DinSAR monitoring of the landslide activity affecting a stretch of motorway in the Campania region of Southern Italy

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Wet Environment Effects for Ethanol and Water Adsorption on Anatase TiO2 (101) Surfaces

Titanium dioxide exhibits superior photocatalytic properties, mainly occurring in liquid environments through molecular adsorptions and dissociations at the solid/liquid interface. The presence of these wet environments is often neglected when performing ab initio calculations for the interaction between the adsorbed molecules and the TiO 2 surface. In this study, we consider two solvents, that is, water and ethanol, and show that the proper inclusion of the wet environment in the methodological scheme is fundamental for obtaining reliable results. Our calculations are based on structure predictions at a density functional theory level for molecules interacting with the perfect and defective anatase (101) surface under both vacuum and wet conditions. A soft-sphere implicit solvation model is used to describe the polar character of the two solvents. As a result, we find that surface oxygen vacancies become energetically favorable with respect to subsurface vacancies at the solid/liquid interface. This aspect is confirmed by ab initio molecular dynamics simulations with explicit water molecules. Ethanol molecules are able to strongly passivate these vacancies, whereas water molecules only weakly interact with the (101) surface, allowing the coexistence of surface vacancy defects and adsorbed species. The infrared and photoluminescence spectra of anatase nanoparticles predominantly exposing (101) surfaces dispersed in water and ethanol support the predicted molecule-surface interactions, validating the whole computational paradigm. The combined analysis allows for a better interpretation of TiO 2 processes in wet environments based on improved computational models with implicit solvation features

Copper Micro-Flowers for Electrocatalytic Sensing of Nitrate Ions in Water

The progressive increase in nitrate’s (NO3−) presence in surface and groundwater enhances environmental and human health risks. The aim of this work is the fabrication and characterization of sensitive, real-time, low-cost, and portable amperometric sensors for low NO3− concentration detection in water. Copper (Cu) micro-flowers were electrodeposited on top of carbon screen-printed electrodes (SPCEs) via cyclic voltammetry (with voltage ranging from −1.0 V to 0.0 V at a scan rate of 0.1 V s−1). The obtained sensors exhibited a high catalytic activity toward the electro-reduction in NO3−, with a sensitivity of 44.71 μA/mM. They had a limit of detection of 0.87 µM and a good dynamic linear concentration range from 0.05 to 3 mM. The results were compared to spectrophotometric analysis. In addition, the devices exhibited good stability and a maximum standard deviation (RSD) of 5% after ten measurements; reproducibility, with a maximum RSD of 4%; and repeatability after 10 measurements with the RSD at only 5.63%

Structural Characterization and Adsorption Properties of Dunino Raw Halloysite Mineral for Dye Removal from Water

In this work, raw halloysite mineral from Dunino (Poland) has been characterized and tested as an efficient and low-cost adsorbent for dye removal from water. The morphology and structure of this clay were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and the chemical composition was evaluated by means of X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS). The results showed that it is made up of both platy and tubular structures, mainly composed of Si, Al, and O. Iron oxide particles covering the platy structures were also observed. The surface charge of halloysite was measured by z-potential measurements and by the evaluation of the point of zero charge. The clay was tested as an adsorbent for the removal of positively and negatively charged dye molecules, i.e., methylene blue (MB) and methyl orange (MO), both separately and in a mixed-dye solution. Halloysite showed the ability to efficiently and selectively remove MB molecules by adsorption, both in a single-dye solution and in a mixed one. The adsorption of positive dyes on the clay surface mainly occurred through ion exchange at negatively charged sites on its surface. The possibility of regenerating the clay for further dye removal processes is also shown

Acupuncture Effects on Cerebral Blood Flow during Normoxia and Normobaric Hypoxia: Results from a Prospective Crossover Pilot Study

Cerebral blood flow (CBF) is significantly influenced by exposure to hypoxia, both hypobaric and normobaric. Alterations in cerebral blood flow can play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of acute mountain sickness (AMS) and its symptoms, especially headache, dizziness, and nausea. Acupuncture has been proven to be effective in treating some cerebrovascular disorders and PC6 Nei Guan stimulation seems to enhance cerebral blood flow. Therefore, we have hypothesized that PC6 Nei Guan stimulation could affect CBF in acute hypoxia and could be used to contrast AMS symptoms. We evaluated blood flow in the middle cerebral artery (MCA) in normoxia, after 15 min in normobaric hypoxia (fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO2) 14%, corresponding to 3600 m a.s.l.) in basal conditions, and after PC6 Nei Guan stimulation, both by needle and by pressure. No comparisons with other acupuncture points and sham acupuncture were done. PC6 stimulation seemed to counteract the effects of acute normobaric hypoxia on end-diastolic velocity (EDV) in MCA, especially after acupuncture, and significantly reduced systolic and diastolic blood pressure. A rebalance of CBF could control some AMS symptoms, but further studies are necessary

Acupuncture Effects on Cerebral Blood Flow during Normoxia and Normobaric Hypoxia: Results from a Prospective Crossover Pilot Study

Cerebral blood flow (CBF) is significantly influenced by exposure to hypoxia, both hypobaric and normobaric. Alterations in cerebral blood flow can play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of acute mountain sickness (AMS) and its symptoms, especially headache, dizziness, and nausea. Acupuncture has been proven to be effective in treating some cerebrovascular disorders and PC6 Nei Guan stimulation seems to enhance cerebral blood flow. Therefore, we have hypothesized that PC6 Nei Guan stimulation could affect CBF in acute hypoxia and could be used to contrast AMS symptoms. We evaluated blood flow in the middle cerebral artery (MCA) in normoxia, after 15 min in normobaric hypoxia (fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO2) 14%, corresponding to 3600 m a.s.l.) in basal conditions, and after PC6 Nei Guan stimulation, both by needle and by pressure. No comparisons with other acupuncture points and sham acupuncture were done. PC6 stimulation seemed to counteract the effects of acute normobaric hypoxia on end-diastolic velocity (EDV) in MCA, especially after acupuncture, and significantly reduced systolic and diastolic blood pressure. A rebalance of CBF could control some AMS symptoms, but further studies are necessary

3C-SiC Growth on Inverted Silicon Pyramids Patterned Substrate

This work reports on the properties of cubic silicon carbide (3C-SiC) grown epitaxially on a patterned silicon substrate composed of squared inverted silicon pyramids (ISP). This compliant substrate prevents stacking faults, usually found at the SiC/Si interface, from reaching the surface. We investigated the effect of the size of the inverted pyramid on the epilayer quality. We noted that anti-phase boundaries (APBs) develop between adjacent faces of the pyramid and that the SiC/Si interfaces have the same polarity on both pyramid faces. The structure of the heterointerface was investigated. Moreover, due to the emergence of APB at the vertex of the pyramid, voids buried on the epilayer form. We demonstrated that careful control of the growth parameters allows modification of the height of the void and the density of APBs, improving SiC epitaxy quality

Atrial Function Impairments after Pediatric Cardiac Surgery Evaluated by STE Analysis

Background: Applications of atrial speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) strain (ε) analysis in pediatric cardiac surgery have been limited. This study aims to evaluate the feasibility of atrial STE ε analysis and the progression of atrial ε values as a function of post-operative time in children after pediatric cardiac surgery. Methods: 131 children (mean 1.69 ± 2.98; range 0.01–15.16 years) undergoing cardiac surgery were prospectively enrolled. Echocardiographic examinations were performed pre-operatively and at 3 different post-operative intervals: Time 1 (24–36 h), Time 2 (3–5 days), Time 3 (>5 days, before discharging). The right and left atrium longitudinal systolic contractile (Ct), Conduit (Cd), and Reservoir (R) ε were evaluated with a novel atrial specific software with both P- and R-Gating methods. One hundred and thirty-one age-matched normal subjects (mean 1.7 ± 3.2 years) were included as controls. Results: In all, 309 examinations were performed over the post-operative times. For each post-operative interval, all STE atrial ε parameters assessed were significantly lower compared to controls (all p p from 0.02 to 0.04). All atrial ε values at discharge were decreased compared to the controls (all p p p Conclusions: Atrial ε is highly reduced after surgery with only partial post-operative recovery in the near term. Our study additionally demonstrates that post-surgical atrial and ventricular ε responses correlated with each other