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Search results for: biological degradation
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"Food Oxidants and Antioxidants" Book review
PublicationThe book is the 14th title in the CRC series Chemical and Functional Properties of Food Components, edited since 2001 by Zdzisław E. Sikorski. The editor of the book, a professor in the University of Łódź and member of the Polish Academy of Sciences, is an internationally recognized authority in biochemistry and biophysics of reactive oxygen species. In Poland Grzegorz Bartosz has a reputation as the author of his most interesting...
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Spetiation of organic matter in Vertical Flow Constructed Wetlands
PublicationThe object of the research were VFCWs which are a component of biological treatment of two hybrid hydrophyte systems located in Wieszyno and Wiklino, close to Słupsk, Poland. The facilities that are subject to analyses are unified in terms of structure (filtration material, depth of the bed and time of operation), but they differ in organic matter load, amounting respectively to: 8.0 gCOD/m2day and 31.0 gCOD/m2day.The intensity...
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Efficiency of acoustic heating produced in the thermoviscous flow of a fluid with relaxation
PublicationInstantaneous acoustic heating of a fluid with thermodynamic relaxation is the subject of investigation. Among others, viscoelastic biological media described by the Maxwell model of the viscous stress tensor, belong to this type of fluid. The governing equation of acoustic heating is derived by means of the special linear combination of conservation equations in differential form, allowing the reduction of all acoustic terms in...
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Mobile wireless measurement system for potatoes storage management
PublicationThe paper discusses the idea and the design of a remote control system for a storage management of agricultural products which temperature may rise in a result of biological processes during the storage. Exemplary potatoes storehouse is discussed as an application of the automation system. Because of existing buildings and infrastructure in the farm, wireless data transfer system has been proposed for both sensors to data acquisition...
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Synthesis and antimicrobial activity of amino acid and peptide derivatives of mycophenolic acid
PublicationThe series of 16 novel amino acid and peptide mycophenolic acid (MPA) derivatives was obtained as potential antibacterial agents. Coupling of MPA with respective amines was optimized with condensing reagents such as EDCI/DMAP and T3P/TEA. Amino acid analogs were received both as methyl esters and also with the free carboxylic group. The biological activity of the products was tested on five references bacterial strains: Klebsiella...
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Hydroperoxyl radical and formic acid formation from common DNA stabilizers upon low energy electron attachment
Publication2-Amino-2-(hydroxymethyl)-1,3-propanediol (TRIS) and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) are key components of biological buffers and are frequently used as DNA stabilizers in irradiation studies. Such surface or liquid phase studies are done with the aim to understand the fundamental mechanisms of DNA radiation damage and to improve cancer radiotherapy. When ionizing radiation is used, abundant secondary electrons are formed...
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Removal of BTEX Compounds From Waste Gases; Destruction and Recovery Techniques
PublicationThe tendency for BTEX compounds (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes) to spread into all compartments of the environment together with their influence on both ecosystem and human health means that the emission of thesecompounds into the air is becoming the matter of worldwide concern. The legal regulations introduced by the European Union governing the assessment and management of air quality obliges member states to systematically...
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Two-Level Multivariable Control System of Dissolved Oxygen Tracking and Aeration System for Activated Sludge Processes
PublicationThe problem of tracking dissolved oxygen is one of the most complex and fundamental issues related to biological processes. The dissolved oxygen level in aerobic tanks has significant influence on behaviour and activity of microorganism inhabiting the plant. Aerated tanks are supplied with air from an aeration system (blowers, pipes, throttling valves, diffusers). It is a complex dynamic system governed by nonlinear hybrid dynamics....
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Analytical applications and physicochemical properties of ionic liquid-based hybrid materials: A review
PublicationIonic liquids with their unique properties found so far numerous analytical applications. Among them ionic liquids immobilized on the surface or within the pores of a solid support were successfully utilized in extraction techniques dedicated to preconcentration of the analytes from food, environmental and biological samples. In this review we focus on comprehensive summarizing of available literature data on the examples of ionic...
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Nanotubular oxide layers and hydroxyapatite coatings on porous titanium alloy Ti13Nb13Zr
PublicationThe surface condition of an implant has a significant impact on response occurring at the implant-biosystem border. The knowledge of physical-chemical and biological processes allows for targeted modification of biomaterials to induce a specified response of a tissue. The present research was aimed at development of technology composing of obtaining the nanotube oxide layers on a porous titanium alloy Ti13Nb13Zr, followed by the...
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Meconium analysis as a promising diagnostic tool for monitoring fetal exposure to toxic substances: Recent trends and perspectives
PublicationPrenatal exposure to toxic substances is an important public health problem. Many biological specimens obtained from the fetus or mother are used for biomonitoring. Each material reflects exposure in a specific time period and has different advantages and disadvantages in terms of accuracy, time window of detection and cost/benefit ratio. Recently, meconium has become the matrix of choice in toxicology screening for detecting exposure...
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Antimicrobial molecular nanocarrier–drug conjugates
PublicationMany antimicrobial drugs are poorly active against pathogenic microbes causing intracellular infections, such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis or Plasmodium falciparum. On the other hand, several known antimicrobial agents are not effective enough because of their limited cellular penetration. A common feature of both challenges is the inability of an active agent to cross the biological membrane(s). One of the possible approaches...
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Fate and significance of phthalates and bisphenol A in liquid by-products generated during municipal solid waste mechanical-biological pre-treatment and disposal
PublicationSamples of liquid by-products generated by municipal solid waste plants (MSWPs) were tested for the presence of phthalates (PAEs) and bisphenol A (BPA). The results indicated that the wastewater generated during mechanical (sorting unit - SU) and biological (composting unit - CU) pre-treatment (MBT) of residual (mixed) solid waste is a significant source of these compounds. The concentrations of PAEs (up to 32222 lg/L) and BPA...
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Stardust - Investigation of Microbes in the Stratosphere
PublicationThe stratospheric microbiome has been investigated several times using the methods of classical microbiology. In this experiment, we have combined them with some novel approaches including whole- metagenome amplification, Maldi TOF mass spectrometry and Sanger DNA sequencing. The results of the experiment may provide the scientists with knowledge about the mechanisms of survivability of microorganisms in stratospheric conditions...
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Microscale diamond protection for a ZnO coated fiber optic sensor
PublicationFiber optic sensors are widely used in environmental, biological and chemical sensing. Due to the demanding environmental conditions in which they can be used, there is a risk of damaging the sensor measurement head placed in the measuring field. Sensors using nanolayers deposited upon the fiber structure are particularly vulnerable to damage. A thin film placed on the surface of the fiber end-face can be prone to mechanical damage...
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Nanodiamond phantoms mimicking human liver: perspective to calibration of T1 relaxation time in magnetic resonance imaging
PublicationPhantoms of biological tissues are materials that mimic the properties of real tissues. This study shows the development of phantoms with nanodiamond particles for calibration of T1 relaxation time in magnetic resonance imaging. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a commonly used and non-invasive method of detecting pathological changes inside the human body. Nevertheless, before a new MRI device is approved for use, it is necessary...
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Interactions between hydration spheres of two different solutes in solution: The least squares fitting with constraints as a tool to determine water properties in ternary systems
PublicationBiological systems are complex and the problem of their description lies in mutual interactions between their components. This paper is focused on model experiment-based studies which can reduce these difficulties. The ternary aqueous N-methylacetamide (NMA)–Na2HPO4 system has been studied by means of the FTIR spectroscopy. A novel difference spectra method aimed to extract the spectral contribution of water affected simultaneously...
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Synthetic strategies in construction of organic macromolecular carrier–drug conjugates
PublicationMany metabolic inhibitors, considered potential antimicrobial or anticancer drug candidates, exhibit verylimited ability to cross the biological membranes of target cells. The restricted cellular penetration ofthose molecules is often due to their highhydrophilicity. One of the possible solutions to this problem is aconjugation of an inhibitor with a molecular organic nanocarrier. The conjugate thus formed should beable to penetrate...
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Role of the Synergistic Interactions of Environmental Pollutants in the Development of Cancer
PublicationThere is a growing awareness that the large number of environmental pollutants we are exposed to on a daily basis are causing major health problems. Compared to traditional studies that focus on individual pollutants, there are relatively few studies on how pollutants mixtures interact. Several studies have reported a relationship between environmental pollutants and the development of cancer, even when pollutant levels are below...
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Solvent Exchange around Aqueous Zn(II) from Ab Initio Molecular Dynamics Simulations
PublicationHydrated zinc(II) cations, due to their importance in biological systems, are the subject of ongoing research concerning their hydration shell structure and dynamics. Here, ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulations are used to study solvent exchange events around aqueous Zn2+, for which observation in detail is possible owing to the considerable length of the generated trajectory. While the hexacoordinated Zn(H2O)62+ is the...
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Evaluation and start-up of an electro-Fenton-sequencing batch reactor for dairy wastewater treatment
PublicationThis study examined the performance of an integrated wastewater (WW) treatment system, namely an electro-Fenton (EF)-sequencing batch reactor (SBR), for dairy industry WW. The EF process was used as the first stage of the SBR. It degrades bio-refractory compounds via advanced oxidation processes, thereby resulting in the formation of simple biodegradable intermediates. Several factors, including the hydraulic retention time (HRT),...
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Enhancing electrochemical properties of an ITO-coated lossy-mode resonance optical fiber sensor by electrodeposition of PEDOT:PSS
PublicationA sensor working in multiple domains may offer enhanced information about the properties of an investigated analyte, including those containing biological species. It has already been shown that a dual-domain sensing capability, i.e., in optical and electrochemical domains, can be offered by lossy-mode resonance (LMR) sensors based on indium-tin-oxide (ITO) thin film. The spectral response of the LMR sensors depends on the refractive...
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Influence of Two-Stage Anodization on Properties of the Oxide Coatings on the Ti–13Nb–13Zr Alloy
PublicationThe increasing demand for titanium and its alloys used for implants results in need of such innovative surface treatment that may jointly increase corrosion resistance and biocompatibility, and demonstrate antibacterial protection at no cytotoxicity. The purpose of this research was to characterize the effect of two-stage anodization, performed for 30 min in phosphoric acid, at the presence of hydrofluoric acid in the second stage....
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The Use of Artificial Neural Networks and Decision Trees to Predict the Degree of Odor Nuisance of Post-Digestion Sludge in the Sewage Treatment Plant Process
PublicationThis paper presents the application of artificial neural networks and decision trees for the prediction of odor properties of post-fermentation sludge from a biological-mechanical wastewater treatment plant. The input parameters were concentrations of popular compounds present in the sludge, such as toluene, p-xylene, and p-cresol, and process parameters including the concentration of volatile fatty acids, pH, and alkalinity in...
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Stabilizing lactate production through repeated batch fermentation of food waste and waste activated sludge
PublicationBio-valorization of organic waste streams, such as food waste and waste activated sludge, to lactic acid (LA) has recently drawn much attention. It offers an opportunity for resource recovery, alleviates environmental issues and potentially turns a profit. In this study, both stable and high LA yield (0.72 ± 0.15 g/g total chemical oxygen demand) and productivity rate (0.53 g/L•h) were obtained through repeated batch fermentation....
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Effects of Addictive Substances During Pregnancy and Infancy and Their Analysis in Biological Materials
PublicationThe use of addictive substances during pregnancy is a serious social problem, not only because of effects on the health of the woman and child, but also because drug or alcohol dependency it detracts from childcare and enhances the prospect of child neglect and family breakdown. Developing additive substance abuse treatment programs for pregnant women is socially important and can help ensure the health of babies, prevent subsequent...
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To donate or not to donate? Future healthcare professionals’ opinions on biobanking of human biological material for research purposes
PublicationBackground Over the last few decades biobanks have been recognised as institutions that may revolutionisebiomedical research and the development of personalised medicine. Poland, however, still lacks clear regulationsregarding the running of biobanks and the conducting of biomedical research. While the awareness of the generalpublic regarding biobanks is low, healthcare professions and medical students also...
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Development of biocompatible iron oxide-silicon oxide core-shell nanoparticles as subcellular delivery platform for glucosamine-6-phosphate synthase inhibitors
PublicationIn order to develop the preparation of iron oxide-silica coreshell nanoparticles (CSNPs), thesis deeply explores the cetyltrimethylammonium (CTA+) directed silica coating methods of the oleic-acid capped iron oxide nanoparticles (OA-IONPs) initialized under near-neutral pH conditions. It is demonstrated that the initial alkaline hydrolysis of ethyl acetate in the presence of CTA+ and OA-IONPs induces an unusual ligand exchange...
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Metal nanoparticles-assisted early diagnosis of diseases
PublicationEarly diagnosis is essential for the effective illness treatment, but traditional diagnostic approaches inevitably have major downsides. Recent advancements in nanoparticle-based biosensors have created new opportunities for accelerating diagnosis. High surface area, exceptional sensitivity, high specificity, and optical characteristics of metal and metal oxide nanoparticles have made it possible to detect a variety of health conditions...
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Chromatographic lipophilicity determination using large volume injections of the solvents non-miscible with the mobile phase
PublicationA new perspective in the lipophilicity evaluation through RP-HPLC is permitted by analysis of the retentionfactor (k) obtained by injecting large volumes of test samples prepared in solvents immiscible withmobile phase. The experiment is carried out on representative groups of compounds with increasedtoxicity (mycotoxins and alkaloids) and amines with important biological activity (naturally occurringmonoamine compounds and related...
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Properties and determination of pesticides in fruits and vegetables
PublicationThe intensive development of agriculture means that more and more toxic organic and inorganic compounds are entering theenvironment. Because of their widespread use, stability, selective toxicity and bioaccumulation, pesticides are among the mosttoxic substances contaminating the environment. They are particularly dangerous in fruit and vegetables, by which people areexposed to them. It is therefore crucial to monitor pesticide...
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Hydrazinolysis Products of Selected Sugar Lactones—Crystal Structure and Microbiological Activity
PublicationCommercially available lactones, as well as those synthesized by us, turned out to be good substrates for the synthesis of sugar hydrazides. The exception was L-ascorbic acid, whose hydrazinolysis led to the formation of a hydrazinium salt, not the hydrazide as expected. The structure of all compounds was confirmed by NMR and X-ray analyses. The lower durability of hydrazinium L-ascorbate was additionally confirmed by thermogravimetric...
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Multimodal analysis of traction forces and the temperature dynamics of living cells with a diamond-embedded substrate
PublicationCells and tissues are constantly exposed to chemical and physical signals that regulate physiological and pathological processes. This study explores the integration of two biophysical methods: traction force microscopy (TFM) and optically detected magnetic resonance (ODMR) to concurrently assess cellular traction forces and the local relative temperature. We present a novel elastic substrate with embedded nitrogen-vacancy microdiamonds...
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Novel materials and approaches for solid-phase (micro) extraction in LC-MS-based metabolomics
PublicationMetabolomics offers a unique approach to study biological systems. Liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry serves as a powerful analytical tool to analyze complex mixtures of metabolites. However, successful metabolomic analysis relies on sample preparation. While untargeted analysis traditionally favors nonselective procedures like liquid-liquid extraction (LLE), these methods can compromise analytical performance due...
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Ion Chromatography with Pulsed Amperometric Detection for Determining Cyanide in Urine and Meconium Samples
PublicationThe parents’ addictions and eating habits have a significant influence on the child’s growth. The first stool of a newborn baby provides a large amount of information about xenobiotics transmitted by the mother’s body. The analytical technique used in the study is ion chromatography with pulsed amperometric detection (IC-PAD). The biological samples, which were obtained from women staying in a maternity ward and their partners,...
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In vitro and in silico assessment of anti-inflammatory activity of cocoa powders
PublicationPlants are considered the major sources of biologically active compounds, which provide unlimited opportunities for their use either as medical treatments or as novel drug formulations. Cocoa powder is frequently used in nutrition and is known to have many benefits thanks to its wide range of biological activities. The presented study was focused on th evaluation of the anti-inflammatory potential of extracts obtained from cocoa...
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Silica In Silico: A Molecular Dynamics Characterization of the Early Stages of Protein Embedding for Atom Probe Tomography
PublicationA novel procedure for the application of atom probe tomography (APT) to the structural analysis of biological systems, has been recently proposed, whereby the specimen is embedded by a silica matrix and ablated by a pulsed laser source. Such a technique, requires that the silica primer be properly inert and bio-compatible, keeping the native structural features of the system at hand, while condensing into an amorphous, glass-like...
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Synthesis and steroid sulfatase inhibitory activities of N-phosphorylated 3-(4-aminophenyl)-coumarin-7-O-sulfamates
PublicationIn the present work, we report convenient methods for the synthesis and biological evaluation of N-phosphorylated derivatives of 3-(4-aminophenyl)-coumarin-7-O-sulfamate as potential steroid sulfatase (STS) inhibitors. Their binding modes were modeled using docking techniques. The inhibitory effects of the synthesized compounds were tested on STS isolated from human placenta. All of the newly synthesised coumarin derivatives were...
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Two-Step Model Based Adaptive Controller for Dissolved Oxygen Control in Sequencing Wastewater Batch Reactor
PublicationDissolved Oxygen (DO) concentration is a crucial parameter for efficient operation of biological processes taking place in the activated sludge Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP). High-quality DO control is difficult to achieve because of complex nonlinear behavior of the plant and substantial influent disturbances. A method to improve the Direct Model Reference Adaptive Control (DMRAC) technology in application to DO tracking for...
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Chronographic Imprint of Age-Induced Alterations in Heart Rate Dynamical Organization
PublicationBeat-to-beat changes in the heart period are transformed into a network of increments between subsequent RR-intervals, which enables graphical descriptions of short-term heart period variability. Three types of such descriptions are considered: (1) network graphs arising from a set of vertices and directed edges, (2) contour plots of adjacency matrices A, representing the networks and transition matrices T, resulting from A, and (3)...
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The Hydrolysis of Slowly Biodegradable Substrate in Activated Sludge
PublicationIn a present work a novel procedure, based on the standard batch tests and pretreatment of wastewater sample with coagulation-flocculation method, was proposed to evaluate the effects of hydrolysis of slowly biodegradable substrate (Xs) on biological nutrient removal (BNR) processes in activated sludge systems. The study was conducted at two large BNR wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in northern Poland: "Wschod" in Gdansk and...
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The influence of selenium addition during germination of Brassica seeds on health-promoting potential of sprouts
PublicationThe correlation among selenium uptake, the content of bioactive compounds in sprouts, and biological activities triggered in cultured human cells by sprout extracts was investigated. Seeds of Brassica crops and rye were treated with SeO2 water solution. The selenium levels in sprouts increased from 1.0-4.1 to 53.3-382 μg/g dw with no influence on plant physiology according to the indices used. Neither the composition of glucosinolates...
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Synthesis of functionalized new conjugates of batracylin with tuftsin/ retro-tuftsin derivatives and their biological evaluation
PublicationNew batracylin conjugates with tuftsin/retro-tuftsin derivatives were designed and synthesized using T3P as a coupling agent. The conjugates possess an amide bond formed between the carboxyl group of heterocyclic molecule and the N-termini of the tuftsin/retro-tuftsin chain. The in vitro cytotoxic activity of the new analogues and their precursors was evaluated using a series of human and murine tumor cells. BAT conjugates containing...
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When Biobanks Meet Religion: Association Between Religiosity and Attitudes of Polish Medical Students Toward Biobanking of Human Biological Material for Research Purposes
PublicationWhile biobanking is expanding globally, the empirical evidence concerning the impact of religion on future healthcare professionals’ awareness and willingness to donate biospecimens for biobank research is lacking. To understand how medicalstudents’ religious beliefs can fuel their questions regarding how biospecimens would be stored, cared for, and used, we conducted a survey among 1500 medical students at Poznań University...
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Effects of different external carbon sources and electron acceptors on interactions between denitrification and phosphorus removal in BNR processes
PublicationThe effects of two different external carbon sources (acetate, ethanol) and electron acceptors (dissolved oxygen, nitrate and nitrite) were investigated under aerobic and anoxic conditions with non-acclimated process biomass from a full-scale biological nutrient removal activated sludge system. When acetate was added as an external carbon source, phosphate release was observed even in the presence of electron acceptors. The release...
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Antimicrobal and ostheointegration activity of bone cement contains nanometals
PublicationPurpose: One of the major problems in bone surgery are infections – especially thoseoccurring in the course of the operating on the patients with lowered immunity system,because they carry the danger of complications. In the Mechanical Department of TechnicalUniversity of Gdansk, there has been carried the research with the use of bone cement andmetal nanoparticles.Design/methodology/approach: The bone cement was used without supplement...
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Failure mode prediction for composite structural insulated panels with MgO board facings
PublicationSandwich panels are readily used in civil engineering due to their high strength to weight ratio and the ease and speed of assembly. The idea of a sandwich section is to combine thin and durable facings with a light-weight core and the choice of materials used allows obtaining the desired behaviour. Panels in consideration consist of MgO (magnesium oxide) board facings and expanded polystyrene core and are characterized by immunity...
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30 years of treatment wetland application in poland- progress and reserch
PublicationThe experiences with design and operation of constructed wetlands in the Pommerania region during last 30 years followed by carried out investigations of treatment processes lead to the following conclusions:First applications of constructed wetlands for biological sewage treatment were made in 1984-92. The later implementations of multi-stage constructed wetlands in the individual household and local scale enable wastewater treatment...
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Transport of paracetamol in swellable and relaxing polyurethane nanocomposite hydrogels
PublicationPolyurethane hydrogels are potentially attractive materials for biomedical applications. They are able to absorb large amount of water, biological fluids or active substances, and thus, they have potential to be used as absorbents or wound-healing dressings. They are also used for the controlled release of therapeutics because of their capacity to embed biologically active agents in their water-swollen network. The presence of...
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Fabrication and Characterization of Flexible Medical-Grade TPU Filament for Fused Deposition Modeling 3DP Technology
PublicationThe possibility of using additive manufacturing (AM) in the medicine area has created new opportunities in health care. This has contributed to a sharp increase in demand for 3D printers, their systems and materials that are adapted to strict medical requirements. We described herein a medical-grade thermoplastic polyurethane (S-TPU) which was developed and then formed into a filament for Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) 3D printers...