bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Overview of Performance and Analytical Modeling Techniques for Electromagnetic Heating and Applications to Steam-Assisted-Gravity-Drainage Process Startup
Authors: Ghannadi Sahar , Irani Mazda , Chalaturnyk Rick 
Published: December 2015

Summary
Steam-assisted gravity drainage is the method of choice to extract bitumen from Athabasca oil-sand reservoirs in Western Canada. Under reservoir conditions, bitumen is immobile because of high viscosity, and its typically high level of saturation limits the injectivity of steam. In current industry practice, steam is circulated within injection and production wells. Operators keep the steam circulating until mobile bitumen breaks through the producer and communication is established between the injector and the producer. The “startup” phase is a time-consuming process taking three or more months with no oil production. A variety of processes could be used to minimize the length of the startup phase, such as electromagnetic (EM) heating in either the induction (medium frequency) or radio-frequency ranges. Knowledge of the size of the hot zone formed by steam circulation and of the benefits of simultaneous EM-heating techniques increases understanding of the startup process and helps to minimize startup duration. The aim of the present work is to introduce an analytical model to predict startup duration for steam circulation with and without EM heating. Results reveal that resistive (electrothermal) heating with/without brine injection cannot be a preferable method for mobilizing the bitumen in startup phase. Induction slightly decreases startup time at frequencies smaller than 10 kHz, and at 100 kHz it can reduce startup time to less than two months.
Racial Differences in the Performance of Existing Risk Prediction Models for Incident Type 2 Diabetes: The CARDIA Study
Authors: Lacy Mary E. , Wellenius Gregory A. , Carnethon Mercedes R. , Loucks Eric B. , Carson April P. , Luo Xi , Kiefe Catarina I. , Gjelsvik Annie , Gunderson Erica P. , Eaton Charles B. , Wu Wen-Chih 
Published: December 2015

OBJECTIVE
In 2010, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) added hemoglobin A1c (A1C) to the guidelines for diagnosing type 2 diabetes. However, existing models for predicting diabetes risk were developed prior to the widespread adoption of A1C. Thus, it remains unknown how well existing diabetes risk prediction models predict incident diabetes defined according to the ADA 2010 guidelines. Accordingly, we examined the performance of an existing diabetes prediction model applied to a cohort of African American (AA) and white adults from the Coronary Artery Risk Development Study in Young Adults (CARDIA).

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
We evaluated the performance of the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) diabetes risk prediction model among 2,456 participants in CARDIA free of diabetes at the 2005–2006 exam and followed for 5 years. We evaluated model discrimination, calibration, and integrated discrimination improvement with incident diabetes defined by ADA 2010 guidelines before and after adding baseline A1C to the prediction model.

RESULTS
In the overall cohort, re-estimating the ARIC model in the CARDIA cohort resulted in good discrimination for the prediction of 5-year diabetes risk (area under the curve [AUC] 0.841). Adding baseline A1C as a predictor improved discrimination (AUC 0.841 vs. 0.863, P = 0.03). In race-stratified analyses, model discrimination was significantly higher in whites than AA (AUC AA 0.816 vs. whites 0.902; P = 0.008).

CONCLUSIONS
Addition of A1C to the ARIC diabetes risk prediction model improved performance overall and in racial subgroups. However, for all models examined, discrimination was better in whites than AA. Additional studies are needed to further improve diabetes risk prediction among AA.
Dietary Modifications for Refractory Chronic Rhinosinusitis? Manipulating diet for the Modulation of Inflammation
Authors: Nayan Smriti , Maby Alexandra , Endam Leandra Mfuna , Desrosiers Martin 
Published: December 2015

Background An endotype of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) refractory to medical and surgical management is characterized by persistent T-helper 1/T-helper 17 inflammation of the sinus mucosa, which potentially facilitates colonization with dysbiotic microbial flora. Dietary interventions that target reduction of systemic inflammation are increasingly recommended as adjuncts to ongoing medical therapy in chronic disorders with a strong inflammatory component, such as cardiac disease, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome. Inflammation-reducing dietary modifications may thus be of benefit in patients with refractory CRS (RCRS). Objective To identify nonpharmacologic approaches that implicate modification of dietary factors, potentially reducing systemic level of inflammation in RCRS. Methods A systematic review of the literature was undertaken to identify dietary strategies for reducing inflammation in metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and cardiac disease. Mechanistic-based strategies for reducing systemic inflammation were identified and categorized to identify potential therapeutic avenues, which would be applicable to RCRS. Results Principal mechanisms for altering inflammation at the systemic level via dietary manipulation center around (1) increased consumption of foods with anti-inflammatory properties, and (2) modulation of the gut microbiome to reduce short-chain fatty acid secretion by dysbiotic gut flora. Recommended dietary modifications to reduce systemic markers of inflammation or to improve RCRS include alteration of macronutrient intake, alterations in consumption of meat and fats, consumption of prebiotics and probiotics, and a low-salicylate diet in the context of aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease. Conclusion Dietary modifications may offer a potential nonpharmacologic means of reducing inflammation in patients with RCRS and hence may represent a complementary adjunct to existing medical therapies. Additional prospective studies are required to further validate the concept of dietary modifications in patients with RCRS to support the findings.
The Role of Viruses in the Clinical Presentation of Chronic Rhinosinusitis
Authors: Rowan Nicholas R. , Lee Stella , Sahu Nivedita , Kanaan Alyssa , Cox Stephen , Phillips Caleb D. , Wang Eric W. 
Published: December 2015

Background The role of viruses in chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is poorly understood. In part, this is secondary to difficulty in isolating viruses. Although traditional detection methods for respiratory viruses have had little clinical utility, modern viral screening techniques that use molecular sequencing are now both rapid and feasible, which makes analysis of the paranasal sinus microbiome more accessible. Objective To detect respiratory viruses in the paranasal sinuses of patients with CRS and of healthy controls as well as to correlate clinical and radiographic measures of CRS with viral presence. Methods In this prospective study, 13 patients with CRS with nasal polyposis (CRSwNP) and 8 patients without nasal polyposis (CRSsNP) were enrolled and compared with 14 healthy controls. Samples were obtained from the paranasal sinuses and were screened for viral DNA with polymerase chain reaction—based sequencing techniques. Typical symptoms of CRS, the Sinonasal Questionnaire, and objective measures, including the modified Lund-Mackay and modified Lund-Kennedy scores were obtained. Results Eighty percent of the positive screens (4/5) were found in patients with CRSsNP, whereas 20% of the positive tests (1/5) were in the CRSwNP group, and none of the controls tested positive (p = 0.0029). Coronavirus was the most common virus detected. Sinonasal Questionnaire scores of the patients with CRS who tested positive for viruses were higher but not statistically different than those without a positive screen (p = 0.31). Radiographic and endoscopic measures of disease were not significantly different in the setting of a positive viral screen (p = 0.12 and 0.11 respectively). Conclusion Although traditionally difficult, advances in molecular sequencing enhance detection of viruses in the sinonasal tract. In this study, respiratory viruses were more commonly isolated from patients with CRS compared with healthy controls. Moreover, viral infection may play a greater role in symptom exacerbation in CRSsNP than in CRSwNP. These findings warrant further investigation into the role of the viral microbiome in CRS.
Long-term Postoperative Azithromycin in Patients with Chronic Rhinosinusitis: A Randomized Clinical Trial
Authors: Amali Amin , Saedi Babak , Rahavi-Ezabadi Sara , Ghazavi Hossein , Hassanpoor Narges 
Published: December 2015

Background Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is recognized as a common disease that imposes a big burden on the health system worldwide. There is ongoing evidence of the anti-inflammatory effect of long-term macrolide in the management of patients with CRS. Objective The aim of this randomized clinical trial was to evaluate the efficacy of long-term consumption of low-dose azithromycin after functional endoscopic sinus surgery. Methods Sixty-six patients who fulfilled the inclusion criteria were randomly divided into intervention and control groups. The subjects received the standard conventional treatment (fluticasone nasal spray plus normal saline solution irrigation) or the conventional treatment plus 250 mg of azithromycin on a daily basis for 3 months. Evaluation was made based on the 22-item Sino-Nasal Outcome Test (SNOT-22) immediately before surgery and 3 months after surgery. Results The intervention group showed a statistically significant improvement in SNOT-22 scores after the treatment and a higher percentage change after 3 months of therapy compared with the control group. A significant correlation was found between the percentage change of SNOT-22 scores and smoking in the placebo group. Lund-Mackay scores, patient age, and the duration of symptoms had no significant correlation with the percentage change. Conclusion Treatment with long-term low-dose azithromycin in combination with the conventional therapy could statistically reduce the recurrence rate of CRS symptoms after functional endoscopic sinus surgery, but there was not sufficient evidence to support clinical significance of azithromycin at the investigated dose. Further larger scale trials, along with a longer follow-up period, is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of the therapy.
Acute Invasive Fungal Rhinosinusitis: Survival Analysis and the Prognostic Indicators
Authors: Gode Sercan , Turhal Goksel , Ozturk Kerem , Aysel Abdulhalim , Midilli Rasit , Karci Bulent 
Published: December 2015

Background Acute invasive fungal rhinosinusitis (AIFR) is a highly mortal, progressive fungal infection of the paranasal sinuses and surrounding structures that is almost always seen in patients who are immunocompromised. Despite the use of newer antifungal treatments and early diagnosis, the prognosis of AIFR does not improve significantly. Due to the higher incidence of patients who are immunocompromised and have more complex disease, AIFR is a growing medical issue in tertiary medical centers. Objective The aim of this study was to present the outcomes and analyze the prognostic indicators of patients with AIFR who underwent surgery. Methods Between October 2009 and November 2014, 37 patients who underwent surgery for AIFR at a tertiary care university hospital were included in the study. Overall survival and disease-specific mortality and survival rates were calculated to estimate survival function. The impact of age, sex, underlying disease, extent of AIFR, applied medical treatment, and causative species (mucormycosis, aspergillosis) were also taken into consideration. Also, the effect of a variety of laboratory parameters, such as hemoglobin, leukocyte, neutrophil, lymphocyte, platelet, and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, to survival were evaluated. Results The median follow-up time was 58 days (interquartile range = 304). Overall and disease-specific mortality rates were 64.9 and 51.4%, respectively. Fever was the most common symptom (86.5%), along with nasal obstruction and/or fullness (48.6%) and epistaxis (48.6%). Age and sex did not have a significant impact on survival (p > 0.05). Palate involvement was significantly associated with mortality (p < 0.05). According to the results of Cox, regression analysis for disease-specific mortality rate, leukocyte and neutrophil counts as well as CRP levels had a significant effect on survival function (p < 0.05). Conclusions Palatal involvement was associated with a higher mortality in our study. Also, leukocyte counts, neutrophile counts, and CRP values had a significant impact on survival function. The reversal of the underlying disease and immunosuppression is as important as the medical and surgical treatment.
Development of a Questionnaire for Measuring Health-related Quality of Life among Children and Adolescents with Mouth Breathing
Authors: Leal Rossana B. , Gomes Monalisa C. , Granville-Garcia Ana F. , Goes Paulo S. A. , de Menezes Valdenice A. 
Published: December 2015

Background Mouth breathing can exert an influence on quality of life and should be evaluated within a multidimensional context. However, there is no specific questionnaire to measure the impact of mouth breathing on quality of life. Objective To develop and validate a questionnaire for measuring the impact of mouth breathing on quality of life among children and adolescents. Methods Thirty-six items were evaluated by six health care professionals, one parent and one child with mouth breathing. After a qualitative evaluation, a modified set of 32 items was developed. The modified Mouth Breather Quality of Life (MBQoL) questionnaire was submitted to a pretest with a sample of 30 children and adolescents diagnosed with mouth breathing to evaluate comprehension, the order of the items, and the form of administration. The MBQoL questionnaire was then administered to 60 children and adolescents (30 mouth breathers and 30 nose breathers) for the evaluation of construct validity, internal consistency, and reproducibility. All the participants answered the questionnaire, and 50% of each group answered the questionnaire a second time after a 1-week interval (test-retest). Results Higher MBQoL scores (which indicated poorer quality of life) were significantly associated with mouth breathing. The Cronbach a coefficient for the items of the questionnaire was 0.88, and the Spearman correlation coefficient for test-retest reliability demonstrated that the questionnaire was reproducible (r = 0.993; p < 0.01). Conclusion Through this validation study, the MBQoL questionnaire demonstrated a good performance in the evaluation of the quality of life of children and adolescents with mouth breathing and may be a useful tool in clinical studies as well as public health programs. However, further studies are needed to establish its applicability in other populations with respiration disorders.
An Analysis of Sleeve Effects for Petrophysical Measurements using Digital Core Analysis
Authors: Alizadeh S. M. , Latham S. , Middleton J. , Senden T. , Arns C. H. 
Published: December 2015

AbstractAssessing the mechanisms of compaction and their effect on transport properties using digital core analysis necessitates the use of small samples to achieve the required resolution for the calculation of petrophysical properties. In this case boundary effects can be substantial and a direct comparison with experiment is only warranted if the boundary effects are included in the simulation. Here we develop a workflow to define regions within the sample where these boundary effects are minimized. We concentrate in particular on sleeve leakage and use a radial partitioning of the solutions of the transport equations to derive measures free of boundary effects, which may be used for the development of petrophysical cross-correlations.We use samples of Bentheimer and Castlegate sandstone as well as Mt Gambier limestone and a sucrosic dolomite. Plugs with diameters between 5mm and 7mm are cut and placed into a purpose-build tri-axial cell on a micro-CT rotation stage. The plugs are surrounded radially by a sleeve separating confining fluid from the samples and axially by fluid distribution heads made of steel which also supply the axial load. We consider hydrostatic confinement and acquire images at low confining pressure. Using the high-resolution images we calculate transport properties, electrical conductivity and permeability to flow, numerically on the samples at full plug scale. We include the sleeve boundary in the calculation, which was segmented out separately to allow matching exactly the experimental boundary conditions. The resulting flux fields are used to locally calculate the fluxes in different regions of interest. We consider partitions of the pore space based on topological distance (pores) and geometric distance with regard to the sleeve boundary. This allows calculating intrinsic fluxes as function of sleeve distance to characterize the radial dependency of transport properties across the core.We observe clear fluid bypassing at the sleeve-sample interface for all samples. For the less consolidated samples (e.g. Castlegate sandstone), core damage at the outer rim is also evident, since the radial dependency shows first a maximum at the sleeve boundary, but then a minimum before stabilizing at larger sleeve distances. This is likely due to compaction from drilling the sample. In addition to the transport properties we also report the porosity as function of sleeve distance for all samples. The leakage observed for the transport properties along the sleeve boundary correlates well with the radial porosity variation for all samples.
Hydrate Cold Restarts: Paradigm Shifts in Hydrate Management
Authors: Lachance Jason W. , Keinath Brendon L. 
Published: December 2015

Abstract
The traditional method of managing hydrates in production systems has been complete avoidance. This methodology comes at a high cost of insulation to maintain fluid temperature beyond the hydrate formation temperature and/or chemicals to prevent hydrates from forming. This paper will present methods to assess hydrate formation/plugging tendencies and manage the system in a manner that allows for reduction in insulation requirements and/or chemical usage.
ExxonMobil's Upstream Research Company (EMURC) has developed a unique hydrate slurry model based on experience gained in the laboratory and field applications. Cold restarts are different than allowing fluids to remain cold indefinitely (i.e. cold flow) in that the hydrates form for a period of time before the system eventually comes out of the hydrate formation region in "steady-state/normal" production. This presentation will show how the model is used to assess hydrate blockage potentials by integration with a transient multiphase flow simulator. This enables the model to predict amounts of hydrates that form and couple the formation with flow dynamics such as shear conditions, phase fractions, and dispersion characteristics which influence the probability of a hydrate blockage forming.
The model has been applied successfully to several applications by assessing various cold restart strategies in which significant cost savings have been realized through the reduction of insulation requirement and/or chemical usage – in some instances it has allowed for the extension of field life.
Qatargas Wastewater Treatment Plants: An Advanced Design for Water Reuse
Authors: Sheikhan Jassim Mohammed , Zainab Ishak , Janson Arnold , Adham Samer 
Published: December 2015

Abstract
Qatargas continually strives to adopt best industry practices throughout its gas extraction and production operations. The Jetty Boil-off Gas Project, the Greenhouse Gas Management Strategy and the Wastewater Management Strategy are prime examples. These projects, and various other initiatives, demonstrate Qatargas' commitment to promote energy security, water sustainability and protection of environment, all important outcomes of the Qatar National Vision 2030.
Key elements of the Wastewater Management Strategy are two advanced Wastewater Recycle and Reduction plants (WRRs) currently being built to treat process waters from three liquefied natural gas (LNG) production plants. Each of the WRRs is designed to treat 5 separate process waste streams with a combined average design flow 176 m3/h and 60% recovery as boiler feedwater targeted. The unit processes include both conventional technologies, e.g. de-oilers, sand filters, walnut shell filters, and advanced technologies, e.g. membrane bioreactors and reverse osmosis. This paper includes an overview of the WRR systems, summarizes unit process designs and, based on a comprehensive mass balance, highlights the significance of membrane rejection and operating temperature on the final effluent quality. Also, in preparing the design basis, certain design assumptions were made and this paper includes the results of a sensitivity analysis conducted to determine the impact different design assumptions have on effluent quality.
This paper identifies the challenges in designing a state-of-the-art WWTP with varying quality feed streams and with different end-uses for the treated water. This will be educational for engineers and professionals in the oil & gas industry interested in developing more sustainable methods of handling process wastewaters generated during oil & gas processing operations.
Filter Cake Porosity and Permeability Profile Along the Horizontal Well and Their Impact on Filter Cake Removal
Authors: Bageri B. S. , Mahmoud M. A. , Al-Mutairi S. H. , Kuwait Chevron , Abdulraheem A. 
Published: December 2015

Abstract
The filter cake evaluation involves many comprehensive testing and procedures to determine the filter cake properties such as thickness, mineralogy, porosity, permeability, and filtration to design the optimal mud program. For the maximum reservoir contact (MRC) and extended reach (ER) wells where the horizontal section could be 3000 ft or more in those wells, the filter cake formed by the drilling fluid varied from one section to another in the long horizontal section. Therefore, the process of filter cake removal in maximum reservoir contact and extended reach wells should consider the variation in the filter cake properties to achieve an efficient removal process.
This research focuses on evaluating the filter cake porosity and permeability profile through the horizontal wells. Moreover, the impact of the filter cake porosity and permeability on the removal process is presented in this work. To achieve the objective of this work, high pressure high temperature (HPHT) fluid loss test was conducted to form the filter cake using actual drilling fluid samples. The compositional and structural analysis of filter cake was carried out using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF). The drilling fluid studied samples were collected from real field rig while drilling the horizontal section.
The results showed that the drilling operation was initiated with drilling fluid that was capable of forming a filter cake with low porosity (5 %) and permeability (0.01 md) to minimize the filtration volume. In the first part of the horizontal section the filter cake porosity and permeability increased sharply as more feet of horizontal section drilled. The porosity increased to about 35% and permeability to 0.25 md. After that it remains stable with slight decrease. This growth in the filter cake porosity from 5 to 35% reduced the liquid to solid ratio in the removal process from 28 gm per 500 ml up to 18 gm per ml.
The result of this work linked the filter cake properties (thickness, porosity, and mineralogy) in the maximum reservoir contact and extended reach wells with solid to liquid ratio needed to be used in the filter cake removal process. This work will help to reevaluate the filter cake removal and stimulation recipes that were designed based on constant filter cake properties.