Predicting transition from selective withdrawal to entrainment in two-fluid stratified systems.

Selective withdrawal is a desired phenomenon in transferring oil from large caverns in the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), because entrainment of oil at the time during withdrawal poses a risk of contaminating the environment. Motivated to understand selective withdrawal in an SPR-like orientation, we performed experiments in order to investigate the critical submergence depth as a function of critical flow rate. For the experiments, a tube was positioned through a liquid-liquid interface that draws the lower liquid upward, avoiding entrainment of the upper fluid. Analysis of the normal stress balance across the interface produced a Weber number, utilizing dynamic pressure scaling, that predicted the transition to entrainment. Additionally, an inviscid flow analysis was performed assuming an ellipsoidal control volume surface that produced a linear relationship between the Weber number and the scaled critical submergence depth. This analytical model was validated using the experimental data, resulting in a robust model for predicting transition from selective withdrawal to entrainment.

Untargeted profiling of Glycyrrhiza glabra extract with comprehensive two-dimensional liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry using multi-segmented shift gradients in the second dimension: Expanding the metabolic coverage.

Metabolic profiling of Glycyrrhiza glabra using comprehensive two-dimensional liquid chromatography (LC × LC) coupled with photodiode array (PDA) and mass spectrometry (MS) detection is described. The separation was conducted under reversed-phase conditions, using a combination of first dimension (1 D) 150 mm microbore cyano column utilising 2.7 µm diameter (dp ) particles, and second dimension (2 D) 50 mm superficially porous octadecylsilica column with 2.7 µm dp particles. A multi-segmented shift gradient (MSG) for the 2 D separation was developed, and the orthogonality achieved was compared with other modes of gradients, such as full in-fraction, and shift gradient systems. Results demonstrated a significant expansion of metabolic coverage using MSG in 2 D, providing the highest measure of orthogonality compared to other gradient modes. Compound identifications were performed by employing complementary data from PDA and MS detection, with reference to structural group-type distribution in 2D space. A total of ca. 120 compounds were detected, and among them 37 were tentatively identified, distributed over the chemical families of glycosylated flavanones, triterpene saponins, and others. In comparison with one-dimensional LC, the total number of compounds detected was ca. 2-fold greater when LC × LC was employed. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of the MSG mode in LC × LC, representing a powerful strategy to expand the metabolic coverage for analysis of plant-derived extracts, containing a multitude of different phytochemical classes.

Longevity effect of a polysaccharide from Chlorophytum borivilianum on Caenorhabditis elegans and Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The traditional Indian medicine, Ayurveda, provides insights and practical solutions towards a healthy life style. Rasayana is a branch of Ayurveda known for preserving and promoting health, enhancing the quality of life and delaying the aging process. In the traditional knowledge, the Rasayana herb, Chlorophytum borivilianum (C. borivilanum) is regarded as a general health promoting tonic that delays aging and increases lifespan, cognitive function and physical strength. Aging is a complex and multifactorial physiological phenomenon that manifests itself over a wide range of biological systems, tissues, and functions. Longevity is an obvious marker of physiological aging. Simple model systems such as the single-cell budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S. cerevisiae) and the nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) are widely used to study the aging process and longevity. Here, we show that a polysaccharide fraction obtained from C. borivilianum increases the lifespan of S. cerevisiae and C. elegans, using an automated screening platform (ChronoscreenTM). Chemical analysis of this extract revealed a low molecular weight polysaccharide of 1000 Da, predominantly comprising Glu1→6Glu linkage. This polysaccharide showed significant dose-dependent extension of the median lifespan of S. cerevisiae by up to 41% and of the median lifespan of C. elegans by up to 10%. Taking cue from these results and the traditionally described benefits of Rasayanas on skin rejuvenation, we tested in vitro the polysaccharide for potential skin benefits. In a keratinocyte culture, we observed that this polysaccharide increased cell proliferation significantly, and induced synthesis of hyaluronic acid (HA), a well-known extracellular matrix component. Furthermore, when added to culture medium of human reconstructed epidermis, we observed an enhanced production of epidermal markers, e.g. CD44 and HA that are otherwise diminished in aged skin. Together, these results suggest that in addition to life-span extension of S. cerevisiae and C. elegans, a polysaccharide from the Rasayana herb, C. borivilianum may have beneficial effects on skin aging parameters.

Gas collection efficiency of annular denuders: a spreadsheet-based calculator.

Denuders are widely used for atmospheric analysis. Annular denuders are especially well-suited for preconcentration of trace gases compared to simpler single tube designs. While traditionally coated annular denuders have both bounding surfaces that behave as sinks, annular denuders/membrane-based scrubbers with the same basic geometric design and with only one of the annular surfaces functioning as sink (e.g., a membrane tube whose outer surface behaves as a sink disposed within an inert jacket tube) have become common. However, the gas collection efficiency of such devices cannot be expressed as a simple equation with fixed constants and there is no presently available tool to a priori determine the denuder performance or to design denuders with specific removal efficiencies at specific sampling rates. This paper presents a simple to use "spreadsheet calculator" for concentric annular denuders of any dimension based on known solutions to analogous heat transfer problems. The results from the present spreadsheet calculator are compared with results from a commercial computational fluid dynamics package (Fluent; this takes significant expertise and development effort to run)--the two approaches produce essentially the same results. The present spreadsheet calculator can be used easily and simply without training and will be a useful tool for denuder users and designers.

Thermally induced natural convection effects in Yucca Mountain drifts.

Thermally induced natural convection from the heat produced by emplaced waste packages is an important heat and mass transfer mechanism within the Yucca Mountain Project (YMP) drifts. Various models for analyzing natural convection have been employed. The equivalent porous medium approach using Darcy's law has been used in many YMP applications. However, this approach has questionable fidelity, especially for turbulent flow conditions. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD), which is based on the fundamental Navier-Stokes equations, is currently being evaluated as a technique to calculate thermally induced natural convection in YMP. Data-model comparisons for turbulent flow conditions show good agreement of CFD predictions with existing experiments including YMP-specific data.