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The entanglement of the momentum of light with its spin at interfaces or inside structured media, known as the photonic spin‐Hall effect, holds great promise for various applications, such as beam splitting, focusing, and polarization detection. However, the photonic spin‐Hall effect remains unexplored in the field of logic operation. In this work, the photonic spin‐Hall effect of spoof surface plasmon polaritons (SSPPs) in programmable metamaterial is demonstrated. Moreover, photonic spin‐Hall logic devices based on programmable spoof plasmonic metamaterial are designed, enabling the control of energy flow through the utilization of both spin and digital coding, with examples including SSPPs logic gates such as the "AND" gate, the "NIMPLY" gate (A AND NOT B), the "OR" gate, and the "NOT" gate. The findings introduce the combination of digital coding metamaterial with the photonic spin Hall effect, which offers a powerful and flexible platform for controlling electromagnetic waves in information processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The heavy-atom effect usually quenches fluorescence, but scarcely enhances it. Herein, fluorescence turn-on sensors without or with a bromine atom for F- detection are presented, achieving fast response time within 1 min, and the LODs of 1.9 × 10-7 and 8.5 × 10-8 M, reflecting that halogen atom introduction is beneficial for F- detection ability improvement. The sensing mechanism of -OH unit deprotonation is confirmed based on the results of a 1: 2 stoichiometric ratio, ¹H NMR titration and TD-DFT calculation. The water environment F- detection and spiked recovery experiments demonstrate their potential for real sample detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microbially induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) technology holds great potential in enhancing soil properties. MICP can be employed to enhance the stability and strength of diverse sandy soil, but it has the shortcoming of low curing efficiency. In response to the identified problem, this study aims to investigate an optimized treatment protocol that involves formulating a cementing solution in a hydrochloric acid (HCl) solution to enhance the solidification rate in the MICP reaction and evaluate its effectiveness. The results indicate that when preparing a 1 M cementing solution in a 0.2 M HCl solution, it promotes the rapid bonding of calcareous sand particles, resulting in an unconfined compressive strength (UCS) of 1312.6 kPa in the sand column after five treatments. Compared to the conventional test group, the experimental group containing HCl exhibited an approximately 1357% increase in UCS. The analysis unveiled the pivotal role of metal ions dissolved from calcareous sand by HCl in enhancing the UCS of MICP-treated calcareous sand. The proposed experimental methodology serves as a valuable tool for designing treatment strategies for MICP-cemented calcareous sand in practical engineering applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Effect of fine grits (FG)/ fine debris (FD) on activated sludge system was analyzed. • FD caused a lower decline of MLVSS/MLSS ratio than FG at the same concentration. • A model to predict MLVSS/MLSS ratio of the system with FG/FD influent was developed. • MLVSS/MLSS ratio was related to the ISS/SS ratio and deposition ratio of FG and FD. This study embarks on an explorative investigation into the effects of typical concentrations and varying particle sizes of fine grits (FG, the involatile portion of suspended solids) and fine debris (FD, the volatile yet unbiodegradable fraction of suspended solids) within the influent on the mixed liquor volatile suspended solids (MLVSS)/mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS) ratio of an activated sludge system. Through meticulous experimentation, it was discerned that the addition of FG or FD, the particle size of FG, and the concentration of FD bore no substantial impact on the pollutant removal efficiency (denoted by the removal rate of COD and ammonia nitrogen) under constant operational conditions. However, a notable decrease in the MLVSS/MLSS ratio was observed with a typical FG concentration of 20 mg/L, with smaller FG particle sizes exacerbating this reduction. Additionally, variations in FD concentrations influenced both MLSS and MLVSS/MLSS ratios; a higher FD concentration led to an increased MLSS and a reduced MLVSS/MLSS ratio, indicating FD accumulation in the system. A predictive model for MLVSS/MLSS was constructed based on quality balance calculations, offering a tool for foreseeing the MLVSS/MLSS ratio under stable long-term influent conditions of FG and FD. This model, validated using data from the BXH wastewater treatment plant (WWTP), showcased remarkable accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We studied a class of generalized n-species non-autonomous cooperative Lotka–Volterra (L-V) systems with time delays. We obtained new criteria on the dynamic properties of the systems. First, we obtained the boundedness and permanence of the system using the inequality analysis technique and comparison method. Then, the existence of positive periodic solutions was investigated using the coincidence degree theory. The global attractivity of the system was obtained by constructing suitable Lyapunov functionals and utilizing Barbalat's lemma. The existence and global attractivity of the periodic solutions were also obtained. Finally, we conducted two numerical simulations to validate the feasibility and practicability of our results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In vivo optical imaging is an important application value in disease diagnosis. However, near-infrared nanoprobes with excellent luminescent properties are still scarce. Herein, two boron–dipyrromethene (BODIPY) molecules (BDP-A and BDP-B) were designed and synthesized. The BODIPY emission was tuned to the near-infrared (NIR) region by regulating the electron-donating ability of the substituents on its core structure. In addition, the introduction of polyethylene glycol (PEG) chains on BODIPY enabled the formation of self-assembled nanoparticles (NPs) to form optical nanoprobes. The self-assembled BODIPY NPs present several advantages, including NIR emission, large Stokes shifts, and high fluorescence quantum efficiency, which can increase water dispersibility and signal-to-noise ratio to decrease the interference by the biological background fluorescence. The in vitro studies revealed that these NPs can enter tumor cells and illuminate the cytoplasm through fluorescence imaging. Then, BDP-B NPs were selected for use in vivo imaging due to their unique NIR emission. BDP-B was enriched in the tumor and effectively illuminated it via an enhanced penetrability and retention effect (EPR) after being injected into the tail vein of mice. The organic nanoparticles were metabolized through the liver and kidney. Thus, the BODIPY-based nanomicelles with NIR fluorescence emission provide an effective research basis for the development of optical nanoprobes in vivo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Determination of polarization states of electromagnetic waves plays a crucial role in photonic applications. However, it is very challenging to determine the polarization state of continuous terahertz (THz) waves. Here, a metasurface‐like metallic waveguide array (MWA) is proposed to address this by measuring both the phase difference and amplitude ratio of its two orthogonal components based on generation and interference of polarization‐multiplexing vortex beams. When a full‐polarized THz wave passes through the MWA, its two orthogonal components will be converted into +1st‐ and −1st‐order Bessel vortex beams, respectively. Their projection components in a proper polarized direction can interfere with each other, and their initial phase difference can be measured in real‐time owing to its linear relationship with the azimuth of the dark fringe in interference patterns. The two Bessel beams can be further collected separately using a linear polarizer to obtain their amplitude ratio. Therefore, the polarization state of incident waves can be determined with both the phase difference and amplitude ratio. The proposed method enables a convenient polarization determination of continuous THz waves and has great potential for developing polarization‐dependent investigations and applications in THz detection, communication, and sensing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon-bonded carbon fiber (CBCF) composite is composed of porous carbon fibers network and vitreous carbon at the intersection. It is considered to be a promising candidate for high thermal insulator and other high-tech applications. However, their low mechanical strength has been one of the main hindrances for achieving high performance in their practical applications. Herein, a self-bonding strategy was utilized to address the problem by eliminating the vitreous carbon binder to obtain carbon fiber monolith with high compressive strength. By carefully engineering the oxidation extent of the pitch fibers, carbon fibers can be partially fused to form strongly bonded porous network that were manufactured under pressure of only 1 ~ 13 kPa. Comparing with CBCFs, the self-bonded carbon fiber monoliths (SBCFM) deliver greatly improved compressive strength (10 ~ 54.5 MPa in xy direction and 7.8 ~ 53 MPa in z direction) and specific compressive strength (15.6 ~ 45 kN·m/kg in xy direction and 12.2 ~ 43.8 kN·m/kg in z direction). The work offers a potential to extend the mechanical capabilities of CBCF composites and provides a valuable insight into the design of high performance thermal structural materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Five novel bis-tridentate Ir(III) complexes (Ir-1–Ir-5) incorporating versatile N^N^C ligands and a N^C^N ligand (1,3-di(2-pyridyl)-4,6-dimethylbenzene) were synthesized. With the combination of experimental and theoretical methods, their steady and transient state characteristics were researched scientifically. The UV-visible absorption spectra show that the broadband charge transfer absorbance of those bis-tridentate Ir(III) complexes can reach 550 nm, all of these complexes reveal the long-lasting phosphorescent emission. Because the excited-state absorption is more powerful than the ground-state absorption, a sturdy reverse saturable absorption (RSA) process can ensue in the visible and near-infrared regions when the complexes are exposed to a 532 nm laser. Therefore, the optical power limiting (OPL) effect follows the trend: Ir-5 > Ir-4 ≈ Ir-3 > Ir-2 > Ir-1. Generally speaking, the expansion of π-conjugation and the introduction of electron donating/withdrawing groups on the N^N^C ligand could effectively elevate the OPL effect. Therefore, these octahedral bis-tridentate Ir(III) complexes might be exploited as potential OPL materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to protect high-field superconducting magnets during a quench with rapidly rising hot spot temperatures, it is important to have a quantitative understanding of quench behaviors of superconducting wires at high magnetic fields. In this article, we developed a two-dimensional numerical model of quench initiation and propagation in Bi2Sr2CaCu2Ox/Ag/Ag alloy (Bi2212) multifilamentary composite round wires with the H-formulation and the heat conduction equation. The results show that the minimum quench energy (MQE) of Bi2212 round wires decreases with increasing magnetic field and closely relates to the current sharing temperature (Tcs). For a constant ratio of the transport current to the critical current (It/Ic), the normal zone propagation velocity (NZPV) decreases with increasing magnetic field. However, the declining trend of NZPVs slows down beyond 10 T. Moreover, for a constant transport current It, the Ic and Tcs decrease with the increasing magnetic field, which results in a simultaneous increase of NZPV with a decrease of MQE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the beginning of the change in bearing condition, the bearing fault features are weak, often drowning in the background noise. It makes difficult to extract weak fault features from the vibration signal. If the fault features cannot be effectively extracted, the diagnostic accuracy will be greatly affected. Under this background, a fault diagnosis framework including two stages of signal enhancement and intelligent fault recognition is proposed in this work. Firstly, use a genetic algorithm to obtain the optimal combination of parameters, upon which the original fault signals are decomposed into intrinsic modal function components. Then, they are transformed into the spectrum signals and inputted into the proposed Bayesian network using dynamic weighted transfer learning (DWTL). This paper uses the DWTL method to set the source domain weight factor and the balance coefficient based on data quantity in different source and target domains. The DWTL method proposed in this paper can improve the fault diagnosis accuracy and effectively avoid the negative transfer phenomenon. An example of rolling bearing fault diagnosis is conducted. The results show that the accuracy of fault diagnosis based on the proposed framework is about 10% higher than that of other fault diagnosis methods. Therefore, the validity and feasibility of the proposed fault diagnosis framework are proved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both selenium (Se) and gibberellins (GA3) can alleviate cadmium (Cd) toxicity in plants. However, the application of Se and GA3 as foliar spray to against Cd stress on soybean and its related mechanisms have been poorly explored. Herein, this experiment evaluated the effects of Se and GA3 alone and combined application on soybean rhizosphere microenvironment, Cd accumulation and growth of soybean seedlings. The results revealed that both Se and GA3 can effectively decrease the accumulation of Cd in soybean seedlings. Foliar application of Se, GA3 and their combination reduced Cd contents in soybean seedlings respectively by 21.70 %, 27.53 % and 45.07 % when compared with the control treatment, suggest a synergistic effect of Se and GA3 in decreasing Cd accumulation. Se and GA3 also significantly increased diversity and abundance of the metabolites in rhizosphere, which consequently played an important role in shaping rhizosphere bacteria community and improve rhizosphere soil physicochemical properties of Cd contaminated soil, as well as decreased the Cd available forms contents but enhance the immobilized form levels. Overall, this study affords a novel approach on mitigating Cd accumulation in soybean seedlings which is attributed to Se and GA3 regulated interplay among rhizosphere soil metabolites, bacteria community and cadmium speciation. [Display omitted] • Foliar application of Se and/or GA3 decreased Cd accumulation in soybean seedlings. • Combined application better mitigate Cd-induced phytotoxicity than alone treatment. • Se and GA3 enhance the formation of immobilized Cd in rhizosphere soil. • Diversity and abundance of rhizosphere soil metabolites were boost by Se and GA3. • Se and GA3 regulate soybean roots to recruit specific Cd-tolerant microbiota. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main challenge in removing nutrients from municipal wastewater in China is the lack of available carbon sources. While hydrolysis acidification tanks can improve wastewater biodegradability by effectively utilizing internal carbon sources, high sludge concentrations are difficult to control in traditional tank variants. In this study, an innovative anaerobic filter (AnF) hydrolysis acidification reactor composed of a continuously stirred tank reactor (CSTR) and cloth media filter was designed to regulate and maintain high sludge concentrations in the hydrolysis acidifier. The reactor was used as a pretreatment unit for the anaerobic/anoxic/oxic (AAO) units and combined into an AnF-AAO system to explore the effectiveness of internal carbon source utilization in wastewater. The results indicate that as the sludge concentration in the hydrolysis acidifier increased, the hydrolysis and acidification processes became more efficient. The optimal sludge concentration was 40 g/L, which significantly increased the production of soluble chemical oxygen demand and volatile fatty acids. Above this concentration, the efficiency decreased. Compared to traditional AAO processes, the AnF-AAO system achieved superior total nitrogen and phosphorus removal with shorter hydraulic retention times and reduced sludge production by a significant amount of 35%. Due to its capacity for enhancing internal carbon source utilization, the AnF-AAO system constitutes a promising approach for sustainable urban wastewater treatment. [Display omitted] • Variable sludge amounts affect wastewater treatment with hydrolysis acidification. • A novel anaerobic filter reactor was used as pretreatment to regulate sludge amount. • AnF hydrolysis acidification reactor was most efficient at 40 g/L sludge concentration. • The AnF-AAO system improved nutrient removal and reduced sludge by 35%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mesophase pitch (MP) is an attractive precursor for tailoring high-performance carbon fibers due to its aromatic hydrocarbons mesogenic components that self-assemble into highly ordered microstructures. Relating processing conditions to the evolution of MP microstructure and its inheritance in carbon materials remains a challenge. This work quantitatively determined the kinetics of mesogenic aggregation in MP at spinning temperatures for the first time. Polarized optical microscopy tracked domain size changes in MP during 1–24 h thermal soaking. Analysis using an exponential growth model revealed nonlinear growth kinetics with an activation energy of just 39.3 kJ·mol−1, suggesting mesogenic aggregation is facile at processing temperatures compared to mesophase formation. Prolonged thermal soaking promoted microcrystalline development in derived carbon fibers, evident from increased crystallite stacking and reduced interlayer spacing. Relating microstructural evolution in the MP to the resulting carbon fiber structure provides new insights to tailor carbon materials for applications. This work revealed the kinetics of MP at its processing temperature, provides a valuable insight into the future optimization of processing conditions for MP based carbon materials. • Domain size determination from polarized optical texture was used in assessment of kinetics data. • The kinetics of mesogenic aggregation in mesophase pitch at spinning temperatures were quantitatively determined. • The kinetics follows nonlinear growth model with an activation energy of only 39.3 kJ·mol−1. • Prolonged thermal soaking promotes microcrystalline development in derived carbon fibers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphene-based nanostructures loaded with transitional metallic atoms have been identified as promising materials for hydrogen storage. In this study, we investigate the adsorption and spillover of hydrogen on a single transitional metal atom incorporated graphene (TM-Gr) through density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Specifically, we explore the geometric and electronic properties of 20 different TM-Gr structures. Our findings reveal that Y-Gr and Sc-Gr exhibit the most favorable H atom adsorption, while Mn-Gr and Cr-Gr are more suitable for H spillover. Additionally, feature importance analysis highlights that Bader charge accumulated in H atom, C-H bond length, and work function of TM-Gr are the three most important features that are sensitive to the activation energy of H spillover. Overall, this work provides valuable insights for the screening of new materials for hydrogen storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon fibers produced from mesophase pitch are superior in many properties such as high thermal conductivity and high tensile modulus, which originated from the high graphitizability and high carbon yield of the raw materials. Any variation in mesophase pitch microstructure will be inherited in derived carbon fibers. Herein, we monitored the microcrystal structure evolution of carbon fiber derived from thermal soaked mesophase pitch and the caused variation in mechanical properties. Results showed that mesophase pitch with prolonged soaking time from 1 to 12 h produced the carbon fibers with improved microcrystal structure, reduced diameter, and crack angle, contributing to an apparent increase in tensile strength from 1.70 to 2.72 GPa and tensile modulus from 152 to 246 GPa. Thermal soaking upon elevated temperature from 320 to 335 °C also contributes an improvement in microcrystalline development. However, the attendant increment in diameter and open crack angle lead to deterioration in tensile strength and modulus, the highest value of which is only 1.53 GPa and 190 GPa. This work provides useful information on thermal soaking parameter selection and is of particular interest for future optimization of carbon fiber production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vinyl chloride, the monomer of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), is industrially synthesized via acetylene hydrochlorination. Thereby, easy to sublimate but toxic mercury chloride catalysts are widely used. It is imperative to find environmentally friendly non-mercury catalysts to promote the green production of PVC. Low-cost copper-based catalysts are promising candidates. In this study, phosphorus-doped Cu-based catalysts are prepared. It is shown that the type of phosphorus configuration and the distribution on the surface of the carrier can be adjusted by changing the calcination temperature. Among the different phosphorus species, the formed P-C bond plays a key role. The coordination structure formed by the interaction between P-C bonds and atomically dispersed Cu2+ species results in effective and stable active sites. Insights on how P-C bonds activate the substrate may provide ideas for the design and optimization of phosphorus-doped catalysts for acetylene hydrochlorination. Copper-based catalysts are widely investigated for the industrially important hydrochlorination of acetylene (PVC production), whereby phosphorus-doped carbon supports have been found to improve the catalyst's properties. Here the interaction between the P-C bond and atomically dispersed Cu2+ species is clarified and the reaction path of C2H2 and HCl revealed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polysialic acid (PSA), a polymer of alpha-2,8 linked sialic acid residues, is a negatively charged macromolecular glycan mainly attached to neural cell adhesion molecules (NCAM). Studies have shown that PSA is not only essential for the development of normal brain circulation, but also for synaptic plasticity, learning and memory in adults. Although the occurrence, features, biosynthesis, and physiological roles of PSA and related effects on related diseases, including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, neurodegenerative diseases and cancer, have been well reviewed, the important roles of PSA and its mimics in the regeneration of the nervous system following injury have not been well discussed. As a consequence, this article comprehensively reviews the effects of small organic compounds that simulate PSA, such as tegaserod and 5-nonyloxytryptamine (5-NOT), on the nervous system of mammals, suggesting that these mimetics may have tremendous therapeutic potential, especially for strategies aimed at tissue repair after injury of the nervous system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The low-palladium Pd/TaN–C catalyst is synthesized by a surfactant-free solvothermal approach and exhibits high activity (2613.18 mA mg Pd −1), durability and CO tolerance for MOR (methanol oxidation reaction) in alkaline media, 12.4 folds that of the commercial Pd/C. XPS and electrochemical results indicate that the interfacial Pd–TaNO bond is generated. This also brings the enhancement of OH ad adsorption responsible for anti-CO poisoning ability. Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations indicate that the reaction pathway and the rate-determining step are changed for methanol decomposition to CO on the Pd 4 /TaN(001) surface compared with Pd (111). The preferred pathway can be described as: CH 3 OH→CH 3 O→CH 2 O→CHO→CO. Furthermore, the results indicate that the adsorption of OH is enhanced and the energy barrier of COOH formation from CO + OH is reduced with the high concentration of hydroxyl on the Pd 4 /TaN(001) surface, further confirming the bi-functional effect of hydroxyl on the CO tolerance. [Display omitted] • The Pd/TaN–C catalyst exhibits high catalytic performance for MOR. • The enhanced OH adsorption on Pd/TaN–C is responsible for the enhanced CO tolerance. • DFT indicate that the reaction pathway and the rate-determining step are changed. • The preferred pathway can be described as: CH3OH → CH3O → CH2O → CHO → CO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Accurate and high‐throughput phenotyping of the dynamic response of a large rice population to drought stress in the field is a bottleneck for genetic dissection and breeding of drought resistance.Here, high‐efficiency and high‐frequent image acquisition by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was utilized to quantify the dynamic drought response of a rice population under field conditions. Deep convolutional neural networks (DCNNs) and canopy height models were applied to extract highly correlated phenotypic traits including UAV‐based leaf‐rolling score (LRS_uav), plant water content (PWC_uav) and a new composite trait, drought resistance index by UAV (DRI_uav).The DCNNs achieved high accuracy (correlation coefficient R = 0.84 for modeling set and R = 0.86 for test set) to replace manual leaf‐rolling rating. PWC_uav values were precisely estimated (correlation coefficient R = 0.88) and DRI_uav was modeled to monitor the drought resistance of rice accessions dynamically and comprehensively. A total of 111 significantly associated loci were detected by genome‐wide association study for the three dynamic traits, and 30.6% of them were not detected in previous mapping studies using nondynamic drought response traits.Unmanned aerial vehicle and deep learning are confirmed effective phenotyping techniques for more complete genetic dissection of rice dynamic responses to drought and exploration of valuable alleles for drought resistance improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a double-vibrator three-component pillared phononic crystal plate and theoretically studies the properties of vibration band gaps of this plate. The band structures and the displacement fields of the eigenmodes are calculated by the finite element method. Comparing the transmission power spectrums of the vibrations in the plate, the flexural vibration gap is proved more useful than the longitudinal vibration gap. The influence of the lattice constant, the height, and diameter of the pillars on the flexural vibration gaps are investigated. A supercell composed of the uni-vibrator and the double-vibrator unit cells is also investigated, and the analysis shows that the starting frequencies of the gaps in this supercell structure depend on the features of its pillars. This research can be used in the low frequency vibration insulation of plate structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a double-vibrator three-component pillared phononic crystal plate and theoretically studies the properties of vibration band gaps of this plate. The band structures and the displacement fields of the eigenmodes are calculated by the finite element method. Comparing the transmission power spectrums of the vibrations in the plate, the flexural vibration gap is proved more useful than the longitudinal vibration gap. The influence of the lattice constant, the height, and diameter of the pillars on the flexural vibration gaps are investigated. A supercell composed of the uni-vibrator and the double-vibrator unit cells is also investigated, and the analysis shows that the starting frequencies of the gaps in this supercell structure depend on the features of its pillars. This research can be used in the low frequency vibration insulation of plate structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sulfide solid electrolytes (SSEs) have captured plentiful interest on account of their high ionic conductivity and appropriate mechanical strength. However, the poor air stability and cost‐intensive preparation process of SSEs limit their applications. Herein, a novel ultimate‐energy mechanical alloying (UEMA) approach is applied to rapidly synthesize the argyrodite‐type electrolytes in a one‐pot process. According to the hard‐soft‐acid‐base theory and the first‐principles density functional theory (DFT) calculation, In‐doping in Li6PS5I is attempted to enhance air stability and the experimental results demonstrate the success of this approach. The synthesized Li6.5In0.25P0.75S5I electrolyte has a high ionic conductivity (1.06 mS cm–1), and also presents excellent interfacial stability against Li metal, benefiting from the formation of a LiI‐rich interphase layer. The assembled Li–S battery with Li6.5In0.25P0.75S5I as an interlayer delivers a high discharge capacity (954 mAh g–1) and presents the capacity retention of 96% after 200 cycles. The In‐doped Li6PS5I is a novel promising electrolyte with high air stability and ionic conductivity for the application of all‐solid‐state lithium metal batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Atrazine [2-chloro-4-(ethylamino)-6-(isopropylamino)- s -triazine] is a herbicide widely used in corn production. However, when used under corn-soybean rotation system, it decreases soybean yield. The toxicology mechanisms of atrazine on soybean are rarely studied from the perspective of rhizobia-soybean symbiont formation and nitrogen fixation. In this study, under atrazine stress, high-throughput sequencing of rpoB was performed to evaluate rhizobial diversity in the nodules and soybean rhizosphere, and the correlation between physiological indicators of plant growth and rhizobial diversity was explored. The results revealed that atrazine inhibited soybean growth by disrupting glutamate synthetase activity to reduce total nitrogen (TN) content in the plant. Atrazine altered the nodule structure and reduced leghemoglobin content. High-throughput sequencing of rpoB revealed that the inhibition rate of Afipia genosp. 3 in the nodules under atrazine stress (20 mg·kg−1) was >80 % higher than that in the control (no atrazine). The abundance of Rhizobium leguminosarum and Rhizobium sp. CF142 decreased in the nodules but increased in rhizosphere soil. The abundance of Afipia genosp. 3 and Bradyrhizobium sp. AD1_1_nodule in rhizosphere soil was negatively correlated with TN content and glutamate synthetase activity in soybean. Moreover, soil nitrate nitrogen (NO 3 −-N) content was the essential factor influencing the rhizobial community diversity under atrazine stress. This study contributed to clarifying the molecular biological mechanism of the effect of atrazine on rhizobia-soybean symbiont formation and nitrogen fixation. Moreover, this study provided new directions and ideas for the subsequent development and application of related prevention and control measures, which can contribute to the more comprehensive development of corn-soybean crop rotation system and ensure the sustainable use of black soil. [Display omitted] • Atrazine reduces soybean nitrogen level by disrupting glutamate synthase activity. • Atrazine alters nodule structure and reduces the number of infected cells. • Rhizobia diversity from nodule is significantly reduced when exposed to 7.5 mg·kg−1 atrazine. • Atrazine inhibits Afipia genosp. 3 abundance significantly in nodules. • Rhizobium smilacinae abundance negatively correlated with soybean nitrogen level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three heteroleptic Ir(III) complexes (Ir-TPA, Ir-CzPh and Ir-PhCz) with different electron-donating aryl groups on C^N ligands were synthesized. Their optical properties were systematically investigated by spectroscopic methods and theoretical calculations to elucidate the effects of introducing different electron-donating groups on their triplet excited state properties. All three complexes possess aggregation-induced phosphorescence emission (AIPE) behaviors. Critically, the relationship between the size of organic ligands and AIPE behaviors for these complexes has been characterized. Their significant AIPE properties predicted that they could be used as efficient latent fingerprint (LFP) developers. Rapid (within 10 s) incubation in Ir(III) complex solution produced high-resolution, naked-eye visible and mobile-photographable LFP images, which could provide fast, reproducible and identifiable analyses of level 3 details for LFPs accurately. In addition, complex Ir-PhCz shows the best imaging of the LFP due to its green light emission and high quantum yield (24.5 %) in solid state. This rapid and practical LFP visualization methodology based on AIPE developers could provide a reliable solution for LFPs detection and investigations in actual scenarios. [Display omitted] • Three Ir(III) complexes with different C^N ligands were designed and synthesized. • All three complexes possess aggregation-induced phosphorescence emission behaviors. • Latent fingerprints (LFP) were incubated in dilute solution within 10 s. • LFP images could be accurate to level 3 details. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The evaporation rate of asphalt emulsion is critical to the strength development of asphalt emulsion materials. Its value is dependent on environmental factors, i.e. relative humidity, temperature, and wind speed. However, the quantitative relation of evaporation rate with these environmental factors are unclear. To quantificationally study the effect of environmental factors on the water evaporation rate of asphalt emulsion, a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation model of water evaporation is firstly proposed and validated by experiment. Then, wide range of environmental factors are studied in the CFD simulation model, and genetic programming-based symbolic regression is used to train the simulation results of CFD samples. Finally, a relatively accurate prediction equation of the evaporation rate of asphalt emulsion versus environmental factor is proposed, and the sensitivity of the water evaporation rate under the three environmental factors is analyzed. Results show that the evaporation rate can be accurately simulated by CFD. All the three environmental factors can greatly affect the evaporation rate of asphalt emulsion, while their effect on the sensitivity of the water evaporation rate is ranked as: temperature > relative humidity > wind speed. To ensure an acceptable curing period, asphalt emulsion-based materials should be avoided to be paved in the conditions of low temperature and high relative humidity. [Display omitted] • A CFD simulation model of water evaporation of asphalt emulsion was proposed and validated by experiment. • A prediction equation of the evaporation rate of asphalt emulsion versus environmental factor was proposed. • The effect of environmental factors on the evaporation rate of asphalt emulsion was quantificationally studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Using density functional theory (DFT) simulations to identify a suitable series of N- decorated Ir single atom catalysts (SACs) graphene as support for HER and OER. • The d-band center of Ir is affected by the coordination environment and plays a key role in determining the surface catalytic activity. • Built quantitative structure–property relationship (QSPR) between electronic structures of Ir SACs and catalytic HER and OER performance. The electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) hold tremendous potential as pathways for generating clean energy. In this study, we conducted comprehensive density functional theory (DFT) calculations to investigate the influence of nitrogen (N) dopants, in terms of their types (Pyrrolic-N and Pyridinic-N) and concentrations, on the performance of 2D graphene-based catalysts containing single atoms of iridium (Ir SACs) for HER and OER. Our computational results demonstrate that the incorporation of N dopants into graphene-based supports significantly enhances the stability of Ir SACs. The bonding strength between the individual Ir atoms and the support material increases as the N content rises. Moreover, as the number of N dopants increases, the electron loss from Ir decreases. Notably, Ir-3-N 1 -Pi exhibits superior HER performance with a ΔG H* value of 0.24 eV, while Ir-4-N 4 -Po demonstrates excellent OER performance with an overpotential (η) of 0.47 V. By understanding the influence of N dopants, this study can pave the way for better tailor graphene-based catalysts for enhanced HER and OER performance, thus advancing the development of clean and sustainable energy technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ultrashort-sludge retention time activate sludge (USAS) process is considered promising for the recovery of energy and resource from wastewater. In this study, we developed five USAS systems (with sludge retention time (SRT) of 0.5, 1, 2, 3, and 4 d), and investigated the nitrogen and phosphorus removal, as well as the microbial community, in the USAS systems. The results revealed that the activated sludge in the USAS system with a shorter SRT can capture more organic matter from wastewater, with organic matter mineralization, capture, and loss rates of 12.9–45.9, 42.4–62.3, and 18.2–24.8%, respectively. In addition, ammonia oxidization only occurred in the USAS systems with SRTs of 3 and 4 d, and all the USAS systems with different SRTs exhibited phosphorus-removal ability. The microbial community analysis results revealed that the relative abundance of nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria (such as Thauera) increased with an increase in the SRT. [Display omitted] • Lower SRT lead to higher capture rate of organic matter in the USAS system. • Nitrification/denitrification was observed in the USAS system with 3 d and 4 d SRT. • Ratio of GAOs and sludge-bulking related Thiothrix declined with longer SRT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A recent genome-wide meta study suggested that rs67338227 in the FHL5 gene and rs10456100 in the KCNK5 gene are associated with migraine from 27 population-based cohorts excluding Chinese population. Given that migraine without aura (MO) is the most common subtype of migraine, our aim was to systematically investigate the relationship of common variants in FHL5 and KCNK5 genes with the susceptibility to MO and provide clues as to the nature of the mechanisms involved in the etiology of migraine. A total of 3306 subjects including 1042 patients with MO and 2264 controls were recruited for the discovery stage, and 2530 individuals including 842 patients with MO and 1688 controls for the replication stage. Twenty-two tag SNPs (7 from FHL5 and 15 from KCNK5) were selected for genotyping. Genetic associations were analyzed at both single-marker and haplotype levels. Potential functional consequences of the significant SNPs were analyzed using gene expression data obtained from the GTEx database. Two SNPs, rs10456100 (KCNK5, P = 9.01 × 10–9) and rs7775721 (FHL5, P = 6.86 × 10–13), were determined to be significantly associated with MO in the discovery sample and were then replicated in another sample. In the combined sample set, the T allele of both SNPs was significantly associated with the increased risk of MO. Significant eQTL signals were identified for both SNP rs10456100 and rs7775721. Our findings suggest that the T allele carriers of SNP rs10456100 and rs7775721 are at increased risk of migraine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multifilamentary Bi2Sr2CaCu2Ox (Bi2212) composite wires are the only high-temperature superconducting round wires (RWs) with sufficient critical current density (Jc) for superconducting magnets generating magnetic fields greater than 25 T. Previous works indicated that various voids in Bi2212 filaments and bridges between the adjacent Bi2212 filaments in Bi2212 RWs were generated after heat treatment. Such complicated microstructural structure will inevitably affect its electrical behavior. Previous studies only focus on single microstructural feature, voids or bridges. Hence, we developed a numerical model containing both voids and bridges to explore the comprehensive influence of these two microstructural features. Due to the preliminary results, it shows that the E-J relationships of the models with bridges and with infinity bridges are similar in the case of numerous bridges between filaments. It indicated that we can build a simplified geometry structural model by removing all the bridges and bonding the adjacent filaments directly. And then the parametric study of the voids was carried out and the results explained that the height (diameter) of void is the key factor to dominant its electrical behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The NECZ/12H-NECZ (N-ethylcarbazole/dodecahydro-N-ethylcarbazole) system is regarded as the most potential liquid organic hydrogen carrier. However, the low activity, selectivity of NECZ and high cost of catalysts for the dehydrogenation reaction restrict its efficiency and commercial applications. In this work, a series of bimetallic Pd-M(M = Cu, Ni)/SiO 2 catalysts were prepared and employed to enhance catalytic activity and selectivity of NECZ for the 12H-NECZ dehydrogenation reaction. Pd 3 Ni 1 /SiO 2 exhibited high catalytic performance with 100% conversion, 91.1% selectivity of NECZ and 5.63 wt% hydrogen release amount at 453 K, 101.325 kPa for 8 h. The TOF (turnover frequency) of Pd 3 Ni 1 /SiO 2 is enhanced by 42.4% compared with Pd/SiO 2. Combined with the characterization analysis, it was found that adjusting the alloying degree or the alloy phase in the PdCu and PdNi bimetallic catalysts could significantly enhance the dehydrogenation activity and selectivity, which were dependent on the component of bimetallic catalysts. This work may provide theoretical guidance for designing the efficient and low-cost bimetallic catalysts for the dehydrogenation of 12H-NECZ, which could boost the commercial applications of liquid organic hydrogen carriers. Image 1 • Pd 3 Ni 1 /SiO 2 and Pd 3 Cu 1 /SiO 2 exhibited high catalytic performance at 453 K. • The TOF of Pd 3 Ni 1 /SiO 2 was enhanced by 42.4% compared with Pd/SiO 2. • Adjusting the alloying agree could evidently enhance the dehydrogenation efficiency. • We provided a method for designing efficient catalysts for 12H-NECZ dehydrogenation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rhizobia are soil bacteria capable of forming symbiotic nitrogen-fixing nodules associated with leguminous plants. In fast-growing legume-nodulating rhizobia, such as the species in the family Rhizobiaceae , the symbiotic plasmid is the main genetic basis for nitrogen-fixing symbiosis, and is susceptible to horizontal gene transfer. To further understand the symbioses evolution in Rhizobiaceae , we analyzed the pan-genome of this family based on 92 genomes of type/reference strains and reconstructed its phylogeny using a phylogenomics approach. Intriguingly, although the genetic expansion that occurred in chromosomal regions was the main reason for the high proportion of low-frequency flexible gene families in the pan-genome, gene gain events associated with accessory plasmids introduced more genes into the genomes of nitrogen-fixing species. For symbiotic plasmids, although horizontal gene transfer frequently occurred, transfer may be impeded by, such as, the host's physical isolation and soil conditions, even among phylogenetically close species. During coevolution with leguminous hosts, the plasmid system, including accessory and symbiotic plasmids, may have evolved over a time span, and provided rhizobial species with the ability to adapt to various environmental conditions and helped them achieve nitrogen fixation. These findings provide new insights into the phylogeny of Rhizobiaceae and advance our understanding of the evolution of symbiotic nitrogen fixation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For a superconducting Bi2Sr2CaCu2Ox (Bi2212) multifilamentary composite round wire (RW), typically the interface between Bi2212 filaments and the Ag matrix become extremely complex after heat treatment, and all the time the question of how the unique interface structure affect the macro properties such as mechanical, electrical, and thermal behaviors has not been satisfactorily answered, mainly because it is very hard to in situ measure the microstructure evolution and further evaluate its effect on these macro properties. Therefore, for this purpose, in this article, we made the modeling and numerical study on the role of the Bi2212/Ag interface in the mechanical and electrical behaviors of composite RWs. By using the randomly generated polygons method, we first reconstructed the cross section of Bi2212 composite RWs, especially in this reconstruction the complex Bi2212/Ag interface can be effectively characterized. On both of two models with and without the complex interface, we obtained the thermally residual stresses and strains due to cooling down from heat treatment, and then the mechanical response from the applied tensile strain. The comparative study further revealed that, for a practical Bi2212 RW with the complex interface, the distributions of the stress and strain are more uniform, which make the wire tend to safely and equivalently increase its limiting load capacity according to the maximum principal stress theory. In order to deeply understand the degradation of the critical current Ic under applied tensile strain ε of Bi2212 RWs, we presented a current sharing model in which the current shares both in Bi2212 filaments and surrounding Ag matrix, taking into account the obstacle of cracks in the filament. By comparing the calculated Ic - ε curve with experimental data, the Ic degradation with the ε was very well interpreted by the mechanical damage and fracture of the microstructure of Bi2212 RWs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marine picoplankton, including prokaryotic and eukaryotic picoplankton, drive many biogeochemical processes, such as carbon, nitrogen and sulfur cycles, making them crucial to the marine ecosystem. Despite the fact that picoplankton is prevalent, its diversity and spatial distribution from the Straits of Malacca (SM) to the South China Sea (SCS) remain poorly investigated. This work explores the phylogenetic diversity and community structure of picoplankton in relation to environmental factors from the SM to the SCS. To this end, the Illumina MiSeq sequencing technique was applied to 16S and 18S rRNA genes. The results showed significant differences in the dynamics of picoplankton between the open sea and the strait region. Proteobacteria and Cyanobacteria constituted a larger part of the prokaryotic group. Within Cyanobacteria, the abundance of Prochlorococcus in the open sea was significantly higher than that of Synechococcus, while the opposite trend was observed in the strait. Dinoflagellata, Cnidaria, Retaria, Tunicata, and Arthropoda dominated among the eukaryotic taxa. High-throughput sequencing data indicated that salinity, temperature and NO2-N were the key factors determining the prokaryotic community structure, while temperature and dissolved oxygen determined the eukaryotic community structure in the studied region. The network analysis demonstrated that the cooperation and competition were also important factors affecting the picoplankton community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

N-ethylcarbazole/dodecahydro-N-ethylcarbazole (NECZ/12H-NECZ) was a promising system for hydrogen storage applications. 1.0 wt% Pt/TiO 2 was regarded as the optimal loading in Pt/TiO 2 catalyst applied in the 12H-NECZ dehydrogenation reaction. The hydrogen release amount, selectivity to NECZ and TOF of 12H-NECZ dehydrogenation are 5.75 wt %, 98% and 229.73 min−1 at 453 K. Compared with the commercial 5.0 wt% Pd and Pt-based catalysts, it exhibited very high activity, selectivity and stability for 12H-NECZ dehydrogenation with low Pt loading. Combined with the XRD, XPS, HRTEM, TPR analysis, it was indicated that the enhanced catalytic performance was due to the SMSI (strong metal-supporting interaction) between Pt and TiO 2 support, which accelerated the rate-limiting step and enhanced the whole dehydrogenation reaction. This work may be beneficial for the commercial application of Pt/TiO 2 catalysts in the Liquid Organic Hydrogen Carrier (LOHC) system. Image 1 • 1.0 wt% Pt/TiO 2 showed highest catalytic performance for 12H-NECZ dehydrogenation. • 1.0 wt% Pt/TiO 2 was the optimal component applied in 12H-NECZ dehydrogenation. • The enhancement of catalytic performance was due to the SMSI between Pt and TiO 2. • This work may be beneficial for the application of Pt/TiO 2 catalysts in LOHC system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nickel, massively used in plating industry but detrimental to ecosystem, tends to form stable complexes with organic additives in industrial effluents. Currently, most of the available processes aim at water decontamination from free toxic metal ions and thus, could not effectively remove nickel-carboxyl complexes from water. Herein, we employed a proprietary combined process Fe(III)/UV/NaOH, namely Fe(III) displacement and UV irradiation followed by alkaline precipitation, to validate its feasibility on the efficient removal of nickel-carboxyl complexes from synthetic and authentic effluents. Fe(III)/UV/NaOH outperformed other commonly used processes including NaOH precipitation, UV/NaOH, Fe(III) coagulation, and Fenton/NaOH. Each unit of the combined process was optimized, and the underlying mechanism was elucidated. Fe(III) displacement favored the stoichiometric release of free nickel ions and formation of Fe(III)-carboxyl complexes, which could be decarboxylated via ligand-metal charge transfer under UV irradiation. The precipitation unit aims at simultaneously removing the released Ni along with Fe species. Attractively, the presence of other organic species (ethylene glycol, ethyl acetate and humic acid) and anions (chloride and sulfate) exerted very slight effect on the final Ni removal, whereas greatly adverse effect occurred on the Fenton process under similar conditions. The feasibility of the combined process was validated by testing on an authentic electroplating effluent, resulting in the residual Ni below 0.1 mg/L, the most stringent discharge standard for Ni in electroplating effluent in China. Image 1 • Fe(III)/UV/NaOH is capable of removing several Ni-carboxyl complexes from water. • Fe(III) displacement favored the release of free Ni and forming Fe(III)-carboxyl complexes. • Decarboxylation was realized via ligand-metal charge transfer under UV irradiation. • Coexisting organic matters and anions exerted slight impact on Ni removal. • Applicability of Fe(III)/UV/NaOH on an authentic electroplating effluent was validated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Single chain conformation of a polyelectrolyte (polystyrene sulfonate, PSS-Na+) during its re-entrant condensation was studied by fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) with single molecule sensitivity. The contraction and re-expansion of PSS-Na+ chain were observed with the addition of counterions of different valencies. The formation of aggregation and precipitation of PSS-Na+ and its redissolution were observed in accordance with the chain contraction and re-expansion process for the PSS-Na+ chain upon the addition of trivalent La3+ ion. Chain contraction and re-expansion of the PSS-Na+ chain were also observed with the addition of monovalent Cs+ and divalent Ca2+ ions, under which condition, the re-entrant condensation was not observed. The results demonstrate that the high sensitivity of FCS can really study single PSS-Na+ chain under extremely dilute situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Few experimental investigations have examined the dependence of probe length scale on the evolution of dynamical heterogeneity in supercooled liquids. In this study, we use fluorescent tracer probes, which are smaller than that of the constituent unlabeled particles in the matrix suspension, to investigate the tracer size sensitivity to the onset of dynamical heterogeneity in model hard-sphere colloidal suspensions close to the glass transition. The dynamics of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) tracer particles of radii aS=137 nm embedded into constituent PMMA particles of aL=212 and 637 nm with bulk volume fraction [lowercase_phi_synonym] varied from 0.50 to 0.57 is examined using fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS). Upon increasing [lowercase_phi_synonym] for the largest tracer size ratio explored, f (=aS/aL)=0.646, the onset of dynamic heterogeneity is observed from the broad distribution of characteristic decay times of the tracers, which is extracted from the measured FCS autocorrelation functions. The strong coupling between tracer size and its sensitivity to dynamical heterogeneity is reflected in the dynamic susceptibility, where dynamic correlation lengths are immeasurable for the smallest size ratio and show a marked increase to five tracer particle diameters for the largest size ratio. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chitooligosaccharides (COS), a group of cationic derivatives, have a number of potential applications in the food industry. However, their alleviative effects on frozen dough products have not previously been well explored. In this work, the effects of adding COS to frozen steamed bread dough later subjected to freeze–thaw (FT) treatment were systematically investigated. The results revealed that COS significantly improved the quality of frozen dough, the specific volume of the steamed bread with the addition of COS increased by 25.4% and the hardness was reduced by 5.9% compared to the control group. In addition, COS also significantly restrained the water migration and retarded the increase in the freezable water content of the dough during FT treatment (P < 0.05). After FT-4, the freezable water content of COS group was decreased by 12.5% in comparison with the control group. In addition, the COS facilitated the prevention of disulfide bond cleavage. The free sulfhydryl content of 4.46 μmol/g in the control group was significantly higher than that of other groups after FT treatment (P < 0.05), which enabled the dough to maintain its rheological properties. Moreover, dough with higher concentrations (0.15% and 0.25%) of COS exhibited better gas-holding capacity. These results revealed that COS can effectively maintain the characteristics of frozen dough, improve the quality of frozen steamed bread, and also provide new insights concerning the cationic polysaccharides used in the preparation of frozen dough. [Display omitted] • A new strategy for chitooligosaccharides to improve the quality of frozen dough was constructed. • Chitooligosaccharides improved the Specific volume and texture of frozen steamed bread. • Chitooligosaccharides inhibited water migration of frozen dough during freeze–thaw cycles. • Chitooligosaccharides interacted with gluten proteins to prevent depolymerization. • Chitooligosaccharides maintained the rheological properties of dough freeze–thaw cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pastures play vital roles in carbon (C) sequestration and the global C balance. Partial root-zone drying (PRD) is widely known to reduce water consumption with a minimum impact on alfalfa productivity in the field. A 2-year field experiment was used to investigate the effects of PRD on C retention in the soil-plant systems of alfalfa. This field experiment consisted of two factors (irrigation modes and irrigation volumes) in a split-plot design. The two irrigation modes were PRD and conventional furrow irrigation, and the four irrigation levels were 70%, 85%, 100%, and 115% alfalfa potential evapotranspiration. This study showed that PRD increased the C in alfalfa plants due to higher C in alfalfa roots. PRD led to higher soil organic C storage, whereas it led to lower soil total C and soil inorganic C storage. PRD was found to decrease the C retention in the soil-plant systems of alfalfa. The findings of this study display a pattern of PRD influencing C retention in the soil-plant systems of perennial crops, and imply that PRD reduces the C sequestration potential of alfalfa pastures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The effect of surface Pd coverage on the electronic structure of Cu(1 0 0) were studied. • Adsorption and decomposition mechanisms of ammonia were investigated. • The synergistic effect between Pd and Cu metals was confirmed. • The catalytic activity and selectivity were dependent upon the coverage of Pd atoms. Ammonia (NH 3) has been considered as a promising alternative for hydrogen storage. In this work, the decomposition mechanism of ammonia was studied on various Pd-doped Cu(1 0 0) surfaces by DFT calculations. It was found that the coverage of Pd atoms on Cu(1 0 0) surface made an evident influence on the interaction between the NH x and substrate. The doped Pd atoms significantly promoted NH 3 decomposition kinetically and thermodynamically compared to Cu(1 0 0), confirming the synergistic effect between Pd and Cu. The catalytic activity and selectivity of various Pd Cu(1 0 0) surfaces for NH 3 decomposition were dependent upon the coverage of Pd atoms to some extent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights The rare-earth barium copper oxide (REBCO) coated conductor (CC) is a typical multilayer wire popularly referred to as CC tapes. Valuable researches showed that the delamination in CC tapes occurs at local defects under thermal stress/strain caused by the difference of thermal contraction coefficient among constituent layer materials during cool-down and large Lorentz force applied in operation. Delaminating behavior of CC tape usually occurs in a mixed-mode de-bonding comprising of layers and its interfaces. However, to give the exact point which de-bonding start was very challenging. In that regard, in this article we: • Developed a displacement-energy model (DEM) based on Plate/Membrane Theory and Hamaker Models to study the delaminating behavior of multilayer REBCO CC tapes, • Comprehensively evaluated the effect of intrinsic defects (in-plane and interface relative separation displacement) on the bonding strength of the CC tape, and • Successfully predicted the delaminating start points and propagation front of a practical REBCO CC tape. Abstract A displacement-energy model (DEM) based on the classical plate theory and Hamaker method was developed to study the delaminating behavior of multilayer rare-earth barium copper oxide (REBCO) coated conductors (CC) tapes. Hamaker method focused on the extreme manifestation of Casimir effects such as cohesion/adhesion between bodies/surfaces and their associated energies. On this model, we studied the supposed defects (in-plane and interface relative separation displacement) created due to thermal mismatch of layers during deposition processing and free vibration of layers in time, and further the effect of these actions on the damage evolution of the CC tape. In the studied American Superconductors (AMSC 344®), the relatively thin films (silver, YBCO, and buffer layers) were modeled as a membrane, while the substrate (Ni-5W) was modeled as a thin plate (shell). We validated the DEM approach by a full 3-D Finite Element Method (FEM) counterpart model. The calculated results showed that unequal and scattered relatively weaker points located in the delaminating region of the CC are responsible for the delaminating behavior of multi-layer REBCO CC tapes, and the results of the location of weakest points with time indicates that delaminating starts at any of the layers' interface or simultaneously in more than one interface. Furthermore for this kind of REBCO CC tapes (for example AMSC 344®), we found that the most vulnerable interfaces to de-bonding are Ni-5W/Y 2 O 3 , CeO 2 /YBCO, and YBCO/silver stabilizer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The biochar used in this study was prepared from corn straw and sawdust mixed in a ratio of 1:1 (m/m) at temperatures of 300 °C and 800 °C, which adopted the methods of co-pyrolysis (BC 300A and BC 800A) and mixing of single biochar (BC 300B and BC 800B). The obtained biochar was characterized by SEM, BET and FTIR analysis. Adsorption properties, including the atrazine adsorption kinetics and isotherms of the four kinds of biochar to atrazine, were investigated. The results showed that a pseudo-second order kinetic model was suitable for describing the adsorption of atrazine by BC 800B because its R2 value is greater than the pseudo-first order model. The adsorption capacity (q e) of BC 800B, blended from the two single biochars produced at 800 °C, is 37.2 mg g−1, which is better than that of the other three species. This value is 4–6 times the q e values of BC 300A , BC 300B and BC 800A , which are 6.74 mg g−1, 7.77 mg g−1 and 5.26 mg g−1, respectively. At higher pyrolysis temperature, the pore structure of biochar is more developed, the specific surface area is larger, and the species and number of surface functional groups are also significantly different. At the same time, the results also showed that the order of mixing and pyrolysis affected the characteristics and adsorption capacity of biochar. This study reveals the atrazine adsorption mechanism of four kinds of biochar and provides information about the potential of these types of materials for the removal of atrazine in the aquatic environment. • Biochar derived from different preparation methods of corn straw and sawdust was analyzed. • Biochar produced by mixing after pyrolysis at 800 °C showed better adsorption capacity for atrazine in solution. • Specific surface area contributes to the adsorption capacity of biochar for atrazine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The accumulation of atrazine in farmland is prone to cause phytotoxicity to kinds of sensitive crops, such as soybean. In addition, some kinds of agricultural solid wastes have long been considered as the important non-point pollution source. The aim of this experiment was to investigate the feasibility of removing atrazine from soil and alleviating the stress of atrazine on the growth of soybean by application a novel bio-organic fertilizer developed by agricultural solid wastes, such as cow manure organic fertilizer, biochar and poly-(γ-glutamic acid), as well as an atrazine-degrading strain Arthrobacter sp. DNS10. Sixteen potential bio-organic fertilizer formulations were designed by D-optimal mixture design of Design Expert software and atrazine-removal ability was selected to single out the optimal formulation. As a result, the optimal formulation of bio-organic fertilizer (named as DNBF10) was produced by the cow manure organic fertilizer 76.20%, biochar 4.46%, poly-(γ-glutamic acid) 8.63% (m/m) and the number of Arthrobacter sp. DNS10 with 0.91 × 108 CFU/g. The atrazine removal percentage of DNBF10 for the atrazine in soil with the initial atrazine concentration 15.26 ± 0.49 mg/kg was 95.05% after 10 days' application with DNBF10 at the adding dosage of 5 mg/kg (relative to the dry weight of the soil). Furthermore, pot experiment results suggest that the growth of soybean seedlings in the soil (initial atrazine was 8.14 ± 0.16 mg/kg) that adding both of DNBF10 (25%) and chemical fertilizer (75%) were better than those of the treatment only adding chemical fertilizer (100%) under the same nutrient addition level. All the results indicate that the application of DNBF10 was a new alternative to reuse the typical agricultural solid wastes, as well as to reduce the harm caused by residual atrazine to soybean. Graphical abstract Image 1 Highlights • Bio-organic fertilizer (BOF) formulation was optimized by D-optimal mixture design. • BOF produced by manure, biochar, poly-(γ-glutamic acid) and Arthrobacter sp. DNS10. • Study of the ability of bio-organic fertilizer to remove atrazine from the soil. • Removal percentage of atrazine was over 95% with the optimal formulation (DNBF10). • Pot experiment proved DNBF10 could alleviate the atrazine stress on soybean growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Liquid organic hydrogen carrier (LOHC) is considered as a promising candidate for large-scale hydrogen storage. In this work, we found that Pt/TiO 2 catalysts exhibited better catalytic activity and selectivity compared to Pd/TiO 2 and commercial Pd/Al 2 O 3 catalysts in the dehydrogenation of dodecahydro-N-ethylcarbazole (12H-NECZ) at 453 K. The catalytic activity of the noble metal catalysts followed the trend of Pt/TiO 2 > Pd/TiO 2 > Rh/TiO 2 > Au/TiO 2 > Ru/TiO 2. Compared with the commercial Pd/Al 2 O 3 , Pt/TiO 2 greatly improved the selectivity and conversion rate, the reaction time was also shortened. In addition, kinetics calculation was carried out to obtain fundamental reaction parameters. It was found that the third step of 4H-NECZ dehydrogenation to NECZ was the rate-limiting step of the entire dehydrogenation reaction for all catalysts. Highlights • Pt/TiO 2 catalysts exhibited better catalytic activity and selectivity. • The catalytic activity followed the trend of Pt/TiO 2 > Pd/TiO 2 > Rh/TiO 2 > Au/TiO 2 > Ru/TiO 2. • 4H-NECZ dehydrogenation to NECZ was the rate-limiting step. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract Enhanced activity for CH 4 dehydrogenation on M-doped Cu(1 1 1) surfaces. Highlights • Adsorption and dissociation mechanisms of CH 4 were investigated by DFT calculations. • The effect of surface composition distribution on the catalytic activity were studied. • CH 4 dissociation is favorable on Rh-Cu(1 1 1) surface kinetically and thermodynamically. Abstract Density functional theory (DFT) calculations have been employed to study the adsorption and dehydrogenation mechanism of CH x (x = 1–4) on the non-doped Cu(1 1 1) and M-Cu(1 1 1) surfaces (M = Pd, Pt, Rh and Ni). The adsorption intensity of CH 2 , CH and C species were higher on M-Cu(1 1 1) surface than non-doped Cu(1 1 1) surface. The minimum energy paths for CH 4 sequential dehydrogenation were also studied, suggesting that CH 4 desorption was more favorable than the dissociation due to the weakly physical adsorption. Interestingly, it was found that CH x dissociation was promoted in different degree on the M-Cu(1 1 1) surface both kinetically and thermodynamically, with the trend of Rh > Ni > Pt > Pd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bi2Sr2CaCu2Ox/Ag/Ag alloy (Bi2212) multifilamentary composite round wire is one of the candidates for fabricating superconducting magnets to generate magnetic fields greater than 20 T. After heat treatment, the microstructures of Bi2212 filaments are complex; notably, the interface between filaments and Ag matrix is meandered and many bridge connections (BCs) develop between filaments. How these microstructural features affect the electric, thermal, and mechanical properties is unknown but likely important. Building on a fractal-based theoretical frame, we investigated the impact of these features on the quench behavior of composite round wires. Our finite element models allow predicting temperature development and voltage growth during a quench in a wire with or without these features. It was found that though the influence of the meandering Ag/filament interface on the quench behavior is minimal, the BCs in the local region have a very remarkable impact. The current-carrying of the BCs is, generally, much lower than that in Bi2212 filaments, but during the quench process, the BCs can fully share the current. During this time a much higher temperature gradient is found at the BCs compared to other places, which further leads to the extremely inhomogeneous distribution of the thermal stress, and consequently, to a great extent, results in thermal and/or mechanical failure that initiated from the local region where the BCs exist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethanol is an ideal fuel in low-temperature fuel cells. The ethanol oxidation reaction (EOR) on platinum-modified tantalum carbide (TaC) has been investigated using both model thin films and powder catalysts. The results demonstrate that the 1.5 wt% Pt-modified TaC catalyst shows enhanced EOR activity compared to Pt. In-situ infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRRAS) study reveals that the Pt surface is less poisoned by EOR intermediates and a higher CO 2 selectivity (7∼9%) is achieved on the 1.5 wt% Pt/TaC catalyst, compared to the 40 wt% Pt/C. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that the binding energies of EOR intermediates on the Pt/TaC(111) surface are weaker than on Pt(111), suggesting an enhanced poison-tolerance from the adsorption of these intermediates. The combined experimental and theoretical investigations indicate that Pt/TaC is a promising electrocatalyst for EOR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]