Flexible piezoelectric liquid volume sensor

Specific gas-liquid interfacial area in flow tubes 70 mm in diameter of the length 725 and 1 450 mm resp. containing various swirl bodies were measured for concurrent upward flow in the ranges of average gas (air) velocities 11 to 35 ms-1 and liquid flow rates 13 to 80 m3 m-2 h-1 using the method of CO2 absorption into NaOH solutions. Two different flow regimes were observed: slug flow swirled annular-mist flow. In the latter case the determination was carried out separately for the film and spray flow components, respectively. The obtained specific areas range between 500 to 20 000 m3 m-2. Correlation parameters are energy dissipation criteria, related to the geometrical reactor volume and to the static liquid volume in the reactor.

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Electromyographic activation patterns during swallowing in older adults

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-84972-6 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Jin Young Ko ◽

Hayoung Kim ◽

Joonyoung Jang ◽

Jun Chang Lee ◽

Ju Seok Ryu

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Viscous Fluid ◽

Muscle Activation ◽

Fatty Infiltration ◽

Liquid Volume ◽

Type I ◽

Type Ii ◽

Activation Patterns ◽

Muscle Activation Patterns ◽

Age Related

AbstractAge-related weakness due to atrophy and fatty infiltration in oropharyngeal muscles may be related to dysphagia in older adults. However, little is known about changes in the oropharyngeal muscle activation pattern in older adults. This was a prospective and experimental study. Forty healthy participants (20 older [> 60 years] and 20 young [< 60 years] adults) were enrolled. Six channel surface electrodes were placed over the bilateral suprahyoid (SH), bilateral retrohyoid (RH), thyrohyoid (TH), and sternothyroid (StH) muscles. Electromyography signals were then recorded twice for each patient during swallowing of 2 cc of water, 5 cc of water, and 5 cc of a highly viscous fluid. Latency, duration, and peak amplitude were measured. The activation patterns were the same, in the order of SH, TH, and StH, in both groups. The muscle activation patterns were classified as type I and II; the type I pattern was characterized by a monophasic shape, and the type II comprised a pre-reflex phase and a main phase. The oropharyngeal muscles and SH muscles were found to develop a pre-reflex phase specifically with increasing volume and viscosity of the swallowed fluid. Type I showed a different response to the highly viscous fluid in the older group compared to that in the younger group. However, type II showed concordant changes in the groups. Therefore, healthy older people were found to compensate for swallowing with a pre-reflex phase of muscle activation in response to increased liquid volume and viscosity, to adjust for age-related muscle weakness.

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An Unrecognized Hazard in E-Cigarette Vapor: Preliminary Quantification of Methylglyoxal Formation from Propylene Glycol in E-Cigarettes

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18020385 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (2) ◽

pp. 385

Author(s):

Parham Azimi ◽

Zahra Keshavarz ◽

Marianne Lahaie Luna ◽

Jose Guillermo Cedeno Laurent ◽

Jose Vallarino ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Propylene Glycol ◽

Airway Epithelial Cells ◽

Health Concern ◽

Liquid Volume ◽

Airway Epithelial ◽

Public Health Concern ◽

Limit Of Quantification ◽

Median Concentration ◽

Potential Risks ◽

New Research

Up to 95% of the liquid volume in an e-cigarette consists of propylene glycol. Previous research has shown that propylene glycol can generate diacetyl and formaldehyde when heated. New research shows that propylene glycol can also generate methylglyoxal, an alpha di-carbonyl compound recently shown to cause epithelial necrosis at even lower concentrations than diacetyl, the flavoring chemical associated with bronchiolitis obliterans (“Popcorn Lung”). We analyzed chemical emissions from 13 JUUL pod flavors. Diacetyl and methylglyoxal was detected in 100% of samples with median concentration (range) of 20 µg/m3 (less than limit of quantification: 54 µg/m3) and 4219 µg/m3 (677–15,342 µg/m3), respectively. We also detected acetaldehyde (median concentration: 341 µg/m3) and propionaldehyde (median concentration: 87 µg/m3) in all samples. The recent evidence that methylglyoxal is more cytotoxic to airway epithelial cells than diacetyl makes this an urgent public health concern. Current smokers considering e-cigarettes as a smoking cessation tool, and never users, who may be under the impression that e-cigarettes are harmless, need information on emissions and potential risks to make informed decisions.

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Research on Local Heating Regeneration Method for Air-Conditioning Systems

Processes ◽

10.3390/pr9030444 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (3) ◽

pp. 444

Author(s):

Feng Cheng ◽

Yunlei Wu ◽

Xiuwei Li

Keyword(s):

Air Conditioning ◽

Local Heating ◽

Solution Concentration ◽

Regeneration Process ◽

Future Application ◽

Liquid Volume ◽

Thermal Regeneration ◽

Lower Efficiency ◽

Good Potential ◽

Air Conditioning Systems

Absorption air-conditioning systems have a great advantage in terms of energy conservation and environmental protection. However, the large amount of energy waste in the thermal regeneration process leads to lower efficiency and impedes its development. To reduce energy loss and improve performance, a local heating regeneration method is proposed in this paper. The main principle is reducing the volume of the liquid participating regeneration. Including the solar steam mode, two modes are introduced and configured. Theoretical and experimental research has been made on the new methods. Models have been developed for comparison analysis. Experiments have been conducted on water and absorbent solution with different modes. Performance has been evaluated based on the experimental data. The results expose the influence of different parameters, like liquid volume and solution concentration, on the regeneration process. The local heating method improved the regeneration efficiency by 40% in the no solar steam mode and the performance tripled in the solar steam mode. The COP (the ratio of cooling load to energy consumption) of the absorption system with the solar steam mode is more than two times of that with the traditional regeneration mode. It shows the local heating regeneration method has good potential in future application.

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