Optimized bimetallic ratios for durable membrane catalyst-film reactors in treating nitrate-polluted water.

Nitrate contamination of surface and ground water is a significant global challenge. Most current treatment technologies separate nitrate from water, resulting in concentrated wastestreams that need to be managed. Membrane Catalyst-film Reactors (MCfR), which utilize in-situ produced nanocatalysts attached to hydrogen-gas-permeable hollow-fiber membranes, offer a promising alternative for denitrification without generating a concentrated wastestream. In hydrogen-based MCfRs, bimetallic nano-scale catalysts reduce nitrate to nitrite and then further to di-nitrogen or ammonium. This study first investigated how different molar ratios of indium-to-palladium (In:Pd) catalytic films influenced denitrification rates in batch-mode MCfRs. We evaluated eleven In-Pd bimetallic catalyst films, with In:Pd molar ratios from 0.0029 to 0.28. Nitrate-removal exhibited a volcano-shaped dependence on In content, with the highest nitrate removal (0.19 mgNO3--N-min-1 L-1) occurring at 0.045 mol In/mol Pd. Using MCfRs with the optimal In:Pd loading, we treated nitrate-spiked tap water in continuous-flow for >60 days. Nitrate removal and reduction occurred in three stages: substantial denitrification in the first stage, a decline in denitrification efficiency in the second stage, and stabilized denitrification in the third stage. Factors contributing to the slowdown of denitrification were: loss of Pd and In catalysts from the membrane surface and elevated pH due to hydroxide ion production. Sustained nitrate removal will require that these factors be mitigated.

Síndrome de Burnout en estudiantes y profesionales de la Carrera de Terapia Ocupacional de la Universidad Central del Ecuador / Burnout syndrome in students and professionals of the Occupational Therapy Career of the Central University of Ecuador

Introducción: El síndrome de Burnout es un fenómeno muy común en los diferentes am-bientes de trabajo, pero estudios de prevalencia en profesionales y estudiantes de terapia ocupacional son limitados.Objetivo: Establecer la presencia de síndrome de Burnout en estudiantes y profesionales de los centros de práctica de la carrera de Terapia Ocupacional de la Universidad Central del Ecuador.Material y métodos: Diseño de estudio observacional, descriptivo, de corte transversal, en 177 estudiantes de la carrera de Terapia Ocupacional y 35 profesionales en el área que laboran en los centros de práctica vinculados a la práctica preprofesional. En cada suje-to se determinó agotamiento emocional, despersonalización y falta de realización personal mediante la Escala Maslach Burnout Inventory; la presencia de nivel alto en las subescalas agotamiento emocional y despersonalización y nivel bajo en realización personal define sín-drome de Burnout. Se calculó la prevalencia del síndrome en estudiantes y profesionales y la correlación con años de ejercicio laboral y sexo.Resultados: El 2.9 % (1/35) de los profesionales y 4.5 % (8/177) de estudiantes presentaron síndrome Burnout, el que se relacionó con las variables ambientales personales incluidas en la escala de Maslach. Del 45.83% al 82.14 % de estudiantes presentaron niveles bajos de cansancio emocional y despersonalización, mientras que, del 37.14 % al 52.94 %, presenta-ron niveles medios de realización personal.Conclusión: La prevalencia del síndrome de Burnout es baja en los profesionales y en los estudiantes de la carrera de Terapia Ocupacional que hacen prácticas preprofesionales en diferentes instituciones.

Introduction: Burnout syndrome is a very common phenomenon in different work environments; however, prevalence studies in occupational therapy professionals and students are limited.Objective: To establish the presence of Burnout syndrome in students and professionals at practice centers of the Occupational Therapy Career from Universidad Central del Ecuador.Material and methods: Cross-sectional, descriptive, observational study design in 177 stu-dents belonging to the Occupational Therapy Career and 35 professionals in the area who work in the practice centers linked to pre-professional practice. Emotional exhaustion, de-personalization and lack of personal fulfillment were determined in each subject using the Maslach Burnout Inventory Scale; the presence of a high level in the emotional exhaustion and depersonalization subscales and a low level of personal fulfillment defines Burnout syn-drome. The prevalence of Burnout syndrome in students and professionals and the correla-tion with years of work practice and gender were calculated.Results: 2.9% (1/35) of the professionals and 4.5% (8/177) of the students presented Bur-nout syndrome, which was related to the personal environmental variables included in the Maslach scale. From 45.83% to 82.14% of students presented low levels of emotional fati-gue and depersonalization; on the other hand, from 37.14% to 52.94% presented average levels of personal fulfillment.Conclusion: The prevalence of Burnout syndrome is low as in professionals as in students of the Occupational Therapy Career who do pre-professional practices in different institutions.

Hydrodefluorination of Perfluorooctanoic Acid in the H2-Based Membrane Catalyst-Film Reactor with Platinum Group Metal Nanoparticles: Pathways and Optimal Conditions.

PFAAs (perfluorinated alkyl acids) have become a concern because of their widespread pollution and persistence. A previous study introduced a novel approach for removing and hydrodefluorinating perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) using palladium nanoparticles (Pd0NPs) in situ synthesized on H2-gas-transfer membranes. This work focuses on the products, pathways, and optimal catalyst conditions. Kinetic tests tracking PFOA removal, F- release, and hydrodefluorination intermediates documented that PFOA was hydrodefluorinated by a mixture of parallel and stepwise reactions on the Pd0NP surfaces. Slow desorption of defluorination products lowered the catalyst's activity for hydrodefluorination. Of the platinum group metals studied, Pd was overall superior to Pt, Rh, and Ru for hydrodefluorinating PFOA. pH had a strong influence on performance: PFOA was more strongly adsorbed at higher pH, but lower pH promoted defluorination. A membrane catalyst-film reactor (MCfR), containing an optimum loading of 1.2 g/m2 Pd0 for a total Pd amount of 22 mg, removed 3 mg/L PFOA during continuous flow for 90 days, and the removal flux was as high as 4 mg PFOA/m2/d at a steady state. The EPA health advisory level (70 ng/L) also was achieved over the 90 days with the influent PFOA at an environmentally relevant concentration of 500 ng/L. The results document a sustainable catalytic method for the detoxification of PFOA-contaminated water.

Adsorption and Reductive Defluorination of Perfluorooctanoic Acid over Palladium Nanoparticles.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) comprise a group of widespread and recalcitrant contaminants that are attracting increasing concern due to their persistence and adverse health effects. This study evaluated removal of one of the most prevalent PFAS, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), in H2-based membrane catalyst-film reactors (H2-MCfRs) coated with palladium nanoparticles (Pd0NPs). Batch tests documented that Pd0NPs catalyzed hydrodefluorination of PFOA to partially fluorinated and nonfluorinated octanoic acids; the first-order rate constant for PFOA removal was 0.030 h-1, and a maximum defluorination rate was 16 µM/h in our bench-scale MCfR. Continuous-flow tests achieved stable long-term depletion of PFOA to below the EPA health advisory level (70 ng/L) for up to 70 days without catalyst loss or deactivation. Two distinct mechanisms for Pd0-based PFOA removal were identified based on insights from experimental results and density functional theory (DFT) calculations: (1) nonreactive chemisorption of PFOA in a perpendicular orientation on empty metallic surface sites and (2) reactive defluorination promoted by physiosorption of PFOA in a parallel orientation above surface sites populated with activated hydrogen atoms (Hads*). Pd0-based catalytic reduction chemistry and continuous-flow treatment may be broadly applicable to the ambient-temperature destruction of other PFAS compounds.

[Involuntary psychiatric hospital admissions]. / Internación psiquiátrica involuntaria. Antecedentes, reflexiones y desafíos.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Article 12 General Commentary, explicitly states that persons with mental illnesses must always have full exercise of their legal rights in all their aspects. Assistants or support persons must not substitute or have undue influence on the decisions of persons with disabilities, including the expression of their consent. However, the number of involuntary psychiatric hospitalizations appears to be increasing globally and in our country. This article reviews the national and international context of involuntary hospitalizations, including the Chilean legislation and administrative rules, the published evidence about patients' outcomes and clinician attitudes. The authors conclude that the conflict in this issue is not limited to the respect for autonomy and the obligation to provide care. We are now experiencing a new way of caring patients. The complex local, social and cultural realities, require a renewed knowledge and documentation of experiences.

Internación psiquiátrica involuntaria: antecedentes, reflexiones y desafíos / Involuntary psychiatric hospital admissions

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Article 12 General Commentary, explicitly states that persons with mental illnesses must always have full exercise of their legal rights in all their aspects. Assistants or support persons must not substitute or have undue influence on the decisions of persons with disabilities, including the expression of their consent. However, the number of involuntary psychiatric hospitalizations appears to be increasing globally and in our country. This article reviews the national and international context of involuntary hospitalizations, including the Chilean legislation and administrative rules, the published evidence about patients' outcomes and clinician attitudes. The authors conclude that the conflict in this issue is not limited to the respect for autonomy and the obligation to provide care. We are now experiencing a new way of caring patients. The complex local, social and cultural realities, require a renewed knowledge and documentation of experiences.

Auditoría de la democracia : informe bolivia 2006

Este documento contiene datos y análisis sobre el escenario político boliviano, las elecciones, la asamblea constituyente, la tolerancia política y el autoritarismo, la medición del capital social en Bolivia y la democracia en Bolivia, se cuentan con datos estadísticos y un cuestionario utilizado en el estudio, en el idioma español, quechua y aymara.

Manifestaciones orales en pacientes diabéticos tipo I y II / Oral lesions in diabetic patients type I and II

El objetivo fue determinar la frecuencia y distribución e las manifestaciones bucales en 35 diabéticos tipo I y II, atendidos en el Servicio de Endocrinología del Hospital Clínico Regional de Concepción. Los pacientes fueron sometidos a un examen médico que registró: antecedentes personales, presencia de complicaciones (renales, vasculares, neurológicas, oftalmológicas), hábitos (ingestión de alcohol, alimentación, cigarrillos). Se efectuaron exámenes de medición de la gluocosa basal y postprandial, hemoglobina glicosilada. El examen bucal incluyó: odontograma, periodontograma, examen clínico de la mucosa bucal. Todos los datos fueron procesados estadísticamente. Según los resultados todos los diabéticos presentaron una o más patologías bucales como: caries, enfermedad periodontal y lesiones de la mucosa (lengua seca, queilitis comisural, candidiasis, estomatitis subprótesis, herpes simple recurrente, aftas menores). No hubo correlación estadísticamente significativa entre las patologías presentes en la cavidad bucal y variables como: sexo, edad, tipo de diabetes, control metabólico, años de evolución de la enfermedad sistémica, hábitos. Los diabéticos con mala higiene bucal presentaron lesiones más severas que los diabéticos con buena higiene