Ecological impacts from syngas burning in internal combustion engine: Technical and economic aspects

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Determination of ecological efficiency in internal combustion engines: The use of biodiesel

This paper evaluates and quantifies the environmental impact from the use of some renewable fuels and fossils fuels in internal combustion engines. The following fuels are evaluated: gasoline blended with anhydrous ethyl alcohol (anhydrous ethanol), conventional diesel fuel, biodiesel in pure form and blended with diesel fuel, and natural gas. For the case of biodiesel, its complete life cycle and the closed carbon cycle (photosynthesis) were considered. The ecological efficiency concept depends on the environmental impact caused by CO(2), SO(2), NO(x) and particulate material (PM) emissions. The exhaust gases from internal combustion engines, in the case of the gasoline (blended with alcohol), biodiesel and biodiesel blended with conventional diesel, are the less polluting; on the other hand, the most polluting are those related to conventional diesel. They can cause serious problems to the environment because of their dangerous components for the human, animal and vegetable life. The resultant pollution of each one of the mentioned fuels are analyzed, considering separately CO(2), SO(2), NO(x) and particulate material (PM) emissions. As conclusion, it is possible to calculate an environmental factor that represents, qualitatively and quantitative, the emissions in internal combustion engines that are mostly used in urban transport. Biodiesel in pure form (B100) and blended with conventional diesel as fuel for engines pollute less than conventional diesel fuel. The ecological efficiency for pure biodiesel (B100) is 86.75%: for biodiesel blended with conventional diesel fuel (B20, 20% biodiesel and 80% diesel), it is 78.79%. Finally, the ecological efficiency for conventional diesel, when used in engines, is 77.34%; for gasoline, it is 82.52%, and for natural gas, it is 91.95%. All these figures considered a thermal efficiency of 30% for the internal combustion engine. Crown Copyright (C) 2008 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fatigue Strength of X45CrSi93 stainless steel applied as internal combustion engine valves

Stainless steels are used to intake and exhaust valves production applied as internal combustion engines. In general valves are requested to support cyclic stresses applied due to opening and closing processes during the operation. The objective of this research is to study the influence on the axial fatigue strength of the resulting microstructure after heat treatment at the martensitic X45CrSi93 steel, combined with different surface treatments as hard chrome-plating, nitride and grinding. It was verified a significant increase on the fatigue strength of the martensitic steel after nitriding, compared with results from the chrome-plating specimens. A slight increase in the tensile strength was also noticed on nitrided parts as a consequence of a resistance increase due to nitrogen and carbon solid solution. (C) 2011 Published by Elsevier Ltd. Selection and peer-review under responsibility of ICM11

Helicobacter pylori and EBV in gastric carcinomas: Methylation status and microsatellite instability

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Genomic instability in non-neoplastic oral mucosa cells can predict risk during 4-nitroquinoline 1-oxide-induced rat tongue carcinogenesis

4-Nitroquinotine 1-oxide (4NQO)-induced rat tongue carcinogenesis is a useful model for studying oral squamous cell carcinoma. The aim of this study was to investigate the level of DNA damage induced by 4NQO in oral mucosa cells by the single cell get (comet) assay. Mate Wistar rats were distributed into three groups of 10 animals each and treated with 50 ppm 4NQO solution by drinking water for 4, 12 or 20 weeks. Ten animals were used as negative control. Statistically significant increase of DNA damage was observed in non-neoplastic oral cells at four weeks of 4NQO administration when compared with control (P < 0.05). The level of DNA damage was directly associated with the severity of histological changes. The results suggest that histologically normal tissue is able to harbor genetically unstable cells contributing to the initiation of oral carcinogenesis. Genomic instability appears to be associated with the risk and progression of oral cancer. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Genomic instability in blood cells is able to predict the oral cancer risk: an experimental study in rats

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Experimental model of bladder instability in rabbits

OBJECTIVE: Propose a new experimental model of bladder instability in rabbits after partial bladder obstruction. MATERIALS and METHODS: Thirty North Folk male rabbits, weighting 1,700 to 2,820 g (mean: 2,162 g) were studied. The animals were distributed in 2 experimental groups, formed by 15 rabbits each: Group 1 - clinical control. In this group there was no surgical intervention; Group 2 - bladder outlet obstruction. In this group, after anesthetizing the animal, urethral cannulation with Foley catheter 10F was performed and then an adjustable plastic bracelet was passed around the bladder neck. It was then adjusted in order to not constrict the urethra. The following parameters were studied in M1 - pre-operative period; M2 - 4 weeks post-operatively moments: 1)- urine culture; 2)- cystometric study; 3)- serum creatinine and BUN. RESULTS: Bladder weight was 2.5 times larger in the group with obstruction than in the control group. Cystometric evaluation showed a significant increase in maximal vesical volume in the final moment at Group G2. However, there was no statistically significant difference among the groups studied. There was no statistically significant difference between maximal detrusor pressure and vesical compliance in the different moments or in the studied groups. There was an absence of uninhibited detrusor contractions in all the animals in group 1, and involuntary contractions were detected in 93% of group 2 animals. There was no significant variation in BUN and serum creatinine either among the groups or in the same group. CONCLUSIONS: We observed in the group with obstruction a bladder weight 2.5 higher than normal bladders. We detected involuntary contractions in 93% of the animals in group 2, establishing this experimental model as appropriate to secondary bladder instability and partial bladder outlet obstruction.

Estimating genomic instability mediated by Alu retroelements in breast cancer

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Formation of bright solitons and soliton trains in a fermion-fermion mixture by modulational instability

We employ a time- dependent mean- field- hydrodynamic model to study the generation of bright solitons in a degenerate fermion - fermion mixture in a cigar- shaped geometry using variational and numerical methods. Due to a strong Pauli- blocking repulsion among identical spin- polarized fermions at short distances there cannot be bright solitons for repulsive interspecies interactions. Employing a linear stability analysis we demonstrate the formation of stable solitons due to modulational instability of a constant-amplitude solution of the model equations for a sufficiently attractive interspecies interaction. We perform a numerical stability analysis of these solitons and also demonstrate the formation of soliton trains by jumping the effective interspecies interaction from repulsive to attractive. These fermionic solitons can be formed and studied in laboratory with present technology.

Particle creation due to tachyonic instability in relativistic stars

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

The modulational instability in deep water under the action of wind and dissipation

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Instability zones for satellites of asteroids: The example of the (87) Sylvia system

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

X-ray diffraction and mossbauer spectra of nickel ferrite prepared by combustion reaction

Nickel ferrite powders with a nominal NiFe2O4 composition were synthesized by combustion reaction using urea as fuel. The powder was obtained using a vitreous silica basin heated directly on a hot plate at 480 degrees C until self-ignition occurred. After combustion, the powder was calcined at 700 degrees C for 2 h. The formation of the spinel phase and the distribution of cations in the tetrahedral and octahedral sites of the crystal structure were investigated by the Rietveld method, using synchrotron X-ray diffraction data and Mossbauer spectroscopy. The material presented a crystallite size of 120 nm and magnetic properties. The resulting stoichiometry after the Rietveld refinement was (Fe-0.989(2) Ni-0.011(2)) [Fe-1.012(2) Ni-0.989(2)] O-4.

Structure of nanoporous zirconia-based powders synthesized by different gel-combustion routes

Zirconia-based ceramics that retain their metastable tetragonal phase at room temperature are widely studied due to their excellent mechanical and electrical properties. When these materials are prepared from precursor nanopowders with high specific surface areas, this phase is retained in dense ceramic bodies. In this work, we present a morphological study of nanocrystalline ZrO2-2.8 mol% Y2O3 powders synthesized by the gel-combustion method, using different organic fuels - alanine, glycine, lysine and citric acid - and calcined at temperatures ranging from 873 to 1173 K. The nanopore structures were investigated by small-angle X-ray scattering. The experimental results indicate that nanopores in samples prepared with alanine, glycine and lysine have an essentially single-mode volume distribution for calcination temperatures up to 1073 K, while those calcined at 1173 K exhibit a more complex and wider volume distribution. The volume-weighted average of the nanopore radii monotonically increases with increasing calcination temperature. The samples prepared with citric acid exhibit a size distribution much wider than the others. The Brunauer-Emmett-Teller technique was used to determine specific surface area and X-ray diffraction, environmental scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy were also employed for a complete characterization of the samples.

Allelic imbalance studies of chromosome 9 suggest major differences in chromosomal instability among nonmelanoma skin carcinomas

CONTEXTO: Vários estudos de perda de heterozigozidade na região 9p21-p22, que abriga os genes supressores tumorais CDKN2a/p16INK4a, p19ARF e p15INK4b, têm sido realizados em uma ampla série de tumores humanos, incluindo os melanomas familiares. Perdas e ganhos em outras regiões do cromossomo 9 também têm sido observados com freqüência e podem indicar mecanismos adicionais no processo de tumorigênese dos carcinomas basocelulares da pele. OBJETIVO: Investigar o equilíbrio alélico existente na região 9p21-p22 em carcinomas basocelulares. TIPO DE ESTUDO: Análise molecular de marcadores de microssatélites em tumores e controles. LOCAL: Dois serviços de dermatologia de atendimento terciário em universidades públicas de São Paulo e o Laboratório de Genética Molecular do Câncer da Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), Brasil. PARTICIPANTES: Examinamos 13 casos benignos, incluindo 4 queratoses solares, 3 queratoacantomas, 3 nevos melanocíticos, 2 doenças de Bowen e 1 neurofibroma cutâneo, além de 58 tumores malignos da pele: 14 de células escamosas, 40 carcinomas basocelulares e 4 melanomas; em pacientes consecutivamente encaminhados à clínica de Dermatologia da Unicamp e que concordaram em participar do estudo. VARIÁVEIS ESTUDADAS: O tumor principal e uma porção normal de pele não-adjacente foram removidos cirurgicamente de pacientes que consecutivamente procuraram os ambulatórios de dermatologia da Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP) e da Universidade Estadual de São Paulo (Unesp), São Paulo, por causa de lesões cutâneas. Extraímos DNA tanto de tecido tumoral como do correspondente tecido normal de cada paciente. Para amplificar regiões de repetição polimórfica de microssatélites do cromossomo 9, foram utilizados quatro pares de primers, sendo dois deles destinados à região 9p21-p22. RESULTADOS: Identificamos oito casos (20%) de desequilíbrio alélico entre os carcinomas basocelulares, sendo dois casos de perda de heterozigozidade e seis casos de instabilidade de microssatélite na região 9p21-p22. Outros marcadores também mostravam anormalidades em três destes tumores, enquanto nenhuma alteração foi detectada entre os casos benignos e nos outros tumores malignos. CONCLUSÃO: Esta dependência fenotípica sugere que existem diferenças importantes no comportamento das formas mais comuns de tumores cutâneos não-melanocíticos em relação à sua tendência para instabilidade de microssatélite no cromossomo 9. Considerando-se que os genes CDKN2a/p16INK4a, p19ARF e p15INK4b não parecem responsáveis pelas anormalidades observadas, outros genes em 9p21-p22 podem estar envolvidos na etiopatogenia e na progressão dos carcinomas basocelulares.