Commonly used amines in power industry, including morpholine, DBU (1,8-diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene), and DMA (dimethylallylamine) were evaluated for their effect on AISI 1018 steel at 250oF. Samples were exposed to an autoclave containing amine added aqueous solution at pH of 9.5 for 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 12 hours. Morphology studies were carried using scanning electron microscope (SEM), phase analysis was done utilizing Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and weight loss was performed to assess kinetics of oxidation. Control samples showed the highest metal dissolution rate. DBU showed the best performance in metal protection and SEM indicated the presence of a free-crack layer formed by fine particles in that set. FTIR showed that DBU apparently favored the formation of magnetite. It is believed that fine particles impede intrusion of aggressive ions into the metal surface by forming a barrier layer. FTIR demonstrated that DMA formed more oxyhydroxides, whereas morpholine presented magnetite to hematite transformation as early as 2 hours. SEM revealed that control and DMA produced acicular particles characteristic of oxyhydroxides while morpholine and DBU presented more equiaxed particles.

Objectives: After mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), psychological factors can contribute to persisting post-concussion symptoms (PCS). Consistent with constructive theories of memory, negative expectations for increased symptoms after mTBI may contribute to misattributing symptoms to the mTBI and underestimating pre-injury symptoms, called the “good old days’ bias” (Gunstad & Suhr, 2001). The good old days’ bias is not thought to be a general retrospective recall bias but studies to date have largely not controlled for normative memory processes including those that lead to a biased, more positive recall of the past. Therefore, the current study examines whether there is a good old days’ bias after mTBI above and beyond normal memory biases. This study also examines how soon after mTBI the good old days’ bias affects recall of pre-injury symptoms in the first month after mTBI in adolescents as well as whether the good old days’ bias causes pre-injury symptom severity to be underestimated or if symptoms are entirely forgotten. Finally, the clinical significance of symptom recall biases is investigated. Method: The sample is 42 adolescents who sustained an mTBI (ages 13-18 years; 24 males) and 42 uninjured adolescents (ages 13-18 years; 24 males, ). The mTBI group rated current and retrospective post-concussion symptom ratings within one week and again, at one month, post-injury. The control group rated current and retrospective post-concussion symptoms at baseline and one month later. Cross-sectional and longitudinal comparisons using non-parametric statistical tests were used. Results: Wilcoxon signed-rank tests showed that, by one month post-mTBI, adolescents report fewer total, physical, and emotional pre-injury symptoms than they had reported within one week of their concussion. The control group did not demonstrate this good old days’ bias. There were no between-group differences in retrospective PCS ratings at either time point. Chi-square analyses found that the mTBI group was as likely as the control group to recall “no” pre-injury/past symptoms one month post-injury after having initially reported some pre-injury symptoms. Only four more adolescents were classified as “recovered” if their one-month PCS ratings were compared with pre-injury PCS ratings made within 1-week post-concussion rather than pre-injury ratings from 1-month post-injury. Discussion: There was mixed evidence for a good old days’ bias by one month post-concussion. This bias was not demonstrated in healthy adolescents, suggesting that the good old days’ bias is found specifically after concussion. During the acute post-injury period, the good old days’ bias may only be apparent by studying changes in concussed individuals’ own PCS ratings. The good old days’ bias leads to underestimating the severity of pre-injury symptoms rather than forgetting them entirely. The good old days’ bias does not greatly affect symptom recovery tracking by one month post-concussion. Future studies should directly examine expectations about concussion and their effect on current and retrospective symptom reporting. / Graduate / 2019-07-10

Orientador: Andréa Cristina Prokopczyk Arita / Resumo: Neste trabalho estudamos algumas propriedades dos operadores quase setoriais e, utilizando a teoria de semigrupos, discutimos a existência de soluções para uma classe de equações diferenciais funcionais neutras abstratas, utilizando teoremas de ponto fixo. / Abstract: In this paper we study some properties of almost sectoral operators and, using semigroup theory, we discuss about the existence of solutions for a class of abstract neutral functional differential equations by means of fixed point theorems. / Mestre

Les chutes à domicile sont un signe précurseur de la perte d’autonomie et représentent un problème majeur de santé publique. La chute implique de multiples facteurs déterminant le risque de chute. Une meilleure connaissance des facteurs de risques de la chute est importante afin de prévenir les chutes ainsi que l’entrée en dépendance chez la personne âgée. Parmi ces facteurs de risques les facteurs biologiques sont peu étudiés. Mieux connaître ces facteurs biologiques permettrait de mieux orienter le diagnostic étiologique de la chute et donc de cibler les actions préventives personnalisées et de définir par des interventions environnementales (ex : l’activité physique, conseils nutritionnels) ou médicales, de prévenir le risque de chute et la perte d’autonomie qu’elle induit. L’hyponatrémie est le désordre électrolytique le plus fréquent rencontré en pratique gériatrique. Elle est définie par une concentration en Na dans le sérum inférieure à 136 mmol/L. L’hyponatrémie peut être divisée en 3 paliers : l’hyponatrémie chronique légère l’hyponatrémie modérée et l’hyponatrémie sévère. De récentes études ont montré que l’hyponatrémie chronique légère peut présenter chez les patients des signes cliniques significatifs et pourrait être associée à une altération des fonctions cognitives, à des troubles de la marche voire de fracture. Qu’elle est la prévalence de l’hyponatrémie chronique légère chez les patients admis à l’unité MUPA ? Qu’elle est l’association entre l’hyponatrémie chronique légère et la chute dans notre population ? La prévalence de l’hyponatrémie chronique légère est particulièrement élevée à l’unité MUPA. les patients admis à l’unité MUPA avec une hyponatrémie chronique légère à la prise de sang effectuée à l’arrivée dans l’unité ont un plus fort risque de chute grave. L’hyponatrémie chronique légère peut-être considérée comme un facteur de risque de la chute grave chez le sujet âgé. / Falls are a precursor to the loss of autonomy and represent a major public health problem. Falls involve multiple factors determining the risk of falling. A better knowledge of the risk factors of falls is important in order to prevent falls as well as loss of autonomy in the elderly. Among these risk factors, biological factors are poorly studied. Better knowing these biological factors would better guide the etiological diagnosis of the fall and therefore target personalized preventive actions and define environmental interventions (physical activity, nutritional counseling) or medical, to prevent the risk of falling and the loss of autonomy. Hyponatremia is the most common electrolyte disorder in geriatric practice. It is defined by a serum Na concentration of less than 136 mmol/L. Hyponatremia can be divided into 3 stages: mild chronic hyponatremia, moderate hyponatremia, and severe hyponatremia. Recent studies have shown that mild chronic hyponatremia may present significant clinical signs in patients and may be associated with impaired cognitive functions, gait disturbances and even fractures. What is the prevalence of mild chronic hyponatremia in patients admitted to MUPA unit? What is the association between mild chronic hyponatremia and falls in our population? Prevalence of mild chronic hyponatremia is particularly high at MUPA unit. Patients admitted to MUPA unit with mild chronic hyponatremia at the first blood test performed on arrival have a higher risk of serious falls. Mild chronic hyponatremia may be considered as a risk factor for serious falls in the elderly

Natural graphite from cheap and abundant natural sources is an attractive anode material for lithium ion batteries. We report on modifications of such a common natural graphite, whose electrochemical performance is very poor, with solutions of (NH4)2S2O8, concentrated nitric acid, and green chemical solutions such of e.g. hydrogen peroxide and ceric sulfate. These treatments resulted in markedly im-proved electrochemical performance (reversible capacity, coulombic efficiency in the first cycle and cycling behavior). This is attributed to the effective removal of active defects, formation of a new dense surface film consisting of oxides, improvement of the graphite stability, and introduction of more nanochannels/micropores. These changes inhibit the decomposition of electrolyte solution, pre-vent the movement of graphene planes along a-axis direction, and provide more passage and storage sites for lithium. The methods are mild, and the uniformity of the product can be well controlled. Pilot experiments show promising results for their application in industry.

Designing with and for People with Dementia: Wellbeing, Empowerment and Happiness is the International Conference 2019 of the MinD Consortium, the DRS Special Interest Group on Behaviour Change and the DRS Special Interest Group on Wellbeing and Happiness, hosted by the Technische Universität Dresden, in Dresden, Germany. The conference proceedings provide trans-disciplinary contributions for researchers, practitioners, end-users and policy makers from the design and health care professions in terms of new findings, approaches and methods for using design to improve dementia care and to support people with dementia and their carers. The conference has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 691001, and from the DFG German Research Foundation.

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<p>The optimization of the electrical system voltage range of a mild hybrid electric vehicle is examined in this research study. The objective is to evaluate and propose the optimized vehicle voltage level for the mild hybrid electric vehicle from both technical and economic aspects. The approach is to evaluate the fuel economy improvement from the mild hybrid electric vehicle of various voltage level for the cost benefit study. The evaluation is conducted from the vehicle system level with discussions of components selection for system optimization. Autonomie, a simulation tool widely used by academic and automotive industry, is used for the vehicle simulation and fuel economy evaluation. The cost analysis is based on the system cost factoring in the component cost based forecasted production volume. </p> <p>The driver for this study is to propose an optimized voltage for the mild hybrid electric vehicle for the vehicle manufacturers and suppliers to standardize the implementation to meet the fuel economy and emission requirements and vehicle power demand. The standardization of the vehicle voltage level can improve design and development efficiency, reusability and reduce cost in developing non-standard voltage levels of the mild hybrid vehicle. The synergy in standardized voltage level for the mild hybrid vehicle can accelerate technology implementation toward mass production to meet regulatory emission and fuel economy requirements. </p>

Orientador: Flávia Heloísa dos Santos / Resumo: Introdução: A doença renal crônica (DRC) atinge um percentual significativo de idosos, além de estar relacionada a uma série de comorbidades, em especial, o transtorno neurocognitivo leve (TNL). A diminuição da taxa de filtração glomerular está significativamente associada a déficits globais na cognição, função executiva, linguagem e memória. Em virtude disso, a triagem cognitiva é fundamental para a população com DRC. Objetivo geral: Estimar a prevalência de TNL em doentes renais crônicos em tratamento dialítico, comparando com um grupo controle (GC) pareado por sexo e idade, e contrastar o uso de diferentes instrumentos de screening para esta finalidade. Material e método: Estudo transversal, caso-controle, no qual foram avaliados 54 pacientes em HD (GHD) e 54 controles saudáveis (GC), pareados por sexo e idade. Os pacientes foram submetidos a avaliação neuropsicológica, compreendida por testes de triagem (Mini-Exame do Estado Mental – MEEM; Avaliação Cognitiva de Montreal – MoCA; Mini-Cog), teste de inteligência (Escala Wechsler Abreviada de Inteligência – WASI), avaliação de qualidade de vida (QV) (The Medical Outcomes Study 36 item Short-Form Health Survey- SF-36), sintomas de ansiedade e depressão (Inventário de Ansiedade de Beck – BAI; Inventário de Depressão de Beck), complementados por dados sociodemográficos, clínicos e laboratoriais. Resultados: O GHD tinha medianas de 60 anos (50-67; intervalo interquartil) de idade, tempo de tratamento de 23 meses (10-51) e 40,74... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: Introduction: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects a significant percentage of the elderly, and is also related to a series of comorbidities, especially mild neurocognitive disorder (mNCD). The decrease in the glomerular filtration rate is significantly associated with global deficits in cognition, executive function, language and memory. As a result, cognitive screening is essential for the population with CKD. General objective: To estimate the prevalence of mNCD in patients with CKD undergoing dialysis, comparing to a control group (CG) matched by sex and age, and to contrast the use of different screening instruments for this purpose. Material and methods: Cross-sectional, case-control study, in which 54 patients on HD (HDG) and 54 healthy controls (CG), matched by sex and age, were evaluated. Patients underwent neuropsychological assessment, comprising screening tests (Mini-Mental State Examination - MMSE; Montreal Cognitive Assessment - MoCA; Mini-Cog), intelligence test (Wechsler Abbreviated Intelligence Scale - WASI), assessment of quality of life (QOL) (The Medical Outcomes Study 36 item Short-Form Health Survey- SF-36), symptoms of anxiety and depression (Beck Anxiety Inventory - BAI; Beck Depression Inventory - BDI), complemented by sociodemographic, clinical and laboratory data. Results: The HDG had medians of 60 years-old (50-67; interquartile range), treatment time of 23 months (10-51) and 40.74% had DM as the underlying disease. The groups did not differ in age... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Doutor

The aim of this thesis is to describe and analyse the moral reasoning of people with mild intellectual disability, as well as to find out their understanding of more abstract terms of the moral domain, what the principle of their deciding is, and which values are important for them. In the first part, the thesis concentrates on the influence of the intellectual disability on the cognitive, emotional and personality aspects of the subjects. It also introduces several theories of the moral development, moral structure and values, and finally, the thesis presents the outcomes of the foreign research focused on the moral reasoning of people with intellectual disability. In six case studies in the empirical part, the thesis demonstrates the moral reasoning of people with mild intellectual disability, who have been respondents of exploratory interviews. In the concluding part, the thesis attempts to find some identical significant moments which might be characteristic of moral reasoning of people with mild intellectual disability, and put them into the context of other research and theories.