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In this paper, the difference method with intrinsic parallelism is studied in order to meet the needs of quickly solving the variable-coefficient compound KdV-Burgers equation. The classical Crank-Nicolson (C-N) scheme is segmented on the basis of the alternating segment difference technique. And four different types of Saul'yev asymmetric schemes are alternately used at the segment points. Then we obtain the alternating segment Crank-Nicolson (ASC-N) difference scheme for the variable-coefficient compound KdV-Burgers equation. Theoretical analyses prove the existence and uniqueness of solution to ASC-N scheme, the linear absolute stability and the second-order convergence in time and space. Numerical experiments show that when the computational accuracy of the ASC-N scheme is similar to that of the C-N scheme, the computational efficiency of the ASC-N scheme is significantly higher than that of the C-N scheme. It shows that the difference method with intrinsic parallelism in this paper can effectively solve the variable-coefficient compound KdV-Burgers equation.

This paper proposes a new class of difference methods with intrinsic parallelism for solving the Burgers–Fisher equation. A new class of parallel difference schemes of pure alternating segment explicit-implicit (PASE-I) and pure alternating segment implicit-explicit (PASI-E) are constructed by taking simple classical explicit and implicit schemes, combined with the alternating segment technique. The existence, uniqueness, linear absolute stability, and convergence for the solutions of PASE-I and PASI-E schemes are well illustrated. Both theoretical analysis and numerical experiments show that PASE-I and PASI-E schemes are linearly absolute stable, with 2-order time accuracy and 2-order spatial accuracy. Compared with the implicit scheme and the Crank–Nicolson (C-N) scheme, the computational efficiency of the PASE-I (PASI-E) scheme is greatly improved. The PASE-I and PASI-E schemes have obvious parallel computing properties, which show that the difference methods with intrinsic parallelism in this paper are feasible to solve the Burgers–Fisher equation.

To mitigate the environmental impact induced by CO2 emissions and nonrenewable resource consumption, which are typically associated with Portland cement production, ground granulated blast furnace slags (GGBSs) are usually added to the cement. In this study, the stabilisation effect of alkali-activated GGBS on saline soil and the hydration products of alkali-activated GGBS were investigated by unconfined compressive strength tests and scanning electron microscopy, respectively. The results show that Ca(OH)2 and NaOH as alkaline activators for GGBS significantly improve the unconfined compressive strength of saline soils. This strength is also enhanced by Na2SO4; however, the increase is considerably less than that provided by Ca(OH)2 and NaOH. In contrast, Na2CO3 is not a suitable alkaline activator for GGBS and has no significant effect on the unconfined compressive strength of saline soils. The study results further show that the morphology of hydration products varies because of the different alkaline activators involved in the hydration reaction with GGBS in saline soils.

In order to study the influence of wind shear on the aerodynamic characteristics of large wind turbines, taking the 5MW wind turbine blade model published by NREL as the research object, large eddy simulation (LES) of wind turbines was carried out by using XFlow fluid simulation software based on Lattice-Boltzmann method (LBM). WALE turbulence model was used to study wind shear at 3, 11.2 and 25m/s wind speeds. The effect of factors on the axial thrust and torque of wind turbines is compared with the data published by NREL. The results show that the XFlow software based on LBM and LES method has good capturing ability for the eddy wake of wind turbine; wind shear causes the airfoil section of each section of blade to deviate from the best designed attack angle in theory and results in a decrease in torque applied to the wind turbine.

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a worldwide health crisis. Rapid diagnosis, new therapeutics and effective vaccines will all be required to stop the spread of COVID-19. Quantitative evaluation of serum antibody levels against the SARS-CoV-2 virus provides a means of monitoring a patient’s immune response to a natural viral infection or vaccination, as well as evidence of a prior infection. In this paper, a portable and low-cost electrochemical immunosensor is developed for the rapid and accurate quantification of SARS-CoV-2 serum antibodies. The immunosensor is capable of quantifying the concentrations of immunoglobulin G (IgG) and immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in human serum. For IgG and IgM, it provides measurements in the range of 10.1 ng/mL − 60 µg/mL and 1.64 ng/mL − 50 µg/mL, respectively, and both antibodies can be assayed in 13 min. We also developed device stabilization and storage strategies to achieve stable performance of the immunosensor within 24-week storage at room temperature. We evaluated the performance of the immunosensor using COVID-19 patient serum samples collected at different time points after symptom onset. The rapid and sensitive detection of IgG and IgM provided by our immunosensor fulfills the need of rapid COVID-19 serology testing for both point-of-care diagnosis and population immunity screening.

Mechanically deforming biological cells through microfluidic constrictions is a recently introduced technique for the intracellular delivery of macromolecules possibly through transient membrane pores induced in the process. The technique is attractive for research and clinical applications mainly because it is simple, fast, and effective while being free of adverse effects often associated with well-known techniques that rely on field- or vector-based delivery. In this nascent approach, an utmost and crucial role is played by the constriction, often in rectangular profile, and it squeezes cells only in one dimension. The results achieved suggest that the longer the constriction is the higher the delivery performance. Contrary to this view, we demonstrate here a unique constriction profile that is highly localized (point) and yet returns comparably effective delivery. Point constrictions are of a semiround geometry, forcing cells in both dimensions while introducing very little backpressure to the system, which is a silicon-glass platform wherein constrictions are arranged in series along an array of channels. The influence of the constriction size and count as well as treatment pressure on delivery performance is presented on the basis of the flow-cytometric analyses of HCT116 cells treated using dextran as model molecules. Delivery performance is also presented for common mammalian cell lines including NIH 3T3, HEK293, and MDCK. Moreover, the versatility of the platform is demonstrated in gene knockdown experiments using synthetic siRNA as well as on the delivery of proteins. Target proteins in some cells exhibit nondiffusive distribution profile raising the plausibility of mechanisms other than transient membrane pores.

More and more solar-powered devices are installed on roofs, and wind load is its structural design control load. Therefore, roof wind field condition is considered to be the most important prerequisite in studies of wind load on structures. In this study, wind tunnel testing was carried out to observe the roof wind field characteristics of a multistorey building. The change rule and characteristics of the multistorey building roof wind field, under different wind directions were studied, and the roof wind field and ground wind field were then compared. The analysis showed that the closer to the roof, the greater the roof wind field effect on the building. When the distance from the roof Z ≥ 9 m, it appears that changes in roof wind speed and turbulence intensity are not affected by the building. When the height from roof Z ≤ 5 m, a turbulence intensity enlargement ratio Δ S I of 0.1–0.3 is recommended. For practical application, a speed-up ratio of the mean wind speed Δ S V of 0.9 is recommended.

The rectification of ion transport through biological ion channels has attracted much attention and inspired the thriving invention and applications of ionic diodes. However, the development of high-performance ionic diodes is still challenging, and the working mechanisms of ionic diodes constructed by 1D ionic nanochannels have not been fully understood. This work reports the systematic investigation of the design and mechanism of a new type of ionic diode constructed from horizontally aligned multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with oppositely charged polyelectrolytes decorated at their two entrances. The major design and working parameters of the MWCNT-based ionic diode, including the ion channel size, the driven voltage, the properties of working fluids, and the quantity and length of charge modification, are extensively investigated through numerical simulations and/or experiments. An optimized ionic current rectification (ICR) ratio of 1481.5 is experimentally achieved on the MWCNT-based ionic diode. These results promise potential applications of the MWCNT-based ionic diode in biosensing and biocomputing. As a proof-of-concept, DNA detection and HIV-1 diagnosis is demonstrated on the ionic diode. This work provides a comprehensive understanding of the working principle of the MWCNT-based ionic diodes and will allow rational device design and optimization.

Controlled ion transport through ion channels of cell membranes regulates signal transduction processes in biological systems and has also inspired the thriving development of ionic electronics (ionotronics or iontronics) and biocomputing. However, for constructing highly integrated ionic electronic circuits, the integration of natural membrane‐spanning ion channel proteins or artificial nanomembrane‐based ionic diodes into planar chips is still challenging due to the vertically arranged architecture of conventional nanomembrane‐based artificial ionic diodes. Here, a new design of ionic diode is reported, which allows chip‐scale integration of ionotronics, based on horizontally aligned nanochannels made from multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). The rectification of ion transport through the MWCNT nanochannels is enabled by decoration of oppositely charged polyelectrolytes on the channel entrances. Advanced ionic electronic circuits including ionic logic gates, ionic current rectifiers, and ionic bipolar junction transistors (IBJT) are demonstrated on planar nanofluidic chips by stacking a series of ionic diodes fabricated from the same bundles of MWCNTs. The horizontal arrangement and facile chip‐scale fabrication of the MWCNT ionic diodes may enable new designs of complex but monolithic ionotronic systems. The MWCNT ionic diode may also prove to be an excellent platform for investigation of electrokinetic ion transport in 1D carbon materials.