Influence of the strong metal support interaction effect (SMSI) of Pt/TiO2 and Pd/TiO2 systems in the photocatalytic biohydrogen production from glucose solution

Two different catalysts consisting of Pt/TiO2 and Pd/TiO 2 were submitted to diverse oxidative and reductive calcination treatments and tested for photocatalytic reforming of glucose water solution (as a model of biomass component) in H2 production. Oxidation and reduction at 850°C resulted in better photocatalysts for hydrogen production than Degussa P-25 and the ones prepared at 500°C, despite the fact that the former consisted in very low surface area (6-8 m2/g) rutile titania specimens. The platinum-containing systems prepared at 850°C give the most effective catalysts. XPS characterization of the systems showed that thermal treatment at 850°C resulted in electron transfer from titania to metal particles through the so-called strong metal-support interaction (SMSI) effect. Furthermore, the greater the SMSI effect, the better the catalytic performance. Improvement in photocatalytic behavior is explained in terms of avoidance of electron-hole recombination through the electron transfer from titania to metal particles

Preparation and characterization of Pt-modified Co-based catalysts through the microemulsion technique: Preliminary results on the Fischer–Tropsch synthesis

The influence of the addition of small amounts of platinum (0.1–0.25% wt) to cobalt-based systems on Fischer–Tropsch synthesis was investigated. The solids were synthesized through microemulsion technique using TiO2 as the support. The best catalytic performance was achieved using Synperonic 13/6.5 as the surfactant. In all cases, the presence of platinum led to an increase in CO conversion which could be ascribed to the promotion of cobalt reducibility as evidenced by XPS. Moreover, the simultaneous reduction of cobalt and platinum precursors during synthetic procedure (ME1) was preferable to the consecutive one (ME2) probably as a result of a better Co–Pt interaction in the former case, as evidenced by TPR. TPR, Raman and XPS data also suggested that not only the presence of Co0 but also the appearance of Co–TiO2 interactions favor the catalytic performance and that in general those interactions are stronger for ME1 solids

Development of a mobile application for the virtualization of science laboratories

Desde la inclusión de España en la Declaración de Bolonia, cuyo objetivo es reformar el sistema universitario a través del Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior (EEES), el alumno adquiere un papel de liderazgo en el proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje. Con el fin de promover la autonomía entre los estudiantes en el proceso de capacitación, el uso de las Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación (TIC) es cada vez más común. Entre ellos, el e-learning con aplicaciones móviles tiene un gran potencial para fortalecer el proceso de aprendizaje, dado su uso popular entre los estudiantes universitarios. Esto se debe principalmente a que estas herramientas tienen una variedad de ventajas sobre los métodos tradicionales, como conferencias magistrales, entre los que cabe citar, entre otras, el que permiten la comunicación profesor-estudiante más allá de los espacios tradicionales, rompiendo las barreras o límites de espacio y tiempo, que favorecen la autonomía (autoaprendizaje) del estudiante o que permiten la presentación de la información en una gran variedad de formas y lenguajes. Además, son fácilmente conectables a las redes sociales, lo que hace que el proceso de aprendizaje sea más atractivo, más accesible y más cooperativo. Con el propósito de aumentar la motivación de los estudiantes, en este trabajo, se diseñó y desarrolló una aplicación móvil, en la que se han virtualizado tres laboratorios pertenecientes a la Facultad de Ciencias (Biología y Química) y la Escuela Politécnica Superior (Física de Ingeniería Mecánica) de la Universidad de Córdoba. En cada uno de los tres laboratorios, los estudiantes pueden acceder a información multimedia correspondiente a diversos materiales, equipos, videos, enlaces, laboratorios virtuales, así como una explicación de algunas sesiones prácticas. Para el desarrollo de diferentes escenarios, se han utilizado imágenes panorámicas de 360º, que se han realizado utilizando técnicas HDR (High Dynamic Range). La plataforma elegida para el desarrollo fue Android, debido al uso mayoritario de este sistema operativo en dispositivos móviles entre los estudiantes. Conviene destacar que este tipo de e-learning facilita a los estudiantes el acceso a materiales relacionados con las materias prácticas en estudio que son muy importantes en la enseñanza de las ciencias. Además, se familiarizan más con los términos técnicos de una manera interactiva, más entretenida y eficiente, mejorando el grado de motivación y la participación del estudiante en los temas en estudio. Esto conduce a una mayor asimilación de conocimientos y habilidades. Para verificar esto, para cada laboratorio, dividimos a los estudiantes en un grupo sin acceso a la aplicación (grupo de control) y otro (grupo de prueba) con acceso. Llevamos a cabo una serie de cuestionarios con los grupos de prueba usando la plataforma basada en juegos "Kahoot!" y Google Forms. Los cuestionarios intentaron aclarar el grado de aceptación de la herramienta, el impacto en el aprendizaje de los temas en estudio y la identificación de posibles áreas de mejora. En general, los estudiantes del grupo de prueba encontraron la herramienta muy interesante y les ayudó a mejorar sus puntuaciones en comparación con el grupo de control. No se aprecia una distinción clara entre los estudiantes de diferentes materias. Entre los aspectos a mejorar, se encuentra el contenido relativamente limitado de esta primera versión. Además, la evaluación se realizó con un único grupo control y un grupo de prueba en cada materia, lo que limita su potencial para extraer conclusiones definitivas. En el futuro, se realizarán más cargas y pruebas de contenido en diferentes cursos para evaluar los beneficios del aprendizaje de ciencias mediante esta aplicación.Since the inclusion of Spain in the Bologna Declaration, whose objective is to reform the university system through the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), the student acquires a leading role in the teaching-learning process. In order to promote autonomy among the students in the training process, the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) is increasingly common. Among them, e-learning using mobile apps has a great potential to strengthen the learning process given its popular use among university students. This is mostly because these tools have assorted advantages over traditional methods, e.g. magisterial lectures, such as ubiquitous access, possibility to update and increase content, self-learning, etc. Moreover, they are easily linkable to social media, thus making the learning process more attractive, more easily accessible and more cooperative. For the purpose of increasing student motivation, in this work, a mobile application has been designed and developed, in which three laboratories, belonging to the faculties of Sciences (Biology and Chemistry) and Engineering, have been virtualized. In each of the three laboratories, the students can access to some multimedia information corresponding to various materials and equipment, videos, links, virtual laboratories as well as an explanation of some practical sessions. For the different scenarios development, 360º panoramic pictures have been used, which have been made using HDR (High Dynamic Range) techniques. The platform chosen for the development was Android, due to the majority use of this operating system on mobile devices among the students. It is good to notice that this type of e-learning facilitates students the accessibility to materials related to the practical subjects under study which are very important in science teaching. Furthermore, they become more familiar with technical terms in an interactive, more entertaining and efficient manner, improving the motivation degree and the student's involvement in the subjects under study. This leads to a greater assimilation of knowledge and skills. To verify this, for each laboratory, we divided the students in a group without access to the app (control group) and another one (testing group) with access. We conducted a series of questionnaires with the testing groups using the game-based platform “Kahoot!” and Google Forms. The questionnaires intended to enlighten the degree of acceptance of the tool, the impact on learning of the subjects under study and the identification of potential areas of improvement. Generally, the testing group students found the tool very interesting and helped them improving their scores compared to the control group. No clear distinction between students of different subjects was appreciated. A limited content in this first version was major drawback. Moreover, this evaluation has been conducted only with one control and one testing group of each subject, thus limiting its potential to extract definite conclusions. Further content upload and testing on different courses will be done in the future to evaluate the benefits of science learning using this app

Determination of the distal boundary of the Guadalhorce River submarine delta: Morphodynamic implications

Clinoforms constitute the basic building elements of continental margin growth. Submarine clinoforms are composed of three geometric elements: topset, foreset and bottomset. This study focuses on the determination of the distal termination of submarine deltaic clinoforms by using morphometric criteria and subsequent validation with stratigraphic, sedimentological and geochemical data. The mechanism and factors that potentially affect bottomset generation are also discussed. These criteria have been applied to the Guadalhorce River prodelta, an environment where advection and along-shore sediment transport prevail. We conclude that the seaward advance of the prodelta is prevented by the current velocity increase at the foot of the morphosedimentary feature.En prens

Influence of the length of hospitalisation in post-discharge outcomes in patients with acute heart failure: Results of the LOHRCA study

Objective: To investigate the relationship between length of hospitalisation (LOH) and post-discharge outcomes in acute heart failure (AHF) patients and to ascertain whether there are different patterns according to department of initial hospitalisation. Methods: Consecutive AHF patients hospitalised in 41 Spanish centres were grouped based on the LOH (15 days). Outcomes were defined as 90-day post-discharge all-cause mortality, AHF readmissions, and the combination of both. Hazard ratios (HRs), adjusted by chronic conditions and severity of decompensation, were calculated for groups with LOH >6 days vs. LOH <6 days (reference), and stratified by hospitalisation in cardiology, internal medicine, geriatrics, or short-stay units. Results: We included 8563 patients (mean age: 80 (SD = 10) years, 55.5% women), with a median LOH of 7 days (IQR 4–11): 2934 (34.3%) had a LOH 15 days. The 90-day post-discharge mortality was 11.4%, readmission 32.2%, and combined endpoint 37.4%. Mortality was increased by 36.5% (95%CI = 13.0–64.9) when LOH was 11–15 days, and by 72.0% (95%CI = 42.6–107.5) when >15 days. Conversely, no differences were found in readmission risk, and the combined endpoint only increased 21.6% (95%CI = 8.4–36.4) for LOH >15 days. Stratified analysis by hospitalisation departments rendered similar post-discharge outcomes, with all exhibiting increased mortality for LOH >15 days and no significant increments in readmission risk. Conclusions: Short hospitalisations are not associated with worse outcomes. While post-discharge readmissions are not affected by LOH, mortality risk increases as the LOH lengthens. These findings were similar across hospitalisation departments

Clinical phenotypes of acute heart failure based on signs and symptoms of perfusion and congestion at emergency department presentation and their relationship with patient management and outcomes

Objective To compare the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients with acute heart failure (AHF) according to clinical profiles based on congestion and perfusion determined in the emergency department (ED). Methods and results Overall, 11 261 unselected AHF patients from 41 Spanish EDs were classified according to perfusion (normoperfusion = warm; hypoperfusion = cold) and congestion (not = dry; yes = wet). Baseline and decompensation characteristics were recorded as were the main wards to which patients were admitted. The primary outcome was 1-year all-cause mortality; secondary outcomes were need for hospitalisation during the index AHF event, in-hospital all-cause mortality, prolonged hospitalisation, 7-day post-discharge ED revisit for AHF and 30-day post-discharge rehospitalisation for AHF. A total of 8558 patients (76.0%) were warm+ wet, 1929 (17.1%) cold+ wet, 675 (6.0%) warm+ dry, and 99 (0.9%) cold+ dry; hypoperfused (cold) patients were more frequently admitted to intensive care units and geriatrics departments, and warm+ wet patients were discharged home without admission. The four phenotypes differed in most of the baseline and decompensation characteristics. The 1-year mortality was 30.8%, and compared to warm+ dry, the adjusted hazard ratios were significantly increased for cold+ wet (1.660; 95% confidence interval 1.400-1.968) and cold+ dry (1.672; 95% confidence interval 1.189-2.351). Hypoperfused (cold) phenotypes also showed higher rates of index episode hospitalisation and in-hospital mortality, while congestive (wet) phenotypes had a higher risk of prolonged hospitalisation but decreased risk of rehospitalisation. No differences were observed among phenotypes in ED revisit risk. Conclusions Bedside clinical evaluation of congestion and perfusion of AHF patients upon ED arrival and classification according to phenotypic profiles proposed by the latest European Society of Cardiology guidelines provide useful complementary information and help to rapidly predict patient outcomes shortly after ED patient arrival