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Gas emissions pose significant environmental and health concerns in thermal processes involving thermoplastic polymers. This issue also extends to material extrusion (MEX) additive manufacturing (AM), which is a thermal process. Therefore, it is crucial to examine gas emissions during MEX AM. This study focused on super engineering plastics (SEPs) such as polyetheretherketone, polysulfone, and polyetherimide. A portable emission-measuring device was employed to analyze total volatile organic compounds (TVOCs) and formaldehyde (HCHO) emitted during MEX AM at various nozzle temperatures. Additionally, the anisotropy of tensile strengths in the SEP specimens fabricated in the longitudinal and transverse deposition directions was evaluated. Overall, the SEPs emitted TVOCs and HCHO within the range from not detected (N/D) to 0.595 mg/m3and from N/D to 0.139 mg/m3, respectively, based on the nozzle temperature during MEX AM. Moreover, the tensile strengths varied from 59.0 to 83.4 MPa in the longitudinal deposition direction and from 19.2 to 55.7 MPa in the transverse deposition direction. Lower nozzle temperatures not only resulted in reduced gas emissions but also led to lower tensile strength in all the SEPs. However, the strategic use of longitudinal deposition can mitigate the reduction in tensile strength. To demonstrate this, a case study involving the fabrication of a Warren truss bridge was presented. This study provides guidelines for the deposition strategy in MEX using SEPs under AM conditions, aiming to minimize gas emissions while maintaining a tensile strength ranging from 81.1% to 88.7% of the bulk specimen strength.

A hybrid sequential additive manufacturing process combined an extrusion syringe and a fused deposition modeling is developed to fabricate a porous PDMS based triboelectric sensor easily and environmentally. The porosity of the PDMS is controlled by using wet sugar particle sizes, and we fabricate a porous PDMS plate with a pore-to-volume ratio of 46%, which has 11 times larger internal contact area and 52.4% softer mechanical strength compared to a non-porous one. So, two key factors for high performance triboelectric sensor is obtained using the proposed method. A cylinder-shaped triboelectric sensor impregnated carbon black particles on the porous PDMS matrix, which is wearable on a finger, is fabricated for evaluation of its characteristics on detecting finger joint movements. From the experimental results, the sensor shows the ability to help quantitatively analyze finger movements, therefore, the proposed flexible triboelectric sensor can apply to athletes or patients around their knees, wrists, or other joints to analyze their physical behavior. Also, we believe that it can be utilized to measure various physical signals such as contact force, gripping force, and pressure with small values.

Silicon photonics enables scaling of quantum photonic systems by allowing the creation of extensive, low-loss, reconfigurable networks linking various functional on-chip elements. Inclusion of single quantum emitters onto photonic circuits, acting as on-demand sources of indistinguishable photons or single-photon nonlinearities, may enable large-scale chip-based quantum photonic circuits and networks. Toward this, we use low-temperature in situ electron-beam lithography to deterministically produce hybrid GaAs/Si3N4photonic devices containing single InAs quantum dots precisely located inside nanophotonic structures, which act as efficient, Si3N4waveguide-coupled on-chip, on-demand single-photon sources. The precise positioning afforded by our scalable fabrication method furthermore allows observation of postselected indistinguishable photons. This indicates a promising path toward significant scaling of chip-based quantum photonics, enabled by large fluxes of indistinguishable single-photons produced on-demand, directly on-chip.

A novel In–Sn–Bi solder with a low electrical resistivity of 14.3 × 10–6Ω cm and a melting temperature of 99.3 °C was produced for use in adhesive joining on a flexible poly(ethylene terephthalate) substrate. We determined that the fine microstructure of the In-based solder (which had an average phase size of 62.2 nm) strongly influenced its superplasticity and toughness at diffusive temperatures of 55–85 °C because the late-forming BiIn intermetallic compound (IMC) suppressed the growth of two other IMCs, In3Sn and In0.2Sn0.8, which formed earlier in the soldering process. Thus, an elongation of 858.3% and toughness of 36.0 MPa were obtained at a temperature of 85 °C and a strain rate of 0.0020 s–1. However, due to phase boundary fracturing, the phase-refined solder exhibited a slightly more brittle nature (with an elongation of 74.3%) at room temperature compared with a standard In–Sn solder consisting only of the In3Sn and In0.2Sn0.8IMCs, which had a slightly larger phase size of 84.9 nm and higher ductility (with an elongation of 80.7%). In terms of superplastic deformation, the conventional fracture system based on the Hall–Petch effect transformed into phase boundary sliding at the solder operating temperature, significantly enhancing ductility.

The photoelectrochemical characteristics of p-InAlP grown on GaAs were investigated to exploit the potential of that material future as a photocathode in solar water splitting. The flat band potential was measured, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy was performed to propose an equivalent circuit model and circuit elements fitted for charge transport analysis. Low photocatalytic activity was attributed to the band alignment with the water redox level. Since the valence band of InAlP is close to the water oxidation level, it causes inefficient hole transport to the counter electrode and the accumulation of holes in the photocathode.

Here, we present a simple yet highly efficient method to enhance the output performance of a piezoelectric device containing electrospun nanofiber mats. Multiple nanofiber mats were assembled together to harness larger piezoelectric sources in the as-spun fibers, thereby providing enhanced voltage and current outputs compared to those of a single-mat device. In addition to the multilayer assembly, microbead-based electrodes were integrated with the nanofiber mats to deliver a complexed compression and tension force excitation to the piezoelectric layers. A vacuum-packing process was performed to attain a tight and well-organized assembly of the device components even though the total thickness was several millimeters. The integrated piezoelectric device exhibited a maximum voltage and current of 10.4 V and 2.3 μA, respectively. Furthermore, the robust integrity of the device components could provide high-precision sensitivity to perceive small pressures down to approximately 100 Pa while retaining a linear input–output relationship.

As opposed to organism-based drug screening approaches, protein-based strategies have the distinct advantage of providing insights into the molecular mechanisms of chemical effectors and thus afford a precise targeting. Capitalising on the increasing number of genome and transcriptome datasets, novel targets in pathogens for therapeutic intervention can be identified in a more rational manner when compared with conventional organism-based methodologies. Trehalose-6-phosphate phosphatases (TPPs) are structurally and functionally conserved enzymes of the trehalose biosynthesis pathway which play a critical role for pathogen survival, in particular, in parasites. The absence of these enzymes and trehalose biosynthesis from mammalian hosts has recently given rise to increasing interest in TPPs as novel therapeutic targets for drugs and vaccines. Here, we summarise some key aspects of the current state of research towards novel therapeutics targeting, in particular, nematode TPPs.

Three-dimensional (3D) printing, combined with medical imaging technologies, such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), has shown a great potential in patient-specific tissue regeneration. Here, we successfully fabricated an ultrathin tubular free-form structure with a wall thickness of several tens of micrometers that is capable of providing sufficient mechanical flexibility. Such a thin geometry cannot easily be achieved by 3D printing alone; therefore, it was realized through a serial combination of processes, including the 3D printing of a sacrificial template, the dip coating of the biomaterial, and the removal of the inner template. We demonstrated the feasibility of this novel tissue engineering construct by conducting bile duct surgery on rabbits. Moving from a rational design based on MRI data to a successful surgical procedure for reconstruction, we confirmed that the presented method of fabricating scaffolds has the potential for use in customized bile duct regeneration. In addition to the specific application presented here, the developed process and scaffold are expected to have universal applicability in other soft-tissue engineering fields, particularly those involving vascular, airway, and abdominal tubular tissues.

Here, we developed highly sensitive piezoelectric sensors in which flexible membrane components were harmoniously integrated. An electrospun nanofiber mat of poly(vinylidenefluoride-co-trifluoroethylene) was sandwiched between two elastomer sheets with sputtered electrodes as an active layer for piezoelectricity. The developed sensory system was ultrasensitive in response to various microscale mechanical stimuli and able to perceive the corresponding deformation at a resolution of 1 μm. Owing to the highly flexible and resilient properties of the components, the durability of the device was sufficiently stable so that the measuring performance could still be effective under harsh conditions of repetitive stretching and folding. When employing spin-coated thin elastomer films, the thickness of the entire sandwich architecture could be less than 100 μm, thereby achieving sufficient compliance of mechanical deformation to accommodate artery–skin motion of the heart pulse. These skin-attachable film- or sheet-type mechanical sensors with high flexibility are expected to enable various applications in the field of wearable devices, medical monitoring systems, and electronic skin.

A novel hybrid construct was developed by combining aligned fibers (AFs) and random fibers (RFs) to form a scaffolding system. Homogeneous fiber-based structures were fabricated by electrospinning, which produced both random and aligned fiber mats depending on the collection method. The upper part of the scaffold contained an AF layer, which possessed a well-organized configuration that provided uniaxial topographic guidance. For mechanical stability and support, the lower part of the scaffold was composed of an RF layer. Despite the presence of randomly distributed RFs, desirable alignment and differentiation could be achieved in cultured C2C12 myoblasts by controlling the density of AF layer. The fibrous structure of the hybrid scaffold also exhibited high porosity and therefore reasonable permeability. Owing to the structural stability provided by the underlying RFs, the cell-laden fibrous scaffolds were amenable to physical manipulation, such as multilayering. Collectively, the morphological features and manipulable architecture of the developed scaffolds suggest that they would perform well in practical applications.

Two-dimensional (2D) dose comparisons are widely performed by using a gamma evaluation with patient-specific intensity modulated radiation therapy quality assurance (IMRT QA) or dose delivery quality assurance (DQA). In this way, a pass/fail determination is made for a particular treatment plan. When gamma evaluation results are close to the failure criterion, the pass/fail decision may change applying a small shift to the center of the 2D dose distribution. In this study, we quantitatively evaluated the meaning of such a small relative shift in a 2D dose distribution comparison. In addition, we propose the use of a small shift for a pass/fail criterion in gamma analysis, where the concept of isocenter optimal matching (IOM) is applied to IMRT QA of 20 patients. Gamma evaluations were performed to compare two dose distributions, one with and the other without IOM. In-house software was developed in C++ in order to find IOM values including both translational and rotational shifts. Upon gamma evaluation failure, further investigation was initiated using IOM. In this way, three groups were categorized: group 1 for ‘pass’ on gamma evaluation, group 21 for ‘fail’ on the gamma evaluation and ‘pass’ on the gamma the evaluation with IOM, and group 22 for ‘fail’ on the both gamma evaluations and the IOM calculation. IOM results revealed that some failures could be considered as a ‘pass’. In group 21, 88.98% (fail) of the averaged gamma pass rate changed to 90.45% (pass) when IOM was applied. On average, a ratio of γ≥ 1 was reduced by 11.06% in 20 patients. We propose that gamma evaluations that do not pass with a rate of 85% to 90% may be augmented with IOM to reveal a potential pass result.

We investigated the volume averaging effect for air-filled cylindrical ionization chambers to determine the correction factors in a small photon field for a given chamber. We measured output factors with several cylindrical ionization chambers, and by using a mathematical method similar to deconvolution, we modeled the non-constant and inhomogeneous exposure function in the cavity of the chamber. The parameters in the exposure function and the correction factors were determined by solving a system of equations that we had developed by using the measured data and the geometry of the given chamber. The correction factors (CFs) were very similar to those obtained from Monte Carlo (MC) simulations. For example, the CFs in this study were found to be 1.116 for PTW31010 and 1.0225 for PTW31016 while the CFs obtained from MC simulations were reported as being approximately between 1.17 and 1.20 for PTW31010 and between 1.02 and 1.06 for PTW31016 in a 6-MV photon beam of 1 × 1 cm2. Furthermore, the method of deconvolution combined with the MC result for the chamber’s response function showed a similar CF for PTW 30013, which was reported as 2.29 and 1.54 for a 1 × 1 cm2and a 1.5 × 1.5 cm2field size, respectively. The CFs from our method were similar, 2.42 and 1.54. In addition, we report CFs for PTW30013, PTW31010, PTW31016, IBA FC23-C, and IBA CC13. As a consequence, we suggest the use of our method to measure the correct output factor by using the fact that an inhomogeneous exposure causes a volume averaging effect in the cavity of air-filled cylindrical ionization chamber. The result obtained by using our method is very similar to that obtained from MC simulations. The method we developed can easily be applied in clinics.

We report a novel high-performance electroactive polymer actuator based on poly (vinylidene fluoride) (i.e., PVDF) and graphene. The PVDF-graphene composite membranes were fabricated through electrospinning method. The electrospun composite membrane has a three-dimensional network structure, high porosity, and large ionic liquid solution uptake which are a prerequisite for high performance dry-type electroactive soft actuators. The conductive poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly (styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) layers were deposited on the surfaces of the composite membrane through dipping-drying method. The electroactive PVDF-graphene actuators under both harmonic and step electrical inputs show larger bending deformation and faster response time than the pure PVDF actuator. X-ray diffusion (XRD) and ionic conductivity testing results for the PVDF-graphene membrane were compared with those of pristine PVDF. Most important, the PVDF-graphene actuator shows much larger bending deformation under low input voltage, and this could be due to the synergistic effects of the higher ionic conductivity of PVDF-graphene membrane and the electrochemical doping processes of the PEDOT:PSS electrode layers.

We developed a high-performance triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) synergistically integrated with three-dimensional customized interfaces. Based on an electrospun ferroelectric poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) (PVDF-TrFE) nanofiber mat, an interfusion with a charge-trapping layer was proposed to create an integrative negative tribo-interface component, in which a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) layer was partially interfused with a nanofibrous mat. The nanofiber-interfused tribo-surface notably enhanced the output performance via the charge-trapping effect, which minimized intrinsic losses in the triboelectric charges. The overall device, targeted for use in shoe insoles, was ergonomically designed based on foot geometry and fabricated accordingly via 3D printing using flexible and rigid materials. The conformal 3D customized interface provided wear comfort, even tribo-contact per foot pressure, and more importantly, augmented tribo-effect from strain-mismatching friction. Through the strain difference between the flexible and rigid parts at the contacting interface, the tribo-interface can generate additional lateral frictions as it is squeezed during foot stepping. As a result, the 3D customized TENG generated a significantly high output voltage and current of 880 V and 3.75 mA, respectively. In addition, durability of the TENG was experimentally confirmed based on at least 1500 cycles of foot stepping, in which high output performance was also sustained. The results of this study are expected to provide insights for the practical design and fabrication of 3D customized TENG systems.

In this study, we fabricated a membrane-type vibrational energy harvester by using a conventional micro-electro-mechanical (MEMS) method. The membrane-type vibrational energy harvester consists of a multi-layered diaphragm for stable and flexible vibration, a piezoelectric ZnO film for responding to the vibrational energy and for generating electric power, and a vibrator connected to the bottom of multi-layered diaphragm for enhancing the vibrational displacement of the diaphragm. First, we characterized the quality of a ZnO film through scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD), which showed a preferred c-axis orientation, a hexagonal rod shape and a quite smooth surface. After the membrane-type vibrational energy harvester had been fabricated, we integrated it into a printing circuit board to realize piezoelectric generation and confirm its performance. Finally, under vibrational motion, we obtained a useful output voltage of 400 mV, and we estimated that the energy harvester generated an actual output voltage of about 200 uV.

Electrospun nanofibers have been developed into a variety of forms for tissue engineering scaffolds to regulate the cellular functions guided by nanotopographical cues. Here, we have successfully fabricated nanofiber-based scaffold complexes of rod and sheet type by combining the three microfabrication techniques of electrospinning, spin coating, and polymer melt deposition. It was demonstrated that this hybrid fabrication could produce uniaxially aligned nanofiber scaffolds supported by a thin film, allowing for a mechanically enforced substrate for cell culture as well as facile scaffold manipulation. The results of cell analysis indicated that nanofibers on spin-coated films could provide contact guidance effects on cells and retain them even after manipulation. As an application of the cell-laden nanofiber film, we built a rod-type structure by rolling up the film around a mechanically supporting core microfiber, which was incorporated by polymer melt deposition. A biocompatible and biodegradable polymer, polycaprolactone, was used throughout the processes and thus could be used as a directly implantable substitute in tissue regeneration.

This study presents a biomimetic 3D customizable artificial vascular graft with a highly porous and uniform microscale structure. The structural features were obtained by dip coating of a highly close-packed microsphere suspension on a 3D printed sacrificial template. Considering the structured arrangement of microspherical porogens in the coating layer, the microsphere-leached constructs showed higher uniformity and porosity than the conventionally particulate-leached structures, leading to ultrasoft mechanical compliance. Considering biomechanical compatibility, the resulting elastic moduli were at the sub-MPa level, comparable with those of native vascular tissues. In addition, the developed porous graft was reinforced selectively at the edge regions using a nonporous coating to secure its practical sutureability for clinical use. The sufficiently low cytotoxicity was clinically confirmed to alleviate the stiffness mismatch issues at the anastomotic interface between the native tissue and the artificial graft, thus overcoming the relevant clinical complications. Furthermore, the overall superior properties could be implemented on the 3D printed template for patient-specific medicare, thus implying the manufacturability of patient-specific vascular grafts.

High-performance energy harvesting for human-sensing applications has been achieved through recent progress in piezoelectric-based wearable devices. Piezoelectric nanomaterials can be leveraged for flexibility and biocompatibility while also enhancing piezoelectricity. However, such nanomaterials exhibit low piezoelectricity, limits the industrial-scale development of highly efficient piezoelectric devices. Hence, design of novel materials to significantly enhance piezoelectricity is necessitated. Herein, we demonstrate that a peapod-inspired design in which ZnSnO3anchored on surface-modified carbon nanotubes (CNT) allows significant enhancement of the piezoelectricity produced by poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-trifluoroethylene)-based (P(VDF-TrFE)-based) nanofibers (a piezoelectric material). The piezoelectric properties were exploited for the application of the as-prepared nanofibers (NFs) in flexible NFs in energy-harvesting and pulse-sensing systems, which demonstrated high output power (97.5 V and 1.16 μA) as well as imperceptible pulse detection even in posterior tibial arteries. This work provides the scientific and engineering framework for delivering ZnSnO3-surface-modified CNT-P(VDF-TrFE) NFs excellent piezoelectric performance for use in piezoelectric devices.

Abstract: Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) having three different lengths of 5, 30, and 100μm were added to silica-filled styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) compounds in order to investigate the effect of the CNT addition on the dynamic and electrical properties. The amounts of CNTs were 1, 2, 4, and 7phr, while the amount of silica was set high at 80phr to clearly demonstrate the performance of the CNTs as fillers. The effect of CNTs on the silica-filled SBR compounds on the tensile properties is not significant, but the addition of longer CNTs with high loading severely deteriorated the dynamic properties, but considerably enhanced electrical conductivity. The medium loading of CNTs in silica-filled SBR compounds is suitable for the improvement of the electrical conductivity without severely sacrificing the dynamic properties. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Phloroglucinol (PG) is a phenolic compound isolated from Ecklonia cava, a brown algae abundant on Jeju island, Korea. Previous reports have suggested that PG exerts antioxidative and cytoprotective effects against oxidative stress. In this study, we confirmed that PG protected against small intestinal damage caused by ionizing radiation, and we investigated its protective mechanism in detail. Regeneration of intestinal crypts in the PG-treated irradiated group was significantly promoted compared with that in irradiated controls. The expression level of proapoptotic molecules such as p53, Bax, and Bak in the small intestine was downregulated and that of antiapoptotic molecules such as Bcl-2 and Bcl-XS/Lwas augmented in the PG-treated group. On histological observation of the small intestine, PG inhibited the immunoreactivity of p53, Bax, and Bak and increased that of Bcl-2 and Bcl-XS/L. These results demonstrate the protective mechanisms of PG in mice against intestinal damage from ionizing radiation, providing the benefit of raising the apoptosis threshold of jejunal crypt cells.

A new approach for the detection of the step initiation in the lower extremity exoskeleton is presented. As the detection of the step initiation is the important factor for the lower extremity exoskeleton to shadow the operator’s movement as soon as possible, many studies have been done to detect it faster by using heel-off time or toe-off time. We detect the step initiation faster than other approaches with the vertical ground reaction forces. Also, we predict the first step’s heel strike time with the regression equations based on the vertical ground reaction forces as soon as we detect the step initiation. It could enable the lower extremity exoskeleton to shadow the operator’s movement much faster.

Composite multicellular spheroids composed of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and synthetic biodegradable nanofilaments are fabricated. Extracellular‐matrix‐mimicking nanofilaments, prepared from transverse fragmentation of semicrystalline poly(L‐lactic acid) nanofibers and subsequent surface modification with cell adhesive peptides, are used to form composite multicellular spheroids with MSCs by cellular self‐assembly. The size of the composite spheroids could be readily controlled with the integrated amount of the nanofilaments. The composite spheroids show enhanced adipogenic potential compared to homotypic spheroids. The resultant spheroids are used as building blocks for 3D biohybrid construction with the assistance of a microstructured scaffold fabricated by a direct polymer melt deposition process. An angiogenic growth factor, basic fibroblast growth factor, is also locally delivered in a sustained fashion from the heparinized scaffold surface for facile neovascularization of adipogenic tissue. The produced multiscaled and multifunctional hybrid MSC construct enable the successful formation of vascularized adipose tissue in vivo.

Human postural responses appeared to have stereotyped modality, such as ankle mode, knee mode, and hip mode in response to various levels of postural challenges. We examined whether human postural control gain of full-state feedback could be decoupled along with the eigenvectors. To verify the model, postural responses subjected to fast backward perturbation were used. Upright posture was modeled as 3-segment inverted pendulum incorporated with linear feedback control, and joint torques were calculated using inverse dynamics. Postural modalities, such as ankle, knee and hip mode, were obtained from eigenvectors of biomechanics model. As oppose to the full-state feedback control, independent modal control assumes that modal control input is determined by the linear combinations of corresponding modality. We used linear regression to obtain and compare the feedback gains for both eigenvector control gain and full-state feedback. As a result, we found that both feedback gains of two control models that fit the joint torque data are reasonably closed each other especially at the joint angle feedback gains. This implies that the simple parameterization using eigenvectors may be used to correlate the feedback gains of full-state feedback control.

The inner ear hair cells, the receptors sensing mechanical stimuli such as acoustic vibration and acceleration, achieve remarkably high sensitivity to miniscule stimuli by selectively amplifying small inputs. The gating springs hypothesis proposes that a phenomenon called negative stiffness is responsible for the nonlinear sensitivity. According to the hypothesis, the bundle becomes more sensitive in certain region as its stiffness changes due to the opening or closing of transduction channels, which in turn exert force in the same direction of the bundle’s displacement. In this study, we developed a conceptual model of an inertial sensor inspired by the inner ear hair cells, focusing on the hair cell’s amplifying mechanism known as negative stiffness. The negative stiffness was applied to a simple mass-spring-damper system with nonlinear spring derived from gating springs hypothesis. Sinusoidal stimuli of 0.1Hz~10Hz with magnitude of 1pN to 1000pN were applied to the system to match the dynamic range of vestibular organs. Simulation on this nonlinear model was performed on MATLAB, and power transfers and sensitivities in both transient and steady states were obtained and compared with those from the system with linear spring. Parameters were chosen in relation to those of the hair bundle to reproduce operating conditions of both the hair cells and micro inertial sensors. The suggested model displayed compressive nonlinear sensitivity resulting from selective amplification of smaller stimuli despite the energy loss due to large viscous damping typical in micro systems.

Organic solvents are widely used in biotransformation systems. There are many efforts to reduce the consumption of organic solvents because of their toxicity to the environment and human health. In recent years, several groups have started to explore novel organic solvents called room temperature ionic liquids in order to substitute conventional organic solvents. In this work, lipase-catalyzed transesterification in several uni-and bi-phasic systems was studied. Two representative hydrophobic ionic liquids based on 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolum coupled with hexafluorophosphate ([BMIM][PF6]) and bis[(trifluoromethylsulfonyl) imide] ([BMIM] [Tf2N]) were employed as reaction media for the transesterification ofn-butanol. The commercial lipase, Novozym 435, was used for the transesterification reaction with vinyl acetate as an acyl donor, The conversion yield was increased around 10% in a water/[BMIM][Tf2N], bi-phasic system compared with that in a water/hexane system. A higher distribution of substrates into the water phase is believed to enhance the conversion yield in a water/[BMIM][Tf2N] system. Partion coefficients of the substrates in the water/[BMIM][Tf2N] bi-phasic system were higher than three times that found in the water/hexane system, while n-butyl acetate showed a similar distribution in both systems. Thus, RTILs appear to be a promising substitute of organic solvents in some biotransformation systems.

We hypothesized that multi-sensory processing at the central nervous system (CNS) in human postural control can be described using an optimal estimator model. The estimates on body dynamics from multi-sensory signals contain sensory noise, transmission delays, and process disturbances. The state estimates approximate actual body movement. Erroneous estimates degrade the performance of feedback control and could cause a loss of balance if distorted severely. To test the hypothesis, we examined the frequency response of a visually-induced postural sway with stimulus frequency ranging from 0.075 to 1Hz and established an optimal estimator model. Two healthy young (33yrs ± 1) subjects stood on a force platform located 1.25m behind a projection screen with their arms crossed over their chests. They were asked to maintain an upright posture against the sinusoidal visual field stimuli. Each sinusoidal visual stimulus was generated by a projector for 200secs in pitch direction with a maximum pitch angle of 20o. Kinematics data was recorded to calculate the frequency response function of the center of mass (COM). There were three components in the modeling procedure: a biomechanical model of body and sensor dynamics, a linear feedback control model to stabilize the biomechanical model, and a state estimator to estimate body dynamic states based on multi-sensory outputs. We modeled the sensor dynamics of the semicircular canal, otolth, vision, and muscle spindles at the ankle and hip joint. We used the Kalman filter and linear quadratic regulator to determine feedback gains. Results showed that the frequency response function of a visually-induced postural sway decreased as stimulus frequency increased, and this low-pass filtering characteristic with an approximate cutoff frequency of 0.2Hz was also simulated by the postural feedback control model with optimal estimator. Low-pass filtering characteristics of the frequency response are mainly due to body and sensor dynamics, which show reduced responses for high frequency stimulus. The Kalman filter represents that the CNS utilizes redundant sensory information in a way that minimizes discrepancies between actual body dynamics and estimated body dynamics based on sensory output and an internal model. The results suggest that the CNS may make use of an internal representation of body dynamics, and can integrate sensory information in an optimal way to best estimate human postural responses.