Flow coupling during three-phase gravity drainage

We measure the three-phase oil relative permeability k(ro) by conducting unsteady-state drainage experiments in a 0.8 m water-wet sand pack. We find that when starting from capillary-trapped oil, k(ro) shows a strong dependence on both the flow of water and the water saturation and a weak dependence on oil saturation, contrary to most models. The observed flow coupling between water and oil is stronger in three-phase flow than two-phase flow, and cannot be observed in steady-state measurements. The results suggest that the oil is transported through moving gas-oil-water interfaces (form drag) or momentum transport across stationary interfaces (friction drag). We present a simple model of friction drag which compares favorably to the experimental data.University of Texas at AustinCenter for Frontiers of Subsurface Energy SecurityUS Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Sciences DE-SC0001114Petroleum and Geosystems Engineerin

Effects of feeding strategy, fiber source of the diet, and crude protein content on productive performance of broiler breeder hens

A 12-wk experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of feeding program, dietary fiber, and CP content of the diet on productive performance of Ross broiler breeder hens (41 wk of age). There were 12 treatments arranged factorially with 2 levels of CP (14.5 vs. 17.4%), 3 fiber sources (0 vs. 3% inulin vs. 3% cellulose), and 2 levels of feed intake (160 vs. 208 g/d) that corresponded to restricted (R) or ad libitum (AL) feeding systems. The experimental diets contained 2,800 kcal ME with either 0.65 (14.5% CP) or 0.78% Lys (17.4% CP)

Effect of wheat inclusion and xylanase supplementation of the diet on intestinal enzyme activity, nutrient retention and performance in laying hen from 25 to 47 wks of age

A trial was conducted to examine the effects of increasing levels of wheat in the diet and xylanase (ES) supplementation on nitrogen and ether extract retention, pH of the GIT, productive performance from 25 to 47 wks of age, and enzyme activity at the small intestine level. The basal diets (from 25 to 33 wks and from 33 to 47 wks) consisted of soybean meal and corn, and the wheat was introduced in the experimental diets at expenses of corn, primarily

Chitinase isolated from water and soil bacteria in shrimp farming ponds

Chitinases have received attention because of their wide applications in the medicine, biotechnology, agriculture, waste management and industrial applications such as food quality enhancer and biopesticide. Excessive use of insecticides has led to several problems related to pollution and environmental degradation. In this study, isolation and identification of native bacterial strains with chitin hydrolysis activity, took place from water and soil of shrimp culture ponds in Bushehr and Abadan. To investigate the capacity of our chitinase for using in insecticide, biochemical properties of selected chitinase obtained in this research were compared to that of produced by Bacillus cereus p-1, isolated from an insecticide tablet. In this research, three mesophilic strains containing: Serratia marcescens B4A, Citrobacter freundii B1A and Bacillus cereus B3R were isolated. Results showed a 1600 bp band corresponding to chitinase gene. The similarity between temperature and pH profile and stability of chitinase was extracted from native bacteria and ones was obtained from Bacillus cereus p-1 implied that chitinase extracted from Serratia marcescens B4A has potential application in industry

Efectos de la inclusión de trigo y suplementación con xilanasas del pienso sobre la actividad enzimática intestinal, la retención de los nutrientes y la productividad en gallinas de 25 a 33 semanas de edad

El trigo es un cereal rico en xilanos lo que reduce su potencial en piensos para aves de puesta por su efecto perjudicial sobre la digestibilidad y el porcentaje de huevos sucios (Lázaro et al., 2003). La utilización de xilanasas podría resolver esta problemática y mejorar la productividad de las aves. Diversos autores (Gracia et al., 2003) han estudiado los efectos de la inclusión de xilanasas en el pienso sobre la digestibilidad de los nutrientes y la productividad (Gutiérrez-Álamo et al., 2008). Sin embargo, sus efectos sobre la producción de enzimas endógenas y el pH de los diversos segmentos del tracto gastrointestinal (TGI) han sido poco estudiados. El objetivo de este ensayo fue estudiar la inclusión de una variedad de trigo de alto contenido en xilanos sobre diversas variables digestivas y la productividad en aves de puesta blancas

Fabrication and characterization of flexible spray-coated antennas

This paper investigates the potential of using spray coating as a methodology for flexible antenna fabrication. The methodology has advantages compared with other antenna-printing techniques, such as screen-printing and gravure printing (more flexibility in design), or inkjet printing (faster production). The methodology is demonstrated using two different types of folded dipole antennas that are designed to operate in the ultra-high frequency radio-frequency identification (UHF RFID) band. Both antennas show good agreement between simulation and measurement of the spray-coated samples in terms of power reflection coefficient and gain. The two folded dipoles, with and without ground plane, show comparable performance in terms of gain, as similar antennas found in literature. The folded dipole on a ground plane is more stable near conductive surfaces and on the human body. Given these results, we conclude that spray coating is a good technique for printing small to medium sized batches of antennas

Wastewater disposal and earthquake swarm activity at the southern end of the Central Valley, California

Fracture and fault zones can channel fluid flow and transmit injection-induced pore pressure changes over large distances (>km), at which seismicity is rarely suspected to be human induced. We use seismicity analysis and hydrogeological models to examine the role of seismically active faults in inducing earthquakes. We analyze a potentially injection-induced earthquake swarm with three events above M4 near the White Wolf fault (WWF). The swarm deviates from classic main aftershock behavior, exhibiting uncharacteristically low Gutenberg-Richter b of 0.6, and systematic migration patterns. Some smaller events occurred southeast of the WWF in an area of several disposal wells, one of which became active just 5 months before the main swarm activity. Hydrogeological modeling revealed that wastewater disposal likely contributed to seismicity via localized pressure increase along a seismically active fault. Our results suggest that induced seismicity may remain undetected in California without detailed analysis of local geologic setting, seismicity, and fluid diffusion

Cardiosphere-derived cells suppress allogeneic lymphocytes by production of PGE2 acting via the EP4 receptor

derived cells (CDCs) are a cardiac progenitor cell population, which have been shown to possess cardiac regenerative properties and can improve heart function in a variety of cardiac diseases. Studies in large animal models have predominantly focussed on using autologous cells for safety, however allogeneic cell banks would allow for a practical, cost-effective and efficient use in a clinical setting. The aim of this work was to determine the immunomodulatory status of these cells using CDCs and lymphocytes from 5 dogs. CDCs expressed MHC I but not MHC II molecules and in mixed lymphocyte reactions demonstrated a lack of lymphocyte proliferation in response to MHC-mismatched CDCs. Furthermore, MHC-mismatched CDCs suppressed lymphocyte proliferation and activation in response to Concanavalin A. Transwell experiments demonstrated that this was predominantly due to direct cell-cell contact in addition to soluble mediators whereby CDCs produced high levels of PGE2 under inflammatory conditions. This led to down-regulation of CD25 expression on lymphocytes via the EP4 receptor. Blocking prostaglandin synthesis restored both, proliferation and activation (measured via CD25 expression) of stimulated lymphocytes. We demonstrated for the first time in a large animal model that CDCs inhibit proliferation in allo-reactive lymphocytes and have potent immunosuppressive activity mediated via PGE2