Fan blade protection system

In one type of aircraft propulsion system, propeller blades are mounted on a ring which surrounds a turbine. An annular space exists between the turbine and the ring. If a propeller blade should break free, the unbalanced centrifugal load tends to deform the ring. The invention reduces the deformation, as by locating spacers between the turbine and the ring

The relevance of fouling models to crossflow microfiltration

An overview of models for crossflow microfiltration is presented, and several are compared with experimental pseudo-equilibrium permeate flux values. Models requiring curve fitting procedures do not describe the physics of the process, and require the answer to be known a priori. Predictive models were generally found to give fluxes which were in error by several orders of magnitude. The shear-induced hydrodynamic self-diffusion model was found to give the best predictions of permeate flux, but the errors found when comparing predictions with experimental values suggest that improvements need to be made to the model or that it is not a good description of the mechanisms which actually occur in microfiltration

Phylogeny of Amphidinium (Dinophyceae) from Guam and Okinawa, with descriptions of A. pagoense sp. nov. and A. uduigamense sp. nov.

Marine benthic dinoflagellates within the genus Amphidinium were isolated from Guam and Okinawa. Isolated strains were identified to species-level using phylogenetic analyses of 28S rRNA and ITS-5.8S rRNA genes as well as microscopy. Of the six isolated strains, two were new species: A. pagoense sp. nov. and A. uduigamense sp. nov. Other isolates included strains of A. massartii and A. operculatum from Guam, and two strains of A. operculatum from Okinawa. Both new species were described using light and electron microscopy (SEM and TEM). The combination of characteristics that make A. pagoense sp. nov. unique includes a pair of centrally-located pyrenoids, variable cell shape, absence of scales and a long, curved ventral ridge. For A. uduigamense sp. nov., a combination of several morphological features distinguishes it from other species. These include a constriction near the anterior of the hypocone, two centrally located pyrenoids, a longitudinal flagellum inserted in the posterior one-third of the cell, cell size, cell division in the motile stage and the absence of scales. Toxicity was confirmed in these two novel species by testing methanol extracts in an Artemia bioassay. Previously unrecorded ITS rRNA gene sequences from A. operculatum were also sequenced from both locations. Species identified and newly described in this study expand the taxonomic knowledge of Amphidinium in the Pacific.journal articl

Predicting 30-day mortality after hip fracture surgery: Evaluation of the National Hip Fracture Database case-mix adjustment model.

OBJECTIVES: The National Hip Fracture Database (NHFD) publishes hospital-level risk-adjusted mortality rates following hip fracture surgery in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The performance of the risk model used by the NHFD was compared with the widely-used Nottingham Hip Fracture Score. METHODS: Data from 94 hospitals on patients aged 60 to 110 who had hip fracture surgery between May 2013 and July 2013 were analysed. Data were linked to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) death register to calculate the 30-day mortality rate. Risk of death was predicted for each patient using the NHFD and Nottingham models in a development dataset using logistic regression to define the models' coefficients. This was followed by testing the performance of these refined models in a second validation dataset. RESULTS: The 30-day mortality rate was 5.36% in the validation dataset (n = 3861), slightly lower than the 6.40% in the development dataset (n = 4044). The NHFD and Nottingham models showed a slightly lower discrimination in the validation dataset compared with the development dataset, but both still displayed moderate discriminative power (c-statistic for NHFD = 0.71, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.67 to 0.74; Nottingham model = 0.70, 95% CI 0.68 to 0.75). Both models defined similar ranges of predicted mortality risk (1% to 18%) in assessment of calibration. CONCLUSIONS: Both models have limitations in predicting mortality for individual patients after hip fracture surgery, but the NHFD risk adjustment model performed as well as the widely-used Nottingham prognostic tool and is therefore a reasonable alternative for risk adjustment in the United Kingdom hip fracture population.Cite this article: Bone Joint Res 2017;6:550-556

Compaction Grouting for Seismic Mitigation of Sensitive Urban Sites

For moderately loaded structures founded on liquefiable soils, spread footings on improved ground can provide considerable cost savings over deep foundation options. Liquefaction mitigation by ground improvement must be properly designed and executed; and should include a field verification program. Although densification is the most effective method of achieving verifiable mitigation of liquefaction susceptible soils, vibro-densification methods are often disregarded for urban sites due to concern for adjacent structures and utilities. An alternative to vibratory methods is compaction grouting, which can achieve densification of cohesionless materials while avoiding excessive vibration of adjacent structures. Recently, compaction grouting was successfully applied to densify a thick loose sand layer (up to 40 feet) for a large development site in an urban environment. This densification significantly increased the factor of safety against liquefaction and reduced potential liquefaction-induced settlement to under 0.5 inch. The compaction grouting program included automated data acquisition and processing and three-dimensional visualization components to ensure quality control and assurance. In addition, the site improvement program was fully verifiable, as the ground improvement program included a comparison of cone penetrometer tests (CPT) conducted prior to and following treatment. Although compaction grouting has been well utilized for several years, the potential for liquefaction mitigation in urban environments is not well established. However, ground improvement through compaction grouting can be a cost-effective alternative to drilled shafts or driven piles on liquefiable sites. This paper includes a description of the site conditions, the compaction grouting program (including automated data acquisition instrumentation and visualization), site instrumentation, post-treatment evaluation of the mitigation procedures, and analysis of the response of adjacent structures

Aberrant migration and surgical removal of a heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) from the femoral artery of a cat.

A cat was evaluated for an acute-onset of right pelvic limb paresis. Thoracic radiographs revealed normal cardiac size and tortuous pulmonary arteries. Abdominal ultrasound identified a heartworm (HW) extending from the caudal abdominal aorta into the right external iliac artery and right femoral artery. The cat was HW-antigen positive. Echocardiography revealed a HW within the right branch of the main pulmonary artery and evidence of pulmonary hypertension. An agitated-saline contrast echocardiogram revealed a small right to left intracardiac shunt at the level of the atria. Surgical removal of the HW was performed with no substantial postoperative complications. There was return of blood flow and improved motor function to the limb. The cat remains mildly paretic on the affected limb with no other clinical signs

Stigma as a fundamental hindrance to the United States opioid overdose crisis response.

Alexander Tsai and co-authors discuss the role of stigma in responses to the US opioid crisis