Strengthening reinforced concrete column-slab connection using CFRP sheets.

Due to the high cost of new construction and the increasing inventory of otherwise adequate structure, the need for repair, strengthening, or reinforced-concrete structures is growing significantly in Canada and worldwide. Fiber reinforced polymer technology has emerged during the past decade as a particular tool to upgrade existing structures. These materials are an excellent option for use as external reinforcing because of their light weight, resistance to corrosion, and high strength. This thesis introduces a strengthening technique of slab-column connection in flat-slab structures to enhance its flexural strength. Six flat-slab column connections were fabricated and then tested under increasing gravity loading up-to-complete collapse to investigate the effectiveness of using carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) sheets in enhancing their flexural capacity. Each specimen comprised 2000 x 1000 x 150 mm slab, with a 200 x 200 mm column stub extending below and above the slab. The tested specimens consisted of two groups. The first group provided control specimens, on which three specimens had central column, edge column, and eccentric column, respectively. The second group was similar to the first group but with CFRP sheets installed around the column on the tension side of the slab. Different structural quantities were used to examine the contribution of CFRP sheets slab. Different structural quantities were used to examine the contribution of CFRP sheets to the flexural strength of the tested specimens. These structural quantities included deflections, concrete and steel strains, ultimate load carrying capacities and crack patterns. Results from testing showed that the ultimate load carrying capacity increased by 32, 38 and 65% for the tested specimens with central, eccentric, and edge column, respectively, when strengthened using CFRP sheets.Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Paper copy at Leddy Library: Theses & Major Papers - Basement, West Bldg. / Call Number: Thesis2004 .A26. Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 43-01, page: 0261. Advisers: F. Ghrib; K. M. Sennah. Thesis (M.A.Sc.)--University of Windsor (Canada), 2004

Putting a price tag on novel autologous cellular therapies

This paper was accepted for publication in the journal Cytotherapy and the definitive published version is available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jcyt.2016.05.005Cell therapies, especially autologous therapies, pose significant challenges to researchers who wish to move from small, probably academic, methods of manufacture to full commercial scale. There is a dearth of reliable information about the costs of operation, and this makes it difficult to predict with confidence the investment needed to translate the innovations to the clinic, other than as small-scale, clinician-led prescriptions. Here, we provide an example of the results of a cost model that takes into account the fixed and variable costs of manufacture of one such therapy. We also highlight the different factors that influence the product final pricing strategy. Our findings illustrate the need for cooperative and collective action by the research community in pre-competitive research to generate the operational models that are much needed to increase confidence in process development for these advanced products

Solvatochromism and potentiometic studies of some active nitroso- and nitroso-azo- compounds

The stability studies of biologically active 2,4-dinitrosoresorcinol, o-carboxy phenylazo-dinitrosoresorcinol, N,N`-bis-[4,4`-(1,3-diphenyltriazine)]-diacetamide, 2-amino-6-phenylazo-pyridin-3-ol, 2-amino-3-hydroxy-pyridin-6-ylazo)-benzoic acid, 4-(2-amino-3-hydroxy-pyridin-6-ylazo)-benzoic acid ethyl ester and N-[4-(2-amino-3-hydroxy-pyridin-6-ylazo)-phenyl]-acetamide compounds were studied. The dissociation constants were determined potentiometrically. The thermodynamic parameters of dissociation were evaluated. Regression analysis is applied for correlating the different parameters. The results help to assign the solute-solvent interactions and the solvatochromic potential of the investigated compounds. The electronic character of the substituent and the chemical nature of the solvent are major factors for the observed solvatochromism

Putting a price tag on novel autologous cellular therapies

Cell therapies, especially autologous therapies, pose significant challenges to researchers who wish to move from small, probably academic, methods of manufacture to full commercial scale. There is a dearth of reliable information about the costs of operation, and this makes it difficult to predict with confidence the investment needed to translate the innovations to the clinic, other than as small-scale, clinician-led prescriptions. Here, we provide an example of the results of a cost model that takes into account the fixed and variable costs of manufacture of one such therapy. We also highlight the different factors that influence the product final pricing strategy. Our findings illustrate the need for cooperative and collective action by the research community in pre-competitive research to generate the operational models that are much needed to increase confidence in process development for these advanced products

Uranium/Vanadium Separation from El-Sahu Carnotite-Bearing Kaolin, Southwestern Sinai, Egypt

A working sample of the lower Carboniferous carnotite-bearing kaolin of wadi El Sahu, Southwestern, Sinai assaying 2.6% uranium and 1.2% vanadium species is subjected to sulfuric acid pug leaching. The extraction behavior of both metal values was first studied from their combined synthetic solution using DEHPA and Aliquat-336 extractants. The obtained results are then applied upon El-Sahu sulfuric acid leach liquor where after proper oxidation of the leach liquor, uranium was selectively extracted as cationic ions by DEHPA solvent, while the vanadium left behind was subsequently extracted as anionic ions using Aliquat-336

Immunogenicity of CAR T cells in cancer therapy

Patient-derived T cells genetically reprogrammed to express CD19-specific chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) have shown remarkable clinical responses and are commercially available for the treatment of patients with certain advanced-stage B cell malignancies. Nonetheless, several trials have revealed pre-existing and/or treatment-induced immune responses to the mouse-derived single-chain variable fragments included in these constructs. These responses might have contributed to both treatment failure and the limited success of redosing strategies observed in some patients. Data from early phase clinical trials suggest that CAR T cells are also associated with immunogenicity-related events in patients with solid tumours. Generally, the clinical implications of anti-CAR immune responses are poorly understood and highly variable between different CAR constructs and malignancies. These observations highlight an urgent need to uncover the mechanisms of immunogenicity in patients receiving CAR T cells and develop validated assays to enable clinical detection. In this Review, we describe the current clinical evidence of anti-CAR immune responses and discuss how new CAR T cell technologies might impact the risk of immunogenicity. We then suggest ways to reduce the risks of anti-CAR immune responses to CAR T cell products that are advancing towards the clinic. Finally, we summarize measures that investigators could consider in order to systematically monitor and better comprehend the possible effects of immunogenicity during trials involving CAR T cells as well as in routine clinical practice

Cetylpyridinium Bromide/Polyvinyl Chloride for Substantially Efficient Capture of Rare Earth Elements from Chloride Solution

A new sorbent cetylpyridinium bromide/polyvinylchloride (CPB/PVC) was prepared and tested to extract rare earth elements (REEs) from their chloride solutions. It was identified by FTIR, TGA, SEM, EDX, and XRD. The impact of various factors such as pH, RE ion initial concentration, contacting time, and dose amount via sorption process was inspected. The optimum pH was 6.0, and the equilibrium contact time was reached at 60 min at 25 °C. The prepared adsorbent (CPB/PVC) uptake capacity was 182.6 mg/g. The adsorption of RE ions onto the CPB/PVC sorbent was found to fit the Langmuir isotherm as well as pseudo-second-order models well. In addition, the thermodynamic parameters of RE ion sorption were found to be exothermic and spontaneous. The desorption of RE ions from the loaded CPB/PVC sorbent was investigated. It was observed that the optimum desorption was achieved at 1.0 M HCl for 60 min contact time at ambient room temperature and a 1:60 solid: liquid phase ratio (S:L). As a result, the prepared CPB/PVC sorbent was recognized as a competitor sorbent for REEs. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.The authors express their gratitude to Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University Researchers Supporting Project number (PNURSP2022R13), Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia