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To distinguish between the kinetic and chemical contributions in the impact of PTFE/Al, this study explores the feasibility of introducing an inert substitute for PTFE/Al by substituting aluminum (Al) with inert materials. Three specimens were fabricated through a process involving mixing, compression, and sintering of raw materials The mechanical properties of these specimens were assessed. Dynamic fragmentation tests of PTFE/Al and PTFE/LiF specimens were performed. These results further substantiate the potential of PTFE/LiF as an inert alternative to PTFE/Al, the two materials exhibit comparable fragmentation distribution characteristics. A preliminary exploration of the energy release in both materials was conducted via vented chamber calorimetry tests. The findings reveal that, at an impact velocity of roughly 650 m/s, only 66.9 % of the materials were deposited into the chamber, with a mere 17.8 % being initiated, about 88.9 % of the total deposited energy results from the chemical reaction energy within the PTFE/Al materials. Importantly, this method demonstrates promise for further application in energy release analysis experiments for various PTFE/Al‐based reactive materials. These findings are beneficial for evaluating the energy release characteristics of reactive fragments on typical targets and lay the foundation for refining energy release models of such materials in future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The wheel–rail adhesion is one of the key factors limiting the traction performance of railway vehicles. To meet the adhesion optimization needs and rapidly obtain wheel–rail creep characteristics under specific operating conditions, an engineering identification method for wheel–rail adhesion characteristics based on a nonlinear model is proposed. The proposed method, built upon the traditional Teaching-Learning-Based Optimization (TLBO) algorithm, has been adapted to the specific nature of nonlinear wheel–rail adhesion model parameters identification, enhancing both the search speed in the early stages and the search accuracy in the later stages of the algorithm. The proposed identification algorithm is validated using experimental data from the South African 22E dual-flow locomotive. The validation results demonstrate that the proposed identification algorithm can obtain a nonlinear wheel–rail adhesion characteristics model with an average adhesion coefficient error of around 0.01 within 50 iteration steps. These validation results indicate promising prospects for the engineering practice of the proposed algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) dysfunction, manifested as drusen formation and RPE mottling, is a characteristic lesion of aging. The mechanism of RPE dysfunction remains unknown. Previous animal studies have proven that the activation of NLRP3 inflammasome in RPE leads to apoptosis and pyroptosis, which may play a very important role in the development of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). However, there is a lack of clinical evidence to support the above hypothesis. Herein, we report a 38-year-old Chinese Han woman who had NLRP3-associated autoinflammatory disease (NLRP3-AID) with widely scattered drusen at the posterior pole in both eyes. NLRP3-AID is a rare disease caused by mutations of the NLRP3 gene, leading to NLRP3 inflammasome activation. This report of early-onset drusen provides clinical evidence that the NLRP3 inflammasome might contribute to the occurrence of RPE dysfunction and is a potential cause of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under neoclassical assumptions, this paper develops a model to illustrate the effects of government use of carbon allowances for carbon emission control. We find that control using the instrument of issuing long-term carbon allowances does not produce the same good results in the Decentralised Equilibrium as in the Planning Problem. Thus, while Coase's Theorem ensures that the Pareto optimum is maintained in an economy with multiple agents, it does not align the social development with the economic optimum of the planner. We believe this is due to the that the price of carbon allowances is determined by asset profiles of investors rather than externalities. The steady-state under the special pathway shows that consumption is determined by the rate of technological progress, the total amount of carbon dioxide at steady-state, the level of technology at which steady-state is reached and the total amount of carbon allowances remaining. The comparison with the optimal tax path reveals that the price of carbon allowances has increased too quickly, leading to excessive consumption of fossil fuels in the early stages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]