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As high-speed rail (HSR) and air transportation developed rapidly in the last decade, their coopetition and interactional relationship has reshaped China's urban networks. Based on HSR and flight schedule data from 2009 to 2019, this paper constructs a weighted network to compare China's urban networks and their evolution, and employs machine learning to investigate the potential determinants. The results indicated that both networks tend toward polarization in the overall distribution and that the structure of urban networks under HSR networks is more hierarchical. That of HSR networks gradually forms a corridor structure along the trunk lines, while that of airline networks mainly shows a diamond spatial structure with Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Chengdu as the cores. As for the evolution of urban networks, geographical factors, per capita GDP, and the tourism function of cities have more important impacts on that of HSR networks, while the network's topological structure and education resources have a greater impact on that of airline networks. Some socioeconomic attributes, such as urban administrative level, population, and the proportion of tertiary industry, have similar and limited influences on the two networks. • The paper constructed a comparative analysis on the evolution of China's urban networks during the last decade. • Employing machine learning to investigate the potential determinants. • The study examined the distinct attributes of the evolution and structure of high-speed rail and airline networks. • The study contrasts the determinants influencing the evolution of high-speed rail and airline networks at the city level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stress memory, melatonin, signaling pathways, priming, breeding For instance, melatonin down-regulates I MdNCED3 i , an ABA synthesis gene, while it up-regulates its catabolic genes, I MdCYP707A1 i and I MdCYP707A2 i , thereby reducing ABA concentration in drought-stressed plants [[22]]. Keywords: stress memory; melatonin; signaling pathways; priming; breeding EN stress memory melatonin signaling pathways priming breeding 2105 4 08/29/23 20230801 NES 230801 1. Previous studies documented that single or double drought priming before anthesis results in a higher grain yield in wheat under drought stress occurring during grain filling [[8]]. [Extracted from the article]

Leopard coral groupers (Plectropomus leopardus), commercially bred in South China, are a significant economical fish species. In this study, by means of quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) technology, we assessed the stability of six common reference genes expression and selected the appropriate reference genes in leopard coral groupers with or without Vibrio harveyi stimulation at different time points. These data produced by qRT-PCR was handled via the geNorm, NormFinder, and BestKeeper software. The results revealed all the examined reference genes had manifest tissue-specific expression in different tissues. Prior to V. harveyi stimulation, RPL13 gene was the appropriate reference gene among eleven tissue types (blood, spleen, hepatopancreas, kidney, stomach, gill, heart, skin, muscle, intestine, brain) in leopard coral groupers. Under V. harveyi stimulation, the most reliable reference genes varied from tissue to tissue and were closely hinged upon different time points. At 6-h post-bacterial injection, the appropriate reference genes in hepatopancreas, spleen, kidney, and gill were Actin, B2M, UBCE, and Actin, respectively. At 9- and 12-h post-bacterial injection, the appropriate reference genes in hepatopancreas, spleen, kidney, and gill were RPL13, Actin, Actin, and Actin, respectively. If one reference gene was preferable, RPL13, Actin, Actin, and Actin could be selected as the reference gene in hepatopancreas, spleen, kidney, and gill of leopard coral groupers after V. harveyi infection, respectively. Expression profiles of two target genes (IL-6 and NK-lysin) were used to further validate reliability of these selected appropriate candidates. This study will lay a solid foundation for the future research on qRT-PCR analysis of gene expression in leopard coral groupers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) image is an effective remote sensing data source for geographic surveys. However, accurate land cover mapping based on SAR image in areas of complex terrain has become a challenge due to serious geometric distortions and the inadequate separation ability of dual-polarization data. To address these issues, a new land cover mapping framework which is suitable for complex terrain is proposed based on Gaofen-3 data of ascending and descending orbits. Firstly, the geometric distortion area is determined according to the local incident angle, based on analysis of the SAR imaging mechanism, and the correct polarization information of the opposite track is used to compensate for the geometric distortion area, including layovers and shadows. Then, the dual orbital polarization characteristics (DOPC) and dual polarization radar vegetation index (DpRVI) of dual-pol SAR data are extracted, and the optimal feature combination is found by means of Jeffries–Matusita (J-M) distance analysis. Finally, the deep learning method 2D convolutional neural network (2D-CNN) is applied to classify the compensated images. The proposed method was applied to a mountainous region of the Danjiangkou ecological protection area in China. The accuracy and reliability of the method were experimentally compared using the uncompensated images and the images without DpRVI. Quantitative evaluation revealed that the proposed method achieved better performance in complex terrain areas, with an overall accuracy (OA) score of 0.93, and a Kappa coefficient score of 0.92. Compared with the uncompensated image, OA increased by 5% and Kappa increased by 6%. Compared with the images without DpRVI, OA increased by 4% and Kappa increased by 5%. In summary, the results demonstrate the importance of ascending and descending orbit data to compensate geometric distortion and reveal the effectiveness of optimal feature combination including DpRVI. Its simple and effective polarization information compensation capability can broaden the promising application prospects of SAR images. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

C-type lectins (CTLs) are glycan-binding pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) that can bind to carbohydrates on pathogen surfaces, triggering immune responses in shrimp innate immunity. In this study, a unique Ca2+-inhibited CTL named Fc Lec was identified and characterized in Chinese shrimp Fenneropenaeus chinensis. The full-length cDNA sequence of Fc Lec was 976 bp (GenBank accession number KU361826), with a 615 bp open reading frame (ORF) encoding 204 amino acids. Fc Lec possesses a C-type lectin-like domain (CTLD) containing four conserved cysteines (Cys105, Cys174, Cys192, and Cys200) and two sugar-binding site structures (QPD and LNP). The tertiary structure of Fc Lec deduced revealed three α-helices and eight β-pleated sheets. The mRNA expression levels of Fc Lec in hemocytes and the hepatopancreas were markedly elevated after stimulation with Vibrio anguillarum and white spot syndrome virus (WSSV). The recombinant Fc Lec protein exhibited Ca2+-independent hemagglutination and bacterial agglutination, but these activities were observed only in the presence of EDTA to chelate metal ions. These findings suggest that Fc Lec plays important and functionally distinct roles in the shrimp's innate immune response to bacteria and viruses, enriching the current understanding of the relationship between CTL activity and Ca2+ in invertebrates. [Display omitted] • A novel CTL, Fc Lec, were identified from F. chinensis. • Fc Lec plays distinct and significant roles in the innate immune system's reaction to microbial assaults. • Fc Lec exhibits Ca2+-independent and even Ca2+-inhibited activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The resuspension of phosphorus (P) in sediments has the most significant contribution to the overlying water. The PP release characterization during resuspension was investigated. The results indicated that the P in suspensions had more release risk compared to the sediments. The particulate P (PP) concentration (0.54 mg L−1) under high-intensity rotational speed (250 rad min−1) was about five times higher than others (0.11 mg L−1). The sorption parameters of zero equilibrium P concentration (EPC 0F) and soluble reactive P (SRP) were significantly correlated with each other (p < 0.01, r = 0.73). Suspended solids expressed stronger P source than sediments. The values of EPC 0F was highly significantly correlated with the sorption coefficient (K F) and native adsorbed P (NAP) (p < 0.01). The mean values of NAP were 0.0612 mg g−1 and 0.0604 mg g−1 in the Prophase and Metaphase, respectively, and 0.0586 mg g−1 at Anaphase. The values of P sorption index (PSI) ranged from 0.4359 to 0.6862 L g−1, with mean values of 0.5350 L g−1 (Prophase), 0.6061 L g−1 (Metaphase), and 0.4967 L g−1 (Anaphase). The degree of P saturation (DPS) decreased in the order of Anaphase (2.73%) > Prophase (2.53%) > Metaphase (2.12%). The release risk index of P (ERI) decreased in the order of Anaphase (5.47%) > Prophase (4.72%) > Metaphase (3.59%), with a range of 2.12%–8.56%. To fast and slow scale, the results of NaOH–P (V 1 <0, V 2 >0) contribution indicated that the persistent disturbance promoted the release of adsorbed dissolved PP from NaOH–P in suspended sediment to the overlying water. The contribution of HCl–P (V 2 > 0) was positive in the Anaphase of the slow scale, and HCl–P was a PP source in the frequently disturbing conditions. [Display omitted] • The effect of disturbance promotes the formation of PP. • As The disturbance continued, Calcium–Phosphorus (HCl–P) gradually dominated in the resuspension process. • The suspended solids served as a strong phosphorus "source" in the resuspension process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

YAG crystal is successfully brazed with Cu using active filler AgCuInTi. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the brazed joints are investigated. The effects of brazing time and holding time on the interfacial microstructure and joint mechanical strength are studied. The joints brazed at 600 °C for 20 min are found to show the highest shear strength of 38.3 MPa, reaching 79.6% of the YAG base material. • YAG and Cu were successfully brazed free of defects by AgCuInTi filler. • A nanometer sized reaction layer of Cu 3 Ti 3 O produced at the ceramic side. • Shear strength of the joints achieved 79.6% of the YAG base material. • The fracture occurs at the YAG ceramic side. • The joining of YAG/Cu provided potential application in solid-state laser devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ba 0.5 Sr 0.5 Co 0.8 Fe 0.2 O 3-δ (BSCF) is an excellent mixed ion/electron conducting cathode among solid oxide fuel cells; however, its electrochemical activity is limited by the sluggish oxygen surface exchange. The application range of the BSCF cathode can be widened by preparing BSCF in the form of an ultrafine powder; however, retaining the microstructure of the powder in the cathode is challenging owing to the sintering of cathodes at high temperatures. In this study, we report a combined modification and direct assembly approach for the fabrication of an ultrafine, multi-phase BSCF-based cathode. This novel BSCF cathode powder is first modified by immersing the pre-synthesised micron-sized BSCF perovskite powder in a weakly acidic chelating solution. The modification treatment changes the composition of the powder and results in the formation of an ultrafine microstructure. The ultrafine microstructure of the powder is further retained in the cathode by direct assembly without high-temperature sintering. The peak power density of the ultrafine, multi-phase BSCF cell is 1.25 W cm−2 at 750 °C, much higher than the 0.83 W cm−2 of the pristine BSCF cell. This study provides insights into the facile fabrication and application of ultrafine cathodes for efficient solid oxide fuel cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Single image super-resolution (SISR) has achieved prominent success based on deep learning. However, most SISR methods based on the specific degradation pattern, e.g., bicubic interpolation with a bulky network structure, are unsuitable for real-world images reconstructed on edge devices. To mitigate the above limitations, unlike the majority of blind super-resolution methods, which consist of a separate complex degradation kernel projection network and a SR reconstruction network, we propose an end-to-end lightweight multi-degradation oriented network that not only can estimate degradation kernel but also reconstructs HR image fast and accurately. The core components of the designed network adopt a lightweight SR model with region non-local feature similarity learning, i.e., Region Non-Local Feature Block (RNLFB), to establish region-wise global feature correlation. Concretely, more and fewer RNLFBs are used to learn more sophisticated feature representation and relatively simple degradation representation. Then, a degradation kernel projector is equipped to fulfill adaptive degradation-aware estimation from the degradation representation. With the help of the encoded degradation kernel, the reconstruction model can learn to restore a high-resolution image from the feature representation. By doing so, the degradation kernel estimation task and the HR image reconstruction task can be accomplished without designing two complex networks separately, which guides more stable and effective network training under low computational resource costs. Extensive experiments on synthetic and real-world datasets demonstrate that our method can fulfill precise degradation kernel prediction and HR image reconstruction compared with other state-of-the-art SR methods with lower model complexity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two-step sequentially deposited FAPbI 3 polycrystalline film is adopted to produce high-performance perovskite solar cells (PSCs) with outstanding power conversion efficiency (PCE). The pore-forming of the inorganic film is beneficial to the second organic salt infiltrate, thus promoting a solid-solution reaction. Here, lead chloride (PbCl 2) is introduced into lead iodide (PbI 2) precursor solution to adjust the properties of PbI 2 membranes and obtain a micrometer-sized perovskite layer by reducing grain boundary defects. The incorporation of PbCl 2 reduces bulk defects and improves the device's performance. The PSCs displayed good operational stability in the dry atmosphere over 2 months. The PCE of PSCs exhibited an increased trend in the initial measurement and then showed decreased trend. A champion PCE of 22.07% was obtained after storage. Furthermore, the PL/TRPL of perovskite film and perovskite/Spiro-OMeTAD interface was tested to explain the efficiency evolution. This work may provide a strategy for further improving the performance of PSCs via fine-controlled PbI 2 membranes in the perovskite layer. Through adjusting the molar ratio of PbI 2 : PbCl 2 to 30:1, perovskite quality improved and defect reduced. The mechanism of continuous increase of efficiency during placement was studies due to the better interface carrier extraction and Ostwald ripening of perovskite crystalline. [Display omitted] • PbCl 2 is introduced to adjust the morphology of inorganic PbI 2 membranes. • The PbCl 2 can largely increase the quality of perovskite films. • The perovskite/HTL interface was tested to explain the efficiency evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This is the first to investigating the association between built environment around workplace and different walking behaviors. • It assesses the non-linear association between environment and walking behaviors. • Built environment around workplace is crucial for higher walking levels, but built environment features tend to have distinctive associations with different walking behaviors. Considering that most working adults spend nearly half their waking time at work, creating a supportive built environment around workplaces could be a feasible approach to maintain adequate levels of physical activity. However, the extent to which the built environment around workplaces influences walking behaviors in working adults remains unclear. Using survey data of 1009 full-time employees in Shanghai, China, this study assessed the nonlinear relationships between the built environment characteristics around workplaces and three domains of walking behaviors (commuting, utilitarian, and recreational walking). Using gradient boosting decision trees, our results showed that the built environment around workplaces is crucial for higher levels of walking behaviors, but built environment features tended to have distinctive associations with different domains of walking behaviors. Specifically, the number of physical activity facilities was positively associated with all three domains of walking behaviors, while a high floor area ratio was negatively associated with different domains of walking behaviors to some extent. Furthermore, several built environment characteristics, such as land use entropy, street view greenery, distance from home to the city center, and distance between the city center and workplaces had distinctive associations with different domains of walking behaviors. The findings of this study could provide nuanced guidance for creating pedestrian-friendly environments around workplaces to promote walking behaviors and overall physical activity levels in the working population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Propofol can have adverse effects on developing neurons, leading to cognitive disorders, but the mechanism of such an effect remains elusive. Here, we aimed to investigate the effect of propofol on neuronal development in zebrafish and to identify the molecular mechanism(s) involved in this pathway. Methods: The effect of propofol on neuronal development was demonstrated by a series of in vitro and in vivo experiments. mRNA injections, whole-mount in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling, 5-ethynyl-2′-deoxyuridine labeling, co-immunoprecipitation, and acyl–biotin exchange labeling were used to identify the potential mechanisms of propofol-mediated zisp expression and determine its effect on the specification of retinal cell types. Results: Propofol impaired the specification of retinal cell types, thereby inhibiting neuronal and glial cell formation in retinas, mainly through the inhibition of Zisp expression. Furthermore, Zisp promoted the stabilization and secretion of a soluble form of the membrane-associated protein Noggin-1, a specific palmitoylation substrate. Conclusions: Propofol caused a severe phenotype during neuronal development in zebrafish. Our findings established a direct link between an anesthetic agent and protein palmitoylation in the regulation of neuronal development. This could be used to investigate the mechanisms via which the improper use of propofol might result in neuronal defects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A large number of preclinical studies have shown that local anesthetics have a direct inhibitory effect on tumor biological activities, including cell survival, proliferation, migration, and invasion. There are few studies on the role of local anesthetics in cancer stem cells. This study aimed to determine the possible role of local anesthetics in glioblastoma stem cell (GSC) self-renewal and the underlying molecular mechanisms. Methods: The effects of local anesthetics in GSCs were investigated through in vitro and in vivo assays (i.e., Cell Counting Kit 8, spheroidal formation assay, double immunofluorescence, western blot, and xenograft model). The acyl-biotin exchange method (ABE) assay was identified proteins that are S-acylated by zinc finger Asp-His-His-Cys-type palmitoyltransferase 15 (ZDHHC15). Western blot, co-immunoprecipitation, and liquid chromatograph mass spectrometer-mass spectrometry assays were used to explore the mechanisms of ZDHHC15 in effects of local anesthetics in GSCs. Results: In this study, we identified a novel mechanism through which local anesthetics can damage the malignant phenotype of glioma. We found that local anesthetics prilocaine, lidocaine, procaine, and ropivacaine can impair the survival and self-renewal of GSCs, especially the classic glioblastoma subtype. These findings suggest that local anesthetics may weaken ZDHHC15 transcripts and decrease GP130 palmitoylation levels and membrane localization, thus inhibiting the activation of IL-6/STAT3 signaling. Conclusions: In conclusion, our work emphasizes that ZDHHC15 is a candidate therapeutic target, and local anesthetics are potential therapeutic options for glioblastoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to numerically investigate flow field and turbulent heat transfer of hybrid nanofluid, water–DWCNT–TiO2 in a two-dimensional rectangular channel with triangular and semicircular vortex generators with three different heights of 1, 2 and 3 mm. For numerically modeling this study, SIMPLEC algorithm was used. Therefore, initially, the geometry of channel and the grid points were generated, and then for solving the mathematical equations via finite volume method, ANSYS Fluent was used. The results indicate that with an increase in Reynolds number and volume fraction (φ) of nanoparticles, the average Nusselt number increases. Also, with an increase in the φ, the pressure loss in the channel increases. About the geometrical shape of the vortex generators, results indicate that with using the semicircular vortex generator, average Nusselt number is higher compared to that of triangular vortex generator. Also, by investigating the performance evaluation criteria of thermal–hydraulic, which is a criterion for comparing the positive effect of the Nusselt number increase with the negative effect of pressure drop, results indicate that this criterion is higher for the semicircular vortex generator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As one of the most promising alternatives to large wind turbines, twin-rotor floating wind turbines enables a significant reduction in the cost of power generation. An appropriate wake control strategy for twin-rotor floating wind turbines can contribute to the reduction of wake effect in wind farms. In the current study, aerodynamics and wake characteristics of twin-rotor floating wind turbine under four different yaw configurations are demonstrated. In detail, the variation of power and thrust of the twin-rotor at different yaw angles (0°, 5°, 10°, 15°, 20°, 30°) are analyzed, and the effect of the surge motion amplitude on the torque and thrust of twin-rotor in yaw are considered, and the wake dynamics under four different configurations are compared. The power gain of a twin-rotor floating wind turbine is about 5 % compared to a DTU 10 MW wind turbine at yaw angle of 15°. When the twin-rotor wind turbine is in wake channeling configuration, optimum wake recovery performance with the lowest level of turbulent kinetic energy is achieved. This study provides a scenario for optimizing the framework of floating wind farms. • A novel framework for optimizing floating wind farms is proposed. • Aerodynamic and wake interferences of a yawed twin-rotor OFWT are studied. • Wake interference between twin-rotor OFWT is investigated. • Four strategies for wake control are carefully evaluated. • A wake model based on a twin-rotor OFWT under yaw conditions is suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Smoke descent in tunnel fires was studied theoretically and numerically. • A theoretical model was developed to predict the smoke depth along the tunnel. • Critical moment and distance were used to characterize smoke descent phenomenon. The smoke stratification and the smoke descent along a tunnel are of the utmost importance for personnel evacuation. The paper investigates the smoke descent along a tunnel during a naturally ventilated tunnel fire. A theoretical model is developed to predict the smoke depth below the ceiling along the tunnel. A series of numerical simulations of full-scale tunnel fires are conducted to compare with the developed model, and some coefficients such as the entrainment coefficient are determined from the simulation results. The concepts of critical moment and critical distance are proposed to characterize the smoke descent along the tunnel. The results show that as the smoke spreads longitudinally, the smoke depth below the tunnel ceiling continuously increases. The temperature decay along the tunnel due to heat losses and air entrainment at the smoke layer interface is considered as the main parameter for the smoke descent. After the vitiated air returns back to the fire source, the smoke stratification in the entire tunnel will be significantly reduced. The smoke layer depth along the tunnel based on the temperature distribution is relatively stable in the process of smoke development, which is not sensitive to the HRR, but influenced by the tunnel width, and this method could only be used before the critical moment. The outcomes of this study could provide references for a better understanding of smoke movement in naturally ventilated tunnels and provide technical guidelines for fire safety designers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Through interface and defect engineering, the rich defective FeS 2 -SnS 2 heterogeneous nanoplates have been in-situ grown on poly(1-vinyl-3-ethylimidazole bromide) functionalized polypyrrole/graphene oxide (PVEIB/PPy/GO). The obtained FeS 2 -SnS 2 /PVEIB/PPy/GO exhibited the best electrocatalytic performance towards nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) and the lowest binding energy of Sn 3p, Sn 3d and S 2p orbitals among a series of electrocatalysts prepared by different modifier under the same reaction conditions. Therefore, PVEIB played an important role in the construction of FeS 2 -SnS 2 /PVEIB/PPy/GO, resulting in the rich planar defects at the heterointerface of FeS 2 -SnS 2 nanoplates, which was benefit to improve the nitrogen activation capacity. Otherwise, the irreversible phase transitions also occurred after FeS 2 -SnS 2 /PVEIB/PPy/GO suffering long term NRR test, eventually resulting in the deactivation of FeS 2 -SnS 2 /PVEIB/PPy/GO towards NRR. It will provide a theoretical basis and practical experience for the study of electrocatalyst deactivation based on metal sulfides. [Display omitted] • The rich-defect FeS 2 -SnS 2 heterostructures were immobilized on PVEIB/PPy/GO. • The catalysts prepared by different modifier presented diverse NRR electroactivities. • PVEIB were crucial for inducing the planar defects on FeS 2 -SnS 2 nanoplates. • Fe2+ might catalyze Sn4+ gradually converting to Sn0 during the NRR process. • The catalysts were deactivated by the occupation of active sites with N intermediates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deep clustering plays an important role in data analysis, and with the prevalence of graph data nowadays, various deep clustering models on graph are constantly proposed. However, due to the lack of more adequate clustering guidance, the discriminability of feature representation learned from these models for the clustering task is limited. Therefore, for the purpose of enabling the output of these models to be more cluster-oriented, we propose a Deep Clustering Optimization Method for Graph Neural Networks (DCOM-GNN), which can be attached to the original model architecture conveniently. For DCOM-GNN, it contains two components, one is the inter-cluster distance optimization module, whose role is to further adjust the distance between clusters of the original model output rationally. Another one is the intra-cluster distance optimization module, which aims to improve the cohesiveness of the original model output. Comprehensive experiments show that the performance of various deep clustering models on graph can be significantly improved after adding DCOM-GNN. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To solve the ash deposition problem caused by burning high‐calcium Zhundong coal (ZDC), the addition of vermiculite is a promising solution. However, complete mechanisms of vermiculite addition reducing ash deposition are still unknown. In this paper, the effect of vermiculite on sodium emission, ash fusion characteristics, and mineral transformation is investigated. The results show that although vermiculite, with limited Na capture capacity, lowers the ash fusion temperatures (AFTs), it can greatly reduce ash deposition. In the combustion of ZDC, calcium‐bearing minerals will react with clay minerals and then convert to molten glassy phase. Those molten minerals will take high melting point minerals, Ca2Al2SiO7 and CaMgSi2O6, as bone, showing slagging phenomenon with high AFTs. When vermiculite is introduced, the main reaction products are Ca2MgSi2O7 and Mg2SiO4 and that reduces the extent of molten minerals formation. The main ash product transforming from Ca2Al2SiO7 to Ca2MgSi2O7 leads to the decrease of AFTs. The initial ash deposition with Ca2Al2SiO7 still happens; however, vermiculite addition makes it hard for ash to grow on the existing ash deposit. The results of FactSage software agree with the experimental ones, and the proportion of slag decreases by 36% with vermiculite at 1250°C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Perimenopausal women are associated with increased risks of depression and anxiety, which may be potentially related to the lack of ovarian hormone with antidepression activity in the body. However, the precise mechanism remains unclear so far. This study first adopted the Sprague-Dawley (SD) female rats to construct the ovariectomy (OVX) combined with a chronic unpredictable stress (CUS) model. Then, a series of behavioral experimental results revealed that the ovariectomized rats receiving CUS had remarkably elevated anxiety and depression behaviors relative to those in sham group rats, and the sucrose preference rate in the sucrose preference test (SPT) was evidently reduced. In elevated plus maze test (EPM) experiment, the open arm entry time and open arm duration were decreased. In the open field test (OFT), the number of line crossings, rearing number, center square entries, and center square duration were reduced; the grooming time was extended; and the number of fecal particles in rats was increased. In the forced swimming test (FST), the rat immobility rate was increased, while the numbers of swimming and crawling were decreased. Afterwards, we discovered that OVX downregulated the serum levels of estradiol and corticosterone in rats. Thereafter, IF results suggested that OVX dramatically induced the increasing of the number of activated microglial cells in prefrontal cortices and the level of M1-type marker iNOS. Finally, PCR results demonstrated that, compared with the sham group, the proinflammatory and prooxidative genes, such as IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, iNOS, and CX3CR1, were upregulated in the prefrontal cortices of OVX rats after CUS stimulation, whereas the anti-inflammatory factor Arg1 and microglial cell negative regulatory factor CD200 were downregulated. To sum up, OVX enhances the CUS-mediated anxiety and depression phenomena in rats, and its mechanism may be related to inducing the activation and polarization of microglial cells in the prefrontal cortex of animal and to accelerating the inflammatory response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lung tissue resident memory (TRM) cells are thought to play crucial roles in lung host defense. We have recently shown that immunization with the adjuvant LTA1 (derived from the A1 domain of E. coli heat labile toxin) admixed with OmpX from K. pneumoniae can elicit antigen specific lung Th17 TRM cells that provide serotype independent immunity to members of the Enterobacteriaceae family. However, the upstream requirements to generate these cells are unclear. Single-cell RNA-seq showed that vaccine-elicited Th17 TRM cells expressed high levels of IL-1R1, suggesting that IL-1 family members may be critical to generate these cells. Using a combination of genetic and antibody neutralization approaches, we show that Th17 TRM cells can be generated independent of caspase-1 but are compromised when IL-1α is neutralized. Moreover IL-1α could serve as a molecular adjuvant to generate lung Th17 TRM cells independent of LTA1. Taken together, these data suggest that IL-1α plays a major role in vaccine-mediated lung Th17 TRM generation. A study in mice to identify mechanisms through which a mucosal Klebsiella pneumoniae vaccine elicits Th17 tissue resident memory cells in the lungs reveals a major role for IL-1a signaling and highlights the utility of IL-1a as a mucosal adjuvant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High performance wide bandgap perovskite solar cells (WB-PSCs) have found widespread applications in tandem solar cells. In WB-PSCs, achieving a high conversion efficiency relies on the effective utilization of light absorption and minimization of electronic defects. In this work, electronic defects at the surface and grain boundaries of perovskite materials have been passivated by n-butylammonium bromide (BABr) to suppress carrier non-radiative recombination. Confirmed through x-ray powder diffraction and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy spectra, ultra-thin two-dimensional (2D) perovskite layers were successfully generated on a perovskite surface. The BABr-treated devices exhibited an increased fill factor and open circuit voltage (VOC) compared to the references. Furthermore, a nanotextured electrode with a roughness of 22.98 nm was employed to trap light. The nanotextured buried interface not only promoted light utilization but also alleviated residual stress and micro-strain in the perovskite film compared to the smooth substrate. Finally, the champion WB-PSC achieved a power conversion efficiency of 20.46% in the reverse scan. These findings pave a promising path for the development of solution-processed perovskite films on nanotextured silicon substrates to improve the performance of monolithic tandem solar cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Laser powder bed fusion (L -PBF) technique, as the mainstream technology in metal additive manufacturing, enables the fabrication of aluminum alloys and their composite components with high precision and design freedom, thereby advancing structural lightweighting in various application domains, such as aerospace and transportation. Nevertheless, aluminum powders present challenges including high laser reflectivity, high thermal conductivity, low melting point, and susceptibility to oxidation. Consequently, defects such as pores, solidification cracks, orientation anisotropy, and surface roughness commonly exist in L -PBFed aluminum alloy and composite parts. These defects severely compromise the mechanical performance and dimensional accuracy of L -PBFed parts. Thus, extensive research efforts have been focused on defect control in the L -PBFed aluminum alloys and their composites. However, a systematic summary and in-depth analysis of the formation mechanism and controlling strategy of various defects is still absent, which is the key to develop high performance aluminum alloys and their composites via L -PBF. In this review, a thorough analysis and summary of the causes of defects are provided, followed by an in-depth analysis and conclusion of defect control strategies and mechanism in L -PBF. Furthermore, we also present an outlook on the challenges and research opportunities in L -PBFed aluminum alloys and their composites in the last section, which we hope could inspire more new development of high-performance aluminum alloys and their composites via L -PBF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deep and wide Convolutional neural networks (CNNs) achieve remarkable performance on image super-resolution (SR), while it is hard to be directly applied on edge devices due to the strict requirements on data transmission and processing. Therefore, numerous lightweight SR methods have been proposed. However, these methods often come with compromises on the reconstruction performance or speed due to the weak reconstruction supervision provided by shallow networks. Aiming to alleviate the above limitation, we introduce a self-calibration network (SCN) equipped with a hierarchical self-calibration module for fast and accurate image SR. Specially, we design a lightweight internal calibration module (ICM) to enable the network to economically focus on the key information by collaboratively refining the weights in both channel and spatial dimensions; and an efficient external calibration module (ECM) to focus on calibrating the prominent error of knowledge learned from the network on Low-Resolution (LR) data for saving computing resources. We experimentally demonstrate the synergy among the two modules guides to a superior SR performance against the state-of-the-art lightweight methods while requiring much fewer parameters and operations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have extensively examined the role of high-speed railways in economic growth from the view of economic geography but have largely overlooked their contribution as technological progress to wages and private savings. This study aims to fill this gap by analysing the association between high-speed rail, wages and private deposits in 284 Chinese prefectural-level cities from 2003 to 2018. Utilizing a difference-in-difference method and conducting robustness tests, we examine three potential mechanism channels in this association. Our findings reveal that the introduction of high-speed rail new stations has significantly boosted wage levels through employment effects and financial development effects. However, the opening of the new stations has led to a decrease in private savings. This can be attributed to the marginal absorption of increased wages by higher consumption levels facilitated by high-speed rail development. Additionally, high-speed rail development stimulates private capital investments growth in financial markets. In essence, the technological progress represented by high-speed rail alters residents' traditional investment behavior. Our finding suggests strong heterogeneity across regions and significant siphon effects across cities. This paper offers insights into the balanced development of wages and private deposits in China, highlighting the implications of high-speed rail for economic dynamics in the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's High-Speed Railways (HSR) network is the biggest in the world, transporting large numbers of passengers by high-speed trains through urban networks. Little is known about the analytical meaning of the use of two types of flow data, namely, time schedule (transportation mode flow) and passenger flow data, to characterise the configuration of urban networks regarding the potential spatial effects of HSR networks on urban networks. In this article, we compare HSR passenger flow data with time schedule data from 2013 in China within the same analytical framework. The findings show great differences in the strength of cities and links generated using the two different types of flow data. These differences can be explained largely by the socio-economic attributes of the cities involved, such as tertiary employment, GDP per capita, the cities' topological properties (closeness centrality) in HSR networks and institutional factors (hub status), especially for the difference in link strength. The strength of first-tier cities in China with high socio-economic performance and the HSR links connecting core cites and major cities within respective regions tends to be underestimated when using time schedule flows compared with passenger flows. When analysing the spatial structure of HSR and urban networks by means of flows, it is important for urban geographers and transportation planners to consider the meaning of the different types of data with the analytical results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: T helper type 17 (Th17) cells and regulatory T (Treg) cells are two distinct T‐cell subsets with opposite effects on immune functions. While Th17 cells are a key effector in the immune response and play critical roles in the development of autoimmunity and inflammation, Treg cells orchestrate the overall immune response and maintain peripheral immune tolerance by regulating the activity of the effector T cells. However, the developmental pathways for Th17 and Treg cells are reciprocally interconnected and there is a significant amount of plasticity between them. Disturbed Th17/Treg balance contributes to the development of autoimmune diseases, like experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis and multiple sclerosis. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non‐coding RNA molecules that post‐transcriptionally regulate gene expression. Recently, emerging evidence demonstrates that miRNAs play an important role in regulating the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases through the modulation of Th17/Treg balance. This review will provide an overview of the dysregulated miRNAs and their functions in modulating the Th17/Treg balance in autoimmune diseases. Th17/Treg balance is critical for immune homeostasis and its dysregulation leads to autoimmune disease. MicroRNAs are small non‐coding RNA molecules that post‐transcriptionally regulate gene expression. Emerging evidence demonstrates that microRNAs play an important role in modulating Th17/Treg balance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zhundong coal, rich in the Alkali and Alkaline Earth Metal elements, causes severe ash deposition during the combustion in many power plants. In this paper, the influence of vermiculite, as an additive, on ash deposition formation and the corrosion phenomenon caused by ash deposition are investigated in a drop tube furnace system. The formation process of ash deposition under real working condition can be simulated in this furnace system. The results show that vermiculite has a significant inhibition effect on the formation and growing process of ash deposition, as well as the corrosion phenomenon. At the beginning of ash deposition, the swelling vermiculite can effectively absorb the SO 2 in the flue gas, which restrains the formation of Na 2 SO 4 in the inner ash, close to the surface of heat exchangers. The mineral in internal inner ash gets changed and the phenomenon of corrosion on the heat exchangers surface gets alleviated. Meanwhile, the external inner ash presents with loose structure instead of the molten condition, which lowers possibility for ash deposition to grow. In outer ash deposition, close to the flue gas, the content of layered particles with high melting point, as Mg 2 SiO 4 , increases and viscous particles, like Ca 2 Al 2 SiO 7 , are separated from each other by the force of the vermiculite swelling. As a result, adding vermiculite makes it hard for ash deposition to form and grow. According to the experiments, with more than 5% blending ratio of vermiculite, the vermiculite additive has a positive effect on restricting the ash deposition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The High-speed Railway (HSR) network in China is the largest in the world, competing intensively with airlines for inter-city travel. Panel data from 2007 to 2013 for 138 routes with HSR-air competition were used to identify the ex-post impacts of the entry of HSR services, the duration of operating HSR services since entry, and the specific impacts of HSR transportation variables such as travel time, frequency, and ticket fares on air passenger flows in China. The findings show that the entry of new HSR services in general leads to a 27% reduction in air travel demand. After two years of operating HSR services, however, the negative impact of HSR services on air passenger flows tends to further increase. The variations of the frequency in the temporal dimension and the travel time in the spatial dimension significantly affect air passenger flows. Neither in the temporal nor spatial dimensions are HSR fares strongly related to air passenger flows in China, due to the government regulation of HSR ticket prices during the period of analysis. The impacts of different transportation variables found in this paper are valuable to consider by operational HSR companies in terms of scheduling and planning of new routes to increase their competitiveness relative to airlines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the Chinese high-speed railway (HSR) entered the transportation market at a late stage in 2003, its networks have become the world's largest and are currently even growing faster than airline networks. Using the 2013 origin/destination (O/D) passenger flow data instead of commonly used scheduled data, we compare the spatial configurations of the Chinese national urban system in both high-speed railway and airline networks. The results show that HSR-dominant cities and links are located mainly in the middle and eastern parts of China, offering regional connections, whereas air-dominant cities and links are evenly distributed across the whole of China and predominantly offer interregional connections. This is mainly because HSR networks are more focused on connections to cities with high socio-economic performance and are more restricted by the geographical distance between linked cities than the airline networks. Furthermore, HSR networks promote agglomeration economies within cities located along the trunk lines in specific regions, whereas airline networks contribute to more balanced urban development in China. These dimensions indicate that the configuration of urban systems in HSR networks differ largely from that of air networks when measured in terms of passenger flows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The high speed railway (HSR) has played a crucial role in the regional integration of urban networks in China. This paper analyses HSR passenger flows instead of commonly‐used time schedules for measuring different polycentricity in urban networks. Using 2013 origin/destination (O/D) passenger flow data, we analyse the spatial configurations of 99 HSR cities at the national scale in China. In addition, we compare the spatial configurations of three regional urban networks: the Pearl River Delta, the Yangzi River Delta and the Bohai Rim. The outcomes show that the three functional regions connected by HSR are the most dominant polycentric regions in China and that the Bohai Rim is less hierarchical than the other two. We conclude that the comprehensive Chinese HSR networks are largely polycentric, especially in the central and eastern regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The memory effect of metastable β form crystals of trans-1,4-polyisoprene (TPI) is investigated with its thermodynamically stable α-TPI as reference. Unexpectedly, β-TPI exhibits a stronger memory effect over α-TPI. The memory temperature of β-TPI can be 20 °C higher than its equilibrium melting point (78 °C), while α-TPI has lost memory below the equilibrium melting point (87 °C). Moreover, the ordered structures in β-TPI memorized melt accelerate spherulite growth, and the growth rate depends on melting time, similar to previous mesomorphic isotactic polypropylene studies, implying metastable phase may have universal memory effects: wide memory temperature range, crystal nucleation and growth accelerating. The higher memory temperature of metastable phase may be from weak entropic difference with isotropic melt, which cannot overcome the barrier from entanglements as thermodynamically stable phase, leading to slow relaxation. This discovery can regulate crystalline morphologies of polymers by controlling the locations of different form crystals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To explore a fast and accurate image superresolution (SR) algorithm for real-world scenarios, information distillation is used to compress the number of feature channels, which has become one of the most commonly used tools in the field of lightweight image SR. However, existing information distillation-based image SR methods simply distill the first (distilled rate) channels in which many channels with unique features, i.e., low-redundancy features, are distilled as well. Hence, these methods lead to suboptimal SR performance since low-redundancy features are indispensable for image SR reconstruction. To alleviate this issue, this paper proposes a feature similarity ranking algorithm, which sorts the extracted feature channels according to the degree of channel redundancy. Then, it utilizes the ranked information distillation block (RIDB) for distilling high-redundancy features. In addition, considering that feature channels have already been sorted in the channel dimension, it involves a gated nonlocal attention module (GNLM) to capture the long-distance feature correlation in the spatial dimension. GNLM greatly reduces the computational consumption through the partitioned nonlocal module as well as the gate unit for evaluating the importance of each module, which is more suitable for lightweight image SR. Extensive experiments demonstrate that the proposed method performs favorably in terms of SR performance compared with not only information distillation-based image SR methods but also other state-of-the-art lightweight SR methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This manuscript describes the preparation of dabigatran derivatives and their inhibitory potentials toward human thrombin. Among the tested compounds, 7c , 7k , 7m and 7o , with IC 50 values of 1.54, 0.84, 1.18 and 1.42 nM, exhibited comparable inhibitory activity to dabigatran (IC 50 = 1.20 nM). The in vivo anti-thrombotic activity of compounds 7c and 7o in SD rats was studied. Results showed that intravenously administering the two compounds significantly inhibited the growth of thrombus with an inhibition rate of (84.24 ± 1.53)% and (84.57 ± 0.45)%, which were comparable to that of dabigatran (85.07 ± 0.61)%. Furthermore, the docking simulation of active compounds ( 7k and 7m ) provided a potential binding model. Results indicated that these compounds could be further investigated to determine their anticoagulant activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Supervillin is an actin-associated protein that regulates actin dynamics by interacting with Myosin II, F-actin, and Cortactin to promote cell contractility and cell motility. Two splicing variants of human Supervillin (SV1 and SV4) have been reported in non-muscle cells; SV1 lacks 3 exons present in the larger isoform SV4. SV2, also called archvillin, is present in striated muscle; SV3, also called smooth muscle archvillin or SmAV, was cloned from smooth muscle. In the present study, we identify a novel splicing variant of Supervillin (SV5). SV5 contains a new splicing pattern. In the mouse tissues and cell lines examined, SV5 was predominantly expressed in skeletal and cardiac muscles and in proliferating cells, but was virtually undetectable in most normal tissues. Using RNAi and rescue experiments, we show here that SV5 displays altered functional properties in cancer cells, and regulates cell proliferation and cell migration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acetic acid bacteria (AAB) are a group of gram-negative, obligate aerobic bacteria within the Acetobacteraceae family of the alphaproteobacteria class, which are distributed in a wide variety of different natural sources that are rich in sugar and alcohols, as well as in several traditionally fermented foods. Their versatile capabilities are not limited to producing acetic acid and brewing vinegar, as their names suggest. They can also be used for fixing nitrogen, yielding pigments and exopolysaccharides (EPS), and most typically, producing a variety of aldehydes, ketones and other organic acids from the incomplete oxidation of the corresponding alcohols and/or sugars (also referred to as oxidative fermentation). In order to gain more insight into these organisms, molecular biology techniques have been extensively applied in almost all aspects of AAB research, including their identification and classification, acid resistance mechanisms, oxidative fermentation, EPS production, thermotolerance and so on. In this review, we mainly focus on the application of molecular biological technologies in the advancement of research into AAB while presenting the progress of the latest studies using these techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, organic–inorganic hybrid perovskite (PVK) devices have attracted widespread attention with their high absorption coefficient and low-cost fabrication process. Formamidinium lead iodide (FAPbI3) perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have been reported to obtain high power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) due to the narrow bandgap. Zinc oxide (ZnO) has better electrical conductivity and high transmittance than tin (IV) dioxide (SnO2). However, the deprotonation behavior of ZnO limits its use in formamidinium (FA) or methylammonium (MA) devices, so it is mostly used in all-inorganic PSCs. In this work, to avoid the deprotonation behavior of ZnO, we prepared FAPbI3 PSCs using ZnO/SnO2 as bilayer electron transporting layers (ETLs), which improved the conductivity of the ETLs and promoted electron extraction and transfer. In addition, the decrease in the oxygen vacancy (Ov) on the bilayer ETLs contributed to the suppression of the non-radiative recombination of the device, thus enabling the achievement of a higher fill factor. As a result, the modified ETLs increased the PCE of FAPbI3 PSCs from 20.24% to 21.42% and improved the stability of the devices. The PCE of unpackaged devices increased steadily to 21.91% when stored in an N2 atmosphere for 183 days. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To design superior thermoelectricmaterials the minority carrierblocking effect in which the unwanted bipolar transport is preventedby the interfacial energy barriers in the heterogeneous nanostructureshas been theoretically proposed recently. The theory predicts an enhancedpower factor and a reduced bipolar thermal conductivity for materialswith a relatively low doping level, which could lead to an improvementin the thermoelectric figure of merit (ZT). Here we show the firstexperimental demonstration of the minority carrier blocking in leadtelluride–silver telluride (PbTe–Ag2Te) nanowireheterostructure-based nanocomposites. The nanocomposites are madeby sintering PbTe–Ag2Te nanowire heterostructuresproduced in a highly scalable solution-phase synthesis. Compared withAg2Te nanowire-based nanocomposite produced in similarmethod, the PbTe–Ag2Te nanocomposite containing∼5 atomic % PbTe exhibits enhanced Seebeck coefficient, reducedthermal conductivity, and ∼40% improved ZT, which can be wellexplained by the theoretical modeling based on the Boltzmann transportequations when energy barriers for both electrons and holes at theheterostructure interfaces are considered in the calculations. Forthis p-type PbTe–Ag2Te nanocomposite, the barriersfor electrons, that is, minority carriers, are primarily responsiblefor the ZT enhancement. By extending this approach to other nanostructuredsystems, it represents a key step toward low-cost solution-processablenanomaterials without heavy doping level for high-performance thermoelectricenergy harvesting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inthis article, we demonstrated that composition modulation ofAg2Te nanowires can be achieved during the self-templatedtransformation of Te nanowires into Ag2Te nanowires duringsolution phase synthesis, which provides a mean to tune the carrierdensity of the Ag2Te nanowires. Both nearly stoichiometricand Ag-rich nanowires have been synthesized, which give rise to p-typeand n-type Ag2Te nanocomposites after hot press, respectively.The electrical and thermal properties of the two kinds of sampleshave been measured. Theoretical modeling based on the near-equilibriumBoltzmann transport equations has been used to understand the experimentalresults. We found that ZT of the heavily doped n-type sample reaches0.55 at 400 K, which is the highest ZT value reported for Ag2Te at the same temperature mainly due to the reduced thermal conductivityby the nanostructures. Theoretical analysis on the carrier transportshows that the power factor is also very well optimized in the dopedAg2Te sample considering the reduced carrier mobility bythe nanostructures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Reformatsky reagent, benzylzinc bromide or alkylzinc iodides react with aryl isocyanates directly to give corresponding N-substituted carbamates under mild reaction conditions. However, the reaction of allylzinc bromide or propargylzinc bromide with aryl isocyanates produces the corresponding N-substituted amides. The reactions provide alternative methods for the synthesis of N-substituted carbamates or amides. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Recent efforts on the development of nanostructured thermoelectric materials from nanowires (Boukai, A. I.; et al. Nature2008, 451, (7175), 168–171; Hochbaum, A. I.; et al. Nature2008, 451, (7175), 163–167) and nanocrystals (Kim, W.; et al. Phys. Rev. Lett.2006, 96, (4), 045901; Poudel, B.; et al. Science2008, 320, (5876), 634-638; Scheele, M.; et al. Adv. Funct. Mater.2009, 19, (21), 3476–3483; Wang, R. Y.; et al. Nano Lett.2008, 8, (8), 2283–2288) show the comparable or superior performance to the bulk crystals possessing the same chemical compositions because of the dramatically reduced thermal conductivity due to phonon scattering at nanoscale surface and interface. Up to date, the majority of the thermoelectric devices made from these inorganic nanostructures are fabricated into rigid configuration. The explorations of truly flexible composite-based flexible thermoelectric devices (See, K. C.; et al. Nano Lett.2010, 10, (11), 4664–4667) have thus far achieved much less progress, which in principle could significantly benefit the conversion of waste heat into electricity or the solid-state cooling by applying the devices to any kind of objects with any kind of shapes. Here we report an example using a scalable solution-phase deposition method to coat thermoelectric nanocrystals onto the surface of flexible glass fibers. Our investigation of the thermoelectric properties yields high performance comparable to the state of the art from the bulk crystals and proof-of-concept demonstration also suggests the potential of wrapping the thermoelectric fibers on the industrial pipes to improve the energy efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• BP-ANN is introduced to assess the slagging tendency of steam coals. • Coal properties are introduced as factors to modify BP-ANN slagging prediction. • BP-ANN has a better accuracy and applicability than conventional slagging indexes. • Algorithms, setup and factors selection might further improve BP-ANN performance. Conventional ash-component-based slagging indices and ash fusion temperatures (AFTs) successfully predict the slagging behavior of steam coals. However, these methods fail to tell the ZDc slagging potential accurately. In this paper, a back propagation artificial neural network (BP-ANN) is proposed to predict the slagging potential for both ZDc and other steam coals. Python is used for the training, verification and test of the BP-ANN. In training and verification, 12 ZDc, 2 lignite, 3 blend coal samples are analyzed and other 63 coals are collected as data. The result shows that the accuracy rate of the network based on ash components is 62.5%, close to the value of conventional slagging indices. It can only predict the slagging potential of certain coals. In contrast, modifying the network with coal properties can greatly increase the accuracy rate to 87.5%. The verification results of 14 samples are completely consistent with the actual slagging behavior, and that of 2 samples shows the slagging tendency. After that, 30 samples are collected from other papers for test. The results of 25 samples are completely consistent with the actual slagging behavior and that of 3 samples shows the slagging tendency, only 2 samples telling the wrong results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although many studies have confirmed the effects of the built environment on adiposity outcomes in the general population, evidence for young adults is scarce. Furthermore, most prior studies are prone to residential self-selection bias due to the nature of cross-sectional research design, which makes the built environment–adiposity relationship spurious. In this study, we explored the associations between the built environment and three objectively measured adiposity outcomes for a large representative sample of 20,227 undergraduate students from 89 university campuses in China. The adiposity outcomes were measured by body mass index (BMI), waist circumstance (WC), and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR). The residential self-selection bias was largely mitigated because these students are required to live in campus dormitories. As shown by multilevel models, street connectivity, population density, and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) within and around the campus environment were negatively associated with the odds of adiposity to different extents. Furthermore, the adiposity outcomes of male and low cost-of-living undergraduates were more likely to be affected by built environment characteristics compared to female and high cost-of-living undergraduates. Hence, to deliver effective environment interventions to curb the prevalence of adiposity among undergraduate students, policymakers and university managers are advised to create a more carefully conceived campus environment. • First nationwide study exploring the link between built environment and adiposity outcomes for undergraduate students. • Three adiposity outcomes were objectively measured by professionals for 20,227 undergraduate students throughout China. • The residential self-selection bias is largely mitigated because these students were required to live in campus dormitories. • Street connectivity, population density, and NDVI within and around campuses were negatively associated with adiposity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Different from vehicle engines, Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) inactivation is an unavoidable issue for low-speed marine diesel engines fueled with Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO). This paper introduced a sulfur resisting material in Silicon Carbide (SiC)-DPF to improve DPF performance. The results of bench-scale experiments showed that the Balance Point Temperature of the modified DPF module was 300°C and DPF modules had a good filtration performance, with Particulate Matters (PMs) residual being less than 0.6 g per cycle. In pilot-scale tests, PMs emissions of unit power decreased with engine load going up, filtration efficiency of nucleation mode PMs being only 36% under 100% load, while DPF still had a good performance in accumulation mode PMs control, being 94.2% under the same load. DPF modules showed excellent regeneration durability in the 205h endurance test, with a regeneration period of 1.5-2h under 380°C. There was no obvious degeneration in the DPF module structure, with no cracks or breakage. Besides, the DPF module could also control gaseous emissions, total emissions decreased by 10.53% for NO and 57.19% for CO, respectively. The results suggested that introducing sulfur-resisting material in DPF could greatly improve the DPF performance of low-speed marine diesel engines fueled with HFO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, efficient two‐color (blue and yellow) hybrid white organic light‐emitting diodes (WOLEDs) with high efficiencies are constructed by introducing iridium(III) bis(4,6‐(difluorophenyl) pyridinato‐N,C2’)picolinate (FIrpic) as electron sensitizer. Experimental results demonstrate that FIrpic with the deep lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) level enables preferential electron trapping to collect excessive electrons, thus realizing carrier's balance and high recombination probability. The obtained cool WOLED exhibits the maximum external quantum efficiency (EQE), current efficiency (ηc), and power efficiency (ηp) of 31.05%, 76.36 cd A−1 and 69.92 lm W−1, respectively. Moreover, by gradient doping FIrpic into yellow EML, the generated forward built‐in electric field originating from gradient electrons distribution reduces carriers transport resistance and improves the transport of holes; the diffusion effect of gradient electrons distribution promotes electrons’ transport, thus enhancing the utilization probabilities of carriers and excitons. Besides, FIrpic acts also as an energy transfer ladder to facilitate the energy transfer from host to yellow emitter. Consequently, warm WOLED with enhanced yellow emission achieves the maximum EQE, ηc, and ηp of 33.27%, 75.66 cd A−1 and 88.04 lm W−1, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Selective catalytic reduction by methanol (Methanol-SCR) on FER zeolite is a promising technology for the deNOx treatment of flue gas with a high concentration of sulfur. However, the resistance to alkali metal and sulfate ions is crucial for the practical application of Methanol-SCR catalysts. In this study, we investigated the poisoning mechanism of H-FER zeolite by K+ and sulfate ions. It was observed that K+ ions induce deactivation at high temperatures, whereas the decline at low temperatures (< 320 °C) can be attributed mainly to sulfate ions. Furthermore, surface modification of H-FER zeolite with metal oxide nanoparticles, such as alumina, has proved to be an effective method for improving its potassium sulfate resistance performance by preventing the diffusion of sulfate into zeolite pores. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]