scholarly journals A Novel Strategy for the Assessment of Radon Risk Based on Indicators

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (15) ◽  
pp. 8089
Author(s):  
Simona Mancini ◽  
Martins Vilnitis ◽  
Michele Guida
Keyword(s):  
Indoor Air ◽  
Health Management ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Radon Exposure ◽  
European Directive ◽  
Supporting Tool ◽  
Novel Strategy ◽  
Ionizing Radiations ◽  
Radon Risk

Among the physical pollutants affecting indoor air, the radioactive gas radon may turn out to be the most hazardous. Health effects related to radon exposure have been investigated for several decades, providing major scientific evidence to conclude that chronic exposures can cause lung cancer. Additionally, an association with other diseases, such as leukemia and cancers of the extra-thoracic airways, has been advanced. The implementation of a strategy to reduce the exposure of the population and minimize the health risk, according to the European Directive 59/2013/Euratom on ionizing radiations, is a new challenge in public health management. Starting from an understanding of the general state-of-the-art, a critical analysis of existing approaches has been conducted, identifying strengths and weaknesses. Then, a strategy for assessing the radon exposure of the general population, in a new comprehensive way, is proposed. It identifies three main areas of intervention and provides a list of hazard indicators and operative solutions to control human exposure. The strategy has been conceived to provide a supporting tool to authorities in the introduction of effective measures to assess population health risks due to radon exposure.

Assessment of Current Health of Hard Disk Drives

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abe Zeid ◽  
Sagar Kamarthi
Keyword(s):  
Health Management ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Hard Disk Drives ◽  
Health Assessment ◽  
Hard Disk ◽  
Assessment Method ◽  
Hard Disks ◽  
Disk Drives ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Self Monitoring

Prognostics and health management of computer hard disk drives is beneficial from two different angles: it can help computer users plan for timely replacement of HDDs before they catastrophically fail and cause serious data loss; it can also help product recover facilities reuse hard disks recovered from the end-of-life computers for building refurbished computers. This paper presents a HDD health assessment method using Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology (SMART) attributes. It also presents the state-of-the art results in monitoring the condition of hard disks and offers future directions for distributed hard disk monitoring.

scholarly journals A Case Study on the Detection and Prognosis of Internal Leakages in Electro-Hydraulic Flight Control Actuators

Actuators ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 215
Author(s):  
Antonio Carlo Bertolino ◽  
Andrea De Martin ◽  
Giovanni Jacazio ◽  
Massimo Sorli
Keyword(s):  
Flight Control ◽  
Particle Filtering ◽  
Health Management ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Commercial Aircraft ◽  
Flight Data ◽  
Prognostic System ◽  
Hydraulic Servo ◽  
Definition Of

Electro-hydraulic servo-actuators (EHSAs) are currently considered the state-of-the art solution for the control of the primary flight control systems of civil and military aircraft. Combining the expected service life of a commercial aircraft with the fact that electro-hydraulic technology is employed in the vast majority of currently in-service aircraft and is planned to be used on future platforms as well, the development of an effective Prognostic and Health Management (PHM) system could provide significant advantages to fleet operators and aircraft maintenance, such as the reduction of unplanned flight disruptions and increased availability of the aircraft. The occurrence of excessive internal leakage within the EHSAs is one of the most common causes of return from the field of flight control actuators, making this failure mode a priority in the definition of any dedicated PHM routine. This paper presents a case study on the design of a prognostic system for this degradation mode, in the context of a wider effort toward the definition of a prognostic framework suitable to work on in-flight data. The study is performed by means of a high-fidelity simulation model supported by experimental activities. Results of both the simulation and the experimental work are used to select a suitable feature, then implemented within the prognostic framework based on particle filtering. The algorithm is at first theoretically discussed, and then tested against several degradation patterns. Performances are evaluated through state-of-the-art metrics, showing promising results and providing the basis towards future applications on real in-flight data.

scholarly journals Effect of fish paste products, fish balls ‘tsumire’, intake in Sprague–Dawley rats

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazunari Kadokura ◽  
Tsuyoshi Tomita ◽  
Kohei Suruga
Keyword(s):  
Body Weight ◽  
Food Intake ◽  
Health Management ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Inorganic Phosphorus ◽  
Organ Weight ◽  
Sprague Dawley ◽  
Group I ◽  
Sprague Dawley Rats ◽  
Group Ii

Abstract The fish paste product, fish balls ‘tsumire’, is a traditional type of Japanese food made from minced fish as well as imitation crab, kamaboko and hanpen. Although tsumire is known as a high-protein and low-fat food, there is a lack of scientific evidence on its health benefits. Hence, we aimed to investigate the effects of tsumire intake on organ weight and biomarker levels in Sprague–Dawley rats for 84 d as a preliminary study. Six-week-old male Sprague–Dawley rats were divided into two groups: group I, fed normal diets, and group II, fed normal diets with 5 % dried tsumire. Throughout the administration period, we monitored their body weight and food intake; at the end of this period, we measured their organ weight and analysed their blood biochemistry. No significant differences were observed with respect to body weight, food intake, organ weight and many biochemical parameters between the two groups. It was found that inorganic phosphorus and glucose levels were higher in group II rats than in group I rats. On the other hand, sodium, calcium, amylase and cholinesterase levels were significantly lower in group II than in group I. Interestingly, we found that the levels of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine transaminase, lactate dehydrogenase and leucine aminopeptidase in group II were significantly lower than in group I, and that other liver function parameters of group II tended to be lower than in group I. In conclusion, we consider that the Japanese traditional food, ‘tsumire,’ may be effective as a functional food for human health management worldwide.

scholarly journals Radon Exposure and Neurodegenerative Disease

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (20) ◽  
pp. 7439
Author(s):  
Silvia Gómez-Anca ◽  
Juan Miguel Barros-Dios
Keyword(s):  
Neurodegenerative Diseases ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Subsequent Development ◽  
Brain Anatomy ◽  
Inclusion Criteria ◽  
Motor Neuron Diseases ◽  
Radon Exposure ◽  
Bibliographic Search ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Lateral Sclerosis

Background: To carry out a systematic review of scientific literature about the association between radon exposure and neurodegenerative diseases. Methods: We performed a bibliographic search in the following databases: Pub med (Medline), Cochrane, BioMed Central and Web of Science. We collected the data by following a predetermined search strategy in which several terms werecombined. After an initial search, 77 articles were obtained.10 of which fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Five of these 10 studies were related to multiple sclerosis (MS), 2 were about motor neuron diseases (MND), in particular amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and 3 were related to both Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD). Results: The majority of the included articles, suggested a possible association between radon exposure and a subsequent development of neurodegenerative diseases. Some of the studies that obtained statistically significant resultsrevealed a possible association between radon exposure and an increase in MS prevalence. Furthermore, it was also suggested that radon exposure increases MND and AD mortality. Regarding AD and PD, it was observed that certainde cay products of radon-222 (222Rn), specifically polonium-210 (210Po) and bismuth-210 (210Bi), present a characteristic distributionpattern within the brain anatomy. However, the study with the highest scientific evidence included in this review, which investigated a possible association between the concentration of residential radon gas and the MS incidence, revealed no significant results. Conclusions: It cannot be concluded, although it is observed, that there is a possible causal association between radon exposure and neurodegenerative diseases. Most of the available studies are ecological so, studies of higher statistical evidence are needed to establish a causal relationship. Further research is needed on this topic.

scholarly journals Current Practice in Untargeted Human Milk Metabolomics

Metabolites ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isabel Ten-Doménech ◽  
Victoria Ramos-Garcia ◽  
José David Piñeiro-Ramos ◽  
María Gormaz ◽  
Anna Parra-Llorca ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Growth Factors ◽  
Human Milk ◽  
Gold Standard ◽  
Current Practice ◽  
Infant Nutrition ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Cell Debris ◽  
Dynamic Composition ◽  
Macro And Micronutrients

Human milk (HM) is considered the gold standard for infant nutrition. HM contains macro- and micronutrients, as well as a range of bioactive compounds (hormones, growth factors, cell debris, etc.). The analysis of the complex and dynamic composition of HM has been a permanent challenge for researchers. The use of novel, cutting-edge techniques involving different metabolomics platforms has permitted to expand knowledge on the variable composition of HM. This review aims to present the state-of-the-art in untargeted metabolomic studies of HM, with emphasis on sampling, extraction and analysis steps. Workflows available from the literature have been critically revised and compared, including a comprehensive assessment of the achievable metabolome coverage. Based on the scientific evidence available, recommendations for future untargeted HM metabolomics studies are included.

scholarly journals Stakeholder engagement in the management of indoor radon exposures

2020 ◽  
Vol 55 ◽  
pp. S227-S233 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Turcanu ◽  
C. Schieber ◽  
T. Schneider ◽  
C. Fallon ◽  
R. Geysmans ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Management ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Indoor Air Pollution ◽  
Indoor Radon ◽  
Stakeholder Participation ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
Regional Level ◽  
Context Specific ◽  
Radon Risk ◽  
Significant Health

Radon in buildings poses a significant health risk, being one of the most important causes of lung cancer deaths worldwide. Acknowledging that successful radon risk management requires engagement of stakeholders, this paper investigated prescriptions and practices for stakeholder participation. First, it points out the need to integrate radon risk management in a holistic approach to indoor air pollution, together with urban planning and energy saving policies. It then argues for establishing more systematic approaches to the involvement of stakeholders in the design, implementation and evaluation of radon actions. Finally, it suggests the development of context specific approaches for the engagement of stakeholders at local and regional level.

Constructing an elastic solid electrolyte interphase on graphite: a novel strategy suppressing lithium inventory loss in lithium-ion batteries

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (22) ◽  
pp. 10885-10894 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiang Shi ◽  
Shuai Heng ◽  
Qunting Qu ◽  
Tian Gao ◽  
Weijie Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solid Electrolyte ◽  
Lithium Ion Batteries ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Solid Electrolyte Interphase ◽  
Lithium Ion ◽  
Elastic Solid ◽  
The State ◽  
Graphite Anode ◽  
Novel Strategy

Constructing a robust and elastic solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) on a graphite anode is an important strategy to suppress lithium-inventory loss and to prolong the lifespan of the state-of-the-art lithium-ion batteries.

scholarly journals Use of radon barriers to reach an acceptable radon level

2020 ◽  
Vol 172 ◽  
pp. 05003
Author(s):  
Torben Valdbjørn Rasmussen ◽  
Thomas Cornelius
Keyword(s):  
Indoor Air ◽  
Radon Concentration ◽  
Indoor Radon ◽  
Ventilation Rate ◽  
Test Method ◽  
Single Family ◽  
Indoor Radon Concentration ◽  
Radon Exposure ◽  
Air Penetration ◽  
Family House

A method is presented for theoretically estimating the necessary airtightness of a radon barrier. Radon barriers are used to balance the indoor radon concentration. To balance radon at an acceptable level, for a given ventilation rate for indoor air, a barrier must fulfil the requirements for airtightness and the indoor-air radon penetration from the soil, which is determined by the radon concentration in the soil gas. The method identifies the optimal radon barrier for a building. Ten different radon barriers are evaluated. Barriers include system solutions based on materials such as bitumen-based radon blockers, wet-room membranes, reinforced fix mortar pastes, and polyethylene membranes. The barriers are tested using a modified version of the test method NBI 167/02 radon membrane: test of airtightness. The radon barriers are evaluated for a typical building construction for a single-family house with radon exposure from the ground. An acceptable radon concentration of 100 Bq/m3 in indoor air is used in combination with a number of higher radon levels. The different radon barriers are evaluated in accordance with their ability to prevent air penetration from the ground. Furthermore, how mounting a barrier can affect the durability of a building is discussed, as the measures may create a far more vulnerable building.

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