Acrylic resins in wet white

Content: The purpose of this paper is to study the influence of acrylic resins on the properties of the hide when added in the pickling-tanning stage of a wet white process. Among retanning products, acrylic resins are very frequently used because they lend very good properties to the hide on account of their high affinity for chromium. When applied during chrome tanning, these resins provide the hides with high fullness, due to the strong interaction of the carboxylate groups with chromium. Extensive bibliography is available on the application of acrylic resins in wet blue, where it is observed that the properties they provide to the hides depend basically on the type of monomers and molecular weight. However, less information is found when these products are applied in wet white tanning. In this study, 9 resins with different molecular weights and different monomer compositions were selected. Resins were applied to pelt leathers of Spanish origin split at 3.5 mm. Hides were cut along the backbone. A standard process was applied to the left halves and the same process adding the resin was applied to the right halves. The resin was added after adjusting the salt of the bath and before adding the pickling acids. The COD was measured before and after adding formic and sulfuric acid, and the shrinkage temperature and the degree of whiteness of the tanned hide were assessed. Hides were retanned and fatliquored with a standard process, and degree of softness, thickness, color intensity and organoleptic properties (fluffiness, compactness and grain tightness) were assessed. Leather shrinkage under temperature was also assessed, and images of leather sections were obtained by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). While acrylic resins did not increase shrinkage temperature, they did fix and/or deposit themselves in the interfibrillary spaces of the hide; indeed, highly reduced COD values after acidification in the pickling stage were observed. This study shows that homopolymeric acrylic resins provided fuller and fluffier hides, while the rest of resins practically did not improve the physical and organoleptic properties of the hides. Take-Away: Homopolymeric acrylic resins provided full er and fluffier hides, while the rest of resins practically did not improve the physical and organoleptic properties of the hides Wet white tanning improvemen

Estimation of the mechanical properties of the eye through the study of its vibrational modes

Measuring the eye's mechanical properties in vivo and with minimally invasive techniques can be the key for individualized solutions to a number of eye pathologies. The development of such techniques largely relies on a computational modelling of the eyeball and, it optimally requires the synergic interplay between experimentation and numerical simulation. In Astrophysics and Geophysics the remote measurement of structural properties of the systems of their realm is performed on the basis of (helio-)seismic techniques. As a biomechanical system, the eyeball possesses normal vibrational modes encompassing rich information about its structure and mechanical properties. However, the integral analysis of the eyeball vibrational modes has not been performed yet. Here we develop a new finite difference method to compute both the spheroidal and, specially, the toroidal eigenfrequencies of the human eye. Using this numerical model, we show that the vibrational eigenfrequencies of the human eye fall in the interval 100 Hz - 10 MHz. We find that compressible vibrational modes may release a trace on high frequency changes of the intraocular pressure, while incompressible normal modes could be registered analyzing the scattering pattern that the motions of the vitreous humour leave on the retina. Existing contact lenses with embebed devices operating at high sampling frequency could be used to register the microfluctuations of the eyeball shape we obtain. We advance that an inverse problem to obtain the mechanical properties of a given eye (e.g., Young's modulus, Poisson ratio) measuring its normal frequencies is doable. These measurements can be done using non-invasive techniques, opening very interesting perspectives to estimate the mechanical properties of eyes in vivo. Future research might relate various ocular pathologies with anomalies in measured vibrational frequencies of the eye.Comment: Published in PLoS ONE as Open Access Research Article. 17 pages, 5 color figure

The effect of aberrations on objectively assessed image quality and depth of focus.

The effects of aberrations on image quality and the objectively assessed depth of focus (DoF) were studied. Aberrometry data from 80 young subjects with a range of refractive errors was used for computing the visual Strehl ratio based on the optical transfer function (VSOTF), and then, through-focus simulations were performed in order to calculate the objective DoF (using two different relative thresholds of 50% and 80%; and two different pupil diameters) and the image quality (the peak VSOTF). Both lower order astigmatism and higher order aberration (HOA) terms up to the fifth radial order were considered. The results revealed that, of the HOAs, the comatic terms (third and fifth order) explained most of the variations of the DoF and the image quality in this population of subjects. Furthermore, computer simulations demonstrated that the removal of these terms also had a significant impact on both DoF and the peak VSOTF. Knowledge about the relationship between aberrations, DoF, image quality, and their interactions is essential in optical designs aiming to produce large values of DoF while maintaining an acceptable level of image quality. Comatic aberration terms appear to contribute strongly towards the configuration of both of these visually important parameters

Effect of even and odd-order aberrations on the accommodation response.

AIM: To investigate the potential effect that odd and even-order monochromatic aberrations may have on the accommodation response of the human eye. METHODS: Eight healthy subjects with astigmatism below 1 D, best corrected visual acuity 20/20 or better and normal findings in an ophthalmic examination were enrolled. An adaptive optics system was used in order to measure the accommodation response of the subjects' eyes under different conditions: with the natural aberrations being present, and with the odd and even-order aberrations being corrected. Three measurements of accommodation response were monocularly acquired at accommodation demands ranging from 0 to 4 D (0.5 D step). RESULTS: The accommodative lag was greater for the accommodative demands of 1.5, 3, 3.5 and 4 D for the condition in which the even-order aberrations were corrected, in comparison to that obtained for the natural aberrations and corrected odd-order aberrations for the same accommodation demands. No statistically significant differences were found between the accommodation responses under the three conditions. CONCLUSION: The odd and even-order aberrations are not helping the visual system to accommodate, because their partial correction do not affect the accommodation performance

Assessing the accommodation response after near visual tasks using different handheld electronic devices

ABSTRACT Purpose: To assess the accommodation response after short reading periods using a tablet and a smartphone as well as determine potential differences in the accommodation response at various stimulus vergences using a Hartmann- Shack aberrometer. Methods: Eighteen healthy subjects with astigmatism of less than 1 D, corrected visual acuity of 20/20 or better, and normal findings in an ophthalmic examination were enrolled. Accommodation responses were obtained under three different conditions: accommodation system of the eye relaxed and visually stressed with a tablet and an smartphone for 10 min, at a distance of 0.25 m from the subject's eyes. Three measurements of accommodation response were monocularly acquired at stimulus vergences ranging from 0 to 4 D (1-D step). Results: No statistically significant differences were found in the accommodation responses among the conditions. A moderate but gradually increasing root mean square, coma-like aberration was found for every condition. Conversely, the spherical aberration decreased as stimulus vergences increased. These outcomes were identified in comparison to the one-to-one ideal accommodation response, implying that a certain lag value was present in all stimulus vergences different from 0 D. Conclusions: The results support the hypothesis that the difference between the ideal and real accommodation responses is mainly attributed to parameters associated with the accommodation process, such as the near visual acuity, depth of focus, pupil diameter, and wavefront aberrations. The wavefront aberrations were dependent on the 3-mm pupil size selected in this study. The accommoda tion response was not dependent on the electronic device employed in each condition, and it was mainly associated with young age and level of amplitude of accommodation of the subjects

Amplitude, Latency, and Peak Velocity in Accommodation and Disaccommodation Dynamics.

The aim of this work was to ascertain whether there are differences in amplitude, latency, and peak velocity of accommodation and disaccommodation responses when different analysis strategies are used to compute them, such as fitting different functions to the responses or for smoothing them prior to computing the parameters. Accommodation and disaccommodation responses from four subjects to pulse changes in demand were recorded by means of aberrometry. Three different strategies were followed to analyze such responses: fitting an exponential function to the experimental data; fitting a Boltzmann sigmoid function to the data; and smoothing the data. Amplitude, latency, and peak velocity of the responses were extracted. Significant differences were found between the peak velocity in accommodation computed by fitting an exponential function and smoothing the experimental data (mean difference 2.36 D/s). Regarding disaccommodation, significant differences were found between latency and peak velocity, calculated with the two same strategies (mean difference of 0.15 s and -3.56 D/s, resp.). The strategy used to analyze accommodation and disaccommodation responses seems to affect the parameters that describe accommodation and disaccommodation dynamics. These results highlight the importance of choosing the most adequate analysis strategy in each individual to obtain the parameters that characterize accommodation and disaccommodation dynamics

Facilitation Among Saproxylic Insects Inhabiting Tree Hollows in a Mediterranean Forest: The Case of Cetonids (Coleoptera: Cetoniidae) and Syrphids (Diptera: Syrphidae)

Tree hollows offer an ideal niche for saproxylic insects in mature Mediterranean forests, where Diptera and Coleoptera are the richest groups. Co-occurrence is frequently observed among many species of both groups in these microhabitats, and some of these species have been considered to facilitate the presence of other species by acting as ecosystem engineers. One of the systems that is found in Mediterranean tree hollows is formed by cetonid (Coleoptera: Cetoniidae) and syrphid (Diptera: Syrphidae) larvae. Here, cetonid larvae feed on wood and litter and produce a substrate that is easier to decompose. To assess the possible role of these larvae as facilitating agents for the saproxylic guild, we studied whether the presence of saprophagous Syrphidae inside tree hollows is associated with the activity of cetonid larvae. Furthermore, in laboratory conditions, we tested whether cetonid larvae activity can improve the development and fitness of the saprophagous syrphid species. Our results show that “cetonid activity” was the variable that best explained the presence of saprophagous syrphid species in natural conditions. Myathropa florea (L., 1758) was one of the species most influenced by this activity. The laboratory experiment gave similar results, demonstrating that an enriched substrate with Cetonia aurataeformis Curti, 1913 larval feces improves syrphid larval growth rate and fitness of adults (measured as longer wing length) of M. florea.Financial support was provided by the Spanish Minister of Science and Innovation (CGL2008-04472, CGL2009-09656, CG L2011-23658, CGL2012-31669) and the Generalitat Valenciana (PROMETEO/2013/034 Project). I.R.S.G. was supported by Grisolia fellowships of the Generalitat Valencian

Evaluation of the iridocorneal angle with accommodation using optical coherence tomography.

The changes in the iridocorneal angle structure during accommodation are assessed by means of anterior segment optical coherence tomography. Thirteen right eyes were included in the study. The device used for the measurement was the Visante®omni system. The stimuli were set up at different vergences (0.0 D, -1.5 D, and -3.0 D). The angle opening distance 500 and 750, the trabecular iris space area 500 and 750, and the scleral spur angle parameters were assessed at the nasal and temporal regions. The results in the iridotrabecular angle comparing the three accommodative states of the eye did not yield any statistically significant difference at nasal or temporal angle sections. In light of our results and in the conditions of our study, the structures of the iridocorneal angle are not significantly changed with accommodation