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This study assessed the hand hygiene performance in French nursing homes using the consumption of alcohol-based hand rubs (AHRs) as a surrogate. Nursing homes from the 17 French regions were contacted to collect their AHR consumption and occupancy in 2018 and 2019. A total of 1290 nursing homes from 15 French regions participated in the survey. The estimated median number of hand hygiene actions per resident-day was 1.48 (interquartile range: 1.04-2.03) in 2018 and 1.60 (1.10-2.26) in 2019. A significantly higher AHR consumption was observed in public nursing homes with an infection control team or link nurse.

Abstract This paper provides new empirical insights on the capital structure of project-financed LNG infrastructures and gas pipeline projects, by using data relating to projects whose financial close occurred between June 2004 and March 2011. Most results are consistent with the basic view of risk-averse funds suppliers. Especially, the projects located in risky countries and larger projects tend to exhibit lower debt ratios and less-concentrated equity ownerships. In addition, regasification projects appear to have a more diluted equity ownership. Methodological issues raised by the financing of these projects are also examined from a capital-budgeting perspective. In particular, the equity residual method, usually used by industrial practitioners to value these projects, should be adjusted.

Among various bioreactors examined in anaerobic digestion and dark fermentation, UASB bioreactor has shown to be a promising alternative. However, mass transfer resistance and biomass washout have been the issues that reported as draw backs of the granular system in the literature. Another problem associated with such a system is its long start-up period as a result of biomass washout and long microbial granulation stage. In this paper, the results obtained from an UASFF bioreactor in methane (AD process) and hydrogen (DF process) production from POME, are presented to assess mass transfer of substrate into the granules and also study the role of internal packing used in the middle part of reactor in the process stability. The value of effectiveness factor, η, for AD and DF processes were calculated to be 0.96 and 0.94, respectively, indicating that there was no mass transfer resistance due to internal and/or external factors. The results showed that the packing material could retain biomass in the reactor and had outstanding contribution in the granulation enhancement. Its role as a supplementing treatment stage was more significant at low HRTs and up-flow velocities.

Summary Past climatic fluctuations have played a major role in shaping the current plant biodiversity. Although harbouring an exceptional biota, oceanic islands have received little attention in studies on species demographic history and past vegetation patterns. We investigated the impact of past climatic changes on the effective population size of a tree (Coffea mauritiana) that is endemic to Reunion Island, located in the south‐western Indian Ocean (SWIO). Demographic changes were inferred using summary statistics calculated from genomic data. Using ecological niche modelling and the current distribution of genetic diversity, the paleodistribution of the species was also assessed. A reduction in the effective population size of C. mauritiana during the last glaciation maximum was inferred. The distribution of the species was reduced on the western side of the island, due to low rainfall. It appeared that a major reduction in rainfall and a slight temperature decrease prevailed in the SWIO. Our findings indicated that analyses on the current patterns of intraspecific genetic variations can efficiently contribute to past climatic changes characterisation in remote islands. Identifying area with higher resilience in oceanic islands could provide guidance in forest management and conservation faced to the global climate change.

Abstract AP1000® Generation III+ reactor bases its safety concept on passive systems, differently from the previous Generation II reactors. This fact has led the approximations and methodologies previously used for modeling active safety systems to be reviewed and adapted to simulate the physics of passive systems. Diverse studies about the AP1000 containment have demonstrated the difficulty to correctly model the occurring phenomenology. In this paper, an integral AP1000 3D containment GOTHIC model is presented, including the Passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS). The model includes the compartments inside and outside the metallic containment liner that influence the thermal–hydraulic behavior. The model is tested against a Large Break Loss of Coolant Accident (LBLOCA) to assess its thermal–hydraulic performance, assuming a PCS tank malfunction, what is a conservative hypothesis. The pressure and temperature evolution predicted by the 3D containment model is analyzed and compared with a single node Lumped Parameters model, allowing to evaluate some preliminary benefits of 3D modeling for containment safety analysis. The 3D containment model allows to predict the thermal evolution in each containment compartment capturing the heterogeneity of this phenomenon, with higher resolution than the lumped parameters models traditionally used in this kind of analyses. It allows to observe the thermohydraulic conditions locally at any time during the transient.

Abstract Synchronous cultures of the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe 972 h −1 are most sensitive to killing by 15 min, 49 °C pulses during a stage stretching from nuclear division through short G1 and S phases to a point early in G2. In this work the cell cycle position of the S phase has been altered by growing the cells in the presence of 2-phenylethanol. The heat sensitivity of these cells was greater at all stages of the cell cycle compared with the cells grown without 2-phenylethanol. However, the position of the most heat sensitive stage in the cell cycle was unaltered. This heat sensitive stage did not include S phase in the cells grown with 2-phenylethanol.

Short-term generation scheduling is an important function in daily operational planning of power systems. It is defined as optimal scheduling of power generators over a scheduling period while respecting various generator constraints and system constraints. Objective of the problem includes costs associated with energy production, start-up cost and shut-down cost along with profits. The resulting problem is a large scale nonlinear mixed-integer optimization problem for which there is no exact solution technique available. The solution to the problem can be obtained only by complete enumeration, often at the cost of a prohibitively computation time requirement for realistic power systems. This paper presents a hybrid algorithm which combines Lagrangian Relaxation (LR) together with Evolutionary Algorithm (EA) to solve the problem in cooperative and competitive energy environments. Simulation studies were carried out on different systems containing various numbers of units. The outcomes from different algorithms are compared with that from the proposed hybrid algorithm and the advantages of the proposed algorithm are briefly discussed.

Purpose This study aims to consider environmental sustainability, a global challenge under the preview of sustainable development goals, highlighting the significance of knowledge economy in attaining sustainable aggregate demand behavior globally. For this purpose, 155 countries that have data available from 1995 to 2021 were selected. The purpose of selecting these countries is to test the global responsibility of the knowledge economy to attain environmental sustainability. Design/methodology/approach Results are estimated with the help of panel quantile regression. The empirical existence of aggregate demand-based environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) was tested using non-linear tests. Moreover, principal component analysis has been incorporated to construct the knowledge economy index. Findings U-shaped aggregate demand-based EKC at global level is validated. However, environmental deterioration increases with an additional escalation after US$497.945m in aggregate demand. As a determinant, the knowledge economy is reducing CO2 emissions. The knowledge economy has played a significant role in global responsibility, shifting the EKC downward and extending the CO2 reduction phase for every selected country. Further, urbanization, energy intensity, financial development and trade openness significantly deteriorate the environmental quality. Originality/value This study contains the empirical existence of aggregate demand-based EKC. The role of the knowledge economy is examined through an index which is calculated by using four pillars of the knowledge economy (technology, innovations, education and institutions). This study is based on a combined panel of all the countries for which the data was available.