| 1. |
- Molander, Peter, et al.
(författare)
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The role of pain in chronic pain patients' perception of health-related quality of life : A cross-sectional SQRP study of 40,000 patients
- 2018
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Pain. - : Walter de Gruyter GmbH. - 1877-8860 .- 1877-8879. ; 18:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Health-related quality of life (Hr-QoL) reflects the burden of a condition on an overarching level. Pain intensity, disability and other factors influence how patients with chronic pain perceive their condition, e.g. Hr-QoL. However, the relative importance of these factors is unclear and there is an ongoing debate as to what importance pain measures have in this group. We investigated the importance of current pain level and mood on aspects of Hr-QoL in patients with chronic pain and investigated whether such relationships are influenced by demographics. Data was obtained from the Swedish Quality Registry for Pain Rehabilitation (SQRP), between 2008 and 2016 on patients ≥18 years old who suffered from chronic pain and were referred to participating specialist clinics. Dependent variables were general Hr-QoL [using two scales from European Quality of Life instrument: EQ5D Index and the European Quality of Life instrument health scale (EQ thermometer)] and specific Hr-QoL [from the Short Form Health Survey (SF36) the physical component summary (SF36-PCS) and the mental (psychological) component summary (SF36-MCS)]. Independent variables were sociodemographic variables, pain variables, psychological distress and pain attitudes. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used for multivariate correlation analyses of all investigated variables and Orthogonal Partial Least Square Regression (OPLS) for multivariate regressions on health aspects. There was 40,518 patients (72% women). Pain intensity and interference showed the strongest multivariate correlations with EQ5D Index, EQ thermometer and SF36-PCS. Psychological distress variables displayed the strongest multivariate correlations with SF36-MCS. Demographic properties did not significantly influence variations in the investigated Hr-QoL variables. Pain, mood and pain attitudes were significantly correlated with Hr-QoL variables, but these variables cannot explain most of variations in Hr-QoL variables. The results pinpoint that broad assessments (including pain intensity aspects) are needed to capture the clinical presentation of patients with complex chronic pain conditions.
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| 2. |
- Abdallah, J., et al.
(författare)
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The Laser calibration of the ATLAS Tile Calorimeter during the LHC run 1
- 2016
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Ingår i: Journal of Instrumentation. - 1748-0221. ; 11
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This article describes the Laser calibration system of the ATLAS hadronic Tile Calorimeter that has been used during the run 1 of the LHC. First, the stability of the system associated readout electronics is studied. It is found to be stable with variations smaller than 0.6 %. Then, the method developed to compute the calibration constants, to correct for the variations of the gain of the calorimeter photomultipliers, is described. These constants were determined with a statistical uncertainty of 0.3 % and a systematic uncertainty of 0.2 % for the central part of the calorimeter and 0.5 % for the end-caps. Finally, the detection and correction of timing mis-configuration of the Tile Calorimeter using the Laser system are also presented.
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| 3. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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Assessing the Environmental Risks of Silver from Clothes in an Urban Area
- 2014
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Ingår i: Human and Ecological Risk Assessment (HERA). - : Informa UK Limited. - 1549-7860 .- 1080-7039. ; 20:4, s. 1008-1022
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The environmental risks from the use of silver-containing clothes (“silver clothes”)were assessed for an urban area. First, we evaluated whether the use of silver clothesmay cause contamination of wastewater treatment sludge that exceeds certain risk thresholds. Second, we assessed the risk of silver exposure to earthworms from applyingthe sludge as fertilizer to agricultural land. The most critical parameter was the concentration of silver in silver clothes, for which estimates in the literaturevary by more than five orders of magnitude. For concentrations at the high end of that parameter range, there is considerably increased concentration of silver in the sludge, and toxic effects on earthworms even at modest use rates of silver clothes suggest high risk. At the low end, no risks can be expected. The main recommendationfrom this study is that if silver is used in clothes, the silver concentration must be kept at the lower end of the range applied in this study if risks are to be avoided.This can be done either by design choices of companies, or by regulation. If the function of the applied silver is not maintained at these lower levels, the use of silver clothes should be minimized.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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Challenges in Exposure Modeling of Nanoparticles in Aquatic Environments
- 2011
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Ingår i: Human and Ecological Risk Assessment. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1080-7039 .- 1549-7860. ; 17:1, s. 245-262
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Managing the potential environmental risks of nanoparticles requires methods to link nanoparticle properties with macro-scale risks. This study outlines challenges in exposure modeling of nanoparticles in aquatic environments, such as the role of natural organic matter, natural colloids, fractal dimensions of agglomerates, coatings and doping of particles, and uncertainties regarding nanoparticle emissions to aquatic environments. The pros and cons of the exposure indicators mass concentration, particle number concentration, and surface area are discussed. By applying colloid chemistry kinetic equations describing particle agglomeration and sedimentation for the case of titanium dioxide nanoparticles, a limited exposure assessment including some of the factors mentioned is conducted with particle number concentration as the exposure indicator. The results of the modeling indicate that sedimentation, shear flows, and settling are of less importance with regard to particle number based predicted environmental concentrations. The inflow of nanoparticles to the water compartment had a significant impact in the model, and the collision efficiency (which is affected by natural organic matter) was shown to greatly affect model output. Implications for exposure modeling, regulation and science are discussed. A broad spectrum of scientific disciplines must be engaged in the development of exposure models where nano-level properties are linked to macro-scale risk.
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| 6. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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Energy and resource use assessment of graphene as a substitute for indium tin oxide in transparent electrodes
- 2016
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Ingår i: Journal of Cleaner Production. - : Elsevier BV. - 0959-6526. ; 132, s. 289-297
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- One of the most promising applications of graphene is as material in transparent electrodes in applications such as liquid crystal displays (LCDs) and solar cells. In this study, we assess life cycle resource requirements of producing an electrode area of graphene by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and compare to the production of indium tin oxide (ITO). The resources considered are energy and scarce metals. The results show that graphene layers can have lower life cycle energy use than ITO layers, with 3–10 times reduction for our best case scenario. Regarding use of scarce metals, the use of indium in ITO production is more problematic than the use of copper in graphene production, although the latter may constitute a resource constraint in the very long run. The substitution of ITO by graphene thus seems favorable from a resource point of view. Higher order effects may outweigh or enhance the energy use benefit. For example, cheaper, graphene-based electrodes may spur increased production of LCDs, leading to increased absolute energy use, or spur the development of new energy technologies, such as solar cells and fuel cells. The latter could potentially lead to larger absolute reductions in resource use if these new technologies will replace fossil-based energy systems.
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| 7. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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Environmental Assessment of Emerging Technologies: Recommendations for Prospective LCA
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of Industrial Ecology. - : Wiley. - 1530-9290 .- 1088-1980. ; 22:6, s. 1286-1294
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- The challenge of assessing emerging technologies with life cycle assessment (LCA) has been increasingly discussed in the LCA field. In this article, we propose a definition of prospective LCA: An LCA is prospective when the (emerging) technology studied is in an early phase of development (e.g., small-scale production), but the technology is modeled at a future, more-developed phase (e.g., large-scale production). Methodological choices in prospective LCA must be adapted to reflect this goal of assessing environmental impacts of emerging technologies, which deviates from the typical goals of conventional LCA studies. The aim of the article is to provide a number of recommendations for how to conduct such prospective assessments in a relevant manner. The recommendations are based on a detailed review of selected prospective LCA case studies, mainly from the areas of nanomaterials, biomaterials, and energy technologies. We find that it is important to include technology alternatives that are relevant for the future in prospective LCA studies. Predictive scenarios and scenario ranges are two general approaches to prospective inventory modeling of both foreground and background systems. Many different data sources are available for prospective modeling of the foreground system: scientific articles; patents; expert interviews; unpublished experimental data; and process modeling. However, we caution against temporal mismatches between foreground and background systems, and recommend that foreground and background system impacts be reported separately in order to increase the usefulness of the results in other prospective studies.
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| 8. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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Environmental Impact of Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticles – Applying Life Cycle Thinking and Risk Assessment for Swedish Conditions
- 2008
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Ingår i: 3rd International Conference on the Environmental Effects of Nanoparticles and Nanomaterials, Birmingham University, Birmingham, UK, September 15-16, 2008.
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The risks of nanoparticles have been issued by several different groups, e.g. The Royal Society (2004) and Friends of the Earth (2006), and the concept nanotoxicology has been introduced to underline the distinctive toxicological features of nanoparticles (Oberdörster et al. 2005). Some nanoparticles, such as carbon nanotubes, have been outlined as hazardous and great caution has been suggested before introducing carbon nanotubes into the market (Poland et al. 2008). According to a risk assessment performed by Mueller and Nowack (2007), titanium dioxide nanoparticles had higher predicted environmental concentration compared with the predicted no effect concentration than both silver nanoparticles and carbon nanotubes, and further detailed studies regarding titanium dioxide nanoparticles were suggested. However, no sensitivity analysis was performed in Mueller and Nowack (2007), and a crude model was used to model environmental faith of the titanium dioxide nanoparticles. Our study applied substance flow analysis in order to facilitate a comprehensive environmental risk assessment of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (see e.g. Tsunemi and Wada (2008) and Fuster et al. (2002)). A detailed investigation of the production of titanium dioxide nanoparticles and their application in society was performed facilitating hazard identification according to Hansen et al. (2007). Emissions were calculated based on use assumptions and a modelling of the environmental faith of the titanium dioxide nanoparticles was attempted including the particle aggregation and interaction with natural organic substances that modify bioavailability. Predicted environmental concentrations were calculated and compared with predicted no effect concentrations according to several ecotoxicological studies and in order to assess the uncertainty a sensitivity analysis was performed for input parameters.
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| 9. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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Fate modeling of titanium dioxide nanoparticles in the water compartment by colloid chemistry
- 2009
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Ingår i: 1st International Conference on the Environmental Implications and Applications of Nanotechnology, June 9-11, 2009, Amherst, U.S.A..
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Titanium dioxide is one of the most produced nanoparticles according to the Project of Emerging Nanotechnologies (www.nanotechproject.org). According to Mueller and Nowack (2008) it is also the nanoparticle that has the largest environmental concentration in the Swiss water compartment, 16 µg/l according to their high estimate. Further, Boxall et al. (2007) estimate a titanium dioxide nanoparticle environmental concentration of 24.5 µg/l in the UK water compartment for a scenario that probably overestimates the current exposure levels. However, neither of these risk models take fate processes such as aggregation and sedimentation into account. Colloid chemistry deals with particles within the size range of 1 nm to 1 µm. Nanoparticles of a size between one nanometer and a few hundred nanometers are thus well within the colloid range. Theories of colloid chemistry suggest that sedimentation of nanoparticles depends mainly on the density and the viscosity of the water and the density and size of the particles. Sedimentation is shown not to be an important factor, since the sedimentation of particles smaller than ~300 nm is negligible. Aggregation is a more complex process which depends on factors such as temperature, salinity, ion valence, pH, point of zero charge, the Hamaker constant, particle size and particle concentration (Elimelech et al. 1995). These factors were estimated for a typical Swedish lake and calculations were performed in MATLAB. The aggregation is modeled by kinetics according to Smoluchowski (1917) but adjusted according to the DLVO theory (see Elimelech et al. 1995). Preliminary results show that aggregation can reduce the predicted environmental concentration significantly in a short time. It would take less than 4 minutes for the initial environmental concentrations predicted by both Mueller and Nowack (2008) and Boxall et al. (2007) to be reduced by 50%. After 24 hours, both predicted environmental concentrations would have fallen below 0.1 µg/l.
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| 10. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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How to make policy-relevant life cycle assessments of future products? Lessons learned from nanomaterials
- 2013
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Ingår i: 6th International Conference on Life Cycle Management, Gothenburg, 25-28 August.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Many new nanomaterials are currently being developed, and there is a great demand from policy-makers such as governments and agencies to understand the future environmental impact of nanomaterials. However, assessing the life cycle environmental impacts, e.g. in terms of emissions and energy use, related to these materials and products that contain them constitutes a great challenge, which makes it difficult to meet such needs from policy-makers. The challenge is much due to the many uncertainties that surround new nanomaterials at an early point of technological development, which makes environmental assessment methods such as life cycle assessment difficult to apply. These uncertainties include the future areas of application of the nanomaterial, future designs of products within those areas, and future production processes. When one or more of these uncertainties are present, we say that the life cycle or product chain is embryonic. This embryonic nature of nanomaterial life cycles differentiates them from the life cycles of more established products, such as cups and cucumbers. Assessing the environmental impacts of embryonic nanomaterial life cycles requires the assessor to understand the future, or rather some aspects of a number of possible futures. Hence, we need to make use of methods belonging to the field of future studies, including monitoring of trends in technology development (e.g. via patent analysis) and application areas as well as predicting and exploring by trend analysis, expert judgement, and sometimes even fantasizing. We illustrate the theoretical concept of embryonic life cycles with a number of examples of embryonic nanomaterial life cycles, including carbon nanotubes in composites, titanium dioxide nanoparticles in self-cleaning cement and graphene in electronic devices and composites. We show that a range of future study approaches may enrich, or even be essential to, policy-relevant life cycle assessments. We also show that environmental assessments such as life cycle assessment can be misused or used in questionable ways when applied to embryonic life cycles with the purpose of obtaining policy-relevant results.
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