The roasting of sulfide ores and concentrates is one of the most important steps in pyrometallurgical metal production from primary raw materials, due to the necessity of excess sulfur removal, present in the virgin material. Pentlandite is one of the main sources for nickel pyrometallurgical production. The knowledge of its reaction mechanism, products distribution during oxidation and reaction kinetics is important for optimizing the production process. Raw pentlandite-bearing ore from the Levack mine (Ontario, Canada) was subjected to oxidative roasting in the air atmosphere. A chemical analysis of the initial sample was conducted according to EDXRF (Energy-Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence) and AAS (Atomic Adsorption Spectrometry) results. The characterization of the initial sample and oxidation products was conducted by an XRD (X-ray Diffraction) and SEM/EDS (Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersive Spectrometry) analysis. Thermodynamic calculations, a phase analysis and construction of Kellogg diagrams for Ni-S-O and Fe-S-O systems at 298 K, 773 K, 923 K and 1073 K were used for proposing the theoretical reaction mechanism. A thermal analysis (TG/DTA—Thermogravimetric and Differential Thermal Analyses) was conducted in temperature range 298–1273 K, under a heating rate of 15° min−1. A kinetic analysis was conducted according to the non-isothermal method of Daniels and Borchardt, under a heating rate of 15° min−1. Calculated activation energies of 113 kJ mol−1, 146 kJ mol−1 and 356 kJ mol−1 for three oxidation stages imply that in every examined stage of the oxidation process, temperature is a dominant factor determining the reaction rate.

Introdução: A implantação de viveiros que foquem na produção de mudas de espécies nativas de todos os estágios de sucessão ecológica e que primem pela qualidade é um norteador do processo produtivo. Considerando que os viveiros florestais podem representar importantes alternativas de geração de emprego e renda nas comunidades rurais e a elevada demanda por profissionais capacitados para contribuir com a sustentabilidade econômica, social e ambiental. Objetivo: Mostrar que através da produção de mudas florestais nativas aliadas a fixação de aprendizagem e trabalho prático, contribui para a formação de estudantes da Engenharia Florestal, ou seja, recursos humanos capacitados a trabalharem os aspectos técnicos, operacionais e de gestão nos viveiros florestais. Material e Métodos: O viveiro didático Vila da Folha localiza-se no município de Belém, PA, dentro dos limites da Universidade Federal Rural da Amazônia (UFRA) e faz parte do Programa de Educação Tutorial em Eng. Florestal. Nesta unidade didática, os discentes são responsáveis pela coleta de sementes, recebimento dos lotes de sementes, preparo de substratos, semeadura e manejo da produção de mudas nativas. Resultados: A atividade iniciou-se com um curso sobre preparo de substrato oferecido pelo Instituto de Desenvolvimento Florestal e da Biodiversidade do Estado do Pará (IDEFLOR-Bio). Sementes foram obtidas por meio de coletas realizadas no Bosque Rodrigues Alves e nas dependências da UFRA. No viveiro foram produzidas um total de 3.896 mudas. As mudas produzidas foram das espécies: ipê amarelo rugoso (278 mudas), ipê amarelo cerrado (171 mudas), ipê branco (702 mudas), ipê rosa (1.260 mudas), açaí (1.182 mudas), pau-preto (250 mudas) e andiroba (53 mudas). Conclusão: Por meio da prática de produção de mudas florestais nativas os discentes do curso de Engenharia Florestal estão sendo capacitados a trabalharem os aspectos técnicos, operacionais e de gestão nos viveiros. Assim, a atividade prática de viveiro florestal auxilia na capacitação e formação de recursos humanos para atuação neste tipo empreendimento.

As the number of older adults in low- and middle- income (LMIC) countries is expected to grow substantially over the next several decades, it is important to develop programs for the prevention of major depression in later life. These programs should be flexible enough to be adjusted to the needs of poorly resourced LMICs. The current report provides an overview of a “depression in later life” (DIL) study in Goa, India, as a promising and effective mental health prevention program, with the potential for implementation in other LMICs. DIL study uses unspecialized physicians and lay health counselors (LHCs) to deliver both scalable psychological intervention and low-intensity intervention, consistent with Institute of Medicine’s (IOM, 1994) indicated prevention approach. DIL intervention led to reduced incidence of Major Depressive Disorder in DIL-randomized participants and as such it is important in meeting the 2016-2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of “Ensuring healthy lives and promoting the well-being for all at all ages."

This paper presents the initial results of wideband channel measurements for polarised off-body communications at 5.8 GHz in an indoor environment. Channel Impulse Response measurements were performed simultaneously for two orthogonal polarisations of a wearable antenna (several placements) and repeated for vertical and horizontal orientations of the off-body one. Four types of scenarios were considered in order to investigate the influence of user dynamics, presence of people in the environment, and body-shadowing effects from the user or other persons obstructing Line-of-Sight in between transmitter and receiver. Initial results are presented.

In this paper, a polynomial system of plane differential equations is observed. The stability of the non-hyperbolic equilibrium point was analyzed using normal forms. The nonlinear part of the differential equation system is simplified to the maximum. Two nonlinear transformations were used to simplify first the quadratic and then the cubic part of the system of equations.

One of the advantages of FDM technology is the production of product materials with infill structure. In order to make the most of this advantage, the behaviour of FDM printed material with infill structure under different loads has to be analyzed and understood. Therefore, the goal of this experimental research is to analyze influence of infill density (100%, 80%, 60% and 20%) on tensile mechanical properties (tensile strength and elastic modulus) of PLA antibacterial nanocomposite, tough PLA and ABS-X 3D printed materials.

The paper presents the results of the current state of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) production companies benchmarked to the Croatian production companies and to the concept of Industry 4.0, using the same methodology formerly used in Croatia related to implementation of Industry 4.0. Assessment was made on a sample of 47 manufacturing companies from different industries. Responses were collected through online questionnaires and interviews. The assessment was made using structured questionnaire with questions related to the business processes of a company from product development, production and to the quality assurance and logistics. According to the collected responses and the methodology used, the level of development of B&H production companies is 2,19, which is very close to the Croatian companies, in which the level of development was at 2.15, but in a survey conducted three years earlier. This research confirmed that the level of development of B&H manufacturing companies is actually the same as with the Croatian companies.

Background Encapsulating Peritoneal Sclerosis (EPS) is a rare phenomenon in paediatric patients with kidney failure treated with peritoneal dialysis (PD). This study highlights clinical challenges in the management of EPS, with particular emphasis on peri-operative considerations and surgical technique. Methods Retrospective analysis of all paediatric patients with EPS treated at the Manchester Centre for Transplantation. Results Four patients were included with a median duration of 78 months on PD. All patients had recurrent peritonitis (> 3 episodes), and all had symptoms within three months of a change of dialysis modality from PD to haemodialysis or transplant. In Manchester, care was delivered by a multi-disciplinary team, including surgeons delivering the adult EPS surgical service with a particular focus on nutritional optimisation, sepsis control, and wound management. The surgery involved laparotomy, lavage, and enterolysis of the small bowel + / − stoma formation, depending on intra-abdominal contamination. Two patients had a formal stoma, which were reversed at three and six months, respectively. Two patients underwent primary closure of the abdomen, whereas two patients had re-look procedures at 48 h with secondary closure. One patient had a post-operative wound infection, which was managed medically. One patient’s stoma became detached, leading to an intra-abdominal collection requiring re-laparotomy. The median length of stay was 25 days, and patients were discharged once enteral feeding was established. All patients remained free of recurrence with normal gut function and currently two out of four have functioning transplants. Conclusions This series demonstrates 100% survival and parenteral feed independence following EPS surgery. Post-operative morbidity was common; however, with individualised experience-based decision-making and relevant additional interventions, patients made full recoveries. Health and development post-surgery continued, allowing the potential for transplantation. Graphical abstract A higher resolution version of the Graphical abstract is available as Supplementary information

Many species of wild mushrooms are used as a delicacy in the diet, but data on their nutritional value and the effects of their storage on nutritional values are rare. The aim of this study was to determine the content of Free Amino Acids (FAAs), total carbohydrates, vitamin C, and total anthocyanins in six wild mushroom species collected in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Results showed that the drying of mushrooms does not have much influence on the presence of essential and non-essential amino acids. Mushrooms are an excellent source of amino acids whether they are fresh or dry. The total carbohydrate content varied between 12.25-62.75 mg g-1 for fresh mushroom extracts and 40.98-167.24 mg g-1 for dry mushroom extracts. The total carbohydrate content in dry mushrooms is significantly higher than in extracts of fresh mushrooms. The vitamin C content of mushrooms varied between 0.02-1.95 mg g-1 for fresh mushrooms and 0.0-0.63 mg g-1 for dry mushrooms. A lower vitamin C content was found in dry mushrooms, which can be affected by the method of drying mushrooms. The total anthocyanins content varied between 0.39-0.66 mg CGE mL-1 for fresh mushroom extracts and 0.10-0.19 mg CGE mL-1 for dry mushroom extracts. Lower total anthocyanins content was found in dry mushroom extracts, probably due to the destruction of anthocyanins by drying. Our research shows that selected wild edible mushrooms, fresh and dry, have considerable nutritional potential. However, further research is needed on both other nutrients and anti-nutrients in these mushrooms to support their nutritional dominance.

In this letter, we propose a fairness-aware rate maximization scheme for a wireless powered communications network (WPCN) assisted by an intelligent reflecting surface (IRS). The proposed scheme combines user scheduling based on time division multiple access (TDMA) and (mechanical) angular displacement of the IRS. Each energy harvesting user (EHU) has dedicated time slots with optimized durations for energy harvesting and information transmission whereas, the phase matrix of the IRS is adjusted to focus its beam to a particular EHU. The proposed scheme exploits the fundamental dependence of the IRS channel path-loss on the angle between the IRS and the node’s line-of-sight, which is often overlooked in the literature. Additionally, the network design can be optimized for large number of IRS unit cells, which is not the case with the computationally intensive state-of-the-art schemes. In fact, the EHUs can achieve significant rates at practical distances of several tens of meters to the base station (BS) only if the number of IRS unit cells is at least a few thousand.