1,064 research outputs found
Experiments and dynamic modeling of a reactive distillationcolumn for the production of ethyl acetate by consideringthe heterogeneous catalyst pilot complexities
Great effort has been applied to model and simulate the dynamic behavior of the reactive distillation as a successfulprocess intensification example. However, very little experimental work has been carried out in transient conditions.The work presents a series of experiments for the production of ethyl acetate from esterification of acetic acid andethanol in a reactive distillation pilot column. The steady-state approach performed experiments with both excessof alcohol and stoichiometric feed configuration. Predicted and measured results show good agreement and reveala strong dependency of the structured packing catalyst activity on the pilot geometry and its operating conditions.The transient process behavior of the heterogeneously catalyzed system was deeply investigated and continuousand dynamic data were collected for an equilibrium model validation, after different perturbations on parameters.The experimental validation is shown to be essential to provide realistic hydrodynamic parameters, to understandthe sensitive parameters such as heat losses and to adapt values for the catalyst holdup as a function of the system
Safe Brain Tumor Resection Does not Depend on Surgery Alone - Role of Hemodynamics
Aim of this study was to determine if perioperative hemodynamics have an impact on perioperative infarct volume and patients' prognosis. 201 cases with surgery for a newly diagnosed or recurrent glioblastoma were retrospectively analyzed. Clinical data and perioperative hemodynamic parameters, blood tests and time of surgery were recorded. Postoperative infarct volume was quantitatively assessed by semiautomatic segmentation. Mean diastolic blood pressure (dBP) during surgery (rho -0.239, 95% CI -0.11 - -0.367, p = 0.017), liquid balance (rho 0.236, 95% CI 0.1-0.373, p = 0.017) and mean arterial pressure (MAP) during surgery (rho -0.206, 95% CI -0.07 - -0.34, p = 0.041) showed significant correlation to infarct volume. A rank regression model including also age and recurrent surgery as possible confounders revealed mean intraoperative dBP, liquid balance and length of surgery as independent factors for infarct volume. Univariate survival analysis showed mean intraoperative dBP and MAP as significant prognostic factors, length of surgery also remained as significant prognostic factor in a multivariate model. Perioperative close anesthesiologic monitoring of blood pressure and liquid balance is of high significance during brain tumor surgery and should be performed to prevent or minimize perioperative infarctions and to prolong survival
Acupuncture for dry eye: a multicentre randomised controlled trial with active comparison intervention (artificial tear drop) using a mixed method approach protocol
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Previous studies of acupuncture show favourable results for both subjective and objective outcomes of dry eye. However, firm conclusions could not be drawn from these studies because the quality of the trials was too low to establish concrete evidence. Therefore, this study was designed both to avoid the flaws of the existing trials and to assess the effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and qualitative characteristics of acupuncture treatment for dry eye.</p> <p>Methods/design</p> <p>One hundred fifty participants with dry eye will be recruited into three independent hospitals from different areas: Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine, DongGuk University Ilsan Oriental Hospital and Dongshin University Gwangju Oriental Hospital. The number of participants required was calculated from the data of a previous, relevant study. These patients will be randomly allocated into acupuncture treatment or artificial tear groups. Either 17 acupuncture points (bilateral BL2, GB14, TE 23, Ex1, ST1, GB20, LI4, LI11 and single GV23) will be used 3 times a week or disposable artificial tear drops (Refresh Plus<sup>®</sup>, ALLERGAN) will be provided for use at least once a day for 4 weeks. The ocular surface disease index (OSDI), tear film break-up time (TFBUT), Schirmer I test, visual analogue scale (VAS) for self-assessment of ocular discomfort, general assessment (by both acupuncture practitioners and participants) and quality of life (QOL) through the Measure Yourself Medical Outcome Profile-2 (MYMOP-2) will be assessed for approximately 3-months for each study participant. In addition, qualitative study and cost-effectiveness of acupuncture treatment will be conducted.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>ClinicalTrials.gov (Identifier: NCT01105221).</p
Search for inherited susceptibility to radiation-associated meningioma by genomewide SNP linkage disequilibrium mapping
The dependence of dijet production on photon virtuality in ep collisions at HERA
The dependence of dijet production on the virtuality of the exchanged photon,
Q^2, has been studied by measuring dijet cross sections in the range 0 < Q^2 <
2000 GeV^2 with the ZEUS detector at HERA using an integrated luminosity of
38.6 pb^-1.
Dijet cross sections were measured for jets with transverse energy E_T^jet >
7.5 and 6.5 GeV and pseudorapidities in the photon-proton centre-of-mass frame
in the range -3 < eta^jet <0. The variable xg^obs, a measure of the photon
momentum entering the hard process, was used to enhance the sensitivity of the
measurement to the photon structure. The Q^2 dependence of the ratio of low- to
high-xg^obs events was measured.
Next-to-leading-order QCD predictions were found to generally underestimate
the low-xg^obs contribution relative to that at high xg^obs. Monte Carlo models
based on leading-logarithmic parton-showers, using a partonic structure for the
photon which falls smoothly with increasing Q^2, provide a qualitative
description of the data.Comment: 35 pages, 6 eps figures, submitted to Eur.Phys.J.
Beauty photoproduction measured using decays into muons in dijet events in ep collisions at =318 GeV
The photoproduction of beauty quarks in events with two jets and a muon has
been measured with the ZEUS detector at HERA using an integrated luminosity of
110 pb. The fraction of jets containing b quarks was extracted from the
transverse momentum distribution of the muon relative to the closest jet.
Differential cross sections for beauty production as a function of the
transverse momentum and pseudorapidity of the muon, of the associated jet and
of , the fraction of the photon's momentum participating in
the hard process, are compared with MC models and QCD predictions made at
next-to-leading order. The latter give a good description of the data.Comment: 32 pages, 6 tables, 7 figures Table 6 and Figure 7 revised September
200
Search for a narrow charmed baryonic state decaying to D^*+/- p^-/+ in ep collisions at HERA
A resonance search has been made in the D^*+/- p^-/+ invariant-mass spectrum
with the ZEUS detector at HERA using an integrated luminosity of 126 pb^-1. The
decay channels D^*+ -> D^0 pi^+_s -> (K^- pi^+) pi^+_s and D^*+ -> D^0 pi^+_s
-> (K^- pi^+ pi^+ pi^-) pi^+_s (and the corresponding antiparticle decays) were
used to identify D^*+/- mesons. No resonance structure was observed in the
D^*+/- p^-/+ mass spectrum from more than 60000 reconstructed D^*+/- mesons.
The results are not compatible with a report of the H1 Collaboration of a
charmed pentaquark, Theta^0_c.Comment: 22 pages, 7 figures, 1 table; minor text revisions; 2 references
adde
Inhibition of GSK3 Phosphorylation of β-Catenin via Phosphorylated PPPSPXS Motifs of Wnt Coreceptor LRP6
The Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway plays essential roles in cell proliferation and differentiation, and deregulated β-catenin protein levels lead to many types of human cancers. On activation by Wnt, the Wnt co-receptor LDL receptor related protein 6 (LRP6) is phosphorylated at multiple conserved intracellular PPPSPXS motifs by glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3) and casein kinase 1 (CK1), resulting in recruitment of the scaffolding protein Axin to LRP6. As a result, β-catenin phosphorylation by GSK3 is inhibited and β-catenin protein is stabilized. However, how LRP6 phosphorylation and the ensuing LRP6-Axin interaction lead to the inhibition of β-catenin phosphorylation by GSK3 is not fully understood. In this study, we reconstituted Axin-dependent β-catenin phosphorylation by GSK3 and CK1 in vitro using recombinant proteins, and found that the phosphorylated PPPSPXS peptides directly inhibit β-catenin phosphorylation by GSK3 in a sequence and phosphorylation-dependent manner. This inhibitory effect of phosphorylated PPPSPXS motifs is direct and specific for GSK3 phosphorylation of β-catenin at Ser33/Ser37/Thr41 but not for CK1 phosphorylation of β-catenin at Ser45, and is independent of Axin function. We also show that a phosphorylated PPPSPXS peptide is able to activate Wnt/β-catenin signaling and to induce axis duplication in Xenopus embryos, presumably by inhibition of GSK3 in vivo. Based on these observations, we propose a working model that Axin recruitment to the phosphorylated LRP6 places GSK3 in the vicinity of multiple phosphorylated PPPSPXS motifs, which directly inhibit GSK3 phosphorylation of β-catenin. This model provides a possible mechanism to account, in part, for inhibition of β-catenin phosphorylation by Wnt-activated LRP6
Angular and Current-Target Correlations in Deep Inelastic Scattering at HERA
Correlations between charged particles in deep inelastic ep scattering have
been studied in the Breit frame with the ZEUS detector at HERA using an
integrated luminosity of 6.4 pb-1. Short-range correlations are analysed in
terms of the angular separation between current-region particles within a cone
centred around the virtual photon axis. Long-range correlations between the
current and target regions have also been measured. The data support
predictions for the scaling behaviour of the angular correlations at high Q2
and for anti-correlations between the current and target regions over a large
range in Q2 and in the Bjorken scaling variable x. Analytic QCD calculations
and Monte Carlo models correctly describe the trends of the data at high Q2,
but show quantitative discrepancies. The data show differences between the
correlations in deep inelastic scattering and e+e- annihilation.Comment: 26 pages including 10 figures (submitted to Eur. J. Phys. C
Plastisol Foaming Process. Decomposition of the Foaming Agent, Polymer Behavior in the Corresponding Temperature Range and Resulting Foam Properties
The decomposition of azodicarbonamide, used as foaming agent in PVC - plasticizer (1/1) plastisols was studied by DSC. Nineteen different plasticizers, all belonging to the ester family, two being polymeric (polyadipates), were compared. The temperature of maximum decomposition rate (in anisothermal regime at 5 K min-1 scanning rate), ranges between 434 and 452 K. The heat of decomposition ranges between 8.7 and 12.5 J g -1. Some trends of variation of these parameters appear significant and are discussed in terms of solvent (matrix) and viscosity effects on the decomposition reactions. The shear modulus at 1 Hz frequency was determined at the temperature of maximum rate of foaming agent decomposition, and differs significantly from a sample to another. The foam density was determined at ambient temperature and the volume fraction of bubbles was used as criterion to judge the efficiency of the foaming process. The results reveal the existence of an optimal shear modulus of the order of 2 kPa that corresponds roughly to plasticizer molar masses of the order of 450 ± 50 g mol-1. Heavier plasticizers, especially polymeric ones are too difficult to deform. Lighter plasticizers such as diethyl phthalate (DEP) deform too easily and presumably facilitate bubble collapse
- …