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Autonomous methods to align beamlines can decrease the amount of time spent on diagnostics, and also uncover better global optima leading to better beam quality. The alignment of these beamlines is a high-dimensional expensive-to-sample optimization problem involving the simultaneous treatment of many optical elements with correlated and nonlinear dynamics. Bayesian optimization is a strategy of efficient global optimization that has proved successful in similar regimes in a wide variety of beamline alignment applications, though it has typically been implemented for particular beamlines and optimization tasks. In this paper, we present a basic formulation of Bayesian inference and Gaussian process models as they relate to multi-objective Bayesian optimization, as well as the practical challenges presented by beamline alignment. We show that the same general implementation of Bayesian optimization with special consideration for beamline alignment can quickly learn the dynamics of particular beamlines in an online fashion through hyperparameter fitting with no prior information. We present the implementation of a concise software framework for beamline alignment and test it on four different optimization problems for experiments on X-ray beamlines at the National Synchrotron Light Source II and the Advanced Light Source, and an electron beam at the Accelerator Test Facility, along with benchmarking on a simulated digital twin. We discuss new applications of the framework, and the potential for a unified approach to beamline alignment at synchrotron facilities.

Here, a recently commissioned five-analyzer Johann spectrometer at the Inner Shell Spectroscopy beamline (8-ID) at the National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II) is presented. Designed for hard X-ray photon-in/photon-out spectroscopy, the spectrometer achieves a resolution in the 0.5–2 eV range, depending on the element and/or emission line, providing detailed insights into the local electronic and geometric structure of materials. It serves a diverse user community, including fields such as physical, chemical, biological, environmental and materials sciences. This article details the mechanical design, alignment procedures and data-acquisition scheme of the spectrometer, with a particular focus on the continuous asynchronous data-acquisition approach that significantly enhances experimental efficiency.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the antimicrobial effect of single and repeated nitric oxide (NO) exposure on the major pathogens of nosocomial pneumonia isolated from the sputum of cardiac surgery patients.Materials and Methods. A 24-hour culture of microorganisms from pan-resistant isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Klebsiella pneumoniae from the sputum of inpatient cardiac surgery patients with nosocomial pneumonia, as well as strains of P. aeruginosa and E. coli from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC), were exposed to 200 ppm NO (experimental sample) or medical air (control sample) in a sealed chamber for 30 minutes. After a single or 4 repeated gas exposure at 4 h intervals, Petri dishes were placed in a thermostat at 37°C and the results were evaluated at 24 and 48 h or at 12, 24, 36 and 48 h, respectively. Grown colonies were counted using an automated colony counter and recorded as CFU/mL.Results. No growth of clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa and E. coli was observed 24 and 48 h after a single exposure to NO. Growth of A. baumannii was lower compared to controls at 24 h but continued at 48 h. No effect of a single exposure to 200 ppm NO on other microorganisms was observed. After 4 exposures to NO, the growth of ATCC E. coli was not detected, the growth of other experimental strains was significantly lower compared to the control (P

The coastal zone and shelf of the north-western of the Sea of Japan have high biological productivity. The vegetation of microalgae is realized due to insolation, nutrient input with river runoff and as a result of seasonal vertical mixing of water masses. Also, the productivity activity relates to the type of marine landscape. Phytoplankton assemblages are first-order food resources for zooplankton and the second for nekton (fish, mammals), and they also serve as a source of biological minerals from the decayed of their dead cell products, which as suspended particles (detritus) provide food for pelagic bacteria and bottom biocenoses. The vertical subdivision of the landscape - neritho-pelagial (coastal zone) of the studied part of the sea reflects a wide biological diversity represented by bottom communities of living organisms. The research objective of this article studied to analyze the spatial and temporal dynamics of chlorophyll-a concentration in phytoplankton in different landscape-bionomic areas in the north- western of the Sea of Japan for each season from 2003 to 2022’s. The article is used the landscape-bionomic and space monitoring data approaches. The known system of units of global zoning of ecoregions (sea basins) describes the natural features of the sea. The fundamental unit of regional zoning is coastal morphostructures or marine landscape which builds ecological conditions for hydrobionts. Space monitoring from the Aqua satellite, NASA, covers the upper layers of water at a wide resolution. Water surface temperature and chlorophyll-a concentration for 20 years (2003-2022's) are compared on the basis of satellite data. Practical significance: the paper discloses the links between landscape-bionomic areas and seasonal multiyear dynamics of temperature and phytoplankton productivity in the north- western of the Sea of Japan. The comprehensive approach will serve as a necessity for the rational use of aquatic biological resources. Moreover, satellite data can be applied to the construction of long-term forecasts of climate variability in the region.

Physical optics simulations for beamlines and experiments allow users to test experiment feasibility and optimize beamline settings ahead of beam time in order to optimize valuable beam time at synchrotron light sources like NSLS-II. Further, such simulations also help to develop and test experimental data processing methods and software in advance. The Synchrotron Radiation Workshop (SRW) software package supports such complex simulations. We demonstrate how recent developments in SRW significantly improve the efficiency of physical optics simulations, such as end-to-end simulations of time-dependent X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy experiments with partially coherent undulator radiation (UR). The molecular dynamics simulation code LAMMPS was chosen to model the sample: a solution of silica nanoparticles in water at room temperature. Real-space distributions of nanoparticles produced by LAMMPS were imported into SRW and used to simulate scattering patterns of partially coherent hard X-ray UR from such a sample at the detector. The partially coherent UR illuminating the sample can be represented by a set of orthogonal coherent modes obtained by simulation of emission and propagation of this radiation through the coherent hard X-ray (CHX) scattering beamline followed by a coherent-mode decomposition. GPU acceleration is added for several key functions of SRW used in propagation from sample to detector, further improving the speed of the calculations. The accuracy of this simulation is benchmarked by comparison with experimental data.

Bulk heterojunction solar cells are among the most promising organic solar cells (OSCs). One of the two important parts of OSCs are acceptors, and the development of the design and synthesis of non-fullerene acceptors involves an electron-deficient heterocyclic central core and anchor acceptor malonitrile derivatives of 3-methylene-2,3-dihydro-1H-inden-1-ones. In this communication, an intermediate for the synthesis of this compound, 1-(dicyanomethylene)-3-hydroxy-1H-indene-2-carboxylic acid, was prepared by the Perkin reaction of 2-(3-oxoisobenzofuran-1(3H)-ylidene)malononitrile with tert-butyl acetoacetate in the presence of acetic anhydride and triethylamine. The structure of the newly synthesized compound was established by means of elemental analysis, high-resolution mass spectrometry, 1H NMR, 13C NMR and IR spectroscopy, and mass spectrometry.

Donor–π spacer–acceptor (D–π–A) dyes are among the most attractive structures for the design of organic dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). Typically, the key intermediates for these sensitizers are D–π compounds containing an aldehyde group to which an anchor acceptor group is attached via the Knoevenagel reaction. In this communication, 5-(9-(p-tolyl)-2,3,4,4a,9,9a-hexahydro-1H-1,4-methanocarbazol-6-yl)thiophene-2-carbaldehyde was prepared via the Suzuki cross-coupling reaction. The structure of the newly synthesized compound was established by means of high-resolution mass spectrometry, 1H NMR, 13C NMR, IR, and UV–Vis spectroscopy. The title compound would be used in the synthesis of sensitizers for DSSCs.

Russia’s dominance in the global energy market is predetermined by the scale and development prospects of gas transmission infrastructure to ensure a continuous cycle of gas supply from fields to end consumers. Operating conditions of gas production, processing, transportation, storage and distribution facilities are associated with the influence of environmental factors, which varies greatly due to the length of pipelines covering all climatic regions of the country. The growth in the length of new pipelines and the need to repair existing pipelines based on the results of in-line diagnostics contribute to an increase in the volume of loading and unloading operations and the storage of pipes, therefore, studies on improving methods for determining the need for truck cranes when for constructions organizing technological processes and repair of main gas pipelines are relevant. The purpose of the study is to determine the efficiency of truck cranes operation in the process of main gas pipelines overhaul and construction. The scientific novelty is formed by the patterns of formation of the cost and labor intensity of loading, depending on the load capacity of a truck crane and the unloading pipes parameters. The research methodology is based on a systematic approach, methods for analyzing the technical operation of vehicles and proven data processing techniques. The recommendations made as a result of this study have been implemented to organize preparatory work at major main gas pipelines overhaul facilities and construction, which increases the efficiency of processes, optimizes the structure of special vehicles and reduces the cost of technological operations.

Planctomycetes of the genus Singulisphaera are common inhabitants of soils and peatlands. Although described members of this genus are characterized as possessing hydrolytic capabilities, the ability to degrade chitin has not yet been reported for these bacteria. In this study, a novel Singulisphaera representative, strain Ch08, was isolated from a chitinolytic enrichment culture obtained from a boreal fen in Northern European Russia. The 16S rRNA gene sequence of this isolate displayed 98.2% similarity to that of Singulisphaera acidiphila MOB10T. Substrate utilization tests confirmed that strain Ch08 is capable of growth on amorphous chitin. The complete genome of strain Ch08 determined in this study was 10.85 Mb in size and encoded two predicted chitinases, which were only distantly related to each other and affiliated with the glycoside hydrolase family GH18. One of these chitinases had a close homologue in the genome of S. acidiphila MOB10T. The experimental verification of S. acidiphila MOB10T growth on amorphous chitin was also positive. Transcriptome analysis performed with glucose- and chitin-growth cells of strain Ch08 showed upregulation of the predicted chitinase shared by strain Ch08 and S. acidiphila MOB10T. The gene encoding this protein was expressed in Escherichia coli, and the endochitinase activity of the recombinant enzyme was confirmed. The ability to utilize chitin, a major constituent of fungal cell walls and arthropod exoskeletons, appears to be one of the previously unrecognized ecological functions of Singulisphaera-like planctomycetes.