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Four organic solid wastes (coffee grounds, ground nut shell, paper money sewage sludge and cork powder) have been investigated as bloating inducing agents in lightweight aggregate (LWA) manufacturing when mixed in small proportions (2.5 wt.%) with three types of clays. The pellets obtained were fired in a rotary kiln at the maximum feasible temperature for 4 min. A similar impact was observed both in the working conditions and in the properties of the LWAs, showing that the differences between said residues are not as decisive as those of the clays to which they are added. The organic wastes have played a crucial role in achieving reducing conditions inside the aggregate. Thus, their addition has led to substantial improvements both from an operational point of view, lowering the working temperature, and from a technological perspective, favoring bloating and the development of a highly porous and lightweight structure. Leachate studies have shown that the LWAs meet the regulatory limits. The outcomes of this investigation show that, in line with the precepts of the Circular Economy, the recovery of organic wastes of different nature can have a place in the production of environmentally friendly LWAs

This work was developed within the scope of project i3N (LA/P/0037/2020. I.P. N. F. Santos thanks i3N for the BPD Grant BPD/UI96/5177/2020. S. O. Pereira thanks i3N for the BPD Grant BPD/UI96/5808/2017. The authors also thank Jonas Deuermeier for the XPS measurements. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 Elsevier Ltd Laser-induced graphene from paper (paper-LIG) was applied in non-enzymatic electrochemical sensing of uric acid (UA) in human urine. Paper-LIG was formed by CO2 laser modification of paper into a 3D graphene arrangement. Kinetic analysis of paper-LIG electrodes returned effective heterogeneous electron transfer standard rate constants of 1.4 × 10−3 cm s−1 and 7.8 × 10−4 cm s−1 for [Ru(NH3)6]2+/3+ and [Fe(CN)6]4−/3− redox probes, respectively. These electrodes were able to detect and quantify uric acid in PBS within the 10–300 μM range at pH between 5.6 and 7.4. At pH 7.4, a linear response (R2 = 0.999) from 10 to 250 μM was achieved, with a limit of detection of 3.97 μM and a sensitivity of 0.363 μA cm−2 μM−1. Paper-LIG electrodes denoted adequate selectivity in synthetic urine as well as in ascorbic acid (AA) and dopamine (DA)-containing electrolytes. Determination of urinary UA content in human samples returned a concentration of c.a. 1.8–1.9 mM, within the range for healthy individuals. Recoveries of samples spiked with 50 and 100 μM UA were 100.6% and 95.4%, respectively, with satisfactory reproducibility and stability. These cheap, lightweight, flexible, and eco-friendly paper-LIG biosensors for non-enzymatic quantification of UA in human urine pave the way to widespread application in the detection of other important biomarkers. publishersversion published

Pseudoestrogene bisphenol A (BPA) can be important ingredient of thermochromic inks, increasingly used materials in thermal printing paper, security printing, advertising, design and as temperature indicators in medicine and food industry. BPA mass fraction in thermochromic inks can be up to several percent. Hence, disposal of items with thermochromic prints pose a risk of environmental pollution. In this work BPA mass fraction was monitored during anaerobic degradation of papers with thermochromic prints in soil in both matrices: papers and soil. The degradation conditions simulated deeper layers of waste at a landfill site. Six types of papers with prints of thermochromic ink containing 2% of BPA were subjected to anaerobic degradation over up to 150 days.

The current data on climate change and environmental degradation are dramatic. The consequences of these changes are already having a significant impact on people's health. Physicians - as advocates of the patients, but also as citizens - have an ethical obligation to be involved in efforts to stop these changes. The European Federation of Internal Medicine (EFIM) strongly encourages the Internal Medicine societies and internists across Europe to play an active role in matters related to climate change and environmental degradation. At a national level, this includes advocating the adoption of measures that reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and environmental degradation and contributing to policy decisions related to these issues. At a hospital level and in clinical practice, supporting actions by the health sector to reduce its ecological footprint is vital. At the level of EFIM and its associated internal societies, promoting educational activities and developing a toolkit to prepare internists to better care for citizens who suffer from the consequences of climate change. In addition to advocating and implementing effective actions to reduce the ecological footprint of the health industry, recommending the introduction of these themes in scientific programs of Internal Medicine meetings and congresses and the pre- and postgraduate medical training. At a personal level, internists must be active agents in advocating sustainable practices for the environment, increasing the awareness of the community about the health risks of climate change and environmental degradation, and being role models in the adoption of environmentally friendly behaviour.

Flexible inkjet-printed antenna is presented. The proposed antenna is designed on a synthetic paper substrate with an area of 35 × 40 mm2 to provide frequency bands for many popular wireless applications. Simulation and measurement are used to study the performances, including the frequency bands, radiation patterns, peak gains and efficiency, of the antenna in two severely bending conditions with a curvature radius of 20 mm in the forward and backward directions. The antenna printed in photo papers material could not be fully flexible due to cracks introduced to the coating material on the surface of the photo paper. Hence, the resin coated material was only suitable for curved devices. The synthetic paper material used in this paper does not have a resin coating, therefore, the antenna does not lose its flexibility and can be bent in both the forward and backward directions without any cracks. Results show that bending in these two conditions has insignificant effects on the performances of the antenna. With a curvature radius of 20 mm in the forward direction, the measured peak gain and efficiency of the antenna are in the ranges from −3 to +2 dBi and 40% to 60%, respectively. The results together with the low cost make the antenna most suitable for many flexible 5G communications devices.

Statement of problem Quick response (QR) codes are a fast and efficient technology for linking and accessing identifying information, and their use has been proposed in forensics. The heat resistance and esthetics of denture marking methods (DMMs) have been recommended by the American Dental Association (ADA), but studies on these aspects of printed QR codes are lacking. Purpose The purpose of this study was to determine the optimal printed material with QR codes for implementation as a DMM adjusted to the recommendations of the ADA. Material and methods The behavior of 4 types of paper, bond paper, fiberglass filter paper, ultralong hydroxyapatite nanowire paper, and polyolefin and silica paper with printed QR codes was analyzed. They were exposed to temperatures between 100 °C and 1000 °C in a heat muffle for 1 hour. Each specimen was subjected to both a morphological and a thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and scanned by using 3 different smartphones. Results The scans were positive for bond paper (33.3%), fiberglass fiber paper (50%), ultralong hydroxyapatite nanowire paper (100%), and polyolefin and silica paper (70.4%). The TGA revealed continuous decomposition curves (average 16.5 minutes at 624 °C). Conclusions Printed QR codes on ultralong hydroxyapatite nanowire paper appear to be suitable as information reservoirs, even surviving incineration, and may be implemented as a DMM conforming to the ADA recommendations.

Chronic pancreatitis is associated with impaired quality of life, high incidence of comorbidities, serious complications and mortality. Healthcare costs are exorbitant. Some medical societies have developed guidelines for treatment based on scientific evidence, but the gathered level of evidence for any individual topic is usually low and, therefore, recommendations tend to be vague or weak. In the present position papers on chronic pancreatitis from the Societat Catalana de Digestologia and the Societat Catalana de Pàncrees we aimed at providing defined position statements for the clinician based on updated review of published literature and on multidisciplinary expert agreement. The final goal is to propose the use of common terminology and rational diagnostic/therapeutic circuits based on current knowledge. To this end 51 sections related to chronic pancreatitis were reviewed by 21 specialists from 6 different fields to generate 88 statements altogether. Statements were designed to harmonize concepts or delineate recommendations. Part 2 of these paper series discuss topics on treatment and follow-up. The therapeutic approach should include assessment of etiological factors, clinical manifestations and complications. The complexity of these patients advocates for detailed evaluation in multidisciplinary committees where conservative, endoscopic, interventional radiology or surgical options are weighed. Specialized multidisciplinary units of Pancreatology should be constituted. Indications for surgery are refractory pain, local complications, and suspicion of malignancy. Enzyme replacement therapy is indicated if evidence of exocrine insufficiency or after pancreatic surgery. Response should be evaluated by nutritional parameters and assessment of symptoms. A follow-up program should be planned for every patient with chronic pancreatitis. © 2021 Elsevier España, S.L.U.

Objective The purpose of this study was to develop a natural language processing (NLP) pipeline to identify incidental thyroid nodules (ITNs) meeting criteria for sonographic follow-up and to assess both adherence rates to white paper recommendations and downstream outcomes related to these incidental findings. Methods 21583 non-contrast chest CT reports from 2017 and 2018 were retrospectively evaluated to identify reports which included either an explicit recommendation for thyroid ultrasound, a description of a nodule ≥ 1.5 cm, or description of a nodule with suspicious features. Reports from 2018 were used to train an NLP algorithm called fastText for automated identification of such reports. Algorithm performance was then evaluated on the 2017 reports. Next, any patient from 2017 with a report meeting criteria for ultrasound follow-up was further evaluated with manual chart review to determine follow-up adherence rates and nodule-related outcomes. Results NLP identified reports with ITNs meeting criteria for sonographic follow-up with an accuracy of 96.5% (95% CI 96.2-96.7) and sensitivity of 92.1% (95% CI 89.8-94.3). In 10006 chest CTs from 2017, ITN follow-up ultrasound was indicated according to white paper criteria in 81 patients (0.8%), explicitly recommended in 46.9% (38/81) of patients, and obtained in less than half of patients in which it was appropriately recommended (17/35, 48.6%). Discussion NLP accurately identified chest CT reports meeting criteria for ITN ultrasound follow-up. Radiologist adherence to white paper guidelines and subsequent referrer adherence to radiologist recommendations showed room for improvement.

Introduction The assessment of the risk of virus transmission through papers, such as postcards, is important. However, the stability of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and influenza A virus (IAV) on different types of papers is currently unknown. Investigation of the survival time of these viruses on different types of papers will provide insights into their risk of long-distance transport by postal items. Methods We evaluated the stability of SARS-CoV-2 and IAV, mixed with a culture medium, on the surface of postcards with various coatings, including plain paper (PP), inkjet paper (IP), and inkjet photo paper (IPP). The surface structure of each paper was microscopically assessed. Results The surface structures of PP, IP, and IPP varied greatly depending on the presence or absence, and type, of coat layer, regardless of the base material. IP and IPP surfaces were less conducive to virus survival than PP surfaces, because of the difference in surface shapes. The survival times of SARS-CoV-2 on each paper were approximately 59.8 (PP), 6.5 (IP), and 9.8 h (IPP), and significantly longer than those of IAV (10.3, 1.8, and 3.3 h, respectively). Conclusions The risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission via paper, such as postcards, is significantly higher than that of IAV transmission. While PP, IP, and IPP have the same base material, their surface structures differ, which affects viral stability. The IP and IPP surfaces are less suitable for virus survival. This study provides novel insights into the risks of viral transmission via paper.