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Leveraging weather radar technology for environmental monitoring, particularly the detection of biometeors like birds, bats, and insects, presents a significant challenge due to the dynamic nature of their behavior. Unlike hydrometeor targets, biometeor targets exhibit arbitrary changes in direction and position, which significantly alter radar wave polarization upon scattering. This study addresses this challenge by introducing a novel methodology utilizing Rwanda’s C-Band Polarization Radar. Our approach exploits the capabilities of dual-polarization radar by analyzing parameters such as differential reflectivity (ZDR) and correlation coefficient (RHOHV) to derive the Depolarization Ratio (DR). While existing radar metrics offer valuable insights, they have limitations in fully capturing depolarization effects. To address this, we propose an advanced fuzzy logic algorithm (FL_DR) integrating the DR parameter. The FL_DR’s performance was rigorously evaluated against a standard FL algorithm. Leveraging a substantial dataset comprising nocturnal clear air radar echoes collected during a Fall Armyworm (FAW) outbreak in maize fields from September 2020 to January 2021, the FL_DR demonstrated a notable improvement in accuracy compared to the existing FL algorithm. This improvement is evident in the Fraction of Echoes Correctly Identified (FEI), which increased from 98.42% to 98.93% for biological radar echoes and from 87.02% to 95.81% for meteorological radar echoes. This enhanced detection capability positions FL_DR as a valuable system for monitoring, identification, and warning of environmental phenomena in regions similar to tropical areas facing FAW outbreaks. Additionally, it could be tested and further refined for other migrating biological targets such as birds, insects, or bats.

A series of novel MnxFey@SiO2 (x,y = 1–20%) nanocomposites were synthesized for the first time via the sol-gel/combustion method with different content of precursors (Mn and Fe acetate salts). The effect of precursor content and ratio on physicochemical properties were observed by various characterization methods. Moreover, Rhodamine B (RhB) was chosen as the target pollutant to test the performance of these nanocomposites under a photocatalytic Fenton-like reaction. The results showed that the nanocomposite morphology improved by increasing Fe and Mn content. In this study, interesting behavior was observed in BET results which were different from the fact that increasing metal content can decrease the surface area. This study revealed that one metal could be more critical in controlling the properties than another. Moreover, the precursor ratio appears to have a more tangible effect on the surface area than the effect of precursor content. Among all synthesized nanocomposites, Mn1Fe5@SiO2 showed the highest surface area of 654.95 m2/g. At optimum batch conditions (temp = 25 °C, catalyst dosage = 1 g L−1, H2O2 = 75 mmolL−1, and initial RhB concentration = 50 mg L−1), complete removal (simultaneous adsorption/degradation) occurred using Mn1Fe5@SiO2 at neutral pH. This study showed that the designed nanomaterial could be used as a dual functional adsorbent/photocatalyst in different environmental applications.

In the last decades, the removal of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (BTEX) has been considered a major environmental crisis. In this study, two novel nanocomposite materials (Fe2O3/SiO2 and Fe2O3-Mn2O3/SiO2) that have regeneration ability by UV irradiation have been fabricated to remove BTEX at ambient temperature. This research revealed that both nanocomposites could remove more than 85% of the BTEX in the first cycle. The adsorption capacities followed the order of ethylbenzene > m-xylene > toluene > benzene as in the molecular weight order. The reusability test using UV irradiation showed that the performance of Fe2O3/SiO2 decreased drastically after the fifth cycle for benzene. On the other hand, when Mn is located in the nanocomposite structure, Fe2O3-Mn2O3/SiO2 could maintain its adsorption performance with more than 80% removal efficiency for all the BTEX for ten consecutive cycles. The difference in the reusability of the two nanocomposites is that the electron energy (from the valence band to the conduction band) for BTEX decomposition is changed due to the presence of manganese. This study provides a promising approach for designing an economical reusable nanomaterial, which can be used for VOC-contaminated indoor air.

The influence of the electrospinning parameters on the diameter of the polyethersulfone (PES) nanofibers was demonstrated using response surface methodology. The electrospinning parameters studied were lithium chloride (LiCl) concentration, PES concentration, feed rate, and tip-to-collector distance. The average fiber diameter was correlated to these factors by using a second-order polynomial function at a 95% confidence level. The statistical analysis indicated that LiCl concentration, PES concentration, and feed rate had the significant connection with the fiber diameter, and LiCl concentration was the most important factor in determining the fiber diameter. When LiCl concentration increased, the fiber diameter decreased, because with more LiCl that is added, more applied voltage is needed to overcome the electrostatic attractions. The interactive effect between PES concentration and feed rate, the interactive effect between PES concentration and tip-to-collector distance, and the quadratic coefficients of LiCl concentration were also found to be significant. The adjusted determination coefficient (Radj2) of the model was calculated to be 0.9106. The water flux measurements showed that the decrease in the fiber diameter of the membrane caused the decrease in the initial pure water flux. The retention tests with 0.6 μm polystyrene (PS) suspension indicated that as the fiber diameter decreased, the pore sizes decreased and the particle removal efficiency increased.

The industrial livestock environment can cause stress and weakened immunity in cattle, leading to microbial infections which reduce productivity. As such, there is a need for an effective therapeutic agent that can alleviate uncontrolled destructive respiratory inflammation. We found that lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), a potent endogenous stress-induced inflammatory agent, causes respiratory tissue damage and triggers inflammation in bovine bronchial cells. LPA also inflames pulmonary bovine blood vessel cells to produce inflammatory cytokines. These findings strongly suggest that LPA is a highly important endogenous material exacerbating bovine respiratory diseases. We further identified a novel LPA-signaling antagonist, KA-1002, and showed that it alleviated LPA-mediated bovine tracheal cell disruption and inflammation. Therefore, KA-1002 could potentially serve as a novel therapeutic agent to maintain physiologically healthy and balanced conditions in bovine respiratory tracts.

Iron was incorporated into an LTA type zeolite using the sol-gel hydrothermal method to form Iron-zeolite-A (Iron-Z-A), and its phosphate adsorption-desorption efficiency were analyzed. Samples were characterized by EDS, SEM, XRD, EPR, FT-IR XPS, and Raman to ensure the apt synthesis of Iron-Z-A and to interpret the mechanism of adsorption-desorption of PO43− in an aqueous solution. EPR and XPS analysis confirmed that the iron was doped as Fe3+ in the LTA structure. The XPS peak shift (Fe-2p), FT-IR band shift, and intensity change (−OH) confirmed the existence of the ligand exchange mechanism. In the adsorption phase at pH 5, the derivative of phosphate (H2PO4−) acts as a ligand and interacts with OH of Fe on the zeolite surface to form “Iron-zeolite (oxy) hydroxide bound phosphate”. In the desorption phase at pH 10, phosphate ligand is detached and get mixed in the aqueous phase as HPO42−. The EDS data, Si−O−Al band shift and intensity change in FT-IR and XPS peak intensity change proved the contribution of Al in the process of adsorption. The data of adsorption fitted well with the Langmuir’s isotherm and pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The amount of PO43− adsorbed was a function of adsorbent’s surface area regardless of concentration. The amount of PO43− being adsorbed by the metal ions was found to be 382.296 mg PO43−/g Fe and 56.296 mg PO43−/g Al.

In this work, the efficacy of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), such as benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene, for the removal of indoor air in a heterogeneous photo-Fenton catalytic semi pilot reactor was investigated at room temperature. Fe-zeolite socony mobil (ZSM)-5 was used as the adsorptive catalytic material, which was coated on the polyethylene tubes as a solid support. The response of Fe-ZSM-5 to UV dry irradiation was investigated in terms of VOC degradation from the indoor air. Different coating materials were tested in order to achieve better binding and less pore blockage. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) micrographs of the Fe-ZSM-5 coated tubes were used for the morphological analysis of the tubes. A complete modular semi pilot reactor (12.51 L) was designed to accommodate the Fe-ZSM-5 coated tubes and UV lamps for UV irradiation, in order to achieve the degradation for VOC and the regeneration of the catalytic material. After completion of the setup, the plant design parameters, such as the linear velocity, surface volume loading rate (SVL), and space retention time (SRT), were calculated.

A simple approach was developed to predict corn yields using the MoDerate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data product from two geographically separate major corn crop production regions: Illinois, USA and Heilongjiang, China. The MOD09A1 data, which are eight-day interval surface reflectance data, were obtained from day of the year (DOY) 89 to 337 to calculate the leaf area index (LAI). The sum of the LAI from early in the season to a given date in the season (end of DOY (EOD)) was well fitted to a logistic function and represented seasonal changes in leaf area duration (LAD). A simple phenology model was derived to estimate the dates of emergence and maturity using the LAD-logistic function parameters b1 and b2, which represented the rate of increase in LAI and the date of maximum LAI, respectively. The phenology model predicted emergence and maturity dates fairly well, with root mean square error (RMSE) values of 6.3 and 4.9 days for the validation dataset, respectively. Two simple linear regression models (YP and YF) were established using LAD as the variable to predict corn yield. The yield model YP used LAD from predicted emergence to maturity, and the yield model YF used LAD for a predetermined period from DOY 89 to a particular EOD. When state/province corn yields for the validation dataset were predicted at DOY 321, near completion of the corn harvest, the YP model, including the predicted phenology, performed much better than the YF model, with RMSE values of 0.68 t/ha and 0.66 t/ha for Illinois and Heilongjiang, respectively. The YP model showed similar or better performance, even for the much earlier pre-harvest yield prediction at DOY 257. In addition, the model performance showed no difference between the two study regions with very different climates and cultivation methods, including cultivar and irrigation management. These results suggested that the approach described in this paper has potential for application to relatively wide agroclimatic regions with different cultivation methods and for extension to the other crops. However, it needs to be examined further in tropical and sub-tropical regions, which are very different from the two study regions with respect to agroclimatic constraints and agrotechnologies.

The claw-pole motor, known for its simple structure, is widely used in various fields due to its cost competitiveness. However, a drawback of the fixed-stator-type claw-pole motor is its vulnerability to eddy current losses. Therefore, this paper presents a single-phase claw-pole motor applied as a motor for cooling fans, with the aim of reducing eddy current losses and improving performance based on shape optimization, ultimately resulting in a single-phase claw-pole motor that meets the desired performance. The validity of this approach is verified through 3D finite element analysis (FEA).

Accurate resistance performance evaluation is essential to predict the minimum propulsion horsepower required for ships in real sea. Therefore, in this paper, the added resistance performance of K-Supramax in various wave conditions was calculated using CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics). First, to compare the resistance performance according to the DOF (Degree of Freedom), the added resistance performance in the head regular wave was investigated and compared with the experiment. The 2DOF and 6DOF results in the head regular wave had no significant differences. Second, to compare the resistance performance among various wave conditions, the effect of the heading angle was analyzed by comparing resistance and motion RAOs (Response Amplitude Operators) in bow quartering sea conditions using 6DOF. The added resistance showed the highest value near the resonance frequency of 170°. As the heading angle increased, the added resistance tended to decrease, regardless of the wavelength ratio. Also, the added resistance performance in irregular waves was investigated with reference to the adverse conditions. The spectral method, which linearly superimposes regular wave results, and the added resistance generated during irregular waves directly through CFD were compared. The resistance in irregular waves increased by approximately 92% for the spectral method and by approximately 72% for the direct irregular wave calculation compared to the resistance in calm water. In addition, the PSD (Power Spectral Density) of resistance and the distribution of motion RAOs obtained from direct irregular wave calculations were investigated.

This study proposes machine learning-based prediction models to estimate hull form performance. The developed models can predict the residuary resistance coefficient (CR), wake fraction (wTM), and thrust deduction fraction (t). The multi-layer perceptron and convolutional neural network models, wherein the hull shape was considered as images, were evaluated. A prediction model for the open-water characteristics of the propeller was also generated. The experimental data used in the learning process were obtained from model test results conducted in the Korea Research Institute of Ships and Ocean Engineering towing tank. The prediction results of the proposed models showed good agreement with the model test values. According to the ITTC procedures, the service speed and shaft revolution speed of a ship can be extrapolated from the values obtained from the predictive models. The proposed models demonstrated sufficient accuracy when applied to the sample hull forms based on data not used for training. Thus, they can be implemented in the preliminary design phase of hull forms.

As biochar improves soil fertility and crop productivity, there is a growing interest in it as a resource for sustainable agriculture. Miscanthus sacchariflorus has promising applications in various industries because it has a large amount of biomass. However, research on the agricultural utilization of Miscanthus-derived biochar is insufficient. The aim of this study was to demonstrate the effects of Miscanthus biochar on the soil environment and soybean growth. First, Miscanthus biochar was amended at different levels (3 or 10 tons/ha) in upland soil, after which the soil properties, root development, and yield of soybeans were compared with the control (without biochar). In the soil amended with 10 tons/ha of biochar (BC10), organic matter (OM) and available phosphate increased 1.6 and 2.0 times, respectively, compared with that in the control soil (CON). In addition, the soil dehydrogenase activity increased by 70% in BC10, and 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis revealed that the structure of the microbial community changed after amendment with biochar. The bacterial phyla that differed between CON and BC10 were Acidobacteria and Chloroflexi, which are known to be involved in carbon cycling. Owing to these changes in soil properties, the root dry weight and number of nodules in soybeans increased by 23% and 27%, respectively, and the seed yield increased 1.5-fold in BC10. In conclusion, Miscanthus biochar increased the fertility of soybean-growing soil and consequently increased seed yield. This study is valuable for the practical application of biochar for sustainable agriculture.

Seasonal forecasts of crop yield are important components for agricultural policy decisions and farmer planning. A wide range of input data are often needed to forecast crop yield in a region where sophisticated approaches such as machine learning and process-based models are used. This requires considerable effort for data preparation in addition to identifying data sources. Here, we propose a simpler approach called the Analogy Based Crop-yield (ABC) forecast scheme to make timely and accurate prediction of regional crop yield using a minimum set of inputs. In the ABC method, a growing season from a prior long-term period, e.g., 10 years, is first identified as analogous to the current season by the use of a similarity index based on the time series leaf area index (LAI) patterns. Crop yield in the given growing season is then forecasted using the weighted yield average reported in the analogous seasons for the area of interest. The ABC approach was used to predict corn and soybean yields in the Midwestern U.S. at the county level for the period of 2017–2019. The MOD15A2H, which is a satellite data product for LAI, was used to compile inputs. The mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) of crop yield forecasts was

Among various immunotherapies, natural killer (NK) cell cancer immunotherapy using adoptive transfer of NK cells takes a unique position by targeting tumor cells that evade the host immune surveillance. As the first-line innate effector cell, it has been revealed that NK cells have distinct mechanisms to both eliminate cancer cells directly and amplify the anticancer immune system. Over the last 40 years, NK cell cancer immunotherapy has shown encouraging reports in pre-clinic and clinic settings. In total, 288 clinical trials are investigating various NK cell immunotherapies to treat hematologic and solid malignancies in 2021. However, the clinical outcomes are unsatisfying, with remained challenges. The major limitation is attributed to the immune-suppressive tumor microenvironment (TME), low activity of NK cells, inadequate homing of NK cells, and limited contact frequency of NK cells with tumor cells. Innovative strategies to promote the cytolytic activity, durable persistence, activation, and tumor-infiltration of NK cells are required to advance NK cell cancer immunotherapy. As maturing nanotechnology and nanomedicine for clinical applications, there is a greater opportunity to augment NK cell therapeutic efficacy for the treatment of cancers. Active molecules/cytokine delivery, imaging, and physicochemical properties of nanoparticles are well equipped to overcome the challenges of NK cell cancer immunotherapy. Here, we discuss recent clinical trials of NK cell cancer immunotherapy, NK cell cancer immunotherapy challenges, and advances of nanoparticle-mediated NK cell therapeutic efficacy augmentation.

In an interior permanent magnet synchronous motor, an adhesive such as bond is generally injected into the magnet tolerance to prevent vibration of the permanent magnet within the insertion space. In this case, a disadvantage is that the magnet tolerance does not contribute to the performance. In this paper, ferrofluid is inserted to improve the torque density, utilizing the magnet tolerance. When inserting ferrofluid into the magnet tolerance, it is important to fix the magnet because conventional adhesives are not used, and it is important that the ferrofluid does not act as a leakage path within the insertion space. In this study, a new rotor configuration using a plastic barrier that satisfies these considerations was introduced. The analysis was conducted through finite element analysis (FEA), and this technique was verified by comparing the simulation results and the experimental results through a dynamo test. It was confirmed that the no-load back electromotive force in the final model increased through ferrofluid injection.

Pretreatment to improve the enzymatic digestibility of highly crystallized lignocellulosic biomass is essential in biorefinery processes. This study investigates the combination of lignocellulose pretreatment with continuous alkaline single-screw extrusion and ultrasonication for biosugar production. Miscanthus sacchariflorus was used because it is a promising bioenergy crop. The results show that ultrasonication with continuous alkaline pretreatment increased the enzymatic digestibility of carbohydrates and reduced the use of chemicals during pretreatment. An hour of ultrasonication following 0.2 M NaOH (2.25 mol-NaOH/kg-biomass) continuous alkaline pretreatment resulted in a 6.7% increase in total biosugar production (83.1% of theoretical yield), a decrease of up to 26.1% in chemical usage, and a 17.0% increase in lignin removal compared with the case without ultrasonication. The developed method can be considered an effective and eco-friendly approach to the production of bio-based materials.