1,648 research outputs found
ZrO2 Based materials as photocatalysts for 2-propanol oxidation by using UV and solar light irradiation and tests for CO2 reduction
Bare ZrO2, Ce doped ZrO2 and Er doped ZrO2 samples have been prepared by a hydrothermal process and have been used as photocatalysts for 2-propanol oxidation reaction in gas solid regime. Moreover, some preliminary tests have been carried out for CO2 reduction. The samples were physico-chemically characterized and both bare and doped ZrO2 based materials resulted active for oxidation and reduction reactions by using UV and solar irradiation. The reactivity results have been correlated with the compositional, structural and morphological features of the photocatalysts
Probing highly obscured, self-absorbed galaxy nuclei with vibrationally excited HCN
We present high resolution (0."4) IRAM PdBI and ALMA mm and submm
observations of the (ultra) luminous infrared galaxies ((U)LIRGs)
IRAS17208-0014, Arp220, IC860 and Zw049.057 that reveal intense line emission
from vibrationally excited (=1) J=3-2 and 4-3 HCN. The emission is
emerging from buried, compact (r<17-70 pc) nuclei that have very high implied
mid-infrared surface brightness L kpc.
These nuclei are likely powered by accreting supermassive black holes (SMBHs)
and/or hot (>200 K) extreme starbursts. Vibrational, =1, lines of HCN
are excited by intense 14 micron mid-infrared emission and are excellent probes
of the dynamics, masses, and physical conditions of (U)LIRG nuclei when H
column densities exceed cm. It is clear that these lines open
up a new interesting avenue to gain access to the most obscured AGNs and
starbursts. Vibrationally excited HCN acts as a proxy for the absorbed
mid-infrared emission from the embedded nuclei, which allows for reconstruction
of the intrinsic, hotter dust SED. In contrast, we show strong evidence that
the ground vibrational state (=0), J=3-2 and 4-3 rotational lines of HCN
and HCO fail to probe the highly enshrouded, compact nuclear regions owing
to strong self- and continuum absorption. The HCN and HCO line profiles are
double-peaked because of the absorption and show evidence of non-circular
motions - possibly in the form of in- or outflows. Detections of vibrationally
excited HCN in external galaxies are so far limited to ULIRGs and early-type
spiral LIRGs, and we discuss possible causes for this. We tentatively suggest
that the peak of vibrationally excited HCN emission is connected to a rapid
stage of nuclear growth, before the phase of strong feedback.Comment: 13 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy and
Astrophysic
Kaolinite-based zeolites synthesis and their application in CO2 capture processes
In light of the urgent need of reducing the atmospheric CO2 emissions, the use of low-cost adsorbents, that exhibit a high affinity and CO2 adsorption capacity, is a promising method from the economic and environmental point of view to separate CO2 from the flue gas emitted from large sources of emissions like power-fueled plants. Clay minerals are low-cost raw materials with high availability all over planet and great versatility in the fields of adsorption and catalysis processes. The present study pretends to elucidate the link between the reaction conditions during the synthesis of the zeolite from kaolinite and its CO2 adsorption capacity. For that purpose, the type A zeolite was synthesized via hydrothermal process in alkaline solution using metakaolinite as a starting material. The metakaolinite was obtained by calcination of kaolinite at 600 degrees C and some parameters such as temperature and synthesis time were modified to optimize the synthesis aiming for a high CO2 adsorption capacity adsorbent. Synthesized materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), N-2 adsorption-desorption at -196 degrees C and CO2 adsorption at 0 degrees C (up to 10 bars) isotherms and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance of solids (NMR). In addition, the adsorption capacity of CO2 was evaluated by means of CO2 adsorption-desorption isotherms at 25 degrees C up to atmospheric pressure. The obtained results indicated that synthesized zeolite 4A can be successfully prepared from natural kaolinite (via metakaolinization) at 100 degrees C for 48 h under alkaline conditions, showing chemical and physical properties similar to that of the commercial 4A zeolite
Unveiling Far-Infrared Counterparts of Bright Submillimeter Galaxies Using PACS Imaging
We present a search for Herschel-PACS counterparts of dust-obscured,
high-redshift objects previously selected at submillimeter and millimeter
wavelengths in the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey North field. We
detect 22 of 56 submillimeter galaxies (39%) with a SNR of >=3 at 100 micron
down to 3.0 mJy, and/or at 160 micron down to 5.7 mJy. The fraction of SMGs
seen at 160 micron is higher than that at 100 micron. About 50% of
radio-identified SMGs are associated with PACS sources. We find a trend between
the SCUBA/PACS flux ratio and redshift, suggesting that these flux ratios could
be used as a coarse redshift indicator. PACS undetected submm/mm selected
sources tend to lie at higher redshifts than the PACS detected ones. A total of
12 sources (21% of our SMG sample) remain unidentified and the fact that they
are blank fields at Herschel-PACS and VLA 20 cm wavelength may imply higher
redshifts for them than for the average SMG population (e.g., z>3-4). The
Herschel-PACS imaging of these dust-obscured starbursts at high-redshifts
suggests that their far-infrared spectral energy distributions have
significantly different shapes than template libraries of local infrared
galaxies.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures. ApJ Letters in pres
Validation Process of Pose Accuracy Estimation in Parallel Robots
This research ponders the origin of errors due to manufacturing and assembling processes that affect pose accuracy of any given robot. The estimation of these errors allows designers to define the influence of individual elements in the overall compliance. Two methods for assessing pose accuracy in parallel robots are presented in this paper: the simplified and the comprehensive methods. The former, based on the assumption that each actuator has a constant error, produces a preliminary rough estimation of pose accuracy; the latter, based on error propagation, requires the measurement of the displacement error of each actuator. Both methods were applied to estimate the accuracy of a highprecision Stewart platform and to verify it experimentally. These methods were validated through an actual platform, and results showed good agreement between them
XPO1 Gene Therapy Attenuates Cardiac Dysfunction in Rats with Chronic Induced Myocardial Infarction
Transcriptomic signature of XPO1 was highly expressed and inversely related to left ventricular function in ischemic cardiomyopathy patients. We hypothesized that treatment with AAV9-shXPO1 attenuates left ventricular dysfunction and remodeling in a myocardial infarction rat model. We induced myocardial infarction by coronary ligation in Sprague-Dawley rats (n = 10), which received AAV9-shXPO1 (n = 5) or placebo AAV9-scramble (n = 5) treatment. Serial echocardiographic assessment was performed throughout the study. After myocardial infarction, AAV9-shXPO1-treated rats showed partial recovery of left ventricular fractional shortening (16.8 +/- 2.8 vs 24.6 +/- 4.1%, P < 0.05) and a maintained left ventricular dimension (6.17 +/- 0.95 vs 4.70 +/- 0.93 mm, P < 0.05), which was not observed in non-treated rats. Furthermore, lower levels of EXP-1 (P < 0.05) and lower collagen fibers and fibrosis in cardiac tissue were observed. However, no differences were found in the IL-6 or TNFR1 plasma levels of the myocardium of AAV9-shXPO1 rats. AAV9-shXPO1 administration attenuates cardiac dysfunction and remodeling in rats after myocardial infarction, producing the gene silencing of XPO1
Molecular Characteristics of Extraintestinal Pathogenic E. coli (ExPEC), Uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC), and Multidrug Resistant E. coli Isolated from Healthy Dogs in Spain. Whole Genome Sequencing of Canine ST372 Isolates and Comparison with Human Isolates Causing Extraintestinal Infections
Under a one health perspective and the worldwide antimicrobial resistance concern, we investigated extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli (ExPEC), uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC), and multidrug resistant (MDR) E. coli from 197 isolates recovered from healthy dogs in Spain between 2013 and 2017. A total of 91 (46.2%) isolates were molecularly classified as ExPEC and/or UPEC, including 50 clones, among which (i) four clones were dominant (B2-CH14-180-ST127, B2-CH52-14-ST141, B2-CH103-9-ST372 and F-CH4-58-ST648) and (ii) 15 had been identified among isolates causing extraintestinal infections in Spanish and French humans in 2015 and 2016. A total of 28 (14.2%) isolates were classified as MDR, associated with B1, D, and E phylogroups, and included 24 clones, of which eight had also been identified among the human clinical isolates. We selected 23 ST372 strains, 21 from healthy dogs, and two from human clinical isolates for whole genome sequencing and built an SNP-tree with these 23 genomes and 174 genomes (128 from canine strains and 46 from human strains) obtained from public databases. These 197 genomes were segregated into six clusters. Cluster 1 comprised 74.6% of the strain genomes, mostly composed of canine strain genomes (p < 0.00001). Clusters 4 and 6 also included canine strain genomes, while clusters 2, 3, and 5 were significantly associated with human strain genomes. Finding several common clones and clone-related serotypes in dogs and humans suggests a potentially bidirectional clone transfer that argues for the one health perspective
Oncogenic driver mutations predict outcome in a cohort of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients within a clinical trial
234 diagnostic formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) blocks from homogeneously treated patients with locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) within a multicentre phase III clinical trial were characterised. The mutational spectrum was examined by next generation sequencing in the 26 most frequent oncogenic drivers in cancer and correlated with treatment response and survival. Human papillomavirus (HPV) status was measured by p16INK4a immunohistochemistry in oropharyngeal tumours. Clinicopathological features and response to treatment were measured and compared with the sequencing results. The results indicated TP53 as the most mutated gene in locally advanced HNSCC. HPV-positive oropharyngeal tumours were less mutated than HPV-negative tumours in TP53 (p < 0.01). Mutational and HPV status influences patient survival, being mutated or HPV-negative tumours associated with poor overall survival (p < 0.05). No association was found between mutations and clinicopathological features. This study confirmed and expanded previously published genomic characterization data in HNSCC. Survival analysis showed that non-mutated HNSCC tumours associated with better prognosis and lack of mutations can be identified as an important biomarker in HNSCC. Frequent alterations in PI3K pathway in HPV-positive HNSCC could define a promising pathway for pharmacological intervention in this group of tumours
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