Comparative study of heat transfer and pressure drop during flow boiling and flow condensation in minichannels

This paper was presented at the 4th Micro and Nano Flows Conference (MNF2014), which was held at University College, London, UK. The conference was organised by Brunel University and supported by the Italian Union of Thermofluiddynamics, IPEM, the Process Intensification Network, the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, the Heat Transfer Society, HEXAG - the Heat Exchange Action Group, and the Energy Institute, ASME Press, LCN London Centre for Nanotechnology, UCL University College London, UCL Engineering, the International NanoScience Community, www.nanopaprika.eu.In the paper a method developed earlier by authors is applied to calculations of pressure drop and heat transfer coefficient for flow boiling and also flow condensation for some recent data collected from literature for such fluids as R245fa, R600a, R134a, R1234yf and other. The modification of interface shear stresses between flow boiling and flow condensation in annular flow structure is considered through incorporation of the so called blowing parameter. The shear stress between vapor phase and liquid phase is generally a function of non-isothermal effects. The mechanism of modification of shear stresses at the vapor-liquid interface has been presented in detail. In case of annular flow it contributes to thickening and thinning of the liquid film, which corresponds to condensation and boiling respectively. There is also a different influence of heat flux on the modification of shear stress in the bubbly flow structure, where it affects the bubble nucleation. In that case the effect of applied heat flux is considered. As a result a modified form of the two-phase flow multiplier is obtained, in which the non-adiabatic effect is clearly pronounced

Temporal evolution of anxiety and depression in chronic heart failure and its association with clinical outcome

Background: Although anxiety and depression have been associated with adverse outcomes in chronic heart failure (HF), data on temporal evolution of these symptoms are scarce. We aimed to investigate the association between repeatedly measured depression and anxiety symptoms and clinical outcome in chronic HF patients. Methods: In this prospective observational study, outpatients with chronic HF were included and followed-up for a maximum of 2.5 years. The hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS) questionnaire was conducted every six months. The primary endpoint was a composite of HF hospitalization, cardiovascular death, heart transplantation and left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation. Cox and joint models were used to investigate the association between the HADS score and the endpoint. Results: A total of 362 patients filled out a median (25th–75th percentile) of 3 [2–4] questionnaires each. Mean ± SD age was 63 ± 13 years, 72% were men. Anxiety scores remained relatively stable leading up to the endpoint, while depression scores increased. Higher baseline depression scores were significantly associated with the endpoint (hazard ratio [HR] 1.68 and 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.19–2.36 per log(score+1), p = 0.003), while higher baseline anxiety scores did not reach statistical significance (HR [95% CI] 1.34 [0.99–1.83], p = 0.061). When repeatedly measured, both higher anxiety (HR [95% CI] 1.57[1.07–2.30], p = 0.022) and depression (HR [95% CI] 2.04 [1.39–3.06], p &lt; 0.001) scores were significantly associated with the endpoint. Conclusion: Serial measurements of depression and anxiety symptoms identify chronic HF patients with increased risk of adverse clinical outcomes. Screening for both disorders should be considered in clinical practice.</p

Genetic Burden of TNNI3K in Diagnostic Testing of Patients With Dilated Cardiomyopathy and Supraventricular Arrhythmias

BACKGROUND: Genetic variants in TNNI3K (troponin-I interacting kinase) have previously been associated with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), cardiac conduction disease, and supraventricular tachycardias. However, the link between TNNI3K variants and these cardiac phenotypes shows a lack of consensus concerning phenotype and protein function. METHODS: We describe a systematic retrospective study of a cohort of patients undergoing genetic testing for cardiac arrhythmias and cardiomyopathy including TNNI3K. We further performed burden testing of TNNI3K in the UK Biobank. For 2 novel TNNI3K variants, we tested cosegregation. TNNI3K kinase function was estimated by TNNI3K autophosphorylation assays.RESULTS: We demonstrate enrichment of rare coding TNNI3K variants in DCM patients in the Amsterdam cohort. In the UK Biobank, we observed an association between TNNI3K missense (but not loss-of-function) variants and DCM and atrial fibrillation. Furthermore, we demonstrate genetic segregation for 2 rare variants, TNNI3K-p.Ile512Thr and TNNI3K-p.His592Tyr, with phenotypes consisting of DCM, cardiac conduction disease, and supraventricular tachycardia, together with increased autophosphorylation. In contrast, TNNI3K-p.Arg556_Asn590del, a likely benign variant, demonstrated depleted autophosphorylation. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings demonstrate an increased burden of rare coding TNNI3K variants in cardiac patients with DCM. Furthermore, we present 2 novel likely pathogenic TNNI3K variants with increased autophosphorylation, suggesting that enhanced autophosphorylation is likely to drive pathogenicity.</p

Genetic burden of TNNI3K in diagnostic testing of patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and supraventricular arrhythmias

BACKGROUND:Genetic variants in TNNI3K (troponin-I interacting kinase) have previously been associated with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), cardiac conduction disease, and supraventricular tachycardias. However, the link between TNNI3K variants and these cardiac phenotypes shows a lack of consensus concerning phenotype and protein function. METHODS:We describe a systematic retrospective study of a cohort of patients undergoing genetic testing for cardiac arrhythmias and cardiomyopathy including TNNI3K. We further performed burden testing of TNNI3K in the UK Biobank. For 2 novel TNNI3K variants, we tested cosegregation. TNNI3K kinase function was estimated by TNNI3K autophosphorylation assays. RESULTS:We demonstrate enrichment of rare coding TNNI3K variants in DCM patients in the Amsterdam cohort. In the UK Biobank, we observed an association between TNNI3K missense (but not loss-of-function) variants and DCM and atrial fibrillation. Furthermore, we demonstrate genetic segregation for 2 rare variants, TNNI3K-p.Ile512Thr and TNNI3K-p.His592Tyr, with phenotypes consisting of DCM, cardiac conduction disease, and supraventricular tachycardia, together with increased autophosphorylation. In contrast, TNNI3K-p.Arg556_Asn590del, a likely benign variant, demonstrated depleted autophosphorylation. CONCLUSIONS:Our findings demonstrate an increased burden of rare coding TNNI3K variants in cardiac patients with DCM. Furthermore, we present 2 novel likely pathogenic TNNI3K variants with increased autophosphorylation, suggesting that enhanced autophosphorylation is likely to drive pathogenicity.Genetics of disease, diagnosis and treatmen

Technical aspects of checking the driver's working time

W artykule omówiono normy prawne regulujące czas pracy kierowców samochodów o nośności powyżej 3,5 tony oraz urządzenia stosowane do rejestracji czasu ich pracy. Okazuje się, że w praktyce regulacje te stwarzają dla kierowców wiele problemów. Powoduje to, że czasami podejmowane są próby omijania tych przepisów. W pracy przedstawiono przykłady działań związanych z tym procesem. Dotyczą one głównie ingerencji w pracę urządzeń rejestrujących parametry jazdy samochodem. Przykłady te dotyczą typowych działań podejmowanych w stosunku do tachometrów samochodowych. Należy podkreślić, że są one niezgodne z przepisami i podlegają stosownym karom. Nie mniej w praktyce zdarzają się dość często. Głównym celem pracy było przybliżenie zasad i unormowań obowiązujących w transporcie samochodowym oraz problemów technicznych związanych z ich stosowaniem.In the article, there are presented the discussion of the legal standards governing the working time for car drivers with a capacity of over 3.5 tones and the equipment used to record of their work time. In practice, these regulations pose many problems for drivers. This makes that sometimes attempts are made to avoid these rules. The paper presents examples of activities related to this process. These actions mainly concern the interference in the operation of recording equipment the limits of driving the car. These examples illustrate the typical activities undertaken with respect to car tachometers. It is important to point out that they are illegal and subject to appropriate penalties. It is important, that they are illegal and subject to appropriate penalties. Nevertheless, in practice there often occur. The aim of the article was to approximate the rules and regulations governing of car transport and the technical problems related to their use

Comparative study of heat transfer and pressure drop during flow boiling and flow condensation in minichannels

In the paper a method developed earlier by authors is applied to calculations of pressure drop and heat transfer coefficient for flow boiling and also flow condensation for some recent data collected from literature for such fluids as R404a, R600a, R290, R32,R134a, R1234yf and other. The modification of interface shear stresses between flow boiling and flow condensation in annular flow structure are considered through incorporation of the so called blowing parameter. The shear stress between vapor phase and liquid phase is generally a function of nonisothermal effects. The mechanism of modification of shear stresses at the vapor-liquid interface has been presented in detail. In case of annular flow it contributes to thickening and thinning of the liquid film, which corresponds to condensation and boiling respectively. There is also a different influence of heat flux on the modification of shear stress in the bubbly flow structure, where it affects bubble nucleation. In that case the effect of applied heat flux is considered. As a result a modified form of the two-phase flow multiplier is obtained, in which the nonadiabatic effect is clearly pronounced