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The invasive golden apple snail Pomacea canaliculata has a strong reproductive capacity and has rapidly spread in Asian countries. Current control methods include physical, chemical, and biological approaches, but there has been limited research on the control of P. canaliculata in its different life stages. This study assessed the effectiveness of using giant river prawns Macrobrachium rosenbergii in controlling juveniles of P. canaliculata through a controlled indoor experiment. The density, size, and dispersal range of recently hatched juvenile snails were significantly lower among those kept with prawns than those kept without prawns, indicating a control effect of M. rosenbergii at least on P. canaliculata juveniles. Furthermore, the study speculates on the potential application of M. rosenbergii in the context of a rice–prawn symbiotic system of ecological farming to control invasive P. canaliculata. In terms of effectiveness and safety, its application might lead to a win-win situation for both rice-farm profits and the ecological benefits of invasive species control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quality-related prediction in the continuous-casting process is important for the quality and process control of casting slabs. As intelligent manufacturing technologies continue to evolve, numerous data-driven techniques have been available for industrial applications. This case study was aimed at developing a machine-learning algorithm, capable of predicting slag inclusion defects in continuous-casting slabs, based on process condition sensor data. A large dataset consisting of sensor data from nearly 7300 casting samples has been analyzed, with the empirical mode decomposition (EMD) algorithm utilized to process the multi-modal time series. The following machine-learning algorithms have been examined: K-Nearest neighbors, support vector classifier (linear and nonlinear kernels), decision trees, random forests, AdaBoost, and Artificial Neural Networks. Four over-sampling or under-sampling algorithms have been adopted to solve imbalanced data distribution. In the experiment, the optimized random forest outperformed other machine-learning algorithms in terms of recall and ROC AUC, which could provide valuable insights for quality control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the change of climate issues and the needs of economic development, the idea of practicing green and low-carbon behaviors sinks deeper and deeper into people's hearts. This paper based on the social cost of carbon (SCC) model, this paper constructs a new carbon social cost model by adding the impact of green low-carbon behavior. Classify climate states, based on Bayesian statistical knowledge, study the posterior probability distribution of climate state transitions, and discuss the optimal carbon policy for different climate states by balancing emission utility costs and utility weighted carbon marginal products. This article also discusses the damage caused by rising temperatures and explores their impact on carbon price policies. then, the paper calculates SCC under four kinds of climate states, which will be visually displayed with graphs. Finally, we compare SCC obtained in this paper with that in other researches. The results show that: (1) Climate status has a significant impact on carbon policy, and carbon price predictions will dynamically change with climate status. (2) Green low-carbon behavior has a positive impact on climate status. (3) There are differences in the impact of the three types of damage caused by rising temperatures on carbon price policies. (4) Green development is conducive to stabilizing the value of SCC. (5) Close monitoring of the climate state helps to update the probability of damage in time so that we can precisely adjust the corresponding policies on SCC. This study provides theoretical and empirical reference for the government to formulate carbon price policies and promote the development of social green behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: The I3− additive promoted in situ formation of zincophilic Cu nanoclusters on commercial Cu foil, which achieves uniform Zn deposition with ultralow nucleation overpotential and high reversibility. The Zn-rich ZnI2 cathode confined by graphene/polyvinyl pyrrolidone heterostructure shows enhanced conductivity and shuttle effect suppression, providing sufficient Zn2+ for the anode stably. The assembled anode-free Zn-iodine battery exhibits attractive features for commercialization: low cost, fast production, significantly increased energy density and durable cycle stability under practical application conditions.The anode-free design is a promising strategy to increase the energy density of aqueous Zn metal batteries (AZMBs). However, the scarcity of Zn-rich cathodes and the rapid loss of limited Zn greatly hinder their commercial applications. To address these issues, a novel anode-free Zn-iodine battery (AFZIB) was designed via a simple, low-cost and scalable approach. Iodine plays bifunctional roles in improving the AFZIB overall performance: enabling high-performance Zn-rich cathode and modulating Zn deposition behavior. On the cathode side, the ZnI2 serves as Zn-rich cathode material. The graphene/polyvinyl pyrrolidone heterostructure was employed as an efficient host for ZnI2 to enhance electron conductivity and suppress the shuttle effect of iodine species. On the anode side, trace I3− additive in the electrolyte creates surface reconstruction on the commercial Cu foil. The in situ formed zincophilic Cu nanocluster allows ultralow-overpotential and uniform Zn deposition and superior reversibility (average coulombic efficiency > 99.91% over 7,000 cycles). Based on such a configuration, AFZIB exhibits significantly increased energy density (162 Wh kg−1) and durable cycle stability (63.8% capacity retention after 200 cycles) under practical application conditions. Considering the low cost and simple preparation methods of the electrode materials, this work paves the way for the practical application of AZMBs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Influenza A viruses (IAV) exhibit vast genetic mutability and have great zoonotic potential to infect avian and mammalian hosts and are known to be responsible for a number of pandemics. A key computational issue in influenza prevention and control is the identification of molecular signatures with cross-species transmission potential. We propose an adjusted entropy-based host-specific signature identification method that uses a similarity coefficient to incorporate the amino acid substitution information and improve the identification performance. Mutations in the polymerase genes (e.g., PB2) are known to play a major role in avian influenza virus adaptation to mammalian hosts. We thus focus on the analysis of PB2 protein sequences and identify host specific PB2 amino acid signatures. Results: Validation with a set of H5N1 PB2 sequences from 1996 to 2006 results in adjusted entropy having a 40% false negative discovery rate compared to a 60% false negative rate using unadjusted entropy. Simulations across different levels of sequence divergence show a false negative rate of no higher than 10% while unadjusted entropy ranged from 9 to 100%. In addition, under all levels of divergence adjusted entropy never had a false positive rate higher than 9%. Adjusted entropy also identifies important mutations in H1N1pdm PB2 previously identified in the literature that explain changes in divergence between 2008 and 2009 which unadjusted entropy could not identify. Conclusions: Based on these results, adjusted entropy provides a reliable and widely applicable host signature identification approach useful for IAV monitoring and vaccine development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Coal ash and AAEMs have a significant promoting effect on the NH 3 oxidation. • AAEMs promote the decomposition of N 2 O at 800 °C. • Alkali metals (K and Na) only promote the reduction of NO at 600–800 °C. • AAEMs enhance the adsorption capacity of NH 3 on the active site of the coal ash. • A appropriate O 2 concentration should be selected for the power plant. Ammonia as an eco-friendly and carbon-free energy has been greatly concerned at home and abroad. It has been utilized in the ammonia and coal co-firing process, demonstrating robust market viability. Nonetheless, due to the element N within ammonia causing the production of NO x , the catalytic effect and reaction mechanics of AAEMs in coal ash on the NH 3 oxidation remain elusive. In this study, the catalytic effects of AAEMs (K, Ca, Na and Mg) on NH 3 oxidation were investigated through experiments, and the reaction mechanism was elucidated from a microscopic perspective by density functional theory (DFT). The experimental results show that the addition of AAEMs does enhance the oxidation potential of NH 3 during coal and ammonia co-firing process, and promote the transformation of NH 3 to NO, N 2 O and N 2. However, the promotion effect of different AAEMs is different, consequently influencing the selectivity of NH 3 oxidation pathway. At 600–800 °C, alkaline earth metals (Ca and Mg) facilitate the oxidation of NH 3 while alkali metals (K and Na) have the opposite effect. Mg has the highest promoting effect on the conversion of NH 3 to NO at 600–800 °C, but the catalytic effect of K and Na is more dominant from 800 °C to 900 °C. The transformation from NH 3 to N 2 O remains the same, but the catalytic impact of Ca is mostly pronounced. AAEMs can reduce thermal decomposition activation energy of N 2 O, and the decomposition of N 2 O can be promoted at 800 °C. The DFT results indicate that AAEMs can enhance the adsorption capacity of NH 3 on the active site of the coal ash surface, and reduce the activation energy of NH 3 oxidation, thereby accelerating the transformation of NH 3 to other nitrogen-containing species. This study provides new insight into the evidence for the enhanced catalytic effect of AAEMs on NH 3 oxidation during ammonia and coal co-firing process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clean and renewable energy resources like solar energy are essential for a sustainable and eco-friendly future, as they decrease reliance on fossil fuels and combat climate change. This study explores trust and knowledge as drivers of solar energy consumption behavior (SECB). Particularly, this study finds the role of social influence and gender as moderators in the associations between trust and SECB, as well as knowledge and SECB. The World Bank energy access data based on the 8500 Pakistani households survey was examined for empirical analysis. Findings reveal that trust and knowledge positively impact SECB. Knowledge also influences trust in solar energy. Meanwhile, higher social influence weakens the association of knowledge and trust with SECB. Furthermore, it was found that the association of knowledge and trust with SECB is stronger for females than males. The findings-based implications are provided for practitioners and researchers. • Solar energy knowledge and trust promote solar energy consumption behavior. • Social influence and gender have moderating effects. • Higher social influence reduces the effect of knowledge and trust on consumption. • The associations of knowledge and trust with consumption are stronger for females. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Intensive aquaculture farming has caused significant degradation of coastal wetlands and has been proposed as a reservoir for pathogenic Vibrio spp. Results: Gut pathogens including Vibrio spp., Salmonella spp., and Klebsiella spp. were isolated from bird feces, shrimp and wetland water in two typical coastal regions of China in 2015 and 2017 and were subsequently subjected to whole-genome sequencing. Meanwhile, local patient isolates were also selected to confirm the epidemiological links. Bacterial community composition analyses of the sediments that were sampled in 2015 and 2017 were conducted by the hypervariable region 4 of the 16S rRNA gene. Together with the local clinical isolates, we observed highly related Vibrio isolates from waterbirds, wetlands and shrimp. Phylogenetic genome comparisons also demonstrated that sequence types ST3 and ST2414 Vibrio parahaemolyticus isolates obtained from aquatic animals were clonally related to patient isolates. Likewise, three Salmonella typhimurium isolates were also genomically related to one clinical strain. The results showed that farming activities significantly altered the community composition and resulted in the emergence of several pathogens, including Acinetobacter, Mycobacterium and Legionella. Conclusions: In conclusion, our results demonstrated that intensive shrimp farming in wetlands has two devastating impacts: pathogen dissemination from aquatic animals into migratory birds and transmission of foodborne pathogens into local communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Long-chain acyl-CoA synthetase-4 (ACSL4) is involved in fatty acid metabolism, and aberrant ACSL4 expression could be either tumorigenic or tumor-suppressive in different tumor types. However, the function and clinical significance of ACSL4 in lung adenocarcinoma remain elusive. Results: ACSL4 was frequently downregulated in lung adenocarcinoma when analyzing both the TCGA database and the validation samples, and the lower ACSL4 expression was correlated with a worse prognosis. Using gene set enrichment analysis, we found that high ACSL4 expression was frequently associated with the oxidative stress pathway, especially ferroptosis-related proteins. In vitro functional studies showed that knockdown of ACSL4 increased tumor survival/invasiveness and inhibited ferroptosis, while ACSL4 overexpression exhibited the opposite effects. Moreover, high-fat treatment could also inhibit erastin-induced ferroptosis by affecting ACSL4 expression. The anti-tumor effects of ferroptosis inducers and the anti-ferroptosis effects of the high-fat diet were further validated using the mouse xenograft model. Conclusions: ACSL4 plays a tumor-suppressive role in lung adenocarcinoma by suppressing tumor survival/invasiveness and promoting ferroptosis. Our study provided a theoretical reference for the application of ferroptotic inducers and dietary guidance for lung adenocarcinoma patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study utilises data from China's second (2018) Time Use Survey (CTUS) to quantitatively investigate the impact of educational level on the amount of time parents commit to childcare. It finds that as educational attainment increases and attitudes towards parenting change, parents focus on childcare through "primary activities". Mothers engaged in childcare as a "secondary activity" only account for 6.2 per cent of the sample, and fathers for an even lower 4.5 per cent. Education positively affects the time parents devote to childcare. The father's involvement in childcare is significantly influenced by the mother's level of education. Employment status significantly influences both parents and spousal childcare time. Women bear approximately three times as much time to childcare as fathers. Furthermore, the shift away from traditional gender-biased attitudes has not significantly influenced the time that parents commit to childcare. Older generations living in the same household do not significantly reduce parents' childcare time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Durability is one of the main obstacles that inhibits the commercialization of polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells for transport applications, in which the microstructure of the catalyst layers (CLs) deteriorates under dynamic loading operation. In this study, CLs' naturally random porous structure is simplified to be a random three-phase microstructure consisting of ionomers, catalyst agglomerates and pores, and the onset and growth of delamination process between the ionomer and catalyst agglomerate is investigated numerically by considering the catalyst agglomerate as elastic while the ionomer is elasto-viscoplastic, influenced by the cell assembly force arising from the cell clamping and variations in temperature and relative humidity. It is found that increasing clamping stress delays the delamination onset but has marginal effect on delamination propagation. The amplitude of hygrothermal cycles is the dominating factor in delamination and more frequent startup/shutdown of PEM fuel cells alleviates the delamination. Correlation between the rate of plastic strain accumulation in the ionomer and the interface delamination has been observed. • Developed elasto-viscoplastic model for interface delamination in catalyst layers. • Evaluated elasto-viscoplastic model parameters for Nafion 211. • Investigated effect of driving behavior and conditions on delamination evolution. • Observed dependence between ionomer plastic deformation and interface delamination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital technology has become a promising measure to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions. So, can digital technology application (DTA) promotes energy saving and emission reduction (ESER) practices in enterprise? To answer this question, this paper studies the influence and mechanism of DTA on enterprise ESER practices based on the awareness-motivation-capability (AMC) framework. The data of 3803 observations of listed companies in China from 2011 to 2020 are analyzed using the ordered logit model. Results indicate that DTA has a significant driving effect on ESER practices in enterprise. In terms of internal managers' characteristics, both the average age of TMT and managerial myopia negatively moderate the effect of DTA on enterprise ESER practices, alleviating the effect between both. In terms of external government intervention, the moderating effects of environmental regulation and government subsidies are investigated, with the former enhancing the relationship between DTA and ESER practices, while the latter weakening the relationship. • Digital technology application promotes energy saving and emission reduction. • Government interventions and managers' characteristics have moderating effects. • Managerial myopia alleviates the effect of digital technology application. • Government subsidies crowd out the effect of digital technology application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The co-agglomeration accentuates haze pollution. • Co-agglomeration has obvious spatial effects on haze pollution. • The pollution effect of co-agglomeration is weakened with the improvement of the economic level. • Technological innovation has an inhibitory effect on the pollution effect of co-agglomeration. The issue of haze in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River urban agglomeration has significant implications for China. Concurrently, co-agglomeration and technological innovation are key factors influencing haze pollution. Using the panel data composed of PM2.5 concentration and other data from 27cities in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River urban agglomeration between 2010 and 2020, this paper empirically investigates the impact of co-agglomeration and technological innovation on haze pollution. From this rigorous analysis, several conclusions crystallize: (1)the co-agglomeration of productive services and manufacturing accentuates haze pollution, showcasing notable regional variances;(2)the haze pollution has a significant positive correlation with the co-agglomeration levels in local and neighboring regions;(3)the negative consequences of co-agglomeration on environments reduce as the agglomeration of productive services and economic development increases;(4)technological innovation significantly moderates the pollution effects of co-agglomeration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Decay rates of Salmonella , norovirus, and IAV were investigated in a lab-scale recirculating sewer system. • Predictive models based on wastewater data were established for these three pathogens. • By wastewater sequencing, we predicted the infection cases of different SARS-CoV-2 variants using a previous model. Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) is a promising tool for monitoring the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and other pathogens, providing a novel public health strategy to combat disease. In this study, we first analysed nationwide reports of infectious diseases and selected Salmonella , norovirus, and influenza A virus (IAV) as prioritized targets apart from SARS-CoV-2 for wastewater surveillance. Next, the decay rates of Salmonella , norovirus, and IAV in wastewater at various temperatures were established to obtain corrected pathogen concentrations in sewage. We then monitored the concentrations of these pathogens in wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) influents in three cities, establishing a prediction model to estimate the number of infected individuals based on the mass balance between total viral load in sewage and individual viral shedding. From October 2022 to March 2023, we conducted multipathogen wastewater surveillance (MPWS) in a WWTP serving one million people in Xi'an City, monitoring the concentration dynamics of SARS-CoV-2, Salmonella , norovirus, and IAV in sewage. The infection peaks of each pathogen were different, with Salmonella cases and sewage concentration declining from October to December 2022 and only occasionally detected thereafter. The SARS-CoV-2 concentration rapidly increased from December 5th, peaked on December 26th, and then quickly decreased until the end of the study. Norovirus and IAV were detected in wastewater from January to March 2023, peaking in February and March, respectively. We used the prediction models to estimate the rate of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Xi'an city, with nearly 90 % of the population infected in urban regions. There was no significant difference between the predicted and actual number of hospital admissions for IAV. We also accurately predicted the number of norovirus cases relative to the reported cases. Our findings highlight the importance of wastewater surveillance in addressing public health priorities, underscoring the need for a novel workflow that links the prediction results of populations with public health interventions and allocation of medical resources at the community level. This approach would prevent medical resource panic squeezes, reduce the severity and mortality of patients, and enhance overall public health outcomes. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessing the presence of waterborne pathogens and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) is crucial for managing the environmental quality of drinking water sources. However, detecting low abundance pathogens in such settings is challenging. In this study, a workflow was developed to enrich for broad spectrum pathogens from drinking water samples. A mock community was used to evaluate the effectiveness of various enrichment broths in detecting low-abundance pathogens. Monthly metagenomic surveillance was conducted in a drinking water source from May to September 2021, and water samples were subjected to five enrichment procedures for 6 h to recover the majority of waterborne bacterial pathogens. Oxford Nanopore Technology (ONT) was used for metagenomic sequencing of enriched samples to obtain high-quality pathogen genomes. The results showed that selective enrichment significantly increased the proportions of targeted bacterial pathogens. Compared to direct metagenomic sequencing of untreated water samples, targeted enrichment followed by ONT sequencing significantly improved the detection of waterborne pathogens and the quality of metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs). Eighty-six high-quality MAGs, including 70 pathogen MAGs, were obtained from ONT sequencing, while only 12 MAGs representing 10 species were obtained from direct metagenomic sequencing of untreated water samples. In addition, ONT sequencing improved the recovery of mobile genetic elements and the accuracy of phylogenetic analysis. This study highlights the urgent need for efficient methodologies to detect and manage microbial risks in drinking water sources. The developed workflow provides a cost-effective approach for environmental management of drinking water sources with microbial risks. The study also uncovered pathogens that were not detected by traditional methods, thereby advancing microbial risk management of drinking water sources. [Display omitted] • An enrichment workflow targeted on enteric pathogens was developewd for uncovering pathogen genomes from drinking water. • Targeted enrichment followed ONT sequencing significantly improved the detection of waterborne pathogens. • This workflow also improved the recovery of mobile genetic elements and assessed the transferability of majority of ARGs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Experimental investigation the natural gas leakage underwater and combustion on the water surface in a wind tunnel. • The temperature distribution have been qualitative and quantitative by thermocouples and IR camera. • A new correlation for flame height and diameter with dimensionless heat release rate is proposed. This paper presents an experimental investigation into the flow rate of natural gas released underwater from a pipe orifice and the associated combustion behavior on the water surface in an aerodynamic channel. A stainless-steel pipeline with a diameter of 25 mm was placed in a water tank of 1 m (height) ×0.5 m (width) ×0.5 m (length). Methane gas was released from a cylinder controlled by a flow meter and pressure gauge. Ten k-type thermocouples, fixed in two directions, were used to measure the temperature profile. The variation parameters of orifice diameter (1 mm, 3 mm, 5 mm), pressure range (0.02 to 0.55 MPa) and gas release depth (0.4 m, 0.6 m, and 0.8 m) were varied to study the flame geometry and temperature profile. A digital CCD camera and an infrared camera are employed to record the visible and temperature distribution, respectively. Results show that flame temperature decreases vertically; an initially high temperature region in the core flame quickly decreases in the plume region. Flame oscillation behavior is due to gas diffusion and flame turbulence. The stability of a burning flame is dependent on an increase in leakage pressure and large orifice diameter; shallow water depths provide greater flame stability. A new correlation is proposed to characterize the flame height to diameter ratio and the dimensionless heat release rate Q *. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Aspirin is a classic anti‐inflammatory drug and its anticancer effect has been previously explored in many types of cancer including colorectal cancer therapy. Programmed cell death‐ligand 1 (PD‐L1) is widely expressed in tumor cells and displays an inhibitory role in antitumor immunity. This study aimed to clarify the role of PD‐L1 in aspirin‐suppressed lung cancer. Methods: The inhibitory effect of aspirin on lung cancer cell proliferation was assessed using an MTT cell viability assay. The role of aspirin in the modulation of PD‐L1 expression was analyzed by western blot or RT‐PCR assays. In lung cancer cells, the influence of aspirin on PD‐L1 promoter activity was detected using a luciferase reporter assay. The interaction of TAZ with PD‐L1 promoter in the cells, with or without aspirin administration, was tested via chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) analysis. The function of PD‐L1 in aspirin‐mediated growth inhibition of lung cancer was examined using a cell viability assay. Results: Following treatment with aspirin, lung cancer cell growth was markedly suppressed. Aspirin was able to markedly decrease the expression of PD‐L1 at the mRNA and protein levels in lung cancer cells. For the mechanism study, we found that the promoter of PD‐L1 was inactivated by aspirin via TAZ transcriptional coactivator in the cells. With regard to the functional investigation, aspirin was capable of resisting cell proliferation and PD‐L1 overexpression abolished aspirin‐depressed cell proliferation in lung cancer. Conclusions: Aspirin suppressed the growth of lung cancer cells via targeting the TAZ/PD‐L1 axis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we propose WiSign that recognizes the continuous sentences of American Sign Language (ASL) with existing WiFi infrastructure. Instead of identifying the individual ASL words from the manually segmented ASL sentence in existing works, WiSign can automatically segment the original channel state information (CSI) based on the power spectral density (PSD) segmentation method. WiSign constructs a five-layer Deep Belief Network (DBN) to automatically extract the features of isolated fragments, and then uses the Hidden Markov Model (HMM) with Gaussian mixture and Forward-Backward algorithm to recognize sign words. In order to further improve the accuracy, WiSign also integrates the language model N-gram, which uses the grammar rules of ASL to calibrate the recognized results of sign words. We implement a prototype of WiSign with commercial WiFi devices and evaluate its performance in real indoor environments. The results show that WiSign achieves satisfactory accuracy when recognizing ASL sentences that involve the movements of the head, arms, hands, and fingers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comparing to the water fracturing fluid regularly used in the hydraulic fracturing operation, supercritical CO2 (SC-CO2) as a promising nonaqueous fracturing fluid has the great potential for the improvement of production and protection of shale reservoir. This paper presents an experimental study of the mechanical response and fracture propagation of shale fractured using water and SC-CO2 under the different stress status and injection rate. According to the experimental results, SC-CO2 fracturing is more time-consuming due to its compressibility which takes about 20 times more time than hydraulic fracturing using water under the same preset conditions. The breakdown pressure of shale can be affected by not only the anisotropy of itself but also the external factors like injection rate and deviator stress. Similar tendency of the breakdown pressure with the variation of bedding orientation can be observed in both of the fracturing using water and SC-CO2. However, all of the shale specimens fractured using SC-CO2 show smaller breakdown pressure if compared with the shale specimens fractured using water. According to the results of fracture width evolution monitored by circumference during the fracturing, the fracture propping and proper size of the proppant are really important for the hydraulic fracturing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

INTRODUCTION: To report the management and outcome of one case of pediatric patient sustaining high-grade blunt renal trauma. We present and discuss the clinical characteristics and radiologic features of the patient. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A 10 years old child was admitted for serious blunt renal trauma formed a huge urinoma in the right renal after injury gradually in 2018. We treated the patient with synchronous percutaneous nephrostomy drainage and retrograde ureteral catheterization. A retrospective review was performed of this case, including the clinical features, imaging studies and short-term follow-up. A literature review was also performed to highlight the principals of diagnosis and treatment of severe blunt renal trauma in children. RESULTS: After drainage, the symptoms of abdominal distension gradually disappeared, and the physical examination shows that the abdomen gradually reduced to normal. The huge urinoma was cured by synchronous drainge. No complications occurred in short-term follow-up. COMMENTS: The choice of surgical treatment is based on the degree and location of renal trauma. Grade IV injuries are a heterogeneous group and management should be tailored to the patient, especially among pediatric patients. Persistent urinary extravasation and/or symptomatic urinoma is a common complication of high-grade renal trauma, which will be amenable to ureteral stent placement or percutaneous drainage. For huge urinoma, synchronous percutaneous nephrostomy drainage and retrograde ureteral catheterization can relieve symptoms quickly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) trade has increased globally; therefore, assessments of the hazards of its accidental release and associated consequences must be conducted to ensure LNG security during marine transportation. This study aims to understand the dynamic behavior occurring when an LNG jet is released underwater and the combustion behavior of a flammable vapor cloud on the water's surface with airflows from 0 to 4 m/s. A series of controlled LNG vertical jet release experiments were conducted using a cryogenic storage tank with three orifices. Various instruments were employed to measure the flow rate and pressure in pipelines during different leakage scenarios, and the emanating LNG vapor clouds were immediately ignited with the mass loss rate of 0.016, 0.037, and 0.049 kg/s in three orifices, respectively. The flame behavior was recorded by a video camera. With respect to flame length rapidly decreased with crosswinds of 0−2 m/s and then gradually decreased to a constant value with the velocities increase to 4 m/s. A dimensionless number of R i was employed to analyze the relative magnitude between the buoyancy force and transverse flow. The flame tilt angle was found in accordance trend with flame length for first increased and further reach to become constant at R i −1 increase to 2. As existing correlations provide an overestimation, a new correlation was established to describe the flame length as a function of crosswind speed, and a good prediction was found for measured tilt angles with the correlated values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of moisture on a polymerized monomeric reactant (PMR)-type polyimide (TriA X) and associated composites were investigated. Water uptake tests were performed on the polyimide at various temperatures and relative humidity levels to investigate moisture absorption behavior. Two-stage moisture absorption was observed, in which the first stage was diffusion controlled, whereas the second stage was moisture plasticization controlled. As exposure temperature increased, the equilibrium moisture content of the polyimide decreased, indicating an exothermic absorption process. The Arrhenius temperature dependence and moisture saturation as functions of temperature and humidity in the neat polymer were determined using curve fitting based on the published mathematical models. Long-term hydrothermal aging at 95°C was conducted on the neat polyimide and associated carbon fiber composites. Reversible hydrolytic reactions and a trace of irreversible hydrolysis were observed in the long-term exposure. The tensile ductility of the neat polyimide and the short-beam shear strength of the composites decreased with increasing aging time, while the tensile strength and modulus and thermal properties of the polyimide exhibited little change after 2000-h aging, demonstrating hydrothermal stability. The decrease in the ductility of the neat polymer after long-term moisture exposure was attributed to the network structure change, driven by hydrolysis and moisture plasticization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Calyceal diverticula outpouchings that occur rarely in the upper collecting system of the kidney and is often difficult to detect. In this study, we present two cases of calyceal diverticula and discuss their clinical characteristics and radiologic features. Patients and methods: In the presented two cases, we applied several imaging examinations, including delayed intravenous pyelography, retrograde pyelography and axial computerized tomographic (CT) scanning of the kidneys with and without contrast. Serum creatinine levels in fluid withdrawn from the diverticula were found to be significantly higher than the simultaneous serum creatinine levels. Intravenous injection of methylene blue through a ureteral catheter was also aided in the diagnosis. Calyceal diverticulum neck dilatation was performed through a percutaneous nephroscope. Results: The two cases were diagnosed preoperatively and the operation was successful performed. The nephrostomy tube was removed seven days after surgery without complications. CT scans of the kidney after six months showed that the size of the calyceal diverticulum of two patients were considerably smaller than pre-surgery. There were no reports of pain in the lumbar region or other discomfort. Comments: Diagnosis of calyceal diverticulum mainly depend on a variety of imaging examinations, including the delayed intravenous pyelography, retrograde pyelography, and kidney CT plain scan plus enhanced scan. If the patient cannot be diagnosed by above methods, cyst fluid can be aspirated percutaneously to measure the preoperative creatinine level. If it is significantly higher than the serum creatinine level, the cyst fluid is considered urine, which can assist in the diagnosis of calyceal diverticulum. A ureteral catheter should also be inserted before operation namely, intravenous injection of methylene blue through a ureteral catheter is helpful for diagnosis. The choice of surgical treatment is based on the size and location of calyceal diverticulum and clinical manifestations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The process of hydraulic fracturing makes use of fluid injection to conduct the fracturing treatment of reservoirs for the exploitation of unconventional resources. As is well known, hydraulic fracturing using water-based fracturing fluid is employed regularly in the commercial development of shale gas. The potential advantages of supercritical CO2 (SC-CO2) make it an ideal candidate of non-aqueous fluid to avoid problems associated with the hydraulic fracturing operations using water. The fracturing fluid plays such an important role in the fracturing process that it can directly affect the fracturing results of shale reservoir. Hydraulic fracturing experiments using freshwater and SC-CO2, under uniaxial stress state, were performed on the shale cores for study on the fracture propagation and micro-crack characteristics. Stereomicroscope was used for the measurement of the fracture to evaluate the fracture complexity. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) was used to reveal the micro-cracks densely developed along the two sides of the fracture surface. The investigation results show that the fractures and micro-cracks induced by hydraulic fracturing constitute the transportation pathways for shale gas, which can link the organic pores to the macro-fractures. Investigation of the micro-cracks was carried out to compare the characteristics induced by freshwater and SC-CO2. The formation mechanism of the micro-crack was analyzed based on the SEM micrographs. Small slippage occurred along the micro-crack surface due to the deviator stress, which could bring about the sustained width of micro-crack for gas transportation. Analysis of the fracture propagation and micro-crack characteristics of hydraulic fracturing shows that SC-CO2 can create the fractures and micro-cracks with more complexity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of thermal cycling on a polymerized monomeric reactant (PMR) type polyimide (TriA X) reinforced with carbon fibers were investigated. Composite specimens were subjected to 2000 thermal cycles between −54°C and 232°C. At 400-cycle intervals, laminates were inspected for microcracks, and glass transition temperature (T g) and short-beam shear (SBS) strength were measured. The composites did not exhibit microcracks after thermal cycling, although after 2000 thermal cycles, mechanical properties of the matrix declined slightly. The matrix degradation decreased the resistance to microcracking upon further loading. No effects of thermal oxidative aging were observed from thermal cycling, and thermally driven fatigue and creep were identified as the primary and secondary factors inducing mechanical degradation of the matrix. T g of the composites exhibited no change after 2000 cycles, while the SBS strength decreased slightly (3–9%). The results highlight the potential for use of TriA X composites as long-term structural components in high-temperature service environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, artificial neural network technology has developed very rapidly. More and more experts and scholars use neural network technology to solve the related problems of applied mathematics. As a representative of the Hopfield neural network, zeroing neural network (ZNN) which can deal with the time-variant problem that may not be solved by traditional methods effectively. In this paper, to solve the problem of time-variant matrix square root, the continuous-time ZNN (CT-ZNN) model is presented based on the ZNN design formula. Next, to meet the requirements of computer simulation, the general square-pattern discretization (SPD) formula is applied to obtain the general discrete-time ZNN (G-DT-ZNN) model. Moreover, by changing the value of the selected parameter in the G-DT-ZNN model, it is presented that the effect of different values of the selected parameter on the precision of the G-DT-ZNN model. Finally, in the numerical experiments, three discrete time-variant matrix square root problems are presented as examples for verifying such theoretical results of the proposed G-DT-ZNN model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The degradable protective articles made of thermoplastic polyvinyl alcohol (TPVA) are widely used in nuclear power plants, and they are thermally decomposed after use to reduce solid waste. However, in the real decomposition of TPVA, the temperature in the oxidation reactor is not self-sustaining; as a result, the degradation products contain a lot of CO, resulting in more pollution and energy waste. In this paper, jet stirred reactor (JSR) and Chemkin software were used to study the reaction kinetics characteristics of the oxidation process of degradation products from TPVA in the range of 550 °C–700 °C. Both experiments and kinetic simulation show that a higher average temperature of the oxidation reactor is needed to achieve lower CO emissions. When using 5% or 10% TPVA degradation solution, the average temperature should not befall below 625 °C or 675 °C. The corresponding residence time should be greater than 6 s and 5 s respectively. The combination of research findings and engineering practice provides great help to the optimization of the actual work process. • The temperature and residence time required for the complete degradation of thermoplastic polyvinyl alcohol after preliminary oxidation with the Fenton method were studied in a jet stirred reactor. • Ketones, the main products of TPVA initial degradation, are used as combustible materials after solution gasification to simulate the oxidation process simulation. • The simulated data are in good agreement with the experimental data. • This article produces cloud maps of operating conditions corresponding to different CO and CH 4 emission standards to guide similar engineering applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The need for the reduction of carbon dioxide (CO 2) emissions has become a global consensus because of the huge effects on the global environment. Exploring the influencing factors of CO 2 emissions is fundamental to reducing CO 2. We explore the effect of social trust on urban CO 2 emissions using the hierarchical linear model using data from China. The effect of social trust, as a type of informal rule, on urban CO 2 emissions is significant, and the increase in the social trust will mitigate the annual increase in CO 2 emissions. These findings highlight the importance of social trust in CO 2 emissions. When studying environmental issues, the influence of informal rules needs to be considered as much as possible to control environmental problems better and achieve sustainable development goals. • The effect of social trust on urban CO 2 emissions was studied. • An empirical analysis was conducted based on the hierarchical linear model. • Social trust has a negative impact on urban CO 2 emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydraulic fracturing using freshwater is difficult for the commercial exploitation of a shale oil reservoir in Jianghan Basin with a continental saline lake basin sedimentary background. Supercritical CO2 (SC-CO2) is a promising fracturing fluid under consideration for the reservoir stimulation, especially in the case of the presence of water sensible salt layers. In this study, SC-CO2 fracturing experiments on the inter-salt-shale and salt specimens, which were obtained from the drilling well, were carried out in the laboratory. The characteristics of fracture propagation, including morphology and width variation, were analyzed based on the observations of a stereoscopic microscope, X-ray micro-CT scanner, and 3D scanner. The existing weak planes in the shale can really impact the fracture propagation in SC-CO2 fracturing. Deflection, branching, and approaching can occur during the process of fracture propagation. The average width value of the reactivated natural fracture is bigger than that of a newly created fracture. In addition, the fracturing results indicate the greater breakdown pressure of rock salt if compared with the inter-salt-shale. The induced fractures in the salt specimen are compact and smaller in average width than those in the shale specimen. The higher breakdown pressure and relatively smaller fracture width of rock salt are real challenges for the fracturing of an inter-salt-shale oil reservoir. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new polymerized monomeric reactant (PMR)-type polyimide, designated TriA X, was investigated to determine polymer structure, processability, thermal, and mechanical properties and establish the relationship between the molecular structure and those properties. TriA X is a PMR-type polyimide with an asymmetric, irregular, and nonplanar backbone. Both the imide oligomers and the cross-linked polyimides of TriA X exhibited loose-packed amorphous structures, independent of thermal processing. The peculiar structures were attributed to the asymmetric backbone, which effectively prevented the formation of closed-packed chain stacking typically observed in polyimides. The imide oligomers exhibited a lower melt viscosity than a control imide oligomer (symmetric and semi-crystalline), indicating a higher chain mobility above the glass transition temperature (Tg). The cured polyimide exhibited a Tg = 362°C and a decomposition temperature = 550°C. The cross-linked TriA X exhibited exceptional toughness and ductility (e.g. 15.1% at 23°C) for a polyimide, which was attributed to the high-molecular-weight oligomer and loose-packed amorphous structure. The thermal and mechanical properties of TriA X surpass those of PMR-15 and AFR-PE-4. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND) is an emerging disease in shrimp aquaculture which directly caused by binary photorhabdus insect-related (Pir) toxins PirABvp from Vibrio parahaemolyticus. To delineating the evolutionary origin and structure variation of PirAB, the protein sequence of PirABvp resembles from bacteria and insects were retrieved from the public database. The evolutionary relationship of PirABvp and resembles were analyzed phylogenetically. I-TASSER server was used to predict the protein-structure of PirA/B in investigated species. The cell-free supernatant obtained from the broth of V. parahaemolyticus and crude and heterologously expressed PirABvp proteins were respectively administrated to shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei), crab (Eriocheir sinensis), European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax), bloodworm (Nereis succinea) and mosquito (Aedes albopictus) to confirm the host range of toxin. Results showed that majority of PirAB located in a genomic island with low GC content. Phylogenetic analysis of PirB from bacteria and insects divided them into three lineages, namely Marine, Soli and Insect lineage respectively, with the majority belonging to Soli lineage. Overall, resembles of PirABvp were structurally similar to the PirABvp, but harbored three highly variable regions in receptor binding region and ligand binding sites, respectively. Shrimps bioassayed with cell-free supernatant of V. parahaemolyticus , crude and heterologously expressed PirABvp proteins resulted in 76.5%, 68.7% and 86.6% mortality, respectively. However, almost no mortality was found in crab, bloodworm, mosquito and European seabass. In summary, results indicated that PirBvp and its homologs have significant sequence divergence and remarkable variability in the receptor binding sites, which might explain why PirABvp are shrimp-specific toxins. Homology analysis of proteins revealed that there were three evolutionary directions for PirAB and the emergence of PirABvp was an ancient event that not associated with the aquaculture practices of shrimp. This study enhanced our understanding of the evolution of pirAB , which provided new insights into the origins of AHPND. However, why only shrimp is highly susceptible to PirABvp remains mysteries and need to solve in the future research. Highlights • The emergence of PirABvp was an ancient event that not associated with the aquaculture practices of shrimp. • PirB has species-specific receptor binding sites, which might affect its pathogenicity against the different host. • PirABvp has no adverse effects on other three animals and seems to be shrimp-specific toxins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Hydraulic fracturing using freshwater as fracturing fluid is regularly employed in commercial shale gas or oil production. Many problems are brought by the fracturing fluid of water, such as water shortages, swelling of clay mineral, and the pollution of flow-back water. Replacement of water by supercritical CO 2 (SC CO 2) in the hydraulic fracturing treatment of shale reservoir has meaningful potential for the improvement of gas production. Hydraulic fracturing experiments, under different injection rate and stress state, were carried out for studying the SC-CO 2 fracturing of shale considering anisotropy effects. Anisotropy of shale has a significant impact on the mechanical behavior and fracture propagation of shale in the experiment. There shows a downward tendency for breakdown pressure with the increase of bedding plane angle in general. Higher injection rate can lead to the higher breakdown pressure, while higher deviator stress can lead to the lower breakdown pressure instead. In addition, three patterns of fracture propagation can be observed in the experiment, relative to the bedding structures of shale specimen, including propagating along, propagating across and arresting. The maximum values of fracture width during experiment in shale with different bedding plane angle ranges from 0.29 mm to 1.05 mm, while the final fracture width after the fracturing experiment is kept within the range of 0.01 mm–0.04 mm under the injection rate of 0.3 ml/s. Highlights • Experimental study on the supercritical CO 2 fracturing was carried out in the lab. • Some impact factors on the supercritical CO 2 fracturing of shale were studied. • The fracture propagation pattern relative to the bedding structure was summarized. • Evolution of the fracture width during the fracturing process was discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new type of polyimide, designated TriA X, has been developed for high-temperature composite applications. TriA X is a polymerized monomeric reactant (PMR)-type polyimide derived from 1,2,4,5-benzenetetracarboxylic dianhydride (PMDA), 2-phenyl-4,4′-diaminodiphenyl ether (p-ODA), and phenylethynyl phthalic anhydride (PEPA). The polymer has an asymmetric, nonplanar backbone, resulting in an amorphous structure and high toughness. In this work, a TriA X resin (with degree of polymerization n = 7 in the imide oligomer) was investigated for processability and performance in carbon fiber composites. Rheological measurements were performed on an oligomer with a low degree of imidization to understand the chemo-rheology of the resin system and determine a suitable B-staging temperature. A composite molding cycle was designed, which yielded fully consolidated woven carbon fiber laminates. Void contents in panels produced with this molding cycle were <0.1% as measured by image analysis (IA) of polished sections, and <0.2% as measured by X-ray micro-computed tomography (micro-CT). Matrix-dominated mechanical properties of composites fabricated with the TriA X polymer exceeded those of PMR-15 and AFR-PE-4 composites. These mechanical properties and a measured glass transition temperature of 367°C indicate potential for use of this resin system in high-temperature composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: It is clinically challenging to infer the phylogenetic relationship between different tumor lesions of patients with multiple synchronous lung cancers (MSLC), whether these lesions are the result of independently evolved tumor or intrapulmonary metastases. Methods: We used the Illumina X10 platform to sequence 128 stage I lung cancer samples collected from 64 patients with MSLC. All samples were analyzed for mutation spectra and phylogenetic inference. Results: We detected genetic aberrations within genes previously reported to be recurrently altered in lung adenocarcinoma including, EGFR, ERBB2, TP53, BRAF, and KRAS. Other putative driver mutations identified were enriched in RTK‐RAS signaling, TP53 signaling, and cell cycle. Also, we found some interesting cases, two cases that carried EGFR L858R and T790M co‐mutation in one tumor and another tumor with only EGFR 19del, and 1 case with two KRAS hotspots in the same tumor. Due to the short follow‐up time and early stage, further investigation is needed to determine whether this unique mutation profile will affect their progression‐free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Regarding genetic evolution analysis among 64 tumor samples, 50 of them display distinct mutational profiles, suggesting these are independently evolved tumors, which is consistent with histopathological assessment. On the other hand, six patients were identified to be intrapulmonary metastasis as the mutations harbored in different lesions are clonally related. Conclusion: In summary, unlike intrapulmonary metastases, patients with MSLC harbor distinct genomic profiles in different tumor lesions, and we could distinguish MSLC from intrapulmonary metastases via clonality estimation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High content of organic matter in paddy fields contributes substantial organic loading to ambient waterways via runoff, which is the potential precursor of disinfection byproducts (DBPs) in downstream water treatment plants. Moreover, submerged conditions of paddy fields pose a high DBP precursor export risk. The major objectives of this study were to characterize and quantify DBP precursors in paddy field floodwater under swine manure application, and to explore the origins and interception strategy of DBP precursors. In spite of high amounts of DBP precursors in paddy fields, the aromaticity and formation reactivity of DBP precursors are relatively low. Parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) and self-organizing map (SOM) showed protein-like substances contributed the major part of bulk DBP precursors, while humic-like substances have a stronger tendency to yield DBPs than protein-like substances. The highest DBP precursor amounts occurred on the second day after swine manure application, and DBP precursor export potential fell by up to 56.2% within 7 days. Therefore, making one or more weeks’ interval between the highest DBP precursor occurrence and a forecasted rainfall event could be an advisable strategy for interception of DBP precursors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lung cancer is the third most frequent human malignant tumour and the leading cause of cancer-associated mortality worldwide. Emerging lines of evidence have demonstrated that microRNAs (miRNAs) are upregulated or downregulated in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and this phenomenon is involved in the regulation of various processes during tumorigenesis and progression, including tumour groWTh, apoptosis, cell invasion, and tumour metastasis. Therefore, understanding the molecular mechanism that associates abnormally expressed miRNAs with NSCLC formation and development may lead to the identification of novel diagnostic, and therapeutic targets for patients with NSCLC. miRNA-584 (miR-584) functions as a tumour suppressor in several types of cancer. However, the expression pattern, detailed biological function and underlying molecular mechanism of miR-584 in NSCLC remain unclear. Therefore, the present study detected the expression of miR-584 in NSCLC, investigated its role in NSCLC cells and determined its underlying molecular mechanism. In the current study, it was demonstrated that miR-584 was downregulated in NSCLC tissues and cell lines. Low miR-584 expression was correlated with tumour size, tumour node metastasis stage and distant metastasis. Overexpression of miR-584 inhibited cell proliferation and invasion in NSCLC. Additionally, metadherin was identified as a direct target gene of miR-584 in NSCLC as confirmed by a series of experiments. Moreover, upregulation of miR-584 was involved in the regulation of the phosphatase and tensin homolog/Akt serine/threonine kinase signalling pathway in NSCLC. Thus, miR-584 may serve as a tumor-suppressor, and the results of the present study provide a reference for future research into the potential mechanisms underlying NSCLC progression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Measuring carbon footprint and controlling carbon emissions across a supply chain have gained considerable attention. This study investigates the effects of carbon emissions within the framework of air freight integrator shipment planning, with integration and consolidation. A mixed 0–1 Linear Programming (LP) model is formulated to examine the effects of operational adjustments on carbon emissions and cost performance, as well as the effects of carbon emissions regulations on operational decisions. Sensitivity analysis is performed to examine different carbon emissions policies and operational environments. Reducing carbon emissions through operational adjustments is feasible at the expense of some increase in cost. Thus, reducing carbon emissions may be considered an alternative or a supplement to more costly carbon-reducing technologies. Policies implemented to control carbon emissions can affect operational decisions when carbon tax/price is high enough. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new national standard (NS) for energy-efficiency labels has been released in China to improve the energy-efficiency requirements of household appliances. However, the impacts of the newly revised NS for air conditioners (ACs) on consumer preference and willingness to pay (WTP) remain unclear. Using data from a large e-commerce website in China, this study explores users' preferences and WTP for the attributes of online stores, comments, and products pertaining to new NS ACs based on the hedonic price model (HPM), and uses the Heckman two-step estimation to correct for selection bias. The results show that the premium of the new NS energy-efficiency label estimated by the Heckman model is 6.24%, which is 23.71% lower than that estimated directly by the HPM. Online store attributes and comment attributes also affect the prices of new NS ACs. Furthermore, product attributes have effects on the prices of both new and old NS ACs, while online store attributes and comment attributes have greater effects on the old NS ACs. Finally, after the implementation of the new NS, the premium for the new NS energy-efficiency label is lower than that of the old one. • Hedonic price model was used to quantify the value of energy-efficiency label. • Heckman two-step estimation was used to correct the selection bias. • Objective data were obtained from a major e-commerce website in China. • Premium for the new energy-efficiency label is lower than that of the old one. • Online store attributes and comment attributes also have an effect on the price. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Federated learning has attracted much attention in fault diagnosis since it can effectively protect data privacy. However, efficient fault diagnosis performance relies on the uninterrupted training of model parameters with massive amounts of perfect data. To solve the problems of model training difficulty and parameter negative transfer caused by data corruption, a novel cross-device fault diagnosis method based on repaired data is proposed. Specifically, the local model training link in each source client performs random forest regression fitting on the fault samples with missing fragments, and then the repaired data is used for network training. To avoid inpainting fragments to produce the wrong characteristics of faulty samples, joint domain discrepancy loss is introduced to correct the phenomenon of parameter bias during local model training. Considering the randomness of the overall performance change brought about by the local model update, an adaptive update is proposed for each round of global model download and local model update. Finally, the experimental verification was carried out in various industrial scenarios established by three sets of bearing data sets, and the effectiveness of the proposed method in terms of fault diagnosis performance and data privacy protection was verified by comparison with various currently popular federated transfer learning methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnetron-sputtering deposition of coatings onto a flat surface is well established, but coating metal on the curved surface of nanoparticles (NPs) is still challenging. Herein, by using a magnetron sputtering system in which a vibration generator with variable frequency is applied to the sample stage to maintain NPs' dispersity and movability, we successfully deposit noble metal (Au, Ag, Pt) nanodots onto the surface of TiO 2 NPs. It is found that the metal nanodots are of a size of 1–6 nm and they are firmly bonded to the TiO 2 NPs' surface. The photocatalytic activity of Ag/TiO 2 is demonstrated to be 2.7 times that of pure TiO 2 under simulated sunlight irradiation. This study creates new opportunities for fabricating excellent NP composite catalysts by liquid-free methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Testing of biomass stove performance is mainly based on the use of water boiling or heating as a surrogate for cooking tasks. Boiling of water is prescribed as a simulation of common cooking tasks and is used for comparison of the performance of stoves under different operating conditions. Tests are designed to evaluate biomass stoves by providing quantitative and qualitative information about their thermal and emission performance. In some developing countries, notably China, India, Mongolia, and South Africa, water boiling or heating tests focus on the overall thermal performance as a fuel consumption proxy, again with narrowly defined operating conditions. During the past few years, several newly developed performance evaluation standards and protocols for cooking and space heating stoves based on solid biofuels have been developed. National standards differ significantly from one country to the other because of inhomogeneous local conditions, widely varying cooking habits, the level of industrialisation and cultural preferences. All those stove testing standards and protocols have been tried and found to be prone to systematic and conceptual errors, virtually none of them having been professionally and scientifically reviewed. The current paper reviews several different approaches to a widespread need for results of stove performance tests to be comparable and identifies a number of calculations and conceptual errors that materially affect the outcome of stove tests. Recently, research and development work promoting the dissemination of improved biomass stoves has attracted global participation. It is essenial that, as far as possible, all conceptual and systematic errors should be identified, corrected and avoided during the process of the development of acceptable international standards and protocols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new tin (II) chelate with 2, 2′-bipyridine- N , N ′-dioxide was synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, IR, UV–vis, SEM, X-ray diffraction, DTA-DSC and molar conductance. The results indicated that 2, 2′-bipyridine- N , N ′-dioxide is bound to the tin (II) via the oxygen atoms. Each tin (II ) is bound to four oxygen atoms and two chlorine atoms. The sensor based on the complex exhibited excellent selectivity and high response to methanol vapor at room temperature. The maximum response of the sensor was 16.9, and the optimum operating voltage was 8 V. The response curve can be expressed in an equation. The response and recovery time of the sensor was 63.4 s and 16.3 s, respectively. Sensor response mechanism for methanol is a weak chemical adsorption with electron transfer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since China's speedy economic development, the problems of energy consumption and environmental pollution have become increasingly prominent. A question worth in-depth study is whether ecological civilization (EC) construction, one of the main policies to solve China's severe environmental and ecological problems, affects carbon dioxide emissions (CDE). In this study, we use a novel method proposed by Hsiao et al. (2012) to estimate the average treatment effect by using panel data to study the impact of establishing the EC pilot zones of China on CDE. The results show that, although EC construction is effective in reducing CDE, the impact varies from region to region. The study findings can provide a scientific basis to promote the experience of EC construction better and improve its CDE effect. • Impact of ecological civilization pilot zones on carbon emissions is studied. • An empirical analysis is conducted based on the HCW method. • Effects of ecological civilization on reducing carbon emissions vary by area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the dual legitimacy theory, this study combined the institutional theory with the adaptive legitimacy theory to explore the external factors affecting enterprise ESER behaviors, and examined the internal factors affecting ESER behaviors of enterprises based on the strategic legitimacy theory and the upper echelons theory. The data of 5389 listed companies in China during 2008 and 2018 were used. We collected secondary data from the China Research Data Service Platform (CNRDS) and RESSET database. The logit model and ordered logit model were used to analyze the data. Results showed that different factors had different effects on an enterprise's different ESER behaviors. For example, market factors could significantly affect a variety of ESER behaviors of enterprises, while media attention could only significantly reduce the probability of pollutant emission of enterprises. Green technology reserve has a significant and positive effect on several ESER behaviors; while financial slack promotes environmentally beneficial products and green office but inhibits other ESER behaviors. At last, the proportion of females in the senior management team positively influences company's ESER behaviors. • Enterprises' various energy-saving and emission reduction behaviors were studied. • External and internal influencing factors were identified. • Secondary data of 5389 listed companies in China during 2008 and 2018 were used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Does energy-saving have a positive effect on the long-term development of enterprises? To answer this question, this study uses the propensity score matching (PSM) method to determine the impact of enterprises completing energy-saving objectives on their financial performance based on data from an industrial enterprise database in China. The results show that industrial enterprises that have completed the energy-saving target have advantages in profitability, operational and financial indicators but have deficiencies in debt indicators, and there is no significant difference in the ratio of profits to cost and expense. The research results of high energy-consuming industry are the same as the overall sample of industrial enterprises in terms of operational and financial indicators, and debt ratio indicators. Nevertheless, energy saving has no significant impact on profit and ratio of profits to cost of high energy-consuming industry. • Impact of energy saving on financial performance of industrial enterprises in China was studied. • An empirical analysis was conducted based on propensity score matching method. • Energy saving positively influences profitability, operational and financial indicators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Postharvest quality deterioration directly limits the shelf life and edibility of the stem of Pteridium aquilinum . In order to investigate the molecular mechanism of postharvest senescence, the changes in protein profiles of P. aquilinum treated with 6-benzylaminopurine (BA) during postharvest storage were investigated using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE). The 2-DE analysis revealed 25 differentially expressed proteins, 23 of which were identified by MALDI-TOF/TOF. The identified proteins belonged to different metabolic pathways, eight proteins were related to carbohydrate metabolism; five proteins were connected with protein synthesis and degradation; three proteins were involved in energy and amino acid metabolism; three proteins were associated with cell structure; three proteins were connected with stress response and; one protein could not be classified. Biochemical experiments were carried out to validate proteomic data. It was determined that BA treatment enhanced antioxidant capacity of the cells, maintained cell structure integrity, and retarded the decline of protein quantity using functional analysis of differentially expressed proteins. The results of the present study suggest that BA regulates P. aquilinum senescence through multiple metabolic pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As major energy consumers, enterprises play an important role in saving energy. Based on dynamic capability theory, this study proposes the concept of enterprise energy-saving capability and identifies its three dimensions: sensing energy-saving opportunities, seizing energy-saving opportunities, and reconfiguring resources. The factors affecting energy-saving capability are explored as well. This study also explores the effect of energy-saving capability on enterprises' competitive advantage and considers the moderating role of the business environmental factors. Data are collected using questionnaire surveys, and partial least squares method is used for analysis. The results show that slack resources, absorptive capacity, command-and-control instruments, and normative pressure positively affect enterprises' energy-saving capability. Incentive instruments and mimetic pressure have no significant effect. In addition, environmental competitiveness positively moderates the relationship between energy-saving capability and competitive advantage. •This study proposes the concept of enterprise energy-saving capability. •Slack resources and absorptive capacity positively affected the capability. •Command-and-control instruments and normative pressure also positively affected the capability. •Energy-saving capability positively affected competitive advantage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • LPG-Ni used as sulfur host greatly reduces the void space, thus increasing the volumetric capacity. • The nano-nickel loaded between graphene layers can serve as active sites for the catalytic conversion of polysulfides. • A large number of pores on the graphene sheet can provide shortcuts for the diffusion of lithium ions. Although lithium-sulfur batteries have the advantages of gravimetric energy density, it remains a challenge to achieve high volumetric energy density in lithium-sulfur batteries due to the employment of conductive porous carbon with low tap density and high porosity. To this context, we synthesized a horizontally aligned lamellar porous graphene/nickel composite (LPG-Ni) as a dense sulfur host material to increase the volumetric capacity of lithium-sulfur batteries while retaining high gravimetric capacity. The nickel decorated on the surface of the porous graphene serves as active sites, effectively adsorbing and catalytically converting polysulfides, thus improving the redox kinetics and reducing shuttle effect. More importantly, the abundant pores on the graphene sheet are considered as a shortcut for lithium-ion diffusion, which accelerates the ion transport through the whole electrode. Owing to the synergistic effect, the as-prepared sulfur cathode exhibits both excellent ionic and electronic conductivity, and has a dense-stacked structure. Thus, the LPG-Ni/S cathode provides high gravimetric and volumetric capacity (718.7 mA h g-1 cathode and 884.0 mA h cm-3 cathode at 0.1C). Meanwhile, the battery exhibits superior rate capability (369.7 mA h cm-3 cathode at 5C) and cycling performance (1000 cycles, 0.037% decay per cycle at 1C). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]