Experimental study and simulations of infiltration in evapotranspiration landfill covers

Various cover systems have been designed for landfill sites in order to minimize infiltration （percolation） into the underlying waste. This study evaluated the soil water balance performance of evapotranspiration covers （ET covers） and simulated percolation in the systems using the active region model （ARM）. Experiments were conducted to measure water flow processes and water balance components in a bare soil cover and different ET covers. Results showed that vegetation played a critical role in controlling the water balance of the ET covers. In soil profiles of 60-cm depth with and without vegetation cover, the maximum soil water storage capacities were 97.2 mm and 62.8 mm, respectively. The percolation amount in the bare soil was 2.1 times that in the vegetation-covered soil. The ARM simulated percolation more accurately than the continuum model because it considered preferential flow. Numerical simulation results also indicated that using the ET cover system was an effective way of removing water through evanotransoiration, thus reducing nercolation.

Critical points in the formulation of pharmaceutical swellable controlled release dosage forms——Influence of particle size

Swellable matrix represents one of the most employed controlled release systems. These dosage forms provide slow release of drugs to reduce the fluctuation of drug concentration in plasma in order to improve the efficiency of treatment and/or to reduce adverse effects. The application of the concepts of statistical physics has allowed discovering the existence of critical points in the formulation of swellable matrices. These points, representing the volume fractions of the tablet components where the properties of the matrix diverge or change suddenly, provide important knowledge of how to rationalize the design of swellable matrices. The critical points are generally related to the percolation threshold of one of the components of the formulation, which corresponds to a geometrical phase transition of this component, passing from isolation to spanning the whole system. The last section of the paper is devoted to more recent findings concerning the influence of particle size of the components on the percolation threshold of the matrix forming polymer, and therefore on the release behaviour of the matrix. Knowledge of the excipient percolation threshold allows a more rational design of swellable matrices, according to the guidelines of the regulatory authorities concerning science-based formulation and quality by design.