Demonstration of a Regulatory Method for Aircraft Engine Nonvolatile PM Emissions Measurements with Conventional and Isoparaffinic Kerosene fuels

The aviation industry is exploring the economic viability and environmental sustainability of the use of alternative fuels to power aircraft main engines and auxiliary power units. The International Civil Aviation Organization is also developing a regulatory standard for aircraft engine nonvolatile particulate matter (nvPM) emissions to meet the growing public demand for improvement in air quality. This study compared the nvPM emissions in the exhaust stream of a small (<26.7 kN thrust) mixed turbofan aircraft engine burning a conventional Jet A fuel as well as a Sasol isoparaffinic kerosene (IPK) fuel derived from coal, using a standardized sampling and measurement system. The goal of the study was to demonstrate the regulatory system on a small mixed turbofan engine and to assess the suitability and limitations of using such systems for turbofan engines burning fuels with different fuel properties. Significant reductions in both nvPM number- and mass-based emission indices were observed with the IPK fuel across the full spectrum of engine thrust settings. The percent reduction in nvPM mass-based emissions was higher than the reduction in nvPM number-based emissions for the corresponding engine thrust settings because smaller and fewer particles were generated with IPK fuel combustion. PM size distribution mean diameters for the IPK fuel were found to be smaller than that for Jet A. The composition of the organic PM emissions for the two fuels was almost identical, and the organic PM was also found to be proportional to the soot concentration. The nvPM mass-based emissions for the mixed turbofan engine measured with the standardized system exhibited a high degree of measurement uncertainty at low engine thrust settings. This limitation was not encountered for nvPM number-based emissions

Anomalous small angle x-ray scattering simulations: proof of concept for distance measurements for nanoparticle-labelled biomacromolecules in solution.

Anomalous small angle X-ray scattering can in principle be used to determine distances between metal label species on biological molecules. Previous experimental studies in the past were unable to distinguish the label-label scattering contribution from that of the molecule, because of the use of atomic labels; these labels contribute only a small proportion of the total scattering signal. However, with the development of nanocrystal labels (of 50-100 atoms) there is the possibility for a renewed attempt at applying anomalous small angle X-ray scattering for distance measurement. This is because the contribution to the scattered signal is necessarily considerably stronger than for atomic labels. Here we demonstrate through simulations, the feasibility of the technique to determine the end-to-end distances of labelled nucleic acid molecules as well as other internal distances mimicking a labelled DNA binding protein if the labels are dissimilar metal nanocrystals. Of crucial importance is the ratio of mass of the nanocrystals to that of the labelled macromolecule, as well as the level of statistical errors in the scattering intensity measurements. The mathematics behind the distance determination process is presented, along with a fitting routine than incorporates maximum entropy regularisation

Patient Safety in Internal Medicine

AbstractHospital Internal Medicine (IM) is the branch of medicine that deals with the diagnosis and non-surgical treatment of diseases, providing the comprehensive care in the office and in the hospital, managing both common and complex illnesses of adolescents, adults, and the elderly. IM is a key ward for Health National Services. In Italy, for example, about 17.3% of acute patients are discharged from the IM departments. After the epidemiological transition to chronic/degenerative diseases, patients admitted to hospital are often poly-pathological and so requiring a global approach as in IM. As such transition was not associated—with rare exceptions—to hospital re-organization of beds and workforce, IM wards are often overcrowded, burdened by off-wards patients and subjected to high turnover and discharge pressure. All these factors contribute to amplify some traditional clinical risks for patients and health operators. The aim of our review is to describe several potential errors and their prevention strategies, which should be implemented by physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals working in IM wards