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Graphical abstract Highlights • This is the first report of using a multifunctional antibacterial nanocomposite for both photocatalytic and photothermal sterilization. • The nanocomposite exhibited greatly enhanced broad-spectrum antibacterial activity compared with previous antimicrobials. • Biocompatibility experiments showed that our composites are safe therapeutic materials for the treatment of bacterial infections. Abstract Despite the development of various drugs and materials, bacterial infections remain a serious problem for wound healing. Most current materials cannot simultaneously provide antibacterial effects, reusability, and biocompatibility, and participate in stimulating cellular behaviour to promote bacterial wound healing. Herein, multifunctional nitrogen-rich carbon-coated bismuth/cobalt nanoparticles (Bi@Co@CN) with foam-like structures synthesised by a simple two-step method showed remarkably improved magnetic and photoconversion effects. These are promising candidates as photodynamic inactivation materials. Within 20 min, >99.999% Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) were killed by the composite due to its strong ability to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) and thermal energy under simulated visible light. Additionally, Bi@Co@CN also displayed high stability: its antibacterial efficiency underwent rapid photodynamic inactivation over five cycles. In vitro results revealed that ROS and photothermal conversion of materials can seriously damage bacterial cell membranes and inhibit the virulence factors produced by bacteria, which ultimately leads to the death of S. aureus. Moreover, in vivo assessment of wound healing showed that the material was very effective for bacteria-accompanied wound healing and did not cause detectable damage to the major organs. Therefore, the Bi@Co@CN composite has great potential as a safe multimodal treatment system for active photodynamic inactivation and wound healing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract LiZn 1-x M x NbO 4 (M = Co, Ni) (x = 0–0.06) systems were fabricated by a facile solid-state reaction method. Structure and property relationships of spinel structured LiZn 1-x M x NbO 4 were investigated systematically. Appropriate amount of Co2+ and Ni2+ greatly improved the dielectric loss of LiZnNbO 4 ceramics. While, the dielectric loss deteriorated seriously when the doping content exceeded x = 0.02. The origin of dielectric loss in LiZn 1-x M x NbO 4 ceramics was investigated systematically. Moreover, the theoretical dielectric constant and linear expansion coefficient were calculated on the bases of the crystallographic parameters from XRD refinement. The temperature coefficient of resonant frequency calculated by the P-V theory agreed well with the test values. Due to the small doping content, the change in chemical bonds was negligible. Density became the major factor determining the variation of dielectric constant in LiZnNbO 4 ceramics. At last, excellent microwave dielectric properties were obtained: Ts = 1010 °C, ε r = 15.25, Q f = 107,000 GHz, τ f = −63.3 ppm/°C for LiZn 0.98 Co 0.02 NbO 4 and Ts = 995 °C, ε r = 14.85, Q f = 104,000 GHz, τ f = −61.7 ppm/°C for LiZn 0.98 Ni 0.02 NbO 4. Highlights • Structure and property of spinel structured LiZn 1-x M x NbO 4 are investigated. • The origin of dielectric loss in LiZn 1-x M x NbO 4 ceramics is clarified. • Dielectric constant and linear expansion coefficient are obtained by the P-V theory. • Excellent microwave performance make it a promising candidate for LTCC applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes an optimal design of quadrature-shaped pickup to satisfy various demands on performance at special positions for omnidirectional wireless power transfer (WPT). Omnidirectional WPT technology as a brand new way of energy supply has shown great potentials for charging objectives at all directions. In order to ensure the energy can be transmitted to arbitrary spatial directions, the orthogonal structure of three circular transmitting coils has been widely accepted matched with non-identical current control scheme. However, there are still some special positions where the transmitted power drops to the bottom which is not suitable for applications. Accordingly, this paper proposes an optimal design analysis for the quadrature-shaped pickup to satisfy different demands on either power or efficiency at such positions. The simulated analysis and experimental results are both given to verify the enhancement of the proposed quadrature-shaped pickup, which aims to provide a reference to fabricate an appropriate pickup up for utilizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose. Studies investigating efficacy and safety of bevacizumab in pterygium have increased and reported controversial results. Thus, we updated this meta-analysis to clarify the issue. Methods. Studies were selected through search of the databases Embase, PubMed, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) from their inception up until June 2017. The pooled risk ratio (RR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated for recurrence and complication rates by using random effects model. Results. 1045 eyes in 18 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) enrolled. Overall, the pooled estimate showed a statistically significant effect of bevacizumab on the reduction of recurrence (RR 0.74, 95% CI 0.56–0.97, P=0.03). Subgroup analyses presented significant results beneficial to bevacizumab (primary pterygium group, RR 0.53, 95% CI 0.33–0.83, P=0.006; conjunctival autograft group, RR 0.48, 95% CI 0.25–0.91, P=0.02; and follow-up longer than 12 months group, RR 0.36, 95% CI 0.13–0.99, P=0.05). No statistically significant difference was observed in complication rates. Conclusions. Application of bevacizumab showed a statistically significant decrease in recurrence rate following removal of primary pterygia, or in cases with conjunctival autograft, or with follow-up longer than 12 months, while complications were not increased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to evaluate the effects of ZrO 2 types including YSZ and nano-ZrO 2 as well as their contents on the phase compositions, macrostructures, microstructures, physical properties, mechanical properties and biocompatibility of Ti2448-ZrO 2 composites fabricated by spark plasma sintering (SPS). The mechanical properties such as hardness and compressive yield strength of the composites have been systematically investigated. The experimental results demonstrate that the hardness and compressive yield strength of the composites all dramatically increased with increasing the content of YSZ and nano-ZrO 2 . Meanwhile the nano-ZrO 2 could be beneficial to the uniformity of microstructure and improvement in mechanical strength of the composites. The biocompatibility of the composites containing nano-ZrO 2 was found to possess better corrosion resistance. In conclusion, Ti2448-ZrO 2 composites are potentially useful in biomedical applications with their mechanical and biological properties being evaluated in this work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of gas sensors based on metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) with highly regular morphology, highly stable structures, and easy preparation is greatly desired but remains a challenge. Herein, we first prepared a highly regular array of TiO 2 nanorods on FTO by a modified in situ hydrothermal method. Then a uniform SnO 2 layer grew on the nanorods to form a core-shell nanocomposite by an ion-layer adsorption-reaction process. The TiO 2 /SnO 2 sensors show enhanced gas sensing performance compared with the TiO 2 sensors, including higher sensitivity to ethanol, lower working temperature, and better long-term stability. And the highest ethanol response can be obtained when the growth cycle of the SnO 2 shell was two times. The gas-sensing mechanism of the TiO 2 /SnO 2 nanocomposites was discussed concerning the unique core-shell structure and a heterojunction between TiO 2 and SnO 2. • Core-shell TiO 2 /SnO 2 nanorod arrays were prepared via a facile two-step method. • The TiO 2 /SnO 2 exhibited better ethanol sensing properties compared with pristine TiO 2. • The enhanced ethanol sensitivity mechanism of TiO 2 /SnO 2 was discussed detailed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Powder metallurgy (PM) Ti–6Al–2Sn–4Zr–2Mo–0.1Si–(0, 2, 4)W (wt%) alloys were fabricated by thermomechanical consolidation of TiH 2 -based powder compacts and subsequent heat treatments. Samples of the as-fabricated alloys were also heated at 650 °C for 200 h. The addition of 2 or 4 wt%W to the base alloy changed its microstructure of parallel α/β lamellar colonies and grain boundary α (α GB) to an interwoven α/β t microstructure consisting of α GB and a network of interpenetrating α plates with β transformed structure (β t) domains comprising variants of fine α laths and β matrix. The partition of the β stabilizing W between β and α phases and the low diffusivity of W atoms limited the growth of α plates/laths, decreasing the thickness of α plates/laths and increasing the volume fraction of β. The increased hardening of the β phase and enhanced α/β interface strengthening associated with the 4 wt%W addition led to a significant increase in the tensile strength of the alloy from 1281 ± 10–1411 ± 12 MPa. However, the high flow stress and the very fine microstructure caused significant strain localization in the weak α GB , resulting in premature fracture of the α GB (intergranular fracture) and the low ductility (1.4%). Here, premature fracture meant the fracture occurred prior to the alloy reaching its ultimate tensile strength. The heating caused the β interlaths in the W-free alloy to partially dissolve and become β particles distributed along the original lines of β interlaths accompanied by the precipitation of α 2 -Ti 3 Al in the α plates. The addition of W inhibited the dissolution of β interlaths and caused the precipitation of a higher volume fraction of α 2 precipitates during heating. The microstructural changes caused by heating resulted in a slight decrease in strength and a significant decrease in ductility for the W-free alloy, but a significant increase of the yield strength of the 2 W and 4 W alloys with some sacrifice of the tensile ductility. The microstructural reasons for the effects on mechanical properties were analyzed with the assistance of detailed characterization of the dislocations in the deformed specimens. • Effects of W alloying on a PM Ti–6Al–2Sn–4Zr–2Mo–0.1Si alloy are investigated. • W refines α plates and enhances formation of β transformed structure domains. • W enhances hardening of the β phase and α/β interface strengthening. • W increases the microstructural stability and prevents the strength reduction from heating. • High W content promotes α 2 precipitation strengthening of the alloy after heating. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The phase composition, crystal structure and microwave dielectric properties of (1-x) (3ZnO-Nb 2 O 5 )-xGeO 2 were investigated systematically. The phase composition and phase transformation of (1-x) (3ZnO-Nb 2 O 5 )-xGeO 2 ceramics were confirmed by XRD refinement, SEM micrographs and EDS analysis. All sintered samples were composed of Zn 3 Nb 2 O 8 and ZnNb 2 O 6 phases. Phase transition between Zn 3 Nb 2 O 8 and ZnNb 2 O 6 was closely related the introduction of GeO 2 . When the doping content was low (x = 0–0.007), the phase transformation from ZnNb 2 O 6 to Zn 3 Nb 2 O 8 occurred, which was discovered for the first time. To clarify the phase transition, the local charge density and band structures were calculated using the CASTEP program. With the substitution of Ge 4+ , part of the electrons transferred from the oxygen atom to the middle of 'niobium-oxygen' and 'zinc-oxygen'. According, the covalency of 'niobium-oxygen' and 'zinc-oxygen' was enhanced. The shrinkage of ZnO 6 octahedron resulted in a decrease in the coordination number of zinc atoms. At last, the relationships between phase transition, crystal structure and the microwave performance were established. The system of 2.73ZnO-0.91Nb 2 O 5 -0.09GeO 2 sintered at 1150 °C for 6 h had excellent microwave dielectric properties: ε r  = 21.3, Q f  = 99,140 GHz, τ f  = −54 ppm/°C, which, to our best knowledge, the best performance with relative lower sintering temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In real decision making, decision makers tend to express their opinions with uncertainty when facing complicated decision problem and environment. This paper develops a novel consensus reaching process for multiple attribute group decision making (MAGDM) with hesitant fuzzy linguistic term sets (HFLTSs). Firstly, we define a new distance measure for two HFLTSs and propose a distance-based consensus measure for the MAGDM with HFLTSs. Then, based on this consensus measure, we develop a minimum adjustment distance consensus rule for the MAGDM with HFLTSs, which can minimize the adjustment distance between the original and adjusted opinions in the process of reaching consensus. Moreover, to obtain the collective opinion with maximum consensus, we develop a minimum distance aggregation model, which is to minimize the maximum of the distance between each decision maker's individual opinion and the collective opinion. Furthermore, based on the proposed consensus rule and aggregation model, we present a consensus reaching process for MAGDM with HFLTSs. Finally, we provide the convergence proof of the consensus reaching process, and a numerical example is used to demonstrate the validity of the consensus reaching process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transcranial magnetic stimulation has been gaining popularity in the therapy for several neurological disorders. A time-varying magnetic field is used to generate electric field in the brain. As the development of TMS methods takes place, emphasis on the coil design increases in order to improve focal stimulation. Ideally reduction of stimulation of neighboring regions of the target area is desired. This study, focused on the improvement of the focality of the Quadruple Butterfly Coil (QBC) with supplemental use of different passive shields. Parameters such as shape, position and permeability of the shields have been explored to improve the focus of stimulation. Results have been obtained with the help of computer modelling of a MRI derived heterogeneous head model over the vertex position and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex position using a finite element tool. Variables such as maximum electric field induced on the grey matter and scalp, volume and area of stimulation above half of the maximum value of electric field on the grey matter, and ratio of the maximum electric field in the brain versus the scalp have been investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, for the first time, we report the synthesis, preparation, and characterization of fatty acid-conjugated poly(ethylene glycol)-block-poly(epsilon-caprolactone) nanoparticles (FA-NPs), with the ultimate goal of improving drug delivery to the brain. These nanoparticles had a nano-size (<100 nm) with a fairly narrow size distribution (PDI = 0.2–0.3). They were non-hemolytic and non-cytotoxic. By employing curcumin, a poorly soluble herbal molecule, as a model, FA-NPs enhanced the drug solubility by >5.4 × 10 5 x. They showed moderate stability in serum and exhibited zero-order drug release. As a proof-of-concept, the brain uptake of oleic acid-NPs (OA-NPs) was examined in rats after intravenous injections. Relative to 1% DMSO and PEG-NPs formulations, the OA-NPs enhanced the brain accumulation of the loaded cargo by 4.28 and 1.94x, respectively. Apparently, these nanoparticles hold considerable promise in drug delivery to the brain and their potential applications for disorders of the central nervous system should be explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A wide range of estimates on global wetland methane (CH 4 ) fluxes has been reported during the recent two decades. This gives rise to urgent needs to clarify and identify the uncertainty sources, and conclude a reconciled estimate for global CH 4 fluxes from wetlands. Most estimates by using bottom-up approach rely on wetland data sets, but these data sets show largely inconsistent in terms of both wetland extent and spatiotemporal distribution. A quantitative assessment of uncertainties associated with these discrepancies among wetland data sets has not been well investigated yet. By comparing the five widely used global wetland data sets (GISS, GLWD, Kaplan, GIEMS and SWAMPS-GLWD), it this study, we found large differences in the wetland extent, ranging from 5.3 to 10.2 million km 2 , as well as their spatial and temporal distributions among the five data sets. These discrepancies in wetland data sets resulted in large bias in model-estimated global wetland CH 4 emissions as simulated by using the Dynamic Land Ecosystem Model (DLEM). The model simulations indicated that the mean global wetland CH 4 emissions during 2000–2007 were 177.2 ± 49.7 Tg CH 4 yr −1 , based on the five different data sets. The tropical regions contributed the largest portion of estimated CH 4 emissions from global wetlands, but also had the largest discrepancy. Among six continents, the largest uncertainty was found in South America. Thus, the improved estimates of wetland extent and CH 4 emissions in the tropical regions and South America would be a critical step toward an accurate estimate of global CH 4 emissions. This uncertainty analysis also reveals an important need for our scientific community to generate a global scale wetland data set with higher spatial resolution and shorter time interval, by integrating multiple sources of field and satellite data with modeling approaches, for cross-scale extrapolation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on SPOT VEGETATION data and meteorological data, NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) and its response to temperature and precipitation in China and its different regions were investigated over the period 1998–2013 by using the maximum value composite and linear regression methods. The results showed that NDVI presented significant increase (0.0046/a) for all of China and all the regions over the last 16 years. Meanwhile, annual mean temperature of China presented a slightly increasing trend, while the annual precipitation showed a slightly decreasing trend over the last 16 years. Nevertheless, there were differences between temperature and precipitation in the subregions of China. The Annual NDVI had better relationships with precipitation (r=0.126) compared to temperature (r=-0.094), and NDVI also had a good correlation with precipitation rather than temperature in different subregions of China. Additionally, human activities also made a difference to the trends of NDVI in some regions. This study is conductive to the effects of climate change on vegetation activity in future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • PEC catalysis of PET to produce formate was coupled with H 2 production. • FE for formate was up to 87% with Ni-Pi/α-Fe 2 O 3 photoanode. • The cell voltage of the PEC system was 270 mV lower than water splitting. • A PEC paradigm to upcycle real-world waste PET plastic was provided. There is no satisfactory treatment technology for plastic waste, which has been a global challenge so far. Here, we report a photoelectrochemical approach for efficient valorization of waste polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic to produce formate coupled with green hydrogen production. Due to the cocatalytic effect of nickel phosphate (Ni-Pi) on α-Fe 2 O 3 photoanode, the Faradaic efficiency of PET hydrolysate solution to formate reached as high as 87% in aqueous electrolyte without any additional oxidant. In addition, an integrated PET oxidation-hydrogen production system achieved a photocurrent density of 1.5 mA/cm2 at a cell voltage of 1.1 V, which is 270 mV lower than the conventional water splitting. Furthermore, we also demonstrate that high selective formate production was also applicable to real-world waste PET plastic. This work provides a sustainable paradigm on photoelectrochemical strategy to upcycle waste PET plastic into value-added chemicals and green hydrogen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The durability of the current polymeric heart valves remains to be improved, which has proven to be highly dynamics and species dependent. Herein, inspired by the fiber-reinforced structure of native valve leaflets, we developed a valve prototype with the polymer matrix reinforced by NiTi wires in the radial direction, to achieve both desirable dynamics control and stress reduction. Textile technology and computer modeling were primarily utilized for integrated construction and biomimetic geometry. The NiTi-reinforced textile composites had suitable properties with valve leaflets. The pulsating flow tests confirmed that the systolic hemodynamics and leaflet kinetics were significantly optimized through the stiffness-domination of NiTi wires. Particle imaging velocimetry measurements revealed the satisfactory flow field characteristic for VP40-RA6 when compared with other reinforced valves. Furthermore, the finite element analysis indicated that the maximum principal stress and the area percentage of that were significantly reduced. As a preliminary proof-of-concept, this novel valve prototype exhibited excellent comprehensive performance which would be beneficial for the further improvement of long-term durability and provide new insight into the design modification of heart valve prosthesis. [Display omitted] • The valve prototype was built by integrated textile technology and computer modeling. • The valve prototype exhibited excellent hemodynamics indicators and leaflet kinetics. • The flow field characteristic was satisfactory. • The polymer matrix within the hybrid leaflet sustained lower stress level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of efficient, environmentally friendly soil amendments is necessary in order to minimize the risk of metal contaminants (Cd, Pb, Cu, and Zn) to the soil ecosystem. As soil amendments, bovine bone meal (BM) and oyster shell meal (OS) reduced the mobility and bioavailability of metals primarily by increasing soil pH. Soil geochemical properties (pH, EC, CEC, Ca, P, and K) after amendment supplementation were more likely to affect metal migration than enzyme activity. Furthermore, BM and OS were found to suppress the Cd and Pb uptake by water spinach, keeping them below international standards for safe utilization. The protein and sugar content and peroxidase (POD) activity showed a significant negative correlation with the amount of metal in water spinach, whereas superoxide dismutase (SOD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX) activities and malondialdehyde (MDA) content exhibited a positive correlation with metal content in water spinach. We also found that BM and OS had less perturbation to phylum-level and genus-level bacterial composition during the remediation of heavy metals contaminated soil. Based on the above, we assume that BM and OS are eco-friendly soil amendments, which could improve soil nutrients contents, stabilize heavy metals and regulate bacterial community structure. Our research contributes to resource utilization of waste and holds promise for widespread application in current agricultural systems. [Display omitted] • BM and OS reduced the bioavailability of Cd, Pb, Cu, and Zn in soil. • BM and OS inhibited the uptake of Cd, Pb, Cu, and Zn by water spinach. • BM and OS reduced the abundance of metal-tolerant bacteria in soil. • Major geochemical factors altering the bacterial community were identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is an urgent medical need to develop effective therapies that can ameliorate damage to the radiation-exposed hematopoietic system. Nanozymes with robust antioxidant properties have a therapeutic potential for mitigating radiation-induced hematopoietic injury. However, enhancing nanozyme recruitment to injured tissues in vivo while maintaining their catalytic activity remains a great challenge. Herein, we present the design and preparation of a biomimetic nanoparticle, a mesenchymal stem cell membrane camouflaged Prussian blue nanozyme (PB@MSCM), which exhibits biocompatible surface properties and demonstrates enhanced injury site-targeting towards the irradiated murine bone marrow niche. Notably, the constructed PB@MSCM possessed redox enzyme-mimic catalytic activity and could scavenge overproduced reactive oxygen species in the irradiated bone marrow cells, both in vitro and ex vivo. More importantly, the administration of PB@MSCM significantly mitigated hematopoietic cell apoptosis and accelerated the regeneration of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. Our findings provide a new targeted strategy to improve nanozyme therapy in vivo and mitigate radiation-induced hematopoietic injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pancreatoduodenectomy (PD) is traumatic, difficult to perform, and has a high incidence of postoperative complications and perioperative mortality. Postoperative complications and pain occur frequently and seriously affect the psychological status of patients. Esketamine, an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, has analgesic and antidepressant effects. In this study, we aim to investigate the effect of esketamine on postoperative depression and pain in patients undergoing PD. Methods/design: This prospective, single-center, randomized control trial will include 80 patients who will undergo elective PD. The patients will be randomly assigned to two groups: the experimental group that will receive esketamine (n = 40) and the control group (n = 40). In the esketamine group, the analgesic pump will be connected immediately after surgery. A solution of esketamine 1.5 mg/kg + sufentanil 2 µg/kg, diluted to 150 mL, will be administered continuously for 72 h at the background infusion and impact doses of 1 mL/h and 2 mL/time, respectively; the locking time will be 10 min. The control group will receive sufentanil 2 µg/kg that will be administered as per the esketamine group. The primary outcome will be the Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD-17) score on the third day post-surgery (POD3). Secondary study indicators will include (1) visual analog scale (VAS) score and HAMD-17 score prior to surgery, immediately after entering the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) and 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 days after surgery; (2) Richmond Agitation-Sedation Scale (RASS) score at 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 days after surgery; (3) consumed doses of sufentanil and esketamine after surgery; (4) postoperative analgesia pump effective press times, rescue analgesia times, and rescue drug dosage, recording the number of rescue analgesia and rescue drug dosage at 6, 24, 48, and 72 h after the patient enters the PACU; (5) postoperative complications and adverse events; (6) postoperative hospital stay; (7) concentrations of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNP), 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) and interleukin-6, at 1, 3, and, 5 days post-surgery; and (8) the patient survival rate at 6 and 12 months post-surgery. Discussion: The study hypothesis is that the postoperative HAMD-17 and VAS scores, incidence of postoperative adverse reactions, and concentration of serum markers BDNP, 5-HT, TNF-α, and IL-6 in the experimental group will be lower than those in the control group. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov ChiCTR2200066303. Registered on November 30, 2022. Protocol version: 1.0 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of non-enzymatic and highly active electrocatalysts for glucose oxidation with excellent durability for blood glucose sensors has aroused widespread concern. In this work, we report a fast, simple, and low-cost NaBH4 reduction method for preparing ultrafine ternary PtPdCu alloy nanowires (NWs) with a 3D network nanostructure. The PtPdCu NWs catalyst presents significant efficiency for glucose oxidation-reduction (GOR), reaching an oxidative peak-specific activity of 0.69 mA/cm2, 2.6 times that of the Pt/C catalyst (0.27 mA/cm2). Further reaction mechanism investigations show that the NWs have better conductivity and smaller electron transfer resistance. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that the alloying effect of PtPdCu could effectively enhance the adsorption energy of glucose and reduce the activation energy of GOR. The obtained NWs also show excellent stability over 3600 s through a chronoamperometry test. These self-supported ultrafine PtPdCu NWs with 3D networks provide a new functional material for building blood glucose sensors and direct glucose fuel cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports a facile two-step synthesis route for the preparation of flower-like ZnO/α-Fe 2 O 3 nanorods (NRs). Flower-like ZnO NRs with the average diameter about 810 nm and length about 4.5 µm were firstly synthesized via a chemical solution method, and then ZnO NRs was coated with a continuous α-Fe 2 O 3 layer to form ZnO/α-Fe 2 O 3 core-shell structure through an ionic-layer adsorption and reaction method. The gas-sensing results show that the ZnO/α-Fe 2 O 3 NRs exhibit excellent sensitivity, selectivity, and response-recovery capacity to ethanol vapor at a low optimum temperature of 240 °C. In particular, compared with pure ZnO NRs and α-Fe 2 O 3 nanoparticles (NPs), the ZnO/α-Fe 2 O 3 NRs show an obvious improvement in gas sensing properties. The substantial improvement of sensing properties may be attributed to the unique microstructure and heterojunction formed between ZnO and α-Fe 2 O 3 . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) is transmitted by the Bemisia tabaci pest Middle East-Asia Minor 1 (MEAM1) in China. Isaria fumosorosea is a fungal pathogen of B. tabaci. However, the effects of fungal infection on TYLCV expression and transmission by MEAM1 are unclear. In this study, potted tomatoes containing second instar nymphs of MEAM1 were treated with I. fumosorosea IfB01 strain and the relationship between fungal infection in MEAM1 and its TYLCV transmission capacity was investigated. The results indicated that a significantly (p < 0.05) decreased incidence of transmission of TYLCV-infected plants (ITYPs) transmitted by second instar nymphs of MEAM1 infected with fungus. Further, we found a negative correlation between fungal conidial concentrations and eclosion rates of MEAM1, and a positive correlation between ITYPs and eclosion. In addition, when each plant was exposed to three adults treated with fungus, a significantly decreased transmission of TYLCV (TYTE) was observed in the infected group. However, the incidence of TYLCV-carrying MEAM1 adults (ITYAs) was not significantly different in the infected and control groups (p < 0.05). Nevertheless, a significant decrease in viral accumulation using TYLCV AC2 gene as a marker was observed in the fungus-infected MEAM1. In conclusion, the results suggested that I. fumosorosea infection decreases TYLCV accumulation in MEAM1 and subsequently reduces its transmission. Our study provides new insights into the relationship between host plant, plant virus, insect vector, and entomopathogenic fungus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel lead-free, high dielectric constant, ultra-wide temperature stable dielectric ceramic Ba 1−x Bi x Ti 1−x −y Zn 0.75x W 0.25x+y O 3+y (0.22≤x≤0.30, y=0.015) was synthesized by the traditional solid-state reaction method. The phase composition, electric and dielectric properties of the Ba 1−x Bi x Ti 1−x −y Zn 0.75x W 0.25x+y O 3 ceramics were investigated. The P-V-L dielectric theory was introduced. And, the chemical bond energy was calculated to track the changes in micro-structure. The relationships between chemical bond energy and the macroscopic dielectric properties(ε r , dielectric stability and dielectric loss ) in Ba 1−x Bi x Ti 1−x−y Zn 0.75x W 0.25x+y O 3+y ceramics were discussed systematically. Owing to the inhomogeneous micro-structure and the diffusion in phase transition, Ba 1−x Bi x Ti 1−x−y Zn 0.75x W 0.25x+y O 3+y ceramics showed a stable permittivity (~800±15%) over a ultra-wide temperature range (−30 to 375 °C). Moreover, dielectric loss was less than 0.02 and the insulation resistance was over 10 12 Ω cm. These features suggested that the Ba 1−x Bi x Ti 1−x−y Zn 0.75x W 0.25x+y O 3+y ceramic could be considered as a promising candidate material for energy storage applications in harsh environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multi-component BaTiO 3 –Bi 0.5 Na 0.5 TiO 3 –Nb 2 O 5 (BBNN) system doped with divalent metal ions (Zn 2+ , Co 2+ , Ni 2+ ) was prepared by the conventional solid–state method.The X-ray diffraction patterns revealed all samples exhibited perovskite (P4mm) single phase. The dielectric properties and micro-mechanisms were discussed and validated. Novel theories, based on the characteristics of the different kinds of dielectric polarization, are proposed to explain the dielectric anomalies in the dielectric system. The relationships between microstructure and the dielectric properties were investigated systematically for the first time. The samples doped with 15 mol% Zn 2+ /Co 2+ presented good dielectric properties of an ultra-broad temperature stable range (from −50 and >300), high dielectric constant (ε~1925 for Zn 2+ / ε~1341 for Co 2+ ) and low dielectric loss (tan δ<0.02) were obtained. These features made the ceramics system have high practical values for miniaturization and harsh environments applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two samples of an α + β Ti-4Al-4Mo-4Sn-0.5Si (wt%) alloy, one with fine prior β grains and a heterogeneous microstructure and the other with coarse prior β grains and a homogeneous microstructure were prepared by extrusion of compacts of TiH 2 /Al/Mo/Sn/Si powder blend at 1200 and 1300 °C respectively. The heterogeneous microstructure is manifested by softer Mo-rich regions with a full α/β lamellar structure containing a high number density of parallel and nanometer sized FCC δ (TiH) needles in a harder matrix with a microstructure consisting of interweaved α plates and β transformed structure (β t) domains and grain boundary α (GB α) layers. The matrix also contains a small fraction of Sn-rich regions which have the same microstructure as the matrix. The Mo-rich and Sn-rich regions form due to the limited diffusion of Mo and Sn alloying elements. This heterogeneous microstructure sustains a high tensile yield strength of 1199 MPa, a high strain hardening rate, and an excellent tensile ductility of 12.0%. In contrast, the homogeneous microstructure comprising of interweaved α plates and β t domains together with GB α layers sustains a similar high strength, but a clearly lower strain hardening rate and a significantly lower tensile ductility of 3.5%. Non-homogeneous deformation capacity, the release of energy by forming numerous microcracks and the intermittent growth of microcracks of the heterogeneous microstructure suggest that this microstructure has a high plasticity and high resistance to the growth of microcracks. • The α + β titanium alloy fabricated has a heterogeneous microstructure and fine prior β grains. • The heterogeneous microstructure encompasses softer Mo-rich regions in a matrix of α/β t microstructure. • This alloy exhibits a superior combination of high strength (YS: 1199 MPa and excellent ductility (12.0%). • This is attributed to the compatible deformation and high microcrack growth resistance of the microstructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As cities continuously expand and with the emergence of mega-city regions, the urban functional zones (UFZs) have spread beyond their original administrative boundaries. An accurate and updated delineation of the UFZs is crucial for assessing the functional integration between cities within a mega-city region. Mobility data provides a chance to depict the UFZs from actual human activities at a finer spatial scale. Existing studies mostly adopted network-based approaches relying on the topological relationship but ignoring spatial factors, causing the lack of sensitivity in detecting the cross-cities integration of the functional region. This research proposed a novel regionalisation algorithm that redraws non-overlap boundaries of urban functional zones based on the commuting origin-destination matrix, representing the spatial interactions within cities and cross-cities. In particular, functional zones are drawn by searching for the best partition with the best goodness of fitting in the hierarchical spatial interaction model. The algorithm was applied to a case study of a mega-city region, Shenzhen-Dongguan-Huizhou (SDH) area in China using mobile phone signalling data. By adopting two different settings, this model evaluated the current status and predict the future trend of urban integration respectively. The results show the current boundary of UFZs in the SDH area almost coincides with administrative boundaries. Meanwhile, the results of long-term predictions might be utilised by policymakers to give more attention to the areas near the Dongguan-Huizhou boundary to promote industry cooperation and avoid mismatches between the functional and administrative regions. • A hierarchical spatial interaction model for delineating urban functional zones. • An iteration-based algorithm for searching for the best partition of urban functional zones. • Using emerging mobile phone data for urban planning applications. • A case study of the SDH Area provides insights into cross-boundary city integration and related policy implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sulfur-rich polymers, synthesized through inverse vulcanization, with tunable heteroatom containing crosslinkers were investigated as the S-containing cathode active material within Li–S cells. The polymers possess up to 73% active sulfur while, importantly, not containing any unreacted, crystalline sulfur. Li–S-polymer cells achieve specific capacities of 1206 mAh g s −1 for an active material polymer containing 80 wt% sulfur, with 10 wt% of a structural crosslinker (dicyclopentadiene), and 10 wt% of an oxygen-containing crosslinker (ethylene glycol dimethacrylate). The high capacity achieved within this composition is associated with of this sample, in a higher average sulfur rank within the polymer structure. Furthermore, S-polymers with heteroatomic crosslinkers exhibited lower capacity fade (0.093% per cycle) compared with polymers without functionalized heteroatomic crosslinkers (0.165% per cycle) and elemental sulfur (0.312% per cycle). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy showed the inherent binding between the ester group carbonyl oxygen within the crosslinker to the long-chain lithium polysulfides, which may inhibit dissolution of these intermediates. • Sulfur polymers with heteroatom containing crosslinkers as cathode in Li–S cells. • Longer sulfur chains benefit electrochemical performance. • Chemical affinity of carbonyl groups impedes dissolution of polysulfides. • Highest specific capacity 1206 mAh g s −1, 0.093% capacity loss per cycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and Gansu Corridor of China with distinct geographic and climatic conditions are remote and less disturbed by humans, in which are likely to find some new strains of fungal entomopathogens against B-biotype whiteflies that is a very important invading pest worldwide. In this research, nineteen strains among six species of entomogenous fungi were isolated from the soil samples collected from 32 locations in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and Gansu Corridor. From the data of isolation rates, it was indicated that the good biodiversity of entomogenous fungi was found in the soil covered good vegetations. On the contrary, no strains were isolated from the desert areas. In addition, the dominant species, Isaria fumosorosea and Metarhizium anisopliae var. anisopliae in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau are different from the strains of other places based on ITS genetic homology analysis. It was verified that the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau area was less disturbed by human, and the fungi in this place exchanged less compared with other regional species. All of these strains showed the pathogenicity against the B-biotype whitefly with the mortality of more than 30%. However, a few strains of Paecilomyces lilacinus, Lecanicillium psalliotae, Aspergillus ustus, I. fumosorosea and M. anisopliae var. anisopliae had better virulence with LC50s of 0.36–26.44×106 spores/mL on post-treatment day 6–7. Especially, the L. psalliotae strain LpTS01 was the greatest virulence with LC50 of 0.36×106spores/mL and LT50 of 4.23d. Our research thus presents some new insights to discover new entomopathogenic fungal strains used for B-biotype whitefly biocontrol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Develop and evaluate an electrochemical method to identify healthy individuals, malignant hematopathic patients and solid tumor patients by detecting the leukocytes in whole-blood. Methods: A total of 114 individual blood samples obtained from our affiliated hospital in China (June 2015- August 2015) were divided into three groups: healthy individuals (n = 35), hematologic malignancies (n = 41) and solid tumors (n = 38). An electrochemical workstation system was used to measure differential pulse voltammetry due to the different electrochemical behaviors of leukocytes in blood samples. Then, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to analyze the scanning curves and to compare the peak potential and peak current. Results: The scanning curve demonstrated the specific electrochemical behaviors of the blank potassium ferricyanide solution and that mixed with blood samples in different groups. Significant differences in mean peak potentials of mixture and shifts (ΔEp (mV)) were observed of the three groups (P< = 0.001). 106.00±9.00 and 3.14±7.48 for Group healthy individuals, 120.90±11.18 and 18.10±8.81 for Group hematologic malignancies, 136.84±11.53 and 32.89±10.50 for Group solid tumors, respectively. In contrast, there were no significant differences in the peak currents and shifts. Conclusions: The newly developed method to apply the electrochemical workstation system to identify hematologic malignancies and solid tumors with good sensitivity and specificity might be effective, suggesting a potential utility in clinical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Peanut is an economically-important oilseed crop and needs a large amount of calcium for its normal growth and development. Calcium deficiency usually leads to embryo abortion and subsequent abnormal pod development. Different tolerance to calcium deficiency has been observed between different cultivars, especially between large and small-seed cultivars. Results: In order to figure out different molecular mechanisms in defensive responses between two cultivars, we treated a sensitive (large-seed) and a tolerant (small-seed) cultivar with different calcium levels. The transcriptome analysis identified a total of 58 and 61 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) within small-seed and large-seed peanut groups under different calcium treatments, and these DEGs were entirely covered by gene modules obtained via weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA). KEGG enrichment analysis showed that the blue-module genes in the large-seed cultivar were mainly enriched in plant-pathogen attack, phenolic metabolism and MAPK signaling pathway, while the green-module genes in the small-seed cultivar were mainly enriched in lipid metabolism including glycerolipid and glycerophospholipid metabolisms. By integrating DEGs with WGCNA, a total of eight hub-DEGs were finally identified, suggesting that the large-seed cultivar concentrated more on plant defensive responses and antioxidant activities under calcium deficiency, while the small-seed cultivar mainly focused on maintaining membrane features to enable normal photosynthesis and signal transduction. Conclusion: The identified hub genes might give a clue for future gene validation and molecular breeding to improve peanut survivability under calcium deficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH) and fondaparinux sodium (FPX) are routinely used to prevent deep vein thrombosis (DVT) after total knee arthroplasty (TKA). In this study, we compared the effects of these agents in preventing post-TKA DVT. Methods: Clinical data of patients who underwent unilateral TKA for unicompartmental knee osteoarthritis at the Ningxia Medical University General Hospital between September 2021 and June 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. Based on the anticoagulation agent used, the patients were divided into LMWH and FPX groups (34 and 37 patients, respectively). Changes in perioperative coagulation-related indicators, d-dimer and platelet count, perioperative complete blood count, amount of blood loss, lower-limb DVT, pulmonary embolism, and allogeneic blood transfusion were determined. Results: Intergroup differences in d-dimer or fibrinogen (FBG) levels before and 1 or 3 days after surgery were not significant (all p > 0.05); within-group pairwise comparisons indicated significant differences (all, p < 0.05). Intergroup differences in preoperative prothrombin time (PT), thrombin time, activated partial PT, and international normalized ratio were not significant (all p > 0.05), whereas significant differences were detected on postoperative days 1 and 3 (all p < 0.05). Intergroup differences in platelet counts before and 1 or 3 days after surgery were not significantly different (all p > 0.05). Pairwise comparisons of hemoglobin and hematocrit levels between patients in the same group before and 1 or 3 days after surgery revealed significant differences in both groups (all p < 0.05); however, intergroup differences were not significant (all p > 0.05). Although intergroup differences in visual analog scale (VAS) scores before and 1 or 3 days after surgery were not significant (p > 0.05), we detected significant intragroup differences in VAS scores before and 1 or 3 days after surgery (p < 0.05). The treatment cost ratio was significantly lower in the LMWH group than in the FPX group (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Both LMWH and FPX can effectively prevent DVT after TKA. There are some suggestive signals that FPX may have more beneficial pharmacological effects and clinical significance, while LMWH is cheaper and therefore more economical. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A water quality parameter retrieval scheme based on the UAV push-broom hyperspectral images was designed and validated for assessing the ecological health of Zhang Wei Xin River in Dezhou distinct, China. First, a UAV carrying a push-broom hyperspectral imager that is lightweight and has a small size was used to acquire high spatial and hyperspectral resolution images. Then, the mosaicked reflectance data of the whole river were produced by a seamless image mosaicking method with high geometrical accuracy and spectral fidelity. Next, the in-field measurements of different parameters and the corresponding spectral reflectance from the mosaicked images at the sampling points were used to build the water quality parameter retrieval models for total phosphorus (TP), chlorophyll a (Chla), and total suspended solids (TSS). To validate the model, the retrieval results of the testing sampling points were compared with the measured parameters. The coefficients of determination R2 of TP, Chla, and TSS were 0.886, 0.918, and 0.968, respectively. The retrieved TP, Chla, and TSS maps showed that the water pollution of Zhang Wei Xin River is serious, the total phosphorus exceeds the standard, and the water body is in a state of eutrophication. The UAV-based hyperspectral remote sensing technique provides a cost-effective method for inland water monitoring at a local scale with high accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• With an addition of 0.2 wt%Si, the Si atoms are equally in α and β phases. • Si solute atoms retard the growth of α phase, causing refinement of the α/β t lamellar structure. • Si atoms enhance solid solution strengthening and Si atoms enhanced α/β t interface strengthening. • Increasing the Si content to 0.5 wt% cause a further increase of the yield strength by 50 MPa. • With a high strength, the tensile ductility deteriorates, due to the premature fracture of grain boundary α layers. Ti-4Al-4Mo-4Sn-xSi (wt%) (x = 0, 0.2, 0.5) alloys were fabricated by hot extrusion of compacts of blends of TiH 2 , AlMo60 master alloy and other required elemental powders followed by heat treatments involving vacuum annealing, solution treatment, air cooling and aging. The microstructure of the alloys consists of α plates, lamellae of α and transformed β structure (β t), β t blocks as well as grain boundary α layers. With the addition of 0.2 wt%Si, the Si atoms exist in equal concentration in both α and β t regions as solute atoms, and they retard the growth of α phase, causing a decrease of the average thickness of α plates and lamellae and slight increase of the volume fraction of β t lamellae and blocks. The solid solution strengthening and enhanced α/β interface hardening brought by the 0.2 wt%Si cause the yield strength of the Ti-4Al-4Mo-4Sn alloy to increase significantly from 1030 to 1130 MPa with a slight decrease of the tensile ductility (7.4% vs 6.8%) and without changing the fracture behavior. With the addition of 0.5 wt%Si, the extra Si causes nanometer sized silicide (Ti 5 Si 3) precipitates to form in both α and β t regions and further microstructural refinement. The additional α/β interface hardening and precipitation hardening cause the yield strength of the alloy to increase further to 1177 MPa, but the tensile ductility deteriorates clearly with the elongation to fracture decreasing to 4.9%. The main reason for this ductility decrease is the premature fracture of grain boundary α layers caused by the higher flow stress which can induce more strain localization at the grain boundary α layers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A serious challenge faced by manufacturers of large-aperture aspheric optical components of glass ceramics is the long processing time. Ultrasonic vibration–assisted grinding (UVG) allows one to effectively shorten the subsequent polishing process by several times, which is essential for grinding of aspheric components. However, the surface creation mechanism of UVG-treated glass ceramics is rarely studied. Herein, rotary ultrasonic vibration–assisted vertical grinding (RUVG) and parallel grinding (RUPG) are applied to polish the aspheric glass ceramics. Particular attention is paid to the surface formation mechanism of UVG-processed ceramics. The single-grain kinematic functions are created and the contact characteristics between the grinding wheel and aspheric surface are analyzed for the two UVG methods in terms of contact area, velocity, and trajectory. In addition, aspheric grinding texture is simulated and comparative experiments are conducted correspondingly. According to the results, the rotary ultrasonic vibration mainly influences the microscopic grinding marks. Besides, the aspheric surface form accuracy of Pt and RMS value in RUVG is 2.16 and 3.71 times lower than those in RUPG, respectively, whereas the surface roughness–related parameters (mean deviation Sa and maximum height of profile Sz) in RUVG are 6.36% and 4.56% higher than those in RUPG. This indicates that RUVG is more suitable for high precision and efficiency grinding of the aspheric surface than RUPG due to the fact that the polishing depth is primarily determined by surface form accuracy rather than surface roughness. Thus, the current research enables an in-depth understanding of surface generation mechanism in rotary ultrasonic vibration–assisted grinding, pointing out its benefits in the high-efficiency aspheric surface manufacturing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The posttranscriptional gene regulation mediated by microRNAs (miRNAs) plays an important role in various species. However, to date limited miRNAs have been reported between fat and muscle tissues in beef cattle. In this paper, 412 known and 22 novel miRNAs in backfat as well as 334 known and 10 novel miRNAs in longissimus thoracis were identified in the Chinese Qinchuan beef cattle. Bta-miR-199a-3p, -154c, -320a and -432 were expressed at higher levels in backfat tissue, while bta-miR-1, -133a, -206, and -378 were also significantly enriched in muscle tissue. Functional analysis revealed that fat-enriched miRNAs targeted PRKAA1/2, PPARA and PPARG genes to modulate lipid and fatty acid metabolism, and muscle-enriched miRNAs targeted CSRP3 gene to present function involved in skeletal and muscular system development. The results obtained may help in the design of new selection strategies to improve beef quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] A novel quaternary chalcogenide KBiCu2S3 has been synthesized via a facile hydrothermal approach. [•] The critical influencing factors for the crystal growth were discussed in detail. [•] The magnetic and electrical properties of KBiCu2S3 were also studied. [•] The band gap of the compound is 1.29 eV. [•] Its photoelectric response was also characterized, which demonstrated the potential for applications in photovoltaic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) propulsion technology is significantly related to the flight performance of UAVs, which has become one of the most important development directions of aviation. It should be noted that UAVs have three types of propulsion systems, namely the fuel, hybrid fuel-electric, and pure electric, respectively. This paper presents and discusses the classification, working principles, characteristics, and critical technologies of these three types of propulsion systems. It is helpful to establish the development framework of the UAV propulsion system and provide the essential information on electric propulsion UAVs. Additionally, future technologies and development, including the high-power density motors, converters, power supplies, are discussed for the electric propulsion UAVs. In the near future, the electric propulsion system would be widely used in UAVs. The high-power density system would become the development trend of electric UAVs. Thus, this review article provides comprehensive views and multiple comparisons of propulsion systems for UAVs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We focus on the unification and fusion of heterogeneous distributed linguistic information. • We present several minimum information-loss transformation models with desirable properties. • We present a multi-attribute group decision making framework in a heterogeneous distributed linguistic context. • We demonstrate the necessity of flexibility in distributed linguistic decision making. In the problems that linguistic assessments are conducted by adopting multiple sources of information representations, the management of unification of heterogeneous information and information loss are necessary. To support a useful fusion of heterogeneous distributed information in linguistic group decision making, a minimum information-loss transformation framework is proposed in this paper. First, distributed linguistic distance measurements are defined to measure information loss among heterogeneous distributed linguistic preference information, and then several minimum information-loss transformation models (MILTMs) with desirable properties are proposed. Furthermore, the application of the MILTMs in addressing the fusion of heterogeneous distributed linguistic information in a multi-attribute group decision context is discussed, and the flexibility of distributed linguistic information is studied to justify the MILTMs through numerical examples and comparative analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Halide perovskite quantum dots have attracted considerable research interest as excellent candidate for photonic and optoelectronic applications due to their unique optoelectronic properties. Stability is prerequisite and therefore is of critical importance. Here we demonstrate highly stable luminescent CsPbBr 3 quantum dots (QDs) can be achieved in different glass matrices via the high temperature melting process and melt-quench method. The microstructure of CsPbBr 3 QDs glass as well as their optical properties are systematically characterized by microscopic techniques and time-resolved spectroscopic techniques. We conclude the surface passivation is the key aspect for the high stability and high luminescence by embedding the quantum dots in the glass matrix. This study provides technical method to form highly stable luminescent solid devices and detailed physical understanding which is critical for the practical applications. • Luminescence in CsPbBr 3 QDs glass were study. • CsPbBr 3 QDs precipitated in 3 kinds of glass matrices. • Exciton recombination is confirmed as the dominant radiative mechanism. • the QDs glass could be flexibly fabricated into various device. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polyanion Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 belongs to sodium-ion super conductor (NASICON) materials, and its NASICON framework offers a stable sodium capacity. The open three-dimensional (3D) channels can provide the transfer paths for sodium-ions. Besides, the unique 3D structure is helpful to achieve the high reversibility of charge and discharge processes. As the cathode compounds for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs), Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 materials meet requirements of low cost and high safety. Moreover, Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 materials possess a high voltage platform and have been widely concerned in SIBs. It is deemed that Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 is a promising cathode material for SIBs. However, the low electronic conductivity of Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 materials hampers the rate capability. Herein, the recent researches of Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 are roundly reviewed. Firstly, this paper introduced the structural characteristics of Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 materials. And then synthetic methods were narrated, such as sol-gel, spray-drying, hydrothermal, electrospinning, and solid-state reaction methods. Moreover, the modified researches of Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 were summarized, mainly including carbon coating, nanocrystallization, and ionic doping. Finally, we prospected the future development direction of Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 modification methods, and made a few suggestions. • The transfer mechanism of sodium ions in Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 is explained in more detail. • The methods of experimental synthesis of Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 materials are reviewed. • The latest research progress in modification methods of Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 as cathodes materials for sodium ion battery is reviewed. • Several suggestions on the modification of Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 materials are put forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The bi-layer composite ceramic armors are widely used in the protection field, and its design method is keep changing since the Florence model has been found. In this study, an analytical design method of bi-layer was proposed and examined with a new ceramic protection efficiency definition. With this definition, the protection efficiency of composite ceramic armor can be divided into two independent parts: the protection efficiency of ceramic and the protection efficiency of backing plate. By using this analytical design method, the design of the bi-layer ceramic armor can be more efficiency and the material of armor can be selected more accurately. [Display omitted] • A design method for bi-layer ceramic armors is established. • Proposed method was verified using numerical simulation and bullet impact experiments. • Analytical solution was in predicting total armor protection efficiency per unit area density. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

W–Re alloys find wide application in high-temperature measurements and as components of engines and aircraft. However, their low oxidation and thermal shock resistances have limited their application at high temperatures in oxidized atmospheres. In this work, an inner WSi 2 coating was first prepared on the surface of the W-26Re alloy by pack cementation. Subsequently, an outer ZrB 2 -HfO 2 -SiC (ZHS) coating was prepared by the sol-gel method and blade coating, using self-prepared nano-HfO 2 fibers introduced in different ratios (0%, 3%, 6%, and 9%). Following thermal shock tests at 1073–1773 K, the coatings toughened by nano-HfO 2 fibers with high melting point (above 3000 K) showed better thermal shock resistance, especially the 6% HfO 2 -doped coatings. The 6%Hf-ZHS coating underwent the highest number of thermal shock cycles (369), 385.5% and 210.1% higher than those experienced by W-26Re and ZHS. In addition, the thermal shock resistance of ZHS was 56.6% better than of the bare W-26Re alloy. Finally, the protection mechanism of the above coatings was explained by scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A multifunctional and biocompatible hybrid microgel (poly(VPBA-AAm)-CD) using N, S-doped carbon dots (CDs) and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) as cross-linking agents, and 4-vinylbenzene boronic acid (VPBA) and acrylamide (AAm) as monomers, was designed in this work. This microgel can be easily prepared by a simple one-pot radical dispersion polymerization of the reactants using a rationally designed hydrogen-bonded complex method. The hybrid microgels were spherical particles with a smooth surface and an average particle size of 234 ± 8 nm. The poly(VPBA-AAm)-CD microgel displayed the glucose-responsive swelling within a clinically concerned range at a physiological pH and could realize the controllable release of insulin. In addition, the release rate of insulin in the hybrid microgel (poly(VPBA-AAm)-CD) could be triggered by glucose concentrations in the solution, and the increasing glucose concentrations can accelerate the insulin release. Further in vitro cytotoxicity studies showed that the microgel had good biocompatibility and no obvious toxicity to the cells. These indicate that the prepared microgel (poly(VPBA-AAm)-CD) may supply a new pattern for the self-regulating therapy of insulin deficiency in diabetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Open in new tab Download slide OBJECTIVES The goal of this study was to compare clinical outcomes of double arterial cannulation (DAC), axillary cannulation and femoral cannulation in patients undergoing frozen elephant trunk for type A aortic dissection. METHODS Between 2015 and 2020, the study included 488 patients and was divided into 3 groups: 171 in the DAC group, 217 in the axillary group and 100 in the femoral group. Overall survival was the primary end point and clinical outcomes were analysed after inverse probability weighting. RESULTS A total of 43 patients died during the follow-up period. DAC group presented higher percentages of coeliac trunk, renal and iliac artery malperfusion, but early outcomes and overall survival did not differ among groups. Subgroup analyses suggested that in patients requiring cardiopulmonary bypass duration ≥180 min, DAC approach was associated with a tendency to improved overall survival compared with axillary [hazard ratio (HR): 0.35, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.14–0.90, P = 0.029) and femoral cannulation (HR: 0.38, 95% CI: 0.14–1.03, P = 0.058). Inverse probability weighting adjustment (axillary as reference: HR: 0.34, 95% CI: 0.13–0.86, P = 0.022; femoral as reference: HR: 0.33, 95% CI: 0.11–0.90, P = 0.030) and multivariable Cox proportional hazards model (covariates including age, gender, acute dissection, any organ malperfusion and deep hypothermic circulatory arrest) confirmed this result. CONCLUSIONS DAC approach was commonly used in patients with branch artery malperfusion and clinical outcomes did not differ compared with axillary and femoral cannulation. It provides a flexible and effective option with adequate perfusion for cases with various dissection-involved statuses and prolonged cardiopulmonary bypass duration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antiferroelectric film capacitors have attracted increasing attention due to their excellent energy storage properties. In this work, PbZrO 3 (PZO) antiferroelectric films have been prepared on the flexible fluorphlogopite (Mica) and rigid Pt/Ti/SiO 2 /Si substrates with a seed layer of LaNiO 3 (LNO) layer by sol-gel process. The microstructure and energy storage properties of the films have been systematically studied. The results show that the Mica-Pt-LNO-PZO (M -LNO-PZO) thin film has an improved energy storage density (W rec) of 16.6 J/cm3 with a charge and discharge efficiency (η) of 50.4%. Furthermore, the flexible thin films exhibit good stability under a wide working temperature range of 25–140 °C and an electric fatigue endurance of 107 cycles. Besides, the capacitive films can endure a bending radius of 4 mm and 104 bending cycles (@ r = 4 mm) with almost unchanged in the energy storage properties. The excellent energy storage properties endow inorganic thin films with great potential in flexible electronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

IW And-type dwarf novae are anomalous Z Cam stars featured with outbursts happening during standstill states, which are not expected in the standard disc instability model. The physical mechanisms for these variations remain unclear. In this study, we report the discovery of a new candidate IW And-type dwarf nova J0652+2436, identified with its frequent outbursts from the slowly rising standstill states. Luckily, the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite observations during a long standstill state and the earlier K2 observations give a chance to find the orbital and negative superhump period in the light curve of J0652+2436, allowing the measurement of its mass ratio of 0.366. This mass ratio is marginally possible for the tidal instability to set in according to previous smoothed particle hydrodynamics simulations. Thus, we propose that the outbursts in J0652+2436 are likely to be caused by the growing accretion disc during standstills, in favour of the previous hypothesis of the mechanisms lying in all IW And stars. We conclude that J0652+2436 might be the first IW And star with both a precessing tilted disc and tidal instability, which will be an important laboratory for studying the accretion disc dynamics and help understand the IW And phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban crowd flow prediction is an important task for transportation systems and public safety. While graph convolutional networks (GCNs) have been widely adopted for this task, existing GCN-based methods still face challenges. Firstly, they employ fixed receptive fields, failing to account for urban region heterogeneity where different functional zones interact distinctly with their surroundings. Secondly, they lack mechanisms to adaptively adjust spatial receptive fields based on temporal dynamics, which limits prediction performance. To address these limitations, we propose an Adaptive Receptive Field Graph Convolutional Network (ARFGCN) for urban crowd flow prediction. ARFGCN allows each region to independently determine its receptive field size, adaptively adjusted and learned in an end-to-end manner during training, enhancing model prediction performance. It comprises a time-aware adaptive receptive field (TARF) gating mechanism, a stacked 3DGCN, and a prediction layer. The TARF aims to leverage gating in neural networks to adapt receptive fields based on temporal dynamics, enabling the predictive network to adapt to urban regional heterogeneity. The TARF can be easily integrated into the stacked 3DGCN, enhancing the prediction. Experimental results demonstrate ARFGCN's effectiveness compared to other methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stance detection is a crucial task in natural language processing and social computing, focusing on classifying expressed attitudes towards specific targets based on the input text. Conventional methods predominantly view stance detection as a task of target-oriented, sentence-level text classification. On popular social media platforms like Twitter, users often express their opinions through hashtags in addition to textual content within tweets. However, current methods primarily treat hashtags as data retrieval labels, neglecting to effectively utilize the semantic information they carry. In this paper, we propose a large language model knowledge-enhanced stance detection framework (LKESD) for stance detection. LKESD contains three main components: an instruction-prompted background knowledge acquisition module (IPBKA) that retrieves background knowledge of hashtags by providing handcrafted prompts to large language models (LLMs); a graph convolutional feature-enhancement module (GCFEM) is designed to extract the semantic representations of words that frequently co-occur with hashtags in the dataset by leveraging textual associations; an a knowledge fusion network (KFN) is proposed to selectively integrate graph representations and LLM features using a prompt-tuning framework. Extensive experimental results on three benchmark datasets demonstrate that our LKESD method outperforms 2.7% on all setups over compared methods, validating its effectiveness in stance detection tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The amorphous form of poorly soluble drugs is physically unstable and prone to crystallization, resulting in decreased solubility and bioavailability. However, the conventional accelerated stability test for amorphous drugs is time-consuming and inaccurate. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop rapid and accurate stability assessment technology. This study used the antitumor drug nilotinib free base as a model drug. The degree of disorder and physical stability in the amorphous form was assessed by applying the pair distribution function (PDF) and principal component analysis (PCA) methods based on powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) data. Specifically, the assessment conditions, such as the PDF interatomic distance range, PXRD detector type, and PXRD diffraction angle range were also optimized. The results showed that more reliable PCA data could be obtained when the PDF interatomic distance range was 0–15 Å. When the PXRD detector was a semiconductor-type detector, the PDF data obtained were more accurate than other detectors. When the PXRD diffraction angle range was 5–40°, the intermolecular arrangement of the amorphous drugs could be accurately predicted. Finally, the accelerated stability test also showed that under the above-optimized conditions, this method could accurately and rapidly assess the degree of disorder and physical stability in the amorphous form of drugs, which has obvious advantages compared with the accelerated stability test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to resolve the issue of physical instability in amorphous solid drugs, which can result in unwanted crystallization, affecting solubility and dissolution rates. The focus was on precipitating physically stable amorphous forms of the nilotinib free base, an anticancer drug, by monitoring preparation conditions such as precipitation temperature and filter cake thickness. A comprehensive set of characterization techniques, including powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and focused beam reflectance measurement (FBRM), were used. These were supplemented by advanced data analysis methods that incorporated pair distribution function (PDF), reduced crystallization temperature (Rc), and principal component analysis (PCA) to evaluate the physical stability of the amorphous samples. Results emphasized that optimal physical stability was achieved when amorphous solids were prepared at a precipitation temperature of 10 °C and a filter cake thickness of 4 cm. Moreover, the integration of PDF analysis with Rc values was confirmed as an innovative approach for assessing physical stability, thus offering enhanced efficiency and accuracy over conventional accelerated stability testing methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the evolving landscape of portable electronics, there is a critical demand for components that meld stretchability with optical transparency, especially in supercapacitors. Traditional materials fall short in harmonizing conductivity, stretchability, transparency, and capacity. Although poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) stands out as an exemplary candidate, further performance enhancements are necessary to meet the demands of practical applications. This study presents an innovative and effective method for enhancing electrochemical properties by homogeneously incorporating Ru(III) into PEDOT:PSS. These Ru(III) PEDOT:PSS complexes are readily synthesized by dipping PEDOT:PSS films in RuCl3 solution for no longer than one minute, leveraging the high specific capacitance of Ru(III) while minimizing interference with transmittance. The supercapacitor made with this Ru(III) PEDOT:PSS complex demonstrated an areal capacitance of 1.62 mF cm−2 at a transmittance of 73.5%, which was 155% higher than that of the supercapacitor made with PEDOT:PSS under comparable transparency. Notably, the supercapacitor retained 87.8% of its initial capacitance even under 20% tensile strain across 20,000 cycles. This work presents a blueprint for developing stretchable and transparent supercapacitors, marking a significant stride toward next-generation wearable electronics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]