Photogeologic mapping in central southwest Bahia, using LANDSAT-1 multispectral images

The interpretation of LANDSAT multispectral imagery for geologic mapping of central southwest Bahia, Brazil is described. Surface features such as drainage, topography, vegetation and land use are identified. The area is composed of low grade Precambrian rocks covered by Mezozoic and Cenozoic sediments. The principal mineral prospects of economic value are fluorite and calcareous rocks. Gold, calcite, rock crystal, copper, potassium nitrate and alumina were also identified

Modified Spin Wave Analysis of Low Temperature Properties of Spin-1/2 Frustrated Ferromagnetic Ladder

Low temperature properties of the spin-1/2 frustrated ladder with ferromagnetic rungs and legs, and two different antiferromagnetic next nearest neighbor interaction are investigated using the modified spin wave approximation in the region with ferromagnetic ground state. The temperature dependence of the magnetic susceptibility and magnetic structure factors is calculated. The results are consistent with the numerical exact diagonalization results in the intermediate temperature range. Below this temperature range, the finite size effect is significant in the numerical diagonalization results, while the modified spin wave approximation gives more reliable results. The low temperature properties near the limit of the stability of the ferromagnetic ground state are also discussed.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figure

Field data observed during the geological excursion in the west-central region of the Sul-Riogrande Shield

Outcrops are studied in the Copper Project test area of the Rio Grande do Sul State of Brazil. The accuracy of LANDSAT-MSS data is checked against field data. A preliminary geological map is included on a scale of 1:500,000 that describes 820 outcrop over an area of 1,700 kilometers

Fuel quality/processing study. Volume 2: Appendix. Task 1 literature survey

The results of a literature survey of fuel processing and fuel quality are given. Liquid synfuels produced from coal and oil shale are discussed. Gas turbine fuel property specifications are discussed. On-site fuel pretreatment and emissions from stationary gas turbines are discussed. Numerous data tables and abstracts are given

Dominant aerosol processes during high-pollution episodes over Greater Tokyo

This paper studies two high-pollution episodes over Greater Tokyo: 9 and 10 December 1999, and 31 July and 1 August 2001. Results obtained with the chemistry-transport model (CTM) Polair3D are compared to measurements of inorganic PM2.5. To understand to which extent the aerosol processes modeled in Polair3D impact simulated inorganic PM2.5, Polair3D is run with different options in the aerosol module, e.g. with/without heterogeneous reactions. To quantify the impact of processes outside the aerosol module, simulations are also done with another CTM (CMAQ). In the winter episode, sulfate is mostly impacted by condensation, coagulation, long-range transport, and deposition to a lesser extent. In the summer episode, the effect of long-range transport largely dominates. The impact of condensation/evaporation is dominant for ammonium, nitrate and chloride in both episodes. However, the impact of the thermodynamic equilibrium assumption is limited. The impact of heterogeneous reactions is large for nitrate and ammonium, and taking heterogeneous reactions into account appears to be crucial in predicting the peaks of nitrate and ammonium. The impact of deposition is the same for all inorganic PM2.5. It is small compared to the impact of other processes although it is not negligible. The impact of nucleation is negligible in the summer episode, and small in the winter episode. The impact of coagulation is larger in the winter episode than in the summer episode, because the number of small particles is higher in the winter episode as a consequence of nucleation.Comment: Journal of Geophysical Research D: Atmospheres (15/05/2007) in pres

Ten Years» Experience of Aortic Aneurysm Associated with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

AbstractBackground: aortic aneurysm is a rare but life-threatening cardiovascular complication in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The purpose of this study was to clarify the characteristic clinical features and the pathological mechanism of aneurysmal formation in these patients. Methods: among 429 patients operated on for abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) during the past 10 years, five cases with SLE were treated surgically. Their clinical data were reviewed, and the resected aneurysmal wall of the five patients was also examined histologically. Results: the mean age of the patients with SLE was 55 years, which was statistically younger than that of the other patients (mean 77 years, s.d. 7.9, p <0.05). They had received long-term corticosteroid therapy for the treatment of SLE for a mean of 23 years. Histologically, destruction of the medial elastic lamina was characteristic. Four patients had no complications in the postoperative follow-up period (mean 4 years), while the remaining patient died of rupture of a dissecting aneurysm two years after operation.Conclusion : prolonged steroid therapy may play a major role in accelerating atherosclerosis, which can result in aortic aneurysmal enlargement, possibly together with primary aortic wall involvement and/or vasculitic damage in patients with SLE

Regulation of Matrix Contraction in Chronic Venous Disease

AbstractObjectiveThe role of TGF-β1 in venous ulcer healing and the signalling cascades regulating dermal fibroblast function are poorly understood. To elucidate these processes, we hypothesized that TGF-β1 facilitates wound healing by increasing chronic venous insufficiency (CVI) induced matrix contraction via intracellular cross-talk between TGF-β1 and the ERK-1/2 MAP kinase signalling cascades.MethodsFibroblasts isolated from calf biopsies (LC) of patients with different severity of CVI (CEAP, Clinical Etiological Anatomical Pathological classes) were seeded into 200μl collagen gels under isometric conditions. Fibroblasts from neonatal foreskins (HS68), non-CVI patients (NC), and the ipsilateral normal thigh of each CVI patient (LT) served as controls. Thirteen patients with CVI (class 2, n=5; class 4, n=5; class 6, n=3) and 2 non-CVI controls (NC, n=2) were included in the study. All experimental conditions were determined by dose–response and time-course experiments. Gels were cultured with/without 0.1ng/ml TGF-β1 and with/without 50μM PD98059 (MEK and downstream-MAPK inhibitor). Additional patient fibroblasts were transfected with constitutively active Ras (pCMV-Ras) or an empty vector (pCMV-β) with/without 0.1ng/ml TGF-β1 and with/without 50μm PD98059. The collagen gels were released after 4 days and the percent contraction was determined by area measurements using image analysis. Differences in α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and ERK-1/2 MAPK (phosphorylated and total) protein levels were analyzed with western blotting.ResultsGels seeded with CVI fibroblasts contracted more than HS68, NC and LT fibroblasts. Inhibition of MAPK and/or stimulation with TGF-β1 increased the contraction of LC gels compared to unstimulated controls. Agonist induced gel contraction correlated with CVI disease severity. α-SMA protein expression in LC fibroblasts increased with MAPK inhibition with/without TGF-β1 stimulation, and correlated with the degree of gel contraction. Transfection with pCMV-Ras (activator of ERK-1/2) inhibited gel contraction; this inhibition was not reversed by addition of TGF-β1. Transfection with the pCMV-β empty vector had no effect on gel contraction.ConclusionsTGF-β1 stimulation of CVI patient fibroblasts grown in 3D collagen gels results in conversion to a contractile phenotype through upregulation of α-SMA, and in enhanced gel contraction. Inhibition of MAPK further increases gel contraction, while Ras activation of ERK-1/2 inhibits TGF-β1-induced gel contraction. These responses correlate with increasing CEAP severity. CVI fibroblast mediated gel contraction is therefore regulated through cross-talk between the ERK-1/2 MAPK and TGF-β1 signalling cascades. These data identify potentially clinically relevant therapeutic molecular targets that could enhance matrix contraction and thereby improve venous ulcer wound healing

Fuel quality processing study, volume 1

A fuel quality processing study to provide a data base for an intelligent tradeoff between advanced turbine technology and liquid fuel quality, and also, to guide the development of specifications of future synthetic fuels anticipated for use in the time period 1985 to 2000 is given. Four technical performance tests are discussed: on-site pretreating, existing refineries to upgrade fuels, new refineries to upgrade fuels, and data evaluation. The base case refinery is a modern Midwest refinery processing 200,000 BPD of a 60/40 domestic/import petroleum crude mix. The synthetic crudes used for upgrading to marketable products and turbine fuel are shale oil and coal liquids. Of these syncrudes, 50,000 BPD are processed in the existing petroleum refinery, requiring additional process units and reducing petroleum feed, and in a new refinery designed for processing each syncrude to produce gasoline, distillate fuels, resid fuels, and turbine fuel, JPGs and coke. An extensive collection of synfuel properties and upgrading data was prepared for the application of a linear program model to investigate the most economical production slate meeting petroleum product specifications and turbine fuels of various quality grades. Technical and economic projections were developed for 36 scenarios, based on 4 different crude feeds to either modified existing or new refineries operated in 2 different modes to produce 7 differing grades of turbine fuels. A required product selling price of turbine fuel for each processing route was calculated. Procedures and projected economics were developed for on-site treatment of turbine fuel to meet limitations of impurities and emission of pollutants

An Asian emission inventory of anthropogenic emission sources for the period 1980?2020

International audienceWe developed a new emission inventory for Asia (Regional Emission inventory in ASia (REAS) Version 1.1) for the period 1980?2020. REAS is the first inventory to integrate historical, present, and future emissions in Asia on the basis of a consistent methodology. We present here emissions in 2000, historical emissions for 1980?2003, and projected emissions for 2010 and 2020 of SO2, NOx, CO, NMVOC, black carbon (BC), and organic carbon (OC) from fuel combustion and industrial sources. Total energy consumption in Asia more than doubled between 1980 and 2003, causing a rapid growth in Asian emissions, by 28% for BC, 30% for OC, 64% for CO, 108% for NMVOC, 119% for SO2, and 176% for NOx. In particular, Chinese NOx emissions showed a marked increase of 280% over 1980 levels, and growth in emissions since 2000 has been extremely high. These increases in China were mainly caused by increases in coal combustion in the power plants and industrial sectors. NMVOC emissions also rapidly increased because of growth in the use of automobiles, solvents, and paints. By contrast, BC, OC, and CO emissions in China showed decreasing trends from 1996 to 2000 because of a reduction in the use of biofuels and coal in the domestic and industry sectors. However, since 2000, Chinese emissions of these species have begun to increase. Thus, the emissions of air pollutants in Asian countries (especially China) showed large temporal variations from 1980?2003. Future emissions in 2010 and 2020 in Asian countries were projected by emission scenarios and from emissions in 2000. For China, we developed three emission scenarios: PSC (policy success case), REF (reference case), and PFC (policy failure case). In the 2020 REF scenario, Asian total emissions of SO2, NOx, and NMVOC were projected to increase substantially by 22%, 44%, and 99%, respectively, over 2000 levels. The 2020 REF scenario showed a modest increase in CO (12%), a lesser increase in BC (1%), and a slight decrease in OC (?5%) compared with 2000 levels. However, it should be noted that Asian total emissions are strongly influenced by the emission scenarios for China