Search results for: sieving particle size

Authors: Angelis P. Barlampas, Ghita Bianca-Andreea

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A case of a prostatic midline cyst is presented, which was found during a routine general ultrasound examination in an otherwise healthy young man. The incidence of prostatic cysts discovered in suprapubic ultrasound examination has constantly been rising over the previous decades. Despite the fact that the majority of them are benign, a significant amount is related to symptoms, such as pain, dysuria, infertility, and even cancer. The wide use of ultrasound examination and the increasing availability of high-resolution ultrasound systems have rendered new diagnostic challenges. Once upon a time a suprapubic ultrasound was only useful for measuring only the size and the dimensions of the prostatic gland. It did not have the ability to analyze and resolve structures such as cystic or solid nodules. The current machine equipment has managed to depict the imaging characteristics of lesions with high acuity that compares of an intrarectal ultrasound. But the last one is a specialized examination, which demands expertise and good knowledge. Maybe the time has come for the general radiologist and, especially the one who uses suprapubic ultrasound, to pay more attention to the examination of the prostate gland and to take advantage of the superb abilities and the high resolution of the new ultrasound systems. That is exactly, what this case is emphasizing. The incidental discovery of prostatic cysts, and the relatively little available literature about managing them turns them into an interesting theme for exploring and studying. The prostatic cysts are further divided into midline and paramidline cysts, with the first being usually utricle cysts. A more precise categorization is as follows: A midline cystic lesion usually regards a Mullerian duct cyst, a prostatic utricle cyst, an ejaculatory duct cyst, a prostatic cystadenoma, a ductus deferens cyst, and a TURP. On the other hand, a lateral cystic lesion usually refers to a cystic degeneration of benign prostatic hyperplasia, a prostatic retention cyst, a seminal vesicle cyst, diverticular prostatitis, a prostatic abscess, cavitatory prostatitis from chronic prostatitis, a parasitic prostatic cyst, a cystic prostatic carcinoma, e.t.c.

Keywords: prostatic cyst, radiology, benign prostatic lesions, prostatic cancer, suprapubic prostatic ultrasound

Procedia PDF Downloads 58

Authors: Sruthi Ramagiri, Rajeev Taliyan

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Background and purpose: Recent investigations on ischemia and reperfusion injury postulate that transient ischemia of remote organs after a prolonged ischemic insult confers neuroprotection. However, the molecular mechanisms of the remote limb ischemic post-conditioning (RIPOC) are yet to be elucidated. The current study was designed to investigate the protective mechanism of RIPOC against cerebral ischemic injury using global model of stroke. Materials and methods: Global ischemic reperfusion injury (IR) was achieved by 30 minutes ischemia of cerebral artery, followed by reperfusion for 24 hours. Induction of global ischemia was followed by 4 brief episodes (30 seconds each) of ischemia and reperfusion of femoral artery to accomplish RIPOC. 5-Hydroxy Decanoic acid (5-HD), a KATP channel blocker (20 mg/kg) was administered after induction of global ischemia and RIPOC intervention. Results: IR injury ensue significant behavioural deficits as manifested by rotarod performance and spontaneous locomotor activity when compared to sham control. Furthermore, IR injury significantly increased oxidonitrative stress and infarct volume as evidenced by biochemical parameters (MDA, GSH, Nitrite, SOD) and 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining respectively. Moreover, RIPOC intervention ameliorated the behavioural performance, attenuated the oxidative stress and infarct volume when compared to IR injury group. However, administration of 5-HD increased the oxidative stress and infarct size while deteriorating the behavioural parameters when compared to RIPOC group. Conclusions: In a nutshell, cerebral IR injury has significantly induced the neuronal damage, whereas RIPOC intervention decreased the neuronal injury. Moreover, 5-HD abolished the neuroprotection offered by RIPOC indicating the putative role of KATP channel opening in RIPOC against cerebral ischemic injury.

Keywords: RIPOC, cerebral injury, KATP channel, neuroprotection

Procedia PDF Downloads 470

Authors: Camila Parodi, Viviana Letelier, Giacomo Moriconi

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The cement industry is responsible for around a 5% of the CO2 emissions worldwide and considering that concrete is one of the most used materials in construction its total effect is important. An alternative to reduce the environmental impact of concrete production is to incorporate certain amount of residues in the dosing, limiting the replacement percentages to avoid significant losses in the mechanical properties of the final material. Previous researches demonstrate the feasibility of using brick and rust residues, separately, as a cement replacement. This study analyses the variation in the mechanical properties of mortars by incorporating masonry residue composed of clay bricks and cement mortar. In order to improve the mechanical properties of masonry residue, this was subjected to a heat treatment of 650 ° C for four hours and its effect is analyzed in this study. Masonry residue was obtained from a demolition of masonry perimetral walls. The residues were crushed and sieved and the maximum size of particles used was 75 microns. The percentages of cement replaced by masonry residue were 0%, 10%, 20% and 30%. The effect of masonry residue addition and its heat treatment in the mechanical properties of mortars is evaluated through compressive and flexural strength tests after 7, 14 and 28 curing days. Results show that increasing the amount of masonry residue used increases the losses in compressive strength and flexural strength. However, the use of up to a 20% of masonry residue, when a heat treatment is applied, allows obtaining mortars with similar compressive strength to the control mortar. Masonry residues mortars without a heat treatment show losses in compressive strengths between 15% and 27% with respect to masonry residues with heat treatment, which demonstrates the effectiveness of the heat treatment. From this analysis it can be conclude that it is possible to use up to 20% of masonry residue with heat treatment as cement replacement without significant losses in mortars mechanical properties, reducing considerably the environmental impact of the final material.

Keywords: cement replacement, environmental impact, masonry residue, mechanical properties of recycled mortars

Procedia PDF Downloads 392

Authors: Harman Jaggi, David Steinsaltz, Shripad Tuljapurkar

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Understanding the effect of fluctuations on populations is crucial in the context of increasing habitat fragmentation, climate change, and biological invasions, among others. Migration in response to environmental disturbances enables populations to escape unfavorable conditions, benefit from new environments and thereby ride out fluctuations in variable environments. Would populations disperse if there is no uncertainty? Karlin showed in 1982 that when sub-populations experience distinct but fixed growth rates at different sites, greater mixing of populations will lower the overall growth rate relative to the most favorable site. Here we ask if and when environmental variability favors migration over no-migration. Specifically, in random environments, would a small amount of migration increase the overall long-run growth rate relative to the zero migration case? We use analysis and simulations to show how long-run growth rate changes with migration rate. Our results show that when fitness (dis)advantages fluctuate over time across sites, migration may allow populations to benefit from variability. When there is one best site with highest growth rate, the effect of migration on long-run growth rate depends on the difference in expected growth between sites, scaled by the variance of the difference. When variance is large, there is a substantial probability of an inferior site experiencing higher growth rate than its average. Thus, a high variance can compensate for a difference in average growth rates between sites. Positive correlations in growth rates across sites favor less migration. With multiple sites and large fluctuations, the length of shortest cycle (excursion) from the best site (on average) matters, and we explore the interplay between excursion length, average differences between sites and the size of fluctuations. Our findings have implications for conservation biology: even when there are superior sites in a sea of poor habitats, variability and habitat quality across space may be key to determining the importance of migration.

Keywords: migration, variable-environments, random, dispersal, fluctuations, habitat-quality

Procedia PDF Downloads 139

Authors: Gunjita Shami, Noopur Anand

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The pilot run of 50 days was undertaken to test employability potential of people with visual and hearing & speech impairment. Various roles in an apparel manufacturing set up like spreading of fabric for cutting, folding, sealing and labeling cartons, pasting size barcode stickers on packed garments, removing tickets from the garments in the finishing stage were studied. Their performance was quantified basis timesheets for all the days and improvement per day was quantified. Their final day output was compared to that of the able-bodied worker. For example in the carton making activity on day one visually impaired worker was making one box every three minutes which improved to four boxes per minute on day 28 displaying 91.6% improvement compared or an improvement of 3.6% per day which was comparable to the able-bodied seasoned workers, who were making 5 boxes per minute. The performance of persons with hearing and speech impairment in the finishing department was 10% higher than that of able-bodied seasoned workers in the same process. Overall in all the activities the differently abled showed day to day improvement of 65% while able bodied displayed improvement of 52%. On the first day performance of able-bodied worker was 75% better than that of differently abled while on the 50th day it was only 20% better. Therefore the performance of persons with disabilities was found comparable to the able bodied person. The results, though on a small scale, showed a big promise of employment of persons with disability in the apparel industry. Armed with the promising result a full-scale study has been undertaken to identify the roles suitable for certain kind of disability in apparel production, work-aids required to assist the differently abled to improve performance and measures to be undertaken to make production floor 'friendlier' for them. The results have been discussed in this paper which opens doors for integrating differently abled into the world projected and assumed for only able-bodied.

Keywords: apparel sector, differently abled, employability, performance, work-aid

Procedia PDF Downloads 149

Authors: Felix Eyben, Simon Schaffrath, Markus Feldmann

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A building should maximize the potential for use through its design. Therefore, flexible use is always important when designing a steel structure. To create flexibility, steel beams with web openings are increasingly used, because these offer the advantage that cables, pipes and other technical equipment can easily be routed through without detours, allowing for more space-saving and aesthetically pleasing construction. This can also significantly reduce the height of ceiling systems. Until now, beams with web openings were not explicitly considered in the European standard. However, this is to be done with the new EN 1993-1-13, in which design rules for different opening forms are defined. In order to further develop the design concepts, beams with web openings under bending are therefore to be investigated in terms of damage mechanics as part of a German national research project aiming to optimize the verifications for steel structures based on a wider database and a validated damage prediction. For this purpose, first, fundamental factors influencing the load-bearing behavior of girders with web openings under bending load were investigated numerically without taking material damage into account. Various parameter studies were carried out for this purpose. For example, the factors under study were the opening shape, size and position as well as structural aspects as the span length, arrangement of stiffeners and loading situation. The load-bearing behavior is evaluated using resulting load-deformation curves. These results are compared with the design rules and critically analyzed. Experimental tests are also planned based on these results. Moreover, the implementation of damage mechanics in the form of the modified Bai-Wierzbicki model was examined. After the experimental tests will have been carried out, the numerical models are validated and further influencing factors will be investigated on the basis of parametric studies.

Keywords: damage mechanics, finite element, steel structures, web openings

Procedia PDF Downloads 173

Authors: Anila Xhahysa, Migena Ceyhan, Neki Kuka, Klajdi Qoshi, Damiano Koxhaj

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The seismic event catalog has been updated in the framework of a bilateral project supported by the Central European Investment Fund and with the extensive support of Global Earthquake Model Foundation to update Albania's national seismic hazard model. The earthquake catalogue prepared within this project covers the Western Balkan area limited by 38.0° - 48°N, 12.5° - 24.5°E and includes 41,806 earthquakes that occurred in the region between 510 BC and 2022. Since the moment magnitude characterizes the earthquake size accurately and the selected ground motion prediction equations for the seismic hazard assessment employ this scale, it was chosen as the uniform magnitude scale for the catalogue. Therefore, proxy values of moment magnitude had to be obtained by using new magnitude conversion equations between the local and other magnitude types to this unified scale. The Global Centroid Moment Tensor Catalogue was considered the most authoritative for moderate to large earthquakes for moment magnitude reports; hence it was used as a reference for calibrating other sources. The best fit was observed when compared to some regional agencies, whereas, with reports of moment magnitudes from Italy, Greece and Turkey, differences were observed in all magnitude ranges. For teleseismic magnitudes, to account for the non-linearity of the relationships, we used the exponential model for the derivation of the regression equations. The obtained regressions for the surface wave magnitude and short-period body-wave magnitude show considerable differences with Global Earthquake Model regression curves, especially for low magnitude ranges. Moreover, a conversion relation was obtained between the local magnitude of Albania and the corresponding moment magnitude as reported by the global and regional agencies. As errors were present in both variables, the Deming regression was used.

Keywords: regression, seismic catalogue, local magnitude, tele-seismic magnitude, moment magnitude

Procedia PDF Downloads 70

Authors: Abraham Kidane

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The study aims at assessing the prospects and challenges of community-based ecotourism development in and around the Guassa Community Conservation Area (GCCA) for the establishment of alternative sources of livelihood for local people and the conservation of natural resources. The Guassa area and its surrounding area are endowed with natural, cultural, and religious tourism resources. The study is descriptive in its design and uses both qualitative and quantitative research methods. Interviews and questionnaires were used as an instrument for data gathering. The interview was undertaken with government officials, NGO officials, and experts, with three local community representatives. The three Kebeles of Guassa were chosen using purposive sampling because of the fact that they are immediate neighbors to GCCA, and hence, 150 questionnaires were administered proportionally to the household numbers in each kebeles. The perspectives of the MoCT, EWCA, and some Tour Operation agencies were uncovered through questionnaires; for each of them, five questionnaires were administered, and all the returns were used in the analysis. Frequency, percentage, average mean, One Way-ANOVA, and independent t-test are used to analyze quantitative data. The findings revealed that food insecurity is commonplace in the study area. The local people's reliance on the conservation area’s resources has been increasing, and the area size is also dwindling from time to time. On the other hand, the local people's levels of awareness about Community-Based Ecotourism (CBET) are low. In addition, the local capacity in relation to conservation and CBET development is also low, even though there is inadequate training offered by the government and NGOs. In general, tourism is not yet considered an alternative source of income and a means of conserving natural resources. In addition, the challenges for CBET development apart from low awareness level about CBET and low capacity, poor infrastructure, and poor tourism facilities were also identified as challenges in the study area.

Keywords: ecotourism, CBET, alternative livelihood, conservation

Procedia PDF Downloads 99

Authors: Latha Krishnan, Andrew Cobley

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Epoxy resin is most widely used as matrices for composites of aerospace, automotive and electronic applications due to its outstanding mechanical properties. These properties are chiefly predetermined by the chemical structure of the prepolymer and type of hardener but can also be varied by the processing conditions such as prepolymer and hardener mixing, degassing and curing conditions. In this research, the effect of degassing on the curing behaviour and the void occurrence is experimentally evaluated for epoxy /anhydride resin system. The epoxy prepolymer was mixed with an anhydride hardener and accelerator in an appropriate quantity. In order to investigate the effect of degassing on the curing behaviour and void content of the resin, the uncured resin samples were prepared using three different methods: 1) no degassing 2) degassing on prepolymer and 3) degassing on mixed solution of prepolymer and hardener with an accelerator. The uncured resins were tested in differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) to observe the changes in curing behaviour of the above three resin samples by analysing factors such as gel temperature, peak cure temperature and heat of reaction/heat flow in curing. Additionally, the completely cured samples were tested in DSC to identify the changes in the glass transition temperature (Tg) between the three samples. In order to evaluate the effect of degassing on the void content and morphology changes in the cured epoxy resin, the fractured surfaces of cured epoxy resin were examined under the scanning electron microscope (SEM). Also, the changes in the mechanical properties of the cured resin were studied by three-point bending test. It was found that degassing at different stages of resin mixing had significant effects on properties such as glass transition temperature, the void content and void size of the epoxy/anhydride resin system. For example, degassing (vacuum applied on the mixed resin) has shown higher glass transition temperature (Tg) with lower void content.

Keywords: anhydride epoxy, curing behaviour, degassing, void occurrence

Procedia PDF Downloads 347

Authors: Razmik Atabekyan, V. Atabekyan

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This article discusses a new alternative method for determination of seismic loads on buildings, based on resistance of structures to deformations of vibrations. The basic principles for determining seismic loads by spectral method were developed in 40… 50ies of the last century and further have been improved to pursuit true assessments of seismic effects. The base of the existing methods to determine seismic loads is response spectrum or dynamicity coefficient β (norms of RF), which are not definitively established. To this day there is no single, universal method for the determination of seismic loads and when trying to apply the norms of different countries, significant discrepancies between the results are obtained. On the other hand there is a contradiction of the results of macro seismic surveys of strong earthquakes with the principle of the calculation based on accelerations. It is well-known, on soft soils there is an increase of destructions (mainly due to large displacements), even though the accelerations decreases. Obviously, the seismic impacts are transmitted to the building through foundation, but paradoxically, the existing methods do not even include foundation data. Meanwhile acceleration of foundation of the building can differ several times from the acceleration of the ground. During earthquakes each building has its own peculiarities of behavior, depending on the interaction between the soil and the foundations, their dynamic characteristics and many other factors. In this paper we consider a new, alternative method of determining the seismic loads on buildings, without the use of response spectrum. The following main conclusions: 1) Seismic loads are revealed at the foundation level, which leads to redistribution and reduction of seismic loads on structures. 2) The proposed method is universal and allows determine the seismic loads without the use of response spectrum and any implicit coefficients. 3) The possibility of taking into account important factors such as the strength characteristics of the soils, the size of the foundation, the angle of incidence of the seismic ray and others. 4) Existing methods can adequately determine the seismic loads on buildings only for first form of vibrations, at an average soil conditions.

Keywords: seismic loads, response spectrum, dynamic characteristics of buildings, momentum

Procedia PDF Downloads 505

Authors: Prateek Sharma, Venkata Ramachandrarao Maddali, Kapil Kukreja, B. N. Mohapatra

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Waste management is one of the pressing issues of India. Several initiatives by the Indian Government, including the recent one “Swachhata hi Seva” campaign launched by Prime Minister on 15th August 2018, can be one of the game changers to waste disposal. Under this initiative, the government, cement industry and other stakeholders are working hand in hand to dispose of single-use plastics in cement plants in rotary kilns. This is an exemplary effort and a move that establishes the Indian Cement industry as one of the key players in a circular economy. One of the cement plants in Southern India has been mandated by the state government to co-process shredded plastic and refuse-derived fuel (RDF) available in nearby regions as an alternative fuel in their cement plant. The plant has set a target of 25 % thermal substitution rate (TSR) by RDF in the next five years. Most of the cement plants in India and abroad have achieved high TSR through pre calciner firing. But the cement plant doesn’t have the precalciner and has to achieve this daunting task of 25 % TSR by firing through the main kiln burner. Since RDF is a heterogeneous waste with the change in fuel quality, it is difficult to achieve this task; hence plant has to resort to firing some portion of RDF/plastics at kiln inlet. But kiln inlet has reducing conditions as observed during measurements) under baseline condition. The combustion behavior of RDF of different sizes at different firing locations in riser was studied with the help of a computational fluid dynamics tool. It has been concluded that RDF above 50 mm size results in incomplete combustion leading to CO formation. Moreover, best firing location appears to be in the bottom portion of the kiln riser.

Keywords: kiln inlet, plastics, refuse derived fuel, thermal substitution rate

Procedia PDF Downloads 127

Authors: S. Abdolvahab Samavi, Kobra Hajializadeh, S. Abdolhadi Samavi

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Nursing is a critical work that that can effect on the health of the society. A parenting style is a psychological construct demonstrating standard policies that parents use in their child rearing. The quality of parenting is more critical than the quantity spend with the child. Also, marital Conflict resolution is conceptualized as the methods and processes involved in facilitating the peaceful ending of conflict between couples. Both of these variables were affected by job status in nurses. Aim of this study was to compare the Marital Conflict Resolution and Parenting Styles between Nurses with fixed and rotating shifts in public hospitals of Bandar Abbas, Iran. Statistical population includes all married Nurses in hospitals of Bandar Abbas (900 Persons). For sample size estimation, the Morgan table was used, 270 people were selected by random sampling method. Conflict solution styles and Baumrind parenting styles questionnaire were used for collecting data about study variables. For analysis of data, descriptive and inferential statistics were used. Results showed there was significant difference between both groups in conflict solution styles. According to study results, nurses with fixed shifts had an effective conflict solution styles. Also, there was significant difference between both groups in Parenting Styles. According to study results, nurses with fixed shifts had an effective parenting style. Totally, results of this study showed that job status of nurses affected on Marital Conflict Resolution and Parenting Styles of nurses. Managers of health system should be consider these issues about work of nurses and if possible, married nurses employed at fixed day (vs. rotating) shift.

Keywords: marital conflict resolution procedures, parenting styles, nurses with fixed and rotating shifts, public hospitals

Procedia PDF Downloads 424

Authors: Essang Anwana Onuntuei, Chinyere Blessing Azunwoke

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The study focused on probing the effectiveness of online consumer privacy and protection laws, electronic transaction laws, privacy and data protection laws, and cybercrime legislation amid frequent cyber-attacks and malware types worldwide. An empirical analysis was engaged to uncover ties and causations between the stringency and implementation of these legal structures and the prevalence of cyber threats. A deliberate sample of seventy-eight countries (thirteen countries each from six continents) was chosen as sample size to study the challenges linked with trending regulations and possible panoramas for improving cybersecurity through refined legal approaches. Findings establish if the frequency of cyber-attacks and malware types vary significantly. Also, the result proved that various cybercrime laws differ statistically, and electronic transactions law does not statistically impact the frequency of cyber-attacks. The result also statistically revealed that the online Consumer Privacy and Protection law does not influence the total number of cyber-attacks. In addition, the results implied that Privacy and Data Protection laws do not statistically impact the total number of cyber-attacks worldwide. The calculated value also proved that cybercrime law does not statistically impact the total number of cyber-attacks. Finally, the computed value concludes that combined multiple cyber laws do not significantly impact the total number of cyber-attacks worldwide. Suggestions were produced based on findings from the study, contributing to the ongoing debate on the validity of legal approaches in battling cybercrime and shielding consumers in the digital age.

Keywords: cybercrime legislation, cyber attacks, consumer privacy and protection law, detection, electronic transaction law, prevention, privacy and data protection law, prohibition, prosecution

Procedia PDF Downloads 42

Authors: Freyedon Ahmadi

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Corporate citizenship is considered as one of the most discussed topics in the developed countries, in which a citizen considers a Corporate just like a usual citizen with every civil right as respectful for corporate as for actual citizens, and in return citizens expect that corporate would pay a reciprocal respect to them. The current study’s purpose is to identify the impact of the current state of corporate citizenship along effective factors on its condition on industrial producing units, in order to find an accession plane for corporate citizenship development. In this study corporate citizenship is studied in four dimensions like legal corporate, economical corporate, ethical corporate and voluntary corporate. Moreover, effective factors’ impact on corporate citizenship is explored based on threefold dimensional model: behavioral, structural, and content factors, as well. In this study, 50 corporate of Food industry and of petrochemical industry, along with 200 selected individuals from directors’ board on Tehran province’s scale with stratified random sampling method, are chosen as actuarial sample. If based on functional goal and compilation methods, the present study is a description of correlation type; questionnaire is used for accumulation of initial Data. For Instrument Validity expert’s opinion is used and structural equations and its reliability is qualified by using Cronbach Alpha. The results of this study indicate that close to 70 percent of under survey corporate have not a good condition in corporate citizenship. And all of structural factors, behavioral factors, contextual factors, have a great deal of impression and impact on the advent corporate citizenship behavior in the producing Units. Among the behavioral factors, social responsibility; among structural factors, organic structure and human centered orientation, medium size, high organizational capacity; and among the contextual factors, the clientele’s positive viewpoints toward corporate had the utmost importance in impression on under survey Producing units.

Keywords: corporate citizenship, structural factors, behavioral factors, contextual factors, producing units

Procedia PDF Downloads 230

Authors: Leda Maria Costa Pereira, Maria Denise Lopes, Nucharin Songsasen

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Mammalian ovaries contain thousands of follicles that eventually degenerate or die after culture in vitro. Caspase-3 is a key enzyme that regulating cell death. Our objective was to examine the influence of anti-apoptotic drug Z-VAD-FMK (pan-caspase inhibitor) on in vitro viability of dog follicles within the ovarian cortex. Ovaries were obtained from prepubertal (age, 2.5–6 months) and adult (age, 8 months to 2 years) bitches and ovarian cortical fragments were recovered. The cortices were then incubated on 1.5% (w/v) agarose gel blocks within a 24-wells culture plate (three cortical pieces/well) containing Minimum Essential Medium Eagle - Alpha Modification (Alpha MEM) supplemented with 4.2 µg/ml insulin, 3.8 µg/ml transferrin, 5 ng/ml selenium, 2 mM L-glutamine, 100 µg/mL of penicillin G sodium, 100 µg/mL of streptomycin sulfate, 0.05 mM ascorbic acid, 10 ng/mL of FSH and 0.1% (w/v) polyvinyl alcohol in humidified atmosphere of 5% CO2 and 5% O2. The cortices were divided in six treatment groups: 1) 10 ng/mL EGF (EGF V0); 2) 10 ng/mL of EGF plus 1 mM Z-VAD-FMK (EGF V1); 3) 10 ng/mL of EGF and 10 mM Z-VAD-FMK (EGF V10); 4) 1 mM Z-VAD-FMK; 5) 10 mM Z-VAD-FMK and (6) no EGF and Z-VAD-FMK supplementation. Ovarian follicles within the tissues were processed for histology and assessed for follicle density, viability (based on morphology) and diameter immediately after collection (Control) or after 3 or 7 days of in vitro incubation. Comparison among fresh and culture treatment group was performed using ANOVA test. There were no differences (P > 0.05) in follicle density and viability among different culture treatments. However, there were differences in this parameter between culture days. Specifically, culturing tissue for 7 days resulted in significant reduction in follicle viability and density, regardless of treatments. We found a difference in size between culture days when these follicles were cultured using 10 mM Z-VAD-FMK or 10 ng/mL EGF (EGF V0). In sum, the finding demonstrated that Z-VAD-FMK at the dosage used in the present study does not provide the protective effect to ovarian tissue during in vitro culture. Future studies should explore different Z-VAD-FMK dosages or other anti-apoptotic agent, such as surviving in protecting ovarian follicles against cell death.

Keywords: anti apoptotic drug, bitches, follicles, Z-VAD-FMK

Procedia PDF Downloads 361

Authors: Mahzabin Afroz, Indubhushan Patnaikuni, Srikanth Venkatesan

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It is well-known that fly ash can be used in high volume as a partial replacement of cement to get beneficial effects on concrete. High volume fly ash (HVFA) concrete is currently emerging as a popular option to strengthen by fiber. Although studies have supported the use of fibers with fly ash, a unified model along with the incorporation into finite element software package to estimate the maximum flexural loads need to be developed. In this study, nonlinear finite element analysis of steel fiber reinforced high strength HVFA concrete beam under static loadings was conducted to investigate their failure modes in terms of ultimate load. First of all, the experimental investigation of mechanical properties of high strength HVFA concrete was done and validates with developed numerical model with the appropriate modeling of element size and mesh by ANSYS 16.2. To model the fiber within the concrete, three-dimensional random fiber distribution was simulated by spherical coordinate system. Three types of high strength HVFA concrete beams were analyzed reinforced with 0.5, 1 and 1.5% volume fractions of steel fibers with specific mechanical and physical properties. The result reveals that the use of nonlinear finite element analysis technique and three-dimensional random fiber orientation exhibited fairly good agreement with the experimental results of flexural strength, load deflection and crack propagation mechanism. By utilizing this improved model, it is possible to determine the flexural behavior of different types and proportions of steel fiber reinforced HVFA concrete beam under static load. So, this paper has the originality to predict the flexural properties of steel fiber reinforced high strength HVFA concrete by numerical simulations.

Keywords: finite element analysis, high volume fly ash, steel fibers, spherical coordinate system

Procedia PDF Downloads 138

Authors: P. Karthick, K. Mahesh

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Video has become an increasingly significant component of our digital everyday contact. With the advancement of greater contents and shows of the resolution, its significant volume poses serious obstacles to the objective of receiving, distributing, compressing, and revealing video content of high quality. In this paper, we propose the primary beginning to complete a deep video compression model that jointly upgrades all video compression components. The video compression method involves splitting the video into frames, comparing the images using convolutional neural networks (CNN) to remove duplicates, repeating the single image instead of the duplicate images by recognizing and detecting minute changes using generative adversarial network (GAN) and recorded with long short-term memory (LSTM). Instead of the complete image, the small changes generated using GAN are substituted, which helps in frame level compression. Pixel wise comparison is performed using K-nearest neighbours (KNN) over the frame, clustered with K-means, and singular value decomposition (SVD) is applied for each and every frame in the video for all three color channels [Red, Green, Blue] to decrease the dimension of the utility matrix [R, G, B] by extracting its latent factors. Video frames are packed with parameters with the aid of a codec and converted to video format, and the results are compared with the original video. Repeated experiments on several videos with different sizes, duration, frames per second (FPS), and quality results demonstrate a significant resampling rate. On average, the result produced had approximately a 10% deviation in quality and more than 50% in size when compared with the original video.

Keywords: video compression, K-means clustering, convolutional neural network, generative adversarial network, singular value decomposition, pixel visualization, stochastic gradient descent, frame per second extraction, RGB channel extraction, self-detection and deciding system

Procedia PDF Downloads 187

Authors: N. A. Kharisa, I. Wulandari, R. Narendratama, M. I. Faisal, K. Kirana, R. Zipora, I. Arfiansah, I. Suyanto

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Acquisition of geophysical survey with magnetic method has been done in manifestation of geothermalat Candi Umbul, Grabag, Magelang, Central Java Province on 10-12 May 2013. This objective research is interpretation to interpret structural geology that control geothermal system in CandiUmbul area. The research has been finished with area size 1,5 km x 2 km and measurement space of 150 m. And each point of line space survey is 150 m using PPM Geometrics model G-856. Data processing was started with IGRF and diurnal variation correction to get total magnetic field anomaly. Then, advance processing was done until reduction to pole, upward continuation, and residual anomaly. That results become next interpretation in qualitative step. It is known that the biggest object position causes low anomaly located in central of area survey that comes from hot spring manifestation and demagnetization zone that indicates the existence of heat source activity. Then, modeling the anomaly map was used for quantitative interpretation step. The result of modeling is rock layers and geological structure model that can inform about the geothermal system. And further information from quantitative interpretations can be interpreted about lithology susceptibility. And lithology susceptibilities are andesiteas heat source has susceptibility value of (k= 0.00014 emu), basaltic as alteration rock (k= 0.0016 emu), volcanic breccia as reservoir rock (k= 0.0026 emu), andesite porfirtic as cap rock (k= 0.004 emu), lava andesite (k= 0.003 emu), and alluvium (k= 0.0007 emu). The hot spring manifestation is controlled by the normal fault which becomes a weak zone, easily passed by hot water which comes from the geothermal reservoir.

Keywords: geological structure, geothermal system, magnetic, susceptibility

Procedia PDF Downloads 384

Authors: Ali Mohammed Yimer, Ayalew H. Assen, Youssef Belmabkhout

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This study delves into sustainable approaches for valorizing phosphatic wastes, specifically phosphate mining wastes and phosphogypsum, which are byproducts of phosphate industries and pose significant environmental challenges due to their accumulation. We propose a unified strategic synthesis method aimed at converting these wastes into hetero-functional porous materials. Our approach involves isolating the primary components of phosphatic wastes, such as CaO, SiO2 and Al2O3 to fabricate functional porous materials falling into two distinct classes. Firstly, alumina and silica components are extracted or isolated to produce zeolites (including CAN, GIS, SOD, FAU, and LTA), characterized by a Si/Al ratio of less than 5. Secondly, residual calcium is utilized to synthesize calcium-based metal–organic frameworks (Ca-MOFs) employing various organic linkers like Ca-BDC, Ca-BTC and Ca-TCPB (SBMOF-2), thereby providing flexibility in material design. Characterization techniques including XRD, SEM-EDX, FTIR, and TGA-MS affirm successful material assembly, while sorption analyses using N2, CO2, and H2O demonstrate the porosity of the materials. Particularly noteworthy is the water/alcohol separation potential exhibited by the Ca-BTC MOF, owing to its optimal pore aperture size (∼3.4 Å). To enhance replicability and scalability, detailed protocols for each synthesis step and specific conditions for each process are provided, ensuring that the methodology can be easily reproduced and scaled up for industrial applications. This synthetic transformation approach represents a valorization route for converting phosphatic wastes into extended porous structures, promising significant environmental and economic benefits.

Keywords: calcium-based metal-organic frameworks, low-silica zeolites, porous materials, sustainable synthesis, valorization

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Authors: Emmanuelle Maria, Pierre Crançon, Gaëtane Lespes

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The knowledge of uranium migration processes within underground environments is a major issue in the environmental risk assessment associated with nuclear activities. This process is identified as strongly controlled by adsorption mechanisms, thus leading to strongly delayed migration paths. Colloidal ligands are likely to significantly increase the mobility of uranium in natural environments. The ability of colloids to mobilize and transport uranium depends on their origin, their nature, their structure, their stability and their reactivity with uranium. Thus, the colloidal mobilization and transport properties are often described as site-specific. In this work, the colloidal phases of two leachates obtained from two different horizons of the same podzolic soil were characterized with a speciation approach. For this purpose, a multi-technique strategy was used, based on Field-Flow Fractionation coupled to Ultraviolet, Multi-Angle Light Scattering and Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (AF4-UV-MALS-ICPMS), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Electrospray Ionization Orbitrap Mass Spectrometry (ESI-Orbitrap), and Time-Resolved Laser Fluorescence Spectroscopy (TRLFS-EEM). Thus, elemental composition, size distribution, microscopic structure, colloidal stability and possible organic and/or inorganic content of colloids were determined, as well as their association with uranium. The leachates exhibit differences in their physical and chemical characteristics, mainly in the nature of organic matter constituents. The multi-technique investigation strategy used provides original data about colloidal phase structure and composition, offering a new vision of the way the uranium can be mobilized and transported in the considered soil. This information is a real significant contribution opening the way to our understanding and predicting of the colloidal transport.

Keywords: colloids, migration, multi-technique, speciation, transport, uranium

Procedia PDF Downloads 144

Authors: Nour S. Abdelrahman, Seunghyun Hong, Hassan A. Arafat, Daniel Choi, Faisal Al Marzooqi

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Abstract—The advancement of lithium extraction methods from water sources, particularly saltwater brine, is gaining prominence in the lithium recovery industry due to its cost-effectiveness. Traditional techniques like recrystallization, chemical precipitation, and solvent extraction for metal recovery from seawater or brine are energy-intensive and exhibit low efficiency. Moreover, the extensive use of organic solvents poses environmental concerns. As a result, there's a growing demand for environmentally friendly lithium recovery methods. Membrane-based separation technology has emerged as a promising alternative, offering high energy efficiency and ease of continuous operation. In our study, we explored the potential of lithium-selective sieve channels constructed from layers of 2D graphene oxide and MXene (transition metal carbides and nitrides), integrated with surface – SO₃₋ groups. The arrangement of these 2D sheets creates interplanar spacing ranging from 0.3 to 0.8 nm, which forms a barrier against multivalent ions while facilitating lithium-ion movement through nano capillaries. The introduction of the sulfonate group provides an effective pathway for Li⁺ ions, with a calculated binding energy of Li⁺ – SO³⁻ at – 0.77 eV, the lowest among monovalent species. These modified membranes demonstrated remarkably rapid transport of Li⁺ ions, efficiently distinguishing them from other monovalent and divalent species. This selectivity is achieved through a combination of size exclusion and varying binding affinities. The graphene oxide channels in these membranes showed exceptional inter-cation selectivity, with a Li⁺/Mg²⁺ selectivity ratio exceeding 104, surpassing commercial membranes. Additionally, these membranes achieved over 94% rejection of MgCl₂.

Keywords: ion permeation, lithium extraction, membrane-based separation, nanotechnology

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Authors: Cholpassorn Sitthiwarongchai, Chutikarn Sriviboon

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The two primary objectives of this research were (1) to examine the current knowledge and actual circumstance of agricultural workers about mangosteen product processing; and (2) to analyze and evaluate ways to develop capacity of mangosteen product processing. The population of this study was 15,125 people who work in the agricultural sector, in this context, mangosteen production, in the eastern part of Thailand that included Chantaburi Province, Rayong Province, Trad Province and Pracheenburi Province. The sample size based on Yamane’s calculation with 95% reliability was therefore 392 samples. Mixed method was employed included questionnaire and focus group discussion with Connoisseurship Model used in order to collect quantitative and qualitative data. Key informants were used in the focus group including agricultural business owners, academic people in agro food processing, local academics, local community development staff, OTOP subcommittee, and representatives of agro processing industry professional organizations. The study found that the majority of the respondents agreed with a high level (in five-rating scale) towards most of variables of knowledge management in agro food processing. The result of the current knowledge and actual circumstance of agricultural human resource in an arena of mangosteen product processing revealed that mostly, the respondents agreed at a high level to establish 7 variables. The guideline to developing the body of knowledge in order to enhance the capacity of the agricultural workers in mangosteen product processing was delivered in the focus group discussion. The discussion finally contributed to an idea to produce manuals for mangosteen product processing methods, with 4 products chosen: (1) mangosteen soap, (2) mangosteen juice, (3) mangosteen toffee, and (4) mangosteen preserves or jam.

Keywords: capacity enhancement, agricultural workers, mangosteen product processing, marketing management

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Authors: Raham El-Kahlout, Hadi Yassin, Asmaa Athani, Marwan Abou Madi, Gheyath Nasrallah

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Background: Since its first isolation in September 2012, Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) has diffused across 27 countries infecting more than two thousand individuals with a high case fatality rate. MERS-CoV–specific antibodies are widely found in Dromedary camel along with viral shedding of similar viruses detected in human at same region, suggesting that MERS epidemiology may be central role by camel. Interestingly, MERS-CoV has also been also reported to be asymptomatic or to cause influenza-like mild illnesses. Therefore, in a country like Qatar (bordered Saudi Arabia), where camels are widely spread, serological surveys are important to explore the role of camels in MERS-CoV transmission. However, widespread strategic serological surveillances of MERS-CoV among populations, particularly in endemic country, are infrequent. In the absence of clear epidemiological view, cross-sectional MERS antibody surveillances in human populations are of global concern. Method: We performed a comparative serological screening of 4719 healthy blood donors, 135 baseline case contacts (high risk individual), and four MERS confirmed patients (by PCR) for the presence of anti-MERS IgG. Initially, samples were screened using Euroimmune anti- MERS-CoV IgG ELISA kit, the only commercial kit available in the market and recommended by the CDC as a screening kit. To confirm ELISA test results, farther serological testing was performed for all borderline and positive samples using two assays; the anti MERS-CoV IgG and IgM Euroimmune indirect immunofluorescent test (IIFT) and pseudoviral particle neutralizing assay (PPNA). Additionally, to test cross reactivity of anti-MERS-CoV antibody with other family members of coronavirus, borderline and positive samples were tested for the presence of the of IgG antibody of the following viruses; SARS, HCoV-229E, HKU1 using the Euroimmune IIFT for SARS and HCoV-229E and ELISA for HKU1. Results: In all of 4858 screened 15 samples [10 donors (0.21%, 10/4719), 1 case contact (0.77 %, 1/130), 3 patients (75%, 3/4)] anti-MERS IgG reactive/borderline samples were seen in ELISA. However, only 7 (0.14%) of them gave positive with in IIFT and only 3 (0.06%) was confirmed by the specific anti-MERS PPNA. One of the interesting findings was, a donor, who was selected in the control group as a negative anti-MERS IgG ELISA, yield reactive for anti-MERS IgM IIFT and was confirmed with the PPNA. Further, our preliminary results showed that there was a strong cross reactivity between anti- MERS-COV IgG with both HCoV-229E or anti-HKU1 IgG, yet, no cross reactivity of SARS were found. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that MERS-CoV is not heavily circulated among the population of Qatar and this is also indicated by low number of confirmed cases (only 18) since 2012. Additionally, the presence of antibody of other pathogenic human coronavirus may cause false positive results of both ELISA and IIFT, which stress the need for more evaluation studies for the available serological assays. Conclusion: this study provides an insight about the epidemiological view for MERS-CoV in Qatar population. It also provides a performance evaluation for the available serologic tests for MERS-CoV in a view of serologic status to other human coronaviruses.

Keywords: seroprevalence, MERS-CoV, healthy individuals, Qatar

Procedia PDF Downloads 269

Authors: Jae-Ho Jang, Jung-Soo Kim, Byung-Jun Kim, Dae-Geun Nam, Uoo-Chang Jung, Yoon-Suk Choi

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Low alloy steels are widely used for pressure vessels, spent fuel storage, and steam generators required to withstand the internal pressure and prevent unexpected failure in nuclear power plants, which these may suffer embrittlement by high levels of radiation and heat for a long period. Therefore, it is important to improve mechanical properties of low alloy steels for the integrity of structure materials at an early stage of fabrication. Recently, it showed that a double austenitizing and tempering (DTA) process resulted in a significant improvement of strength and toughness by refinement of prior austenite grains. In this study, it was investigated that the mechanism of improving mechanical properties according to the change of microstructure by the second fully austenitizing temperature of the DAT process for low alloy steel required the structural integrity. Compared to conventional single austenitizing and tempering (SAT) process, the tensile elongation properties have improved about 5%, DBTTs have obtained result in reduction of about -65℃, and grain size has decreased by about 50% in the DAT process conditions. Grain refinement has crack propagation interference effect due to an increase of the grain boundaries and amount of energy absorption at low temperatures. The higher first austenitizing temperature in the DAT process, the more increase the spheroidized carbides and strengthening the effect of fine precipitates in the ferrite grain. The area ratio of the dimple in the transition area has increased by proportion to the effect of spheroidized carbides. This may the primary mechanisms that can improve low-temperature toughness and elongation while maintaining a similar hardness and strength.

Keywords: double austenitizing, Ductile Brittle transition temperature, grain refinement, heat treatment, low alloy steel, low-temperature toughness

Procedia PDF Downloads 510

Authors: B. Suresh Reddy

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The over dependence on chemical fertilizers for nutrient management in crop production for the last few decades has led to several problems affecting soil health, environment and farmers themselves. Based on the field work done in 2012-13 with 1080 farmers of different size-classes in semi-arid regions of Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh states of India, this paper reveals that the farmers in semi-arid regions of India are actively managing soil fertility and other soil properties through a wide range of practices that are based on local resources and knowledge. It also highlights the socio-economic web woven around these soil fertility management practices. This study highlights the contribution of organic matter by traditional soil fertility management practices in maintaining the soil health. Livestock has profound influence on the soil fertility enhancement through supply of organic manure. Empirical data of this study has clearly revealed how farmers’ soil fertility management options are being undermined by government policies that give more priority to chemical fertiliser-based strategies. Based on the findings it is argued that there should be a 'level playing field' for both organic and inorganic soil fertility management methods by promoting and supporting farmers in using organic methods. There is a need to provide credit to farmers for adopting his choice of soil fertility management methods which suits his socio-economic conditions and that best suits the long term productivity of soils. The study suggests that the government policies related to soil fertility management must be enabling, creating the conditions for development based more on locally available resources and local skills and knowledge. This will not only keep Indian soils in healthy condition but also support the livelihoods of millions of people, especially the small and marginal farmers.

Keywords: livestock, organic matter, small farmers, soil fertility

Procedia PDF Downloads 174

Authors: Jasmina Pluncevic Gligoroska, Sanja Manchevska, Vaska Antevska, Lidija Todorovska, Beti Dejanova, Sunchica Petrovska, Ivanka Karagjozova, Elizabeta Sivevska

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Introduction: Anthropometric measurements are integral part of regular medical examinations of athletes. In addition to the quantification of the size of the body, these measurements indicate the quality of the physical status, because of its association with sports performance. The purpose of this study was to examine whether there are differences in anthropometric parameters and body mass components in female athletes who participate in two different types of sports. Methods: A total of 27 athletes, 15 handball players and 12 basketball players, at the average age of 22.7 years (age span from 17 to 30 years) entered the study. Anthropometric method by Matiegka was used for determination of body components. Sixteen anthropometric measures were taken: height, weight, four diameters of joints, four circumferences of limbs and six skin folds. Results: Handball players were 169.6±6.7 cm tall and 63,75±7.5 kg heavy. Their average relative muscle mass (absolute mass in kg) was 51% (32.5kg), while bone component was 16.8% (10.7kg) and fat component was 14.3% (7.74kg). The basketball players were 177.4±8.2cm tall and 70.37±12.1kg heavy. Their average relative muscle mass (absolute mass in kg) was 51.9 % (36.6kg), bone component was 16.37% (11.5kg) and fat component was 15.36% (9.4kg). The comparison of anthropometric values showed that basketball players were statistically significantly higher and heavier than handball players (p<0.05). Statistically significant difference (p<0.05) was observed in the range of upper leg circumference (higher in basketball players) and the forearm skin fold (higher in the basketball players). Conclusion: Handball players and basketball players significantly differed in basic anthropometric measures (height and weight), but the body components had almost identical values. The anthropometric measurements that have been taken did not show significant difference between handball and basketball female players despite the different physical demands of the games.

Keywords: anthropometry, body components, basketball, handball female players

Procedia PDF Downloads 463

Authors: Sarah Fitzpatrick, Hossein Zare-Behtash, Konstantinos Kontis

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Traditionally, the focus of horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) blade aerodynamic optimisation studies has been the outer working region of the blade. However, recent works seek to better understand, and thus improve upon, the performance of the inboard blade region to enhance power production, maximise load reduction and better control the wake behaviour. This paper presents the design considerations and characterisation of a wind turbine wind tunnel model devised to further the understanding and fundamental definition of horizontal axis wind turbine root vortex shedding and interactions. Additionally, the application of passive and active flow control mechanisms – vortex generators and plasma actuators – to allow for the manipulation and mitigation of unsteady aerodynamic behaviour at the blade inboard section is investigated. A static, modular blade wind turbine model has been developed for use in the University of Glasgow’s de Havilland closed return, low-speed wind tunnel. The model components - which comprise of a half span blade, hub, nacelle and tower - are scaled using the equivalent full span radius, R, for appropriate Mach and Strouhal numbers, and to achieve a Reynolds number in the range of 1.7x105 to 5.1x105 for operational speeds up to 55m/s. The half blade is constructed to be modular and fully dielectric, allowing for the integration of flow control mechanisms with a focus on plasma actuators. Investigations of root vortex shedding and the subsequent wake characteristics using qualitative – smoke visualisation, tufts and china clay flow – and quantitative methods – including particle image velocimetry (PIV), hot wire anemometry (HWA), and laser Doppler anemometry (LDA) – were conducted over a range of blade pitch angles 0 to 15 degrees, and Reynolds numbers. This allowed for the identification of shed vortical structures from the maximum chord position, the transitional region where the blade aerofoil blends into a cylindrical joint, and the blade nacelle connection. Analysis of the trailing vorticity interactions between the wake core and freestream shows the vortex meander and diffusion is notably affected by the Reynold’s number. It is hypothesized that the shed vorticity from the blade root region directly influences and exacerbates the nacelle wake expansion in the downstream direction. As the design of inboard blade region form is, by necessity, driven by function rather than aerodynamic optimisation, a study is undertaken for the application of flow control mechanisms to manipulate the observed vortex phenomenon. The designed model allows for the effective investigation of shed vorticity and wake interactions with a focus on the accurate geometry of a root region which is representative of small to medium power commercial HAWTs. The studies undertaken allow for an enhanced understanding of the interplay of shed vortices and their subsequent effect in the near and far wake. This highlights areas of interest within the inboard blade area for the potential use of passive and active flow control devices which contrive to produce a more desirable wake quality in this region.

Keywords: vortex shedding, wake interactions, wind tunnel model, wind turbine

Procedia PDF Downloads 235

Authors: Burcu Ileri, Deniz Sanliyuksel Yucel, Onder Ayyildiz

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The oxidation of pyrite in water results in the formation of acid mine drainage, which typically forms extremely acid mine lake (AML) in the depression areas of abandoned Etili open-pit coal mine site, Northwest Turkey. Nine acid mine lakes of various sizes have been located in the Etili coal mine site. Hayirtepe AML is one of the oldest lake having a mean pH value of 2.9 and conductivity of 4550 μS/cm, and containing elevated concentrations of Al, B, Ba, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Ni, Pb, and Zn. The water quality of the lake has been deteriorated due to its high chemical composition, in particular, increasing heavy metal pollution. In this study, fly ash (FA), a coal combustion by-product from fluidized bed thermal power plant in the northwestern part of Turkey, was used as an adsorbent for the treatment of Hayirtepe AML. The FA is a relatively abundant and cost effective material, but its use in adsorption processes usually require excessive adsorbent doses. To increase adsorption efficiency and lower the adsorbent dose, we modified the FA by means of ultrasonic treatment (20 kHz and 40 kHz). The images of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) have demonstrated that ultrasonic treatment not only decreased the size of ash particles but also created pits and cracks on their surfaces which in turn led to a significant increase in the BET surface area. Both FA and modified fly ash were later tested for the removal of heavy metals from the AML. The effect of various operating parameters such as ultrasonic power, pH, ash dose, and adsorption contact time were examined to obtain the optimum conditions for the treatment process. The results have demonstrated that removal of heavy metals by ultrasound-modified fly ash requires much shorter treatment times and lower adsorbent doses than those attained by the unmodified fly ash. This research was financially supported by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK), (Project no: 116Y510).

Keywords: acid mine lake, heavy metal, modified fly ash, ultrasonic treatment

Procedia PDF Downloads 198

Authors: Marta Kozuń, Krystian Toczewski, Sylwester Gerus, Justyna Wolicka, Kamila Boberek, Jarosław Filipiak, Dariusz Patkowski

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Long gap esophageal atresia is a congenital defect and is a challenge for pediatric surgeons all over the world. There are different surgical techniques in use to treat atresia. One of them is esophageal elongation but the optimal suture placement technique to achieve maximum elongation with low-risk complications is still unknown. The aim of the study was to characterize the process of esophageal elongation from the biomechanical point of view. Esophagi of white Pekin Duck was used as a model based on the size of this animal which is similar to a newborn (2.5-4kg). The specimens were divided into two groups: the control group (CG) and the group with sutures (SG). The esophagi of the control group were mounted in the grips of the MTS Tytron 250 testing machine and tensile test until rupture was performed. The loading speed during the test was 10mm/min. Then the SG group was tested. Each esophagus was cut into two equal parts and that were fused together using surgical sutures. The distance between both esophagus parts was 20mm. Ten both ends were mounted on the same testing machine and the tensile test with the same parameters was conducted. For all specimens, force and elongation were recorded. The biomechanical properties, i.e., the maximal force and maximal elongation, were determined on the basis of force-elongation curves. The maximal elongation was determined at the point of maximal force. The force achieved with the suture group was 10.1N±1.9N and 50.3N±11.6N for the control group. The highest elongation was also obtained for the control group: 18mm±3mm vs. 13.5mm ±2.4mm for the suture group. The presented study expands the knowledge of elongation of esophagi. It is worth emphasizing that the duck esophagus differs from the esophagus of a newborn, i.e., its wall lacks striated muscle cells. This is why the parts of animal esophagi used in the research are may characterized by different biomechanical properties in comparison with newborn tissue.

Keywords: long gap atresia treatment, esophageal elongation, biomechanical properties, soft tissue

Procedia PDF Downloads 100

Authors: Iwona Kasior

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Purpose: Pelvic organ prolapse is the descent of pelvic organs into the vaginal opening. Currently, few trials have been conducted to determine the influence of pelvic floor muscle training in decreasing stage or symptoms associated with pelvic organ prolapse. The purpose of this case study is to determine whether pelvic floor muscle training can decrease the stage of pelvic organ prolapse and related symptoms. Case Presentation: This is the case of a 55-year-old female; recently diagnosed with midline cystocele, stage three. She has undergone corrective surgery that failed. She has now resorted to managing the condition with a home exercise regimen of voluntary pelvic floor muscle contractions, topical vaginal crème prescribed by her gynecologist, and slight lifestyle modifications. Methods: The patient was treated by a physical therapist for evaluation, vaginal exam, and educated in the ‘knack’ maneuver, lifestyle modifications, and proper technique of performing pelvic floor muscle contractions. The subject continued with a home exercise program with a specific regimen of pelvic floor muscle contractions and topical vaginal crème. Outcome: As determined by her physical therapist and the subject, her pelvic floor muscle strength had increased following the pelvic floor muscle training regimen and the use of the ‘knack’ maneuver. The subject reported a small decrease in the size of bulging prolapse and related symptoms of dryness, odor, vaginal discomfort, and the sensation of descent. Conclusion: Pelvic floor muscle training helped to lessen the degree of the prolapse, but not significantly enough to decrease the diagnosed stage.

Keywords: Kegel exercises, pelvic floor, pelvic organ prolapse, physical therapy

Procedia PDF Downloads 194