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This study is a digital form-finding and manual fabrication experiment in woven architectural design, with one traditional weaving style, Kagome, used to scale the craft up into an architectural-scale bamboo woven artifact. Kagome is a trihexagonal pattern employed in traditional bamboo basketry as a triaxial weaving system, resulting in an object with a self-bracing capacity without the use of fasteners owing to its interlacing lattices. Although existing studies and tools have addressed triaxial weaving design and representation, the current consideration of the advantages of weaving with bamboo is insufficient. To address this research gap, this study develops a computational design method based on studies on bamboo basketry. This allows for the representation and exploration of design geometries using combinations of regular triangular meshes for the fabrication of Kagome woven bamboo artifacts. A full-scale mock-up was fabricated to evaluate the effectiveness of the method. The mock-up demonstrated the self-bracing properties of Kagome, but there were discrepancies between the mock-up and the design. Factors affecting bamboo weaving on an architectural scale have been identified within this study to inform future research on woven bamboo structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is an urgent need for small-diameter artificial blood vessels in clinic. Physical, chemical and biological factors should be integrated to avoid thrombosis and intimal hyperplasia after implantation and to promote successful fabrication of small-diameter artificial blood vessels. From a physical perspective, the internal oriented structures of natural blood vessels plays an important role in guiding the directional growth of cells, improving the blood flow environment, and promoting the regeneration of vascular tissue. In this review, the effects of the oriented structures on cells, including endothelial cells (ECs), smooth muscle cells (SMCs) and stem cells, as well as the effect of the oriented structures on hemodynamics and vascular tissue remodeling and regeneration are introduced. Various forms of oriented structures (fibers, grooves, channels, etc.) and their construction methods are also reviewed. Conclusions and future perspectives are given. It is expected to give some references to relevant researches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital picture forgery detection has recently become a popular and significant topic in image processing. Due to advancements in image processing and the availability of sophisticated software, picture fabrication may hide evidence and hinder the detection of such criminal cases. The practice of modifying original photographic images to generate a forged image is known as digital image forging. A section of an image is copied and pasted into another part of the same image to hide an item or duplicate particular image elements in copy-move forgery. In order to make the forgeries real and inconspicuous, geometric or postprocessing techniques are frequently performed on tampered regions during the tampering process. In Copy-Move forgery detection, the high similarity between the tampered regions and the source regions has become crucial evidence. The most frequent way for detecting copy-move forgeries is to partition the images into overlapping square blocks and utilize Discrete cosine transform (DCT) components as block representations. Due to the high dimensionality of the feature space, Gaussian Radial basis function (RBF) kernel based Principal component analysis (PCA) is used to minimize the dimensionality of the feature vector representation, which improves feature matching efficiency. In this paper, we propose to use a novel enhanced Scale-invariant feature transform (SIFT) detector method called as RootSIFT, combined with the similarity measures to mark the tampered areas in the image. The proposed method outperforms existing state-of-the-art methods in terms of matching time complexity, detection reliability, and forgery location accuracy, according to the experimental results. The F1 score of the proposed method is 92.3% while the literature methods are around 90% on an average. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of wearable technologies promotes the research of flexible sensors. It is hoped that a flexible sensor can collect different physiological data, such as temperature and respiratory rate(RR). The temperature of the exhaled gas is generally higher than that in the air, and the periodic change of temperature is related to the respiratory rate. In this work, we use platinum fiber and spandex fiber to prepare yarn-based temperature sensor with high tensile performance through hollow spindle wrapping spinning technology. After the measurement, the sensitivity of the sensor can reach at least 3. 18 × 10 -3℃ -1 . We use the sensor and ordinary fabric mask to prepare a sensor mask that can monitor human respiratory signals to explore the performance of the sensor in RR measurement. The experimental results show that when measuring human RR, the yarn-based temperature sensor can accurately distinguish different respiratory states such as normal breathing, deep breathing, and rapid breathing while speaking. It is suggested that yarn-based temperature sensors can be used in medical fields such as real-time respiratory detection and temperature measurement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the collaborative journey of the SmithVent team, a 30-person distributed group of volunteers, who designed, fabricated, and tested a simplified and cost-efficient ventilator over a three-month period, and won the CoVent-19 Challenge in July 2020. The paper first presents the SmithVent experience through a co-constructed narrative that describes the team's approaches to collaborative distributed design and fabrication. The paper next reviews frameworks from five theoretical lenses and then details the process of extracting, synthesizing, and organizing relevant factors to create a new and emergent framework reflective of the SmithVent experience. Lastly, the paper discusses educational implications of the SmithVent experience and proposed framework, emphasizing that the team's strategies provide a model for educational and industry settings for future collaborative and distributed design and fabrication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patient: This clinical report describes treatment with a double-crown-retained removable dental prosthesis fabricated using an intraoral scanner (IOS) and computer-aided design/manufacturing technology (CAD/CAM). A 68-year-old female patient presented with complaints of missing maxillary right first and left second premolars. CAD/CAM technology was applied to plan treatment with a double-crown-retained removable dental prosthesis. The patient consented to this treatment option but did not want orthodontic treatment for the anterior crossbite of the right side. After the definitive preparation of the abutment teeth, the shape of the provisional restoration was adjusted to match the definitive prosthesis. An IOS was used to obtain digital scans of the provisional restoration, occlusion, antagonist arch, and prepared surface of the abutment teeth. First, the primary crowns were milled from cobalt-chromium alloy. Next, using an intraoral scanner, a pickup impression of the primary crowns was performed, and the secondary crowns were designed, milled, and veneered. After delivery, the patient expressed satisfaction with the functionality, esthetics, and fit of the double-crown-retained removable dental prosthesis. Discussion: The surface of the primary crowns was coated with scan spray when the pick-up impression was made using the IOS. Practice is needed to achieve a thin and homogeneous coating with scan spray to improve reproducibility. Conclusion: Double-crown-retained removable dental prostheses can be successfully fabricated using an IOS and CAD/ CAM technology, resulting in patient satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low-temperature interconnection processes for high-efficiency PV cells will be a key R&D topic in the coming years. In reality, to avoid significant deterioration of the surface passivation, the metallization and interconnection processes of silicon heterojunction (SHJ) cells are limited to temperatures below 200°C; tandem cells with a perovskite subcell demand an even greater reduction in process temperature, namely below 130°C. Moreover, to ensure the sustainability of PV production on a TW scale, the use of scarce materials, especially silver, needs to be reduced, as 10% of the world's supply was already dedicated to PV in 2020. This paper addresses the results obtained in terms of reducing the silver consumption in interconnection technology based on electrical conductive adhesive (ECA) and Pb-free ribbons. The first demonstration of stencil-printing-based ECA deposition with an improved accuracy using equipment from Mondragon Assembly is reported. This equipment allows a minimal amount of ECA deposition while maintaining highly reproducible results, as demonstrated through the fabrication of 400 glass-glass modules and the validation of process reliability. This paves the way towards creating Si/perovskite tandems that involve ECA curing at temperatures below 130°C with sufficient adhesion (> 0.8N/mm) of the ribbon to the cell, as well as offering a means to consistently reduce Ag usage. Furthermore, improvements to the Mondragon Assembly stringer to handle next-generation cells are outlined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrospun sodium alginate (SA) fibers, which are always considered as a kind of biocompatible and non- toxic materials, have great potential application in the biomedical field due to high specific surface area and large porosity. However, in order to facilitate the electrospinning process, another polymer should be added into the SA solution. The effect of the added polymer of polyethylene oxide ( PEO), SA, and ethanol on tuning the beaded structure of electrospun fibers was evaluated. Pure SA electrospun membrane with a beaded structure was prepared. The results show that PEO can facilitate the fabrication, but the mass fractions of SA and ethanol are positively correlated with the bead forming. When the mass fraction of ethanol in the solution was 15. 0% ( mass fractions of SA and PEO were 1. 0% and 1. 5%, respectively), the average diameter of the obtained beads was 824. 80 nm, and the average length was 2. 88 μm. Besides, the fibrous structure can be maintained even after the removal of PEO by ethanol. After removing PEO, the average diameter of the beads was reduced to 578. 73 nm and the average length was reduced to 2. 34 μm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several publications and even commercial products showcasing the application of optical fibers for textile goods abound in literature. Optical fibers can be employed as sensors by making use of physical principles to sense strain, temperature, and other quantities by tailoring the fiber such that the quantity to be measured alters the intensity, phase, polarisation, and wavelength of light within the fiber. However, a paper directed at the development of textile based applications or smart garments using optical fibers is lacking. This review seeks to serve as apt reference material for the development of optical fiber based textile sensors or smart garments with a focus on the application of plastic optical fibers (POFs). Highlighted are the salient material properties of POFs and their importance in delivering satisfactory sensing results. Special treatment has also been given to their proposed feasibility for embedment within weft knitted structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Until now, Ni/Cu-plated contacts have not been widely favoured in the PV industry despite them being more cost-effective than screenprinted Ag/Al contacts, and the possibility of their further enhancing the cell efficiency in many concepts. One of the main challenges is that moving from one mature technology to another requires putting a great deal of intense effort in equipment and process development. Several fabrication aspects need to be considered in order to ensure the quality of Ni/Cu-plated contacts: 1) generation of contact patterns; 2) plated contact growth; and 3) post-processing for reliable cell and module performance. This paper reviews those associated fabrication technologies for the mass production of Ni/Cu-plated contacts. The technologies currently in use in the PV industry for plated contacts, as well as the developing technologies having high scaling-up potential, will be reviewed. In addition, the future requirements for plating metallization will be discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite it being an older, conventional production method. the cast metal post and core is still often considered the best option for the restoration of severely damaged teeth. The direct technique for fabrication of cast post-and-core patterns, however, can pose challenges due to the inefficiencies and guesswork involved in creating an appropriate form and dimension for the core segment. This article presents an enhanced technique for cast post-and-core fabrication in reference to the desired dimensions of the final restoration. As the authors demonstrate, the procedure involves creation of an accurate and passive pattern of each post space. Bis-acrylic composite resin is then injected into a putty impression of the idealized wax-up and seated on the prepared post patterns. A preparation of the abutments is then performed by creating the cores according to the desired dimensions of the final restoration. The major advantages of this technique include a more efficient workflow and a reduction iii the number of adjustments needed after insertion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of dental implants to restore oral form and function has transformed the dental treatment of both partially and fully edentulous patients. With the advent of cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) imaging technology in 1998 followed by its establishment at the beginning of the new century as the imaging modality of choice in implant treatment, 2-dimensional treatment planning was abruptly supplemented by the much- cherished third dimension. Additive manufacturing, ie, the fabrication of an object by adding material layer by layer, was pioneered in the early 1980s and has become readily available and relatively affordable over the past few years. Although computer-guided planning of treatment is gaining ground in implant therapy, freehand placement of the fixtures remains the standard of care. Time and cost considerations and lack of proper training throughout the steps involved are factors in why clinicians have been reluctant to adopt computer-guided placement of implants. The purpose of this article is to offer guidance to dental clinicians who favor freehand implant placement to facilitate their transition to computer-guided implantology with the use of static surgical guides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Yam-based strain sensors serve as essential elements for wearable electronics in the applications of personal health monitoring, motion detection, and smart garments. In the paper, a yarn-based strain sensor was created by coating conductive polymer, polypyrrole (PPy), onto a double covered elastic yarn, i. e.,polyurethane/polyamide/polyamide (PU/PA/PA) yarn. Surface morphology of the yarn-based strain sensors demonstrates that the PPy conductive particles are evenly distributed on the surface of the PA multi-filaments as well as immersed into the PU core. Cyclic tensile test is conducted to characterize the electro-mechanical performance of the yarnbased strain sensor. The mechanical hysteresis of the sensor is low, which mainly comes from the geometrical change of the PA filaments around the PU core. However, the electromechanical hysteresis of the sensor is large mainly due to the unrecoverable cracks of the PPy layers on the PU core. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Joining of metals is very useful concept which is being utilized since Bronze Age and then gradual advancement gave rise to development of modern welding. And now welding is increasingly used in the fields of fabrication, manufacturing and construction. But productivity is the main concern in many manufacturing and industrial welding applications. Therefore selection of a welding process and its variables/parameters without sacrificing weld quality with respect to productivity and its quality is very important because an optimum blend of parameters which inevitably develop minimum or no defect will result in high productivity. For this study Submerge Arc Welding (SAW) process is selected for optimization because this versatile welding process is the first choice whenever good productivity with high quality requires in fabrication and manufacturing of Marine & pressure vessels, pipelines and offshore structures. Here Signal to noise (S/N) ratio analyses are used to find significant effects of key parameters on selected responses and then for optimization design of experiment based both quality loss function (OFM) and desirability function along with variance analyses by ANOVA are utilized. Moreover codes and standards provide a range for weld process parameters but author experienced that still there is a window to further optimize these parameters to produce the quality weld. Therefore this study is also useful to contribute in welding related research work by enhancing the knowledge of welding process and its analysis by utilizing advance statistical optimization techniques to find optimum zone within the acceptable zone from Code & Standard based tolerance Zone. • Result oriented different statistical approaches based a comprehensive optimization. • Narrowed down optimum region for process parameters within recommended window. • Found weld condition for best weld quality for similar material & welding circumstances. • Validation of optimal responses & results found by performing actual run of weld. • Conclude optimum zone within the acceptable zone from Code & Standard based tolerance Zone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Integrated circuit (IC) fabrication technology has improved to 7 nm resulting that IC can accommodate more transistors to implement system-on-a-chip (SOC). SOC generally consists of a great quantity digital circuits with specific functions. Diverse signals not only convey inside but also communicate outside among circuits. For hundreds of thousands interlaced and complicated signals, it is an extreme big challenge to route in shrink channel. In this work, we propose a complexity effect routing algorithm based on the Lee algorithm to achieve fast verification for SOC. The advantages are to gain fast evaluated for various architectures of route, trace path from origin to destination and set diverse complexity to simulate SOC architectures. Experimental results demonstrate the achievements on five complexity sets of routing benchmarks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the late 20th century, there has been rapid development in the display industry. Only 30 years ago, we used big cathode ray tube displays with poor resolution, but now most people use televisions or smartphones with very high‐quality displays. People now want images that are more realistic, beyond the two‐dimensional images that exist on the flat screen, and digital holography—one of the next‐generation displays—is expected to meet that need. The most important parameter that determines the performance of a digital hologram is the pixel pitch. The smaller the pixel pitch, the higher the level of hologram implementation possible. In this study, we fabricated the world‐smallest 3‐μm‐pixel‐pitch holographic backplane based on the spatial light modulator technology. This panel could display images with a viewing angle of more than 10°. Furthermore, a comparative study was conducted on the fabrication processes and the corresponding holographic results from the large to the small pixel‐pitch panels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing advanced cathode materials to achieve the high-power applications is an important technology for the rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. In this work, hierarchical LiMnPO4 microspheres are designed and fabricated using MnCO3 microspheres as the self-sacrificial template. The novel hierarchical structure with high tap density and more exposed active sites is favorable for the electrolyte penetration and also provides sufficient contact areas for fast Li-ion intercalation and deintercalation reaction. In addition, the uniform thin carbon layer extending from the interior to the outside of the LiMnPO4 microsphere, could further construct a conductive and robust carbon network, which will inevitably accelerate the transport of electrons and improve the discharge capacity. Specifically, a high reversibility capacity of 158.4 mAh g-1 at 0.05 C and 104.3 mAh g-1 at 5 C is achieved. Furthermore, the superior capacity retention with 98% after 200 cycles at 5 C is maintained, revealing an excellent cycle stability. This work may open up a promising strategy to prepare other advanced electrode materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • A novel Bi 2 S 3 @Bi 2 WO 6 /WO 3 ternary composite displayed boosted photocatalytic activity. • A novel Z-scheme/traditional ternary heterojunction system was presented. • The synergistic effect of heterojunction and oxygen vacancy was proposed. Abstract Both the fabricating of heterojunction and oxygen vacancy are the effective methods for boosting the performance of semiconductor photocatalyst. However, the fast recombination of charge carriers and limited light absorption in ubiquitous binary heterojunction are still inherent problems that hinder the practical application of photocatalysts. Herein, a ternary heterojunction of Bi 2 S 3 @Bi 2 WO 6 /WO 3 was fabricated by the facile hydrothermal route combining with an in-situ growth method, and was confirmed by employing elemental mapping and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The oxygen vacancy was introduced into Bi 2 S 3 @Bi 2 WO 6 /WO 3 ternary heterojunction as demonstrated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Compared with Bi 2 S 3 and Bi 2 WO 6 /WO 3 samples, the obtained Bi 2 S 3 @Bi 2 WO 6 /WO 3 composites exhibited higher photocatalytic activity in photodegrading rhodamine B and Tetracycline. The high photocatalytic activity was attributed to the synergistic effect of Z-scheme/traditional heterojunction and oxygen vacancy that extended the visible-light absorption range and promoted the effective separation of photo-generated electron–hole pairs. Based on the trapping experiments and calculated positions of energy band, the photocatalytic mechanisms of the Z-scheme/traditional heterojunction with oxygen vacancy were also proposed. Graphical abstract Brief synopsis: A novel synergistic effect between Z-scheme/traditional heterojunction and oxygen vacancy to design a high-efficiency Bi 2 S 3 @Bi 2 WO 6 /WO 3 ternary photocatalyst. Image, graphical abstract [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Highly-hydrophobic Cu-NPs coated sponge was one-step fabricated without any modification. • The dynamic Cu-NPs coating provides sponge an excellent renewability. • The coated sponge exhibits high open-pore structure and great mechanical property. • The coated sponge shows excellent striking absorption capacities and separation efficiencies. • The coated sponge can be used for oil/water separation at static and dynamic states. Abstract Due to the high porosity and excellent absorption capacity, three-dimensional network bulk materials with hydrophobicity for clean-up oil-spill and organic solvents discharge have attracted significant interest and attention. Herein, this work presents a facile and low-cost method to fabricate highly-hydrophobic, mechanically flexible and dynamic copper nanoparticles coated commercial melamine sponge (Cu-NPs/MS) via one-step process without any hydrophobic modification. The as-prepared Cu-NPs/MS possesses high-hydrophobicity/superoleophilicity, high open-pore structure and great mechanical property which can be used for removal oil/solvents from water. The Cu-NPs/MS absorbent shows striking absorption capacities (60–145 g/g) at static state and admirable separation efficiencies (96.4–98.6%) as oil-collecting device under the pump driven at dynamic state. Moreover, the renewability of Cu-NPs/MS can be achieved via dissolving polluted and destroyed Cu-NPs coating, and redepositing dynamic Cu-NPs coating. This report shows high-performance Cu-NPs/MS absorbent is a promising practical application in clean-up oil-spill and pollution remediation. Graphical abstract A novel highly-hydrophobic copper nanoparticles coated melamine sponge (Cu-NPs/MS) was directly fabricated via facile one-step process. The dynamic Cu-NPs coating was deposited on the skeleton surface of the MS by the reduction of copper acetate by hydrazine hydrate. The obtained hydrophobic Cu-NPs/MS exhibits excellent renewability, mechanical flexibility and oil/water separation performance. Image, graphical abstract [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Rice husk nano-silica particles are synthesized using acid and thermal treatment. • Rice husk nano-silica particles are environmentally benign. • Electrorheological application of rice husk nano-silica is introduced. Abstract Rice husk-based nano-sized silica particles were prepared using both acid and thermal treatment methods for applications to electro-responsive electrorheological (ER) fluids when dispersed in silicone oil. The morphology of the nano-sized silica particles was observed by scanning electron microscopy, and their chemical structure and thermal stability were examined by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscope and thermo-gravimetric analysis, respectively. The ER properties of the nano-sized silica particle-based ER suspension was investigated using a rotation rheometer under various electric field strengths, showing a conduction mechanism with a slope of 1.5 for a plot of the yield stress versus the applied electric field strength. In addition, its shear stresses increased with increased electric field strengths along with ER efficiency and became stable over the entire shear rate range when the electric field reached 2.0 kV/mm. Typical solid-like behaviors of the ER suspension was also confirmed by both higher storage moduli than the loss moduli and shear relaxation modulus property. Graphical abstract Image, graphical abstract Nano-sized silica particles were extracted from rice husk via a facile thermal method and used as a dispersion phase in an ER fluid. Their ER properties were conducted using a rotational rheometer with high voltage generator under external electric field strengths. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • A single atom layered structure graphene oxide quantum dot (GOQD) was synthesized. • GOQD was functionalized by polyaniline (PAni) in a rapid-mixture polymerization method. • GOQD-PAni well dispersed in the epoxy matrix. • GOQD-PAni significantly improved the corrosion protection properties of epoxy coating. Abstract For decades the zinc chromate and zinc phosphate pigments have been utilized as the most popular anti-corrosive pigments in the anti-corrosive organic coatings formulations. However, these pigments include heavy and toxic zinc and chrome metals, causing serious risks for the human health and ecosystem. Therefore, demands for finding less toxic and more environmentally friendly alternatives are extremely in progress in recent years. In recent years, the carbon based nanomaterials, such as graphene and graphene oxide, have drawn significant attention of the researchers and scientist for making polymer composites with superior anti-corrosion properties. In this study a well crystalized single atom layered structure graphene oxide quantum dot (GOQD) with lateral dimension, ranging from 2 to 20 nm, was synthesized through a bottom-up" method by direct pyrolyzing of citric acid and then functionalized by polyaniline (PAni) through a rapid-mixture polymerization procedure. The morphology and chemistry of the GOQD-PAni were characterized through atomic force microscopy (AFM), high resolution-transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and photo-luminescent (PL) technique. The effect of GOQD-PAni on the corrosion protection properties of epoxy coating was investigated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and salt spray test. Results confirmed that both barrier and inhibitive action of epoxy coating were significantly enhanced in the presence of GOQD-PAni. The fine GOQD-PAni well dispersed in the epoxy matrix, filled the pores and defects and blocked the diffusion pathways. Graphical abstract Image, graphical abstract [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Metallic implant materials are biomaterials that have experienced major development over the last fifty years, yet some demands posed to them have not been addressed. For the osseointegration process and the outcome of endosseous implantation, it is crucial to reduce the stress shielding effect and achieve sufficient biocompatibility. Powder metallurgy (PM) was utilized in this study to fabricate a new type of titanium (Ti) + magnesium (Mg) bioactive composite to enable stress-shielding reduction and obtain better biocompatibility compared with that of the traditional Ti and Ti alloys used for dental implants. Such composites are produced by well-known cost-effective and widely used PM methods, which eliminate the need for complex and costly Ti casting used in traditional implant production. The relation between the microstructure and mechanical properties of as-extruded Ti + (0–24) vol% Mg composites was investigated with respect to the Mg content. The microstructure of the composites consisted of a biodegradable Mg component in the form of filaments, elongated along the direction of extrusion, which were embedded within a permanent, bioinert Ti matrix. As the Mg content was increased, the discrete filaments became interconnected with each other and formed a continuous Mg network. Young's modulus (E) of the composites was reduced to 81 GPa, while other tensile mechanical properties were maintained at the values required for a dental implant material. The corrosion behavior of the Ti + Mg composites was studied during immersion in a Hank's balanced salt solution (HBSS) for up to 21 days. The elution of Mg pores formed at former Mg sites led to a further decrease of E to 74 GPa. The studied compositions showed that a new Ti + Mg metallic composite should be promising for load-bearing applications in endosseous dental implants in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The supply from silver powder to PV module is highly concentrated. • Silver stocks in installed PV modules are estimated at over 19,000 tons. • ESG risks in Ag supply chains are mostly nested in fabrication and manufacturing. • Virtually all silver used in PV is associated with high ESG risks upstream. • Reshoring the PV industry in the EU can de-risk the supply chain. Supply concentration and environmental, social, governance (ESG) issues constitute important supply risks. With strategic autonomy and responsible sourcing high on the political agenda these risks are especially relevant for the EU. This paper proposes an approach to conduct risk-based due diligence. Using a trade-linked material flow analysis, ESG and dependency hotspots along supply chains can be identified. Silver supply chains for photovoltaics (PV) are taken as case-study. The model traces silver from mining to PV module manufacturing, from 1995 to 2021. The supply of silver powder, paste, PV cells, and modules is found to be highly concentrated. These supply chains are linked to substantial ESG risks, mostly nested in fabrication and manufacturing, some of which have worsened over time. Over 87% of the silver used in PV transits through at least one country with a very high risk factor. Reshoring the PV industry to the EU can partially de-risk supply. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Despite a growing consensus that 3D printing technology has emerged as a revolutionary driver of innovation in society and has grown exponentially as an innovation ecosystem, our understanding of how the 3D printing ecosystem emerged and has grown is still limited. Based on the case study and the grounded theory approach, we found that four relevant platforms—open-source hardware platforms, online service platforms, free and low-cost 3D design software platforms, and crowdsourcing platforms—nurtured the innovation ecosystem. We also found that complementary relationships among the four platforms accelerated the growth of the ecosystem from the perspective of an increase in the user base, 3D printer sales, 3D design contents, and the emergence of entrepreneurial firms that are developing the platforms. Consequently, we newly suggest "complementary multiplatforms," a platform strategy that develops multiple platforms with complementary relationships for nurturing an innovation ecosystem. Our findings provide important theoretical grounds for the multiplatform strategy with complementary relationships aimed at facilitating the growth of an innovation ecosystem. Highlights • We investigate the role of platforms in the growth of 3D printing innovation ecosystem. • We find complementarity among platforms in the ecosystem. • We newly introduce the concept of 'complementary multiplatforms'. • The new concept extends our understanding of the innovation ecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In most cases, bridges are an integral part of a grown, long-term development of infrastructure. While for the Renaissance architects and engineers bridges were part of the general infrastructure, urban bridges have become a natural continuation of the city with its various layers of meaning. Technological advancement and scientific thought during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries brought the concept of efficiency and the domination of fabrication processes into the design of structures; whereas in the past bridges were often considered as technical devices with a clearly expressed inner logic of form, today new forms of development for structures in footbridge design—in combination with modern materials—are resulting in greater effectivity and broader functionality. In order to shape the spaces on and around bridges, the load-bearing structures are often made visible above the deck, manipulating the spatial experience either directly or through a diagrammatic articulation of the structural behavior in the arrangement of the bridge’s components. Recently there has been an intentional shift away from common perceptions of bridge design through the manipulation and dissection of structural typologies, leading to new interpretations and multilayered narratives. The aesthetic conception of the user’s perception has been shifted away from the subtle reading of a familiar structural grammar toward a more direct influence on the user through the creation of clearly expressed structural figures. The structure itself is now not only more visible and actively involved in the spatial experience but it is also designed to suggest a greater form of immediacy through its increasingly performative character. This paper reflects the changing understanding of the role of structures in the design of bridges, and examines the ways in which the strategies for contemporary footbridges can be contextualized both historically and aesthetically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract Abstract A range of traditional and free-form fabrication technologies have been investigated and, in numerous occasions, commercialized for use in the field of regenerative tissue engineering (TE). The demand for technologies capable of treating bone defects inherently difficult to repair has been on the rise. This quest, accompanied by the advent of functionally tailored, biocompatible, and biodegradable materials, has garnered an enormous research interest in bone TE. As a result, different materials and fabrication methods have been investigated towards this end, leading to a deeper understanding of the geometrical, mechanical and biological requirements associated with bone scaffolds. As our understanding of the scaffold requirements expands, so do the capability requirements of the fabrication processes. The goal of this review is to provide a broad examination of existing scaffold fabrication processes and highlight future trends in their development. To appreciate the clinical requirements of bone scaffolds, a brief review of the biological process by which bone regenerates itself is presented first. This is followed by a summary and comparisons of commonly used implant techniques to highlight the advantages of TE-based approaches over traditional grafting methods. A detailed discussion on the clinical and mechanical requirements of bone scaffolds then follows. The remainder of the manuscript is dedicated to current scaffold fabrication methods, their unique capabilities and perceived shortcomings. The range of biomaterials employed in each fabrication method is summarized. Selected traditional and non-traditional fabrication methods are discussed with a highlight on their future potential from the authors' perspective. This study is motivated by the rapidly growing demand for effective scaffold fabrication processes capable of economically producing constructs with intricate and precisely controlled internal and external architectures. Statement of Significance The manuscript summarizes the current state of fabrication technologies and materials used for creating scaffolds in bone tissue engineering applications. A comprehensive analysis of different fabrication methods (traditional and free-form) were summarized in this review paper, with emphasis on recent developments in the field. The fabrication techniques suitable for creating scaffolds for tissue engineering was particularly targeted and their use in bone tissue engineering were articulated. Along with the fabrication techniques, we emphasized the choice of materials in these processes. Considering the limitations of each process, we highlighted the materials and the material properties critical in that particular process and provided a brief rational for the choice of the materials. The functional performance for bone tissue engineering are summarized for different fabrication processes and the choice of biomaterials. Finally, we provide a perspective on the future of the field, highlighting the knowledge gaps and promising avenues in pursuit of effective scaffolds for bone tissue engineering. This extensive review of the field will provide research community with a reference source for current approaches to scaffold preparation. We hope to encourage the researchers to generate next generation biomaterials to be used in these fabrication processes. By providing both advantages and disadvantage of each fabrication method in detail, new fabrication techniques might be devised that will overcome the limitations of the current approaches. These studies should facilitate the efforts of researchers interested in generating ideal scaffolds, and should have applications beyond the repair of bone tissue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract In the present study, we fabricated an efficient, simple biomimetic scaffold to stimulate osteogenic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). Electrospun poly L-lactic acid nanofibers were employed to mimic the nanofibrillar structure of bone proteins and coated with hydroxyapatite nanoparticles to simulate bone minerals. Thereafter, we regulated the release pattern of BMP-2 peptide through covalent attachment of an optimized liposomal formulation to the scaffold. The fabricated platform provided a sustained release profile of BMP-2 peptide up to 21 days while supporting cellular attachment and proliferation without cytotoxicity. In-vitro results confirmed the superiority of the scaffold containing liposomes through enhancement of growth and differentiation of MSCs. Ectopic bone formation model exhibited significant localized initiation of bone formation of liposome incorporated scaffold. Consequently, these findings demonstrated that our designed platform with modified release properties of BMP-2 peptide considerably promoted osteogenic differentiation of MSCs making it a unique candidate for bone regeneration therapeutics. Graphical abstract To simulate bone ECM in terms of mechanical properties, surface topography and regulatory bioactive agents, electrospun PLLA nanofibrous scaffold was prepared and the surface was modified through plasma ionization enhancing aqueous solubility and cellular attachment. Then it was thiolated, coated with hydroxyapatite nanoparticles and covalently attached to our optimized nanoliposomal formulation of BMP-2 peptide. Incorporation of the peptide into controlled release carriers loaded onto scaffolds helped decrease peptide inactivation at the regeneration site and its diffusion to nearby tissues, thereby reducing the undesired side effects. In the current approach, we benefited the use of liposomes and PLA polymer as FDA approved materials for clinical use and fabricated a biomimetic scaffold platform with an easy to scale up process suggesting its promising potential in tissue regeneration applications. Unlabelled Image [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current semiconductor industrial scenario, wafers are rinsed in an overflow rinsing tank while being mounted on several lifters prior to most of its manufacturing processes. However, a major drawback of this overflow rinsing methodology is that some of the processing fluid stagnates due to the generated vortices in the regions between the side and middle lifters which entrap some of the flushed particles that further adhere and deteriorate the surface of the wafers. In this work, the hydrodynamics of the flow field inside the wafer rinsing tank with this original lifter orientation setup was studied and compared through numerical simulation and flow visualization using particle image velocimetry (PIV) method, and a strong agreement was found between them in terms of velocity calculation. A new lifter orientation setup was initiated and it was evidenced by the numerical simulation that with this new setup, the generated vortices which are situated opposite to the lifters tilting direction can be displaced significantly in terms of magnitude and distribution. This work presents a new wafer cleaning concept which shows its great potentials in improvement and implementation to the current in-line wafer batch fabrication process without modifying the original design of the rinsing tank. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research utilizes computational design concepts to address dysfunction in the architectural, engineering and construction (AEC) sector. The goal is to identify solutions by focussing on the integration of computational design concepts into computer-aided design (CAD) processes and into compatible prefabrication strategies. Precedents are examined and project work is used to set up the modelling framework of a three-storey, prefabricated residential building, allowing reflection and speculation on solutions to the problems identified. The computational design concept of the ‘design domain’ is employed to assist with set up of the modelling framework, while computational ‘design rules’ are implemented during the developed design stage, including the ‘declarative format’ which improves accessibility using visual programming graphs, and the ‘modular format’ which reveals combined effects between programming and prefabrication strategies. The intensity of integration between these computational design, AEC CAD and prefabrication processes is assessed, allowing solutions to be developed which could improve conventional AEC CAD practice and traditional AEC prefabrication processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Direct ink writing (DIW) techniques open up new possibilities for the fabrication of patient-specific bone grafts. Self-setting calcium phosphate inks, which harden at low temperature, allow obtaining nanostructured scaffolds with biomimetic properties and enhanced bioactivity. However, the slow hardening kinetics hampers the translation to the clinics. Different hydrothermal treatments for the consolidation of DIW scaffolds fabricated with an α-tricalcium phosphate /pluronic F127 ink were explored, comparing them with a biomimetic treatment. Three different scaffold architectures were analysed. The hardening process, associated to the conversion of α-tricalcium phosphate to hydroxyapatite was drastically accelerated by the hydrothermal treatments, reducing the time for complete reaction from 7 days to 30 minutes, while preserving the scaffold architectural integrity and retaining the nanostructured features. β-tricalcium phosphate was formed as a secondary phase, and a change of morphology from plate-like to needle-like crystals in the hydroxyapatite phase was observed. The binder was largely released during the treatment. The hydrothermal treatment resulted in a 30% reduction of the compressive strength, associated to the residual presence of β-tricalcium phosphate. Biomimetic and hydrothermally treated scaffolds supported the adhesion and proliferation of rat mesenchymal stem cells, indicating a good suitability for bone tissue engineering applications. Statement of Significance 3D plotting has opened up new perspectives in the bone regeneration field allowing the customisation of synthetic bone grafts able to fit patient-specific bone defects. Moreover, this technique allows the control of the scaffolds’ architecture and porosity. The present work introduces a new method to harden biomimetic hydroxyapatite 3D-plotted scaffolds which avoids high-temperature sintering. It has two main advantages: i) it is fast and simple, reducing the whole fabrication process from the several days required for the biomimetic processing to a few hours; and ii) it retains the nanostructured character of biomimetic hydroxyapatite and allows controlling the porosity from the nano- to the macroscale. Moreover, the good in vitro cytocompatibility results support its suitability for cell-based bone regeneration therapies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores a finite production rate (FPR) model featuring overtime option and rework of nonconforming products. Classic FPR model assumed all items produced are of perfect quality. However, in real fabrication systems, owing to diverse uncontrollable conditions, production of nonconforming items is inevitable. To maintain high product quality and lower production cost allow present-day’s manufacturing firms to gain competition advantage. Also, due to limited in-house capacity, to be able to smooth production schedule enables management to meet due dates and better allocate fabrication resources. Motivated by these practical issues, the present study investigates a FPR model considering overtime and rework of nonconforming items. An exact model is developed to specifically describe the problem. Mathematical analysis and differential calculus are employed to help obtain the expected system cost function and prove its convexity, and then derive the optimal lot size per replenishment cycle. Moreover, sensitivity analysis and diverse effects of key system factors on the problem are demonstrated via numerical illustrations to help managerial decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The availability of low cost, efficient and wearable glucose sensors is one of the prerequisites for the development of ubiquitous sensors networks for the efficient monitoring of diabetes epidemiology. Starting from this principle, wet metallization and low cost inkjet printing were employed in the present work to manufacture non-enzymatic electrochemical sensors. CuO nanoparticles were inkjet printed on platinum, which was electrodeposited on stainless steel. The active layer obtained in this way showed an acceptable linear range for glucose detection and a good sensitivity when used as sensor. The influence on performances of interfering species and curvature were investigated, demonstrating a negligible effect for the first and a decrease in linearity of the response and sensitivity for the latter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work reports incorporation of Mentha longifolia in a silane coating to improve active corrosion protection. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were employed to characterize the chemical structure of extract. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) revealed that superlative corrosion resistance of silane primer was achieved at 200 ppm inhibitor concentration. DC polarization and open circuit potential (OCP) measurements confirmed the EIS results. The effect of inhibitor concentration on the crosslinking density was evaluated by FTIR and its subsequent effect on the coating wettability was assessed by water droplet contact angle method. The protective performance of the artificially defected bilayer coating system (silane + epoxy) assessed by EIS and surface analysis showed an improvement in the anticorrosion properties of silane formulated with 200 ppm extract due to the corrosion reaction restriction. Solution phase studies by electrochemical test and SEM indicated participation of a protective layer on the surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We prepare a new type of patented biodegradable biomedical Mg–Nd–Zn–Zr (JDBM) alloy system and impose double continuously extrusion (DCE) processing. The lowest processing temperature is 250 °C for JDBM-2.1Nd and 310 °C for JDBM-2.8Nd, which increases with the Nd concentration. The highest yield strength of 541 MPa is achieved in JDBM-2.1 Nd samples when extruded at 250 °C and the elongation is about 3.7%. Moreover, the alloy with a lower alloying element content can reach a higher yield strength while that with a higher alloying element content can reach a larger elongation after DCE processing. However, when extruded under the same conditions, the alloy with a higher alloying contents exhibits better tensile properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, surface patterning of membranes has been explored as a new strategy to modify surface properties of polymeric membranes. A variety of methods including template-based micromolding and direct printing have been developed for effective fabrication of surface-patterned membranes. In this review, we compare the underlying pattern replication mechanisms and the advantages and challenges associated with the range of different fabrication methods. The presence of the surface patterns, when properly created, can enlarge the active surface/interfacial area, create more effective conduction pathways, and enhance the hydrodynamic effects. These effects can be harnessed for improving membrane performance for a wide range of applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Butyl reclaimed rubber (BRR) was used as a novel precursor in the fabrication of a rubber membrane for CO 2 separation. Fully de-vulcanized BRR without impurities was produced from waste tire by regeneration. The properties of BRR were evaluated via systematic investigation of a number of experimental variables, and the effects of these variables on the molecular structure and the CO 2 separation performance of the membrane were assessed. The BRR-derived membrane was fabricated by simple solution-coating on an Al 2 O 3 support. The effect of the fabrication parameters, such as the solvent type, polymer concentration (8–12 wt%), and curing temperature (room temperature to 100 °C). The results indicate that the CO 2 /N 2 separation performance of the BRR-derived membrane prepared with a low concentration (<10 wt%) of coating dope in toluene solvent and cured at room temperature is competitive with that of membranes reported in previous studies due to the cis -isoprene structure. The CO 2 /N 2 ideal selectivity of 11.6, coupled with a CO 2 permeability of 86.9 Barrer, obtained with the 8RD-T25 membrane is comparable to that of a commercial rubber membrane. Furthermore, the use of BRR would decrease the use of non-renewable resources and aggregation of waste, with reduced environmental impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flash reduction of graphene oxide is an efficient method for producing high quality reduced graphene oxide under room temperature ambient conditions without the use of hazardous reducing agents (such as hydrazine and hydrogen iodide). The entire process is fast, low‐cost, and suitable for large‐scale fabrication, which makes it an attractive process for industrial manufacturing. Herein, we present a simple fabrication method for a flexible in‐plane graphene micro‐supercapacitor using flash light irradiation. All carbon‐based, monolithic supercapacitors with in‐plane geometry can be fabricated with simple flash irradiation, which occurs in only a few milliseconds. The thinness of the fabricated device makes it highly flexible and thus useful for a variety of applications, including portable and wearable electronics. The rapid flash reduction process creates a porous graphene structure with high surface area and good electrical conductivity, which ultimately results in high specific capacitance (36.90 mF cm−2) and good cyclic stability up to 8,000 cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, we first successfully designed and fabricated the ternary plasmonic Ag/β-Ag 2 WO 4 /WO 3 photocatalysts with different contents of Ag/β-Ag 2 WO 4 particles in situ decorated on the surface of WO 3 nanoplates by a simple precipitation method at room temperature condition. The photocatalytic activity of as-prepared samples was investigated by degradation of rhodamine B (RhB), methylene blue (MB) and methyl orange (MO) under visible-light irradiation. It was found that the prepared 40 wt% Ag/β-Ag 2 WO 4 /WO 3 photocatalyst showed the highest photocatalytic RhB efficiency with 83.21 and 86.83 times higher than those of pure WO 3 and Ag/β-Ag 2 WO 4 samples, respectively. The highly enhanced photocatalytic performance was attributed to the Z-scheme mechanism in this ternary composites, in which Ag particles play a crucial role by the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect; meanwhile, Ag particles also can work as the charge transmission-bridge, giving rise to effectively restraining recombination of the photogenerated charge carriers. This novel ternary Ag/β-Ag 2 WO 4 /WO 3 nanostructures may provide an appropriate insight in the consideration as an ideal candidate in environmental remediation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is well established that the piezoelectric effect plays an important physiological role in bone growth, remodeling and fracture healing. Barium titanate, as a well-known piezoelectric ceramic, is especially an attractive material as a scaffold for bone tissue engineering applications. In this regard, we tried to fabricate a highly porous barium titanate based scaffolds by foam replication method and polarize them by applying an external electric field. In order to enhance the mechanical and biological properties, polarized/non-polarized scaffolds were coated with gelatin and nanostructured HA and characterized for their morphologies, porosities, piezoelectric and mechanical properties. The results showed that the compressive strength and piezoelectric coefficient of porous scaffolds increased with the increase of sintering temperature. After being coated with Gel/HA nanocomposite, the interconnected porous structure and pore size of the scaffolds almost remain unchanged while the Gel/nHA-coated scaffolds exhibited enhanced compressive strength and elastic modulus compared with the uncoated samples. Also, the effect of polarizing and coating of optimal scaffolds on adhesion, viability, and proliferation of the MG63 osteoblast-like cell line was evaluated by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and MTT assay. The cell culture experiments revealed that developed scaffolds had good biocompatibility and cells were able to adhere, proliferate and migrate into pores of the scaffolds. Furthermore, cell density was significantly higher in the coated scaffolds at all tested time-points. These results indicated that highly porous barium titanate scaffolds coated with Gel/HA nanocomposite has great potential in tissue engineering applications for bone tissue repair and regeneration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The long standing need of the implant manufacturing industries is to fabricate multi-matrix, customized porous scaffold as cost-effectively. In recent years, freeze casting has shown greater opportunity in the fabrication of porous scaffolds (tricalcium phosphate, hydroxyapatite, bioglass, alumina, etc.) such as at ease and good control over pore size, porosity, a range of materials and economic feasibility. In particular, tricalcium phosphate (TCP) has proved as it possesses good biocompatible (osteoinduction, osteoconduction, etc.) and biodegradability hence beta-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP, particle size of 10 µm) was used as base material and camphene was used as a freezing vehicle in this study. Both freezing conditions such as constant freezing temperature (CFT) and constant freezing rate (CFR) were used for six different conditional samples (CFT: 30, 35 and 40 vol% solid loading; similarly CFR: 30, 35 and 40 vol% solid loading) to study and understand the effect of various properties (pore size, porosity and compressive strength) of the freeze-cast porous scaffold. It was observed that the average size of the pore was varying linearly as from lower to higher when the solid loading was varying higher to lower. With the help of scanning electron micrographs (SEM), it was observed that the average size of pore during CFR (9.7/ 6.5/ 4.9 µm) was comparatively higher than the process of CFT (6.0/ 4.8/ 2.6 µm) with respect to the same solid loading (30/ 35/ 40 vol%) conditions. From the Gas pycnometer analysis, it was found that the porosity in both freezing conditions (CFT, CFR) were almost near values such as 32.8% and 28.5%. Further to be observed that with the increase in solid loading, the total porosity value has decreased due to the reduction in the concentration of the freezing vehicle. Hence, the freezing vehicle was found as responsible for the formation of appropriate size and orientation of pores during freeze casting. The compressive strength (CS) testing was clearly indicated that the CS was majorly depending on the size of pore which was depending on solid loading. The CS of CFT-based samples (smaller pore sizes and higher resistance to the propagation of crack) were higher due to the higher solid content (pore size) in compared with CFR-based samples on the similar solid loading conditions. As evidently, it was noted that the CFT-based sample with 40% solid loading has given the compressive strength which has come in the range of cancellous bone. The positive note was that the ratio of Ca/P has come as 1.68 (natural bone) after sintering and that was the required value recommended by the food and drug administration (FDI) for manufacturing of bone implants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a new extrusion method for fabrication of a tube with spiral inner fins. The spiral fins are formed by utilizing the generation of spiral outer fins or grooves, which drive the metal to circumferentially move with twist deformation. The effect of the outer fins/grooves is examined for realizing the circumferential metal flow. The position of the mandrel has an ability to flexibly control the spiral angle. This method would drastically enhance the productivity and reduce the manufacturing cost, as the tube would be manufactured directly from a billet through only one process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A solid-state pressure joining using resistance heating as a heat source and adopting an additive manufactured metal porous interlayer between joining specimens is demonstrated. During the joining of 316L stainless steel cylindrical specimens, an electric current is directly applied to the joint under continuous axial compression. Defect-free joints are successfully fabricated with a lower joining pressure when applying the porous interlayer with a lower compressive strength and higher electric resistivity. The microstructural analysis confirms that the porosity is eliminated as a result of the compressive deformation during joining, and recrystallization takes place in the interlayer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sapphire is a widely used hard transparent material for optics and protective windows, and a superhydrophobic coating on sapphire can prevent contamination by self-cleaning. However, the coating can be easily degraded according to time and heat. In this research, transparent superhydrophobic sapphire surfaces were fabricated via laser surface ablation, without coating, for good stability and heat resistance. The laser ablated surface showed hydrophilic initially, but the wettability transition to superhydrophobic was achieved after an additional simple heat treatment. Contact angle and transmittance were measured to confirm the superhydrophobicity and transparency, and surface analysis was performed to explain the wetting mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The digital thread links disparate systems across the product lifecycle to support data curation and information cultivation and enable data-driven applications, e.g., digital twin. Realizing the digital thread requires the integration of semantically-rich, open standards to facilitate the dynamic creation of context based on multiple viewpoints. This research develops such an approach to link as-planned (ISO 6983) to as-fabricated (MTConnect) product data using dynamic time warping. Applying this approach to a production part enabled the designer to make a more optimal decision from the perspective of the product lifecycle that would have otherwise been challenging to identify. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]