Wet Bag Research Articles

Improvement in the wet bag problem of the no-woven packing in the central sterile supply

Objective To explore the method of reducing the phenomenon of wet bag in the no-woven packing after sterilization in the central sterile supply. Methods The phenomenon of wet bag in the no-woven operation packing after sterilization was due to the bad absorption of water molecules in the non-woven packaging, movement the non-woven packaging without the given time and poor temperature and humidity in the storage. The improvements were carried out according to the above problems, and the effective method of reducing the phenomenon of wet bagwas summarized. The no-woven packing in the experimental group was packed by no-woven, and filled up a piece of the crepe paper between the instruments and the non-woven and laid the single deek cotton cloth over the sterilization frame in the packaging process. Results The incidence rate of wet bag was decreased from 7.64% to 1.04% three months after improvement. Conclusions Filling up a piece of the crepe paper between the instruments and the non-woven and laying the single deck cotton cloth over the sterilization frame in the packaging process can effectivelyprevent the phenomenon of wet bag in the no- woven operation packing after sterilization. Key words: Sterilization; Packing material; No-woven; Wet bag

Just Telling Stories? Public Testimony in <i>Molora</i> and <i>The Angry Wounds</i>

This paper examines two recent adaptations of Greek tragedy that explore the role played by public testimony in conflict resolution: Yael Farber’s Molora and Julian Armitstead’s The Angry Wounds. In Molora (2003 premiere, Grahamstown, South Africa), South African playwright Yael Farber offers an adaptation of Aeschylus’ Oresteia set in the context of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The play foregrounds the agonistic nature of both Greek tragedy and democratic judicial process. Indeed, it is in the communal process of bearing witness to lived experience, with all the conflicts and contradictions that such a process engenders, that Molora sees the resolution to the age-old cycle of violence. The play sets democratic parrhesia and multivalence against the torture techniques of the totalitarian regime. The ‘wet bag’ method of torture relived in Scene 7 leads not only to forced confessions but also prevents speech: “The person, deprived of breath, is unable to testify to their experiences and is denied not just the right to speak but the right to be heard,” (Molora, p. 9). At the heart of this play is the belief that ‘the common everyman and everywoman’ (Molora, p. 7) has his or her own truth to tell, and that bearing witness to this truth can heal individuals and communities in the aftermath of violence. The role that public testimony plays in the reintegration into society of those who have experienced and participated in violence is also a central theme of Julian Armitstead’s The Angry Wounds, an adaptation of Sophocles’ Philoctetes recently premiered at Oxford University (November 2009). Philoctetes has been desensitized by trauma, but rediscovers the ability to feel when he and Neoptolemus share with each other intimacies of their experiences, and begins to regain his humanity through the process of telling his story. When, however, Neoptolemus tries to make public confession of war-crimes he has committed, Odysseus and Diomedes do not want to listen. Odysseus cautions to “leave the past alone,” adding that “memories can be as dangerous as wounds.” Odysseus also feels guilt, for having abandoned his comrade Philoctetes in his hour of need, and drinks to forget; his solution to the impasse with Philoctetes is to “make up and go home.” He sees Philoctetes’ obsession with the past and his desire for justice as impractical. Diomedes has seen his own son die before his eyes; he avoids asking questions, and seeks solace in doing his patriotic duty. Like Molora, The Angry Wounds contrasts the complex realities of lived experience with the tidy ‘facts’ of the dominant mythical narrative promulgated by those in power. Thus, although they respond to different contexts (the TRC in South Africa and the Iraq Inquiry in the United Kingdom respectively), both plays draw on Greek tragedy to make the case for parrhesia, and provide evidence of shifting attitudes towards classical works in the new millennium: no longer seen as exercising a hegemonic grip, they are now called upon as valuable partners in a two-way exchange of stories. In fact, it is precisely in their departure from the tragic script that these retellings derive much of their potency.

Automatic quantification of phases and mechanical characterization of materials based on Portland clinker modified with silica and alumina additions

Actual image analysis software allows the automatic quantification of the different main phases present in Portland clinker. This work studies, by optical microscopy analysis, the modification of porosity and relative amount of phases existing in plain clinker when increasing silica and alumina proportions. The compositions were dry mixed in a laboratory ball mill during 30 min. In all cases three different amounts of additions (3, 6 and 9 wt.%) were chosen. The different mixes were pressed by isostatic pressing (in wet bag) at 180 MPa. The sintering was carried out in air at 1400 °C during 30 min. All materials were polished, without etching, to reach the best contrast between porosity and material to analyse the level of porosity. The samples were etched with a mix of acetic acid and ethanol or hydrochloric acid to quantify the relative amount of main phases of materials. The obtained results were correlated with mechanical properties as bending strength and hardness.

Reliability study of ceramic matrix composites based on clinker portland doped with alumina and silica

A study was made of the Weibull modulus of white clinker portland reinforced with alumina and silica. The Weibull distribution was introduced as a way of measuring the reliability of materials through the slope or shape parameter, known as Weibull modulus, and it is used as a reference and estimation of the probability of failure. The manufacturing process of composite materials (3, 6 and 9% Al2O3 and SiO2 by weight) includes mixing in a ball mill, cold isostatic pressing in wet bag at 180 MPa and sintering at 1400°C in air. Bending strength was used as the key property for measuring the Weibull modulus using more than 20 tests in all cases. The correlation coefficients obtained in all the estimations for the studied materials are above 95%. These ceramic matrix composite (CMCs) materials present a high Weibull modulus (in some materials about 26) and better behaviour than plain white clinker portland. Most results are above typical values of the conventional and advanced ceramics (between 5 and 15). Microstructural analysis was carried out to explain the reliable behaviour of these materials, a behaviour that could make them very interesting for structural applications.