Fabrication of copper/single-walled carbon nanotube composite film with homogeneously dispersed nanotubes by electroless deposition

Copper/single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) composite films were fabricated by electroless deposition. The SWCNTs were formed using the water-assisted chemical vapor deposition method. To prepare copper/SWCNT composite plating baths with homogeneously dispersed SWCNTs, magnetic stirring, ultrasonic homogenization, and collision-type atomization were examined as mechanical methods for the disintegration of SWCNT bundles. Appropriate dispersants were added to the plating baths to avoid re-aggregation of the disintegrated SWCNTs. The degree of SWCNT dispersion in the copper/SWCNT composite plating bath was evaluated using a particle size analyzer, and the microstructures of the copper/SWCNT composite films were analyzed using scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Collision-type atomization most significantly improved the degree of SWCNT dispersion in the composite plating bath. Using this treatment method, copper/SWCNT composite films with homogeneous dispersions of SWCNTs were successfully fabricated by electroless deposition. (C) 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://cleativecommonhorghicensehby-nc-nd74,0/).ArticleMATERIALS TODAY COMMUNICATIONS. 7:101-107 (2016)journal articl

National trends in the outcomes of subarachnoid haemorrhage and the prognostic influence of stroke centre capability in Japan: retrospective cohort study

Objectives To examine the national, 6-year trends in in-hospital clinical outcomes of patients with subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) who underwent clipping or coiling and the prognostic influence of temporal trends in the Comprehensive Stroke Center (CSC) capabilities on patient outcomes in Japan.Design Retrospective study.Setting Six hundred and thirty-one primary care institutions in Japan.Participants Forty-five thousand and eleven patients with SAH who were urgently hospitalised, identified using the J-ASPECT Diagnosis Procedure Combination database.Primary and secondary outcome measures Annual number of patients with SAH who remained untreated, or who received clipping or coiling, in-hospital mortality and poor functional outcomes (modified Rankin Scale: 3–6) at discharge. Each CSC was assessed using a validated scoring system (CSC score: 1–25 points).Results In the overall cohort, in-hospital mortality decreased (year for trend, OR (95% CI): 0.97 (0.96 to 0.99)), while the proportion of poor functional outcomes remained unchanged (1.00 (0.98 to 1.02)). The proportion of patients who underwent clipping gradually decreased from 46.6% to 38.5%, while that of those who received coiling and those left untreated gradually increased from 16.9% to 22.6% and 35.4% to 38%, respectively. In-hospital mortality of coiled (0.94 (0.89 to 0.98)) and untreated (0.93 (0.90 to 0.96)) patients decreased, whereas that of clipped patients remained stable. CSC score improvement was associated with increased use of coiling (per 1-point increase, 1.14 (1.08 to 1.20)) but not with short-term patient outcomes regardless of treatment modality.Conclusions The 6-year trends indicated lower in-hospital mortality for patients with SAH (attributable to better outcomes), increased use of coiling and multidisciplinary care for untreated patients. Further increasing CSC capabilities may improve overall outcomes, mainly by increasing the use of coiling. Additional studies are necessary to determine the effect of confounders such as aneurysm complexity on outcomes of clipped patients in the modern endovascular era