The Effect of Some Fluids on Surface Oxidation and Amount of Released Iron of Stainless Steel Endodontic Files

Endodontic files come in contact with blood, infected pulp tissue, and irrigating solutions during root canal therapy. Some instruments such as stereomicroscopy and scanning electron microscopy are used to observe corrosion of endodontic files which are complicated and dependent on preparation methods. Having knowledge of the corrosion and ion release of endodontic files can help in drawing firm deductions as to which files would perform better in the clinical scenario. Therefore, we have used energy dispersive X‐ray analysis and an atomic absorption spectrophotometer to track oxygen on the surface and iron in the exposed media to observe the oxidative rate of the media. In this study, corrosion by blood was higher than other biological fluids, but less than with sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl). Observations of energy dispersive X‐ray analysis and atomic absorption spectrophotometer results demonstrated that after exposure the amount of oxygen on the surface and surrounding areas increased. Therefore, the files should be rinsed as soon as possible during and after use to hinder the oxidation rate, but blood may produce a different behavior and it might be considered as a decreased risk of broken stainless steel files remaining in the root canal after treatment. SCANNING 34: 309‐315, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

The combination effects of trivalent gold ions and gold nanoparticles with different antibiotics against resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Despite much success in drug design and development, Pseudomonas aeruginosa is still considered as one of the most problematic bacteria due to its ability to develop mutational resistance against a variety of antibiotics. In search for new strategies to enhance antibacterial activity of antibiotics, in this work, the combination effect of gold materials including trivalent gold ions (Au³⁺) and gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) with 14 different antibiotics was investigated against the clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. Disk diffusion assay was carried out, and test strains were treated with the sub-inhibitory contents of gold nanomaterial. Results showed that Au NPs did not increase the antibacterial effect of antibiotics at tested concentration (40 μg/disc). However, the susceptibility of resistant P. aeruginosa increased in the presence of Au³⁺ and methicillin, erythromycin, vancomycin, penicillin G, clindamycin and nalidixic acid, up to 147 %. As an individual experiment, the same group of antibiotics was tested for their activity against clinical isolates of S. aureus, E. coli and a different resistant strain of P. aeruginosa in the presence of sub-inhibitory contents of Au³⁺, where Au³⁺ increased the susceptibility of test strains to methicillin, erythromycin, vancomycin, penicillin G, clindamycin and nalidixic acid. Our finding suggested that using the combination of sub-inhibitory concentrations of Au³⁺ and methicillin, erythromycin, nalidixic acid or vancomycin may be a promising new strategy for the treatment of highly resistant P. aeruginosa infections.     

Safety interval analysis: A risk-based approach to specify low-risk quantities of uncertainties for contractor’s bid proposals

By appearing more complex projects, Design–Bid-Build (DBB) contracts could not satisfy new projects requirements and a need to new types of contracts was felt. New contracts requirements differ from previous ones. Challenging the method of proposal offering in design–construct contracts, this paper seeks solutions for more rational proposing of project uncertainties. The problem commences with the question “which duration and price a contractor must propose in a project with design–construct contract?” A part of the answer to this question is the matter of the lowest-risk limit of uncertainties which result from output of Monte Carlo Simulation and its analysis. The output of this analysis is a series of intervals named “safety Intervals” which will be contractors’ guide in offering the bid proposal.     

Antioxidant Property,Thymoquinone Content and Chemical Characteristics of Different Extracts from Nigella sativa L. Seeds

In this study, Nigella sativa L. seeds were extracted using supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO₂) and Soxhlet. Chemical characteristics, fatty acid composition, antioxidant activity and thymoquinone content of N. sativa L. extracts obtained through different methods were investigated and compared. It was revealed that antioxidant activity and thymoquinone content could be significantly different for SC-CO₂ and Soxhlet extracts. The results for fatty acid composition indicated that linoleic acid, palmitic acid and oleic acid were the main fatty acids in both extracts. The SC-CO₂ extraction could provide an extract with higher quality and antioxidant activity compared to Soxhlet extraction method and can be considered a more appropriate method for attaining a high-quality extract.     

Multi-Objective Optimization of Fusegates System under Hydrologic Uncertainties

Fusegates are independent units held only by the gravity installed on the free spillway of existing dams in order to increase reservoir storage and/or discharge capacity. Increasing reservoir storage in many dams can partly sacrifice dam’s reliabilities. So considering the failure risk of a dam together with the amount of increase in the reservoir capacity can prevent selecting fusegates which seriously endanger a dam safety. However, Lack of accurate information on various damage functions and difficulty in quantifying failure consequences are among principal limitations that hinder practical application of conventional approaches which account failure risk in real world hydrosystems problems. This study develops two effective multi-objective frameworks to optimize fusegates’ configuration in order to eliminate the need for such hard-to-get mathematical damage functions and provide valuable information on the failure risk, total cost, and increased water volume of a reservoir. The proposed models find trade-off solutions between two sets of conflicting objectives. The first competing objectives is investment cost and water storage and the second conflicting goals are water storage and failure probability under the inherent and parameter hydrologic uncertainties. Complicated flood routing phenomenon within a reservoir equipped with fusegates is explicitly taken into account to attain a more cost-effective and reliable design without jeopardizing the dam safety. Applicability and performance of the developed optimization schemes are discussed and demonstrated on a real life case study. The multi-objective optimization results represented as an ensemble of diverse trade-off solutions provide decision makers with more insight and understanding of system behavior and different design alternatives.     

Operability of an Industrial Methanol Synthesis Reactor with Mixtures of Fresh and Partially Deactivated Catalyst

Disposal of spent catalyst is a common practice in industrial methanol synthesis. However, the spent catalyst has, generally, a good level of activity and can be used if mixed with fresh catalyst. In this work the operation of an industrial methanol synthesis reactor with mixtures of fresh and partially deactivated catalyst was investigated using a one‐dimensional transient model. Analysis of the deactivation behavior of low‐pressure methanol synthesis catalyst shows there is an extremely sharp rate of deactivation in a small part of the catalyst life‐time, which is followed by a relatively slow rate of deactivation in the remaining catalyst cycle‐time. Different configurations were studied for catalyst recycling, and two limiting cases are discussed in detail in this paper, namely layered and homogeneous (mixed) bed models. In the first one, the catalyst was segregated into two alternate layers of fresh and partially deactivated catalyst, while in the second homogeneity of the catalyst bed was simulated by segregating a large number of alternate layers of fresh and partially deactivated catalyst. It was observed in both cases that when catalyst recycling is used, the process does not depart significantly from the standard operating conditions, and also that the mixed bed had less influence on the reactor performance than layered one.     

Brain mechanisms for reading and language processing in spina bifida meningomyelocele: A combined magnetic source- and structural magnetic resonance imaging study.

Objective: The development of the ability to process spoken and written language depends upon a network of left hemisphere temporal, parietal, and frontal regions. The present study explored features of brain organization in children with spina bifida meningomyelocele (SBM) and shunted hydrocephalus, who commonly present with precocious development of word reading skills and preservation of vocabulary and grammar skills. Method: Eight children with SBM were compared with 15 IQ and reading-level matched, typically developing controls on MRI-based morphometric and Magnetic Source Imaging-derived neurophysiological profiles. Results: Children with SBM showed reduced magnetic activity in left inferior parietal regions during spoken word recognition and pseudoword reading tasks. We also noted reduced surface area/volume in inferior parietal and posterior temporal regions in SBM and increased gray matter volumes in left middle frontal regions and gyral complexity in left posterior temporal and inferior parietal regions. Conclusions: A complex pattern of changes in cortical morphology and activation may serve as evidence for structural and functional brain reorganization ensuring preservation of language and decoding abilities in children with SBM. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Rapid Analysis of Styrene in Drinking Water and Tea Samples Using Dispersive Liquid-Liquid Microextraction Combined with Liquid Chromatography-Ultraviolet Detection

In this project, a simple, low-cost and rapid procedure based on dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction (DLLME) technique coupled with high performance liquid chromatography-ultraviolet detector (HPLC-UV) has been used for the extraction and determination of styrene in aqueous solutions. Several factors, such as type of extraction and dispersive solvents and their volumes, salt addition, and pH were optimized. Under optimal conditions, the recoveries of styrene for tea and water samples spiked with 10 and 15 ng mL^?1 were in the range of 91.4–97.8 %, whereas the temperature was set at 0, 4, 20, 70 and 91 °C for 15, 30, 60, 1440, and 14,400 min. The linear range was obtained in the interval of 1.86–50 ng mL^?1. The limits of detection (S/N = 3) and quantitation (S/N = 10) were 0.6 and 1.86 ng mL^?1, respectively. The relative standard deviations (RSDs) for three replicated analysis of styrene in aqueous samples ranged from 0.01 to 0.3 %.     

Evaluation of two-diode-model of a solar panel in a wide range of environmental conditions

In this article, a standard and comprehensive two-diode model of a solar cell is first fully described, and a solar panel model based on this model is developed. A measurement system is designed and implemented to evaluate the validity of the developed model. This measurement system is capable of extracting the electrical behaviour of solar panels in different environmental conditions. A comparison between measurement data and simulation results is performed to evaluate the model's accuracy. It is observed that the extracted electrical parameters have a good compatibility with the simulated data only near to nominal conditions. The main conclusion to be drawn is that the obtained model of a solar panel cannot fully describe its behaviour in a wide range of environmental conditions and consequently a modification is needed. Finally an appropriate method, using curve fitting, is introduced to modify the model. By adding several nonlinear terms to the equations of the solar panel model, the accuracy of the model is considerably boosted.     

Characterization of Iranian Virgin Olive Oil from the Roodbar Region: A Study on Zard,Mari and Phishomi

The aim of this study is to describe the physicochemical properties of Iranian virgin olive oil (Zard, Mari and Phishomi) cultivated in Roodbar, Gilan. There were statistically significant differences for most of the parameters (P < 0.05). The acidity and peroxide value were in the limit established for classification as extra virgin olive oil. The oil of Zard had the highest amount of monounsaturated fatty acids followed by Mari and Phishomi oils. Mari oil proved to have the minimum value of polyunsaturated fatty acids, and the highest amount of phenolic compounds and oxidative stability. The oil of Phishomi had the maximum amount of chlorophylls and carotenoids and therefore it had the highest color index. There were no significant differences between the cultivars regarding the refractive index (1.469 at 20 °C for all three cultivars). According to the high content of monounsaturated fatty acids, the lowest amounts of polyunsaturated fatty acids and the highest amounts of phenolic compounds as well as the results of a Rancimat assay, it seems that the quality of the oil of Mari cultivar is better than Zard and Phishomi oils and is also more stable against oxidation.