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In the current context of fossil energy depletion and the requirement for low carbon emissions, the efficient use of energy and a diversified energy mix have become increasingly important. The use of cleaner and low-carbon alternative fuels is rapidly growing. However, corrosion remains a key issue limiting the large-scale application of alternative fuels. This paper describes the corrosion characteristics of different alternative fuels. Also, the mechanisms of fuel corrosion, corrosion measurement methods, and the future of corrosion inhibitor applications are discussed. Corrosion causes changes in material weight and surface morphology and generates electrical signals as it progresses. Although there are well-established methods to characterize corrosion by recognizing these changes, there is still a need to identify a universal standard signal for their detailed description. For the foreseeable future, corrosion in fuels will continue to be mitigated by the addition of corrosion inhibitors. The research on corrosion inhibitors focuses on green corrosion inhibitors and multifunctional corrosion inhibitors. However, further analysis is needed to understand the active ingredients in green corrosion inhibitors, and the mechanism of corrosion inhibition for different types of corrosion inhibitors needs further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] The CO oxidation catalytic activity of catalysts is strongly influenced by the oxygen vacancy defects (OVDs) concentration and the valence state of active metal. Herein, a defect engineering approach was implemented to enhance the oxygen vacancy defects and to modify the valence of metal ions in manganese oxide octahedral molecular sieves (OMS-2) by the introduction of copper (Cu). The characterization and theoretical calculation results reveal that the incorporation of Cu2+ ion into the OMS-2 structure led to a rise in specific surface area and pore volume, weakening of Mn-O bonds, higher proportion of the low-coordinated oxygen species adsorbed in oxygen vacancies (O ads) and an increase in the average oxidation state of manganese. These structural modifications were discovered to considerably reduce the apparent activation energy (Ea), thus ultimately significantly enhancing the CO oxidation activity (T 99 at 148 ℃at GHSV = 13,200 h−1) than the original OMS-2 (T 99 = 215 ℃ at GHSV = 13,200 h−1). Furthermore, In-situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform (DRIFT) and In-situ near-ambient pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (in situ NAP-XPS) results indicate that the bimetallic synergy enhanced by doping strategy accelerates the conversion of oxygen to chemisorbed oxygen species and the reaction rate of CO oxidation through Mn3++Cu2+↔Mn4++Cu+ redox cycle. The findings of this study offer novel perspectives on the design of catalysts with exceptional performance in CO oxidation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate seismic wave modeling of viscoelastic anisotropic medium is a fundamental tool for seismic data processing, interpretation and full waveform inversion. Also, free water surface, topographic relief and irregular seabed are often encountered in practical seismic surveys. Thus, basing on the General Maxwell Body, we proposed a generalized matrix form of the velocity-stress seismic wave equation, which becomes valid for composite viscoelastic anisotropic media and satisfies the boundary conditions in presence of topographic free surfaces and irregular fluid–solid interfaces. We theoretically show that the viscoelastic effect of a medium may be considered as the intrinsic body sources accumulated in wavefield history and computed by a recursive convolution formula accurately and efficiently. We also demonstrated that such a generalized viscoelastic wave equation may be solved with the curvilinear MacCormack finite difference method and validated the accuracy and feasibility of the proposed method. The modeling results in homogeneous and heterogeneous media match well with the analytical solutions and the references yielded by the spectral element solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The n-butanol/low-carbon alcohol/diesel microemulsion system is a good alternative fuel to diesel. In this study, the microemulsions were formulated in four ways: ultrasonication, vortex oscillation, shaker mixing and spontaneous formation. The results reveal that the ultrasonication method is significantly influenced by temperature. Specifically, at 45 °C, the quantity of cosolvent added during the ultrasonic process can be reduced by a maximum of 25% compared to that at 25 °C. However, while the amount of cosolvent required is the lowest at 45 °C, the stability of the emulsion is the poorest. In all cases of this study, the stability of the microemulsion increases when the volume ratio of the lower carbon alcohol exceeds 60%. The lowest amount of co-solvent and high stability were achieved using the shaker mixing method at both 25 °C and 35 °C. Although the quantity of cosolvent required at 45 °C is second only to the lowest, its stability surpasses that of the ultrasonication method. Therefore, it is more effective to choose the shaker mixing method that provides uniform and ordered forces for the preparation of microemulsion liquids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aeschynanthus wangii Y.H.Tan & H.B.Ding, a new species of Gesneriaceae from Yunnan Province, China, is described and illustrated here. The new species morphologically resembles A. angustioblongus W.T. Wang and A. stenosepalus J.Anthony, but is significantly different from them by having lanceolate leaves with long caudate apex, brownish yellow corolla with five dark red lines from the middle of corolla tube to the top of the lobes, and calyx lobes slightly fused into calyx tube (2-4 mm) at the base. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heterospecific pollen (HP) deposition varies widely among species in communities, which has been explicated by two adaptation strategies: HP avoidance and HP tolerance. Studies of the plant–pollinator network have uncovered that oceanic island communities are highly generalized and strongly connected. It remains unclear, however, which strategy prevails in such communities. We examined stigma pollen deposition on 29 plant species, and assessed patterns of HP load size and diversity in the Yongxing Island community. We assessed the effects of phenotypic specialization and species‐level network structural properties of plant species on pollen deposition among species. The hypothesis of three accrual patterns of HP within species was tested by illustrating the relationship between conspecific pollen (CP) and HP receipt. Extensive variation occurred among species in HP receipt, while 75.9% of species received less than 10% HP and one species received more than 40% HP throughout the community. Flower size strongly drives the variation of HP receipt, while network structural properties had no effect on the pollen receipt. Nineteen species showed no relationship between the number of HP and CP loads, and they received smaller HP load sizes and lower HP proportions. Most plant species evolved HP avoidance strategy, and HP receipt was an occasional event for most plant species in the generalized community. HP and CP receipts are independent of each other in plant species with the HP avoidance mechanism. Our results highlight that plants in the generalized pollination system may preferentially select to minimize the HP load on stigmas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring two-dimensional (2D) multiferroic systems with strong magneto-electric coupling properties holds significant application value in nanoscale spintronics devices. However, due to the weak interlayer van der Waals interactions, strong magneto-electric coupling in 2D heterostructures is relatively rare. By using first-principles simulations, we demonstrate that in the NiPS3/Sc2CO2 heterostructure, the ferroelectric polarization switching of the Sc2CO2 layer induces a transition in the magnetic ground state of the NiPS3 layer from the ferromagnetic state to antiferromagnetic ordering, accompanied by a transformation from a semiconductor to a half-metallic state. This magnetic phase transition is caused by a novel magneto-electric coupling mechanism: the polarization switching changes the band alignment between the two materials and then induces a significant interlayer charge transfer, leading to the emergence of Stoner itinerant ferromagnetism. In addition, the polarization switching can also change the magnetic anisotropy from an easy magnetization plane to an easy magnetization axis. These results not only offer a promising multiferroic heterostructure for nonvolatile memory devices and magnetic sensors but also provide a feasible approach for designing multiferroic system with strong magneto-electric coupling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With rapid industrialization, rising fossil fuel consumption, and environmental concerns, developing clean and green energy is an inescapable option. Hydrogen has emerged as a significant potential energy carrier and a viable future replacement fuel for fossil fuels due to its renewable and pollution-free properties. Previous review papers have significantly contributed to the body of literature on the various technologies for producing hydrogen by revealing key insights into their working principles and conditions, as well as the economic and environmental aspects. In addition, they also highlighted the potential pathways to enable the application of these technologies in the context of carbon neutrality. However, these studies have not broken down the evolutionary patterns and developmental progress of either fossil fuel-based or renewable energy-based technologies used to produce hydrogen. In addition, the currently available literature does not contain the most recent research that focuses on the evolution and life cycle of each technology category from a chronological point of view. The key drivers, countries/regions, and their contributions to the field's development have received little attention. As a result, it is critical to monitor technological advances in hydrogen energy production and investigate the key enablers of these advancements. Against this backdrop, the current study employs patent analysis tools to achieve four primary goals: (1) to track the development trends in the field of hydrogen production from 2000 to 2019; (2) to identify and compare the recent development trends in the last five years according to the feedstock, i.e., fossil fuel, water, and biomass-based technologies; (3) to predict the technology life cycle of the two main groups of hydrogen production technologies (fossil and renewable); (4) to identify and compare the key drivers of hydrogen production technologies from a statistical standpoint. The findings of the study may aid in identifying technical prospects in the field of fossil and renewable-based hydrogen production, and decision-makers may use them as a reference in developing a strategic plan for future technological growth. • Patent review on hydrogen production technologies from 2000 to 2019. • Japan, US, China are the leading countries in the field. • Recent developments are focused on renewable energy-based technologies especially water. • Technology maturity rate of renewable-based technologies is about 57%. • R&D expenditure strongly promotes hydrogen production innovations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Actualization of well-balanced high porosity with simultaneous increase in hardness/fracture toughness for thermal insulation composites in hypersonic aerospace vehicle components is always of great challenge. Considering significant toughening effect of unique Mo 4.8 Si 3 C 0.6 -SiC composites microstructure, an agile strategy is proposed to prepare porous Mo 4.8 Si 3 C 0.6 /SiC(rGO) polymer-derived ceramics (PDCs) via re-pyrolysis of ball-milling-induced MoSi 2 -SiC(rGO) p /polycarbosilane-vinyltriethoxysilane-graphene oxide (PVG) precursors blends with polystyrene (PS) as pore-forming agent. In-situ formed Mo 4.8 Si 3 C 0.6 -β-SiC nanocrystals, possessing eminent mechanical properties and good compatibility with SiO x C y /C free , can significantly strengthen interface bonding and increase disorder of ceramic network. Such effective hindrance to crack propagation moderates the inherent brittleness while retaining high hardness of SiC PDCs. Moreover, dense Mo 4.8 Si 3 C 0.6 -β-SiC/SiO x C y /C free (rGO) framework, with spontaneous regular pore structure, well balances loading/thermal insulation capacity. Particularly, samples with 10 wt.% PS exhibit outstanding mechanical performances (hardness: 5.10 GPa; fracture toughness: 2.24 MPa·m1/2; compressive strength: 58.15 MPa) and low thermal conductivity (0.8427 W·m-1·K-1). As demonstrated, products remain decent structural integrity after ablation of butane blowtorch flame for 1-20 min. The synergy oxidation with fast response of Mo 4.8 Si 3 C 0.6 and durability of β-SiC facilitates great anti-oxidation ability, opening up manufacture of SiC-based composites for thermal protection system (TPS) of hypersonic vehicles and re-entry spacecraft with ultra-high speed. [Display omitted] • Oxidation resistant porous Mo 4.8 Si 3 C 0.6 /SiC(rGO) composite PDCs with controlled porosity were ingeniously constructed. • In-situ formed Mo 4.8 Si 3 C 0.6 -β-SiC nanocrystals exactly strengthen interface bonding and increase disorder of ceramic network. • Dense Mo 4.8 Si 3 C 0.6 -β-SiC/SiO x C y /C free (rGO) framework well balances loading/thermal insulation capacity of SiC-based PDCs. • The products remain decent structural integrity after ablation of butane blowtorch flame. • Synergistic oxidation, with rapid response of Mo 4.8 Si 3 C 0.6 and durability of β-SiC, ensures good anti-oxidation ability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of zero-carbon and carbon-neutral fuels reduces emissions of conventional pollutants, but their emissions can be toxic and have various adverse effects on human health. This article reviews the possible combustion products of zero-carbon and carbon-neutral fuels, as well as their cytotoxic effects and potential health risks. At the same time, the review outlines biological models and toxicity detection methods commonly used in pollutant toxicity studies. Metals, nitrogen oxides (NOX), and ammonia (NH3) emitted from the combustion of metal fuels, hydrogen fuels, and ammonia fuels in zero-carbon fuels are harmful to human health. Exhaust emissions from carbon-neutral fuels, particularly biodiesel, and their blends with gasoline/diesel are cytotoxic, leading to severe cellular damage, such as oxidative damage, inflammatory responses, DNA damage, cell death, or apoptosis. Moreover, the normal function of the human body's respiratory, cardiovascular, immune, digestive, urinary, and nervous systems may also be impacted by these fuel emissions according to cytotoxic research. Cytotoxicity of fuel combustion products is usually related to the fuel type, time, dose, and cell line used in the experiment. This review provides some ideas for the exhaust emission management of zero-carbon and carbon-neutral fuels and human health assessment. It also presents a theoretical and experimental basis for further research, including in vivo experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effective modulation of magnetism for two-dimensional (2D) materials not only has potential applications in nanoscale spintronic devices but also has urgent demands in modern industries. In this work, we report the discovery of ferroelectrically (FE) tunable orbital reconstruction in FeCl2/In2Se3 2D van der Waals (vdWs) heterostructures (HSs), which leads to a transition from ferromagnetic (FM) order to ferrimagnetic order (intra-layer magnetic coupling is AFM3 arrangement). The reversible FE polarization not only enables the easy magnetization axis to be tuned from the out-of-plane to in-plane direction but also reduces the net magnetization strength from 31.87 to −0.18 μB/f.u. Based on the charge density differences and the density of states analysis, the preference of FM and AFM3 arrangement can be reasonably explained by the Goodenough–Kanamori–Anderson rule. The ferroelectric switching enables nonvolatile electric control of magnetic order and anisotropy, offering significant potential for high-efficiency nanodevices and nonvolatile information storage. Moreover, modulation of magnetism (magnetic moment from −0.18 to 0.18 μB/f.u.) can also be achieved through interlayer sliding in the −P case, providing a way to control magnetism in 2D vdWs HSs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thin copper and carbon coatings of electrodes of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have the potential to improve LIB operation by preserving electrode integrity during cycling, by developing a proper solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer (e.g., by increasing the de-solvation rate), and by enhancing electric conductivity. In the structures, the thin coatings, e.g., copper thin films, must be permeable to Li+ ions in order to facilitate Li+ uptake and Li+ release in the electrochemically active material of coated electrodes beneath. The influences of copper and carbon thin coatings on LIB-electrode performance were investigated in this work by electrochemically cycling a [C(16 nm)/Cu(17 nm)] × 10 multilayer (ML) up to lithium plating. The C/Cu ML was deposited onto a copper current collector using ion beam sputtering. The rate capability and the long-time cycling were compared to the corresponding ones for the cycling of the bare copper substrate and 16 nm and 230 nm carbon single films (without Cu coating). The bare copper electrode does not store Li+ ions, which is as expected because copper is electrochemically inactive with respect to lithiation. The Li+ uptake and Li+ release in thin carbon layers capped by thin copper layers within the C/Cu ML is compared to that of uncapped carbon single thin films. All electrodes exhibited a good rate capability and long-term cycling stability. Under fast cycling, the amount of reversible Li+ uptake and Li+ release was largest for the case of the C/Cu ML, which pointed to the beneficial influence of the capping Cu layers. The higher Li kinetics in the C/Cu ML was confirmed using impedance analysis. The C/Cu ML behaves as a supercapacitor possessing a differential charge plot nearly independent of potential. At lower currents, the specific capacity of the C/Cu ML is only 20% of that of the thin carbon single films, with that of the latter being the same as that of graphite. On the one hand, this evidences a disadvantageous influence of the thin Cu layers, which block the Li+ permeation, that is necessary to reach deeper carbon layers of the C/Cu ML electrode. On the other hand, the differential capacity plots reveal that the carbon material in the interior of the C/Cu ML is electrochemically cycled. Microscopy, Raman scattering, depth profiling with X-ray reflectometry (XRR), and secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) were applied to get deep insights and a comprehensive examination of the contradiction. The XRR examination revealed a non-altered ML after more than 542 electrochemical cycles, after the washing procedure, and even after 15 months of air exposure. This observation suggests that the copper layers block contamination as well as the Li insertion. The analyses of microscopy, Raman, and SIMS affirm the ML intactness but also reveal the participation of some portions of the interior of the C/Cu ML in electrochemical cycling. The low capacity of carbon in the C/Cu ML may stem from the mechanical stress inside the C/Cu ML, which reduces the Li+ uptake and Li+ release. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As high-capacity anode materials, spinel NiFe2O4 aroused extensive attention due to its natural abundance and safe working voltage. For widespread commercialization, some drawbacks, such as rapid capacity fading and poor reversibility due to large volume variation and inferior conductivity, urgently require amelioration. In this work, NiFe2O4/NiO composites with a dual-network structure were fabricated by a simple dealloying method. Benefiting from the dual-network structure and composed of nanosheet networks and ligament-pore networks, this material provides sufficient space for volume expansion and is able to boost the rapid transfer of electrons and Li ions. As a result, the material exhibits excellent electrochemical performance, retaining 756.9 mAh g−1 at 200 mA g−1 after cycling for 100 cycles and retaining 641.1 mAh g−1 after 1000 cycles at 500 mA g−1. This work provides a facile way to prepare a novel dual-network structured spinel oxide material, which can promote the development of oxide anodes and also dealloying techniques in broad fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coal-bearing sequences of the Late Permian in southwest China are enriched in critical elements Sc, V, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Nb, Ta, Zr and Hf. Ascertaining the conditions and basis for the enrichment of critical elements in this area is very important to support the critical metal demands of China. In this study, we analyzed the concentrations of elemental compositions of coal samples collected from the Late Permian Guishan coalfield in the eastern Yunnan, China. The results show that the C4-Upper coal seam of the Feilongma mine and C5 + 10 coal seam of the Shipeng mine are indeed rich in critical elements. The average concentration coefficients (CC) of transition metal elements Sc, V, Co, Ni, Cu, and Zn are 3.23 and 2.93, respectively, in the two coal seams. The average CCs of high-field-strength elements Nb, Ta, Zr, and Hf and non-variable valence chalcophile elements Ga and In are 2.21 and 2.53, respectively, in the two coal seams. The C4-Upper coal seam of the Feilongma mine can be divided into two sections based on the different ash contents, and the CCs of the critical elements in the two sections are almost equal. The main minerals in the two coal seams are kaolinite, siderite, quartz, gypsum, rozenite and marcasite. Multiple indicators of provenance show that the enrichment of critical elements in the Guishan coalfield is controlled by clastic terrigenous material. The source area of the Guishan coalfield is Kangdian Oldland in the northwest, and the main clastic materials are related with high-Ti basalts from the Emeishan Large Igneous Province. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The attenuation of seismic waves propagating in reservoirs can be obtained accurately from the data analysis of vertical seismic profile in terms of the quality‐factor Q. The common methods usually use the downgoing wavefields in vertical seismic profile data. However, the downgoing wavefields consist of more than 90% energy of the spectrum of the vertical seismic profile data, making it difficult to estimate the viscoacoustic parameters accurately. Thus, a joint viscoacoustic waveform inversion of velocity and quality‐factor is proposed based on the multi‐objective functions and analysis of the difference between the results inverted from the separated upgoing and downgoing wavefields. A simple separating step is accomplished by the reflectivity method to obtain the individual wavefields in vertical seismic profile data, and then a joint inversion is carried out to make full use of the information of the individual wavefields and improve the convergence of viscoacoustic full‐waveform inversion. The sensitivity analysis of the different wavefields to the velocity and quality‐factor shows that the upgoing and downgoing wavefields contribute differently to the viscoacoustic parameters. A numerical example validates our method can improve the accuracy of viscoacoustic parameters compared with the direct inversion using full wavefield and the separate inversion using upgoing or downgoing wavefield. The application on real field data indicates our method can recover a reliable viscoacoustic model, which helps reservoir appraisal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The C-rate capability of 230 nm- and 16 nm-thin ion-beam sputter-deposited amorphous carbon films, an interesting class of carbonaceous material for lithium-ion batteries, was investigated up to Li-platting. Stepwise ascending and descending constant Li+ currents after each fifth cycle, followed by hundreds of cycles with the highest current were applied. The carbon films show similar cycling with irreversible losses during the first five cycles, followed by reversible cycling with a capacity close to that of graphite. The capacity is significantly lower at high currents; however, it is restored for subsequent cycling again at low currents. Differential charge and differential capacity curves reveal three Li+ uptake and three Li+ release peaks located between 0 and 3 V. Irreversible as well as reversible Li bonding can be associated with all these peaks. Irreversibly bonded Li can be found at the surface (solid electrolyte interphase) and in the bulk of the carbon films (Li trapping). Reversible Li bonding might be possible inside the carbon films in graphite-like nano-domains and at defects. The thinner film reveals a more pseudo-capacitive cycling behavior, pointing to enhanced Li kinetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring low-cost, high-efficiency, and stable photocatalysts is still a significant challenge. SrTiO3, one of the appealing photocatalysts, can meet most of the screening criteria except for its efficiency, which is restricted by its poor absorption of visible light and its prompt photogenerated carrier recombination. Recently, a two-dimensional transition metal carbide Ti3C2Tx (2D MXene) has been found to serve as a co-catalyst due to its excellent metallic conductivity, hydrophilic property, large specific surface area, abundance of active sites, and low reaction barrier to hydrogen production. In this work, SrTiO3 nanoparticles are rationally integrated with Ti3C2Tx nanosheets via a simple hydrothermal process. The hydrogen production rate can achieve up to 3.43 mmol g−1 h−1 in the hybridization of SrTiO3-3 wt. % Ti3C2Tx, which is almost six times that of SrTiO3 alone. This remarkable enhancement arises predominantly from the Schottky contact between SrTiO3 and Ti3C2Tx, which can effectively suppress the recombination of photogenerated carriers and accelerate their separation. In addition, such enhancement benefits from the hydrogen evolution capacity of Ti3C2Tx. This work opens an excellent prospect for constructing highly active, low-cost, and stable photocatalysts with 2D MXene and finding potential applications of 2D MXene in energy conversion fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In real world, images always do not have the ground truth that we can compare with. Therefore, we consider blind image quality assessment (BIQA) no-reference methods for the real-world images without ground truth. However, the existing BIQA can only consider an image with a single-distortion-type. For these reasons, a multitask hierarchical blind image quality assessment model is proposed to assess multiple distortion types of images. An integrated algorithm that incorporates an improved deep neural network by introducing a penalty term and a shared layer is proposed to improve its generalization performance. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm is significantly better than algorithms such as DIIVINE and BRISQUE in the Pearson linear correlation coefficient and Spearman rank-order correlation coefficient; for each image, the three most significant distortion categories and probability results are obtained through the algorithm. It can effectively solve the problem of image quality assessment when multiple types of distortion are present. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate the feasibility of developing biobased and biodegradable thermochromic fibers, poly(lactic acid) (PLA) fibers with visual temperature indicator functionality were fabricated using a scalable melt spinning technique (spinning speed 800 m/min), where PLA and thermochromic microcapsules were used as fiber-forming polymers and color indicators, respectively. The effect of thermochromic microcapsules on the mechanical properties and reversible color-changing function of PLA fibers was systematically investigated to achieve high tenacity and sensitive color-changing function. The difference in the fiber performance was connected to changes in the multilayer structure. The results show that PLA fibers exhibit excellent tenacity of 3.7–4.7 cN/dtex and reversible and stable thermochromic behavior over 31 °C. The high fraction of mesophase within TPLA-1 fiber plays an important role in its tenacity. Meanwhile, the low-concentration of microcapsules (∼1 wt%) with good dispersion could act as a nucleating agent inside the PLA matrix and contribute to the formation of microcrystals in the amorphous between primary lamellae, which is also beneficial to maintain the tenacity of the fibers. The agglomeration of high-concentration microcapsules within PLA fibers hampered the formation of mesophase, resulting in a decrease in fiber tenacity. Aside from the content of microcapsules, the agglomeration of high-concentration microcapsules (>5 wt%) is the main reason that limits the substantial increase in fiber color depth. This study opens up new possibilities for degradable thermochromic fibers produced using standard industrial spinning technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Methanol derived from solar energy is a carbon-neutral alternative fuel for engines. The low viscosity of methanol is one of the problems that restrict its direct compression ignition application in engines. Glycerol is a renewable resource derived from biomass, and its viscosity is more than 1700 times that of methanol. In this study, glycerol was mixed with methanol in different volume fractions (1–50%), and a methanol-glycerol mixture with similar viscosity to diesel was prepared. Then, the particle size, electrical conductivity, viscosity, swelling and corrosion characteristics of the mixed fuel were measured. Finally, the combustion and emission tests of methanol-glycerol mixed fuel were carried out on a heavy-duty multi-cylinder diesel engine. The results show that glycerol can effectively adjust the viscosity of the mixed fuel. The viscosity of the mixed fuel can reach 3.19 mm2/s at 20 °C when blended with 30% glycerol by volume, which meets the requirements of the national standard for diesel fuel. The addition of glycerol can alleviate the corrosion of methanol to the polymer. The test of the mixed fuel in the direct compression ignition engine shows that the thermal efficiency of methanol mixed with 5% glycerol was further improved than that of pure methanol, both of which were significantly higher than the thermal efficiency of diesel compression ignition engines. Methanol and 5% glycerol by volume blends can reduce soot and nitrogen oxide emissions while maintaining low HC and CO emissions. Therefore, proper blending of glycerol in methanol fuel can optimize the fuel properties of methanol and achieve higher thermal efficiency and lower pollutant emissions than pure methanol direct compression ignition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cellulose-based handmade paper records a substantial amount of historical data and promotes human civilization. Due to the complexity of its structure and external factors, the deterioration of paper in the restoration of ancient books cannot be completely stopped. Nonetheless, the lack of microstructure analysis of handmade paper limits the understanding of its aging mechanism and storage life-span. Herein, CP/MAS 13C NMR method was used to estimate the cellulose types, crystallinity, average lateral fibril dimension (LFD), and the average lateral fibril aggregate dimension (LFAD), relying on integrated spectral fitting from C1, C4, and C6 regions, respectively. Consequently, cellulose Iβ crystals were predominant in all handmade paper samples. Based on the results of C4 and C6 regions by peak separation method, bast paper (Kaihua paper and Yingchun paper) demonstrated a higher crystallinity than bamboo paper (Yuanshu paper). Additional analysis of the C4 data revealed that bast papers exhibit larger cellulose microfibrils, and their LFDs and LFADs were greater than bamboo papers. Moreover, external stress of Wiley milling reduced the LFAD from the original 9 elementary fibrils to 4 elementary fibrils with unchanged LFDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Selenium (Se) is an essential trace element in human health. In this article, egg white polypeptide (EWP) was used as the reducing agent and stabiliser to prepare a novel type of EWP‐selenium complex nanoparticles (EWP‐SeNPs). Particle size, morphology, FT‐IR, stability, and functional properties of EWP‐SeNPs were characterised. The results showed that EWP‐SeNPs were 30–50 nm in diameter and were spherical. The SeNPs complexed with the EWP through O‐ and N‐ containing groups. This reaction was entropy‐driven spontaneous and the binding force was mainly hydrophobic. The stability of EWP‐SeNPs was best at pH = 10. Moreover, EWP‐SeNPs showed significantly inhibitory effect on HepG‐2 cells in the range of 6.2500 to 50.0000 μg mL−1. Anti‐bacterial effect occurred when the concentration of EWP‐SeNPs was 1.2500 mg mL−1. This study would provide a green method for synthesising stable SeNPs, which was helpful for further evaluation in the food field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current study, low carbon alcohols (methanol and ethanol) have been blended into marine heavy fuel oil (HFO) at 10–50 vol% alcohol in the presence of microbial (Rhamnolipid) and synthetic (Span 80) surfactants. The ternary systems were subjected to three different temperatures, i.e., 25, 45, and 55 °C. The investigated areas included (1) the comparative solubilizing ability between the two distinct surfactant types, (2) the viscosity adjustment of the resulting ternary system, and their sulfur content. Results show that the biosurfactants have strong solubilizing power than their synthetic counterparts. Also, as the ratio of low carbon alcohol in the ternary system increases, the stability worsens, requiring more surfactants to promote miscibility. For instance, At 30% and 50% methanol content for 25 °C , the amount of Span 80 needed by these systems to become a kinetically stable solution was 2.83 mL and 4.65 mL, corresponding to 36.14 vol% and 48.16 vol%, respectively. For the same base systems, the corresponding requirement of Rhamnolipid was 0.87 mL (14.82 vol%) and 1.53 mL (23.43 vol%), respectively. In general, solubility in ethanol-containing systems was much easier to achieve upon adding surfactants than in methanol's. Rhamnolipid and the low carbon alcohols positively decreased the viscosity of HFO, hence reducing the cost of its preheating. Results from this study show that at a minimum of 20 vol% methanol and 25 vol% ethanol (when Rhamnolipid is the surfactant and system temperature is as low as 25 °C), ship owners could take advantage of this fuel blend by significantly reducing or eliminating fuel preheating costs. When the concentration of HFO in the ternary system did not exceed 60 vol%, the blend could meet the global sulfur content limit (0.5%); hence the need for exhaust abatement technologies could be avoided if the operation is outside the emission control areas. Results of the current study address some of the key issues raised in the combustion of HFO in the shipping sector. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • A novel fatigue life prediction model is established by combining critical distance theory and crystal plasticity theory. • Probabilistic fatigue life prediction of GH4169 notched specimens is conducted. • Microstructural and geometrical size effects on critical distance and fatigue life are investigated. Geometrical discontinuities are inevitable in engineering structures due to various functional requirements, which often yield complex stress–strain state and thereby significantly impact their fatigue performances. In this study, crystal plasticity theory is coupled with traditional critical distance theory for notch effect modelling considering microstructural heterogeneity. Specifically, microstructural and geometrical size effects on critical distance and fatigue performance are studied based on Sub-modelling approach. In addition, critical distance theory is coupled with Weibull distribution for probabilistic fatigue life evaluation of notched components. The developed method is verified and compared by using experimental data of GH4169 alloy. The findings demonstrate that the evaluated P-S-N curves exhibit strong agreement with tested data and geometrical size effect poses larger influence than the grain size effect on critical distance and fatigue life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The corrosion of metallic Bipolar Plates (BPs) has become a key bottleneck in the practical application of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). Environmental factors inside the PEMFCs significantly accelerate the degradation of electrical conductivity and durability of metallic BPs. In this work, we investigated the corrosion behavior and conductive properties of amorphous carbon coating (a-C) coated SS316L in a simulated PEMFC environment at various operating temperatures. The results showed that the corrosion current density (I corr) of a-C varied in a range of 2.3–8.7 nA/cm2 when subjected to a temperature range of 40–80 °C. Additionally, the interfacial contact resistance increased from 4.36 to 9.56 mΩ/cm2 with a rise in temperature. The reasons could be ascribed to two aspects. First, the a-C maintained the good chemical stability of sp2/sp3 bonds regardless of temperature changes, favoring remarkable anti-corrosion and good conductivity. Second, the higher temperatures intensified the penetration of corrosive species, accelerating the dissolution process of a-C coated SS316L and leading to substantial corrosion failure. [Display omitted] • a-C coatings were fabricated on SS316L by a hybrid magnetron sputtering technique. • a-C coated SS316L enhanced corrosion resistance and interfacial conductive resistance in a simulated PEMFCs condition. • Increasing operating temperature slightly sacrificed the protective capability of a-C due to dissolution of metallic ions. • Strongly chemical stability of a-C favored long-term durability at high running temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Psoraleae Fructus (PF), the dried fruit of Psoralea corylifolia L., is a commonly used traditional medicine that has contributed to the treatment of orthopedic diseases for thousands of years in China. However, recent PF-related liver injury reports have drawn widespread attention regarding its potential hepatotoxicity risks. This study was aimed to evaluate the long-term efficacy and chronic toxicity of PF using a 26-week administration experiment on rats in order to simulate the clinical usage situation. The PF aqueous extract was consecutively administrated to rats daily at dosages of 0.7, 2.0, and 5.6 g/kg (equivalent to 1–8 times the clinical doses for humans) for as long as 26 weeks. Samples were collected after 13, 26, and 32 weeks (withdrawal for 6 weeks) since the first administration. The chronic toxicity of PF was evaluated by conventional toxicological methods, and the efficacy of PF was evaluated by osteogenic effects in the natural growth process. In our experiments, only the H group (5.6 g/kg) for 26-week PF treatment demonstrated liver or kidney injury, which the injuries were reversible after 6 weeks of withdrawal. Notably, the PF treatment beyond 13 weeks showed significant benefits for bone growth and development in rats, with a higher benefit-risk ratio in female rats. PF displayed a promising benefit-risk ratio in the treatment and prevention of osteoporosis, a disease that lacks effective medicine so far. This is the first study to elucidate the benefit-risk balance associated with clinical dosage and long-term use of PF, thereby providing valuable insights for rational clinical use and risk control of PF. [Display omitted] • Reversible liver or kidney injury only occurred in excessive dosing and prolonged treatment of Psoraleae Fructus. • Beyond the 13-week treatment of Psoraleae Fructus showed significant benefits for bone growth and development. • Psoraleae Fructus displayed a positive benefit-risk ratio for treating and preventing osteoporosis with minimal risks. • Psoraleae Fructus could be more favorable in females due to a wider therapeutic window than males. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Multi-Agent Simulation is an essential technique for exploring complex systems. In research of contagious diseases, it is widely exploited to analyze their spread mechanisms, especially for preventing COVID-19. Nowadays, transmission dynamics and interventions of COVID-19 have been elaborately established by this method, but its computation performance is seldomly concerned. As it usually suffers from inadequate CPU utilization and poor data locality, optimizing the performance is challenging and important for real-time analyzing its spreading. Results: This paper explores approaches to optimize multi-agent simulation for COVID-19 disease. The focus of this work is on the algorithm and data structure designs for improving performance, as well as its parallelization strategies. We propose two successive methods to optimize the computation. We construct a case-focused iteration algorithm to improve data locality, and propose a fast data-mapping scheme called hierarchical hash table to accelerate hash operations. As a result, The case-focused method degrades ∼ 90 % cache references and achieves × 4.3 speedup. Hierarchical hash table can further boost computation speed by 47%. And parallel implementation with 20 threads on CPU achieves × 80 speedup consequently. Conclusions: In this work, we propose optimizations for multi-agent simulation of COVID-19 transmission from aspects of algorithm and data structure. Benefit from improvement of locality and multi-thread implementation, our methods can significantly accelerate the simulation computation. It is promising in supporting real-time prevention of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) provides a convenient diagnosis avenue for noninvasive cancer detection. The current methods are focused on identifying circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA)s genomic aberrations, e.g. mutations, copy number aberrations (CNAs) or methylation changes. In this study, we report a new computational method that unifies two orthogonal pieces of information, namely methylation and CNAs, derived from whole-genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS) data to quantify low tumor content in cfDNA. It implements a Bayes model to enrich ctDNA from WGBS data based on hypomethylation haplotypes, and subsequently, models CNAs for cancer detection. We generated WGBS data in a total of 262 samples, including high-depth (>20×, deduped high mapping quality reads) data in 76 samples with matched triplets (tumor, adjacent normal and cfDNA) and low-depth (~2.5×, deduped high mapping quality reads) data in 186 samples. We identified a total of 54 Mb regions of hypomethylation haplotypes for model building, a vast majority of which are not covered in the HumanMethylation450 arrays. We showed that our model is able to substantially enrich ctDNA reads (tens of folds), with clearly elevated CNAs that faithfully match the CNAs in the paired tumor samples. In the 19 hepatocellular carcinoma cfDNA samples, the estimated enrichment is as high as 16 fold, and in the simulation data, it can achieve over 30-fold enrichment for a ctDNA level of 0.5% with a sequencing depth of 600×. We also found that these hypomethylation regions are also shared among many cancer types, thus demonstrating the potential of our framework for pancancer early detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As clinical rotations were disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with surgical specialty being the one most severely affected among all disciplines, social media had become increasingly used for surgical education. We aimed to identify and present the application of social media as an essential tool for surgical education during the COVID-19 pandemic. A literature review was conducted using PubMed/MEDLINE and EMBASE databases for potentially eligible articles published until April 2021. The review was performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. A total of 23 articles were identified and systematically reviewed that related to the application of social media use in surgical education during the COVID-19 pandemic. These may be grouped into 3 discrete categories (online learning, scientific research, networking) and 14 topics (online resources, virtual conferencing, preparing for exams, etc.). Social media has played a multidimensional critical role in training surgical students and residents in the COVID-19 era, with special superiority that cannot be substituted by other online tools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four novel heptanuclear Ln–Cu complexes with the formula [Ln2Cu(hfac)8(NITPhTzbis)2][LnCu(hfac)5(NITPhTzbis)]2 (LnCu = YCu 1, TbCu 2, DyCu 3 and HoCu 4; hfac = hexafluoroacetylacetonate) were successfully constructed by employing the triazole functionalized nitronyl nitroxide biradical ligand NITPh-Tzbis (NITPh-Tzbis = 5-(1,2,4-triazolyl)-1,3-bis(1′-oxyl-3′-oxido-4′,4′,5′,5′-tetramethyl-4,5-hydro-1H-imidazol-2-yl)benzene). These hetero-tri-spin complexes are composed of two biradical-bridged dinuclear [(LnCu(hfac)5(NITPhTzbis)] units and one trinuclear [Ln2Cu(hfac)8(NITPhTzbis)2] unit which form a heptanuclear supramolecular structure through π–π interactions. Magnetic susceptibility investigations indicate that ferromagnetic exchange interactions dominate at low temperature for this supramolecular system which can be attributed to the Ln–nitroxide exchange and intramolecular NIT⋯NIT coupling mediated by the m-phenylene moiety. The DyCu derivative was found to exhibit a slow magnetic relaxation behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new method for characterizing fiber bending flexibility was developed by worm-like chain model proposed by Kratky-Porod,[1] which was first introduced to the pulp and paper field in this study. For the three types of pulps, the experimental results were compared with the KP chain model, and the resulting determination coefficients were all above 0.95, which proved that the model was feasible to be applied to these three fibers. The relation between fiber bending rigidity and that of cellulosic chains inside was discussed to deduce the fiber bending flexibility. The flexibility of an individual fiber can be approximated as the contribution of that of all the cellulose chains inside. By this method, the fiber flexibility values were determined to be in the range of 0.6×1011−3.5×1011 N−1·m−2, which was comparable to that of the conventional methods recorded in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coals of Early Carboniferous Wanshoushan Formation in northeast Yunnan, southwest China are enriched in Li, Cu, Zn, Ge, Se, Sr, Mo, Cd, In, Pb, Th, and U (the red and orange columns) and depleted in B, F, and Hg (the green columns). The most enriched element is Li and its concentration is almost 9 times as much as the average of the worldwide coals. The patterns of rare earth elements in the coals of Wanshoushan Formation in east Yunnan (A, B, and C) are similar to that of the bauxite of Jiujialu Formation and Dazhuyuan Formation in West Guizhou (D), which indicates they probably have the same provenance. [Display omitted] • The Lower Carboniferous coal in the northeast Yunnan, China is enriched in kinds of critical elements, especially in Li, and the concentration coefficient of Li reaches 8.92. • The major minerals in the coal and host rock samples were kaolinite, quartz, pyrite, illite, jarosite, boehmite, alum (K), and gypsum, with authigenic minerals. • The distribution pattern of trace elements in the coals of the Wanshoushan Formation, Lower Carboniferous in the northeast Yunnan and in the bauxites of the Jiujialu and Dazhuyuan Formations,also Lower Carboniferous in the central-north Guizhou are similar, and their provenance is the underlying Cambrian–Ordovician carbonate rocks. The Middle and Lower Carboniferous sedimentary sequences in the central and western parts of Guizhou, southwest China, are enriched in bauxite, and are characterized by increased levels of the critical element Li. In the adjacent area (northeastern Yunnan), the Lower Carboniferous sequences contain coal seams. Whether these coal seams are enriched in Li, and the provenance affinity between the bauxites and these coal seams are still unclear. In this study, the mineralogy and geochemistry of the C1 coal seam in the Wanshoushan Formation, Lower Carboniferous sedimentary sequences, Zhaotong Mining Area, northeastern Yunnan Province, were investigated. The results showed that the major minerals in the C1 coal seam are clay minerals, Al-bearing minerals, quartz, pyrite, and so on, most of which are of authigenic origin. This coal seam was enriched in Li, Cu, Zn, and so on with the Li concentration coefficient reaching to 8.92. The trace elements in the C1 coal seam of the Wanshoushan Formation and the elements in the bauxites of the Jiujialu and Dazhuyuan Formations were similar, and their provenance was the underlying Cambrian - Ordovician carbonate rocks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to simulate the characteristics of underwater shield tunnels, a new large-scale model test system with high water pressure and high stress loading capacity was developed. The loading control mode of the hydraulic system can perform uniform loading and gradient loading. Moreover, the vertical and horizontal hydraulic loading can reach 0·8 MPa and 1·6 MPa. The water pressure loading system has a maximum capacity of 0·5 MPa. Based on an actual project, a model test of an underwater shield tunnel lining under real soil and water pressure conditions was carried out. New segment joints of the model were developed during the model testing. The lateral pressure coefficient at rest of the model strata was slightly larger than 0·5, and close to that of the field strata. It was also found that the water pressure had a reducing effect on the soil pressure under large buried depth and high water pressure conditions. This system can mostly meet the requirements of underwater or underground engineering model tests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aiming at the flight safety problems existing in UAV power patrol inspection, this study proposes a UAV patrol inspection safety management system (SMS) scheme, which takes the safety target level specified in soar as the target management, based on safety management, modern control theory, risk management, and UAV operation regulations, combined with the actual needs of machine patrol inspection of China Southern Power Grid and the requirements of local government. The UAV SMS scheme is developed from four parts: safety policy, risk management, safety guarantee, and safety promotion, and the application analysis is carried out in combination with the Kobe accident case in 2020. The experimental results demonstrate that the implementation of SMS scheme can effectively reduce the accident risk level during UAV power patrol inspection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A theoretical investigation of the macroscopic quantum coherence in a whispering‐gallery‐mode optical microresonator is conducted, where clockwise (CW) and counterclockwise (CCW) propagating modes are coupled in nonreciprocal non‐Hermitian manner induced by nanoparticles. The results indicate that the dynamic control of quantum coherence/intercoherence can be realized by adjusting relative phase angle of the nanoparticles. A rather more exotic finding is that chiral optical quantum coherence can be achieved in the context of asymmetric backscattering. Especially in the vicinity of the exceptional point, chiral optical quantum coherence phenomenon is most obvious; that is, the CW(CCW) mode generated by backscattering exhibits strong quantum coherence while the coherence of CCW(CW) mode generated by backscattering is completely suppressed. Further, the optomechanical coherence between photons and phonons also shows chiral behavior. Finally, the experimental feasibility of quantum coherence is evaluated, and experimental scheme to readout and measure coherence is discussed briefly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Relaxation in resistance switching (RS) has severely hindered the stability of memory devices based on oxide-thin-film/ferroelectric heterostructures. In this work, Zn doped SnO2 (ZTO) thin films were deposited on (111)-0.7Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-0.3PbTiO3 (PMN-0.3PT) substrates to investigate the effect of oxygen vacancies (OVs) on resistance relaxation. The polarization-dependent resistance relaxation is observed in ZTO/PMN-0.3PT heterostructures. The largest relative change in resistance up to 53.6% within 20 min is ascribed to OV diffusion. Local aggregation of positively charged OVs with the application of poling electric field would enhance the Coulomb repulsion and strain in distorted lattice, which could accelerate the OV back-diffusion. Partial positively charged OVs are neutralized in the positive polarization state with the application of +10 kV/cm poling voltage, which weakens the relaxation compared to the negative polarization state. Our work helps to understand the interrelation between OVs and polarization-dependent relaxation of RS properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A standard finite element method (FEM) is hindered by numerical dispersion error and fails to achieve accurate solutions for underwater noise prediction at large wave numbers. This study develops an advanced FEM known as the coupled local smoothing FEM (CLS-FEM) to address this issue. This methodology integrates the local smoothing FEM (LS-FEM) with the modified Dirichlet-to-Neumann boundary condition (MDtNBC). The MDtNBC is applied to an artificial boundary in CLS-FEM to ensure sound traveling outward and the solution's uniqueness. A hybrid acoustic stiffness is established to mitigate the dispersion error by combining the "overly stiff" FEM and the "overly soft" node-based smoothed FEM (NS-FEM) models. A key feature of CLS-FEM is its ability to significantly improve accuracy by appropriately softening acoustic stiffness without adding extra degrees of freedom. The performance of CLS-FEM is investigated numerically. Numerical examples are conducted to assess the characteristics of the approach. These simulations demonstrated that the proposed CLS-FEM significantly reduces the numerical dispersion error, achieving greater precision than both FEM and NS-FEM at large wave numbers. Hence, the developed method proves competitive for computing underwater noise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An effective regulation of the magnetism and interface of ferromagnetic materials is not only of great scientific significance, but also has an urgent need in modern industry. In this work, by using the first-principles calculations, we demonstrate an effective approach to achieve non-volatile electrical control of ferromagnets, which proves this idea in multiferroic heterostructures of ferromagnetic LaTiO3 and ferroelectric BiFeO3. The results show that the magnetic properties and two-dimensional electron gas concentrations of LaTiO3 films can be controlled by changing the polarization directions of BiFeO3. The destroyed symmetry being introduced by ferroelectric polarization of the system leads to the transfer and reconstruction of the Ti-3d electrons, which is the fundamental reason for the changing of magnetic properties. This multiferroic heterostructures will pave the way for non-volatile electrical control of ferromagnets and have potential applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new Zn(II)-bearing metal-organic framework (MOF), namely, {[Zn2(L)2(H2O)]·8H2O·DMF}n (1) has been generated via applying 4,4′-([2,3′-bipyridine]-4,6-diyl) dibenzoic acid (H2L), a pyridine-carboxylic acid ligand under the solvothermal reaction conditions. In the aqueous solution, complex 1 could be utilized as the fluorescent sensor for the simultaneous detection of Cr2O72− ion and CrO42− ion with low limits of detection and high sensitivity. It is important that this luminescent material can be regenerated quickly and the sensing ability of this luminescent material can be reused for three times. Furthermore, the assessment of the compound's application values against the Tuberculosis care was carried out and simultaneously its relevant mechanism was investigated. First of all, the bacterial burden in the lung macrophages was measured with plate micro-dilution method. Besides, the signaling pathway of JAK/STAT activation was evaluated with real time RT-PCR. Molecular docking simulation reveals that the polar oxygens are the active sites that could form binding interactions the protein. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stretchable conductive fibers offer unparalleled advantages in the development of wearable strain sensors for smart textiles due to their excellent flexibility and weaveability. However, the practical applications of these fibers in wearable devices are hindered by either contradictory properties of conductive fibers (high stretchability versus high sensing stability), or lack of manufacturing scalability. Herein, we present a facile approach for highly stretchable self-crimping fiber strain sensors based on a polyether-ester (TPEE) elastomer matrix using a side-by-side bicomponent melt-spinning process involving two parallel but attached components with different shrinkage properties. The TPEE component serves as a highly elastic mechanical support layer within the bicomponent fibers, while the conductive component (E-TPEE) of carbon black (CB), multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MCNTs) and TPEE works as a strain-sensitive layer. In addition to the intrinsic elasticity of the matrix, the TPEE/E-TPEE bicomponent fibers present an excellent form of elasticity due to self-crimping. The self-crimping elongation of the fibers can provide a large deformation, and after the crimp disappears, the intrinsic elastic deformation is responsible for monitoring the strain sensing. The reliable strain sensing range of the TPEE/E-TPEE composite fibers was 160%–270% and could be regulated by adjusting the crimp structure. More importantly, the TPEE/E-TPEE fibers had a diameter of 30–40 µm and tenacity of 40–50 MPa, showing the necessary practicality. This work introduces new possibilities for fiber strain sensors produced in standard industrial spinning machines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) increases the incidence of allergic rhinitis (AR). microRNA (miRNA) can regulate cell proliferation, invasion and apoptosis. However, the mechanism of miR-338–3p in mediating PM2.5-induced autophagy in AR animal models remains unknown. To explore the mechanism of miR-338–3p in PM2.5-induced autophagy in AR, the human nasal epithelium cells and AR model exposed to PM2.5 were deployed. The results showed that miR-338–3p was down-regulated in both nasal mucosa of PM2.5-exacerbated AR rat models and PM2.5-treated RPMI-2650 cells. Forced expression of miR-338–3p could inhibit autophagy in vitro. miR-338–3p specifically bound to UBE2Q1 3′-untranslated region (3′ UTR) and negatively regulated its expression. Overexpression of UBE2Q1 attenuated the inhibitory effects of miR-338–3p on PM2.5-induced autophagy of RPMI-2650 cells through AKT/mTOR pathway. Moreover, our in vivo study found that after administration of agomiR-338–3p in AR rats model, the expression of autophagy-related proteins decreased and nasal symptoms alleviated. In conclusion, this study revealed that miR-338–3p acts as an autophagy suppressor in PM2.5-exacerbated AR by directly targeting UBE2Q1 and affecting AKT/mTOR pathway. • PM 2.5 can aggravate autophagy. • PM2.5 can inhibit the expression of miR-338–3p. • miR-338–3p agomiR can relieve nasal symptoms in AR model exposured to PM 2.5 • miR-338–3p/UBE2Q1/AKT/mTOR regulates PM2.5-induced autophagy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The conversion between charge and spin through spin–orbit coupling (SOC) is critical in heavy nonmagnetic metal/ferromagnetic metal systems. Here, both the single γ′-Fe4N films and the epitaxial Pt/γ′-Fe4N bilayers were fabricated by facing-target sputtering. In the Pt(3 nm)/γ′-Fe4N(tFe4N ≤ 6 nm) bilayers, the anisotropy magnetoresistance (AMR) exhibits an "M" shape, which is opposite to that of the single γ′-Fe4N film with a "W" shape. Meanwhile, the planar Hall resistivity (PHR) reversal also appears. The inversion of AMR and PHR after capping a 3-nm-thick Pt layer on the γ′-Fe4N layer is mainly determined by the interfacial effect, in which the magnetic-proximity-effect induced the interface Pt local moments and the inverse-spin-Hall-effect caused the reflected spin-current to charge-current conversion. Our work helps to understand the interfacial SOC effects and has potential application in the field of magnetic sensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A dual-scale modelling approach combining sub-modelling approach with crystal plasticity constitutive model. • Efficient procedure for fatigue life prediction of anotch parts using the Tanaka-Mura-Wu model and Paris law. • The microstructural size effect on the mechanical and fatigue behaviors of Ni-based superalloy GH4169. Fatigue performances of critical structures are strongly affected by the microstructural (e.g. grain, defect, inclusion, etc.) size effect, and it is thus important to quantify their detrimental effect. In this work, a numerical procedure is constructed to quantify the influence of microstructure on the mechanical and fatigue behaviors of Ni-based superalloy GH4169. Specifically, by combining sub-modelling approach with crystal plasticity constitutive model, a dual-scale modelling approach is developed for studying grain-level mechanical behavior of Ni-based superalloy GH4169 notched components. In addition, the dislocation-based Tanaka-Mura-Wu model is applied for fatigue crack initiation life prediction. The Paris law is then utilized for fatigue crack propagation analysis based on the simulated short crack. To study the microstructural size effect on fatigue crack initiation and propagation behaviors, sub-models containing various grain orientation, grain size, defect size/shape are built and analysed. Finally, a series of fatigue tests on notched specimens of Ni-based superalloy GH4169 were carried out for method validation. Results indicate that the established dual-scale modelling approach and fatigue life prediction framework yields good agreement with experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The adsorption and electrooxidation of CO molecules at well‐defined Pt(hkl) single‐crystal electrode surfaces is a key step towards addressing catalyst poisoning mechanisms in fuel cells. Herein, we employed in situ electrochemical shell‐isolated nanoparticle‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SHINERS) coupled with theoretical calculation to investigate CO electrooxidation on Pt(hkl) surfaces in acidic solution. We obtained the Raman signal of top‐ and bridge‐site adsorbed CO* molecules on Pt(111) and Pt(100). In contrast, on Pt(110) surfaces only top‐site adsorbed CO* was detected during the entire electrooxidation process. Direct spectroscopic evidence for OH* and COOH* species forming on Pt(100) and Pt(111) surfaces was afforded and confirmed subsequently via isotope substitution experiments and DFT calculations. In summary, the formation and adsorption of OH* and COOH* species plays a vital role in expediting the electrooxidation process, which relates with the pre‐oxidation peak of CO electrooxidation. This work deepens knowledge of the CO electrooxidation process and provides new perspectives for the design of anti‐poisoning and highly effective catalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The adsorption and electrooxidation of CO molecules at well‐defined Pt(hkl) single‐crystal electrode surfaces is a key step towards addressing catalyst poisoning mechanisms in fuel cells. Herein, we employed in situ electrochemical shell‐isolated nanoparticle‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SHINERS) coupled with theoretical calculation to investigate CO electrooxidation on Pt(hkl) surfaces in acidic solution. We obtained the Raman signal of top‐ and bridge‐site adsorbed CO* molecules on Pt(111) and Pt(100). In contrast, on Pt(110) surfaces only top‐site adsorbed CO* was detected during the entire electrooxidation process. Direct spectroscopic evidence for OH* and COOH* species forming on Pt(100) and Pt(111) surfaces was afforded and confirmed subsequently via isotope substitution experiments and DFT calculations. In summary, the formation and adsorption of OH* and COOH* species plays a vital role in expediting the electrooxidation process, which relates with the pre‐oxidation peak of CO electrooxidation. This work deepens knowledge of the CO electrooxidation process and provides new perspectives for the design of anti‐poisoning and highly effective catalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the important role of metronidazole (MNO) in treating giardiasis and amoebiasis, its intake may cause mutagenic‐, genotoxic‐, and carcinogenic‐type side reactions, so proper sensors are essential for MNO detection. In this work, we studied, using the density functional theory (DFT) approach, MNO adsorption on a pristine and Pt‐decorated BC3 nanotube (Pt@BCN) in order to assess their potential as drug‐sensing material. We showed that the pristine tube weakly adsorbed the MNO drug and cannot detect it. Next, we examined the most stable complexes for Pt decoration on the BNC, finding a more favorable binding energy (BE) for a Pt‐η6 with B2C4 hexagon. Several complexes were considered for MNO adsorption on the Pt@BCN. In the most stable complex, the MNO interacts with the Pt atom through the NO2 group with a BE of −1.51 eV. The sensing response of BCN dramatically increased from 5.7 up to 415.2 by the Pt decoration. A short recovery time of 1.54 seconds was reached for the MNO desorption from the Pt@BCN surface. The water solvent reduces the BE of both MNO and sensing response of the Pt@BCN to −1.36 eV and 303.9, respectively. Our study proposes that a Pt@BCN could act as a promising sensor for MNO drug detection purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As a pandemic, a most-common pattern resembled organizing pneumonia (OP) has been identified by CT findings in novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). We aimed to delineate the evolution of CT findings and outcome in OP of COVID-19. Materials and methods: 106 COVID-19 patients with OP based on CT findings were retrospectively included and categorized into non-severe (mild/common) and severe (severe/critical) groups. CT features including lobar distribution, presence of ground glass opacities (GGO), consolidation, linear opacities and total severity CT score were evaluated at three time intervals from symptom-onset to CT scan (day 0–7, day 8–14, day > 14). Discharge or adverse outcome (admission to ICU or death), and pulmonary sequelae (complete absorption or lesion residuals) on CT after discharge were analyzed based on the CT features at different time interval. Results: 79 (74.5%) patients were non-severe and 103 (97.2%) were discharged at median day 25 (range, day 8–50) after symptom-onset. Of 67 patients with revisit CT at 2–4 weeks after discharge, 20 (29.9%) had complete absorption of lesions at median day 38 (range, day 30–53) after symptom-onset. Significant differences between complete absorption and residuals groups were found in percentages of consolidation (1.5% vs. 13.8%, P = 0.010), number of involved lobe > 3 (40.0% vs. 72.5%, P = 0.030), CT score > 4 (20.0% vs. 65.0%, P = 0.010) at day 8–14. Conclusion: Most OP cases had good prognosis. Approximately one-third of cases had complete absorption of lesions during 1–2 months after symptom-onset while those with increased frequency of consolidation, number of involved lobe > 3, and CT score > 4 at week 2 after symptom-onset may indicate lesion residuals on CT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experimental Investigations on crack formation in reinforced concrete due to restraint stress In the current Eurocode 2, a crack‐force‐based approach is used to determine the minimum reinforcement in restrained concrete members. Due to the tightening of the requirement by a change of the German national annex in Eurocode 2, an economic design is no longer possible. One of the reasons for the overdimensioning of the minimum reinforcement is that the design approach is based on incomplete empirical data and conservative assumptions. To investigate the influences on crack initiation and the effects of crack formation on restrained concrete members, precisely defined boundary conditions are necessary. These allow not only the comparability of the experimental investigations but also their reproducibility. The test setup used allows full restraint under constant climatic conditions of the test specimens. By systematic evaluation of selected tests, the crack formation of restrained plates is analyzed, allowing interpretations and the identification of basic phenomena. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In magnetic resonance-guided high-intensity focused ultrasound (MR-HIFU) treatment of uterine fibroids, the immediate ablation response is significantly affected by blood perfusion. The variability of measurement for blood perfusion is critical due to the inherent non-uniformity of tumor perfusion and its dependence on reproducible region of interest (ROI) placement.Purpose: To investigate the value of whole-tumor ROI (ROIwt) analysis for quantitative perfusion in predicting immediate ablation response of uterine fibroids in MR-HIFU.Material and Methods: Thirty-one fibroids in 28 eligible patients were treated with MR-HIFU. Quantitative perfusion parameters (Ktrans, Kep, and Vp) derived from dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI were obtained before MR-HIFU treatment. The ROIwt and single-layer ROI (ROIsl) were used for quantitative perfusion analysis. T1 contrast-enhanced MRI immediately after MR-HIFU treatment was conducted to determine the non-perfused volume ratio (NPVR). Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was used for consistency test. Spearman's correlation and multivariate linear regression were used to investigate the predictors of the NPVR. Received operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to test the predictive efficacy of quantitative perfusion parameter.Results: The intra- and inter-observer ICC of the quantitative perfusion parameters from ROIwt were higher than those from ROIsl. Multivariate analysis showed that the Ktrans of ROIwt was a predictor of the immediate ablation response. ROC analysis displayed that the AUC of Ktrans of ROIwt is 0.817 in predicting the ablation response.Conclusion: Pretreatment Ktrans of ROIwt is more reliable and stable than that of ROIsl. It could be a predictor for the immediate ablation response of uterine fibroids in MR-HIFU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]