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Non-gonococcal urethritis (NGU) is one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases caused by chlamydia or mycoplasma. The present study aimed to explore the clinical efficacy of azithromycin combined with doxycycline in patients with NGU and its effect on serum levels of inflammatory cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6). A total of 98 patients with non-gonococcal urethritis were prospectively selected, of which 46 patients were assigned to an azithromycin group (treated with azithromycin alone), while the rest were assigned to a combination group (treated with azithromycin and doxycycline). The conditions of the patients were evaluated and compared between the two groups. The treatment efficacy in patients in the combination group was significantly better than that in the azithromycin group, and the time to symptom relief, period of medication, recurrence rate within 1 year of withdrawal and level of serum IL-6 in the combination group were significantly lower than those in the azithromycin group. The quality of life of patients in the combination group was significantly improved compared to those in the azithromycin group. However, there was no significant difference in the incidence of adverse reactions between the two groups. Azithromycin combined with doxycycline was revealed to be more effective than azithromycin monotherapy for NGU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid urbanization has dramatically changed regional land use patterns and brought enormous pressures on ecosystem services (ESs). The assessment of the impact of urbanization on ESs is critical for sustainable urban planning and land policy in China. In this study, we used the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST) model to assess the changes in ESs based on land use patterns in Beijing from 1984 to 2015. A new comprehensive ecosystem service (CES) index was developed to spatially reflect the total supply of multiple ESs and provide references for policy makers. We further analyzed the trade-offs among various ESs through correlation analysis and designed five alternative scenarios to explore effective strategies which can improve the CES while simultaneously reducing trade-offs among different ESs in Beijing. The results showed that the average CES of Beijing decreased over the past 30 years. The ecological conservation region, which is located to the north and west of Beijing, had the best CES performance. Among the various ESs, services for water purification, soil erosion control, vegetable provision, and fruit provision increased, whereas services for carbon storage, water provision, habitat provision, and grain provision decreased from 1984 to 2015. It’s worth noting that sediment export in Beijing showed no significant relationships with regulating and supporting services, which include carbon storage, water purification and habitat provision. To control soil erosion effectively, we should not only increase the area of afforestation but also plant trees on the steeper slopes. In addition, there is a major trade-off between food provision and regulating and supporting services. Vegetation restoration in both riparian zones and previously steep croplands can improve CES at the expense of reducing food provision. Moreover, forestry restoration is proved to be more effective than grass-based restoration. To reduce the trade-offs between food provision and regulating and supporting services and concurrently improve the CES, it is essential to increase the efficiency of food provision per unit area and develop urban vertical agriculture in Beijing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The transformation of power in coal-dominated and renewable-rich region is studied. • The study evaluated the transition pathway using the optimisation model. • Three scenarios were formulated to reflect different levels of carbon reduction. • The study compared the energy flow, cost-benefit, and carbon emission in scenarios. • The challenging carbon neutrality scenario has the lowest cost. Under the vision of carbon neutrality, reaching carbon peaking and neutrality targets in the power industry in coal-dominated, renewable energy-rich provinces is facing unprecedented development pressure. This study used the optimization model to research the deeper decarburisation path with the lowest cost to the Inner Mongolian power industry. Then, three scenarios were set based on the gradual increase of carbon emission constraints and the increased renewable energy target. The electricity demand, installed capacity and generation, cost-effectiveness, and carbon emissions were evaluated under the three scenarios. Results showed that (1) electricity demand will grow steadily in all three scenarios by 2060, to achieve carbon peak and carbon neutrality targets, with industrial electricity demand falling by an average of 41.15%, while the 'transport, storage & postal' needs to rise by 88.82%. (2) Inner Mongolia needs to fully tap the renewable energy potential, establish a renewable energy storage system, diversify its power supply mode, and achieve the 2060 carbon neutrality target. (3) Achieving a profound emission reduction at minimum cost is feasible. Compared with keeping 13.01% of coal power as a flexible power supply in the nationally determined contributions scenario, completely withdrawing coal power in the carbon neutrality scenario in 2060 will reduce carbon emissions by 148.10 million metric tons and costs by 1375.92 billion yuan. This method can analyse the carbon emission pathways and emission reduction measures of the resource-based provincial power sector, including setting boundaries, scenario analysis, forecasting future emissions, analysing results, and providing policy recommendations. Providing relevant countermeasures for government departments, industry organisations, power companies, and individuals to conduct carbon neutrality-related work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we introduce an integrated framework for managing the complex interdependence between urban infrastructures and the socioeconomic environment within which it evolves, in pursuit of sustainable and environmentally cleaner urban living. The framework addresses the nature of individual preferences for more sustainable urban infrastructures, and how we can use this knowledge to improve urban form in ways that reduce environmental impacts. Using metropolitan Atlanta as a case study, we developed a survey that focuses on the preferences of Atlanta residents for low-impact development (LID) and transit-oriented development (TOD), with responses collected on the Mechanical Turk crowed-source platform. Using these responses we developed a latent-class residential community choice model for four distinctive classes of respondents that revealed heterogeneous preferences for community amenities. Next, we integrated the results of these individual choices into an agent-based market diffusion model, to predict land-use pattern, and to explore policies that drive greater adoption of more compact development. Finally, we used the results of this data collection and modelling to estimate the carbon emission reduction potentials from more compact development driven by LID and TOD. In the future, we will continuously refine the steps and address the issues including survey sample bias to make the framework more reliable and useful for sustainable urban infrastructure planning, design and implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autonomous vehicles (AVs) have emerged as a transformative technology with the potential to both fundamentally improve lives in cities but also to exacerbate suburban sprawl, vehicle miles traveled and the associated greenhouse gas emissions. Are communities willing to adopt best practices that can lead to early adoption of more sustainable outcomes? This paper presents innovative means to analyze social preferences, demand for AVs, and the potential to resolve community concerns with integrated solutions. We discuss our comprehensive analysis of unstructured and structured data from a survey on AVs that was conducted by the Atlanta Regional Commission in 2015. We used topic modeling to synthesize the “topics” from 1540 comments. The topics captured Atlanta residents' concerns and suggestions about implementing AVs. Further, sentiment analysis revealed people's attitudes on the topics. Accordingly, we proposed an integration of AVs and transit-oriented development (TOD: the development of compact and mixed-use communities around high quality mass transit services within a 10-min walking distance). The second type of data is people's responses to multiple-choice questions about AVs and TOD, which we call structured data. Using latent-class analysis, we identified heterogeneity in preferences for AVs and TOD. More Atlanta residents are willing to live in transit-oriented communities than traditional automobile-dependent ones if AVs save time and improve productivity. This finding portends the future success of combining AVs with TOD and reaping the sustainable benefits of this transformative technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fractal dimension of road networks emerges as a measure of the complexity of road transport infrastructures. In this study, we measured fractal dimensions of both the geometric form (i.e., the layout of the roads) and structure hierarchy (i.e., the connections among roads) of the major road networks in the largest 95 U.S. metro areas. We explained the causes of the variances in these fractal dimensions, especially the one for structure hierarchy. Further, we hypothesized the impacts of these fractal dimensions on the urban built environment and validated our hypotheses using path analysis. We found that a larger geometric fractal dimension (D g ) shows a more uniform distribution of roads over the metro area, which provides the accessibility to suburban areas and incentives to low-density development. A larger structural fractal dimension (D s ) indicates the highly-connected roads (e.g., highways) tend to join to other highly-connected roads so that most roads can be reached by a small number of neighboring roads (i.e., the small-world phenomenon). As D s increases and the small-world effect become more significant, daily vehicle miles traveled per capita (DVMT/Cap) decline. However, D s should be kept low in order to reduce the DVMT/Cap as population size increases. We consider that the low D s can contribute to more mixed, polycentric and more uniform on an urban area-wide basis. Overall, higher D g and D s of the major road network in a metro area leads to higher per capita carbon emissions of transport, and lower quality of life as population increases. In the end, we conclude that fractal dimensions can provide valuable insight into the nature of the transportation land use nexus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With data from a 2011 National Association of Realtors community preference survey, we examined individuals’ preferences and the resulting market potential for smart growth neighbourhoods in the USA. Using a latent class choice model, we discovered four classes of individuals that reveal distinctive behaviours when choosing smart growth neighbourhoods, based on the interplay between aspects of community design, socioeconomic characteristics and personal attitudes. Based on these results we estimated the demand for smart growth neighbourhoods given the way they are planned and built. By linking the results of the latent class choice to a market diffusion model we were able to evaluate the effectiveness of a proposed smart growth neighbourhood design in inducing less sprawling development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on both physical and biological data collected from cruises in different seasons between 2010 and 2011, we found that the phytoplankton bloom was highly seasonally variable along the longitudinal axis of the Pearl River Estuary (PRE) and was confined to very limited locations because of the variation in the coupled physical–biological forcing of the phytoplankton growth and accumulation. We investigated the relative importance and joint control of the bloom′s variation by freshwater residence time, water column stability, and light limitation that were governed by river discharge, vertical mixing, and turbidity in the PRE, respectively. We found that the bloom occurred in the middle of the well/partially mixed estuary during the dry season when river discharge was relatively small. Although the water nutrient concentration and residence time were favorable for phytoplankton accumulation during this season, the bloom was absent in the upper and lower parts of the estuary likely associated with high turbidity in the upper region and strong vertical mixing in the lower region. In contrast, strong river discharge during the wet season pushed the nutrient-rich river plume farther seaward and formed a salt-wedged estuary. With a stable water column and relatively low turbidity during this season, the bloom could only occur in the lower part of the estuary where the phytoplankton growth rate was greater than the water turnover rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the issue of managing the complexity of urban systems. Complexity results from the interaction of diverse adaptive entities, and properties that emerge from interactions. Urban infrastructure systems (UIS) integrate the flows of capital that include social, cultural, financial, natural, technological, and human, in the context of urban systems

Abstract: This paper describes the simulated temporal variation of surface seawater CO2 partial pressure (pCO2) in the northern South China Sea. We produced the simulations with a one-dimensional (1-D) coupled physical–biogeochemical model that had high-frequency, time-dependent atmospheric forcing and that were validated with field observations. We also examined the associated processes that modulate seawater pCO2 at different time scales, from diurnal to seasonal, using a series of process-oriented experiments. At seasonal time scales, we revealed that the sea–air CO2 exchange was a primary process that modulated surface pCO2 and exceeded the role of sea surface temperature (SST) even though the phase of the pCO2 variation generally followed the strong seasonal cycle of SST. This was because sea–air CO2 exchange is a slow process and has an accumulative effect on surface water pCO2 due to the buffering effect of the carbonate system once CO2 has dissolved in the seawater, which leads to a long equilibration time of CO2 between the atmosphere and seawater. The mixing effect on pCO2 induced by total alkalinity and dissolved inorganic carbon variations was, generally, positively correlated with the seasonal evolution of wind speed. Biological processes were the smallest contributors to pCO2 variations at the seasonal scale because of the oligotrophic characteristic of the region. At diurnal time scales, the dominant pCO2 controlling factor was mainly associated with the local physical and biological conditions. Temperature and wind-induced vertical mixing played major roles in pCO2 when the winter heat flux and upward transport of low temperature and high pCO2 in deep water were intensified. Phytoplankton blooms generally occur after a period of strong wind, as a result, biological metabolism becomes the most important pCO2 regulator when the surface chlorophyll-a reached its highest level. Unlike that in the seasonal scale, the effect of sea–air CO2 exchange was minor at diurnal time scales due to the long equilibration time of CO2 between the atmosphere and seawater. We also found that the frequency of the model driving force was important in reproducing the sea surface pCO2. The high frequency forcing was important in controlling the pCO2 variation through the feedback effect to the corresponding physical and biogeochemical responses. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Frequently observed subsurface chlorophyll maximum (SCM) contributes substantial biomass to the waters over the continental shelf of the northeastern South China Sea (NSCS) but it has not been sufficiently investigated. In this study, observations and a three-dimensional coupled physical–biological numerical model were utilized to investigate the characteristics of the SCM under strong controls of coastal upwelling circulation and the Pearl River plume in the NSCS. The model captures the observed characteristics of the SCM in the NSCS reasonably well. Both the depth and intensity of the SCM are spatially variable and regulated by the variable upwelling circulation and associated plume distribution over the complex shelf topography. In nearshore waters, the SCM shoals and weakens towards the coast as a result of the upwelling of high nutrient low chlorophyll deep water while surface productivity is enhanced. The intensity of the SCM weakens when the surface layer is covered by the river plume because of the substantial reduction of photosynthetic active radiation (PAR). Strengthening upwelling-favorable wind weakens the intensity of the SCM due to dilution by the enhanced mixing, but the SCM depth remains relatively stable in the offshore water as a result of no apparent shift of the nutricline. Changing incident PAR leads to an interactive response in chlorophyll concentration, nutricline, and the depth of the SCM. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

[Display omitted] • Carbon emissions and costs were analyzed for sustainable urban taxis. • Battery swap EVs & green hydrogen fuel cell taxis show low carbon-abatement cost. • Hydrogen price and electricity carbon intensity influence optimum vehicle choice. • Taxi miles traveled affects the vehicle technology abatement cost ranking. Our study compared vehicle technologies to reduce the carbon emissions of the Hong Kong taxi fleet. An environmental cost-benefit analysis was developed to measure the tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO 2 -eq) potentially abated and the incurred cost over the period 2021–2030 by the substitution of the current fleet with electric vehicles (EVs), fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs), and more efficient internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs). Our result highlights that FCEVs fueled with hydrogen from renewables and EVs with battery swap stations have lower abatement costs (i.e., cost incurred/carbon saved). The selection of a relatively low-cost option between EVs with battery swap stations and FCEVs with hydrogen from renewables depends on the reduction of electricity carbon intensity versus whether an economic and reliable import of hydrogen from renewables can be secured. Taxi miles traveled affect the vehicle technology abatement cost ranking. Overall, our study provides insight into sustainable urban taxi transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A sensor system suitable for monitoring changes in partial pressure of carbon dioxide (pCO2) in surface seawater or in the atmosphere has been developed. Surface seawater samples are pumped into a PVC tube enclosing an inner Teflon AF tube, which served as a long pathlength gas-permeable liquid-core waveguide for spectrophotometry. The Teflon cell contains a pH-sensitive indicator-buffer solution consisting of bromothymol blue (BTB) and sodium carbonate. Carbon dioxide in the sample diffuses into the indicator-buffer solution to reach equilibrium, resulting in pH changes, which are detected by changes in the absorbance of BTB at wavelengths of 620 and 434nm. The pCO2 in the sample is then derived from the pH change. The sensor has a response time of 2min at the 95% equilibrium value and a measurement precision of 0.26–0.37% in the range 200–800μatm pCO2. This chemical sensor takes advantage of a combination of long pathlength, multiple wavelength detection, indicator solution renewal, and in situ automatic control technology, and has the feature of low power consumption (the average being ∼4W with a peak of ∼8W). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Layered circulation in the SCS is key in regulating the variation of nutrients. • Upward advection of deep water compensates for the nutrient deficiency in upper layer. • Remineralization contributes most of the PO 4 in the euphotic layer. The South China Sea (SCS) is one of the largest marginal seas in the world, yet the processes that drive its nutrient distribution are not well understood. Using the three-dimensional China Sea Multiscale Ocean Modeling System (CMOMS) embedded with a nitrogen-phosphorus-phytoplankton-zooplankton-detritus ecosystem model, we investigated nutrient transport and dynamics in the SCS. The model was well validated with field and remotely sensed observations. We found that the unique layered distribution of nutrients that increases from north to south in the upper layer and increases in the opposite direction in the middle and deep layers. We found that the lateral and vertical fluxes associated with three-dimensional ocean circulation and biogeochemical processes shape the distribution. The lateral fluxes are provided extrinsically by the sandwich-like transport through Luzon Strait (LS) and the exchanges through other straits, and intrinsically by the interior vertical motion due to flow-slope topography interaction. The nutrient deficiency in the upper layer due to dilution by inflow from the Western Pacific Ocean is mainly compensated by the upward nutrient-rich deep water. The nutrient transport is jointly regulated by volume transport and the uneven spatiotemporal distribution of nutrients. We demonstrated that labile organic matter plays an important role in total nutrient budgets. In euphotic layer, biological production is the major sink, but remineralization contributions to PO 4 are more important than to NO 3 due to the higher recycling rate of PO 4. In the shelf water, coastal upwelling serves as major source for both NO 3 and PO 4 , vertical diffusion is another important source of PO 4 due to the strong downward increasing gradient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Development of sustainable and resilient water infrastructure is an urgent challenge for urban areas to secure long-term water availability and mitigate negative impacts of water consumption and urban development. A hybrid system that combines centralized water infrastructure and household decentralized water facilities, including rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling, may be a solution to more sustainable and resilient water management in urban areas. Understanding household and community preferences for decentralized water facilities is important to inform the design and ultimately the promotion and adoption of such systems. In this study, we conducted a discrete choice experiment, via Amazon Mechanical Turk, to collect data on household choices of different decentralized water facility designs in two U.S. cities, Atlanta, Georgia and Boston, Massachusetts. Based on the responses to the choice experiment, we then developed a latent-class choice model to predict households' preferences of decentralized system design features and examine the influence of socioeconomic and personal characteristics on heterogeneous class membership. We identified six major classes of preferences in Atlanta and Boston, respectively, and evaluated how readily each class is likely to choose a decentralized water facility. Atlanta and Boston have some classes sharing similar preferences for decentralized water systems, but the socioeconomic and personal characteristics of these classes in the two cities are different. We found that the early adoption of decentralized water facilities is positively related to neighbors' adoptions and pressure of water scarcity increases households' willingness to share a decentralized facility. The visualization of spatial distribution of the classes highlighted early demand of decentralized water facilities is likely to emerge in low-property-value communities, which creates a unique opportunity for introducing decentralized water facilities during water infrastructure renovations. Our study provides a framework through citizen engagement to understand social demand and to inform the promotion of decentralized water facilities. Image 1 • A choice experiment on decentralized water systems was conducted in two US cities. • Six unique social classes were identified in each city using latent-class analysis. • Notable preference heterogeneity among residents was found in both cities. • Neighbors' choice and perception of water scarcity influence class memberships. • Downtown Atlanta and southeastern Boston have higher proportions of quick adopters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low impact development (LID) is a sustainable practice to managing urban runoff. However, its effectiveness in densely populated areas with intense rainfall, such as Hong Kong, remains unclear due to limited studies with similar climate conditions and urban patterns. The highly mixed land use and complicated drainage network present challenges for preparing a Storm Water Management Model (SWMM). This study proposed a reliable framework for setting up and calibrating SWMM by integrating multiple automated tools to address these issues. With a validated SWMM, we examined LID's effects on runoff control in a densely built catchment of Hong Kong. A designed full-scale LID implementation can reduce total and peak runoffs by around 35–45% for 2, 10 and 50-year return rainfalls. However, LID alone may not be adequate to handle the runoff in densely built areas of Hong Kong. As the rainfall return period increases, total runoff reduction increases, but peak runoff reduction remains close. Percentages of reduction in total and peak runoffs decline. The marginal control diminishes for total runoff while remaining constant for peak runoff when increasing the extent of LID implementation. In addition, the study identifies the crucial design parameters of LID facilities using global sensitivity analysis. Overall, our study contributes to accelerating the reliable application of SWMM and deepening the understanding of the effectiveness of LID in ensuring water security in densely built urban communities located near the humid-tropical climate zone, such as Hong Kong. • An easy-to-implement framework was proposed to apply SWMM to densely built areas. • A validated SWMM was developed to evaluate LID in dense communities of Hong Kong. • Full-scale LID can reduce total & peak runoff by 35–45% for 2, 10 & 50-year events. • Important LID design parameters were identified with global sensitivity analysis. • Co-optimization of drainage infrastructure and LID is needed in Hong Kong. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Through a participatory approach, Libey et al. ([6]) developed a system dynamics model to investigate the influence of budget allocation on the functionality of water supply infrastructure in two developing regions. To identify effective strategies for improving the community management that can provide sustainable water services, Cannon et al. ([1]) developed a system dynamics model that captures the critical feedback loops between community management and water system service. The special collection on Integrative Analysis and Modeling of Interdependent Systems is available in the ASCE Library (https://ascelibrary.org/joeedu/integrative modeling interdependent systems). [Extracted from the article]

• Biomass in subsurface chlorophyll maximum (SCM) offshore fueled coastal hypoxia. • The biomass and plume frontal convergence jointly triggered coastal hypoxia. • The study revealed a new mechanism for coastal hypoxia formation off estuary. This study reports, for the first time, the role of shoreward transport of organic matter (OM) from subsurface chlorophyll maximum (SCM) in triggering hypoxia off the Pearl River Estuary (PRE, an outstanding example of typical estuary-shelf systems) based on field measurements. Compared to frequently observed hypoxia driven by surface eutrophication and terrestrial OM during large river discharge, we demonstrate that the upslope-transported SCM played a critical role in forming offshore hypoxia during low river discharge. Together with the plume-sourced OM trapped below the surface plume front, upslope-transported OM originating from the SCM accumulated underneath the pycnocline and consumed dissolved oxygen (DO), enhancing the bottom hypoxia. The DO consumption induced by the SCM-associated OM was estimated to contribute ∼ 26% (± 23%) of the DO depletion under the pycnocline. Based on coherent and consistent physical and biogeochemical evidence and reasoning, this study reveals the contribution of SCM to bottom hypoxia off the PRE, which is unreported and likely occurs in other coastal hypoxic systems. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Air and soil pollution from mining activities has been considered as a critical issue to the health of living organisms. However, few efforts have been made in distinguishing the main pathway of organism genetic damage by heavy metals related to mining activities. Therefore, we investigated the genetic damage of Leymus chinensis leaf cells, the air particulate matter (PM) contents, and concentrations of the main heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Cr, Hg) in soil and foliar dust samples collected from seven experiment points at the core mining area and one control point 20 kilometers away from the core mining area in Inner Mongolia in 2013. Comet assay was used to test the genetic damage of the Leymus chinensis leaf cells; the Tail DNA% and Tail Moment were used to characterize the genetic damage degree of the plant cells. The comet assay results showed that the cell genetic damage ratio was up to 77.0% in experiment points but was only 35.0% in control point. The control point also had the slight Tail DNA% and Tail Moment values than other experiment groups. The cell damage degree of the control group was 0.935 and experiment groups were 1.299–1.815. The geo-accumulation index and comperehensive pollution index(CPI) were used to characterize heavy metal pollution in foliar dust samples, and single factor pollution index and CPI were used to characterize the heavy metal pollution in soil samples. The CPIfoliar dust of control group was 0.36 and experiment groups were 1.45–2.57; the CPIsoil of control group was 0.04 and experiment groups were 0.07–0.12. The results of correlation analyze showed that Air Quality Index (AQI) -CPIfoliar dust(r = 0.955**)>Damage degree-CPIfoliar dust(r = 0.923**)>Damage degree-AQI(r = 0.908**)>Damage degree-CPIsoil (r = 0.824*). The present research proved that mining activity had a high level of positive correlation with organism genetic damage caused by heavy metals through comparing with the control point; soil and atmosphere were both the important action pathway for heavy metal induced genetic damage in mining area. Furthermore, heavy metal contents in foliar dust showed a higher positive correlation with genetic damage than when compared with soil. This means the heavy metal contents that L.chinensis absorbed through respiration from the atmosphere could make more serious genetic damage than when absorbed by root systems from soil in the mining area. This study can provide theoretical support for research on plant genetic damage mechanisms and exposure pathways induced by environmental pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Room air conditioners (RACs) are one of the high energy-consuming home appliances. Developing a smart solution to evaluate and track the efficiency of RACs is essentially useful for residents to make necessary maintenance or replacement decisions. While smart meters are increasingly installed to monitor electricity use, the application of smart meter data to evaluate the RAC efficiency remains inadequate. In this paper, we present a data-driven framework to identify non-inverter window RACs with low energy efficiency by analyzing smart meter data from the university student hall rooms. In this framework, we first applied the extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) method to predict a RAC's hourly electricity consumption. Then we measured the effect of outdoor temperature on the XGBoost prediction of hourly RAC electricity consumption using the Shapley Additive Explanation method to interpret the RAC's efficiency. We conjectured that the RAC efficiency is normal if the predicted hourly electricity consumption is significantly correlated with the outdoor temperature. In contrast, the RAC efficiency is low if the outdoor temperature changes have little impact on the predicted electricity consumption. Finally, we applied the K-Means clustering algorithm to separate the RACs into the "low efficiency" and "normal efficiency" categories based on each's pattern of outdoor temperature's impact on electricity consumption. Our cross-validation result showed that the XGBoost model can achieve an average R2 score of 0.50 and an average root mean squared error of 0.20 kWh. We used RAC replacement records to validate our framework of interpreting the RAC's efficiency. On average, RACs having low efficiency consumed 25.69% more electricity per hour. Overall, our data-driven framework can contribute to extending the value of smart meters for RAC efficiency evaluation. Meanwhile, the smart meter data-driven framework can be improved, and more validation is needed in the future. • We created a data-driven framework to assess the room air conditioner's efficiency. • An XGBoost model was developed for hourly electricity consumed by air conditioners. • We clustered air conditioners based on Shapley value of outdoor temperature. • Air conditioners with low efficiency were identified and validated from clustering. • Identifying air conditioners with low efficiency can save electricity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We aim to clarify the specific role of Karyopherin α2 (KPNA2) in the progression of laryngeal cancer, a kind of malignant tumor with a poor curative effect. We performed the bioinformatic analysis to obtain the ferroptosis-related differentially expressed genes. KPNA2 was screened out. Then the CCK-8 assay, wound healing assay, and transwell assay were used to clarify the changes in the proliferation, migration, and invasion abilities of laryngeal cancer cells after silencing KPNA2. The concentrations of iron ions, glutathione, superoxide dismutase, and malondialdehyde were evaluated by the corresponding detection kits. The expression levels of cyclooxygenase 2, Acyl-CoA synthetase long-chain family member 4, glutathione peroxidase 4, forkhead box O (FoxO)1a and FoxO3a were determined by Western Blot. A total of 45 ferroptosis-related differentially expressed genes in laryngeal cancer were obtained, and KPNA2 was selected after bioinformatic analysis. In ferroptosis-induced laryngeal cancer cells, the cell viability, migration rate, invasion ability, and the expression of glutathione peroxidase 4, glutathione, and superoxide dismutase were further decreased and the expression of cyclooxygenase 2, Acyl-CoA synthetase long-chain family member 4, iron ions, and malondialdehyde were further increased after silencing KPNA2. The expression levels of FoxO1a and FoxO3a in laryngeal cancer cells were increased by silencing KPNA2. KPNA2 may be a promising therapeutic target for laryngeal cancer. Down-regulation of KPNA2 can promote ferroptosis in laryngeal cancer by stimulating the FoxO signaling pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Head and neck cancer is one of the most common cancer types worldwide. MicroRNAs play a vital regulatory role in the occurrence and development of cancer. The objective of this study is to explore the mechanism of miR-125a-5p in the proliferation, migration and apoptosis of head and neck cancer cells and define its target genes.Methods: The effects of miR-125a-5p on head and neck cancer cells proliferation, cell cycle distribution, apoptosis and migration were evaluated by colony formation, BrdU assay, flow cytometry and transwell assays. The potential target gene of miR-125a-5p was determined by luciferase activity assay and western blot analysis.Results: In this study, overexpression of miR-125a-5p significantly inhibited the proliferation of head and neck cancer cells, whereas inhibition of miR-125a-5p enhanced their proliferation. BrdU assay and flow cytometry revealed that miR-125a-5p might inhibit the proliferation of cancer cells by causing cell cycle arrest. Cell apoptosis assay and Transwell assay indicated that miR-125a-5p induced cell apoptosis and inhibited cell migration of cancer cells. Other experiments confirmed that miR-125a-5p could significantly downregulate its expression by binding to ERBB3 to inhibit proliferation and ERBB3 could at least partially mediate the inhibition of miR-125a-5p on the proliferation of head and neck cancer cells.Conclusion: The findings of this study suggested that the miR-125a-5p/ERBB3 axis might play a role in the proliferation, regulation of cell cycle, migration and apoptosis of head and neck cancer cells, potentially offering a new target for treatments of head and neck cancers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globally expanding hypoxia in estuaries and coastal oceans has largely been attributed to the elevated river nutrient inputs, whereas the role of river‐delivered terrestrial organic matter (OMterr) in hypoxia formation has been less investigated. This study uses a coupled physical‐biogeochemical model and observations to investigate how OMterr directly (via remineralization) and indirectly (via the nutrients released from OMterr remineralization) promotes hypoxia development in the coastal transition zone off the Pearl River Estuary. Results show that direct contribution of OMterr remineralization to total oxygen consumption by terrestrial and marine organic matter negatively correlates with salinity, decreasing from over 60% in the upper estuary to nearly 0% in the far reaches of the river plume, and is higher in the upstream (average 30%) than the downstream region (average 18%). Nevertheless, the nutrients released from OMterr remineralization greatly sustain an indirect contribution to oxygen depletion and hypoxia formation downstream. The increasing relative importance of indirect over the direct effect of OMterr to hypoxia along the plume path is a combined result of the wind‐driven eastward shelf current and the OMterr‐released nutrients being advected farther downstream than the sinking OMterr. This highlights that without including the indirect effect of OMterr may underestimate the role of OMterr in hypoxia formation in aquatic systems. Examinations of the hypoxia response to varying riverine loads further suggest that reducing the nutrient and OMterr loads is required for hypoxia mitigation in the upstream region while reducing the nutrient load alone is more effective in mitigating hypoxia in the downstream. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A drug and gene co-delivery system with chemotherapeutic sensibilization was prepared and used for nasopharyngeal carcinoma therapy. For this purpose, the graphene oxide (GO) was conjugated with the redox hyperbranched poly(amido amine) (HPAA) and then the targeting molecule, transferrin (Tf), was also conjugated. The obtained Tf-HPAA-GO could co-deliver docetaxel (DOC) and MMP-9 shRNA plasmid (pMMP-9) effectively and showed the targeting effect to HNE-1 cells. The co-delivery system showed the effective drug and gene delivery ability with high cytotoxicity and gene transfection efficiency. Besides that, Tf-HPAA-GO/DOC also showed the chemotherapeutic sensibilization effect, the formulation containing HPAA segments showed much higher cytotoxicity than free DOC. Benefiting from the sensibilization effect and DOC/pMMP-9 co-delivery strategy, this Tf-HPAA-GO/DOC/pMMP-9 co-delivery system exhibited the significantly improved therapeutic efficacy to HNE-1 tumor in a combined manner which was confirmed by in vitro and in vivo assays. This strategy provided an easily delivery system combining the drug/gene co-delivery, chemotherapeutic sensibilization, and targeting into one single platform, which showed a promising application in cancer therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessing urban environmental sustainability is fundamentally important for guiding urban areas to achieve more sustainable urban development. We followed the theme-oriented framework to select eight indicators for measuring urban environmental sustainability performance in China using three aspects: waste emissions, resource consumption, and environmental initiatives. These eight indicators were measured per unit area, per capita, and per GDP for 286 prefecture-level cities, 22 urban clusters, and 7 geographic regions of China from 2000 to 2010. Among the 7 geographic regions, the East China region had the greatest intensity of waste emissions, resource consumption, and environmental investment per unit area. In comparison, the Central China region had greater water consumption and wastewater discharge measured per capita and per GDP. The North China region had greater waste gas emissions and energy consumption measured per capita and per GDP than the other regions. The three northern regions of China (North China, Northeast China, and Northwest China) also had the greatest solid waste emissions measured per capita and per GDP. The expansion of the built-up area per GDP was the greatest in the western regions (including Northwest China and Southwest China), indicating a very low urban land-use efficiency for these two regions. Among the 22 urban clusters, the 12 well-developed urban clusters had greater waste emissions, resource consumption, and environmental investment per unit area than the 10 less-developed urban clusters. The well-developed urban clusters also had larger environmental investment as a share of GDP than the less-developed urban clusters, but waste emissions and resource consumption per GDP were much lower for the well-developed urban clusters. Among the 286 prefecture-level cities, the cities with greater waste emissions and resource consumption per unit area also had greater environmental investment per unit area, but these cities increased their environmental investment at a relatively slower rate than the increase in their waste emissions and resource consumption. The cities that spent a larger share of GDP on pollution reduction had relatively lower waste emissions per GDP, but more investment should be targeted at improving resource efficiency, especially for those resource-intensive cities. In summary, the well-developed urban clusters and cities in the eastern region of China generally had much greater waste emissions and resource consumption per unit area (i.e., greater impacts), while they had lower waste emissions and resource consumption per capita and per GDP (i.e., higher efficiency) relative to the less-developed urban clusters and cities in central and western regions. Based on these findings, we proposed several countermeasures for improving urban environmental sustainability for different cities, urban clusters, and geographic regions of China. • We provided an assessment framework and an indicator set for measuring Urban Environmental Sustainability (UES). • We compared UES performance among 286 prefecture-level cities, 22 urban clusters, and 7 geographic regions of China. • We proposed several countermeasures for improving UES in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is an urgent challenge to coordinate industrialization and air quality in China since the rapid industrialization over the past forty years caused serious air pollution. In this paper, we measured the industrialization levels of the 31 regions in China from 2003 to 2017 as a sum of per capita gross domestic product (GDP), urban population (% of total), tertiary vs. secondary industry output ratio, non-agricultural output value (% of GDP), non-agricultural employment proportion, and the proportion of added value of manufacturing in the total added value of commodity. We measured air quality as a sum of annual SO 2 , NO 2 and PM 10 concentrations. In general, the industrialization level continuously increased while air pollution was reduced in spite of some fluctuations in China. Our results show air pollution presented N-shape relations with the industrialization level in China in the periods from 2003 to 2008, 2009 to 2013, and 2014 to 2017. Air pollution increases as the industrialization occurs but later deceases as the industrialization level improves. However, air pollution rebounds as the industrialization moves further but this rebound became weaker in recent years. With the association rule mining, we identified ranges of the six indicators for industrialization associated with good and poor air quality, respectively. Using industrialization indicators associated with poor air quality as references, we pointed out differentiated strategies for regions to coordinate the industrialization and air quality protection. • We analyzed industrialization progress & air quality from 2003 to 2017 in China. • Air pollution in China exhibits N-shape relations with industrialization level. • We mined association rules between industrialization indicators and air quality. • Summary of industrialization indicator ranges associated with good/poor air quality. • Differential strategy by region to coordinate development & air quality protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • We modified the CO 2 transfer in social-economic system as a metabolic process in ecosystem. • We utilized ecological network analysis to study the flow variation in global, national, and bilateral scale. • We put up a plan to adjust current mitigation targets set by Paris Agreement based on our study results. Abstract A large share of total global CO 2 emissions results from the production processes of internationally traded goods and services. Such emissions have been referred to as virtual or embodied CO 2 flows. Hence, it is important to understand the directions, locations, and drivers of carbon flows resulting from global trade. To analyze these flows, hotspots, divisions of labor, and directions of flows in the global production and consumption web, we applied a multi-national framework based on a combination of multi-region input-output tables with ecological network analysis. We found that the CO 2 flows between the 40 key countries within the network doubled between 1996 and 2011, and the trade-related emission hub shifted from Europe to Asia. We analyzed a large number of CO 2 transfer paths and their changes over time. We found that the United States participated the most in big paths, including those that represent carbon flows between the United States and both developed and developing countries, whereas developing countries such as China and India participated more in the fast-growing paths, and especially in paths between pairs of developing countries. In contrast, traditionally active countries, including Russia and Germany, grew at a slower rate, resulting in a progressively smaller share in the global system. Taking these large and important CO 2 transfers into consideration, we proposed adjustments to the national mitigation targets set by the Paris Agreement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine the current status of dissolved oxygen (DO) and its trend over the past 25 years in the lower Pearl River Estuary, a large eutrophic estuary located in Southern China and surrounded by large cities including Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Guangzhou. Monthly cruises conducted from April 2010 to March 2011 clearly show that DO depletion began to emerge in the bottom layer of the lower estuary off Hong Kong in June, and became fully developed in July and August when oxygen-deficient water occupied ∼1000 km 2 before gradually becoming re-oxygenated in September and October. The development of the low oxygen zone was closely coupled with phytoplankton blooms in the surface water, which was supersaturated with respect to DO suggesting the importance of autochthonous organic matter in fueling bottom DO consumption after settling through the pycnocline. Long-term monitoring data collected in the study area adjacent to Hong Kong by the Hong Kong Environmental Protection Department showed a decreasing trend of ∼2 ± 0.9 μmol kg −1 yr −1 in the annual minimum DO concentration in bottom water over the past 25 years. Associated with the decrease in DO was an increase in the annual maximum surface concentration of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) at a rate of ∼1.4 ± 0.3 μmol kg −1 yr −1 , suggesting again that eutrophication is the most plausible driver of oxygen deficiency in this region. Therefore, our monthly cruises, along with the decadal monitoring data, reveal a large low oxygen zone, likely developing into a large hypoxic zone driven primarily by anthropogenic eutrophication. This new development suggests environmental stressors such as eutrophication may have a cascading effect, with important and expensive consequences for the regional environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban expansion can lead to land use changes and, hence, threatens the ecosystems. Understanding the effects of urbanization on ecosystem services (ESs) can provide scientific guidance for land use planning and the protection of ESs. We established a framework to assess the spatial distributions of ESs based on land use changes in the Atlanta Metropolitan area (AMA) from 1985 to 2012. A new comprehensive ecosystem service (CES) index was developed to reflect the comprehensive level of ESs. Associated with the influential factors, we simulated the business as usual scenario in 2030. Four alternative scenarios, including more compact growth (MCG), riparian vegetation buffer (RVB), soil conservation (SC), and combined development (CD) scenarios were developed to explore the optimal land use strategies which can enhance the ESs. The results showed that forest and wetland had the greatest decreases, while low and high intensity built-up lands had the greatest increases. The values of CES and most of ESs decreased significantly due to the sprawling expansion of built-up land. The scenario analysis revealed that the CD scenario performs best in CES value, while it performs the worst in food supply. Compared with the RVB and SC scenarios, MCG scenario is a more optimal land use strategy to enhance the ESs without at the expense of food supply. To integrate multiple ESs into land use planning and decision making, corresponding land management policies and ecological engineering measures should be implemented to enhance: (1) the water yield and water purification in urban core counties, (2) the carbon storage, habitat quality, and recreational opportunity in counties around the core area, and (3) the soil conservation and food supply in surrounding suburban counties. The land use strategies and ecological engineering measures in this study can provide references for enhancing the ESs in the AMA and other metropolitan areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The eastern coastal areas of China have high-density population, developed society and economy, and large water pollution emissions. How to reduce water pollution and realize the coordinated development of the economy and environment has become the national focus. Effective environmental policies should consider regional differences in development stage and sustainability performance. Here, we first analyzed the water pollution emissions intensity of the eastern coastal areas of China and the urgency of emissions reduction using 8-year environmental statistics from 2003 to 2010. We characterized development stages of the eastern coastal areas based on the relationships between water pollution emissions intensity and economic development. Further, we built a coordination degree index of economic development and water environment protection as a measure of sustainability. Results show that water pollution emissions intensity decreases as the economy grows from 2003 to 2010. The less-developed regions have a better coordination degree than some more-developed regions, especially those most-developed ones (e.g., Shanghai show more pressures on long-term sustainability than Hebei). The less-developed regions should take advantage of economic growth to invest more advanced environment protection technologies. The more-developed regions need to upgrade its economic structures and municipal infrastructures. Overall, the study provided a comprehensive approach to understand regional difference in development stage and sustainability performance in the eastern coastal region of China as well as the need of different environmental policies to reduce water pollution emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rural residential areas and low resident density areas are usually distressed by the lack of municipal infrastructure, which causes a poor supply of water and energy, as well as a shortage of the waste and pollution disposal equipment The courtyard integrated ecological system (CIES) is an example of an ecological engineering solution to this problem. CIES originated in the Hainan rural area of China. This family level symbiotic system was designed by the authors according to a few sustainable principles, such as making good use of local natural resources, low cost, convenience of operation, and resource recycling. CIES systematically integrated a series of single techniques, such as vertical planting, hydroponic farming, artificial wetland, rainwater harvesting and automatic management, and so on. After a brief introduction of the CIES design, this article also studied its economic-environmental benefit with one year of monitoring data and a comparison between the CIES pattern and traditional pattern with both emergy analysis and carbon footprint analysis methods. The results showed that CIES could provide an increase of 75 m 2 of green land, 40 m 3 of green volume and 2400 kg of vegetables for each rural family. In addition, each family could save 277 kWh of electric power, 70.87 t of fresh water, 7.5 kg of chemical fertilizer and 450 g of pesticides each year. Additionally, counting the money saved, each CIES can produce more than 38,000 RMB after 1.28 years of payback. Compared to the traditional living pattern in a local area, the CIES pattern costs only 19.4% of the former's emergy and 49.6% of the carbon footprint of the traditional living pattern. Assuming that CIES is applied to half of the rural households in Hainan Province, each farmer would receive an extra 2842 RMB for each year, the emergy consumed by the system would be reduced by 1.6 × 10 21 sej, and CO 2 emissions would be reduced by 1.036 × 10 5 t. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• An analytic framework for sustainable promotion of decentralized water technologies. • The framework consists of spatial optimization and data-driven interpretation. • The tradeoff between water-use energy savings & financial investment was evaluated. • Southern communities should be first invested with rainwater harvesting in Boston. • Equal access to water & sanitation services should be included in the objectives. Decentralized water technologies such as rainwater harvesting (RWH) and greywater recycling (GWR) can supplement centralized urban water systems, helping reduce water withdrawal and improve water reliability. These benefits only emerge when decentralized water technologies are widely implemented. Several decision-supporting frameworks have been developed to identify suitable locations for deploying decentralized water technologies in a city. Yet, the support remains inadequate regarding: (1) the evaluation of the trade-off between environmental benefits and economic costs in selecting locations, and (2) the interpretation of the transition of optimal selections from low to high investment to assist in the promotion. This study presents an integrated analytic framework that combines multi-objective optimization and data-driven interpretation to direct the city-wide sustainable promotion of building-based decentralized water technologies. We select single-family houses in the city of Boston and apply the framework to study the promotion of building-based RWH and GWR. The framework starts with multi-objective spatial optimization to identify the non-dominant optimal selections (i.e., Pareto-front) of houses and technologies at the trade-off between maximizing energy savings and minimizing financial investment. Then, we evaluate the impact of the initial selection setting and the community-based maximum water saving constraint on the Pareto-optimal front. The spatial optimization shows that RWH is much more applicable than GWR for single-family house communities in Boston. When interpreting the Pareto-front, two clusters of census blocks stand out based on the change in the percentages of houses selected to invest RWH and GWR in each census block along with different investment levels. One cluster demonstrates its priority of being first selected to deploy RWH. Using Random Forest, critical features explain why one cluster should be selected first for promotion, including the larger demand for non-potable water use, longer distance from the centralized facilities, and larger rooftop for collecting rainwater. Finally, we discuss possible future improvements of the proposed spatial optimization and interpretation framework. Overall, our study can be useful to promote decentralized water technologies in cities. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • The bioturbation effects of fortified Daqu under different pit ages were investigated. • Both Daqu type and pit age affected the community structure and metabolic function. • The mechanism of fortified Daqu in improving flavor quality was varied by pit age. The fermentation of strong-flavor baijiu depends largely on the evolution of the microbial community that originated from Daqu and pit mud (PM). Applying fortified Daqu (FD) has been proven to be an effective strategy to improve the quality and yield of baijiu. However, it is unclear what the effects of FD on the liquor brewing microecosystem under different pit ages because of the temporal heterogeneity of the PM community. Taking 2-year (new) and 40-year (aged) pits as the objects, the influence of FD on the metabolic profile, physicochemical parameters, and community diversity in Zaopei and PM was investigated by polyphase detecting approaches. Present results showed that the metabolic profiles of Zaopei were significantly improved by FD, whereas those of PM were mainly dependent on pit age. Aspergillus , Caproiciproducens , and Methanosarcina were more abundant in the aged pit, while Kazachstania , Lactobacillus , and Sphingomonas dominated in the new pit, whether in Zaopei or in PM. The interaction relationships among the communities were also altered by FD, and the co-occurrence network, especially the increased links between archaea and bacteria in the new pit. Notably, this interaction in the aged pit distinctly affected the hexanoic acid content based on the Mantel test. The results of PICRUSt2 analysis inferred that FD perhaps improved the interspecies hydrogen transfer in the new pit and increased the carbon flow of hexanoic acid production during chain elongation in the aged pit. These results provide new insights into the production of high-quality strong-flavor baijiu and the aging of PM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the market demand for decentralized water technologies and the impacts on the urban water systems (UWS) is critical to sustainable promotion in urban communities. In this paper, we developed a spatial agent-based model (ABM) that simulates the adoption of home-based rainwater harvesting (RWH) and greywater recycling (GWR) by single-family households in Boston, United States. We applied system dynamics modeling (SDM) to evaluate the impacts of decentralized technologies on the UWS. The change in carbon emissions of the UWS was modeled as the environmental benefit for household choice decisions in ABM. We validated our integration by comparing the simulated reservoir elevations with the reference-year values and comparing where early adoptions emerge with the reported installations. In the results, we first examined the sensitivity of the adoption and diffusion to the market promotion, neighbor's influence, environmental benefits, and economic attractiveness. Our simulation highlights the diffusion from central downtown to the suburban. RWH has higher adoptions than GWR, and RWH starts diffusing much earlier. Reservoir water availability is improved through the adoption of RWH and GWR. As the tradeoffs, reservoirs discharge more water for storage security, and hydropower generation becomes less as the need of water transfer decreases. The UWS do not reduce carbon emissions due to the high electricity consumption of GWR. Utilizing the improved water resources and reducing the impact of decentralized technologies are required for sustainable promotion of water decentralization. Our integrated modeling can be improved by including more critical socio-technical interactions for spatial planning of decentralized water technologies. • A framework for planning water at the nexus of human-infrastructure-environment. • Agent-based model to simulate spatial adoption of decentralized water technologies. • System dynamics model to quantify the impact of adoption on water system. • Rainwater harvesting has a higher potential among Boston single-family communities. • Suggestions are identified for sustainable promotion of decentralization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While coal consumption has played an essential role in fueling the industrialization and urbanization of China, it is also responsible for serious atmospheric pollution. Great efforts have been made by Chinese governments to restrict coal consumption in metropolitan areas. Taking Beijing as a case, this paper investigated the dynamics of coal consumption from 1985 to 2017 with regard to quantity, proportion, and sectoral distribution. A structural decomposition analysis model was developed to identify the key driving forces of the quantity decline in coal consumption. Results showed that Beijing has experienced an evident de-coal process with two stages of relative decline (1985–2005) and absolute decline (2005–2017). Coal intensity and final demand composition changes, mainly associated with technological renovation, energy substitution, and adjustment of economic structure, had positive effects on curbing coal consumption. Results obtained in this study could shed light on energy transition in other regions of China, by building a diversified energy portfolio, optimizing regional industrial structure, and improving technology levels of production and consumption systems. Nevertheless, the de-coal process model of Beijing cannot be fully copied to other regions due to its unique political position and developmental stage, and appropriate adjustments based on local circumstances must be made. • De-coal process and underlying driving forces are investigated for urban Beijing. • Two stages of de-coal process with relative decline and absolute decline were observed. • Coal intensity plays a dominant role against that of population and final demand. • Sectoral level has the similar but more diversified pattern of driving forces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Household decentralized water systems, including rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling, are often touted as a means to improve the sustainability and resiliency of centralized municipal systems. This research is focused on the spatial distributions of life cycle energy savings, consumer cost savings, and percent demand met of decentralized, household rainwater harvesting (RWH) and greywater recycling (GWR) system adoptions when they are being optimized for either life cycle cost or energy savings. The city of Boston was used as a testbed for applying the modeling framework in this study. A dynamic model was developed for both RWH and GWR systems to simulate daily water and energy usages and savings over a 30-year time frame using Python. The cost and energy optimal sizes of the RWH and GWR systems for each residential building in Boston were calculated using the Brent's method. Household characteristics such as distance from the centralized plants, number of tenants, and roof size were either directly obtained through Boston GIS data or approximated based upon existing data. Overall, GWR systems were found to perform generally better than RWH systems across the entire Boston. An average life cycle cost saving of $909–948/year and an average life cycle energy saving of 586–622 MJ/year can be achieved via installing cost- or energy-optimized GWR systems. The middle city area is generally good for both RWH and GWR system adoptions from both cost and energy perspectives. Incentives might be provided to foster decentralized system adoptions with infrastructure renovation efforts in this area. On the other hand, the southern sub-urban areas are generally the most suitable for installing RWH systems, while the downtown and its surrounding areas are generally the most suitable for promoting GWR systems. When taking stormwater management into consideration, the downtown area can also benefit from combined RWH and GWR systems as well as shared systems with local parks or other buildings with larger irrigation demands. [Display omitted] • GWR is more cost and energy effective and can better meet user demand than RWH. • RWH system adoption has better performance in buildings with larger roof areas. • GWR system adoption has better performance in high occupancy buildings. • The middle city area is generally good for both GWR and RWH adoptions. • There is a tradeoff between the individual vs common good in both cost optimized systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We observed a phytoplankton bloom downstream of a large estuarine plume induced by heavy precipitation during a cruise conducted in the Pearl River estuary and the northern South China Sea in May–June 2001. The plume delivered a significant amount of nutrients into the estuary and the adjacent coastal region, and enhanced stratification stimulating a phytoplankton bloom in the region near and offshore of Hong Kong. A several fold increase (0.2–1.8μgChlL−1) in biomass (Chl a) was observed during the bloom. During the bloom event, the surface water phytoplankton community structure significantly shifted from a pico-phytoplankton dominated community to one dominated by micro-phytoplankton (>20μm). In addition to increased Chl a, we observed a significant drawdown of pCO2, biological uptake of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and an associated enhancement of dissolved oxygen and pH, demonstrating enhanced photosynthesis during the bloom. During the bloom, we estimated a net DIC drawdown of 100–150μmolkg−1 and a TAlk increase of 0–50μmolkg−1. The mean sea–air CO2 flux at the peak of the bloom was estimated to be as high as ∼−18mmolm−2 d−1. For an average surface water depth of 5m, a very high apparent biological CO2 consumption rate of 70–110mmolm−2 d−1 was estimated. This value is 2–6 times higher than the estimated air–sea exchange rate. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) fluorescence and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) were measured in the Lingdingyang Estuary, a major component of the Pearl River Delta, China, in May 2001 and November 2002. Measurements of CDOM and DOC suggest multiple sources of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in the low-salinity region of the estuary, due to the mixing of four freshwater outlets, Humen, Jiaomen, Honqimen and Hengmen, all with different freshwater endmembers and all flowing into the head of the Lingdingyang. Our 2002 cruise expanded efforts to characterize these four major outlets, allowing for the quantification of CDOM inputs within this complex watershed.DOC and CDOM appear conservative in mid-salinity (5–20) waters, suggesting that mixing dominates production and removal processes over time scales on the order of 3 days, the residence time of water in this region of the estuary. DOC and fluorescence are linearly correlated in the mid-salinity region of the estuary north of Shenzhen, suggesting that in this region, terrestrial inputs dominate both signals. However, this relationship does not continue out onto the shelf, where water masses of differing optical properties mix. The CDOM/DOC ratio decreases with increasing salinity as would be expected through phototrasformation of CDOM into non-fluorescent DOC. Additionally, this ratio at low salinity appears to vary seasonally, with a higher value in Spring (high flow) compared to Fall (low flow). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Widmanstatten structure and dendrite morphology were observed near the bursting region. • Extensive intergranular cracks, severe decarburization and hardness reduction were identified. • Deposits composed of iron oxide and copper are consistent in the outline of surfacing layer. • The tube bursting is the result of surfacing weld induced overheating and corrosion. In this study, by performing visual inspection, chemical composition analysis, mechanical performance testing, micro-structure and micro-morphology analyses, a failure investigation is presented on the surfacing weld induced bursting of 20G water wall tube in a thermal power plant. Besides, to identify the environmental medium and deposits, the Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) and X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) have been conducted. The tube has undergone the localized wall thinning by fly-ash erosion burst after being repaired for 4000 h. As revealed from the macroscopic examination on the tube, significant corrosive products have been produced on the water-side of the surfacing layer position of the tube. According to the metallographic analysis of the rupture region, the massive widmanstatten overheated structure has been found in the heat-affected zone (HAZ). Furthermore, in the failure parent metal, extensive intergranular cracks, severe decarburization and mechanical performance degradation (∼20 HV 10) have been identified. The micro-morphology analysis has described the partial-melting process, spherical particles and the dendrite on the fracture surface. As revealed from the EDS and XRD results, the accumulation of Cu on the inner surface of the rupture region of the tube was demonstrated. The comprehensive study has suggested that the excessive welding heat-input leads to the generation of local over-heating and over-burning. Lastly, the electrochemical corrosion and the hydrogen corrosion cracking are generated in the inner wall of the welding region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Our model well simulated the Pearl River Plume (PRP) and the spatiotemporal distribution of surface p CO 2. • Controls of surface p CO 2 differ substantially in near-, mid- and far-field PRP sub-regions. • Primary production, plume current and CO 2 buffer capacity jointly determine the PRP's role as an atmospheric CO 2 sink. River-dominated ocean margins (RiOMars), characterized by river plumes and abundant riverine nutrient inputs, are especially critical in determining the oceanic uptake of atmospheric CO 2. Using a well validated three-dimensional, coupled physical-biogeochemical model, we examined the dynamics of the carbonate system in the Pearl River Plume (PRP) during summer over a typical RiOMar in the northern South China Sea (NSCS). Sea surface p CO 2 in the PRP was mainly influenced by a combination of physical processes, air-sea exchange, and biological activity. The interplay between these complex processes differed spatially and temporally depending on the evolution of the PRP. The latter was divided into three sub-regions: near-, mid- and far-field. In the near-field PRP, the evolution of surface p CO 2 was primarily influenced by biological activity. Surface p CO 2 decreased substantially at the initial stage as a result of phytoplankton blooms, and then increased due to the reduction in the phytoplankton and increase of zooplankton and detritus. In the mid-field, surface p CO 2 was initially dominated by air-sea exchange. Subsequently, the rates of biological processes exceeded the rate of air-sea exchange, resulting in a strong drawdown of surface p CO 2 or a strong sink for atmospheric CO 2. The far-field of the PRP acted as a weak CO 2 sink, where surface p CO 2 was dominated by air-sea exchange as biological processes were fairly weak. In addition, given that the air-sea CO 2 equilibrium time is much longer than water residence time of the PRP, the biologically-mediated low p CO 2 surface water was enabled to be transported far away from estuary. Taken together, the combined effect of enhanced primary production, strong plume current and strong seawater carbonate buffering capacity were responsible for maintaining low surface p CO 2 levels in this subtropical RiOMar system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• DIC in the SCS is modulated by intrinsic dynamics and extrinsic exchanges via straits. • 3D-DIC transports across straits and within the SCS are examined. • DIC inventory in euphotic zone decreased in spring/summer but increased in fall/winter. Using a validated, three-dimensional, coupled physical-biogeochemical model, this study examines the dynamics of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) in the South China Sea (SCS). The model identifies characteristic differences in DIC concentrations between the SCS and adjacent West Philippine Sea (WPS), showing an increase in DIC of up to 140 μmol kg−1 in the upper 2000 m layer from the WPS to the vicinity of the northern SCS. This increasing pattern continues from the northern to the southern SCS, but to a much lower degree (<20 μmol kg−1 increase). Overall, spatial and seasonal variation of DIC in the SCS are evidently modulated by both intrinsic dynamics (e.g., river plumes, vertical mixing, basin-scale upwelling and eddies), and extrinsic exchanges via various straits. The inputs of DIC to the SCS are mainly through the Luzon Strait in the upper layer (depth, h < 600 m) and from the deep WPS at > 1600 m. Exports of DIC occur through other straits and the SCS intermediate water outflow (600 m to 1600 m) via the Luzon Strait. The model shows upward transport of DIC in the upper 400 m and below 1100 m, in contrast to downward DIC transport between 400 m and 1100 m. Seasonally, both DIC concentrations and fluxes in the upper layer have larger dynamic ranges in winter than in summer, attributable to the combined effects of enhanced Kuroshio intrusion, stronger vertical upwelling and greater biogeochemical alterations. A balance of various constitutive DIC terms revealed that horizontal and vertical advection is an order of magnitude greater than the other terms of the DIC budget, which has an opposite sign and thus tends to neutralize each other. The model indicated a decrease in the DIC inventory in the euphotic zone in spring and summer caused by net DIC consumption, and a contrasting increase in fall and winter primarily influenced by DIC vertical transport. In intermediate and deep layers, physical transport processes play a dominant role in the seasonal variation of DIC inventories. In the upper 150 m, DIC fluxes and their stoichiometry with nutrient fluxes, which potentially impact the air-sea CO 2 fluxes, are largely driven by excess vertical DIC fluxes compared to horizontal fluxes via the Luzon Strait. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban green infrastructures have been well recognized for their roles in providing ecosystem services in cities. However, their environmental performances have not been fully understood from a life-cycle perspective. In this study, we evaluated the life-cycle environmental performances and energy efficiencies of three types of green infrastructure, i.e. green roof, greenway, and grove that are increasingly built in cities. Our analysis covered all phases of the life-cycle including extraction and construction, use and maintenance, end-of-life, and transportation. Results confirm the environmental improvements of the green roof, greenway, and grove in most of the addressed impact categories. The energy saving in the use and maintenance phase contributed a significant part to these improvements, while the construction material in the extraction and construction phase had a dominant share in the environmental impacts. The grove and greenway showed better environmental performances than the green roof. The extensive use of compost for the greenway and grove could release toxic substances to the environment, and offset environmental improvements or even resulted in a negative consequence to EP of the greenway. The utilization of substrate and waste disposal for the green roof caused relatively high impacts on the environment. Sensitivity analysis shows a 50% reduction of the energy saving weakened the environmental improvements of the green roof, greenway and grove in all categories, and particularly exacerbated the environmental impacts on EP and CADP for the green roof, AP for the greenway and EP for the grove; and an increased waste recycling and reuse rates will greatly enhance the environmental improvements of the green roof. • Life-cycle environmental performances of three UGIs were evaluated and compared. • Robustness of results and impact of uncertainty factors were examined. • Grove and greenway showed better environmental performances than green roof. • 50% energy saving reduction weakened environmental improvements in all categories. • Increasing recycling and reuse rates improved green roof's environmental performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Advanced stage laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) presents a poor prognosis; thus, there is a great need to identify novel prognostic molecular markers. Procollagen-lysine, 2-oxoglutarate 5-dioxygenase 2 (PLOD2) is thought to be a novel prognostic factor in several cancers, but its role in LSCC remains unknown. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are responsible for most instances of tumor recurrence and the development of drug resistance and have been proven to be present in head and neck cancers. Our preliminary study indicated that PLOD2 was elevated in LSCC tissues; therefore, we hypothesized that PLOD2 is related to the prognosis of LSCC patients and aimed to explore the role and underlying mechanism of PLOD2 in LSCC.Methods: We validated the prognostic role of PLOD2 in 114 LSCC patients by immunohistochemistry. Stable PLOD2-overexpressing Hep-2 and FaDu cells were established and assessed by molecular biology and biochemistry methods both in vitro and in vivo.Results: We confirmed that PLOD2 overexpression was correlated with poor prognosis in LSCC patients. PLOD2 overexpression strengthened the CSC-like properties of Hep-2 and FaDu cells, activated the Wnt signaling pathway and conferred drug resistance in LSCC in vitro and in vivo.Conclusions: We found that PLOD2 could serve as a prognostic marker in patients with LSCC and confer drug resistance in LSCC by increasing CSC-like traits; in addition, a Wnt-responsive CSC pathway was identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing urbanization places cities at the forefront of achieving global sustainability. For cities to become more sustainable, however, the infrastructure on which they rely must also become more productive, efficient and resilient. Unfortunately the current paradigm of urban infrastructure development is fragmented in approach lacking a systems perspective. Urban infrastructure systems are analogous to ecological systems because they are interconnected, complex and adaptive components that exchange material, information and energy among themselves and to and from the environment, and exhibit characteristic scaling properties that can be expressed by Zipf's Law. Analyzing them together as a whole, as one would do for an ecological system, provides a better understanding about their dynamics and interactions, and enables system-level optimization. The adoption of this “ infrastructure ecology ” approach will result in urban (re)development that requires lower investment of financial and natural resources to build and maintain, is more sustainable (e.g. uses less materials and energy and generates less waste) and resilient, and enables a greater and more equitable opportunities for the creation of wealth and comfort. The 12 guiding principles of infrastructure ecology will provide a set of goals for urban planners, engineers and other decision-makers in an urban system for urban (re)development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]