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Monetti A, Donzella A, Ballan M, Centofante L, Corradetti S, Ferrari M, Lilli G, Manzolaro M, Marchi T, Scarpa D, Zangrando L, Zenoni A, Andrighetto A. Study of the radionuclide deposition in the radioactive ion line of the Selective Production of Exotic Species (SPES) facility. Appl Radiat Isot 2024; 204:111121. [PMID: 38016259 DOI: 10.1016/j.apradiso.2023.111121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2023] [Revised: 11/10/2023] [Accepted: 11/21/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023]
Abstract
SPES (Selective Production of Exotic Species) is a second generation facility for the production of radioactive ion beams that is going to be commissioned at the Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro of INFN at Legnaro, Padua, Italy. Radioactive neutron-rich isotopes are expected to be produced by nuclear fission induced by a 40 MeV, 200 μA primary proton beam impinging on a 238UCx target. The expected reaction rate is about 1013 fission/s. Radioactive ion beams are produced using the isotope separation on-line technique. The production of such an amount of radioactive species raises radiological issues throughout the life cycle of the facility. A study of the radioactive contamination of the components of the radioactive ion beam line is performed with the FLUKA Monte Carlo simulation code, under realistic hypotheses for the produced isobaric beams. The present results complete previous studies focused on the radiological impact of the production target irradiation, the residual activation of the primary proton beam line and the radioactive contamination of the ion source complex. The overall ambient dose equivalent rate due to the different radiation sources is calculated at several positions inside the production bunker and at different times after a typical one-year operating period of the facility with the 238UCx target at full power. The obtained results and the developed methodology provide the guidelines and the needed tools to plan ordinary and extraordinary interventions as well as final decommissioning of the SPES facility.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Monetti
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - A Donzella
- Università degli Studi di Brescia, Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Industriale, Via Branze 38, 25123 Brescia, Italy; INFN, Sezione di Pavia, Via A. Bassi 6, 27100 Pavia, Italy.
| | - M Ballan
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - L Centofante
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - S Corradetti
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - M Ferrari
- Université Jean Monnet Saint-Etienne, CNRS, Institut d'Optique Graduate School, Laboratoire Hubert Curien UMR 5516, F-42023, Saint-Etienne, France
| | - G Lilli
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy; Università degli Studi di Padova, Dipartimento di Tecnica e Gestione dei sistemi industriali, Stradella S. Nicola 3, 36100 Vicenza, Italy
| | - M Manzolaro
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - T Marchi
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - D Scarpa
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - L Zangrando
- INFN, Sezione di Padova, Via F. Marzolo 8, 35131 Padova, Italy
| | - A Zenoni
- Università degli Studi di Brescia, Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Industriale, Via Branze 38, 25123 Brescia, Italy; INFN, Sezione di Pavia, Via A. Bassi 6, 27100 Pavia, Italy
| | - A Andrighetto
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
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Ballan M, Corradetti S, Manzolaro M, Meneghetti G, Andrighetto A. Thermal and Structural Characterization of a Titanium Carbide/Carbon Composite for Nuclear Applications. MATERIALS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 15:8358. [PMID: 36499852 PMCID: PMC9739871 DOI: 10.3390/ma15238358] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2022] [Revised: 11/10/2022] [Accepted: 11/22/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
In the framework of ISOL (isotope separation on-line) facilities, porous carbides are among the most employed target materials for the production of radioactive ion beams for research. As foreseen by the ISOL technique, a production target is impinged by an energetic particle beam, inducing nuclear reactions from such an interaction. The resulting radionuclides are subsequently released, thanks to the high target working temperature (1600-2000 °C); ionized; and extracted into a beam. Since the target microstructure and porosity play a fundamental role in the radionuclide release efficiency, custom-made target materials are often specifically produced, resulting in unknown thermal and structural properties. Considering that such targets might undergo intense thermal stresses during operation, a thermal and structural characterization is necessary to avoid target failure under irradiation. In the presented work, a custom-made porous titanium carbide that was specifically designed for application as an ISOL target was produced and characterized. The thermal characterization was focused on the evaluation of the material emissivity and thermal conductivity in the 600-1400 °C temperature range. For the estimation of a reference material tensile stress limit, the virtual thermoelastic parameter approach was adopted. In particular, for the aforementioned temperature range, an emissivity between 0.7 and 0.8 was measured, whereas a thermal conductivity between 8 and 10 W/mK was estimated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michele Ballan
- National Institute of Nuclear Physics—Legnaro National Laboratories (INFN-LNL), Viale dell’Università 2, Legnaro, 35020 Padova, Italy
| | - Stefano Corradetti
- National Institute of Nuclear Physics—Legnaro National Laboratories (INFN-LNL), Viale dell’Università 2, Legnaro, 35020 Padova, Italy
| | - Mattia Manzolaro
- National Institute of Nuclear Physics—Legnaro National Laboratories (INFN-LNL), Viale dell’Università 2, Legnaro, 35020 Padova, Italy
- Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Padova, Via Venezia 1, 35131 Padova, Italy
| | - Giovanni Meneghetti
- Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Padova, Via Venezia 1, 35131 Padova, Italy
| | - Alberto Andrighetto
- National Institute of Nuclear Physics—Legnaro National Laboratories (INFN-LNL), Viale dell’Università 2, Legnaro, 35020 Padova, Italy
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Lilli G, Centofante L, Manzolaro M, Monetti A, Oboe R, Andrighetto A. Remote handling systems for the Selective Production of Exotic Species (SPES) facility. NUCLEAR ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.net.2022.08.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
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Centofante L, Donzella A, Zenoni A, Ferrari M, Ballan M, Corradetti S, D'Agostini F, Lilli G, Manzolaro M, Monetti A, Morselli L, Scarpa D, Andrighetto A. Study of the radioactive contamination of the ion source complex in the Selective Production of Exotic Species (SPES) facility. THE REVIEW OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS 2021; 92:053304. [PMID: 34243328 DOI: 10.1063/5.0045063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2021] [Accepted: 04/28/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The Isotope Separation On-Line (ISOL) technique is today established as one of the primary methods to produce high-intensity and high-quality radioactive beams. This technique produces, for a given amount of the desired isotope, many orders of magnitude of other radioactive species. Due to the activation generated by interactions of the primary beam, intense neutron fields, and deposition of the produced radioactive ions inside beam line elements, an ISOL facility in operation becomes an intense radioactive source. Therefore, the biological hazard imposes severe radiological safety challenges to the design, operation, maintenance, and final decommissioning of such facilities. A challenging component is the ion source complex, where the ion extraction electrode provides the extraction of radioactive ions from the ion source and the first acceleration to the extracted beam. The radioactive contamination of this sub-component is studied, by means of the FLUKA code, in the case of the Selective Production of Exotic Species facility, which is in the advanced construction phase at Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Padua, Italy. The developed model includes isotope production by the interactions of a 40 MeV energy proton beam on a 238UCx target, selection of radioactive isotopes that are able to stick on the electrode tip, time evolution of the deposited isotopes during the operation and cooling periods before maintenance interventions, and evaluation of the ambient dose equivalent rate generated by the contamination of the electrode tip. Based on these results, the possibility of manual interventions for maintenance and emergency vs the use of remote handling systems is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Centofante
- Università degli Studi di Brescia, Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Industriale, via Branze 38, 25123 Brescia, Italy
| | - A Donzella
- Università degli Studi di Brescia, Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Industriale, via Branze 38, 25123 Brescia, Italy
| | - A Zenoni
- Università degli Studi di Brescia, Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Industriale, via Branze 38, 25123 Brescia, Italy
| | - M Ferrari
- CERN, CH 1211 Geneva 23, Switzerland
| | - M Ballan
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - S Corradetti
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - F D'Agostini
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - G Lilli
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - M Manzolaro
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - A Monetti
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - L Morselli
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - D Scarpa
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - A Andrighetto
- INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell'Università 2, 35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
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Preliminary evaluation of the production of non-carrier added 111Ag as core of a therapeutic radiopharmaceutical in the framework of ISOLPHARM_Ag experiment. Appl Radiat Isot 2020; 164:109258. [PMID: 32819502 DOI: 10.1016/j.apradiso.2020.109258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2020] [Revised: 05/28/2020] [Accepted: 06/01/2020] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Research in the field of radiopharmaceuticals is increasingly promoted by the widespread and growing interest in applying nuclear medicine procedures in both disease diagnosis and treatment. The production of radionuclides of medical interest is however a challenging issue. Along with the conventional techniques other innovative approaches are being investigated and, among those, the ISOLPHARM project is being developed at INFN-LNL (Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare - Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro). Such technique foresees the employment of the SPES ISOL facility to produce isobarically pure Radioactive Ion Beams (RIBs), obtained thanks to electromagnetic mass separation and collected on appropriate substrates. The latter are successively recovered and dissolved, allowing thus the chemical separation and harvesting of the nuclides of interest, free from any isotopic contaminant. Although ISOLPHARM can be potentially employed for most of the routinely used medical radioisotopes, its innovation potential is better expressed considering its capability to provide carrier free unconventional nuclides, difficult to produce with state-of-art techniques, such as 111Ag, a β- emitter potentially interesting for therapeutic applications. Thus, in the framework of ISOLPHARM, INFN supported a two-years experiment, called ISOLPHARM_Ag, aimed at evaluating the feasibility of the production of a111Ag labelled radiopharmaceutical. The ISOL production yields are estimated by computing intensive Monte Carlo codes, that require an appropriate custom Information Technology infrastructure. The presented work is focused on the first part of the production chain including the capability to extract, ionize, and collect stable Ag beams with SPES technologies. MC calculations were used to estimate the expected 111Ag in-target yields, whereas experiments with stable Ag were performed to test the ionization, transport and collection of Ag beams.
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Ferrari M, Zenoni A, Hartl M, Lee Y, Andrighetto A, Monetti A, Salvini A, Zelaschi F. Experimental study of consistency degradation of different greases in mixed neutron and gamma radiation. Heliyon 2019; 5:e02489. [PMID: 31687582 PMCID: PMC6819864 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2019.e02489] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2019] [Revised: 04/10/2019] [Accepted: 08/27/2019] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Many of the moving components in accelerator and target environments require lubrication. Lubricants in such environments are exposed to high fluxes of secondary radiation, which originates from beam interactions with the target and from beam losses. The secondary radiation is a mix of components, which can include significant fractions of neutrons. Lubricants are radiation-sensitive polymeric materials. The radiation-induced modifications of their structure reduce their service lifetime and impose additional facility maintenance, which is complicated by the environmental radioactivity. The study of the lubricants radiation resistance is therefore necessary for the construction of new generation accelerators and target systems. Nevertheless, data collected in mixed radiation fields are scarce. Nine commercial greases were irradiated at a TRIGA Mark II Research Reactor to serve for the construction of new accelerator projects like the European Spallation Source (ESS) at Lund (Sweden) and Selective Production of Exotic Species (SPES) at Legnaro, (Italy). Mixed neutron and gamma doses ranging from 0.1 MGy to 9.0 MGy were delivered to the greases. For an experimental quantification of their degradation, consistency was measured. Two of the greases remained stable, while the others became fluid. Post-irradiation examinations evidence the cleavage of the polymeric structure as the dominant radiation effect. Dose and fluence limits for the use of each product are presented. Apart from the scientific significance, the results represent an original and useful reference in selecting radiation resistant greases for accelerator and target applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matteo Ferrari
- Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Industriale, Università degli Studi di Brescia, Via Branze 38, I-25123 Brescia, Italy.,Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Via Bassi 6, I-27100 Pavia, Italy
| | - Aldo Zenoni
- Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Industriale, Università degli Studi di Brescia, Via Branze 38, I-25123 Brescia, Italy.,Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Via Bassi 6, I-27100 Pavia, Italy
| | - Monika Hartl
- European Spallation Source, Odarslövsvägen 113 SE-22484 Lund, Sweden
| | - Yongjoong Lee
- European Spallation Source, Odarslövsvägen 113 SE-22484 Lund, Sweden
| | - Alberto Andrighetto
- Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro dell'INFN, Viale dell'Università 2, I-35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - Alberto Monetti
- Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro dell'INFN, Viale dell'Università 2, I-35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
| | - Andrea Salvini
- Laboratorio Energia Nucleare Applicata LENA, Università degli Studi di Pavia, Via Aselli 41, I-27100 Pavia, Italy
| | - Fabio Zelaschi
- Laboratorio Energia Nucleare Applicata LENA, Università degli Studi di Pavia, Via Aselli 41, I-27100 Pavia, Italy
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Ferrari M, Pandini S, Zenoni A, Donzella G, Battini D, Avanzini A, Salvini A, Zelaschi F, Andrighetto A, Bignotti F. Degradation of EPDM and FPM elastomers irradiated at very high dose rates in mixed gamma and neutron fields. POLYM ENG SCI 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/pen.25249] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Matteo Ferrari
- Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e IndustrialeUniversità degli Studi di Brescia Brescia 25123 Italy
- INSTM, Unità di Ricerca di Brescia, Università degli Studi di Brescia Brescia 25123 Italy
- INFN, Sezione di Pavia, Via Bassi 6 Pavia 27100 Italy
| | - Stefano Pandini
- Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e IndustrialeUniversità degli Studi di Brescia Brescia 25123 Italy
- INSTM, Unità di Ricerca di Brescia, Università degli Studi di Brescia Brescia 25123 Italy
| | - Aldo Zenoni
- Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e IndustrialeUniversità degli Studi di Brescia Brescia 25123 Italy
- INSTM, Unità di Ricerca di Brescia, Università degli Studi di Brescia Brescia 25123 Italy
- INFN, Sezione di Pavia, Via Bassi 6 Pavia 27100 Italy
| | - Giorgio Donzella
- Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e IndustrialeUniversità degli Studi di Brescia Brescia 25123 Italy
| | - Davide Battini
- Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e IndustrialeUniversità degli Studi di Brescia Brescia 25123 Italy
| | - Andrea Avanzini
- Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e IndustrialeUniversità degli Studi di Brescia Brescia 25123 Italy
| | - Andrea Salvini
- INFN, Sezione di Pavia, Via Bassi 6 Pavia 27100 Italy
- Laboratorio LENAUniversità di Pavia, Via G. Aselli 41 Pavia 27100 Italy
| | - Fabio Zelaschi
- INFN, Sezione di Pavia, Via Bassi 6 Pavia 27100 Italy
- Laboratorio LENAUniversità di Pavia, Via G. Aselli 41 Pavia 27100 Italy
| | - Alberto Andrighetto
- Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro dell'INFNViale dell'Università 2 Legnaro (PD) 35020 Italy
| | - Fabio Bignotti
- Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e IndustrialeUniversità degli Studi di Brescia Brescia 25123 Italy
- INSTM, Unità di Ricerca di Brescia, Università degli Studi di Brescia Brescia 25123 Italy
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Borgna F, Ballan M, Favaretto C, Verona M, Tosato M, Caeran M, Corradetti S, Andrighetto A, Di Marco V, Marzaro G, Realdon N. Early Evaluation of Copper Radioisotope Production at ISOLPHARM. Molecules 2018; 23:E2437. [PMID: 30249975 PMCID: PMC6222311 DOI: 10.3390/molecules23102437] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2018] [Revised: 09/20/2018] [Accepted: 09/21/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The ISOLPHARM (ISOL technique for radioPHARMaceuticals) project is dedicated to the development of high purity radiopharmaceuticals exploiting the radionuclides producible with the future Selective Production of Exotic Species (SPES) Isotope Separation On-Line (ISOL) facility at the Legnaro National Laboratories of the Italian National Institute for Nuclear Physics (INFN-LNL). At SPES, a proton beam (up to 70 MeV) extracted from a cyclotron will directly impinge a primary target, where the produced isotopes are released thanks to the high working temperatures (2000 °C), ionized, extracted and accelerated, and finally, after mass separation, only the desired nuclei are collected on a secondary target, free from isotopic contaminants that decrease their specific activity. A case study for such project is the evaluation of the feasibility of the ISOL production of 64Cu and 67Cu using a zirconium germanide target, currently under development. The producible activities of 64Cu and 67Cu were calculated by means of the Monte Carlo code FLUKA, whereas dedicated off-line tests with stable beams were performed at LNL to evaluate the capability to ionize and recover isotopically pure copper.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Borgna
- Legnaro National Laboratories, National Institute of Nuclear Physics, 35020 Legnaro, Italy.
| | - Michele Ballan
- Legnaro National Laboratories, National Institute of Nuclear Physics, 35020 Legnaro, Italy.
- Department of Physics and Earth Science, University of Ferrara, 44122 Ferrara, Italy.
| | - Chiara Favaretto
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, University of Padua, 35131 Padua, Italy.
| | - Marco Verona
- Legnaro National Laboratories, National Institute of Nuclear Physics, 35020 Legnaro, Italy.
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, University of Padua, 35131 Padua, Italy.
| | - Marianna Tosato
- Legnaro National Laboratories, National Institute of Nuclear Physics, 35020 Legnaro, Italy.
- Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Padua, 35131 Padua, Italy.
| | - Michele Caeran
- Legnaro National Laboratories, National Institute of Nuclear Physics, 35020 Legnaro, Italy.
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, University of Padua, 35131 Padua, Italy.
| | - Stefano Corradetti
- Legnaro National Laboratories, National Institute of Nuclear Physics, 35020 Legnaro, Italy.
| | - Alberto Andrighetto
- Legnaro National Laboratories, National Institute of Nuclear Physics, 35020 Legnaro, Italy.
| | - Valerio Di Marco
- Legnaro National Laboratories, National Institute of Nuclear Physics, 35020 Legnaro, Italy.
- Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Padua, 35131 Padua, Italy.
| | - Giovanni Marzaro
- Legnaro National Laboratories, National Institute of Nuclear Physics, 35020 Legnaro, Italy.
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, University of Padua, 35131 Padua, Italy.
| | - Nicola Realdon
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, University of Padua, 35131 Padua, Italy.
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