Veneto Nanotech (Italy)

The properties of tires related to their viscoelastic behavior have a significant impact in the field of vehicle dynamics. They affect the performance and safety of a vehicle based on how they change when the tire performs in variable thermal conditions, interacts with various kinds of road surfaces, and accumulates mileage over time. To analyze and understand such properties of viscoelastic materials, destructive tests like dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) are used, which make the tire unusable after the test; these are usually carried out on specimens cut from the zone of interest. The development of an innovative testing methodology connected to a hardware device called VESevo allows the characterization of the viscoelastic properties of tire compounds belonging to tread or other parts in a fast and nondestructive way. This new device provides valuable information about the evolution of the tire’s viscoelastic properties, allowing it to monitor them throughout the whole lifecycle. In the paper, an overview of the possible sensitivities that can be investigated thanks to the VESevo is provided: The tread viscoelasticity was characterized and monitored for several tire tread compounds, over tire mileage, over tread thermal curing cycles, and as an index of the tread quality and uniformity in production. Preliminary results were collected and are presented. In the final paragraph, further recent applications developed from the tire field, which are not directly related, are reported.

BACKGROUND: Dysmenorrhea and premenstrual syndrome (PMS) are the main disorders related to the menstrual cycle. The prevailing symptoms of dysmenorrhea are painful cyclic cramps in the lower abdomen, while PMS is accompanied by a wide and varied set of symptoms that includes both physical and psychological aspects. These disorders are characterized by oxidative stress, increased production of prostaglandin F2α (PGF2α), and intracellular calcium concentration ([Ca2+]i) in myometrium. Currently, the main pharmacological therapies involve the use of NSAIDs and combined hormonal contraceptives, even if both approaches may have some limitations. Recent scientific evidence supports the use of food supplements for symptom prevention and management, also in association with conventional therapies. The study aimed to investigate the in-vitro effect of a novel combination of active substances (mix), composing the food supplement Miledix® (Kolinpharma S.p.A., Lainate, Milan, Italy) on: 1) antioxidant activity; 2) variation of PGF2α levels; and 3) variation of [Ca2+]i induced by PGF2α.METHODS: We used a primary human cell line of uterine smooth muscle. Cell viability was assessed by MTS [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium] test. Oxidative stress was investigated with glutathione assay and dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate assay. PGF2α levels were assessed by ELISA while [Ca2+]i by fluorometric test.RESULTS: Results show that the mix determines an increase in the Reduced Glutathione/Oxidized Glutathione Ratio, while it decreases reactive oxygen species levels, the expression of PGF2α, and [Ca2+]i induced by prostaglandin.CONCLUSIONS: Under these experimental conditions, the mix was able to act on the molecular mechanisms underlying the onset of cycle disorders, such as oxidative stress, the production of PGF2α, and the accumulation of [Ca2+]i.

A dielectric-loaded cavity filter working in the Ku-band with wide bandwidth and high selectivity is presented. The structure is composed of rectangular waveguide cavities loaded with 3-D-printed dielectric resonators. An example of a 4-pole filter is shown in this paper. The filter has three rectangular cavities loaded with three dielectric resonators made of alumina. The dielectrics have a hexagonal shape and have been designed as a single piece. They operate with the dielectric mode TE <inf xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">01δ</inf> and the cavity mode TE <inf xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">101</inf> . More specifically, the mode TE <inf xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">01δ</inf> was exploited for cavities 1 and 3, whereas modes TE <inf xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">01δ</inf> and TE <inf xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">101</inf> were exploited for the middle cavity. These combinations of modes were used in order to obtain transmission zeros (TZs) in the upper and lower stopband of the filter, and obtain as a result, a high-selective filtering response. For validation purposes, a 4-pole filter working in the Ku-band at 14.125 GHz, with 5.3% fractional bandwidth was fabricated and measured.

The potential of nanoemulsions for the oral administration of peptides is still in its early stage. The aim of the present work was to rationally design, develop, and fully characterize a new nanoemulsion (NE) intended for the oral administration of hydrophobically modified insulin (HM-insulin). Specific components of the NE were selected based on their enhancing permeation properties as well as their ability to improve insulin association efficiency (Miglyol 812, sodium taurocholate), stability in the intestinal fluids, and mucodiffusion (PEGylated phospholipids and poloxamer 407). The results showed that the NE co-existed with a population of micelles, forming a mixed system that exhibited a 100% of HM-insulin association efficiency. The nanosystem showed good stability and miscibility in different bio-relevant media and displayed an acceptable mucodiffusive behavior in porcine mucus. In addition, it exhibited a high interaction with cell mono-cultures (Caco -2 and C2BBe1 human colon carcinoma Caco-2 clone cells) and co-cultures (C2BBe1 human colon carcinoma Caco-2 clone/HT29-MTX cells). The internalization in Caco-2 monolayers was also confirmed by confocal microscopy. Finally, the promising in vitro behavior of the nanosystem in terms of overcoming the biological barriers of the intestinal tract was translated into a moderate, although significant, hypoglycemic response (≈ 20–30%), following intestinal administration to both healthy and diabetic rat models. Overall, this information underlines the crucial steps to address when designing peptide-based nanoformulations to successfully overcome the intestinal barriers associated to the oral modality of administration.Graphical abstract

This study detected and investigated the degradation effects and dynamics of the tin amalgam reflective layer of ancient mirrors. The experimental results have been obtained by different spectroscopic techniques: Light Microscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersive X-ray Microanalysis (SEM–EDS), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and μ-Raman Spectroscopy. The latter two were applied for the first time to characterize the amalgam of ancient mirrors. Amalgam alteration products in form of concentric rings with alternate different compositions of tin oxides have been studied on both the amalgam reflective layer inner surface and on its cross-sections. For the first time SEM images of micro-cross-sections of different amalgam degradation products, such as amalgam “drops” and craters, have been obtained. The size of the nano-particles of tin oxides, as amalgam degradation products, was estimated around 3–8 nm by AFM and micro-Raman, as already previously detected through TEM. Micro-Raman showed the presence of both cassiterite and romarkite nano-crystals forming the concentric rings, as only previously hypothesized. This investigation allowed to obtain further experimental evidence and a more advanced comprehension about the structure and formation phases of the amalgam decay products, giving further support to some statements by previous authors and suggesting some assertions different from the ones of previous studies.

Layered double hydroxides (LDH) are very used as fillers in polymer nanocomposites research. They cannot be used in their pristine form (magnesium and aluminum hydroxycarbonates) because they exhibit strong interlayer electrostatic interactions and tight basal spacings so that they require the intercalation of organic anions into clay galleries. The organic modification of LDH increases the filler-polymer compatibility, enlarges the basal spacing of the lamellae (making easier the insertion of the polymeric chains into the gallery), and promotes the exfoliation of the filler into the polymeric matrix. Organically modified LDH/polymer nanocomposites exhibit improved mechanical, thermal, and chemical properties when they are compared with pristine polymers or conventional composites. Moreover, the incorporation of LDH allows us to obtain materials with specific functionalities. For example, the intercalation of antimicrobial molecules into LDH (such as benzoate or stearate) and the use of the modified nanoparticles as fillers results in nanocomposites with antimicrobial activity. In this paper, several benzoate and/or stearate LDH/polypropylene (PP) nanocomposites have been produced for food packaging applications. The O2 permeability coefficient of the nanocomposite named 1.5% o-benzoate/1.5% o-stearate LDH/PP/3% PP-g-MAH reduces by 20% compared to unfilled PP and 30% compared to unfilled PP/3%PP-g-MAH. It is accepted that in such a nanocomposite, the lamellar structure of LDH creates a more tortuous path for the progress of oxygen molecules reducing the gas diffusion. For the novel nanocomposite material, the physical, morphological, mechanical, and gas barrier properties have been measured and the antimicrobial effect has been evaluated. In this paper, some benzoate LDH/polyurethane foam (PU) nanocomposites have been also produced. The filler dispersion into the PU has been investigated by scanning electronic microscopy. It was observed that organic LDH particles were uniformly dispersed into the walls of cells, forming small aggregates. The morphological properties of the foam have been analyzed by nanotomography. LDH/PU nanocomposite showed antibacterial and improved mechanical properties. © 2016 IEEE.

This paper presents the design, manufacturing and testing of a new type of compact and low loss Ka-band filter in multilayer micromachined technology. It consists of a 4th order pseudo-elliptic filter realized by stacking six silicon layers for a reduced footprint. The filter is based on λ/2 TEM Si membrane resonators placed inside shielding cavities and short-circuited at both anchored ends. With respect to conventional cavities based on TE101 resonant mode, the footprint of the proposed resonators is reduced by more than 50% at the expenses of a reduced Q factor degradation (<20%). The measurements of the 4th order filter at Ka-band show insertion loss better than 3dB and Q factor above 500 in Ka-band. The filter robustness to manufacturing and the assembly tolerances has been verified on eight samples, showing good reproducibility of the filter response. Environmental tests are on-going to demonstrate the space compatibility of the filter.