Wear-resistant ball bearings for space applications

Ball bearings for hostile environments were developed. They consist of normal ball bearing steel parts of which the rings are coated with hard, wear-resistant, chemical vapor deposited (C.V.D) TiC. Experiments in ultrahigh vacuum, using cages of various materials with self-lubricating properties, have shown that such bearings are suitable for space applications

On the Life History of Wireworms of the Genus Agriotes, Esch., with Some notes on that of Athous Haemorrhoidalis, F. Part II

RESP-30

Revolutionizing Clinical Microbiology Laboratory Organization in Hospitals with In Situ Point-of-Care

BACKGROUND: Clinical microbiology may direct decisions regarding hospitalization, isolation and anti-infective therapy, but it is not effective at the time of early care. Point-of-care (POC) tests have been developed for this purpose. METHODS AND FINDINGS: One pilot POC-lab was located close to the core laboratory and emergency ward to test the proof of concept. A second POC-lab was located inside the emergency ward of a distant hospital without a microbiology laboratory. Twenty-three molecular and immuno-detection tests, which were technically undemanding, were progressively implemented, with results obtained in less than four hours. From 2008 to 2010, 51,179 tests yielded 6,244 diagnoses. The second POC-lab detected contagious pathogens in 982 patients who benefited from targeted isolation measures, including those undertaken during the influenza outbreak. POC tests prevented unnecessary treatment of patients with non-streptococcal tonsillitis (n = 1,844) and pregnant women negative for Streptococcus agalactiae carriage (n = 763). The cerebrospinal fluid culture remained sterile in 50% of the 49 patients with bacterial meningitis, therefore antibiotic treatment was guided by the molecular tests performed in the POC-labs. With regard to enterovirus meningitis, the mean length-of-stay of infected patients over 15 years old significantly decreased from 2008 to 2010 compared with 2005 when the POC was not in place (1.43±1.09 versus 2.91±2.31 days; p = 0.0009). Altogether, patients who received POC tests were immediately discharged nearly thrice as often as patients who underwent a conventional diagnostic procedure. CONCLUSIONS: The on-site POC-lab met physicians' needs and influenced the management of 8% of the patients that presented to emergency wards. This strategy might represent a major evolution of decision-making regarding the management of infectious diseases and patient care

CVD AND PVD LOW-FRICTION / ANTI-WEAR COATINGS

La durée de vie de composants mécaniques, qui sont en contact glissant, roulant ou vibrant, est souvent déterminée par le taux d'usure. Le plus important remède contre l'usure est la lubrification. Dans des cas où une lubrification conventionnelle ne peut être utilisée à cause de l'environnement, des revêtements spéciaux résistant à l'usure, et à basse friction peuvent être appliqués sur les surfaces fonctionnelles. Les revêtements qui sont considérés ici, sont du type dur tels que TiC, TiN et Ti(C,N), et du type tendre, auto-lubrifiant tel que MoS2 ; les épaisseurs sont entre 0.5 et 5 µm. Les procédés d'obtention de ces revêtements sont le dépôt chimique en phase vapeur (C.V.D.), et le dépôt physique en phase vapeur (P.V.D.). L'expérience a montré que les revêtements mentionnés ci-dessus, peuvent dans certains cas augmenter notablement la durée de vie de contacts mécaniques, lubrifiés à l'huile et/ou graisse.The functional lifetime of mechanical components, which are in sliding, rolling and vibrating contact, is often determined by their wear rates. The mostcommon means of fighting wear is lubrication. When conventional lubrication cannot be used because of the environment, special purpose, wear-resistant, low-friction coatings can be applied on the functional surfaces. The coatings which are considered, are of the hard type like TiC, TiN and Ti(C,N), and of the soft, self-lubricating type like MoS2 ; the coating thicknesses are typically between 0.3 and 5 µm. The processes used to deposit these coatings are Chemical Vapor Deposition (C.V.D.) and Physical Vapor Deposition (P.V.D.). Practice has proven that the mentioned coatings can dramatically increase the performance of certain oil/grease lubricated contacts

[Magnetometer for weak fields with resolution of 10 ppm]

This magnetometer has a 10 ppm resolution in measuring fields between 30 and 200 G, performances being independent of room and probe temperature. Measures are achieved by means of nuclear resonance of premagnetised flowing water. The probe contains only 1 cm/sup 3/ of water.Francai

Potential for localized groundwater contamination in a porous pavement parking lot setting in Rhode Island

The control of polluted surface runoff and the assessment of possible impacts on groundwater is a concern at the local and regional scale. On this background, a study investigates possible impacts of organic and inorganic pollutants (including bacteria) originating from a permeable asphalt parking lot on the water quality immediately beneath it. The functioning of the permeable pavement, including clogging and restricted vertical percolation, was also evaluated. Four nested sample ports (shallow and deep) were installed below low- and high-traffic areas, including one port outside the parking lot. At least initially there was a good hydraulic connection between the parking surface and the shallow sample ports. The presence of a geotextile layer at the base of the parking lot structure, however, was identified in lab tests as one factor restricting vertical percolation to the deeper ports. Clogging of the permeable surface was most pronounced in heavy traffic areas and below snow pile storage areas. Corroborated by high electric conductivity and chloride measurements, sand brought in by cars during winter was the principal cause for clogging. No bacteria or BOD were found in percolating water. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) were present at concentrations near minimum detection limit. Nutrients (nitrate and phosphate) were being leached into the ground via the permeable parking lot surface at annual flux rates of 0.45-0.84 g/m 2/year. A multi-species tracer test demonstrated a retention capacity of the permeable parking lot structure of \u3e90% for metals and 27% for nutrients, respectively. © 2007 Springer-Verlag

Ultrasonic parameters of concentric laminated uric acid stones

Recently a new idea for the disintegration of urinary calculi based upon the large difference of the acoustic impedance inside urinary calculi was suggested. This large difference of acoustical impedance between the two main components of kidney stones, is confirmed in this paper for smooth laminated uric acid stones by two different experimental techniques measuring sound velocities: a surface contact and a submersion technique. Our measured values correlate well with the large differences of the earlier reported measured sound velocities. In general, the disintegration of a urinary stone can be described as follows: a urinary calculus is an inhomogeneous geometrical structure, and its structure plays an important role in the disintegration process.status: publishe