Modeling the kinetics of the coalescence of water droplets in crude oil emulsions subject to an electric field, with the cellular automata technique

In this study, the concept of cellular automata is applied in an innovative way to simulate the separation of phases in a water/oil emulsion. The velocity of the water droplets is calculated by the balance of forces acting on a pair of droplets in a group, and cellular automata is used to simulate the whole group of droplets. Thus, it is possible to solve the problem stochastically and to show the sequence of collisions of droplets and coalescence phenomena. This methodology enables the calculation of the amount of water that can be separated from the emulsion under different operating conditions, thus enabling the process to be optimized. Comparisons between the results obtained from the developed model and the operational performance of an actual desalting unit are carried out. The accuracy observed shows that the developed model is a good representation of the actual process. (C) 2010 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Coalescence of Water Droplets in Crude Oil Emulsions: Analytical Solution

In petroleum refineries, water is used in desalting units to remove the salt contained in crude oil. Typically, 7% of the volume of hot crude oil is water, forming a water-and-oil emulsion. The emulsion flows between two electrodes and is subjected to an electric field. The electrical forces promote the coalescence of small droplets of water dispersed in crude oil, and these form bigger droplets. This paper calculates the forces acting on the droplets, highlighting particularly the mechanisms proposed for droplet-droplet coalescence under the influence of an applied electric field. Moreover, a model is developed in order to calculate the displacement speed of the droplets and the time between droplet collisions. Thus, it is possible to simulate and optimize the process by changing the operational variables (temperature, electrical field, and water quantity). The main advantage of this study is to show that it is feasible to increase the volume of water recycled in desalting processes, thus reducing the use of freshwater and the generation of liquid effluents in refineries.

Tetrachromacy, oil droplets and bird plumage colours

There is a growing body of data on avian eyes, including measurements of visual pigment and oil droplet spectral absorption, and of receptor densities and their distributions across the retina. These data are sufficient to predict psychophysical colour discrimination thresholds for light-adapted eyes, and hence provide a basis for relating eye design to visual needs. We examine the advantages of coloured oil droplets, UV vision and tetrachromacy for discriminating a diverse set of avian plumage spectra under natural illumination. Discriminability is enhanced both by tetrachromacy and coloured oil droplets. Oil droplets may also improve colour constancy. Comparison of the performance of a pigeon's eye, where the shortest wavelength receptor peak is at 410 nm, with that of the passerine Leiothrix, where the ultraviolet-sensitive peak is at 365 nm, generally shows a small advantage to the latter, but this advantage depends critically on the noise level in the sensitivity mechanism and on the set of spectra being viewed.

Electron driven reactions in complexes embedded in superfluid helium droplets

A thesis submitted to the University of Innsbruck for the doctor degree in Natural Sciences, Physics and New University of Lisbon for the doctor degree in Physics, Atomic and Molecular Physics

Cellulose micro/nano fibers conformational effects probed by nematic liquid crystal droplets

Probing micro-/nano-sized surface conformations, which are ubiquitous in biological systems, by using liquid crystal droplets, which change their ordering and optical appearance in response to the presence of more than ten times smaller cellulose based micro/nano fibers, might find new uses in a range of biological environments and sensors. Previous studies indicate that electrospun micro/nano cellulosic fibers produced from liquid crystalline solutions could present a twisted form [1]. In this work, we study the structures of nematic liquid crystal droplets threaded by cellulose fibers prepared from liquid crystalline and isotropic solutions as well as droplets pierced by spider-made fibers [2]. Planar anchoring at the fibers and planar and homeotropic at the drop surfaces allowed probing cellulose fibers different helical structures as well as aligned filaments.

Deciphering the contribution of lipid droplets in leprosy: multifunctional organelles with roles in Mycobacterium leprae pathogenesis

Leprosy is an infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium leprae that affects the skin and nerves, presenting a singular clinical picture. Across the leprosy spectrum, lepromatous leprosy (LL) exhibits a classical hallmark: the presence of a collection of M. leprae-infected foamy macrophages/Schwann cells characterised by their high lipid content. The significance of this foamy aspect in mycobacterial infections has garnered renewed attention in leprosy due to the recent observation that the foamy aspect represents cells enriched in lipid droplets (LD) (also known as lipid bodies). Here, we discuss the contemporary view of LD as highly regulated organelles with key functions in M. leprae persistence in the LL end of the spectrum. The modern methods of studying this ancient disease have contributed to recent findings that describe M. leprae-triggered LD biogenesis and recruitment as effective mycobacterial intracellular strategies for acquiring lipids, sheltering and/or dampening the immune response and favouring bacterial survival, likely representing a fundamental aspect of M. leprae pathogenesis. The multifaceted functions attributed to the LD in leprosy may contribute to the development of new strategies for adjunctive anti-leprosy therapies.

Triplet pairing in fermionic droplets

We have investigated, in the L-S coupling scheme, the appearance of triplet pairing in fermionic droplets in which a single nl shell is active. The method is applied to a constant-strength model, for which we discuss the different phase transitions that take place as the number of particles in the shell is varied. Drops of 3He atoms can be plausible physical scenarios for the realization of the model.

Response of doped 4He droplets

In the framework of a finite-range density-functional theory, we compute the response of 4HeN clusters doped with a rare-gas molecule. For this purpose, the mean field for the 4He atoms, their wave functions and effective quasiparticle interaction, are self-consistently calculated for a variety of particle numbers in the cluster. The response function is then evaluated for several multipolarities in each drop and the collective states are consequently located from the peaks of the strength function. The spectra of pure droplets approach those previously extracted with a similar algorithm resorting to a zero-range density functional. The spectra of doped clusters are sensitive to the presence of the impurity and are worth a future systematic investigation.

Structure and Stability of 3He Droplets

We have studied the structure of 3He droplets at zero temperature using a density functional approach plus a configuration interaction calculation in an harmonic oscillator major shell. The most salient feature of open shell drops is that the valence atoms couple their spins to the maximum value compatible with Pauli's principle, building a large magnetic moment. We have determined that 29 atoms constitute the smallest self-bound droplet.

Shell structure in mixed 3He-4He droplets

Due to the immiscibility of 3He into 4He at very low temperatures, mixed helium droplets consist of a core of 4He atoms coated by a 3He layer whose thickness depends on the number of atoms of each isotope. When these numbers are such that the centrifugal kinetic energy of the 3He atoms is small and can be considered as a perturbation to the mean-field energy, a novel shell structure arises, with magic numbers different from these of pure 3He droplets. If the outermost shell is not completely filled, the valence atoms align their spins up to the maximum value allowed by the Pauli principle.

Competitive evaporation in arrays of droplets

We consider the evaporation of periodic arrays of initially equal droplets in two-dimensional systems with open (absorbing) boundaries. Our study is based on the numerical solution of the Cahn-Hilliard equation. We show that due to cooperative effects the droplets which are further from the boundary may evaporate earlier than those in the boundary¿s vicinity. The time evolution of the overall amount of matter in the system is also studied.

Implication des protéines des gouttelettes lipidiques dans la résistance a l'insuline hépatique. [Involvement of protein lipid droplets in the resistance to hepatic insulin.]

Introduction : La prévalence des maladies stéatosiques non alcooliques du foie augmente de manière exponentielle dans les pays industrialisés. Le développement de ces maladies se traduit par une stéatose hépatique fréquemment associée à une résistance à l'insuline. Cette résistance a pu être expliquée par l'accumulation intra-hépatocytaire de lipides intermédiaires tels que Céramides et Diacylglycérols. Cependant, notre modèle animal de stéatose hépatique, les souris invalidées pour la protéine hépatique « Microsomal Triglyceride Transfert Protein » (Mttp Δ / Δ), ne développent pas de résistance à l'insuline, malgré une augmentation de ces lipides intermédiaires. Ceci suggère la présence d'un autre mécanisme induisant la résistance à l'insuline. Matériels et méthodes : L'analyse Microarray du foie des souris Mttp Δ / Δ a montré une forte up-régulation des gènes « Cell-death Inducing DFFA-like Effector C (cidec) », « Lipid Storage Droplet Protein 5 (lsdp5) » et « Bernardinelli-Seip Congenital Lipodystrophy 2 Homolog (seipin) » dans le foie des souris Mttp Δ / Δ. Ces gènes ont été récemment identifiés comme codant pour des protéines structurelles des gouttelettes lipidiques. Nous avons testé si ces gènes jouaient un rôle important dans le développement de la stéatose hépatique, ainsi que de la résistance à l'insuline. Résultats : Nous avons démontré que ces gènes sont fortement augmentés dans d'autres modèles de souris stéatosées tels que ceux présentant une sur-expression de ChREBP. Dans les hépatocytes murins (AML12 :Alfa Mouse Liver 12), l'invalidation de cidec et/ou seipin semble diminuer la phosphorylation d'AKT après stimulation à l'insuline, suggérant une résistance à l'insuline. Chez l'homme, l'expression de ces gènes est augmentée dans le foie de patients obèses avec stéatose hépatique. De manière intéressante, cette augmentation est atténuée chez les patients avec résistance à l'insuline. Conclusion : Ces données suggèrent que ces protéines des gouttelettes lipidiques augmentent au cours du développement de la stéatose hépatique et que cette augmentation protège contre la résistance à l'insuline.

Competitive evaporation in arrays of droplets

We consider the evaporation of periodic arrays of initially equal droplets in two-dimensional systems with open (absorbing) boundaries. Our study is based on the numerical solution of the Cahn-Hilliard equation. We show that due to cooperative effects the droplets which are further from the boundary may evaporate earlier than those in the boundary¿s vicinity. The time evolution of the overall amount of matter in the system is also studied.

Etude des gènes codant les protéines de gouttelettes lipidiques chez les patients avec la stéatose hépatique[Study of genes encoding proteins of lipid droplets in patients with fatty liver]

Introduction: La prévalence de la «non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)» dans les pays industrialisés augment de manière exponentielle. La NAFLD se développe d'une simple stéatose hépatique jusqu'à l'hépatite, puis à la cirrhose. De plus, la stéatose hépatique est fréquemment accompagnée par une résistance à l'insuline, une des causes principales du diabète. Les lipides intermédiaires, tels que céramides et diacylglycérols, ont été décrits comme induisant la résistance à l'insuline. Cependant, nous avons démontré dans notre modèle de stéatose hépatique, que les souris présentant une invalidation de la protéine «microsomal triglyceride transfer protein» (Mtpp) au niveau hépatique, ne développent pas de résistance à l'insuline. Ceci suggère fortement l'existence d'autres mécanismes susceptibles d'induire la résistance à l'insuline. Résultats: Grâce à une analyse de Microarray, nous avons observé une augmentation de l'expression des gènes «cell-death inducing DFFA-like effector c (CIDEC)», «lipid storage droplet protein 5 (LSDP5)» et «Bernardinelli-Seip congenital lipodystrophy 2 homolog (Seipin)» dans le foie des souris Mttp. Ces gènes ont récemment été identifiés comme des protéines localisées autour des gouttelettes lipidiques. Nous avons également constaté que la souris Mttp développe plutôt une microstéatose (petites gouttelettes lipidiques) qu'une macrostéatose qui est normalement observée chez les patients avec NAFLD. Nous avons étudié l'expression des gènes associés aux gouttelettes lipidiques chez les patients obèses avec stéatose hépatique, avec ou sans résistance à l'insuline. Comparés aux sujets sains sans stéatose hépatique, les patients avec la stéatose ont une expression significativement plus élevée. De manière intéressante, les patients avec résistance à l'insuline ont une diminution de ces expressions. Conclusion : Ces données suggèrent que les gènes des gouttelettes lipidiques sont impliqués dans le développement de la stéatose hépatique chez l'homme et peut-être contribue à la mise en place de la résistance à l'insuline.