Injection Equipment Research Articles

Which illicit drugs are injected in Oslo? A study based on analysis of drug residues in used injection equipment and self-reported information.

People who inject drugs (PWID) have a high risk of premature death due to fatal overdoses. Newly emerged fentanyls, much more potent than heroin and other opioids, may increase this risk further. Therefore, precise information on injected drugs is critical to improving prevention strategies. This study aimed to analyse drug residues in used injection equipment in order to determine drug and drug combinations and compare and complement findings with self-reported information. Used syringes and needles (n=766) were collected at the supervised drug consumption facilities, the needle exchange service and two low-threshold health services for problem drug users in Oslo, Norway. The material was collected every third month from June 2019 to June 2020 and analysed for 64 substances using highly specific analytical methods (ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry). Additionally, a street-recruited sample of PWID was interviewed from 2017 to 2019 regarding their drug injection habits (n=572). Heroin (65.5%) or amphetamines (59.8%), often in combination (30.5%), were commonly detected in drug residues. Other opioids, stimulants or benzodiazepines were rarely detected (6.1%). Fentanyl was detected in only one syringe. Heroin was the most reported drug (77.6% during the past four weeks, 48.3% daily/almost daily), followed by amphetamines (57.5% during the past four weeks, 23.1% daily or almost daily). Injection of methadone, buprenorphine and dissolved tablets was self-reported more frequently than determined in drug residue findings. Analysis of the injection equipment proved useful as a non-invasive, rapid and accurate means to obtain detailed information on injected drugs in Oslo and supplement traditional PWID survey information.

Engine durability and lubricating oil tribology study of a biodiesel fuelled common rail direct injection medium-duty transportation diesel engine

Biodiesel has emerged as a viable alternative to mineral diesel in the transport sector to replace fossil fuels partially. However, long-term compatibility with engine hardware must be evaluated to ensure a smooth transition. Long-term material compatibility studies of Karanja oil methyl ester (biodiesel) blends with the hardware of a modern common rail direct injection system equipped diesel engine used in sports utility vehicles have been carried out in this investigation. A long-term endurance test was carried out in two phases, each lasting 274 h and utilizing (i) baseline mineral diesel and (ii) a 20% v/v Karanja biodiesel blended with mineral diesel (KB20). After completing the first phase, the engine was dismantled, and essential engine components were investigated for carbon deposits and physical wear using several techniques. Before proceeding with the next phase of the endurance test KB20, new engine components were installed in the engine, and then the test was executed. The KB20-fuelled engine exhibited lower wear on the valves and crankpins but higher wear of liners, piston rings, pistons, gudgeon pin, small and big end bearings of the connecting rod, and the main bearings. Fuel chemistry affected the lubricating oil efficacy and its residual useful life. Lubricating oil from the KB20-fuelled engine exhibited a higher increase in density and ash content. KB20 fuelled engine's lubricating oil underwent higher oxidation and polymerization. The surface roughness characteristics of the cylinder liner were measured before and after the endurance test for comparative wear evaluation during both phases of the endurance test. Carbon deposits on the cylinder head, piston top, and injectors were compared, and the pistons of the KB20 fuelled engine exhibited higher carbonaceous deposits. Biodiesel blends harmed the CRDI engine's fuel injection system. Biodiesel harms the fuel injection equipment (FIE) of the CRDI engine. Various tribological tests were performed on the lubricating oil samples collected regularly to examine the compatibility of KB20 vis-à-vis mineral diesel. This series of tribological tests on the lubricating oil samples assessed the effect of fuel chemistry on the lubricating oil's performance and residual useful life. Tests included variations in lubricant density, viscosity, flash point temperature, moisture content, pentane and toluene insoluble, and copper corrosion with time. The study summarily concluded that Biodiesel blends could be utilized in a CRDI engine without causing major engine durability or lubricating oil degradation issues.

A Noninvasive Interturn Insulation Condition Monitoring Method Based on the Common-Mode Impedance Spectrum of Inverter-Fed Machines

The winding impedance spectrum method becomes popular in online stator insulation monitoring in recent years. It can detect the insulation ageing condition and give alarm before catastrophic failure happens. However, the theoretical explanation of this method is not sufficient and the relationship between impedance spectrum and insulation ageing is not clear. In addition, the existing methods need additional signal injection equipment, which is intrusive and difficult to be applied in industrial applications. Therefore, this article develops a noninvasive interturn insulation condition monitoring method based on the common-mode impedance spectrum in inverter-fed machines. By building a broadband stator winding insulation model, the relationship between the interturn insulation ageing and the impedance spectrum is studied and the high frequency parallel capacitance is first proposed as an indicator for the interturn ageing. The offline test validate the effectiveness of the proposed method and the online test shows the potential of this method for noninvasive condition monitoring in inverter-fed machines. Future work is planned to further improve the online performance of the proposed method.

A qualitative study of injection and sexual risk behavior among unstably housed people who inject drugs in the context of an HIV outbreak in Northeast Massachusetts, 2018

BackgroundTo investigate the underlying causes of a sudden increase in HIV among people who inject drugs (PWID) and initiate an appropriate response to the outbreak, we engaged in in-depth qualitative interviews with members of the PWID community in Lawrence and Lowell, Massachusetts. MethodsWe interviewed 34 PWID who were currently or recently unstably housed, then transcribed interviews and coded transcripts, grouping codes into categories from which we identified key themes. ResultsParticipants described a heightened threat of overdose prompting PWID to inject together, increasing opportunities for sharing injection equipment. There were misunderstandings about safe injection practices to prevent HIV transmission and a low threshold for injection-related risk taking. Stigma regarding HIV prevented conversations about HIV status. Less thought was given to sexual risks than injection-related risks for HIV transmission. ConclusionsWe found multiple facilitators of HIV transmission. Additional HIV education and prevention interventions focusing on both injection and sexual risk practices would benefit this population, in addition to structural interventions such as increased access and availability of syringe service programs.

Nozzle configuration and in-cylinder pressure effects on fuel spray behaviour: studies using a rapid cycling machine

Efforts to improve the efficiency of internal combustion engines in applications such as heavy-duty vehicles where electric propulsion is currently unfeasible or need complementing are essential. However, studying the conditions of actual internal combustion engines whilst accessing their combustion chambers whilst they are in operation remains difficult. To allow for the characterization of practical operating conditions of diesel engine designs, detailed studies examining the influence of the injector nozzle configuration, peak in-cylinder pressure conditions, and fuel injection pressure values up to 25% greater than those hitherto typically reported using rapid cycling machines for diesel spray diagnosis were carried out. A rapid cycling machine using a production diesel engine piston design, equipped with optical windows and fitted with a high-pressure common rail fuel injection equipment was used with temporal spray liquid and vapour penetration values obtained using Schlieren and Mie scattering imaging techniques for injector nozzles of various k-factor values. Even though the effects of the different injector nozzle conicity values on the fuel spray liquid and vapour penetration values observed were not significant, the studies supported the use of such methods to evaluate the piston and cylinder wall wetting which can have significant effects on the emissions and fuel consumption from internal combustion engines. These are also useful for internal combustion engine design and numerical spray code development.

Food access among people who inject drugs in West Virginia

BackgroundThe substance use epidemic in the United States continues to drive high levels of morbidity and mortality, particularly among people who inject drugs (PWID). Poor access to food often co-occurs with drug use and contributes to associated sequelae, such as risks for HIV and diabetes. The objective of this study was to examine factors associated with adequate food access among PWID in a rural Appalachian community.MethodsCross-sectional surveys were used to collect data among PWID aged 18 and older in Cabell County, West Virginia. Frequency of hunger and sociodemographic, structural and drug use characteristics were measured. Adequate food access was defined as reporting ‘never’ going to bed hungry at night in the past six months. Pearson’s χ2 and t-tests and multivariable logistic regression were used to identify factors associated with food access.ResultsOnly 71 individuals (17%) reported never going to bed hungry at night in the past six months. Adjusted odds of having adequate food access were higher among PWID who completed high school (aOR 2.94; P = 0.010) and usually used drugs alone (aOR 1.97; P = 0.025), and lower among PWID who were female (aOR 0.51; P = 0.037), experienced homelessness (aOR 0.23, P < 0.001), were recently arrested (aOR 0.50 P = 0.047), and engaged in receptive sharing of injection equipment (aOR 0.52, P = 0.035).ConclusionsWe found extremely low food access in a population of PWID in Appalachia who are vulnerable to overdose and infectious disease transmission. Integrated interventions promoting food access are needed to improve the public health and wellbeing of people who inject drugs in Appalachia.

Baseline assessment of therapeutic injection practices in Pakistan in 2020: a cross-sectional study

Objective: To assess the magnitude of the problem of injection safety in public and private health facilities in two districts of Sindh and Punjab provinces of Pakistan.&#x0D; Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted between October and December 2020 among public and private health facilities of two districts of Pakistan: Gujarat in Punjab and Larkana in Sindh provinces. A convenient sample size of 60 healthcare facilities (30 from each district) was taken due to time and resource constraint. Six data collection tools were used which included structured observations and interviews with injection prescribers and providers based on WHO Revised Tool C, which were finalised after piloting.&#x0D; Results: Reuse of injection equipment was not observed in any of the 60 health facilities. In exit interviews of 120 patients, it was found that 27 (22.5%) patients reported receiving an injection, while 11 (9.2%) were prescribed intravenous (IV) drips. More injections and drips were prescribed in the private sector (n=15; 25.0%) in comparison with the public sector (n=12; 20.0%). Slightly higher proportion of IV drips were prescribed by the private providers when compared to public sector healthcare providers: 6 (10.0%) vs 5 (8.3%) respectively. Most of the prescribers (n=58; 96.7%) reported that patients who attended public and private health facilities demanded injectable medicines. Used syringes and drips were noted to be visible in open containers and buckets for final disposal in 20 (33.3%) assessed health facilities.&#x0D; Continuou...

New Monoethylene-Glycol Sensor Validated by Flow Loop Under Hydrate-Forming Conditions

This article, written by JPT Technology Editor Chris Carpenter, contains highlights of paper SPE 202375, “Validation of a Novel MEG Sensor Employing a Pilot-Scale Subsea Jumper,” by Asheesh Kumar, The University of Western Australia; Mauricio Di Lorenzo, SPE, CSIRO Energy; and Bruce W.E. Norris, SPE, The University of Western Australia, et al., prepared for the 2020 SPE Asia Pacific Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition, originally scheduled to be held in Perth, Australia, 20–22 October. The paper has not been peer reviewed. Online pipeline-management systems provide real-time and look-ahead functionality for production networks. They are limited, however, by a dearth of data with which to inform their predictions. This represents a barrier to a true, high-fidelity digital twin. Greater integration with new sensor technologies is needed to bound model predictions and improve their reliability. In this work, the authors present a novel monoethylene-glycol (MEG) sensing system and validate it in a specially constructed flow loop. Introduction Subsea jumpers experience a high probability of hydrate blockages. The most common practice used to avoid hydrate formation in subsea wellhead jumpers essentially is based on the injection of thermodynamic hydrate inhibitors such as MEG and methanol at high flow rates to flush out and inhibit the water pooled in the low spots of the jumper spools. Such hydrate management operations in deep water require adequate planning to minimize unproductive time and may not be feasible in unplanned well shutdowns. To improve the models implemented in current sensing technologies and explore their potential for new functionalities to detect hydrate formation, measurements under realistic field conditions in a controlled environment are vital. In this work, a flow loop that replicates the geometry of industrial subsea jumpers was deployed to investigate the performance of a new MEG sensor for subsea applications under hydrate-forming conditions. Preliminary baseline experiments were performed at steady state and during gas-restart operations in the absence of any hydrates in the jumper flow loop. Experiments were performed at 64.4°F with nitrogen (N2) gas at 1,200 psig and superficial gas velocity ranges from 0.82 to 2.88 ft/s. The MEG-sensing system’s performance was investigated under hydrate-forming conditions with and without MEG (10–30 wt% in water) in the jumper test section. These experiments were performed at temperatures ranging from 25.2 to 35.6°F. Experimental Flow Loop The flow loop consists of a test section connected to independent gas and liquid injection equipment at the inlet and gas-separation facilities at the outlet, which allows for continuous recirculation of gas and a once-through pass of the liquid. The test section has a complex geometry, with three identical low points (LPs) and two high points. The horizontal length of each low and high points is 12 ft, 10 in., and 7 ft, 7 in., respectively, and total height is 13 ft, 2 in. The test section is equipped with 12 pressure and temperature sensors distributed at regular intervals, a MEG sensor at the second LP, a throttling valve downstream of the first high point to mimic a wellhead choke, and a viewing window at the outlet.

Disparities in risk perception and low harm reduction services awareness, access, and utilization among young people with newly reported hepatitis C infections in California, 2018

BackgroundNewly reported hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections in California increased 50% among people 15–29 years of age between 2014 and 2016. National estimates suggest this increase was due to the opioid epidemic and associated increases in injection drug use. However, most of California’s 61 local health jurisdictions (LHJs) do not routinely investigate newly reported HCV infections, so these individuals’ risk factors for infection are not well understood. We sought to describe the demographics, risk behaviors, and utilization of harm reduction services in California’s fastest-rising age group of people with newly reported hepatitis C infections to support targeted HCV prevention and treatment strategies.MethodsCalifornia Department of Public Health invited LHJs to participate in enhanced surveillance if they met criteria indicating heightened population risk for HCV infection among people ages 15–29. From June–December 2018, eight LHJs contacted newly reported HCV cases by phone using a structured questionnaire.ResultsAmong 472 total HCV cases who met the inclusion criteria, 114 (24%) completed an interview. Twenty-seven percent of respondents (n = 31) had ever been incarcerated, of whom 29% received a tattoo/piercing and 39% injected drugs while incarcerated. Among people who injected drugs (PWID)—36% (n = 41) of all respondents—68% shared injection equipment and many lacked access to harm reduction services: 37% knew of or ever used a needle exchange and 44% ever needed naloxone during an overdose but did not have it. Heroin was the most frequently reported injected drug (n = 30), followed by methamphetamine (n = 18). Pre-diagnosis HCV risk perception varied significantly by PWID status and race/ethnicity: 76% of PWID vs. 8% of non-PWID (p < 0.001), and 44% of non-Hispanic White respondents vs. 22% of people of color (POC) respondents (p = 0.011), reported thinking they were at risk for HCV before diagnosis. Eighty-nine percent of all respondents reported having health insurance, although only two had taken HCV antiviral medications.ConclusionsAmong young people with HCV, we found limited pre-diagnosis HCV risk perception and access to harm reduction services, with racial/ethnic disparities. Interventions to increase harm reduction services awareness, access, and utilization among young PWID, especially young PWID of color, may be warranted.

Opioid-related hospitalizations and intravenous drug users: Socio-demographic, spatial, and comorbid associations among hospital inpatients and community-based harm reduction organization participants.

To provide an updated analysis of opioid-related injuries in Nevada and provide a first-time analysis of the intravenous drug user (IDU) population within Clark County. Cross-sectional study. Center for Health Information Analysis (CHIA) database and IDU data from Trac-B Exchange (Trac-B). Patients hospitalized for opioid-related causes (n = 9,064) and participants from Trac-B. Variables assessed included age, gender, and race/ethnicity. Zip codes were retrieved to find differences in geographical usage patterns of hospital or sterile injection equipment (SEP) sites. Contingency tables were utilized to determine the frequency of comorbidities. Additionally, GIS was used to investigate potential spatial patterns of interest. Totally 5,268 out of the 9,064 opioid-related cases reported in Nevada were Clark County residents. The highest frequency for comorbidities associated with opioid-related hospitalizations (ORHs) included: infections, chronic bodily pain, and malnutrition. There was a higher proportion of 18-35-year-olds who used SEPs as compared to hospitals and a higher proportion of individuals aged 36 years or older who used hospitals as compared to using SEPs. Of the nearly 100 zip codes in Clark County, six showed a disproportionally high frequency of ORHs, and three comprised the majority of injection drug use. There is an opioid epidemic in Nevada that has contributed to addiction, heroin usage, injection drug use, and transmission of bloodborne diseases. Understanding the ORHs and intravenous drug use trends can help guide the development of program interventions.

Surface Modification of a Polyester-Augmented Cellulose Filter for Dehydration of Low-Sulfur Diesel.

Fuel filters play an essential role in protecting the injection equipment and fuel tanks against corrosion and damage of diesel engines. Diesel fuel separators are typically made of treated cellulose, fiberglass, or mixed fibrous media (composites), modified with various chemicals to obtain a hydrophobic surface. In the presented research, a modification procedure of polyester fibers supported on cellulose using octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS) has been developed. The OTS coating renders the filter media superhydrophobic with water contact angle and roll-off angle of 156.4 and 4.9°, respectively. The performance of the modified material was verified in dispersed water removal from low-sulfur diesel fuel. High efficiency and a reliable operation in test conditions were confirmed.

Healthcare stigma and HIV risk among rural people who inject drugs

IntroductionThe HIV epidemic is increasingly penetrating rural areas of the U.S. due to evolving epidemics of injection drug use. Many rural areas experience deficits in availability of HIV prevention, testing and harm reduction services, and confront significant stigma that inhibits care seeking. This paper examines enacted stigma in healthcare settings among rural people who inject drugs (PWID) and explores associations of stigma with continuing high-risk behaviors for HIV. MethodsPWID participants (n = 324) were recruited into the study in three county health department syringe service programs (SSPs), as well as in local community-based organizations. Trained interviewers completed a standardized baseline interview lasting approximately 40 min. Bivariate logistic regression models examined the associations between enacted healthcare stigma, health conditions, and injection risk behaviors, and a mediation analysis was conducted. ResultsStigmatizing health conditions were common in this sample of PWID, and 201 (62.0 %) reported experiencing stigma from healthcare providers. Injection risk behaviors were uniformly associated with higher odds of enacted healthcare stigma, including sharing injection equipment at most recent injection (OR = 2.76; CI 1.55, 4.91), and lifetime receptive needle sharing (OR = 2.27; CI 1.42, 3.63). Enacted healthcare stigma partially mediated the relationship between having a stigmatizing health condition and engagement in high-risk injection behaviors. DiscussionRural PWID are vulnerable to stigma in healthcare settings, which contributes to high-risk injection behaviors for HIV. These findings have critical public health implications, including the importance of tailored interventions to decrease enacted stigma in care settings, and structural changes to expand the provision of healthcare services within SSP settings.

Considerations about Hollow Polypropylene Balls Manufacturing by Ultrasonic Welding

Fast development of Sustainability and Circular Economy concepts has been materialized in European Parliament Directive no 2019/904. This Directive requires to reduce the consumption of plastic material for the manufacture of disposable packaging. In spite of the aggressive campaign against plastic materials usage, there are huge advantages which must be considered before replacing them by other alternative materials. Downsizing, Lightweighting and Downgauging technics are employed from early stage in designing new products made by plastic materials. Product recyclability features and recycled materials usage for products manufacturing need also to be assessed during the design and testing phase. This article proposes ultrasonic welding as an alternative technology for manufacturing the hollow polypropylene balls. With the traditional technology, the manufacturing of these balls results in an uneven wall thicknesses and a large technological runner of material that needs to be grinded and reintroduced into the injection equipment and this involves high consumption of raw material and energy. The proposed method of manufacturing these hollow balls consists in forming the ball from two ball halves joined together by ultrasonic welding. This process will result in significant savings in raw material and energy. As a case study, the manufacturing of deo roll balls have been considered. Several experimental researches have been made using ultrasonic welding at frequencies of 20 kHz and 35 kHz. Significant improvements on the capabilities of the ball external diameters have been recorded by ultrasonic welding using the frequency of 35 kHz. Further testing and comparative study of mechanical properties must be considered in order to define the best process parameters for hollow plastic balls manufacturing by Ultrasonic Welding.

Injecting network structure determines the most efficient strategy to achieve Hepatitis C elimination in people who inject drugs.

Transmission of Hepatitis C (HCV) continues via sharing of injection equipment between people who inject drugs (PWID). Network-based modelling studies have produced conflicting results about whether random treatment is preferable to targeting treatment at PWID with multiple partners. We hypothesise that differences in the modelled injecting network structure produce this heterogeneity. The study aimed to test how changing network structure affects HCV transmission and treatment effects. We created three dynamic injecting network structures connecting 689 PWID (UK-net, AUS-net and USA-net) based on published empirical data. We modelled HCV in the networks and at 5years compared prevalence of HCV 1) with no treatment, 2) with randomly targeted treatment and 3) with treatment targeted at PWID with the most injecting partnerships (degree-based treatment). HCV prevalence at 5years without treatment differed significantly between the three networks (UK-net (42.8%) vs. AUS-net (38.2%), p < 0.0001 and vs. USA-net (54.0%), p < 0.0001). In the treatment scenarios UK-net and AUS-net showed a benefit of degree-based treatment with a 5-year prevalence of 1.0% vs. 9.6% p < 0.0001 and 0.15% vs. 0.44%, p < 0.0001. USA-net showed no significant difference (29.3% vs. 29.2%, p = 0.0681). Degree-based treatment was optimised with low prevalence, moderate treatment coverage conditions whereas random treatment was optimised in low treatment coverage, high prevalence conditions. In conclusion, injecting network structure determines the transmission rate of HCV and the most efficient treatment strategy. In real-world injecting network structures, the benefit of targeting HCV treatment at individuals with multiple injecting partnerships may have been underestimated.

The use of neural network algorithms for modeling injection doses of modern fuel injectors

The article presents the possibilities of using artificial intelligence methods to model the injection doses of a modern Common Rail (CR) fuel injector. The presented neural network solution belongs to the experimental models known as black boxes in mechatronics. The backpropagation algorithm and its Levenberg-Marquardt expansion were used for the simulation. The analysis showed that there is a good match between the measurements and the computational model. The proposed solution can be used in the processes of diagnosing not only elements of the injection equipment, but also the internal combustion engine. The paper presents the construction and operation of fuel injectors and the important role of precision pairs work.

A Case Study in Planning and Executing a Source-Control Exercise Using a Visual Simulator as a Well Response Training Tool

ABSTRACT Since the 2010 Macondo incident, the oil industry has made many strides in improving offshore blowout prevention and preparedness. This includes manufacturing over 20 large subsea capping stacks with other supporting subsea source control equipment (e.g. cutting tools for debris removal, injection and monitoring equipment for subsea dispersants) , and routinely conducting emergency exercises to demonstrate the ability to simulate deploying their subsea control equipment defined in their source control emergency response plans, often on short notice for government initiated unannounced exercises. In 2017, Anadarko partnered with U.S. and Mexican government agencies to conduct a joint-preparedness exercise to demonstrate a binational response to a hypothetical pollution incident that would threaten the border zone of both countries. The exercise conduced in accordance with the Mexico – US (MEXUS) Plan, a bilateral agreement between both countries for offshore spill that would originate in one country and could impact the other country. Coordinating a drill that involved over 300 participants from multiple companies and organizations took several years. A short coming of previous similar exercises have been the lack of visualization and sense of realism. A fit-for-purpose visualization simulator was used improve the overall training and learning experience. The visual simulator is coupled with a dynamic multi-phase simulator to ensure that the physics of the blowout and intervention operations are as realistic as possible. The improved visualizations and physics of the source-control operation significantly improved the learnings compared to previous exercise events. This paper explains the general methodology for closing a capping stack, and, more importantly, the planning process that made the drill successful.

Experimental Investigation of the Rail Pressure Fluctuations Correlated with Fuel Properties and Injection Settings

Injection-induced rail pressure fluctuations are proven to cause nonuniform spray development. These fluctuations are also responsible for generating lower injection pressures, to the detriment of jet penetration length and break-up timing. Despite the vast literature dealing with such issues, several aspects of rail pressure fluctuations remain unclear. Additionally, the need for compliance with the emission legislation has shed light on the potential of alternative fuels, which represent a pathway for sustainable mobility. This scenario has motivated the present study dealing with the assessment of the time history of rail pressure correlated with fuel properties. Tests have been performed using a last-generation common rail injection equipment under various injection settings, employing diesel and 2-methylfuran-diesel blend. This paper describes the research activity and aims to provide new insights into the correlation of rail pressure fluctuations with fuel properties.

Experience of application of calcium-containing cored wire with various fillers at steel ladle treatment

Treatment of mass production steels by cored calcium-containing wires is widely spread all over the world. Injection of several tens of gram of calcium per 1 t of the treated steel enables significantly improve its cast ability, increase the yield of CC billet, decrease rejection of rolled products by surface and internal defects, improve corrosion properties of steel and have similar effects. At the same time application of the technological method requires accurate forecasting of the purpose process conditions, strict following the technology parameters, application of quality injection equipment, as well as application of best calcium-containing cored wires. Taking into consideration, that the role of the filler in the cored wires is not discussed widely, the purpose of the work was summarizing of the experience of application of various calcium-containing materials. Mechanisms of calcium influence on steel quality considered. It was shown that it is possible to control not only chemical composition but also phase composition of nonmetallic inclusions by variation of calcium concentration in steel melt. Among others, liquid inclusions based on calcium aluminates which have high speed of surfacing, will be formed, thus ensuring deep steel refining for nonmetallic inclusions within a short time. Having high sulphur affinity, at the stage of continuous casting calcium forms sulfide and oxide-sulfide nonmetallic inclusions of micron and submicron size, uniformly distributed in the steel volume, which improves the structure of center zone of the continuously casted billet and that of the rolled product. It was shown that calcium-containing filler of a cored wire plays an important role in ensuring high and stable result. It was established based on the probes from tundish that the average recovery of fillers of electrolytic calcium is higher comparing with other fillers. Analysis of frequency distribution of the calcium recovery value showed that to ensure a guaranteed minimal content of calcium of 12 ppm at a CCM, it is required to inject aluminothermic calcium in the amount of 4.5 times bigger comparing with electrolytic calcium and ferrocalcium – 6 times bigger. Analysis of cast ability of steel treated by cored wires showed that to ensure a stable cast ability it is enough to add 55 grams of electrolytic calcium per 1 t of steel, at that addition of 83 grams of aluminothermic calcium does not ensure a stable casting from heat to heat. A dependence of rolled products rejection indices on calcium content in steel was noted, which indicated of a possibility of further increase of economic efficiency of technologies of steel mass production due to development of steel treatment by calcium.

Comorbid Communicable Diseases of Substance Abuse in Thailand: A 5-Year Retrospective Study

Abstract Substance abuse is a major threat to health and safety of not only drug users themselves but also communities more widely because of the increased risk of spreading communicable diseases that coexist with drug misuse. Retrospective data from 2013 to 2017 drawn from a Thai rehabilitation center showed 14 cases of hepatitis, 36 of HIV, and 102 of tuberculosis (TB). Demographic data and International Classification of Disease, Tenth Revision, codes related to comorbidity of these communicable diseases were obtained. Most hepatitis comorbidity was found in patients with alcohol dependence who were infected with hepatitis B or C. Comorbidities with TB and HIV were found only in persons with other stimulant use. With a 5-year prevalence, there was statistically significant difference in TB comorbidities among substance abusers (P = 0.028). Interestingly, any substance misuse could contribute to co-occurring HIV infection, but there were no statistically significant differences. Nowadays, a tradition of sharing unsterilized injection equipment might not be the leading cause of coexisting communicable diseases among illegal drug users. Instead, sharing personal possessions and unprotected sexual activity might the major actions increasing risk of contracting comorbid communicable diseases, particularly TB and HIV.

Next Generation Plasma Spray Torch

Abstract Innovations built into a new plasma spray torch address shortcomings of previous axial injection equipment.