Development of 1 MJ Conduction-Cooled LTS Pulse Coil for UPS-SMES

A 1 MW, 1 s UPS-SMES is being developed for a protection from a momentary voltage drop and an instant power failure. As a key technology of the UPS-SMES, we developed a prototype LTS pulse coil with a stored energy of 100 kJ and conducted cooling and excitation tests in 2005. The operation test of the prototype UPS-SMES using this 100 kJ coil with power converters have been performed in 2006. A 1 MJ coil was designed before the fabrication of the 100 kJ prototype coil. The superconductor, the electric insulation technique, the winding method, and the cooling structure used for the 100 kJ coil were based upon the 1 MJ coil design. The successful performance test results of the prototype 100 kJ coil validated the design concept and fabrication technique of the 1 MJ coil. According to the achievement of the prototype 100 kJ UPS-SMES, the 1 MJ conduction-cooled LTS pulse coil has been fabricated successfully. The successful experimental results of the 100 kJ prototype coil with power converters and the fabrication procedure of the 1 MJ full size coil are described

Cbl-b DEFICIENCY AND MACROPHAGE ACTIVATION

We previously reported the potential involvement of casitas B-cell lymphoma-b (Cbl-b) in aging-related murine insulin resistance. Because obesity also induces macrophage recruitment into adipose tissue, we elucidated here the role of Cbl-b in obesity-related insulin resistance. Cbl-b+/+ and Cbl-b-/- mice were fed a high-fat diet (HFD) and then examined for obesity-related changes in insulin signaling. The HFD caused recruitment of macrophages into adipose tissue and increased inflammatory reaction in Cbl-b-/- compared with Cbl-b+/+ mice. Peritoneal macrophages from Cbl-b-/- mice and Cbl-b–overexpressing RAW264.7 macrophages were used to examine the direct effect of saturated fatty acids (FAs) on macrophage activation. In macrophages, Cbl-b suppressed saturated FA-induced Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) signaling by ubiquitination and degradation of TLR4. The physiological role of Cbl-b in vivo was also examined by bone marrow transplantation and Eritoran, a TLR4 antagonist. Hematopoietic cell-specific depletion of the Cbl-b gene induced disturbed responses on insulin and glucose tolerance tests. Blockade of TLR4 signaling by Eritoran reduced fasting blood glucose and serum interleukin-6 levels in obese Cbl-b-/- mice. These results suggest that Cbl-b deficiency could exaggerate HFD-induced insulin resistance through saturated FA-mediated macrophage activation. Therefore, inhibition of TLR4 signaling is an attractive therapeutic strategy for treatment of obesity-related insulin resistance

Culture and psychosocial function in British and Japanese people with an ostomy

Original article can be found at : http://ovidsp.tx.ovid.com/ Copyright Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins [Full text of this article is not available in the UHRA]PURPOSE: We compared social and psychological adjustment to surgery ending with an ostomy in British and Japanese patients. METHODS: In response to a postal survey, 948 ostomy patients (464 British and 484 Japanese), selected at random from respective national databases, provided assessable data on the Ostomy Adjustment Inventory-23 (OAl-23), a validated scale for measurement of psychosocial adjustment to an ostomy. RESULTS: Analysis of variance revealed that country of residence (F-1,F-876 (-)50.9, P <.001) and time since surgery (F-3,F-876 (-)9.9, P <.001) significantly influenced psychosocial adjustment to an ostomy. British persons with an ostomy experienced higher psychosocial adjustment to an ostomy than did Japanese respondents. Multivariate analysis based on acceptance, social engagement, anxious-preoccupation, and anger also found that country of residence and time since surgery influenced psychosocial adjustment (Pillai's Trace: V = 0.22, F = 67.15, P < 0.001, and V = 0.05, F = 3.6, P <.001, respectively). Acceptance and social engagement (discriminant coefficient = 0.92 and 0.56, respectively) made the largest contribution. CONCLUSION: Psychosocial functioning differed in British and Japanese persons with an ostomy, suggesting that culture influences psychosocial adjustment to life with an ostomy. These findings support the need for culturally informed ostomy care.Peer reviewe

Thermally stable graft-type polymer electrolyte membranes consisting based on poly (ether ether ketone) and crosslinked graft-polymers for fuel cell applications

The effect of crosslinking on the thermal stability of poly (styrenesulfonic acid)-grafted poly (ether ether ketone) polymer electrolyte membranes (PEEK-PEMs) was investigated in water at 120 °C. The radiation-induced graft polymerization of an ethyl 4-styrenesulfonate (ETSS) monomer onto PEEK substrates, with divinylbenzene (DVB) (0.05, 0.1, 0.2, and 0.5wt.%) as a crosslinker, followed by hydrolysis, generated crosslinker-containing PEEK-PEMs (PEEK-×0.05, -×0.1, -×0.2, and -×0.5), because the crosslinker (up to 0.5wt.%) did not cause any destructive effect on the on grafting and hydrolysis rates. As a result, grafting degrees of 100–114% and ion exchange capacities (IECs) of 2.2–2.7 mmol/g, respectively, were achieved. Increasing the DVB amounts (from 0 to 0.5 wt.%), the conductivity, and water uptakes decreased; the PEEK-×0.5 showed a conductivity of 0.10 S/cm and water uptake of 43%. This confirms the successful incorporation of crosslinking structures on the graft-polymers. The hydrothermal test involved the immersion of PEMs in water at 120 °C for 500 hours. The no-crosslinked PEEK-PEMs with the same IEC (2.7 mmol/g) experienced a decreases in the weight and IEC to 84 and 68% levels from the initial values, respectively, while those of crosslinked PEEK-×0.05 almost maintained their initial values (100 and 96%, respectively). These results indicated that very small amounts of crosslinkers can decreases the conductivity and the water absorption tendency while increasing the hydrothermal stability at higher temperatures