Develop improved metal hydride technology for the storage of hydrogen. Final technical report

The overall objective was to develop commercially viable metal hydrides capable of reversibly storing at least 3 wt.% hydrogen for use with PEM fuel cells and hydrogen fueled internal combustion engine (HICE) applications. Such alloys are expected to result in system capacities of greater than 2 wt.%, making metal hydride storage systems (MHSS`s) a practical means of supplying hydrogen for many consumer applications. ECD`s (Energy Conversion Devices, Inc.) past work on sputtered thin films of transition metal-based alloys led to the commercialization of it`s nickel/metal hydride batteries, and similar work on thin film Mg-based alloys demonstrated potential to achieve very high gravimetric and volumetric energy densities approaching 2,500 Wh/Kg and 2,500 Wh/M{sup 3} respectively. Under this 2-year cost shared project with the DOE, the authors have successfully demonstrated the feasibility of scaling up the Mg-based hydrides from thin film to bulk production without substantial loss of storage capacity. ECD made progress in alloy development by means of compositional and process modification. Processes used include Mechanical Alloying, Melt spinning and novel Gas Phase Condensation. It was showed that the same composition when prepared by melt-spinning resulted in a more homogeneous material having a higher PCT plateau pressure as compared to mechanical alloying. It was also shown that mechanically alloyed Mg-Al-Zn results in much higher plateau pressures, which is an important step towards reducing the desorption temperature. While significant progress has been made during the past two years in alloy development and understanding the relationship between composition, structure, morphology, and processing parameters, additional R and D needs to be performed to achieve the goals of this work

Evidence for long-term variability in the ultra high energy photon flux from Cygnus X-3

A time-correlation analysis of atmospheric Cerenkov pulses by a wide-angle photomultiplier system was previously shown to have present in it a nonrandom component which seemed associated with the Right Ascension (RA) range approx. 20+or-04h. A recent examination of multi-muon events recorded by a photon-decay detector shows a similar time-dependent effect, closely matching the previous results, supporting the suggestion that the effect is of cosmic origin. However, even though Cyg. X-3 lies well inside the region of peak intensity, it does not seem possible to ascribe to it the whole effect, for the implied photon flux appears too large to be reconciled to various gamma-ray measurements of Cyg. X-3. The original data were subjected to a phase-histogram analysis and it as found that only 2.5% of overall recorded data are compatible with a phase-dependent emission from Cyg. X-3. Assuming these events to be gamma rays yields a detected flux of (2.6 + or - 0.3) x 10 to the minus 12th power gamma cm -2s-1 above 5 x 10 to the 14th power eV. Comparing this value with more recent ultra high energy (UHE) photon data from the same source, it is suggested that the available data generally favor a long-term reduction in the Cyg. X-3 inferred luminosity ( 10 to the 13th power eV) by a factor of (1.8 + or - 0.3) per year

Periodic gamma-ray emissions from Geminga at or = 10(12) eV

Analysis of data from an atmospheric Cerenkov telescope indicated the periodic emission of gamma rays of energy 10 to the 12th power eV, at 60.25 second period, from 2CG 195+4. The gamma ray flux at 99% confidence level is estimated to be 9.5 x 10 to 12 photons/sq cm/s

Temporal variation in saffron (Crocus sativus L.)

Saffron (Crocus sativus L. : Irridaceae), the world's most expensive spice is unknown in the wild state (Mathew 1982). It is a triploid (2n=3x=24) and reproduces asexually through corms. In India saffron is cultivated in the Kashmir Valley and also at Kishtwar (Jammu and Kashmir), Ranikhet and Chamoli (Uttar Pradesh). The present investigation was undertaken to assess the temporal variation in saffron from four locations (Chrar-Sharief, Sanatnagar, Pampore and Malabagh). Observations on floral characters were recorded from 200 randomly selected flowers at each location during October-November 1988. The characters included fresh flower weight, flower size (perianth area), stigma length, fresh and dry stigma weight and saffron percentage. &nbsp

Effect of spacings and nitrogen levels on herb and oil yield oil concentration and composition in three selections of Cymbopogon jwarancusa (Jones) Schultz

The performance of three selections of Cymbopogon jwarancusa (SL-7822, SL-7869 and SL-7896) was studied under five spacings and two levels of nitrogen. Though herbage and oil yield was higher in 4.01 m' stand density (50 x 50 cm spacing), 1l.l/m' (30 x 30 cm spacing) stand density was preferred as the projected yield per ha was higher in the latter. Increase in nitrogen from 200 to 300 kg/ba did not result in higher herbage and oil concentration in the leaves. The composition of oil was also not affected by spacings or nitrogen levels. &nbsp

A prospective investigation of interleukin-8 levels in pediatric acute respiratory failure and acute respiratory distress syndrome

© 2019 The Author(s). Background: The association of plasma interleukin-8 (IL-8), or IL-8 genetic variants, with pediatric acute respiratory distress syndrome (PARDS) in children with acute respiratory failure at risk for PARDS has not been examined. The purpose of this study was to examine the association of early and sequential measurement of plasma IL-8 and/or its genetic variants with development of PARDS and other clinical outcomes in mechanically ventilated children with acute respiratory failure. Methods: This was a prospective cohort study of children 2 weeks to 17 years of age with acute airways and/or parenchymal lung disease done in 22 pediatric intensive care units participating in the multi-center clinical trial, Randomized Evaluation of Sedation Titration for Respiratory Failure (RESTORE). Plasma IL-8 levels were measured within 24 h of consent and 24 and 48 h later. DNA was purified from whole blood, and IL-8 single nucleotide polymorphisms, rs4073, rs2227306, and rs2227307, were genotyped. Results: Five hundred forty-nine patients were enrolled; 480 had blood sampling. Plasma IL-8 levels ranged widely from 4 to 7373 pg/mL. Highest IL-8 levels were observed on the day of intubation with subsequent tapering. Levels of IL-8 varied significantly across primary diagnoses with the highest levels occurring in patients with sepsis and the lowest levels in those with asthma. Plasma IL-8 was strongly correlated with oxygenation defect and severity of illness. IL-8 was consistently higher in PARDS patients compared to those without PARDS; levels were 4-12 fold higher in non-survivors compared to survivors. On multivariable analysis, IL-8 was independently associated with death, duration of mechanical ventilation, and PICU length of stay on all days measured, but was not associated with PARDS development. There was no association between the IL-8 single nucleotide polymorphisms, rs4073, rs2227306, and rs2227307, and PARDS development or plasma IL-8 level. Conclusions: When measured sequentially, plasma IL-8 was robustly associated with multiple, relevant clinical outcomes including mortality, but was not associated with PARDS development. The wide range of plasma IL-8 levels exhibited in this cohort suggests that further study into the heterogeneity of this patient population and its impact on individual responses to PARDS treatment is warranted

Mapping genetic determinants of host susceptibility to Pseudomonas aeruginosa lung infection in mice.

Background: P. aeruginosa is one of the top three causes of opportunistic human bacterial infections. The remarkable variability in the clinical outcomes of this infection is thought to be associated with genetic predisposition. However, the genes underlying host susceptibility to P. aeruginosa infection are still largely unknown. Results: As a step towards mapping these genes, we applied a genome wide linkage analysis approach to a mouse model. A large F2 intercross population, obtained by mating P. aeruginosa-resistant C3H/HeOuJ, and susceptible A/J mice, was used for quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping. The F2 progenies were challenged with a P. aeruginosa clinical strain and monitored for the survival time up to 7 days post-infection, as a disease phenotype associated trait. Selected phenotypic extremes of the F2 distribution were genotyped with high-density single nucleotide polymorphic (SNP) markers, and subsequently QTL analysis was performed. A significant locus was mapped on chromosome 6 and was named P. aeruginosa infection resistance locus 1 (Pairl1). The most promising candidate genes, including Dok1, Tacr1, Cd207, Clec4f, Gp9, Gata2, Foxp1, are related to pathogen sensing, neutrophils and macrophages recruitment and inflammatory processes. Conclusions: We propose a set of genes involved in the pathogenesis of P. aeruginosa infection that may be explored to complement human studie

Early Elevation of Matrix Metalloproteinase-8 and -9 in Pediatric ARDS Is Associated with an Increased Risk of Prolonged Mechanical Ventilation

BACKGROUND: Matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) -8 and -9 may play key roles in the modulation of neutrophilic lung inflammation seen in pediatric Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). We aimed to perform a comprehensive analysis of MMP-8 and MMP-9 activity in tracheal aspirates of pediatric ARDS patients compared with non-ARDS controls, testing whether increased MMP-8 and -9 activities were associated with clinical outcomes. METHODS: Tracheal aspirates were collected from 33 pediatric ARDS patients and 21 non-ARDS controls at 48 hours of intubation, and serially for those who remained intubated greater than five days. MMPs, tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases (TIMPs), human neutrophil elastase (HNE) and myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity were measured by ELISA, and correlated with clinical indicators of disease severity such as PRISM (Pediatric Risk of Mortality) scores, oxygen index (OI), multi-organ system failure (MOSF) and clinical outcome measures including length of intubation, ventilator-free days (VFDs) and mortality in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). RESULTS: Active MMP-9 was elevated early in pediatric ARDS subjects compared to non-ARDS controls. Higher MMP-8 and active MMP-9 levels at 48 hours correlated with a longer course of mechanical ventilation (r = 0.41, p = 0.018 and r = 0.75, p<0.001; respectively) and fewer number of VFDs (r = -0.43, p = 0.013 and r = -0.76, p<0.001; respectively), independent of age, gender and severity of illness. Patients with the highest number of ventilator days had the highest levels of active MMP-9. MMP-9 and to a lesser extent MMP-8 activities in tracheal aspirates from ARDS subjects were sensitive to blockade by small molecule inhibitors. CONCLUSIONS: Higher MMP-8 and active MMP-9 levels at 48 hours of disease onset are associated with a longer duration of mechanical ventilation and fewer ventilator-free days among pediatric patients with ARDS. Together, these results identify early biomarkers predictive of disease course and potential therapeutic targets for this life threatening disease