Due To (due + to)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Mechanisms affecting the dissolution of nonaqueous phase liquids into the aqueous phase in slow-stirring batch systems

ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY & CHEMISTRY, Issue 3 2001
Mathias Schluep
Abstract Understanding the kinetics of the exchange processes between nonaqueous phase liquids (NALs) and water is important in predicting the fate of anthropogenic compounds such as petroleum hydrocarbons, i.e., benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (BTEX) as well as polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Exchange processes occurring in the environment resemble the experimental setup of the slow-stirring method (SSM) designed to determine solubilities and octanol-water partition coefficients. Data obtained from SSM experiments for diesel fuel compounds are interpreted by a linear transfer model that is characterized by an aqueous molecular boundary layer and the water/NAPL equilibrium partition coefficient. For the chosen experimental setup, the boundary layer thickness is 2.42 × 10,2 cm. Typical equilibration times lie between 1 and 2 d. Due to the temperature dependence of the aqueous diffusivity, this time increases with decreasing temperature. Transport within the NAPL phase can slow down the exchange process for the more water-soluble compounds (e.g., benzene) provided that the stirring rate exceeds a critical value. [source]


Tensile and compressive damage coupling for fully-reversed bending fatigue of fibre-reinforced composites

FATIGUE & FRACTURE OF ENGINEERING MATERIALS AND STRUCTURES, Issue 6 2002
W. Van Paepegem
ABSTRACT Due to their high specific stiffness and strength, fibre-reinforced composite materials are winning through in a wide range of applications in automotive, naval and aerospace industry. Their design for fatigue is a complicated problem and a large research effort is being spent on it today. However there is still a need for extensive experimental testing or large safety factors to be adopted, because numerical simulations of the fatigue damage behaviour of fibre-reinforced composites are often found to be unreliable. This is due to the limited applicability of the theoretical models developed so far, compared to the complex multi-axial fatigue loadings that composite components often have to sustain in in-service loading conditions. In this paper a new phenomenological fatigue model is presented. It is basically a residual stiffness model, but through an appropriate choice of the stress measure, the residual strength and thus final failure can be predicted as well. Two coupled growth rate equations for tensile and compressive damage describe the damage growth under tension,compression loading conditions and provide a much more general approach than the use of the stress ratio R. The model has been applied to fully-reversed bending of plain woven glass/epoxy specimens. Stress redistributions and the three stages of stiffness degradation (sharp initial decline , gradual deterioration , final failure) could be simulated satisfactorily. [source]


Diverse Asymmetric Quinolizidine Synthesis: A Stereodivergent One-Pot Approach

ADVANCED SYNTHESIS & CATALYSIS (PREVIOUSLY: JOURNAL FUER PRAKTISCHE CHEMIE), Issue 2-3 2010
Wei Zhang
Abstract A diverse stereodivergent organocatalytic one-pot addition/cyclization/annulation sequence to optically active quinolizidine derivatives from easily available starting materials is presented. The one-pot sequence relies on a pyrrolidine-catalyzed enantioselective conjugate addition of electron-deficient amide ,-carbons to ,,,-unsaturated aldehydes, spontaneous hemiaminal formation and acid-catalyzed/mediated N -acyliminium ion cyclization to give the quinolizidine framework. Simple tuning of the reaction conditions in the N -acyliminuim ion cyclization step provides a diastereomeric switch, which gives access to both of the two bridgehead epimers through kinetic, thermodynamic or chelation control. The methodology display a broad substrate scope that is demonstrated by the stereoselective formation of indolo-, thieno-, benzofuro-, furo- and different benzoquinolizidine derivatives with high atom efficiency, up to >99% ee and up to >95:5 dr. Due to its efficiency, synthetic diversity and operational simplicity, this protocol has the potential to find important use as a key step in natural product synthesis, biochemistry and pharmaceutical science. The stereochemical outcome of the one-pot sequence was investigated, and the mechanism and origin of stereoselectivity of the different steps is discussed. [source]


A review of the early discharge experiences of stroke survivors and their carers

JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING, Issue 18 2008
Jan Pringle
Aims and objectives., Understanding the experiences of stroke patients and their carers during the early days following discharge from hospital is an important aspect of providing appropriate care during this crucial time. Background., Due to the diverse changes that can result from a stroke, adjustment to returning home may raise many issues for those involved. A review of research was undertaken with the aim of identifying what is already known about experiences at this time. Design., Systematic review. Method., Search of electronic databases. Results., The review revealed that recognition of the impact of stroke on patients and carers is improving, with many studies focussing on the longer-term aspects of stroke recovery. Research into the early discharge experiences of stroke patients and/or their carers is often limited to retrospective, longitudinal studies. With the continuing shift towards care in the community, patients and carers can increasingly expect more recovery to be taking place at home at an even earlier stage. Earlier discharge may have important implications for those involved. The review also highlighted that patients with aphasia have frequently been excluded from stroke research and that social roles are important aspects in stroke recovery. Conclusions., To prepare patients and carers better for the impact of returning home, further research is needed into their experiences at this significant time, particularly in the UK. There is also a need to facilitate the inclusion of those with aphasia in stroke research. Relevance to clinical practice., An improved understanding of the issues facing stroke patients and carers during their early days at home should facilitate the preparation for discharge in the hospital setting and allow more focussed follow-up services in the community. [source]


Spawning dynamics and biomass estimates of an anchovy Engraulis australis population in contrasting gulf and shelf environments

JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY, Issue 7 2009
W. F. Dimmlich
The spawning biomass of Australian anchovy Engraulis australis in gulf and shelf waters of South Australia was compared using the daily egg production method (DEPM). The total survey area was 128 700 km2 with recorded spawning areas in gulf and shelf waters of 4898 and 44 618 km2, respectively. High egg densities in the warm, shallow gulf waters were produced by small, young (<1 year old) E. australis that spawned relatively small batches of eggs (c. 855) approximately every 3 days. In cooler, deeper shelf waters, where larger, older E. australis are found, lower egg densities occurred despite individuals producing much larger batches of eggs (c. 15 572) approximately every 7 days. In shelf waters, the highest densities were recorded at inshore sampling stations. Spawning appeared to peak between 0000 and 0100 hours. Females were more abundant than males in samples from both gulf and shelf waters with sex ratios of 0·61 and 0·56, respectively. The spawning biomass of E. australis in shelf waters was 101 522 t, whereas the estimate for gulf waters was 25 374 t. Due to the differences in mean size of the spawning females, however, c. 6 × 109E. australis were present in each region. The results support the hypothesis that variability in habitat conditions may directly influence E. australis reproduction. A large reserve of young fish in the relatively stable gulf environment may increase the resilience of the E. australis population in South Australia to unfavourable interannual changes in offshore environmental conditions. [source]


Experimental study on gasification characteristics and slagging behavior of Chinese typical high ash fusion temperature coal in lab scale downflow gasifier

ASIA-PACIFIC JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING, Issue 3 2010
Xiaojiang Wu
Abstract In order to extend the applicability of entrained flow gasification technology by using Chinese high ash fusion temperature (AFT) coal with dry ash extraction, gasification characteristics and slagging behavior of Chinese high AFT coal were studied in a lab scale downflow gasifier. The results showed that under this experimental condition, the optimum temperature window which is suitable for dry ash extraction with high AFT coal ranges from 1573 to 1623 K, as well as the corresponding optimum O2/coal mass ratio ranges from 0.93 to 1.13. The cold gas efficiency and carbon conversion are around 42 and 90%, respectively in this experiment. The slag on the bottom of the gasifier and in the cyclone existed, on the whole, as solid except that some small parts were melted with several micrometers in diameter, while the slag in the bag filter had remained unmelted when continue operating at an optimum condition for 1.5 h. Due to the small percentage of melted parts in the slag, the tendency of plugging is small and the problems of plugging can be avoided at the exit of gasifier by gasifying Chinese high AFT coal at around 1623 K. Copyright © 2009 Curtin University of Technology and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Tayler instability with Hall effect in young neutron stars

ASTRONOMISCHE NACHRICHTEN, Issue 1 2009
G. Rüdiger
Abstract Collapse calculations indicate that the hot young neutron stars rotate differentially so that strong toroidal magnetic field components should exist in the outer shell where also the Hall effect appears to be important when the Hall parameter = ,B, exceeds unity. The amplitudes of the induced toroidal magnetic fields are limited by the current-induced Tayler instability. An important characteristics of the Hall effect is its distinct dependence on the sign of the magnetic field. We find for fast rotation that positive (negative) Hall parameters essentially reduce (increase) the stability domain. It is thus concluded that the toroidal field belts in young neutron stars induced by their differential rotation should have different amplitudes in both hemispheres which later are frozen in. Due to the effect of magnetic suppression of the heat conductivity also the brightness of the two hemispheres should be different. As a possible example for our scenario the isolated neutron star RBS 1223 is considered which has been found to exhibit different X-ray brightness at both hemispheres (© 2009 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) [source]


Mouse Strain Susceptibility to Diethylnitrosamine Induced Hepatocarcinogenesis Is Cell Autonomous Whereas Sex-susceptibility Is Due to the Micro-environment: Analysis with C3H , BALB/c Sexually Chimeric Mice

CANCER SCIENCE, Issue 7 2000
Tetsuya Tsukamoto
In man, liver cancer is on the increase, especially in males. Sex differences also exist in rodent models. To elucidate the mechanisms, chimeric mice were produced by amalgamation of early embryos from high and low hepatocarcinogen-susceptible strains, C3H and BALB/c. Tumor formation was initiated with 10 mg/kg of diethylnitrosamine at the ages of 7 and 14 days and mice were sacrificed at 30 and 45 weeks. The chimeras were classified into XY,XY, XY,XX, XX,XY, and XX,XX in terms of sex chromosomes by means of polymerase chain reaction-simple sequence length polymorphism analysis (SSLP) using Y chromosome-specific Sry primers in combination with the D3Mit21 marker. Liver lesions were analyzed histopathologically, by immunostaining using a C3H strain-specific antibody and by DNA in situ hybridization with the Y chromosomespecific digoxigenin-labeled Y353/B probe. Sex and strain genotyping by SSLP analysis matched histological observations, confirming the reliability of our system. The strain differences in liver tumor numbers of each strain type in XY,XY and XX,XX subtypes of C3H,BALB/c chimeras were retained well (P< 0.0001 and P< 0.001, respectively), indicating a minimum influence of the C3H or BALB/c surrounding milieu on development of individual lesions. On the other hand, significant promotion of XX cell tumors was evident in phenotypically male sexually chimeric XY,XX and XX,XY chimeras for both C3H (P< 0.02) and BALB/c (P< 0.01) lesions compared to the XX,XX case. The results suggest the presence of hormonal or micro-environmental factors specific for males, which are not caused cell-autonomously. Basic strain differences, however, are determined by intrinsic genetic factors rather than the strain-dependent micro-environment [source]


Engineering Metal Complexes of Chiral Pentaazacrowns as Privileged Reverse-turn Scaffolds

CHEMICAL BIOLOGY & DRUG DESIGN, Issue 2 2007
Ye Che
Reverse turns are common structural motifs and recognition sites in protein/protein interactions. The design of peptidomimetics is often based on replacing the amide backbone of peptides by a non-peptidic scaffold while retaining the biologic mode of action. This study evaluates the potential of metal complexes of chiral pentaazacrowns conceptually derived by reduction of cyclic pentapeptides as reverse-turn mimetics. The possible conformations of metal complexes of chiral pentaazacrown scaffolds have been probed by analysis of 28 crystal structures complexed with six different metals (Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, and Zn). The solvated structures as well as the impact of complexation with different metals/oxidation states have been examined with density functional theory (DFT) calculation as explicitly represented by interactions with a single water molecule. The results suggest that most reverse-turn motifs seen in proteins could be mimicked effectively with a subset of metal complexes of chiral pentaazacrown scaffolds with an RMSD of approximately 0.3 Å. Due to the relatively fixed orientation of the pendant chiral side groups in these metal complexes, one can potentially elicit information about the receptor-bound conformation of the parent peptide from their binding affinities. The presence of 20 H-atoms on the pentaazacrown ring that could be functionalized as well as the conformational perturbations available from complexation with different metals offer a desirable diversity to probe receptors for reverse-turn recognition. [source]


Liquid-Liquid Stratified Flow through Horizontal Conduits

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY (CET), Issue 8 2005
T. Sunder Raj
Abstract The stratified configuration is one of the basic and most important distributions during two phase flow through horizontal pipes. A number of studies have been carried out to understand gas-liquid stratified flows. However, not much is known regarding the simultaneous flow of two immiscible liquids. There is no guarantee that the information available for gas-liquid cases can be extended to liquid-liquid flows. Therefore, the present work attempts a detailed investigation of liquid-liquid stratified flow through horizontal conduits. Gas-liquid flow exhibits either smooth or wavy stratified orientations, while liquid-liquid flow exhibits other distinct stratified patterns like three layer flow, oil dispersed in water, and water flow, etc. Due to this, regime maps and transition equations available for predicting the regimes in gas-liquid flow cannot be extended for liquid-liquid cases by merely substituting phase physical properties in the equations. Further efforts have been made to estimate the in-situ liquid holdup from experiments and theory. The analysis considers the pronounced effect of surface tension, and attempts to modify the Taitel-Dukler model to account for the curved interface observed in these cases. The curved interface model of Brauner has been validated with experimental data from the present work and those reported in literature. It gives a better prediction of liquid holdup in oil-water flows and reduces to the Taitel-Dukler model for air-water systems. [source]


Risk of Heart Failure Due to a Combination of Mild Mitral Regurgitation and Impaired Distensibility of the Left Ventricle in Patients with Old Myocardial Infarction

CLINICAL CARDIOLOGY, Issue 12 2008
Shu Inami MD
Abstract Background Ischemic mitral regurgitation (MR) is a serious complication after myocardial infarction, and the incidence of heart failure (HF) increases as the severity of MR increases. However, little is known about the relationship between mild MR and HF in the patients with old myocardial infarction (OMI) and a normal ejection fraction (EF). Hypothesis We hypothesized that a combination of mild MR and impaired distensibility of the left ventricle may increase the risk of diastolic HF in the patients with OMI and a normal EF. Methods The relationship between HF and mild MR was retrospectively investigated in 62 patients with OMI and EF of > 50% on echocardiography. Results Of the 62 patients, 47 (76%) did not have HF and 15 (24%) had HF. There was a significant difference in the incidence of mild MR between the patients with and without HF (p < 0.0001): of the 47 patients without HF, mild MR was detected in 19, but all 15 patients with HF had mild MR. However, there were no significant differences in age, gender, infarct sites, diseased coronary vessels, peak CK level, and observation period between the 2 groups. An increased E-wave and the ratio of the E-wave to the A-wave (E/A), a reduction of the E-wave deceleration time, and an increased brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) level were significantly noted in HF patients with mild MR compared with patients without HF. Conclusions Even a mild MR may cause diastolic HF in patients with impaired distensibility of the left ventricle due to ischemic heart disease. Copyright © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source]