The effects of paints and moisture content on the indoor air emissions from pinewood (Pinus sylvestris) boards

The emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from building materials may significantly contribute to indoor air pollution, and VOCs have been associated with odor annoyance and adverse health effects. Wood materials together with coatings are commonly used indoors for furniture and large surfaces such as walls, floors, and ceilings. This leads to high surface-to-volume ratios, and therefore, these materials may participate remarkably to the VOC levels of indoor environment. We studied emissions of VOCs and carbonyl compounds from pinewood (Pinus sylvestris) boards of 10% and 16% moisture contents (MC) with three paints using small-scale test chambers (27 L). The emissions from uncoated pinewood and paints (on a glass substrate) were tested as references. The 28-day experiment showed that the VOC emissions from uncoated pinewood were lower from sample with 16% MC. Painted pinewood samples showed lower emissions compared to paints on glass substrate. Additionally, paints on 16% MC pinewood exhibited lower emissions than on drier 10% MC wood. The emissions from painted pinewood samples were dominated by paint-based compounds, but the share of wood-based compounds increased over time. However, we noticed differences between the paints, and wood-based emissions were clearly higher with the most permeable paint.     

Emissions of DEHP‐free PVC flooring

Degrading 2‐ethylhexyl‐containing PVC floorings (eg DEHP‐PVC floorings) and adhesives emit 2‐ethylhexanol (2‐EH) in the indoor air. The danger of flooring degradation comes from exposing occupants to harmful phthalates plasticisers (eg DEHP), but not from 2‐EH as such. Since the EU banned the use of phthalates in sensitive applications, the market is shifting to use DEHP‐free and alternative types of plasticisers in PVC products. However, data on emissions from DEHP‐free PVC floorings are scarce. This study aimed at assessing the surface and bulk emissions of two DEHP‐free PVC floorings over three years. The floorings were glued on the screed layer of concrete casts at 75%, 85%, and 95% RH. The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were actively sampled using FLEC (surface emissions) and micro‐chamber/thermal extractor (µ‐CTE, bulk emissions) onto Tenax TA adsorbents and analyzed with TD‐GC‐MS. 2‐EH, C9‐alcohols, and total volatile organic compound (TVOC) emissions are reported. Emissions at 75% and 85% RH were similar. As expected, the highest emissions occurred at 95% RH. 2‐EH emissions originated from the adhesive. Because the two DEHP‐free floorings tested emitted C9‐alcohols at all tested RH, it makes the detection of flooring degradation harder, particularly if the adhesive used does not emit 2‐EH.     

Sputtering of hydrocarbons by ion-induced breaking of chemical bonds

While the physical sputtering of atoms caused by keV and MeV ions has been studied extensively both by molecular dynamics (MD) simulation and experiments, the mechanisms leading to atom and molecule erosion at energies 1–100 eV are not very well understood. We now describe how low-energy hydrogen ions can cause erosion of carbon atoms and hydrocarbon molecules by entering the region of a carbon–carbon chemical bond and hence breaking it, a process we call ‘swift chemical sputtering'. In the particular case of hydrogen bombardment of carbon-based materials, we further show that this can lead to erosion yields far exceeding those expected for a physical sputtering process.     

Frequency dependence of amplitude scintillation

In the prediction models of tropospheric scintillation on Earth-satellite paths from Karasawa, Yamada, and Allnutt and ITU-R, the frequency dependence of scintillation is expressed as a power law with a different exponent for each model. This is verified using a collection of measurement results from different satellite links in Europe, the US, and Japan at frequencies from 4 to 50 GHz and elevation angles from 2.5 to 52°. It shows that the exponent of the power law varies widely among the results from the different sites. Possible explanations of this are: (1) the frequency dependence of scintillation due to cloudy turbulence is different from that due to clear-sky turbulence and this kind of scintillation may be present to different extents in the various databases due to climatic differences and different clear-sky selection procedures or (2) angle-of-arrival fluctuations due to turbulence have a different frequency dependence and this effect may have some impact on the measured scintillation at some of the sites     

Experiences on data quality in automatic tissue classification

Automatic intensity-based tissue classification sets requirements for the quality of multispectral magnetic resonance (MR) images. Tests for evaluating the separability of tissue classes, and on the other hand class distances required to obtain reliable classification, are presented in this study. Intraslice, interslice and interpatient training schemes for 5-nn classification were considered. Interslice training was utilized in classification of images from 10 patients with ischemic stroke giving results of satisfactory but highly variable quality. Based on the experience with these data sets, similar tests are recommended before imaging a large patient series in order to avoid extra manual work and to obtain reliable classification results.     

Occurrence of Uranium in Finnish Bedrock Water and Its Removal with a Strongly Basic Anion-Exchange Resin

The uranium concentrations in Finnish drilled wells may reach a few mg l^{- 1} (maximum 12.4 mg l^{- 1}). Most of the highest concentrations of uranium have been found in Southern Finland but elevated concentrations have been found all over the country. The removal of uranium with a strongly basic anion-exchange resin (SBA) has been tested in domestic use with different types of ion-exchange filters and water. SBA resin was considered to be the best type of resin for testing because of its high capacity, simplicity, and cost efficiency. Uranium is removed with SBA resin to more than 90% irrespective of the test location, water quality, and the presence of competing ions.     

Body iron stores are associated with serum insulin and blood glucose concentrations. Population study in 1,013 eastern Finnish men

OBJECTIVE: To study if there is an association between mildly elevated body iron and glucose homeostasis indexes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: A cross-sectional population study was conducted in 1,013 middle-aged men, and an association of serum ferritin with concentrations of serum insulin, blood glucose, and serum fructosamine was tested. RESULTS: The mean concentration of fasting serum insulin was 21.6% higher (95% CI 7.3-37.9%, P < 0.001) in the 5th quintile of serum ferritin compared with the 1st quintile. The elevation in blood glucose was 6.1% (95% CI 2.3-9.9%, P < 0.001) and in serum fructosamine 3.9% (1.5-6.9%, P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Mildly elevated body iron stores are associated with statistically significant elevations in glucose homeostasis indexes.     

Semliki Forest virus infection leads to increased expression of adhesion molecules on splenic T-cells and on brain vascular endothelium

Semliki Forest virus A7 (SFV-A7) is a neurotropic alphavirus that leads to an asymptomatic encephalitis in adult immunocompetent mice. We studied the expression of leukocyte and endothelial cell adhesion molecules in the spleen and in the central nervous system (CNS) during SFV-A7 infection. Kinetics of the expression of LFA-1 alpha/CD11a, LFA-1 beta/CD18, Mac-1/CD11b, VLA-4/CD49d, ICAM-1/CD54 and L-selectin/CD62L was determined on splenic CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells and macrophages by flow cytometry. Time course of the expression of these antigens and VCAM-1/CD106 as well as viral antigens in the CNS was studied by immunoperoxidase staining. In the spleen, a sustained increase in LFA-1-expression and a temporary increase at day 7 in the expression of VLA-4, Mac-1 and ICAM-1 were detected on CD8+ T-cells. L-selection was down-regulated on CD4+ cells. Adhesion molecules on macrophages remained unchanged. In the CNS, expression of Mac-1+, VLA-4+ and LFA-1+ cells increased in parallel with the kinetics of the expression of their ligands ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 on brain vessels. Upregulation of adhesion of molecules peaked between days 5-8 and was most prominent in the cerebellar and brain stem white matter where viral antigens were most abundant. We conclude that the adhesion molecules profile of splenic T cells is altered during SFV-A7 infection which may influence their homing into the CNS. Macrophages are probably recruited non-specifically as a consequence of activation of the brain vascular endothelium in the inflamed areas of the brain.