Promising Zone Research Articles

Searching for thermal shutdown separators in lithium-ion batteries: Paradigm and practice

This paper focuses on the thermal shutdown separators for thermal runaway control in lithium-ion batteries (LIB). In electrical cars (EV), thermal runaway is the most catastrophic and life-threatening failure mode. Here we reexamined 17 reported phase-change-based thermal shutdown separators and suggested a new design paradigm for thermal shutdown separators of EV level batteries. Through accelerating rate calorimeter (ARC), we have obtained the thermal response curves of three typical EV level batteries: LFP 18,650 battery, NCM 18,650 battery and NCM pouch battery and summarized their critical temperatures. Taking NCM pouch battery as an example, we formed a searching zone for the 17 phase-change-based thermal shutdown separators and found that only 7 of them falling into the promising zone. After analysis on these 7 composite materials, we designed a new trial composite material PBS/PI, which turned out successful in all the following thermal and electrochemical tests. Moreover, we are aware from the beginning that all the reported materials are only tested in button batteries and may not as well apply to EV level batteries. Our own practice has also shown this discrepancy. Thereby we employed thermal simulation to help mapping the discrepancy between the button battery and pouch battery. The results shows that the thermal shutdown happens much earlier in the button battery when elevating the temperature, which tricks researchers into misjudging the material feasibility. This work offers avenues for the searching of thermal shutdown separators in EV level batteries.

Enhancing Solar Power Plant Location Selection Through Multicriteria Decision-Making with the Analytic Hierarchy Process

Renewable energy, particularly solar power, is clean, cost-effective, and virtually limitless, making it an essential source of energy for developing countries. In the Kurdistan region, however, dependence on fossil fuels remains high, with 85 percent of electricity generated from these sources, whereas solar power contributes less than 1 percent. This study addresses this disparity by employing Boolean logical analytical hierarchy process techniques and a comprehensive set of criteria encompassing technical, ecological, and economic factors to identify suitable sites for solar power plants in Duhok Governorate. The results indicate that 68.5 percent of the governorate’s area is deemed suitable for solar power station construction, with the most promising zone comprising 132.2 km2 and capable of generating more than 8,000 megawatts of solar energy. Notably, most suitable areas are concentrated in the south and southwest, particularly in the districts of Bardarash, Shekhan, and Semel. This study paves the way for a significant shift toward renewable energy in northern Iraq. Identifying vast suitable areas for solar power plants offers a practical roadmap to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, provide a clean energy source, and enable a large-scale solar power project. This study empowers policymakers, energy companies, and investors to make informed decisions toward realizing this renewable energy potential, ultimately transforming the energy landscape in northern Iraq.

New results on optimal conditional error functions for adaptive two-stage designs

Unblinded interim analyses in clinical trials with adaptive designs are gaining increasing popularity. Here, the type I error rate is controlled by defining an appropriate conditional error function. Since various approaches to the selection of the conditional error function exist, the question of an optimal choice arises. In this article, we extend existing work on optimal conditional error functions by two results. Firstly, we prove that techniques from variational calculus can be applied to derive existing optimal conditional error functions. Secondly, we answer the question of optimizing the conditional error function of an optimal promising zone design and investigate the efficiency gain.

Adaptive promising zone design for cancer immunotherapy with heterogeneous delayed treatment effect

ABSTRACT Indirect mechanisms of cancer immunotherapies result in delayed treatment effects that vary among patients. Consequently, the use of the log-rank test in trial design and analysis can lead to significant power loss and pose additional challenges for interim decisions in adaptive designs. In this paper, we describe patients’ survival using a piecewise proportional hazard model with random lag time and propose an adaptive promising zone design for cancer immunotherapy with heterogeneous delayed effects. We provide solutions for calculating conditional power and adjusting the critical value for the log-rank test with interim data. We divide the sample space into three zones – unfavourable, promising, and favourable –based on re-estimations of the survival parameters, the log-rank test statistic at the interim analysis, and the initial and maximum sample sizes. If the interim results fall into the promising zone, the sample size is increased; otherwise, it remains unchanged. We show through simulations that our proposed approach has greater overall power than the fixed sample design and similar power to the matched group sequential trial. Furthermore, we confirm that critical value adjustment effectively controls the type I error rate inflation. Finally, we provide recommendations on the implementation of our proposed method in cancer immunotherapy trials.

A Manta-Ray Hill Climbing Vision Transformer Model for Predicting Ischemic Stroke Outcome

An ischemic stroke attack can cause permanent damage to healthy brain tissue, leading to a permanent loss of motor or sensory function. It can also result in disability or death if not diagnosed and treated promptly. Early prediction of the outcome of the first stroke, such as disability or death, can help many patients by administering appropriate medications to save their lives. Additionally, early prediction of a recurrent stroke within 14 days of the initial stroke can contribute to prevent its recurrence. This paper first proposes a modified Manta-Ray Foraging Optimizer (MMRFO) to enhance the characteristics of the MRFO technique. This approach is based on incorporating the Hill Climbing methodology into the original MRFO in order to improve the exploitation phase, which is responsible for locating the promising zone in the search area. The proposed approach is then utilized to determine the appropriate hyperparameters of the Vision Transformer(ViT) model to predict stroke outcomes prior to its occurrence. To transform categorical data to numerical values, an ASCII encoder module is included. In the feature selection step, the Harris Hawk Optimization approach (HHO) is used to identify the most important elements that may define the stroke. A comparative study has been performed to confirm the effectiveness of the proposed methodology. The results demonstrate that the proposed technique with a Vision Transformer achieves superior results compared to state-of-the-art algorithms. The accuracy of the proposed technique was improved to 87% for the first dataset and 83% for the second, which is clearly superior to that of the other models and earlier research.

Assessment of the demographic potential of municipalities of the Arctic zone of Yakutia

The prospects for the development of Arctic regions are of great interest today for the entire scientific community, in view of the strategic status of these territories. The implementation of large resource projects is impossible without preserving and developing its demographic potential. This article discusses issues related to the state and development of the demographic potential of the Arctic regions of Yakutia. The role of natural growth and migration in the formation of the population of the Arctic regions was revealed. Understanding the reasons for the outflow of the population will allow in the future to form a modern regional policy regarding the spatial development of the Arctic regions of Yakutia. The subject of the study is the demographic potential of the Yan group of districts. Interest in the group of regions under consideration is caused by a historically formed territorial production complex for the extraction of ore minerals (primarily tin and gold), as well as promising plans for the development of new deposits. The creation of energy (PATES) and transport infrastructure (Yana road, Nizhneyansk and Ust7Kuiga ports) allows us to assess the regions of the Yan group as a single promising zone for the growth of the republic’s Arctic economy. Due to the above circumstances, it becomes necessary to assess its demographic potential. The materials for the study were the official data of the territorial body of the Federal State Statistics Service for the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), presented in annual statistical collections.

Design, synthesis, and molecular docking studies of new phenanthrene-linked oxadiazoles as potential antimicrobial agents

Oxadiazoles and phenanthrene-based tylophorine alkaloids exhibit diverse biological activities, and the combination of both provides significant biological activity. Herein, we report the novel synthesis of phenanthrene-linked oxadiazoles (7a-m). Molecular docking studies were performed, and the binding energy values with the protein β-ketoacyl-acyl carrier protein synthase III (FabH) enzyme provide an attractive new target for the development of antibacterial agents and support their biological activities. Most of the derived compounds adhere to "Lipinski's Rule of Five" for assessing drug-likeness. The newly synthesized analogues were assessed for their in vitro antibacterial and antifungal activities against selected gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria as well as fungal strains. Compounds 7b, 7e, 7j, and 7c demonstrate potential antimicrobial activity, while the remaining compounds show moderate activity. The selected derivatives (7b, 7e, 7j, and 7c) exhibit a promising zone of inhibition (mm) against the minimum inhibitory concentration.

A Randomized, Double‐blind, Sham‐controlled, Adaptive‐Design Pivotal Trial of Sensory Stimulation in Subjects with Alzheimer’s Disease

AbstractBackgroundIn three prospective clinical trials (Overture: NCT03556280, Etude: NCT03661034, Flicker: NCT03543878) non‐invasive, visual and auditory gamma (40 Hz) sensory stimulation diminished Alzheimer’s disease (AD) symptoms, including a reduction in decline in cognitive and functional symptoms. These trials initiated the design of the Cognito Therapeutics sponsored Hope pivotal trial which examines the safety and efficacy of Cognito Therapeutics’ Sensory Stimulation System.MethodThe US‐based multicenter Hope trial will randomize (1:1) approximately 500 subjects aged 50 and older diagnosed with mild to moderate AD (MMSE 15‐26) and will stratify them to active and sham in a blinded manner across MMSE score ranges: 15‐20 and 21‐26. Subjects in both study arms will self‐administer therapy via the Sensory Stimulation System for 60 minutes daily for 12 months. An interim analysis will employ the promising zone methodology, allowing the sample size to be adjusted if the effect is trending toward success, but additional subjects are needed to maintain greater than 80% power.ResultThe primary outcome measure will be the Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study – Activities of Daily Living (ADCS‐ADL) test. Changes in function and cognition will be evaluated using a combined statistical test for ADCS‐ADL and the Mini Mental State Exam (MMSE). The key secondary outcome is change in cognition using the MMSE. Other clinical efficacy assessments include instrumental activities of daily living (IADL), Zarit Burden Index (ZBI), the Clinical Dementia Rating Scale (CDR) and The Neuropsychiatric Inventory anxiety subscale (NPI – Anxiety). Key biomarker assessments include whole brain, white matter, and hippocampal volume and occipital cortical thickness. Sleep fragmentation will be assessed in a subgroup of subjects using actigraphy. Exploratory measures will include additional brain structural change, plasma biomarkers, EEG assessed coherence, and at‐home tablet‐based tasks. Safety will be evaluated via routine clinical laboratory assessments, review of adverse events, concurrent medication use, physical and neurological exams, vital signs, MRI, and a suicidality scale.ConclusionThe Hope pivotal trial is designed to demonstrate the efficacy and safety of daily in‐home gamma sensory stimulation in AD patients to support a regulatory filing with the FDA.

Secondary Metabolites from Terminalia Catappa and Evaluation of its Bioactivities

Bangladesh is a land of medicinal plants. Terminalia catappa is an important medicinal plant of Bangladesh which is used for various pharmacological and biological activities like hepatoprotective, antioxidant, anti-fertility, antidiabetic, anticoagulant and antimicrobial. The coarsely powder dried stem bark sample of T. catappa was extracted by the solvent CHCl3. The concentrated extract was then fractionated by flash column chromatography using petroleum ether, ethyl acetate and methanol as solvents respectively. The column fraction was further fractionated with void liquid chromatography. Repeated preparative thin layer chromatography of selective fractions resulted in the isolation of two compounds which were identified as a triterpenoid, taraxerol (1) and a steroid, Stigmastane-3, 6-diol (2). The structure of these compounds were elucidated by 1H NMR spectroscopy and by comparison with reported values. This is the first report of the isolation of these compounds from this plant. The different extracts also showed significant antibacterial activity against gram positive and gram negative bacteria. The methanol extract did not show significant activity. The antifungal activity of different extract of T. catappa demonstrated promising zone of inhibition except Saccharomyces cerevecae. In the brine shrimp lethality bioassay, the extract of T. catappa exhibited a significant cytotoxic activity. The LC50 value of CHCl3 soluble extract was found to be 1.55 μg/ml. T. catappa was also reported to have free radical scavenging activity with IC50 value of 255.0 μg/ml. Since this plant demonstrated a number of promising pharmacological biological activities, so it can be a good source of natural medicine. Bioresearch Commu. 9(2): 1310-1319, 2023 (July)

Surveillance of Bacterial Canker of Peach in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and its Bio-Management

Bacterial canker of peach caused by Pseudomonas syringae is an increasing problem in Azad Jammu Kashmir with more than 50 pathovars on the basis of host. A detailed survey was conducted in peach growing areas of Azad Jammu and Kashmir for the determination of disease prevalence and incidence. Pathogen was isolated and characterized from the collected samples using LOPAT and GaTTA scheme. Furthermore the results of biochemical identification was confirmed using PCR followed by sequencing of obtained expected bands. For the bio-management of virulent pathogenic strains indigenous rhizobacterial isolates were obtained, characterized and evaluated using dual culture as well as in a greenhouse pot experiment against P. syringae pathovars. During a positive sampling method used for the surveillance it was found that maximum disease prevalence was 75% in district Bagh while there was 25% disease prevalence found in Haveli and Sudhanoti. Similarly maximum disease incidence was found in district Bagh that was 16%. A total of 32 isolates were recovered from the collected samples that were further screened on the basis of their virulence. It was found that the total of 18 isolates screened were similar to the already reported strains of P. syringae pv. syringae (Pss) on the basis of biochemical and molecular tools. From total 17 rhizobacterial isolates recovered were subjected to dual culture technique and was found that 06 isolates showed promising zone of inhibition upto 11.5 mm. The results of greenhouse evaluation revealed that the minimum disease incidence was recorded 3% using R-9 and R-17 in consortium against Pss as compared to the control treatment (39%). It was concluded that the ecofriendly management practices against this destructive disease must be adopted and appreciated

Delineation of aquifer promising zones and protective capacity for regional groundwater development and sustainability

Water security is the central mission of the sustainable development goals. The demand for potable and clean water has skyrocketed due to frequent borehole failures and population expansion, which requires adequate groundwater resource management strategies. Identifying groundwater potential zone, overburden protective index capacity and installations of alternative/artificial storage support mechanisms for water security and sustainability under the growing water challenge and demand is critical. This study identifies; (i) aquifer promising zones (ii) aquifer protective capacity through geophysical investigation and suggests (iii) improving aquifer recovery management strategy as the top three targets for groundwater development. An electric resistivity technique was applied to acquire a total of sixty (60) vertical electrical sounding points with Schlumberger arrays. The study indicates the resistivity layer of the aquifer unit ranges from 21 to 294 Ωm, while the aquifer layer thickness values spread from 8 to 59 m and the overburden thickness overlays the aquifer unit extends from 3 to 20 m. The deeper aquifer zones were encountered between 30 and 59 m, which could be suitable for groundwater development, and the shallow aquifer occurs between 8 and 14 m, which is not encouraging for groundwater development and may be susceptible to surface contaminations. However, for water security and sustainability, multiple boreholes should be sited at the delineated aquifer promising zone where the aquifer is fractured and occurs within a depth of 30 m and above. The weathered/fractured units constitute the regional aquifer units, which are largely responsible for the groundwater potential. The hydraulic conductivity of the regional aquifer was estimated to vary between 0.337 and 10.62 m/day, which invariably enhances the aquifer recovery processing. Groundwater quality and the risk of surface contamination were examined through overburden protective index capacity.

Promising zone two-stage design for a single-arm study with binary outcome.

Adaptive designs are increasingly used in clinical trials to assess the effectiveness of new drugs. For a single-arm study with a binary outcome, several adaptive designs were developed by using numerical search algorithms and the conditional power approach. The design based on numerical search algorithms is able to identify the global optimal design, but the computational intensity limits the usage of these designs. The conditional power approach searches for the optimal design without expensive computing time. In addition, promising zone strategy was proposed to move on drug development to the follow-up stages when the interim results are promising. We propose to develop two adaptive designs: One based on the conditional power approach, and the other based on the promising zone strategy. These two designs preserve types I and II error rates. It is preferable to satisfy the monotonic property for adaptive designs: The second stage sample size decreases as the first stage responses go up. We theoretically prove this important property for the two proposed designs. The proposed designs can be easily applied to real trials with limited computing resources.

Development of a Polyherbal Topical Gel for the Treatment of Acne

The present work aimed to formulate and evaluate a polyherbal gel using Aloe barbadensis and extract of Vigna radiata for the treatment of acne, a disorder of the skin in which hair follicles and sebaceous glands are blocked, causing inflammation and redness of the skin. Aloe barbadensis pulp was collected and mixed with the extract of Vigna radiata and formulated into a gel using Carbopol 940, triethanolamine, and propylene glycol as the gelling agent, viscosity modifier, and pH modifier, respectively. The gel was evaluated for its antimicrobial properties against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Candida albicans. Antimicrobial agents, such as gentamycin and fluconazole, were used as the standards. The developed formulation showed promising zone of inhibition. The gel was further evaluated for its physicochemical properties. The formulation showed a promising effect on acne together with the additive effect of Aloe barbadensis on skin.

Groundwater System of Khanaqin Basin in Diyala Governorate – East of Iraq

Land and water resources are generally depleting due to rapid increase in population, urbanization and industrialization. The demand has increased tremendously for these resources; hence optimal utilization of them is essential for sustainable development. The study area is located in Diyala Governorate in the east of Iraq covering 1920 km2. The hydrogeological investigation of the basin divided groundwater aquifers into two main units, the unconfined and confined aquifers, where geographical position, elevations, static water levels, depths, thicknesses, maximum yields as well as water sampling and pumping tests have been carried out during these investigations. Quaternary deposits, Bai Hassan and Mukdadiyah formations reflect the unconfined aquifer while confined aquifer consists of Mukdadiyah and Injana formations. The promising zone of unconfined aquifer is located around Khanaqin city within the southern part of the basin, while two promising zones of confined aquifer are located to western part of the basin and near the border within north part of the basin.

Silver nanoparticles coated medical fiber synthesized by surface engineering with bio-inspired mussel powered polydopamine: An investigated antimicrobial potential with bacterial membrane leakage reaction mechanism

Nature frequently provides narrative biological motivation. This study reports on oxygen-induced auto-polymerization of dopamine on the surface of medical cotton fibers to develop super-hydrophobic surfaces. The versatile reactivity of polydopamine (PDA) surfactant was adopted to deposit silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) on the surface of medical cotton. SEM micrographs demonstrated the uniform deposition of Ag NPs. The antimicrobial reactivity confirmed the potential of Ag-loaded PDA-cotton fiber to hinder the growth of some tested pathogenic microbes. Silver-loaded PDA-cotton fibers showed the most promising zone of inhibition (ZOI) against (33.5 mm), Candida tropicalis (30.2 mm), and Aspergillus niger (30.2 mm). In growth curve assay, after addition of silver-loaded PDA-cotton fibers, the O.D. were lower (0.365 nm), showing the repression impact on S. aureus. It was observed that the quantity of cellular protein discharged from S. aureus is directly proportional to the concentration of silver-loaded PDA-cotton fibers and found to be 159.68 μg/ml after the treatment with silver-loaded PDA-cotton fibers (2 cm × 2 cm), which proves the antibacterial characteristics of the synthesied silver-loaded PDA-cotton fibers. The obtained antimicrobial results gives solution in treating pathogenic microbes and the application of silver-loaded PDA-cotton fibers as wound dressing in biomedical and pharmaceutical fields.

Near-surface groundwater exploration using the geoelectrical resistivity method: A case study of Wadi Nisah, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

In desert regions like Saudi Arabia, groundwater exploration is critical for drinking, household, and agricultural purposes. The purpose of this study is to use Vertical Electric Sounding (VES) to assign near-surface groundwater sources in the Wadi Nisah area of central Saudi Arabia. Twenty VES stations were installed in the central part of Wadi Nisah, with a maximum half current electrode separation (AB/2) of 100 m, utilizing a Syscal R2 resistivity-meter with Schlumberger electrode design. The interpretation of these VES's revealed five geoelectric layers, the first of which is formed of dry sand with greater resistivity values and has a depth of around 3 m. The groundwater-bearing aquifer is represented by the fifth layer, which is the deepest, with depths ranging from 37.8 to 52.25 m below the surface and resistivities ranging from 47 Ω-m to 115.3 Ω-m. Six geoelectrical cross-sections were also mapped to show the lateral and vertical heterogeneities of the underlying lithology in the study area. These findings suggest that the groundwater bearing layer is a hydrologically promising zone capable of delivering optimal groundwater yield for drinking and agricultural use in the study area; the VES technique is a useful tool for identifying groundwater prospective zones.

Metallic-Mineral Prospecting Using Integrated Geophysical and Geochemical Techniques: A Case Study from the Bela Ophiolitic Complex, Baluchistan, Pakistan

An integrated geophysical and geochemical investigation was conducted to investigate the metallic minerals hosted in the mafic and ultramafic rocks in the Bela Ophiolitic Complex. Two thousand magnetic observations were made along with six vertical electrical soundings, with Induced Polarization (IP) targeting the anomalous magnetic zones. The magnetic raw field data were interpreted qualitatively and quantitatively, and two anomalous zones (A1 and A2) were identified on the magnetic maps. The residual magnetic values in the high-magnetic-anomalous zone (A2) ranged from 310 nT to 550 nT, while the magnetic signatures in the low-magnetic zone (A1) ranged from –190 nT to 50 nT. The high-anomalous zone (A2) was distinguished by a high IP value ranging from 3.5 mV/V to 15.1 mV/V and a low apparent and true resistivity signature of 50 ohm·m. Whereas, the low-anomalous zone (A1) was distinguished by very low IP values ranging from 0.78 mV/V to 4.1 mV/V and a very high apparent and true resistivity of 100 ohm·m. The Euler deconvolution was used to determine the depth of the promising zone, which for A1 and A2 was in the 100 m range. The statistical analysis was carried out using hierarchical classification to distinguish between background and anomalous data. The high-magnetic anomalous signature of probable mineralization was in the range of 46,181 nT–46,628 nT, with a total intensity range of 783 nT–1166 nT. The major and trace-element analysis of the 22 rock and stream sediments collected from the high-magnetic-anomalous zone confirmed the mineralization type. The geomagnetic and geophysical cross sections revealed that anomalous mineralization was concentrated with the anticlinal Bela Ophiolitic Complex. The generated results also aided in the identification of rock boundaries, depth, and hidden faults in the area. The findings revealed that the study area has excellent mineralization associated with the ultramafic-rock sequence.

Geophysical appraisal of the Abu Madi gas reservoir, Nile Delta Basin, Egypt: Implications for the tectonic effect on the lateral distribution of petrophysical parameters

The tectonic deformation has a significant influence on the hydrocarbon reservoirs properties. The effect of this process focuses on the lateral distribution of the petrophysical parameters characterizing the hydrocarbon reservoirs. The main objective of the current study is to perform a petrophysical examination of the Abu Madi gas reservoir which is the greatest gas-bearing reservoir at Nile Delta Basin in order to examine how far the Messinian tectonics affected the lateral variations of these petrophysical parameters. This petrophysical evaluation was performed based on the wireline log data acquired for five wells, namely, Abu Madi-2, Abu Madi-7, El Qara-3, Nidoco-7, and Nidoco-9 drilled within the Abu Madi Paleo-Valley. The petrophysical assessment for the most promising zone intervals within the Abu Madi sandstones in the inspected wells show that the total porosity varies between 17% and 22%, the effective porosity ranges from 7% to 19%, the shale volume fluctuates between 16% and 30%, hydrocarbon saturation varies from 37% to 76%, and the bulk volume of water varies between 0.02 and 0.09. These significant variations in the petrophysical properties of the Abu Madi reservoir are attributed to the tectonic influence during the deposition of the Abu Madi Formation as a part of the Late Miocene syn-rift megasequence in the Nile Delta Basin. This conclusion confirms that the petrophysical properties of sandstone reservoirs are function of tectonic and structural deformation.

Lithium-rich geothermal brines in Europe: An up-date about geochemical characteristics and implications for potential Li resources

Lithium (Li) is a strategic metal - especially for batteries in electric vehicles - for which worldwide demand is constantly increasing. Presently, several investigations are examining if a part of lithium could be extracted from deep European geothermal fluids. Among the data from geothermal and hydrocarbon wells found in the literature review carried out by BRGM and EIFER, only six areas stand out with deep fluids containing high Li concentrations from 125 to 480 mg/l in Italy, Germany, France and the United-Kingdom. Except the UK fluid, which has a relatively low salinity (TDS = 19 g/l) and reservoir temperature (around 52 °C), these deep Li-rich fluids are Na-Cl brines (TDS ≥ 56 g/l) with high concentrations of Na (> 18 g/l) and Cl (> 25 g/l) and high temperatures (≥ 120 °C and up to 380 °C in Italy). If high TDS and temperature values seem to be key factors for triggering high Li concentrations in such fluids, these two factors alone cannot be sufficient. Indeed, our study confirms that Li concentrations not only depend on temperature and fluid salinity, but also on the type of reservoir rock and its mineralogical constituents, as demonstrated by the good results obtained using two different Na-Li thermometric relationships existing in the literature. One fits well with the brines from low to high temperature (120–250 °C) reservoirs in deep tectonic sedimentary basins over a crystalline basement (France, Germany) and the other with the fluids from ultra-high temperature (≥ 300 °C) reservoirs in volcano-sedimentary environment (Italy). If the high chloride concentrations values in these brines mainly depend on the fluid origin (evaporated seawater or freshwater, halite dissolution, primary neutralization fluids or parent-geothermal fluids in high-temperature and -pressure volcanic environments, water mixing, etc.), the other aqueous major species are mostly controlled by hydrothermal water-rock interaction processes. At these temperatures (≥ 120 °C), the fluid-rock interaction processes are generally dominated by plagioclase and K-feldspar dissolution, followed by albitization of these minerals, dissolution of white micas and biotite, precipitation of illite, and chloritization. According to the two Na-Li thermometric relationships, existing mineralogical and isotopic data, this study suggests that the main sources of Li are white micas and biotite dissolution. Among the European areas, it shows that the Upper Rhine Graben (URG) along the French/German border is probably the most promising zone. For the URG geothermal brines, the main source and control of lithium, at about 225 °C, at reservoir depth, is probably the up to 450-m-thick micaceous continental sandstone of Triassic Buntsandstein. A minor contribution from the granite basement can also not be excluded. Though the Li concentration values of these brines (≥ 150 mg/l) seem to be favourable for geothermal Li exploitation, it is essential to make an as accurate as possible estimate of the Li resource of these brines, design the Li extraction process, and examine the economic conditions of its exploitation.

Optimal adaptive promising zone designs.

We develop optimal decision rules for sample size re-estimation in two-stage adaptive group sequential clinical trials. It is usual for the initial sample size specification of such trials to be adequate to detect a realistic treatment effect with good power, but not sufficient to detect the smallest clinically meaningful treatment effect . Moreover it is difficult for the sponsors of such trials to make the up-front commitment needed to adequately power a study to detect . It is easier to justify increasing the sample size if the interim data enter a so-called "promising zone" that ensures with high probability that the trial will succeed. We have considered promising zone designs that optimize unconditional power and promising zone designs that optimize conditional power and have discussed the tension that exists between these two objectives. Where there is reluctance to base the sample size re-estimation rule on the parameter we propose a Bayesian option whereby a prior distribution is assigned to the unknown treatment effect , which is then integrated out of the objective function with respect to its posterior distribution at the interim analysis.