In this work, vacuum hot pressed Ni-Mn-Sn-In Heusler alloys with different concentration of In (0, 2 and 4 at.%), were investigated. The magneto-structural behaviour and microstructure dependencies on chemical composition and on heat treatment were examined. It was found that the martensite start transformation temperature increases with growing In content and to a lesser extent with increasing temperature of heat treatment. The high energy X-ray synchrotron radiation results, demonstrated that both chemical composition as well as temperature of heat treatment slightly modified the crystal structures of the studied alloys. Microstructural investigation performed by transmission electron microscopy confirmed chemical composition and crystal structure changes in the alloys.

Refinement is one of the most energy consuming technological process, aimed at obtaining mineral raw materials of the proper grain size.

Cast structural elements such as jaws or hammers in crushing machines operate under conditions of an intensive wear. The data indicate

that 80 % of failures of machines and devices is caused by wearing of rubbing surfaces. This problem became the subject of several

scientific and industrial investigations carried out in the whole world in order to produce materials ultra- wear resistant. Methods allowing

to obtain wear resistant composite castings are discussed in the hereby paper. Within the performed research microstructures of the

produced composite zones were presented and the comparative analysis with regard to mechanical and functional properties of local

composite reinforcements in relation to the commercial alloys of increased wear resistance was performed. The results show almost twenty

five times increase in wear resistance compared to manganese cast steel containing 18 % Mn.

Background: In early phase of acute pancreatitis (AP), systemic inflammatory response syndrome may lead to organ failure. The severe form of AP is associated with high mortality that may be prevented by timely diagnosis and treatment of the predicted severe cases. Serum interleukin 6 (IL-6) and urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) have been proposed as accurate early markers of severe AP. The aim of the study was to assess whether widely available blood count indexes: neutrophil to lymphocyte (NLR), lymphocyte to monocyte (LMR) and platelet to lymphocyte ratios correlate with IL-6 and uPAR and may be utilized to predict organ complications at the early phase of AP.

Methods: The study included 95 adult patients with AP treated at the Surgical Ward Complex of Health Care Centers in Wadowice, Poland. Organ failure was diagnosed according to modified Marshall scoring system, as recommended by 2012 Atlanta classification. Blood samples for laboratory tests were collected on days 1, 2 and 3 following the onset of AP symptoms.

Results: Patients with organ failure presented significantly lower LMR on day 1 and signifi cantly higher NLR on days 2 and 3. Strong positive correlations between NLR and IL-6 and moderate correlations between NLR and uPAR were observed throughout the study. Day 2 and 3 NLR values significantly predicted organ failure at the early phase of AP.

Conclusions: Taking into account the wide availability of NLR, it may be considered as a surrogate of more expensive tests to help the early assessment of organ failure complicating AP.