Assessment of tear film parameters post-treatment with commercial eyelid cleaning wipes:a pilot study

AIM:To investigate the short-term effects of commercially available eyelid-cleaning wipes on film parameters.METHODS:This study enrolled 48 healthy participants aged 20-35y(both males and females).Clinical assessment included the Ocular Surface Disease Index(OSDI)questionnaire,non-invasive tear break-up time(NITBUT),tear meniscus height(TMH),and lipid layer pattern(LLP).Based on these initial results,participants were categorized as either non-dry eye or dry eye.Participants in each group were randomly allocated to either Blephaclean■or Systane■treatments.Changes in NITBUT,TMH,and LLP levels before and after lid wipe treatment were assessed.RESULTS:The dry eye group exhibited significantly higher OSDI scores and lower NITBUT and TMH levels than in the non-dry eye group(P<0.001).Following the application of eyelid wipes(Systane■wipes),dry eye subjects experienced a significant improvement in NITBUT levels(P=0.0014)compared to the non-dry eye individuals.Although the remaining participants showed a marginal increase in TMH and NITBUT levels,these changes did not achieve statistical significance(P>0.05).Similarly,the LLP levels were significantly improved with Systane■(P<0.001)post-treatment compared to individuals in the non-dry eye group.However,the dry eye subjects showed higher posttreatment LLP levels than the untreated group(P<0.02).CONCLUSION:The short-term effects of Systane®eyelid wipes on tear film parameters suggest their effectiveness in dry eye disease.Nonetheless,further exploration of their long-term impact is essential to justify their cost effectiveness and efficacy in treating both aqueous deficiency and evaporative dryness.

The role of structural inheritance in continental break-up and exhumation of Alpine Tethyan mantle(Canavese Zone,Western Alps)

The Canavese Zone(CZ)in the Western Alps represents the remnant of the distal passive margin of the Adria microplate,which was stretched and thinned during the Jurassic opening of the Alpine Tethys.Through detailed geological mapping,stratigraphic and structural analyses,we document that the continental break-up of Pangea and tectonic dismemberment of the Adria distal margin,up to mantle rocks exhumation and oceanization,did not simply result from the syn-rift Jurassic extension but was strongly favored by older structu ral inheritances(the Proto-Canavese Shear Zone),which controlled earlier lithospheric weakness.Our findings allowed to redefine in detail(i)the tectono-stratigraphic setting of the Variscan metamorphic basement and the Late Carbonife rous to Early Cretaceous CZ succession,(ii)the role played by inherited Late Carboniferous to Early Triassic structures and(iii)the significance of the CZ in the geodynamic evolution of the Alpine Tethys.The large amount of extensional displacement and crustal thinning occurred during different pulses of Late Carbonife rous-Early Triassic strike-slip tectonics is wellconsistent with the role played by long-lived regional-scale wrench faults(e.g.,the East-Variscan Shear Zone),suggesting a re-discussion of models of mantle exhumation driven by low-angle detachment faults as unique efficient mechanism in stretching and thinning continental crust.

Assembly, Accretion and Break-up of the Paleo-Mesoproterozoic Columbia(Nuna) Supercontinent: Records in the North China Craton

Columbia(Nuna)is a Paleo-Mesoproterozoic supercontinent that was assembled during global 2.0–1.8Ga collisional events,underwent long-lived,subductionrelated accretion at key continental margins in the period

Break-up Process of Perturbed Molten Metal Jet and Preparation of Lead-Free Solder Balls

Solder balls, which are used in advanced electronics packages such as BGA (Ball Grid Array) and CSP (Chip Scale Package) to substitute the leads and realize the electrical and mechanical connections between substrate and chip,have severe specifications in diameter tolerance, roundness and surface quality, and therefore challenge the traditional technologies for fabrication of metallic particles and powders. The present work made a survey of perturbed molten metal jet break-up process, observed the formation and growth of capillary wave of tin-lead melt jet by way of rapid solidification, and on the basis of the above research, successfully obtained tin-lead eutectic and Sn-4.0Ag-0.5Cu lead free solder balls with tight distribution and good sphericity of particles through optimization of processing parameters, forming a solid base for cost effectively producing solder balls.

Computational study of bubble coalescence/break-up behaviors and bubble size distribution in a 3-D pressurized bubbling gas-solid fluidized bed of Geldart A particles

A computational study was carried out on bubble dynamic behaviors and bubble size distributions in a pressurized lab-scale gas-solid fluidized bed of Geldart A particles.High-resolution 3-D numerical simulations were performed using the two-fluid model based on the kinetic theory of granular flow.A finegrid,which is in the range of 3–4 particle diameters,was utilized in order to capture bubble structures explicitly without breaking down the continuum assumption for the solid phase.A novel bubble tracking scheme was developed in combination with a 3-D detection and tracking algorithm(MS3 DATA)and applied to detect the bubble statistics,such as bubble size,location in each time frame and relative position between two adjacent time frames,from numerical simulations.The spatial coordinates and corresponding void fraction data were sampled at 100 Hz for data analyzing.The bubble coalescence/break-up frequencies and the daughter bubble size distribution were evaluated by using the new bubble tracking algorithm.The results showed that the bubble size distributed non-uniformly over cross-sections in the bed.The equilibrium bubble diameter due to bubble break-up and coalescence dynamics can be obtained,and the bubble rise velocity follows Davidson’s correlation closely.Good agreements were obtained between the computed results and that predicted by using the bubble break-up model proposed in our previous work.The computational bubble tracking method showed the potential of analyzing bubble motions and the coalescence and break-up characteristics based on time series data sets of void fraction maps obtained numerically and experimentally.

Lamprophyres from Southern Karnataka, Dharwar Craton, India: Insight on the Rodinia Break-up and Addition of Juvenile Crust

The late Archean Dharwar Craton is an important part of the Archean and Proterozoic terrains in Peninsular India.Dharwar Craton consists of Western and Eastern Blocks,separated by the Chitradurga Shear Zone.Eastern

Effect of Projectile Break-Up Threshold Energy on Incomplete Fusion at Energy ≈ 4 - 7 MeV/Nucleon

Complete and incomplete fusion cross sections have been measured for the 20Ne + 51V system to investigate the influence of projectile break-up at or above the barrier energies. The excitation function of the individual reaction channel measured using off-line γ-ray spectroscopy has been compared with those estimated theoretically using the statistical model code PACE4. A significant fraction of incomplete fusion has been found in the production of residues involving α-particle in the exit channel. In order to understand the energy dependence of incomplete fusion reactions, incomplete fusion fraction has been deduced, which has also been compared with the earlier data available for 12C and 16O projectiles to look for the projectile structure dependence.

Effects of Neo-Tethyan evolution on the petroleum system of Persian Gulf Superbasin

Considering the Neo-Tethyan tectonic process and the resulting environmental changes,a geodynamic model of“one-way train loading”is proposed to analyze the formation and evolution mechanism of the Persian Gulf Superbasin with the most abundant hydrocarbons in the world.The Persian Gulf Superbasin has long been in a passive continental margin setting since the Late Paleozoic in the process of unidirectional subduction,forming a superior regional space of hydrocarbon accu-mulation.During the Jurassic-Cretaceous,the Persian Gulf Superbasin drifted slowly at low latitudes,and developed multiple superimposed source-reservoir-caprock assemblages as a combined result of several global geological events such as the Hadley Cell,the Equatorial Upwelling Current,and the Jurassic True Polar Wander.The collision during the evolution of the foreland basin since the Cenozoic led to weak destruction,which was conducive to the preservation of oil and gas.Accordingly,it is be-lieved that the slow drifting and long retention in favorable climate zone of the continent are the critical factors for hydrocarbon enrichment.Moreover,the prospects of hydrocarbon potential in other continents in the Neo-Tethyan were proposed.

Model Calculation of n + 6Li Reactions Below 20 MeV

Based on the unified Hauser-Feshbach and exciton model for light nuclei, the calculations of reaction cross sections and the double-differential cross sections for n + 6Li are performed. Since all of the first-particle emissions are from the compound nucleus to the discrete levels, the angular momentum coupling effect in pre-equilibrium mechanism must be taken into account. The fitting of the measured data indicates that the three-body break-up process needs to be involved, and the pre-equilibrium reaction mechanism dominates the reaction processes. In light nucleus reactions the recoil effect must be taken into account.

Ocular surface changes in type II diabetic patients with proliferative diabetic retinopathy

AIM: To detect and analyze the changes on ocular surface and tear function in type II diabetic patients with proliferative diabetic retinopathy(PDR), an advanced stage of diabetic retinopathy(DR), using conventional ophthalmic tests and the high-resolution laser scanning confocal microscopy.METHODS: Fifty-eight patients with type II diabetes were selected. Based on the diagnostic criteria and stage classification of DR, the patients were divided into the non-DR(NDR) group and the PDR group. Thirty-six patients with cataract but no other ocular and systemic disease were included as non-diabetic controls. All the patients were subjected to the conventional clinical tests of corneal sensitivity, Schirmer I test, and corneal fluorescein staining. The non-invasive tear film break-up time(NIBUT) and tear interferometry were conducted by a Tearscope Plus. The morphology of corneal epithelia and nerve fibers was examined using the high-resolution confocal microscopy.RESULTS: The NDR group exhibited significantly declined corneal sensitivity and Schirmer I test value, as compared to the non-diabetic controls(P 【0.001). The PDR group showed significantly reduced corneal sensitivity, Schirmer I test value, and NIBUT in comparison to the non-diabetic controls(P 【0.001).Corneal fluorescein staining revealed the progressively injured corneal epithelia in the PDR patients. Moreover,significant decrease in the corneal epithelial density andmorphological abnormalities in the corneal epithelia and nerve fibers were also observed in the PDR patients.CONCLUSION: Ocular surface changes, including blunted corneal sensitivity, reduced tear secretion, tear film dysfunction, progressive loss of corneal epithelia and degeneration of nerve fibers, are common in type II diabetic patients, particularly in the diabetic patients with PDR. The corneal sensitivity, fluorescein staining scores,and the density of corneal epithelial cells and nerve fibers in the diabetic patients correlate with the duration of diabetes. Therefore, ocular surface of the patients with PDR should be examined regularly by conventional approaches and confocal microscopy to facilitate early diagnosis and treatment of keratopathy.

Regional tectonics, geology, magma chamber processes and mineralisation of the Jinchuan nickel-copper-PGE deposit, Gansu Province, China： A review

The Jinchuan Ni-Cu-PGE deposit（〉500 Mt @1.2%Ni,0.7%Cu,～0.4 g/t PGE）,one of the largest magmatic sulphide deposits in the world,is located within the westernmost terrane of the North China Craton.It is hosted within the 6.5 km long,Neoproterozoic（～0.83 Ga） Jinchuan ultramafic intrusion,emplaced as a sill-like body into a Palaeoproterozoic suite of gneisses,migmatites,marbles and amphibolites,below an active intracratonic rift.The parental magma was high-Mg basalt,generated through melting of subcrustal lithospheric mantle by a mantle plume during the initiation of Rodinia supercontinent breakup.The lower Palaeozoic collision of the exotic Qilian Block with the breakup-related southern margin of the craton accreted a subduction complex,and emplaced voluminous granitic intrusions and foreland basin sequences within the craton,to as far north as Jinchuan.During the Cainozoic,allochthonous lower Palaeozoic rocks were thrust up to 300 km to the northeast over cratonic basement,to within 25 km of the Jinchuan deposit.The Jinchuan ultramafic intrusion was injected into three interconnected sub-chambers,each containing a separate orebody.It essentially comprises an olivine-orthopyroxene-chromite cumulate,with interstitial orthopyroxene,clinopyroxene,plagioclase and phlogopite,and is predominantly composed of lherzolite（～80%）,with an outer rim of olivine pyroxenite and cores of mineralised dunite.Mineralisation occurs as disseminated and net-textured sulphides,predominantly within the dunite,with lesser,PGE rich lenses,late massive sulphide accumulations,small copper rich pods and limited mineralised diopside skarn in wall rock marbles.The principal ore minerals are pyrrhotite（the dominant sulphide）,pentlandite,chalcopyrite,cubanite,mackinawite and pyrite,with a variety of platinum group minerals and minor gold.The deposit underwent significant post-magmatic tremolite-actinolite,chlorite,serpentine and magnetite alteration.The volume of thejinchuan intrusion accounts for 〈3% of the total parental magma required to generate the contained olivine and sulphide.It is postulated that mafic melt,intruded into the lower crust,hydraulically supported by density contrast buoyancy from below the Moho,ponded in a large staging chamber,where crystallisation and settling formed a lower sulphide rich mush.This mush was subsequently injected into nearby shallow dipping faults to form the Jinchuan intrusion.

Numerical simulation on dynamic behaviors of bubbles flowing through bifurcate T-junction in microfluidic device

Based on the volume of fluid(VOF) method, a numerical model of bubbles splitting in a microfluidic device with T-junction is developed and solved numerically. Various flow patterns are distinguished and the effects of bubble length,capillary number, and diameter ratio between the mother channel and branch are discussed. The break-up mechanism is explored in particular. The results indicate that the behaviors of the bubbles can be classified into two categories: break-up and non-break. Under the condition of slug flowing, the branches are obstructed by the bubbles that the pressure difference drives the bubbles into break-up state, while the bubbles that retain non-break state flow into an arbitrary branch under bubbling flow condition. The break-up of the short bubbles only occurs when the viscous force from the continuous phase overcomes the interfacial tension. The behavior of the bubbles transits from non-break to break-up with the increase of capillary number. In addition, the increasing of the diameter ratio is beneficial to the symmetrical break-up of the bubbles.

Comprehensive two-dimensional river ice model based on boundary-fitted coordinate transformation method

River ice is a natural phenomenon in cold regions, influenced by meteorology, geomorphology, and hydraulic conditions. River ice processes involve complex interactions between hydrodynamic, mechanical, and thermal processes, and they are also influenced by weather and hydrologic conditions. Because natural rivers are serpentine, with bends, narrows, and straight reaches, the commonly-used one-dimensional river ice models and two-dimensional models based on the rectangular Cartesian coordinates are incapable of simulating the physical phenomena accurately. In order to accurately simulate the complicated river geometry and overcome the difficulties of numerical simulation resulting from both complex boundaries and differences between length and width scales, a two-dimensional river ice numerical model based on a boundary-fitted coordinate transformation method was developed. The presented model considers the influence of the frazil ice accumulation under ice cover and the shape of the leading edge of ice cover during the freezing process. The model is capable of determining the velocity field, the distribution of water temperature, the concentration distribution of frazil ice, the transport of floating ice, the progression, stability, and thawing of ice cover, and the transport, accumulation, and erosion of ice under ice cover. A MacCormack scheme was used to solve the equations numerically. The model was validated with field observations from the Hequ Reach of the Yellow River. Comparison of simulation results with field data indicates that the model is capable of simulating the river ice process with high accuracy.

Ca. 1.7 Ga Magmatism on Southwestern Margin of the Yangtze Block: Response to the Breakup of Columbia

This paper presents some data of the Jiaopingdu gabbro and Caiyuanzi granite at the southwestern margin of the Yangtze Block,on the geochemical compositions,zircon LA-ICP-MS U-Pb ages and Hf isotopic data.The Jiaopingdu gabbro gives the age of 1721±5 Ma,the Caiyuanzi granite 1732±6 Ma and 1735±4 Ma,and the Wenjiacun porphyry granite 1713±4 Ma,suggesting nearly contemporaneous formation time of the gabbro and granite.The bimodal feature is demonstrated by the gabbro Si O2 content of 44.64-46.87 wt%and granite 73.81-77.03 wt%.In addition,the granite has high content of Si O2 and Na2 O+K2 O,low content of Al2 O3 and Ca O,enriched in REEs(except Eu)and Zr,Nb,Ga and Y,depleted in Sr,implying it belongs to A-type granite geochemistry and origin of within-plate environment.The zirconε(Hf)(t)of the granite and gabbro is at the range of 2-6,which is near the 2.0 Ga evolution line of the crust,implying the parent magma of the gabbro being derived from the depleted mantle and a small amount of crustal material,and the parent magma of the granite from partial melting of the juvenile crust and some ancient crustal material at the same time.Compared with 1.8-1.7 Ga magmatism during breakup of other cratons in the world,we can deduce that the Columbia has initially broken since ca.1.8 Ga,and some continental marginal or intra-continental rifts occurred at ca.1.73 Ga.

Topographic tear film trend and new parameters for noninvasive break up time test

AIM:To evaluate the quantitative and qualitative results of the noninvasive tear film break-up time(NI-BUT)test and investigate the predictive ability of the new NIBUT parameter in discriminating between normal Ocular Surface Disease Index(OSDI;scores≤12)and abnormal OSDI(scores≥13).METHODS:A total of 341 eyes of 341 volunteers who applied for routine eye outpatient control were included in the prospective study.All participants'noninvasive first tear film break-up time(NIF-BUT),noninvasive average tear film break-up time(NIAvg-BUT)and average value of the first three break-up time(A3F-BUT)were analyzed.A3F-BUT,the new NI-BUT parameter,is calculated by adding the NIF-BUT value to the 2^(nd )break-up time value that has a difference of at most 1 second from the NIF-BUT value and to the 3^(rd) break-up time and then dividing the respective sum by 3.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve and forward logistic regression analyses were performed to determine the parameter that had the best predictive ability between the OSDI groups.RESULTS:The NI-BUT values of 255 eyes of 255 volunteers included in the study were analyzed statistically.The mean NIF-BUT,NIAvg-BUT,and A3F-BUT values were calculated as 5.3±3.0,8±3.1,and 5.8±3.0 seconds,respectively.All three parameters were found to be significantly lower in the abnormal OSDI group(P=0.014,0.034,and 0.011,respectively).The area under the curve(AUC)of the A3F-BUT to predict abnormal OSDI was AUC=0.625(0.529-0.720),P=0.011 and NIF-BUT was AUC=0.599(0.502-0.696),P=0.043.The A3F-BUT parameter and NIF-BUT parameters were found to be significantly efficient in discriminating abnormal OSDI.CONCLUSION:The new parameter for the NI-BUT test has more predictive ability in the discrimination of OSDI groups.

The Kalahari Impacts Hypothesis for the Birth of the Moon： Did Morokweng Meteorite Impact （145 Ma） Break up the Gondwanaland and Ignite Volcanic Explosion to Form the Moon？

When gigantic meteorite impact sites in Southern Africa are plotted on the geological map of the region, they overlap with the SW-NE fault lines and it indicates that meteorite impacts have contributed to the geological structure of the region. The Morokweng Meteorite Impact of 145 Ma （Million years ago）, at the J/K （Jurassic/Cretaceous） boundary, seems to have broken up the Gondwanaland. It is plausible that, at the time of continental break-up, seawater poured into Morokweng crater and ignited a gigantic volcanic eruption which delivered low viscose magma into the outer space to form the Moon. An extremely flat surface of the Megakalahari extending 3,800,000 sq. km at 800-1,200 m above sea level in the central and southern Africa seems to be the terrestrial residue of fluid magma at the end of the volcanic event.

Properties of middle-late Proterozoic volcanic rocks in South Qinling and the Precambrian continental break-up

In South Qinling, the volcanic series of the middle-late Proterozoic Yunxi Group, Yaolinghe Group, Xi.xiang Group and Bikou Group have characteristics of the continental rift volcanic rocks or continental flood basalts and are formed in continental intraplate tensional setting. The enrichment of incompatible elements, high εNd values and low-medium 87Sr/86Sr initial ratios of these volcanic rocks indicate that they were derived from asthenospheric plume. Under the action of the intense pull-apart in lithosphere, the mantle plume upwelled, quickly decompressed and melted, and finally produced magma. This tensional process made the continental crust break and eventually led to an oceanic basin in late Proterozoic. The middle-late Proterozoic volcanism is a precursor of Precarabrian continental break-up in the South Qinling.

Oxide transformation and break-up of liquid metal in boiling solutions

The non-toxic gallium-based liquid metals(LMs) are promising for various newly emerging areas due to having excellent fluidity, high electrical and heat conductivity. However, the oxide layers often affect their applications. In this paper, we disclosed a straightforward boiling strategy to efficiently remove the oxide of LM in deionized water. Meanwhile such method was also demonstrated to be capable of quickly breaking up LM into droplets(mean 0.51 mm, SD 0.20 mm) in Na Cl solution,which has important value for manufacture purpose. According to the force analysis, surface tension of LM dominates the interaction between solution bubbles and LM under the same heating conditions. Then we characterized the surface morphology and compositions of LM droplets boiled(LMDB) using scanning electron microscope(SEM), X-ray diffraction(XRD) and Xray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS) and tested the dynamic force between a rod and LMDB. It was shown that after being boiled in water, most of Ga2O3 was transformed to scattered α-Ga OOH nanorods which has less restriction to the deformation of LM and large resistance force(0.8 mN) was tested;otherwise, after boiled in Na Cl solution, more Ga2 O3 with contact patch structure reduces the surface resistance of LM(0.2 m N) and makes it to be broken up by bubbles. The different surface products are determined by the inhibition of hydrolysis of Ga3+by Na Cl solution. This study paved a simple way for oxide removal in neutral solution and mass production of LMD. It also suggests an efficient approach for exploring mechanisms of interactions between LM and bubbles, which is difficult to study otherwise in sonication.

Study on the Cylindrical Liquid Nanojet Break-up Phenomenon

In this paper the liquid argon nanojet break-up phenomenon was studied using the molecular dynamics method. The effects of temperature, nozzle diameter and body force on the nanojet break-up length and time were simu- lated. Meanwhile, the particle size, wave length and the frequency of the disturbance were compared with the re- suits of linear stability analysis. The results showed that even though the fluid becomes discontinuous, the tradi- tional linear stability analysis can be used to make a rough calculation of the nanojet break-up.

Analysis of Spray Evaporation in a Model Evaporating Chamber:Effect of Air Swirl

Spray evaporation of liquid fuels in a turbulent flow is a common process in various engineering applications such as combustion.Interactions between fuel droplets(discrete phase)and fluid flow(continuous phase)have a considerable effect on liquid fuel evaporation.In this paper,both the single-and two-phase modeling of liquid fuel injection into a model evaporating chamber are presented.The influences of important issues such as turbulence models,coupling between gas phase and droplets,secondary break-up and air swirling on the current spray simulation are investigated.Accordingly,the shear stress transport turbulence model,Taylor analogy break-up and two-way coupling models are applied to simulate the two-phase flow.Atomization and spray of fuel droplets in hot air are modeled employing an Eulerian-Lagrangian approach.The current results show an acceptable agreement with the experiments.Adjacent the fuel atomizer,bigger droplets are detected near the spray edge and minor droplets are situated in the middle.With increasing the droplets axial position,the droplets diameter decreases with a finite slope.The smaller droplets have a deeper penetration,but their lifetime is smaller and they evaporate sooner.A linear relation between penetration and lifetime of smaller droplets is detected.Maximum droplet penetration and mean axial velocity of gas phase are observed for no air swirling case.The effect of variation of swirl number on the lifetime of droplets is almost negligible.By enhancing the swirl number,the uniformity of droplet size distribution is reduced and some large droplets are formed up in the domain.