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Electro spark deposition technology is a manufacturing process based on conductive materials in the surface reinforcement and repair of metals, which has been widely used in industrial mold manufacturing, aviation automobile and other fields. In order to prolong the service life of metal products and improve the wear and corrosion resistance of metal surfaces, the researchers have improved the surface by using electro spark deposition technology. In this work, the electro spark deposition technology was briefly introduced. The application of this technology in the wear and corrosion resistance field for ferrous metals (including steel materials) and nonferrous metals (including magnesium, aluminum, titanium, copper and their alloys) was emphatically summarized. Finally, the shortcomings in the preparation of modified coatings on metal surfaces by electric spark deposition were pointed out, and its future development direction was prospected.

Superhydrophobic surfaces can seal the gas–liquid interface (GLI) under water to produce the drag reduction effect. Enhancing the stability and slip length of the GLI is an important issue in this context. Herein, we fabricate wettability step electrodes (WSEs) by creating an array of millimeter-scale circular superhydrophobic regions on a hydrophilic graphite plate by using an economical and efficient mask spraying method. When the WSE was electrified as an anode, the oxygen produced by the electrolytic reaction was preferentially precipitated in the superhydrophobic regions and ultimately formed an array of millimeter-scale GLIs. The evolution process of this GLI can be divided into a spreading stage and a growth stage. The results of experiments revealed that the spreading duration of the GLI increased with the diameter of the superhydrophobic regions (D) and decreased with the spacing between adjacent superhydrophobic regions (L). During the growth stage, the height of the GLI decreased with the ratio D/(L + D) and increased over the duration of electrification according to a 1/3 power-law relationship. Finally, we measured the slip characteristic on a single millimeter-scale GLI by particle image velocimetry. The result showed that the effective slip length of the GLI with a streamwise length of 2 mm can exceed 100 μm, thus confirming the potential of the millimeter-scale GLI for drag reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enhancing the synergistic development level of face value and resilience is the key to achieving green and high-quality development of characteristic towns. This study takes 83 characteristic towns in Taihu Lake Basin as research samples, constructs a systematic evaluation index system of the face value and resilience, and scientifically classifies the face value and resilience of Taihu Lake Basin into high level, medium–high level, medium level, and low level, respectively, and explores the intrinsic influence mechanism of the deviation between the face value and resilience via the deviation index and synergy development degree model. The results show that (1) the face value of about 60% of the characteristic towns is above average, which is distributed in the northern and southeast regions of Taihu Lake Basin. In terms of the industry type, the face value level of characteristic towns of tourism, digital economy, information, and finance is high. (2) The number of characteristic towns with moderate resilience is the largest, accounting for 36.1%. Spatially, the characteristic towns with medium–high and high levels are mainly concentrated in Hangzhou, Kunshan, Wuxi, and Shanghai. In terms of the industry type, the resilience levels of tourism towns, digital economy towns, and modern service towns with distinctive industrial characteristics are higher. (3) The face value and resilience of most characteristic towns in Taihu Lake Basin are not synchronized, and 67.5% of the towns have a large deviation. We classify 83 characteristic towns into four categories: high robustness (Hj > 4.80), medium–high robustness (4.02 ≤ Hj ≥ 4.79), medium robustness (4.03 ≤ Hj ≥ 3.11), and low robustness (Hj < 3.10); the high robustness areas are concentrated in Suzhou–Wuxi–Changzhou and the northern part of Zhejiang. (4) We propose the differentiated development paths of synergistic development between face value and resilience, and the synergistic cooperation and governance mechanism of multiple subjects for the achievement of balanced development in characteristic towns. The conclusions of this study have important research value and practical significance for the sustainable development of similar characteristic towns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The post-harvest ripening of pineapples can be effectively postponed by refrigerated storage. Nevertheless, internal browning (IB) frequently appears in pineapples after refrigerated storage during the course of the shelf life at room temperature, which is known as chilling injury (CI). In this study, the chilling injury of pineapple fruit was induced by a low temperature (6 °C) and transferred to normal-temperature storage; the best concentration of 50 μmol/L of CaCl2 was selected by the IB appearance and electrical conductivity. Fruit quality, reactive oxygen species (ROS), antioxidants, and transcription factors were investigated. The physiological data results indicated that pineapples treated with 50 μmol/L of CaCl2 maintained fruit quality, decreased reactive oxygen species (ROS), and enhanced the antioxidant activity of fruits, alleviating internal browning (IB) symptoms in pineapple fruit. The expressions of related genes were also consistent with the physiological changes by the transcriptome data analysis. In addition, we focused on some related metabolic pathways, including phenylpropanoid biosynthesis, MAPK pathway, plant hormone, plant–pathogen interaction, tricarboxylic acid cycle (TAC), and fatty acid biosynthesis. We performed integrative analyses of transcriptome data combined with a series of physiology and experimental analyses on the internal browning of pineapples, which will be of great significance to extending the shelf life of pineapples through molecular biology in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The gas–liquid interface (GLI) over superhydrophobic surfaces (SHSs), where the flow slips, is the key to reduce frictional drag in underwater applications. Many-body dissipative particle dynamics simulations are used to explore the slip behavior of a shear flow over a rectangular grooved SHS, and a flat GLI is obtained by tuning the contact angle of the GLI. Due to the slip, the normal profiles of the local velocity, which are perpendicular to the GLI, are curved and shifted away from the linear form near the GLI. Then, a polynomial function is proposed to fit the velocity profile to extract the local shear rate and calculate the slip length. Based on this fitting method, a hybrid slip boundary condition is derived for both longitudinal and transverse flows. That is, the shear stress and slip length are finite near the groove edge, and the stress is nearly zero and the slip length is infinite in the center region of the GLI. This new hybrid slip boundary condition not only explains the inconsistent slip conditions reported in the literature under different groove length scales, but also unifies the existing exclusive slip assumptions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• PDT is an innovative therapy in treating early-stage EC and has been poorly reported in the literature. • PDT combined with hysteroscopic resection can be a good choice for patients with early-stage EC who want to preserve fertility. Endometrial carcinoma (EC) is one of the most prevalent gynecological malignancies and the onset age of EC tends to be younger. This case report explored the feasibility of surgery combined with photodynamic therapy (PDT) in two young patients with early-stage EC. A 31 years old patient and a 24 years old patient were treated with surgery and PDT, respectively. The intraoperative PDT was performed 3 h after oral administration of 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) with intrauterine light irradiation of 630 nm laser light. The patients were followed up for 3 years and 4 months, respectively. There were no signs of recurrence. Intraoperative and intrauterine PDT was feasible and might be used for EC patients who attempt to preserve fertility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• ALA-PDT is an effective, safe, and alternative treatment for recurrent cervical HSIL after conization. • ALA-PDT has similar efficacy to surgery in patients with recurrent cervical HSIL after conization. • Compared with surgery, ALA-PDT protects the cervix from further damage. The study aimed to compare the clinical efficacy and safety of 5-aminolevulinic acid photodynamic therapy (ALA-PDT) and surgery in treating recurrent cervical high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL) after surgery due to precancerous lesions. A total of 41 patients with recurrent cervical HSIL after surgery for precancerous lesions were studied retrospectively. Patients underwent ALA-PDT or surgery and were followed up at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months and then every six months after that. Clinical data were collected and the efficacy and safety of the two treatment methods were compared. Of the 41 patients with recurrent cervical HSIL after conization, 15 cases received ALA-PDT and 26 received surgery. At the six-month follow-up, the lesions' complete remission (CR) rate was 93.33 % in ALA-PDT group and 88.46 % in the surgery group. The human papillomavirus (HPV) clearance rates were 66.67 % and 73.08 %, respectively. No significant differences concerning the lesions' CR rate and the HPV clearance rate were observed between the two groups (P >0.05). At the twelve-month follow-up, the HPV clearance rates were 80.00 % and 91.67 %. No significant differences concerning the HPV clearance rate were observed between the two groups (P >0.05). In the surgery group, the HPV clearance rate and the lesions' CR rate were lower in patients over 45 years of age (25.00% vs. 81.82 %, P = 0.031; 50.00% vs. 95.45 %, P = 0.052). During the follow-up, there was no significant difference in the recurrence rate between the two groups (P >0.05). In addition, none of the patients progressed. In women treated with ALA-PDT, there was no vaginal bleeding, and no harmful effects on the cervical organizational structure or functions compared to the surgery group, and two women delivered successfully after ALA-PDT treatment. The efficacy of ALA-PDT was similar to that of surgery in treating recurrent cervical HSIL following surgery, with fewer side effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the scheduling problem about the Automatic Vehicle Storage and Retrieval System controlling of the shuttle combined vehicles and the elevator to complete the storing and picking-up operations on the order in automatic three-dimensional warehouse. For the order with the pure storing operations or pure picking-up operations, it directly solve them similar to Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP), and for storing and picking-up compound operations,it will respectively cooperate and schedule the elevator with one or two sets of shuttle combined vehicles to complete the task in the shortest time. Pertinent mathematical models has been established, and have been simulated and optimized with MATLAB. Compared with the conventional random access strategy, the current method can greatly save the travel time of the elevator and shuttle bus. The lower time consumption and higher efficiency indicates that the method presented is of significant value in both theory and practical usage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Superhydrophobic surfaces have great potential for self-cleaning, anti-icing, and drag-reducing because of their water repellency property. However, their super-hydrophobicity is destroyed under mechanical abrasion due to the vulnerability of the delicate surface textures. Here, we demonstrate a strategy to create a robust superhydrophobic surface using MXene and fluoridated silica as functional fillers in epoxy resin. The fluoridated silica produces low surface energy, MXene serves as a wear-resistant phase and epoxy resin is the binding matrix. The composite coating demonstrates a self-cleaning effect to remove particles from the superhydrophobic surface by rolling water droplets. Moreover, the coating exhibits excellent mechanical durability by standing abrasion to maintain super-hydrophobicity. The superhydrophobic composite coating has the advantages of low cost and feasibility and has the potential for expandable industrial promotion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]