Benchmark experiment of large-angle scattering reaction cross section of iron at 14 MeV using two shadow bars – Comparison of experimental results with ENDF/B-VIII –

ABSTRACT

It is important to perform neutron transport simulations with accurate nuclear data in the neutronics design of a fusion reactor. However, absolute values of large-angle scattering cross sections vary among nuclear data libraries even for well-examined nuclide of iron. Benchmark experiments focusing on large-angle scattering cross sections were thus performed to confirm the correctness of nuclear data libraries. The series benchmark experiments were performed at a DT neutron source facility, OKTAVIAN of Osaka University, Japan, by the unique experimental system established by the authors’ group, which can extract only the contribution of large-angle scattering reactions. This system consists of two shadow bars, target plate (iron), and neutron detector (niobium). Two types of shadow bars were used and four irradiations were conducted for one experiment, so that contribution of room-return neutrons was effectively removed and only large-angle scattering neutrons were extracted from the measured four Nb reaction rates. The obtained experimental results were compared with calculations for five nuclear data libraries including JENDL-4.0, JEFF.-3.3, FENDL-3.1, ENDF/B- VII, and recently released ENDF/B-VIII. It was found from the comparison that ENDF/B-VIII showed the best result, though ENDF/B-VII showed overestimation and others are in large underestimation at 14 MeV.     

Ammonia production using iron nitride and water as hydrogen source under mild temperature and pressure

Ammonia generation was studied in the reaction between water and nitrogen-containing iron at 323 K and atmospheric pressure. Similar to metallic Fe, the interstitial compound Fe₃N reduced water through Fe oxidation to produce hydrogen gas, while the N combined with atomic hydrogen to produce ammonia as a byproduct. The addition of carbon dioxide to this system accelerated the reaction with concomitant consumption of carbon dioxide. The promoted ammonia production upon addition of carbon dioxide can be attributed to the generation of atomic hydrogen from the redox reaction of carbonic acid and Fe, as well as removal of used Fe from the reaction system through the formation of a soluble carbonato complex. When carbonate was added to the reaction system, the production rates of ammonia and hydrogen increased further. The results here confirmed that ammonia can be synthesized from iron nitride under mild conditions by utilizing carbon dioxide.     

Molecular Targeted Therapy for the Bone Loss Secondary to Pyogenic Spondylodiscitis Using Medications for Osteoporosis: A Literature Review

Pyogenic spondylodiscitis can cause severe osteolytic and destructive lesions in the spine. Elderly or immunocompromised individuals are particularly susceptible to infectious diseases; specifically, infections in the spine can impair the ability of the spine to support the trunk, causing patients to be bedridden, which can also severely affect the physical condition of patients. Although treatments for osteoporosis have been well studied, treatments for bone loss secondary to infection remain to be elucidated because they have pathological manifestations that are similar to but distinct from those of osteoporosis. Recently, we encountered a patient with severely osteolytic pyogenic spondylodiscitis who was treated with romosozumab and exhibited enhanced bone formation. Romosozumab stimulated canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling, causing robust bone formation and the inhibition of bone resorption, which exceeded the bone loss secondary to infection. Bone loss due to infections involves the suppression of osteoblastogenesis by osteoblast apoptosis, which is induced by the nuclear factor-κB and mitogen-activated protein kinase pathways, and osteoclastogenesis with the receptor activator of the nuclear factor-κB ligand-receptor combination and subsequent activation of the nuclear factor of activated T cells cytoplasmic 1 and c-Fos. In this study, we review and discuss the molecular mechanisms of bone loss secondary to infection and analyze the efficacy of the medications for osteoporosis, focusing on romosozumab, teriparatide, denosumab, and bisphosphonates, in treating this pathological condition.     

Moisture migration in idealized bilayer systems: relationships among water-associated properties, structure, and texture

The effects of composition and thermal treatment on the water sorption and diffusional properties of idealized protein gels arranged in bilayer configurations were determined; these water binding/migration properties were related to the mechanical characteristics of the gels. Samples were prepared from whey protein concentrate (WPC), they consisted of water:WPC ratios of 1.5 to 5.67, and were thermally set for 20–60 min. Moisture migration rates from samples interfaced with filters were determined, as were moisture sorption capacities of samples immersed in water. The physical properties of the gels were assessed by uniaxial compression and microscopy. Results showed that gel strength and consequent extent of protein interaction—as affected by thermal treatment—controlled the ability of the gel structure to absorb water. Sorption was exponentially correlated with gel modulus and linearly correlated with a function of protein content, heating time, and immersion time. Rates of diffusion from interfaced gels were dependent solely on water content. It was concluded that the degree of protein interaction, whether influenced by concentration or thermal treatment, affected network extensibility and thus the capacity of the gels to act as receptors of moisture. Results have implications for the functionality of shelf-stable sandwiches and other multicomponent foods.     

Cytokine gene expression after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation

Cytokines produced by T lymphocytes, monocytes/macrophages, and fibroblasts play a central role in the immune response and in the development of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). Also, it has been reported that dysregulated production of cytokines maybe the primary mediator of clinical manifestation of acute GVHD. Regarding cytokine gene expression after human allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (allo BMT), we have demonstrated increased IL-1 beta, IL-6, and TNF-alpha mRNA expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells during the development of acute and chronic GVHD and that the degree of the increase was dependent on the severity of the disease. Furthermore, overexpression of these cytokine mRNAs could be detected before the clinical manifestations of GVHD developed. In contrast, IL-2 mRNA expression was not detected in peripheral blood mononuclear cells in GVHD patients. On the other hand, we have reported that increased mRNA expression and protein product of IL-2 and IFN-gamma were evident in the mixed lymphocyte culture of the cases who developed severe lethal transplantation-related complications. Therefore, the detection of increased IL-2 and IFN-gamma gene expression in MLC appeared to be useful for predicting transplantation-related complications in BMT patients. Furthermore, we found increased IL-2 receptor alpha subunit mRNA expression in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells during GVHD. These findings may indicate the important role of inflammatory cytokines such as IL-1 beta, IL-6 and TNF-alpha in the development of the clinical manifestation of GVHD and also may be indicative of the important role of IL-2 and the IL-2 receptor in allo response perhaps mainly as an autocrine effect.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

The role of aluminum in automotive weight reduction—part III

This series of articles provides, from an international perspective, an analysis of the future of the automotive industry and aluminum’s role in automobile weight reduction. Part I briefly described technological, environmental, and societal issues that are mandating vehicular weight reduction for, among other reasons, purposes of fuel economy. Part II described the status of the weight-reduction technologies that are currently available and projects how they may evolve in the coming years. Part III, the final installment, examines some of the specific strengths and weaknesses of aluminum alloys with regard to their long-term attractiveness to automakers.     

Drain structure optimization for highly reliable deep submicrometern-channel MOSFET

A guideline for n^- fully gate overlapped (FOLD) structure design optimization has been studied. From the viewpoint of reliability, the greatest reduction in substrate current directly leads to the most reliable n^- design for the FOLD structure. The current path modulation phenomenon due to the trapped charge at the n ^- extension region dominates the hot-carrier induced characteristics change for conventional lightly doped drain (LDD) structure with side-wall spacer. This phenomenon is minimized in the FOLD structure due to its higher controllability of the gate electrode than the LDD structure at the n^- extension region. Furthermore, it was also confirmed that the 0.3 μm optimized FOLD structure can achieve high circuit performance at 3.3 V operation, maintaining hot-carrier resistance     

Enzymatic degradation of esters of dichloropropanols: removal of chlorinated glycerides from processed foods

The esters of dichloropropanols from the byproduct of hydrolysates during food processing were degraded by the cell-free extracts of a dichloropropanol-assimilating bacterium of Pseudomonas sp. OS-K-29. 1-Acyloxy-2,3-dichloropropane was hydrolysed into the corresponding carbonic acid and 2,3-dichloropropanol, and then the dichloropropanol was dechlorinated. The esterase activity of the cell-free extracts was effective for the esters of the dichloropropanols and monoacylglycerides, but not for hydrolysing the lipase substrates such as triacylglycerides and Tween 60. A comparative study using a series of octanoyl glycerides and the esters of the dichlopropanols showed that the substrate specificities of the cell-free extracts were similar to the monoacylglyceride lipase from Penicillium camembertii.     

High-performance polymer alloys of polybenzoxazine and bismaleimide

Two series of high-performance polymer alloys were prepared by mixing typical benzoxine monomers, 3-phenyl-3,4-dihydro-2H-1,3-benzoxazine (P-a) or 6,6-(1-methylethyliden)-bis-(3,4-dihydro-3-phenyl-2H-1,3-benzoxazine) (B-a), with a typical bismaleimide, 4,4-bismaleimidodiphenyl methane by various ratios followed by thermal treatment up to 240 °C. DSC and IR of the alloys were examined to follow the curing reaction. These analyses showed that the obtained polymer alloys are AB co-cross-linked polymer networks through the formation of ether linkage between the hydroxyl group of polybenoxazine and the double bond of bismaleimide. Viscoelastic analysis and softening temperature measurement revealed that the polymer alloys have much higher glass transition temperatures than those of each homopolymer. The thermal stability also increased with the increase of bismaleimide content as evidenced by TGA.