Tile vaults as integrated formwork for reinforced concrete: Construction, experimental testing and a method for the design and analysis of two-dimensional structures

Tile vaults are traditional, unreinforced masonry structures made of thin bricks (tiles), mortar and fast-setting cement or gypsum. They can be constructed without the need for a formwork, except at the boundaries, making them inherently economic. Tile vaults have historically provided a solution for the efficient construction of vaulted structures. Today, they can be used as permanent formwork for concrete shells, allowing for a significant reduction of the construction cost and waste produced, due to the possibility of reducing or even eliminating the need for traditional formwork. The concrete can be poured directly onto a tile-vaulted formwork to form a composite structure. This paper presents a technique for the construction of single-curvature shells consisting of a composite structure combining tile vaulting and reinforced concrete. A method for the design of these composite vaults and the assessment of their strength and stability against external loading is also presented. This method is based on limit analysis but takes into account the reinforcement’s contribution to the composite cross-section’s bending capacity. The equilibrium method is implemented computationally to provide fast results for the user. It provides graphical and intuitive results and opens the possibility for the future extension to fully three-dimensional problems. The design and structural analysis method is called Extended Limit Analysis for Reinforced Masonry (ELARM). Both the proposed construction technique and the computational method have been validated through experimental research. The feasibility of the building technique has been validated by the construction of two full-scale prototypes. In addition, the prototypes have been load-tested to failure to compare the results with those predicted by ELARM.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Experimental testing and structural analysis of composite tile - reinforced concrete domes

Conventional formworks for concrete curved shells either are expensive, complex and wasteful or have formal restrictions. Using tile vaults (also known as timbrel, Guastavino, thin-tile or Catalan vaults) as stay-in-place formwork for concrete shells could significantly reduce construction costs and material waste. Tile vaults only require formwork at the boundaries and provide a high formal flexibility. The combination of masonry and reinforced concrete creates a new type of composite structure that needs experimental validation and new structural analysis models to deal with the specific features of the system. This paper presents experimental research on the component materials, load tests on doubly-curved, full-scale prototypes and the definition of a reliable Finite Element structural model for the analysis of the proposed hybrid structure. The experimental research has involved the characterisation of the bricks, mortar, concrete and reinforcement composing the proposed system in order to provide the material properties to be considered in the structural analysis. The construction and testing of two composite sail domes in the laboratory have allowed the validation of the proposed FE model by comparing its predictions with the collapse mechanisms, damage, ultimate loads and load–displacement curves obtained experimentally.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Estudio computacional de reacciones de nitronas que no son lo que parecen

Nitrones are highly versatile compounds in organic synthesis due to their diverse reactivity, mainly as 1,3-dipoles and electrophiles (in the presence of activating agents). Reactions of nitrones allow a facile introduction of heteroatoms in organic compounds and have some advantages over similar functional groups such as oximes, hydrazones and imines. Therefore, understanding mechanisms involved in nitrone reactivity is an extremely important goal. Nitrone functional group consists of 3 atoms (C, N and O) that share 4 π electrons. Their typical reactivity includes electrophilic attacks to the O atom, nucleophilic attacks to the C atom (usually after electrophilic activation) and the most known 1,3 dipolar cycloadditions with unsaturated systems. Furthermore, nitrones are also attractive substrates for radical processes such as coupling reactions with unsaturated heteroatomic multiple bonds. Even though the most important nitrone reactivity is already known, there is still controversy regarding (i) concertedness of several cycloaddition reactions and (ii) involvement of diradical species in particular processes. The present Ph.D. Thesis summarizes the studies carried out on several different nitrone-related processes. In particular, four nitrone reactions, whose mechanisms were not fully established, have been studied through DFT and topological (ELF and NCI) methods. The results are collected in the indicated published scientific papers. The reactions are: A) The mechanism of cyclodimerization of nitrones, a process apparently disallowed by the orbital symmetry rules. Several open and closed shell mechanisms were studied and, ultimately, we were able to prove that the reaction takes place through a bispseudopericyclic concerted mechanism. (Org. Biomol. Chem. 2014, 12, 517). B) The thermal E/Z isomerization of nitrones, a process observed in several nitrones bearing electron-withdrawing groups at the carbon atom. After ruling out both unimolecular torsional and oxaziridine-mediated mechanisms, as well as bimolecular concerted and zwitterionic stepwise ones, we determined that the preferred mechanism for this type of isomerization involved a dirradical C C coupling between two nitrone molecules. (J. Org. Chem. 2014, 79, 8358). C) The reaction of nitrones with lithium ynolates and enolates. Some of these reactions take place through an only kinetic step that, actually, involves a two-stage, one-step process in which the formation of the two newly formed bonds is sequential. NCI and ELF analyses were also carried out to study the bond evolution along the reaction. (J. Org. Chem. 2015, 80, 4076, lythium ynolates; Eur. J. Org. Chem. 2015, 4143, lythium enolates)

Mems integrated reconfigurable antenna for cognitive public safety radios

The frequency reconfigurable volumetric PIFA presented in this paper is designed to switch between two US public-safety bands, one operating at 700MHz and the other having a bandwidth of 17% around 850MHz - in effect covering a range from 800MHz to 900MHz. The reconfigurability is limited to only the ground and patch layers as an aim to minimize the number of MEMS switches used. The radiation pattern of the antenna maintains its shape and the maximum gain over this reconfigurable band of operation, 700 – 900 MHPostprint (published version

Mechanistic Insights in the Mode of Action of Bifunctional Pyrrolidine-Squaramide-derived Organocatalysts

The modes of catalytic action of three squaramide-derived bifunctional organocatalysts have been investigated using DFT methods. The [5+2] cycloaddition between oxidopyrilium ylides and enals has been used as model reaction. Two primary modes are possible for the different catalysts studied. The preference for one mode over the other is due to the possibility of additional favourable π,π-interactions between the H-bond activated pyrilium ylide and an electron-deficient aromatic ring bonded to a squaramide NH-group. The model can be extended to other reactions catalyzed by the same catalysts such as formal [2+2] cycloadditions between nitroalkenes and α,β-unsaturated aldehydes. The computational results are in excellent concurrence with the available experimental reports on the observed total enantioselectivity and differences in diastereoselectivity depending on the substrate and the reactionThis work was supported by Spanish MINECO Contracts CTQ2013-44367-C2-1-P (to P.M.) and CTQ2014-52107 (to J.L.V.). We also acknowledge the Government of Aragón (Spain) (Group E-10), the Basque Government (Spain) (IT328-10) and Aarhus University (Denmark) for financial support. We acknowledge the Institute of Biocomputation and Physics of Complex Systems (BIFI) at the University of Zaragoza (Spain) for computer time at clusters Terminus and Memento. D.R.-L. Thanks the Spanish Ministry of Education (MEC) for a predoctoral grant (FPU program)

UV‐selective optically transparent Zn(O,S)‐based solar cells

This work reports experimental evidence of a photovoltaic effect in transparent UV‐selective Zn(O,S)‐based heterojunctions. Zn(O,S) has a strong interest for the development of UV‐selective solar cells with high transparency in the visible region, required for the development of nonintrusive building‐integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) elements as transparent solar windows and glass‐based solar façades. By anion alloying, Zn(O,S) mixed crystal absorbers can be fabricated with different sulfur content across the whole compositional range. This allows adjustment of the bandgap of the absorbers in the 2.7-2.9 eV region, maximizing absorption in the UV, while keeping a high level of transparency. Zn(O,S) alloys with composition corresponding to S/(S + O) content ratios of 0.6 are successfully grown by sputtering deposition, and first glass/FTO/NiO/Zn(O,S)/ITO device prototypes are produced. The resulting devices present an average visible transmittance (AVT) of 75% and present photovoltaic effect. By introducing a thin C60 film as electron transport layer (ETL), charge extraction is enhanced, and devices show an efficiency of 0.5% and an AVT > 69%. The transparency of these devices can potentially allow for their ubiquitous installation in glazing systems as part of nonintrusive BIPV elements or to power Internet of Things (IoT) devices and sensors as an integrated transparent component

Analysis and prediction of COVID-19 for EU-EFTA-UK and other countries

The present report aims to provide a comprehensive picture of the pandemic situation of COVID-19 in the EU countries, and to be able to foresee the situation in the next coming days. We employ an empirical model, verified with the evolution of the number of confirmed cases in previous countries where the epidemic is close to conclude, including all provinces of China. The model does not pretend to interpret the causes of the evolution of the cases but to permit the evaluation of the quality of control measures made in each state and a short-term prediction of trends. Note, however, that the effects of the measures’ control that start on a given day are not observed until approximately 7-10 days later. The model and predictions are based on two parameters that are daily fitted to available data: a: the velocity at which spreading specific rate slows down; the higher the value, the better the control. K: the final number of expected cumulated cases, which cannot be evaluated at the initial stages because growth is still exponential. We show an individual report with 8 graphs and a table with the short-term predictions for different countries and regions. We are adjusting the model to countries and regions with at least 4 days with more than 100 confirmed cases and a current load over 200 cases. The predicted period of a country depends on the number of datapoints over this 100 cases threshold, and is of 5 days for those that have reported more than 100 cumulated cases for 10 consecutive days or more. For short-term predictions, we assign higher weight to last 3 points in the fittings, so that changes are rapidly captured by the model. The whole methodology employed in the inform is explained in the last pages of this document. In addition to the individual reports, the reader will find an initial dashboard with a brief analysis of the situation in EU-EFTA-UK countries, some summary figures and tables as well as long-term predictions for some of them, when possible. These long-term predictions are evaluated without different weights to datapoints. We also discuss a specific issue every day.These reports are funded by the European Commission (DG CONNECT, LC-01485746) PJC and MC received funding from “la Caixa” Foundation (ID 100010434), under agreement LCF/PR/GN17/50300003; CP, DL, SA, MC, received funding from Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades and FEDER, with the project PGC2018-095456-B-I00Postprint (published version

Role of Cyclooxygenase-2 on Intermittent Hypoxia-Induced Lung Tumor Malignancy in a Mouse Model of Sleep Apnea

An adverse role for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in cancer epidemiology and outcomes has recently emerged from clinical and animal studies. In animals, intermittent hypoxia (IH) mimicking OSA promotes tumor malignancy both directly and via host immune alterations. We hypothesized that IH could potentiate cancer aggressiveness through activation of the cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) pathway and the concomitant increases in prostaglandin E2 (PGE2). The contribution of the COX-2 in IH-induced enhanced tumor malignancy was assessed using celecoxib as a COX-2 specific inhibitor in a murine model of OSA bearing Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC1) tumors. Exposures to IH accelerated tumor progression with a tumor associated macrophages (TAMs) shift towards a pro-tumoral M2 phenotype. Treatment with celecoxib prevented IH-induced adverse tumor outcomes by inhibiting IH-induced M2 polarization of TAMs. Furthermore, TAMs isolated from IH-exposed mice treated with celecoxib reduced the proliferation of LLC1 naïve cells, while the opposite occurred with placebo-treated IH-exposed mice. Finally, in vitro IH exposures of murine macrophages and LLC1 cells showed that both cell types increased PGE2 release in response to IH. These results suggest a crucial role for the COX-2 signaling pathway in the IH-exacerbated malignant processes, and designate macrophages and lung adenocarcinoma cells, as potential sources of PGE2

Cost-effectiveness of a technology-supported multimodal prehabilitation program in moderate-to-high risk patients undergoing lung cancer resection: randomized controlled trial protocol

Background: Multimodal prehabilitation is a preoperative intervention with the objective to enhance cancer patients' functional status which has been showed to reduce both postoperative morbidity and hospital length of stay in digestive oncologic surgery. However, in lung cancer surgery patients further studies with higher methodological quality are needed to clarify the benefits of prehabilitation. The main aim of the current protocol is to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of a multimodal prehabilitation program supported by information and communication technologies in moderate-to-high risk lung cancer patients undergoing thoracic surgery. Methods: A Quadruple Aim approach will be adopted, assessing the prehabilitation program at the following levels: i) Patients' and professionals' experience outcomes (by means of standardized questionnaires, focus groups and structured interviews); ii) Population health-based outcomes (e.g. hospital length of stay, number and severity of postoperative complications, peak oxygen uptake and levels of systemic inflammation); and, iii) Healthcare costs. Discussion: This study protocol should contribute not only to increase the scientific basis on prehabilitation but also to detect the main factors modulating service adoption. Trial registration: NCT04052100 (August 9, 2019)

Desenvolupament transversal de la competència informacional al segon semestre del Grau de Psicologia.

Podeu consultar la Vuitena trobada de professorat de Ciències de la Salut completa a: http://hdl.handle.net/2445/66524Buscar, seleccionar i gestionar informació especialitzada de manera estratègica, fent ús de diferents tecnologies i fonts d'informació és una de les competències transversals de la UB. Cinc assignatures del segon semestre de Psicologia van elaborar un pla d’actuació per treballar-la coordinadament. Els estudiants que van seguir aquesta formació van obtenir notables resultats quan s'enfrontaven a exercicis pràctics específics (identificació de paraules clau o factors d'impacte), però van mostrar mancances a l’hora de resoldre tasques que requerien la cerca avançada, l’ús de l'estil APA, la identificació de títols de revistes científiques o el coneixement global dels usos i recursos d'informació. No obstant, els estudiants que van rebre la formació van ser lleugerament més competents que els seus companys de darrer curs del grau (que no havien rebut aquesta formació coordinada, però que se'ls hi suposa experiència en cerca documental, atesa les demandes de les diferents assignatures que han cursat). D’altra banda, l'avaluació de la competència informacional no va resultar independent de la resta de competències avaluades ja que va correlacionar positivament, tant en la tasca de defensa oral, com en la puntuació de l'examen final de continguts bàsics de l'assignatura (valors rxy entre 0,09 i 0,18).Buscar, seleccionar i gestionar informació especialitzada de manera estratègica, fent ús de diferents tecnologies i fonts d'informació és una de les competències transversals de la UB. Cinc assignatures del segon semestre de Psicologia van elaborar un pla d’actuació per treballar-la coordinadament. Els estudiants que van seguir aquesta formació van obtenir notables resultats quan s'enfrontaven a exercicis pràctics específics (identificació de paraules clau o factors d'impacte), però van mostrar mancances a l’hora de resoldre tasques que requerien la cerca avançada, l’ús de l'estil APA, la identificació de títols de revistes científiques o el coneixement global dels usos i recursos d'informació. No obstant, els estudiants que van rebre la formació van ser lleugerament més competents que els seus companys de darrer curs del grau (que no havien rebut aquesta formació coordinada, però que se'ls hi suposa experiència en cerca documental, atesa les demandes de les diferents assignatures que han cursat). D’altra banda, l'avaluació de la competència informacional no va resultar independent de la resta de competències avaluades ja que va correlacionar positivament, tant en la tasca de defensa oral, com en la puntuació de l'examen final de continguts bàsics de l'assignatura (valors rxy entre 0,09 i 0,18)