Investigation of hydrodynamic and mass transfer of mercaptan extraction in pulsed and non-pulsed packed columns

Pouria Amani,Mohammad Amani,Reza Hasanvandian 한국화학공학회 2017 Korean Journal of Chemical Engineering Vol.34 No.5

We investigated the hydrodynamic behavior and mass transfer characteristics of a pilot-scale conventional packed bed extraction column of mercaptan removal from liquid propane. The extraction column was filled with pall rings structured packing where mercaptan was extracted from the continuous phase to the dispersed phase, accompanied by a chemical reaction in propane-mercaptan-caustic system. The pulsing was introduced into the column to enhance the mass transfer rate. Hydrodynamic parameters such as hold up, flooding velocity and mean drop size were studied together with the effect of chemical reaction on increasing mass transfer performance. Finally, the mass transfer and axial mixing coefficients were obtained from the optimization of data by ADM. It was found that at the pulsation intensity from 0.003 to 0.007 m/s, the maximum mass transfer and minimum axial mixing occurred and it can be concluded that pulsation improves the efficiency of mass transfer just at low intensities.

Association between Diet-related Behaviour and Risk of Colorectal Cancer: A Scoping Review

Nur Mahirah Amani Binti Mohammad,Mohd Razif Shahril,Suzana Shahar,Michael Fenech,Razinah Sharif 대한암예방학회 2022 Journal of cancer prevention Vol.27 No.4

Individual dietary patterns may be influenced by diet-related behaviours, which may eventually play a significant role in contributing to colorectal cancer risk. As nearly half of colorectal cancer cases can be prevented through diet and lifestyle modification, in this study, we aimed to present an overview of the literature on diet-related behaviour and its effect on colorectal cancer risk among adults. Articles published from 2011 until July 2021 were selected. Out of the 1,198 articles retrieved, 25 were analyzed. There were 16 case-control studies, and nine of them were cohort studies. As a finding, the instruments used in this review were food frequency questionnaires (n = 23), followed by a semi-structured interview (n = 1), and diet records (n = 1). We demonstrated that unhealthy diet-related behaviours are linked to an increased risk of colorectal cancer in adults and those food frequency questionnaires or food records are common instruments used to collect diet-related behaviours. This article imparts the research trends and directions of colorectal cancer risk factors and shows that diet-related behaviour varies and changes over time

Association of Helicobacter pylori cagA Gene with Gastric Cancer and Peptic Ulcer in Saudi Patients

( Taisir Saber ),( Mabrouk M. Ghonaim ),( Amany R. Yousef ),( Amany Khalifa ),( Hesham Al Qurashi ),( Mohammad Shaqhan ),( Mohammad Samaha ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2015 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.25 No.7

This study was conducted to assess the relationship between occurrence of gastric cancer and peptic ulcer, and the presence of H. pylori cagA gene and anti-CagA IgG, and to estimate the value of these antibodies in detecting infection by cagA gene-positive H. pylori strains in Saudi patients. The study included 180 patients who were subjected to upper gastrointestinal endoscopy in Taif province and Western region of Saudi Arabia (60 gastric cancer, 60 peptic ulcer, and 60 with non-ulcer dyspepsia). Gastric biopsy specimens were obtained and tested for H. pylori infection by rapid urease test and culture. PCR was performed on the isolated strains and biopsy specimens for detection of the cagA gene. Blood samples were collected and tested for CagA IgG by ELISA. H. pylori infection was detected among 72.8% of patients. The cagA gene and anti-CagA IgG were found in 63.4% and 61.8% of H. pylori-infected patients, respectively. They were significantly (p < 0.01) higher in patients with gastric cancer and peptic ulcer compared with those with non-ulcer dyspepsia. Detection of the CagA IgG was 91.6% sensitive, 89.6% specific, and 90.8% accurate compared with detection of the cagA gene. Its positive and negative predictive values were 93.8% and 86%, respectively. The study showed a significant association between the presence of the cagA gene and gastric cancer and peptic ulcer disease, and between anti-CagA IgG and the cagA gene in Saudi patients. However, a further larger study is required to confirm this finding.

Pan-vasculitis and fulminant hepatitis following routine vaccination at the age of 4 months

Mohammad Hosny Awad,Amany El-Hawary,Gehan Sawah,Nehad Nasef 대한백신학회 2021 Clinical and Experimental Vaccine Research Vol.10 No.1

Vaccines are known to have side effects, most of which are tolerable. Vasculitis following vaccination is reported and has various modes of presentation. We report a 4-month-old girl presented with an unusual presentation of fulminant hepatitis, pan vasculitis, and diffuse body aneurysms following routine immunization diagnosed by echocardiography and computed tomography angiogram. It is important to be aware of different possible adverse effects following vaccines and their different modes of presentation as well as possible treatments such as intravenous immunoglobulins and high dose methylprednisolone.

Potential Role for a Panel of Immunohistochemical Markers in the Management of Endometrial Carcinoma

Amany Salama,Mohammad Arafa,Eman ElZahaf,Abdelhadi Mohamed Shebl,Azmy Abd El-Hameed Awad,Sylvia A. Ashamallah,Reda Hemida,Anas Gamal,Abd AlRahman Foda,Khaled Zalata,El-Said M. Abdel-Hady 대한병리학회 2019 Journal of Pathology and Translational Medicine Vol.53 No.3

Background: In order to improve the efficacy of endometrial carcinoma (EC) treatment, identifying prognostic factors for high risk patients is a high research priority. This study aimed to assess the relationships among the expression of estrogen receptors (ER), progesterone receptors (PR), human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), Ki-67, and the different histopathological prognostic parameters in EC and to assess the value of these in the management of EC. Methods: We examined 109 cases of EC. Immunohistochemistry for ER, PR, HER2, and Ki-67 were evaluated in relation to age, tumor size, International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage and grade, depth of infiltration, cervical and ovarian involvement, lymphovascular space invasion (LVSI), and lymph node (LN) metastasis. Results: The mean age of patients in this study was 59.8 ± 8.2 years. Low ER and PR expression scores and high Ki-67 expression showed highly significant associations with non-endometrioid histology (p = .007, p < .001, and p < .001, respectively) and poor differentiation (p = .007, p < .001, and p <. 001, respectively). Low PR score showed a significant association with advanced stage (p = .009). Low ER score was highly associated with LVSI (p = .006), and low PR scores were associated significantly with LN metastasis (p = .026). HER2 expression was significantly related to advanced stages (p = .04), increased depth of infiltration (p = .02), LVSI (p = .017), ovarian involvement (p = .038), and LN metastasis (p = .038). There was a close relationship between HER2 expression and uterine cervical involvement (p = .009). Higher Ki-67 values were associated with LN involvement (p = .012). Conclusions: The over-expression of HER2 and Ki-67 and low expression of ER and PR indicate a more malignant EC behavior. An immunohistochemical panel for the identification of high risk tumors can contribute significantly to prognostic assessments.

Microwave-assisted combustion design of magnetic Mg–Fe spinel for MgO-based nanocatalyst used in biodiesel production: Influence of heating-approach and fuel ratio

Tohid Amani,Mohammad Haghighi,Behgam Rahmanivahid 한국공업화학회 2019 Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Vol.80 No.-

Magnetic MgO/MgFe2O4 nanocatalysts synthesized by microwave-assisted combustion method by usingvarious fuel ratios and employed in the production of biodiesel. To evaluate the influence of microwaveheating, its results were compared to those of conventional furnace. MgO was dispersed on all thesamples using simple and cost-effective impregnation method. Characterizations of the magnetic spinelnanocatalysts were performed via XRD, FESEM, SPSD, BET-BJH, FTIR, TG and EDX analyses. Accordingly,the sample synthesized by microwave irradiation with a fuel ratio of 1.5 exhibited the largest effectivearea and pore volume and appropriate pore size for transesterification reaction with coarse molecules.

Simulation of phenol biodegradation by Ralstonia eutropha in a packed-bed bioreactor with batch recycle mode using CFD technique

Afshin Amani,Elham Jalilnejad,Seyyed Mohammad Mousavi 한국공업화학회 2018 Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Vol.59 No.-

Packed-bed reactors are widely used in biological treatment processes. The complete simulation of the reactions and concentration profiles of the reactors, which are necessary for a successful reactor design, operation, and scale-up, are now possible due to extensive improvements of numerical methods and computational power. In the present work, phenol biodegradation was studied in a packed-bed bioreactor operating in the recycling batch mode using the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method. A transient comprehensive 3D CFD was developed to simulate the dynamic behavior of batch phenol biodegradation by Ralstonia eutropha in a Kissiris-immobilized cell bioreactor. The model combined the porous medium CFD model with two kinetic equations, namely the Haldane and Luong inhibition models, to consider the inhibitory effect of phenol at high concentrations. The simulation results of the phenol concentration variation in different initial phenol concentrations (2.13, 4.26, 6.39, and 8.52 mol/m3) and recirculation flow rates (10, 25, and 40 ml/min) were validated against experimental data. Despite the assumptions, the simulation results create an acceptable assurance of the simulation precision with good agreement with experimental data.

Assessment of natural radioactivity in soil and olive mill pomace utilizing nal (TI) gamma-ray spectrometry and low background alpha/beta counting system

Kraishan Amani,Shayeb Mohammad Abu,Belmabrouk Hafedh,Qwasmeh Ahmad Ali Husein,Baloch Muzahir Ali 한국원자력학회 2024 Nuclear Engineering and Technology Vol.56 No.5

The study conducted in the northwest region of Jordan aimed to assess the levels of natural radioactivity in soil and olive mill pomace (OMP) samples. The researchers used Nal (TI) gamma-ray spectrometry to measure the activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th, 40K, and 137Cs in the samples. The average activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th, 40K, and 137Cs in the soil samples were found to be 18.624 ± 5.82, 12.276 ± 5.728, 518.33 ± 212.57, and 0.140 ± 0.09 (Bq, kg−1), respectively. In the OMP samples, the average activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th, and 40K were 7.272 ± 4.386, 3.454 ± 1.503, and 169.997 ± 81.873 (Bq kg−1), respectively, and no 137Cs was detected. The study also investigated fundamental parameters associated with radon, specifically the radon emanation coefficient ( ) and radon mass exhalation rate ( ). The values ranged from 0.621 to 0.78 (Bq kg−1), with an average value of 0.71 ± 0.06 (Bq kg−1). The estimated from the soil samples ranged from 65.83 to 124.86 (mBq kg−1h−1), with an average value of 99.74 ± 21.73 (mBq kg−1h−1). Regarding radiological hazards, the study examined various parameters, including radium equivalent activity, external and internal hazard indices, gamma and alpha indices, absorbed gamma dose rate, and excess lifetime cancer risk. All of these assessed values were found to be below the worldwide recommended limits for radiological safety. Additionally, the study analyzed the concentrations of gross alpha and gross beta radioactivities in soil and OMP samples. The soil samples had an average gross alpha activity of 4.642 ± 1.04 (Bq kg−1) and an average gross beta activity of 48.13 ± 14.50 (Bq kg−1). The OMP samples showed an average gross alpha activity of 0.32 ± 0.27 (Bq kg−1) and an average gross beta activity of 59.19 ± 12.94 (Bq kg−1). Overall, the obtained results are crucial for evaluating the radiological risks associated with natural radioactivity in the northwest region of Jordan. The findings establish baseline data for comparison and reference for radioactivity levels in the environment.

Evaluation of the Protective Effect of Citral, Silymarin, and Thymoquinone on Methotrexate-Induced Lung Injury in Rats

Sakineh Amani,Noorbakhsh Mohammad Foad,Ahmadi Nasrollah,Saeed Nazifi,Behdokht Barzan 대한약침학회 2023 Journal of pharmacopuncture Vol.26 No.2

Objectives: Several studies have reported that methotrexate is an anti-cancer and immunosuppressive drug leading to lung injury. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the protective effects of silymarin, citral, and thymoquinone on methotrexate-induced pulmonary toxicity. Methods: Forty-eight rats were divided into six groups, including healthy, Methotrexate, and drug carrier control groups and silymarin, citral, and thymoquinone treatment groups. At the end of the experiment, the studied rats were anesthetized and sacrificed by CO 2 . Lung tissue samples were isolated to measure the antioxidant activity and histopathological evaluation. Results: In the thymoquinone treatment group, the concentration of total antioxidant capacity and Malondialdehyde increased and decreased significantly, respectively, compared to the methotrexate group. The histopathological evaluation of the lung of the methotrexate group showed hemorrhage and congestion, the nodule-like accumulation of mononuclear inflammatory lymphocytes around the blood vessel, a small number of neutrophils around the blood vessel, and the inflammatory cells around the small vessels. However, no significant pathological alterations were observed in the treatment groups, especially the thymoquinone treatment group. Conclusion: Thymoquinone has the greatest protective effect on methotrexate-induced lung injury, probably due to its antioxidant effect.

TiO2 nanofiber yarns: A prospective candidate as a photocatalyst

Farnaz Memarian,Mohammad Amani-Tehran,Masoud Latifi 한국공업화학회 2015 Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Vol.23 No.-

Considering the efficient TiO2 structure on enhancing its photocatalytic behavior is of great interest in recent years. Meanwhile, inhibiting the filtration process for detachment of the catalyst from the purified solution is very advantages. To approach this purpose, TiO2 nanofiber yarns were successfully fabricated through the electrospinning technique using two oppositely charged nozzles followed by the calcinations process from a solution containing titanium precursor and polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) as the supporting material. The introduced nanofiber yarns eliminate the ultrasonic and centrifuge steps required in photocatalytic tests of nanoparticles and electrospun nanofibers. The results show that this new catalyst’s structure maintains its shape during the photocatalytic degradation process and can be easily removed from the purified water.