Sorption of humic acids by a zeolite-feldspar-bearing tuff in batch and fixed-bed column

The sorption of humic acids (HA) on zeolite-feldspar-bearing Phlegraean Yellow Tuff enriched with calcium ions has been investigated at neutral pH both on fixed-bed columns and in batch. A two-step sorption kinetics and a relatively long time to reach the equilibrium were observed in batch. In line with this behaviour, the breakthrough curves and shipping curves from exhaust columns showed distinctive properties that cannot be easily modelled by the common mass balance equations; noteworthy, the breakthrough curves were dependent on the space velocity also for very slow processes and the bed sorption capacity decreased linearly with the space velocity. Moreover, after an initial high-rate burst, HA desorption from exhausted columns proceeded at a very slow rate, particularly so for columns loaded with higher amounts of HA.     

Hydrothermal Carbonization of Sewage Sludge: Analysis of Process Severity and Solid Content

Hydrothermal carbonization of sewage sludge was carried out with the aim to evaluate the influence of process severity and initial solid content. Response surface methodology was applied to model yield and C yield responses. Enhanced dewaterability performance was recorded under mild processing conditions. The treatment promoted concentration and immobilization of Pb, Cd, Ni, Zn, and Cu. Variation of the solid content showed a stronger influence than severity on average yield and C yield. Higher heating values (HHVs) and energy retention efficiencies (EREs) of hydrochars obtained at the lowest solid content displayed the lowest values. Hence, the energy requirements of a first dewatering step should be compared with the related improvement in terms of HHV and ERE when sludge is used as feedstock.     

Classification of vegetable oils by high-resolution <Superscript>13</Superscript>C NMR spectroscopy using chromatographically obtained oil fractions

¹³C NMR spectra of oil fractions obtained chromatographically from 109 vegetable oils were obtained and analyzed to evaluate the potential use of those fractions in the classification of vegetable oils and to compare the results with the NMR analysis of complete oils. The oils included the following: virgin olive oils from different cultivars and regions of Europe and north Africa; “lampante” olive, refined olive, refined olive pomace, hazelnut, rapeseed, high-oleic sunflower, corn, grapeseed, soybean, and sunflower oils; and mixtures of virgin olive oils from different geographical origins. Oils were divided into two sets of samples. The training set (98 samples) was employed to select the variables that resulted in significant discrimination among the different oil classes. By using stepwise discriminant analysis, more than 98% of correct validated assignments were obtained; these results were confirmed when applied to the test set (11 blind samples). Results suggest that the use of oil fractions considerably increases the discriminating power of NMR in the analysis of vegetable oils.     

Targeted Therapies for Brain Metastases from Breast Cancer

The discovery of various driver pathways and targeted small molecule agents/antibodies have revolutionized the management of metastatic breast cancer. Currently, the major targets of clinical utility in breast cancer include the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) receptor, mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway, and the cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6 (CDK-4/6) pathway. Brain metastasis, however, remains a thorn in the flesh, leading to morbidity, neuro-cognitive decline, and interruptions in the management of systemic disease. Approximately 20%–30% of patients with metastatic breast cancer develop brain metastases. Surgery, whole brain radiation therapy, and stereotactic radiosurgery are the traditional treatment options for patients with brain metastases. The therapeutic paradigm is changing due to better understanding of the blood brain barrier and the advent of tyrosine kinase inhibitors and monoclonal antibodies. Several of these agents are in clinical practice and several others are in early stage clinical trials. In this article, we will review the common targetable pathways in the management of breast cancer patients with brain metastases, and the current state of the clinical development of drugs against these pathways.     

Integrated combined cycle from natural gas with CO2 capture using a Ca–Cu chemical loop

The integration in a natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) of a novel process for H₂ production using a chemical Ca–Cu loop was proposed. This process is based on the sorption‐enhanced reforming process for H₂ production from natural gas with a CaO/CaCO₃ chemical loop, but including a second Cu/CuO loop to regenerate the Ca‐sorbent. An integration of this system into a NGCC was proposed and a full process simulation exercise of different cases was carried out. Optimizing the operating conditions in the Ca–Cu looping process, 8.1% points of efficiency penalty with respect to a state‐of‐the‐art NGCC are obtained with a CO₂ capture efficiency of 90%. It was demonstrated that the new process can yield power generation efficiencies as high as any other emerging and commercial concepts for power generation from NGCC with CO₂ capture, but maintaining competing advantages of process simplification and compact pressurized reactor design inherent to the Ca–Cu looping system. © 2013 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 59: 2780–2794, 2013     

Significant Decline in Galactomannan Signal during Storage of Clinical Serum Samples

Galactomannan (GM) is widely used for detection of invasive aspergillosis in high-risk haemato-oncology patients. Recent publications have reported a lack of repeatability of GM detection. The objective of this retrospective study was to assess the repeatability of GM levels during storage of clinical samples. In a GM screening strategy, positive sera were repeat tested as per manufacturer’s recommendations. Short-term (ST) storage of samples was at +4 °C while long-term (LT) storage was at −80 °C. Bronchoalveolar (BAL) fluid was also repeating tested after ST storage and LT storage. Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test was employed to assess the repeatability of GM levels. In a subset of 14 GM positive sera, repeat testing was performed on both the original serum and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) pre-treated sample. There was a significant reduction in GM signals on repeat testing following ST storage (median GM index: 0.65 vs. 0.19; p < 0.001) and LT storage (median GM index: 0.56 vs. 0.10; p < 0.001) of serum samples. Of samples that were initially GM positive, an average GM index reduction of 50% was seen, with approximately two-thirds becoming GM negative on repeat testing of the same sample. In contrast, GM signal loss was not seen on repeat testing of BAL fluid following ST or LT storage. When GM positive serum samples were repeat tested using EDTA pre-treated serum from the first step of the testing protocol, all samples remained GM positive. In contrast, when the same samples were repeat tested from the original collected serum, 9 samples (64%) became GM negative. The significant reduction in GM signals during ST and LT storage of serum samples has implications for clinical management. Although the reasons for GM decline are unknown, they occur prior to the EDTA pre-treatment stage, indicating that the time from phlebotomy to testing should be minimized. BAL fluid GM index values remain stable.     

Dynamic in situ observation of automotive catalysts for emission control using X-ray absorption fine structure

Two main pivotal subjects of research in automotive catalysts were studied by modern X-ray absorption analysis techniques. One is oxygen storage/release behaviour, and the other is sintering inhibition of Pt particles. First, three types of CeO₂–ZrO₂ (Ce:Zr = 1:1 molar ratio) compounds with different oxygen storage/release capacities and different structural properties were prepared, and the valence change of Ce as a function of temperature during oxygen release/storage processes was investigated. The reduction of surface Ce mainly occurred in the range 100–170 °C, and the reduction of bulk Ce progressed at high temperatures of 170 °C and above. The Ce reduction behaviour depended not only on the homogeneity of the Ce and Zr for bulk reduction at high temperatures but also on the particle size of the CeO₂–ZrO₂ samples for surface reduction at low temperatures. Secondly, sintering inhibition of Pt in Pt/Al₂O₃, Pt/MgO and Pt/ceria-based catalysts after 800 °C ageing in air was studied. We found that the Pt–O–M (M = Mg, Ce) bond acted as an anchor and inhibited the sintering of Pt particles on MgO or ceria-based oxide. Especially, it was noteworthy that the Pt–O–Ce⁴⁺ bond on the ceria-based support breaks easily through the reduction of Ce (Ce⁴⁺ → Ce³⁺) during the usual stoichiometric and reducing conditions.     

Body Compositional Changes and Growth Alteration in Chicks from Hens Fed Conjugated Linoleic Acid

Effects of feeding conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) to hens on progeny chick development and composition at hatch (NHC) and three weeks of age (TWC) were assessed. CLA (0 or 0.5%, composed of mixed isomers of cis-9,trans-11 or trans-10,cis-12-CLA) was fed to hens with either safflower (SO) or olive oil (OO) (3 or 3.5%) to assure successful hatch for 2 weeks prior to collection for incubation. Maternal CLA feeding had no effect on hatchability, but improved egg fertility (p < 0.05). Maternal feeding of CLA with SO increased 21 day-old progeny growth, while CLA with OO decreased growth (oil*CLA, p < 0.05). In 25 day-old chicks (TWC), but not NHC, maternal CLA decreased the proportion of total body water (p < 0.05) and increased body ash (p < 0.05). While monounsaturated fatty acids were decreased and saturated fatty acids increased in eggs and NHC from hens fed CLA, no differences in fatty acid composition were observed in chicks at 25 days of age from hens fed CLA. Maternal CLA feeding resulted in the presence of c9,t11 and t10,c12-CLA in NHC, but only c9,t11 in the TWC. In conclusion, hens fed CLA led to improved fertility and altered body composition at 3 weeks of age.     

Polymorphism of syndiotactic poly(p-fluoro-styrene)

Syndiotactic poly(p-fluoro-styrene) (s-PPFS) has been prepared with a polymerization procedure which allows reaching high average molecular masses and satisfactory yields. The polymorphic behavior of the polymer has been mainly studied by X-ray diffraction, calorimetric and infrared analyses. The main crystalline phase of s-PPFS, obtained by melt processing or cold-crystallization, exhibits trans-planar chains, is orthorhombic (a = 9.5 Å, b = 28.7 Å, c = 5.1 Å) and melts at nearly 320 °C. The X-ray analysis shows a strict analogy of this orthorhombic phase with the β phase of s-PS, also as for the occurrence of two limit ordered (β″) and disordered (β′) modifications, which differ for the intensity of reflections characterized by h + k = 2n + 1. A metastable crystalline phase, also exhibiting trans-planar chains, has been observed for as-polymerized samples as well as for amorphous samples crystallized by sorption of toluene or 1,4-difluoro-benzene. Mainly on the basis of solvent sorption and desorption experiments, it is suggested that this metastable phase is a co-crystalline phase with the low-molecular-mass guest molecules.