Enhanced anti-graffiti or adhesion properties of polymers using versatile combination of fluorination and polymer grafting.

International audienceCommonly used polymers and polymer articles have some advantages, e.g. low. But very often they have not very good adhesion, barrier properties, low conductivity, etc. Specialty polymers possessing necessary properties, e.g. fluoropolymers, can be used to fabricate polymer articles. However, practical use of specially synthesized polymers is restricted due to their high cost and complexity of synthesis. It is possible to coat a polymer with another polymer layer with necessary properties but this co-extrusion method is difficult to apply due to a complexity of applied equipment. Also the problems of adhesion between two polymers and polymers compatibility are to be solved. Very often application properties of polymer goods (adhesion, barrier properties, conductivity, etc.) are defined mainly by their surface properties. Hence, it is not necessary to fabricate articles from specialty polymers but simpler, cheaper, and more convenient to apply a surface treatment of articles made from commonly used relatively cheap polymers. In this case, only thin surface layer several nm to several μm in thickness is to be modified and direct fluorination (treatment with mixture of F2 and other gases) can be effectively used. For our research we have chosen common widely used polymers. We targeted to improve hydrophobicity/hydrophylicity, adhesion properties and surface conductivity of polymers. For the first time modification of the surface of high density (HDPE), low density (LDPE) and ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyvinylchloride (PVC) was performed by direct fluorination followed by a grafting of acrylic acid, styrene, acrylonitrile, vinylidene chloride, aniline and thiophene from the gas phase. Aniline grafting was studied to improve surface conductivity of polymers. Grafting of polymers was confirmed by ATR and MATR FTIR spectroscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray microprobe spectroscopy (cartography). AFM was used to study polymers surface. Influence of the nature of grafted monomers on the surface energy was studied. It was shown that depending on the nature of a grafted monomer hydrophobicity or hydrophilicity can be markedly improved. The hydrophobicity of modified polymers is not changed and is even improved with time contrary to virgin polymers. For the case of PP and UHMWPE grafting of styrene and acrylonitrile improved anti-graffiti properties (graffiti and pollutions from the polymer surface can be easier removed). For the case of HDPE and LDPE grafting of styrene and acrylonitrile improved printability. Grafting of aniline did not improved electrical conductivity. The uniformity of grafted polymers distribution was investigated by energy-dispersive X-ray microprobe spectroscopy (cartography) for the first time

Combined porous-monolithic TiNi materials surface-modified with electron beam for new-generation rib endoprostheses

TiNi alloys are very widely used materials in implant fabrication. When applied in rib replacement, they are required to be manufactured as combined porous-monolithic structures, ideally with a thin, porous part well-adhered to its monolithic substrate. Additionally, good biocompatibility, high corrosion resistance and mechanical durability are also highly demanded. So far, all these parameters have not been achieved in one material, which is why an active search in the field is still underway. In the present study, we prepared new porous-monolithic TiNi materials by sintering a TiNi powder (0–100 m) on monolithic TiNi plates, followed by surface modification with a highcurrent pulsed electron beam. The obtained materials were evaluated by a set of surface and phase analysis methods, after which their corrosion resistance and biocompatibility (hemolysis, cytotoxicity, and cell viability) were evaluated. Finally, cell growth tests were conducted. In comparison with flat TiNi monoliths, the newly developed materials were found to have better corrosion resistance, also demonstrating good biocompatibility and potential for cell growth on their surface. Thus, the newly developed porous-on-monolith TiNi materials with different surface porosity and morphology showed promise as potential new-generation implants for use in rib endoprostheses

Influenza Epidemiology And Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness During The 2016-2017 Season In The Global Influenza Hospital Surveillance Network (Gihsn)

BackgroundThe Global Influenza Hospital Surveillance Network (GIHSN) aims to determine the burden of severe influenza disease and Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness (IVE). This is a prospective, active surveillance and hospital-based epidemiological study to collect epidemiological data in the GIHSN. In the 2016-2017 influenza season, 15 sites in 14 countries participated in the GIHSN, although the analyses could not be performed in 2 sites. A common core protocol was used in order to make results comparable. Here we present the results of the GIHSN 2016-2017 influenza season.MethodsA RT-PCR test was performed to all patients that accomplished the requirements detailed on a common core protocol. Patients admitted were included in the study after signing the informed consent, if they were residents, not institutionalised, not discharged in the previous 30days from other hospitalisation with symptoms onset within the 7days prior to admission. Patients 5years old or more must also complied the Influenza-Like Illness definition. A test negative-design was implemented to perform IVE analysis. IVE was estimated using a logistic regression model, with the formula IVE=(1-aOR)x100, where aOR is the adjusted Odds Ratio comparing cases and controls.ResultsAmong 21,967 screened patients, 10,140 (46.16%) were included, as they accomplished the inclusion criteria, and tested, and therefore 11,827 (53.84%) patients were excluded. Around 60% of all patients included with laboratory results were recruited at 3 sites. The predominant strain was A(H3N2), detected in 63.6% of the cases (1840 patients), followed by B/Victoria, in 21.3% of the cases (618 patients). There were 2895 influenza positive patients (28.6% of the included patients). A(H1N1)pdm09 strain was mainly found in Mexico. IVE could only be performed in 6 sites separately. Overall IVE was 27.24 (95% CI 15.62-37.27. Vaccination seemed to confer better protection against influenza B and in people 2-4years, or 85years old or older. The aOR for hospitalized and testing positive for influenza was 3.02 (95% CI 1.59-5.76) comparing pregnant with non-pregnant women.ConclusionsVaccination prevented around 1 in 4 hospitalisations with influenza. Sparse numbers didn't allow estimating IVE in all sites separately. Pregnancy was found a risk factor for influenza, having 3 times more risk of being admitted with influenza for pregnant women.Wo

Joint Analysis of BICEP2/ Keck Array and Planck Data

We report the results of a joint analysis of data from BICEP2/Keck Array and Planck. BICEP2 and Keck Array have observed the same approximately 400 deg2 patch of sky centered on RA 0h, Dec. −57.5deg. The combined maps reach a depth of 57 nK deg in Stokes Q and U in a band centered at 150 GHz. Planck has observed the full sky in polarization at seven frequencies from 30 to 353 GHz, but much less deeply in any given region (1.2 μK deg in Q and U at 143 GHz). We detect 150×353 cross-correlation in B-modes at high significance. We fit the single- and cross-frequency power spectra at frequencies ≥150 GHz to a lensed-ΛCDM model that includes dust and a possible contribution from inflationary gravitational waves (as parameterized by the tensor-to-scalar ratio r), using a prior on the frequency spectral behavior of polarized dust emission from previous \planck\ analysis of other regions of the sky. We find strong evidence for dust and no statistically significant evidence for tensor modes. We probe various model variations and extensions, including adding a synchrotron component in combination with lower frequency data, and find that these make little difference to the r constraint. Finally we present an alternative analysis which is similar to a map-based cleaning of the dust contribution, and show that this gives similar constraints. The final result is expressed as a likelihood curve for r, and yields an upper limit r0.05<0.12 at 95% confidence. Marginalizing over dust and r, lensing B-modes are detected at 7.0σ significance.Astronom