Rejection Factor Research Articles

First Tests of the Full SIDDHARTA-2 Experimental Apparatus with a 4He Gaseous Target

In this paper, we present the first tests performed after the full installation of the SIDDHARTA-2 experimental apparatus on the Interaction Region of the DA{\Phi}NE collider at the INFN National Laboratories of Frascati. Before starting the first measurement of the kaonic deuterium 2p{\rightarrow}1s transition, accurate evaluation of the background rejection. mainly achieved with the Kaon Trigger system, was required. This run, performed in the period 04-26/05/2022 with a 4 He gaseous target, confirmed the 10^5 rejection factor obtained with a reduced version of the setup and different machine conditions in 2021. This important outcome motivated the filling of the target cell with deuterium and the starting of the measurement campaign of the kaonic deuterium 2p{\rightarrow}1s transition.

Cellulose acetate from palm oil bunch waste for forward osmosis membrane in desalination of brackish water

Hygienic drinking water availability has become a significant problem in many parts of the world in emerging countries, developing countries, and the countries that often experience disasters, including Indonesia. Forward osmosis (FO) membrane is an alternative water treatment method, particularly in emergency water supplies. This study has developed a FO membrane for desalination brackish water to produce energy drinking water. The FO membrane was made from cellulose acetate (CA) polymer synthesized from cellulose isolated from waste palm oil empty fruit bunches (POEFB). The forward osmosis membranes were made by printing a polymer solution on a glass plate, followed by solidification and membrane formation. FT-IR spectrum confirmed the successful synthesis of cellulose acetate. The obtaining cellulose acetate showed that the cellulose produced was cellulose diacetate, with acetyl content and degree substitution, 36.17% and 2.15, respectively. The Cellulose diacetate FO membrane has a water flux value of 2.2 L/m2hour and a rejection factor of 96% using 1 M sucrose as a draw solution. The water quality of the FO product has met drinking water standards based on the regulation of the Minister of Health of the Republic Indonesia Number 492/MENKES/PER/VI/2010 and WHO standard drinking water quality.

Association between oppositional defiant disorder and parenting style in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

To study the association between oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and parenting style in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). A case-control study was performed on 482 children with ADHD, among whom 322 did not have ODD (simple ADHD group) and 160 had ODD (ADHD+ODD group). General demographic data and the Parenting Style Scale assessment scores were collected from the two groups. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify the association between parenting style and ODD in children with ADHD. There was no significant difference in parenting style scores (including rejection factor, emotional warmth factor, overprotection factor, and preference factor) and general demographic data between the simple ADHD and ADHD+ODD groups (P>0.05). Among the children with the predominantly inattentive type of ADHD, the older the child or the lower the father's educational level, the higher the risk of ODD (P<0.05), while there was no significant association between parenting style and the development of ODD (P>0.05). Parenting style is not significantly associated with the development of ODD in children with ADHD. In clinical practice, it is necessary to eliminate the stereotype that the parents of children with ADHD and comorbid ODD have a poor parenting style and look for the causes of development of ODD from multiple perspectives, so as to provide reasonable intervention recommendations.

Topical administration of tacrolimus and corticosteroids in tapering doses is effective in preventing immune rejection\xa0in high-risk keratoplasty: a 5-year follow-up study

BackgroundTo evaluate the efficacy of the topical administration of immunosuppressants and corticosteroids in tapering doses in the management of patients with high-risk keratoplasty.MethodsOne hundred and six patients treated with topical immunosuppressants (50 eyes in the FK506 group and 56 eyes in the CsA group) and corticosteroid eye drops in tapering doses were enrolled in the study. The rates of rejection episodes, irreversible rejection, graft survival, and related influential factors were evaluated.ResultsThe mean follow-up period was 48.1 ± 7.9 months (range, 36–60 months). The rates of rejection episodes and irreversible rejection were 14.0% and 6.00% in the FK506 group and 37.5% and 7.1% in the CsA group, respectively. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis demonstrated a significantly higher graft survival rate in the FK506 group (81.6%±5.3%, 71.1%±6.3%) compared with that in the CsA group (71.1%±6.3%, 57.5%±7.5%) at 3 and 5 years after surgery (P = 0.006). Multivariate logistic regression revealed that preoperative risk score ≥ 3 (P = 0.016) and endothelial immune rejection (P = 0.033) were risk factors associated with graft survival.ConclusionsTopical administration of tacrolimus and corticosteroids in tapering doses is effective in decreasing the incidence of immune rejection in high-risk keratoplasty. Careful instruction of patients on the reasonable use of topical tacrolimus is critical to avoid immune rejection induced by sudden discontinuation of medication.

Improving sensitivity of the ARIANNA detector by rejecting thermal noise with deep learning

The ARIANNA experiment is an Askaryan detector designed to record radio signals induced by neutrino interactions in the Antarctic ice. Because of the low neutrino flux at high energies (Eν > 1016 eV), the physics output is limited by statistics. Hence, an increase in sensitivity significantly improves the interpretation of data and offers the ability to probe new parameter spaces. The amplitudes of the trigger threshold are limited by the rate of triggering on unavoidable thermal noise fluctuations. We present a real-time thermal noise rejection algorithm that enables the trigger thresholds to be lowered, which increases the sensitivity to neutrinos by up to a factor of two (depending on energy) compared to the current ARIANNA capabilities. A deep learning discriminator, based on a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), is implemented to identify and remove thermal events in real time. We describe a CNN trained on MC data that runs on the current ARIANNA microcomputer and retains 95% of the neutrino signal at a thermal noise rejection factor of 105, compared to a template matching procedure which reaches only 102 for the same signal efficiency. Then the results are verified in a lab measurement by feeding in generated neutrino-like signal pulses and thermal noise directly into the ARIANNA data acquisition system. Lastly, the same CNN is used to classify cosmic-rays events to make sure they are not rejected. The network classified 102 out of 104 cosmic-ray events as signal.

Prevailing user’s factors in bus rapid transport stations located in high-traffic urban highways

The high-level highways, where the operating speed is high, are implanted in areas with low population density. However, in some Brazilian regions, the uncontrolled growth of large cities leads to urbanization in their surroundings. As a result, these highways become urban roads, and collective transportation buses use them. There is a duplicate section of BR-282/SC highway in this scenario, which promotes access to Santa Catarina Island, where a Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) corridor will be implanted. This study aims to evaluate the attraction and rejection factors for the implantation of BRT stations located on the central axis of the highway between the opposing traffic lanes. It was carried out a case study with five stages: choice of the station implantation site, identification of attraction and rejection factors, description of mitigating measures, and elaboration of the design guidelines. A qualitative and quantitative study of the adjacent environment was carried out in the area covered by the station, and the walking conditions were verified. The analysis of the rejection factors related to traffic, pavement, and accessibility included noise pollution, air pollution, thermal discomfort, and access conditions, consideration of the existence of sidewalks and bicycle paths. As a result, the user attraction factors were relative to proximity to the residences and jobs poles and the station's connectivity with the local and marginal routes. On the other hand, rejection factors were related to noise and thermal discomfort, atmospheric pollution, and access characteristics (streets, sidewalks, and commerce). Mitigating measures and the station design to be feasible the Bus Rapid Transport stations attractiveness implanted in the road center were proposed.

Fully Electrical Post-Fabrication Trimming of Resistive Sensors.

A compact and efficient IC architecture is presented as an alternative to laser-trimmed precision thin-film resistors or look-up tables. The objective is to keep the device, such as a four-terminal Wheatstone bridge, but to compensate for post-manufacturing offset and to avoid the so-induced degradation of performances in terms of full-scale, non-linearity, power supply noise rejection and scale factor. Expected advantages are a reduced cost due to the electrical-only implementation and a possible on-field calibration of high-end sensors. Application of the proposed solution is illustrated on an example to demonstrate improvement factors on offset and sensitivity accuracy of 32 and 10, respectively. Additionally, the power supply rejection ratio is improved by 30 dB. The experimental results finally demonstrate both efficiency and versatility of the proposed solution thanks to a first silicon prototype, fabricated in a 0.35 μm Technology from AMS, connected to an off-the-shelf pressure sensor.

Apoprotein L1 risk variants and kidney transplantation: a protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

Graft survival after kidney transplantation may be influenced by both donors' and recipients' Apoprotein 1 (APOL1) risk variant status. There are several conflicting reports on screening, eligibility, and inclusion of APOL1 risk variant testing in the Kidney donor risk index. We developed a search strategy that included medical subject headings (MeSH), text words, and entry terms in order to search nine databases. The primary measurable outcome is the recipient's post-transplant graft survival time from APOL1 high-risk variant donors. The secondary outcomes are the proportion of APOL1 high-risk variants in end-stage kidney disease requiring a kidney transplant, the proportion in graft recipients and kidney donors; the effect of APOL1 high-risk variant on donor's kidney function post-kidney donation, recipient kidney allograft survival in APOL1 low and high-risk recipients. Confidence and comprehensive meta-analysis software will be used for the meta-analysis. Methodological, clinical, and statistical heterogeneity will be assessed. Publication bias will be visually assessed using the funnel plot. Results will be presented in forest plots with pooled survival time, standard error, and variance. Sub-group analysis will be performed using moderators such as sociodemographic characteristics, hypertension, HIV status, forms of rejection and other environmental factors. The primary outcome effect size is the standardized mean difference in survival time for APOL1 high risk variants in kidney transplants. The differences in kidney function between donors and recipients before and after transplantation would be examined. The suitability of donors with APOL1 high risk variants will be explored in terms of graft survival time, donor kidney function, and the aforementioned moderators.

Trigger rejection factor in the first kaonic helium run with the complete SIDDHARTA-2 setup

The SIDDHARTA-2 experiment aims to perform the first measurement of the kaonic deuterium 2p → 1s x-ray transition energy. Such measurement, together with the measurement of kaonic hydrogen 2p → 1s x-ray energy transition performed by the SIDDHARTA experiment in 2011, allows the determination of kaon proton and kaon neutron scattering lengths and represents a fundamental input for the low energies QCD in the strangeness sector theory. The SIDDHARTA-2 experiment is presently installed at the DAΦNE electronpositron collider at the National Laboratories of Frascati, in Italy. In May 2022, the kaonic 4He x-ray transitions measurement was performed by the complete SIDDHARTA-2 setup, by using a gaseous target. The result of this measurement is presented in this paper, with a specific focus on the background rejection performed by the kaon trigger system.

Bio-inspired hybrid coating of microporous polyethersulfone membranes by one-step deposition of polydopamine embedded with amino-functionalized SiO2 for high-efficiency oily wastewater treatment

Oily wastewater treatment has turned out to be a big menace due to complexity, existence of surfactant/oil-including water, and growth of originating industries. Superhydrophilic surfaces due to higher water permeability, under-water superoleophobicity, and better fouling resistance than typical hydrophilic membranes are in the center of attention. In the present study, a neat polyethersulfone (PES) membrane was fabricated using non-solvent induced phase separation - vapor induced phase separation (NIPS-VIPS) processes and then was modified using facile amino-functionalization of SiO2 in the presence of polydopamine (PDA). Symmetric PES membrane hydrophilicity was improved from 44.6 to 11.3º after a surface modification. Permeate flux of the neat NIPS-VIPS and the well-modified membrane were measured as 511 and 1836 L/m2 h bar, respectively. The oil rejection factor was higher than 98% using all tested membranes. Furthermore, irreversible fouling (Rir) was reduced from 18.0% to 2.5% for the neat NIPS-VIPS and well-modified PES membranes, respectively. Considering these attributes, our study can pave the way to fabricate more robust membranes with superior anti-fouling properties to deal with the rising threat of oily water production.

Process simulation of modelled reverse osmosis for desalination of seawater

Abstract Model equations for prediction of process parameters of reverse osmosis for desalination of seawater were developed via mathematical derivation from basic equations for the reverse osmosis process. A model equation relating the interfacial solute concentration () with the process pressure difference () was developed. Taking the of reverse osmosis as the basic independent variable, further model equations relating other process parameters such as the solute concentration polarity , water flux , osmotic pressure , water output rate (q), power density (Pd) and specific energy consumption (SEC) were developed. Simulation of hypothetical reverse osmosis data using Microsoft Excel Worksheet and Microsoft Windows 10 on a 64-bit operating system was carried out. Simulation results showed that the optimum fluid bulk concentration was = 0.0004 mole/cm3. The optimum rate of increase in the solute rejection factor per unit rise in ΔP was 0.45%. The optimum solute rejection factor was 97.6%. The optimum water output rate, specific energy consumption and power density were 103.2 L/h, 3.65 kWh/m3 and 6.09 W/m2, respectively.

Factor Influencing Vaccine Rejection of Complete Basic Immunization in Indonesia

AIM: This study aims to identify psychological factors against vaccine rejection in Indonesia. The study also provides a review of the group of different factors on psychological factors in social media. METHODS: This study uses secondary data sourced from Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram about vaccines rejection from 2018 to 2019. That text is labeled based on seven psychological factors that influence vaccine rejection. The factor analysis method is used to determine the relationship between vaccine rejection and psychological factors. RESULTS: Dimension 1 focused on individual and group influences, where the correlation value between factors such as vaccine misinformation, health worker trust, perception of side effect is 0.906 (&gt;0.5). Dimension 2 used different factors such as trust in the goverment, negative opinion about vaccine efficacy, and social influence as contextual/environmental influencers,with a correlation value of 0.866 (&gt;0.5). Meanwhile, Dimension 3 with general perception is a factor in vaccine and vaccination specific problems with a correlation value of 0.940 (&gt;0.5). CONCLUSION: Psychological factors are mainly associated with vaccine rejection. Stakeholders need to observe these factors in identifying conditions for childhood vaccines rejection posted on social media in Indonesia.

Recovery of Spent Sulphuric Acid by Diffusion Dialysis Using a Spiral Wound Module.

In this study, we assess the effects of volumetric flow and feed temperature on the performance of a spiral-wound module for the recovery of free acid using diffusion dialysis. Performance was evaluated using a set of equations based on mass balance under steady-state conditions that describe the free acid yield, rejection factors of metal ions and stream purity, along with chemical analysis of the outlet streams. The results indicated that an increase in the volumetric flow rate of water increased free acid yield from 88% to 93%, but decreased Cu2+ and Fe2+ ion rejection from 95% to 90% and 91% to 86%, respectively. Increasing feed temperature up to 40 °C resulted in an increase in acid flux of 9%, and a reduction in Cu2+ and Fe2+ ion rejection by 2–3%. Following diffusion dialysis, the only evidence of membrane degradation was a slight drop in permselectivity and an increase in diffusion acid and salt permeability. Results obtained from the laboratory tests used in a basic economic study showed that the payback time of the membrane-based regeneration unit is approximately one year.

Synthesis of Polyurethane Membranes Derived from Red Seaweed Biomass for Ammonia Filtration

The development of membrane technology is rapidly increasing due to its numerous advantages, including its ease of use, chemical resistant properties, reduced energy consumption, and limited need for chemical additives. Polyurethane membranes (PUM) are a particular type of membrane filter, synthesized using natural organic materials containing hydroxy (-OH) groups, which can be used for water filtration, e.g., ammonia removal. Red seaweed (Rhodophyta) has specific molecules which could be used for PUM. This study aimed to ascertain PUM synthesis from red seaweed biomass (PUM-RSB) by using toluene diisocyanate via the phase inversion method. Red seaweed biomass with a particle size of 777.3 nm was used as starting material containing abundant hydroxy groups visible in the FTIR spectrum. The PUM-RSB produced was elastic, dry, and sturdy. Thermal analysis of the membrane showed that the initial high degradation temperature was 290.71 °C, while the residue from the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) analysis was 4.88%. The PUM-RSB section indicates the presence of cavities on the inside. The mechanical properties of the PUM-RSB have a stress value of 53.43 MPa and a nominal strain of 2.85%. In order to optimize the PUM-RSB synthesis, a Box–Behnken design of Response Surface Methodology was conducted and showed the value of RSB 0.176 g, TDI 3.000 g, and glycerin 0.200 g, resulting from the theoretical and experimental rejection factor, i.e., 31.3% and 23.9%, respectively.

The Phenomenon of National Security within Postmodern Cultures: Interests, Values, Mentality

The article is devoted to defining the essence of security, particularly national security, its interpretation, main features, structure, and factors. The research focuses on the main concepts of the modern understanding of national security and defines national security according to recent research. The authors have performed a structural and functional analysis of the system of national security of Ukraine, which would be an adequate counteraction to threats to vital national interests. The article examines the multi-vector interpretation and representation of the security phenomenon with an increased focus on the axiological paradigm of postmodern society analysis. The cardinal role of postmodernism is considered as a manifestation of postmodern culture in the value dimension of social-political existence. Postmodernism, on the one hand, enabled new vectors of analytical understanding and perception of the security phenomenon. On the other hand, it introduced an imbalance and determined the crisis factor in the space of classical perception of security guarantors due to violating the established foundations and traditions (especially in the perception of the state institution). The rejection factor is seen as a core feature of postmodern social-political reality. The emphasis is given to the problem of the security standard in the security studies and the idea of the mutual determination of both national interests and national values. The article states the importance and priority of historical memory and the phenomenon of mentality in the context of future analytical discourses in the scope of Ukrainian security studies.

Pulling the Higgs and top needles from the jet stack with feature extended supervised tagging

Jet tagging has become an essential tool for new physics searches at the high-energy frontier. For jets that contain energetic charged leptons we introduce Feature Extended Supervised Tagging (FEST) which, in addition to jet substructure, considers the features of the charged lepton within the jet. With this method we build dedicated taggers to discriminate among boosted H rightarrow ell nu q {bar{q}}, t rightarrow ell nu b, and QCD jets (with ell an electron or muon). The taggers have an impressive performance, allowing for overall light jet rejection factors of 10^4-10^5, for top quark/Higgs boson efficiencies of 0.5. The taggers are also excellent in the discrimination of Higgs bosons from top quarks and vice versa, for example rejecting top quarks by factors of 100–300 for Higgs boson efficiencies of 0.5. We demonstrate the potential of these taggers to improve the sensitivity to new physics by using as example a search for a new Z' boson decaying into ZH, in the fully-hadronic final state.

Desalination by direct contact membrane distillation using mixed matrix electrospun nanofibrous membranes with carbon-based nanofillers: A strategic improvement

Robust hydrophobic and superhydrophobic mixed matrix electrospun nanofibrous membranes (MM-ENMs) have been prepared from low- and high- molecular weight polyvinylidene fluoride with either multi-walled carbon nanotubes or graphene oxide nanofillers (0.05–0.5 wt%). The polymer solutions' properties, including their electrical conductivity, viscosity, and surface tension, were determined and used to guide the design of single-, dual-, and triple-layered MM-ENMs combining layers with different hydrophobic character. All MM-ENMs were subsequently prepared and characterized in terms of their morphology, hydrophobicity, mechanical properties, and direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) performance. A thinner hydrophobic layer with a thicker hydrophilic support layer in dual-layered MM-ENMs reduced water vapor transport resistance and improved DCMD performance relative to single-layer MM-ENMs. Conversely, placing an intermediate hydrophilic layer between two hydrophobic layers in triple-layered MM-ENMs promoted water condensation (water pocket formation) and thus reduced DCMD performance. Over 10 h DCMD, the best-performing dual-layered MM-ENM allowed ultra-high permeate fluxes of up to 74.7 kg/m2 h while maintaining a stable permeate electrical conductivity of around 7.63 μS/cm and a salt (NaCl) rejection factor of up to 99.995% when operated with a feed temperature of 80°C, a permeate temperature of 20°C, and a feed solution containing NaCl at a concentration of 30 g/L.

Boosting background suppression in the NEXT experiment through Richardson-Lucy deconvolution

Next-generation neutrinoless double beta decay experiments aim for half-life sensitivities of ∼ 1027 yr, requiring suppressing backgrounds to < 1 count/tonne/yr. For this, any extra background rejection handle, beyond excellent energy resolution and the use of extremely radiopure materials, is of utmost importance. The NEXT experiment exploits differences in the spatial ionization patterns of double beta decay and single-electron events to discriminate signal from background. While the former display two Bragg peak dense ionization regions at the opposite ends of the track, the latter typically have only one such feature. Thus, comparing the energies at the track extremes provides an additional rejection tool. The unique combination of the topology-based background discrimination and excellent energy resolution (1% FWHM at the Q-value of the decay) is the distinguishing feature of NEXT. Previous studies demonstrated a topological background rejection factor of ∼ 5 when reconstructing electron-positron pairs in the 208Tl 1.6 MeV double escape peak (with Compton events as background), recorded in the NEXT-White demonstrator at the Laboratorio Subterráneo de Canfranc, with 72% signal efficiency. This was recently improved through the use of a deep convolutional neural network to yield a background rejection factor of ∼ 10 with 65% signal efficiency. Here, we present a new reconstruction method, based on the Richardson-Lucy deconvolution algorithm, which allows reversing the blurring induced by electron diffusion and electroluminescence light production in the NEXT TPC. The new method yields highly refined 3D images of reconstructed events, and, as a result, significantly improves the topological background discrimination. When applied to real-data 1.6 MeV e−e+ pairs, it leads to a background rejection factor of 27 at 57% signal efficiency.

Performance optimization of diamine cross-linked mixed matrix membrane for high value organic acid recovery

A modelling and optimization approach was implemented for the succinate recovery, a high-value organic acid, from concentrated feeds using polyimide (PI)/graphene oxide (GO) mixed matrix membrane (MMM) cross-linked with ethylenediamine (EDA). The effects of parameters, including i) time for crosslinking, ii) time for solvent evaporation, and iii) feed concentration, on succinate rejection and separation factor (SF) were investigated. The optimization of the dominant factors, namely, crosslinking time and succinate concentration, greatly enhanced the succinate rejection and SF, where 73% initial drop in succinate rejection was improved, and a membrane rejection performance of above 80% was sustained, even when the succinate concentration rose to 50 g/L. This improvement was attributed to the formation of covalent bonds and a reduction in the d-spacing of the cross-linked MMM. The optimization study with a desirability of 0.81 also demonstrated the applicability of the model to an actual broth. The optimized membrane prepared at 1.61 h crosslinking time, 30 s evaporation time and 30 g/L succinate concentration demonstrated 86% succinate recovery from the actual broth, 0.15-0.33 SF, and 96% flux recovery ratio. Thus, this optimization study could be a way forward in exploring, simultaneously expanding cross-linked membrane applications especially in product recoveries from concentrated feed(s).

Electrospun Nanostructured Membrane Engineering Using Reverse Osmosis Recycled Modules: Membrane Distillation Application.

As a consequence of the increase in reverse osmosis (RO) desalination plants, the number of discarded RO modules for 2020 was estimated to be 14.8 million annually. Currently, these discarded modules are disposed of in nearby landfills generating high volumes of waste. In order to extend their useful life, in this research study, we propose recycling and reusing the internal components of the discarded RO modules, membranes and spacers, in membrane engineering for membrane distillation (MD) technology. After passive cleaning with a sodium hypochlorite aqueous solution, these recycled components were reused as support for polyvinylidene fluoride nanofibrous membranes prepared by electrospinning technique. The prepared membranes were characterized by different techniques and, finally, tested in desalination of high saline solutions (brines) by direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD). The effect of the electrospinning time, which is the same as the thickness of the nanofibrous layer, was studied in order to optimize the permeate flux together with the salt rejection factor and to obtain robust membranes with stable DCMD desalination performance. When the recycled RO membrane or the permeate spacer were used as supports with 60 min electrospinning time, good permeate fluxes were achieved, 43.2 and 18.1 kg m−2 h−1, respectively; with very high salt rejection factors, greater than 99.99%. These results are reasonably competitive compared to other supported and unsupported MD nanofibrous membranes. In contrast, when using the feed spacer as support, inhomogeneous structures were observed on the electrospun nanofibrous layer due to the special characteristics of this spacer resulting in low salt rejection factors and mechanical properties of the electrospun nanofibrous membrane.