Marketing and compromising for sustainability : Competing orders of worth in the North Atlantic

Funding The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/ or publication of this article: The research upon which this article reports was funded by the Leverhulme Trust, grant F/00 273/N.

Pressure radiation from a perforated duct exit region

Acknowledgements The authors are grateful to the following bodies that provided financial support for the project: (i) China Scholarship Council, (ii) National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant no. U1334201) and (iii) UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (Grant no. EP/G069441/1).

Processos e significados da experiência de pais, mães ou cuidador primário de crianças abusadas sexualmente

Introdução - O abuso sexual de crianças constitui um problema de saúde pública, com aproximadamente 73 milhões de casos de meninos e 150 milhões de meninas registrados anualmente no mundo. O abuso sexual gera consequências negativas e condutas de risco que contribuem com algumas das principais causas de morte, doença e deficiência nas vítimas do abuso. Pais ou cuidadores primários são fundamentais no processo de orientação e de cuidado das crianças abusadas, no sentido de prevenir as consequências cognitivas, comportamentais e emocionais evidenciadas no futuro dessas crianças. Entretanto, as habilidades das famílias de cuidadores para lidar com a problemática ainda são insuficientes. Objetivo - Descrever os processos e significados da experiência vivida pelos pais ou cuidadores primários de crianças abusadas sexualmente. Método - Os dados empíricos foram tratados utilizando-se o Discurso do Sujeito Coletivo (DSC), fundamentado na Teoria das Representações Sociais, que viabiliza a emergência das representações sociais por meio da construção dos discursos coletivos obtidos de depoimentos de um grupo específico. Foram avaliados 60 pais ou cuidadores primários não estupradores, que responderam à cinco situações-problema, cada uma com questões correspondentes, residentes nos municípios de Cajicá e Tabio de Bogotá, Colômbia. O processamento e a análise dos dados foram realizados no sofware Qualiquantisoft, associado à metodologia do DSC. Resultados - Na primeira situação-problema, que aborda o porquê do silêncio do filho sobre o abuso, os entrevistados enfatizaram que é fundamental o relacionamento pais e filhos (45,7 por cento , n = 43), bem como melhorar o papel de pais por meio da escuta, do diálogo e do confiar, dedicando mais tempo às crianças; também acham que o silêncio se deve ao medo por parte das crianças e a ameaças e intimidação por parte do abusador, Na situação-problema 2, relativa à identificação do abuso sexual como problema real, o significado atribuído configura cadeias que se repetem por transmissão intergeracional (26,9 por cento , n = 21). Na situação-problema 3, o que fazer no futuro, 53,3 por cento dos entrevistados (n = 32) acham que a criança está comprometida comportamentalmente e enfatizam a homossexualidade com perda da identidade como consequência da violência sexual. Na situação-problema 4, que enfatiza o papel da rede social quanto ao cuidado da criança, os entrevistados acreditam que a solução é dar proteção (29,1 por cento ; n = 32), com ações que visem a afastar a criança do ambiente agressor, dar orientação, apoio e segurança à criança e à família. A quinta situação-problema que diz respeito ao cuidado das crianças abusadas; 34,26 por cento dos entrevistados (n = 37) enfatizam o apoio e a ajuda com a interveniência da rede de apoio social e afetivo. Conclusão - Para os pais ou cuidadores primários de crianças abusadas sexualmente, os significados se expressam como afetivo, coragem, superação, não ter medo e saber reconhecer as falhas dos pais. Em função dos resultados, que identificam posturas tradicionais dos respondentes, recomenda-se programas inovadores com um alto componente educativo, onde se contextualize o abuso sexual por meio de situações reais em escolas, delegacias, nas famílias e na comunidade, com interveniência das redes de apoio social; enfatiza-se igualmente a necessidade de formação mais humanizada dos profissionais de apoio social.

Phosphane-free Suzuki-Miyaura coupling of aryl imidazolesulfonates with arylboronic acids and potassium aryltrifluoroborates under aqueous conditions

Aryl imidazole-1-sulfonates are efficiently cross-coupled with arylboronic acids and potassium aryltrifluoroborates using only 0.5 mol % of oxime palladacycles 1 under aqueous conditions at 110 °C. Under these simple phosphane-free reaction conditions a wide array of biaryl derivatives has been prepared in high yields. This methodology allows in situ phenol sulfonation and one-pot Suzuki arylation as well as the employment of microwave irradiation conditions.

GE models and algorithms for condensed phase equilibrium data regression in ternary systems: limitations and proposals

Phase equilibrium data regression is an unavoidable task necessary to obtain the appropriate values for any model to be used in separation equipment design for chemical process simulation and optimization. The accuracy of this process depends on different factors such as the experimental data quality, the selected model and the calculation algorithm. The present paper summarizes the results and conclusions achieved in our research on the capabilities and limitations of the existing GE models and about strategies that can be included in the correlation algorithms to improve the convergence and avoid inconsistencies. The NRTL model has been selected as a representative local composition model. New capabilities of this model, but also several relevant limitations, have been identified and some examples of the application of a modified NRTL equation have been discussed. Furthermore, a regression algorithm has been developed that allows for the advisable simultaneous regression of all the condensed phase equilibrium regions that are present in ternary systems at constant T and P. It includes specific strategies designed to avoid some of the pitfalls frequently found in commercial regression tools for phase equilibrium calculations. Most of the proposed strategies are based on the geometrical interpretation of the lowest common tangent plane equilibrium criterion, which allows an unambiguous comprehension of the behavior of the mixtures. The paper aims to show all the work as a whole in order to reveal the necessary efforts that must be devoted to overcome the difficulties that still exist in the phase equilibrium data regression problem.

Thermogravimetric analysis of the pyrolysis of several materials used in the preparation of commercial cigarettes

Comunicación presentada en forma de póster en el "12th Mediterranean Congress of Chemical Engineering", Barcelona (Spain), November 15-18, 2011

Catalytic effect of MCM-41 in the pyrolysis of tobacco and several substances used as additives in the preparation of commercial cigarettes

Comunicación presentada en forma de póster en el "12th Mediterranean Congress of Chemical Engineering", Barcelona (Spain), November 15-18, 2011.

Effect of carbon fibres on the mechanical properties and corrosion levels of reinforced portland cement mortars

The changes in mechanical properties of portland cement mortars due to the addition of carbon fibres (CF) to the mix have been studied. Compression and flexural strengths have been determined in relation to the amount of fibres added to the mix, water/binder ratio, curing time and porosity. Additionally, the corrosion level of reinforcing steel bars embedded in portland cement mortars containing CF and silica fume (SF) have also been investigated and reinforcing steel corrosion rates have been determined. As a consequence of the large concentration of oxygen groups in CF surface, a good interaction between the CF and the water of the mortar paste is to be expected. A CF content of 0.5% of cement weight implies an optimum increase in flexural strength and an increase in embedded steel corrosion.

Video of the labelling of projected Placido rings through the scanning annulus

The Elliptical Scanning Algorithm is an effective method to individually detect and label the projected rings. It consecutively defines an elliptical annulus of one pixel wide which grows pixel by pixel and sweeps the image, from centre to periphery, until it detects and labels each whole ring. In a way, it works like a snake-annealing algorithm. Active contour models (snakes) are energy-minimising curves that deform to fit image features. Elliptical Scanning Algorithm changes its geometry in order to label reflected rings.

Propagation, structural similarity and image quality

Póster presentado en SPIE Photonics Europe, Brussels, 16-19 April 2012.

Use of subpixel techniques in pocket cameras to measure vibrations and displacements

Presentación oral SPIE Photonics Europe, Brussels, 16-19 April 2012.

Measurement of wide frequency range structural microvibrations with a pocket digital camera and sub-pixel techniques

Analysis of vibrations and displacements is a hot topic in structural engineering. Although there is a wide variety of methods for vibration analysis, direct measurement of displacements in the mid and high frequency range is not well solved and accurate devices tend to be very expensive. Low-cost systems can be achieved by applying adequate image processing algorithms. In this paper, we propose the use of a commercial pocket digital camera, which is able to register more than 420 frames per second (fps) at low resolution, for accurate measuring of small vibrations and displacements. The method is based on tracking elliptical targets with sub-pixel accuracy. Our proposal is demonstrated at a 10 m distance with a spatial resolution of 0.15 mm. A practical application over a simple structure is given, and the main parameters of an attenuated movement of a steel column after an impulsive impact are determined with a spatial accuracy of 4 µm.

Well-defined mesoporosity on lignocellulosic-derived activated carbons

Activated carbons with a highly developed mesoscale cavitation-linked structure have been prepared from natural products (e.g. peach stones) by combining chemical and physical activation processes. Characterization results show that these materials exhibit a large “apparent” surface area (∼1500 m2/g) together with a well-defined mesoporous structure, i.e. large cavities connected to the external surface through narrower mesoporous necks (cavitation effects).

Ammonia removal using activated carbons: effect of the surface chemistry in dry and moist conditions

The effect of surface chemistry (nature and amount of oxygen groups) in the removal of ammonia was studied using a modified resin-based activated carbon. NH3 breakthrough column experiments show that the modification of the original activated carbon with nitric acid, that is, the incorporation of oxygen surface groups, highly improves the adsorption behavior at room temperature. Apparently, there is a linear relationship between the total adsorption capacity and the amount of the more acidic and less stable oxygen surface groups. Similar experiments using moist air clearly show that the effect of humidity highly depends on the surface chemistry of the carbon used. Moisture highly improves the adsorption behavior for samples with a low concentration of oxygen functionalities, probably due to the preferential adsorption of ammonia via dissolution into water. On the contrary, moisture exhibits a small effect on samples with a rich surface chemistry due to the preferential adsorption pathway via Brønsted and Lewis acid centers from the carbon surface. FTIR analyses of the exhausted oxidized samples confirm both the formation of NH4+ species interacting with the Brønsted acid sites, together with the presence of NH3 species coordinated, through the lone pair electron, to Lewis acid sites on the graphene layers.

Investigating the influence of surfactants on the stabilization of aqueous reduced graphene oxide dispersions and the characteristics of their composite films

The stabilization of reduced graphene oxide (RGO) sheets in aqueous dispersion using a wide range of surfactants of anionic, non-ionic and zwitterionic type has been investigated and compared under different conditions of pH, surfactant and RGO concentration, or sheet size. The observed differences in the performance of the surfactants were rationalized on the basis of their chemical structure (e.g., alkylic vs. aromatic hydrophobic tail or sulfonic vs. carboxylic polar head), thus providing a reference framework in the selection of appropriate surfactants for the processing of RGO suspensions towards particular purposes. RGO-surfactant composite paper-like films were also prepared through vacuum filtration of the corresponding mixed dispersions and their main characteristics were investigated. The composite paper-like films were also electrochemically characterized. Those prepared with two specific surfactants exhibited a high capacitance in relation to their surfactant-free counterpart.