Effect of recycled content and rPET quality on the properties of PET bottles,part II: Migration

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles were produced from three types of recycled PET (rPET) with four levels of recycled content. The migration of substances from these bottles to water was studied. Several migrated substances were detected. The migrated amounts of acetaldehyde and ethylene glycol complied with the limits given in the food contact material (FCM) legislation. Migration of 2-methyl-1,3-dioxolane was below the limit of 10 μg·L⁻¹, which is conventionally applied for non-intentionally added substances (NIAS) not classified as ‘carcinogenic’, ‘mutagenic’ or ‘toxic to reproduction’ (CMR). Limonene, acetone, butanone and furan were also detected as migrants, of which limonene is a natural fragrant, and the other three are probably residues from solvents used to clean and protect the mould at the small-scale production facility. Finally, benzene and styrene were also found as migrants from rPET. These migrants appear to originate from heat-induced reactions within the PET matrix, which involve contaminants. The formation of benzene in rPET is attributed to polyvinylchloride as contaminant. The migrated amounts of benzene from the PET bottles with recycled content to the water simulant are relatively small (0.03–0.44 μg·L⁻¹) after 10 days at 40°C. Consequently, the margin of exposure is 3.10⁵–8.10⁶. Hence, the level of concern for the public health is low, and the migrated amount represents a low priority for risk management. The FCM legislation demands a risk assessment for migrating NIAS. Depending on the underlying data and exposure scenario, different threshold limits in the food can be derived which can still be considered as safe.     

How scientific research reacts to international public health emergencies: a global analysis of response patterns

As of the middle of April 2020, the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic has claimed more than 137,000 lives (https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html). Because of its extremely fast spreading, the attention of the global scientific community is now focusing on slowing down, containing and finally stopping the spread of this disease. This requires the concerted action of researchers and practitioners of many related fields, raising, as always in such situations the question, of what kind of research has to be conducted, what are the priorities, how has research to be coordinated and who needs to be involved. In other words, what are the characteristics of the response of the global research community on the challenge? In the present paper, we attempt to characterise, quantify and measure the response of academia to international public health emergencies in a comparative bibliometric study of multiple outbreaks. In addition, we provide a preliminary review of the global research effort regarding the defeat of the COVID-19 pandemic. From our analysis of six infectious disease outbreaks since 2000, including COVID-19, we find that academia always responded quickly to public health emergencies with a sharp increase in the number of publications immediately following the declaration of an outbreak by the WHO. In general, countries/regions place emphasis on epidemics in their own region, but Europe and North America are also concerned with outbreaks in other, developed and less developed areas through conducting intensive collaborative research with the core countries/regions of the outbreak, such as in the case of Ebola in Africa. Researches in the fields of virology, infectious diseases and immunology are the most active, and we identified two characteristic patterns in global science distinguishing research in Europe and America that is more focused on public health from that conducted in China and Japan with more emphasis on biomedical research and clinical pharmacy, respectively. Universities contribute slightly less than half to the global research output, and the vast majority of research funding originates from the public sector. Our findings on how academia responds to emergencies could be beneficial to decision-makers in research and health policy in creating and adjusting anti-epidemic/-pandemic strategies.

     

Associations between indoor environment in residential buildings in wet and dry seasons and health of students in upper northern Thailand

We performed a repeated questionnaire study on home environment and health (six medical symptoms) in 1159 junior high school students (age 12.8 ± 0.7 years) in upper northern Thailand in wet and dry seasons. Data on outdoor temperature, relative humidity (RH), and air pollution were collected from nearest monitoring station. Odds ratios (OR) were calculated by multi-level logistic regression. Most common symptoms were rhinitis (62.5%), headache (49.8%), throat (42.8%), and ocular symptoms (42.5%). Ocular symptoms were more common at lower RH and rhinitis more common in dry season. Water leakage (28.2%), indoor mold (7.1%), mold odor (4.1%), and windowpane condensation (13.6%) were associated with all six symptoms (ORs: 1.3–3.5). Other risk factors included cat keeping, environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), other odor than mold odor, gas cooking, and cooking with biomass fire. Biomass burning inside and outside the home for other reasons than cooking was associated with all six symptoms (ORs: 1.5–2.6). Associations between home environment exposure and rhinitis were stronger in wet season. In conclusion, dampness-related exposure, windowpane condensation, cat keeping, ETS, gas cooking, and biomass burning can impair adolescent health in upper northern Thailand. In subtropical areas, environmental health effects should be investigated in wet and dry seasons.     

First genetically verified occurrence of Ligula pavlovskii outside its native range and characteristics of its infection in Neogobius fluviatilis

In this study, we provide the first genetically verified distribution record beyond its native range of Ligula pavlovskii, a high-impact endoparasite of Ponto-Caspian gobies. According to parasitological surveys, ligulosis was detected for the first time in monkey goby individuals collected from Lake Balaton in 2004, 34 years after the first record of monkey goby in the lake. During a Lake Balaton survey in 2018, we detected tapeworms in 44.4% of the sampled monkey gobies. This prevalence is about two to ten times higher than it was reported from within the native range of the fish hosts. The same survey revealed an uneven spatial distribution of the ligulosis in the monkey gobies inhabiting different shoreline sections of the lake. We assume that the occurrence and recent distribution data of this high-impact endoparasite may provide useful information for potential biocontrol measures of invasive Ponto-Caspian gobies in the future.     

Rapid Aging as a Key to Understand Deactivation of Ni/Al2O3 Catalysts Applied for the CO2 Methanation

Catalysis Letters - We developed a rapid aging method for Ni/Al2O3 methanation catalysts mimicking the real aging in the actual application. The method is based on hydrothermal deactivation of the...     

Zuverlässige Prozesse durch Vakuumkomponenten mit definierten Ausgasraten

Reliable processes by use of vacuum components with specified outgassing rates Contamination of vacuum components cannot be avoided in the manufacturing process. In order to significantly reduce particulate and organic impurities, a multi-stage cleaning process and proof of cleanliness are essential. In order to guarantee a reproducible quality of the cleanliness of vacuum components, uniform standards for defined outgassing rates are necessary. The development of Vacom Purity Classes serves the generally accessible specification of components and characterises their vacuum and cleanroom suitability. Vacom Vacuum Classes guarantee the suitability of vacuum components for use in UHV/XHV. In this article, the importance of cleaning of vacuum chambers and components is examined as well as the need to establish a uniform method for the quantitative measurement of the outgassing rate is highlighted. The systematic division into Vacom Purity and Vacuum Classes provides the basis for a cross-industry standard for the defined quality of vacuum processes.     

Supporting perspective taking across chasms of thinking: Do real-time analytics hold the key?

International Journal of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning -