Method for Characterization of Solvents for Physical Absorption Processes

A method for solvent screening and searching for additives in the field of physical absorption processes is presented. A model based on the concept of virtual components and on the concept of a simplified abstract flow sheet is created. An estimation procedure for thermodynamically consistent property sets for the virtual component is developed. The model is implemented into MATLAB®. Its application is demonstrated in two studies including a study for a solvent additive. Potential candidates can be characterized and ranges for properties of the solvent or additive are found by means of the model. Conclusions obtained from the model support the screening process by a reduction of the number of further investigated components.     

How to get proteomics to the clinic? Issues in clinical proteomics,exemplified by CE‐MS

Clinical proteomics is defined as application of proteome analysis aiming at improving the current clinical situation. As such, the success of clinical proteomics should be assessed based on the clinical impact following implementation of the findings. While we have experienced significant technological advancements in mass spectrometry in the last years, based on the above measure, this has not at all resulted in similar advancements in clinical proteomics. Although a large number of proteomic biomarkers have been described, most of them were not subsequently validated, and certainly have had no impact in clinical decision making as yet. Under the current conditions, it appears likely that the situation will not change significantly: we will be flooded by reports on biomarkers, but not see any implementation. In this article, some key issues in proteomic biomarker research are pinpointed, based on the experience with CE‐MS, likely also holding true for biomarkers resulting from other analysis domains.     

CFD-Simulation eines direkt befeuerten Ofens zur Vorbehandlung feuerverzinkter Stahlbänder

For the production of high-quality goods in industrial furnaces using minimal expenditure of energy, optimization of the process parameters is required. One tool for improving the processes economically is the simulation of the furnaces by using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). The pre-heating process of a steel strip in a section of an annealing furnace for surface treatment in a hot-dip galvanizing process was simulated using the commercial CFD software Ansys Fluent 15.0. For combustion, the Equilibrium model is used, turbulence is modeled by the realizable-k-ε model, and radiation is taken into account by using the Discrete Ordinate Method (DOM).     

Training echo state networks for rotation-invariant bone marrow cell classification

The main principle of diagnostic pathology is the reliable interpretation of individual cells in context of the tissue architecture. Especially a confident examination of bone marrow specimen is dependent on a valid classification of myeloid cells. In this work, we propose a novel rotation-invariant learning scheme for multi-class echo state networks (ESNs), which achieves very high performance in automated bone marrow cell classification. Based on representing static images as temporal sequence of rotations, we show how ESNs robustly recognize cells of arbitrary rotations by taking advantage of their short-term memory capacity. The performance of our approach is compared to a classification random forest that learns rotation-invariance in a conventional way by exhaustively training on multiple rotations of individual samples. The methods were evaluated on a human bone marrow image database consisting of granulopoietic and erythropoietic cells in different maturation stages. Our ESN approach to cell classification does not rely on segmentation of cells or manual feature extraction and can therefore directly be applied to image data.

     

Porous protein-based scaffolds prepared through freezing as potential scaffolds for tissue engineering

Successful tissue engineering with the aid of a polymer scaffold offers the possibility to produce a larger construct and to mould the shape after the defect. We investigated the use of cryogelation to form protein-based scaffolds through different types of formation mechanisms; enzymatic crosslinking, chemical crosslinking, and non-covalent interactions. Casein was found to best suited for enzymatic crosslinking, gelatin for chemical crosslinking, and ovalbumin for non-covalent interactions. Fibroblasts and myoblasts were used to evaluate the cryogels for tissue engineering purposes. The stability of the cryogels over time in culture differed depending on formation mechanism. Casein cryogels showed best potential to be used in skeletal tissue engineering, whereas gelatin cryogels would be more suitable for compliable soft tissues even though it also seemed to support a myogenic phenotype. Ovalbumin cryogels would be better suited for elastic tissues with faster regeneration properties due to its faster degradation time. Overall, the cryogelation technique offers a fast, cheap and reproducible way of creating porous scaffolds from proteins without the use of toxic compounds.     

A method to characterize asymmetrical three-stage creep of ordinary refractory ceramics and its application for numerical modelling

During operation, thermomechanical stresses occur in refractory linings. Under elevated stress and temperatures, these ceramics experience primary creep, which can further proceed to the secondary and tertiary creep stages. This necessitates a characterization of their three-stage creep behavior. Hence, two advanced uniaxial tensile and compressive creep testing devices are utilized. The Norton-Bailey creep equations and an inverse identification procedure are applied for the evaluation of the creep curves. To account for the full three-stage creep behavior in thermomechanical modelling activities, a creep-stage transition criterion is identified and subsequently implemented together with the Norton-Bailey creep-strain rate representations in a new developed creep model. The finite element simulation results from different creep testing procedures are in accordance with the corresponding experimental results of a magnesia-chromite refractory ceramic. The study also reveals the temperature-dependent asymmetrical creep behavior of the material in terms of the creep-strain rates and critical creep strains.