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Phosphogypsum is a solid waste generated during the production of phosphoric acid. Effective utilization of phosphogypsum resources is a complex challenge. In this research, an innovative and eco-friendly sand consolidation technique, i.e., microbial-induced CaCO 3 precipitation using phosphogypsum (MICPP), is applied to achieve phosphogypsum mineralization and sand stabilization. Phosphogypsum is employed as a calcium source for sand consolidation. To elucidate the efficiency and the mechanism of sand consolidation through MICPP, a series of experimental tests on the sand columns using varying phosphogypsum dosages and consolidation methods are conducted. The results show a positive correlation between the increase in phosphogypsum dosage and the increase in the compressive strength of the specimens. Concurrently, As the amount of phosphogypsum increased, the permeability coefficient of the sand columns decreased and the production of CaCO 3 increased. Notably, the immersion method exhibits a superior curing effect compared to the stirring method. The MICPP-treated specimens significantly mitigated the risk of environmental contamination. The CaCO 3 precipitated by the microbial action is predominantly in the form of calcite that effectively fills the voids, bond surfaces, and bridge gaps in the sand columns, thereby substantially enhancing the performance of sand columns. • The application of MICPP was suggested for the stabilization of sands. • MICPP can enhance the unconfined compressive strength, reduce permeability, and promote CaCO 3 generation in sand columns. • Sand columns stabilized by MICPP exhibit reduced environmental contaminability and hazard. • The microscopic mechanism of MICPP in sand stabilization was elucidated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In-situ photocatalysis technology has become a hot research topic in the field of water treatment today due to its simple operation, environmental friendliness, and low energy consumption. This technology can not only effectively treat persistent organic pollutants in water bodies, but also remove heavy metal ions and microorganisms, thus significantly improving water quality. However, most research to date remains at the laboratory stage, and the application of in-situ photocatalysis technology in natural water bodies is still in its infancy. This paper systematically reviews the characteristics of this technology, the main factors affecting photocatalytic reactions in natural water bodies, the performance of photocatalytic reactions, the existing shortcomings, and proposes feasible ideas for future development. The paper analyzes conventional influencing factors such as light and the physicochemical properties of the water body, and discusses the impact of bottom reactants in complex natural water bodies on the overall in-situ photocatalytic reaction. The analysis of degradable water pollutants shows that this technology faces issues such as poor performance with low concentration pollutants and significant losses in reactive oxygen species (ROS) diffusion. The modification of photocatalysts, and the rational design of carriers and reactors, are key to enhancing their reactive performance. [Display omitted] • Analyzed the factors influencing the application of photocatalytic water purification technology. • Introduced the practical application of photocatalytic reactions for pollutant removal. • Discussed the promotion and inhibition relationship of substrates in natural photocatalytic reactions. • Summarized the feasibility of modified photocatalysts, photocatalyst carriers, and photoreactors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Screening for mental health comorbidities is recommended in adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with diabetes. There is a paucity of data on mental health comorbidities in AYAs with type 2 diabetes (T2D). To assess rates of depression, suicidal ideation, and diabetes distress (DD) in AYAs with T2D overall and by sociodemographic and clinical factors. AYAs with T2D ages 13–21 years seen in a pediatric diabetes clinic between March 2018 and June 2019 completed the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) for depression screening and the Problem Areas in Diabetes – teen version (PAID-T) survey to assess DD. Chi-square tests were used to assess whether rates of depression and DD were associated with participant characteristics. The sample consisted of 64 AYAs with T2D (58% female, mean age 15.8 ± 2.0 years, mean HbA1c 8.3% ± 2.6%, mean BMI z-score 2.2 ± 0.6, 59% on insulin). Overall, 31% of participants had high depression and/or DD. Twenty-two percent of participants reported high depressive symptoms and 9% endorsed suicidal ideation on the PHQ-9. There were no differences in rates of depression by sociodemographic factors. Twenty-three percent of participants reported high DD. Rates of DD were higher among those on insulin (p = 0.014) and on public health insurance (p = 0.014). Almost 1 in 3 AYAs with T2D endorsed depression and/or DD. Our findings support the importance of mental health screening in AYAs with T2D, as well as the need for strategies to address psychological comorbidities in this population. • Depression, suicidal ideation, and diabetes distress are prevalent in adolescents with type 2 diabetes. • Future research should be aimed at interventions to address mental health comorbidities in adolescents with type 2 diabetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glomerular endothelial cells (GEnCs) contribute to renal injuries in IgA nephropathy (IgAN). Here we profiled microRNAs (miRNAs) in GEnCs treated with conditioned medium from human mesangial cells in vitro. Levels of miR-223 in GEnCs decreased after incubation with the medium prepared with pIgA from patients with glomerular endothelial proliferation and were also decreased in the glomerular tissues of patients with glomerular endothelial proliferation. Mesangial-derived IL-6 caused miR-223 levels to decrease. The addition of exogenous miR-223 inhibited cell proliferation, ICAM-1 expression, and monocyte adhesion. The NF-κB and STAT3 signaling pathways collaborate during the activation process. MiR-223 mimics inhibited the nuclear localization and DNA binding of p65 and STAT3 but had no effect on the expression of upstream molecules. Instead, importin α4 and α5 (multipurpose nuclear transport receptors), validated as targets of miR-223, were responsible for the nuclear transport of p65 and STAT3. Importin α4 and α5 siRNA inhibited the nuclear localization of p65 and STAT3 and prevented cell proliferation and monocyte adhesion. The level of miR-223 in circulating endothelial cells was decreased and related to the clinical and pathological parameters. Thus, miR-223 downregulation promotes glomerular endothelial cell activation by upregulating importin α4 and α5 in IgAN. Monitoring the level of miR-223 in circulating endothelial cells may provide a noninvasive method for evaluating the severity of IgAN. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, supercritical carbonation tests of concrete specimens with different water-to-cement ratios are carried out. In the test, the thickness of interfacial transition zone (ITZ) of the concrete is determined by the distribution of Ca/Si ratio across the interface between the coarse aggregate and cement paste. The microhardness distribution, microstructure and porosity of the ITZ before and after supercritical carbonation are analyzed. A geometrical and physical model considering the distribution of porosity, coarse aggregates, ITZ, and the supercritical carbonation of concrete is proposed, by which cracks, pores, calcium carbonates, and C-S-H gel at the interface of coarse aggregates and cement paste can be studied. The overall microstructures are relatively compacted after supercritical carbonation. The thickness of ITZ of concrete is reduced from 47-79 μm to 35–51 μm after supercritical carbonation. The average value and variance of carbonation depth of concrete increase with the increase of the thickness and porosity of ITZ. Comparing the carbonation results of concrete with different thicknesses and porosity of ITZ, it appears that porosity of ITZ has greater impact on the carbonation depth of concrete. • Ca/Si ratio distribution can be used to accurately determine the thickness of ITZ. • A method for generating the ITZ between the aggregates and cement paste was proposed. • A geometrical and physical model was proposed for the supercritical carbonation of concrete. • The carbonation depth of concrete is more sensitive to porosity than thickness of ITZ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clinical use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like diclofenac (DCLF) is limited by multiple adverse effects, including renal toxicity leading to acute kidney injury. In mice with DCLF-induced nephrotoxicity, TDZD-8, a selective glycogen synthase kinase (GSK)3β inhibitor, improved acute kidney dysfunction and ameliorated tubular necrosis and apoptosis associated with induced cortical expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and prostaglandin E2. This renoprotective effect was blunted but still largely preserved in COX-2-null mice, suggesting that other GSK3β targets beyond COX-2 functioned in renal protection. Indeed, TDZD-8 diminished the mitochondrial permeability transition in DCLF-injured kidneys. In vitro, GSK3β inhibition reinstated viability and suppressed necrosis and apoptosis in DCLF-stimulated tubular epithelial cells. DCLF elicited oxidative stress, enhanced the activity of the redox-sensitive GSK3β, and promoted a mitochondrial permeability transition by interacting with cyclophilin D, a key component of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore. TDZD-8 blocked GSK3β activity and prevented GSK3β-mediated cyclophilin D phosphorylation and the ensuing mitochondrial permeability transition, concomitant with normalization of intracellular ATP. Conversely, ectopic expression of a constitutively active GSK3β abolished the effects of TDZD-8. Hence, inhibition of GSK3β ameliorates NSAID-induced acute kidney injury by induction of renal cortical COX-2 and direct inhibition of the mitochondrial permeability transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate prediction of tunnel convergence is important to ensure the stability of tunnel structures. Reliability analysis of tunnel convergence on spatially variable soils was performed based on Monte Carlo simulations. The Young's modulus of soils was shown to be spatially varied. The influence of the coefficient of variation, the vertical scale of fluctuation and the distribution type (i.e. beta distribution, gamma distribution and lognormal distribution) of soils on the tunnel convergence were systematically discussed. From measuring the mean and standard deviation of tunnel convergence, and the probability of exceeding some thresholds, it was found that the distribution type significantly influenced the results. The results were accompanied by a detailed analysis of the mechanisms of tunnel convergence in spatially random soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We proposed a method for the preparation of mixed solution of aggressive CO 2 and H+. • We experimentally studied corrosion depth of cement-based materials in the mixed solution. • We proposed a carbonation model with moving boundary to predict the corrosion depth. • We studied the effects of corrosion condition on the deterioration of cement-based materials. The deterioration mechanism of cement-based materials in mixed solution of corrosive CO 2 and H+ was experimentally investigated. A carbonation model with the moving boundary was proposed to predict the corrosion depth of cement paste in the mixed solution of aggressive CO 2 and H+ in this paper. A test apparatus and method for the preparation of mixed solution of aggressive CO 2 and H+ was designed and manufactured. The corrosion tests of cement paste and concrete under different corrosion condition were implemented and the corrosion depth were obtained. The microscopic test methods were also applied to study the corrosion mechanism of cement-based materials. In addition, a carbonation model with the moving boundary was proposed to simulate the corrosion process. Results indicate that both the single and dual corrosion of aggressive CO 2 and H+ solution have an obvious damage on the quality of cement paste and concrete. The damage of dual corrosion of aggressive CO 2 and H+ on the specimens are greater than that of single aggressive CO 2 solution or the strong acidity. The corrosion region can be divided into gel layer, carbonated layer and transition layer. The carbonation model with a moving boundary can be used satisfactorily to predict the corrosion process of cement paste. This paper provides experimental and numerical methods for the future investigations on the durability of underground structures in acid water containing aggressive carbon dioxide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We experimentally and numerically studied irregularity of carbonation depth of concrete. • We proposed novel method to randomly distribute aggregates. • We included both aggregates and cement porosity in the numerical model. • We investigated the effects of volume ratios and gradation of aggregate on the carbonation depth. This paper presents both experimental study and multi-physics modelling of supercritical carbonation of concrete. A novel mathematical model is proposed to simulate random distribution of coarse aggregates in concrete. Supercritical carbonation tests of concrete are carried out and the measured carbonation depth is compared with the simulation results. On the basis of previous research on random field of porosity and supercritical carbonation of cement mortar, a new supercritical carbonation model is developed to study the effect of randomly distributed coarse aggregates and porosity on the irregularities of carbonation depth of concrete. The effect of the type, volume fraction and gradation of coarse aggregates and the porosity of ITZ on the distribution of irregular carbonation depth are also studied. The results demonstrate that the proposed two-dimensional random coarse aggregates model can be used satisfactorily to generate different types, volume fraction and gradation of coarse aggregates with the designed mix proportion within a confined space. The method provides a better and more realistic predictive model for simulating carbonation depth of concrete due to random distribution of coarse aggregates and porosity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two novel tetraphenylethylene derivatives (denoted as A12-TPE and T12-TPE) were prepared by incorporating different chiral d -gluconic acid substituents into the achiral TPE core. Their aggregation-induced emission (AIE) activity, self-assembly structure and circularly polarized luminescent (CPL) performance were then investigated using various techniques. The results reveal that both A12-TPE and T12-TPE exhibit AIE properties with quantum yields as high as 74.3% and 74.0% respectively. Moreover, due to the synergy effect of steric hindrance of the acetal group and chiral induction of d -gluconic acid, A12-TPE possesses a helical supermolecular structure, which endowed the material with distinct CPL properties. On the contrary, T12-TPE without the acetal group exhibits a lamellar structure rather than a helical structure, and no CPL signal can be observed. The helical supermolecular structure, in combination with the AIE activity and CPL performance of A12-TPE , make it a promising material for fabrication of chiral luminescent devices. Image 1 • Two novel TPE derivatives with different chiral substituents (A12-TPE and T12-TPE) were synthesized. • A12-TPE and T12-TPE possesses lamellar and helical supramolecular structures, respectively. • The unique helical supermolecular structure endowed A12-TPE with distinct CPL property. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Optimal control of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, along with demand-side management, are both cost-effective methods in the process of energy conservation and carbon reduction. The successful implementation of these initiatives largely hinges on accurate cooling load predictions. Due to the complex nonlinear and dynamic time-varying nature of demand loads, however, it is a formidable challenge to accurately predict the cooling load. To address these issues, a novel deep learning-based prediction framework, aTCN-LSTM, is proposed. First, a gate-controlled multi-head temporal convolutional network is designed to capture the inherent nonlinear and local temporal features from the time series of cooling loads. Second, a sparse probabilistic self-attention mechanism is integrated with a bidirectional long short-term memory (BiLSTM) network to extract the long-term dependencies within the cooling load sequences. Finally, through integration with the proposed two components, the framework is developed and validated through a 14-month real cooling load forecasting problem for a 51-story hotel building in Guangzhou, China. Experiments and comparison studies demonstrate the effectiveness and superiority of the proposed method. The mean absolute percentage error of the proposed method's 1-step, 6-step, and 12-step prediction results is reduced by 27.48%, 14.05%, and 13.38%, respectively, compared with the state-of-the-art baseline model. Consequently, it stands poised to serve as an effective guide for HVAC chiller scheduling and demand management initiatives. [Display omitted] • A gated multi-head temporal convolution network (GMTCN) is designed. • A novel framework is constructed by integrating GMTCN and improved BiLSTM. • The proposed framework is compared with nine other models in real-life cases. • GMTCN exhibits robust feature and temporal pattern extraction capabilities. • The prediction error of the proposed framework is reduced by more than 13.38%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Three high pure LiSiPSCl electrolytes were synthesized at 450/475/500 °C for 8 h. • Li/Li-In anode & LiNbO 3 -coated LiNi 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O 2 cathode were selected. • LiSiPSCl-based blocking/symmetrical/semi-blocking cells & ASSLIBs were assembled. • Optimized NCM@LNO//SE-475//Li-In ASSLIB exhibited good cycle/rate performance. The lithium silicon phosphor sulfo-chloride (LiSiPSCl) with a Li 10 GeP 2 S 12 -type structure is one of the most promising solid electrolytes (SEs) for all-solid-state lithium-ion batteries (ASSLIBs) due to its currently highest ionic conductivity at RT. In this work, three kinds of LiSiPSCl electrolytes, i.e. Li 7.59(10) Si 1.95(9) P 1.65(7) S 11.64(1) Cl 0.36(1) (SE-450), Li 7.67(12) Si 1.90(1) P 1.67(1) S 11.61(2) Cl 0.39(2) (SE-475) and Li 7.58(5) Si 1.75(4) P 1.79(2) S 11.54(4) Cl 0.46(4) (SE-500), were prepared at 450 / 475 / 500 °C for 8 h through a solid-state method. The assembling of blocking / symmetrical / semi-blocking cells and ASSLIBs, and electrochemical measurements were carried out by coupling the three SEs with two kinds of anodes (Li metal and Li-In alloy) and one cathode of LiNbO 3 -coated LiNi 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O 2 (NCM@LNO). Studies were focused on the relationship among chemical compositions, phase structures and electrochemical properties, as well as the electrolyte/electrode interfacial stability. Results show that LiSiPSCl electrolytes had favorable interfacial stability with Li-In anode and exhibited low polarization voltage (< 20 mV) and decomposition current (< 0.01 mA). The optimized NCM@LNO//SE-475//Li-In of ASSLIBs exhibited a stable long-term cycle performance with a capacity retention of 97.0% (128.4 mAh g−1) after 50 cycles and 81.1% (107.4 mAh g−1) after 100 cycles at 0.1 C. In addition, it exhibited a good rate performance while its capacity retention remained 99.3% (140.6 mAh g−1) after 39 cycles at 0.05 / 0.1 / 0.2 / 0.5 / 0.05 C. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flexible force sensors capable of real-time and sensitive analysis have gained immense popularity because of their great potential to be integrated into potable and wearable electronics. Herein, a novel flexible force sensor constructing from topographically patterned piezo-active MXene@MnO 2 /poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) hybrid that allows for real-time precise pressure detection is proposed. Benefiting from the synergistic effect of topographical patterning and nano-reinforcement filling, the piezo-active hybrids with convex microarrays patterns demonstrate outstanding piezoelectric coefficient d 33 (49 pC/N) and output upon mechanical stimuli, enabling the resultant force sensors with high voltage sensitivity of 0.450 V/N, fast response time of 16–19 ms and excellent operation stability. Furthermore, the feasibility of sensors in effectively detecting water droplets, gas flow and finger bending is demonstrated, confirming their viability for real applications. [Display omitted] • A facile approach is developed to fabricate flexible micropatterned MXene@MnO 2 /poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) hybrid. • The novel micropatterned hybrids deliver outstanding piezoelectric coefficient d 33 up to 49 pC/N. • The micropatterned hybrids sensors present high voltage sensitivity, fast response time and excellent operation stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]