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Purpose: Our aim was to describe non-AIDS-defining cancer (NADC) mortality among people living with HIV (PLWH), to compare it with that of the general population, and to assess potential risk factors. Methods: We included antiretroviral-naive PLWH from the multicentre CoRIS cohort (2004–2021). We estimated mortality rates and standardised mortality ratios (SMRs). We used cause-specific Cox models to identify risk factors. Results: Among 17,978 PLWH, NADC caused 21% of all deaths observed during the follow-up. Mortality rate due to NADC was 1.58 (95%CI 1.36, 1.83) × 1000 person-years and lung and liver were the most frequent cancer-related causes of death. PLWH had 79% excess NADC mortality risk compared to the general population with the highest SMR found for Hodgkin lymphoma, anal and liver cancers. The SMRs decreased with age and were the highest in age groups under 50 years. The most important prognostic factor was low CD4 count, followed by smoking, viral hepatitis and HIV transmission through heterosexual contact or injection drug use. Conclusion: Non-AIDS cancers are an important cause of death among PLWH. The excess mortality related to certain malignancies and the association with immunodeficiency, smoking, and coinfections highlights the need for early detection and treatment of cancer in this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, in 2020, Stark broadening parameters have been measured for spectral lines belonging to 75 vanadium ii (V  ii) multiplets. For some of them, there are published calculations in the literature. However, these lines are not sufficient for the analysis of the lines present in the metal-poor star HD 8493. When new calculations by the Griem approximation are performed and compared with the experimental results, in some cases there is a difference of a factor of 7. It is clear that the problem lies, as already suggested some years ago in a theoretical paper by Douglas H. Sampson, in the poor approximation proposed by van Regemorter for the Gaunt factors used in the Griem approximation. In this work, we have performed broadening measurements of 3276.12 and 3715.46 Å V  ii lines that confirmed the previous measurements of 2020. Subsequently, we performed a more accurate calculation using the procedure to calculate the Gaunt factors suggested by Sampson, obtaining results very close to the experimental values. These allowed us to assume that the calculations performed for 56 lines ranging between 3700 and 4600 Å (present in the photospheres of the Sun and the metal-poor star HD 8493), and without experimental information, are more accurate using the Gaunt factors proposed by Sampson. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The crystallization process of melt quenched Ge-rich GeSbTe films, with composition optimized for memory applications, has been studied by optical reflectance measurements. The optical properties have been related to the structure and composition by means of the effective medium approximation. The compositional variations have been investigated by transmission electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy. Amorphous materials prepared by melt-quenching with different laser energy densities have been studied. For the energy density of 1.5 J cm−2, a uniform amorphous layer, with embedded Ge crystalline grains, is obtained. The film exhibits a crystallization temperature of 275 °C and no relevant phase separation during crystallization. For a lower energy density of 1 J cm−2, only half of the film thickness is quenched to the amorphous phase, with Ge depletion. The crystallization temperature of the Ge depleted film is 245 °C, and a partial phase separation occurs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A commercial pMOS transistor (MOSFET), 3N163 from Vishay (USA), has been characterized as a low-energy proton beam dosimeter. The top of the samples' housing has been removed to guarantee that protons reached the sensitive area, that is, the silicon die. Irradiations took place at the National Accelerator Centre (Seville, Spain). During irradiations, the transistors were biased to improve the sensitivity, and the silicon temperature was monitored activating the parasitic diode of the MOSFET. Bias voltages of 0, 1, 5, and 10 V were applied to four sets of three transistors, obtaining an averaged sensitivity that was linearly dependent on this voltage. In addition, the short-fading effect was studied, and the uncertainty of this effect was obtained. The bias voltage that provided an acceptable sensitivity, (11.4 ± 0.9) mV/Gy, minimizing the uncertainty due to the fading effect (−0.09 ± 0.11) Gy was 1 V for a total absorbed dose of 40 Gy. Therefore, this off-the-shelf electronic device presents promising characteristics as a dosimeter sensor for proton beams. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clinostomidae is a diverse family of digenean parasitizing fish-eating birds as adults and fishes as metacercariae. The species composition, within the genus Clinostomum has been steadily increasing in recent years. In Argentina, four named species of Clinostomum have been documented, accompanied by four metacercariae representing distinct genetic lineages whose adults have not been identified. This study focused on examining clinostomids in three fish species – Australoheros scitulus (ASI), Cichlasoma dimerus (CDIM), and Pimelodella laticeps (PLA) – at various localities in Argentina. We conducted both morphological and molecular characterizations of the Clinostomum metacercariae collected from these fish species. Molecular phylogenetic analyses using COI mtDNA were performed to determine the placement of these metacercariae within the clinostomid phylogenetic tree. Clinostomum ASC represents a distinct lineage, morphologically distinguishable from other sequenced metacercariae due to its body shape (widest anteriorly and becoming slender towards the posterior end); this lineage was found to be closely related to C. caffarae. While Clinostomum CDIM and Clinostomum PLA exhibited morphological differences, they clustered together genetically with metacercariae reported in previous studies as Clinostomum L3 and Clinostomum CVI. This outcome, coupled with a low genetic distance (0 to 3%), suggests that they are conspecific with metacercariae found in fish across Mexico, Costa Rica, and Argentina. In light of the extensive diversity of fish species in Argentine freshwater ecosystems (over 500 species), and considering the relatively constrained extent of prior investigations, the anticipation of unearthing additional Clinostomum species or lineages is plausible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two approaches of an automatic control were studied through mathematical fitting obtained from color mixing saturation curves in polydimethylsiloxane microfluidic devices: The integrative control with variable integral gain and integrative control with constant integral gain. The aim of this work is to control the color percentage decrement when dye is injected. The results indicate that microfluidic systems are very sensitive to changes in flow and the control variable needs to change slowly; that is, it must be small (at least 100 times less than the theoretically calculated values). The control and stabilization of the microfluidic system were achieved for dye percentages above 60%. The controlling color percentage could provide a tool to regulate other parameters' concentration applied to cell culture and alkalinity control (pH) of solutions in microfluidic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most important problems in Geometric Tomography is to establish properties of a given convex body if we know some properties over its sections or its projections. There are many interesting and deep results that provide characterizations of the sphere and the ellipsoid in terms of the properties of its sections or projections. Another kind of characterization of the ellipsoid is when we consider properties of the support cones. However, in almost all the known characterizations, we have only a convex body and the sections, projections, or support cones are considered for this given body. In this article we prove some results that characterize the Euclidean ball or the ellipsoid when the sections or projections are taken for a pair of nested convex bodies, i.e., two convex bodies K, L such that L ⊂ int K. We impose some relations between the corresponding sections or projections and some apparently new characterizations of the ball or the ellipsoid appear. We also deal with properties of support cones or point source shadow boundaries when the apexes are taken in the boundary of K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Designing TPV modules using smaller area cells contributes to mitigating the series resistance losses caused by the large currents typically handled. However, the areal losses caused by the larger number of interconnections required challenge the design of high compacity modules, which is necessary to maximize the output power density or the TPV efficiency. Here we propose using series connected n/p and p/n cells to minimize the areal losses, attain high compacity modules and facilitate the manufacturing of the interconnections. This approach relies on attaining high performance TPV cells of both polarities. We demonstrate state-of-the-art InGaAs n/p cells, and a matching performance, in terms of J SC and V OC , in p/n cells. We assess the effect of the higher emitter sheet resistance in the p/n design, caused by the low mobility of holes in InGaAs. A minimal TPV efficiency loss is projected by using higher shadowing factors that have a reduced impact on the TPV efficiency thanks to the ability to recycle photons reflected at the front metal. Furthermore, this small loss could be offset, and the overall TPV efficiency significantly improved, by the higher compacity achievable in these modules. • TPV module design arrangement enabling high compacity and simpler manufacturing proposed. • Series connection of n/p and p/n InGaAs cells minimizes interconnection and areal losses. • n/p and p/n InGaAs TPV cells with matching EQE and V OC but higher emitter sheet resistance implemented. • Larger shadow factor losses in p/n design affect minimally the TPV efficiency thanks to the high front grid reflectivity. • Lower areal losses attainable should offset the projected losses introduced by the p/n cells and enable higher TPV efficiencies in final modules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Moderate/severe cases of COVID-19 present a dysregulated immune system with T cell lymphopenia and a hyper-inflammatory state. This is a study protocol of an open-label, multi-center, double-arm, randomized, dose-finding phase I/II clinical trial to evaluate the safety, tolerability, alloreactivity, and efficacy of the administration of allogeneic memory T cells and natural killer (NK) cells in COVID-19 patients with lymphopenia and/or pneumonia. The aim of the study is to determine the safety and the efficacy of the recommended phase 2 dose (RP2D) of this treatment for patients with moderate/severe COVID-19.Methods: In the phase I trial, 18 patients with COVID-19-related pneumonia and/or lymphopenia with no oxygen requirement or with an oxygen need of ≤ 2.5 liters per minute (lpm) in nasal cannula will be assigned to two arms, based on the biology of the donor and the patient. Treatment of arm A consists of the administration of escalating doses of memory T cells, plus standard of care (SoC). Treatment of arm B consists of the administration of escalating doses of NK cells, plus SoC. In the phase II trial, a total of 182 patients with COVID-19-related pneumonia and/or lymphopenia requiring or not oxygen supplementation but without mechanical ventilation will be allocated to arm A or B, considering HLA typing. Within each arm, they will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio. In arm A, patients will receive SoC or RP2D for memory T cells plus the SoC. In arm B, patients will receive SoC or RP2D for NK cells plus the SoC.Discussion: We hypothesized that SARS-CoV-2-specific memory T-lymphocytes obtained from convalescent donors recovered from COVID-19 can be used as a passive cell immunotherapy to treat pneumonia and lymphopenia in moderate/severe patients. The lymphopenia induced by COVID-19 constitutes a therapeutic window that may facilitate donor engraftment and viral protection until recovery.Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04578210 . First Posted : October 8, 2020. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dough fermentation is a fundamental step in bread manufacturing, commonly supervised by bakery experts. This work aims to develop an efficient technology based on near infrared spectroscopy (NIR) and partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) to determine the fermentation state of bread loaves in the bakery industry. Knowing the fermentation state of the loaves during the manufacturing will allow to act in the production line, avoiding introducing an inadequate loaf in the oven and reducing costs. For that, a new methodology is proposed that consists in reproducing the knowledge of a Master Baker through a NIR spectrometer. Regarding the sequentiality of the objects and the real applicability of the method, three different cases were proposed using PLS-DA, getting that, in the best case, the sensitivity of the prediction set for the unfermented doughs was 88% and for the fermented and over-fermented was 86%; whereas the specificities were all greater than 86%. • Application of NIR spectroscopy to monitor the fermentation process of bread loaves. • Using PLS-DA models to classify samples according to their fermentation state. • New methodology based on sensitivity-specificity values to act in the production line. • NIR spectroscopy is a viable choice for monitoring bread fermentation process. • PLS-DA allows to classify unfermented, correct-fermented and over-fermented doughs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Si foliar application at 10 or 20 mg L−1 promoted plant growth in young olive plants, but its absence did not prevent it. • The low dose (10 mg L−1) of Si enhanced stomatal density and size. • K accumulation in plants was improved by Si fertilization. • Rb uptake and translocation rates were positively influenced by Si doses. • Si could not be considered an essential element for olive. Silicon (Si) is the second most abundant element in the Earth's crust, so all plants growing in soils contain Si. However, they differ in their ability to accumulate Si, being fruit trees, including the olive, low Si accumulators. Several works have shown that Si nutrition stimulates vegetative growth and nutrients uptake having also other beneficial effects. As a result, some authors have hypothesized Si could be considered essential, but its essentiality has not been proven yet. Therefore, the aim of this work was to study the possible essentiality of Si in olive. Two experiments were performed with 'Arbequina' olive seedlings cultivated in a silicon-free medium under controlled conditions. The treatments consisted of the application of different Si doses (0, 10, 20, or 30 mg L−1) by foliar sprays once a week. In both experiments, both shoot growth and plant dry weight was increased, including plants growing in absence of Si (control). Growth showed a quadratic response: the doses of 10 and 20 mg L−1 of Si produced the greatest growth. No differences between plants treated with higher doses of Si or grown in the absence of Si were observed. Also, the low Si dose (10 mg L−1) enhanced stomatal density and size. K nutrition was affected by Si foliar applications too; K concentration in plants increased when they received the dose of 10 or 20 mg L−1, in addition K (Rb) uptake and translocation rates were influenced by Si doses. Since the absence of Si did not prevent plant growth, the results indicate that Si is not an essential element despite it stimulates growth probably because it promotes the uptake and translocation of nutrients, particularly K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Monthly IPAR is estimated for cereals in Castilla León using Beer Lambert's law. • Modeled PAR , satellite LAI , and bibliographic k data are used for calculations. • The methodology is applicable at different spatial and temporal scales. • The fIPAR estimate for wheat, barley and maize for the whole territory. • Average annual growth and yield patterns for large crop areas is determined. Agriculture is by far the most important economic activity in the Spanish autonomous region of Castilla y León. Numerous factors influence crop development but one of the most related variables to the photosynthetic process is Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR). Estimating Intercepted Photosynthetically Active Radiation (IPAR) in different crops through the Beer-Lambert law could be a relevant factor in crop season planning by enabling photosynthesis monitoring. The Beer-Lambert Law is applied in this study to the data for almost 2 million hectares of wheat, barley, and maize cultivated in Castilla y León in 2021. The fourteen-year data set of Global Horizontal Irradiance (GHI) used to calculate the monthly PAR data in the region was collected at 93 meteorological stations (46 in Castilla y León and 47 in neighboring Spanish and Portuguese regions). Two previously published global calibrated models were employed to calculate the PAR , with a relative Root Mean Square Error (rRMSE) below 6%, for the measured daily mean values of PAR in Burgos. Processing the various NASA Terra and Aqua satellite images yielded the monthly Leaf Area Index (LAI) and the literature review provided the light extinction coefficient (k). The Geographic Information System (GIS) facilitated visualization of IPAR estimates for the three cereal crops in all months of its growing season. Wheat and barley reach their IPAR peaks in June and July, while maize peaks in July and August. In addition, the fraction of Intercepted Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fIPAR) was calculated in different provinces to assess PAR interception for each cereal at different growing stages. In June, almost 50% of the wheat area in Burgos, Palencia and Soria displayed fIPAR values exceeding 45% while in the case of barley only the province of Burgos reached these percentages of area and. fIPAR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The presence of Hg iii in the stellar atmosphere in the stars HgMn χ Lupi and HR7775 was reported by Leckrone et al. and Proffitt et al. In this last work, the authors indicate that the intensities of the spectral lines of 1360.50, 1647.48, and 1738.54 Å of Hg iii are relatively strong compared to the intensities of the spectral lines of Hg ii. Although the explanation given by the authors in their conclusions should be correct, the values of the oscillator strengths used by the authors in some cases were not consistent with the experimental lifetimes obtained by Henderson et al. In addition, some of the lines studied by the authors are widely overlapped with intense lines of Hg iii of the same multiplet. In this paper, we present values of transition probabilities and line broadening by electron collision (Stark effect) of several lines of Hg iii in order to clarify the problems indicated above. Since Hg iii is a heavy element, we include the core polarization effects (using the Cowan's code) in our calculations. Several values of polarizability, taking Fraga values for Hg iv as a starting point, have been considered in this study in order to obtain theoretical values of those parameters close to the experimental ones. The theoretical values of the lifetimes obtained in this study, close to the experimental ones, were obtained for a polarizability value of 3.5 au. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate adherence to the recommendations of the Spanish guidelines for the initial assessment of patients with HIV infection in the multicentre Cohort of the Spanish HIV/AIDS Network (CoRIS) during the years 2004–2017. Methods: We calculated the percentage of patients who had each of 11 clinical and analytical recommended examinations performed in their initial evaluation. We evaluated the factors associated with not performing each examination with multivariable logistic regression models. Results: We included 13 612 patients in the study. In the initial assessment, CD4 count and viral load were determined in more than 98.0% of the patients. Serologies for hepatitis A, B and C and syphilis were determined in 55.8%, 66.4%, 89.8% and 81.7% of the patients, respectively. Total cholesterol and creatinine were determined in 78.7% and 78.9% of the patients, respectively. The lowest proportions of examinations were observed for blood pressure, smoking status and latent tuberculosis screening, which were performed in 43.2%, 50.6% and 53.9% of the patients, respectively. Injecting drug users and heterosexual patients (compared to men who have sex with men) and patients with a lower educational level had a higher risk of having an incomplete initial assessment for a substantial number of examinations. Latent tuberculosis screening was less likely in patients with CD4 counts < 200 cells/µL. Conclusions: The initial assessment of HIV‐infected patients is suboptimal for the evaluation of cardiovascular risk, smoking status, screening of syphilis and viral hepatitis, and diagnosis of latent tuberculosis: adherence to the guidelines was low for these examinations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nature of failure in long fiber-reinforced composites is strongly affected by damage at the micro-scale. The presence of different phases at different length scales leads to a significant complexity in the failure progression. At the micro-scale, the complexity is due to the presence of different points of initiation for damage and the presence of cracks propagating both in the matrix and along the fiber–matrix interfaces. This scenario gives also the opportunity to improve the material design by modifying the properties of the different constituents in order to inhibit or delay some failure mechanisms. In view of this complexity, the development of predictive numerical tools with high capabilities in terms of reliability becomes of notable importance. In order to address this aspect, the combination of the phase-field approach for fracture and the cohesive zone model is herein exploited to demonstrate its capability and accuracy for the study of failure initiation at the micro-scale. Single-fiber problems subjected to transverse loading are considered as benchmark for the prediction of the sequence of stages of failure initiation, the size effect of the fiber radius on the apparent strength, the effect of a secondary tensile transverse load and the effect of a secondary neighbouring fiber. Numerical predictions are found to be in very good agreement with experimental trends and finite fracture mechanics predictions available in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Femtosecond time-resolved images acquired by using a two-color pump–probe microscope have been used in combination with optical emission spectroscopy to determine the time scales for the onset of atomic and molecular emission in laser-induced plasmas. A time-slicing acquisition scheme has been used to follow the build-up of emission lines in the spectra. Microscopy images suggest that the ejection of material from silicon starts several nanoseconds before photon emission is detected in our system. The time elapsed is material dependent and proceeds much slower in organics as demonstrated for nylon and Teflon. This finding is of great interest for time-resolved measurements in laser-induced plasmas and should be used for extracting maximum information from spectral data following femtosecond laser ablation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An innovative protocol to electrodeposit ZnS:nano-MoS 2 composite coatings with enhanced tribological properties is reported. The mechanisms involved in the deposition process are analyzed by cyclic voltammetry. The morphology and composition of the ZnS:nano-MoS 2 composite coatings are characterized. The tribological performance of the coatings is studied through pin-on-disk tests. The chemical composition of the wear tracks are characterized in order to gain further insight into the mechanisms behind of the self-lubricating ability of the ZnS:nano-MoS 2 coatings. Key role for not only MoS 2 –i.e. lubricating ability-, but also ZnS as a relatively soft matrix –i.e. providing supplementary sulphur to the Mo S tribofilm formation- is suggested. The ZnS:nano-MoS 2 composite coatings deposited from 10 g/L MoS 2 nanoparticle electrolytes exhibit decreased and stable pin-on-disk friction coefficient of approximately 0.1 under 2 N of normal load. • Ionic liquid-based route to electrodeposit self-lubricating ZnS:nano-MoS 2 coatings. • ZnS:nano-MoS 2 with durable low friction coefficient • Mo S tribofilms from relatively soft matrix-based nanocomposite coatings including MoS 2 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Long-term efficacy and safety of stem cell therapy (Cx601) for complex perianal fistulas in patients with Crohn's disease. Crohn's disease is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease often complicated by perianal complex fistulas in 30%-40% of patients, fistulas more resistant to treatment than simple fistulas and with higher recurrence rate, affecting the quality of life of patients. Allogeneic expanded adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (Cx601), which have anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory properties, were shown to be effective and safe for the treatment of complex perianal fistulas in patients with Crohn's disease who did not respond to conventional and/or biological treatments [1]. [Extracted from the article]

Dynamic programming (DP) approaches, in particular value iteration, is often seen as a method to derive optimal policies in inventory management. The challenge in this approach is to deal with an increasing state space when handling realistic problems. As a large part of world food production is thrown out due to its perishable character, a motivation exists to have a good look at order policies in retail. Recently, investigation has been introduced to consider substitution of one product by another, when one is out of stock. Taking this tendency into account in a policy requires an increasing state space. Therefore, we investigate the potential of using GPU platforms in order to derive optimal policies when the number of products taken into account simultaneously is increasing. First results show the potential of the GPU approach to accelerate computation in value iteration for DP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy storage is needed in order to sustain the energy system on renewable energies like wind and solar power. Power-to-Gas (PtG) is a technology that enables the storage of the renewable electricity in a chemical carrier such as hydrogen, via water electrolysis, or methane, via carbon dioxide methanation. In this work a series of catalysts based on nickel and alumina, the catalyst commonly employed for carbon dioxide methanation, have been synthesised employing different calcination temperatures to study the influence of this parameter in the activity of the catalysts. As a result of this study 673 K was determined as the most suitable Moreover, the catalysts have also been tested at different pressures to determine the most suitable operating pressure. Although due to Le Chatelier's Principle a higher pressure results in an increasing yield, the study carried out proved that 10 bar is the most suitable pressure as the difference in the yield when increasing the pressure it is not high enough taking into account the costs and risks associated with higher pressures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PURPOSE Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most common malignancy among men and one of the most common neoplasms affecting renal transplant recipients (RTRs). The available treatments for localized PCa among the general population (GP), surgery and external beam radiotherapy, carry a risk of damage to the transplanted kidney, the ureters, and the bladder and therefore tend to be avoided by most groups. The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy and feasibility of low-dose-rate brachytherapy (LDR-BT) for PCa in RTRs. METHODS AND MATERIALS We carried out a retrospective review on all RTRs diagnosed of PCa who had undergone LDR-BT at our institution between 2000 and 2015. Nine patients met these criteria, but 1 did not fulfill the followup. Hence, we analyzed 8 patients. We reviewed all clinical data for PCa and graft function in these patients and compared the results with the GP. Results Mean baseline prostate-specific antigen was 6.8 ± 1.9 ng/mL. All PCa had a Gleason score of 6 and were classified as low risk according the Europe Association of Urology guidelines. Mean followup after seed implantation was 48 ± 12.8 months. All 8 patients remain free of prostate-specific antigen failure. Five-year progression-free survival, cancer-specific survival, and overall survival rates were 100%, 100%, and 62.5%. There was no specific toxicity associated with LDR-BT, and there were no acute adverse events affecting the graft. Conclusions LDR-BT is a feasible and acceptable treatment for localized PCa in RTRs. Oncological outcomes are similar to the GP, and there is minimal toxicity to the renal graft. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The energy demand and their associated costs in pressurized irrigation networks together with water scarcity are currently causing serious challenges for irrigation district's (ID) managers. Additionally, most of the new water distribution networks in IDs have been designed to be operated on-demand complexing ID managers the daily decision-making process. The knowledge of the water demand several days in advance would facilitate the management of the system and would help to optimize the water use and energy costs. For an efficient management and optimization of the water-energy nexus in IDs, longer term forecasting models are needed. In this work, a new hybrid model (called LSTMHybrid) combining Fuzzy Logic (FL), Genetic Algorithm (GA), LSTM encoder-decoder and dense or full connected neural networks (DNN) for the one-week forecasting of irrigation water demand at ID scale has been developed. LSTMHybrid was developed in Python and applied to a real ID. The optimal input variables for LSTMHydrid were mean temperature (°C), reference evapotranspiration (mm), solar radiation (MJ m−2) and irrigation water demand of the ID (m3) from 1 to 7 days prior to the first day of prediction. The optimal LSTMHybrid model selected consisted of 50 LSTM cells in the encoder submodel, 409 LSTM cells in the decoder submodel and three hidden layers in the DNN submodel with 31, 96 and 128 neurons in each hidden layer, respectively. Thus, LSTMHybrid had a total of 1.5 million parameters, obtaining a representativeness higher than 94 % and an accuracy around of 20 %. • New artificial intelligence model for water demand forecasting. • LSTMHybrid combines Artificial neural networks, fuzzy logic, and Genetic Algorithm. • LSTMHybrid was applied to a real water user association. • LSTMHybrid obtained an accuracy lower than 20 %. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PlGF at admission presented a mean of 170.16 pg/ml (p 25 = 70.48) in the FGR group, compared to 227.11 in the group of normal fetuses (p 25 = 143.50). To evaluate the predictive power of angiogenic markers in late fetal growth restriction (FGR) for worse perinatal prognosis. In our study, PlGF levels were lower in those fetuses with lower birthweights, which supports the idea that angiogenic markers can be a useful weapon in the diagnosis of FGR. [Extracted from the article]

Regulatory guidelines recommend that, when a level A IVIVC is established, dissolution specification should be established using averaged data and the maximum difference between AUC and C max between the reference and test formulations cannot be greater than 20%. However, averaging data assumes a loss of information and may reflect a bias in the results. The objective of the current work is to present a new approach to establish dissolution specifications using a new methodology (individual approach) instead of average data (classical approach). Different scenarios were established based on the relationship between in vitro - in vivo dissolution rate coefficient using a level A IVIVC of a controlled release formulation. Then, in order to compare this new approach with the classical one, six additional batches were simulated. For each batch, 1000 simulations of a dissolution assay were run. C max ratios between the reference formulation and each batch were calculated showing that the individual approach was more sensitive and able to detect differences between the reference and the batch formulation compared to the classical approach. Additionally, the new methodology displays wider dissolution specification limits than the classical approach, ensuring that any tablet from the new batch would generate in vivo profiles which its AUC or C max ratio will be out of the 0.8–1.25 range, taking into account the in vitro and in vivo variability of the new batches developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chicxulub Crater, formed ~66Ma ago by an asteroid impact on the southern Gulf of Mexico, is the best preserved of the three large multi-ring basins in the terrestrial record. The crater structure is characterized by a semi-circular concentric ring pattern, marking the crater basin, peak ring, terrace zone and basement uplift. Analysis of a grid of 19 seismic reflection profiles using seismic attributes, marker horizons, contour surfaces and 3-D views is used to investigate the stratigraphy of the central zone. We used interactive software and routine applications to map the impact breccias, breccia-carbonate contact and post-impact carbonates. Four horizons marked by high-amplitude reflectors representing high-impedance contrasts were identified and laterally correlated in the seismic images. Complex trace attribute analysis was applied for petrophysical characterization. Surface contour maps of base and top of stratigraphic packages were constructed, which mapped the impactites and post- and pre-impact carbonate stratigraphy. Basin floor, marked by the contact between the impact breccias and overlying carbonates is shown by laterally discontinuous high-amplitude reflectors. Discontinuous scattered reflectors interpreted as the upper breccias beneath the crater floor, have an average thickness of ~300msm. The Paleogene sedimentary units are characterized by multiple reflectors with lateral continuity, which contrast with the seismic response of underlying breccias. The basal Paleocene sediments follow the basin floor relief. Upwards in the section, the carbonate strata are characterized by horizontal reflectors, which are interrupted by a regional unconformity. Onlap/downlap packages over the unconformity record a period of sea level change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A model to predict transverse cracking in cross-ply laminates in the presence of residual thermal stresses is developed here. This model is based on the coupled criterion of the finite fracture mechanics. This criterion has been successfully used for different materials, structures and scales to predict crack initiation. It is based on two main hypotheses: (i) crack initiation occurs as a finite-length crack onset and (ii) the crack onset requires that both stress and energy criteria are fulfilled simultaneously. The present model is developed under the generalized-plane-strain hypotheses combining the results obtained using the laminate theory and a boundary element code. The present analysis shows that the residual thermal stresses affect both the stress and the energy criteria in the form of adding a residual elastic-strain to the strain imposed by external mechanical loads. An explicit expression for this residual elastic-strain is provided. For certain composite materials as carbon/epoxy the value of this residual elastic-strain is shown to be relatively large in comparison with the nominal critical transverse strain of the material. The comparison with experiments shows that considering the residual thermal stresses using the strategy proposed here improves drastically the accuracy of the model predictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The presence of singly ionized thallium in the stellar atmosphere of the chemically peculiar star x Lupi was reported by Leckrone et al. in 1999 by analysis of its stellar spectrum obtained with the Goddard High Resolution Spectrograph (GHRS) on board the Hubble Space Telescope. Atomic data about the spectral line of 1307.50 Å and about the hyperfine components of the spectral lines of 1321.71 Å and 1908.64 Å were taken from different sources and used to analyse the isotopic abundance of thallium II in the star X Lupi. From their results the authors concluded that the photosphere of the star presents an anomalous isotopic composition of Tl II. A study of the atomic parameters of Tl II and of the broadening by the Stark effect of its spectral lines (and therefore of the possible overlaps of these lines) can help to clarify the conclusions about the spectral abundance of Tl II in different stars. In this paper we present calculated values of the atomic transition probabilities and Stark broadening parameters for 49 spectral lines of Tl II obtained by using the Cowan code including core polarization effects and the Griem semiempirical approach. Theoretical values of radiative lifetimes for 11 levels (eight with experimental values in the bibliography) are calculated and compared with the experimental values in order to test the quality of our results. Theoretical trends of the Stark width and shift parameters versus the temperature for spectral lines of astrophysical interest are displayed. Trends of our calculated Stark width for the isoelectronic sequence Tl II-Pb III-Bi IV are also displayed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This is the first study to isolate, identify and characterize Streptococcus iniae as the causative disease agent in two tilapia (Oreochromis aureus) populations. The populations were geographically isolated, of distinct origins, and did not share water sources. Affected fish showed various external (e.g., exophthalmia and cachexia, among others) and internal (e.g., granulomatous septicaemia and interstitial nephritis, among others) signs. All internal organ samples produced pure cultures, two of which (one from each farm, termed S‐1 and S‐2) were subjected to biochemical, PCR and 16S rRNA sequencing (99.5% similarity) analyses, confirming S. iniae identification. The two isolates presented genetic homogeneity regardless of technique (i.e., RAPD, REP‐PCR and ERIC‐PCR analyses). Pathogenic potentials were assessed through intraperitoneal injection challenges in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and zebrafish (Danio rerio). Rainbow trout mortalities were respectively 40% and 70% at 104 and 106 CFU per fish with the S‐1 isolate, while 100% mortality rates were recorded in zebrafish at 102 and 104 CFU per fish with the S‐2 isolate. The obtained data clearly indicate a relationship between intensified aquaculture activities in Mexico and new disease appearances. Future studies should establish clinical significances for the tilapia industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concentrations of PCDD/Fs (2,3,7,8-chlorosubstituted) and three dioxin-like PCBs (PCB 77, PCB 126 and PCB169) were analyzed in bivalve mollusk collected in several Galician Rías between 2006 and 2014. Levels of Total PCDD/Fs ranged from 0.03 to 0.62 pg WHO-TEQ g −1 wet weight. Total dl-PCBs values were higher than Total PCDD/Fs and ranged from 0.01 to 2.11 pg WHO-TEQ g −1 wet weight. These concentrations were below those considered safe for human consumption. The PCDD/Fs profile was dominated by 2,3,4,7,8-PeCDF and 2,3,7,8-TCDF with a percentage of 24.95 and 23.87 of the Total PCDD/Fs, respectively. In relation to Total dl-PCBs, CB126 was the priority congener with the highest TEF value (0.1). Principal component analysis (PCAs) indicated a clear separation between the northern (Rías de Ferrol and Coruña) and southern Rías (Ría de Pontevedra and Vigo). The northern Rías were the highest contaminated one. Temporal trends showed important reduction rates suggesting that the regulations on dioxin like contaminants have been effective for quality waters in Galician Rías. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, pressurized pipe networks have improved the efficiency of irrigation systems while substantially increasing their energy demand. The progressive rise in energy costs makes it difficult to maintain the profitability of agricultural holdings. Moreover, global warming is a serious problem that threatens the environment worldwide and low CO 2 emission processes should be promoted. To address these issues, it is necessary to look for sustainable and more profitable alternatives for the agricultural sector. One of these new alternatives is the use of renewable energies for pumping irrigation water at farm level, particularly photovoltaic energy. Nevertheless, the instability of irradiation hinders its management for stand-alone photovoltaic installations. In this work, a real-time model called the Smart Photovoltaic Irrigation Manager (SPIM) is developed to synchronize the photovoltaic power availability with the energy required to pump the irrigation requirements of different sectors of irrigation networks. SPIM consists of different modules to calculate the key management variables of the photovoltaic irrigation system: the daily irrigation requirements, the hydraulic behavior of the irrigation network, the instantaneous photovoltaic power production and the daily soil water balance. The lack of photovoltaic energy during daylight hours on any day of the irrigation season to supply the daily required amount of water is balanced with either the water stored in the soil or by extending the duration of the irrigation events in the following days when necessary. SPIM has been applied to simulate the management of photovoltaic irrigation in a real olive orchard in Southern Spain during the 2013 irrigation season. The results showed that the proper management of the photovoltaic irrigation system provided enough water to satisfy crop irrigation requirements throughout the irrigation season and avoided the emission of 1.2 tn CO 2 eq using only the energy generated by solar panels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In many regions, water resource scarcity has required adapting irrigated agriculture towards more efficient water distribution networks and irrigation systems. These systems, however, have higher energy requirements. To overcome this problem, a new semi-arranged demand model combining network sectoring and critical points have been developed. The model computes a new indicator known as the optimal number of disabled hydrants (ONDHY) to determine the number of critical hydrants in the sector that are only allowed to irrigate at off-peak hours, while the rest of non-critical hydrants can irrigate at any time. The proposed model has been applied to each of the 11 irrigation networks in the Bembezar MD irrigation district located in southern Spain. The results showed potential energy savings of 5.6%–25.8% with 14.5% and 7.8% of critical hydrants that could only operate during off-peak hours, respectively, thus satisfying crop irrigation requirements. The proposed methodology is a useful and easy tool to optimize energy consumption in pressurized irrigation networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a consequence of noise exposure, lack of attention badly affects directly the academic and work performance. The study of the brain and the waves that it produces is the most objective way to evaluate this process. Attentional improvement is associated with increases of the amplitude in both beta and theta bands. The objective of this work is to study the influence of background noise produced inside university facilities on changes in the cerebral waves related to attention processes (beta 13–30 Hz and theta 4–7 Hz). Volunteers were asked to perform a specific task in which attention was involved. This task was performed in both silent and noisy conditions. To evaluate the cerebral activity of volunteers during the development of the test, measurement of spontaneous activity (electroencephalogram) was developed. The results show significant decreases in both beta and theta frequency bands under background noise exposure. Since attentional improvement is related to an increment on amplitude of both beta and theta bands, it is suggested that decreases on amplitude of these frequency bands could directly be related to a lack of attention caused by the exposure to background noise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, Pt based mono and bimetallic catalysts were tested under conditions of tri-reforming (TR). All the catalysts contained 25% of CeO and a metal loading of 2.5 or 5.0% (wt%). The bimetallic catalysts contained 2.5% Pt and 2.5% of Me, where Me = Ni, Co, Mo, Pd, Fe, Re, Y, Cu or Zn. For all the experiments, a synthetic biogas which consisted of 60% CH and 40% CO (vol.) was mixed with water, S/C = 1.0, and oxygen, O/CH = 0.25, and fed to a fixed bed reactor (FBR) system or a microreactor. The 2.5Pt catalyst was used in order to compare the performance of each reaction system. The tests were performed at reaction temperatures between 700 and 800 °C, and at volume hourly space velocities (VHSV) between 100 L/(h g) and 200 L/(h g) for the FBR system and between 1000 L/(h g) and 2000 L/(h g) for the microreactor, at atmospheric pressure. Then, all catalysts were deposited into microchannel reactors and tested at a constant VHSV of 2000 L/(h g) and reaction temperatures between 700 and 800 °C. Catalysts under investigation were characterized applying the following techniques: inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES), N Physisorption, Temperature Programmed Reduction (TPR), CO chemisorption, Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). The microreactor was identified as the most efficient and promising reaction system, and the 2.5(Pt-Pd) catalyst as the bimetallic formulation with the highest activity. Therefore its activity and stability was compared with the reference 5.0Pt catalyst at 700 °C and VHSV of 2000 L/(h g) for more than 100 h. Although slightly lower activity was measured operating with the 2.5(Pt-Pd) catalyst, a significant reduction of the Pt content compared to the reference 5.0Pt catalyst was achieved through the incorporation of Pd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To describe a case diagnosed with intracranial teratoma in week 32 of gestation, as well as review of the literature in order to discern the appropriate treatment method and general prognosis of this anomaly.Methods: A literature search was performed on the prenatal diagnosis of congenital intracranial teratomas in MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane library data bases. Evaluated in this review are parameters such as time of prenatal diagnosis, associated pathology, size of tumors, method of terminating pregnancy, perinatal outcome and histological study of the tumor.Results: A total of 49 cases were found, of which 12 were finished gestation, 28 cesarean section was performed and only nine had vaginal delivery. All died in the neonatal period except in three cases with intrauterine death after diagnosis.Conclusion: As the incidence of intracranial immature teratomas is very low and the prognosis is poor, their prenatal diagnosis and obstetric management present a great challenge for the planning of a follow-up and treatment of the disease in accordance with the preferences of the parents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

4-nitroquinoline-1-oxide (4-NQO) is a pro-oxidant carcinogen bioactivated by xenobiotic metabolism (XM). We investigated if antioxidants lycopene [0.45, 0.9, 1.8 µM], resveratrol [11, 43, 172 µM], and vitamin C [5.6 mM] added or not with FeSO4 [0.06 mM], modulate the genotoxicity of 4-NQO [2 mM] with the Drosophila wing spot test standard (ST) and high bioactivation (HB) crosses, with inducible and high levels of cytochromes P450, respectively. The genotoxicity of 4-NQO was higher when dissolved in an ethanol - acetone mixture. The antioxidants did not protect against 4-NQO in any of both crosses. In the ST cross, resveratrol [11 µM], vitamin C and FeSO4 resulted in genotoxicity; the three antioxidants and FeSO4 increased the damage of 4-NQO. In the HB cross, none of the antioxidants, neither FeSO4, were genotoxic. Only resveratrol [172 µM] + 4-NQO increased the genotoxic activity in both crosses. We concluded that the effects of the antioxidants, FeSO4 and the modulation of 4-NQO were the result of the difference of Cyp450s levels, between the ST and HB crosses. We propose that the basal levels of the XM's enzymes in the ST cross interacted with a putative pro-oxidant activity of the compounds added to the pro-oxidant effects of 4-NQO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The generation of an expanding plasma during laser ablation is preceded at early times by the formation and evolution of a subsurface melted front. The monitoring of such transient event can't be studied by conventional spectroscopic techniques. Pump-probe femtosecond microscopy allows the following of the surface changes during femtosecond laser ablation taking advantage of the formation of a number of dynamic Newton rings that evolve with time. Measurements at different times allow the quantification of the radial expansion velocity of the molten material. For Au and Ag, expansions in the range of 7000–12,000 m/s for Au and 3000–21,000 m/s have been calculated depending on the pump energies. Such values correspond to hypersonic velocities with Mach number between 3 and 6. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Doñana area in Southwestern Spain has the largest concentration of strawberry producers in Europe with an annual production 300,000 tons. Due to the high water demand of strawberries, the proximity of the Doñana national park and the increasing environmental concerns of destination countries make that the water efficiency improvement was essential for sustainability of the strawberry sector. However, strawberries are cropped in sandy soils which make the irrigation management difficult. In this work a multiplatform application consisting of a PC and a mobile module developed for Android devices (APP) has been developed. It is a useful tool that facilitates the irrigation scheduling in the strawberry sector. The software takes into account agro-climatic, soil data and information related to the hydraulic system and offers farmers daily/weekly information about the required irrigation times. The application has been used in several commercial farms, achieving water savings which range from 11% to 33%, and highlighting that efficient water use is in fact possible in the strawberry production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Sepsis mortality in intensive and intermediate care units is high. To speak of fever is to speak of a factor that has been considered independent of mortality, since there are studies in which they evaluate the rate of elevation above of 38.3°C directly related to a worse prognosis for the patient1, it is currently unknown what is the most efficient way of treating it, whether with the use of antipyretic drugs or with the use of physical means2, and if these treatment modalities impact on mortality, All this remains controversial. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Randomized controlled trial in which treatment with acetaminophen IV against physical therapy was compared in patients who developed sepsis fever at the high speciality naval hospital in the area of hospitalization and intermediate care unit, follow-up was 28 days and the primary outcome was mortality. RESULTS: It was found that both treatment modalities are effective for the control of fever (p = 0.04), however regarding the primary objective that was the analysis of mortality did not report significant statistical difference (p = 0.11) We found a slight trend toward higher mortality in the acetaminophen group, so we conclude that a larger population sample is needed to make recommendations regarding mortality, now in relation to effectiveness and cost-benefit we conclude is better Treatment with physical means. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Porous titanium foams were successfully sintered using a solar parabolic concentrator, of vertical axis and 2 kW power, in argon atmosphere. Green pellets were previously prepared following the space holder powder manufacturing route using NaCl as soluble spacer. Titanium foams were fully sintered at lower temperature and shorter time than in conventional furnace sintering. Moreover, porosity achieved ranges between 58% and 77%, with dual size range: larger porous ranging from 500 to 1000 µm resulting from the NaCl particles; and smaller porous of 1–10 µm due to the powder sintering. Both the porosity and the porous size obtained for titanium foams produced by solar sintering fulfil the requirements for load-bearing and scaffold applications in tissue engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work carbon dioxide methanation was performed in order to produce methane. This process is known as “Power-to-Gas”, which uses the excess of electricity produced from renewable sources to generate hydrogen via water electrolysis. This hydrogen can react with carbon dioxide, obtained from different industrial processes, to generate methane that can be stored, burned or injected into the existing natural gas grid. Thus, different catalysts supported on alumina and cerium/zirconium modified alumina were prepared, using nickel as main active metal and with the addition of small amounts of noble metals, rhodium and ruthenium, in order to increase their catalytic activity. Addition of noble metals increased the dispersion and the reducibility of the nickel species, whilst support modifiers increased the amount of nickel oxide with moderate interaction with the support and non-stoichiometric nickel aluminate species. These species proved to be related with the catalytic activity. For the catalysts tested, promising results were obtained between 640 and 700 K with a methane yield of 70%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emission lines of Mg iv have been detected in the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) spectrum of LS V +46°21 star and in the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) spectrum of BD +28°4211 star. This fact justifies our interest in providing spectroscopic parameters of Mg iv. Stark broadening parameters for 169 spectral lines of Mg iv have been calculated by using the Griem semi-empirical approach. The matrix elements used in these calculations has been determined from 13 configurations of Mg iv: 2s12p6, 2s22p4ns (n = 3–5), 2s22p4nd (n = 3–5) and 2s22p45g for even parity and 2s22p5, 2s22p4np (n = 3, 4) and 2s22p4nf (n = 4, 5) for odd parity. Our calculations were made by using the Cowan code. Data are presented for an electron density of 1017 cm−3 and temperatures T = 1.0–10.0 (104 K). Also we present calculated values of transition probabilities for 30 spectral lines and radiative lifetimes corresponding to its upper levels. These values were analysed using the data found in the literature. Theoretical trends of the Stark broadening parameters versus the temperature for several lines of astrophysical interest are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An alternative solution for power regulation of doubly fed induction generators is proposed in this work by a proper combination of passivity-based controllers with algebraic approaches for online estimation of system parameters and mechanical torque. Our proposal shows that the stability property of the original closed-loop system is preserved, without the restriction of explicitly knowing the parameters and mechanical torque of the induction generator. A performance evaluation study is performed on the passivity-based power control scheme considering typical/normal operation conditions for the electrical power generation system, namely active power generation with either demanded or delivered reactive power. Analytical and numerical results prove the effectiveness of the power control scheme combined with the proposed real-time estimators of parameters and torque. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Negative emotional stimuli are particularly salient events that receive privileged access to neurocognitive resources. At the neural level, the processing of negative stimuli relies on a set of sensory, limbic, and prefrontal areas. However, controversies exist on how demographic and task-related characteristics modulate this brain pattern. Here, we used activation likelihood estimation (ALE) meta-analysis and replicator dynamics to investigate the processing of negative visual stimuli in healthy adults. Our findings endorse the central role of the amygdala. This result might reflect how this structure modulates perceptual and attentional mechanisms in response to emotional stimuli. Additionally, we characterize how the neural processing of negative visual stimuli is influenced by the demographic factors of age and sex as well as by task-related characteristics like stimulus type, emotion category, and task instruction, with the amygdala showing comparable engagement across different sexes, stimulus types, and task instructions. Our findings practically inform experimentation in the affective neurosciences but also suggest brain circuits for neurobiological investigations of affective symptomatology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ultrasound findings, the probable identification of male external genitalia, the absence of bowel loops herniation and the absence of renal involvement, make the most likely diagnosis to be bladder exstrophy without being able to rule out coaclal exstrophy as less likely. The defect extends from this point to the origin of the genitalia at the infraumbilical level without visualisation of the correct repletion of the bladder throughout the examination. The 2nd trimester morphologic ultrasound shows a wide defect of the anterior abdominal wall located below the insertion of the cord, with no apparent defect at its base and no herniation at this level of abdominal viscera. [Extracted from the article]

Results From a total of 3,009 deliveries during 4 years of the study, we found 2 cases of FMK, which represent an incidence of 0.6/1,000 births. To assess the incidence of fetal multicystic kidney (FMK), its ultrasound characteristics, its intrauterine evolution, and the postnatal evolution of affected newborns between 2018 and 2021 at the Zamora Healthcare Complex (Spain). The inclusion criteria were singleton pregnancies with an ultrasound diagnosis of FMK. [Extracted from the article]

• Commercial photodiodes as radiation sensors. • Thermal characterization and thermal model: With reverse bias current the device acts as photodiode, and applying forward bias current and playing as pin diode. • The forward voltage of the pin diode results proportional to silicon die temperature, as it was expected. • Radiation measurements were thermal compensated using the thermal model, and as input the forward voltage of the diode. • The presented thermal compensation method permits to reduce the uncertainty of the radiation measurements using photodiodes due to temperature. The effect of temperature on dosimetric measurements is a major limitation of solid-state dosimeters. This is especially true for PIN photodiode dosimeters, where the dark current depends exponentially on temperature. To minimize this effect, a compensation method is presented that relies on the diode structure itself without the need for an external sensor or device. During irradiation, the photodiode is periodically switched from reverse to forward polarization to determine the temperature of the device. This measurement is based on the linear dependence between the temperature and the forward voltage of the diode when it is operated at constant current. An electronic circuit implementing this procedure was developed and used for experimental characterization of the response to radiation of the BPW34S Si PIN photodiode. The proposed procedure reduced the uncertainty due to thermal drift by a factor of 7.5. In addition, an average dose rate sensitivity of 12 ± 2 nC/cGy was measured, with a sensitivity degradation below 2% for the irradiation cycle of 21.4 Gy performed under a 6 MV photon beam. We have shown that a p-n junction can be successfully used to compensate for the temperature effect on the dosimetric measurement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Well dispersed iron catalysts were synthesized in silica (Fe 0.0 X SiO 2 ) by a one-step synthesis procedure. These materials were tested in the propylene epoxidation reaction with gaseous O 2 . The influence of the iron metal loading on the iron incorporation and distribution in the support (both influenced by the synthetic procedure) were thoroughly studied (conversion, generation and selectivity). Electron Microscopy and UltraViolet–Visible (UV–VIS), Raman and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) spectroscopy techniques were used to analyze the iron distribution in the catalysts and to probe its incorporation into the silica framework. In situ FTIR was also used to analyze the interaction between propylene and iron-based catalysts. Computational calculations considering a single-site iron catalyst incorporated into the silica structure show a possible interaction between O 2 and the incorporated iron atom and the olefin bond and the acidic proton neighboring the iron species which favor the reaction between the two molecules near the iron atom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of gold nanoparticles to deliver different types of photosensitizer used in Photodynamic Therapy on the depth of light penetration is studied by means of a predictive model with dosimetric purposes. The model employed allows to analyze the changes induced by the spherical nanoparticles administration in the optical distribution within the malignant tissue. The depth of photodynamic treatment was estimated in a nodular basal cell carcinoma taking into account both the conventional photosensitizer delivery and by means of nanoparticles. Significant differences were observed and demonstrate the great functionality of predictive modeling to rule out the use of certain nanoparticles to deliver the photosensitizer due to the limited therapeutic effect at certain depths within the carcinoma despite the photosensitizer delivery improvements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a methodology aimed at assisting irrigation district managers in the optimal rehabilitation of pressurized irrigation networks. The methodology uses a multi-objective approach and finds optimal trade-off between investments and long term operational costs. The approach is based on two steps: 1—application of two alternative optimization algorithms to determine optimal trade-offs between installation costs and pump power absorption; 2—post-processing of the optimal solutions in terms of long term costs under various possible scenarios generated featuring various values of the useful construction life and of the capital recovery factor. Applications were carried out on a real case study, considering a pre-fixed electricity tariff and the on-demand operation of the network. After analyzing the results, the most cost-effective solution, with a redesign cost of 205,627 €; and overall cost varying from 6,019,447 €; to 11,498,053 €; according to the scenarios considered, was selected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]