Sage Extracts as Inhibitors of Steel Corrosion in 4% HCl

In this paper the research of corrosion protection of steel by processing corrosion environment using various concentrations of sage extracts (Salvia officinalis) (0.5 g/dm(3), 1 g/dm(3) and 1.5 g/dm(3)) in a 4% solution of HCl was carried out. Measurements were performed using gravimetric and electrochemical methods (Tafel extrapolation method and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy). The results have showed that sage is recommendable as a possible inhibitor in 4% solutions of HCl. The research also confirms that electrochemical impedance spectroscopy is a reliable method to use for rapid corrosion tests, since the results confirm the gravimetric measurements of corrosion indicators. Determination of corrosion rate and the degree of protection using Tafel diagrams calculated on the basis of corrosion current did not give reliable results. The results show that sage may be used as a "green inhibitor" for protection of steel in a shorter period of time. The degree of protection ranges up to 64.5% for steel 2; however, since sage is environmentally friendly, it is a suitable corrosion inhibitor for shorter periods of time

The high-pressure phase of boron, {\gamma}-B28: disputes and conclusions of 5 years after discovery

{\gamma}-B28 is a recently established high-pressure phase of boron. Its structure consists of icosahedral B12 clusters and B2 dumbbells in a NaCl-type arrangement (B2){\delta}+(B12){\delta}- and displays a significant charge transfer {\delta}~0.5- 0.6. The discovery of this phase proved essential for the understanding and construction of the phase diagram of boron. {\gamma}-B28 was first experimentally obtained as a pure boron allotrope in early 2004 and its structure was discovered in 2006. This paper reviews recent results and in particular deals with the contentious issues related to the equation of state, hardness, putative isostructural phase transformation at ~40 GPa, and debates on the nature of chemical bonding in this phase. Our analysis confirms that (a) calculations based on density functional theory give an accurate description of its equation of state, (b) the reported isostructural phase transformation in {\gamma}-B28 is an artifact rather than a fact, (c) the best estimate of hardness of this phase is 50 GPa, (d) chemical bonding in this phase has a significant degree of ionicity. Apart from presenting an overview of previous results within a consistent view grounded in experiment, thermodynamics and quantum mechanics, we present new results on Bader charges in {\gamma}-B28 using different levels of quantum-mechanical theory (GGA, exact exchange, and HSE06 hybrid functional), and show that the earlier conclusion about significant degree of partial ionicity in this phase is very robust

Sage Extracts as Inhibitors of Steel Corrosion in 4% HCl

In this paper the research of corrosion protection of steel by processing corrosion environment using various concentrations of sage extracts (Salvia officinalis) (0.5 g/dm(3), 1 g/dm(3) and 1.5 g/dm(3)) in a 4% solution of HCl was carried out. Measurements were performed using gravimetric and electrochemical methods (Tafel extrapolation method and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy). The results have showed that sage is recommendable as a possible inhibitor in 4% solutions of HCl. The research also confirms that electrochemical impedance spectroscopy is a reliable method to use for rapid corrosion tests, since the results confirm the gravimetric measurements of corrosion indicators. Determination of corrosion rate and the degree of protection using Tafel diagrams calculated on the basis of corrosion current did not give reliable results. The results show that sage may be used as a "green inhibitor" for protection of steel in a shorter period of time. The degree of protection ranges up to 64.5% for steel 2; however, since sage is environmentally friendly, it is a suitable corrosion inhibitor for shorter periods of time

Performance of the CMS Cathode Strip Chambers with Cosmic Rays

The Cathode Strip Chambers (CSCs) constitute the primary muon tracking device in the CMS endcaps. Their performance has been evaluated using data taken during a cosmic ray run in fall 2008. Measured noise levels are low, with the number of noisy channels well below 1%. Coordinate resolution was measured for all types of chambers, and fall in the range 47 microns to 243 microns. The efficiencies for local charged track triggers, for hit and for segments reconstruction were measured, and are above 99%. The timing resolution per layer is approximately 5 ns

アトガキ

Background: Bullous pemphigoid (BP) is an autoimmune blistering skin disorder associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Doxycycline and prednisolone to treat bullous pemphigoid were compared within a randomised controlled trial (RCT). Objectives: To compare the cost-effectiveness of doxycycline-initiated and prednisolone-initiated treatment for patients with BP. Methods: a multicentre, parallel-group, investigator-blinded RCT. Within-trial analysis used bivariate regression of costs and QALYs, with multiple imputation of missing data, informing a probabilistic assessment of incremental treatment cost-effectiveness from a health service perspective Results: In the base case, there was no robust difference in costs or QALYs per patient at 1 year comparing doxycycline-initiated therapy with prednisolone-initiated therapy (net cost: £959, 95% CI –£24 to £1941; net QALYs: –0.024, 95% CI –0.088 to 0.041). However, findings varied by baseline blister severity. For patients with mild or moderate blistering (≤30) net costs and outcomes were similar. For patients with severe blistering (>30) net costs were higher (£2558, 95% CI –£82 to £5198) and quality of life poorer (–0.090 QALYs, 95% CI–0.222 to 0.042) for patients starting on doxycycline. The probability that doxycycline would be cost-effective for those with severe pemphigoid was 1.5% at a willingness to pay of £20,000/QALY. Conclusions: Consistent with the clinical findings of the BLISTER trial, patients with mild or moderate blistering should receive treatment guided by the safety and effectiveness of the drugs and patient preference - neither strategy is clearly a preferred use of NHS resources. However, prednisolone-initiated treatment may be more cost-effective for patients with severe blistering

L’indagine macrosismica: metodologia, parametri del terremoto, questioni aperte

Subito dopo l’evento del 6 aprile 2009, come di consueto è stata realizzata una lunga e complessa indagine macrosismica, promossa dal gruppo operativo QUEST, che ha avuto inizialmente l’obiettivo di delimitare l’area di danneggiamento, a supporto delle attività di pronto intervento della Protezione Civile, e successivamente quello di classificare nel modo più accurato e capillare possibile, gli effetti prodotti dall’evento, particolarmente nelle aree danneggiate. A questo scopo è stata prodotta una stima utilizzando la scala MCS (Sieberg, 1930); in un secondo momento è stata rifinita l’indagine per una cinquantina di località dell’area maggiormente danneggiata (Is MCS>VII), raccogliendo ed elaborando i dati in termini di scala macrosismica EMS98 (Grünthal, 1998). Per la complessità e la dimensione dei problemi affrontati, questo terremoto ha costituito un banco di prova di grande importanza per la macrosismologia italiana. In questo testo viene descritto il lavoro realizzato, discutendo in particolare alcuni aspetti che hanno messo alla prova le metodologie di indagine tradizionali (sistematiche irregolarità degli insediamenti monitorati, forti divergenze degli scenari di danno rispetto a quelli previsti dalle scale, difficile comparabilità con scenari storici, ecc.) e presentandone i risultati, in relazione ai parametri epicentrali che ne risultano e il loro contributo più diretto alla comprensione complessiva della sismicità dell’area

Performance and Operation of the CMS Electromagnetic Calorimeter

The operation and general performance of the CMS electromagnetic calorimeter using cosmic-ray muons are described. These muons were recorded after the closure of the CMS detector in late 2008. The calorimeter is made of lead tungstate crystals and the overall status of the 75848 channels corresponding to the barrel and endcap detectors is reported. The stability of crucial operational parameters, such as high voltage, temperature and electronic noise, is summarised and the performance of the light monitoring system is presented

Elastically driven, intermittent microscopic dynamics in soft solids

Soft solids with tunable mechanical response are at the core of new material technologies, but a crucial limit for applications is their progressive aging over time, which dramatically affects their functionalities. The generally accepted paradigm is that such aging is gradual and its origin is in slower than exponential microscopic dynamics, akin to the ones in supercooled liquids or glasses. Nevertheless, time- and space-resolved measurements have provided contrasting evidence: dynamics faster than exponential, intermittency, and abrupt structural changes. Here we use 3D computer simulations of a microscopic model to reveal that the timescales governing stress relaxation respectively through thermal fluctuations and elastic recovery are key for the aging dynamics. When thermal fluctuations are too weak, stress heterogeneities frozen-in upon solidification can still partially relax through elastically driven fluctuations. Such fluctuations are intermittent, because of strong correlations that persist over the timescale of experiments or simulations, leading to faster than exponential dynamics.Comment: 7 pages, Supplementary Information include

Doxycycline versus prednisolone as an initial treatment strategy for bullous pemphigoid: a pragmatic non-inferiority randomised controlled trial

Background: Bullous pemphigoid (BP) is a blistering skin disorder with increased mortality. We tested whether a strategy of starting treatment with doxycycline conveys acceptable short-term blister control whilst conferring long-term safety advantages over starting treatment with oral corticosteroids. Methods: Pragmatic multi-centre parallel-group randomised controlled trial of adults with BP (≥3 blisters ≥2 sites and linear basement membrane IgG/C3) plus economic evaluation. Participants were randomised to doxycycline (200 mg/day) or prednisolone (0·5 mg/kg/day). Localised adjuvant potent topical corticosteroids (<30 g/week) was permitted weeks 1-3. The non-inferiority primary effectiveness outcome was the proportion of participants with ≤3 blisters at 6 weeks. We assumed that doxycycline would be 25% less effective than corticosteroids with a 37% acceptable margin of noninferiority. The primary safety outcome was the proportion with severe, life-threatening or fatal treatment-related adverse events by 52 weeks. Analysis used a regression model adjusting for baseline disease severity, age and Karnofsky score, with missing data imputed. Results: 132 patients were randomised to doxycycline and 121 to prednisolone from 54 UK and 7 German dermatology centres. Mean age was 77·7 years and 68.4% had moderate to severe baseline disease. For those starting doxycycline, 83/112 (74·1%) had ≤3 blisters at 6 weeks compared with 92/101 (91·1%) for prednisolone, a difference of 18·6% favouring prednisolone (upper limit of 90% CI, 26·1%, within the predefined 37% margin). Related severe, life-threatening and fatal events at 52 weeks were 18·5% for those starting doxycycline and 36·6% for prednisolone (mITT analysis), an adjusted difference of 19·0% (95% CI, 7·9%, 30·1%, p=0·001). Conclusions: A strategy of starting BP patients on doxycycline is non-inferior to standard treatment with oral prednisolone for short-term blister control and significantly safer long-term