Search

Abstract: Civil aviation in China has developed rapidly in recent years, and the effects of civil aviation emissions on the atmospheric environment should not be neglected. The establishment of emission inventories of atmospheric pollutants from civil aviation contributes to related policy formation and pollution control. According to the 2010’s China flight schedules, aircraft/engine combination information and revised emission indices from the International Civil Aviation Organization emission data bank based on meteorological data, the fuel consumption and HC, CO, NO x , CO2, SO2 emissions from domestic flights of civil aviation in China (excluding Taiwan Province) in 2010 are estimated in this paper. The results show that fuel consumption in 2010 on domestic flights in China is 12.12 million tons (metric tons), HC, CO, NO x , CO2 and SO2 emissions are 4600 tons, 39,700 tons, 154,100 tons, 38.21 million tons and 9700 tons, respectively. The fuel consumption and pollutant emissions of China Southern Airline are responsible for the largest national proportion of each, accounting for 27% and 25–28%, respectively. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This study examines patterns of foreign patents and their determinants in China from 1985 to 1999. It reveals that China’s patent system is not significantly different from those in most countries, though it is more oriented towards promoting technology diffusion rather than protecting inventors’ rights. Since China patent law came into force in 1985, foreign patents, as well as China’s domestic patents have been growing rapidly. The study confirms the substantial differences between foreign patents in China and China’s domestic patents revealed by previous studies. First, foreign patents primarily fall within the category of inventions, whereas the majority of Chinese domestic patents consist of utility models and industrial designs. Second, foreign patents in China are largely awarded to organizations, while individuals comprise the majority of Chinese domestic patentees. Third, foreign patents in China concentrate in a small number of advanced and newly industrialized economies (NIEs). In addition, this study finds that foreign patents in China are primarily driven by demand factors such as imports from the origin countries, while innovative capabilities of the origin countries or their distances from China are not very significant yet. Finally, this study reveals that innovative capabilities of foreign countries are starting to show significant impacts on their patents in China, particularly on inventions, indicating increasing competition in the Chinese market. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• This study investigates the shear capacity of PC hollow slabs of existing bridges. • The effect of adding a 15-cm-thick concrete layer on shear capacity is explored. • Slabs of various span lengths were tested under incremental loading until failure. • The load-displacement curves and failure mechanisms are reported. • Modified formulae for calculating the shear capacities of the slabs are proposed. Prestressed concrete (PC) hollow slab is widely used in the construction of short and medium span highway bridges in China. With the increase in the highway load, the shear capacity of hollow slab bridges constructed before the 1990s can no longer meet the requirements of new safety regulations. Further research on the shear capacity of PC hollow slabs is necessary to ensure their safety, as these bridges continue to be operational. In this study, twelve hollow slabs with spans of 20 m, 16 m, and 10 m were tested to determine the shear performance of existing PC hollow slabs. Some hollow slabs were reinforced with a 15-cm thick concrete layer on the top surface to determine its effect on the shear capacity. The load-displacement curve, web strain, cracking and ultimate loads, and cracking and failure mode of the hollow slab were experimentally determined. The finite element method was used to simulate the shear process. The results show that the 10-m hollow slabs exhibited bending-shear failure, the 16-m hollow slabs exhibited shear compression failure, and the 20-m hollow slabs exhibited diagonal compression failure. Abdominal shear oblique cracks occurred on the webs of the hollow slabs with spans of 16 m and 20 m, whereas bending shear oblique cracks were formed in the 10-m hollow slabs. With post-casting of the 15-cm thick concrete layer, the cracking loads of the hollow slabs with spans of 10 m, 16 m, and 20 m increased by 47%, 32%, and 8%, whereas the ultimate loads increased by 41%, 22%, and 18%, respectively. A comparison of the results calculated based on design specifications and the test results shows that the design provisions for specifications related to the shear capacity are highly conservative. Finally, the conventional formula for the shear capacity was modified, and new formulas were proposed based on the test results and numerical simulation results to predict the shear capacities of the 10-m and 16-m/20-m PC hollow slabs. For these hollow slabs, the mean ratios of the calculated value to the experimental/simulated value obtained using the proposed formulas are 0.993 and 0.956, and the variances are 0.005 and 0.013, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lumnitzera littorea (Jack) Voigt is one of the most endangered mangrove species in China. Previous studies have showed the impact of chilling stress on L. littorea and the repsonses at physiological and biochemical levels, but few attentions have been paid at molecular level. In this study, we conducted genome-wide investigation of transcriptional and post-transcriptional dynamics in L. littorea in response to chilling stress (8 °C day/5 °C night). In the seedlings of L. littorea , chilling sensing and signal transducing, photosystem II regeneration and peroxidase-mediated reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging were substantially enhanced to combat the adverse impact induced by chilling exposure. We further revealed that alternative polyadenylation (APA) events participated in chilling stress-responsive processes, including energy metabolism and steroid biosynthesis. Furthermore, APA-mediated miRNA regulations downregulated the expression of the genes involved in fatty acid biosynthesis and elongation, and protein phosphorylation, reflecting the important role of post-transcriptional regulation in modulating chilling tolerance in L. littorea. Our findings present a molecular view to the adaptive characteristics of L. littorea and shed light on the conservation genomic approaches of endangered mangrove species. • Chilling stress caused damage to cell membrane and photosynthesis of L. littorea. • L. littorea coped with cold stress at transcriptional and post-transcriptional level. • Photosystem II regeneration and ROS scavenging were enhanced against oxidative damage. • APA acts a fine-tuning role in regulating stress-responsive gene expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper analyzes the nature of FDI local networks in production and R&D activities in China and discusses their implications for technological dynamism and regional development. We investigate foreign ventures (or foreign-invested enterprises, FIEs) in the information and communication technology (ICT) industry, based on a large-scale survey of ICT firms conducted in three mega-city regions of China: Beijing, Shanghai–Suzhou, and Shenzhen–Dongguan. Our data show that FIEs in China are gradually localizing their production, but the extent of local embeddedness is contingent upon home country effects, local specific contexts and FDI–host region relationships. We have also found significant influence of industrial agglomeration on FDI location and network decisions. Beijing tends to have broader FDI sources and better integrated global–local networks, while in those regions dominated by FDI such as Suzhou and Dongguan, FIEs are thinly embedded with local economies and tend to establish global–local networks among themselves; local embeddedness is limited by a series of technological, institutional, spatial, and structural mismatches. Shanghai and Shenzhen are in between. More efforts are still needed to better integrate FDI with local economies and strengthen China’s local innovative capacities. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]