Experimental Verification of Thermal Insulation in Timber Framed Walls.

Current environmental crisis calls for sustainable solutions in the building industry. One of the possible solutions is to incorporate timber-framed constructions into designs. Among other benefits, these structures are well established in many countries, originating in traditional building systems.

Biodegradable Thermoplastic Starch/Polycaprolactone Blends with Co-Continuous Morphology Suitable for Local Release of Antibiotics.

We report a reproducible preparation and characterization of highly homogeneous thermoplastic starch/pol(ε-caprolactone) blends (TPS/PCL) with a minimal thermomechanical degradation and co-continuous morphology. These materials would be suitable for biomedical applications, specifically for the local release of antibiotics (ATB) from the TPS phase. The TPS/PCL blends were prepared in the whole concentration range.

Effect of Water Condensate on Corrosion of Wires in Ungrouted Ducts.

In the case of existing prestressed concrete structures, information about the actual state of prestressing is an important basis for determining their load-carrying capacity, as well as remaining service lifetime. This is even more important in the case of existing prestressed concrete bridges, which are exposed to a more aggressive environment than the other prestressed concrete structures. The level of prestressing is affected and reduced by prestress losses at a given time.

Thermoplastic starch composites with TiO particles: Preparation, morphology, rheology and mechanical properties.

Composites of thermoplastic starch (TPS) with titanium dioxide particles (mTiO; average size 0.1μm) with very homogeneous matrix and well-dispersed filler were prepared by a two-step method, including solution casting (SC) followed by melt mixing (MM). Light and scanning electron microscopy confirmed that only the two-step procedure (SC+MM) resulted in ideally homogeneous TPS/mTiO systems.

Associations between HLA class II alleles and type 1 diabetes mellitus in the Slovak population.

Objectives: Several associations between HLA complex and diabetes mellitus type IA were found in various groups of patients of Caucasoid population. This study was therefore prompted to be conducted in Slovak population, since any such has not yet been performed in Slovak population.

Methods: Patients suffering from DM-1A originated from all regions of Slovakia.