The Influence of Materials on the Mechanical Properties of Ultra-High-Performance Concrete (UHPC): A Literature Review.

Ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) is a cementitious composite combining high-strength concrete matrix and fiber reinforcement. Standing out for its excellent mechanical properties and durability, this material has been widely recognized as a viable choice for highly complex engineering projects. This paper proposes (i) the review of the influence exerted by the constituent materials on the mechanical properties of compressive strength, flexural tensile strength, and elastic modulus of UHPC and (ii) the determination of optimal quantities of the constituent materials based on simplified statistical analyses of the developed database. The data search was restricted to papers that produced UHPC with straight steel fibers at a content of 2% by volume. UHPC mixture models were proposed based on graphical analyses of the relationship of constituent materials versus mechanical properties, aiming to optimize the material's performance for each mechanical property. The results proved to be in accordance with the specifications present in the literature, characterized by high cement consumption, significant presence of fine materials, and low water-to-binder ratio. The divergences identified between the mixtures reflect how the constituent materials uniquely impact each mechanical property of the concrete. In general, fine materials were shown to play a significant role in increasing the compressive strength and flexural tensile strength of UHPC, while water and superplasticizers stood out for their influence on the material's workability.

Chemical composition, fermentative characteristics, and in situ ruminal degradability of elephant grass silage containing Parkia platycephala pod meal and urea.

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of the addition of Parkia platycephala pod meal (PP) and urea on the chemical composition, fermentation characteristics, and in situ ruminal degradability of elephant grass silage. A completely randomized design with a 4 × 2 factorial arrangement was adopted, with four levels of pod meal (0, 10, 20, and 30%) and two levels of urea (0 and 1.5%) on as fed basis. The produced silages were evaluated in terms of dry matter (DM), crude protein (CP), mineral matter (MM), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), hemicellulose, ammonia nitrogen, pH, short chain fatty acids, and in situ ruminal degradability. For the study of degradation, four Santa Ines rumen fistulated sheep, with average weight of 45 ± 2.5 kg were used. The association of the additives increased (p < 0.05) DM, CP, DM degradability, fractions a, b, and effective degradability at all passage rates (2, 5, and 8%/h) and reduced NDF and ADF contents. DM disappearance increased (p < 0.05) during the incubation time, especially for the silages containing the two additives. The interaction in the rumen environment is essential for microbial multiplication. Thus, the use of additives such as PP and urea contributed to the availability of digestible fractions of the feed and greater use by ruminal microorganisms. The association of Parkia platycephala with urea improves the fermentation characteristics, chemical composition, and degradability of elephant grass silage.

New Opportunities at the Next-Generation Neutrino Experiments (Part 1: BSM Neutrino Physics and Dark Matter.

With the advent of a new generation of neutrino experiments which leverage high-intensity neutrino beams for precision neutrino oscillation parameter and for CP violation phase measurements, it is timely to explore physics topics beyond the standard neutrino-related physics. Given that beyond the standard model (BSM) physics phenomena have been mostly sought at high-energy regimes, such as the LHC at CERN, the exploration of BSM physics in neutrino experiments will enable complementary measurements at the energy regimes that balance that of the LHC. This is in concert with new ideas for high-intensity beams for fixed target and beam-dump experiments world-wide. The combination of the high intensity beam facilities and large mass detectors with highly precise track and energy measurements, excellent timing resolution, and low energy thresholds will help make BSM physics reachable even in low energy regimes in accelerator-based experiments and searches for BSM phenomena from cosmogenic origin. Therefore, it is conceivable that BSM topics could be the dominant physics topics in the foreseeable future. In this spirit, this paper provides a review of the current theory landscape theory in neutrino experiments in two selected areas of the BSM topics - dark matter and neutrino related BSM - and summarizes the current results from existing neutrino experiments for benchmark. This paper then provides a review of upcoming neutrino experiments and their capabilities to set the foundation for potential reach in BSM physics in the two themes. One of the most important outcomes of this paper is to ensure theoretical and simulation tools exist to perform studies of these new areas of physics from the first day of the experiments, such as DUNE and Hyper-K. Tasks to accomplish this goal, and the time line for them to be completed and tested to become reliable tools in a timely fashion are also discussed.

Artificial tritrophic exposure system for environmental risk analysis on aphidophagous predators.

We evaluated an artificial tritrophic exposure system for use in ecotoxicological evaluations of environmental stressors on aphidophagous predators. It consists of an acrylic tube with a Parafilm M sachet containing liquid aphid diet, into which can be added environmental stressors. Immature Cycloneda sanguinea, Harmonia axyridis and Chrysoperla externa, and adult H. axyridis were reared on Myzus persicae. Larval and pupal development and survival of all species and reproductive parameters of H. axyridis were similar to published results. The system provides a suitable tritrophic exposure route, enables ex-ante evaluation of stressors, and improves the accuracy of the assessment.

Levantamento etnobotânico de plantas medicinais comercializadas no município de Uruará, Pará, Brasil / Ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants marketed in the municipality of Uruará, Pará, Brazil

O presente estudo teve como objetivo fazer o levantamento etnobotânico de plantas medicinais comercializadas pela população do município de Uruará, Pará, e seus principais distritos. Foram mencionadas pelos entrevistados 63 espécies distribuídas em 36 famílias botânicas. As famílias mais representativas foram Lamiaceae, Asteraceae, Fabaceae e Rutaceae. As espécies com maior valor de uso foram o capim-cidreira (Cymbopogon citratus, VU = 0,90); mastruz (Chenopodium ambrosioides, VU = 0,83) e hortelã (Mentha sp., VU = 0,79), enquanto o capim-cidreira (Cymbopogon citratus) e o picão (Bidens pilosa) apresentaram maior frequência relativa de indicação, sendo indicados como calmante/analgésico e tratamento dos rins, respectivamente. Dentre as principais afecções tratadas por meio do uso de plantas medicinais, as mais expressivas foram as do sistema digestório, infecções/inlamações, gripes e as do sistema respiratório. Não foi observada diferença signiicativa entre o número de espécies citadas e o número de indivíduos por família nem a distância da zona urbana. Também não houve diferença entre o número de espécies mencionadas em relação ao nível de escolaridade. Dentre as plantas medicinais comercializadas no município, predominam as que compõem o estrato herbáceo, sendo as folhas as partes mais utilizadas e a forma de preparo mais comum, o chá.

Ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants marketed in the municipality of Uruará, Pará, Brazil. The present study aimed to perform an ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants marketed by the population of the municipality of Uruará, Pará, and its main districts. The respondents mentioned 63 species distributed in 36 botanical families. The most representative families were Lamiaceae, Asteraceae, Fabaceae and Rutaceae. The species with the highest Use Value were capim cidreira (Cymbopogon citratus, UV = 0.90), mastruz (Chenopodium ambrosioides, UV = 0.83) and hortelã (Mentha sp., UV = 0.79), while capim cidreira (Cymbopogon citratus) and picão (Bidens pilosa) had a higher indicator value, and were indicated as a tranquilizer/painkiller and for treating kidney disease, respectively. Among the main disorders treated with medicinal plants, diseases of the digestive system, infections/inlammations, colds and respiratory system diseases were the most cited. There was no signiicant difference between the number of species mentioned and the number of individuals per family or the distance of households to the urban zone. There was also no difference between the number of species mentioned and education level. Most medicinal plants marketed in the municipality are herbs, leaves are the most used parts and the most common form of preparation is tea.

Potencial osteoindutor de blocos de osso alógeno humano in vitro / Osteoinductive potential ot allogeneic human bone blacks in vitro

O enxerto alógeno apresenta diversas vantagens em relação ao enxerto autógeno, porém sua utilização é relativamente recente e cercada de incertezas em relação ao seu comportamento biológico/imunológico e eficácia como biomaterial. Alguns autores consideram-no estritamente osteocondutor, enquanto outros acreditam que ele pode ser osteoindutor. O objetivo deste trabalho foi estudar o potencial osteoindutor do osso alógeno analisando os efeitos dos extratos proteicos provenientes de blocos de aloenxerto sobre células pré-osteoblásticas humanas. As proteínas extraídas dos blocos ósseos foram incubadas em culturas de células pré-osteoblásticas, a fim de verificar o potencial de indução de proliferação celular. Foram utilizados os métodos do RT-qPCR, Vermelho de Alizarina e Von Kossa para avaliar o metabolismo das células ósseas e a formação de nódulos minerais contendo cálcio e fosfato, respectivamente. Também foi pesquisado se havia nos blocos ósseos a proteína morfogenética BMP-2. Foi possível observar, nos grupos experimentais, aumento na proliferação celular, do metabolismo das células ósseas e da produção de nódulos de cálcio e fosfato, em relação ao grupo controle. Foi possível detectar a presença de BMP-2 em seis dos nove blocos ósseos. Conclui-se que os blocos de aloenxerto mineralizado possuem proteínas com potencial osteoindutor quando testado seu comportamento in vitro em células osteoblásticas

The allogenic bone has several comparative advantages in relation to autograft bone, but its use is relatively recent and surrounded by uncertainties regarding the bioloqical/immunological behavior and effectiveness as a biomaterial. Some authors consider the material strictly osteoconductive, while others bel ieve that the materia I ca n a Iso possess osteoi nd uctive activitv Thus, we evaluated the osteoinductive potential of allograft bone by analyzing the effects of protein extracts from allograft blocks using human pre-osteoblastic cells. The protein extract from allograft block was incubated in cultures of pre-osteoblast cells in order to verify the cell proliferation potential. Moreover, it was employed the RT-qPCR, Alizarin and Von Kossa staining to evaluate the bone metabolism, as well as, the potential induction of calcium and phosphate nodule formation. Finally, it was quantified the morphogenetic protein BMP-2. It was possible to observe in the experimental group, an increase in the cell proliferation and cellular metabolism, as well as, a significant increase in the formation of nodules of calcium and phosphate in comparison to control group. It was possible to detect amounts of BMP-2 in six of nine total samples tested. It was possible to conclude that the mineralized allografts blocks have in vitro osteoinductive activity on osteoblastic cells