Nitric acid reduction on 316L stainless steel under conditions representative of reprocessing

Steels comprise the largest class of metal-based materials encountered on nuclear sites. An understanding of how process steels interact with HNO3 in spent fuel treatment plant environments is required to enable informed decisions to be made about the design and effective application of different steel types within nuclear environments. Stainless steels readily passivate in nitric acid. However, increasing the oxidising power of the media can lead to passive film dissolution, resulting in rapid transpassive corrosion. The corrosion of steels in nitric acid is further complicated by the autocatalytic reduction of HNO3 to aqueous HNO2 which attacks the steel surface. This paper describes the effect of this behaviour on process steels in stagnant and/or flowing conditions using electrochemical and microgravimetric based methods. We describe linear sweep voltammetry studies performed on a 316L stainless steel rotating disk electrodes in varying concentrations of nitric acid and rotation speeds and provide a qualitative interpretation of the results and what these imply about the mechanism of HNO3 reduction. These findings will be used in follow on studies to determine the kinetic parameters of the nitric acid reduction reaction at the surface of 316L stainless steel

Both Sides of the Counter

Colin is a neuroscience Registered Nurse originally from the United Kingdom (UK). He had his first seizure in the UK. He and his family emigrated to Christchurch, New Zealand in 2007. Whilst at work on the neuroscience unit, Colin had another seizure resulting in a significant head injury. He was in rehab when the deadly Christchurch earthquake hit. Both Sides of the Counter covers his experience as a neuroscience nurse caring for others and then how things can quickly change - as a neuroscience patient with a head injury. This is his story

Evaluating the multiple benefits of a sustainable drainage scheme in Newcastle, UK

Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) and Blue-Green infrastructure (BGI) provide a range of environmental, economic and social benefits in addition to managing water quantity and quality. Recognition of the multifunctionality of SuDS and BGI, and the specific benefits that may accrue to different beneficiaries, may facilitate partnership working towards multifunctional infrastructure that meets the strategic objectives of public and private organisations. We evaluate the multiple benefits of the Killingworth and Longbenton surface water management scheme, a Partnership Project in NE England jointly funded by Northumbrian Water, the Environment Agency and North Tyneside Council. Using CIRIA’s Benefits of SuDS Tool (BeST) and the Blue-Green Cities Multiple Benefits GIS Toolbox, we a) quantify and monetise six key benefits, b) assess two qualitative benefits, c) illustrate the spatial distribution of five non-flood benefits, and d) highlight locations with the greatest opportunity for multi-beneficial intervention. The Killingworth and Longbenton scheme generates; significant flood damage reduction benefits; improves water quality, habitat size, carbon sequestration, attractiveness of the area and property prices (amenity), and; reduces noise pollution. Utilisation of these complementary tools for multiple benefit evaluation shows promise as an aid to facilitate partnership working towards implementation of multifunctional SuDS and BGI

Evaluating the multiple benefits of a sustainable drainage scheme in Newcastle, UK

Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) and Blue-Green infrastructure (BGI) provide a range of environmental, economic and social benefits in addition to managing water quantity and quality. Recognition of the multifunctionality of SuDS and BGI, and the specific benefits that may accrue to different beneficiaries, may facilitate partnership working towards multifunctional infrastructure that meets the strategic objectives of public and private organisations. We evaluate the multiple benefits of the Killingworth and Longbenton surface water management scheme, a Partnership Project in NE England jointly funded by Northumbrian Water, the Environment Agency and North Tyneside Council. Using CIRIA’s Benefits of SuDS Tool (BeST) and the Blue-Green Cities Multiple Benefits GIS Toolbox, we a) quantify and monetise six key benefits, b) assess two qualitative benefits, c) illustrate the spatial distribution of five non-flood benefits, and d) highlight locations with the greatest opportunity for multi-beneficial intervention. The Killingworth and Longbenton scheme generates; significant flood damage reduction benefits; improves water quality, habitat size, carbon sequestration, attractiveness of the area and property prices (amenity), and; reduces noise pollution. Utilisation of these complementary tools for multiple benefit evaluation shows promise as an aid to facilitate partnership working towards implementation of multifunctional SuDS and BGI

Faint young Sun paradox remains

The Sun was fainter when the Earth was young, but the climate was generally at least as warm as today; this is known as the `faint young Sun paradox'. Rosing et al. [1] claim that the paradox can be resolved by making the early Earth's clouds and surface less reflective. We show that, even with the strongest plausible assumptions, reducing cloud and surface albedos falls short by a factor of two of resolving the paradox. A temperate Archean climate cannot be reconciled with the low level of CO2 suggested by Rosing et al. [1]; a stronger greenhouse effect is needed.Comment: 3 pages, no figures. In press in Nature. v2 corrects typo in author list in original submissio

Expression of a glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored ligand, growth hormone, blocks receptor signalling

We have investigated the interaction between GH (growth hormone) and GHR (GH receptor). We previously demonstrated that a truncated GHR that possesses a transmembrane domain but no cytoplasmic domain blocks receptor signalling. Based on this observation we investigated the impact of tethering the receptor's extracellular domain to the cell surface using a native lipid GPI (glycosylphosphatidylinositol) anchor. We also investigated the effect of tethering GH, the ligand itself, to the cell surface and demonstrated that tethering either the ecGHR (extracellular domain of GHR) or the ligand itself to the cell membrane via a GPI anchor greatly attenuates signalling. To elucidate the mechanism for this antagonist activity, we used confocal microscopy to examine the fluorescently modified ligand and receptor. GH–GPI was expressed on the cell surface and formed inactive receptor complexes that failed to internalize and blocked receptor activation. In conclusion, contrary to expectation, tethering an agonist to the cell surface can generate an inactive hormone receptor complex that fails to internalize

Analytical validation of a next generation sequencing liquid biopsy assay for high sensitivity broad molecular profiling.

Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) analysis is being incorporated into cancer care; notably in profiling patients to guide treatment decisions. Responses to targeted therapies have been observed in patients with actionable mutations detected in plasma DNA at variant allele fractions (VAFs) below 0.5%. Highly sensitive methods are therefore required for optimal clinical use. To enable objective assessment of assay performance, detailed analytical validation is required. We developed the InVisionFirst™ assay, an assay based on enhanced tagged amplicon sequencing (eTAm-Seq™) technology to profile 36 genes commonly mutated in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and other cancer types for actionable genomic alterations in cell-free DNA. The assay has been developed to detect point mutations, indels, amplifications and gene fusions that commonly occur in NSCLC. For analytical validation, two 10mL blood tubes were collected from NSCLC patients and healthy volunteer donors. In addition, contrived samples were used to represent a wide spectrum of genetic aberrations and VAFs. Samples were analyzed by multiple operators, at different times and using different reagent Lots. Results were compared with digital PCR (dPCR). The InVisionFirst assay demonstrated an excellent limit of detection, with 99.48% sensitivity for SNVs present at VAF range 0.25%-0.33%, 92.46% sensitivity for indels at 0.25% VAF and a high rate of detection at lower frequencies while retaining high specificity (99.9997% per base). The assay also detected ALK and ROS1 gene fusions, and DNA amplifications in ERBB2, FGFR1, MET and EGFR with high sensitivity and specificity. Comparison between the InVisionFirst assay and dPCR in a series of cancer patients showed high concordance. This analytical validation demonstrated that the InVisionFirst assay is highly sensitive, specific and robust, and meets analytical requirements for clinical applications