Engineers and scientists are increasingly interested in clean energy options to replace fossil fuels in response to rising environmental concerns and dwindling fossil fuel resources. There has been an increase in the installation of renewable energy resources, and at the same time, conventional energy conversion systems have improved in efficiency. In this paper, several multi-generation systems based on geothermal energy are modeled, assessed, and optimized which employ an organic Rankine cycle and a proton-exchange membrane electrolyzer subsystem in five different configurations.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHealthcare workers (HCW) are exposed to many different pathogens, and cases of occupational infection have been reported involving the vast majority of known and emerging agents. The risk is present during all the phases of patient care and manipulation of biologic materials, and the implementation of Standard Precautions--and biosafety level 2 measures in the laboratory--and Transmission-Based Precautions in all health settings represents the necessary preventive intervention required by law. Percutaneous exposures represent an extremely frequent event in healthcare facilities; among the many pathogens acquired through this type of exposure, those of highest concern due to the frequency of exposure are HIV, HBV and HCV.
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