Speciation and source identification of radiocesium by radiochemical separation and QQQ-ICP-MS analysis

The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP) accident on March 11th, 2011, in Japan caused the release of radioactive fallout, including radioactive cesium (Cs), and contaminated the near field but also large areas 50-70 km from the reactors. The aim of this study was to optimize published methods for the radiochemical separation of radiocesium from environmental samples and measurement of 137Cs and 135Cs by triple quadrupole inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (QQQ-ICP-MS). This optimized method would then be applied to determine the 135Cs/137Cs isotopic ratio for source identification. The method was optimized by testing and evaluating the different procedure steps. A simulated complex solution containing radiocesium was first used to evaluate: i) three techniques for separating Cs from AMP based on Cs recovery and convenience of work, and ii) the anion and cation resins based on ability to remove unwanted ions from solution. Using bulk soil samples from Fukushima, two acid mixtures were tested for extraction capacity of the microwave digestion. The resulting samples containing 137Cs were then measured by QQQ-ICP-MS to check for Cs recovery and decontamination factor (DF) of unwanted ions. The measurements showed that the optimized method, using concentrate HNO3, 1 mg/mL AMP and a 0.45 µm syringe filter, resulted in 75-85% and ca. 100% Cs recovery in the digestion and radiochemical separation steps, respectively. Moreover, based on high DF for ICP-MS interfering elements, the anion resin step was excluded, thus reducing the overall sample preparation time. The optimized method was then applied in triplicate to samples collected at different locations within the FDNNP near field, 14 bulk soils and 7 sequential extraction fractions, and the 137Cs and 135Cs activity concentrations and isotopic ratios were determined by QQQ-ICP-MS. The method resulted in LOD and LOQ for 133Cs, 135Cs and 137Cs in the low pg/L range. The 137Cs activity concentration in the soils varied among samples and as expected, 135Cs activity levels were significantly lower but followed the same trend as 137Cs. The measured 135Cs/137Cs isotopic ratios were similar to those reported in the literature, confirming the radiocesium contamination originated from the fallout during the FDNPP accident. However, there was no clear relationship between isotopic ratios and distance or direction from the FDNPP and thus could not be connected to the plumes released from the different reactor units. Finally, the sequential extraction samples showed similar isotopic ratio to the corresponding bulk samples, suggesting that the isotopic ratio did not change between the fractions Cs was bound to in the soils. Overall, this optimized method proved to be suitable for determining 135Cs and 137Cs in environmental complex samples by QQQ-ICP-MS analysis following microwave acid digestion and a simplified radiochemical separation using AMP and a cation exchange resin.Ulykken ved Fukushima Daiichi kjernekraftverk som skjedde i Japan 11. mars 2011 forårsaket radioaktivt utslipp, inkludert radioaktivt cesium (Cs). Dette utslippet kontaminerte områder nær anlegget samt store områder 50-70 km fra reaktorene. Målet med denne studien var å optimalisere publiserte metoder for radiokjemisk separasjon av radiocesium fra miljøprøver og måling av 137Cs og 135Cs ved trippelkvadrupol induktivt koplet plasma massespektrometri (QQQICP-MS). Den optimaliserte metoden ville bli brukt til å bestemme isotopratio til 135Cs/137Cs for kildeidentifisering. Metoden ble optimalisert ved testing og evaluering av tre forskjellige steg i prosedyren. En simulert løsning som inneholdt radiocesium, ble først evaluert til: i) tre separasjonsteknikker for Cs med AMP basert på gjenvinning av Cs og vanskelighetsgrad av jobben, og ii) anion- og kationresin basert på evnen til å fjerne uønskede ioner fra løsningen. To syreblandinger ble brukt på jordprøver i bulk fra Fukushima for å teste ekstraksjonskapasiteten til nedbrytning i mikrobølgeovn. Prøvene som inneholdt 137Cs ble deretter målt på QQQ-ICP-MS for å sjekke gjenvinning av Cs og dekontamineringsfaktoren (DF) av uønskede ioner. Målingene viste at den optimaliserte metoden, som brukte konsentrert HNO3, 1 mg/mL AMP og 0.45 µm sprøytefilter, resulterte i ca. 75% og 100% gjenvinning av CS henholdsvis til nedbrytnings- og radiokjemisk separasjonstrinn. Basert på høye DF verdier for ioner som skaper interferens i ICP-MS, ble trinnet med anionresin fjernet, og dermed reduserte den totale prøveforberedelsestiden. Den optimaliserte metoden ble deretter brukt i triplikater på prøver som ble hentet på forskjellige steder innenfor området til FDNPP, 14 jordprøver i bulk og 7 sekvensielle ekstraksjonsfraksjoner, og aktivitetskonsentrasjonen og isotopratioen til 137Cs og 135Cs ble bestemt med QQQ-ICP-MS. Metoden resulterte i lave deteksjons- og kvantifiseringsgrenser for 133Cs, 135Cs og 137Cs i det lave pg/L området. Aktivitetskonsentrasjonen til 137Cs i jordprøvene varierte mellom prøvene, og som forventet var aktivitetskonsentrasjonen til 135Cs betydelig lavere, men fulgte samme trend som 137Cs. De målte isotopratioene til 135Cs/137Cs var lik de tilsvarende verdiene fra litteraturen, som bekreftet at radiocesiumkontamineringen stammet fra nedfallet etter FDNPP-ulykken. Derimot var det ingen klar sammenheng mellom isotopratio og avstand eller retning fra FDNPP-området, og kunne derfor ikke kobles til nedfallet fra de forskjellige reaktorenhetene. Til slutt viser de sekvensielle ekstraksjonsprøvene lignende isotopforhold til sine korresponderende jordprøver i bulk, som tyder på at isotopratioen ikke ble endret av hvilken fraksjon Cs var bundet til i jordprøvene. Totalt sett er den optimaliserte metoden egnet til å bestemme 135Cs og 137Cs aktivitetskonsentrasjon i komplisert sammensatte miljøprøver med QQQ-ICP-MS etter mikrobølgenedbrytning og en forenklet radiokjemisk separasjon med AMP og kationresin.M-K

Dying and death in the electronic patient record. A qualitative analysis of textual practices

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without permission.In Norway, over one in four deaths occur in hospitals, places that operate primarily according to curative logic. One aim of the Norwegian health care system is that patients, at the end of life, should receive high-quality palliative care as defined by the World Health Organization, independent of whether they are dying at home or in a nursing home, hospice or hospital. Against this potentially challenging background, this project investigates the role of the texts about such patients written into the electronic patient record (EPR). Starting from the view of (EPR) texts as active contributors to the whereabouts of (dying) patients, the EPR can be seen as an essential communication and coordination tool contributing to the types of knowledge that circulate about the dying patient and their treatment. This thesis aims to provide insights into how and what knowledge the EPR proposes as relevant by asking: What kind of textual practices of dying and death in medical wards are present in the EPR, and what do these practices achieve? The selected methods were a qualitative document analysis combining elements from the fields of linguistics, literary criticism and science and technology studies. This effort resulted in three articles elaborating different aspects of how dying and death are documented in the EPR. The first article investigated the negotiations of the transition from curative to palliative care. It argued that the text often changes from being technical and conclusive to being uncertain and open to negotiations as a need to align the involved parties in the decision. The second article explored which aspects of dying the text is attuned to in patients’ last 24 hours of life. It argued that the text has three hegemonic modes of ordering – numbering, timing, and classifying – which perform a dominant narrative in which dying is concealed. Yet, in between, there are traces of caring attention to and compassion for the dying patient. The third article considered how the moment of death is documented. It argued for what seem to be established ways of recording this moment as being manageable and portraying it as uneventful or good. This exploration of textual practices suggests that, first, the EPR treats dying and death as observations and tasks to be solved in general biomedical terms, rather than probing the needs of the individual patient. Second, the EPR seems to avoid difficult topics, deliberations, and disagreements, and it never admits to failure. Finally, the EPR sometimes shows professionals’ attempts to reveal individual patients’ needs and suffering and the troubles of dying in a curative context. Paper I: Hov, L., Synnes, O., & Aarseth, G. (2020). Negotiating the turning point in the transition from curative to palliative treatment: A linguistic analysis of medical records of dying patients. BMC Palliative Care, 19 (1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12904-020-00602-4 Paper II: Hov, L., Pasveer, B., & Synnes, O. (2020). Modes of dying in the electronic patient record, Mortality, https://doi.org/10.1080/13576275.2020.1865294 Paper III: Hov, L., Tveit, B., & Synnes O. (2021, May). Nobody dies alone in the electronic patient record – A qualitative analysis of the textual practices of documenting dying and death. OMEGA-Journal of Death and Dying. https://doi.org/10.1177/00302228211019197publishedVersio

Strength and Stiffness Properties of Laboratory-Improved Soft Swedish Clays

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Rehabilitation of the frail older adults in primary healthcare in rural areas: a scoping review protocol

Introduction Frail older adults are particularly vulnerable to functional decline and adverse outcomes because they lack the necessary resistance and ability to cope. Rehabilitation services for the frail older adults are thus vital and require clarification. The aim of this review is to identify and map the scope and breadth of literature regarding rehabilitation of the frail older adults to develop a holistic rehabilitation service in primary healthcare in rural areas. The concept of rehabilitation, how rehabilitation services are organised, how patients and next of kin are involved in planning and evaluating services during rehabilitation, as well as reported results will be identified and mapped. Methods and analysis This scoping review will be conducted based on the methodology developed by Arksey and O’Malley. The search strategy will aim to locate both published and unpublished studies in relevant databases. Key information sources include CINAHL, MEDLINE, Embase, ProQuest and Google Scholar. Data will be extracted from papers that all three reviewers have chosen to include in the review. All three reviewers will participate in screening, assessment and selection of studies against the inclusion criteria for the review and work in teams of two. The full text of selected citations will be assessed in detail against the inclusion criteria by the same teams. Data will be extracted from papers included in the scoping review by two of the reviewers. Modifications will be detailed in the full review report. Any disagreements that arise between two reviewers will be resolved through discussion or with the third reviewer’s mediation. A narrative summary of the findings will be presented accompanied by tables that reflect the objective of the review. Ethics and dissemination Data will be obtained only from already publicly available materials. Special ethical approval is, therefore, not required.publishedVersio

Flipping the Classroom? From Text to Video in Teaching Russian Grammar

Source at https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/rlj/.The notion of a “flipped classroom” has received considerable attention in recent years. This article reports on a project in which an instructor and two students co-created teaching materials to facilitate flipping the classroom. The purpose of the article is twofold. First, we explore some aspects of flipped classrooms in Russian language courses. Second, we reflect on the opportunities and limitations of student involvement in pedagogical development

TOMS total ozone data compared with northern latitude Dobson ground stations

Ozone measurements from the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer on the Nimbus 7 satellite are compared with ground-based measurements from five Dobson stations at northern latitudes to evaluate the accuracy of the TOMS data, particularly in regions north of 50 deg N. The measurements from the individual stations show mean differences from -2.5 percent up to plus 8.3 percent relative to TOMS measurements and two of the ground stations, Oslo and Longyearbyen, show a significant drift of plus 1.2 percent and plus 3.7 percent per year, respectively. It can be shown from nearly simultaneous measurements in two different wavelength double pairs at Oslo that at least 2 percent of the differences result from the use of the CC' wavelength double pair instead of the standard AD wavelength double pair. Since all Norwegian stations used the CC' wavelength double pair exclusively a similar error can be assumed for Tromso and Longyearbyren. A comparison between the tropospheric ozone content in TOMS data and from ECC ozonesonde measurements at Ny-Alesund and Bear Island shows that the amount of tropospheric ozone in the standard profiles used in the TOMS algorithm is too low, which leads to an error of about 2 percent in total ozone. Particularly at high solar zenith angles (greater than 80 deg), Dobson measurements become unreliable. They are up to 20 percent lower than TOMS measurements averaged over solar zenith angles of 88 deg to 89 deg

Model studies of the meteorology and chemical composition of the troposphere over the North Atlantic during August 18-30, 1993

A mesoscale chemistry transport model driven by meteorological data from a numerical weather prediction model is used to calculate ozone, carbon monoxide, oxides of nitrogen, and other chemical species over the North Atlantic for a 13-days period (August 18-30, 1993). The model has a circumpolar grid so that the boundary condition problems are minimized, and the influence of North American emissions on the chemical composition of the troposphere over the North Atlantic and Europe is calculated. During the first part of the period there is a zonal flow across the North Atlantic in the free troposphere; later, there is a strong north-south as well as vertical component in the advection field. The variability in the concentrations of ozone in the free troposphere is mainly caused by dynamical processes, while the chemical modification is small over an integration time of less than two weeks. A continental plume off the North American continent extending 2000 km or more into the North Atlantic is identified toward the end of the calculation period. There is then a maximum in the concentration of ozone around 1 km above the sea surface, with a much lower concentration in the marine boundary layer close to the ocean surface. Measurements from the U.K. Meteorological Office Hercules C-130 in the free troposphere off the Atlantic Provinces, across the Atlantic Ocean, and around the Azores together with ozone soundings from the Azores, Bermuda, and Iceland were used for model comparison. The calculations indicate that in the free troposphere the initial conditions as well as the upper boundary conditions are important for ozone distribution. In the upper troposphere the net change in the chemical formation rate of ozone due to a change in the NOx concentration is quite independent of the absolute value of the ozone concentration itself and, consequently, the choice of boundary conditions for ozone is not so important in this context, In the lower troposphere the change in the net chemical formation rate of ozone, which follows from a change in the concentration of NOx, shows a marked dependence on the concentration of ozone

Full-flow CPT tests in a nearshore organic clay

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