Investigation into Travel Modes for Transit Oriented Development: Employees' Travel Survey of Kelvin Grove Urban Village

Travel surveys were conducted for collecting data related to visitors travel to Kelvin Grove Urban Village (KGUV). KGUV has employees of retail shopping centre, employees of educational land use, school and university students and shoppers as visitors of this area. As a part of data collection process a travel surveys was undertaken for employees and students of KGUV. This document contains the questionnaire form used to collect the data related to employee travel. Similar questions were asked to the students of KGUV. The instructions given for filling out the survey were not included in the actual questionnaire form as internet based surveys were undertaken. This form was used for personal interviews and Computer Assisted Personal Interview (CAPI) surveys undertaken for employees of the retail shopping centre

Experimental and numerical investigation of pilot scale microwave assisted transesterification process for biodiesel production

The goal of this study was to design and test a pilot scale process for biodiesel production using advanced microwave technology and develop a numerical model for investigating various parameters affecting this process. Dielectric properties of materials play a major role in microwave design of a process. The dielectric properties (dielectric constant ε’ and dielectric loss ε”) of biodiesel precursors: soybean oil, alcohols and catalyst and their different mixtures were measured at four different temperatures (30°C, 45°C, 60°C and 75°C) and in the frequency range of 154 MHz to 4.5 GHz. Results indicate that the microwave dielectric properties of almost all components depend on both temperature and frequency. Addition of catalyst changed the properties of solvent due to the strong ionic nature. A scaled up version of a continuous microwave transesterification process was designed, built and tested. Experimental parameters were set based on previous laboratory scale results. Experiments were performed in a well controlled continuous pilot scale microwave reactor at temperatures of 60°C and 75°C and processing times of 5 to 15 minutes. Microwave power required to achieve the temperature of 60°C was 4000W and for 75°C was 4700W. Ethanol was used as a solvent with NaOH as a catalyst (\u3c 0.2% by weight of oil). The conversion obtained was \u3e99% for all experimental conditions. The final objective was to develop a basic numerical model of continuous electromagnetic heating of biodiesel precursors. A finite element model was built using COMSOL Multiphysics 4.2 software. High frequency electromagnetic problem was coupled with the non-isothermal flow problem. The model was tested for the two different power levels. The electric field, electromagnetic power flow and temperature profiles were studied. Resulting temperature profiles were verified by comparing to the experimental data. The presented study assists in understanding microwave heating application for biodiesel production. The dielectric property analysis gives a clear picture of interaction of biodiesel components with microwave irradiation, numerical model aids in understanding temperature distribution while experiments validate the results. This study can be applied to optimize the microwave assisted continuous biodiesel production process

Seguridad del paciente en el bloque quirúrgico. Una perspectiva enfermera

Las consecuencias sanitarias, sociales y económicas de los efectos adversos que se producen en el contexto de la prestación sanitaria, han llevado a diferentes organismos internacionales, en los últimos años, a reflexionar sobre la seguridad del paciente y sobre la gestión de riesgos sanitarios, a desarrollar recomendaciones y estrategias orientadas a la prevención, detección y mitigación de los sucesos adversos, así como al análisis de sus causas, al aprendizaje de los errores y a la difusión de las lecciones aprendidas. El presente trabajo titulado “La seguridad del paciente en el bloque quirúrgico. Una perspectiva enfermera”, pretende describir aquellos requisitos o recomendaciones funcionales, estructurales y organizativos del Bloque Quirúrgico que garantizan las condiciones adecuadas de calidad y seguridad para realizar la intervención quirúrgica ; y por otra parte, analizar las intervenciones de enfermería encaminadas a garantizar la seguridad del paciente durante el proceso quirúrgico y que son fundamentales para contribuir a la disminución de los efectos adversos relacionados con el mismo

Electronic, optical, mechanical and thermoelectric properties of graphene

Graphene, a two-dimensional allotrope of graphite with sp2 bonded carbon atoms, is arranged in honeycomb structure. Its quasi one-dimensional form is graphene nanoribbon (GNR). Graphene related materials have been found to display excellent electronic, chemical, mechanical properties along with uniquely high thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity and high optical transparency. With excellent electrical characteristics such as high carrier transport properties, quantum Hall effect at room temperature and unusual magnetic properties, graphene has applications in optoelectronic devices. Electronically, graphene is a zero bandgap semiconductor making it essential to tailor its structure for obtaining specific band structure. Narrow GNRs are known to open up bandgap and found to exhibit variations for different chiralities i.e., armchair and zigzag. Doping graphene, with p- or n- type elements, is shown to exhibit bandgap in contrast to pristine graphene. In this study, optical properties including dielectric functions, absorption coefficient, transmittance, and reflectance, as a function of wavelength and incident energy, are studied. Refractive index and extinction coefficient of pristine graphene are presented. A key optical property in the infrared region, emissivity, is studied as a function of wavelength for various multilayered configurations having graphene as one of the constituent layers. Application of such a structure is in the fabrication of a Hot Electron Bolometer (a sensor that operates on the basis of temperature-dependent electrical resistance). Graphene is found to have very high elastic modulus and intrinsic strength. Nanoindentation of graphene sheet is simulated to study the force versus displacement curves. Effects of variation of diameter of indenter, speed of indentation and number of layers of graphene on the mechanical properties are presented. Shrinking size of electronic devices has led to an acute need for thermal management. This prompted the study of thermoelectric (TE) effects in graphene based systems. TE devices are finding applications in power generation and solid state refrigeration. This study involves analyzing the electronic, thermal and electrical transport properties of these systems. Electronic thermal conductivity, of graphene based systems (κe), is found to be negligible as compared to its phonon-induced lattice thermal conduction (κp). Variations in κp of graphene and GN Rs are evaluated as a function of their width and length of their edges, chiralities, temperature, and number of layers. The interdependence of transport parameters, i.e., electrical conductivity (σ), thermoelectric power (TEP) or Seebeck coefficient (S), and κ of graphene are discussed. The thermoelectric performance of these materials is determined mainly by a parameter called Figure-of-Merit. Effective methods to optimize the value of Figure-of-Merit are explored. Reducing the thermal conductivity and increasing the power factor of these systems are found to improve the Figure-of-Merit significantly. This involves correlation of structure and transport properties. Effects of doping on σ, κ and Hall coefficient are discussed

Thermo-Catalytic Upgrading of Pyrolysis Vapors Using Electromagnetic Heating

Electromagnetic heating offers several advantages such as rapid heating rates, accurate temperature control and energy efficiency over conventional reactors. The goal of this study was to design an effective and energy efficient catalytic reactor for pyrolysis vapor upgrading. An induction based catalytic reactor was designed for upgrading of pyrolysis vapors. The effect of catalyst bed temperatures (290°, 330° and 370°C) and biomass to catalyst ratios of 1, 1.5 and 2 was studied. The results were compared to conventional heating reactor. Induction heating reactor performance exceeded that of conventional heater. The biomass to catalyst ratio of 2 in combination with the temperature of 370°C gave the highest aromatics yield. A microwave based catalytic reactor was designed for pyrolysis vapor upgrading. Microwave heating had higher product selectivity and energy efficiency compared to conventional and induction heating reactors. Rate of deterioration of catalyst mainly due to coking was lower for microwave heated catalyst. Higher aromatic hydrocarbon yield, lower oxygen content and high heating value value of bio-oil was obtained by microwave heating of catalyst. A numerical model studying the microwave heating of porous catalyst bed was developed using COMSOL Multiphysics 5.1. The model was validated against the experimental data. The temperature profiles obtained from microwave heating were compared to those obtained from conventional heating. The model was in good agreement with the experimental results. The sample shape, size and position was found to have significant effect on microwave heating of porous catalyst bed

Effect of 2-Deoxyglucose on Colorectal Cancer Cell Lines

The third leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S. is colon cancer. The major disadvantage of cancer chemotherapy is its non-selective toxicity to healthy cells at the therapeutic doses. A possible target selective for cancer cells is their dependence on glycolysis for cellular energy. 2-deoxyglucose (2-DG) is a glycolytic inhibitor that has been shown to be safe in both animals and humans. The molecular mechanisms for the anticancer effect of 2-DG cannot be explained solely by its glycolytic inhibition. In this manuscript we studied the effect of 2-DG on colon cancer cells and its possible molecular mechanism. Colon cancer cells are more susceptible to 2-DG treatment than other cancerous and non-cancerous cell lines tested. The colon cancer cells tested are SW620, SW480 and GC3/C1. In cell cycle analysis studied using propidium iodide staining of DNA followed by flow-cytometry, 2-DG induced cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase in SW 620 cells. 2-DG also modified the expression of various cell cycle proteins such as p21, p53, and cyclins as measured through Western Blotting. In addition to cell cycle arrest, 2-DG also induced apoptosis through activation of Caspase 3. Complementing 5-Fluorouracil (5- FU) treatment of colon cancer cells with 2-DG significantly enhanced the efficiency of 5- FU treatment up to 3.5 fold. This study showed a new molecular mechanisms for 2-DG that could be used to design novel combination therapies with other known chemotherapeutic agents for colon cancer. The addition of a well-tolerated molecule like 2- DG increases the efficiency of 5-FU, thus reducing the patient’s cumulative exposure to 5- FU. This may lead to fewer dose dependent side effects and better patient outcomes

Hepatoprotective Effect of Cassia Fistula Linn.

A number of herbal preparations are used throughout the world for the management of the hepatic disorders. However, many of them have not been investigated for their described effects. Cassia fistula Linn. is one such drug used in the treatment of hepatitis in folk medicine. Therefore, an attempt was made to investigate the hepatoprotective effect of leaves and bark of Cassia fistula against carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) induced hepatotoxicity in rats. Sixty albino Wistar rats were divided into six equal groups of 10. Four groups received extracts leaves/bark of Cassia fistula and intraperitoneal (i.p.) CCl4 (0.2 ml/100 g) either before or after administration of extracts. Two groups were controls, one treated with CCl4 and one with normal saline. Liver damage was assessed by plasma concentration of bilirubin and enzyme activities of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, and alkaline phosphatase. Treatment with aqueous extract of leaves and bark significantly reduced CCl4 -induced elevation in plasma enzyme and bilirubin concentration in rats. This study demonstrated that CCl4 -induced liver damage in rats can be ameliorated by treatment of extracts from leaves and bark