteristics, procedure-related parameters, Eckardt scores, lower esophageal sphincter pressures (LESP), and esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) results, were analyzed to determine their influence on treatment success after mucosal penetration during POEM. RESULTS All 21 patients had a solitary mucosal penetration in the cardia (12 in esophageal region of the cardia, 9 in the stomach region of the cardia, and 1 in both the esophageal and stomach regions). Twelve had a hole-like penetration and 9 had a linear penetration. For those with a hole-like penetration, the mean size was 0.14 cm2 (0.02-0.32 cm2). For those with a linear penetration, the median size was 0.37 cm (0.10-1.00 cm). Closure of the mucosal penetration using fibrin sealant was performed successfully in all 21 patients (two patients required 5 mL fibrin sealant, and the remaining 19 patients required 2.5 mL). Two patients had a nasogastric tube placed for five days after POEM; the remaining 19 patients were kept fasting for 3 d. All 21 patients were discharged after a median of 5 d (range: 5-7 d) postoperatively. During a median 42 mo (range: 9-62 mo) follow-up, all 21 patients with a mucosal penetration successfully healed without the occurrence of infection, ulcer, or esophagitis. Furthermore, the median LESP decreased from 31.9 mmHg (range: 21.9-67.1 mmHg) preoperatively to 20.3 mmHg (range: 6.0-41.0 mmHg) postoperatively (P < 0.05). The median preoperative and postoperative Eckardt scores were 5.0 (range; 4-10) and 1.0 (range: 0-4), respectively (P < 0.05). Of the 21 patients with mucosal penetration, symptom remission, which is defined as a postoperative Eckardt score ≤ 3, was achieved in 20 patients (95.2%) indicating that mucosal penetration did not influence the success of POEM treatment if closed successfully using fibrin sealant. CONCLUSION Fibrin sealant is safe and effective for closure of mucosal penetration during POEM. Mucosal penetrations do not appear to influence the treatment success of POEM if closed successfully using fibrin sealant. Additional studies regarding the feasibility, efficacy, and safety of fibrin sealant for closure of larger mucosal penetrations is warranted. PMID:28321165

  10. Miniaturization technology for Lunar penetrator mission

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hayashi, T.; Saito, H.; Orii, T.; Masumoto, Y.

    1993-10-01

    The ISAS will launch Lunar-A in 1997 to study internal structure of the moon by seismometric measurements. A mother spacecraft which holds three penetrators will be launched by newly developed M-V rocket. Three penetrators will be released from the mother spacecraft orbiting around the moon. These penetrators make hard landing on the moon with shock of about 10,000 G and will penetrate about 1-3 m in depth into the soil. Three axis seismometer, heat flow meter, data handling subsystem, communications subsystem, power subsystem are installed in a penetrator. These penetrators will be placed at three different sites on the moon and expected to operate more than one year using super lithium primary batteries and will send data to the earth via the mother spacecraft. Weight of the penetrator is limited within 13 kg because of the rocket capability. To achieve the mission, it is absolutely necessary to develop miniaturizing technology in the size and power reduction for penetrator equipment in addition to special assembly technique to withstand extremely high-G environment.

  11. Fiscal year 1976 progress report on a feasibility study evaluating the use of surface penetrators for planetary exploration

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Blanchard, M. B.; Oberbeck, V. R.; Bunch, T. E.; Reynolds, R. T.; Canning, T. N.; Jackson, R. W.

    1976-01-01

    The feasibility of employing penetrators for exploring Mars was examined. Eight areas of interest for key scientific experiments were identified. These include: seismic activity, imaging, geochemistry, water measurement, heatflow, meteorology, magnetometry, and biochemistry. In seven of the eight potential experiment categories this year's progress included: conceptual design, instrument fabrication, instrument performance evaluation, and shock loading of important components. Most of the components survived deceleration testing with negligible performance changes. Components intended to be placed inside the penetrator forebody were tested up to 3,500 g and components intended to be placed on the afterbody were tested up to 21,000 g. A field test program was conducted using tentative Mars penetrator mission constraints. Drop tests were performed at two selected terrestrial analog sites to determine the range of penetration depths for anticipated common Martian materials. Minimum penetration occurred in basalt at Amboy, California. Three full-scale penetrators penetrated 0.4 to 0.9 m into the basalt after passing through 0.3 to 0.5 m of alluvial overburden. Maximum penetration occurred in unconsolidated sediments at McCook, Nebraska. Two full-scale penetrators penetrated 2.5 to 8.5 m of sediment. Impact occurred in two kinds of sediment: loess and layered clay. Deceleration g loads of nominally 2,000 for the forebody and 20,000 for the afterbody did not present serious design problems for potential experiments. Penetrators have successfully impacted into terrestrial analogs of the probable extremes of potential Martian sites.

  12. Stability of Full Penetration, Flat Position Weld Pools

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nunes, Arthur C., Jr.; Coan, Al. B.

    1999-01-01

    The dynamics of the dropthrough distance of a full penetration, flat position weld pool is described. Close to incipient root side penetration the dropthrough is metastable, so that a small drop in power can cause a loss of penetration if not followed soon enough by a compensating rise in power. The SPA (Soft Plasma Arc) process with higher pressure on top of the weld pool loses penetration more quickly than the GTA (Gas Tungsten Arc) process. 2195 aluminum-lithium alloy with a lower surface tension loses penetration more quickly than 2219 aluminum alloy. An instance of loss of penetration of a SPA weld in 2195 aluminum-lithium alloy is discussed in the light of the model.

  13. Results of analyses performed on soil adjacent to penetrators emplaced into sediments at McCook, Nebraska, January 1976. [simulated penetration into wind-deposited sediments on Martian plains

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Blanchard, M.; Bunch, T.; Davis, A.; Kyte, F.; Shade, H.; Erlichman, J.; Polkowski, G.

    1977-01-01

    During 1976 several penetrators (full and 0.58 scale) were dropped into a test site McCook, Nebraska. The McCook site was selected because it simulated penetration into wind-deposited sediments (silts and sands) on Martian plains. The physical and chemical modifications found in the sediment after the penetrators' impact are described. Laboratory analyses have shown mineralogical and elemental changes are produced in the sediment next to the penetrator. Optical microscopy studies of material next to the skin of the penetrator revealed a layer of glassy material about 75 microns thick. Elemental analysis of a 0-1-mm layer of sediment next to the penetrator revealed increased concentrations for Cr, Fe, Ni, Mo, and reduced concentrations for Mg, Al Si, P, K, and Ca. The Cr, Fe, Ni, and Mo were in fragments abraded from the penetrator. Mineralogical changes occurring in the sediment next to the penetrator included the introduction of micron-size grains of alpha iron and several hydrated iron oxide minerals. The newly formed silicate minerals include metastable phases of silica (cristobalite, lechatelierite, and opal). The glassy material was mostly opal which formed when the host minerals (mica, calcite, and clay) decomposed. In summary, contaminants introduced by the penetrator occur up to 2 mm away from the penetrator's skin. Although volatile elements do migrate and new minerals are formed during the destruction of host minerals in the sediment, no changes were observed beyond the 2-mm distance. The analyses indicate 0.58-scale penetrators do effectively simulate full-scale testing for soil modification effects.

  14. Vehicle effects on human stratum corneum absorption and skin penetration.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Alissa; Jung, Eui-Chang; Zhu, Hanjiang; Zou, Ying; Hui, Xiaoying; Maibach, Howard

    2017-05-01

    This study evaluated the effects of three vehicles-ethanol (EtOH), isopropyl alcohol (IPA), and isopropyl myristate (IPM)-on stratum corneum (SC) absorption and diffusion of the [ 14 C]-model compounds benzoic acid and butenafine hydrochloride to better understand the transport pathways of chemicals passing through and resident in SC. Following application of topical formulations to human dermatomed skin for 30 min, penetration flux was observed for 24 h post dosing, using an in vitro flow-through skin diffusion system. Skin absorption and penetration was compared to the chemical-SC (intact, delipidized, or SC lipid film) binding levels. A significant vehicle effect was observed for chemical skin penetration and SC absorption. IPA resulted in the greatest levels of intact SC/SC lipid absorption, skin penetration, and total skin absorption/penetration of benzoic acid, followed by IPM and EtOH, respectively. For intact SC absorption and total skin absorption/penetration of butenafine, the vehicle that demonstrated the highest level of sorption/penetration was EtOH, followed by IPA and IPM, respectively. The percent doses of butenafine that were absorbed in SC lipid film and penetrated through skin in 24 h were greatest for IPA, followed by EtOH and IPM, respectively. The vehicle effect was consistent between intact SC absorption and total chemical skin absorption and penetration, as well as SC lipid absorption and chemical penetration through skin, suggesting intercellular transport as a main pathway of skin penetration for model chemicals. These results suggest the potential to predict vehicle effects on skin permeability with simple SC absorption assays. As decontamination was applied 30 min after chemical exposure, significant vehicle effects on chemical SC partitioning and percutaneous penetration also suggest that skin decontamination efficiency is vehicle dependent, and an effective decontamination method should act on chemical solutes in the lipid domain.

  15. Correlated matrix-fluctuation-mediated activated transport of dilute penetrants in glass-forming liquids and suspensions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Rui; Schweizer, Kenneth S.

    2017-05-01

    We formulate a microscopic, force-level statistical mechanical theory for the activated diffusion of dilute penetrants in dense liquids, colloidal suspensions, and glasses. The approach explicitly and self-consistently accounts for coupling between penetrant hopping and matrix dynamic displacements that actively facilitate the hopping event. The key new ideas involve two mechanistically (at a stochastic trajectory level) coupled dynamic free energy functions for the matrix and spherical penetrant particles. A single dynamic coupling parameter quantifies how much the matrix displaces relative to the penetrant when the latter reaches its transition state which is determined via the enforcement of a temporal causality or coincidence condition. The theory is implemented for dilute penetrants smaller than the matrix particles, with or without penetrant-matrix attractive forces. Model calculations reveal a rich dependence of the penetrant diffusion constant and degree of dynamic coupling on size ratio, volume fraction, and attraction strength. In the absence of attractions, a near exponential decrease of penetrant diffusivity with size ratio over an intermediate range is predicted, in contrast to the much steeper, non-exponential variation if one assumes local matrix dynamical fluctuations are not correlated with penetrant motion. For sticky penetrants, the relative and absolute influence of caging versus physical bond formation is studied. The conditions for a dynamic crossover from the case where a time scale separation between penetrant and matrix activated hopping exists to a "slaved" or "constraint release" fully coupled regime are determined. The particle mixture model is mapped to treat experimental thermal systems and applied to make predictions for the diffusivity of water, toluene, methanol, and oxygen in polyvinylacetate liquids and glasses. The theory agrees well with experiment with values of the penetrant-matrix size ratio close to their chemically intuitive values.

  16. Sample Acquisition and Handling System from a Remote Platform

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Badescu, Mircea; Sherrit, Stewart; Jones, Jack A.

    2011-01-01

    A system has been developed to acquire and handle samples from a suspended remote platform. The system includes a penetrator, a penetrator deployment mechanism, and a sample handler. A gravity-driven harpoon sampler was used for the system, but other solutions can be used to supply the penetration energy, such as pyrotechnic, pressurized gas, or springs. The deployment mechanism includes a line that is attached to the penetrator, a spool for reeling in the line, and a line engagement control mechanism. The penetrator has removable tips that can collect liquid, ice, or solid samples. The handling mechanism consists of a carousel that can store a series of identical or different tips, assist in penetrator reconfiguration for multiple sample acquisition, and deliver the sample to a series of instruments for analysis. The carousel sample handling system was combined with a brassboard reeling mechanism and a penetrator with removable tips. It can attach the removable tip to the penetrator, release and retrieve the penetrator, remove the tip, and present it to multiple instrument stations. The penetrator can be remotely deployed from an aerobot, penetrate and collect the sample, and be retrieved with the sample to the aerobot. The penetrator with removable tips includes sample interrogation windows and a sample retainment spring for unconsolidated samples. The line engagement motor can be used to control the penetrator release and reeling engagement, and to evenly distribute the line on the spool by rocking between left and right ends of the spool. When the arm with the guiding ring is aligned with the spool axis, the line is free to unwind from the spool without rotating the spool. When the arm is perpendicular to the spool axis, the line can move only if the spool rotates.

  17. Correlated matrix-fluctuation-mediated activated transport of dilute penetrants in glass-forming liquids and suspensions

    PubMed Central

    Schweizer, Kenneth S.

    2017-01-01

    We formulate a microscopic, force-level statistical mechanical theory for the activated diffusion of dilute penetrants in dense liquids, colloidal suspensions, and glasses. The approach explicitly and self-consistently accounts for coupling between penetrant hopping and matrix dynamic displacements that actively facilitate the hopping event. The key new ideas involve two mechanistically (at a stochastic trajectory level) coupled dynamic free energy functions for the matrix and spherical penetrant particles. A single dynamic coupling parameter quantifies how much the matrix displaces relative to the penetrant when the latter reaches its transition state which is determined via the enforcement of a temporal causality or coincidence condition. The theory is implemented for dilute penetrants smaller than the matrix particles, with or without penetrant-matrix attractive forces. Model calculations reveal a rich dependence of the penetrant diffusion constant and degree of dynamic coupling on size ratio, volume fraction, and attraction strength. In the absence of attractions, a near exponential decrease of penetrant diffusivity with size ratio over an intermediate range is predicted, in contrast to the much steeper, non-exponential variation if one assumes local matrix dynamical fluctuations are not correlated with penetrant motion. For sticky penetrants, the relative and absolute influence of caging versus physical bond formation is studied. The conditions for a dynamic crossover from the case where a time scale separation between penetrant and matrix activated hopping exists to a “slaved” or “constraint release” fully coupled regime are determined. The particle mixture model is mapped to treat experimental thermal systems and applied to make predictions for the diffusivity of water, toluene, methanol, and oxygen in polyvinylacetate liquids and glasses. The theory agrees well with experiment with values of the penetrant-matrix size ratio close to their chemically intuitive values. PMID:28527449

  18. Health maintenance organization penetration and the practice location choices of new physicians: a study of large metropolitan areas in the United States.

    PubMed

    Escarce, J J; Polsky, D; Wozniak, G D; Pauly, M V; Kletke, P R

    1998-11-01

    The rapid growth of health maintenance organizations is reshaping the practice opportunities available to physicians. The practice location decisions of new physicians provide a sensitive bellwether of these changes. This study assessed the effect of health maintenance organization penetration on practice location for physicians completing graduate medical education (GME). Conditional logit regression analysis was used to determine the effect of health maintenance organization penetration on practice location, controlling for other market characteristics. Subjects were physicians who finished GME between 1989 and 1994 and who located in one of the 98 US metropolitan areas with more than 500,000 population. The outcome measure was the particular metropolitan area chosen by each new physician. Early in the study period, new generalists were significantly more likely to locate in metropolitan areas with high health maintenance organization penetration than in low penetration areas, whereas new specialists' practice location choices were not associated with health maintenance organization penetration. The likelihood of choosing a high penetration relative to a low penetration area declined with time, however, for both generalists and specialists. Consequently, by the end of the study period, health maintenance organization penetration had a weak but significant negative effect on practice location for generalists and a strong negative influence on practice location for specialists. New generalists who completed graduate medical education between 1989 and 1994 were more likely than new specialists to locate in market areas with high health maintenance organization penetration; however, the proportions of both generalists and specialists who chose high penetration areas decreased during the study period. This finding may reflect reduced practice opportunities in high penetration areas relative to low penetration areas as health maintenance organizations' systems for controlling utilization began to yield results. Alternatively, new physicians may have become more hesitant to accept available positions in high penetration areas.

  19. Nanoparticle filtration performance of NIOSH-certified particulate air-purifying filtering facepiece respirators: evaluation by light scattering photometric and particle number-based test methods.

    PubMed

    Rengasamy, Samy; Eimer, Benjamin C

    2012-01-01

    National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) certification test methods employ charge neutralized NaCl or dioctyl phthalate (DOP) aerosols to measure filter penetration levels of air-purifying particulate respirators photometrically using a TSI 8130 automated filter tester at 85 L/min. A previous study in our laboratory found that widely different filter penetration levels were measured for nanoparticles depending on whether a particle number (count)-based detector or a photometric detector was used. The purpose of this study was to better understand the influence of key test parameters, including filter media type, challenge aerosol size range, and detector system. Initial penetration levels for 17 models of NIOSH-approved N-, R-, and P-series filtering facepiece respirators were measured using the TSI 8130 photometric method and compared with the particle number-based penetration (obtained using two ultrafine condensation particle counters) for the same challenge aerosols generated by the TSI 8130. In general, the penetration obtained by the photometric method was less than the penetration obtained with the number-based method. Filter penetration was also measured for ambient room aerosols. Penetration measured by the TSI 8130 photometric method was lower than the number-based ambient aerosol penetration values. Number-based monodisperse NaCl aerosol penetration measurements showed that the most penetrating particle size was in the 50 nm range for all respirator models tested, with the exception of one model at ~200 nm size. Respirator models containing electrostatic filter media also showed lower penetration values with the TSI 8130 photometric method than the number-based penetration obtained for the most penetrating monodisperse particles. Results suggest that to provide a more challenging respirator filter test method than what is currently used for respirators containing electrostatic media, the test method should utilize a sufficient number of particles <100 nm and a count (particle number)-based detector.

  20. Self-inflicted injuries are an important cause of penetrating traumatic injuries in Japan.

    PubMed

    Izawa, Yoshimitsu; Suzukawa, Masayuki; Lefor, Alan K

    2016-10-01

    Japan has a low crime rate, but a high suicide rate. The aim of this study is to review the causes of penetrating traumatic injuries in a tertiary care emergency center in Japan. We retrospectively reviewed all admissions for traumatic injuries over a 3-year period, and calculated the proportion of patients with penetrating traumatic injuries. Weapon used, age, gender, Injury Severity Score, cause of injury, and site of injury in all patients with penetrating injuries were reviewed. The proportion of patients with penetrating injuries among patients with all types of traumatic injuries requiring surgical intervention was calculated. Of 1,321 patients admitted over 3 years, 65 patients (5%) suffered from penetrating injuries. Most were stab wounds, with only one gunshot (2%). The most common site of injury was an extremity (48%). The most common cause of penetrating injury was self-inflicted (38%). The abdomen is the most common site injured among self-inflicted injuries. Of patients with all types of traumatic injuries requiring surgical intervention, penetrating injuries accounted for 23%. Penetrating injuries represent 23% of all patients with traumatic injuries who required surgical intervention. Self-inflicted penetrating injuries were most common, supporting the need for preventive services. Acute care surgeons must be familiar with the surgical management of penetrating traumatic injuries, even in a country with a low crime rate.

  1. Characteristics of rain penetration through a gravity ventilator used for natural ventilation.

    PubMed

    Kim, Taehyeung; Lee, Dong Ho; Ahn, Kwangseog; Ha, Hyunchul; Park, Heechang; Piao, Cheng Xu; Li, Xiaoyu; Seo, Jeoungyoon

    2008-01-01

    Gravity ventilators rely simply on air buoyancy to extract air and are widely used to exhaust air contaminants and heat from workplaces using minimal energy. They are designed to maximize the exhaust flow rate, but the rain penetration sometimes causes malfunctioning. In this study, the characteristics of rain penetration through a ventilator were examined as a preliminary study to develop a ventilator with the maximum exhaust capacity while minimizing rain penetration. A model ventilator was built and exposed to artificial rain and wind. The paths, intensities and amounts of penetration through the ventilator were observed and measured in qualitative and quantitative fashions. In the first phase, the pathways and intensities of rain penetration were visually observed. In the second phase, the amounts of rain penetration were quantitatively measured under the different configurations of ventilator components that were installed based on the information obtained in the first-phase experiment. The effects of wind speed, grill direction, rain drainage width, outer wall height, neck height and leaning angle of the outer wall from the vertical position were analyzed. Wind speed significantly affected rain penetration. Under the low crosswind conditions, the rain penetration intensities were under the limit of detection. Under the high crosswind conditions, grill direction and neck height were the most significant factors in reducing rain penetration. The installation of rain drainage was also important in reducing rain penetration. The experimental results suggest that, with proper configurations of its components, a gravity ventilator can be used for natural ventilation without significant rain penetration problems.

  2. Statistical Mechanical Theory of Penetrant Diffusion in Polymer Melts and Glasses

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Rui; Schweizer, Kenneth

    We generalize our force-level, self-consistent nonlinear Langevin equation theory of activated diffusion of a dilute spherical penetrant in hard sphere fluids to predict the long-time diffusivity of molecular penetrants in supercooled polymer liquids and non-aging glasses. Chemical complexity is treated using an a priori mapping to a temperature-dependent hard sphere mixture model where polymers are disconnected into effective spheres based on the Kuhn length as the relevant coarse graining scale. A key parameter for mobility is the penetrant to polymer segment diameter ratio, R. Our calculations agree well with experimental measurements for a wide range of temperatures, penetrant sizes (from gas molecules with R ~0.3 to aromatic molecules with R ~1) and diverse amorphous polymers, over 10 decades variation of penetrant diffusivity. Structural parameter transferability is good. We have also formulated a theory at finite penetrant loading for the coupled penetrant-polymer dynamics in chemically (nearly) matched mixtures (e.g., toluene-polystyrene) which captures well the increase of penetrant diffusivity and decrease of polymer matrix vitrification temperature with increasing loading.

  3. A study to examine the feasibility of using surface penetrators for mineral exploration

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Davis, A. S.; Anderson, D. W.

    1978-01-01

    The feasibility of using penetrators in earth applications is examined. Penetrator applications in exploration for mineral resources only is summarized. Instrumentation for future penetrators is described. Portions of this report are incorporated into a more extensive report examining other penetrator applications in exploration for fossil fuels, geothermal resources, and in environmental and engineering problems, which is to be published as a NASA technical publication.

  4. The Lightning Electromagnetic Pulse Coupling Effect Inside the Shielding Enclosure With Penetrating Wire

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jiao, Xue; Yang, Bo

    2017-10-01

    To study the lightning electromagnetic pulse (LEMP) coupling and protection problems of shielding enclosure with penetrating wire, we adopt the model with proper size which is close to the practical engineering and the two-step finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method is used for calculation in this paper. It is shown that the coupling voltage on the circuit lead inside the enclosure increases about 34 dB, when add 1.0 m long penetrating wire at the aperture, comparing with the case without penetrating wire. Meanwhile, the waveform, has the same wave outline as the lightning current source, shows that the penetrating wire brings a large number of low frequency component into the enclosure. The coupling effect in the enclosure will reduce greatly when penetrating wire has electrical connection with the enclosure at the aperture and the coupling voltage increase only about 12 dB than the case without penetrating wire. Moreover, the results show that though the waveguide pipe can reduce the coupling effect brought by the penetrating wire, the exposing part of penetrating wire can increase the coupling when the penetrating wire outside the enclosure is longer than the waveguide pipe and the longer the exposing part is, the stronger the coupling is.

  5. Caval penetration by retrievable inferior vena cava filters: a retrospective comparison of Option and Günther Tulip filters.

    PubMed

    Olorunsola, Olufoladare G; Kohi, Maureen P; Fidelman, Nicholas; Westphalen, Antonio C; Kolli, Pallav K; Taylor, Andrew G; Gordon, Roy L; LaBerge, Jeanne M; Kerlan, Robert K

    2013-04-01

    To compare the frequency of vena caval penetration by the struts of the Option and Günther Tulip cone filters on postplacement computed tomography (CT) imaging. All patients who had an Option or Günther Tulip inferior vena cava (IVC) filter placed between January 2010 and May 2012 were identified retrospectively from medical records. Of the 208 IVC filters placed, the positions of 58 devices (21 Option filters, 37 Günther Tulip filters [GTFs]) were documented on follow-up CT examinations obtained for reasons unrelated to filter placement. In cases when multiple CT studies were obtained after placement, each study was reviewed, for a total of 80 examinations. Images were assessed for evidence of caval wall penetration by filter components, noting the number of penetrating struts and any effect on pericaval tissues. Penetration of at least one strut was observed in 17% of all filters imaged by CT between 1 and 447 days following placement. Although there was no significant difference in the overall prevalence of penetration when comparing the Option filter and GTF (Option, 10%; GTF, 22%), only GTFs showed time-dependent penetration, with penetration becoming more likely after prolonged indwelling times. No patient had damage to pericaval tissues or documented symptoms attributed to penetration. Although the Günther Tulip and Option filters exhibit caval penetration at CT imaging, only the GTF exhibits progressive penetration over time. Copyright © 2013 SIR. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Regional associations between Medicare Advantage penetration and administrative claims-based measures of hospital outcome

    PubMed Central

    Kulkarni, Vivek T.; Shah, Sachin J.; Bernheim, Susannah M.; Wang, Yongfei; Normand, Sharon-Lise T.; Han, Lein F.; Rapp, Michael T.; Drye, Elizabeth E.; Krumholz, Harlan M.

    2017-01-01

    Structured Abstract Background Risk-standardized measures of hospital outcomes reported by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) include Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) patients and exclude Medicare Advantage (MA) patients due to data availability. MA penetration varies greatly nationwide and appears associated with increased FFS population risk. Whether variation in MA penetration affects the performance on the CMS measures is unknown. Objective To determine whether the MA penetration rate is associated with outcomes measures based on fee-for-service patients. Research Design In this retrospective study, 2008 MA penetration was estimated at the Hospital Referral Region (HRR) level. Risk-standardized mortality rates (RSMRs), and risk-standardized readmission rates (RSRRs) for heart failure, acute myocardial infarction, and pneumonia from 2006–2008 were estimated among HRRs, along with several markers of FFS population risk. Weighted linear regression was used to test the association between each of these variables and MA penetration among HRRs. Results Among 304 HRRs, MA penetration varied greatly (median: 17.0%, range: 2.1% – 56.6%). Although MA penetration was significantly (p<0.05) associated with 5 of the 6 markers of FFS population risk, MA penetration was insignificantly (p≥0.05) associated with 5 of 6 hospital outcome measures. Conclusion RSMRs and RSRRs for heart failure, acute myocardial infarction, and pneumonia do not seem to differ systematically with MA penetration, lending support to the widespread use of these measures even in areas of high MA penetration. PMID:22456113

  7. Planetary and Primitive Object Strength Measurements and Sampling Apparatus

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ahrens, Thomas J.

    1997-01-01

    We present experimental data and a model for the low-velocity (subsonic, 0 - 1000 m/s) penetration of brittle materials by both solid and hollow (i.e., coring) penetrators. The experiments show that penetration is proportional to momentum/frontal area of the penetrator. Because of the buildup of a cap in front of blunt penetrators, the presence or absence of a streamlined or sharp front end usually has a negligible effect for impact into targets with strength. The model accurately predicts the dependence of penetration depth on the various parameters of the target-penetrator system, as well as the qualitative condition of the target material ingested by a corer. In particular, penetration depth is approximately inversely proportional to the static bearing strength of the target. The bulk density of the target material has only a small effect on penetration, whereas friction can be significant, especially at higher impact velocities, for consolidated materials. This trend is reversed for impacts into unconsolidated materials. The present results suggest that the depth of penetration is a good measure of the strength, but not the density, of a consolidated target. Both experiments and model results show that, if passage through the mouth of a coring penetrator requires initially porous target material to be compressed to less than 26% porosity, the sample collected by the corer will be highly fragmented. If the final porosity remains above 26%, then most materials, except cohesionless materials, such as dry sand, will be collected as a compressed slug of material.

  8. Differential permeation of artemia cysts and cucumber seeds by alcohols

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Smith, C. W.; Siegel, S. M.

    1975-01-01

    The rate of penetration of the simpler alcohols into brine shrimp cysts and cucumber seeds was studied. In solutions below 70% the rate of penetration is related to lipid solvent capacity of the alcohol. In concentrations above 70%, particularly in absolute alcohols, methanol penetrates brine shrimp rapidly and ethanol penetrates slowly. All the other alcohols tested did not penetrate the dormant structures. Ethionine and deuteroxy-methanol did not affect the rate of penetration of methanol. It is suggested that in dehydrated membranes the lipid moiety is protected by a continuous sheet of protein. Methanol, which is fairly similar to water, is probably able to penetrate the membrane by initiating a conformation change in the protein, exposing the lipid which subsequently dissolves in the methanol thus destroying the membrane.

  9. SDHB-related pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma penetrance and genotype-phenotype correlations.

    PubMed

    Jochmanova, Ivana; Wolf, Katherine I; King, Kathryn S; Nambuba, Joan; Wesley, Robert; Martucci, Victoria; Raygada, Margarita; Adams, Karen T; Prodanov, Tamara; Fojo, Antonio Tito; Lazurova, Ivica; Pacak, Karel

    2017-08-01

    Succinate dehydrogenase subunit B (SDHB) gene mutations are associated with an aggressive clinical disease course of pheochromocytoma/paraganglioma (PHEO/PGL). Limited information is available concerning PHEO/PGL penetrance among SDHB mutation carriers with regards to primary tumor location, specific mutation type, and gender. We assessed PHEO/PGL penetrance in SDHB mutation carriers and described the clinical presentation and disease course. Asymptomatic relatives (N = 611) of 103 index patients were tested for SDHB mutations. Mutation carriers (N = 328) were offered PHEO/PGL screening, of which 241 participated and were included in penetrance analysis. For additional disease outcome analysis, the 103 index patients and 40 screened individuals who developed PHEO/PGL were included. Clinical data were collected between October 2004 and June 2016. Forty (16.60%) of the 241 screened individuals developed PHEO/PGL during the study. The penetrance estimate in this population was 49.80% (95% CI 29-74.9) at 85 years. A significantly higher age-related penetrance of disease was observed in males compared to females, with 50% penetrance achieved at age 74 vs. not reached. Age-related penetrance analysis demonstrated 4 mutations (Ile127Ser, IVS1+1G>T, Exon 1 deletion, Arg90X) presenting with a slower rate of disease development (50% penetrance ages, respectively: not achieved, 70, 63, 61 years) compared to Arg46X and Val140Phe mutations (50% penetrance at 38 years). Here, we found a higher estimated penetrance compared to several other studies, and a striking difference in age-related penetrance between male and female SDHB mutation carriers with no association between mutation and gender or tumor location.

  10. Confocal Raman microscopy and multivariate statistical analysis for determination of different penetration abilities of caffeine and propylene glycol applied simultaneously in a mixture on porcine skin ex vivo.

    PubMed

    Mujica Ascencio, Saul; Choe, ChunSik; Meinke, Martina C; Müller, Rainer H; Maksimov, George V; Wigger-Alberti, Walter; Lademann, Juergen; Darvin, Maxim E

    2016-07-01

    Propylene glycol is one of the known substances added in cosmetic formulations as a penetration enhancer. Recently, nanocrystals have been employed also to increase the skin penetration of active components. Caffeine is a component with many applications and its penetration into the epidermis is controversially discussed in the literature. In the present study, the penetration ability of two components - caffeine nanocrystals and propylene glycol, applied topically on porcine ear skin in the form of a gel, was investigated ex vivo using two confocal Raman microscopes operated at different excitation wavelengths (785nm and 633nm). Several depth profiles were acquired in the fingerprint region and different spectral ranges, i.e., 526-600cm(-1) and 810-880cm(-1) were chosen for independent analysis of caffeine and propylene glycol penetration into the skin, respectively. Multivariate statistical methods such as principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) combined with Student's t-test were employed to calculate the maximum penetration depths of each substance (caffeine and propylene glycol). The results show that propylene glycol penetrates significantly deeper than caffeine (20.7-22.0μm versus 12.3-13.0μm) without any penetration enhancement effect on caffeine. The results confirm that different substances, even if applied onto the skin as a mixture, can penetrate differently. The penetration depths of caffeine and propylene glycol obtained using two different confocal Raman microscopes are comparable showing that both types of microscopes are well suited for such investigations and that multivariate statistical PCA-LDA methods combined with Student's t-test are very useful for analyzing the penetration of different substances into the skin. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. Quantification of nanowire penetration into living cells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, Alexander M.; Aalipour, Amin; Leal-Ortiz, Sergio; Mekhdjian, Armen H.; Xie, Xi; Dunn, Alexander R.; Garner, Craig C.; Melosh, Nicholas A.

    2014-04-01

    High-aspect ratio nanostructures such as nanowires and nanotubes are a powerful new tool for accessing the cell interior for delivery and sensing. Controlling and optimizing cellular access is a critical challenge for this new technology, yet even the most basic aspect of this process, whether these structures directly penetrate the cell membrane, is still unknown. Here we report the first quantification of hollow nanowires—nanostraws—that directly penetrate the membrane by observing dynamic ion delivery from each 100-nm diameter nanostraw. We discover that penetration is a rare event: 7.1±2.7% of the nanostraws penetrate the cell to provide cytosolic access for an extended period for an average of 10.7±5.8 penetrations per cell. Using time-resolved delivery, the kinetics of the first penetration event are shown to be adhesion dependent and coincident with recruitment of focal adhesion-associated proteins. These measurements provide a quantitative basis for understanding nanowire-cell interactions, and a means for rapidly assessing membrane penetration.

  12. An evaluation of bacterial contamination of barriers used in periapical tissue regeneration: Part 2--Bacterial penetration.

    PubMed

    Sharma, Priya; Mickel, André K; Chogle, Sami; Sharma, Prem Nath; Han, Yiping W; Jones, Jefferson J

    2008-03-01

    To compare the relative penetration of Prevotella melaninogenica and Enterococcus faecalis through 3 guided tissue regeneration membranes: Atrisorb, Lambone, and OsseoQuest. It was hypothesized that OsseoQuest would show increased bacterial penetration when compared to Lambone and Atrisorb. Centrifuge tubes containing trypticase soy broth were sealed with circular sections of membranes and placed in test tubes containing culture media. The bacterial penetration was assessed by passage of bacteria from the outer tube culture media to the inner centrifuge tube media through the membrane. After incubation for 4 and 48 hours, the media from the outer and inner tubes were compared for bacterial count. P melaninogenica exhibited 91% penetration for Lambone in 2 days, while OsseoQuest displayed 87% penetration with E faecalis in the same time. Atrisorb displayed a minimal penetration with both bacteria (2%). Atrisorb displayed the least bacterial penetration, which may be attributed to membrane structure, chemical configuration, hydrophobicity, and porosity of tested membranes.

  13. A Highly Sensitive Assay Using Synthetic Blood Containing Test Microbes for Evaluation of the Penetration Resistance of Protective Clothing Material under Applied Pressure.

    PubMed

    Shimasaki, Noriko; Hara, Masayuki; Kikuno, Ritsuko; Shinohara, Katsuaki

    2016-01-01

    To prevent nosocomial infections caused by even either Ebola virus or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), healthcare workers must wear the appropriate protective clothing which can inhibit contact transmission of these pathogens. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the performance of protective clothing for penetration resistance against infectious agents. In Japan, some standard methods were established to evaluate the penetration resistance of protective clothing fabric materials under applied pressure. However, these methods only roughly classified the penetration resistance of fabrics, and the detection sensitivity of the methods and the penetration amount with respect to the relationship between blood and the pathogen have not been studied in detail. Moreover, no standard method using bacteria for evaluation is known. Here, to evaluate penetration resistance of protective clothing materials under applied pressure, the detection sensitivity and the leak amount were investigated by using synthetic blood containing bacteriophage phi-X174 or S. aureus. And the volume of leaked synthetic blood and the amount of test microbe penetration were simultaneously quantified. Our results showed that the penetration detection sensitivity achieved using a test microbial culture was higher than that achieved using synthetic blood at invisible leak level pressures. This finding suggested that there is a potential risk of pathogen penetration even when visual leak of contaminated blood through the protective clothing was not observed. Moreover, at visible leak level pressures, it was found that the amount of test microbe penetration varied at least ten-fold among protective clothing materials classified into the same class of penetration resistance. Analysis of the penetration amount revealed a significant correlation between the volume of penetrated synthetic blood and the amount of test microbe penetration, indicating that the leaked volume of synthetic blood could be considered as a latent indicator for infection risk, that the amount of exposure to contaminated blood corresponds to the risk of infection. Our study helped us ascertain, with high sensitivity, the differences among fabric materials with respect to their protective performance, which may facilitate effective selection of protective clothing depending on the risk assessment.

  14. A comparison of observed and analytically derived remote sensing penetration depths for turbid water

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Morris, W. D.; Usry, J. W.; Witte, W. G.; Whitlock, C. H.; Guraus, E. A.

    1981-01-01

    The depth to which sunlight will penetrate in turbid waters was investigated. The tests were conducted in water with a single scattering albedo range, and over a range of solar elevation angles. Two different techniques were used to determine the depth of light penetration. It showed little change in the depth of sunlight penetration with changing solar elevation angle. A comparison of the penetration depths indicates that the best agreement between the two methods was achieved when the quasisingle scattering relationship was not corrected for solar angle. It is concluded that sunlight penetration is dependent on inherent water properties only.

  15. Surface penetrators for planetary exploration: Science rationale and development program

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Murphy, J. P.; Reynolds, R. T.; Blanchard, M. B.; Clanton, U. S.

    1981-01-01

    Work on penetrators for planetary exploration is summarized. In particular, potential missions, including those to Mars, Mercury, the Galilean satellites, comets, and asteroids are described. A baseline penetrator design for the Mars mission is included, as well as potential instruments and their status in development. Penetration tests in soft soil and basalt to study material eroded from the penetrator; changes in the structure, composition, and physical properties of the impacted soil; seismic coupling; and penetrator deflection caused by impacting rocks, are described. Results of subsystem studies and tests are given for design of entry decelerators, high-g components, thermal control, data acquisition, and umbilical cable deployment.

  16. Mathematical modeling of intraperitoneal drug delivery: simulation of drug distribution in a single tumor nodule.

    PubMed

    Steuperaert, Margo; Falvo D'Urso Labate, Giuseppe; Debbaut, Charlotte; De Wever, Olivier; Vanhove, Christian; Ceelen, Wim; Segers, Patrick

    2017-11-01

    The intraperitoneal (IP) administration of chemotherapy is an alternative treatment for peritoneal carcinomatosis, allowing for higher intratumor concentrations of the cytotoxic agent compared to intravenous administration. Nevertheless, drug penetration depths are still limited to a few millimeters. It is thus necessary to better understand the limiting factors behind this poor penetration in order to improve IP chemotherapy delivery. By developing a three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model for drug penetration in a tumor nodule, we investigated the impact of a number of key parameters on the drug transport and penetration depth during IP chemotherapy. Overall, smaller tumors showed better penetration than larger ones, which could be attributed to the lower IFP in smaller tumors. Furthermore, the model demonstrated large improvements in penetration depth by subjecting the tumor nodules to vascular normalization therapy, and illustrated the importance of the drug that is used for therapy. Explicitly modeling the necrotic core had a limited effect on the simulated penetration. Similarly, the penetration depth remained virtually constant when the Darcy permeability of the tissue changed. Our findings illustrate that the developed parametrical CFD model is a powerful tool providing more insight in the drug transport and penetration during IP chemotherapy.

  17. HMO penetration and the geographic mobility of practicing physicians.

    PubMed

    Polsky, D; Kletke, P R; Wozniak, G D; Escarce, J J

    2000-09-01

    In this study, we assessed the influence of changes in health maintenance organization (HMO) penetration on the probability that established patient care physicians relocated their practices or left patient care altogether. For physicians who relocated their practices, we also assessed the impact of HMO penetration on their destination choices. We found that larger increases in HMO penetration decreased the probability that medical/surgical specialists in early career stayed in patient care in the same market, but had no impact on generalists, hospital-based specialists, or mid career medical/surgical specialists. We also found that physicians who relocated their practices were much more likely to choose destination markets with the same level of HMO penetration or lower HMO penetration compared with their origin markets than they were to choose destination markets with higher HMO penetration. The largely negligible impact of changes in HMO penetration on established physicians' decisions to relocate their practices or leave patient care is consistent with high relocation and switching costs. Relocating physicians' attraction to destination markets with the same level of HMO penetration as their origin markets suggests that, while physicians' styles of medical practice may adapt to changes in market conditions, learning new practice styles is costly.

  18. Simulation Study on Missile Penetration Based on LS - DYNA

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tang, Jue; Sun, Xinli

    2017-12-01

    Penetrating the shell armor is an effective means of destroying hard targets with multiple layers of protection. The penetration process is a high-speed impact dynamics research category, involving high pressure, high temperature, high speed and internal material damage, including plugging, penetration, spalling, caving, splashing and other complex forms, therefore, Analysis is one of the difficulties in the study of impact dynamics. In this paper, the Lagrang algorithm and the SPH algorithm are used to analyze the penetrating steel plate, and the penetration model of the rocket penetrating the steel plate, the failure mode of the steel plate and the missile and the advantages and disadvantages of Lagrang algorithm and SPH algorithm in the simulation of high-speed collision problem are analyzed and compared, which provides a reference for the study of simulation collision problem.

  19. Prevalence of penetration and aspiration on videofluoroscopy in normal individuals without dysphagia.

    PubMed

    Allen, Jacqui E; White, Cheryl J; Leonard, Rebecca J; Belafsky, Peter C

    2010-02-01

    To determine the prevalence of penetration and aspiration on videofluoroscopic swallow studies (VFSS) in normal individuals without dysphagia. Case series with planned data collection. A tertiary urban university hospital. Normal adult volunteers without dysphagia, neurological disease, or previous surgery underwent VFSS. Studies were recorded and then reviewed for evidence of penetration or aspiration. The degree of penetration was assessed with the penetration-aspiration scale (PAS). The effect of age, bolus size, and consistency was evaluated. A total of 149 VFSS (596 swallows) were reviewed. The mean age of the cohort was 57 years (+/-19 years); 56 percent were female. Only one (0.6%) individual aspirated on VFSS. Seventeen (11.4%) individuals demonstrated penetration. The mean PAS for the entire cohort was 1.17 (+/-0.66). Prevalence of penetration by swallow was 2.85 percent (17/596). Prevalence of penetration was 9.3 percent in elderly individuals aged >65 years and 14.3 percent in adults aged <65 years (P = 0.49). Prevalence of penetration on a liquid bolus was 3.4 percent (15/447) and on paste was 1.3 percent (2/149) (P > 0.05). Prevalence of penetration for a bolus <30 cc was 2.34 percent (7/298) and for a bolus >30 cc was 5.4 percent (8/149) (P > 0.05). Aspiration on VFSS is not a normal finding. Penetration is present in 11.4 percent of normal adults and is more common with a liquid bolus. Copyright 2010 American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. The effect of HMO penetration on physician retirement.

    PubMed

    Kletke, P R; Polsky, D; Wozniak, G D; Escarce, J J

    2000-12-01

    To examine the effect of HMO penetration on physician retirement. We linked together historical data from the Physician Masterfile of the American Medical Association for successive years to track changes in physicians' activity status between 1980 and 1997. We used a multivariate discrete-time survival model to examine how the probability of physician retirement was affected by the level of HMO penetration in the physician's market area, controlling for other physician and market characteristics. The study population included all active allopathic patient-care physicians in the United States who reached age 55 between the years of 1980 and 1996. The main outcome measure was physician retirements as reported on the Physician Masterfile. HMO penetration had a statistically significant positive effect on the retirement probabilities of generalists and medical/surgical specialists, but it s effect on hospital-based specialists and psychiatrists was not significant . For generalists regression-adjusted retirement probabilities were roughly 13 percent greater in high-penetration markets (HMO penetration of 45 percent ) than in low-penetration markets (HMO penetration of 5 percent ). For medical/surgical specialist s regression-adjusted retirement probabilities were roughly 17 percent greater in high-penetration markets than in low-penetration markets. Our findings suggest that many older physicians have found it preferable to retire rather than adapt their practices to an environment with a high degree of managed care penetration . Because the number of physicians entering the older age categories will increase rapidly over the next 20 years, the growth of managed care and other influences on physician retirement will play an increasingly important role in determining the size of the physician workforce.

  1. [Filtering facepieces: effect of oily aerosol load on penetration through the filtering material].

    PubMed

    Plebani, Carmela; Listrani, S; Di Luigi, M

    2010-01-01

    Electrostatic filters are widely used in applications requiring high filtration efficiency and low pressure drop. However various studies showed that the penetration through electrostatic filters increases during exposure to an aerosol flow. This study investigates the effects of prolonged exposure to an oily aerosol on the penetration through filtering facepieces available on the market. Some samples of FFP1, FFP2 and FFP3 filtering facepieces were exposed for 8 hours consecutively to a paraffin oil polydisperse aerosol. At the end of the exposure about 830 mg of paraffin oil were deposited in the facepiece. All the examined facepieces showed penetration values that increased with paraffin oil load while pressure drop values were substantially the same before and after exposure. The measured maximum penetration values did not exceed the maximum penetration values allowed by the European technical standards, except in one case. According to the literature, 830 mg of oil load in a facepiece is not feasible in workplaces over an eight- hour shift. However, the trend of the penetration versus exposure mass suggests that if the load increases, the penetration may exceed the maximum allowed values. For comparison a mechanical filter was also studied. This showed an initial pressure drop higher than FFP2 filtering facepieces characterized by comparable penetration values. During exposure the pressure drop virtually doubled while penetration did not change. The increase in penetration with no increase in pressure drop in the analyzed facepieces indicates that it is necessary to comply with the information supplied by the manufacturer that restricts their use to a single shift.

  2. The Inland Penetration of Atmospheric Rivers over Western North America: A Lagrangian Analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rutz, J. J.; Steenburgh, W. J.; Ralph, F. M.

    2014-12-01

    Although atmospheric rivers (ARs) typically weaken following landfall, those that penetrate inland can contribute to heavy precipitation and high-impact weather within the interior of western North America. In this paper, we examine the evolution of ARs over western North America using trajectories released at 950 and 700 hPa within cool-season ARs along the Pacific coast. These trajectories are classified as coastal decaying, inland penetrating, or interior penetrating based on whether they remain within an AR upon reaching selected transects over western North America. Interior-penetrating AR trajectories most frequently make landfall along the Oregon coast, but the greatest fraction of landfalling AR trajectories that eventually penetrate into the interior is found along the Baja Peninsula. In contrast, interior-penetrating trajectories rarely traverse the southern "high" Sierra. At landfall, interior-penetrating trajectories are associated with a more amplified flow pattern, more southwesterly (vs. westerly) flow along the Pacific coast, and larger water vapor transport (qu). The larger initial qu of interior-penetrating trajectories is due primarily to larger initial water vapor (q) and wind speed (u) for those initiated at 950 and 700 hPa, respectively. Inland- and interior-penetrating AR trajectories maintain large qu over the interior due partially to increases in u that offset decreases in q, particularly in the vicinity of topographical barriers. Therefore, synoptic conditions and trajectory pathways favoring larger initial qu at the coast, limited water vapor depletion by orographic precipitation, and increases in u over the interior are keys to differentiating interior-penetrating from coastal-decaying AR trajectories.

  3. Penetration studies of an extremely lipophilic active model substance from an oil-in-water emulsion: influence of the lipophilicity of the formulation in human skin - part 2.

    PubMed

    Naumann, S; Lange, S; Polak, G; Kalhoelfer, V; Motlagh, L; Goebel, A; Wohlrab, J; Neubert, R H H

    2014-01-01

    The effect of the lipophilicity of a carrier on human skin penetration of an extremely lipophilic active model substance was evaluated by using Franz type diffusion cells. Oil-in-water model emulsions containing different amounts of the oily phase were prepared, and Myritol® PC (M-PC) was selected as lipophilic marker component of the oily phase. The penetrated amounts of the lipophilic model substance salicyloyl phytosphingosine (SP) were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection, while M-PC was detected using gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. It has been ascertained that the amount of the lipid phase within the emulsion influenced the penetration profile of the active ingredient SP. The emulsion containing the lowest proportion of the lipid phase provides the best conditions for SP penetration. Surprisingly, the penetration behavior of M-PC was influenced by the oily phase in the same way. Regarding the M-PC and the SP penetration profiles from each emulsion, a solvent drag mechanism can be assumed whereby M-PC acts as penetration enhancer. In conclusion, the penetration rate of the active ingredient SP and the marker component M-PC are in reverse proportion to the oil content of the formulations. The lipophilicity of SP and M-PC, their solubility and their thermodynamic activity within the vehicle could have an effect on their penetration behavior. Additionally, M-PC has the property to enhance the penetration rates of extremely lipophilic substances even at low concentrations.

  4. Penetration tests to study the mechanical tribological properties of chisel type knife

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vlăduţoiu, L.; Chişiu, G.; Andrei, T.; Predescu, A.; Muraru, C.; Vlăduţ, V.

    2017-02-01

    The goal of this study was to analyze the behaviour of chisel knife type penetration in a certain type of sand. A series of penetration tests were carried out with chisel knife type, the answer to penetration depending mainly on nature, shape, size of knife and operating parameters such as speed, depth and working conditions. Tests were conducted in work conditions with wet sand and dry sand and determined force of resistance to penetration of the chisel knife type to a certain depth.

  5. Varieties of cognitive penetration in visual perception.

    PubMed

    Vetter, Petra; Newen, Albert

    2014-07-01

    Is our perceptual experience a veridical representation of the world or is it a product of our beliefs and past experiences? Cognitive penetration describes the influence of higher level cognitive factors on perceptual experience and has been a debated topic in philosophy of mind and cognitive science. Here, we focus on visual perception, particularly early vision, and how it is affected by contextual expectations and memorized cognitive contents. We argue for cognitive penetration based on recent empirical evidence demonstrating contextual and top-down influences on early visual processes. On the basis of a perceptual model, we propose different types of cognitive penetration depending on the processing level on which the penetration happens and depending on where the penetrating influence comes from. Our proposal has two consequences: (1) the traditional controversy on whether cognitive penetration occurs or not is ill posed, and (2) a clear-cut perception-cognition boundary cannot be maintained. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Topological properties of the limited penetrable horizontal visibility graph family

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Minggang; Vilela, André L. M.; Du, Ruijin; Zhao, Longfeng; Dong, Gaogao; Tian, Lixin; Stanley, H. Eugene

    2018-05-01

    The limited penetrable horizontal visibility graph algorithm was recently introduced to map time series in complex networks. In this work, we extend this algorithm to create a directed-limited penetrable horizontal visibility graph and an image-limited penetrable horizontal visibility graph. We define two algorithms and provide theoretical results on the topological properties of these graphs associated with different types of real-value series. We perform several numerical simulations to check the accuracy of our theoretical results. Finally, we present an application of the directed-limited penetrable horizontal visibility graph to measure real-value time series irreversibility and an application of the image-limited penetrable horizontal visibility graph that discriminates noise from chaos. We also propose a method to measure the systematic risk using the image-limited penetrable horizontal visibility graph, and the empirical results show the effectiveness of our proposed algorithms.

  7. New Analysis Finds Synergistic Relationship Between High PV Penetration and

    Science.gov Websites

    High PV Penetration and Energy Storage Deployment April 10, 2018 Adding higher penetrations of solar High PV Penetration and Energy Storage Deployment New Analysis Finds Synergistic Relationship Between photovoltaics (PV) to the electric power grid could increase the potential for energy storage to meet peak

  8. Glass-to-Metal Seal Quality.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1982-05-01

    SELECTION AND EVALUATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 2.2 MICROELECTRONIC PACKAGES AND THEIR QUALITY . . . * . . . . . . . . 5 2.3 EQUIPMENT...liquid penetrant testing for various microelectronic package hermeticity. I t I MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT 2.1 DYE PENETRANT SELECTION AND EVALUATION...a commercial visible dye penetrant and a commercial fluorescent dye penetrant were selected as being suitable for the testing of microelectronic

  9. Mixed-Penetrant Sorption in Ultrathin Films of Polymer of Intrinsic Microporosity PIM-1.

    PubMed

    Ogieglo, Wojciech; Furchner, Andreas; Ghanem, Bader; Ma, Xiaohua; Pinnau, Ingo; Wessling, Matthias

    2017-11-02

    Mixed-penetrant sorption into ultrathin films of a superglassy polymer of intrinsic microporosity (PIM-1) was studied for the first time by using interference-enhanced in situ spectroscopic ellipsometry. PIM-1 swelling and the concurrent changes in its refractive index were determined in ultrathin (12-14 nm) films exposed to pure and mixed penetrants. The penetrants included water, n-hexane, and ethanol and were chosen on the basis of their significantly different penetrant-penetrant and penetrant-polymer affinities. This allowed studying microporous polymer responses at diverse ternary compositions and revealed effects such as competition for the sorption sites (for water/n-hexane or ethanol/n-hexane) or enhancement in sorption of typically weakly sorbing water in the presence of more highly sorbing ethanol. The results reveal details of the mutual sorption effects which often complicate comprehension of glassy polymers' behavior in applications such as high-performance membranes, adsorbents, or catalysts. Mixed-penetrant effects are typically very challenging to study directly, and their understanding is necessary owing to a broadly recognized inadequacy of simple extrapolations from measurements in a pure component environment.

  10. Structure-skin permeability relationship of dendrimers.

    PubMed

    Venuganti, Venkata Vamsi; Sahdev, Preety; Hildreth, Michael; Guan, Xiangming; Perumal, Omathanu

    2011-09-01

    To investigate skin penetration of poly (amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers as a function of surface charge and molecular weight in presence and absence of iontophoresis. Dendrimers were labeled with fluoroisothiocynate (FITC); skin penetration of dendrimers was studied using excised porcine skin in-vitro. Skin penetration of FITC-labeled dendrimers was quantified using confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM). G2-G6 NH(2), G3.5-COOH and G4-OH dendrimers were used. Cationic dendrimers showed higher skin penetration than neutral and anionic dendrimers. Skin penetration of cationic dendrimer increased linearly with increase in treatment time. Iontophoresis enhanced skin penetration of cationic and neutral dendrimers. Increase in current strength and current duration increased skin transport of dendrimers. Passive and iontophoretic skin penetration of cationic dendrimers was inversely related to their molecular weight. Dendrimer penetrated the skin through intercellular lipids and hair follicles. With iontophoresis, dendrimer was also found in localized skin regions. The study demonstrates that the physicochemical properties of dendrimers influence their skin transport. Findings can be used to design dendrimer-based nanocarriers for drug delivery to skin.

  11. Water Penetration through a Superhydrophobic Mesh During a Drop Impact.

    PubMed

    Ryu, Seunggeol; Sen, Prosenjit; Nam, Youngsuk; Lee, Choongyeop

    2017-01-06

    When a water drop impacts a mesh having submillimeter pores, a part of the drop penetrates through the mesh if the impact velocity is sufficiently large. Here we show that different surface wettability, i.e., hydrophobicity and superhydrophobicity, leads to different water penetration dynamics on a mesh during drop impact. We show, despite the water repellence of a superhydrophobic surface, that water can penetrate a superhydrophobic mesh more easily (i.e., at a lower impact velocity) over a hydrophobic mesh via a penetration mechanism unique to a superhydrophobic mesh. On a superhydrophobic mesh, the water penetration can occur during the drop recoil stage, which appears at a lower impact velocity than the critical impact velocity for water penetration right upon impact. We propose that this unique water penetration on a superhydrophobic mesh can be attributed to the combination of the hydrodynamic focusing and the momentum transfer from the water drop when it is about to bounce off the surface, at which point the water drop retrieves most of its kinetic energy due to the negligible friction on superhydrophobic surfaces.

  12. Hybridization regulated metal penetration at transition metal-organic semiconductor contacts

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chuang, Tzu-Hung; Lu, Kun-Ta; Lu, Chun-I.; Hsu, Yao-Jane; Wei, Der-Hsin

    2018-02-01

    Metal-organic contacts are keys to define the functionalities of hybrid structures, but orbital hybridization at interfaces has made rationalizing their behavior a challenging task. Here, we examined Fe/C60 and Ni/C60 bilayers with X-ray absorption spectra to study the nature of orbital hybridization and the possible correlation with metal penetration. Depositing Fe or Ni on C60 films of sub-nanometer thickness to emulate interfaces, we found that both bilayers show evidence of not only d-π hybridization and metal penetration but also a deeper Ni penetration. The carbon K-edge spectra recorded from C60 films indicate that the deeper Ni penetration is accompanied by a larger donation of electrons from Ni to C60. This finding of hybridization-modulated metal penetration is somewhat counterintuitive but is consistent with a scenario of metal-C60 hybridization competing with metal-metal aggregation. A stronger Ni-C60 hybridization could result in smaller Ni clusters and a greater probability of penetration through the interstitial space between C60 molecules. We conclude that metal penetration can be regulated with orbital hybridization between metal and C60.

  13. Aerosol penetration through respirator exhalation valves.

    PubMed

    Bellin, P; Hinds, W C

    1990-10-01

    Exhalation valves are a critical component of industrial respirators. They are designed to permit minimal inward leakage of air contaminants during inhalation and provide low resistance during exhalation. Under normal conditions, penetration of aerosol through exhalation valves is minimal. The exhalation valve is, however, a vulnerable component of a respirator and under actual working conditions may become dirty or damaged to the point of causing significant leakage. Aerosol penetration was measured for normal exhalation valves and valves compromised by paint or fine copper wires on the valve seat. Penetration increased with increasing wire diameter. A wire 250 microns in diameter allowed greater than 1% penetration into the mask cavity. Dirt or paint accumulated on the exhalation valve allowed a similar level of penetration. Work rate had little effect on observed penetration. Penetration decreased significantly with increasing aerosol particle size. The amount of material on the valve or valve seat necessary for significant (greater than 0.5%) inward leakage in a half-mask respirator could be readily observed by careful inspection of the exhalation valve and its seat in good lighting conditions.

  14. Cell Penetration Properties of a Highly Efficient Mini Maurocalcine Peptide

    PubMed Central

    Tisseyre, Céline; Bahembera, Eloi; Dardevet, Lucie; Sabatier, Jean-Marc; Ronjat, Michel; De Waard, Michel

    2013-01-01

    Maurocalcine is a highly potent cell-penetrating peptide isolated from the Tunisian scorpion Maurus palmatus. Many cell-penetrating peptide analogues have been derived from the full-length maurocalcine by internal cysteine substitutions and sequence truncation. Herein we have further characterized the cell-penetrating properties of one such peptide, MCaUF1-9, whose sequence matches that of the hydrophobic face of maurocalcine. This peptide shows very favorable cell-penetration efficacy compared to Tat, penetratin or polyarginine. The peptide appears so specialized in cell penetration that it seems hard to improve by site directed mutagenesis. A comparative analysis of the efficacies of similar peptides isolated from other toxin members of the same family leads to the identification of hadrucalcin’s hydrophobic face as an even better CPP. Protonation of the histidine residue at position 6 renders the cell penetration of MCaUF1-9 pH-sensitive. Greater cell penetration at acidic pH suggests that MCaUF1-9 can be used to specifically target cancer cells in vivo where tumor masses grow in more acidic environments. PMID:24276021

  15. Water Penetration through a Superhydrophobic Mesh During a Drop Impact

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ryu, Seunggeol; Sen, Prosenjit; Nam, Youngsuk; Lee, Choongyeop

    2017-01-01

    When a water drop impacts a mesh having submillimeter pores, a part of the drop penetrates through the mesh if the impact velocity is sufficiently large. Here we show that different surface wettability, i.e., hydrophobicity and superhydrophobicity, leads to different water penetration dynamics on a mesh during drop impact. We show, despite the water repellence of a superhydrophobic surface, that water can penetrate a superhydrophobic mesh more easily (i.e., at a lower impact velocity) over a hydrophobic mesh via a penetration mechanism unique to a superhydrophobic mesh. On a superhydrophobic mesh, the water penetration can occur during the drop recoil stage, which appears at a lower impact velocity than the critical impact velocity for water penetration right upon impact. We propose that this unique water penetration on a superhydrophobic mesh can be attributed to the combination of the hydrodynamic focusing and the momentum transfer from the water drop when it is about to bounce off the surface, at which point the water drop retrieves most of its kinetic energy due to the negligible friction on superhydrophobic surfaces.

  16. Effect of Egg Washing and Correlation between Eggshell Characteristics and Egg Penetration by Various Salmonella Typhimurium Strains

    PubMed Central

    Gole, Vaibhav C.; Chousalkar, Kapil K.; Roberts, Juliet R.; Sexton, Margaret; May, Damian; Tan, Jessica; Kiermeier, Andreas

    2014-01-01

    Salmonella is an important foodborne pathogen, causing an estimated 11,992 cases of infection in Australia per year. Egg or egg product related salmonellosis is a major concern for the egg industry. Worldwide, S. Typhimurium is one of the most common serovars identified in Salmonella food poisoning cases. The current study investigated the ability of five S. Typhimurium strains to penetrate washed and unwashed eggs using whole egg and agar egg penetration methods. All S. Typhimurium strains were able to penetrate eggshells and survive in egg albumen (at 20°C) according to whole egg penetration results. Polymerase Chain Reaction results demonstrated that S. Typhimurium strain 2 (103 and 105 CFU/mL), and strain 5 (103 and 105 CFU/mL) egg penetration was significantly higher (p<0.05) in washed eggs when compared to unwashed eggs. Statistical analysis of the agar penetration experiment indicated that S. Typhimurium was able to penetrate washed eggs at a significantly higher rate when compared to unwashed eggs (p<0.05). When compared to unwashed eggs, washed eggs also had significantly damaged cuticles. Statistical analysis also indicated that eggshell penetration by S. Typhimurium was related to various eggshell ultrastructural features such as cap quality, alignment, erosion, confluence, Type B bodies and cuticle cover. PMID:24621821

  17. Ground penetrating radar for underground sensing in agriculture: a review

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Xiuwei; Dong, Xuejun; Leskovar, Daniel I.

    2016-10-01

    Belowground properties strongly affect agricultural productivity. Traditional methods for quantifying belowground properties are destructive, labor-intensive and pointbased. Ground penetrating radar can provide non-invasive, areal, and repeatable underground measurements. This article reviews the application of ground penetrating radar for soil and root measurements and discusses potential approaches to overcome challenges facing ground penetrating radar-based sensing in agriculture, especially for soil physical characteristics and crop root measurements. Though advanced data-analysis has been developed for ground penetrating radar-based sensing of soil moisture and soil clay content in civil engineering and geosciences, it has not been used widely in agricultural research. Also, past studies using ground penetrating radar in root research have been focused mainly on coarse root measurement. Currently, it is difficult to measure individual crop roots directly using ground penetrating radar, but it is possible to sense root cohorts within a soil volume grid as a functional constituent modifying bulk soil dielectric permittivity. Alternatively, ground penetrating radarbased sensing of soil water content, soil nutrition and texture can be utilized to inversely estimate root development by coupling soil water flow modeling with the seasonality of plant root growth patterns. Further benefits of ground penetrating radar applications in agriculture rely on the knowledge, discovery, and integration among differing disciplines adapted to research in agricultural management.

  18. Root anatomical phenes predict root penetration ability and biomechanical properties in maize (Zea Mays)

    PubMed Central

    Chimungu, Joseph G.; Loades, Kenneth W.; Lynch, Jonathan P.

    2015-01-01

    The ability of roots to penetrate hard soil is important for crop productivity but specific root phenes contributing to this ability are poorly understood. Root penetrability and biomechanical properties are likely to vary in the root system dependent on anatomical structure. No information is available to date on the influence of root anatomical phenes on root penetrability and biomechanics. Root penetration ability was evaluated using a wax layer system. Root tensile and bending strength were evaluated in plant roots grown in the greenhouse and in the field. Root anatomical phenes were found to be better predictors of root penetrability than root diameter per se and associated with smaller distal cortical region cell size. Smaller outer cortical region cells play an important role in stabilizing the root against ovalization and reducing the risk of local buckling and collapse during penetration, thereby increasing root penetration of hard layers. The use of stele diameter was found to be a better predictor of root tensile strength than root diameter. Cortical thickness, cortical cell count, cortical cell wall area and distal cortical cell size were stronger predictors of root bend strength than root diameter. Our results indicate that root anatomical phenes are important predictors for root penetrability of high-strength layers and root biomechanical properties. PMID:25903914

  19. Skin Penetration Enhancement by Natural Oils for Dihydroquercetin Delivery.

    PubMed

    Čižinauskas, Vytis; Elie, Nicolas; Brunelle, Alain; Briedis, Vitalis

    2017-09-12

    Natural oils are commonly used in topical pharmaceutical formulations as emulsifiers, stabilizers or solubility enhancers. They are presented as safe and inert components, mainly used for formulation purposes. It is confirmed that natural oils can affect the skin penetration of various substances. Fatty acids are mainly responsible for this effect. Current understanding lacks reliable scientific data on penetration of natural oils into the skin and their skin penetration enhancement potential. In the current study, fatty acid content analysis was used to determine the principal fatty acids in soybean, olive, avocado, sea-buckthorn pulp, raspberry seed and coconut oils. Time of flight secondary ion mass spectrometry bioimaging was used to determine the distribution of these fatty acids in human skin ex vivo after application of the oils. Skin penetration enhancement ratios were determined for a perspective antioxidant compound dihydroquercetin. The results demonstrated skin penetration of fatty acids from all oils tested. Only soybean and olive oils significantly increased the skin distribution of dihydroquercetin and can be used as skin penetration enhancers. However, no correlation can be determined between the fatty acids' composition and skin penetration enhancement using currently available methodological approaches. This indicates that potential chemical penetration enhancement should be evaluated during formulation of topically applied products containing natural oils.

  20. Results of analyses performed on basalt adjacent to penetrators emplaced into volcanic rock at Amboy, California, April 1976

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Blanchard, M.; Bunch, T.; Davis, A.; Shade, H.; Erlichman, J.; Polkowski, G.

    1977-01-01

    The physical and chemical modifications found in the basalt after impact of four penetrators were studied. Laboratory analyses show that mineralogical and elemental changes are produced in the powdered and crushed basalt immediately surrounding the penetrator. Optical microscopy studies of material next to the skin of the penetrator revealed a layer, 0-2 mm thick, of glass and abraded iron alloy mixed with fractured mineral grains of basalt. Elemental analysis of the 0-2 mm layer revealed increased concentrations of Fe, Cr, Ni, No, and Mn, and reduced concentrations of Mg, Al, Si, and Ca. The Fe, Cr, Ni, and Mo were in fragments abraded from the penetrator. Mineralogical changes occurring in the basalt sediment next to the penetrator include the introduction of micron-size grains of alpha-iron, magnetite, and hematite. The newly formed silicate minerals include metastable phases of silica (tridymite and cristobalite). An increased concentration of Fe, Cr, Ni, and Mo occurred in the 2-mm to 1-cm layer of penetrator no. 1, which impacted at the highest velocity. No elemental concentration increase was noted for penetrators nos. 2 and 3 in the 2-mm to 1-cm layer. Contaminants introduced by the penetrator occur up to 1 cm away from the penetrator's skin. Although volatile elements do migrate and new minerals are formed during the destruction of host minerals in the crushed rock, no changes were observed beyond the 1-cm distance.

  1. Effect of Liquid Penetrant Sensitivity on Probability of Detection

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Parker, Bradford H.

    2011-01-01

    The objective of the task is to investigate the effect of liquid penetrant sensitivity level on probability of detection (POD) of cracks in various metals. NASA-STD-5009 currently requires the use of only sensitivity level 4 liquid penetrants for NASA Standard Level inspections. This requirement is based on the fact that the data used to establish the reliably detectable flaw sizes penetrant inspection was from studies performed in the 1970s using penetrant deemed to be equivalent only to modern day sensitivity level 4 penetrants. However, many NDE contractors supporting NASA Centers routinely use sensitivity level 3 penetrants. Because of the new NASA-STD-5009 requirement, these contractors will have to either shift to sensitivity level 4 penetrants or perform formal POD demonstration tests to qualify their existing process. We propose a study to compare the POD generated for two penetrant manufactures, Sherwin and Magnaflux, and for the two most common penetrant inspection methods, water washable and post emulsifiable, hydrophilic. NDE vendors local to GSFC will be employed. A total of six inspectors will inspect a set of crack panels with a broad range of fatigue crack sizes. Each inspector will perform eight inspections of the panel set using the combination of methods and sensitivity levels described above. At least one inspector will also perform multiple inspections using a fixed technique to investigate repeatability. The hit/miss data sets will be evaluated using both the NASA generated DOEPOD software and the MIL-STD-1823 software.

  2. An Analytical Means of Determining Mass Loss from High Velocity Rigid Penetrators based on the Thermodynamic and Mechanical Properties of the Penetrator and Target

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Foster, Joseph C., Jr.; Jones, S. E.; Rule, William; Toness, Odin

    1999-06-01

    Sub-scale experimentation is commonly used as a cost-effective means of conducting terminal ballistics research. Analytical models of the penetration process focus on calculating the depth of penetration based on target density, target strength represented by the unconfined compressive-strength (f”c), the areal density of the penetrator (W/A), and the impact velocity.1 Forrestal, et. al. have documented the mass loss from the penetrator during the penetration process and employed improved equations of motion.2 Various researchers have investigated the upper limits of rigid body penetration and identified the onset of instabilities.3 In an effort to better understand the physical processes associated with this instability, experimental techniques have been developed to capture the details of the penetrator and target and subject them to microscopic analysis.4 These results have served as motivation to explore new forms for the physics included in the penetration equation as a means of identifying the processes associated with high velocity instability. We have included target shear and nose friction in the formulation of the fundamental load function expressions.5 When the resulting equations of motion are integrated and combined with the thermodynamics indicated by microscopic analysis, methods are identified to calculated penetrator mass loss. A comparison of results with experimental data serves as an indicator of the thermodynamic state variables associated with the quasi-steady state penetrator target interface conditions. 1 Young, C. W. , “Depth Predictions for Earth Penetrating Projectiles,” Journal of Soil Mechanics and Foundations, Division of ASCE, May 1998 pp 803-817 2. M.J. Forrestal, D.J. Frew, S.J. Hanchak, amd Brar, “ Pentration of Grout and Concrete Targets with Ogive-Nose Steel Projectiles,” Inrt. J. Impact Engng. Vol 18, pp. 465-476,1996 3. Andrew J. Piekutowski, Michael J. Forrestal, Kevin L. Poormon, and Thomas L. Warren, “Penetration of 6061-T6511 Aluminum Target by Ogive-Nose Projectiles with Striking Velocities between 0.5 and 3.0 Km/s,’ Int. J. Impact Engng. Vol. 23, 1999 4. Joseph C. Foster, Jr., Frank Christopher, Leo Wilson, Dave Jerome, Odin Toness, “Observations concerning the Damage in Concrete Subjected to High Rates of Loading,” Proceedings of Plasticity ’99, Cancun Mexico, 4-14 January 1999 5. S.E. Jones, Joseph C. Foster, Jr. , and William K Rule, “Estimating Target Strength from Penetration Experiments,” (submitted for publication)

  3. Influence of aortic neck characteristics on successful aortic wall penetration of EndoAnchors in therapeutic use during endovascular aneurysm repair.

    PubMed

    Goudeketting, Seline R; van Noort, Kim; Ouriel, Kenneth; Jordan, William D; Panneton, Jean M; Slump, Cornelis H; de Vries, Jean-Paul P M

    2018-04-21

    This study sought to quantify EndoAnchor (Medtronic Vascular, Santa Rosa, Calif) penetration into the aortic wall in patients undergoing endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm repair and to assess predictors of successful penetration and its relationship to postprocedural type IA endoleak. A subset of patients from the Aneurysm Treatment Using the Heli-FX Aortic Securement System Global Registry (ANCHOR) were included if they met the following criteria: the indication for EndoAnchor use was to treat a type IA endoleak, and postprocedure contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) scans of sufficient quality were available for core laboratory review. Patients undergoing implantation of cuffs or stents during the EndoAnchor implantation procedure were excluded. Baseline anatomic characteristics were recorded. The cohort was divided into patients with and without persistent type IA endoleaks at the first postoperative CT scan. Penetration of each EndoAnchor measured on this CT scan was defined as good penetration when the EndoAnchor penetrated ≥2 mm into the aortic wall, borderline penetration when EndoAnchor penetration was <2 mm or a gap remained between the endograft and aortic wall, or no penetration when the EndoAnchor did not penetrate into the aortic wall. Differences between the groups were analyzed with the Mann-Whitney U test or Fisher exact test. Multivariate analyses were performed to identify independent predictors of EndoAnchor penetration, and procedural success was defined by absence of type IA endoleak. Eighty-six patients of the primary (n = 61 [71%]) and revision (n = 25 [29%]) arms of the ANCHOR registry were included. There were 53 (62%) without and 33 (38%) with persistent type IA endoleaks on the first postprocedural CT scan. The median number of EndoAnchors with good penetration was significantly greater in the cohort without endoleaks, 4 (interquartile range, 3-5) vs 3 (interquartile range, 1.5-4), respectively (P = .002). A multivariate model for EndoAnchor penetration identified use of a Medtronic Endurant endograft as a factor associated with good penetration (P = .001), whereas poor penetration was associated with a larger aortic neck diameter 10 mm distal to the lowest renal artery (P < .001) and greater proximal neck calcium thickness (P = .004). EndoAnchor penetration was the only variable that attained significance (P < .001) in the multivariate model for successful treatment of a type IA endoleak. Adequate EndoAnchor penetration into the aortic wall is less likely when the aortic neck diameter is large or when the neck contains significant mural calcium. No penetration of the EndoAnchor was the only factor predictive of postprocedural type IA endoleak. This study stresses the importance of careful selection of patients based on preoperative assessment of the infrarenal neck on CT angiography and emphasizes careful deployment of EndoAnchors into the aortic wall to improve successful treatment of type IA endoleaks. Copyright © 2018 Society for Vascular Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. Universal penetration test apparatus with fluid penetration sensor

    DOEpatents

    Johnson, Phillip W.; Stampfer, Joseph F.; Bradley, Orvil D.

    1999-01-01

    A universal penetration test apparatus for measuring resistance of a material to a challenge fluid. The apparatus includes a pad saturated with the challenge fluid. The apparatus includes a compression assembly for compressing the material between the pad and a compression member. The apparatus also includes a sensor mechanism for automatically detecting when the challenge fluid penetrates the material.

  5. NDE of PWA 1480 single crystal turbine blade material

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Klima, Stanley J.; Orange, Thomas W.; Dreshfield, Robert L.

    1993-01-01

    Cantilever bending fatigue specimens were examined by fluorescent liquid penetrant and radioactive gas penetrant (Krypton) non-destructive evaluation (NDE) methods and tested. Specimens with cast, ground, or polished surface were evaluated to study the effect of surface condition on NDE and fatigue crack initiation. Fractographic and metallurgical analyses were performed to determine the nature of crack precursors. Preliminary results show that fatigue strength was lower for specimens with cast surfaces than for specimens with machined surfaces. The liquid penetrant and gas penetrant techniques both provided indications of a large population of defects on the cast surfaces. On ground or polished specimen surfaces, the gas penetrant appeared to estimate the actual number of voids more accurately than the liquid penetrant.

  6. An Experimental Study of Dependence of Optimum TBM Cutter Spacing on Pre-set Penetration Depth in Sandstone Fragmentation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Han, D. Y.; Cao, P.; Liu, J.; Zhu, J. B.

    2017-12-01

    Cutter spacing is an essential parameter in the TBM design. However, few efforts have been made to study the optimum cutter spacing incorporating penetration depth. To investigate the influence of pre-set penetration depth and cutter spacing on sandstone breakage and TBM performance, a series of sequential laboratory indentation tests were performed in a biaxial compression state. Effects of parameters including penetration force, penetration depth, chip mass, chip size distribution, groove volume, specific energy and maximum angle of lateral crack were investigated. Results show that the total mass of chips, the groove volume and the observed optimum cutter spacing increase with increasing pre-set penetration depth. It is also found that the total mass of chips could be an alternative means to determine optimum cutter spacing. In addition, analysis of chip size distribution suggests that the mass of large chips is dominated by both cutter spacing and pre-set penetration depth. After fractal dimension analysis, we found that cutter spacing and pre-set penetration depth have negligible influence on the formation of small chips and that small chips are formed due to squeezing of cutters and surface abrasion caused by shear failure. Analysis on specific energy indicates that the observed optimum spacing/penetration ratio is 10 for the sandstone, at which, the specific energy and the maximum angle of lateral cracks are smallest. The findings in this paper contribute to better understanding of the coupled effect of cutter spacing and pre-set penetration depth on TBM performance and rock breakage, and provide some guidelines for cutter arrangement.

  7. Costs and clinical quality among Medicare beneficiaries: associations with health center penetration of low-income residents.

    PubMed

    Sharma, Ravi; Lebrun-Harris, Lydie A; Ngo-Metzger, Quyen

    2014-01-01

    Determine the association between access to primary care by the underserved and Medicare spending and clinical quality across hospital referral regions (HRRs). Data on elderly fee-for-service beneficiaries across 306 HRRs came from CMS' Geographic Variation in Medicare Spending and Utilization database (2010). We merged data on number of health center patients (HRSA's Uniform Data System) and number of low-income residents (American Community Survey). We estimated access to primary care in each HRR by "health center penetration" (health center patients as a proportion of low-income residents). We calculated total Medicare spending (adjusted for population size, local input prices, and health risk). We assessed clinical quality by preventable hospital admissions, hospital readmissions, and emergency department visits. We sorted HRRs by health center penetration rate and compared spending and quality measures between the high- and low-penetration deciles. We also employed linear regressions to estimate spending and quality measures as a function of health center penetration. The high-penetration decile had 9.7% lower Medicare spending ($926 per capita, p=0.01) than the low-penetration decile, and no different clinical quality outcomes. Compared with elderly fee-for-service beneficiaries residing in areas with low-penetration of health center patients among low-income residents, those residing in high-penetration areas may accrue Medicare cost savings. Limited evidence suggests that these savings do not compromise clinical quality.

  8. Sealing Penetrating Eye Injuries with Photoactivated Bonding

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2012-09-01

    light treatment parameters for sealing a variety of penetrating eye wounds and have demonstrated that these repair procedures are safe to ocular...AWARD NUMBER: W81XWH-09-2-0050 TITLE: Sealing Penetrating Eye Injuries with Photoactivated...TYPE Final 3. DATES COVERED (From - To) 1 Sep 2009-31 Aug 2012 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Sealing Penetrating Eye Injuries with Photoactivated Bonding

  9. Universal penetration test apparatus with fluid penetration sensor

    DOEpatents

    Johnson, P.W.; Stampfer, J.F.; Bradley, O.D.

    1999-02-02

    A universal penetration test apparatus is described for measuring resistance of a material to a challenge fluid. The apparatus includes a pad saturated with the challenge fluid. The apparatus includes a compression assembly for compressing the material between the pad and a compression member. The apparatus also includes a sensor mechanism for automatically detecting when the challenge fluid penetrates the material. 23 figs.

  10. TVT ABBREVO: cadaveric study of tape position in foramen obturatum and adductor region.

    PubMed

    Hubka, Petr; Nanka, Ondrej; Masata, Jaromir; Martan, Alois; Svabik, Kamil

    2016-07-01

    The aim of the study was to describe fixation of the TVT ABBREVO and establish whether the tape penetrates through obturator muscles and membrane (obturator complex) into the adductor region and, if so, how far it penetrates. Eight formalin-embalmed female cadavers were used to simulate TVT ABBREVO surgery (totalling 16 insertions). Following tape insertion, dissection was performed and ends of the tape were identified. In cases of penetration, the length of tape penetrating into the adductor region was measured. Of the 16 cases, the tape ended in the obturator membrane in eight, in the internal obturator muscle in one, and penetrated through the obturator membrane into the external obturator muscle in five, where it remained. In two cases, it penetrated through the obturator internus muscle, obturator membrane and obturator externus muscle into the group of thigh adductors; one penetration was by 3 mm and the second by 10 mm. No contact with the obturator nerve or its branches was noted in any case. No TVT contact with the obturator nerve was noted; tape penetrated into the adductor region in two of the 16 cases.

  11. Mechanism and determinants of nanoparticle penetration through human skin

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Labouta, Hagar I.; El-Khordagui, Labiba K.; Kraus, Tobias; Schneider, Marc

    2011-12-01

    The ability of nanoparticles to penetrate the stratum corneum was the focus of several studies. Yet, there are controversial issues available for particle penetration due to different experimental setups. Meanwhile, there is little known about the mechanism and determinants of their penetration. In this paper the penetration of four model gold nanoparticles of diameter 6 and 15 nm, differing in surface polarity and the nature of the vehicle, through human skin was studied using multiphoton microscopy. This is in an attempt to profoundly investigate the parameters governing particle penetration through human skin. Our results imply that nanoparticles at this size range permeate the stratum corneum in a similar manner to drug molecules, mainly through the intercellular pathways. However, due to their particulate nature, permeation is also dependent on the complex microstructure of the stratum corneum with its tortuous aqueous and lipidic channels, as shown from our experiments performed using skin of different grades of barrier integrity. The vehicle (toluene-versus-water) had a minimal effect on skin penetration of gold nanoparticles. Other considerations in setting up a penetration experiment for nanoparticles were also studied. The results obtained are important for designing a new transdermal carrier and for a basic understanding of skin-nanoparticle interaction.

  12. Sensitivity and comparison evaluation of Saturn 5 liquid penetrants

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Jones, G. H.

    1973-01-01

    Results of a sensitivity and comparison evaluation performed on six liquid penetrants that were used on the Saturn 5 vehicle and other space hardware to detect surface discontinuities are described. The relationship between penetrant materials and crack definition capabilities, the optimum penetrant materials evaluation method, and the optimum measurement methods for crack dimensions were investigated. A unique method of precise developer thickness control was envolved, utilizing clear radiographic film and a densitometer. The method of evaluation included five aluminum alloy, 2219-T87, specimens that were heated and then quenched in cold water to produce cracks. The six penetrants were then applied, one at a time, and the crack indications were counted and recorded for each penetrant for comparison purposes. Measurements were made by determining the visual crack indications per linear inch and then sectioning the specimens for a metallographic count of the cracks present. This method provided a numerical approach for assigning a sensitivity index number to the penetrants. Of the six penetrants evaluated, two were not satisfactory (one was not sufficiently sensitive and the other was to sensitive, giving false indications). The other four were satisfactory with approximately the same sensitivity in the range of 78 to 80.5 percent of total cracks detected.

  13. A Comparison of the Capability of Sensitivity Level 3 and Sensitivity Level 4 Fluorescent Penetrants to Detect Fatigue Cracks in Aluminum

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Parker, Bradford, H.

    2009-01-01

    Historically both sensitivity level 3 and sensitivity level 4 fluorescent penetrants have been used to perform NASA Standard Level inspections of aerospace hardware. In April 2008, NASA-STD-5009 established a requirement that only sensitivity level 4 penetrants were acceptable for inspections of NASA hardware. Having NASA contractors change existing processes or perform demonstration tests to certify sensitivity level 3 penetrants posed a potentially huge cost to the Agency. This study was conducted to directly compare the probability of detection sensitivity level 3 and level 4 penetrants using both Method A and Method D inspection processes. The study results strongly support the conclusion that sensitivity level 3 penetrants are acceptable for NASA Standard Level inspections

  14. A Comparison of the Capability of Sensitivity Level 3 and Sensitivity Level 4 Fluorescent Penetrants to Detect Fatigue Cracks in Various Metals

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Parker, Bradford H.

    2011-01-01

    In April 2008, NASA-STD-5009 established a requirement that only sensitivity level 4 penetrants are acceptable for NASA Standard Level liquid penetrant inspections. Having NASA contractors change existing processes or perform demonstration tests to certify sensitivity level 3 penetrants posed a potentially huge cost to the Agency. This study was conducted to directly compare the probability of detection (POD) of sensitivity level 3 and level 4 penetrants using both Method A and Method D inspection processes. POD demonstration tests were performed on 6061-Al, Haynes 188 and Ti-6Al-4V crack panel sets. The study results strongly support the conclusion that sensitivity level 3 penetrants are acceptable for NASA Standard Level inspections.

  15. The Effect of a Planetary Surface Penetrator on the Soil Column Surrounding the Impacting Body

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Blanchard, Maxwell B.; Shade, Harry D.

    1975-01-01

    A prototype penetrator instrument was impacted into a dry lake bed. Laboratory studies of the soil surrounding the penetrator revealed that the soil was contaminated by paint and metal from the penetrator's casing. Paint pigment rich in titanium and sulfur was found in the adjacent soil. The highly mobile paint pigment migrated onto viewing ports in the penetrator's exterior. Bulk analysis of the soil adjacent to the impactor showed a significant increase in both elements, as well as the presence of metal chips from the casing and nose cone. It is recommended that great care be taken in the use of coating materials and the metal alloys selected for the penetrator's exterior, or the accuracy of any experiment requiring an uncontaminated in situ sample may be adversely affected.

  16. Tumor stroma-containing 3D spheroid arrays: A tool to study nanoparticle penetration.

    PubMed

    Priwitaningrum, Dwi L; Blondé, Jean-Baptiste G; Sridhar, Adithya; van Baarlen, Joop; Hennink, Wim E; Storm, Gert; Le Gac, Séverine; Prakash, Jai

    2016-12-28

    Nanoparticle penetration through tumor tissue after extravasation is considered as a key issue for tumor distribution and therapeutic effects. Most tumors possess abundant stroma, a fibrotic tissue composed of cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) and extracellular matrix (ECM), which acts as a barrier for nanoparticle penetration. There is however a lack of suitable in vitro systems to study the tumor stroma penetration of nanoparticles. In the present study, we developed and thoroughly characterized a 3D co-culture spheroidal array to mimic tumor stroma and investigated the penetration of silica and PLGA nanoparticles in these spheroids. First, we examined human breast tumor patient biopsies to characterize the content and organization of stroma and found a high expression of alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA; 40% positive area) and collagen-1 (50% positive area). Next, we prepared homospheroids of 4T1 mouse breast cancer cells or 3T3 mouse fibroblasts alone as well as heterospheroids combining 3T3 and 4T1 cells in different ratios (1:1 and 5:1) using a microwell array platform. Confocal live imaging revealed that fibroblasts distributed and reorganized within 48h in heterospheroids. Furthermore, immunohistochemical staining and gene expression analysis showed a proportional increase of α-SMA and collagen in heterospheroids with higher fibroblast ratios attaining 35% and 45% positive area at 5:1 (3T3:4T1) ratio, in a good match with the clinical breast tumor stroma. Subsequently, we studied the penetration of high and low negatively charged fluorescent silica nanoparticles (30nm; red and 100 or 70nm; green; zeta potential: -40mV and -20mV) and as well as Cy5-conjugated pegylated PLGA nanoparticles (200nm, -7mV) in both homo- and heterospheroid models. Fluorescent microscopy on spheroid cryosections after incubation with silica nanoparticles showed that 4T1 homospheroids allowed a high penetration of about 75-80% within 24h, with higher penetration in case of the 30nm nanoparticles. In contrast, spheroids with increasing fibroblast amounts significantly inhibited NP penetration. Silica nanoparticles with a less negative zeta potential exhibited lesser penetration compared to highly negative charged nanoparticles. Subsequently, similar experiments were conducted using Cy5-conjugated pegylated PLGA nanoparticles and confocal laser scanning microscopy; an increased nanoparticle penetration was found in 4T1 homospheroids until 48h, but significantly lower penetration in heterospheroids. Furthermore, we also developed human homospheroids (MDA-MB-231 or Panc-1 tumor cells) and heterospheroids (MDA-MB-231/BJ-hTert and Panc-1/pancreatic stellate cells) and performed silica nanoparticle (30 and 100nm) penetration studies. As a result, heterospheroids had significantly a lesser penetration of the nanoparticles compared to homospheroids. In conclusion, our data demonstrate that tumor stroma acts as a strong barrier for nanoparticle penetration. The 30-nm nanoparticles with low zeta potential favor deeper penetration. Furthermore, the herein proposed 3D co-culture platform that mimics the tumor stroma, is ideally suited to systematically investigate the factors influencing the penetration characteristics of newly developed nanomedicines to allow the design of nanoparticles with optimal penetration characteristics. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. Oligoalanine helical callipers for cell penetration.

    PubMed

    Pazo, Marta; Juanes, Marisa; Lostalé-Seijo, Irene; Montenegro, Javier

    2018-06-04

    Even for short peptides that are enriched in basic amino acids, the large chemical space that can be spanned by combinations of natural amino acids hinders the rational design of cell penetrating peptides. We here report on short oligoalanine scaffolds for the fine-tuning of peptide helicity in different media and the study of cell penetrating properties. This strategy allowed the extraction of the structure/activity features required for maximal membrane interaction and cellular penetration at minimal toxicity. These results confirmed oligoalanine helical callipers as optimal scaffolds for the rational design and the identification of cell penetrating peptides.

  18. Evaluation of filter media for particle number, surface area and mass penetrations.

    PubMed

    Li, Lin; Zuo, Zhili; Japuntich, Daniel A; Pui, David Y H

    2012-07-01

    The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) developed a standard for respirator certification under 42 CFR Part 84, using a TSI 8130 automated filter tester with photometers. A recent study showed that photometric detection methods may not be sensitive for measuring engineered nanoparticles. Present NIOSH standards for penetration measurement are mass-based; however, the threshold limit value/permissible exposure limit for an engineered nanoparticle worker exposure is not yet clear. There is lack of standardized filter test development for engineered nanoparticles, and development of a simple nanoparticle filter test is indicated. To better understand the filter performance against engineered nanoparticles and correlations among different tests, initial penetration levels of one fiberglass and two electret filter media were measured using a series of polydisperse and monodisperse aerosol test methods at two different laboratories (University of Minnesota Particle Technology Laboratory and 3M Company). Monodisperse aerosol penetrations were measured by a TSI 8160 using NaCl particles from 20 to 300 nm. Particle penetration curves and overall penetrations were measured by scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS), condensation particle counter (CPC), nanoparticle surface area monitor (NSAM), and TSI 8130 at two face velocities and three layer thicknesses. Results showed that reproducible, comparable filtration data were achieved between two laboratories, with proper control of test conditions and calibration procedures. For particle penetration curves, the experimental results of monodisperse testing agreed well with polydisperse SMPS measurements. The most penetrating particle sizes (MPPSs) of electret and fiberglass filter media were ~50 and 160 nm, respectively. For overall penetrations, the CPC and NSAM results of polydisperse aerosols were close to the penetration at the corresponding median particle sizes. For each filter type, power-law correlations between the penetrations measured by different instruments show that the NIOSH TSI 8130 test may be used to predict penetrations at the MPPS as well as the CPC and NSAM results with polydisperse aerosols. It is recommended to use dry air (<20% RH) as makeup air in the test system to prevent sodium chloride particle deliquescing and minimizing the challenge particle dielectric constant and to use an adequate neutralizer to fully neutralize the polydisperse challenge aerosol. For a simple nanoparticle penetration test, it is recommended to use a polydisperse aerosol challenge with a geometric mean of ~50 nm with the CPC or the NSAM as detectors.

  19. Penetration of Fiber Versus Spherical Particles Through Filter Media and Faceseal Leakage of N95 Filtering Facepiece Respirators with Cyclic Flow

    PubMed Central

    Cho, Kyungmin Jacob; Turkevich, Leonid; Miller, Matthew; McKay, Roy; Grinshpun, Sergey A.; Ha, KwonChul; Reponen, Tiina

    2015-01-01

    This study investigated differences in penetration between fibers and spherical particles through faceseal leakage of an N95 filtering facepiece respirator. Three cyclic breathing flows were generated corresponding to mean inspiratory flow rates (MIF) of 15, 30, and 85 L/min. Fibers had a mean diameter of 1 μm and a median length of 4.9 μm (calculated aerodynamic diameter, dae = 1.73 μm). Monodisperse polystyrene spheres with a mean physical diameter of 1.01 μm (PSI) and 1.54 μm (PSII) were used for comparison (calculated dae = 1.05 and 1.58 μm, respectively). Two optical particle counters simultaneously determined concentrations inside and outside the respirator. Geometric means (GMs) for filter penetration of the fibers were 0.06, 0.09, and 0.08% at MIF of 15, 30, and 85 L/min, respectively. Corresponding values for PSI were 0.07, 0.12, and 0.12%. GMs for faceseal penetration of fibers were 0.40, 0.14, and 0.09% at MIF of 15, 30, and 85 L/min, respectively. Corresponding values for PSI were 0.96, 0.41, and 0.17%. Faceseal penetration decreased with increased breathing rate for both types of particles (p ≤ 0.001). GMs of filter and faceseal penetration of PSII at an MIF of 30 L/min were 0.14% and 0.36%, respectively. Filter penetration and faceseal penetration of fibers were significantly lower than those of PSI (p < 0.001) and PSII (p < 0.003). This confirmed that higher penetration of PSI was not due to slightly smaller aerodynamic diameter, indicating that the shape of fibers rather than their calculated mean aerodynamic diameter is a prevailing factor on deposition mechanisms through the tested respirator. In conclusion, faceseal penetration of fibers and spherical particles decreased with increasing breathing rate, which can be explained by increased capture by impaction. Spherical particles had 2.0–2.8 times higher penetration through faceseal leaks and 1.1–1.5 higher penetration through filter media than fibers, which can be attributed to differences in interception losses. PMID:23339437

  20. Penetration of fiber versus spherical particles through filter media and faceseal leakage of N95 filtering facepiece respirators with cyclic flow.

    PubMed

    Cho, Kyungmin Jacob; Turkevich, Leonid; Miller, Matthew; McKay, Roy; Grinshpun, Sergey A; Ha, KwonChul; Reponen, Tiina

    2013-01-01

    This study investigated differences in penetration between fibers and spherical particles through faceseal leakage of an N95 filtering facepiece respirator. Three cyclic breathing flows were generated corresponding to mean inspiratory flow rates (MIF) of 15, 30, and 85 L/min. Fibers had a mean diameter of 1 μm and a median length of 4.9 μm (calculated aerodynamic diameter, d(ae) = 1.73 μm). Monodisperse polystyrene spheres with a mean physical diameter of 1.01 μm (PSI) and 1.54 μm (PSII) were used for comparison (calculated d(ae) = 1.05 and 1.58 μm, respectively). Two optical particle counters simultaneously determined concentrations inside and outside the respirator. Geometric means (GMs) for filter penetration of the fibers were 0.06, 0.09, and 0.08% at MIF of 15, 30, and 85 L/min, respectively. Corresponding values for PSI were 0.07, 0.12, and 0.12%. GMs for faceseal penetration of fibers were 0.40, 0.14, and 0.09% at MIF of 15, 30, and 85 L/min, respectively. Corresponding values for PSI were 0.96, 0.41, and 0.17%. Faceseal penetration decreased with increased breathing rate for both types of particles (p ≤ 0.001). GMs of filter and faceseal penetration of PSII at an MIF of 30 L/min were 0.14% and 0.36%, respectively. Filter penetration and faceseal penetration of fibers were significantly lower than those of PSI (p < 0.001) and PSII (p < 0.003). This confirmed that higher penetration of PSI was not due to slightly smaller aerodynamic diameter, indicating that the shape of fibers rather than their calculated mean aerodynamic diameter is a prevailing factor on deposition mechanisms through the tested respirator. In conclusion, faceseal penetration of fibers and spherical particles decreased with increasing breathing rate, which can be explained by increased capture by impaction. Spherical particles had 2.0-2.8 times higher penetration through faceseal leaks and 1.1-1.5 higher penetration through filter media than fibers, which can be attributed to differences in interception losses.

  1. Principles of appendage design in robots and animals determining terradynamic performance on flowable ground.

    PubMed

    Qian, Feifei; Zhang, Tingnan; Korff, Wyatt; Umbanhowar, Paul B; Full, Robert J; Goldman, Daniel I

    2015-10-08

    Natural substrates like sand, soil, leaf litter and snow vary widely in penetration resistance. To search for principles of appendage design in robots and animals that permit high performance on such flowable ground, we developed a ground control technique by which the penetration resistance of a dry granular substrate could be widely and rapidly varied. The approach was embodied in a device consisting of an air fluidized bed trackway in which a gentle upward flow of air through the granular material resulted in a decreased penetration resistance. As the volumetric air flow, Q, increased to the fluidization transition, the penetration resistance decreased to zero. Using a bio-inspired hexapedal robot as a physical model, we systematically studied how locomotor performance (average forward speed, v(x)) varied with ground penetration resistance and robot leg frequency. Average robot speed decreased with increasing Q, and decreased more rapidly for increasing leg frequency, ω. A universal scaling model revealed that the leg penetration ratio (foot pressure relative to penetration force per unit area per depth and leg length) determined v(x) for all ground penetration resistances and robot leg frequencies. To extend our result to include continuous variation of locomotor foot pressure, we used a resistive force theory based terradynamic approach to perform numerical simulations. The terradynamic model successfully predicted locomotor performance for low resistance granular states. Despite variation in morphology and gait, the performance of running lizards, geckos and crabs on flowable ground was also influenced by the leg penetration ratio. In summary, appendage designs which reduce foot pressure can passively maintain minimal leg penetration ratio as the ground weakens, and consequently permits maintenance of effective locomotion over a range of terradynamically challenging surfaces.

  2. ASC-AD penetration modeling FY05 status report.

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

    Kistler, Bruce L.; Ostien, Jakob T.; Chiesa, Michael L.

    2006-04-01

    Sandia currently lacks a high fidelity method for predicting loads on and subsequent structural response of earth penetrating weapons. This project seeks to test, debug, improve and validate methodologies for modeling earth penetration. Results of this project will allow us to optimize and certify designs for the B61-11, Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator (RNEP), PEN-X and future nuclear and conventional penetrator systems. Since this is an ASC Advanced Deployment project the primary goal of the work is to test, debug, verify and validate new Sierra (and Nevada) tools. Also, since this project is part of the V&V program within ASC, uncertaintymore » quantification (UQ), optimization using DAKOTA [1] and sensitivity analysis are an integral part of the work. This project evaluates, verifies and validates new constitutive models, penetration methodologies and Sierra/Nevada codes. In FY05 the project focused mostly on PRESTO [2] using the Spherical Cavity Expansion (SCE) [3,4] and PRESTO Lagrangian analysis with a preformed hole (Pen-X) methodologies. Modeling penetration tests using PRESTO with a pilot hole was also attempted to evaluate constitutive models. Future years work would include the Alegra/SHISM [5] and AlegrdEP (Earth Penetration) methodologies when they are ready for validation testing. Constitutive models such as Soil-and-Foam, the Sandia Geomodel [6], and the K&C Concrete model [7] were also tested and evaluated. This report is submitted to satisfy annual documentation requirements for the ASC Advanced Deployment program. This report summarizes FY05 work performed in the Penetration Mechanical Response (ASC-APPS) and Penetration Mechanics (ASC-V&V) projects. A single report is written to document the two projects because of the significant amount of technical overlap.« less

  3. Penetration of steady fluid motions into an outer stable layer excited by MHD thermal convection in rotating spherical shells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Takehiro, Shin-ichi; Sasaki, Youhei

    2018-03-01

    Penetration of steady magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) disturbances into an upper strongly stratified stable layer excited by MHD thermal convection in rotating spherical shells is investigated. The theoretical model proposed by Takehiro (2015) is reexamined in the case of steady fluid motion below the bottom boundary. Steady disturbances penetrate into a density stratified MHD fluid existing in the semi-infinite region in the vertical direction. The axis of rotation of the system is tilted with respect to the vertical. The basic magnetic field is uniform and may be tilted with respect to the vertical and the rotation axis. Linear dispersion relation shows that the penetration distance with zero frequency depends on the amplitude of Alfvén wave speed. When Alfvén wave speed is small, viscous diffusion becomes dominant and penetration distance is similar to the horizontal scale of the disturbance at the lower boundary. In contrast, when Alfvén wave speed becomes larger, disturbance can penetrate deeper, and penetration distance becomes proportional to the Alfvén wave speed and inversely proportional to the geometric average of viscous and magnetic diffusion coefficients and to the total horizontal wavenumber. The analytic expression of penetration distance is in good agreement with the extent of penetration of mean zonal flow induced by finite amplitude convection in a rotating spherical shell with an upper stably stratified layer embedded in an axially uniform basic magnetic field. The theory expects that the stable layer suggested in the upper part of the outer core of the earth could be penetrated completely by mean zonal flows excited by thermal/compositional convection developing below the stable layer.

  4. Nanoparticles Penetrate into the Multicellular Spheroid-on-Chip: Effect of Surface Charge, Protein Corona, and Exterior Flow.

    PubMed

    Huang, Ke; Boerhan, Rena; Liu, Changming; Jiang, Guoqiang

    2017-12-04

    Nanoparticles (NPs) are widely studied as tumor targeted vehicles. The penetration of NPs into the tumor is considered as a major barrier for delivery of NPs into tumor cell and a big challenge to translate NPs from lab to the clinic. The objective of this study is to know how the surface charge of NPs, the protein corona surrounding the NPs, and the fluid flow around the tumor surface affect the penetration and accumulation of NPs into the tumor, through in vitro penetration study based on a spheroid-on-chip system. Surface decorated polystyrene (PS) NPs (100 nm) carrying positive and negative surface charge were loaded to the multicellular spheroids under static and flow conditions, in the presence or absence of serum proteins. NP penetration was investigated by confocal laser microscopy scanning followed with quantitative image analysis. The results reveal that negatively charged NPs are attached more on the spheroid surface and easier to penetrate into the spheroids. Protein corona, which is formed surrounding the NPs in the presence of serum protein, changes the surface properties of the NPs, weakens the NP-cell affinity, and, therefore, results in lower NP concentration on the spheroid surface but might facilitate deeper penetration. The exterior fluid flow enhances the interstitial flow into the spheroid, which benefits the penetration but also strips the NPs (especially the NPs with protein corona) on the spheroid surface, which decreases the penetration flux significantly. The maximal penetration was obtained by applying negatively charged NPs without protein corona under the flow condition. We hope the present study will help to understand the spatiotemporal performance of drug delivery NPs and inform the rational design of NPs with highly defined drug accumulation localized at a target site.

  5. [The aspiratory resistance and filtration penetration of N95 filtering-facepiece respirators used widely in China].

    PubMed

    Wang, Xinyan; Shi, Tingming; Lu, Wei; Qin, Shaoxian; Liu, Yuewei; Tao, Ying; Zhang, Hongge; Chen, Weihong

    2015-01-01

    The objective of this study was to investigate the aspiratory resistance, filtration penetration and their influence factors of N95 filtering-facepiece respirators used widely in China. The total of 6 brands and 21 models of N95 filtering-facepiece respirators which are certified and big sales on the market. The aspiratory resistance and filtration efficiency filter penetration were measured while air pump ran from 10 L/min to 100 L/min using differential pressure gauge and the PortaCount, respectively. The filtration penetrations for 2 of the 21 models were lower than 95%, and the qualified rate for all models was 90.47%. The filtration penetrations gradually decreased when ventilation flow of air pump increased. The negative correlation was observed between filtration penetration and ventilation flow (r(2) = 0.711, P < 0.05). The resistances of all 21 models of N95 respirators met the requirements of the national standard. The aspiratory resistance started to elevate with the increasing of ventilation flow, and a positive correlation between both (r(2) = 0.878, P < 0.05). Significant differences of filtration penetration and aspiratory resistance were observed among between different brands (P < 0.05) although no differences of filtration penetration existed among different models of one brand (P > 0.05). But the differences of the aspiratory resistance among different models of one brand were statistically significant (P < 0.05). The aspiratory resistances of all N95 filtering-facepiece respirators used in this study met the requirements of the national standard. And the qualified ratio of filtration penetration of all models was higher than 90%. The influencing factors of aspiratory resistance included materials, size and ventilation flow. And influencing factors for filtration penetration were materials and ventilation flow.

  6. Studying the effectiveness of penetration enhancers to deliver retinol through the stratum cornum by in vivo confocal Raman spectroscopy.

    PubMed

    Mélot, Mickaël; Pudney, Paul D A; Williamson, Ann-Marie; Caspers, Peter J; Van Der Pol, Andre; Puppels, Gerwin J

    2009-08-19

    The purpose of this study is to monitor in vivo the effect of chemical penetration enhancers on the delivery of trans-retinol into human skin. Chemical penetration enhancers reversibly alter barrier properties of the SC by disruption of the membrane structures or maximising drug solubility with the skin. So far, most of permeation or penetration experiments are performed in vitro. Raman spectroscopy is uniquely placed to be able to measure biological processes in vivo and this paper shows for the first time that the effect of penetration enhancer on the delivery of trans-retinol can successfully be measured in vivo using this technique. Here, the volar forearm of volunteers was treated with four formulations. One formulation is a highly effective model delivery system identified from ex vivo experiments: trans-retinol in Propylene Glycol (PG)/ethanol, with PG being a well-known and efficient penetration enhancer. The other three formulations are based on 0.3% trans-retinol in Caprylic/Capric Acid Triglyceride (MYRITOL 318), an oil commonly used in skin creams but in two of them a specific penetration enhancer is added. One contains a lipid extractor, Triton X 100, whereas another formulation contains a lipid fluidiser, Oleic Acid. Solutions were applied once and measurements were performed up to 6 h after treatment. Remarkable differences in the delivery of trans-retinol between formulation with or without penetration enhancer can clearly be seen. Moreover, the type of penetration enhancer is also shown to influence the delivery. While using the Oleic Acid, which is a lipid fluidiser, a better delivery of trans-retinol in the skin can be detected. For the first time, the effect of penetration enhancer on the delivery of trans-retinol has been monitored, non invasively in vivo, with time.

  7. In Vitro Skin Penetration of Petrolatum and Soybean Oil and Effects of Glyceryl Monooleate.

    PubMed

    Intarakumhaeng, Rattikorn; Shi, Zhanquan; Wanasathop, Apipa; Stella, Q Ching; Wei, Karl S; Styczynski, P B; Li, Chuiying; Smith, Edward D; Li, S Kevin

    2018-06-06

    Petrolatum and soybean oil are common ingredients incorporated in topical skin formulations for skin protection and moisturization. However, the stratum corneum (SC) penetration kinetics of these two cosmetic ingredients has not been systematically studied. Glyceryl monooleate (GlyMOle) has been shown to enhance skin penetration of various compounds. It was hypothesized that GlyMOle could enhance skin penetration of petrolatum and soybean oil. The present study aimed to examine the in vitro skin penetration of petrolatum and soybean oil in the presence or absence of GlyMOle. Skin permeation experiments were conducted using the in vitro Franz diffusion cell model with split-thickness human skin and human epidermal membrane (HEM). The effect of permeant dose and the kinetics of permeant penetration were examined with and without GlyMOle in vitro. Petrolatum and soybean oil were found to permeate across HEM, and no effect of GlyMOle on skin permeation into the receptor chamber was observed. GlyMOle enhanced the penetration of petrolatum into the split-thickness skin at 50 μg dose (petrolatum:GlyMOle, 49:1, w/w). However, no effect of GlyMOle on petrolatum penetration was observed at 200 μg dose (petrolatum:GlyMOle, 49:1, w/w), indicating a dose-dependent effect. GlyMOle at the level used in the study did not enhance the penetration of soybean oil with 50 and 200 μg doses at any time points. GlyMOle was a skin penetration enhancer for petrolatum under the in vitro conditions identified in the present study. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

  8. Mars penetrator: Subsurface science mission

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lumpkin, C. K.

    1974-01-01

    A penetrator system to emplace subsurface science on the planet Mars is described. The need for subsurface science is discussed, and the technologies for achieving successful atmospheric entry, Mars penetration, and data retrieval are presented.

  9. The Dependency of Penetration on the Momentum Per Unit Area of the Impacting Projectile and the Resistance of Materials to Penetration

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Collins, Rufus D., Jr.; Kinard, William H.

    1960-01-01

    The results of this investigation indicate that the penetration of projectiles into quasi-infinite targets can be correlated as a function of the maximum momentum per unit area possessed by the projectiles. The penetration of projectiles into aluminum, copper, and steel targets was found to be a linear function while the penetration into lead targets was a nonlinear function of the momentum per unit area of the impacting projectiles. Penetration varied inversely as the projectile density and the elastic modulus of the target material for a given projectile momentum per unit area. Crater volumes were found to be a linear function of the kinetic energy of the projectile, the greater volumes being obtained in the target materials which had the lowest yield strength and the lowest speed of sound.

  10. USDC based rapid penetrator of packed soil

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Bao, Xiaoqi; Bar-Cohen, Yoseph; Chang, Zensheu; Sherrit, Stewart; Badescu, Mircea

    2006-01-01

    Environment protection requires more testing and analysis tools. To detect buried chemical containers or other objects embedded in soil and avoid possible damages of them, a penetrator of packed soil operated using low pushing force was developed. The design was based on a novel driving mechanism of the ultrasonic/sonic driller/corer (USDC) device developed in the NDEAA lab at JPL [Bar-Cohen et al 2001, Bao et al 2003]. In the penetrator, a small free-flying mass is energized by a piezoelectric transducer and impacts a rod probe on its shoulder at frequencies of hundreds times per second. The impacts help the probe to penetrate the packed soil rapidly. A great reduction of the needed pushing force for penetration was achieved. The details of the design of the prototype penetrator and the results of performance tests are presented.

  11. Effect of Target Thickness on Cratering and Penetration of Projectiles Impacting at Velocities to 13,000 Feet Per Second

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kinard, William H.; Lambert, C. H., Jr.; Schryer, David R.; Casey, Francis W., Jr.

    1958-01-01

    In order to determine the effects of target thickness on the penetration and cratering of a target resulting from impacts by high-velocity projectiles, a series of experimental tests have been run. The projectile-target material combinations investigated were aluminum projectiles impacting aluminum targets and steel projectiles impacting aluminum and copper targets. The velocity spectrum ranged from 4,000 ft/sec to 13,000 ft/sec. It has been found that the penetration is a function of target thickness provided that the penetration is greater than 20 percent of the target thickness. Targets of a thickness such that the penetration amounts to less than 20 percent of the thickness may be regarded as quasi-infinite. An empirical formula has been established relating the penetration to the target thickness and to the penetration of a projectile of the same mass, configuration, and velocity into a quasi- infinite target. In particular, it has been found that a projectile can completely penetrate a target whose thickness is approximately one and one-half times as great as the penetration of a similar projectile into a quasi-infinite target. The diameter of a crater has also been found to be a function of the target thickness provided that the target thickness is not greater than the projectile length in the case of cylindrical projectiles and not greater than two to three times the projectile diameter in the case of spherical projectiles.

  12. Unsteady penetration of a target by a liquid jet

    PubMed Central

    Uth, Tobias; Deshpande, Vikram S.

    2013-01-01

    It is widely acknowledged that ceramic armor experiences an unsteady penetration response: an impacting projectile may erode on the surface of a ceramic target without substantial penetration for a significant amount of time and then suddenly start to penetrate the target. Although known for more than four decades, this phenomenon, commonly referred to as dwell, remains largely unexplained. Here, we use scaled analog experiments with a low-speed water jet and a soft, translucent target material to investigate dwell. The transient target response, in terms of depth of penetration and impact force, is captured using a high-speed camera in combination with a piezoelectric force sensor. We observe the phenomenon of dwell using a soft (noncracking) target material. The results show that the penetration rate increases when the flow of the impacting water jet is reversed due to the deformation of the jet–target interface––this reversal is also associated with an increase in the force exerted by the jet on the target. Creep penetration experiments with a constant indentation force did not show an increase in the penetration rate, confirming that flow reversal is the cause of the unsteady penetration rate. Our results suggest that dwell can occur in a ductile noncracking target due to flow reversal. This phenomenon of flow reversal is rather widespread and present in a wide range of impact situations, including water-jet cutting, needleless injection, and deposit removal via a fluid jet. PMID:24277818

  13. Penetration depth, concentration and efficiency of transdermal α-arbutin delivery after ultrasound treatment with albumin-shelled microbubbles in mice.

    PubMed

    Liao, Ai-Ho; Ma, Wan-Chun; Wang, Chih-Hung; Yeh, Ming-Kung

    2016-09-01

    Recently, the feasibility and effects of using microbubbles (MBs) as an ultrasound (US) contrast agent for enhancing the penetration in transdermal delivery in vivo have been demonstrated, but the mechanism and efficiency are unclear. This study demonstrates the penetration depth, concentration and efficiency of transdermal α-arbutin delivery during 4 weeks after US treatment with MBs in mice. Experimental animals were randomly divided into the following four groups (n = 5 animals per group): (1) penetrating α-arbutin alone (C), (2) US combined with penetrating α-arbutin, (3) US combined with MBs and penetrating α-arbutin, and (4) US combined with diluted MBs and penetrating α-arbutin (UBD). The penetration depths in agarose phantoms and pigskin were 47 and 84% greater for group UBD, respectively, than for group C. The in vitro skin penetration by 2% α-arbutin after 3 h was 83% greater in group UBD than in group C. The degree of in vivo skin whitening (quantified as the luminosity index) in group UBD significantly increased by 25% after 1 week, 34% after 2 weeks, and then stabilized after 3 weeks at 37% in C57BL/6J mice over a 4-week experimental period. Our results indicate that combined treatment with optimal US and MBs can increase skin permeability so as to enhance α-arbutin delivery to inhibit melanogenesis without damaging the skin in mice.

  14. Leak test adapter for containers

    DOEpatents

    Hallett, Brian H.; Hartley, Michael S.

    1996-01-01

    An adapter is provided for facilitating the charging of containers and leak testing penetration areas. The adapter comprises an adapter body and stem which are secured to the container's penetration areas. The container is then pressurized with a tracer gas. Manipulating the adapter stem installs a penetration plug allowing the adapter to be removed and the penetration to be leak tested with a mass spectrometer. Additionally, a method is provided for using the adapter.

  15. Quantifying and Improving International Space Station Survivability Following Orbital Debris Penetration

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Williamsen, Joel; Evans, Hilary; Bohl, Bill; Evans, Steven; Parker, Nelson (Technical Monitor)

    2001-01-01

    The increase of the orbital debris environment in low-earth orbit has prompted NASA to develop analytical tools for quantifying and lowering the likelihood of crew loss following orbital debris penetration of the International Space Station (ISS). NASA uses the Manned Spacecraft and Crew Survivability (MSCSurv) computer program to simulate the events that may cause crew loss following orbital debris penetration of ISS manned modules, including: (1) critical cracking (explosive decompression) of the module; (2) critical external equipment penetration (such as hydrazine and high pressure tanks); (3) critical internal system penetration (guidance, control, and other vital components); (4) hazardous payload penetration (furnaces, pressure bottles, and toxic substances); (5) crew injury (from fragments, overpressure, light flash, and temperature rise); (6) hypoxia from loss of cabin pressure; and (7) thrust from module hole causing high angular velocity (occurring only when key Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GN&C) equipment is damaged) and, thus, preventing safe escape vehicle (EV) departure. MSCSurv is also capable of quantifying the 'end effects' of orbital debris penetration, such as the likelihood of crew escape, the probability of each module depressurizing, and late loss of station control. By quantifying these effects (and their associated uncertainties), NASA is able to improve the likelihood of crew survivability following orbital debris penetration due to improved crew operations and internal designs.

  16. Comparative analysis of the effects of CO2 fractional laser and sonophoresis on human skin penetration with 5-aminolevulinic acid.

    PubMed

    Choi, J H; Shin, E J; Jeong, K H; Shin, M K

    2017-11-01

    Successful delivery of a photosensitizer into the skin is an important factor for effective photodynamic therapy (PDT). The effective method to increase drug penetration within short incubation time overcoming skin barrier have been investigated. This study was performed to analyze and compare the effectiveness of ablative fractional laser (FXL) pretreatment and/or sonophoresis for enhancing the penetration of 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) into human skin in vivo. Twenty-four identical 1 × 1 cm 2 treatment areas were mapped on the backs of ten healthy male subjects. Each area received FXL pretreatment and/or sonophoresis with different energy settings and ALA incubation times. After treatments, porphyrin fluorescence reflecting the ALA penetration were measured. Application of ablative CO 2 FXL pretreatment resulted to higher fluorescence intensities than the non-treatment group. Incubation times were positively correlated with the increments of ALA penetration. However, increasing pulse energy or combining with sonophoresis did not show additional positive effects on ALA penetration. Ablative CO 2 FXL pretreatment effectively facilitated ALA penetration in human skin in vivo. Ablative CO 2 FXL alone without sonophoresis setting pulse energy of 10 and 20 mJ with more than 60 min of ALA incubation time could be an ideal setting for ALA penetration.

  17. Setup for investigating gold nanoparticle penetration through reconstructed skin and comparison to published human skin data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Labouta, Hagar I.; Thude, Sibylle; Schneider, Marc

    2013-06-01

    Owing to the limited source of human skin (HS) and the ethical restrictions of using animals in experiments, in vitro skin equivalents are a possible alternative for conducting particle penetration experiments. The conditions for conducting penetration experiments with model particles, 15-nm gold nanoparticles (AuNP), through nonsealed skin equivalents are described for the first time. These conditions include experimental setup, sterility conditions, effective applied dose determination, skin sectioning, and skin integrity check. Penetration at different exposure times (two and 24 h) and after tissue fixation (fixed versus unfixed skin) are examined to establish a benchmark in comparison to HS in an attempt to get similar results to HS experiments presented earlier. Multiphoton microscopy is used to detect gold luminescence in skin sections. λex=800 nm is used for excitation of AuNP and skin samples, allowing us to determine a relative index for particle penetration. Despite the observed overpredictability of penetration into skin equivalents, they could serve as a first fast screen for testing the behavior of nanoparticles and extrapolate their penetration behavior into HS. Further investigations are required to test a wide range of particles of different physicochemical properties to validate the skin equivalent-human skin particle penetration relationship.

  18. Status analysis of keyhole bottom in laser-MAG hybrid welding process.

    PubMed

    Wang, Lin; Gao, Xiangdong; Chen, Ziqin

    2018-01-08

    The keyhole status is a determining factor of weld quality in laser-metal active gas arc (MAG) hybrid welding process. For a better evaluation of the hybrid welding process, three different penetration welding experiments: partial penetration, normal penetration (or full penetration), and excessive penetration were conducted in this work. The instantaneous visual phenomena including metallic vapor, spatters and keyhole of bottom surface were used to evaluate the keyhole status by a double high-speed camera system. The Fourier transform was applied on the bottom weld pool image for removing the image noise around the keyhole, and then the bottom weld pool image was reconstructed through the inverse Fourier transform. Lastly, the keyhole bottom was extracted from the de-noised bottom weld pool image. By analyzing the visual features of the laser-MAG hybrid welding process, mechanism of the closed and opened keyhole bottom were revealed. The results show that the stable opened or closed status of keyhole bottom is directly affected by the MAG droplet transition in the normal penetration welding process, and the unstable opened or closed status of keyhole bottom would appear in excessive penetration welding and partial penetration welding. The analysis method proposed in this paper could be used to monitor the keyhole stability in laser-MAG hybrid welding process.

  19. A clinical comparison of penetrating and blunt traumatic brain injuries.

    PubMed

    Santiago, Luis A; Oh, Bryan C; Dash, Pramod K; Holcomb, John B; Wade, Charles E

    2012-01-01

    Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a leading cause of injury death and long-term disability in the USA. It commonly results from blunt (closed) or penetrating trauma. The majority of civilian TBI is caused by falls or motor vehicle collisions, whereas military TBI mainly results from explosions. Although penetrating injuries are less common than closed injuries in the civilian population, they are far more lethal. Unfortunately, the pathophysiologic differences between penetrating and closed TBI remain poorly understood due to the lack of studies on the subject. Many studies on the prognostic factors of mortality and functional outcome after TBI exclude penetrating brain injuries from their series because they are believed to have a different pathophysiology. 125 Articles regarding brain injury were reviewed and summarized for this report. Despite the absence of a clear delineation between penetrating and blunt TBI, the current guidelines for penetrating TBI suggest defaulting to management strategies used for closed TBI with limited supportive evidence. Thus, injuries that appear to have different pathophysiologies and outcomes are managed equally and perhaps not optimally. In view of the incomplete understanding of the impact of mechanism of injury on TBI outcomes, as demonstrated in the current review, new research studies are required to improve evidence-based TBI guidelines tailored especially for penetrating injuries.

  20. An unusual case of foreign body pulmonary embolus: case report and review of penetrating trauma at a pediatric trauma center.

    PubMed

    Boomer, Laura A; Watkins, Daniel J; O'Donovan, Julie; Kenney, Brian D; Yates, Andrew R; Besner, Gail E

    2015-03-01

    Penetrating thoracic trauma is relatively rare in the pediatric population. Embolization of foreign bodies from penetrating trauma is very uncommon. We present a case of a 6-year-old boy with a penetrating foreign body from a projectile dislodged from a lawn mower. Imaging demonstrated a foreign body that embolized to the left pulmonary artery, which was successfully treated non-operatively. We reviewed the penetrating thoracic trauma patients in the trauma registry at our institution between 1/1/03 and 12/31/12. Data collected included demographic data, procedures performed, complications and outcome. Sixty-five patients were identified with a diagnosis of penetrating thoracic trauma. Fourteen of the patients had low velocity penetrating trauma and 51 had high velocity injuries. Patients with high velocity injuries were more likely to be older and less likely to be Caucasian. There were no statistically significant differences between patients with low vs. high velocity injuries regarding severity scores or length of stay. There were no statistically significant differences in procedures required between patients with low and high velocity injuries. Penetrating thoracic trauma is rare in children. The case presented here represents the only report of cardiac foreign body embolus we could identify in a pediatric patient.

  1. Van Allen Probes Measurements of Energetic Particle Deep Penetration Into the Low L Region (L < 4) During the Storm on 8 April 2016

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhao, H.; Baker, D. N.; Califf, S.; Li, X.; Jaynes, A. N.; Leonard, T.; Kanekal, S. G.; Blake, J. B.; Fennell, J. F.; Claudepierre, S. G.; Turner, D. L.; Reeves, G. D.; Spence, H. E.

    2017-12-01

    Using measurements from the Van Allen Probes, a penetration event of tens to hundreds of keV electrons and tens of keV protons into the low L shells (L < 4) is studied. Timing and magnetic local time (MLT) differences of energetic particle deep penetration are unveiled and underlying physical processes are examined. During this event, both proton and electron penetrations are MLT asymmetric. The observed MLT difference of proton penetration is consistent with convection of plasma sheet protons, suggesting enhanced convection during geomagnetic active times to be the cause of energetic proton deep penetration during this event. The observed MLT difference of tens to hundreds of keV electron penetration is completely different from tens of keV protons and cannot be well explained by inward radial diffusion, convection of plasma sheet electrons, or transport of trapped electrons by enhanced convection electric field represented by the Volland-Stern model or a uniform dawn-dusk electric field model based on the electric field measurements. It suggests that the underlying physical mechanism responsible for energetic electron deep penetration, which is very important for fully understanding energetic electron dynamics in the low L shells, should be MLT localized.

  2. Analysis of thermal performance of penetrated multi-layer insulation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Foster, Winfred A., Jr.; Jenkins, Rhonald M.; Yoo, Chai H.; Barrett, William E.

    1988-01-01

    Results of research performed for the purpose of studying the sensitivity of multi-layer insulation blanket performance caused by penetrations through the blanket are presented. The work described in this paper presents the experimental data obtained from thermal vacuum tests of various penetration geometries similar to those present on the Hubble Space Telescope. The data obtained from these tests is presented in terms of electrical power required sensitivity factors referenced to a multi-layer blanket without a penetration. The results of these experiments indicate that a significant increase in electrical power is required to overcome the radiation heat losses in the vicinity of the penetrations.

  3. Measuring skin penetration by confocal Raman microscopy (CRM): correlation to results from conventional experiments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lunter, Dominique; Daniels, Rolf

    2016-03-01

    Confocal Raman microscopy has become an advancing technique in the characterization of drug transport into the skin. In this study the skin penetration of a local anesthetic from a semisolid preparation was investigated. Furthermore, the effect of the chemical enhancers propylene glycol and POE-23-lauryl ether on its penetration was investigated. The results show that confocal Raman microscopy may provide detailed information on the penetration of APIs into the skin and may elucidate their distribution within the skin with high resolution. The results of the CRM analysis are fully in line with those of conventional permeation and penetration experiments.

  4. Real-Time Penetrating Particle Analyzer (PAN)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wu, X.; Ambrosi, G.; Bertucci, B.

    2018-02-01

    The PAN can measure penetrating particles with great precision to study energetic particles, solar activities, and the origin and propagation of cosmic rays. The real-time monitoring of penetrating particles is crucial for deep space human travel.

  5. Cooperative Activated Transport of Dilute Penetrants in Viscous Molecular and Polymer Liquids

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schweizer, Kenneth; Zhang, Rui

    We generalize the force-level Elastically Collective Nonlinear Langevin Equation theory of activated relaxation in one-component supercooled liquids to treat the hopping transport of a dilute penetrant in a dense hard sphere fluid. The new idea is to explicitly account for the coupling between penetrant displacement and a local matrix cage re-arrangement which facilitates its hopping. A temporal casuality condition is employed to self-consistently determine a dimensionless degree of matrix distortion relative to the penetrant jump distance using the dynamic free energy concept. Penetrant diffusion becomes increasingly coupled to the correlated matrix displacements for larger penetrant to matrix particle size ratio (R) and/or attraction strength (physical bonds), but depends weakly on matrix packing fraction. In the absence of attractions, a nearly exponential dependence of penetrant diffusivity on R is predicted in the intermediate range of 0.2

  6. Topical dissolved oxygen penetrates skin: model and method.

    PubMed

    Roe, David F; Gibbins, Bruce L; Ladizinsky, Daniel A

    2010-03-01

    It has been commonly perceived that skin receives its oxygen supply from the internal circulation. However, recent investigations have shown that a significant amount of oxygen may enter skin from the external overlying surface. A method has been developed for measuring the transcutaneous penetration of human skin by oxygen as described herein. This method was used to determine both the depth and magnitude of penetration of skin by topically applied oxygen. An apparatus consisting of human skin samples interposed between a topical oxygen source and a fluid filled chamber that registered changes in dissolved oxygen. Viable human skin samples of variable thicknesses with and without epidermis were used to evaluate the depth and magnitude of oxygen penetration from either topical dissolved oxygen (TDO) or topical gaseous oxygen (TGO) devices. This model effectively demonstrates transcutaneous penetration of topically applied oxygen. Topically applied dissolved oxygen penetrates through >700 microm of human skin. Topically applied oxygen penetrates better though dermis than epidermis, and TDO devices deliver oxygen more effectively than TGO devices. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Hypervelocity penetration against mechanical properties of target materials

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kamarudin, Khairul Hasni; Abdullah, Mohamad Faizal; Zaidi, Ahmad Mujahid Ahmad; Nor, Norazman M.; Ismail, Ariffin; Yusof, Mohammed Alias; Hilmi, Ahmad Humaizi

    2018-02-01

    This paper study the mechanical properties behavior of metal plates against hypervelocity penetration caused by shaped charge. Five different materials were used as target specimen fabricated from welded stacks of material plates, namely Rolled Homogeneous Armor (RHA), Hardox-500, mild steel, aluminum and brass. Specimens had undergone an initial monolithic test consist of tensile tests and microstructure observations, followed by series of hydrodynamics penetration blast tests using shape charge mechanism. Results from blast test shows that the least penetrated specimen is RHA (58mm) followed by Hardox-500 (92 mm), mild steel (110 mm), Brass (155 mm) and aluminum 238 mm). Comparing these with the specimen yield strength from the tensile test results shows that Hardox-500 has higher yield strength (Sy) followed by RHA, mild steel, brass and aluminum, which are 1370 MPa, 1320 MPa, 280,221 respectively, which are not inversely proportional to the penetration. However, the ultimate tensile strength (Sut) where the RHA were the highest followed by Hardox-500, mild steel, brass and aluminum, were inversely proportional with the depth of penetration. The penetration results also show consistence relation with energy absorption.

  8. Is Grey Level a Suitable Alternative to Low-Contrast Penetration as a Serial Measure of Sensitivity in Computerised Ultrasound Quality Assurance?

    PubMed

    Dudley, Nicholas J; Gibson, Nicholas M

    2017-02-01

    The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that grey levels are a suitable alternative measure of sensitivity in ultrasound imaging quality assurance, as there are several caveats in the use of penetration depth. In a primary cohort of nine probes, where measurements had been made for 6 to 34 mo, both penetration depth and mean grey level fell below tolerance for six probes; both penetration depth and mean grey level remained within tolerance for three probes. In a secondary cohort where a measurement programme had been in place for a shorter period, grey level and/or penetration depth fell below tolerance in 15 of 66 probes; the sensitivity and specificity of at least 10% loss of grey level in predicting >5% loss in penetration depth were 91% and 93%, respectively. A loss of grey level accompanies a loss of penetration and provides a suitable alternative measure of sensitivity. Crown Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. Chronic Disease Prevalence and Medicare Advantage Market Penetration: Findings From the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey.

    PubMed

    Howard, Steven W; Bernell, Stephanie Lazarus; Casim, Faizan M; Wilmott, Jennifer; Pearson, Lindsey; Byler, Caitlin M; Zhang, Zidong

    2015-01-01

    By March 2015, 30% of all Medicare beneficiaries were enrolled in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. Research to date has not explored the impacts of MA market penetration on individual or population health outcomes. The primary objective of this study is to examine the relationships between MA market penetration and the beneficiary's portfolio of cardiometabolic diagnoses. This study uses 2004 to 2008 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) Household Component data to construct an aggregate index that captures multiple diagnoses in one outcome measure (Chronic Disease Severity Index [CDSI]). The MEPS data for 8089 Medicare beneficiaries are merged with MA market penetration data from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Ordinary least squares regressions are run with SAS 9.3 to model the effects of MA market penetration on CDSI. The results suggest that each percentage increase in MA market penetration is associated with a greater than 2-point decline in CDSI (lower burden of cardiometabolic chronic disease). Spill-over effects may be driving improvements in the cardiometabolic health of beneficiary populations in counties with elevated levels of MA market penetration.

  10. Chronic Disease Prevalence and Medicare Advantage Market Penetration

    PubMed Central

    Bernell, Stephanie Lazarus; Casim, Faizan M.; Wilmott, Jennifer; Pearson, Lindsey; Byler, Caitlin M.; Zhang, Zidong

    2015-01-01

    By March 2015, 30% of all Medicare beneficiaries were enrolled in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. Research to date has not explored the impacts of MA market penetration on individual or population health outcomes. The primary objective of this study is to examine the relationships between MA market penetration and the beneficiary’s portfolio of cardiometabolic diagnoses. This study uses 2004 to 2008 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) Household Component data to construct an aggregate index that captures multiple diagnoses in one outcome measure (Chronic Disease Severity Index [CDSI]). The MEPS data for 8089 Medicare beneficiaries are merged with MA market penetration data from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Ordinary least squares regressions are run with SAS 9.3 to model the effects of MA market penetration on CDSI. The results suggest that each percentage increase in MA market penetration is associated with a greater than 2-point decline in CDSI (lower burden of cardiometabolic chronic disease). Spill-over effects may be driving improvements in the cardiometabolic health of beneficiary populations in counties with elevated levels of MA market penetration. PMID:28462266

  11. [Effects of penetration enhancers on curcumin transdermal drug delivery].

    PubMed

    Gao, Zhen-Shen; Wang, Lan; Zhang, Mei

    2012-01-01

    To study the effects of penetration enhancers and their combinations on the curcumine transdermal drug delivery (CUR-TDDS). The penetration rate of curcumin through rat skin in vitro was measured using Valia-Chien diffusion cells, and orthogonal design method was set up for experimental design. The optimum penetration enhancers were: 3% hydroxypropyl beta cyclodextrins (HP-beta-CD), 9% borneol and 3% peppermint oil. The HP-beta-CD has the most potent enhancing effect.

  12. Fire Resistance Testing of Bulkhead and Deck Penetrations. Phase 2

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1988-12-01

    thick steel plate. All sample 12 construction was representative of Class A-0 construction. The UL staff secured insulation ( rockwool batts) to the...designated side of the steel plates and penetrants for testing as Class A-60 deck assemblies. The rockwool batts complied with the Class A-60...insulated with rockwool batts and tested for a Class A-60 rating. This group consisted of one steel penetration, eight copper penetrations, four PVC

  13. Safety assessment for In-service Pressure Bending Pipe Containing Incomplete Penetration Defects

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, M.; Tang, P.; Xia, J. F.; Ling, Z. W.; Cai, G. Y.

    2017-12-01

    Incomplete penetration defect is a common defect in the welded joint of pressure pipes. While the safety classification of pressure pipe containing incomplete penetration defects, according to periodical inspection regulations in present, is more conservative. For reducing the repair of incomplete penetration defect, a scientific and applicable safety assessment method for pressure pipe is needed. In this paper, the stress analysis model of the pipe system was established for the in-service pressure bending pipe containing incomplete penetration defects. The local finite element model was set up to analyze the stress distribution of defect location and the stress linearization. And then, the applicability of two assessment methods, simplified assessment and U factor assessment method, to the assessment of incomplete penetration defects located at pressure bending pipe were analyzed. The results can provide some technical supports for the safety assessment of complex pipelines in the future.

  14. Static penetration resistance of soils

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Durgunoglu, H. T.; Mitchell, J. K.

    1973-01-01

    Model test results were used to define the failure mechanism associated with the static penetration resistance of cohesionless and low-cohesion soils. Knowledge of this mechanism has permitted the development of a new analytical method for calculating the ultimate penetration resistance which explicitly accounts for penetrometer base apex angle and roughness, soil friction angle, and the ratio of penetration depth to base width. Curves relating the bearing capacity factors to the soil friction angle are presented for failure in general shear. Strength parameters and penetrometer interaction properties of a fine sand were determined and used as the basis for prediction of the penetration resistance encountered by wedge, cone, and flat-ended penetrometers of different surface roughness using the proposed analytical method. Because of the close agreement between predicted values and values measured in laboratory tests, it appears possible to deduce in-situ soil strength parameters and their variation with depth from the results of static penetration tests.

  15. Integral isolation valve systems for loss of coolant accident protection

    DOEpatents

    Kanuch, David J.; DiFilipo, Paul P.

    2018-03-20

    A nuclear reactor includes a nuclear reactor core comprising fissile material disposed in a reactor pressure vessel having vessel penetrations that exclusively carry flow into the nuclear reactor and at least one vessel penetration that carries flow out of the nuclear reactor. An integral isolation valve (IIV) system includes passive IIVs each comprising a check valve built into a forged flange and not including an actuator, and one or more active IIVs each comprising an active valve built into a forged flange and including an actuator. Each vessel penetration exclusively carrying flow into the nuclear reactor is protected by a passive IIV whose forged flange is directly connected to the vessel penetration. Each vessel penetration carrying flow out of the nuclear reactor is protected by an active IIV whose forged flange is directly connected to the vessel penetration. Each active valve may be a normally closed valve.

  16. Ground-penetrating radar and electromagnetic surveys at the Monroe Crossroads battlefield site, Fort Bragg, North Carolina

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Kessler, Richard; Strain, R.E.; Marlowe, J. I.; Currin, K.B.

    1996-01-01

    A ground-penetrating radar survey was conducted at the Monroe Crossroads Battlefield site at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, to determine possible locations of subsurface archaeological features. An electromagnetic survey also was conducted at the site to verify and augment the ground-penetrating radar data. The surveys were conducted over a 67,200-square-foot grid with a grid point spacing of 20 feet. During the ground-penetrating radar survey, 87 subsurface anomalies were detected based on visual inspection of the field records. These anomalies were flagged in the field as they appeared on the ground-penetrating radar records and were located by a land survey. The electromagnetic survey produced two significant readings at ground-penetrating radar anomaly locations. The National Park Service excavated 44 of the 87 anomaly locations at the Civil War battlefield site. Four of these excavations produced significant archaeological features, including one at an abandoned well.

  17. Comparison of gravimetric and gas chromatographic methods for assessing performance of textile materials against liquid pesticide penetration.

    PubMed

    Shaw, Anugrah; Abbi, Ruchika

    2004-01-01

    Penetration of liquid pesticides through textile materials is a criterion for determining the performance of protective clothing used by pesticide handlers. The pipette method is frequently used to apply liquid pesticides onto textile materials to measure penetration. Typically, analytical techniques such as Gas Chromatography (GC) are used to measure percentage penetration. These techniques are labor intensive and costly. A simpler gravimetric method was developed, and tests were conducted to compare the gravimetric and GC methods of analysis. Three types of pesticide formulations and 4 fabrics were used for the study. Diluted pesticide formulations were pipetted onto the test specimens and percentage penetration was measured using the 2 methods. For homogeneous formulation, the results of the two methods were fairly comparable. However, due to the filtering action of the textile materials, there were differences in the percentage penetration between the 2 methods for formulations that were not homogeneous.

  18. Shape-Dependent Skin Penetration of Silver Nanoparticles: Does It Really Matter?

    PubMed Central

    Tak, Yu Kyung; Pal, Sukdeb; Naoghare, Pravin K.; Rangasamy, Sabarinathan; Song, Joon Myong

    2015-01-01

    Advancements in nano-structured materials have facilitated several applications of nanoparticles (NPs). Skin penetration of NPs is a crucial factor for designing suitable topical antibacterial agents with low systemic toxicity. Available reports focus on size-dependent skin penetration of NPs, mainly through follicular pathways. Herein, for the first time, we demonstrate a proof-of-concept study that entails variations in skin permeability and diffusion coefficients, penetration rates and depth-of-penetration of differently shaped silver NPs (AgNPs) via intercellular pathways using both in vitro and in vivo models. The antimicrobial activity of AgNPs is known. Different shapes of AgNPs may exhibit diverse antimicrobial activities and skin penetration capabilities depending upon their active metallic facets. Consideration of the shape dependency of AgNPs in antimicrobial formulations could help developing an ideal topical agent with the highest efficacy and low systemic toxicity. PMID:26584777

  19. Ground-penetrating radar--A tool for mapping reservoirs and lakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Truman, C.C.; Asmussen, L.E.; Allison, H.D.

    1991-01-01

    Ground-penetrating radar was evaluated as a tool for mapping reservoir and lake bottoms and providing stage-storage information. An impulse radar was used on a 1.4-ha (3.5-acre) reservoir with 31 transects located 6.1 m (20 feet) apart. Depth of water and lateral extent of the lake bottom were accurately measured by ground-penetrating radar. A linear (positive) relationship existed between measured water depth and ground-penetrating radar-determined water depth (R2=0.989). Ground-penetrating radar data were used to create a contour map of the lake bottom. Relationships between water (contour) elevation and water surface area and volume were established. Ground-penetrating radar proved to be a useful tool for mapping lakes, detecting lake bottom variations, locating old stream channels, and determining water depths. The technology provides accurate, continuous profile data in a relatively short time compared to traditional surveying and depth-sounding techniques.

  20. Penetration enhancer-containing vesicles (PEVs) as carriers for cutaneous delivery of minoxidil.

    PubMed

    Mura, Simona; Manconi, Maria; Sinico, Chiara; Valenti, Donatella; Fadda, Anna Maria

    2009-10-01

    The aim of this work was to evaluate the ability of a few different penetration enhancers to produce elastic vesicles with soy lecithin and the influence of the obtained vesicles on in vitro (trans)dermal delivery of minoxidil. To this purpose, so-called Penetration Enhancer-containing Vesicles (PEVs) were prepared as dehydrated-rehydrated vesicles by using soy lecithin and different amounts of three penetration enhancers, 2-(2-ethoxyethoxy)ethanol (Transcutol), capryl-caproyl macrogol 8-glyceride (Labrasol), and cineole. Soy lecithin liposomes, without penetration enhancers, were used as control. Prepared formulations were characterized in terms of size distribution, morphology, zeta potential, and vesicle deformability. The influence of PEVs on (trans)dermal delivery of minoxidil was studied by in vitro diffusion experiments through newborn pig skin in comparison with traditional liposomes and ethanolic solutions of the drug also containing each penetration enhancer. A skin pre-treatment study using empty PEVs and conventional liposomes was also carried out. Results showed that all the used penetration enhancers were able to give more deformable vesicles than conventional liposomes with a good drug entrapment efficiency and stability. In vitro skin penetration data showed that PEVs were able to give a statistically significant improvement of minoxidil deposition in the skin in comparison with classic liposomes and penetration enhancer-containing drug ethanolic solutions without any transdermal delivery. Moreover, the most deformable PEVs, prepared with Labrasol and cineole, were also able to deliver to the skin a higher total amount of minoxidil than the PE alcoholic solutions thus suggesting that minoxidil delivery to the skin was strictly correlated to vesicle deformability, and therefore to vesicle composition.

  1. Effect of photodynamic therapy and non-thermal plasma on root canal filling: analysis of adhesion and sealer penetration.

    PubMed

    Menezes, Marilia; Prado, Maíra; Gomes, Brenda; Gusman, Heloisa; Simão, Renata

    2017-01-01

    The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of photodynamic therapy (PDT) and non-thermal plasma (NTP) on adhesion and sealer penetration in root canals. Sixty single-rooted premolars were used. The teeth were prepared using a crown-down technique. NaOCl and EDTA were used for irrigation and smear layer removal, respectively. The root canals were divided into three groups: control, PDT, and NTP. After treatments, the roots were filled using gutta-percha and either AH Plus (AHP) or MTA Fillapex (MTAF) sealers. Samples were sectioned at 4, 8, and 12 mm from the apex (1-mm slices)and analyzed by the push-out bond strength test (adhesion) and confocal laser scanning microscopy (sealer penetration). Data were statistically evaluated using Kruskal-Wallis, Dunn's, and Spearman's tests. Regarding AHP, bond strength was similar in the NTP group and in the control group, but significantly lower in the PDT group. As to MTAF, both therapies showed lower values than the control group. In the confocal analysis of AHP, maximum and mean penetration, and penetrated area were statistically higher in the control group than in the PDT and NTP groups. Penetrated perimeter was similar among groups. Regarding MTAF, all parameters yielded better results in the NTP than in the control group. The PDT and control groups showed similar results except for penetrated area. PDT and plasma therapy affected the adhesion and sealer penetration of root canals filled with AH Plus and MTA Fillapex and there is no positive correlation between adhesion and sealer penetration.

  2. Low Force Penetration of Icy Regolith

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Mantovani, J. G.; Galloway, G. M.; Zacny, K.

    2016-01-01

    A percussive cone penetrometer measures the strength of granular material by using percussion to deliver mechanical energy into the material. A percussive cone penetrometer was used in this study to penetrate a regolith ice mixture by breaking up ice and decompacting the regolith. As compared to a static cone penetrometer, percussion allows low reaction forces to push a penetrometer probe tip more easily into dry regolith in a low gravity environment from a planetary surface rover or a landed spacecraft. A percussive cone penetrates icy regolith at ice concentrations that a static cone cannot penetrate. In this study, the percussive penetrator was able to penetrate material under 65 N of down-force which could not be penetrated using a static cone under full body weight. This paper discusses using a percussive cone penetrometer to discern changes in the concentration of water-ice in a mixture of lunar regolith simulant and ice to a depth of one meter. The rate of penetration was found to be a function of the ice content and was not significantly affected by the down-force. The test results demonstrate that this method may be ideal for a small platform in a reduced gravity environment. However, there are some cases where the system may not be able to penetrate the icy regolith, and there is some risk of the probe tip becoming stuck so that it cannot be retracted. It is also shown that a percussive cone penetrometer could be used to prospect for water ice in regolith at concentrations as high as 8 by weight.

  3. FRACTIONAL PENETRATION OF PAINT OVERSPRAY ARRESTORS

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report describes the development of fractional penetration curves for liquid droplet penetration of overspray arrestors for discrete droplet diameters from 0.3 to 10 micrometers. (NOTE: Fine particulates are particles with diameters of 10 micrometers or less.) These data poin...

  4. Simple amides of oleanolic acid as effective penetration enhancers.

    PubMed

    Bednarczyk-Cwynar, Barbara; Partyka, Danuta; Zaprutko, Lucjusz

    2015-01-01

    Transdermal transport is now becoming one of the most convenient and safe pathways for drug delivery. In some cases it is necessary to use skin penetration enhancers in order to allow for the transdermal transport of drugs that are otherwise insufficiently skin-permeable. A series of oleanolic acid amides as potential transdermal penetration enhancers was formed by multistep synthesis and the synthesis of all newly prepared compounds is presented. The synthetized amides of oleanolic acid were tested for their in vitro penetration promoter activity. The above activity was evaluated by means of using the Fürst method. The relationships between the chemical structure of the studied compounds and penetration activity are presented.

  5. Simple Amides of Oleanolic Acid as Effective Penetration Enhancers

    PubMed Central

    Bednarczyk-Cwynar, Barbara; Partyka, Danuta; Zaprutko, Lucjusz

    2015-01-01

    Transdermal transport is now becoming one of the most convenient and safe pathways for drug delivery. In some cases it is necessary to use skin penetration enhancers in order to allow for the transdermal transport of drugs that are otherwise insufficiently skin-permeable. A series of oleanolic acid amides as potential transdermal penetration enhancers was formed by multistep synthesis and the synthesis of all newly prepared compounds is presented. The synthetized amides of oleanolic acid were tested for their in vitro penetration promoter activity. The above activity was evaluated by means of using the Fürst method. The relationships between the chemical structure of the studied compounds and penetration activity are presented. PMID:26010090

  6. Closed loop control of penetration depth during CO₂ laser lap welding processes.

    PubMed

    Sibillano, Teresa; Rizzi, Domenico; Mezzapesa, Francesco P; Lugarà, Pietro Mario; Konuk, Ali Riza; Aarts, Ronald; Veld, Bert Huis In 't; Ancona, Antonio

    2012-01-01

    In this paper we describe a novel spectroscopic closed loop control system capable of stabilizing the penetration depth during laser welding processes by controlling the laser power. Our novel approach is to analyze the optical emission from the laser generated plasma plume above the keyhole, to calculate its electron temperature as a process-monitoring signal. Laser power has been controlled by using a quantitative relationship between the penetration depth and the plasma electron temperature. The sensor is able to correlate in real time the difference between the measured electron temperature and its reference value for the requested penetration depth. Accordingly the closed loop system adjusts the power, thus maintaining the penetration depth.

  7. Penetration depth of MgB2 measured using Josephson junctions and SQUIDs

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cunnane, Daniel; Zhuang, Chenggang; Chen, Ke; Xi, X. X.; Yong, Jie; Lemberger, T. R.

    2013-02-01

    The penetration depth of MgB2 was measured using two methods of different mechanisms. The first method used MgB2 Josephson junctions and the magnetic field dependence of the junction critical current. The second method deduced the penetration depth from the inductance of a MgB2 microstrip used to modulate the voltage of a MgB2 DC SQUID. The two methods showed a consistent value of the low-temperature penetration depth for MgB2 to be about 40 nm. Both the small penetration depth value and its temperature dependence are in agreement with a microscopic theory for MgB2 in the clean limit.

  8. Penetration of stimuli of fish skin for Acanthostomum brauni cercariae.

    PubMed

    Ostrowski de Nuñez, M; Haas, W

    1991-02-01

    The cercaria of Acanthostomum brauni penetrates the skin of its fish host in response to a combination of two chemical signals from the fish skin surface: free fatty acids and a macro-molecular mucus component. The latter seems to be a protein, as the penetration-stimulating activity of fish skin surface mucus is eliminated by digestion with proteinase, but not by digestion with glycosidases, nor by a removal of glycosaminoglycans. These penetration-stimulating host signals differ from the glycoproteins that stimulate the attachment of A. brauni cercariae to the host and also from the macromolecular fish host signals which have been found to stimulate the attachment and penetration by Opisthorchis viverrini cercariae.

  9. Closed Loop Control of Penetration Depth during CO2 Laser Lap Welding Processes

    PubMed Central

    Sibillano, Teresa; Rizzi, Domenico; Mezzapesa, Francesco P.; Lugarà, Pietro Mario; Konuk, Ali Riza; Aarts, Ronald; Veld, Bert Huis in 't; Ancona, Antonio

    2012-01-01

    In this paper we describe a novel spectroscopic closed loop control system capable of stabilizing the penetration depth during laser welding processes by controlling the laser power. Our novel approach is to analyze the optical emission from the laser generated plasma plume above the keyhole, to calculate its electron temperature as a process-monitoring signal. Laser power has been controlled by using a quantitative relationship between the penetration depth and the plasma electron temperature. The sensor is able to correlate in real time the difference between the measured electron temperature and its reference value for the requested penetration depth. Accordingly the closed loop system adjusts the power, thus maintaining the penetration depth. PMID:23112646

  10. Influence of planar macrodefects on the anisotropy of magnetic-flux penetration in YBa 2Cu 3O 7-δ

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cuche, E.; Indenbom, M. V.; André, M.-O.; Richard, P.; Benoit, W.; Wolf, Th.

    1996-02-01

    The magnetic flux penetration in a high-quality YBa 2Cu 3O 7-δ single crystal with an external field applied perpendicular to the crystalline c axis is directly visualized by means of the magneto-optical technique. The observations show that the field penetrates preferentially along the ab planes. Scanning acoustic microscopy reveals macrodefects along ab planes which strongly affect this anisotropy of the field penetration.

  11. Study of Comet Nucleus Gamma-Ray Spectrometer Penetration System

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Adams, G. L.; Amundsen, R. J.; Beardsley, R. W.; Cash, R. H.; Clark, B. C.; Knight, T. C. D.; Martin, J. P.; Monti, P.; Outteridge, D. A.; Plaster, W. D.

    1986-01-01

    A penetrator system has been suggested as an approach for making in situ measurements of the composition and physical properties of the nucleus of a comet. This study has examined in detail the feasibility of implementing the penetrator concept. The penetrator system and mission designs have been developed and iterated in sufficient detail to provide a high level of confidence that the concept can be implemented within the constraints of the Mariner Mark 2 spacecraft.

  12. Enhancing the transdermal delivery of rigid nanoparticles using the simultaneous application of ultrasound and sodium lauryl sulfate

    PubMed Central

    Lopez, Renata F.V.; Seto, Jennifer E.; Blankschtein, Daniel; Langer, Robert

    2010-01-01

    The potential of rigid nanoparticles to serve as transdermal drug carriers can be greatly enhanced by improving their skin penetration. Therefore, the simultaneous application of ultrasound and sodium lauryl sulfate (referred to as US/SLS) was evaluated as a skin pre-treatment method for enhancing the passive transdermal delivery of nanoparticles. We utilized inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry and an improved application of confocal microscopy to compare the delivery of 10- and 20-nm cationic, neutral, and anionic quantum dots (QDs) into US/SLS-treated and untreated pig split-thickness skin. Our findings include: (a) ~0.01% of the QDs penetrate the dermis of untreated skin (which we quantify for the first time), (b) the QDs fully permeate US/SLS-treated skin, (c) the two cationic QDs studied exhibit different extents of skin penetration and dermal clearance, and (d) the QD skin penetration is heterogeneous. We discuss routes of nanoparticle skin penetration and the application of the methods described herein to address conflicting literature reports on nanoparticle skin penetration. We conclude that US/SLS treatment significantly enhances QD transdermal penetration by 500–1300%. Our findings suggest that an optimum surface charge exists for nanoparticle skin penetration, and motivate the application of nanoparticle carriers to US/SLS-treated skin for enhanced transdermal drug delivery. PMID:20971504

  13. Enhancing the transdermal delivery of rigid nanoparticles using the simultaneous application of ultrasound and sodium lauryl sulfate.

    PubMed

    Lopez, Renata F V; Seto, Jennifer E; Blankschtein, Daniel; Langer, Robert

    2011-01-01

    The potential of rigid nanoparticles to serve as transdermal drug carriers can be greatly enhanced by improving their skin penetration. Therefore, the simultaneous application of ultrasound and sodium lauryl sulfate (referred to as US/SLS) was evaluated as a skin pre-treatment method for enhancing the passive transdermal delivery of nanoparticles. We utilized inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and an improved application of confocal microscopy to compare the delivery of 10- and 20-nm cationic, neutral, and anionic quantum dots (QDs) into US/SLS-treated and untreated pig split-thickness skin. Our findings include: (a) ∼0.01% of the QDs penetrate the dermis of untreated skin (which we quantify for the first time), (b) the QDs fully permeate US/SLS-treated skin, (c) the two cationic QDs studied exhibit different extents of skin penetration and dermal clearance, and (d) the QD skin penetration is heterogeneous. We discuss routes of nanoparticle skin penetration and the application of the methods described herein to address conflicting literature reports on nanoparticle skin penetration. We conclude that US/SLS treatment significantly enhances QD transdermal penetration by 500-1300%. Our findings suggest that an optimum surface charge exists for nanoparticle skin penetration, and motivate the application of nanoparticle carriers to US/SLS-treated skin for enhanced transdermal drug delivery. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Projectile penetration into ballistic gelatin.

    PubMed

    Swain, M V; Kieser, D C; Shah, S; Kieser, J A

    2014-01-01

    Ballistic gelatin is frequently used as a model for soft biological tissues that experience projectile impact. In this paper we investigate the response of a number of gelatin materials to the penetration of spherical steel projectiles (7 to 11mm diameter) with a range of lower impacting velocities (<120m/s). The results of sphere penetration depth versus projectile velocity are found to be linear for all systems above a certain threshold velocity required for initiating penetration. The data for a specific material impacted with different diameter spheres were able to be condensed to a single curve when the penetration depth was normalised by the projectile diameter. When the results are compared with a number of predictive relationships available in the literature, it is found that over the range of projectiles and compositions used, the results fit a simple relationship that takes into account the projectile diameter, the threshold velocity for penetration into the gelatin and a value of the shear modulus of the gelatin estimated from the threshold velocity for penetration. The normalised depth is found to fit the elastic Froude number when this is modified to allow for a threshold impact velocity. The normalised penetration data are found to best fit this modified elastic Froude number with a slope of 1/2 instead of 1/3 as suggested by Akers and Belmonte (2006). Possible explanations for this difference are discussed. © 2013 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  15. Modeling of light dynamic cone penetration test - Panda 3 ® in granular material by using 3D Discrete element method

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tran, Quoc Anh; Chevalier, Bastien; Benz, Miguel; Breul, Pierre; Gourvès, Roland

    2017-06-01

    The recent technological developments made on the light dynamic penetration test Panda 3 ® provide a dynamic load-penetration curve σp - sp for each impact. This curve is influenced by the mechanical and physical properties of the investigated granular media. In order to analyze and exploit the load-penetration curve, a numerical model of penetration test using 3D Discrete Element Method is proposed for reproducing tests in dynamic conditions in granular media. All parameters of impact used in this model have at first been calibrated by respecting mechanical and geometrical properties of the hammer and the rod. There is a good agreement between experimental results and the ones obtained from simulations in 2D or 3D. After creating a sample, we will simulate the Panda 3 ®. It is possible to measure directly the dynamic load-penetration curve occurring at the tip for each impact. Using the force and acceleration measured in the top part of the rod, it is possible to separate the incident and reflected waves and then calculate the tip's load-penetration curve. The load-penetration curve obtained is qualitatively similar with that obtained by experimental tests. In addition, the frequency analysis of the measured signals present also a good compliance with that measured in reality when the tip resistance is qualitatively similar.

  16. Microorganism penetration in dentinal tubules of instrumented and retreated root canal walls. In vitro SEM study.

    PubMed

    Al-Nazhan, Saad; Al-Sulaiman, Alaa; Al-Rasheed, Fellwa; Alnajjar, Fatimah; Al-Abdulwahab, Bander; Al-Badah, Abdulhakeem

    2014-11-01

    This in vitro study aimed to investigate the ability of Candida albicans (C. albicans) and Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis) to penetrate dentinal tubules of instrumented and retreated root canal surface of split human teeth. Sixty intact extracted human single-rooted teeth were divided into 4 groups, negative control, positive control without canal instrumentation, instrumented, and retreated. Root canals in the instrumented group were enlarged with endodontic instruments, while root canals in the retreated group were enlarged, filled, and then removed the canal filling materials. The teeth were split longitudinally after canal preparation in 3 groups except the negative control group. The teeth were inoculated with both microorganisms separately and in combination. Teeth specimens were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the depth of penetration into the dentinal tubules was assessed using the SMILE view software (JEOL Ltd). Penetration of C. albicans and E. faecalis into the dentinal tubules was observed in all 3 groups, although penetration was partially restricted by dentin debris of tubules in the instrumented group and remnants of canal filling materials in the retreated group. In all 3 groups, E. faecalis penetrated deeper into the dentinal tubules by way of cell division than C. albicans which built colonies and penetrated by means of hyphae. Microorganisms can easily penetrate dentinal tubules of root canals with different appearance based on the microorganism size and status of dentinal tubules.

  17. [Management of penetrating ocular injuries and endophthalmitis in thirteen-year follow-up period].

    PubMed

    Vukosavljević, Miroslav

    2006-01-01

    Ocular trauma is one of the most common causes of unilateral morbidity and blindness in the world today. Frequency of penetrating ocular injuries and endophthalmitis after injuries caused by explosive weapons during the war in former Yugoslavia in the period 1991-1999 as well as eye injuries in the period 2000-2004 was examined. During 1991-1999, 647 patients with eye injuries were hospitalized at Eye Clinic, MMA, out of whom 500 cases with penetrating eye injuries. In 2000-2004 period, 601 patients with eye injuries were treated, out of whom 297 had penetrating eye injuries (including patients from Montenegro and Republica Srpska). All patients underwent thorough ophthalmological examination, antibiotic treatment and VPP or other required surgical interventions. All 500 patients from the first period had severe penetrating eye injuries. Intrabulbar foreign bodies (IFB) were detected in 286 cases, while 214 cases with penetrating eye injuries had no intrabulbar foreign bodies. Almost all patients had multiple head and body injuries as well. Endophthalmitis was observed in 29 eyes (5.2%) upon admission to hospital. In the second observed period (2000-2004), 196 (66%) out of 297 penetrating eye injuries had IOFB, and 101 (34%) was without IOFB. Endophthalmitis was observed in 34 eyes (8.4%). War eye injuries are a special group of injuries. Relatively low percent of posttraumatic endophthalmitis is definitely worth attention, especially in comparison with peacetime eye penetrating injuries.

  18. Prediction of soil frost penetration depth in northwest of Iran using air freezing indices

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mohammadi, H.; Moghbel, M.; Ranjbar, F.

    2016-11-01

    Information about soil frost penetration depth can be effective in finding appropriate solutions to reduce the agricultural crop damage, transportations, and building facilities. Amongst proper methods to achieve this information are the statistical and empirical models capable of estimating soil frost penetration depth. Therefore, the main objective of this research is to calculate soil frost penetration depth in northwest of Iran during the year 2007-2008 to validate two different models accuracy. To do so, the relationship between air and soil temperature in different depths (5-10-20-30-50-100 cm) at three times of the day (3, 9, and 15 GMT) for 14 weather stations over 7 provinces was analyzed using linear regression. Then, two different air freezing indices (AFIs) including Norwegian and Finn AFI was implemented. Finally, the frost penetration depth was calculated by McKeown method and the accuracy of models determined by actual soil frost penetration depth. The results demonstrated that there is a significant correlation between air and soil depth temperature in all studied stations up to the 30 cm under the surface. Also, according to the results, Norwegian index can be effectively used for determination of soil frost depth penetration and the correlation coefficient between actual and estimated soil frost penetration depth is r = 0.92 while the Finn index overestimates the frost depth in all stations with correlation coefficient r = 0.70.

  19. Assessment of Quantum Dot Penetration into Skin in Different Species Under Different Mechanical Actions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Monteiro-Riviere, N. A.; Zhang, L. W.

    Skin penetration is one of the major routes of exposure for nanoparticles to gain access to a biological system. QD nanoparticles have received a great deal of attention due to their fluorescent characteristics and potential use in medical applications. However, little is known about their permeability in skin. This study focuses on three types of quantum dots (QD) with different surface coatings and concentrations on their ability to penetrate skin. QD621 (polyethylene glycol coated, PEG) was studied for 24 h in porcine skin flow-through diffusion cells. QD565 and QD655 coated with carboxylic acid were studied for 8 and 24 h in flow-through diffusion cells with flexed, tape stripped and abraded rat skin to determine if these mechanical actions could perturb the barrier and affect penetration. Confocal microscopy depicted QD621 penetration through the uppermost layers of the stratum corneum (SC) and fluorescence was found in the SC and near hair follicles. QD621 were found in the intercellular lipid layers of the SC by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). QD565 and 655 with flexed and tape-stripped skin did not show penetration; only abraded skin showed penetration in the viable dermal layers. In all QD studies, inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) analysis for cadmium (Cd) and fluorescence for QD did not detect Cd or fluorescence signal in the perfusate at any time point, concentration or type of QD. These results indicate that porcine skin penetration of QD621 is minimal and limited primarily to the outer SC layers, while QD565 and 655 penetrated into the dermis of abraded skin. The anatomical complexity of skin and species differences should be taken into consideration when selecting an animal model to study nanoparticle absorption/penetration. These findings are of importance to risk assessment for nanoscale materials because it indicates that if skin barrier is altered such as in wounds, scrapes, or dermatitis conditions could affect nanoparticle penetration deeper into the dermal layers and skin is an important organ and can serve as a potential route of exposure and should not be overlooked.

  20. Evaluation of cone penetration testing (CPT) for use with transportation projects.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2011-04-01

    Cone Penetration Testing (CPT) has many advantages as a means for subsurface investigation. CPT consists of pushing a steel : cone into the ground and recording the penetration resistance using sensors. Pore pressure, shear wave velocity and other : ...

  1. Long-term behavior of aortic intramural hematomas and penetrating ulcers.

    PubMed

    Chou, Alan S; Ziganshin, Bulat A; Charilaou, Paris; Tranquilli, Maryann; Rizzo, John A; Elefteriades, John A

    2016-02-01

    For intramural hematoma and penetrating atherosclerotic ulcer, long-term behavior and treatment are controversial. This study evaluates the long-term behavior of intramural hematoma and penetrating atherosclerotic ulcer, including radiologic follow-up and survival analysis. Between 1995 and 2014, 108 patients (mean age, 70.8 ± 10 years; 56% female) presented with intramural hematoma or penetrating atherosclerotic ulcer to Yale-New Haven Hospital (New Haven, Conn). We reviewed the medical records, radiology, and online mortality databases. Ten of 55 patients (18%) with intramural hematoma and 17 of 53 patients (32%) with penetrating atherosclerotic ulcer had rupture state symptoms on admission, both greater than type A (8%) or type B dissection (4%) (P < .001). No branch vascular occlusion occurred. For patients with intramural hematoma with follow-up imaging, 8 of 14 (57%) worsened (mean follow-up, 9.4 months) and 6 (43%) underwent late surgery. For patients with penetrating atherosclerotic ulcer with follow-up imaging, 6 of 20 (30%) worsened and underwent late surgery, and 11 (55%) showed no change (mean follow-up, 34.3 months). Overall survivals were 77%, 70%, 58%, and 33% at 1, 3, 5, and 10 years, respectively. No operative deaths occurred for patients with nonrupture state. Patients with penetrating atherosclerotic ulcer with initial surgical treatment had better long-term survival than patients treated medically (P = .037). In the intramural hematoma group, no such difference was observed (P = .10). At presentation, the incidence of early rupture of intramural hematoma and penetrating atherosclerotic ulcer was higher than for typical dissection. For branch vessels, intramural hematoma never occludes branch arteries. On imaging follow-up, patients with intramural hematoma and penetrating atherosclerotic ulcer rarely improved, with late surgery commonly needed. Better survival was observed for the initial surgical management of patients with penetrating atherosclerotic ulcer compared with initial medical management. Copyright © 2016 The American Association for Thoracic Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Measurement of in-situ strength using projectile penetration: Tests of a new launching system

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

    Hearst, J.R.; Newmark, R.L.; Charest, J.A.

    1987-10-01

    The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has a continuing need to measure rock strength in situ, both for simple prediction of cavity size, and as input to computational models. In a previous report we compared two methods for measuring formation strength in situ: projectile penetration and a cone penetrometer. We determined that the projectile method was more promising for application to our large-diameter (2-4-m) hole environment. A major practical problem has been the development of a launcher and an apparatus for measuring depth of penetration that would be suitable for use in large-diameter holes. We are developing a gas-gun launcher systemmore » that will be capable of measuring both depth of penetration and deceleration of a reusable projectile. The current version of the launcher is trailer-mounted for testing at our Nevada Test Site (NTS) in tunnels and outcrops, but its design is such that it can be readily adapted for emplacement hole use. We test the current launcher on 60-cm cubes of gypsum cement, mixed to provie a range of densities (1.64 to 2.0 g/cc) and strengths (3 to 17 MPa). We compared depth of penetration of a 84-g projectile from a ''Betsy'' seismic gun - traveling on the order of 500 m/s - with the depth of penetration of a 13-kg projectile from the gas gun - traveling on the order of 30 m/s. For projectiles with the same nose size and shape, impacting targets of approximately constant strength, penetration depth was proportional to projectile kinetic energy. The ratio of kinetic energy to penetration depth was approximately proportional to target strength. Tests in tuffs with a wide range of strengths at NTS gave a similar linear relationship between the ratio of kinetic energy to penetration and target strength, and also a linear relationship between deceleration and strength. It appears that penetration can indeed be used as a semiquantitative measure of strength.« less

  3. Brain processing of visual stimuli representing sexual penetration versus core and animal-reminder disgust in women with lifelong vaginismus.

    PubMed

    Borg, Charmaine; Georgiadis, Janniko R; Renken, Remco J; Spoelstra, Symen K; Weijmar Schultz, Willibrord; de Jong, Peter J

    2014-01-01

    It has been proposed that disgust evolved to protect humans from contamination. Through eliciting the overwhelming urge to withdraw from the disgusting stimuli, it would facilitate avoidance of contact with pathogens. The physical proximity implied in sexual intercourse provides ample opportunity for contamination and may thus set the stage for eliciting pathogen disgust. Building on this, it has been argued that the involuntary muscle contraction characteristic of vaginismus (i.e., inability to have vaginal penetration) may be elicited by the prospect of penetration by potential contaminants. To further investigate this disgust-based interpretation of vaginismus (in DSM-5 classified as a Genito-Pelvic Pain/Penetration Disorder, GPPPD) we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine if women with vaginismus (n = 21) show relatively strong convergence in their brain responses towards sexual penetration- and disgust-related pictures compared to sexually asymptomatic women (n = 21) and women suffering from vulvar pain (dyspareunia/also classified as GPPPD in the DSM-5, n = 21). At the subjective level, both clinical groups rated penetration stimuli as more disgusting than asymptomatic women. However, the brain responses to penetration stimuli did not differ between groups. In addition, there was considerable conjoint brain activity in response to penetration and disgust pictures, which yield for both animal-reminder (e.g., mutilation) and core (e.g., rotten food) disgust domains. However, this overlap in brain activation was similar for all groups. A possible explanation for the lack of vaginismus-specific brain responses lies in the alleged female ambiguity (procreation/pleasure vs. contamination/disgust) toward penetration: generally in women a (default) disgust response tendency may prevail in the absence of sexual readiness. Accordingly, a critical next step would be to examine the processing of penetration stimuli following the induction of sexual arousal.

  4. The Effect of Arrow Mass and Shape on Penetration into a Target

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shyam, S.; Gurram, A.; Madireddy, S.

    2016-12-01

    We conducted an archery experiment in order to quantify how aerodynamic design impacted the depth of arrow impact. Research shows that the smaller the surface area of an object, the more easily it travels through the air and the deeper it penetrates a target (Benson 2014). Momentum also affects how far and fast the arrow will go and therefore, how deep it will penetrate into the target. Therefore, a combination of an arrow with greater momentum and better aerodynamics will help the arrow fly faster and penetrate the target deeper. Mass, velocity, momentum, acceleration, force, and drag are the factors that acted on our experiment and produced its results. We hypothesized that the arrow with a thin shaft and pointed arrowhead would penetrate deepest, as opposed to both arrows with no arrowheads or arrows with thick shafts and blunt arrowheads. We tested our hypothesis by having a well-trained archer shoot different types of arrows into a target. We used arrows with shaft lengths of 7 cm and 5.3 cm, coupled with either pointed, blunt, or no arrowhead. We measured the time to target and arrow penetration (in cm) to see which style reached the target the fastest and penetrated the deepest. The results demonstrated that arrows with thin shafts and pointed arrowheads penetrated our target the deepest, followed by arrows with thick shafts and blunt arrowheads. Arrows with thin shafts and blunt arrowheads came after, and arrows with thick shafts and pointed arrowheads came last in depth of penetration. The arrows with no arrowheads either barely penetrated the target, or bounced back. We were able to conclude that the thinner the shaft and the more pointed the arrowhead, the better the arrow cuts the air. This is because, according to the principles of aerodynamics, it creates less drag since the surface area is smaller. However, mass also plays an important role in force through momentum, which also significantly affected our results.

  5. Brain Processing of Visual Stimuli Representing Sexual Penetration versus Core and Animal-Reminder Disgust in Women with Lifelong Vaginismus

    PubMed Central

    Borg, Charmaine; Georgiadis, Janniko R.; Renken, Remco J.; Spoelstra, Symen K.; Weijmar Schultz, Willibrord; de Jong, Peter J.

    2014-01-01

    It has been proposed that disgust evolved to protect humans from contamination. Through eliciting the overwhelming urge to withdraw from the disgusting stimuli, it would facilitate avoidance of contact with pathogens. The physical proximity implied in sexual intercourse provides ample opportunity for contamination and may thus set the stage for eliciting pathogen disgust. Building on this, it has been argued that the involuntary muscle contraction characteristic of vaginismus (i.e., inability to have vaginal penetration) may be elicited by the prospect of penetration by potential contaminants. To further investigate this disgust-based interpretation of vaginismus (in DSM-5 classified as a Genito-Pelvic Pain/Penetration Disorder, GPPPD) we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine if women with vaginismus (n = 21) show relatively strong convergence in their brain responses towards sexual penetration- and disgust-related pictures compared to sexually asymptomatic women (n = 21) and women suffering from vulvar pain (dyspareunia/also classified as GPPPD in the DSM-5, n = 21). At the subjective level, both clinical groups rated penetration stimuli as more disgusting than asymptomatic women. However, the brain responses to penetration stimuli did not differ between groups. In addition, there was considerable conjoint brain activity in response to penetration and disgust pictures, which yield for both animal-reminder (e.g., mutilation) and core (e.g., rotten food) disgust domains. However, this overlap in brain activation was similar for all groups. A possible explanation for the lack of vaginismus-specific brain responses lies in the alleged female ambiguity (procreation/pleasure vs. contamination/disgust) toward penetration: generally in women a (default) disgust response tendency may prevail in the absence of sexual readiness. Accordingly, a critical next step would be to examine the processing of penetration stimuli following the induction of sexual arousal. PMID:24465445

  6. The impact of health maintenance organization penetration on the use of hospitals that serve minority communities.

    PubMed

    Gaskin, D J

    1997-12-01

    Health maintenance organization (HMO) penetration has made hospital markets more price competitive. Hospitals in minority communities may be at a competitive disadvantage because they serve patients who are, on average, sicker and more likely to be uninsured or underinsured. This study estimated the impact of HMO penetration on the use of hospitals in minority communities during 1987 to 1992. Using a sample of 1,413 short-term general hospitals from the 85 largest metropolitan statistical areas, the determinants of hospitals' patient volumes were estimated. Hospitals located in predominately nonwhite neighborhoods were designated minority hospitals, and other hospitals were designated nonminority hospitals. Using regression analysis, the impact of HMO penetration and concentration on hospitals' patient volumes were estimated. By interacting the HMO penetration and concentration variables with a minority hospital indicator variable, HMOs' impact on minority hospitals was calculated. Health maintenance organization penetration was correlated with lower patient volumes in minority hospitals and higher patient volumes in nonminority hospitals. Competition in HMO markets was correlated with lower patient volumes for all hospitals. This effect was stronger for minority hospitals. These findings suggest that minority hospitals may be at risk of losing patients as HMO penetration increases.

  7. Prediction of percutaneous absorption in human using three-dimensional human cultured epidermis LabCyte EPI-MODEL.

    PubMed

    Hikima, Tomohiro; Kaneda, Noriaki; Matsuo, Kyouhei; Tojo, Kakuji

    2012-01-01

    The objective of this study is to establish a relationship of the skin penetration parameters between the three-dimensional cultured human epidermis LabCyte EPI-MODEL (LabCyte) and hairless mouse (HLM) skin penetration in vitro and to predict the skin penetration and plasma concentration profile in human. The skin penetration experiments through LabCyte and HLM skin were investigated using 19 drugs that have a different molecular weight and lipophilicity. The penetration flux for LabCyte reached 30 times larger at maximum than that for HLM skin. The human data can be estimated from the in silico approach with the diffusion coefficient (D), the partition coefficient (K) and the skin surface concentration (C) of drugs by assuming the bi-layer skin model for both LabCyte and HLM skin. The human skin penetration of β-estradiol, prednisolone, testosterone and ethynylestradiol was well agreed between the simulated profiles and in vitro experimental data. Plasma concentration profiles of β-estradiol in human were also simulated and well agreed with the clinical data. The present alternative method may decrease human or animal skin experiment for in vitro skin penetration.

  8. Romanomermis culicivorax: penetration of larval mosquitoes.

    PubMed

    Shamseldean, M M; Platzer, E G

    1989-09-01

    In the presence of second larval instars of three mosquito species the preparasites of Romanomermis culicivorax swam near the water surface in an orthokinetic manner. When the preparasites were ca. 1 mm from the host, they stopped and swam klinotactically toward the host. During this phase, the preparasites secreted a small amount of a putative adhesive material from the anterior region and host contact was completed. The adhesive appeared to aid in attachment of the preparasites to the host and initiation of the search-boring phase. The preparasites glided over the host until a suitable penetration site was found. The penetration phase was initiated by probing with the odontostyle. This was followed by partial paralysis, decreased intestinal peristaltic movement, and temporary cardiac arrest in all host mosquitoes which was probably related to injection of esophageal secretions. SEM observations showed that the abdominal walls were the most frequent site for penetration. As the preparasites entered through the penetration hole, microorganisms adhering to the cuticle of the preparasites were retained by the adhesive which accumulated around the penetration site. Thus, microbial contamination of the host was avoided by a mechanical cleansing mechanism. Penetration was usually completed in less than 10 min.

  9. The Tubular Penetration Depth and Adaption of Four Sealers: A Scanning Electron Microscopic Study

    PubMed Central

    Chen, Huan; Zhao, Xinyuan; Qiu, Yu; Xu, Dengyou

    2017-01-01

    Background. The tubular penetration and adaptation of the sealer are important factors for successful root canal filling. The aim of this study was to evaluate the tubular penetration depth of four different sealers in the coronal, middle, and apical third of root canals as well as the adaptation of these sealers to root canal walls. Materials and Methods. 50 single-rooted teeth were prepared in this study. Forty-eight of them were filled with different sealers (Cortisomol, iRoot SP, AH-Plus, and RealSeal SE) and respective core filling materials. Then the specimens were sectioned and scanning electron microscopy was employed to assess the tubular penetration and adaptation of the sealers. Results. Our results demonstrated that the maximum penetration was exhibited by RealSeal SE, followed by AH-Plus, iRoot SP, and Cortisomol. As regards the adaptation property to root canal walls, AH-Plus has best adaptation capacity followed by iRoot SP, RealSeal SE, and Cortisomol. Conclusion. The tubular penetration and adaptation vary with the different sealers investigated. RealSeal SE showed the most optimal tubular penetration, whereas AH-Plus presented the best adaptation to the root canal walls. PMID:29479539

  10. Instantaneous death due to transorbital reverse penetration of a screw in an accidental fall: unusual autopsy case report and review of the literature.

    PubMed

    Gioia, Sara; Bacci, Mauro; Lancia, Massimo; Carlini, Luigi; Suadoni, Fabio

    2014-03-01

    We present a peculiar autopsy case of a transorbital penetrating head injury, in a male worker, after an accidental fall onto a screw not completely stuck into a wooden board. A 13-cm screw entered the cranium 9.5 cm deep, penetrating with the flat end, a condition defined in literature as "reverse penetration." The death was instantaneous and caused by a neurogenic shock due to injuries to the brain stem and the right cerebellar hemisphere. These injuries, enabled by the length of the screw, are generally described in literature as due to nontransorbital penetrations, frequently associated with posterior entry and a large intracranial injury. The ocular globe has been, furthermore, perfectly preserved thanks to its mobility in the orbit. Even the dynamic of the incident is peculiar because of the stationary nature of the penetrating object, which the victim actively fell on by accident. To the best of our knowledge, the matter is therefore a very peculiar mortal case of transorbital intracranial penetration, whose verified injuries and dynamics are absolutely atypical. The case is now under discussion, and a review of pertinent literature is performed.

  11. Fluoride Penetration and Clearance Are Higher in Exopolysaccharide-Containing Bacterial Pellets.

    PubMed

    Spinola, Manuela S; Nóbrega, Diego Figueiredo; Del Bel Cury, Altair Antoninha; Ricomini Filho, Antonio Pedro; Cury, Jaime Aparecido; Tenuta, Livia Maria Andaló

    2018-06-06

    Extracellular polysaccharides (EPS) could increase the penetration of fluoride through dental biofilm, reducing its cariogenicity. We measured the concentration of fluoride in EPS-containing (EPS+) or not-containing (EPS-) Streptococcus mutans bacterial pellets resembling test biofilms, before and up to 60 min after a 0.05% NaF rinse in situ. Fluoride penetration and clearance were higher in EPS+ bacterial pellets. The data suggest that EPS enhances fluoride penetration, but also accelerates fluoride clearance from dental biofilms. © 2018 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  12. Miniature penetrator (MinPen) acceleration recorder development test

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

    Franco, R.J.; Platzbecker, M.R.

    1998-08-01

    The Telemetry Technology Development Department at Sandia National Laboratories actively develops and tests acceleration recorders for penetrating weapons. This new acceleration recorder (MinPen) utilizes a microprocessor-based architecture for operational flexibility while maintaining electronics and packaging techniques developed over years of penetrator testing. MinPen has been demonstrated to function in shock environments up to 20,000 Gs. The MinPen instrumentation development has resulted in a rugged, versatile, miniature acceleration recorder and is a valuable tool for penetrator testing in a wide range of applications.

  13. High-Obliquity Impact of a Compact Penetrator on a Thin Plate: Penetrator Splitting and Adiabatic Shear

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1998-01-01

    nonideal penetrator on a thin plate at high obliquities. These computations simulated two series of experiments at velocities of 1.5 km/ s and 4.1 km/ s ...3 2. Combined Effects of Obliquity, 0, and Rotation, 4, on Debris Cloud Evolution at 4.1 km/ s and 26 p s ; Impact Velocity Vector Lies in x-z Plane...7 3. Time History of the Penetrator Mass Fraction Exiting the Bottom of the Target at 4.1 km / s

  14. Magnetic field penetration in niobium- and vanadium-based Josephson junctions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cucolo, A. M.; Pace, S.; Vaglio, R.; di Chiara, A.; Peluso, G.; Russo, M.

    1983-02-01

    Measurements on the temperature dependence of the magnetic field penetration in Nb-NbxOy-Pb and V-VxOy-Pb Josephson junctions have been performed. Results on the zero-temperature penetration depth in niobium films are far above the bulk values although consistent with other measurements on junctions reported in the literature. For vanadium junctions anomalously large penetration depth values are obtained at low temperatures. Nevertheless, the temperature dependence is in reasonable agreement with the local dirty limit model.

  15. Phenomena after meteoroid penetration of a bumper plate

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Todd, F. C.

    1971-01-01

    The analysis of hypervelocity impact of particles on a detector in space, with flow and shock penetration through fluid, plastic, and elastic zones was studied. The original paper and computer program on this topic is presented. Improvements in the program for the study of the formation of a cone of debris are discussed. The truncated apex of the cone is at the hole formed by the penetration of an initially spherical rock through a thin plate. A solution for the penetration of the thin plate was sought.

  16. Evaluation of Microencapsulated Penetrant Inspection.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1980-12-01

    AD-A9b 826 GENERAL ELECTRIC CO CINCINNATI OH AIRCRAFT ENGINE GROUP F/6 IA/2ADG EVALUATION OF MICROENCAPSULATED PENETRANT INSPECTION.(U) DEC 80 J M...4156 ADA096826 EVALUATION OF MICROENCAPSULATED PENETRANT INSPECTION i :I J.M. Portaz Aircraft Engine Group General Electric Company Cincinnati, Ohio... Microencapsulated Penetrant 5 7riJF-Iehica17 = Inspection p un May@84 -1 ---- --- ---- 19AMFGK657j7 7. AiJTHOR(s) nVCWRACT OR GRANT m 𔃻 " JO J.M./Portaz

  17. The effect of 25% tannic acid on prepared dentin: a scanning electron microscope-methylene blue dye study.

    PubMed

    Bitter, N C

    1990-07-01

    The effect on the permeability of prepared dentin treated with 25% tannic acid and 6% citric acid was compared with the untreated dentinal surface. Methylene blue was applied to the dentin surface after treatment to evaluate penetration into dentinal tubules. The tannic acid solution reduced or prevented dye penetration of the dentinal tubules. Citric acid treatment permitted severe penetration. The 25% tannic acid solution removed the smear layer while inhibiting penetration of the dye.

  18. Analytic Simulation of Tissue Damage from Penetrating Wounds to the Heart

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2006-12-01

    Fragment Penetration – Sensitivity Study………. 141 I. Comparison of Long Rod versus Wedge Fragment Penetration into Gelatin…… 145 J. An Acoustic Model for...Penetrating Wounds to the Heart, MMVR 2005. See Appendix N. (2) El-Raheb, M., An Acoustic Model for Wave Propagation in a Weak Layer, JOURNAL OF APPLIED...An acoustic model for wave propagation in a weak layer” Michael El-Raheb ATK Mission Research, Laguna Hills, CA ATK MISSION RESEARCH W81XWH-04-C-0084

  19. Cost Assessment for Shielding of C3 Type. Facilities

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1980-03-01

    imperfections and on penetrations . Long-conductor penetrants are assumed to enter the building through a one-quarter-inch thick entry plate and a shielded...Effects 21 3.2.3 Currents from Penetrants 21 3.2.4 Numerical Examples 23 3.3 Design Approach 23 3.3.1 Design Assuming Linear Behavior of Shield 23...General 36 4.1.1 Envelope Shield 36 4.1.2 Penetrations 41 4.2 Condition I, New Construction, External Shield 46 4.3 Condition II, New

  20. The Method of Manufacturing Nonmetallic Test-Blocks on Different Sensitivity Classes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kalinichenko, N. P.; Kalinichenko, A. N.; Lobanova, I. S.; Zaitseva, A. A.; Loboda, E. L.

    2016-01-01

    Nowadays in our modern world there is a vital question of quality control of details made from nonmetallic materials due to their wide spreading. Nondestructive penetrant testing is effective, and in some cases it is the only possible method of accidents prevention at high- risk sites. A brief review of check sample necessary for quality evaluation of penetrant materials is considered. There was offered a way of making agents for quality of penetrant materials testing according to different liquid penetrant testing sensibility classes.

  1. Brain-penetrating 2-aminobenzimidazole H(1)-antihistamines for the treatment of insomnia.

    PubMed

    Coon, Timothy; Moree, Wilna J; Li, Binfeng; Yu, Jinghua; Zamani-Kord, Said; Malany, Siobhan; Santos, Mark A; Hernandez, Lisa M; Petroski, Robert E; Sun, Aixia; Wen, Jenny; Sullivan, Sue; Haelewyn, Jason; Hedrick, Michael; Hoare, Samuel J; Bradbury, Margaret J; Crowe, Paul D; Beaton, Graham

    2009-08-01

    The benzimidazole core of the selective non-brain-penetrating H(1)-antihistamine mizolastine was used to identify a series of brain-penetrating H(1)-antihistamines for the potential treatment of insomnia. Using cassette PK studies, brain-penetrating H(1)-antihistamines were identified and in vivo efficacy was demonstrated in a rat EEG/EMG model. Further optimization focused on strategies to attenuate an identified hERG liability, leading to the discovery of 4i with a promising in vitro profile.

  2. Effect of egg washing and correlation between cuticle and egg penetration by various Salmonella strains.

    PubMed

    Gole, Vaibhav C; Roberts, Juliet R; Sexton, Margaret; May, Damian; Kiermeier, Andreas; Chousalkar, Kapil K

    2014-07-16

    In Australia, Europe and the United States, eggs and egg products are frequently associated with Salmonella food poisoning outbreaks. Many of the egg-associated Salmonella outbreaks have been due to the products such as mayonnaise, ice-cream and cold desserts which are eaten without cooking following the addition of raw egg. The ability of four Salmonella isolates (one each of S. Singapore, S. Adelaide, S. Worthington and S. Livingstone) to penetrate washed and unwashed eggs using whole egg and agar egg penetration methods was investigated in the current study. The results of the agar penetration experiment indicated that all the isolates used in the present study have the capacity to penetrate the eggshell. Eggshell penetration by the S. Worthington isolate was higher but not significant (p=0.06) in washed eggs compared to unwashed eggs. However, for all other isolates (S. Singapore, S. Adelaide and S. Livingstone), there was no significant difference in penetration of washed and unwashed eggs. Statistical analysis indicated that cuticle score was a significant linear predictor of Salmonella eggshell penetration. Whole egg penetration results showed that all of the Salmonella isolates used in the present study were capable of surviving on the eggshell surface after 21days of incubation (at 20°C) following a high dose of inoculation (10(5)CFU/mL). The combined data of all isolates demonstrated that, the survival rate of Salmonella on eggshells (inoculated with 10(5)CFU/mL) was significantly higher (p=0.002) at 20°C as compared to 37°C. S. Singapore, S. Worthington, and S. Livingstone were not detected in egg internal contents whereas S. Adelaide was detected in one egg's internal contents. Crown Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. Penetrating and Intrastromal Corneal Arcuate Incisions in Rabbit and Human Cadaver Eyes: Manual Diamond Blade and Femtosecond Laser-Created Incisions.

    PubMed

    Gray, Brad; Binder, Perry S; Huang, Ling C; Hill, Jim; Salvador-Silva, Mercedes; Gwon, Arlene

    2016-07-01

    To compare morphologic differences between freehand diamond or femtosecond laser-assisted penetrating and intrastromal arcuate incisions. Freehand diamond blade, corneal arcuate incisions (180° apart, 60° arc lengths) and 150 kHz femtosecond laser (80% scheimpflug pachymetry depth corneal thickness) arcuate incisions were performed in rabbits. Intrastromal arcuate incisions (100 μm above Descemet's membrane, 100 μm below epithelium) were performed in rabbit corneas (energy 1.2 μJ, spot line separation 3 × 3 μm, 90° side cut angle). Eyes were examined by slit lamp and light microscopy up to 47 days post-procedure. Freehand diamond blade penetrating incisions, and femtosecond laser penetrating and intrastromal arcuate incisions (energy 1.8 μJ, spot line separation 2 × 2 μm) were performed in cadaver eyes. Optical coherence tomography was performed immediately after surgery and the corneas were fixed for light scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The rabbit model showed anterior stromal inflammation with epithelial hyperplasia in penetrating blade and laser penetrating wounds. The laser intrastromal and penetrating incisions showed localized constriction of the stromal layers of the cornea near the wound. In cadaver eyes, penetrating wound morphology was similar between blade and laser whereas intrastromal wounds did not affect the cornea above or below incisions. Penetrating femtosecond laser arcuate incisions have more predictable and controlled outcomes shown by less post-operative scarring than incisions performed with a diamond blade. Intrastromal incisions do not affect uncut corneal layers as demonstrated by histopathology. The femtosecond laser has significant advantages in its ability to make intrastromal incisions which are not achievable by traditional freehand or mechanical diamond blades.

  4. Quantitative wood–adhesive penetration with X-ray computed tomography

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

    Paris, Jesse L.; Kamke, Frederick A.

    Micro X-ray computed tomography (XCT) was used to analyze the 3D adhesive penetration behavior of different wood–adhesive bondlines. Three adhesives, a phenol formaldehyde (PF), a polymeric diphenylmethane diisocyanate (pMDI), and a hybrid polyvinyl acetate (PVA), all tagged with iodine for enhanced X-ray attenuation, were used to prepare single-bondline laminates in two softwoods, Douglas-fir and loblolly pine, and one hardwood, a hybrid polar. Adhesive penetration depth was measured with two separate calculations, and results were compared with 2D fluorescent micrographs. A total of 54 XCT scans were collected, representing six replicates of each treatment type; each replicate, however, consisted of approximatelymore » 1500 individual, cross-section slices stacked along the specimen length. As these adhesives were highly modified, the presented results do not indicate typical behavior for their broader adhesive classes. Still, clear penetration differences were observed between each adhesive type, and between wood species bonded with both the PF and pMDI adhesives. Furthermore, penetration results depended on the calculation method used. Two adhesive types with noticeably different resin distributions in the cured bondline, showed relatively similar penetration depths when calculated with a traditional effective penetration equation. However, when the same data was calculated with a weighted penetration calculation, which accounts for both adhesive area and depth, the results appeared to better represent the different distributions depicted in the photomicrographs and tomograms. Additionally, individual replicate comparisons showed variation due to specimen anatomy, not easily observed or interpreted from 2D images. Finally, 3D views of segmented 3D adhesive phases offered unique, in-situ views of the cured adhesive structures. In particular, voids formed by CO 2 bubbles generated during pMDI cure were clearly visible in penetrated columns of the solidified adhesive.« less

  5. Air quality impacts of projections of natural gas-fired distributed generation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Horne, Jeremy R.; Carreras-Sospedra, Marc; Dabdub, Donald; Lemar, Paul; Nopmongcol, Uarporn; Shah, Tejas; Yarwood, Greg; Young, David; Shaw, Stephanie L.; Knipping, Eladio M.

    2017-11-01

    This study assesses the potential impacts on emissions and air quality from the increased adoption of natural gas-fired distributed generation of electricity (DG), including displacement of power from central power generation, in the contiguous United States. The study includes four major tasks: (1) modeling of distributed generation market penetration; (2) modeling of central power generation systems; (3) modeling of spatially and temporally resolved emissions; and (4) photochemical grid modeling to evaluate the potential air quality impacts of increased DG penetration, which includes both power-only DG and combined heat and power (CHP) units, for 2030. Low and high DG penetration scenarios estimate the largest penetration of future DG units in three regions - New England, New York, and California. Projections of DG penetration in the contiguous United States estimate 6.3 GW and 24 GW of market adoption in 2030 for the low DG penetration and high DG penetration scenarios, respectively. High DG penetration (all of which is natural gas-fired) serves to offset 8 GW of new natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) units, and 19 GW of solar photovoltaic (PV) installations by 2030. In all scenarios, air quality in the central United States and the northwest remains unaffected as there is little to no DG penetration in those states. California and several states in the northeast are the most impacted by emissions from DG units. Peak increases in maximum daily 8-h average ozone concentrations exceed 5 ppb, which may impede attainment of ambient air quality standards. Overall, air quality impacts from DG vary greatly based on meteorological conditions, proximity to emissions sources, the number and type of DG installations, and the emissions factors used for DG units.

  6. Adsorption of lysozyme to phospholipid and meibomian lipid monolayer films.

    PubMed

    Mudgil, Poonam; Torres, Margaux; Millar, Thomas J

    2006-03-15

    It is believed that a lipid layer forms the outer layer of the pre-ocular tear film and this layer helps maintain tear film stability by lowering its surface tension. Proteins of the aqueous layer of the tear film (beneath the lipid layer) may also contribute to reducing surface tension by adsorbing to, or penetrating the lipid layer. The purpose of this study was to compare the penetration of lysozyme, a tear protein, into films of meibomian lipids and phospholipids held at different surface pressures to determine if lysozyme were part of the surface layer of the tear film. Films of meibomian lipids or phospholipids were spread onto the surface of a buffered aqueous subphase. Films were compressed to particular pressures and lysozyme was injected into the subphase. Changes in surface pressure were monitored to determine adsorption or penetration of lysozyme into the surface film. Lysozyme penetrated a meibomian lipid film at all pressures tested (max=20 mN/m). It also penetrated phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylserine or phosphatidylethanolamine lipid films up to a pressure of 20 mN/m. It was not able to penetrate a phosphatidylcholine film at pressures >or=10 mN/m irrespective of the temperature being at 20 or 37 degrees C. However, it was able to penetrate it at very low pressures (<10 mN/m). Epifluorescence microscopy showed that the protein either adsorbs to or penetrates the lipid layer and the pattern of mixing depended upon the lipid at the surface. These results indicate that lysozyme is present at the surface of the tear film where it contributes to decreasing the surface tension by adsorbing and penetrating the meibomian lipids. Thus it helps to stabilize the tear film.

  7. Depth of penetration of a 785nm wavelength laser in food powders

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chao, Kuanglin; Dhakal, Sagar; Qin, Jianwei; Kim, Moon S.; Peng, Yankun; Schmidt, Walter F.

    2015-05-01

    Raman spectroscopy is a useful, rapid, and non-destructive method for both qualitative and quantitative evaluation of chemical composition. However it is important to measure the depth of penetration of the laser light to ensure that chemical particles at the very bottom of a sample volume is detected by Raman system. The aim of this study was to investigate the penetration depth of a 785nm laser (maximum power output 400mw) into three different food powders, namely dry milk powder, corn starch, and wheat flour. The food powders were layered in 5 depths between 1 and 5 mm overtop a Petri dish packed with melamine. Melamine was used as the subsurface reference material for measurement because melamine exhibits known and identifiable Raman spectral peaks. Analysis of the sample spectra for characteristics of melamine and characteristics of milk, starch and flour allowed determination of the effective penetration depth of the laser light in the samples. Three laser intensities (100, 200 and 300mw) were used to study the effect of laser intensity to depth of penetration. It was observed that 785nm laser source was able to easily penetrate through every point in all three food samples types at 1mm depth. However, the number of points that the laser could penetrate decreased with increasing depth of the food powder. ANOVA test was carried out to study the significant effect of laser intensity to depth of penetration. It was observed that laser intensity significantly influences the depth of penetration. The outcome of this study will be used in our next phase of study to detect different chemical contaminants in food powders and develop quantitative analysis models for detection of chemical contaminants.

  8. Validation of a measuring technique with computed tomography for cement penetration into trabecular bone underneath the tibial tray in total knee arthroplasty on a cadaver model

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Background In total knee arthroplasty (TKA), cement penetration between 3 and 5 mm beneath the tibial tray is required to prevent loosening of the tibia component. The objective of this study was to develop and validate a reliable in vivo measuring technique using CT imaging to assess cement distribution and penetration depth in the total area underneath a tibia prosthesis. Methods We defined the radiodensity ranges for trabecular tibia bone, polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) cement and cement-penetrated trabecular bone and measured the percentages of cement penetration at various depths after cementing two tibia prostheses onto redundant femoral heads. One prosthesis was subsequently removed to examine the influence of the metal tibia prostheses on the quality of the CT images. The percentages of cement penetration in the CT slices were compared with percentages measured with photographs of the corresponding transversal slices. Results Trabecular bone and cement-penetrated trabecular bone had no overlap in quantitative scale of radio-density. There was no significant difference in mean HU values when measuring with or without the tibia prosthesis. The percentages of measured cement-penetrated trabecular bone in the CT slices of the specimen were within the range of percentages that could be expected based on the measurements with the photographs (p = 0.04). Conclusions CT scan images provide valid results in measuring the penetration and distribution of cement into trabecular bone underneath the tibia component of a TKA. Since the proposed method does not turn metal elements into artefacts, it enables clinicians to assess the width and density of the cement mantle in vivo and to compare the results of different cementing methods in TKA. PMID:25158996

  9. An efficient soil penetration strategy for explorative robots inspired by plant root circumnutation movements.

    PubMed

    Del Dottore, Emanuela; Mondini, Alessio; Sadeghi, Ali; Mattoli, Virgilio; Mazzolai, Barbara

    2017-12-22

    This paper presents a comparative analysis in terms of energy required by an artificial probe to penetrate soil implementing two different strategies: a straight penetration movement and a circumnutation, which is an oscillatory movement performed by plant roots. The role of circumnutations in plant roots is still debated. We hypothesized that circumnutation movements can help roots in penetrating soil, and validated our assumption by testing the probe at three distinct soil densities and using various combinations of circumnutation amplitudes and periods for each soil. The comparison was based on the total work done by the system while circumnutating at its tip level with respect to that shown by the same system in straight penetration. The total energy evaluation confirmed an improvement obtained by circumnutations up to 33%. We also proposed a fitting model for our experimental data that was used to estimate energy needed by the probe to penetrate soil at different dimensions and circumnutation amplitudes. Results showed the existence of a trade-off among penetration velocity, circumnutation period, and amplitude toward an energy consumption optimization, expressed by the lead angle of the helical path that should stay in the range between 46° and 65°. Moreover, circumnutations with appropriate amplitude (~10°) and period (~80 s) values were more efficient than straight penetration also at different probe tip dimensions, up to a threshold diameter (from 2 mm to 55 mm). Based on the obtained results, we speculated that circumnutations can represent a strategy used by plant roots to reduce the pressure and energy needed to penetrate soil. The translation of this biological feature in robotic systems will allow improving their energetic efficiency in digging tasks, and thus open new scenarios for use in search and rescue, environmental monitoring, and soil exploration.

  10. Comparison of penetration and metabolism of [3H]diacetoxyscirpenol, [3H]verrucarin A and [3H]T-2 toxin in skin.

    PubMed

    Kemppainen, B W; Riley, R T; Biles-Thurlow, S

    1987-05-01

    The purpose of this research was to determine the rate of cutaneous penetration and metabolism of [3H]diacetoxyscirpenol (DAS) and [3H]verrucarin A (VCA) and compare these values to previously determined values for [3H]T-2 toxin (T-2), to compare the cutaneous penetration and metabolism of DAS in human and guinea-pig skin, and to compare the effects of dose and of two vehicles, methanol and dimethylsulphoxide (DMSO), on penetration rates. DAS or VCA was applied to the epidermal surface of excised skin, and the receptor fluid bathing the dermal surface was sampled periodically for 48 hr. Whether the applied dose (581 ng/cm2) was dissolved in methanol or DMSO, the rate of penetration through human skin was lower for VCA than for DAS or T-2, the rates for the two latter compounds being similar at this dose. Metabolism of DAS occurred during penetration through excised human skin and did not occur in the receptor fluid as a result of enzymes leaching out of the skin. VCA appeared to be metabolized by human skin, but this conclusion is tentative because of the relative instability of this compound. DAS penetrated significantly (P less than 0.05) faster through excised guinea-pig skin than through human skin. Metabolism of DAS was greater in human skin than in guinea-pig skin. When compared with methanol, DMSO increased the penetration of DAS and VCA by factors of between 7 and 52. At the low dose (79 ng/cm2) DAS penetrated human and guinea-pig skin significantly (P less than 0.05) faster than T-2 using either vehicle.

  11. Managed care and the diffusion of intensity-modulated radiotherapy for prostate cancer.

    PubMed

    Jacobs, Bruce L; Zhang, Yun; Skolarus, Ted A; Wei, John T; Montie, James E; Schroeck, Florian R; Hollenbeck, Brent K

    2012-12-01

    To better understand associations between managed care penetration in health care markets and the adoption of intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT). We used Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results-Medicare data to identify men diagnosed with prostate cancer between 2001 and 2007 who were treated with radiotherapy (n = 55,162). We categorized managed care penetration in Health Service Areas (HSAs) as low (<3%), intermediate (3%-10%), and high (>10%), and assessed our main outcomes (ie, probability of IMRT adoption, which is the ability of a health care market to deliver IMRT, and IMRT utilization in HSA markets) using a Cox proportional hazards model and Poisson regression model, respectively. Compared with markets with low managed care penetration, populations in highly penetrated HSAs were more racially diverse (25% vs 15% non-white, P <.01), densely populated (2110 vs 145 people/square mile, P <.01), and wealthier (median income, $48,500 vs $31,900, P <.01). The probability of IMRT adoption was greatest in markets with the highest managed care penetration (eg, 0.82 [high] vs 0.72 [low] in 2007, P = .05). Among adopting markets, the use of IMRT increased in all HSA categories. However, relative to markets with low managed care penetration, IMRT use was constrained in markets with the highest penetration (0.69 [high] vs 0.76 [low] in 2007, P <.01). Markets with higher managed care penetration demonstrated a greater propensity for acquiring IMRT technology. However, after adopting IMRT, more highly penetrated markets had roughly 7% slower growth in IMRT use during the study period. These findings provide insight into the implications of delivery system reforms for cancer-related technologies. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Effect of photodynamic therapy and non-thermal plasma on root canal filling: analysis of adhesion and sealer penetration

    PubMed Central

    MENEZES, Marilia; PRADO, Maíra; GOMES, Brenda; GUSMAN, Heloisa; SIMÃO, Renata

    2017-01-01

    Abstract Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of photodynamic therapy (PDT) and non-thermal plasma (NTP) on adhesion and sealer penetration in root canals. Material and Methods Sixty single-rooted premolars were used. The teeth were prepared using a crown-down technique. NaOCl and EDTA were used for irrigation and smear layer removal, respectively. The root canals were divided into three groups: control, PDT, and NTP. After treatments, the roots were filled using gutta-percha and either AH Plus (AHP) or MTA Fillapex (MTAF) sealers. Samples were sectioned at 4, 8, and 12 mm from the apex (1-mm slices)and analyzed by the push-out bond strength test (adhesion) and confocal laser scanning microscopy (sealer penetration). Data were statistically evaluated using Kruskal-Wallis, Dunn’s, and Spearman’s tests. Results Regarding AHP, bond strength was similar in the NTP group and in the control group, but significantly lower in the PDT group. As to MTAF, both therapies showed lower values than the control group. In the confocal analysis of AHP, maximum and mean penetration, and penetrated area were statistically higher in the control group than in the PDT and NTP groups. Penetrated perimeter was similar among groups. Regarding MTAF, all parameters yielded better results in the NTP than in the control group. The PDT and control groups showed similar results except for penetrated area. Conclusion PDT and plasma therapy affected the adhesion and sealer penetration of root canals filled with AH Plus and MTA Fillapex and there is no positive correlation between adhesion and sealer penetration. PMID:28877278

  13. Prediction of Weld Penetration in FCAW of HSLA steel using Artificial Neural Networks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Asl, Y. Dadgar; Mostafa, N. B.; Panahizadeh R., V.; Seyedkashi, S. M. H.

    2011-01-01

    Flux-cored arc welding (FCAW) is a semiautomatic or automatic arc welding process that requires a continuously-fed consumable tubular electrode containing a flux. The main FCAW process parameters affecting the depth of penetration are welding current, arc voltage, nozzle-to-work distance, torch angle and welding speed. Shallow depth of penetration may contribute to failure of a welded structure since penetration determines the stress-carrying capacity of a welded joint. To avoid such occurrences; the welding process parameters influencing the weld penetration must be properly selected to obtain an acceptable weld penetration and hence a high quality joint. Artificial neural networks (ANN), also called neural networks (NN), are computational models used to express complex non-linear relationships between input and output data. In this paper, artificial neural network (ANN) method is used to predict the effects of welding current, arc voltage, nozzle-to-work distance, torch angle and welding speed on weld penetration depth in gas shielded FCAW of a grade of high strength low alloy steel. 32 experimental runs were carried out using the bead-on-plate welding technique. Weld penetrations were measured and on the basis of these 32 sets of experimental data, a feed-forward back-propagation neural network was created. 28 sets of the experiments were used as the training data and the remaining 4 sets were used for the testing phase of the network. The ANN has one hidden layer with eight neurons and is trained after 840 iterations. The comparison between the experimental results and ANN results showed that the trained network could predict the effects of the FCAW process parameters on weld penetration adequately.

  14. Magnetic Penetration Effects in Small Superconducting Devices

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Stevenson, T. R.; Adams, J. S.; Balvin, M. A.; Bandler, S. R.; Denis, K. L.; Hsieh, W.-T.; Kelly, D. P.; Nagler, P. C.; Porst, J.-P.; Sadleir, J. E.; hide

    2011-01-01

    The temperature dependent behavior of a superconducting body in an applied magnetic field involves flux penetration/expulsion both from screening currents (within a magnetic penetration depth) and variations in the superconducting order parameter (locally to form vortices or a mixed state, or globally in the Meissner effect). The temperature dependence of the magnetic penetration depth, in particular, has been used to make highly sensitive macroscopic thermometers. For the microscopic device volumes required in sensitive low temperature photon detectors, properties of actual thin film materials, non-uniformity of applied magnetic fields, and the influence of measurement circuit dynamics are complicating factors. We discuss the various penetration effects as demonstrated in a particularly promising combination of material and geometry that we have used to make sensitive x-ray microcalorimeters.

  15. A decoy chain deployment method based on SDN and NFV against penetration attack

    PubMed Central

    Zhao, Qi; Zhang, Chuanhao

    2017-01-01

    Penetration attacks are one of the most serious network security threats. However, existing network defense technologies do not have the ability to entirely block the penetration behavior of intruders. Therefore, the network needs additional defenses. In this paper, a decoy chain deployment (DCD) method based on SDN+NFV is proposed to address this problem. This method considers about the security status of networks, and deploys decoy chains with the resource constraints. DCD changes the attack surface of the network and makes it difficult for intruders to discern the current state of the network. Simulation experiments and analyses show that DCD can effectively resist penetration attacks by increasing the time cost and complexity of a penetration attack. PMID:29216257

  16. A decoy chain deployment method based on SDN and NFV against penetration attack.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Qi; Zhang, Chuanhao; Zhao, Zheng

    2017-01-01

    Penetration attacks are one of the most serious network security threats. However, existing network defense technologies do not have the ability to entirely block the penetration behavior of intruders. Therefore, the network needs additional defenses. In this paper, a decoy chain deployment (DCD) method based on SDN+NFV is proposed to address this problem. This method considers about the security status of networks, and deploys decoy chains with the resource constraints. DCD changes the attack surface of the network and makes it difficult for intruders to discern the current state of the network. Simulation experiments and analyses show that DCD can effectively resist penetration attacks by increasing the time cost and complexity of a penetration attack.

  17. The effects of HMO ownership on hospital costs and revenues: is there a difference between for-profit and nonprofit plans?

    PubMed

    Shen, Yu-Chu; Melnick, Glenn

    2004-01-01

    We conducted multivariate analyses to examine whether high health maintenance organization (HMO) penetration and large share of for-profit health plans in a market reduced hospital cost and revenue growth rates between 1989 and 1998. We found that hospitals in high HMO areas experienced revenue and cost growth rates that were 21 and 18 percentage points, respectively, below hospitals in low HMO areas. We also found that, conditional on overall HMO penetration level, hospitals in areas with high for-profit HMO penetration experienced revenue and cost growth rates that were 10 percentage points below hospitals in areas with low for-profit penetration areas; the difference was especially evident within high HMO penetration areas.

  18. Penetration boundary of solar cosmic rays into the earth's magnetosphere during magnetically quiet times

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

    Biryukov, A.S.; Ivanova, T.A.; Kovrygina, L.M.

    1984-05-01

    Data is used from the satellites Interkosmos-17 and Kosmos-900 to determine penetration boundaries at high latitudes in the earth's magnetosphere. Considered are the results of observations of the penetration boundary of solar cosmic ray (SCR) protons and electrons during an SCR increase on November 22-25, 1977. The position of the SCR penetration boundary during a single increase at practically all values of MLT in quiet conditions is examined. Magnetospheric structure is determined in the region of closed drift shells where the magnetic field is asymmetric. The authors can estimate how the solar wind pressure affects the magnetosphere by using datamore » on the penetration boundaries of solar protons obtained during quiet geomagnetic conditions.« less

  19. Dermal in vitro penetration of methiocarb, paclobutrazol, and pirimicarb: effect of nonylphenolethoxylate and protective gloves.

    PubMed Central

    Nielsen, J B; Andersen, H R

    2001-01-01

    Dermal exposure has become the major route of human occupational exposure to pesticides. Detergents are used as part of formulated pesticide products and are known to change the barrier properties of human skin in vitro. However, studies on the influence of detergents as well as protective glove materials on dermal penetration of pesticides are scarce. In an experiment using in vitro static diffusion cells mounted with human skin, we evaluated the effect of nonylphenol-ethoxylate on dermal penetration of three extensively used pesticides--methiocarb, paclobutrazol, and pirimicarb--and the protection against dermal penetration offered by protective gloves made of latex or nitrile. There was a general tendency, though not statistically significant for all pesticides, for nonylphenolethoxylate to decrease the percutaneous penetration of the three pesticides. The nitrile generally offered better protection against percutaneous penetration of pesticides than did latex, but the degree of protection decreased over time and depended on the pesticides used. PMID:11266321

  20. Microstructure and Porosity of Laser-welded Dissimilar Material Joints of HR-2 and J75

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shen, Xianfeng; Teng, Wenhua; Zhao, Shuming; He, Wenpei

    Dissimilar laser welding of HR-2 and J75 has a wide range of applications in high-and low-temperature hydrogen storage. The porosity distributions of the welded joints were investigated at different line energies, penetration status, and welding positions (1G, 2G, and 3G). The effect of the welding position on the welding appearance was evident only at high line energies because of the essential effect of gravity of the larger and longer dwelling molten pool. The porosity of the welded joints between the solutionised and aged J75 and HR-2 at the 3G position and partial penetration was located at the weld centre line, while the porosity at the 2G position with full penetration was distributed at the weld edges, which is consistent with the distribution of floating slag. Full keyhole penetration resulted in minimum porosity, partial penetration resulted in moderate porosity, and periodic molten pool penetration resulted in maximum porosity.

  1. Pharmaceutical penetration of new drug and pharmaceutical market structure in Taiwan: hospital-level prescription of thiazolidinediones for diabetes.

    PubMed

    Tsai, Yi-Wen; Wen, Yu-Wen; Huang, Weng-Foung; Kuo, Ken N; Chen, Pei-Fen; Shih, Hsin-Wei; Lee, Yue-Chune

    2010-06-01

    This study used Taiwan's National Health Insurance claim database (years 2000-2005) to examine how thiazolidinediones (TZD), a new class of drugs for diabetes, penetrated into Taiwan's hospitals, and its association with the concentration of all diabetes drugs at the hospital level. We collected 72 monthly summaries of diabetes prescriptions from all hospitals in Taiwan. Hospital-level pharmaceutical concentration was measured by penetration of TZD, defined as monthly market share of TZD in each hospital. Concentration of diabetes drugs was measured by Herfindahl-Hirschman indices. We found a negative association (coefficient = -0.3610) between TZD penetration and concentration of diabetes drug but a positive association between penetration of TZD and the volume of prescribed diabetes drugs (coefficient = 0.4088). In conclusion, hospital characteristics and volume of services determined the concentration of pharmaceuticals at the institution level, reflecting the heterogeneous competition between pharmaceutical companies within each hospital. Institution-level pharmaceutical concentration influences the adoption and penetration of new drugs.

  2. Microleakage and penetration depth of different fissure sealant materials after cyclic thermo-mechanic and brushing simulation.

    PubMed

    Hatirli, Hüseyin; Yasa, Bilal; Yasa, Elif

    2018-01-30

    The aim of the study was to evaluate microleakage and the penetration-depths of different fissure-sealant materials applied with/without enameloplasty after cyclic aging. One-hundred-sixty mandibular molars were divided into non-invasive and enameloplasty preparation groups and eight material subgroups, including: flowable composites (microhyrid, nanohybrid, and nanofilled), three resin-based (unfilled, filled, and highly-filled), a giomer-based, and a glass-ionomer-based fissure sealant. Specimens were subjected to two-year cyclic chewing and brushing simulation. After 5% basic-fuchsin dye penetration, specimens were sectioned and scored under stereomicroscope. Kruskal-Wallis statistical data showed that preparation type significantly affected the penetration of all tested materials (p<0.05), but not significantly affected microleakage (p>0.05). Flowable composites showed the best and the glass-ionomer-based sealant showed the worst penetration and microleakage. Slight preparation of fissures is not important in microleakage. However, enameloplasty significantly enhanced the depth of penetration of the sealants. Flowable composites offer promising results at the fissure sealing.

  3. Field measurement of penetrator seismic coupling in sediments and volcanic rocks

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nakamura, Y.; Latham, G. V.; Frohlich, C.

    1979-01-01

    Field experiments were conducted to determine experimentally how well a seismometer installed using a penetrator would be coupled to the ground. A dry lake bed and a lava bed were chosen as test sites to represent geological environments of two widely different material properties. At each site, two half-scale penetrators were fired into the ground, a three-component geophone assembly was mounted to the aft end of each penetrator, and dummy penetrators were fired at various distances to generate seismic signals. The recorded signals were digitized, and cross-spectral analyses were performed to compare the observed signals in terms of power spectral density ratio, coherence and phase difference. The analyses indicate that seismometers deployed by penetrators will be as well coupled to the ground as are seismometers installed by conventional methods for the frequency range of interest in earthquake seismology, although some minor differences were observed at frequencies near the upper limit of the frequency band.

  4. Penetration of ASM 981 in canine skin: a comparative study.

    PubMed

    Gutzwiller, Meret E Ricklin; Reist, Martin; Persohn, Elke; Peel, John E; Roosje, Petra J

    2006-01-01

    ASM 981 has been developed for topical treatment of inflammatory skin diseases. It specifically inhibits the production and release of pro-inflammatory cytokines. We measured the skin penetration of ASM 981 in canine skin and compared penetration in living and frozen skin. To make penetration of ASM 981 visible in dog skin, tritium labelled ASM 981 was applied to a living dog and to defrosted skin of the same dog. Using qualitative autoradiography the radioactive molecules were detected in the lumen of the hair follicles until the infundibulum, around the superficial parts of the hair follicles and into a depth of the dermis of 200 to 500 microm. Activity could not be found in deeper parts of the hair follicles, the dermis or in the sebaceous glands. Penetration of ASM 981 is low in canine skin and is only equally spread in the upper third of the dermis 24 hours after application. Penetration in frozen skin takes even longer than in living canine skin but shows the same distribution.

  5. HMO penetration and quality of care: the case of breast cancer.

    PubMed

    Decker, S L; Hempstead, K

    1999-01-01

    In theory, health maintenance organizations (HMOs) receiving a fixed payment rate per enrolled member have an incentive to coordinate services and emphasize prevention and early detection of disease in order to minimize costs of care. This article tests whether higher HMO penetration rates across counties in the United States and across time improve the use of mammography services, the chance of early rather than late detection of breast cancer, and ultimately improve breast cancer survival. We use two data sets to test the effect of HMO penetration on use of breast cancer services and on breast cancer health outcomes for women aged 55 to 64 years. These data sources are matched with county-level data on HMO penetration and other market variables from the Bureau of Health Profession's Area Resource File. Results of logit regression show evidence that HMO penetration positively affects the probability of recent mammography receipt. However, we do not find a statistically significant relationship between HMO penetration and either stage of diagnosis or breast cancer survival.

  6. Weld pool oscillation during GTA welding of mild steel

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

    Xiao, Y.H.; Ouden, G. den

    1993-08-01

    In this paper the results are reported of a study dealing with the oscillation behavior of weld pools in the case of GTA bead-on-plate welding of mild steel, Fe 360. During welding, the weld pool was brought into oscillation by applying short current pulses, and the oscillation frequency and amplitude were measured by monitoring the arc voltage. It was found that the oscillation of the partially penetrated weld pool is dominated by one of two different oscillation modes (Mode 1 and Mode 2) depending on the welding conditions, whereas the oscillation of the fully penetrated weld pool is characterized bymore » a third oscillation mode (Mode 3). It is possible to maintain partially penetrated weld pool oscillation in Mode 1 by choosing appropriate welding conditions. Under these conditions, an abrupt decrease in oscillation frequency occurs when the weld pool transfers from partial penetration to full penetration. Thus, weld penetration can be in-process controlled by monitoring the oscillation frequency during welding.« less

  7. Optical microangiography reveals collateral blood perfusion dynamics in mouse cerebral cortex after focal stroke

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Baran, Utku; Li, Yuandong; Wang, Ruikang K.

    2015-03-01

    Arteriolo-arteriolar anastomosis's role in regulating blood perfusion through penetrating arterioles during stroke is yet to be discovered. We apply ultra-high sensitive optical microangiography (UHS-OMAG) and Doppler optical microangiography (DOMAG) techniques to evaluate vessel diameter and red blood cell velocity changes in large number of pial and penetrating arterioles in relation with arteriolo-arteriolar anastomosis (AAA) during and after focal stroke. Thanks to the high sensitivity of UHS-OMAG, we were able to image pial microvasculature up to capillary level through a cranial window (9 mm2), and DOMAG provided clear image of penetrating arterioles up to 500μm depth. Results showed that penetrating arterioles close to a strong AAA connection dilate whereas penetrating arterioles constrict significantly in weaker AAA regions. These results suggest that AAA plays a major role in active regulation of the pial arterioles, and weaker AAA connections lead to poor blood perfusion to penumbra through penetrating arterioles.

  8. Forces required for a knife to penetrate a variety of clothing types.

    PubMed

    Nolan, Gary; Hainsworth, Sarah V; Rutty, Guy N

    2013-03-01

    In stabbing incidents, it is usual for the victim to be clothed and therefore a knife penetrates both clothes and skin. Clothes (other than leather) have been thought to make little difference to the penetration force. However, there is little quantitative data in the literature. In this study, a range of clothes have been tested, either singly or in layers of, for example, T-shirt and shirt, to quantify the additional force required when clothes are present. A materials testing system has been used to test the penetration force required to stab through clothes into a foam-silicone rubber skin simulant. The results show that the force required can be significantly different, particularly when layers of clothing are penetrated. A cotton t-shirt adds c. 8 N to the penetration force, while a T-shirt and jacket can add an additional 21 N. The results allow a more quantitative assessment of forces required in stabbing. © 2012 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

  9. Sunlight penetration through the Martian polar caps: Effects on the thermal and frost budgets

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lindner, Bernhard Lee

    1992-01-01

    An energy balance model of the seasonal polar caps on Mars is modified to include penetration of solar radiation into and through the ice. Penetration of solar radiation has no effect on subsurface temperature or total frost sublimation if seasonal ice overlies a dust surface. An effect is noted for seasonal ice which overlies the residual polar caps. For the case of an exposed water-ice residual polar cap, the temperature at depth is calculated to be up to several degrees warmer and the calculated lifetime of seasonal CO2 frost is slightly lower when penetration of sunlight is properly treated in the model. For the case of a residual polar cap which is perennially covered by CO2 frost, the calculated lifetime of seasonal CO2 frost is very slightly increased as a result of sunlight penetration through the ice. Hence, penetration of sunlight into the ice helps to stabilize the observed dichotomy in the residual polar caps on Mars, although it is a small effect.

  10. Sunlight penetration through the Martian polar caps - Effects on the thermal and frost budgets

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lindner, Bernhard L.

    1992-01-01

    An energy balance model of the seasonal polar caps on Mars is modified to include penetration of solar radiation into and through the ice. Penetration of solar radiation has no effect on subsurface temperature or total frost sublimation if seasonal ice overlies a dust surface. An effect is noted for seasonal ice which overlies the residual polar caps. For the case of an exposed water-ice residual polar cap, the temperature at depth is calculated to be up to several degrees warmer, and the calculated lifetime of seasonal CO2 frost is slightly lower when penetration of sunlight is properly treated in the model. For the case of a residual polar cap which is perennially covered by CO2 frost, the calculated lifetime of seasonal CO2 frost is very slightly increased as a result of sunlight penetration through the ice. Hence, penetration of sunlight into the ice helps to stabilize the observed dichotomy in the residual polar caps on Mars, although it is a small effect.

  11. The Current Status of the Japanese Penetrator Mission: LUNAR-A

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tanaka, S.; Shiraishi, H.; Fujimura, A.; Hayakawa, H.

    The scientific objective of the LUNAR-A, Japanese Penetrator Mission, is to explore the lunar interior by seismic and heat-flow experiments. Two penetrators containing two seismometers (horizontal and vertical components) and heat-flow probes will be deployed from a spacecraft onto the lunar surface, one on the nearside and the other on the farside of the moon. The final impact velocity of the penetrator will be about 300m/sec; it will encounter a shock of about 8000 G at impact on the lunar surface. According to numerous experimental impact tests using model penetrators and a lunar regolith analog target, each penetrator is predicted to penetrate to a depth of 1 to 3 m. The data obtained by the penetrators will be transmitted to the earth station via the LUNAR-A mother spacecraft orbiting at an altitude of about 200 km. The penetrator is a missile-shaped instrument carrier, which is about 14cm in diameter, 75cm in length, and about 14kg in weight without attitude control system. It contains a two-component seismometer and heat flow probes together with other supporting instruments such as a tilt meter and an accelerometer. The seismic observations are expected to provide key data on the size of the lunar core, as well as data on deep lunar mantle structure. The heat flow measurements at two penetrator deployment sites will also provide important data on the thermal structure and bulk concentrations of heat-generating elements in the Moon. These data will provide much stronger geophysical constraints on the origin and evolution of the Moon than has been obtained so far. The LUNAR-A spacecraft was supposed to be launched in the summer of 2004, but it was postponed due to the necessity of a replacement of the valves used in the RCS propulsion system of the spacecraft, following a recall issued by the manufacturer who found a malfunction of similar valves. Then, the technological review boards by ISAS and JAXA recommended that both the more robustness of the communication link, between the penetrator and the orbiting spacecraft, and the improvement of data processing unit onboard penetrator should be made. And also, in compliance with the recommendation by the external review board, we have made a decision to suspend a development of LUNAR-A spacecraft and to concentrate on the completion of the penetrator technology. To solve the above technological issues, it was estimated to take a couple of years. In this paper, we present the current status of development and some results of the impact tests for component level models and for the full-size integrated model, which both are modified and re-designed.

  12. Prediction of cell penetrating peptides by support vector machines.

    PubMed

    Sanders, William S; Johnston, C Ian; Bridges, Susan M; Burgess, Shane C; Willeford, Kenneth O

    2011-07-01

    Cell penetrating peptides (CPPs) are those peptides that can transverse cell membranes to enter cells. Once inside the cell, different CPPs can localize to different cellular components and perform different roles. Some generate pore-forming complexes resulting in the destruction of cells while others localize to various organelles. Use of machine learning methods to predict potential new CPPs will enable more rapid screening for applications such as drug delivery. We have investigated the influence of the composition of training datasets on the ability to classify peptides as cell penetrating using support vector machines (SVMs). We identified 111 known CPPs and 34 known non-penetrating peptides from the literature and commercial vendors and used several approaches to build training data sets for the classifiers. Features were calculated from the datasets using a set of basic biochemical properties combined with features from the literature determined to be relevant in the prediction of CPPs. Our results using different training datasets confirm the importance of a balanced training set with approximately equal number of positive and negative examples. The SVM based classifiers have greater classification accuracy than previously reported methods for the prediction of CPPs, and because they use primary biochemical properties of the peptides as features, these classifiers provide insight into the properties needed for cell-penetration. To confirm our SVM classifications, a subset of peptides classified as either penetrating or non-penetrating was selected for synthesis and experimental validation. Of the synthesized peptides predicted to be CPPs, 100% of these peptides were shown to be penetrating.

  13. Analysis of 178 penetrating stomach and small bowel injuries.

    PubMed

    Salim, Ali; Teixeira, Pedro G R; Inaba, Kenji; Brown, Carlos; Browder, Timothy; Demetriades, Demetrios

    2008-03-01

    Surgical site infections (SSIs), such as wound infection, fascial dehiscence, and intraabdominal abscess, commonly occur following penetrating abdominal trauma. However, most of the literature involves penetrating colon injuries. There are few reports describing complications following penetrating stomach and small bowel injuries. Based on the hypothesis that SSIs are commonly found following penetrating stomach and small bowel trauma, a prospective observational study was performed at an academic Level I trauma center from March 1, 2004 until August 31, 2006. The subjects were patients who had sustained a penetrating injury to the stomach or small bowel. Patients were followed for the development of an SSI, defined as wound infection, fascial dehiscence, or intraabdominal abscess. A total of 178 patients were admitted with penetrating stomach or small bowel injuries over the 29-month period. There were 121 (68%) gunshot injuries and 57 (32%) stab wounds. Associated intraabdominal injuries occurred in 74% of patients. Overall, SSIs occurred in 20% of cases. Risk factors for SSI included associated duodenal or colon injury, whereas time to operating room, blood loss, and type and duration of antibiotic use were not. When associated colon injuries were excluded, SSIs occurred in 16% of patients with gastric injuries and 13% of those with small bowel injuries. SSIs commonly follow penetrating stomach and small bowel trauma. Risk factors for SSI include associated duodenal or colon injury. Delay to operating room, blood loss, and type and length of antibiotic prophylaxis were not associated with an increased risk of SSI.

  14. Microorganism penetration in dentinal tubules of instrumented and retreated root canal walls. In vitro SEM study

    PubMed Central

    Al-Sulaiman, Alaa; Al-Rasheed, Fellwa; Alnajjar, Fatimah; Al-Abdulwahab, Bander; Al-Badah, Abdulhakeem

    2014-01-01

    Objectives This in vitro study aimed to investigate the ability of Candida albicans (C. albicans) and Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis) to penetrate dentinal tubules of instrumented and retreated root canal surface of split human teeth. Materials and Methods Sixty intact extracted human single-rooted teeth were divided into 4 groups, negative control, positive control without canal instrumentation, instrumented, and retreated. Root canals in the instrumented group were enlarged with endodontic instruments, while root canals in the retreated group were enlarged, filled, and then removed the canal filling materials. The teeth were split longitudinally after canal preparation in 3 groups except the negative control group. The teeth were inoculated with both microorganisms separately and in combination. Teeth specimens were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the depth of penetration into the dentinal tubules was assessed using the SMILE view software (JEOL Ltd). Results Penetration of C. albicans and E. faecalis into the dentinal tubules was observed in all 3 groups, although penetration was partially restricted by dentin debris of tubules in the instrumented group and remnants of canal filling materials in the retreated group. In all 3 groups, E. faecalis penetrated deeper into the dentinal tubules by way of cell division than C. albicans which built colonies and penetrated by means of hyphae. Conclusions Microorganisms can easily penetrate dentinal tubules of root canals with different appearance based on the microorganism size and status of dentinal tubules. PMID:25383343

  15. Palatability and Preference of Gummi Formulations with Various Pharmaceutical Characteristics.

    PubMed

    Nakagaki, Fumiaki; Uchida, Shinya; Tanaka, Shimako; Namiki, Noriyuki

    2018-01-01

    This study aimed to elucidate the appropriate physical characteristics that are clinically acceptable for gummi formulations. We prepared 11 placebo gummi formulations containing different amounts of gelatin and water and evaluated their penetration and restitution using a penetrometer and rheometer, respectively. Clinical sensory tests in 16 healthy volunteers (age, 23.4±0.9 years, mean±standard deviation) were conducted on the placebo gummi formulations using the visual analog scale (VAS) score to evaluate elasticity, hardness, and overall palatability, with a 5-point rating scale of preference. The penetration increased with decreasing amounts of gelatin or increasing amounts of water in the gummi formulations. Similarly, the VAS score of elasticity and hardness from the clinical sensory tests increased with increasing amounts of gelatin but decreased with increasing amounts of water. The relationship between the penetration and VAS scores of elasticity and hardness revealed good linear correlations. This suggests that the penetration was well reflected by the hardness results of the clinical VAS scores. The overall palatability evaluated using the VAS score increased until the penetration was 10 mm and then plateaued at >10 mm penetration. The 5-point rating score for preference revealed that >50% of volunteers "prefer" the gummi formulations with penetration values of 9.8 to 13.5 mm. These results suggest that gummi formulations likely have an appropriate window of hardness. Furthermore, appropriate gummi formulations with clinically preferred physical characteristics could be prepared by adjusting the amount of gelatin and water and measuring their penetration.

  16. Costs and Clinical Quality Among Medicare Beneficiaries: Associations with Health Center Penetration of Low-Income Residents

    PubMed Central

    Sharma, Ravi; Lebrun-Harris, Lydie A.; Ngo-Metzger, Quyen

    2014-01-01

    Objective Determine the association between access to primary care by the underserved and Medicare spending and clinical quality across hospital referral regions (HRRs). Data Sources Data on elderly fee-for-service beneficiaries across 306 HRRs came from CMS’ Geographic Variation in Medicare Spending and Utilization database (2010). We merged data on number of health center patients (HRSA’s Uniform Data System) and number of low-income residents (American Community Survey). Study Design We estimated access to primary care in each HRR by “health center penetration” (health center patients as a proportion of low-income residents). We calculated total Medicare spending (adjusted for population size, local input prices, and health risk). We assessed clinical quality by preventable hospital admissions, hospital readmissions, and emergency department visits. We sorted HRRs by health center penetration rate and compared spending and quality measures between the high- and low-penetration deciles. We also employed linear regressions to estimate spending and quality measures as a function of health center penetration. Principal Findings The high-penetration decile had 9.7% lower Medicare spending ($926 per capita, p=0.01) than the low-penetration decile, and no different clinical quality outcomes. Conclusions Compared with elderly fee-for-service beneficiaries residing in areas with low-penetration of health center patients among low-income residents, those residing in high-penetration areas may accrue Medicare cost savings. Limited evidence suggests that these savings do not compromise clinical quality. PMID:25243096

  17. The Effect and Mechanism of Transdermal Penetration Enhancement of Fu's Cupping Therapy: New Physical Penetration Technology for Transdermal Administration with Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Characteristics.

    PubMed

    Xie, Wei-Jie; Zhang, Yong-Ping; Xu, Jian; Sun, Xiao-Bo; Yang, Fang-Fang

    2017-03-27

    In this paper, a new type of physical penetration technology for transdermal administration with traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) characteristics is presented. Fu's cupping therapy (FCT), was established and studied using in vitro and in vivo experiments and the penetration effect and mechanism of FCT physical penetration technology was preliminarily discussed. With 1-(4-chlorobenzoyl)-5-methoxy-2-methylindole-3-ylacetic acid (indomethacin, IM) as a model drug, the establishment of high, medium, and low references was completed for the chemical permeation system via in vitro transdermal tests. Furthermore, using chemical penetration enhancers (CPEs) and iontophoresis as references, the percutaneous penetration effect of FCT for IM patches was evaluated using seven species of in vitro diffusion kinetics models and in vitro drug distribution; the IM quantitative analysis method in vivo was established using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry technology (UPLC-MS/MS), and pharmacokinetic parameters: area under the zero and first moment curves from 0 to last time t (AUC 0-t , AUMC 0-t ), area under the zero and first moment curves from 0 to infinity (AUC 0-∞ , AUMC 0-∞ ), maximum plasma concentration (C max ) and mean residence time (MRT), were used as indicators to evaluate the percutaneous penetration effect of FCT in vivo. Additionally, we used the 3 K factorial design to study the joint synergistic penetration effect on FCT and chemical penetration enhancers. Through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM) imaging, micro- and ultrastructural changes on the surface of the stratum corneum (SC) were observed to explore the FCT penetration mechanism. In vitro and in vivo skin permeation experiments revealed that both the total cumulative percutaneous amount and in vivo percutaneous absorption amount of IM using FCT were greater than the amount using CPEs and iontophoresis. Firstly, compared with the control group, the indomethacin skin percutaneous rate of the FCT low-intensity group (FCTL) was 35.52%, and the enhancement ratio (ER) at 9 h was 1.76X, roughly equivalent to the penetration enhancing effect of the CPEs and iontophoresis. Secondly, the indomethacin percutaneous ratio of the FCT middle-intensity group (FCTM) and FCT high-intensity group (FCTH) were 47.36% and 54.58%, respectively, while the ERs at 9 h were 3.58X and 8.39X, respectively. Thirdly, pharmacokinetic data showed that in vivo indomethacin percutaneous absorption of the FCT was much higher than that of the control, that of the FCTM was slightly higher than that of the CPE, and that of the FCTM group was significantly higher than all others. Meanwhile, variance analysis indicated that the combination of the FCT penetration enhancement method and the CPE method had beneficial effects in enhancing skin penetration: the significance level of the CPE method was 0.0004, which was lower than 0.001, meaning the difference was markedly significant; the significance level of the FCT was also below 0.0001 and its difference markedly significant. The significance level of factor interaction A × B was lower than 0.0001, indicating that the difference in synergism was markedly significant. Moreover, SEM and TEM images showed that the SC surfaces of Sprague-Dawley rats treated with FCT were damaged, and it was difficult to observe the complete surface structure, with SC pores growing larger and its special "brick structure" becoming looser. This indicated that the barrier function of the skin was broken, thus revealing a potentially major route of skin penetration. FCT, as a new form of transdermal penetration technology, has significant penetration effects with TCM characteristics and is of high clinical value. It is worth promoting its development.

  18. 46 CFR 174.225 - Hull penetrations and shell connections.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 46 Shipping 7 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Hull penetrations and shell connections. 174.225 Section 174.225 Shipping COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY (CONTINUED) SUBDIVISION AND STABILITY... § 174.225 Hull penetrations and shell connections. Each overboard discharge and shell connection except...

  19. 46 CFR 174.225 - Hull penetrations and shell connections.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 46 Shipping 7 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Hull penetrations and shell connections. 174.225 Section 174.225 Shipping COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY (CONTINUED) SUBDIVISION AND STABILITY... § 174.225 Hull penetrations and shell connections. Each overboard discharge and shell connection except...

  20. Mars penetrator umbilical. [to study geophysical properties of Mars

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Barns, C. E.

    1979-01-01

    The device proposed to gather subsurface data on the planet Mars is a ballistic probe which penetrates the soil after a free fall through the Martian atmosphere. Highlights of the design, development, and testing of several features of the Mars Surface Penetration Probe are outlined.

  1. 47 CFR 15.509 - Technical requirements for ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 1 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Technical requirements for ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems. 15.509 Section 15.509 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS... ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems. (a) The UWB bandwidth of an imaging system operating...

  2. 47 CFR 15.509 - Technical requirements for ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 1 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Technical requirements for ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems. 15.509 Section 15.509 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS... ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems. (a) The UWB bandwidth of an imaging system operating...

  3. 47 CFR 15.509 - Technical requirements for ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 1 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Technical requirements for ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems. 15.509 Section 15.509 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS... ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems. (a) The UWB bandwidth of an imaging system operating...

  4. 47 CFR 15.509 - Technical requirements for ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 1 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Technical requirements for ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems. 15.509 Section 15.509 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS... ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems. (a) The UWB bandwidth of an imaging system operating...

  5. 47 CFR 15.509 - Technical requirements for ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Technical requirements for ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems. 15.509 Section 15.509 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS... ground penetrating radars and wall imaging systems. (a) The UWB bandwidth of an imaging system operating...

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

    Canavan, G.H.

    The optimal allocation of space-based interceptors (SBIs) between fixed, heavy missiles and mobile singlets can be derived from approximate expressions for the boost-phase penetration of each. Singlets can cluster before launch and have shorter burn times, which reduce their availability to SBIs by an order of magnitude. Singlet penetration decreased slowly with the number of SBIs allocated to them; heavy missile penetration falls rapidly. The allocation to the heavy missiles falls linearly with their number. The penetration of heavy and singlet missiles is proportional to their numbers and inversely proportional to their availability. 8 refs., 2 figs.

  7. Effect of neoclassical toroidal viscosity on error-field penetration thresholds in tokamak plasmas.

    PubMed

    Cole, A J; Hegna, C C; Callen, J D

    2007-08-10

    A model for field-error penetration is developed that includes nonresonant as well as the usual resonant field-error effects. The nonresonant components cause a neoclassical toroidal viscous torque that keeps the plasma rotating at a rate comparable to the ion diamagnetic frequency. The new theory is used to examine resonant error-field penetration threshold scaling in Ohmic tokamak plasmas. Compared to previous theoretical results, we find the plasma is less susceptible to error-field penetration and locking, by a factor that depends on the nonresonant error-field amplitude.

  8. Requirements and capabilities for planetary missions. Volume 2: Mars polar orbiter penetrator 1981

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ball, G. G.; Bird, T. H.

    1976-01-01

    The Mars Polar Orbiter/Penetrator 1981 mission, intended to investigate the manner in which Mars has evolved, and which surveys its geochemistry, performs climatological investigations, and attempts to determine the planet's gravitational field, was described. The spacecraft, modified from the Viking Orbiter design, carries a new remote-sensing payload and six penetrators. The penetrators are released from a 2.46-h, 1000-km sun synchronous circular orbit and interrogated daily throughout the 2-year orbital mission. X-band telemetry is used to increase data return.

  9. Space Debris Surfaces - Probability of no penetration versus impact velocity and obliquity

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Elfer, N.; Meibaum, R.; Olsen, G.

    1992-01-01

    A collection of computer codes called Space Debris Surfaces (SD-SURF), have been developed to assist in the design and analysis of space debris protection systems. An SD-SURF analysis will show which obliquities and velocities are most likely to cause a penetration to help the analyst select a shield design best suited to the predominant penetration mechanism. Examples of the interaction between space vehicle geometry, the space debris environment, and the penetration and critical damage ballistic limit surfaces of the shield under consideration are presented.

  10. An international perspective on Facebook intrusion.

    PubMed

    Błachnio, Agata; Przepiorka, Aneta; Benvenuti, Martina; Cannata, Davide; Ciobanu, Adela Magdalena; Senol-Durak, Emre; Durak, Mithat; Giannakos, Michail N; Mazzoni, Elvis; Pappas, Ilias O; Popa, Camelia; Seidman, Gwendolyn; Yu, Shu; Wu, Anise M S; Ben-Ezra, Menachem

    2016-08-30

    Facebook has become one of the most popular social networking websites in the world. The main aim of the study was to present an international comparison of Facebook intrusion and Internet penetration while examining possible gender differences. The study consisted of 2589 participants from eight countries: China, Greece, Israel, Italy, Poland, Romania, Turkey, USA. Facebook intrusion and Internet penetration were taken into consideration. In this study the relationship between Facebook intrusion and Internet penetration was demonstrated. Facebook intrusion was slightly negatively related to Internet penetration in each country. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  11. Rapid Treatment of Subungual Onychomycosis Using Controlled Micro Nail Penetration and Terbinafine Solution.

    PubMed

    Bristow, Ivan; Baran, Robert; Score, Michelle

    2016-08-01

    Onychomycosis continues to be a common and intractable problem in adults, often responding poorly to topical treatment due to limited drug penetration of the nail plate. Improving penetration has been attempted previously by chemical and physical means with some success. The authors present three cases of toenail onychomycosis treated topical terbinafine 1% solution using controlled micro-penetration of the nail using a novel intelligent nail drill system which is able to drill nail plate without penetrating the delicate nail bed beneath. The cases illustrate how the device has been successfully employed to deliver the anti-fungal drug directly and rapidly to the site of infection with minimal side effects or complications, whilst maintaining the nail integrity.

    J Drugs Dermatol. 2016;15(8):974-978.

  12. Space station integrated wall design and penetration damage control

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Coronado, A. R.; Gibbins, M. N.; Wright, M. A.; Stern, P. H.

    1987-01-01

    A methodology was developed to allow a designer to optimize the pressure wall, insulation, and meteoroid/debris shield system of a manned spacecraft for a given spacecraft configuration and threat environment. The threat environment consists of meteoroids and orbital debris, as specified for an arbitrary orbit and expected lifetime. An overall probability of no penetration is calculated, as well as contours of equal threat that take into account spacecraft geometry and orientation. Techniques, tools, and procedures for repairing an impacted and penetrated pressure wall were developed and tested. These techniques are applied from the spacecraft interior and account for the possibility of performing the repair in a vacuum. Hypervelocity impact testing was conducted to: (1) develop and refine appropriate penetration functions, and (2) determine the internal effects of a penetration on personnel and equipment.

  13. Shaving effects on percutaneous penetration: clinical implications.

    PubMed

    Hamza, Muhammad; Tohid, Hassaan; Maibach, Howard

    2015-01-01

    Human/animal shaving biology. To assess the effect of shaving on percutaneous penetration and skin function. We screened 500+publications in Pub Med, Scopus, Cochrane Library and pertinent journals out of which only 17 were deemed relevant. Terms for searches included shaving and skin, percutaneous penetration and shaving, skin absorption and shaving, absorption of dyes and shaving, skin penetration, effects of shaving and absorption, shave and dyes, axillary shaving and stratum corneum, shaving and breast cancer, shaving and infections, etc. Shaving appears to have an exaggerated effect on percutaneous absorption; however, some studies do not support this evidence. Shaving enhances percutaneous penetration of some chemicals; however this effect is species and chemical specific. Further investigations of chemicals of varying physio-chemical properties are mandated before a generalized theory can be promulgated.

  14. Melting Penetration Simulation of Fe-U System at High Temperature Using MPS_LER

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mustari, A. P. A.; Yamaji, A.; Irwanto, Dwi

    2016-08-01

    Melting penetration information of Fe-U system is necessary for simulating the molten core behavior during severe accident in nuclear power plants. For Fe-U system, the information is mainly obtained from experiment, i.e. TREAT experiment. However, there is no reported data on SS304 at temperature above 1350°C. The MPS_LER has been developed and validated to simulate melting penetration on Fe-U system. The MPS_LER modelled the eutectic phenomenon by solving the diffusion process and by applying the binary phase diagram criteria. This study simulates the melting penetration of the system at higher temperature using MPS_LER. Simulations were conducted on SS304 at 1400, 1450 and 1500°C. The simulation results show rapid increase of melting penetration rate.

  15. Penetration analysis of projectile with inclined concrete target

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, S. B.; Kim, H. W.; Yoo, Y. H.

    2015-09-01

    This paper presents numerical analysis result of projectile penetration with concrete target. We applied dynamic material properties of 4340 steels, aluminium and explosive for projectile body. Dynamic material properties were measured with static tensile testing machine and Hopkinson pressure bar tests. Moreover, we used three concrete damage models included in LS-DYNA 3D, such as SOIL_CONCRETE, CSCM (cap model with smooth interaction) and CONCRETE_DAMAGE (K&C concrete) models. Strain rate effect for concrete material is important to predict the fracture deformation and shape of concrete, and penetration depth for projectiles. CONCRETE_DAMAGE model with strain rate effect also applied to penetration analysis. Analysis result with CSCM model shows good agreement with penetration experimental data. The projectile trace and fracture shapes of concrete target were compared with experimental data.

  16. Perinatal market penetration rate. A tool to evaluate regional perinatal programs.

    PubMed

    Powers, W F; McGill, L

    1987-01-01

    Very small babies born in tertiary centers fare better than outborn babies referred for tertiary care after birth. Viewing the 1001-1500 gm regional cohort of fetuses as a potential "market" for center delivery, and measuring a center's penetration into this market, quantitates how well a center draws to itself these small, high-risk fetuses for delivery. An Illinois center's annual penetration rate into its regional market for the years 1973-1983 is presented and significant increases are found. The penetration rates of nine Illinois perinatal centers are calculated and wide discrepancies are found. Defining a high-risk regional cohort as a market stresses a perinatal center's obligation to its region. The penetration rate into a defined market measures how well a center fulfills this obligation.

  17. Fire extinguishing apparatus having a slidable mass for a penetrator nozzle. [for penetrating aircraft and shuttle orbiter skin

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Gray, N. C.; Senseny, R. M.; Bolton, P. N.

    1980-01-01

    A fire extinguishing apparatus for delivering an extinguishing agent through a tarrier surrounding a structure into its interior includes an elongated tubular nozzle body which has a pointed penetrating head carried on one end of the tubular body. A source of extinguishing agent coupled to the opposite end of the tubular body is fed through and passes through passages adjacent the head for delivering the extinguishing agent to the interior of the structure. A slidable mass is carried on the tubular body on a remote end of the tubular body from the penetrating head. By manipulating the slidable mass and bringing such in contact with an abutment the force imparted to the tubular body causes the head to penetrate the structure.

  18. Penetrating Injury to Cauda Equina from a Missile Fragment, Completely Recovered after Delayed Surgical Removal of Ballistic Fragment.

    PubMed

    Harsha, Kamble Jayaprakash; Thomas, Anu

    2018-01-01

    Penetrating injuries to cauda equina due to missile fragment are rare. The mechanism of injury may be more complex due to thermal effect of missile fragment, apart from mechanisms described in penetrating gunshot injuries or stab injuries. We report a case of a 42-year-old male with penetrating missile injury to cauda equina, improved completely after delayed surgical exploration and removal of ballistic fragment. Furthermore, his bowel and bladder dysfunction improved completely within 1 week of neurosurgical exploration. Although early neurosurgical intervention is recommended for penetrating injuries of the cauda equina, delayed intervention may also be beneficial in selected patients. Computed tomography (CT) scan and CT myelogram are extremely useful in surgical planning when magnetic resonance imaging contraindicated due to impregnated metal fragments.

  19. Penetration through the Skin Barrier.

    PubMed

    Nielsen, Jesper Bo; Benfeldt, Eva; Holmgaard, Rikke

    2016-01-01

    The skin is a strong and flexible organ with barrier properties essential for maintaining homeostasis and thereby human life. Characterizing this barrier is the ability to prevent some chemicals from crossing the barrier while allowing others, including medicinal products, to pass at varying rates. During recent decades, the latter has received increased attention as a route for intentionally delivering drugs to patients. This has stimulated research in methods for sampling, measuring and predicting percutaneous penetration. Previous chapters have described how different endogenous, genetic and exogenous factors may affect barrier characteristics. The present chapter introduces the theory for barrier penetration (Fick's law), and describes and discusses different methods for measuring the kinetics of percutaneous penetration of chemicals, including in vitro methods (static and flow-through diffusion cells) as well as in vivo methods (microdialysis and microperfusion). Then follows a discussion with examples of how different characteristics of the skin (age, site and integrity) and of the penetrants (size, solubility, ionization, logPow and vehicles) affect the kinetics of percutaneous penetration. Finally, a short discussion of the advantages and challenges of each method is provided, which will hopefully allow the reader to improve decision making and treatment planning, as well as the evaluation of experimental studies of percutaneous penetration of chemicals. © 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  20. Traumatic diaphragmatic injury: a review of CT signs and the difference between blunt and penetrating injury

    PubMed Central

    Panda, Ananya; Kumar, Atin; Gamanagatti, Shivanand; Patil, Aruna; Kumar, Subodh; Gupta, Amit

    2014-01-01

    PURPOSE We aimed to present the frequency of computed tomography (CT) signs of diaphragmatic rupture and the differences between blunt and penetrating trauma. MATERIALS AND METHODS The CT scans of 23 patients with surgically proven diaphragmatic tears (both blunt and penetrating) were retrospectively reviewed for previously described CT signs of diaphragmatic injuries. The overall frequency of CT signs was reported; frequency of signs in right- and left-sided injuries and blunt and penetrating trauma were separately tabulated and statistically compared. RESULTS The discontinuous diaphragm sign was the most common sign, observed in 95.7% of patients, followed by diaphragmatic thickening (69.6%). While the dependent viscera sign and collar sign were exclusively observed in blunt-trauma patients, organ herniation (P = 0.05) and dangling diaphragm (P = 0.0086) signs were observed significantly more often in blunt trauma than in penetrating trauma. Contiguous injury on either side of the diaphragm was observed more often in penetrating trauma (83.3%) than in blunt trauma (17.7%). CONCLUSION Knowledge of the mechanism of injury and familiarity with all CT signs of diaphragmatic injury are necessary to avoid a missed diagnosis because there is variability in the overall occurrence of these signs, with significant differences between blunt and penetrating trauma. PMID:24412818

  1. Temperature-Enhanced Follicular Penetration of Thermoresponsive Nanogels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jung, Sora; Nagel, Gregor; Giulbudagian, Michael; Calderón, Marcelo; Patzelt, Alexa; Knorr, Fanny; Lademann, Jürgen

    2018-05-01

    Hair follicles can serve as an effective reservoir for dermal drug delivery upon the topical application of particulate substances. Here, the follicular penetration of an indodicarbocyanine-labelled thermoresponsive nanogel (189 nm) having a cloud point temperature of 34°C and linked via an acid-labile linker to the model drug indocarbocyanine was investigated. In total, 227 hair follicles of porcine ear skin were examined after topical application of the thermoresponsive nanogels at room temperature (21°C), physiological skin surface temperature (32°C) and core body temperature (37°C) for the follicular penetration depths of indodicarbocyanine and indocarbocyanine using confocal laser scanning microscopy. The results showed a significantly increased mean follicular penetration of the carrier to a depth of 298.8±85.8 μm after incubation at 37°C compared to samples incubated at 21°C and 32°C with mean follicular penetration depths of 202.7±81.7 μm and 219.4±52.9 μm, respectively (p<0.001). Possibly structural changes in the thermoresponsive nanogel induced by the increased incubation temperature led to an enhancement of follicular penetration. Therefore, thermoresponsive nanogels may be suitable for the temperature-enhanced penetration into the hair follicles under physiological conditions.

  2. A Double-Blind Study on Acupuncture Sensations with Japanese Style of Acupuncture: Comparison between Penetrating and Placebo Needles.

    PubMed

    Nishiwaki, Masako; Takayama, Miho; Yajima, Hiroyoshi; Nasu, Morihiro; Park, Joel; Kong, Jian; Takakura, Nobuari

    2018-01-01

    To investigate the acupuncture sensations elicited by the Japanese style of acupuncture, penetrating acupuncture and skin-touch placebo needles were randomly administered at various insertion depths (5 and 10 mm for the penetrating needles and 1 and 2 mm for the placebo needles) at LI4 to 50 healthy subjects. Among the 12 acupuncture sensations in the Massachusetts General Hospital Acupuncture Sensation Scale (MASS), "heaviness" was the strongest and most frequently reported sensation with the 10 mm needles, but not with the 5 mm needles. There were no significant differences in number of sensations elicited, MASS index, range of spreading, and intensity of needle pain for 5 mm penetration versus 1 mm skin press and 10 mm penetration versus 2 mm skin press. The MASS index with 2 mm skin-touch needles was significantly larger than that with 1 mm skin-touch and 5 mm penetrating needles. The factor structures in the 12 acupuncture sensations between penetrating and skin-touch needles were different. The acupuncture sensations obtained in this study under satisfactorily performed double-blind (practitioner-patient) conditions suggest that a slight difference in insertion depth and skin press causes significant differences in quantity and quality of acupuncture sensations.

  3. The experimental and numerical investigation of pistol bullet penetrating soft tissue simulant.

    PubMed

    Wang, Yongjuan; Shi, Xiaoning; Chen, Aijun; Xu, Cheng

    2015-04-01

    Gelatin, a representative simulant for soft tissue of the human body, was used to study the effects of 9 mm pistol bullet's penetration. The behavior of a bullet penetrating gelatin was quantified by the temporary cavity sizes in ballistic gelatin and the pressure values of bullet's impact. A numerical simulation model of a bullet penetrating the soft tissue simulant gelatin was built using the finite element method (FEM). The model was validated by the comparison between the numerical results and the experimental results. During a bullet penetrating ballistic gelatin, four stages were clearly observed in both the experiment and the numerical simulation: a smooth attenuation stage, a rolling stage, a full penetration stage, and a stage of expansion and contraction. The cavity evolution, equivalent stress field and the strain field in gelatin were analyzed by numerical simulation. Moreover, the effects of the bullet's impact velocities and angles of incidence on the temporary cavity in gelatin, its velocity attenuation, and its rolling angle were investigated, as well as the bullet's resistance and energy variation. The physical process and the interactive mechanism during a pistol bullet penetrating gelatin were comprehensively revealed. This may be significant for research in wound ballistics. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. A study of the mechanisms by which the cercariae of Microphallus primas (Jag, 1909) Stunkard, 1957 penetrate the shore crab, Carcinus maenas (L).

    PubMed

    Saville, D H; Irwin, S W B

    2005-10-01

    This study established the mechanisms by which Microphallus primas cercariae penetrate the crab Carcinus maenas in which they form metacercarial cysts. Light and electron microscopy were used to investigate cercarial features and to follow the fate of cercariae released in close proximity to crabs. It was shown that cercariae were carried in respiratory currents into crabs' branchial chambers where each enveloped itself in a transparent penetration cyst on the gill lamellae. When cercariae were present the number of respiratory current reversals performed by crabs increased. Using an 'artificial branchial chamber' it was possible to observe how cercariae attached to crab gills during breaks in current flow that preceded each current reversal. Inside the penetration cysts the now tail-less larvae used their stylets to pierce holes through which they levered themselves into underlying haemolymph channels in the gills. Histochemical tests demonstrated that the penetration cysts were products of glands in the cercariae and that penetration of the crabs was achieved by mechanical means. The importance of crab respiratory current reversals to the success of cercarial penetration is discussed as it represents the exploitation by a parasite of a host behavioural response to an unrelated stimulus.

  5. Dynamic OCT monitoring and quantification of light penetration enhancement for normal, benign and cancerous human lung tissues at different concentrations of glycerol

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

    Shu-wen Tan; Ying Jin; Hui Yu

    2013-10-31

    We have evaluated the dynamic effects of the analyte diffusion on the 1/e light penetration depths of normal, benign and cancerous human lung tissue in vitro, as well as have monitored and quantified the dynamic change in the light penetration depths of the mentioned human lung tissue after application of 25 % and 50 % glycerol solution, respectively. The light penetration depths of the analyte diffusion in the lung tissue are measured using the Fourierdomain optical coherence tomography (FD-OCT). Experimental results show that the application of glycerol as a chemical agent can significantly enhance light penetration depths into the humanmore » normal lung (NL), lung benign granulomatosis (LBG) and lung squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) tissue. In-depth transport of the glycerol molecules in the NL, LBG and LSCC tissue at a lower glycerol concentration (25 %) are faster than those at a higher glycerol concentration (50 %), and the 1/e light penetration depths at a lower glycerol concentration (25 %) are smaller than those at a higher glycerol concentration (50 %), respectively. Their differences in the maximal 1/e light penetration depths of the NL, LBG and LSCC tissue at a higher and a lower glycerol concentrations were only 8.8 %, 6.8 % and 4.7 %, respectively. (biophotonics)« less

  6. Cell wall composition and penetration resistance against the fungal pathogen Colletotrichum higginsianum are affected by impaired starch turnover in Arabidopsis mutants.

    PubMed

    Engelsdorf, Timo; Will, Cornelia; Hofmann, Jörg; Schmitt, Christine; Merritt, Brian B; Rieger, Leonie; Frenger, Marc S; Marschall, André; Franke, Rochus B; Pattathil, Sivakumar; Voll, Lars M

    2017-01-01

    Penetration resistance represents the first level of plant defense against phytopathogenic fungi. Here, we report that the starch-deficient Arabidopsis thaliana phosphoglucomutase (pgm) mutant has impaired penetration resistance against the hemibiotrophic fungus Colletotrichum higginsianum. We could not determine any changes in leaf cutin and epicuticular wax composition or indolic glucosinolate levels, but detected complex alterations in the cell wall monosaccharide composition of pgm. Notably, other mutants deficient in starch biosynthesis (adg1) or mobilization (sex1) had similarly affected cell wall composition and penetration resistance. Glycome profiling analysis showed that both overall cell wall polysaccharide extractability and relative extractability of specific pectin and xylan epitopes were affected in pgm, suggesting extensive structural changes in pgm cell walls. Screening of mutants with alterations in content or modification of specific cell wall monosaccharides indicated an important function of pectic polymers for penetration resistance and hyphal growth of C. higginsianum during the biotrophic interaction phase. While mutants with affected pectic rhamnogalacturonan-I (mur8) were hypersusceptible, penetration frequency and morphology of fungal hyphae were impaired on pmr5 pmr6 mutants with increased pectin levels. Our results reveal a strong impact of starch metabolism on cell wall composition and suggest a link between carbohydrate availability, cell wall pectin and penetration resistance.

  7. Human skin penetration of the major components of Australian tea tree oil applied in its pure form and as a 20% solution in vitro.

    PubMed

    Cross, Sheree E; Russell, Michael; Southwell, Ian; Roberts, Michael S

    2008-05-01

    The safety of topical application of Australian tea tree Oil (TTO) is confounded by a lack of transdermal penetration data, which adequately informs opinions and recommendations. In this study we applied TTO in its pure form and as a 20% solution in ethanol in vitro to human epidermal membranes from three different donors, mounted in horizontal Franz-type diffusion cells, using normal 'in use' dosing conditions (10 mg/cm2). In addition, we examined the effect of partially occluding the application site on the penetration of TTO components. Our data showed that only a small quantity of TTO components, 1.1-1.9% and 2-4% of the applied amount following application of a 20% TTO solution and pure TTO, respectively, penetrated into or through human epidermis. The largest TTO component penetrating the skin was terpinen-4-ol. Following partial occlusion of the application site, the penetration of terpinen-4-ol increased to approximately 7% of the applied TTO. Measurement of the rate of evaporation of tea tree oil from filter paper (7.4 mg/cm2) showed that 98% of the oil evaporated in 4 hours. Overall, it is apparent that the penetration of TTO components through human skin is limited.

  8. An analytic, approximate method for modeling steady, three-dimensional flow to partially penetrating wells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bakker, Mark

    2001-05-01

    An analytic, approximate solution is derived for the modeling of three-dimensional flow to partially penetrating wells. The solution is written in terms of a correction on the solution for a fully penetrating well and is obtained by dividing the aquifer up, locally, in a number of aquifer layers. The resulting system of differential equations is solved by application of the theory for multiaquifer flow. The presented approach has three major benefits. First, the solution may be applied to any groundwater model that can simulate flow to a fully penetrating well; the solution may be superimposed onto the solution for the fully penetrating well to simulate the local three-dimensional drawdown and flow field. Second, the approach is applicable to isotropic, anisotropic, and stratified aquifers and to both confined and unconfined flow. Third, the solution extends over a small area around the well only; outside this area the three-dimensional effect of the partially penetrating well is negligible, and no correction to the fully penetrating well is needed. A number of comparisons are made to existing three-dimensional, analytic solutions, including radial confined and unconfined flow and a well in a uniform flow field. It is shown that a subdivision in three layers is accurate for many practical cases; very accurate solutions are obtained with more layers.

  9. Comparison of the Skin Penetration of 3 Metabolically Stable Chemicals Using Fresh and Frozen Human Skin.

    PubMed

    Jacques-Jamin, Carine; Duplan, Hélène; Rothe, Helga; Vaillant, Ophelie; Eilstein, Joan; Grégoire, Sebastien; Cubberley, Richard; Lange, Daniela; Ellison, Corie; Klaric, Martina; Hewitt, Nicola; Schepky, Andreas

    2017-01-01

    The Cosmetics Europe ADME Task Force is developing in vitro and in silico tools for predicting skin and systemic concentrations after topical application of cosmetic ingredients. There are conflicting reports as to whether the freezing process affects the penetration of chemicals; therefore, we evaluated whether the storage of human skin used in our studies (8-12 weeks at -20°C) affected the penetration of model chemicals. Finite doses of trans-cinnamic acid (TCA), benzoic acid (BA), and 6-methylcoumarin (6MC) (non-volatile, non-protein reactive and metabolically stable in skin) were applied to fresh and thawed frozen skin from the same donors. The amounts of chemicals in different skin compartments were analysed after 24 h. Although there were some statistical differences in some parameters for 1 or 2 donors, the penetration of TCA, BA, and 6MC was essentially the same in fresh and frozen skin, i.e., there were no biologically relevant differences in penetration values. Statistical differences that were evident indicated that penetration was marginally lower in frozen than in fresh skin, indicating that the barrier function of the skin was not lost. The penetration of the 3 chemicals was essentially unaffected by freezing the skin at -20°C for up to 12 weeks. © 2017 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  10. Effect of Nd:YAG laser parameters on the penetration depth of a representative Ni-Cr dental casting alloy.

    PubMed

    Al Jabbari, Youssef S; Koutsoukis, Theodoros; Barmpagadaki, Xanthoula; El-Danaf, Ehab A; Fournelle, Raymond A; Zinelis, Spiros

    2015-02-01

    The effects of voltage and laser beam (spot) diameter on the penetration depth during laser beam welding in a representative nickel-chromium (Ni-Cr) dental alloy were the subject of this study. The cast alloy specimens were butted against each other and laser welded at their interface using various voltages (160-390 V) and spot diameters (0.2-1.8 mm) and a constant pulse duration of 10 ms. After welding, the laser beam penetration depths in the alloy were measured. The results were plotted and were statistically analyzed with a two-way ANOVA, employing voltage and spot diameter as the discriminating variables and using Holm-Sidak post hoc method (a = 0.05). The maximum penetration depth was 4.7 mm. The penetration depth increased as the spot diameter decreased at a fixed voltage and increased as the voltage increased at a fixed spot diameter. Varying the parameters of voltage and laser spot diameter significantly affected the depth of penetration of the dental cast Ni-Cr alloy. The penetration depth of laser-welded Ni-Cr dental alloys can be accurately adjusted based on the aforementioned results, leading to successfully joined/repaired dental restorations, saving manufacturing time, reducing final cost, and enhancing the longevity of dental prostheses.

  11. Effectiveness and confounding factors of penetrating astigmatic keratotomy in clinical practice

    PubMed Central

    Yen, Chu-Yu; Tseng, Gow-Lieng

    2018-01-01

    Abstract Rationale: Penetrating astigmatic keratotomy (penetrating AK) is a well-known method to correct corneal astigmatism but rarely be performed nowadays. This article reevaluated the clinical effectiveness and confounding factors of penetrating AK. Patient concerns: Penetrating AK has been introduced to serve as one alternative operation for astigmatism correction, and is thought to have the potential advantage of being more affordable and easy to perform. The purpose of our study is to evaluate the effectiveness and confounding factors of penetrating AK. Diagnoses: The chart of 95 patients with corneal astigmatism (range: 0.75–3.25 diopters [D]) who received penetrating AK from January 2014 to December 2016 was collected. The corneal astigmatism were measured by an autokeratometer (Topcon KR8100PA topographer-autorefractor), and repeated with manual keratometer in low reproducibility cases. Interventions: All patients received penetrating AK by an experienced ophthalmologist (Dr. Gow-Lieng Tseng, MD, PHD) in the operation room. Among which, 66 patients received penetrating AK with phacoemulsification simultaneously (group A), whereas 29 patients received penetrating AK at least 3 months after phacoemulsification (group B). After excluding the patients combined with other procedures or lost followed up, 79 patients are remaining for analysis. The outcome was evaluated by net correction, the difference between preoperative corneal astigmatism (PCA) and residual corneal astigmatism (RCA). Two sample t tests and Pearson test were used for effectiveness evaluation. For confounding factors, multivariate linear regression was used for statistical analysis. Outcomes: The mean preoperative and postoperative refractive cylinders were 1.97 ± 0.77 and 1.08 ± 0.64 D, respectively, in group A and 2.62 ± 1.05 and 1.51 ± 0.89 D in group B. There were no statistically significant differences in net correction between these two groups (0.9 ± 0.66 vs. 1.1 ± 0.69, P = .214). Higher PCA were associated with higher net correction in both group A (P = .002) and group B (P = .019). Compound myopic astigmatism caused less net correction than others only in group A (P = 0.031). Lessons: Penetrating AK is an accessible, affordable, and effective way to correct corneal astigmatism. The results of this procedure are comparable to modern methods in patients with low to moderate corneal astigmatism. PMID:29369200

  12. Macroscopically detected female genital injury after consensual and non-consensual vaginal penetration: a prospective comparison study.

    PubMed

    Lincoln, Catherine; Perera, Rafael; Jacobs, Ian; Ward, Alison

    2013-10-01

    The aim of this study was to compare the prevalence, type and pattern of macroscopically detected female genital injury after consensual and non-consensual vaginal penetration to further an understanding of the forensic significance of genital injury in women reporting sexual assault. A secondary aim was to identify any effect of a range of possible variables upon the likelihood of genital injury resulting from vaginal penetrative sexual intercourse. Two groups of reproductive age women (aged 18-45 years) were prospectively recruited within 72 h of a single episode of vaginal penetrative sex, and macroscopically examined for the presence of bruises, abrasions and lacerations at twelve external and internal genital sites. Forty one women who presented for forensic examination after reporting a sexual assault to police were recruited to the non-consensual group and 81 women who presented for routine cervical screening or with sexual health concerns to a primary health care service to the consensual group. Each group was examined by a different group of doctors, all of whom were experienced in both forensic genital examination and gynaecological examination of healthy and diseased sexually active women. Data collection and examination protocols were the same for both groups. The key finding was a statistically significant difference in genital injury prevalence between women who were vaginally penetrated non-consensually and consensually; 53.7% of the non-consensual group (22/41) and 9.9% of the consensual group (8/81) were found to have at least one genital injury [OR 10.57, CI (4.07, 27.42), p < 0.00001]. Penetration with finger/s and possible pre-existing genital 'infection' were found to be significantly associated with the presence of injury in the univariate analysis after adjusting for consent. Logistic regression demonstrated that women penetrated without consent were 19.5 times more likely to sustain at least one genital injury, than those penetrated consensually [OR 19.53, CI (6.03, 63.24)] and that a penetration scenario that included finger/s was 4.2 times more likely to result in at least one genital injury than penetration without finger involvement [OR 4.25, CI (1.42, 12.78)], when controlling for other variables in the model. Whilst a comparatively low injury prevalence in the consensual group limited interpretation, results revealed possible differences in genital injury typology and pattern resulting from non-consensual and consensual vaginal penetration. Lacerations were seen after both consensual and non-consensual vaginal penetration, while abrasions and bruises were seen exclusively in the non-consensual group. This study demonstrated a significant consent group difference in genital injury prevalence and the highest macroscopically detected genital injury prevalence rate resulting from non-consensual vaginal penetration identified to date. Results also indicate that vaginal penetration with finger/s increases the likelihood of sex-related injury. The difference in type of injury sustained as a result of non-consensual and consensual vaginal penetration was an unexpected finding, and warrants further investigation. These results highlight the importance of a standardised means of detecting genital injury based on consistent injury definitions, examination protocols, and examiner experience and suggest that macroscopic genital examination may be uniquely placed to detect consent group differences in injury typology and pattern if they exist. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd and Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine. All rights reserved.

  13. Prediction of penetration rate of rotary-percussive drilling using artificial neural networks - a case study / Prognozowanie postępu wiercenia przy użyciu wiertła udarowo-obrotowego przy wykorzystaniu sztucznych sieci neuronowych - studium przypadku

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Aalizad, Seyed Ali; Rashidinejad, Farshad

    2012-12-01

    Penetration rate in rocks is one of the most important parameters of determination of drilling economics. Total drilling costs can be determined by predicting the penetration rate and utilized for mine planning. The factors which affect penetration rate are exceedingly numerous and certainly are not completely understood. For the prediction of penetration rate in rotary-percussive drilling, four types of rocks in Sangan mine have been chosen. Sangan is situated in Khorasan-Razavi province in Northeastern Iran. The selected parameters affect penetration rate is divided in three categories: rock properties, drilling condition and drilling pattern. The rock properties are: density, rock quality designation (RQD), uni-axial compressive strength, Brazilian tensile strength, porosity, Mohs hardness, Young modulus, P-wave velocity. Drilling condition parameters are: percussion, rotation, feed (thrust load) and flushing pressure; and parameters for drilling pattern are: blasthole diameter and length. Rock properties were determined in the laboratory, and drilling condition and drilling pattern were determined in the field. For create a correlation between penetration rate and rock properties, drilling condition and drilling pattern, artificial neural networks (ANN) were used. For this purpose, 102 blastholes were observed and drilling condition, drilling pattern and time of drilling in each blasthole were recorded. To obtain a correlation between this data and prediction of penetration rate, MATLAB software was used. To train the pattern of ANN, 77 data has been used and 25 of them found for testing the pattern. Performance of ANN models was assessed through the root mean square error (RMSE) and correlation coefficient (R2). For optimized model (14-14-10-1) RMSE and R2 is 0.1865 and 86%, respectively, and its sensitivity analysis showed that there is a strong correlation between penetration rate and RQD, rotation and blasthole diameter. High correlation coefficient and low root mean square error of these models showed that the ANN is a suitable tool for penetration rate prediction.

  14. A comparison of lamellar and penetrating keratoplasty outcomes: a registry study.

    PubMed

    Coster, Douglas J; Lowe, Marie T; Keane, Miriam C; Williams, Keryn A

    2014-05-01

    To investigate changing patterns of practice of keratoplasty in Australia, graft survival, visual outcomes, the influence of experience, and the surgeon learning curve for endothelial keratoplasty. Observational, prospective cohort study. From a long-standing national corneal transplantation register, 13 920 penetrating keratoplasties, 858 deep anterior lamellar keratoplasties (DALKs), and 2287 endokeratoplasties performed between January 1996 and February 2013 were identified. Kaplan-Meier functions were used to assess graft survival and surgeon experience, the Pearson chi-square test was used to compare visual acuities, and linear regression was used to examine learning curves. Graft survival. The total number of corneal grafts performed annually is increasing steadily. More DALKs but fewer penetrating grafts are being performed for keratoconus, and more endokeratoplasties but fewer penetrating grafts are being performed for Fuchs' dystrophy and pseudophakic bullous keratopathy. In 2012, 1482 grafts were performed, compared with 955 in 2002, translating to a requirement for 264 extra corneal donors across the country in 2012. Comparing penetrating grafts and DALKs performed for keratoconus over the same era, both graft survival (P <0.001) and visual outcomes (P <0.001) were significantly better for penetrating grafts. Survival of endokeratoplasties performed for Fuchs' dystrophy or pseudophakic bullous keratopathy was poorer than survival of penetrating grafts for the same indications over the same era (P <0.001). Visual outcomes were significantly better for penetrating grafts than for endokeratoplasties performed for Fuchs' dystrophy (P <0.001), but endokeratoplasties achieved better visual outcomes than penetrating grafts for pseudophakic bullous keratopathy (P <0.001). Experienced surgeons (>100 registered keratoplasties) achieved significantly better survival of endokeratoplasties (P <0.001) than surgeons who had performed fewer grafts (<100 registered keratoplasties). In the hands of experienced, high-volume surgeons, endokeratoplasty failures occurred even after 100 grafts had been performed. More corneal transplants, especially DALKs and endokeratoplasties, are being performed in Australia than ever before. Survival of DALKs and endokeratoplasties is worse than the survival of penetrating grafts performed for the same indications over the same timeframe. Many endokeratoplasties fail early, but the evidence for a surgeon learning curve is unconvincing. Copyright © 2014 American Academy of Ophthalmology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. Effects of soap-water wash on human epidermal penetration.

    PubMed

    Zhu, Hanjiang; Jung, Eui-Chang; Phuong, Christina; Hui, Xiaoying; Maibach, Howard

    2016-08-01

    Skin decontamination is a primary interventional method used to decrease dermal absorption of hazardous contaminants, including chemical warfare agents, pesticides and industrial pollutants. Soap and water wash, the most common and readily available decontamination system, may enhance percutaneous absorption through the "wash-in effect." To understand better the effect of soap-water wash on percutaneous penetration, and provide insight to improving skin decontamination methods, in vitro human epidermal penetration rates of four C(14) -labeled model chemicals (hydroquinone, clonidine, benzoic acid and paraoxon) were assayed using flow-through diffusion cells. Stratum corneum (SC) absorption rates of these chemicals at various hydration levels (0-295% of the dry SC weights) were determined and compared with the results of the epidermal penetration study to clarify the effect of SC hydration on skin permeability. Results showed accelerated penetration curves of benzoic acid and paraoxon after surface wash at 30 min postdosing. Thirty minutes after washing (60 min postdosing), penetration rates of hydroquinone and benzoic acid decreased due to reduced amounts of chemical on the skin surface and in the SC. At the end of the experiment (90 min postdosing), a soap-water wash resulted in lower hydroquinone penetration, greater paraoxon penetration and similar levels of benzoic acid and clonidine penetration compared to penetration levels in the non-wash groups. The observed wash-in effect agrees with the enhancement effect of SC hydration on the SC chemical absorption rate. These results suggest SC hydration derived from surface wash to be one cause of the wash-in effect. Further, the occurrence of a wash-in effect is dependent on chemical identity and elapsed time between exposure and onset of decontamination. By reducing chemical residue quantity on skin surface and in the SC reservoir, the soap-water wash may decrease the total quantity of chemical absorbed in the long term; however, the more immediate accelerated absorption of chemical toxins, particularly chemical warfare agents, may be lethal. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  16. Epidemiology of moderate-to-severe penetrating versus closed traumatic brain injury in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

    PubMed

    Orman, Jean A; Geyer, Dennis; Jones, John; Schneider, Eric B; Grafman, Jordan; Pugh, Mary Jo; Dubose, Joseph

    2012-12-01

    US combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan have resulted in a greater proportion of service members with head and neck wounds caused by explosions compared with that of previous wars. Although penetrating traumatic brain injury (TBI) is frequently associated with these wounds, the epidemiology of penetrating TBI from these conflicts has not been well described. The Joint Theater Trauma Registry was queried for January 2003 through December 2010 to identify all patients with moderate-to-severe brain injury with a maximum Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) score of the head of 3 or greater and a diagnosis of penetrating or closed TBI in accordance with the Department of Defense Traumatic Brain Injury Surveillance definition. The epidemiology of these injuries was examined, including demographics, TBI severity, overall injury severity, and surgical interventions provided. A total of 1,255 TBI patients (774 penetrating, 481 closed) meeting criteria were identified. Penetrating brain injuries were more severe, more likely to be battle related, and less likely to be isolated injuries than a group of moderate-to-severe closed TBIs within the same range of anatomic injury severity. During the 5-year period of the Iraq war with the largest numbers of TBIs (2004-2008), the numbers of penetrating TBIs exceeded closed TBIs by a ratio of 2:1. During the 3-year period of the Afghanistan war with the greatest numbers of TBIs (2008-2010), the ratio of penetrating to closed TBIs was substantially lower, approximately 1.3:1. This study represents the first comprehensive report on the epidemiology of moderate-to-severe penetrating and closed TBIs resulting from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan using Joint Theater Trauma Registry data. With the maturing theater of conflicts, penetrating TBIs were substantially less predominant compared with closed TBIs. While this finding may reflect changes in the use of protective measures and tactics or improvements in diagnosis of closed TBIs, additional research is needed to identify the reason for this shift and the subsequent effect on outcome after combat-related TBIs. Epidemiologic study, level III.

  17. Huntington disease reduced penetrance alleles occur at high frequency in the general population

    PubMed Central

    Kay, Chris; Collins, Jennifer A.; Miedzybrodzka, Zosia; Madore, Steven J.; Gordon, Erynn S.; Gerry, Norman; Davidson, Mark; Slama, Ramy A.

    2016-01-01

    Objective: To directly estimate the frequency and penetrance of CAG repeat alleles associated with Huntington disease (HD) in the general population. Methods: CAG repeat length was evaluated in 7,315 individuals from 3 population-based cohorts from British Columbia, the United States, and Scotland. The frequency of ≥36 CAG alleles was assessed out of a total of 14,630 alleles. The general population frequency of reduced penetrance alleles (36–39 CAG) was compared to the prevalence of patients with HD with genetically confirmed 36–39 CAG from a multisource clinical ascertainment in British Columbia, Canada. The penetrance of 36–38 CAG repeat alleles for HD was estimated for individuals ≥65 years of age and compared against previously reported clinical penetrance estimates. Results: A total of 18 of 7,315 individuals had ≥36 CAG, revealing that approximately 1 in 400 individuals from the general population have an expanded CAG repeat associated with HD (0.246%). Individuals with CAG 36–37 genotypes are the most common (36, 0.096%; 37, 0.082%; 38, 0.027%; 39, 0.000%; ≥40, 0.041%). General population CAG 36–38 penetrance rates are lower than penetrance rates extrapolated from clinical cohorts. Conclusion: HD alleles with a CAG repeat length of 36–38 occur at high frequency in the general population. The infrequent diagnosis of HD at this CAG length is likely due to low penetrance. Another important contributing factor may be reduced ascertainment of HD in those of older age. PMID:27335115

  18. Using portable particle sizing instrumentation to rapidly measure the penetration of fine and ultrafine particles in unoccupied residences.

    PubMed

    Zhao, H; Stephens, B

    2017-01-01

    Much of human exposure to particulate matter of outdoor origin occurs inside buildings, particularly in residences. The particle penetration factor through leaks in a building's exterior enclosure assembly is a key parameter that governs the infiltration of outdoor particles. However, experimental data for size-resolved particle penetration factors in real buildings, as well as penetration factors for fine particles less than 2.5 μm (PM 2.5 ) and ultrafine particles less than 100 nm (UFPs), remain limited, in part because of previous limitations in instrumentation and experimental methods. Here, we report on the development and application of a modified test method that utilizes portable particle sizing instrumentation to measure size-resolved infiltration factors and envelope penetration factors for 0.01-2.5 μm particles, which are then used to estimate penetration factors for integral measures of UFPs and PM 2.5 . Eleven replicate measurements were made in an unoccupied apartment unit in Chicago, IL to evaluate the accuracy and repeatability of the test procedure and solution methods. Mean estimates of size-resolved penetration factors ranged from 0.41 ± 0.14 to 0.73 ± 0.05 across the range of measured particle sizes, while mean estimates of penetration factors for integral measures of UFPs and PM 2.5 were 0.67 ± 0.05 and 0.73 ± 0.05, respectively. Average relative uncertainties for all particle sizes/classes were less than 20%. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  19. Penetration and blown-air effect in sand

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Clement, R.; Courrech du Pont, S.; Douady, S.

    2012-04-01

    Sand is known to show a variety of uncommon physical features that do not fit the behavior of liquid or solid state. A good example of the inherent difficulties encountered when trying to describe collective grains behavior is the penetration of an intruding object into a granular medium. Such problems involve large coordination numbers, and the medium response dramatically depends on the volume fraction. On the fringe of these studies, we consider here the penetration of a cylindrical shell (typically an upside down glass) into dry sand, and report what we called the "blown-air effect". The air initially trapped escapes when the shell is pushed into sand, flowing through the granular medium. This flow dilates the sand and considerably eases the penetration of the shell. This is very different from what happens in liquids: when pushing a top-closed shell into a liquid, the trapped air increases the buoyancy and opposes the penetration. We show that the air flow does not change the general dynamics of penetration, suggesting that fluidization only involves an effective smaller volume fraction. Despite its simplicity (only a glass and some sand are needed to observe the effect), this experiment nicely illustrates the sometimes counter-intuitive behavior of granular media. Penetration in sand is also a critical issue in industry, and this work may help improving burying methods. Ref: Penetration and blown air effect in granular media R. Clément, S. Courrech du Pont, M. Ould-Hamouda, D. Duveau, and S. Douady Phys. Rev. Lett. 2011 Science News: http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/02/convince-your-friends-youre-a-ge.html

  20. Anal findings in children with and without probable anal penetration: a retrospective study of 1115 children referred for suspected sexual abuse.

    PubMed

    Myhre, Arne K; Adams, Joyce A; Kaufhold, Marilyn; Davis, Jennifer L; Suresh, Premi; Kuelbs, Cynthia L

    2013-07-01

    Interpreting the significance of anal findings in child sexual abuse can be difficult. The aim of this study is to compare the frequency of anal features between children with and without anal penetration. This is a retrospective blinded review of consecutive charts of children seen for suspected sexual abuse at a regional referral center from January 1. 2005 to December 31. 2009 Based on predetermined criteria, children were classified into two groups: low or high probability of anal penetration. The charts of 1115 children were included, 84% girls and 16% boys with an age range from 0.17 to 18.83 years (mean 9.20 year). 198 children (17.8%) were classified as belonging to the anal penetration group. Bivariate analysis showed a significant positive association between the following features and anal penetration: Anal soiling (p=0.046), fissure (p=0.000), laceration (p=0.000) and total anal dilatation (p=0.000). Logistic regression analysis and stratification analysis confirmed a positive association of soiling, anal lacerations and anal fissures with anal penetration. Total anal dilation was significantly correlated with a history of anal penetration in girls, in children examined in the prone knee chest position and in children without anal symptoms. Several variables were found to be significantly associated with anal penetration, including the controversial finding of total anal dilatation. Due to limitations in the study design, this finding should still be interpreted with caution in the absence of a clear disclosure from the child. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Investigation on penetration of three conventional foodstuffs packaging polymers with two different thicknesses by larvae and adults of major species of stored-product pest insects.

    PubMed

    Allahvaisi, Somayeh; Purmirza, Ali Asghar; Safaralizade, Mohamad Hasan

    2009-01-01

    Despite modern methods of packaging, stored agricultural products are still under attack by stored-insect pests. Therefore, determination of the best polymer and appropriate thickness inhibiting the penetration of the insects must be considered. In this study, we investigated the ability of penetration and the rates of contamination by nine important stored product pest insects for three conventional flexible polymers (polyethylene, cellophane and polypropylene) at two thicknesses (16.5 and 29 microm), which are used as pouches for packing of agricultural products. We used adults of T. castaneum (Coleoptera), S. granarius (Coleoptera), R. dominica (Coleoptera), C. maculates (Coleoptera), O. surinamensis (Coleoptera), and larvae of P. interpunctella (Lepidoptera), E. kuehniella (Lepidoptera), S. cerealella (Lepidoptera) and T. granarium (Coleoptera). Results showed that for most of the species penetration occurred between 4 days and 2 weeks, but there were significant differences (p < or = 0.05) in the penetration of three polymers (cellophane, polyethylene and polypropylene) by the insects. Among the polymers, polyethylene with a thickness of 16.5 microm showed the highest degree of penetration and was the most unsuitable polymer for packaging of foodstuffs. Application of this polymer led to a complete infestation of the product and a lot of punctures were created by the insects. In contrast, no penetration was observed in polypropylene polymer with a thickness of 29 microm. Furthermore, adults and larvae of all species showed a much lower penetration when there was no food present in the pouches and this was the case for all polymers tested.

  2. Feedbacks between soil penetration resistance, root architecture and water uptake limit water accessibility and crop growth - A vicious circle.

    PubMed

    Colombi, Tino; Torres, Lorena Chagas; Walter, Achim; Keller, Thomas

    2018-06-01

    Water is the most limiting resource for global crop production. The projected increase of dry spells due to climate change will further increase the problem of water limited crop yields. Besides low water abundance and availability, water limitations also occur due to restricted water accessibility. Soil penetration resistance, which is largely influenced by soil moisture, is the major soil property regulating root elongation and water accessibility. Until now the interactions between soil penetration resistance, root system properties, water uptake and crop productivity are rarely investigated. In the current study we quantified how interactive effects between soil penetration resistance, root architecture and water uptake affect water accessibility and crop productivity in the field. Maize was grown on compacted and uncompacted soil that was either tilled or remained untilled after compaction, which resulted in four treatments with different topsoil penetration resistance. Higher topsoil penetration resistance caused root systems to be shallower. This resulted in increased water uptake from the topsoil and hence topsoil drying, which further increased the penetration resistance in the uppermost soil layer. As a consequence of this feedback, root growth into deeper soil layers, where water would have been available, was reduced and plant growth decreased. Our results demonstrate that soil penetration resistance, root architecture and water uptake are closely interrelated and thereby determine the potential of plants to access soil water pools. Hence, these interactions and their feedbacks on water accessibility and crop productivity have to be accounted for when developing strategies to alleviate water limitations in cropping systems. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. Influence of the mole penetrator on measurements of heat flow in lunar subsurface layers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wawrzaszek, Roman; Drogosz, Michal; Seweryn, Karol; Banaszkiewicz, Marek; Grygorczuk, Jerzy

    Measuring the thermal gradient in subsurface layers is a basic method of determination the heat flux from the interior of a planetary body to its surface. In case of the Moon, such measurements complemented with the results of theoretical analysis and modeling can significantly improve our understanding of the thermal and geological evolution of the Moon. In practice, temperature gradient measurements are performed by at least two sensors located at different depths under the surface. These sensors will be attached to a penetrator [1] or to a cable pulled behind the penetrator. In both cases the object that carries the sensors, e.g. penetrator, perturb temperature measurements. In our study we analyze a case of two thermal sensors attached to the ends of 350mm long penetrator made of a composite material. In agreement with the studies of other authors we have found that the penetrator should be placed at the depth of 2-3 meters, where periodic changes of the temperature due to variation of solar flux at the surface are significantly smaller than the error of temperature measurement. The most important result of our analysis is to show how to deconvolve the real gradient of the temperature from the measurements perturbed by the penetrator body. In this way it will be possible to more accurately determine heat flux in the lunar regolith. [1] Grygorczuk J., Seweryn K., Wawrzaszek R., Banaszkiewicz M., Insertion of a Mole Pene-trator -Experimental Results, /39th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference /League City, Texas 2008

  4. Hydrodynamics of the Capture Zone of a Partially Penetrating Well in a Confined Aquifer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Faybishenko, Boris A.; Javandel, Iraj; Witherspoon, Paul A.

    1995-04-01

    In the pump and treat approach to the problem of managing a contaminated aquifer, a key problem is to design an effective capture system that collects only the polluted groundwater without allowing any of it to escape. At present, it is customary to design a capture system using fully penetrating withdrawal wells. Very often, however, only part of the vertical thickness of the aquifer is contaminated, so the question may arise whether a more efficient capture system can be achieved using partially penetrating wells. Very little work has been done on the application of partially penetrating wells to this problem. A new semianalytic method that can be used in determining the geometry of the capture zone for steady state flow to a partially penetrating well that is screened from the top (or from the bottom) of a confined aquifer has been developed. By combining the velocity potentials for flow to the well with that for the regional flow field, a three-dimensional velocity potential that can be used in determining the complete geometry of the capture surface has been developed. The results have shown that with a constant pumping rate the maximum horizontal extent of the capture surface at the top (or bottom) of the aquifer increases as the degree of penetration decreases. As one would expect, the maximum vertical extent increases as the depth of penetration increases. Thus, if one knows the actual location of the contaminant plume, an appropriate combination of the degree of penetration and pumping rate can be selected to create an effective capture zone.

  5. Freezing tolerance of sea urchin embryonic cells: Differentiation commitment and cytoskeletal disturbances in culture.

    PubMed

    Odintsova, Nelly A; Ageenko, Natalya V; Kipryushina, Yulia O; Maiorova, Mariia A; Boroda, Andrey V

    2015-08-01

    This study focuses on the freezing tolerance of sea urchin embryonic cells. To significantly reduce the loss of physiological activity of these cells that occurs after cryopreservation and to study the effects of ultra-low temperatures on sea urchin embryonic cells, we tested the ability of the cells to differentiate into spiculogenic or pigment directions in culture, including an evaluation of the expression of some genes involved in pigment differentiation. A morphological analysis of cytoskeletal disturbances after freezing in a combination of penetrating (dimethyl sulfoxide and ethylene glycol) and non-penetrating (trehalose and polyvinylpyrrolidone) cryoprotectants revealed that the distribution pattern of filamentous actin and tubulin was similar to that in the control cultures. In contrast, very rare spreading cells and a small number of cells with filamentous actin and tubulin were detected after freezing in the presence of only non-penetrating cryoprotectants. The largest number of pigment cells was found in cultures frozen with trehalose or trehalose and dimethyl sulfoxide. The ability to induce the spicule formation was lost in the cells frozen only with non-penetrating cryoprotectants, while it was maximal in cultures frozen in a cryoprotective mixture containing both non-penetrating and penetrating cryoprotectants (particularly, when ethylene glycol was present). Using different markers for cell state assessment, an effective cryopreservation protocol for sea urchin cells was developed: three-step freezing with a low cooling rate (1-2°C/min) and a combination of non-penetrating and penetrating cryoprotectants made it possible to obtain a high level of cell viability (up to 65-80%). Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Validation of the CNS Penetration-Effectiveness Rank for Quantifying Antiretroviral Penetration Into the Central Nervous System

    PubMed Central

    Letendre, Scott; Marquie-Beck, Jennifer; Capparelli, Edmund; Best, Brookie; Clifford, David; Collier, Ann C.; Gelman, Benjamin B.; McArthur, Justin C.; McCutchan, J. Allen; Morgello, Susan; Simpson, David; Grant, Igor; Ellis, Ronald J.

    2009-01-01

    Objective To evaluate whether penetration of a combination regimen into the central nervous system (CNS), as estimated by the CNS Penetration-Effectiveness (CPE) rank, is associated with lower cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) viral load. Design Data were analyzed from 467 participants who were human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) seropositive and who reported antiretroviral (ARV) drug use. Individual ARV drugs were assigned a penetration rank of 0 (low), 0.5 (intermediate), or 1 (high) based on their chemical properties, concentrations in CSF, and/or effectiveness in the CNS in clinical studies. The CPE rank was calculated by summing the individual penetration ranks for each ARV in the regimen. Results The median CPE rank was 1.5 (interquartile range, 1–2). Lower CPE ranks correlated with higher CSF viral loads. Ranks less than 2 were associated with an 88% increase in the odds of detectable CSF viral load. In multivariate regression, lower CPE ranks were associated with detectable CSF viral loads even after adjusting for total number of ARV drugs, ARV drug adherence, plasma viral load, duration and type of the current regimen, and CD4 count. Conclusions Poorer penetration of ARV drugs into the CNS appears to allow continued HIV replication in the CNS as indicated by higher CSF HIV viral loads. Because inhibition of HIV replication in the CNS is probably critical in treating patients who have HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders, ARV treatment strategies that account for CNS penetration should be considered in consensus treatment guidelines and validated in clinical studies. PMID:18195140

  7. Application of direct-reading and elemental carbon analysis methods to measure mass-based penetration of carbon nanotubes through elastomeric half-face and filtering facepiece respirators.

    PubMed

    Vo, Evanly; Zhuang, Ziqing; Birch, Eileen; Birch, Quinn

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study was to apply a direct-reading aerosol instrument method and an elemental carbon (EC) analysis method to measure the mass-based penetration of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) through elastomeric half-mask respirators (EHRs) and filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs). For the direct-reading aerosol instrument method, two scanning mobility particle sizer/aerodynamic particle sizer systems were used to simultaneously determine the upstream (outside respirator) and downstream (inside respirator) test aerosols. For the EC analysis method, upstream and downstream CNTs were collected on filter cassettes and then analyzed using a thermal-optical technique. CNT mass penetrations were found in both methods to be within the associated efficiency requirements for each type and class of the respirator models that were tested. Generally, the penetrations of SWCNTs and MWCNTs had a similar trend with penetration being the highest for the N95 EHRs, followed by N95 FFRs, P100 EHRs, and P100 FFRs. This trend held true for both methods; however, the CNT penetration determined by the direct-reading aerosol instrument method (0.009-1.09% for SWCNTs and 0.005-0.21% for MWCNTs) was greater relative to the penetration values found through EC analysis method (0.007-0.69% for SWCNTs and 0.004-0.13% for MWCNTs). The results of this study illustrate considerations for how the methods can be used to evaluate penetration of morphologically complex materials through FFRs and EHRs.

  8. NREL, SolarCity Addressing Challenges of High Penetrations of Distributed

    Science.gov Websites

    Companies NREL, SolarCity Addressing Challenges of High Penetrations of Distributed Photovoltaics NREL is , reliability, and stability challenges of interconnecting high penetrations of distributed photovoltaics (PV country that distributed solar is not a liability for reliability-and can even be an asset. Project Impact

  9. Nondestructive Testing Information Analysis Center, 1979.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1980-09-01

    transmission and reflectometry Ultrasonic imaging Spectrum analysis Acoustic emission * LIQUID PENETRANT TESTING Dye penetrants Fluorescent penetrants...OPTICAL TESTING Visual testing Optical reflectometry and transmission Holography * THERMAL TESTING Infrared radiometry The rmography 13 The present...on our surveillance effectiveness, we also scan Current Contents, NASA /SCAN, and the monthly Engineering Index and Science Abstracts. New books

  10. Sidewall penetrator for oil wells

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Collins, E. R., Jr.

    1981-01-01

    Penetrator bores horizontal holes in well casing to increase trapped oil drainage. Several penetrators operated by common drive are inserted into well at once. Shaft, made from spiraling cable, rotates and thrusts simultaneously through rigid curvilinear guide tube forcing bit through casing into strata. Device pierces more deeply than armor-piercing bullets and shaped explosive charges.

  11. 46 CFR 128.230 - Penetrations of hulls and watertight bulkheads-materials and pressure design.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 46 Shipping 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Penetrations of hulls and watertight bulkheads-materials and pressure design. 128.230 Section 128.230 Shipping COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY... § 128.230 Penetrations of hulls and watertight bulkheads—materials and pressure design. (a) Each piping...

  12. Energy Storage Requirements for Achieving 50% Penetration of Solar Photovoltaic Energy in California

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

    Denholm, Paul; Margolis, Robert

    2016-09-01

    We estimate the storage required to enable PV penetration up to 50% in California (with renewable penetration over 66%), and we quantify the complex relationships among storage, PV penetration, grid flexibility, and PV costs due to increased curtailment. We find that the storage needed depends strongly on the amount of other flexibility resources deployed. With very low-cost PV (three cents per kilowatt-hour) and a highly flexible electric power system, about 19 gigawatts of energy storage could enable 50% PV penetration with a marginal net PV levelized cost of energy (LCOE) comparable to the variable costs of future combined-cycle gas generatorsmore » under carbon constraints. This system requires extensive use of flexible generation, transmission, demand response, and electrifying one quarter of the vehicle fleet in California with largely optimized charging. A less flexible system, or more expensive PV would require significantly greater amounts of storage. The amount of storage needed to support very large amounts of PV might fit within a least-cost framework driven by declining storage costs and reduced storage-duration needs due to high PV penetration.« less

  13. Energy Storage Requirements for Achieving 50% Solar Photovoltaic Energy Penetration in California

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

    Denholm, Paul; Margolis, Robert

    2016-08-01

    We estimate the storage required to enable PV penetration up to 50% in California (with renewable penetration over 66%), and we quantify the complex relationships among storage, PV penetration, grid flexibility, and PV costs due to increased curtailment. We find that the storage needed depends strongly on the amount of other flexibility resources deployed. With very low-cost PV (three cents per kilowatt-hour) and a highly flexible electric power system, about 19 gigawatts of energy storage could enable 50% PV penetration with a marginal net PV levelized cost of energy (LCOE) comparable to the variable costs of future combined-cycle gas generatorsmore » under carbon constraints. This system requires extensive use of flexible generation, transmission, demand response, and electrifying one quarter of the vehicle fleet in California with largely optimized charging. A less flexible system, or more expensive PV would require significantly greater amounts of storage. The amount of storage needed to support very large amounts of PV might fit within a least-cost framework driven by declining storage costs and reduced storage-duration needs due to high PV penetration.« less

  14. Voluntary cough production and swallow dysfunction in Parkinson's disease.

    PubMed

    Pitts, Teresa; Bolser, Donald; Rosenbek, John; Troche, Michelle; Sapienza, Christine

    2008-09-01

    Cough is important for airway clearance, particularly if penetration/aspiration of foreign material occurs during swallow. Measures of voluntary cough production from ten male participants with stage II-III Parkinson's disease (PD) who showed no videofluorographic evidence of penetration/aspiration (Group 1) were examined and compared with those of ten male participants with stage II-III PD who showed videofluorographic evidence of penetration/aspiration (Group 2). The degree of penetration/aspiration was expertly judged from the videofluorographic examinations of the participants' sequential swallow of a thin, 30-cc bolus. Measured cough parameters included inspiratory phase duration, inspiratory peak flow, compression phase duration, expiratory peak flow, expiratory rise time, and cough volume acceleration. Results indicated significant group differences for the majority of cough measures, except for inspiratory phase duration and inspiratory peak flow. A modest relationship existed between voluntary cough parameters and penetration/aspiration scores. Decreased ability to adequately clear material from the airway with voluntary cough may exacerbate symptoms resulting from penetration/aspiration, particularly for those with neurodegenerative disease. Measurement of voluntary cough may be useful for the evaluation of airway clearance ability.

  15. Levofloxacin Penetration into Epithelial Lining Fluid as Determined by Population Pharmacokinetic Modeling and Monte Carlo Simulation

    PubMed Central

    Drusano, G. L.; Preston, S. L.; Gotfried, M. H.; Danziger, L. H.; Rodvold, K. A.

    2002-01-01

    Levofloxacin was administered orally to steady state to volunteers randomly in doses of 500 and 750 mg. Plasma and epithelial lining fluid (ELF) samples were obtained at 4, 12, and 24 h after the final dose. All data were comodeled in a population pharmacokinetic analysis employing BigNPEM. Penetration was evaluated from the population mean parameter vector values and from the results of a 1,000-subject Monte Carlo simulation. Evaluation from the population mean values demonstrated a penetration ratio (ELF/plasma) of 1.16. The Monte Carlo simulation provided a measure of dispersion, demonstrating a mean ratio of 3.18, with a median of 1.43 and a 95% confidence interval of 0.14 to 19.1. Population analysis with Monte Carlo simulation provides the best and least-biased estimate of penetration. It also demonstrates clearly that we can expect differences in penetration between patients. This analysis did not deal with inflammation, as it was performed in volunteers. The influence of lung pathology on penetration needs to be examined. PMID:11796385

  16. Confocal laser scanning microscopy to estimate nanoparticles' human skin penetration in vitro.

    PubMed

    Zou, Ying; Celli, Anna; Zhu, Hanjiang; Elmahdy, Akram; Cao, Yachao; Hui, Xiaoying; Maibach, Howard

    2017-01-01

    With rapid development of nanotechnology, there is increasing interest in nanoparticle (NP) application and its safety and efficacy on human skin. In this study, we utilized confocal laser scanning microscopy to estimate NP skin penetration. Three different-sized polystyrene NPs marked with red fluorescence were applied to human skin, and Calcium Green 5N was used as a counterstain. Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and ethanol were used as alternative vehicles for NPs. Tape stripping was utilized as a barrier-damaged skin model. Skin biopsies dosed with NPs were incubated at 4°C or 37°C for 24 hours and imaged using confocal laser scanning microscopy. NPs were localized in the stratum corneum (SC) and hair follicles without penetrating the epidermis/dermis. Barrier alteration with tape stripping and change in incubation temperature did not induce deeper penetration. DMSO enhanced NP SC penetration but ethanol did not. Except with DMSO vehicle, these hydrolyzed polystyrene NPs did not penetrate intact or barrier-damaged human "viable" epidermis. For further clinical relevance, in vivo human skin studies and more sensitive analytic chemical methodology are suggested.

  17. Two regimes of vortex penetration into platelet-shaped type-II superconductors

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

    Brandt, E. H.; Mikitik, G. P., E-mail: mikitik@ilt.kharkov.ua; Zeldov, E.

    Vortex penetration into a thin superconducting strip of a rectangular cross section is considered at an increasing applied magnetic field H{sub a}, taking an interplay between the Bean-Livingston and the geometric barriers in the sample into account. We calculate the magnetic field H{sub p} at which the penetration begins and show that two regimes of vortex penetration are possible. In the first regime, vortices appearing at the corners of the strip at H{sub a} = H{sub p} immediately move to its center, where a vortex dome starts to develop. In the second regime, the penetration occurs in two stages. Inmore » the first stage, at H{sub a} < H{sub p}, tilted vortices penetrate into the edge regions of the strip, where novel domes are shown to be formed at the top, bottom, and lateral surfaces. In the second stage, at H{sub a} = H{sub p}, the vortex propagation to the center becomes possible. The difference between the regimes manifests itself in slightly different dependences of the magnetic moment of the strip on H{sub a}.« less

  18. Experimental and numerical investigations on spray characteristics of fatty acid methyl esters

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lanjekar, R. D.; Deshmukh, D.

    2018-02-01

    A comparative experimental and numerical study is conducted to establish the significance of the use of single-component over multi-component representatives of biodiesel, diesel and their blend for predicting spray tip penetration. Methyl oleate and methyl laurate are used as single-component representative fuels for biodiesel. The pure components n-heptane, n-dodecane and n-tetradecane are used as single-component representative fuels for diesel. Methyl laurate is found to represent biodiesel of coconut, whereas methyl oleate is found to represent biodiesel having high percentage of long-chain fatty acid esters. The spray tip penetration of methyl oleate is found to be in good agreement with the measured spray tip penetration of karanja biodiesel. The spray tip penetration prediction of n-heptane fuel is closely following diesel spray tip penetration along with that of n-tetradecane and n-dodecane. The study suggests that the knowledge of the single-component representatives of biodiesel, diesel and their blend is sufficient to predict the spray tip penetration of the corresponding biodiesel, diesel and their blend under non-evaporating environment.

  19. Investigation of molecular penetration depth variation with SMBI fluxes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhou, Yu-Lin; Wang, Zhan-Hui; Xu, Min; Wang, Qi; Nie, Lin; Feng, Hao; Sun, Wei-Guo

    2016-09-01

    We study the molecular penetration depth variation with the SMBI fluxes. The molecular transport process and the penetration depth during SMBI with various injection velocities and densities are simulated and compared. It is found that the penetration depth of molecules strongly depends on the radial convective transport of SMBI and it increases with the increase of the injection velocity. The penetration depth does not vary much once the SMBI injection density is larger than a critical value due to the dramatic increase of the dissociation rate on the fueling path. An effective way to improve the SMBI penetration depth has been predicted, which is SMBI with a large radial injection velocity and a lower molecule injection density than the critical density. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11375053, 11575055, 11405022, and 11405112), the Chinese National Fusion Project for ITER (Grant Nos. 2013GB107001 and 2013GB112005), the International S&T Cooperation Program of China (Grant No. 2015DFA61760), and the Funds of the Youth Innovation Team of Science and Technology in Sichuan Province of China (Grant No. 2014TD0023).

  20. Influence of Subjectivity in Geological Mapping on the Net Penetration Rate Prediction for a Hard Rock TBM

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Seo, Yongbeom; Macias, Francisco Javier; Jakobsen, Pål Drevland; Bruland, Amund

    2018-05-01

    The net penetration rate of hard rock tunnel boring machines (TBM) is influenced by rock mass degree of fracturing. This influence is taken into account in the NTNU prediction model by the rock mass fracturing factor ( k s). k s is evaluated by geological mapping, the measurement of the orientation of fractures and the spacing of fractures and fracture type. Geological mapping is a subjective procedure. Mapping results can therefore contain considerable uncertainty. The mapping data of a tunnel mapped by three researchers were compared, and the influence of the variation in geological mapping was estimated to assess the influence of subjectivity in geological mapping. This study compares predicted net penetration rates and actual net penetration rates for TBM tunneling (from field data) and suggests mapping methods that can reduce the error related to subjectivity. The main findings of this paper are as follows: (1) variation of mapping data between individuals; (2) effect of observed variation on uncertainty in predicted net penetration rates; (3) influence of mapping methods on the difference between predicted and actual net penetration rate.

  1. Voluntary Cough Production and Swallow Dysfunction in Parkinson’s Disease

    PubMed Central

    Bolser, Donald; Rosenbek, John; Troche, Michelle; Sapienza, Christine

    2014-01-01

    Cough is important for airway clearance, particularly if penetration/aspiration of foreign material occurs during swallow. Measures of voluntary cough production from ten male participants with stage II–III Parkinson’s disease (PD) who showed no videofluorographic evidence of penetration/aspiration (Group 1) were examined and compared with those of ten male participants with stage II–III PD who showed videofluorographic evidence of penetration/aspiration (Group 2). The degree of penetration/ aspiration was expertly judged from the videofluorographic examinations of the participants’ sequential swallow of a thin, 30-cc bolus. Measured cough parameters included inspiratory phase duration, inspiratory peak flow, compression phase duration, expiratory peak flow, expiratory rise time, and cough volume acceleration. Results indicated significant group differences for the majority of cough measures, except for inspiratory phase duration and inspiratory peak flow. A modest relationship existed between voluntary cough parameters and penetration/aspiration scores. Decreased ability to adequately clear material from the airway with voluntary cough may exacerbate symptoms resulting from penetration/aspiration, particularly for those with neurodegenerative disease. Measurement of voluntary cough may be useful for the evaluation of airway clearance ability. PMID:18483823

  2. Experimental and numerical investigations on spray characteristics of fatty acid methyl esters.

    PubMed

    Lanjekar, R D; Deshmukh, D

    2018-02-01

    A comparative experimental and numerical study is conducted to establish the significance of the use of single-component over multi-component representatives of biodiesel, diesel and their blend for predicting spray tip penetration. Methyl oleate and methyl laurate are used as single-component representative fuels for biodiesel. The pure components n -heptane, n -dodecane and n -tetradecane are used as single-component representative fuels for diesel. Methyl laurate is found to represent biodiesel of coconut, whereas methyl oleate is found to represent biodiesel having high percentage of long-chain fatty acid esters. The spray tip penetration of methyl oleate is found to be in good agreement with the measured spray tip penetration of karanja biodiesel. The spray tip penetration prediction of n -heptane fuel is closely following diesel spray tip penetration along with that of n -tetradecane and n -dodecane. The study suggests that the knowledge of the single-component representatives of biodiesel, diesel and their blend is sufficient to predict the spray tip penetration of the corresponding biodiesel, diesel and their blend under non-evaporating environment.

  3. Experimental and numerical investigations on spray characteristics of fatty acid methyl esters

    PubMed Central

    Deshmukh, D.

    2018-01-01

    A comparative experimental and numerical study is conducted to establish the significance of the use of single-component over multi-component representatives of biodiesel, diesel and their blend for predicting spray tip penetration. Methyl oleate and methyl laurate are used as single-component representative fuels for biodiesel. The pure components n-heptane, n-dodecane and n-tetradecane are used as single-component representative fuels for diesel. Methyl laurate is found to represent biodiesel of coconut, whereas methyl oleate is found to represent biodiesel having high percentage of long-chain fatty acid esters. The spray tip penetration of methyl oleate is found to be in good agreement with the measured spray tip penetration of karanja biodiesel. The spray tip penetration prediction of n-heptane fuel is closely following diesel spray tip penetration along with that of n-tetradecane and n-dodecane. The study suggests that the knowledge of the single-component representatives of biodiesel, diesel and their blend is sufficient to predict the spray tip penetration of the corresponding biodiesel, diesel and their blend under non-evaporating environment. PMID:29515835

  4. A Flexure-Guided Piezo Drill for Penetrating the Zona Pellucida of Mammalian Oocytes.

    PubMed

    Johnson, Wesley; Dai, Changsheng; Liu, Jun; Wang, Xian; Luu, Devin K; Zhang, Zhuoran; Ru, Changhai; Zhou, Chao; Tan, Min; Pu, Huayan; Xie, Shaorong; Peng, Yan; Luo, Jun; Sun, Yu

    2018-03-01

    Mammalian oocytes such as mouse oocytes have a highly elastic outer membrane, zona pellucida (ZP) that cannot be penetrated without significantly deforming the oocyte, even with a sharp micropipette. Piezo drill devices leverage lateral and axial vibration of the micropipette to accomplish ZP penetration with greatly reduced oocyte deformation. However, existing piezo drills all rely on a large lateral micropipette vibration amplitude ( 20 ) and a small axial vibration amplitude (0.1 ). The very large lateral vibration amplitude has been deemed to be necessary for ZP penetration although it also induces larger oocyte deformation and more oocyte damage. This paper reports on a new piezo drill device that uses a flexure guidance mechanism and a systematically designed pulse train with an appropriate base frequency. Both simulation and experimental results demonstrate that a small lateral vibration amplitude (e.g., 2 ) and an axial vibration amplitude as large as 1.2 were achieved. Besides achieving 100% effectiveness in the penetration of mouse oocytes (n = 45), the new piezo device during ZP penetration induced a small oocyte deformation of 3.4 versus larger than 10 using existing piezo drill devices.

  5. Partial liquid-penetration inside a deep trench by film flowing over it

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nguyen, Phuc-Khanh; Dimakopoulos, Yiannis; Tsamopoulos, John

    2014-11-01

    Liquid film flow along substrates featuring a deep trench may not wet the trench floor, but create a second gas-liquid interface inside the trench. The liquid penetration inside the trench depends on the location and shape of this inner interface. The penetration increases by decreasing the two three-phase contact lines between the inner interface and the two side-walls or the flow rate and depends on the liquid properties. This partial-penetration is studied by employing the Galerkin / finite element method to solve the two-dimensional steady-state Navier-Stokes equations in a physical domain that is adaptively remeshed. Multiple branches of steady solutions connected via turning points are revealed by pseudo arc-length continuation. Flow hysteresis may occur in a certain range of liquid penetration depth, when the interaction of the two interfaces changes qualitatively. This induces an abrupt jump of penetration distance and deformation amplitude of the outer interface. Work supported by the General Secretariat of Research & Technology of Greece through the program ``Excellence'' (Grant No. 1918) in the framework ``Education and Lifelong Learning'' co-funded by the ESF.

  6. Photoacoustic Analysis of the Penetration Kinetics of Cordia verbenacea DC in Human Skin

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Carvalho, S. S.; Barja, P. R.

    2012-11-01

    Phonophoresis consists of the utilization of ultrasound radiation associated to pharmacological agents in order to enhance transdermal penetration of applied drugs. It is a widely employed resource in physiotherapy practice, normally associated with anti-inflammatory drugs, such as Acheflan. This drug was developed in Brazil from the essential oil of Cordia verbenacea DC, a native plant of the Brazilian southern coast. In previous studies, the photoacoustic (PA) technique proved effective in the study of the penetration kinetics of topically applied products and in the evaluation of drug delivery after phonophoresis application. The present work aimed to evaluate the penetration kinetics of Acheflan in human skin, employing in vivo PA measurements after massage application or phonophoresis application. Ten volunteers (aged between 18 and 30 years) took part in the study. Time evolution of the PA signal was fitted to a Boltzmann curve, S-shaped. After statistical analysis, PA measurements have shown drug penetration for both application forms, but drug delivery was more evident after phonophoresis application, with a characteristic penetration time of less than 15 min for the stratum corneum.

  7. Do HMO penetration and hospital competition impact quality of hospital care?

    PubMed

    Rivers, P A; Fottler, M D

    2004-11-01

    This study examines the impact of HMO penetration and competition on hospital markets. A modified structure-conduct-performance paradigm was applied to the health care industry in order to investigate the impact of HMO penetration and competition on risk-adjusted hospital mortality rates (i.e. quality of hospital care). Secondary data for 1957 acute care hospitals in the USA from the 1991 American Hospital Association's Annual Survey of Hospitals were used. The outcome variables were risk-adjusted mortality rates in 1991. Predictor variables were market characteristics (i.e. managed care penetration and hospital competition). Control variables were environmental, patient, and institutional characteristics. Associations between predictor and outcome variables were investigated using statistical regression techniques. Hospital competition had a negative relationship with risk-adjusted mortality rates (a negative indicator of quality of care). HMO penetration, hospital competition, and an interaction effect of HMO penetration and competition were not found to have significant effects on risk-adjusted mortality rates. These findings suggest that when faced with intense competition, hospitals may respond in ways associated with reducing their mortality rates.

  8. The Association between Medicare Advantage Market Penetration and Diabetes in the United States

    PubMed Central

    Howard, Steven W.; Bernell, Stephanie Lazarus; Wilmott, Jennifer; Casim, M. Faizan; Wang, Jing; Pearson, Lindsey; Byler, Caitlin M.; Zhang, Zidong

    2015-01-01

    The objective of this study is to explore the extent to which managed care market penetration in the United States is associated with the presence of chronic disease. Diabetes was selected as the chronic disease of interest due to its increasing prevalence as well as the disease management protocols that can lessen disease complications. We hypothesized that greater managed care market penetration would be associated with (1) lower prevalence of diabetes and (2) lower prevalence of diabetes-related comorbidities (DRCs) among diabetics. Data for this analysis came from two sources. We merged Medicare Advantage (MA) market penetration data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) with data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) (2004–2008). Results suggest that county-level MA market penetration is not significantly associated with prevalence of diabetes or DRCs. That finding is quite interesting in that managed care market penetration has been shown to have an effect on utilization of inpatient services. It may be that managed care protocols do not offer the same benefits beyond the inpatient setting. PMID:26501052

  9. The Association between Medicare Advantage Market Penetration and Diabetes in the United States.

    PubMed

    Howard, Steven W; Bernell, Stephanie Lazarus; Wilmott, Jennifer; Casim, M Faizan; Wang, Jing; Pearson, Lindsey; Byler, Caitlin M; Zhang, Zidong

    2015-01-01

    The objective of this study is to explore the extent to which managed care market penetration in the United States is associated with the presence of chronic disease. Diabetes was selected as the chronic disease of interest due to its increasing prevalence as well as the disease management protocols that can lessen disease complications. We hypothesized that greater managed care market penetration would be associated with (1) lower prevalence of diabetes and (2) lower prevalence of diabetes-related comorbidities (DRCs) among diabetics. Data for this analysis came from two sources. We merged Medicare Advantage (MA) market penetration data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) with data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) (2004-2008). Results suggest that county-level MA market penetration is not significantly associated with prevalence of diabetes or DRCs. That finding is quite interesting in that managed care market penetration has been shown to have an effect on utilization of inpatient services. It may be that managed care protocols do not offer the same benefits beyond the inpatient setting.

  10. A comparative study on the transdermal penetration effect of gaseous and aqueous plasma reactive species

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Xin; Gan, Lu; Ma, Mingyu; Zhang, Song; Liu, Jingjing; Chen, Hongxiang; Liu, Dawei; Lu, Xinpei

    2018-02-01

    To improve the depth of plasma active species in the skin, it is very important to develop skin disease treatment using plasma. In this article, an air plasma source was used to work directly with the skin of a mouse. A tortuous pathway, hair follicles, electroporation and a microneedle do not aid the transdermal delivery of gaseous plasma active species, therefore these gaseous plasma active species cannot penetrate mouse skin with a thickness of ~0.75 mm. The plasma activated water (PAW) produced by the air plasma source was used to study the transdermal penetration of the aqueous plasma activated species. This aqueous plasma activated species can penetrate the skin through hair follicles, intercellular and transcellular routes. The pH of the PAW did not affect the penetration efficiency of the aqueous plasma active species.

  11. Peptide structure: Its effect on penetration into human hair.

    PubMed

    Silva, Carla J S M; Vasconcelos, Andreia; Cavaco-Paulo, Artur

    2007-01-01

    The influence of the peptide structure on its penetration inside hair was studied, together with the effect of hair bleaching (oxidation). For that reason, the outcome of positioning a charged sequence (KAKAK) either at the N or C terminal on hair penetration has been studied for peptides with 17 residues each. It was observed that the penetration of these peptides into hair was driven by electrostatic interactions, where the position of the charged group at the peptide structure was of major importance. The penetration was only achieved for damaged hair due to its higher negative charge at the membrane surface. It was also observed that the peptides were able to restore the original tensile strength of bleached hair. Consequently, the knowledge of hair surface properties is of extreme importance when designing peptides directed for hair treatment.

  12. The DSM diagnostic criteria for vaginismus.

    PubMed

    Binik, Yitzchak M

    2010-04-01

    Vaginal spasm has been considered the defining diagnostic characteristic of vaginismus for approximately 150 years. This remarkable consensus, based primarily on expert clinical opinion, is preserved in the DSM-IV-TR. The available empirical research, however, does not support this definition nor does it support the validity of the DSM-IV-TR distinction between vaginismus and dyspareunia. The small body of research concerning other possible ways or methods of diagnosing vaginismus is critically reviewed. Based on this review, it is proposed that the diagnoses of vaginismus and dyspareunia be collapsed into a single diagnostic entity called "genito-pelvic pain/penetration disorder." This diagnostic category is defined according to the following five dimensions: percentage success of vaginal penetration; pain with vaginal penetration; fear of vaginal penetration or of genito-pelvic pain during vaginal penetration; pelvic floor muscle dysfunction; medical co-morbidity.

  13. Penetrating Injury to Cauda Equina from a Missile Fragment, Completely Recovered after Delayed Surgical Removal of Ballistic Fragment

    PubMed Central

    Harsha, Kamble Jayaprakash; Thomas, Anu

    2018-01-01

    Penetrating injuries to cauda equina due to missile fragment are rare. The mechanism of injury may be more complex due to thermal effect of missile fragment, apart from mechanisms described in penetrating gunshot injuries or stab injuries. We report a case of a 42-year-old male with penetrating missile injury to cauda equina, improved completely after delayed surgical exploration and removal of ballistic fragment. Furthermore, his bowel and bladder dysfunction improved completely within 1 week of neurosurgical exploration. Although early neurosurgical intervention is recommended for penetrating injuries of the cauda equina, delayed intervention may also be beneficial in selected patients. Computed tomography (CT) scan and CT myelogram are extremely useful in surgical planning when magnetic resonance imaging contraindicated due to impregnated metal fragments. PMID:29682053

  14. A proposal of utilization of penetrators as a quick deployment system of instruments in an emergency

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Murakami, H.; Kobayashi, N.; Tanaka, S.; Shiraishi, H.; Hayakawa, M.; Yamada, R.; Takeuchi, N.; Okamoto, T.; Ishihara, Y.; Hayakawa, H.; Working Group, T.

    2011-12-01

    In the 2011 Tohoku Great earthquake, towns and lifelines were completely destroyed mainly by the mega Tsunami-waves induced by the earthquake. Many people were killed and injured. In addition to the direct destroy of seismic stations, cut-off of electronic power and communication lines made a seismic measurement impossible after the earthquake. The data of seismicity near the destroyed area had been lacked. The quake also destroyed the Fukushima atomic plant that emitted a lot of radioactive elements such as iodine 131 and cesium 137 around the plant. The area of the inside of a circle with a distance of 20 km from the plant has been kept out soon after the failure, where people exactly desire to know what happens and exact quantities of some geophysical and geochemical measurements. In this presentation, we propose a penetrator system as an efficient way to deploy measurement stations for an emergent event such as the 2011 Tohoku Great earthquake. The penetrator technique has been developed in the former Japanese lunar exploration project LUNAR-A and after the cancelation of the project. The penetrator was planned to carry seismic sensors and heat flow probes into the surface regolith of the moon in the project. It collides with the lunar surface with a speed of 300 m/s. We have established a technique to survive the sensors in the penetrator throughout the hard landing. The technique is of course applicable for terrestrial measurements. A measurement in an emergent area is suitable for the penetrator system. Using penetrators, we can deploy sensors in a kept-out area by throwing them into target sites from a flying boat. Penetrators can be used to establish communication lines in a damaged area by carrying a translator of radio waves. Because of the easiness of deployment of sensors, utilization of penetrators as a quick deployment device in an emergent event is expected.

  15. Sealer penetration into dentinal tubules in the presence or absence of smear layer: a confocal laser scanning microscopic study.

    PubMed

    Kuçi, Astrit; Alaçam, Tayfun; Yavaş, Ozer; Ergul-Ulger, Zeynep; Kayaoglu, Guven

    2014-10-01

    The aim of this study was to test the dentinal tubule penetration of AH26 (Dentsply DeTrey, Konstanz, Germany) and MTA Fillapex (Angelus, Londrina, PR, Brazil) in instrumented root canals obturated by using cold lateral compaction or warm vertical compaction techniques in either the presence or absence of the smear layer. Forty-five extracted single-rooted human mandibular premolar teeth were used. The crowns were removed, and the root canals were instrumented by using the Self-Adjusting File (ReDent-Nova, Ra'anana, Israel) with continuous sodium hypochlorite (2.6%) irrigation. Final irrigation was either with 5% EDTA or with sodium hypochlorite. The canals were dried and obturated by using rhodamine B-labeled AH26 or MTA Fillapex in combination with the cold lateral compaction or the warm vertical compaction technique. After setting, the roots were sectioned horizontally at 4-, 8-, and 12-mm distances from the apical tip. On each section, sealer penetration in the dentinal tubules was measured by using confocal laser scanning microscopy. Regardless of the usage of EDTA, MTA Fillapex, compared with AH26, was associated with greater sealer penetration when used with the cold lateral compaction technique, and, conversely, AH26, compared with MTA Fillapex, was associated with greater sealer penetration when used with the warm vertical compaction technique (P < .05). Removal of the smear layer increased the penetration depth of MTA Fillapex used with the cold lateral compaction technique (P < .05); however, it had no significant effect on the penetration depth of AH26. Greater sealer penetration could be achieved with either the MTA Fillapex-cold lateral compaction combination or with the AH26-warm vertical compaction combination. Smear layer removal was critical for the penetration of MTA Fillapex; however, the same did not hold for AH26. Copyright © 2014 American Association of Endodontists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  16. Penetration pattern of rhodamine dyes into enamel and dentin: confocal laser microscopy observation.

    PubMed

    Kwon, S R; Wertz, P W; Li, Y; Chan, D C N

    2012-02-01

    Enamel and dentin are susceptible to extrinsic and intrinsic stains. The purposes of this study were to determine the penetration pattern of Rhodamine B and dextran-conjugated Rhodamine B into the enamel and dentin as observed by confocal laser microscopy and to relate it to the penetration pattern of hydrogen peroxide commonly used as an active ingredient in tooth-whitening agents and high-molecular-weight staining molecules. Eighteen recently extracted human maxillary anterior teeth were used. Teeth were cleaned and painted with nail varnish except for the crown area above the cemento-enamel junction (CEJ). The painted teeth were then immersed in Rhodamine B and dextran-conjugated Rhodamine B (70 000 MW) for 4, 7, 10 and 15 days. Teeth were sliced to 3 mm thickness in transverse plane and mounted on a glass slide just prior to observation with confocal laser microscopy. Rhodamine B and dextran-conjugated Rhodamine B readily penetrated into the enamel and dentin when exposed for 4 and 7 days, respectively. Rhodamine B penetrated along the interprismatic spaces of the enamel into the dentin. The penetration was accentuated in sections with existing crack lines in the enamel. Rhodamine B was readily absorbed into the dentinal tubules at the dentino-enamel junction and continued to penetrate through the dentin via the dentinal tubules into the pre-dentin. Within the limitations of this study, it is concluded that Rhodamine B and dextran-conjugated Rhodamine B when applied to the external surface of the tooth readily penetrate into the enamel and dentin via the interprismatic spaces in the enamel and dentinal tubules in the dentin, suggesting that stain molecules and bleaching agents possibly exhibit similar penetration pathways. © 2011 The Authors. ICS © 2011 Society of Cosmetic Scientists and the Société Française de Cosmétologie.

  17. Thermo-chemical Ice Penetrator for Icy Moons

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Arenberg, J. W.; Lee, G.; Harpole, G.; Zamel, J.; Sen, B.; Ross, F.; Retherford, K. D.

    2016-12-01

    The ability to place sensors or to take samples below the ice surface enables a wide variety of potential scientific investigations. Penetrating an ice cap can be accomplished via a mechanical drill, laser drill, kinetic impactor, or heated penetrator. This poster reports on the development of technology for the latter most option, namely a self-heated probe driven by an exothermic chemical reaction: a Thermo-chemical ice penetrator (TChIP). Our penetrator design employs a eutectic mix of alkali metals that produce an exothermic reaction upon contact with an icy surface. This reaction increases once the ice starts melting, so no external power is required. This technology is inspired by a classified Cold-War era program developed at Northrop Grumman for the US Navy. Terrestrial demonstration of this technology took place in the Arctic; however, this device cannot be considered high TRL for application at the icy moons of the solar system due to the environmental differences between Earth's Arctic and the icy moons. These differences demand a TChIP design specific to these cold, low mass, airless worlds. It is expected that this model of TChIP performance will be complex, incorporating all of the forces on the penetrator, gravity, the thermo-chemistry at the interface between penetrator and ice, and multi-phase heat and mass transport, and hydrodynamics. Our initial efforts are aimed at the development of a validated set of tools and simulations to predict the performance of the penetrator for both the environment found on these icy moons and for a terrestrial environment. The purpose of the inclusion of the terrestrial environment is to aid in model validation. Once developed and validated, our models will allow us to design penetrators for a specific scientific application on a specific body. This poster discusses the range of scientific investigations that are enabled by TChIP. We also introduce the development plan to advance TChIP to the point where it can be considered for infusion into a program.

  18. Technology for a Thermo-chemical Ice Penetrator for Icy Moons

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Arenberg, Jonathan; Harpole, George; Zamel, James; Sen, Bashwar; Lee, Greg; Ross, Floyd; Retherford, Kurt D.

    2016-10-01

    The ability to place sensors or to take samples below the ice surface enables a wide variety of potential scientific investigations. Penetrating an ice cap can be accomplished via a mechanical drill, laser drill, kinetic impactor, or heated penetrator. This poster reports on the development of technology for the latter most option, namely a self-heated probe driven by an exothermic chemical reaction: a Thermo-chemical ice penetrator (TChIP). Our penetrator design employs a eutectic mix of alkali metals that produce an exothermic reaction upon contact with an icy surface. This reaction increases once the ice starts melting, so no external power is required. This technology is inspired by a classified Cold-War era program developed at Northrop Grumman for the US Navy. Terrestrial demonstration of this technology took place in the Arctic; however, this device cannot be considered high TRL for application at the icy moons of the solar system due to the environmental differences between Earth's Arctic and the icy moons. These differences demand a TChIP design specific to these cold, low mass, airless worlds. It is expected that this model of TChIP performance will be complex, incorporating all of the forces on the penetrator, gravity, the thermo-chemistry at the interface between penetrator and ice, and multi-phase heat and mass transport, and hydrodynamics. Our initial efforts are aimed at the development of a validated set of tools and simulations to predict the performance of the penetrator for both the environment found on these icy moons and for a terrestrial environment. The purpose of the inclusion of the terrestrial environment is to aid in model validation. Once developed and validated, our models will allow us to design penetrators for a specific scientific application on a specific body. This poster discusses the range of scientific investigations that are enabled by TChIP. We also introduce the development plan to advance TChIP to the point where it can be considered for infusion into a program.

  19. Controlling Force and Depth in Friction Stir Welding

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Adams, Glynn; Loftus, Zachary; McCormac, Nathan; Venable, Richard

    2005-01-01

    Feedback control of the penetration force applied to a pin tool in friction stir welding has been found to be a robust and reliable means for controlling the depth of penetration of the tool. This discovery has made it possible to simplify depth control and to weld with greater repeatability, even on workpieces with long weld joints. Prior to this discovery, depths of penetration in friction stir welding were controlled by hard-tooled roller assemblies or by depth actuators controlled by feedback from such external sensors as linear variable-differential transformers or laser-based devices. These means of control are limited: A hard-tooled roller assembly confines a pin tool to a preset depth that cannot be changed easily during the welding process. A measurement by an external sensor is only an indirect indicative of the depth of penetration, and computations to correlate such a measurement with a depth of penetration are vulnerable to error. The present force-feedback approach exploits the proportionality between the depth and the force of penetration Unlike a depth measurement taken by an external sensor, a force measurement can be direct because it can be taken by a sensor coupled directly to the pin tool. The reading can be processed through a modern electronic servo control system to control an actuator to keep the applied penetration force at the desired level. In comparison with the older depth-control methods described above, this method offers greater sensitivity to plasticizing of the workpiece metal and is less sensitive to process noise, resulting in a more consistent process. In an experiment, a tapered panel was friction stir welded while controlling the force of penetration according to this method. The figure is a plot of measurements taken during the experiment, showing that force was controlled with a variation of 200 lb (890 N), resulting in control of the depth of penetration with a variation of 0.004 in. (0.1 mm).

  20. Epidemiology and outcome of penetrating injuries in a Western European urban region.

    PubMed

    Störmann, P; Gartner, K; Wyen, H; Lustenberger, T; Marzi, I; Wutzler, S

    2016-12-01

    Severe life-threatening injuries in Western Europe are mostly caused by blunt trauma. However, penetrating trauma might be more common in urban regions, but their characteristics have not been fully elucidated. Retrospective analysis of data from patients admitted to our urban university level I trauma center between 2008 and 2013 with suspicion of severe multiple injuries. Collection of data was performed prospectively using a PC-supported online documentation program including epidemiological, clinical and outcome parameters. Out of 2095 trauma room patients admitted over the 6-year time period 194 (9.3 %) suffered from penetrating trauma. The mean Injury Severity Score (ISS) was 12.3 ± 14.1 points. In 62.4 % (n = 121) the penetrating injuries were caused by interpersonal violence or attempted suicide, 98 of these by stabbing and 23 by firearms. We observed a widespread injury pattern where mainly head, thorax and abdomen were afflicted. Subgroup analysis for self-inflicted injuries showed higher ISS (19.8 ± 21.8 points) than for blunt trauma (15.5 ± 14.6 points). In 82.5 % of all penetrating trauma a surgical treatment was performed, 43.8 % of the patients received intensive care unit treatment with mean duration of 7.4 ± 9.3 days. Immediate emergency surgical treatment had to be performed in 8.0 vs. 2.3 % in blunt trauma (p < 0.001). Infectious complications of the penetrating wounds were observed in 7.8 %. Specific characteristics of penetrating trauma in urban regions can be identified. Compared to nationwide data, penetrating trauma was more frequent in our collective (9.3 vs. 5.0 %), which may be due to higher crime rates in urban areas. Especially, self-inflicted penetrating trauma often results in most severe injuries.

  1. Evaluation of the filtration performance of NIOSH-approved N95 filtering facepiece respirators by photometric and number-based test methods.

    PubMed

    Rengasamy, Samy; Miller, Adam; Eimer, Benjamin C

    2011-01-01

    N95 particulate filtering facepiece respirators are certified by measuring penetration levels photometrically with a presumed severe case test method using charge neutralized NaCl aerosols at 85 L/min. However, penetration values obtained by photometric methods have not been compared with count-based methods using contemporary respirators composed of electrostatic filter media and challenged with both generated and ambient aerosols. To better understand the effects of key test parameters (e.g., particle charge, detection method), initial penetration levels for five N95 model filtering facepiece respirators were measured using NaCl aerosols with the aerosol challenge and test equipment employed in the NIOSH respirator certification method (photometric) and compared with an ultrafine condensation particle counter method (count based) for the same NaCl aerosols as well as for ambient room air particles. Penetrations using the NIOSH test method were several-fold less than the penetrations obtained by the ultrafine condensation particle counter for NaCl aerosols as well as for room particles indicating that penetration measurement based on particle counting offers a more difficult challenge than the photometric method, which lacks sensitivity for particles < 100 nm. All five N95 models showed the most penetrating particle size around 50 nm for room air particles with or without charge neutralization, and at 200 nm for singly charged NaCl monodisperse particles. Room air with fewer charged particles and an overwhelming number of neutral particles contributed to the most penetrating particle size in the 50 nm range, indicating that the charge state for the majority of test particles determines the MPPS. Data suggest that the NIOSH respirator certification protocol employing the photometric method may not be a more challenging aerosol test method. Filter penetrations can vary among workplaces with different particle size distributions, which suggests the need for the development of new or revised "more challenging" aerosol test methods for NIOSH certification of respirators.

  2. Nanometre-sized pores in coal: Variations between coal basins and coal origin

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sakurovs, Richard; Koval, Lukas; Grigore, Mihaela; Sokolava, Anna; Ruppert, Leslie F.; Melnichenko, Yuri B.

    2018-01-01

    We have used small angle neutron scattering (SANS) to investigate the differences in methane and hexane penetration in pores in bituminous coal samples from the U.S., Canada, South Africa, and China, and maceral concentrates from Australian coals. This work is an extension of previous work that showed consistent differences between the extent of penetration by methane into 10–20 nm size pores in inertinite in bituminous coals from Australia, North America and Poland.In this study we have confirmed that there are differences in the response of inertinite to methane and hexane penetration in coals sourced from different coal basins. Inertinite in Permian Australian coals generally has relatively high numbers of pores in the 2.5–250 nm size range and the pores are highly penetrable by methane and hexane; coals sourced from Western Canada had similar penetrability to these Australian coals. However, the penetrability of methane and hexane into inertinite from the Australian Illawarra Coal Measures (also Permian) is substantially less than that of the other Australian coals; there are about 80% fewer 12 nm pores in Illawarra inertinite compared to the other Australian coals examined. The inertinite in coals sourced from South Africa and China had accessibility intermediate between the Illawarra coals and the other Australian coals.The extent of hexane penetration was 10–20% less than CD4 penetration into the same coal and this difference was most pronounced in the 5–50 nm pore size range. Hexane and methane penetrability into the coals showed similar trends with inertinite content.The observed variations in inertinite porosity between coals from different coal regions and coal basins may explain why previous studies differ in their observations of the relationships between gas sorption behavior, permeability, porosity, and maceral composition. These variations are not simply a demarcation between Northern and Southern Hemisphere coals.

  3. Pressure enhanced penetration with shaped charge perforators

    DOEpatents

    Glenn, Lewis A.

    2001-01-01

    A downhole tool, adapted to retain a shaped charge surrounded by a superatmospherically pressurized light gas, is employed in a method for perforating a casing and penetrating reservoir rock around a wellbore. Penetration of a shaped charge jet can be enhanced by at least 40% by imploding a liner in the high pressure, light gas atmosphere. The gas pressure helps confine the jet on the axis of penetration in the latter stages of formation. The light gas, such as helium or hydrogen, is employed to keep the gas density low enough so as not to inhibit liner collapse.

  4. Penetration of nanoparticles and nanomaterials in the skin: fiction or reality?

    PubMed

    Baroli, Biancamaria

    2010-01-01

    The advent of nanotechnological products in the market, while holding great promise, is raising concerns in consumers. Therefore, this contribution will attempt to compare different particulate formulations and to answer whether their passive penetration into, and potential permeation through the skin may be possible or not. To this end, skin structure, composition, and penetration paths will be concisely reviewed. Parameters generally cited to affect skin absorption will be resumed and commented on from the perspective of potentially penetrating nanosized agents. These sections will provide the basis to understand what is fiction and what is reality.

  5. Stochastic dynamics of penetrable rods in one dimension: occupied volume and spatial order.

    PubMed

    Craven, Galen T; Popov, Alexander V; Hernandez, Rigoberto

    2013-06-28

    The occupied volume of a penetrable hard rod (HR) system in one dimension is probed through the use of molecular dynamics simulations. In these dynamical simulations, collisions between penetrable rods are governed by a stochastic penetration algorithm (SPA), which allows for rods to either interpenetrate with a probability δ, or collide elastically otherwise. The limiting values of this parameter, δ = 0 and δ = 1, correspond to the HR and the ideal limits, respectively. At intermediate values, 0 < δ < 1, mixing of mutually exclusive and independent events is observed, making prediction of the occupied volume nontrivial. At high hard core volume fractions φ0, the occupied volume expression derived by Rikvold and Stell [J. Chem. Phys. 82, 1014 (1985)] for permeable systems does not accurately predict the occupied volume measured from the SPA simulations. Multi-body effects contribute significantly to the pair correlation function g2(r) and the simplification by Rikvold and Stell that g2(r) = δ in the penetrative region is observed to be inaccurate for the SPA model. We find that an integral over the penetrative region of g2(r) is the principal quantity that describes the particle overlap ratios corresponding to the observed penetration probabilities. Analytic formulas are developed to predict the occupied volume of mixed systems and agreement is observed between these theoretical predictions and the results measured from simulation.

  6. Skin penetration behaviour of sesquiterpene lactones from different Arnica preparations using a validated GC-MSD method.

    PubMed

    Wagner, Steffen; Merfort, Irmgard

    2007-01-04

    Preparations of Arnica montana L. are widely used for the topical treatment of inflammatory diseases. The anti-inflammatory activity is mainly attributed to their sesquiterpene lactones (SLs) from the helenalin and 11alpha,13-dihydrohelenalin type. To study the penetration kinetics of SLs in Arnica preparations, a stripping method with adhesive tape and pig skin as a model was used. For the determination of SLs in the stripped layers of the stratum corneum (SC), a gas chromatography/mass spectrometry method was developed and validated. Thereby the amount of helenalin derivatives was calculated as helenalin isobutyrate, and 11alpha,13-dihydrohelenalin derivatives as 11alpha,13-dihydrohelenalin methacrylate. This GC-MSD method is suitable also to determine low amounts of SLs in Arnica preparations. The penetration behaviour of one gel preparation and two ointment preparations was investigated. The SLs of all preparations show a comparable penetration in and a permeation through the stratum corneum, the uppermost part of the skin. Interestingly, the gel preparation showed a decrease of the penetration rate over 4h, whereas the penetration rate of ointments kept constant over time. Moreover, we could demonstrate that the totally penetrated amount of SLs only depends on the kind of the formulation and of the SLs-content in the formulation but not on the SLs composition or on the used extraction agent.

  7. A tumor-penetrating peptide enhances circulation-independent targeting of peritoneal carcinomatosis

    PubMed Central

    Sugahara, Kazuki N.; Scodeller, Pablo; Braun, Gary B.; de Mendoza, Tatiana Hurtado; Yamazaki, Chisato M.; Kluger, Michael D.; Kitayama, Joji; Alvarez, Edwin; Howell, Stephen B.; Teesalu, Tambet; Ruoslahti, Erkki; Lowy, Andrew M.

    2015-01-01

    Peritoneal carcinomatosis is a major source of morbidity and mortality in patients with advanced abdominal neoplasms. Intraperitoneal chemotherapy (IPC) is an area of intense interest given its efficacy in ovarian cancer. However, IPC suffers from poor drug penetration into peritoneal tumors. As such, extensive cytoreductive surgery is required prior to IPC. Here, we explore the utility of iRGD, a tumor-penetrating peptide, for improved tumor-specific penetration of intraperitoneal compounds and enhanced IPC in mice. Intraperitoneally administered iRGD significantly enhanced penetration of an attached fluorescein into disseminated peritoneal tumor nodules. The penetration was tumor-specific, circulation-independent, and mediated by the neuropilin-binding RXXK tissue-penetration peptide motif of iRGD. Q-iRGD, which fluoresces upon cleavage, including the one that leads to RXXK activation, specifically labeled peritoneal metastases displaying different growth patterns in mice. Importantly, iRGD enhanced intratumoral entry of intraperitoneally co-injected dextran to approximately 300% and doxorubicin to 250%. Intraperitoneal iRGD/doxorubicin combination therapy inhibited the growth of bulky peritoneal tumors and reduced systemic drug toxicity. iRGD delivered attached fluorescein and co-applied nanoparticles deep into fresh human peritoneal metastasis explants. These results indicate that intraperitoneal iRGD co-administration serves as a simple and effective strategy to facilitate tumor detection and improve the therapeutic index of IPC for peritoneal carcinomatosis. PMID:26071630

  8. Videofluoroscopic Predictors of Penetration-Aspiration in Parkinson's Disease Patients.

    PubMed

    Argolo, Natalie; Sampaio, Marília; Pinho, Patrícia; Melo, Ailton; Nóbrega, Ana Caline

    2015-12-01

    Parkinson's disease (PD) patients show a high prevalence of swallowing disorders and tracheal aspiration of food. The videofluoroscopic study of swallowing (VFSS) allows clinicians to visualize the visuoperceptual and temporal parameters associated with swallowing disorders in an attempt to predict aspiration risk. However, this subject remains understudied in PD populations. Our aim was to identify the predictors of penetration-aspiration in PD patients using the VFSS. Consecutive patients were evaluated using VFSS with different consistencies and volumes of food. A speech-language pathologist measured the type of intra-oral bolus organization, loss of bolus control, bolus location at the initiation of the pharyngeal swallow, the presence of multiple swallows, piecemeal deglutition, bolus residue in the pharyngeal recesses and temporal measures. Scores ≥3 on the penetration-aspiration scale (PAS) indicated the occurrence of penetration-aspiration. Using logistic marginal regression, we found that residue in the vallecula, residue in the upper esophageal sphincter and piecemeal deglutition were associated with penetration-aspiration (odds ratio (OR) = 4.09, 2.87 and 3.83; P = 0.0040, 0.0071 and 0.0009, respectively). Penetration/aspiration occurred only with fluids (both of thin and thick consistency), and no significant differences were observed between fluid types or food volumes. The mechanisms underlying dysphagia and penetration/aspiration in PD patients and indications for further studies are discussed.

  9. Cell wall composition and penetration resistance against the fungal pathogen Colletotrichum higginsianum are affected by impaired starch turnover in Arabidopsis mutants

    PubMed Central

    Engelsdorf, Timo; Will, Cornelia; Hofmann, Jörg; Schmitt, Christine; Merritt, Brian B.; Rieger, Leonie; Frenger, Marc S.; Marschall, André; Franke, Rochus B.; Pattathil, Sivakumar

    2017-01-01

    Abstract Penetration resistance represents the first level of plant defense against phytopathogenic fungi. Here, we report that the starch-deficient Arabidopsis thaliana phosphoglucomutase (pgm) mutant has impaired penetration resistance against the hemibiotrophic fungus Colletotrichum higginsianum. We could not determine any changes in leaf cutin and epicuticular wax composition or indolic glucosinolate levels, but detected complex alterations in the cell wall monosaccharide composition of pgm. Notably, other mutants deficient in starch biosynthesis (adg1) or mobilization (sex1) had similarly affected cell wall composition and penetration resistance. Glycome profiling analysis showed that both overall cell wall polysaccharide extractability and relative extractability of specific pectin and xylan epitopes were affected in pgm, suggesting extensive structural changes in pgm cell walls. Screening of mutants with alterations in content or modification of specific cell wall monosaccharides indicated an important function of pectic polymers for penetration resistance and hyphal growth of C. higginsianum during the biotrophic interaction phase. While mutants with affected pectic rhamnogalacturonan-I (mur8) were hypersusceptible, penetration frequency and morphology of fungal hyphae were impaired on pmr5 pmr6 mutants with increased pectin levels. Our results reveal a strong impact of starch metabolism on cell wall composition and suggest a link between carbohydrate availability, cell wall pectin and penetration resistance. PMID:28204541

  10. The isolated perfused human skin flap model: A missing link in skin penetration studies?

    PubMed

    Ternullo, Selenia; de Weerd, Louis; Flaten, Gøril Eide; Holsæter, Ann Mari; Škalko-Basnet, Nataša

    2017-01-01

    Development of effective (trans)dermal drug delivery systems requires reliable skin models to evaluate skin drug penetration. The isolated perfused human skin flap remains metabolically active tissue for up to 6h during in vitro perfusion. We introduce the isolated perfused human skin flap as a close-to-in vivo skin penetration model. To validate the model's ability to evaluate skin drug penetration the solutions of a hydrophilic (calcein) and a lipophilic (rhodamine) fluorescence marker were applied. The skin flaps were perfused with modified Krebs-Henseleit buffer (pH7.4). Infrared technology was used to monitor perfusion and to select a well-perfused skin area for administration of the markers. Flap perfusion and physiological parameters were maintained constant during the 6h experiments and the amount of markers in the perfusate was determined. Calcein was detected in the perfusate, whereas rhodamine was not detectable. Confocal images of skin cross-sections shoved that calcein was uniformly distributed through the skin, whereas rhodamine accumulated in the stratum corneum. For comparison, the penetration of both markers was evaluated on ex vivo human skin, pig skin and cellophane membrane. The proposed perfused flap model enabled us to distinguish between the penetrations of the two markers and could be a promising close-to-in vivo tool in skin penetration studies and optimization of formulations destined for skin administration. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. X-ray Imaging of Transplanar Liquid Transport Mechanisms in Single Layer Textiles.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Gannian; Parwani, Rachna; Stone, Corinne A; Barber, Asa H; Botto, Lorenzo

    2017-10-31

    Understanding the penetration of liquids within textile fibers is critical for the development of next-generation smart textiles. Despite substantial research on liquid penetration in the plane of the textile, little is known about how the liquid penetrates in the thickness direction. Here we report a time-resolved high-resolution X-ray measurement of the motion of the liquid-air interface within a single layer textile, as the liquid is transported across the textile thickness following the deposition of a droplet. The measurement of the time-dependent position of the liquid meniscus is made possible by the use of ultrahigh viscosity liquids (dynamic viscosity from 10 5 to 2.5 × 10 6  times larger than water). This approach enables imaging due to the slow penetration kinetics. Imaging results suggest a three-stage penetration process with each stage being associated with one of the three types of capillary channels existing in the textile geometry, providing insights into the effect of the textile structure on the path of the three-dimensional liquid meniscus. One dimensional kinetics studies show that our data for the transplanar penetration depth Δx L vs time do not conform to a power law, and that the measured rate of penetration for long times is smaller than that predicted by Lucas-Washburn kinetics, challenging commonly held assumptions regarding the validity of power laws when applied to relatively thin textiles.

  12. Pneumocranium secondary to halo vest pin penetration through an enlarged frontal sinus.

    PubMed

    Cheong, Min Lee; Chan, Chris Yin Wei; Saw, Lim Beng; Kwan, Mun Keong

    2009-07-01

    We present a case report of a patient with pneumocranium secondary to halo vest pin penetration and a review of literature. The objectives of this study are to report a rare complication of halo vest pin insertion and to discuss methods of prevention of this complication. Halo vest orthosis is a commonly used and well-tolerated upper cervical spinal stabilizing device. Reports of complications related to pin penetration is rare and from our review, there has been no reports of pneumocranium occurring from insertion of pins following standard anatomical landmarks. A 57-year-old male sustained a type 1 traumatic spondylolisthesis of C2/C3 following a motor vehicle accident. During application of the halo vest, penetration of the left anterior pin through the abnormally enlarged frontal sinus occurred. The patient developed headache, vomiting and CSF rhinorrhoea over his left nostril. He was treated with intravenous Ceftriaxone for 1 week. This resulted in resolution of his symptoms as well as the pneumocranium. In conclusion, complications of halo vest pin penetration are rare and need immediate recognition. Despite the use of anatomical landmarks, pin penetration is still possible due to aberrant anatomy. All patients should have a skull X-ray with a radio-opaque marker done prior to placement of the halo vest pins and halo vest pins have to be inserted by experienced personnel to enable early detection of pin penetration.

  13. The contribution of laparoscopy in evaluation of penetrating abdominal wounds.

    PubMed

    Ahmed, Naveed; Whelan, Jim; Brownlee, John; Chari, Vedantum; Chung, Raphael

    2005-08-01

    Penetrating abdominal wounds are traditionally explored by laparotomy. We investigated prospectively the role of laparoscopy within a defined protocol for management of penetrating abdominal wounds to determine its safety and advantages over traditional operative management. The study inclusion criteria were: stab and gun shot abdominal wounds, including junction zone injuries; stable vital signs; and absence of contraindications for laparoscopy. Diagnostic end points included detection of peritoneum or diaphragm violation, visceral injuries, and other indications for laparotomy. Systematic examination was undertaken using a multiport technique whenever the peritoneum or diaphragm had been violated. All repairs were done by open operation. A total of 40.6% of patients with penetrating trauma fulfilled study criteria (52 patients). Of these, 33% had no peritoneal penetration; 29% had no visceral injuries despite violation of peritoneum or diaphragm; 38% had visceral injuries, of which 40% (mainly liver and omentum) required no intervention. Twelve patients (23% of total) had open repairs. No missed injuries or death occurred in the study. Overall, 77% of penetrating injuries with stable vital signs avoided exploratory laparotomy. Compared with National Trauma Data Bank information for patients with the same Injury Severity Scores, hospitalization was reduced by more than 55% for the entire series. Laparoscopy for penetrating abdominal injuries in a defined set of conditions was safe and accurate, effectively eliminating nontherapeutic laparotomy and shortening hospitalization.

  14. Pharmacokinetics of new nootropic acylprolyldipeptide and its penetration across the blood-brain barrier after oral administration.

    PubMed

    Boiko, S S; Ostrovskaya, R U; Zherdev, V P; Korotkov, S A; Gudasheva, T A; Voronina, T A; Seredenin, S B

    2000-04-01

    Pharmacokinetics of GVS-111, a new acylprolyldipeptide with nootropic properties and its penetration across the blood-brain barrier were studied in rats using HPLC. It was found that the dipeptide is absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract, enters the circulation, and penetrates through the blood-brain barrier in an unmodified state.

  15. Differences in Stylet Penetration Behaviors of Glassy-winged Sharpshooters on Xylella-Resistant Vitis candicans vs. Susceptible Vitis vinifera cv. ‘Chardonnay’

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Electrical penetration graph (EPG) monitoring was used to compare stylet penetration behaviors of glassy-winged sharpshooter (GWSS), a vector of Xylella fastidiosa (Xf), on Xf-resistant Vitis candicans grape vs. susceptible V. vinifera cv. ‘Chardonnay.’ Frequency of occurrence of X waves (represent...

  16. Does Medicaid managed care market penetration impact provider participation, costs, utilization, and access?

    PubMed

    Minott, Jenny

    2010-09-01

    Key findings. (1) An increase in commercial plan penetration increased the liklihood [sic] that a physician would accept new Medicaid patients, but this did not significantly impact enrollee costs. (2) An increase in Medicaid-dominant HMO market penetration increased the probability that individuals reported using the ED as their primary source of care.

  17. Thermoluminescent phosphor

    DOEpatents

    Lasky, Jerome B.; Moran, Paul R.

    1978-01-01

    A thermoluminescent phosphor comprising LiF doped with boron and magnesium is produced by diffusion of boron into a conventional LiF phosphor doped with magnesium. Where the boron dopant is made to penetrate only the outer layer of the phosphor, it can be used to detect shallowly penetrating radiation such as tritium beta rays in the presence of a background of more penetrating radiation.

  18. Spray penetration and natural enemy survival in dense and sparse plant canopies treated with Carbaryl: implications for conventional and biological control

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Ornamental plant producers often rely on chemical control to manage insect pests. However, cultural practices, such as pruning, can influence plant architecture which may, in turn, affect pesticide penetration. Spray penetration was studied to determine the effect of canopy density on beneficial ins...

  19. 46 CFR 128.230 - Penetrations of hulls and watertight bulkheads-materials and pressure design.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... 46 Shipping 4 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Penetrations of hulls and watertight bulkheads-materials and pressure design. 128.230 Section 128.230 Shipping COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY (CONTINUED) OFFSHORE SUPPLY VESSELS MARINE ENGINEERING: EQUIPMENT AND SYSTEMS Materials and Pressure Design § 128.230 Penetrations of hulls and...

  20. 46 CFR 128.230 - Penetrations of hulls and watertight bulkheads-materials and pressure design.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 46 Shipping 4 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Penetrations of hulls and watertight bulkheads-materials and pressure design. 128.230 Section 128.230 Shipping COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY (CONTINUED) OFFSHORE SUPPLY VESSELS MARINE ENGINEERING: EQUIPMENT AND SYSTEMS Materials and Pressure Design § 128.230 Penetrations of hulls and...

  1. Improving cell penetration of helical peptides stabilized by N-terminal crosslinked aspartic acids.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Hui; Jiang, Yanhong; Tian, Yuan; Yang, Dan; Qin, Xuan; Li, Zigang

    2017-01-04

    Cell penetration and nucleus translocation efficiency are important for the cellular activities of peptide therapeutics. For helical peptides stabilized by N-terminal crosslinked aspartic acid, correlations between their penetration efficiency/nucleus translocation and physicochemical properties were studied. An increase in hydrophobicity and isoelectric point will promote cellular uptake and nucleus translocation of stabilized helices.

  2. 40 CFR 1065.376 - Chiller NO2 penetration.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 33 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Chiller NO2 penetration. 1065.376... Chiller NO2 penetration. (a) Scope and frequency. If you use a chiller to dry a sample upstream of a NOX measurement instrument, but you don't use an NO2-to-NO converter upstream of the chiller, you must perform...

  3. Acoustic-Emission Weld-Penetration Monitor

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Maram, J.; Collins, J.

    1986-01-01

    Weld penetration monitored by detection of high-frequency acoustic emissions produced by advancing weld pool as it melts and solidifies in workpiece. Acoustic emission from TIG butt weld measured with 300-kHz resonant transducer. Rise in emission level coincides with cessation of weld penetration due to sudden reduction in welding current. Such monitoring applied to control of automated and robotic welders.

  4. Penetration of boron from topically applied borate solutions

    Treesearch

    Stan T. Lebow; Patricia K. Lebow; Steven A. Halverson

    2010-01-01

    Borate penetration relies on diffusion when borate and glycol-borate preservatives are applied to the surface of wood. This study evaluated the extent of borate penetration in framing lumber as a function of preservative formulation, wood moisture content, and diffusion time after treatment. In Phase I of the study, end-matched specimens were conditioned to target...

  5. The Penetration Behavior of an Annular Gas-Solid Jet Impinging on a Liquid Bath: The Effects of the Density and Size of Solid Particles

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chang, J. S.; Sohn, H. Y.

    2012-08-01

    Top-blow injection of a gas-solid jet through a circular lance is used in the Mitsubishi Continuous Smelting Process. One problem associated with this injection is the severe erosion of the hearth refractory below the lances. A new configuration of the lance to form an annular gas-solid jet rather than the circular jet was designed in this laboratory. With this new configuration, the solid particles fed through the center tube leave the lance at a much lower velocity than the gas, and the penetration behavior of the jet is significantly different from that with a circular lance where the solid particles leave the lance at the same high velocity as the gas. In previous cold-model investigations in this laboratory, the effects of the gas velocity, particle feed rate, lance height of the annular lance, and the cross-sectional area of the gas jet were studied and compared with the circular lance. This study examined the effect of the density and size of the solid particles on the penetration behavior of the annular gas-solid jet, which yielded some unexpected results. The variation in the penetration depth with the density of the solid particles at the same mass feed rate was opposite for the circular lance and the annular lance. In the case of the circular lance, the penetration depth became shallower as the density of the solid particles increased; on the contrary, for the annular lance, the penetration depth became deeper with the increasing density of particles. However, at the same volumetric feed rate of the particles, the density effect was small for the circular lance, but for the annular lance, the jets with higher density particles penetrated more deeply. The variation in the penetration depth with the particle diameter was also different for the circular and the annular lances. With the circular lance, the penetration depth became deeper as the particle size decreased for all the feed rates, but with the annular lance, the effect of the particle size was small. The overall results including the previous work indicated that the penetration behavior of an annular jet is much less sensitive to the variations in operating variables than that of a circular jet. Correlation equations for the penetration depth that show good agreements with the measured values have been developed.

  6. Ground-Support Algorithms for Simulation, Processing, and Calibration of Barnes Static Earth Sensor Measurements: Applications to Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission Observatory

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Natanson, G. A.

    1997-01-01

    New algorithms are described covering the simulation, processing, and calibration of penetration angles of the Barnes static Earth sensor assembly (SESA) as implemented in the Goddard Space Flight Center Flight Dynamics Division ground support system for the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Observatory. The new treatment involves a detailed analysis of the measurements by individual quadrants. It is shown that, to a good approximation, individual quadrant misalignments can be treated simply as penetration angle biases. Simple formulas suitable for real-time applications are introduced for computing quadrant-dependent effects. The simulator generates penetration angles by solving a quadratic equation with coefficients uniquely determined by the spacecraft's position and the quadrant's orientation in GeoCentric Inertial (GCI) coordinates. Measurement processing for attitude determination is based on linearized equations obtained by expanding the coefficients of the aforementioned quadratic equation as a Taylor series in both the Earth oblateness coefficient (alpha approx. 1/150) and the angle between the pointing axis and the geodetic nadir vector. A simple formula relating a measured value of the penetration angle to the deviation of the Earth-pointed axis from the geodetic nadir vector is derived. It is shown that even near the very edge of the quadrant's Field Of View (FOV), attitude errors resulting from quadratic effects are a few hundredths of a degree, which is small compared to the attitude determination accuracy requirement (0.18 degree, 3 sigma) of TRMM. Calibration of SESA measurements is complicated by a first-order filtering used in the TRMM onboard algorithm to compute penetration angles from raw voltages. A simple calibration scheme is introduced where these complications are avoided by treating penetration angles as the primary raw measurements, which are adjusted using biases and scale factors. In addition to three misalignment parameters, the calibration state vector contains only two average penetration angle biases (one per each pair of opposite quadrants) since, because of the very narrow sensor FOV (+/- 2.6 degrees), differences between biases of the penetration angles measured by opposite quadrants cannot be distinguished from roll and pitch sensor misalignments. After calibration, the estimated misalignments and average penetration angle biases are converted to the four penetration angle biases and to the yaw misalignment angle. The resultant biases and the estimated scale factors are finally used to update the coefficients necessary for onboard computations of penetration angles from measured voltages.

  7. [Special penetration needling for refractory peripheral facial paralysis].

    PubMed

    Cao, Rongjuan; Qiu, Xiaohu; Xie, Xiaokun

    2018-03-12

    To observe the clinical effect difference between special penetration needling and conventional penetration needling for the refractory peripheral facial paralysis. A total of 97 patients with intractable facial paralysis were randomized into an observation group (49 cases and 2 dropping) and a control group (48 cases and 4 dropping). In the observation group, special penetration needling at an angle about 45° between the penetration needle and paralysis muscle bundle was used, Yangbai (GB 14) through Touwei (ST 8), Yangbai (GB 14) through Shangxing (GV 23), Sizhukong (TE 23) through Yuyao (EX-HN 4), Qianzhen (Extra) through Yingxiang (LI 20), mutual penetration between Yingxiang (LI 20) and Jiache (ST 6). Conventional penetration needling was applied in the control group, Yangbai (GB 14) through Yuyao (EX-HN 4), Cuanzhu (BL 2) through Yuyao (EX-HN 4), mutual penetration between Dicang (ST 4) and Jiache (ST 6), Qianzheng (Extra) through Dicang (ST 4), Sibai (ST 2) through Yingxiang (LI 20). Three groups of electroacupuncture (discontinuous wave, 1 Hz) with tolerance were connected respectively in the two groups, Yangbai (GB 14) and Sizhukong (TE 23), Yangbai (GB 14) and Qianzheng (Extra), Yingxiang (LI 20) and Jiache (ST 6) in the observation group, Yangbai (GB 14) and Cuanzhu (BL 2), Dicang (ST 4) and Jiache (ST 6), Qianzheng (Extra) and Sibai (ST 2) in the control group. TDP was applied in the two groups at the affected Yifeng (TE 17), Jiache (ST 6) and Qianzheng (Extra), which were around the ear. Perpendicular insertion was used at Yifeng (TE 17) at the affected side and Hegu (LI 4) at the healthy side and bilateral Zusanli (ST 36). The needles were retained for 30 min. The treatment was given for 3 courses, once a day and 10 days as a course, 5 days at the interval. House-Brackmann (H-B) facial nerve grading score was recorded before and after treatment. The clinical effects were compared. The H-B scores after treatment in the two groups were higher than those before treatment (both P <0.05), with better result in the observation group ( P <0.05). The cured and markedly effective rate of the observation group was 74.5% (35/47), which was better than 47.7% (21/44) of the control group ( P <0.01). Special penetration needling at an angle about 45° between the penetration needle and paralysis muscle bundle is better than conventional penetration needling for refractory facial paralysis.

  8. Diffusion of beta-lactam antibiotics through the porin channels of Escherichia coli K-12.

    PubMed Central

    Yoshimura, F; Nikaido, H

    1985-01-01

    Diffusion rates of various beta-lactam antibiotics through the OmpF and OmpC porin channels of Escherichia coli K-12 were measured by the use of reconstituted proteoliposomes. The results can be interpreted on the basis of the gross physicochemical properties of the antibiotics along the following lines. (i) As noted previously (Nikaido et al., J. Bacteriol., 153:232-240, 1983), there was a monotonous dependence of the penetration rate on the hydrophobicity of the molecule among the classical monoanionic beta-lactams, and a 10-fold increase in the octanol-water partition coefficient of the uncharged molecule decreased the penetration rate by a factor of 5 to 6. (ii) Compounds with exceptionally bulky side chains, such as mezlocillin, piperacillin, and cefoperazone, showed much slower penetration rates than expected from their hydrophobicity. (iii) The substituted oxime side chain on the alpha-carbon of the substituent group at position 7 of the cephem nucleus decreased the penetration rate almost by an order of magnitude; this appears to be largely due to the steric effect. (iv) The presence of a methoxy group at position 7 of the cephalosporins also reduced the penetration rate by 20%, probably also due to the steric hindrance. (v) Zwitterionic compounds penetrated very rapidly, and the correlation between the rate and hydrophobicity appeared to be much weaker than with the monoanionic compounds. Imipenem showed the highest permeability among the compounds tested, presumably due, at least in part, to its compact molecular structure. (vi) Compounds with two negative charges penetrated more slowly than did analogs with only one negatively charged group. Among them, only moxalactam, ceftriaxone, and azthreonam showed penetration rates corresponding to, or higher than, 10% of that of imipenem. PMID:2580479

  9. CT Appearance of Traumatic Inferior Vena Cava Injury.

    PubMed

    Tsai, Richard; Raptis, Constantine; Schuerer, Douglas J; Mellnick, Vincent M

    2016-07-19

    CT plays a crucial role in the evaluation of stable patients with blunt and penetrating trauma in the emergency department. Among the more severe injuries that may occur in penetrating and blunt trauma are those to the inferior vena cava (IVC). The purpose of this study was to evaluate and differentiate the CT findings associated with penetrating versus blunt trauma to the IVC to aid the radiologist in diagnosing IVC injuries. Cases of blunt and penetrating IVC injury were retrospectively identified using search queries. Criteria for inclusion were preoperative contrast-enhanced CT and surgically confirmed caval injury or direct findings of caval injury on CT with patient death before surgical confirmation could be obtained. Twelve cases of traumatic IVC injury were identified over a 9-year period: six blunt and six penetrating. The most common finding was a retroperitoneal hematoma, seen in 75% of cases. Eighty-three percent of blunt injuries were associated with hepatic lacerations and contrast material extravasation. Thirty-three percent of penetrating IVC injuries were associated with extravasation. Contour abnormalities were seen in 50% of blunt and 17% of penetrating injuries to the IVC. All three cases of IVC injury resulting in mortality occurred in the retrohepatic segment. Injury to the IVC is frequently fatal in patients with penetrating or blunt trauma. The CT appearance of IVC injury is dichotomous between the two causes, with blunt IVC injury more likely to show extravasation, contour abnormality, and associated hepatic laceration. Injury of the retrohepatic IVC portends a poor outcome. With the continued use of CT for evaluation of trauma patients, the radiologist should be familiar with IVC injury and its different CT appearances.

  10. Evaluation of the sealing ability of gutta-percha and thermoplastic synthetic polymer-based systems along the root canals through the glucose penetration model.

    PubMed

    Kaya, B Ureyen; Kececi, Ayşe Diljin; Belli, S

    2007-12-01

    To compare the sealing ability of gutta-percha and thermoplastic synthetic polymer-based systems along the root canals using a recently introduced glucose penetration model. Premolars (n = 156) instrumented to an apical size of .06/40 were divided into 12 experimental and 2 control groups. The root canals were filled with either gutta-percha (groups 1-6) or Resilon (groups 7-12) core materials combined with AH Plus (groups 1, 4, 7, 0), Ketac Endo (groups 1, 5, 8, 11), or Epiphany (groups 2, 6, 9, 12), using cold lateral compaction (groups 1-3, 7-9) or System B with Obtura II (groups 4-6, 10-12). The leaked glucose concentration was measured spectrophotometrically at 1, 8, 15, 22, and 30 days. Percentage leaking of each group was also calculated. Data were recorded as mmol/L and statistically analyzed with Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests (P = .05). Throughout the experimental period Resilon/Ketac-Endo/cold lateral compaction (group 8) showed the highest mean cumulative glucose penetration (mmol/L) (17.27 +/- 10.32), whereas Resilon/AH Plus/cold lateral compaction (group 7) had the least (3.36 +/- 4.65) (P < .05). At the 30(th) day, the least leaking percentage was observed in gutta-percha, Epiphany/cold lateral compaction (group 3). Glucose penetration was affected by the obturation technique in some groups. Ketac-Endo either with gutta-percha (group 2) or Resilon (group 8) indicated significantly less glucose penetration in warm technique, whereas gutta-percha/Epiphany (group 3) had significantly less glucose penetration in cold technique (P < .05). All material/technique combinations allowed glucose penetration. Gutta-percha/AH Plus combinations allowed similar patterns of glucose penetration to Resilon/Epiphany combinations.

  11. Comparing Angiographic Devascularization with Histologic Penetration after Preoperative Tumor Embolization with Onyx: What Indicates an Effective Procedure?

    PubMed

    Grandhi, Ramesh; Hunnicutt, Christopher T; Harrison, Gillian; Zwagerman, Nathan T; Snyderman, Carl H; Gardner, Paul A; Hartman, Douglas J; Horowitz, Michael

    2015-07-01

    To assess Onyx (Covidien, Irvine, California, United States) efficacy as a preoperative embolic agent for neoplasms of the head, neck, and spine, and to compare angiographic and histologic evidence of tumor penetration as predictors of intraoperative blood loss. Retrospective analysis of preoperative Onyx embolization procedures for treatment of head, neck, and spine tumors from 2009 to 2011. Patient demographics and information relating to the embolization procedure and operation were recorded. Measures of Onyx efficacy included intraoperative blood loss and length of surgery. Angiographic and histologic penetration, in addition to percentage of tumor devascularization, were assessed as predictors of efficacy. A total of 22 patients with 17 head or neck and 5 spinal lesions underwent trans-arterial preoperative Onyx embolization. Good angiographic penetration was reported in 41% of tumors and central histologic penetration in 59%, with mean tumor devascularization of 85.3% (standard deviation [SD]: 12.6%). There was no relationship between angiographic and histologic Onyx penetrance. Mean surgical blood loss was 1342 mL (SD: 1327 mL), and length of surgery was 289 minutes (SD: 162 minutes). Neither angiographic, nor histologic Onyx penetration predicted intraoperative blood loss (p = 0.38 and p = 0.32, respectively) or surgical length (p = 0.62 and 0.90, respectively). Devascularization was not associated with blood loss (p = 0.62), but it was a negative predictor of surgical length (p = 0.013). Preoperative Onyx embolization of head, neck, and spine tumors is capable of deep histologic tumor penetration, even when not visualized on angiography. The lack of association between measures of procedural adequacy suggests that using angiographic devascularization as a measure of procedural efficacy may be of limited utility. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  12. Quality Assessment of Longissimus and Semitendinosus Muscles from Beef Cattle Subjected to Non-penetrative and Penetrative Percussive Stunning Methods

    PubMed Central

    Sazili, A. Q.; Norbaiyah, B.; Zulkifli, I.; Goh, Y. M.; Lotfi, M.; Small, A. H.

    2013-01-01

    This study provides a comparative analysis of the effects of pre-slaughter penetrative and non-penetrative stunning and post-slaughter stunning on meat quality attributes in longissimus lumborum (LL) and semitendinosus (ST) muscles in heifers. Ten animals were assigned to each of four treatment groups: i) animals were subjected to conventional Halal slaughter (a clean incision through the structures at the front of the upper neck - the trachea, oesophagus, carotid arteries and jugular veins) and post-cut penetrating mechanical stun within 10 to 20 s of the neck cut (Unstunned; US); ii) high power non-penetrating mechanical stunning followed by the neck cut (HPNP); iii) low power non-penetrating mechanical stunning followed by the neck cut (LPNP); and iv) penetrative stunning using a captive bolt pistol followed by the neck cut (P). For each carcass, muscle samples were removed within 45 min of slaughter, portioned and analysed for pH, cooking loss, water holding capacity (WHC), tenderness (WBS), lipid oxidation (TBARS) and color, over a two week storage period. Stunning did not affect pH and cooking loss. Significant differences in water holding capacity, tenderness, lipid oxidation and color were present at different storage time points. HPNP stunning resulted in lower WHC and color values, particularly lightness (L*), higher TBARS values and peak force values compared with those stunned using LPNP, P and US. These adverse effects on quality were mostly encountered in the ST muscle. In conclusion, the meat quality achieved using P, LPNP and US treatments was comparable, and no treatment stood out as considerably better than another. PMID:25049845

  13. Evaluation of nano- and submicron particle penetration through ten nonwoven fabrics using a wind-driven approach.

    PubMed

    Gao, Pengfei; Jaques, Peter A; Hsiao, Ta-Chih; Shepherd, Angie; Eimer, Benjamin C; Yang, Mengshi; Miller, Adam; Gupta, Bhupender; Shaffer, Ronald

    2011-01-01

    Existing face mask and respirator test methods draw particles through materials under vacuum to measure particle penetration. However, these filtration-based methods may not simulate conditions under which protective clothing operates in the workplace, where airborne particles are primarily driven by wind and other factors instead of being limited to a downstream vacuum. This study was focused on the design and characterization of a method simulating typical wind-driven conditions for evaluating the performance of materials used in the construction of protective clothing. Ten nonwoven fabrics were selected, and physical properties including fiber diameter, fabric thickness, air permeability, porosity, pore volume, and pore size were determined. Each fabric was sealed flat across the wide opening of a cone-shaped penetration cell that was then housed in a recirculation aerosol wind tunnel. The flow rate naturally driven by wind through the fabric was measured, and the sampling flow rate of the Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer used to measure the downstream particle size distribution and concentrations was then adjusted to minimize filtration effects. Particle penetration levels were measured under different face velocities by the wind-driven method and compared with a filtration-based method using the TSI 3160 automated filter tester. The experimental results show that particle penetration increased with increasing face velocity, and penetration also increased with increasing particle size up to about 300 to 500 nm. Penetrations measured by the wind-driven method were lower than those obtained with the filtration method for most of the fabrics selected, and the relative penetration performances of the fabrics were very different due to the vastly different pore structures.

  14. Host-parasitoid interactions relating to penetration of the whitefly, Bemisia tabaci, by the parasitoid wasp, Eretmocerus mundus

    PubMed Central

    Gelman, Dale B.; Gerling, Dan; Blackburn, Michael A.

    2005-01-01

    It has been reported that the aphelinid wasp Eertmocerus mundus parasitizes all four nymphal instars of the sweet potato whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Biotype B), with 3rd instars being the preferred hosts. The parasitoid lays its egg on the leaf underneath the host nymph. First instars hatch and later penetrate the whitefly. Previous studies have shown that the initiation of parasitoid penetration induces the host to form a cellular capsule around the parasitoid. As described here, females never oviposited once the 4th instar whitefly nymph had initiated adult development. First instar E. mundus larvae were observed under 2nd, 3rd and 4th instar whitefly nymphs, however, penetration did not occur until the whitefly had reached the 4th instar. The non-penetrating E. mundus larva almost always induced permanent developmental arrest in its 4th instar whitefly host and also caused a reduction in whole body host ecdysteroid titers. Therefore, unless there is a peak in molting hormone titer in the area local to penetration, it appears that the induction of capsule formation is not due to an increase in ecdysteroid titer. As the capsule formed around the penetrating parasitoid, host epidermal cells multiplied and became cuboidal and columnar, and relatively thick layers of new cuticle were deposited within the developing capsule, particularly near its ventral opening. The newly formed host cuticle was thinner in the dorsal part of the capsule and appeared to be absent at its apex. These results provide new information regarding the timing and dynamics of parasitoid oviposition and egg hatch as related to larval penetration, parasitoid-induced changes in whitefly development, molting hormone titers and the process of capsule formation. PMID:17119628

  15. Interaction of vortex ring with a stratified finite thickness interface

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Advaith, S.; Manu, K. V.; Tinaikar, Aashay; Chetia, Utpal Kumar; Basu, Saptarshi

    2017-09-01

    This work experimentally investigates the dynamics of interaction between a propagating vortex ring and density stratified interface of finite thickness. The flow evolution has been quantified using a high speed shadowgraph technique and particle image velocimetry. The spatial and temporal behaviours of the vortex in the near and far field of the interface and the plume structure formed due to buoyancy are investigated systematically by varying the vortex strength (Reynolds number, Re) and the degree of stratification (Atwood number, At). Maximum penetration length (Lpmax) of the vortex ring through the interface is measured over a range of Reynolds (1350 ≤ Re ≤ 4600) and Richardson (0.1 ≤ Ri ≤ 4) numbers. It is found that for low Froude number values, the maximum penetration length varies linearly with the Froude number as in the study of Orlandi et al. ["Vortex rings descending in a stratified fluid," Phys. Fluids 10, 2819-2827 (1998)]. However, for high Reynolds and Richardson numbers (Ri), anomalous behaviour in maximum penetration is observed. The Lpmax value is used to characterize the vortex-interface interactions into non-penetrative, partially-penetrative, and extensively penetrative regimes. Flow visualization revealed the occurrence of short-wavelength instability of a plume structure, particularly in a partially penetrative regime. Fluid motion exhibits chaotic behaviour in an extensively penetrative regime. Detailed analyses of plume structure propagation are performed by measuring the plume length and plume rise. Appropriate scaling for the plume length and plume rise is derived, which allows universal collapse of the data for different flow conditions. Some information concerning the instability of the plume structure and decay of the vortex ring is obtained using proper orthogonal decomposition.

  16. An in vivo confocal Raman study of the delivery of trans retinol to the skin.

    PubMed

    Pudney, Paul D A; Mélot, Mickaël; Caspers, Peter J; Van Der Pol, Andre; Puppels, Gerwin J

    2007-08-01

    The purpose of this study is to monitor in vivo the delivery of trans-retinol into human skin. Delivery to real systems, such as skin, can be extremely difficult to execute and is problematic to confirm and measure. So far, methods for studying the delivery of compounds through the skin are mostly ex vivo and so inherently influence the skin and may not translate directly to the in vivo situation. Raman spectroscopy is uniquely placed to be able to measure biological processes in vivo, and this paper shows that the trans-retinol penetration into the skin can successfully be measured in vivo using this technique. This study measured the volar forearm of volunteers treated with 0.3% trans-retinol in propylene glycol (PG)/ethanol and 0.3% trans-retinol in caprylic/capric acid triglyceride (MYRITOL318), an oil found in skin creams. Solutions were applied and then confocal Raman depth profiles were obtained of the stratum corneum (SC) and into the viable epidermis (VE) up to 10 hours after treatment. Remarkable differences between a penetrating and a nonpenetrating solution can clearly be observed. Treating with trans-retinol in PG/ethanol results in trans-retinol penetrating through the SC and into the VE. Its penetration was also observed to be highly correlated with the depth of penetration of the PG, which is well known as an efficient penetration enhancer. In contrast, while treating with trans-retinol in MYRITOL318, trans-retinol hardly penetrates at all. For the first time, the penetration of trans-retinol has been monitored directly after application of solutions, in vivo without skin excision. Here, the effect of two different solutions on the delivery of trans-retinol into the skin was measured very effectively in vivo by Raman spectroscopy.

  17. Penetrance estimates for BRCA1, BRCA2 (also applied to Lynch syndrome) based on presymptomatic testing: a new unbiased method to assess risk?

    PubMed

    Evans, D Gareth; Woodward, Emma; Harkness, Elaine F; Howell, Anthony; Plaskocinska, Inga; Maher, Eamonn R; Tischkowitz, Marc D; Lalloo, Fiona

    2018-02-26

    The identification of BRCA1 , BRCA2 or mismatch repair (MMR) pathogenic gene variants in familial breast/ovarian/colorectal cancer families facilitates predictive genetic testing of at-risk relatives. However, controversy still exists regarding overall lifetime risks of cancer in individuals testing positive. We assessed the penetrance of BRCA1 , BRCA2, MLH1 and MSH2 mutations in men and women using Bayesian calculations based on ratios of positive to negative presymptomatic testing by 10-year age cohorts. Mutation position was also assessed for BRCA1 / BRCA2. RESULTS: Using results from 2264 presymptomatic tests in first-degree relatives (FDRs) of mutation carriers in BRCA1 and BRCA2 and 646 FDRs of patients with MMR mutations, we assessed overall associated cancer penetrance to age of 68 years as 73% (95% CI 61% to 82%) for BRCA1 , 60% (95% CI 49% to 71%) for BRCA2 , 95% (95% CI 76% to 99%) for MLH1% and 61% (95% CI 49% to 76%) for MSH2 . There was no evidence for significant penetrance for males in BRCA1 or BRCA2 families and males had equivalent penetrance to females with Lynch syndrome. Mutation position and degree of family history influenced penetrance in BRCA2 but not BRCA1. CONCLUSION: We describe a new method for assessing penetrance in cancer-prone syndromes. Results are in keeping with published prospective series and present modern-day estimates for overall disease penetrance that bypasses retrospective series biases. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

  18. A statistical experimental design approach to evaluate the influence of various penetration enhancers on transdermal drug delivery of buprenorphine.

    PubMed

    Taghizadeh, S Mojtaba; Moghimi-Ardakani, Ali; Mohamadnia, Fatemeh

    2015-03-01

    A series of drug-in-adhesive transdermal drug delivery systems (patch) with different chemical penetration enhancers were designed to deliver drug through the skin as a site of application. The objective of our effort was to study the influence of various chemical penetration enhancers on skin permeation rate and adhesion properties of a transdermal drug delivery system using Box-Behnken experimental design. The response surface methodology based on a three-level, three-variable Box-Behnken design was used to evaluate the interactive effects on dependent variables including, the rate of skin permeation and adhesion properties, namely peel strength and tack value. Levulinic acid, lauryl alcohol, and Tween 80 were used as penetration enhancers (patch formulations, containing 0-8% of each chemical penetration enhancer). Buprenorphine was used as a model penetrant drug. The results showed that incorporation of 20% chemical penetration enhancer into the mixture led to maximum skin permeation flux of buprenorphine from abdominal rat skin while the adhesion properties decreased. Also that skin flux in presence of levulinic acid (1.594 μg/cm(2) h) was higher than Tween 80 (1.473 μg/cm(2) h) and lauryl alcohol (0.843 μg/cm(2) h), and in mixing these enhancers together, an additional effect was observed. Moreover, it was found that each enhancer increased the tack value, while levulinic acid and lauryl alcohol improved the peel strength but Tween 80 reduced it. These findings indicated that the best chemical skin penetration enhancer for buprenorphine patch was levulinic acid. Among the designed formulations, the one which contained 12% (wt/wt) enhancers exhibited the highest efficiency.

  19. Effect of chitosan nanoparticle, QMix, and EDTA on TotalFill BC sealers' dentinal tubule penetration: a confocal laser scanning microscopy study.

    PubMed

    Aydın, Zeliha Uğur; Özyürek, Taha; Keskin, Büşra; Baran, Talat

    2018-04-12

    The aim of the present study was to compare the effect of chitosan nanoparticle, QMix, and 17% EDTA on the penetrability of a calcium silicate-based sealer into dentinal tubules using a confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM). Sixty mandibular premolar teeth were selected and randomly divided into three groups (n = 20) before root canal preparation according to the solution used in the final rinse protocol: chitosan, QMix, and EDTA groups. Twenty teeth of each group were filled with a TotalFill BC sealers' single gutta-percha cone and with 0.1% rhodamine B. The specimens were horizontally sectioned at 3 and 5 mm from the apex, and the slices were analyzed in CLSM (4×). Total percentage and maximum depth of sealer penetration were measured using confocal laser scanning microscopy with using Image J analysis software. Dentinal tubule's penetration depth, percentage, and area were measured using imaging software. Kruskal-Wallis test was used for statistical analysis. The level of significance was set at 5%. Results of Kruskal-Wallis analysis showed that there was a significant difference in the percentage and depth of sealer penetration among all groups at 3 and 5 mm level sections (P < 0.05). Within the groups, the minimum sealer penetration depth was recorded for chitosan nanoparticle group. Greater depth of sealer penetration was recorded at 5 mm as compared to 3 mm in all the groups. Within the limitation of the present study, it can be concluded that QMix and EDTA promoted sealer penetration superior to that achieved by chitosan nanoparticle.

  20. A Study to Increase Weld Penetration in P91 Steel During TIG Welding by using Activating Fluxes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Singh, Akhilesh Kumar; Kumar, Mayank; Dey, Vidyut; Naresh Rai, Ram

    2017-08-01

    Activated Flux TIG (ATIG) welding is a unique joining process, invented at Paton Institute of electric welding in 1960. ATIG welding process is also known as flux zoned TIG (FZTIG). In this process, a thin layer of activating flux is applied along the line on the surface of the material where the welding is to be carries out. The ATIG process aids to increase the weld penetration in thick materials. Activating fluxes used in the literature show the use of oxides like TiO2, SiO2, Cr2O3, ZnO, CaO, Fe2O3, and MnO2 during welding of steels. In the present study, ATIG was carried out on P-91 steel. Though, Tungsten Inert Gas welding gives excellent quality welds, but the penetration obtained in such welding is still demanding. P91 steel which is ferritic steel is used in high temperature applications. As this steel is, generally, used in thick sections, fabrication of such structures with TIG welding is limited, due to its low depth of penetration. To increase the depth of penetration in P91while welding with ATIG, the role of various oxides were investigated. Apart from the oxides mentioned above, in the present study the role of B2O3, V2O5 and MgO, during ATIG welding of P91 was investigated. It was seen that, compared to TIG welding, there was phenomenal increase in weld penetration during ATIG welding. Amongst all the oxides used in this study, maximum penetration was achieved in case of B2O3. The measurements of weld penetration, bead width and heat affected zone of the weldings were carried out using an image analysis technique.

  1. High-pressure-induced water penetration into 3-­isopropylmalate dehydrogenase

    PubMed Central

    Nagae, Takayuki; Kawamura, Takashi; Chavas, Leonard M. G.; Niwa, Ken; Hasegawa, Masashi; Kato, Chiaki; Watanabe, Nobuhisa

    2012-01-01

    Hydrostatic pressure induces structural changes in proteins, including denaturation, the mechanism of which has been attributed to water penetration into the protein interior. In this study, structures of 3-isopropylmalate dehydrogenase (IPMDH) from Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 were determined at about 2 Å resolution under pressures ranging from 0.1 to 650 MPa using a diamond anvil cell (DAC). Although most of the protein cavities are monotonically compressed as the pressure increases, the volume of one particular cavity at the dimer interface increases at pressures over 340 MPa. In parallel with this volume increase, water penetration into the cavity could be observed at pressures over 410 MPa. In addition, the generation of a new cleft on the molecular surface accompanied by water penetration could also be observed at pressures over 580 MPa. These water-penetration phenomena are considered to be initial steps in the pressure-denaturation process of IPMDH. PMID:22349232

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

    Reifenrath, W.G.; Hawkins, G.S.; Kurtz, M.S.

    Formulations of the mosquito repellent N,N-diethyl-3-methylbenzamide (deet) in combination with a variety of additives were developed to control repellent evaporation and percutaneous penetration. Deet was also formulated with the repellent dimethyl phthalate to study the interaction of the two compounds on the skin. The evaporation and penetration processes were evaluated on whole and split-thickness pig skin using radiolabeled repellents with an in vitro apparatus. Under essentially still air and air flow conditions, one of the deet formulations resulted in significantly reduced total evaporation and percutaneous penetration of deet as compared to unformulated repellent. When deet and dimethyl phthalate were combined,more » neither repellent affected the total amount of evaporation and penetration of the other compound. However, initial percutaneous penetration and evaporation rates were slightly less and decayed less rapidly than when both chemicals were tested separately at the same dose. These results indicated a degree of competition of the two compounds for the same avenues of loss.« less

  3. Dyract compomer: comparison of total etch vs. no etch technique.

    PubMed

    Kugel, G; Perry, R D; Hoang, E; Hoang, T; Ferrari, M

    1998-01-01

    Different dental materials and methods can influence the integrity of the marginal seal of restorations. To evaluate the microleakage of Dyract AP Light Cured Compomer, a polyacid modified resin (Caulk), using etched and unetched techniques, standardized trapezoidal Class V restorations were placed on facial or lingual surfaces of 20 human molars with the gingival margin in the cementum. Each restoration was scored at the cervical by two independent, double blinded operators, with reference to the DEJ, for dye penetration on a ranking system of: 0 = no evidence of dye penetration; 1 = dye penetration up to one-half the distance to the axial wall; 2 = dye penetration beyond one-half the distance to the axial wall but short of the axial wall; 3 = dye penetration to the axial wall or beyond. Statistical analysis (Fisher Exact Test) indicated that the etched compomer demonstrated significantly less microleakage when compared to the unetched compomer (p < 0.05).

  4. Penetration Characteristics of Air, Carbon Dioxide and Helium Transverse Sonic Jets in Mach 5 Cross Flow.

    PubMed

    Erdem, Erinc; Kontis, Konstantinos; Saravanan, Selvaraj

    2014-12-08

    An experimental investigation of sonic air, CO 2 and Helium transverse jets in Mach 5 cross flow was carried out over a flat plate. The jet to freestream momentum flux ratio, J, was kept the same for all gases. The unsteady flow topology was examined using high speed schlieren visualisation and PIV. Schlieren visualisation provided information regarding oscillating jet shear layer structures and bow shock, Mach disc and barrel shocks. Two-component PIV measurements at the centreline, provided information regarding jet penetration trajectories. Barrel shocks and Mach disc forming the jet boundary were visualised/quantified also jet penetration boundaries were determined. Even though J is kept the same for all gases, the penetration patterns were found to be remarkably different both at the nearfield and the farfield. Air and CO 2 jet resulted similar nearfield and farfield penetration pattern whereas Helium jet spread minimal in the nearfield.

  5. Can increasing the viscosity of formulations be used to reduce the human skin penetration of the sunscreen oxybenzone?

    PubMed

    Cross, S E; Jiang, R; Benson, H A; Roberts, M S

    2001-07-01

    The effect of adding thickening agents on the penetration of a sunscreen benzophenone-3 through epidermal and a high-density polyethylene membrane was studied using both very thick (infinite dose) and thin (in use) applications. Contradictory results were obtained. Thickening agents retard skin penetration, in a manner consistent with a diffusional resistance in the formulation, when applied as an infinite dose. In contrast, when applied as in thin (in use) doses, thickening agents promote penetration, most likely through greater stratum corneum diffusivity arising from an enhanced hydration by the thicker formulations. The two key implications from this work are (i) a recognition of the danger in the potential extrapolation of infinite dosing to in use situations, and (ii) to recognize that thicker formulations may sometimes enhance the penetration of other topical agents when applied "in use".

  6. Coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulation of activated penetrant transport in glassy polymers.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Kai; Meng, Dong; Müller-Plathe, Florian; Kumar, Sanat K

    2018-01-17

    Membrane separations of gas mixtures strive to maximize the permeability of a desired species while keeping out undesired ones. Permeability vs. selectivity data from many polymer membranes for a given gas pair with diameters d A and d B are typically collected in a "Robeson plot"', and are bound from above by a line with a slope λ = (d B /d A ) 2 - 1. A microscopic understanding of this relationship, especially λ, is still missing. We perform molecular dynamics simulations of penetrant diffusion using three different coarse-grained polymer models over a wide range of penetrant sizes, temperatures, and monomer densities. The empirically relevant λ = (d B /d A ) 2 - 1 is only found for polymers that are either supercooled liquids with caged segmental dynamics or glasses and when the penetrant size is approximately half the Kuhn length of the chains, for which the penetrant diffusion is an activated process.

  7. A novel method for imitating nacre by utilizing magnetic graphene oxide and its magnetic field alignment in polymer nanocomposites

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Zhenxiang; Jiao, Weicheng; Yan, Meiling; Li, Jun; Ding, Guomin; Wang, Rongguo

    2018-02-01

    The way gas molecules penetrate the resin matrix composites are generally divided into diffusion penetration and destruction penetration. Through theoretical analysis, the larger the nanoscale layers, the smaller the penetration effect in the directional nanosheets reinforced resin matrix composites. To control destruction penetration, the cracks should be reduced by toughening resin matrix composites. In order to solve these two kinds of leakage, the magnetic graphene oxide is connected to mimic nacre while L- glutamic acid is used as binder and the directional solidification is also utilized. Compared with pure resin, only 0.13 wt% monolithic magnetic graphene oxide and its interbed reinforced composites can reduce the leakage of He by 36.4% and 52.0% respectively, and the toughness of composites is validated to increase 4.0% and 20.3% respectively. This toughening mechanism is similar to that of nacre.

  8. Effect of cementum defects on radicular penetration of 30% H2O2 during intracoronal bleaching.

    PubMed

    Rotstein, I; Torek, Y; Misgav, R

    1991-05-01

    Bleaching pulpless teeth with 30% hydrogen peroxide has been reported to cause external cervical root resorption. It has been hypothesized that H2O2 penetrating through open dentin tubules can initiate an inflammatory reaction which could result in root resorption. Extracted human premolars were treated endodontically and bleached intracoronally using the thermocatalytic technique. The teeth were divided into three groups; one group with no cementum defects at the cementoenamel junction, one group with artificial cementum defects at the cementoenamel junction, and another group with artificial cementum defects at the middle third of the root. The radicular penetration of 30% hydrogen peroxide in the three groups was assessed directly and compared using an in vitro model. Radicular penetration of hydrogen peroxide was found in all of the groups tested. The penetration of hydrogen peroxide was significantly higher in teeth with cementum defects at the cementoenamel junction than in those without defects.

  9. Penetration of fast projectiles into resistant media: From macroscopic to subatomic projectiles

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gaite, José

    2017-09-01

    The penetration of a fast projectile into a resistant medium is a complex process that is suitable for simple modeling, in which basic physical principles can be profitably employed. This study connects two different domains: the fast motion of macroscopic bodies in resistant media and the interaction of charged subatomic particles with matter at high energies, which furnish the two limit cases of the problem of penetrating projectiles of different sizes. These limit cases actually have overlapping applications; for example, in space physics and technology. The intermediate or mesoscopic domain finds application in atom cluster implantation technology. Here it is shown that the penetration of fast nano-projectiles is ruled by a slightly modified Newton's inertial quadratic force, namely, F ∼v 2 - β, where β vanishes as the inverse of projectile diameter. Factors essential to penetration depth are ratio of projectile to medium density and projectile shape.

  10. Penetration Characteristics of Air, Carbon Dioxide and Helium Transverse Sonic Jets in Mach 5 Cross Flow

    PubMed Central

    Erdem, Erinc; Kontis, Konstantinos; Saravanan, Selvaraj

    2014-01-01

    An experimental investigation of sonic air, CO2 and Helium transverse jets in Mach 5 cross flow was carried out over a flat plate. The jet to freestream momentum flux ratio, J, was kept the same for all gases. The unsteady flow topology was examined using high speed schlieren visualisation and PIV. Schlieren visualisation provided information regarding oscillating jet shear layer structures and bow shock, Mach disc and barrel shocks. Two-component PIV measurements at the centreline, provided information regarding jet penetration trajectories. Barrel shocks and Mach disc forming the jet boundary were visualised/quantified also jet penetration boundaries were determined. Even though J is kept the same for all gases, the penetration patterns were found to be remarkably different both at the nearfield and the farfield. Air and CO2 jet resulted similar nearfield and farfield penetration pattern whereas Helium jet spread minimal in the nearfield. PMID:25494348

  11. Penetration of ELF currents and electromagnetic fields into the Earth's equatorial ionosphere

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Eliasson, B.; Papadopoulos, K.

    2009-10-01

    The penetration of extremely low frequency (ELF) transient electromagnetic fields and associated currents in the Earth's equatorial E-region plasma is studied theoretically and numerically. In the low-frequency regime, the plasma dynamics of the E-region is characterized by helicon waves since the ions are viscously coupled to neutrals while the electrons remain mobile. For typical equatorial E-region parameters, the plasma is magnetically insulated from penetration of very long timescale magnetic fields by a thin diffusive sheath. Wave penetration driven by a vertically incident pulse localized in space and time leads to both vertical penetration and the triggering of ELF helicon/whistler waves that carry currents obliquely to the magnetic field lines. The study presented here may have relevance for ELF wave generation by lightning discharges and seismic activity and can lead to new concepts in ELF/ULF injection in the earth-ionosphere waveguide.

  12. Radial flow to a partially penetrating well with storage in an anisotropic confined aquifer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mishra, Phoolendra Kumar; Vesselinov, Velimir V.; Neuman, Shlomo P.

    2012-07-01

    SummaryDrawdowns generated by extracting water from large diameter (e.g. water supply) well are affected by wellbore storage. We present an analytical solution in Laplace transformed space for drawdown in a uniform anisotropic aquifer caused by withdrawing water at a constant rate from partially penetrating well with storage. The solution is back transformed into the time domain numerically. When the pumping well is fully penetrating our solution reduces to that of Papadopulos and Cooper (1967); Hantush (1964) when the pumping well has no wellbore storage; Theis (1935) when both conditions are fulfilled and Yang (2006) when the pumping well is partially penetrating, has finite radius but lacks storage. Newly developed solution is then used to explore graphically the effects of partial penetration, wellbore storage and anisotropy on time evolutions of drawdown in the pumping well and in observation wells. We concluded after validating the developed analytical solution using synthetic pumping test.

  13. Follicular penetration of topically applied caffeine via a shampoo formulation.

    PubMed

    Otberg, N; Teichmann, A; Rasuljev, U; Sinkgraven, R; Sterry, W; Lademann, J

    2007-01-01

    Follicular drug delivery is the prerequisite for an effective treatment of androgenetic alopecia or other reasons of premature hair loss. The follicular penetration of caffeine, applied topically in a shampoo formulation for 2 min, was measured with highly sensitive surface ionization in combination with mass spectroscopy, a selective method for the detection of very small quantities of transcutaneously absorbed substances in the blood. An experimental protocol, developed to selectively block the follicular pathway within the test area, was used. Based on this principle, a clear distinction between interfollicular and follicular penetration of topically applied caffeine was feasible. After 2 min, caffeine penetrated via the hair follicles and stratum corneum. It was found that the penetration via hair follicles was faster and higher compared with the interfollicular route and that hair follicles are the only pathway for fast caffeine absorption during the first 20 min after application. Copyright 2007 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  14. The DSM diagnostic criteria for dyspareunia.

    PubMed

    Binik, Yitzchak M

    2010-04-01

    The DSM-IV-TR attempted to create a unitary category of dyspareunia based on the criterion of genital pain that interfered with sexual intercourse. This classificatory emphasis of interference with intercourse is reviewed and evaluated from both theoretical and empirical points of view. Neither of these points of view was found to support the notion of dyspareunia as a unitary disorder or its inclusion in the DSM-V as a sexual dysfunction. It seems highly likely that there are different syndromes of dyspareunia and that what is currently termed "superficial dyspareunia" cannot be differentiated reliably from vaginismus. It is proposed that the diagnoses of vaginismus and dyspareunia be collapsed into a single diagnostic entity called genito-pelvic pain/penetration disorder. This diagnostic category is defined according to five dimensions: percentage success of vaginal penetration; pain with vaginal penetration; fear of vaginal penetration or of genito-pelvic pain during vaginal penetration; pelvic floor muscle dysfunction; medical co-morbidity.

  15. Fish bone penetration of the duodenum extending into the pancreas: report of a case.

    PubMed

    Yasuda, Takashi; Kawamura, Shiro; Shimada, Etsuji; Okumura, Shuichi

    2010-07-01

    We report a case of fish bone penetration of the duodenum extending into the pancreatic head, which was successfully treated by surgery. A 73-year-old woman was admitted with upper abdominal dull pain that had persisted for 3 days. Computed tomography showed a linear calcified body, which appeared to penetrate the posterior wall of the duodenal bulb into the pancreatic head. A laparotomy was performed based on the preoperative diagnosis of localized peritonitis caused by penetration of the duodenum into the pancreas by an ingested foreign body. The foreign body was safely removed from both the pancreas and duodenum and was found to be a fish bone, measuring 4 cm in length. Neither an abscess nor hematoma was detected at the site of the pancreatic head. The postoperative course was uneventful. This case demonstrates an unusual presentation of fish bone penetration of the duodenum with a migration to the pancreas.

  16. Particle loading time and humidity effects on the efficiency of an N95 filtering facepiece respirator model under constant and inhalation cyclic flows.

    PubMed

    Mahdavi, Alireza; Haghighat, Fariborz; Bahloul, Ali; Brochot, Clothilde; Ostiguy, Claude

    2015-06-01

    It is necessary to investigate the efficiencies of filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs) exposed to ultrafine particles (UFPs) for long periods of time, since the particle loading time may potentially affect the efficiency of FFRs. This article aims to investigate the filtration efficiency for a model of electrostatic N95 FFRs with constant and 'inhalation-only' cyclic flows, in terms of particle loading time effect, using different humidity conditions. Filters were exposed to generated polydisperse NaCl particles. Experiments were performed mimicking an 'inhalation-only' scenario with a cyclic flow of 85 l min(-1) as the minute volume [or 170 l min(-1) as mean inhalation flow (MIF)] and for two constant flows of 85 and 170 l min(-1), under three relative humidity (RH) levels of 10, 50, and 80%. Each test was performed for loading time periods of 6h and the particle penetration (10-205.4nm in electrical mobility diameter) was measured once every 2h. For a 10% RH, the penetration of smaller size particles (<80nm), including the most penetrating particle size (MPPS), decreased over time for both constant and cyclic flows. For 50 and 80% RH levels, the changes in penetration were typically observed in an opposite direction with less magnitude. The penetrations at MPPS increased with respect to loading time under constant flow conditions (85 and 170 l min(-1)): it did not substantially increase under cyclic flows. The comparison of the cyclic flow (85 l min(-1) as minute volume) and constant flow equal to the cyclic flow minute volume indicated that, for all conditions the penetration was significantly less for the constant flow than that of cyclic flow. The comparison between the cyclic (170 l min(-1) as MIF) and constant flow equal to cyclic flow MIF indicated that, for the initial stage of loading, the penetrations were almost equal, but they were different for the final stages of the loading time. For a 10% RH, the penetration of a wide range of sizes was observed to be higher with the cyclic flow (170 as MIF) than with the equivalent constant flow (170 l min(-1)). For 50 and 80% RH levels, the penetrations were usually greater with a constant flow (170 l min(-1)) than with a cyclic flow (170 l min(-1) as MIF). It is concluded that, for the tested electrostatic N95 filters, the change in penetration as a function of the loading time does not necessarily take place with the same rate under constant (MIF) and cyclic flow. Moreover, for all tested flow rates, the penetration is not only affected by the loading time but also by the RH level. Lower RH levels (10%) have decreasing penetration rates in terms of loading time, while higher RH levels (50 and 80%) have increasing penetration rates. Also, the loading of the filter is normally accompanied with a shift of MPPS towards larger sizes. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Occupational Hygiene Society.

  17. 46 CFR 172.180 - Extent of damage.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... penetrations having the dimensions given in Table 172.180 except that, if the most disabling penetrations would... 172.180—Extent of Damage Collision Penetration Longitudinal extent 0.495L2/3 or 47.6 feet ((1/3)L2/3 or 14.5m) whichever is shorter. Transverse extent 1 B/5 or 37.74 feet (11.5m) 2 whichever is shorter...

  18. 46 CFR 172.180 - Extent of damage.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... penetrations having the dimensions given in Table 172.180 except that, if the most disabling penetrations would... 172.180—Extent of Damage Collision Penetration Longitudinal extent 0.495L2/3 or 47.6 feet ((1/3)L2/3 or 14.5m) whichever is shorter. Transverse extent 1 B/5 or 37.74 feet (11.5m) 2 whichever is shorter...

  19. 46 CFR 172.135 - Extent of damage.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... penetrations having the dimensions given in Table 172.135 except that, if the most disabling penetrations would... 172.135—Extent of Damage Collision Penetration Longitudinal extent 0.495L 2/3 or 47.6 feet ((1/3)L 2/3 or 14.5m) whichever is shorter. Transverse extent 1 B/5 or 37.74 feet (11.5m) 2 whichever is shorter...

  20. 46 CFR 172.135 - Extent of damage.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... penetrations having the dimensions given in Table 172.135 except that, if the most disabling penetrations would... 172.135—Extent of Damage Collision Penetration Longitudinal extent 0.495L 2/3 or 47.6 feet ((1/3)L 2/3 or 14.5m) whichever is shorter. Transverse extent 1 B/5 or 37.74 feet (11.5m) 2 whichever is shorter...

  1. New Statistical Probe into the Decline of Daily Newspaper Household Penetration.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Alperstein, Gerald

    From 1950 to 1970, daily newspaper household penetration (DNHP) levels dropped from 1.24 to 0.99 in the United States. This paper describes some of the variables involved in this decline and outlines a market-by-market statistical analysis of the relationship between the penetration levels of daily newspapers and other forms of mass media. From…

  2. Method of preparing a thermoluminescent phosphor

    DOEpatents

    Lasky, Jerome B.; Moran, Paul R.

    1979-01-01

    A thermoluminescent phosphor comprising LiF doped with boron and magnesium is produced by diffusion of boron into a conventional LiF phosphor doped with magnesium. Where the boron dopant is made to penetrate only the outer layer of the phosphor, it can be used to detect shallowly penetrating radiation such as tritium beta ays in the presence of a background of more penetrating radiation.

  3. Principles of Air Defense and Air Vehicle Penetration

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2000-03-01

    Range For reliable dateetien, the target signal must reach some minimum or threshold value called S . . When internal noise is the only interfer...analyze air defense and air vehicle penetration. Unique expected value models are developed with frequent numerical examples. Radar...penetrator in the presence of spurious returns from internal and external noise will be discussed. Tracking With sufficient sensor information to determine

  4. Computed tomography diagnosis of a thoracic and abdominal penetrating foreign body in a dog

    PubMed Central

    Appleby, Ryan; zur Linden, Alex; Singh, Ameet; Finck, Cyrielle; Crawford, Evan

    2015-01-01

    A 1.5-year-old, spayed female, mixed-breed dog was presented for hemoabdomen associated with an abdominal mass. Upon presentation bicavitary effusion was diagnosed. A penetrating intra-abdominal wooden foreign body was identified using computed tomography. This case describes a thoracic penetrating wooden foreign body causing bicavitary effusion following migration into the retroperitoneal space. PMID:26538669

  5. Generic penetration in the retail antidepressant market.

    PubMed

    Ventimiglia, Jeffrey; Kalali, Amir H

    2010-06-01

    In this article, we explore the accelerated penetration of generic antidepressants in the United States market following the availability of generic citalopram and sertraline. Analysis suggests that overall, generic penetration into the antidepressant market has grown from approximately 41 percent in January 2004 to over 73 percent in January 2010. Similar trends are uncovered when branded and generic prescriptions are analyzed by specialty.

  6. Space station integrated wall design and penetration damage control. Task 3: Theoretical analysis of penetration mechanics

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Bjorkman, M. D.; Geiger, J. D.; Wilhelm, E. E.

    1987-01-01

    The efforts to provide a penetration code called PEN4 version 10 is documented for calculation of projectile and target states for the impact of 2024-T3 aluminum, R sub B 90 1018 steel projectiles and icy meteoroids onto 2024-T3 aluminum plates at impact velocities from 0 to 16 km/s. PEN4 determines whether a plate is perforated by calculating the state of fragmentation of projectile and first plate. Depth of penetration into the second to n sup th plate by fragments resulting from first plate perforation is determined by multiple cratering. The results from applications are given.

  7. Priors in perception: Top-down modulation, Bayesian perceptual learning rate, and prediction error minimization.

    PubMed

    Hohwy, Jakob

    2017-01-01

    I discuss top-down modulation of perception in terms of a variable Bayesian learning rate, revealing a wide range of prior hierarchical expectations that can modulate perception. I then switch to the prediction error minimization framework and seek to conceive cognitive penetration specifically as prediction error minimization deviations from a variable Bayesian learning rate. This approach retains cognitive penetration as a category somewhat distinct from other top-down effects, and carves a reasonable route between penetrability and impenetrability. It prevents rampant, relativistic cognitive penetration of perception and yet is consistent with the continuity of cognition and perception. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. Penetration of tungsten-alloy rods into composite ceramic targets: Experiments and 2-D simulations

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

    Rosenberg, Z.; Dekel, E.; Hohler, V.

    1998-07-10

    A series of terminal ballistics experiments, with scaled tungsten-alloy penetrators, was performed on composite targets consisting of ceramic tiles glued to thick steel backing plates. Tiles of silicon-carbide, aluminum nitride, titanium-dibroide and boron-carbide were 20-80 mm thick, and impact velocity was 1.7 km/s. 2-D numerical simulations, using the PISCES code, were performed in order to simulate these shots. It is shown that a simplified version of the Johnson-Holmquist failure model can account for the penetration depths of the rods but is not enough to capture the effect of lateral release waves on these penetrations.

  9. Agreement Between Local and Global Measurements of the London Penetration Depth

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

    Lippman, Thomas M.; Kalisky, Beena; Kim, Hyunsoo

    Recent measurements of the superconducting penetration depth in Ba(Fe{sub 1-x}Co{sub x}){sub 2}As{sub 2} appeared to disagree on the magnitude and curvature of {delta}{lambda}{sub ab}(T), even near optimal doping. These measurements were carried out on different samples grown by different groups. To understand the discrepancy, we use scanning SQUID susceptometry and a tunnel diode resonator to measure the penetration depth in a single sample. The penetration depth observed by the two techniques is identical with no adjustments. We conclude that any discrepancies arise from differences between samples, either in growth or crystal preparation.

  10. Dynamic cone penetration tests in granular media: Determination of the tip's dynamic load-penetration curve

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Escobar, E.; Benz, M.; Gourvès, R.; Breul, P.

    2013-06-01

    In this article a two-dimensional discrete numerical model, realized in PFC2D, is presented. This model is used in the dynamic penetration tests in a granular medium. Its objective being the validation of the measurement technique offered by Panda 3® (Benz et al. 2011) which is designed to calculate the tip's load-penetration curve for each impact in the soil where different parameters are used. To do so, we have compared the results obtained by calculation during the impacts to those measured directly in the model of a penetrometer through the installation of the gauges at the cone.

  11. DIFFERENCES IN MENTAL HEALTH AND SEXUAL OUTCOMES BASED ON TYPE OF NONCONSENUAL SEXUAL PENETRATION

    PubMed Central

    Pinsky, Hanna T.; Shepard, Molly E.; Bird, Elizabeth R.; Gilmore, Amanda K.; Norris, Jeanette; Davis, Kelly Cue; George, William H.

    2016-01-01

    Little is known based on the stratification and localization of penetration type of rape: oral, vaginal, and/or anal. The current study examined associations between type of rape and mental and sexual health symptoms in 865 community women. All penetration types were positively associated with negative mental and sexual health symptoms. Oral and/or anal rape accounted for additional variance in anxiety, depression, some trauma-related symptoms, and dysfunctional sexual behavior than the association with vaginal rape alone. Findings suggest that penetration type can be an important facet of a rape experience and may be useful to assess in research and clinical settings. PMID:27486127

  12. Structural frequency functions for an impulsive, distributed forcing function

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Bateman, Vesta I.

    1987-01-01

    The response of a penetrator structure to a spatially distributed mechanical impulse with a magnitude approaching field test force levels (1-2 Mlb) were measured. The frequency response function calculated from the response to this unique forcing function is compared to frequency response functions calculated from response to point forces of about 2000 pounds. The results show that the strain gages installed on the penetrator case respond similiarly to a point, axial force and to a spatially distributed, axial force. This result suggests that the distributed axial force generated in a penetration event may be reconstructed as a point axial force when the penetrator behaves in linear manner.

  13. Multispectral visualization of surgical safety-margins using fluorescent marker seeds

    PubMed Central

    Chin, Patrick TK; Beekman, Chantal AC; Buckle, Tessa; Josephson, Lee; van Leeuwen, Fijs WB

    2012-01-01

    Optical guidance provided by luminescent marker seeds may be suitable for intraoperative determination of appropriate resection margins. In phantom studies we compared the tissue penetration of several organic dyes and inorganic particles (quantum dots; QDs) after incorporation in experimental marker seeds. The tissue penetration of (near infra-) red organic dyes was much better than the penetration of dyes and QDs with an emission in the visible range. By combining 3 dyes in a single marker seed we were able to distinguish four depth ranges. The difference in tissue penetration between the dyes and QDS enabled depth estimation via a ‘traffic light’ approach. PMID:23133810

  14. Penetration of salicylic acid and salicylate into the multilayer membrane system and into the human horny layer.

    PubMed

    Neubert, R; Partyka, D; Wohlrab, W; Dettlaff, B; Fürst, W; Taube, K M

    1990-01-01

    Using a multilayer membrane system and human horny layer the difference in the penetration of salicylic acid (SA) and its sodium (Na-S) and choline (Ch-S) salts from topical formulations was studied. It was found Na-S and Ch-S were markedly accumulated in the first membrane of the three layer membrane system used. In contrast, a rapid penetration into all three membranes was observed when SA was used. Similar penetration profiles were obtained in human horny layer. Hence, the use of the salts of SA appears to be more suitable for the application as keratolytic.

  15. Frequency Response Assessment and Enhancement of the U.S. Power Grids towards Extra-High Photovoltaic Generation Penetrations – an Industry Perspective

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

    Liu, Yong; You, Shutang; Tan, Jin

    Nonsynchronous generations such as photovoltaics (PVs) are expected to undermine bulk power systems (BPSs)' frequency response at high penetration levels. Though the underlying mechanism has been relatively well understood, the accurate assessment and effective enhancement of the U.S. interconnections, frequency response under extra-high PV penetration conditions remains an issue. In this paper, the industry-provided full-detail interconnection models were further validated by synchrophasor frequency measurements and realistically-projected PV geographic distribution information were used to develop extra-high PV penetration scenarios and dynamic models for the three main U.S. interconnections, including Eastern Interconnection (EI), Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC), and Electric Reliability Councilmore » of Texas (ERCOT). Up to 65% instantaneous PV and 15% wind penetration were simulated and the frequency response change trend of each U.S. interconnection due to the increasing PV penetration level were examined. Most importantly, the practical solutions to address the declining frequency response were discussed. This paper will provide valuable guidance for policy makers, utility operators and academic researchers not only in the U.S. but also other countries in the world.« less

  16. Penetration and development of Meloidogyne arenaria on two new grape rootstocks.

    PubMed

    Anwar, Safdar A; McKenry, M V

    2002-06-01

    Penetration, development, and reproduction of a virulent 'Harmony' population of Meloidogyne arenaria was studied on two nematode-resistant grape rootstocks 10-17A and 6-19B. 'Cabernet Sauvignon' was used as a susceptible control for comparison. Plants were inoculated with 100 freshly hatched second-stage juveniles (J2) of M. arenaria. Greater numbers of J2 penetrated roots of 'Cabernet' than 10-17A, and none penetrated roots of 6-19B 4 days after inoculation (DAI). At 7 DAI, vermiform J2 advanced to sausage-shaped J2 in roots of 'Cabernet,' penetrated roots of 6-19B, and had egressed from roots of 10-17A. Resistant rootstocks expressed hypersensitive responses to penetrating J2 along the root epidermis, among the cortical cells, and along the differentiating vascular bundles. At 13 DAI, 68% of the J2 had attained globose stage in roots of 'Cabernet,' whereas there was no development of vermiform J2 in roots of the other two rootstocks. The nematodes reproduced only in roots of 'Cabernet.' Lack of development of J2 in roots of the two resistant grape rootstocks might be the result of a hypersensitive response to J2 feeding.

  17. Vena Cava Filter Retrieval with Aorto-Iliac Arterial Strut Penetration.

    PubMed

    Holly, Brian P; Gaba, Ron C; Lessne, Mark L; Lewandowski, Robert J; Ryu, Robert K; Desai, Kush R; Sing, Ronald F

    2018-05-03

    To evaluate the safety and technical success of inferior vena cava (IVC) filter retrieval in the setting of aorto-iliac arterial strut penetration. IVC filter registries from six large United States IVC filter retrieval practices were retrospectively reviewed to identify patients who underwent IVC filter retrieval in the setting of filter strut penetration into the adjacent aorta or iliac artery. Patient demographics, implant duration, indication for placement, IVC filter type, retrieval technique and technical success, adverse events, and post procedural clinical outcomes were identified. Arterial penetration was determined based on pre-procedure CT imaging in all cases. The IVC filter retrieval technique used was at the discretion of the operating physician. Seventeen patients from six US centers who underwent retrieval of an IVC filter with at least one strut penetrating either the aorta or iliac artery were identified. Retrieval technical success rate was 100% (17/17), without any major adverse events. Post-retrieval follow-up ranging from 10 days to 2 years (mean 4.6 months) was available in 12/17 (71%) patients; no delayed adverse events were encountered. Findings from this series suggest that chronically indwelling IVC filters with aorto-iliac arterial strut penetration may be safely retrieved.

  18. Organic Pollutant Penetration through Fruit Polyester Skin: A Modified Three-compartment Diffusion Model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Yungui; Li, Qingqing; Chen, Baoliang

    2016-03-01

    The surface of plants is covered by a continuous but heterogeneous cuticular membrane (CM). Serving as the first protective barrier, the uptake and transport behavior of organic pollutants at this interface continue to engage the research efforts of environmental chemist. To date, the contributions of cuticular components as a defense against the organic pollutants penetration remain unresolved. In this study, the unsteady-state penetration characteristics of phenanthrene (PHE) through isolated fruit CM was investigated. PHE penetration was differentiated by three cuticular compartments: epicuticular waxes (EW), cuticle proper (CP) and cuticular layer (CL). The driving force for PHE penetration was ascribed to the sharp concentration gradient built up endogenously by cuticular compartments with different lipophilic affinities. A modified penetration model was established and verified in terms of its general suitability for the hydrophobic chemicals and CMs of various plant species (apple, tomato and potato). The new three-compartment model demonstrates much higher accuracy in characterizing the uptake and transport behavior of semivolatile chemicals with fewer limitations in terms of environmental conditions and complexity (e.g., coexisting contaminants and temperature). This model could contribute to a more comprehensive understanding on the role of polymeric lipids in the organic pollutant sorption and transport into plants.

  19. Vulnerability of manned spacecraft to crew loss from orbital debris penetration

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Williamsen, J. E.

    1994-01-01

    Orbital debris growth threatens the survival of spacecraft systems from impact-induced failures. Whereas the probability of debris impact and spacecraft penetration may currently be calculated, another parameter of great interest to safety engineers is the probability that debris penetration will cause actual spacecraft or crew loss. Quantifying the likelihood of crew loss following a penetration allows spacecraft designers to identify those design features and crew operational protocols that offer the highest improvement in crew safety for available resources. Within this study, a manned spacecraft crew survivability (MSCSurv) computer model is developed that quantifies the conditional probability of losing one or more crew members, P(sub loss/pen), following the remote likelihood of an orbital debris penetration into an eight module space station. Contributions to P(sub loss/pen) are quantified from three significant penetration-induced hazards: pressure wall rupture (explosive decompression), fragment-induced injury, and 'slow' depressurization. Sensitivity analyses are performed using alternate assumptions for hazard-generating functions, crew vulnerability thresholds, and selected spacecraft design and crew operations parameters. These results are then used to recommend modifications to the spacecraft design and expected crew operations that quantitatively increase crew safety from orbital debris impacts.

  20. Organic Pollutant Penetration through Fruit Polyester Skin: A Modified Three-compartment Diffusion Model.

    PubMed

    Li, Yungui; Li, Qingqing; Chen, Baoliang

    2016-03-24

    The surface of plants is covered by a continuous but heterogeneous cuticular membrane (CM). Serving as the first protective barrier, the uptake and transport behavior of organic pollutants at this interface continue to engage the research efforts of environmental chemist. To date, the contributions of cuticular components as a defense against the organic pollutants penetration remain unresolved. In this study, the unsteady-state penetration characteristics of phenanthrene (PHE) through isolated fruit CM was investigated. PHE penetration was differentiated by three cuticular compartments: epicuticular waxes (EW), cuticle proper (CP) and cuticular layer (CL). The driving force for PHE penetration was ascribed to the sharp concentration gradient built up endogenously by cuticular compartments with different lipophilic affinities. A modified penetration model was established and verified in terms of its general suitability for the hydrophobic chemicals and CMs of various plant species (apple, tomato and potato). The new three-compartment model demonstrates much higher accuracy in characterizing the uptake and transport behavior of semivolatile chemicals with fewer limitations in terms of environmental conditions and complexity (e.g., coexisting contaminants and temperature). This model could contribute to a more comprehensive understanding on the role of polymeric lipids in the organic pollutant sorption and transport into plants.

  1. Penetration enhancer-containing vesicles (PEVs) as carriers for cutaneous delivery of minoxidil: in vitro evaluation of drug permeation by infrared spectroscopy.

    PubMed

    Mura, Simona; Manconi, Maria; Fadda, Anna Maria; Sala, Maria Chiara; Perricci, Jacopo; Pini, Elena; Sinico, Chiara

    2013-01-01

    Recently, we carried out a research on new liposomal systems prepared by using in their composition a few penetration enhancers which differ for chemical structure and physicochemical properties. The penetration enhancer-containing vesicles (PEVs) were prepared by using soy lecithin and different amounts of three penetration enhancers, 2-(2-ethoxyethoxy) ethanol (Transcutol(®)), capryl-caproyl macrogol 8-glyceride (Labrasol(®)), and cineole.To study the influence of the PEVs on (trans)dermal delivery of minoxidil, in vitro diffusion experiments were performed through new born pig skin and the results were compared with that obtained applying the vesicular system without enhancer (control) after pretreatment of the skin with the various enhancers. In this study, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), attenuated total reflectance FTIR (ATR-FTIR) and FTIR imaging were used to evaluate the effective penetration of minoxidil in the skin layers and to discover the influence of the enhancer on the drug topical delivery. These analytical studies allowed us to characterize the drug formulations and to evaluate the vesicle distribution into the skin. Recorded spectra confirmed that the vesicle formulations with penetration enhancers promoted drug deposition into the skin.

  2. Cellular uptake and ex vivo urothelial penetration by oligodeoxynucleotides for optimizing treatment of transitional cell carcinoma.

    PubMed

    Bolenz, Christian; Trojan, Lutz; Gabriel, Ute; Honeck, Patrick; Wendt-Nordahl, Gunnar; Schaaf, Axel; Alken, Peter; Michel, Maurice Stephan

    2008-10-01

    To evaluate cellular uptake and urothelial penetration of oligodeoxynucleotides (ODNs) in transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) cell lines and in a porcine ex vivo model, respectively. A panel of human TCC cell lines (RT 112, HT 1197 and UM-UC3) were exposed tofluorescein-labeled ODNs. Transfection rates were assessed byfluorescence microscopy and fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS). Intravesical treatment with ODNs was performed in a porcine ex vivo model. Urothelial penetration was evaluated using fluorescence microscopy of cryosections. Treatment with ODNs provided transfection rates of at least 96.8% of TCC cells, irrespective of use of a transfection agent. Effective urothelial penetration by ODNs was detected when compared with controls (p = 0.0325). The addition of a liposomal transfection agent significantly increased the penetration depth, allowing affection of deep urothelial cell layers (p = 0.0082). High transfection rates of ODNs can be achieved in TCC cells. Urothelial penetration of ODNs was observed down to the deepest cell layers when a transfection agent is added, suggesting a high potential for complementing the chemoresection effects on residual tumor areas during intravesical therapy of non-muscle-invasive TCC.

  3. Frequency Response Assessment and Enhancement of the U.S. Power Grids towards Extra-High Photovoltaic Generation Penetrations – an Industry Perspective

    DOE PAGES

    Liu, Yong; You, Shutang; Tan, Jin; ...

    2018-01-30

    Nonsynchronous generations such as photovoltaics (PVs) are expected to undermine bulk power systems (BPSs)' frequency response at high penetration levels. Though the underlying mechanism has been relatively well understood, the accurate assessment and effective enhancement of the U.S. interconnections, frequency response under extra-high PV penetration conditions remains an issue. In this paper, the industry-provided full-detail interconnection models were further validated by synchrophasor frequency measurements and realistically-projected PV geographic distribution information were used to develop extra-high PV penetration scenarios and dynamic models for the three main U.S. interconnections, including Eastern Interconnection (EI), Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC), and Electric Reliability Councilmore » of Texas (ERCOT). Up to 65% instantaneous PV and 15% wind penetration were simulated and the frequency response change trend of each U.S. interconnection due to the increasing PV penetration level were examined. Most importantly, the practical solutions to address the declining frequency response were discussed. This paper will provide valuable guidance for policy makers, utility operators and academic researchers not only in the U.S. but also other countries in the world.« less

  4. A Study of Crystalline Mechanism of Penetration Sealer Materials.

    PubMed

    Teng, Li-Wei; Huang, Ran; Chen, Jie; Cheng, An; Hsu, Hui-Mi

    2014-01-14

    It is quite common to dispense a topping material like crystalline penetration sealer materials (CPSM) onto the surface of a plastic substance such as concrete to extend its service life span by surface protections from outside breakthrough. The CPSM can penetrate into the existing pores or possible cracks in such a way that it may form crystals to block the potential paths which provide breakthrough for any unknown materials. This study investigated the crystalline mechanism formed in the part of concrete penetrated by the CPSM. We analyzed the chemical composites, in order to identify the mechanism of CPSM and to evaluate the penetrated depth. As shown in the results, SEM observes the acicular-structured crystals filling capillary pores for mortar substrate of the internal microstructure beneath the concrete surface; meanwhile, XRD and FT-IR showed the main hydration products of CPSM to be C-S-H gel and CaCO₃. Besides, MIP also shows CPSM with the ability to clog capillary pores of mortar substrate; thus, it reduces porosity, and appears to benefit in sealing pores or cracks. The depth of CPSM penetration capability indicated by TGA shows 0-10 mm of sealer layer beneath the concrete surface.

  5. Penetrating Brain Injury after Suicide Attempt with Speargun: Case Study and Review of Literature

    PubMed Central

    Williams, John R.; Aghion, Daniel M.; Doberstein, Curtis E.; Cosgrove, G. Rees; Asaad, Wael F.

    2014-01-01

    Penetrating cranial injury by mechanisms other than gunshots are exceedingly rare, and so strategies and guidelines for the management of PBI are largely informed by data from higher-velocity penetrating injuries. Here, we present a case of penetrating brain injury by the low-velocity mechanism of a harpoon from an underwater fishing speargun in an attempted suicide by a 56-year-old Caucasian male. The case raised a number of interesting points in management of low-velocity penetrating brain injury (LVPBI), including benefit in delaying foreign body removal to allow for tamponade; the importance of history-taking in establishing the social/legal significance of the events surrounding the injury; the use of cerebral angiogram in all cases of PBI; advantages of using dual-energy CT to reduce artifact when available; and antibiotic prophylaxis in the context of idiosyncratic histories of usage of penetrating objects before coming in contact with the intracranial environment. We present here the management of the case in full along with an extended discussion and review of existing literature regarding key points in management of LVPBI vs. higher-velocity forms of intracranial injury. PMID:25071701

  6. Penetration scaling in atomistic simulations of hypervelocity impact

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ruestes, C. J.; Bringa, E. M.; Fioretti, F.; Higginbotham, A.; Taylor, E. A.; Graham, G.

    2011-06-01

    We present atomistic molecular dynamics simulations of the impact of copper nano particles at 5 km/s on copper films ranging in thickness from 0.5 to 4 times the projectile diameter. We access both penetration and cratering regimes with final cratering morphologies showing considerable similarity to experimental impacts on both micron and millimeter scales. Both craters and holes are formed from a molten region, with relatively low defect densities remaining after cooling and recrystallisation. Crater diameter and penetration limits are compared to analytical scaling models: in agreement with some models we find the onset of penetration occurs for 1.0 < f/d < 1.5, where f is the film thickness and d is the projectile diameter. However, our results for the hole size agree well with scaling laws based on macroscopic experiments providing enhanced strength of a nano-film that melts completely at the impact region is taken into account. Penetration in films with pre-existing nanocracks is qualitatively similar to penetration in perfect films, including the lack of back-spall. Simulations using ``peridynamics'' are also described and compared to the atomistic simulations. Work supported by PICT2007-PRH, PICT-2008 1325, and SeCTyP.

  7. Confocal laser scanning microscopy to estimate nanoparticles’ human skin penetration in vitro

    PubMed Central

    Elmahdy, Akram; Cao, Yachao; Hui, Xiaoying; Maibach, Howard

    2017-01-01

    Objective With rapid development of nanotechnology, there is increasing interest in nanoparticle (NP) application and its safety and efficacy on human skin. In this study, we utilized confocal laser scanning microscopy to estimate NP skin penetration. Methods Three different-sized polystyrene NPs marked with red fluorescence were applied to human skin, and Calcium Green 5N was used as a counterstain. Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and ethanol were used as alternative vehicles for NPs. Tape stripping was utilized as a barrier-damaged skin model. Skin biopsies dosed with NPs were incubated at 4°C or 37°C for 24 hours and imaged using confocal laser scanning microscopy. Results NPs were localized in the stratum corneum (SC) and hair follicles without penetrating the epidermis/dermis. Barrier alteration with tape stripping and change in incubation temperature did not induce deeper penetration. DMSO enhanced NP SC penetration but ethanol did not. Conclusion Except with DMSO vehicle, these hydrolyzed polystyrene NPs did not penetrate intact or barrier-damaged human “viable” epidermis. For further clinical relevance, in vivo human skin studies and more sensitive analytic chemical methodology are suggested. PMID:29184403

  8. Effects of different root canal obturation techniques on bacterial penetration.

    PubMed

    Yücel, Ali Cağin; Ciftçi, Alper

    2006-10-01

    The aim of this study was to compare bacterial penetration following obturation with 5 different techniques. This study was performed on 120 teeth including negative control (n = 10), positive control (n = 10), and experimental groups (n = 100). One hundred teeth were randomly divided into 5 groups of 20 teeth each and obturated with System B (Sb), Lateral Compaction (Lc), Thermafil (T), Single ProTaper Gutta-percha (P), and laterally compacted ProTaper Gutta-percha (PLc). Enterococcus faecalis was used for determination of the bacterial penetration. Evaluation was carried out for 60 days. At 30 days, the chi2 test showed that the slowest penetration was observed in Group Sb and Group PLc, which were not significantly different from each other. The fastest penetration in the all experimental groups was observed in Group T and Group P, which were not significantly different from one another. Also, there was no statistically significance difference (P > .05) among all groups at 60 days. It may be concluded that under the conditions of this study System B and laterally compacted ProTaper Gutta-percha prevent bacterial penetration of the root canal at 30 days. Furthermore, there was no difference among obturation techniques at 60 days.

  9. The importance of pulsed lavage on interface temperature and ligament tension force in cemented unicompartmental knee arthroplasty.

    PubMed

    Clarius, M; Seeger, J B; Jaeger, S; Mohr, G; Bitsch, R G

    2012-05-01

    Mechanical loosening is the most common cause of revision in unicompartmental knee arthroplasty. We determined the effect of bone lavage on tibial cement penetration and interface temperature with controlled ligament tension forces. We presumed pulsed lavage would allow increased cement penetration compared with syringe lavage. Cemented unicompartmental knee arthroplasty was performed in 12 pairs of fresh-frozen knees. Lavage was performed using pulsed lavage on one side (A) and syringe lavage on the other (B). Cement penetration pressure, interface temperature, and ligament tension forces were continuously monitored during the operation. Screened radiographs were taken and cement penetration under the tibial plateau was measured. The pulsed lavage group showed a mean cement penetration area of 187.24 (SD 36.37) mm², whereas 144.29 (SD 35.74) mm(2) was measured in the group with syringe lavage. Cement penetration pressure was 13.29 (SD 8.69) kPa in Group A and 20.21 (SD 7.78) kPa in Group B. Maximum interface temperatures of 46.99°C were observed in Group A and 45.02°C in Group B. Our data showed pulsed lavage cleansing of the cancellous tibial bone substantially improved cement penetration compared with syringe lavage without reaching the temperature threshold for bone necrosis. We recommend the routine use of pulsed lavage to improve long-term fixation. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Penetrating head injury from angle grinder: A cautionary tale.

    PubMed

    Senthilkumaran, S; Balamurgan, N; Arthanari, K; Thirumalaikolundusubramanian, P

    2010-01-01

    Penetrating cranial injury is a potentially life-threatening condition. Injuries resulting from the use of angle grinders are numerous and cause high-velocity penetrating cranial injuries. We present a series of two penetrating head injuries associated with improper use of angle grinder, which resulted in shattering of disc into high velocity missiles with reference to management and prevention. One of those hit on the forehead of the operator and the other on the occipital region of the co-worker at a distance of five meters. The pathophysiological consequence of penetrating head injuries depends on the kinetic energy and trajectory of the object. In the nearby healthcare center the impacted broken disc was removed without realising the consequences and the wound was packed. As the conscious level declined in both, they were referred. CT brain revealed fracture in skull and changes in the brain in both. Expeditious removal of the penetrating foreign body and focal debridement of the scalp, skull, dura, and involved parenchyma and Watertight dural closure were carried out. The most important thing is not to remove the impacted foreign body at the site of accident. Craniectomy around the foreign body, debridement and removal of foreign body without zigzag motion are needed. Removal should be done following original direction of projectile injury. The neurological sequelae following the non missile penetrating head injuries are determined by the severity and location of initial injury as well as the rapidity of the exploration and fastidious debridement.

  11. An evidence based review of the assessment and management of penetrating neck trauma.

    PubMed

    Burgess, C A; Dale, O T; Almeyda, R; Corbridge, R J

    2012-02-01

    Although relatively uncommon, penetrating neck trauma has the potential for serious morbidity and an estimated mortality of up to 6%. The assessment and management of patients who have sustained a penetrating neck injury has historically been an issue surrounded by significant controversy. OBJECTIVES OF REVIEW: To assess recent evidence relating to the assessment and management of penetrating neck trauma, highlighting areas of controversy with an overall aim of formulating clinical guidelines according to a care pathway format. Structured, non-systematic review of recent medical literature. An electronic literature search was performed in May 2011. The Medline database was searched using the Medical Subject Headings terms 'neck injuries' and 'wounds, penetrating' in conjunction with the terms 'assessment' or 'management'. Embase was searched with the terms 'penetrating trauma' and 'neck injury', also in conjunction with the terms 'assessment' and 'management'. Results were limited to articles published in English from 1990 to the present day. Abstracts were reviewed by the first three authors to select full-text articles for further critical appraisal. The references and citation links of these articles were hand-searched to identify further articles of relevance. 147 relevant articles were identified by the electronic literature search, comprising case series, case reports and reviews. 33 were initially selected for further evaluation. Although controversy continues to surround the management of penetrating neck trauma, the role of selective non-operative management and the utility of CT angiography to investigate potential vascular injuries appears to be increasingly accepted. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  12. Estimating Consequences of MMOD Penetrations on ISS

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Evans, H.; Hyde, James; Christiansen, E.; Lear, D.

    2017-01-01

    The threat from micrometeoroid and orbital debris (MMOD) impacts on space vehicles is often quantified in terms of the probability of no penetration (PNP). However, for large spacecraft, especially those with multiple compartments, a penetration may have a number of possible outcomes. The extent of the damage (diameter of hole, crack length or penetration depth), the location of the damage relative to critical equipment or crew, crew response, and even the time of day of the penetration are among the many factors that can affect the outcome. For the International Space Station (ISS), a Monte-Carlo style software code called Manned Spacecraft Crew Survivability (MSCSurv) is used to predict the probability of several outcomes of an MMOD penetration-broadly classified as loss of crew (LOC), crew evacuation (Evac), loss of escape vehicle (LEV), and nominal end of mission (NEOM). By generating large numbers of MMOD impacts (typically in the billions) and tracking the consequences, MSCSurv allows for the inclusion of a large number of parameters and models as well as enabling the consideration of uncertainties in the models and parameters. MSCSurv builds upon the results from NASA's Bumper software (which provides the probability of penetration and critical input data to MSCSurv) to allow analysts to estimate the probability of LOC, Evac, LEV, and NEOM. This paper briefly describes the overall methodology used by NASA to quantify LOC, Evac, LEV, and NEOM with particular emphasis on describing in broad terms how MSCSurv works and its capabilities and most significant models.

  13. Terminal ballistics of a reduced-mass penetrator. Final report, January 1990--December 1995

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

    Silsby, G.F.

    1996-07-01

    This report presents the results of an experimental program to examine the performance of a reduced-mass concept penetrator impacting semi-infinite rolled homogeneous armor (RHA) at normal incidence. The reduced-mass penetrator used in this program is a solid tungsten alloy rod with eight holes drilled parallel to its axis, equally spaced on a circle, with axes parallel to the rod axis. Its performance was contrasted with baseline data for length-to- diameter ratios (L/D) 4 and 5 solid tungsten alloy penetrators. Striking velocity was nominally 1.6 km/s. A determined effort to reduce the scatter in the data by analysis of collateral datamore » from the US Army Research Laboratory (ARL) and literature sources suggested only a rather weak influence of L/D on penetration even at L/Ds approaching 1 and provided a tentative relationship to remove the influence of target lateral edge effects. It tightened up the holed-out rod data enough to be able to conclude with a moderate degree of certainty that there was no improvement in penetration as suggested by a simplistic density law model. A companion work by Kimsey of ARL examines the performance of this novel penetrator concept computationally, using the Eulerian code CTH. His work explains the possible causes of reduced performance suggested by analysis by Zook and Frank of ARL, though with some relative improvement in performance at higher velocities.« less

  14. Trans-resveratrol and beta-carotene from sunscreens penetrate viable skin layers and reduce cutaneous penetration of UV-filters.

    PubMed

    Freitas, J V; Praça, F S G; Bentley, M V L B; Gaspar, L R

    2015-04-30

    Cutaneous permeation is a critical parameter when topical application of sunscreens containing antioxidants is considered. The aim of this study was to evaluate the cutaneous penetration of most marketed UV-filters combined with trans-resveratrol (RES) and beta-carotene (BTC) since few studies report skin penetration when such compounds are applied. Formulations containing octocrylene, octyl methoxycinnamate, avobenzone and bemotrizinole were prepared and supplemented or not with BTC, or with RES, or with both compounds in combination. Penetration studies were performed using Franz vertical diffusion cells and porcine ear skin as the biological membrane. The quantification of UV-filters and antioxidants in the stratum corneum (SC), viable epidermis plus dermis and receptor fluid was performed by HPLC. Results suggested that UV-filters and antioxidants did not permeate the skin but were retained for 12h post application. About 90% and 80%, respectively, of the total penetrated amount of UV-filters and antioxidants was found in the SC. Interestingly, it was observed that BTC, alone or combined with RES, reduced the skin retention of UV-filters on average by 63%. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that the combination of antioxidants and UV-filters in sunscreens is advantageous for cutaneous penetration, since BTC and BTC+RES improved sunscreen safety by reducing delivery of the four UV-filters in the study into SC and viable epidermis. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  15. Evaluation of Enterococcus faecalis adhesion, penetration, and method to prevent the penetration of Enterococcus faecalis into root cementum: Confocal laser scanning microscope and scanning electron microscope analysis.

    PubMed

    Halkai, Rahul S; Hegde, Mithra N; Halkai, Kiran R

    2016-01-01

    To ascertain the role of Enterococcus faecalis in persistent infection and a possible method to prevent the penetration of E. faecalis into root cementum. One hundred and twenty human single-rooted extracted teeth divided into five groups. Group I (control): intact teeth, Group II: no apical treatment done, Group III divided into two subgroups. In Groups IIIa and IIIb, root apex treated with lactic acid of acidic and neutral pH, respectively. Group IV: apical root cementum exposed to lactic acid and roughened to mimic the apical resorption. Group V: apical treatment done same as Group IV and root-end filling done using mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA). Apical one-third of all samples immersed in E. faecalis broth for 8 weeks followed by bone morphogenetic protein and obturation and again immersed into broth for 8 weeks. Teeth split into two halves and observed under confocal laser scanning microscope and scanning electron microscope, organism identified by culture and polymerase chain reaction techniques. Adhesion and penetration was observed in Group IIIa and Group IV. Only adhesion in Group II and IIIB and no adhesion and penetration in Group I and V. Adhesion and penetration of E. faecalis into root cementum providing a long-term nidus for subsequent infection are the possible reason for persistent infection and root-end filling with MTA prevents the adhesion and penetration.

  16. Predicting the Consequences of MMOD Penetrations on the International Space Station

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hyde, James; Christiansen, E.; Lear, D.; Evans

    2018-01-01

    The threat from micrometeoroid and orbital debris (MMOD) impacts on space vehicles is often quantified in terms of the probability of no penetration (PNP). However, for large spacecraft, especially those with multiple compartments, a penetration may have a number of possible outcomes. The extent of the damage (diameter of hole, crack length or penetration depth), the location of the damage relative to critical equipment or crew, crew response, and even the time of day of the penetration are among the many factors that can affect the outcome. For the International Space Station (ISS), a Monte-Carlo style software code called Manned Spacecraft Crew Survivability (MSCSurv) is used to predict the probability of several outcomes of an MMOD penetration-broadly classified as loss of crew (LOC), crew evacuation (Evac), loss of escape vehicle (LEV), and nominal end of mission (NEOM). By generating large numbers of MMOD impacts (typically in the billions) and tracking the consequences, MSCSurv allows for the inclusion of a large number of parameters and models as well as enabling the consideration of uncertainties in the models and parameters. MSCSurv builds upon the results from NASA's Bumper software (which provides the probability of penetration and critical input data to MSCSurv) to allow analysts to estimate the probability of LOC, Evac, LEV, and NEOM. This paper briefly describes the overall methodology used by NASA to quantify LOC, Evac, LEV, and NEOM with particular emphasis on describing in broad terms how MSCSurv works and its capabilities and most significant models.

  17. Managed care market share and cesarean section rates in the United States: is there a link?

    PubMed

    Hueston, W J; Sutton, A

    2000-11-01

    After peaking during the early 1980s, cesarean section rates in the United States have been falling for the last decade. At the same time, managed care enrollment has increased dramatically. This study examines whether managed care penetration in local markets is associated with lower cesarean section rates in those geographic area. A cross-sectional comparison of cesarean section rates and health maintenance organization (HMO) market penetration in 61 selected metropolitan areas in the United States was conducted. National birth certificate data for 1996 were used to calculate crude and race-adjusted cesarean section rates for residents in each area. No relationship between overall cesarean section rates in the metropolitan areas and managed care penetration was observed. Subanalyses of racial groups demonstrated the existence of a weak association between managed care penetration and cesarean section rates for white women (21.2% for the highest quartile of HMO penetration, compared with 19.1% for the lowest quartile; P = .03), but not for African-Americans or other minorities. Managed care penetration in a market may have an association with cesarean section rates for white women, but the strength of this relationship is small. Even if managed care delivery systems reduce cesarean section rates in their own populations, this change is likely to have only a small impact on overall cesarean rates. HMO penetration is unlikely to influence national cesarean section rates, nor does it appear to explain state variations in these rates.

  18. Weld pool oscillation during pulsed GTA welding

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

    Aendenroomer, A.J.R.; Ouden, G. den

    1996-12-31

    This paper deals with weld pool oscillation during pulsed GTA welding and with the possibility to use this oscillation for in-process control of weld penetration. Welding experiments were carried out under different welding conditions. During welding the weld pool was triggered into oscillation by the normal welding pulses or by extra current pulses. The oscillation frequency was measured both during the pulse time and during the base time by analyzing the arc voltage variation using a Fast Fourier Transformation program. Optimal results are obtained when full penetration occurs during the pulse time and partial penetration during the base time. Undermore » these conditions elliptical overlapping spot welds are formed. In the case of full penetration the weld pool oscillates in a low frequency mode (membrane oscillation), whereas in the case of partial penetration the weld pool oscillates in a high frequency mode (surface oscillation). Deviation from the optimal welding conditions occurs when high frequency oscillation is observed during both pulse time and base time (underpenetration) or when low frequency oscillation is observed during both pulse time and base time (overpenetration). In line with these results a penetration sensing system with feedback control was designed, based on the criterion that optimal weld penetration is achieved when two peaks are observed in the frequency distribution. The feasibility of this sensing system for orbital tube welding was confirmed by the results of experiments carried out under various welding conditions.« less

  19. Evaluation of penetration depth of 2% chlorhexidine digluconate into root dentinal tubules using confocal laser scanning microscope.

    PubMed

    Vadhana, Sekar; Latha, Jothi; Velmurugan, Natanasabapathy

    2015-05-01

    This study evaluated the penetration depth of 2% chlorhexidine digluconate (CHX) into root dentinal tubules and the influence of passive ultrasonic irrigation (PUI) using a confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM). Twenty freshly extracted anterior teeth were decoronated and instrumented using Mtwo rotary files up to size 40, 4% taper. The samples were randomly divided into two groups (n = 10), that is, conventional syringe irrigation (CSI) and PUI. CHX was mixed with Rhodamine B dye and was used as the final irrigant. The teeth were sectioned at coronal, middle and apical levels and viewed under CLSM to record the penetration depth of CHX. The data were statistically analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests. The mean penetration depths of 2% CHX in coronal, middle and apical thirds were 138 µm, 80 µm and 44 µm in CSI group, respectively, whereas the mean penetration depths were 209 µm, 138 µm and 72 µm respectively in PUI group. Statistically significant difference was present between CSI group and PUI group at all three levels (p < 0.01 for coronal third and p < 0.001 for middle and apical thirds). On intragroup analysis, both groups showed statistically significant difference among three levels (p < 0.001). Penetration depth of 2% CHX into root dentinal tubules is deeper in coronal third when compared to middle and apical third. PUI aided in deeper penetration of 2% CHX into dentinal tubules when compared to conventional syringe irrigation at all three levels.

  20. Review of relationship between indoor and outdoor particles: I/O ratio, infiltration factor and penetration factor

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Chun; Zhao, Bin

    2011-01-01

    Epidemiologic evidence indicates a relationship between outdoor particle exposure and adverse health effects, while most people spend 85-90% of their time indoors, thus understanding the relationship between indoor and outdoor particles is quite important. This paper aims to provide an up-to-date revision for both experiment and modeling on relationship between indoor and outdoor particles. The use of three different parameters: indoor/outdoor (I/O) ratio, infiltration factor and penetration factor, to assess the relationship between indoor and outdoor particles were reviewed. The experimental data of the three parameters measured both in real houses and laboratories were summarized and analyzed. The I/O ratios vary considerably due to the difference in size-dependent indoor particle emission rates, the geometry of the cracks in building envelopes, and the air exchange rates. Thus, it is difficult to draw uniform conclusions as detailed information, which make I/O ratio hardly helpful for understanding the indoor/outdoor relationship. Infiltration factor represents the equilibrium fraction of ambient particles that penetrates indoors and remains suspended, which avoids the mixture with indoor particle sources. Penetration factor is the most relevant parameter for the particle penetration mechanism through cracks and leaks in the building envelope. We investigate the methods used in previously published studies to both measure and model the infiltration and penetration factors. We also discuss the application of the penetration factor models and provide recommendations for improvement.

  1. Penetration of gold nanoparticles across the stratum corneum layer of thick-Skin.

    PubMed

    Raju, Gayathri; Katiyar, Neeraj; Vadukumpully, Sajini; Shankarappa, Sahadev A

    2018-02-01

    Transdermal particulate penetration across thick-skin, such as that of palms and sole, is particularly important for drug delivery for disorders such as small fiber neuropathies. Nanoparticle-based drug delivery across skin is believed to have much translational applications, but their penetration especially through thick-skin, is not clear. This study specifically investigates the effectiveness of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) for thick-skin penetration, especially across the stratum corneum (SC) as a function of particle size. The thick-skinned hind-paw of rat was used to characterize depth and distribution of AuNPs of varying sizes, namely, 22±3, 105±11, and 186±20nm. Epidermal penetration of AuNPs was characterized both, in harvested skin from the hind-paw using a diffusion chamber, as well as in vivo. Harvested skin segments exposed to 22nm AuNPs for only 3h demonstrated higher penetration (p<0.05) as compared to the 105 and 186nm particles. In animal studies, hind-paw skin of adult rats exposed to AuNPs solution for the same time, demonstrated nanoparticles in blood on the 4th day, and histological analysis revealed AuNPs in epidermal layers just below the SC, with no apparent tissue response. We conclude that the thick-skin allows nanoparticle penetration and acts as a depot for release of AuNPs into circulation long after the initial exposure has ceased. Copyright © 2017 Japanese Society for Investigative Dermatology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. Rates of cuticular penetration of chelated Fe(III): role of humidity, concentration, adjuvants, temperature, and type of chelate.

    PubMed

    Schönherr, Jörg; Fernández, Victoria; Schreiber, Lukas

    2005-06-01

    Time courses of cuticular penetration of FeCl3 and Fe(III) complexes of citric acid, EDTA, EDDHA (Sequestrene 138Fe), imidodisuccinic acid (IDHA), and ligninsulfonic acid (Natrel) were studied using astomatous cuticular membranes (CMs) isolated from Populus x canescens leaves. At 100% relative humidity, the Fe(III) chelates disappeared exponentially with time from the surface of the CMs; that is, penetration was a first-order process that can be described using rate constants or half-times of penetration (t(1/2)). Half-times ranged from 20 to 30 h. At 90% humidity, penetration rates were insignificant with the exception of Natrel, for which t(1/2) amounted to 58 h. Rate constants were independent of temperature (15, 25, and 35 degrees C). Permeability decreased with increasing Fe chelate concentration (IDHA and EDTA). At 100% humidity, half-times measured with FeIDHA were 11 h (2 mmol L(-1)), 17 h (10 mmol L(-1)) and 36 h (20 mmol L(-1)), respectively. In the presence of FeEDTA, penetration of CaCl2 was slowed greatly. Half-times for penetration of CaCl2, which were 1.9 h in the absence of FeEDTA, rose to 3.12 h in the presence of an equimolar concentration of EDTA and 13.3 h when the FeEDTA concentration was doubled. Hence, Fe chelates reduced permeability of CMs to CaCl2 and to the Fe chelates themselves. It is suggested that Fe chelates reduced the size of aqueous pores. This view is supported by the fact that rate constants for calcium salts were about 5 times higher than for Fe chelates with the same molecular weights. Adding Tween 20 (5 g L(-1)) as a humectant did not increase permeability to FeIDHA at 90% humidity and below, while addition of glycine betaine did. Penetration of FeCl3 applied at 5 g L(-1) (pH 1.5) was not a first order process as rate constants decreased rapidly with time. Only 2% of the dose penetrated during the first 2 h and less than that in the subsequent 8 h. Recovery was only 70%. This was attributed to the formation of insoluble Fe hydroxide precipitates on CMs. These results explain why in the past foliar application of Fe compounds had limited success. Inorganic Fe salts are instable and phytotoxic because of low pH, while Fe chelates penetrate slowly and 100% humidity is required for significant penetration rates. Concentrations as low as reasonably possible should be used. These physical facts are expected to apply to stomatous leaf surfaces as well, but absolute rates probably depend on leaf age and plant species. High humidity in stagnant air layers may favor penetration rates across stomatous leaf surfaces when humidity in bulk air is below 100%.

  3. Sealing Penetrating Eye Injuries Using Photo-Activated Bonding

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2011-09-01

    called PTB ) with the potential to decrease vision loss and ocular complications in warfighters sustaining penetrating eye injuries. Scope: In year 2...not competitive with PTB for sealing is amnion over penetrating cornea injuries, determined that two potential adverse effects (inhibition of...epithelial cell migration and keratocyte phototoxicity) are not significant problems, demonstrated that PTB can be used to seal lacerations in thin (e.g

  4. Contact Dermatitis from Penetration of Rubber Gloves by Acrylic Monomer

    PubMed Central

    Pegum, J. S.; Medhurst, F. A.

    1971-01-01

    An orthopaedic surgeon developed dermatitis from acrylic materials. The acrylic monomer was found to penetrate surgical rubber gloves readily. Cases of “rubber glove dermatitis” with negative patch tests may have a similar explanation. Laboratory tests suggest that monomer does not damage rubber sufficiently to allow bacteria to penetrate gloves, but it remains possible that this would happen under theatre conditions. PMID:5581492

  5. Hafnium-Based Bulk Metallic Glasses for Kinetic Energy Penetrators

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2004-12-01

    uranium -based (DU) and tungsten- nickel -iron (W-Ni-Fe) composite kinetic energy (KE) munitions is primarily ascribed to their high densities (U: ρ...based on an invariant point identified in the hafnium- copper- nickel ternary system. They are denser than zirconium-based glass-forming compositions...depleted- uranium penetrators. 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 Criterion for Effective Kinetic Energy Penetrator Performance The lethality of depleted

  6. Penetrating atherosclerotic ulcer at the proximal aorta complicated with cardiac tamponade and aortic valve regurgitation.

    PubMed

    Yano, K; Makino, N; Hirayama, H; Hatakenaka, M; Matsui, H; Soeda, T; Hadama, T

    1999-03-01

    A 56-year-old man had a penetrating atherosclerotic ulcer originating in the proximal ascending aorta, which is an unusual case of penetrating aortic ulcer complicated with the aortic valve regurgitation and cardiac tamponade. This hemodynamically unstable patient was successfully treated by conservative management to control his blood pressure and was also monitored closely with follow-up imaging studies.

  7. Munition Penetration Depth Prediction: SERDP SEED Project MR 2629

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2017-08-01

    ER D C/ CR RE L TR -1 7- 12 Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) Munition Penetration-Depth Prediction...release; distribution is unlimited. The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) solves the nation’s toughest engineering and... Research and Development Program (SERDP) ERDC/CRREL TR-17-12 August 2017 Munition Penetration-Depth Prediction SERDP SEED Project MR-2629 Arnold J

  8. A scanning electron microscopic evaluation of in vitro dentinal tubules penetration by selected anaerobic bacteria.

    PubMed

    Siqueira, J F; De Uzeda, M; Fonseca, M E

    1996-06-01

    In vitro root canal dentinal tubule invasion by selected anaerobic bacteria commonly isolated from endodontic infections was evaluated. Dentinal cylinders obtained from bovine incisors were inoculated with bacteria, and microbial penetration into tubules was demonstrated by scanning electron microscopy. The results indicated that all bacterial strains tested were able to penetrate into dentinal tubules, but to different extents.

  9. Generic Penetration in the Retail Antidepressant Market

    PubMed Central

    Kalali, Amir H.

    2010-01-01

    In this article, we explore the accelerated penetration of generic antidepressants in the United States market following the availability of generic citalopram and sertraline. Analysis suggests that overall, generic penetration into the antidepressant market has grown from approximately 41 percent in January 2004 to over 73 percent in January 2010. Similar trends are uncovered when branded and generic prescriptions are analyzed by specialty. PMID:20622940

  10. Impulsive penetration : a viable mechanism for plasma entry across the magnetopause ?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    De Keyser, Johan; Echim, Marius; Darrouzet, Fabien; Gunell, Herbert

    Density inhomogeneities in the solar wind may cross the bow shock, and retain an excess earthward momentum in the magnetosheath upon approaching the magnetopause. Also, the bow shock dynamics as well as the behaviour of the magnetopause itself may introduce spatial inhomogeneities in the magnetosheath density and/or flow. Plasma entities with excess momentum may penetrate across the magnetopause, by the impulsive penetration mechanism. This plasma entry mechanism requires the existence of a polarization electric field in the moving blob, that is sustained by charge separation layers in the interfaces at the flanks of the blob. Both direct observation and simulation of plasma entry across the magnetopause following the impulsive penetration mechanism are hard. It is difficult to prove that observed plasma entry is really due to the impulsive penetration mechanism since the required charge separation layers or the resulting polarization electric field are hard to measure directly. Simply assessing the geometry is not easy, although multi-spacecraft missions like Cluster have resolved many of the ambiguities inherent in single-spacecraft measurements. Impulsive penetration is difficult to simulate as it operates on the fluid, the ion, and the electron scales simultaneously. It requires not only a high spatial resolution, but also a high precision to properly represent the charge imbalance in the flank interfaces. We have modelled impulsive penetration with a kinetic model, by simplifying the problem. The fully kinetic model is 3-dimensional in velocity space, but we consider spatial structure only along a single spatial dimension, namely the coordinate transverse to the blob’s direction of motion. We thereby assume that the blob is elongated both along the magnetic field and in the direction of motion. The model is semi-analytic and is able to represent the charge imbalance in the blob edges very well. In a second modelling step, we consider a slow, quasi-static change of this structure as the blob penetrates deeper into the magnetosphere, resulting in a description of the evolution of the penetrating plasma blob as a consequence of both adiabatic and non-adiabatic deceleration. Although the simulation considers this a simplified geometry, it sheds some light on some fundamental aspects of this plasma entry mechanism.

  11. Geophysical-log and hydraulic-test analyses of groundwater-production wells at the Hannahville Indian Community, Menominee County, Michigan

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Bayless, E. Randall; Anderson, J. Alton; Lampe, David C.; Williams, John H.

    2013-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Hannahville Indian Community, evaluated the geohydrology of the bedrock formations and hydraulic properties of groundwater-production wells at the Hannahville Indian Community in Menominee County, Michigan. Geophysical logs were collected from five wells at two sites during September 2012. The logs were analyzed to characterize the lithostratigraphy, bedding and fractures, and hydraulic properties of the geologic formations and aquifers beneath the Hannahville Indian Community. The geophysical logs collected included natural gamma radiation, electromagnetic conductivity, wellbore image, caliper, ambient and stressed flowmeter, fluid resistivity, temperature, and wellbore deviation. The geophysical logs were analyzed with results from short-term hydraulic tests to estimate the transmissivity and water-level altitudes of flow zones penetrated by the wells. The geophysical log analysis indicated the wells penetrated four distinct lithostratigraphic units—shale and carbonate rock, upper carbonate rock, carbonate rock and glauconitic sandstone, and lower carbonate rock. Most of the fractures penetrated by the wellbores appeared to be related bedding partings. The lower carbonate rock unit contained solution features. Analysis of the geophysical logs and hydraulic tests indicated that each of the five wells penetrated from one to four flow zones. The Casino 5 well penetrated a flow zone that was associated with solution features and had an estimated total transmissivity of 4,280 feet squared per day (ft2/d), the highest estimate for all the wells. The Casino 3 well penetrated four flow zones and had an estimated total transmissivity of 3,570 ft2/d. The flow zones penetrated in the lower carbonate rock unit by the Casino 3 and 5 wells were hydraulically connected. The Golf Shack well penetrated two flow zones and had an estimated total transmissivity of 40 ft2/d, the lowest estimate for all the wells. The Community 1 and Community 2 wells penetrated three and four flow zones, respectively, and had estimated total transmissivity values of 185 and 280 ft2/d, respectively.

  12. Extreme value statistics for two-dimensional convective penetration in a pre-main sequence star

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pratt, J.; Baraffe, I.; Goffrey, T.; Constantino, T.; Viallet, M.; Popov, M. V.; Walder, R.; Folini, D.

    2017-08-01

    Context. In the interior of stars, a convectively unstable zone typically borders a zone that is stable to convection. Convective motions can penetrate the boundary between these zones, creating a layer characterized by intermittent convective mixing, and gradual erosion of the density and temperature stratification. Aims: We examine a penetration layer formed between a central radiative zone and a large convection zone in the deep interior of a young low-mass star. Using the Multidimensional Stellar Implicit Code (MUSIC) to simulate two-dimensional compressible stellar convection in a spherical geometry over long times, we produce statistics that characterize the extent and impact of convective penetration in this layer. Methods: We apply extreme value theory to the maximal extent of convective penetration at any time. We compare statistical results from simulations which treat non-local convection, throughout a large portion of the stellar radius, with simulations designed to treat local convection in a small region surrounding the penetration layer. For each of these situations, we compare simulations of different resolution, which have different velocity magnitudes. We also compare statistical results between simulations that radiate energy at a constant rate to those that allow energy to radiate from the stellar surface according to the local surface temperature. Results: Based on the frequency and depth of penetrating convective structures, we observe two distinct layers that form between the convection zone and the stable radiative zone. We show that the probability density function of the maximal depth of convective penetration at any time corresponds closely in space with the radial position where internal waves are excited. We find that the maximal penetration depth can be modeled by a Weibull distribution with a small shape parameter. Using these results, and building on established scalings for diffusion enhanced by large-scale convective motions, we propose a new form for the diffusion coefficient that may be used for one-dimensional stellar evolution calculations in the large Péclet number regime. These results should contribute to the 321D link.

  13. Cratering and penetration experiments in teflon targets at velocities from 1 to 7 km/s

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Horz, Friedrich; Cintala, Mark; Bernhard, Ronald P.; Cardenas, Frank; Davidson, William; Haynes, Gerald; See, Thomas H.; Winkler, Jerry; Knight, Jeffrey

    1994-01-01

    Approximately 20 sq m of protective thermal blankets, largely composed of Teflon, were retrieved from the Long Duration Exposure Facility after the spacecraft spent approximately 5.7 years in space. Examination of these blankets revealed that they contained thousands of hypervelocity impact features ranging from micron-sized craters to penetration holes several millimeters in diameter. We conducted impact experiments to reproduce such features and to understand the relationships between projectile size and the resulting crater or penetration hole diameter over a wide range of impact velocities. Such relationships are needed to derive the size and mass frequency distribution and flux of natural and man-made particles in low-earth orbit. Powder propellant and light-gas guns were used to launch soda-lime glass spheres into pure Teflon targets at velocities ranging from 1 to 7 km/s. Target thickness varied over more than three orders of magnitude from finite halfspace targets to very thin films. Cratering and penetration of massive Teflon targets is dominated by brittle failure and the development of extensive spall zones at the target's front and, if penetrated, the target's rear side. Mass removal by spallation at the back side of Teflon targets may be so severe that the absolute penetration hole diameter can become larger than that of a standard crater. The crater diameter in infinite halfspace Teflon targets increases, at otherwise constant impact conditions, with encounter velocity by a factor of V (exp 0.44). In contrast, the penetration hole size in very thin foils is essentially unaffected by impact velocity. Penetrations at target thicknesses intermediate to these extremes will scale with variable exponents of V. Our experimental matrix is sufficiently systematic and complete, up to 7 km/s, to make reasonable recommendations for velocity-scaling of Teflon craters and penetrations. We specifically suggest that cratering behavior and associated equations apply to all impacts in which the shock-pulse duration of the projectile is shorter than that assigned a unique projectile size, provided an impact velocity is known or assumed. This calibration seems superior to the traditional ballistic-limit approach.

  14. Effects of egg shell quality and washing on Salmonella Infantis penetration.

    PubMed

    Samiullah; Chousalkar, K K; Roberts, J R; Sexton, M; May, D; Kiermeier, A

    2013-07-15

    The vast majority of eggs in Australia are washed prior to packing to remove dirt and fecal material and to reduce the microbial contamination of the egg shell. The egg contents can be an ideal growth medium for microorganisms which can result in human illness if eggs are stored improperly and eaten raw or undercooked, and it is estimated that egg-related salmonellosis is costing Australia $44 million per year. Egg shell characteristics such as shell thickness, amount of cuticle present, and thickness of individual egg shell layers can affect the ease with which bacteria can penetrate the egg shell and washing could partially or completely remove the cuticle layer. The current study was conducted to investigate the effects of egg washing on cuticle cover and effects of egg shell quality and cuticle cover on Salmonella Infantis penetration of the egg shell. A higher incidence of unfavorable ultrastructural variables of the mammillary layer such as late fusion, type B bodies, type A bodies, poor cap quality, alignment, depression, erosion and cubics were recorded in Salmonella penetrated areas of egg shells. The influence of egg washing on the ability of Salmonella Infantis on the egg shell surface to enter the egg internal contents was also investigated using culture-based agar egg penetration and real-time qPCR based experiments. The results from the current study indicate that washing affected cuticle cover. There were no significant differences in Salmonella Infantis penetration of washed or unwashed eggs. Egg shell translucency may have effects on Salmonella Infantis penetration of the egg shell. The qPCR assay was more sensitive for detection of Salmonella Infantis from egg shell wash and internal contents than traditional microbiological methods. The agar egg and whole egg inoculation experiments indicated that Salmonella Infantis penetrated the egg shells. Egg washing not only can be highly effective at removing Salmonella Infantis from the egg shell surface, but also allows subsequent trans-shell and trans-membrane penetration into the egg. Consequently, it is important to prevent recontamination of the egg after washing. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  15. Numerical Experiments of Counterflowiing Jet Effects on Supersonic Slender-Body Configurations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Venkatachari, Balaji Shankar; Mullane, Michael; Cheng, Gary C.; Chang, Chau-Lyan

    2015-01-01

    Previous studies have demonstrated that the use of counterflowing jets can greatly reduce the drag and heat loads on blunt-body geometries, especially when the long penetration mode jet condition can be established. Previously, the authors had done some preliminary numerical studies to determine the ability to establish long penetration mode jets on a typical Mach 1.6 slender configuration, and study its impact on the boom signature. The results indicated that a jet with a longer penetration length was required to achieve any impact on the boom signature of a typical Mach 1.6 slender configuration. This paper focuses on an in-depth parametric study, done using the space-time conservation element solution element Navier-Stokes flow solver, for investigating the effect of various counterflowing jet conditions/configurations on two supersonic slender-body models (cone-cylinder and quartic body of revolution). The study is aimed at gaining a better understanding of the relationship between the shock penetration length and reduction of drag and boom signature for these two supersonic slender-body configurations. Different jet flow rates, Mach numbers, nozzle jet exit diameters and jet-to-base diameter ratios were examined. The results show the characteristics of a short-to-long-to-short penetration-mode pattern with the increase of jet mass flow rates, observed across various counterflowing jet nozzle configurations. Though the optimal shock penetration length for potential boom-signature mitigation is tied to the long penetration mode, it often results in a very unsteady flow and leads to large oscillations of surface pressure and drag. Furthermore, depending on the geometry of the slender body, longer jet penetration did not always result in maximum drag reduction. For the quartic geometry, the maximum drag reduction corresponds well to the longest shock penetration length, while this was not the case for the cone-cylinder-as the geometry was already optimized for drag. Numerical results and assessments obtained from this parametric study along with the recommendation for future implementation of counterflowing jets as a means for drag and noise reduction are detailed in this paper.

  16. A new penetration test method: protection efficiency of glove and clothing materials against diphenylmethane diisocyanate (MDI).

    PubMed

    Henriks-Eckerman, Maj-Len; Mäkelä, Erja

    2015-03-01

    Reported cases of allergic contact dermatitis caused by methylenediphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) have increased and thereby increased the need for adequate skin protection. Current standardized permeation and penetration test methods give information about efficacy of protective materials against individual components of the polyurethane systems. They do not give information of what kind of clothing materials workers should wear against splashes when handling mixed MDI-polyurethane formulations, which contain MDI, its oligomers, and polyols. The aim of this study was to develop and validate a sensitive penetration test method that can be used to select clothing that is protective enough against uncured splashes of MDI-polyurethane, still easy to use, and also, to find affordable glove materials that provide adequate protection during a short contact. The penetration of MDI through eight representative glove or clothing materials was studied with the developed test procedure. One MDI hardener and two polymeric MDI (PMDI)-polyol formulations representing different curing times were used as test substances. The materials tested included work clothing (woven) fabric, arm shields (nonwoven fabric), old T-shirt, winter gloves, and gloves of nitrile rubber, leather, vinyl (PVC), and natural rubber. A drop (50 µl) of test substance was added to the outer surface of the glove/clothing material, which had Tape Fixomull attached to the inner surface as a collection medium. After penetration times of 5 or 20min, the collecting material was removed and immediately immersed into acetonitrile containing 1-(2-methoxyphenyl)-piperazine for derivatization. The formed urea derivatives of 2,4'-MDI and 4,4'-MDI were analysed using liquid chromatography with mass spectrometric and UV detection. The precision of the test method was good for the material with high penetration (work clothing fabric) of MDI, as the relative standard deviation (RSD) was 14 and 20%. For the arm shield with a low penetration (the nonwoven fabric), the precision was lower with RSDs of 35 and 50%. For two clothing materials, the penetration was high (134-577 µg cm(-2)). Low penetration (<0.5 µg cm(-2)) was shown by the arm shield and the natural rubber glove. Three glove materials showed no detectable MDI penetration (<0.002 µg cm(-2)). Two affordable glove materials (natural rubber and nitrile rubber) and one clothing material (dust proof arm shield) that can provide adequate protection during short contact with solvent free PMDI formulations were found. The new test procedure should be standardized in order to get a new international penetration standard. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Occupational Hygiene Society.

  17. [Comments on the paper by D. Tausch et al. Experiments on the penetration power of various bullets into skin and muscle tissue (author's transl)].

    PubMed

    Dammermann, W

    1979-07-17

    The objections in the following comments on a recent paper by Tausch et al. (1978) are raised principally to the points that the mass of the projectile is given an importance for the penetration which is not justified, and that the inherent uncertainty of the measurement data and the scope of validity of the empirical formulas are not sufficiently taken into account. The discussion on the process of penetration and a discontinuity of the depth of penetration as a function of the velocity of the bullet is of fundamental significance, with consequences for the definition of the critical velocity.

  18. Active penetration of Trypanosoma cruzi into host cells: historical considerations and current concepts

    PubMed Central

    de Souza, Wanderley; de Carvalho, Tecia M. Ulisses

    2013-01-01

    In the present short review, we analyze past experiments that addressed the interactions of intracellular pathogenic protozoa (Trypanosoma cruzi, Toxoplasma gondii, and Plasmodium) with host cells and the initial use of the term active penetration to indicate that a protozoan “crossed the host cell membrane, penetrating into the cytoplasm.” However, the subsequent use of transmission electron microscopy showed that, for all of the protozoans and cell types examined, endocytosis, classically defined as involving the formation of a membrane-bound vacuole, took place during the interaction process. As a consequence, the recently penetrated parasites are always within a vacuole, designated the parasitophorous vacuole (PV). PMID:23355838

  19. Method for determining transport critical current densities and flux penetration depth in bulk superconductors

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Israelsson, Ulf E. (Inventor); Strayer, Donald M. (Inventor)

    1992-01-01

    A contact-less method for determining transport critical current density and flux penetration depth in bulk superconductor material. A compressor having a hollow interior and a plunger for selectively reducing the free space area for distribution of the magnetic flux therein are formed of superconductor material. Analytical relationships, based upon the critical state model, Maxwell's equations and geometrical relationships define transport critical current density and flux penetration depth in terms of the initial trapped magnetic flux density and the ratio between initial and final magnetic flux densities whereby data may be reliably determined by means of the simple test apparatus for evaluating the current density and flux penetration depth.

  20. Health insurance reform and HMO penetration in the small group market.

    PubMed

    Buchmueller, Thomas C; Liu, Su

    This study uses data from several national employer surveys conducted between the late 1980s and the mid-1990s to investigate the effect of state-level underwriting reforms on HMO penetration in the small group health insurance market. We identify reform effects by exploiting cross-state variation in the timing and content of reform legislation and by using mid-sized and large employers, which were not affected by the legislation, as within-state control groups. While it is difficult to disentangle the effect of state reforms from other factors affecting HMO penetration in the small group markets, the results suggest a positive relationship between insurance market regulations and HMO penetration.

  1. Degradation of a Multilayer Insulation Due to a Seam and a Penetration

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sumner, I. E.

    1976-01-01

    The degradation of the thermal performance of a multilayer insulation due to the presence of a seam and a penetration was studied. The multilayer insulation had 30 aluminized Mylar radiation shields with silk net spacers. The seam, an offset butt joint, caused a heat input of 0.169 watt per meter in addition to the basic insulation thermal performance of 0.388 watt per square meter obtained before the installation of the butt joint. The penetration, a fiberglass tank support strut, provided a heat input (including the degradation of the insulation) of 0.543 watt in addition to the basic insulation thermal performance of 0.452 watt per square meter obtained before the penetration.

  2. Turbid water measurements of remote sensing penetration depth at visible and near-infrared wavelength

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Morris, W. D.; Witte, W. G.; Whitlock, C. H.

    1980-01-01

    Remote sensing of water quality is dicussed. Remote sensing penetration depth is a function both of water type and wavelength. Results of three tests to help demonstrate the magnitude of this dependence are presented. The water depth to which the remote-sensor data was valid was always less than that of the Secchi disk depth, although not always the same fraction of that depth. The penetration depths were wavelength dependent and showed the greatest variation for the water type with largest Secchi depth. The presence of a reflective plate, simulating a reflective subsurface, increased the apparent depth of light penetration from that calculated for water of infinite depth.

  3. Planetary and Primitive Object Strength Measurement and Sampling Apparatus

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ahrens, Thomas J.

    1995-01-01

    Support is requested for continuation of a program of dynamic impact (harpoon) coring of planetary, comet, or asteroid surface materials. We have previously demonstrated that good quality cores are obtainable for planetary materials with compressive strengths less than 200 MPa. Since the dynamics of penetration are observable on a Discovery class spacecraft, which images the sampling operation, these data can be used with a model developed under this project, to measure in-situ strength and frictional strength of the crust of the object. During the last year we have developed a detailed analytic model of penetrator mechanics. Progress is reported for the solid penetrators experiments, the CIT penetrator model, and the impact spall sampling apparatus.

  4. Changes in the Economic Value of Variable Generation at High Penetration Levels: A Pilot Case Study of California

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

    Mills, Andrew; Wiser, Ryan

    2012-05-18

    We estimate the long-run economic value of variable renewable generation with increasing penetration using a unique investment and dispatch model that captures long-run investment decisions while also incorporating detailed operational constraints and hourly time resolution over a full year. High time resolution and the incorporation of operational constraints are important for estimating the economic value of variable generation, as is the use of a modeling framework that accommodates new investment decisions. The model is herein applied with a case study that is loosely based on California in 2030. Increasing amounts of wind, photovoltaics (PV), and concentrating solar power (CSP) with and without thermal energy storage (TES) are added one at a time. The marginal economic value of these renewable energy sources is estimated and then decomposed into capacity value, energy value, day-ahead forecast error cost, and ancillary services. The marginal economic value, as defined here, is primarily based on the combination of avoided capital investment cost and avoided variable fuel and operations and maintenance costs from other power plants in the power system. Though the model only captures a subset of the benefits and costs of renewable energy, it nonetheless provides unique insights into how the value of that subset changes with technology and penetration level. Specifically, in this case study implementation of the model, the marginal economic value of all three solar options is found to exceed the value of a flat-block of power (as well as wind energy) by \\more » $$20--30/MWh at low penetration levels, largely due to the high capacity value of solar at low penetration. Because the value of CSP per unit of energy is found to be high with or without thermal energy storage at low penetration, we find little apparent incremental value to thermal storage at low solar penetration in the present case study analysis. The marginal economic value of PV and CSP without thermal storage is found to drop considerably (by more than \\$$70/MWh) as the penetration of solar increases toward 30\\percent on an energy basis. This is due primarily to a steep drop in capacity value followed by a decrease in energy value. In contrast, the value of CSP with thermal storage drops much less dramatically as penetration increases. As a result, at solar penetration levels above 10\\percent, CSP with thermal storage is found to be considerably more valuable relative to PV and CSP without thermal storage. The marginal economic value of wind is found to be largely driven by energy value, and is lower than solar at low penetration. The marginal economic value of wind drops at a relatively slower rate with penetration, however. As a result, at high penetration, the value of wind can exceed the value of PV and CSP without thermal storage. Though some of these findings may be somewhat unique to the specific case study presented here, the results: (1) highlight the importance of an analysis framework that addresses long-term investment decisions as well as short-term dispatch and operational constraints, (2) can help inform long-term decisions about renewable energy procurement and supporting infrastructure, and (3) point to areas where further research is warranted.« less

  5. Design, Simulation and Fabrication of Triaxial MEMS High Shock Accelerometer.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Zhenhai; Shi, Zhiguo; Yang, Zhan; Xie, Zhihong; Zhang, Donghong; Cai, De; Li, Kejie; Shen, Yajing

    2015-04-01

    On the basis of analyzing the disadvantage of other structural accelerometer, three-axis high g MEMS piezoresistive accelerometer was put forward in order to apply to the high-shock test field. The accelerometer's structure and working principle were discussed in details. The simulation results show that three-axis high shock MEMS accelerometer can bear high shock. After bearing high shock impact in high-shock shooting test, three-axis high shock MEMS accelerometer can obtain the intact metrical information of the penetration process and still guarantee the accurate precision of measurement in high shock load range, so we can not only analyze the law of stress wave spreading and the penetration rule of the penetration process of the body of the missile, but also furnish the testing technology of the burst point controlling. The accelerometer has far-ranging application in recording the typical data that projectile penetrating hard target and furnish both technology guarantees for penetration rule and defend engineering.

  6. Penetration and release studies of positively and negatively charged nanoemulsions--is there a benefit of the positive charge?

    PubMed

    Baspinar, Yücel; Borchert, Hans-Hubert

    2012-07-01

    The surface of all tissues, including the stratum corneum, carries a negative charge. Following that fact it is assumed that a positively charged topical formulation could lead to an enhanced penetration because of an increased interaction with the negative charge of the membrane. The intention of this study is to prove an enhanced penetration of a positively charged nanoemulsion compared to a negatively charged nanoemulsion, both containing prednicarbate. The release and penetration of these nanoemulsions, produced with the high pressure homogenization method, were investigated. Regarding these results reveals that the release of the negatively charged formulation is higher compared to the positively charged nanoemulsion, while the penetration of the positively charged nanoemulsion is enhanced compared to the negatively charged formulation. The results of the investigated positively charged nanoemulsion containing prednicarbate show that its topical use could be advantageous for the therapy of atopic dermatitis, especially regarding phytosphingosine, which was responsible for the positive charge. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  7. The effect of simulated air conditions on N95 filtering facepiece respirators performance.

    PubMed

    Ramirez, Joel A; O'Shaughnessy, Patrick T

    2016-07-01

    The objective of this study was to determine the effect of several simulated air environmental conditions on the particle penetration and the breathing resistance of two N95 filtering facepiece respirator (FFR) models. The particle penetration and breathing resistance of the respirators were evaluated in a test system developed to mimic inhalation and exhalation breathing while relative humidity and temperature were modified. Breathing resistance was measured over 120 min using a calibrated pressure transducer under four different temperature and relative humidity conditions without aerosol loading. Particle penetration was evaluated before and after the breathing resistance test at room conditions using a sodium chloride aerosol measured with a scanning mobility particle sizer. Results demonstrated that increasing relative humidity and lowering external temperature caused significant increases in breathing resistance (p < 0.001). However, these same conditions did not influence the penetration or most penetrating particle size of the tested FFRs. The increase in breathing resistance varied by FFR model suggesting that some FFR media are less influenced by high relative humidity.

  8. Monitoring of copper nanoparticle penetration into dentin of human tooth in vitro

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Selifonov, Alexey A.; Glukhovskoy, Evgeny G.; Skibina, Yulia S.; Zakharevich, Andrey M.; Begletsova, Nadezhda N.; Tuchin, Valery V.

    2018-04-01

    Study of the penetration depth of synthesized copper nanoparticles into cut samples of human dentin was conducted. The scanning electron microscopy was used to determine the elemental composition of fresh transverse cleavage of the dentin cut for determination of the copper nanoparticles penetration with an effective antiseptic effect. The morphology of the cut surface of the dentin of a human tooth was studied and the lower limit of the diffusion boundary was determined. It was found that copper nanoparticles penetrate into the dentin cut to a depth of 1.8 μm with the diffusion coefficient of 1.8×10-11 cm2/s. Despite the rather small size of the synthesized copper nanoparticles (20-80 nm), a rather small penetration depth can be explained by the high aggregation ability of copper nanoparticles, as well as the ability of a micellar solution of sodium dodecyl sulfate, in which nanoparticles were stabilized, to form conglomerates in micelles of much larger sizes.

  9. Failure kinetics in borosilicate glass during rod impact

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

    Orphal, Dennis L.; Anderson, Charles E. Jr.; Behner, Thilo

    2007-12-12

    Failure front (FF) and penetration velocity have been measured for long gold rods impacting and penetrating borosilicate (BS) glass. Data are obtained by visualizing simultaneously FF propagation with a high speed camera and rod penetration with flash X-rays. Results for BS glass are qualitatively similar to those of DEDF (PbO) glass. FF velocity rapidly decreases from an initial value to a lower, approximately constant value. FF velocity increases with impact velocity, v{sub p}. The FF velocity remains significantly lower than the shear velocity, even at the highest impact velocity tested, about 2.5 km/s. The ratio of the FF velocity tomore » the rod penetration velocity, v{sub F}/u, decreases with increasing v{sub p} and appears to be approaching v{sub F}/u = 1 asymptotically, as observed previously for DEDF glass. The separation of the FF and the tip of the rod decreases with increasing impact velocity. Importantly, since v{sub F}/u{>=}1, the gold rod is always penetrating glass behind the FF.« less

  10. The parametric modified limited penetrable visibility graph for constructing complex networks from time series

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Xiuming; Sun, Mei; Gao, Cuixia; Han, Dun; Wang, Minggang

    2018-02-01

    This paper presents the parametric modified limited penetrable visibility graph (PMLPVG) algorithm for constructing complex networks from time series. We modify the penetrable visibility criterion of limited penetrable visibility graph (LPVG) in order to improve the rationality of the original penetrable visibility and preserve the dynamic characteristics of the time series. The addition of view angle provides a new approach to characterize the dynamic structure of the time series that is invisible in the previous algorithm. The reliability of the PMLPVG algorithm is verified by applying it to three types of artificial data as well as the actual data of natural gas prices in different regions. The empirical results indicate that PMLPVG algorithm can distinguish the different time series from each other. Meanwhile, the analysis results of natural gas prices data using PMLPVG are consistent with the detrended fluctuation analysis (DFA). The results imply that the PMLPVG algorithm may be a reasonable and significant tool for identifying various time series in different fields.

  11. Percutaneous penetration of benzene and benzene contained in solvents used in the rubber industry

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

    Maibach, H.I.; Anjo, D.M.

    1981-09-01

    Penetration of benzene through the skin of the rhesus monkey was determined using /sup 14/C-benzene, and quantitating the labelled metabolites in urine. The modes of application and amounts of benzene that penetrated the skin (indicated in parentheses) are as follows: (1) a single, direct cutaneous application of liquid benzene (0.172 +/- 0.139%); (2) a single application of benzene-containing (0.36%) solvent (0.0805 +/- 0.0306%); (3) multiple washes with full-strength benzene (0.848 +/- 0.0806%); (4) multiple washes with the benzene-containing (0.35%) solvent (0.431 +/- 0.258%); (5) removal of the stratum corneum followed by application of full-strength benzene (0.09 +/- 0.627%); and (6)more » application of benzene to the palmar surface (0.651 +/- 0.482%). Until more complete human data becomes available, benzene penetration in the monkey may be used to estimate penetration in man, both for industrial hygiene purposes and general toxicological use.« less

  12. An electrochemical modeling of lithium-ion battery nail penetration

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chiu, Kuan-Cheng; Lin, Chi-Hao; Yeh, Sheng-Fa; Lin, Yu-Han; Chen, Kuo-Ching

    2014-04-01

    Nail penetration into a battery pack, resulting in a state of short-circuit and thus burning, is likely to occur in electric car collisions. To demonstrate the behavior of a specific battery when subject to such incidents, a standard nail penetration test is usually performed; however, conducting such an experiment is money consuming. The purpose of this study is to propose a numerical electrochemical model that can simulate the test accurately. This simulation makes two accurate predictions. First, we are able to model short-circuited lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) via electrochemical governing equations so that the mass and charge transfer effect could be considered. Second, the temperature variation of the cell during and after nail penetration is accurately predicted with the help of simulating the temperature distribution of thermal runaway cells by thermal abuse equations. According to this nail penetration model, both the onset of battery thermal runaway and the cell temperature profile of the test are obtained, both of which are well fitted with our experimental results.

  13. Calculation of effective penetration depth in X-ray diffraction for pharmaceutical solids.

    PubMed

    Liu, Jodi; Saw, Robert E; Kiang, Y-H

    2010-09-01

    The use of the glancing incidence X-ray diffraction configuration to depth profile surface phase transformations is of interest to pharmaceutical scientists. The Parratt equation has been used to depth profile phase changes in pharmaceutical compacts. However, it was derived to calculate 1/e penetration at glancing incident angles slightly below the critical angle of condensed matter and is, therefore, applicable to surface studies of materials such as single crystalline nanorods and metal thin films. When the depth of interest is 50-200 microm into the surface, which is typical for pharmaceutical solids, the 1/e penetration depth, or skin depth, can be directly calculated from an exponential absorption law without utilizing the Parratt equation. In this work, we developed a more relevant method to define X-ray penetration depth based on the signal detection limits of the X-ray diffractometer. Our definition of effective penetration depth was empirically verified using bilayer compacts of varying known thicknesses of mannitol and lactose.

  14. Confocal Raman microscopic investigation of the effectiveness of penetration enhancers for procaine delivery to the skin

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lunter, Dominique; Daniels, Rolf

    2014-12-01

    A methodology that employs confocal Raman microscopy (CRM) on ex vivo skin samples is proposed for the investigation of drug content and distribution in the skin. To this end, the influence of the penetration enhancers propylene glycol and polyoxyethylene-23-lauryl ether on the penetration and permeation of procaine as a model substance was investigated. The drug content of skin samples that had been incubated with semisolid formulations containing one of these enhancers was examined after skin segmentation. The experiments showed that propylene glycol did not affect the procaine content that was delivered to the skin, whereas polyoxyethylene-23-lauryl ether led to higher procaine contents and deeper penetration. Neither substance was found to influence the permeation rate of procaine. It is thereby shown that CRM can provide additional information on drug penetration and permeation. Furthermore, the method was found to enhance the depth from which Raman spectra can be collected and to improve the depth resolution compared to previously proposed methods.

  15. Transient Dupuit Interface Flow with partially penetrating features

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bakker, Mark

    1998-11-01

    A comprehensive potential is presented for Dupuit interface flow in coastal aquifers where both the fresh water and salt water are moving. The resulting potential flow problem may be solved, for incompressible confined aquifers, using analytic functions. The vertical velocity of the interface may then be computed analytically and the change of the position of the interface may be simulated by numerical integration through time, starting with a known (or estimated) initial position. The upconing of the interface below a partially penetrating ditch or well may be studied if Dupuit solutions for such features are available. A new Dupuit solution is derived for a ditch that penetrates the aquifer partially from above; a Dupuit solution for a partially penetrating well may be obtained following a similar derivation. The new Dupuit solution is combined with the interface solution to simulate the upconing of an initially horizontal interface below a series of partially penetrating ditches; the interface converges to the known steady state position.

  16. Effect of a chemical mixture on dermal penetration of arsenic and nickel in male pig in vitro.

    PubMed

    Turkall, Rita M; Skowronski, Gloria A; Suh, Duck H; Abdel-Rahman, Mohamed S

    2003-04-11

    The effect of a chemical mixture on the dermal penetration of arsenic or nickel was assessed by applying arsenic-73 or nickel-63 alone or with the chemical mixture to dermatomed male pig skin samples in flow-through diffusion cells. The chemical mixture consisted of chloroform, phenanthrene, and toluene for arsenic penetration studies and phenol, toluene, and trichloroethylene (TCE) for nickel studies. These are predominant chemicals found at hazardous waste sites. Arsenic and nickel bind to skin after dermal exposure. Total penetration of arsenic and nickel in the chemical mixture were significantly increased by 33% and 20% compared to arsenic and nickel alone, respectively. While more radioactivity penetrated skin with chemical treatment than metal alone, significantly less radioactivity was loosely adsorbed to skin and could be easily washed off from the skin surface with soap and water. The results of this study indicate that the potential health risk from dermal exposure to arsenic or nickel is enhanced if other chemicals are present.

  17. Quantum shielding effects on the Gamow penetration factor for nuclear fusion reaction in quantum plasmas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lee, Myoung-Jae; Jung, Young-Dae

    2017-01-01

    The quantum shielding effects on the nuclear fusion reaction process are investigated in quantum plasmas. The closed expression of the classical turning point for the Gamow penetration factor in quantum plasmas is obtained by the Lambert W-function. The closed expressions of the Gamow penetration factor and the cross section for the nuclear fusion reaction in quantum plasmas are obtained as functions of the plasmon energy and the relative kinetic energy by using the effective interaction potential with the WKB analysis. It is shown that the influence of quantum screening suppresses the Sommerfeld reaction factor. It is also shown that the Gamow penetration factor increases with an increase of the plasmon energy. It is also shown that the quantum shielding effect enhances the deuterium formation by the proton-proton reaction in quantum plasmas. In addition, it is found that the energy dependences on the reaction cross section and the Gamow penetration factor are more significant in high plasmon-energy domains.

  18. Switching cell penetrating and CXCR4-binding activities of nanoscale-organized arginine-rich peptides.

    PubMed

    Favaro, Marianna Teixeira de Pinho; Serna, Naroa; Sánchez-García, Laura; Cubarsi, Rafael; Roldán, Mónica; Sánchez-Chardi, Alejandro; Unzueta, Ugutz; Mangues, Ramón; Ferrer-Miralles, Neus; Azzoni, Adriano Rodrigues; Vázquez, Esther; Villaverde, Antonio

    2018-05-16

    Arginine-rich protein motifs have been described as potent cell-penetrating peptides (CPPs) but also as rather specific ligands of the cell surface chemokine receptor CXCR4, involved in the infection by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Polyarginines are commonly used to functionalize nanoscale vehicles for gene therapy and drug delivery, aimed to enhance cell penetrability of the therapeutic cargo. However, under which conditions these peptides do act as either unspecific or specific ligands is unknown. We have here explored the cell penetrability of differently charged polyarginines in two alternative presentations, namely as unassembled fusion proteins or assembled in multimeric protein nanoparticles. By this, we have observed that arginine-rich peptides switch between receptor-mediated and receptor-independent mechanisms of cell penetration. The relative weight of these activities is determined by the electrostatic charge of the construct and the oligomerization status of the nanoscale material, both regulatable by conventional protein engineering approaches. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. Factors affecting flood insurance penetration in residential properties in Johor Malaysia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Godwin Aliagha, U.; Ewe Jin, T.; Weng Choong, W.; Nadzri Jaafar, M.

    2014-04-01

    High impact flood has virtually become an annual experience in Malaysia, yet flood insurance has remained a grossly neglected part of comprehensive integrated flood risk management. Using discriminant analysis, this study seeks to indentify the demand-side variables that best predict flood insurance penetration and risk aversion between two groups of residential homeowners in three districts of Johor State, Malaysia: those who purchased flood insurance and the group that did not. Our result revealed 34% penetration rate with Kota Tinggi district having the highest penetration (44%) and thus, the highest degree of flood risk aversion. The Wilks' Lambda F test for equality of group means, SCDFC, structure correlation and canonical correlation have clearly shown that there are strong significant attribute differences between the two groups of homeowners based on measures of objective flood risk exposure, subjective risk perception, and socio-economic cum demographic variables. However, measures of subjective risk perception were found more predictive of flood insurance penetration and flood risk aversion.

  20. Skin penetration assessment of less lethal kinetic energy munitions.

    PubMed

    Bir, Cynthia A; Stewart, Shelby J; Wilhelm, Marianne

    2005-11-01

    The development of less-lethal technologies has provided law enforcement personnel with an alternative to lethal force. Although the less lethal projectile was produced to engender non-penetrating wounds, case studies show that there have been a number of reported penetrating injuries ranging from minor to significant in morbidity. The objective of this study was to determine the energy per unit area required to penetrate various regions of the body. Eight unembalmed postmortem human specimens were procured for this testing. Each specimen sustained a maximum of 25 impacts consisting of shots to the anterior and posterior thorax, abdomen, and legs. A 12-gauge, fin-stabilized, rubber rocket round was used as the impactor for all of the conducted tests. The energy density required for 50% risk of penetration varied from 23.99 J/cm2 for the location on the anterior rib (p = 0.000) to 52.74 J/cm2 for the location on the posterior rib (p = 0.001).

  1. Penetration into Granular Earth Materials (Topic H): A Multi-scale Physics-Based Approach Towards Developing a Greater Understanding of Dynamically Loaded Heterogeneous Systems

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2016-08-01

    7 2.1. DYNAMIC DART GUN EXPERIMENTS...penetration, and cavity formation associated with high-speed projectile penetration of sand. A new half-inch gun was constructed for this project. A...inch gun with them. Data was collected utilizing NSWC’s Cordin 550, 64 frame, high-speed camera. In addition, several student participated in the

  2. Direct Measurements of the Penetration Depth in a Superconducting Film using Magnetic Force Microscopy

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

    E Nazaretski; J Thibodaux; I Vekhter

    2011-12-31

    We report the local measurements of the magnetic penetration depth in a superconducting Nb film using magnetic force microscopy (MFM). We developed a method for quantitative extraction of the penetration depth from single-parameter simultaneous fits to the lateral and height profiles of the MFM signal, and demonstrate that the obtained value is in excellent agreement with that obtained from the bulk magnetization measurements.

  3. Generic penetration in the retail atypical antipsychotic market.

    PubMed

    Lenderts, Susan; Kalali, Amir H; Buckley, Peter

    2010-03-01

    In this article, we explore the penetration of generic atypical antipsychotics in the United States market before and after the availability of generic risperidone in July 2008. Analysis suggests that, overall, generic penetration into the atypical antipsychotic market has grown from approximately three percent in January 2008 to more than 25 percent in December 2009. Similar trends are uncovered when branded and generic prescriptions are analyzed by specialty.

  4. Generic Penetration in the Retail Atypical Antipsychotic Market

    PubMed Central

    Kalali, Amir H; Buckley, Peter

    2010-01-01

    In this article, we explore the penetration of generic atypical antipsychotics in the United States market before and after the availability of generic risperidone in July 2008. Analysis suggests that, overall, generic penetration into the atypical antipsychotic market has grown from approximately three percent in January 2008 to more than 25 percent in December 2009. Similar trends are uncovered when branded and generic prescriptions are analyzed by specialty. PMID:20436769

  5. Penetrators for delivering Scientific equipment to minor bodies by flying-pass missions.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bagrov, Alexander; Martynov, Maxim; Pichkhadze, Konstantin M.; Dolgopolov, Vladimir; Sysoev, Valentin

    Many space missions are planned to have close encounters with Solar system minor bodies as a pass-fly. Short time of such close encounters were effectively used for photographing of these bodies, i.e. for distant investigations only because of large velocities of the encounter. We propose to use high-velocity penetrators to provide contact investigations of the minor bodies in situ. These devices were designed by Lavochkin Association for lunar missions. They were designed for long lived scientific equipment to be placed under surface up to depth 2...3 m. Penetrators could survive under 500 g shock, so the contact velocity was from 90 to 250 m/s, so each of them had booster engine to decelerate orbital velocity. As flying-pass velocity near minor body can be more then 10 km/s, penetrators would hit target at speed above 1 km/s and successfully bear 1500 g. To do so we propose to fulfill whole internal space inside penetrator with distilled water and froze it to temperature - 80°C or lower. At this temperature water ice is as hard as steel, so penetrator will plunge into target like armour-piercing shell. After landing protective ice will be evaporated (particularly due to heating from collision) and all sensitive mechanics will be set free.

  6. Effectiveness of different final irrigation techniques and placement of endodontic sealer into dentinal tubules.

    PubMed

    Oliveira, Kauhanna Vianna de; Silva, Bruno Marques da; Leonardi, Denise Piotto; Crozeta, Bruno Monguilhott; Sousa-Neto, Manoel Damião de; Baratto-Filho, Flares; Gabardo, Marilisa Carneiro Leão

    2017-12-18

    The aim of this study was to compare two irrigation techniques and four devices for endodontic sealer placement into the dentinal tubules. Ninety-nine single-rooted human teeth were instrumented and allocated to either the control (CO) (n=11) or experimental groups according to the irrigation method: syringe and NaveTip needle (NT) (n=44), and EndoActivator (EA) (n=44). These groups were subdivided according to sealer placement into K-File (KF), lentulo spiral (LS), Easy Clean (EC), and EndoActivator (EA) subgroups. Moreover, the distances of 5 mm and 2 mm from the apex were analyzed. The teeth were obturated with AH Plus and GuttaCore X3. Analyses were performed by scanning electron microscopy associated to cathodoluminescence. The percentage and maximum depth of sealer penetration were measured. Data were evaluated by three-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Games-Howell test (p<0.05). EA was superior to NT in percentage of sealer penetration. EC was significantly superior to EA (subgroup) for sealer penetration, and both improved the percentage of sealer penetration when compared to LS. Better sealer penetration was observed at the distance of 5 mm from the apex. Sealer penetration into the dentinal tubules was significantly improved by sonic irrigant activation.

  7. Does lamellar surgery for keratoconus experience the popularity it deserves?

    PubMed

    Wisse, Robert P L; van den Hoven, Célinde M L; Van der Lelij, Allegonda

    2014-08-01

    To analyse developments in surgical treatment for keratoconus (KC) by assessing rates and types of corneal surgery from 2005 to 2010. The Dutch Transplantation Foundation supplied data on all keratoplasty procedures for KC performed from 2005 to 2010 in the Netherlands. Registration was carried out by the eyebank at allocation and by the surgeon at the time of surgery. The type of surgery was categorized as either a penetrating or a lamellar procedure. Five hundred and seventy-five anonymized records were received, with excellent data completion (99%). Patients undergoing penetrating surgery had on average a lower visual acuity, higher k-readings and were slightly older compared with the lamellar group. A previous corneal hydrops was recorded for 19.1% of patients. Regular penetrating keratoplasty decreased in popularity from 79.7% in 2005 to 43.7% in 2010, due to the increased rate of lamellar surgery (42.5% in 2010) and 'mushroom' penetrating keratoplasty (13.8% in 2010). When hydrops cases were excluded, popularity became equal (47.6% penetrating versus 52.4% lamellar surgery, in 2010). Lamellar surgery is gaining in popularity, although regular penetrating keratoplasty is still the more commonly performed procedure. Only when hydrops cases are excluded do transplant rates become comparable. © 2013 Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  8. An investigation of the effects of antiretroviral central nervous system penetration effectiveness on procedural learning in HIV+ drug users.

    PubMed

    Wilson, Michael J; Martin-Engel, Lindsay; Vassileva, Jasmin; Gonzalez, Raul; Martin, Eileen M

    2013-01-01

    Treatment with combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) regimens with a high capacity to penetrate the blood-brain barrier has been associated with lower levels of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in the central nervous system (CNS). This study examined neurocognitive performance among a sample of 118 HIV+ substance-dependent individuals (SDIs) and 310 HIV- SDIs. HIV+ participants were prescribed cART regimens with varying capacity to penetrate the CNS as indexed by the revised CNS Penetration Effectiveness (CPE) scale. Participants completed the Rotary Pursuit Task (RPT) and the Weather Prediction Task (WPT)-two measures of procedural learning (PL) with known sensitivity to HIV infection-and a control task of sustained attention. HIV+ SDIs prescribed cART with relatively high CNS penetrance performed significantly more poorly on both tasks than HIV- controls. Task performance of HIV+ SDIs prescribed cART with relatively low CNS penetrance did not differ significantly from either HIV- controls or the HIV+/high CPE group, although a trend toward lower RPT performance than that of HIV- participants was observed. Between-group differences were not seen on a control task of motor impulsivity (Immediate Memory Task), indicating that the observed deficits among HIV+/high CPE SDIs may have some specificity.

  9. Penetration depth of photons in biological tissues from hyperspectral imaging in shortwave infrared in transmission and reflection geometries.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Hairong; Salo, Daniel; Kim, David M; Komarov, Sergey; Tai, Yuan-Chuan; Berezin, Mikhail Y

    2016-12-01

    Measurement of photon penetration in biological tissues is a central theme in optical imaging. A great number of endogenous tissue factors such as absorption, scattering, and anisotropy affect the path of photons in tissue, making it difficult to predict the penetration depth at different wavelengths. Traditional studies evaluating photon penetration at different wavelengths are focused on tissue spectroscopy that does not take into account the heterogeneity within the sample. This is especially critical in shortwave infrared where the individual vibration-based absorption properties of the tissue molecules are affected by nearby tissue components. We have explored the depth penetration in biological tissues from 900 to 1650 nm using Monte–Carlo simulation and a hyperspectral imaging system with Michelson spatial contrast as a metric of light penetration. Chromatic aberration-free hyperspectral images in transmission and reflection geometries were collected with a spectral resolution of 5.27 nm and a total acquisition time of 3 min. Relatively short recording time minimized artifacts from sample drying. Results from both transmission and reflection geometries consistently revealed that the highest spatial contrast in the wavelength range for deep tissue lies within 1300 to 1375 nm; however, in heavily pigmented tissue such as the liver, the range 1550 to 1600 nm is also prominent.

  10. Ballistic impact response of lipid membranes.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Yao; Meng, Zhaoxu; Qin, Xin; Keten, Sinan

    2018-03-08

    Therapeutic agent loaded micro and nanoscale particles as high-velocity projectiles can penetrate cells and tissues, thereby serving as gene and drug delivery vehicles for direct and rapid internalization. Despite recent progress in developing micro/nanoscale ballistic tools, the underlying biophysics of how fast projectiles deform and penetrate cell membranes is still poorly understood. To understand the rate and size-dependent penetration processes, we present coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations of the ballistic impact of spherical projectiles on lipid membranes. Our simulations reveal that upon impact, the projectile can pursue one of three distinct pathways. At low velocities below the critical penetration velocity, projectiles rebound off the surface. At intermediate velocities, penetration occurs after the projectile deforms the membrane into a tubular thread. At very high velocities, rapid penetration occurs through localized membrane deformation without tubulation. Membrane tension, projectile velocity and size govern which phenomenon occurs, owing to their positive correlation with the reaction force generated between the projectile and the membrane during impact. Two critical membrane tension values dictate the boundaries among the three pathways for a given system, due to the rate dependence of the stress generated in the membrane. Our findings provide broad physical insights into the ballistic impact response of soft viscous membranes and guide design strategies for drug delivery through lipid membranes using micro/nanoscale ballistic tools.

  11. Effect of Resin Infiltration on Artificial Caries: An in vitro Evaluation of Resin Penetration and Microhardness.

    PubMed

    Prajapati, Deepesh; Nayak, Rashmi; Pai, Deepika; Upadhya, Nagraj; K Bhaskar, Vipin; Kamath, Pujan

    2017-01-01

    To evaluate the effectiveness of resin infiltration on artificial caries lesion by assessing the depth of resin penetration and the change in microhardness of lesion postinfiltration. Totally 45 human extracted premolars were used to create an artificial demineralized lesion in enamel using demineralizing solution. A total of 15 samples (group I) were infiltrated with resin. The depth of resin penetration was studied using scanning electron microscope (SEM). Other half (n = 30) of samples was equally divided into three subgroups and Vickers hardness number (VHN) values were obtained to measure the surface microhardness as group 11 a-before demineralization, 11 b-after demineralization, IIc-postresin infiltration. Mean depth of penetration in group I was 516.8 urn. There was statistically significant increase in VHN values of demineralized lesion postresin infiltration (independent Student's t-test, p < 0.001). Penetration depth of the resin infiltrant was deep enough to render beneficial effects, while significant increase in microhardness was observed postresin infiltration. Infiltrant used can be considered as a valid treatment option for noncavitated lesions. Prajapati D, Nayak R, Pai D, Upadhya N, Bhaskar VK, Kamath P. Effect of Resin Infiltration on Artificial Caries: An in vitro Evaluation of Resin Penetration and Microhardness. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2017;10(3):250-256.

  12. Epiphany sealer penetration into dentinal tubules: Confocal laser scanning microscopic study.

    PubMed

    Ravi, S V; Nageswar, Rao; Swapna, Honwad; Sreekant, Puthalath; Ranjith, Madhavan; Mahidhar, Surabhi

    2014-03-01

    The aim of the following study was to evaluate the percentage and average depth of epiphany sealer penetration into dentinal tubules among the coronal, middle and apical thirds of the root using the confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). A total of 10 maxillary central incisors were prepared and obturated with Resilon-Epiphany system. Sealer was mixed with fluorescent rhodamine B isothiyocyanate dye for visibility under confocal microscope. Teeth were cross-sectioned into coronal, middle and apical sections-2 mm thick. Sections were observed under CLSM. Images were analyzed for percentage and average depth of sealer penetration into dentinal tubules using the lasso tool in Adobe Photoshop CS3 (Adobe systems incorporated, San jose, CA) and laser scanning microscopy (LSM 5) image analyzer. One-way analysis of variance with Student Neuman Keuls post hoc tests, Kruskal-Wallis test and Wilcoxon signed-rank post hoc tests. The results showed that a higher percentage of sealer penetration in coronal section-89.23%, followed by middle section-84.19% and the apical section-64.9%. Average depth of sealer penetration for coronal section was 526.02 μm, middle-385.26 μm and apical-193.49 μm. Study concluded that there was higher epiphany sealer penetration seen in coronal followed by middle and least at apical third of the roots.

  13. A Genetic Algorithm Based Support Vector Machine Model for Blood-Brain Barrier Penetration Prediction

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Daqing; Xiao, Jianfeng; Zhou, Nannan; Luo, Xiaomin; Jiang, Hualiang; Chen, Kaixian

    2015-01-01

    Blood-brain barrier (BBB) is a highly complex physical barrier determining what substances are allowed to enter the brain. Support vector machine (SVM) is a kernel-based machine learning method that is widely used in QSAR study. For a successful SVM model, the kernel parameters for SVM and feature subset selection are the most important factors affecting prediction accuracy. In most studies, they are treated as two independent problems, but it has been proven that they could affect each other. We designed and implemented genetic algorithm (GA) to optimize kernel parameters and feature subset selection for SVM regression and applied it to the BBB penetration prediction. The results show that our GA/SVM model is more accurate than other currently available log BB models. Therefore, to optimize both SVM parameters and feature subset simultaneously with genetic algorithm is a better approach than other methods that treat the two problems separately. Analysis of our log BB model suggests that carboxylic acid group, polar surface area (PSA)/hydrogen-bonding ability, lipophilicity, and molecular charge play important role in BBB penetration. Among those properties relevant to BBB penetration, lipophilicity could enhance the BBB penetration while all the others are negatively correlated with BBB penetration. PMID:26504797

  14. Root canal penetration of a sodium hypochlorite mixture using sonic or ultrasonic activation.

    PubMed

    Sáinz-Pardo, Marta; Estevez, Roberto; Pablo, Óliver Valencia de; Rossi-Fedele, Giampiero; Cisneros, Rafael

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of this ex vivo study was to determine, in "open" and "closed" systems, whether the design has an influence on the penetration length of sodium hypochlorite mixed with a radiopaque contrast medium, measured in millimeters, when delivered using positive pressure (PP) and using sonic (SI) or passive ultrasonic (PUI) activation. Sixty single-rooted teeth were divided into two groups: open and closed systems (n=30). Root canal shaping was performed to a working length of 17 mm. The samples were divided into three sub-groups (n=10) according to irrigant delivery and activation: PP, and SI or PUI activation. By using radiographs, penetration length was measured, and vapor lock was assessed. For the closed group, the penetration distance means were: PP 15.715 (±0.898) mm, SI 16.299 (±0.738) mm and PUI 16.813 (±0.465) mm, with vapor lock occurring in 53.3% of the specimens. In the open group, penetration to 17 mm occurred in 97.6% of the samples, and no vapor lock occurred. Irrigant penetration and distribution evaluation using open and closed systems provide significantly different results. For closed systems, PUI is the most effective in delivering the irrigant to working length, followed by SI.

  15. Penetrating trauma; experience from Southwest Finland between 1997 and 2011, a retrospective descriptive study.

    PubMed

    Inkinen, J; Kirjasuo, K; Gunn, J; Kuttila, K

    2015-08-01

    (1) There is lack of epidemiological data on penetrating trauma in European countries. (2) In Finland most acts of violence are performed under the influence of alcohol. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence and types of injury, treatment and survival of patients with penetrating injuries to the thorax and abdomen. This study includes two trauma centers with combined catchment area of approximately 720,000 patients. Patients were identified from patient records using ICD-10 codes. Patients were predominantly young males and they were stab victims. The average yearly incidence for penetrating trauma was 0.9/100,000 inhabitants. Thirteen percent of patients admitted gave a negative toxicology screen or breathalyzer test for alcohol. Twenty two percent of wounds were self-inflicted. Fifty five percent of patients received a chest tube and 30 patients (23%) underwent emergent thoracotomy after sustaining critical injury to the thorax. A considerable proportion (12%) of the study group also later died due to alcohol and/or violence, highlighting the psychosocial co-morbidity among penetrating trauma victims. Chest tube insertion is a skill to be mastered by any on-call physician. This simple procedure can be potentially life-saving. There is also a call for assessment of psychosocial well-being among penetrating trauma victims.

  16. Multipole-Based Cable Braid Electromagnetic Penetration Model: Electric Penetration Case

    DOE PAGES

    Campione, Salvatore; Warne, Larry K.; Langston, William L.; ...

    2017-07-11

    In this paper, we investigate the electric penetration case of the first principles multipole-based cable braid electromagnetic penetration model reported in the Progress in Electromagnetics Research B 66, 63–89 (2016). We first analyze the case of a 1-D array of wires: this is a problem which is interesting on its own, and we report its modeling based on a multipole-conformal mapping expansion and extension by means of Laplace solutions in bipolar coordinates. We then compare the elastance (inverse of capacitance) results from our first principles cable braid electromagnetic penetration model to that obtained using the multipole-conformal mapping bipolar solution. Thesemore » results are found in a good agreement up to a radius to half spacing ratio of 0.6, demonstrating a robustness needed for many commercial cables. We then analyze realistic cable implementations without dielectrics and compare the results from our first principles braid electromagnetic penetration model to the semiempirical results reported by Kley in the IEEE Transactions on Electromagnetic Compatibility 35, 1–9 (1993). Finally, although we find results on the same order of magnitude of Kley's results, the full dependence on the actual cable geometry is accounted for only in our proposed multipole model which, in addition, enables us to treat perturbations from those commercial cables measured.« less

  17. Multipole-Based Cable Braid Electromagnetic Penetration Model: Electric Penetration Case

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

    Campione, Salvatore; Warne, Larry K.; Langston, William L.

    In this paper, we investigate the electric penetration case of the first principles multipole-based cable braid electromagnetic penetration model reported in the Progress in Electromagnetics Research B 66, 63–89 (2016). We first analyze the case of a 1-D array of wires: this is a problem which is interesting on its own, and we report its modeling based on a multipole-conformal mapping expansion and extension by means of Laplace solutions in bipolar coordinates. We then compare the elastance (inverse of capacitance) results from our first principles cable braid electromagnetic penetration model to that obtained using the multipole-conformal mapping bipolar solution. Thesemore » results are found in a good agreement up to a radius to half spacing ratio of 0.6, demonstrating a robustness needed for many commercial cables. We then analyze realistic cable implementations without dielectrics and compare the results from our first principles braid electromagnetic penetration model to the semiempirical results reported by Kley in the IEEE Transactions on Electromagnetic Compatibility 35, 1–9 (1993). Finally, although we find results on the same order of magnitude of Kley's results, the full dependence on the actual cable geometry is accounted for only in our proposed multipole model which, in addition, enables us to treat perturbations from those commercial cables measured.« less

  18. Evaluation of nicotinamide microemulsion on the skin penetration enhancement.

    PubMed

    Boonme, Prapaporn; Boonthongchuay, Chalida; Wongpoowarak, Wibul; Amnuaikit, Thanaporn

    2016-01-01

    This study purposed to evaluate a microemulsion containing nicotinamide for its characteristics, stability, and skin penetration and retention comparing with a solution of nicotinamide in 2:1 mixture of water and isopropyl alcohol (IPA). The microemulsion system was composed of 1:1 mixture of Span80 and Tween80 as a surfactant mixture, isopropyl palmitate (IPP) as an oil phase, and 2:1 mixture of water and IPA as an aqueous phase. Nicotinamide microemulsion was prepared by dissolving the active in the aqueous phase before simply mixing with the other components. It was determined for its characteristics and stability under various conditions. The skin penetration and retention studies of nicotinamide microemulsion and solution were performed by modified Franz diffusion cells, using newborn pig skin as the membrane. The results showed that nicotinamide microemulsion could be obtained as clear yellowish liquid, was water-in-oil (w/o) type, possessed Newtonian flow, and exhibited physicochemical stability when kept at 4 °C and room temperature (≈30 ± 2 °C) during 3 months. From the skin penetration data, the microemulsion could enhance the skin penetration of nicotinamide comparing with the solution. Additionally, nicotinamide microemulsion could provide much higher amount of skin retention than that of skin penetration, resulting in suitability for a cosmeceutical product.

  19. Drain Tube-Induced Jejunal Penetration Masquerading as Bile Leak following Whipple's Operation.

    PubMed

    Bae, Sang Ho; Lee, Tae Hoon; Lee, Sae Hwan; Lee, Suck-Ho; Park, Sang-Heum; Kim, Sun-Joo; Kim, Chang Ho

    2011-05-01

    A 70-year-old man had undergone pancreaticoduodenectomy due to a distal common bile duct malignancy. After the operation, serous fluid discharge decreased from two drain tubes in the retroperitoneum. Over four weeks, the appearance of the serous fluid changed to a greenish bile color and the patient persistently drained over 300 ml/day. Viewed as bile leak at the choledochojejunostomy, treatment called for endoscopic diagnosis and therapy. Cap-fitted forward-viewing endoscopy demonstrated that the distal tip of a pancreatic drain catheter inserted at the pancreaticojejunostomy site had penetrated the opposite jejunum wall. One of the drain tubes primarily placed in the retroperitoneum had also penetrated the jejunum wall, with the distal tip positioned near the choledochojejunostomy site. No leak of contrast appeared beyond the jejunum or anastomosis site. Following repositioning of a penetrating catheter of the pancreaticojejunostomy, four days later, the patient underwent removal of two drain tubes without additional complications. In conclusion, the distal tip of the catheter, placed to drain pancreatic juice, penetrated the jejunum wall and may have caused localized perijejunal inflammation. The other drain tube, placed in the retroperitoneal space, might then have penetrated the inflamed wall of the jejunum, allowing persistent bile drainage via the drain tube. The results masqueraded as bile leakage following pancreaticoduodenectomy.

  20. Enhanced chlorhexidine skin penetration with eucalyptus oil

    PubMed Central

    2010-01-01

    Background Chlorhexidine digluconate (CHG) is a widely used skin antiseptic, however it poorly penetrates the skin, limiting its efficacy against microorganisms residing beneath the surface layers of skin. The aim of the current study was to improve the delivery of chlorhexidine digluconate (CHG) when used as a skin antiseptic. Method Chlorhexidine was applied to the surface of donor skin and its penetration and retention under different conditions was evaluated. Skin penetration studies were performed on full-thickness donor human skin using a Franz diffusion cell system. Skin was exposed to 2% (w/v) CHG in various concentrations of eucalyptus oil (EO) and 70% (v/v) isopropyl alcohol (IPA). The concentration of CHG (μg/mg of skin) was determined to a skin depth of 1500 μm by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Results The 2% (w/v) CHG penetration into the lower layers of skin was significantly enhanced in the presence of EO. Ten percent (v/v) EO in combination with 2% (w/v) CHG in 70% (v/v) IPA significantly increased the amount of CHG which penetrated into the skin within 2 min. Conclusion The delivery of CHG into the epidermis and dermis can be enhanced by combination with EO, which in turn may improve biocide contact with additional microorganisms present in the skin, thereby enhancing antisepsis. PMID:20860796

  1. Search algorithm complexity modeling with application to image alignment and matching

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    DelMarco, Stephen

    2014-05-01

    Search algorithm complexity modeling, in the form of penetration rate estimation, provides a useful way to estimate search efficiency in application domains which involve searching over a hypothesis space of reference templates or models, as in model-based object recognition, automatic target recognition, and biometric recognition. The penetration rate quantifies the expected portion of the database that must be searched, and is useful for estimating search algorithm computational requirements. In this paper we perform mathematical modeling to derive general equations for penetration rate estimates that are applicable to a wide range of recognition problems. We extend previous penetration rate analyses to use more general probabilistic modeling assumptions. In particular we provide penetration rate equations within the framework of a model-based image alignment application domain in which a prioritized hierarchical grid search is used to rank subspace bins based on matching probability. We derive general equations, and provide special cases based on simplifying assumptions. We show how previously-derived penetration rate equations are special cases of the general formulation. We apply the analysis to model-based logo image alignment in which a hierarchical grid search is used over a geometric misalignment transform hypothesis space. We present numerical results validating the modeling assumptions and derived formulation.

  2. Organic Pollutant Penetration through Fruit Polyester Skin: A Modified Three-compartment Diffusion Model

    PubMed Central

    Li, Yungui; Li, Qingqing; Chen, Baoliang

    2016-01-01

    The surface of plants is covered by a continuous but heterogeneous cuticular membrane (CM). Serving as the first protective barrier, the uptake and transport behavior of organic pollutants at this interface continue to engage the research efforts of environmental chemist. To date, the contributions of cuticular components as a defense against the organic pollutants penetration remain unresolved. In this study, the unsteady-state penetration characteristics of phenanthrene (PHE) through isolated fruit CM was investigated. PHE penetration was differentiated by three cuticular compartments: epicuticular waxes (EW), cuticle proper (CP) and cuticular layer (CL). The driving force for PHE penetration was ascribed to the sharp concentration gradient built up endogenously by cuticular compartments with different lipophilic affinities. A modified penetration model was established and verified in terms of its general suitability for the hydrophobic chemicals and CMs of various plant species (apple, tomato and potato). The new three-compartment model demonstrates much higher accuracy in characterizing the uptake and transport behavior of semivolatile chemicals with fewer limitations in terms of environmental conditions and complexity (e.g., coexisting contaminants and temperature). This model could contribute to a more comprehensive understanding on the role of polymeric lipids in the organic pollutant sorption and transport into plants. PMID:27009902

  3. Skin penetration surrogate for the evaluation of less lethal kinetic energy munitions.

    PubMed

    Bir, Cynthia A; Resslar, Marianne; Stewart, Shelby

    2012-07-10

    Although the benefits of the use of less lethal kinetic energy munitions are numerous, there is a need to evaluate the munitions prior to deployment to ensure their intended effect. The objective of the current research was to validate a surrogate that could be used to predict the risk of penetration of these devices. Existing data from biomechanical testing with post-mortem human specimens (PMHS) served as the foundation for this research. Development of the surrogate involved simulating the various layers of the skin and underlying soft tissues using a combination of materials. A standardized 12-gauge impactor was used to assess each combination. The energy density that resulted in a 50% risk of penetration for the anterior thorax region (23.99 J/cm(2)) from the previous research was matched using a specific combination of layers. Twelve various combinations of materials were tested with the 50% risk of penetration determined. The final validated surrogate consisted of a Laceration Assessment Layer (LAL) of natural chamois and .6 cm of closed-cell foam over a Penetration Assessment Layer (PAL) of 20% ordnance gelatin. This surrogate predicted a 50% risk of penetration at 23.88 J/cm(2). Injury risk curves for the PMHS and surrogate development work are presented. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Amperometric monitoring of quercetin permeation through skin membranes.

    PubMed

    Rembiesa, Jadwiga; Gari, Hala; Engblom, Johan; Ruzgas, Tautgirdas

    2015-12-30

    Transdermal delivery of quercetin (QR, 3,3',4',5,7-pentahydroxyflavone), a natural flavonoid with a considerable antioxidant capacity, is important for medical treatment of, e.g., skin disorders. QR permeability through skin is low, which, at the same time, makes the monitoring of percutaneous QR penetration difficult. The objective of this study was to assess an electrochemical method for monitoring QR penetration through skin membranes. An electrode was covered with the membrane, exposed to QR solution, and electrode current was measured. The registered current was due to electro-oxidation of QR penetrating the membrane. Exploiting strict current-QR flux relationships diffusion coefficient, D, of QR in skin and dialysis membranes was calculated. The D values were strongly dependent on the theoretical model and parameters assumed in the processing of the amperometric data. The highest values of D were in the range of 1.6-6.1×10(-7)cm(2)/s. This was reached only for skin membranes pretreated with buffer-ethanol mixture for more than 24h. QR solutions containing penetration enhancers, ethanol and l-menthol, definitely increased D values. The results demonstrate that electrochemical setup gives a possibility to assess penetration characteristics as well as enables monitoring of penetration dynamics, which is more difficult by traditional methods using Franz cells. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Comparison of Vibringe, EndoActivator, and needle irrigation on sealer penetration in extracted human teeth.

    PubMed

    Bolles, Jordan A; He, Jianing; Svoboda, Kathy K H; Schneiderman, Emet; Glickman, Gerald N

    2013-05-01

    Vibringe is a new device that allows continuous sonic irrigation of the canal system during endodontic treatment. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of different irrigation systems on sealer penetration into dentinal tubules of extracted single-rooted teeth. Fifty single-rooted human teeth were instrumented and randomly divided into 4 groups: group 1 (control), saline; group 2 (conventional irrigation), 17% EDTA followed by 6% NaOCl; group 3 (EndoActivator), same irrigants as group 2; group 4 (Vibringe), same irrigants as group 2. Obturation of all teeth was done with gutta-percha and SimpliSeal labeled with fluorescent dye. Transverse sections at 1 mm and 5 mm from the root apex were examined by using confocal laser scanning microscopy. Percentage and maximum depth of sealer penetration were measured by using NIS-Elements Br 3.0 imaging software. Groups 3 and 4 had a significantly greater percentage of the canal wall penetrated by sealer at the 5-mm level than group 1 (P < .0125), but not group 2. No other differences were found between the groups at either section level for both the percentage of sealer penetration and maximum depth. The 5-mm sections in each experimental group had a significantly higher percentage and maximum depth of sealer penetration than did the 1-mm sections (P < .0125). The use of sonic activation with either the EndoActivator or Vibringe did not significantly improve the sealer penetration when compared with conventional irrigation. Copyright © 2013 American Association of Endodontists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Polyethylene wear in Oxford unicompartmental knee replacement: a retrieval study of 47 bearings.

    PubMed

    Kendrick, B J L; Longino, D; Pandit, H; Svard, U; Gill, H S; Dodd, C A F; Murray, D W; Price, A J

    2010-03-01

    The Oxford Unicompartmental Knee replacement (UKR) was introduced as a design to reduce polyethylene wear. There has been one previous retrieval study involving this implant, which reported very low rates of wear in some specimens but abnormal patterns of wear in others. There has been no further investigation of these abnormal patterns. The bearings were retrieved from 47 patients who had received a medial Oxford UKR for anteromedial osteoarthritis of the knee. None had been studied previously. The mean time to revision was 8.4 years (sd 4.1), with 20 having been implanted for over ten years. The macroscopic pattern of polyethylene wear and the linear penetration were recorded for each bearing. The mean rate of linear penetration was 0.07 mm/year. The patterns of wear fell into three categories, each with a different rate of linear penetration; 1) no abnormal macroscopic wear and a normal articular surface, n = 16 (linear penetration rate = 0.01 mm/year); 2) abnormal macroscopic wear and normal articular surfaces with extra-articular impingement, n = 16 (linear penetration rate = 0.05 mm/year); 3) abnormal macroscopic wear and abnormal articular surfaces with intra-articular impingement +/- signs of non-congruous articulation, n = 15 (linear penetration rate = 0.12 mm/year). The differences in linear penetration rate were statistically significant (p < 0.001). These results show that very low rates of polyethylene wear are possible if the device functions normally. However, if the bearing displays suboptimal function (extra-articular, intra-articular impingement or incongruous articulation) the rates of wear increase significantly.

  7. Voluntary Cough Airflow Differentiates Safe versus Unsafe Swallowing in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

    PubMed Central

    Plowman, Emily K.; Watts, Stephanie A.; Robison, Raele; Tabor, Lauren; Dion, Charles; Gaziano, Joy; Vu, Tuan; Gooch, Clifton

    2016-01-01

    Dysphagia and aspiration are prevalent in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and contribute to malnutrition, aspiration pneumonia and death. Early detection of at risk individuals is critical to ensure maintenance of safe oral intake and optimal pulmonary function. We therefore aimed to determine the discriminant ability of voluntary cough airflow measures in detecting penetration/aspiration status in ALS patients. Seventy individuals with ALS (El-Escorial criteria) completed voluntary cough spirometry testing and underwent a standardized videofluoroscopic swallowing evaluation (VFSE). A rater blinded to aspiration status derived six objective measures of voluntary cough airflow and evaluated airway safety using the Penetration Aspiration Scale (PAS). A between groups ANOVA (safe vs. unsafe swallowers) was conducted and sensitivity, specificity, area under the curve (AUC) and likelihood ratios were calculated. VFSE analysis revealed 24 penetrator/aspirators (PAS ≥3) and 46 non-penetrator/aspirators (PAS ≤2). Cough volume acceleration (CVA), peak expiratory flow rise time (PEFRT), and peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) were significantly different between airway safety groups (p <0.05) and demonstrated significant discriminant ability to detect the presence of penetration/aspiration with AUC values of: 0.85, 0.81, and 0.78 respectively. CVA < 45.28L/s/s, PEFR <3.97L/s, and PEFRT > 76ms had sensitivities of 91.3%, 82.6% and 73.9% respectively and specificities of 82.2%, 73.9%, and 78.3% for identifying ALS penetrator/aspirators. Voluntary cough airflow measures identified ALS patients at risk for penetration/aspiration and may be a valuable screening tool with high clinical utility. PMID:26803772

  8. Evaluating Penetration Ability of Plodia interpunctella (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) Larvae into Multilayer Polypropylene Packages.

    PubMed

    Scheff, Deanna S; Sehgal, Blossom; Subramanyam, Bhadriraju

    2018-04-18

    The larvae of the Indian meal moth, Plodia interpunctella (Hübner), can invade or penetrate packaging materials and infest food products. Energy bars with three polypropylene packaging types were challenged with eggs (first instars), third instars, and fifth instars of P. interpunctella to determine package resistance at 28 °C and 65% r.h. The packing types were also challenged with two male and two female pupae of P. interpunctella under similar conditions in order to determine which package provided the greatest protection against larval penetration. Samples infested with eggs, third instars, and pupae were evaluated after 21 days and 42 days to count the number of larvae, pupae, and adults found inside the packages. Packages challenged with fifth instars were observed after 21 days to count the number of larvae, pupae, and adults inside each package. The number and diameter of the holes were determined in each package, followed by the amount of damage sustained to the energy bar. Third and fifth instars showed a higher tendency to penetrate all of the packaging types. First instars showed a reduction in package penetration ability compared with third and fifth instars. The increase in exposure time resulted in an increase in the damage sustained to the energy bars. Among packaging types, the thickest package (Test A) was most resilient to penetration by all of the larval stages. In conclusion, energy bar manufacturers need to invest more effort into improving packaging designs, creating thicker gauge films, or advancing odor barrier technology, in order to prevent penetration and infestation by P. interpunctella larvae.

  9. Penetration experiments in aluminum 1100 targets using soda-lime glass projectiles

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Horz, Friedrich; Cintala, Mark J.; Bernhard, Ronald P.; Cardenas, Frank; Davidson, William E.; Haynes, Gerald; See, Thomas H.; Winkler, Jerry L.

    1995-01-01

    The cratering and penetration behavior of annealed aluminum 1100 targets, with thickness varied from several centimeters to ultra-thin foils less than 1 micrometer thick, were experimentally investigated using 3.2 mm diameter spherical soda-lime glass projectiles at velocities from 1 to 7 km/s. The objective was to establish quantitative, dimensional relationships between initial impact conditions (impact velocity, projectile diameter, and target thickness) and the diameter of the resulting crater or penetration hole. Such dimensional relationships and calibration experiments are needed to extract the diameters and fluxes of hypervelocity particles from space-exposed surfaces and to predict the performance of certain collisional shields. The cratering behavior of aluminum 1100 is fairly well predicted. However, crater depth is modestly deeper for our silicate impactors than the canonical value based on aluminum projectiles and aluminum 6061-T6 targets. The ballistic-limit thickness was also different. These differences attest to the great sensitivity of detailed crater geometry and penetration behavior on the physical properties of both the target and impactor. Each penetration experiment was equipped with a witness plate to monitor the nature of the debris plume emanating from the rear of the target. This plume consists of both projectile fragments and target debris. Both penetration hole and witness-plate spray patterns systematically evolve in response to projectile diameter/target thickness. The relative dimensions of the projectile and target totally dominate the experimental products documented in this report; impact velocity is an important contributor as well to the evolution of penetration holes, but is of subordinate significance for the witness-plate spray patterns.

  10. Drug carrier nanoparticles that penetrate human chronic rhinosinusitis mucus

    PubMed Central

    Lai, Samuel K.; Suk, Jung Soo; Pace, Amanda; Wang, Ying-Ying; Yang, Ming; Mert, Olcay; Chen, Jeane; Kim, Jean; Hanes, Justin

    2011-01-01

    No effective therapies currently exist for chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS), a persistent inflammatory condition characterized by the accumulation of highly viscoelastic mucus (CRSM) in the sinuses. Nanoparticle therapeutics offer promise for localized therapies for CRS, but must penetrate CRSM in order to avoid washout during sinus cleansing and to reach underlying epithelial cells. Prior research has not established whether nanoparticles can penetrate the tenacious CRSM barrier, or instead become trapped. Here, we first measured the diffusion rates of polystyrene nanoparticles and the same nanoparticles modified with muco-inert polyethylene glycol (PEG) coatings in fresh, minimally perturbed CRSM collected during endoscopic sinus surgery from CRS patients with and without nasal polyp. We found that uncoated polystyrene particles, previously shown to be mucoadhesive, were immobilized in all CRSM samples tested. In contrast, densely PEGylated particles as large as 200 nm were able to readily penetrate all CRSM samples from patients with CRS alone, and nearly half of CRSM samples from patients with nasal polyp. Based on the mobility of different sized PEGylated particles, we estimate the average pore size of fresh CRSM to be at least 150 ± 50 nm. Guided by these studies, we formulated mucus-penetrating particles (MPP) composed of PLGA and Pluronics, two materials with a long history of safety and use in humans. We showed that biodegradable MPP are capable of rapidly penetrating CRSM at average speeds up to only 20-fold slower than their theoretical speeds in water. Our findings strongly support the development of mucus-penetrating nanomedicines for the treatment of CRS. PMID:21665271

  11. Correlation between laryngeal sensitivity and penetration/aspiration after stroke.

    PubMed

    Onofri, Suely Mayumi Motonaga; Cola, Paula Cristina; Berti, Larissa Cristina; da Silva, Roberta Gonçalves; Dantas, Roberto Oliveira

    2014-04-01

    Stroke is the most common neurological disease in adults that is associated with deglutition disorders. The presence of laryngeal sensitivity is very important in developing safe swallowing without risk of pulmonary complications. The aim of this study was to correlate laryngeal sensitivity with laryngeal penetration and tracheal aspiration after swallows of three food consistencies (puree, thickened liquid, and liquid) in poststroke individuals in the late phase. A cross-sectional clinical study was performed with 91 post-ischemic stroke individuals, with oropharyngeal dysphagia, who were in rehabilitation center treatment from 2009 to 2011. They had a mean age of 68.1 years and average time since injury was 22.6 months; 39 had injury to the right hemisphere and 52 had injury to the left hemisphere. All underwent fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing and evaluation of laryngeal sensitivity by touching the tip of the endoscope to the arytenoids and aryepiglottic folds. The linear correlation coefficient of Spearman was applied to evaluate the correlation between laryngeal penetration and tracheal aspiration and the presence/absence of laryngeal sensitivity. There was a negative correlation between the observation of penetration and tracheal aspiration and laryngeal sensitivity, with all bolus consistencies (p < 0.001 for aspiration and p ≤ 0.01 for penetration). The absence of laryngeal sensitivity determines the more frequent findings of penetration and tracheal aspiration. This sensory stimulus in the mucosa of the pharynx and larynx is an essential element for safe swallowing and its deficiency associated with altered motor activity can cause laryngeal penetration and aspiration in poststroke individuals regardless of food consistency.

  12. Primary repair of penetrating colon injuries: a systematic review.

    PubMed

    Singer, Marc A; Nelson, Richard L

    2002-12-01

    Primary repair of penetrating colon injuries is an appealing management option; however, uncertainty about its safety persists. This study was conducted to compare the morbidity and mortality of primary repair with fecal diversion in the management of penetrating colon injuries by use of a meta-analysis of randomized, prospective trials. We searched for prospective, randomized trials in MEDLINE (1966 to November 2001), the Cochrane Library, and EMBase using the terms colon, penetrating, injury, colostomy, prospective, and randomized. Studies were included if they were randomized, controlled trials that compared the outcomes of primary repair with fecal diversion in the management of penetrating colon injuries. Five studies were included. Reviewers performed data extraction independently. Outcomes evaluated from each trial included mortality, total complications, infectious complications, intra-abdominal infections, wound complications, penetrating abdominal trauma index, and length of stay. Peto odds ratios for combined effect were calculated with a 95 percent confidence interval for each outcome. Heterogeneity was also assessed for each outcome. The penetrating abdominal trauma index of included subjects did not differ significantly between studies. Mortality was not significantly different between groups (odds ratio, 1.70; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.51-5.66). However, total complications (odds ratio, 0.28; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.18-0.42), total infectious complications (odds ratio, 0.41; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.27-0.63), abdominal infections including dehiscence (odds ratio, 0.59; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.38-0.94), abdominal infections excluding dehiscence (odds ratio, 0.52; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.31-0.86), wound complications including dehiscence (odds ratio, 0.55; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.34-0.89), and wound complications excluding dehiscence (odds ratio, 0.43; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.25-0.76) all significantly favored primary repair. Meta-analysis of currently published randomized, controlled trials favors primary repair over fecal diversion for penetrating colon injuries.

  13. Penetration of Escherichia coli O157:H7 into lettuce as influenced by modified atmosphere and temperature.

    PubMed

    Takeuchi, K; Hassan, A N; Frank, J F

    2001-11-01

    The effects of temperature and atmospheric oxygen concentration on the respiration rate of iceberg lettuce and Escherichia coli O157:H7 cells attachment to and penetration into damaged lettuce tissues were evaluated. Respiration rate of lettuce decreased as the temperature was reduced from 37 to 10 degrees C. Reducing the temperature further to 4 degrees C did not affect the respiration rate of lettuce. Respiration rate was also reduced by lowering the atmospheric oxygen concentration. Lettuce was submerged in E. coli O157:H7 inoculum at 4, 10, 22, or 37 degrees C under 21 or 2.7% oxygen. Attachment and penetration of E. coli O157:H7 were not related to the respiration rate. The greatest numbers of E. coli O157:H7 cells attached to damaged lettuce tissues at 22 degrees C at both oxygen concentrations. More cells were attached under 21% oxygen than under 2.7% oxygen at each temperature, but this difference was small. Penetration of E. coli O157:H7 into lettuce tissue was determined by immunostaining with a fluorescein isothiocyanate-labeled antibody. Under 21% oxygen, E. coli O157:H7 cells showed greatest penetration when lettuce was held at 4 degrees C, compared to 10, 22. or 37 degrees C, and were detected at an average of 101 microm below the surfaces of cut tissues. However, under 2.7% oxygen, there were no differences in degree of penetration among four incubation temperatures. The degree of E. coli O157:H7 penetration into lettuce tissue at 4 or 22 degrees C was greater under 21% oxygen than under 2.7% oxygen; however, no difference was observed at 37 degrees C. Conditions that promote pathogen penetration into tissue could decrease the effectiveness of decontamination treatments.

  14. No Evidence of Narrowly Defined Cognitive Penetrability in Unambiguous Vision

    PubMed Central

    Lammers, Nikki A.; de Haan, Edward H.; Pinto, Yair

    2017-01-01

    The classical notion of cognitive impenetrability suggests that perceptual processing is an automatic modular system and not under conscious control. Near consensus is now emerging that this classical notion is untenable. However, as recently pointed out by Firestone and Scholl, this consensus is built on quicksand. In most studies claiming perception is cognitively penetrable, it remains unclear which actual process has been affected (perception, memory, imagery, input selection or judgment). In fact, the only available “proofs” for cognitive penetrability are proxies for perception, such as behavioral responses and neural correlates. We suggest that one can interpret cognitive penetrability in two different ways, a broad sense and a narrow sense. In the broad sense, attention and memory are not considered as “just” pre- and post-perceptual systems but as part of the mechanisms by which top-down processes influence the actual percept. Although many studies have proven top-down influences in this broader sense, it is still debatable whether cognitive penetrability remains tenable in a narrow sense. The narrow sense states that cognitive penetrability only occurs when top-down factors are flexible and cause a clear illusion from a first person perspective. So far, there is no strong evidence from a first person perspective that visual illusions can indeed be driven by high-level flexible factors. One cannot be cognitively trained to see and unsee visual illusions. We argue that this lack of convincing proof for cognitive penetrability in the narrow sense can be explained by the fact that most research focuses on foveal vision only. This type of perception may be too unambiguous for transient high-level factors to control perception. Therefore, illusions in more ambiguous perception, such as peripheral vision, can offer a unique insight into the matter. They produce a clear subjective percept based on unclear, degraded visual input: the optimal basis to study narrowly defined cognitive penetrability. PMID:28740471

  15. HMO growth and the geographical redistribution of generalist and specialist physicians, 1987-1997.

    PubMed Central

    Escarce, J J; Polsky, D; Wozniak, G D; Kletke, P R

    2000-01-01

    OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of the growth in HMO penetration in different metropolitan areas on the change in the number of generalists, specialists, and total physicians, and on the change in the proportion of physicians who are generalists. DATA SOURCES/STUDY SETTING: The American Medical Association Physician Masterfile, to obtain the number of patient care generalists and specialists in 1987 and in 1997 who were practicing in each of 316 metropolitan areas in the United States. Additional data for each metropolitan area were obtained from a variety of sources, and included HMO penetration in 1986 and 1996. STUDY DESIGN: We estimated multivariate regression models in which the change in the number of physicians between 1987 and 1997 was a function of HMO penetration in 1986, the change in HMO penetration between 1986 and 1996, population characteristics and physician fees in 1986, and the change in population characteristics and fees between 1986 and 1996. Each model was estimated using ordinary least squares (OLS) and two-stage least squares (TSLS). PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: HMO penetration did not affect the number of generalist physicians or hospital-based specialists, but faster HMO growth led to smaller increases in the numbers of medical/surgical specialists and total physicians. Faster HMO growth also led to larger increases in the proportion of physicians who were generalists. Our best estimate is that an increase in HMO penetration of .10 between 1986 and 1996 reduced the rate of increase in medical/surgical specialists by 10.3 percent and reduced the rate of increase in total physicians by 7.2 percent. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study support the notion that HMOs reduce the demand for physician services, particularly for specialists' services. The findings also imply that, during the past decade, there has been a redistribution of physicians-especially medical/surgical specialists-from metropolitan areas with high HMO penetration to low-penetration areas. PMID:11055451

  16. Alaskan frozen soil impact tests of the B83-C/S and Strategic Earth Penetrator

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

    Dockery, H.A.; Clarke, J.B.; Stull, S.P.

    To assess the penetrability of the B83 strategic bomb and a Strategic Earth Penetrator design into frozen soil and ice, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Sandia National Laboratories, assisted by the US Air Force and US Army, conducted a series of tests in 1987. In April, Strategic Earth Penetrator units were dropped into multi-year sea ice and frozen tundra near Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. Calculated impact velocity ranged from 200 to 308 ft/s into ice and from 200 to 444 ft/s into frozen tundra. Tests in May include drops of a B83 design with specially designed ogive nose shape, a B83more » with a cap over the production ''cookie cutter'' nose, and a Strategic Earth Penetrator. The May tests were conducted near Fairbanks, Alaska, at Eielson Air Force Base and at Donnelly Flats on the Fort Greely Military Reservation. The type of frozen soil encountered at Eielson was very homogeneous in composition; however. Two drops impacted areas with very thin frozen soil layers at depths of about 24 in. below the surface. Velocities of these drops prior to impact ranged from 256 to 308 ft/s, and peak axial deceleration ranged from 160 to 490 g. The units penetrated to depths of 7.5-12 ft. Three other events impacted in a target area where frozen soil averaging 35 in. thick extended essentially to the surface. We calculated velocities prior to impact at 200-256 ft/s; and penetration depths of 3.2-9.6 ft. The geologic material at Donnelly Flats was primarily a very hard, rocky glacial deposit with a variable degree of ice bonding. Here, the test units dropped from 10,000 ft above ground level and achieved an average calculated velocity of 802 ft/s. Depth of penetration ranged from 7.6 to 13.5 ft.« less

  17. Box simulations of rotating magnetoconvection. Effects of penetration and turbulent pumping

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ziegler, U.; Rüdiger, G.

    2003-04-01

    Various effects of penetration in rotating magnetoconvection are studied by means of three-dimensional numerical simulations employing the code NIRVANA. A local, 2-layer model is applied dividing the computational domain (which is a rectangular box placed tangentially on a sphere at latitude 45deg) in an unstable polytropic region on top of a stable polytropic region. Different realizations of convection are examined parameterized by Taylor numbers Ta=0,6 x 104, 6x 105 and magnetic field strengths β = 5,50,500,5000,infty . We find a rather distinctive behavior of the penetration depth Delta on the system parameters (Ta,β). In non-rotating convection Delta is a monotonically decreasing function of β-1 which is due to magnetic quenching effects. Also, penetration is subject to rotational quenching, i.e. Delta is reduced for increasing rotation rate. In the intermediate regime of (Ta,β), the effects of rotation and magnetic field on Delta do not simply add (see Fig. 3). We find, nevertheless, a very strong reduction of the penetration depth of overshooting turbulence by both rotation and magnetism. Penetrative convection is closely associated with the mixing of a passive scalar quantity advected with the flow. In the long term, the tracer material penetrates significantly deeper into the stable layer than suggested by Delta which is due to the cumulative effect of isolated, fast-moving plumes. In case of a weak magnetic field, penetrative convection also serves to ensure a downward transport of magnetic flux by turbulent pumping with an average rate gammaz ~ -7x 10-3 measured in units of the sound speed at the top z-boundary. For larger magnetic fields the pumping effect is quenched and even changes sign in the convection zone. This effect is suggested as being due to the effect of ``turbulent buoyancy'' which in density-stratified media transports a given magnetic field upwards if it is not too strong (Kichatinov & Rüdiger \\cite{Kichatinov92}).

  18. Direct Peptide Interaction with Surface Glycosaminoglycans Contributes to the Cell Penetration of Maurocalcine*

    PubMed Central

    Ram, Narendra; Aroui, Sonia; Jaumain, Emilie; Bichraoui, Hicham; Mabrouk, Kamel; Ronjat, Michel; Lortat-Jacob, Hugues; De Waard, Michel

    2008-01-01

    Maurocalcine (MCa), initially identified from a tunisian scorpion venom, defines a new member of the family of cell penetrating peptides by its ability to efficiently cross the plasma membrane. The initiating mechanistic step required for the cell translocation of a cell penetrating peptide implicates its binding onto cell surface components such as membrane lipids and/or heparan sulfate proteoglycans. Here we characterized the interaction of wild-type MCa and MCa K20A, a mutant analogue with reduced cell-penetration efficiency, with heparin (HP) and heparan sulfates (HS) through surface plasma resonance. HP and HS bind both to MCa, indicating that heparan sulfate proteoglycans may represent an important entry route of the peptide. This is confirmed by the fact that (i) both compounds bind with reduced affinity to MCa K20A and (ii) the cell penetration of wild-type or mutant MCa coupled to fluorescent streptavidin is reduced by about 50% in mutant Chinese hamster ovary cell lines lacking either all glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) or just HS. Incubating MCa with soluble HS, HP, or chondroitin sulfates also inhibits the cell penetration of MCa-streptavidin complexes. Analyses of the cell distributions of MCa/streptavidin in several Chinese hamster ovary cell lines show that the distribution of the complex coincides with the endosomal marker Lyso-Tracker red and is not affected by the absence of GAGs. The distribution of MCa/streptavidin is not coincident with that of transferrin receptors nor affected by a dominant-negative dynamin 2 K44A mutant, an inhibitor of clathrin-mediated endocytosis. However, entry of the complex is greatly diminished by amiloride, indicating the importance of macropinocytosis in MCa/streptavidin entry. It is concluded that (i) interaction of MCa with GAGs quantitatively improves the cell penetration of MCa, and (ii) GAG-dependent and -independent MCa penetration rely similarly on the macropinocytosis pathway. PMID:18603532

  19. Transdermal permeation of drugs with differing lipophilicity: Effect of penetration enhancer camphor.

    PubMed

    Xie, Feng; Chai, Jia-Ke; Hu, Quan; Yu, Yong-Hui; Ma, Li; Liu, Ling-Ying; Zhang, Xu-Long; Li, Bai-Ling; Zhang, Dong-Hai

    2016-06-30

    The aim of the present study was to investigate the potential application of (+)-camphor as a penetration enhancer for the transdermal delivery of drugs with differing lipophilicity. The skin irritation of camphor was evaluated by in vitro cytotoxicity assays and in vivo transdermal water loss (TEWL) measurements. A series of model drugs with a wide span of lipophilicity (logP value ranging from 3.80 to -0.95), namely indometacin, lidocaine, aspirin, antipyrine, tegafur and 5-fluorouracil, were tested using in vitro transdermal permeation experiments to assess the penetration-enhancing profile of camphor. Meanwhile, the in vivo skin microdialysis was carried out to further investigate the enhancing effect of camphor on the lipophilic and hydrophilic model drugs (i.e. lidocaine and tegafur). SC (stratum corneum)/vehicle partition coefficient and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) were performed to probe the regulation action of camphor in the skin permeability barrier. It was found that camphor produced a relatively low skin irritation, compared with the frequently-used and standard penetration enhancer laurocapram. In vitro skin permeation studies showed that camphor could significantly facilitate the transdermal absorption of model drugs with differing lipophilicity, and the penetration-enhancing activities were in a parabola curve going downwards with the drug logP values, which displayed the optimal penetration-enhancing efficiency for the weak lipophilic or hydrophilic drugs (an estimated logP value of 0). In vivo skin microdialysis showed that camphor had a similar penetration behavior on transdermal absorption of model drugs. Meanwhile, the partition of lipophilic drugs into SC was increased after treatment with camphor, and camphor also produced a shift of CH2 vibration of SC lipid to higher wavenumbers and decreased the peak area of the CH2 vibration, probably resulting in the alteration of the skin permeability barrier. This suggests that camphor might be a safe and effective penetration enhancer for transdermal drug delivery. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  20. Effects of Intercellular Junction Protein Expression on Intracellular Ice Formation in Mouse Insulinoma Cells

    PubMed Central

    Higgins, Adam Z.; Karlsson, Jens O.M.

    2013-01-01

    The development of cryopreservation procedures for tissues has proven to be difficult in part because cells within tissue are more susceptible to intracellular ice formation (IIF) than are isolated cells. In particular, previous studies suggest that cell-cell interactions increase the likelihood of IIF by enabling propagation of ice between neighboring cells, a process thought to be mediated by gap junction channels. In this study, we investigated the effects of cell-cell interactions on IIF using three genetically modified strains of the mouse insulinoma cell line MIN6, each of which expressed key intercellular junction proteins (connexin-36, E-cadherin, and occludin) at different levels. High-speed video cryomicroscopy was used to visualize the freezing process in pairs of adherent cells, revealing that the initial IIF event in a given cell pair was correlated with a hitherto unrecognized precursor phenomenon: penetration of extracellular ice into paracellular spaces at the cell-cell interface. Such paracellular ice penetration occurred in the majority of cell pairs observed, and typically preceded and colocalized with the IIF initiation events. Paracellular ice penetration was generally not observed at temperatures >−5.65°C, which is consistent with a penetration mechanism via defects in tight-junction barriers at the cell-cell interface. Although the maximum temperature of paracellular penetration was similar for all four cell strains, genetically modified cells exhibited a significantly higher frequency of ice penetration and a higher mean IIF temperature than did wild-type cells. A four-state Markov chain model was used to quantify the rate constants of the paracellular ice penetration process, the penetration-associated IIF initiation process, and the intercellular ice propagation process. In the initial stages of freezing (>−15°C), junction protein expression appeared to only have a modest effect on the kinetics of propagative IIF, and even cell strains lacking the gap junction protein connexin-36 exhibited nonnegligible ice propagation rates. PMID:24209845

  1. The hyperelastic and failure behaviors of skin in relation to the dynamic application of microscopic penetrators in a murine model.

    PubMed

    Meliga, Stefano C; Coffey, Jacob W; Crichton, Michael L; Flaim, Christopher; Veidt, Martin; Kendall, Mark A F

    2017-01-15

    In-depth understanding of skin elastic and rupture behavior is fundamental to enable next-generation biomedical devices to directly access areas rich in cells and biomolecules. However, the paucity of skin mechanical characterization and lack of established fracture models limits their rational design. We present an experimental and numerical study of skin mechanics during dynamic interaction with individual and arrays of micro-penetrators. Initially, micro-indentation of individual skin strata revealed hyperelastic moduli were dramatically rate-dependent, enabling extrapolation of stiffness properties at high velocity regimes (>1ms -1 ). A layered finite-element model satisfactorily predicted the penetration of micro-penetrators using characteristic fracture energies (∼10pJμm -2 ) significantly lower than previously reported (≫100pJμm -2 ). Interestingly, with our standard application conditions (∼2ms -1 , 35gpistonmass), ∼95% of the application kinetic energy was transferred to the backing support rather than the skin ∼5% (murine ear model). At higher velocities (∼10ms -1 ) strain energy accumulated in the top skin layers, initiating fracture before stress waves transmitted deformation to the backing material, increasing energy transfer efficiency to 55%. Thus, the tools developed provide guidelines to rationally engineer skin penetrators to increase depth targeting consistency and payload delivery across patients whilst minimizing penetration energy to control skin inflammation, tolerability and acceptability. The mechanics of skin penetration by dynamically-applied microscopic tips is investigated using a combined experimental-computational approach. A FE model of skin is parameterized using indentation tests and a ductile-failure implementation validated against penetration assays. The simulations shed light on skin elastic and fracture properties, and elucidate the interaction with microprojection arrays for vaccine delivery allowing rational design of next-generation devices. Copyright © 2016 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Radar attenuation in Europa's ice shell: obstacles and opportunities for constraining shell thickness and thermal structure

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kalousova, Klara; Schroeder, Dustin M.; Soderlund, Krista M.; Sotin, Christophe

    2016-10-01

    With its strikingly young surface and possibly recent endogenic activity, Europa is one of the most exciting bodies within our Solar System and a primary target for spacecraft exploration. Future missions to Europa are expected to carry ice penetrating radar instruments which are powerful tools to investigate the subsurface thermophysical structure of its ice shell.Several authors have addressed the 'penetration depth' of radar sounders at icy moons, however, the concept and calculation of a single value penetration depth is a potentially misleading simplification since it ignores the thermal and attenuation structure complexity of a realistic ice shell. Here we move beyond the concept of a single penetration depth by exploring the variation in two-way radar attenuation for a variety of potential thermal structures of Europa's ice shell as well as for a low loss and high loss temperature-dependent attenuation model. The possibility to detect brines is also investigated.Our results indicate that: (i) for all ice shell thicknesses investigated (5-30 km), a nominal satellite-borne radar sounder will penetrate between 15% and 100% of the total thickness, (ii) the maximum penetration depth strongly varies laterally with the deepest penetration possible through the cold downwellings, (iii) the direct detection of the ice/ocean interface might be possible for shells of up to 15 km if the radar signal travels through the cold downwelling, (iv) even if the ice/ocean interface is not detected, the penetration through most of the shell could constrain the deep shell structure through the loss of signal, and (v) for all plausible ice shells the two-way attenuation to the eutectic point is ≤30 dB which shows a robust potential for longitudinal investigation of the ice shell's shallow structure.Part of this work has been performed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, under contract to NASA. K.K. acknowledges support by the Grant Agency of the Czech Republic through project 15-14263Y.

  3. Deployable Wireless Camera Penetrators

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Badescu, Mircea; Jones, Jack; Sherrit, Stewart; Wu, Jiunn Jeng

    2008-01-01

    A lightweight, low-power camera dart has been designed and tested for context imaging of sampling sites and ground surveys from an aerobot or an orbiting spacecraft in a microgravity environment. The camera penetrators also can be used to image any line-of-sight surface, such as cliff walls, that is difficult to access. Tethered cameras to inspect the surfaces of planetary bodies use both power and signal transmission lines to operate. A tether adds the possibility of inadvertently anchoring the aerobot, and requires some form of station-keeping capability of the aerobot if extended examination time is required. The new camera penetrators are deployed without a tether, weigh less than 30 grams, and are disposable. They are designed to drop from any altitude with the boost in transmitting power currently demonstrated at approximately 100-m line-of-sight. The penetrators also can be deployed to monitor lander or rover operations from a distance, and can be used for surface surveys or for context information gathering from a touch-and-go sampling site. Thanks to wireless operation, the complexity of the sampling or survey mechanisms may be reduced. The penetrators may be battery powered for short-duration missions, or have solar panels for longer or intermittent duration missions. The imaging device is embedded in the penetrator, which is dropped or projected at the surface of a study site at 90 to the surface. Mirrors can be used in the design to image the ground or the horizon. Some of the camera features were tested using commercial "nanny" or "spy" camera components with the charge-coupled device (CCD) looking at a direction parallel to the ground. Figure 1 shows components of one camera that weighs less than 8 g and occupies a volume of 11 cm3. This camera could transmit a standard television signal, including sound, up to 100 m. Figure 2 shows the CAD models of a version of the penetrator. A low-volume array of such penetrator cameras could be deployed from an aerobot or a spacecraft onto a comet or asteroid. A system of 20 of these penetrators could be designed and built in a 1- to 2-kg mass envelope. Possible future modifications of the camera penetrators, such as the addition of a chemical spray device, would allow the study of simple chemical reactions of reagents sprayed at the landing site and looking at the color changes. Zoom lenses also could be added for future use.

  4. Cratering and penetration experiments in Teflon targets at velocities from 1 to 7 km/s

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hoerz, Friedrich; Bernhard, Ronald P.; Cintala, Mark J.; See, Thomas H.

    1995-01-01

    Approximately 20 sq m of protective thermal blankets, largely composed of Teflon, were retrieved from the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) after the spacecraft had spent approximately 5.7 years in space. Examination of these blankets revealed that they contained thousands of hypervelocity impact features ranging from micron-sized craters to penetration holes several millimeters in diameter. We conducted impact experiments in an effort to reproduce such features and to -- hopefully -- understand the relationships between projectile size and the resulting crater or penetration-hole diameter over a wide range of impact velocity. Such relationships are needed to derive the size- and mass-frequency distribution and flux of natural and man-made particles in low-Earth orbit. Powder propellant and light-gas guns were used to launch soda-lime glass spheres of 3.175 mm (1/8 inch) nominal diameter (Dp) into pure Teflon FEP targets at velocities ranging from 1 to 7 km/s. Target thickness (T) was varied over more than three orders of magnitude from infinite halfspace targets (Dp/T less than 0.1) to very thin films (Dp/T greater than 100). Cratering and penetration of massive Teflon targets is dominated by brittle failure and the development of extensive spall zones at the target's front and, if penetrated, the target's rear side. Mass removal by spallation at the back side of Teflon targets may be so severe that the absolute penetration-hole diameter (Dh) can become larger than that of a standard crater (Dc) at relative target thicknesses of Dp/T = 0.6-0.9. The crater diameter is infinite halfspace Teflon targets increases -- at otherwise constant impact conditions -- with encounter velocity by a factor of V0.44. In contrast, the penetration-hole size is very thin foils (Dp/T greater than 50) is essentially unaffected by impact velocity. Penetrations at target thicknesses intermediate to these extremes will scale with variable exponents of V. Our experimental matrix is sufficiently systematic and complete, up to 7 km/s, to make reasonable recommendations for the velocity-scaling of Teflon craters and penetrations. We specifically suggest that cratering behavior and associated equations dominate all impacts in which the shock-pulse duration of the projectile (tp) is shorter than that of the target (tt). We also demonstrate that each penetration hole from space-retrieved surfaces may be assigned a unique projectile size, provided an impact velocity is known or assumed. This calibration seems superior to the traditional ballistic-limit approach.

  5. Results of the mole penetration tests in different materials

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wawrzaszek, Roman; Seweryn, Karol; Grygorczuk, Jerzy; Banaszkiewicz, Marek; Rybus, Tomasz; Wisniewski, Lukasz; Neal, Clive R.; Huang, Shaopeng

    2010-05-01

    Mole devices are low velocity, medium to high energy, self-driven penetrators, designed as a carrier of different sensors for in situ investigations of subsurface layers of planetary bodies. The maximum insertion depth of such devices is limited by energy of single mole's stroke and soil resistance for the dynamic penetration. A mole penetrator ‘KRET' has been designed, developed, and successfully tested at Space Research Centre PAS in Poland. The principle of operation of the mole bases on the interaction between three masses: the cylindrical casing, the hammer, and the rest of the mass, acting as a support mass. This approach takes advantage of the MUPUS penetrator (a payload of Philae lander on Rosetta mission) insertion tests knowledge. Main parameters of the mole KRET are listed below: - outer diameter: 20.4mm, - length: 330mm, - total mass: 488g, - energy of the driving spring: 2.2J, - average power consumption: 0.28W, - average insertion progress/stroke: 8.5mm, The present works of Space Research Center PAS team are focused on three different activities. First one includes investigations of the mole penetration effectiveness in the lunar analogues (supported by ESA PECS project). Second activity, supported by Polish national fund, is connected with numerical calculation of the heat flow investigations and designing and developing the Heat Flow Probe Hardware Component (HPHC) for L-GIP NASA project. It's worth noting that L-GIP project refers to ILN activity. Last activity focuses on preparing the second version of the mole ready to work in low thermal and pressure conditions. Progress of a mole penetrator in granular medium depends on the mechanical properties of this medium. The mole penetrator ‘KRET' was tested in different materials: dry quartz sand (0.3 - 0.8 grain size), wet quartz sand, wheat flour and lunar regolith mechanical simulant - Chemically Enhanced OB-1 (CHENOBI). Wheat flour was selected due to its high cohesion rate and small grain size. Influence of the material compaction on the mole progress was also investigated. For these tests the small testbed has been used. It allowed us to test our mole penetrator up to the depth of 0.5 meters. Obtained results show that 'KRET' is able to penetrate even compacted lunar regolith simulant CHENOBI with minimum progress rate about 2mm per stroke. Moreover, we have confirmed that the mole works properly in both materials with low and high cohesion.

  6. Cratering and penetration experiments in Teflon targets at velocities from 1 to 7 km/s

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hoerz, Friedrich; Bernhard, Ronald P.; Cintala, Mark J.; See, Thomas H.

    1995-02-01

    Approximately 20 sq m of protective thermal blankets, largely composed of Teflon, were retrieved from the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) after the spacecraft had spent approximately 5.7 years in space. Examination of these blankets revealed that they contained thousands of hypervelocity impact features ranging from micron-sized craters to penetration holes several millimeters in diameter. We conducted impact experiments in an effort to reproduce such features and to -- hopefully -- understand the relationships between projectile size and the resulting crater or penetration-hole diameter over a wide range of impact velocity. Such relationships are needed to derive the size- and mass-frequency distribution and flux of natural and man-made particles in low-Earth orbit. Powder propellant and light-gas guns were used to launch soda-lime glass spheres of 3.175 mm (1/8 inch) nominal diameter (Dp) into pure Teflon FEP targets at velocities ranging from 1 to 7 km/s. Target thickness (T) was varied over more than three orders of magnitude from infinite halfspace targets (Dp/T less than 0.1) to very thin films (Dp/T greater than 100). Cratering and penetration of massive Teflon targets is dominated by brittle failure and the development of extensive spall zones at the target's front and, if penetrated, the target's rear side. Mass removal by spallation at the back side of Teflon targets may be so severe that the absolute penetration-hole diameter (Dh) can become larger than that of a standard crater (Dc) at relative target thicknesses of Dp/T = 0.6-0.9. The crater diameter is infinite halfspace Teflon targets increases -- at otherwise constant impact conditions -- with encounter velocity by a factor of V0.44. In contrast, the penetration-hole size is very thin foils (Dp/T greater than 50) is essentially unaffected by impact velocity. Penetrations at target thicknesses intermediate to these extremes will scale with variable exponents of V. Our experimental matrix is sufficiently systematic and complete, up to 7 km/s, to make reasonable recommendations for the velocity-scaling of Teflon craters and penetrations. We specifically suggest that cratering behavior and associated equations dominate all impacts in which the shock-pulse duration of the projectile (tp) is shorter than that of the target (tt). We also demonstrate that each penetration hole from space-retrieved surfaces may be assigned a unique projectile size, provided an impact velocity is known or assumed. This calibration seems superior to the traditional ballistic-limit approach.

  7. Injuries to the colon from blast effect of penetrating extra-peritoneal thoraco-abdominal trauma.

    PubMed

    Sharma, Om P; Oswanski, Michael F; White, Patrick W

    2004-03-01

    Although rare, blast injury to the intestine can result from penetrating thoraco-abdominal extra-peritoneal gunshot (and shotgun) wounds despite the absence of injury to the diaphragm or to the peritoneum. Injuries of the spleen, small intestine and the mesentery by this mechanism have been previously reported in the world literature. This paper reports the first two cases of non-penetrating ballistic trauma to the colon.

  8. Impact Response of Granular Material at Global and Meso Scales

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-02-01

    compressed gas from a gas tank. The striker hits the incident bar and uni- axial stress propagates along the bar. Then, the stress propagates into the...that, at low striking velocities (e.g., below 1 km/s), the penetration of steel projectiles into aluminum targets can be described as a rigid...alloy penetrator is shot into a wax target, the Figure 1: Radiographs of a steel projectile penetrating into an aluminum target

  9. Sealing Penetrating Eye Injuries Using Photoactivated Bonding

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2011-09-01

    of the rabbit pushed the viscoeastic out of the eye during the laser phase of the treatment . This interfered with the bonding of the amnion...ANSI Std. Z39.18 Sealing Penetrating Eye Injuries Using Photoactivated Bonding W81XWH-09-2-0059 1 Sep 2010 - 31 Aug 2011Annual01-09-2011 Anthony...called PTB) with the potential to decrease vision loss and ocular complications in warfighters sustaining penetrating eye injuries. Scope: In

  10. Effect of flexing and massage on in vivo human skin penetration and toxicity of zinc oxide nanoparticles.

    PubMed

    Leite-Silva, Vânia R; Liu, David C; Sanchez, Washington Y; Studier, Hauke; Mohammed, Yousuf H; Holmes, Amy; Becker, Wolfgang; Grice, Jeffrey E; Benson, Heather Ae; Roberts, Michael S

    2016-05-01

    We assessed the effects of flexing and massage on human skin penetration and toxicity of topically applied coated and uncoated zinc oxide nanoparticles (˜75 nm) in vivo. Noninvasive multiphoton tomography with fluorescence lifetime imaging was used to evaluate the penetration of nanoparticles through the skin barrier and cellular apoptosis in the viable epidermis. All nanoparticles applied to skin with flexing and massage were retained in the stratum corneum or skin furrows. No significant penetration into the viable epidermis was seen and no cellular toxicity was detected. Exposure of normal in vivo human skin to these nanoparticles under common in-use conditions of flexing or massage is not associated with significant adverse events.

  11. Clostridium perfringens panophthalmitis and orbital cellulitis: a case report.

    PubMed

    Guedira, Ghita; Taright, Nabil; Blin, Hélène; Fattoum, Thameur; Leroy, Jordan; El Samad, Youssef; Milazzo, Solange; Hamdad, Farida

    2018-04-10

    Clostridium perfringens is an uncommon pathogen in endophthalmitis, causing rapid destruction of ocular tissues. Clostridium perfringens infection typically occurs after penetrating injury with soil-contaminated foreign bodies. Here, we describe the case of a 17-year-old male who sustained a penetrating injury with a metallic intraocular foreign body and who rapidly developed severe C. perfringens panophthalmitis with orbital cellulitis. He was managed by systemic and intravitreal antibiotics, resulting in preservation of the globe, but a poor visual outcome. Clostridial endophthalmitis secondary to penetrating injuries is a fulminant infection, almost always resulting in loss of the globe in the case of advanced infection. When feasible, early vitrectomy and intravitreal antibiotics should be considered in patients with penetrating eye injuries with contaminated foreign bodies.

  12. Space station integrated wall design and penetration damage control. Task 4: Impact detection/location system

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nelson, J. M.; Lempriere, B. M.

    1987-01-01

    A program to develop a methodology is documented for detecting and locating meteoroid and debris impacts and penetrations of a wall configuration currently specified for use on space station. Testing consisted of penetrating and non-penetrating hypervelocity impacts on single and dual plate test configurations, including a prototype 1.22 m x 2.44 m x 3.56 mm (4 ft x 8 ft x 0.140 in) aluminum waffle grid backwall with multilayer insulation and a 0.063-in shield. Acoustic data were gathered with transducers and associated data acquisition systems and stored for later analysis with a multichannel digitizer. Preliminary analysis of test data included sensor evaluation, impact repeatability, first waveform arrival, and Fourier spectral analysis.

  13. Effect of Penetration Enhancers on the Percuaneous Delivery of Hormone Replacement Actives.

    PubMed

    Trimble, John O; Light, Bob

    2017-01-01

    Transdermal compositions for hormone replacement are comprised of exogenous hormones that are biochemically similar to those produced endogenously by the ovaries or elsewhere in the body. In this work, estradiol, estriol, and testosterone were loaded in transdermal vehicles, prepared using one of three selected penetration enhancer mixtures: Vehicle 1 (olive oil and oleic acid), Vehicle 2 (isopropyl palmitate and lecithin), and Vehicle 3 (isopropyl myristate and lecithin). The influence of penetration enhancers on transdermal delivery was evaluated using Franz-type diffusion cells and Normal Human 3D Model of Epidermal Tissue. Results showed that drug delivery is affected by the penetration enhancer used in the transdermal composition. Copyright© by International Journal of Pharmaceutical Compounding, Inc.

  14. Ball Bearing (BB) Guns, Ease of Purchase and Potential for Significant Injury

    PubMed Central

    Grocock, C; McCarthy, R; Williams, DJ

    2006-01-01

    INTRODUCTION Ball bearing guns are used in the UK for war games, but they have the potential to cause severe injury if used incorrectly. MATERIALS AND METHODS A search was made for availability of these weapons, the ease of purchase and the potential for tissue damage. RESULTS These weapons are widely available on the Internet and are easy to purchase with no security checks. Once fully charged, an electric BB gun is capable of penetrating a cadaveric animal model at distances up to 5 m (1 m = 25 mm penetration, 3 m = 20 mm penetration, 5 m = 15 mm penetration). CONCLUSIONS BB guns are not toys and have a significant potential to cause injury. PMID:16834864

  15. Emergency operation for penetrating thoracic trauma in a metropolitan surgical service in South Africa.

    PubMed

    Clarke, Damian Luiz; Quazi, Muhammed A; Reddy, Kriban; Thomson, Sandie Rutherford

    2011-09-01

    This audit examines our total experience with penetrating thoracic trauma. It reviews all the patients who were brought alive to our surgical service and all who were taken directly to the mortuary. The group of patients who underwent emergency operation for penetrating thoracic trauma is examined in detail. A prospective trauma registry is maintained by the Pietermaritzburg Metropolitan Complex. This database was retrospectively interrogated for all patients requiring an emergency thoracic operation for penetrating injury from July 2006 till July 2009. A retrospective review of mortuary data for the same period was undertaken to identify patients with penetrating thoracic trauma who had been taken to the forensic mortuary. Over the 3-year period July 2006 to July 2009, a total of 1186 patients, 77 of whom were female, were admitted to the surgical services in Pietermaritzburg with penetrating thoracic trauma. There were 124 gunshot wounds and 1062 stab wounds. A total of 108 (9%) patients required emergency operation during the period under review. The mechanism of trauma in the operative group was stab wounds (n = 102), gunshot wound (n = 4), stab with compass (n = 1), and impalement by falling on an arrow (n = 1). Over the same period 676 persons with penetrating thoracic trauma were taken to the mortuary. There were 135 (20%) gunshot wounds of the chest in the mortuary cohort. The overall mortality for penetrating thoracic trauma was 541 (33%) of 1603 for stab wounds and 135 (52%) of 259 for gunshot wounds of the chest. Among the 541 subjects with stab wounds from the mortuary cohort, there were 206 (38%) with cardiac injuries. In the emergency operation group there were 11 (10%) deaths. In 76 patients a cardiac injury was identified. The other injuries identified were lung parenchyma bleeding (n = 12) intercostal vessels (n = 10), great vessels of the chest (n = 6), internal thoracic vessel (n = 2), and pericardial injury with no myocardial injury (n = 2). Most patients reached the hospital within 60 minutes of sustaining their injury. A subset of 12 patients had much longer delays of 12 to 24 hours. Surgical access was via median sternotomy in 56 patients and lateral thoracotomy in 52. The overall mortality for penetrating cardiac trauma in our series was 217 (76%) of 282. Penetrating thoracic trauma has a high mortality rate of 30% for subjects with stab wounds and 52% for those with gunshot wounds. Less than a quarter of patients with a penetrating cardiac injury reach the hospital alive. Of those who do and who are operated on, about 90 percent will survive. Other injuries necessitating emergency operation are lung parenchyma, intercostal vessels and internal thoracic vessels, and great vessels of the thorax. Gunshot wounds of the thorax remain more lethal than stab wounds. Copyright © 2011 The American Association for Thoracic Surgery. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

  16. The role of hair follicles in the percutaneous absorption of caffeine.

    PubMed

    Otberg, Nina; Patzelt, Alexa; Rasulev, Utkur; Hagemeister, Timo; Linscheid, Michael; Sinkgraven, Ronald; Sterry, Wolfram; Lademann, Jürgen

    2008-04-01

    * In recent years, it has been suggested that hair follicles represent important shunt routes into the skin for drugs and chemicals [1-3]. * In vitro studies have shown the importance of skin appendages for skin penetration by hydrophilic compounds [4]. Investigation of follicular penetration in vivo has been difficult due to the absence of appropriate analytical methods or suitable animal model systems. * Recently, a new method was described that quantifies follicular penetration in vivo by using selective closure of hair follicles [5]. * Caffeine is frequently used in skin penetration experiments as a model for highly water-soluble compounds. Occlusion [6] and skin thickness [7] seem to have little influence on the penetration of caffeine. However, percutaneous absorption rates for caffeine exhibit regional skin differences in humans in vivo[1]. * The results of the present study demonstrate that a fast drug delivery of caffeine occurs through shunt routes. Therefore, hair follicles are considerable weak spots in our protective sheath against penetration into the body by hydrophilic substances. * We showed that there is a quantitative distinction between follicular penetration and interfollicular diffusion of caffeine in vivo. * These findings are of importance for the development and optimization of topically applied drugs and cosmetics. In addition, such properties must be considered in the development of skin protection measures. The skin and its appendages are our protective shield against the environment and are necessary for the maintenance of homeostasis. Hypotheses concerning the penetration of substances into the skin have assumed diffusion through the lipid domains of the stratum corneum. It is believed that while hair follicles represent a weakness in the shield, they play a subordinate role in the percutaneous penetration processes. Previous investigation of follicular penetration has mostly addressed methodical and technical problems. Our study utilized a selective closure technique of hair follicle orifices in vivo, for the comparison of interfollicular and follicular absorption rates of caffeine in humans. Every single hair follicle within a delimited area of skin was blocked with a microdrop of a special varnish-wax-mixture in vivo. Caffeine in solution was topically applied and transcutaneous absorption into the blood was measured by a new surface ionization mass spectrometry (SI/MS) technique, which enabled a clear distinction to be made between interfollicular and follicular penetration of a topically applied substance. Caffeine (3.75 ng ml(-1)) was detected in blood samples, 5 min after topical application, when the follicles remained open. When the follicles were blocked, caffeine was detectable after 20 min (2.45 ng ml(-1)). Highest values (11.75 ng caffeine ml(-1)) were found 1 h after application when the follicles were open. Our findings demonstrate that hair follicles are considerable weak spots in our protective sheath against certain hydrophilic drugs and may allow a fast delivery of topically applied substances.

  17. Manipulating the membrane penetration mechanism of helical polypeptides via aromatic modification for efficient gene delivery.

    PubMed

    Zheng, Nan; Song, Ziyuan; Yang, Jiandong; Liu, Yang; Li, Fangfang; Cheng, Jianjun; Yin, Lichen

    2017-08-01

    The delivery performance of non-viral gene vectors is greatly related to their intracellular kinetics. Cationic helical polypeptides with potent membrane penetration properties and gene transfection efficiencies have been recently developed by us. However, they suffer from severe drawbacks in terms of their membrane penetration mechanisms that mainly include endocytosis and pore formation. The endocytosis mechanism leads to endosomal entrapment of gene cargos, while the charge- and helicity-induced pore formation causes appreciable cytotoxicity at high concentrations. With the attempt to overcome such critical challenges, we incorporated aromatic motifs into the design of helical polypeptides to enhance their membrane activities and more importantly, to manipulate their membrane penetration mechanisms. The aromatically modified polypeptides exhibited higher cellular internalization level than the unmodified analogue by up to 2.5 folds. Such improvement is possibly because aromatic domains promoted the polypeptides to penetrate cell membranes via direct transduction, a non-endocytosis and non-pore formation mechanism. As such, gene cargos were more efficiently delivered into cells by bypassing endocytosis and subsequently avoiding endosomal entrapment, and the material toxicity associated with excessive pore formation was also reduced. The top-performing aromatic polypeptide containing naphthyl side chains at the incorporated content of 20mol% revealed notably higher transfection efficiencies than commercial reagents in melanoma cells in vitro (by 11.7 folds) and in vivo (by 9.1 folds), and thus found potential utilities toward topical gene delivery for cancer therapy. Cationic helical polypeptides, as efficient gene delivery materials, suffer from severe drawbacks in terms of their membrane penetration mechanisms. The main cell penetration mechanisms involved are endocytosis and pore formation. However, the endocytosis mechanism has the limitation of endosomal entrapment of gene cargos, while the charge- and helicity-induced pore formation causes cytotoxicity at high concentrations. To address such critical issues toward the maximization of gene delivery efficiency, we incorporated aromatic domains into helical polypeptides to promote the cell membrane penetrations via direct transduction, which is a non-endocytosis and non-pore formation mechanism. The manipulation of their membrane penetration mechanisms allows gene cargos to be more efficiently delivered by bypassing endocytosis and subsequently avoiding endosomal entrapment. Copyright © 2017 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. Materials properties of hafnium and zirconium silicates: Metal interdiffusion and dopant penetration studies

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Quevedo Lopez, Manuel Angel

    Hafnium and Zirconium based gate dielectrics are considered potential candidates to replace SiO2 or SiON as the gate dielectric in CMOS processing. Furthermore, the addition of nitrogen into this pseudo-binary alloy has been shown to improve their thermal stability, electrical properties, and reduce dopant penetration. Because CMOS processing requires high temperature anneals (up to 1050°C), it is important to understand the diffusion properties of any metal associated with the gate dielectric in silicon at these temperatures. In addition, dopant penetration from the doped polysilicon gate into the Si channel at these temperatures must also be studied. Impurity outdiffusion (Hf, Zr) from the dielectric, or dopant (B, As, P) penetration through the dielectric into the channel region would likely result in deleterious effects upon the carrier mobility. In this dissertation extensive thermal stability studies of alternate gate dielectric candidates ZrSixOy and HfSixO y are presented. Dopant penetration studies from doped-polysilicon through HfSixOy and HfSixOyNz are also presented. Rutherford Backscattering Spectroscopy (RBS), Heavy Ion RBS (HI-RBS), X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HR-TEM), and Time of Flight and Dynamic Secondary Ion Mass Spectroscopy (ToF-SIMS, D-SIMS) methods were used to characterize these materials. The dopant diffusivity is calculated by modeling of the dopant profiles in the Si substrate. In this disseration is reported that Hf silicate films are more stable than Zr silicate films, from the metal interdiffusion point of view. On the other hand, dopant (B, As, and P) penetration is observed for HfSixO y films. However, the addition of nitrogen to the Hf - Si - O systems improves the dopant penetration properties of the resulting HfSi xOyNz films.

  19. Epidemiology of non-penetrative sex among university students in the context of HIV/AIDS prevention in Northwestern Ethiopia.

    PubMed

    Mehari, Zelalem; Wubshet, Mamo; Deribe, Kebede; Biadgilign, Sibhatu

    2011-03-01

    This study was conducted to explore the knowledge, attitude and practices related to non-penetrative sexual behavior in the context of HIV/AIDS prevention among Bahir Dar University students in Northwestern Ethiopia. We conducted a cross-sectional study among a representative sample of 624 regular students attending their education in academic year 2007 in Bahir Dar University in Ethiopia selected by stratified sampling technique. Association between practices and the explanatory variables was assessed in bivariate analysis using Chi-square tests and the associations were further expanded using multivariate logistic regression analysis. The overall knowledge assessments of the respondents showed that 65.2% of the respondents were having reasonable and good knowledge. Around 46.7% were currently practicing one or more of the non penetrative sexual practices. Among those who were practicing one or more of the non penetrative sexual behaviors (n = 286) were for the reasons as make sexual pleasure (56.8%), prevent HIV and STI (49.8%), keeping virginity (17.1%) and prevention of pregnancy (16.7%)respectively. Around 60.7% had unfavorable attitude towards non penetrative sexual behavior. Having good knowledge, being male gender, and having favorable attitudes towards NPS were associated with non penetrative sexual practice. Most of the students have relatively good knowledge and a considerable proportion of them were already engaged in one of the NPS practices withstanding the unfavorable attitude they have towards NPS. This remained that it is advisable to further consider NPS as one option and additional menu for avoiding unwanted penetrative sex in order to maximize young people's options to prevent HIV/AIDS and STIs along with broader IEC/BCC interventions.

  20. Cyclic mechanical loading promotes bacterial penetration along composite restoration marginal gaps

    PubMed Central

    Khvostenko, D.; Salehi, S.; Naleway, S. E.; Hilton, T. J.; Ferracane, J. L.; Mitchell, J. C.; Kruzic, J. J.

    2015-01-01

    Objectives Secondary caries is the most common reason for composite restoration replacement and usually forms between dentin and the filling. The objective of this study was to investigate the combined effect of cyclic loading and bacterial exposure on bacterial penetration into gaps at the interface between dentin and resin composite restorative material using a novel bioreactor system and test specimen design. Methods Human molars were machined into 3 mm thick disks with 2 mm deep × 5 mm diameter cavity preparations into which composite restorations were placed. A ∼15-30 micrometer (small) or ∼300 micrometer wide (large) dentin-restoration gap was introduced along half of the interface between the dentin and restoration. Streptococcus mutans UA 159 biofilms were grown on each sample prior to testing in a bioreactor both with and without cyclic loading. Both groups of samples were tested for 2 weeks and post-test biofilm viability was confirmed with a live-dead assay. Samples were fixed, mounted and cross-sectioned to reveal the gaps and observe the depth of bacterial penetration. Results It was shown that for large gap samples the bacteria easily penetrated to the full depth of the gap independent of loading or non-loading conditions. The results for all cyclically loaded small gap samples show a consistently deep bacterial penetration down 100% of the gap while the average penetration depth was only 67% for the non-loaded samples with only two of six samples reaching 100%. Significance A new bioreactor was developed that allows combining cyclic mechanical loading and bacterial exposure of restored teeth for bacterial biofilm and demineralization studies. Cyclic loading was shown to aid bacterial penetration into narrow marginal gaps, which could ultimately promote secondary caries formation. PMID:25900624

  1. Imaging assessment of penetrating injury of the neck and face.

    PubMed

    Offiah, Curtis; Hall, Edward

    2012-10-01

    Penetrating trauma of the neck and face is a frequent presentation to acute emergency, trauma and critical care units. There remains a steady incidence of both gunshot penetrating injury to the neck and face as well as non-missile penetrating injury-largely, but not solely, knife-related. Optimal imaging assessment of such injuries therefore remains an on-going requirement of the general and specialised radiologist. The anatomy of the neck and face-in particular, vascular, pharyngo-oesophageal, laryngo-tracheal and neural anatomy-demands a more specialised and selective management plan which incorporates specific imaging techniques. The current treatment protocol of injuries of the neck and face has seen a radical shift away from expectant surgical exploration in the management of such injuries, largely as a result of advances in the diagnostic capabilities of multi-detector computed tomography angiography (MDCTA), which is now the first-line imaging modality of choice in such cases. This review aims to highlight ballistic considerations, differing imaging modalities, including MDCTA, that might be utilised to assist in the accurate assessment of these injuries as well as the specific radiological features and patterns of specific organ-system injuries that should be considered and communicated to surgical and critical care teams. TEACHING POINTS : • MDCTA is the first-line imaging modality in penetrating trauma of the neck and, often, of the face • The inherent deformability of a bullet is a significant factor in its tissue-damaging capabilities • MDCTA can provide accurate assessment of visceral injury of the neck as well as vascular injury • Penetrating facial trauma warrants radiological assessment of key adjacent anatomical structures • In-driven fragments of native bone potentiate tissue damage in projectile penetrating facial trauma.

  2. Site-specific epsilon-NH2 monoacylation of pancreatic phospholipase A2. 2. Transformation of soluble phospholipase A2 into a highly penetrating "membrane-bound" form.

    PubMed

    Van der Wiele, F C; Atsma, W; Roelofsen, B; van Linde, M; Van Binsbergen, J; Radvanyi, F; Raykova, D; Slotboom, A J; De Haas, G H

    1988-03-08

    Long-chain lecithins present in bilayer structures like vesicles or membranes are only very poor substrates for pancreatic phospholipases A2. This is probably due to the fact that pancreatic phospholipases A2 cannot penetrate into the densely packed bilayer structures. To improve the weak penetrating properties of pancreatic phospholipases A2, we prepared and characterized a number of pancreatic phospholipase A2 mutants that have various long acyl chains linked covalently to Lys116 in porcine and to Lys10 in bovine phospholipase A2 [Van der Wiele, F.C., Atsma, W., Dijkman, R., Schreurs, A.M.M., Slotboom, A.J., & De Haas, G.H. (1988) Biochemistry (preceding paper in this issue)]. When monomolecular surface layers of L- and D-didecanoyllecithin were used, it was found that the introduction of caprinic, lauric, palmitic, and oleic acid at Lys116 in the porcine enzyme increases its penetrating power from 13 to about 17, 20, 32, and 22 dyn/cm, respectively, before long lag periods were obtained. Incorporation of a palmitoyl moiety at Lys10 in the bovine enzyme shifted the penetrating power from 11 to about 25 dyn/cm. Only the best penetrating mutant, viz., porcine phospholipase A2 having a palmitoyl moiety at Lys116, was able to cause complete leakage of 6-carboxyfluorescein entrapped in small unilamellar vesicles of egg lecithin under nonhydrolytic conditions. Similarly, only this latter palmitoylphospholipase A2 completely hydrolyzed all lecithin in the outer monolayer of the human erythrocyte at a rate much faster than Naja naja phospholipase A2, the most powerful penetrating snake venom enzyme presently known.

  3. Probing the effect of polymer molecular weight on penetration into the wood cell wall using polyethylenimine (PEI) as a model compound.

    PubMed

    Dorvel, Brian; Boopalachandran, Praveenkumar; Chen, Ida; Bowling, Andrew; Williams, Kerry; King, Steve

    2018-05-01

    Decking is one of the largest applications for the treated wood market. The most challenging property to obtain for treated wood is dimensional stability, which can be achieved, in part, by cell wall bulking, cell wall polymer crosslinking and removal of hygroscopic components in the cell wall. A commonly accepted key requirement is for the actives to infuse through the cell wall, which has a microporosity of ∼5-13 nm. Equally as challenging is being able to measure and quantify the cell wall penetration. Branched polyethylenimine (PEI) was studied as a model polymer for penetration due to its water solubility, polarity, variable molecular weight ranges, and ability to form a chelation complex with preservative metals to treat lumbers. Two different molecular weight polyethylenimines (PEI), one with a weight average molecular weight (Mw) equal to 800 Da and the other 750 000 Da, were investigated for penetration by microscopy and spectroscopy techniques. Analytical methods were developed to both create smooth interfaces and for relative quantitation and visualisation of PEI penetration into the wood. The results showed both PEI with Mw of 800 Da and PEI with Mw of 750 000 Da coated the lumens in high density. However, only the PEI with Mw of 800 appeared to penetrate the cell walls in sufficient levels. Literature has shown the hydrodynamic radii of PEI 750 000 is near 29 nm, whereas a smaller PEI at 25 K showed 4.5 nm. Most importantly the results, based on methods developed, show how molecular weight and tertiary structure of the polymer can affect its penetration, with the microporosity of the wood being the main barrier. © 2017 The Authors Journal of Microscopy © 2017 Royal Microscopical Society.

  4. Market influences on internal medicine residents' decisions to subspecialize.

    PubMed

    Valente, E; Wyatt, S M; Moy, E; Levin, R J; Griner, P F

    1998-06-01

    Managed care reduces the demand for internal medicine subspecialists, but little empirical information is available on how increasing managed care may be affecting residents' training choices. To determine whether increased managed care penetration into an area where residents train was associated with a decreased likelihood that residents who completed general internal medicine training pursued subspecialty training. Secondary logistic regression analysis of data from the 1993 cohort of general internal medicine residents. U.S. residency training sites. 2263 U.S. medical school graduates who completed general internal medicine residency training in 1993. The outcome variable (enrollment in subspecialty training) was derived from the Graduate Medical Education Tracking Census of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). Health maintenance organization (HMO) penetration (possible range, 0.0 to 1.0; higher values indicate greater penetration) was taken from the Interstudy Competitive Edge Database. Individual and medical school covariates were taken from the AAMC's Student and Applicant Information Management System database and the National Institutes of Health Information for Management Planning, Analysis, and Coordination system. The U.S. Census division was included as a control covariate. 980 participants (43%) enrolled in subspecialty training. Logistic regression analyses indicated a nonlinear association between managed care penetration into a training area and the odds of subspecialization. Increasing managed care penetration was associated with decreasing odds of subspecialization when penetration exceeded 0.15. The choice of subspecialty training increased as HMO penetration increased from 0 to 0.15. Local market forces locally influenced the career decisions of internal medicine residents, but the influence was small compared with the effects of age and sex. These results suggest that market forces help to achieve more desirable generalist-to-specialist physician ratios in internal medicine.

  5. The use of radiolabelling techniques to measure substantivity to, and penetration into, hair of protein hydrolysates.

    PubMed

    Jones, R T; Chahal, S P

    1997-10-01

    The use of 14C-labelled amino acids enables the measurement of both the total substantivity to hair and the degree of penetration into the hair shaft of amino acid mixtures derived from complete hydrolysis of proteins. The technique utilizes the fact that direct measurement of 14C radioactivity of the treated hair detects only the surface substantivity. Total substantivity can be determined following solubilization of the hair. Data obtained for wheat amino acids show significant penetration when used to treat hair from a shampoo or conditioner formulation. A similar technique has been investigated for a wheat protein partial hydrolysate using 14CNO for radiolabelling purposes and shows that significant penetration into hair can occur. L'utilisation d'amino-acides marques au 14C permet la mesure a la fois de l'absorption totale par les cheveux et du degre de penetration dans la fibre du cheveu de melanges d'amino-acides obtenus a partir d'une hydrolyse totale de proteines. La technique utilise le fait que la mesure directe de la radioactivite du 14C des cheveux traites ne detecte que l'absorption en surface. L'absorption totale peut etre determinee apres solubilisation des cheveux. Les donnees obtenues a partir d'amino-acides de ble montrent une penetration significative lors d'une utilisation pour traiter des cheveux a partir d'une formulation de shampoing ou d'apres-shampoing. Une technique similaire a ete exploree vis-a-vis d'un hydrolysat partiel d'une proteine de ble utilisant 14CNO a des fins de marquage, et montre qu'une penetration significative dans les cheveux peut avoir lieu.

  6. Comprehensive evaluation of formulation factors for ocular penetration of fluoroquinolones in rabbits using cassette dosing technique.

    PubMed

    Sharma, Charu; Biswas, Nihar R; Ojha, Shreesh; Velpandian, Thirumurthy

    2016-01-01

    Corneal permeability of drugs is an important factor used to assess the efficacy of topical preparations. Transcorneal penetration of drugs from aqueous formulation is governed by various physiological, physiochemical, and formulation factors. In the present study, we investigated the effect of formulation factors like concentration, pH, and volume of instillation across the cornea using cassette dosing technique for ophthalmic fluoroquinolones (FQs). Sterile cocktail formulations were prepared using four congeneric ophthalmic FQs (ofloxacin, sparfloxacin, pefloxacin mesylate, and gatifloxacin) at concentrations of 0.025%, 0.5%, and 0.1%. Each formulation was adjusted to different pH ranges (4.5, 7.0, and 8.0) and assessed for transcorneal penetration in vivo in rabbit's cornea (n=4 eyes) at three different volumes (12.5, 25, and 50 μL). Aqueous humor was aspirated through paracentesis after applying local anesthesia at 0, 5, 15, 30, 60, 120, and 240 minutes postdosing. The biosamples collected from a total of 27 groups were analyzed using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectroscopy to determine transcorneal permeability of all four FQs individually. Increase in concentration showed an increase in penetration up to 0.05%; thereafter, the effect of concentration was found to be dependent on volume of instillation as we observed a decrease in transcorneal penetration. The highest transcorneal penetration of all FQs was observed at pH 7.0 at concentration 0.05% followed by 0.025% at pH 4.5. Lastly, increasing the volume of instillation from 12.5 to 50 μL showed a significant fall in transcorneal penetration. The study concludes that formulation factors showed discernible effect on transcorneal permeation; therefore, due emphasis should be given on drug development and design of ophthalmic formulation.

  7. Development of a constant surface pressure penetration langmuir balance based on axisymmetric drop shape analysis.

    PubMed

    Wege, H A; Holgado-Terriza, J A; Cabrerizo-Vílchez, M A

    2002-05-15

    A new constant pressure pendant-drop penetration surface balance has been developed combining a pendant-drop surface balance, a rapid-subphase-exchange technique, and a fuzzy logic control algorithm. Beside the determination of insoluble monolayer compression-expansion isotherms, it allows performance of noninvasive kinetic studies of the adsorption of surfactants added to the new subphase onto the free surface and of the adsorption/penetration/reaction of the former onto/into/with surface layers, respectively. The interfacial pressure pi is a fundamental parameter in these studies: by working at constant pi one controls the height of the energy barrier to adsorption/penetration and can select different regimes and steps of the adsorption/penetration process. In our device a solution drop is formed at the tip of a coaxial double capillary, connected to a double microinjector. Drop profiles are extracted from digital drop micrographs and fitted to the equation of capillarity, yielding pi, the drop volume V, and the interfacial area A. pi is varied changing V (and hence A) with the microinjector. Control is based on a case-adaptable modulated fuzzy-logic PID algorithm able to maintain constant pi (or A) under a wide range of experimental conditions. The drop subphase liquid can be exchanged quantitatively by the coaxial capillaries. The adsorption/penetration/reaction kinetics at constant pi are then studied monitoring A(t), i.e., determining the relative area change necessary at each instant to compensate the pressure variation due to the interaction of the surfactant in the subsurface with the surface layer. A fully Windows-integrated program manages the whole setup. Examples of experimental protein adsorption and monolayer penetration kinetics are presented.

  8. A dual strategy to improve the penetration and treatment of breast cancer by combining shrinking nanoparticles with collagen depletion by losartan.

    PubMed

    Cun, Xingli; Ruan, Shaobo; Chen, Jiantao; Zhang, Li; Li, Jianping; He, Qin; Gao, Huile

    2016-02-01

    Although development of nanomedicines has been a promising direction in tumor treatment, the therapeutic outcome of current nanomedicines is unsatisfying, partly because of the poor retention and penetration in tumors. Recently, a kind of tumor microenvironment sensitive size shrinkable nanoparticles (DOX-AuNPs-GNPs) has been developed by our lab, which could enhance the tumor penetration and retention depending on the size shrinking. However, the further enhancement is still restricted by dense collagen network in tumors. Thus in this study, we combined DOX-AuNPs-GNPs with losartan to deplete tumor collagen (constituted up to 90% of extracellular matrix) to further improve tumor penetration. In vitro, DOX-AuNPs-GNPs can shrink from over 117.8nm to less than 50.0nm and release DOX-AuNPs under the triggering of tumor overexpressed matrix metalloproteinases-2 (MMP-2). In vivo, pretreatment with losartan significantly decrease the collagen level and improve the tumor penetration. In combination, losartan combined with DOX-AuNPs-GNPs showed the best drug delivery efficiency, striking penetration efficiency and best 4T1 breast tumor inhibition effect. In conclusion, this study provided a promising synergetic strategy to improve the tumor treatment efficiency of nanomedicines. We have developed a dual strategy for deep tumor penetration through combining size shrinkable DOX-AuNPs-GNPs with depleting tumor collagen by losartan. Additionally, we demonstrate therapeutic efficacy in breast tumor bearing mouse model. DOX-AuNPs-GNPs co-administration with losartan is a novel and highly attractive strategy for anti-tumor drug delivery with the potential for broad applications in clinic. Copyright © 2015 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Effect of Irradiation on Tissue Penetration Depth of Doxorubicin after Pressurized Intra-Peritoneal Aerosol Chemotherapy (PIPAC) in a Novel Ex-Vivo Model.

    PubMed

    Khosrawipour, Veria; Giger-Pabst, Urs; Khosrawipour, Tanja; Pour, Yousef Hedayat; Diaz-Carballo, David; Förster, Eckart; Böse-Ribeiro, Hugo; Adamietz, Irenäus Anton; Zieren, Jürgen; Fakhrian, Khashayar

    2016-01-01

    This study was performed to assess the impact of irradiation on the tissue penetration depth of doxorubicin delivered during Pressurized Intra-Peritoneal Aerosol Chemotherapy (PIPAC). Fresh post mortem swine peritoneum was cut into 10 proportional sections. Except for 2 control samples, all received irradiation with 1, 2, 7 and 14 Gy, respectively. Four samples received PIPAC 15 minutes after irradiation and 4 other after 24 hours. Doxorubicin was aerosolized in an ex-vivo PIPAC model at 12 mmHg/36°C. In-tissue doxorubicin penetration was measured using fluorescence microscopy on frozen thin sections. Doxorubicin penetration after PIPAC (15 minutes after irradiation) was 476 ± 74 µm for the control sample, 450 ± 45µm after 1 Gy (p > 0.05), 438 ± 29 µm after 2 Gy (p > 0.05), 396 ± 32 µm after 7 Gy (p = 0.005) and 284 ± 57 after 14 Gy irradiation (p < 0.001). The doxorubicin penetration after PIPAC (24 hours after irradiation) was 428 ± 77 µm for the control sample, 393 ± 41 µm after 1 Gy (p > 0.05), 379 ± 56 µm after 2 Gy (p > 0.05), 352 ± 53 µm after 7 Gy (p = 0.008) and 345 ± 53 after 14 Gy irradiation (p = 0.001). Higher (fractional) radiation dose might reduce the tissue penetration depth of doxorubicin in our ex-vivo model. However, irradiation with lower (fractional) radiation dose does not affect the tissue penetration negatively. Further studies are warranted to investigate if irradiation can be used safely as chemopotenting agent for patients with peritoneal metastases treated with PIPAC.

  10. Root hairs aid soil penetration by anchoring the root surface to pore walls

    PubMed Central

    Bengough, A. Glyn; Loades, Kenneth; McKenzie, Blair M.

    2016-01-01

    The physical role of root hairs in anchoring the root tip during soil penetration was examined. Experiments using a hairless maize mutant (Zea mays: rth3–3) and its wild-type counterpart measured the anchorage force between the primary root of maize and the soil to determine whether root hairs enabled seedling roots in artificial biopores to penetrate sandy loam soil (dry bulk density 1.0–1.5g cm−3). Time-lapse imaging was used to analyse root and seedling displacements in soil adjacent to a transparent Perspex interface. Peak anchorage forces were up to five times greater (2.5N cf. 0.5N) for wild-type roots than for hairless mutants in 1.2g cm−3 soil. Root hair anchorage enabled better soil penetration for 1.0 or 1.2g cm−3 soil, but there was no significant advantage of root hairs in the densest soil (1.5g cm−3). The anchorage force was insufficient to allow root penetration of the denser soil, probably because of less root hair penetration into pore walls and, consequently, poorer adhesion between the root hairs and the pore walls. Hairless seedlings took 33h to anchor themselves compared with 16h for wild-type roots in 1.2g cm−3 soil. Caryopses were often pushed several millimetres out of the soil before the roots became anchored and hairless roots often never became anchored securely.The physical role of root hairs in anchoring the root tip may be important in loose seed beds above more compact soil layers and may also assist root tips to emerge from biopores and penetrate the bulk soil. PMID:26798027

  11. Root hairs aid soil penetration by anchoring the root surface to pore walls.

    PubMed

    Bengough, A Glyn; Loades, Kenneth; McKenzie, Blair M

    2016-02-01

    The physical role of root hairs in anchoring the root tip during soil penetration was examined. Experiments using a hairless maize mutant (Zea mays: rth3-3) and its wild-type counterpart measured the anchorage force between the primary root of maize and the soil to determine whether root hairs enabled seedling roots in artificial biopores to penetrate sandy loam soil (dry bulk density 1.0-1.5g cm(-3)). Time-lapse imaging was used to analyse root and seedling displacements in soil adjacent to a transparent Perspex interface. Peak anchorage forces were up to five times greater (2.5N cf. 0.5N) for wild-type roots than for hairless mutants in 1.2g cm(-3) soil. Root hair anchorage enabled better soil penetration for 1.0 or 1.2g cm(-3) soil, but there was no significant advantage of root hairs in the densest soil (1.5g cm(-3)). The anchorage force was insufficient to allow root penetration of the denser soil, probably because of less root hair penetration into pore walls and, consequently, poorer adhesion between the root hairs and the pore walls. Hairless seedlings took 33h to anchor themselves compared with 16h for wild-type roots in 1.2g cm(-3) soil. Caryopses were often pushed several millimetres out of the soil before the roots became anchored and hairless roots often never became anchored securely.The physical role of root hairs in anchoring the root tip may be important in loose seed beds above more compact soil layers and may also assist root tips to emerge from biopores and penetrate the bulk soil. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology.

  12. An Approach to Maximize Weld Penetration During TIG Welding of P91 Steel Plates by Utilizing Image Processing and Taguchi Orthogonal Array

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Singh, Akhilesh Kumar; Debnath, Tapas; Dey, Vidyut; Rai, Ram Naresh

    2017-10-01

    P-91 is modified 9Cr-1Mo steel. Fabricated structures and components of P-91 has a lot of application in power and chemical industry owing to its excellent properties like high temperature stress corrosion resistance, less susceptibility to thermal fatigue at high operating temperatures. The weld quality and surface finish of fabricated structure of P91 is very good when welded by Tungsten Inert Gas welding (TIG). However, the process has its limitation regarding weld penetration. The success of a welding process lies in fabricating with such a combination of parameters that gives maximum weld penetration and minimum weld width. To carry out an investigation on the effect of the autogenous TIG welding parameters on weld penetration and weld width, bead-on-plate welds were carried on P91 plates of thickness 6 mm in accordance to a Taguchi L9 design. Welding current, welding speed and gas flow rate were the three control variables in the investigation. After autogenous (TIG) welding, the dimension of the weld width, weld penetration and weld area were successfully measured by an image analysis technique developed for the study. The maximum error for the measured dimensions of the weld width, penetration and area with the developed image analysis technique was only 2 % compared to the measurements of Leica-Q-Win-V3 software installed in optical microscope. The measurements with the developed software, unlike the measurements under a microscope, required least human intervention. An Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) confirms the significance of the selected parameters. Thereafter, Taguchi's method was successfully used to trade-off between maximum penetration and minimum weld width while keeping the weld area at a minimum.

  13. SIR-B analysis of the Precambrian shield of Sudan and Egypt: Penetration studies and subsurface mapping

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Dixon, T. H.; Roth, L.; Stern, R. J.; Almond, D. C.; Kroner, A.; Elshazly, E. M.

    1984-01-01

    A shuttle imaging radar-B (SIR-B) study is proposed for the Precambrian shield in southeast Egypt and northeast Sudan in an area east of the Nile. The phenomenon of radar penetration of thin, dry eolian/alluvial cover is to be confirmed and quantified. The penetration phenomenon is to be used to map structural and lithologic features. Field work to be done in conjunction with image acquisition is discussed.

  14. External tank space debris considerations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Elfer, N.; Baillif, F.; Robinson, J.

    1992-01-01

    Orbital debris issues associated with maintaining a Space Shuttle External Tank (ET) on orbit are presented. The first issue is to ensure that the ET does not become a danger to other spacecraft by generating space debris, and the second is to protect the pressurized ET from penetration by space debris or meteoroids. Tests on shield designs for penetration resistance showed that when utilized with an adequate bumper, thermal protection system foam on the ET is effective in preventing penetration.

  15. The Use Of Phosphates To Reduce Slag Penetration In Cr203-Based Refractories

    DOEpatents

    Kwong, Kyei-Sing; Dogan, Cynthia P.; Bennett, James P.; Chinn, Richard E.; Petty, Arthur V.

    2004-11-09

    A high-chromium refractory material that provides improved resistance to coal slag penetration is presented. The refractory mixture comprises a blend of chromium oxide, aluminum oxide and phosphates. The refractory mixture may be blended with an aggregate and cured. In addition a phosphorous oxide may be blended with chromium oxide and aluminum oxide and additionally an aggregate. The refractory mixture reduces the rate of coal slag penetration into the surface of the cured refractory.

  16. Fire Resistance Testing of Bulkhead and Deck Penetrations.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1985-10-01

    consisted of a steel plate identical to that used in the Class A-0 assembly, but rockwool insulation was applied to the fire side of the steel plate and...penetration samples were then insulated with rockwool batts to form a Class A-60 assembly (Figure 2). Between nine and twenty-eight temperature readings...representative of Class A-O construction. The UL staff secured insulation ( rockwool batts) to the fire side of the steel plates and penetrating items to prepare

  17. On the barrier properties of the cornea: a microscopy study of the penetration of fluorescently labeled nanoparticles, polymers, and sodium fluorescein.

    PubMed

    Mun, Ellina A; Morrison, Peter W J; Williams, Adrian C; Khutoryanskiy, Vitaliy V

    2014-10-06

    Overcoming the natural defensive barrier functions of the eye remains one of the greatest challenges of ocular drug delivery. Cornea is a chemical and mechanical barrier preventing the passage of any foreign bodies including drugs into the eye, but the factors limiting penetration of permeants and nanoparticulate drug delivery systems through the cornea are still not fully understood. In this study, we investigate these barrier properties of the cornea using thiolated and PEGylated (750 and 5000 Da) nanoparticles, sodium fluorescein, and two linear polymers (dextran and polyethylene glycol). Experiments used intact bovine cornea in addition to bovine cornea de-epithelialized or tissues pretreated with cyclodextrin. It was shown that corneal epithelium is the major barrier for permeation; pretreatment of the cornea with β-cyclodextrin provides higher permeation of low molecular weight compounds, such as sodium fluorescein, but does not enhance penetration of nanoparticles and larger molecules. Studying penetration of thiolated and PEGylated (750 and 5000 Da) nanoparticles into the de-epithelialized ocular tissue revealed that interactions between corneal surface and thiol groups of nanoparticles were more significant determinants of penetration than particle size (for the sizes used here). PEGylation with polyethylene glycol of a higher molecular weight (5000 Da) allows penetration of nanoparticles into the stroma, which proceeds gradually, after an initial 1 h lag phase.

  18. Thoracic computed tomography is an effective screening modality in patients with penetrating injuries to the chest.

    PubMed

    Strumwasser, Aaron; Chong, Vincent; Chu, Eveline; Victorino, Gregory P

    2016-09-01

    The precise role of thoracic CT in penetrating chest trauma remains to be defined. We hypothesized that thoracic CT effectively screens hemodynamically normal patients with penetrating thoracic trauma to surgery vs. expectant management (NOM). A ten-year review of all penetrating torso cases was retrospectively analyzed from our urban University-based trauma center. We included hemodynamically normal patients (systolic blood pressure ≥90) with penetrating chest injuries that underwent screening thoracic CT. Hemodynamically unstable patients and diaphragmatic injuries were excluded. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value were calculated. A total of 212 patients (mean injury severity score=24, Abbreviated Injury Score for Chest=3.9) met inclusion criteria. Of these, 84.3% underwent NOM, 9.1% necessitated abdominal exploration, 6.6% underwent exploration for retained hemothorax/empyema, 6.6% underwent immediate thoracic exploration for significant injuries on chest CT, and 1.0% underwent delayed thoracic exploration for missed injuries. Thoracic CT had a sensitivity of 82%, specificity of 99%, positive predictive value of 90%, a negative predictive value of 99%, and an accuracy of 99% in predicting surgery vs. NOM. Thoracic CT has a negative predictive value of 99% in triaging hemodynamically normal patients with penetrating chest trauma. Screening thoracic CT successfully excludes surgery in patients with non-significant radiologic findings. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  19. Comparison of sealer penetration using the EndoVac irrigation system and conventional needle root canal irrigation.

    PubMed

    Kara Tuncer, Aysun; Unal, Bayram

    2014-05-01

    The aim of this study was to compare the effect of the EndoVac irrigation system (SybronEndo, Orange, CA) and conventional endodontic needle irrigation on sealer penetration into dentinal tubules. Forty single-rooted, recently extracted human maxillary central incisors were randomly divided into 2 groups according to the irrigation technique used: conventional endodontic needle irrigation and EndoVac irrigation. All teeth were instrumented using the ProFile rotary system (Dentsply Maillefer, Ballaigues, Switzerland) and obturated with gutta-percha and AH Plus sealer (Dentsply DeTrey, Konstanz, Germany) labeled with fluorescent dye. Transverse sections at 1, 3, and 5 mm from the root apex were examined using confocal laser scanning microscopy. The total percentage and maximum depth of sealer penetration were then measured. Mann-Whitney test results showed that EndoVac irrigation resulted in a significantly higher percentage of sealer penetration than conventional irrigation at both the 1- and 3-mm levels (P < .05). However, no difference was found at the 5-mm level. The 5-mm sections in each group showed a significantly higher percentage and maximum depth of sealer penetration than did the 1- and 3-mm sections (P < .05). The EndoVac irrigation system significantly improved the sealer penetration at the 1- to 3-mm level over that of conventional endodontic needle irrigation. Copyright © 2014 American Association of Endodontists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. Penetrator role in Mars sample strategy

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Boynton, William; Dwornik, Steve; Eckstrom, William; Roalstad, David A.

    1988-01-01

    The application of the penetrator to a Mars Return Sample Mission (MRSM) has direct advantages to meet science objectives and mission safety. Based on engineering data and work currently conducted at Ball Aerospace Systems Division, the concept of penetrators as scientific instruments is entirely practical. The primary utilization of a penetrator for MRSM would be to optimize the selection of the sample site location and to help in selection of the actual sample to be returned to Earth. It is recognized that the amount of sample to be returned is very limited, therefore the selection of the sample site is critical to the success of the mission. The following mission scenario is proposed. The site selection of a sample to be acquired will be performed by science working groups. A decision will be reached and a set of target priorities established based on data to give geochemical, geophysical and geological information. The first task of a penetrator will be to collect data at up to 4 to 6 possible landing sites. The penetrator can include geophysical, geochemical, geological and engineering instruments to confirm that scientific data requirements at that site will be met. This in situ near real-time data, collected prior to final targeting of the lander, will insure that the sample site is both scientifically valuable and also that it is reachable within limits of the capability of the lander.

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