B15 2TT Research Articles

Experimental Investigation of Gaseous Emissions and Hydrocarbon Speciation for MF and MTHF Gasoline Blends in DISI Engine

Article Experimental Investigation of Gaseous Emissions and Hydrocarbon Speciation for MF and MTHF Gasoline Blends in DISI Engine Rafiu K. Olalere 1,2, Gengxin Zhang 1, and Hongming Xu 1,3, * 1 Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Engineering, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK 2 Department Mechanical Engineering, Lagos State University of Science and Technology, Ikorodu 02341, Nigeria 3 State Key Laboratory of Automotive Safety and Energy, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China * Correspondence: h.m.xu@bham.ac.uk Received: 8 November 2023 Accepted: 25 March 2024 Published: 28 March 2024 Abstract: With the increasing shortage of fossil energy, the development of engines urgently requires alternative fuels. Gaseous emissions of a gasoline direct injection spark ignition engine fueled with blends of 2-methylfuran (MF 20% vol. and gasoline 80% vol.) and 2-methyltetrahydrofuran (MTHF 20% vol. and gasoline 80% vol.) were experimentally investigated using Gasmeth FTIR. Experiments were conducted at air-fuel ratio (λ = 1) and at engine speed of 1500 rpm using the fuels optimised spark timing. Effects of fuel injection sweeps (180–280 °CA BTDC) on the emission characteristics of blends were investigated at the intermediate load of 5.5 bar IMEP. Hydrocarbon emission (HC) for gasoline is about 41% and 16% higher compared to MF20 and MTHF20 respectively. Carbon monoxide emission for the fuels increases as the injection timing is retarded but the Nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions was observed to reduce with the retarded injection timing. Both MF20 and MTHF20 recorded high NOx emissions compared to gasoline. The results indicated ethylene (25–26%) as the major component of the HC speciation in the fuels investigated. The unburnt furan samples for blend fuels were determined to be less than 3% of HC emissions, which could be considered a safe level for exposure.

Artificial Intelligence and Its Roles in the R&D of Vehicle Powertrain Products

Review Artificial Intelligence and Its Roles in the R&D of Vehicle Powertrain Products Quan Zhou , * , Ji Li , and Hongming Xu , * Birmingham CASE Automotive Research and Education Centre, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, B15 2TT UK * Correspondence: q.zhou@bham.ac.uk (Q.Z.); h.m.xu@bham.ac.uk (H.X.) Received: 5 October 2022 Accepted: 20 November 2022 Published: 25 December 2022 Abstract: Decarbonization requires global actions, and the transport sector is the main battlefield since it contributes more than 20% of CO 2 emissions. Vehicle electrification is an effective routine to reduce vehicle carbon emissions, but it increases the complexity of the vehicle systems, especially the powertrain systems. The rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) is promoting the development of new automation technologies that can benefit the automotive industry. This paper reviews the key milestones of AI technology development for vehicle research and development (R&D) and highlights the advantage of AI-based methods in powertrain design and control. An outlook of future research directions will be discussed, and conclusions will be summarized.

E. Micheler, Company Law: A Real Entity Theory, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2021, 320 pp, hb, £80.00

The Modern Law ReviewEarly View REVIEW E. Micheler, Company Law: A Real Entity Theory, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2021, 320 pp, hb, £80.00 Andreas Kokkinis, Corresponding Author Andreas Kokkinis a.kokkinos@bham.ac.uk University of Birmingham, School of Law. Dr Andreas Kokkinis, Birmingham Law School, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT Email: a.kokkinis@bham.ac.ukSearch for more papers by this author Andreas Kokkinis, Corresponding Author Andreas Kokkinis a.kokkinos@bham.ac.uk University of Birmingham, School of Law. Dr Andreas Kokkinis, Birmingham Law School, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT Email: a.kokkinis@bham.ac.ukSearch for more papers by this author First published: 08 April 2022 https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-2230.12733 Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Early ViewOnline Version of Record before inclusion in an issue RelatedInformation

Is There a Correlation Between How Medical Students Study and Prepare for Anatomy and the Reasons Why They Find Anatomy Difficult?

Anatomical Sciences EducationEarly View Letter to the Editor Is There a Correlation Between How Medical Students Study and Prepare for Anatomy and the Reasons Why They Find Anatomy Difficult? Eleni Patera B.Sc., M.Sc., F.H.E.A., Corresponding Author E.Patera@bham.ac.uk orcid.org/0000-0001-6154-4069 School of Biomedical Sciences, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Institute of Clinical Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom Correspondence to: Ms. Eleni Patera, Department of Anatomy, Birmingham University Medical School, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT United Kingdom. E-mail: E.Patera@bham.ac.ukSearch for more papers by this author Eleni Patera B.Sc., M.Sc., F.H.E.A., Corresponding Author E.Patera@bham.ac.uk orcid.org/0000-0001-6154-4069 School of Biomedical Sciences, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Institute of Clinical Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom Correspondence to: Ms. Eleni Patera, Department of Anatomy, Birmingham University Medical School, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT United Kingdom. E-mail: E.Patera@bham.ac.ukSearch for more papers by this author First published: 19 April 2021 https://doi.org/10.1002/ase.2091Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onEmailFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Early ViewOnline Version of Record before inclusion in an issue RelatedInformation

The certainty of uncertainty: can we teach a constructive response?

Medical EducationVolume 51, Issue 12 p. 1200-1202 Commentary The certainty of uncertainty: can we teach a constructive response? Georgina White, Georgina White Birmingham, UKdenotes joint first authorsSearch for more papers by this authorSimon Williams, Corresponding Author Simon Williams sxw381@student.bham.ac.uk Birmingham, UKdenotes joint first authorsCorrespondence: Simon Williams, Institute of Inflammation and Ageing, School of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK. Tel: 00 44 7825 409352; E-mail: sxw381@student.bham.ac.ukSearch for more papers by this author Georgina White, Georgina White Birmingham, UKdenotes joint first authorsSearch for more papers by this authorSimon Williams, Corresponding Author Simon Williams sxw381@student.bham.ac.uk Birmingham, UKdenotes joint first authorsCorrespondence: Simon Williams, Institute of Inflammation and Ageing, School of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK. Tel: 00 44 7825 409352; E-mail: sxw381@student.bham.ac.ukSearch for more papers by this author First published: 10 November 2017 https://doi.org/10.1111/medu.13466Citations: 18 Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article.Citing Literature Volume51, Issue12December 2017Pages 1200-1202 RelatedInformation

Reply to Giannakos, K. Comment on: Toughness of Railroad Concrete Crossties with Holes and Web Openings. Infrastructures 2017, 2, 3

This paper responds to the discussion [1] by Dr. K. Giannakos over our technical note [2].[...]

WOMEN IN CANCER PROFILE: From bedside to bench and back: my journey in thyroid disease.

Kristien Boelaert, Reader in Endocrinology, Institute of Metabolism and Systems Research, College 2 of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, B15 2TT 3 Corresponding Author: k.boelaert@bham.ac.uk 4 5 Declaration of interest: 6 I declare that there is no conflict of interest that could be perceived as prejudicing the impartiality of 7 the research reported. 8 Funding Declaration: 9 My work has been supported by Research Funding from the Wellcome Trust (066569/Z/01/Z), MRC 10 (MR/J001414/1, G070064, G060181), , NIHR-HTA (110399), NIHR-EME (09/100/10), The British 11 Thyroid Foundation and The Get-a-Head Charity. 12 13 14 Page 1 of 11 Accepted Preprint first posted on 15 September 2016 as Manuscript ERC-16-0396

Magnesium for Atrial Fibrillation, Myth or Magic?

Low magnesium levels have been implicated as a risk factor for the development of atrial fibrillation (AF).1 However, like many interventions before it, supplementing magnesium levels does not necessarily lead to a successful cardioversion or better prevention of AF in high-risk groups. This issue is clinically important in view of the high burden that AF poses, the increasing incidence of AF, and the association of AF with adverse long-term clinical outcomes.2 AF is not only prevalent in the general population (≈3%, with much higher rates in older patients) but also a frequent comorbidity and risk factor in patients with a range of cardiovascular conditions, including heart failure and after cardiac surgery.3,4 Identifying practical and effective methods for managing AF is a clinical imperative. See Article by Rajagopalan et al The attention on magnesium as a potential antiarrhythmic agent is founded on a small number of physiological assessments in human and animal models.5 Intravenous magnesium directly affects myocardial potassium channels, has voltage-dependent and indirect effects on calcium and sodium channels, prolongs the PR interval, and increases the refractory period of antegrade atrioventricular node conduction.6,7 However, although low serum magnesium levels were associated with incident AF in the ARIC study (Atherosclerosis Risk in …

Pilot study investigating the prevalence of oral Human Papilloma Viral (HPV) infection in young adults

G.L. Knight , L. Needham , D. Ward , S. Roberts c a Department of Life Sciences, College of Life and Natural Sciences, University of Derby, Derby, DE22 1GB, UK b College of Health and Social Care, University of Derby, Derby, DE22 1GB, UK c Institute of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Cancer Research UK Birmingham Cancer Centre, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK

Supporting the industry sector of the metabolomics community: the remit of the Metabolomics Society’s Industry Engagement Task Group

The overarching goal of the Metabolomics Society’s Industry Engagement Task Group is to enhance the relationships between the Metabolomics Society, the scientific community that it supports, and different companies including software and hardware vendors, service providers and users of metabolomics technologies within industry. The second goal is to improve the benefits provided by the Metabolomics Society to support the growth of metabolomics within industry, both as a tool for scientific discovery and as a commercial product. The third goal is to encourage industrial contributions toward the growth of the international metabolomics community. Synergistic relationships between industry, academia and government scientists are critical to facilitate the continued growth of metabolomics. A report published in 2013 on the worldwide metabolomics market for clinical disease biomarker research and applications predicts double-digit growth up to 2017 (http://www.businesswire.com/ news/home/20131101005334/en/Research-Markets-2013Report-Worldwide-Metabolomics-Market). Various industries will be needed to deliver such growth, spanning industrial technology providers and industrial technology users. These needs have been recognised by the Industry Engagement Task Group, which is developing a portfolio of benefits to support both groups. The first industrial sector comprises instrument and software vendors, chemical companies (who market chemical standards, reagents and ‘kits’), and metabolomics service providers. Generalising their needs somewhat, these companies have products or services to sell. Therefore, one of the most important aspects for them is the ability to reach the Society’s membership for marketing, and hence we seek to engage with scientists and/or business development managers in these companies and help to deliver a portfolio of networking and advertising opportunities. In addition, these companies have a keen interest in developing their latest breakthroughs in metabolomics technologies into commercial products or services. Marketing advanced metabolomics technologies to the broader science community is critical to the continued growth of the discipline, and improved collaboration between the industrial and academic/government sectors is vital to continue the rapid advancement and distribution of metabolomics technologies. The second industrial sector is composed of users of metabolomics technologies within a broad range of industries, e.g. pharmaceutical, agri-chemical, food and biotechnology. Metabolomics as a science is now sufficiently mature to have significant impacts on the wider society if the implementation of metabolomics technologies in the industrial sector is appropriately supported. We M. R. Viant (&) School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK e-mail: m.viant@bham.ac.uk

Breast screening saves lives: now is the time to address overtreatment

Breast screening saves lives: now is the time to address overtreatment

Steroid sulfatase contributes to systemic androgen activation in pre-pubertal boys: lessons from steroid sulfatase deficiency

(1) CEDAM, Centre for Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, School of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, United Kingdom; (2) MRC-Holland bv, 1057-DN Amsterdam, The Netherlands; (3) Centre for Rare Diseases and Personalized Medicine, School of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, United Kingdom (4) Department of Paediatric Endocrinology, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London WC1N 3JH (5) Department of Paediatric Endocrinology and (6) Department of Paediatric Dermatology, Birmingham Children’s Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Steelhouse Lane, Birmingham B4 6NH, United Kingdom

Lymphotoxin-β receptor signalling links steatohepatitis, hyper-lipidemia and atherosclerosis

Lymphotoxin-β receptor signalling links steatohepatitis, hyper-lipidemia and atherosclerosis

Catchment similarity concepts for understanding dynamic biogeochemical behaviour of river basins

Stefan Krause,* Jim Freer, David M. Hannah, Nicholas J. K. Howden, Thorsten Wagener and Fred Worrall 1 School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK 2 School of Geographical Sciences, University of Bristol, University Road, Tyndalls Park, Bristol BS8 1SS, UK 3 Department of Civil Engineering, University of Bristol, Queen’s Building, University Walk, Tyndalls Park, Bristol BS8 1TR, UK 4 Department of Earth Sciences, University of Durham, Science Labs, Durham DH1 3LE, UK

CELLULAR MECHANISMS OF EPILEPSY

John Jefferys FMedSc, Professor of Neuroscience, Neurotrauma and Neurodegeneration School of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT Email j.g.r.jefferys@bham.ac.ukEpilepsy...

Gone Fishing (for Silent Atrial Fibrillation)

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with a stubbornly elevated mortality (3.5% –4% per year in trials),1–4 at odds with the decline in mortality after a first myocardial infarction.5 Furthermore, the prevalence and incidence of AF are increasing as our societies get older,6 and treatment of other acute and chronic cardiac disorders that predispose to AF will further prolong the lives of patients at risk of AF. Hence, there is a need to improve outcomes in patients with AF.7 Article see p 930 AF can present in a variety of clinical scenarios. Some patients suffer so much that they seek specialist help to be relieved from the arrhythmia. Others present with diffuse symptoms, often including fatigue and shortness of breath, and are found to be in AF on clinical or ECG examination. In yet others, AF is an incidental finding when an irregular heartbeat is detected on physical examination and/or an ECG is recorded for other reasons, such as during preoperative assessment. In these patients, the diagnosis of AF is made in time to institute therapy, such as oral anticoagulation, rate control, rhythm control, and therapy of concomitant cardiovascular diseases.8 It is estimated that one third of patients with AF are asymptomatic. Paroxysmal AF, in particular, frequently occurs without patient awareness. Studies in which systematic ECG monitoring is used have suggested that 50% to 70% of AF episodes occur without patient symptoms.9 Some patients are particularly unfortunate, and the diagnosis of AF is made only after presentation with an AF-related complication. The most devastating complication of AF is an acute ischemic stroke. In others, paroxysmal, self-terminating AF may remain undiagnosed even after the …

Mass spectrometry and metabolomics: past, present and future

From humble beginnings, the scientific discipline of metabolomics has developed with a multitude of small but significant steps in the last 15 years. Today, we are interrogating the metabolite complement of biological systems in significantly greater depth and with higher accuracy and quality than we could ever predict 15 years ago. Many developments that have emerged during this journey have been related to new tools, from analytical instruments to computational software and including novel methodologies associated with instruments and software. With these innovative tools we are deriving new knowledge related to metabolism, biochemical synthesis and the regulation of complex biological networks in diverse organisms from microbes and alga, through plants and model organisms including Arabidopsis, Daphnia and Drosophila to mammals. The application of analytical platforms is one hugely important area where development in the past has, and in the future will shape our capabilities. The technological advances which allowed us to detect hundreds or thousands of metabolites in an untargeted approach, applying mass spectrometry (MS) and NMR spectroscopy, was one of the significant driving forces in the expansion of metabolomics at the end of the 20th century and in the early years of the 21st century. The two techniques of MS and NMR are highly complementary and when applied synergistically in studies they can increase our capabilities to answer biological questions. Today, MS and NMR are applied in greater than 80 % of all published metabolomics studies. Mass spectrometry, including its integration with separation techniques including liquid chromatography and associated variants, gas chromatography and capillary electrophoresis, is a powerful bio-analytical tool to apply in metabolomics. In studies where the metabolites of interest are known and chemical standards are available absolute quantification can be applied with high precision, accuracy and sensitivity; although the metabolites still have to be extracted from the samples in a robust and quantitative (or at least known) extent, which is an important aspect in these studies. These techniques have been applied in many areas including pharmaceutical drug development, environmental testing laboratories and anti-doping laboratories such as were applied in the 2012 Olympic Games. Mass spectrometry can also be applied to study thousands of metabolites in a single sample in untargeted studies where the metabolites of biological importance are not known a priori; a true discovery platform providing an unparalleled phenotypic readout comprising thousands of metabolites. It is with great pleasure that as Guest Editors we present a special issue of the journal Metabolomics focused on the development and application of mass spectrometry. Here we will focus on past achievements, current tools, developments for the future and novel applications. We have planned this special issue to provide an overview of the current role and potential of MS for metabolomics which have not been previously observed. We wish to thank our contributing authors and provide special thanks to our sponsors for this special issue; Agilent Technologies, LECO and Thermo Fisher Scientific. W. B. Dunn (&) School of Biosciences, The University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK e-mail: w.dunn@bham.ac.uk

RASSF Family Proteins

1 JG Brown Cancer Center, University of Louisville, 417 CTR Building, 505 S. Hancock Street, Louisville, KY 40202, USA 2Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta, 3-055 Katz Group Centre for Pharmacy and Health Research, 113 Street 87 Avenue, Edmonton, AB, Canada T6G 2E1 3School of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK 4National Creative Research Initiatives Center for Cell Division and Differentiation, Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), 373-1 Guseoung-D, Yuseong-G, Daejeon 305-701, Republic of Korea

Improving cardiovascular disease screening for patients with diabetes

ISSN 1758-1907 10.2217/DMT.11.55 © 2011 Future Medicine Ltd Diabetes Manage. (2011) 1(6), 555–558 1Department of Diabetes & Endocrinology, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TH, UK 2University of Birmingham, College of Medical & Dental Sciences, School of Clinical & Experimental Medicine, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK †Author for correspondence: m.j.stevens@bham.ac.uk Improving cardiovascular disease screening for patients with diabetes

The unrealistic claims for the effects of classroom blogging on English as a second language, students' writing performance

British Journal of Educational TechnologyVolume 42, Issue 6 p. E148-E151 The unrealistic claims for the effects of classroom blogging on English as a second language, students' writing performance Ming-Huei Lin, Corresponding Author Ming-Huei Lin Department of English, University of Birmingham, UKMing-Huei Lin, Department of English, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK. Email: [email protected]Search for more papers by this authorChin-Ying Lin, Chin-Ying Lin Department of English, University of Birmingham, UKSearch for more papers by this authorPi-Ying Hsu, Pi-Ying Hsu Department of English, University of Birmingham, UKSearch for more papers by this author Ming-Huei Lin, Corresponding Author Ming-Huei Lin Department of English, University of Birmingham, UKMing-Huei Lin, Department of English, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK. Email: [email protected]Search for more papers by this authorChin-Ying Lin, Chin-Ying Lin Department of English, University of Birmingham, UKSearch for more papers by this authorPi-Ying Hsu, Pi-Ying Hsu Department of English, University of Birmingham, UKSearch for more papers by this author First published: 20 October 2011 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8535.2011.01225.xCitations: 4Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume42, Issue6November 2011Pages E148-E151 RelatedInformation