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Electrical discharge machining (EDM), especially the die-sinking variant, is a well-known slow machining process among non-conventional manufacturing processes. Different approaches are being researched to improve EDM performance characteristics especially increasing its material removal rate (MRR) and reducing the tool wear rate (TWR). This study aims to improve the EDM process performance through modifications in tool design and employing different tool materials. The performance of conventional EDM tool is compared with different tool designs while machining D2 steel. Moreover, tool designs are employed on different tool materials including copper (Cu), copper-tungsten alloy (CuW), and graphite (Gr) to investigate the combined effect of tool designs and materials on important performance indicators of EDM die-sinking. The machining time (MT), material removal rate (MRR), lateral tool wear (TWR_L), and diametric tool wear (TWR_D) are selected as the response measures. The modified tool designs reduce the machining time by 45%. Likewise, Cu and CuW remarkably improve the material removal rate by 80%. Similarly, the lateral and diametric tool wear of modified designs are less than the wear corresponding to conventional design. Microscopic analysis revealed two wear zones which are named as aggressive sparking zone and mild sparking zone. All materials (Cu, CuW, and Gr) with the modified tool designs show significantly less sparking zone compared with the conventional design. Moreover, the most appropriate combination of tool design and material is proposed to achieve better EDM performance.

Highlights Recent advances in electrochemical energy storage based on nano- and micro-structured (NMS) scaffolds are summarized and discussed. The fundamentals, superiorities, and design principle of NMS scaffolds are outlined. Given the present progress, the ongoing challenges and promising perspectives are highlighted.

Alkaline fuel cells (AFC) have proven to provide high power densities and can attain considerable lifetimes, thus making them a worthy competitor to proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC). The electrolytes are based on aqueous bases and are relatively inexpensive. The non-corrosive nature of their electrolyte facilitates diverse usage of various catalyst materials apart from platinum, thus enabling the mass production of low-cost fuel cells. This review provides a summarized overview of AFCs. It sheds light on its fundamental operational principles, the most recent research trends related to catalyst developments, its system components and stack designs, and also provides a brief performance analysis section that highlights how the performance of an AFC is impacted upon varying different system parameters (e.g. electrolyte concentration, electrolyte thickness, and operating temperatures). This parametric study has shown that increasing the electrolyte concentration from 1–61 mol/L results in an increase in the AFC’s peak power density from 72.9 to 169 W/m2. Similarly, increasing the cell’s operating temperatures from 243–283 K yields increased peak power densities from 112 to 140 W/m2. This is mainly attributed to the enhancement of the electrolyte’s specific conductivity and the cell’s overall electrochemical kinetics. Increasing the electrolyte thickness, however, decreases the performance of an AFC, where peak power densities fall from 123 to 66 W/m2 when the thickness increases from 1 to 5 μm. This is a consequence of the increased internal resistances encountered by the hydroxyl ions as they migrate through the electrolyte.

Current liquid crystal (LC) lenses cannot achieve lossless arbitrary movement of the optical axis without mechanical movement. This article designs a novel bottom electrode through simulation and optimization, which forms a special LC lens with an Archimedean spiral electrode, realizing a 3D LC wedge and an arbitrarily movable LC lens. When only the bottom electrode is controlled, it achieves a maximum beam steering angle of 0.164°, which is nearly an order of magnitude larger than the current design. When the top and bottom electrodes are controlled jointly, a 0.164° movement of the lens optical axis is achieved. With focal length varies, the movement of the optical axis ranges from zero to infinity, and the lens surface remains unchanged during movement. The focus can move in a 3D conical area. When the thickness of the LC layer is 30 μm, the fastest response time reaches only 0.635 s, much faster than now.

The urgency of achieving green chemical production through Cu-based CO2 electroreduction necessitates a rapid transition towards technical maturity and commercialization in the pursuit of addressing the global imperative of decarbonization. Surprisingly, limited emphasis has been placed on exploration of readily scalable cell and electrode designs, which are pivotal in ushering in the era of stable and selective CO2 electrolyzers, showcasing the innovative potential within this area. Herein, we report a breakthrough in achieving month-long stability in the production of C2H4, representing an unprecedented milestone in low-temperature CO2 to C2+ electrolysis. Initial investigations involved the evaluation of five distinct cell architectures for Cu-based CO2 electrolyzers, guided by considerations of cell potentials, scalability with current technology, and CO2 crossover. An innovative multilayer Gas Diffusion Electrode (GDE), featuring an anion exchange ionomer and metal oxide layer, is introduced for CEM-based zero-gap cells, enabling C2H4 formation despite acidic surroundings. However, selectivity towards C2H4 proved suboptimal for extended stability testing. Conversely, the tailored multilayer GDE for one-gap cell architecture achieves a commendable 54 % faradaic efficiency (FE) towards C2+ products at 300 mA/cm2. Remarkably, chronopotentiometric tests demonstrate 720 h of stability (FEC2H4 > 20 %) at 100 mA/cm2. At higher current densities (300 mA/cm2), stability is reduced to 75 h, with detailed analyses revealing distinct degradation mechanisms. At 100 mA/cm2, salt formation predominates, while at 300 mA/cm2, catalyst layer restructuring degrades catalytic activity towards C2H4. Our research underscores the potential for stable, high C2+ selectivity through innovative electrode design and scalable cell architectures, advancing sustainable CO2 utilization.

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) dominate the market of rechargeable power sources. To meet the increasing market demands, technology updates focus on advanced battery materials, especially cathodes, the most important component in LIBs. In this review, we provide an overview of the development of materials and processing technologies for cathodes from both academic and industrial perspectives. We briefly compared the fundamentals of cathode materials based on intercalation and conversion chemistries. We then discussed the processing of cathodes, with specific focuses on the mechanisms of a drying process and the role of the binders. Several key parameters for the development of thick electrodes were critically assessed, which may offer insights into the design of next-generation batteries.

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) offer a dual solution of generating electrical energy from organic pollutants-laden wastewater while treating it. This study focuses on enhancing MFC performance through innovative electrode design. Three-dimensional (3D) anodes, created from corncobs and mango seeds via controlled graphitization, achieved remarkable power densities. The newly developed electrode configurations were evaluated within sewage wastewater-driven MFCs without the introduction of external microorganisms or prior treatment of the wastewater. At 1,000°C and 1,100°C graphitization temperatures, corncob and mango seed anodes produced 1,963 and 2,171 mW/m2, respectively, nearly 20 times higher than conventional carbon cloth and paper anodes. An advanced cathode composed of an activated carbon-carbon nanotube composite was introduced, rivaling expensive platinum-based cathodes. By optimizing the thermal treatment temperature and carbon nanotube content of the proposed cathode, comparable or superior performance to standard Pt/C commercial cathodes was achieved. Specifically, MFCs assembled with corncob anode with the proposed and standard Pt/C cathodes reached power densities of 1,963.1 and 2,178.6 mW/m2, respectively. Similarly, when utilizing graphitized mango seeds at 1,100°C, power densities of 2,171 and 2,151 mW/m2 were achieved for the new and standard cathodes, respectively. Furthermore, in continuous operation with a flow rate of 2 L/h, impressive chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal rates of 77% and 85% were achieved with corncob and mango seed anodes, respectively. This work highlights the significance of electrode design for enhancing MFC efficiency in electricity generation and wastewater treatment.

Measuring the electrical conductivity (EC) of plant substrates is an effective way to assess their nutrient content. This study aims to compare the performance of EC sensors with varying electrode sizes and spacings when embedded in a plant substrate. The range of electrode sizes and spacings varied from 0.1 mm to 10 mm. The EC electrodes were embedded in a porous plant substrate and subjected to wet–dry cycles. The results showed that the electrodes with larger electrode dimensions and spacing produce valid EC values.

In this work, an electrode was developed to determine the dielectric properties of tissue phantoms using impedance measurements. For this purpose, a coaxial electrode design was selected as the most suitable electrode design. Three tissue phantoms (blood, fat, muscle) were prepared from distilled water, sodium chloride, 1,2-propanediol, agar, and gelatine, and then characterized. Measurements were performed using an impedance analyzer in a range between 1 kHz and 1 MHz. A comparison with literature values showed good correspondance of the permittivity values determined, thus proving the applicability of the electrode design. However, the conductivity values measured were different from literature values. In the future, alteration and minimization of the electrode can be done to further improve the characterization.

With the rapid development of portable and wearable electronic devices, research on flexible energy storage devices has gradually shifted to the directions of miniaturization, softness and intelligence. At the same time, people have higher requirements for the energy density, power density and mechanical properties of the device. As the core part of flexible energy storage devices, electrode material is the key to determining device performance. With the development of flexible energy storage electronic devices, there is an urgent need for new battery technology and fast, low cost and precise control of their microstructure preparation methods. Therefore, the research and development of new energy storage devices such as flexible lithium/sodium-ion batteries, flexible lithium-sulfur batteries, and flexible zinc-air batteries have become the current research hotspots in academia. The current research status of flexible energy storage battery electrodes in recent years was discussed in this paper, the design of flexible electrode materials (independent flexible electrodes and flexible substrate electrodes), and the preparation process of flexible electrode materials of different dimensions (one-dimensional materials, two-dimensional materials and three-dimensional materials) and applications of flexible energy storage electrodes (flexible lithium/sodium ion batteries, flexible lithium-sulfur batteries, flexible zinc-air batteries) were compared and analyzed, and the structural characteristics and electrochemical properties of electrode materials were discussed. Finally, the current problems faced by flexible energy storage devices were pointed out, and the future focus of flexible energy storage devices was the research and development of new solid electrolytes, the rational design of device structures and the continuous optimization of packaging technology.

Abstract The electrode structure is a crucial factor for all‐solid‐state batteries (ASSBs) since it affects the electronic and ionic transport properties and determines the electrochemical performance. In terms of electrode structure design, a single‐ion conducting solid polymer electrolyte (SIC‐SPE) is an attractive solid electrolyte (SE) for the composite electrode among various SEs. Although the ionic conductivity of SIC‐SPE is lower than other inorganic SEs, the SIC‐SPE has a relatively lower density and can form an intimate contact between the SE and active materials (AM), resulting in an excellent electrode structure. The electrochemical performance of the cell with SIC‐SPE was comparable with the cell with Li6PS5Cl (LPSCl), which has 10 times higher intrinsic ionic conductivity than SIC‐SPE (SIC‐SPE: 0.2 × 10−3 S cm−1, LPSCl: 2.2 = 10−3 S cm−1 at 25°C). 3D digital‐twin‐driven simulation showed that the electrode with SIC‐SPE has a higher SE volume fraction, a lower tortuosity, and a larger AM/SE contact area than the LPSCl electrode. The favorable structure of the SIC‐SPE electrode leads to lower overpotential than the LPSCl electrode during operation. Our results suggest that the SIC‐SPE is a promising SE for making a good electrode structure in ASSBs.

Abstract Wearable devices are widely used in the smart healthcare monitoring system to detect changes in user parameters through applications such as wristwatches, bands, and clothing electronic skin. In addition, multimode devices enable monitoring of vital signs, helping diagnose and prevent diseases. A wearable device detects the user's biological signals such as body temperature, movement, heartbeat, and humidity level, transmits the information to the mobile phone, and sends the information to an emergency center/family/clinician through cloud computing or wireless communication systems. This all‐day monitoring system enables the user's status information to be monitored 24 h a day to ensure appropriate treatment, thereby facilitating highly personalized care due to its human‐centricity. When integrated with higher‐level infrastructure, it is expected to be useful in healthcare scenarios, providing benefits to multiple stakeholders. In addition, it will help protect people exposed to potentially life‐threatening environments such as military personnel, first responders, and deep‐sea and space explorers. In this review, the components for implementing an all‐day monitoring system are described, including the electrode design strategy for realizing a skin attachable e‐skin device. Issues related to flexible storage devices and recent research results are also discussed.

Electro-optic modulators (EOMs) are crucial devices for modern communication enabling high bandwidth optical communication links. Traveling wave electrodes are used to obtain high-speed modulation in these EOMs. We present the electrode design and analysis along with the study of effects of changing orientation on device performance for a thin-film lithium niobate tunable Mach–Zehnder interferometer (MZI) that offers sub-THz bandwidth operations. High velocity and impedance matching with low RF attenuation, high third-order SFDR (∼121 dB/Hz2/3) and a low half-wave voltage length product (1.74 V.cm) have been achieved for a bandwidth of 136 GHz. High-speed digital modulation using multi-level signal formats (PAM-2, QAM-4 and QAM-16) with low BER for 400 Gbps data has been demonstrated to assess the digital performance of the device.

Detection sensitivity is a crucial factor in the application of ECIS sensors. For these biosensors, the electrode configuration has a direct impact on sensitivity, yet few studies on monopolar electrodes have been reported. In this study, ECIS sensor arrays, which have a series of working electrode configuration with a wide diameter range and different electrode number, were fabricated to monitor living osteoblast-like MC3T3-E1 cells. The experimental results revealed that when the electrode diameter was larger than 25 μm, electrodes with smaller diameter and number yielded higher impedance values and generated more impedance shift to cell status change. The membrane capacitance obtained by equivalent circuit fitting was at the same level. When the electrode diameter was even smaller, the results in detection of cell monolayer were opposite, and there was no distinct relationship between impedance and membrane capacitance shift to cell status change and electrode geometry. The proposed sensor chip, allowing for a sustained and stable detection of cellular impedance, provides the basis for the selection of the electrode configuration of monopolar electrodes. The test results of electrodes with a diameter of 25 μm and lower indicated the possibility of single cell impedance measurement, which can provide unique insight into the heterogeneous electrical behavior of cells, and, in this case, the electrode size should be close to the cell size.

Rechargeable zinc–air batteries (ZABs) show enticing prospects as next‐generation energy conversion and storage technology due to their unique merits of environmental friendliness, low cost, impressive energy density, and high security. However, the dendrite growth, surface passivation, and metal anode corrosion, as well as the sluggish reaction kinetics, deficient bifunctionality, high platinum group metals (PGMs) dependence, and corrosion of carbon‐based materials for air cathodes, are the main problems hindering the large‐scale application of ZABs. Herein, the fundamental principles of ZABs are first introduced. The detailed discussions will be focused on the electrochemical aspects of the metal anode and air cathode by making a comprehensive comparison of the recent progress in the field. Lastly, brief perspectives on the further development of rechargeable ZABs are introduced. This review aims to provide a better understanding of electrode design for ZABs, which will provide guidelines for the design and fabrication of high‐performance and cost‐effective ZABs.

Intracortical microelectrodes are neuroprosthetic devices used in brain-machine interfaces to both record and stimulate neural activity in the brain. These technologies have been improved by advances in microfabrication, which have led to the creation of subcellular and high-density microelectrodes. The greater number of independent stimulation channels in these devices allows for improved neuromodulation selectivity, compared to single-site microelectrodes. Elements of electrode design such as electrode-site placement can influence the long-term performance of neuroprostheses. Previous studies have shown that electrode-sites placed on the edge of a planar microelectrode have greater chronic recording functionality than sites placed in the center. However, the effect of electrode-site placement on long-term intracortical microstimulation (ICMS) is still unknown. Here, we show that, in rats chronically implanted with custom-made planar silicon microelectrodes, electrode-sites on the tip of the device outperformed those on both the edge and center in terms of the effect per charge delivered, though there is still a slight advantage to using edge sites over center sites for ICMS. Longitudinal analysis of ICMS detection thresholds over a 16-week period revealed that while all sites followed a similar trend over time, the tip and edge sites consistently elicited the behavioral response with less charge compared to center sites. Furthermore, we quantified channel activity over time and found that edge sites remained more active than center sites over time, though the rate of decay of active sites for center and edge sites was comparable. Our results demonstrate that electrode-site placement plays an important role in the long-term stability of intracortical microstimulation and could be a potential factor to consider in the design of future intracortical electrodes.

The modulation asymmetry of a multifunction integrated optic circuit (MIOC) indicates the difference in the phase response to modulation electric fields with the same magnitude but different directions, and is partly caused by the vertical component of the modulation signal. This introduces a nonlinear phase error that is difficult to compensate in fiber optic gyroscopes (FOGs), which needs to be suppressed. In this paper, a sinking-electrode MIOC design to suppress the modulation asymmetry is proposed and verified through numerical simulations. Optimal parameters of the gap, height, side-wall angle, and center position error of the sinking electrodes are obtained on the basis of the simulation results. With the proposed method, the modulation asymmetry of MIOC can be reduced from 5 × 10-4 rad to 1 × 10-6 rad, thus facilitating the development of high-performance FOGs. Furthermore, compared with the traditional electrode design, the sinking-electrode design can increase the tolerance for the manufacturing process, and the design configuration can be obtained through the general process method.

The early monitoring of downhole overflow can be effectively realized by the downhole annular electromagnetic flow detection system. In order to improve the accuracy of the electromagnetic measurement system of downhole annular flow, it is important to optimize the excitation system and electrodes of this system. This research focuses on the optimization of the electrodes for the electromagnetic measurement system of downhole annular flow, whose excitation system has been optimized. First, the basic principle of electromagnetic measurement of downhole annular flow is analyzed. Then, the influence of different positions of the four-point electrodes on the virtual current distributions is analyzed, and the optimum electrode positions and distributions are introduced. On this basis, the influence of shape and size of the large electrode on virtual current density distribution is analyzed. Based on the theoretical study of the influence of electrode on virtual current density distribution, taking hemispherical electrodes and arc electrodes as examples, this paper optimizes hemispherical electrodes and arc electrodes with different shapes and sizes by using finite element simulation method, and proposes three indexes to evaluate the annular virtual current density distributions when the electrodes of different shapes are used. The optimum parameters of shapes and sizes of the hemisphere electrodes and arc electrodes under specific structures of the downhole annular electromagnetic flow measurement system are obtained. This research has great significance for the optimization of electrodes in the downhole annular electromagnetic flow measurement system, and can also be used as reference for the electrode optimization of the traditional electromagnetic flowmeter.

Objective: Vertigo is a common side effect of cochlear implant (CI) treatment. This prospective study examines the incidence of postoperative vertigo over time and aims to analyze influencing factors such as electrode design and insertion angle (IA).Study Design and Setting: This is a prospective study which has been conducted at a tertiary referral center (academic hospital).Patients: A total of 29 adults were enrolled and received a unilateral CI using one of six different electrode carriers, which were categorized into “structure-preserving” (I), “potentially structure-preserving” (II), and “not structure-preserving” (III).Intervention: Subjective vertigo was assessed by questionnaires at five different time-points before up to 6 months after surgery. The participants were divided into four groups depending on the time of the presence of vertigo before and after surgery. Preoperatively and at 6 months postoperatively, a comprehensive vertigo diagnosis consisting of Romberg test, Unterberger test, subjective visual vertical, optokinetic test, video head impulse test, and caloric irrigation test was performed. In addition, the IA was determined, and the patients were divided in two groups (

Rechargeable aqueous zinc‐based batteries (AZBs) have been recently considered as desirable energy storage devices for renewable energy storage because of their high theoretical capacity, low cost, and high safety. Despite the inspiring achievements in this field, the energy density of AZBs is still far below expectation, which directly hinders their practical application as next‐generation secondary cells. To address this issue, previously, reseach efforts have been mainly dedicated to the improvement of capacity by designing different kinds of high‐capacity electrode candidates, especially the cathode materials. In recent years, elevation of the output voltage for energy density improvement has gained more and more attention. The main limitation of the relatively low output voltage of AZBs lies in the narrow electrochemically stable window of aqueous electrolytes, which results in limited choice of cathode materials with high potential. Herein, by summarizing recently reported work in this field, the strategies applied to high‐voltage AZB construction are classified into two categories, from the aspects of electrode and battery structure. Classic examples of each category are discussed in detail, and their respective advantages/defects are compared and commented on. Finally, further challenges are elaborated to provide more insights into this area.

The globus pallidus internus and the subthalamic nucleus are common targets for deep brain stimulation to alleviate symptoms of Parkinson's disease and dystonia. In the rodent models, however, their direct targeting is hindered by the relatively large dimensions of applied electrodes. To reduce the neurological damage, the electrodes are usually implanted cranial to the nuclei, thus exposing the non-targeted brain regions to large electric fields and, in turn, possible undesired stimulation effects. In this numerical study, we analyze the spread of the fields for the conventional electrodes and several modifications. As a result, we present a relatively simple electrode design that allows an efficient focalization of the stimulating field in the inferiorly located nuclei.

The fibrous electrode is an essential component of the redox flow batteries, as the electrode structure influences the reactant/product local concentration, electrochemical reaction kinetics, and the pressure loss of the battery. A three-dimensional numerical model of vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) was developed in this work. After model validation, simulations were conducted to understand the effects of electrode structural parameters on the battery performance. The gradient electrode design, specific surface area, porosity, and different flow fields were studied and optimized. The results show that in the large-size VRFB system, ensuring a large porosity can minimize the concentration polarization, which not only improves the battery performance, and also reduce the pressure loss. To further improve the mass transfer, fibers with larger diameter can be used, and the specific surface area of the electrode can be increased by modifying the surface of the fiber. The battery performance can be significantly improved with increasing specific surface area when the specific surface area is lower than 500,000. However, with further increase in specific surface area, the voltage of the battery remains almost constant at about 1.37 V. Its influence on interdigitated flow channel case is mainly in reducing pressure loss, and on serpentine flow channel case is directly reflected in improving battery performance.

Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy is an important tool for fuel-cell analysis and monitoring. This study focuses on the low-AC frequencies (2–0.1 Hz) to show that the thickness of the catalyst layer significantly influences the overall resistance of the cell. By combining known models, a new equivalent circuit model was generated. The new model is able to simulate the impedance signal in the complete frequency spectrum of 105–10−2 Hz, usually used in experimental work on polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEMFCs). The model was compared with experimental data and to an older model from the literature for verification. The electrochemical impedance spectra recorded on different MEAs with cathode catalyst layer thicknesses of approx. 5 and 12 µm show the appearance of a third semicircle in the low-frequency region that scales with current density. It has been shown that the ohmic resistance contribution (Rmt) of this third semicircle increases with the catalyst layer’s thickness. Furthermore, the electrolyte resistance is shown to decrease with increasing catalyst-layer thickness. The cause of this phenomenon was identified to be increased water retention by thicker catalyst layers.

Lithium metal batteries have achieved large-scale application, but still have limitations such as poor safety performance and high cost, and limited lithium resources limit the production of lithium batteries. The construction of these devices is also hampered by limited lithium supplies. Therefore, it is particularly important to find alternative metals for lithium replacement. Sodium has the properties of rich in content, low cost and ability to provide high voltage, which makes it an ideal substitute for lithium. Sulfur-based materials have attributes of high energy density, high theoretical specific capacity and are easily oxidized. They may be used as cathodes matched with sodium anodes to form a sodium-sulfur battery. Traditional sodium-sulfur batteries are used at a temperature of about 300 °C. In order to solve problems associated with flammability, explosiveness and energy loss caused by high-temperature use conditions, most research is now focused on the development of room temperature sodium-sulfur batteries. Regardless of safety performance or energy storage performance, room temperature sodium-sulfur batteries have great potential as next-generation secondary batteries. This article summarizes the working principle and existing problems for room temperature sodium-sulfur battery, and summarizes the methods necessary to solve key scientific problems to improve the comprehensive energy storage performance of sodium-sulfur battery from four aspects: cathode, anode, electrolyte and separator.

As most of the light and easy oil fields have been produced or are nearing their end-life, the emulsion stability is enhanced and water cut is increasing in produced fluid which have brought challenges to oil–water separation in onshore and offshore production trains. The conventional solution to these challenges includes a combination of higher chemical dosages, larger vessels and more separation stages, which often demands increased energy consumption, higher operating costs and larger space for the production facility. It is not always feasible to address the issues by conventional means, especially for the separation process on offshore platforms. Electrostatic coalescence is an effective method to achieve demulsification and accelerate the oil–water separation process. In this paper, a novel compact electrostatic coalescer with helical electrodes was developed and its performance on treatment of water-in-oil emulsions was investigated by experiments. Focused beam reflectance measurement (FBRM) was used to make real-time online measurements of water droplet sizes in the emulsion. The average water droplet diameters and number of droplets within a certain size range are set as indicators for evaluating the effect of coalescence. We investigated the effect of electric field strength, frequency, water content and fluid velocity on the performance of coalescence. The experimental results showed that increasing the electric field strength could obviously contribute to the growth of small water droplets and coalescence. The extreme value of electric field strength achieved in the high-frequency electric field was much higher than that in the power-frequency (50 Hz) electric field, which can better promote the growth of water droplets. The initial average diameters of water droplets increase with higher water content. The rate of increment in the electric field was also increased. Its performance was compared with that of the plate electrodes to further verify the advantages of enhancing electrostatic coalescence and demulsification with helical electrodes. The research results can provide guidance for the optimization and performance improvement of a compact electrocoalescer.

Traditional capacitive electrocardiogram (cECG) electrodes suffer from limited patient comfort, difficulty of disinfection and low signal-to-noise ratio in addition to the challenge of integrating them in wearables. A novel hybrid flexible cECG electrode was developed that offers high versatility in the integration method, is well suited for large-scale manufacturing, is easy to disinfect in clinical settings and exhibits better performance over a comparable rigid contactless electrode. The novel flexible electrode meets the frequency requirement for clinically important QRS complex detection (0.67–5 Hz) and its performance is improved over rigid contactless electrode across all measured metrics as it maintains lower cut-off frequency, higher source capacitance and higher pass-band gain when characterized over a wide spectrum of patient morphologies. The results presented in this article suggest that the novel flexible electrode could be used in a medical device for cECG acquisition and medical diagnosis. The novel design proves also to be less sensitive to motion than a reference rigid electrode. We therefore anticipate it can represent an important step towards improving the repeatability of cECG methods while requiring less post-processing. This would help making cECG a viable method for remote cardiac health monitoring.

Electrical discharge machining (EDM) is one of the earliest non-traditional machining processes, based on thermoelectric energy between the workpiece and an electrode. In this process, the material is removed electro thermally by a series of successive discrete discharges between two electrically conductive objects, i.e., the electrode and the workpiece. The performance of the process, to a large extent, depends on the material, design and manufacturing method of the electrodes. Electrode design and method of its manufacturing also affect on the cost of electrode. Researchers have explored a number of ways to improve electrode design and devised various ways of manufacturing. The paper reports a review on the research relating to EDM electrode design and its manufacturing for improving and optimizing performance measures and reducing time and cost of manufacturing. The final part of the paper discusses these developments and outlines the trends for future research work.

Commercial lithium ion cells are now optimised for either high energy density or high power density. There is a trade off in cell design between the power and energy requirements. A tear down protocol has been developed, to investigate the internal components and cell engineering of nine cylindrical cells, with different power−energy ratios. The cells designed for high power applications used smaller particles of the active material in both the anodes and the cathodes. The cathodes for high power cells had higher porosities, but a similar trend was not observed for the anodes. In terms of cell design, the coat weights and areal capacities were lower for high power cells. The tag arrangements were the same in eight out of nine cells, with tags at each end of the anode, and one tag on the cathode. The thicknesses of the current collectors and separators were based on the best (thinnest) materials available when the cells were designed, rather than materials optimised for power or energy. To obtain high power, the resistance of each component is reduced as low as possible, and the lithium ion diffusion path lengths are minimised. This information illustrates the significant evolution of materials and components in lithium ion cells in recent years, and gives insight into designing higher power cells in the future.

Synchronization of populations of neurons is a hallmark of several brain diseases. Coordinated reset (CR) stimulation is a model-based stimulation technique which specifically counteracts abnormal synchrony by desynchronization. Electrical CR stimulation, e.g. for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease (PD), is administered via depth electrodes. In order to get a deeper understanding of this technique, we extended the top-down approach of previous studies and constructed a large-scale computational model of the respective brain areas. Furthermore, we took into account the spatial anatomical properties of the simulated brain structures and incor- porated a detailed numerical representation of 2·104 simulated neurons. We simulated the subthalamic nucleus (STN) and the globus pallidus externus (GPe). Connections within the STN were governed by spike-timing dependent plasticity (STDP). In this way, we modeled the physiological and pathological activity of the considered brain structures. In particular, we investigated how plasticity could be exploited and how the model could be shifted from strongly synchronized (pathological) activity to strongly desynchronized (healthy) activity of the neuronal populations via CR stimulation of the STN neurons. Furthermore, we investigated the impact of specific stimulation parameters especially the electrode position on the stimulation outcome. Our model provides a step forward towards a biophysically realistic model of the brain areas relevant to the emergence of pathological neuronal activity in PD. Furthermore, our model constitutes a test bench for the optimization of both stimulation parameters and novel electrode geometries for efficient CR stimulation.

New deep brain stimulation (DBS) electrode designs offer operation in voltage and current mode and capability to steer the electric field (EF). The aim of the study was to compare the EF distributions of four DBS leads at equivalent amplitudes (3 V and 3.4 mA). Finite element method (FEM) simulations (n = 38) around cylindrical contacts (leads 3389, 6148) or equivalent contact configurations (leads 6180, SureStim1) were performed using homogeneous and patient-specific (heterogeneous) brain tissue models. Steering effects of 6180 and SureStim1 were compared with symmetric stimulation fields. To make relative comparisons between simulations, an EF isolevel of 0.2 V/mm was chosen based on neuron model simulations (n = 832) applied before EF visualization and comparisons. The simulations show that the EF distribution is largely influenced by the heterogeneity of the tissue, and the operating mode. Equivalent contact configurations result in similar EF distributions. In steering configurations, larger EF volumes were achieved in current mode using equivalent amplitudes. The methodology was demonstrated in a patient-specific simulation around the zona incerta and a “virtual” ventral intermediate nucleus target. In conclusion, lead design differences are enhanced when using patient-specific tissue models and current stimulation mode.