Breakthrough Method Research Articles

SAT-198 Significant urinary metabolites in the progression of chronic kidney disease

Despite the development of diagnostic techniques, methods for predicting changes in renal function or outcomes are still insufficient. Metabolomics is considered to be a breakthrough method to address the shortage of tools by analyzing the end metabolites, reflecting genetic and environmental factors. Herein, we would like to propose the metabolites which significantly associated with development and progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD).

GAS CONDENSATE BANKING: A REVIEW OF THE PHENOMENON, ACCUMULATION, MITIGATION METHODS, AND NEW BREAKTHROUGH

This research presents a review related to condensate banking problem by describing the condensate phenomenon; condensate accumulation; current mitigation methods and its limitation. Then a new breakthrough method based on wettability alteration is introduced with an explanation on its mechanism and example of chemicals used. Next, new research ideas using nanoparticles as a wettability alteration agent is presented, and it is believed to be better than the chemical treatment alone as it modifieds the wettability surface from two aspects: surface free energy and surface roughness – while chemical treatment only reduced the surface free energy. In a nutshell, there is a significant gap of study in using nanoparticles as the wettability alteration agent in gas condensate reservoirs.

From Fancy Blue to Red: Controlled Production of a Vibrant Color Spectrum of Fluorescent Diamond Particles

AbstractThe current study reports a breakthrough method for production of multicolor diamond particulates using a rapid thermal annealing (RTA) approach with precise temperature and time control, enabling annealing of diamond particulates up to 2100 °C without extensive graphitization. The RTA method generates conditions which allow formation of one‐, two‐, and three‐atom nitrogen complexes with vacancies in electron irradiated type Ib synthetic diamond, providing vibrant luminescence in the red, green, and blue spectral ranges, correspondingly. Controlled and highly reproducible formation of specific color centers previously not possible in type Ib synthetic diamond particles opens new opportunities for particulate diamond in a plethora of fluorescence imaging applications in biological and industrial fields.

Satellite scatterometer estimation of urban built-up volume: Validation with airborne lidar data

Accurately mapping urban infrastructure and extent is a high priority for resource management and service allocation as well as for addressing environmental, socioeconomic, and geopolitical concerns. Most available data products only document surficial (two-dimensional) land use and land cover (LULC), yet a substantial component of urban growth occurs in the vertical dimension. Light detection and ranging (lidar) data offer the potential for monitoring three-dimensional (3D) change, but the extreme lack of systematic lidar coverage worldwide inflicts considerable gaps in both spatial and temporal coverage. Satellite scatterometer (radar) data may serve as an alternative data source for characterizing urban growth and development in both the horizontal and vertical directions. The accuracy of these radar-based datasets for estimating building volumes remains to be validated quantitatively. For nine U.S. cities, we test whether scatterometer data can be used to estimate 3D urban built-up volume. We found strong, linear correlations between the lidar-derived and radar-derived building volume estimates for all cities with r2 values as high as 0.98 when using spatial trend analysis. Given the high expense that limits lidar data acquisition to small areas at sporadic points in time, satellite scatterometer data provide a breakthrough method for monitoring both vertical growth and horizontal expansion of cities across the world with a continuous decadal time scale.

A short nonalgorithmic proof of the containers theorem for hypergraphs

Recently the breakthrough method of hypergraph containers, developed independently by Balogh, Morris, and Samotij as well as Saxton and Thomason, has been used to study sparse random analogs of a variety of classical problems from combinatorics and number theory. The previously known proofs of the containers theorem use the so-called scythe algorithm---an iterative procedure that runs through the vertices of the hypergraph. (Saxton and Thomason have also proposed an alternative, randomized construction in the case of simple hypergraphs.) Here we present the first known deterministic proof of the containers theorem that is not algorithmic, i.e., it does not involve an iterative process. Our proof is less than 4 pages long while being entirely self-contained and conceptually transparent. Although our proof is completely elementary, it was inspired by considering hypergraphs in the setting of nonstandard analysis, where there is a notion of dimension capturing the logarithmic rate of growth of finite sets. Before presenting the proof in full detail, we include a one-page informal outline that refers to this notion of dimension and summarizes the essence of the argument.

A Breakthrough Method for the Effective Conditioning of PVA Brush Used for Post-CMP Process

Polyvinyl acetal (PVA) brush cleaning is one of the most important processes in the post chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) cleaning process. However, PVA brush could be severely contaminated due to strong direct contact with a large amount of abrasive particles during the long-time post CMP cleaning, and the particles on the brush can be easily transported to the next wafer substrate. In this study, we tested four different types of conditioning processes to remove the particles from the brush to increase the cleaning efficiency of post CMP process and comparatively evaluated using FE-SEM. The physical scrubbing method showed higher cleaning efficiency than the chemically dipping method, but some abrasive particles remained on the non-contacted surface. The flow-through method using pH 11 showed the higher removal ability than pH 3 and 7 due to strong repulsive force between silica abrasive particle and PVA brush, but some abrasive particles remained due to non-uniform flow of chemicals. The ultrasonication method with DIW was found to be very effective to remove the particles completely from the brush without damage. Consequently, the new developed conditioning process provides an environmentally friendly and cost effective alternative conditioning process to the existing conditioning process of contaminated PVA brushes.

Morphotropic Phase Boundary of Hf1- xZr xO2 Thin Films for Dynamic Random Access Memories.

The utilization of the morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) between the newly found ferroelectric orthorhombic phase and the tetragonal phase in an HfO2-ZrO2 solid solution is suggested for a high-capacitance dielectric capacitor. Being different from other high- k dielectrics, where the k value decreases with decreasing film thickness, these films (Hf/Zr ratio = 6:4, 5:5, 3:7) showed increasing k values with decreasing film thicknesses in the ∼5-20 nm range. Among them, Hf0.5Zr0.5O2 and Hf0.3Zr0.7O2 films showed 47 and 43 peak k values at 6.5 and 9.2 nm thicknesses, respectively, suggesting the involvement of the MPB phenomenon. For the systematic understanding of this peculiar phenomenon, the phase evolution of the HfO2-ZrO2 solid solution is presented based on experimental observations. The detailed electrical tests of the films with different compositions and thicknesses demonstrated that the characteristic feature of this material system is consistent with the involvement of the MPB depending on the composition and thickness. Through the optimization of the annealing process for crystallization, a 0.62 nm minimum equivalent oxide thickness was reported for the 6.5 nm thick Hf0.5Zr0.5O2 film, which is highly promising for the future dynamic random access memories. This work provided a breakthrough method for overcoming the fundamental limitation of a decreasing k value with a decreasing film thickness of other high- k dielectrics.

Dynamic Study of VSA and TSA Processes for VOCs Removal from Air

Volatile organic compounds are air pollutants that necessitate to be eliminated for health and environment concerns. In the present paper, two VOCs, that is, dichloromethane and acetone are recovered by adsorption on activated carbon from a nitrogen gas stream. Experimental adsorption isotherms of the two VOCs are determined at three different temperatures 298, 313, and 323 K by the dynamic column breakthrough method. The dynamic mathematical model succeeds to predict satisfactorily the experimental breakthrough curves for pure VOCs and different binary mixtures for various conditions. Thus, the validated dynamic mathematical model has been used as a simulation tool for optimization purposes of VSA and TSA processes in order to achieve the highest performances under the given constraints. The effects of the adsorption step duration, the vacuum pressure, and the desorption temperature on the recovery of dichloromethane and acetone have been studied. A recovery of 100% of the two VOCs could be attained. However, the adsorption step duration should be determined precisely so as not to affect the recovery and alter the quality of air being purified due to the breakthrough of VOCs. The vacuum pressure and the desorption temperature should be carefully chosen in order to both reduce the energy consumption and shorten the purge step duration. Regeneration by hot nitrogen stream seems to be more efficient than regeneration by reducing pressure.

Investigation of the effective oxygen storage and release performances on the Pt/CeO2-ZrO2 catalysts by breakthrough method

To clarify the gap between the effective oxygen storage capacity (OSC) and complete OSC of Pt/CeO2-ZrO2 (CZ) catalysts, a quick-response reactor coupled with a high-time-resolution mass spectrometer was used to measure oxygen storage and release by flushing CO and O2 alternately and periodically. Hence, both oxygen storage and release were visualized together and the effective OSCs were determined based on the breakthrough influxes of CO and O2. The obtained effective OSCs varied with the CO concentration and were much lower than the complete OSC as determined by the conventional CO2 integration method. In accordance with the high oxygen mobility, as determined by the 18O/16O isotopic exchange reaction, the Pt catalysts supported on CZ oxides with a homogeneous and ordered Ce-Zr structure exhibited very high OSCs even at very low Pt loadings and low CO concentrations.

Recrystallized NaCl from Thin Film to Nano-/Microsized Sacrificial Crystal for Metal Nanostructures

We developed a breakthrough method for preparing metallic nanostructures using a self-assembled NaCl nanosized sacrificial crystal and applied it to (i) transparent flexible electrodes and (ii) as catalysts for Si nanorod fabrication. Au nanostructures fabricated using the NaCl sacrificial crystal on a polyethylene terephthalate substrate showed low resistance (40 Ω/sq), relatively high transmittance (73%), and excellent mechanical stability. Wet chemical etching of Si with Ag nanostructures formed on a Si(100) substrate using the NaCl sacrificial crystal produced uniform vertical Si microrods with a thickness of 1–2 μm and length of about 3–4 μm. These Si microrods showed high light absorption (over 90%) in the wavelength range of 350–800 nm, and various applications in optoelectronic devices are expected in the future.

Dynamic Adsorption of CO2/N2 on Cation-Exchanged Chabazite SSZ-13: A Breakthrough Analysis.

Alkali-exchanged SSZ-13 adsorbents were investigated for their applicability in separating N2 from CO2 in flue gas streams using a dynamic breakthrough method. In contrast to IAST calculations based on equilibrium isotherms, K+ exchanged SSZ-13 was found to yield the best N2 productivity, comparable to Ni-MOF-74, under dynamic conditions where diffusion properties play a significant role. This was attributed to the selective, partial blockage of access to the chabazite cavities, enhancing the separation potential in a 15/85 CO2/N2 binary gas mixture.

METAMORFOSIS “ILLAT HUKUM” DALAM SAD ADZ-DZARI’AH DAN FATH ADZ-DZARIAH (SEBUAH KAJIAN PERBANDINGAN)

Sad Adz-Dzariah is a breakthrough method produced by the scholars of Usul Fikih to protecting and keeping the human being as Mukallaf falling or rubbing on damage or mafsadah by closing and blocking all means, tools and wasilah that will be used for some action. But as a result of the development of life, there is another aspect that should be of concern as opposed also to avoiding damage or Mafsadah, namely the realization of the benefit or Jalbu al-Maslahah, by opening and allowing to use the means, tools and or wasilah that will be used for some action, by another method of ijtihad Fath Adz-Dzariah. So that the next concern is on the logical link or 'Illat Law must also be seen again for use, so then the transition from the Sad Adz-Dzariah Method to the Fath Adz-Dzariah Method can be done.Kata Kunci: Sad Adz-Dzariah, Fath Adz-Dzariah, sarana, alat dan wasilah

Co-designing Integrated Care: Better everyday life for high needs/high costs clients

Introduction: Finland is currently preparing an extensive national-level reform to integrate its social and health care systems at all levels to achieve client-oriented, effective, cost-efficient and coordinated services.The Better Everyday Life (BEL) project (2015–2017), funded by the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, is a pilot project implementing the principles of the forthcoming reform at the operative level. Aim and theory of change: The aim of the BEL project is to support high needs/high costs clients in everyday life by developing client-centered, integrated care for them. Theoretically the project draws on the extended Chronic Care Model. Short description of practice change implemented: Development work on integrated care is done by grassroots professionals, together with the clients. The participants of the BEL project are care professionals working in primary care, secondary care, social care and education (37 multiprofessional and interorganizational teams, altogether 250 professionals). The professionals (nurses, doctors, social workers, therapists etc.) work together in teams, supported by coaches and project seminars, aiming to develop concrete tools for integrated care. The Breakthrough method and other LEAN-related development methods are used. The teams also involve clients in their development work. The BEL project thus serves as a common platform for co-designing integrated care for this challenging client group. Targeted population and stakeholders: Each BEL team has selected its own client group, for example older people who repeatedly visit health care centers, young people with mental and drug problems, unemployed people with several health and/or social problems; the common trait of the group being that they need/use a lot of health and social care services. Highlights: (innovation, impact and outcomes) The concrete tools the BEL teams have developed include - A tool for identifying high needs patients - A comprehensive, shared social and health care plan (SHCP). SHCP should in future be used for all actors instead of different kinds of plans of care providers - Concrete collaboration models to deal with shared clients. The models developed by the teams will define how the concrete collaboration process between ‘silos’ of health and social care proceeds. Comments on sustainability: The project is outlined according to the principles of the forthcoming national reform of the Finnish social and health care system. The sustainability of the project’s outcomes depends, however, on how local managers and decision-makers are committed to the project. Comments on transferability: The challenges related to care for high needs/high costs clients are quite similar in most European countries. Conclusions and Discussions: Identification of high needs clients is difficult if the professionals do not collaborate over the boundaries of care organizations and sectors. Many clients use the services of several care providers, but individual professionals do not know which other professionals are already involved in the care of the very same patient. Lessons learned: It is extremely important to engage grassroots level professionals and clients themselves in the development work and support them to collaborate beyond the traditional ‘silos’.

Mutations Located outside the Integrase Gene Can Confer Resistance to HIV-1 Integrase Strand Transfer Inhibitors

ABSTRACTResistance to the integrase strand transfer inhibitors raltegravir and elvitegravir is often due to well-identified mutations in the integrase gene. However, the situation is less clear for patients who fail dolutegravir treatment. Furthermore, most in vitro experiments to select resistance to dolutegravir have resulted in few mutations of the integrase gene. We performed an in vitro dolutegravir resistance selection experiment by using a breakthrough method. First, MT4 cells were infected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) Lai. After integration into the host cell genome, cells were washed to remove unbound virus and 500 nM dolutegravir was added to the cell medium. This high concentration of the drug was maintained throughout selection. At day 80, we detected a virus highly resistant to dolutegravir, raltegravir, and elvitegravir that remained susceptible to zidovudine. Sequencing of the virus showed no mutations in the integrase gene but highlighted the emergence of five mutations, all located in the nef region, of which four were clustered in the 3′ polypurine tract (PPT). Mutations selected in vitro by dolutegravir, located outside the integrase gene, can confer a high level of resistance to all integrase inhibitors. Thus, HIV-1 can use an alternative mechanism to develop resistance to integrase inhibitors by selecting mutations in the 3′ PPT region. Further studies are required to determine to what extent these mutations may explain virological failure during integrase inhibitor therapy.

Effect of amine structure on CO2 capture performance of amine-modified SBA-15

To investigate the relative CO2 capture performance of “molecular basket” type solid amine sorbents with varying amine structural characteristics, two model amine isomers, triethylenetetramine(TETA) and tris(2-aminoethyl)-amine(TAEA), were chosen alongside mesoporous silica SBA-15 as a support. The CO2 capture performance of each amine derivative was evaluated using a breakthrough method with a fixed-bed reactor. The results show that, in the absence of moisture, the SBA-TETA sorbents show better CO2 capture performance than the SBA-TAEA sorbents; on the other hand, in the presence of moisture, the SBA-TAEA sorbents show slightly improved uptake compared to the SBA-TETA sorbents. The tertiary amine groups, such as those found on TAEA, are known to be un-reactive with CO2 in the absence of moisture, but is activated in the presence of moisture may account for these findings.

Gelation Behavior Study of a Resorcinol–Hexamethyleneteramine Crosslinked Polymer Gel for Water Shut-Off Treatment in Low Temperature and High Salinity Reservoirs

Mature oilfields usually encounter the problem of high watercut. It is practical to use chemical methods for water-shutoff in production wells, however conventional water-shutoff agents have problems of long gelation time, low gel strength, and poor stability under low temperature and high salinity conditions. In this work a novel polymer gel for low temperature and high salinity reservoirs was developed. This water-shutoff agent had controllable gelation time, adjustable gel strength and good stability performance. The crosslinking process of this polymer gel was studied by rheological experiments. The process could be divided into an induction period, a fast crosslinking period, and a stable period. Its gelation behaviors were investigated in detail. According to the Gel Strength Code (GSC) and vacuum breakthrough method, the gel strength was displayed in contour maps. The composition of the polymer gel was optimized to 0.25~0.3% YG100 + 0.6~0.9% resorcinol + 0.2~0.4% hexamethylenetetramine (HMTA) + 0.08~0.27% conditioner (oxalic acid). With the concentration increase of the polymer gel and temperature, the decrease of pH, the induction period became shorter and the crosslinking was more efficient, resulting in better stability performance. Various factors of the gelation behavior which have an impact on the crosslinking reaction process were examined. The relationships between each impact factor and the initial crosslinking time were described with mathematical equations.

Measurement of CO<sub>2</sub> Adsorption Using the Cost-Effective Dynamic Column Breakthrough Method

The adsorption of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) on solid sorbents or any gas adsorption in general can be experimentally determined using various techniques. The present study demonstrates a dynamic column breakthrough method for the measurement of CO 2 adsorption using a cost-effective purpose-built single-column fixed-bed adsorption unit. The CO 2 adsorption capacity is estimated using a graphical method that does not require knowledge of the variation of molar CO 2 flow rate at the column exit. The experimental method is validated using a commercial zeolite 13X adsorbent.

Experimental study on cryogenic adsorption of methane by activated carbon for helium coolant purification of High-Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor

The cryogenic adsorption behavior of methane on activated carbon was investigated for helium coolant purification of high-temperature gas-cooled reactor by using dynamic column breakthrough method. With helium as carrier gas, experiments were performed at −196°C and low methane partial pressure range of 0–120Pa. The breakthrough curves at different superficial velocities and different feed concentrations were measured and analyzed by the mass-transfer zone model. The methane single-component adsorption isotherm was obtained and fitted well by the Toth model and the Dubinin-Radushkevich model. The adsorption heat of methane on activated carbon was estimated. The cryogenic adsorption process of methane on activated carbon has been verified to be effective for helium coolant purification of high-temperature gas-cooled reactor.

Continuous, One-pot Synthesis and Post-Synthetic Modification of NanoMOFs Using Droplet Nanoreactors.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs); also known as porous coordination polymers (PCP) are a class of porous crystalline materials constructed by connecting metal clusters via organic linkers. The possibility of functionalization leads to virtually infinite MOF designs using generic modular methods. Functionalized MOFs can exhibit interesting physical and chemical properties including accelerated adsorption kinetics and catalysis. Although there are discrete methods to synthesize well-defined nanoscale MOFs, rapid and flexible methods are not available for continuous, one-pot synthesis and post-synthetic modification (functionalization) of MOFs. Here, we show a continuous, scalable nanodroplet-based microfluidic route that not only facilitates the synthesis of MOFs at a nanoscale, but also offers flexibility for direct functionalization with desired functional groups (e.g., -COCH3, fluorescein isothiocyanate; FITC). In addition, the presented route of continuous manufacturing of functionalized nanosized MOFs takes significantly less time compared to state-of-the-art batch methods currently available (1 hr vs. several days). We envisage our approach to be a breakthrough method for synthesizing complex functionalized nanomaterials (metal, metal oxides, quantum dots and MOFs) that are not accessible by direct batch processing and expand the range of a new class of functionalized MOF-based functional nanomaterials.

Sorbents with high efficiency for CO2 capture based on amines-supported carbon for biogas upgrading

Sorbents for CO2 capture have been prepared by wet impregnation of a commercial active carbon (Ketjen-black, Akzo Nobel) with two CO2-philic compounds, polyethylenimine (PEI) and tetraethylenepentamine (TEPA), respectively. The effects of amine amount (from 10 to 70wt.%), CO2 concentration in the feed, sorption temperature and gas hourly space velocity on the CO2 capture performance have been investigated. The sorption capacity has been evaluated using the breakthrough method, with a fixed bed reactor equipped with on line gas chromatograph. The samples have been characterized by N2 adsorption–desorption, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray (SEM/EDX). A promising CO2 sorption capacity of 6.90 mmol/gsorbent has been obtained with 70wt.% of supported TEPA at 70°C under a stream containing 80vol% of CO2. Sorption tests, carried out with simulated biogas compositions (CH4/CO2 mixtures), have revealed an appreciable CO2 separation selectivity; stable performance was maintained for 20 adsorption–desorption cycles.