Thermodynamic and economic seasonal analysis of a transcritical CO2 supermarket with HVAC supply through ice thermal energy storage (ITES)

A real case of a supermarket where a CO2 refrigerating plant also supplies heating, air conditioning and hot water is considered. Ice thermal energy storage (ITES) is used both as latent storage in summer and as sensible thermal energy storage (TES) in winter to partially cover the space cooling/heating load of the supermarket. In particular, it allows to reduce peaks in the electrical power use, when the refrigeration and HVAC systems are running at full power together with ovens and heaters for meals. A thermodynamic analysis, including a detailed theoretical model of the formation and melting of ice on the coils, is carried out to predict the behaviour of ITES during the charging and the discharging phases. A daily energy analysis for both a winter and a summer typical day, and an annual analysis are carried out for the whole system. In summer, two cases are evaluated, i.e. supplying the whole AC demand in the morning or partially covering the AC demand to reduce the design capacity of the reversible heat pump. In all cases, the use of ITES aimed at shaving electrical peaks leads to a higher electrical energy use, also on an annual basis. However, the cost analysis reveals significant benefits, including a reduction in the required capacity of the reversible heat pump, better exploitation of tariffs and the avoidance of installing an electrical transformer in a dedicated room. This results in savings €58,699 over 10 years €47,888 over 15 years, making the choice of ITES more economically advantageous within the typical lifetime of these system

Finding footy : female fan socialization and Australian rules football

The question of how, irrespective of gender, a person becomes a sports fan has been absent in sociological studies of sports supporters. Distinct from other studies of sport spectatorship that focus on the practices of already existing (and overwhelmingly male) fans, our research is the first to consider how women become supporters, and in doing so, it begins to redress the significant under-representation of women in sports fan research. From interviews with female supporters of the Australian Football League (AFL), this article identifies and critically assesses the modes by which women come to support sport. We propose four categories to explain the different ways women accomplish fandom, focusing on the importance of strong social ties and doxic actions in this process. The events, experiences and social relations that inform women\u27s first encounters with AFL offers a template for the wider consideration of women as social agents in the sporting landscape

The Role of Meningioma-1 (Mn1) Gene as Marker for Prognosis and Minimal Residual Disease Monitoring in Acute Myeloid Leukemia: A Concise Review

Molecular markers are necessary for prognostic stratification and monitoring of Minimal Residual Disease (MRD) in Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) [1,2]. Cytogenetic aberrations have long been recognized as the most important prognostic variable in AML, and are still the major determinant for post-remission therapy [3]. Unfortunately, only 50-60% of AML patients present an abnormal karyotype at diagnosis, while the remaining cases display a Normal Karyotype (NK). NK AML patients are generally included in an “intermediate risk” prognostic group, that is however characterized by a heterogeneous clinical course. To stratify prognosis of NK AML patients, numerous studies have led, in the last decade, to the introduction of different molecular markers such as FLT3, NPM1, BAALC and CEBPA [4-7]. Still, their use to monitor disease, either defining remission status and detecting relapse as early as possible, is still somehow controversial, due to fluctuations during disease course, low incidence rates in AML and sensitivity of the technologies detecting the single marker [8-10]. These limitations have, to date, precluded a timely and precise quantification of disease in NK AML patients, thus preventing from a complete individualization of post-remission therapy and early treatment in case of impending relapse. In other words, in NK AML it has not been reached the precision achieved in BCR/ABL-positive chronic myeloid leukemia and PML/RAR alpha mutated acute promyelocytic leukemia

Experimental evaluation of CO2/R-152a mixtures in a refrigeration plant with and without IHX

In recent years, CO2-based mixtures have been considered as a way to improve the performance of refrigerating plants using pure CO2 as refrigerant. Combining CO2 with a fluid with higher critical temperature generates a blend which allows to run a refrigeration plant in subcritical conditions at higher heat rejection temperature when compared to pure carbon dioxide, and consequently reach higher COP. This work evaluates from an experimental point of view two CO2/R-152a mixtures, ([90/10 %] and [95/5 %]), used as refrigerants in a single-stage refrigeration plant with and without internal heat exchanger, and compares the results to those obtained using pure CO2. The work analyses the main energy parameters of the plant for secondary fluid inlet temperature of 2.5 °C at the evaporator, and in the range from 20 °C to 40 °C with 5 °C step at the condenser/gas-cooler. The use of such mixtures, compared to the use of pure CO2, allowed to obtain a higher COP in the base cycle for heat rejection temperature above 25 °C, reaching the largest increment at the highest temperature while, when working with IHX cycle, no improvements in the COP were measured

Experimental comparison of cycle modifications and ejector control methods using variable geometry and CO2 pump in a multi-evaporator transcritical CO2 refrigeration system

To reduce the direct global warming impact of refrigerants in HVAC&R applications, low-global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants, including natural refrigerants, have been extensively investigated as alternatives to hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants. Among the natural refrigerants, Carbon Dioxide (CO2) offers several advantages, such as excellent transport and thermo-physical properties, being neither toxic nor flammable, and having a low price and high availability around the world. However, the high critical pressure and low critical temperature of CO2 often lead to transcritical operation, resulting in lower efficiency due to the additional compressor power necessary to achieve transcritical operation relative to subcritical HFC cycles. Therefore, a number of cycle modifications are used to enhance the coefficient of performance (COP) of transcritical CO2 cycles to meet or surpass those of HFC cycles. This paper provides a systematic experimental investigation of four such cycle architectures by employing the same multi-stage, two-evaporator CO2 refrigeration cycle test stand, 3 of these configurations in transcritical and 1 in subcritical conditions. The four cycles architectures included intercooling, open economization, an internal heat exchanger and two different ejector control approaches. Specifically, a variable-diameter motive nozzle and a variable-speed liquid CO2 pump located directly upstream of the ejector motive nozzle inlet were analyzed. Based on the experimental data, the maximum COP improvements are 4.64 % and 9.47 % when the ejector and the internal heat exchanger are used, respectively. The CO2 pump, once successfully stabilized, can control the ejector, increase its efficiency by up to 15 % and increase the cooling capacity to a maximum of 6.2 %. Nevertheless, a reduction in COP is measured when the pump is in use; however, unlike the other three different configurations, it was only analyzed under subcritical conditions

Evaluation of CO2-doped blends in single-stage with IHX and parallel compression refrigeration architectures

CO2 is the standard for medium to large-sized commercial applications, as it combines security and low environmental impact. However, it requires the use of advanced and complex cycles. Recently, CO2-doping (the addition of a small quantity of another fluid) has attracted scientific attention, as when CO2 is mixed with fluids with higher critical temperatures, the optimum operation moves to subcritical, providing COP increments in relation to pure-CO2 operation. This work, from a theoretical perspective, evaluates CO2-doping with the fluids R-152a, R-1234yf, R-1234ze(E) and R-1233zd(E) considering the two most used CO2 cycles: the base cycle with an internal heat exchanger (IHX) and the cycle with parallel compression (PC), fractionation taking place. The work analyses the COP improvements for an evaporating level of -10°C and from 10 to 40°C of environment temperature. Predicted maximum COP increments reach up to 5.8% for the IHX cycle and 10.0% for the PC cycle

BCR::ABL1 levels at first month after TKI discontinuation predict subsequent maintenance of treatment-free remission: A study from the “GRUPPO TRIVENETO LMC”

We analyzed BCR::ABL1 expression at stop and in the first month after discontinuation in 168 chronic myeloid leukemia patients who stopped imatinib or 2nd generation tyrosine kinase inhibitors (2G-TKIs) while in sustained deep molecular response. Patients were divided among those who maintained response (group 1, n = 123) and those who lost major molecular response (group 2, n = 45). Mean BCR::ABL1 RNA levels 1 month after discontinuation were higher in group 2 than in group 1 (p = 0.0005) and the difference was more evident 2 months after stop (p < 0.0001). The same trend was found both for imatinib and 2G-TKIs. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis to determine a threshold value of BCR::ABL1 at 1 month after discontinuation identified a cut-off value of 0.0051%, with 92.2% specificity, 31.7% sensitivity and a likelihood ratio of 4.087

Digital PCR (dPCR) is able to anticipate the achievement of stable deep molecular response in adult chronic myeloid leukemia patients: results of the DEMONSTRATE study

Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML) is marked by the BCR::ABL1 fusion gene. Monitoring tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) therapy response is crucial for treatment management, thus, limitations in Reverse Transcription quantitative PCR’s (RT-qPCR) accuracy and sensitivity led to the exploration of alternative methods like digital PCR (dPCR). This study evaluated dPCR efficacy in detecting Minimal Residual Disease (MRD) in CML patients undergoing TKI therapy. 79 CML patients were enrolled (NP 3809 clinical trial), with samples analysed using both methods. The achievement and stability of Deep Molecular Response (DMR) were assessed over a 2-year period following the first DMR achievement. A comparative statistical analysis of MRD and DMR attainment, stability, and potential TFR achievement using both RT-qPCR and dPCR was conducted, supported by chi-squared tests, Fisher's exact tests, and Kaplan–Meier analysis. In 69/79 patients, dPCR either anticipated or coincided DMR achievement as compared to RT-qPCR. Among them, 52/69 achieved a stable DMR according to RT-qPCR, while 44/69 according to dPCR. Thus, dPCR capability to anticipate or coincide the achievement of a stable DMR resulted with p = 0.0012 and p = 0.0017, respectively. Transcript type and TKI choice did not influence DMR achievement or stability by either method. These findings highlight dPCR as a sensitive and accurate tool for monitoring MRD in CML patients, providing information for treatment management decisions, and potentially enhancing the selection of candidates for treatment-free remission. Further standardization of dPCR methodologies is warranted to leverage their benefits in clinical practice. Graphical abstract: (Figure presented.

New Combination Regimens vs. Fludarabine, Cytarabine, and Idarubicin in the Treatment of Intermediate- or Low-Risk Nucleophosmin-1-Mutated Acute Myeloid Leukemia: A Retrospective Analysis from 7 Italian Centers

Background: Nucleophosmin-1 (NPM1) mutation accounts for 30% of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cases and defines either low- or intermediate-risk AML, depending on FLT3-ITD mutation. New combination regimens (NCRs), adding midostaurin and gemtuzumab ozogamicin (GO) to the 3 + 7 scheme, are commonly used, though there are no data that compare NCRs with intensive induction chemotherapy. Methods: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of NCRs and FLAI in NPM1+ AML, we retrospectively analyzed 125 patients treated with FLAI (n = 53) or NCRs (n = 72) at seven Italian Centers. Results: The median age was 61 years and 51/125 (41%) were FLT3-ITD+. The complete remission (CR) rate was 77%, slightly better with NCRs (83% vs. 68%; p = 0.054). NCRs yielded a superior median overall survival (OS) (not reached (NR) vs. 27.3 months; p = 0.002), though the median event-free survival (EFS) was similar (NR vs. 20.5 months; p = 0.07). In low-risk AML, CR was higher in NCRs (94% vs. 72%, p = 0.02), as were median OS (NR vs. 41.6 months; p = 0.0002) and EFS (NR vs. 17.8 months; p = 0.0085). In intermediate-risk AML (FLT3-ITD+), there were no differences in CR (60% vs. 71%; p = 0.5), OS (p = 0.27), or EFS (p = 0.86); only allogeneic transplantation improved OS (NR vs. 13.4 months; p = 0.005), regardless of induction regimen. The safety profile was similar, except for delayed platelet recovery with FLAI (22 vs. 18 days; p = 0.0024) and higher-grade II–IV gastrointestinal toxicity with NCRs (43% vs. 18.8%; p = 0.0066). Conclusions: Our data suggest the superiority of NCRs over FLAI in low-risk patients, while all outcomes were comparable in intermediate-risk patients, a setting in which only transplants positively impacted on survival

Ebola virus disease complicated with viral interstitial pneumonia: A case report

Background: In the current Ebola epidemic in Western Africa, many healthcare workers have become infected. Some of these have been medically evacuated to hospitals in Europe and the USA. These clinical experiences provide unique insights into the course of Ebola virus disease under optimized condition within high level isolation units. Case presentation: A 50-year-old Caucasian male physician contracted Ebola virus diseases in Sierra Leone and was medically evacuated to Italy. Few days after the admission the course of the illness was characterized by severe gastro-intestinal symptoms followed by respiratory failure, accompanied by pulmonary infiltration and high Ebola viral load in the bronchial aspirate and Plasmodium vivax co-infection. The patient received experimental antiviral therapy with favipiravir, convalescent plasma and ZMAb. Ebola viral load started to steadily decrease in the blood after ZMAb administration and became undetectable by day 19 after admission, while it persisted longer in urine samples. No temporal association was observed between viral load decay in plasma and administration of favipiravir. The patient completely recovered and was discharged 39days after admission. Conclusions: This is the first case of Ebola-related interstitial pneumonia documented by molecular testing of lung fluid specimens. This reports underlines the pivotal role of fluid replacement and advanced life support with mechanical ventilation in the management of patients with Ebola virus diseases respiratory failure. Beside our finding indicates a close temporal association between administration of cZMAb and Ebola virus clearance from blood