516 research outputs found
Additive manufacturing for electrochemical labs: An overview and tutorial note on the production of cells, electrodes and accessories
Additive Manufacturing (AM) is an ever-growing part of modern scientific research due to its ability to create complex features, low wastage, ever-decreasing cost of entry and rapid prototyping capabilities. Up to this point, the use of AM in electrochemical research has focused around two of the main components of the experimental setup: the working electrode, and the electrochemical cell. In this paper we highlight how researchers have utilised AM in the literature and offer our own insights into how this technology can be exploited to benefit all areas of electrochemical research. For the development of electrodes, much of the literature utilises commercially available conductive PLA filaments in conjunction with FFF printing, with only a few groups expanding into the development of their own bespoke conductive materials. AM offers huge advantages in the production of electrochemical cells, allowing users to produce bespoke designs to fit their experimental needs, rapidly producing these at low cost and easily modifying the design to improve performance. However, the use of AM in electrochemical laboratories should not stop there. We present basic designs of electrodes, cells and even accessories that can benefit all electrochemical researchers (new and experienced) in their quest for reproducible and reliable results. These designs are offered free of charge, are available to download from the Supporting Information and can be easily modified to meet any usersâ specific needs. As such, we feel AM should be a staple of every laboratory and hope this work inspires people to think about all the ways that AM can benefit their research environments
Bounds on SCFTs from Conformal Perturbation Theory
The operator product expansion (OPE) in 4d (super)conformal field theory is
of broad interest, for both formal and phenomenological applications. In this
paper, we use conformal perturbation theory to study the OPE of nearly-free
fields coupled to SCFTs. Under fairly general assumptions, we show that the OPE
of a chiral operator of dimension with its complex
conjugate always contains an operator of dimension less than . Our
bounds apply to Banks-Zaks fixed points and their generalizations, as we
illustrate using several examples.Comment: 36 pages; v2: typos fixed, minor change
General Argyres-Douglas Theory
We construct a large class of Argyres-Douglas type theories by compactifying
six dimensional (2,0) A_N theory on a Riemann surface with irregular
singularities. We give a complete classification for the choices of Riemann
surface and the singularities. The Seiberg-Witten curve and scaling dimensions
of the operator spectrum are worked out. Three dimensional mirror theory and
the central charges a and c are also calculated for some subsets, etc. Our
results greatly enlarge the landscape of N=2 superconformal field theory and in
fact also include previous theories constructed using regular singularity on
the sphere.Comment: 55 pages, 20 figures, minor revision and typos correcte
T-Branes and Monodromy
We introduce T-branes, or "triangular branes," which are novel non-abelian
bound states of branes characterized by the condition that on some loci, their
matrix of normal deformations, or Higgs field, is upper triangular. These
configurations refine the notion of monodromic branes which have recently
played a key role in F-theory phenomenology. We show how localized matter
living on complex codimension one subspaces emerge, and explain how to compute
their Yukawa couplings, which are localized in complex codimension two. Not
only do T-branes clarify what is meant by brane monodromy, they also open up a
vast array of new possibilities both for phenomenological constructions and for
purely theoretical applications. We show that for a general T-brane, the
eigenvalues of the Higgs field can fail to capture the spectrum of localized
modes. In particular, this provides a method for evading some constraints on
F-theory GUTs which have assumed that the spectral equation for the Higgs field
completely determines a local model.Comment: 110 pages, 5 figure
Adjusting the connection length of additively manufactured electrodes changes the electrochemical and electroanalytical performance
Changing the connection length of an additively manufactured electrode (AME) has a significant impact on the electrochemical and electroanalytical response of the system. In the literature, many electrochemical platforms have been produced using additive manufacturing with great variations in how the AME itself is described. It is seen that when measuring the near-ideal outer-sphere redox probe hexaamineruthenium (III) chloride (RuHex), decreasing the AME connection length enhances the heterogeneous electrochemical transfer (HET) rate constant ((Formula presented.)) for the system. At slow scan rates, there is a clear change in the peak-to-peak separation (ÎEp) observed in the RuHex voltammograms, with the ÎEp shifting from 118 ± 5 mV to 291 ± 27 mV for the 10 and 100 mm electrodes, respectively. For the electroanalytical determination of dopamine, no significant difference is noticed at low concentrations between 10- and 100-mm connection length AMEs. However, at concentrations of 1 mM dopamine, the peak oxidation is shifted to significantly higher potentials as the AME connection length is increased, with a shift of 150 mV measured. It is recommended that in future work, all AME dimensions, not just the working electrode head size, is reported along with the resistance measured through electrochemical impedance spectroscopy to allow for appropriate comparisons with other reports in the literature. To produce the best additively manufactured electrochemical systems in the future, researchers should endeavor to use the shortest AME connection lengths that are viable for their designs
Prognostic impact of matched preoperative plasma and serum VEGF in patients with primary colorectal carcinoma
In serum, the major part of vascular endothelial growth factor derives from in vitro degranulation of granulocytes and platelets. Therefore, plasma may be preferred for vascular endothelial growth factor measurements. However, which specimen is the best predictor of survival is still debated. The present study analyzed the prognostic value of matched preoperative serum and plasma vascular endothelial growth factor concentrations in patients with colorectal cancer. To establish the reference range among healthy people, vascular endothelial growth factor was analyzed in 50 matched EDTA-plasma and serum samples from healthy blood donors. Preoperatively, in 524 patients with colorectal cancer, matched plasma and serum vascular endothelial growth factor concentrations were analyzed. In the colorectal cancer patients, the median plasma vascular endothelial growth factor concentration (44âpgâmlâ1) was significantly (P=0.01) higher than the median plasma vascular endothelial growth factor concentration (30âpgâmlâ1) in the healthy blood donors. In serum, no significant (P=0.30) difference in the median vascular endothelial growth factor concentration was found between colorectal cancer patients (268âpgâmlâ1) and healthy blood donors (220âpgâmlâ1). The preoperative vascular endothelial growth factor concentrations were dichotomized by the 95th percentile of the healthy blood donors (plasma=112âpgâmlâ1, serum=533âpgâmlâ1). In univariate survival analyses, both high plasma vascular endothelial growth factor (>112âpgâmlâ1) and high serum vascular endothelial growth factor (>533âpgâmlâ1) predicted a reduced survival. In multivariate survival analyses, high serum vascular endothelial growth factor (>533âpgâmlâ1) independently predicted a reduced survival (HR=1.65, P=0.015), while high plasma vascular endothelial growth factor (>112âpgâmlâ1) did not (HR=1.27, P=0.23). This study indicates that preoperative serum vascular endothelial growth factor apparently is a better predictor of overall survival than the preoperative plasma vascular endothelial growth factor
Direct Mediation and Metastable Supersymmetry Breaking for SO(10)
We examine a metastable Macroscopic SO(N) SQCD model of
Intriligator, Seiberg and Shih (ISS). We introduce various baryon and meson
deformations, including multitrace operators and explore embedding an SO(10)
parent of the standard model into two weakly gauged flavour sectors. Direct
fundamental messengers and the symmetric pseudo-modulus messenger mediate SUSY
breaking to the MSSM. Gaugino and sfermion masses are computed and compared for
each deformation type. We also explore reducing the rank of the magnetic quark
matrix of the ISS model and find an additional fundamental messenger.Comment: 43 pages, Latex. Version to appear in JHEP
Wall-Crossing in Coupled 2d-4d Systems
We introduce a new wall-crossing formula which combines and generalizes the
Cecotti-Vafa and Kontsevich-Soibelman formulas for supersymmetric 2d and 4d
systems respectively. This 2d-4d wall-crossing formula governs the
wall-crossing of BPS states in an N=2 supersymmetric 4d gauge theory coupled to
a supersymmetric surface defect. When the theory and defect are compactified on
a circle, we get a 3d theory with a supersymmetric line operator, corresponding
to a hyperholomorphic connection on a vector bundle over a hyperkahler space.
The 2d-4d wall-crossing formula can be interpreted as a smoothness condition
for this hyperholomorphic connection. We explain how the 2d-4d BPS spectrum can
be determined for 4d theories of class S, that is, for those theories obtained
by compactifying the six-dimensional (0,2) theory with a partial topological
twist on a punctured Riemann surface C. For such theories there are canonical
surface defects. We illustrate with several examples in the case of A_1
theories of class S. Finally, we indicate how our results can be used to
produce solutions to the A_1 Hitchin equations on the Riemann surface C.Comment: 170 pages, 45 figure
Low-cost, facile droplet modification of screen-printed arrays for internally validated electrochemical detection of serum procalcitonin
This manuscript presents the design and facile production of screen-printed arrays (SPAs) for the internally validated determination of raised levels of serum procalcitonin (PCT). The screen-printing methodology produced SPAs with six individual working electrodes that exhibit an inter-array reproducibility of 3.64% and 5.51% for the electrochemically active surface area and heterogenous electrochemical rate constant respectively. The SPAs were modified with antibodies specific for the detection of PCT through a facile methodology, where each stage simply uses droplets incubated on the surface, allowing for their mass-production. This platform was used for the detection of PCT, achieving a linear dynamic range between 1 and 10 ng mLâ1 with a sensor sensitivity of 1.35 Ă 10â10 NIC%/ng mLâ1. The SPA produced an intra- and inter-day %RSD of 4.00 and 5.05%, with a material cost of ÂŁ1.14. Internally validated human serum results (3 sample measurements, 3 control) for raised levels of PCT (>2 ng mLâ1) were obtained, with no interference effects seen from CRP and IL-6. This SPA platform has the potential to offer clinicians vital information to rapidly begin treatment for âquery sepsisâ patients while awaiting results from more lengthy remote laboratory testing methods. Analytical ranges tested make this an ideal approach for rapid testing in specific patient populations (such as neonates or critically ill patients) in which PCT ranges are inherently wider. Due to the facile modification methods, we predict this could be used for various analytes on a single array, or the array increased further to maintain the internal validation of the system
Children from Baffin Island have a disproportionate burden of tuberculosis in Canada: data from the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (1998-2008)
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) provides services to children in Baffin Island, through the Baffin Island Pediatric Health Initiative. Tuberculosis (TB) remains a major public health problem in that region. The objective of our study was to describe the origin and clinical characteristics of patients with TB disease at CHEO, since the inception of the Baffin Island Pediatric Health Initiative.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>All charts with a discharge diagnosis of TB disease during the first 10 years of the Baffin Island program were reviewed. Patients meeting a pre-determined case definition were included in analyses. A standard medical record abstraction form was used for patient data collection.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Twenty patients met our case definition. Seven (35%) were Canadian-born children from Baffin Island. Seven resided in Ontario, 4 in Quebec, and 2 were visiting from other countries. All 7 children residing in Ontario were born in African countries. Endothoracic disease occurred in 16 patients (80%), including 9 with primary pulmonary TB, and 3 with sputum smear positive "adult-type" disease. Extrathoracic disease was present in 6 children (30%), including 3 with CNS disease. Three children had disease in 2 separate sites.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>While Baffin Island makes up 1% of the hospital catchment population, they contributed 35% of TB patients, and the only TB death. While TB in foreign-born children is due in part to epidemics abroad, the problem in Baffin Island is a reflection of disease burden and transmission within Canada.</p
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