AkzoNobel (Netherlands)

Background/Objective: Despite available SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, coverage gaps persist due to unequal distribution and limited access. Microarray patches offer a promising solution to address these challenges, providing a safer and easier-to-use alternative. We present a randomised, double-blind Phase I clinical trial evaluating the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein subunit vaccine, HexaPro, delivered via a high-density microarray patch (HD-MAP). Methods: Forty-four healthy adults aged 18–50 years were assigned to receive either 0 µg, 15 µg, or 45 µg of HexaPro via the HD-MAP, with the primary objective of assessing safety and tolerability. Results: The HD-MAP HexaPro vaccine was found to be safe and well tolerated, with only mild adverse events reported. Following vaccination significant increases in spike-specific IgG titers were observed by 7 days and remained stable through day 90. This IgG response effectively neutralised multiple SARS-CoV-2 variants. Additionally, the HexaPro HD-MAP was stable for up to 12 months at 40 °C. Conclusions: These findings support the continued clinical development of HD-MAPs as an alternative vaccination strategy.

We present the Dynamic Bloch-Lock Consistency Theory (DB-LCT), a novel framework that extends quantum computing security principles to Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) systems. The theoretical foundation exploits a fundamental insight: both quantum bi

The Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) transports North Slope crude oil in Alaska from pump stations in Prudhoe Bay all the way to Valdez. The Valdez Marine Terminal is the northernmost ice-free port in North America, where tankers are loaded to deliver the critical crude oil supply to market. The Alyeska Pipeline Service Company, the operator of the TAPS, requires a reliable, safe, and redundant power supply for efficient and safe operation. Any electric power disruption and the associated downtime severely impacts the flow of oil through the pipeline and the loading of the tankers. The electric power reliability and safety is improved via a custom main-tie-main scheme, along with an arc-flash and fast bus protection scheme, using the high-speed IEC 61850 Generic Object-Oriented Substation Event protocol. This solution is also implemented with cybersecurity best practices that are resilient to external threats using a softwaredefined network supporting a zero-trust architecture and security gateways. This paper dives deeper into the objectives, design philosophy, communications architecture, and testing procedure for this solution. The scheme is standardized and successfully commissioned into service at Valdez Marine Terminal for one medium-voltage and two low-voltage switchgear facilities in 2019. This innovative solution is then scaled to include further switchgear facilities from 2019 to the present.

Color visualization on websites and in apps usually tacitly assumes device-independent sRGB color space, bypassing the essential step of characterization—a process that requires expensive equipment and significant time. This work proposes a pseudo-device-independent approach applicable to Apple displays, one of the most renowned brands in this area, eliminating the need for characterization by leveraging the Mobile Display Characterization and Illumination Model (MDCIM). For this purpose, 11 Apple mobile displays were characterized, analyzing variations in parameters from spectroradiometer measurements and improving their sRGB tone rendering curves. Tested on an iPhone XS Max, the Color for the Average Apple Display model (CAAD) improved reasonable to good color matches from 4.0% to 84.3%, while incorrect matches dropped from 85.3% to 4.9% when compared to sRGB. These results are nearly as strong as those of the device-specific MDCIM, suggesting that an average model is a practical alternative to individual display characterization.

Abstract The Hyperloop innovation is a carbon-free high-speed concept for mid/long-distance connections as a complement to the railway network both in preserving investments already completed and planned and in unlocking the full economic and social potential of areas not yet adequately served. A low-pressure tube system results in substantially reduced air friction, thus allowing speeds to increase while significantly lowering energy consumption in comparison to conventional modes of transport. Hyperloop has a similar network topology as highways, enabling direct connections between origins and destinations without intermediate stops. Hyperloop has a small infrastructure footprint while enabling for a high transport capacity at minimal energy usage. Flagship 7 of the EU’s Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy – Innovation, Data and Artificial Intelligence for Smarter Mobility - identifies Hyperloop as one of the game changing mobility technologies. The European Commission is working on a regulatory framework (Q1 2024) covering health, safety, security and environmental standards for the construction and operation of Hyperloop systems with autonomous levitating pods carrying passengers or goods at high speed inside low-pressure tubes.

The western part of the Netherlands depends largely on river water from the Meuse and Rhine rivers for drinking water supply, which is infiltrated into Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) systems in the Dutch coastal dunes. Pre-treated river water is infiltrated through open basins and recovered after soil passage for further treatment. This soil passage is a crucial step in drinking water treatment where unwanted microorganisms are efficiently removed. Field studies by Schijven et al (1998,1999), among others, showed that log removal during saturated transport in these systems is more than sufficient to produce microbiologically safe drinking water. Nevertheless, in subsequent years, fecal indicator organisms were still found with some regularity in the abstracted water. It was suspected that this (re)contamination was caused by short circuit flow with feces-contaminated water from ground level through the unsaturated zone. Conducting several field experiments confirmed this hypothesis and provided unique insight into transport behavior and log removal in the unsaturated zone and the role of preferential flow under field conditions. Results of the field trials have been implemented in guidelines for design and management of MAR systems and whether to allow grazing livestock near the MAR-systems for nature management. In this contribution we present the results of a series of field trials, spanning 20 years, providing unique insight in removal of fecal indicator bacteria in unsaturated dune soils and increasing insight in processes responsible for recontamination of infiltrated river water. 

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