Exploring the environmental performance of liquid glass coating using Sol-Gel technology and responsive Venetian blinds in the tropics

The dynamic nature of tropical skies presents challenges for the built environment due to the momentous fluctuations and instability in solar irradiance and illuminance levels that cause limitations in responding to the needs of the indoor environment. The study aims to investigate the performance of daylighting strategies using liquid glass coating and responsive Venetian blinds in an office building in the tropics. The objective of this study is to systematically examine the impacts of proposed strategies on indoor environmental conditions. The study was experimentally investigated by utilising field measurements in full-scale cellular offices in a real environment and simulation using Radiance. The results indicated that responsive Venetian blinds provided steady daylight levels between 375 lx and 588 lx in the centre of the room, while a further integration with liquid glass coating provided a glare control with a maximum of 33.71% (Imperceptible) using Daylight Glare Probability. The indoor air temperature was reduced by 3.42 °C with liquid glass coating and 2.85 °C with responsive Venetian blinds. The outputs of assessing the performance of static and responsive strategies demonstrated new findings that are significant to developing these strategies in the tropics

Bean Golden Mosaic: Research Advances

El frijol (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) es una de las fuentes de proteina (15-35%) y calorías (ca. 340 caI./100 gr) más importantes en la América Latina. En esta región, centro de origen de esta especie, se producen más de cuatro millones de toneladas de frijol al año, lo cual equivale al 88% de la semilla de frijol producida en las regiones tropicales del mundo. Brasil, el mayor productor de frijol del mundo, posee un consumo per capita de cerca de 20 kg/año. En America Central, el frijol es igualmente importante, siendo consumido en la mayoría de los países centroamericanos hasta tres veces por día. Proporcionalmente, en la America Central se cultiva el doble del área que en Brasil, relativo a sus extensiones territoriales. El frijol es también producido en islas del Caribe, tales como Cuba (ca. 26.000 TM), Haití (56.000 TM) y República Dominicana (55.000 TM) según datos de 1990 (CIAT). México, el segundo productor de frijol en la America Latina, consume aproximadamente 1.2 millones de toneladas métricas de frijol al año. A pesar de que México cultiva cerca de 1.800.000 hectáreas de frijol, la demanda interna no es satisfecha en algunos años dado la baja productividad del cultivo. Esta baja productividad relativa del frijol, no solo en México sino también en el resto de la América Latina (700 kg/ha vs. 1.600 kg/ha en los Estados Unidos), es una consecuencia de los múltiples problemas bióticos y abióticos que inciden en el cultivo, en el trópico Americano. Es precisamente en las regiones productoras de frijol situadas en climas cálidos, de altitud baja a intermedia (0-1200 m.s.n.m), donde el mosaico dorado del frijol alcanza su mayor incidencia.The common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is an important source of protein and calories in Latin America. In this region, the center of origin of this legume species, over 4 million tons of dry beans are produced per year. Nevertheless, many Latin American countries, including two of the largest producers of beans in the world, Brazil and Mexico, have to import beans to meet internal demand. This shortage of beans is related to the low productivity of this crop in Latin America (700 kg /ha vs. 1,600 kg/ ha average in the USA). The low productivity in the main bean production regions of tropical America is associated to the incidence of several biotic and abiotic constraints. Among the biotic constraints, bean golden mosaic virus is undoubtedly the main bean production problem in the lowland tropics, particularly, during the dry seasons of the year.Programa Cooperativo Regional de Frijol para Centroamérica, México y el Caribe (PROFRIJOL)Cooperación Suiza para el Desarrollo (COSUDE)Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical (CIAT)UCR::Vicerrectoría de Investigación::Unidades de Investigación::Ciencias Agroalimentarias::Estación Experimental Agrícola Fabio Baudrit Moreno (EEAFBM

The global burden of cancer attributable to risk factors, 2010–19: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

BACKGROUND: Understanding the magnitude of cancer burden attributable to potentially modifiable risk factors is crucial for development of effective prevention and mitigation strategies. We analysed results from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019 to inform cancer control planning efforts globally. METHODS: The GBD 2019 comparative risk assessment framework was used to estimate cancer burden attributable to behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risk factors. A total of 82 risk–outcome pairs were included on the basis of the World Cancer Research Fund criteria. Estimated cancer deaths and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) in 2019 and change in these measures between 2010 and 2019 are presented. FINDINGS: Globally, in 2019, the risk factors included in this analysis accounted for 4·45 million (95% uncertainty interval 4·01–4·94) deaths and 105 million (95·0–116) DALYs for both sexes combined, representing 44·4% (41·3–48·4) of all cancer deaths and 42·0% (39·1–45·6) of all DALYs. There were 2·88 million (2·60–3·18) risk-attributable cancer deaths in males (50·6% [47·8–54·1] of all male cancer deaths) and 1·58 million (1·36–1·84) risk-attributable cancer deaths in females (36·3% [32·5–41·3] of all female cancer deaths). The leading risk factors at the most detailed level globally for risk-attributable cancer deaths and DALYs in 2019 for both sexes combined were smoking, followed by alcohol use and high BMI. Risk-attributable cancer burden varied by world region and Socio-demographic Index (SDI), with smoking, unsafe sex, and alcohol use being the three leading risk factors for risk-attributable cancer DALYs in low SDI locations in 2019, whereas DALYs in high SDI locations mirrored the top three global risk factor rankings. From 2010 to 2019, global risk-attributable cancer deaths increased by 20·4% (12·6–28·4) and DALYs by 16·8% (8·8–25·0), with the greatest percentage increase in metabolic risks (34·7% [27·9–42·8] and 33·3% [25·8–42·0]). INTERPRETATION: The leading risk factors contributing to global cancer burden in 2019 were behavioural, whereas metabolic risk factors saw the largest increases between 2010 and 2019. Reducing exposure to these modifiable risk factors would decrease cancer mortality and DALY rates worldwide, and policies should be tailored appropriately to local cancer risk factor burden

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Bearing capacity of shell strip footing on reinforced sand

In this paper, the ultimate load capacities of shell foundations on unreinforced and reinforced sand were determined by laboratory model tests. A series of loading tests were carried out on model shell footing with and without single layer of reinforcement. The tests were done for shell foundation at different shell embedment depth and subgrade density. The results were compared with those for flat foundations without reinforcement. The model test results were verified using finite element analysis using program PLAXIS. The experimental studies indicated that, the ultimate load capacity of shell footing on reinforced subgrade is higher than those on unreinforced cases and the load settlement curves were significantly modified. The shell foundation over reinforced subgrade can be considered a good method to increase the effective depth of the foundation and decrease the resulting settlement. Also the rupture surface of shell reinforced system was significantly deeper than both normal footing and shell footing without reinforcement. The numerical analysis helps in understanding the deformation behavior of the studied systems and identifies the failure surface of reinforced shell footing

Theoretical approach for the performance of 4-mercapto-1-alkylpyridin-1-ium bromide as corrosion inhibitors using DFT

Density function theory (DFT) study on adsorptivity and corrosion inhibition performance of 4-mercapto-1-alkylpyridin-1-ium bromide (where R = C8, C10 and C12) on carbon steel in 1 M HCl solution was presented. Quantum chemical descriptors were investigated to explain the performance of these molecules as corrosion inhibitors. These descriptors were EHOMO; energy of the highest occupied molecular orbital, ELUMO; energy of the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital, ΔE; the energy gap, η; Global hardness, S; global softness, I: ionization potential, A: electron affinity, X: absolute electronegativity, ΔN; the fraction of electron transferred, ω; global electrophilicity index, ΔEBack-donation; the back donation, f+, f−; Fukui indices for local nucleophilic and electrophilic attacks and s+, s− local softness. The result of descriptors calculation pronounces that the theoretical approach complies with the reported experimental data. Keywords: DFT, Quantum chemical descriptors, Fukui function, Local reactivit

مكونات الفاصوليا الخضراء ( الدهنيات والفلافرتيد ات )

Chemical study of the lipid fraction resulted in the isolation and identification of a hydrocarbon fraction (n-Czg -0-033); an aliphatic alcohol fraction (C^, Czp, €30) and a sterol fraction (stigmasterol and sitosterol). Analysis of the fatty acids revealed the presence of myristic, palmitic, hexadodecanoic, stearic, oleic and linoleic acids. The flavonoid constituents were identified as kaempferol-3-rutinoside and quercetin-3-rutinoside.أسفرت دراسة الدهنيات عن فصل والتعرف على هيدروكربونات مشبعة ، كحولات اليافتية مشبعة وستيرويدات ( بيتا سيتو ستيرول ستيجما ستيرول ) وأسفر تحليل الاحماض الدهنية عن وجود احماض الميرستيك ، الى الهكساديكانويك ، الستياريك ، الأوليك ، اللينوليك . وقد اسفرت دراسة المواد الفلافونيدية عن التعرف على مركبين. كامبفيرول ، -3-روتينوسيد،كيرستين -3-روتينوسليد

The performance of hydrophobic and hydrophilic moieties in synthesized thiol cationic surfactants on corrosion inhibition of carbon steel in HCl

AbstractHere in, cationic surfactants namely (1-octyl, decyl, and dodecyl-4-mercaptopyridine-1-ium bromide) I, II and III, respectively, were synthesized. The inhibition effect of these surfactants on the corrosion of carbon steel in 1M HCl was studied by polarization, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and weight loss measurements. Polarization curves revealed that the used inhibitors represent mixed-type inhibitors. Adsorption of used inhibitors led to a reduction in the double layer capacitance and an increase in the charge transfer resistance. Adsorption of used compounds was found to obey Langmuir isotherm

Biomimetic building skins: an adaptive approach

© 2017 Elsevier Ltd This paper provides an overview of the design of biomimetic building skins. Many types of smart and responsive building envelopes have been developed, but their improvement to achieve adaptability remains unclear and unstructured. Studies on biomimicry have formulated strategies but have failed to identify or review their technical and functional aspects in terms of architecture. Therefore, this study aims to understand biomimetic building skin designs by investigating its mechanisms, functions and materials through an adaptive approach. This study describes these biomimetic designs through theories, concepts, issues, approaches, methodologies, materials from nature, developed materials and systems in architectural applications. The study also employs a systematic quantitative research to enhance the integration of biology and architecture. This research is based on an evidence review focusing on selected studies and exploration results in accordance with systematic methods and critical analyses, such as classification and comparison, to identify patterns and trends. This study provides further insights into the relationship between biological systems and building skins. It also contributes to the development of adaptive building skins based on functional aspects to overcome technical challenges and promote innovation and sustainable architectural systems