Life Cycle Assessment of Metals: A Scientific Synthesis

PubMed Central

Nuss, Philip; Eckelman, Matthew J.

2014-01-01

We have assembled extensive information on the cradle-to-gate environmental burdens of 63 metals in their major use forms, and illustrated the interconnectedness of metal production systems. Related cumulative energy use, global warming potential, human health implications and ecosystem damage are estimated by metal life cycle stage (i.e., mining, purification, and refining). For some elements, these are the first life cycle estimates of environmental impacts reported in the literature. We show that, if compared on a per kilogram basis, the platinum group metals and gold display the highest environmental burdens, while many of the major industrial metals (e.g., iron, manganese, titanium) are found at the lower end of the environmental impacts scale. If compared on the basis of their global annual production in 2008, iron and aluminum display the largest impacts, and thallium and tellurium the lowest. With the exception of a few metals, environmental impacts of the majority of elements are dominated by the purification and refining stages in which metals are transformed from a concentrate into their metallic form. Out of the 63 metals investigated, 42 metals are obtained as co-products in multi output processes. We test the sensitivity of varying allocation rationales, in which the environmental burden are allocated to the various metal and mineral products, on the overall results. Monte-Carlo simulation is applied to further investigate the stability of our results. This analysis is the most comprehensive life cycle comparison of metals to date and allows for the first time a complete bottom-up estimate of life cycle impacts of the metals and mining sector globally. We estimate global direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions in 2008 at 3.4 Gt CO2-eq per year and primary energy use at 49 EJ per year (9.5% of global use), and report the shares for all metals to both impact categories. PMID:24999810

Evaluation of life-cycle air emission factors of freight transportation.

PubMed

Facanha, Cristiano; Horvath, Arpad

2007-10-15

Life-cycle air emission factors associated with road, rail, and air transportation of freight in the United States are analyzed. All life-cycle phases of vehicles, infrastructure, and fuels are accounted for in a hybrid life-cycle assessment (LCA). It includes not only fuel combustion, but also emissions from vehicle manufacturing, maintenance, and end of life, infrastructure construction, operation, maintenance, and end of life, and petroleum exploration, refining, and fuel distribution. Results indicate that total life-cycle emissions of freight transportation modes are underestimated if only tailpipe emissions are accounted for. In the case of CO2 and NOx, tailpipe emissions underestimate total emissions by up to 38%, depending on the mode. Total life-cycle emissions of CO and SO2 are up to seven times higher than tailpipe emissions. Sensitivity analysis considers the effects of vehicle type, geography, and mode efficiency on the final results. Policy implications of this analysis are also discussed. For example, while it is widely assumed that currently proposed regulations will result in substantial reductions in emissions, we find that this is true for NOx, emissions, because fuel combustion is the main cause, and to a lesser extent for SO2, but not for PM10 emissions, which are significantly affected by the other life-cycle phases.

A comparison of production system life cycle models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Attri, Rajesh; Grover, Sandeep

2012-09-01

Companies today need to keep up with the rapidly changing market conditions to stay competitive. The main issues in this paper are related to a company's market and its competitors. The prediction of market behavior is helpful for a manufacturing enterprise to build efficient production systems. However, these predictions are usually not reliable. A production system is required to adapt to changing markets, but such requirement entails higher cost. Hence, analyzing different life cycle models of the production system is necessary. In this paper, different life cycle models of the production system are compared to evaluate the distinctive features and the limitations of each model. Furthermore, the difference between product life cycle and production life cycle is summarized, and the effect of product life cycle on production life cycle is explained. Finally, a production system life cycle model, along with key activities to be performed in each stage, is proposed specifically for the manufacturing sector.

Insect seasonality: circle map analysis of temperature-driven life cycles.

PubMed

Powell, James A; Logan, Jesse A

2005-05-01

Maintaining an adaptive seasonality, with life cycle events occurring at appropriate times of year and in synchrony with cohorts and ephemeral resources, is a basic ecological requisite for many cold-blooded organisms. There are many mechanisms for synchronizing developmental milestones, such as egg laying (oviposition), egg hatching, cocoon opening, and the emergence of adults. These are often irreversible, specific to particular life stages, and include diapause, an altered physiological state which can be reversed by some synchronizing environmental cue (e.g. photoperiod). However, many successful organisms display none of these mechanisms for maintaining adaptive seasonality. In this paper, we briefly review the mathematical relationship between environmental temperatures and developmental timing and discuss the consequences of viewing these models as circle maps from the cycle of yearly oviposition dates and temperatures to oviposition dates for subsequent generations. Of particular interest biologically are life cycles which are timed to complete in exactly 1 year, or univoltine cycles. Univoltinism, associated with reproductive success for many temperate species, is related to stable fixed points of the developmental circle map. Univoltine fixed points are stable and robust in broad temperature bands, but lose stability suddenly to maladaptive cycles at the edges of these bands. Adaptive seasonality may therefore break down with little warning with constantly increasing or decreasing temperature change, as in scenarios for global warming. These ideas are illustrated and explored in the context of Mountain Pine Beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins) occurring in the marginal thermal habitat of central Idaho's Rocky Mountains. Applications of these techniques have not been widely explored by the applied math community, but are likely to provide great insight into the response of biological systems to climate change.

Fitness and Individuality in Complex Life Cycles.

PubMed

Herron, Matthew D

2016-12-01

Complex life cycles are common in the eukaryotic world, and they complicate the question of how to define individuality. Using a bottom-up, gene-centric approach, I consider the concept of fitness in the context of complex life cycles. I analyze the fitness effects of an allele (or a trait) on different biological units within a complex life history and how these effects drive evolutionary change within populations. Based on these effects, I attempt to construct a concept of fitness that accurately predicts evolutionary change in the context of complex life cycles.

Life-cycle implications of hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle technology for medium- and heavy-duty trucks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Dong-Yeon; Elgowainy, Amgad; Kotz, Andrew; Vijayagopal, Ram; Marcinkoski, Jason

2018-07-01

This study provides a comprehensive and up-to-date life-cycle comparison of hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks (FCETs) and their conventional diesel counterparts in terms of energy use and air emissions, based on the ensemble of well-established methods, high-fidelity vehicle dynamic simulations, and real-world vehicle test data. For the centralized steam methane reforming (SMR) pathway, hydrogen FCETs reduce life-cycle or well-to-wheel (WTW) petroleum energy use by more than 98% compared to their diesel counterparts. The reduction in WTW air emissions for gaseous hydrogen (G.H2) FCETs ranges from 20 to 45% for greenhouse gases, 37-65% for VOC, 49-77% for CO, 62-83% for NOx, 19-43% for PM10, and 27-44% for PM2.5, depending on vehicle weight classes and truck types. With the current U.S. average electricity generation mix, FCETs tend to create more WTW SOx emissions than their diesel counterparts, mainly because of the upstream emissions related to electricity use for hydrogen compression/liquefaction. Compared to G.H2, liquid hydrogen (L.H2) FCETs generally provide smaller WTW emissions reductions. For both G.H2 and L.H2 pathways for FCETs, because of electricity consumption for compression and liquefaction, spatio-temporal variations of electricity generation can affect the WTW results. FCETs retain the WTW emission reduction benefits, even when considering aggressive diesel engine efficiency improvement.

Life-Cycle Implications of Hydrogen Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle Technology for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Trucks

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

Kotz, Andrew J; Le, Dong-Yeon; Elgowainy, Amgad

This study provides a comprehensive and up-to-date life-cycle comparison of hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks (FCETs) and their conventional diesel counterparts in terms of energy use and air emissions, based on the ensemble of well-established methods, high-fidelity vehicle dynamic simulations, and real-world vehicle test data. For the centralized steam methane reforming (SMR) pathway, hydrogen FCETs reduce life-cycle or well-to-wheel (WTW) petroleum energy use by more than 98% compared to their diesel counterparts. The reduction in WTW air emissions for gaseous hydrogen (G.H2) FCETs ranges from 20 to 45% for greenhouse gases, 37-65% for VOC, 49-77% for CO, 62-83% for NOx,more » 19-43% for PM10, and 27-44% for PM2.5, depending on vehicle weight classes and truck types. With the current U.S. average electricity generation mix, FCETs tend to create more WTW SOx emissions than their diesel counterparts, mainly because of the upstream emissions related to electricity use for hydrogen compression/liquefaction. Compared to G.H2, liquid hydrogen (L.H2) FCETs generally provide smaller WTW emissions reductions. For both G.H2 and L.H2 pathways for FCETs, because of electricity consumption for compression and liquefaction, spatio-temporal variations of electricity generation can affect the WTW results. FCETs retain the WTW emission reduction benefits, even when considering aggressive diesel engine efficiency improvement.« less

A 5-Year Study of the Adult Flight Periodicity of 27 Caddisfly (Trichoptera) Species in Forest and Meadow Habitats of a First-Order Lower Michigan (USA) Stream.

PubMed

Houghton, David C

2015-12-01

Life cycles of 27 caddisfly species were estimated from weekly adult flight periodicity data during 2010-2014 from a forest and a meadow site of a small stream in northern Lower Michigan. Of the 11 species abundant only at the forest site, 10 appeared to be univoltine and 1 appeared bivoltine. Of the 13 species abundant only at the meadow site, 5 appeared univoltine, 5 appeared bivoltine, and 3 were enigmatic due to inconsistent flight peaks between years. Although the sites were separated by ∼400 m, only three species were abundant at both sites due to differences in stream habitat and food availability. Two of these species had notably dissimilar life cycles between sites, reflecting these differences. Despite the study dates encompassing both the warmest and coldest years of the 2000s, most species retained consistent flight periods between years. This consistency with date appeared unrelated to lunar phase. Date was a better predictor of flight periodicity than water temperature for every species except those that emerged earliest in the season. Warming water temperatures appeared to synchronize emergence of species at the meadow site to a greater degree than those of the forest site, probably due to the greater range of temperatures at the meadow site, although date was still the better predictor at both sites. These data suggest that warming water temperatures, although important under certain conditions, may not always be primary life cycle synchronizers in small streams. © The Authors 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Gender Identification in Date Palm Using Molecular Markers.

PubMed

Awan, Faisal Saeed; Maryam; Jaskani, Muhammad J; Sadia, Bushra

2017-01-01

Breeding of date palm is complicated because of its long life cycle and heterozygous nature. Sexual propagation of date palm does not produce true-to-type plants. Sex of date palms cannot be identified until the first flowering stage. Molecular markers such as random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), sequence-characterized amplified regions (SCAR), and simple sequence repeats (SSR) have successfully been used to identify the sex-linked loci in the plant genome and to isolate the corresponding genes. This chapter highlights the use of three molecular markers including RAPD, SCAR, and SSR to identify the gender of date palm seedlings.

Important Topics about Life & Living.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Whitcraft, James S.

This teacher's guide presents material suitable for junior and senior high school physical education, health, or home economics classes concerning life cycles and sex education. Unit 1, understanding the self, contains lessons on personality, self-image, defense mechanisms, peer groups, and the conformist. Unit 2, dating, contains lessons on going…

Induction of Phase Variation Events in the Life Cycle of the Marine Coccolithophorid Emiliania huxleyi

PubMed Central

Laguna, Richard; Romo, Jesus; Read, Betsy A.; Wahlund, Thomas M.

2001-01-01

Emiliania huxleyi is a unicellular marine alga that is considered to be the world's major producer of calcite. The life cycle of this alga is complex and is distinguished by its ability to synthesize exquisitely sculptured calcium carbonate cell coverings known as coccoliths. These structures have been targeted by materials scientists for applications relating to the chemistry of biomedical materials, robust membranes for high-temperature separation technology, lightweight ceramics, and semiconductor design. To date, however, the molecular and biochemical events controlling coccolith production have not been determined. In addition, little is known about the life cycle of E. huxleyi and the environmental and physiological signals triggering phase switching between the diploid and haploid life cycle stages. We have developed laboratory methods for inducing phase variation between the haploid (S-cell) and diploid (C-cell) life cycle stages of E. huxleyi. Plating E. huxleyi C cells on solid media was shown to induce phase switching from the C-cell to the S-cell life cycle stage, the latter of which has been maintained for over 2 years under these conditions. Pure cultures of S cells were obtained for the first time. Laboratory conditions for inducing phase switching from the haploid stage to the diploid stage were also established. Regeneration of the C-cell stage from pure cultures of S cells followed a predictable pattern involving formation of large aggregations of S cells and the subsequent production of cultures consisting predominantly of diploid C cells. These results demonstrate the ability to manipulate the life cycle of E. huxleyi under controlled laboratory conditions, providing us with powerful tools for the development of genetic techniques for analysis of coccolithogenesis and for investigating the complex life cycle of this important marine alga. PMID:11525973

Life history and secondary production of the amphipod Haploops nirae (Kaim-Malka, 1976) in the Bay of Concarneau (South Brittany)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rigolet, Carinne; Dubois, Stanislas F.; Droual, Gabin; Caisey, Xavier; Thiébaut, Eric

2012-11-01

Haploops nirae is a gregarious tubiculous amphipod that creates dense tube mats in two ecosystems of South Brittany (i.e. the Bay of Vilaine and the Bay of Concarneau). To assess the ecological consequences of its recent expansion, the pattern of population dynamics of H. nirae was determined from January 2010 to March 2011 at a 29 m deep station in the Bay of Concarneau with a sampling interval of ca. 3 weeks (23 sampling dates). Modal analysis of size-frequency distribution at each date was used to describe the life cycle and the population dynamics of H. nirae, and to estimate the annual secondary production using the increment summation method. We showed that H. nirae is a semelparous species exhibiting a biannual life cycle with a lifespan ranging from 24 to 28 months. The recruitment was extremely high in 2010 and occurred between January and April but most recruits arrived at the end of March. Recruits are produced by two year old individuals, which die shortly after hatching. Female densities were low in winter. Females produced only one brood during their lifetime with an average brood size of 29. H. nirae secondary production was estimated at 9.66 gDW m-2 y-1 and the production to biomass ratio (P/B¯) was 2.26 y-1. Results are compared with previous published data on other Ampeliscid amphipods. The biannual life cycle appears unusual for most of Ampeliscidae except for the genus Haploops where a biannual life cycle appears characteristic of this genus. The secondary production calculated for H. nirae was high compared to other biannual Ampeliscidae species and constituted one of the highest production values calculated for an Ampeliscid.

Growing up in the Ocean: Complex Life Cycles of Common Marine Invertebrates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bennett, Katie; Hiebert, Laurel

2010-01-01

Most people are familiar with the concept that animals come in all shapes and sizes and that the body plan of some animals can completely transform during their lifetime. Well-known examples of such complex life cycles of terrestrial animals include butterflies and frogs. Many people are unaware, however, that complex life cycles are exceedingly…

Moving Up the CMMI Capability and Maturity Levels Using Simulation

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-01-01

Alternative Process Tools, Including NPV and ROI 6 Figure 3: Top-Level View of the Full Life-Cycle Version of the IEEE 12207 PSIM, Including IV&V Layer 19...Figure 4: Screenshot of the Incremental Version Model 19 Figure 5: IEEE 12207 PSIM Showing the Top-Level Life-Cycle Phases 22 Figure 6: IEEE 12207 ...Software Detailed Design for the IEEE 12207 Life- Cycle Process 24 Figure 8: Incremental Life Cycle PSIM Configured for a Specific Project Using SEPG

Animal Life Cycles. Animal Life in Action[TM]. Schlessinger Science Library. [Videotape].

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

2000

This 23-minute videotape for grades 5-8, presents the myriad of animal life that exists on the planet. Students can view and perform experiments and investigations that help explain animal traits and habits. The stages of life that animals pass through--birth, growth, maturation, reproduction, and death--make up the life cycle. Students learn…

Long-term variation of total ozone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kane, R. P.

1988-03-01

The long-term variation of total ozone is studied for 1957 up to date for different latitude zones. The 3-year running averages show that, apart from a small portion showing parallelism with sunspot cycles, the trends in different latitude zones are dissimilar. In particular, where northern latitudes show a rising trend, the southern latitudes show an opposite (decreasing) trend. In the north-temperate group, Europe, North America and Asia show dissimilar trends. The longer data series (1932 ownards) for Arosa shows, besides a solar-cycle-dependent component, a steady level during 1932 1953 and a down-trend thereafter up to date. Very localised but long-lasting circulation patterns, different in different geographical regions, are indicated.

Conceptual design study of small long-life PWR based on thorium cycle fuel

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

Subkhi, M. Nurul; Su'ud, Zaki; Waris, Abdul

2014-09-30

A neutronic performance of small long-life Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) using thorium cycle based fuel has been investigated. Thorium cycle which has higher conversion ratio in thermal region compared to uranium cycle produce some significant of {sup 233}U during burn up time. The cell-burn up calculations were performed by PIJ SRAC code using nuclear data library based on JENDL 3.3, while the multi-energy-group diffusion calculations were optimized in whole core cylindrical two-dimension R-Z geometry by SRAC-CITATION. this study would be introduced thorium nitride fuel system which ZIRLO is the cladding material. The optimization of 350 MWt small long life PWRmore » result small excess reactivity and reduced power peaking during its operation.« less

Integrated systems analysis of persistent polar pollutants in the water cycle.

PubMed

van der Voet, E; Nikolic, I; Huppes, G; Kleijn, R

2004-01-01

Persistent polar pollutants (P3) are difficult to degrade in standard waste water treatment plants. As a result, they end up in the effluent and are emitted to the surface water. In some areas, this problem is aggravated through "closed loop recycling", causing concentrations of P3 in surface water to build up over time. This could cause violation of (future) EU regulations. In the P-THREE project, various alternative waste water treatment techniques are investigated regarding their effectiveness in eliminating these substances, especially membrane bioreactor treatment and advanced oxidation processes, MBR and AOP. The integrated systems analysis which is the subject of this paper assesses these techniques in a broader systems context: (1) the life-cycle of the P3, (2) the life cycle of the WWTPs, and (3) the WWTP life cycle costs.

Animals of the Chinese Zodiac. [Lesson Plan].

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

2002

The Chinese lunar calendar dates back to the second millennium BC. Unlike the western calendar, which numbers the years progressively from the birth of Jesus Christ, the Chinese calendar is cyclical. Each cycle is made up of 12 years--after the 12th year, the cycle is repeated. The Chinese associate each year of a 12-year cycle with an animal, and…

Universal quinone electrodes for long cycle life aqueous rechargeable batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liang, Yanliang; Jing, Yan; Gheytani, Saman; Lee, Kuan-Yi; Liu, Ping; Facchetti, Antonio; Yao, Yan

2017-08-01

Aqueous rechargeable batteries provide the safety, robustness, affordability, and environmental friendliness necessary for grid storage and electric vehicle operations, but their adoption is plagued by poor cycle life due to the structural and chemical instability of the anode materials. Here we report quinones as stable anode materials by exploiting their structurally stable ion-coordination charge storage mechanism and chemical inertness towards aqueous electrolytes. Upon rational selection/design of quinone structures, we demonstrate three systems that coupled with industrially established cathodes and electrolytes exhibit long cycle life (up to 3,000 cycles/3,500 h), fast kinetics (>=20C), high anode specific capacity (up to 200-395 mAh g-1), and several examples of state-of-the-art specific energy/energy density (up to 76-92 Wh kg-1/ 161-208 Wh l-1) for several operational pH values (-1 to 15), charge carrier species (H+, Li+, Na+, K+, Mg2+), temperature (-35 to 25 °C), and atmosphere (with/without O2), making them a universal anode approach for any aqueous battery technology.

Active cycle of breathing technique for cystic fibrosis.

PubMed

Mckoy, Naomi A; Wilson, Lisa M; Saldanha, Ian J; Odelola, Olaide A; Robinson, Karen A

2016-07-05

People with cystic fibrosis experience chronic airway infections as a result of mucus build up within the lungs. Repeated infections often cause lung damage and disease. Airway clearance therapies aim to improve mucus clearance, increase sputum production, and improve airway function. The active cycle of breathing technique (also known as ACBT) is an airway clearance method that uses a cycle of techniques to loosen airway secretions including breathing control, thoracic expansion exercises, and the forced expiration technique. This is an update of a previously published review. To compare the clinical effectiveness of the active cycle of breathing technique with other airway clearance therapies in cystic fibrosis. We searched the Cochrane Cystic Fibrosis Trials Register, compiled from electronic database searches and handsearching of journals and conference abstract books. We also searched the reference lists of relevant articles and reviews.Date of last search: 25 April 2016. Randomised or quasi-randomised controlled clinical studies, including cross-over studies, comparing the active cycle of breathing technique with other airway clearance therapies in cystic fibrosis. Two review authors independently screened each article, abstracted data and assessed the risk of bias of each study. Our search identified 62 studies, of which 19 (440 participants) met the inclusion criteria. Five randomised controlled studies (192 participants) were included in the meta-analysis; three were of cross-over design. The 14 remaining studies were cross-over studies with inadequate reports for complete assessment. The study size ranged from seven to 65 participants. The age of the participants ranged from six to 63 years (mean age 22.33 years). In 13 studies, follow up lasted a single day. However, there were two long-term randomised controlled studies with follow up of one to three years. Most of the studies did not report on key quality items, and therefore, have an unclear risk of bias in terms of random sequence generation, allocation concealment, and outcome assessor blinding. Due to the nature of the intervention, none of the studies blinded participants or the personnel applying the interventions. However, most of the studies reported on all planned outcomes, had adequate follow up, assessed compliance, and used an intention-to-treat analysis.Included studies compared the active cycle of breathing technique with autogenic drainage, airway oscillating devices, high frequency chest compression devices, conventional chest physiotherapy, and positive expiratory pressure. Preference of technique varied: more participants preferred autogenic drainage over the active cycle of breathing technique; more preferred the active cycle of breathing technique over airway oscillating devices; and more were comfortable with the active cycle of breathing technique versus high frequency chest compression. No significant difference was seen in quality of life, sputum weight, exercise tolerance, lung function, or oxygen saturation between the active cycle of breathing technique and autogenic drainage or between the active cycle of breathing technique and airway oscillating devices. There was no significant difference in lung function and the number of pulmonary exacerbations between the active cycle of breathing technique alone or in conjunction with conventional chest physiotherapy. All other outcomes were either not measured or had insufficient data for analysis. There is insufficient evidence to support or reject the use of the active cycle of breathing technique over any other airway clearance therapy. Five studies, with data from eight different comparators, found that the active cycle of breathing technique was comparable with other therapies in outcomes such as participant preference, quality of life, exercise tolerance, lung function, sputum weight, oxygen saturation, and number of pulmonary exacerbations. Longer-term studies are needed to more adequately assess the effects of the active cycle of breathing technique on outcomes important for people with cystic fibrosis such as quality of life and preference.

24 CFR 941.101 - Purpose and scope.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... housing residents over the long term and have the lowest possible life cycle costs, taking into account.... [61 FR 38016, July 22, 1996, as amended at 64 FR 13511, Mar. 19, 1999] Effective Date Note: At 61 FR...

24 CFR 941.101 - Purpose and scope.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... housing residents over the long term and have the lowest possible life cycle costs, taking into account.... [61 FR 38016, July 22, 1996, as amended at 64 FR 13511, Mar. 19, 1999] Effective Date Note: At 61 FR...

24 CFR 941.101 - Purpose and scope.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... housing residents over the long term and have the lowest possible life cycle costs, taking into account.... [61 FR 38016, July 22, 1996, as amended at 64 FR 13511, Mar. 19, 1999] Effective Date Note: At 61 FR...

Life cycles of traumatized teeth: long-term observations from a cohort of dental trauma victims.

PubMed

Heithersay, G S

2016-03-01

Life cycles of dental trauma victims can provide important clinical information, especially when viewed over many years. In this first series of life cycles, the pulp and periodontal responses to traumatic injuries of four patients are documented over periods varying from 26 to 51 years. The dynamics of pulp survival following an intrusive luxation and two avulsions are followed, with particular reference to pulp canal calcification to which a new term, root canal stenosis, has been proposed. The life cycles include the successful management of inflammatory root resorption in a replanted tooth with an open apex contrasting with the early prophylactic endodontic treatment of two replanted teeth in a patient with mature apices. The long-term development of invasive cervical resorption in one of the patient's life cycle highlights the importance of ongoing follow-up examinations for dental trauma victims. © 2016 Australian Dental Association.

A Methodology for Integrated, Multiregional Life Cycle Assessment Scenarios under Large-Scale Technological Change.

PubMed

Gibon, Thomas; Wood, Richard; Arvesen, Anders; Bergesen, Joseph D; Suh, Sangwon; Hertwich, Edgar G

2015-09-15

Climate change mitigation demands large-scale technological change on a global level and, if successfully implemented, will significantly affect how products and services are produced and consumed. In order to anticipate the life cycle environmental impacts of products under climate mitigation scenarios, we present the modeling framework of an integrated hybrid life cycle assessment model covering nine world regions. Life cycle assessment databases and multiregional input-output tables are adapted using forecasted changes in technology and resources up to 2050 under a 2 °C scenario. We call the result of this modeling "technology hybridized environmental-economic model with integrated scenarios" (THEMIS). As a case study, we apply THEMIS in an integrated environmental assessment of concentrating solar power. Life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions for this plant range from 33 to 95 g CO2 eq./kWh across different world regions in 2010, falling to 30-87 g CO2 eq./kWh in 2050. Using regional life cycle data yields insightful results. More generally, these results also highlight the need for systematic life cycle frameworks that capture the actual consequences and feedback effects of large-scale policies in the long term.

MicroRNA expression profiling during the life cycle of the silkworm (Bombyx mori)

PubMed Central

Liu, Shiping; Zhang, Liang; Li, Qibin; Zhao, Ping; Duan, Jun; Cheng, Daojun; Xiang, Zhonghuai; Xia, Qingyou

2009-01-01

Background MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are expressed by a wide range of eukaryotic organisms, and function in diverse biological processes. Numerous miRNAs have been identified in Bombyx mori, but the temporal expression profiles of miRNAs corresponding to each stage transition over the entire life cycle of the silkworm remain to be established. To obtain a comprehensive overview of the correlation between miRNA expression and stage transitions, we performed a whole-life test and subsequent stage-by-stage examinations on nearly one hundred miRNAs in the silkworm. Results Our results show that miRNAs display a wide variety of expression profiles over the whole life of the silkworm, including continuous expression from embryo to adult (miR-184), up-regulation over the entire life cycle (let-7 and miR-100), down-regulation over the entire life cycle (miR-124), expression associated with embryogenesis (miR-29 and miR-92), up-regulation from early 3rd instar to pupa (miR-275), and complementary pulses in expression between miR-34b and miR-275. Stage-by-stage examinations revealed further expression patterns, such as emergence at specific time-points during embryogenesis and up-regulation of miRNA groups in late embryos (miR-1 and bantam), expression associated with stage transition between instar and molt larval stages (miR-34b), expression associated with silk gland growth and spinning activity (miR-274), continuous high expression from the spinning larval to pupal and adult stages (miR-252 and miR-31a), a coordinate expression trough in day 3 pupae of both sexes (miR-10b and miR-281), up-regulation in pupal metamorphosis of both sexes (miR-29b), and down-regulation in pupal metamorphosis of both sexes (miR-275). Conclusion We present the full-scale expression profiles of miRNAs throughout the life cycle of Bombyx mori. The whole-life expression profile was further investigated via stage-by-stage analysis. Our data provide an important resource for more detailed functional analysis of miRNAs in this animal. PMID:19785751

MicroRNA expression profiling during the life cycle of the silkworm (Bombyx mori).

PubMed

Liu, Shiping; Zhang, Liang; Li, Qibin; Zhao, Ping; Duan, Jun; Cheng, Daojun; Xiang, Zhonghuai; Xia, Qingyou

2009-09-28

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are expressed by a wide range of eukaryotic organisms, and function in diverse biological processes. Numerous miRNAs have been identified in Bombyx mori, but the temporal expression profiles of miRNAs corresponding to each stage transition over the entire life cycle of the silkworm remain to be established. To obtain a comprehensive overview of the correlation between miRNA expression and stage transitions, we performed a whole-life test and subsequent stage-by-stage examinations on nearly one hundred miRNAs in the silkworm. Our results show that miRNAs display a wide variety of expression profiles over the whole life of the silkworm, including continuous expression from embryo to adult (miR-184), up-regulation over the entire life cycle (let-7 and miR-100), down-regulation over the entire life cycle (miR-124), expression associated with embryogenesis (miR-29 and miR-92), up-regulation from early 3rd instar to pupa (miR-275), and complementary pulses in expression between miR-34b and miR-275. Stage-by-stage examinations revealed further expression patterns, such as emergence at specific time-points during embryogenesis and up-regulation of miRNA groups in late embryos (miR-1 and bantam), expression associated with stage transition between instar and molt larval stages (miR-34b), expression associated with silk gland growth and spinning activity (miR-274), continuous high expression from the spinning larval to pupal and adult stages (miR-252 and miR-31a), a coordinate expression trough in day 3 pupae of both sexes (miR-10b and miR-281), up-regulation in pupal metamorphosis of both sexes (miR-29b), and down-regulation in pupal metamorphosis of both sexes (miR-275). We present the full-scale expression profiles of miRNAs throughout the life cycle of Bombyx mori. The whole-life expression profile was further investigated via stage-by-stage analysis. Our data provide an important resource for more detailed functional analysis of miRNAs in this animal.

A review of neosporosis and pathologic findings of Neospora caninum infection in wildlife

PubMed Central

Donahoe, Shannon L.; Lindsay, Scott A.; Krockenberger, Mark; Phalen, David; Šlapeta, Jan

2015-01-01

Neospora caninum is an apicomplexan parasite that is the etiologic agent of neosporosis, a devastating infectious disease regarded as a major cause of reproductive loss in cattle and neuromuscular disease in dogs worldwide. This protozoan pathogen is maintained in the environment by a heteroxenous life cycle that involves a definitive canid host and a wide range of intermediate hosts. In recent years, a number of wildlife species have been investigated for their possible involvement in the N. caninum life cycle and many have been implicated as intermediate hosts. However, in many instances these studies have utilized serological and molecular techniques to detect infection in clinically normal animals, and investigation of possible associated morbidity, mortality, and pathology has been neglected. As such, the occurrence and importance of Neospora-associated disease in wildlife species are unknown. In order to improve our understanding of the significance of N. caninum infection in nondomestic species, the present review provides an up-to-date summary of clinical neosporosis and N. caninum-associated pathologic lesions in naturally and experimentally infected wildlife species. We provide a list of all free-ranging and captive wildlife species identified with N. caninum infection to date using currently available diagnostic tools. The advantages and disadvantages of diagnostic methods in wildlife are addressed in order to recommend optimal diagnosis of confirming N. caninum infection and neosporosis in nondomestic species. Although current data would suggest that N. caninum infection does not adversely impact wildlife populations, there is a need for greater international uniformity in the diagnosis of N. caninum infection and neosporosis in nondomestic species in order to assess the true consequences of parasite infection. PMID:25973393

Life cycle assessment of the end-of-life phase of a residential building.

PubMed

Vitale, Pierluca; Arena, Noemi; Di Gregorio, Fabrizio; Arena, Umberto

2017-02-01

The study investigates the potential environmental impacts related to the end-of-life phase of a residential building, identified in a multifamily dwelling of three levels, constructed in the South of Italy by utilizing conventional materials and up-to-date procedures. An attributional life cycle assessment has been utilised to quantify the contributions of each stage of the end-of-life phase, with a particular attention to the management of the demolition waste. The investigation takes into account the selective demolition, preliminary sorting and collection of main components of the building, together with the processes of sorting, recycling and/or disposal of main fractions of the demolition waste. It quantifies the connections between these on-site and off-site processes as well as the main streams of materials sent to recycling, energy recovery, and final disposal. A sensitivity analysis has been eventually carried out by comparing the overall environmental performances of some alternative scenarios, characterised by different criteria for the demolition of the reference building, management of demolition waste and assessment of avoided burdens of the main recycled materials. The results quantify the advantage of an appropriate technique of selective demolition, which could increase the quality and quantity of residues sent to the treatment of resource recovery and safe disposal. They also highlight the contributions to the positive or negative environmental impact of each stage of the investigated waste management system. The recycling of reinforcing steel appears to play a paramount role, accounting for 65% of the total avoided impacts related to respiratory inorganics, 89% of those for global warming and 73% of those for mineral extraction. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Design study of long-life PWR using thorium cycle

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

Subkhi, Moh. Nurul; Su'ud, Zaki; Waris, Abdul

2012-06-06

Design study of long-life Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) using thorium cycle has been performed. Thorium cycle in general has higher conversion ratio in the thermal spectrum domain than uranium cycle. Cell calculation, Burn-up and multigroup diffusion calculation was performed by PIJ-CITATION-SRAC code using libraries based on JENDL 3.2. The neutronic analysis result of infinite cell calculation shows that {sup 231}Pa better than {sup 237}Np as burnable poisons in thorium fuel system. Thorium oxide system with 8%{sup 233}U enrichment and 7.6{approx} 8%{sup 231}Pa is the most suitable fuel for small-long life PWR core because it gives reactivity swing less than 1%{Delta}k/kmore » and longer burn up period (more than 20 year). By using this result, small long-life PWR core can be designed for long time operation with reduced excess reactivity as low as 0.53%{Delta}k/k and reduced power peaking during its operation.« less

AN OPTIMAL MAINTENANCE MANAGEMENT MODEL FOR AIRPORT CONCRETE PAVEMENT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shimomura, Taizo; Fujimori, Yuji; Kaito, Kiyoyuki; Obama, Kengo; Kobayashi, Kiyoshi

In this paper, an optimal management model is formulated for the performance-based rehabilitation/maintenance contract for airport concrete pavement, whereby two types of life cycle cost risks, i.e., ground consolidation risk and concrete depreciation risk, are explicitly considered. The non-homogenous Markov chain model is formulated to represent the deterioration processes of concrete pavement which are conditional upon the ground consolidation processes. The optimal non-homogenous Markov decision model with multiple types of risk is presented to design the optimal rehabilitation/maintenance plans. And the methodology to revise the optimal rehabilitation/maintenance plans based upon the monitoring data by the Bayesian up-to-dating rules. The validity of the methodology presented in this paper is examined based upon the case studies carried out for the H airport.

Life-Cycle Cost Modeling to Determine Whether Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) Integration and Ancillary Service Revenue Can Generate a Viable Case for Plug-In Electric Drive Vehicles

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-09-01

LEFT BLANK i REPORT DOCUMENTATION PAGE Form Approved OMB No. 0704–0188 Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to...information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports ...0188) Washington, DC 20503. 1. AGENCY USE ONLY (Leave blank) 2. REPORT DATE September 2013 3. REPORT TYPE AND DATES COVERED Master’s Thesis 4

Potential release scenarios for carbon nanotubes used in composites

EPA Science Inventory

The expected widespread use of carbon nanotube (CNT)-composites in consumer products calls for an assessment of the possible release and exposure to workers, consumers and the environment. Release of CNTs may occur at all steps in the life cycle of products, but to date only limi...

Reduction of capacity decay in vanadium flow batteries by an electrolyte-reflow method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Ke; Liu, Le; Xi, Jingyu; Wu, Zenghua; Qiu, Xinping

2017-01-01

Electrolyte imbalance is a major issue with Vanadium flow batteries (VFBs) as it has a significant impact on electrolyte utilization and cycle life over extended charge-discharge cycling. This work seeks to reduce capacity decay and prolong cycle life of VFBs by adopting a novel electrolyte-reflow method. Different current density and various start-up time of the method are investigated in the charge-discharge tests. The results show that the capacity decay rate is reduced markedly and the cycle life is prolonged substantially by this method. In addition, the coulomb efficiency, voltage efficiency and energy efficiency remain stable during the whole cycle life test, which indicates this method has little impact on the long lifetime performance of the VFBs. The method is low-cost, simple, effective, and can be applied in industrial VFB productions.

Evaluating Indicators and Life Cycle Inventories for Processes in Early Stages of Technical Readiness

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

Tan, Eric C; Smith, Raymond; Ruiz-Mercado, Gerardo

This presentation examines different methods for analyzing manufacturing processes in the early stages of technical readiness. Before developers know much detail about their processes, it is valuable to apply various assessments to evaluate their performance. One type of assessment evaluates performance indicators to describe how closely processes approach desirable objectives. Another type of assessment determines the life cycle inventories (LCI) of inputs and outputs for processes, where for a functional unit of product, the user evaluates the resources used and the releases to the environment. These results can be compared to similar processes or combined with the LCI of othermore » processes to examine up-and down-stream chemicals. The inventory also provides a listing of the up-stream chemicals, which permits study of the whole life cycle. Performance indicators are evaluated in this presentation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's GREENSCOPE (Gauging Reaction Effectiveness for ENvironmental Sustainability with a multi-Objective Process Evaluator) methodology, which evaluates processes in four areas: Environment, Energy, Economics, and Efficiency. The method develops relative scores for indicators that allow comparisons across various technologies. In this contribution, two conversion pathways for producing cellulosic ethanol from biomass, via thermochemical and biochemical routes, are studied. The information developed from the indicators and LCI can be used to inform the process design and the potential life cycle effects of up- and down-stream chemicals.« less

An optimised multi-host trematode life cycle: fishery discards enhance trophic parasite transmission to scavenging birds.

PubMed

Born-Torrijos, Ana; Poulin, Robert; Pérez-Del-Olmo, Ana; Culurgioni, Jacopo; Raga, Juan Antonio; Holzer, Astrid Sibylle

2016-10-01

Overlapping distributions of hosts and parasites are critical for successful completion of multi-host parasite life cycles and even small environmental changes can impact on the parasite's presence in a host or habitat. The generalist Cardiocephaloides longicollis was used as a model for multi-host trematode life cycles in marine habitats. This parasite was studied to quantify parasite dispersion and transmission dynamics, effects of biological changes and anthropogenic impacts on life cycle completion. We compiled the largest host dataset to date, by analysing 3351 molluscs (24 species), 2108 fish (25 species) and 154 birds (17 species) and analysed the resultant data based on a number of statistical models. We uncovered extremely low host specificity at the second intermediate host level and a preference of the free-swimming larvae for predominantly demersal but also benthic fish. The accumulation of encysted larvae in the brain with increasing fish size demonstrates that parasite numbers level off in fish larger than 140mm, consistent with parasite-induced mortality at these levels. The highest infection rates were detected in host species and sizes representing the largest fraction of Mediterranean fishery discards (up to 67% of the total catch), which are frequently consumed by seabirds. Significantly higher parasite densities were found in areas with extensive fishing activity than in those with medium and low activity, and in fish from shallow lagoons than in fish from other coastal areas. For the first time, C. longicollis was also detected in farmed fish in netpens. Fishing generally drives declines in parasite abundance, however, our study suggests an enhanced transmission of generalist parasites such as C. longicollis, an effect that is further amplified by the parasite's efficient host-finding mechanisms and its alteration of fish host behaviour by larvae encysted in the brain. The anthropogenic impact on the distribution of trophically-transmitted, highly prevalent parasites likely results in a strong effect on food web structure, thus making C. longicollis an ideal bioindicator to compare food webs in natural communities versus those impacted by fisheries and aquaculture. Copyright © 2016 Australian Society for Parasitology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Predictors and Characteristics of Erikson's Life Cycle Model Among Men: A 32-Year Longitudinal Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Westermeyer, Jerry F.

2004-01-01

To assess Erikson's life cycle model, 86 men, initially selected for health, were prospectively studied at age 21, and reassessed 32 years later at age 53. Using the Vaillant and Milofsky (1980) modification of Erikson's model, 48 men (56%) achieved generativity, an advanced developmental stage, at follow-up. Results generally support Erikson's…

Ancient pests: the season of the Santorini Minoan volcanic eruption and a date from insect chitin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Panagiotakopulu, Eva; Higham, Thomas; Sarpaki, Anaya; Buckland, Paul; Doumas, Christos

2013-07-01

Attributing a season and a date to the volcanic eruption of Santorini in the Aegean has become possible by using preserved remains of the bean weevil, Bruchus rufipes, pests of pulses, from the storage jars of the West House, in the Bronze Age settlement at Akrotiri. We have applied an improved pre-treatment methodology for dating the charred insects, and this provides a date of 1744-1538 BC. This date is within the range of others obtained from pulses from the same context and confirms the utility of chitin as a dating material. Based on the nature of the insect material and the life cycle of the species involved, we argue for a summer eruption, which took place after harvest, shortly after this material was transported into the West House storeroom.

Life cycle cost modeling of conceptual space vehicles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ebeling, Charles

1993-01-01

This paper documents progress to date by the University of Dayton on the development of a life cycle cost model for use during the conceptual design of new launch vehicles and spacecraft. This research is being conducted under NASA Research Grant NAG-1-1327. This research effort changes the focus from that of the first two years in which a reliability and maintainability model was developed to the initial development of a life cycle cost model. Cost categories are initially patterned after NASA's three axis work breakdown structure consisting of a configuration axis (vehicle), a function axis, and a cost axis. The focus will be on operations and maintenance costs and other recurring costs. Secondary tasks performed concurrent with the development of the life cycle costing model include continual support and upgrade of the R&M model. The primary result of the completed research will be a methodology and a computer implementation of the methodology to provide for timely cost analysis in support of the conceptual design activities. The major objectives of this research are: to obtain and to develop improved methods for estimating manpower, spares, software and hardware costs, facilities costs, and other cost categories as identified by NASA personnel; to construct a life cycle cost model of a space transportation system for budget exercises and performance-cost trade-off analysis during the conceptual and development stages; to continue to support modifications and enhancements to the R&M model; and to continue to assist in the development of a simulation model to provide an integrated view of the operations and support of the proposed system.

Electronic tagging and integrated product intelligence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Swerdlow, Martin; Weeks, Brian

1996-03-01

The advent of 'intelligent,' electronic data bearing tags is set to revolutionize the way industrial and retail products are identified and tracked throughout their life cycles. The dominant system for unique identification today is the bar code, which is based on printed symbology and regulated by the International Article Numbering Association. Bar codes provide users with significant operational advantages and generate considerable added value to packaging companies, product manufacturers, distributors and retailers, across supply chains in many different sectors, from retailing, to baggage handling and industrial components, e.g., for vehicles or aircraft. Electronic tags offer the potential to: (1) record and store more complex data about the product or any modifications which occur during its life cycle; (2) access (and up-date) stored data in real time in a way which does not involve contact with the product or article; (3) overcome the limitations imposed by systems which rely on line-of-sight access to stored data. Companies are now beginning to consider how electronic data tags can be used, not only to improve the efficiency of their supply chain processes, but also to revolutionize the way they do business. This paper reviews the applications and business opportunities for electronic tags and outlines CEST's strategy for achieving an 'open' standard which will ensure that tags from different vendors can co-exist on an international basis.

Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Coal-Biomass to Liquid Jet Fuel Compared to Petroleum-Derived JP-8 Jet Fuel

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-03-01

of gasoline. History of Diesel Diesel fuel received its name from the inventor Rudolph Diesel who invented the diesel engine in 1892 and was...additional emissions” (Searchinger, et al., 2008). The authors of this well-documented peer -reviewed paper go on to state that with land-use change the...ABOVE ADDRESS. 1. REPORT DATE (DD-MM-YYYY) 25-03-2010 2. REPORT TYPE Master’s Thesis 3. DATES COVERED (From – To) Jan 2009 – Mar 2010 4. TITLE

Live attenuated pre-erythrocytic malaria vaccines.

PubMed

Keitany, Gladys J; Vignali, Marissa; Wang, Ruobing

2014-01-01

Although recent control measures have significantly reduced malaria cases and deaths in many endemic areas, an effective vaccine will be essential to eradicate this parasitic disease. Malaria vaccine strategies developed to date focus on different phases of the parasite's complex life cycle in the human host and mosquito vector, and include both subunit-based and whole-parasite vaccines. This review focuses on the 3 live-attenuated malaria vaccination strategies that have been tested in humans to date, and discusses their progress, challenges and the immune correlates of protection that have been identified.

A Real Options Approach to Quantity and Cost Optimization for Lifetime and Bridge Buys of Parts

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-05-01

demand • Asymmetric over- and under-buy penalties • Non-negligible inventory costs • Cost of money (non-zero WACC ) • Uncertain end of support date...ROA for WACC of 12%. The optimum life- cycle buy size distribution for the example case from DES and ROA for WACC of 3%. ~1 part difference...of a variable end-of-support (EOS) date – A fundamental problem that needs to be addressed is how to set the discount factor ( WACC ) for the

Comparative Transcriptome of Wild Type and Selected Strains of the Microalgae Tisochrysis lutea Provides Insights into the Genetic Basis, Lipid Metabolism and the Life Cycle

PubMed Central

Carrier, Gregory; Garnier, Matthieu; Le Cunff, Loïc; Bougaran, Gaël; Probert, Ian; De Vargas, Colomban; Corre, Erwan; Cadoret, Jean-Paul; Saint-Jean, Bruno

2014-01-01

The applied exploitation of microalgae cultures has to date almost exclusively involved the use of wild type strains, deposited over decades in dedicated culture collections. Concomitantly, the concept of improving algae with selection programs for particular specific purposes is slowly emerging. Studying since a decade an economically and ecologically important haptophyte Tisochrysis lutea (Tiso), we took advantage of the availability of wild type (Tiso-Wt) and selected (Tiso-S2M2) strains to conduct a molecular variations study. This endeavour presented substantial challenges: the genome assembly was not yet available, the life cycle unknown and genetic diversity of Tiso-Wt poorly documented. This study brings the first molecular data in order to set up a selection strategy for that microalgae. Following high-throughput Illumina sequencing, transcriptomes of Tiso-Wt and Tiso-S2M2 were de novo assembled and annotated. Genetic diversity between both strains was analyzed and revealed a clear conservation, while a comparison of transcriptomes allowed identification of polymorphisms resulting from the selection program. Of 34,374 transcripts, 291 were differentially expressed and 165 contained positional polymorphisms (SNP, Indel). We focused on lipid over-accumulation of the Tiso-S2M2 strain and 8 candidate genes were identified by combining analysis of positional polymorphism, differential expression levels, selection signature and by study of putative gene function. Moreover, genetic analysis also suggests the existence of a sexual cycle and genetic recombination in Tisochrysis lutea. PMID:24489800

Including exposure variability in the life cycle impact assessment of indoor chemical emissions: the case of metal degreasing.

PubMed

Golsteijn, Laura; Huizer, Daan; Hauck, Mara; van Zelm, Rosalie; Huijbregts, Mark A J

2014-10-01

The present paper describes a method that accounts for variation in indoor chemical exposure settings and accompanying human toxicity in life cycle assessment (LCA). Metal degreasing with dichloromethane was used as a case study to show method in practice. We compared the human toxicity related to the degreasing of 1m(2) of metal surface in different exposure scenarios for industrial workers, professional users outside industrial settings, and home consumers. The fraction of the chemical emission that is taken in by exposed individuals (i.e. the intake fraction) was estimated on the basis of operational conditions (e.g. exposure duration), and protective measures (e.g. local exhaust ventilation). The introduction of a time-dependency and a correction for protective measures resulted in reductions in the intake fraction of up to 1.5 orders of magnitude, compared to application of existing, less advanced models. In every exposure scenario, the life cycle impacts for human toxicity were mainly caused by indoor exposure to metal degreaser (>60%). Emissions released outdoors contributed up to 22% of the life cycle impacts for human toxicity, and the production of metal degreaser contributed up to 19%. These findings illustrate that human toxicity from indoor chemical exposure should not be disregarded in LCA case studies. Particularly when protective measures are taken or in the case of a short duration (1h or less), we recommend the use of our exposure scenario-specific approach. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Deciphering life history transcriptomes in different environments

PubMed Central

Etges, William J.; Trotter, Meredith V.; de Oliveira, Cássia C.; Rajpurohit, Subhash; Gibbs, Allen G.; Tuljapurkar, Shripad

2014-01-01

We compared whole transcriptome variation in six preadult stages and seven adult female ages in two populations of cactophilic Drosophila mojavensis reared on two host plants in order to understand how differences in gene expression influence standing life history variation. We used Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) to identify dominant trajectories of life cycle gene expression variation, performed pair-wise comparisons of stage and age differences in gene expression across the life cycle, identified when genes exhibited maximum levels of life cycle gene expression, and assessed population and host cactus effects on gene expression. Life cycle SVD analysis returned four significant components of transcriptional variation, revealing functional enrichment of genes responsible for growth, metabolic function, sensory perception, neural function, translation and aging. Host cactus effects on female gene expression revealed population and stage specific differences, including significant host plant effects on larval metabolism and development, as well as adult neurotransmitter binding and courtship behavior gene expression levels. In 3 - 6 day old virgin females, significant up-regulation of genes associated with meiosis and oogenesis was accompanied by down-regulation of genes associated with somatic maintenance, evidence for a life history tradeoff. The transcriptome of D. mojavensis reared in natural environments throughout its life cycle revealed core developmental transitions and genome wide influences on life history variation in natural populations. PMID:25442828

Climate variability drives population cycling and synchrony

Treesearch

Lars Y. Pomara; Benjamin Zuckerberg

2017-01-01

Aim There is mounting concern that climate change will lead to the collapse of cyclic population dynamics, yet the influence of climate variability on population cycling remains poorly understood. We hypothesized that variability in survival and fecundity, driven by climate variability at different points in the life cycle, scales up from...

Technology development and demonstration of a low thrust resistojet thruster

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pfeifer, G. R.

1972-01-01

Three thrusters were fabricated to definitized thruster drawings using new rhenium vapor deposition technology. Two of the thrusters were operated using ammonia as propellant and one was operated using hydrogen propellant for performance determination. All demonstrated consistent operational specific impulse performance while demonstrating thermal performance better than the development units from which they evolved. Two of the thrusters were subjected to environmental structural testing including vibration, acceleration and shock loading to specifications. Both of the thrusters subjected to the environmental tests passed all required tests. The third, spare, thruster was introduced into the life test portion of the program. Two thrusters were then subjected to a life cycling test program under typical spacecraft operating power levels. During the life test sequence, the hydrogen thruster accrued 720 operating life test cycles, more than 370 on-off cycles and 365 hours of powered up time. The ammonia accrued approximately 380 on-off cycles and 392.2 on time hours of operation during the 720 cycling hour test. Both thrusters completed the scheduled operational life test in reasonably good condition, structurally integral and capable of indefinite further operation.

Comparing Life-Cycle Costs of ESPCs and Appropriations-Funded Energy Projects: An Update to the 2002 Report

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

Shonder, John A; Hughes, Patrick; Atkin, Erica

2006-11-01

A study was sponsored by FEMP in 2001 - 2002 to develop methods to compare life-cycle costs of federal energy conservation projects carried out through energy savings performance contracts (ESPCs) and projects that are directly funded by appropriations. The study described in this report follows up on the original work, taking advantage of new pricing data on equipment and on $500 million worth of Super ESPC projects awarded since the end of FY 2001. The methods developed to compare life-cycle costs of ESPCs and directly funded energy projects are based on the following tasks: (1) Verify the parity of equipmentmore » prices in ESPC vs. directly funded projects; (2) Develop a representative energy conservation project; (3) Determine representative cycle times for both ESPCs and appropriations-funded projects; (4) Model the representative energy project implemented through an ESPC and through appropriations funding; and (5) Calculate the life-cycle costs for each project.« less

KOH concentration effect on the cycle life of nickel-hydrogen cells. 4: Results of failure analyse

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lim, H. S.; Verzwyvelt, S. A.

1989-01-01

Effects of KOH concentrations on failure modes and mechanisms of nickel-hydrogen cells were studied using long cycled boiler plate cells containing electrolytes of various KOH concentrations ranging 21 to 36 percent. Life of these cells were up to 40,000 cycles in an accelerated low earth orbit (LEO) cycle regime at 80 percent depth of discharge. An interim life test results were reported earlier in J. Power Sources, 22, 213-220, 1988. The results of final life test, end-of-life cell performance, and teardown analyses are discussed. These teardown analyses included visual observations, measurements of nickel electrode capacity in an electrolyte-flooded cell, dimensional changes of cell components, SEM studies on cell cross section, BET surface area and pore volume distribution in cycled nickel electrodes, and chemical analyses. Cycle life of a nickel-hydrogen cell was improved tremendously as KOH concentration was decreased from 36 to 31 percent and from 31 to 26 percent while effect of further concentration decrease was complicated as described in our earlier report. Failure mode of high concentration (31 to 36 percent) cells was gradual capacity decrease, while that of low concentration (21 to 26 percent) cells was mainly formation of a soft short. Long cycled (25,000 to 40,000 cycles) nickel electrodes were expanded more than 50 percent of the initial value, but no correlation was found between this expansion and measured capacity. All electrodes cycled in low concentration (21 to 26 percent) cells had higher capacity than those cycled in high concentration (31 to 36 percent) cells.

The study of capability natural uranium as fuel cycle input for long life gas cooled fast reactors with helium as coolant

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

Ariani, Menik, E-mail: menikariani@gmail.com; Satya, Octavianus Cakra; Monado, Fiber

The objective of the present research is to assess the feasibility design of small long-life Gas Cooled Fast Reactor with helium as coolant. GCFR included in the Generation-IV reactor systems are being developed to provide sustainable energy resources that meet future energy demand in a reliable, safe, and proliferation-resistant manner. This reactor can be operated without enrichment and reprocessing forever, once it starts. To obtain the capability of consuming natural uranium as fuel cycle input modified CANDLE burn-up scheme was adopted in this system with different core design. This study has compared the core with three designs of core reactorsmore » with the same thermal power 600 MWth. The fuel composition each design was arranged by divided core into several parts of equal volume axially i.e. 6, 8 and 10 parts related to material burn-up history. The fresh natural uranium is initially put in region 1, after one cycle of 10 years of burn-up it is shifted to region 2 and the region 1 is filled by fresh natural uranium fuel. This concept is basically applied to all regions, i.e. shifted the core of the region (i) into region (i+1) region after the end of 10 years burn-up cycle. The calculation results shows that for the burn-up strategy on “Region-8” and “Region-10” core designs, after the reactors start-up the operation furthermore they only needs natural uranium supply to the next life operation until one period of refueling (10 years).« less

KOH concentration effect on the cycle life of nickel-hydrogen cells. Part 4: Results of failure analyses

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lim, H. S.; Verzwyvelt, S. A.

1989-01-01

KOH concentration effects on cycle life of a Ni/H2 cell have been studied by carrying out a cycle life test of ten Ni/H2 boiler plate cells which contain electrolytes of various KOH concentrations. Failure analyses of these cells were carried out after completion of the life test which accumulated up to 40,000 cycles at an 80 percent depth of discharge over a period of 3.7 years. These failure analyses included studies on changes of electrical characteristics of test cells and component analyses after disassembly of the cell. The component analyses included visual inspections, dimensional changes, capacity measurements of nickel electrodes, scanning electron microscopy, BET surface area measurements, and chemical analyses. Results have indicated that failure mode and change in the nickel electrode varied as the concentration was varied, especially, when the concentration was changed from 31 percent or higher to 26 percent or lower.

Independent divergence of 13- and 17-y life cycles among three periodical cicada lineages.

PubMed

Sota, Teiji; Yamamoto, Satoshi; Cooley, John R; Hill, Kathy B R; Simon, Chris; Yoshimura, Jin

2013-04-23

The evolution of 13- and 17-y periodical cicadas (Magicicada) is enigmatic because at any given location, up to three distinct species groups (Decim, Cassini, Decula) with synchronized life cycles are involved. Each species group is divided into one 13- and one 17-y species with the exception of the Decim group, which contains two 13-y species-13-y species are Magicicada tredecim, Magicicada neotredecim, Magicicada tredecassini, and Magicicada tredecula; and 17-y species are Magicicada septendecim, Magicicada cassini, and Magicicada septendecula. Here we show that the divergence leading to the present 13- and 17-y populations differs considerably among the species groups despite the fact that each group exhibits strikingly similar phylogeographic patterning. The earliest divergence of extant lineages occurred ∼4 Mya with one branch forming the Decim species group and the other subsequently splitting 2.5 Mya to form the Cassini and Decula species groups. The earliest split of extant lineages into 13- and 17-y life cycles occurred in the Decim lineage 0.5 Mya. All three species groups experienced at least one episode of life cycle divergence since the last glacial maximum. We hypothesize that despite independent origins, the three species groups achieved their current overlapping distributions because life-cycle synchronization of invading congeners to a dominant resident population enabled escape from predation and population persistence. The repeated life-cycle divergences supported by our data suggest the presence of a common genetic basis for the two life cycles in the three species groups.

Toward a continuous 405-kyr-calibrated Astronomical Time Scale for the Mesozoic Era

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hinnov, Linda; Ogg, James; Huang, Chunju

2010-05-01

Mesozoic cyclostratigraphy is being assembled into a continuous Astronomical Time Scale (ATS) tied to the Earth's cyclic orbital parameters. Recognition of a nearly ubiquitous, dominant ~400-kyr cycling in formations throughout the era has been particularly striking. Composite formations spanning contiguous intervals up to 50 myr clearly express these long-eccentricity cycles, and in some cases, this cycling is defined by third- or fourth-order sea-level sequences. This frequency is associated with the 405-kyr orbital eccentricity cycle, which provides a basic metronome and enables the extension of the well-defined Cenozoic ATS to scale the majority of the Mesozoic Era. This astronomical calibration has a resolution comparable to the 1% to 0.1% precision for radioisotope dating of Mesozoic ash beds, but with the added benefit of providing continuous stratigraphic coverage between dated beds. Extended portions of the Mesozoic ATS provide solutions to long-standing geologic problems of tectonics, eustasy, paleoclimate change, and rates of seafloor spreading.

Nitrogen-Doped Holey Graphene as an Anode for Lithium-Ion Batteries with High Volumetric Energy Density and Long Cycle Life.

PubMed

Xu, Jiantie; Lin, Yi; Connell, John W; Dai, Liming

2015-12-01

Nitrogen-doped holey graphene (N-hG) as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries has delivered a maximum volumetric capacity of 384 mAh cm(-3) with an excellent long-term cycling life up to 6000 cycles, and as an electrochemical capacitor has delivered a maximum volumetric energy density of 171.2 Wh L(-1) and a volumetric capacitance of 201.6 F cm(-3) . © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Life cycle assessment of water supply alternatives in water-receiving areas of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project in China.

PubMed

Li, Yi; Xiong, Wei; Zhang, Wenlong; Wang, Chao; Wang, Peifang

2016-02-01

To alleviate the water shortage in northern China, the Chinese government launched the world's largest water diversion project, the South-to-North Water Diversion Project (SNWDP), which delivers water from water-sufficient southern China to water-deficient northern China. However, an up-to-date study has not been conducted to determine whether the project is a favorable option to augment the water supply from an environmental perspective. The life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology integrated with a freshwater withdrawal category (FWI) was adopted to compare water supply alternatives in the water-receiving areas of the SNWDP, i.e., water diversion, wastewater reclamation and seawater desalination. Beijing, Tianjin, Jinan and Qingdao were studied as representative cities because they are the primary water-receiving areas of the SNWDP. The results revealed that the operation phase played the dominant role in all but one of the life cycle impact categories considered and contributed to more than 70% of their scores. For Beijing and Tianjin, receiving water through the SNWDP is the most sustainable option to augment the water supply. The result can be drawn in all of the water-receiving areas of the middle route of the SNWDP. For Jinan and Qingdao, the most sustainable option is the wastewater reclamation system. The seawater desalination system obtains the highest score of the standard impact indicators in all of the study areas, whereas it is the most favorable water supply option when considering the freshwater withdrawal impact. Although the most sustainable water supply alternative was recommended through an LCA analysis, multi-water resources should be integrated into the region's water supply from the perspective of water sustainability. The results of this study provide a useful recommendation on the management of water resources for China. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cardiomyocyte cell cycle control and growth estimation in vivo--an analysis based on cardiomyocyte nuclei.

PubMed

Walsh, Stuart; Pontén, Annica; Fleischmann, Bernd K; Jovinge, Stefan

2010-06-01

Adult mammalian cardiomyocytes are traditionally viewed as being permanently withdrawn from the cell cycle. Whereas some groups have reported none, others have reported extensive mitosis in adult myocardium under steady-state conditions. Recently, a highly specific assay of 14C dating in humans has suggested a continuous generation of cardiomyocytes in the adult, albeit at a very low rate. Mice represent the most commonly used animal model for these studies, but their short lifespan makes them unsuitable for 14C studies. Herein, we investigate the cellular growth pattern for murine cardiomyocyte growth under steady-state conditions, addressed with new analytical and technical strategies, and we furthermore relate this to gene expression patterns. The observed levels of DNA synthesis in early life were associated with cardiomyocyte proliferation. Mitosis was prolonged into early life, longer than the most conservative previous estimates. DNA synthesis in neonatal life was attributable to bi-nucleation, therefore suggesting that cardiomyocytes withdraw from the cell cycle shortly after birth. No cell cycle activity was observed in adult cardiomyocytes and significant polyploidy was observed in cardiomyocyte nuclei. Gene analyses identified 32 genes whose expression was predicted to be particular to day 3-4 neonatal myocytes, compared with embryonic or adult cells. These cell cycle-associated genes are crucial to the understanding of the mechanisms of bi-nucleation and physiological cellular growth in the neonatal period.

Breaking Up is Hard to do: The Impact of Unmarried Relationship Dissolution on Mental Health and Life Satisfaction

PubMed Central

Rhoades, Galena K.; Kamp Dush, Claire M.; Atkins, David C.; Stanley, Scott M.; Markman, Howard J.

2011-01-01

This study was the first to examine the impact of unmarried relationship break-up on psychological distress and life satisfaction using a within-subjects design. Among unmarried 18 to 35-year olds (N = 1295), 36.5% had one or more break-ups over a 20-month period. Experiencing a break-up was associated with an increase in psychological distress and a decline in life satisfaction (from pre- to post-dissolution). In addition, several characteristics of the relationship or of the break-up were associated with the magnitude of the changes in life satisfaction following a break-up. Specifically, having been cohabiting and having had plans for marriage were associated with larger declines in life satisfaction while having begun to date someone new was associated with smaller declines. Interestingly, having higher relationship quality at the previous wave was associated with smaller declines in life satisfaction following a break-up. No relationship or break-up characteristics were significantly associated with the magnitude of changes in psychological distress after a break-up. Existing theories are used to explain the results. Implications for clinical work and future research on unmarried relationships are also discussed. PMID:21517174

Quality of sexual life of women using the contraceptive vaginal ring in extended cycles: preliminary report.

PubMed

Caruso, Salvatore; Cianci, Stefano; Malandrino, Chiara; Cicero, Carla; Lo Presti, Lucia; Cianci, Antonio

2014-08-01

To evaluate the quality of the sexual life of healthy women who are using a contraceptive vaginal ring (CVR) in extended cycles. Fifty-two women (18 to 32 years old) seeking hormonal contraception were enrolled in this prospective study. Women were to use a CVR releasing daily 15 μg of ethinylestradiol (EE) and 120 μg of etonogestrel (ENG) for 63 days, followed by a four-day hormone-free interval, for two such extended cycles. At baseline and at the first (day 63-73) and second (day 126-134) follow-ups the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) and the Short Form-36 (SF-36) questionnaires were administered to investigate, respectively, sexual behaviour and the quality of life (QoL). The Female Sexual Distress Scale (FSDS) was used to verify whether sexual dysfunction caused significant personal distress to the woman. The FSFI and FSDS scores obtained at the first and second follow-up appointments detected an improvement with respect to the baseline score (p < 0.05). QoL measures of body pain, general health and emotional role improved at the first follow-up visit (p < 0.05); at the second one, all variables showed improvement (p < 0.05). According to these preliminary data the CVR in extended cycles could improve the sexual function and the QoL of women.

Emergence of polycystic neotropical echinococcosis.

PubMed

Tappe, Dennis; Stich, August; Frosch, Matthias

2008-02-01

Echinococcosis is a parasitic zoonosis of increasing concern. In 1903, the first cases of human polycystic echinococcosis, a disease resembling alveolar echinococcosis, emerged in Argentina. One of the parasites responsible, Echinococcus oligarthrus, had been discovered in its adult strobilar stage before 1850. However, >100 years passed from the first description of the adult parasite to the recognition that this species is responsible for some cases of human neotropical polycystic echinococcosis and the elucidation of the parasite's life cycle. A second South American species, E. vogeli, was described in 1972. Obtaining recognition of the 2 species and establishing their connection to human disease were complicated because the life cycle of tapeworms is complex and comprises different developmental stages in diverse host species. To date, at least 106 human cases have been reported from 12 South and Central American countries.

Skills To Fit Your Life Together.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Draper, Patty; Emmons, Kay; Gregory, Glenda; Lewis, Beverly; Owen, Pat; Rogers, Grenell; Wilson, Cynthia

This document is a fill-in-the-dates calendar that students in a daily living skills or family life education class can use to remind themselves to live a healthy and productive life. Set up with a page of tips on the top with a monthly calendar page below, the guide covers the following topics: (1) living better with less; (2) home safety rules;…

High hunting pressure selects for earlier birth date: Wild boar as a case study

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gamelon, M.; Besnard, A.; Gaillard, J.-M.; Servanty, S.; Baubet, E.; Brandt, S.; Gimenez, O.

2011-01-01

Exploitation by humans affects the size and structure of populations. This has evolutionary and demographic consequences that have typically being studied independent of one another. We here applied a framework recently developed applying quantitative tools from population ecology and selection gradient analysis to quantify the selection on a quantitative trait-birth date-through its association with multiple fitness components. From the long-term monitoring (22 years) of a wild boar (Sus scrofa scrofa) population subject to markedly increasing hunting pressure, we found that birth dates have advanced by up to 12 days throughout the study period. During the period of low hunting pressure, there was no detectable selection. However, during the period of high hunting pressure, the selection gradient linking breeding probability in the first year of life to birth date was negative, supporting current life-history theory predicting selection for early births to reproduce within the first year of life with increasing adult mortality. ?? 2011 The Author(s). Evolution?? 2011 The Society for the Study of Evolution..

Carbon footprint of forest and tree utilization technologies in life cycle approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Polgár, András; Pécsinger, Judit

2017-04-01

In our research project a suitable method has been developed related the technological aspect of the environmental assessment of land use changes caused by climate change. We have prepared an eco-balance (environmental inventory) to the environmental effects classification in life-cycle approach in connection with the typical agricultural / forest and tree utilization technologies. The use of balances and environmental classification makes possible to compare land-use technologies and their environmental effects per common functional unit. In order to test our environmental analysis model, we carried out surveys in sample of forest stands. We set up an eco-balance of the working systems of intermediate cutting and final harvest in the stands of beech, oak, spruce, acacia, poplar and short rotation energy plantations (willow, poplar). We set up the life-cycle plan of the surveyed working systems by using the GaBi 6.0 Professional software and carried out midpoint and endpoint impact assessment. Out of the results, we applied the values of CML 2001 - Global Warming Potential (GWP 100 years) [kg CO2-Equiv.] and Eco-Indicator 99 - Human health, Climate Change [DALY]. On the basis of the values we set up a ranking of technology. By this, we received the environmental impact classification of the technologies based on carbon footprint. The working systems had the greatest impact on global warming (GWP 100 years) throughout their whole life cycle. This is explained by the amount of carbon dioxide releasing to the atmosphere resulting from the fuel of the technologies. Abiotic depletion (ADP foss) and marine aquatic ecotoxicity (MAETP) emerged also as significant impact categories. These impact categories can be explained by the share of input of fuel and lube. On the basis of the most significant environmental impact category (carbon footprint), we perform the relative life cycle contribution and ranking of each technologies. The technological life cycle stages examined in the stands are the followings: Stage 1. cleaning cutting Stage 2. selection thinning Stage 3. increment thinning Stage 4. final harvest In these priority impact categories, the life cycle contribution of technologies varied according to the life cycle stages. • The spruce stand showed the smallest contribution in the stages 1, 2, 3 alike. • After the large contribution of beech stand at the beginning (stage 1), it continues representing a moderate level in stage 2 and 3, and it shares the smallest rate in final harvest (stage 4). • The oak stand showed the largest contribution in the stages 2, 3, 4 alike. • In the case of acacia and poplar, we have got the same results as in the case of oak stands. • In the case of short rotation energy plantations (willow, poplar), we got the results typical on stage 4 of spruce stands. We can conclude, that in case of the stage of final harvest, which represents the most significant environmental impact, the ranking of working systems showes the increasing order of „energy plantations - beech - spruce - acacia - poplar - oak". The environmental assessment of technological aspects of land use and land use change represent an important added value to the climate research. Acknowledgement: This research has been supported by the Agroclimate.2 VKSZ_12-1- 2013-0034 project. Keywords: life-cycle assessment / forest utilization technology / carbon footprint / life-cycle thinking

Effect of Understress on Fretting Fatigue Crack Initiation of Press-Fitted Axle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kubota, Masanobu; Niho, Sotaro; Sakae, Chu; Kondo, Yoshiyuki

Axles are one of the most important components in railway vehicles with regard to safety, since a fail-safe design is not available. The problems of fretting fatigue crack initiation in a press-fitted axle have not been completely solved even though up-to-date fatigue design methods are employed. The objective of the present study is to clarify the effect of understress on fretting fatigue crack initiation behavior in the press-fitted axle. Most of the stress amplitude given to the axle in service is smaller than the fretting fatigue limit based on the stress to initiate cracks under a constant load σwf1. Rotating bending fatigue tests were performed using a 40mm-diameter press-fitted axle assembly. Two-step variable stresses consisting of σwf1 and half or one-third of σwf1 were used in the experiment. Crack initiation life was defined as the number of cycles when a fretting fatigue crack, which is longer than 30µm, was found using a metallurgical microscope. Fretting fatigue cracks were initiated even when the variable stress did not contain the stress above the fretting fatigue crack initiation limit. The crack initiation life varied from 4.0×107 to 1.2×108 depending on the stress frequency ratio nL/nH. The sum of the number of cycles of higher stress at crack initiation NH was much smaller than the number of cycles to initiate cracks estimated from the modified Miner's rule. The value of the modified Miner's damage ranged from 0.013 to 0.185. To clarify the effect of variable amplitude on the fretting fatigue crack initiation, a comprehensive investigation related to relative slip, tangential force and fretting wear is necessary.

Life cycle assessment of switchgrass- and corn stover-derived ethanol-fueled automobiles.

PubMed

Spatari, Sabrina; Zhang, Yimin; MacLean, Heather L

2005-12-15

Utilizing domestically produced cellulose-derived ethanol for the light-duty vehicle fleet can potentially improve the environmental performance and sustainability of the transport and energy sectors of the economy. A life cycle assessment model was developed to examine environmental implications of the production and use of ethanol in automobiles in Ontario, Canada. The results were compared to those of low-sulfur reformulated gasoline (RFG) in a functionally equivalent automobile. Two time frames were evaluated, one near-term (2010), which examines converting a dedicated energy crop (switchgrass) and an agricultural residue (corn stover) to ethanol; and one midterm (2020), which assumes technological improvements in the switchgrass-derived ethanol life cycle. Near-term results show that, compared to a RFG automobile, life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are 57% lower for an E85-fueled automobile derived from switchgrass and 65% lower for ethanol from corn stover, on a grams of CO2 equivalent per kilometer basis. Corn stover ethanol exhibits slightly lower life cycle GHG emissions, primarily due to sharing emissions with grain production. Through projected improvements in crop and ethanol yields, results for the mid-term scenario show that GHG emissions could be 25-35% lower than those in 2010 and that, even with anticipated improvements in RFG automobiles, E85 automobiles could still achieve up to 70% lower GHG emissions across the life cycle.

Changes in impedance of Ni/Cd cells with voltage and cycle life

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Reid, Margaret A.

1992-01-01

Impedances of aerospace design Super Ni/Cd cells are being measured as functions of voltage and number of cycles. The cells have been cycled over 4400 cycles to date. Analysis of the impedance data has been made using a number of equivalent circuits. The model giving the best fit over the whole range of voltage has a parallel circuit of a kinetic resistance and a constant phase element in series with the ohmic resistance. The values for the circuit elements have been treated as empirical parameters, and no attempt has been made as yet to correlate them with physical and chemical changes in the electrode. No significant changes have been seen as yet with the exception of a decrease in kinetic resistance at low states of charge in the first 500 cycles.

Advanced Extremely High Frequency Satellite (AEHF)

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-12-01

control their tactical and strategic forces at all levels of conflict up to and including general nuclear war, and it supports the attainment of...10195.1 10622.2 Confidence Level Confidence Level of cost estimate for current APB: 50% The ICE) that supports the AEHF SV 1-4, like all life-cycle cost...mathematically the precise confidence levels associated with life-cycle cost estimates prepared for MDAPs. Based on the rigor in methods used in building

Family Formation, Labor Market Experience, and the Wages of Married Women.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cogan, John F.; Berger, Franklin

The impact of the timing, spacing, and number of children on a married woman's wage growth over her life cycle was examined. The data used for the analysis were information pertaining to the labor market experience of women and the birth dates of their children, taken from the 1976 survey of the Michigan Panel Study of Income Dynamics (IDP). There…

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

Kelly, Jarod C.; Sullivan, John L.; Burnham, Andrew

This study examines the vehicle-cycle impacts associated with substituting lightweight materials for those currently found in light-duty passenger vehicles. We determine part-based energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission ratios by collecting material substitution data from both the literature and automotive experts and evaluating that alongside known mass-based energy use and GHG emission ratios associated with material pair substitutions. Several vehicle parts, along with full vehicle systems, are examined for lightweighting via material substitution to observe the associated impact on GHG emissions. Results are contextualized by additionally examining fuel-cycle GHG reductions associated with mass reductions relative to the baseline vehiclemore » during the use phase and also determining material pair breakeven driving distances for GHG emissions. The findings show that, while material substitution is useful in reducing vehicle weight, it often increases vehicle-cycle GHGs depending upon the material substitution pair. However, for a vehicle’s total life cycle, fuel economy benefits are greater than the increased burdens associated with the vehicle manufacturing cycle, resulting in a net total life-cycle GHG benefit. The vehicle cycle will become increasingly important in total vehicle life-cycle GHGs, since fuel-cycle GHGs will be gradually reduced as automakers ramp up vehicle efficiency to meet fuel economy standards.« less

Comparative proteomics of two life cycle stages of stable isotope-labeled Trypanosoma brucei reveals novel components of the parasite's host adaptation machinery.

PubMed

Butter, Falk; Bucerius, Ferdinand; Michel, Margaux; Cicova, Zdenka; Mann, Matthias; Janzen, Christian J

2013-01-01

Trypanosoma brucei developed a sophisticated life cycle to adapt to different host environments. Although developmental differentiation of T. brucei has been the topic of intensive research for decades, the mechanisms responsible for adaptation to different host environments are not well understood. We developed stable isotope labeling by amino acids in cell culture in trypanosomes to compare the proteomes of two different life cycle stages. Quantitative comparison of 4364 protein groups identified many proteins previously not known to be stage-specifically expressed. The identification of stage-specific proteins helps to understand how parasites adapt to different hosts and provides new insights into differences in metabolism, gene regulation, and cell architecture. A DEAD-box RNA helicase, which is highly up-regulated in the bloodstream form of this parasite and which is essential for viability and proper cell cycle progression in this stage is described as an example.

Assessing a Reclaimed Concrete Up-Cycling Scheme through Life-Cycle Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guignot, Sylvain; Bru, Kathy; Touzé, Solène; Ménard, Yannick

The present study evaluates the environmental impacts of a recycling scheme for gravels from building concretes wastes, in which the liberated aggregates are reused in structural concretes while the residual mortar fines are sent to the raw mill of a clinker kiln.

Specialists and the Future of Rural Life in Russia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shirokalova, G. S.; Deriabina, O. N.

2012-01-01

The future of Russian agriculture and rural community depends on the willingness of skilled workers to accept conditions of village life and the demands of agricultural work. Surveys of potential rural specialists indicate that they are concerned about the lack of up-to-date technologies, the difficult working conditions and low prestige of…

Emergence of Polycystic Neotropical Echinococcosis

PubMed Central

Stich, August; Frosch, Matthias

2008-01-01

Echinococcosis is a parasitic zoonosis of increasing concern. In 1903, the first cases of human polycystic echinococcosis, a disease resembling alveolar echinococcosis, emerged in Argentina. One of the parasites responsible, Echinococcus oligarthrus, had been discovered in its adult strobilar stage before 1850. However, >100 years passed from the first description of the adult parasite to the recognition that this species is responsible for some cases of human neotropical polycystic echinococcosis and the elucidation of the parasite’s life cycle. A second South American species, E. vogeli, was described in 1972. Obtaining recognition of the 2 species and establishing their connection to human disease were complicated because the life cycle of tapeworms is complex and comprises different developmental stages in diverse host species. To date, at least 106 human cases have been reported from 12 South and Central American countries. PMID:18258123

How Metamorphosis Is Different in Plethodontids: Larval Life History Perspectives on Life-Cycle Evolution

PubMed Central

Beachy, Christopher K.; Ryan, Travis J.; Bonett, Ronald M.

2017-01-01

Plethodontid salamanders exhibit biphasic, larval form paedomorphic, and direct developing life cycles. This diversity of developmental strategies exceeds that of any other family of terrestrial vertebrate. Here we compare patterns of larval development among the three divergent lineages of biphasic plethodontids and other salamanders. We discuss how patterns of life-cycle evolution and larval ecology might have produced a wide array of larval life histories. Compared with many other salamanders, most larval plethodontids have relatively slow growth rates and sometimes exceptionally long larval periods (up to 60 mo). Recent phylogenetic analyses of life-cycle evolution indicate that ancestral plethodontids were likely direct developers. If true, then biphasic and paedomorphic lineages might have been independently derived through different developmental mechanisms. Furthermore, biphasic plethodontids largely colonized stream habitats, which tend to have lower productivity than seasonally ephemeral ponds. Consistent with this, plethodontid larvae grow very slowly, and metamorphic timing does not appear to be strongly affected by growth history. On the basis of this, we speculate that feeding schedules and stress hormones might play a comparatively reduced role in governing the timing of metamorphosis of stream-dwelling salamanders, particularly plethodontids. PMID:29269959

Class II ADP-ribosylation factors are required for efficient secretion of dengue viruses.

PubMed

Kudelko, Mateusz; Brault, Jean-Baptiste; Kwok, Kevin; Li, Ming Yuan; Pardigon, Nathalie; Peiris, J S Malik; Bruzzone, Roberto; Desprès, Philippe; Nal, Béatrice; Wang, Pei Gang

2012-01-02

Identification and characterization of virus-host interactions are very important steps toward a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms responsible for disease progression and pathogenesis. To date, very few cellular factors involved in the life cycle of flaviviruses, which are important human pathogens, have been described. In this study, we demonstrate a crucial role for class II Arf proteins (Arf4 and Arf5) in the dengue flavivirus life cycle. We show that simultaneous depletion of Arf4 and Arf5 blocks recombinant subviral particle secretion for all four dengue serotypes. Immunostaining analysis suggests that class II Arf proteins are required at an early pre-Golgi step for dengue virus secretion. Using a horseradish peroxidase protein fused to a signal peptide, we show that class II Arfs act specifically on dengue virus secretion without altering the secretion of proteins through the constitutive secretory pathway. Co-immunoprecipitation data demonstrate that the dengue prM glycoprotein interacts with class II Arf proteins but not through its C-terminal VXPX motif. Finally, experiments performed with replication-competent dengue and yellow fever viruses demonstrate that the depletion of class II Arfs inhibits virus secretion, thus confirming their implication in the virus life cycle, although data obtained with West Nile virus pointed out the differences in virus-host interactions among flaviviruses. Our findings shed new light on a molecular mechanism used by dengue viruses during the late stages of the life cycle and demonstrate a novel function for class II Arf proteins.

Class II ADP-ribosylation Factors Are Required for Efficient Secretion of Dengue Viruses*

PubMed Central

Kudelko, Mateusz; Brault, Jean-Baptiste; Kwok, Kevin; Li, Ming Yuan; Pardigon, Nathalie; Peiris, J. S. Malik; Bruzzone, Roberto; Desprès, Philippe; Nal, Béatrice; Wang, Pei Gang

2012-01-01

Identification and characterization of virus-host interactions are very important steps toward a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms responsible for disease progression and pathogenesis. To date, very few cellular factors involved in the life cycle of flaviviruses, which are important human pathogens, have been described. In this study, we demonstrate a crucial role for class II Arf proteins (Arf4 and Arf5) in the dengue flavivirus life cycle. We show that simultaneous depletion of Arf4 and Arf5 blocks recombinant subviral particle secretion for all four dengue serotypes. Immunostaining analysis suggests that class II Arf proteins are required at an early pre-Golgi step for dengue virus secretion. Using a horseradish peroxidase protein fused to a signal peptide, we show that class II Arfs act specifically on dengue virus secretion without altering the secretion of proteins through the constitutive secretory pathway. Co-immunoprecipitation data demonstrate that the dengue prM glycoprotein interacts with class II Arf proteins but not through its C-terminal VXPX motif. Finally, experiments performed with replication-competent dengue and yellow fever viruses demonstrate that the depletion of class II Arfs inhibits virus secretion, thus confirming their implication in the virus life cycle, although data obtained with West Nile virus pointed out the differences in virus-host interactions among flaviviruses. Our findings shed new light on a molecular mechanism used by dengue viruses during the late stages of the life cycle and demonstrate a novel function for class II Arf proteins. PMID:22105072

A comparison of major petroleum life cycle models | Science ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Many organizations have attempted to develop an accurate well-to-pump life cycle model of petroleum products in order to inform decision makers of the consequences of its use. Our paper studies five of these models, demonstrating the differences in their predictions and attempting to evaluate their data quality. Carbon dioxide well-to-pump emissions for gasoline showed a variation of 35 %, and other pollutants such as ammonia and particulate matter varied up to 100 %. Differences in allocation do not appear to explain differences in predictions. Effects of these deviations on well-to-wheels passenger vehicle and truck transportation life cycle models may be minimal for effects such as global warming potential (6 % spread), but for respiratory effects of criteria pollutants (41 % spread) and other impact categories, they can be significant. A data quality assessment of the models’ documentation revealed real differences between models in temporal and geographic representativeness, completeness, as well as transparency. Stakeholders may need to consider carefully the tradeoffs inherent when selecting a model to conduct life cycle assessments for systems that make heavy use of petroleum products. This is a qualitative and quantitative comparison of petroleum LCA models intended for an expert audience interested in better understanding the data quality of existing petroleum life cycle models and the quantitative differences between these models.

Cycle life performance of rechargeable lithium ion batteries and mathematical modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ning, Gang

Capacity fade of commercial Sony US 18650 Li-ion batteries cycled at high discharge rates was studied at ambient temperature. Battery cycled at the highest discharge rate (3 C) shows the largest internal resistance increase of 27.7% relative to the resistance of fresh battery. It's been observed anode carbon loses 10.6% of its capability to intercalate or deintercalate Li+ after it was subjected to 300 cycles at discharge rate of 3 C. This loss dominates capacity fade of full battery. A mechanism considering continuous parasitic reaction at anode/electrolyte interface and film thickening has been proposed. First principles based charge-discharge models to simulate cycle life behavior of rechargeable Li-ion batteries have been developed. In the generalized model, transport in both electrolyte phase and solid phase were simultaneously taken into account. Under mild charge-discharge condition, transport of lithium in the electrolyte phase has been neglected in the simplified model. Both models are based on loss of the active lithium ions due to the electrochemical parasitic reaction at anode/electrolyte interface and on rise of the anode film resistance. The effect of parameters such as depth of discharge (DOD), end of charge voltage (EOCV) and overvoltage of the parasitic reaction on the cycle life behavior of a battery has been analyzed. The experimental results obtained at a charge rate of 1 C, discharge rate of 0.5 C, EOCV of 4.0 V and DOD of 0.4 have been used to validate cycle life models. Good agreement between the simulations and the experiments has been achieved up to 1968 cycles with both models. Simulation of cycle life of battery under multiple cycling regimes has also been demonstrated.

[Follow-up of infants with birth weight under 1,500 g].

PubMed

Weldt, E; Valenzuela, B; Angulo, G; Muñoz, E; Gómez, S; Levy, M L; Rosselot, S; Norambuena, N

1989-01-01

A prospective study of 199 children with birth weight less than 1,500 g was done. 86 boys and 113 girls, 141 (71%) adequate for gestational age and 58 (29%) small for gestational age. At follow-up 43 (21.6%) infants were lost to control, 17 (7%) moved to other places and 7 (3.5%) died in the first year of life. In the first year of life, infants whose birthweights were adequate for gestational age had been hospitalized more frequently and the small for dates showed higher percentage of undernutrition. After the second year of life, it was possible to know the impairment. It was found 7.4% of cerebral palsy, 2.9% of hipoacusia and 2.2% of retinopathy of prematurity, these diagnosis were most frequent in children that were adequate for gestational age. We concluded that small for dates infants are at risk of undernutrition and that those adequate for gestational age are at risk of permanent sequelae.

Celestial Moderation of Tropical Seabird Behavior

PubMed Central

Pinet, Patrick; Jaeger, Audrey; Cordier, Emmanuel; Potin, Gaël; Le Corre, Matthieu

2011-01-01

Most animals, including birds, have cyclic life histories and numerous studies generally conducted on captive animals have shown that photoperiod is the main factor influencing this periodicity. Moon cycles can also affect periodic behavior of birds. Few studies have investigated the influence of these environmental cues in natural settings, and particularly in tropical areas where the change in photoperiod is slight and some bird species keep cyclic behaviors. Using miniaturized light sensors, we simultaneously investigated under natural conditions the influence of photoperiod and moon phases on the migration dates and at-sea activity of a tropical seabird species, the Barau's petrel, throughout its annual cycle. Firstly, we found that birds consistently started their pre- and post-breeding migrations at precise dates corresponding in both cases to a day-duration of 12.5 hours, suggesting a strong influence of the photoperiod in the regulation of migration behavior. We also found that mean population arrival dates to the colony changed from year to year and they were influenced by moon phases. Returns at their colonies occurred around the last full moon of the austral winter, suggesting that moon cycle is used by birds to synchronize their arrival. Secondly, variations of day-time activity were sinusoidal and correlated to seasonal changes of daylength. We thus hypothesize that the photoperiod could directly affect the behavior of the birds at sea. Night-time at-sea activity exhibited a clear cycle of 29.2 days, suggesting that nocturnal foraging was highly regulated by moon phase, particularly during the non-breeding season. To our knowledge, this is the first study to document a mixed regulation of the behavior of a wild bird by photoperiod and moon phases throughout its annual cycle. PMID:22110711

Celestial moderation of tropical seabird behavior.

PubMed

Pinet, Patrick; Jaeger, Audrey; Cordier, Emmanuel; Potin, Gaël; Le Corre, Matthieu

2011-01-01

Most animals, including birds, have cyclic life histories and numerous studies generally conducted on captive animals have shown that photoperiod is the main factor influencing this periodicity. Moon cycles can also affect periodic behavior of birds. Few studies have investigated the influence of these environmental cues in natural settings, and particularly in tropical areas where the change in photoperiod is slight and some bird species keep cyclic behaviors. Using miniaturized light sensors, we simultaneously investigated under natural conditions the influence of photoperiod and moon phases on the migration dates and at-sea activity of a tropical seabird species, the Barau's petrel, throughout its annual cycle. Firstly, we found that birds consistently started their pre- and post-breeding migrations at precise dates corresponding in both cases to a day-duration of 12.5 hours, suggesting a strong influence of the photoperiod in the regulation of migration behavior. We also found that mean population arrival dates to the colony changed from year to year and they were influenced by moon phases. Returns at their colonies occurred around the last full moon of the austral winter, suggesting that moon cycle is used by birds to synchronize their arrival. Secondly, variations of day-time activity were sinusoidal and correlated to seasonal changes of daylength. We thus hypothesize that the photoperiod could directly affect the behavior of the birds at sea. Night-time at-sea activity exhibited a clear cycle of 29.2 days, suggesting that nocturnal foraging was highly regulated by moon phase, particularly during the non-breeding season. To our knowledge, this is the first study to document a mixed regulation of the behavior of a wild bird by photoperiod and moon phases throughout its annual cycle.

Data-Driven Mechanistic Modeling of Influence of Microstructure on High-Cycle Fatigue Life of Nickel Titanium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kafka, Orion L.; Yu, Cheng; Shakoor, Modesar; Liu, Zeliang; Wagner, Gregory J.; Liu, Wing Kam

2018-04-01

A data-driven mechanistic modeling technique is applied to a system representative of a broken-up inclusion ("stringer") within drawn nickel-titanium wire or tube, e.g., as used for arterial stents. The approach uses a decomposition of the problem into a training stage and a prediction stage. It is applied to compute the fatigue crack incubation life of a microstructure of interest under high-cycle fatigue. A parametric study of a matrix-inclusion-void microstructure is conducted. The results indicate that, within the range studied, a larger void between halves of the inclusion increases fatigue life, while larger inclusion diameter reduces fatigue life.

Transport of Passive Tracers in Baroclinic Wave Life Cycles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stone, Elizabeth M.; Randel, William J.; Stanford, John L.

1999-01-01

The transport of passive tracers in idealized baroclinic wave life cycles is studied using output from the National Center for Atmospheric Research Community Climate Model (CCM2). Two life cycles, LCn and LCs, are simulated, starting with baroclinically unstable initial conditions similar to those used by Thorncroft et al. in their study of two life cycle paradigms. The two life cycles LCn and LCs have different initial horizontal wind shear structures that result in distinctive nonlinear development. In terms of potential vorticity-potential temperature (PV-theta) diagnostics, the LCn case is characterized by thinning troughs that are advected anti-cyclonically and equatorward, while the LCs case has broadening troughs that wrap up cyclonically and poleward. Four idealized passive tracers are included in the model to be advected by the semi-Lagrangian transport scheme of the CCM2, and their evolutions are investigated throughout the life cycles. Tracer budgets are analyzed in terms of the transformed Eulerian mean constituent transport formalism in pressure coordinates and also in isentropic coordinates. Results for both LCn and LCs show transport that is downgradient with respect to the background structure of the tracer field, but with a characteristic spatial structure that maximizes in the middle to high latitudes. For the idealized tropospheric tracers in this study, this represents a net upward and poleward transport that enhances concentrations at high latitudes. These results vary little with the initial distribution of the constituent field. The time tendency of the tracer is influenced most strongly by the eddy flux term. with the largest transport occurring during the nonlinear growth stage of the life cycle. The authors also study the transport of a lower-stratospheric tracer, to examine stratosphere-troposphere exchange for baroclinic waves.

Life Cycle Assessment of Wall Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramachandran, Sriranjani

Natural resource depletion and environmental degradation are the stark realities of the times we live in. As awareness about these issues increases globally, industries and businesses are becoming interested in understanding and minimizing the ecological footprints of their activities. Evaluating the environmental impacts of products and processes has become a key issue, and the first step towards addressing and eventually curbing climate change. Additionally, companies are finding it beneficial and are interested in going beyond compliance using pollution prevention strategies and environmental management systems to improve their environmental performance. Life-cycle Assessment (LCA) is an evaluative method to assess the environmental impacts associated with a products' life-cycle from cradle-to-grave (i.e. from raw material extraction through to material processing, manufacturing, distribution, use, repair and maintenance, and finally, disposal or recycling). This study focuses on evaluating building envelopes on the basis of their life-cycle analysis. In order to facilitate this analysis, a small-scale office building, the University Services Building (USB), with a built-up area of 148,101 ft2 situated on ASU campus in Tempe, Arizona was studied. The building's exterior envelope is the highlight of this study. The current exterior envelope is made of tilt-up concrete construction, a type of construction in which the concrete elements are constructed horizontally and tilted up, after they are cured, using cranes and are braced until other structural elements are secured. This building envelope is compared to five other building envelope systems (i.e. concrete block, insulated concrete form, cast-in-place concrete, steel studs and curtain wall constructions) evaluating them on the basis of least environmental impact. The research methodology involved developing energy models, simulating them and generating changes in energy consumption due to the above mentioned envelope types. Energy consumption data, along with various other details, such as building floor area, areas of walls, columns, beams etc. and their material types were imported into Life-Cycle Assessment software called ATHENA impact estimator for buildings. Using this four-stepped LCA methodology, the results showed that the Steel Stud envelope performed the best and less environmental impact compared to other envelope types. This research methodology can be applied to other building typologies.

Ending the Tech Refresh Nightmare

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Demski, Jennifer

2010-01-01

As higher education budgets tighten in the ongoing recession, colleges and universities have found themselves questioning, lengthening, and even eliminating tech refresh cycles. Yet how deep an institution cuts into its refresh program can compromise its ability to provide an up-to-date and competitive computing environment for students and a…

Infrastructure and automobile shifts: positioning transit to reduce life-cycle environmental impacts for urban sustainability goals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chester, Mikhail; Pincetl, Stephanie; Elizabeth, Zoe; Eisenstein, William; Matute, Juan

2013-03-01

Public transportation systems are often part of strategies to reduce urban environmental impacts from passenger transportation, yet comprehensive energy and environmental life-cycle measures, including upfront infrastructure effects and indirect and supply chain processes, are rarely considered. Using the new bus rapid transit and light rail lines in Los Angeles, near-term and long-term life-cycle impact assessments are developed, including consideration of reduced automobile travel. Energy consumption and emissions of greenhouse gases and criteria pollutants are assessed, as well the potential for smog and respiratory impacts. Results show that life-cycle infrastructure, vehicle, and energy production components significantly increase the footprint of each mode (by 48-100% for energy and greenhouse gases, and up to 6200% for environmental impacts), and emerging technologies and renewable electricity standards will significantly reduce impacts. Life-cycle results are identified as either local (in Los Angeles) or remote, and show how the decision to build and operate a transit system in a city produces environmental impacts far outside of geopolitical boundaries. Ensuring shifts of between 20-30% of transit riders from automobiles will result in passenger transportation greenhouse gas reductions for the city, and the larger the shift, the quicker the payback, which should be considered for time-specific environmental goals.

Probabilistic Fatigue Damage Program (FATIG)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Michalopoulos, Constantine

2012-01-01

FATIG computes fatigue damage/fatigue life using the stress rms (root mean square) value, the total number of cycles, and S-N curve parameters. The damage is computed by the following methods: (a) traditional method using Miner s rule with stress cycles determined from a Rayleigh distribution up to 3*sigma; and (b) classical fatigue damage formula involving the Gamma function, which is derived from the integral version of Miner's rule. The integration is carried out over all stress amplitudes. This software solves the problem of probabilistic fatigue damage using the integral form of the Palmgren-Miner rule. The software computes fatigue life using an approach involving all stress amplitudes, up to N*sigma, as specified by the user. It can be used in the design of structural components subjected to random dynamic loading, or by any stress analyst with minimal training for fatigue life estimates of structural components.

High temperature fatigue behavior of Haynes 188

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Halford, Gary R.; Saltsman, James F.; Kalluri, Sreeramesh

1988-01-01

The high temperature, creep-fatigue behavior of Haynes 188 was investigated as an element in a broader thermomechanical fatigue life prediction model development program at the NASA-Lewis. The models are still in the development stage, but the data that were generated possess intrinsic value on their own. Results generated to date is reported. Data were generated to characterize isothermal low cycle fatigue resistance at temperatures of 316, 704, and 927 C with cyclic failure lives ranging from 10 to more than 20,000. These results follow trends that would be predicted from a knowledge of tensile properties, i.e., as the tensile ductility varies with temperature, so varies the cyclic inelastic straining capacity. Likewise, as the tensile strength decreases, so does the high cyclic fatigue resistance. A few two-minute hold-time cycles at peak compressive strain were included in tests at 760 C. These results were obtained in support of a redesign effort for the Orbital Maneuverable System engine. No detrimental effects on cyclic life were noted despite the added exposure time for creep and oxidation. Finally, a series of simulated thermal fatigue tests, referred to as bithermal fatigue tests, were conducted using 316 C as the minimum and 760 C as the maximum temperature. Only out-of-phase bithermal tests were conducted to date. These test results are intended for use as input to a more general thermomechanical fatigue life prediction model based on the concepts of the total strain version of Strainrange Partitioning.

Forty-five years of cell-cycle genetics

PubMed Central

Reid, Brian J.; Culotti, Joseph G.; Nash, Robert S.; Pringle, John R.

2015-01-01

In the early 1970s, studies in Leland Hartwell’s laboratory at the University of Washington launched the genetic analysis of the eukaryotic cell cycle and set the path that has led to our modern understanding of this centrally important process. This 45th-anniversary Retrospective reviews the steps by which the project took shape, the atmosphere in which this happened, and the possible morals for modern times. It also provides an up-to-date look at the 35 original CDC genes and their human homologues. PMID:26628751

Personality, Cognitive Skills and Life Outcomes: Evidence from the Polish Follow-Up Study to PIAAC

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Palczynska, Marta; Swist, Karolina

2018-01-01

Background: There is a growing literature providing evidence on the importance of non-cognitive skills for life outcomes. However, to date there is limited evidence on the gains from incorporating such measures into large-scale competence surveys. Methods: We investigate the relationship between personality traits and eight important life…

Optimum selection of an implantable secondary battery for an artificial heart by examination of the cycle life test.

PubMed

Okamoto, Eiji; Watanabe, Kazuya; Hashiba, Kunihiro; Inoue, Taku; Iwazawa, Eichi; Momoi, Masato; Hashimoto, Takuya; Mitamura, Yoshinori

2002-01-01

An implantable secondary battery is one of the key components in a total artificial heart system. Because a 2 year cycle life is required, the cycle life of the secondary battery as well as its charge and discharge properties are important parameters for selection of an appropriate battery. We carried out cycle life tests on four kinds of rechargeable batteries (a Ni-MH secondary battery, a Ni-Cd secondary battery, a Li-ion battery with a graphite anode, and a Li-ion battery with a nongraphitizable carbon electrode) to determine their suitability as implanted back-up batteries. Each of the batteries was charge/discharge cycled at 37 degrees C to 39 degrees C using a charge current of 1 C ampere, and they were each fully discharged under either pulsatile discharge loads, which mimicked pulsatile operation, or a nonpulsatile load equivalent to the average of the pulsatile loads. The two Li-ion batteries made by different manufacturers both met the minimum requirement of cycle life of more than 1,500 cycles, considering safety coefficient regardless of the discharge pattern. In addition, the temperature increase of these Li-ion batteries (3 degrees C) was lower than that of Ni-Cd and Ni-MH batteries (15-25 degrees C). Out of these four batteries, the two Li-ion batteries are the most suitable for use in a totally implantable artificial heart system.

Menstrual Cycle Hormone Changes in Women Traversing Menopause: Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation

PubMed Central

Crawford, Sybil L.; El Khoudary, Samar R.; Allshouse, Amanda A.; Burnett-Bowie, Sherri-Ann; Finkelstein, Joel; Derby, Carol; Matthews, Karen; Kravitz, Howard M.; Harlow, Sioban D.; Greendale, Gail A.; Gold, Ellen B.; Kazlauskaite, Rasa; McConnell, Dan; Neal-Perry, Genevieve; Pavlovic, Jelena; Randolph, John; Weiss, Gerson; Chen, Hsiang-Yu; Lasley, Bill

2017-01-01

Context: Menstrual cycle hormone patterns in women approaching menopause are inadequately studied. Objective: To describe day-to-day menstrual cycle hormones in women as they approach menopause from the Study of Women's Health Across the Nation Daily Hormone Study (DHS). Design: DHS enrollees collected daily urine for one entire menstrual cycle or up to 50 days, whichever came first, annually, up to the final menstrual period (FMP) or for up to 10 years. Setting: Seven sites across the United States. Participants: A total of 511 premenopausal or early perimenopausal women at enrollment, within 10 years before menopause. Intervention: Time-to-FMP measurement. Main Outcome Measures: Evidence of luteal activity (ELA), determined using objective algorithms. Menstrual cycle/segment length; whole cycle, and segment integrated urinary luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, estrone conjugates, and pregnanediol glucuronide (Pdg) for each year, organized around the FMP. Results: Mean menstrual cycle length was remarkably preserved at 26 to 27 days in ELA cycles; non-ELA cycles had greater variability. The percentage of cycles that were ELA remained high until 5 years before the FMP (87.9%); only 22.8% of cycles within 1 year of the FMP were ELA. Whole cycle hormones remained relatively stable up to 3 years before the FMP, when gonadotropins began to increase. Pdg excretion declined slowly with progress to the FMP, but Pdg patterns of ELA cycles remained distinguishable from non-ELA. Conclusions: Menstrual cycle hormone patterns in perimenopausal women resemble those of midreproductive-aged women until 5 years before menopause, and presumably ovulatory cycles retain a potentially fertile pattern up to the end of reproductive life. PMID:28368525

Ablative fractional CO2 laser for burn scar reconstruction: An extensive subjective and objective short-term outcome analysis of a prospective treatment cohort.

PubMed

Issler-Fisher, Andrea C; Fisher, Oliver M; Smialkowski, Ania O; Li, Frank; van Schalkwyk, Constant P; Haertsch, Peter; Maitz, Peter K M

2017-05-01

The introduction of ablative fractional CO 2 lasers (CO 2 -AFL) for burn scar management shows promising results. Whilst recent studies have focused on objective scar outcomes following CO 2 -AFL treatment, to date no data on patient subjective factors such as quality of life are available. A prospective study was initiated to analyze the safety and efficacy of the CO 2 -AFL. Various objective and subjective outcome parameters were prospectively collected from the date of first consultation and follow-up following treatment. Objective factors include the Vancouver Scar Scale (VSS), the Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale (POSAS), and ultrasound measurements of the thickness of the scar. Subjective parameters included the assessment of neuropathic pain and pruritus, as well as the evaluation of improvement of quality of life following CO 2 -AFL with the Burns Specific Health Scale (BSHS-B). For treatment effect analysis, patients were stratified according to scar maturation status (> or <2 years after injury). 47 patients with 118 burn scars completed at least one treatment cycle. At a median of 55 days (IQR 32-74) after CO 2 -AFL treatment all analyzed objective parameters decreased significantly: intra-patient normalized scar thickness decreased from a median of 2.4mm to 1.9mm (p<0.001) with a concomitant VSS-drop from a median of 7 to 6 (p<0.001). The overall POSAS patient scale decreased from a median of 9 to 5 (p<0.001) with similar effects documented in POSAS observer scales. Both pain and pruritus showed significant reduction. Quality of life increased significantly by 15 points (median 120 to 135; p<0.001). All of the identified changes following CO 2 -AFL were equally significant irrespective of scar maturation status. Our preliminary results confirm significant improvement in thickness, texture, colour, and symptoms following treatment with CO 2 -AFL. Foremost, quality of life of patients with both immature and mature scars (up to 23 years after injury) improved significantly after just one treatment session. To our knowledge, this is the first study to document such holistic treatment effects in burn patients treated by CO 2 -AFL. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd and ISBI. All rights reserved.

Ada education in a software life-cycle context

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clough, Anne J.

1986-01-01

Some of the experience gained from a comprehensive educational program undertaken at The Charles Stark Draper Lab. to introduce the Ada language and to transition modern software engineering technology into the development of Ada and non-Ada applications is described. Initially, a core group, which included manager, engineers and programmers, received training in Ada. An Ada Office was established to assume the major responsibility for training, evaluation, acquisition and benchmarking of tools, and consultation on Ada projects. As a first step in this process, and in-house educational program was undertaken to introduce Ada to the Laboratory. Later, a software engineering course was added to the educational program as the need to address issues spanning the entire software life cycle became evident. Educational efforts to date are summarized, with an emphasis on the educational approach adopted. Finally, lessons learned in administering this program are addressed.

From concept(ion) to life after death/the grave: The 'natural' history and life cycle(s) of novel psychoactive substances (NPS).

PubMed

Corkery, John Martin; Orsolini, Laura; Papanti, Duccio; Schifano, Fabrizio

2017-05-01

A range of information needs should be met in order to better understand and predict the longevity/existence of novel psychoactive substances (NPS). This conceptual paper argues that one way of assessing how long a molecule may be around is to document how the life cycles or natural histories of 'traditional' drugs and NPS evolve. The earliest indication of the possible appearance of a new substance might be evidenced on the DeepWeb. However, this means they are less visible, in line with the clandestine nature of drug use and supply. Therefore, monitoring discussion groups/fora needs the development of new methods compared to those used in the Surface Net. Issues needing consideration in establishing NPS life cycles are outlined here, together with the probable outcomes that could result. The approach advocated means that it should be easier to identify which NPS are likely to come up or are emerging in real time, and, therefore, pre-empt/prevent their supply. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Gas Bearing Implementation of Small Cryocooler Compressor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuo, D. T.; Loc, A. S.; Hanes, M.

2006-04-01

In order to reduce the life-cycle cost of systems that use cryocoolers, it is necessary to extend the operating life of the cooler beyond what is currently available for tactical military applications. Several approaches have been used to increase life such as flexure bearing and gas bearing support. It was determined that a gas bearing system offered a novel and cost effective approach for our products. This paper presents the implementation of a gas bearing system into the miniature cryocooler compressor. The theoretical analyses used to design the gas bearing system will be discussed and empirical data comparing the performance between the baseline and gas bearing coolers will be presented. A life test program is being undertaken to verify the life characteristics of the gas bearing cooler and the results will be summarized and published at a later date.

Cyber physical systems role in manufacturing technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Al-Ali, A. R.; Gupta, Ragini; Nabulsi, Ahmad Al

2018-04-01

Empowered by the recent development in single System-on-Chip, Internet of Things, and cloud computing technologies, cyber physical systems are evolving as a major controller during and post the manufacturing products process. In additional to their real physical space, cyber products nowadays have a virtual space. A product virtual space is a digital twin that is attached to it to enable manufacturers and their clients to better manufacture, monitor, maintain and operate it throughout its life time cycles, i.e. from the product manufacturing date, through operation and to the end of its lifespan. Each product is equipped with a tiny microcontroller that has a unique identification number, access code and WiFi conductivity to access it anytime and anywhere during its life cycle. This paper presents the cyber physical systems architecture and its role in manufacturing. Also, it highlights the role of Internet of Things and cloud computing in industrial manufacturing and factory automation.

Life cycle assessment of second generation (2G) and third generation (3G) mobile phone networks.

PubMed

Scharnhorst, Wolfram; Hilty, Lorenz M; Jolliet, Olivier

2006-07-01

The environmental performance of presently operated GSM and UMTS networks was analysed concentrating on the environmental effects of the End-of-Life (EOL) phase using the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method. The study was performed based on comprehensive life cycle inventory and life cycle modelling. The environmental effects were quantified using the IMPACT2002+ method. Based on technological forecasts, the environmental effects of forthcoming mobile telephone networks were approximated. The results indicate that a parallel operation of GSM and UMTS networks is environmentally detrimental and the transition phase should be kept as short as possible. The use phase (i.e. the operation) of the radio network components account for a large fraction of the total environmental impact. In particular, there is a need to lower the energy consumption of those network components. Seen in relation to each other, UMTS networks provide an environmentally more efficient mobile communication technology than GSM networks. In assessing the EOL phase, recycling the electronic scrap of mobile phone networks was shown to have clear environmental benefits. Under the present conditions, material recycling could help lower the environmental impact of the production phase by up to 50%.

Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM)

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-12-01

February 19, 2015 and the O&S cost are based on an ICE dated August 28, 2014 Confidence Level Confidence Level of cost estimate for current APB: 50% A...mathematically derived confidence level was not computed for this Life-Cycle Cost Estimate (LCCE). This LCCE represents the expected value, taking into...consideration relevant risks, including ordinary levels of external and unforeseen events. It aims to provide sufficient resources to execute the

Development and application of EEAST: a life cycle based model for use of harvested rainwater and composting toilets in buildings.

PubMed

Devkota, J; Schlachter, H; Anand, C; Phillips, R; Apul, Defne

2013-11-30

Harvested rainwater systems and composting toilets are expected to be an important part of sustainable solutions in buildings. Yet, to this date, a model evaluating their economic and environmental impact has been missing. To address this need, a life cycle based model, EEAST was developed. EEAST was designed to compare the business as usual (BAU) case of using potable water for toilet flushing and irrigation to alternative scenarios of rainwater harvesting and composting toilet based technologies. In EEAST, building characteristics, occupancy, and precipitation are used to size the harvested rainwater and composting toilet systems. Then, life cycle costing and life cycle assessment methods are used to estimate cost, energy, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission payback periods (PPs) for five alternative scenarios. The scenarios modeled include use of harvested rainwater for toilet flushing, for irrigation, or both; and use of composting toilets with or without harvested rainwater use for irrigation. A sample simulation using EEAST showed that for the office building modeled, the cost PPs were greater than energy PPs which in turn were greater than GHG emission PPs. This was primarily due to energy and emission intensive nature of the centralized water and wastewater infrastructure. The sample simulation also suggested that the composting toilets may have the best performance in all criteria. However, EEAST does not explicitly model solids management and as such may give composting toilets an unfair advantage compared to flush based toilets. EEAST results were found to be very sensitive to cost values used in the model. With the availability of EEAST, life cycle cost, energy, and GHG emissions can now be performed fairly easily by building designers and researchers. Future work is recommended to further improve EEAST and evaluate it for different types of buildings and climates so as to better understand when composting toilets and harvested rainwater systems outperform the BAU case in building design. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The use of remotely sensed soil moisture data in large-scale models of the hydrological cycle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Salomonson, V. V.; Gurney, R. J.; Schmugge, T. J.

1985-01-01

Manabe (1982) has reviewed numerical simulations of the atmosphere which provided a framework within which an examination of the dynamics of the hydrological cycle could be conducted. It was found that the climate is sensitive to soil moisture variability in space and time. The challenge arises now to improve the observations of soil moisture so as to provide up-dated boundary condition inputs to large scale models including the hydrological cycle. Attention is given to details regarding the significance of understanding soil moisture variations, soil moisture estimation using remote sensing, and energy and moisture balance modeling.

International Space Station Lithium-Ion Battery Start-Up

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dalton, Penni J.; North, Tim; Bowens, Ebony; Balcer, Sonia

2017-01-01

International Space Station Lithium-Ion Battery Start-Up.The International Space Station (ISS) primary Electric Power System (EPS) was originally designed to use Nickel-Hydrogen (Ni-H2) batteries to store electrical energy. The electricity for the space station is generated by its solar arrays, which charge batteries during insolation for subsequent discharge during eclipse. The Ni-H2 batteries are designed to operate at a 35 depth of discharge (DOD) maximum during normal operation in a Low Earth Orbit. As the oldest of the 48 Ni-H2 battery Orbital Replacement Units (ORUs) has been cycling since September 2006, these batteries are now approaching their end of useful life. In 2010, the ISS Program began the development of Lithium-Ion (Li-ion) batteries to replace the Ni-H2 batteries and concurrently funded a Li-Ion ORU and cell life testing project. The first set of 6 Li-ion battery replacements were launched in December 2016 and deployed in January 2017. This paper will discuss the Li-ion battery on-orbit start-up and the status of the Li-Ion cell and ORU life cycle testing.

Feasibility of a nickel-metal hydride battery for totally implantable artificial hearts.

PubMed

Okamoto, E; Yoshida, T; Fujiyoshi, M; Shimanaka, M; Takeuchi, A; Mitamura, Y; Mikami, T

1996-01-01

An implantable rechargeable battery is one of the key technologies for totally implantable artificial hearts. The nickel-metal hydride (Ni-MH) battery is promising for its high energy density of 1.5-2.0 times that of a nickel-cadmium battery. In this study, the effects of pulsatile discharge loads on the operating time and cycle life of Ni-MH batteries at 39 degrees C were studied. Two battery cells (TH-3M, 1,200 mAh, phi 14.5 x 49 mm; Toshiba, Tokyo, Japan) in series were charge/discharge cycled at 39 degrees C using a charge current of 1CA (1,200 mA) and then were fully discharged to 1.0 V/cell under either pulsatile discharge loads, which mimicked a systole (1 A for 0.3 sec) and a diastole (0.4 A for 0.3 sec), or a non pulsatile discharge load equivalent to the average of the pulsatile loads (0.7 A). Each cycle life test was interrupted on the 482nd cycle under pulsatile load, and on the 423rd cycle under non pulsatile load, because of malfunction of each battery charger. The tests showed that the pulsatile discharge cells had significantly (p < 0.001) less operating time (74.0 +/- 7.15 min) throughout the test period (up to 482 days) compared to the cells under equivalent non pulsatile discharge loads (93.7 +/- 7.74 min). The pulsatile-discharged Ni-MH cells provide significantly less operating time than the constantly discharged cells; the Ni-MH battery has an operating time of over 78 min and a cycle life of almost 500 cycles at 39 degrees C. In conclusion, the Ni-MH battery is feasible as an implantable back-up battery for a totally implantable artificial heart system.

Review of the Two-Step H2O/CO2-Splitting Solar Thermochemical Cycle Based on Zn/ZnO Redox Reactions

PubMed Central

Loutzenhiser, Peter G.; Meier, Anton; Steinfeld, Aldo

2010-01-01

This article provides a comprehensive overview of the work to date on the two‑step solar H2O and/or CO2 splitting thermochemical cycles with Zn/ZnO redox reactions to produce H2 and/or CO, i.e., synthesis gas—the precursor to renewable liquid hydrocarbon fuels. The two-step cycle encompasses: (1) The endothermic dissociation of ZnO to Zn and O2 using concentrated solar energy as the source for high-temperature process heat; and (2) the non-solar exothermic oxidation of Zn with H2O/CO2 to generate H2/CO, respectively; the resulting ZnO is then recycled to the first step. An outline of the underlying science and the technological advances in solar reactor engineering is provided along with life cycle and economic analyses. PMID:28883361

Quality of Life in the Nursing Home: Perspectives of Younger and Older Residents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Watt, Ashli; Konnert, Candace

2007-01-01

Adults aged 65 and younger make up a significant proportion of nursing-home residents. To date, however, there is no research examining their quality of life (QOL), including how their perceptions of QOL compare to those of older nursing-home residents. This study used a multidimensional approach to (a) assess the QOL of younger nursing-home…

Determination of the carbon footprint of all Galician production and consumption activities: Lessons learnt and guidelines for policymakers.

PubMed

Roibás, Laura; Loiseau, Eléonore; Hospido, Almudena

2017-08-01

Galicia is an Autonomous Community located in the north-west of Spain. As a starting point to implement mitigation and adaptation measures to climate change, a regional greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory is needed. So far, the only regional GHG inventories available are limited to the territorial emissions of those production activities which are expected to cause major environmental degradation. An alternative approach has been followed here to quantify all the on-site (direct) and embodied (indirect) GHG emissions related to all Galician production and consumption activities. The carbon footprint (CF) was calculated following the territorial life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology for data collection, that combines bottom-up and top-down approaches. The most up-to-date statistical data and life cycle inventories available were used to compute all GHG emissions. This case study represents a leap of scale when compared to existing studies, thus addressing the issue of double counting, which arises when considering all the production activities of a large region. The CF of the consumption activities in Galicia is 17.8 ktCO 2 e/year, with 88% allocated to Galician inhabitants and 12% to tourist consumption. The proposed methodology also identifies the main important contributors to GHG emissions and shows where regional reduction efforts should be made. The major contributor to the CF of inhabitants is housing (32%), followed by food consumption (29%). Within the CF of tourist consumption, the share of transport is highest (59%), followed by housing (26%). The CF of Galician production reaches 34.9 MtCO 2 e/y, and its major contributor is electricity production (21%), followed by food manufacturing (19%). Our results have been compared to those reported for other regions, actions aimed at reducing GHG emissions have been proposed, and data gaps and limitations identified. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Scenarios for Low Carbon and Low Water Electric Power Plant Operations: Implications for Upstream Water Use.

PubMed

Dodder, Rebecca S; Barnwell, Jessica T; Yelverton, William H

2016-11-01

Electric sector water use, in particular for thermoelectric operations, is a critical component of the water-energy nexus. On a life cycle basis per unit of electricity generated, operational (e.g., cooling system) water use is substantially higher than water demands for the fuel cycle (e.g., natural gas and coal) and power plant manufacturing (e.g., equipment and construction). However, could shifting toward low carbon and low water electric power operations create trade-offs across the electricity life cycle? We compare business-as-usual with scenarios of carbon reductions and water constraints using the MARKet ALlocation (MARKAL) energy system model. Our scenarios show that, for water withdrawals, the trade-offs are minimal: operational water use accounts for over 95% of life cycle withdrawals. For water consumption, however, this analysis identifies potential trade-offs under some scenarios. Nationally, water use for the fuel cycle and power plant manufacturing can reach up to 26% of the total life cycle consumption. In the western United States, nonoperational consumption can even exceed operational demands. In particular, water use for biomass feedstock irrigation and manufacturing/construction of solar power facilities could increase with high deployment. As the United States moves toward lower carbon electric power operations, consideration of shifting water demands can help avoid unintended consequences.

The Stability of Individual Differences in Mental Ability from Childhood to Old Age: Follow-up of the 1932 Scottish Mental Survey.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deary, Ian J.; Whalley, Lawrence J.; Lemmon, Helen; Crawford, J. R.; Starr, John M.

2000-01-01

Tested 101 adults, aged 77, who had completed psychometric intelligence testing in 1932, with the same test of mental ability. Results of this study, the longest follow-up study reported to date, show substantial stability in mental ability differences from childhood to late life. (SLD)

Calculating length of gestation from the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology Clinic Outcome Reporting System (SART CORS) database versus vital records may alter reported rates of prematurity.

PubMed

Stern, Judy E; Kotelchuck, Milton; Luke, Barbara; Declercq, Eugene; Cabral, Howard; Diop, Hafsatou

2014-05-01

To compare length of gestation after assisted reproductive technology (ART) as calculated by three methods from the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology Clinic Outcome Reporting System (SART CORS) and vital records (birth and fetal death) in the Massachusetts Pregnancy to Early Life Longitudinal Data System (PELL). Historical cohort study. Database linkage analysis. Live or stillborn deliveries. None. ART deliveries were linked to live birth or fetal death certificates. Length of gestation in 7,171 deliveries from fresh autologous ART cycles (2004-2008) was calculated and compared with that of SART CORS with the use of methods: M1 = outcome date - cycle start date; M2 = outcome date - transfer date + 17 days; and M3 = outcome date - transfer date + 14 days + day of transfer. Generalized estimating equation models were used to compare methods. Singleton and multiple deliveries were included. Overall prematurity (delivery <37 weeks) varied by method of calculation: M1 29.1%; M2 25.6%; M3 25.2%; and PELL 27.2%. The SART methods, M1-M3, varied from those of PELL by ≥ 3 days in >45% of deliveries and by more than 1 week in >22% of deliveries. Each method differed from each other. Estimates of preterm birth in ART vary depending on source of data and method of calculation. Some estimates may overestimate preterm birth rates for ART conceptions. Copyright © 2014 American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

History of the Earth - The History of Life

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rozanov, A. Yu.

2017-05-01

To date there is more and more evidence that life is a phenomenon of galactic scale, and the problem of the life origin should be moved to an earlier time, at least 1-2 billion years from the usual dating. The process of life formation could begin already at the stage of the formation of solar clusters from molecular clouds, which leads us to consider the possible existence of an RNA world up to 7 billion years ago. Verification of physical conditions on the early Earth with the latest astrobiological and paleontological data shows that the optimal conditions for the existence of ancient bacteria suggest that the average temperature of the ocean is slightly higher than today. Also, thanks to the studies of the last two decades, the hypothesis of the oxygen-free atmosphere of the Earth in the first 2 billion years of its existence is rejected.

Renewal of radiological equipment.

PubMed

2014-10-01

In this century, medical imaging is at the heart of medical practice. Besides providing fast and accurate diagnosis, advances in radiology equipment offer new and previously non-existing options for treatment guidance with quite low morbidity, resulting in the improvement of health outcomes and quality of life for the patients. Although rapid technological development created new medical imaging modalities and methods, the same progress speed resulted in accelerated technical and functional obsolescence of the same medical imaging equipment, consequently creating a need for renewal. Older equipment has a high risk of failures and breakdowns, which might cause delays in diagnosis and treatment of the patient, and safety problems both for the patient and the medical staff. The European Society of Radiology is promoting the use of up-to-date equipment, especially in the context of the EuroSafe Imaging Campaign, as the use of up-to-date equipment will improve quality and safety in medical imaging. Every healthcare institution or authority should have a plan for medical imaging equipment upgrade or renewal. This plan should look forward a minimum of 5 years, with annual updates. Teaching points • Radiological equipment has a definite life cycle span, resulting in unavoidable breakdown and decrease or loss of image quality which renders equipment useless after a certain time period.• Equipment older than 10 years is no longer state-of-the art equipment and replacement is essential. Operating costs of older equipment will be high when compared with new equipment, and sometimes maintenance will be impossible if no spare parts are available.• Older equipment has a high risk of failure and breakdown, causing delays in diagnosis and treatment of the patient and safety problems both for the patient and the medical staff.• Every healthcare institution or authority should have a plan for medical imaging equipment upgrade or replacement. This plan should look forward a minimum of 5 years, with annual updating.

High resolution remote sensing for reducing uncertainties in urban forest carbon offset life cycle assessments.

PubMed

Tigges, Jan; Lakes, Tobia

2017-10-04

Urban forests reduce greenhouse gas emissions by storing and sequestering considerable amounts of carbon. However, few studies have considered the local scale of urban forests to effectively evaluate their potential long-term carbon offset. The lack of precise, consistent and up-to-date forest details is challenging for long-term prognoses. Therefore, this review aims to identify uncertainties in urban forest carbon offset assessment and discuss the extent to which such uncertainties can be reduced by recent progress in high resolution remote sensing. We do this by performing an extensive literature review and a case study combining remote sensing and life cycle assessment of urban forest carbon offset in Berlin, Germany. Recent progress in high resolution remote sensing and methods is adequate for delivering more precise details on the urban tree canopy, individual tree metrics, species, and age structures compared to conventional land use/cover class approaches. These area-wide consistent details can update life cycle inventories for more precise future prognoses. Additional improvements in classification accuracy can be achieved by a higher number of features derived from remote sensing data of increasing resolution, but first studies on this subject indicated that a smart selection of features already provides sufficient data that avoids redundancies and enables more efficient data processing. Our case study from Berlin could use remotely sensed individual tree species as consistent inventory of a life cycle assessment. However, a lack of growth, mortality and planting data forced us to make assumptions, therefore creating uncertainty in the long-term prognoses. Regarding temporal changes and reliable long-term estimates, more attention is required to detect changes of gradual growth, pruning and abrupt changes in tree planting and mortality. As such, precise long-term urban ecological monitoring using high resolution remote sensing should be intensified, especially due to increasing climate change effects. This is important for calibrating and validating recent prognoses of urban forest carbon offset, which have so far scarcely addressed longer timeframes. Additionally, higher resolution remote sensing of urban forest carbon estimates can improve upscaling approaches, which should be extended to reach a more precise global estimate for the first time. Urban forest carbon offset can be made more relevant by making more standardized assessments available for science and professional practitioners, and the increasing availability of high resolution remote sensing data and the progress in data processing allows for precisely that.

A Framework for Evaluating R&D Impacts and Supply Chain Dynamics Early in a Product Life Cycle. Looking inside the black box of innovation

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

Jordan, Gretchen; Mote, Jonathan; Ruegg, Rosalie

This report provides a framework for evaluation of R&D investments aimed at speeding up the pace of innovation and strengthening domestic manufacturing and supply chains, which make up a portion of the investments of the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOEs) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). These investments focus on early phases of the product life cycle, characterized as extending from pre-product, late stage R&D, to initial product introduction and through to early market growth. The investments aim to provide support for additional technology, supply-chain, manufacturing, and early market development to enhance or create markets for clean energymore » technologies and strengthen the U.S. industry base.« less

A lithium–oxygen battery with a long cycle life in an air-like atmosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Asadi, Mohammad; Sayahpour, Baharak; Abbasi, Pedram; Ngo, Anh T.; Karis, Klas; Jokisaari, Jacob R.; Liu, Cong; Narayanan, Badri; Gerard, Marc; Yasaei, Poya; Hu, Xuan; Mukherjee, Arijita; Lau, Kah Chun; Assary, Rajeev S.; Khalili-Araghi, Fatemeh; Klie, Robert F.; Curtiss, Larry A.; Salehi-Khojin, Amin

2018-03-01

Lithium–air batteries are considered to be a potential alternative to lithium-ion batteries for transportation applications, owing to their high theoretical specific energy. So far, however, such systems have been largely restricted to pure oxygen environments (lithium–oxygen batteries) and have a limited cycle life owing to side reactions involving the cathode, anode and electrolyte. In the presence of nitrogen, carbon dioxide and water vapour, these side reactions can become even more complex. Moreover, because of the need to store oxygen, the volumetric energy densities of lithium–oxygen systems may be too small for practical applications. Here we report a system comprising a lithium carbonate-based protected anode, a molybdenum disulfide cathode and an ionic liquid/dimethyl sulfoxide electrolyte that operates as a lithium–air battery in a simulated air atmosphere with a long cycle life of up to 700 cycles. We perform computational studies to provide insight into the operation of the system in this environment. This demonstration of a lithium–oxygen battery with a long cycle life in an air-like atmosphere is an important step towards the development of this field beyond lithium-ion technology, with a possibility to obtain much higher specific energy densities than for conventional lithium-ion batteries.

A lithium-oxygen battery with a long cycle life in an air-like atmosphere.

PubMed

Asadi, Mohammad; Sayahpour, Baharak; Abbasi, Pedram; Ngo, Anh T; Karis, Klas; Jokisaari, Jacob R; Liu, Cong; Narayanan, Badri; Gerard, Marc; Yasaei, Poya; Hu, Xuan; Mukherjee, Arijita; Lau, Kah Chun; Assary, Rajeev S; Khalili-Araghi, Fatemeh; Klie, Robert F; Curtiss, Larry A; Salehi-Khojin, Amin

2018-03-21

Lithium-air batteries are considered to be a potential alternative to lithium-ion batteries for transportation applications, owing to their high theoretical specific energy. So far, however, such systems have been largely restricted to pure oxygen environments (lithium-oxygen batteries) and have a limited cycle life owing to side reactions involving the cathode, anode and electrolyte. In the presence of nitrogen, carbon dioxide and water vapour, these side reactions can become even more complex. Moreover, because of the need to store oxygen, the volumetric energy densities of lithium-oxygen systems may be too small for practical applications. Here we report a system comprising a lithium carbonate-based protected anode, a molybdenum disulfide cathode and an ionic liquid/dimethyl sulfoxide electrolyte that operates as a lithium-air battery in a simulated air atmosphere with a long cycle life of up to 700 cycles. We perform computational studies to provide insight into the operation of the system in this environment. This demonstration of a lithium-oxygen battery with a long cycle life in an air-like atmosphere is an important step towards the development of this field beyond lithium-ion technology, with a possibility to obtain much higher specific energy densities than for conventional lithium-ion batteries.

Aerospace Systems Design in NASA's Collaborative Engineering Environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Monell, Donald W.; Piland, William M.

1999-01-01

Past designs of complex aerospace systems involved an environment consisting of collocated design teams with project managers, technical discipline experts, and other experts (e.g. manufacturing and systems operations). These experts were generally qualified only on the basis of past design experience and typically had access to a limited set of integrated analysis tools. These environments provided less than desirable design fidelity, often lead to the inability of assessing critical programmatic and technical issues (e.g., cost risk, technical impacts), and generally derived a design that was not necessarily optimized across the entire system. The continually changing, modern aerospace industry demands systems design processes that involve the best talent available (no matter where it resides) and access to the best design and analysis tools. A solution to these demands involves a design environment referred to as collaborative engineering. The collaborative engineering environment evolving within the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is a capability that enables the Agency's engineering infrastructure to interact and use the best state-of-the-art tools and data across organizational boundaries. Using collaborative engineering, the collocated team is replaced with an interactive team structure where the team members are geographically distributed and the best engineering talent can be applied to the design effort regardless of physical location. In addition, a more efficient, higher quality design product is delivered by bringing together the best engineering talent with more up-to-date design and analysis tools. These tools are focused on interactive, multidisciplinary design and analysis with emphasis on the complete life cycle of the system, and they include nontraditional, integrated tools for life cycle cost estimation and risk assessment. NASA has made substantial progress during the last two years in developing a collaborative engineering environment. NASA is planning to use this collaborative engineering infrastructure to provide better aerospace systems life cycle design and analysis, which includes analytical assessment of the technical and programmatic aspects of a system from "cradle to grave." This paper describes the recent NASA developments in the area of collaborative engineering, the benefits (realized and anticipated) of using the developed capability, and the long-term plans for implementing this capability across the Agency.

Aerospace Systems Design in NASA's Collaborative Engineering Environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Monell, Donald W.; Piland, William M.

2000-01-01

Past designs of complex aerospace systems involved an environment consisting of collocated design teams with project managers, technical discipline experts, and other experts (e.g., manufacturing and systems operation). These experts were generally qualified only on the basis of past design experience and typically had access to a limited set of integrated analysis tools. These environments provided less than desirable design fidelity, often lead to the inability of assessing critical programmatic and technical issues (e.g., cost, risk, technical impacts), and generally derived a design that was not necessarily optimized across the entire system. The continually changing, modern aerospace industry demands systems design processes that involve the best talent available (no matter where it resides) and access to the the best design and analysis tools. A solution to these demands involves a design environment referred to as collaborative engineering. The collaborative engineering environment evolving within the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is a capability that enables the Agency's engineering infrastructure to interact and use the best state-of-the-art tools and data across organizational boundaries. Using collaborative engineering, the collocated team is replaced with an interactive team structure where the team members are geographical distributed and the best engineering talent can be applied to the design effort regardless of physical location. In addition, a more efficient, higher quality design product is delivered by bringing together the best engineering talent with more up-to-date design and analysis tools. These tools are focused on interactive, multidisciplinary design and analysis with emphasis on the complete life cycle of the system, and they include nontraditional, integrated tools for life cycle cost estimation and risk assessment. NASA has made substantial progress during the last two years in developing a collaborative engineering environment. NASA is planning to use this collaborative engineering engineering infrastructure to provide better aerospace systems life cycle design and analysis, which includes analytical assessment of the technical and programmatic aspects of a system from "cradle to grave." This paper describes the recent NASA developments in the area of collaborative engineering, the benefits (realized and anticipated) of using the developed capability, and the long-term plans for implementing this capability across Agency.

Aerospace Systems Design in NASA's Collaborative Engineering Environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Monell, Donald W.; Piland, William M.

2000-07-01

Past designs of complex aerospace systems involved an environment consisting of collocated design teams with project managers, technical discipline experts, and other experts (e.g., manufacturing and systems operations). These experts were generally qualified only on the basis of past design experience and typically had access to a limited set of integrated analysis tools. These environments provided less than desirable design fidelity, often led to the inability of assessing critical programmatic and technical issues (e.g., cost, risk, technical impacts), and generally derived a design that was not necessarily optimized across the entire system. The continually changing, modern aerospace industry demands systems design processes that involve the best talent available (no matter where it resides) and access to the best design and analysis tools. A solution to these demands involves a design environment referred to as collaborative engineering. The collaborative engineering environment evolving within the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is a capability that enables the Agency's engineering infrastructure to interact and use the best state-of-the-art tools and data across organizational boundaries. Using collaborative engineering, the collocated team is replaced with an interactive team structure where the team members are geographically distributed and the best engineering talent can be applied to the design effort regardless of physical location. In addition, a more efficient, higher quality design product is delivered by bringing together the best engineering talent with more up-to-date design and analysis tools. These tools are focused on interactive, multidisciplinary design and analysis with emphasis on the complete life cycle of the system, and they include nontraditional, integrated tools for life cycle cost estimation and risk assessment. NASA has made substantial progress during the last two years in developing a collaborative engineering environment. NASA is planning to use this collaborative engineering infrastructure to provide better aerospace systems life cycle design and analysis, which includes analytical assessment of the technical and programmatic aspects of a system from "cradle to grave." This paper describes the recent NASA developments in the area of collaborative engineering, the benefits (realized and anticipated) of using the developed capability, and the long-term plans for implementing this capability across the Agency.

"Birds of passage" or "career" women? Thoughts on the life cycle of the eighteenth-century European servant.

PubMed

Simonton, Deborah

2011-01-01

Frequently eighteenth-century service is described as a life-cycle stage used to build up the financial wherewithal to set up house. As such it was central to the way youth or girlhood was traversed, and studies of adolescent years rightly emphasise the importance of service. However, this narrative, while largely accurate, is also problematic. What happened when service did not end with marriage, or when a woman remained single well into adulthood? In practice, servants were found among both the married and single, and among the young and the old. Concentrating on the eighteenth century, and incorporating material from Nordic Europe, this article teases out some of the nuances in the context and experience of service that partially disrupt the established narrative.

Recurrent sublethal warming reduces embryonic survival, inhibits juvenile growth, and alters species distribution projections under climate change.

PubMed

Carlo, Michael A; Riddell, Eric A; Levy, Ofir; Sears, Michael W

2018-01-01

The capacity to tolerate climate change often varies across ontogeny in organisms with complex life cycles. Recently developed species distribution models incorporate traits across life stages; however, these life-cycle models primarily evaluate effects of lethal change. Here, we examine impacts of recurrent sublethal warming on development and survival in ecological projections of climate change. We reared lizard embryos in the laboratory under temperature cycles that simulated contemporary conditions and warming scenarios. We also artificially warmed natural nests to mimic laboratory treatments. In both cases, recurrent sublethal warming decreased embryonic survival and hatchling sizes. Incorporating survivorship results into a mechanistic species distribution model reduced annual survival by up to 24% compared to models that did not incorporate sublethal warming. Contrary to models without sublethal effects, our model suggests that modest increases in developmental temperatures influence species ranges due to effects on survivorship. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd/CNRS.

Unique Outcomes in the Narratives of Young Adults Who Experienced Dating Violence as Adolescents.

PubMed

Draucker, Claire Burke; Smith, Carolyn; Mazurczyk, Jill; Thomas, Destini; Ramirez, Patricia; McNealy, Kim; Thomas, Jade; Martsolf, Donna S

2016-01-01

Narrative therapy, an approach based on the reauthoring of life narratives, may be a useful psychotherapeutic strategy for youth who have experienced dating violence. A cornerstone of narrative therapy is the concept of unique outcomes, which are moments that stand in contrast to a client's otherwise problem-saturated narratives. The purpose of this study was to identify and categorize unique outcomes embedded in narratives about adolescent dating violence. Text units representing unique outcomes were extracted from transcripts of interviews with 88 young adults who had experienced dating violence and were categorized using standard content analytic techniques. Six categories of unique outcome stories were identified: facing-facts stories, standing-up-for-myself stories, cutting-it-off stories, cutting-'em-loose stories, getting-back-on-track stories, and changing-it-up stories. This typology of unique outcomes can inform clinicians who work with clients who have a history of adolescent dating violence. © The Author(s) 2015.

SOLID WASTE INTEGRATED FORECAST TECHNICAL (SWIFT) REPORT FY2005 THRU FY2035 VERSION 2005.0 VOLUME 1

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

BARCOT, R.A.

2005-04-13

The SWIFT Report provides up-to-date life cycle information about the radioactive solid waste expected to be managed by Hanford's Waste Management (WM) Project from onsite and offsite generators. This report is an annual update to the SWIFT 2004.1 report that was published in August 2004. The SWIFT Report is published in two volumes. SWIFT Volume II provides detailed analyses of the data, graphical representation, comparison to previous years, and waste generator specific information. The data contained in this report are the official data for solid waste forecasting. In this revision, the volume numbers have been switched to reflect the timingmore » of their release. This particular volume provides the following data reports: (1) Summary volume data by DOE Office, company, and location; (2) Annual volume data by waste generator; (3) Annual waste specification record and physical waste form volume; (4) Radionuclide activities and dose-equivalent curies; and (5) Annual container type data by volume and count.« less

A deterministic model of nettle caterpillar life cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Syukriyah, Y.; Nuraini, N.; Handayani, D.

2018-03-01

Palm oil is an excellent product in the plantation sector in Indonesia. The level of palm oil productivity is very potential to increase every year. However, the level of palm oil productivity is lower than its potential. Pests and diseases are the main factors that can reduce production levels by up to 40%. The existence of pests in plants can be caused by various factors, so the anticipation in controlling pest attacks should be prepared as early as possible. Caterpillars are the main pests in oil palm. The nettle caterpillars are leaf eaters that can significantly decrease palm productivity. We construct a deterministic model that describes the life cycle of the caterpillar and its mitigation by using a caterpillar predator. The equilibrium points of the model are analyzed. The numerical simulations are constructed to give a representation how the predator as the natural enemies affects the nettle caterpillar life cycle.

Life Cycle Assessment of Connected and Automated Vehicles: Sensing and Computing Subsystem and Vehicle Level Effects.

PubMed

Gawron, James H; Keoleian, Gregory A; De Kleine, Robert D; Wallington, Timothy J; Kim, Hyung Chul

2018-03-06

Although recent studies of connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) have begun to explore the potential energy and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission impacts from an operational perspective, little is known about how the full life cycle of the vehicle will be impacted. We report the results of a life cycle assessment (LCA) of Level 4 CAV sensing and computing subsystems integrated into internal combustion engine vehicle (ICEV) and battery electric vehicle (BEV) platforms. The results indicate that CAV subsystems could increase vehicle primary energy use and GHG emissions by 3-20% due to increases in power consumption, weight, drag, and data transmission. However, when potential operational effects of CAVs are included (e.g., eco-driving, platooning, and intersection connectivity), the net result is up to a 9% reduction in energy and GHG emissions in the base case. Overall, this study highlights opportunities where CAVs can improve net energy and environmental performance.

Slow growth rates of Amazonian trees: Consequences for carbon cycling

PubMed Central

Vieira, Simone; Trumbore, Susan; Camargo, Plinio B.; Selhorst, Diogo; Chambers, Jeffrey Q.; Higuchi, Niro; Martinelli, Luiz Antonio

2005-01-01

Quantifying age structure and tree growth rate of Amazonian forests is essential for understanding their role in the carbon cycle. Here, we use radiocarbon dating and direct measurement of diameter increment to document unexpectedly slow growth rates for trees from three locations spanning the Brazilian Amazon basin. Central Amazon trees, averaging only ≈1mm/year diameter increment, grow half as fast as those from areas with more seasonal rainfall to the east and west. Slow growth rates mean that trees can attain great ages; across our sites we estimate 17-50% of trees with diameter >10 cm have ages exceeding 300 years. Whereas a few emergent trees that make up a large portion of the biomass grow faster, small trees that are more abundant grow slowly and attain ages of hundreds of years. The mean age of carbon in living trees (60-110 years) is within the range of or slightly longer than the mean residence time calculated from C inventory divided by annual C allocation to wood growth (40-100 years). Faster C turnover is observed in stands with overall higher rates of diameter increment and a larger fraction of the biomass in large, fast-growing trees. As a consequence, forests can recover biomass relatively quickly after disturbance, whereas recovering species composition may take many centuries. Carbon cycle models that apply a single turnover time for carbon in forest biomass do not account for variations in life strategy and therefore may overestimate the carbon sequestration potential of Amazon forests. PMID:16339903

Dating Saharan dust deposits on Lanzarote (Canary Islands) by luminescence dating techniques and their implication for palaeoclimate reconstruction of NW Africa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

von Suchodoletz, H.; Fuchs, M.; ZöLler, L.

2008-02-01

Lava flow dammed valleys (Vegas) on Lanzarote (Canary Islands) represent unique sediment traps, filled with autochthonous volcanic material and allochthonous Saharan dust. These sediments and the intercalated palaeosoil sediments document past environmental change of the last glacial-interglacial cycles, both on Lanzarote and in NW Africa. A reliable chronology must be established to use these sediment archives for palaeoclimate reconstructions. Owing to the lack of organic material and the limiting time range of the 14C-dating method, luminescence dating is the most promising method for these sediments. However, the fluvio-eolian character of these sediments is a major problem for luminescence dating, because these sediments are prone to insufficient resetting of the parent luminescence signal (bleaching) prior to sedimentation. To check for the best age estimates, we compare the bleaching behavior of (1) different grain sizes (coarse- versus fine-grain quartz OSL) and (2) different minerals (fine-grain feldspar IRSL versus fine-grain quartz OSL). The results show that owing to its bleaching characteristics, quartz is the preferable mineral for luminescence dating. On the basis of the fine- and coarse-grain quartz OSL age estimates, a chronostratigraphy up to 100 ka could be established. Beyond this age limit for OSL quartz, the chronostratigraphy could be extended up to 180 ka by correlating the vega sediments with dated marine sediment archives.

Electronics-X: A Study of Military Electronics with Particular Reference to Cost and Reliability. Volume 2: Complete Report

DTIC Science & Technology

1974-01-01

also makes the Government vulner- able to upward price pressures by the selected supplier and induces design stagnation. % • The potential benefit of...following modifications: 1. It should specifically permit consideration of changes that are of benefit to the contractor and not detrimen- tal to...vali- dated by experience, that competition throughout the electronic-system life-cycle process will, on the whole, yield great benefits in

Waste tire derived carbon-polymer composite paper as pseudocapacitive electrode with long cycle life

DOE PAGES

Boota, M.; Paranthaman, Mariappan Parans; Naskar, Amit K.; ...

2015-09-25

Recycling hazardous wastes to produce value-added products is becoming essential for the sustainable progress of our society. Herein, highly porous carbon (1625 m 2/g –1) is synthesized using waste tires as the precursor and used as supercapacitor electrode. The narrow pore size distribution (PSD) and high surface area led to a good charge storage capacity, especially when used as a three-dimensional nanoscaffold to polymerize polyaniline (PANI/TC). The composite film was highly flexible, conductive and exhibited a capacitance of 480 F/g –1 at 1 mV/s –1 with excellent capacitance retention up to 98% after 10,000 charge/discharge cycles. The high capacitance andmore » long cycle life were ascribed to the short diffusional paths, uniform PANI coating and tight confinement of the PANI in the inner pores of the tire-derived carbon via - interactions, which minimized the degradation of the PANI upon cycling. Here, we anticipate that the same strategy can be applied to deposit other pseudocapacitive materials with low-cost TC to achieve even higher electrochemical performance and longer cycle life, a key challenge for redox active polymers.« less

Waste Tire Derived Carbon-Polymer Composite Paper as Pseudocapacitive Electrode with Long Cycle Life.

PubMed

Boota, M; Paranthaman, M Parans; Naskar, Amit K; Li, Yunchao; Akato, Kokouvi; Gogotsi, Y

2015-11-01

Recycling hazardous wastes to produce value-added products is becoming essential for the sustainable progress of our society. Herein, highly porous carbon (1625 m(2)  g(-1)) is synthesized using waste tires as the precursor and used as a supercapacitor electrode material. The narrow pore-size distribution and high surface area led to good charge storage capacity, especially when used as a three-dimensional nanoscaffold to polymerize polyaniline (PANI). The composite paper was highly flexible, conductive, and exhibited a capacitance of 480 F g(-1) at 1 mV s(-1) with excellent capacitance retention of up to 98% after 10,000 charge/discharge cycles. The high capacitance and long cycle life were ascribed to the short diffusional paths, uniform PANI coating, and tight confinement of the PANI in the inner pores of the tire-derived carbon through π-π interactions, which minimized the degradation of the PANI upon cycling. We anticipate that the same strategy can be applied to deposit other pseudocapacitive materials to achieve even higher electrochemical performance and longer cycle life-a key challenge for redox active polymers. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Hunting billbug (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) life cycle and damaging life stage in North Carolina, with notes on other billbug species abundance.

PubMed

Doskocil, J P; Brandenburg, R L

2012-12-01

In the southeastern United States, hunting billbug, Sphenophorus venatus vestitus Chittenden, adults are often observed in turfgrass, but our knowledge of their biology and ecology is limited. Field surveys and experiments were conducted to determine the species composition, life cycle, damaging life stage, and distribution of billbugs within the soil profile in turfgrass in North Carolina. Linear pitfall trapping revealed six species of billbug, with the hunting billbug making up 99.7% of all beetles collected. Data collected from turf plus soil sampling suggest that hunting billbugs have two overlapping generations per year in North Carolina and that they overwinter as both adults and larvae. Field experiments provided evidence that adult hunting billbugs are capable of damaging warm season turfgrasses.

Quantifying the environmental impact of an integrated human/industrial-natural system using life cycle assessment; a case study on a forest and wood processing chain.

PubMed

Schaubroeck, Thomas; Alvarenga, Rodrigo A F; Verheyen, Kris; Muys, Bart; Dewulf, Jo

2013-01-01

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a tool to assess the environmental sustainability of a product; it quantifies the environmental impact of a product's life cycle. In conventional LCAs, the boundaries of a product's life cycle are limited to the human/industrial system, the technosphere. Ecosystems, which provide resources to and take up emissions from the technosphere, are not included in those boundaries. However, similar to the technosphere, ecosystems also have an impact on their (surrounding) environment through their resource usage (e.g., nutrients) and emissions (e.g., CH4). We therefore propose a LCA framework to assess the impact of integrated Techno-Ecological Systems (TES), comprising relevant ecosystems and the technosphere. In our framework, ecosystems are accounted for in the same manner as technosphere compartments. Also, the remediating effect of uptake of pollutants, an ecosystem service, is considered. A case study was performed on a TES of sawn timber production encompassing wood growth in an intensively managed forest ecosystem and further industrial processing. Results show that the managed forest accounted for almost all resource usage and biodiversity loss through land occupation but also for a remediating effect on human health, mostly via capture of airborne fine particles. These findings illustrate the potential relevance of including ecosystems in the product's life cycle of a LCA, though further research is needed to better quantify the environmental impact of TES.

Congeneration feasibility: Otis Elavator Company and Polychrome Corporation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fox, H.

1982-05-01

An investigation of the technical and economic feasibility of cogenerating electric and thermal power at two manufacturing plants (Otis Elevator Company and Polychrome Corporation) located on neighboring properties in Yonkers, NY is discussed. Existing electrical and steam producing equipment and energy consumption date are summarized. Alternative cases examined include electrical energy generation, electrical energy generation with waste heat recovery and a combined cycle case. Also reported are life cycle cost economic evaluations including simple payback period and return on investment indices. While it was concluded that cogeneration of heat and electricity at these industrial plant sites would not be economically viable, this detailed study provides valuable insights.

Sea-Sponge-like Structure of Nano-Fe3O4 on Skeleton-C with Long Cycle Life under High Rate for Li-Ion Batteries.

PubMed

Chen, Shipei; Wu, Qingnan; Wen, Ming; Wu, Qingsheng; Li, Jiaqi; Cui, Yi; Pinna, Nicola; Fan, Yafei; Wu, Tong

2018-06-13

To meet the demands of long cycle life under high rate for lithium-ion batteries, the advancement of anode materials with stable structural properties is necessarily demanded. Such promotion needs to design reasonable structure to facilitate the transportation of electron and lithium ions (Li + ). Herein, a novel C/Fe 3 O 4 sea-sponge-like structure was synthesized by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis following thermal decomposition process. On the basis of sea-sponge carbon (SSC) excellences in electronic conductivity and short Li + diffusion pathway, nano-Fe 3 O 4 anchored on stable SSC skeleton can deliver high electrochemical performance with long cycle life under high rate. During electrochemical cycling, well-dispersed nano-Fe 3 O 4 in ∼6 nm not only averts excessive pulverization and is enveloped by solid electrolyte interphase film, but also increases Li + diffusion efficiency. The much improved electrochemical properties showed a capacity of around 460 mAh g -1 at a high rate of 1.5C with a retention rate of 93%, which is maintained without degradation up to 1000 cycles (1C = 1000 mA g -1 ).

[Impact of commuting on partnership and family life. A literature review of the current state of research with special emphasis on commuter marriages].

PubMed

Häfner, Steffen

2011-01-01

Because of modern working conditions, for many people commuting has increasingly become a necessity with many consequences for their health as well as for their family life and partnership. To date, little research has been done concerning the impact of this modern lifestyle on partnership and family life, particularly on dual-career couples and long-distance commuters. The results of a literature review are presented based on age, sex, family cycle and consequences for children; research questions are formulated. Sex-specific differences seem to be especially important, confirming the "household responsibility hypothesis." The commuter marriage as a new lifestyle seems to have become a coping mechanism for the increasing necessity in our society to commute.

Differential gene transcription across the life cycle in Daphnia magna using a new all genome custom-made microarray.

PubMed

Campos, Bruno; Fletcher, Danielle; Piña, Benjamín; Tauler, Romà; Barata, Carlos

2018-05-18

Unravelling the link between genes and environment across the life cycle is a challenging goal that requires model organisms with well-characterized life-cycles, ecological interactions in nature, tractability in the laboratory, and available genomic tools. Very few well-studied invertebrate model species meet these requirements, being the waterflea Daphnia magna one of them. Here we report a full genome transcription profiling of D. magna during its life-cycle. The study was performed using a new microarray platform designed from the complete set of gene models representing the whole transcribed genome of D. magna. Up to 93% of the existing 41,317 D. magna gene models showed differential transcription patterns across the developmental stages of D. magna, 59% of which were functionally annotated. Embryos showed the highest number of unique transcribed genes, mainly related to DNA, RNA, and ribosome biogenesis, likely related to cellular proliferation and morphogenesis of the several body organs. Adult females showed an enrichment of transcripts for genes involved in reproductive processes. These female-specific transcripts were essentially absent in males, whose transcriptome was enriched in specific genes of male sexual differentiation genes, like doublesex. Our results define major characteristics of transcriptional programs involved in the life-cycle, differentiate males and females, and show that large scale gene-transcription data collected in whole animals can be used to identify genes involved in specific biological and biochemical processes.

Low cost, SPF aluminum cryogenic tank structure for ALS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anton, Claire E.; Rasmussen, Perry; Thompson, Curt; Latham, Richard; Hamilton, C. Howard; Ren, Ben; Gandhi, Chimata; Hardwick, Dallis

1992-01-01

Past production work has shown that cryogenic tank structure for the Shuttle Booster Rockets and the Titan system have very high life cycle costs for the fuel tank structure. The tanks are machined stiffener-skin combination that are subsequently formed into the required contour after machining. The material scrap rate for these configurations are usually high, and the loss of a tank panel due to forming or heat treatment problems is very costly. The idea of reducing the amount of scrap material and scrapped structural members has prompted the introduction of built-up structure for cryogenic tanks to be explored on the ALS program. A build-up structure approach that has shown improvements in life cycle cost over the conventional built-up approach is the use of superplastically formed (SPF) stiffened panels (reducing the overall part count and weight for the tank) resistance spot welded (RSW) to outer tank skin material. The stiffeners provide for general stability of the tank, while the skin material provides hoop direction continuity for the loads.

A soft approach to encapsulate sulfur: polyaniline nanotubes for lithium-sulfur batteries with long cycle life.

PubMed

Xiao, Lifen; Cao, Yuliang; Xiao, Jie; Schwenzer, Birgit; Engelhard, Mark H; Saraf, Laxmikant V; Nie, Zimin; Exarhos, Gregory J; Liu, Jun

2012-03-02

A novel vulcanized polyaniline nanotube/sulfur composite was prepared successfully via an in situ vulcanization process by heating a mixture of polyaniline nanotube and sulfur at 280 °C. The electrode could retain a discharge capacity of 837 mAh g(-1) after 100 cycles at a 0.1 C rate and manifested 76% capacity retention up to 500 cycles at a 1 C rate. Copyright © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Life cycle evaluation of emerging lignocellulosic ethanol conversion technologies.

PubMed

Spatari, Sabrina; Bagley, David M; MacLean, Heather L

2010-01-01

Lignocellulosic ethanol holds promise for addressing climate change and energy security issues associated with personal transportation through lowering the fuel mixes' carbon intensity and petroleum demand. We compare the technological features and life cycle environmental impacts of near- and mid-term ethanol bioconversion technologies in the United States. Key uncertainties in the major processes: pre-treatment, hydrolysis, and fermentation are evaluated. The potential to reduce fossil energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions varies among bioconversion processes, although all options studied are considerably more attractive than gasoline. Anticipated future performance is found to be considerably more attractive than that published in the literature as being achieved to date. Electricity co-product credits are important in characterizing the GHG impacts of different ethanol production pathways; however, in the absence of near-term liquid transportation fuel alternatives to gasoline, optimizing ethanol facilities to produce ethanol (as opposed to co-products) is important for reducing the carbon intensity of the road transportation sector and for energy security.

Concentrating Solar Power Projects - Martin Next Generation Solar Energy

Science.gov Websites

solar plant of any kind outside of California. The facility is the first hybrid facility in the world to connect a solar facility to an existing combined-cycle power plant, providing 75 megawatts of solar up to about 200,000 mirrors over about 500 acres at the existing FPL Martin Plant site. Status Date

Regional distribution and losses of end-of-life steel throughout multiple product life cycles-Insights from the global multiregional MaTrace model.

PubMed

Pauliuk, Stefan; Kondo, Yasushi; Nakamura, Shinichiro; Nakajima, Kenichi

2017-01-01

Substantial amounts of post-consumer scrap are exported to other regions or lost during recovery and remelting, and both export and losses pose a constraint to desires for having regionally closed material cycles. To quantify the challenges and trade-offs associated with closed-loop metal recycling, we looked at the material cycles from the perspective of a single material unit and trace a unit of material through several product life cycles. Focusing on steel, we used current process parameters, loss rates, and trade patterns of the steel cycle to study how steel that was originally contained in high quality applications such as machinery or vehicles with stringent purity requirements gets subsequently distributed across different regions and product groups such as building and construction with less stringent purity requirements. We applied MaTrace Global, a supply-driven multiregional model of steel flows coupled to a dynamic stock model of steel use. We found that, depending on region and product group, up to 95% of the steel consumed today will leave the use phase of that region until 2100, and that up to 50% can get lost in obsolete stocks, landfills, or slag piles until 2100. The high losses resulting from business-as-usual scrap recovery and recycling can be reduced, both by diverting postconsumer scrap into long-lived applications such as buildings and by improving the recovery rates in the waste management and remelting industries. Because the lifetimes of high-quality (cold-rolled) steel applications are shorter and remelting occurs more often than for buildings and infrastructure, we found and quantified a tradeoff between low losses and high-quality applications in the steel cycle. Furthermore, we found that with current trade patterns, reduced overall losses will lead to higher fractions of secondary steel being exported to other regions. Current loss rates, product lifetimes, and trade patterns impede the closure of the steel cycle.

Money-back guarantee warranty policy with preventive maintenance strategy for sensor-embedded remanufactured products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alqahtani, Ammar Y.; Gupta, Surendra M.

2018-01-01

In today's global environment, technology is constantly evolving. Being able to stay up-to-date with the very latest technological advances can be extremely hard to accomplish. As a result of these changes and developments in technology, which often come unexpectedly, consumers are frequently tempted to update their devices to the very latest model. The result is that the life cycle of a product is becoming shorter and shorter than before. Manufacturers attempt to respond to consumers' concerns involving environmental issues as well as the more governmentally stringent environmental legislations by establishing facilities which include the minimization of the totality of waste relocated to landfills by recovering materials and components from returned, or End-Of-Life products and reuse them to build a remanufactured product, and/or novel components. With the rapid growth of interest in remanufactured products' market, offering warranty for remanufactured products and components is becoming a necessity for remanufacturer in order to meet customers' requirement and as a marketing mechanism. During that process, maintenance policies are of great importance in order to reduce the warranty cost on the remanufacturer. In this paper, an optimization simulation model for remanufactured items sold with one-dimensional non-renewing money-back guarantee (MBG) warranty policy is proposed from the view of remanufacturer, in which, an End-Of-Life product is subjected to upgrade action at the end of its past life and during the warranty period, preventive maintenance actions are carried out when the remaining life of the product reaches a pre-specified value so that the remanufacturer's expected profit can be maximized. Finally, a numerical example and design of experiment analysis are provided to demonstrate the proposed approach.

Further comments on oral transmission of Chagas' disease in Brazil: epidemiology, geographical distribution and viability of the infective parasite.

PubMed

Benchimol-Barbosa, Paulo R

2010-05-28

In 2006, Brazilian government received the international certificate of interruption of the vectorial transmission of Chagas' disease. However, outbreaks reported in Brazilian Amazon rainforest bear a regular occurrence and represents a relevant regional epidemiological gauge. The wild life cycle of the Chagas' disease transmission (i.e., triatomine-marsupial cycle) is present outside the previously reported endemic belt, ubiquitously, as infective triatomines can be demonstrated in Palm trees widespread all over the Amazon rainforest. As humans invade the rainforest, one is incidentally caught up and further becomes' an active part of American trypanosomiasis wild life cycle. Copyright 2008 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Flowering time and seed dormancy control use external coincidence to generate life history strategy.

PubMed

Springthorpe, Vicki; Penfield, Steven

2015-03-31

Climate change is accelerating plant developmental transitions coordinated with the seasons in temperate environments. To understand the importance of these timing advances for a stable life history strategy, we constructed a full life cycle model of Arabidopsis thaliana. Modelling and field data reveal that a cryptic function of flowering time control is to limit seed set of winter annuals to an ambient temperature window which coincides with a temperature-sensitive switch in seed dormancy state. This coincidence is predicted to be conserved independent of climate at the expense of flowering date, suggesting that temperature control of flowering time has evolved to constrain seed set environment and therefore frequency of dormant and non-dormant seed states. We show that late flowering can disrupt this bet-hedging germination strategy. Our analysis shows that life history modelling can reveal hidden fitness constraints and identify non-obvious selection pressures as emergent features.

From cradle-to-grave at the nanoscale: gaps in U.S. regulatory oversight along the nanomaterial life cycle.

PubMed

Beaudrie, Christian E H; Kandlikar, Milind; Satterfield, Terre

2013-06-04

Engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) promise great benefits for society, yet our knowledge of potential risks and best practices for regulation are still in their infancy. Toward the end of better practices, this paper analyzes U.S. federal environmental, health, and safety (EHS) regulations using a life cycle framework. It evaluates their adequacy as applied to ENMs to identify gaps through which emerging nanomaterials may escape regulation from initial production to end-of-life. High scientific uncertainty, a lack of EHS and product data, inappropriately designed exemptions and thresholds, and limited agency resources are a challenge to both the applicability and adequacy of current regulations. The result is that some forms of engineered nanomaterials may escape federal oversight and rigorous risk review at one or more stages along their life cycle, with the largest gaps occurring at the postmarket stages, and at points of ENM release to the environment. Oversight can be improved through pending regulatory reforms, increased research and development for the monitoring, control, and analysis of environmental and end-of-life releases, introduction of periodic re-evaluation of ENM risks, and fostering a "bottom-up" stewardship approach to the responsible management of risks from engineered nanomaterials.

Competence-Based Pharmacy Education in the University of Helsinki

PubMed Central

Katajavuori, Nina; Salminen, Outi; Vuorensola, Katariina; Huhtala, Helena; Vuorela, Pia; Hirvonen, Jouni

2017-01-01

In order to meet the expectations to act as an expert in the health care profession, it is of utmost importance that pharmacy education creates knowledge and skills needed in today’s working life. Thus, the planning of the curriculum should be based on relevant and up-to-date learning outcomes. In the University of Helsinki, a university wide curriculum reform called ‘the Big Wheel’ was launched in 2015. After the reform, the basic degrees of the university are two-cycle (Bachelor–Master) and competence-based, where the learning outcomes form a solid basis for the curriculum goals and implementation. In the Faculty of Pharmacy, this curriculum reform was conducted in two phases during 2012–2016. The construction of the curriculum was based on the most relevant learning outcomes concerning working life via high quality first (Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy) and second (Master of Science in Pharmacy) cycle degree programs. The reform was kicked off by interviewing all the relevant stakeholders: students, teachers, and pharmacists/experts in all the working life sectors of pharmacy. Based on these interviews, the intended learning outcomes of the Pharmacy degree programs were defined including both subject/contents-related and generic skills. The curriculum design was based on the principles of constructive alignment and new structures and methods were applied in order to foster the implementation of the learning outcomes. During the process, it became evident that a competence-based curriculum can be created only in close co-operation with the stakeholders, including teachers and students. Well-structured and facilitated co-operation amongst the teachers enabled the development of many new and innovative teaching practices. The European Union funded PHAR-QA project provided, at the same time, a highly relevant framework to compare the curriculum development in Helsinki against Europe-wide definitions of competences and learning outcomes in pharmacy education. PMID:28970441

The thermal limits to life on Earth

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Clarke, Andrew

2014-04-01

Living organisms on Earth are characterized by three necessary features: a set of internal instructions encoded in DNA (software), a suite of proteins and associated macromolecules providing a boundary and internal structure (hardware), and a flux of energy. In addition, they replicate themselves through reproduction, a process that renders evolutionary change inevitable in a resource-limited world. Temperature has a profound effect on all of these features, and yet life is sufficiently adaptable to be found almost everywhere water is liquid. The thermal limits to survival are well documented for many types of organisms, but the thermal limits to completion of the life cycle are much more difficult to establish, especially for organisms that inhabit thermally variable environments. Current data suggest that the thermal limits to completion of the life cycle differ between the three major domains of life, bacteria, archaea and eukaryotes. At the very highest temperatures only archaea are found with the current high-temperature limit for growth being 122 °C. Bacteria can grow up to 100 °C, but no eukaryote appears to be able to complete its life cycle above ~60 °C and most not above 40 °C. The lower thermal limit for growth in bacteria, archaea, unicellular eukaryotes where ice is present appears to be set by vitrification of the cell interior, and lies at ~-20 °C. Lichens appear to be able to grow down to ~-10 °C. Higher plants and invertebrates living at high latitudes can survive down to ~-70 °C, but the lower limit for completion of the life cycle in multicellular organisms appears to be ~-2 °C.

Overview on association of different types of leukemias with radiation exposure.

PubMed

Gluzman, D F; Sklyarenko, L M; Zavelevich, M P; Koval, S V; Ivanivska, T S; Rodionova, N K

2015-06-01

Exposure to ionizing radiation is associated with increasing risk of various types of hematological malignancies. The results of major studies on association of leukemias and radiation exposure of large populations in Japan and in Ukraine are analyzed. The patterns of different types of leukemia in 295 Chernobyl clean-up workers diagnosed according to the criteria of up-to-date World Health Organization classification within 10-25 years following Chernobyl catastrophe are summarized. In fact, a broad spectrum of radiation-related hematological malignancies has been revealed both in Life Span Study in Japan and in study of Chernobyl clean-up workers in Ukraine. The importance of the precise diagnosis of tumors of hematopoietic and lymphoid tissues according to up-to-date classifications for elucidating the role of radiation as a causative factor of leukemias is emphasized. Such studies are of high importance since according to the recent findings, radiation-associated excess risks of several types of leukemias seem to persist throughout the follow-up period up to 55 years after the radiation exposure.

Misconceptions Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leonard, Mary J.; Kalinowski, Steven T.; Andrews, Tessa C.

2014-01-01

A recent essay in "CBE-Life Sciences Education" criticized biology education researchers' use of the term "misconceptions" and recommended that, in order to be up-to-date with education research, biology education researchers should use alternative terms for students' incorrect ideas in science. We counter that…

The tropopause inversion layer in baroclinic life cycles over the North Atlantic: a pre-WISE case study and climatology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaluza, Thorsten; Hoor, Peter; Kunkel, Daniel

2017-04-01

Studies of baroclinic life cycles recently revelead that the tropopause inversion layer (TIL) in the extratropics is significantly strengthened by diabatic processes related to moist tropospheric dynamics as well as by breaking of the baroclinic wave itself. However, these findings summarize the results from idealized model simulations and the contribution from processes related to baroclinic life cycles relative to other processes enhancing the lower stratospheric static stability (stratospheric dynamics, seasonal variation of radiative feedbacks) to the observed TIL at midlatitudes has yet to be assessed. Further the role of the TIL for stratosphere-troposphere exchange (STE) is currently still under debate. In preparation of the up-coming field campaign WISE (Wave driven isentropic exchange) we explore the state and variability of the TIL over the North Atlantic between August and October in analysis model data. We use high resolution operational analysis from the European Center for Medium Range Weather Forecast to study the mesoscale structure of the TIL. The main focus is on case studies of the TIL in real baroclinic life cycles, in particular on small scale enhancements within the baroclinic disturbances and the relation to STE. Moreover, a summary is presented about the quasi climatological state of the tropopause location and sharpness over the North Atlantic over recent years.

Integrating life-cycle environmental and economic assessment with transportation and land use planning.

PubMed

Chester, Mikhail V; Nahlik, Matthew J; Fraser, Andrew M; Kimball, Mindy A; Garikapati, Venu M

2013-01-01

The environmental outcomes of urban form changes should couple life-cycle and behavioral assessment methods to better understand urban sustainability policy outcomes. Using Phoenix, Arizona light rail as a case study, an integrated transportation and land use life-cycle assessment (ITLU-LCA) framework is developed to assess the changes to energy consumption and air emissions from transit-oriented neighborhood designs. Residential travel, commercial travel, and building energy use are included and the framework integrates household behavior change assessment to explore the environmental and economic outcomes of policies that affect infrastructure. The results show that upfront environmental and economic investments are needed (through more energy-intense building materials for high-density structures) to produce long run benefits in reduced building energy use and automobile travel. The annualized life-cycle benefits of transit-oriented developments in Phoenix can range from 1.7 to 230 Gg CO2e depending on the aggressiveness of residential density. Midpoint impact stressors for respiratory effects and photochemical smog formation are also assessed and can be reduced by 1.2-170 Mg PM10e and 41-5200 Mg O3e annually. These benefits will come at an additional construction cost of up to $410 million resulting in a cost of avoided CO2e at $16-29 and household cost savings.

Comparative environmental assessment of natural and recycled aggregate concrete.

PubMed

Marinković, S; Radonjanin, V; Malešev, M; Ignjatović, I

2010-11-01

Constant and rapid increase in construction and demolition (C&D) waste generation and consumption of natural aggregate for concrete production became one of the biggest environmental problems in the construction industry. Recycling of C&D waste represents one way to convert a waste product into a resource but the environment benefits through energy consumption, emissions and fallouts reductions are not certain. The main purpose of this study is to determine the potentials of recycled aggregate concrete (concrete made with recycled concrete aggregate) for structural applications and to compare the environmental impact of the production of two types of ready-mixed concrete: natural aggregate concrete (NAC) made entirely with river aggregate and recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) made with natural fine and recycled coarse aggregate. Based on the analysis of up-to-date experimental evidence, including own tests results, it is concluded that utilization of RAC for low-to-middle strength structural concrete and non-aggressive exposure conditions is technically feasible. The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is performed for raw material extraction and material production part of the concrete life cycle including transport. Assessment is based on local LCI data and on typical conditions in Serbia. Results of this specific case study show that impacts of aggregate and cement production phases are slightly larger for RAC than for NAC but the total environmental impacts depend on the natural and recycled aggregates transport distances and on transport types. Limit natural aggregate transport distances above which the environmental impacts of RAC can be equal or even lower than the impacts of NAC are calculated for the specific case study. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hybrid power systems for autonomous MEMS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bennett, Daniel M.; Selfridge, Richard H.; Humble, Paul; Harb, John N.

2001-08-01

This paper describes the design of a hybrid power system for use with autonomous MEMS and other microdevices. This hybrid power system includes energy conversion and storage along with an electronic system for managing the collection and distribution of power. It offers flexibility and longevity in a compact package. The hybrid power system couples a silicon solar cell with a microbattery specially designed for MEMS applications. We have designed a control/interface charging circuit to be compatible with a MEMS duty cycle. The design permits short pulses of 'high' power while taking care to avoid excessive charging or discharging of the battery. Charging is carefully controlled to provide a balance between acceptably small charging times and a charging profile that extends battery life. Our report describes the charging of our Ni/Zn microbatteries using solar cells. To date we have demonstrated thousands of charge/discharge cycles of a simulated MEMS duty cycle.

High-capacity FeTiO3/C negative electrode for sodium-ion batteries with ultralong cycle life

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ding, Changsheng; Nohira, Toshiyuki; Hagiwara, Rika

2018-06-01

The development of electrode materials which improve both the energy density and cycle life is one of the most challenging issues facing the practical application of sodium-ion batteries today. In this work, FeTiO3/C nanoparticles are synthesized as negative electrode materials for sodium-ion batteries. The electrochemical performance and charge-discharge mechanism of the FeTiO3/C negative electrode are investigated in an ionic liquid electrolyte at 90 °C. The FeTiO3/C negative electrode delivers a high reversible capacity of 403 mAh g-1 at a current rate of 10 mA g-1, and exhibits high rate capability and excellent cycling stability for up to 2000 cycles. The results indicate that FeTiO3/C is a promising negative electrode material for sodium-ion batteries.

The plurennial life cycles of the European Tettigoniidae (Insecta: Orthoptera) : 1. The effect of temperature on embryonic development and hatching.

PubMed

Ingrisch, Sigfrid

1986-11-01

The effect of temperature on embryonic development, voltinism, and hatching was studied in the laboratory in eggs of 21 Central and Southeastern European Tettigoniidae species. In most species, the embryo has to arrive at a postkatatrepsis stage prior to the onset of cold to be able to hatch in the following spring. The rate of embryonic development differs: quickly developing species need 4 weeks at 24°C (prior to cold) and almost all eggs hatch after the first cold treatment, slowly developing species would need 8-12 weeks to do the same. In Central Europe, warmth is not enough for the slowly developing species to have an univoltine life cycle, but they could have it in southern Europe. Most species make use of a dormancy sequence to pass successive winters as follows: an initial embryonic dormancy (either quiscence or diapause in embryonic stage 4) and a final diapause in embryonic stage 23/24. Additionally, 3 forms of aestivation or summer dormancy were observed facultatively: an initial diapause in embryonic stage 4 (induced and terminated at 30°C), a median dormancy shortly before or after katatrepsis (at 30°C), and a penultimate diapause in embryonic stage 20 (at 24°C).The life cycles of the European Tettigoniidae species can follow one of 3 types: 1. annual life cycle (no initial embryonic dormancy); 2. annual or biennial depending on whether laid early or late; 3. biennial or many year life cycle (up to 8 years due to a prolonged initial diapause).

ANALYSIS OF OUT OF DATE MCU MODIFIER LOCATED IN SRNL

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

Crawford, C.

2014-10-22

SRNL recently completed density measurements and chemical analyses on modifier samples stored in drums within SRNL. The modifier samples date back to 2008 and are in various quantities up to 40 gallons. Vendor information on the original samples indicates a shelf life of 5 years. There is interest in determining if samples that have been stored for more than the 5 year shelf life are still acceptable for use. The Modular Caustic Side Solvent Extraction Unit (MCU) Solvent component Cs-7SB [(2,2,3,3- tetraflouropropoxy)-3-(4-sec-butylphenoxy)-2-propanol, CAS #308362-88-1] is used as a diluent modifier to increase extractant solubility and provide physical characteristics necessary formore » diluent trimming.« less

From fresh vegetables to the harvest of wheat plants grown in the "SVET" space greenhouse onboard the MIR orbital station

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ivanova, T.; Kostov, P.; Sapunova, S.; Dandolov, I.; Sytchev, V.; Podolski, I.; Levinskikh, M.; Meleshko, G.; Bingham, G.; Salisbury, F.

1997-01-01

Researchers report the results of experiments conducted onboard MIR in 1990, 1995, and 1996 in raising edible crops. In the 1990 experiment, radishes and Chinese cabbage were grown successfully, though the experimental plants were up to four times smaller than controls at harvest. The 1995 experiment in growing wheat through a complete life cycle was not completed. The 1996 experiment was successful in growing wheat through a complete life cycle to the seed stage. No seeds developed on any of the 279 ears harvested in that experiment. Reasons for the seedless development are explored.

The effect of hold-times on the fatigue behavior of type AISI 316L stainless steel under deuteron irradiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scholz, R.; Mueller, R.

1998-10-01

Strain controlled fatigue tests have been performed in torsion at 400°C on type 316L stainless steel samples in both 20% cold worked and annealed conditions during an irradiation with 19 MeV deuterons. A hold-time was imposed in the loading cycle. For the cold worked (cw) material, at shear strain ranges of 1.13% and 1.3%, irradiation creep induced stress relaxation led to the built up of a mean stress. The fatigue life was significantly reduced in comparison to thermal control tests. For the annealed (ann) material, tested under similar experimental conditions, irradiation creep effects were negligibly small compared to cyclic and irradiation hardening. The fatigue life was only slightly reduced. Continuous cycling tests conducted under irradiation conditions lay in the scatter band of the thermal control tests. The difference in fatigue life between continuous cycling and hold-time tests is attributed mainly to the observed difference in irradiation hardening.

Life cycle and reproduction of house-dust mites: environmental factors influencing mite populations.

PubMed

Hart, B J

1998-01-01

An understanding of the life cycle of house-dust mites, as well as environmental factors influencing mite populations, can be exploited in mite control. The most important limiting factor for house-dust-mite populations is air humidity. House-dust mites osmoregulate through the cuticle and therefore require a high ambient air humidity to prevent excessive water loss. In addition, the supracoxal glands actively take up ambient water vapour, and the protonynph stage of the life cycle is resistant to desiccation. Larger house-dust-mite populations are found when the absolute indoor air humidity is above 7 g/kg (45% relative humidity at 20 degrees C). Consequently, ventilation by air-conditioning systems is being developed as a means of control. A number of other aspects of the domestic environment are also being manipulated in an integrated approach to render the habitat less suitable for mites. The potential exists for developing models for house-dust mite populations, environmental characteristics, and the effects of various approaches to control.

Life Cycle Assessment of Residential Heating and Cooling Systems in Minnesota A comprehensive analysis on life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and cost-effectiveness of ground source heat pump (GSHP) systems compared to the conventional gas furnace and air conditioner system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Mo

Ground Source Heat Pump (GSHP) technologies for residential heating and cooling are often suggested as an effective means to curb energy consumption, reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and lower homeowners' heating and cooling costs. As such, numerous federal, state and utility-based incentives, most often in the forms of financial incentives, installation rebates, and loan programs, have been made available for these technologies. While GSHP technology for space heating and cooling is well understood, with widespread implementation across the U.S., research specific to the environmental and economic performance of these systems in cold climates, such as Minnesota, is limited. In this study, a comparative environmental life cycle assessment (LCA) is conducted of typical residential HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) systems in Minnesota to investigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for delivering 20 years of residential heating and cooling—maintaining indoor temperatures of 68°F (20°C) and 75°F (24°C) in Minnesota-specific heating and cooling seasons, respectively. Eight residential GSHP design scenarios (i.e. horizontal loop field, vertical loop field, high coefficient of performance, low coefficient of performance, hybrid natural gas heat back-up) and one conventional natural gas furnace and air conditioner system are assessed for GHG and life cycle economic costs. Life cycle GHG emissions were found to range between 1.09 × 105 kg CO2 eq. and 1.86 × 10 5 kg CO2 eq. Six of the eight GSHP technology scenarios had fewer carbon impacts than the conventional system. Only in cases of horizontal low-efficiency GSHP and hybrid, do results suggest increased GHGs. Life cycle costs and present value analyses suggest GSHP technologies can be cost competitive over their 20-year life, but that policy incentives may be required to reduce the high up-front capital costs of GSHPs and relatively long payback periods of more than 20 years. In addition, results suggest that the regional electricity fuel mix and volatile energy prices significantly influence the benefits of employing GSHP technologies in Minnesota from both environmental and economic perspectives. It is worthy noting that with the historically low natural gas price in 2012, the conventional system's energy bill reduction would be large enough to bring its life-cycle cost below those of the GSHPs. As a result, the environmentally favorable GSHP technologies would become economically unfavorable, unless they are additionally subsidized. Improved understanding these effects, along with design and performance characteristics of GSGP technologies specific to Minnesota's cold climate, allows better decision making among homeowners considering these technologies and policy makers providing incentives for alternative energy solutions.

Adapting to a Warmer Ocean—Seasonal Shift of Baleen Whale Movements over Three Decades

PubMed Central

Ramp, Christian; Delarue, Julien; Palsbøll, Per J.; Sears, Richard; Hammond, Philip S.

2015-01-01

Global warming poses particular challenges to migratory species, which face changes to the multiple environments occupied during migration. For many species, the timing of migration between summer and winter grounds and also within-season movements are crucial to maximise exploitation of temporarily abundant prey resources in feeding areas, themselves adapting to the warming planet. We investigated the temporal variation in the occurrence of fin (Balaenoptera physalus) and humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in a North Atlantic summer feeding ground, the Gulf of St. Lawrence (Canada), from 1984 to 2010 using a long-term study of individually identifiable animals. These two sympatric species both shifted their date of arrival at a previously undocumented rate of more than 1day per year earlier over the study period thus maintaining the approximate 2-week difference in arrival of the two species and enabling the maintenance of temporal niche separation. However, the departure date of both species also shifted earlier but at different rates resulting in increasing temporal overlap over the study period indicating that this separation may be starting to erode. Our analysis revealed that the trend in arrival was strongly related to earlier ice break-up and rising sea surface temperature, likely triggering earlier primary production. The observed changes in phenology in response to ocean warming are a remarkable example of phenotypic plasticity and may partly explain how baleen whales were able to survive a number of changes in climate over the last several million years. However, it is questionable whether the observed rate of change in timing can be maintained. Substantial modification to the distribution or annual life cycle of these species might be required to keep up with the ongoing warming of the oceans. PMID:25785462

Adapting to a warmer ocean--seasonal shift of baleen whale movements over three decades.

PubMed

Ramp, Christian; Delarue, Julien; Palsbøll, Per J; Sears, Richard; Hammond, Philip S

2015-01-01

Global warming poses particular challenges to migratory species, which face changes to the multiple environments occupied during migration. For many species, the timing of migration between summer and winter grounds and also within-season movements are crucial to maximise exploitation of temporarily abundant prey resources in feeding areas, themselves adapting to the warming planet. We investigated the temporal variation in the occurrence of fin (Balaenoptera physalus) and humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in a North Atlantic summer feeding ground, the Gulf of St. Lawrence (Canada), from 1984 to 2010 using a long-term study of individually identifiable animals. These two sympatric species both shifted their date of arrival at a previously undocumented rate of more than 1 day per year earlier over the study period thus maintaining the approximate 2-week difference in arrival of the two species and enabling the maintenance of temporal niche separation. However, the departure date of both species also shifted earlier but at different rates resulting in increasing temporal overlap over the study period indicating that this separation may be starting to erode. Our analysis revealed that the trend in arrival was strongly related to earlier ice break-up and rising sea surface temperature, likely triggering earlier primary production. The observed changes in phenology in response to ocean warming are a remarkable example of phenotypic plasticity and may partly explain how baleen whales were able to survive a number of changes in climate over the last several million years. However, it is questionable whether the observed rate of change in timing can be maintained. Substantial modification to the distribution or annual life cycle of these species might be required to keep up with the ongoing warming of the oceans.

NASA's Controlled Environment Agriculture Testing for Space Habitats

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wheeler, Raymond M.

2014-01-01

NASA and other space agencies have an interest in using plants for human life support in space. The plants could provide food and O2 for the humans, while removing CO2 and helping purify wastewater. Studies to date have shown that a wide range of crops can be grown in controlled environment conditions envisioned for space. Light is a critical factor both for crop productivity and system power costs, and recent improvements in LEDs make them a preferred lighting option for space. Because space systems would be tightly closed, issues such as ethylene build-up and management must be considered. Ultimately, the costs and reliability of biological life support options must be compared with more conventional life support approaches. Findings to date suggest that about 20-25 sq. meters of crops could supply the O2 for one human, while about 50 sq. meters would be required for food (dietary calories).

Antiretroviral therapy: current drugs.

PubMed

Pau, Alice K; George, Jomy M

2014-09-01

The rapid advances in drug discovery and the development of antiretroviral therapy is unprecedented in the history of modern medicine. The administration of chronic combination antiretroviral therapy targeting different stages of the human immunodeficiency virus' replicative life cycle allows for durable and maximal suppression of plasma viremia. This suppression has resulted in dramatic improvement of patient survival. This article reviews the history of antiretroviral drug development and discusses the clinical pharmacology, efficacy, and toxicities of the antiretroviral agents most commonly used in clinical practice to date. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Flowering time and seed dormancy control use external coincidence to generate life history strategy

PubMed Central

Springthorpe, Vicki; Penfield, Steven

2015-01-01

Climate change is accelerating plant developmental transitions coordinated with the seasons in temperate environments. To understand the importance of these timing advances for a stable life history strategy, we constructed a full life cycle model of Arabidopsis thaliana. Modelling and field data reveal that a cryptic function of flowering time control is to limit seed set of winter annuals to an ambient temperature window which coincides with a temperature-sensitive switch in seed dormancy state. This coincidence is predicted to be conserved independent of climate at the expense of flowering date, suggesting that temperature control of flowering time has evolved to constrain seed set environment and therefore frequency of dormant and non-dormant seed states. We show that late flowering can disrupt this bet-hedging germination strategy. Our analysis shows that life history modelling can reveal hidden fitness constraints and identify non-obvious selection pressures as emergent features. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.05557.001 PMID:25824056

Cyberbullying: What Counselors Need to Know

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bauman, Sheri

2011-01-01

This informative book offers complete, up-to-date coverage of the growing problem of cyberbullying. Written for counselors, teachers, school leaders, and other professionals who work with children and teens, "Cyberbullying" addresses the real-life dangers students face on the Internet, including offensive, confrontational, and harassing messages;…

Florida, 2010 forest inventory and analysis factsheet

Treesearch

Mark J. Brown; Jarek Nowak

2012-01-01

Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) factsheets are produced periodically to keep the public up to date on the extent and condition of the forest lands in each State. This factsheet is an annualized update of the full 5-year cycle of panel data completed in 2007 and updated by reprocessing with new 2009 and 2010 panel data. It represents 5 years of data, 40 percent of...

Behavioral assessment of language brain processing in the first year of life.

PubMed

Guzzetta, Francesco

2014-09-01

An up-to-date review of the behavioral assessments of language development in the first year of life is reported. After recalling the anatomical bases of the early development of the auditory system, the different stages of language development during the first year of life are considered: discrimination, transition and perception. The different kinds of behavioral assessment during the course of the first year are then described by stressing their indications and limitations. Copyright © 2014 European Paediatric Neurology Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A proteomic chronology of gene expression through the cell cycle in human myeloid leukemia cells.

PubMed

Ly, Tony; Ahmad, Yasmeen; Shlien, Adam; Soroka, Dominique; Mills, Allie; Emanuele, Michael J; Stratton, Michael R; Lamond, Angus I

2014-01-01

Technological advances have enabled the analysis of cellular protein and RNA levels with unprecedented depth and sensitivity, allowing for an unbiased re-evaluation of gene regulation during fundamental biological processes. Here, we have chronicled the dynamics of protein and mRNA expression levels across a minimally perturbed cell cycle in human myeloid leukemia cells using centrifugal elutriation combined with mass spectrometry-based proteomics and RNA-Seq, avoiding artificial synchronization procedures. We identify myeloid-specific gene expression and variations in protein abundance, isoform expression and phosphorylation at different cell cycle stages. We dissect the relationship between protein and mRNA levels for both bulk gene expression and for over ∼6000 genes individually across the cell cycle, revealing complex, gene-specific patterns. This data set, one of the deepest surveys to date of gene expression in human cells, is presented in an online, searchable database, the Encyclopedia of Proteome Dynamics (http://www.peptracker.com/epd/). DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.01630.001.

A proteomic chronology of gene expression through the cell cycle in human myeloid leukemia cells

PubMed Central

Ly, Tony; Ahmad, Yasmeen; Shlien, Adam; Soroka, Dominique; Mills, Allie; Emanuele, Michael J; Stratton, Michael R; Lamond, Angus I

2014-01-01

Technological advances have enabled the analysis of cellular protein and RNA levels with unprecedented depth and sensitivity, allowing for an unbiased re-evaluation of gene regulation during fundamental biological processes. Here, we have chronicled the dynamics of protein and mRNA expression levels across a minimally perturbed cell cycle in human myeloid leukemia cells using centrifugal elutriation combined with mass spectrometry-based proteomics and RNA-Seq, avoiding artificial synchronization procedures. We identify myeloid-specific gene expression and variations in protein abundance, isoform expression and phosphorylation at different cell cycle stages. We dissect the relationship between protein and mRNA levels for both bulk gene expression and for over ∼6000 genes individually across the cell cycle, revealing complex, gene-specific patterns. This data set, one of the deepest surveys to date of gene expression in human cells, is presented in an online, searchable database, the Encyclopedia of Proteome Dynamics (http://www.peptracker.com/epd/). DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.01630.001 PMID:24596151

Cycle life status of SAFT VOS nickel-cadmium cells

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goualard, Jacques

1993-01-01

The SAFT prismatic VOS Ni-Cd cells have been flown in geosynchronous orbit since 1977 and in low earth orbit since 1983. Parallel cycling tests are performed by several space agencies in order to determine the cycle life for a wide range of temperature and depth of discharge (DOD). In low Earth orbit (LEO), the ELAN program is conducted on 24 Ah cells by CNES and ESA at the European Battery Test Center at temperatures ranging from 0 to 27 C and DOD from 10 to 40 percent. Data are presented up to 37,000 cycles. One pack (X-80) has achieved 49,000 cycles at 10 C and 23 percent DOD. The geosynchronous orbit simulation of a high DOD test is conducted by ESA on 3 batteries at 10 C and 70, 90, and 100 percent DOD. Thirty-one eclipse seasons are completed, and no signs of degradation have been found. The Air Force test at CRANE on 24 Ah and 40 Ah cells at 20 C and 80 percent DOD has achieved 19 shadow periods. Life expectancy is discussed. The VOS cell technology could be used for the following: (1) in geosynchronous conditions--15 yrs at 10-15 C and 80 percent DOD; and (2) in low earth orbit--10 yrs at 5-15 C and 25-30 percent DOD.

Sex differences in mate preferences revisited: do people know what they initially desire in a romantic partner?

PubMed

Eastwick, Paul W; Finkel, Eli J

2008-02-01

In paradigms in which participants state their ideal romantic-partner preferences or examine vignettes and photographs, men value physical attractiveness more than women do, and women value earning prospects more than men do. Yet it remains unclear if these preferences remain sex differentiated in predicting desire for real-life potential partners (i.e., individuals whom one has actually met). In the present study, the authors explored this possibility using speed dating and longitudinal follow-up procedures. Replicating previous research, participants exhibited traditional sex differences when stating the importance of physical attractiveness and earning prospects in an ideal partner and ideal speed date. However, data revealed no sex differences in the associations between participants' romantic interest in real-life potential partners (met during and outside of speed dating) and the attractiveness and earning prospects of those partners. Furthermore, participants' ideal preferences, assessed before the speed-dating event, failed to predict what inspired their actual desire at the event. Results are discussed within the context of R. E. Nisbett and T. D. Wilson's (1977) seminal article: Even regarding such a consequential aspect of mental life as romantic-partner preferences, people may lack introspective awareness of what influences their judgments and behavior. (c) 2008 APA, all rights reserved

Life-cycle implications and supply chain logistics of electric vehicle battery recycling in California

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hendrickson, Thomas P.; Kavvada, Olga; Shah, Nihar; Sathre, Roger; Scown, Corinne D.

2015-01-01

Plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) use in the United States (US) has doubled in recent years and is projected to continue increasing rapidly. This is especially true in California, which makes up nearly one-third of the current US PEV market. Planning and constructing the necessary infrastructure to support this projected increase requires insight into the optimal strategies for PEV battery recycling. Utilizing life-cycle perspectives in evaluating these supply chain networks is essential in fully understanding the environmental consequences of this infrastructure expansion. This study combined life-cycle assessment and geographic information systems (GIS) to analyze the energy, greenhouse gas (GHG), water use, and criteria air pollutant implications of end-of-life infrastructure networks for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) in California. Multiple end-of-life scenarios were assessed, including hydrometallurgical and pyrometallurgical recycling processes. Using economic and environmental criteria, GIS modeling revealed optimal locations for battery dismantling and recycling facilities for in-state and out-of-state recycling scenarios. Results show that economic return on investment is likely to diminish if more than two in-state dismantling facilities are constructed. Using rail as well as truck transportation can substantially reduce transportation-related GHG emissions (23-45%) for both in-state and out-of-state recycling scenarios. The results revealed that material recovery from pyrometallurgy can offset environmental burdens associated with LIB production, namely a 6-56% reduction in primary energy demand and 23% reduction in GHG emissions, when compared to virgin production. Incorporating human health damages from air emissions into the model indicated that Los Angeles and Kern Counties are most at risk in the infrastructure scale-up for in-state recycling due to their population density and proximity to the optimal location.

Extended Life Testing of Duplex Ball Bearings

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mobley, Jeffrey; Robertson, Michael; Hodges, Charles

2016-01-01

Sierra Nevada Corporation’s Space Systems performed bearing life testing for the Scan Mirror Motor/Encoder Assembly (SMMA), part of the Scan Mirror Assembly on-board the Aerosol Polarimetry Sensor (APS) on the NASA Glory Spacecraft. The baseline bearing life test duration extended beyond the launch date for the Glory Spacecraft; a risk that the program was willing to undertake with the understanding that if any anomalies or failures occurred before the required life was achieved, then the mission objectives or operating profile could be modified on orbit to take those results into account. Even though the Glory Spacecraft failed to reach orbit during its launch in March of 2011, the bearing life testing was continued through a mutual understanding of value between Sierra Nevada Corporation and our customer; with a revised goal of testing to failure rather than completing a required number of life cycles. Life testing thus far has not only exceeded the original mission required life, but has also exceeded the published test data for Cumulative Degradation Factor (CDF) from NASA/CR-2009-215681. Many lessons were learned along the way regarding long life testing. The bearing life test has been temporarily suspended due to test support equipment issues.

Life cycles of traumatized teeth: long-term observations from a cohort of dental trauma victims - series 2.

PubMed

Heithersay, G S

2016-09-01

In this the second of a series of life cycles of dental trauma victims, the short and particularly long-term responses of four survivors of either multiple luxation injuries or avulsions have been documented over periods varying up to 41 years. The development of ankylosis, either in the short or longer term post trauma, proved a common feature in the series and management strategies have been outlined. External invasive resorption was also identified as a complicating response for which the topical application of trichloracetic acid, intracanal dressing and root canal obturation proved effective in resorption management. Long-term observations indicate that some compromised teeth can be functionally and aesthetically retained for extended periods, but follow-up examinations are important so that treatment interventions can be implemented if adverse responses are diagnosed. © 2016 Australian Dental Association.

Motivational Determinants for Adult Learning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dubin, Samuel S.; George , John L.

A concern with the motivational behavior for keeping up-to-date, a learning process, is presented. The half-life of a professional's competence is described as the time after completion of professional training when, because of new developments, practicing professionals have become roughly half as competent as they were upon graduation to meet the…

Bottom-up processes influence the demography and life-cycle phenology of Hawaiian bird communities

Treesearch

Jared D. Wolfe; C. John Ralph; Andrew Wiegardt

2017-01-01

Changes in climate can indirectly regulate populations at higher trophic levels by influencing the availability of food resources in the lower reaches of the food web. As such, species that rely on fruit and nectar food resources may be particularly sensitive to these bottom-up perturbations due to the strength of their trophic linkages with climatically-...

Life cycle environmental impact of high-capacity lithium ion battery with silicon nanowires anode for electric vehicles.

PubMed

Li, Bingbing; Gao, Xianfeng; Li, Jianyang; Yuan, Chris

2014-01-01

Although silicon nanowires (SiNW) have been widely studied as an ideal material for developing high-capacity lithium ion batteries (LIBs) for electric vehicles (EVs), little is known about the environmental impacts of such a new EV battery pack during its whole life cycle. This paper reports a life cycle assessment (LCA) of a high-capacity LIB pack using SiNW prepared via metal-assisted chemical etching as anode material. The LCA study is conducted based on the average U.S. driving and electricity supply conditions. Nanowastes and nanoparticle emissions from the SiNW synthesis are also characterized and reported. The LCA results show that over 50% of most characterized impacts are generated from the battery operations, while the battery anode with SiNW material contributes to around 15% of global warming potential and 10% of human toxicity potential. Overall the life cycle impacts of this new battery pack are moderately higher than those of conventional LIBs but could be actually comparable when considering the uncertainties and scale-up potential of the technology. These results are encouraging because they not only provide a solid base for sustainable development of next generation LIBs but also confirm that appropriate nanomanufacturing technologies could be used in sustainable product development.

Observation to Theory in Deep Subsurface Microbiology Research: Can We Piece It Together?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Colwell, F. S.; Thurber, A. R.

2016-12-01

Three decades of observations of microbes in deep environments have led to startling discoveries of life in the subsurface. Now, a few theoretical frameworks exist that help to define Stygian life. Temperature, redox gradients, productivity (e.g., in the overlying ocean), and microbial power requirements are thought to determine the distribution of microbes in the subsurface. Still, we struggle to comprehend the spatial and temporal spectra of Earth processes that define how deep microbe communities survive. Stommel diagrams, originally used to guide oceanographic sampling, may be useful in depicting the subsurface where microbial communities are impacted by co-occurring spatial and temporal phenomena that range across exponential scales. Spatially, the geological settings that influence the activity and distribution of microbes range from individual molecules or minerals all the way up to the planetary-scale where geological formations, occupying up to 105 km3, dictate the bio- and functional geography of microbial communities. Temporally, life in the subsurface may respond in time units familiar to humans (e.g., seconds to days) or to events that unfold over hundred millennial time periods. While surface community dynamics are underpinned by solar and lunar cycles, these cycles only fractionally dictate survival underground where phenomena like tectonic activity, isostatic rebound, and radioactive decay are plausible drivers of microbial life. Geological or planetary processes that occur on thousand or million year cycles could be uniquely important to microbial viability in the subsurface. Such an approach aims at a holistic comprehension of the interaction of Earth system dynamics with microbial ecology.

Life cycle thinking and assessment tools on environmentally-benign electronics: Convergent optimization of materials use, end-of-life strategy and environmental policies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Xiaoying

The purpose of this study is to integrate the quantitative environmental performance assessment tools and the theory of multi-objective optimization within the boundary of electronic product systems to support the selection among design alternatives in terms of environmental impact, technical criteria, and economic feasibility. To meet with the requirements that result from emerging environmental legislation targeting electronics products, the research addresses an important analytical methodological approach to facilitate environmentally conscious design and end-of-life management with a life cycle viewpoint. A synthesis of diverse assessment tools is applied on a set of case studies: lead-free solder materials selection, cellular phone design, and desktop display technology assessment. In the first part of this work, an in-depth industrial survey of the status and concerns of the U.S. electronics industry on the elimination of lead (Pb) in solders is described. The results show that the trade-offs among environmental consequences, technology challenges, business risks, legislative compliance and stakeholders' preferences must be explicitly, simultaneously, and systematically addressed in the decision-making process used to guide multi-faceted planning of environmental solutions. In the second part of this work, the convergent optimization of the technical cycle, economic cycle and environmental cycle is addressed in a coherent and systematic way using the application of environmentally conscious design of cellular phones. The technical understanding of product structure, components analysis, and materials flow facilitates the development of "Design for Disassembly" guidelines. A bottom-up disassembly analysis on a "bill of materials" based structure at a micro-operational level is utilized to select optimal end-of-life strategies on the basis of economic feasibility. A macro-operational level life cycle model is used to investigate the environmental consequences linking environmental impact with the cellular phone production activities focusing on the upstream manufacturing and end-of-life life cycle stages. The last part of this work, the quantitative elicitation of weighting factors facilitates the comparison of trade-offs in the context of a multi-attribute problem. An integrated analytical approach, Integrated Industrial Ecology Function Deployment (I2-EFD), is proposed to assess alternatives at the design phase of a product system and is validated with the assessment of desktop display technologies and lead-free solder alternatives.

The Life-Cycle Cost of Life-Style: Strategic Implications of Health in the Air Force

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-06-01

flowers , and many fruits in less time than it takes in soil. The 5-foot-tall tower can grow up to 20 different items providing fresh and pesticide...calorie muffins ($0.20, banana -nut muffin is 270 calories and 14g fat) are relatively cheap, while an individual yogurt ($0.90, 179 calories and 5.8g

Frontline brentuximab vedotin in combination with dacarbazine or bendamustine in patients aged ≥60 years with HL.

PubMed

Friedberg, Jonathan W; Forero-Torres, Andres; Bordoni, Rodolfo E; Cline, Vivian J M; Patel Donnelly, Dipti; Flynn, Patrick J; Olsen, Gregg; Chen, Robert; Fong, Abraham; Wang, Yinghui; Yasenchak, Christopher A

2017-12-28

Patients aged ≥60 years with treatment-naive Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) have few treatment options and inferior survival due to treatment-related toxicities and comorbidities. This phase 2, nonrandomized, open-label study evaluated brentuximab vedotin (BV) monotherapy (results previously reported), BV plus dacarbazine (DTIC), and BV plus bendamustine. Patients had classical HL and were ineligible for or declined frontline chemotherapy. Twenty-two patients received 1.8 mg/kg BV and 375 mg/m 2 DTIC for up to 12 cycles, and 20 more patients received 1.8 mg/kg BV plus 90 or 70 mg/m 2 bendamustine for up to 6 cycles (dose reduced due to toxicity). Subsequent BV monotherapy was allowed. Approximately 30 patients were to receive BV plus bendamustine; however, the incidence of serious adverse events (65%) and 2 deaths on study led to discontinuation of bendamustine and cessation of enrollment. Most patients had stage III/IV disease, and approximately half had ≥3 comorbidities or were impaired in ≥1 aspect that significantly interfered with quality of life. For BV plus DTIC, the objective response rate (ORR) was 100% and the complete remission (CR) rate was 62%. To date, the median progression-free survival (PFS) is 17.9 months. For BV plus bendamustine, the ORR was 100% and the CR rate was 88%. Neither the median PFS nor overall survival was reached. For elderly patients with HL, BV plus DTIC may be a frontline option based on tolerability and response duration. Despite activity, BV plus bendamustine is not a tolerable regimen in these patients. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT01716806. © 2017 by The American Society of Hematology.

Dynamics of Wolbachia pipientis Gene Expression Across the Drosophila melanogaster Life Cycle

PubMed Central

Gutzwiller, Florence; Carmo, Catarina R.; Miller, Danny E.; Rice, Danny W.; Newton, Irene L. G.; Hawley, R. Scott; Teixeira, Luis; Bergman, Casey M.

2015-01-01

Symbiotic interactions between microbes and their multicellular hosts have manifold biological consequences. To better understand how bacteria maintain symbiotic associations with animal hosts, we analyzed genome-wide gene expression for the endosymbiotic α-proteobacteria Wolbachia pipientis across the entire life cycle of Drosophila melanogaster. We found that the majority of Wolbachia genes are expressed stably across the D. melanogaster life cycle, but that 7.8% of Wolbachia genes exhibit robust stage- or sex-specific expression differences when studied in the whole-organism context. Differentially-expressed Wolbachia genes are typically up-regulated after Drosophila embryogenesis and include many bacterial membrane, secretion system, and ankyrin repeat-containing proteins. Sex-biased genes are often organized as small operons of uncharacterized genes and are mainly up-regulated in adult Drosophila males in an age-dependent manner. We also systematically investigated expression levels of previously-reported candidate genes thought to be involved in host-microbe interaction, including those in the WO-A and WO-B prophages and in the Octomom region, which has been implicated in regulating bacterial titer and pathogenicity. Our work provides comprehensive insight into the developmental dynamics of gene expression for a widespread endosymbiont in its natural host context, and shows that public gene expression data harbor rich resources to probe the functional basis of the Wolbachia-Drosophila symbiosis and annotate the transcriptional outputs of the Wolbachia genome. PMID:26497146

Where microorganisms meet rocks in the Earth's Critical Zone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akob, D. M.; Küsel, K.

2011-03-01

The Earth's Critical Zone (CZ) is the critical, outer shell of the Earth that provides an arena for the interplay of diverse physical, chemical, and biological processes that are fundamental for sustaining life. As microbes are the principle drivers of biogeochemical cycles, it is necessary to understand the biodiversity of the CZ unseen majority and their impact on life-sustaining processes. This review aims to summarize the factors controlling where microbes (prokaryotes and micro-eukaryotes) live within the CZ and what is known to date about their diversity and function. Microbes live in all regions of the CZ down to 5 km depth, but due to changing habitat complexity, e.g., variability in pore spaces, water, oxygen, and nutrients, their functional role changes with depth. The abundance of prokaryotes and micro-eukaryotes decreases from a maximum of 1010 or 107 cells g soil-1 up to eight orders of magnitude with depth. Symbiotic mycorrhizal fungi and free-living decomposers are best understood in soil habitats, where they are up to 103 cells g soil-1. However, little is known about their identity and impact on weathering in the deep subsurface. The relatively low abundance of micro-eukaryotes in the deep subsurface suggests that these organisms are either limited in space or nutrients or unable to cope with oxygen limitations. Since deep regions of the CZ are limited in the recent input of photosynthesis-derived carbon, microbes are dependent on deposited organic material or on chemolithoautotrophic metabolism that allows for the establishment of a complete food chain independent from the surface. However, the energy flux available might only allow cell growth over tens to thousands of years. The recent development of "omics" technologies has provided microbial ecologists with methods to link the composition and function of in situ microbial communities. We should expect new metabolic discoveries as we have a closer look utilizing a polyphasic approach into the microbial communities of the CZ. Thus, future work is still needed to link microbial biodiversity to the exact role of microbes in weathering and geochemical cycling in the CZ, especially in subsurface habitats.

Bicycle Guidelines and Crash Rates on Cycle Tracks in the United States

PubMed Central

Morency, Patrick; Miranda-Moreno, Luis F.; Willett, Walter C.; Dennerlein, Jack T.

2013-01-01

Objectives. We studied state-adopted bicycle guidelines to determine whether cycle tracks (physically separated, bicycle-exclusive paths adjacent to sidewalks) were recommended, whether they were built, and their crash rate. Methods. We analyzed and compared US bicycle facility guidelines published between 1972 and 1999. We identified 19 cycle tracks in the United States and collected extensive data on cycle track design, usage, and crash history from local communities. We used bicycle counts and crash data to estimate crash rates. Results. A bicycle facility guideline written in 1972 endorsed cycle tracks but American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) guidelines (1974–1999) discouraged or did not include cycle tracks and did not cite research about crash rates on cycle tracks. For the 19 US cycle tracks we examined, the overall crash rate was 2.3 (95% confidence interval = 1.7, 3.0) per 1 million bicycle kilometers. Conclusions. AASHTO bicycle guidelines are not explicitly based on rigorous or up-to-date research. Our results show that the risk of bicycle–vehicle crashes is lower on US cycle tracks than published crashes rates on roadways. This study and previous investigations support building cycle tracks. PMID:23678920

Reuse of bituminous pavements: A mini-review of research, regulations and modelling.

PubMed

Anthonissen, Joke; Van den Bergh, Wim; Braet, Johan

2017-04-01

Bituminous pavement can be recycled - even multiple times - by reusing it in new bituminous mixtures. If the mechanical properties of the binder get worse, this reclaimed asphalt is often used in the sub-structure of the road. Apparently, up till now, no end-of-life phase exists for the material. Actually, defining the end-of-life and the end-of-waste stage of a material is important for life cycle assessment modelling. Various standards and scientific studies on modelling life cycle assessment are known, but the crucial stages are not yet defined for reclaimed asphalt pavement. Unlike for iron, steel and aluminium scrap, at this moment, no legislative end-of-waste criteria for aggregates are formulated by the European Commission. More research is necessary in order to develop valuable end-of-life criteria for aggregates. This contribution is a mini-review article of the current regulations, standards and studies concerning end-of-life and end-of-waste of reclaimed asphalt pavement. The existing methodology in order to define end-of-waste criteria, a case study on aggregates and the argumentation used in finished legislative criteria are the basis to clarify some modelling issues for reclaimed asphalt material. Hence, this contribution elucidates the assignment of process environmental impacts to a life cycle stage as defined by EN15804, that is, end-of-life stage (C) and the supplementary information Module D with benefits and loads beyond the system boundary.

5 CFR 870.704 - Amount of Option A.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... (CONTINUED) FEDERAL EMPLOYEES' GROUP LIFE INSURANCE PROGRAM Annuitants and Compensationers § 870.704 Amount... amount each month up to a maximum reduction of 75 percent. This reduction starts at the beginning of the... after the date of the insured's 65th birthday, whichever is later. (c) Paragraph (b) of this section...

Waste-to-energy: A review of life cycle assessment and its extension methods.

PubMed

Zhou, Zhaozhi; Tang, Yuanjun; Chi, Yong; Ni, Mingjiang; Buekens, Alfons

2018-01-01

This article proposes a comprehensive review of evaluation tools based on life cycle thinking, as applied to waste-to-energy. Habitually, life cycle assessment is adopted to assess environmental burdens associated with waste-to-energy initiatives. Based on this framework, several extension methods have been developed to focus on specific aspects: Exergetic life cycle assessment for reducing resource depletion, life cycle costing for evaluating its economic burden, and social life cycle assessment for recording its social impacts. Additionally, the environment-energy-economy model integrates both life cycle assessment and life cycle costing methods and judges simultaneously these three features for sustainable waste-to-energy conversion. Life cycle assessment is sufficiently developed on waste-to-energy with concrete data inventory and sensitivity analysis, although the data and model uncertainty are unavoidable. Compared with life cycle assessment, only a few evaluations are conducted to waste-to-energy techniques by using extension methods and its methodology and application need to be further developed. Finally, this article succinctly summarises some recommendations for further research.

The Perfect Pairing: The Adult Learner and the Boutique Winery in the Start-Up Phase

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heath-Simpson, Delta F.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand and describe the lived experiences of adult learners who are owners and managers of small winery businesses operating in the start-up phase of the organizational life cycle. The study explored and identified the meaning of adult learning in the entrepreneurial context and its affect on…

Sporophyte Formation and Life Cycle Completion in Moss Requires Heterotrimeric G-Proteins1[OPEN

PubMed Central

Hackenberg, Dieter; Quatrano, Ralph

2016-01-01

In this study, we report the functional characterization of heterotrimeric G-proteins from a nonvascular plant, the moss Physcomitrella patens. In plants, G-proteins have been characterized from only a few angiosperms to date, where their involvement has been shown during regulation of multiple signaling and developmental pathways affecting overall plant fitness. In addition to its unparalleled evolutionary position in the plant lineages, the P. patens genome also codes for a unique assortment of G-protein components, which includes two copies of Gβ and Gγ genes, but no canonical Gα. Instead, a single gene encoding an extra-large Gα (XLG) protein exists in the P. patens genome. Here, we demonstrate that in P. patens the canonical Gα is biochemically and functionally replaced by an XLG protein, which works in the same genetic pathway as one of the Gβ proteins to control its development. Furthermore, the specific G-protein subunits in P. patens are essential for its life cycle completion. Deletion of the genomic locus of PpXLG or PpGβ2 results in smaller, slower growing gametophores. Normal reproductive structures develop on these gametophores, but they are unable to form any sporophyte, the only diploid stage in the moss life cycle. Finally, the mutant phenotypes of ΔPpXLG and ΔPpGβ2 can be complemented by the homologous genes from Arabidopsis, AtXLG2 and AtAGB1, respectively, suggesting an overall conservation of their function throughout the plant evolution. PMID:27550997

Consequences of Dating for Post-Divorce Maternal Well-Being

PubMed Central

Langlais, Michael R.; Anderson, Edward R.; Greene, Shannon M.

2016-01-01

Repartnering has been linked to health benefits for mothers, yet few studies have examined relationship quality in this context. According to the divorce-stress-adaptation perspective, relationship quality may influence the relationship between maternal well-being and dating after divorce. The current study examines the consequences of dating, relationship quality, and dating transitions (breaking up and dating new partners) on maternal well-being (negative affect and life satisfaction). Using monthly surveys completed by mothers over a two-year period after filing for divorce, we examined changes in intercepts and slopes of dating status and transitions for maternal well-being while also testing the effects of relationship quality. Mothers entering high-quality relationships were likely to report boosts in well-being at relationship initiation compared to single mothers and mothers entering low-quality relationships. Mothers entering lower-quality relationships were likely to report lower levels of well-being than single mothers. Dating transitions were associated with increases in well-being. Implications for maternal adjustment are discussed. PMID:27746511

Conventional vs. extended-cycle oral contraceptives on the quality of sexual life: comparison between two regimens containing 3 mg drospirenone and 20 µg ethinyl estradiol.

PubMed

Caruso, Salvatore; Iraci Sareri, Marco; Agnello, Carmela; Romano, Mattea; Lo Presti, Lucia; Malandrino, Chiara; Cianci, Antonio

2011-05-01

Women may use new oral contraceptives (OC) having flexible extended-cycle regimens with a reduced hormone-free interval. To study the changes of the quality of sexual life in users of the traditional 21/7 or extended-cycle 24/4 OC regimens both containing 3 mg drospirenone and 20 µg ethinyl estradiol. One hundred fifteen women (age range 18-37 years) were enrolled. Fifty-four women were randomly placed on traditional OC standard regimen, administered for 21 days, followed by a 7-day hormone-free interval (group A); and 61 women were placed on extended-cycle OC regimen covering 24 days of the cycle with a 4-day hormone-free interval (group B). The Short Form-36 (SF-36) validate questionnaire to assess quality of life (QoL) and the Short Personal Experience Questionnaire (SPEQ) to measure the changes of sexual behavior were administered before starting OC intake and at the 3rd and 6th cycle follow-ups. The SF-36 and the SPEQ questionnaires. Group A women reported QoL improvement during the 6th cycle on all the scales (P < 0.05). Group B women reported QoL improvement during the 3rd and 6th cycle (P < 0.05). Satisfaction with sexual activity, arousal, orgasm, and desire increased during the 3rd cycle in women on the group B (P < 0.05). Group A women did not report any change in all SPEQ items. At the 6th cycle, group B women reported better sexual experience than baseline in all SPEQ items (P < 0.05). All subjects who were affected by dyspareunia before OC intake reported decreased genital pain associated with intercourse at the 3rd and 6th cycle of both OC regimens (P < 0.05). Women could use OCs in a subjective flexible modality. The extended-cycle OC might produce positive effects on the quality of sexual life, enforcing the concept of tailoring an OC to a woman. © 2011 International Society for Sexual Medicine.

An Exploration of the Relationship between Improvements in Energy Efficiency and Life-Cycle Energy and Carbon Emissions using the BIRDS Low-Energy Residential Database.

PubMed

Kneifel, Joshua; O'Rear, Eric; Webb, David; O'Fallon, Cheyney

2018-02-01

To conduct a more complete analysis of low-energy and net-zero energy buildings that considers both the operating and embodied energy/emissions, members of the building community look to life-cycle assessment (LCA) methods. This paper examines differences in the relative impacts of cost-optimal energy efficiency measure combinations depicting residential buildings up to and beyond net-zero energy consumption on operating and embodied flows using data from the Building Industry Reporting and Design for Sustainability (BIRDS) Low-Energy Residential Database. Results indicate that net-zero performance leads to a large increase in embodied flows (over 40%) that offsets some of the reductions in operational flows, but overall life-cycle flows are still reduced by over 60% relative to the state energy code. Overall, building designs beyond net-zero performance can partially offset embodied flows with negative operational flows by replacing traditional electricity generation with solar production, but would require an additional 8.34 kW (18.54 kW in total) of due south facing solar PV to reach net-zero total life-cycle flows. Such a system would meet over 239% of operational consumption of the most energy efficient design considered in this study and over 116% of a state code-compliant building design in its initial year of operation.

The influence of catalysts on biofuel life cycle analysis (LCA)

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

Benavides, Pahola Thathiana; Cronauer, Donald C.; Adom, Felix K.

Catalysts play an important role in biofuel production but are rarely included in biofuel life cycle analysis (LCA). In this work, we estimate the cradle-to-gate energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of Pt/γ-Al 2O 3, CoMo/γ-Al 2O 3, and ZSM-5, catalysts that could be used in processes to convert biomass to biofuels. We also consider the potential impacts of catalyst recovery and recycling. Integrating the energy and environmental impacts of CoMo/γ-Al 2O 3 and ZSM-5 into an LCA of renewable gasoline produced via in-situ and ex-situ fast pyrolysis of a blended woody feedstock revealed that the ZSM-5, with cradle-to-gatemore » GHG emissions of 7.7 kg CO 2e/kg, could influence net life-cycle GHG emissions of the renewable gasoline (1.7 gCO 2e/MJ for the in-situ process, 1.2 gCO 2e/MJ for the ex-situ process) by up to 14% depending on the loading rate. CoMo/γ-Al 2O 3 had a greater GHG intensity (9.6 kg CO 2e/kg) than ZSM-5, however, it contributed approximately only 1% to the life-cycle GHG emissions of the renewable gasoline because of the small amount of this catalyst needed per kg of biofuel produced. As a result, given that catalysts can contribute significantly to biofuel life-cycle GHG emissions depending on the GHG intensity of their production and their consumption rates, biofuel LCAs should consider the potential influence of catalysts on LCA results.« less

The influence of catalysts on biofuel life cycle analysis (LCA)

DOE PAGES

Benavides, Pahola Thathiana; Cronauer, Donald C.; Adom, Felix K.; ...

2017-01-21

Catalysts play an important role in biofuel production but are rarely included in biofuel life cycle analysis (LCA). In this work, we estimate the cradle-to-gate energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of Pt/γ-Al 2O 3, CoMo/γ-Al 2O 3, and ZSM-5, catalysts that could be used in processes to convert biomass to biofuels. We also consider the potential impacts of catalyst recovery and recycling. Integrating the energy and environmental impacts of CoMo/γ-Al 2O 3 and ZSM-5 into an LCA of renewable gasoline produced via in-situ and ex-situ fast pyrolysis of a blended woody feedstock revealed that the ZSM-5, with cradle-to-gatemore » GHG emissions of 7.7 kg CO 2e/kg, could influence net life-cycle GHG emissions of the renewable gasoline (1.7 gCO 2e/MJ for the in-situ process, 1.2 gCO 2e/MJ for the ex-situ process) by up to 14% depending on the loading rate. CoMo/γ-Al 2O 3 had a greater GHG intensity (9.6 kg CO 2e/kg) than ZSM-5, however, it contributed approximately only 1% to the life-cycle GHG emissions of the renewable gasoline because of the small amount of this catalyst needed per kg of biofuel produced. As a result, given that catalysts can contribute significantly to biofuel life-cycle GHG emissions depending on the GHG intensity of their production and their consumption rates, biofuel LCAs should consider the potential influence of catalysts on LCA results.« less

Advances in ambient temperature secondary lithium cells

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Subbarao, S.; Shen, D. H.; Deligiannis, F.; Huang, C-K.; Halpert, G.

1989-01-01

The goal is to develop secondary lithium cells with a 100 Wh/kg specific energy capable of 1000 cycles at 50 percent DOD. The approach towards meeting this goal initially focused on several basic issues related to the cell chemistry, selection of cathode materials and electrolytes and component development. The performance potential of Li-TiS2, Li-MoS3, Li-V6O13 and Li-NbSe3 electrochemical systems was examined. Among these four, the Li-TiS2 system was found to be the most promising system in terms of achievable specific energy and cycle life. Major advancements to date in the development of Li-TiS2 cells are in the areas of cathode processing technology, mixed solvent electrolytes, and cell assembly. A summary is given of these advances.

Does D matter? The role of vitamin D in hair disorders and hair follicle cycling.

PubMed

Amor, Karrie T; Rashid, Rashid M; Mirmirani, Paradi

2010-02-15

The role of vitamin D in the proliferation and differentiation of keratinocytes is well known within the field of dermatology. We sought to evaluate the role that vitamin D and the vitamin D receptor play in the hair cycle and assess how this can be clinically applied to the treatment of hair disorders. A MEDLINE search (1955-July 2009) was preformed to find relevant articles pertaining to vitamin D, the vitamin D receptor, and hair loss. The vitamin D receptor, independent of vitamin D, plays an important role in hair cycling, specifically anagen initiation. The role of vitamin D in hair follicle cycling is not as well understood. The review is broad and there are limited human studies available to date. Additional studies to evaluate the role of vitamin D in the hair cycle should be done. Treatments that up regulate the vitamin D receptor may be successful in treating hair disorders and are a potential area of further study.

Role of Ultraviolet Radiation in Papillomavirus-Induced Disease

PubMed Central

Uberoi, Aayushi; Yoshida, Satoshi; Frazer, Ian H.; Pitot, Henry C.; Lambert, Paul F.

2016-01-01

Human papillomaviruses are causally associated with 5% of human cancers. The recent discovery of a papillomavirus (MmuPV1) that infects laboratory mice provides unique opportunities to study the life cycle and pathogenesis of papillomaviruses in the context of a genetically manipulatable host organism. To date, MmuPV1-induced disease has been found largely to be restricted to severely immunodeficient strains of mice. In this study, we report that ultraviolet radiation (UVR), specifically UVB spectra, causes wild-type strains of mice to become highly susceptible to MmuPV1-induced disease. MmuPV1-infected mice treated with UVB develop warts that progress to squamous cell carcinoma. Our studies further indicate that UVB induces systemic immunosuppression in mice that correlates with susceptibility to MmuPV1-associated disease. These findings provide new insight into how MmuPV1 can be used to study the life cycle of papillomaviruses and their role in carcinogenesis, the role of host immunity in controlling papillomavirus-associated pathogenesis, and a basis for understanding in part the role of UVR in promoting HPV infection in humans. PMID:27244228

Role of Ultraviolet Radiation in Papillomavirus-Induced Disease.

PubMed

Uberoi, Aayushi; Yoshida, Satoshi; Frazer, Ian H; Pitot, Henry C; Lambert, Paul F

2016-05-01

Human papillomaviruses are causally associated with 5% of human cancers. The recent discovery of a papillomavirus (MmuPV1) that infects laboratory mice provides unique opportunities to study the life cycle and pathogenesis of papillomaviruses in the context of a genetically manipulatable host organism. To date, MmuPV1-induced disease has been found largely to be restricted to severely immunodeficient strains of mice. In this study, we report that ultraviolet radiation (UVR), specifically UVB spectra, causes wild-type strains of mice to become highly susceptible to MmuPV1-induced disease. MmuPV1-infected mice treated with UVB develop warts that progress to squamous cell carcinoma. Our studies further indicate that UVB induces systemic immunosuppression in mice that correlates with susceptibility to MmuPV1-associated disease. These findings provide new insight into how MmuPV1 can be used to study the life cycle of papillomaviruses and their role in carcinogenesis, the role of host immunity in controlling papillomavirus-associated pathogenesis, and a basis for understanding in part the role of UVR in promoting HPV infection in humans.

Case Studies in Elementary and Secondary Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boboc, Marius; Nordgren, R. D.

2010-01-01

Practical and engaging, this book contains 21 case studies that help students apply curriculum theory to classroom reality. Each case is authored by an in-service teacher, reflecting on ways to improve instruction by making changes to various aspects of the curriculum. These real-life examples investigate up-to-date curricular issues ranging from…

The Life Cycle Cost (LCC) of Life Support Recycling and Resupply

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jones, Harry W.

2015-01-01

Brief human space missions supply all the crew's water and oxygen from Earth. The multiyear International Space Station (ISS) program instead uses physicochemical life support systems to recycle water and oxygen. This paper compares the Life Cycle Cost (LCC) of recycling to the LCC of resupply for potential future long duration human space missions. Recycling systems have high initial development costs but relatively low durationdependent support costs. This means that recycling is more cost effective for longer missions. Resupplying all the water and oxygen requires little initial development cost but has a much higher launch mass and launch cost. The cost of resupply increases as the mission duration increases. Resupply is therefore more cost effective than recycling for shorter missions. A recycling system pays for itself when the resupply LCC grows greater over time than the recycling LCC. The time when this occurs is called the recycling breakeven date. Recycling will cost very much less than resupply for long duration missions within the Earth-Moon system, such as a future space station or Moon base. But recycling would cost about the same as resupply for long duration deep space missions, such as a Mars trip. Because it is not possible to provide emergency supplies or quick return options on the way to Mars, more expensive redundant recycling systems will be needed.

Thermal fatigue life evaluation of SnAgCu solder joints in a multi-chip power module

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barbagallo, C.; Malgioglio, G. L.; Petrone, G.; Cammarata, G.

2017-05-01

For power devices, the reliability of thermal fatigue induced by thermal cycling has been prioritized as an important concern. The main target of this work is to apply a numerical procedure to assess the fatigue life for lead-free solder joints, that represent, in general, the weakest part of the electronic modules. Starting from a real multi-chip power module, FE-based models were built-up by considering different conditions in model implementation in order to simulate, from one hand, the worst working condition for the module and, from another one, the module standing into a climatic test room performing thermal cycles. Simulations were carried-out both in steady and transient conditions in order to estimate the module thermal maps, the stress-strain distributions, the effective plastic strain distributions and finally to assess the number of cycles to failure of the constitutive solder layers.

Archaeal Viruses: Diversity, Replication, and Structure.

PubMed

Dellas, Nikki; Snyder, Jamie C; Bolduc, Benjamin; Young, Mark J

2014-11-01

The Archaea-and their viruses-remain the most enigmatic of life's three domains. Once thought to inhabit only extreme environments, archaea are now known to inhabit diverse environments. Even though the first archaeal virus was described over 40 years ago, only 117 archaeal viruses have been discovered to date. Despite this small number, these viruses have painted a portrait of enormous morphological and genetic diversity. For example, research centered around the various steps of the archaeal virus life cycle has led to the discovery of unique mechanisms employed by archaeal viruses during replication, maturation, and virion release. In many instances, archaeal virus proteins display very low levels of sequence homology to other proteins listed in the public database, and therefore, structural characterization of these proteins has played an integral role in functional assignment. These structural studies have not only provided insights into structure-function relationships but have also identified links between viruses across all three domains of life.

Implications of low natural gas prices on life cycle greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. electricity sector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jaramillo, P.; Venkatesh, A.; Griffin, M.; Matthews, S.

2012-12-01

Increased production of unconventional natural gas resources in the U.S. has drastically reduced the price of natural gas. While in 2005 prices went above 10/MMBtu, since 2011 they have been below 3/MMBtu. These low prices have encouraged the increase of natural gas utilization in the United States electricity sector. Natural gas can offset coal for power generation, reducing emissions such as greenhouse gases, sulfur and nitrogen oxides. In quantifying the benefit of offsetting coal by using natural gas, life cycle assessment (LCA) studies have shown up to 50% reductions in life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions can be expected. However, these studies predominantly use limited system boundaries that contain single individual coal and natural gas power plants. They do not consider (regional) fleets of power plants that are dispatched on the basis of their short-run marginal costs. In this study, simplified economic dispatch models (representing existing power plants in a given region) are developed for three U.S. regions - ERCOT, MISO and PJM. These models, along with historical load data are used to determine how natural gas utilization will increase in the short-term due to changes in natural gas price. The associated changes in fuel mix and life cycle GHG emissions are estimated. Results indicate that life cycle GHG emissions may, at best, decrease by 5-15% as a result of low natural gas prices, compared to almost 50% reductions estimated by previous LCAs. This study thus provides more reasonable estimates of potential reductions in GHG emissions from using natural gas instead of coal in the electricity sector in the short-term.

Suppression of magnetostructural transition on GdSiGe thin film after thermal cyclings

DOE PAGES

Pires, A. L.; Belo, J. H.; Gomes, I. T.; ...

2016-09-08

The influence of thermal cycling on the microstructure, magnetic phase transition and magnetic entropy change of a Gd 5Si 1.3Ge 2.7 thin film up to 1000 cycles is investigated. The authors found that after 1000 cycles a strong reduction of the crystallographic phase responsible for the magnetostructural transition (Orthorhombic II phase) occurs. We attribute this to the chemical disorder, caused by the large number of expansion/compression cycles that the Orthorhombic II phase undergoes across the magnetostructural transition. The suppression of the magnetostructural transition corresponds to a drastic decrease of the thin film magnetic entropy change. Our results reveal the importancemore » of studying the thermal/magnetic cycles influence on magnetostructural transitions as they can damage a real-life device.« less

Whole-genome analysis of mRNA decay in Plasmodium falciparum reveals a global lengthening of mRNA half-life during the intra-erythrocytic development cycle.

PubMed

Shock, Jennifer L; Fischer, Kael F; DeRisi, Joseph L

2007-01-01

The rate of mRNA decay is an essential element of post-transcriptional regulation in all organisms. Previously, studies in several organisms found that the specific half-life of each mRNA is precisely related to its physiologic role, and plays an important role in determining levels of gene expression. We used a genome-wide approach to characterize mRNA decay in Plasmodium falciparum. We found that, globally, rates of mRNA decay increase dramatically during the asexual intra-erythrocytic developmental cycle. During the ring stage of the cycle, the average mRNA half-life was 9.5 min, but this was extended to an average of 65 min during the late schizont stage of development. Thus, a major determinant of mRNA decay rate appears to be linked to the stage of intra-erythrocytic development. Furthermore, we found specific variations in decay patterns superimposed upon the dominant trend of progressive half-life lengthening. These variations in decay pattern were frequently enriched for genes with specific cellular functions or processes. Elucidation of Plasmodium mRNA decay rates provides a key element for deciphering mechanisms of genetic control in this parasite, by complementing and extending previous mRNA abundance studies. Our results indicate that progressive stage-dependent decreases in mRNA decay rate function are a major determinant of mRNA accumulation during the schizont stage of intra-erythrocytic development. This type of genome-wide change in mRNA decay rate has not been observed in any other organism to date, and indicates that post-transcriptional regulation may be the dominant mechanism of gene regulation in P. falciparum.

Advanced valve-regulated lead-acid batteries for hybrid vehicle applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Soria, M. L.; Trinidad, F.; Lacadena, J. M.; Sánchez, A.; Valenciano, J.

Future vehicle applications require the development of reliable and long life batteries operating under high-rate partial-state-of-charge (HRPSoC) working conditions. Work presented in this paper deals with the study of different design parameters, manufacturing process and charging conditions of spiral wound valve-regulated lead-acid (VRLA) batteries, in order to improve their reliability and cycle life for hybrid vehicle applications. Test results show that both electrolyte saturation and charge conditions have a strong effect on cycle life at HRPSoC performance, presumably because water loss finally accelerates battery failure, which is linked to irreversible sulphation in the upper part of the negative electrodes. By adding expanded graphite to the negative active mass formulation, increasing the electrolyte saturation degree (>95%) and controlling overcharge during regenerative braking periods (voltage limitation and occasional boosting) it is possible to achieve up to 220,000 cycles at 2.5% DOD, equivalent to 5500 capacity throughput. These results could make lead acid batteries a strong competitor for HEV applications versus other advanced systems such as Ni-MH or Li-ion batteries.

Becoming an Educable Lifelong Learning Subject: Adult Graduates' Transitions in Education and Working Life

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Siivonen, Päivi

2016-01-01

Continuous learning and updating one's competences and abilities have become requirements for staying "up-to-date" and "at the top of one's game". Lifelong learning policy has been persuasive in its emphasis on equal learning opportunities for all: everyone has endless possibilities and capabilities to learn according to…

Crack Nucleation in β Titanium Alloys under High Cycle Fatigue Conditions - A Review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benjamin, Rohit; Nageswara Rao, M.

2017-05-01

Beta titanium (β-Ti) alloys have emerged over the last 3 to 4 decades as an important class of titanium alloys. Many of the applications that they found, particularly in aerospace sector, are such that their high cycle fatigue (HCF) behavior becomes critical. In HCF regime, crack nucleation accounts for major part of the life. Consequently it becomes important to understand the mechanisms underlying the nucleation of cracks under HCF type loading conditions. The purpose of this review is to document the best understanding we have on date on crack nucleation in β-Ti alloys under HCF conditions. Role of various microstructural features encountered in β-Ti alloys in influencing the crack nucleation under HCF conditions has been reviewed. It has been brought out that changes in processing can result in changes in microstructure which in turn influence the time for crack nucleation/fatigue life and fatigue limit. While majority of fatigue failures originate at the surface, subsurface cracking is not uncommon with β-Ti alloys and the factors leading to subsurface cracking have been discussed in this review.

Intervention to increase physical activity in irritable bowel syndrome shows long-term positive effects.

PubMed

Johannesson, Elisabet; Ringström, Gisela; Abrahamsson, Hasse; Sadik, Riadh

2015-01-14

To assess the long-term effects of physical activity on irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) symptoms and on quality of life, fatigue, depression and anxiety. Seventy-six patients from a previous randomized controlled interventional study on increased physical activity in IBS were asked to participate in this long-term follow-up study. The included patients attended one visit in which they filled out questionnaires and they underwent a submaximal cycle ergometer test. The primary end point was the change in the IBS Severity Scoring System (IBS-SSS) at baseline, i.e., before the intervention and at follow-up. The secondary endpoints were changes in quality of life, fatigue, depression and anxiety. A total of 39 [32 women, median age 45 (28-61) years] patients were included in this follow-up. Median follow-up time was 5.2 (range: 3.8-6.2) years. The IBS symptoms were improved compared with baseline [IBS-SSS: 276 (169-360) vs 218 (82-328), P = 0.001]. This was also true for the majority of the dimensions of psychological symptoms such as disease specific quality of life, fatigue, depression and anxiety. The reported time of physical activity during the week before the visit had increased from 3.2 (0.0-10.0) h at baseline to 5.2 (0.0-15.0) h at follow-up, P = 0.019. The most common activities reported were walking, aerobics and cycling. There was no significant difference in the oxygen uptake 31.8 (19.7-45.8) mL per min per kg at baseline vs 34.6 (19.0-54.6) mL/min per kg at follow-up. An intervention to increase physical activity has positive long-term effects on IBS symptoms and psychological symptoms.

The evolution of life cycle complexity in aphids: Ecological optimization or historical constraint?

PubMed

Hardy, Nate B; Peterson, Daniel A; von Dohlen, Carol D

2015-06-01

For decades, biologists have debated why many parasites have obligate multihost life cycles. Here, we use comparative phylogenetic analyses of aphids to evaluate the roles of ecological optimization and historical constraint in the evolution of life cycle complexity. If life cycle complexity is adaptive, it should be evolutionarily labile, that is, change in response to selection. We provide evidence that this is true in some aphids (aphidines), but not others (nonaphidines)-groups that differ in the intensity of their relationships with primary hosts. Next, we test specific mechanisms by which life cycle complexity could be adaptive or a constraint. We find that among aphidines there is a strong association between complex life cycles and polyphagy but only a weak correlation between life cycle complexity and reproductive mode. In contrast, among nonaphidines the relationship between life cycle complexity and host breadth is weak but the association between complex life cycles and sexual reproduction is strong. Thus, although the adaptiveness of life cycle complexity appears to be lineage specific, across aphids, life cycle evolution appears to be tightly linked with the evolution of other important natural history traits. © 2015 The Author(s). Evolution © 2015 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

An evaluative review of questionnaires recommended for the assessment of quality of life and symptom severity in women with urinary incontinence.

PubMed

Hewison, Ann; McCaughan, Dorothy; Watt, Ian

2014-11-01

To provide an up-to-date assessment of the quality of commonly recommended questionnaires for measuring symptom severity and quality of life in women with urinary incontinence and also to consider their application to practice. Urinary incontinence is a common problem for women. In addition to various physical symptoms, there is a known effect on quality of life. Psychometrically robust questionnaires are reported to be the best way to measure an individual's perceptions of symptom severity and quality of life, and a number of different ones are recommended for use in international and national guidance, which can be confusing for clinicians. Moreover, there are concerns over the applicability of some of these instruments in clinical practice. An evaluative review was carried out examining selected questionnaires measuring symptom severity and/or quality of life. Selection of questionnaires for inclusion in the review was based on the recommendations of evidence-based guidance, followed by systematic scrutiny of the characteristics of the individual recommended questionnaires. Thirteen questionnaires were included in the review, of which three appeared to 'outperform' the remainder in terms of their psychometric properties and other characteristics. This review provides the most up-to-date and comprehensive analysis of the quality and applicability of the included questionnaires and offers the practitioner advice on which to select for use in practice. This review aims to help the practitioner choose a questionnaire based on a sound evaluation of the quality of the questionnaire and its applicability to the clinical setting. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Prototype Lithium-Ion Battery Developed for Mars 2001 Lander

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Manzo, Michelle A.

2000-01-01

In fiscal year 1997, NASA, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and the U.S. Air Force established a joint program to competitively develop high-power, rechargeable lithium-ion battery technology for aerospace applications. The goal was to address Department of Defense and NASA requirements not met by commercial battery developments. Under this program, contracts have been awarded to Yardney Technical Products, Eagle- Picher Technologies, LLC, BlueStar Advanced Technology Corporation, and SAFT America, Inc., to develop cylindrical and prismatic cell and battery systems for a variety of NASA and U.S. Air Force applications. The battery systems being developed range from low-capacity (7 to 20 A-hr) and low-voltage (14 to 28 V) systems for planetary landers and rovers to systems for aircraft that require up to 270 V and for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles that require capacities up to 200 A-hr. Low-Earth-orbit and geosynchronousorbit spacecraft pose additional challenges to system operation with long cycle life (>30,000 cycles) and long calendar life (>10 years), respectively.

Effect of Quercetin on Hepatitis C Virus Life Cycle: From Viral to Host Targets.

PubMed

Rojas, Ángela; Del Campo, Jose A; Clement, Sophie; Lemasson, Matthieu; García-Valdecasas, Marta; Gil-Gómez, Antonio; Ranchal, Isidora; Bartosch, Birke; Bautista, Juan D; Rosenberg, Arielle R; Negro, Francesco; Romero-Gómez, Manuel

2016-08-22

Quercetin is a natural flavonoid, which has been shown to have anti hepatitis C virus (HCV) properties. However, the exact mechanisms whereby quercetin impacts the HCV life cycle are not fully understood. We assessed the effect of quercetin on different steps of the HCV life cycle in Huh-7.5 cells and primary human hepatocytes (PHH) infected with HCVcc. In both cell types, quercetin significantly decreased i) the viral genome replication; ii) the production of infectious HCV particles and iii) the specific infectivity of the newly produced viral particles (by 85% and 92%, Huh7.5 and PHH respectively). In addition, when applied directly on HCV particles, quercetin reduced their infectivity by 65%, suggesting that it affects the virion integrity. Interestingly, the HCV-induced up-regulation of diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGAT) and the typical localization of the HCV core protein to the surface of lipid droplets, known to be mediated by DGAT, were both prevented by quercetin. In conclusion, quercetin appears to have direct and host-mediated antiviral effects against HCV.

Effect of Quercetin on Hepatitis C Virus Life Cycle: From Viral to Host Targets

PubMed Central

Rojas, Ángela; Del Campo, Jose A.; Clement, Sophie; Lemasson, Matthieu; García-Valdecasas, Marta; Gil-Gómez, Antonio; Ranchal, Isidora; Bartosch, Birke; Bautista, Juan D.; Rosenberg, Arielle R.; Negro, Francesco; Romero-Gómez, Manuel

2016-01-01

Quercetin is a natural flavonoid, which has been shown to have anti hepatitis C virus (HCV) properties. However, the exact mechanisms whereby quercetin impacts the HCV life cycle are not fully understood. We assessed the effect of quercetin on different steps of the HCV life cycle in Huh-7.5 cells and primary human hepatocytes (PHH) infected with HCVcc. In both cell types, quercetin significantly decreased i) the viral genome replication; ii) the production of infectious HCV particles and iii) the specific infectivity of the newly produced viral particles (by 85% and 92%, Huh7.5 and PHH respectively). In addition, when applied directly on HCV particles, quercetin reduced their infectivity by 65%, suggesting that it affects the virion integrity. Interestingly, the HCV-induced up-regulation of diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGAT) and the typical localization of the HCV core protein to the surface of lipid droplets, known to be mediated by DGAT, were both prevented by quercetin. In conclusion, quercetin appears to have direct and host-mediated antiviral effects against HCV. PMID:27546480

Evaluation of the Importance of VlsE Antigenic Variation for the Enzootic Cycle of Borrelia burgdorferi.

PubMed

Rogovskyy, Artem S; Casselli, Timothy; Tourand, Yvonne; Jones, Cami R; Owen, Jeb P; Mason, Kathleen L; Scoles, Glen A; Bankhead, Troy

2015-01-01

Efficient acquisition and transmission of Borrelia burgdorferi by the tick vector, and the ability to persistently infect both vector and host, are important elements for the life cycle of the Lyme disease pathogen. Previous work has provided strong evidence implicating the significance of the vls locus for B. burgdorferi persistence. However, studies involving vls mutant clones have thus far only utilized in vitro-grown or host-adapted spirochetes and laboratory strains of mice. Additionally, the effects of vls mutation on tick acquisition and transmission has not yet been tested. Thus, the importance of VlsE antigenic variation for persistent infection of the natural reservoir host, and for the B. burgdorferi enzootic life cycle in general, has not been examined to date. In the current work, Ixodes scapularis and Peromyscus maniculatus were infected with different vls mutant clones to study the importance of the vls locus for the enzootic cycle of the Lyme disease pathogen. The findings highlight the significance of the vls system for long-term infection of the natural reservoir host, and show that VlsE antigenic variability is advantageous for efficient tick acquisition of B. burgdorferi from the mammalian reservoir. The data also indicate that the adaptation state of infecting spirochetes influences B. burgdorferi avoidance from host antibodies, which may be in part due to its respective VlsE expression levels. Overall, the current findings provide the most direct evidence on the importance of VlsE for the enzootic cycle of Lyme disease spirochetes, and underscore the significance of VlsE antigenic variation for maintaining B. burgdorferi in nature.

Probabilistic Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Vaccination for Mild or Moderate Alzheimer's Disease.

PubMed

Yang, Kuen-Cheh; Chen, Hsiu-Hsi

2016-01-01

Studies on the immunotherapy for Alzheimer's disease (AD) have increasingly gained attention since 1990s. However, there are pros (preventing of AD) and cons (incurred cost and side effects) regarding the administration of immunotherapy. Up to date, there has been lacking of economic evaluation for immunotherapy of AD. We aimed to assess the cost-effectiveness analysis of the vaccination for AD. A meta-analysis of randomized control trials after systemic review was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of the vaccine. A Markov decision model was constructed and applied to a 120,000-Taiwanese cohort aged ≥65 years. Person years and quality-adjusted life years (QALY) were computed between the vaccinated group and the the unvaccinated group. Economic evaluation was performed to calculate the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) and cost-effectiveness acceptability curve (CEAC). Vaccinated group gained an additional 0.84 life years and 0.56 QALYs over 10-years and an additional 0.35 life years and 0.282 QALYs over 5-years of follow-up. The vaccinated group dominated the unvaccinated group by ICER over 5-years of follow-up. The ICERs of 10-year follow-up for the vaccinated group against the unvaccinated group were $13,850 per QALY and $9,038 per life year gained. Given the threshold of $20,000 of willingness to pay (WTP), the CEAC showed the probability of being cost-effective for vaccination with QALY was 70.7% and 92% for life years gained after 10-years of follow-up. The corresponding figures were 87.3% for QALY and 93.5% for life years gained over 5-years follow-up. The vaccination for AD was cost-effective in gaining QALY and life years compared with no vaccination, under the condition of a reasonable threshold of WTP.

Investigation of individual and group variability in estrous cycle characteristics in female Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) at the Oregon Zoo.

PubMed

Glaeser, S S; Hunt, K E; Martin, M S; Finnegan, M; Brown, J L

2012-07-15

Evaluating ovarian cycle activity through longitudinal progestagen monitoring is important for optimizing breeding management of captive elephants and understanding impact of life events (births, deaths, and transfers) on reproductive function. This study summarized serum progestagen profiles for eight Asian mainland elephants (Elephas maximus indicus) and one Bornean elephant (E. maximus borneensis) at the Oregon Zoo over a 20-yr interval, and represents the longest longitudinal dataset evaluated to date. Estrous cycle characteristics were more varied than previously reported for this species, with an overall duration of 12 to 19 wk, luteal phase duration of 4 to 15 wk, and follicular phase duration of 2 to 12 wk. In general, there was more cycle variability across than within individual elephants. Compared with other elephants in the group, the Borneo female exhibited consistently longer cycle lengths, higher progestagen concentrations, and greater cycle variability; however, it is not known if this represents a subspecies or an individual difference. Cycle durations did not appear to change over time or with age, and the first pubertal cycle was similar to subsequent cycles. Variability in duration of the follicular phase was greater than that of the luteal phase. In addition, there was a significant negative relationship between luteal and follicular phase durations, suggesting a possible regulatory role of the follicular phase in maintaining a relatively consistent cycle duration within individuals. Overall, we found these elephants to be highly resilient in that major life events (births, deaths, and changes in herd structure) had minimal effect on cycle dynamics over time. In conclusion, the higher range in cycle phase characteristics is likely because of the larger number of elephants studied and longer duration of longitudinal monitoring, and may be more representative of the captive population as a whole. Furthermore, identification of significant interanimal variability suggests that understanding the complexities of herd reproductive characteristics could facilitate development of more effective institution-specific breeding management strategies. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

[Prediction method of rural landscape pattern evolution based on life cycle: a case study of Jinjing Town, Hunan Province, China].

PubMed

Ji, Xiang; Liu, Li-Ming; Li, Hong-Qing

2014-11-01

Taking Jinjing Town in Dongting Lake area as a case, this paper analyzed the evolution of rural landscape patterns by means of life cycle theory, simulated the evolution cycle curve, and calculated its evolution period, then combining CA-Markov model, a complete prediction model was built based on the rule of rural landscape change. The results showed that rural settlement and paddy landscapes of Jinjing Town would change most in 2020, with the rural settlement landscape increased to 1194.01 hm2 and paddy landscape greatly reduced to 3090.24 hm2. The quantitative and spatial prediction accuracies of the model were up to 99.3% and 96.4%, respectively, being more explicit than single CA-Markov model. The prediction model of rural landscape patterns change proposed in this paper would be helpful for rural landscape planning in future.

Congeneration feasibility: Otis Elevator Company and Polychrome Corporation. Final report

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

Fox, H.

1982-05-01

This report summarizes an investigation of the technical and economic feasibility of cogenerating electric and thermal power at two manufacturing plants (Otis Elevator Company and Polychrome Corporation) located on neighboring properties in Yonkers, NY. Existing electrical- and steam-producing equipment and energy consumption date are summarized. Alternative cases examined include electrical energy generation, electrical energy generation with waste heat recovery and a combined cycle case. Also reported are life cycle cost economic evaluations including simple payback period and return-on-investment indices. While it was concluded that cogeneration of heat and electricity at these industrial plant sites would not be economically viable, thismore » detailed study provides valuable insight into the types of problems encountered when considering cogeneration feasibility.« less

Evaluation of vaccine coverage for low birth weight infants during the first year of life in a large managed care population.

PubMed

Batra, Jagmohan S; Eriksen, Eileen M; Zangwill, Kenneth M; Lee, Martin; Marcy, S Michael; Ward, Joel I

2009-03-01

There are few recent population-based assessments of vaccine coverage in premature infants available. This study assesses and compares age- and dose-specific immunization coverage in children of different birth weight categories during the first year of life. We performed a retrospective cohort analysis of computerized vaccination data from a large managed care organization in southern California. The participants were children born between January 1, 1997, and December 31, 2002, and continuously enrolled from birth to at least 12 months of age in the Southern California Kaiser Permanente health plan. We measured age-specific up-to-date and age-appropriate immunization rates according to birth weight (extremely low birth weight: <1000 g; very low birth weight: 1000-1499 g; low birth weight: 1500-2499 g; normal birth weight: >/=2500 g) for 4 vaccines (hepatitis B, diphtheria and tetanus toxoids with pertussis, Haemophilus influenzae type b, and poliovirus) through the first year of life. We identified 127 833 infants born during the study period and continuously enrolled through the first year of life; 120 048 were normal birth weight infants; 6491 were low birth weight infants; 788 were very low birth weight infants; and 506 were extremely low birth weight infants. Vaccine-specific age-appropriate immunization rates were 3% to 15% lower for low birth weight infants and 17% to 33% lower for extremely low birth weight infants compared with the rates for normal birth weight infants in the first 6 months of life. Extremely low birth weight infants had the lowest age-specific up-to-date immunization levels (5%-31% lower) compared with normal birth weight infants at each age assessed. By 12 months, extremely low birth weight infants still had significantly lower up-to-date levels (87%) compared with very low birth weight, low birth weight, and normal birth weight infants (91%-92%). Despite recommendations that lower birth weight infants be vaccinated as the same chronological age as normal birth weight infants, extremely low birth weight and very low birth weight infants are immunized at significantly lower rates relative to low birth weight and normal birth weight infants at 2, 4, and 6 months of age. However, by 12 months of age this finding persists only in extremely low birth weight infants.

The Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 and its Physiological Splicing Variant p53as in a Mouse Mammary Cancer Model

DTIC Science & Technology

1997-10-01

and Biomedical Laboratories. PI - Signature Date TABLE OF CONTENTS Report Documentation Page ii Foreword m Introduction 1-2 Experimental Methods...life studies of P53 or p53as in G1, S, and G2/ M was unsuccessful as reported last year. Long cell cycle times may be responsible for lack of separation...of S-phase 5 cells from G2/ M -phase cells by centrifugal elutriation. Attempts to synchronize cells by density arrest and/or serum starvation resulted

Concepts associated with a unified life cycle analysis

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

Whelan, Gene; Peffers, Melissa S.; Tolle, Duane A.

There is a risk associated with most things in the world, and all things have a life cycle unto themselves, even brownfields. Many components can be described by a''cycle of life.'' For example, five such components are life-form, chemical, process, activity, and idea, although many more may exist. Brownfields may touch upon several of these life cycles. Each life cycle can be represented as independent software; therefore, a software technology structure is being formulated to allow for the seamless linkage of software products, representing various life-cycle aspects. Because classes of these life cycles tend to be independent of each other,more » the current research programs and efforts do not have to be revamped; therefore, this unified life-cycle paradigm builds upon current technology and is backward compatible while embracing future technology. Only when two of these life cycles coincide and one impacts the other is there connectivity and a transfer of information at the interface. The current framework approaches (e.g., FRAMES, 3MRA, etc.) have a design that is amenable to capturing (1) many of these underlying philosophical concepts to assure backward compatibility of diverse independent assessment frameworks and (2) linkage communication to help transfer the needed information at the points of intersection. The key effort will be to identify (1) linkage points (i.e., portals) between life cycles, (2) the type and form of data passing between life cycles, and (3) conditions when life cycles interact and communicate. This paper discusses design aspects associated with a unified life-cycle analysis, which can support not only brownfields but also other types of assessments.« less

Simulation of cracking cores when molding piston components

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petrenko, Alena; Soukup, Josef

2014-08-01

The article deals with pistons casting made from aluminum alloy. Pistons are casting at steel mold with steel core. The casting is provided by gravity casting machine. The each machine is equipped by two metal molds, which are preheated above temperature 160 °C before use. The steel core is also preheated by flame. The metal molds and cores are heated up within the casting process. The temperature of the metal mold raise up to 200 °C and temperature of core is higher. The surface of the core is treated by nitration. The mold and core are cooled down by water during casting process. The core is overheated and its top part is finally cracked despite its intensive water-cooling. The life time cycle of the core is decreased to approximately 5 to 15 thousands casting, which is only 15 % of life time cycle of core for production of other pistons. The article presents the temperature analysis of the core.

Altair Lander Life Support: Design Analysis Cycles 4 and 5

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Molly; Curley, Su; Rotter, Henry; Stambaugh, Imelda; Yagoda, Evan

2011-01-01

Life support systems are a critical part of human exploration beyond low earth orbit. NASA s Altair Lunar Lander team is pursuing efficient solutions to the technical challenges of human spaceflight. Life support design efforts up through Design Analysis Cycle (DAC) 4 focused on finding lightweight and reliable solutions for the Sortie and Outpost missions within the Constellation Program. In DAC-4 and later follow on work, changes were made to add functionality for new requirements accepted by the Altair project, and to update the design as knowledge about certain issues or hardware matured. In DAC-5, the Altair project began to consider mission architectures outside the Constellation baseline. Selecting the optimal life support system design is very sensitive to mission duration. When the mission goals and architecture change several trade studies must be conducted to determine the appropriate design. Finally, several areas of work developed through the Altair project may be applicable to other vehicle concepts for microgravity missions. Maturing the Altair life support system related analysis, design, and requirements can provide important information for developers of a wide range of other human vehicles.

Altair Lander Life Support: Design Analysis Cycles 4 and 5

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Molly; Curley, Su; Rotter, Henry; Yagoda, Evan

2010-01-01

Life support systems are a critical part of human exploration beyond low earth orbit. NASA s Altair Lunar Lander team is pursuing efficient solutions to the technical challenges of human spaceflight. Life support design efforts up through Design Analysis Cycle (DAC) 4 focused on finding lightweight and reliable solutions for the Sortie and Outpost missions within the Constellation Program. In DAC-4 and later follow on work, changes were made to add functionality for new requirements accepted by the Altair project, and to update the design as knowledge about certain issues or hardware matured. In DAC-5, the Altair project began to consider mission architectures outside the Constellation baseline. Selecting the optimal life support system design is very sensitive to mission duration. When the mission goals and architecture change several trade studies must be conducted to determine the appropriate design. Finally, several areas of work developed through the Altair project may be applicable to other vehicle concepts for microgravity missions. Maturing the Altair life support system related analysis, design, and requirements can provide important information for developers of a wide range of other human vehicles.

The effect of an interactive cycling training on cognitive functioning in older adults with mild dementia: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Karssemeijer, E G A; Bossers, W J R; Aaronson, J A; Kessels, R P C; Olde Rikkert, M G M

2017-03-21

To date there is no cure or an effective disease-modifying drug to treat dementia. Available acetylcholine-esterase inhibiting drugs or memantine only produce small benefits on cognitive and behavioural functioning and their clinical relevance remains controversial. Combined cognitive-aerobic interventions are an appealing alternative or add-on to current pharmacological treatments. The primary aim of this study is to investigate the efficacy of a combined cognitive-aerobic training and a single aerobic training compared to an active control group in older adults with mild dementia. We expect to find a beneficial effect on executive functioning in both training regimes, compared to the control intervention, with the largest effect in the combined cognitive-aerobic group. Secondary, intervention effects on cognitive functioning in other domains, physical functioning, physical activity levels, activities of daily living, frailty and quality of life are studied. The design is a single-blind, randomized controlled trial (RCT) with three groups: a combined cognitive-aerobic bicycle training (interactive cycling), a single aerobic bicycle training and a control intervention, which consists of stretching and toning exercises. Older adults with mild dementia follow a 12-week training program consisting of three training sessions of 30-40 min per week. The primary study outcome is objective executive functioning measured with a neuropsychological assessment. Secondary measures are objective cognitive functioning in other domains, physical functioning, physical activity levels, activities of daily living, frailty, mood and quality of life. The three groups are compared at baseline, after 6 and 12 weeks of training, and at 24-week follow-up. This study will provide novel information on the effects of an interactive cycling training on executive function in older adults with mild dementia. Furthermore, since this study has both a combined cognitive-aerobic training and a single aerobic training group the effectiveness of the different components of the intervention can be identified. The results of this study may be used for physical and mental activity recommendations in older adults with dementia. The Netherlands National Trial Register NTR5581 . Registered 14 February 2016.

Lithium Batteries and Supercapacitors Capable of Operating at Low Temperatures for Planetary Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smart, M. C.; Ratnakumar, B. V.; West, W. C.; Brandon, E. J.

2012-01-01

Demonstrated improved performance with wide operating temperature electrolytes containing ester co - solvents (i.e., methyl propionate and ethyl butyrate) in a number of prototype cells: center dot Successfully scaled up low temperature technology to 12 Ah size prismatic Li - ion cells (Quallion, LCC), and demonstrated good performance down to - 60 o C. center dot Demonstrated wide operating temperature range performance ( - 60 o to +60 o C) in A123 Systems LiFePO 4 - based lithium - ion cells containing methyl butyrate - based low temperature electrolytes. These systems were also demonstrated to have excellent cycle life performance at ambient temperatures, as well as the ability to be cycled up to high temperatures.

Modeling of combined capacity fade with thermal effects for a cycled LixC6-LiyMn2O4 cell

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vazquez-Arenas, Jorge; Fowler, Michael; Mao, Xiaofeng; Chen, Shih-ken

2012-10-01

Li-ion batteries are the most promising technology for use in electric vehicles in the near future, and as such it is critical to understand their performance at both beginning of life (BOL) and end of life (EOL). In this work different thermal and capacity fade effects (e.g. SEI formation, dissolution of LiyMn2O4 particles) are modeled to account comprehensively for the behavior of a LixC6-LiyMn2O4 cell. The comparison between baseline and complex models is systematically used to analyze individual contributions and perform a deeper evaluation of the variables affecting the capacity fade with thermal inputs during typical cycle life tests. Some modifications in the original model are proposed to better describe the behavior of the cell and speed up the calculations.

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Replication Is Severely Impaired by MG132 due to Proteasome-Independent Inhibition of M-Calpain

PubMed Central

Schneider, Martha; Ackermann, Kerstin; Stuart, Melissa; Wex, Claudia; Protzer, Ulrike; Schätzl, Hermann M.

2012-01-01

The ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) is involved in the replication of a broad range of viruses. Since replication of the murine hepatitis virus (MHV) is impaired upon proteasomal inhibition, the relevance of the UPS for the replication of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) was investigated in this study. We demonstrate that the proteasomal inhibitor MG132 strongly inhibits SARS-CoV replication by interfering with early steps of the viral life cycle. Surprisingly, other proteasomal inhibitors (e.g., lactacystin and bortezomib) only marginally affected viral replication, indicating that the effect of MG132 is independent of proteasomal impairment. Induction of autophagy by MG132 treatment was excluded from playing a role, and no changes in SARS-CoV titers were observed during infection of wild-type or autophagy-deficient ATG5−/− mouse embryonic fibroblasts overexpressing the human SARS-CoV receptor, angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). Since MG132 also inhibits the cysteine protease m-calpain, we addressed the role of calpains in the early SARS-CoV life cycle using calpain inhibitors III (MDL28170) and VI (SJA6017). In fact, m-calpain inhibition with MDL28170 resulted in an even more pronounced inhibition of SARS-CoV replication (>7 orders of magnitude) than did MG132. Additional m-calpain knockdown experiments confirmed the dependence of SARS-CoV replication on the activity of the cysteine protease m-calpain. Taken together, we provide strong experimental evidence that SARS-CoV has unique replication requirements which are independent of functional UPS or autophagy pathways compared to other coronaviruses. Additionally, this work highlights an important role for m-calpain during early steps of the SARS-CoV life cycle. PMID:22787216

Life cycle assessment of segregating fattening pig urine and feces compared to conventional liquid manure management.

PubMed

De Vries, Jerke W; Aarnink, André J A; Groot Koerkamp, Peter W G; De Boer, Imke J M

2013-02-05

Gaseous emissions from in-house storage of liquid animal manure remain a major contributor to the environmental impact of manure management. Our aim was to assess the life cycle environmental consequences and reduction potential of segregating fattening pig urine and feces with an innovative V-belt system and to compare it to conventional liquid manure management, that is, the reference. Moreover, we aimed at analyzing the uncertainty of the outcomes related to applied emission factors. We compared a reference with two scenarios: segregation with solid, aerobically, stored feces and with liquid, anaerobically, stored feces. Results showed that, compared to the reference, segregation reduced climate change (CC) up to 82%, due to lower methane emission, reduced terrestrial acidification (TA) and particulate matter formation (PMF) up to 49%, through lower ammonia emission, but increased marine eutrophication up to 11% through nitrogen oxide emission from storage and nitrate leaching after field application. Fossil fuel depletion did not change. Segregation with liquid feces revealed lower environmental impact than segregation with solid feces. Uncertainty analysis supported the conclusion that segregating fattening pig urine and feces significantly reduced CC and additionally segregation with liquid feces significantly reduced TA and PMF compared to the reference.

A simplified life-cycle cost comparison of various engines for small helicopter use

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Civinskas, K. C.; Fishbach, L. M.

1974-01-01

A ten-year, life-cycle cost comparison is made of the following engines for small helicopter use: (1) simple turboshaft; (2) regenerative turboshaft; (3) compression-ignition reciprocator; (4) spark-ignited rotary; and (5) spark-ignited reciprocator. Based on a simplified analysis and somewhat approximate data, the simple turboshaft engine apparently has the lowest costs for mission times up to just under 2 hours. At 2 hours and above, the regenerative turboshaft appears promising. The reciprocating and rotary engines are less attractive, requiring from 10 percent to 80 percent more aircraft to have the same total payload capability as a given number of turbine powered craft. A nomogram was developed for estimating total costs of engines not covered in this study.

Mechanisms for capacity fading in the NiH2 cell and its effects on cycle life

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zimmerman, Albert H.

1993-01-01

During recent years there have been a number of instances where the capacity of nickel hydrogen battery cells has proven to be unstable during storage. The capacity losses seen after periods of cell or battery storage have typically varied from only a small amount of fading, up to about 30 percent of the total cell capacity. Detailed studies into the root causes for such fading have been carried out in a number of instances. This report provides an overview of the different mechanisms that have been found to be responsible for such capacity fading in nickel hydrogen cells, and summarizes the presently available data on how each responsible mechanism affects ultimate cell cycle life.

Assessing the greenhouse gas emissions of Brazilian soybean biodiesel production.

PubMed

Cerri, Carlos Eduardo Pellegrino; You, Xin; Cherubin, Maurício Roberto; Moreira, Cindy Silva; Raucci, Guilherme Silva; Castigioni, Bruno de Almeida; Alves, Priscila Aparecida; Cerri, Domingos Guilherme Pellegrino; Mello, Francisco Fujita de Castro; Cerri, Carlos Clemente

2017-01-01

Soybean biodiesel (B100) has been playing an important role in Brazilian energy matrix towards the national bio-based economy. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is the most widely used indicator for assessing the environmental sustainability of biodiesels and received particular attention among decision makers in business and politics, as well as consumers. Former studies have been mainly focused on the GHG emissions from the soybean cultivation, excluding other stages of the biodiesel production. Here, we present a holistic view of the total GHG emissions in four life cycle stages for soybean biodiesel. The aim of this study was to assess the GHG emissions of Brazilian soybean biodiesel production system with an integrated life cycle approach of four stages: agriculture, extraction, production and distribution. Allocation of mass and energy was applied and special attention was paid to the integrated and non-integrated industrial production chain. The results indicated that the largest source of GHG emissions, among four life cycle stages, is the agricultural stage (42-51%) for B100 produced in integrated systems and the production stage (46-52%) for B100 produced in non-integrated systems. Integration of industrial units resulted in significant reduction in life cycle GHG emissions. Without the consideration of LUC and assuming biogenic CO2 emissions is carbon neutral in our study, the calculated life cycle GHG emissions for domestic soybean biodiesel varied from 23.1 to 25.8 gCO2eq. MJ-1 B100 and those for soybean biodiesel exported to EU ranged from 26.5 to 29.2 gCO2eq. MJ-1 B100, which represent reductions by 65% up to 72% (depending on the delivery route) of GHG emissions compared with the EU benchmark for diesel fuel. Our findings from a life cycle perspective contributed to identify the major GHG sources in Brazilian soybean biodiesel production system and they can be used to guide mitigation priority for policy and decision-making. Projected scenarios in this study would be taken as references for accounting the environmental sustainability of soybean biodiesel within a domestic and global level.

Assessing the greenhouse gas emissions of Brazilian soybean biodiesel production

PubMed Central

You, Xin; Cherubin, Maurício Roberto; Moreira, Cindy Silva; Raucci, Guilherme Silva; Castigioni, Bruno de Almeida; Alves, Priscila Aparecida; Cerri, Domingos Guilherme Pellegrino; Mello, Francisco Fujita de Castro; Cerri, Carlos Clemente

2017-01-01

Soybean biodiesel (B100) has been playing an important role in Brazilian energy matrix towards the national bio-based economy. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is the most widely used indicator for assessing the environmental sustainability of biodiesels and received particular attention among decision makers in business and politics, as well as consumers. Former studies have been mainly focused on the GHG emissions from the soybean cultivation, excluding other stages of the biodiesel production. Here, we present a holistic view of the total GHG emissions in four life cycle stages for soybean biodiesel. The aim of this study was to assess the GHG emissions of Brazilian soybean biodiesel production system with an integrated life cycle approach of four stages: agriculture, extraction, production and distribution. Allocation of mass and energy was applied and special attention was paid to the integrated and non-integrated industrial production chain. The results indicated that the largest source of GHG emissions, among four life cycle stages, is the agricultural stage (42–51%) for B100 produced in integrated systems and the production stage (46–52%) for B100 produced in non-integrated systems. Integration of industrial units resulted in significant reduction in life cycle GHG emissions. Without the consideration of LUC and assuming biogenic CO2 emissions is carbon neutral in our study, the calculated life cycle GHG emissions for domestic soybean biodiesel varied from 23.1 to 25.8 gCO2eq. MJ-1 B100 and those for soybean biodiesel exported to EU ranged from 26.5 to 29.2 gCO2eq. MJ-1 B100, which represent reductions by 65% up to 72% (depending on the delivery route) of GHG emissions compared with the EU benchmark for diesel fuel. Our findings from a life cycle perspective contributed to identify the major GHG sources in Brazilian soybean biodiesel production system and they can be used to guide mitigation priority for policy and decision-making. Projected scenarios in this study would be taken as references for accounting the environmental sustainability of soybean biodiesel within a domestic and global level. PMID:28493965

A Two-Stage Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) Design Optimization Study and Life Cycle Cost Analysis

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-12-01

discussed in more depth in Chapter 4 and Appendix B. Advanced liners with an estimated service life of up to 35 years (94) are being investigated now for the...Minuteman life - extension program. In fact, independent research is already underway for a replacement system, the Advanced Inertial Measurement System... Al = - T and n(n + 1) 7-2 Solving for n and r gives *= All, (D. ) 01(2 - Al2) and MI’= W2 (D.2) For the Weibull pdf . P () );-) .exp[-(t/O)•] the first

Fatigue life characterization for piezoelectric macrofiber composites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Henslee, Isaac A.; Miller, David A.; Tempero, Tyler

2012-10-01

In an effort to aid the investigation into lightweight and reliable materials for actuator design, a study was developed to characterize the temperature-dependent lifetime performance of a piezoelectric macrofiber composite (MFC). MFCs are thin rectangular patches of polyimide film, epoxy and a single layer of rectangular lead zirconium titanate (PZT) fibers. In this study, the useful life of the MFC is characterized to determine the effect of temperature on the performance of the composite as it is fatigued by cyclic piezoelectric excitation. The test specimen consists of the MFC laminated to a cantilevered stainless steel beam. Beam strain and tip displacement measurements are used as a basis for determining the performance of the MFC as it is cyclically actuated under various operating temperatures. The temperature of the beam laminate is held constant and then cycled to failure, or 250 million cycles, in order to determine the useful life of the MFC over a temperature range from - 15 to 145 °C. The results of the experiments show a strong temperature dependence of the operational life for the MFC. Damage inside the composite was identified through in situ visual inspection and during post-test microstructural observation; however, no degradation in operational performance was identified as it was cyclically actuated up to the point of failure, regardless of temperature or actuation cycle number.

A life cycle database for parasitic acanthocephalans, cestodes, and nematodes

USGS Publications Warehouse

Benesh, Daniel P.; Lafferty, Kevin D.; Kuris, Armand

2017-01-01

Parasitologists have worked out many complex life cycles over the last ~150 years, yet there have been few efforts to synthesize this information to facilitate comparisons among taxa. Most existing host-parasite databases focus on particular host taxa, do not distinguish final from intermediate hosts, and lack parasite life-history information. We summarized the known life cycles of trophically transmitted parasitic acanthocephalans, cestodes, and nematodes. For 973 parasite species, we gathered information from the literature on the hosts infected at each stage of the parasite life cycle (8510 host-parasite species associations), what parasite stage is in each host, and whether parasites need to infect certain hosts to complete the life cycle. We also collected life-history data for these parasites at each life cycle stage, including 2313 development time measurements and 7660 body size measurements. The result is the most comprehensive data summary available for these parasite taxa. In addition to identifying gaps in our knowledge of parasite life cycles, these data can be used to test hypotheses about life cycle evolution, host specificity, parasite life-history strategies, and the roles of parasites in food webs.

Waste Tire Derived Carbon-Polymer Composite Paper as Pseudocapacitive Electrode with Long Cycle Life

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

Boota, M.; Paranthaman, M. Parans; Naskar, Amit K.

2015-09-25

Recycling hazardous wastes to produce value-added products is becoming essential for the sustainable progress of our society. Herein, highly porous carbon (1625 m2 g-1) is synthesized using waste tires as the precursor and used as a supercapacitor electrode material. The narrow pore-size distribution and high surface area led to good charge storage capacity, especially when used as a three-dimensional nanoscaffold to polymerize polyaniline (PANI). The composite paper was highly flexible, conductive, and exhibited a capacitance of 480 F g-1 at 1 mV s-1 with excellent capacitance retention of up to 98 % after 10 000 charge/discharge cycles. The high capacitancemore » and long cycle life were ascribed to the short diffusional paths, uniform PANI coating, and tight confinement of the PANI in the inner pores of the tire-derived carbon through π–π interactions, which minimized the degradation of the PANI upon cycling. We anticipate that the same strategy can be applied to deposit other pseudocapacitive materials to achieve even higher electrochemical performance and longer cycle life—a key challenge for redox active polymers.« less

NREL: U.S. Life Cycle Inventory Database Home Page

Science.gov Websites

U.S. Life-Cycle Inventory Database Buildings Research Photo of a green field with an ocean in the background. U.S. Life Cycle Inventory Database NREL and its partners created the U.S. Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) Database to help life cycle assessment (LCA) practitioners answer questions about environmental

10 CFR 435.8 - Life-cycle costing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Life-cycle costing. 435.8 Section 435.8 Energy DEPARTMENT...-cycle costing. Each Federal agency shall determine life-cycle cost-effectiveness by using the procedures..., including lower life-cycle costs, positive net savings, savings-to-investment ratio that is estimated to be...

10 CFR 435.8 - Life-cycle costing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Life-cycle costing. 435.8 Section 435.8 Energy DEPARTMENT...-cycle costing. Each Federal agency shall determine life-cycle cost-effectiveness by using the procedures..., including lower life-cycle costs, positive net savings, savings-to-investment ratio that is estimated to be...

10 CFR 435.8 - Life-cycle costing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Life-cycle costing. 435.8 Section 435.8 Energy DEPARTMENT...-cycle costing. Each Federal agency shall determine life-cycle cost-effectiveness by using the procedures..., including lower life-cycle costs, positive net savings, savings-to-investment ratio that is estimated to be...

Partnering across the Life Course: Sex, Relationships, and Mate Selection

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sassler, Sharon

2010-01-01

Marital delay, relationship dissolution and churning, and high divorce rates have extended the amount of time individuals in search of romantic relationships spend outside of marital unions. The scope of research on intimate partnering now includes studies of "hooking up," Internet dating, visiting relationships, cohabitation, marriage following…

75 FR 57696 - Change to FMCSA Policy on Calculating and Publicizing the Driver, Vehicle, and Hazardous...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-09-22

... document revises the date used to calculate the threshold crash and OOS rates, from calendar year cycles to fiscal year cycles, from October 1 of a given year to September 30 of the following year. This will... determine HMSP eligibility, before the motor carrier HMSP registration cycle begins on January 1. DATES...

Life duration of Ni-MH cells for high power applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le Guenne, Laure; Bernard, Patrick

Intensive research and development carried out at SAFT Research [1,2] has shown that limitation of Ni-MH battery life duration can be directly linked to AB 5 alloy corrosion in the negative electrode. A mathematical model taking into account these results has been developed in order to predict battery life as a function of the conditions of utilisation: cycle and calendar life [3]. However, the degradation of the negative electrode is the consequence of two phenomena: surface corrosion of the active alloy and decrepitation of alloy particles during cycling. Up to now, only the kinetic law controlling the evolution of the thickness of the corrosion layer could have been quantified [3]. On the other hand, the kinetic law of decrepitation could not be directly measured, but is only fitted by determining the total amount of corrosion. Thus, an in situ method suitable to quantify the electrochemical surface of the alloy has been developed. Therefore, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) has been used to follow the degradation of the negative electrode, as a function of depth of discharge (DOD) during cycling. Alloy corrosion measurements and scanning electron microscope (SEM) analyses have been performed to confirm the validity of the method. It has been found that decrepitation is nearly zero for low levels of low DOD (5%).

Indirect water management through Life Cycle Assessment: Fostering sustainable production in developing countries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pfister, S.; Bayer, P.; Koehler, A.; Hellweg, S.

2009-04-01

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) represents a methodological framework for analyzing the total environmental impact of any product or service of our daily life. After tracking all associated emissions and the consumption of resources, this impact is expressed with respect to a few common impact categories. These are supposed to reflect major societal and environmental priorities. However, despite their central role in environmental processes, to date hydrological as well as hydrogeological aspects are only rarely considered in LCA. Compared with standard impact categories within LCA, water is special. In contrast to other abiotic resources such as crude oil, it can be replenished. Total freshwater resources are immense, but not evenly distributed and often scarce in regions of high demand. Consequently, threads to natural water bodies have immense spatial dependency. Setting up functional relationships in order to derive a generally valid and practicable evaluation is tedious due to the complex, insufficiently understood, and uncertain natural processes involved. LCA that includes the environmental effects of water consumption means global indirect water resource management. It supports goal-directed consumer behaviour that aims to reduce pressure on natural water systems. By developing a hydrologically-based assessment of potential impacts from human interaction with natural water bodies, "greener" products can be prioritised. More sustainable and environmentally friendly water management is the result. The proposed contribution presents an operational assessment method of global surface water consumption for impacts on human health and ecosystem quality within a LCA framework. A major focus is the issue of how such global assessment helps to quantify potential impacts from water-intensive production in developing countries, where the means for proper water management are often limited. We depict a compensation scheme for impacts related to water consumption that allows agriculture-dependent regions to produce and export crops while customers can compensate the related environmental impacts and/or improving the integrated water resource management by paying a premium. This allows for efficient international food production, strengthening sustainability regarding social, environmental and economic issues related to water and trade.

Biologically enhanced cathode design for improved capacity and cycle life for lithium-oxygen batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oh, Dahyun; Qi, Jifa; Lu, Yi-Chun; Zhang, Yong; Shao-Horn, Yang; Belcher, Angela M.

2013-11-01

Lithium-oxygen batteries have a great potential to enhance the gravimetric energy density of fully packaged batteries by two to three times that of lithium ion cells. Recent studies have focused on finding stable electrolytes to address poor cycling capability and improve practical limitations of current lithium-oxygen batteries. In this study, the catalyst electrode, where discharge products are deposited and decomposed, was investigated as it has a critical role in the operation of rechargeable lithium-oxygen batteries. Here we report the electrode design principle to improve specific capacity and cycling performance of lithium-oxygen batteries by utilizing high-efficiency nanocatalysts assembled by M13 virus with earth-abundant elements such as manganese oxides. By incorporating only 3-5 wt% of palladium nanoparticles in the electrode, this hybrid nanocatalyst achieves 13,350 mAh g-1c (7,340 mAh g-1c+catalyst) of specific capacity at 0.4 A g-1c and a stable cycle life up to 50 cycles (4,000 mAh g-1c, 400 mAh g-1c+catalyst) at 1 A g-1c.

Getting AM Up to Speed Across the Army Life Cycle

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-12-01

acquisition domain, more engi- neering work is needed to better define what standards should be used in Data Item Descriptions (DID) and Contract Data... compared to traditional parts replacement using procurement. While cold spray AM technology does not necessarily require the use of 3D models, to fully

Sporophyte Formation and Life Cycle Completion in Moss Requires Heterotrimeric G-Proteins.

PubMed

Hackenberg, Dieter; Perroud, Pierre-François; Quatrano, Ralph; Pandey, Sona

2016-10-01

In this study, we report the functional characterization of heterotrimeric G-proteins from a nonvascular plant, the moss Physcomitrella patens. In plants, G-proteins have been characterized from only a few angiosperms to date, where their involvement has been shown during regulation of multiple signaling and developmental pathways affecting overall plant fitness. In addition to its unparalleled evolutionary position in the plant lineages, the P. patens genome also codes for a unique assortment of G-protein components, which includes two copies of Gβ and Gγ genes, but no canonical Gα Instead, a single gene encoding an extra-large Gα (XLG) protein exists in the P. patens genome. Here, we demonstrate that in P. patens the canonical Gα is biochemically and functionally replaced by an XLG protein, which works in the same genetic pathway as one of the Gβ proteins to control its development. Furthermore, the specific G-protein subunits in P. patens are essential for its life cycle completion. Deletion of the genomic locus of PpXLG or PpGβ2 results in smaller, slower growing gametophores. Normal reproductive structures develop on these gametophores, but they are unable to form any sporophyte, the only diploid stage in the moss life cycle. Finally, the mutant phenotypes of ΔPpXLG and ΔPpGβ2 can be complemented by the homologous genes from Arabidopsis, AtXLG2 and AtAGB1, respectively, suggesting an overall conservation of their function throughout the plant evolution. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists. All Rights Reserved.

Free-standing Fe2O3 nanomembranes enabling ultra-long cycling life and high rate capability for Li-ion batteries.

PubMed

Liu, Xianghong; Si, Wenping; Zhang, Jun; Sun, Xiaolei; Deng, Junwen; Baunack, Stefan; Oswald, Steffen; Liu, Lifeng; Yan, Chenglin; Schmidt, Oliver G

2014-12-12

With Fe2O3 as a proof-of-concept, free-standing nanomembrane structure is demonstrated to be highly advantageous to improve the performance of Li-ion batteries. The Fe2O3 nanomembrane electrodes exhibit ultra-long cycling life at high current rates with satisfactory capacity (808 mAh g(-1) after 1000 cycles at 2 C and 530 mAh g(-1) after 3000 cycles at 6 C) as well as repeatable high rate capability up to 50 C. The excellent performance benefits particularly from the unique structural advantages of the nanomembranes. The mechanical feature can buffer the strain of lithiation/delithiation to postpone the pulverization. The two-dimensional transport pathways in between the nanomembranes can promote the pseudo-capacitive type storage. The parallel-laid nanomembranes, which are coated by polymeric gel-like film and SEI layer with the electrolyte in between layers, electrochemically behave like numerous "mini-capacitors" to provide the pseudo-capacitance thus maintain the capacity at high rate.

Weibull-Based Design Methodology for Rotating Aircraft Engine Structures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zaretsky, Erwin; Hendricks, Robert C.; Soditus, Sherry

2002-01-01

The NASA Energy Efficient Engine (E(sup 3)-Engine) is used as the basis of a Weibull-based life and reliability analysis. Each component's life and thus the engine's life is defined by high-cycle fatigue (HCF) or low-cycle fatigue (LCF). Knowing the cumulative life distribution of each of the components making up the engine as represented by a Weibull slope is a prerequisite to predicting the life and reliability of the entire engine. As the engine Weibull slope increases, the predicted lives decrease. The predicted engine lives L(sub 5) (95 % probability of survival) of approximately 17,000 and 32,000 hr do correlate with current engine maintenance practices without and with refurbishment. respectively. The individual high pressure turbine (HPT) blade lives necessary to obtain a blade system life L(sub 0.1) (99.9 % probability of survival) of 9000 hr for Weibull slopes of 3, 6 and 9, are 47,391 and 20,652 and 15,658 hr, respectively. For a design life of the HPT disks having probable points of failure equal to or greater than 36,000 hr at a probability of survival of 99.9 %, the predicted disk system life L(sub 0.1) can vary from 9,408 to 24,911 hr.

Industrial process system assessment: bridging process engineering and life cycle assessment through multiscale modeling.

EPA Science Inventory

The Industrial Process System Assessment (IPSA) methodology is a multiple step allocation approach for connecting information from the production line level up to the facility level and vice versa using a multiscale model of process systems. The allocation procedure assigns inpu...

Go Big or Go Home: Employing America’s Heavy Force

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-05-01

currently valid OMB control number. PLEASE DO NOT RETURN YOUR FORM TO THE ABOVE ADDRESS. 1. REPORT DATE (DD-MM-YYYY) 01 -04-2010 2. REPORT TYPE...doctrine to train their soldiers prior to deployment under the watchful eye of observer-controllers. However, the ARFORGEN cycle treats all brigade...combat team types came up short against current and future threats from 2006- 2018 . “The analysis identified capability gaps that must be resolved to

2016 Annual Technology Baseline (ATB)

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

Cole, Wesley; Kurup, Parthiv; Hand, Maureen

Consistent cost and performance data for various electricity generation technologies can be difficult to find and may change frequently for certain technologies. With the Annual Technology Baseline (ATB), National Renewable Energy Laboratory provides an organized and centralized dataset that was reviewed by internal and external experts. It uses the best information from the Department of Energy laboratory's renewable energy analysts and Energy Information Administration information for conventional technologies. The ATB will be updated annually in order to provide an up-to-date repository of current and future cost and performance data. Going forward, we plan to revise and refine the values usingmore » best available information. The ATB includes both a presentation with notes (PDF) and an associated Excel Workbook. The ATB includes the following electricity generation technologies: land-based wind; offshore wind; utility-scale solar PV; concentrating solar power; geothermal power; hydropower plants (upgrades to existing facilities, powering non-powered dams, and new stream-reach development); conventional coal; coal with carbon capture and sequestration; integrated gasification combined cycle coal; natural gas combustion turbines; natural gas combined cycle; conventional biopower. Nuclear laboratory's renewable energy analysts and Energy Information Administration information for conventional technologies. The ATB will be updated annually in order to provide an up-to-date repository of current and future cost and performance data. Going forward, we plan to revise and refine the values using best available information.« less

Microbial Safety and Shelf Life of UV-C Treated Freshly Squeezed White Grape Juice.

PubMed

Unluturk, Sevcan; Atilgan, Mehmet R

2015-08-01

The effects of UV-C irradiation on the inactivation of Escherichia coli K-12 (ATCC 25253), a surrogate of E. coli O157:H7, and on the shelf life of freshly squeezed turbid white grape juice (FSWGJ) were investigated. FSWGJ samples were processed at 0.90 mL/s for 32 min by circulating 8 times in an annular flow UV system. The UV exposure time was 244 s per cycle. The population of E. coli K-12 was reduced by 5.34 log cycles after exposure to a total UV dosage of 9.92 J/cm(2) (1.24 J/cm(2) per cycle) at 0.90 mL/s flow rate. The microbial shelf life of UV-C treated FSWGJ was extended up to 14 d at 4 °C. UV exposure was not found to alter pH, total soluble solid, and titratable acidity of juice. There was a significant effect (P < 0.05) on turbidity, absorbance coefficient, color, and ascorbic acid content. Furthermore, all physicochemical properties were altered during refrigerated storage. The microbial shelf life of FSWGJ was doubled after UV-C treatment, whereas the quality of juice was adversely affected similarly observed in the control samples. © 2015 Institute of Food Technologists®

26 CFR 1.101-4 - Payment of life insurance proceeds at a date later than death.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... Income § 1.101-4 Payment of life insurance proceeds at a date later than death. (a) In general. (1)(i... 26 Internal Revenue 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Payment of life insurance proceeds at a date... (whether as an option or otherwise) to pay such beneficiary an amount or amounts at a date or dates later...

Life beyond the Classroom: Transition Strategies for Young People with Disabilities, Fourth Edition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wehman, Paul

2006-01-01

Just in time for the implementation of new IDEA regulations, this fourth edition of a landmark text brings together the most up-to-date, comprehensive information on facilitating transitions for young people with mild, moderate, or severe disabilities. Teaming with the best-known researchers in the fields of employment, transition, postsecondary…

Caring for You and Your Baby: From Pregnancy through the First Year of Life.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Minnesota Univ., Minneapolis. Fairview Health Services.

Prepared by the Maternal and Newborn Services staff at a health care system affiliated with the University of Minnesota, this book is designed as several resources in one, encompassing pregnancy, childbirth, infant care, child development, baby keepsakes, medical records, and journal-keeping. The book provides authoritative, up-to-date information…

Critical Thinking and School Music Education: Literature Review, Research Findings, and Perspectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kokkidou, May

2013-01-01

The most up-to-date validations of educational praxis propose that teachers and learners should engage together in a process of understanding life and the world, should share their anxieties and their problematic issues, look for solutions, make plans for action, express themselves creatively and take a critical stance toward every new datum…

Cycling-Induced Changes in the Entropy Profiles of Lithium Cobalt Oxide Electrodes

DOE PAGES

Hudak, N. S.; Davis, L. E.; Nagasubramanian, G.

2014-12-09

Entropy profiles of lithium cobalt oxide (LiCoO2) electrodes were measured at various stages in the cycle life to examine performance degradation and cycling-induced changes, or lack thereof, in thermodynamics. LiCoO 2 electrodes were cycled at C/2 rate in half-cells (vs. lithium anodes) up to 20 cycles or C/5 rate in full cells (vs. MCMB anodes) up to 500 cycles. The electrodes were then subjected to entropy measurements (∂E/∂T, where E is open-circuit potential and T is temperature) in half-cells at regular intervals over the approximate range 0.5 ≤ x ≤ 1 in LixCoO 2. Despite significant losses in capacity uponmore » cycling, neither cycling rate resulted in any change to the overall shape of the entropy profile relative to an uncycled electrode, indicating retention of the basic LiCoO 2 structure, lithium insertion mechanism, and thermodynamics. This confirms that cycling-induced performance degradation in LiCoO 2 electrodes is primarily caused by kinetic barriers that increase with cycling. In the case of electrodes cycled at C/5, there was a subtle, quantitative, and gradual change in the entropy profile in the narrow potential range of the hexagonal-to-monoclinic phase transition. The observed change is indicative of a decrease in the intralayer lithium ordering that occurs at these potentials, and it demonstrates that a cyclinginduced structural disorder accompanies the kinetic degradation mechanisms.« less

Reusability aspects for space transportation rocket engines: programmatic status and outlook

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Preclik, D.; Strunz, R.; Hagemann, G.; Langel, G.

2011-09-01

Rocket propulsion systems belong to the most critical subsystems of a space launch vehicle, being illustrated in this paper by comparing different types of transportation systems. The aspect of reusability is firstly discussed for the space shuttle main engine, the only rocket engine in the world that has demonstrated multiple reuses. Initial projections are contrasted against final reusability achievements summarizing three decades of operating the space shuttle main engine. The discussion is then extended to engines employed on expendable launch vehicles with an operational life requirement typically specifying structural integrities up to 20 cycles (start-ups) and an accumulated burning time of about 6,000 s (Vulcain engine family). Today, this life potential substantially exceeds the duty cycle of an expendable engine. It is actually exploited only during the development and qualification phase of an engine when system reliability is demonstrated on ground test facilities with a reduced number of hardware sets that are subjected to an extended number of test cycles and operation time. The paper will finally evaluate the logic and effort necessary to qualify a reusable engine for a required reliability and put this result in context of possible cost savings realized from reuse operations over a time span of 25 years.

32 CFR Appendix to Part 162 - Reporting Procedures

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... generated. e. Projected Life-Cycle Savings. For each PIF project provide the estimated amount of savings the project is projected to earn over the project's economic life. f. Projected Life-Cycle Cost Avoidance. For... Projected Life-Cycle Savings. e. Total Projected Life-Cycle Cost Avoidance. 3. CSI. Each DoD Component that...

10 CFR 433.8 - Life-cycle costing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Life-cycle costing. 433.8 Section 433.8 Energy DEPARTMENT... HIGH-RISE RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS § 433.8 Life-cycle costing. Each Federal agency shall determine life... choose to use any of four methods, including lower life-cycle costs, positive net savings, savings-to...

10 CFR 433.8 - Life-cycle costing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Life-cycle costing. 433.8 Section 433.8 Energy DEPARTMENT... HIGH-RISE RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS § 433.8 Life-cycle costing. Each Federal agency shall determine life... choose to use any of four methods, including lower life-cycle costs, positive net savings, savings-to...

10 CFR 433.8 - Life-cycle costing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Life-cycle costing. 433.8 Section 433.8 Energy DEPARTMENT... HIGH-RISE RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS § 433.8 Life-cycle costing. Each Federal agency shall determine life... choose to use any of four methods, including lower life-cycle costs, positive net savings, savings-to...

Does It Have a Life Cycle?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keeley, Page

2010-01-01

If life continues from generation to generation, then all plants and animals must go through a life cycle, even though it may be different from organism to organism. Is this what students have "learned," or do they have their own private conceptions about life cycles? The formative assessment probe "Does It Have a Life Cycle?" reveals some…

Impact of Life-Cycle Stage and Gender on the Ability to Balance Work and Family Responsibilities.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Higgins, Christopher; And Others

1994-01-01

Examined impact of gender and life-cycle stage on three components of work-family conflict using sample of 3,616 respondents. For men, levels of work-family conflict were moderately lower in each successive life-cycle stage. For women, levels were similar in two early life-cycle stages but were significantly lower in later life-cycle stage.…

From Centralized Disassembly to Life Cycle Management: Status and Progress of E-waste Treatment System in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Xiaolong; Yang, Jianxin; Lu, Bin; Yang, Dong

2017-01-01

China is now facing e-waste problems from both growing domestic generation and illegal imports. Many stakeholders are involved in the e-waste treatment system due to the complexity of e-waste life cycle. Beginning with the state of the e-waste treatment industry in China, this paper summarizes the latest progress in e-waste management from such aspects as the new edition of the China RoHS Directive, new Treatment List, new funding subsidy standard, and eco-design pilots. Thus, a conceptual model for life cycle management of e-waste is generalized. The operating procedure is to first identify the life cycle stages of the e-waste and extract the important life cycle information. Then, life cycle tools can be used to conduct a systematic analysis to help decide how to maximize the benefits from a series of life cycle engineering processes. Meanwhile, life cycle thinking is applied to improve the legislation relating to e-waste so as to continuously improve the sustainability of the e-waste treatment system. By providing an integrative framework, the life cycle management of e-waste should help to realize sustainable management of e-waste in developing countries.

25 CFR 700.463 - Requirements for applications.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... funding assistance. The preapplication shall be due by the closing date published by the Commission, and... funding cycle. Applications received after the due date will be considered for the next funding cycle, although the Commission, at its discretion, may select such a project for funding under the current cycle...

Geographic variation and evolution in the life cycle of the witch-hazel leaf gall aphid, Hormaphis hamamelidis.

PubMed

von Dohlen, C D; Gill, D E

1989-02-01

Two divergent life cycles associated with different elevations and latitudes have been documented for the witch-hazel leaf gall aphid, Hormaphis hamamelidis. At low elevation in northern Virginia, the aphid had seven distinct generations alternating between the primary host, witchhazel (Hamamelis virginiana), and a secondary host, river birch (Betula nigra). These findings confirm the original published life cycle description for the same locality. A second, abbreviated life cycle consisting of only three generations restricted to witch-hazel was discovered at high elevation (1000 m) in north central and northwestern Virginia. Aphids of both life cycles were sympatric at a middle elevation site. The life cycles and morphology suggest that the two forms are separate species. Although monoecious life cycles on primary hosts in aphids generally are thought to be ancestral to complex host-alternating ones, it is certainly possible that monoecious cycles are sometimes secondarily derived from complex cycles. By constructing a preliminary phylogeny of the described species in the tribe Hormaphidini, we propose that the abbreviated life cycle is derived from the complex one in the case of these witchhazel gall aphids. Our findings are discussed in the context of current theory regarding the evolutionary stability of complex life cycles.

Modeling the influence of genetic and environmental variation on the expression of plant life cycles across landscapes.

PubMed

Burghardt, Liana T; Metcalf, C Jessica E; Wilczek, Amity M; Schmitt, Johanna; Donohue, Kathleen

2015-02-01

Organisms develop through multiple life stages that differ in environmental tolerances. The seasonal timing, or phenology, of life-stage transitions determines the environmental conditions to which each life stage is exposed and the length of time required to complete a generation. Both environmental and genetic factors contribute to phenological variation, yet predicting their combined effect on life cycles across a geographic range remains a challenge. We linked submodels of the plasticity of individual life stages to create an integrated model that predicts life-cycle phenology in complex environments. We parameterized the model for Arabidopsis thaliana and simulated life cycles in four locations. We compared multiple "genotypes" by varying two parameters associated with natural genetic variation in phenology: seed dormancy and floral repression. The model predicted variation in life cycles across locations that qualitatively matches observed natural phenology. Seed dormancy had larger effects on life-cycle length than floral repression, and results suggest that a genetic cline in dormancy maintains a life-cycle length of 1 year across the geographic range of this species. By integrating across life stages, this approach demonstrates how genetic variation in one transition can influence subsequent transitions and the geographic distribution of life cycles more generally.

Life cycle assessment of domestic and agricultural rainwater harvesting systems.

PubMed

Ghimire, Santosh R; Johnston, John M; Ingwersen, Wesley W; Hawkins, Troy R

2014-04-01

To further understanding of the environmental implications of rainwater harvesting and its water savings potential relative to conventional U.S. water delivery infrastructure, we present a method to perform life cycle assessment of domestic rainwater harvesting (DRWH) and agricultural rainwater harvesting (ARWH) systems. We also summarize the design aspects of DRWH and ARWH systems adapted to the Back Creek watershed, Virginia. The baseline design reveals that the pump and pumping electricity are the main components of DRWH and ARWH impacts. For nonpotable uses, the minimal design of DRWH (with shortened distribution distance and no pump) outperforms municipal drinking water in all environmental impact categories except ecotoxicity. The minimal design of ARWH outperforms well water in all impact categories. In terms of watershed sustainability, the two minimal designs reduced environmental impacts, from 58% to 78% energy use and 67% to 88% human health criteria pollutants, as well as avoiding up to 20% blue water (surface/groundwater) losses, compared to municipal drinking water and well water. We address potential environmental and human health impacts of urban and rural RWH systems in the region. The Building for Environmental and Economic Sustainability (BEES) model-based life cycle inventory data were used for this study.

Pairing the Adult Learner and Boutique Wineries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holyoke, Laura; Heath-Simpson, Delta

2013-01-01

This study explored connections between adult learners and their experiences in the context of small boutique wineries operating in the start-up phase of the organizational life cycle. The research objective was to gain insight regarding the pairing of adult learners with the entering of a specialty industry. Fourteen individuals from four…

Impact of Agile Software Development Model on Software Maintainability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gawali, Ajay R.

2012-01-01

Software maintenance and support costs account for up to 60% of the overall software life cycle cost and often burdens tightly budgeted information technology (IT) organizations. Agile software development approach delivers business value early, but implications on software maintainability are still unknown. The purpose of this quantitative study…

HEAVY-DUTY VEHICLE IN USE EMISSION PERFORMANCE

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

Nylund, N; Ikonen, M; Laurikko, J

2003-08-24

Engines for heavy-duty vehicles are emission certified by running engines according to specified load pattern or duty cycle. In the US, the US Heavy-Duty Transient cycle has been in use already for a number of years, and Europe is, according to the requirements of the Directive 1999/96/EC gradually switching to transient-type testing. Evaluating the in-use emission performance of heavy-duty vehicles presents a problem. Taking engines out of vehicles for engine dynamometer testing is difficult and costly. In addition, engine dynamometer testing does not take into account the properties of the vehicle itself (i.e. mass, transmission etc.). It is also debatable,more » how well the standardized duty cycles reflect real-life -driving patterns. VTT Processes has recently commissioned a new emission laboratory for heavy-duty vehicles. The facility comprises both engine test stand and a fully transient heavy-duty chassis dynamometer. The roller diameter of the dynamometer is 2.5 meters. Regulated emissions are measured using a full-flow CVS system. The HD vehicle chassis dynamometer measurements (emissions, fuel consumption) has been granted accreditation by the Centre of Metrology and Accreditation (MIKES, Finland). A national program to generate emission data on buses has been set up for the years 2002-2004. The target is to generate emission factors for some 50 different buses representing different degree of sophistication (Euro 1 to Euro5/EEV, with and without exhaust gas aftertreatment), different fuel technologies (diesel, natural gas) and different ages (the effect of aging). The work is funded by the Metropolitan Council of Helsinki, Helsinki City Transport, The Ministry of Transport and Communications Finland and the gas company Gasum Oy. The International Association for Natural Gas Vehicles (IANGV) has opted to buy into the project. For IANGV, VTT will deliver comprehensive emission data (including particle size distribution and chemical and biological characterization of particles) for up-to-date diesel and natural gas vehicles. The paper describes the methodology used for the measurements on buses, the test matrix and some preliminary emission data on both regulated and unregulated emissions.« less

Rearing and estimation of life-cycle parameters of the tubicifid worm Branchiura sowerbyi: application to ecotoxicity testing.

PubMed

Ducrot, Virginie; Péry, Alexandre R R; Quéau, Hervé; Mons, Raphaël; Lafont, Michel; Garric, Jeanne

2007-10-01

This paper provides original collection, acclimatizing, rearing and toxicity test methods for the freshwater worm Branchiura sowerbyi, an alternative species to Tubifex tubifex for ecotoxicity evaluation of sediments. Influence of the substrate, type of food, and feeding level on individual performances was assessed in short-term tests, in order to set up optimal culture and test conditions. Low-size particles and high organic matter content favoured the growth and reproduction of B. sowerbyi. The relative contribution of sediments and fish food to the individual food intake was assessed using a foraging efficiency model based upon the dynamic energy budget theory. Individual performances were optimal when the substrate plus fish food provided the energy equivalent to 5 mg Tetramin per worm per day, which is the ad libitum food level for adults at 21 degrees C. The life-cycle of the worm was fully characterized using a life-cycle test conducted under the previously defined optimal conditions. Hatching rates were low (32%), whereas newborn and juveniles exhibited high survival (>80%) and growth (2.4 mg/day in juveniles) rates. Age at puberty was low (60 days) when compared to the maximal life span (1100 days) as predicted using a Weibull model. Adults reproduced every other month with a constant fecundity (0.16 cocoon/worm/day). The mean values of the life-cycle parameters and their variability and reproducibility among laboratory studies were discussed in order to identify relevant endpoints to be used in ecotoxicity tests. Survival, juvenile growth, and fecundity may constitute suitable test endpoints, whereas hatching rate and adult growth should not be used as endpoints in B. sowerbyi.

19 CFR 207.27 - Short life cycle products.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 19 Customs Duties 3 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Short life cycle products. 207.27 Section 207.27... SUBSIDIZED EXPORTS TO THE UNITED STATES Final Determinations, Short Life Cycle Products § 207.27 Short life... short life cycle merchandise which has been the subject of two or more affirmative dumping...

19 CFR 207.27 - Short life cycle products.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 19 Customs Duties 3 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Short life cycle products. 207.27 Section 207.27... SUBSIDIZED EXPORTS TO THE UNITED STATES Final Determinations, Short Life Cycle Products § 207.27 Short life... short life cycle merchandise which has been the subject of two or more affirmative dumping...

19 CFR 207.27 - Short life cycle products.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 19 Customs Duties 3 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Short life cycle products. 207.27 Section 207.27... SUBSIDIZED EXPORTS TO THE UNITED STATES Final Determinations, Short Life Cycle Products § 207.27 Short life... short life cycle merchandise which has been the subject of two or more affirmative dumping...

19 CFR 207.27 - Short life cycle products.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 19 Customs Duties 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Short life cycle products. 207.27 Section 207.27... SUBSIDIZED EXPORTS TO THE UNITED STATES Final Determinations, Short Life Cycle Products § 207.27 Short life... short life cycle merchandise which has been the subject of two or more affirmative dumping...

19 CFR 207.27 - Short life cycle products.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 19 Customs Duties 3 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Short life cycle products. 207.27 Section 207.27... SUBSIDIZED EXPORTS TO THE UNITED STATES Final Determinations, Short Life Cycle Products § 207.27 Short life... short life cycle merchandise which has been the subject of two or more affirmative dumping...

Performance Characteristics of Lithium-Ion Prototype Batteries for Mars Surveyor Program 2001 Lander

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smart, M. C.; Ratnakumar, B. V.; Whitcanack, L.; Surampudi, S.; Byers, J.; Marsh, R. A.

2000-01-01

A viewgraph presentation outlines the scientific payload, expected launch date and tasks, and an image of the Mars Surveyor 2001 Lander components. The Lander's battery specifications are given. The program objectives for the Li-ion cells for the Lander are listed, and results performance evaluation and cycle life performance tests are outlined for different temperatures. Cell charge characteristics are described, and test data is presented for charge capacity at varying temperatures. Capacity retention and storage characteristics tests are described and results are shown.

An Open Epistle to Dr. Traditional Cherokee of the Nonexistent Bear Clan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Redsteer, Robert W.

2003-01-01

Having grown up in the Native American Church culture in the time when Navajo people were persecuted for practicing this religion, the author states that a great price has been paid to date that allows him to practice his religious freedom and his way of life. Because non native people are selfishly imitating sacred Indigenous ceremonies, they put…

Computerized systems analysis and optimization of aircraft engine performance, weight, and life cycle costs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fishbach, L. H.

1979-01-01

The computational techniques utilized to determine the optimum propulsion systems for future aircraft applications and to identify system tradeoffs and technology requirements are described. The characteristics and use of the following computer codes are discussed: (1) NNEP - a very general cycle analysis code that can assemble an arbitrary matrix fans, turbines, ducts, shafts, etc., into a complete gas turbine engine and compute on- and off-design thermodynamic performance; (2) WATE - a preliminary design procedure for calculating engine weight using the component characteristics determined by NNEP; (3) POD DRG - a table look-up program to calculate wave and friction drag of nacelles; (4) LIFCYC - a computer code developed to calculate life cycle costs of engines based on the output from WATE; and (5) INSTAL - a computer code developed to calculate installation effects, inlet performance and inlet weight. Examples are given to illustrate how these computer techniques can be applied to analyze and optimize propulsion system fuel consumption, weight, and cost for representative types of aircraft and missions.

Rock Smelting of Copper Ores with Waste Heat Recovery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Norgate, Terry; Jahanshahi, Sharif; Haque, Nawshad

It is generally recognised that the grades of metallic ores are falling globally. This trend can be expected to increase the life cycle-based energy requirement for primary metal production due to the additional amount of material that must be handled and treated in the mining and mineral processing stages of the metal production life cycle. Rock (or whole ore) smelting has been suggested as a possible alternative processing route for low grade ores with a potentially lower energy intensity and environmental impact than traditional processing routes. In this processing route, the beneficiation stage is eliminated along with its associated energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, but this is partially offset by the need for more solid material to be handled and heated up to smelting temperatures. A life cycle assessment study was carried out to assess the potential energy and greenhouse gas benefits of a conceptual flowsheet of the rock smelting process, using copper ore as an example. Recovery and utilisation of waste heat in the slag (via dry slag granulation) and offgas streams from the smelting step was also included in the study, with the waste heat being utilised either for thermal applications or electricity generation.

Life-cycle assessment of transportation biofuels from hydrothermal liquefaction of forest residues in British Columbia.

PubMed

Nie, Yuhao; Bi, Xiaotao

2018-01-01

Biofuels from hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) of abundantly available forest residues in British Columbia (BC) can potentially make great contributions to reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the transportation sector. A life-cycle assessment was conducted to quantify the GHG emissions of a hypothetic 100 million liters per year HTL biofuel system in the Coast Region of BC. Three scenarios were defined and investigated, namely, supply of bulky forest residues for conversion in a central integrated refinery (Fr-CIR), HTL of forest residues to bio-oil in distributed biorefineries and subsequent upgrading in a central oil refinery (Bo-DBR), and densification of forest residues in distributed pellet plants and conversion in a central integrated refinery (Wp-CIR). The life-cycle GHG emissions of HTL biofuels is 20.5, 17.0, and 19.5 g CO 2 -eq/MJ for Fr-CIR, Bo-DBR, and Wp-CIR scenarios, respectively, corresponding to 78-82% reduction compared with petroleum fuels. The conversion stage dominates the total GHG emissions, making up more than 50%. The process emitting most GHGs over the life cycle of HTL biofuels is HTL buffer production. Transportation emission, accounting for 25% of Fr-CIR, can be lowered by 83% if forest residues are converted to bio-oil before transportation. When the credit from biochar applied for soil amendment is considered, a further reduction of 6.8 g CO 2 -eq/MJ can be achieved. Converting forest residues to bio-oil and wood pellets before transportation can significantly lower the transportation emission and contribute to a considerable reduction of the life-cycle GHG emissions. Process performance parameters (e.g., HTL energy requirement and biofuel yield) and the location specific parameter (e.g., electricity mix) have significant influence on the GHG emissions of HTL biofuels. Besides, the recycling of the HTL buffer needs to be investigated to further improve the environmental performance of HTL biofuels.

Dynamics of core body temperature cycles in long-term measurements under real life conditions in women.

PubMed

Ekhart, D; Wicht, H; Kersken, T; Ackermann, H; Kaczmarczyk, M; Pretzsch, G; Alexander, H; Korf, H W

2018-01-01

Studies under real life conditions become more and more relevant in chronobiological and chronomedical research. The present study aims to analyze one of the most prominent biological rhythms: the core body temperature (CBT) rhythm in the real world outside the laboratory. CBT was recorded continuously in 37 healthy women (age between 21 and 44 years, median 29 years) with a newly developed intravaginal temperature sensor for up to 102 days. Sleep logs were available from 23 participants. To quantify the daily dynamics of each individual CBT-curve, novel measurement parameters are introduced which permit the quantification of the phase and shape of the CBT rhythms as well as their relation to the sleep-wake cycle. In addition to the classical phase markers (i.e. nadir and peak), the daily curves were segmented into quartiles by introducing the t25/t50/t75-values which can be used as phase and shape markers. At variance to previous studies, a conspicuous day-to-day variation was shown not only for the time point of the peak, but also for the time point of the nadir. However, the t-values, particularly the t75-value were relatively closely locked to external time and thus represent more reliable phase markers than the nadir. The (variable) time point of the nadir determined the period length, phase and shape of the subsequent CBT cycle. If a nadir occurred close to the wake-up time, the following cycle was considerably shorter than 24 hours, while a nadir distant from the wake-up time was followed by a longer cycle. Thus, the period lengths of the daily CBT cycles of each individual were characterized by an "expand/contract" rhythm. The analyses of the novel phase markers (t25/t50/t75) of the CBT curves allowed to identify "early" and "late" participants who may differ in their phase-response curves with regard to the entraining effect of light. In addition, the novel phase markers mirrored the different social entrainment conditions on weekends and workdays.

Transportation life cycle assessment (LCA) synthesis : life cycle assessment learning module series.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2015-03-12

The Life Cycle Assessment Learning Module Series is a set of narrated, self-advancing slideshows on : various topics related to environmental life cycle assessment (LCA). This research project produced the first 27 of such modules, which : are freely...

LCIA framework and cross-cutting issues guidance within the UNEP/SETAC Life Cycle Initiative

EPA Science Inventory

Increasing needs for decision support and advances in scientific knowledge within life cycle assessment (LCA) led to substantial efforts to provide global guidance on environmental life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) indicators under the auspices of the UNEP-SETAC Life Cycle Init...

Evolution of complex life cycles in trophically transmitted helminths. I. Host incorporation and trophic ascent.

PubMed

Parker, G A; Ball, M A; Chubb, J C

2015-02-01

Links between parasites and food webs are evolutionarily ancient but dynamic: life history theory provides insights into helminth complex life cycle origins. Most adult helminths benefit by sexual reproduction in vertebrates, often high up food chains, but direct infection is commonly constrained by a trophic vacuum between free-living propagules and definitive hosts. Intermediate hosts fill this vacuum, facilitating transmission to definitive hosts. The central question concerns why sexual reproduction, and sometimes even larval growth, is suppressed in intermediate hosts, favouring growth arrest at larval maturity in intermediate hosts and reproductive suppression until transmission to definitive hosts? Increased longevity and higher growth in definitive hosts can generate selection for larger parasite body size and higher fecundity at sexual maturity. Life cycle length is increased by two evolutionary mechanisms, upward and downward incorporation, allowing simple (one-host) cycles to become complex (multihost). In downward incorporation, an intermediate host is added below the definitive host: models suggest that downward incorporation probably evolves only after ecological or evolutionary perturbations create a trophic vacuum. In upward incorporation, a new definitive host is added above the original definitive host, which subsequently becomes an intermediate host, again maintained by the trophic vacuum: theory suggests that this is plausible even under constant ecological/evolutionary conditions. The final cycle is similar irrespective of its origin (upward or downward). Insights about host incorporation are best gained by linking comparative phylogenetic analyses (describing evolutionary history) with evolutionary models (examining selective forces). Ascent of host trophic levels and evolution of optimal host taxa ranges are discussed. © 2015 European Society For Evolutionary Biology. Journal of Evolutionary Biology © 2015 European Society For Evolutionary Biology.

Cell Cycle Deregulation in the Neurons of Alzheimer’s Disease

PubMed Central

Moh, Calvin; Kubiak, Jacek Z.; Bajic, Vladan P.; Zhu, Xiongwei; Smith, Mark A.

2018-01-01

The cell cycle consists of four main phases: G1, S, G2, and M. Most cells undergo these cycles up to 40–60 times in their life. However, neurons remain in a nondividing, nonreplicating phase, G0. Neurons initiate but do not complete cell division, eventually entering apoptosis. Research has suggested that like cancer, Alzheimer’s disease (AD) involves dysfunction in neuronal cell cycle reentry, leading to the development of the two-hit hypothesis of AD. The first hit is abnormal cell cycle reentry, which typically results in neuronal apoptosis and prevention of AD. However, with the second hit of chronic oxidative damage preventing apoptosis, neurons gain “immortality” analogous to tumor cells. Once both of these hits are activated, AD can develop and produce senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles throughout brain tissue. In this review, we propose a mechanism for neuronal cell cycle reentry and the development of AD. PMID:21630160

Comparative Demography of the Spider Mite, Oligonychus afrasiaticus, on four Date Palm Varieties in Southwestern Tunisia

PubMed Central

Chaaban, Sameh Ben; Chermiti, Brahim; Kreiter, Serge

2011-01-01

The date palm mite, Oligonychus afrasiaticus (McGregor) (Acari: Tetranychidae), is a serious pest of palm date fruits. Life cycle, fecundity, and longevity of this mite were studied on fruits of four date palms, Phoenix dactylifera L. (Arecales: Arecaceae)(varieties: Deglet Noor, Alig, Kentichi, and Besser), under laboratory conditions at 27 = 1 °C, 60 ± 10% RH. Total development time of immature female was shorter on Deglet Noor fruits than on the other cultivars. O. afrasiaticus on Deglet Noor had the highest total fecundity per female, while low fecundity values occurred on Besser. The comparison of intrinsic rates of natural increase (rm), net reproductive rates (Ro), and the survival rates of immature stage of O. afrasiaticus on the host plants suggests that O. afrasiaticus performs better on Deglet Noor fruits. The mite feeding on Alig showed the lowest intrinsic rate of natural population increase (rm = 0.103 day 1). The estimation of difference in susceptibility of cultivars to O. afrasiaticus is crucial for developing efficient pest control programs. Indeed, less susceptible cultivars can either be left unsprayed or sprayed at low threshold. PMID:22233420

10 CFR 436.12 - Life cycle cost methodology.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Life cycle cost methodology. 436.12 Section 436.12 Energy DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY ENERGY CONSERVATION FEDERAL ENERGY MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING PROGRAMS Methodology and Procedures for Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.12 Life cycle cost methodology. The life cycle cost methodology...

10 CFR 436.12 - Life cycle cost methodology.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Life cycle cost methodology. 436.12 Section 436.12 Energy DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY ENERGY CONSERVATION FEDERAL ENERGY MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING PROGRAMS Methodology and Procedures for Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.12 Life cycle cost methodology. The life cycle cost methodology...

10 CFR 436.12 - Life cycle cost methodology.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Life cycle cost methodology. 436.12 Section 436.12 Energy DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY ENERGY CONSERVATION FEDERAL ENERGY MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING PROGRAMS Methodology and Procedures for Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.12 Life cycle cost methodology. The life cycle cost methodology...

10 CFR 436.12 - Life cycle cost methodology.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Life cycle cost methodology. 436.12 Section 436.12 Energy DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY ENERGY CONSERVATION FEDERAL ENERGY MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING PROGRAMS Methodology and Procedures for Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.12 Life cycle cost methodology. The life cycle cost methodology...

10 CFR 436.19 - Life cycle costs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Life cycle costs. 436.19 Section 436.19 Energy DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY ENERGY CONSERVATION FEDERAL ENERGY MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING PROGRAMS Methodology and Procedures for Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.19 Life cycle costs. Life cycle costs are the sum of the...

10 CFR 436.12 - Life cycle cost methodology.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Life cycle cost methodology. 436.12 Section 436.12 Energy DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY ENERGY CONSERVATION FEDERAL ENERGY MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING PROGRAMS Methodology and Procedures for Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.12 Life cycle cost methodology. The life cycle cost methodology...

10 CFR 436.19 - Life cycle costs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Life cycle costs. 436.19 Section 436.19 Energy DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY ENERGY CONSERVATION FEDERAL ENERGY MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING PROGRAMS Methodology and Procedures for Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.19 Life cycle costs. Life cycle costs are the sum of the...

Assessing fugitive emissions of CH4 from high-pressure gas pipelines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Worrall, Fred; Boothroyd, Ian; Davies, Richard

2017-04-01

The impact of unconventional natural gas production using hydraulic fracturing methods from shale gas basins has been assessed using life-cycle emissions inventories, covering areas such as pre-production, production and transmission processes. The transmission of natural gas from well pad to processing plants and its transport to domestic sites is an important source of fugitive CH4, yet emissions factors and fluxes from transmission processes are often based upon ver out of date measurements. It is important to determine accurate measurements of natural gas losses when compressed and transported between production and processing facilities so as to accurately determine life-cycle CH4 emissions. This study considers CH4 emissions from the UK National Transmission System (NTS) of high pressure natural gas pipelines. Mobile surveys of CH4 emissions using a Picarro Surveyor cavity-ring-down spectrometer were conducted across four areas in the UK, with routes bisecting high pressure pipelines and separate control routes away from the pipelines. A manual survey of soil gas measurements was also conducted along one of the high pressure pipelines using a tunable diode laser. When wind adjusted 92 km of high pressure pipeline and 72 km of control route were drive over a 10 day period. When wind and distance adjusted CH4 fluxes were significantly greater on routes with a pipeline than those without. The smallest leak detectable was 3% above ambient (1.03 relative concentration) with any leaks below 3% above ambient assumed ambient. The number of leaks detected along the pipelines correlate to the estimated length of pipe joints, inferring that there are constant fugitive CH4 emissions from these joints. When scaled up to the UK's National Transmission System pipeline length of 7600 km gives a fugitive CH4 flux of 4700 ± 2864 kt CH4/yr - this fugitive emission from high pressure pipelines is 0.016% of the annual gas supply.

Gimme shelter--the relative sensitivity of parasitic nematodes with direct and indirect life cycles to climate change.

PubMed

Molnár, Péter K; Dobson, Andrew P; Kutz, Susan J

2013-11-01

Climate change is expected to alter the dynamics of host-parasite systems globally. One key element in developing predictive models for these impacts is the life cycle of the parasite. It is, for example, commonly assumed that parasites with an indirect life cycle would be more sensitive to changing environmental conditions than parasites with a direct life cycle due to the greater chance that at least one of their obligate host species will go extinct. Here, we challenge this notion by contrasting parasitic nematodes with a direct life cycle against those with an indirect life cycle. Specifically, we suggest that behavioral thermoregulation by the intermediate host may buffer the larvae of indirectly transmitted parasites against temperature extremes, and hence climate warming. We term this the 'shelter effect'. Formalizing each life cycle in a comprehensive model reveals a fitness advantage for the direct life cycle over the indirect life cycle at low temperatures, but the shelter effect reverses this advantage at high temperatures. When examined for seasonal environments, the models suggest that climate warming may in some regions create a temporal niche in mid-summer that excludes parasites with a direct life cycle, but allows parasites with an indirect life cycle to persist. These patterns are amplified if parasite larvae are able to manipulate their intermediate host to increase ingestion probability by definite hosts. Furthermore, our results suggest that exploiting the benefits of host sheltering may have aided the evolution of indirect life cycles. Our modeling framework utilizes the Metabolic Theory of Ecology to synthesize the complexities of host behavioral thermoregulation and its impacts on various temperature-dependent parasite life history components in a single measure of fitness, R0 . It allows quantitative predictions of climate change impacts, and is easily generalized to many host-parasite systems. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Novel Non-Carbonate Based Electrolytes for Silicon Anodes

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

Zhu, Ye; Yang, Johnny; Cheng, Gang

2016-09-09

Substantial improvement in the energy density of rechargeable lithium batteries is required to meet the future needs for electric and plug-in electric vehicles (EV and PHEV). Present day lithium ion battery technology is based on shuttling lithium between graphitic carbon and inorganic oxides. Non-graphitic anodes, such as silicon can provide significant improvements in energy density but are currently limited in cycle life due to reactivity with the electrolyte. Wildcat/3M proposes the development of non-carbonate electrolyte formulations tailored for silicon alloy anodes. Combining these electrolytes with 3M’s anode and an NMC cathode will enable up to a 20% increase in themore » volumetric cell energy density, while still meeting the PHEV/EV cell level cycle/calendar life goals.« less

A thematic review of life cycle assessment (LCA) applied to pig production

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

McAuliffe, Graham A., E-mail: g.a.mcauliffe@umail.ucc.ie; School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University College Cork, Distillery Fields, North Mall, Cork; Chapman, Deborah V.

Commercial livestock production is known to have significant impacts on the environment. Pig production is a complex system which involves the production of animal feed, transportation, animal rearing and waste management. One tool for assessing the environmental performance of such complex systems is life cycle assessment (LCA). LCA has been applied to pig production considerably to date. This paper provides a chronological review of state-of-the-art pig production LCAs under three themes: feed production; entire-system livestock rearing; and waste management. The study considers how LCA applications have addressed technological improvements in animal husbandry, and highlights methodological limitations, particularly related to cross-studymore » comparisons. Recent research demonstrates crude protein reduction in feed and anaerobic treatment of pig excreta resulting in bioenergy production are the key targets for environmental performance improvements related to pig production. - Highlights: • An extensive review of LCA applied to pig production is provided chronologically over the past decade. • Individual studies have been categorised into feed, whole-system pig production and waste management themes. • We consider how LCAs have addressed state-of-the-art pig husbandry. • We offer a discussion on key findings, limitations and future research.« less

Reliability of Tin Silver Copper and mixed solders under variable loading conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jaradat, Younis

Industry use of lead free solder joints necessitates accurate modeling in predicting life in service. Yet, current extrapolations of accelerated test results do not actuate realistic conditions. This research focuses on joint properties of Pb-mixed and Pb-free solder alloys in order to explain material behavior subject to certain test conditions, i.e., varying cycling amplitudes. Additionally, this research will begin with extensive studies on backward compatible solder joints from the material's behavior to its reliability under displacement and load controlled fatigue tests. We address the evolution of the joint's microstructure ergo its properties and performance (mixed solder joints). The present work reports results of reflowing 30 mil SAC305 balls onto Cu, and ENIG coated BGA pads with different amounts of SnPb paste, aging and/or cycling the joints and inspecting the microstructure by cross polarizer microscopy and SEM. We found that the addition of small amounts of Pb had significant effects on solidification during cool-down from reflow, and consequently the initial microstructure. In terms of the varying cycling amplitude study, we note how realistic service conditions are almost never well approximated by cycling with fixed amplitudes. Recent results have demonstrated the consistent breakdown of common damage accumulation rules. In isothermal cycling tests the remaining life, after a step-down in amplitude, was invariably shorter than predicted by such a rule, while a step-up tended to have the opposite effect. The present work offers a mechanistic explanation for this and the basis for a practical approach to the assessment of life under service conditions. Realistic BGA joints were cycled individually in a micromechanical tester, monitoring the solder stiffness and the inelastic energy deposition. Cycling was seen to first cause rapid hardening, followed by leveling off in a 'cyclic saturation' stage and eventually the initiation and growth of a crack until failure. A temporary increase in amplitude during cycling caused a lasting reduction in hardness, and thus enhanced inelastic energy deposition and damage evolution, after the fact. This factor dominates during repeated increases and decreases, eventually shortening the remaining life dramatically

LIFE CYCLE DESIGN FRAMEWORK AND DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS PROFILES OF AT&T AND ALLIED SIGNAL

EPA Science Inventory

Life cycle design seeks to minimize the environmental burden associated with a product life cycle from raw materials acquisition through manufacturing, use, and end-of-life management. ife cycle design emphasizes integrating environmental requirements into the earliest phases of ...

77 FR 38766 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; International Client Life-Cycle Multi-Purpose...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-06-29

... Request; International Client Life-Cycle Multi-Purpose Forms AGENCY: International Trade Administration... aspects of an international organization's life-cycle with CS. CS is mandated by Congress to help U.S... trade events to U.S. organizations. The International Client Life-cycle Multi-Purpose Forms, previously...

A Predictive Framework for Thermomechanical Fatigue Life of High Silicon Molybdenum Ductile Cast Iron Based on Considerations of Strain Energy Dissipation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Avery, Katherine R.

Isothermal low cycle fatigue (LCF) and anisothermal thermomechanical fatigue (TMF) tests were conducted on a high silicon molybdenum (HiSiMo) cast iron for temperatures up to 1073K. LCF and out-of-phase (OP) TMF lives were significantly reduced when the temperature was near 673K due to an embrittlement phenomenon which decreases the ductility of HiSiMo at this temperature. In this case, intergranular fracture was predominant, and magnesium was observed at the fracture surface. When the thermal cycle did not include 673K, the failure mode was predominantly transgranular, and magnesium was not present on the fracture surface. The in-phase (IP) TMF lives were unaffected when the thermal cycle included 673K, and the predominant failure mode was found to be transgranular fracture, regardless of the temperature. No magnesium was present on the IP TMF fracture surfaces. Thus, the embrittlement phenomenon was found to contribute to fatigue damage only when the temperature was near 673K and a tensile stress was present. To account for the temperature- and stress-dependence of the embrittlement phenomenon on the TMF life of HiSiMo cast iron, an original model based on the cyclic inelastic energy dissipation is proposed which accounts for temperature-dependent differences in the rate of fatigue damage accumulation in tension and compression. The proposed model has few empirical parameters. Despite the simplicity of the model, the predicted fatigue life shows good agreement with more than 130 uniaxial low cycle and thermomechanical fatigue tests, cyclic creep tests, and tests conducted at slow strain rates and with hold times. The proposed model was implemented in a multiaxial formulation and applied to the fatigue life prediction of an exhaust manifold subjected to severe thermal cycles. The simulation results show good agreement with the failure locations and number of cycles to failure observed in a component-level experiment.

12 CFR 226.2 - Definitions and rules of construction.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... promotes, directly or indirectly, a credit transaction. (3) [Reserved] 2 2 [Reserved] (4) Billing cycle or cycle means the interval between the days or dates of regular periodic statements. These intervals shall... of days in the cycle does not vary more than 4 days from the regular day or date of the periodic...

Electrolytes for Use in High Energy Lithium-ion Batteries with Wide Operating Temperature Range

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smart, Marshall C.; Ratnakumar, B. V.; West, W. C.; Whitcanack, L. D.; Huang, C.; Soler, J.; Krause, F. C.

2012-01-01

Met programmatic milestones for program. Demonstrated improved performance with wide operating temperature electrolytes containing ester co-solvents (i.e., methyl butyrate) containing electrolyte additives in A123 prototype cells: Previously demonstrated excellent low temperature performance, including 11C rates at -30 C and the ability to perform well down to -60 C. Excellent cycle life at room temperature has been displayed, with over 5,000 cycles being demonstrated. Good high temperature cycle life performance has also been achieved. Demonstrated improved performance with methyl propionate-containing electrolytes in large capacity prototype cells: Demonstrated the wide operating temperature range capability in large cells (12 Ah), successfully scaling up technology from 0.25 Ah size cells. Demonstrated improved performance at low temperature and good cycle life at 40 C with methyl propionate-based electrolyte containing increasing FEC content and the use of LiBOB as an additive. Utilized three-electrode cells to investigate the electrochemical characteristics of high voltage systems coupled with wide operating temperature range electrolytes: From Tafel polarization measurements on each electrode, it is evident the NMC-based cathode displays poor lithium kinetics (being the limiting electrode). The MB-based formulations containing LiBOB delivered the best rate capability at low temperature, which is attributed to improved cathode kinetics. Whereas, the use of lithium oxalate as an additive lead to the highest reversible capacity and lower irreversible losses.

Life cycles of dominant mayflies (Ephemeroptera) on a torrent of the high Bolivian Andes

PubMed

Molina, Carlos I; Puliafico, Kenneth P

2016-03-01

The mayflies of the temperate and cold zones have well-synchronized life cycles, distinct cohorts, short emergence and flight periods. In contrast, aquatic insects from the tropical zones are characterized by multivoltine life cycles, “non-discernible cohorts” and extended flight periods throughout the year. This report is the first observation of life cycle patterns made of two species of mayflies on a torrent in the high elevation Bolivian Andes. The samples were taken from four sites and four periods during a hydrological season. The life cycle of each species was examined using size-class frequency analysis and a monthly modal progression model (von Bertalanffy’s model) to infer the life cycle synchrony type. These first observations showed a moderately synchronized univoltine life cycle for Andesiops peruvianus (Ulmer, 1920), whereas Meridialaris tintinnabula Pescador and Peters (1987), had an unsynchronized multivoltine life cycle. These results showed that the generalization of all aquatic insects as unsynchronized multivoltine species in the Andean region may not be entirely accurate since there is still a need to further clarify the life cycle patterns of the wide variety of aquatic insects living in this high elevation tropical environment.

Characterization factors for thermal pollution in freshwater aquatic environments.

PubMed

Verones, Francesca; Hanafiah, Marlia Mohd; Pfister, Stephan; Huijbregts, Mark A J; Pelletier, Gregory J; Koehler, Annette

2010-12-15

To date the impact of thermal emissions has not been addressed in life cycle assessment despite the narrow thermal tolerance of most aquatic species. A method to derive characterization factors for the impact of cooling water discharges on aquatic ecosystems was developed which uses space and time explicit integration of fate and effects of water temperature changes. The fate factor is calculated with a 1-dimensional steady-state model and reflects the residence time of heat emissions in the river. The effect factor specifies the loss of species diversity per unit of temperature increase and is based on a species sensitivity distribution of temperature tolerance intervals for various aquatic species. As an example, time explicit characterization factors were calculated for the cooling water discharge of a nuclear power plant in Switzerland, quantifying the impact on aquatic ecosystems of the rivers Aare and Rhine. The relative importance of the impact of these cooling water discharges was compared with other impacts in life cycle assessment. We found that thermal emissions are relevant for aquatic ecosystems compared to other stressors, such as chemicals and nutrients. For the case of nuclear electricity investigated, thermal emissions contribute between 3% and over 90% to Ecosystem Quality damage.

Model-Based Control of an Aircraft Engine using an Optimal Tuner Approach

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Connolly, Joseph W.; Chicatelli, Amy; Garg, Sanjay

2012-01-01

This paper covers the development of a model-based engine control (MBEC) method- ology applied to an aircraft turbofan engine. Here, a linear model extracted from the Commercial Modular Aero-Propulsion System Simulation 40,000 (CMAPSS40k) at a cruise operating point serves as the engine and the on-board model. The on-board model is up- dated using an optimal tuner Kalman Filter (OTKF) estimation routine, which enables the on-board model to self-tune to account for engine performance variations. The focus here is on developing a methodology for MBEC with direct control of estimated parameters of interest such as thrust and stall margins. MBEC provides the ability for a tighter control bound of thrust over the entire life cycle of the engine that is not achievable using traditional control feedback, which uses engine pressure ratio or fan speed. CMAPSS40k is capable of modeling realistic engine performance, allowing for a verification of the MBEC tighter thrust control. In addition, investigations of using the MBEC to provide a surge limit for the controller limit logic are presented that could provide benefits over a simple acceleration schedule that is currently used in engine control architectures.

Precipitation Matters

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McDuffie, Thomas

2007-01-01

Although weather, including its role in the water cycle, is included in most elementary science programs, any further examination of raindrops and snowflakes is rare. Together rain and snow make up most of the precipitation that replenishes Earth's life-sustaining fresh water supply. When viewed individually, raindrops and snowflakes are quite…

Forming Health Culture of Bachelors of Education by Means of an Academic Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Asafova, Elena V.; Sazanova, Maria L.

2016-01-01

In Russia the system of spreading health-culture among the young generation, the students, has not been formed yet, which makes the paper topical and up-to-date. The young generation is characterized by a low level of education and professional training efficiency in healthy life-style and health culture. It has caused depreciation of the concepts…

Residential Preferences and Moving Behavior: A Family Life Cycle Analysis.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McAuley, William J.; Nutty, Cheri L.

The relationship of family life cycle changes to housing preferences and residential mobility is examined. Two residential decision-making issues are explored in detail--how family life cycle stages influence what people view as important to their choice of residential setting and what individuals at different family life cycle stages view as the…

10 CFR 434.607 - Life cycle cost analysis criteria.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Life cycle cost analysis criteria. 434.607 Section 434.607... HIGH RISE RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS Building Energy Compliance Alternative § 434.607 Life cycle cost analysis criteria. 607.1 The following life cycle cost criteria applies to the fuel selection requirements...

77 FR 38582 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Domestic Client Life-Cycle Multi-Purpose Forms

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-06-28

... Request; Domestic Client Life-Cycle Multi-Purpose Forms AGENCY: International Trade Administration. ACTION... life-cycle with CS. CS is mandated by Congress to help U.S. organizations, particularly small and... Client Life-cycle Multi-Purpose Forms, previously titled Export Information Services Order Forms, are...

10 CFR 434.607 - Life cycle cost analysis criteria.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Life cycle cost analysis criteria. 434.607 Section 434.607... HIGH RISE RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS Building Energy Compliance Alternative § 434.607 Life cycle cost analysis criteria. 607.1 The following life cycle cost criteria applies to the fuel selection requirements...

76 FR 41525 - Hewlett Packard Global Parts Supply Chain, Global Product Life Cycles Management Unit Including...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-07-14

... Parts Supply Chain, Global Product Life Cycles Management Unit Including Teleworkers Reporting to... workers of Hewlett Packard, Global Parts Supply Chain, Global Product Life Cycles Management Unit...). Since eligible workers of Hewlett Packard, Global Parts Supply Chain, Global Product Life Cycles...

Lithium Ion Testing at NSWC Crane in Support of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brown, Harry; Jung, David; Lee, Leonine

2010-01-01

This viewgraph presentation reviews Lithium Ion Cell testing at the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Crane, India. The contents include: 1) Quallion 15 Ahr Lithium-Ion Cells, LEO Life Cycle Test; 2) Lithion 50 Ahr Lithium-Ion Cells, LEO Life Cycle Test; 3) ABSL 5 Ahr Lithium-Ion Battery, LRO-LLO Life Cycle Test, SDO-GEO Life Cycle Test; and 4) A123 40 Ahr Lithium-Ion Battery, GPM Life Cycle Test, MMS Life Cycle Test.

Life Cycle Energy Analysis of Reclaimed Water Reuse Projects in Beijing.

PubMed

Fan, Yupeng; Guo, Erhui; Zhai, Yuanzheng; Chang, Andrew C; Qiao, Qi; Kang, Peng

2018-01-01

  To illustrate the benefits of water reuse project, the process-based life cycle analysis (LCA) could be combined with input-output LCA to evaluate the water reuse project. Energy is the only evaluation parameter used in this study. Life cycle assessment of all energy inputs (LCEA) is completed mainly by the life cycle inventory (LCI), taking into account the full life cycle including the construction, the operation, and the demolition phase of the project. Assessment of benefit from water reuse during the life cycle should focus on wastewater discharge reduction and water-saving benefits. The results of LCEA of Beijing water reuse project built in 2014 in a comprehensive way shows that the benefits obtained from the reclaimed water reuse far exceed the life cycle energy consumption. In this paper, the authors apply the LCEA model to estimate the benefits of reclaimed water reuse projects quantitatively.

Application of Life Cycle Assessment on Electronic Waste Management: A Review.

PubMed

Xue, Mianqiang; Xu, Zhenming

2017-04-01

Electronic waste is a rich source of both valuable materials and toxic substances. Management of electronic waste is one of the biggest challenges of current worldwide concern. As an effective and prevailing environmental management tool, life cycle assessment can evaluate the environmental performance of electronic waste management activities. Quite a few scientific literatures reporting life cycle assessment of electronic waste management with significant outcomes have been recently published. This paper reviewed the trends, characteristics, research gaps, and challenges of these studies providing detailed information for practitioners involved in electronic waste management. The results showed that life cycle assessment studies were most carried out in Europe, followed by Asia and North America. The research subject of the studies mainly includes monitors, waste printed circuit boards, mobile phones, computers, printers, batteries, toys, dishwashers, and light-emitting diodes. CML was the most widely used life cycle impact assessment method in life cycle assessment studies on electronic waste management, followed by EI99. Furthermore, 40% of the reviewed studies combined with other environmental tools, including life cycle cost, material flow analysis, multi-criteria decision analysis, emergy analysis, and hazard assessment which came to more comprehensive conclusions from different aspects. The research gaps and challenges including uneven distribution of life cycle assessment studies, life cycle impact assessment methods selection, comparison of the results, and uncertainty of the life cycle assessment studies were examined. Although life cycle assessment of electronic waste management facing challenges, their results will play more and more important role in electronic waste management practices.

Application of Life Cycle Assessment on Electronic Waste Management: A Review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xue, Mianqiang; Xu, Zhenming

2017-04-01

Electronic waste is a rich source of both valuable materials and toxic substances. Management of electronic waste is one of the biggest challenges of current worldwide concern. As an effective and prevailing environmental management tool, life cycle assessment can evaluate the environmental performance of electronic waste management activities. Quite a few scientific literatures reporting life cycle assessment of electronic waste management with significant outcomes have been recently published. This paper reviewed the trends, characteristics, research gaps, and challenges of these studies providing detailed information for practitioners involved in electronic waste management. The results showed that life cycle assessment studies were most carried out in Europe, followed by Asia and North America. The research subject of the studies mainly includes monitors, waste printed circuit boards, mobile phones, computers, printers, batteries, toys, dishwashers, and light-emitting diodes. CML was the most widely used life cycle impact assessment method in life cycle assessment studies on electronic waste management, followed by EI99. Furthermore, 40% of the reviewed studies combined with other environmental tools, including life cycle cost, material flow analysis, multi-criteria decision analysis, emergy analysis, and hazard assessment which came to more comprehensive conclusions from different aspects. The research gaps and challenges including uneven distribution of life cycle assessment studies, life cycle impact assessment methods selection, comparison of the results, and uncertainty of the life cycle assessment studies were examined. Although life cycle assessment of electronic waste management facing challenges, their results will play more and more important role in electronic waste management practices.

NREL: U.S. Life Cycle Inventory Database - User Poll

Science.gov Websites

User Poll In preparation for the 2009 U.S. Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) Data Stakeholder meeting, the interested in life cycle analysis. The results from that poll and information gathered from the stakeholders polling data and feedback from life cycle analysis supporters helped develop the U.S. Life Cycle Inventory

A role for plant microtubules in the formation of transmission-specific inclusion bodies of Cauliflower mosaic virus.

PubMed

Martinière, Alexandre; Gargani, Daniel; Uzest, Marilyne; Lautredou, Nicole; Blanc, Stéphane; Drucker, Martin

2009-04-01

Interactions between microtubules and viruses play important roles in viral infection. The best-characterized examples involve transport of animal viruses by microtubules to the nucleus or other intracellular destinations. In plant viruses, most work to date has focused on interaction between viral movement proteins and the cytoskeleton, which is thought to be involved in viral cell-to-cell spread. We show here, in Cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV)-infected plant cells, that viral electron-lucent inclusion bodies (ELIBs), whose only known function is vector transmission, require intact microtubules for their efficient formation. The kinetics of the formation of CaMV-related inclusion bodies in transfected protoplasts showed that ELIBs represent newly emerging structures, appearing at late stages of the intracellular viral life cycle. Viral proteins P2 and P3 are first produced in multiple electron-dense inclusion bodies, and are later specifically exported to transiently co-localize with microtubules, before concentrating in a single, massive ELIB in each infected cell. Treatments with cytoskeleton-affecting drugs suggested that P2 and P3 might be actively transported on microtubules, by as yet unknown motors. In addition to providing information on the intracellular life cycle of CaMV, our results show that specific interactions between host cell and virus may be dedicated to a later role in vector transmission. More generally, they indicate a new unexpected function for plant cell microtubules in the virus life cycle, demonstrating that microtubules act not only on immediate intracellular or intra-host phenomena, but also on processes ultimately controlling inter-host transmission. © 2009 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Life cycle replacement by gene introduction under an allee effect in periodical cicadas.

PubMed

Nariai, Yukiko; Hayashi, Saki; Morita, Satoru; Umemura, Yoshitaka; Tainaka, Kei-ichi; Sota, Teiji; Cooley, John R; Yoshimura, Jin

2011-04-06

Periodical cicadas (Magicicada spp.) in the USA are divided into three species groups (-decim, -cassini, -decula) of similar but distinct morphology and behavior. Each group contains at least one species with a 17-year life cycle and one with a 13-year cycle; each species is most closely related to one with the other cycle. One explanation for the apparent polyphyly of 13- and 17-year life cycles is that populations switch between the two cycles. Using a numerical model, we test the general feasibility of life cycle switching by the introduction of alleles for one cycle into populations of the other cycle. Our results suggest that fitness reductions at low population densities of mating individuals (the Allee effect) could play a role in life cycle switching. In our model, if the 13-year cycle is genetically dominant, a 17-year cycle population will switch to a 13-year cycle given the introduction of a few 13-year cycle alleles under a moderate Allee effect. We also show that under a weak Allee effect, different year-classes ("broods") with 17-year life cycles can be generated. Remarkably, the outcomes of our models depend only on the dominance relationships of the cycle alleles, irrespective of any fitness advantages.

Gene Expression of Pneumocystis murina after Treatment with Anidulafungin Results in Strong Signals for Sexual Reproduction, Cell Wall Integrity, and Cell Cycle Arrest, Indicating a Requirement for Ascus Formation for Proliferation.

PubMed

Cushion, Melanie T; Ashbaugh, Alan; Hendrix, Keeley; Linke, Michael J; Tisdale, Nikeya; Sayson, Steven G; Porollo, Aleksey

2018-05-01

The echinocandins are a class of antifungal agents that target β-1,3-d-glucan (BG) biosynthesis. In the ascigerous Pneumocystis species, treatment with these drugs depletes the ascus life cycle stage, which contains BG, but large numbers of forms which do not express BG remain in the infected lungs. In the present study, the gene expression profiles of Pneumocystis murina were compared between infected, untreated mice and mice treated with anidulafungin for 2 weeks to understand the metabolism of the persisting forms. Almost 80 genes were significantly up- or downregulated. Like other fungi exposed to echinocandins, genes associated with sexual replication, cell wall integrity, cell cycle arrest, and stress comprised the strongest upregulated signals in P. murina from the treated mice. The upregulation of the P. murina β-1,3-d-glucan endohydrolase and endo-1,3-glucanase was notable and may explain the disappearance of the existing asci in the lungs of treated mice since both enzymes can degrade BG. The biochemical measurement of BG in the lungs of treated mice and fluorescence microscopy with an anti-BG antibody supported the loss of BG. Downregulated signals included genes involved in cell replication, genome stability, and ribosomal biogenesis and function and the Pneumocystis -specific genes encoding the major surface glycoproteins (Msg). These studies suggest that P. murina attempted to undergo sexual replication in response to a stressed environment and was halted in any type of proliferative cycle, likely due to a lack of BG. Asci appear to be a required part of the life cycle stage of Pneumocystis , and BG may be needed to facilitate progression through the life cycle via sexual replication. Copyright © 2018 Cushion et al.

The feasibility study of small long-life gas cooled fast reactor with mixed natural Uranium/Thorium as fuel cycle input

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

Ariani, Menik; Su'ud, Zaki; Waris, Abdul

2012-06-06

A conceptual design study of Gas Cooled Fast Reactors with Modified CANDLE burn-up scheme has been performed. In this study, design GCFR with Helium coolant which can be continuously operated by supplying mixed Natural Uranium/Thorium without fuel enrichment plant or fuel reprocessing plant. The active reactor cores are divided into two region, Thorium fuel region and Uranium fuel region. Each fuel core regions are subdivided into ten parts (region-1 until region-10) with the same volume in the axial direction. The fresh Natural Uranium and Thorium is initially put in region-1, after one cycle of 10 years of burn-up it ismore » shifted to region-2 and the each region-1 is filled by fresh natural Uranium/Thorium fuel. This concept is basically applied to all regions in both cores area, i.e. shifted the core of i{sup th} region into i+1 region after the end of 10 years burn-up cycle. For the next cycles, we will add only Natural Uranium and Thorium on each region-1. The calculation results show the reactivity reached by mixed Natural Uranium/Thorium with volume ratio is 4.7:1. This reactor can results power thermal 550 MWth. After reactor start-up the operation, furthermore reactor only needs Natural Uranium/Thorium supply for continue operation along 100 years.« less

The influence of loading frequency on the high-temperature fatigue behavior of a Nicalon-fabric-reinforced polymer-derived ceramic-matrix composite

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

Vanswijgenhoven, E.; Holmes, J.; Wevers, M.

Fiber-reinforced ceramic-matrix composites are under development for high-temperature structural applications. These applications involve fatigue loading under a wide range of frequencies. To date, high-temperature fatigue experiments have typically been performed at loading frequencies of 10 Hz or lower. At higher frequencies, a strong effect of loading frequency on fatigue life has been demonstrated for certain CMC`s tested at room temperature. The fatigue life of CMC`s with weak fiber-matrix interfaces typically decreases as the loading frequency increases. This decrease is attributed to frictional heating and frequency dependent interface and fiber damage. More recently, it has been shown that the room temperaturemore » fatigue life of a Nicalon-fabric-reinforced composite with a strong interface (SYLRAMIC{trademark}) appears to be independent of loading frequency. The high-temperature low-frequency fatigue behavior of the SYLRAMIC composite has also been investigated. For a fatigue peak stress {sigma}{sub peak} above a proportional limit stress of 70 MPa, the number of cycles to failure N{sub f} decreased with an increase in {sigma}{sub peak}. The material endured more than 10{sup 6} cycles for {sigma}{sub peak} below 70 MPa. In this paper, the influence of loading frequency on the high-temperature fatigue behavior of the SYLRAMIC composite is reported. It will be shown that the fatigue limit is unaffected by the loading frequency, that the number of fatigue cycles to failure N{sub f} increases with an increase in frequency, and that the time to failure t{sub f} decreases with an increase in frequency.« less

Effect of KOH concentration on LEO cycle life of IPV nickel-hydrogen flight cells. An update

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smithrick, John J.; Hall, Stephen W.

1991-01-01

An update of validation test results confirming the breakthrough in LEO cycle life of nickel-hydrogen cells containing 26 percent potassium hydroxide (KOH) electrolyte is presented. A breakthrough in the LEO cycle life of individual pressure vessel nickel-hydrogen cells is reported. The cycle life of boiler plate cells containing 26 percent KOH electrolyte was about 40,000 LEO cycles compared to 3500 cycles for cells containing 31 percent KOH.

Effect of KOH concentration on LEO cycle life of IPV nickel-hydrogen flight cells - An update

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smithrick, John J.; Hall, Stephen W.

1991-01-01

An update of validation test results confirming the breakthrough in LEO cycle life of nickel-hydrogen cells containing 26 percent potassium hydroxide (KOH) electrolyte is presented. A breakthrough in the LEO cycle life of individual pressure vessel nickel-hydrogen cells is reported. The cycle life of boiler plate cells containing 26 percent KOH electrolyte was about 40,000 LEO cycles compared to 3500 cycles for cells containing 31 percent KOH.

A review on bovine besnoitiosis: a disease with economic impact in herd health management, caused by Besnoitia besnoiti (Franco and Borges, ).

PubMed

Cortes, Helder; Leitão, Alexandre; Gottstein, Bruno; Hemphill, Andrew

2014-09-01

Bovine besnoitiosis is caused by the largely unexplored apicomplexan parasite Besnoitia besnoiti. In cows, infection during pregnancy often results in abortion, and chronically infected bulls become infertile. Similar to other apicomplexans B. besnoiti has acquired a largely intracellular lifestyle, but its complete life cycle is still unknown, modes of transmission have not been entirely resolved and the definitive host has not been identified. Outbreaks of bovine besnoitiosis in cattle were described in the 1990s in Portugal and Spain, and later several cases were also detected in France. More cases have been reported recently in hitherto unaffected countries, including Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Hungary and Croatia. To date, there is still no effective pharmaceutical compound available for the treatment of besnoitiosis in cattle, and progress in the identification of novel targets for intervention through pharmacological or immunological means is hampered by the lack of molecular data on the genomic and transcriptomic level. In addition, the lack of an appropriate small animal laboratory model, and wide gaps in our knowledge on the host-parasite interplay during the life cycle of this parasite, renders vaccine and drug development a cost- and labour-intensive undertaking.

A Life-Cycle Cost Estimating Methodology for NASA-Developed Air Traffic Control Decision Support Tools

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wang, Jianzhong Jay; Datta, Koushik; Landis, Michael R. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

This paper describes the development of a life-cycle cost (LCC) estimating methodology for air traffic control Decision Support Tools (DSTs) under development by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), using a combination of parametric, analogy, and expert opinion methods. There is no one standard methodology and technique that is used by NASA or by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for LCC estimation of prospective Decision Support Tools. Some of the frequently used methodologies include bottom-up, analogy, top-down, parametric, expert judgement, and Parkinson's Law. The developed LCC estimating methodology can be visualized as a three-dimensional matrix where the three axes represent coverage, estimation, and timing. This paper focuses on the three characteristics of this methodology that correspond to the three axes.

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

Polat, B. D.; Eryilmaz, O. L.; Keles, O

Compositionally graded and non-graded composite SiCu thin films were deposited by magnetron sputtering technique on Cu disks for investigation of their potentials in lithium ion battery applications. The compositionally graded thin film electrodes with 30 at.% Cu delivered a 1400 mAh g-1 capacity with 80% Coulombic efficiency in the first cycle and still retained its capacity at around 600 mAh g-1 (with 99.9% Coulombic efficiency) even after 100 cycles. On the other hand, the non-graded thin film electrodes with 30 at.% Cu exhibited 1100 mAh g-1 as the first discharge capacity with 78% Coulombic efficiency but the cycle life ofmore » this film degraded very quickly, delivering only 250 mAh g-1 capacity after 100th cycles. Not only the Cu content but also the graded film thickness were believed to be the main contributors to the much superior performance of the compositionally graded SiCu films. We also believe that the Cu-rich region of the graded film helped reduce internal stress build-up and thus prevented film delamination during cycling. In particular, the decrease of Cu content from interface region to the top of the coating reduced the possibility of stress build-up across the film during cycling, thus leading to a high electrochemical performance.« less

Life cycle assessment to compare the environmental impact of seven contemporary food waste management systems.

PubMed

Edwards, Joel; Othman, Maazuza; Crossin, Enda; Burn, Stewart

2018-01-01

Municipal food waste (FW) represents 35-45% of household residual waste in Australia, with the nation generating 1.6Tg annually. It is estimated that 91% of this FW ends up in landfill. This study used life cycle assessment to determine and compare the environmental impact of seven contemporary FW management systems for two real-life jurisdictions; incorporating the complete waste service and expanding the system to include inert and garden waste. Although, no system exhibited a best ranking across all impact categories, FW digestion based systems were all revealed to have a lower global warming potential than composting and landfilling systems. Mechanical biological treatment, anaerobic co-digestion, and home composting all demonstrated the lowest environmental impacts for two or more of the environmental impact categories assessed. The assessment included market and technological specific variables and uncertainties providing a framework for robust decision making at a municipality level. Crown Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Optimizing product life cycle processes in design phase

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Faneye, Ola. B.; Anderl, Reiner

2002-02-01

Life cycle concepts do not only serve as basis in assisting product developers understand the dependencies between products and their life cycles, they also help in identifying potential opportunities for improvement in products. Common traditional concepts focus mainly on energy and material flow across life phases, necessitating the availability of metrics derived from a reference product. Knowledge of life cycle processes won from an existing product is directly reused in its redesign. Depending on sales volume nevertheless, the environmental impact before product optimization can be substantial. With modern information technologies today, computer-aided life cycle methodologies can be applied well before product use. On the basis of a virtual prototype, life cycle processes are analyzed and optimized, using simulation techniques. This preventive approach does not only help in minimizing (or even eliminating) environmental burdens caused by product, costs incurred due to changes in real product can also be avoided. The paper highlights the relationship between product and life cycle and presents a computer-based methodology for optimizing the product life cycle during design, as presented by SFB 392: Design for Environment - Methods and Tools at Technical University, Darmstadt.

Modular life cycle assessment of municipal solid waste management.

PubMed

Haupt, M; Kägi, T; Hellweg, S

2018-05-31

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is commonly applied to examine the environmental performance of waste management systems. The system boundaries are, however, often limited to either one tonne of material or to specific waste treatments and are, therefore, lacking a systems perspective. Here, a framework is proposed to assess complete waste management systems based on actual waste flows, assessed with a detailed material flow analysis (MFA) in a modular MFA/LCA approach. The transformation of the MFA into a product-process-matrix facilitates a direct link between MFA and LCA, therefore allowing for the assessment of variations in flows. To allow for an up-to-date and geographically specific assessment, 190 LCA modules were set up based on primary industrial data and the ecoinvent database. The LCA modules show where there have been improvements in different recycling processes over the past years (e.g. for paper recycling) and highlight that, from an environmental perspective, closed-loop recycling is not always preferable to open-loop recycling. In a case study, the Swiss municipal solid waste management system, of which there is already a detailed MFA, was modeled using the new LCA modules and applying the modular MFA/LCA approach. Five different mass flow distribution scenarios for the Swiss municipal solid waste management system were assessed to show the environmental impact of political measures and to test the sensitivity of the results to key parameters. The results of the case study highlight the importance of the dominant fractions in the overall environmental impacts assessment; while the metal fraction has the highest impact on a per kilogram basis, paper, cardboard, glass and mixed municipal solid waste were found to dominate the environmental impacts of the Swiss waste management system due to their mass. The scenarios also highlight the importance of the energy efficiency of municipal solid waste incineration plants and the credits from material substitution as key variables. In countries with advanced waste management systems such as Switzerland, there is limited improvement potential with further increases in recycling rates. In these cases, the focus of political measures should be laid on (i) the utilization of secondary materials in applications where they replace high-impact primary production, and (ii) an increased recovery of energy in waste-to-energy plants. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Autonomy and integration in complex parasite life cycles.

PubMed

Benesh, Daniel P

2016-12-01

Complex life cycles are common in free-living and parasitic organisms alike. The adaptive decoupling hypothesis postulates that separate life cycle stages have a degree of developmental and genetic autonomy, allowing them to be independently optimized for dissimilar, competing tasks. That is, complex life cycles evolved to facilitate functional specialization. Here, I review the connections between the different stages in parasite life cycles. I first examine evolutionary connections between life stages, such as the genetic coupling of parasite performance in consecutive hosts, the interspecific correlations between traits expressed in different hosts, and the developmental and functional obstacles to stage loss. Then, I evaluate how environmental factors link life stages through carryover effects, where stressful larval conditions impact parasites even after transmission to a new host. There is evidence for both autonomy and integration across stages, so the relevant question becomes how integrated are parasite life cycles and through what mechanisms? By highlighting how genetics, development, selection and the environment can lead to interdependencies among successive life stages, I wish to promote a holistic approach to studying complex life cycle parasites and emphasize that what happens in one stage is potentially highly relevant for later stages.

[Handling of automated external defibrillator (AED)].

PubMed

Iwai, Kazuhiko

2011-04-01

It is medical equipment in "Advanced managed care equipment and specific maintenance medical equipment" for around and the life support though is thought that AED operates if it always turns on power like the television not used by the sense like home appliance as a result of spreading in general widely. It is management that it is important to always check the expiration date etc. of the indicator and the articles of consumption of AED to use it at any time when AED is set up, and requested by those who set it up.

Up-to-date approach to manage keloids and hypertrophic scars: A useful guide

PubMed Central

Arno, Anna I.; Gauglitz, Gerd G.; Barret, Juan P.; Jeschke, Marc G.

2014-01-01

Keloids and hypertrophic scars occur anywhere from 30 to 90% of patients, and are characterized by pathologically excessive dermal fibrosis and aberrant wound healing. Both entities have different clinical and histochemical characteristics, and unfortunately still represent a great challenge for clinicians due to lack of efficacious treatments. Current advances in molecular biology and genetics reveal new preventive and therapeutical options which represent a hope to manage this highly prevalent, chronic and disabling problem, with long-term beneficial outcomes and improvement of quality of life. While we wait for these translational clinical products to be marketed, however, it is imperative to know the basics of the currently existing wide array of strategies to deal with excessive scars: from the classical corticotherapy, to the most recent botulinum toxin and lasers. The main aim of this review paper is to offer a useful up-to-date guideline to prevent and treat keloids and hypertrophic scars. PMID:24767715

Cell Signalling Through Covalent Modification and Allostery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, Louise N.

Phosphorylation plays essential roles in nearly every aspect of cell life. Protein kinases catalyze the transfer of the γ-phosphate of ATP to a serine, threonine or tyrosine residue in protein substrates. This covalent modification allows activation or inhibition of enzyme activity, creates recognition sites for other proteins and promotes order/disorder or disorder/order transitions. These properties regulate ­signalling pathways and cellular processes that mediate metabolism, transcription, cell cycle progression, differentiation, cytoskeleton arrangement and cell movement, apoptosis, intercellular communication, and neuronal and immunological functions. In this lecture I shall review the structural consequences of protein phosphorylation using our work on glycogen phosphorylase and the cell cycle cyclin dependent protein kinases as illustrations. Regulation of protein phosphorylation may be disrupted in the diseased state and protein kinases have become high profile targets for drug development. To date there are 11 compounds that have been approved for clinical use in the treatment of cancer.

Advanced Trauma Life Support®. ABCDE from a radiological point of view

PubMed Central

Blickman, Johan G.

2007-01-01

Accidents are the primary cause of death in patients aged 45 years or younger. In many countries, Advanced Trauma Life Support® (ATLS®) is the foundation on which trauma care is based. We will summarize the principles and the radiological aspects of the ATLS®, and we will discuss discrepancies with day to day practice and the radiological literature. Because the ATLS® is neither thorough nor up-to-date concerning several parts of radiology in trauma, it should not be adopted without serious attention to defining the indications and limitations pertaining to diagnostic imaging. PMID:17564732

Methane Leakage from Natural Gas Systems: Comparisons, Communication, and Policy Relevance (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weber, C.; Clavin, C.; Mueller, K. L.

2013-12-01

Increases in domestic natural gas production from shale gas and tight oil resources have ignited a scientific and policy debate about the climate implications of increasing levels of natural gas utilization on a national and global scale. The debate has primarily centered on characterizing the life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions associated with natural gas electricity generation or transportation. As such, there has been significant recent attention to estimating upstream methane and CO2 emissions from natural gas production, processing, transmission, and distribution using either bottom-up inventory or top-down atmospheric methods ranging from regional to global scales. Due to the general scarcity of measured data, the highly variable production practices of the oil & gas industry, and the different geological conditions under which the industry operates, determining methane emissions (sometimes calculated as a 'leakage rate') and overall climate impact over a policy-relevant spatial and temporal scale has been highly challenging. This unsettled state of the science exists as energy and climate policy decisions are being made in tandem with scientific knowledge generation, while at the same time production practices continue to change in a quickly innovating industry. This research critically reviews the work to date on quantifying methane leakage and life-cycle greenhouse gas implications of unconventional onshore oil & gas compared to other fuels such as coal. We take the perspective of a national-level U.S. decision-maker and ask how different methods (inventories, device-level measurements, regional and national inversions) can contribute to the information needed to make informed energy and climate policy decision regarding unconventional resources. Different methods have different strengths, weaknesses, and uncertainties, and such differences must be accounted for properly to ensure usefulness. We find that most work to date has suffered from one or more of several flaws that decrease the policy applicability of scientific results. These include inconsistent metric definitions (particularly related to the 'methane leakage' metric), inconsistent comparisons between studies with different scopes and temporal and spatial boundaries, and a failure to properly distinguish between emissions associated with oil, gas, and other co-products. We conclude that in order for policy decisions to be made in the needed timeframe given the current speed of development, scientists from different communities must work together to develop common strategies for communicating results and interpreting differences between highly different methods. This represents a significant challenge but one that is imperative for atmospheric scientists, engineers, and policy analysts to jointly solve in order to better inform national energy policy needs.

10 CFR 436.42 - Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost Effectiveness.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost Effectiveness. 436.42... PROGRAMS Agency Procurement of Energy Efficient Products § 436.42 Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost...) ENERGY STAR qualified and FEMP designated products may be assumed to be life-cycle cost-effective. (b) In...

10 CFR 436.42 - Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost Effectiveness.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost Effectiveness. 436.42... PROGRAMS Agency Procurement of Energy Efficient Products § 436.42 Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost...) ENERGY STAR qualified and FEMP designated products may be assumed to be life-cycle cost-effective. (b) In...

10 CFR 436.42 - Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost Effectiveness.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost Effectiveness. 436.42... PROGRAMS Agency Procurement of Energy Efficient Products § 436.42 Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost...) ENERGY STAR qualified and FEMP designated products may be assumed to be life-cycle cost-effective. (b) In...

DEVELOPMENT OF THE METHOD AND U.S. NORMALIZATION DATABASE FOR LIFE CYCLE IMPACT ASSESSMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY METRICS

EPA Science Inventory

Normalization is an optional step within Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) that may be used to assist in the interpretation of life cycle inventory data as well as, life cycle impact assessment results. Normalization transforms the magnitude of LCI and LCIA results into relati...

10 CFR 436.42 - Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost Effectiveness.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost Effectiveness. 436.42... PROGRAMS Agency Procurement of Energy Efficient Products § 436.42 Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost...) ENERGY STAR qualified and FEMP designated products may be assumed to be life-cycle cost-effective. (b) In...

Comparative life cycle assessment of standard and green roofs.

PubMed

Saiz, Susana; Kennedy, Christopher; Bass, Brad; Pressnail, Kim

2006-07-01

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is used to evaluate the benefits, primarily from reduced energy consumption, resulting from the addition of a green roof to an eight story residential building in Madrid. Building energy use is simulated and a bottom-up LCA is conducted assuming a 50 year building life. The key property of a green roof is its low solar absorptance, which causes lower surface temperature, thereby reducing the heat flux through the roof. Savings in annual energy use are just over 1%, but summer cooling load is reduced by over 6% and reductions in peak hour cooling load in the upper floors reach 25%. By replacing the common flat roof with a green roof, environmental impacts are reduced by between 1.0 and 5.3%. Similar reductions might be achieved by using a white roof with additional insulation for winter, but more substantial reductions are achieved if common use of green roofs leads to reductions in the urban heat island.

Development of a nickel/metal hydride battery (Ni/MH) system for EV application

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

Ikoma, M.; Hamada, S.; Morishita, N.

1994-12-31

In order to satisfy basic battery characteristics for electric vehicles (EV) such as specific energy, specific power and cycle life that are required for driving on urban streets, the authors have selected the valve-regulated lead acid battery as a conventional battery and the nickel/metal-hydride battery as an advanced battery, and have been studying their development in order to put them into practical use by 1998. Regarding the nickel/metal-hydride battery, excellent nickel positive electrode with high temperature charge efficiency accomplished with additives such as Ca compounds, and an exceedingly good hydrogen absorbing alloy negative electrode with high capacity and long cyclemore » life, achieved by adjustment of alloy composition, surface treatment, and control of binder and conductive additive have been developed to overcome difficulties in the scale-up of battery size. Modular batteries using this technology possess specific energy twice (70 Wh/kg) that of the lead-acid battery, and have superior specific power (160 Wh/kg) and cycle life. 5 refs.« less

Efficacy and safety of rolapitant for prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting over multiple cycles of moderately or highly emetogenic chemotherapy.

PubMed

Rapoport, Bernardo; Schwartzberg, Lee; Chasen, Martin; Powers, Dan; Arora, Sujata; Navari, Rudolph; Schnadig, Ian

2016-04-01

Rolapitant, a novel neurokinin-1 receptor antagonist (RA), was shown to protect against delayed chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) during the first cycle of moderately emetogenic chemotherapy (MEC) or highly emetogenic chemotherapy (HEC) in randomized, double-blind trials. This analysis explored the efficacy and safety of rolapitant in preventing CINV over multiple cycles of MEC or HEC. Patients in one phase III MEC, one phase II HEC, and two phase III HEC clinical trials were randomized to receive oral rolapitant (180 mg) or placebo in combination with a 5-hydroxytryptamine type 3 RA and dexamethasone. Regardless of response in cycle 1, patients could continue the same antiemetic treatment for up to six cycles. On days 6-8 of each subsequent chemotherapy cycle, patients reported the incidence of emesis and/or nausea interfering with normal daily life. Post hoc analyses of pooled safety and efficacy data from the four trials were performed for cycles 2-6. Significantly more patients receiving rolapitant than control reported no emesis or interfering nausea (combined measure) in cycles 2 (p = 0.006), 3 (p < 0.001), 4 (p = 0.001), and 5 (p = 0.021). Over cycles 1-6, time-to-first emesis was significantly longer with rolapitant than with control (p < 0.001). The incidence of treatment-related adverse events during cycles 2-6 was similar in rolapitant (5.5%) and control (6.8%) arms. No cumulative toxicity was observed. Over multiple cycles of MEC or HEC, rolapitant provided superior CINV protection and reduced emesis and nausea interfering with daily life compared with control and remained well tolerated. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

10 CFR 436.19 - Life cycle costs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Life cycle costs. 436.19 Section 436.19 Energy DEPARTMENT... Procedures for Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.19 Life cycle costs. Life cycle costs are the sum of the... (d) Energy and/or water costs. [55 FR 48220, Nov. 20, 1990, as amended at 61 FR 32651, June 25, 1996] ...

10 CFR 436.19 - Life cycle costs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Life cycle costs. 436.19 Section 436.19 Energy DEPARTMENT... Procedures for Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.19 Life cycle costs. Life cycle costs are the sum of the... (d) Energy and/or water costs. [55 FR 48220, Nov. 20, 1990, as amended at 61 FR 32651, June 25, 1996] ...

10 CFR 436.19 - Life cycle costs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Life cycle costs. 436.19 Section 436.19 Energy DEPARTMENT... Procedures for Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.19 Life cycle costs. Life cycle costs are the sum of the... (d) Energy and/or water costs. [55 FR 48220, Nov. 20, 1990, as amended at 61 FR 32651, June 25, 1996] ...

Creep-Fatigue Behavior of Alloy 617 at 850°C

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

Carroll, Laura

Creep-fatigue deformation is expected to be a significant contributor to the potential factors that limit the useful life of the Intermediate Heat Exchanger (IHX) in the Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) nuclear system.[1] The IHX of a high temperature gas reactor will be subjected to a limited number of transient cycles due to start-up and shut-down operations imparting high local stresses on the component. This cycling introduces a creep-fatigue type of interaction as dwell times occur intermittently. The leading candidate alloy for the IHX is a nickel-base solid solution strengthened alloy, Alloy 617, which must safely operate near the expectedmore » reactor outlet temperature of up to 950 °C.[1] This solid solution strengthened nickel-base alloy provides an interesting creep-fatigue deformation case study because it has characteristics of two different alloy systems for which the cyclic behavior has been extensively investigated. Compositionally, it resembles nickel-base superalloys, such as Waspalloy, IN100, and IN718, with the exception of its lower levels of Al. At temperatures above 800 °C, the microstructure of Alloy 617, however, does not contain the ordered ?’ or ?’’ phases. Thus microstructurally, it is more similar to an austenitic stainless steel, such as 316 or 304, or Alloy 800H comprised of a predominantly solid solution strengthened matrix phase with a dispersion of inter- and intragranular carbides. Previous studies of the creep-fatigue behavior of Alloy 617 at 950 °C indicate that the fatigue life is reduced when a constant strain dwell is added at peak tensile strain.[2-5] This results from the combination of faster crack initiation occurring at surface-connected grain boundaries due to oxidation from the air environment along with faster, and intergranular, crack propagation resulting from the linking of extensive interior grain boundary cracking.[3] Saturation, defined as the point at which further increases in the strain-controlled hold time duration no longer decreases the cycle life, has been observed for Alloy 617 at 950 °C at least to the investigated hold times[2,3], as illustrated through a plot of cycles to failure v. hold time in Figure 1. The 950 °C creep-fatigue data set generated by Totemeier and Tian[5] at the 0.3% and 1.0% strain range is consistent in magnitude in terms of the cycles to failure data of that of Carroll et al., however, 0.3% strain range data did not exhibit saturation at hold times of up to 10 min. At 1.0% total strain, saturation in the number of cycles to failure was observed within the investigated peak tensile hold times of up to 10 min[5]. The data of Carroll et al.[2,3] in Figure 1 and Totemeier and Tian[5] is also consistent in magnitude with the data of Rao and coworkers[4] investigated at the 0.6% strain range. It should be noted that saturation in the number of cycles to failure is not present in the data published by Rao and coworkers[4] for tensile hold times of up to 120 min. The latter testing was in a simulated primary-circuit helium gas as opposed to air and a single data point is reported for the longer hold time conditions.« less

Improving greater trochanteric reattachment with a novel cable plate system.

PubMed

Baril, Yannick; Bourgeois, Yan; Brailovski, Vladimir; Duke, Kajsa; Laflamme, G Yves; Petit, Yvan

2013-03-01

Cable-grip systems are commonly used for greater trochanteric reattachment because they have provided the best fixation performance to date, even though they have a rather high complication rate. A novel reattachment system is proposed with the aim of improving fixation stability. It consists of a Y-shaped fixation plate combined with locking screws and superelastic cables to reduce cable loosening and limit greater trochanter movement. The novel system is compared with a commercially available reattachment system in terms of greater trochanter movement and cable tensions under different greater trochanteric abductor application angles. A factorial design of experiments was used including four independent variables: plate system, cable type, abductor application angle, and femur model. The test procedure included 50 cycles of simultaneous application of an abductor force on the greater trochanter and a hip force on the femoral head. The novel plate reduces the movements of a greater trochanter fragment within a single loading cycle up to 26%. Permanent degradation of the fixation (accumulated movement based on 50-cycle testing) is reduced up to 46%. The use of superelastic cables reduces tension loosening up to 24%. However this last improvement did not result in a significant reduction of the grater trochanter movement. The novel plate and cables present advantages over the commercially available greater trochanter reattachment system. The plate reduces movements generated by the hip abductor. The superelastic cables reduce cable loosening during cycling. Both of these positive effects could decrease the risks related to grater trochanter non-union. Copyright © 2012 IPEM. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Health-related quality of life of adjuvant chemotherapy with S-1 versus gemcitabine for resected pancreatic cancer: Results from a randomised phase III trial (JASPAC 01).

PubMed

Hagiwara, Yasuhiro; Ohashi, Yasuo; Uesaka, Katsuhiko; Boku, Narikazu; Fukutomi, Akira; Okamura, Yukiyasu; Konishi, Masaru; Matsumoto, Ippei; Kaneoka, Yuji; Shimizu, Yasuhiro; Nakamori, Shoji; Sakamoto, Hirohiko; Morinaga, Soichiro; Kainuma, Osamu; Imai, Koji; Sata, Naohiro; Hishinuma, Shoichi; Ojima, Hitoshi; Yamaguchi, Ryuzo; Hirano, Satoshi; Sudo, Takeshi

2018-04-01

Adjuvant chemotherapy with S-1 for resected pancreatic cancer demonstrated survival benefits compared with gemcitabine in the JASPAC 01 trial. We investigated the effect of these agents on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of patients in the JASPAC 01 trial. Patients with resected pancreatic cancer were randomly assigned to receive gemcitabine (1000 mg/m 2 weekly for three of four weeks for up to six cycles) or S-1 (40, 50, or 60 mg twice daily for four of six weeks for up to four cycles). HRQOL was assessed using the EuroQol-5D-3L (EQ-5D) questionnaire at baseline, months three and six, and every 6 months thereafter. HRQOL end-points included change in EQ-5D index from baseline, responses to five items in the EQ-5D, and quality-adjusted life months up to 24 months. Of randomised 385 patients, 354 patients were included in HRQOL analysis. Mean change in the EQ-5D index was similar in the S-1 and gemcitabine groups within 6 months from treatment initiation (difference, 0.024; P = 0.112), whereas corresponding mean from 12 to 24 months was better in the S-1 group than in the gemcitabine group (difference, 0.071; P < 0.001). Problems in mobility and pain/discomfort were also less frequent in the S-1 group than in the gemcitabine group in that period. Quality-adjusted life months were longer in the S-1 group than in the gemcitabine group (P < 0.001). Adjuvant chemotherapy with S-1 does not improve HRQOL within 6 months from treatment initiation but does improve HRQOL thereafter and quality-adjusted life months. UMIN000000655 at UMIN CTR. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sn4+x P3 @ amorphous Sn-P composites as anodes for sodium-ion batteries with low cost, high capacity, long life, and superior rate capability.

PubMed

Li, Weijie; Chou, Shu-Lei; Wang, Jia-Zhao; Kim, Jung Ho; Liu, Hua-Kun; Dou, Shi-Xue

2014-06-25

Sn4+x P3 @ amorphous Sn-P composites are a promising cheap anode material for sodium-ion batteries with high capacity (502 mA h g(-1) at a current density of 100 mA g(-1)), long cycling stability (92.6% capacity retention up to 100 cycles), and high rate capability (165 mA h g(-1) at the 10C rate). © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Provider-Payer Partnerships as an Engine for Continuous Quality Improvement.

PubMed

Balfour, Margaret E; Zinn, Tylar E; Cason, Karena; Fox, Jerimya; Morales, Myra; Berdeja, Cesar; Gray, Jay

2018-06-01

The authors describe a quality improvement approach in which a crisis center and a payer collaborate to improve care. Each crisis visit is considered as a potentially missed opportunity for community stabilization. Daily data on crisis visits are sent to the payer for a more up-to-date analysis of trends than is possible with financial claims data, which may lag behind services provided by up to 90 days. Using these trend data, the two organizations collaborate to identify patterns that lead to opportunities for improvement and develop multiple rapid-cycle projects for better management of services, resulting in significant decreases in readmissions and in the number of high utilizers.

Peer mentoring for eating disorders: evaluation of a pilot program.

PubMed

Beveridge, Jennifer; Phillipou, Andrea; Edwards, Kelly; Hobday, Alice; Hilton, Krissy; Wyett, Cathy; Saw, Anna; Graham, Georgia; Castle, David; Brennan, Leah; Harrison, Philippa; de Gier, Rebecca; Warren, Narelle; Hanly, Freya; Torrens-Witherow, Benjamin; Newton, J Richard

2018-01-01

Eating disorders are serious psychiatric illnesses that are often associated with poor quality of life and low long-term recovery rates. Peer mentor programs have been found to improve psychiatric symptoms and quality of life in other mental illnesses, and a small number of studies have suggested that eating disorder patients may benefit from such programs. The aim of this study is to assess the efficacy of a peer mentor program for individuals with eating disorders in terms of improving symptomatology and quality of life. Up to 30 individuals with a past history of an eating disorder will be recruited to mentor 30 individuals with a current eating disorder. Mentoring will involve 13 sessions (held approximately every 2 weeks), of up to 3 h each, over 6 months. This pilot proof-of-concept feasibility study will inform the efficacy of a peer mentoring program on improving eating disorder symptomatology and quality of life, and will inform future randomised controlled trials. Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registration Number: ACTRN12617001412325. The date of registration (retrospective): 05/10/2017.

Shortening tobacco life cycle accelerates functional gene identification in genomic research.

PubMed

Ning, G; Xiao, X; Lv, H; Li, X; Zuo, Y; Bao, M

2012-11-01

Definitive allocation of function requires the introduction of genetic mutations and analysis of their phenotypic consequences. Novel, rapid and convenient techniques or materials are very important and useful to accelerate gene identification in functional genomics research. Here, over-expression of PmFT (Prunus mume), a novel FT orthologue, and PtFT (Populus tremula) lead to shortening of the tobacco life cycle. A series of novel short life cycle stable tobacco lines (30-50 days) were developed through repeated self-crossing selection breeding. Based on the second transformation via a gusA reporter gene, the promoter from BpFULL1 in silver birch (Betula pendula) and the gene (CPC) from Arabidopsis thaliana were effectively tested using short life cycle tobacco lines. Comparative analysis among wild type, short life cycle tobacco and Arabidopsis transformation system verified that it is optional to accelerate functional gene studies by shortening host plant material life cycle, at least in these short life cycle tobacco lines. The results verified that the novel short life cycle transgenic tobacco lines not only combine the advantages of economic nursery requirements and a simple transformation system, but also provide a robust, effective and stable host system to accelerate gene analysis. Thus, shortening tobacco life cycle strategy is feasible to accelerate heterologous or homologous functional gene identification in genomic research. © 2012 German Botanical Society and The Royal Botanical Society of the Netherlands.

Randomized study of sequential cisplatin-topotecan/carboplatin-paclitaxel versus carboplatin-paclitaxel: effects on quality of life.

PubMed

Brotto, Lori; Brundage, Michael; Hoskins, Paul; Vergote, Ignace; Cervantes, Andres; Casado, Herraez A; Poveda, A; Eisenhauer, Elizabeth; Tu, Dongsheng

2016-03-01

A recent phase III trial compared the efficacy of cisplatin-topotecan (a topoisomerase I inhibitor) followed by carboplatin-paclitaxel (Arm 1) versus paclitaxel-carboplatin (Arm 2) in women with newly diagnosed stage IIB or greater ovarian cancer. There was a significantly lower response rate in the experimental arm compared to standard treatment, and less likelihood of normalized CA125 within the first 3 months. At 43 months follow-up, there were no significant group differences in progression-free survival. There were also significantly more side effects in the experimental arm. The current study examined quality of life (QoL) endpoints using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire C30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) and the ovarian cancer module, QLQ-OV28, administered prior to randomization, at day 1 of treatment cycles 3, 5, and 7, at completion of the last cycle, and at 3 and 6 months following completion of chemotherapy. Global QoL, physical symptoms, fatigue, and role, emotional, cognitive and social function (all from the EORTC QLQ-C30) significantly improved in both treatment arms, with no significant between-arm differences. Between-group differences in pain, insomnia, and peripheral neuropathy reported while on treatment did not differ at follow-up. Nausea and vomiting improved more with standard treatment both during and after treatment. Body image significantly differed between the groups only at cycle 5 (more deterioration in Arm 2) but group differences disappeared at follow-up. A stratified analysis of global QoL by debulking surgery status found no greater effect indicating that overall improvements in QoL were unrelated to surgical recovery. There was no significant QoL advantage of cisplatin-topotecan. This finding, combined with no progression-free survival conferred by this combination, reaffirms carboplatin-paclitaxel as the standard of care for women with newly diagnosed ovarian cancer.

Performance of lightweight nickel electrodes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Britton, Doris L.

1988-01-01

The NASA Lewis Research Center is currently developing nickel electrodes for nickel-hydrogen (Ni-H2) batteries. These electrodes are lighter in weight and have higher energy densities than the heavier state-of-the-art (SOA) sintered nickel electrodes. In the present approach, lightweight materials or plaques are used as conductive supports for the nickel hydroxide active material. These plaques (fiber and felt, nickel plated plastic and graphite) are commercial products that are fabricated into nickel electrodes by electrochemically impregnating them with active material. Evaluation is performed in half cells structured in the bipolar configuration. Initial performance tests include capacity measurements at five discharge levels, C/2, 1.0C 1.37C, 2.0C and 2.74C. The electrodes that pass the initial tests are life cycle tested in a low Earth orbit regime at 80 percent depth of discharge. Different formulations of nickel fiber materials obtained from several manufacturers are currently being tested as possible candidates for nickel electrodes. One particular lightweight fiber mat electrode has accumulated over 3000 cycles to date, with stable capacity and voltage. Life and performance data of this electrode were investigated and presented. Good dimensional stability and active material adherence have been demonstrated in electrodes made from this lightweight plaque.

The circle of life: A cross-cultural comparison of children's attribution of life-cycle traits.

PubMed

Burdett, Emily R R; Barrett, Justin L

2016-06-01

Do children attribute mortality and other life-cycle traits to all minded beings? The present study examined whether culture influences young children's ability to conceptualize and differentiate human beings from supernatural beings (such as God) in terms of life-cycle traits. Three-to-5-year-old Israeli and British children were questioned whether their mother, a friend, and God would be subject to various life-cycle processes: Birth, death, ageing, existence/longevity, and parentage. Children did not anthropomorphize but differentiated among human and supernatural beings, attributing life-cycle traits to humans, but not to God. Although 3-year-olds differentiated significantly among agents, 5-year-olds attributed correct life-cycle traits more consistently than younger children. The results also indicated some cross-cultural variation in these attributions. Implications for biological conceptual development are discussed. © 2015 The British Psychological Society.

Monitoring Start of Season in Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Robin, J.; Dubayah, R.; Sparrow, E.; Levine, E.

2006-12-01

In biomes that have distinct winter seasons, start of spring phenological events, specifically timing of budburst and green-up of leaves, coincides with transpiration. Seasons leave annual signatures that reflect the dynamic nature of the hydrologic cycle and link the different spheres of the Earth system. This paper evaluates whether continuity between AVHRR and MODIS normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) is achievable for monitoring land surface phenology, specifically start of season (SOS), in Alaska. Additionally, two thresholds, one based on NDVI and the other on accumulated growing degree-days (GDD), are compared to determine which most accurately predicts SOS for Fairbanks. Ratio of maximum greenness at SOS was computed from biweekly AVHRR and MODIS composites for 2001 through 2004 for Anchorage and Fairbanks regions. SOS dates were determined from annual green-up observations made by GLOBE students. Results showed that different processing as well as spectral characteristics of each sensor restrict continuity between the two datasets. MODIS values were consistently higher and had less inter-annual variability during the height of the growing season than corresponding AVHRR values. Furthermore, a threshold of 131-175 accumulated GDD was a better predictor of SOS for Fairbanks than a NDVI threshold applied to AVHRR and MODIS datasets. The NDVI threshold was developed from biweekly AVHRR composites from 1982 through 2004 and corresponding annual green-up observations at University of Alaska-Fairbanks (UAF). The GDD threshold was developed from 20+ years of historic daily mean air temperature data and the same green-up observations. SOS dates computed with the GDD threshold most closely resembled actual green-up dates observed by GLOBE students and UAF researchers. Overall, biweekly composites and effects of clouds, snow, and conifers limit the ability of NDVI to monitor phenological changes in Alaska.

NREL, Johns Hopkins SAIS Develop Method to Quantify Life Cycle Land Use of

Science.gov Websites

Life Cycle Land Use of Electricity from Natural Gas News Release: NREL, Johns Hopkins SAIS Develop Method to Quantify Life Cycle Land Use of Electricity from Natural Gas October 2, 2017 A case study of time provides quantifiable information on the life cycle land use of generating electricity from

Alternative Fuels Data Center: Benefits and Considerations of Electricity

Science.gov Websites

tailpipe emissions when in all-electric mode. The life cycle emissions of an EV or PHEV depend on the low-polluting energy sources for electricity production, plug-in vehicles typically have a life cycle strong life cycle emissions benefit. Use the Vehicle Cost Calculator to compare life cycle emissions of

The black soldier-fly, Hermetia illucens (Diptera, Stratiomyidae), used to estimate the postmortem interval in a case in Amapá State, Brazil.

PubMed

Pujol-Luz, José R; Francez, Pablo Abdon da Costa; Ururahy-Rodrigues, Alexandre; Constantino, Reginaldo

2008-03-01

The black soldier-fly (Hermetia illucens) is a generalist detritivore which is commonly present in corpses in later stages of decomposition and may be useful in forensic entomology. This paper describes the estimation of the postmortem interval (PMI) based on the life cycle of the black soldier-fly in a case in northern Brazil. A male child was abducted from his home and 42 days later his corpse was found in an advanced stage of decay. Two black soldier-fly larvae were found associated with the body. The larvae emerged as adults after 25-26 days. Considering the development cycle of H. illucens, the date of oviposition was estimated as 24-25 days after abduction. Since H. illucens usually (but not always) colonizes corpses in more advanced stages of decay, this estimate is consistent with the hypothesis that the child was killed immediately after abduction.

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT TAXONOMY PROVIDING COMPREHENSIVE COVERAGE OF MIDPOINTS, ENDPOINTS, DAMAGES, AND AREAS OF PROTECTION

EPA Science Inventory

Prior to conducting a comprehensive impact assessment, such as a Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA), there is a need to discuss the range of impacts which could and should be included. Up to this point in time, there has not been available a comprehensive list of impacts for po...

Understanding future emissions from low-carbon power systems by integration of life-cycle assessment and integrated energy modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pehl, Michaja; Arvesen, Anders; Humpenöder, Florian; Popp, Alexander; Hertwich, Edgar G.; Luderer, Gunnar

2017-12-01

Both fossil-fuel and non-fossil-fuel power technologies induce life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions, mainly due to their embodied energy requirements for construction and operation, and upstream CH4 emissions. Here, we integrate prospective life-cycle assessment with global integrated energy-economy-land-use-climate modelling to explore life-cycle emissions of future low-carbon power supply systems and implications for technology choice. Future per-unit life-cycle emissions differ substantially across technologies. For a climate protection scenario, we project life-cycle emissions from fossil fuel carbon capture and sequestration plants of 78-110 gCO2eq kWh-1, compared with 3.5-12 gCO2eq kWh-1 for nuclear, wind and solar power for 2050. Life-cycle emissions from hydropower and bioenergy are substantial (˜100 gCO2eq kWh-1), but highly uncertain. We find that cumulative emissions attributable to upscaling low-carbon power other than hydropower are small compared with direct sectoral fossil fuel emissions and the total carbon budget. Fully considering life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions has only modest effects on the scale and structure of power production in cost-optimal mitigation scenarios.

Engineering sustainable development

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

Prendergast, J.

1993-10-01

This article discusses sustainable development, a policy which attempts to balance environmental preservation and economic growth, and promises a way to provide a decent life for Earth's human inhabitants without destroying the global ecosystem. Sustainable development is an effort to use technology to help clean up the mess it helped make, and engineers will be central players in its success or failure. Key aspects include more efficient energy use through conservation measures and switching to renewable sources, waste minimization, much greater recycling and reuse of materials, more comprehensive economic/environmental assessments employing life-cycle analyses, and better management of resources.

Dating relationships in college students with childhood-onset asthma.

PubMed

Eddington, Angelica R; Mullins, Larry L; Fedele, David A; Ryan, Jamie L; Junghans, Ashley N

2010-02-01

The current study investigated whether differences existed in dating anxiety and fear of intimacy between individuals with childhood-onset asthma and individuals without a chronic illness. Analyses were also conducted to determine if dating anxiety or fear of intimacy were predictors of health-related quality of life in individuals with asthma and healthy controls. Additionally, potential gender differences in dating anxiety and fear of intimacy in individuals with childhood-onset asthma were explored. College undergraduates at least 17 years of age who self-identified as having childhood asthma were randomly matched by age and gender to healthy control participants. Participants completed a demographic form, the Dating Anxiety Scale for Adolescents, the Fear of Intimacy Scale, and the SF-36 Health Survey, a measure of health-related quality of life. There were no significant differences between self-identified participants with asthma and matched healthy controls on the Dating Anxiety Scale or Fear of Intimacy Scale. However, dating anxiety was a significant predictor of mental health-related quality of life in participants with asthma but not in matched health controls. Fear of intimacy was not a significant predictor of mental or physical health-related quality of life in individuals with asthma. In addition, women with asthma endorsed significantly more dating anxiety and lower physical health-related quality of life than males with asthma. College students with asthma appear to experience similar levels of dating anxiety and fear of intimacy than healthy college students; however, their anxiety about dating may have a larger effect on health-related quality of life than healthy individuals. Additional examination of dating and interpersonal relationships among individuals with asthma appears warranted, particularly as it concerns possible gender differences in individuals with childhood-onset asthma.

High volumetric supercapacitor with a long life span based on polymer dots and graphene sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wei, Ji-Shi; Chen, Jie; Ding, Hui; Zhang, Peng; Wang, Yong-Gang; Xiong, Huan-Ming

2017-10-01

A series of polymer dots/graphene sheets composites with high densities are prepared and tested for supercapacitors. Polymer dots (PDs) are synthesized by one-step method at room temperature. They can effectively increase surface areas of the composites (almost 10 times), and the functional groups from PDs produce high pseudocapacitance, so that the samples exhibit high specific capacitances (e. g., 364.2 F cm-3 at 1 A g-1) and high cycling stability (e. g., more than 95% of the initial capacity retention over 10 000 cycles at different current densities). The optimal sample is employed to fabricate a symmetric supercapacitor, which exhibits an energy density up to 8 Wh L-1 and a power density up to 11 800 W L-1, respectively.

Influence of subsolvus thermomechanical processing on the low-cycle fatigue properties of haynes 230 alloy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vecchio, Kenneth S.; Fitzpatrick, Michael D.; Klarstrom, Dwaine

1995-03-01

Strain-controlled low-cycle fatigue tests have been conducted in air at elevated temperature to determine the influence of subsolvus thermomechanical processing on the low-cycle fatigue (LCF) behavior of HAYNES 230 alloy. A series of tests at various strain ranges was conducted on material experimentally processed at 1121 °C, which is below the M23C6 carbide solvus temperature, and on material fully solution annealed at 1232 °C. A comparative strain-life analysis was performed on the LCF results, and the cyclic hardening/softening characteristics were examined. At 760 °C and 871 °C, the fatigue life of the experimental 230/1121 material was improved relative to the standard 230/1232 material up to a factor of 3. The fatigue life advantage of the experimental material was related primarily to a lower plastic (inelastic) strain amplitude response for a given imposed total strain range. It appears the increase in monotonic flow stress exhibited by the finer grain size experimental material has been translated into an increase in cyclic flow stress at the 760 °C and 871 °C test temperatures. Both materials exhibited entirely transgranular fatigue crack initiation and propagation modes at these temperatures. The LCF performance of the experimental material in tests performed at 982 °C was improved relative to the standard material up to a factor as high as 2. The life advantage of the 230/1121 material occurred despite having a larger plastic strain amplitude than the standard 230/1232 material for a given total strain range. Though not fully understood at present, it is suspected that this behavior is related to the deleterious influence of grain boundaries in the fatigue crack initiations of the standard processed material relative to the experimental material, and ultimately to differences in carbide morphology as a result of thermomechanical processing.

Error Cost Escalation Through the Project Life Cycle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stecklein, Jonette M.; Dabney, Jim; Dick, Brandon; Haskins, Bill; Lovell, Randy; Moroney, Gregory

2004-01-01

It is well known that the costs to fix errors increase as the project matures, but how fast do those costs build? A study was performed to determine the relative cost of fixing errors discovered during various phases of a project life cycle. This study used three approaches to determine the relative costs: the bottom-up cost method, the total cost breakdown method, and the top-down hypothetical project method. The approaches and results described in this paper presume development of a hardware/software system having project characteristics similar to those used in the development of a large, complex spacecraft, a military aircraft, or a small communications satellite. The results show the degree to which costs escalate, as errors are discovered and fixed at later and later phases in the project life cycle. If the cost of fixing a requirements error discovered during the requirements phase is defined to be 1 unit, the cost to fix that error if found during the design phase increases to 3 - 8 units; at the manufacturing/build phase, the cost to fix the error is 7 - 16 units; at the integration and test phase, the cost to fix the error becomes 21 - 78 units; and at the operations phase, the cost to fix the requirements error ranged from 29 units to more than 1500 units

High-Cycle Fatigue Resistance of Si-Mo Ductile Cast Iron as Affected by Temperature and Strain Rate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matteis, Paolo; Scavino, Giorgio; Castello, Alessandro; Firrao, Donato

2015-09-01

Silicon-molybdenum ductile cast irons are used to fabricate exhaust manifolds of internal combustion engines of large series cars, where the maximum pointwise temperature at full engine load may be higher than 973 K (700 °C). In this application, high-temperature oxidation and thermo-mechanical fatigue (the latter being caused by the engine start and stop and by the variation of its power output) have been the subject of several studies and are well known, whereas little attention has been devoted to the high-cycle fatigue, arising from the engine vibration. Therefore, the mechanical behavior of Si-Mo cast iron is studied here by means of stress-life fatigue tests up to 10 million cycles, at temperatures gradually increasing up to 973 K (700 °C). The mechanical characterization is completed by tensile and compressive tests and ensuing fractographic examinations; the mechanical test results are correlated with the cast iron microstructure and heat treatment.

Systems of Systems: Scaling Up the Development Process

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-08-01

many organizations are using the TSP and growing evidence sup- ports its efficacy [Davis 03, Grojeans 05, McAndrews 00, Pracchia 04, Rickets 05...January 2004. http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/Crosstalk/2004/01 /0401Pracchia.html. [ Rickets 05] Rickets , Chris A. “A TSP Software Maintenance Life Cycle

Systems of Systems: Scaling up the Development Program

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-08-01

many organizations are using the TSP and growing evidence sup- ports its efficacy [Davis 03, Grojeans 05, McAndrews 00, Pracchia 04, Rickets 05...January 2004. http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/Crosstalk/2004/01 /0401Pracchia.html. [ Rickets 05] Rickets , Chris A. “A TSP Software Maintenance Life Cycle

Administrative Candidacy: A Process of New-Role Learning--Part I

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Greenfield, William D., Jr.

1977-01-01

Reports the initial results of a longitudinal study of the organizational socialization of educational administrators. Part I claims that socialization through the life-cycle may be conceived as a series of learned interpersonal relationships through which individuals build up a repertoire of interpersonal responses that condition new…

A framework to analyze emissions implications of manufacturing shifts in the industrial sector through integrating bottom-up energy models and economic input-output environmental life cycle assessment models

EPA Science Inventory

Future year emissions depend highly on the evolution of the economy, technology and current and future regulatory drivers. A scenario framework was adopted to analyze various technology development pathways and societal change while considering existing regulations and future unc...

A framework to analyze emissions implications of manufacturing shifts in the industrial sector through integrating bottom-up energy models and economic input/output environmental life cycle assessment models

EPA Science Inventory

Future year emissions depend highly on economic, technological, societal and regulatory drivers. A scenario framework was adopted to analyze technology development pathways and changes in consumer preferences, and evaluate resulting emissions growth patterns while considering fut...

Long life nickel electrodes for a nickel-hydrogen cell: Cycle life tests

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lim, H. S.; Verzwyvelt, S. A.

1985-01-01

In order to develop a long life nickel electrode for a Ni/H2 cell, the cycle life of nickel electrodes was tested in Ni/H2 boiler plate cells. A 19 test cell matrix was made of various nickel electrode designs including three levels each of plaque mechanical strength, median pore size of the plaque, and active material loading. Test cells were cycled to the end of their life (0.5v) in a 45 minute low Earth orbit cycle regime at 80% depth-of-discharge. It is shown that the active material loading level affects the cycle life the most with the optimum loading at 1.6 g/cc void. Mechanical strength does not affect the cycle life noticeably in the bend strength range of 400 to 700 psi. It is found that the best plaque is made of INCO nickel powder type 287 and has median pore size of 13 micron.

The Mediating Role of Romantic Desolation and Dating Anxiety in the Association Between Interpersonal Competence and Life Satisfaction Among Polish Young Adults.

PubMed

Adamczyk, Katarzyna; Segrin, Chris

This study investigates the role of romantic desolation on life satisfaction in young adulthood. Using data from a Polish sample of 330 (205 females and 125 males) young adults aged 20-30, who completed Polish versions of the Satisfaction With Life Scale, Dating Anxiety Scale, Interpersonal Competence Questionnaire-Revised, and Social and Emotional Loneliness Scale for Adults-Short Form, romantic desolation (romantic loneliness and lack of a romantic partner) and dating anxiety were tested as mediators of the association between interpersonal competence and life satisfaction. Results revealed that single individuals reported lower life satisfaction and higher romantic loneliness than did partnered individuals. At the same time, no differences emerged between single and partnered individuals in dating anxiety or interpersonal competence. Structural equation modeling results showed that low interpersonal competence has an indirect effect on romantic desolation through higher levels of dating anxiety. Also, dating anxiety had an indirect effect on lower life satisfaction through increased romantic desolation. These results highlight the important role of dating anxiety and romantic desolation for explaining why low interpersonal competence is associated with diminished life satisfaction in young adults.

Application of life cycle assessment for an evaluation of wastewater treatment and reuse project--case study of Xi'an, China.

PubMed

Zhang, Q H; Wang, X C; Xiong, J Q; Chen, R; Cao, B

2010-03-01

In order to illuminate the benefit of a wastewater treatment and reuse project, a life cycle assessment (LCA) model was proposed by combining the process-based LCA and the input-output based LCA in one framework and using energy consumption as the sole parameter for quantitative evaluation of the project. The life cycle consumption was evaluated mainly by life cycle inventory (LCI) analysis taking into account the construction phase, operation phase and demolishment phase of the project. For evaluating the life cycle benefit of treated water reuse, attention was paid to the decrease of secondary effluent discharge and water saving. As a result of comprehensive LCA analysis of a case project in Xi'an, China, it was understood that the life cycle benefit gained from treated wastewater reuse much surpassed the life cycle energy consumption. The advantage of wastewater treatment and reuse was well shown by LCA analysis using the proposed model. 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A case study by life cycle assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Shuyun

2017-05-01

This article aims to assess the potential environmental impact of an electrical grinder during its life cycle. The Life Cycle Inventory Analysis was conducted based on the Simplified Life Cycle Assessment (SLCA) Drivers that calculated from the Valuation of Social Cost and Simplified Life Cycle Assessment Model (VSSM). The detailed results for LCI can be found under Appendix II. The Life Cycle Impact Assessment was performed based on Eco-indicator 99 method. The analysis results indicated that the major contributor to the environmental impact as it accounts for over 60% overall SLCA output. In which, 60% of the emission resulted from the logistic required for the maintenance activities. This was measured by conducting the hotspot analysis. After performing sensitivity analysis, it is evidenced that changing fuel type results in significant decrease environmental footprint. The environmental benefit can also be seen from the negative output values of the recycling activities. By conducting Life Cycle Assessment analysis, the potential environmental impact of the electrical grinder was investigated.

Increase Return on Investment of Software Development Life Cycle by Managing the Risk - A Case Study

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-04-01

for increasing the return on investment during the Software Development Life Cycle ( SDLC ) through selected quantitative analyses employing both the...defect rate, return on investment (ROI), software development life cycle ( SDLC ) DE FE N SE A C Q U IS IT IO N UN IVERSITY ALU M N I A SSO C IATIO N R...becomes comfortable due to its intricacies and learning cycle. The same may be said with respect to software development life cycle ( SDLC ) management

Vertical profile of fog microphysics : a case study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burnet, Frédéric; Brilouet, Pierre-Etienne; Mazoyer, Marie; Bourrianne, Thierry; Etcheberry, Jean-Michel; Gaillard, Brigitte; Legain, Dominique; Tzanos, Diane; Barrié, Joel; Barrau, Sébastien; Defoy, Stephan

2016-04-01

The occurrence and development of fogs result from the non-linear interaction of competing radiative, thermodynamic, microphysical and dynamical processes and the forecasting of their life cycle still remains a challenging issue. Several field campaigns have been carried out at the SIRTA observatory in the Paris suburb area (France). These experiments have shown that fog events exhibit large differences of the microphysical properties and various evolutions during their life cycle. To better understand relationships between the different processes and to validate numerical simulations it is necessary however to document the vertical profile of the fog microphysics. A CDP (Cloud Droplet Spectrometer) from DMT (Droplet Measurement Technology, Boulder, CO) has been modified to allow measurements of the droplet size distribution in fog layers with a tethered balloon. This instrumental set-up has been used during a field campaign during the winter 2013-214 in the Landes area in the South West of France. To validate the vertical profiles provided by the modified CDP, a mast was equipped with microphysical instruments at 2 altitude levels with an another CDP at 24 m and a Fog Monitor FM100 at 42 m. The instrumental set-up deployed during this campaign is presented. Data collected during a fog event that occurred during the night of 5-6 March 2014 are analysed. We show that microphysical properties such as droplet number concentration, LWC and mean droplet size, exhibit different time evolution during the fog life cycle depending on the altitude level. Droplet size distribution measurements are also investigated. They reveal sharp variations along the vertical close to the top of the fog layer. In addition it is shown that the shape of the size distributions at the top follows a time evolution typical of a quasi-adiabatic droplet growth.

Updated estimation of energy efficiencies of U.S. petroleum refineries.

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

Palou-Rivera, I.; Wang, M. Q.

2010-12-08

Evaluation of life-cycle (or well-to-wheels, WTW) energy and emission impacts of vehicle/fuel systems requires energy use (or energy efficiencies) of energy processing or conversion activities. In most such studies, petroleum fuels are included. Thus, determination of energy efficiencies of petroleum refineries becomes a necessary step for life-cycle analyses of vehicle/fuel systems. Petroleum refinery energy efficiencies can then be used to determine the total amount of process energy use for refinery operation. Furthermore, since refineries produce multiple products, allocation of energy use and emissions associated with petroleum refineries to various petroleum products is needed for WTW analysis of individual fuels suchmore » as gasoline and diesel. In particular, GREET, the life-cycle model developed at Argonne National Laboratory with DOE sponsorship, compares energy use and emissions of various transportation fuels including gasoline and diesel. Energy use in petroleum refineries is key components of well-to-pump (WTP) energy use and emissions of gasoline and diesel. In GREET, petroleum refinery overall energy efficiencies are used to determine petroleum product specific energy efficiencies. Argonne has developed petroleum refining efficiencies from LP simulations of petroleum refineries and EIA survey data of petroleum refineries up to 2006 (see Wang, 2008). This memo documents Argonne's most recent update of petroleum refining efficiencies.« less

Estimation of fatigue life using electromechanical impedance technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lim, Yee Yan; Soh, Chee Kiong

2010-04-01

Fatigue induced damage is often progressive and gradual in nature. Structures subjected to large number of fatigue load cycles will encounter the process of progressive crack initiation, propagation and finally fracture. Monitoring of structural health, especially for the critical components, is therefore essential for early detection of potential harmful crack. Recent advent of smart materials such as piezo-impedance transducer adopting the electromechanical impedance (EMI) technique and wave propagation technique are well proven to be effective in incipient damage detection and characterization. Exceptional advantages such as autonomous, real-time and online, remote monitoring may provide a cost-effective alternative to the conventional structural health monitoring (SHM) techniques. In this study, the main focus is to investigate the feasibility of characterizing a propagating fatigue crack in a structure using the EMI technique as well as estimating its remaining fatigue life using the linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM) approach. Uniaxial cyclic tensile load is applied on a lab-sized aluminum beam up to failure. Progressive shift in admittance signatures measured by the piezo-impedance transducer (PZT patch) corresponding to increase of loading cycles reflects effectiveness of the EMI technique in tracing the process of fatigue damage progression. With the use of LEFM, prediction of the remaining life of the structure at different cycles of loading is possible.

Dating, synthesis, and interpretation of palaeoclimatic records of the Last Glacial cycle and model-data integration: advances by the INTIMATE (INTegration of Ice-core, MArine and TErrestrial records) COST Action ES0907

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rasmussen, Sune O.; Birks, Hilary H.; Blockley, Simon P. E.; Brauer, Achim; Hajdas, Irka; Hoek, Wim Z.; Lowe, J. John; Moreno, Ana; Renssen, Hans; Roche, Didier M.; Svensson, Anders M.; Valdes, Paul; Walker, Mike J. C.

2014-12-01

Since 2010, the INTIMATE (INTegration of Ice-core, MArine and TErrestrial records) network has been operating as a COST Action (designated ES0907). This paper outlines the accomplishments of the INTIMATE COST Action in the context of how the INTIMATE ideas have evolved during the network's twenty-year life span, and highlights a number of challenges that can guide further work. In the second part of the paper, the contributions that comprise this INTIMATE special issue are introduced.

Research, development and demonstration of nickel-iron batteries for electric-vehicle propulsion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

1982-03-01

Full-size, prototype cell, module and battery fabrication and evaluation, aimed at advancing the technical capabilities of the nickel-iron battery, while simultaneously reducing its potential cost in materials and process areas are discussed. Improved electroprecipitation process nickel electrodes of design thickness (2.5 mm) are now being prepared that display stable capacities for the C/3 drain rate with less than 10% capacity decline for greater than 1000 test cycles. Iron electrodes of the composite-type are delivering 24 Ah at the target thickness (1.0 mm). Iron electrodes also are displaying capacity stability for greater than 1000 test cycles in continuing 3-plate cell tests. Finished cells delivered 57 to 63 Wh/kg at C/3, and have demonstrated cyclic stability up to 1200 cycles at 80 percent depth of discharge profiles. Modules exceeded 580 test cycles and remain on test. Reduction in nickel electrode swelling (and concurrent stack starvation), to improve cycling, continues to be an area of major effort to reach the final battery cycle life objectives.

Irradiation creep-fatigue interaction of type 316L stainless steel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scholz, R.; Mueller, R.

1996-10-01

Type 316L stainless steel samples in both, 20% cold-worked (cw) and recrystallised (rc) conditions were exposed to strain controlled fatigue cycling in torsion at 400°C during an irradiation with 19 MeV deuterons. The effect of irradiation creep induced stress relaxation on the fatigue life was studied by imposing a hold time at the minimum strain value in the loading cycle. For the cw material at strain ranges of 1.13% and 1.3%, the absolute stress values, τ H, maintained during the hold time decreased with the number of cycles due to the irradiation creep induced stress relaxation. A mean stress was built up. The number of cycles to failure was considerably reduced in comparison to continuous cycling tests under thermal conditions. For the rc material at strain ranges of 1.03% and 1.4%, the values of τ H increased with the number of cycles, despite the hold time imposed, due to irradiation and/or cyclic hardening.

Optimal seasonal schedules and the relative dominance of heteromorphic and isomorphic life cycles in macroalgae.

PubMed

Bessho, Kazuhiro; Iwasa, Yoh

2010-11-21

Marine macroalgae (seaweed) show diverse life cycles. Species with a heteromorphic life cycle have a large multicellular algal body in one generation but have a very small body in the second generation of the same year. In contrast, the diploid and haploid life forms of isomorphic species have similar morphology, and these species often have more than two generations in a year. Here, we first study the optimal life cycle schedule of marine macroalgae when daily mortality changes seasonally, and then we discuss the conditions for coexistence and relative dominance of different life cycles. According to the optimal life cycle schedule, heteromorphic species tend to have a generation with a large algal body when mortality is low, and a microscopic-sized generation when mortality is high. In contrast, isomorphic species tend to mature when body size reaches a threshold value that is the same for different generations. We then examine the coexistence of the two life cycles when growth rate decreases with biomass. The model predicts that (1) at high latitudes (i.e., in strongly seasonal environments), heteromorphic species are likely to dominate over isomorphic species, and (2) species with a heteromorphic life cycle should dominate in the supratidal and upper intertidal zones where macroalgae tend to suffer high mortality, and also in the subtidal zone, where mortality is low, whereas isomorphic species are likely to be more successful when mortality is intermediate. These predictions are consistent with the observed distribution patterns of the two life cycles in macroalgae. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Four-year prospective evaluation of the relationship between meaning in life and smoking status

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background To date, all investigations on the relationship between smoking and perceived level of meaning in life have used cross-sectional designs. Therefore, the purpose of the present prospective study, conducted with a four-year time lag, was to test the predictive power of the life meaning construct concerning changes in smoking status. Methods The data of 4,294 respondents (40.3% male, Mage = 54.7 ± 16.5 yrs) from the Hungarian Epidemiological Panel Survey were analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis and Mann–Whitney U-test and structural equation modeling (SEM) with a nominal outcome variable. Gender, age, and educational level were included in the study as covariates. Results On the bivariate level, results showed that both baseline and follow-up meaning in life scores were higher in stable non-smokers when compared to stable smokers. However, quitters and starters differed from stable non-smokers in their baseline but not in follow-up life meaning scores. The other relationships (stable smokers vs. quitters; stable smokers vs. starters, starters vs. quitters) were non-significant in both time points. According to the SEM-analysis, a higher sense of meaning in life measured at baseline and follow-up is associated with a lower likelihood (OR = 0.54, z = 2.80, p = 0.005; OR = 0.64, z = 2.88, p = 0.004, respectively) of being a stable smoker compared to being a stable non-smoker, confirming the expected relationship between smoking and decreased level of meaning in life. However, neither baseline nor follow-up life meaning scores predicted significantly quitting and uptake of smoking. Conclusions If future research from other cultures verifies the protective role of a higher level of meaning in life against smoking, then smoking prevention and cessation programs will also have to include such components that help individuals experience more meaning in their lives. PMID:23433067

Design of the fiber optic support system and fiber bundle accelerated life test for VIRUS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Soukup, Ian M.; Beno, Joseph H.; Hayes, Richard J.; Heisler, James T.; Mock, Jason R.; Mollison, Nicholas T.; Good, John M.; Hill, Gary J.; Vattiat, Brian L.; Murphy, Jeremy D.; Anderson, Seth C.; Bauer, Svend M.; Kelz, Andreas; Roth, Martin M.; Fahrenthold, Eric P.

2010-07-01

The quantity and length of optical fibers required for the Hobby-Eberly Telescope* Dark Energy eXperiment (HETDEX) create unique fiber handling challenges. For HETDEX‡, at least 33,600 fibers will transmit light from the focal surface of the telescope to an array of spectrographs making up the Visible Integral-Field Replicable Unit Spectrograph (VIRUS). Up to 96 Integral Field Unit (IFU) bundles, each containing 448 fibers, hang suspended from the telescope's moving tracker located more than 15 meters above the VIRUS instruments. A specialized mechanical system is being developed to support fiber optic assemblies onboard the telescope. The discrete behavior of 448 fibers within a conduit is also of primary concern. A life cycle test must be conducted to study fiber behavior and measure Focal Ratio Degradation (FRD) as a function of time. This paper focuses on the technical requirements and design of the HETDEX fiber optic support system, the electro-mechanical test apparatus for accelerated life testing of optical fiber assemblies. Results generated from the test will be of great interest to designers of robotic fiber handling systems for major telescopes. There is concern that friction, localized contact, entanglement, and excessive tension will be present within each IFU conduit and contribute to FRD. The test apparatus design utilizes six linear actuators to replicate the movement of the telescope over 65,000 accelerated cycles, simulating five years of actual operation.

KOH concentration effect on cycle life of nickel-hydrogen cells

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lim, Hong S.; Verzwyvelt, S. A.

1987-01-01

A cycle life test of Ni/H2 cells containing electrolytes of various KOH concentrations and a sintered type nickel electrode was carried out at 23 C using a 45 min accelerated low Earth orbit (LEO) cycle regime at 80 percent depth of discharge. One of three cells containing 26 percent KOH has achieved over 28,000 cycles, and the other two 19,000 cycles, without a sign of failure. Two other cells containing 31 percent KOH electrolyte, which is the concentration presently used in aerospace cells, failed after 2,979 and 3,620 cycles. This result indicates that the cycle life of the present type of Ni/H2 cells may be extended by a factor of 5 to 10 simply by lowering the KOH concentration. Long cycle life of a Ni/H2 battery at high depth-of-discharge operation is desired, particularly for an LEO spacecraft application. Typically, battery life of about 30,000 cycles is required for a five year mission in an LEO. Such a cycle life with presently available cells can be assured only at a very low depth-of-discharge operation. Results of testing already show that the cycle life of an Ni/H2 cell is tremendously improved by simply using an electrolyte of low KOH concentration.

Measurement of Nanoparticles Release during Drilling of Polymer Nanocomposites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gendre, L.; Marchante Rodriguez, V.; Abhyankar, H.; Blackburn, K.; Brighton, J. L.

2015-05-01

Nanomaterials are one of the promising technologies of this century. The Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies [1] reports more than 1600 consumer products based on nanotechnology that are currently on the market and advantages link to the reinforcement of polymeric materials using nano-fillers are not to demonstrate anymore. However, the concerns about safety and its consumer perception can slow down the acceptance of nanocomposites. Indeed, during its life-cycle, a nanotechnology-based product can release nano-sized particles exposing workers, consumers and environment and the risk involved in the use and disposal of such particles is not well known. The current legislation concerning chemicals and environment protection doesn't explicitly cover nanomaterials and changes undergone by nanoparticles during the products’ life cycle. Also, the possible physio-chemical changes that the nanoparticles may undergo during its life cycle are unknown. Industries need a standard method to evaluate nanoparticles release during products’ life cycle in order to improve the knowledge in nanomaterials risk assessment and the legislation, and to inform customers about the safety of nanomaterials and nanoproducts. This work aims to propose a replicable method in order to assess the release of nanoparticles during the machining of nanocomposites in a controlled environment. For this purpose, a new experimental set-up was implemented and issues observed in previous methods (background noise due to uncontrolled ambient environment and the process itself, unrepeatable machining parameters) were solved. A characterisation and validation of the chamber used is presented in this paper. Also, preliminary testing on drilling of polymer-based nanocomposites (Polyamide-6/Glass Fibre reinforced with nano-SiO2) manufactured by extrusion and injection moulding were achieved.

NASA Lessons Learned from Space Lubricated Mechanisms

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Predmore, Roamer E.

2000-01-01

This document reviews the lessons learned from short-life and long life lubricated space mechanisms. A short-life lubricated mechanisms complete their life test qualification requirements after a few cycles. The mechanisms include the hinges, motors and bearings for deployment, release mechanisms, latches, release springs and support shops. Performance testing can be difficult and expensive but must be accomplished. A long-life lubricated mechanisms requires up to 5 years of life testing, or 10 to 100 years of successful flight. The long-life mechanisms include reaction wheels, momentum wheels, antenna gimbals, solar array drives, gyros and despin mechanisms. Several instances of how a mechanisms failed either in test, or in space use, and the lessons learned from these failures are reviewed. The effect of the movement away from CFC-113 cleaning solvent to ODC (Ozone-Depleting Chemical) -free is reviewed, and some of the alternatives are discussed.

Overexpression of NAC gene from Lepidium latifolium L. enhances biomass, shortens life cycle and induces cold stress tolerance in tobacco: potential for engineering fourth generation biofuel crops.

PubMed

Grover, Atul; Singh, Sadhana; Pandey, Pankaj; Patade, Vikas Yadav; Gupta, Sanjay Mohan; Nasim, M

2014-11-01

We report elevated biomass and altered growth characteristics of tobacco plants up on transformation with a NAC (NAM, ATAF1/2,CUC2) gene (GenBank Accession FJ754254) isolated from Lepidium latifolium L. (LlaNAC). Transgenic plants showed significant differences in fresh weight, midrib length of longest leaf, leaf area, height of the plant, root and shoot weights, etc. during vegetative phase. On 100th day after sowing (DAS), plants of transgenic lines were 2-3 times taller than the wild type plants, though no significant difference was recorded in moisture contents of any of the plant tissues. Over-expression of NAC gene up to 2,000 fold was recorded in leaves of transgenic plants on 100th DAS. Interestingly, transgenic plants showed significantly shortened (P(t) = 0.02-0.04) life cycle, as they showed a completely altered growth behaviour. Transgenic plants entered reproductive phase earlier by 60 days, with lines NC2 and NC7b entering first, followed by line NC10. However, the time period spent in the reproductive phase by the plant was nearly twice in case of transgenic lines NC2, NC7b and NC10, as compared to the wild type plants. Despite that, these lines completed their life cycle in 45-60 days lesser than the time taken by wild-type tobacco plants. No difference was recorded in fruit and seed yield of transgenic or wild type plants. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on over-expression of NAC gene causing altered growth and biomass patterns. We expect this study to become an important reference towards future engineering of plants for fuel and fodder purposes.

How rare is complex life in the Milky Way?

PubMed

Bounama, Christine; von Bloh, Werner; Franck, Siegfried

2007-10-01

An integrated Earth system model was applied to calculate the number of habitable Earth-analog planets that are likely to have developed primitive (unicellular) and complex (multicellular) life in extrasolar planetary systems. The model is based on the global carbon cycle mediated by life and driven by increasing stellar luminosity and plate tectonics. We assumed that the hypothetical primitive and complex life forms differed in their temperature limits and CO(2) tolerances. Though complex life would be more vulnerable to environmental stress, its presence would amplify weathering processes on a terrestrial planet. The model allowed us to calculate the average number of Earth-analog planets that may harbor such life by using the formation rate of Earth-like planets in the Milky Way as well as the size of a habitable zone that could support primitive and complex life forms. The number of planets predicted to bear complex life was found to be approximately 2 orders of magnitude lower than the number predicted for primitive life forms. Our model predicted a maximum abundance of such planets around 1.8 Ga ago and allowed us to calculate the average distance between potentially habitable planets in the Milky Way. If the model predictions are accurate, the future missions DARWIN (up to a probability of 65%) and TPF (up to 20%) are likely to detect at least one planet with a biosphere composed of complex life.

[Life cycle assessment of energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions of cellulosic ethanol from corn stover].

PubMed

Tian, Wang; Liao, Cuiping; Li, Li; Zhao, Daiqing

2011-03-01

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is the only standardized tool currently used to assess environmental loads of products and processes. The life cycle analysis, as a part of LCA, is a useful and powerful methodology for studying life cycle energy efficiency and life cycle GHG emission. To quantitatively explain the potential of energy saving and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction of corn stover-based ethanol, we analyzed life cycle energy consumption and GHG emissions of corn stover-based ethanol by the method of life cycle analysis. The processes are dilute acid prehydrolysis and enzymatic hydrolysis. The functional unit was defined as 1 km distance driven by the vehicle. Results indicated: compared with gasoline, the corn stover-based E100 (100% ethanol) and E10 (a blend of 10% ethanol and 90% gasoline by volume) could reduce life cycle fossil energy consumption by 79.63% and 6.25% respectively, as well as GHG emissions by 53.98% and 6.69%; the fossil energy consumed by biomass stage was 68.3% of total fossil energy input, N-fertilizer and diesel were the main factors which contributed 45.78% and 33.26% to biomass stage; electricity production process contributed 42.06% to the net GHG emissions, the improvement of technology might reduce emissions markedly.

Networked web-cameras monitor congruent seasonal development of birches with phenological field observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peltoniemi, Mikko; Aurela, Mika; Böttcher, Kristin; Kolari, Pasi; Loehr, John; Karhu, Jouni; Kubin, Eero; Linkosalmi, Maiju; Melih Tanis, Cemal; Nadir Arslan, Ali

2017-04-01

Ecosystems' potential to provide services, e.g. to sequester carbon is largely driven by the phenological cycle of vegetation. Timing of phenological events is required for understanding and predicting the influence of climate change on ecosystems and to support various analyses of ecosystem functioning. We established a network of cameras for automated monitoring of phenological activity of vegetation in boreal ecosystems of Finland. Cameras were mounted on 14 sites, each site having 1-3 cameras. In this study, we used cameras at 11 of these sites to investigate how well networked cameras detect phenological development of birches (Betula spp.) along the latitudinal gradient. Birches are interesting focal species for the analyses as they are common throughout Finland. In our cameras they often appear in smaller quantities within dominant species in the images. Here, we tested whether small scattered birch image elements allow reliable extraction of color indices and changes therein. We compared automatically derived phenological dates from these birch image elements to visually determined dates from the same image time series, and to independent observations recorded in the phenological monitoring network from the same region. Automatically extracted season start dates based on the change of green color fraction in the spring corresponded well with the visually interpreted start of season, and field observed budburst dates. During the declining season, red color fraction turned out to be superior over green color based indices in predicting leaf yellowing and fall. The latitudinal gradients derived using automated phenological date extraction corresponded well with gradients based on phenological field observations from the same region. We conclude that already small and scattered birch image elements allow reliable extraction of key phenological dates for birch species. Devising cameras for species specific analyses of phenological timing will be useful for explaining variation of time series of satellite based indices, and it will also benefit models describing ecosystem functioning at species or plant functional type level. With the contribution of the LIFE+ financial instrument of the European Union (LIFE12 ENV/FI/000409 Monimet, http://monimet.fmi.fi)

An economic evaluation and assessment of environmental impact of the municipal solid waste management system for Taichung City in Taiwan.

PubMed

Chang, Yao-Jen; Chu, Chien-Wei; Lin, Min-Der

2012-05-01

Municipal solid waste management (MSWM) is an important environmental challenge and subject in urban planning. For sustainable MSWM strategies, the critical management factors to be considered include not only economic efficiency of MSW treatment but also life-cycle assessment of the environmental impact. This paper employed linear programming technique to establish optimal MSWM strategies considering economic efficiency and the air pollutant emissions during the life cycle of a MSWM system, and investigated the correlations between the economical optimization and pollutant emissions. A case study based on real-world MSW operating parameters in Taichung City is also presented. The results showed that the costs, benefits, streams of MSW, and throughputs of incinerators and landfills will be affected if pollution emission reductions are implemented in the MSWM strategies. In addition, the quantity of particulate matter is the best pollutant indicator for the MSWM system performance of emission reduction. In particular this model will assist the decision maker in drawing up a friendly MSWM strategy for Taichung City in Taiwan. Recently, life-cycle assessments of municipal solid waste management (MSWM) strategies have been given more considerations. However, what seems to be lacking is the consideration of economic factors and environmental impacts simultaneously. This work analyzed real-world data to establish optimal MSWM strategies considering economic efficiency and the air pollutant emissions during the life cycle of the MSWM system. The results indicated that the consideration of environmental impacts will affect the costs, benefits, streams of MSW, and throughputs of incinerators and landfills. This work is relevant to public discussion and may establish useful guidelines for the MSWM policies.

Mesyatsy "knizhnye" i "nebesnye": ikh sootnoshenie na stranitsakh letopisej %t "Literary" and "heavenly" months: their correlations in Russian chronicles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhuravel', A. V.

The overwhelming majority of Old-Russian dates are Julian, and this fact seems to prove that the Julian calendar gained a foothold after the baptism of Rus'. However, there are also about 10 lunar datings (mainly from the XV c.) in Russian chronicles. This fact corresponds to the words of Kirik (the Novgorod mathematician of the XII c.) who distinguished "heavenly" months from "literary" ones. The research shows that Kirik's words are true for the entire Medieval period of Russian history: the Julian calendar was really the "literary" one and people continued to count days by the Moon in their day-to-day life. Thus, lunar dating came up in Russian chronicles again and again. That is why attempts of recalculation into the Julian manner generated many mistakes (variant readings). If we take into account these "traces", we can reconstruct the initial lunar dating and determine more precisely the course of historical events.

Geothermal Water Use: Life Cycle Water Consumption, Water Resource Assessment, and Water Policy Framework

DOE Data Explorer

Schroeder, Jenna N.

2014-06-10

This report examines life cycle water consumption for various geothermal technologies to better understand factors that affect water consumption across the life cycle (e.g., power plant cooling, belowground fluid losses) and to assess the potential water challenges that future geothermal power generation projects may face. Previous reports in this series quantified the life cycle freshwater requirements of geothermal power-generating systems, explored operational and environmental concerns related to the geochemical composition of geothermal fluids, and assessed future water demand by geothermal power plants according to growth projections for the industry. This report seeks to extend those analyses by including EGS flash, both as part of the life cycle analysis and water resource assessment. A regional water resource assessment based upon the life cycle results is also presented. Finally, the legal framework of water with respect to geothermal resources in the states with active geothermal development is also analyzed.

Behaviour of L. monocytogenes in sliced, vacuum-packed mortadella

PubMed Central

Bersot, Luciano dos Santos; Gillio, Cíntia; Tavolaro, Paula; Landgraf, Mariza; de Melo Franco, Bernadette Dora Gombossy; Destro, Maria Teresa

2008-01-01

This study evaluated the growth of naturally occurring L. monocytogenes in sliced, vacuum-packed mortadella samples during storage at 5°C until the expiration date. Tukey’s test indicated that counts of L. monocytogenes on 0, 10, 20, 30 and 40 days of storage were significantly different (p<0.05), indicating growth during shelf life. In three trials, the mean increase was 1.72 log cycles. Vacuum packing and storage under refrigeration were not effective in controlling the growth of L. monocytogenes in sliced mortadella, indicating that good manufacturing practices and implemented HACCP programs are essential to assure safety of this product. PMID:24031257

Conversion of Amazon rainforest to agriculture alters community traits of methane-cycling organisms.

PubMed

Meyer, Kyle M; Klein, Ann M; Rodrigues, Jorge L M; Nüsslein, Klaus; Tringe, Susannah G; Mirza, Babur S; Tiedje, James M; Bohannan, Brendan J M

2017-03-01

Land use change is one of the greatest environmental impacts worldwide, especially to tropical forests. The Amazon rainforest has been subject to particularly high rates of land use change, primarily to cattle pasture. A commonly observed response to cattle pasture establishment in the Amazon is the conversion of soil from a methane sink in rainforest, to a methane source in pasture. However, it is not known how the microorganisms that mediate methane flux are altered by land use change. Here, we use the deepest metagenomic sequencing of Amazonian soil to date to investigate differences in methane-cycling microorganisms and their traits across rainforest and cattle pasture soils. We found that methane-cycling microorganisms responded to land use change, with the strongest responses exhibited by methane-consuming, rather than methane-producing, microorganisms. These responses included a reduction in the relative abundance of methanotrophs and a significant decrease in the abundance of genes encoding particulate methane monooxygenase. We also observed compositional changes to methanotroph and methanogen communities as well as changes to methanotroph life history strategies. Our observations suggest that methane-cycling microorganisms are vulnerable to land use change, and this vulnerability may underlie the response of methane flux to land use change in Amazon soils. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Method applied to the background analysis of energy data to be considered for the European Reference Life Cycle Database (ELCD).

PubMed

Fazio, Simone; Garraín, Daniel; Mathieux, Fabrice; De la Rúa, Cristina; Recchioni, Marco; Lechón, Yolanda

2015-01-01

Under the framework of the European Platform on Life Cycle Assessment, the European Reference Life-Cycle Database (ELCD - developed by the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission), provides core Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) data from front-running EU-level business associations and other sources. The ELCD contains energy-related data on power and fuels. This study describes the methods to be used for the quality analysis of energy data for European markets (available in third-party LC databases and from authoritative sources) that are, or could be, used in the context of the ELCD. The methodology was developed and tested on the energy datasets most relevant for the EU context, derived from GaBi (the reference database used to derive datasets for the ELCD), Ecoinvent, E3 and Gemis. The criteria for the database selection were based on the availability of EU-related data, the inclusion of comprehensive datasets on energy products and services, and the general approval of the LCA community. The proposed approach was based on the quality indicators developed within the International Reference Life Cycle Data System (ILCD) Handbook, further refined to facilitate their use in the analysis of energy systems. The overall Data Quality Rating (DQR) of the energy datasets can be calculated by summing up the quality rating (ranging from 1 to 5, where 1 represents very good, and 5 very poor quality) of each of the quality criteria indicators, divided by the total number of indicators considered. The quality of each dataset can be estimated for each indicator, and then compared with the different databases/sources. The results can be used to highlight the weaknesses of each dataset and can be used to guide further improvements to enhance the data quality with regard to the established criteria. This paper describes the application of the methodology to two exemplary datasets, in order to show the potential of the methodological approach. The analysis helps LCA practitioners to evaluate the usefulness of the ELCD datasets for their purposes, and dataset developers and reviewers to derive information that will help improve the overall DQR of databases.

Lithium Sulfide (Li2S)/Graphene Oxide Nanospheres with Conformal Carbon Coating as a High-Rate, Long-Life Cathode for Li/S Cells.

PubMed

Hwa, Yoon; Zhao, Juan; Cairns, Elton J

2015-05-13

In recent years, lithium/sulfur (Li/S) cells have attracted great attention as a candidate for the next generation of rechargeable batteries due to their high theoretical specific energy of 2600 W·h kg(-1), which is much higher than that of Li ion cells (400-600 W·h kg(-1)). However, problems of the S cathode such as highly soluble intermediate species (polysulfides Li2Sn, n = 4-8) and the insulating nature of S cause poor cycle life and low utilization of S, which prevents the practical use of Li/S cells. Here, a high-rate and long-life Li/S cell is proposed, which has a cathode material with a core-shell nanostructure comprising Li2S nanospheres with an embedded graphene oxide (GO) sheet as a core material and a conformal carbon layer as a shell. The conformal carbon coating is easily obtained by a unique CVD coating process using a lab-designed rotating furnace without any repetitive steps. The Li2S/GO@C cathode exhibits a high initial discharge capacity of 650 mA·h g(-1) of Li2S (corresponding to the 942 mA·h g(-1) of S) and very low capacity decay rate of only 0.046% per cycle with a high Coulombic efficiency of up to 99.7% for 1500 cycles when cycled at the 2 C discharge rate.

KOH concentration effect on the cycle life of nickel-hydrogen cells

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lim, H. S.; Verzwyvelt, S. A.

1985-01-01

Effects of KOH concentration on the cycle life of a sintered-type nickel electrode were studied in a boiler plate nickel-hydrogen cell at 23 C using an accelerated 45-min cycle regime at 80 percent depth of discharge. The cycle life improved greatly as the KOH concentration decreased, although the initial capacity of the cell decreased slightly. The cycle life improved by a factor of two or more when the KOH concentration was reduced from 36 to 31 percent and by a similar factor from reductions of 31 to 26 percent. For many applications, this life improvement may outweigh the initial capacity decrease.

On the relevance of genotoxicity for fish populations I: effects of a model genotoxicant on zebrafish (Danio rerio) in a complete life-cycle test.

PubMed

Diekmann, Markus; Hultsch, Veit; Nagel, Roland

2004-05-28

Genotoxicity may be detected in surface waters by means of various genotoxicity assays. In order to enable an ecotoxicological assessment of the consequences of such genotoxic potential for fish populations, a complete life-cycle test with zebrafish (Danio rerio) and the model genotoxicant 4-nitroquinoline-1-oxide (NQO) was conducted. Zebrafish (f1) were continuously exposed to NQO (i.e. 0.1, 0.3, 1.1, 2.9, and 14.6 microg/l, respectively) from fertilised eggs until sexual maturity. In addition to reproduction studies in the f1-generation, f2-fish were exposed to NQO during the first 6 weeks of development. Up to 2.9 microg/l NQO, fish did not display differences in survival and growth (P < 0.05). A NQO concentration of 14.6 microg/l, however, was lethal. Female fish exposed to all NQO concentrations up to 2.9 microg/l displayed a significant reduction in egg production (P < 0.05). A mathematical simulation revealed that exposure to weak concentrations of NQO is leading to an elevated extinction risk. Copyright 2004 Elsevier B.V.

Evaluating Data Clustering Approach for Life-Cycle Facility Control

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-04-01

produce 90% matching accuracy with noise/variations up to 55%. KEYWORDS: Building Information Modelling ( BIM ), machine learning, pattern detection...reconciled to building information model elements and ultimately to an expected resource utilization schedule. The motivation for this integration is to...by interoperable data sources and building information models . Building performance modelling and simulation efforts such as those by Maile et al

The Model Life-cycle: Training Module

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Model Life-Cycle includes identification of problems & the subsequent development, evaluation, & application of the model. Objectives: define ‘model life-cycle’, explore stages of model life-cycle, & strategies for development, evaluation, & applications.

10 CFR 435.8 - Life-cycle costing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Life-cycle costing. 435.8 Section 435.8 Energy DEPARTMENT... BUILDINGS Mandatory Energy Efficiency Standards for Federal Low-Rise Residential Buildings. § 435.8 Life-cycle costing. Each Federal agency shall determine life-cycle cost-effectiveness by using the procedures...

10 CFR 435.8 - Life-cycle costing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Life-cycle costing. 435.8 Section 435.8 Energy DEPARTMENT... BUILDINGS Mandatory Energy Efficiency Standards for Federal Low-Rise Residential Buildings. § 435.8 Life-cycle costing. Each Federal agency shall determine life-cycle cost-effectiveness by using the procedures...

US Federal LCA Commons Life Cycle Inventory Unit Process Template

EPA Science Inventory

The US Federal LCA Commons Life Cycle Inventory Unit Process Template is a multi-sheet Excel template for life cycle inventory data, metadata and other documentation. The template comes as a package that consistent of three parts: (1) the main template itself for life cycle inven...

7 CFR 2902.8 - Determining life cycle costs, environmental and health benefits, and performance.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 15 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Determining life cycle costs, environmental and... DESIGNATING BIOBASED PRODUCTS FOR FEDERAL PROCUREMENT General § 2902.8 Determining life cycle costs, environmental and health benefits, and performance. (a) Providing information on life cycle costs and...

77 FR 50724 - Developing Software Life Cycle Processes for Digital Computer Software Used in Safety Systems of...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-08-22

... NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC-2012-0195] Developing Software Life Cycle Processes for Digital... Software Life Cycle Processes for Digital Computer Software used in Safety Systems of Nuclear Power Plants... clarifications, the enhanced consensus practices for developing software life-cycle processes for digital...

An Assessment of Alternate Thermal Protection Systems for the Space Shuttle Orbiter. Volume 1; Executive Summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hays, D.

1982-01-01

Alternate thermal protection system (TPS) concepts to the Space Shuttle Orbiter were assessed. Metallic, ablator, and carbon-carbon concepts which are the result of some previous design, manufacturing and testing effort were considered. Emphasis was placed on improved TPS durability, which could potentially reduce life cycle costs and improve Orbiter operational characteristics. Integrated concept/orbiter point designs were generated and analyzed on the basis of Shuttle design environments and criteria. A merit function evaluation methodology based on mission impact, life cycle costs, and risk was developed to compare the candidate concepts and to identify the best alternate. Voids and deficiencies in the technology were identified, along with recommended activities to overcome them. Finally, programmatic plans, including ROM costs and schedules, were developed for all activities required to bring the selected alternate system up to operational readiness.

Long Life Nickel Electrodes for a Nickel-hydrogen Cell: Cycle Life Tests

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lim, H. S.; Verzwyvelt, S. A.

1984-01-01

In order to develop a long life nickel electrode for a Ni/H2 cell, cycle life tests of nickel electrodes were carried out in Hi/H2 boiler plate cells. A 19 test cell matrix was made of various nickel electrode designs including three levels each of plaque mechanical strength, median pore size of the plaque, and active material loading. Test cells were cycled to the end of their life (0.5v) in a 45-minute low earth orbit cycle regime at 80% depth-of-discharge. The results show that the active material loading level affects the cycle life the most with the optimum loading at 1.6 g/cc void. Mechanical strength did not affect the cycle life noticeably in the bend strength range of 400 to 700 psi. The best plaque type appears to be one which is made of INCO nickel powder type 287 and has a median pore size of 13 micron.

Nitrogen rate and landscape impacts on life cycle energy use and emissions from switchgrass-derived ethanol

DOE PAGES

Mbonimpa, Eric G.; Kumar, Sandeep; Owens, Vance N.; ...

2015-08-24

Switchgrass-derived ethanol has been proposed as an alternative to fossil fuels to improve sustainability of the US energy sector. In this study, life cycle analysis (LCA) was used to estimate the environmental benefits of this fuel. To better define the LCA environmental impacts associated with fertilization rates and farm-landscape topography, results from a controlled experiment were analyzed. Data from switchgrass plots planted in 2008, consistently managed with three nitrogen rates (0, 56, and 112 kg N ha –1), two landscape positions (shoulder and footslope), and harvested annually (starting in 2009, the year after planting) through 2014 were used as inputmore » into the Greenhouse gases, Regulated Emissions and Energy use in transportation (GREET) model. Simulations determined nitrogen (N) rate and landscape impacts on the life cycle energy and emissions from switchgrass ethanol used in a passenger car as ethanol–gasoline blends (10% ethanol:E10, 85% ethanol:E85s). Results indicated that E85s may lead to lower fossil fuels use (58 to 77%), greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (33 to 82%), and particulate matter (PM2.5) emissions (15 to 54%) in comparison with gasoline. However, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other criteria pollutants such as nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulate matter (PM10), and sulfur dioxides (SO x) were higher for E85s than those from gasoline. Nitrogen rate above 56 kg N ha –1 yielded no increased biomass production benefits; but did increase (up to twofold) GHG, VOCs, and criteria pollutants. Lower blend (E10) results were closely similar to those from gasoline. The landscape topography also influenced life cycle impacts. Biomass grown at the footslope of fertilized plots led to higher switchgrass biomass yield, lower GHG, VOCs, and criteria pollutants in comparison with those at the shoulder position. Lastly, results also showed that replacing switchgrass before maximum stand life (10–20 years.) can further reduce the energy and emissions reduction benefits.« less

Study of turbine bypass remote augmentor lift system for V/STOL aircraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sheridan, A. E.

1985-01-01

The airframe design and engine/aircraft integration were emphasized in a NASA comparative study of turbofan and turbine bypass engine (TBE) with remote augmentor lift systems (RALS) for supersonic V/STOL aircraft. Functional features of the TBE are reviewed, noting the enhanced cycle efficiency and reduced afterbody drag compared to the turbojets. The present studies examied performance levels for aircraft with fleet defense and secondary anti-surface warfare roles, carrying AMRAAM and AIM missiles. TBE engine cycles were configured for hover and up-and-away flight from deck launch, and all tests were done from a conceptual design viewpoint. The results indicate that the TBE-RALS is superior to turbofan-RALS aircraft in both gross take-off weight and life cycle cost.

The Oedipus Cycle: developmental mythology, Greek tragedy, and the sociology of knowledge.

PubMed

Datan, N

1988-01-01

The Oedipus complex of Freud is based on the inevitability of the tragic fate of a man who fled his home to escape the prophecy of parricide. Thus, he fulfilled it by killing a stranger who proved to be his father. As Freud does, this consideration of the tragedy of Oedipus takes as its point of departure the inevitability of the confrontation between father and son. Where Freud looks to the son, however, I look to the father, who set the tragedy in motion by attempting to murder his infant son. Themes ignored in developmental theory but axiomatic in gerontology are considered in this study of the elder Oedipus. The study begins by noting that Oedipus ascended the throne of Thebes not by parricide but by answering the riddle of the Sphynx and affirming the continuity of the life cycle which his father denied. In the second tragedy of the Oedipus Cycle of Sophocles, Oedipus at Colonus, this affirmation is maintained. As Oedipus the elder accepts the infirmities of old age and the support of his daughter Antigone, Oedipus the king proves powerful up to the very end of his life when he gives his blessing not to the sons who had exiled him from Thebes, but to King Theseus who shelters him in his old age. Thus, the Oedipus cycle, in contrast to the "Oedipus complex," represents not the unconscious passions of the small boy, but rather the awareness of the life cycle in the larger context of the succession of the generations and their mutual interdependence. These themes are illuminated by a fuller consideration of the tragedy of Oedipus.

Land-Energy Nexus: Life Cycle Land Use of Natural Gas-Fired Electricity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heath, G.; Jordaan, S.; Macknick, J.; Mohammadi, E.; Ben-Horin, D.; Urrea, V.

2014-12-01

Comparisons of the land required for different types of energy are challenging due to the fact that upstream land use of fossil fuel technologies is not well characterized. This research focuses on improving estimates of the life cycle land use of natural gas-fired electricity through the novel combination of inventories of the location of natural gas-related infrastructure, satellite imagery analysis and gas production data. Land area per unit generation is calculated as the sum of natural gas life cycle stages divided by the throughput of natural gas, combined with the land use of the power plant divided by the generation of the power plant. Five natural gas life cycle stages are evaluated for their area: production, gathering, processing, transmission and disposal. The power plant stage is characterized by a thermal efficiency ηth, which converts MegaJoules (MJ) to kilowatt hours (kWh). We focus on seven counties in the Barnett shale region in Texas that represent over 90% of total Barnett Shale gas production. In addition to assessing the gathering and transmission pipeline network, approximately 500 sites are evaluated from the five life cycle stages plus power plants. For instance, assuming a 50 foot right-of-way for transmission pipelines, this part of the Barnett pipeline network occupies nearly 26,000 acres. Site, road and water components to total area are categorized. Methods are developed to scale up sampled results for each component type to the full population of sites within the Barnett. Uncertainty and variability are charaterized. Well-level production data are examined by integrating commercial datasets with advanced methods for quantifying estimated ultimate recovery (EUR) for wells, then summed to estimate natural gas produced in an entire play. Wells that are spatially coincident are merged using ArcGIS. All other sites are normalized by an estimate of gas throughput. Prior land use estimates are used to validate the satellite imagery analysis. Results of this research will provide a step towards better quantifying the land footprint of energy production activities and a methodologically consistent baseline from which more robust comparisons with alternative energy choices can be made.

NASA Human Spaceflight Scenarios - Do All Our Models Still Say No?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zapata, Edgar

2017-01-01

Historically, NASA human spaceflight planning has included healthy doses of life cycle cost analysis. Planners put projects and their cost estimates in a budget context. Estimated costs became expected budgets. Regardless, real budgets rarely matched expectations. So plans would come and go as NASA canceled projects. New projects would arise and the cycle would begin again. Repeatedly, NASA schedule and performance ambitions come up against costs growing at double-digit rates while budgets barely rise a couple of percent a year. Significant skepticism greets proposed NASA programs at birth, as cost estimates for new projects are traditionally very high, and worse, far off the mark for those carried forward. In this environment the current "capability driven framework" for NASA human spaceflight evolved, where long term life cycle cost analysis are even viewed as possibly counter-productive. Here, a space exploration project, for example the Space Launch System, focuses on immediate goals. A life cycle is that of a project, not a program, and for only that span of time to a near term milestone like a first test launch. Unfortunately, attempting to avoid some pitfalls in long-term life cycle cost analysis breeds others. Government audits have noted that limiting the scope of cost analysis "does not provide the transparency necessary to assess long-term affordability" making it difficult to understand if NASA "is progressing in a cost-effective and affordable manner." Even in this short-term framework, NASA realizes the importance of long-term considerations, that it must "maximize the efficiency and sustainability of the Exploration Systems development programs", that this is "critical to free resources for re-investment...such as other required deep space exploration capabilities." Assuming the value of long-term life cycle cost analysis, where due diligence meets reconnaissance, and accepting past shortcomings, the work here approaches life cycle cost analysis for human spaceflight differently. 1) If costs have traditionally been so high that adding them up is discouraging, are there any new facts on the ground offering paths to significantly lower costs? 2) If NASA's spaceflight budget and process is an over-arching constraint, with its planning limitations favoring short-term outlooks, is there a way to step outside the budget box? 3) If life cycle answers have historically been too uncertain to be useful, is there a process where stakeholders gain valuable insights merely from emphasizing a common understanding around questions? We analyze the potential life cycle cost of assorted NASA human spaceflight architectures - an architecture as a sum of individual systems, working together. With the prior questions of high costs, limited budgets and uncertainties in mind, public private partnerships are central in these architectures. The cost data for current commercial public private partnerships is encouraging, as are cost estimates for future partnership approaches beyond low Earth orbit. Private capital, directly or indirectly, an ingredient of public private partnerships, may be a significant factor in finding a path around the limits of the NASA spaceflight budget. Also, understanding and reviewing the pros, cons and uncertainties of assorted architectures can assist in developing a common understanding around key questions as important if not more so than the numbers and answers. Lastly, a scenario planning technique is briefly explored that can mature a common understanding about the agencies situation at hand and how diverse stakeholders can go forward together. Scenario planning, rather than focusing on answers, places emphasis on stakeholders developing a common understanding about the future. Putting aside costs, this is especially true of questions about sustainability and growth, results, benefits and expectations. While efficiency exercises or analysis look to reduce resources in one place to apply them elsewhere, moving around slices in a pie, scenario planning can get at the heart of the matter, growing the pie, transforming it, and making the pieces relevant. Especially important is the question of sustainability for different scenarios in the broad sense of the word - not just the narrow ability to survive or continue, but also the ability to adapt, prosper and grow.

Modeling the effects of climate on date palm scale ( Parlatoria blanchardi) population dynamics during different phenological stages of life history under hot arid conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Idder-Ighili, Hakima; Idder, Mohamed Azzedine; Doumandji-Mitiche, Bahia; Chenchouni, Haroun

2015-10-01

The date palm scale (DPS) Parlatoria blanchardi is a serious pest due to the damage it inflicts on its host tree ( Phoenix dactylifera). To develop an effective control against DPS in arid regions, it is essential to know its bio-ecology including population dynamics and climatic factors influencing the duration and timing of life history and also the densities of different phenological stages (crawlers, first and second instars nymphs, adult males, and adult females). Monitoring of biological cycle and population dynamics of the pest were achieved through weekly counts of DPS densities on leaflets sampled at different position of date palm trees in an oasis of Ouargla region (Algerian Sahara Desert). Within this hyper-arid region, DPS established four generations per year, the most important was the spring generation. Two overlapping generations occurred in spring-early summer and two in autumn-early winter; these two pairs of generations were interspersed by two phases of high-mortality rates, the first corresponds to winter cold and the second refers to the extreme heat of summer. Statistical analysis of the effects of the studied climatic conditions (minimum, maximum and mean temperatures, precipitation, humidity, wind, rain days, and climatic indices) on the DPS densities at different phenological stages showed great variability from one stage to another. Among these, adult females were the most affected by climate factors. For the total DPS population, high values of minimum temperatures negatively affected population density, while high maximum temperatures, hygrometry, and De Martonne aridity index showed a positive influence.

Modeling the effects of climate on date palm scale (Parlatoria blanchardi) population dynamics during different phenological stages of life history under hot arid conditions.

PubMed

Idder-Ighili, Hakima; Idder, Mohamed Azzedine; Doumandji-Mitiche, Bahia; Chenchouni, Haroun

2015-10-01

The date palm scale (DPS) Parlatoria blanchardi is a serious pest due to the damage it inflicts on its host tree (Phoenix dactylifera). To develop an effective control against DPS in arid regions, it is essential to know its bio-ecology including population dynamics and climatic factors influencing the duration and timing of life history and also the densities of different phenological stages (crawlers, first and second instars nymphs, adult males, and adult females). Monitoring of biological cycle and population dynamics of the pest were achieved through weekly counts of DPS densities on leaflets sampled at different position of date palm trees in an oasis of Ouargla region (Algerian Sahara Desert). Within this hyper-arid region, DPS established four generations per year, the most important was the spring generation. Two overlapping generations occurred in spring-early summer and two in autumn-early winter; these two pairs of generations were interspersed by two phases of high-mortality rates, the first corresponds to winter cold and the second refers to the extreme heat of summer. Statistical analysis of the effects of the studied climatic conditions (minimum, maximum and mean temperatures, precipitation, humidity, wind, rain days, and climatic indices) on the DPS densities at different phenological stages showed great variability from one stage to another. Among these, adult females were the most affected by climate factors. For the total DPS population, high values of minimum temperatures negatively affected population density, while high maximum temperatures, hygrometry, and De Martonne aridity index showed a positive influence.

Histone deacetylases play a major role in the transcriptional regulation of the Plasmodium falciparum life cycle.

PubMed

Chaal, Balbir K; Gupta, Archna P; Wastuwidyaningtyas, Brigitta D; Luah, Yen-Hoon; Bozdech, Zbynek

2010-01-22

The apparent paucity of molecular factors of transcriptional control in the genomes of Plasmodium parasites raises many questions about the mechanisms of life cycle regulation in these malaria parasites. Epigenetic regulation has been suggested to play a major role in the stage specific gene expression during the Plasmodium life cycle. To address some of these questions, we analyzed global transcriptional responses of Plasmodium falciparum to a potent inhibitor of histone deacetylase activities (HDAC). The inhibitor apicidin induced profound transcriptional changes in multiple stages of the P. falciparum intraerythrocytic developmental cycle (IDC) that were characterized by rapid activation and repression of a large percentage of the genome. A major component of this response was induction of genes that are otherwise suppressed during that particular stage of the IDC or specific for the exo-erythrocytic stages. In the schizont stage, apicidin induced hyperacetylation of histone lysine residues H3K9, H4K8 and the tetra-acetyl H4 (H4Ac4) and demethylation of H3K4me3. Interestingly, we observed overlapping patterns of chromosomal distributions between H4K8Ac and H3K4me3 and between H3K9Ac and H4Ac4. There was a significant but partial association between the apicidin-induced gene expression and histone modifications, which included a number of stage specific transcription factors. Taken together, inhibition of HDAC activities leads to dramatic de-regulation of the IDC transcriptional cascade, which is a result of both disruption of histone modifications and up-regulation of stage specific transcription factors. These findings suggest an important role of histone modification and chromatin remodeling in transcriptional regulation of the Plasmodium life cycle. This also emphasizes the potential of P. falciparum HDACs as drug targets for malaria chemotherapy.

A Growth Model for Academic Program Life Cycle (APLC): A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Acquah, Edward H. K.

2010-01-01

Academic program life cycle concept states each program's life flows through several stages: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline. A mixed-influence diffusion growth model is fitted to enrolment data on academic programs to analyze the factors determining progress of academic programs through their life cycles. The regression analysis yield…

[The sanitary and hygienic state of solid garbage burial grounds in the stages of a life cycle].

PubMed

Zomarev, A M; Vaĭsman, Ia I; Zaĭtseva, T A; Glushankova, I S

2010-01-01

The purpose of the study was to assess the sanitary-and-hygienic state of solid garbage (SG) burial grounds in the Perm Territory in different stage of a life cycle. This paper presents the results of the study of deposited waste, forming dump soil, and SG ground emissions by general sanitary and sanitary-microbiological parameters and their effect on environmental objects. The performed studies of the sanitary-and-hygienic situation on some grounds of the Perm Territory suggest that there is a need for setting up a system for sanitary-and-monitoring of SG ground and for elaborating engineering, organizational, and prophylactic measures to assure the sanitary-and-hygienic safety of objects and to control the quality and quantity of waste to be buried and the currents of emissions (ground body degassing, filtrating sewage drainage and purification).

Optimizing heliostat positions with local search metaheuristics using a ray tracing optical model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reinholz, Andreas; Husenbeth, Christof; Schwarzbözl, Peter; Buck, Reiner

2017-06-01

The life cycle costs of solar tower power plants are mainly determined by the investment costs of its construction. Significant parts of these investment costs are used for the heliostat field. Therefore, an optimized placement of the heliostats gaining the maximal annual power production has a direct impact on the life cycle costs revenue ratio. We present a two level local search method implemented in MATLAB utilizing the Monte Carlo raytracing software STRAL [1] for the evaluation of the annual power output for a specific weighted annual time scheme. The algorithm was applied to a solar tower power plant (PS10) with 624 heliostats. Compared to former work of Buck [2], we were able to improve both runtime of the algorithm and quality of the output solutions significantly. Using the same environment for both algorithms, we were able to reach Buck's best solution with a speed up factor of about 20.

The Sphinx's Riddle: Life and Career Cycles.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burack, Elmer H.

1984-01-01

Career cycles should be considered apart from life cycles, even though the two are interrelated. This essay examines five theories about life and career cycles, and offers insights into their limitations and potential uses. (JB)

Paclitaxel (3-hour infusion) followed by carboplatin (24 hours after paclitaxel): a phase II study in advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

PubMed

Roychowdhury, D F; Desai, P; Zhu, Y W

1997-08-01

This phase II study was performed to investigate the efficacy of a 3-hour 225 mg/m2 paclitaxel infusion (Taxol; Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Princeton, NJ) followed 24 hours later by a 30-minute infusion of carboplatin (dosed to an area under the concentration-time curve of 6) in patients with stage IIIA, IIIB, or IV non-small cell lung cancer. Patients received chemotherapy and were monitored for toxicity, response, quality of life, and survival. Paclitaxel and carboplatin pharmacokinetics were also determined with the first cycle of chemotherapy. Eleven men have been treated to date. Eight were white and three black, with a median age of 65 years. All patients had a performance status of 0 or 1. The regimen was well tolerated, with no deaths or grade 4 toxicities noted. The most common grade 3 toxicity was neutropenia, thrombocytopenia, and parasthesias (observed in <10% of cycles). The overall response rate was 57% (14% complete and 43% partial responses). Quality of life improved in most patients. Physical and emotional well-being improved in 57%, functional well-being in 43%, and social/family well-being in 14% of patients. Pharmacokinetic data are being analyzed by limited sampling technique to predict the paclitaxel area under the concentration-time curve. This unique schedule of paclitaxel and carboplatin is well tolerated and active, and is associated with improvements in various aspects of quality of life.

Microsporidia infection impacts the host cell's cycle and reduces host cell apoptosis

PubMed Central

Higes, Mariano; Sagastume, Soledad; Juarranz, Ángeles; Dias-Almeida, Joyce; Budge, Giles E.; Meana, Aránzazu; Boonham, Neil

2017-01-01

Intracellular parasites can alter the cellular machinery of host cells to create a safe haven for their survival. In this regard, microsporidia are obligate intracellular fungal parasites with extremely reduced genomes and hence, they are strongly dependent on their host for energy and resources. To date, there are few studies into host cell manipulation by microsporidia, most of which have focused on morphological aspects. The microsporidia Nosema apis and Nosema ceranae are worldwide parasites of honey bees, infecting their ventricular epithelial cells. In this work, quantitative gene expression and histology were studied to investigate how these two parasites manipulate their host’s cells at the molecular level. Both these microsporidia provoke infection-induced regulation of genes involved in apoptosis and the cell cycle. The up-regulation of buffy (which encodes a pro-survival protein) and BIRC5 (belonging to the Inhibitor Apoptosis protein family) was observed after infection, shedding light on the pathways that these pathogens use to inhibit host cell apoptosis. Curiously, different routes related to cell cycle were modified after infection by each microsporidia. In the case of N. apis, cyclin B1, dacapo and E2F2 were up-regulated, whereas only cyclin E was up-regulated by N. ceranae, in both cases promoting the G1/S phase transition. This is the first report describing molecular pathways related to parasite-host interactions that are probably intended to ensure the parasite’s survival within the cell. PMID:28152065

Microsporidia infection impacts the host cell's cycle and reduces host cell apoptosis.

PubMed

Martín-Hernández, Raquel; Higes, Mariano; Sagastume, Soledad; Juarranz, Ángeles; Dias-Almeida, Joyce; Budge, Giles E; Meana, Aránzazu; Boonham, Neil

2017-01-01

Intracellular parasites can alter the cellular machinery of host cells to create a safe haven for their survival. In this regard, microsporidia are obligate intracellular fungal parasites with extremely reduced genomes and hence, they are strongly dependent on their host for energy and resources. To date, there are few studies into host cell manipulation by microsporidia, most of which have focused on morphological aspects. The microsporidia Nosema apis and Nosema ceranae are worldwide parasites of honey bees, infecting their ventricular epithelial cells. In this work, quantitative gene expression and histology were studied to investigate how these two parasites manipulate their host's cells at the molecular level. Both these microsporidia provoke infection-induced regulation of genes involved in apoptosis and the cell cycle. The up-regulation of buffy (which encodes a pro-survival protein) and BIRC5 (belonging to the Inhibitor Apoptosis protein family) was observed after infection, shedding light on the pathways that these pathogens use to inhibit host cell apoptosis. Curiously, different routes related to cell cycle were modified after infection by each microsporidia. In the case of N. apis, cyclin B1, dacapo and E2F2 were up-regulated, whereas only cyclin E was up-regulated by N. ceranae, in both cases promoting the G1/S phase transition. This is the first report describing molecular pathways related to parasite-host interactions that are probably intended to ensure the parasite's survival within the cell.

Bulk Bismuth as a High-Capacity and Ultralong Cycle-Life Anode for Sodium-Ion Batteries by Coupling with Glyme-Based Electrolytes.

PubMed

Wang, Chenchen; Wang, Liubin; Li, Fujun; Cheng, Fangyi; Chen, Jun

2017-09-01

Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) have attracted great interest for large-scale electric energy storage in recent years. However, anodes with long cycle life and large reversible capacities are still lacking and therefore limiting the development of SIBs. Here, a bulk Bi anode with surprisingly high Na storage performance in combination with glyme-based electrolytes is reported. This study shows that the bulk Bi electrode is gradually developed into a porous integrity during initial cycling, which is totally different from that in carbonate-based electrolytes and ensures facile Na + transport and structural stability. The achievable capacity of bulk Bi in the NaPF 6 -diglyme electrolyte is high up to 400 mAh g -1 , and the capacity retention is 94.4% after 2000 cycles, corresponding to a capacity loss of 0.0028% per cycle. It exhibits two flat discharge/charge plateaus at 0.67/0.77 and 0.46/0.64 V, ascribed to the typical two-phase reactions of Bi ↔ NaBi and NaBi ↔ Na 3 Bi, respectively. The excellent performance is attributed to the unique porous integrity, stable solid electrolyte interface, and good electrode wettability of glymes. This interplay between electrolyte and electrode to boost Na storage performance will pave a new pathway for high-performance SIBs. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Application of Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics in Product Life Cycle Management. A Case Study with a Carbidopa-Levodopa Extended-Release Formulation.

PubMed

Modi, Nishit B

2017-05-01

Increasing costs in discovering and developing new molecular entities and the continuing debate on limited company pipelines mean that pharmaceutical companies are under significant pressure to maximize the value of approved products. Life cycle management in the context of drug development comprises activities to maximize the effective life of a product. Life cycle approaches can involve new formulations, new routes of delivery, new indications or expansion of the population for whom the product is indicated, or development of combination products. Life cycle management may provide an opportunity to improve upon the current product through enhanced efficacy or reduced side effects and could expand the therapeutic market for the product. Successful life cycle management may include the potential for superior efficacy, improved tolerability, or a better prescriber or patient acceptance. Unlike generic products where bioequivalence to an innovator product may be sufficient for drug approval, life cycle management typically requires a series of studies to characterize the value of the product. This review summarizes key considerations in identifying product candidates that may be suitable for life cycle management and discusses the application of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics in developing new products using a life cycle management approach. Examples and a case study to illustrate how pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics contributed to the selection of dosing regimens, demonstration of an improved therapeutic effect, or regulatory approval of an improved product label are presented.

CINRG: Infrastructure for Clinical Trials in Duchenne Dystrophy

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-09-01

research centers sharing a common goal of improving the quality of life of neuromuscular disease patients by cooperative planning , implementation, analysis...discrepancies were noted surrounding the regulatory binder, consent process and data records. The site personnel have a scheduled plan with the CINRG CC...missing long term follow-up visits). The project manager also reviewed the study records to date while onsite. A high priority plan was developed with the

Hypersaline sapropels act as hotspots for microbial dark matter

DOE PAGES

Andrei, Adrian -Stefan; Baricz, Andreea; Robeson, Michael Scott; ...

2017-07-21

Present-day terrestrial analogue sites are crucial ground truth proxies for studying life in geochemical conditions close to those assumed to be present on early Earth or inferred to exist on other celestial bodies (e.g. Mars, Europa). Although hypersaline sapropels are border-of-life habitats with moderate occurrence, their microbiological and physicochemical characterization lags behind. Here, we study the diversity of life under low water activity by describing the prokaryotic communities from two disparate hypersaline sapropels (Transylvanian Basin, Romania) in relation to geochemical milieu and pore water chemistry, while inferring their role in carbon cycling by matching taxa to known taxon-specific biogeochemical functions.more » Furthermore, the polyphasic approach combined deep coverage SSU rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and bioinformatics with RT-qPCR and physicochemical investigations. We found that sapropels developed an analogous elemental milieu and harbored prokaryotes affiliated with fifty-nine phyla, among which the most abundant were Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes and Chloroflexi. Containing thirty-two candidate divisions and possibly undocumented prokaryotic lineages, the hypersaline sapropels were found to accommodate one of the most diverse and novel ecosystems reported to date and may contribute to completing the phylogenetic branching of the tree of life.« less

Hypersaline sapropels act as hotspots for microbial dark matter

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

Andrei, Adrian -Stefan; Baricz, Andreea; Robeson, Michael Scott

Present-day terrestrial analogue sites are crucial ground truth proxies for studying life in geochemical conditions close to those assumed to be present on early Earth or inferred to exist on other celestial bodies (e.g. Mars, Europa). Although hypersaline sapropels are border-of-life habitats with moderate occurrence, their microbiological and physicochemical characterization lags behind. Here, we study the diversity of life under low water activity by describing the prokaryotic communities from two disparate hypersaline sapropels (Transylvanian Basin, Romania) in relation to geochemical milieu and pore water chemistry, while inferring their role in carbon cycling by matching taxa to known taxon-specific biogeochemical functions.more » Furthermore, the polyphasic approach combined deep coverage SSU rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and bioinformatics with RT-qPCR and physicochemical investigations. We found that sapropels developed an analogous elemental milieu and harbored prokaryotes affiliated with fifty-nine phyla, among which the most abundant were Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes and Chloroflexi. Containing thirty-two candidate divisions and possibly undocumented prokaryotic lineages, the hypersaline sapropels were found to accommodate one of the most diverse and novel ecosystems reported to date and may contribute to completing the phylogenetic branching of the tree of life.« less

Stressful life events and the perpetration of adolescent dating abuse.

PubMed

Chen, May S; Foshee, Vangie A

2015-03-01

Theoretical and empirical evidence suggests that stressful life events are associated with the perpetration of intimate partner violence among adults, but little attention has been given to the relationship between stressful life events and adolescent dating abuse, a prevalent form of violence that results in serious and long-lasting consequences. The current study addresses this gap by examining associations between family-, peer-, school-, and health-related stressful life events and the perpetration of both psychological and physical forms of dating abuse in a sample of 1,125 adolescents (54.6% female, 18% Black), and determining whether these associations are moderated by attributes of the family (closeness to parent) and the adolescent (sex and self-esteem). The total number of stressful events and school-related events were positively associated with the perpetration of psychological dating abuse and family-related events were related to the perpetration of psychological dating abuse for boys, but not girls. Closeness to parent buffered the effect of stressful health-related events on the perpetration of physical dating abuse, but exacerbated the effect of stressful family-related events on the perpetration of physical dating abuse. Health-related events were associated with physical perpetration for those with high, but not low self-esteem. Finally, the total number of stressful events and family-related events were related to the perpetration of physical dating abuse by boys, but not by girls. Taken together, these findings suggest that stressful life events play an important role in adolescent dating abuse, and should be taken into consideration when developing adolescent dating abuse prevention programs.

High Cycle Life Cathode for High Voltage (5V) Lithium Ion Batteries

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-12-16

lithium cobalt phosphate (LiCoPO4) that provides higher energy density (15% > LiFePO4 demonstrated, up to 40% greater with further R&D). •The invention...standard LiFePO4 • Higher voltage at cell level may reduce number of cells required for application • Easy and inexpensive method to prepare • Offers safety

Evolutionary lability of a complex life cycle in the aphid genus Brachycaudus.

PubMed

Emmanuelle, Jousselin; Gwenaelle, Genson; Armelle, Coeur d'acier

2010-09-28

Most aphid species complete their life cycle on the same set of host-plant species, but some (heteroecious species) alternate between different hosts, migrating from primary (woody) to secondary (herbaceous) host plants. The evolutionary processes behind the evolution of this complex life cycle have often been debated. One widely accepted scenario is that heteroecy evolved from monoecy on woody host plants. Several shifts towards monoecy on herbaceous plants have subsequently occurred and resulted in the radiation of aphids. Host alternation would have persisted in some cases due to developmental constraints preventing aphids from shifting their entire life cycle to herbaceous hosts (which are thought to be more favourable). According to this scenario, if aphids lose their primary host during evolution they should not regain it. The genus Brachycaudus includes species with all the types of life cycle (monoecy on woody plants, heteroecy, monoecy on herbs). We used this genus to test hypotheses concerning the evolution of life cycles in aphids. Phylogenetic investigation and character reconstruction suggest that life cycle is evolutionary labile in the genus. Though ancestral character states can be ambiguous depending on optimization methods, all analyses suggest that transitions from monoecy on herbs towards heteroecy have occurred several times. Transitions from heteroecy towards monoecy, are also likely. There have been many shifts in feeding behaviour but we found no significant correlation between life cycle changes and changes in diet. The transitions from monoecy on herbs towards heteroecy observed in this study go against a widely accepted evolutionary scenario: aphids in the genus Brachycaudus seem to be able to recapture their supposedly ancestral woody host. This suggests that the determinants of host alternation are probably not as complicated as previously thought. Definitive proofs of the lability of life cycle in Brachycaudus will necessitate investigation of these determinants. Life cycle changes, whether corresponding to the loss or acquisition of a primary host, necessarily promote speciation, by inducing shifts of the reproductive phase on different plants. We suggest that the evolutionary lability of life cycle may have driven speciation events in the Brachycaudus genus.

21 CFR 106.100 - Records.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... CONSUMPTION INFANT FORMULA QUALITY CONTROL PROCEDURES Records and Reports § 106.100 Records. (a) Every..., including tests conducted when nutrients exceed their expiration date or shelf life (retest date). (2) All... when nutrient premixes exceed their expiration date or shelf life (retest date). (e) The manufacturer...

Advances and Environmental Conditions of Spring Migration Phenology of American White Pelicans

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

King, D. Tommy; Wang, Guiming; Yang, Zhiqiang; Fischer, Justin W.

2017-01-01

Spring migration phenology of birds has advanced under warming climate. Migration timing of short-distance migrants is believed to be responsive to environmental changes primarily under exogenous control. However, understanding the ecological causes of the advancement in avian spring migration phenology is still a challenge due to the lack of long-term precise location data. We used 11 years of Global Positioning System relocation data to determine four different migration dates of the annual migration cycle of the American white pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos), a short-distance migrant. We also tested the hypothesis that increases in winter temperature and precipitation on the wintering grounds would advance pelican spring migration. Pelican spring departures and arrivals advanced steadily from 2002 to 2011. Spring departure timing exhibited high repeatability at the upper end of migration timing repeatability reported in literature. However, individual spring departure and arrival dates were not related to winter daily temperature, total winter precipitation, and detrended vegetation green-up dates indexed by the normalized difference vegetation index. Despite high repeatability, the observed between-year variation of spring departure dates was still sufficient for the advancement of spring departure timing.

Advances and Environmental Conditions of Spring Migration Phenology of American White Pelicans.

PubMed

King, D Tommy; Wang, Guiming; Yang, Zhiqiang; Fischer, Justin W

2017-01-16

Spring migration phenology of birds has advanced under warming climate. Migration timing of short-distance migrants is believed to be responsive to environmental changes primarily under exogenous control. However, understanding the ecological causes of the advancement in avian spring migration phenology is still a challenge due to the lack of long-term precise location data. We used 11 years of Global Positioning System relocation data to determine four different migration dates of the annual migration cycle of the American white pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos), a short-distance migrant. We also tested the hypothesis that increases in winter temperature and precipitation on the wintering grounds would advance pelican spring migration. Pelican spring departures and arrivals advanced steadily from 2002 to 2011. Spring departure timing exhibited high repeatability at the upper end of migration timing repeatability reported in literature. However, individual spring departure and arrival dates were not related to winter daily temperature, total winter precipitation, and detrended vegetation green-up dates indexed by the normalized difference vegetation index. Despite high repeatability, the observed between-year variation of spring departure dates was still sufficient for the advancement of spring departure timing.

Effect of LEO cycling on 125 Ah advanced design IPV nickel-hydrogen flight cells - An update

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smithrick, John J.; Hall, Stephen W.

1991-01-01

An update of validation test results confirming the breakthrough in LEO cycle life of nickel-hydrogen cells containing 26 percent potassium hydroxide (KOH) electrolyte is presented. A breakthrough in the LEO cycle life of individual pressure vessel nickel-hydrogen cells is reported. The cycle life of boiler plate cells containing 26 percent KOH electrolyte was about 40,000 LEO cycles compared to 3500 cycles for cells containing 31 percent KOH.

10 CFR 436.20 - Net savings.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.20 Net savings. For a retrofit project, net savings may be found by subtracting life cycle costs based on the proposed project from life cycle costs based on not having it. For a new building design, net savings is the difference between the life cycle costs of an alternative...

10 CFR 436.20 - Net savings.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.20 Net savings. For a retrofit project, net savings may be found by subtracting life cycle costs based on the proposed project from life cycle costs based on not having it. For a new building design, net savings is the difference between the life cycle costs of an alternative...

10 CFR 435.306 - Selecting a life cycle effective proposed building design.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Selecting a life cycle effective proposed building design... Residential Buildings § 435.306 Selecting a life cycle effective proposed building design. In selecting... prototype, has the highest Net Savings or lowest total life cycle costs calculated in compliance with...

10 CFR 435.306 - Selecting a life cycle effective proposed building design.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Selecting a life cycle effective proposed building design... Residential Buildings § 435.306 Selecting a life cycle effective proposed building design. In selecting... prototype, has the highest Net Savings or lowest total life cycle costs calculated in compliance with...

10 CFR 435.306 - Selecting a life cycle effective proposed building design.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Selecting a life cycle effective proposed building design... Residential Buildings § 435.306 Selecting a life cycle effective proposed building design. In selecting... prototype, has the highest Net Savings or lowest total life cycle costs calculated in compliance with...

10 CFR 436.20 - Net savings.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.20 Net savings. For a retrofit project, net savings may be found by subtracting life cycle costs based on the proposed project from life cycle costs based on not having it. For a new building design, net savings is the difference between the life cycle costs of an alternative...

10 CFR 433.8 - Life-cycle costing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Life-cycle costing. 433.8 Section 433.8 Energy DEPARTMENT... FEDERAL COMMERCIAL AND MULTI-FAMILY HIGH-RISE RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS § 433.8 Life-cycle costing. Each Federal agency shall determine life-cycle cost-effectiveness by using the procedures set out in subpart A...

78 FR 47012 - Developing Software Life Cycle Processes Used in Safety Systems of Nuclear Power Plants

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-02

... NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC-2012-0195] Developing Software Life Cycle Processes Used in... revised regulatory guide (RG), revision 1 of RG 1.173, ``Developing Software Life Cycle Processes for... Developing a Software Project Life Cycle Process,'' issued 2006, with the clarifications and exceptions as...

10 CFR 433.8 - Life-cycle costing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Life-cycle costing. 433.8 Section 433.8 Energy DEPARTMENT... FEDERAL COMMERCIAL AND MULTI-FAMILY HIGH-RISE RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS § 433.8 Life-cycle costing. Each Federal agency shall determine life-cycle cost-effectiveness by using the procedures set out in subpart A...

10 CFR 435.306 - Selecting a life cycle effective proposed building design.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Selecting a life cycle effective proposed building design... Residential Buildings § 435.306 Selecting a life cycle effective proposed building design. In selecting... prototype, has the highest Net Savings or lowest total life cycle costs calculated in compliance with...

10 CFR 436.20 - Net savings.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.20 Net savings. For a retrofit project, net savings may be found by subtracting life cycle costs based on the proposed project from life cycle costs based on not having it. For a new building design, net savings is the difference between the life cycle costs of an alternative...

10 CFR 436.20 - Net savings.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.20 Net savings. For a retrofit project, net savings may be found by subtracting life cycle costs based on the proposed project from life cycle costs based on not having it. For a new building design, net savings is the difference between the life cycle costs of an alternative...

10 CFR 436.42 - Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost Effectiveness.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... the life-cycle cost analysis method in part 436, subpart A, of title 10 of the Code of Federal... 10 Energy 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost Effectiveness. 436.42... PROGRAMS Agency Procurement of Energy Efficient Products § 436.42 Evaluation of Life-Cycle Cost...

Revised systematics of Holospora-like bacteria and characterization of "Candidatus Gortzia infectiva", a novel macronuclear symbiont of Paramecium jenningsi.

PubMed

Boscaro, Vittorio; Fokin, Sergei I; Schrallhammer, Martina; Schweikert, Michael; Petroni, Giulio

2013-01-01

The genus Holospora (Rickettsiales) includes highly infectious nuclear symbionts of the ciliate Paramecium with unique morphology and life cycle. To date, nine species have been described, but a molecular characterization is lacking for most of them. In this study, we have characterized a novel Holospora-like bacterium (HLB) living in the macronuclei of a Paramecium jenningsi population. This bacterium was morphologically and ultrastructurally investigated in detail, and its life cycle and infection capabilities were described. We also obtained its 16S rRNA gene sequence and developed a specific probe for fluorescence in situ hybridization experiments. A new taxon, "Candidatus Gortzia infectiva", was established for this HLB according to its unique characteristics and the relatively low DNA sequence similarities shared with other bacteria. The phylogeny of the order Rickettsiales based on 16S rRNA gene sequences has been inferred, adding to the available data the sequence of the novel bacterium and those of two Holospora species (Holospora obtusa and Holospora undulata) characterized for the purpose. Our phylogenetic analysis provided molecular support for the monophyly of HLBs and showed a possible pattern of evolution for some of their features. We suggested to classify inside the family Holosporaceae only HLBs, excluding other more distantly related and phenotypically different Paramecium endosymbionts.

From life cycle talking to taking action

EPA Science Inventory

The series of Life Cycle Management (LCM) conferences has aimed to create a platform for users and developers of life cycle assessment tools to share their experiences as they challenge traditional environmental management practices, which are narrowly confined (“gate-to-gate”) a...

Life Cycle Assessment for Biofuels

EPA Science Inventory

A presentation based on life cycle assessment (LCA) for biofuels is given. The presentation focuses on energy and biofuels, interesting environmental aspects of biofuels, and how to do a life cycle assessment with some examples related to biofuel systems. The stages of a (biofuel...

Cognitive function during and six months following chemotherapy for front-line treatment of ovarian, primary peritoneal or fallopian tube cancer: An NRG oncology/gynecologic oncology group study.

PubMed

Hess, Lisa M; Huang, Helen Q; Hanlon, Alexandra L; Robinson, William R; Johnson, Rhonda; Chambers, Setsuko K; Mannel, Robert S; Puls, Larry; Davidson, Susan A; Method, Michael; Lele, Shashikant; Havrilesky, Laura; Nelson, Tina; Alberts, David S

2015-12-01

Changes in cognitive function have been identified in and reported by many cancer survivors. These changes have the potential to impact patient quality of life and functional ability. This prospective longitudinal study was designed to quantify the incidence of change in cognitive function in newly diagnosed ovarian cancer patients throughout and following primary chemotherapy. Eligible patients had newly diagnosed, untreated ovarian cancer and had planned to receive chemotherapy. Web-based and patient reported cognitive assessments and quality of life questionnaires were conducted prior to chemotherapy, prior to cycle four, after cycle six, and six months after completion of primary therapy. Two-hundred-thirty-one evaluable patients entered this study between May 2010 and October 2011. At the cycle 4 time point, 25.2% (55/218) of patients exhibited cognitive impairment in at least one domain. At the post-cycle 6 and 6-month follow up time points, 21.1% (44/208) and 17.8% (30/169) of patients, respectively, demonstrated impairment in at least one domain of cognitive function. There were statistically significant, but clinically small, improvements in processing speed (p<0.001) and attention (p<0.001) but not in motor response time (p=0.066), from baseline through the six-month follow up time period. This was a large, prospective study designed to measure cognitive function in ovarian cancer. A subset of patients had evidence of cognitive decline from baseline during chemotherapy treatment in this study as measured by the web-based assessment; however, changes were generally limited to no more than one domain. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A comparative study of commercial lithium ion battery cycle life in electric vehicle: Capacity loss estimation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Xuebing; Ouyang, Minggao; Lu, Languang; Li, Jianqiu

2014-12-01

Now the lithium ion batteries are widely used in electric vehicles (EV). The cycle life is among the most important characteristics of the power battery in EV. In this report, the battery cycle life experiment is designed according to the actual working condition in EV. Five different commercial lithium ion cells are cycled alternatively under 45 °C and 5 °C and the test results are compared. Based on the cycle life experiment results and the identified battery aging mechanism, the battery cycle life models are built and fitted by the genetic algorithm. The capacity loss follows a power law relation with the cycle times and an Arrhenius law relation with the temperature. For automotive application, to save the cost and the testing time, a battery SOH (state of health) estimation method combined the on-line model based capacity estimation and regular calibration is proposed.

USING LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT TOOLS FOR INTEGRATED PRODUCT POLICY

EPA Science Inventory

The European Union's new Integrated Product Policy directs governments and companies to consider the entire product life cycle, from cradle to grave, in their environmental decision-making process. A life-cycle based approach is intended to lead toward true environmental improvem...

Ionically conducting PVA-LiClO4 gel electrolyte for high performance flexible solid state supercapacitors.

PubMed

Chodankar, Nilesh R; Dubal, Deepak P; Lokhande, Abhishek C; Lokhande, Chandrakant D

2015-12-15

The synthesis of polymer gel electrolyte having high ionic conductivity, excellent compatibility with active electrode material, mechanical tractability and long life is crucial to obtain majestic electrochemical performance for flexible solid state supercapacitors (FSS-SCs). Our present work describes effect of different polymers gel electrolytes on electrochemical properties of MnO2 based FSS-SCs device. It is revealed that, MnO2-FSS-SCs with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)-Lithium perchlorate (LiClO4) gel electrolyte demonstrate excellent electrochemical features such as maximum operating potential window (1.2V), specific capacitance of 112Fg(-1) and energy density of 15Whkg(-1) with extended cycling stability up to 2500CV cycles. Moreover, the calendar life suggests negligible decrease in the electrochemical performance of MnO2-FSS-SCs after 20days. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From inanimate matter to living systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fox, S. W.

1980-01-01

Since the early part of this century, the Genesis account of the origin and evolution of life has been explained as an extrapolation of astronomical and geochemical processes. The essence of the answer to date is a protoreproductive protocell of much biochemical and cytophysical competance. The processes of its origin, molecular ordering, and its functions are described. A crucial understanding is that of the nonrandomness of evolutionary processes at all stages (with perhaps a minor statistical component). In this way, evolution conflicts with statistical randomness; the latter is a favorite assumption of both scientific and creationistic critics of the proteinoid theory. The principle contribution of the proteinoid theory to the understanding of general biology is to particularize the view that evolutionary direction is rooted in the shapes of molecules, in stereochemistry. After molecules of the right kind first assembled to protocells, life in its various stages of evolution was an inevitable consequence. It is molecules that continue to assemble as part of living process and, in the role of enzymes, continue to direct life cycle of the cell.

Fatigue life calculation of desuperheater for solving pipe cracking issue using finite element method (FEM) software

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kumar, Aravinda; Singh, Jeetendra Kumar; Mohan, K.

2012-06-01

Desuperheater assembly experiences thermal cycling in operation by design. During power plant's start up, load change and shut down, thermal gradient is highest. Desuperheater should be able to handle rapid ramp up or ramp down of temperature in these operations. With "hump style" two nozzle desuperheater, cracks were appearing in the pipe after only few cycles of operation. From the field data, it was clear that desuperheater is not able to handle disproportionate thermal expansion happening in the assembly during temperature ramp up and ramp down in operation and leading to cracks appearing in the piping. Growth of thermal fatigue crack is influenced by several factors including geometry, severity of thermal stress and applied mechanical load. This paper seeks to determine cause of failure of two nozzle "hump style" desuperheater using Finite Element Method (FEM) simulation technique. Thermal stress simulation and fatigue life calculation were performed using commercial FEA software "ANSYS" [from Ansys Inc, USA]. Simulation result showed that very high thermal stress is developing in the region where cracks are seen in the field. From simulation results, it is also clear that variable thermal expansion of two nozzle studs is creating high stress at the water manifold junction. A simple and viable solution is suggested by increasing the length of the manifold which solved the cracking issues in the pipe.

A Life Cycle Cost Analysis of Rigid Pavements

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1999-09-01

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT)commissioned a research project in 1996, summarized here, to promote life cycle cost analysis of rigid pavements throughout the TxDOT districts by developing a uniform methodology for performing life cycl...

International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) Ice Snow Product in Native (NAT) Format (ISCCP_ICESNOW_NAT)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rossow, William B. (Principal Investigator)

Since 1983 an international group of institutions has collected and analyzed satellite radiance measurements from up to five geostationary and two polar orbiting satellites to infer the global distribution of cloud properties and their diurnal, seasonal and interannual variations. The primary focus of the first phase of the project (1983-1995) was the elucidation of the role of clouds in the radiation budget (top of the atmosphere and surface). In the second phase of the project (1995 onwards) the analysis also concerns improving understanding of clouds in the global hydrological cycle. [Location=GLOBAL] [Temporal_Coverage: Start_Date=1983-07-01; Stop_Date=] [Spatial_Coverage: Southernmost_Latitude=-90; Northernmost_Latitude=90; Westernmost_Longitude=-180; Easternmost_Longitude=180] [Data_Resolution: Latitude_Resolution=112 Km; Longitude_Resolution=112 Km; Temporal_Resolution=5-day].

A new instrument for measuring anticoagulation-related quality of life: development and preliminary validation

PubMed Central

Samsa, Greg; Matchar, David B; Dolor, Rowena J; Wiklund, Ingela; Hedner, Ewa; Wygant, Gail; Hauch, Ole; Marple, Cheryl Beadle; Edwards, Roger

2004-01-01

Background Anticoagulation can reduce quality of life, and different models of anticoagulation management might have different impacts on satisfaction with this component of medical care. Yet, to our knowledge, there are no scales measuring quality of life and satisfaction with anticoagulation that can be generalized across different models of anticoagulation management. We describe the development and preliminary validation of such an instrument – the Duke Anticoagulation Satisfaction Scale (DASS). Methods The DASS is a 25-item scale addressing the (a) negative impacts of anticoagulation (limitations, hassles and burdens); and (b) positive impacts of anticoagulation (confidence, reassurance, satisfaction). Each item has 7 possible responses. The DASS was administered to 262 patients currently receiving oral anticoagulation. Scales measuring generic quality of life, satisfaction with medical care, and tendency to provide socially desirable responses were also administered. Statistical analysis included assessment of item variability, internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha), scale structure (factor analysis), and correlations between the DASS and demographic variables, clinical characteristics, and scores on the above scales. A follow-up study of 105 additional patients assessed test-retest reliability. Results 220 subjects answered all items. Ceiling and floor effects were modest, and 25 of the 27 proposed items grouped into 2 factors (positive impacts, negative impacts, this latter factor being potentially subdivided into limitations versus hassles and burdens). Each factor had a high degree of internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha 0.78–0.91). The limitations and hassles factors consistently correlated with the SF-36 scales measuring generic quality of life, while the positive psychological impact scale correlated with age and time on anticoagulation. The intra-class correlation coefficient for test-retest reliability was 0.80. Conclusions The DASS has demonstrated reasonable psychometric properties to date. Further validation is ongoing. To the degree that dissatisfaction with anticoagulation leads to decreased adherence, poorer INR control, and poor clinical outcomes, the DASS has the potential to help identify reasons for dissatisfaction (and positive satisfaction), and thus help to develop interventions to break this cycle. As an instrument designed to be applicable across multiple models of anticoagulation management, the DASS could be crucial in the scientific comparison between those models of care. PMID:15132746

A quantitative genetic analysis of hibernation emergence date in a wild population of Columbian ground squirrels.

PubMed

Lane, J E; Kruuk, L E B; Charmantier, A; Murie, J O; Coltman, D W; Buoro, M; Raveh, S; Dobson, F S

2011-09-01

The life history schedules of wild organisms have long attracted scientific interest, and, in light of ongoing climate change, an understanding of their genetic and environmental underpinnings is increasingly becoming of applied concern. We used a multi-generation pedigree and detailed phenotypic records, spanning 18 years, to estimate the quantitative genetic influences on the timing of hibernation emergence in a wild population of Columbian ground squirrels (Urocitellus columbianus). Emergence date was significantly heritable [h(2) = 0.22 ± 0.05 (in females) and 0.34 ± 0.14 (in males)], and there was a positive genetic correlation (r(G) = 0.76 ± 0.22) between male and female emergence dates. In adult females, the heritabilities of body mass at emergence and oestrous date were h(2) = 0.23 ± 0.09 and h(2) = 0.18 ± 0.12, respectively. The date of hibernation emergence has been hypothesized to have evolved so as to synchronize subsequent reproduction with upcoming peaks in vegetation abundance. In support of this hypothesis, although levels of phenotypic variance in emergence date were higher than oestrous date, there was a highly significant genetic correlation between the two (r(G) = 0.98 ± 0.01). Hibernation is a prominent feature in the annual cycle of many small mammals, but our understanding of its influences lags behind that for phenological traits in many other taxa. Our results provide the first insight into its quantitative genetic influences and thus help contribute to a more general understanding of its evolutionary significance. © 2011 The Authors. Journal of Evolutionary Biology © 2011 European Society For Evolutionary Biology.

Software security checklist for the software life cycle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gilliam, D. P.; Wolfe, T. L.; Sherif, J. S.

2002-01-01

A formal approach to security in the software life cycle is essential to protect corporate resources. However, little thought has been given to this aspect of software development. Due to its criticality, security should be integrated as a formal approach in the software life cycle.

Application of life cycle thinking in multidisciplinary multistakeholder contexts for cross-sectoral planning and implementation of sustainable development projects.

PubMed

Thabrew, Lanka; Ries, Robert

2009-07-01

Development planning and implementation is a multifaceted and multiscale task mainly because of the involvement of multiple stakeholders across sectors and disciplines. Even though top-down sectoral planning is commonly practiced, bottom-up cross-sectoral planning involving all relevant stakeholders in a transdisciplinary learning environment has been recognized as a better option, especially if the goal is to drive development projects toward sustainable implementation (Rowe and Fudge 2003; Müller et al. 2005; Global Development Research Center 2008). Even though many planning approaches have this goal, there are limited decision frameworks that are suitable for achieving consensus among stakeholders from multiple disciplines with sectoral objectives and priorities. In most instances, the upstream and downstream effects of development decisions are not thoroughly investigated or communicated with the relevant stakeholders, strongly affecting cross-sectoral integration in the real world (Wiek, Brundiers, et al. 2006). This article presents methodological aspects of developing a stakeholder based life cycle assessment framework (SBLCA) for upstream-downstream decision analysis in a multistakeholder development planning context. The applicability of the framework is demonstrated using simple examples extracted from a pilot case study conducted in Sri Lanka for sustainable posttsunami reconstruction at a village scale. The applicability of SBLCA in specific planning stages, how it promotes transdisciplinary learning and cross-sectoral stakeholder integration in phases of project cycles, and how local stakeholders can practice life cycle thinking in their village development planning and implementation are discussed.

Late glacial ice advances in the Strait of Magellan, Southern Chile

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mcculloch, Robert D.; Bentley, Michael J.

During the last glacial cycle low gradient glaciers repeatedly drained north-eastward into the Strait of Magellan and dammed extensive proglacial lakes in the central section of the strait. This paper focuses on the two most recent glacial advances in the strait, culminating over 150 and 80 km from the present ice limits. The timing of the first of the two advances has, up to now, been ambiguous and depended on the interpretation of anomously older dates of 16,590-15,800 yr BP for deglaciation at Puerto del Hambre. Here, we show there is evidence from seismic data and truncated shorelines that the Puerto del Hambre basin has been tectonically displaced and that the dates do not represent minimums for deglaciation. Several other dates show that the advance occurred sometime before 14,260 yr BP. The timing of the second advance has been investigated using a refined tephrochronology for the region, which has also enabled a palaeoshoreline and glaciolacustrine sediments to be linked to a moraine limit. 14C dating of peat and a key tephra layer, above and below the glaciolacustrine deposits, respectively suggest that the advance culminated in the Strait of Magellan between 12,010 and 10,050 yr BP.

Development of computer software for pavement life cycle cost analysis.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1988-01-01

The life cycle cost analysis program (LCCA) is designed to automate and standardize life cycle costing in Virginia. It allows the user to input information necessary for the analysis, and it then completes the calculations and produces a printed copy...

EVALUATING THE GREENNESS OF IONIC LIQUIDS VIA LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT

EPA Science Inventory

Ionic Liquids have been suggested as "greener" replacements to traditional solvents. However, the environmental impacts of the life cycle phases have not been studied. Such a "cradle to gate" Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for comparing the environmental impact of various solvents...

Life cycle-based water assessment of a hand dishwashing product: opportunities and limitations.

PubMed

Van Hoof, Gert; Buyle, Bea; Kounina, Anna; Humbert, Sebastien

2013-10-01

It is only recently that life cycle-based indicators have been used to evaluate products from a water use impact perspective. The applicability of some of these methods has been primarily demonstrated on agricultural materials or products, because irrigation requirements in food production can be water-intensive. In view of an increasing interest on life cycle-based water indicators from different products, we ran a study on a hand dishwashing product. A number of water assessment methods were applied with the purpose of identifying both product improvement opportunities, as well as understanding the potential for underlying database and methodological improvements. The study covered the entire life cycle of the product and focused on environmental issues related to water use, looking in-depth at inventory, midpoint, and endpoint methods. "Traditional" water emission driven methods, such as freshwater eutrophication, were excluded from the analysis. The use of a single formula with the same global supply chain, manufactured in 1 location was evaluated in 2 countries with different water scarcity conditions. The study shows differences ranging up to 4 orders in magnitude for indicators with similar units associated with different water use types (inventory methods) and different cause-effect chain models (midpoint and endpoint impact categories). No uncertainty information was available on the impact assessment methods, whereas uncertainty from stochastic variability was not available at the time of study. For the majority of the indicators studied, the contribution from the consumer use stage is the most important (>90%), driven by both direct water use (dishwashing process) as well as indirect water use (electricity generation to heat the water). Creating consumer awareness on how the product is used, particularly in water-scarce areas, is the largest improvement opportunity for a hand dishwashing product. However, spatial differentiation in the inventory and impact assessment model may lead to very different results for the product used under exactly the same consumer use conditions, making the communication of results a real challenge. From a practitioner's perspective, the data collection step in relation to the goal and scope of the study sets high requirements for both foreground and background data. In particular, databases covering a broad spectrum of inventory data with spatially differentiated water use information are lacking. For some impact methods, it is unknown as to whether or not characterization factors should be spatially differentiated, which creates uncertainty in their interpretation and applicability. Finally, broad application of life cycle-based water assessment will require further development of commercial life cycle assessment software. © 2013 SETAC.