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Granulation is an ancient and sophisticated decorative technique. The production of granules is a crucial part of this process but has rarely been studied. The present study employed three techniques—pouring method, heating method, and crucible method—to produce gold granules. The success ratio of granule formation, granule surface morphology, microstructure, and formation were analyzed to identify the techniques used in archaeological objects. The cooling medium significantly influenced small granule formation, microstructure, and grain size. Both heating and crucible methods could control the granule formation, but these methods produced distinct microstructures. Based on these experimental granules, the probable production methods of ancient gold balls were identified. The present study provided microscopic information for determining ancient gold granule production techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wound or injury can be defined as partial or complete separation of the skin, while the healing of the wounds is defined as the sequences of processes by which the skin heals and returns to its normal appearance. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of Laurus nobilis leaf extracts on the healing of open wounds in rabbits. Twenty‐four healthy rabbits were used, divided randomly into control and treated groups, each consisting of 12 rabbits. The rabbits were caused to experience circular wound defects (2.5 cm) in diameter. All animals in the control (C) group were left without treatment while those in the Laurus nobilis leaf extract group were treated with drops of the aqueous extract of Laurus nobilis in a dose of 200 mg/kg per day for 20 days. The results of macroscopic observation revealed that all animals in both groups showed equitable viability and good appetite, no mortality occurred, and no signs of infection. In the group with the Laurus nobilis extract, we noticed a significant improvement in wound‐healing activity and a reduction in the wound area at p ≤ 0.05 compared with the C group. Histopathological results at the end of the study show that the thick epidermal layer covers a mass of granulation with congested blood vessels and the dermis transforms into a denser layer gradually due to the improvements of the cellularity in the C group and also revealed a well‐formed skin appearance, widespread of collagen, and fibrosis within the dermis with an appearance near the normal dermis in the group treated with Laurus nobilis leaf extract. In conclusion, the results confirmed that using Laurus nobilis methanolic extract solution in a daily dose of 200 mg/kg promotes healing of open wounds in rabbits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Preharvest granulation of Imperial mandarins is a significant problem for the Australian market. Causes of, and solutions for, this physiological disorder are poorly understood despite decades of research worldwide. Aims: This research aimed to find management practices for growers to reduce granulation. Methods: A 5-year on-farm trial in central Queensland, Australia, compared standard versus deficit irrigation and five rates of winter nitrogen application. Key results: Reducing water (irrigation plus rainfall) in the 16–18 weeks following flowering reduced granulation in 3 of 5 years. Granulation increases with ratio of total water received to evapotranspiration, particularly in low crop load years. Higher nitrogen applications reduced granulation in 4 of 5 years, although treatment means were only significantly different at α = 0.05 in 1 year. Granulation increased with stronger early spring flush growth in a low crop load year and with later spring flush growth in one of two high crop load years. The deficit irrigation treatment had less spring flush growth and higher fruit set than the control in all years. Higher nitrogen treatments had more flush growth in high crop load years and less in low crop load years. Our data suggests competition between flush growth and fruit development for mineral resources and/or carbohydrates is a factor in the variability of granulation from fruit to fruit, but crop load is more important. Conclusions: The three key strategies to minimise granulation are to maintain high crop loads, reduce irrigation after flowering, and apply sufficient nitrogen in winter. Implications: This research will improve fruit quality for the consumer and financial returns to growers. Granulation, a physiological disorder in which citrus fruit are white, dry and tasteless, is a significant problem for Imperial mandarins in Australia. We discovered that excessive irrigation and insufficient nitrogen fertilisation are important causes of granulation and three key strategies to minimise granulation are to maintain high crop loads, reduce irrigation after flowering, and apply sufficient nitrogen in winter. This research will improve fruit quality for the consumer and financial returns to growers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aimed to evaluate the pneumatization status of the mastoid air cells in general with the depth and status of mastoid antrum in particular, in patients of chronic otitis media (COM). This is an observational cross-sectional study in sample size of 60 participants with large, subtotal perforation and posterosuperior retraction pocket (PSRP). Mean age with large central and subtotal perforation combined was 35.78 years, compared to 32.13 years in PSRP. Granulations seen in antrum in 71.6% and cholesteatoma observed in 15%. Mean depth of the mastoid antrum was 17.27 mm. A well pneumatized mastoid in 21.6%, diploic 28.3% and sclerotic in 50% was noted in this study. Chronic otitis media affects temporal bone pneumatization, particularly the mastoid antrum. Our findings indicate that the depth of the mastoid antrum is slightly greater in cholesteatoma cases due to bone erosion. As early intervention enhances postoperative quality of life by preserving or restoring auditory function, understanding the mastoid pneumatization and antrum depth is crucial for managing chronic otitis media effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A bibliometric analysis concluded that the evaluation of post-operative outcomes of endoscopic dacryocystorhinostomy in Indonesia had yet to be done. Hence, this study aims to assess the postoperative outcomes of endoscopic dacryocystorhinostomy, focusing on ostium granulation, intranasal synechiae, membranous obstruction, and ostium stenosis after a three-month follow-up in our Indonesian center. A longitudinal study (2017–2023) at our Indonesian center included cases with a minimum of three-month follow-up. Nasal endoscopy assessed ostium granulation, intranasal synechiae, membranous obstruction, and ostium stenosis. 28 cases were successfully followed up for three months. At three months, ostium granulation was present in 42.9% of cases, membranous obstruction in 14.3% of cases, with no intranasal synechiae or ostium stenosis observed. Out of 28 cases, 13 were successfully followed for six months, revealing ostium granulation in 7.7%, membranous obstruction in 38.5%, and ostium stenosis in 23.1%. Ostium granulation predominates, followed by membranous obstruction at three-month follow-up. Ostium stenosis, a minimal occurrence, manifests after six months. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Synthesis of complex oxide ceramic materials in a fast electron beam is discussed. Powder reagents, along with irradiation, are exposed to air currents, which prevent gases and particles from entering the accelerator. To keep ultrafine powder mixtures in the irradiation zone, they were granulated. Two methods for granulation of an ultrafine powder with the composition 80 wt % Al2O3 + 20 wt % (ZrO2–3Y2O3) were used. The first method involved moistening, drying, and subsequent sifting through a coarse sieve. In the second method, the powder mixture was supplemented with a binding additive, which gave a stable volumetric shape to the sample. For the granulation methods used, the features of short-term heating of the oxide powders in air with a fast electron beam with energy of 2 MeV and the zirconia corundum synthesis under these conditions were studied. Granulation of the ultrafine powder made it possible to minimize its weight loss under irradiation. During irradiation of the powder mass, the latter was locally melted, which was accompanied by an intense gas release leading to the formation of hollow ceramic droplets. It has been shown by X-ray diffraction analysis that the oxides do not mutually dissolve in the droplet walls and the recrystallization processes are accompanied by the formation of cubic aluminum oxide microcrystallites and the transition of aluminum oxide in them from the monoclinic to corundum phase. The presence of microcrystallites of evenly distributed fine zirconia dioxide particles in the intergrain spacings indicates the synthesis of zirconia corundum under irradiation. At the same time, the phase composition of zirconium dioxide after irradiation does not change as compared with the initial powder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The palm oil industry has contributed substantially to environmental pollution due to the large volume of oil extraction by-products known as palm oil mill effluents (POME). Compared to several industrial effluents, POME is about 100 times more contaminated in terms of biochemical and chemical oxygen demand. Aerobic granular sludge technology is considered a more effective method for treating POME than traditional activated sludge systems. Nonetheless, the lengthy start-up phase of the granulation process is a significant disadvantage of this method. In this study, eco-eco-enzymes, a multifunctional liquid with high enzymatic activity, was tested to potentially accelerate the initial growth of granules. The study utilized a 5-set of 1-L bioreactors operated simultaneously, and samples were taken every 5 h for granulation and removal performance analysis. The results showed that the Spinach eco-enzyme had the highest potential to enhance initial granulation, with the highest surface hydrophobicity (52.6%), aggregation (80.7%), and settling performance (54.03 mL/g SS SVI) compared to banana, orange, and mango. Additionally, the Spinach eco-enzyme was the most efficient in removing total phosphorus, total ammonia nitrogen, and chemical oxygen demand (COD), with an 80%, 91.4%, and 70.4% respectively. These findings suggest that eco-enzymes, particularly the Spinach eco-enzyme, have the potential to act as a secondary treatment for treating POME with excellent initial granulation performance compared to banana, orange and mango eco-enzyme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two MOX powders containing 11 mol% Pu/(U+Pu) have been synthesized using the freeze granulation or dry-cogrinding routes. The sintering behaviour of green compacts has been investigated up to 1700 °C in an Ar/4.3 vol% H 2 humidified with 1200 vpm H 2 O. The evolution of the sintering trajectory (grain size as a function of relative density) is identical up to approximately 94% relative density. Above this value, grain growth becomes significant in compacts made with the powder obtained by freeze granulation and densification becomes more modest. As for it, the sintering trajectory relating to the compacts shaped from the co-grinded powder continues up to approximately 97.5% relative density, without remarkable grain growth. Beyond this value, grain growth occurs and densification slows down. It has also been shown that the plutonium distribution is more homogeneous in the case of a sample sintered from the powder obtained by freeze-granulation (relative density around 97–99%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At present, the biphasic Li 2 TiO 3 –Li 4 SiO 4 ceramic pebbles with high lithium content and crushing load have been viewed as promising tritium breeders for maintaining the safety-state operation of the D-T fusion reactor. The tritium release behavior of Li 2 TiO 3 –Li 4 SiO 4 ceramic pebbles fabricated by centrifugal granulation method was investigated by using the Thermal Desorption Spectroscopy apparatus at Shizuoka University. It can be found that the Li 2 TiO 3 –Li 4 SiO 4 ceramic pebbles show three tritium release peaks, and most of the tritium was released as HTO observed from T-TDS spectra, and the peaks at 581 K and 734 K are mainly due to tritium release from Li 2 TiO 3 in core and shell. The peak at 813 K is mainly deemed as tritium release derived from the Li 4 SiO 4 shell. The content of tritium release from biphasic Li 2 TiO 3 –Li 4 SiO 4 ceramic is up to 11.5 MBq g−1, but the amount of gas species (HT) is only 0.126 MBq g−1. Besides, the isothermal heating experiment showed that the tritium release behavior was subject to diffusion process and de-trapping in defect sites. At the same time, the irradiation defects of E′-center, O-related center, and Ti3+ for breeding material can be found by using an ESR device, and the isochronous heating experiments have manifested that the amount of irradiated defect decreases as heating temperature increases, which indicates that the tritium release behavior is closely related to defect annihilation process. Therefore, the advanced Li 2 TiO 3 –Li 4 SiO 4 ceramic breeder can be fabricated based on tritium release result, which will be conducive to meet the practical application of breeder in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four control systems are generated using Matlab software based on different regulators for the granulation process in a fluidized bed: PID controller and optimal LQR for linear systems and MPC and those based on fuzzy logic for nonlinear systems. For each control system, transient characteristics are obtained and system efficiency indicators are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a systematic and automatic approach for integrating tableting reduced-order models with upstream unit operations. The approach not only identifies the upstream critical material attributes and process parameters that describe the coupling to the first order and, possibly, the second order, but it also selects the mathematical form of such coupling and estimates its parameters. Specifically, we propose that the coupling can be generally described by normalized bivariate rational functions. We demonstrate this approach for dry granulation, a unit operation commonly used to enhance the flowability of pharmaceutical powders by increasing granule size distribution, which, inevitably, negatively impacts tabletability by reducing the particle porosity and imparting plastic work. Granules of different densities and size distributions are made with a 10% w/w acetaminophen and 90% w/w microcrystalline cellulose formulation, and tablets with a wide range of relative densities are fabricated. This approach is based on product and process understanding, and, in turn, it is not only essential to enabling the end-to-end integration, control, and optimization of dry granulation and tableting processes, but it also offers insight into the granule properties that have a dominant effect on each of the four stages of powder compaction, namely die filling, compaction, unloading, and ejection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an effective method for uncertain knowledge discovery and decision-making, the three-way decisions model has attracted extensive attention from scholars. However, in practice, the existing sequential three-way decision model often faces challenges due to factors such as missing data and unbalanced attribute granularity. To address these issues, we propose an intuitionistic fuzzy sequential three-way decision (IFSTWD) model, which introduces several significant contributions: (1) New intuitionistic fuzzy similarity relations. By integrating possibility theory, our model defines similarity and dissimilarity in incomplete information systems, establishing new intuitionistic fuzzy similarity relations and their cut relations. (2) Granulation method innovation. We propose a density neighborhood-based granulation method to partition decision attributes and introduce a novel criterion for evaluating attribute importance. (3) Enhanced decision process. By incorporating sequential three-way decision theory and developing a multi-level granularity structure, our model replaces the traditional equivalent relation in the decision-theoretic rough sets model, thus advancing the model's applicability and effectiveness. The practical utility of our model is demonstrated through an example analysis of "Chinese + vocational skills" talent competency and validated through simulation experiments on the UCI dataset, showing superior performance compared to existing methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Upscaling of the laboratory oxygen carriers while keeping comparable performance as laboratory powders remains a challenge in the field of chemical looping combustion (CLC). In this work, two perovskite compositions of CaMn0.375Ti0.5Fe0.125O3 (termed CMTF8341) and CaMn0.5Ti0.375Fe0.125O3 (CMTF8431) have been fabricated by means of spray granulation. The fabricated granules were evaluated by redox cycles under CLC conditions and showed comparable performance with laboratory-prepared powders, i.e. high oxygen transfer capacity and fast redox kinetics. Under chemical looping oxygen uncoupling (CLOU) conditions, it has been found that steam leads to a slower kinetics and lower oxygen transfer capacity for these two compositions. When it comes to sulphur effect on the oxygen carriers, redox cycles with deep reduction showed no influence with H2S since the CaSO4 formed in air decompose but it affected the materials under mild CLOU due to calcium sulphate formed under such condition. Nonetheless, redox performance can be recovered by deep reduction with an enhanced oxygen capacity. These two oxygen carriers showed no degradation as compared to other tested minerals in the field of CLC. Microstructure analyses from SEM showed high degree of structure integrity after redox cycles at temperatures up to 1050 °C for the CMTF8341. Good mechanical strength was evidenced from cold attrition test, and the lifetime of the two granules was also predicted based on a standard reference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The microwave ignition holds potential in the ignition of weapons due to its simple structure, non-contact property, and simultaneous ignitions of large area. However, the long ignition delay time of the current ignition agents cannot meet the microwave weaponry advancements. To address the issues, a microwave sensitive oxide-CuFe 2 O 4 (CUFO) which was firstly discovered to be easily ignited by microwaves compared many ferrites, was coupled with Ti nanoparticles (n-Ti) to form Ti/CUFO microwave ignition agents by electrostatic spray granulation. The characterization of microwave ignition, volumetric combustion, burning rate and DSC were used to determine its ignition delay time and the energy release properties. It indicates that the microwave sensitivity, maximum peak pressure and pressure pressurization rate of Ti/CUFO first increases and then decreases with the promoting content of n-Ti. The Ti/CUFO at Φ = 3.5 exhibits the lowest ignition delay time by 79.24 ms compared to the 98.7 ms of n-Ti, meanwhile, its maximum peak pressure and pressurization rate reach the highest by 338.54 kPa and 8.57 kPa/ms, respectively. The DSC results indicate that Ti/CUFO exhibits much lower reaction peak temperature by 320–335 °C compared to 488 °C of n-Ti, which suggests Ti-CUFO reaction maybe much easier be activated. The dielectric loss of n-Ti and CUFO under strong electric field transfer the energy of microwaves to heat, reaching to its reaction temperature. The XPS and XRD results of CUFO after microwave radiation disclosing the crystal transition, formation of divalent iron and oxygen vacancies, as well as the released bright light under microwave radiation, suggest the thermal breakdown mechanism of CUFO. When Ti/CUFO exposes into microwaves, CUFO generates oxygen vacancies due to heat loss and n-Ti is dielectric heated, followed by the generated oxygen reacting with n-Ti, improving the combustion performance of n-Ti. This result provides new insight for the designing of microwave ignition. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The physiological disorder of citrus granulation is one of the qualitative issues in consumer markets that is not visually detectable. One of the applicable methods for the non-destructive study of the internal tissue of agricultural products is the visible and near-infrared spectroscopy technique. In this research, the VIS/NIR signals in the wavelength range of 200-1100 nanometers were recorded for each sample. Spectroscopy was performed on the samples With contact. Then, the amount of reflectance was calculated in the interaction mode, and absorption spectra were normalized using the Min-Max method. Subsequently, the recorded spectra were smoothed by the moving average (MA) method, the Stavisky-Golay algorithm was applied to each spectrum, and seven statistical features were extracted from each spectrum. Five levels were defined to show the intensity and amount of granulation in the internal tissue of oranges, including levels A, B, C, D, and E. The degree of granulation of each sample was defined based on the dryness and appearance of the dried area using a destructive method. Support vector regression (SVR) and support vector machine (SVM) were used to estimate oranges' moisture content and detect granulation levels in oranges, respectively. The results showed that with the increase and development of the intensity of granulation, the juice bags become harder, drier, and bigger. Their water content decreased; the highest moisture content of oranges was 90.97% in the state without granulated lesions, and the lowest was 83.36% in the state where more than 75% of its tissue was granulated. Also, the examination of ViS-NIR spectra showed that with the development of granulation in oranges, the absorption in the 400-950 nanometer range significantly decreased, and the difference in absorption intensity for different levels of granulation was maximum in the 570-850 nanometer range. Granulation level detection results showed that the overall accuracy of the support vector machine for linear, polynomial, and Gaussian radial kernels was 92.50%, 96.50%, and 95.00%, respectively. The sensitivity of SVM with polynomial kernel in detecting the levels A, B, C, D, and E granulation were equal to 98.0%, 91.40%, 97.30%, 96.80%, and 95.70%, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The research aims to develop and evaluate an immediate-release dosage form of sapropterin dihydrochloride to improve efficacy, stability, and patient acceptance in treating hyperphenylalaninemia (HPA), ensuring rapid therapeutic action upon administration. Formulation development began with a pre-formulation study to evaluate drug-excipient compatibility, solubility, and compressibility, followed by feasibility trials to create a prototype formulation. Dissolution tests and optimization methods, including DoE and OFAT, were employed to refine the formulation based on critical quality attributes. Process optimization involved identifying and fine-tuning critical parameters through sequential unit operations and risk assessments, ensuring uniformity and quality during scale-up for commercial production. The prototype formulation development for a tablet product based on the reference product Kuvan involved strategic excipient selection to meet critical quality attributes (CQA) and mitigate concerns like mottling. The formulation deviates from the reference by using LH 21 as a binder, colloidal silicon dioxide as a glidant, and omitting anhydrous dibasic calcium phosphate, with Mannitol SD (Pearlitol 200) chosen for its flowability and compressibility. The feasibility trial aimed at achieving pharmaceutical equivalence to Kuvan tablets, focusing on bioequivalence, stability, and API distribution, and involved top spray fluid bed granulation with roller compaction and blending identified as high-risk steps. Optimization of tablet formulation considered drug substance particle size, blend ratios, and excipient selection, with adjustments in intra and extra-granular ratios significantly impacting tablet characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four control systems are generated using Matlab software based on different controllers for the granulation process in a fluidized bed: controllers for linear systems — PID and optimal LQR, controllers for nonlinear systems — MPC and those based on fuzzy logic. For each control system, transient characteristics are obtained and system efficiency indicators are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The process of obtaining powders from the 5–50 μm fraction of a W-Ni-Fe system consisting of particles with predominantly spherical shapes was investigated. Experimental studies on the plasma–chemical synthesis of a nanopowder composed of WNiFe-90 were carried out in a plasma reactor with a confined jet flow. A mixture of tungsten trioxide, nickel oxide, and iron oxide powders interacted with a flow of hydrogen-containing plasma generated in an electric-arc plasma torch. The parameters of the spray-drying process and the composition of a suspension consisting of WNiFe-90 nanoparticles were determined, which provided mechanically strong nanopowder microgranules with a rounded shape and a homogeneous internal structure that contained no cavities. The yield of the granule fraction under 50 μm was 60%. The influence of the process parameters of the plasma treatment of the nanopowder microgranules in the thermal plasma flow on the degree of spheroidization and the microstructure of the obtained particles, seen as their bulk density and fluidity, was established. It was shown that the plasma spheroidization of the microgranules of the W-Ni-Fe system promoted the formation of a submicron internal structure in the obtained spherical particles, which were characterized by an average tungsten grain size of 0.7 μm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aimed to fingerprint the physical manufacturing properties of five commonly used acid sources in effervescent systems for designing the formulation and process of such systems. The hygroscopicity, texture properties, rheological torque, compressibility, tabletability, etc., were investigated to inspect 'powder direct compression (DC)' and 'wet granulation and compression' properties of citric (CA), tartaric (TA), malic (MA), fumaric (FA), and adipic acid (AA). The DC ability was evaluated by the SeDeM expert system. The results indicated that all acid powders failed to meet flowability requirements for DC, and plastic deformation dominated during compression. Furthermore, CA exhibited strong hygroscopicity and punch sticking, while MA demonstrated the best tabletability. TA had a large wet granulation space and was relatively the most suitable for DC. AA was extremely hygroscopic, and its flowability improved significantly as particle size increased. Finally, FA displayed the lowest hygroscopicity and ejection force as well as great compressibility and wet granulation space, and did not exhibit punch sticking, while the granule fragments dissolved slowly during disintegration. Generally speaking, the formulation or granulation affected the tabletability, indicating that pairing with other acids or suitable fillers could potentially improve its disadvantages. These multidimensional assessments effectively reduce the pre-exploration and enhance the efficiency of the development of effervescent systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The work presents the concept of aerobic granular sludge (AGS) and its potential for wastewater treatment. The work also evaluates the condition of the SBR (Sequencing Batch Reactor) type of municipal wastewater-treatment plant (WWTP) after its reconstruction into a system with AGS. The WWTP parameters achieved before and after reconstruction were compared. Operational measurements of the process during the individual phases of the treatment process showed a balanced concentration profile of the monitored parameters in the span of the semicontinuous cycle. Laboratory tests showed that the sludge from the WWTP has nitrification and denitrification rates comparable to the rates achieved for flocculent sludge, and it is also comparable to the nitrification and denitrification rates of AGS with size of granules below 400 µm. Despite the fact that complete sludge granulation was not achieved, the results measured at the WWTP confirmed the advantages of the AGS concept. Neither anaerobic nor anoxic conditions were identified in the SBR during the individual phases of operation, yet high removal efficiencies of ammonia and nitrate nitrogen and orthophosphate phosphorus were achieved. The concentration of ammonia and nitrate nitrogen at the WWTP effluent was below 5 mg/L, and the concentration of phosphorus was below 0.5 mg/L. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Granulation is the critical process for the pharmaceutical development of poorly water-soluble drug products. Poorly formulated products have challenges in dissolution and bioequivalence studies. Rivaroxaban (RXB) is a poorly soluble drug and has 66% fasting bioavailability at a high strength of 20 mg. Establishing the bioequivalence between test and reference products for high strength requires comparative dissolution profiles and bioequivalence. Improper granulation products and the rest of the batches failed in virtual bioequivalence. The present study provided insight into the optimization of the wet granulation process for manufacturing RXB generic immediate-release tablets using PBPK modeling and simulations. Furthermore, PBPK models are not only useful for formulation optimization but also for process optimization during pharmaceutical product development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Resistance to first-generation somatostatin receptor ligand (fgSRL) treatment in acromegaly is common, making the identification of biomarkers that predict fgSRL response a desired goal. We conducted a retrospective analysis on 21 patients with acromegaly who underwent surgery and subsequent pharmacological treatment. Through immunohistochemistry (IHC), we assessed the expression of the somatostatin receptor subtypes SSTR2 and SSTR5, E-Cadherin, and cytokeratin granulation pattern (sparsely or densely). Patients were divided into responders and non-responders based on their biochemical response to fgSRL and/or the newer agent, Pasireotide, or the GH-blocker, Pegvisomant. Patients resistant to fgSRL (n = 12) exhibited lower SSTR2 and E-Cadherin expressions. Sparsely granulated tumors were more frequent in the non-responder group. SSTR2 (p = 0.024, r = 0.49) and E-Cadherin (p = 0.009, r = 0.64) positively correlated with the Insulin-like Growth Factor 1 (IGF-1) decrease after fgSRL, while SSTR5 (p = 0.107, r = −0.37) showed a trend towards negative correlation. SSTR5 positivity seemed to be associated with Pasireotide response, albeit the number of treated patients was too low (n = 4). No IHC markers correlated with Pegvisomant response. Our findings suggest that densely granulated tumors, with positive SSTR2 and E-Cadherin seem to be associated with favorable fgSRL responses. The strongest predictive value of the studied markers was found for E-Cadherin, which seems to surpass even SSTR2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zirconia-toughened alumina (ZTA) ceramics have attracted much attention in the medical field as joint replacement materials due to their good mechanical properties and biocompatibility. However, the flexural strength of conventional ZTA is still slightly insufficient in traditional preparation techniques. In this study, by improving the slurry system, the effects of the solid content of the slurry, additives, and the pH of the slurry on the slurry system were investigated. ZTA powders with a uniform particle size distribution, high degree of sphericity and high flowability were prepared by spray granulation. The mechanical properties, microstructure and biocompatibility of the ZTA pressing were investigated after degreasing and sintering processes. The results showed that the hardness of the prepared ZTA ceramics was 1658.24 ± 28.04 H V, the fracture toughness was 4.016 ± 0.027 MPa m1/2, and the biaxial bending strength was 501.43 ± 21.44 MPa, and the three-point bending strength reached 635 MPa. The ZTA ceramics also possessed good biocompatibility and a low haemolysis rate, which aligns with the requirements of clinical biomedical implant materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study employs machine learning algorithms to analyze the bead foam extrusion process and to assess the impact of processing parameters, specifically focusing on their effects on bead foam density and melt pressure in under water granulation (UWG) for polylactic acid (PLA). These interrelated parameters, influenced by processing parameters such as temperature, screw speed, and blowing agent, possess challenges for traditional empirical methods to capture. The key factors that significantly impact the prediction of melt pressure in UWG are blowing agent, injector pressure, temperature in B‐extruder and die size. Likewise, essential parameters for predicting bead foam density comprise blowing agent, injector pressure, temperature in B‐extruder, die plate temperature, melt temperature in B‐extruder, and melt pressure in B‐extruder. Machine learning (ML) models were employed to forecast bead foam density and melt pressure in UWG using various processing parameters in PLA bead foam extrusion. The random forest model achieved a high coefficient of determination R2 score of 0.96 for predicting melt pressure in UWG. Additionally, the decision tree model demonstrated effective predictions for bead density, with the R2 score: 0.81. These ML models can be applied to diverse materials, leading to more sustainable, efficient processes for bead foam extrusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVES This study evaluated the effect of intratracheal administration of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) on tracheal healing following implantation of a novel layered polyglycolic acid (PGA) material to replace a critical-size defect in rat trachea. METHODS A critical-size defect in the rat cervical trachea was covered with PGA. Distilled water (DW) or 3.125, 6.25, 12.5 or 25 µg bFGF was administered into the trachea for 2 weeks (n  = 6 for each of 5 groups). Regenerated areas of cilia, ciliary beat frequency and ciliary transport function (CTF) in the centre of the PGA were measured. To examine potential side effects of intratracheal administration of bFGF, the right lower lobe was pathologically evaluated. RESULTS All rats survived during the study period. Histological examination showed ciliated epithelization on the PGA material after 2 weeks. Bronchoscopy revealed stenosis due to granulation following administration of high concentrations of bFGF (12.5 and 25 µg). Compared with the DW group, groups administered 3.125, 6.25, 12.5 and 25 µg bFGF had significantly larger areas of regenerated cilia (15.2%, 27.0%, 41.3%, 33.1% and 31.0%, respectively; P  = 0.00143), improved ciliary beat frequency (7.10, 8.18, 10.10, 9.50 and 9.50 Hz, respectively), and improved CTS (6.40, 9.54, 16.89, 16.41 and 14.29 µm/sec, respectively). Pathological examination of the right lower lobe revealed pulmonary fibrosis and hyperplasia with high concentrations of bFGF (12.5 and 25 µg). CONCLUSIONS Intratracheal administration of bFGF effectively promoted tracheal regeneration at an optimal dose of 6.25 µg following implantation of an artificial trachea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVES Our objective was to explore the safety and efficacy of a graphene oxide-loaded rapamycin-coated self-expandable metallic airway stent (GO@RAPA-SEMS) in a rabbit model. METHODS The dip coating method was used to develop a GO@RAPA-SEMS and a poly(lactic-co-glycolic)-acid loaded rapamycin-coated self-expandable metallic airway stent (PLGA@RAPA-SEMS). The surface structure was evaluated using a scanning electronic microscope. The in vitro drug-release profiles of the 2 stents were explored and compared. In the animal study, a total of 45 rabbits were randomly divided into 3 groups and underwent 3 kinds of stent placements. Computed tomography was performed to evaluate the degree of stenosis at 1, 2 and 3 months after the stent operation. Five rabbits in each group were sacrificed after the computed tomography scan. The stented trachea and blood were collected for further pathological analysis and laboratory testing. RESULTS The in vitro drug-release study revealed that GO@RAPA-SEMS exhibited a sudden release on the first day and maintained a certain release rate on the 14th day. The PLGA@RAPA-SEMS exhibited a longer sustained release time. All 45 rabbits underwent successful stent placement. Pathological results indicated that the granulation tissue thickness in the GO@RAPA-SEMS group was less than that in the PLGA@RAPA-SEMS group. The TUNEL and hypoxia-inducible factor-1α staining results support the fact that the granulation inhibition effect in the GO@RAPA-SEMS group was greater than that in the PLGA@RAPA-SEMS group. CONCLUSIONS GO@RAPA-SEMS effectively inhibited stent-related granulation tissue hyperplasia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Improvement to roller compaction model by considering roll speed dependency. • Model prediction and validation using literature and industrial data. • Built a custom model in gPROMS to incorporate the effect of mass throughput during process optimization and design. This study introduces a modification to the roller compaction model proposed by Sousa et al. 1 to account for the effect of roll speed on powder compaction in the dry granulation process. The proposed model enhances the prediction accuracy, particularly at higher roll speeds, which are often overlooked in existing models. The modified model is validated using literature data, demonstrating improved performance compared to the original model. Additionally, the model is applied to a pharmaceutical formulation, showing its applicability in an industrial context. The integration of the model into gPROMS allows for global sensitivity analysis and design space exploration, providing valuable insights for process optimization and scale-up. The study contributes to the understanding of roller compaction dynamics and offers a practical tool for decision-making in pharmaceutical manufacturing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This study has collected a database wide enough to demonstrate the validity of a correction factor that allows to accurately simulate the compaction behavior of multicomponent mixtures. • The possibility to apply a modelling approach to scale-up from compaction simulator to roller compaction would significantly improve the formulation development efficiency as it would avoid the need of performing experiments on the roller compactor itself. • One correction factor is identified as the optimal trade-off between the SF prediction accuracy on the roller compactor and its applicability to a wide range of formulations. Roll compaction (RC) is a cost-effective dry granulation method, widely implemented in the pharmaceutical industry. In early formulation development however, when the material availability is limited, being able to predict the most important parameters in RC, like gap width and specific compaction force (SCF), to obtain a target ribbon solid fraction (SF) would significantly improve the formulation development efficiency as it would avoid the need of performing experiments on the roller compactor itself. However, at the present state of things, experiments on RC mechanical simulators present an overestimation of the target SF, when compared to roller compactor SF values. Although numerous correction approaches have been developed to improve the predictive performance of different mathematical models applied to the simulation experimental results, no study has collected a database wide enough to demonstrate the validity of a correction factor that allows to accurately simulate the compaction behavior of multicomponent mixtures. Here, 25 different formulations at 40 % drug load are compacted at different SCFs, both on a RC mimicking device (Styl'One Evolution) and on an actual roller compactor (Gerteis Mini-Pactor): following a similar approach as Reimer et al. and implementing a simplified version of the Johanson's mathematical model, 4 different correction factors are calculated, depending on how their material properties and pressure dependencies are considered. In conclusion, one correction factor is identified as the optimal trade-off between the SF prediction accuracy on the Gerteis Mini-Pactor and its applicability to a wide range of formulations, as it is independent of the material properties. This finding is particularly relevant when applied to scale-up to this specific roller compactor or early development processes of new formulations that have not been mechanically characterized yet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key Clinical Message: Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) aided in the management of complex soft tissue injury in a 14‐year‐old girl by managing moisture, reducing oedema, and stimulating wound granulation less than 2 months after the accident and prepared the skin for skin grafting, thus successfully saving the limb. This case study describes the use of a tubular bandage encompassing the whole limb to deliver successful NPWT in the treatment and reconstruction of extensive soft tissue damage extending from the right lower extremity to the hip in a 14‐year‐old female. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Box‐Behnken design was used for the analysis using a gray wolf optimizer (GWO)‐coupled artificial neural network (ANN) model and response surface methodology (RSM) to analyze the effect of three operating parameters (volumetric exchange ratio [VER], aeration rate [AR], and cycle time [CT]) manipulated during an aerobic granular sludge process (AGS) sequencing batch reactor on modeling the removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD) in mixed wastewater. The most efficient architecture for COD showed the highest efficiency for modeling the AGS. The RSM model and plot results indicate that the CT and AR were the most influential on COD removal efficiency. When compared with models with statistical indices, GWO‐ANN demonstrated higher performance compared to RSM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several new Scorpio populations are studied from various habitats in Jordan, including specimens previously identified as Scorpio kruglovi Birula, 1910 and S. fuscus (Ehrenberg, 1829). A new scorpionid genus, Jordanius gen. n. is described, mainly differentiated from the genus Scorpio Linnaeus, 1758 by the elongation and heavy patterns of granulation of chela manus, and granulated chela fingers. Scorpio granulomanus Al-Saraireh et al., 2023 is transferred to the new genus, and Jordanius maysaraensis gen. et sp. n. is described. Also, Scorpio jordanensis sp. n. and S. wahbehi sp. n. are described. Detailed redescriptions and illustrations of S. palmatus (Ehrenberg, 1828) and S. fuscus (Ehrenberg, 1829) are given. A neotype of S. palmatus from Alexandria, Egypt and a neotype of S. fuscus from Lebanon are designated. A key to the family Scorpionidae in Jordan and comments on dubious or incorrect records from Jordan are provided. Lastly, S. propinquus is suggested as nomen dubium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: With advancements in respiratory interventional techniques, bronchoscopic intervention technology has emerged as a viable approach for managing postintubation tracheal stenosis (PITS). However, there was a paucity of research investigating the potential impact of stenosis characteristics and morphology (such as stenosis degree, length, type, and morphology) on bronchoscopic intervention treatment prognosis for PITS patients. This study was to assess the impact of various preoperative stenosis characteristic factors on the bronchoscopic cure rate among patients. Methods: This is a retrospective study analyzing the medical records of patients with PITS who received bronchoscopic intervention at the tertiary interventional pulmonology center. Results: Among the cases, 115 individuals achieved a in a success rate of 79.86% for bronchoscopic intervention therapy and were assigned to Group S. On the other hand, 29 cases required surgical intervention, accounting for a surgical treatment rate of 20.14% and were assigned to Group F. The stenosis in the Group F predominantly exhibited irregular shapes with scar granulation accompanied by tracheal chondromalacia collapse. Patients in group S experienced fewer total procedures, rigid bronchoscopy treatment, intraoperative hypoxemia, needed emergency re‐bronchoscopy in 24 h and transferred to ICU postoperatively. Patients with pure scar and granuloma, the rate of bronchoscopic success cure was higher than patients with scar granulation accompanied by tracheal chondromalacia (odds ratio: 8.208; 95% confidence interval: 2.755–24.459), and regular stenosis morphology was associated with a higher bronchoscopic success cure rate (odds ratio: 9.463; 95% confidence interval: 3.128–28.623). Conclusion: Irregular airway stenosis, chondromalacia or airway collapse are key factors affecting the success rate of bronchoscopic treatment for post‐intubation tracheal stenosis. Level of evidence: 4 (historically controlled studies). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

LR serves as a generalized linear classifier for binary classification in supervised learning, exhibiting characteristics of simplicity in structure, strong interpretability, and effective fitting when dealing with linear data. However, its classification performance becomes limited when confronted with high-dimensional, uncertain, and linearly inseparable data. To address the inherent limitations of logistic regression, this paper introduced the theory of granular computing and proposed a novel logistic regression model called rotating granular logistic regression (RGLR). This paper introduced the theory of rotating granulation, where different angles of rotation were applied to pairs of features forming a plane coordinate system. This process constructed rotating granules by rotating pairs of features at various angles on the plane coordinate system, and granulated to form rotating granule vectors on multiple plane coordinate systems. This paper further defined the size, measurement, and operational rules of granules, and proposed a loss function for rotating granular logistic regression. The optimized solution of the rotating granular logistic regression was obtained by solving the value of the loss function. Finally, experiments are conducted using multiple UCI datasets, and the results compared across various evaluation metrics, indicate the effectiveness of the rotating granular logistic regression model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Inorganic Chemicals Industry is the property of Editorial Office of Inorganic Chemicals Industry and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article aims to prepare a nitrogen, silicon, and phosphorus multiple synergistic high-efficiency flame retardant and study its application performance. Firstly, allyl substituted melamine was synthesized by melamine powder and allyl bromide. After copolymerizing it with vinyltrimethoxysilane, a nitrogen-silicon containing melamine copolymer was obtained. Using the equal volume impregnation method, a certain mass of Type I ammonium polyphosphate (I-APP) powder is mixed with an equal volume of nitrogen-silicon containing melamine copolymer solution to prepare nitrogen silicon flame retardant copolymer coated I-APP flame retardant (MAPP). Pre mix polypropylene(PP) with a certain mass fraction of I-APP or MAPP flame retardant, and then perform melt blending, extrusion, and granulation in a twin-screw extruder to prepare PP flame retardant composites. Mechanical and vertical combustion tests were conducted on PP flame-retardant composites. The results showed that when MAPP was added up to 20%, it could reach the V-0 flame retardant level, while pure I-APP, even with 30% addition, remained below the V-0 level and had lower mechanical properties. It can be seen that the compatibility of I-APP coated with nitrogen silicon copolymer is better, and the synergistic flame retardant efficiency among nitrogen, silicon, and phosphorus is higher. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Technology of Water Treatment is the property of Technology of Water Treatment Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Vanadis 4E (V4E) is a powder metallurgical cold work tool steel predominantly used in application with demand for wear resistance, high hardness, and toughness. It is of interest to have a processing route that enables full density starting from clean gas-atomized powder allowing component shaping capabilities. This study presents a process involving freeze granulation of powder to facilitate compaction by means of cold isostatic pressing, followed by sintering to allow for capsule-free hot isostatic pressing (HIP) and subsequent heat treatments of fully densified specimens. The sintering stage has been studied in particular, and it is shown how sintering in pure nitrogen at 1150 °C results in predominantly closed porosity, while sintering at 1200 °C gives near full density. Microstructural investigation shows that vanadium-rich carbonitride (MX) is formed as a result of the nitrogen uptake during sintering, with coarser appearance for the higher temperature. Nearly complete densification, approximately 7.80 ± 0.01 g/cm3, was achieved after sintering at 1200 °C, and after sintering at 1150 °C, followed by capsule-free HIP, hardening, and tempering. Irrespective of processing once the MX is formed, the nitrogen is locked into this phase and the austenite is stabilised, which means any tempering tends to result in a mixture of austenite and tempered martensite, the former being predominate during the sequential tempering, whereas martensite formation during cooling from austenitization temperatures becomes limited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of mechanical activation (MA) of the (100 – x)(Ti + C) + x(Ti + 2B) system on the characteristics of combustion of samples with different macrostructures—pressed compacts with a relative density of 0.53–0.6 and bulk density granules 0.6–1.6 mm in size—is studied. It is found that MA of powders leads to a gradual decrease in the combustion rate of pressed samples as the Ti + 2B content in the mixtures increases (a descending dependence), while an increase in the Ti + 2B content in compacts of nonactivated powders leads to an increase in the combustion rate (an ascending dependence). The obtained results contradict the theoretical ideas about the influence of MA on the combustion process, according to which the combustion rate should increase. One of the important factors influencing the change in the combustion rate is the release of impurity gases (IGs). For the first time, the influence of MA on the combustion patterns of granular mixtures is experimentally determined. It is found that the burning rates of granular mixtures are higher than those of powder mixtures for all the compositions studied. It is shown that granulated mixtures from an activated powder have a combustion rate that is on average 3 times higher than granules from a nonactivated powder, and the dependence of the combustion rate on the mass content of Ti + 2B has a local minimum, which is probably related to the peculiarities of the MA process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Salinity was considered to have effects on the characteristics, performance microbial communities of aerobic granular sludge. This study investigated granulation process with gradual increase of salt under different gradients. Two identical sequencing batch reactors were operated, while the influent of Ra and Rb was subjected to stepwise increments of NaCl concentrations (0–4 g/L and 0–10 g/L). The presence of filamentous bacteria may contribute to granules formed under lower salinity conditions, potentially leading to granules fragmentation. Excellent removal efficiency achieved in both reactors although there was a small accumulation of nitrite in Rb at later stages. The removal efficiencies of chemical oxygen demand (COD), total nitrogen (TN), and total phosphorus (TP) in Ra were 95.31%, 93.70% and 88.66%, while the corresponding removal efficiencies in Rb were 94.19%, 89.79% and 80.74%. Salinity stimulated extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) secretion and enriched EPS producing bacteria to help maintain the integrity and stability of the aerobic granules. Heterotrophic nitrifying bacteria were responsible for NH 4 +-N and NO 2 −-N oxidation of salinity systems and large number of denitrifying bacteria were detected, which ensure the high removal efficiency of TN in the systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ceramic injection molding (CIM) is a near-net-shape technology for the rapid manufacture of complex-shaped small parts. Preparation of thick-walled parts remains a challenge owing to the difficulty in debinding process for green body based on micron and irregular ceramic powders. In this study, spherical metal-ceramic composite powders with different particle sizes were prepared using a wet granulation method. NiFe 2 O 4 -based cermets with a thickness of 20 mm were fabricated using both spherical (SP) and non-spherical (NSP) powders as raw materials. Roles of the powder shapes in catalytic debinding and sintering behaviour were investigated. Compared with that of NSP, green body with SP exhibited improved debinding efficiency, due to the well developed pore channels. A new perspective was proposed to explain the mass transfer mechanism during the debinding process. The adoption of spherical composite powders significantly enhanced the debinding rate without affecting the sintering performance. After sintering, sound cermet parts with uniform microstructure and the highest relative density of 98.62 % were achieved. This provides an important reference for the fabrication of large and thick-walled parts by CIM via controlling the powders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Homogeneous sphere NiO-8YSZ composite powder with a narrow size distribution is significant for the fabrication of high-quality solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) anodes. In this study, spray drying was used to prepare evenly distributed and spherical NiO-8YSZ composite particles used for the fabrication of SOFC anodes. The result showed that the particles prepared with a solid content of 65 wt %, atomizing pressure of 60 kPa, drying temperature of 180 °C, and sintering at 1200 °C for 2 h exhibited the best holistic quality with high sphericity (90 % over 0.84), narrow size distribution (D 10 = 27.78 μm, D 90 = 45.49 μm), high collection rate (70 %), and low content of unstable phases. The influence of these main parameters on the quality of the prepared particles was investigated and discussed as well. It was found that the solid content and the atomizing pressure demonstrated opposite effects on the particle size, with the former showing a positive correlation and the latter showing a negative correlation. The drying temperature decided the agglomeration degree of the prepared powder, which was involved in the presence of grape-like particles. In addition, the collection rate appeared to be positively correlated with the solid content and the atomizing pressure. The atmospheric plasma sprayed coating fabricated using the sprayed-dried powder prepared with the optimal parameters demonstrated significantly improved micromorphology and structure when compared with the coating fabricated using the mechanical mixed composite powder, which proved the prominent advantage of the powder produced through this spray drying method. All these progresses were considered good instructions for the studies on powder granulation and its applications in manufacturing high-quality coating materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study compared an anaerobic baffled reactor (ABR) with a multi-staged UASB (MS-UASB) to investigate the effects of loading shocks on the anaerobic digestion in both reactors. Both reactors were subjected to five hydraulic/organic loading shocks, each lasting 3 days. During the hydraulic shock with the highest organic loading rate (OLR) (OLR of 24 g COD L−1 d−1), MS-UASB and ABR exhibited minimum effluent COD removal efficiency of 90.9 and 73.0%, with average methane concentrations decreasing to 62.4 ± 0.9% and 59.8 ± 3.0%. Under the highest organic shock (OLR of 12 g COD L−1 d−1), the minimum effluent COD removal efficiency of MS-UASB and ABR was 81.5 and 73.4%, with average methane concentrations decreasing to 60.4 ± 1.1% and 58.6 ± 0.8%. After the hydraulic and organic shock phase, the biomass concentration in the MS-UASB reached 159 and 130% of the ABR, respectively. The reason for the improved operational stability of the MS-UASB is due to the presence of the solid/liquid/gas separator, which promotes the formation of granular sludge and reduces biomass washout. In addition, MS-UASB exhibited a higher abundance of the syntrophic bacterium Candidatus cloacamonas, which plays a crucial role in maintaining the stability of anaerobic digestion systems. HIGHLIGHTS Application of MS-UASB to treat leachate from refuse transfer stations and comparison with ABR treatment performance.; The analysis of the sludge characteristics of ABR and MS-UASB revealed the reasons behind the stronger shock resistance of MS-UASB.; Changes in microbial populations before and after the shocks were explored.;

旨在优化大豆蛋白粉的生产工艺流程，介绍了大豆分离蛋白和大豆浓缩蛋白的3种喷涂造粒工艺（流化床喷涂造粒工艺、高效混合机喷涂造粒工艺、风运管道喷涂造粒工艺）的生产工艺流程以及工艺特点，并对比分析这3种喷涂造粒工艺的优缺点。如果只从蛋白粉的不飞扬性考虑，风运管道喷涂造粒工艺具有更大的优势；如果从蛋白粉的不飞扬性及蛋白的功能性两方面考虑，则采用流化床喷涂造粒工艺更合适。In order to optimize the production process of soybean protein powder, production process and process characteristics of three spraying granulation processes (fluidized bed spraying granulation process, high efficiency mixer spraying granulation process, air pipeline spraying granulation process) of soybean protein isolate and soybean protein concentrate were introduced. The advantages and disadvantages of these three spraying granulation processes were compared and analyzed. If only considering the non-flying of protein powder, the air pipeline spraying granulation process has greater advantages.If considering from the two aspects of non-flying and protein function, the fluidized bed spraying granulation process is more suitable.

The object of research is the process of cooling mineral fertilizer granules in a granulation tower. The main problem that was solved was the analysis of the temperature mode of cooling the granules to increase their strength and quality, as well as to reduce the probability of their destruction during storage and transportation. The design of a rotating vibrating granulator (RVG) and a mathematical model for calculating the temperature of granules and air at different stages of the granulation process are presented. Reynolds, Peclet and Prandtl criteria are used to describe hydrodynamic and thermodynamic processes. In the course of the work, a calculation model and the possibility of predicting the final temperature of mineral fertilizer granules were created, which allows to avoid negative consequences, such as a decrease in the strength of the granules and their destruction during shipment, transportation and introduction into the soil. Improving the technological performance of the granulation tower, in particular the temperature regimes of granule cooling, contributes to the improvement of product quality. The calculation model allows to adjust the process parameters to ensure the formation of granules with specified properties that meet modern requirements for the monodisperse composition of mineral fertilizer granules. Results were obtained that show the influence of hydrodynamic and thermodynamic factors on the process of cooling and crystallization of granules. This is due to the use of a rotating vibrating granulator, which ensures uniform distribution of liquid droplets across the cross section of the tower and their effective cooling due to contact with the air flow. The results can be used in practice to improve the operation of granulation towers in the production of mineral fertilizers, which allows to improve the quality of products and improve their storage and use. Compared to similar methods, the use of the proposed models provides increased strength and uniformity of granules, which are key advantages in conditions of large-scale production of fertilizers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mechanized biochar field application remains challenging due to biochar's poor flowability and bulk density. Granulation of biochar with fertilizer provides a product ready for application with well-established machinery. However, it's unknown whether granulated biochar-based fertilizers (gBBF) are as effective as co-application of non-granulated biochar with fertilizer. Here, we compared a gBBF with a mineral compound fertilizer (control), and with a non-granulated biochar that was co-applied at a rate of 1.1 t ha−1 with the fertilizer in a white cabbage greenhouse pot trial. Half the pots received heavy rain simulation treatments to investigate nutrient leaching. Crop yields were not significantly increased by biochar without leaching compared to the control. With leaching, cabbage yield increased with gBBF and biochar-co-application by 14% (p > 0.05) and 34% (p < 0.05), respectively. Nitrogen leaching was reduced by 26–35% with both biochar amendments. Biochar significantly reduced potassium, magnesium, and sulfur leaching. Most nitrogen associated with gBBF was released during the trial and the granulated biochar regained its microporosity. Enriching fertilizers with biochar by granulation or co-application can improve crop yields and decrease nutrient leaching. While the gBBF yielded less biomass compared to biochar co-application, improved mechanized field application after granulation could facilitate the implementation of biochar application in agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]