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Epidemiological data on cerebral venous thrombosis in China are still lacking at present on the aspects of incidence, recurrence, risk factors, and so on. Herein, we aimed to fill the gap, based on the result of this multicenter prospective cohort study. A total of 26 top tertiary hospitals distributed in China Mainland will take part in this study. For the first time, a dataset of cerebral venous thrombosis cohort (including multiethnic patients of all ages in almost all regions of Mainland China, regardless of gender) will be built. Inclusion criteria were as follows: (1) aged ≥14 years, (2) neuroimaging-confirmed cerebral venous thrombosis, (3) symptom onset was within 30 days prior to enrollment, (4) signed the informed consent form. Demographic data, risk factors, clinical and neuroimaging features, ophthalmologic and aural results, blood tests, cerebrospinal fluid examination, therapeutic strategies, and adverse events were analyzed. Two milliliters of fasting venous blood and 2 mL of cerebrospinal fluid will be collected and stored. Furthermore, patients will be followed up at months 1, 3, 6, and 12 after baseline assessment. Primary outcome will be all-cause mortality. Secondary outcomes: (1) cerebrospinal fluid pressure and Frisen grade; (2) recanalization rate on imaging; (3) rating scales such as GCS, NIHSS, mRS, Mini-Mental State Examination, Montreal Cognitive Assessment, Patient Health Questionnaire 9-item, HIT-6, and Tinnitus Handicap Index. This study will for the first time provide strong evidence on the incidence rate, recurrence rate, and demographic data, as well as special risk factors, clinical outcomes, symptomatic and imaging features of cerebral venous thrombosis in Chinese population. The results of this study will also provide an important reference on prevention, early diagnosis, and customized treatment of cerebral venous thrombosis in Chinese patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Internal jugular vein stenosis (IJVS) results in poor venous outflow and can result in intracranial hypertension. Venous stenting has become a debated topic for correction of this pathology. A 49-year-old male merchant with bilateral IJVS presented with headache, dizziness, and pulsatile tinnitus. He was found to have intracranial hypertension and left IJVS caused by styloid process compression and right IJVS caused by damage of the venous intima. His symptoms improved after undergoing styloidectomy followed by left intra–internal jugular vein (IJV) balloon. However, 1 year later, the prior symptoms reoccurred. At this time, the patient underwent right intra-IJV stenting. After treatment of the contralateral side, the symptoms resolved during the following 3 months. The clinical practice in this case indicated that in patients with bilateral IJVS, a 2-side intervention may be necessary when unilateral correction fails. We advise a staged approach to correction of bilateral IJVS. Styloid compression–induced IJVS should be corrected by styloidectomy in combination with balloon and/or stenting, whereas IJVS induced by venous wall issues needs only stenting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Fastener stiffness increases with service time in high-speed railway. • Fastener stiffness is sensitive to low temperature and high frequency. • The temperature- and frequency-dependent characteristics of fastener affect rail vibration and decay rate. • PUEP composed of PTMG1000 and NDI has wide temperature range stiffness characteristics. The operation line of China's high-speed railway has exceeded 40,000 km. The performance decay and even failure to some fastener systems could be caused by complex terrain (mountain and plain), variable environment (−50 °C to 50 °C), high speed (300–350 km/h) and high frequency (500–700 Hz). Herein, the W300-1 fastener is taken as the research object to test and conclude the service performance and online track modal recognition. The comprehensive test system is used to obtain the dynamic characteristics of fasteners with the preload under the temperature-dependent (−70 °C to 50 °C) and frequency-dependent (10–1250 Hz) coupling conditions. It is found that the elastic pad stiffness in fastener system is sensitive to the low temperature and high frequency. In order to study the influences of temperature- and frequency-dependent dynamic characteristics of fasteners on track system, the dynamics analysis model of track system is constructed. The rail receptance curve under constant working condition is verified by the online track recognition. Simultaneously, the dynamic characteristics of the rail under constant working condition (4 Hz) and temperature-/frequency-dependent conditions are contrastively analyzed. The results indicate that the frequency-dependent characteristics of elastic pad enable the first-order modal frequency to shift toward a higher frequency, accompanied by the amplitude increase. The temperature-dependent characteristics of elastic pad make the medium- and high-frequency decay rate of rail wider but smaller. Due to the adverse effects of above conclusions, the polymer materials of elastic pad in fastener system are modified and optimized from two perspectives of polyol type and crosslinking agent type. Based on the standard requirements of Q/CR7-2014, it is certain that the dynamic performances of PUEP samples prepared by PTMG1000 and NDI together can meet the requirements of safety and stability of high-speed railway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the circumstances of high-speed railways, the wheel-rail vibration is significantly aggravated by polygonal wheel wear and rail corrugation, which subsequently leads to the wheel-rail interaction at higher frequencies and potential failure of the rail fastening. In this paper, a ω-type clip of the fastening in the CRH high-speed rail was used to investigate the failure mechanism. First, a dynamic wheel-rail coupling model and a finite element analysis of the rail clip were developed, from which the rail vibration frequency and modal frequencies of the clip with different installation torques were obtained. The experimental tests and modal simulation results were mutually verified. In addition, the real-time vibration measurement and the wheel-rail wear monitoring were carried out at a CRH high-speed railway site. It was found that the resonant frequencies of the ω-type clip in the installation condition coincided with the excitation frequencies of the wheel-rail interaction induced by wheel-rail wear. The high-frequency dynamic failure mechanism of a typical ω-type clip, W300-1, is put forward for the first time. Moreover, a high-frequency rail clip fatigue test system was designed and developed specifically for this study. The loading excitation frequency of the clip test used was set as 590 Hz, and the loading amplitude was 0.05 mm. After 125-minute operation of the test system, the clip was broken at the expected location predicted by the FEA model. The high-frequency fatigue test result further verified that the failure mechanism of the ω-type clip was due to the resonance of the clip with its excitation force from the wheel-rail interaction. Finally, the clip was then structurally improved taking into account the stiffness and mass, which led to its resonant frequencies shifting away from the high-frequency excitation range, hence avoiding resonance failure of the subject clip. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Great efforts have been made on the assessment of the effects of nitrogen (N) fertilization or silicon (Si) addition on plant growth and community composition. However, their interactive effects were not well documented. We here tested the effects of N addition (0, 70, 140 and 210 kg ha −1 of N) on the leaf N content, growth, photosynthetic characteristics of five common species and structure of community (biomass, height, abundance and species richness) with or without Si (14.36 kg ha −1 ) incorporation. Different species and whole community responded different. As compared to without Si, Si incorporation increased the net photosynthetic rate ( Pn ) and biomass of species Elymus nutans by 16.7 and 31.1%, Kobresia capillifolia by 10.4 and 11.1%, Oxytropis kansuensis by 42 and 18.0%, Anemone rivularis by 14.3 and 157%, Potentilla fragarioides by 12.5 and 91.7%, plant abundance and species richness of community by 6.2 and 11.8% under N addition of 210 kg ha −1 . The effect of Si supply on species richness was more efficient under low N addition than high N addition. Together, our results indicate that N fertilization incorporation with Si addition benefits plant growth for higher-photosynthetic activity of individual species and higher-species richness of community in alpine meadow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of REO (RE = La, Ce) fluxes on penetration and microstructure in 3-mm-thick Ti6Al4V weld joints made by activated flux tungsten inert gas (A-TIG) welding process was investigated. The mechanism of penetration increase was discussed. Microstructure characterization in the fusion zone region was also observed under optical microscope. It is shown that REO fluxes can effectively increase weld penetration of Ti6Al4V for applying a thin layer paste when welding. The mechanism would comply with changing the Marangoni convection in the weld pool, rather than the arc. A-TIG welding with REO fluxes can slightly refine the width of β-Ti grains. Phase constitution shows single α′-Ti in solidification structure in both two welding process. There are no significant changes in weld metal microstructure with and without ReO fluxes. Microhardness distribution of weld seam indicates that the appearance of REO has not affected the metal plastic deformation capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the development of a satellite-based precipitation product, two important aspects are sufficient precipitation information in the satellite-input data and proper methodologies, which are used to extract such information and connect it to precipitation estimates. In this study, the effectiveness of the state-of-the-art deep learning (DL) approaches to extract useful features from bispectral satellite information, infrared (IR), and water vapor (WV) channels, and to produce rain/no-rain (R/NR) detection is explored. To verify the methodologies, two models are designed and evaluated: the first model, referred to as the DL-IR only method, applies deep learning approaches to the IR data only; the second model, referred to as the DL-IR+WV method, incorporates WV data to further improve the precipitation identification performance. The radar stage IV data are the reference data used as ground observation. The operational product, Precipitation Estimation from Remotely Sensed Information Using Artificial Neural Networks-Cloud Classification System (PERSIANN-CCS), serves as a baseline model with which to compare the performances. The experiments show significant improvement for both models in R/NR detection. The overall performance gains in the critical success index (CSI) are 21.60% and 43.66% over the verification periods for the DL-IR only model and the DL-IR+WV model compared to PERSIANN-CCS, respectively. In particular, the performance gains in CSI are as high as 46.51% and 94.57% for the models for the winter season. Moreover, specific case studies show that the deep learning techniques and the WV channel information effectively help recover a large number of missing precipitation pixels under warm clouds while reducing false alarms under cold clouds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The particle formation behavior of methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS) was researched in the presence of a small amount of inorganic calcium carbonate particles. MTMS was first hydrolyzed in water under the catalyzation by hydrochloric acid to produce hydrolyzate and then neutralized by base sodium hydroxide. Under the neutral condition, the hydrolyzate of MTMS was mixed with a small amount of newly-prepared precipitation of calcium carbonate. Following this, hydrolytic polycondensation reaction catalyzed by adding ammonia to the mixture was conducted. The results show that polymethylsilsesquioxane (PMSQ) particles with raspberry-like morphology were obtained by this method, while those without addition of calcium carbonate are of smooth surface, which was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) micrographs. The static water contact angles changed from 136.2 ± 0.9° of pure PMSQ particles with smooth surface to 146.3 ± 1.1° with raspberry-like morphology, showing a great increment in apparent hydrophobicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the advantage of global coverage at high spatiotemporal resolutions, satellite remotely sensed precipitation estimates still suffer from insufficient accuracy that needs to be improved for weather, climate, and hydrologic applications. This paper presents a framework of a deep neural network (DNN) that improves the accuracy of satellite precipitation products, focusing on reducing the bias and false alarms. The state-of-the-art deep learning techniques developed in the area of machine learning specialize in extracting structural information from a massive amount of image data, which fits nicely into the task of retrieving precipitation data from satellite cloud images. Stacked denoising autoencoder (SDAE), a widely used DNN, is applied to perform bias correction of satellite precipitation products. A case study is conducted on the Precipitation Estimation from Remotely Sensed Information Using Artificial Neural Networks Cloud Classification System (PERSIANN-CCS) with spatial resolution of 0.08° × 0.08° over the central United States, where SDAE is used to process satellite cloud imagery to extract information over a window of 15 × 15 pixels. In the study, the summer of 2012 (June-August) and the winter of 2012/13 (December-February) serve as the training periods, while the same seasons of the following year (summer of 2013 and winter of 2013/14) are used for validation purposes. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the methodology outside the study area, three more regions are selected for additional validation. Significant improvements are achieved in both rain/no-rain ( R/NR) detection and precipitation rate quantification: the results make 33% and 43% corrections on false alarm pixels and 98% and 78% bias reductions in precipitation rates over the validation periods of the summer and winter seasons, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study demonstrates the application of an improved Evolutionary optimization Algorithm (EA), titled Multi-Objective Complex Evolution Global Optimization Method with Principal Component Analysis and Crowding Distance Operator (MOSPD), for the hydropower reservoir operation of the Oroville–Thermalito Complex (OTC) – a crucial head-water resource for the California State Water Project (SWP). In the OTC's water-hydropower joint management study, the nonlinearity of hydropower generation and the reservoir's water elevation–storage relationship are explicitly formulated by polynomial function in order to closely match realistic situations and reduce linearization approximation errors. Comparison among different curve-fitting methods is conducted to understand the impact of the simplification of reservoir topography. In the optimization algorithm development, techniques of crowding distance and principal component analysis are implemented to improve the diversity and convergence of the optimal solutions towards and along the Pareto optimal set in the objective space. A comparative evaluation among the new algorithm MOSPD, the original Multi-Objective Complex Evolution Global Optimization Method (MOCOM), the Multi-Objective Differential Evolution method (MODE), the Multi-Objective Genetic Algorithm (MOGA), the Multi-Objective Simulated Annealing approach (MOSA), and the Multi-Objective Particle Swarm Optimization scheme (MOPSO) is conducted using the benchmark functions. The results show that best the MOSPD algorithm demonstrated the best and most consistent performance when compared with other algorithms on the test problems. The newly developed algorithm (MOSPD) is further applied to the OTC reservoir releasing problem during the snow melting season in 1998 (wet year), 2000 (normal year) and 2001 (dry year), in which the more spreading and converged non-dominated solutions of MOSPD provide decision makers with better operational alternatives for effectively and efficiently managing the OTC reservoirs in response to the different climates, especially drought, which has become more and more severe and frequent in California. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This manuscript introduces a novel computational science approach for studying the impact of climate variability on precipitation. The approach uses an object-oriented connectivity algorithm that segments gridded near-global satellite precipitation data into four-dimensional (4D) objects (longitude, latitude, time, and intensity). These precipitation systems have distinct spatiotemporal properties that are counted, tracked, described, and stored in a searchable database. A case study of western United States precipitation systems is performed, demonstrating the unique properties and capabilities of this object-oriented database. The precipitation dataset used in the case study is the University of California, Irvine, Precipitation Estimation from Remotely Sensed Information Using Artificial Neural Networks (PERSIANN) from 1 March 2000 to 1 January 2011. A search of the database for all western United States precipitation systems during this time period returns 626 precipitation systems as objects. By analyzing these systems as segmented objects, joint interactions of the selected climate phenomena 1) Arctic Oscillation (AO), 2) Madden-Julian oscillation (MJO), and 3) El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) on precipitation can be shown. They directly show the increased/decreased likelihood of having precipitation systems occurring over the western United States (monthly count) during phases of these climate phenomena. It is found that specific climate phenomena impact the monthly count of the events differently, and that the joint interaction of climate phenomena of the AO-MJO and AO-ENSO is important, especially during certain months of the year. It is also found that these interactions impact the physical features of the precipitation systems themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The improved physicochemical immobilization and catalytic redox conversion of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) intermediates are considered to be a desirable solution to enhance the sulfur electrochemistry in lithium-sulfur (Li–S) batteries. Herein, we for the first time, reported the fabrication of the core-shell structure composed of cobalt-doped carbon nano-tube (CNT) assembled polyhedron core derived from the cobalt metal-organic frameworks (Co-MOFs)@graphitized porous carbon aerogel shell as the sulfur reservoir material for Li–S batteries. The obtained sulfur cathodes exhibited excellent electrochemical performance, including a high reversible capacity (939.9 mAh g−1 at 0.1C), outstanding areal capacity (3.35 mAh cm−2 after 50 cycles, under a low electrolyte/8.3 μL m g s − 1 ), and superior cycling stability (the capacity decay rate of 0.087% per cycle after 500 cycles at 1C). The improvement in electrochemical performance could be attributed to the unique core-shell architecture: the multiple polyhedron Co–C cores not only provide a multiple-point catalytic center for LiPS conversion, but also serves as the polar material to inhibit the migrating of polysulfides by chemical interaction; More importantly, the graphitized porous carbon aerogel shell provides a fast transport channel for Li+/e− diffusion, and also sufficient free space for the sulfur reservoir and Li 2 S 2 /Li 2 S deposition. [Display omitted] • Co–C polyhedra reduced the formation of non-graphitic carbon in carbon aerogel. • Core-shell structures provided adequate accommodation capacity for sulfur species. • Multipoint Co–C polyhedron cores accelerated polysulfide redox reaction kinetics. • The S/Co-GC@GPCA cathode delivered outstanding cycling stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS) was used as the precursor and the organosilica aerogel was prepared by an acid-base catalyzed two stage process. To the aqueous system of acid-catalyzed hydrolyzate of MTMS, a kind of hydrophobic organic solvent, cyclohexane, which is insoluble in the aqueous phase was added and dispersed into small droplets with the aid of a high speed homogenizer. Then the reaction mixture was transformed into a gel through base catalyzed condensation. The hydrophobic solvent was pre-embedded in the gel in the form of microcapsules with the condensed MTMS hydrolyzate forming the shell. The pre-embedded hydrophobic solvent reduced the interface tension between the pore liquid and the skeleton solid. Ambient pressure drying of the wet gels produced low shrinkage and gave low density monolithic aerogels consisting of hollow microspheres. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the Vossloh W300 fastener currently used in China's high-speed railway is taken as the research object. Combined with the requirements of ISO 10846 series standards and the knowledge of the author, to the best of the authors knowledge, the first high-frequency dynamic stiffness test system for elastic elements of rail fastener has been successfully developed and built. By taking the influence of preloading into consideration, the vertical and lateral dynamic frequency-dependent stiffness and loss factor of high-speed railway W300 fastener at 5~1250 Hz were obtained through the 1:1 test model coupling test method for the first time. Referring to the prediction method of high-speed railway wheel-rail vibration and noise, and factoring in the high-speed rotating, the infinite length of plate track structure and high-speed movement of sound source to wheels, the Kelvin - Voigt simulation sub-model of fastening system was added to predict and analyze the difference between the total sound pressure levels of the wheel and rail that is relative to the standard point under the constant stiffness and frequency-dependent stiffness of fastener. The results indicate that the frequency-dependent characteristics of fastener stiffness have significant impact on the spectrum of wheel-rail interaction forces, total sound pressure levels of rail and wheel-rail. The total sound pressure level of the wheel-rail relative to standard point, which factors in the frequency-dependent stiffness of fastener was approximately reduced 2.6 dB, that is, the frequency-dependent stiffness of fastener can rectify the overestimation of wheel-rail sound pressure level by stiffness coefficient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The contribution of complement to the development of autoimmune diabetes has been proposed recently. The underlying mechanisms, however, remain poorly understood. We hypothesize that myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC), which act as regulators in autoimmunity, play a role in resistance to diabetes in absence of complement C3. Indeed, MDSC number was increased significantly in STZ-treated C3−/− mice. These cells highly expressed arginase I and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS). Importantly, depletion of MDSC led to the occurrence of overt diabetes in C3−/− mice after STZ. Furthermore, C3−/− MDSC actively suppressed diabetogenic T cell proliferation and prevented/delayed the development of diabetes in arginase and/or iNOS-dependent manner. Both Tregs and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) are crucial for MDSC induction in STZ-treated C3−/− mice as depletion of Tregs or blocking TGF-β bioactivity dramatically decreased MDSC number. These findings indicate that MDSC are implicated in resistance to STZ-induced diabetes in the absence of complement C3, which may be helpful for understanding of mechanisms underlying preventive effects of complement deficiency on autoimmune diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Recent studies have demonstrated that complement contributes to the development of autoimmune diabetes. However, the mechanisms remain unknown. Herein, using a model of streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes, we found the presence of immune tolerance to self islet in complement C3-deficient mice after STZ. Higher number of CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) with characteristics of expressing Foxp3 was observed in C3−/− mice. These C3−/− Tregs exhibited enhanced suppressive capacity to effector cell proliferation. The central role of Tregs was further evidenced by that depleting these cells using anti-CD25 antibody dramatically abrogated the preventive effects of C3 deficiency on STZ-induced diabetes. Importantly, transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) was a key factor for Treg-mediated immune suppression as blocking TGF-β activity reversed suppressive capacity of Tregs in vitro and diabetes-resistant effects of C3 deficiency in vivo. These findings suggest that resistance to overt diabetes in STZ-treated C3−/− mice involves a population of Tregs in TGF-β-dependent manner. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Recent studies have shown that Th17 cells, as a distinct lineage from Th1 and Th2 subsets, play an obligatory role in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases. It is well known that immunotherapy with Complete Freund''s adjuvant (CFA) is effective in preventing from the onset of autoimmune diabetes in nonobese diabetic (NOD) mice. In the present study, we investigated whether CFA treatment restrained Th17 development and down-regulated Th17-related cytokine production in NOD mice. Th17-related cytokines (i.e. IL-17A, IL-17F, IL-21, IL-22, IL-23, IL-6, TGF-β) production in splenocytes was decreased dramatically on day 18 following CFA immunization. This effect was also observed at 10 and 20 week after adjuvant treatment. Injection of IL-17 into CFA-treated diabetes-free mice led to occurrence of overt diabetes, indicating that therapeutic effects of adjuvant treatment may be partially due to suppressing Th17 commitment. Interestingly, the main producer of IL-17 resided in a population of myeloid cells, which negatively expressed makers of neutrophil or macrophages. IL-23 stimulation did not alter the distribution of IL-17 in myeloid cells. Furthermore, this pattern of IL-17 expression was also present in Balb/c and C57BL/6 strains. These findings may have important implications for understanding of mechanisms underlying adjuvant treatment on autoimmune diseases. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

SnP 0.94 nanodot electrocatalysts supported on porous hollow carbon aerogel matrix effectively manipulated electrochemical redox reaction kinetics of sulfur species. [Display omitted] • A synergistic SnP 0.94 @porous hollow carbon aerogel (SnP 0.94 @PHCA) was engineered. • The SnP 0.94 @PHCA could provide adequate accommodation capacity for sulfur species. • Experiment and DFT results confirmed strong adsorption/catalytic activity for LiPSs. • The S/SnP 0.94 @PHCA cathode exhibited an enhanced electrochemical performance. The realization of the high energy density of lithium-sulfur batteries (Li-S) has always been one of the targets pursued by researchers. However, the shuttling effect, dissolution of sulfur/lithium polysulfides (LiPSs), and sluggish redox kinetics in Li-S batteries restricted its long-term application and development. Herein, an advanced sulfur immobilizer composed of SnP 0.94 nanodot electrocatalysts@porous hollow carbon aerogel (SnP 0.94 @PHCA) was synthesized. As expected, the synergistic sulfur host can not only act as a good electrochemical interface but also provide adequate accommodation for active materials to alleviate the LiPS diffusion. More importantly, SnP 0.94 nanodot electrocatalysts supported on the conductive PHCA skeleton effectively expedited the conversion/redox reaction kinetics and also constructed a stronger adsorption system for LiPSs to inhibit the LiPS shuttling behavior. Correspondingly, the SnP 0.94 @PHCA composite endowed the sulfur cathode the outstanding specific capacity of 1017.8 mAh g−1 under a high sulfur loading (2.94 mg cm−2) at 0. 1 C, superior rate performance (579.8 mAh g−1 at 1 C), excellent cycling stability (the capacity decay rate of 0.13% per cycle at 0.5 C), and a high areal capacity of 6.9 mAh cm−2 under starved electrolyte conditions (8.6 μL mg s −1). This work opens up a new direction for constructing the electroactive hosts in Li-S batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A coupled atmosphere–land-surface mesoscale model is used to assess the responses of precipitation to soil-moisture anomalies in two regions: (1) the core region of the North American Monsoon (NAM; 105°–112°W, 24°–36°N); (2) the central–southern United States (CS-US; 85°–95°W, 30°–36°N). Results from a series of numerical experiments integrated from July to September 2000 show that precipitation increases in the NAM region in July with a prescribed wet soil-moisture anomaly; meanwhile, precipitation decreases in the CS-US region. In the following months, when the prescribed wet soil-moisture anomaly in the NAM region was removed, the increase in precipitation in the NAM region becomes weaker and shifts eastward to the CS-US region. By September, an inverse precipitation seesaw in these two regions is built up. Except for local evaporation, the transportation of atmospheric moisture affects the interaction between soil moisture and precipitation, especially in the regions and periods without the prescribed soil-moisture anomaly. The soil-moisture anomaly in the NAM region is only partially responsible for the precipitation seesaw in the southern United States. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a precipitation model which was developed using remotely sensed infrared data from the Japanese Islands, collected by the Geostationary Meteorological Satellite, and ground based data collected by the Automated Meteorological Data Acquisition System. Validation of the model for the Japanese Islands and the Florida Peninsula; What the adaptive feature of the model allows; Important feature of the model.

• The failure mechanism of clip caused by high-frequency excitation of wheel and rail. • Clip parameter optimization and damping design, fatigue life of the clip was greatly improved. • This research save the cost of fastener system and has the adaptability of high-speed. In this paper, the fastener clip in high-speed railway with the speed of 300–350 km/h is taken as the research object, it studied the relationship among parameters such as high-speed rail wear, dynamic frequency response of clip and dynamic stress of clip, revealed the dynamic failure mechanism of clip damage in high-speed rail caused by high-frequency excitation (580–680 Hz). In order to improve the service life of existing W1-type fastener in high-speed rail on the basis of guaranteeing design requirements and installation interchangeability of clips, taking "keeping away from excitation frequency band and reducing vibration amplitude" as the research objective, the clip geometric parameter optimization based on the correlation theory and the composite damping structure design of clip based on the modal damping theory are mainly promoted. Under the conditions of installation and use of rail clips, high damping clips with different combination of inner and outer diameters are obtained and strength simulation analysis, damping clip samples and dynamic frequency response test of optimized damping clips are carried out. The results show that, (1) with the increase of the equal ratio of outer diameter and damping diameter of high damping clip, the attentive mode frequency of clip increases up to 18.5%;(2) As the ratio of outer diameter and damping diameter of high damping clip increases, the response amplitude of high damping clip significantly decreases, up to 31.6%, (3) As the ratio of outer diameter and damping diameter of high damping clip increases, the overall mass of fastener clip also decreases, up to 9.7%.To a certain extent, the design structure of high damping composite clip is not only far away from the excitation frequency of wheel and rail, but also improves the dynamic fatigue life of clip, saves the cost of fastener system and has more applicability for high-speed railway lines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to high theoretical specific capacity, energy density, and low-cost lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries became the most potential energy storage devices for the next generation. The harsh shuttling effect, poor electroconductibility of sulfur, and volume change affect the Li-S battery's practical application. Herein, the rational design of porous hollow carbon aerogel (PHCA) with an ultra-high specific surface area of 2054.5 m2 g−1 and outstanding adsorption ability is firstly fabricated to restrict the shuttling effect of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) by using commercialized nano-CaCO 3 as a template. As a sulfur host, the S/PHCA cathode delivers initially discharge specific capacity of 992.7 mAh g−1 with an average Coulombic efficiency of 97.6%. After 200 cycles, it obtains the reversible specific capacities of 600.1 mAh g−1 for S/PHCA cathode at 0.1C (2.2 mg cm−2) corresponding to 60.45% of their initial discharge specific capacity. As a PHCA interlayer, the Li-S battery with the PHCA interlayer exhibits initially discharge specific capacity of 1267.7 mAh g−1 with an average Coulombic efficiency of 99.36% at 0.1C (3.2 mg cm−2) and maintains at 863.3 mAh g−1 with the discharge specific capacity retention rate of 69.2%. This is an effective strategy to improve the outstanding electrochemical performance which is beyond reported carbon materials, which is attributed to stronger adsorption of LiPSs by the micropore. This work provides a new direction for the modification of a sulfur host and interlayer and simultaneously reveals the relationship between the heteroatom distribution and LiPSs. • The porous hollow carbon aerogel with an ultra-high specific surface area as a sulfur host and interlayer to absorb LiPSs. • The abundant porous structure acts as a lubricant role between LiPSs and the heteroatom of the PHCA. • Li-S batteries with a lightweight PHCA interlayer exhibit the outstanding electrochemical performance. • The areal density of the PHCA interlayer is only 0.008 mg cm−2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because of its high specific surface area and high conductivity, carbon aerogel has become one of an ideal sulfur hosts for lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries. However, the microstructure of carbon aerogel perplexed by many factors, such as solvents, catalysts. In this work, carbon aerogel (CA) is respectively fabricated through phenol-formaldehyde reaction under two different catalysts of hexamethylenetetramine and sodium hydroxide, and carbonized under high temperature, and loaded with sulfur via diffusion-melting. The physical properties of resulting CA via hexamethylenetetramine catalyst (CAHE) and the electrochemical performances of the obtaining CAHE/S (sulfur) are more outstanding than that of carbon aerogel via sodium hydroxide catalyst (CASH) by scanning electron microscopy, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller characterization, and galvanostatic discharge/charge test and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. With a comparison of common CASH, and sulfur loaded in CASH (CASH/S), CAHE/S electrode exhibits a relatively high initial discharge specific capacity of 1085.6 mAh g−1, increasing 11% in capacity retention rate at 0.1 C after 100 cycles. After 50 cycles, the capacity attenuation rate is 0.08% per cycle, which displays the excellent performance of the CAHE/S electrode. It is found that the improved performance of CAHE/S is attributed to finer particles and larger specific surface area of CAHE which rapidly improves lithium ion diffusion. This work not only modifies the structure of carbon aerogelbut also provides an important reference value for the potential application of the carbon aerogel in Li-S batteries. Unlabelled Image • An organic base catalyst of hexamethylenetetramine is firstly proposed to fabricate carbon aerogel applied in Li-S battery. • The improved electrochemical performance is attributed to the application of the organic base catalyst and finer carbon aerogel particles. • Li-S batteries with carbon aerogel as a sulfur host are applied in light-emitting diodes with different colors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patients with early-stage renal cell carcinoma (RCC) are considered to be eligible donors. Although preliminary experience in using kidneys of specific pathologic types, mainly those with small renal masses (SRMs), have been established, multiorgan utilization of the same donor with SRMs is limited. One deceased donor whose left-side kidney was diagnosed with Fuhrman grade I RCC was included. The tumor mass in the kidney was removed through partial nephrectomy according to the gold standard. Then, 3 transplant surgeries were performed, in which 1 recipient accepted kidney transplant after tumor exeresis, 1 simultaneous heart-kidney (the contralateral one) transplant, and 1 liver transplant. Recipients were followed up according to our standard protocol for renal cancers. (All allografts were allocated in compliance with the Declaration of Helsinki and the Declaration of Istanbul.) After 32 months, no radiographic findings showed any morphologic changes of the lesion, and all patients were in good condition, with neither tumor recurrence nor allograft rejection or infection. No complaints such as pain, oliguria, dyspnea, nausea, or fatigue were recorded. To the best of knowledge, this initial work takes the lead in elaborating the organ utilization of multiorgan donors with SRMs. We hope the experience will provide support for cross discussion concerned with multiorgan transplant from tumor-affected donors in clinical practices, further expand the donor pool and address the donor shortage problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Transition metal and heteroatom codoped carbon materials have become the most promising materials to replace commercial platinum carbon (Pt / C) catalysts due to their low cost, high stability, and methanol resistance. In this work, iron‐nitrogen and phosphorus codoped carbon nanorod‐layer composites (N, P‐CNL) derived from phosphorus‐doped polyaniline (P‐PANI) by phytic acid (PA) and iron salt were successfully obtained after high‐temperature pyrolysis. As a result, the N, P‐CNL materials exhibited good electrocatalytic performance due to abundant active sites. The N, P‐CNL with 50% mass filling ratio of iron salt (named as N, P‐CNL‐1:1) displayed an enhanced limiting current density of −5.97 mA cm−2 at 1600 rpm and outstanding onset potential (−0.004 V) and oxygen reduction peak potential (−0.144 V). In general, this work can give insights into understanding the mechanism of codoped catalysts and synthesis the catalyst with excellent long‐term stability and resistance to methanol crossover and poisoning better than commercial Pt/C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rational construction of unique hierarchical nanostructured electrodes with excellent electrochemical performance is a promising solution to satisfy the increasing demand of supercapacitors with high energy density. In this work, a novel nanostructure of bowl-like MnO 2 nanosheets with ultra-thin thickness (about 4 nm) has been successfully designed by a simple template-assisted hydrothermal method. The composition and morphology of the obtained bowl-like nanostructures have been characterized by FESEM, TEM, XRD, XPS and N 2 adsorption-desorption. Such novel nanostructures present several advantages, such as large surface area, compact contacts, reduced interior space, additional electroactive sites for reversible redox reactions and short/unimpeded diffusion channels for ions/electron transport. When evaluated as electrode materials, bowl-like MnO 2 nanosheets exhibit a specific capacitance of 379 F g −1 at a current density of 0.5 A g −1 , a capacitance retained ratio of 60.5% from 0.5 to 10 A g −1 and 87.3% capacitance retention after 5000 cycles. Moreover, a possible mechanism for the excellent electrochemical performance of the novel bowl-like nanostructures compared with hollow particles has been systematically studied. We believe that this strategy can open up an avenue and appropriate idea for the rational construction of other transition metal oxides with high performance for the practical supercapacitor applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Integrating polyaniline (PANI) with different dimensional carbon materials is considered as a promising strategy to solve the disadvantages of PANI electrodes, such as low rate capability and poor cyclic stability. In this work, a novel layer-by-layer sandwiched graphene/PANI nanorods/carbon nanotubes (G/PANI/CNTs) heterostructure has been synthesized. The morphology of the heterostructures has been characterized by XRD, Raman spectroscopy, N 2 adsorption-desorption, XPS, FESEM and TEM. The obtained new layer-by-layer sandwiched heterostructures exhibit intimate interface contacts, fully network-structured CNTs coating, dual physical supports and synergistic effects, which can effective host the electrochemical properties of PANI with the electrolyte and restrain the volumetric changes of PANI. As a result, the electrodes exhibit high specific capacitance (638 F g -1  at 0.5 A g −1 ), good rate capability (88.2% retention from 0.5 A g −1 to 10 A g −1 ) and long cycle stability (93% of the initial specific capacitance after 2000 cycles) when the amount of CNTs is 2 mg. Moreover, a possible mechanism for good performance of the layer-by-layer sandwiched heterostructures has been systematically studied. We believe that this strategy will open up an avenue for the rational design of sandwich structured electrodes for high performance supercapacitors and other electronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Superior electromagnetic (EM) wave absorption properties in 8.2–12.4 GHz (X-band) can be obtained via the effective combination of polyaniline (PANI) and SnO 2 nanoparticle cluster. In this work, SnO 2 nanoparticle cluster@PANI (SnO 2 @PANI) core-shell microspheres were firstly fabricated via a hydrothermal process followed by in-situ polymerization, and the EM wave absorption properties of SnO 2 @PANI core-shell microspheres in X band were studied. The related structure and morphology analyses indicated SnO 2 @PANI core-shell microspheres were successfully synthesized with PANI coated on the surface of SnO 2 nanoparticle cluster. The minimum reflection loss (RL min) of − 69.1 dB (thickness of 2.78 mm) and effective absorption bandwidth (EAB) covering the whole X-band (when the thickness was from 2.5 to 3.1 mm) was achieved. Remarkable EM wave absorption properties of SnO 2 @PANI core-shell microspheres were mainly attributed to the outstanding impedance matching characteristic and dielectric loss capability (conduction loss, interfacial polarization loss and dipole polarization loss). • SnO 2 @PANI core-shell micropheres have been synthesized via a hydrothermal process followed by in-situ polymerization. • The excellent reflection loss of SnO 2 @PANI core-shell micropheres is − 69.1 dB with a matching thickness of 2.78 mm. • The effective absorption bandwidth of SnO 2 @PANI core-shell micropheres could cover the whole X-band. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies have been reported about the efficacy of satellites for measuring precipitation and about quantifying their errors. Based on these studies, the errors are associated with a number of factors, among them, intensity, location, climate, and season of the year. Several error models have been proposed to assess the relationship between the error and the rainfall intensity. However, it is unknown whether these models are adaptive to different seasons, different regions, or different types of satellite-based estimates. Therefore, how the error-intensity relationship varies with the season or region is unclear. To investigate these issues, a parametric joint pdf model is proposed to analyze and study the 9-yr satellite-derived precipitation datasets of Climate Prediction Center (CPC) morphing technique (CMORPH); PERSIANN; and the real-time TRMM product 3B42, version 7 (TRMM-3B42-RTV7). The NEXRAD Stage IV product is the ground reference. The adaptability of the proposed model is verified by applying it to three locations (Oklahoma, Montana, and Florida) and by applying it to cold season, warm season, and the entire year. Then, the heteroscedasticities in the errors of satellite-based precipitation measurements are investigated using the proposed model under those scenarios. The results show that the joint pdfs have the same formulation under these scenarios, whereas their parameter sets were adaptively adjusted. This parametric model reveals detailed information about the spatial and seasonal variations of the satellite-based precipitation measurements. It is found that the shape of the conditional pdf shifts across the intensity ranges. At the ~10-20 mm day−1 range, the conditional pdf is L shaped, while at the ~40-60 mm day−1 range, it becomes more bell shaped. It is also concluded that no single satellite-based precipitation product outperforms others with respect to the different scenarios (i.e., seasons, regions, and climates). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intense interaction force between the wheel-rail causes the vibration of wheel and rail, and generates rolling noise. Increasing the rail damper is an effective way to suppress rail vibration. In this paper, a shear-type multi-band tuned rail damper (MTRD) consist of internal mass bars and external resilient layer to reduce rail vibration is proposed. Mass bars are wrapped inside resilient layer and placed along the length of rail. Resilient layer between two adjacent mass bars can enforce them perform shearing motion corresponding to the layer along the main vibration direction of rail. Different oscillation frequencies corresponding to different mass bars can be tuned by adjusting the structure of MTRD. It achieves an increase in the operating frequency band and a widening of the operating frequency range of MTRD. The influence of parameters of MTRD on its performance is investigated by the finite element method (FEM). One of three designed MTRD models is selected for prototype production after comparative analysis. Laboratory measurements are conducted on a rail specimen and 12 m track platform. Results show the main operating frequency band of designed MTRD is in the range of 200 Hz–800 Hz, achieves the goal of the desired frequency band. Frequency response function tests of rail on 12 m platform show the MTRD could suppress rail vibration in the range of 100–2000 Hz. To estimate the practical reduction effects of MTRD on vibration, a small radius curve of metro line is selected for field measurements. The measured track decay rate (DR) shows MTRD could increase DR at frequencies above 80 Hz with a max increment of 5 dB/m and 9.3 dB/m in vertical and lateral direction respectively. Reduction of rail vibration and rolling noise when trains pass is also measured. The overall vibration level of rail achieves a max reduction of 10.9 dB and 6.3 dB in vertical and lateral directions respectively. The overall sound pressure level is reduced by 5.9 dB(A) at the speed of 60 km/h. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Multi-model ensemble strategy is a means to exploit the diversity of skillful predictions from different models. This paper studies the use of Bayesian model averaging (BMA) scheme to develop more skillful and reliable probabilistic hydrologic predictions from multiple competing predictions made by several hydrologic models. BMA is a statistical procedure that infers consensus predictions by weighing individual predictions based on their probabilistic likelihood measures, with the better performing predictions receiving higher weights than the worse performing ones. Furthermore, BMA provides a more reliable description of the total predictive uncertainty than the original ensemble, leading to a sharper and better calibrated probability density function (PDF) for the probabilistic predictions. In this study, a nine-member ensemble of hydrologic predictions was used to test and evaluate the BMA scheme. This ensemble was generated by calibrating three different hydrologic models using three distinct objective functions. These objective functions were chosen in a way that forces the models to capture certain aspects of the hydrograph well (e.g., peaks, mid-flows and low flows). Two sets of numerical experiments were carried out on three test basins in the US to explore the best way of using the BMA scheme. In the first set, a single set of BMA weights was computed to obtain BMA predictions, while the second set employed multiple sets of weights, with distinct sets corresponding to different flow intervals. In both sets, the streamflow values were transformed using Box–Cox transformation to ensure that the probability distribution of the prediction errors is approximately Gaussian. A split sample approach was used to obtain and validate the BMA predictions. The test results showed that BMA scheme has the advantage of generating more skillful and equally reliable probabilistic predictions than original ensemble. The performance of the expected BMA predictions in terms of daily root mean square error (DRMS) and daily absolute mean error (DABS) is generally superior to that of the best individual predictions. Furthermore, the BMA predictions employing multiple sets of weights are generally better than those using single set of weights. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Regional Spectral Model (RSM) is used to produce twice-daily (0000 and 1200 UTC), high-resolution ensemble forecasts to 24 h. The forecasts are performed at an equivalent horizontal grid spacing of 12 km for the period 1 November 2002 to 31 March 2003 over the southwest United States. The performance of 6-h accumulated precipitation is assessed for 32 U.S. Geological Survey hydrologic catchments. Multiple accuracy and skill measures are used to evaluate probabilistic quantitative precipitation forecasts. NCEP stage-IV precipitation analyses are used as “truth,” with verification performed on the stage-IV 4-km grid. The RSM ensemble exhibits a ubiquitous wet bias. The bias manifests itself in areal coverage, frequency of occurrence, and total accumulated precipitation over every region and during every 6-h period. The biases become particularly acute starting with the 1800–0000 UTC interval, which leads to a spurious diurnal cycle and the 1200 UTC cycle being more adversely affected than the 0000 UTC cycle. Forecast quality and value exhibit marked variability over different hydrologic regions. The forecasts are highly skillful along coastal California and the windward slopes of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, but they generally lack skill over the Great Basin and the Colorado basin except over mountain peaks. The RSM ensemble is able to discriminate precipitation events and provide useful guidance to a wide range of users over most regions of California, which suggests that mitigation of the conditional biases through statistical postprocessing would produce major improvements in skill. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Regional Spectral Model (RSM) is used to generate ensemble forecasts over the southwest United States during the 151 days of 1 November 2002 to 31 March 2003. RSM forecasts to 24 h on a 12-km grid are produced from 0000 and 1200 UTC initial conditions. Eleven ensemble members are run each forecast cycle from the NCEP Global Forecast System (GFS) ensemble analyses (one control and five pairs of bred modes) and forecast lateral boundary conditions. The model domain covers two NOAA River Forecast Centers: the California Nevada River Forecast Center (CNRFC) and the Colorado Basin River Forecast Center (CBRFC). Ensemble performance is evaluated for probabilistic forecasts of 24-h accumulated precipitation in terms of several accuracy and skill measures. Differences among several NCEP precipitation analyses are assessed along with their impact on model verification, with NCEP stage IV blended analyses selected to represent “truth.” Forecast quality and potential value are found to depend strongly on the verification dataset, geographic region, and precipitation threshold. In general, the RSM forecasts are skillful over the CNRFC region for thresholds between 1 and 50 mm but are unskillful over the CBRFC region. The model exhibits a wet bias for all thresholds that is larger over Nevada and the CBRFC region than over California. Mitigation of such biases over the Southwest will pose serious challenges to the modeling community in view of the uncertainties inherent in verifying analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The difficulty of deploying remaining oil from unconventional reservoirs and the increasing CO2 emissions has prompted researchers to delve into carbon emissions through Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) technologies. Under the confinement of nanopore in unconventional formation, CO2 and hydrocarbon molecules show different density distribution from in the bulk phase, which leads to a unique phase state and interface behavior that affects fluid migration. At the same time, mineral reactions, asphaltene deposition, and CO2 pressurization will cause the change of porous media geometry, which will affect the multiphase flow. This review highlights the physical and chemical effects of CO2 injection into unconventional reservoirs containing a large number of micro-nanopores. The interactions between CO2 and in situ fluids and the resulting unique fluid phase behavior, gas-liquid equilibrium calculation, CO2 adsorption/desorption, interfacial tension, and minimum miscible pressure (MMP) are reviewed. The pore structure changes and stress distribution caused by the interactions between CO2, in situ fluids, and rock surface are discussed. The experimental and theoretical approaches of these fluid-fluid and fluid-solid reactions are summarized. Besides, deficiencies in the application and safety assessment of CCUS in unconventional reservoirs are described, which will help improve the design and operation of CCUS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The irregular wear of carbon current collector pantograph strips increases the railway maintenance costs and introduces safety hazards in the railway operation. This paper presents a method for analyzing the irregular wear of carbon strips with numerical dynamic analyses and modal tests. The carbon strips were studied in laboratory tests, and an equivalent numerical model for the investigation of their irregular wear and performance improvement was established. The results from the computational simulations were evaluated based on the laboratory results, and the correlation between the high-frequency vibration and irregular wear of the carbon strips was studied. The irregular wear contour of the carbon strips coincides with the high-frequency mode shape according to the experimental and numerical results. Moreover, the dynamic design for carbon strips was optimized with the validated computational model. The results suggest that the optimized schemes effectively mitigate the irregular wear of carbon strips. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermal management of Al composites is a crucial issue to keep the promising performance and excellent reliability of the devices. We revealed a novel method to enhance the surface property of graphite flakes (GF) with Cu and Ni coatings by chemical plating way. Taking advantage of Cu and Ni co-doped GF and silicon powders, the GF@Cu@Ni/Si/Al composites were fabricated by vacuum pressure infiltration method. The GF@Cu-30@Ni-10 composites revealed about 2 times larger TC (474.4 W/m·K) and lower CTE 6.22 ppm/K than neat Al. Our strategy for highly TC offers not only the advanced process for dispersing reinforcements but also an extremely simple way for the anisotropic composites with high TC and low CTE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three-dimensional (3D) flower-like Bi 2 SiO 5 nanomaterials (FLB) and 3D flower-like Bi 2 SiO 5 @nitrogen doped graphene nanomaterials (FLBNG) have been originally synthesized. Notably, as-synthesized FLB and FLBNG nanomaterials have not yet been discussed in previous reports. The FLBNG nanomaterials have been for the first time studied as the cathodic catalysts for Fuel cell. Research results have shown that the FLBNG-2 possesses perfectly 3D flower-like Bi 2 SiO 5 with numerous uniformly coiled nanowires and exhibits good methanol immunity, high activity and high durability during oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) process under acidic and basic electrolytes. The value of onset potential (E 0) for FLBNG-2 in alkaline electrolyte can reach to 1.091 V, Tafel slope of FLBNG-2 is 45.637 mV dec−1 and its limiting current density (J L) is 6.49 mA cm−2. Similarly, These ORR performances in acidic electrolyte are also better than those of 20 wt% commercial Pt/C and most of the associated reports. Thus, the FLBNG-2 could be a potential ORR catalyst, applied in the cathode of fuel cells to enhance the kinetic rate, decrease costs and enhance durability. And this synthesis method may be provide a good design to synthesize other 3D flower-like nanomaterials with desirable properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reasonable design of multi-component metal oxides hierarchical nanostructures is an effective and promising way to improve electrochemical performances of electrode materials. In this work, novel hydrangea-like ZnCo 2 O 4 /Ni 3 V 2 O 8 hierarchical nanostructures are constructed by adjusting the ratio of ZnCo 2 O 4 and Ni 3 V 2 O 8. The perfect architecture maximizes the synergistic effect between different components and provides abundant electrochemical reactive sites, promoting the diffusion and transfer of electrolyte ions in electrochemical reaction process. As a result, ZnCo 2 O 4 /Ni 3 V 2 O 8 electrodes deliver an enhanced specific capacitance of 1734 F g−1 at 1 A g−1 and cyclic stability (96% of initial capacitance is retained after 8000 cycles). Furthermore, the assembled ZnCo 2 O 4 /Ni 3 V 2 O 8 //AC device e achieves excellent energy density of 90 Wh kg−1 at power density of 812 W kg−1, proving the optimized hydrangea-like ZnCo 2 O 4 /Ni 3 V 2 O 8 hierarchical nanostructures are promising electrode material for supercapacitor. In addition, this work supplies helpful insights into rational design of structure and composition of multi-component metal oxides for enhanced electrochemical performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Porous NiCo 2 O 4 /NiO/Co 3 O 4 nanoflowers (NCNs) are prepared by adding oxalic acid. • NCNs-0.1 possess optimal distribution of micro-mesopores. • NCNs-0.1 electrodes deliver an enhanced specific capacitance of 1693F g−1. • 88% capacitance can be retained after 6000 cycles. • Excellent energy densities of 43.02 Wh kg−1 and power densities of 820.29 W kg−1. Abstract The rational design of micro-mesopores is a hugely challenging for porous metal-based nanomaterials. Here oxalic acid (H 2 C 2 O 4) as control agent is proposed for the first time to prepare 3D optimal micro-mesoporous NiCo 2 O 4 /NiO/Co 3 O 4 nanoflowers (NCNs). Theoretical and experimental analyses demonstrate NCNs-0.1 which are prepared by adding 0.1 g H 2 C 2 O 4 possess optimal distribution of micro-mesopores. The optimal structure creates abundant active sites and fluent ionic channels. Beneficially, NCNs-0.1 electrodes deliver an enhanced specific capacitance of 1693F g−1 at 1 A g−1 and outstanding cyclic stability (88% capacitance retention after 6000 cycles). Further, the assembled NCNs-0.1//AC capacitor achieves excellent energy densities of 43.02 Wh kg−1 at power densities of 820.29 W kg−1. The current NCNs-0.1 confirms a practicable method to optimize the electrochemical performances of supercapacitors by utilizing H 2 C 2 O 4 to construct 3D optimal micro-mesoporous nanoflower architectures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reasonable design for structure and composition of multi-component metal oxides is an effective and promising way to improve electrochemical performance of electrode materials. In this work, novel carnations-like Mn 3 O 4 @NiCo 2 O 4 @NiO hierarchical nanostructures are constructed by introducing CATB as structure-directing agents and adjusting hydrothermal reaction time. The perfect architecture maximizes the synergistic effect between components, providing more electrochemical reactive sites and promoting the diffusion and transfer of electrolyte ions. As a result, Mn 3 O 4 @NiCo 2 O 4 @NiO electrodes deliver an enhanced specific capacitance of 1905 F g−1 at 1 A g−1 and outstanding cyclic stability (92% of its initial capacitance is retained after 10000 cycles). Furthermore, ASC device which is assembled by the Mn 3 O 4 @NiCo 2 O 4 @NiO and activated carbon achieve excellent energy densities of 76.8 W h kg−1 at power densities of 800 W kg−1, proving the optimized Mn 3 O 4 @NiCo 2 O 4 @NiO is promising electrode material for supercapacitor. In addition, this work supplies helpful insights into rational design for structure and composition of multi-component metal oxides for enhancing electrochemical performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The hierarchical hollow framework involving interconnected highly conductive N-doped carbon nanotube networks and CoS 2 particles were successfully prepared by metal-organic framework (MOF) derived method. After the two pyrolysis process in the atmosphere of reducing gas and inert gases, numerous carbon nanotubes interlaced on the surface of framework and CoS 2 nanoparticles also attached on the surface. The electromagnetic parameters of CoS 2 /NCNTs composites can be well controlled by regulating the loadings of sample in sample-paraffin mixture. The results demonstrate that CoS 2 /NCNTs with 50% loadings show superior electromagnetic wave absorption properties in the wide frequency range, almost covering the whole X bands (8–12 GHz) only with a relative thin thickness of 1.6 mm. Hierarchical hollow structure and better impedance matching performance between N-doped carbon nanocube and CoS 2 nanoparticles contribute to the enhancement of microwave absorption ability. Our work confirms that hollow framework CoS 2 /NCNTs composites can provide a novel idea for designing high-absorbability microwave absorbers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • A novel DCMC has been prepared and is first used to encapsulate sulfur for Li-S batteries. • The DCMC exhibits ultrahigh specific area. • The DCMC2/S composites deliver excellent electrochemical performance. Abstract Novel microporous carbon materials (DCMC) with excellent electron conductivity and ultrahigh surface area (1896.9 m2 g−1) are successfully prepared from discarded clothes. The porous carbon-encapsulated sulfur composites were synthesized by a feasible melting process and used as host materials for lithium sulfur batteries. Because of the unique microporous, ultrahigh surface area and irregular wrinkled surface coexisting structure, the resulting microporous carbon/sulfur (DCMC/S) composite cathode possesses a good rate capability and long-term cycling performance. The initial discharge capacity of the DCMC2/S composite electrode with 74.3 wt% sulfur content is 1082.6 mAh g−1 at a current rate of 0.2 C. At a higher current rate of 1 C, it possesses excellent cyclic performance and retained a capacity of 422.8 mAh g−1 after 500 cycles with a low capacity fading rate of 0.11% per cycle. The coulombic efficiency remains over 98% during cycling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A simple synthesize method of hybrid transition metal oxides is important for the application of electrodes materials. In this work, we report one-pot hydrothermal method to synthesize 3D hierarchical MnMoO 4 /NiWO 4 microspheres. Notably, the 3D hierarchical MnMoO 4 /NiWO 4 microspheres electrodes with a MnMoO 4 /NiWO 4 molar ratio of 4:3 present outstanding electrochemical performance. The excellent specific capacitance of the hybrid materials is 598 F g -1  at a discharge current density of 1 A g −1 and the capacitance retains 82% of its initial capacitance even after 5000 cycles, which are attributed to the obtained 3D hierarchical MnMoO 4 /NiWO 4 microspheres are constituted by self-assembly MnMoO 4 nanoflakes and NiWO 4 nanoparticals and feature with abundant transportation shortcuts for electrolyte ions and excellent electrochemical performance. The results reveal that the 3D hierarchical MnMoO 4 /NiWO 4 microspheres have great application prospect for electrochemical energy storage and the quick and facile method provides a new avenue for the preparation of hybrid materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compared to ground precipitation measurements, satellite-based precipitation estimation products have the advantage of global coverage and high spatiotemporal resolutions. However, the accuracy of satellitebased precipitation products is still insufficient to serve many weather, climate, and hydrologic applications at high resolutions. In this paper, the authors develop a state-of-the-art deep learning framework for precipitation estimation using bispectral satellite information, infrared (IR), and water vapor (WV) channels. Specifically, a two-stage framework for precipitation estimation from bispectral information is designed, consisting of an initial rain/no-rain (R/NR) binary classification, followed by a second stage estimating the nonzero precipitation amount. In the first stage, the model aims to eliminate the large fraction of NR pixels and to delineate precipitation regions precisely. In the second stage, the model aims to estimate the pointwise precipitation amount accurately while preserving its heavily skewed distribution. Stacked denoising autoencoders (SDAEs), a commonly used deep learning method, are applied in both stages. Performance is evaluated along a number of common performance measures, including both R/NR and real-valued precipitation accuracy, and compared with an operational product, Precipitation Estimation from Remotely Sensed Information Using Artificial Neural Networks-Cloud Classification System (PERSIANN-CCS). For R/NR binary classification, the proposed two-stage model outperforms PERSIANN-CCS by 32.56% in the critical success index (CSI). For real-valued precipitation estimation, the two-stage model is 23.40% lower in average bias, is 44.52% lower in average mean squared error, and has a 27.21% higher correlation coefficient. Hence, the two-stage deep learning framework has the potential to serve as a more accurate and more reliable satellite-based precipitation estimation product. The authors also provide some future directions for development of satellite-based precipitation estimation products in both incorporating auxiliary information and improving retrieval algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to use the PERSIANN-Climate Data Record (PERSIANN-CDR) dataset to evaluate the ability of 32 CMIP5 models in capturing the behavior of daily extreme precipitation estimates globally. The daily long-term historical global PERSIANN-CDR allows for a global investigation of eight precipitation indices that is unattainable with other datasets. Quantitative comparisons against CPC daily gauge; GPCP One-Degree Daily (GPCP1DD); and TRMM 3B42, version 7 (3B42V7), datasets show the credibility of PERSIANN-CDR to be used as the reference data for global evaluation of CMIP5 models. This work uniquely defines different study regions by partitioning global land areas into 25 groups based on continent and climate zone type. Results show that model performance in warm temperate and equatorial regions in capturing daily extreme precipitation behavior is largely mixed in terms of index RMSE and correlation, suggesting that these regions may benefit from weighted model averaging schemes or model selection as opposed to simple model averaging. The three driest climate regions (snow, polar, and arid) exhibit high correlations and low RMSE values when compared against PERSIANN-CDR estimates, with the exceptions of the cold regions showing an inability to capture the 95th and 99th percentile annual total precipitation characteristics. A comprehensive assessment of each model's performance in each continent-climate zone defined group is provided as a guide for both model developers to target regions and processes that are not yet fully captured in certain climate types, and for climate model output users to be able to select the models and/or the study areas that may best fit their applications of interest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is one of the most common causes of chronic liver disease and is considered to be a causative factor of cryptogenic cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. The aim of this work was to investigate whether treatment with geraniol (a monoterpene) attenuated NASH induced by methionine-choline-deficient (MCD) diet in rats. Methods: Rats were fed with MCD diet to induce NASH and treated with geraniol (200 mg/kg/day) for 10 weeks. Results: Treatment with geraniol reduced histological scores, fibrosis, and apoptosis in livers, lowered activities of alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase in serum, and attenuated hepatic fat accumulation in rats fed with MCD diet. Treatment with geraniol preserved hepatic mitochondrial function, evidenced by reduced mitochondrial reactive oxygen species formation, enhanced adenosine triphosphate formation and membrane integrity, restored mitochondrial electron transport chain enzyme activity, and increased mitochondrial DNA content in rats fed with MCD diet. Treatment with geraniol reduced uncoupling protein 2 protein expression, and enhanced protein expression of prohibitin, mRNA expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α, and activity of mitochondrial carnitine palmitoyl transferase-I in livers of rats fed with MCD diet. Treatment with geraniol abated oxidative stress, evidenced by reduced malondialdehyde and 3-nitrotyrosine formation, enhanced activity of glutathione S-epoxide transferase, and down-regulated expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase and cytochrome P450 2E1 in livers of rats fed with MCD diet. Treatment with geraniol reduced myeloperoxidase activity and protein expression of tumor necrosis factor alpha and IL-6 in livers of rats fed with MCD diet. Conclusion: Treatment with geraniol attenuated MCD-induced NASH in rats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The methionine choline-deficient (MCD) diet leads to severe liver injury similar to human nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Autophagy has emerged as a critical lysosomal pathway that maintains cell function and survival through the degradation of cellular components such as organelles and proteins. The goal of this study was to elucidate the role of autophagy in MCD-induced steatosis, fibrosis, inflammation, mitochondrial dysfunction, and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in mice. Mice were fed with MCD diet and treated with rapamycin (an autophagy enhancer) or chloroquine (an autophagy inhibitor) for 10 weeks. Liver injury was evaluated biochemically and histologically together with hepatic gene expression analysis. Autophagic flux was impaired in livers of mice fed with MCD diet, evidenced by reduced ratio of LC3-II/LC3-I and increased protein expression of p62. It was found that autophagy activation by rapamycin attenuated MCD-induced steatosis, fibrosis, inflammation, mitochondrial dysfunction, and ER stress. By contrast, MCD mice treated with chloroquine developed more liver injury. In conclusions, the autophagic pathway plays an important protective role in MCD-induced advanced NASH. Thus, pharmacological promotion of autophagy may provide a novel therapeutic strategy for treatment of NASH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]