Average Pressure Research Articles

[Comparison of surgical outcomes between Kahook Dual Blade goniotomy and Trabectome surgery in patients with open-angle glaucoma].

Objective: To compare the medium-term therapeutic effects of Kahook Dual Blade (KDB) goniotomy and Trabectome surgery in the treatment of patients with primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG). Methods: This study was a non-randomized prospective interventional controlled clinical study. POAG patients who underwent KDB goniotomy or Trabectome surgery at Beijing Tongren Hospital from May 2017 to April 2022 were enrolled. The definition of successful surgery was postoperative average intraocular pressure (IOP)≤21 mmHg (1 mmHg=0.133 kPa) and IOP decrease≥20%. Follow-up visits were conducted on the 1st day, 1st week, 1st, 3rd and 6th month after surgery. The IOP value, the number of IOP-lowering medications, the proportion of surgical success (average IOP≤21 mmHg at 6 months), and complications were evaluated. Statistical methods included independent sample t-test, Mann-Whitney rank sum test, χ2 test, repeated measures two-factor analysis of variance, Bonferroni, Friedman M test, Wilcoxon, and Log-rank. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to calculate the cumulative success rate of each group. Results: Seventeen male patients (17 eyes) and 10 female patients (10 eyes) were included. The mean age was (39.9±17.7) years old. There were 11 patients in the KDB group and 16 patients in the Trabectome group. There was no significant difference in clinical baseline conditions between the two groups (P>0.05). The IOPs in the KDB and Trabectome groups at postoperative 1 week [(16.6±6.3) and (16.4±4.1) mmHg) and 6 months [(17.8±5.3) and (19.9±4.4) mmHg) were lower than those before surgery [(25.1±9.3) and (27.4±9.1) mmHg) (all P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the overall IOP between groups (P>0.05). The IOP reduction rates in the KDB and Trabectome groups were 23.4% and 19.0%, with no significant difference (P=0.674). The numbers of IOP-lowering medications used in the KDB and Trabectome groups at 3 months [2.0 (1.0, 4.0) and 2.0 (1.0, 2.3)] and 6 months [2.0 (0.0, 4.0) and 2.0 (1.0, 3.0)] after surgery were not significantly different from those before surgery [4.0 (2.0, 4.0) and 3.0 (2.0, 4.0)] (both P>0.05). There was no statistical significance in the overall number of IOP-lowering medications used between the two groups (P>0.05). There was also no statistically significant difference in the proportion of patients with an IOP decrease of≥20% and the proportion of patients whose mean postoperative IOP was≤21 mmHg (all P>0.05). The proportions of IOP≤21 mmHg in the KDB group and the Trabectome group at 6 months after surgery were 81.8% and 68.8% (P>0.05). Serious intraoperative or postoperative complications occurred in neither group. Conclusions: Both KDB trabeculotomy and Trabectome surgery can effectively reduce IOP and have a good safety profile in treating POAG, with the same number of IOP-lowering medications.

Design, assembly and testing of an upgraded aeroacoustics wind tunnel facility

The Aeroacoustics Laboratory in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Penn State currently serves several areas of experimental research. Most notable in the laboratory is the Anechoic Chamber of which the Aeroacoustics Wind Tunnel is an integral part. In recent years the dominant areas of research have included model aircraft exhaust jets and model rotors for helicopter applications involving detailed noise experiments. In the jet noise area, the applications have included aircraft in both flyover and take-off configurations. In the flyover application the air flow surrounding the exhaust jet has a significant effect on the radiated noise and must be simulated to produce experimental results that will be most useful in preliminary design of noise suppression applications. The Aeroacoustics Wind Tunnel at Penn State serves the purpose for this simulation. During aircraft take-off, the aircraft airspeed is in a range exceeding 250 ft per second, or Mach number of over M = 0.22. In the years preceding 2022, the velocity of the free jet flow of the Penn State facility was limited to less than 200 ft/sec. This paper reports on a project to design upgrades to the existing wind tunnel to improve the test section flow velocity to values closer to the 250 ft/sec target. The approach began with a preliminary design of the return flow ducting to convert the open jet, open return wind tunnel to a closed return tunnel. The concept is to make use of the flow energy in the exhaust of the tunnel to boost the input energy to the inlet fan that drives the flow to the test section. An integral part of the preliminary design involved making use of an upgraded flow analysis computer code to predict the gain in test section velocity of the new facility. For the available horsepower of two fans in the facility, the configurations of the existing and upgraded wind tunnel were entered into this analysis code based on a quasi-one-dimensional formulation. The code included empirical data formulated to include the various shapes of the components of the tunnels. The relative flow velocities in each section used simple incompressible continuity to calculate all velocities in the component sections. The average dynamic pressure in each section is calculated from the flow (constant) density and the velocity squared. Each section had a non-dimensional pressure loss parameter calculated from empirical data (from the relevant literature). The basic code (using the Excel algorithms) was based on a predictor-corrector concept in which the calculation was initialized with the estimated velocity and pressure of the flow at the entrance to the test section. The loss in each following section is estimated to determine the loss in the total pressure and the cumulated loss compared to the gains made at the two fans in the circuit. The initial guess is adjusted based on the total pressure value at the end of the circuit. During the related experiments, measurements of the total and dynamic pressure were performed at several joints between sections and compared to the values predicted in the analysis code. Various settings of the horsepower of the drive fans were used and the results were compared to flow measurements for the tunnel configurations (predominantly for the open return and closed return tunnel setups available before and after the upgrade project.) Results of the analysis and experiments are presented and analyzed together with the remaining activities planned for the coming months.

Changes in the state of matter of KCIO4 to improve thermal and combustion properties of Al/MoO3 nanothermite

To improve the thermal and combustion properties of nanothermites, a design theory of changing the state of matter and structural state of the reactants during reaction was proposed. The Al/MoO3/KClO4 (Kp) nanothermite was prepared and the Al/MoO3 nanothermite was used as a control. SEM and XRD were used to characterize the nanothermites; DSC was used to test thermal properties; and constant volume and open combustion tests were performed to examine their combustion performance. Phase and morphology characterization of the combustion products were performed to reveal the mechanism of the aluminothermic reaction. The results show that the Al/MoO3/Kp nanothermite exhibited excellent thermal properties, with a total heat release of 1976 J·g− 1, increasing by approximately 33% of 1486 J·g− 1 of the Al/MoO3 nanothermite, and activation energy of 269.66 kJ·mol− 1, which demonstrated higher stability than the Al/MoO3 nanothermite (205.64 kJ·mol− 1). During the combustion test, the peak pressure of the Al/MoO3/Kp nanothermite was 0.751 MPa, and the average pressure rise rate was 25.03 MPa·s− 1, much higher than 0.188 MPa and 6.27 MPa·s− 1 of the Al/MoO3 nanothermite. The combustion products of Al/MoO3 nanothermite were Al2O3, MoO, and Mo, indicating insufficient combustion and incomplete reaction, whereas, the combustion products of Al/MoO3/Kp nanothermite were Al2O3, MoO, and KCl, indicating complete reaction. Their “coral-like” morphology was the effect of reactants solidifying after melting during the combustion process. The characterization of reactants and pressure test during combustion reveals the three stages of aluminothermic reaction in thermites. The excellent thermal and combustion performance of Al/MoO3/Kp nanothermite is attributed to the melt and decomposition of Kp into O2 in the third stage. This study provides new ideas and guidance for the design of high-performance nanothermites.

“Advocates for Each Other”: The creation and evaluation of a pragmatic peer navigation program for black patients in primary care with uncontrolled hypertension

BackgroundBlack individuals in the U.S. and in our primary care clinic experience worse control of blood pressure compared to White individuals. ObjectiveTo address this inequity, our objectives were to (1) elicit from patients and community members their ideas for barriers and facilitators to blood pressure control; and (2) use their input to design and pilot a navigator program for Black patients in our clinic to improve blood pressure management. Patient involvementWe conducted three focus groups with 27 individuals and identified two main areas of need that informed the peer navigator program: (1) community-based services and (2) skill development for hypertension self-management. MethodsPeer navigators from the Black community called participants at least monthly for 6–12 months and connected them with medical and social services. Available blood pressure data was used as the primary outcome to measure change pre- to post-peer navigation program. ResultsAmong 499 eligible patients in the clinic, 53 (10.6%) enrolled in the peer navigation program. For those with baseline and follow-up blood pressure data, mean systolic blood pressure decreased from 155.9 to 142.4 mmHg after the program (change of −13.6, 95% CI −24.7 to −2.4) for the enrolled patients (N = 17) and from 139.1 to 137.1 mmHg (change of −2.5, −4.8 to 1.9) for unenrolled, comparison patients (N = 183). DiscussionThis community-informed peer navigation program to support Black patients with uncontrolled hypertension led to a 11.1 mmHg greater decrease in average systolic blood pressure for enrolled patients compared to the comparison group. However, the enrolled group started with a significantly higher systolic blood pressure at baseline with more room for improvement. While this study was conducted during the pandemic years, low uptake of this program needs to be addressed in expansion efforts. Practical valueClinic-based peer navigation for hypertension improved blood pressure control and was highly regarded by the subset of enrolled patients. Increasing uptake and sustainable funding for non-billable clinic roles remain areas of need. FundingGrant from the Pacific Hospital Preservation & Development Authority.

The Role of Blood Pressure Control in Prevention of Hematoma After Blepharoplasty.

Hematoma formation after blepharoplasty is serious and potentially vision-threatening, with hypertension being the primary risk factor. The aim of this paper is to assess perioperative blood pressure trends and rates of complication in patients undergoing a strict blood pressure protocol designed to keep perioperative systolic blood pressure below 120 mmHg. A retrospective chart review was performed of 32 patients undergoing face lift with conomitant blepharoplasty from January 2015 to July 2018. For each patient blood pressure readings obtained before, during, and after surgery were reviewed. Two-sample one-tail T-tests were performed, and p values less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant. The mean systolic blood pressure (SBP) for all patients was highest intraoperatively. Patients with known hypertension had higher mean SBPs than patients without hypertension across all phases of care, with a statistically significant difference in immediate preoperative SBP (p=0.05). Males had a higher average blood pressure immediately postoperatively (p=0.05). A previous diagnosis of hypertension in females was associated with a higher immediate preoperative SBP (p=0.07) as well as age over 65 (p=0.07). The overall rate of complications was 37.5%. No patients experienced hematoma. This study demonstrated that keeping blood pressure below 120 mmHg after surgery was an effective method of preventing hematoma after blepharoplasty, even in patients concurrently on anti-coagulative medications. Special attention to blood pressure control should be shown to patients with known risk factors such as a previous diagnosis of hypertension, male sex, or age greater than 65. This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .

Effect of the early diastolic blood pressure response to the head-up tilt test on the recurrence of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo.

Otolith organ acts complementarily with the autonomic nervous system to maintain blood pressure. However, the effect of blood pressure variability in the autonomic nervous system on otolith organ has not yet been determined. This study aimed to verify the hypothesis that blood pressure variability in the autonomic nervous system affects the recurrence of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), which is the most common disease of the vestibular organs, by using the head-up tilt test (HUTT). This study included 432 patients diagnosed with idiopathic BPPV. The follow-up period for all patients was 12 months. Age, sex, hypertension, diabetes and recurrence were analyzed. The HUTT parameters were divided into a group of patients whose average diastolic blood pressure increased in the upright position compared to supine position during the HUTT (DBP1) and a group of patients whose average diastolic blood pressure decreased in the upright position compared to supine position during the HUTT (DBP2). Model selection, general loglinear analysis, and logit loglinear analysis were performed using a hierarchically progressing loglinear analysis. In summary, the group with increased average diastolic blood pressure (DBP1) showed a higher tendency for BPPV recurrence compared to the group with decreased diastolic blood pressure (DBP2) in the upright position during the HUTT, although the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.080). However, in males, the DBP1 group demonstrated a significantly higher recurrence rate of BPPV than the DBP2 group during the HUTT (95% CI, -20.021 to -16.200; p < 0.001). It is presumed that poor autonomic nervous system response through vestibulosympathetic reflex maintains elevated diastolic blood pressure in the upright position during the HUTT. This variability is assumed to affect the recurrence of BPPV.

Evaluation of tubal patency based on peak injection pressure in four-dimensional hysterosalpingo-contrast sonography among infertile females: a preliminary study.

Although the application of four-dimensional hysterosalpingo-contrast sonography (4D-HyCoSy) has relatively good diagnostic accuracy for assessing the patency of the fallopian tubes, the evaluation process mainly relies on morphological findings of the fallopian tubes and pelvic cavity. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship of peak injection pressure during 4D-HyCoSy and tubal patency to provide a quantitative indicator for the evaluation of fallopian tube patency. This study included infertile patients who underwent 4D-HyCoSy and laparoscopic chromopertubation (LC) between 2020 and 2022, with LC serving as the reference test for assessing tubal patency. For the HyCoSy procedure, the ultrasound contrast agent was injected automatically using a liquid injection machine, and real-time pressure values were recorded. Patients were classified based on tubal patency status in LC as bilaterally patent, unilaterally patent, or bilaterally nonpatent. The average peak injection pressure and contrast agent volume of different groups were compared. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was employed to determine the cutoff value. A total of 268 infertile patients were enrolled in the study. With LC as the standard examination, the sensitivity and specificity of 4D-HyCoSy in diagnosing nonpatent fallopian tubes were 91.1% and 95.1%, respectively. In general, peak injection pressure was observed to gradually increase as tubal patency decreased (P<0.001), with average peak injection pressures of 233.5±66.3, 338.8±99.8, and 469.6±63.1 mmHg in the bilaterally patent, unilaterally patent, and bilaterally nonpatent groups, respectively. The volume of contrast agent used in patients in the bilaterally nonpatent group was significantly lower than that in the other two groups (P<0.01), with average volumes of 22.7±6.3, 24.3±9.3, and 18.9±9.2 mL, respectively. When one fallopian tube was patent, the area under the curve (AUC) for distinguishing obstruction from patency of the other fallopian tube was 0.827, with a sensitivity of 79.8% and a specificity of 74.3% (cutoff value: 254.3 mmHg). Similarly, when one fallopian tube was nonpatent, the AUC was 0.866, with a sensitivity of 90.6% and a specificity of 78.3% (cutoff value: 401.3 mmHg). Peak injection pressure during 4D-HyCoSy demonstrates promising diagnostic performance in evaluating fallopian tube patency in infertile patients.

Experimental study on pulsed pneumatic pre-fracturing grouting in sandy and clayey-silty hydrate-bearing sediments

Clayey-silty hydrate reservoirs in the South China Sea (SCS) are characterized by low permeability, poor strength, and weak cementation. In order to improve the injection effect of reservoir stimulation by high-viscosity grout, this paper proposes a pulsed pneumatic pre-fracturing grouting technology to enhance the injectability of grout and improve overall conductivity of hydrate-bearing sediments. In the pulsed pneumatic fracturing experiment, increasing the frequency ƒ results in higher average pneumatic pressure σavg and maximum pneumatic pressure σmax, maintaining elevated pneumatic pressure levels that reduce local soil strength and improve fracturing effectiveness. In addition, the fracture extension range is positively correlated with the pressure and frequency. In a pulsed pneumatic pre-fracturing grouting experiment, this technology outperformed the conventional fracturing grouting. At frequencies of 2.5 Hz, 5 Hz, and 10 Hz, the total extension distance of the grout consolidation body increases by 3.28, 4.43, and 4.71, respectively. Meanwhile, the total weight of the grout consolidation body increased by factors of 1.94, 2.45, and 3.57. Additionally, under high-frequency fracture initiation condition (10 Hz), the average thickness of the grout consolidation body doubled compared to that under low-frequency condition (2.5 Hz). In conclusion, the pulsed pneumatic pre-fracturing grouting technology significantly improved the injectability of high-viscosity grout and the effectiveness of grouting stimulation in sandy and clayey-silty hydrate-bearing sediments.

Thermal-hydraulic performance of modified Schwartz-Diamond solid-networks triply periodic minimal surface structures

The triply periodic minimal surface (TPMS) structures are widely used as disturbance core structure in high performance heat exchangers. In this paper, four modified Schwartz-Diamond solid-networks (SD-solid) TPMS structures, one structure compressed along the flow direction (β = 2), and three structures compressed along the spanwise direction (α = 2, α = 3, and α = 4) are designed. Flow and heat transfer processes in the structures are studied with computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and experimental method. The performance enhancement criterion (PEC) is employed to evaluate the overall heat transfer performance. As the results of simulation, the overall heat transfer coefficient (hoverall) of α = 2, α = 3, and α = 4 is 10.04 %, 34.34 %, and 62.03 % higher than that of SD-solid respectively. The PEC of α = 2, α = 3, and α = 4 structures is 27.35 %, 34.17 %, and 34.95 % higher than that of the original SD-solid structure, respectively. Two samples of them (β = 2 and α = 2) are fabricated using additive manufacturing and their thermal–hydraulic performance is experimented on a flow and heat transfer experimental platform. Comparing the experimental results of the hoverall, the β = 2 structure is 68.5 % higher and the α = 2 structure is 23.06 % higher than the original SD-solid structure. However, for the average pressure drop, the β = 2 structure is 448.5 % higher and the α = 2 structure is 66.77 % lower than the original SD-solid structure. It is proved that the modified SD-solid structure compressed along the spanwise direction has the performance of enhancing heat transfer and reducing the pressure drop.

Optimization of annular transonic thrust nozzles via genetic algorithm and adjoint method

In this research, the idea of combining the genetic algorithm and adjoint method was proposed to leverage the benefits of both approaches to improve the accuracy of thrust nozzle shape optimization. Although the genetic algorithm can search the entire design space to approach the global optimum, its computational cost increases considerably with the number of design variables. Meanwhile, the adjoint method is unaffected by the design variables, but it cannot achieve the global optimum directly and relies on the initial guess geometry. To address these challenges, a genetic algorithm was initially employed to approximate the global optimal geometry of a thrust nozzle with a conical center body parameterized by a Bezier curve. A MATLAB code integrated the geometry parameterization, genetic algorithm, and Fluent R2 2021 flow solver. The resulting geometry was then considered as the initial guess for the adjoint method, which accurately achieved the final optimal geometry with increased control points. The genetic algorithm aimed to maximize the thrust coefficient as the objective function, while the adjoint solver aimed to minimize the axial velocity variance at the nozzle outlet as the cost function. Three distinct constraints were incorporated in the optimization process, and the influence of the center body shape on the results was thoroughly examined to consider all possible geometries throughout the optimization procedure. The findings revealed that the conical center body effectively adjusted the flow angle at the exit, significantly affecting the thrust force. Both optimization steps reduced the average velocity and increased the average pressure at the nozzle exit, enhanced the mass flow rate, and finally increased the thrust force. The genetic algorithm and adjoint method contributed to 3% and 0.6% increases, respectively, in the thrust force, resulting in a thrust coefficient of 96.15% for the final optimized nozzle.

The influence of plug nozzle and Laval nozzle on the flow field and performance of non-premixed rotating detonation combustor

With the rotating detonation engine's (RDE) development to engineering applications, the selection and optimization of nozzle is garnering great concerns, with the aim to maximize the performance benefits of this pressure gain propulsion system. The present study represents the first effort to explore the distinct impacts of two commonly used nozzles in RDE, namely, the plug nozzle and the Laval nozzle, on the internal flow and performance within the combustion chamber. Three-dimensional numerical simulations are conducted on non-premixed annular RDEs with plug nozzles and Laval nozzles. It is found that the Laval nozzle induces a forward-leaning wavefront structure in the combustion chamber. Furthermore, the overall pressure gain of the RDE is divided into the injection pressure loss, the average pressure gain at the chamber bottom, and the flow losses downstream, by combining the wavefront coordinate averaged flow field, which is proposed and applied in this study, and laboratory coordinate averaged flow field. The results show that, for the performance of the combustion chamber, while Laval nozzles enhance pressure gains at the chamber bottom and reduce exit flow non-uniformity, they also increase downstream losses. By comparing the RDE performance with the ideal performance of deflagration-based combustors, it is found that the premixed control group exceeded the deflagration ideal performance by 30%. Despite lower combustion efficiency, non-premixed configurations nearly match the ideal deflagration performance, underscoring the inherent advantages of RDEs.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation to Reduce Chronic Pain in Elderly with Hypertension: A Case Study

Increased blood pressure causes vascular damage to the blood vessels in the neck when carrying blood to the brain, resulting in pressure on the muscle nerve fibres, which causes head pain. One of the independent nursing interventions that can be used is Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR). This case study is to determine the application of PMR to reduce pain scale in elderly with hypertension at UPT PSTW Jember. This Final Scientific Work uses a descriptive design with the Case report method, which describes the application of Evidence-Based Nursing Practice, namely PMR, for headaches in the elderly with hypertension. Therapy is given to a patient in two meetings a day for seven days for 15 minutes. Measurement of pain scale using the Numeric Rating Scale (NRS). The results after being given PMR showed a decrease in pain levels by reviewing complaints of decreased pain, the average pain scale from 4.4 NRS to 3.4 NRS, the average systolic blood pressure from 155.7 mmHg to 142.8 mmHg and the average diastolic blood pressure from 94.2 mmHg to 90 mmHg. PMR therapy can reduce chronic pain by increasing the elasticity of blood vessels, reducing muscle tension and reducing headaches.

[Attempts for salt reduction in workers through specific food service facility guidance by public health center: A case study at a worksite in Kawagoe City, Saitama Prefecture].

Objective　The Kawagoe City Public Health Center implemented a project to reduce salt intake through specific food service facility guidance in workplace cafeterias. Here, we report the study results.Methods　The target worksite was company A, with approximately 270 employees, located in Kawagoe City, Saitama Prefecture. There were 214 participants (approximately 80%). The project was conducted from November 2019 to November 2021. The long-term goal was to decrease the number of hypertensive cases in the city. Project outcomes included decreased salt intake, urinary sodium/potassium ratio, and average blood pressure. The project aimed to improve the cafeteria menu, focusing on salt reduction by offering Smart Meals® and reducing the salt equivalents in all menus. The project output indicators included reduced amount of salt in cafeteria menu items, increased frequency of cafeteria use, increased positive evaluations of the cafeteria, and increased daily awareness of the need for salt reduction. Spot urine samples, blood pressure measurements, and self-administered questionnaire data were collected during annual physical examinations. The amount of salt in the cafeteria menu was evaluated by receiving monthly data from the food service company to which company A outsourced its cafeteria operations.Results　The analysis included 102 individuals with complete data from to 2019-2021. Estimated salt intake (g/day) from spot urine decreased from 10.3±2.1 in 2019 to 9.8±2.4 in 2020 and 9.5±2.0 in 2021 (P=0.003). Systolic blood pressure (mmHg) decreased from 114.7±12.5 in 2019 to 111.7±12.1 in 2020 and 110.6±12.0 in 2021 (P=0.010). Compared to 2019, changes in dietary salt equivalents in cafeteria menus in 2020 and 2021decreased for set meals A and B, curries, and noodles (P<0.001).Conclusion　We offered Smart Meals® and reduced salt equivalents in all workplace cafeteria menus. After 1-2 years, employees' salt intake and blood pressure levels were lower. These results provide implications for the implementation of food environment improvements in public health centers and other local government agencies to promote the Health Japan 21 (third term) strategy.

INVESTIGATION OF TROPOSPHERIC RADIO REFRACTIVITY AND OTHER RELEVANT PARAMETERS USING METEOROLOGICAL VARIABLES OVER BAUCHI, NIGERIA

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) archives were used in this work to obtain the measured monthly average daily temperature, relative humidity, and atmospheric pressure over a 41-years period (1981–2021) for Bauchi (latitude , longitude ) to calculate the monthly tropospheric radio refractivity. The site is located in Nigeria's midland climate zone. We also looked into the variation with other factors, the refractivity gradient, and the percentage contribution of the dry term (Ndry) and wet term (Nwet) radio refractivity. The results showed that during the rainy and dry seasons, respectively, the months of August and February had the highest and lowest average values of radio refractivity, measuring 355.032 (N-units) and 273.255 (N-units), respectively. This suggests that radio refractivity is higher during the rainy season than it is during the dry season. The wet term contributes to the significant fluctuation in radio refractivity values, while the dry term makes up 77.60 % of the total value. The average refractivity gradient estimate was found to be – 40.854 N – units/km suggesting super-refraction propagation for Bauchi indicating that electromagnetic waves are often bent downward towards the earth when the super refraction condition occurs.

Deep learning tool: reconstruction of long missing climate data based on spatio-temporal multilayer perceptron

AbstractLong-term monitoring of climate data is significant for grasping the law and development trend of climate change and guaranteeing food security. However, some weather stations lack monitoring data for even decades. In this study, 62 years of historical monitoring data from 105 weather stations in Xinjiang were used for missing sequence prediction, validating proposed data reconstruction tool. First of all, study area was divided into three parts according to the climatic characteristics and geographical locations. A spatio-temporal multilayer perceptron (MLP) was established to reconstruct meteorological data with three time scales (Short term, cycle and long term) and one spatio dimension as inputing (rolling predictions, one step predicts one day), filling in long sequence blank data. By designing an end-to-end model to autonomously detect the locations of missing data and make rolling predictions,we obtained complete meteorological monitoring data of Xinjiang from 1961 to 2022. Seven kinds of parameter reconstructed include maximum temperature (Max_T), minimum temperature (Min_T), mean temperature (Ave _ T), average water vapor pressure (Ave _ WVP), relative humidity (Ave _ RH), average wind speed (10 m Ave _ WS), and sunshine duration (Sun_H). Contrasted the prediction accuracy of the model with general MLP and LSTM, results shows that, in the seven types of parameters, designed spatio-temporal MLP decreases MAE and MSE by 7.61% and 4.80% respectively. The quality of reconstructed data was evaluated by calculating correlation coefficient with the monitored sequences of nearest station,determining the applicable meteorological parameters of the model according to the results. Results show that,proposed model reached satisfied average correlation coefficient for Max_T, Min_T, Ave _ T and Ave _ WVP parameters are 0.969, 0.961, 0.971 and 0.942 respectively. The average correlation coefficient of Sun_H and Ave _ RH are 0.720 and 0.789. Although it is difficult to predict extreme values, it can still capture the period and trend; the reconstruction effect of 10 m Ave _ WS is poor, with the average similarity of 0.488. Proposed method is applicable to reconstruct Max_T, Min_T, Ave _ T and Ave _ WVP, but not recommended to reconstruct Sun_H, Ave _ RH and Ave _ WS.

Investigation of membrane stress continuously adjustable fiber optic acoustic sensor based on inverse piezoelectric effect

In this paper, a fiber optic acoustic sensor with continuously adjustable membrane stress technology is proposed, in which the stress exerted on the membrane can be flexibly adjusted by employing the inverse piezoelectric effect of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) tubular pedestal. First, the response mechanism of stress on the membrane is investigated theoretically. Based on this principle, the effect of adjustable stress on the flat response region and sensitivity of a single mode-multimode-single mode (SMS) fiber optic acoustic sensor are studied experimentally. The experimental results reveal that the flat response region of the sensor extends from 250 Hz to 450 Hz following the continuous increase in the membrane stress by changing the positive direct current voltage applied on PZT from 0 V to 100 V; meanwhile, the sensitivity decreases gradually from 336.5 mV Pa−1 to 162.7 mV Pa−1. The results also verify that the average minimum detectable pressure of the sensor is maintained at 0.54 mPa Hz−1/2 with a fluctuation of 0.08 mPa Hz−1/2 during the tuning process of membrane stress, which provides a flexible method for performance and applicability improvement of membrane-based fiber optic acoustic sensors.

Assessment of Tropospheric Radio Refractivity and Its Variation with Climatic Variables Over Zaria, Nigeria

To achieve optimal performances, radio link/system planning and design must take radio refractivity estimation very seriously. This study  utilizes measured average daily temperature, relative humidity, and atmospheric pressure for forty-one-year period (1981–2021) obtained  from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) archives for Zaria (latitude 11.100 N, longitude 7.680 E)  strategically located in Nigeria’s midland climate zone to calculate the monthly tropospheric radio refractivity and look into how it varies  with other meteorological factors and radio refractive index. The percentage of the contribution of dry term (Ndry) and wet term (Nwet)  to radio refractivity and refractivity gradient were investigated. The findings indicated that radio refractivity was higher during the rainy  season (August) and lower’during the dry season (February), with a maximum mean value of 350.8733 N-units and a minimum mean  value of 284.1975 N-units, respectively, found in those months. The wet term contributes to the significant fluctuation of the radio  refractivity, whereas the dry term makes up 76.03% of the total value. The gradient of mean refractivity estimated for Zaria was found to  be – 43.8709 N – units/km indicating super-refraction propagation condition. 

PCA-pump for analgesia following pediatric scoliosis surgery: bolus administration with/without basal infusion.

The aim of this study is to compare the use of two different opioid delivery systems (bolus PCA with/without basal infusion) to control postoperative pain and evaluate the side effect profile in pediatric patients undergoing scoliosis surgery. 38 patients who underwent posterior spinal fusion for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis were included in the study. Patients were randomly divided into 2 groups by the computer. Patients who received only bolus PCA were named Group 1, and patients who received bolus PCA with basal infusion were named Group 2.Morphine consumption, postoperative pain assessmentduring rest, movement and coughing with numeric rating scale (NRS) and the Wong -Baker pain scale, heart rate and average blood pressure, sedation levels withRamsey sedation scale and side effects such as nausea, vomiting, itching, desaturation, and urinary retention were recorded. Total mean morphine consumption (mg) was 32.7 ± 9.7 in Group 1 and 43.4 ± 9.1 in Group 2. The mean morphine consumption (mg) at 12-24hours and 0-48hours in Group 1 was statistically lower than Group 2 (p = 0.001). There was no significant difference between the groups in terms of median NRS scores (p = 0.55). There was no statistically significant difference in the evaluation of the groups in terms of Wong-Baker pain scale. Wong-Baker pain scale is p:0.66 at the 2nd hour, p:0.951 at the 12th hour and p:0.467 at the 24th hour.There was no statistically significant difference in Ramsay Sedation Scale evaluation between groups during each follow-up time (p > 0.05). The Ramsay Sedation Scale was p: 0.94 at the 2nd hour, p:1.0 at the 12th hour, and p:1.0 at the 24th hour. The duration of vomiting between 0-2h, 2-24h and 0-48h was higher in Group 2 (p = 0.001, p = 0.024, p = 0.001). The two administration settings of morphine sulphate by PCA pump have shown to be equally effective in the treatment of postoperative pain following PSF. In addition, PCA with basal infusion administration causes more opioid consumption and more systemic side effects. Therefore, the use of only bolus PCA in pediatric scoliosis surgery should be encouraged. LevelII, Randomized Controlled Trial.

Exploring the performance of protected areas in alleviating future human pressure.

Protected areas (PAs) are effective in mitigating human pressures, yet their future pressure alleviating effects remain unclear. In this study, we employed the ConvLSTM model to forecast the future human footprint and analyzed human pressure trends using Theil-Sen median and Mann-Kendall tests. We further evaluated the mitigating effects of PAs within their buffer zones (1-10 km) and the contributions of different IUCN categories of PAs to mitigating human pressure using linear regression models. The results indicate that by 2035, the average human pressure value is expected to increase by 11%, with trends exhibiting a polarized pattern. Furthermore, PAs also effectively mitigate human pressure within their 1 km buffer zones. Different categories of PAs vary in their effectiveness in mitigating human pressure, and stricter conservation areas are not always the most effective. This study can offer insights for evaluating the effectiveness of PAs in reducing human pressure and advocate for their targeted management in urban areas.

Evaluasi dan Optimalisasi Penyediaan Air Bersih Berbasis Masyarakat (Studi Kasus: Kawasan Langara Pesisir, Kab. Konawe Kepulauan)

The Langara Coastal area is the economic center area of the capital city of Konawe Islands Regency. However, the provision of clean water as a basic need is still not fulfilled, this is because the source of clean water in the Langara Coastal Area currently still depends on Community Self-Help, as a result, water distribution is carried out in shifts. This research aims to determine air needs, the condition of the existing distribution network, and optimize the clean water distribution system. Air requirements are calculated using an analysis of population projections for 15 years. Analysis of pipe hydraulics using EPANET 2.2 Software, and air flow by gravity using PVC pipes. The analysis results show that the population in 2036 will be 1816 people with peak hour water demand of 4.13 l/sec. The condition of the existing distribution network shows that all Junctions have an average pressure of 9 atm. Meanwhile, the pipe with the highest speed at P3 is 0.47 m/s and the speed at P15 is 0.04 m/s, indicating that the existing conditions do not meet the technical criteria of Minister of PUPR Regulation No. 27/PRT/M/2016. So to increase the flow speed it is necessary to change the pipe dimensions at several points. In peak hour optimization simulations, the maximum speed occurs in pipes P2, P3, P4, and P10, namely 2.61 m/s, while the lowest speed occurs in pipe P21, namely 0.30 m/s. The results of this optimization are by the speed criteria in Minister of PUPR Regulation No.27/PRT/M/2016