An electron microscopy study of the crystal growth of schwertmannite needles through oriented aggregation of goethite nanocrystals

The formation of their onoxyhydroxide schwertmannite has been monitored by time-resolved transmission electronmicroscopy (TEM) studies. Schwertmannitea ggregates are found to form initially as spherical agglomerates offer rihydrite crystallites, which then begin to grow characteristic needles on their surfaces. High-resolution images of the needles show that they are initially comprised of aligned goethite nanocrystals, which subsequently coarsen to form crystallographically coherent needles of goethite. Thus, needle formation on schwertmannite aggregates can be considered as the first stage in the phase transformation from schwertmannite to goethite. The results of this study suggest that schwertmannite is not a distinct mineral phase, but may be a mixture of ferrihydrite and poorly crystalline goethite with a distinctive morphology directed by the presence of surface-adsorbed sulfate anions

Zinc sulfide as a solid phase additive for improving the processing characteristics of ferrihydrite residues

The effect of ZnS powders as additives for improving the physical and chemical properties of ferrihydrite residues has been studied in both kinetic and batch experiments. Four ZnS samples were compared: two industrial ZnS concentrates, high purity ZnS pieces, and a sample of synthetic ZnS nanoparticles. The industrial ZnS concentrates were found to be the most effective for promoting the transformation of ferrihydrite to hematite, and this effect was found to be due to their lower surface charge at pH 3, which promotes formation of mixed ZnS/ferrihydrite aggregates. For the high purity ZnS samples, aggregation was not favoured, and only goethite formation was promoted. The effect of particle size of the ZnS additive was also studied, and it was found that samples of smaller average particle size were more effective in promoting phase transformation. Measurement of filtration times and moisture content of ferrihydrite residues precipitated in the presence of ZnS showed only minor improvement in physical handling and indicated that better control of surface properties of the additive would be needed to optimise its effect on phase transformation

The dissolution behaviour of titanium oxide phases in synthetic Bayer liquors at 90 C

Many of the bauxites currently being processed to alumina contain titanium minerals, yet little fundamental knowledge is available regarding their dissolution behaviour in Bayer liquors. In this paper the dissolution of various titanium oxide phases (anatase, rutile, sodium titanate and calcium titanate) are presented. It is shown that rutile, calcium titanate and sodium titanate have the expected dissolution behaviour, which increases with free caustic concentration. Anatase, too, generally increases in dissolution with free caustic concentration. However, anatase is shown to have an anomalous behaviour when gibbsite co-precipitates. In this case, the dissolution of anatase does not follow the expected free caustic trend. According to the data presented, the most probable cause is an impervious aluminium/sodium titanate surface layer hindering further dissolution

Complex Biventricular Pacing - A Case Series

AbstractIt is established that cardiac resynchronisation therapy (CRT) reduces mortality and hospitalisation and improves functional class in patients with NYHA class 3-4 heart failure, an ejection fraction of ≤ 35% and a QRS duration of ≥ 120ms. Recent updates in the American guidelines have expanded the demographic of patients in whom CRT may be appropriate. Here we present two cases of complex CRT; one with a conventional indication but occluded central veins and the second with a novel indication for CRT post cardiac transplant

The effects of abdominal compartment hypertension after open and endovascular repair of a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm

ObjectiveThis study assessed if emergency endovascular repair (eEVR) reduces the increase in intra-abdominal compartment pressure and host inflammatory response in patients with ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA).MethodsThirty patients with ruptured AAA were prospectively recruited. Patients were offered eEVR or emergency conventional open repair (eOR) depending on anatomic suitability. Intra-abdominal pressure was measured postoperatively, at 2 and 6 hours, and then daily for 5 days. Organ dysfunction was assessed preoperatively by calculating the Hardman score. Multiple organ dysfunction syndrome, systemic inflammatory response syndrome, and lung injury scores were calculated regularly postoperatively. Hematologic analyses included serum urea and electrolytes, liver function indices, and C-reactive protein. Urine was analyzed for the albumin-creatinine ratio.ResultsFourteen patients (12 men; mean age, 72.2 ± 6.2 years) underwent eEVR, and 16 (14 men; mean age, 71.4 ± 7.0 years) had eOR. Intra-abdominal pressure was significantly higher in the eOR cohort compared with the eEVR group. The eEVR patients had significantly less blood loss (P < .001) and transfused (P < .001) and total intraoperative intravenous fluid infusion (P = .001). The eOR group demonstrated a greater risk of organ dysfunction, with a higher systemic inflammatory response syndrome score at day 5 (P = .005) and higher lung injury scores at days 1 and 3 (P = .02 and P = .02) compared with eEVR. A significant correlation was observed between intra-abdominal pressure and the volume of blood lost and transfused, amount of fluid given, systemic inflammatory response syndrome score, multiple organ dysfunction score, lung injury score, and the length of stay in the intensive care unit and hospital.ConclusionThese results suggest that eEVR of ruptured AAA is less stressful and is associated with less intra-abdominal hypertension and host inflammatory response compared with eOR

Small Molecules Greatly Improve Conversion of Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells to the Neuronal Lineage

Efficient in vitro differentiation into specific cell types is more important than ever after the breakthrough in nuclear reprogramming of somatic cells and its potential for disease modeling and drug screening. Key success factors for neuronal differentiation are the yield of desired neuronal marker expression, reproducibility, length, and cost. Three main neuronal differentiation approaches are stromal-induced neuronal differentiation, embryoid body (EB) differentiation, and direct neuronal differentiation. Here, we describe our neurodifferentiation protocol using small molecules that very efficiently promote neural induction in a 5-stage EB protocol from six induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) lines from patients with Parkinson's disease and controls. This protocol generates neural precursors using Dorsomorphin and SB431542 and further maturation into dopaminergic neurons by replacing sonic hedgehog with purmorphamine or smoothened agonist. The advantage of this approach is that all patient-specific iPSC lines tested in this study were successfully and consistently coaxed into the neural lineage

Mineralogy and petrology of comet 81P/wild 2 nucleus samples

The bulk of the comet 81P/Wild 2 (hereafter Wild 2) samples returned to Earth by the Stardust spacecraft appear to be weakly constructed mixtures of nanometer-scale grains, with occasional much larger (over 1 micrometer) ferromagnesian silicates, Fe-Ni sulfides, Fe-Ni metal, and accessory phases. The very wide range of olivine and low-Ca pyroxene compositions in comet Wild 2 requires a wide range of formation conditions, probably reflecting very different formation locations in the protoplanetary disk. The restricted compositional ranges of Fe-Ni sulfides, the wide range for silicates, and the absence of hydrous phases indicate that comet Wild 2 experienced little or no aqueous alteration. Less abundant Wild 2 materials include a refractory particle, whose presence appears to require radial transport in the early protoplanetary disk