Preparation process and properties of LiCoO2/PANI/dodecylbenzenesulfonate composite electrode materials

Composite materials that combine the lithium exchanging material LiCoO₂ and the conductive polymer poly(aniline) (PANI) have been investigated regarding their possible application to electrode materials of lithium batteries. Such composite materials have been prepared by means of polymerization of aniline in acidic suspensions of LiCoO₂ particles. PANI was synthesized by oxidative polymerization of aniline by ammonium persulfate in the presence of sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate (SDBS) as a micellar template and dopant. The composite material consisted in LiCoO₂ particles dispersed in a continuous matrix of PANI. The ribbon-like morphology of the powdered material was distinctly different of the morphologies of the parent materials. The conductive material had conductivity close to that of PANI because the LiCoO₂ content of the composite material was low. The presence of the poorly conductive inorganic phase caused a significant loss of conductivity, showing that LiCoO₂ blocked electronic transfers between PANI crystallites. Ammonium persulfate caused the loss of lithium from LiCoO₂ when it was used at high concentration in the polymerization recipe. In this case a new phase made of Co₃O₄ formed by chemical decomposition of Li_xCoO₂. Thin films prepared from stable suspensions of composite materials in water show comparable electrical performance to that measured for bulk materials.     

Donor Genetic Predisposition to High Interleukin-10 Production Appears Protective against Acute Graft-Versus-Host Disease

The persistence of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) as the principal complication of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) demonstrates that HLA matching alone is insufficient to prevent alloreactivity. We performed molecular and functional characterization of 22 candidate cytokine genes for their potential to improve matching in 315 myeloablative, 10/10 HLA-matched donor–recipient pairs. Recipients of a graft carrying the -1082GG IL10 gene promoter region variant had a three-fold lower incidence of grade II–IV acute GVHD compared to IL10-1082AA graft recipients (SHR = 0.25, p = 0.005). This was most evident in matched unrelated donor (MUD) transplants, where the greatest alloreactivity is expected. IL10-1082GG transplants did not experience an increased incidence of relapse, and, consequently, overall survival was two-fold higher in IL10-1082GG MUD transplants (HR = 0.17, p = 0.023). Longitudinal post-transplant measurements demonstrated that -1082GG is a high-IL10-producing and -expressing genotype with attenuated CD8⁺ T-cell reconstitution. High post-transplant donor chimerism in T- and myeloid-cells (>95%) confirmed a predominant donor, rather than recipient, genotype effect on immune function and aGVHD. To date, this is the first study to report corroborating genome-to-cellular evidence for a non-HLA donor immunogenetic variant that appears to be protective against GVHD. The incorporation of IL10 variants in donor selection criteria and clinical-management decisions has the potential to improve patient outcomes.     

CFD modeling to predict diffused date syrup yield and quality from sugar production process

In this study, diffusion process of sugar from date is modeled using a commercial computational fluids dynamics (CFD) code FLUENT 6.3.23 (Fluent Inc., USA). A two phases CFD model was developed using an Eulerian–Eulerian approach to calculate the date volume fraction transferred during time from date phase to water phase. The diffusion process was studied as function of three date varieties (Manakher, Lemsi and Alligue), three speeds of agitation (0, 50 and 100 rpm) and three date/water ratio (0.25, 0.50 and 0.75). The results revealed that, for mass transfer, the numerical data were in good agreement with the experimental data indicating the R² of 0.84. Using a Lemsi date variety, the optimal condition of diffusion were 50 rpm and 0.75 for speed of agitation and date/water ratio respectively.     

Simulators for medical training: application to vascular ultrasound imaging

Whilst computers are more and more used in the medical and surgical domains, medical education is still very conservative. However, new information technology could bring a lot to this area. In particular, simulators are of paramount interest: they would allow one both to experiment with surgical or imaging techniques for a wide range of pathologies without the need for patients and to quantitatively evaluate the trainees' performances. Ultrasound imaging is a typical area where virtual reality may change educational uses. This paper describes an ultrasound imaging simulator dedicated to the training of physicians for the detection of deep venous thromboses of the lower limbs. Like this one, a lot of other pathologies of soft tissue are diagnosed using ultrasound imaging. Because this examination is difficult and operator‐dependent, developing a simulator is very useful to give common databases of pathological samples on which physicians can both experiment with image acquisition and evaluate their understanding of clinical cases. Real‐time simulation is mandatory. An ultrasound imaging simulator has been developed and is being tested. This paper presents the hardware and software components of the simulator and describes the status of this project. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Coupling spring-induced resonance shift in PDNB system with PSH network

Microsystem Technologies - The dynamic vibration analysis of a perforated double-nanobeam (PDNB) system with a periodic square holes (PSH) network is researched in this paper. Both nanobeams are...