Proprietary Chemicals Research Articles

Increases in trade secret designations in hydraulic fracturing fluids and their potential implications for environmental health and water quality

Hydraulic fracturing is an increasingly common method of oil and gas extraction across the United States. Many of the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing processes have been proven detrimental to human and environmental health. While disclosure frameworks have advanced significantly in the last 20 years, the practice of withholding chemical identities as “trade secrets” or “proprietary claims” continues to represent a major absence in the data available on hydraulic fracturing. Here, we analyze rates of trade secret claims using FracFocus, a nationwide database of hydraulic fracturing data, from January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2022. We use the open-source tool Open-FF, which collates FracFocus data, makes it accessible for systematic analysis, and performs several quality-control measures. We found that the use by mass of chemicals designated as trade secrets has increased over the study time period, from 728 million pounds in 2014 to 2.96 billion pounds in 2022 (or a 43.7% average yearly increase). A total of 10.4 billion pounds of chemicals were withheld as trade secrets in this time period. The water volume used (and therefore total mass of fracturing fluid) per fracturing job has shown a large increase from 2014 to 2022, which partly explains the increase in mass of chemicals withheld as trade secrets over this time period, even as total fracturing jobs and individual counts of proprietary records have decreased. Our analysis also shows increasing rates of claiming proppants (which can include small grains of sand, ceramic, or other mineral substances used to prop open fractures) as proprietary. However, the mean and median masses of non-proppant constituents designated as trade secrets have also increased over the study period. We also find that the total proportion of all disclosures including proprietary designations has increased by 1.1% per year, from 79.3% in 2014 to 87.5% in 2022. In addition, most disclosures designate more than one chemical record as proprietary: trade secret withholding is most likely to apply to 10–25% of all records in an individual disclosure. We also show the top ten reported purposes that most commonly include proprietary designations, after removing vague or multiple entries, the first three of which are corrosion inhibitors, friction reducers, and surfactants. Finally, we report the top ten operators and suppliers using and supplying proprietary chemicals, ranked by mass used or supplied, over our study period. These results suggest the importance of revisiting the role of proprietary designations within state and federal disclosure mechanisms.

Improvements to in silico skin sensitisation predictions through privacy-preserving data sharing

In silico models are often built solely on publicly available data which may mean that they are less predictive for proprietary chemical space. Data sharing initiatives can improve the performance of such models, but organisations are often unable to share their data due to the need to protect their business interests and maintain the confidentiality of the chemicals in their research and development programmes. In silico models like Derek Nexus, which use expert knowledge to develop structural alerts based on chemical toxicity, can use proprietary data to identify new areas of chemical space and/or refine existing alerts whilst still preserving the privacy of the confidential data. Five hundred and thirty seven proprietary chemicals with skin sensitisation data were shared which led to the implementation of 7 new alerts and 5 modified alerts, with a concomitant 19% increase in sensitivity and 3% increase in specificity of the model.

QUEST FOR SUSTAINABLE CURATIVES FOR CHLOROPRENE RUBBER: A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW

ABSTRACT Chloroprene rubber (CR) is one of the most versatile synthetic rubbers suitable for numerous industrial applications. For years, zinc oxide (ZnO) has been satisfactorily used as the vulcanization activator for CR, typically with organic accelerator(s). Ethylene thiourea (ETU) is the most widely used accelerator, offering the best balance between cost and performance in CR vulcanizates. Recently, the ZnO level in rubber compounds has become a pressing issue because of its harmful environmental impacts. ETU is classified as a substance of potentially serious health risks. It is therefore imperative to identify sustainable crosslinking additives for CR from both technical and commercial standpoints. The key purpose of this review is to collate the significant lines of technological advances made to identify proecological curative options for CR and update the information up to the current year. In preparation for this review, pertinent scholarly articles on the curing of CR, published in scientific journals mainly in the past two decades, were assessed. Since the scope of this review is to capture the significant technical information available in the public domain, the reference list is therefore not necessarily an exhaustive one. Reports dealing with proprietary chemicals or undisclosed technical strategies are beyond the purview of this review.

Effectiveness of various cleaning strategies in acute and long-term care facilities during novel corona virus 2019 disease pandemic-related staff shortages.

BackgroundCleanliness of hospital surfaces helps prevent healthcare-associated infections, but comparative evaluations of various cleaning strategies during COVID-19 pandemic surges and worker shortages are scarce.Purpose and methodsTo evaluate the effectiveness of daily, enhanced terminal, and contingency-based cleaning strategies in an acute care hospital (ACH) and a long-term care facility (LTCF), using SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) assays. Daily cleaning involved light dusting and removal of visible debris while a patient is in the room. Enhanced terminal cleaning involved wet moping and surface wiping with disinfectants after a patient is permanently moved out of a room followed by ultraviolet light (UV-C), electrostatic spraying, or room fogging. Contingency-based strategies, performed only at the LTCF, involved cleaning by a commercial environmental remediation company with proprietary chemicals and room fogging. Ambient surface contamination was also assessed randomly, without regard to cleaning times. Near-patient or high-touch stationary and non-stationary environmental surfaces were sampled with pre-moistened swabs in viral transport media.ResultsAt the ACH, SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected on 66% of surfaces before cleaning and on 23% of those surfaces immediately after terminal cleaning, for a 65% post-cleaning reduction (p = 0.001). UV-C enhancement resulted in an 83% reduction (p = 0.023), while enhancement with electrostatic bleach application resulted in a 50% reduction (p = 0.010). ATP levels on RNA positive surfaces were not significantly different from those of RNA negative surfaces. LTCF contamination rates differed between the dementia, rehabilitation, and residential units (p = 0.005). 67% of surfaces had RNA after room fogging without terminal-style wiping. Fogging with wiping led to a -11% change in the proportion of positive surfaces. At the LTCF, mean ATP levels were lower after terminal cleaning (p = 0.016).ConclusionAmbient surface contamination varied by type of unit and outbreak conditions, but not facility type. Removal of SARS-CoV-2 RNA varied according to cleaning strategy.ImplicationsPrevious reports have shown time spent cleaning by hospital employed environmental services staff did not correlate with cleaning thoroughness. However, time spent cleaning by a commercial remediation company in this study was associated with cleaning effectiveness. These findings may be useful for optimizing allocation of cleaning resources during staffing shortages.

Streamlining the supply chain for the future of world energy - VALYNT secures contract with ESSCO to provide Saudi Aramco with proprietary chemicals related to production and refining of petroleum products

This chapter aims to present several modelling approaches to analyze energy systems that implement a particular category of fuel cells and electrolyzers, namely reversible Solid Oxide Cells (rSOCs). This technology allows the dual operation mode, hence requires particular care in the analysis of processes, transient operation and energy/power management in the long-term. Therefore, this chapter reviews the principal methodologies adopted to the scope.

Determination of Total Proteinogenic Amino Acids and Taurine by Pre-column Derivatization and UHPLC: Single Laboratory Validation, First Action Official MethodSM 2019.09.

A method has been developed and validated for selective, accurate, and precise determination of total proteinogenic amino acids and taurine from infant formula and adult/pediatric nutritional formulas (powders, ready-to-feed liquids, and liquid concentrates). The method was reviewed by the AOAC INTERNATIONAL SPIFAN Expert Review Panel (ERP) during the 133rd AOAC Annual Meeting and Expo on September 7, 2019 in Denver, CO, USA, and was recommended to First Action Official MethodsSM status. The method involves protein hydrolysis to amino acids, a simple pre-column derivatization of amino acids and separation of derivatized amino acids by UHPLC. The quantification of amino acids is performed by multi-point calibration using norvaline as the internal standard. The analytical method is capable of quantitative determination for 22 proteinogenic amino acids, but cannot be used to quantitate tryptophan, which is destroyed during the acid hydrolysis step. Asparagine is determined as aspartic acid and glutamine as glutamic acid. Cystine and cysteine are converted to S-2-carboxyethylthiocysteine (CYSx) and the derivative is separated from the other amino acids. Citrulline, which is present in some matrixes, is separated from other amino acids and is not included in the method performance evaluation in the single-laboratory validation (SLV). The proposed method met all the performance requirement limits set in Standard Method Performance Requirement (SMPR®) 2014.013 for total proteinogenic amino acids and taurine. The correlation coefficient of multi-point calibration was not less than 0.999 for any amino acids at any point in the SLV study, confirming the validity of linear dynamic range (LDR) and linearity of the method. The individual amino acids in the chromatogram were identified by absolute retention time and relative retention time (RRT) with respect to the internal standard norvaline. There were no significant (S/N <10) interferences from the reagents or byproducts of derivatization and targeted matrixes. The method demonstrated high selectivity. Accuracy of the method was validated using standard reference materials (SRMs; NIST SRM 1869 and 1849a) and spike recovery studies. The amino acid results in the SRMs were within the ranges of Reference Mass Fraction Values. The accuracy of the method was corroboratively validated by spike recovery studies. The average spike recovery ranged between 93 and 107% ensuring the accuracy of the method for amino acids and compliance with AOAC SMPR 2014.013. Precision data of the method demonstrate that it meets the stakeholder requirements as per the SMPR. The mean RSDr for all the amino acids for 17 matrixes selected for the SLV were not more than 4%. The method is very sensitive and the LOQ can go down to approximately ten times lower than the SMPR requirements. The sensitivity of method is a direct reflection of its signal-to-noise ratio which ensures guaranteed method performance at the lower levels of amino acids in these matrixes. Taurine (aminoethane sulfonic acid), unlike the other amino acids, is a beta-sulfonic amino acid that is not used in protein synthesis but is found as a free amino acid in tissues. The acidic functional group (-COOH) in common amino acids is replaced with a sulfonic acid (-SO3H) group in taurine. The method offers baseline separation of citrulline which is an alpha amino acid generally present in infant formula and adult/pediatric nutritional products. The separation of citrulline eliminates the risk of interference of this compound with other amino acids. The method can also separate and quantitate hydroxyproline, an important component of collagen that is often used to quantitate collagen. The method is simple and does not include any proprietary chemicals or instruments, and it can be performed on any basic reverse phase UHPLC system with UV detection (1-6).

Internal validation of latest generation STR kits for direct STR typing from reference samples

Forensic STR kits are manufactured by various biotechnology companies. Differences in primer designs and proprietary chemicals, as well as the availability of instruments in each laboratory, may result in performance differences. As such, internal validation is a necessary step prior to adopting a new kit, especially if accreditation is sought. Here, we evaluated three latest generation direct STR kits (Thermo Fisher Scientific’s GlobalFiler® Express, Promega’s PowerPlex® Fusion 6C, and Qiagen’s Investigator® 24plex GO!) for direct STR typing of reference samples as part of ISO17025:2017 implementation. Thirty buccal swab samples (untreated cotton swabs) were used to optimize the parameters that could affect test results, such as the amount of swab used, PCR cycle number, and electrophoretic injection condition. Each kit was then used for direct STR typing of additional one hundred untreated buccal swabs. A scoring system based on profile quality was used to evaluate the kits: high-quality, minor-issue, moderate-issue, and critical-issue. GlobalFiler® Express kit showed the highest number of high-quality profiles (i.e. full profile with no quality flag), followed by PowerPlex® Fusion 6C and Investigator® 24plex GO!. Non-standard loci typed in the kits (e.g. DYS391 and “Quality Sensors”) provided additional information in cases where amelogenin-Y failed to amplify and also where inhibitors were present. In summary, we selected the GlobalFiler® Express kit for direct STR typing of untreated buccal swab samples due to its superior performance.

Computational identification of a phospholipidosis toxicophore using 13C and 15N NMR-distance based fingerprints

Modified 3D-SDAR fingerprints combining 13C and 15N NMR chemical shifts augmented with inter-atomic distances were used to model the potential of chemicals to induce phospholipidosis (PLD). A curated dataset of 328 compounds (some of which were cationic amphiphilic drugs) was used to generate 3D-QSDAR models based on tessellations of the 3D-SDAR space with grids of different density. Composite PLS models averaging the aggregated predictions from 100 fully randomized individual models were generated. On each of the 100 runs, the activities of an external blind test set comprised of 294 proprietary chemicals were predicted and averaged to provide composite estimates of their PLD-inducing potentials (PLD+ if PLD is observed, otherwise PLD−). The best performing 3D-QSDAR model utilized a grid with a density of 8ppm×8ppm in the C–C region, 8ppm×20ppm in the C–N region and 20ppm×20ppm in the N–N region. The classification predictive performance parameters of this model evaluated on the basis of the external test set were as follows: accuracy=0.70, sensitivity=0.73 and specificity=0.66. A projection of the most frequently occurring bins on the standard coordinate space suggested a toxicophore composed of an aromatic ring with a centroid 3.5–7.5Å distant from an amino-group. The presence of a second aromatic ring separated by a 4–5Å spacer from the first ring and at a distance of between 5.5Å and 7Å from the amino-group was also associated with a PLD+ effect. These models provide comparable predictive performance to previously reported models for PLD with the added benefit of being based entirely on non-confidential, publicly available training data and with good predictive performance when tested in a rigorous, external validation exercise.

Group To Examine Potential Health Effects From Producing Unconventional Resources

This article, written by Special Publications Editor Adam Wilson, contains highlights of paper SPE 168518, ’Collaborative Industry Initiative To Assess Potential Health Effects Related to the Production of Unconventional Resources,’ by D.J. Devlin, ExxonMobil; P. Beatty and R.D. White, American Petroleum Institute; Z. Naufal, Chevron; and S.S. Sarang, Shell, prepared for the 2014 SPE International Conference on Health, Safety, and Environment, Long Beach, California, USA, 17-19 March. The paper has not been peer reviewed. Unconventional resources offer many substantial benefits, yet the rapid increase in production of these resources using hydraulic fracturing has generated scrutiny by some policymakers and advocates who cite health concerns. The Exploration and Production Health Issues Group was recently formed to provide research, scientific analysis, and guidance on health issues regarding unconventional-resource production (URP). The group is particularly focused on community health concerns, including those associated with the compositions of hydraulic-fracturing fluid and flowback, effects on aquifers, air emissions, and psychosocial stress related to operations. Chemical Disclosure Opinion polls have found that community residents are most concerned about the possibility of drinking-water contamination from hydraulic fracturing. The idea that fracturing fluids of unknown composition are pumped underground through groundwater is the cause of that concern. A key issue for the industry to address is communicating the full nature of this risk while maintaining the confidentiality of proprietary chemicals used. The composition of fracturing fluids is the intellectual property of companies that develop the wellsite. The skill required to identify the right fluid composition for particular fracturing operations is what keeps those companies in business. But the need to protect some portion of fluid compositions as confidential business information (CBI) has been exploited by some opposed to URP to spread fear about unknown toxic chemicals and the harm they may cause. To address this challenge, the Groundwater Protection Council, an organization of state regulators, created Frac- Focus. FracFocus is a Web-based chemical disclosure registry where the nonconfidential chemicals used in fracturing for a particular wellsite are posted for public viewing. In many states, the use of Frac- Focus to disclose nonconfidential chemicals is mandatory. Some segments of the URP industry believe that additional steps must be taken to develop criteria to assess the suitability of a chemical for use in URP from the perspective of health, safety, and environmental effects, and they have been working to develop criteria and a user-friendly tool to implement those criteria in URP operations. While some chemicals will continue to be identified as CBI under existing regulations and policy, operators and service companies would apply the established criteria of suitability for hydraulic fracturing. The objective is to encourage continued development of new and improved fracturing fluids while maintaining the intellectual-property protections of the companies that develop them and enhancing public confidence that protection of health and the environment is integrated into the selection of chemicals. The balance between the legitimate need to keep certain information confidential and the processes by which compositional information is provided to experts on a need-to-know basis should be communicated better to the public to help build and maintain trust. Potential Health Effects The Institute of Medicine Roundtable on Environmental Health Sciences, Research, and Medicine held a workshop on the Health Impact Assessment of Shale Gas Extraction in May 2012. The workshop brought together a range of experts from the natural-gas industry, regulatory agencies, and fields of environmental monitoring and occupational and community health. A key premise for the workshop was the recognition that shale-gas extraction is an emerging technology and that it will continue to be important in the years to come. Consequently, the environmental health community needs to begin to understand potential related health effects. Furthermore, the community should adopt an approach that recognizes that the role of the health community is not to decide whether or where the nation should use shale-gas extraction but rather to discuss potential health effects, to which individuals are more vulnerable, and how any proven effects can be mitigated.

A Proprietary Chemical Bath Life Study in MHM ULK Scheme Wet Cleaning

As technology evolves to 45nm and beyond, IC companies adopt TiN metal hardmask instead of PR (photo resist) to gain better etching profile, CD uniformity and less low-k material damage. To improve Cu gap fill capability, an in situ TiN pull back is needed in the subsequential wet clean step. This pullback can be done by mixing some additive with clean media, like H2O2. But H2O2 tends to decompose along the time, it also bring the challenges to the wet clean media stability. In this paper, we study a proprietary wet clean chemical behavior with pH, Cu ion concentration, H2O2 additive and bath lifetime. Cu ions content is demonstrated critical to the mixture instability when H2O2 presents. Chemical degradation mechanism is also discussed.

Low-cost direct PCR for aged and processed wildlife sample analysis

Direct PCR has been used successfully in wildlife forensic DNA analysis from several types of biological samples using specialized, commercial direct PCR kits. This is attributed to the proprietary chemicals provided in the kits such as pre-PCR buffer and modified DNA polymerases. These reagents can be expensive, thereby limiting their widespread adoption in developing countries, where wildlife crimes are often encountered. We report on a study to evaluate the possibility of using low-cost direct PCR assay for degraded and processed wildlife sample analysis. Phire® and Q5® polymerases were used, due to their relatively low cost, for direct amplification of six aged and processed sample types (dried skin, 30-year old hair, muscle tissue, bone, trace blood mixed in vodka, and dried soft antler). The result indicated that Phire® Hot Start II DNA polymerase and Q5® DNA polymerase performed similarly to commercially available direct PCR kit. The low-cost amplification could efficiently identify species origin from all aged and processed samples. We observed a rate of more than 80% amplification success and high PCR product concentrations sufficient for further sequencing. The assay proved to be cost effective and robust; thus, we expect it to be adopted by wildlife forensic laboratories in developing countries.

Co-treatment of acid mine drainage with municipal wastewater: performance evaluation

Co-treatment of acid mine drainage (AMD) with municipal wastewater (MWW) using the activated sludge process is a novel treatment technology offering potential savings over alternative systems in materials, proprietary chemicals and energy inputs. The impacts of AMD on laboratory-scale activated sludge units (plug-flow and sequencing batch reactors) treating synthetic MWW were investigated. Synthetic AMD containing Al, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb, Zn and SO4 at a range of concentrations and pH values was formulated to simulate three possible co-treatment processes, i.e., (1) adding raw AMD to the activated sludge aeration tank, (2) pre-treating AMD prior to adding to the aeration tank by mixing with digested sludge and (3) pre-treating AMD by mixing with screened MWW. Continuous AMD loading to the activated sludge reactors during co-treatment did not cause a significant decrease in chemical oxygen demand (COD), 5-day biochemical oxygen demand, or total organic carbon removal; average COD removal rates ranged from 87-93%. Enhanced phosphate removal was observed in reactors loaded with Fe- and Al-rich AMD, with final effluent TP concentrations<2 mg/L. Removal rates for dissolved Al, Cu, Fe and Pb were 52-84%, 47-61%, 74-86% and 100%, respectively, in both systems. Manganese and Zn removal were strongly linked to acidity; removal from net-acidic AMD was <10% for both metals, whereas removal from circum-neutral AMD averaged 93-95% for Mn and 58-90% for Zn. Pre-mixing with screened MWW was the best process option in terms of AMD neutralization and metal removal. However, significant MWW alkalinity was consumed, suggesting an alkali supplement may be necessary.

Fatigue behaviour of Kevlar composites with nanoclay-filled epoxy resin

The fatigue behaviour of Kevlar fibre-reinforced composites is a subject not often studied and requires a better understanding. The objective of this study is to characterize the fatigue strength of a Kevlar/epoxy laminate composite as well as the benefits obtained using a nanoclay-filled epoxy matrix. The filler used was an organoclay Cloisite 30B after applying an appropriate silane treatment and other proprietary chemicals to improve the dispersion and interface adhesion. Twelve ply laminates, all in the same direction, of woven bidirectional Kevlar 292, were prepared by hand lay-up, using an SR 1500 epoxy resin. The composite sheets were produced by a vacuum moulding process. The addition of nanoclays reduced static strength and increased the stiffness in both tension and bend loading. Filled composites exhibited tensile fatigue strengths 12% higher than unfilled matrices, but in three-point bending the fatigue strength of filled composites was lower.

TRADE SECRET ANXIETY

THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRY is on edge over the Environmental Protection Agency’s efforts to make public some of the information companies claim as proprietary in submissions on commercial chemicals to EPA. That nervousness was a significant theme running through the industry’s annual global chemical regulation conference, which was held last month in Baltimore. Companies are anxious about the agency revealing to the public the identity of proprietary chemicals, components of secret formulations, or the name of the business that makes them. This confidential business information is included in submissions required by the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The heightened concern about data claimed as proprietary may have started at the 2010 GlobalChem meeting. At last year’s conference, Stephen A. Owens, EPA assistant administrator for chemical safety and pollution prevention, threw down the gauntlet. He challenged manufacturers to voluntarily lift some of their confidentiality claims in health and safety stud...

STI CMP: Exploration of a Colloidal Silica Based Slurry System

With the size shrinking of IC transistors, more stringent polishing performance in shallow trench isolation (STI) CMP processes is requested in advanced fabrication processes. Up to date, most available STI slurries are ceria based. Technical challenges, such as scratches, rate instability, and handling, are the challenges to overcome. In addition, lower CoO is also desired. In this paper, colloidal silica based STI slurries are explored as an alternative. Different types of colloidal silica abrasives and chemicals are examined to understand their effects on HDP oxide removal rate and polishing selectivity of silicon nitride to silicon oxide. Planarization efficiency and slurry colloidal stability are also investigated. The results show that an abrasive type can make great difference on the removal rates of silicon nitride and silicon oxide. Certain proprietary chemicals can also greatly increase the selectivity of silicon oxide to silicon nitride without significant oxide losses in trenches. The capability of step height repairing can be tuned by carefully selected additives. The possible mechanism is also proposed. In addition, slurry handling can be improved by special designed dispersion agents. The preliminary data from the studies indicate that it is feasible to develop a silica based STI slurry to replace the traditional ceria based STI slurry. It also shows the potential to offer additional performance and cost benefits.

MINING: EPA Tackles Fracking

With the push for energy independence and fuels that emit fewer greenhouse gases, domestically produced natural gas has been growing in popularity. But alongside this growth have come concerns that hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”), a procedure used in the extraction of natural gas and oil, may pollute ground and surface waters. Responding to increasing public pressure for federal action and a call by the U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Conference Committee, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced 18 March 2010 it will conduct a comprehensive study to investigate the potential adverse effects of fracking on water quality and public health. Natural gas provides almost 25% of the U.S. energy supply and could provide 50% by 2035, according to the 2010 report Fueling North America’s Energy Future by consultancy IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates. In recent years, vast new deposits of natural gas have been discovered in layers of shale thousands of feet underground. Some of these deposits, such as the Marcellus Shale running under the Appalachian Basin, lie beneath watersheds supplying drinking water to millions of people. In many locations fracking—in which a mixture of water, sand, and chemicals is injected into natural gas wells under high pressure—occurs within hundreds of feet of residences that use wells for drinking water. Recent evidence suggests fracking may have contributed to groundwater contamination with methane in some instances and that proprietary chemicals used in the procedure could theoretically pose a public health threat. However, because groundwater supplies and natural gas deposits are often separated by thousands of feet of rock and earth, and groundwater can be contaminated by many sources, it is difficult to establish a definitive connection between contaminated drinking water and fracking. Further, there has been very little in-depth research on the subject with respect to drilling in shale beds. In 2005 Congress exempted fracking from regulation under the Safe Drinking Water Act partly on the basis of the EPA report Evaluation of Impacts to Underground Sources of Drinking Water by Hydraulic Fracturing of Coalbed Methane Reservoirs. The authors of this report wrote that hydraulic fracturing poses “minimal threat” to drinking water and that “additional or further study is not warranted at this time.” However, the study involved no direct monitoring of water wells but instead relied on existing peer-reviewed literature and interviews with industry and state and local government officials. It also was strictly limited to one specific type of drilling and did not address the effects in substrates other than coalbeds. Operators surround drill holes with steel casings cemented into place to prevent groundwater contamination during fracking. In addition, a large volume of “back-flow fluids,” on the order of hundreds of thousands of gallons per well, are brought to the surface during drilling and production. Back-flow fluids are typically stored in on-site pits (which, depending on state regulations, may or may not be lined) and ultimately are disposed of either by injection into EPA-approved underground wells or by delivery to municipal waste treatment facilities. In January 2010 state officials testified before the Ohio House of Representatives that standards and enforcement regarding oil and gas well construction are not always adequate to ensure proper performance. The EPA has reallocated $1.9 million for the new study in this fiscal year and will request further funding in the President’s FY2011 budget proposal. The agency’s scoping document identifies three major categories for research: characterization of the fracking life cycle, potential relationships to drinking water sources, and potential health and environmental hazards. Explicit research goals, as yet undefined, will be divided into short term (1–3 years) and long term (3–5 years). “We’re very pleased that EPA is doing this study,” says Amy Mall, a senior policy analyst with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), which has long pressured Congress for federal regulation of fracking. “There are communities around the country that are very concerned because their water has been contaminated or could be contaminated.” The NRDC also supports passage of the Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals (FRAC) Act, which was introduced in Congress in 2009. The FRAC Act would permit regulation of hydraulic fracturing under the SDWA and would require oil and gas companies to disclose the chemicals used in fracking operations. Energy In Depth, a nonprofit organization representing the oil and gas industry, has lobbied against the FRAC Act, but supports the new EPA study in concept. “We’ve said from the outset that any updated study in this area should be science-based, peer-reviewed, and completely isolated from political design or interference,” says Chris Tucker, spokesman for Energy In Depth. “Assuming those criteria are met, we’re confident the new study will end up reaching the same conclusions that were produced by the old study.”

Salvianolic acid B–vitamin C synergy in cardiac differentiation from embryonic stem cells

Inefficient cardiomyocyte differentiation limits the therapeutic use of embryonic stem (ES) cell-derived cardiomyocytes. While large collections of proprietary chemicals had been screened to improve ES cell differentiation into cardiomyocytes, the natural product library remained unexplored. Using a mouse ES cell line transfected with a cardiomyocyte-specific α-myosin heavy chain promoter-driven enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) reporter, we screened 24 natural products with known cardioprotective actions. Salvianolic acid B (saB), while produced minimal effect on its own, concentration-dependently synergized with vitamin C in inducing cardiomyocyte differentiation, as demonstrated by an increase in EGFP + cells, beating area in embryoid bodies, and expression of cardiomyocyte maturity markers. This synergy is specific to cardiomyocyte differentiation, and is involved with collagen synthesis. The present study demonstrates the saB–vitamin C synergy in inducing ES cell differentiation into matured and functional cardiomyocytes, and this may lead to a practicable cocktail approach to generate ES cell-derived cardiomyocytes for cardiac stem cell therapy.

Midrange Temperature Rheological Properties of Warm Asphalt Binders

With increasing concerns of global warming and increasing emissions, the asphalt industry is making a constant effort to lower its emissions by reducing the mixing and compaction temperatures of the asphalt mixture without affecting the properties of the mix. Several proprietary chemicals are available in the industry that can help reduce the mixing and compaction temperatures. A significant reduction of required heat can be achieved in most cases. Several studies have been conducted evaluating the properties of the warm mix asphalt; however, properties of the binders containing these chemicals have not been studied in great detail. Warm asphalts were produced using two of the available processes utilizing five different asphalt binder sources, and some rheological tests were conducted (dynamic shear rheometer and viscosity). The results indicated that binders containing the inorganic additive Aspha-Min (Eurovia, France) underwent minor or no changes compared to the base binders in terms of flow properties, stiffness, and response to creep. However, the flow of binders with the additive Sasobit (Sasol Wax, Germany), which consists of aliphatic hydrocarbons, changed from Newtonian to shear thinning at 60°C, and the viscosity of the binder at 60°C increased. Sasobit also improved the stiffness and penetration resistance of the base binders, and binders with Sasobit had significantly lower permanent deformations after repeated creep-recovery tests compared to the base binders.

Current Patents and Future Development Underlying Marker-Assisted Breeding in Major Grain Crops

Genomics and molecular markers provide new tools to assemble and mobilize important traits from different genetic backgrounds, including breeding lines and cultivars from different parts of the world and their related wild ancestors, to improve the quality and yield of the existing commercial cultivars to meet the increasing challenges of global food demand. The basic techniques of marker-assisted breeding, such as isolating DNA, amplifying DNA of interest using publicly available primers, and visualizing DNA fragments using standard polyacrylamid gel, have been described in the literature and, therefore, are available to scientists and breeders without any restrictions. A more sophisticated high-throughput system that includes proprietary chemicals and reagents, parts and equipments, software, and methods or processes, has been a subject of intensive patents and trade secrets. The high-throughput systems offer a more efficient way to discover associated QTLs for traits of economic importance. Therefore, an increasing number of patents of highly valued genes and QTLs is expected. This paper will discuss and review current patents associated with genes and QTLs utilized in marker-assisted breeding in major grain crops. The availability of molecular markers for important agronomic traits combined with more efficient marker detection systems will help reach the full benefit of MAS in the breeding effort to reassemble potential genes and recapture critical genes among the breeding lines that were lost during domestication to help boost crop production worldwide.

Experiences with the conventional pretreatment system in the seawater reverse osmosis plant at Kalpakkam

A 1800 m³/day Seawater Reverse Osmosis (SWRO) plant was commissioned in October 2002 at Kalpakkam, India, as part of the Nuclear Desalination Demonstration Project (NDDP). The conventional pretreatment scheme was adopted consisting of a lamella clarifier, pressurised sand filter, activated carbon filter and cartridge filter. The dosing of pretreatment chemicals, ferrous sulphate and polyelectrolytes was done at optimum levels to keep the Silt Density Index (SDI) value between 3 and 4. Experimental trials indicated that the dosing of chemicals may not be necessary below a particular turbidity level. Similarly, the dosing of proprietary antiscalant chemicals instead of sodium hexametaphosphate to control the sulphate scaling did not affect the process performance. Rather it helped the operation, as the antiscalant is in liquid form and the addition of hydrochloric acid could be eliminated. The overall cost per unit water production was also reduced.