Cognitive Disability and Postsecondary Education: A National Study on Earnings

Postsecondary education provides an opportunity to increase the economic potential of individuals. Earnings for individuals with cognitive disabilities are a major concern, as occupational outcomes are often dire. The prevalence of individuals with cognitive disabilities in postsecondary education settings is increasing, but little is known about how postsecondary attendance may relate to post-graduation earnings for this population. This article presents findings from the 2017 U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey on the prevalence of individuals with cognitive disabilities who have attended various levels of postsecondary education and a series of linear regressions identifies the relationship between varying degrees and earnings while controlling for age, sex, race, ethnicity, public support systems, weeks worked each year, and hours worked each week. Results indicated that some college without a degree (14.815%), an associate’s degree (35.831%), a bachelor’s degree (68.267%), and advanced degrees (106.063%) all provide substantial earnings increases over individuals who received a high school degree or less. Findings include policy and practice implications to improve supports and services to increase access to postsecondary education for individuals with cognitive disabilities

Development of Fly Ash Derived Sorbents to Capture CO2 from Flue Gas of Power Plants

This research program focused on the development of fly ash derived sorbents to capture CO{sub 2} from power plant flue gas emissions. The fly ash derived sorbents developed represent an affordable alternative to existing methods using specialized activated carbons and molecular sieves, that tend to be very expensive and hinder the viability of the CO{sub 2} sorption process due to economic constraints. Under Task 1 'Procurement and characterization of a suite of fly ashes', 10 fly ash samples, named FAS-1 to -10, were collected from different combustors with different feedstocks, including bituminous coal, PRB coal and biomass. These samples presented a wide range of LOI value from 0.66-84.0%, and different burn-off profiles. The samples also spanned a wide range of total specific surface area and pore volume. These variations reflect the difference in the feedstock, types of combustors, collection hopper, and the beneficiation technologies the different fly ashes underwent. Under Task 2 'Preparation of fly ash derived sorbents', the fly ash samples were activated by steam. Nitrogen adsorption isotherms were used to characterize the resultant activated samples. The cost-saving one-step activation process applied was successfully used to increase the surface area and pore volume of all the fly ash samples. The activated samples present very different surface areas and pore volumes due to the range in physical and chemical properties of their precursors. Furthermore, one activated fly ash sample, FAS-4, was loaded with amine-containing chemicals (MEA, DEA, AMP, and MDEA). The impregnation significantly decreased the surface area and pore volume of the parent activated fly ash sample. Under Task 3 'Capture of CO{sub 2} by fly ash derived sorbents', sample FAS-10 and its deashed counterpart before and after impregnation of chemical PEI were used for the CO{sub 2} adsorption at different temperatures. The sample FAS-10 exhibited a CO{sub 2} adsorption capacity of 17.5mg/g at 30 C, and decreases to 10.25mg/g at 75 C, while those for de-ashed counterpart are 43.5mg/g and 22.0 mg/g at 30 C and 75 C, respectively. After loading PEI, the CO{sub 2} adsorption capacity increased to 93.6 mg/g at 75 C for de-ashed sample and 62.1 mg/g at 75 C for raw fly ash sample. The activated fly ash, FAS-4, and its chemical loaded counterparts were tested for CO{sub 2} capture capacity. The activated carbon exhibited a CO{sub 2} adsorption capacity of 40.3mg/g at 30 C that decreased to 18.5mg/g at 70 C and 7.7mg/g at 120 C. The CO{sub 2} adsorption capacity profiles changed significantly after impregnation. For the MEA loaded sample the capacity increased to 68.6mg/g at 30 C. The loading of MDEA and DEA initially decreased the CO{sub 2} adsorption capacity at 30 C compared to the parent sample but increased to 40.6 and 37.1mg/g, respectively, when the temperature increased to 70 C. The loading of AMP decrease the CO{sub 2} adsorption capacity compared to the parent sample under all the studied temperatures. Under Task 4 'Comparison of the CO{sub 2} capture by fly ash derived sorbents with commercial sorbents', the CO{sub 2} adsorption capacities of selected activated fly ash carbons were compared to commercial activated carbons. The CO{sub 2} adsorption capacity of fly ash derived activated carbon, FAS-4, and its chemical loaded counterpart presented CO{sub 2} capture capacities close to 7 wt%, which are comparable to, and even better than, the published values of 3-4%

Optimization and characterization of a femtosecond tunable light source based on the soliton self-frequency shift in photonic crystal fiber

International audienceWe take advantage of the Raman soliton self-frequency shift experienced during the propagation in an anomalous dispersive photonic crystal fiber in order to continuously tune the central frequency of ultrashort pulses. We discuss the fiber properties to be favored to obtain high power spectral densities and we carry out an extensive experimental study of the properties of the frequency shifted pulses in terms of spectral, autocorrelation, and RF spectrum measurements

Entanglement in a Solid State Spin Ensemble

Entanglement is the quintessential quantum phenomenon and a necessary ingredient in most emerging quantum technologies, including quantum repeaters, quantum information processing (QIP) and the strongest forms of quantum cryptography. Spin ensembles, such as those in liquid state nuclear magnetic resonance, have been powerful in the development of quantum control methods, however, these demonstrations contained no entanglement and ultimately constitute classical simulations of quantum algorithms. Here we report the on-demand generation of entanglement between an ensemble of electron and nuclear spins in isotopically engineered phosphorus-doped silicon. We combined high field/low temperature electron spin resonance (3.4 T, 2.9 K) with hyperpolarisation of the 31P nuclear spin to obtain an initial state of sufficient purity to create a non-classical, inseparable state. The state was verified using density matrix tomography based on geometric phase gates, and had a fidelity of 98% compared with the ideal state at this field and temperature. The entanglement operation was performed simultaneously, with high fidelity, to 10^10 spin pairs, and represents an essential requirement of a silicon-based quantum information processor.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures plus supporting information of 4 pages, 1 figure v2: Updated reference

Towards net-zero: CO 2 capture and biogas purification through electric potential swing desorption to achieve SDGs 7 and 13

Currently, the potential of biomethane derived from biogas is substantial, positioning it to fulfill a considerable share of the United Kingdom’s total energy needs. The primary challenge associated with raw biogas lies in purifying it to produce biomethane, a process that necessitates the removal of carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide. Among the various methods, adsorption of activated carbon (AC) stands out as a particularly effective and cost-efficient approach for converting biogas into biomethane, provided that the regeneration of AC proves economically viable. In this research, a segment of activated carbon was utilized to assess the adsorption properties when exposed to a gas mixture of CO2, H2S, and N2 within a regenerative activated carbon setup. This investigation encompassed the analysis of adsorption and desorption behaviors, process capacities, and the impact of regeneration. To enhance the adsorption of CO2, electro-conductive polymers (ECPs) were incorporated into the AC samples, leading to an extension in breakthrough time. Subsequent to adsorption, the electric potential swing desorption (EPSD) was employed for in situ regeneration of activated carbon samples, involving potentials of up to 30 V. The findings exhibited that the newly introduced EPSD technique considerably diminished desorption durations for both H2S and CO2. Moreover, it successfully rejuvenated the accessible adsorption sites, resulting in reduced desorption times compared to the initial breakthrough time during adsorption. Consequently, the EPSD system proves to be a promising candidate for in situ regeneration of activated carbon to eliminate CO2 and H2S from biogas. Notably, this approach offers inherent advantages over conventional methods including thermal swing adsorption (TSA) and pressure swing adsorption (PSA) in terms of regeneration. The demonstrated method underscores the potential for more efficient and economically viable cycles of adsorption and desorption, thereby enhancing the overall biogas-to-biomethane conversion process to achieve SDGs 7 and 13 for clean and green energy applications

Long-term Transplant Function After Thrombolytic Treatment Ex Vivo of Donated Kidneys Retrieved 4 to 5 Hours After Circulatory Death

Background.\ua0Using a novel thrombolytic technique, we present long-term transplant function, measured by creatinine and iohexol clearance, after utilizing kidneys from porcine donors with uncontrolled donation after circulatory deaths, with 4.5–5 h of warm ischemia.Methods.\ua0Pigs in the study group were subjected to simulated circulatory death. After 2 h, ice slush was inserted into the abdomen and 4.5 h after death, the kidneys were retrieved. Lys-plasminogen, antithrombin-III, and alteplase were injected through the renal arteries on the back table. Subsequent ex vivo perfusion was continued for 3 h at 15\ub0C, followed by 3 h with red blood cells at 32\ub0C, and then transplanted into pigs as an autologous graft as only renal support. Living-donor recipient pigs that did not receive ex vivo perfusion, and unilateral nephrectomized pigs served as the controls.Results.\ua0Pigs in the study group (n = 13), surviving 10 d or more were included, of which 7 survived for 3 mo. Four animals in the living-donor group (n = 6) and all 5 nephrectomized animals survived for 3 mo. Creatinine levels in the plasma and urine, neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin levels, Kidney Injury Marker-1 expression, and iohexol clearance at 3 mo did not differ significantly between the study and living-donor groups. Histology and transmission electron microscopy after 3 mo showed negligible fibrosis and no other damage.Conclusions.\ua0The present method salvages kidneys from extended unontrolled donation after circulatory death using thrombolytic treatment while preserving histology and enabling transplantation after ex vivo reconditioning, with clinically acceptable late function after 3 mo, as measured by creatinine and iohexol clearance