A new method for the separation of androgens from estrogens and for the partition of estriol from the estrone-estradiol fraction: with special reference to the identification and quantitative microdetermination of estrogens by ultraviolet absorption spectrophotometry

It is recognized generally that a qualitative and quantitative knowledge of the excretion pattern of the urinary estrogens is one index to an understanding of the functional activity of the ovary and adrenal cortex. Obviously, such determinations may be useful also in evaluating the normal and abnormal functions of other physiologically related endocrine glands as well as of organs like the liver and kidneys. The clinical applications of these data are self-evident. Various attempts have been made to circumvent the notoriously inaccurate values which have been obtained for the urinary estrogens by a variety of bioassay methods and calorimetric techniques (1, 2). The acknowledged shortcomings of these methods have led us to investigate the application of ultraviolet absorption spectrophotometry to the quantitative determination of the urinary estrogens in an attempt to develop an objective physical method for their accurate determination. It is known that the infra-red portion of the spectrum yields more differentially characteristic curves, but those of the ultraviolet range are more readily obtainable, and consequently better adapted to clinical use. This communication is concerned with studies of the following aspects of the problem: (1) spectrophotometric identification and quantitative micro determination of crystalline estrogens; (2) detection by spectrophotometric assay of gross errors in current methods for extraction and partition of estrogens; (3) studies on the ultraviolet absorption of substances comprising the background material; (4) separation of the phenolic estrogens from the so called neutral steroid fraction; (5) separation of urinary estrogens from other urinary phenolic substances by steam distillation; (6) micro-Girard separation of estrone from estradiol; (7) an essentially new method for the extraction and partition of crystalline estrone, estradiol, and estriol, and their quantitative assay by ultraviolet spectrophotometry

A Structural Model of the Inflation Process in South Africa

We build a 4-equation model of the inflation process in South Africa (which has recently adopted inflation targeting), including the exchange rate, consumer prices, producer price, and import prices. This provides useful information on the speed and extent of exchange rate pass-through, and illuminates the various channels through which monetary policy influences inflation. The model is in the tradition of central bank models of the inflation process, but carefully tests for asymmetries, structural breaks and expectations effects, and applies a range of econometric tests and methods to refute the charge that such models necessarily impose .incredible. restrictions, Sims (1980).

Cutting the cost of carbon capture: a case for carbon capture and utilization

A significant part of the cost for Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is related to the compression of the captured CO2 to its supercritical state, at 150 bar and typically 99% purity. These stringent conditions may however not always be necessary for specific cases of Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU). In this manuscript, we investigate how much the parasitic energy of an adsorbent-based carbon capture process may be lowered by utilizing CO2 at 1 bar and adapting the final purity requirement for CO2 from 99% to 70% or 50%. We compare different CO2 sources: the flue gases of coal-fired or natural gas-fired power plants and ambient air. We evaluate the carbon capture performance of over 60 nanoporous materials and determine the influence of the initial and final purity on the parasitic energy of the carbon capture process. Moreover, we demonstrate the underlying principles of the parasitic energy minimization in more detail using the commercially available NaX zeolite. Finally, the calculated utilization cost of CO2 is compared with reported prices for CO2 and published costs for CCS

Building Stronger Channel Relationships Through Information Sharing

Does sharing market information help channel partners to buildstronger mutual relationships? Is low initial trust really animpediment for further relationship development by means ofinformation sharing? How do connections with other competingchannel partners affect the relationship building process? Toaddress these questions, we conducted an experimental study.Our findings show that retailer information sharing helps todevelop higher quality supplier relationships. Interestingly,even if the initial level of trust in the retailer is low, therelationship quality substantially improves. In a morecompetitive situation the suppliers respond more favorably tothe retailer?s information-sharing initiative.experimental design;information-sharing;interfirm collaboration;marketing channels

Monte Carlo simulations to understand 'breathing' phenomenon of metal organic frameworks

Metal Organic Frameworks (MOFs) are a new class of porous materials synthesized from metal clusters connected by organic linkers. One of the promising applications of MOFs is carbon capture from fuel gasses, where CO2 is adsorbed in the pores of the material. In this presentation, we explore framework flexibility as a possible mechanism for selective and reversible CO2 adsorption by means of Monte Carlo simulations. Most MOFs are fairly rigid structures, in the sense that they undergo small changes in volume when external stress is applied. Typical volume changes are of the order of a few percent only. Nevertheless, some MOF materials have an unexpectedly high flexibility and impressively shrink or swell under pressure, temperature or adsorption changes. A well-known example is MIL-53, a structure that shows volume changes of over 40%. In an adsorption experiment, the gas pressure is gradually increased while the amount of adsorbed material in the pores is measured. For MIL-53, the measured adsorption isotherm shows interesting features: when MIL-53 is brought into contact with a gas at increasing pressure, the framework's pores constrict, while at even higher pressures, the pores return to their original geometry. The process, referred to as "breathing", is reversible and shows hysteresis. Based on Monte Carlo runs, we have constructed a mean-field model to gain insight in the thermodynamics of the breathing. The model shows that the behavior is the result of the different factors at play in a (Nmof,μ,P,T) ensemble (constant amount of MOF material, constant gas chemical potential, constant gas pressure, constant temperature), i.e. the entropy, the pressure and the resistance given by the adsorbed particles. We further investigate how the MOFs' flexibility could be exploited to design an efficient pressure swing setup

Self-referential Monte Carlo method for calculating the free energy of crystalline solids

A self-referential Monte Carlo method is described for calculating the free energy of crystalline solids. All Monte Carlo methods for the free energy of classical crystalline solids calculate the free-energy difference between a state whose free energy can be calculated relatively easily and the state of interest. Previously published methods employ either a simple model crystal, such as the Einstein crystal, or a fluid as the reference state. The self-referential method employs a radically different reference state; it is the crystalline solid of interest but with a different number of unit cells. So it calculates the free-energy difference between two crystals, differing only in their size. The aim of this work is to demonstrate this approach by application to some simple systems, namely, the face centered cubic hard sphere and Lennard-Jones crystals. However, it can potentially be applied to arbitrary crystals in both bulk and confined environments, and ultimately it could also be very efficient

Morphine for cancer pain

CITATION: Smit, B. J. 1994. Morphine for cancer pain. South African Medical Journal, 84(11):788.The original publication is available at http://www.samj.org.za[No abstract available]Publisher’s versio

(Un)Common Law Protection of Certification Marks

Part I of this Note defines and examines the general principles of certification marks. From that foundation, Part II provides an overview of the case law on unregistered common law certification marks. Part III analyzes the reasons why abuses of certification marks would increase under a commonlaw regime and posits that certification marks, therefore, should only exist under federal law. Finally, Part IV proposes several adjustments that should be made to the current certification mark registration system in order to address existing shortcomings that affect both consumers and third-party businesses

Towards a strong-coupling theory of QCD at finite density

We apply strong-coupling perturbation theory to the QCD lattice Hamiltonian. We begin with naive, nearest-neighbor fermions and subsequently break the doubling symmetry with next-nearest-neighbor terms. The effective Hamiltonian is that of an antiferromagnet with an added kinetic term for baryonic "impurities," reminiscent of the t-J model of high-T_c superconductivity. As a first step, we fix the locations of the baryons and make them static. Following analyses of the t-J model, we apply large-N methods to obtain a phase diagram in the (N_c,N_f) plane at zero temperature and baryon density. Next we study a simplified U(3) toy model, in which we add baryons to the vacuum. We use a coherent state formalism to write a path integral which we analyze with mean field theory, obtaining a phase diagram in the (n_B,T) plane.Comment: Lattice2002(nonzerot) - Parallel talk and poster presented at Lattice 2002, Cambridge, MA, USA, June 2002. 6 pages, 6 EPS figure