The HEPD particle detector of the CSES satellite mission for investigating seismo-associated perturbations of the Van Allen belts

CSES(China Seismo-Electromagnetic Satellite) is a mission developed by CNSA(Chinese National Space Administration) and ASI(Italian Space Agency), to investigate the near-Earth electromagnetic, plasma and particle environment, for studying the seismo-associated disturbances in the ionosphere-magnetosphere transition zone. The anthropogenic and electromagnetic noise,as well as the natural non-seismic electromagnetic emissions is mainly due to tropospheric activity. In particular, the mission aims to confirming the existence of possible temporal correlations between the occurrence of earthquakes for medium and strong magnitude and the observation in space of electromagnetic perturbations, plasma variations and precipitation of bursts with highenergy charged particles from the inner Van Allen belt. In this framework, the high energy particle detector(HEPD) of the CSES mission has been developed by the Italian LIMADOU Collaboration. HEPD is an advanced detector based on a tower of scintillators and a silicon tracker that provides good energy and angular resolution and a wide angular acceptance, for electrons of 3–100 Me V, protons of 30–200 Me V and light nuclei up to the oxygen. CSES satellite has been launched on February 2~(nd), 2018 from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center(China).     

[18F]Flurpiridaz: Facile and Improved Precursor Synthesis for this Next-Generation Cardiac Positron Emission Tomography Imaging Agent

[¹⁸F]Flurpiridaz is a recently developed positron emission tomography tracer that is currently being investigated in phase III clinical trials to measure myocardial blood flow. The relatively long physical half-life of fluorine-18 alongside the high spatial resolution and outstanding myocardium-to-background ratio fuels its potential to be the next gold standard for the early detection of coronary artery disease. Notwithstanding the expected widespread use of [¹⁸F]flurpiridaz, the reported multistep synthesis of its precursor for radiofluorination involves a hazardous alkylation step using carcinogenic ethylene oxide, and a low overall chemical yield of 7 %. In this work, we have improved the overall yield more than fivefold and concurrently replaced the hazardous step. Specificity of binding of [¹⁸F]flurpiridaz to mitochondrial complex 1 was demonstrated by in vitro autoradiography on mouse heart tissue sections. These results thus pave the way for assessing myocardial blood flow and coronary flow reserve in mouse models of cardiovascular disease.     

A cluster analysis study based on profitability and financial indicators in the Italian gas retail market

In the European Union, the natural gas market is increasingly being liberalized. The liberalization process is aimed at leading to lower prices and higher volumes, and hence higher consumer welfare.     

LCA of domestic and centralized biomass combustion: The case of Lombardy (Italy)

This paper analyzes and compares the environmental impacts of biomass combustion in small appliances such as domestic open fireplaces and stoves, and in two types of centralized combined heat and power plants, feeding district heating networks. The analysis is carried out following a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach. The expected savings of GHG (greenhouse gases) emissions due to the substitution of fossil fuels with biomass are quantified, as well as emissions of toxic pollutants and substances responsible for acidification and ozone formation.The LCA results show net savings of GHG emissions when using biomass instead of conventional fuels, varying from 0.08 to 1.08 t of CO₂ eq. per t of dry biomass in the different scenarios. Avoided GHG emissions thanks to biomass combustion in Lombardy are 1.32 Mt year^?1(1.5% of total regional GHG emissions). For the other impact categories, the use of biomass in district heating systems can again cause a consistent reduction of impacts, whereas biomass combustion in residential devices shows higher impacts than fossil fuels with a particular concern for PAH, VOC and particulate matter emissions. For example, in Lombardy, PM10 emissions from domestic devices are about 8100 t year^?1, corresponding to almost one third of the total particulate emissions in 2005.     

A high-pressure cell for kinetic studies on gas hydrates by powder x-ray diffraction

A new high-pressure-low-temperature cell was developed for in situ observations of gas hydrates by powder x-ray diffraction. The experimental setup allows investigating hydrate formation and dissociation as well as transformation processes between different hydrate crystal structures as a function of pressure, temperature, and feed gas composition. Due to a continuous gas flow, the composition of the gas phase is kept constant during the whole experiment. This is crucial for the formation of mixed hydrates formed from feed gas mixtures that contain one or more components in low concentrations. The pressure cell can be used in a pressure range between 0.1 and 4.0 MPa and a temperature range between 248 and 298 K. First results of time-resolved measurements of a mixed structure II CH(4) + iso-C(4)H(10) hydrate and a structure I CO(2) hydrate are presented.     

Online train disposition: To wait or not to wait?

We deal with an online problem arising from bus/tram/train disposition problems. In particular, we look at the case in which the delay is unknown and the vehicle can only wait in a station so as to minimize the passengers waiting time.     

Ground-based radar interferometry for landslides monitoring: atmospheric and instrumental decorrelation sources on experimental data

The application of ground-based radar interferometry for landslide monitoring is analyzed: a case study based on an experimental campaign carried out in Italy during 2002 is discussed. Interferometric data obtained from coherent synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images acquired by means of C-band ground-based equipment are analyzed. The campaign was aimed at retrieving potential terrain movements of a small landslide observed hundreds of meters away. Critical aspects related to spatial and temporal decorrelation are discussed: the use of optical photogrammetry as a technique for evaluating mechanical stability and correcting geometric distortion is presented. Results also confirmed that the application of ground-based radar interferometry can be attractive and effective if the acquired SAR images maintain an adequate coherence on different dates.     

Structural static testing by interferometric synthetic radar

In this paper, the authors propose a radar technique for building structural static testing or monitoring. The technique is based on interferometric step-frequency continuous-wave (SFCW) radar. It works synthesising microwave holographic images, and comparing pairs of holograms to obtain a deformation map. The application of the interferometric technique for structural static testing of a concrete pedestrian bridge is described. The radar-measured deformation profile has been compared with a finite element simulation of the bridge.     

Distributivity,Collectivity, and Cumulativity in Terms of (In)dependence and Maximality

This article proposes a new logical framework for NL quantification. The framework is based on Generalized Quantifiers, Skolem-like functional dependencies, and Maximality of the involved sets of entities. Among the readings available for NL sentences, those where two or more sets of entities are independent of one another are particularly challenging. In the literature, examples of those readings are known as Collective and Cumulative readings. This article briefly analyzes previous approaches to Cumulativity and Collectivity, and indicates (Schwarzschild in Pluralities. Kluwer, Dordrecht, 1996) as the best proposal so far to deal with these readings. Then, it incorporates its insights in the logical framework defined in Robaldo (J Philos Log 39(1):23–58, 2009a), leading to a scalable logical account for NL quantification.