Algunas consideraciones sobre los efectos de la rebaja de la velocidad máxima a 110 km/h

Queremos creer que la decisión del Gobierno de rebajar temporalmente a 110 km/h la velocidad máxima en las autopistas y autovías a partir del 7 de marzo, con objeto de ahorrar combustible, es una ocurrencia fruto de la improvisación, como muchos han opinado. Esta creencia está avalada por las declaraciones del Vicepresidente Chaves, quien ha afirmado que “llevaban quince días discutiéndolas”. Normalmente, decisiones de este calado son precedidas por estudios de sus consecuencias, e incluso se llevan a cabo algunas experiencias piloto, reducidas en ámbito y breves en tiempo, para comprobar los efectos de la medida; pero ésta parece una reacción rápida al súbito encarecimiento del crudo provocado por los recientes (y aún inconclusos) movimientos sociales en el Norte de Áfric

Perfluoropolyether-Based Micellar Aggregates Coatings for Corrosion Resistance Enhancement of Copper-Based Alloys

In this paper, a perfluoropolyether (PFPE) micellar solution was effectively deposited on metallic substrates using a dip-coating process to enhance brass and nickel aluminum bronze (NAB) corrosion resistance. Particular attention was paid to the aesthetic results as well. Enabling the metallic substrates hydrophobic to facilitate water and moisture removal was the key concept of this work. The corrosion resistance of the as-received and coated metals was investigated via a salt spray chamber test. The study focused on the characterization of the polymeric coating via dynamic light scattering and wettability tests, while the substrates were assessed with traditional metallographic techniques. The preparation of the polymeric solution was important in determining the final corrosion resistance of the two substrates. Noteworthy was the effectiveness of the PFPE-based coating when it was applied to the brass rather than the NAB. Moreover, the polymer concentration of the dip-coating polymeric emulsion was the most significant factor to obtaining adequate protection: higher polymer concentrations resulted in a decrease in corrosion resistance

Fingerprinting the Hydration Products of Hydraulic Binders Using Snapshots from Time-Resolved In Situ Multinuclear MAS NMR Spectroscopy

The very early hydration behavior of a hydraulic binder phase, ye'elimite, Ca4Al6O12SO4, in the absence and in the presence of calcium sulfate, has been investigated. A time-resolved in situ multin..

I FABBISOGNI DEI TERRITORI, L’AGENDA ONU 2030 E L’OFFERTA FORMATIVA UNIVERSITARIA

La diffusione del Covid19 ha indubbiamente generato un’amplificazione delle preoccupazioni destate dalle emergenze climatiche e ambientali. Ne è emersa una geografia che, mentre in una prospettiva globale presenta caratteri di omogeneità, a scala locale e regionale rivela dinamiche e velocità diversificate: e questo sia con riferimento ai risvolti negativi prodotti dalla crisi e dalla pandemia, sia in relazione alle politiche adottate a livello europeo ed internazionale in ottica sostenibile. Sono mutati i fabbisogni dei territori e al contempo le relazioni tra gli attori economici e sociali che ne determinano le traiettorie evolutive. Pur nella condivisione di macro obiettivi dettati dall’Agenda ONU 2030, e rimarcati dalla strategia europea correlata al Green Deal, si registrano in Italia criticità numerose e tali per cui il rilancio degli investimenti e l’attenzione per le politiche ambientali devono andare di pari passo verso un’economia green e circolare. Da più parti viene invocato un intervento sinergico di Governo, Istituzioni e Parti Sociali per investire su settori strategici, fra cui ricerca e formazione, generando nuove competenze “verdi”, orientate alla tutela dell’ambiente e alla sostenibilità secondo un approccio interdisciplinare. In questa cornice, il lavoro si propone di presentare strategie e azioni con cui l’Università del Piemonte Orientale sta affrontando le tematiche dell’ambiente e della sostenibilità, evidenziando in particolare come la progettazione di due nuovi corsi di laurea consenta di condensare e fertilizzare spinte endogene ed esogene, includendo metodi e percorsi geografici innovativi. Questa visione integrata favorisce il consolidamento dei processi di migrazione alla sostenibilità su vari piani, dalla società civile al contesto industriale, dagli istituti scolastici al no profit e terzo settore, in modo da avviare un processo di accompagnamento alla sostenibilità tour court dell’intera società in modo armonico e sinergico

Adsorption features of various inorganic materials for the drug removal from water and synthetic urine medium: A multi-technique time-resolved in situ investigation

Pharmaceutical active compounds, including hundreds of different substances, are counted among the emerging contaminants in waterbodies, whose presence raises a growing concern for the ecosystem. Drugs are metabolized and excreted mainly through urine as an unchanged active ingredient or in the form of metabolites. These emerging contaminants are not effectively removed with the technologies currently in use, making them a relevant environmental problem. This study proposes the treatment of urine and water at the source that can allow an easier removal of dissolved drugs and metabolites. The treatment of synthetic urine, with dissolved ibuprofen as a model compound, by adsorption, using various classes of inorganic materials, such as clays, hierarchical zeolites and ordered mesoporous silica (MCM-41), is presented. A multi-technique approach involving X-ray powder diffraction, solid-state NMR, UV-Vis and Raman spectroscopies was employed to investigate the adsorption process in inorganic adsorbents. Moreover, the uptake, the ensuing competition, the efficiency and selectivity as well as the packing of the model compound in ordered mesoporous silica during the incipient wetness impregnation process were all thoroughly monitored by a novel approach, involving combined complementary time-resolved in situ1 H and13 C MAS NMR spectroscopy as well as X-ray powder diffraction

Fingerprinting the hydration products of hydraulic binders using snapshots from time-resolved in situ multinuclear mas nmr spectroscopy

The very early hydration behavior of a hydraulic binder phase, ye'elimite, Ca4Al6O12SO4, in the absence and in the presence of calcium sulfate, has been investigated. A time-resolved in situ multinuclear magic angle spinning (MAS) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopic suite involving 1H and 27Al MAS as well as two-dimensional 27Al multiple quantum MAS (MQMAS) experiments has been employed to detect the transient species and to govern the sequence of hydration reactions and the subsequent formation of the hydration products. The results of the study show that the rates of formation of ye'elimite hydration products vary substantially according to the absence or the presence of calcium sulfate. Hydrated calcium sulfoaluminate phases such as ettringite and monosulfate as well as aluminum hydroxide gel have been detected during the various stages of hydration. The direct observation of various transient species during the hydration stages of calcium aluminates and calcium sulfoaluminates illustrates the potential of a newly designed time-resolved in situ 1H MAS NMR experimental approach for fingerprinting phases and offers significant advantages over other established techniques in detecting transient species

On the rehydration of organic layered double hydroxides to form low-ordered carbon/LDH nanocomposites

Low-ordered carbon/layered double hydroxide (LDH) nanocomposites were prepared by rehydration of the oxides produced by calcination of an organic LDH. While the memory effect is a widely recognized effect on oxides produced by inorganic LDH, it is unprecedented from the calcination/rehydration of organic ones. Different temperatures (400, 600, and 1100 °C) were tested on the basis of thermogravimetric data. Water, instead of a carbonate solution, was used for the rehydration, with CO2 available from water itself and/or air to induce a slower process with an easier and better intercalation of the carbonaceous species. The samples were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD), infrared in reflection mode (IR), and Raman spectroscopies and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). XRPD indicated the presence of carbonate LDH, and of residuals of unreacted oxides. IR confirmed that the prevailing anion is carbonate, coming from the water used for the rehydration and/or air. Raman data indicated the presence of low-ordered carbonaceous species moieties and SEM and XRPD the absence of separated bulky graphitic sheets, suggesting an intimate mixing of the low ordered carbonaceous phase with reconstructed LDH. Organic LDH gave better memory effect after calcination at 400 °C. Conversely, the carbonaceous species are observed after rehydration of the sample calcined at 600 °C with a reduced memory effect, demonstrating the interference of the carbonaceous phase with LDH reconstruction and the bonding with LDH layers to form a low-ordered carbon/LDH nanocomposite