Energy drink consumption in young subjects: a growing problem

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Aortoaortic bypass pathophysiology

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Toward a unified pathophysiology in COVID-19 acute aortopathies

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Alkylation of isopropanol with ethanol over heterogeneous catalysts

The importance of synthesis of carbon-carbon bonds is reflected by the fact that Nobel Prizes in Chemistry have been given to this area: The Grignard reaction (1912), the Diels-Alder reaction (1950), the Witting reaction (1979), the olefin metathesis Y. Chauvin, R.H. Grubbs and R.R. Schrock (2005), the palladiumcatalyzed cross-coupling reactions to R. F. Heck, A. Suzuki, E. Negishi (2010). For the first time ever alkylation of isopropanol with ethanol was carried out over heterogeneous 0.2-1 wt.% Au and/or 0.02-0.3 wt. %Ni - containing catalysts without any sacrificial agents and/or presence of acidic/base additives. The catalyst containing 0.2 wt.% Au and 0.18 wt.% Ni supported on γ-Al2O3 was found to be the most selective in the cross-coupling route. Total selectivity of coupling products reached up to 70 %, conversion of the both initial alcohols was 50 %. Structural investigations of the Au, Ni - containing catalysts permitted to determine probable active sites peculiarities that provide effective one-pot alkylation of isopropanol with ethanol

Don’t forget the vertical dimension: Assessment of distributional dynamics of cave-dwelling invertebrates in both ground and parietal microhabitats

Biological studies on factors shaping underground communities are poor, especially those considering simultaneously organisms with different degrees of adaptation to cave life. In this study, we assessed the annual dynamics and use of both horizontal and vertical microhabitats of a whole community with the aim of understanding whether cave-dwelling organisms have a similar distribution among vertical and ground-level microhabitats and to find out which microhabitat features influence such distribution. We monthly assessed from 2017 to 2018, by direct observation combined with quadrat sampling method on the ground and transects on the walls, richness and abundance of 62 cave-dwelling species in a cave of Northern Italy. Environmental factors such as light intensity, temperature, relative humidity and mineralogical composition of the substrates were measured during each monitoring session, influencing the dynamics of the whole community and revealing significant differences between ground and wall microhabitats. A gradient of variation of the species assemblages occurred from the entrance toward inner areas, however, evidence that the dynamics of the walls are very different from those occurring at the ground independent from the distance from the surface are shown. Biodiversity indices highlighted sampling area diversity and a discrete total cave fauna biodiversity with the highest values found near the entrance and the lowest in the inner part of the cave

Self-sustainable bio-methanol & bio-char coproduction from 2nd generation biomass gasification

Methanol is an important intermediate in the synthesis of different chemicals. It is mainly produced by reforming of natural gas in centralized facilities with productive capacities on the order of 109 tons per day. Production of methanol from biomass suffers from the cost and logistics of the transportation of biomass and it has not yet maturated into commercial scale. The techno-economic feasibility of the co-production of bio-methanol and bio-char is assessed through detailed computer simulations using process simulator Aspen HYSYS® together with the gasification simulator GASDS. This work further elaborates the previous results on the bio-methanol production process, presenting particularities and updates on previously reported values. The production model is seen to be valid, with payback times that go from 3 to 6 years according to the capacity of the plant (100 to 1000 kt of biomass per year). Self-sustainability is possible but a 50/50 mix of producing and buying electricity yields the most economic choice. © Copyright 2017, AIDIC Servizi S.r.l