Investigation of Breakthrough Curves of Citric Acid Adsorption

In this paper, experimental breakthrough curves for citric acid adsorption from aqueous solution onto ion-exchange resin at 20, 35, 55 °C have been obtained by some weak and strong basic anionic resins, such as IRA-92, IRA-93, IRA-420 and IRA-458. The results show that amberlite IRA-93 has good performance and is one of the best resins in the process of citric acid recovery from aqueous solution. Also, the temperature effect study shows that an increase in temperature causes an increase in diffusion coefficient of particles, but the saturation capacity of resin decreases. To achieve an appropriate model, three mathematical models were analyzed to predict system properties based on statistical tests, and finally, the appropriate model was determined. To examine model capability, mathematical equations have been implemented in various breakthrough curve data obtained by other investigators, and the results show appropriate conformity

A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis to Investigate the Correlation Vegetable Irrigation with Wastewater and Concentration of Potentially Toxic Elements (PTES): a Case Study of Spinach (Spinacia oleracea) and Radish (Raphanus raphanistrum subsp. sativus)

Water shortage and stress around the world lead to the reuse of wastewater in many sectors while the recycling of water in agriculture as one of the most consumed sectors can boost the contamination of crops by potentially toxic elements (PTEs). Therefore, this study was aimed to investigate the correlation between the accumulation of PTEs (Fe, Zn, Cr, Ni, Cu, Pb, As, Cd, and Se) in edible parts of spinach and radish plants and sewage irrigation by the aid of a meta-analysis. Moreover, the non-carcinogenic risk (N-CR) and carcinogenic risk (CR) for health risk assessment of consumers were assessed through actual total target hazard quotient (TTHQact) and carcinogenic risk (CRact). After the screening process, 51 articles with 75 studies were included. According to findings, the rank order of PTEs in spinach and radish were Fe > Zn > Cr > Cu > Ni > Pb > Cd > As > Se and Fe > Zn > Cr > Ni > Cu > Pb > As > Cd > Se, respectively. PTE adsorption by edible parts of spinach (leafy vegetable) was higher than radish. The health risk assessment shows that residents in Iran, India, and China are at N-CR while the population of Iran, India, and Pakistan are facing CR. © 2020, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature

Experimental Investigation on Acoustic Wave Generation due to Supersonic Hot Jet Impingement on an Inclined Flat Plate

In the present paper, noise generation due to supersonic hot jet impingement (M=1.4 and Tt=950 K) to an inclined flat plate is experimentally investigated. In general, four types of acoustic waves are defined for jet impingement: acoustic waves generated by the shear layer of the main jet (type-A), by the impingement region (type-B), by the shear layer of the wall/jet downstream of the impinging region (type-C), and tonal acoustic waves observed in normal impingement. An attempt is made to understand the sources of the noise of the impinging jet by comparing acoustic scalograms of the impinging and free jets at the far-field. It is determined that the type-C acoustic wave images are similar to the far-field scalogram images of the free jet at the same polar angles. Further, the type-B acoustic waves in oblique jet impingement have similar acoustic signature with tonal noise due to normal jet impingement

Construction of Aptamer-Based Nanobiosensor for Breast Cancer Biomarkers Detection Utilizing g-C3N4/Magnetic Nano-Structure

An electrochemical aptasensor has been developed to determine breast cancer biomarkers (CA 15-3). Aptamer chains were immobilized on the surface of the electrode by g-C3N4/Fe3O4 nanoparticles, which increased the conductivity and active surface area of the electrode. X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) measurements have been carried out to characterize the nanomaterials. Cyclic voltammetry, square wave voltammetry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy have been used to characterize the developed electrode. The results demonstrate that the modified electrode has better selectivity for CA 15-3 compared to other biological molecules. It has a good electrochemical response to CA 15-3 with a detection limit of 0.2 UmL(-1) and a linear response between 1 and 9 UmL(-1). It has been used as a label-free sensor in potassium ferrocyanide medium and as methylene blue-labeled in phosphate buffer medium. This electrode was successfully applied to analyze the serum of diseased and healthy individuals, which corroborates its high potential for biosensing applications, especially for the diagnosis of breast cancer

The influences of nursing transformational leadership style on the quality of nurses’ working lives in Taiwan: a cross-sectional quantitative study

- Background: Taiwan’s NHI system is one of the most successful health care models for countries around the globe. However, little research has demonstrated the mental health issues associated with nursing transformational leadership style under the NHI system, especially in the quality of nurses’ working lives in Taiwan. It is important to know the relationship between transformational leadership style and the mental health of nurses, organisational commitment and job satisfaction. The research aimed to understand the influences of nursing transformational leadership style on the quality of nurses’ working lives in Taiwan. The research hypothesis was that transformational leadership styles would have positive influence on the quality of nurses’ working lives. - Methods: This was a cross-sectional quantitative study. Nurses from each type of hospital ownership (private, public and religious) were recruited. Participation was voluntary and signed informed consent was obtained. The inclusion criteria were nurses with at least one year’s work experience in the hospitals. Self-administrated questionnaires were used. A total of 807 participants were contacted and 651 questionnaires were fully completed (response rate 80.7 %). A theory driven model was used to test the research hypotheses using structural equation modelling performed with AMOS 16.0. - Results: Transformational leadership contributes significantly to supervisor support. Workplace support, particularly from the supervisor, is an important mediator variable that explains the relationship between transformational leadership and job satisfaction. Organisational commitment was the strongest factor relevant to the general health well-being in Taiwanese nurses than job satisfaction. The hypothesized positive relationships between transformational leadership and all variables were supported by the data. - Conclusions: Our findings have important consequences for organisational health. Our model demonstrates a complete picture of the work relationships on the quality of nurses’ working lives. The results provided information about the subordinates’ perceptions of transformational nursing leadership styles and mental health outcomes in different hospital settings, as well as identified organisational factors that could improve the quality of nurses’ working lives

Studies of new Higgs boson interactions through nonresonant HH production in the b¯bγγ fnal state in pp collisions at √s = 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector

A search for nonresonant Higgs boson pair production in the b ¯bγγ fnal state is performed using 140 fb−1 of proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV recorded by the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. This analysis supersedes and expands upon the previous nonresonant ATLAS results in this fnal state based on the same data sample. The analysis strategy is optimised to probe anomalous values not only of the Higgs (H) boson self-coupling modifer κλ but also of the quartic HHV V (V = W, Z) coupling modifer κ2V . No signifcant excess above the expected background from Standard Model processes is observed. An observed upper limit µHH < 4.0 is set at 95% confdence level on the Higgs boson pair production cross-section normalised to its Standard Model prediction. The 95% confdence intervals for the coupling modifers are −1.4 < κλ < 6.9 and −0.5 < κ2V < 2.7, assuming all other Higgs boson couplings except the one under study are fxed to the Standard Model predictions. The results are interpreted in the Standard Model efective feld theory and Higgs efective feld theory frameworks in terms of constraints on the couplings of anomalous Higgs boson (self-)interactions

Searches for lepton-flavour-violating decays of the Higgs boson into eτ and μτ in \sqrt{s} = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

Abstract This paper presents direct searches for lepton flavour violation in Higgs boson decays, H → eτ and H → μτ, performed using data collected with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. The searches are based on a data sample of proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy s $$\sqrt{s}$$ = 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb−1. Leptonic (τ → ℓνℓντ) and hadronic (τ → hadrons ντ) decays of the τ-lepton are considered. Two background estimation techniques are employed: the MC-template method, based on data-corrected simulation samples, and the Symmetry method, based on exploiting the symmetry between electrons and muons in the Standard Model backgrounds. No significant excess of events is observed and the results are interpreted as upper limits on lepton-flavour-violating branching ratios of the Higgs boson. The observed (expected) upper limits set on the branching ratios at 95% confidence level, B $$\mathcal{B}$$ (H → eτ) < 0.20% (0.12%) and B $$\mathcal{B}$$ (H → μτ ) < 0.18% (0.09%), are obtained with the MC-template method from a simultaneous measurement of potential H → eτ and H → μτ signals. The best-fit branching ratio difference, B $$\mathcal{B}$$ (H → μτ) → B $$\mathcal{B}$$ (H → eτ), measured with the Symmetry method in the channel where the τ-lepton decays to leptons, is (0.25 ± 0.10)%, compatible with a value of zero within 2.5σ

Measurement of the H → γ γ and H → ZZ∗ → 4 cross-sections in pp collisions at √s = 13.6 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The inclusive Higgs boson production cross section is measured in the di-photon and the Z Z∗ → 4 decay channels using 31.4 and 29.0 fb−1 of pp collision data respectively, collected with the ATLAS detector at a centre of-mass energy of √s = 13.6 TeV. To reduce the model dependence, the measurement in each channel is restricted to a particle-level phase space that closely matches the chan nel’s detector-level kinematic selection, and it is corrected for detector effects. These measured fiducial cross-sections are σfid,γ γ = 76+14 −13 fb, and σfid,4 = 2.80 ± 0.74 fb, in agreement with the corresponding Standard Model predic tions of 67.6±3.7 fb and 3.67±0.19 fb. Assuming Standard Model acceptances and branching fractions for the two chan nels, the fiducial measurements are extrapolated to the full phase space yielding total cross-sections of σ (pp → H) = 67+12 −11 pb and 46±12 pb at 13.6 TeV from the di-photon and Z Z∗ → 4 measurements respectively. The two measure ments are combined into a total cross-section measurement of σ (pp → H) = 58.2±8.7 pb, to be compared with the Stan dard Model prediction of σ (pp → H)SM = 59.9 ± 2.6 p