Availability of barley straw application on oil spill clean up

Oil spills are a global concern due to the environmental and economical impact. Various commercial systems have been developed to control these spills, including the use of fibers as sorbents. However, most sorbents end up in landfills or in cineration after single use. These options either produce another source of pollution or increase the oil recovery cost. Plant biomass is renewable resource that can be converted into useful materials and energy. Barley straw, an agricultural waste, was used as sorbent material. The present study examines the absorption capacity of raw barley straw for different petroleum products and water pick up. The investigate revealed that the capacity of fibers to remove crude oil from sea water was related to the surface properties of the fibers, concentration of the oil, size of the fiber, amount of the fibers, as well as the temperature of the crude oil. Cyclic sorption /desorption studies indicated that a simple squeezing operation was enough to remove most of the oil sorbed and that recycling was feasible

Hyperfunctioning intrathyroidal parathyroid carcinoma

Intrathyroidal parathyroid carcinoma is an exceedingly rare cause of primary hyperparathyroidism with difficulties in the diagnosis and management. We report a case of hypercalcemia from intrathyroidal parathyroid carcinoma in a 63-year-old Saudi female. She was diagnosed 2 years earlier with osteoporosis in a primary care clinic and was on alendronate since then. This year she was noted to have hypercalcemia, but in retrospect she had more than 10 years history of multiple medical problems related to hypercalcemia. Parathyroid 99mTc-SestaMIBI scintigraphy revealed parathyroid adenoma in the left inferior parathyroid gland. She had successful video-assisted parathyroidectomy that relieved most of her symptoms. The extreme rarity of such a case, the interesting clinical presentation and review of the literature are discussed

Ventilatory response to interval workload exercise protocol and inhaled beta2-agonists in patients with exercise-induced bronchospasm

The purposes of this study were to determine the effect of interval workload exercise protocol on selected pulmonary functions in asthmatic subjects with exercise-induced bronchospasm [EIB], and to demonstrate the difference between using interval exercise protocol alone and the combination of it with administration of short-acting bronchodilator beta2-agonists on pulmonary functions for the same subjects. Twenty-six asthmatic subjects, fifteen males and eleven females aged 35.61 +/- 2.5 years with a history of EIB participated in the study. They were in stable clinical and physiological conditions. Subjects did not administer any medicines 24 hours prior to each intervention. All subjects were enrolled in two interventions study procedures. In the first intervention, they practice interval workload exercise protocol of 60% - 40% of their maximum work rate [MWR], which is determined previously by using symptom-limited exercise test, for 30 minutes by bicycle ergometer. While in the second intervention, short-acting bronchodilator beta2-agonists was administered through pressurized metered-dose inhaler and after 10-minutes, they practice the same exercise protocol as in the first intervention. Selected pulmonary function measures of EVC, FEVI, FEVI% pred., MVV and RR were recorded pre, during and immediately after cessation of exercise and after 15 minutes rest by using computerized spirometry. On comparing during exercise parameters between the first and second interventions, it was found a significant [P<0.05] decrease in RR [26.2 +/- 3.2 vs. 20.9 +/- 2.1 C/M] in the second intervention. While on comparing the two interventions immediately after cessation of exercise, it was found a significant [P<0.05] increase in FEVI% pred. [69.4 +/- 7.5 vs. 80.5 +/- 6.8%], in PEFR [5.5 +/- 1.4 vs. 6.9 +/- 1.5 L/S] and in MVV [95.1 +/- 20.0 vs. 98.4 +/- 19.0 L/M], while RR showed significant [P<0.05] decrease [28.7 +/- 3.2 vs. 21.8 +/- 1.8 C/M] in the second intervention. On comparing the pulmonary function parameters for both interventions after 15 minutes rest, it was found a significant increase [P<0.05] in FVC [2.5 +/- 0.6 vs. 3.0 +/- 0.4 L], in FEVI [2.4 +/- 0.6 vs. 2.9 +/- 0.5 L], in FEVI% pred. [68.6 +/- 5.7 vs. 76.8 +/- 3.3%] and in MVV [95.8 +/- 14.2 vs. 102.6 +/- 20.1 L/M]. Interval workload exercise protocol is efficient in asthmatic subjects with a history of EIB and it can be used in pulmonary rehabilitation and during carrying out their daily activities. Short-acting bronchodilator 2-agonists that are used in occasions before exertion can be replaced by practicing the exercise or the daily activities as an interval exercise workload protocol, to improve the cardiopulmonary fitness and to avoid the adverse reactions of 2-agonists

Nitrotoluenesulphonhydrazones and related compounds

A narray of sulphonhydrazides and sulphonhydrazones have proved to be a fertile source of pesticides and fungicides. The present work extends the research to the sulphonhydrazides of 4-nitrotoluene [I, II, V] and its hydrazone derivatives [VI, VIIIa, XII]. The pyrazole derivatives [VII, IX, XIII] were prepared as following procedures through the condensation of sulphonhydrazides with acetylacetone. The synthetic routes to achieve these compounds are described in detail in the experimental section

Synthesis of some new methyl N-acetyl-aminobenzene disulphonanilides, disulphonic esters and benzo-thiadiazine1, 1-dioxides

The diuretic activity of representative benzene disulphonamides has been reported previously. The use of disulphonamides as insecticides and as antibacterial or antifungal has been known. Taylor reported the use of sulphonates as bacteriostatic and fungistatic agents. The aim of this investigation is to procure N-methyl or N-acetylamino disulphonamides and disulphonates derived from o-, m- and p-methylamino-benzene derivatives in the hope of obtaining new derivatives which might posses antibacterial or antifungal activity. Acetylation of methylamino benzene disulphonanilides [I] with one equivalent of acetic anhydride yielded the corresponding monoacetyl derivatives [II] in which the amino group was only acetylated. The structure of these acetylated derivatives [II] was established by elemental analyses, IR spectra and by means of a negative colour test for diazotizable amine. These products [II] also obtained by direct interaction of o-, m- and p-methyl-acetanilidedisulphonyl chlorides with the requisite amine in ether pyridine medium [m.p. and mixed m.p.]

Synthesis of coumerin sulfonamides, sulphonates and related compounds

Various coumarin-3,6-disulphonamides [V,VI], diary l sulphonates [VII, VIII] and coumarin-6-sulphonamides [IX,X] have keen prepared. Coumarin-6-sulphonamide react with diazonium salts to give the iminoazo derivatives [III]. Also, coumarin-6-aminoethylsulphonarnide [I] and its Scruff's bases [II] have been prepared. Structural evidences as well as some of their reactions are discussed