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Allicin regulates macrophage autophagy and senescence, and inhibits hepatoma cell growth. This study investigated the mechanism by which allicin inhibits the growth of hepatoma cells. Hepa1–6 mouse hepatoma cells were subcutaneously injected into C57BL/6 J mice to construct a tumor transplantation model. Macrophages were cultured with the supernatant of hepatoma cells to construct a cell model. The levels of mRNA and proteins and the level of Sestrin2 ubiquitination were measured by RT qPCR, immunofluorescence and Western blotting. The levels of autophagy-related factors and the activity of senescence-associated β-galactosidase were determined by kits, and protein stability was detected by cycloheximide (CHX) tracking. Data analysis of clinical samples revealed that RBX1 was highly expressed in tumor tissues, while Sestrin2 was expressed at low levels in tumor tissues. Allicin can promote the expression of the autophagy-related proteins LC3 and Beclin-1 in tumor macrophages and inhibit the expression of the aging-related proteins p16 and p21, thus promoting autophagy in macrophages and inhibiting cell senescence. Moreover, allicin can inhibit the expression of RBX1, thereby reducing the ubiquitination of Sestrin2, enhancing the stability of Sestrin2, activating autophagy in tumor macrophages and inhibiting senescence. In addition, allicin treatment inhibited the proliferation and migration of hepatoma carcinoma cells cocultured with macrophages and significantly improved the development of liver cancer in mice. Allicin can affect the autophagy of macrophages and restrain the growth of hepatoma cells by regulating the ubiquitination of Sestrin2. • Allicin enhances the autophagy level of macrophages cultured in tumor cell supernatant and inhibits macrophage senescence. • Allicin inhibits the development of liver cancer cells. • Allicin inhibits aging by inhibiting RBX1 to activate autophagy of tumor macrophages. • Allicin enhances the stability of Sestrin2 by inhibiting its ubiquitination through RBX1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing protein delivery systems holds tremendous promise for the next-generation of protein-related biotechniques and biotherapeutics. Polycatechols inspired from nature polyphenols such as epigallocatechin gallate represent a class of polymers with highly efficacy in cytosolic protein delivery. Besides catechol, there are other benzenediol structures with two hydroxyls on an aromatic ring such as resorcinol and hydroquinone, and their behaviors in protein binding and intracellular delivery are yet unknown. Here, we firstly reported a type of polyresorcinols by grafting resorcinol moieties on cationic dendrimers for efficient cytosolic protein delivery. The materials exhibited comparable protein delivery efficacy with polycatechols but much higher stability towards oxidation in air. The resorcinol modification greatly improved the protein binding, cellular internalization, and endosomal disruption of the cationic polymer and reduced its cytotoxicity as well. The obtained polyresorcinols delivered various native proteins into the cytoplasm with maintained protein bioactivities, and successfully delivered a model antigen ovalbumin into dendritic cells to induce antigen cross-presentation for the treatment of B16-OVA melanoma in vivo. This study gives new insights into the physicochemical behaviors of phenolic polymers and developed a class of polyresorcinols for efficient cytosolic protein delivery. [Display omitted] • The resorcinol modification significantly enhanced the protein delivery efficacy of the cationic polymer in multiple ways. • Polyresorcinols exhibited higher stability towards oxidation compare to polycatechols and polyhydroquinone. • Polyresorcinols delivered a model antigen ovalbumin into dendritic cells to induce antigen cross-presentation for the treatment of B16-OVA melanoma in vivo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rare studies are available exploring the impact of limited activities of daily living (ADL), loneliness on suicidal ideation, and protective effect of social support on their relationships in nursing home residents. This study aims to examine these links in a sample of older adults from nursing homes. A stratified random sampling was adopted to recruit 538 respondents from 37 nursing homes in Jinan. Suicidal ideation, limited ADL, social support and loneliness were assessed through instruments of Beck Suicidal Ideation Scale, ADL scale, Perceived Social Support Scale and UCLA Loneliness Scale. Relationships of latent variables were tested using Path Analysis in this cross-sectional study. The mediating effect of loneliness was significant on the association between limited ADL and suicidal ideation, and the mediation model was multiply moderated by social support with significant coefficients and acceptable model fitness. This study demonstrated the multiple moderating role of social support in the effect of limited ADL and loneliness on suicidal ideation among nursing home residents. More efforts are suggested in providing more available external resources to seniors' mental health for reducing risk of influencing factors of suicidal ideation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the role of sintering aids during microstructure evolution is critical to the manufacture of densified SiC fibers. A variety of TEM characterization techniques are combined to investigate grain growth behavior in iron-doped SiC fibers. Ultra-large SiC grains in micron size, as the self-assembly of nano sub-grains into a similar orientation, were consistently discovered at the surface and indicative of abnormal grain growth. The growth front consisted of polycrystalline nanograins wetted by iron-rich particles, where several sub-grains were found to unify their (111) planes with a misorientation angle less than 10°, indicating grain rotation at the growth front. It is proposed that iron-rich particles form a quasi-liquid interfacial phase during sintering, which facilitates coherent attachment of grains and results in fast grain growth using neighboring irregular-shaped nanograins as building blocks. The imperfect ordered coalescence of nanograins introduces structural heterogeneities, including low angle grain boundaries and porosities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The understanding of the microstructures is critical to the design of SiC fibers with excellent thermal stability and mechanical properties. We introduce a density-sensitive electron microscopy method, high-angle annular dark field (HAADF) imaging to study the microstructure of SiC fibers processed at a variety of temperatures ranging from 1200 to 1800 °C. It is revealed that, irrespective of their processing temperatures, SiC grains form the skeleton of SiC fibers that are surrounded by a multiple of zones with low HAADF contrast (low-density zones, LDZs). LDZs mainly consist of amorphous SiOC phases and turbostratic graphite. As a result, three important interfaces that dictate grain growth, namely, the SiC/amorphous SiOC interface, the SiC/turbostratic graphite phase boundary and the SiC high angle grain boundary (HAGBs) emerge. We find that, the SiC/turbostratic graphite interfaces and the SiC HAGBs are more effective in suppressing the growth of SiC grains than the SiC/a-SiOC interfaces on a basis of extensive TEM characterization. Aberration corrected TEM reveals marked differences in the atomic structures of those three interfaces, shedding light on how the interfacial structures affect grain growth of SiC fibers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ordinal optimization (OO) is a widely-studied technique for optimizing discrete-event dynamic systems (DEDS). It evaluates the performance of the system designs in a finite set by sampling and aims to correctly make ordinal comparison of the designs. A well-known method in OO is the optimal computing budget allocation (OCBA). It builds the optimality conditions for the number of samples allocated to each design, and the sample allocation that satisfies the optimality conditions is shown to asymptotically maximize the probability of correct selection for the best design. In this paper, we investigate two popular OCBA algorithms. With known variances for samples of each design, we characterize their convergence rates with respect to different performance measures. We first demonstrate that the two OCBA algorithms achieve the optimal convergence rate under measures of probability of correct selection and expected opportunity cost. It fills the void of convergence analysis for OCBA algorithms. Next, we extend our analysis to the measure of cumulative regret, a main measure studied in the field of machine learning. We show that with minor modification, the two OCBA algorithms can reach the optimal convergence rate under cumulative regret. It indicates the potential of broader use of algorithms designed based on the OCBA optimality conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ranking and selection (R&S) is a popular model for studying discrete-event dynamic systems. It aims to select the best design (the design with the largest mean performance) from a finite set, where the mean of each design is unknown and has to be learned by samples. Great research efforts have been devoted to this problem in the literature for developing procedures with superior empirical performance and showing their optimality. In these efforts, myopic procedures were popular. They select the best design using a "naive" mechanism of iteratively and myopically improving an approximation of the objective measure. Although they are based on simple heuristics and lack theoretical support, they turned out highly effective, and often achieved competitive empirical performance compared to procedures that were proposed later and shown to be asymptotically optimal. In this paper, we theoretically analyze these myopic procedures and prove that they also satisfy the optimality conditions of R&S, just like some other popular R&S methods. It explains the good performance of myopic procedures in various numerical tests, and provides good insight into the structure and theoretical development of efficient R&S procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Problems with serological cross-reactivity have led to development of a number of PCRs (individual and multiplex) for molecular typing of Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae , the causative agent of porcine pleuropneumonia. Most of these assays were developed for detection of specific amplicons within capsule biosynthetic genes before the availability of complete sequences for the different serovars. Here we describe comparative analysis of the complete capsular loci for all 18 serovars of A. pleuropneumoniae , and development of two multiplex PCRs for comprehensive capsule typing of this important pig pathogen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to investigate isolates of Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae previously designated serologically either as non-typable (NT) or as ‘K2:07’, which did not produce serovar-specific amplicons in PCR assays. We used whole genome sequencing to identify the capsule (CPS) loci of six previously designated biovar 1 NT and two biovar 1 ‘K2:O7’ isolates of A. pleuropneumoniae from Denmark, as well as a recent biovar 2 NT isolate from Canada. All of the NT isolates have the same six-gene type I CPS locus, sharing common cpsABC genes with serovars 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11 and 13. The two ‘K2:O7’ isolates contain a unique three-gene type II CPS locus, having a cpsA gene similar to that of serovars 1, 4, 12, 14 and 15. The previously NT isolates share the same O-antigen genes, found between erpA and rpsU , as serovars 3, 6, 8, and 15. Whereas the ‘K2:O7’ isolates, have the same O-antigen genes as serovar 7, which likely contributed to their previous mis-identification. All of the NT and ‘K2:O7’ isolates have only the genes required for production of ApxII ( apxIICA structural genes, and apxIBD export genes). Rabbit polyclonal antisera raised against representative isolates with these new CPS loci demonstrated distinct reactivity compared to the 16 known serovars. The serological and genomic results indicate that the isolates constitute new serovars 17 (previously NT) and 18 (previously ‘K2:O7’). Primers designed for amplification of specific serovar 17 and 18 sequences for molecular diagnostics will facilitate epidemiological tracking of these two new serovars of A. pleuropneumoniae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Battery model is crucial for the accurate estimation of the state of charge (SOC) in a battery management system of electric vehicles. However, differences exist within optimal battery models corresponding to different types of batteries. Even for the same type of battery, the corresponding optimal battery model may vary with the change of the battery status. To solve the problem, this paper proposes a multi-model probability fusion estimation (MMPFE) method to realize an accurate description of battery characteristics and a precise SOC estimation. An improved adaptive unscented Kalman filter (AUKF) approach is developed for measurement noise variance online update based on the idea of orthogonality between residual and innovation during the SOC estimation. Finally, the proposed MMPFE method was verified by experiments using LiFeO 4 and LiMnO 2 batteries, respectively. Results indicate that when a voltage drift of +3 mV was applied on the LiFeO 4 battery under UDDS condition and an initial SOC error was applied on LiMnO 2 battery under FUDS condition at different temperatures, the proposed method still can estimated the precise SOC. Comparing with the results obtained by the other methods under the same conditions, the method presented in the paper shows a higher SOC estimation accuracy and better robustness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is concerned with input-to-state stability (ISS) of coupled retarded systems on networks (CRSNs). By incorporating Razumikhin method with generalized Kirchhoff’s Matrix Tree Theorem, sufficient conditions are established to guarantee ISS of CRSNs. For the convenience of application, sufficient conditions in the form of coefficients are also obtained. What is more, a sufficient criterion on ISS of the coupled retarded oscillators system on networks is derived. Finally, as an illustration, a numerical example is given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the theoretical results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An accurate battery State of Charge estimation plays an important role in battery electric vehicles. This paper makes two contributions to the existing literature. (1) A recursive least squares method with fuzzy adaptive forgetting factor has been presented to update the model parameters close to the real value more quickly. (2) The statistical information of the innovation sequence obeying chi-square distribution has been introduced to identify model uncertainty, and a novel combination algorithm of strong tracking unscented Kalman filter and adaptive unscented Kalman filter has been developed to estimate SOC (State of Charge). Experimental results indicate that the novel algorithm has a good performance in estimating the battery SOC against initial SOC errors and voltage sensor drift. A comparison with the unscented Kalman filter-based algorithms and adaptive unscented Kalman filter-based algorithms shows that the proposed SOC estimation method has better accuracy, robustness and convergence behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Embrittlement of polycrystalline aluminum by liquid gallium represents a classic example of liquid metal embrittlement, whereas the interfacial atomic structure of Ga penetration front remains elusive despite decades of investigation. We performed aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy characterization to uncover the atomistic structure of Ga-enriched complexion within Al general grain boundaries. Multiple-layer adsorption of Ga with ordering gradients is revealed, consisting of disordered Ga layers at the GB core that are sandwiched by two more ordered adsorbate layers connecting to both aluminum grains. The ordering gradients within the interfacial complexion are further verified by the hybrid Monte Carlo and molecular dynamic simulations. This study advances our fundamental understandings of complexion structures within general grain boundaries. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We addressed the hypothesis that meningococcal secreted proteins (MSPs) can elicit protective immunity against meningococcal disease. Endotoxin-depleted MSP preparations were used to immunise a group of 15 six-week-old BALB/c mice (25μg MSPs/dose mixed with Freund''s complete adjuvant) on days 0, 14 and 21. Mice were challenged 2 weeks later with 107 colony forming units of live Neisseria meningitidis strain MC58 (serogroup B, ET-5). Negative and positive control groups of 15 mice each were injected with adjuvant only, or a live attenuated strain of MC58, respectively. Seven out of 15 mice (47%) from the negative control group died after 72h of challenge, whereas none of test or positive control group died. Protection afforded by the anti-MSP immune response can be at least partly attributed to complement-mediated bacterial lysis, detectable in vitro using the serum of immunised mice. Murine anti-MC58 MSP sera were bactericidal against homologous and five unrelated ET-5 serogroup B strains. However, failed to kill strains from other hypervirulent clonal lineages belonging to the same or different serogroups, despite the presence of cross-reactive antibodies detectable by immunoblotting. Similar sera raised against MSPs from an isolate belonging to the ET-37 electropherotype lineage were bactericidal against all tested isolates of this lineage and, in addition, against some but not all isolates belonging to the ET-5 lineage. FACS analysis of intact bacteria treated with anti-MSPs confirmed surface-binding of antibodies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Systemic infection with Neisseria meningitidis leads to a devastating, septicaemic illness with a high mortality, particularly in children. Currently, there are no vaccines to prevent disease caused by strains of N. meningitidis serogroup B, the commonest isolate in developed countries. Here, we describe the identification of vaccine candidates that protect mice against lethal challenge with this bacterium. A total 11 meningococcal proteins that are necessary for establishing systemic infection were expressed as recombinant antigens and assessed for their ability to protect animals against live bacterial challenge; the lactate permease (LctP) and ExbB, which is required for iron acquisition, elicited protective immunity. Both LctP and ExbB are expressed by a wide range of pathogenic isolates of N. meningitidis. Targeting bacterial factors required for pathogenesis may lead to new vaccines to protect individuals from this important human pathogen. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Tests were conducted on the hysteretic behavior of seven corroded circular RC columns strengthened by C-FRCM. • The effects of AC ratio and layer of C-FRCM on the hysteretic behavior of corroded RC columns were studied. • Large AC ratio has detrimental effect on the hysteretic behavior of corroded RC columns. • The C-FRCM can effectively enhance the hysteretic behavior of corroded RC columns. • Two layers of C-FRCM is considered to be desirable for the C-FRCM strengthening Approach. This study presents an experimental investigation on the seismic behavior of corroded reinforced concrete (RC) columns strengthened by carbon-fabric reinforced cementitious matrix (C-FRCM). To this end, cyclic loading tests were conducted on seven circular RC columns, six of which were suffered from corrosion with duration of 360 days. Four of the corroded specimens were afterwards strengthened by C-FRCM composites. Among these, two specimens were externally bounded with two layers of C-FRCM, the other two specimens were externally bounded with three layers of C-FRCM. After the corrosion process, cyclic loading tests were conducted on the specimens, wherein various axial compression (AC) ratios were considered. The test results show that the secant stiffness, strength, ductility and energy dissipation capacity of corroded specimens were significantly reduced compared with those of the uncorroded counterparts. This phenomenon is severer with larger AC ratio. The C-FRCM can effectively enhance the stiffness, strength, ductility and energy dissipation capacity of the corroded RC columns, wherein two layers of C-FRCM is considered to be desirable for the C-FRCM strengthening approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The conventional way to fabricate current sub-ambient daytime radiative cooling (SDRC) systems is to maximally suppress the cooler's solar absorption and substantially improve its selective emissivity only in the atmospheric transparency window. This greatly limits the selection of materials and their practical applications. In this paper, an alternative method, which combines sunlight-triggered fluorescent cooling, particle scattering, and broadband infrared radiation, was presented for creating serial eco-friendly coatings with the SDRC effect with conventional cost-effective building materials. The presence of conventional fluorescent pigments in the coating composition increased the effective direct-normal solar reflectance via sunlight-excited fluorescent emissions to the level required for SDRC. When applied to various substrates, the serial coatings exhibited distinct SDRC effects under direct and strong sunlight in typical temperate monsoon climate regions such as Beijing. The observed sub-ambient temperature reduction of the coating with yellow–green fluorescence over an aluminium plate was 3.5 °C under a peak solar intensity of 996 W/m2, yielding a cooling power of 45.7 W/m2 under a peak solar intensity of 981 W/m2. Compared with the conventional cool white coatings, the large-scale application of the coating to urban surfaces is predicted to reduce a city's air temperature by approximately 1 °C and thereby decrease the Heat Island Intensity. Additionally, the method proposed in this paper was generic and expanded the SDRC design paradigm, thereby promoting SDRC as a viable energy-efficient technology. Image 1 • Fluorescent emissions increase the effective solar reflectance to an ideal level. • Fluorescent cooling is crucial for sub-ambient daytime radiative cooling (SDRC). • FR coatings over various substrates exhibit distinct SDRC effect. • The SDRC effect on an aluminium plate is 3.5 °C on a clear hot sunny day. • The cooling power is 45.7 W/m2 under a peak solar intensity of 981 W/m2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current sub-ambient daytime radiative cooling (SDRC) designs are generally evaluated in a well-insulated apparatus to suppress heat convection and conduction with the surrounding environment. In a companion study, we experimentally demonstrated that serial waterborne coatings, which combined particle scattering, sunlight-excited fluorescence, and mid-infrared broadband radiation, exhibited pronounced SDRC effects on various substrates installed on a well-designed rooftop setup under different climatic conditions. In this study, we experimentally show that the coating with yellow-green fluorescence (termed as the FR coating) can achieve meaningful SDRC under real working conditions. When applied to a concrete scale-model building, the FR coating showed a significant SDRC effect compared with other substrates installed on the rooftop cooling device and an assembled corrugated steel house. The average decrease in sub-ambient temperature under direct sunlight was 10.1 ± 1.4 °C with a maximum value of 12.4 °C under a peak solar intensity of 999 W/m2. Moreover, during the coldest day in winter, the maximum sub-ambient temperature reduction during the midday hours was 5.3 °C. The maximum difference between the lowest temperatures of the coated and uncoated scale-model buildings' room interiors was 1.5–1.6 °C. Therefore, excessive heating energy consumption in the winter might be completely compensated for or exceeded by the cooling energy savings in the summer in areas that require both heating and cooling depending on the season. Additionally, the coating possesses excellent weather and salt spray resistance, self-cleaning capabilities, and excellent visible appearance, which are essential for practical applications. Image 1 • The FR coating exhibits a distinct SDRC effect under real working conditions. • The FR coating over a concrete roof surface shows a more notable SDRC effect. • The SDRC design does not necessarily result in detrimental effects in winter. • The FR coating has excellent durability and outstanding self-cleaning properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article has been retracted: please see Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal (http://www.elsevier.com/locate/withdrawalpolicy). This article has been retracted at the request of the authors and the Editor-in-Chief due to insurmountable scientific disagreements over the authorship and section 3.1 in the linked first part of this article, which is being also retracted: "Generic method for creating waterborne coatings with sub-ambient daytime cooling–part I: Optical properties and rooftop cooling effect measurements", Solar Energy Material and Solar Cells 204 (2019):110205. 10.1016/j.solmat.2019.110205. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article has been retracted: please see Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal (http://www.elsevier.com/locate/withdrawalpolicy). This article has been retracted at the request of the authors and the Editor-in-Chief due to insurmountable scientific disagreements over the authorship and section 3.1. The linked second part of this article is also being retracted: "Generic method for creating waterborne coatings with sub-ambient daytime cooling–Part II: Cooling effect under real working conditions and key physical properties", Solar Energy Material and Solar Cells 204 (2019):110220. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article has been retracted: please see Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal (http://www.elsevier.com/locate/withdrawalpolicy). This article has been retracted at the request of the authors and the Editor-in-Chief due to insurmountable scientific disagreements over the authorship and section 3.1 in the linked first part of this article, which is being also retracted: "Generic method for creating waterborne coatings with sub-ambient daytime cooling–part I: Optical properties and rooftop cooling effect measurements", Solar Energy Material and Solar Cells 204 (2019):110205 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article has been retracted: please see Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal (http://www.elsevier.com/locate/withdrawalpolicy). This article has been retracted at the request of the authors and the Editor-in-Chief due to insurmountable scientific disagreements over the authorship and section 3.1. The linked second part of this article is also being retracted: "Generic method for creating waterborne coatings with sub-ambient daytime cooling–Part II: Cooling effect under real working conditions and key physical properties", Solar Energy Material and Solar Cells 204 (2019):110220. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) is a rare disease affecting the brain, leptomeninges, spinal cord, cerebrospinal fluid, or vitreoretinal compartment, without evidence of systemic disease. Prognosis is still poor after intensive methotrexate-based chemotherapy. Methods Clinical data of 91 patients treated in a tertiary referral center during a 13-year period were retrospectively reviewed. Results The estimated median progression-free survival and overall survival (OS) for the entire cohort were 39.1 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 14.1–64.0 months) and 54.5 months (95% CI, 28.9–80.1 months), respectively. Estimated 5-year progression-free survival and OS were 37.0% ± 6.5% and 47.5% ± 7.5%. Survival was associated with cycles of methotrexate only in multivariate analysis. Seventy-four patients received methotrexate-based chemotherapy after diagnosis. Thirty-nine patients experienced disease progression. Patients with relapsed/refractory disease had a poor survival, with median second OS (calculated from the date of first disease progression to the time of death from any cause) being 7.2 months (95% CI, 2.5–12.00 months). Three patients responded to ibrutinib after disease progression and incurred no fungal infection. Conclusions The outcomes of patients with PCNSL treated in our cohort are still poor. Relapse or refractory PCNSL and those not tolerating aggressive chemotherapy urgently require new approaches to improve their still dismal prognosis. Novel agents such as ibrutinib have shown promising clinical activity. Future studies should focus on the predictive biomarkers for the treatment of PCNSL with novel agents to provide precision medicine for PCNSL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A superamphiphobic self-cleaning passive subambient daytime radiative cooling (SSC-PSDRC) coating was applied to distributed telecommunication base stations (d-TBSs) in different climatic regions and showed prominent subambient cooling effect under direct sunlight even after more than one year. Relative to the cool-white-coated counterparts, the SSC-PSDRC-coated d-TBSs significantly reduced the cooling energy consumption. Within experimental errors, the measured cooling energy savings agreed excellently with the theoretical values predicted using different methods. After five cycles of dirt- and 2200 h of artificial accelerated weathering-resistance tests, the solar reflectance of the superamphiphobic PSDRC coating decreased by 0.015 and 0.023, respectively. [Display omitted] • A passive subambient daytime radiative cooling (PSDRC) coating was fabricated. • The superamphiphobic topcoat had contact angles > 150° and sliding angles < 10°. • The coating was applied to distributed telecommunication base stations (d-TBSs) • The PSDRC-coated d-TBSs showed remarkable PSDRC effect even after one year. • PSDRC d-TBSs greatly save cooling energy use relative to cool white controls. A superamphiphobic self-cleaning passive subambient daytime radiative cooling (SSC-PSDRC) coating with ultrahigh solar reflectance and emissivity was applied to distributed telecommunication base stations (d-TBSs) in various climatic regions. The SSC-PSDRC surface showed remarkable PSDRC effect both in the absence and presence of heat-producing electronic equipment. After exposure to severe outdoor conditions for more than one year, the top surface of the spotless d-TBS still exhibited a strong subambient cooling effect under peak sunlight conditions, owing to the presence of the SSC topcoat. Regardless of the identical appearance, the top-surface temperature difference during the noon hours between the cool-white- and SSC-PSDRC-coated d-TBSs was as high as 24.2 °C, resulting in a chamber interior temperature decrease of the SSC-SDRC-coated d-TBSs. Consequently, the measured cooling energy consumptions of the SSC-PSDRC-coated d-TBS in Kashgar for one year and that in Panzhihua for 290 d were 1044.9 and 2083.3 kWh, respectively, both of which were underestimated. In the long term, the annual cooling energy conservations estimated using different methods correlated well with the measured value in Kashgar. After five cycles of dirt- and 2200 h of artificial accelerated weathering-resistance tests, the solar reflectance of the SSC-PSDRC coating decreased by only 0.015 and 0.023, respectively. These excellent performances were attributed to the unique molecular structure of the superamphiphobic topcoat which contained networks of –Si–O–. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To overcome the issue of overheating and conserve cooling energy consumption, a superamphiphobic passive sub-ambient daytime radiative cooling (PSDRC) coating was extensively applied to distributed telecommunication base stations. The top surfaces of the battery and equipment cabinets coated with the PSDRC coating indicated prominent sub-ambient cooling effects regardless of the climate; this resulted in substantially lower surface temperatures compared with their counterparts. The applications of the PSDRC coating reduced the chamber interior temperature of an equipment cabinet by 10.4 °C during noon hours and by 6.0 °C before sunrise. The PSDRC-coated base stations could properly operate without air conditioners by replacing the closed door with a modified one containing an external exhaust system. The drastic decrease in the chamber interior temperature of the PSDRC base stations allowed them to conserve a considerable amount of cooling energy; this, resulted in cooling energy efficiencies between 31.7% and 64.9%. After more than one year, the surfaces of the PSDRC base station near busy city transit roads were still spotless and super non-wettable; this demonstrated the significance of the superamphiphobic self-cleaning topcoat and provided the top surfaces of the base stations in various regions with identical sub-ambient cooling effects on the initial state. • A passive subambient daytime radiative cooling (PSDRC) coating was prepared. • The PSDRC coating was superamphiphobic self-cleaning. • The PSDRC coating was used to distributed telecommunication base stations (TBSs). • The top surface of the PSDRC TBSs constantly showed subambient daytime cooling. • The cooling energy efficiency of the PSDRC TBSs was between 31.7% and 63.9%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effective thermal conductivity (ETC) of composites is of great significance for simulating the macroscopic heat transfer process. In this paper, an extension of the morphology efficiency is proposed, which quantifies the influence of morphology on composite ETC, and is initially derived from two extreme models-series and parallel ETC bounds. The morphology efficiency obtained from different bound models are compared. It concluded that the morphology efficiency derived from Hashin and Shtrikman bound models is the best representative of the morphology of isotropic composite materials, which can conveniently reveal the optimal volume fraction of inclusion phase and thermal conductivity of the ideal thermal response. For composites with inverse Simple Cubic, Body Centered Cubic, Face-Centered Cubic and Kelvin lattice, the corresponding prediction model of ETC is proposed in a wide range of porosity and thermal conductivity. Among them, the ETC model of Kelvin cell and inverse Simple Cubic cell can well predict the high porosity foam and foams filled with phases with thermal conductivity ratio r in the range of 3 to 8, respectively. [Display omitted] • The best morphology factor is derived from Hashin–Shtrikman bounds. • The models for effective thermal conductivity (ETC) of regular lattices are proposed. • The ETC model of Kelvin cell can well predict the ETC of the high porosity foam. • The ETC model of SC cell can well predict the ETC of Al−Sn and Fe−Cu alloys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ultra-high density of parallel planar defects is discovered within WC grains in V-doped cemented carbide. High resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) shows that such defects are stacking faults on the {10 1 ‾ 0} prismatic planes. The presence of multiple stacking faults within WC grain gives rise to a series of anomalous diffraction patterns, including the streaking of diffraction spots and forbidden fractional diffraction spots. Interestingly, quantitative analysis indicates that the density of stacking faults within the V-doped sample is one order of magnitude higher than that of the Ti-doped counterpart. Because the two doped samples are processed under the same condition, we conclude that the planar defects of WC grains in V-doped samples are largely produced during the sintering of cemented carbide. Aberration-corrected TEM images suggest that the formation of stacking faults can be ascribed to the merging of independently developed WC micro-pillars. The formation of such pillars can be further explained by the segregation of V-rich precipitates at the corners between basal and prismatic planes. The current finding not only unravels a new formation mechanism of stacking faults within WC grains, but also provides a new route to design superhard cemented carbides with interlaced stacking faults by simply doping solute atoms and controlling the sintering process, other than the traditional deformation method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, physics-informed neural networks (PINNs) have emerged as a promising method for solving partial differential equations (PDEs). In this study, we establish a deep learning computational framework, HL-nets, for computing the flow field of hydrodynamic lubrication involving cavitation effects. The Swift-Stieber (SS) and the Jakobsson-Floberg-Olsson (JFO) cavitation conditions are implemented in the PINNs to solve the Reynolds equation. For the non-negativity constraint of the SS cavitation condition, a penalizing scheme with a residual of the non-negativity and an imposing scheme with a continuous differentiable non-negative function are proposed. For the complementarity constraint of the JFO cavitation condition, the pressure and cavitation fraction are taken as the neural network outputs, and the residual of the Fischer-Burmeister (FB) equation constrains their complementary relationships. Multi-task learning (MTL) methods are applied to balance the loss terms of functions and constraints described above. To estimate the accuracy of HL-nets, we present a numerical solution of the Reynolds equation for oil-lubricated bearings involving cavitation. The results indicate that the proposed HL-nets can highly accurately simulate hydrodynamic lubrication involving cavitation phenomena. The imposing scheme can effectively improve the accuracy of the training results of PINNs, and it is expected to have great potential to be applied to different fields where the non-negativity constraint is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]