About the Use of mineral and vegetable Oils to improve the Sustainability of Steel Quenching

Abstract The Die Assisted Oil Quenching process is a highly customisable heat treatment that permits a relevant reduction of distortions thus limiting or avoiding following grinding operations. Distortion reductions can be obtained not only by an action on process parameters and equipment but also by choosing suitable quenching media. Nowadays, the most widely used quenching fluids are mineral oils. Nevertheless, a number of innovative quenchants that are derived from oily plants are available on the market as possible alternatives to such media. Such multiplicity leads to a decision-making problem that may deeply affect the global sustainability of the process. In this paper, a comparative study between a mineral and a vegetable oil is performed. A preliminary analysis of the environmental impacts of the two quenching media is presented. Then, an experimental activity has been performed to investigate the technical performances of the two media in terms of dimensional and metallurgical properties of the quenched parts. Furthermore, a measurement of oily fogs has been performed during quenching to verify possible emission reductions. The experimental activity pointed out a better control of part distortions and a comparable metallurgical microstructure when vegetable oil is used for quenching. In addition, no oily fogs have been observed for this quenching medium

Effects of Azadirachta indica seed kernel extracts on early erythrocytic schizogony of Plasmodium berghei and pro-inflammatory response in inbred mice

Background: Medicinal plant research may contribute to develop new pharmacological control tools for vector borne diseases, such as malaria. Methods: The effects of methanol extracts (ME) obtained from seed kernel of ripe and unripe Azadirachta indica fruits were studied on erythrocytic proliferation of the rodent malaria parasite Plasmodium berghei strain ANKA and on mice pro-inflammatory response, as evaluated by measuring the matrix-metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) and tumour necrosis factor (TNF) plasma levels, in two mouse strains (C57BL/6 and BALB/c) which are considered as prototypical of Th1 and Th2 immune response, respectively. Results: ME obtained from seed kernel of unripe Azadirachta indica fruits decreased by about 30% the proportion of erythrocytes infected with the malaria parasite in C57BL/6 mice in the 4 days suppressive test. In this treatment group, MMP-9 and TNF levels were notably higher than those measured in the same mouse strain treated with the anti-malarial drug artesunate, Azadirachta indica kernel extracts from ripe fruits or solvent. In BALB/c mice, treatment with kernel extracts did not influence parasitaemia. MMP-9 and TNF levels measured in this mouse strain were notably lower than those recorded in C57BL/6 mice and did not vary among treatment groups. Conclusions: The effects of the ME on the parasite-host interactions appeared to be mouse strain-dependent, but also related to the ripening stage of the neem fruits, as only the unripe fruit seed kernel extracts displayed appreciable bioactivity

One-Pot Total Synthesis of Cannabinol via Iodine-Mediated Deconstructive Annulation

The thermal degradation of cannabichromene (CBC, 3) is dominated by cationic reactions and not by the pericyclic rearrangements observed in model compounds. The rationalization of these differences inspired the development of a process that coupled, in an aromatization-driven single operational step, the condensation of citral and alkylresorciniols to homoprenylchromenes and their in situ deconstructive annulation to benzo[c]chromenes. This process was applied to a total synthesis of cannabinol (CBN, 5) and to its molecular editing

Analisi costo-efficacia di rituximab + CHOP versus CHOP in soggetti affetti da linfoma non Hodgkin aggressivo

Cost-effectiveness analysis of rituximab + CHOP versus CHOP in patients with aggressive Non-Hodgkin lymphoma Objective: Aim of this study was to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of rituximab + CHOP (R-CHOP) versus CHOP alone, in Italian patients with aggressive Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), in the NHS' perspective. Design: The economic analysis is based on an existing Markov model which was developed to evaluate costs and effects for two hypothetical cohorts of patients aged ≥ 60 years or aged < 60 years respectively, over a time frame of 15 years after administration of chemotherapy. The model is based on five health states (start therapy, complete response, no response, progression, death) and combines efficacy data from published clinical trials (GELA-98-5) with costs of therapies and follow-up after chemotherapy, based on Italian treatment patterns. Costs and effects were discounted respectively at 6% and 1.5% per year. Extensive 1-way and Monte Carlo sensitivity analyses were conducted to test the robustness of results. Results: For the two cohorts (age ≥ 60 or age < 60 years), incremental discounted survival gains with R-CHOP vs. CHOP were respectively 1.08 and 1.02 years per patient; incremental QALYs were 1.15 and 1.04 per patient; incremental cost/patient was €14 838 and €13 938; the incremental cost per life-year gained (cost/LYG) was therefore €13 732 and €13 717, while the incremental cost/QALY gained was €12 879 and €13 362. Conclusions: The clinical advantage of R-CHOP is supported by values of incremental cost/LYG and cost/QALY gained, which are well below the thresholds commonly indicated both in the international and Italian literature. R-CHOP is a substantial improvement in the treatment of aggressive NHL, at a reasonable cost, in the perspective of the Italian NHS