Hansen Solubility Parameters of Coal Tar-Derived Typical PAHs Using Turbidimetric Titration and an Extended Hansen Approach

The advantage of selectivity for coal tar extraction can be obtained by using the solubility parameter of Hansen theory as a guide. However, most of the Hansen solubility parameters (dispersion contributions, δ_d; polarity contributions, δ_p; hydrogen bonding contributions, δ_hb) of coal tar components (e.g., polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, PAHs) were inadequate. This study estimated the Hansen solubility parameters of naphthalene, acenaphthene, anthracene, phenanthrene, pyrene, and fluoranthene from coal tar by applying a new approach regulated by turbidimetric titration and a calculating program based on the method of exhaustion. The extended Hansen approach was used to verify the new approach and evaluate the solubility of the six PAH components in different solvents. The results show that the new method can clearly identify the differences in Hansen solubility parameters caused by various combinations of benzene rings among some isomers (e.g., anthracene and phenanthrene). Among the six PAH compounds, high relativity between their Hansen solubility parameters and solubility data was revealed, indicating an excellent reliability of the new method. An extended Hansen approach is appropriate for the estimation of solubility for the six PAHs with acceptable deviations. Moreover, the relationship between the Hansen solubility sphere and the extended Hansen approach was successfully presented by regression analysis

Can variations in visual behavior measures be good predictors of driver sleepiness? A real driving test study

<p><b>Objective</b>: The primary purpose of this study was to examine the association between variations in visual behavior measures and subjective sleepiness levels across age groups over time to determine a quantitative method of measuring drivers' sleepiness levels.</p> <p><b>Method</b>: A total of 128 volunteer drivers in 4 age groups were asked to finish 2-, 3-, and 4-h continuous driving tasks on expressways, during which the driver's fixation, saccade, and blink measures were recorded by an eye-tracking system and the subjective sleepiness level was measured through the Stanford Sleepiness Scale. Two-way repeated measures analysis of variance was then used to examine the change in visual behavior measures across age groups over time and compare the interactive effects of these 2 factors on the dependent visual measures.</p> <p><b>Results</b>: Drivers' visual behavior measures and subjective sleepiness levels vary significantly over time but not across age groups. A statistically significant interaction between age group and driving duration was found in drivers' pupil diameter, deviation of search angle, saccade amplitude, blink frequency, blink duration, and closure duration. Additionally, change in a driver's subjective sleepiness level is positively or negatively associated with variation in visual behavior measures, and such relationships can be expressed in regression models for different period of driving duration.</p> <p><b>Conclusions</b>: Driving duration affects drivers' sleepiness significantly, so the amount of continuous driving time should be strictly controlled. Moreover, driving sleepiness can be quantified through the change rate of drivers' visual behavior measures to alert drivers of sleepiness risk and to encourage rest periods. These results provide insight into potential strategies for reducing and preventing traffic accidents and injuries.</p

Measurement of the Energy and High-Pressure Dependence of X‑ray-Induced Decomposition of Crystalline Strontium Oxalate

We report measurements of the X-ray-induced decomposition of crystalline strontium oxalate (SrC₂O₄) as a function of energy and high pressure in two separate experiments. SrC₂O₄ at ambient conditions was irradiated with monochromatic synchrotron X-rays ranging in energy from 15 to 28 keV. A broad resonance of the decomposition yield was observed with a clear maximum when irradiating with ∼20 keV X-rays and ambient pressure. Little or no decomposition was observed at 15 keV, which is below the Sr K-shell energy of 16.12 keV, suggesting that excitation of core electrons may play an important role in the destabilization of the C₂O₄^2– anion. A second experiment was performed to investigate the high-pressure dependence of the X-ray-induced decomposition of strontium oxalate at fixed energy. SrC₂O₄ was compressed in a diamond anvil cell (DAC) in the pressure range from 0 to 7.6 GPa with 1 GPa increments and irradiated in situ with 20 keV X-rays. A marked pressure dependence of the decomposition yield of SrC₂O₄ was observed with a decomposition yield maximum at around 1 GPa, suggesting that different crystal structures of the material play an important role in the decomposition process. This may be due in part to a phase transition observed near this pressure

A simple method for extraction and purification of pedunculoside from the dried barks of <i>Ilex rotunda</i> and its inhibitory effect on pancreatic lipase in vitro

<p>A simple and efficient method was developed for the preparation of pedunculoside from the dried barks of <i>Ilex rotunda</i>. Pedunculoside was extracted by heat reflux. The optimal conditions were determined by the response surface methodology (40% ethanol concentration, 14 mL/g solvent/material loading level and 90 min extraction time with the dried barks being extracted twice). After extraction and condensing the crude extract, pedunculoside was directly purified through crystallization in water with the addition of ethyl acetate. Pedunculoside (96.9% purity) was obtained with 48.2% recovery after the extraction and purification. Compared with the reported chromatographic methods, this strategy is simple, eco-friendly, and economical. The purified pedunculoside showed an inhibitory effect on pancreatic lipase in vitro (IC₅₀ = 80.8 μg/mL), suggesting its anti-obesity potential.</p

Regeneration of stroma cells in the endometrium immunohistochemical staining with vimentin.

<p>4-A: experimental group I, 4-B: control group I, 4-C: experimental group II, 4-D: control group II. The expression of vimentin in experimental group I and experimental group II were significantly stronger than that of corresponding control groups. The expression of vimentin in the experimental group I was significantly stronger than that of the experimental group II, but there was no difference between control group I and control group II (PV, ×200).</p

Regeneration of epithelial cells in the endometrium immunohistochemical staining with cytokeratin.

<p>2-A: experimental group I, 2-B: control group I, 2-C: experimental group II, 2-D: control group II. The expression of cytokeratin in experimental group I and experimental group II were significantly stronger than that of corresponding control groups. The expression of cytokeratin in the experimental group I was significantly stronger than that of the experimental group II, but there was no difference between control group I and control group II (PV, ×200).</p

The morphology observation of the endometrium with HE staining of the four groups.

<p>1 -A: experimental group I, 1-B: control group I, 1-C: experimental group II, 1-D: control group II. Significantly thicker endometrial lining was observed in experimental groups compared with the corresponding control groups. The endometrial lining was significantly thicker in experimental group I than that of experimental group II, and there was no significant difference between control group I and control group II (HE, ×80).</p

Expression of vimentin and cytokeratin with western blot.

<p>Group1–4: experimental group I, experimental group II, control group I, control group II. The results showed that the expression of cytokeratin, vimentin in experimental groups were significantly stronger compared with the corresponding control groups, and there was no significant difference between group I and group II when the G-CSF was given or not given.</p

Effective Adsorptive Denitrogenation from Model Fuels over CeY Zeolite

Nitrogen-containing compounds (NCCs) in high-temperature coal tar have a negative impact on its utilization. This work aimed to prepare a series of CexY adsorbents with superior capacity and selectivity by ion exchange, and further clarify the regeneration properties and adsorption mechanism. The adsorptive denitrogenation properties were evaluated at different temperatures using batch adsorption experiments in different model fuels. The implication of Ce loading on the adsorption properties has been studied. The results show that Ce0.2Y exhibits a remarkable performance in adsorption capacity. Ce0.2Y can reach 25.32 mg·N·g–1 absorption for quinoline and 23.78 mg·N·g–1 absorption for indole at 30 °C, which is much better than that of NaY. The effect of naphthalene on the adsorption of NCCs indicated that Ce0.2Y is much resistant to the influence of naphthalene. Furthermore, the regenerated adsorbents still retained better adsorption properties than NaY after five cycles. The adsorption mechanism for NCCs and naphthalene on Ce0.2Y was revealed by the IR spectra. By contrast, the interaction between Ce0.2Y and NCCs is stronger than the interaction between Ce0.2Y and naphthalene. The Ce0.2Y adsorbent preferentially adsorbed NCCs, which can be attributed to the introduction of Ce4+

The Preoperative Neutrophil-To-Lymphocyte Ratio Is a Novel Immune Parameter for the Prognosis of Esophageal Basaloid Squamous Cell Carcinoma

<div><p>Background</p><p>The pretreatment neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is an independent predictor of prognosis in various malignancies, but its predictive capacity in basaloid squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus (BSCCE) remains unclear. We aim to determine the value of the inflammation-related factors, including the NLR, neutrophil-to-monocyte ratio (NMR), and albumin levels, in predicting BSCCE prognosis.</p><p>Methods</p><p>We retrospectively analyzed the records of 121 patients with pathologically diagnosed BSCCE that underwent a curative esophagectomy from January 2007 to December 2014. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to identify prognostic factors for overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS).</p><p>Results</p><p>The preoperative NLR was correlated with the tumor length and NMR. In OS univariate analyses, a high NLR (>1.77), high NMR (>12.31), and low albumin (≤40.0 g/L) level were significantly associated with a poorer survival in BSCCE. The median OS was significantly greater in low NLR (≤1.77) than in the high NLR (>1.77) patients (51.0 vs. 31.0 months; P = 0.008). In multivariate analyses, only the NLR was an independent prognostic factor for OS (hazard ratio (HR), 2.030; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.262–3.264; P = 0.003). A high NLR was also an independent predictor of a poorer RFS in BSCCE (HR, 2.222; 95% CI, 1.407–3.508; P = 0.001); the median RFS for low (≤1.77) and high (> 1.77) NLR patients was 44.0 months and 14.0 months, respectively. NLR remained a strong prognostic indicator for OS in stage I/II patients and a preoperative NLR>1.77 was predictive of a poor RFS in both stage I/II and stage III patients.</p><p>Conclusions</p><p>We show that the preoperative NLR, a convenient and cost-effective biomarker, may serve as a prognostic indicator for BSCCE patients following curative surgery.</p></div