Trends in registered psychiatric morbidity and forecasting psychotropic drug needs in Bulgarian hospitals

Registered psychiatric morbidity in Bulgaria as a whole and particularly in Plovdiv, the second largest region of the country, was assessed. Three aspects of psychotropic drug usage were analysed, namely, changes in registered psychotropic drugs, the prescribed daily dose (PDD) values for 2 years, and the preferred therapeutic schemes, and drug usage and needs in a psychiatric hospital with 365 beds. This was done by time series analysis for evaluation of psychiatric morbidity and drug consumption data, calculation of PDD for psychotropic medicines, and, based on a modification of the World Health Organization's morbidity method, assessment and prediction of drug use and needs in Plovdiv hospital. The results indicated that the registered morbidity had increased by 4% over the period 1989-93 to 2,427 psychiatric patients per 100,000 people. The increased consumption of especially benzodiazepines and sedative medicines was analyzed. Diazepam was prescribed the most often (91.1%), followed by levomepromazine (86.4%), haloperidol (82.7%), etc. Future drug consumption in Plovdiv hospital is expected to decrease because therapeutic practice in hospitals has been revised and improved on the basis of the World Health Organization's recommendations.     

Catalytic oxidation of sulphide ions to elementary sulphur in aqueous solutions over transition metal oxides

The catalytic activity of a wide range of transition metal oxides in oxidation of sulphide ions by air in aqueous medium was studied. Some specific features of the reaction mechanism on some of the studied oxides were considered. The transition metal oxides are promising catalysts for practical application. Some of these oxides will allow the preparation of catalysts possessing activity comparable to that of the cobalt phthalocyanine based catalysts, popular in industrial practice.     

Selecting optimum density of lattice of blades of screw pump impeller

A method is proposed for calculating the optimum density of lattice of blades of screw pump impeller that ensures, for a given cavitation margin (inlet pressure), the first critical condition on the partial cavitation characteristic of the pump. The equations obtained can be used also to calculate the permissible cavitation margin of screw centrifugal and screw mixed-flow pumps as well as of stand-alone screw impeller, provided the geometric and operating conditions of the screw are given. __________ Translated from Khimicheskoe i Neftegazovoe Mashinostroenie, No. 6, pp. 29–33, June, 2007.     

Directions in processing of Tengizsk crude

Translated from Khimiya i Tekhnologiya Topliv i Masel, No. 5, pp. 2–3, May, 1992.     

Investigation of mechanical and thermophysical properties of composite materials based on “black binders” with the aim of optimizing the process of their cementing

Optimum conditions for cementing prepared roofing paper are determined and an installation for laying prepared roofing paper as a hydroinsulating roofing carpet is designed.Gomel Polytechnic Institute. Translated from Inzhenerno-Fizicheskii Zhurnal, Vol. 63, No. 2, pp. 151–153, August, 1992.     

The Problem of Estimating the Uncertainty of the Fixed Point Temperature Due to the Presence of Impurities

The main problems in estimating the uncertainty due to the presence of impurities in the material: the absence in the documents of a unique definition of the quantity being measured – the fixed point temperature, the lack of agreed methods of realizing the fixed points and the insufficient justification of the equations used for the estimate, are analyzed. The results of a measurement of the melting point of gallium are presented, which differ in the conditions in which they were realized – with one and two liquid-solid interfaces and different solidification conditions, are presented. The reasons for the considerable difference between the values of the temperatures obtained in these experiments are discussed.     

Deterministic Chaos during First-Order Phase Transitions in a Liquid–Vapor System

A model is developed in which the theory of deterministic chaos for the interface layer is used to treat both homophase and heterophase fluctuations of density (volume) and the fluctuations of pressure, whose duration increases as the critical point is approached. This approach, based on the transition from continuous differential equations to mappings, leads to a number of important consequences in theoretical analysis of high-temperature processes of evaporation and condensation, including the loss of information on the initial conditions, the alternation, and the presence of branching points on bifurcation diagrams.     

Kinetik der polykondensation von natriumsulfidhydrat und 1,4-dichlorbenzol zu poly(thio-1,4-phenylen)

The kinetics of the polycondensation of sodium sulfide hydrate and 1,4-dichlorobenzene to poly(thio-1,4-phenylene) in 1-methyl-2-pyrrolidone as solvent was studied in a differential scanning calorimeter at temperatures between 220 and 280°C. This polycondensation shows an autocatalytic behavior and the kinetics can be modelled by a first order reaction up to complete conversion. This is explained by the low solubility of sodium sulfide in l-methyl-2-pyrrolidone. The concentration of sodium sulfide is regarded as being constant during the whole course of the reaction. The autocatalytic effect can be explained by the increase of the condensation rate constant at the beginning of polycondensation due to the higher reactivity of the oligomers compared to the monomers. The number- and the weight-average molecular weight of the products formed during the course of the polycondensation can be modelled by means of stochastic methods. A simple model with only two different rate constants of the condensation process is assumed. The concentration of sodium sulfide in the reactive phase is found to be 2–5% of the value of dichlorobenzene at the beginning of the reaction and remains constant nearly until the end of polycondensation.