39 research outputs found

    Optimal integration modeling of Co–Electrolysis in a power-to-liquid industrial process

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    High temperature co-electrolysis using solid-oxide electrolysis cells is a highly efficient pathway for green syngas production owing to the possibility of heat integration with other processes. Therefore, this study described and evaluates a flexible and efficient configuration for producing sustainable synthetic fuels using electricity from renewables and captured CO2 by integrating co-electrolysis in a power-to-liquid industrial plant. Thereafter, novel and efficient technologies were implemented for green syngas production and its subsequent purification, increasing the overall process efficiency and achieving a significant reduction in the carbon footprint compared to mature synthetic crude production processes. Catalytic partial oxidation and dual pressure swing adsorption were integrated with co-electrolysis and Fischer–Tropsch synthesis in a scaled industrial plant, using residual streams from the complex or those of renewable origin as feed, which allowed the continuous operation of the process independent of renewable power generation. The mass and energy balance, performance, and efficiency estimations were also included in this study. A solid-oxide electrolytic cell (SOEC) plant using renewable electricity and heat input from thermal integration with the outlet syngas stream of the catalytic partial oxidation reactor was selected as a case study. Both the performance and efficiency analyses of the co-electrolysis unit demonstrated the benefits of such thermal integration in comparison with current solutions. In this study, both the thermal integration of the process streams, as well as the energy and heat consumed by the syngas purification process were considered.The authors acknowledge the project funded by the Comunidad Autónoma de la Región de Murcia, Consejería de Desarrollo Económico, Turismo y Empleo (Región de Murcia, Spain), and the European Union through the program RIS3MUR (Ref:2I20SAE00079)

    Gastrointestinal Bleeding in Patients with Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia: Risk Factors and Endoscopic Findings

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    Background: We aimed to describe risk factors for gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding and endoscopic findings in patients with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT). Methods: This is a prospective study from a referral HHT unit. Endoscopic tests were performed when there was suspicion of GI bleeding, and patients were divided as follows: with, without, and with unsuspected GI involvement. Results: 67 (27.9%) patients with, 28 (11.7%) patients without, and 145 (60.4%) with unsuspected GI involvement were included. Age, tobacco use, endoglin (ENG) mutation, and hemoglobin were associated with GI involvement. Telangiectases were mostly in the stomach and duodenum, but 18.5% of patients with normal esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) had GI involvement in video capsule endoscopy (VCE). Telangiectases ≤ 3 mm and ≤10 per location were most common. Among patients with GI disease, those with hemoglobin 3 mm). After a mean follow-up of 34.2 months, patients with GI involvement required more transfusions and more emergency department and hospital admissions, with no differences in mortality. Conclusions: Risk factors for GI involvement have been identified. Patients with GI involvement and severe anemia had larger telangiectases and higher ESS. VCE should be considered in patients with suspicion of GI bleeding, even if EGD is normal

    Long-term use of somatostatin analogs for chronic gastrointestinal bleeding in hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia

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    BackgroundChronic bleeding due to gastrointestinal (GI) involvement in patients with hemorrhagic hereditary telangiectasia (HHT) can provoke severe anemia with high red blood cells (RBC) transfusion requirements. However, the evidence about how to deal with these patients is scarce. We aimed to assess the long-term efficacy and safety of somatostatin analogs (SA) for anemia management in HHT patients with GI involvement. MethodsThis is a prospective observational study including patients with HHT and GI involvement attended at a referral center. SA were considered for those patients with chronic anemia. Anemia-related variables were compared in patients receiving SA before and during treatment. Patients receiving SA were divided into responders (patients with minimal hemoglobin levels improvement >10 g/L and maintaining hemoglobin levels >= 80 g/L during treatment), and non-responders. Adverse effects during follow-up were collected. ResultsAmong 119 HHT patients with GI involvement, 67 (56.3%) received SA. These patients showed lower minimal hemoglobin levels (73 [60-87] vs. 99 [70.2-122.5], p < 0.001), and more RBC transfusion requirements (61.2% vs. 38.5%, p = 0.014) than patients without SA therapy. Median treatment period was 20.9 +/- 15.2 months. During treatment, there was a statistically significant improvement in minimum hemoglobin levels (94.7 +/- 29.8 g/L vs. 74.7 +/- 19.7, p < 0.001) and a reduction of patients with minimal hemoglobin levels <80 g/L (39 vs. 61%, p = 0.007) and RBC transfusions requirement (33.9% vs. 59.3%, p < 0.001). Sixteen (23.9%) patients showed mild adverse effects, mostly diarrhea or abdominal pain, leading to treatment discontinuation in 12 (17.9%) patients. Fifty-nine patients were eligible for efficacy assessment and 32 (54.2%) of them were considered responders. Age was associated with non-responder patients, OR 95% CI; 1.070 (1.014-1.130), p = 0.015. ConclusionSA can be considered a long-term effective and safe option for anemia management in HHT patients with GI bleeding. Older age is associated with poorer response

    Causa de reprobación en ingeniería desde la perspectiva del académico y administradores.

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    La reprobación estudiantil es un problema añejo y complejo que tiene que irse monitoreando cada determinado tiempo en las instituciones de educación superior. El propósito de esta investigación fue identificar las causas de reprobación en las carreras de ingeniería del Instituto Tecnológico de Mexicali, en Baja California, México, desde la perspectiva de los actores educativos principales. En este documento se presentan los resultados obtenidos de los académicos y administradores. La información se recabó mediante una encuesta aplicada en febrero de 2013. El método utilizado es de tipo descriptivo-analítico. Pese a que los orígenes son variados, los académicos y administradores consideran que la principal causa de reprobación de los estudiantes de ingeniería es atribuible al rendimiento escolar del estudiante, es decir problemas relacionados a la falta de hábitos de estudio, de bases para cursar las asignaturas, dificultad para entender la asignatura y no asistir al aula o a las asesorías

    Zinc-Doped Iron Oxide Nanoparticles as a Proton-Activatable Agent for Dose Range Verification in Proton Therapy

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    Proton therapy allows the treatment of specific areas and avoids the surrounding tissues. However, this technique has uncertainties in terms of the distal dose fall-off. A promising approach to studying the proton range is the use of nanoparticles as proton-activatable agents that produce detectable signals. For this, we developed an iron oxide nanoparticle doped with Zn (IONP@Zn-cit) with a hydrodynamic size of 10 nm and stability in serum. Cytotoxicity, defined as half of the surveillance, was 100 &mu;g Zn/mL in the U251 cell line. The effect on clonogenic cell death was tested after X-ray irradiation, which suggested a radioprotective effect of these nanoparticles at low concentrations (1&ndash;10 &mu;g Zn/mL). To evaluate the production of positron emitters and prompt-gamma signals, IONP@Zn-cit was irradiated with protons, obtaining prompt-gamma signals at the lowest measured concentration (10 mg Zn/mL). Finally, 67Ga-IONP@Zn-cit showed accumulation in the liver and spleen and an accumulation in the tumor tissue of 0.95% ID/g in a mouse model of U251 cells. These results suggest the possibility of using Zn nanoparticles as proton-activatable agents to verify the range by prompt gamma detection and face the challenges of prompt gamma detection in a specific biological situation, opening different avenues to go forward in this field
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