Measurement of water concentration in oil/water dispersions with a circular single-electrode capacitance probe

A new measurement method, called SeCaP, has been used to measure the water content in oil/water dispersions. The measuring principle is based on an oscillator working at approximately 20 MHz. The dielectric property of the medium adjacent to one single free electrode affects the frequency of the oscillator. The dispersion was produced by means of recirculation through a colloid mill. The concentration of water was first increased from zero to approximately 70%. Then, it was reduced from 100% to approximately 45%. The probe signal correlates very well with the water concentration in the dispersion, especially for the oil continuous case with a correlation coefficient of 0.9998. The instrument represents a new approach of measuring the water content in process streams in, for example, oil production facilities, where it is important to have reliable information on the amount of water that is flowing in the production tubing.     

De novo balanced 5;21 translocation in a child with acrobrachycephaly, ventriculomegaly, pulmonary stenosis, ectopic anus and mental retardation

An apparently balanced de novo reciprocal translocation t(5;21) (q13;q22) was demonstrated in a girl with acrobrachycephaly, ventriculomegaly, pulmonary stenosis and anal malformation. The possible relationships between her karyotype and malformations are discussed.     

Effect of humidity on the interaction of CO2 with alkaline anion exchange membranes probed using the quartz crystal microbalance

The alkaline anion exchange membrane fuel cell (AAEM-FC) is able to deliver a comparable performance to the traditional proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEM-FC) without the use of precious metal electrocatalysts, making it a more cost-competitive alternative for low-temperature fuel cell applications. However, issues relating to degradation and specifically interaction with CO₂ still hinder the technology's commercialisation prospects. With hydration playing a key role in solid polymer electrolyte fuel cell operation, this study examines how membrane hydration affects the AAEM interaction with CO₂. The change of membrane conductivity upon exposure to atmospheric CO₂ has been compared with the change in viscoelastic properties of a cast thin-film ionomer, both as a function of humidity. The effect of CO₂ on the membrane as a function of hydration suggests a link to its solvation and swelling regimes and thus the access of CO₂ to the ionic channels within the membrane. The thin-film QCM composite resonator study has suggested that during the solvation (pore opening) regime, there is a linear increase in CO₂ uptake as water can further permeate the pore system and the cationic headgroups become increasingly accessible. During the transition to the pore swelling regime, there is a step increase in CO₂ uptake as the network is thought to be fully open; as such, subsequent increases in RH do not lead to any significant increase in CO₂ uptake.     

Relationship between symptoms of jumper''s knee and the ultrasound characteristics of the patellar tendon among high level male volleyball players

In this study we investigated the applicability of 99mTc-labeled CD19 monoclonal antibody (mAb) for tumor imaging in patients with B cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. A 1-mg sample of murine CD19 mAb was labeled with approximately 550 MBq [99mTc]pertechnetate. The labeled mAb was administered i.v. to seven patients, four without and three with pretreatment with 10 mg unlabeled CD19 mAb. The number of circulating B cells was decreased by 44 +/- 5% 1 h after injection of the radiolabeled mAb. Peripheral B cells were coated with CD19, resulting in partial modulation of CD19, most pronounced in the three pretreated patients. Whole-body images were obtained with a gamma camera and compared with results obtained by conventional imaging techniques. Initially, blood-pool activity dominated, whereas 24 h after injection the radioactivity was mainly located in the spleen, kidneys and liver. In two patients, a lesion in the spleen appeared as an unlabeled spot. In one patient, a lesion in the femur, which was detected by computed tomography (CT) and gallium-67 scans, was also seen on the CD19 scan from 1 h after administration of the radioimmunoconjugate onwards. Good imaging of bone marrow infiltration was observed in one of three patients. Lymph node involvement was not observed in any of the patients in whom affected lymph nodes were detected by CT or gallium-67 scan. In conclusion, in the present study radioimmunodetection with 99mTc-labeled CD19 mAb was found to be inferior to CT and gallium-67 scanning in the diagnosis of patients with B cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.