Wellbore integrity in a saline aquifer : experimental steel-cement interface degradation under supercritical CO2 conditions representative of Brazil’s Parana basin

From our work, significant progress has been made in understanding the degradation of cement-casing systems. The CO2 degradation process was evaluated in specimens with a large interfacial defect, such as large annular spaces, voids and/or channels, which may be the result of a poor cementing job. From the experiments showing no interfacial defect, no signs of degradation were observed, while from experiments showing interfacial defect, both the cement and steel undergo significant degradation. In the well casing, the CO2-rich brine affects the steel phase, leaching Fe2+ ions into solution and promoting FeCO3 precipitation on the material surface, while on the cement sheath, two processes are occurring: (i) the portlandite dissolution and (ii) the cement carbonation process. Then, iron (Fe2+) starts to migrate into the cement structure, compromising the material’s self-healing and pore-blocking features, while calcium (Ca2+) starts to compose the corrosion film from the formation of mixed carbonates (FexCayCO3) so reducing the corrosion layer’s protection. Finally, both ions (Ca2+ and Fe2+) become so abundant in the material vicinity that they may form calcium carbonate (CaCO3) on the corrosion layer and iron carbonate (FeCO3) in the cement matrix. Thus, from our results, the degradation mechanisms of the cement-casing system in CO2-rich brine was revised

challenges and strategies for adherence to treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil

Funding Information: The study was supported by the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) [Grant 2018/14337–0], the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) [Grant 130160/2020–2] and Research Productivity Grant from the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) [Grant 304483/2018–4 - PQ modality (Level 1C)]. Publisher Copyright: © 2021, The Author(s).Background: Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is a serious phenomenon on a global scale that can worsen with the COVID-19 pandemic. The study aimed to understand the perceptions of health professionals about MDR-TB, their strategies to ensure adherence to treatment and their challenges in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic in a priority municipality for disease control. Methods: We conducted a qualitative study and recruited 14 health providers (four doctors, three nurses, three nursing technicians, three nursing assistants and a social worker) working in a city in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. Remote semi-structured interviews were conducted with the participants. For data analysis, the thematic content analysis technique was applied according to the study’s theoretical framework. Results: The study revealed the causes of MDR-TB are associated with poverty, vulnerability, and social risk. A pre-judgement from the providers was observed, namely, all patients do not adhere due their resistance and association with drug abuse or alcoholism. The study also observed difficulty among health providers in helping patients reconstruct and reframe their life projects under a care perspective, which would strengthen adherence. Other issues that weakened adherence were the cuts in social protection and the benefits really necessary to the patients and a challenge for the providers manage that. The participants revealed that their actions were impacted by the pandemic and insecurity and fear manifested by patients after acquiring COVID-19. For alleviating this, medical appointments by telephone, delivery of medicine in the homes of patients and visits by health professionals once per week were provided. Conclusion: The study advances knowledge by highlighting the challenges faced by the health system with the adherence of patients with MDR-TB in a context aggravated by the pandemic. An improvement in DOT is really necessary to help the patients reframe their lives without prejudices, face their fears and insecurity, recover their self-esteem and motivate in concluding their treatment.publishersversionpublishe

Emprego de anticoncepcionais por uma população brasileira

A group of 245 married women from Mogi das Cruzes (State of S. Paulo, Brazil were questioned about the use of contraceptive practices, past obstetric history, child mortality, and attitude toward birth control. Answers were classified according to age and family earnings. Only 49% of these women practiced contraception, 42% of which used the "pill". There was a positive correlation between the practice of birth control and wage levels, and contraception was like-wise more common in the younger age groups. The natality was reduced considerably in those women who availed themselves of contraception and also it was observed a drastic decrease in the number of abortions and in child mortality. This effect was more pronounced in those who used the anovulatory drugs.Um grupo de 245 mulheres moradoras em Mogi das Cruzes (Estado de S. Paulo, Brasil) foi questionado com relação ao uso de anticoncepcionais, história obstétrica, mortalidade infantil e atitudes correlacionadas com a limitação da natalidade. As respostas foram classificadas segundo idade e nível de renda da informante. Apenas 49% das mulheres empregavam medidas anticoncepcionais, das quais 42% recorriam aos anovulatórios. Esta prática era mais freqüente entre as mulheres jovens, e aquelas pertencentes às famílias melhores situadas economicamente. Não só era mais baixa a natalidade nas mulheres que se valiam de anticoncepcionais, mas esta prática acompanhava-se de sensível redução no número de abortos e da mortalidade infantil. O efeito foi mais pronunciado entre aquelas que empregavam os anovulatórios

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear un derstanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5–7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8–11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world’s most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepre sented in biodiversity databases.13–15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may elim inate pieces of the Amazon’s biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological com munities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple or ganism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region’s vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most ne glected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lostinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio