Psicologia e pobreza no Brasil: limites e perspectivas da produção de conhecimento e atuação do psicólogo

Poverty is a main theme in Brazil: according to official data, poverty reachs 70 million Brazilian people, and, between them, 20 million are unable to provide their basic needs. Psychology, as a welfare profession, and given its historical concerns with social actions, could not be away from this theme. Based on this, we ask: Which answers Psychology can provide, toward both the production of knowledge and the practice about social reality? The purpose of this paper is to investigate the psychological scientific production on poverty and the propositions, limits and impacts of psychological actions. We carried out a three stages documental based study analyzing Brazilian psychological literature: (1) online databases survey (312 papers identified); (2) 109 scientific abstracts accessed and coded; (3) selected 47 scientific papers read and analyzed. Results are presented in three sections: general description of the selected scientific production; characterization of the role of poverty in psychological literature; and themes presented at the papers. The academic production about the main theme (poverty) is dispersed, heterogeneous, and related to other fields of knowledge. Poverty is presented at these studies in many ways, such as: a criterium for sample design and the assessment of its psychological impacts; reports on professional experience with poor population; descriptions of this population group; relationship between poverty and others social themes; developmental and learning problems of poor children. In general, it appears that Psychology has improved the scientific production and experiences with poor population. However, it is necessary to build up theories and technical innovations and also to understand structural boundaries for professional practice with this population group

Síntese, caracterização e avaliação catalítica do silicoaluminofosfato SAPO-11 sulfatado

Due to environmental restrictions around the world, clean catalytic technology are of fundamental importance in the petrochemical industry and refineries. Creating the face of this a great interest in replacing the liquid acids for solid acids, so as molecular sieves have been extensively studied in reactions involving the acid catalysis to produce chemical substances with a high potential of quality. Being the activity of the catalysts involved in the reaction attributed to the acid character of them involved for the Lewis and Brönsted acid sites. Based on this context, this study aimed to prepare catalysts acids using a molecular sieve silicoalumino-phosphate (SAPO-11) synthesized in hidrotermical conditions and sulphated with sulphuric acid at different concentrations, using to it the method of controlled impregnating. The samples resulting from this process were characterized by x-ray difratometry (DRX), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), thermal analysis (TG-DTG) and determination of total acidity (by n-butilamin adsorption). The results show that the synthesis method used was efficient in the formation of AEL structure of SAPO-11 and when being incorporated the sulfate groups in this structure the acidity of the material was increased, pointing out that to very high concentrations of acid there is a trend of decrease the main peaks that form the structure. Finally they were tested catalytictly by the reaction model of conversion of m-xylene which showed favorable results of conversion for this catalyst, showing to be more selective of cracking products than isomerization, as expected, in order that for the o-xylene selectivity there was no positive change when to sulfate a sample of SAPO-11, while for light gases of C1-C4 this selectivity was remarkably observed

Síntese e caracterização de materiais nanoporosos para pirólise catalítica de óleos pesados

The present work reports the study of nanoporous structures, aiming at their use in research directed to the current demand of the petroleum industry to value heavy oil. Initially, two ways were chosen for the synthesis of porous structures from the molecular sieves of type Si-MCM-41. In the first way, the structure MCM-41 is precursory for heteroatom substitutes of silicon, generating catalyst of the type Al-MCM-41 from two different methods of incorporation of the metal. This variation of the incorporation method of Aluminum in the structure of Si-MCM-41 was carried out through the conventional procedure, where the aluminum source was incorporated to the gel of synthesis, and the procedure post-synthesis, where the Aluminum source was incorporated in catalyst after the synthesis of Si-MCM-41. In the second way, the MCM-41 acts as a support for growth of nanocrystals of zeolite embedded in their mesoporous, resulting in hybrid MCM-41/ZSM-5 catalyst. A comparative analysis was carried through characterizations by XRD, FTIR, measures of acidity through n-butylamine adsorption for TGA, SEM-XRF and N2 adsorption. Also crystalline aluminosilicate with zeolitic structure MFI of type ZSM-5 was synthesized without using organic templates. Methodologies to the preparation of these materials are related by literature using conventionally reactants that supply oxides of necessary silicon and aluminum, as well as a template agent, and in some cases co-template. The search for new routes of preparation for the ZSM-5 aimed at, above all, the optimization of the same as for the time and the temperature of synthesis, and mainly the elimination of the use of organic templates, that are material of high cost and generally very toxic. The current study is based on the use of the H2O and Na+ cations playing the role of structural template and charge compensation in the structure. Characterizations by XRD, FTIR, SEM-XRF and N2 adsorption were also conducted for this material in order to compare the samples of ZSM-5 synthesized in the absence of template and those used industrially and synthesized using structuring

Síntese, caracterização e aplicação do MCM-41 e A1-MCM-41 na pirólise do resíduo atmosférico de petróleo

In present work, mesoporous materials of the M41S family were synthesized, which were discovered in the early 90s by researchers from Mobil Oil Corporation, thus allowing new perspectives in the field of catalysis. One of the most important members of this family is the MCM-41, which has a hexagonal array of mesopores with pore diameters ranging from 2 to 10 nm and a high surface area, enabling it to become very promising for the use as a catalyst in the refining of oil in the catalytic cracking process, since the mesopores facilitate the access of large hydrocarbon molecules, thereby increasing the production of light products, that are in high demand in the market. The addition of aluminum in the structure of MCM-41 increases the acidity of the material, making it more beneficial for application in the petrochemical industry. The mesoporous materials MCM-41 and Al-MCM-41 (ratio Si / Al = 50) were synthesized through the hydrothermal method, starting with silica gel, NaOH and distilled water. CTMABr was used as template, for structural guiding. In Al-MCM-41 the same reactants were used, with the adding of pseudoboehmite (as a source of aluminum) in the synthesis gel. The syntheses were carried out over a period of four days with a daily adjustment of pH. The optimum conditions of calcination for the removal of the organic template (CTMABr) were discovered through TG / DTG and also through analysis by XRD, FTIR and Nitrogen Adsorption. It was found that both the method of hydrothermal synthesis and calcination conditions of the studies based on TG were promising for the production of mesoporous materials with a high degree of hexagonal array. The acidic properties of the materials were determined by desorption of n-butylamine via thermogravimetry. One proved that the addition of aluminum in the structure of MCM-41 promoted an increase in the acidity of the catalyst. To check the catalytic activity of these materials, a sample of Atmospheric Residue (RAT) that is derived from atmospheric distillation of oil from the Pole of Guamaré- RN was used. This sample was previously characterized by various techniques such as Thermogravimetry, FTIR and XRF, where through thermal analysis of a comparative study between the thermal degradation of the RAT, the RAT pyrolysis + MCM-41 and RAT + Al- MCM-41. It was found that the Al-MCM-41 was most satisfactory in the promotion of a catalytic effect on the pyrolysis of the RAT, as the cracking of heavy products in the waste occurred at temperatures lower than those observed for the pyrolysis with MCM-41, and thereby also decreasing the energy of activation for the process and increasing the rates of conversion of residue into lighter products

Craqueamento termocatalítico de óleo de girassol na presença da peneira molecular SAPO-5

The catalytic cracking of triglycerides presents itself as a possible alternative to the production of biofuels with low emission of pollutants. In this work were synthesized the SAPO-5, the catalysts for the cracking reaction of soybean oil is presented. The solids were powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TG/DTG) and infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The analyses indicated that the synthesis method has employed to obtain materials with high surface area and high acid. The soybean oil thermal and thermal catalytic cracking, realized from the room temperature to 450 ºC in a simple distillation system, has allowed obtaining two liquid fractions, each consisting of two phases, one aqueous and another organic, organic liquid (OL). The OL obtained from first fractions has shown high acid index, even in the thermal catalytic process. The products obtained in the cracking of soybean oil were analyzed by distillation, acid number, infra-red spectroscopy, density, viscosity, carbon residue, cetane number determination and characterization. The analysis of the products obtained in the presence and in the absence of the SAPO-5 permitted to conclude that all the solids tested presented catalytic activity in the deoxygenation of final products only at the second step of the cracking process

Avaliação da remoção de hidrocarbonetos aromáticos (BTEX) em águas utilizando materiais nanoestruturados do tipo Ti-MCM-41

Volatile Organic Compounds are pollutants coming mainly from activities that use fossil fuels. Within this class are the BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes) compounds that are considered hazardous. Among the various existing techniques for degradation of pollutants, there is advanced oxidation using H2O2 generating hidoxil radical ( OH). In this work, the mesoporous material of MCM-41 was synthesized by hydrothermal method and then was used as support, the impregnation of titanium by the method of synthesis with excess solvent to obtain the catalyst Ti-MCM-41. The catalyst was used in the reaction catalyzed removal of BTEX in water using H2O2 as oxidant. The materials were characterized by: XRD, TG/DTG, FTIR, nitrogen adsorption-desorption and FRX-EDX, in order to verify the method of impregnation of the mesoporous titanium support was effective. Catalytic tests were carried out in reactors of 20 mL containing BTEX (100.0 μg/L), H2O2 (2.0 M) and Ti-MCM-41 (2.0 g/L) in acid medium. The reaction occurred for 5 h at 60 °C and analysis were performed by gas chromatography with photoionization detector and static headspace sampler. The characterizations have proven the effectiveness of the synthesis method used and the incorporation of titanium lt in the support. The catalytic tests showed satisfactory results with conversion of more than 95 % for the studied compounds, where the catalyst 48% Ti-MCM-41 showed a higher removal efficiency of the compounds under study

Eficiência do processo de obtenção do biodiesel de girassol usando o catalisador KNO3/Al2O3

It is known that the head office world energetics is leaning in the fossil fuels. However, the world panorama is changing quickly, for linked reasons to three of the humanity's great concerns in that century beginning: environment, global economy and energy. The biodiesel production is based on the transesterificação of vegetable oils or animal fats, using catalysts homogeneous or heterogeneous. The process of heterogeneous transesterificação presents lower conversions in comparison with the homogeneous, however, it doesn't present corrosion problems and it reduces to the occurrence of parallel reactions as saponification. In this sense, this work has for purpose the synthesis of a heterogeneous catalyst, KNO3/Al2O3, that soon afterwards was used in the reaction of transesterificação of the oil of the Helianthus annuus L. (sunflower). The solid materials (it supports and catalyst) they were analyzed by diffraction of ray-X (XRD) and electronic microscope of sweeping (MEV). After the analysis of Al2O3, a structure monophase amorphous tetragonal was verified, with characteristic patterns of that material, what could not be visualized in the difratograma of the catalyst. The biodiesel obtained with 4% wt. of KNO3/Al2O3 it was what obtained a better cinematic viscosity 8,3 mm2/s, comparing with the norms of ANP, and it also presented the best conversion tax in ethyl ésteres, in accordance with the quantitative measure starting from TG, that was of 60%. While the biodiesel with 6% wt. and with 8% wt. of KNO3/Al2O3 it was it that no transesterificou, because it was observed in the analysis termogravimétrica of those two materials, a single thermal event, that it corresponds the decomposition or volatilization of the triglycerides

Síntese e Caracterização de Titanatos de Cobalto e Níquel, dopados com Praseodímio, obtidos a partir da decomposição de Nitrilotriacetatos

In recent years, studies about the physicochemical properties of mixed oxides, call attention of the scientific community, properties like as piezoelectricity, photoluminescence, or applications as catalysts, arise in these compounds, when their chemical compositions are modified, in this context some routes are employed in the synthesis of these materials, among which can be cited these methods: ceramic, combustion, co-precipitation, Pechini or polymeric precursor method, hydrothermal, sol-gel; these routes are divided into traditional routes or chemical routes. In this work were synthesized oxides with variable composition, from the thermal decomposition of titanium, cobalt, nickel and praseodymium nitrilotriacetates. The nitrilotriacetates were characterized by IR Spectroscopy (FTIR), Thermogravimetric (TG/ DTG) and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), while oxides have been characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Spectrofluorimetry and IR Spectroscopy (FTIR). From FTIR data, it was demonstrated that the displacement of the band corresponding to the carboxylate group (νCOOH) at 1712 cm-1, present in nitrilotriacetic acid (H3NTA), for 1680-1545 cm-1, these stretches are characteristics of coordinated nitrilotriacetates, By thermal analysis (TG/DTG /DSC), it was suggested, that in an oxidizing atmosphere (air) oxides are obtained at lower temperatures than in an inert atmosphere N2(g). By results from X-ray Diffraction (XRD), it was determinated that the oxides are crystalline and the predominant phases obtained are summarized titanate phases rutile and ilmenite. By fluorimetry was observed that the intensity of emission bands are directly proportional to the concentration of ions Ni2+, Co2+ and Pr3+, and IR spectroscopy (FTIR) from oxides, demonstrated the disappearance of characteristic bands by nitrilotriacetates, determining the complete decomposition of the nitrilotriacetates in oxides

Avaliação oxidativa do biodiesel de pinhão manso em diferentes processos de purificação

The objective of this study was to analyze the oxidative stability of biodiesel from jatropha obtained from different purification processes, three wet processes with different drying (in a vacuum oven, conventional oven and in anhydrous sodium sulfate) and dry (purification with magnesium silicate adsorbent). Raw materials of different qualities (jatropha crop ancient and recent crop) were used. The Jatropha oil was extracted by mechanical extraction and refined. The Jatropha biodiesel was obtained by the transesterification reaction in ethyl route using alkaline catalysis. The biodiesel samples were characterized by analysis of water content, carbon residue, Absorption Spectroscopy in the Infrared Region and Thermogravimetry. Thermogravimetric curves of purified PUsv* PUsq* and had higher initial decomposition temperatures, indicating that the most stable, followed by samples PU* and PUSC*. Besides the sample SP* is a smaller initial temperature, confirming the sample without purification to be less thermally stable. The percentage mass loss of the purified samples showed conversion of about 98.5%. The results of analyzes carbon residue and infrared suggested that contamination by impurities is the main factor for decreased oxidative stability of biodiesel. The oxidative stability was assessed from periodic monitoring, using the techniques of Rancimat, peroxide index, acid value and Pressurized Differential Scanning Calorimetry. Samples of biodiesel from jatropha which showed better oxidative stability were of the best quality raw material and wet scrubbing: PUsq* with dry chemical, using anhydrous sodium sulfate and PUsv* with vacuum drying, which had oxidative stability 6 hours in Rancimat time 0 days, within the limits established by the Technical Regulation No. 4/2012 of the ANP, without the addition of antioxidant, suggesting that these procedures the least influence on the oxidative stability of biodiesel

Síntese, caracterização e estudo das propriedades magnéticas de ortoferritas de lantânio dopadas com manganês

Orthoferrites AFeO3 (A = rare earth) are an important class of perovskite oxides that exhibit weak ferromagnetism. These materials find numerous applications as chemical sensors, cathodes for fuel cells and catalysis, which make them interesting from the standpoint of science and technology. Their structural, electrical and magnetic properties are dependent on many factors such as the preparation method, heat treatment conditions, chemical composition and replacement of cations in sites A and/or B. In this paper, LaFe1-xMnxO3 (0 ≤ x ≤ 1) orthoferrites-type was prepared by Pechini method and Microwave-assisted combustion reaction in order to evaluate the influence of synthesis route on the formation of oxide, as well as the effect of parcial replacement of iron by manganese and heat treatment on the magnetic properties. The precursor powders were calcined at 700°C, 900°C, 1100°C and 1300°C for 4 hours and they were characterized by the techniques: Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X ray diffraction (XRD), Refinement by Rietveld method, Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Reduction temperature programmed (RTP) and Magnetic hysteresis measurements performed at room temperature. According to the XRD patterns, the formation of perovskite phase with orthorhombic structure was observed for the systems where 0 ≤ x ≤ 0.5 and rhombohedral for x = 1. The results also showed a decrease of lattice parameters with the parcial replacement of iron by manganese and consequently a reduction in cell volume. The hysteresis curves exhibited weak ferromagnetism for the systems prepared by both synthesis methods. However, a dependence of magnetization as a function of dopant content was observed for samples produced by Pechini method. As for the systems prepared by combustion reaction, it was found that the secondary phases exert a strong influence on the magnetic behavior

Síntese hidrotérmica e caracterização estrutural de titanatos nanotubulares para aplicação na captura do dióxido de carbono

Nanostructured materials have been spreading successfully over past years due its size and unusual properties, resulting in an exponential growth of research activities devoted to nanoscience and nanotechnology, which has stimulated the search for different methods to control main properties of nanomaterials and make them suitable for applications with high added value. In the late 90 s an alternative and low cost method was proposed from alkaline hydrothermal synthesis of nanotubes. Based on this context, the objective of this work was to prepare different materials based on TiO2 anatase using hydrothermal synthesis method proposed by Kasuga and submit them to an acid wash treatment, in order to check the structural behavior of final samples. They were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), adsorption/desorption of N2, thermal analysis (TG/DTA) and various spectroscopic methods such as absorption spectroscopy in the infrared (FT-IR), Raman spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). All the information of characterizations confirmed the complete conversion of anatase TiO2 in nanotubes titanates (TTNT). Observing the influence of acid washing treatment in titanates structure, it was concluded that the nanotubes are formed during heat treatment, the sample which was not subjected to this process also achieved a complete phase transformation, as showed in crystallography and morphology results, however the surface area of them practically doubled after the acid washing. By spectroscopy was performed a discussion about chemical composition of these titanates, obtaining relevant results. Finally, it was observed that the products obtained in this work are potential materials for various applications in adsorption, catalysis and photocatalysis, showing great promise in CO2 capture

Estudo cinético da degradação térmica e catalítica de petróleo pesado usando Al-MCM-41

The mesoporous nanostructured materials have been studied for application in the oil industry, in particular Al-MCM-41, due to the surface area around 800 to 1.000 m2 g-1 and, pore diameters ranging from 2 to 10 nm, suitable for catalysis to large molecules such as heavy oil. The MCM-41 has been synthesized by hydrothermal method, on which aluminum was added, in the ratio Si/Al equal to 50, to increase the generation of active acid sites in the nanotubes. The catalyst was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), surface area by the BET method and, the average pore volume BJH method using the N2 adsorption, absorption spectroscopy in the infrared Fourier Transform (FT-IR) and determination of surface acidity with application of a probe molecule - n-butylamine. The catalyst showed well-defined structural properties and consistent with the literature. The overall objective was to test the Al-MCM-41 as catalyst and thermogravimetric perform tests, using two samples of heavy oil with API º equal to 14.0 and 18.5. Assays were performed using a temperature range of 30-900 ° C and heating ratios (β) ranging from 5, 10 and 20 °C min-1.The aim was to verify the thermogravimetric profiles of these oils when subjected to the action of the catalyst Al- MCM-41. Therefore, the percentage ranged catalyst applied 1, 3, 5, 10 and 20 wt%, and from the TG data were applied two different kinetic models: Ozawa-Flynn-Wall (OFW) and Kissinger-Akahrira-Sunose (KAS).The apparent activation energies found for both models had similar values and were lower for the second event of mass loss known as cracking zone, indicating a more effective performance of Al-MCM-41 in that area. Furthermore, there was a more pronounced reduction in the value of activation energy for between 10 and 20% by weight of the oil-catalyst mixture. It was concluded that the Al-MCM-41 catalyst has applicability in heavy oils to reduce the apparent activation energy of a catalyst-oil system, and the best result with 20% by weight of Al-MCM-41

Degradação térmica e catalítica do resíduo atmosférico de petróleo (RAT), utilizando materiais nanoestruturados do tipo SBA-15

In this work were synthesized and characterized the materials mesoporous SBA-15 and Al- SBA-15, Si / Al = 25, 50 and 75, discovered by researchers at the University of California- Santa Barbara, USA, with pore diameters ranging from 2 to 30 nm and wall thickness from 3.1 to 6.4 nm, making these promising materials in the field of catalysis, particularly for petroleum refining (catalytic cracking), as their mesopores facilitate access of the molecules constituting the oil to active sites, thereby increasing the production of hydrocarbons in the range of light and medium. To verify that the materials used as catalysts were successfully synthesized, they were characterized using techniques of X-ray diffraction (XRD), absorption spectroscopy in the infrared Fourier transform (FT-IR) and adsorption nitrogen (BET). Aiming to check the catalytic activity thereof, a sample of atmospheric residue oil (ATR) from the pole Guamaré-RN was performed the process by means of thermogravimetry and thermal degradation of catalytic residue. Upon the curves, it was observed a reduction in the onset temperature of the decomposition process of catalytic ATR. For the kinetic model proposed by Flynn-Wall yielded some parameters to determine the apparent activation energy of decomposition, being shown the efficiency of mesoporous materials, since there was a decrease in the activation energy for the reactions using catalysts. The ATR was also subjected to pyrolysis process using a pyrolyzer with gas chromatography coupled to a mass spectrometer. Through the chromatograms obtained, there was an increase in the yield of the compounds in the range of gasoline and diesel from the catalytic pyrolysis, with emphasis on Al-SBA-15 (Si / Al = 25), which showed a percentage higher than the other catalysts. These results are due to the fact that the synthesized materials exhibit specific properties for application in the process of pyrolysis of complex molecules and high molecular weight as constituents of the ATR

Síntese de catalisadores nanoporosos na ausência total e parcial de direcionadores orgânicos para pirólise catalítica de óleos pesados e intermediários

The processing of heavy oil produced in Brazil is an emergency action and a strategic plan to obtain self-sufficiency and economic surpluses. Seen in these terms, it is indispensable to invest in research to obtain new catalysts for obtaining light fraction of hydrocarbons from heavy fractions of petroleum. This dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy reports the materials preparation that combine the high catalytic activity of zeolites with the greater accessibility of the mesoporosity, more particularly the HZSM-5/MCM-41 hybrid, done by synthesis processes with less environmental impact than conventional ones. Innovative methodologies were developed for the synthesis of micro-mesoporous hybrid material by dual templating mechanism and from crystalline zeolitic aluminosilicate in the absence of organic template. The synthesis of hybrid with pore bimodal distribution took place from one-single organic directing agent aimed to eliminate the use of organic templates, acids of any kind or organic solvents like templating agent of crystalline zeolitic aluminosilicate together with temperature-programmed microwave-assisted, making the experimental procedures of preparation most practical and easy, with good reproducibility and low cost. The study about crystalline zeolitic aluminosilicate in the absence of organic template, especially MFI type, is based on use of H2O and Na+ cation playing a structural directing role in place of an organic template. Advanced characterization techniques such as X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Highresolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HRTEM), Adsorption of N2 and CO2, kinetic studies by Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) and Pyrolysis coupled to Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry (Pyrolysis-GC/MS) were employed in order to evaluate the synthesized materials. Achieve the proposed objectives, has made available a set of new methodologies for the synthesis of zeolite and hybrid micro-mesoporous material, these suitable for catalytic pyrolysis of heavy oils aimed at producing light fraction

Coeficientes de incidência do dengue e sua relação com os diferenciais intra-urbanos segundo condições de vida no município do Natal, Rio Grande do Norte

This study sprang from the hypothesis that spatial variations in the morbidity rate for dengue fever within the municipality of Natal are related to intra-city socioeconomic and environmental variations. The objective of the project was to classify the different suburbs of Natal according to their living conditions and establish if there was any correlation between this classification and the incidence rate for dengue fever, with the aim of enabling public health planners to better control this disease. Data on population density, access to safe drinking water, rubbish collection, sewage disposal facilities, income level, education and the incidence of dengue fever during the years 2001 and 2003 was drawn from the Brazilian Demographic Census 2000 and from the Reportable Disease Notification System -SINAN. The study is presented here in the form of two papers, corresponding to the types of analysis performed: a classification of the urban districts into quartiles according to the living conditions which exist there, in the first article; and the incidence of dengue fever in each of these quartiles, in the second. By applying factorial analysis to the chosen socioeconomic and environmental indicators for the year 2000, a compound index of living condition (ICV) was obtained. On the basis of this index, it was possible to classify the urban districts into quartiles. On undertaking this grouping (paper 1), a heterogeneous distribution of living conditions was found across the city. As to the incidence rate for dengue fever (paper 2), it was discovered that the quartile identified as having the best living conditions presented incidence rates of 15.62 and 15.24 per 1000 inhabitants respectively in the years 2001 and 2003; whereas the quartile representing worst living conditions showed incidence rates of 25.10 and 10.32 for the comparable periods. The results suggest that dengue fever occurs in all social classes, and that its incidence is not related in any evident way to the chosen formula for living conditions