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A micro-sprinkling hose is promising water-saving irrigation equipment due to its low cost and ease of installation and dismantlement during operation. The performance of the micro-sprinkling hose depends on the kinetic energy generated during field irrigation, which in turn is determined by the distribution of water droplets sprayed into the air. This paper aims to investigate the droplet diameter distribution provided by micro-sprinkling hoses by determining drop characteristics and assessing the impacts of the pressure and spraying angle on the droplet diameter distribution. Therefore, an indoor experiment was conducted to investigate the drop diameter distribution provided by micro-sprinkling hose under different pressures (20, 24, 28, and 32 kPa) and spraying angles (20°, 30°, 40°, 50°, 60°, 70°, and 80°). Droplet characteristic parameters were measured and collected using a laser precipitation monitor (LPM). The results show that (1) the diameter of water droplets sprayed from a micro-sprinkling hose with a single-hole diameter increases with increasing pressure, resulting in an expanded distribution range. Moreover, the diameter of these droplets initially increases and then decreases with increasing spraying angle. The maximum droplet is observed at a spraying angle of 40°. (2) The percentage of water droplets increases with increasing distance from the ground, with a diameter distribution range of 0–2.00 mm and an increase in the droplet diameter from 0.50 to 0.75–1.00 mm. The results reflect the characteristics of the droplet diameter distribution obtained with micro-sprinkling hoses under different pressures and spraying angles, providing guidance for the design of hose structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of different Ca/Al mass ratios (ranging from 0.2 to 1.4) in modifying the microstructure, phase evolution and the mechanical properties of Mg-Al-Ca-Mn alloys was investigated. The primary second phase evolves from blocky Mg17Al12 to semi-continuous Al2Ca and then to the reticular (Mg, Al)2Ca phase and Mg2Ca phase when the Ca/Al ratio rises. Meanwhile, the average grain sizes decrease from 1.5 to 0.5 μm. Therefore, the fine grain strengthening effect of the as-extruded alloy is enhanced. The broken second phases exhibit a banding distribution along the extrusion direction, and their dimension is approximately 3 ~ 5 μm. These second phases not only refined grains but also hinder dislocation migration, resulting in dislocation accumulation and increase in dislocation density, which strengthens the alloy further. Furthermore, increasing the Ca/Al ratio causes the recrystallization degree decrease, which means more undynamically recrystallized grains with numerous residual dislocations and higher basal texture strengthening. The optimum grain orientation changes from < 11–20 > to < 10–10 > as the Ca/Al ratio increases, and the Schmid factor of the as-extruded AXM2306 alloy is smaller than that of the AXM4106 alloy. The tensile yield strength and ultimate tensile strength of as-extruded Mg-2.0Al-2.8Ca-0.6Mn alloy were ~ 401.8 and ~ 426.2 MPa, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the carrying capacity of the resources and the environment, this article defines the connotation of the land multifunctional space (LMFS) from three aspects, ecological protection, agricultural production and urban construction, in the new era of land space planning system. Moreover, a framework is constructed for the coordinated development of the multi-functional oriented space to match the use of land space (ULS) with the supply of resources and environment (SRE). Based on this, the technology and methods of comprehensive evaluation, dominance recognition, and matching relationship division functions of the use of land space (FULS) and functions of the supply of resources and environment (FSRE) are discussed. The advantageous functions of the use of land space (AFULS) and advantageous functions of the supply of resources and environment (AFSRE) are also identified in the study area. A LMFS coordinated development system integrating "function position-comprehensive partition-regulation strategy" is proposed. Through the empirical study of Shandong province, we found that, first, the FULS of ecological protection space in the province is mainly found in high value areas, and the FSRE is mainly in low value areas, which has certain complementarity in the space. The FULS of agricultural production space is mainly observed in high value areas, the FSRE is mainly in middle value areas, and the spatial distribution is balanced and staggered. The FULS of the urban construction space and the FSRE are mainly in middle values areas, and the spatial distribution is basically similar. Second, the FULS in the study area is dominated by the single advantage of agricultural production and urban construction, while the FSRE has a relatively balanced distribution of the advantages of ecological protection, single agricultural production and compound advantages of agricultural production and urban construction, and urban construction and ecological protection. The matching between the two is mainly at high and middle levels. Specifically, 70% of the province's land space still has a certain development and utilization potential, and 30% of ULS intensity is close to or exceeds the resource and environment carrying capacity. Third, considering the comprehensive impact of resource endowment, social and economic development and policy and institutional environment on different matching relationships, this paper constructs the land spatial development strategic pattern of "two screens-seven regions-multicore" positioning and "four regions-eight categories" hierarchical area of Shandong at the macro level, and puts forward a differentiated land space development strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, approximately 3% of the world's population suffers from psoriasis, an inflammatory dermatosis with high recurrence. Tryptanthrin (TRYP) is a natural alkaloid that possesses anti-inflammatory activities on multiple diseases. The present study aimed to unravel whether TRYP could relieve psoriasis and how it works. Imiquimod (IMQ)-induced psoriatic mouse models were administered saline (model), TRYP (25 and 100 mg/kg), or methotrexate (MTX, 1 mg/kg) and considered as the positive control. TNF-α-induced keratinocytes (HaCaT cells) with TRYP (0, 10, 20 and 50 nM) were used for in vitro verification. Psoriasis area severity index (PASI) and spleen index were evaluated. Th17 cell infiltration in both spleens and lymph nodes was detected by flow cytometry. The expression levels of inflammatory cytokines, glutathione (GSH), malondialdehyde (MDA) and catalase (CAT), as well as superoxide dismutase (SOD), were examined by ELISA, while the NF-κB/MAPK/Nrf2 pathways-related proteins were determined by western blot. TRYP significantly attenuated psoriatic skin lesions, increased GSH, SOD, and CAT levels, reduced spleen index, accumulation of MDA, the abundance of Th17 cells in both the spleen and lymph nodes, and secretion of inflammatory cytokines in IMQ-induced psoriatic mouse models. Mechanically, TRYP suppressed IMQ-activated NF-κB (IκB and p65), MAPK (JNK, ERK1/2, and p38), and activated Nrf2 signaling pathways. Similar alterations for inflammation and oxidative stress parameters and NF-κB/MAPK/Nrf2 pathways were also observed in TNF-α-treated HaCaT cells upon TRYP treatment. Our findings suggested TRYP is effective in protecting against inflammation and oxidative stress in psoriasis-like pathogenesis by modulating the NF-κB/MAPK/Nrf2 pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sepsis-induced lung injury was the most common cause of death in patients. This study aimed to investigate whether PD-L1 regulates the inflammation in LPS-induced lung epithelial cells and vascular endothelial cells by interacting with the HIF-1α signaling pathway. Sepsis-induced lung injury mice were constructed by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) procedure, and lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced lung epithelial cells and vascular endothelial cells simulate the sepsis-induced lung injury model in vitro. Hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining detected the morphological changes of the lung tissues, and immunohistochemistry (IHC) detected the PD-L1 expression in lung tissues. Bicinchoninic acid (BCA) assay determined the protein concentration in bronchial alveolar lavage fluid (BALF). The number of PD-1 (+) cells in blood was detected by flow cytometry. The apoptosis in lung tissues and LPS-induced cells was analyzed by TUNEL assay. The inflammatory factor levels and HIF-1α in lung tissues and LPS-induced cells were analyzed by ELISA. The transfection effects of KD-PDL1 or KD-HIF1A in lung epithelial cells and vascular endothelial cells were confirmed by qRT-PCR analysis. The protein expression related to the PD-L1- and HIF-1α-related pathway was determined by Western blot analysis. As a result, LMT-28, as an IL-6 inhibitor, alleviated lung injury and suppressed the apoptosis and inflammation in lung tissues in BALF and the number of PD-1 (+) cells in blood. Sepsis-induced lung injury activated the PD-L1- and HIF-1α-related pathway, while LMT-28 could not completely inhibit the pathway. In addition, downregulation of PD-L1 or downregulation of HIF-1α suppressed the apoptosis and alleviated the inflammation in LPS-induced lung epithelial cells and vascular endothelial cells. Downregulation of PD-L1 had significant effects on lung epithelial cells but had greater effects on vascular endothelial cells. Downregulation of HIF-1α could decrease PD-L1 expression, and downregulation of PD-L1 could also suppress the protein expression of HIF-1α and related pathways. In conclusion, downregulation of PD-L1 alleviated the inflammation in LPS-induced lung epithelial cells and vascular endothelial cells by suppressing the HIF-1α signaling pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epoxy-functionalized silane (KH560) modified Li1.2Ni0.13Co0.13Mn0.54O2 materials are prepared by a facile chemical grafting method for the first time. X-ray diffraction confirms that the crystal structure of Li1.2Ni0.13Co0.13Mn0.54O2 is not affected by the KH560 modification. Scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy results prove that KH560 is homogeneously grafted on the Li1.2Ni0.13Co0.13Mn0.54O2 surface with a thickness of 3–5 nm. The electrochemical tests reveal that the 1.0 wt% KH560 modified Li1.2Ni0.13Co0.13Mn0.54O2 cathodes retain 92.88% (1 C) and 98.24% (5 C) capacity retentions after 100 cycles, respectively, far higher than 83.09% (1 C) and 50.68% (5 C) of the pristine. The improved cycling performances are mainly attributed to the fact that the X-O-M bonds stabilize the surface oxygen and resist the parasitic reactions during cycling, which further can suppress the structure degradation and the impedance increase. This work provides a facile and effective modification method to optimize the interfacial structures of Li1.2Ni0.13Co0.13Mn0.54O2 and/or other cathode materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A system of obtaining image of surface of wire rope is designed in this paper. Three linear-array charge-coupled device industrial cameras are used, separated by 120 degrees in the same plane. The acquisition is realized by receiving the synchronous pulse transmitted by the encoder. Considering that the wire rope is bent due to gravity, this paper restores the wire rope to the straightened state through image processing. The wire rope is then separated from the image. In order to obtain a complete surface unrolling diagram, this paper firstly corrects the projection of curved surface of image of the wire rope. Three unrolling diagrams of surface of wire rope with different angles are obtained, and then, the surface development image with different directions is aligned in axial and circumferential directions, respectively. At last, weighted average algorithm is used for image fusion. The experimental results show that the method proposed in this paper can obtain a complete, intuitive and non-dislocation surface development image of wire rope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 (LNMO) is a promising cathode material for lithium-ion batteries due to its high discharge voltage, low cost, environmental friendliness, and high energy density. To enhance the electrochemical performance of LNMO, Cd is innovatively employed as a modifying agent. Structural and morphological characterizations confirm that CdO is successfully wrapped on the surface of LNMO. Further physical, chemical, and electrochemical detections verify the phase transition of LNMO. The CdO-coated samples show excellent cyclability and rate performance. The CdO-coated LNMO (Cd 0.4 wt.%) exhibits a discharge capacity of 133.3 mAh g−1 with a retention rate of 95.2% after 300 cycles at 1-C rate (3.5–4.8 V), while that of the pristine is only 89.4%. Even at 10-C rates, the CdO-coated LNMO has an initial discharge capacity of 120.0 mAh g−1 with a retention rate of 92.3% after 300 cycles at the same voltage limit. Specifically, at the first of cycling, the newly formed Cd-F compounds and CdO layer could suppress the side reactions and reduce the formation of surface film. Finally, the process of kinetics is improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online multi-attribute reverse auctions (OMARA), which include many non-price attributes, aligns better to practice, and is prevalent in many fields such as project bidding and public sector procurement. In such auctions, the decision makers often face varying degrees of cognitive and environmental uncertainty. This renders the traditional winner (supplier) determination method based on deterministic values impracticable. Hence, from the standpoint of the auctioneer (purchaser), a new integrated decision framework under an uncertain situation is proposed. Firstly, the fuzzy set theory is applied to the winner determination problem in OMARA to recognize the uncertainty in the bidding attribute values. Secondly, the detail description of the winner determination problem in OMARA is provided. Thirdly, the comprehensive weights of the evaluation attributes are obtained by using fuzzy AHP and fuzzy deviation maximizing method together. Lastly, the five fuzzy multi-attribute decision-making methods are combined with simple dominant principle to evaluate the bidding alternatives and determine the winner (supplier). A numerical example is used to demonstrate the process of the proposed integrated decision frame-work, and the comparative analysis illustrates its feasibility and effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnetic flux leakage (MFL) detection has the advantages of obvious target defect and accurate positioning. The MFL information on the surface of the wire rope can be converted into magnetic images so that the axial and circumferential position of the wire rope defects can be displayed more intuitively. The visible image has rich texture information. By fusing the visible and magnetic images, we can make full use of their information and the defect recognition rate can be improved. In this paper, the original magnetic leakage data are first denoised by wavelet soft threshold, and the corresponding visible image is processed by homomorphic filtering to eliminate the interference of light. Then, the magnetic image and visible image are fused at feature level. The features of magnetic image and visible image are extracted and fused, and then principal component analysis is carried out to reduce dimensions. The fusion feature vector is input into back-propagation network for recognition and is compared with the magnetic image features alone. Experimental results show that when the error is allowed to be 0.9%, the defect recognition rate after image fusion is 5.27% higher than the magnetic image. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper investigates rational interactions in a large government network when its government members coordinate to make economic decisions. We show that the complexity of such massive interactions could be simplified by hierarchically decomposing the original complex game as a collection of much simpler games. Besides, the political structure of a government network is formally introduced, and some of its characterizations are proven or demonstrated to be efficient indicators of the relevant game structure. We then propose a pragmatic solution concept for the complex game through a quasi-dynamic integration process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Correction to: PD-L1 Regulates Inflammation in LPS-Induced Lung Epithelial Cells and Vascular Endothelial Cells by Interacting with the HIF-1 Signaling Pathway These errors do not affect the discussion or conclusions in the article. Correction to: Inflammation (2021) 44(5):1969-1981 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10753-021-01474-3 After the publication of our article, we became aware that there were errors in Fig. [Extracted from the article]

An efficient and facile synthesis of 5-amino-2,3-dihydrobenzo[ b]thiophene-4,6-dicarbonitrile and 5-amino-2,3-dihydrobenzo[ d]thiazole-4,6-dicarbonitrile derivatives from the reactions of aldehyde, malononitrile, and dihydrothiophen-3(2 H)-one or rhodanine has been reported. This is the first reported method for preparation of these compounds containing sulfur 2,6-dicyanoanilines. The compounds were confirmed by IR, H NMR, C NMR, and HRMS. The other advantages of this procure are simple handling, high yields, and short reaction times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mitochondrial calcium uniporter (MCU) transports Ca from the cytoplasm to the mitochondrial matrix and thus maintains Ca homeostasis. Previous studies have reported that inhibition of MCU by ruthenium red (RR) protects the brain from ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury and that mitochondrial fission plays an important role in I/R injury. However, it is still not known whether MCU affects mitochondrial fission. In the present study, treatment with RR was found to decrease the concentration of free calcium in the mitochondria, calcineurin enzyme activity and dynamin-related protein 1 expression, and treatment with spermine was found to have the opposite effect in organisms subjected to occlusion of the middle cerebral artery lasting 2 h followed by 24 h reperfusion. These results indicate that MCU may be related to mitochondrial fission via modulating mitochondrial Ca uptake and this relationship between MCU and mitochondrial fission may protect the brain from I/R injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]