Fluctuation and dissipation dynamics in fusion reactions from stochastic mean-field approach

By projecting the stochastic mean-field dynamics on a suitable collective path during the entrance channel of heavy-ion collisions, expressions for transport coefficients associated with relative distance are extracted. These transport coefficients, which have similar forms to those familiar from nucleon exchange model, are evaluated by carrying out TDHF simulations. The calculations provide an accurate description of the magnitude and form factor of transport coefficients associated with one-body dissipation and fluctuation mechanism.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figure

Embedding sustainability in engineering education through interactive industrial design case studies

The need for the integration of industrial concepts and applications of sustainability in engineering education is a priority for universities and especially for engineering courses. To deliver the concepts and benefits of sustainable engineering design to students requires something more than just a theoretical overview. The use of case studies in engineering education is well established and a mature concept. The scope and criticality of sustainable development is increasingly complex and diverse and continues to change and adapt as the climate crises deepens. The biotechnology industry is perhaps the youngest of all of the process industries and is changing and adapting rapidly. Combine these two changing dynamics and the result is a compelling argument for interactive design case studies. The design of a manufacturing process within the biopharmaceutical industry is based on various criteria such as capital investment, operating costs, process reliability and safety with an overarching focus on patient safety. While environmental impact and sustainability is a critical area from a global perspective, it has not been a key consideration within the industry with relatively little research into the environmental impact of adopting different processes and technologies. There is a growing demand for multiproduct, flexible facilities with approaches such as modular strategies facilitating easy adaptation for different processes. This places an increasing emphasis on support services such as buffer preparation, where overheads are increasing and bottlenecks are developing. The supply of buffer solutions in particular, accounts for a large proportion of a facility’s footprint, labour, equipment and operating costs. To alleviate the potential bottlenecks, reduce the impact on capital and operational expenditure and improve sustainability, alternative philosophies for buffer management must be considered. Buffer preparation offers an ideal opportunity for collaboration with case studies as it represents a common problem within the industry in a non-competitive space, which has a clear demand for fresh thinking. While there are significant variations in core process technology, buffer preparation remains a key aspect of facility design across differing modalities. This research aims to demonstrate the benefit of exploring the industrial sustainability design space in conjunction with third level engineering education. This synergy with utilise Interactive Design Sessions utilising approaches such as Finite Capacity Analysis to demonstrate the environmental impact of operational strategy and technology utilisation (such as Single Use Technology and inline buffer preparation) on buffer preparation within the biopharmaceutical industry, highlighting the synergy between more sustainable production and a reduction in the cost of manufacturing

Techno-economic analysis of biogas upgrading via amine scrubber, carbon capture and ex-situ methanation

Biogas upgraded to biomethane can provide a renewable gaseous transport fuel and is one of the proposed solutions in meeting the renewable energy supply in transport targets set under the EU Renewable Energy Directive. The upgrading process for biogas involves the removal of CO2. Amine scrubbing is one traditional method of upgrading that is applied due to its low methane slippage and its capability to provide a high purity renewable methane product. However, new technologies such as power to gas (P2G) can also upgrade biogas through biological methanation by combining the CO2 in biogas with H2 to produce renewable methane. The H2 for P2G can be produced through electrolysis of renewable electricity. Through simulation software – SuperPro Designer, the economics of different pathways for upgrading biogas from a grass silage and slurry fed digester are analysed and compared in this paper. Three scenarios were investigated: biogas upgrading through amine scrubbing (scenario 1); biogas upgrading through amine scrubbing with CO2 directed to ex-situ biological methanation (scenario 2) and biogas upgrading through ex-situ biological methanation only (scenario 3). The results show that at a net present value of zero, the minimum selling price (MSP) per m3 of renewable methane for scenario 1, 2 and 3 is €0.76; €1.50 and €1.43, respectively (with an electricity price to produce H2 of €0.10/kWh and a grass silage production cost of €27/t). The electricity price has a significant effect on the cost of renewable methane in both scenarios 2 and 3. The MSP reduces to €1.09 and €1.00 per m3 of renewable methane, respectively for scenarios 2 and 3, if the electricity price is reduced to €0.05/kWh. Since the renewable methane MSP from scenario 2 is higher than scenario 3, it is suggested that direct biogas injection to the methanation reactor is financially more attractive than capturing CO2 from biogas and feeding it to the methanation step. The MSP of renewable methane from both scenarios 2 and 3 are significantly higher than that of scenario 1. However, when considering climate change mitigation, balancing of the electricity network and storage of surplus electricity, utilising P2G can offset some of these costs. The cost of H2 is a significant factor in determining the cost of renewable methane

Multiscale fluctuations in nuclear response

The nuclear collective response is investigated in the framework of a doorway picture in which the spreading width of the collective motion is described as a coupling to more and more complex configurations. It is shown that this coupling induces fluctuations of the observed strength. In the case of a hierarchy of overlapping decay channels, we observe Ericson fluctuations at different scales. Methods for extracting these scales and the related lifetimes are discussed. Finally, we show that the coupling of different states at one level of complexity to some common decay channels at the next level, may produce interference-like patterns in the nuclear response. This quantum effect leads to a new type of fluctuations with a typical width related to the level spacing.Comment: 34 Latex pages including 6 figures (submitted to Phys. Rev. C

Genome-wide analysis identifies 12 loci influencing human reproductive behavior.

The genetic architecture of human reproductive behavior-age at first birth (AFB) and number of children ever born (NEB)-has a strong relationship with fitness, human development, infertility and risk of neuropsychiatric disorders. However, very few genetic loci have been identified, and the underlying mechanisms of AFB and NEB are poorly understood. We report a large genome-wide association study of both sexes including 251,151 individuals for AFB and 343,072 individuals for NEB. We identified 12 independent loci that are significantly associated with AFB and/or NEB in a SNP-based genome-wide association study and 4 additional loci associated in a gene-based effort. These loci harbor genes that are likely to have a role, either directly or by affecting non-local gene expression, in human reproduction and infertility, thereby increasing understanding of these complex traits

Cerebral small vessel disease genomics and its implications across the lifespan

White matter hyperintensities (WMH) are the most common brain-imaging feature of cerebral small vessel disease (SVD), hypertension being the main known risk factor. Here, we identify 27 genome-wide loci for WMH-volume in a cohort of 50,970 older individuals, accounting for modification/confounding by hypertension. Aggregated WMH risk variants were associated with altered white matter integrity (p = 2.5×10-7) in brain images from 1,738 young healthy adults, providing insight into the lifetime impact of SVD genetic risk. Mendelian randomization suggested causal association of increasing WMH-volume with stroke, Alzheimer-type dementia, and of increasing blood pressure (BP) with larger WMH-volume, notably also in persons without clinical hypertension. Transcriptome-wide colocalization analyses showed association of WMH-volume with expression of 39 genes, of which four encode known drug targets. Finally, we provide insight into BP-independent biological pathways underlying SVD and suggest potential for genetic stratification of high-risk individuals and for genetically-informed prioritization of drug targets for prevention trials.Peer reviewe

Rhinitis associated with asthma is distinct from rhinitis alone: TARIA‐MeDALL hypothesis

Asthma, rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis (AD) are interrelated clinical phenotypes that partly overlap in the human interactome. The concept of “one-airway-one-disease,” coined over 20 years ago, is a simplistic approach of the links between upper- and lower-airway allergic diseases. With new data, it is time to reassess the concept. This article reviews (i) the clinical observations that led to Allergic Rhinitis and its Impact on Asthma (ARIA), (ii) new insights into polysensitization and multimorbidity, (iii) advances in mHealth for novel phenotype definitions, (iv) confirmation in canonical epidemiologic studies, (v) genomic findings, (vi) treatment approaches, and (vii) novel concepts on the onset of rhinitis and multimorbidity. One recent concept, bringing together upper- and lower-airway allergic diseases with skin, gut, and neuropsychiatric multimorbidities, is the “Epithelial Barrier Hypothesis.” This review determined that the “one-airway-one-disease” concept does not always hold true and that several phenotypes of disease can be defined. These phenotypes include an extreme “allergic” (asthma) phenotype combining asthma, rhinitis, and conjunctivitis.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.

Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms

Current perspectives on the development of Industry 4.0 in the pharmaceutical sector

Industry 4.0 is a concept that represents the adoption by industry of techniques and processes allowed by digitisation, cloud computing, the internet of things and big data to gain competitive advantages in domestic and global markets. The research is conducted in Ireland with the resulting data examined through a global lens, yielding information relevant to the effective adoption and integration of 4.0 concepts. Key outcomes are the perspectives of the pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical industries with regards to the adoption of 4.0, the current level of implementation of 4.0 technologies in manufacturing facilities and planned 4.0 projects to be executed. Statistically relevant relationships evident in the responses are also investigated. This research provides novel and highly relevant information concerning the state of industry preparedness for the adoption of 4.0. Across all survey respondents only 42% indicated any knowledge of 4.0. The majority of respondents who indicated a knowledge of 4.0 identified with either the Automation or Engineering department. Among established employees with greater than 8 years of experience 82% identified with having knowledge of 4.0. Those surveyed with Vice-President or Director roles, had a 98% certainty of 4.0 awareness. A noteworthy finding of this work is the identification of a substantial disconnect in knowledge of 4.0 based on seniority, function and industry. Thus while the implementation of 4.0 is playing an increasingly significant role in the modernisation of the Pharmaceutical and Biopharmaceutical industries, challenges remain with respect to the holistic fusion of 4.0 into the culture of organisations

Industry 4.0 as an enabler for sustainable manufacturing: An educational perspective

The chemical engineering sector faces the challenge of meeting the continuously growing demand for their products and services while at the same time ensuring that the industry fully integrates the concepts of sustainable manufacturing. Industry 4.0 provides immense opportunities for the realisation of sustainable manufacturing. Industry 4.0 is a concept that represents the adoption of techniques and processes by industry to gain competitive advantages in domestic and global markets, and Pharma 4.0 is an iteration of Industry 4.0 that relates specifically to the pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical sectors. The emerging technologies encountered in Pharma and Industry 4.0 facilitate sustainable value creation, through the implementation of agile and smart technologies leading to highly efficient automated processes driven by an integrated manufacturing control strategy. The objective of this research is to quantify the industrial opportunities for enhanced sustainable manufacturing and in parallel evaluate the status of Industry 4.0 within 3rd level chemical engineering education and training establishments such as the National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training (NIBRT). The research focuses on cross-linking, as well as the implementation of Industry 4.0 with curriculum development and examines critical aspects of industrial application such as production efficiencies, eco-friendly production, and end-of-life products disposal, providing new educational sustainability benchmarks. Preliminary findings indicate that students have fundamental knowledge regarding core Pharma 4.0 concepts such as Augmented Reality, Cloud Computing and Artificial Intelligence; however, the structure of the 3rd level engineering education needs to adapt, incorporating a more connected curriculum in order to ensure new graduates can successfully engage with a rapidly developing industry and related Pharma 4.0 concepts. Similarly, training institutes indicate an increasing requirement to re-train staff associated with pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical industries, to upskill 4.0 concepts among the existing workforce