Diatomite releases silica during spirit filtration

The purpose of this study was to ascertain whether diatomite is an inert filter aid during spirit filtration. Surely, any compound with a negative effect on the spirit composition or the consumer’s health could be dissolved. In this study different diatomites were treated with 36% vol. ethanol/water mixtures and the amounts and structures of the extracted compounds were determined. Furthermore, Brandy de Jerez was diatomite- and membrane-filtered at different temperatures and the silicon content was analysed. It was found that up to 0.36% by weight of diatomite dissolved in the aqueous ethanol and amorphous silica, in the form of hollow spherical microparticles, was the most abundant component. Silicon concentrations in Brandy de Jerez increased by up to 163.0% after contact with diatomite and these changes were more marked for calcined diatomite. In contrast, reductions of more than 30% in silicon concentrations were achieved after membrane filtration at low temperatures

Formation of siliceous sediments in brandy after diatomite filtration

Brandy is quite a stable spirit but sometimes light sediment appears. This sediment was separated and analysed by IR and SEM-EDX. It was revealed that the sediment is composed mostly of silica and residual organic matter. Silica was present as an amorphous phase and as microparticles. In an attempt to reproduce the formation of the sediment, a diatomite extract was prepared with an ethanol/water mixture (36% vol.) and a calcined diatomite similar to that used in brandy filtration. This extract was added to unfiltered brandy in different amounts. After 1 month, the Si concentration decreased in all samples and sediments with similar compositions and features to those found in the unstable brandy appeared. The amounts of sediment obtained were directly related to the decrease in Si concentration in solution. Consequently, it can be concluded that siliceous sediment in brandy originates from Si released during diatomite filtration

A Finite Element‑Based Methodology for the Thermo‑mechanical Analysis of Early Age Behavior in Concrete Structures

This paper presents a general procedure based on fracture mechanics models in order to analyze the level of cracking and structural safety in reinforced concrete elements at early ages, depending on the stripping time. Our procedure involves the development of a thermo-mechanical numerical model based on the finite element method that accounts for the change in the mechanical properties of concrete with time. Moreover, fracture mechanisms are analyzed by means of a material damage model, which is characterized via specific experimental results obtained for standard specimens and notched beams under three-point bending testing. The loading conditions are both thermal and mechanical, and are obtained from the hydration process for a given concrete dosage. The presented methodology allows for the determination of the optimal stripping time, whereas it helps assessing the analysis of the cracking and the stress states of the elements under consideration. A practical application, namely the analysis of a retaining wall, is used to validate our methodology, showing its suitability in engineering practice.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad BIA2016-75431-

Corrupción e inequidad en los servicios públicos en el Perú

Cada ciudadano peruano que tiene que realizar algún trámite en una dependencia estatal, sea nacional, regional o local, termina usualmente mortificado por las largas colas y tiempos de espera que hay que soportar, por las veces que hay que regresar a la misma institución para terminar con el trámite, por el trato descortés o simple maltrato de los funcionarios públicos y, en muchos casos, por el requerimiento de coimas para «agilizar» o hacer efectivo el servicio. El Perú está viviendo una bonanza económica sin precedentes en su historia contemporánea, con tasas de crecimiento promedio anual superiores al 6% durante más de una década. En este contexto, los problemas que más preocupan a la ciudadanía son la persistente desigualdad y pobreza, la corrupción en el Estado y la inseguridad ciudadana. Este estudio se ha concentrado en explorar la relación entre los dos primeros temas, empleando el uso de servicios públicos como eje central del análisis

Aplicación del autoconcepto al desarrollo de la marca personal. Análisis comparativo entre estudiantes internacionales

Individual personal brands have experienced a growing importance due to the massive use of new technologies. Everyone can benefit from the use of social networks to make a personal brand spread establishing a difference with the rest of the individuals. The interest to develop a personal brand is growing partly because of the high competitive employment market. Students in their last university years are especially interested in developing a personal brand. This study shows results obtained in a sample of students from Belgium and Spain. The objectives are to analyze self-concept as a valid tool to develop a personal brand and to establish possible differences in the self-concept levels of both nationalities. This article shows the results obtained in a study about personal brand and self-concept carried out in Belgium and Spain in May 2013.El auge de las nuevas tecnologías ha posibilitado la creación de la marca personal a nivel individual. Cualquier persona haciendo uso de las redes sociales puede difundir su imagen o marca a fin de construir una imagen diferenciada. El interés por el desarrollo de una marca personal consolidada se ha incrementado en la medida que resulta más difícil hacerse valer en un mercado de trabajo cada vez más competitivo. Los estudiantes a punto de entrar en el mercado laboral son unos sujetos especialmente interesados en el desarrollo de su marca personal. Así esta investigación utiliza como muestra a estudiantes de dos nacionalidades: españoles y belgas. El objetivo es doble, por un lado, presentar el autoconcepto como una herramienta adecuada al desarrollo de la marca personal y por otro, establecer posibles diferencias entre el nivel de autoconcepto de ambas nacionalidades. En este artículo se van presentar los resultados obtenidos en un estudio sobre autoconcepto y marca personal llevada a cabo en Bélgica y en España entre enero y mayo de 2013

La resiliencia en entrenadores de pádel adaptado

En el Deporte, la mayoría de los estudios sobre resiliencia se han centrado en deportistas, siendo reducido el número de investigaciones con entrenadores, sobre todo en el ámbito del deporte adaptado. Por ello, los objetivos del trabajo son: describir las características de resiliencia de entrenadores de Pádel Adaptado desarrollando baremos específicos para muestra analizada; establecer posibles diferencias en los niveles de resiliencia considerando variables personales y deportivas; establecer posibles relaciones entre los niveles de resiliencia, la edad y experiencia; comparar los niveles de resiliencia de la presente muestra con los resultados de estudios precedentes y determinar los niveles de fiabilidad obtenidos con la escala de resiliencia utilizada. La muestra estaba integrada por 111 entrenadores de pádel adaptado, a los que se aplicó dos instrumentos: cuestionario sociodemográfico para entrenadores de Pádel Adaptado (Ruiz, 2004; RuizBarquín, De la Vega, De la Rocha y Batista, 2015a) y la adaptación al castellano del cuestionario de Resiliencia (Ruiz, De la Vega, Poveda, Rosado y Serpa, 2012). Los resultados señalan un alto porcentaje de entrenadores con alta resiliencia (35.10%), mostrando niveles superiores a anteriores estudios y adecuados niveles de fiabilidad. La ausencia de diferencias significativas considerando las variables personales y deportivas, y las implicaciones de prácticas derivadas de los resultados obtenidos, son discutidas. Palabras clave: Resiliencia; entrenadores; pádel; deporte adaptadoIn Sport, most research on resilience is focused on athletes, with quite a low amount on coaches, especially regarding adapted sport. Therefore, the aims of this research are: to describe the resilience characteristics of Adapted paddle coaches by developing specific scales for the sample under study; to establish possible differences in the total resilience levels considering different personal and sport variables; to establish possible relationships between the resilience levels of Adapted Paddle Coaches and the age and experience variables; to compare the resilience levels within the current sample with results in previous studies; and to evaluate reliability levels obtained with the resilience scale used. The sample comprised 111 adapted paddle coaches, to whom two questionnaires were given: a sociodemographic one for adapted paddle coaches (Ruiz, 2004; Ruiz-Barquín, De la Vega, De la Rocha y Batista, 2015a) and the Spanish version of resilience (Ruiz, De la Vega, Poveda, Rosado & Serpa, 2012). The results conclude that the sample group has a large percentage of coaches with high resilience (35.10%), showing higher levels than those in previous studies, and appropriate reliability levels. The absence of significant differences, taking into account the personal and sport variables, and the implications of practices deriving from the results obtained, are discussed in the articl