A fully automatic system for acid-base coulometric titrations

An automatic system for acid-base titrations by electrogeneration of H+ and OH- ions, with potentiometric end-point detection, was developed. The system includes a PC-compatible computer for instrumental control, data acquisition and processing, which allows up to 13 samples to be analysed sequentially with no human intervention

Automatic system for the determination of boron in ceramic frits

An automatic system for the potentiometric determination of boron in ceramic frits was developed. The system includes a personal computer for instrumental control, data acquisition and processing, which allows up to 13 samples to be analysed sequentially with no human intervention

Suspensions of supracolloidal magnetic polymers: self-assembly properties from computer simulations

We study self-assembly in suspensions of supracolloidal polymer-like structures made of crosslinked magnetic particles. Inspired by self-assembly motifs observed for dipolar hard spheres, we focus on four different topologies of the polymer-like structures: linear chains, rings, Y-shaped and X-shaped polymers. We show how the presence of the crosslinkers, the number of beads in the polymer and the magnetic interparticle interaction affect the structure of the suspension. It turns out that for the same set of parameters, the rings are the least active in assembling larger structures, whereas the system of Y- and especially X-like magnetic polymers tend to form very large loose aggregates

Multi-pumping flow system for the determination of dissolved orthophosphate and dissolved organic phosphorus in wastewater samples

A multi-pumping flow system (MPFS) for the spectrophotometric determination of dissolved orthophosphate and dissolved organic phosphorus in wastewater samples is proposed. The determination of orthophosphate is based on the vanadomolybdate method. In-line ultraviolet photooxidation is employed to mineralise organic phosphorus to orthophosphate prior to detection. A solenoid valve allows the deviation of the flow towards the UV-lamp to carry out the determination of organic phosphorus. Calibration was found to be linear up to 20 mg P L−1, with a detection limit (3sb/S) of 0.08 mg P L−1, an injection throughput of 75 injections h−1 and a repeatability (R.S.D.) of 0.6% for the direct determination of orthophosphate. On the other hand, calibration graphs were linear up to 40 mg P L−1, with a detection limit (3sb/S) of 0.5 mg P L−1, an injection throughput of 11 injections h−1 and a repeatability (R.S.D.) inferior to 2.3% for the procedures involving UV photo-oxidation

Supramolecular Magnetic Brushes: The Impact of Dipolar Interactions on the Equilibrium Structure

The equilibrium structure of supramolecular magnetic filament brushes is analyzed at two different scales. First, we study the density and height distributions for brushes with various grafting densities and chain lengths. We use Langevin dynamics simulations with a bead-spring model that takes into account the cross-links between the surface of the ferromagnetic particles, whose magnetization is characterized by a point dipole. Magnetic filament brushes are shown to be more compact near the substrate than nonmagnetic ones, with a bimodal height distribution for large grafting densities. This latter feature makes them also different from brushes with electric dipoles. Next, in order to explain the observed behavior at the filament scale, we introduce a graph theory analysis to elucidate for the first time the structure of the brush at the scale of individual beads. It turns out that, in contrast to nonmagnetic brushes, in which the internal structure is determined by random density fluctuations, magnetic forces introduce a certain order in the system. Because of their highly directional nature, magnetic dipolar interactions prevent some of the random connections to be formed. On the other hand, they favor a higher connectivity of the chains' free and grafted ends. We show that this complex dipolar brush microstructure has a strong impact on the magnetic response of the brush, as any weak applied field has to compete with the dipole-dipole interactions within the crowded environment.This research has been partially supported by the Austrian Research Fund (FWF): START-Projekt Y 627-N27. The authors are grateful to the Ural Federal University stimulating programme. S.S.K, E.S.P., and E.V.N. are supported by RFBR mol-a-ved 15-32-20549. The work of E.V.N. was partially supported by the President of RF, Grant NO MK-5216.2015.2. S.S.K. is supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation (Contract 02.A03.21.000, Project 3.12.2014/K) and EU-Project 642774 ETN-Colldense. P.A.S. acknowledges financial support from the Universitat de les Illes Balears within its Programa de foment de la recerca. T.S. and J.J.C. were supported by the project FIS2012-30634 (funded by the Spanish Mineco). J.J.C. and T.S. also acknowledge funding from a grant awarded by the Conselleria d’Educació, Cultura i Universitats del Govern de les Illes Balears and the European Social Fund (ESF).Peer Reviewe

Self-assembly of polymer-like structures of magnetic colloids: Langevin dynamics study of basic topologies

We study the self-assembly of colloidal magnetic particles permanently cross-linked into polymer-like structures with different topologies, that we call supracolloidal magnetic polymers (SMPs). In order to understand the influence of the interparticle permanent links, we investigate SMPs holding the main topologies observed in the self-assembly of non-cross-linked magnetic particles via grand canonical Monte Carlo simulations: chains, rings and simple branched structures. Here, using molecular dynamics simulations, we focus on systems of SMP pairs. Our results evidence that the presence of crosslinkers leads to the formation of new types of aggregates, not previously observed for individual magnetic colloids. © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.This research has been supported by the Russian Science Foundation [grant number 17-72-10145]. J.J.C. and T.S. acknowledge funding from a grant awarded by the Conselleria d’Innovació, Recerca i Turisme del Govern de les Illes Balears and the European Social Fund (ESF). T.S. also acknowledges financial support from the Spanish Ministerio de Economía y Competi-tividad and the European Regional Development Fund, [Project number FIS20015-63628-C2-2-R] (AEI/FEDER, UE). P.A.S and S.S.K acknowledge support from the Austrian Research Fund (FWF) [START-Projekt Y 627-N27]. S.S.K. also acknowledges support from the European Commission ETN-COLLDENSE [H2020-MSCA-ITN-2014], [grant number 642774]. The authors would like to thank F. Sciortino for his valuable contribution to the GCMC simulation results

Cost-utility of cognitive behavioral therapy versus U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommended drugs and usual care in the treatment of patients with fibromyalgia: an economic evaluation alongside a 6-month randomized controlled trial

Introduction:- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-recommended pharmacologic treatments (RPTs; pregabalin, duloxetine, and milnacipran) are effective treatment options for fibromyalgia (FM) syndrome and are currently recommended by clinical guidelines. We compared the cost-utility from the healthcare and societal perspectives of CBT versus RPT (combination of pregabalin + duloxetine) and usual care (TAU) groups in the treatment of FM. Methods:- The economic evaluation was conducted alongside a 6-month, multicenter, randomized, blinded, parallel group, controlled trial. In total, 168 FM patients from 41 general practices in Zaragoza (Spain) were randomized to CBT (n = 57), RPT (n = 56), or TAU (n = 55). The main outcome measures were Quality-Adjusted Life Years (QALYs, assessed by using the EuroQoL-5D questionnaire) and improvements in health-related quality of life (HRQoL, assessed by using EuroQoL-5D visual analogue scale, EQ-VAS). The costs of healthcare use were estimated from patient self-reports (Client Service Receipt Inventory). Cost-utility was assessed by using the net-benefit approach and cost-effectiveness acceptability curves (CEACs). Results:- On average, the total costs per patient in the CBT group (1,847€) were significantly lower than those in patients receiving RPT (3,664€) or TAU (3,124€). Patients receiving CBT reported a higher quality of life (QALYs and EQ-VAS scores); the differences between groups were significant only for EQ-VAS. From a complete case-analysis approach (base case), the point estimates of the cost-effectiveness ratios resulted in dominance for the CBT group in all of the comparisons performed, by using both QALYs and EQ-VAS as outcomes. These findings were confirmed by bootstrap analyses, net-benefit curves, and CEACs. Two additional sensitivity analyses (intention-to-treat analysis and per-protocol analysis) indicated that the results were robust. The comparison of RPT with TAU yielded no clear preference for either treatment when using QALYs, although RPT was determined to be more cost-effective than TAU when evaluating EQ-VAS. Conclusions:- Because of lower costs, CBT is the most cost-effective treatment for adult FM patients. Implementation in routine medical care would require policymakers to develop more-widespread public access to trained and experienced therapists in group-based forms of CBT. Trial registration:- Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN10804772. Registered 29 September 2008

Behavior of Bulky Ferrofluids in the Diluted Low-Coupling Regime: Theory and Simulation

A theoretical formalism to predict the structure factors observed in dipolar soft-sphere fluids based on a virial expansion of the radial distribution function is presented. The theory is able to account for cases with and without externally applied magnetic fields. A thorough comparison of the theoretical results to molecular-dynamics simulations shows a good agreement between theory and numerical simulations when the fraction of particles involved in clustering is low; i.e., the dipolar coupling parameter is λ 2, and the volume fraction is φ 0.25. When magnetic fields are applied to the system, special attention is paid to the study of the anisotropy of the structure factor. The theory reasonably accounts for the structure factors when the Langevin parameter is smaller than 5. © 2010 The American Physical Society.This research has been carried out within the financial support of RFBR Grant No. 08-02-00647 and DFG-RFBR Joint Grants No. HO 1108/12-1 and No. 06-02-04019