Making standard grade FeSiMn alloy by blending of different low grade materials.

NML has developed a process for extraction of Cu, Ni, & Co from sea nodules by reduction roast - ammonia leaching - solvent extraction - electrowinning route on pilot scale. This process generates leach liquor (Cu, Ni & Co) and a fine residue having low Mn/Fe ratio (not suitable for direct silicomanganese smelting). The utilization of huge quantity of leached residue is therefore, a matter of great concern. Development of another process of direct smelting of sea nodules in arc furnace to separate Cu, Ni & Co in alloy is being carried out which generates Mn rich slag with high Mn/Fe ratio. In this endeavor these two low Mn containing materials are blended to have suitable Mn/Fe ratio and smelted in 50 KVA DC arc furnace to produce standard grade FeSiMn alloy

Recovery of copper, nickel and cobalt from manganese nodules by Arc furnace smelting

Polymetallic sea nodule contains multiple metals like copper (1.1 %), nickel (1.2%), cobalt (0.08%), manganese (24%), iron (5.4%), silica, aluminum, etc. Of these, cobalt, copper and nickel are of much importance and in great demand world over. India has made remarkable progress in recovering these valuable metals from sea nodules following the hydrometallurgical routes. The present paper describes the attempt for recovering these metals from sea nodules by pyrometallurgical route. A number of experiments were carried out in 50 KVA electric arc furnace for reduction smelting of sea nodule. The smelting produced an alloy rich in Cu, Ni & Co. A typical composition of alloy is: Cu: 12.33%, Ni: 14.05 %, Co: 0.75 %, Mn: 8.23%, Fe: 55.96% and a slag consisting of MnO: 42.61%, Si02: 33.51%, FeO: 5.66%, (CaO+MgO): 5.42%, A1203: 6.1 %. The recovery of metals in alloy were Cu: 90-95%, Ni: 95-97% and Co:80-85% with 6 % coke addition at temperature of 1400-1550°C. The alloy obtained may be suitably treated further to recover these metal in pure form by pyro or/and hydrometallurgical routes. The slag contained high Mn/Fe ratio, which was suitable for ferromanganese or ferrosilicomanganese production by smelting in an electric arc furnace

Recovery of Cu, Ni, Co and Mn from sea nodules by direct reduction smelting

Polymetallic nodule contains various metals like copper, nickel, cobalt, manganese, iron, lead, zinc, aluminum, etc. Of these, copper, nickel and cobalt are of much importance and in great demand world over. In fact, due to their extensive technological use these three metals are fast depleting from the earth surface. Hence a world-wide research is progressing on sea nodules as an alternative future source of these metals. India is entirely dependent on imports to meet its requirements of cobalt and nickel both of which are most strategic in nature. In this respect, India has made remarkable progress in recovering these metals from sea nodules. The recovery process so far developed in India is based on either purely hydrometallurgical or pyro-hydrometallurgical routes. The processes generate very dilute leach solution, the downstream processing of which is very difficult. Generation of concentrated leach solution from sea nodule would make the process simpler and economical which may not be possible by direct leaching process. Therefore, it has been planned to explore direct smelting of sea nodules to recover copper, nickel and cobalt along with part of iron in the form of alloy followed by individual metal recovery through matte formation and dissolution. Initial studies on direct reduction smelting of Indian sea nodule were conducted using coke as reductant in lab scale experiments. Various parameters like smelting temperature, reductant concentration, holding time etc. have been optimized to obtain an alloy of suitable composition. At a smelting temperature of 1400 oC, recovery of 90-92% Cu, 92-95% Ni and 80-85% Co is obtained in the form of alloy in a recrystallized alumina crucible which can be further treated to recover these metals in pure form. The iron content in the alloy varies significantly with coke concentration. The slag generated after smelting can be directly treated for production of standard grade Fe-Si-Mn without blending

microRNA and Overcoming the Challenges of Their Use in the Diagnosis of Endometriosis

Endometriosis is a common estrogen dependent and inflammatory disease affecting approximately 176 million women worldwide. Currently, the time between onset of symptoms and a definitive diagnosis has been reported by several international studies to range from 6 to 12 years. Presently, laparoscopic surgery followed by histopathological confirmation of lesions remains the gold standard for diagnosis. In part because of cost and invasiveness, current trends favor reduced laparoscopic surgeries in preference of the non-surgical diagnosis of endometriosis. However, the search for a clinical marker or markers of endometriosis that provide equal or similar sensitivity and specificity to laparoscopy has remained elusive. Thus, the search for a diagnostic test for the diagnosis of endometriosis continues to be a high priority research and clinical issue. Recent studies have reported favorable results with microRNA; however, lack of replication and absence of validation suggest that circulating miRNA may not be reliable for clinical use. Use of different screening platforms together with divergent methods may account for some of the lack or reproducibility in the literature. Herein we critically assess the recent literature and explore sources for discrepant findings. We suggest that prospective studies using validated reference miRNA to normalize results together with improved study design may yet reveal a suitable diagnostic marker or panel of markers for the diagnosis of endometriosis

Amebic Liver Abscess With Intra-Biliary Rupture

The case of a large amebic liver abscess with an atypical presentation is reported. High output bile drainage persisted after ultrasound guided percutaneous catheter drainage because of a preexisting communication of the abscess with the right hepatic ductal system. The abscess was managed successfully by surgical evacuation and internal drainage into a defunctioned jejunal loop

Production of Fe-Si-Mn from leached sea nodule residue

A pilot plant for processing of polymetallic sea nodule on 500 Kg/day scale has been set up by Department of Ocean Development at CRDL, HZL, Udaipur. After recovery of Cu, Ni & Co by NH3/SO2 pressure leaching, the generated residue contains considerable amount of manganese and iron. Attempts on recovery of manganese from this residue has been made at National Metallurgical Laboratory and standard grade Fe-Si-Mn alloy has been produced. Two different routes of smelting were carried out which comprised single stage smelting of residue blended with manganese containing materials and two stage smelting of residue with out any blending. The process is developed at 20 Kg scale and has been tested at 300 Kg scale in pilot plant also. A maximum recovery of Mn in the form of Fe-Si-Mn alloy has been found 68.0%

Current endometriosis care and opportunities for improvement

Endometriosis is a chronic disease associated with debilitating pain that affects many people assigned female at birth, from menarche through menopause, not just causing pain and infertility but also negatively impacting quality of life, participation in daily activities, productivity, and income. It is associated with increased incidence of obstetric and neonatal complications, anxiety, other chronic diseases, and substantial healthcare costs. Despite the profound negative impact of endometriosis on quality of life, current treatment options remain suboptimal and many patients express dissatisfaction with current care. The prevailing acute-care, single-provider model in which the provider works in relative isolation and thus with limited diagnostic and therapeutic strategies readily available proves inadequate for treating endometriosis. Patients would benefit from earlier diagnosis and referral to a center capable of providing a comprehensive and multimodal management plan that utilizes a chronic care model. Often this can only be achieved through multidisciplinary teams of providers with expertise in endometriosis. The authors acknowledge that many low- and middle-income countries do not have the resources to support such centers but could still benefit from any breakthroughs in treatment they bring about. Researchers need to agree on standardized core outcome measures, relevant to patients with endometriosis and the healthcare system as a whole. Only through increased societal and healthcare provider education and recognition of endometriosis as a chronic disease can we achieve better treatment outcomes

Increased incidence of glomerulonephritis following spleno-renal shunt surgery in non-cirrhotic portal fibrosis

Increased incidence of glomerulonephritis following spleno-renal shunt surgery in non-cirrhotic portal fibrosis. In a prospective study of 200 non-cirrhotic portal fibrosis (NCPF) patients, 7% had mild proteinuria and their renal biopsies showed mild mesangial proliferative glomerulonephritis (mes-PGN). The remaining 93% biopsies were normal. However, following the insertion of a spleno-renal shunt (SRS) for portal hypertension 32% of these patients developed nephrotic syndrome in five years. Renal histology revealed mesangiocapillary glomerulonephritis (MCGN) (18.5%), mes-PGN (9%), minimal change nephropathy (3%), and chronic sclerosing GN (1.5%). Immunofluorescence showed granular deposition of IgA and C3. IgA2 was the predominant form of Ig in the glomerular deposits, indicating that IgA in the immune complexes was derived from the gastrointestinal tract. Electron microscopy revealed electron dense deposits in the mesangium. In contrast to the NCPF patients who underwent a SRS for portal hypertension, the 200 patients in our study who underwent spleno-renal shunting because of extra hepatic portal obstruction did not have renal disease, nor did they develop renal disease during the five-year post-operative follow-up. Fifty percent of the glomerulonephritis (GN) in the NCPF group progressed to renal failure in five years; 46.6% continued to have proteinuria. Low serum complement, C3 (40%) and circulating immune complexes (14.8%) were detected in the glomerulonephritis group. Our study shows that: (i) there is a high rate of the occurrence of GN following SRS in NCPF patients, but not in those with normal livers; (ii) the type of GN is primarily IgA nephropathy; and (iii) the GN could be the result of defective hepatic reticuloendothelial function in the NCPF group that is worsened by the shunting procedure