Research@THEA (Technological Higher Education Association)
Not a member yet
2857 research outputs found
Sort by
Production and testing of the flat faced tablets via overprinting of injection moulded tablet bases
Get PDFConventional drug production assures the merits of maintaining unit
dosage form accuracy, stable dose and invariability among the batches. It
also has a shortcoming that cannot make personalised medicine that could
target different individuals.
3D printing manufacturing technique allows for tailored dosage forms for
individual patients by providing precision medicine solutions; however, it’s
hard to scale up efficiently.
Injection moulding has been applied in the pharmaceutical area for a long
time. It is available for the high production of tablets, but when it’s involved
in personalised customisation, it’s neither cost-saving nor the simple making
of designed moulding tooling.
Overprinting is a proposed approach that combines the above two
techniques to tailor the personalised solid dosage forms. It means to
fabricate the injection moulded layer firstly then overprinting on the top of
the tablet. All of the processes and testing results were implemented and
presented
An Exploration into Changing Behaviours within Social Media during Covid-19 Pandemic (2020-2021): A Study of Irish Female Entrepreneurs
No full textThis research explores the experiences and interpretations of Irish (based in Ireland) female entrepreneurs’ changing behaviours within social media during the Covid-19 pandemic, 2020-2021. It explores how Irish female entrepreneurs used social media before the pandemic, how this changed during the pandemic and what the learning, so far, is from the experience. The overarching research question of the study is: How has the Covid-19 pandemic changed the social media use of Irish female entrepreneurs/founders of SMEs? To address this question, the study employs an exploratory research design and a mixed-methods approach. Empirical data was collected through an online survey and four semi-structured interviews. The research finds that social media has played a vital part for Irish female entrepreneurs in aspects of networking and digital marketing during the pandemic. The empirical evidence indicates that the environmental changes led to increased activity on social media, with significant growth in video use and live sessions. These
tactics facilitated the entrepreneurs taking a central role in front of their customers, and literally becoming ‘the face of the businesses’, which resulted in more followers, views, interactions and ultimately revenue. Beyond the use of social media for sales and promotion purposes, the data suggests that Irish female entrepreneurs also used these platforms to connect with and support each other, highlighting the critical need for emotional support for female entrepreneurs. This study contributes to the entrepreneurial literature by providing empirical evidence around the use of social media by Irish female entrepreneurs during a challenging time and has practical relevance in guiding entrepreneurs in digital marketing planning, as well as social networking practice.n
Peatland-based innovation can potentially support and enable the sustainable development goals of the United Nations: case study from the Republic of Ireland.
Get PDFThe aim of this case study is to develop a novel freshwater aquaculture organic-process in the Irish peatlands
along with adjacent eco-innovation that will support food production and security regionally with a global
orientation. This specifically addresses the problem of traditional workforce reliance on burning peat as a fossil
fuel by providing alternative green-friendly eco-innovative activities for new employment and social enterprise.
Findings show that this system relies upon a naturally-occurring ecosystem of algae, bacteria and duckweed
species to achieve effective waste remediation and for water quality. There is no use of artificial compounds
including antibiotics, and no discharge of effluent to receiving waters. Peatlands are a unique ecosystem that
constitute an important carbon sink, but also represents a novel environment for climate solutions. This novel
peatland-site holds the potential to support the sustainable development goals of the United Nations as described
herein.ye
Self-photopolymerizable hydrogel-ceramic composites with scavenger properties
No full textThe photocatalytic behaviours of semiconductive ceramic nanoparticles such as TiO2, ZnO, Fe2O3, and Fe3O4, have been extensively studied in photocatalysis and photopolymerization, due to their ability to produce radical species under ultraviolet–visible light, and even in dark conditions. In addition, in the form of microparticles, TiO2 and its Magnéli phases are capable of neutralizing radical species, and a heterogeneous catalytic process has been suggested to explain this property, as it is well known as scavenging activity. Thus, in this study, we demonstrate that these ceramic powders, in the form of microparticles, could be used as photoinitiators in UV polymerization in order to synthesize a hydrogel matrix. Them, embedded ceramic powders could be able to neutralize radical species of physiological media once implanted. The hydrogel matrix would regulate the exchange of free radicals in any media, while the ceramic particles would neutralize the reactive species. Therefore, in this work, the scavenger activities of TiO2, ZnO, Fe2O3, and Fe3O4 microparticles, along with their photoinitiation yield, were evaluated. After photopolymerization, the gel fraction and swelling behaviour were evaluated for each hydrogel produced with different ceramic initiators. Gel fractions were higher than 60%, exhibiting variation in their scavenging activity. Therefore, we demonstrate that ceramic photoinitiators of TiO2, ZnO, Fe2O3, and Fe3O4 can be used to fabricate implantable devices with scavenger properties in order to neutralize radical species involved in inflammatory processes and degenerative diseases.ye
Immunomodulatory activity of β-glucan polysaccharides isolated from different species of mushroom – A potential treatment for inflammatory lung conditions
Get PDFAcute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is the most common form of acute severe hypoxemic respiratory failure in the critically ill with a hospital mortality of 40%. Alveolar inflammation is one of the hallmarks for this disease. β-Glucans are polysaccharides isolated from a variety of natural sources including mushrooms, with documented immune modulating properties. To investigate the immunomodulatory activity of β-glucans and their potential as a treatment for ARDS, we isolated and measured glucan-rich polysaccharides from seven species of mushrooms. We used three models of in-vitro injury in THP-1 macrophages, Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (CD14+) (PMBCs) isolated from healthy volunteers and lung epithelial cell lines. We observed variance between β-glucan content in extracts isolated from seven mushroom species. The extracts with the highest β-glucan content found was Lentinus edodes which contained 70% w/w and Hypsizygus tessellatus which contained 80% w/w with low levels of α-glucan. The extracts had the ability to induce secretion of up to 4000 pg/mL of the inflammatory cytokine IL-6, and up to 5000 pg/mL and 500 pg/mL of the anti-inflammatory cytokines IL-22 and IL-10, respectively, at a concentration of 1 mg/mL in THP-1 macrophages. In the presence of cytokine injury, IL-8 was reduced from 15,000 pg/mL to as low as 10,000 pg/mL in THP-1 macrophages. After insult with LPS, phagocytosis dropped from 70–90% to as low 10% in CD14+ PBMCs. After LPS insult CCL8 relative gene expression was reduced, and IL-10 relative gene expression increased from 50 to 250-fold in THP-1 macrophages. In lung epithelial cells, both A549 and BEAS-2B after IL-1β insult, IL-8 levels dropped from 10,000 pg/mL to as low as 6000 pg/mL. TNF-α levels dropped 10-fold from 100 pg/mL to just below 10 pg/mL. These results demonstrate the therapeutic potential of β-glucans in inflammatory lung conditions. Findings also advance bio-based research that connects green innovation with One Health applications for the betterment of society.ye
Diverted from landfill: reuse of single-use plastic packaging waste
Get PDFLow-density polyethylene (LDPE) based packaging films mostly end up in landfill after
single-use as they are not commonly recycled due to their flexible nature, low strength and low cost.
Additionally, the necessity to separate and sort different plastic waste streams is the most costly step
in plastics recycling, and is a major barrier to increasing recycling rates. This cost can be reduced
through using waste mixed plastics (wMP) as a raw material. This research investigates the properties
of PE-based wMP coming from film packaging wastes that constitutes different grades of PE with
traces of polypropylene (PP). Their properties are compared with segregated individual recycled
polyolefins and virgin LDPE. The plastic plaques are produced directly from the wMP shreds as well
as after extruding the wMP shreds into a more uniform material. The effect of different material
forms and processing conditions on the mechanical properties are investigated. The results of the
investigation show that measured properties of the wMP fall well within the range of properties
of various grades of virgin polyethylene, indicating the maximum possible variations between
different batches. Addition of an intermediate processing step of extrusion before compression
moulding is found to have no effect on the tensile properties but results in a noticeably different
failure behaviour. The wMP does not show any thermal degradation during processing that was
confirmed by thermogravimetric analysis. The results give a scientific insight into the adoption of
wMP in real world products that can divert them from landfill creating a more circular economy.ye
Epistemological treatment of design in technology education
Get PDFDesign as a construct has multiple meanings depending on context, function, and agenda. This paper proposes to set out functions of design as it manifests in the context of technological activity for the purposes of technology education. The importance of context and by association intention in technological and designerly activity is presented with reference to recent reforms of lower secondary school subjects in Ireland, in an attempt to demonstrate the complexity of design’s treatment in technological activity. Critical to the success of designerly outcomes and outputs, is having a clear intention for the objectives of learning. This paper proposes a framework of articulations of design in the context of technological activity that attempts to position its utility with respect to the development of capability. Unpacking ‘learning about design’, ‘learning by design’ and ‘learning to design’ provides delineated intent that makes explicit learning, pedagogical, and evaluative decisions, reinforcing the position that it is what learners can do opposed to know, that is central to technological activity.ye
Unlocking the archive: using the biochemical and isotopic composition of fish scales to understand the marine phase of Atlantic salmon
Get PDFThe Atlantic salmon is a species of great importance culturally, economically and ecologically. Recent declines suffered by many populations have been linked to marine mortality, therefore a better understanding of the marine phase is needed to inform management decisions, slow population declines, and protect this iconic species. The overall aim of this research was to develop, validate and apply methods that unlock the information contained in Atlantic salmon scales to enhance our knowledge of the marine phase. Fish scales incorporate biochemical and isotopic signatures as they grow, acting as a chronological record of the fish’s life history. Large, multi-decadal archives of Atlantic salmon scales are held by many organisations, containing vast amounts of data to be explored. Stable isotopes of scales can be used to examine the diet, origin, and trophic level of prey of a fish, but inorganic carbonates on the scale surface can confound results. The carbon isotopic ratio (δ13C) of acid-treated and untreated scales from 208 Atlantic salmon was analysed. Acid-treatment had a negligible effect on (δ13C) and therefore does not need to be performed prior to stable isotope analysis (SIA) of Atlantic salmon scales, saving scale material, time and money. A recent isotope-based geolocation tool suggests that the marine feeding location of salmon can be determined by correlating a time series of scale δ13C with sea surface temperature (SST). To validate the method, SIA of archived scales from 100 fish (10 years of a 50-year period) caught at their feeding grounds west of Greenland was completed. The highest area of correlation between scale δ13C and SST, the Labrador Sea, accurately represented the foraging location of the fish. This validation allows the results of the geolocation tool to be interpreted with increased confidence. Cortisol, the most commonly measured stress hormone in fish, was recently extracted from fish scales as a measure of chronic stress. In this thesis, the method was adapted for use on Atlantic salmon scales and used to extract cortisol from the scales of 156 experimentally reared post-smolts that were exposed to 3 temperatures (6, 10.5 and 15°C) and varying starvation stressors. Cortisol increased significantly in fish kept at 15°C. Fluctuations occurred in fish at 6°C and in starved fish at 10.5°C, but a larger sample size is needed to determine the significance of these results. This research determined that scale cortisol is a suitable biomarker for temperature stress in Atlantic salmon and, due to optimisation to require lower weights of scale material, may open this method up to a wider range of species and life stages. Using the method, the stability of cortisol was confirmed in archived scales, then cortisol was extracted from 120 archived scale samples (6 years over a 29-year period). No interannual trends were detected, and individual variability appeared to drive the
differences in cortisol. Combining cortisol data with other analyses could help understand the factors affecting scale cortisol in Atlantic salmon. This research illustrated the value of scales for examining the marine phase of Atlantic salmon, which may be key to preventing further declines. The methods developed and validated in this thesis can be used to determine marine feeding location and to examine the response of salmon to stressors experienced during their life cycle.n
Harnessing “WebWork” Platform To Engage Students
Get PDFSummary of Teaching & Learning Context
In the academic year 2021/22 I have scaled up use of the
“WebWork” platform for my mathematics courses. WebWork
is an online platform allowing students to try mathematics
problems. The system is popular since it allows the instructor
to control most details, such as how many times a student can
try a problem, how many marks per problem, etc.
Full details on this open source platform can be found at:
http://www.webwork.maa.org/getwebwork.html
This active learning method was targeted at a group of
approximately sixty students in their third year of engineering
courses. I also used the system for smaller apprenticeship
courses. It should be noted that the system can scale to many
hundreds if needed.
For the academic year 2021/22, I have also used the data
collected by the WebWork server to compile usage statistics
that I am in the process of preparing for a case study
publication on students’ device-usage habits: does choice of
web browser influence student scores? This is joint work with
Dr F. Hegarty – MSP/Berkeley , CA, USA
High intensity interval training practices in competitive field-based invasion team sports
Get PDFHigh intensity interval training (HIIT) can be defined as alternating bouts of short duration exercise (e.g., 5s to 10 minutes) at near/maximal intensities separated by complete
rest or low intensity activity allowing partial/full recovery (1). Formats of HIIT include sprint interval training, repeated sprint training, long and short intervals, with each format
capable of inducing high levels of physical stress. Competitive field-based invasion team sports (FITS) such as rugby, soccer and Gaelic games are dominated by technical and
tactical components, while high fitness levels are required to supplement these skills as performance is regulated by a combination of physiological and psychological qualities.
In spite of the high profile nature of FITS there remains a paucity of scientific literature examining coaches practices within such sports [6]. However it is not clear why/how
coaches prescribe HIIT or what methods they implement. The aim of this study is to clarify several aspects of coaches HIIT practices such as why it is used, what methods do they
utilise, does their prescription vary depending on the time of season and what variables impact their decision making when selecting a method of HIIT