Effect of Infilled Walls On The Performance of Steel Frame Structures

Today, the subject of a building's resistance to lateral loads is one of the most important concerns of structural engineers. The partitions and infilled walls are non-structural elements that are important due to their effects on the lateral resistance of the building frame. Recently, it has been observed that great damage is occurring to infilled walls, partitions, and buildings in an earthquake-prone area. Infilled walls are effective at increasing the hardness and resistance of building frames, which changes the seismic properties of structures. Therefore, the study of interactions between the structural frame and the infilled walls is essential for a better understanding of structural behaviors. In this paper, the effect of infilled walls is investigated on the behaviour of steel frames using ABAQUS software. Modeling is carried out for different types of infilled materials, including brick and panel, as well as different thicknesses of the infills. It was observed that with an increase in the thickness of infills from 7 to 20 cm, the final capacity and energy absorption increased by 78%. Also, the panel-infilled frames have 18% more capacity and 3.8% more energy absorption than the brick-infilled frame in the same full state. As a result, panel-infilled frames outperform brick-infilled frames in terms of performance.&nbsp

Effect of Infilled Walls On The Performance of Steel Frame Structures

Today, the subject of a building's resistance to lateral loads is one of the most important concerns of structural engineers. The partitions and infilled walls are non-structural elements that are important due to their effects on the lateral resistance of the building frame. Recently, it has been observed that great damage is occurring to infilled walls, partitions, and buildings in an earthquake-prone area. Infilled walls are effective at increasing the hardness and resistance of building frames, which changes the seismic properties of structures. Therefore, the study of interactions between the structural frame and the infilled walls is essential for a better understanding of structural behaviors. In this paper, the effect of infilled walls is investigated on the behaviour of steel frames using ABAQUS software. Modeling is carried out for different types of infilled materials, including brick and panel, as well as different thicknesses of the infills. It was observed that with an increase in the thickness of infills from 7 to 20 cm, the final capacity and energy absorption increased by 78%. Also, the panel-infilled frames have 18% more capacity and 3.8% more energy absorption than the brick-infilled frame in the same full state. As a result, panel-infilled frames outperform brick-infilled frames in terms of performance.&nbsp

A185 ABDOMINAL WALL VARICES: A CASE REPORT

Abstract Background Portal hypertension in cirrhosis results in variable and numerous portosystemic collateral circulations. Computed tomography (CT) and Doppler ultrasound (US) can identify these collateral vessels, especially abdominal wall varices, which can be encountered during a bedside paracentesis. Aims Describe a case of traumatic abdominal wall variceal bleed. Methods Case report. Results A 53 year-old Caucasian male presented to the emergency department (ED) with 4-days of abdominal pain and 2-months of increased abdominal girth. His medical history included Child Pugh Class B alcoholic liver cirrhosis diagnosed 1 year ago. No prior history of ascites, esophageal variceal bleed or hepatic encephalopathy. In the ED, his US showed moderate ascites with right portal vein flow reversal. A diagnostic RLQ paracentesis showed yellow ascitic fluid, no spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP), and he was discharged home with diuretics. He returned to the ED the next day for increased abdominal girth with a Hb of 103 g/L. A diagnostic RLQ paracentesis showed orange-red ascitic fluid and no SBP. The following day, a therapeutic US-guided paracentesis was attempted in the RLQ and left-lower quadrant LLQ; however, ascitic fluid aspirate was grossly bloody. The procedure was aborted. Hb was 82 g/L and progressively decreased. CT angiogram was performed and showed a 10.7 x 4.7 x 8.0 cm hyperdense fluid in the right paracolic gutter near the paracentesis site, consistent with intraperitoneal hemorrhage (Figure A). The insertion site was seen as abdominal wall musculature focal thickening around abdominal wall varices and no contrast extravasation was seen. Gastroesophageal, splenic hilar and omental varices were seen. Doppler US showed no sonographic signs of active extravasation. Interventional Radiology performed a US-guided paracentesis and aspirated 3650 mL of hemorrhagic fluid. Color Doppler US showed small varices within the subcutaneous soft tissues (Figure A). The patient later developed hematemesis with an EGD showing a large high-risk esophageal varix actively bleeding that was banded. Given the refractory variceal bleeding, a Minnesota tube was inserted 4 days later and a transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt was inserted the following day. Unfortunately, the patient developed progressive worsening hepatic encephalopy, multi-organ failure and expired 7-days later. Conclusions Adjunct imaging modalities such as color flow Doppler US or CT can be used as a screening tool to identify abdominal wall varices and reduce paracentesis bleeding complications. Funding Agencies None </jats:sec

A254 HEPATIC SEQUELAE OF POST-ACUTE COVID-19 SYNDROME (PACS): A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF THE CURRENT LITERATURE

Abstract Background Post-acute COVID-19 syndrome (PACS), colloquially known as long-COVID, is a syndrome characterized by persistent or delayed symptoms four weeks or beyond from initial infection onset. Observational studies have shown liver injury during acute COVID-19 infection, particularly in severe infections requiring hospitalization. This has been observed in forms of increased liver enzyme markers, imaging, fibrosis and transplant rejection. However, the data on resolution of abnormal liver injury markers is inconsistent. As such, the long-term hepatic sequelae following acute COVID-19 infection remains unclear. Purpose To assess the current understanding of long-term hepatic sequalae of COVID-19 in adults, and to identify prevalence and odds of liver complications in patients with PACS compared to COVID-negative individuals. Method Included criteria consisted of observational or cross-sectional studies with patients ≥18y at least four weeks following COVID-19 infection evaluating liver disease/involvement. Liver involvement was defined as per primary study, in order to accomodate various modalities of hepatic injury (e.g. lab markers, imaging, etc.). Case reports or series, systematic reviews, literature reviews, meta-analyses, editorials and commentaries were excluded, as well as studies that report liver function/injury only during acute COVID-19 infection rather than following. Systematic searches were performed on MEDLINE, CINAHL and EMBASE. All studies were screened by two independent reviewers. Risk of bias was assessed by two independent reviewers using the Cochrane ROBIN-E tool. All conflicts from screening, data extraction and risk of bias assessment stages were resolved by a third independent reviewer. Data on biochemical liver markers, imaging, fibrosis and clinical scores were collected where available. Result(s) 2734 studies were found and 614 duplicates were removed. 2117 abstracts and 35 subsequent full texts were screened. Most studies were high or very high risk of bias; only two studies were found to be low risk of bias. Only nine studies utilized control groups. Most studies assessed liver enzymes. 22 of 26 studies suggested some type of abnormality in hepatic testing following COVID-19 infection. 14 studies suggested persistently abnormal liver function tests in PACS patients. 5 studies suggested persistent imaging, fibrosis or autopsy abnormalities. Given the high risk of bias, meta-analysis could not be reliably performed among all included studies. Conclusion(s) Despite most studies suggesting there is a proportion of patients who suffer from prolonged liver abnormalities such as elevated liver enzymes or fibrosis on imaging, the reliability of these fundings is uncertain given high risk of bias and lack of consistent control groups. As such, there is insufficient high-quality data to inform the natural history of hepatic sequalae following COVID-19 infection. Further high-quality research is required in this field to inform future clinical decisions. Please acknowledge all funding agencies by checking the applicable boxes below None Disclosure of Interest None Declared </jats:sec

Effects of Atmospheric Turbulence on Optical Wireless Communication in NEOM Smart City

The foundation of any smart city requires an innovative and robust communication infrastructure. Many research communities envision free-space optical communication (FSO) as a promising backbone technology for the services and applications provided by such cities. However, the channel through which the FSO signal travels is the atmosphere. Therefore, the FSO performance is limited by the local weather conditions. The variation in meteorological variables leads to variations of the refractive index along the transmission path. These index inhomogeneities (i.e., atmospheric turbulence) can significantly degrade the performance of FSO systems. Thus, a practical implementation of the FSO link must carefully consider the atmospheric turbulence effect. This paper aims to investigate the feasibility of FSO communication for NEOM, a promising smart city in Saudi Arabia. We study the effect of weather conditions on FSO links using the micrometeorology model, taking into account actual weather data. The FSO performance in winter and summer was compared in terms of the bit error rate, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), link availability, and transmission distance. The study shows that the atmospheric turbulence strength is moderate and strong in winter and summer, respectively. The temperature has the biggest impact on the FSO system when compared to the other meteorological elements included in this study. Furthermore, at transmission distances less than 300 m, atmospheric turbulence does not significantly affect the FSO for the operating wavelength of 1550 nm. Furthermore, it has been shown that at transmission distances greater than 300 m, the SNR in summer is more than 18% higher than in winter. The findings of this research enable understanding of the effect of turbulence caused by NEOM weather on the FSO link, thus assisting engineers in establishing a reliable FSO backbone link by adjusting the relevant parameters.</jats:p

Effect of Digestate and Biochar Amendments on Photosynthesis Rate, Growth Parameters, Water Use Efficiency and Yield of Chinese Melon (Cucumis melo L.) under Saline Irrigation

Despite the recent interest in biochar and digestate as soil amendments for improving soil quality and increasing crop production, there is inadequate knowledge of the effect of the combination of biochar and digestate, particularly under saline irrigation conditions. A pot experiment with Chinese melon was conducted in a greenhouse, biochar (5%) and digestate (500 mL/pot) were used with and without the recommended mineral NPK (Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium) fertilizer dose (120-150-150 Kg ha−1). The plants were irrigated with tap water (SL0) and 2 dS/m (SL1) NaCl solution. The growth, photosynthesis rate, water use efficiency (WUE) and yield of Chinese melon were affected positively when biochar was combined with digestate amendment, particularly under saline irrigation water with and without mineral NPK fertilizer. The maximum yield under normal water was obtained by digestate (SL0: 218.87 t ha−1) and biochar amendment combined with digestate (SL1: 118.8 t ha−1) under saline water. The maximum WUE values were noticed with the biochar and digestate combination under all water treatments (SL0: 32.2 t ha−1 mm−1 and SL1: 19.6 t ha−1 mm−1). It was concluded that digestate alone was more effective than the use of biochar, particularly with normal water. The combination of biochar with digestate had a significant effect on the Chinese melon growth, photosynthesis rate, water use efficiency and yield under saline irrigation, and it can be used as an alternative fertilizer for mineral NPK fertilizer

Modeling of Soil Exchangeable Sodium Percentage Function to Soil Adsorption Ratio on Sandy Clay Loam Soil, Khartoum- Sudan

An experiment was conducted at the Wadi Soba farm, Khartoum- Sudan. The aim of this study is to estimate the Exchangeable Sodium Percentage (ESP) function to Sodium Adsorption Ratio. In this study, linear regression model (ESP-SAR&nbsp;model) for predicting soil ESP from SAR was suggested. For this purpose, 30 soil samples were collected from the field of experiment, soil ESP was estimated from soil SAR in order to compare the predicted results with measured SAR using laboratory tests on saline and non- saline soil samples. The results show that on saline soil samples, the Standard Error of Mean (SEM) of predicted ESP obtained by ESP-SAR&nbsp;model was (0.9389) and the P-value was (0.0572). On non- saline soil samples, the Standard Error of Mean (SEM) of predicted ESP acquired by ESP-SAR&nbsp;model was (0.2920) and the P-value was (0.2628). The statistical results indicated that the linear regression model (ESP-SAR&nbsp;model), ESP= 0.84 × SAR + 2.17 with R2&nbsp;= 0.7347 has a good performance in predicting soil ESP from SAR meanwhile the ESP-SAR&nbsp;model reflected more accuracy on non- saline soil samples and it can be recommended for both saline soil and non-saline soil samples. &nbsp

Abstract 2553: Using a “train-the-trainer” approach with urban and rural minority community health workers to implement the cancer-Community Awareness Access Research and Education (c-CARE) Project

Abstract Introduction: Community health workers (CHW) are often a key component to effective implementation of health promotion interventions; training on intervention delivery and self-efficacy enhances CHW effectiveness. The cancer-Community Awareness Access Research and Education (c-CARE) project utilized a train-the-trainer approach to equip CHWs to teach the four-week c-CARE lung cancer module. Project objectives included providing and facilitating: 1) education on risks of lung cancer, 2) low-dose CT (LCDT) screening for eligible participants, 3) smoking cessation, and 4) training CHWs to deliver the educational intervention and thus promote sustainability. Methods: Lay CHWs (n=63, 54 urban, 9 rural, 92% female, 56% having ≥Bachelors degree, 79% healthcare providers) were selected from 16 historically African American (AA) churches (n = 9 urban, 3 rural), Federally-Qualified Health centers (n=3) and one community center, all in Georgia or South Carolina. CHW inclusion criteria included pastor recommendation from the churches' healthcare ministry (primarily nurses and other allied health professionals) or community clinic workers who were public health practitioners, nurses, and paraprofessionals. CHWs participated in a 2-day implementation training. Training topics included: their role as a c-CARE facilitator, knowledge of cancer risk factors and lung cancer screening, and using the c-CARE materials to teach the sessions. Pre and post surveys assessed knowledge, satisfaction with the training, and self-efficacy regarding teaching the content. Responses were summarized; all significance tests were two-tailed using a significance level of 0.05. Result: Improvement in each of the six items was strongly significant (p &amp;lt; 0.001), with a mean improvement of at least 2 points on the 0-10 scale in: 1) understanding of their roles as c-CARE facilitators, 2) knowledge of cancer risk factors, 3) knowledge of lung cancer screening, 4) confidence in conducting a c-CARE group, 5) confidence in their abilities to implement a policy change, and 6) confidence in using c-CARE materials to teach participants. Participants also reported satisfaction with the c-CARE training they received. There were no significant differences between urban and rural CHW participants. CHWs conducted 64 sessions for 586 participants as a part of the c-CARE project. Discussion: Use of lay CHWs to deliver culturally competent cancer education and screening navigation was an important component of the c-CARE project. Increases in knowledge regarding cancer risk factors, screening requirements, and self-efficacy in leading the sessions were reported by the CHWs. Use of local lay CHWs ensures sustainability, positively affecting community knowledge, attitude and beliefs regarding lung cancer, prevention, and screening behaviors. Citation Format: Marlo M. Vernon, Ghadeer Albashir, Samantha J. Sojourner, Justin X. Moore, Stephen W. Looney, Martha S. Tingen. Using a “train-the-trainer” approach with urban and rural minority community health workers to implement the cancer-Community Awareness Access Research and Education (c-CARE) Project [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2021; 2021 Apr 10-15 and May 17-21. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2021;81(13_Suppl):Abstract nr 2553.</jats:p