Search results for: FRESHWATER CONTAMINATION
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Optimized 5-hour multiplex PCR test for the detection of tinea unguium: performance in a routine PCR laboratory
PublicationWe recently reported the development of a 5-hour multiplex PCR test for the detection of tinea unguium and the optimization of this test by the inclusion of an inhibition control. Here we report the performance of this procedure as used in a routine clinical laboratory as compared to conventional microscopy and culture-based techniques performed in a mycology reference laboratory. We found in processing 109 samples that 22 (20.2%)...
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Two-Dimensional Gas Chromatography Coupled With Mass Spectrometry in Food Analysis
PublicationThe development of instrumental analytical techniques provided the opportunity for in-depth characterization of many food matrices. In particular, the use of gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry gives impressive results in terms of quality and authenticity testing, conducting food freshness evaluations and contamination assessments. A new variant of gas chromatography, namely two-dimensional gas chromatography (GC...
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POLLUTANTS PRESENT IN DIFFERENT COMPONENTS OF THE SVALBARD ARCHIPELAGO ENVIRONMENT
PublicationDuring last years an interest in the processes of transport and fate of pollutants to the polar regions located distantly from industrial centers, has significantly increased. The current analytical techniques enabling conducting studies prove that the Arctic regions (in the past considered as a pollution free area) have become an area of highly intensive anthropopresion. Svalbard archipelago stands out from the other polar regions...
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An integral-differential method for impedance determination of the hydrogen oxidation process in the presence of carbon monoxide in the proton exchange membrane fuel cell
PublicationThe impedance of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell powered by hydrogen contaminated with carbon monoxide, ranging from 150 to 300 ppb, is measured and discussed. The tested range of CO concentration complied with the fuel standard specified in the ISO standards. Studies of influence of CO contamination on operation of PEMFC are crucial for further development and commercialization of fuel cells for automotive applications. Based...
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Effectiveness of a dual surface modification of metallic interconnects for application in energy conversion devices
PublicationA dual surface modification of an SOFC metallic interconnect with a Gd2O3 layer and an MnCo2O4 coating was evaluated. The tested samples were oxidized for 7000 h in air at 1073 K. Oxidation products were characterized using XRD, SEM-EDS, and confocal Raman imaging, and ASR was measured. The effect of gadolinium segregation at grain boundaries in Cr2O3 was evaluated using S/TEM-EDS. Area specific-resistance was measured and fuel...
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Conversion of waste biomass into activated carbon and evaluation of environmental consequences using life cycle assessment
PublicationIn this article, activated carbon was produced from Lantana camara and olive trees by H3PO4 chemical activation. The prepared activated carbons were analyzed by characterizations such as scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller, X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. H3PO4 is used as an activator agent to create an abundant pore...
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Determination of organophosphorus and organonitrogen pesticides in water samples
PublicationPesticides are among the most dangerous environmental pollutants because of their stability, mobility and long-term effects on living organisms. Their presence in sources of drinking water, essential to life, is a particular danger. In water, these compounds can undergo transformations, leading to the production of substances of even greater toxicity. Legal regulations are in force, stipulating the highest permissible level of...
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DIGITAL HYDRAULICS CIRCUIT BASED ON PWM FUNCTION FOR CONTROLLING HYDRAULIC ACTUATOR POSITION
PublicationHydraulic systems are used in many different industries, such as multi-source hydrostatic drive systems. In traditional hydraulic systems, a proportional servo valve is used to control the position of hydraulic actuators. The low energy efficiency and high cost of these control valves are two major problems with these systems. Digital hydraulics is one of the most unique ideas on how to solve these problems. Researchers like digital...
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Water-Lubricated Journal Bearings Marine Applications, Design, and Operational Problems and Solutions
PublicationWater-Lubricated Journal Bearings: Marine Applications, Design, and Operational Problems and Solutions provides cutting-edge design solutions, common problems and methods for avoiding them, and material selection considerations for the use of water-lubricated journal bearings in marine environments. These bearings have many advantages, including the absence of the potential for oil contamination. They are also sensitive, and their...
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Green Approaches in Rubber Recycling Technologies: Present Status and Future Perspective
PublicationAs a consequence of massive production and consumption of rubbers, rubber blends, and rubber composites for myriad applications, elastomeric products have enormously accumulated and become an environmental threat. The disposal and burning of rubber wastes have been banned because of environmental and economic reasons. By contrast, a great deal of attention has been directed toward strategies enabling recycling and reuse of rubbers....
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Comprehensive Review of Fluorescence Applications in Gynecology
PublicationSince the introduction of indocyanine green (ICG) as a fluorophore in near-infrared imaging, fluorescence visualization has become an essential tool in many fields of surgery. In the field of gynecology, recent new applications have been proposed and found their place in clinical practice. Different applications in gynecology were investigated, subcategorized, and overviewed concerning surgical applications and available dyes....
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Analysis of pesticide residues in fruits and vegetables using QuEChERS sample preparation method and gas chromatography with electron capture detection
PublicationPesticides are a numerous and diverse group of chemical compounds. They are some of the most toxic substances contaminating the environment, which are used to eliminate pests in agriculture and the household. Despite considerable progress in the development of methods for preparing samples for analysis and for the final determination of analytes, the analysis of pesticides in biological samples continues to present challenges to...
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Mercury concentrations in marine biota with special focus on grey and ringed seals
PublicationMarine organisms are exposed and sensitive to effects of environmental contamination by heavy metals including different forms of mercury. Baltic seals as the top predators of the marine ecosystem are even more endangered due to (considerable) longevity as well as a long biological half-time of toxin elimination. The concentrations of mercury in seals from the Baltic is poorly known, thus the aim of this work is to determine and...
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The influence of moderate pressure and subzero temperature on the shelf life of minced cod, salmon, pork and beef meat
PublicationThe effect of moderate pressure at subzero temperature on natural microflora of minced cod, salmony, pork and beef meat was studied. Pressure of 193 MPa at –20 °C caused reduction of total bacterial count in pork and beef meat by 1.1 and 0.6 log cycles, respectively, and by about 1.5 log cycles in fish meat. Under these conditions the psychrophilic and psychrotophic bacteria were below the detection limit (<10CFU/g of sample) in...
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Machine learning approach to packaging compatibility testing in the new product development process
PublicationThe paper compares the effectiveness of selected machine learning methods as modelling tools supporting the selection of a packaging type in new product development process. The main goal of the developed model is to reduce the risk of failure in compatibility tests which are preformed to ensure safety, durability, and efficacy of the finished product for the entire period of its shelf life and consumer use. This kind of testing...
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Waste printer ink as modifier for natural rubber/carbon black composites: No haste, use waste
PublicationFrom a sustainability perspective, achieving a greener future with a minimal carbon footprint requires maximizing waste materials' reuse. The four pillars of satisfying customer demands are processing, price, properties, and performance. Along with such a global policy, this work seeks to utilize waste printer ink (WPI) as a source of carbon in combination with low- and high-surface carbon black (LCB and HCB, respectively) additives...
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What should we know when choosing feather, blood, egg or preen oil as biological samples for contaminants detection? A non-lethal approach to bird sampling for PCBs, OCPs, PBDEs and PFASs
PublicationBirds are considered as good bio-monitors and they can provide highly valuable data about the level of contamination in their habitat. During the design of biomonitoring studies one of the first issues after choosing species is the choice of biological material. Non-lethally collected samples have recently been gaining greater attention as they offer several ethical and practical advantages. However, not all sample matrices are...
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Degradation of xylose using a microbial fuel cell
PublicationIt is generally known, that many kind of microorganisms are capable of using carbohydrates as a source of carbon and energy in an environment. The biodegradation process of monosaccharides from pentoses (in this case- racemic mixture of D - and L – xylose) is an immense opportunity for an entire reduction of biological contamination to neutral compounds through MFC. The process is occurred in a single-chamber MFC, which is contained...
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The Thin-Layer Microchromatography (μTLC) and TLC–FID Technique as a New Methodology in the Study of Lubricating Oils
PublicationThis paper concerns the possibility of using TLC coupled with a flame ionization detector (FID) and micro-TLC (μTLC) as precursors for microfluidized devices of analytical techniques to identify and determine the presence and content of the petroleum/vegetable oil base in the lubricating oils applied in cutting devices (chainsaws). This research is related to the problem of ensuring, in compliance with the requirements of environmental...
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Groundwater Quality in the Gdansk Aquifer System
PublicationThe Gdańsk hydrogeological system consists of three main aquifers: Cretaceous, Paleogene-Neogene and Pleistocene. Chemical composition of groundwater varies between water-bearing beds, although water from Pleistocene and Paleogene-Neogene aquifers shows much similarities. The dominant hydrochemical groundwater types is HCO3-Ca. This type is characteristic for Pleistocene deposits in the Kashubian Lake District where natural chemical...
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Investigation and operation problems of metal tanks in Poland
PublicationThe paper consists of three parts concerned with steel cylindrical, vertical tank for liquid fuel. In the first part the present trends in tank design and building in Poland are described. The main are: · reduction of environment contamination danger caused by tank leakage and hydrocarbons evaporation, · increasing capacity of new tanks (100000 m3 and more) due to economic factor - reduction of steel amount per m3 of storage capacity....
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Thermal utilization of meat-and-bone meal using the rotary kiln pyrolyzer and the fluidized bed boiler – The performance of pilot-scale installation
PublicationThermal utilization of meat-and-bone meal (MBM) is subject to stringent regulations that are meant to provide elimination of any potential pathogens. Incineration as well as other possible routes for thermal conversion of MBM are still at the research state. The universal technology was developed that allows to combust various types of waste organic materials, including animal waste, municipal solid waste and sludge, mixed at any...
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Nitrofurazone Removal from Water Enhanced by Coupling Photocatalysis and Biodegradation
Publication(1) Background: Environmental contamination with antibiotics is particularly serious because the usual methods used in wastewater treatment plants turn out to be insufficient or ineffective. An interesting idea is to support natural biodegradation processes with physicochemical methods as well as with bioaugmentation with efficient microbial degraders. Hence, the aim of our study is evaluation of the effectiveness of different...
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The Physicochemical and Antibacterial Properties of Chitosan-Based Materials Modified with Phenolic Acids Irradiated by UVC Light
PublicationThis paper concerns the physicochemical properties of chitosan/phenolic acid thin films irradiated by ultraviolet radiation with wavelengths between 200 and 290 nm (UVC) light. We investigated the preparation and characterization of thin films based on chitosan (CTS) with tannic (TA), caffeic (CA) and ferulic acid (FA) addition as potential food‐packaging materials. Such materials were then exposed to the UVC light (254 nm) for...
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Rola i znaczenie zbiornika sieciowego w kształtowaniu hydrauliki i jakości wody w systemie wodociągowym
PublicationEksploatacja zbiornika sieciowego powinna zapewniać cykliczną wymianę wody w jego komorach. Koniecznym warunkiem prawidłowej eksploatacji zbiornika jest zgodność założeń projektowych ze stanem faktycznym. Praktyka eksploatacyjna wskazuje na szereg nieprawidłowości w tym względzie. Z powodu lokalizacji zbiornika sieciowego za nisko lub za wysoko albo wskutek błędów popełnionych w ustaleniu jego parametrów obserwuje się niestabilność...
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Wpływ rodzaju zanieczyszczenia powierzchni odlewu ze staliwa LH14 na jakość napoin wykonanych elektrodą otuloną
PublicationNapawanie jest szeroko stosowaną metodą naprawiania powierzchni. Pozwala między innymi na uzupełnienie miejsc, w których uprzednio wystąpiły wżery korozyjne. Techniki napawania wykorzystywane są również do przywracania pierwotnego kształtu zużytych części. W pracy wykonano badania napoin wykonanych elektrodami otulonymi na czołowych powierzchniach cylindrycznych próbek ze staliwa LH14. Proces wykonywano dwoma rodzajami elektrod:...
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Modelling the impact of the agricultural holdings and land-use structure on the quality of inland and coastal waters with an innovative and interdisciplinary toolkit
PublicationThe changes taking place in the marine coastal zones are extremely important, as about 40% of the human population currently lives in the coastal areas (within 100 kilometres of the coastline) increasing anthropogenic pressure on the marine ecosystems. Agriculture is a significant source of nutrients to the marine environment that increase hypoxia, eutrophication and may pose a threat to the services provided by ecosystems. In...
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Mutagenic and Carcinogenic Compounds in Food
PublicationFood is a major environmental human cancer risk factor. One of the reasons for this is that food products contain substances that exhibit mutagenic and carcinogenic potential which may induce the transformation of normal somatic cells into cancerous cells. These compounds occur in food as a result of microbial contaminations (mycotoxins produced by molds), are generated from natural food components upon processing (e.g. heterocyclic...
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The influence of Be addition on the structure and thermal properties of alkali-silicate glasses
PublicationBe-Na-(Li)-Si oxide glasses containing up to 15 mol% of BeO were prepared. Their structure was characterized by X-ray powder diffraction and Raman as well as infrared spectroscopic techniques, while their chemical compositions were examined by Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry. All materials were found to be amorphous and contain Al contaminations from minor dissolution of the alumina crucibles. The results...
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Toxicity and chemical analyses of airport runoff waters in Poland
PublicationThe aim of this study was to assess the ecotoxicological effects of various compounds in complex airport effluents using a chemical and ecotoxicological integrated strategy. The present work deals with the determination of sum of PCBs, PAHs, pesticides, cations, anions, phenols, anionic, cationic, non-ionic detergents, formaldehyde and metals – as well as TOC and conductivity – in runoff water samples collected from 2009 to 2011...
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Metal tolerance and Cd phytoremoval ability in Pisum sativum grown in spiked nutrient solution
PublicationIn the presented study, the effects of cadmium (Cd) stress and silicon (Si) supplementation on the pea plant (Pisum sativum L.) were investigated. The tendency to accumulate cadmium in the relevant morphological parts of the plant (roots and shoots respectively)—bioaccumulation, the transfer of this element in the plant (translocation) and the physiological parameters of the plant through...
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Speciation of heavy metals in bottom sediments of a drinking water reservoir for Gdańsk, Poland – changes over the 14 years
PublicationThere was conducted a comparative study of the concentrations of heavy metals (Zn, Cu, Pb, andCd) in the surface layer of sediments collected in two investigation periods: 1999–2000 and 2013.The results demonstrated that the degree of metals pollution decreased over time. The contaminationfactors (Cf) calculated for Zn, Cu, Pb, and Cd were respectively 3.63, 3.86, 3.23, and 3.25 in thefirst period of...
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Analytical progress on emerging pollutants in the environment: An overview of the topics
PublicationThis overview discusses the ideas behind a collection of articles by invited authors on a diverse range of complex chemical mixtures and analytical methods which represent some of the most relevant and interesting issues on emerging contaminants of environmental health concerns. These chemicals, including those in high volume production, are released on an ongoing basis as a result of various human activities. Moreover, these emerging contaminants...
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Deep eutectic solvents – Ideal solution for clean air or hidden danger?
PublicationThe industrial sector is one of the fastest-growing sources of greenhouse gases, due to its excessive energy consumption to meet the rapidly growing demand for energy-intensive products. The use of deep eutectic solvents (DESs) has been studied extensively in order to cope with these harmful gases, but their usage can be an issue in respect to ecological reasons. Do deep eutectic solvents harm the atmosphere? Yes, these solvents...
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Evaluation of candidate reference material obtained from selenium - enriched sprouts for the purpose of selenium speciation analysis
PublicationSelenium is an essential element in animals and humans. Diet supplementation with selenium-rich vegetables has better chemoprotective effect than Se (IV) and SeMet. The production of selenium-enriched vegetables requires a preliminary stage in soil preparation, which may subsequently pose a risk of soil contamination. It seems that the sprouting of seeds under controlled conditions would be a good solution for delivering SeMetSeCys...
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Structural Health Monitoring of Overhead Power Transmission Lines
PublicationStructural Health Monitoring (SHM) is a novel and continuously developing branch of science and technology that draws attention of scientists all over the world. It creates opportunities to detect, localize and identify structural damage of various types such as: line breakage, permissible sag, bolt loosening, fatigue cracking or insulator contamination. On the other hand the methods used to estimate the remaining operational...
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Photocatalytical properties of maze-like MoO3 microstructures prepared by anodization of Mo plate
PublicationIn this work, we present a simple method of the formation of MoO3 microstructures via an electrochemical anodization of Mo plate carried out under varied conditions. The morphology, composition and structure of samples were investigated by SEM, EDX, XRD and Raman spectroscopy. The band gap energy was estimated using the Kubelka–Munk function and was found to be 2.87 eV. Finally, the photocatalytic activities of MoO3 samples were...
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Electrochemical determination of nitroaromatic explosives at boron-doped diamond/graphene nanowall electrodes: 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene and 2,4,6-trinitroanisole in liquid effluents
PublicationThe study is devoted to the electrochemical detection of trace explosives on boron-doped diamond/graphene nanowall electrodes (B:DGNW). The electrodes were fabricated in a one-step growth process using chemical vapour deposition without any additional modifications. The electrochemical investigations were focused on the determination of the important nitroaromatic explosive compounds, 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) and 2,4,6-trinitroanisole...
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On minimum cost edge searching
PublicationWe consider the problem of finding edge search strategies of minimum cost. The cost of a search strategy is the sum of searchers used in the clearing steps of the search. One of the natural questions is whether it is possible to find a search strategy that minimizes both the cost and the number of searchers used to clear a given graph G. We call such a strategy ideal. We prove, by an example, that ideal search strategies do not...
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Searching by heterogeneous agents
PublicationIn this work we introduce and study a pursuit-evasion game in which the search is performed by heterogeneous entities. We incorporate heterogeneity into the classical edge search problem by considering edge-labeled graphs: once a search strategy initially assigns labels to the searchers, each searcher can be only present on an edge of its own label. We prove that this problem is not monotone even for trees and we give instances...
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Metody usuwania zakłóceń podczas pomiarów polowych widm Ramana
PublicationW pracy zostały scharakteryzowane źródła zakłóceń występujące podczas pomiarów widm Ramana w warunkach polowych. Zaprezentowano wpływ czasu integracji na jakość rejestrowanych widm w przypadkach, gdy szumy własne spektrometru mają składową typu 1/f, dominującą w zakresie małych częstotliwości. Przedstawiono także wyniki uzyskane podczas pomiarów z detekcją synchroniczną, stosowaną w przenośnych spektrometrach Ramana, w pomiarach...
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Cadmium accumulation by Phragmites australis and Iris pseudacorus from stormwater in floating treatment wetlands microcosms: Insights into plant tolerance and utility for phytoremediation
PublicationEnvironmentally sustainable remediation is needed to protect freshwater resources which are deteriorating due to severe industrial, mining, and agricultural activities. Treatment by floating wetlands could be a sustainable solution to remediate water bodies. The study aimed to examine the effects of Cd on Phragmites australis and Iris pseudacorus growth (height, biomass, root length and chlorophyll contents), anatomy, Cd accumulation...
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Urban city lights. Light pollution as one of the effects of incorrectly designed external illumination. How can a successful lighting masterplan diminish its impact?
PublicationIn the modern world, artificial lighting brings many tangible benefits such as the ability to extend working hours and so increase production, recreational use of the city after dark, or the possibility to travel regardless of the time of day. However, this flexibility comes at a price and negatively impacts on the environment. One such negative phenomenon is Light Pollution ‐ a term used to describe excessive nighttime artificial...
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Ergonomic Aspects of Transport of Patient through the Operating Theatre
PublicationOne of the most crucial decisions to be made while designing and re-modernizing an operating theatre is selecting a method of transporting the patient through the hospital’s spatial arrangement. This decision, while irrelevant at first thought, implies numerous project and functional consequences. Designing an operating theatre within a hospital is related to numerous specialist requirements with an aim of minimizing the risk of...
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Determination of pesticide residues in fruits and vegetables using QuEChERS sample preparation method
PublicationThe intensive development of agriculture means that more and more toxic organic and inorganic compounds are entering the environment. Because of their widespread use, environmental stability, selective toxicity and bioaccumulative capability, pesticides belong to the most hazardous substances contaminating the environment. They are particularly dangerous in fruits and vegetables, because they are one of the reasons why people are...
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Development of different methods for drugs and psychoactive substances extraction from hair samples and their identification based on HPLC-ESI-QTOF analysis
PublicationOver the past decade, the use of non-controlled designer drugs and drug of abuse has rapidly increased. Hair, as a human matrix, enables detection of drugs incorporated into its structure. Studies of presence and identification of drug metabolites in human hair samples has been performed using liquid chromatography electrospray ionization quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS) with steady alternation of...
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Searching by Heterogeneous Agents
PublicationIn this work we introduce and study a pursuit-evasion game in which the search is performed by heterogeneous entities. We incorporate heterogeneity into the classical edge search problem by considering edge-labeled graphs. In such setting a searcher, once a search strategy initially decides on the label of the searcher, can be present on an edge only if the label of the searcher and the label of the edge are the same. We prove...
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Diamond protection for reusable ZnO coated fiber-optic measurement head in optoelectrochemical investigation of bisphenol A
PublicationDue to the global problem with plastic contaminating the environment, with bisphenol A (BPA) being one of the highest demand, effective monitoring and purification of the pollutants are required. The electrochemical methods constitute a good solution but, due to polymerization of electrochemical oxidation bisphenol A products and their adsorption to the surfaces, measurement head elements are clogged by the formed film. In this...
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Decontaminating Arbitrary Graphs by Mobile Agents: a Survey
PublicationA team of mobile agents starting from homebases need to visit and clean all nodes of the network. The goal is to find a strategy, which would be optimal in the sense of the number of needed entities, the number of moves performed by them or the completion time of the strategy. Currently, the field of distributed graph searching by a team of mobile agents is rapidly expanding and many new approaches and models are being presented...
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Phylogenetic relationship and antimicrobial resistance in Escherichia coli isolated from the Reda River and the Oliwski Stream, Northern Poland = Lekooporność i przynależność filogenetyczna szczepów Escherichia Coli izolowanych z rzeki Redy i Potoku Oliwskiego
PublicationThe high abundance of fecal bacteria in surface water is usually related to poor agricultural practice, pollution caused by domesticated and wild animals as well as with septic tank failures. Identification of fecal contamination sources seems to be crucial in order to effectively estimate the inherent risk. In this study, the phylogenetic relationship of 30 isolates of E. coli, originated from surface water, was estimated by employing...