Investigation on the feasibility of integration of high temperature solar energy in a textile factory

Thermal energy production from fossil fuels is very common in many applications, especially in industrial processes. In a global context where great attention is being focused on reducing pollution and greenhouse gas production, the integration of renewable energy in industrial applications is very interesting. This is even more important considering that greenhouse gas emission for industrial processes is a great portion of their total emission. Considering the above, it appears that the integration of high temperature solar panels in industrial processes is quite an attractive prospect. The working temperatures of parabolic solar collectors are, for example, generally close to those of the thermal fluids used in many industrial processes, and parabolic solar collectors are a well known technology with several applications primarily used in electric production systems. Nonetheless, only a few examples of industrial integration have been studied or built. In this study, the integration of a concentrating solar thermal plant in a textile factory has been examined both from the thermodynamic and economic point of view. An existing textile factory was chosen as a case study and its annual consumption of thermal energy characterized. A model of the plant with solar energy integration was developed and simulated with TRNSYS over a one year time period. The plant was simulated considering the panel characteristics provided by the manufacturer and the local irradiation data. The influence of several plant parameters has been investigated in order to estimate their importance on performance and plant suitability.     

Endosomal Escape of Polymer‐Coated Silica Nanoparticles in Endothelial Cells

Current investigations into hazardous nanoparticles (i.e., nanotoxicology) aim to understand the working mechanisms that drive toxicity. This understanding has been used to predict the biological impact of the nanocarriers as a function of their synthesis, material composition, and physicochemical characteristics. It is particularly critical to characterize the events that immediately follow cell stress resulting from nanoparticle internalization. While reactive oxygen species and activation of autophagy are universally recognized as mechanisms of nanotoxicity, the progression of these phenomena during cell recovery has yet to be comprehensively evaluated. Herein, primary human endothelial cells are exposed to controlled concentrations of polymer‐functionalized silica nanoparticles to induce lysosomal damage and achieve cytosolic delivery. In this model, the recovery of cell functions lost following endosomal escape is primarily represented by changes in cell distribution and the subsequent partitioning of particles into dividing cells. Furthermore, multilamellar bodies are found to accumulate around the particles, demonstrating progressive endosomal escape. This work provides a set of biological parameters that can be used to assess cell stress related to nanoparticle exposure and the subsequent recovery of cell processes as a function of endosomal escape.     

Revisitation of formaldehyde-aniline condensation. III. The Cyclic Tetramer of N-Methyleneaniline: An X-ray diffraction structure determination

The cyclic tetramer of N -methyleneaniline, one of the products from the condensation between formaldehyde and aniline under neutral condition, has been characterized as 1.3.5.7-tetraphenyltetrazocine ( 3 ) and its crystal structure elucidated by X-ray diffraction.     

Recto-cutaneous penile fistula. A description of a clinical case and review of the literature

This describes a newborn with an imperforate anus associated to a fistulous track extending along the scrotal raphe and opening at the penis top. This variant appears to be a low anomaly. The surgical treatment of this pathology is discussed.     

Proposal and performance evaluation of a packet over VDSL protocol for increasing throughput in the transmission of IP packets

This paper presents a possible implementation of a Packet over very high bit rate digital subscriber line protocol with reduced impact of the overhead when transmitting Internet protocol packets. The proposal relates to some shared opinions about the inefficiency of the asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) layer when used to transport this kind of packets, and it is based on proper adaptation of previous recommendations and standards. It is numerically shown that a significant throughput increase is achieved when the new protocol is used in place of the current ATM adaptation layer type 5/ATM protocol. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A study on biological clogging of nonwoven geotextiles under leachate flow

This paper presents results of long-term permittivity tests using leachate to evaluate biological clogging of nonwoven geotextiles. Three types of geotextiles with varying masses per unit area were used in the tests. The identification and quantification of microorganisms in the geotextile were carried out as well as microscopic investigations. The accuracies of semi-empirical models to evaluate the kinetics of bacteria growth and to correlate hydraulic properties and microbiological parameters were examined. Permittivity tests under increasing water heads were also performed on the geotextile samples already subjected to long-term leachate flow in order to evaluate the values of water heads required to wash the biofilms out of the geotextile pores. The results of the tests showed the marked reduction of geotextile permeability due to biological clogging and that the results of the predictions by semi-empirical methods were consistent with the biological mechanisms observed.     

Magnetic nanocarriers with tunable pH dependence for controlled loading and release of cationic and anionic payloads

Superparamagnetic nanocarriers with tunable pH dependence of the surface charge are designed by a simple co-precipitation method. By exploiting electrostatic interactions, cationic or anionic payloads can be adsorbed and desorbed depending on the pH. On three different resulting nanocarrier systems, experiments of loading and release of gold nanoparticles as well as effective siRNA loading and in vitro delivery on human cells are performed.     

Nanocomposite Hydrogels as Platform for Cells Growth,Proliferation, and Chemotaxis

The challenge of mimicking the extracellular matrix with artificial scaffolds that are able to reduce immunoresponse is still unmet. Recent findings have shown that mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) infiltrating into the implanted scaffold have effects on the implant integration by improving the healing process. Toward this aim, a novel polyamidoamine‐based nanocomposite hydrogel is synthesized, cross‐linked with porous nanomaterials (i.e., mesoporous silica nanoparticles), able to release chemokine proteins. A comprehensive viscoelasticity study confirms that the hydrogel provides optimal structural support for MSC infiltration and proliferation. The efficiency of this hydrogel, containing the chemoattractant stromal cell‐derived factor 1α (SDF‐1α), in promoting MSC migration in vitro is demonstrated. Finally, subcutaneous implantation of SDF‐1α‐releasing hydrogels in mice results in a modulation of the inflammatory reaction. Overall, the proposed SDF‐1α‐nanocomposite hydrogel proves to have potential for applications in tissue engineering.