The transformation of CO2 into alcohols or other hydrocarbon compounds is challenging because of the difficulties associated with the chemical activation of CO2 by heterogeneous catalysts. Pure ...metals and bimetallic systems used for this task usually have low catalytic activity. Here we present experimental and theoretical evidence for a completely different type of site for CO2 activation: a copper-ceria interface that is highly efficient for the synthesis of methanol. The combination of metal and oxide sites in the copper-ceria interface affords complementary chemical properties that lead to special reaction pathways for the CO2→CH3OH conversion.
Whenever the defining sequence of a Carleman ultraholomorphic class (in the sense of H. Komatsu) is strongly regular and associated with a proximate order, flat functions are constructed in the class ...on sectors of optimal opening. As consequences, we obtain analogues of both Borel–Ritt–Gevrey theorem and Watson's lemma in this general situation.
Objectives
This in vitro investigation was aimed to evaluate the cleaning ability of four mechanical devices designed for decontaminating implant surfaces.
Material and methods
Ninety‐six implants ...were coated with permanent ink and inserted into 3D‐printed resin blocks simulating three different intraosseous defect configurations (types Ib, Ic, and Ie). The four tested mechanical decontamination devices (air‐polishing with glycine powder, rotating titanium brush, polyetheretherketone PEEK‐coated ultrasonic tip, and stainless steel ultrasonic tip) were randomly applied onto the 5 mm exposed implant surface. Standardized photographs were taken from a frontal perspective and with a 30° angle coronally and apically to the implant axis. The area with remnant ink on the implant surface was calculated.
Results
Although none of the groups achieved complete ink removal, air‐polishing with glycine and titanium brushes demonstrated a higher cleaning ability when compared with ultrasonic devices either with standard or PEEK tips for all three defect configurations. For the three tested models, the best cleaning ability in all groups was shown on implant surfaces without facing an intraosseous wall. Titanium brush was the most effective when the intraosseous walls existed. Cleaning effectiveness diminished in the threads located in the apical third, especially when using air‐polishing and ultrasonic devices.
Conclusions
Titanium brushes and air‐polishing devices were more effective in removing artificial biofilm using this in vitro model, although their effectiveness was influenced by the presence of the intrabony component.
Harvested by advanced technical systems honed over decades of research and development, wind energy has become a mainstream energy resource. However, continued innovation is needed to realize the ...potential of wind to serve the global demand for clean energy. Here, we outline three interdependent, cross-disciplinary grand challenges underpinning this research endeavor. The first is the need for a deeper understanding of the physics of atmospheric flow in the critical zone of plant operation. The second involves science and engineering of the largest dynamic, rotating machines in the world. The third encompasses optimization and control of fleets of wind plants working synergistically within the electricity grid. Addressing these challenges could enable wind power to provide as much as half of our global electricity needs and perhaps beyond.
Objectives
The aim of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of a supportive peri‐implant care (SPIC) protocol after surgical therapy of peri‐implantitis, combining ultrasonic mechanical ...debridement and glycine powder air polishing.
Materials and Methods
Thirty subjects diagnosed with peri‐implantitis and treated by means of access flap were randomized 6 months later into two different SPIC groups: the test group combined a piezoelectric ultrasonic instrumentation with a specific implant PEEK tip and glycine powder air polishing, while control group received the same ultrasonic instrumentation together with a rubber cup and a polishing paste. Patients were followed for 12 months, with intermediate SPIC visits every 3 months. Clinical, radiological, microbiological and biochemical outcome variables were registered and calculated.
Results
After 12 months of SPIC, probing depths (PD) showed a mean reduction of 0.33 ± 0.11 mm, with significant differences (p < .001) between the test (−0.84 ± 0.43 mm) and the control group (+0.18 ± 0.73 mm). Healthy peri‐implant tissues defined by PD <5 mm, absence of BoP (or in only one site around the implant), and no additional bone loss (<0.5 mm), were observed at the final visit in 83% of the implants (87% in the test group and 80% in the control group, p = .255). No adverse events were reported by the subjects participating in the study.
Conclusions
The SPIC protocol including mechanical ultrasonic debridement and glycine powder air‐polishing demonstrated significantly better efficacy in terms of PD reductions. A strict SPIC protocol can maintain for 1 year, or even improve, the results obtained after surgical treatment of peri‐implantitis.
Objectives
Evaluate the dimensions and morphology of peri‐implant tissues around a modified dental implant designed with tissue level connection and a convergent transmucosal neck, when compared with ...a conventional bone level implant connected to a cylindrical machined titanium abutment.
Material and methods
Eight experimental animals were used for this in vivo investigation, in whom 16 test and 16 control implants were placed following a random allocation sequence. The following histological outcomes at 4 and 12 weeks were evaluated: morphology of peri‐implant tissues, the soft tissue height and thickness, the horizontal and vertical bone remodeling, and the bone to implant contact (BIC).
Results
In both early (4 weeks) and late (12 weeks) healing times, there were no statistically significant differences between test and control implants, with respect to the overall height and thickness of the peri‐implant hard and soft tissues. There was a tendency toward a more coronal free gingival margin (I‐FGM) at the buccal aspect of test when compared to control implants (at 4 weeks, difference of 0.97 mm (p = .572) and 0.30 mm (p = 1.000) at 12 weeks). Similarly, there was a tendency toward a more coronal position of the first bone to implant contact (I‐B) at the buccal aspect of test as compared to control implants (1.08 mm (p = 0.174) at 4 weeks and 0.83 mm (p = 0.724) at 12 weeks).
Conclusions
Hard and soft tissue healing occurred at both implant types with no statistically significant differences. Test implants tended to present a more coronal gingival margin (FGM) and first bone to implant contact (B).
Experimental techniques and DFT calculations have been combined to study and compare the effect of the metal–substrate interaction in Cu/TiO2(110) and Cu/CeO x /TiO2(110) catalysts for the water–gas ...shift (WGS) reaction. Experiments and theory show that CeO x nanoparticles affect the dispersion of copper on titania, and on the formed copper–ceria interface, there are synergistic effects which favor water dissociation and the WGS reaction. The minimum energy path for the WGS reaction on the new highly active catalytic system Cu/CeO x /TiO2(110) has been predicted by theoretical calculations. Main steps such as adsorption–dissociation of water and *OCOH carboxyl intermediate formation–deprotonation have been characterized. In this very particular system, water splitting is no longer the rate-limiting step because it can dissociate overcoming an energy barrier of only 0.92 kcal/mol. One important insight of the present work is to show that easy full hydration of the ceria particles strongly lowers the reaction barrier for the deprotonation of the *OCOH intermediate and facilitates the evolution of the WGS reaction. For the first time, a system has been found on which the WGS reaction is able to work with all the involved energy barriers below 12 kcal/mol. This remarkable behavior makes the metal/CeO x /TiO2 family a potential candidate for industrial application as catalysts in the WGS reaction. The change in the metal–support interactions when going from Cu/TiO2 to Cu/CeO x /TiO2 illustrates the importance of optimizing the oxide phase when improving the performance of metal/oxide catalysts for the WGS.
Long‐term sustainable development of European offshore wind energy requires knowledge of the best places for installing offshore wind farms. To achieve this, a good knowledge of wind resources is ...needed, as well as knowledge of international, European, and national regulations regarding conflict management, marine environment conservation, biodiversity protection, licensing processes, and support regimes. Such a multidisciplinary approach could help to identify areas where wind resources are abundant and where conflicts with other interests are scarce, support measures are greater, and licensing processes are streamlined. An overview of offshore wind power studies at present, and of their future projections for the 21st century, allows for determining the optimal European locations to install or maintain offshore wind farms. Only northern Europe, the northwest portion of the Iberian Peninsula, the Gulf of Lyon, the Strait of Gibraltar, and the northwest coast of Turkey show no change or increase in wind power, revealing these locations as the most suitable for installing and maintaining offshore wind farms in the future. The installation of wind farms is subject to restrictions established under international law, European law, and the domestic legal framework of each EU member state. Europe is moving toward streamlining of licensing procedures, reducing subsidies, and implementing auction systems.
Wind energy has become the second largest form of power generation capacity in the European Union because the cost has fallen at the same time that efficiency and availability have increased. We provide an overview of various studies of offshore wind and wind power in Europe at present and future projections for the 21st century to determine their suitability for characterizing present and future offshore wind energy resources.
Atherosclerosis is characterized by thickening of the walls of the arteries, a process that occurs slowly and 'silently' over decades. This prolonged course of disease provides a window of ...opportunity for diagnosis before symptoms occur. But, until recently, only advanced atherosclerotic disease could be observed. Now, developments in imaging technology offer many enticing prospects, including detecting atherosclerosis early, grouping individuals by the probability that they will develop symptoms of atherosclerosis, assessing the results of treatment and improving the current understanding of the biology of atherosclerosis.
Empagliflozin cardiac benefits in the EMPA-REG OUTCOME (Empagliflozin Cardiovascular Outcome Event Trial in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients) trial cannot be explained exclusively by its ...antihyperglycemic activity.
The hypothesis was that empagliflozin’s cardiac benefits are mediated by switching myocardial fuel metabolism away from glucose toward ketone bodies (KB), which improves myocardial energy production.
Heart failure was induced in nondiabetic pigs (n = 14) by 2-h balloon occlusion of the proximal left anterior descending artery. Animals were randomized to empagliflozin or placebo for 2 months. Animals were evaluated with cardiac magnetic resonance imaging and 3-dimensional echocardiography. Myocardial metabolite consumption was analyzed by simultaneous blood sampling from coronary artery and coronary sinus. Myocardial samples were obtained for molecular evaluation. Nonmyocardial infarction animals served as comparison.
Despite similar initial ischemic myocardial injury in both groups, the empagliflozin group showed amelioration of adverse remodeling at 2 months (lower left ventricular LV mass, reduced LV dilatation, less LV sphericity) versus the control group. LV systolic function (LV ejection fraction and echocardiography-derived strains) was improved, as was neurohormonal activation. Compared with nonmyocardial infarction, control animals increased myocardial glucose consumption mainly through anaerobic glycolysis while reducing utilization of free fatty acid (FFA) and branched-chain amino acid (BCAA). Empagliflozin-treated pigs did not consume glucose (reduction in myocardial glucose uptake, and glucose-related enzymes) but instead switched toward utilization of KB, FFA, and BCAA (increased myocardial uptake of these 3 metabolites, and enhanced expression/activity of the enzymes implicated in the metabolism of KB/FFA/BCAA). Empagliflozin increased myocardial ATP content and enhanced myocardial work efficiency.
Empagliflozin ameliorates adverse cardiac remodeling and heart failure in a nondiabetic porcine model. Empagliflozin switches myocardial fuel utilization away from glucose toward KB, FFA, and BCAA, thereby improving myocardial energetics, enhancing LV systolic function, and ameliorating adverse LV remodeling.
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