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International audience; We study the mechanical response, and tearing features of crêpe paper, a two-dimensional, very anisotropic material, with one direction much less stiff than the other one. Depending on how the soft direction has been pre-stretched or not, the apparent Young modulus of the material can be varied over a broad range, while its fracture energy remains unaltered. The classical tearing concertina problem shows that a macroscopic measurement (the shape of the teared region) provides a direct access to the fracture properties of the material (effective Young's modulus, and fracture energy). The overall discussion is conducted in the frame of Griffith's theory of fracture.

International audience; We clarify some analytical expressions existing in the literature, • Within the correct formulae we conclude that there is no need for an ad hoc improvement on the opposite to the title paper, • We highlight the symmetry properties of the function to be integrated in order to agree with the usual assumptions made to derive the Kramers-Kronig relations, • The analytical formula we provide may be used to increase the accuracy of the "Poor Man's Kramers-Kronig analysis" method and the "Kramers-Kronig constrained variational analysis" method.

Machine learning has been applied to several problems in particle physics research, beginning with applications to high-level physics analysis in the 1990s and 2000s, followed by an explosion of applications in particle and event identification and reconstruction in the 2010s. In this document we discuss promising future research and development areas for machine learning in particle physics. We detail a roadmap for their implementation, software and hardware resource requirements, collaborative initiatives with the data science community, academia and industry, and training the particle physics community in data science. The main objective of the document is to connect and motivate these areas of research and development with the physics drivers of the High-Luminosity Large Hadron Collider and future neutrino experiments and identify the resource needs for their implementation. Additionally we identify areas where collaboration with external communities will be of great benefit., Comment: Editors: Sergei Gleyzer, Paul Seyfert and Steven Schramm

International audience; This Special Issue will publish selected papers from the International Symposium on Thermal Effects in Gas flow in Microscale ISTEGIM 2019 - A MIGRATE Event (http://www.istegim.eu/), 24-25 October 2019, Ettlingen, Germany.MIGRATE (www.migrate2015.eu) is a H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie European Training Network, intended to address some of the current challenges to innovation that faces European industry with regard to heat and mass transfer in gas-based micro-scale processes. This network of 10 participants and 6 associated partners coming from all over the European Community covers different aspects of enhanced heat transfer and thermal effects in gases: from modelling of heat transfer processes and devices, development and characterization of sensors and measurement systems for heat transfer in gas flows as well as thermally driven micro gas separators, to micro-scale devices for enhanced and efficient heat recovery in environmental, transport, telecommunications and energy generation. The MIGRATE Project presents his 2-day symposium, ISTEGIM19, during which the members of the MIGRATE network will showcase the main achievements of the project. The program will include keynote lectures, invited lectures and contributed papers.

Preparing a scientific paper requires practice and organization. Some suggestions are offered to optimize the process, especially for Ph.D. students and for young scientists collaborating with (one or more) experienced colleagues. After and overview of general considerations, a step-by-step organizational procedure is suggested to streamline the article preparation process.

The influence of pressure on the optical properties of nanostructured tetragonal Cu2Sb has been investigated jointly by experimental Raman spectroscopy (RS) and theoretical first-principles calculation based on density functional theory (DFT) varying pressure from zero (ambient condition) to 45 GPa. The DFT determined pressure dependence of the Raman active modes and the mode-Gruneisen parameters for each Raman mode are found to be in excellent agreement with those experimentally determined. Comparison of the pressure evolution of the experimental Raman data with those of DFT has allowed us to make the proper assignment of optical phonon modes.

International audience; After Arthur Ashkin's pioneering work in optical levitation and manipulation, the study of optical forces exerted by laser beams on particles has become an active field of research. The present paper is a contribution to this issue. The interest of Bessel beams is that their intensity does not have any longitudinal gradient along the direction of propagation leading to a trivial separation between gradient and scattering forces. Beside the classical gradient and scattering forces, we shall however exhibit a new kind of optical forces associated with the existence of non zero axicon angles

International audience

International audience; Many samples used for luminescence and ESR dating show complex mineralogical structures, resulting in heterogeneous beta dose rates. Ideally, the beta dose rate distribution could be reconstructed using softwares like DosiVox, which can both upload 3D-scans recorded with X-ray tomography and distributions of radioactive elements. However, some minerals often exhibit only small X-ray contrasts making them difficult to distinguish in 3D-scans. For example, quartz and plagioclase have closely similar X-ray characteristics, which limit the applicability of this approach. Here, we introduced a Monte Carlo simulation of beta particles in two dimensions, in order to calculate the dose rate from 2D images. The simulation results are compared between 2D modelling, 3D modelling and standard calculation. The implications for beta dose rate heterogeneity in grains are discussed. Using the “DosiVox-2D” software, we show that 2D scans may characterize complex heterogeneous 3D beta dose rate distributions. This approach could lead to a better understanding of micro-dosimetric phenomena and the improvements in the accuracy of dose rate calculation for heterogeneous samples.

International audience

International audience

I discuss briefly the foundations of quantum cognition taking as reference an article that appeared on Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience Keywords: consciousness, quantum state, mixed state, probability distribution, dominance duration, quantum superposition principle, quantum collapse, quantum cognition , cognitive science In Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience , general commentary , the authors M. Reza Paraan, F. Bakouie and S. Gharibzadeh ,in date 20 February , 2014(doi:10.3389/fncom.2014.00015) (Paraan M.R. et al, 2014) published a paper entitled A More Realistic Quantum Mechanical Model of Conscious Perception During Binocularly rivalry , discussing and criticizing the basic experimental and theoretical results that I and Khrennikov obtained (Conte E. et al.,2009) examining the possible role of quantum mechanics during the perception and the cognition of ambiguous figures. First of all we retain that , in order to criticize the results of authors , it is appropriate that scholars are aware about all the articulated research that the criticized authors have explained about the matter so to be sure to have fully explored all the obtained results. This is the reason to report in references a long list of publications that such authors have realized (). Unfortunately it may happen that scholars sometimes have not the opportunity to look at all the scientific production of another author and in some cases instead it may contribute to a better definition of his/her production. The feature that such authors seem to outline , is contained in the following their sentence : " Technically, a wave-function is a superposition of all the real possible states of a quantum system. We believe that this is an inappropriate take on the problem which leads to inconsistencies within the model. The developers of these two quantum mechanical models believe that the actualization of each quantum state is equal to the activation of neural correlates of consciousness (NCC) of the corresponding perception; a state is actualized when a quantum system is measured (observed) and subsequently its wave-function " collapses " to that constituent state. Therefore, we believe that wave-function is not a legitimate representation, because it does not describe a real state of a system and is doomed to collapse, and on the other hand, specific NCC of MS (Mixed States duration) or that of indeterminate perception demand a distinct associated quantum state. Their model takes into account the periods when their subjects report indeterminate perception. Indeterminate perception resembles MS in that they are both mental states and are mediated by specific neural correlates. But Conte et al. represent indeterminacy state by the wave-function of the two-state system rather than an additional third quantum state. Technically, a wave-function is a superposition of all the real possible states of a quantum system. We believe that this is an inappropriate take on the problem which leads to inconsistencies within the model " (Paraan M.R. et al, 2014).

The Third European Conference on Microfluidics (μFlu’12) was held in Heidelberg, Germany, in December 8–10, 2012, under the sponsorship of the Hydrotechnic Society of France (SHF), the Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna, the University of Toulouse and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. This event has gathered 252 participants from 33 countries. During three days, 174 communications have been presented in 16 thematic sessions including liquid microflows, gas microflows, microsensors and in-situ analytics, fluidic microactuators and micromixing, microfabrication techniques for microfluidic systems, convective micro heat transfer, micro chemical engineering, lab-on-a-chip, electrokinetic microflows, microdroplets management, microflows in biological systems and bioengineering, multi-phase flows in microsystems, and microflow visualization. Two special sessions have been devoted to industrial applications of microfluidics and to nanofluidics. This special issue of Microsystem Technologies focuses the attention of the readers on a selection of nine works representative of the research advances in microfluidics presented during the Conference.

International audience; The goal of this study was to evaluate the areal mass distribution (defined as the X-ray transmission image) of paper from its optical transmission image. A Bayesian inversion framework was used in the related deconvolution process so as to combine indirect optical information with a priori knowledge about the type of paper imaged. The a priori knowledge was expressed in the form of an empirical Besov space prior distribution constructed in a computationally effective way using the wavelet transform. The estimation process took the form of a large-scale optimization problem, which was in turn solved using the gradient descent method of Barzilai and Borwein. It was demonstrated that optical transmission images can indeed be transformed so as to fairly closely resemble the ones that reflect the true areal distribution of mass. Furthermore, the Besov space prior was found to give better results than the classical Gaussian smoothness prior (here equivalent to Tikhonov regularization).

An approach to the analysis of the impedance of porous electrodes proposed by Barcia et al. [Electrochim. Acta 47 (2002) 2109] is reconsidered. It is pointed out that the impedance data are not sufficient to determine pore length (l) pore radius (r) and number of pores (n), since their analysis can only yield two combinations of these geometrical parameters: nr3/2 and l r . However, if one of the geometrical parameters l, r or n is known from an independent measurement, the impedance data can provide the information for estimating the others.

Snellen, I.A.G. et al., In this White Paper, which was submitted in response to the European Space Agency (ESA) Voyage 2050 Call, we recommend the ESA plays a proactive role in developing a global collaborative effort to construct a large high-contrast imaging space telescope, e.g. as currently under study by NASA. Such a mission will be needed to characterize a sizable sample of temperate Earth-like planets in the habitable zones of nearby Sun-like stars and to search for extraterrestrial biological activity. We provide an overview of relevant European expertise, and advocate ESA to start a technology development program towards detecting life outside the Solar System., I.S. acknowledges funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No 694513. A.L.M. acknowledges the financial support of the F.R.S.-FNRS through a postdoctoral researcher grant. MB acknowledges support from the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) research grant ST/S000631/1. I.R. acknowledges support from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation and the European Regional Development Fund through grant PGC2018-098153-B-C33, as well as the support of the Generalitat de Catalunya/CERCA programme. E.P. acknowledges support from the Spanish Ministry of Science through grant PGC2018-098153-B-C31. J.M.D. acknowledges funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Unions Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement no. 679633; Exo-Atmos) Part of this research was carried out at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, under a contract with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. We acknowledge financial support from the ASI-INAF agreement n.2018-16-HH.0 We acknowledge financial support from Spanish MCIU SEV-2017-0709 and PID2019-110689RB-I00 awards. We acknowledge financial support from the ASI-INAF agreement n.2018-16-HH.0 AV acknowledges funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No. 757561). KH acknowledges funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No. 771620). NJM acknowledges funding from the Leverhulme Trust, and a Science and Technology Facilities Council Consolidated Grant (ST/R000395/1). PdV acknowledges funding from the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research NWO (Veni Grant No. 639.041.750). IP acknowledges financial support from the ASI-INAF agreements 2019-29-HH.06-HH.0 and 2015-019-R.1-2018. FS acknowledges funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement no. 678194; FALCONER). MJ acknowledges support from the Knut and Alice Wallenberg foundation (KAW). JLB acknowledges funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No 805445. T.H. acknowledges support from the European Research Council under the Horizon 2020 Framework Program via the ERC Advanced Grant Origins 83 24 28. JLG acknowledges ISSI Team 464 for useful discussion.

The results of the 2018 commissioning and experimental campaigns of the new High Power Laser Facility on the Energy-dispersive X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (ED-XAS) beamline ID24 at the ESRF are presented., Results of the 2018 commissioning and experimental campaigns of the new High Power Laser Facility on the Energy-dispersive X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (ED-XAS) beamline ID24 at the ESRF are presented. The front-end of the future laser, delivering 15 J in 10 ns, was interfaced to the beamline. Laser-driven dynamic com­pression experiments were performed on iron oxides, iron alloys and bismuth probed by online time-resolved XAS.

International audience; Liquid biofuels for compression ignition engines are often based on vegetable oils. In order to be used in compression ignition engine the vegetable oils have to be processed because of their high viscosity or it is also possible to use vegetable oils in fuel blends. In order to decrease the viscosity of the fuel blends containing crude vegetable oil the alcohol-based fuel admixtures can be used. The paper describes the effect of rapeseed oil–diesel fuel–n-butanol blends on combustion characteristics and solid particles production of turbocharged compression ignition engine. The 10% and 20% concentrations of n-butanol in the fuel blend were measured and analysed. The engine Zetor 1204, located in tractor Zetor Forterra 8641 with the power of 60kW and direct injection was used for the measurement. The engine was loaded through power take off shaft of the tractor using mobile dynamometer MAHA ZW500. The measurement was carried out in stabilized conditions at 20%, 60% and 100% engine load. The engine speed was kept at 1950 rpm. Tested fuel blends showed lower production of solid particles than diesel fuel and lower peak cylinder pressure and with increasing concentration of n-butanol in the fuel blend the ignition delay was prolonged and premixed phase of combustion was increased.

This work is the continuation of a ‘revolution’ started with "Research Counts, Not the Journal". Own and published opinions from worldwide scientists on critical issues of peer-reviewed publishing are presented. In my opinion, peer-reviewed publishing is a quite flawed process (in many ways) that has greatly harmed Science for a long time – it has been imposed by most academic and science funding institutions as the only way to assess scientific performance. Unfortunately, most academics still follow that path, even though I believe most do it for the fear of losing their job or not being promoted. This paper aims to encourage (i) a full disruption of peer-reviewed publishing and (ii) the use of free eprint repositories for a sustainable academic/scientific publishing, i.e. healthier (no stress/distress associated to the peer review stage and the long waiting for publication) and more economic, effective and efficient (research is made immediately available and trackable/citable to anyone). On the other hand, it should be pointed out that nothing exists against scientific publishers/journals – actually it´s perfectly normal that any company wants to implement its own quality criteria. This paper is just the way chosen to promote the quick implementation of suitable policies for research evaluation.

Battelier, B., et al., We present the scientific motivation for future space tests of the equivalence principle, and in particular the universality of free fall, at the 10 level or better. Two possible mission scenarios, one based on quantum technologies, the other on electrostatic accelerometers, that could reach that goal are briefly discussed. This publication is a White Paper written in the context of the Voyage 2050 ESA Call for White Papers., Open Access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL.

Materials with a high atomic number (Z) are shown to cause an increase in the level of cell kill by ionizing radiation when introduced into tumor cells. This study uses in vitro experiments to investigate the differences in radiosensitization between two cell lines (MCF‐7 and U87) and three commercially available nanoparticles (gold, gadolinium, and iron oxide) irradiated by 6 MV X‐rays. To assess cell survival, clonogenic assays are carried out for all variables considered, with a concentration of 0.5 mg mL−1 for each nanoparticle material used. This study demonstrates differences in cell survival between nanoparticles and cell line. U87 shows the greatest enhancement with gadolinium nanoparticles (2.02 ± 0.36), whereas MCF‐7 cells have higher enhancement with gold nanoparticles (1.74 ± 0.08). Mass spectrometry, however, shows highest elemental uptake with iron oxide and U87 cells with 4.95 ± 0.82 pg of iron oxide per cell. A complex relationship between cellular elemental uptake is demonstrated, highlighting an inverse correlation with the enhancement, but a positive relation with DNA damage when comparing the same nanoparticle between the two cell lines., This study investigates the enhancement effect of nanoparticles combined with radiotherapy, relating both cell survival and DNA damage to cellular elemental uptake. Different nanoparticles and cancer cells are used, where in all cases, nanoparticles cause a level of enhancement. The complexity in enhancement with increasing uptake can be seen, highlighting different mechanisms contributing to the enhancement effect.

To precisely control protein activity in a living system is a challenging yet long-pursued objective in biomedical sciences. Recently, we have developed a new approach named molecular hyperthermia (MH) to photoinactivate protein activity of interest without genetic modification. MH utilizes nanosecond laser pulse to create nanoscale heating around plasmonic nanoparticles to inactivate adjacent protein in live cells. Here we use a numerical model to study important parameters and conditions for MH to efficiently inactivate proteins in nanoscale. To quantify the protein inactivation process, the impact zone is defined as the range where proteins are inactivated by the nanoparticle localized heating. Factors that reduce the MH impact zone include the laser pulse duration, temperature-dependent thermal conductivity (versus constant properties), and nonspherical nanoparticle geometry. In contrast, the impact zone is insensitive to temperature-dependent material density and specific heat, as well as thermal interface resistance based on reported data in the literature. The low thermal conductivity of cytoplasm increases the impact zone. Different proteins with various Arrhenius kinetic parameters have significantly different impact zones. This study provides guidelines to design the protein inactivation process by MH.

International audience; In this paper, the viability of expanding the feedstock base of diesel fuel production by the involvement of the heavy diesel fraction and the use of cold flow improvers was shown. The influence of the heavy diesel fraction content in the diesel fuel composition on its low-temperature properties and the effectiveness of the cold flow improver were studied. It was established that the involvement of a small amount of the heavy diesel fraction (up to 3 vol%) increases the effectiveness of the cold flow improver in relation to the cold filter plugging point. The following recipes of diesel fuel production were recommended: the involvement of up to 5 vol% heavy diesel fraction allows producing fuel of the summer grade; the involvement of up to 5 vol% heavy diesel fraction and the cold flow improver allows producing fuel of the inter-season grade; and the involvement of up to 3 vol% heavy diesel fraction and the cold flow improver to produce fuel of the winter grade.

International audience; A Software Product Line (SPL) is a set of programs, called variants, which are generated from a common artifact base. Delta-Oriented Programming (DOP) is a flexible approach to implement SPLs. This short paper summarises the contributions published in [10]. A foundation for rigorous development of delta-oriented product lines of statecharts is provided by defining: a core language for statecharts, DOP on top of it, an analysis ensuring that a product line is well-formed (i.e., all variants can be generated and are well-formed statecharts). An implementation of the analysis has been applied to an industrial case study.

The stability of magnetic information stored in surface adsorbed single‐molecule magnets is of critical interest for applications in nanoscale data storage or quantum computing. The present study combines X‐ray magnetic circular dichroism, density functional theory and magnetization dynamics calculations to gain deep insight into the substrate dependent relevant magnetization relaxation mechanisms. X‐ray magnetic circular dichroism reveals the opening of a butterfly‐shaped magnetic hysteresis of DyPc2 molecules on magnesium oxide and a closed loop on the bare silver substrate, while density functional theory shows that the molecules are only weakly adsorbed in both cases of magnesium oxide and silver. The enhanced magnetic stability of DyPc2 on the oxide film, in conjunction with previous experiments on the TbPc2 analogue, points to a general validity of the magnesium oxide induced stabilization effect. Magnetization dynamics calculations reveal that the enhanced magnetic stability of DyPc2 and TbPc2 on the oxide film is due to the suppression of two‐phonon Raman relaxation processes. The results suggest that substrates with low phonon density of states are beneficial for the design of spintronics devices based on single‐molecule magnets., DyPc2 single‐molecule magnets on magnesium oxide exhibit a significantly more stable magnetic moment than on a silver substrate. Modeling of the magnetic hysteresis loops reveals that the stabilization effect originates from the suppression of the two‐phonon Raman process. The results suggest the perspective of enhancing the magnetic stability by weakly adsorbing substrates with low density of vibrational modes.

International audience; The activated sludges and the sugarcane distillery wastewater (vinasse) are two different types of liquid wastes generated throughout the domestic wastewater treatment and sugarcane molasses fermentation and distillation respectively. In Reunion Island, sludge is currently discarded in landfills. Regarding the vinasse, a part of the production is treated by anaerobic digestion process. However, the remaining part is diluted then discharged into the sea 900 m of the coast. In this study, the mesophilic biochemical methane potential (BMP) test, with different inoculum to substrate (I/S) ratios, are presented in this paper as well as the methane production and kinetic results. The BMP is modelled by both the first order linear regression and the modified Gompertz model. In a future study, we will propose an alternative solution in order to treat both wastes simultaneously while producing energy with the co-digestion of the vinasse and the activated sludges in semi-industrial scale.

A new generation improved oil recovery methods comes from combining techniques to make the overall process of oil recovery more efficient. One of the most promising methods is combined Low Salinity Surfactant (LSS) flooding. Low salinity brine injection has proven by numerous laboratory core flood experiments to give a moderate increase in oil recovery. Current research shows that this method may be further enhanced by introduction of surfactants optimized for lowsal environment by reducing the interfacial tension. Researchers have suggested different mechanisms in the literature such as pH variation, fines migration, multi-component ionic exchange, interfacial tension reduction and wettability alteration for improved oil recovery during lowsal injection. In this study, surfactant solubility in lowsal brine was examined by bottle test experiments. A series of core displacement experiments was conducted on nine crude oil aged Berea core plugs that were designed to determine the impact of brine composition, wettability alteration, Low Salinity Water (LSW) and LSS flooding on Enhancing Oil Recovery (EOR). Laboratory core flooding experiments were conducted on the samples in a heating cabinet at 60 °C using five different brine compositions with different concentrations of NaCl, CaCl2 and MgCl2. The samples were first reached to initial water saturation, Swi, by injecting connate water (high salinity water). LSW injection followed by LSS flooding performed on the samples to obtain the irreducible oil saturation. The results showed a significant potential of oil recovery with maximum additional recovery of 7% Original Oil in Place (OOIP) by injection of LS water (10% LS brine and 90% distilled water) into water-wet cores compared to high salinity waterflooding. It is also concluded that oil recovery increases as wettability changes from water-wet to neutral-wet regardless of the salinity compositions. A reduction in residual oil saturation, Sor, by 1.1–4.8% occurred for various brine compositions after LSS flooding in tertiary recovery mode. The absence of clay swelling and fine migration has been confirmed by the stable differential pressure recorded for both LSW and LSS flooding. Aging the samples at high temperature prevented the problem of fines production. Combined LSS flooding resulted in an additional oil recovery of 9.2% OOIP when applied after LSW flooding. Surfactants improved the oil recovery by reducing the oil-water interfacial tension. In addition, lowsal environment decreased the surfactant retention, thus led to successful LSS flooding. The results showed that combined LSS flooding may be one of the most promising methods in EOR. This hybrid improved oil recovery method is economically more attractive and feasible compared to separate low salinity waterflooding or surfactant flooding.

Gas sweetening is one of the important purification processes which is employed to remove acidic contaminants from natural gases prior to meet transport requirements and sale gas specifications. In this work, simulation and parametric studies of the natural gas processing plant ofMissan Oil Company/Buzurgan Oil Field of Natural Gas Processing Plant(in Iraq) were considered. After simulation and validation of this plant, the effect of feed temperature and flow rate and solvent concentration were considered. Results show with increasing the feed temperature and flow rate, the amount of H2S and CO2in the sweet gas stream increases. Then, in the next step, the effect of mixture solvents was studied. Sulfolane–MDEA and MDEA–MEA were selected as a physical–chemical mixture solvent and chemical mixture solvent, respectively. The simulation results show that the solvent price and reboiler duty and cooling duty can be reduced by using a mixture solvent. However, the amount of H2S and CO2in the sweet gas can be affected by these solvents. The system by a chemical mixture solvent can better performance than other solvents.

We scrutinize the evolution of COVID-19 in Madagascar by comparing results from three approaches (cubic polynomial, semi-gaussian and gaussian-like models) which we use to provide an analytical form of the spread of the pandemic. In so doing, we introduce (for the first time) the ratio ℜI/Tc,d of the cumulative and daily numbers of infected persons over the corresponding one of tests which are expected to be less sensitive to the number of the tests because the credibility of the results based only on the absolute numbers often raises some criticisms. We also give and compare the effective reproduction number Reff from different approaches and with the ones of some European countries with a small number of population (Greece, Switzerland) and some other African countries. Finally, we show and comment the evolution of the total number of deaths and of the per cent number of cured persons and discuss the performance of the medical care., Highlights • Attempt to study the COVID-19 spread in Madagascar. • First use of the ratio of the number of infected over the one of the tests. • Comparison of the predictions of different approaches. • Comments on the performance of the medical care in Madagascar.

The exploitation of our forests generates waste, amongst which sawdust produces approximately cubic meter per year. The objective of this work is to contribute to the improvement of the recovery process of this waste through the optimization of the pre-treatment stage of sawdust from Ayous (Triplochiton scleroxylon) by the organosolv process in order to produce bioethanol. To achieve this objective, Ayous sawdust was sampled and then characterized, followed by the pre-treatment through organosolv process. During pre-treatment, a composite experimental design centred on three factors (temperature, time, ethanol concentration) was used to study their effects on extraction of pentoses, reducing sugars and phenolic compounds. Analysis shows that Ayous sawdust contains 45.33 ± 5.5% cellulose, 30.32 ± 1.95% lignin and 20.03 ± 3.5% hemicellulose. To release the maximum of pentoses, reducing sugars and the minimum of phenolic compounds, an organosolv pre-treatment of this substrate should be carried out at 209.08 °C for 47.60 min with an ethanol–water ratio of 24.02%. Temperature is the factor having the most positive influence on the pre-treatment process whereas, ethanol concentration is not an essential factor. Organosolv pre-treatment is an effective process for delignification of the lignocellulosic structure of Ayous sawdust.

A multimodal spectral imaging technique is demonstrated that allows simultaneous acquisition of soft X-ray transmission and X-ray excited optical luminescence. The use of a Fresnel zone plate ensures a lateral resolution of the correlative spectral images of approximately 40 nm., X-ray absorption and optical luminescence can both provide valuable but very different information on the chemical and physical properties of materials. Although it is known that the spectral characteristics of many materials are highly heterogeneous on the micro- and/or nanoscale, no methodology has so far been shown to be capable of spatially resolving both full X-ray absorption and X-ray excited optical luminescence (XEOL) spectra on the nanoscale in a correlative manner. For this purpose, the scanning transmission X-ray microscope at the HERMES beamline of the SOLEIL synchrotron was equipped with an optical detection system capable of recording high-resolution XEOL spectra using a 40 nm soft X-ray probe. The functionality of the system was demonstrated by analyzing ZnO powder dispersions — showing simultaneously the X-ray linear dichroism and XEOL behavior of individual submicrometric ZnO crystallites.

Successive transitions toward unconventional charge density wave states are shown by resistivity measurements and thermal X-ray diffraction., Single crystals of the m = 8 member of the low-dimensional monophosphate tungsten bronzes (PO2)4(WO3)2m family were grown by chemical vapour transport technique and the high crystalline quality obtained allowed a reinvestigation of the physical and structural properties. Resistivity measurements revealed three anomalies at T C1 = 258 K, T C2 = 245 K and T C3 = 140 K, never observed until now. Parallel X-ray diffraction investigations showed a specific signature associated with three structural transitions, i.e. the appearance of different sets of satellite reflections below T C1, T C2 and T C3. Several harmonics of intense satellite reflections were observed, reflecting the non-sinusoidal nature of the structural modulations and a strong electron–phonon coupling in the material. These transitions could be associated with the formation of three successive unconventional charge density wave states.

A new reactor cell and experimental setup designed to perform time-resolved experiments on heterogeneous catalysts under working conditions that simulltaneously combines XAS, DRIFT and MS spectroscopies are reported., The combination of complementary techniques in the characterization of catalysts under working conditions is a very powerful tool for an accurate and in-depth comprehension of the system investigated. In particular, X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) coupled with diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS) and mass spectroscopy (MS) is a powerful combination since XAS characterizes the main elements of the catalytic system (selecting the absorption edge) and DRIFTS monitors surface adsorbates while MS enables product identification and quantification. In the present manuscript, a new reactor cell and an experimental setup optimized to perform time-resolved experiments on heterogeneous catalysts under working conditions are reported. A key feature of this setup is the possibility to work at high temperature and pressure, with a small cell dead volume. To demonstrate these capabilities, performance tests with and without X-rays are performed. The effective temperature at the sample surface, the speed to purge the gas volume inside the cell and catalytic activity have been evaluated to demonstrate the reliability and usefulness of the cell. The setup capability of combining XAS, DRIFTS and MS spectroscopies is demonstrated in a time-resolved experiment, following the reduction of NO by Rh nanoparticles supported on alumina.

Significant improvements to the sample-location, characterization and data-collection algorithms on the autonomous ESRF beamline MASSIF-1 are described. The workflows now include dynamic beam-diameter adjustment and multi-position and multi-crystal data collections., Macromolecular crystallography is now a mature and widely used technique that is essential in the understanding of biology and medicine. Increases in computing power combined with robotics have not only enabled large numbers of samples to be screened and characterized but have also enabled better decisions to be taken on data collection itself. This led to the development of MASSIF-1 at the ESRF, the first beamline in the world to run fully automatically while making intelligent decisions taking user requirements into account. Since opening in late 2014, the beamline has processed over 42 000 samples. Improvements have been made to the speed of the sample-handling robotics and error management within the software routines. The workflows initially put into place, while highly innovative at the time, have been expanded to include increased complexity and additional intelligence using the information gathered during characterization; this includes adapting the beam diameter dynamically to match the diffraction volume within the crystal. Complex multi-position and multi-crystal data collections have now also been integrated into the selection of experiments available. This has led to increased data quality and throughput, allowing even the most challenging samples to be treated automatically.

International audience; Magnetic moment measurements of isomeric states in neutron-rich isotopes populated in photofission using γ-beam facility at the Extreme Light Infrastructure−Nuclear Physics (ELI-NP) laboratory aim at addressing many open questions related to the structure of the nuclei in A around 100 and 130 mass regions. The possibility of such measurements at ELI-NP is briefly discussed here using Geant4 Monte Carlo simulations. The present paper report the estimates of γ-beam profile at the target, fission fragment production rates and the possible target geometry.

Atomic vacancies in complex crystals can be determined by atomic-resolution strain mapping at picometre precision using scanning transmission electron microscopy. The method is applied to InAs/GaSb superlattices., Determining vacancy in complex crystals or nanostructures represents an outstanding crystallographic problem that has a large impact on technology, especially for semiconductors, where vacancies introduce defect levels and modify the electronic structure. However, vacancy is hard to locate and its structure is difficult to probe experimentally. Reported here are atomic vacancies in the InAs/GaSb strained-layer superlattice (SLS) determined by atomic-resolution strain mapping at picometre precision. It is shown that cation and anion vacancies in the InAs/GaSb SLS give rise to local lattice relaxations, especially the nearest atoms, which can be detected using a statistical method and confirmed by simulation. The ability to map vacancy defect-induced strain and identify its location represents significant progress in the study of vacancy defects in compound semiconductors.

International audience; A critical need exists to develop rapid, in situ, and real-time tools to monitor the impact of pollution discharge toxicity on aquatic ecosystems. The present paper deals with the development of a novel, simple-to-use, low-cost, portable, and user-friendly algal biosensor. In this study, a complete and autonomous portable fluorimeter was developed to assess the A-chlorophyll fluorescence of microalgae, inserted by capillarity into low-cost and disposable xurography-based microfluidic chips. Three microalgae populations were used to develop the biosensor: Chlorella vulgaris, Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Biosensor feasibility and sensitivity parameters, such as algal concentration and light intensity, were optimized beforehand to calibrate the biosensor sensitivity with Diuron, a pesticide known to be very toxic for microalgae. Finally, the biosensor was employed in 10 aqueous urban polluted samples (7 urban wet-weather discharges and 3 wastewaters) in order to prove its reliability, reproducibility, and performance in the detection of toxic discharges in the field.

International audience; Natural gas emissions from oil spill ensue changes to microbial consortia in oceans which might cause ecotoxicological impacts on marine life. Gas flaring, a technique in the clean-up of oil spill, is a major source of greenhouse gas emission and possess high risk of fire hazard. It is of utmost importance to avoid flaring and resort to cleaner techniques such as bioremediation. The study focuses on bioremediation of marine oil spill by indigenous bacterial consortia using beeswax as a biostimulant which supplements the limiting nutrients such as nitrate and phosphate. The experimental study was conducted by adding diesel oil in marine water with beeswax for bioremediation. The vital parameters such as dissolved oxygen, pH, diesel range organics, total microbial count, nitrate and phosphate contents were measured at intervals of 5 days. The indigenous bacteria utilized oil as carbon source and beeswax as nutrient source for growth and metabolism. The results showed 87% removal of oil content in treatment sample while only 59% reduction was achieved in the corresponding control sample. Evaporation of oil results in formation of aerosols and black carbon which can lead to climate change. The study proves that bioremediation of marine oil spill is an environmentally benign clean-up technique for oil spill which can reduce carbon emission.

International audience; Unique physicochemical features place gold nanoclusters at the forefront of nanotechnology for biological and biomedical applications. To date, information on the interactions of gold nanoclusters with biological macromolecules is limited and restricts their use in living cells.Methods: Our multidisciplinary study begins to fill the current knowledge gap by focusing on lysosomes and associated biological pathways in U251N human glioblastoma cells. We concentrated on lysosomes, because they are the intracellular destination for many nanoparticles, regulate cellular homeostasis and control cell survival.Results: Quantitative data presented here show that gold nanoclusters (with 15 and 25 gold atoms), surface-modified with glutathione or PEG, did not diminish cell viability at concentrations ≤1 µM. However, even at sublethal concentrations, gold nanoclusters modulated the abundance, positioning, pH and enzymatic activities of lysosomes. Gold nanoclusters also affected other aspects of cellular homeostasis. Specifically, they stimulated the transient nuclear accumulation of TFEB and Nrf2, transcription factors that promote lysosome biogenesis and stress responses. Moreover, gold nanoclusters also altered the formation of protein aggregates in the cytoplasm. The cellular responses elicited by gold nanoclusters were largely reversible within a 24-hour period.Conclusions: Taken together, this study explores the subcellular and molecular effects induced by gold nanoclusters and shows their effectiveness to regulate lysosome biology. Our results indicate that gold nanoclusters cause homeostatic perturbations without marked cell loss. Notably, cells adapt to the challenge inflicted by gold nanoclusters. These new insights provide a framework for the further development of gold nanocluster-based applications in biological sciences.

International audience; This work addresses the need for a comprehensive methodology for nanoscale electrical testing dedicated to the analysis of both "front end of line" (FEOL) (doped semiconducting layers) and "back end of line" (BEOL) layers (metallization, trench dielectric, and isolation) of highly integrated microelectronic devices. Based on atomic force microscopy, an electromagnetically shielded and electrically conductive tip is used in scanning microwave impedance microscopy (sMIM). sMIM allows for the characterization of the local electrical properties through the analysis of the microwave impedance of the metal-insulator-semiconductor nanocapacitor (nano-MIS capacitor) that is formed by tip and sample. A highly integrated monolithic silicon PIN diode with a 3D architecture is analysed. sMIM measurements of the different layers of the PIN diode are presented and discussed in terms of detection mechanism, sensitivity, and precision. In the second part, supported by analytic calculations of the equivalent nano-MIS capacitor, a new multidimensional approach, including a complete parametric investigation, is performed with a dynamic spectroscopy method. The results emphasize the strong impact, in terms of distinction and location, of the applied bias on the local sMIM measurements for both FEOL and BEOL layers.

An implementation of pump–probe Kelvin probe force microscopy (pp-KPFM) is reported that enables recording the time-resolved surface potential in single-point mode or over a 2D grid. The spectroscopic data are acquired in open z-loop configuration, which simplifies the pp-KPFM operation. The validity of the implementation is probed by measurements using electrical pumping. The dynamical photoresponse of a bulk heterojunction solar cell based on PTB7 and PC71BM is subsequently investigated by recording point-spectroscopy curves as a function of the optical power at the cathode and by mapping 2D time-resolved images of the surface photovoltage of the bare organic active layer.

International audience; The long-lasting make-up was created to avoid migration of the product on the skin throughout the day. Currently, the formulation technology most commonly used to obtain it is based on the use of film-forming agents with volatile oils. However, with the growing trend in natural cosmetics, petroleum-based volatile compounds are increasingly being abandoned. The objective of this study is to determine whether a mixture of plant-based butters can be chosen to replace a mixture of volatile oil and synthetic wax in a long-lasting eyeshadow. Initial comparisons were made between two jojoba butters and a wax/volatile oil mixture in order to identify the best candidate to replace the latter. Then, the best candidate was incorporated into formula and finished formulas were compared using sensory evaluation, rheology and X-ray scattering. The results show that it is possible to preserve texture, rheological properties and structural organization of a formula by replacing a wax/oil mixture with vegetable butters. However, this does not mean that the formulas will behave the same on the eyelids over time. This work illustrates the real complexity faced by formulators when they must replace one raw material with another while guaranteeing the durability of all the product's properties. This challenge is more relevant today as consumer demand for products based on natural ingredients is growing.

Objectives: Proton minibeam radiation therapy (pMBRT) is a novel therapeutic strategy that combines the benefits of proton therapy with the remarkable normal tissue preservation observed with the use of submillimetric spatially fractionated beams. This promising technique has been implemented at the Institut Curie-Proton therapy centre (ICPO) using a first prototype of a multislit collimator. The purpose of this work was to develop a Monte Carlo-based dose calculation engine to reliably guide preclinical studies at ICPO. Methods: The whole “Y1”-passive beamline at the ICPO, including pMBRT implementation, was modelled using the Monte Carlo GATE v. 7.0 code. A clinically relevant proton energy (100 MeV) was used as starting point. Minibeam generation by means of the brass collimator used in the first experiments was modelled. A virtual source was modelled at the exit of the beamline nozzle and outcomes were compared with dosimetric measurements performed with EBT3 gafchromic films and a diamond detector in water. Dose distributions were recorded in a water phantom and in rat CT images (7-week-old male Fischer rats). Results: The dose calculation engine was benchmarked against experimental data and was then used to assess dose distributions in CT images of a rat, resulting from different irradiation configurations used in several experiments. It reduced computational time by an order of magnitude. This allows us to speed up simulations for in vivo trials, where we obtained peak-to-valley dose ratios of 1.20 ± 0.05 and 6.1 ± 0.2 for proton minibeam irradiations targeting the tumour and crossing the rat head. Tumour eradication was observed in the 67 and 22% of the animals treated respectively. Conclusion: A Monte Carlo dose calculation engine for pMBRT implementation with mechanical collimation has been developed. This tool can be used to guide and interpret the results of in vivo trials. Advances in knowledge: This is the first Monte Carlo dose engine for pMBRT that is being used to guide preclinical trials in a clinical proton therapy centre.

In the field of ischemic cerebral injury, precise characterization of neurovascular hemodynamic is required to select candidates for reperfusion treatments. It is thus admitted that advanced imaging-based approaches would be able to better diagnose and prognose those patients and would contribute to better clinical care. Current imaging modalities like MRI allow a precise diagnostic of cerebral injury but suffer from limited availability and transportability. The recently developed ultrafast ultrasound could be a powerful tool to perform emergency imaging and long term follow-up of cerebral perfusion, which could, in combination with MRI, improve imaging solutions for neuroradiologists. Methods: In this study, in a model of in situ thromboembolic stroke in mice, we compared a control group of non-treated mice (N=10) with a group receiving the gold standard pharmacological stroke therapy (N=9). We combined the established tool of magnetic resonance imaging (7T MRI) with two innovative ultrafast ultrasound methods, ultrafast Doppler and Ultrasound Localization Microscopy, to image the cerebral blood volumes at early and late times after stroke onset and compare with the formation of ischemic lesions. Results: Our study shows that ultrafast ultrasound can be used through the mouse skull to monitor cerebral perfusion during ischemic stroke. In our data, the monitoring of the reperfusion following thrombolytic within the first 2 h post stroke onset matches ischemic lesions measured 24 h. Moreover, similar results can be made with Ultrasound Localization Microscopy which could make it applicable to human patients in the future. Conclusion: We thus provide the proof of concept that in a mouse model of thromboembolic stroke with an intact skull, early ultrafast ultrasound can be indicative of responses to treatment and cerebral tissue fates following stroke. It brings new tools to study ischemic stroke in preclinical models and is the first step prior translation to the clinical settings.

High-density polyethylene (HDPE)-based nanocomposites incorporating three different types of graphene nanoplatelets (GnPs) were fabricated to investigate the size effects of GnPs in terms of both lateral size and thickness on the morphological, thermal, electrical, and mechanical properties. the results show that the inclusion of GnPs enhance the thermal, electrical, and mechanical properties of HDPE-based nanocomposites regardless of GnP size. Nevertheless, the most significant enhancement of the thermal and electrical conductivities and the lowest electrical percolation threshold were achieved with GnPs of a larger lateral size. This could have been attributed to the fact that the GnPs of larger lateral size exhibited a better dispersion in HDPE and formed conductive pathways easily observable in scanning electron microscope (SEM) images. Our results show that the lateral size of GnPs was a more regulating factor for the above-mentioned nanocomposite properties compared to their thickness. For a given lateral size, thinner GnPs showed significantly higher electrical conductivity and a lower percolation threshold than thicker ones. on the other hand, in terms of thermal conductivity, a remarkable amount of enhancement was observed only above a certain filler concentration. the results demonstrate that GnPs with smaller lateral size and larger thickness lead to lower enhancement of the samples' mechanical properties due to poorer dispersion compared to the others. in addition, the size of the GnPs had no considerable effect on the melting and crystallization properties of the HDPE/GnP nanocomposites., Science Grant Agency VEGAVedecka grantova agentura MSVVaS SR a SAV (VEGA) [2/0010/18, 2/0093/16], This work was partially supported by the Science Grant Agency VEGA, project no. 2/0010/18, and 2/0093/16 (Slovakia).

DABAM, an open-source database of X-ray mirrors metrology to be used with ray-tracing and wave-propagation codes for simulating the effect of the surface errors on the performance of a synchrotron radiation beamline., An open-source database containing metrology data for X-ray mirrors is presented. It makes available metrology data (mirror heights and slopes profiles) that can be used with simulation tools for calculating the effects of optical surface errors in the performances of an optical instrument, such as a synchrotron beamline. A typical case is the degradation of the intensity profile at the focal position in a beamline due to mirror surface errors. This database for metrology (DABAM) aims to provide to the users of simulation tools the data of real mirrors. The data included in the database are described in this paper, with details of how the mirror parameters are stored. An accompanying software is provided to allow simple access and processing of these data, calculate the most usual statistical parameters, and also include the option of creating input files for most used simulation codes. Some optics simulations are presented and discussed to illustrate the real use of the profiles from the database.

In Table 2 of this Full Paper, the units for the turnover frequencies (TOF) are given as 10-13 s-1. The correct units for the TOF are 10-3 s-1. The authors and editorial office apologize for the oversight.

High-performance wood materials have attracted significant attention in recent years because of excellent property profiles achieved by relatively easy top-down processing of a renewable resource. A crucial flaw of the renewable wood scaffolds is the low flame retardancy, which we tackled by bioinspired mineralization in an eco-friendly processing step. The formation of the biomineral struvite, commonly found in urinary tract stones, was used for the infiltration of hierarchical wood structures with the necessary ions followed by an in situ synthesis of struvite by ammonium steam fumigation. Struvite decomposes prior to wood, which absorbs heat and releases nonflammable gas and amorphous MgHPO4 resulting from the degradation, which promotes insulating char formation. As a result, the mineralized wood can hardly be ignited and the treatment strongly suppresses the heat release rate and smoke production.

International audience; Speckle contrast imaging allows in vivo imaging of relative blood flow changes. Multiple exposure speckle imaging (MESI) is more accurate than the standard single-exposure method since it allows separating the contribution of the static and moving scatters of the recorded speckle patterns. MESI requires experimental validation on phantoms prior to in vivo experiments to ensure the proper calibration of the system and the robustness of the model. The data analysis relies on the calculation of the speckle contrast for each exposure and a subsequent nonlinear fit to the MESI model to extract the scatterers correlation time and the relative contribution of moving scatters. We have designed two multichannel polydimethylsiloxane chips to study the influence of multiple and static scattering on the accuracy of MESI quantitation. We also propose a method based on standard C++ libraries to implement a computationally efficient analysis of the MESI data. Finally, the system was used to obtain in vivo hemodynamic data on two distinct sensory areas of the mice brain: the barrel cortex and the olfactory bulb.