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[Display omitted] • Category of bio-based phase change materials. • Principle and method of using bio-based phase change materials for thermal energy storage. • Review of incorporation technology of bio-based phase change materials for building application. • The directions and challenges for future research on bio-based phase change materials are presented. In recent years, the energy consumed by heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAc) systems has reached 60% of building energy consumption. This will lead to a further increase in global warming and energy depletion. Phase change materials (PCMs) have been developed to deal with this problem. PCMs with excellent properties can store excess energy and release it when needed to fill the gap between energy supply and demand. However, currently, widely used commercial PCM is paraffin derived from non-renewable petroleum. Although it can play the role of thermal energy storage (TES), it inevitably brings some environmental problems at the same time. Bio-based phase change materials (BPCMs) are considered to be good alternatives for paraffin PCM because they are derived from plant and animal fats and have excellent heat storage properties. This article comprehensively reviews the incorporation technology of BPCMs, draws some important conclusions from the existing literature, and raises some issues that require further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study of barley starch synthesis, the interaction between mutations at the sex6 locus and the amo1 locus has been characterized. Four barley genotypes, the wild type, sex6, amo1, and the amo1sex6 double mutant, were generated by backcrossing the sex6 mutation present in Himalaya292 into the amo1 ‘high amylose Glacier’. The wild type, amo1, and sex6 genotypes gave starch phenotypes consistent with previous studies. However, the amo1sex6 double mutant yielded an unexpected phenotype, a significant increase in starch content relative to the sex6 phenotype. Amylose content (as a percentage of starch) was not increased above the level observed for the sex6 mutation alone; however, on a per seed basis, grain from lines containing the amo1 mutation (amo1 mutants and amo1sex6 double mutants) synthesize significantly more amylose than the wild-type lines and sex6 mutants. The level of granule-bound starch synthase I (GBSSI) protein in starch granules is increased in lines containing the amo1 mutation (amo1 and amo1sex6). In the amo1 genotype, starch synthase I (SSI), SSIIa, starch branching enzyme IIa (SBEIIa), and SBEIIb also markedly increased in the starch granules. Genetic mapping studies indicate that the ssIIIa gene is tightly linked to the amo1 locus, and the SSIIIa protein from the amo1 mutant has a leucine to arginine residue substitution in a conserved domain. Zymogram analysis indicates that the amo1 phenotype is not a consequence of total loss of enzymatic activity although it remains possible that the amo1 phenotype is underpinned by a more subtle change. It is therefore proposed that amo1 may be a negative regulator of other genes of starch synthesis. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Roots of Astragalus membranaceus, Angelica sinensis, Glycyrrhiza uralensis and Codonopsis pilosula, which were often used as herbs in traditional Chinese medicine, were analyzed by Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA). The samples were collected in Gansu, northwest of China and irradiated at the 15 MW heavy water reactor in China Institute of Atomic Energy (CIAE). The induced activities were counted by a well calibrated low background γ-spectrometer equipped with a high efficiency coaxial high-purity germanium (HPGe) detector. The concentrations of eighteen trace elements (Ca, Fe, Na, Zn, Ba, Rb, Ce, Cr, La, Co, Th, Cs, Sb, Sc, Sm, Hf, Eu and Tb) in the herbs were determined. Possible links between pharmacological action of the herbs and content of some elements were also discussed in this paper. The measured results were compared with the reported values in literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: As the yield behavior of Al2O3–SiO2(sf)/Al–Si MMCS is concerned, effects of heat treatment and parameters of short fiber, including volume fraction, size, distribution mode, were investigated. Dislocation configurations adjacent to interface between matrix and fiber were observed by TEM. Macro-yield stress (σ 0.2) and micro-yield stress (σ MYS) vary with parameters of short fiber, and effects of these parameters on σ 0.2 appear to be opposite to those on σ MYS. This phenomenon was interpreted by thermal residual stress in matrix and dislocation configuration. Suitable quenching followed aging treatment is an effective method to enhance the σ MYS and the σ 0.2 simultaneously. For the specimen with heat treatment of 550°C/1h WQ+170°C/6h (T6) AC, σ 0.2 and σ MYS reach 200 and 58MPa, respectively, and they are almost as twice as those as-cast. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The lateral hypothalamic area (LHa) is an important brain site for the regulation of food intake. Central injection of opioids increases food intake, and the LHa contains mu and kappa opioid receptors, both of which are involved in feeding behavior. It is unclear whether opioids impact feeding when injected directly into the rostral portion of the LHa (rLHa) in rats. We performed a series of studies in which free-feeding rLHa-cannulated rats were injected with opioid agonists (DAMGO, morphine, dynorphin, U-50488H) followed by the measurement of food intake at 1, 2, and 4 h postinjection. To determine whether opioid receptor ligands administered into the rLHa affect neuronal activation in this brain site, we studied cFos immunoreactivity (cFos IR) in response to rLHa stimulation with naltrexone. We found that the only compound that stimulated feeding behavior was morphine. The other agonists had no effect on food consumption. Naltrexone injection into the rLHa increased neural activation in the LHa, indicating the presence of functional opioid receptors in this region. These data suggest that although neuronal activity is affected by opioid agents acting in the rLHa, administration of selective mu and kappa opioid ligands in this subdivision of the LHa does not have a reliable effect on feeding behavior. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Ghrelin stimulates feeding when administered centrally and peripherally. The lateral hypothalamus (LH) is thought to mediate ghrelin-induced hyperphagia. Thus, we examined central mechanisms underlying feeding generated by LH ghrelin. We determined that 0.3 nmol of LH-injected ghrelin was the lowest dose increasing food consumption and it induced Fos immunoreactivity (IR; a marker of neuronal activation) in feeding-related brain areas, including the hypothalamic paraventricular, arcuate, and dorsomedial nuclei, amygdala, and nucleus of the solitary tract. Also, LH ghrelin induced Fos IR in LH orexin neurons. We conclude that the LH, as part of larger central circuitry, integrates orexigenic properties of ghrelin. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Wnt5a is a secreted Wnt ligand that plays a critical role in cellular pathways and inflammatory diseases. The WNT5A gene encodes two protein isoforms, Wnt5a-long and Wnt5a-short, which differ based on different promoter methylation and have distinct functions. However, the mechanisms of the promoter methylation are unclear. Depending on the extent of promoter methylation, Wnt5a exerts both anti-inflammatory and pro-inflammatory effects in inflammatory diseases, which may be involved in different Wnt5a isoforms. Therefore, the Wnt5a isoforms may be potential diagnostic markers for inflammatory diseases and the mechanisms of the WNT5A gene promoter methylation need to be further investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To reduce the use of formaldehyde wood adhesives, a chemical modification of starch with chitosan was explored to prepare an adhesive film for plywood with good adhesive properties, low price, non-toxic, and convenient sizing. The effect of chitosan content of the adhesive film on the shear strength of plywood was studied. The modification mechanism and bonding mechanism of the film were analyzed by FTIR, XPS, XRD and SEM. The results showed that when the amount of chitosan was 30% of starch dry weight, the dry-wet shear strength of plywood met the requirements of Chinese national class Ⅱ plywood (≧ 0.80 MPa). FTIR and XPS analysis showed that –NH 2 in the chitosan reacted with –COOH on starch and wood surface to form amide bond, which specifies the chitosan's role as a coupling agent. XRD and SEM analysis showed that the addition of chitosan disturbed the otherwise orderly arrangement of a starch structure. The structure of the attained modified film is mostly amorphous. Sizing in the form of a adhesive film solves the disadvantage of difficulty in sizing starch adhesive. Compared with commercial adhesives on the market, this adhesive film has the advantages of low price, wide source of raw materials, non-toxic, and is expected to be a good substitute for formaldehyde adhesives on the market. • Raw starch and modifier chitosan are both sustainable resources. • Chitosan is used as a special coupling agent. • The mechanism is –NH 2 and –COOH condensation reaction. • The method of adhesive film sizing is more convenient and simple. • Adhesive film cost is lower than commercial adhesives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Simulations of the hygrothermal performances of straw bales in split-insulation wall assembly was performed under cold and humid climate. • Hygrothermal profiles within each layer of the wall cross-section was studied. • Risk assessment of mould growth in straw bales split-insulation walls under Quebec City outdoor climate was conducted. The abundance of straw in Quebec makes this material an interesting insulation option to reduce the energy consumption of buildings. At the same time, studies indicate that straw bales' outstanding hygrothermal performance can provide a comfortable living experience for the occupants. However, due to the slightly higher thermal conductivity of straw bales insulation compared to common insulation materials, the walls are found to be 30–90% thicker, which can lead to moisture-related problems especially under a humid and cold outdoor climate. Therefore, a split-insulation wall structure was used in this study to reduce the wall thickness by combining straw bales with expanded polystyrene (EPS) exterior insulation. Results show that straw bale walls generally have higher thermal inertia and better moisture buffer capacity compared to the reference wall using glass fiber insulation. The hygrothermal profiles show that the sheathing-insulation interface is the position having the highest relative humidity in the walls. The biohygrothermal model also suggests that under Quebec's climate, the mould grow risk in a straw bales wall with two inches EPS exterior insulation is within acceptable limits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solid–liquid organic phase-change micro/nanocapsules are potential candidates for energy storage. Recently, significant progress has been made regarding phase-change micro/nanocapsules in terms of their synthesis, properties, and applications. Extensive research has been conducted to enhance their thermal properties, such as thermal storage capacity, thermal conductivity, and thermal reliability. However, factors that influence the thermal properties of micro/nanocapsules have received little attention. This study presents a comprehensive review of phase-change micro/nanocapsules focusing on their thermal properties and their influencing factors. In addition, the thermal properties of the major solid–liquid organic pure phase-change materials are summarized. Furthermore, common micro/nanoencapsulation methods and their influence on the thermal properties were analyzed. Finally, the potential applications of these phase-change micro/nanocapsules were also investigated. This study was devoted to enhancing the thermal properties of micro/nanocapsules, which play a crucial role in their practical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Yellow River flows through multiple provinces in China, shaping the North China Plain, the largest alluvial plain in China. As the control node of basin ecological environment, the confluence of Weihe River and Yellow River is deemed as the gateway to North China Plain. In this study, a numerical simulation of the Weihe River–Yellow River confluence is conducted using a 2D hydrodynamic model and a coupled transport model for dissolved oxygen–biochemical oxygen demand. The results show that: (i) The typical flow field with multiple backflow areas is formed at the stagnant area where main stream and tributary converge and abrupt channel change area in different hydrological periods. The spur dike here mainly affects the velocity of the Weihe River outlet. (ii) There is an obvious concentration transition mixing zone downstream of the confluence, and the width of the mixing zone gradually linear increases with the direction of water flow. (iii) The self‐purification ability of the confluence is strongest in dry period, weaker in level period, and weakest in wet period. Water bodies have stronger self‐purification capacity on riverbanks than in the middle, and it is stronger in the upper reaches of Weihe River compared to Yellow River. Lower reaches also have a stronger self‐purification capacity than upper reaches. The study results can serve as a scientific reference for protecting the ecological environment of the Yellow River. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human activity and adaptation to the environmental changes on the Tibetan Plateau are under debate. Lhasa is the political and economic center of the Tibetan Autonomous Region, and was founded in 633 CE. The potential influence of changes in the landscape on the city's development remains unclear. In this paper, Optically Stimulated Luminescence and radiocarbon dating techniques were applied to determine the ages at which landforms have changed since the Last Glacial Maximum. Combining these results with archaeological evidence taken from two sites (Changguogougou and Qugong) in the Lhasa area, the relation between river migration and human adaptation was discussed. The results showed that the two terraces (T1 and T2) of the Lhasa River are fill and fill-cut terraces, and that these were formed after ∼0.9 ka and 0.08 cal ka BP, respectively. Land below an altitude of ∼3650 m above sea level was lower than the contemporary river level before ∼0.9 ka. With the down cutting of the Lhasa River, more land became available for habitation, and the flood risk to the city was also reduced. The sediments of the lower land around the Changguogou area appear to be composed of fluvial-lacustrine facies during the Last Glacial Maximum to Late Glacial period. Humans occupied the Changguogou area between ∼3.255 and 3.059 cal ka BP when there was weaker aeolian activity, and abandoned this area when aeolian activity increased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glucosinolates (GSLs) are specialized metabolites in plants of the order Brassicales. GSL transporters (GTRs) are essential for the redistribution of GSLs and also play a role in controlling the GSL content of seeds. However, specific inhibitors of these transporters have not been reported. In the current study, we described the design and synthesis of 2,3,4,6- t etrachloro-5- c yano p henyl G SL (TCPG), an artificial GSL bearing a chlorothalonil moiety as a potent inhibitor of GTRs, and evaluated its inhibitory effect on the substrate uptake mediated through GTR1 and GTR2. Molecular docking showed that the position of the β-D-glucose group of TCPG was significantly different from that of the natural substrate in GTRs and the chlorothalonil moiety forms halogen bonds with GTRs. Functional assays and kinetic analysis of the transport activity revealed that TCPG could significantly inhibit the transport activity of GTR1 and GTR2 (IC 50 values (mean ± SD) being 79 ± 16 μM and 192 ± 14 μM, respectively). Similarly, TCPG could inhibit the uptake and phloem transport of exogenous sinigrin by Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh leaf tissues, while not affecting that of esculin (a fluorescent surrogate for sucrose). TCPG could also reduce the content of endogenous GSLs in phloem exudates. Together, TCPG was discovered as an undescribed inhibitor of the uptake and phloem transport of GSLs, which brings novel insights into the ligand recognition of GTRs and provides a new strategy to control the GSL level. Further tests on the ecotoxicological and environmental safety of TCPG are needed before using it as an agricultural or horticultural chemical in the future. An artificial glucosinolate bearing a chlorothalonil moiety was synthesized, and its inhibitory effect on the glucosinolate uptake mediated through GTR1 and GTR2 transporters was evaluated. [Display omitted] • GTR1 and GTR2 are key targets for glucosinolate content modulation. • An artificial GSL bearing a chlorothalonil as an inhibitor of GTRs was synthesized. • The inhibitor was named 2,3,4,6-tetrachloro-5-cyanophenyl GSL (TCPG). • The R moiety of TCPG could form halogen bonds with GTRs. • TCPG could inhibit the GTR-mediated influx of GSLs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: It is imperative to develop novel therapeutics to overcome chemoresistance, a significant obstacle in the clinical management of prostate cancer (PCa) and other cancers. Methods: A phenotypic screen was performed to identify novel inhibitors of chemoresistant PCa cells. The mechanism of action of potential candidate(s) was investigated using in silico docking, and molecular and cellular assays in chemoresistant PCa cells. The in vivo efficacy was evaluated in mouse xenograft models of chemoresistant PCa. Results: Nicardipine exhibited high selectivity and potency against chemoresistant PCa cells via inducing apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. Computational, molecular, and cellular studies identified nicardipine as a putative inhibitor of embryonic ectoderm development (EED) protein, and the results are consistent with a proposed mechanism of action that nicardipine destabilised enhancer of zeste homologue 2 (EZH2) and inhibited key components of noncanonical EZH2 signalling, including transducer and activator of transcription 3, S-phase kinase-associated protein 2, ATP binding cassette B1, and survivin. As a monotherapy, nicardipine effectively inhibited the skeletal growth of chemoresistant C4-2B-TaxR tumours. As a combination regimen, nicardipine synergistically enhanced the in vivo efficacy of docetaxel against C4-2 xenografts. Conclusion: Our findings provided the first preclinical evidence supporting nicardipine as a novel EED inhibitor that has the potential to be promptly tested in PCa patients to overcome chemoresistance and improve clinical outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The outbreak of COVID-19 brings almost the biggest explosions of scientific literature ever. Facing such volume literature, it is hard for researches to find desired citation when carrying out COVID-19 related research, especially for junior researchers. This paper presents a novel neural network based method, called c itation r elational B ERT with h eterogeneous d eep g raph c onvolutional n etwork (CRB-HDGCN), for COVID-19 inline citation recommendation task. The CRB-HDGCN contains two main stages. The first stage is to enhance the representation learning of BERT model for COVID-19 inline citation recommendation task through CRB. To achieve the above goal, an augmented citation sentence corpus, which replaces the citation placeholder with the title of the cited papers, is used to lightly retrain BERT model. In addition, we extract three types of sentence pair according citation relation, and establish sentence prediction tasks to further fine-tune the BERT model. The second stage is to learn effective dense vector of nodes among COVID-19 bibliographic graph through HDGCN. The HDGCN contains four layers which are essentially all sub neural networks. The first layer is initial embedding layer which generates initial input vectors with fixed size through CRB and a multilayer perceptron. The second layer is a heterogeneous graph convolutional layer. In this layer, we expand traditional homogeneous graph convolutional network into heterogeneous by subtly adding heterogeneous nodes and relations. The third layer is a deep attention layer. This layer uses trainable project vectors to reweight the node importance simultaneously according to both node types and convolution layers, which further promotes the performance of learnt node vectors. The last decoder layer recovers the graph structure and let the whole network trainable. The recommendation is finally achieved by integrating the high performance heterogeneous vectors learnt from CRB-HDGCN with the query vectors. We conduct experiments on the CORD-19 and LitCovid datasets. The results show that compared with the second best method CO-Search, CRB-HDGCN improves MAP, MRR, P@100 and R@100 with 21.8%, 22.7%, 37.6% and 21.2% on CORD-19, and 29.1%, 25.9%, 15.3% and 11.3% on LitCovid, respectively. • A neural based citation recommendation method is proposed for COVID-19 papers. • A new solution to retrain and fine-tune PLMs is proposed. • A new heterogeneous deep graph convolutional network is proposed. • CRB-HDGCN achieves state-of-art on CORD-19 and LitCovid datasets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article proposes a novel dual-three-phase high-power high-speed permanent magnet assisted synchronous reluctance starter generator (PMaSynR SG) for aviation application, which has the characteristics of high efficiency, high power density, high reliability, and excellent antishort-circuit ability. The proposed PMaSynR SG can obtain higher efficiency and power density by embedding permanent magnet in the rotor topology compared with the synchronous reluctance generator, and has better antishort-circuit ability compared with the permanent magnet synchronous starter-generator. Moreover, design of dual-three-phase winding is adopted, which not only reduces the phase current, but also improves the reliability. In this article, the topological structure, characteristics and principle of PMaSynR SG are systematically studied at first. Second, a simplified dq-axis equivalent magnetic circuit model is established, and the expressions of dq-axis inductance and permanent magnet flux linkage are derived on the basis of the basic parameter selection. Then, combined with parameter sensitivity analysis, the influence law of rotor structural parameters on antishort-circuit ability and electromagnetic performance is revealed. Finally, a 40 kW 24 000 r/min PMaSynR SG is designed and manufactured. The simulation and experimental results show that the proposed PMaSynR SG has excellent electromagnetic performance with the power density of 3.1 kW/kg and the efficiency of 94%, while the short-circuit current is only 59% of its rated value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A model of DO transport applicable to the confluence was constructed. • The mechanism of secondary flow merger and decay at confluence was obtained. • The relationship between DO mixing and hydrodynamics at confluence was found. • The interaction of secondary flow and DO at confluence may affect the habitat there. In the natural river network, the confluences play an important role as control nodes. It is of great scientific value to study the transport and mixing process of water quality at the confluence of the mainstream and tributaries to improve the health of the river environment. In this study, dissolved oxygen (DO, the essential survival conditions for aquatic organisms) was used as a water quality index, and a 3D transport model of DO considering atmospheric reoxygenation and biodegradation oxygen consumption was constructed. The hydrodynamic mechanism of DO transport, mixing and reoxygenation at confluence under different flow ratios, junction angles and water temperature conditions was studied. The results show that the secondary flow is the main driving force of the transversal mixing at confluence, and there is a high coupling relationship between the evolution of the secondary flow and the mixing process of water quality at confluence. With the increase of flow ratio and junction angle, the intensity of secondary flow at confluence shows an exponential increase, which in turn promotes the transversal mixing efficiency of DO at confluence. The water quality of the polluted confluence under different water temperature conditions showed a trend of gradual recovery, but the higher the water temperature, the weaker the recovery rate. This study can provide theoretical support to deal with the threat to aquatic organisms caused by pollution accumulation at confluence, and provide scientific basis for the improvement of the water environment and water ecology protection in the river confluence and downstream. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • The 3D hydrodynamic and DO transport model at confluence were constructed. • The atmospheric oxygen mass transfer characteristics of confluence were proposed. • The equations of hydrodynamic and DO transport at confluence are found. As the control cell of river networks, the complex hydrodynamic conditions at river junctions pose significant challenges to pollution control and water ecology protection. The purpose of this study is to construct a 3D hydrodynamic model for dissolved oxygen (DO) transport at the confluence, studying its unsteady mechanism under different flow ratios and junction angles. The results of the study show that: i) The atmospheric reoxygenation distribution at the confluence exhibits a typical layered 3D feature, and the strong flow turbulence therein exerts a significant promoting effect on such reoxygenation. ii) The DO transport pattern at the confluence is characterized by the formation of an arc-shaped concentration distribution zone, followed by a contraction towards the opposite bank of the tributary and downstream transportation. A delay in DO concentration increase occurs within the separation area, while lateral oscillations are observed during downstream transport. iii) The flow ratio primarily governs the lateral migration extent of DO, while the junction angle serves as the main driver for downstream transport rate of DO. Increasing both flow ratio and junction angle can expedite mixing efficiency of DO at the confluence. The findings of this study can further enhance the hydrodynamic mechanism for water quality control at the confluent flume, and serve as a valuable reference for improving water environments and protecting water ecology in natural river confluence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of life beyond planet Earth is a long-standing quest of the human race, but whether normal mammalian embryonic development can occur in space is still unclear. Here, we show unequivocally that preimplantation mouse embryos can develop in space, but the rate of blastocyst formation and blastocyst quality are compromised. Additionally, the cells in the embryo contain severe DNA damage, while the genome of the blastocysts developed in space is globally hypomethylated with a unique set of differentially methylated regions. The developmental defects, DNA damage and epigenetic abnormalities can be largely mimicked by the treatment with ground-based low-dose radiation. However, the exposure to simulated microgravity alone does not cause major disruptions of embryonic development, indicating that radiation is the main cause for the developmental defects. This work advances the understanding of embryonic development in space and reveals long-term extreme low-dose radiation as a hazardous factor for mammalian reproduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aerogel was selected as one of IUPAC Top Ten Emerging Technologies in Chemistry in 2022, and has attracted tremendous concerns of scientists in removal of emerging contaminants. In this work a novel Fe3+ cross-linked alginate aerogel (SA/DA-Fe3+) with multiple sorption sites were facilely fabricated and applied for highly efficient removal of tetracycline (TC) from water. Results showed that Fe3+ and DA cooperatively improve adsorption of TC and TC was efficiently removed over a broad pH range of 4–8. The kinetics process can be better described by a chemisorption controlled pseudo-second-order kinetics model and Langmuir isotherm equation with characteristics of monolayer coverage. The fitted q max value of TC at ambient temperature was 804.6 mg g−1 higher than those of other reported adsorbents. Multiple interactions including π-π EDA, complexation, hydrogen bonding, electrostatic attraction, etc. were involved in adsorption process. Moreover, SA/DA-Fe3+ aerogel exhibited satisfactory stability, reusability, and recyclability for consecutive applications. Most importantly, after consecutively running for >1000 h with dynamic sorption capacity over 500 mg g−1, the packed-column was still not saturated, manifesting its great potentials for treating actual wastewaters. Thus, above superiorities make SA/DA-Fe3+ a promising candidate adsorbent for treating TC-containing wastewater. • Sodium alginate/dopamine powder was structured into a macroscopic aerogel. • As prepared SA/DA-Fe3+ aerogel showed superhigh sorption capacity for TC. • Fe3+ and DA incorporation synergistically improved adsorption of TC. • Multiple adsorption mechanisms were responsible for enhanced TC uptake. • It exhibited extraordinary sorption performance in fixed-bed column system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aerogel was selected as one of IUPAC Top Ten Emerging Technologies in Chemistry in 2022, and has attracted tremendous concerns of scientists in removal of emerging contaminants. In this work a novel Fe3+ cross-linked alginate aerogel (SA/DA-Fe3+) with multiple sorption sites were facilely fabricated and applied for highly efficient removal of tetracycline (TC) from water. Results showed that Fe3+ and DA cooperatively improve adsorption of TC and TC was efficiently removed over a broad pH range of 4–8. The kinetics process can be better described by a chemisorption controlled pseudo-second-order kinetics model and Langmuir isotherm equation with characteristics of monolayer coverage. The fitted q max value of TC at ambient temperature was 804.6 mg g−1 higher than those of other reported adsorbents. Multiple interactions including π-π EDA, complexation, hydrogen bonding, electrostatic attraction, etc. were involved in adsorption process. Moreover, SA/DA-Fe3+ aerogel exhibited satisfactory stability, reusability, and recyclability for consecutive applications. Most importantly, after consecutively running for >1000 h with dynamic sorption capacity over 500 mg g−1, the packed-column was still not saturated, manifesting its great potentials for treating actual wastewaters. Thus, above superiorities make SA/DA-Fe3+ a promising candidate adsorbent for treating TC-containing wastewater. • Sodium alginate/dopamine powder was structured into a macroscopic aerogel. • As prepared SA/DA-Fe3+ aerogel showed superhigh sorption capacity for TC. • Fe3+ and DA incorporation synergistically improved adsorption of TC. • Multiple adsorption mechanisms were responsible for enhanced TC uptake. • It exhibited extraordinary sorption performance in fixed-bed column system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vast palaeolakes once occupied the Qinghai‐Tibetan Plateau (TP). Analyses of the sedimentary records of these lakes could potentially provide an extensive dating archive. Many previously constructed age‐depth models simulating lacustrine cores have been principally based on radiocarbon (14C) dating. However, such dating could have been hampered by the so‐called ‘lake reservoir effect’ (LRE) and the reworking of lakebed sediments, resulting in inaccurate 14C age‐depth models and limiting interpretations of existing lacustrine palaeoclimatic records. Lake Linggo Co is located on the central TP, in one of the coldest and most arid regions of Tibet. We dated a 9.87‐m‐long lacustrine core extracted from the lakebed at a water depth of ~60 m using a combination of 210Pb, 14C and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) techniques. Some 14C ages showed significant age reversals; all the 14C ages were much older than the 210Pb and OSL ages for the same depths. This could possibly be attributed to the presence of old, inherited carbon, causing the inherited 14C age to appear unstable during the deposition period. The 210Pb and OSL ages were roughly concordant, and were also consistent with the stratigraphical succession. We therefore suggest that 14C dating may, on its own, be inadequate for accurate dating of lacustrine sediment sites on the TP, and that the OSL method should also be applied in order to evaluate the reliability of any 14C ages. With this approach, we constructed an age‐depth model, revealing sedimentation rates of 1.7, 0.8, 6.8 and 0.6 mm a−1 between 0–1.9, 1.9–4.2, 4.2–4.4 and 4.4–9.4 ka, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The energy internet analysis method based on energy flow analysis can be used to analyze complex flow phenomena of material and energy effectively. However, there is a lack of general conservation principles for energy flow modeling when analyzing the coupling of energy flow with different types of material and energy. Hence, it is necessary to explore the general transmission principles of energy flows based on the physical mechanism. The objective of this paper is to obtain the conservation principles of energy flow at the node and the state parameters characteristics, then develop an effective energy flow calculation method. Firstly, concepts of potential parameters are extended to the general physical potentials, such as voltage, pressure, temperature, and concentration. Then, the application limitations of Kirchhoff's loop law from circuit calculation to energy network analysis are analyzed. The nodal conservation principle of potential energy flow (PEF) and the nodal mixing principle of potential is proposed. Finally, a general PEF calculation method suitable for energy internet is proposed. The results of the 14-node heating solution network show that the general PEF calculation method can effectively analyze the heating solution network, and the number of iterations does not increase with the increase of PEF types. • Pressure, temperature and concentration are uniformly defined as physical potential. • Potential energy flow and transmission flow are defined for energy internet. • Each type of potential energy flow and network flow is conserved at branch node. • Potential after mixing equals the average of inflows' potential before mixing. • Iterations not increase with potential types for potential energy flow calculation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extrapolation chambers are widely used to detect the weakly-penetrating types of radiation beams. Normally, the sensitive volume of them is limited, only a few cubic centimeters. Their collecting electrodes use sheet structure, which lead to more backscattering photons. In this work, a large volume extrapolation chamber with (235–1413) cm3 was designed for the absolute measurement of air kerma strength of 125I brachytherapy seeds. The developed chamber has the following innovation: large sensitive volume and the Aluminized Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) collecting electrode foil. In order to give a more comprehensive performance evaluation for the designed chamber, a series of experiments were conducted. Evaluation parameters include leakage current, saturation curve, polarity effect, ion collecting efficiency, linearity of response, collecting area and zero point. Those tests were measured in the standard X-ray radiation field. A comparative experiment with the primary standard free air chamber (FAC) was performed. Moreover, extrapolation curve was measured in 125I radiation field. Evaluation results show a good behavior of the extrapolation chamber. The Al-coated PET collecting electrode influence the response of the chamber to 0.07% with the simulation of MCNP5 Monte Carlo. All the results indicate the usefulness of the extrapolation chamber for the absolute measurement for 125I seeds. • A large volume extrapolation chamber with (235–1413) cm3 was designed and fabricated. • A new design method of the collecting electrode is adopted. It is etched as the collecting electrode and the potential guard. • The Al-coated PET foil can be employed for fabricating the collecting electrode to replace the PMMA sheet structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heating flow calculation method can determine the temperature and pressure of each node and the mass flow of each branch in the energy network. Since the heating network flow is coupling network flow, it is difficult to deal with discontinuous nodal parameters at the mixing node. The objective of this paper is to obtain characteristics in meshed heating networks based on the physical mechanism analysis and develop a decoupling calculation method for network flow. First, pressure and temperature are proved as two types of physical potentials, for thermal potential energy flow and pressure potential energy flow, respectively. Then, nodal potential energy flow conservation is obtained as the basic rule for the potential energy flow. Due to the transmission speed differences between pressure and thermal potential energy flow, the inflow temperature is different. Using the nodal pressure differences to describe the flow direction of the coupling network flow, temperatures of inflows and outflows at the mixing node are determined. Finally, the directional nodal potential method (DNPM) is developed. The results show that the proposed DNPM can deal with the complex networks containing several potential energy flows with higher convergence speed and more concise modeling formulation. • Temperature and pressure are physical potentials in heating networks. • Thermal energy flow and pressure energy flow are potential energy flows. • Heating flow is decoupled as thermal energy flow and pressure energy flow. • Nodal potential energy flow conservation is the basic rule for network analysis. • DNPM can be applied for coupling network flow rather than BFM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The effects of grain size on nonlinear dielectric properties of as-deposited SrTiO3(STO) thin films were studied by using interdigital capacitor. C-axis-oriented STO thin films with different grain size were deposited onto interdigital electrodes made from YBa2Cu3O7−x thin films by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique. The grain size of as-deposited STO thin films increased with substrate temperature, and reached a maximum value at 700 °C. With further increase of substrate temperature, the grain size decrease rapidly because of the negative oxygen supersaturation and the high nucleation density. The nonlinear dielectric properties measurements showed to be highly correlated with the grain size of STO thin films; the zero-bias dielectric constant, the dielectric dissipation, and the tunability decreased with the decrease of the grain size. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The Yangtze River is the longest watercourse in China, where it flows through the most densely populated and richest regions. The upper course of the River (Jinsha River) has been recurrently blocked over the course of time. The dam-outburst flood process has exerted a significant impact on the river's drainage area. However, the frequency of such events along the course of the Yangtze River remains poorly investigated. In this study, damming chain sediments were identified in the First Bend area of the Yangtze River, and were dated using optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and 14C techniques. The obtained ages would suggest that the river was dammed by a debris flow during the ~20–7 ka period, with a resulting paleolake covering an area of 40.79 km2 and having a water volume of 0.63 km3. Two outburst megafloods occurred at ~18–20 and ~ 6.0 ka, respectively. The river was re-dammed again during 1.5–0.4 ka, with a lake coverage of 28.20 km2 and water volume of 0.28 km3. The dammed lake may have been gradually breached after ~0.4 ka. The damming events were caused by debris flows triggered by glacial advances on Yulong Mountain. • Fully investigated the paleo- damming chain sediments in the First Bend area of the Yangtze River. • OSL and 14C ages suggest that the river were dammed twice by debris flows during the ~20–7 and 1.5–0.4 ka period, and two outburst megafloods occurred at ~18–20 and ~ 6.0 ka, respectively. • The damming events were caused by debris flows triggered by glacial advances on Yulong Mountain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has spread globally and the meteorological factors vary greatly across the world. Understanding the effect of meteorological factors and control strategies on COVID-19 transmission is critical to contain the epidemic. Using individual-level data in mainland China, Hong Kong, and Singapore, and the number of confirmed cases in other regions, we explore the effect of temperature, relative humidity, and control measures on the spread of COVID-19. We find that high temperature mitigates the transmission of the disease. High relative humidity promotes COVID-19 transmission when temperature is low, but tends to reduce transmission when temperature is high. Implementing classical control measures can dramatically slow the spread of the disease. However, due to the occurrence of pre-symptomatic infections, the effect of the measures to shorten treatment time is markedly reduced and the importance of contact quarantine and social distancing increases. Unlabelled Image • High temperature mitigates the transmission of COVID-19. • High relative humidity promotes COVID-19 transmission when temperature is low. • High relative humidity reduces COVID-19 transmission when temperature is high. • Contact quarantine and social distancing are critical to contain the epidemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Tibetan Plateau and Indian Plain exhibit the largest altitudinal difference between two geographically contiguous areas on Earth, but the eastern margin of the Plateau has not experienced headward erosion of the Yarlung Zangbo River (YZR) since ~2.5 Ma. In the past, some scientists have argued that moraine dams on Mount Namcha Barwa (in the Eastern Himalayan syntaxis) frequently blocked the YZR, thus keeping the Plateau's margin intact at this point. In this study, three sets of moraines were identified in the Pai Valley alongside Namcha Barwa, and were dated using optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and 10Be exposure dating. The resultant ages would suggest that three glaciations occurred at ~22.2, 4.7 and 1.3 ka, respectively. Comparison of OSL and 10Be ages for glacial advances with local paleoclimatic proxies would suggest that temperature was the dominant factor controlling glacial change. Because of the paleoglacial advance frequency, coupling with rapid fluvial incision, moraine dams were cut through by the YZR. Thus, any moraine dams that lost their efficacy in impacting upon knickpoint migration. Instead, similarities between rock uplift and fluvial incision, rather than moraine dams, might have been the main control impeding headward erosion of the YZR, thereby keeping this part of the eastern Tibetan Plateau margin intact. • Glacial-fluvial landscape development explored in the Eastern Himalayan syntaxis were mapped and dated in the Pai Valley • OSL/TCN ages cluster to ~22.2, 4.7, 1.3 ka, associated with climate-glacial advances • Glacier extent-timings and knickpoints in relation to river gorge damming explored • Uplift-fluvial incision balance controls eastern Tibetan Plateau margin stability [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]