Synergistic effects of zinc borate and aluminiumtrihydroxide on flammability behaviour of aerospaceepoxy system

The flame retardancy of mono-component epoxy resin (RTM6), widely used for aerospace composites, treated with zinc borate (ZB), aluminium trihydroxide (ATH) and their mixtures at different concentrations have been investigated by morphological and thermal characterization. Cone calorimeter data reveal that combustion behaviour, heat release rate peak (PHRR) and heat release rate average (HRR Average) of RTM6 resin decrease substantially when synergistic effects of zinc borate and aluminium trihydroxide intervene. Thermogravimetric (TGA) results and analysis of the residue show that addition higher than 20% w/w of ZB, ATH, and their mixture greatly promotes RTM6 char formation acting as a barrier layer for the fire development. Depending upon the different used flame additives, SEM micrographs indicate that the morphology of residual char could vary from a compact amalgam-like structure, for the RTM6+ZB system, to a granular structure, characterized by very small particles of degraded resin and additive for the AT

Development of a combined micro-macro mechanics analytical approach to design shape memory alloy spring-based actuators and its experimental validation

In this work, an analytical procedure for the preliminary design of shape memory alloy spring-based actuators is investigated. Two static analytical models are considered and interconnected in the frame of the proposed procedure. The first model, based on the works from An, is able to determine the material properties of the SMA components by means of experimental test data and is able to size the SMA component based on the requirements of the system. The second model, based on a work from Spaggiari, helps to design and size an antagonist spring system that allows one to obtain the geometric characteristics of springs (SMA and bias) and the mechanical characteristics of the entire actuator. The combined use of these models allows one to define and size a complex SMA actuator based on the actuation load requirements. To validate the design procedure, static experimental tests have been performed with the entire SMA actuator

Experimental and numerical assessment of fibre bridging toughening effects on the compressive behaviour of delaminated composite plates

Increasing the Mode I inter-laminar fracture toughness of composite laminates can contribute to slowing down delamination growth phenomena, which can be considered one of the most critical damage mechanisms in composite structures. Actually, the Mode I interlaminar fracture toughness (GIc) in fibre-reinforced composite materials has been found to considerably increase with the crack length when the fibre bridging phenomenon takes place. Hence, in this paper, the fibre bridging phenomenon has been considered as a natural toughening mechanism able to replace embedded metallic or composite reinforcements, currently used to increase tolerance to inter-laminar damage. An experimental/numerical study on the influence of delamination growth on the compressive behaviour of fibre-reinforced composites characterised by high sensitivity to the fibre bridging phenomenon has been performed. Coupons, made of material systems characterised by a variable toughness related to a high sensitivity to the fibre bridging phenomenon and containing artificial through-the-width delaminations, were subjected to a compressive mechanical test and compared to coupons made of standard material system with constant toughness. Out-of-plane displacements and strains were monitored during the compression test by means of strain gauges and digital image correlation to assess the influence of fibre bridging on delamination buckling, delamination growth and on the global buckling of the specimens, including buckling shape changes. Experimental data were combined with a numerical study, performed by means of a virtual crack closure technique based procedure, named SMart Time XB-Fibre Bridging (SMXB-FB), able to mimic the crack bridging effect on the toughness properties of the material system. The combination of numerical results and experimental data has allowed the deformations and the buckling shape changes to be correlated to the onset and evolution of damage and, hence, contributes to improving the knowledge on the interaction of the failure mechanisms in the investigated composite specimens

Physiological mechanisms and adaptation strategies of Lactuca sativa L. in response to Olea europaea L. and Ficus carica L. allelochemicals

Agro-industrial wastes of Ficus carica L. and Olea europaea L. represent great sources of bioactive phenolic compounds that would be actively involved in sustainable development. Most of these wastes possess a valuable source of phytotoxic compounds that would be used as potential bioherbicides, but their function and mechanisms of action in cultivated crops remain far to be understood. In this study, we investigate the biochemical and physiological mechanisms of action of fig and olive allelochemicals extracts in lettuce as a model plant for weed species studies. Results revealed that these allelochemicals triggered an oxidative stress through cell membrane damage in lettuce roots and leaves, which was mitigated by various adaptive responses. Therefore, an intricate defense system was implicated by the increase of enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants in lettuce tissues. This adaptive physiological response was highly correlated with the regulation of the phenylpropanoid pathway through the distinguished activation of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase by 98% and phenolic accumulation by 85% under olive and fig leaves aqueous extracts. The outcomes of this study will help understanding the response of cultivated crop to fig and olive phenolic compounds that can be selective in their actions, or the plants can be selective in their responses

A customized knee antibiotic-loaded pmma spacer: A preliminary design analysis

A preliminary design of customized antibiotic-loaded poly-methyl-methacrylate (ALP-MMA) spacer characterized by an appropriate footprint according to the specific patient’s anatomy and a reliable mechanical response to severe functional loads (i.e., level walking and 45◦ bent knee) is reported. The targeted virtual prototyping process takes origin from a novel patented 3D geometrical conceptualization characterized by added customization features and it is validated by a preliminary FEM-based analysis. Mechanical and thermomechanical properties of the antibiotic-doped orthopedic PMMA cement, which will be used for the future prototype manufacturing, were measured experimentally by testing samples taken during a real day-running orthopedic surgery and manufactured according to the surgeon protocol. FEM analysis results indicate that small area is subjected to intensive stresses, validating the proposed geometry from the mechanical point of view, under the two loading scenarios, moreover the value of safety margins results positive, and this is representa-tive of the lower stress magnitude compared to the critical material limits. The experimental data confirm that the presence of antibiotic will last during the surgeon period moreover, the temperature dependent modulus of the bone cement is slightly affected by the body range temperature whereas it will drastically drop for higher temperature out the range of interest. A complete customization, according to a patient anatomy, and the corresponding real prototype spacer will be manufactured by 3D printing techniques, and it will be validated by destructive testing during the second stage of this activity before commercialization

On the necessity of a customized knee spacer in peri-prosthetic joint infection treatment: 3d numerical simulation results

Peri-prosthetic joint infections (PJIs) dramatically affect human health, as they are associated with high morbidity and mortality rates. Two-stage revision arthroplasty is currently the gold standard treatment for PJI and consists of infected implant removal, an accurate debridement, and placement of antimicrobial impregnated poly-methyl-metha-acrylate (PMMA) spacer. The use of antibiotic-loaded PMMA (ALPMMA) spacers have showed a success rate that ranges from 85% to 100%. ALPMMA spacers, currently available on the market, demonstrate a series of disadvantages, closely linked to a low propensity to customize, seen as the ability to adapt to the patients’ anatomical characteristics, with consequential increase of surgical complexity, surgery duration, and postoperative complications. Conventionally, ALPMMA spacers are available only in three or four standard sizes, with the impossibility of guaranteeing the perfect matching of ALPMMA spacers with residual bone (no further bone loss) and gap filling. In this paper, a 3D model of an ALPMMA spacer is introduced to evaluate the cause-effect link between the geometric characteristics and the correlated clinical improvements. The result is a multivariable-oriented design able to effectively manage the size, alignment, stability, and the patients’ anatomical matching. The preliminary numerical results, obtained by using an “ad hoc” 3D virtual planning simulator, clearly point out that to restore the joint line, the mechanical and rotational alignment and the surgeon’s control on the thicknesses (distal and posterior thicknesses) of the ALPMMA spacer is mandatory. The numerical simulations campaign involved nineteen patients grouped in three different scenarios (Case N◦ 1, Case N◦ 2 and Case N◦ 3) whose 3D bone models were obtained through an appropriate data management strategy. Each scenario is characterized by a different incidence rate. In particular, the observed rates of occurrence are, respectively, equal to 17% (Case N◦ 1), 74% (Case N◦ 2), and 10% (Case N◦ 3)

Ontogenetic variation in the mineral, phytochemical and yield attributes of brassicaceous microgreens

Microgreens constitute novel gastronomic ingredients that combine visual, kinesthetic and bioactive qualities. The definition of the optimal developmental stage for harvesting microgreens remains fluid. Their superior phytochemical content against mature leaves underpins the current hypothesis of significant changes in compositional profile during the brief interval of ontogeny from the appearance of the first (S1) to the second true leaf (S2). Microgreens of four brassicaceous genotypes (Komatsuna, Mibuna, Mizuna and Pak Choi) grown under controlled conditions and harvested at S1 and S2 were appraised for fresh and dry yield traits. They were further analyzed for macro-and micromineral content using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES), carotenoid content using high-performance liquid chromatography with a diode-array detector (HPLC-DAD), volatile organic compounds using solid-phase microextraction followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (SPME-GC/MS), anthocyanins and polyphenols using liquid chromatography-high resolution-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) with Orbitrap technology and for chlorophyll and ascorbate concentrations, well as antioxidant capacity by spectrophotometry. Analysis of compositional profiles revealed genotype as the principal source of variation for all constituents. The response of mineral and phytochemical composition and of antioxidant capacity to the growth stage was limited and largely genotype-dependent. It is, therefore, questionable whether delaying harvest from S1 to S2 would significantly improve the bioactive value of microgreens while the cost-benefit analysis for this decision must be genotype-specific. Finally, the lower-yielding genotypes (Mizuna and Pak Choi) registered higher relative increase in fresh yield between S1 and S2, compared to the faster-growing and higher-yielding genotypes. Although the optimal harvest stage for specific genotypes must be determined considering the increase in yield against reduction in crop turnover, harvesting at S2 seems advisable for the lower-yielding genotypes

Synthesis, biophysical characterization and anti-HIV activity of d(TG3AG) Quadruplexes bearing hydrophobic tails at the 5'-end

Novel conjugated G-quadruplex-forming d(TG3AG) oligonucleotides, linked to hydrophobic groups through phosphodiester bonds at 50-end, have been synthesized as potential anti-HIV aptamers, via a fully automated, online phosphoramidite-based solid-phase strategy. Conjugated quadruplexes showed pronounced anti-HIV activity with some preference for HIV-1, with inhibitory activity invariably in the low micromolar range. The CD and DSC monitored thermal denaturation studies on the resulting quadruplexes, indicated the insertion of lipophilic residue at the 50-end, conferring always improved stability to the quadruplex complex (20 < DTm < 40 C). The data suggest no direct functional relationship between the thermal stability and anti-HIV activity of the folded conjugated G-quartets. It would appear that the nature of the residue at 50 end of the d(TG3AG) quadruplexes plays an important role in the thermodynamic stabilization but a minor influence on the anti-HIV activity. Moreover, a detailed CD and DSC analyses indicate a monophasic behaviour for sequences I and V, while for ODNs (II–IV) clearly show that these quadruplex structures deviate from simple two-state melting, supporting the hypothesis that intermediate states along the dissociation pathway may exis

A Review on the Mechanical Modeling of Composite Manufacturing Processes

© 2016, The Author(s). The increased usage of fiber reinforced polymer composites in load bearing applications requires a detailed understanding of the process induced residual stresses and their effect on the shape distortions. This is utmost necessary in order to have more reliable composite manufacturing since the residual stresses alter the internal stress level of the composite part during the service life and the residual shape distortions may lead to not meeting the desired geometrical tolerances. The occurrence of residual stresses during the manufacturing process inherently contains diverse interactions between the involved physical phenomena mainly related to material flow, heat transfer and polymerization or crystallization. Development of numerical process models is required for virtual design and optimization of the composite manufacturing process which avoids the expensive trial-and-error based approaches. The process models as well as applications focusing on the prediction of residual stresses and shape distortions taking place in composite manufacturing are discussed in this study. The applications on both thermoset and thermoplastic based composites are reviewed in detail

Common and rare variant association analyses in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis identify 15 risk loci with distinct genetic architectures and neuron-specific biology

A cross-ancestry genome-wide association meta-analysis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) including 29,612 patients with ALS and 122,656 controls identifies 15 risk loci with distinct genetic architectures and neuron-specific biology. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease with a lifetime risk of one in 350 people and an unmet need for disease-modifying therapies. We conducted a cross-ancestry genome-wide association study (GWAS) including 29,612 patients with ALS and 122,656 controls, which identified 15 risk loci. When combined with 8,953 individuals with whole-genome sequencing (6,538 patients, 2,415 controls) and a large cortex-derived expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) dataset (MetaBrain), analyses revealed locus-specific genetic architectures in which we prioritized genes either through rare variants, short tandem repeats or regulatory effects. ALS-associated risk loci were shared with multiple traits within the neurodegenerative spectrum but with distinct enrichment patterns across brain regions and cell types. Of the environmental and lifestyle risk factors obtained from the literature, Mendelian randomization analyses indicated a causal role for high cholesterol levels. The combination of all ALS-associated signals reveals a role for perturbations in vesicle-mediated transport and autophagy and provides evidence for cell-autonomous disease initiation in glutamatergic neurons