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Tropomyosin (TM), the major allergen in shellfish, is a common protein cause of allergenic diseases, hence a sensitive, efficient method for TM detection is urgently needed to protect allergy sufferers in food products. In this work, a novel fluorescent aptasensor for TM-sensitive detection based on DNA-templated silver nanoclusters (AgNCs) and catalytic hairpin assembly (CHA) was designed. With the rapid separation and enrichment of magnetic beads, the detection of TM was converted to the detection of cDNA (complementary DNA). Then the cDNA was utilized as the initiator to successfully trigger the CHA amplification technique, which ultimately formed double-stranded to induce high fluorescence signals by AgNCs. Specifically, the cDNA could trigger repeated cycles, which enabled signal amplification and enhanced aptasensor performance with an excellent linear relationship in a wide linear range from 0.1 to 50 μg/mL (R2= 0.9967) and a desirable low detection limit of 0.0179 μg/mL. It is worth noting that the method was successfully validated with high specificity and stability for detecting processed shrimp products, implying great potential in the field of allergen assay.

Two-dimensional (2D) transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) are excellent candidates for electronic applications because of their high carrier mobility, tunable bandgap energy depending on the number of layers, monolayer thickness, and the absence of dangling bonds on their surfaces. Despite these advantages, the crystalline structures of TMDs contain intrinsic defects such as vacancies, adatoms, grain boundaries, and substitutional impurities, which can cause large contact resistance at the source/drain interface. Customized engineering of interfaces and defects, which provides a method to modulate the properties of TMDs, is crucial as it can significantly enhance device performance. Herein, we explored a novel electrode to enhance the interface between electrode and semiconductor materials. we report the synthesis of high-quality atomically thin MoO2using atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition (APCVD) and its application to field-effect transistors. To improve crystallinity of MoO2, we investigated the influence of hydrogen concentration, a key parameter in the reduction process, on the synthesis of high-crystallinity MoO₂. By adding NaCl to MoO₃ powder, we optimized the synthesis of high-crystallinity MoO₂. Utilizing the optimized MoO₂, we fabricated transistors that exhibited a mobility of 29.1 cm²/V∙s and an on/off ratio of 1.78 × 10⁴, demonstrating excellent performance. Our findings confirm that single-crystal MoO2can be effectively applied as a contact electrode in high-performance two-dimensional semiconductor devices.

Blur is one of the common types of damage in the image. Image de-blurring is one of the biggest and most common challenges in the field of image processing. In this article, we present a suitable method for the caused blind blur removal by the motion in the image, in which, in addition to the original image recovery, we recover the kernel of the blur, which is the unknown. The blur kernel is a function that describes the amount and type of blur caused by imaging a point source of light. In our article, the end-to-end learning method for motion blur removal is presented. The presented learning in this paper is the basis of the content loss and the conditional generative adversarial networks. This method gets advanced efficiency in terms of the appearance of the visual and the similarity of the structure. This approach is faster than five times over similar methods. Also, we introduce a new method for artificial motion blur image generation from sharp images that provides the possibility of the increase of the real data. Although the focus of this article is on the removal of the caused blur by the motion on the natural images, our presented approach is capable of removing blur on text images as well, and it partially covers the blur that varies with the location. According to the comparison of existing approaches and the conducted tests, our presented approach has the greatest image output quality value in terms of peak signal-to-noise ratio parameters.

Enhancing hepatic gluconeogenesis is one of the main modes of meeting the glucose requirement of dairy cows. This study attempted to determine whether the gluconeogenesis precursor propionate had an effect on the expression of the main genes involved in gluconeogenesis in calf hepatocytes and elucidate the associated mechanisms. Calf hepatocytes were obtained from 5 healthy calves (1 d old; 30 to 40 kg) and exposed to 0-, 1-, 2.5-, or 5-mM sodium propionate (NaP), which is known to promote the expression of genes involved in the gluconeogenesis pathway, including fructose 1,6-bisphosphatase, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase, and glucose-6-phosphatase. With regard to the underlying mechanism, propionate promoted the expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator 1-alpha, hepatocyte nuclear factor 4, and forkhead box O1 (transcription factors that regulate the expression of hepatic gluconeogenic genes) by promoting mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1), but inhibiting mTORC2 activity (P < 0.01). We also established a model of palmitic acid (PA)-induced hepatic injury in calf hepatocytes and found that PA could inhibit the gluconeogenic capacity of calf hepatocytes by suppressing the expression of gluconeogenic genes, inhibiting mTORC1, and promoting the activity of mTORC2 (P < 0.01). In contrast, NaP provided protection to calf hepatocytes by counteracting the inhibitory effect of PA on the gluconeogenic capacity of calf hepatocytes (P < 0.05). Collectively, these findings indicate that NaP enhances the gluconeogenic capacity of calf hepatocytes by regulating the mTOR pathway activity. Thus, in addition to improving the glucose production potential, propionate may have therapeutic potential for the treatment of hepatic injury in dairy cows.

In this study, double cross-linked acrylic acid/bagasse cellulose (AA/BC) porous hydrogels were first prepared using cold plasma (CP) technology instead of chemical initiators. The structure and properties of porous hydrogels, as well as the controlled release and bacteriostatic application as functional carriers, were investigated. Results showed that a novel double cross-linked hydrogel had been successfully synthesized by utilizing •OH and H+produced during plasma discharge. The acrylic acid (AA) monomers were successfully grafted onto the main chains of bagasse cellulose (BC), forming a porous three-dimensional network structure. The AA/BC porous hydrogels showed excellent swelling levels and intelligent responses. The release of citral in hydrogel inclusion compounds embedded with citral was controlled by adjusting the pH, and the slow release period was about 2 days. The inclusion compounds presented strong bacteriostatic effects against Escherichia coliand Staphylococcus aureus, extending the shelf life of fruits for about 4 days. Therefore, it can be concluded that CP technology is considered to be an efficient and environmental-friendly initiation technology for preparing hydrogels. The potential application of hydrogel inclusion compounds in the food field is expanded.

A bifunctional supercapacitor based on the recycled montmorillonite geopolymer membrane and MnO2/CNTs composite electrodes was designed and assembled. The recycled geopolymer was prepared from recycled montmorillonite geopolymer powder and alkali activators and used as a solid electrolyte skeleton, with a maximum compressive strength of 30.6 MPa after 28 days of curing, which is comparable to the strength of the initially polymerized geopolymer. The MnO2/CNTs electrodes were prepared by electrodeposition method, and the electrode materials containing 2 wt% CTAB and 1 wt% CNTs had the best area specific capacity of 3310 mF cm−2at a current density of 1 mA cm−2. The regenerated geopolymer electrolyte framework was injected with 0.5 M Na2SO4and assembled with MnO2/CNTs electrode to form a structural load-bearing supercapacitor, which had a specific capacity of 2094.4 mF cm−2at a load of 15 MPa, with a capacity retention rate of 65.43 % after 10,000 charge/discharge cycles.

Salinity gradient energy is a sustainable, clean, and renewable ocean energy source. In this work, we used citric acid, phosphoric acid, and nitric acid to modify the surface of activated carbon. Based on the electrochemical capacitive mixing technology, a salinity gradient energy extraction device was constructed using acid-modified activated carbon as cathode and MoS2/MWCNTs as anode. Surface modification by different acids improves the performance of activated carbon electrodes for salt gradient energy conversion in the salt difference battery. The modification effect of nitric acid was the most pronounced, the specific capacitance of the modified electrode reaches 156 F g−1, and the concentration response voltage reaches 170 mV, with the assembled energy extraction system obtaining an energy density of 10.65 J m−2, an enhancement of 53.0% compared to the unmodified activated carbon electrode.

Investment casting involves using an expendable pattern made from a variety of materials, such as wax, frozen mercury, or plastic, among others. The term 'investment casting' is derived from the [...]

A cost-effective technique to dissipate the energy in hydropower systems is the formation of a swirling flow within a tunnel. In such flows, an air core with a significant cross section usually occurs. To reveal the air-core features in the horizontal tunnel of a high-head shaft spillway, laboratory tests, numerical modeling, and prototype observations are performed, to examine issues such as the formation of the air core, the interjacent air motion, the air-carrying capacity, and the scale effects. It is shown that the shape of the air core varies greatly in the axial and radial directions along the tunnel and that the center of the core deviates from the axis of the tunnel. The motion of the air within the core is caused by the combined action of the water entrainment on the inner surface of the swirling flow and the axial pressure difference in the air core. The aeration process can be divided into five processes with respect to the changes of the gate openings. A theoretical expression is established for the air-carrying capacity of the swirling flow. The vacuum degree is the similarity condition of the air-carrying capacity of the swirling flow between the model and prototype tests based on the Froude law of the similitude, and this similarity condition is verified by both the model and prototype results. This work provides a reference for the application of the swirling flows in horizontal hydropower tunnels.

A magnetron-sputtered Cr-diamond-like carbon (DLC) coating was deposited on nitrided Ti6Al4V alloys (TAs) by employing the CrN interlayer. The physical and chemical characteristics of the obtained coating were systematically studied using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, X-ray diffraction, nanoindentation, and scratch tests. The results show that the Cr-DLC coating is an amorphous structure of carbon (C), and the Cr clusters are dispersed in the Cr-DLC coating. Raman analysis also confirms the existence of G and D peaks in the Cr-DLC coating. The Cr-DLC coating presents outstanding nanomechanical properties, and its nanohardness and elastic modulus are 19.29 and 168.8 GPa, respectively, which are contributed to the formation of diamond. The adhesive force of the Cr-DLC coating with the nitrided TA is determined to be 20.70 N by the scratch test, which is improved by the Cr–C bond of the CrN interlayer at a binding energy of 283.4 eV.

This study aimed to assess the effects of chitosan on the gelling properties of tilapia surimi gels during microwave (MW) heating treatment from composite gel layer to myofibrillar proteins (MPs) layer. For composite surimi gel, the hardness, elasticity, and water holding capacity of surimi gel with 0.004 % chitosan (CS) initially increased and then reduced with the increasing MW power (0–9 W/g). Rheometer measurements demonstrated that the samples displayed high elasticity across the entire frequency range (0.1–100 Hz) and exhibited gel-like characteristics. The best apparent morphology of surimi gel was observed at MW power of 3 W/g. To further explain the interaction, MPs solutions with different CS volume ratio (0–10 %) showed significant aggregation and more formation of disulfide bonds. Moreover, ultraviolet and intrinsic fluorescence spectra showed that the surimi samples had protein structural characteristics. Furthermore, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were used to initially investigate and explain the interactions between MPs and CS under the MW treatment, indicating that MPs/CS complex exhibited higher flexibility and a greater tendency to react and transition into a more compact three-dimensional (3D) network structure during the MW treatment. Therefore, this study provides a deeper understanding of the mechanism involved in microwave-assisted tilapia surimi gel formation, thereby expanding industrial applications of surimi products.

To examine the effect of leading-edge deflected angle ϕ1on the stability of the leading-edge vortex, the three-dimensional flow field of a flapping wing is simulated by a numerical method. The multi domain mesh generation, dynamic mesh and large eddy simulation technology are employed to capture the finer flowfield structure. The wings perform pure periodic oscillations, and the Reynolds number (Re) is 4527 based on the chord length c. The folding line formed after the deflection coincides with the pitch axis and is located at the 1/4cfrom the leading edge. The results show that the increase of ϕ1maintains the strength of the leading-edge vortex for longer time, and weakens the influence of the motion of the wing on the leading-edge vortex intensity. The flowfield topological analysis shows that the increase of ϕ1also prevents the formation of secondary vortices between the wing surface and the leading-edge vortices, which indirectly contributes to the attachment of the leading-edge vortices to the wing. Moreover, the vortex dynamics equations have been analyzed, and the results indicate that the increase of ϕ1will delay the occurrence of spanwise convection of vorticity and weaken its intensity. In addition, it can also suppress the spanwise flow behind the leading-edge vortices toward the symmetric plane. As a result, increasing ϕ1stabilizes the boundary layer in this region and thereby stabilizes the leading-edge vortices indirectly. Finally, a new parameter is introduced to quantitatively evaluate the proximity of the leading-edge vortex to the surface of the plate. Our method comprehensively considers the influence of the leading-edge vortex scale and the core motion on the approaching of the leading-edge vortex to the wing, and some important conclusions on the developing law of the leading-edge vortex, which are agreement with the experimental measurement, are obtained.

In order to improve compressor performance using a new design method, which originates from the fins on a humpback whale, experimental tests and numerical simulations were undertaken to investigate the influence of the tubercle leading edge on the aerodynamic performance of a linear compressor cascade with a NACA 65–010 airfoil. The results demonstrate that the tubercle leading edge can improve the aerodynamic performance of the cascade in the post-stall region by reducing total pressure loss, with a slight increase in total pressure loss in the pre-stall region. The tubercles on the leading edge of the blades cause the flow to migrate from the peak to the valley on the blade surface around the tubercle leading edge by the butterfly flow. The tubercle leading edge generates the vortices similar to those created by vortex generators, splitting the large-scale separation region into multiple smaller regions.

The mechanical properties and microstructure of low-carbon high-silicon alloy steel were examined under various tempering temperatures using the quenching, partitioning and tempering (Q–P–T) process. The performance changed with the variation in tempering temperature. The results show that the microstructure of low carbon high silicon alloy steel treated by Q-P-T process was mainly ferrite, martensite, carbide-free bainite and film-like retained austenite. This alloys exhibited good mechanical properties at tempering temperature of 300 °C. The product of strength and elongation were 33.7 GPa%. Specifically, the Ultimate tensile strength were 1508 MPa, the yield strength were 1048 MPa, and the elongation were 22.4%. At this temperature of 300 °C, the volume fraction of retained austenite reached 10.4%.

In order to consider the fluctuating wind load induced fatigue problem of long span suspension bridge, fatigue reliability formula is modified by assuming the fatigue life is accord with the weibull distribution. Based on the accurate bridge buffeting analysis of time history, the stress time history of components of a suspension bridge in east sea China is simulated, and then the fatigue damages and reliabilities are calculated. The results indicate that the main cables and hangers have enough fatigue reliability under the fluctuating wind load, the fatigue failure will not occur; the stiffening girder has larger fatigue damage, under 40 / (m.s-1) mean wind speed action, the girder of mid-support section’s average fatigue life is only 3.103 years, so the girder’s damage under strong wind action should be taken seriously.

The objective of this study was to analyze the dynamics of nutrient balance, physiological biomarkers and comprehensive indexes associated with metabolism and function of organs in transition cows. Fourteen transition cows were used for this research. Dietary intake was recorded daily, and samples of the diet, venous blood and milk were collected for measurements. The balance values of net energy for lactation (NEL), metabolizable protein (MP), and metabolizable glucose (MG) were calculated, and regression analysis and calculation of comprehensive indexes were performed. Accordingly, the prepartum cows presented positive balances of NEL, MP, and MG, while severe negative balances were found during the postpartum period. Dynamic changes of energy metabolism, nutrient mobilization, liver function, anti-oxidative status and immune response, as indicated by blood biomarkers and modified comprehensive indexes, were out of sync with the calculated balance values, but they were closely related to the day relative to calving. Compared with the 21 d prepartum, the plasma concentrations of non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) and β-hydroxybutyric acid (BHBA) were significantly increased around and after calving (P<0.05), and similar variation tendency was observed for most of other parameters. The occurrence of parturition and the initiation of lactation were more responsible for the negative balances of nutrients in transition dairy cows. Although negative balances of NEL, MP and MG were not observed using the assessment model, the nutritional strategies should be applied before calving, because metabolic adaptations had been validated during the prepartum period. In addition, it was plausible to conclude that the decline of hepatic metabolism, defense function and insulin sensitivity are critical causes of metabolic dysfunction.

This paper describes in detail the uncertainties due to several factors that may affect the direction vector of a reactor neutrino in a liquid scintillation detector. The reactor neutrino direction vector was reconstructed through a charge weighting method. The paper simulates the response of gadolinium-loaded, liquid scintillator detector to reactor electron anti-neutrinos. The reaction is based on neutrino capture on hydro-genic protons of inverse beta decay process in the scintillator. A Cherenkov radiation detector can reconstruct the directional information of incident neutrinos relatively well, compared to the liquid scintillation detector. Statistics, spatial resolution, neutrino energy, and multi-reactor and multi-detectors are examined by using Monte Carlo simulation based on the cylindrical liquid scintillating detector model. Furthermore, this simulated model is detailed down to the optical processes, and the source of reactor fuel composition. Finally, one of the main goals is to provide the potential of the detector to measure the origin direction of the incident neutrino. Furthermore, our intention is to help understanding of various uncertainties of the neutrino directionality study for the future massive liquid scintillating neutrino detectors.

Single-molecule force spectroscopy is a powerful tool to directly measure protein–protein interactions (PPI). The high specificity and precision of PPI measurements made it possible to reveal detailed mechanisms of intermolecular interactions. However, protein aggregation due to specific or nonspecific interactions is among the most challenging problems in PPI examination. Here, we propose a strategy of a parallel DNA circuit to probe PPI using single-molecule magnetic tweezers. In contrast to PPI examination using atomic force microscopy, microspheres as probes used in magnetic tweezers avoided the single-probe issue of a cantilever. Negatively charged DNA as a linker circumvented the severe aggregation in the PPI construct with a protein linker. The unnatural amino acid encoded in proteins of interest expanded the choices of biorthogonal conjugation. We demonstrated how to apply our strategy to probe the PPI between the PHD3-Bromo and the histone H3 methylated at K4, a critical epigenetic event in leukemia development. We found a rupture force of 12 pN for breaking the PPI, which is much higher than that required to peel DNA off from a nucleosome, 3 pN. We expect that our methods will make PPI measurements of mechanics and kinetics with great precision, facilitating PPI-related research, e.g., PPI-targeted drug discovery.

Allergic incidents of crustacean aquatic products occur frequently, and tropomyosin (TM) is the main allergen. Therefore, it is worthwhile to develop technologies to efficiently reduce the allergenicity of TM. In this study, ultrasound-assisted cold plasma (UCP) treatment was used to regulate shrimp allergy. The remarkable changes in TM structure were substantiated by alteration in secondary structure, reduction in sulfhydryl content, change in surface hydrophobicity, and disparity in surface morphology. The IgE and IgG binding ability of TM significantly decreased by 52.40% and 46.51% due to UCP treatment. In the Balb/c mouse model, mice in the UCP group showed most prominent mitigation of allergic symptoms, proved by lower allergy score, changes in levels of TM-specific antibodies, and restoration of Th1/Th2 cytokine imbalance. Using a proteomics approach, 439 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) in the TM group (vs phosphate-buffered saline group) and 170 DEPs in the UCP group (vs TM group) were determined. Subsequent analysis demonstrated that Col6a5, Col6a6, and Epx were potential biomarkers of TM allergy. Moreover, Col6a5, Col6a6, Dcn, and Kng1 might be the target proteins of UCP treatment, while PI3K/Akt/mTOR might be the regulated signaling pathway. These findings proved that UCP treatment has great potential in reducing TM allergenicity and provide new insights into the development of hypoallergenic shrimp products.

The application of cold plasma (CP) treatment was investigated for its effectiveness in promoting the covalent grafting of β-lactoglobulin (β-LG) and epigallo-catechin 3 -gallate (EGCG), as well as improving the antioxidant capacity of β-LG and eliminating its antigenicity. The results indicated that CP treatment significantly enhanced the covalent grafting of β-LG and EGCG. The maximum EGCG content in β-LG-EGCG complexes reached 47.08 ± 0.58 mg/g (with 45 s treatment), as confirmed by SDS-PAGE analysis and FTIR spectroscopy. Additionally, LC-MS/MS identifies two binding sites (T76 and K77) of EGCG in the β-LG-EGCG conjugates. After 60 s treatments, there was a significant reduction in the IgG binding capacity of β-LG-EGCG conjugates (29.97 ± 0.05%). Further analysis suggested that the change in the conformational epitopes of β-LG, due to the conjugating with EGCG, was likely the main factor responsible for the reduced binding Immunoglobulin G (IgG) capacity. The maximum antioxidant activities of β-LG-EGCG conjugates were found to be 974.14 ± 1.94 μmol TE g−1for ABTS and 748.48 ± 9.66 μmol TE g−1for DPPH). These values represent an eightfold increase in DPPH activity and a twofold increase in ABTS compared to the control sample. This study demonstrated that the CP treatment is highly effective technology for facilitating the covalent grafting of polyphenols to proteins, thereby enhancing their antioxidant properties and eliminate their antigenicity.

The effects of combining roasting and steam cooking at 200 °C for various cooking times (10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 min) on water status and distribution and the microstructure and physicochemical properties of pork patties were analyzed with low-field nuclear magnetic resonance and magnetic resonance imaging analyses, as compared with roasting alone. The findings demonstrated that the addition of steam can alleviate the denaturation of protein and reduce the mobility of water molecules. Roasting-steam cooking (RS) had no negative effect on the TBARS value and surface hydrophobicity. Furthermore, the RS treatment has a higher moisture content, WHC and texture than roasting cooking. Proton density maps displayed a gradual decrease in water intensity, suggesting the gradual expelling of inside water to the surface as drip loss. Therefore, the findings revealed that water status evolution during RS significantly changed the microstructure and protein structure of the meat.

In the present work, the structure and physicochemical properties of natural actomyosin (NAM) extracted from king prawn (Litopenaeus vannamei) and subjected to atmospheric pressure plasma jet (APPJ) generated in argon gas as a function of the treatment time were examined. The results revealed that prawn NAM exhibited a correlating decrease in pH from 7.06 ± 0.03 to 6.92 ± 0.02 and a slight increase (p> 0.05) in solubility from 91.89 ± 1.57 to 96.86 ± 1.19 within the first few minutes of plasma exposure as a result of the formation of soluble aggregates. A rise in turbidity was also noted, confirming the occurrence of protein aggregation. These changes were also accompanied by a rise in emulsifying activity from 48.96 ± 1.66 to 67.31 ± 1.39 m2/g (p< 0.05) and a nearly 50% increase in foaming capacity after 5 min of APPJ exposure. The modulation of these properties occurred as a result of conformational changes in NAM evident by various complementary structural analyses conducted. Overall, these findings show that mild oxidation from argon plasma can be used for modification of protein functionality and emphasize the need for optimal selection of plasma processing conditions.

Babesia microtiis a protozoan considered to be a major etiological agent of emerging human babesiosis. It imposes an increasing public-health threat and can be overlooked because of low parasitemia or mixed infection with other pathogens. More sensitive and specific antigens are needed to improve the diagnosis of babesiosis. To screen the immune diagnostic antigens of B. microti, 204 sequences from homologue proteins between B. microtiand B. bovisgenome sequences in PiroplasmaDB were selected. The high throughput cloned and expressed B. microtiproteins were screened with the sera from the BALB/c mice infected by B. microtiusing protein arrays. Ten (5.9%, 10/169) highly immunoreactive proteins were identified, and most (80%, 8/10) of these highly immunoreactive proteins had not been characterized before, making them potentially useful as candidate antigens for the development of diagnostic tools for babesiosis.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the keystone technique to characterize the psychology and neurochemistry of human body. This imaging mechanism is advanced and with ample significances to detect the biological changes or diseases in human body. This work exploits the notable properties of compact and thin metamaterial (MM) lens that can be use to enhance image quality of 0.35-T MRI systems. The lens structure is based on a three-dimensional array of split-ring resonators (SRRs) having a thickness of only 2.5 mm corresponding the side length of the structure. By including parametric elements (capacitors, inductors) with SRRs, the required resonance at very low working frequency for 0.35-T MRI of 14.88 MHz was achieved. The lens exhibits relative permeability, µr= −1.38 + j0.92, which concludes in the resonant enhancement of magnetic field Band SNR (signal-to-noise ratio) inside body (phantom) and improved the efficiency of MR (magnetic resonance) coil. Image quality optimizations due to diameter size variations of MR coil of an MRI system in the presence of the MM lens were also done.

The emulsifying effects and mechanism of ovalbumin (OVA) modified by dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) cold plasma were investigated in this study. Results showed that cold plasma improved the emulsifying characteristics of OVA by forming an emulsion with smaller particle size and longer stable time. The adsorption kinetics showed that the modified OVA exhibited higher capability for reducing interfacial tension compared with natural OVA, which also revealed two different stable mechanisms of plasma modified OVA during emulsifying process combining the interfacial protein concentration results. Cold plasma treatment also helped OVA to form the gel network by chemical cross-linking force, which endowed emulsion with solid property. Plasma modified OVA significantly improved the hardness, adhesion and chewiness of processed cheese. The processed cheese displayed better texture, appearance, fluidity and grease release ability than the control cheese emulsified by high sodium and high phosphorus emulsifying salts. It can be concluded that cold plasma is a good way to enhance the emulsification of OVA and obtain better cheese quality.

A numerical method was developed to predict the aerodynamic stability of a high bypass ratio turbofan engine, at the landing stage of a large transport aircraft, when the thrust reverser was deployed. 3D CFD simulation and 2D aeroengine aerodynamic stability analysis code were performed in this work, the former is to achieve distortion coefficient for the analysis of engine stability. The 3D CFD simulation was divided into two steps, the single engine calculation and the integrated aircraft and engine calculation. Results of the CFD simulation show that with the decreasing of relative wind Mach number, the engine inlet will suffer more severe flow distortion. The total pressure and total temperature distortion coefficients at the inlet of the engines were obtained from the results of the numerical simulation. Then an aeroengine aerodynamic stability analysis program was used to quantitatively analyze the aerodynamic stability of the high bypass ratio turbofan engine. The results of the stability analysis show that the engine can work stably, when the reverser flow is re-ingested. But the anti-distortion ability of the booster is weaker than that of the fan and high pressure compressor. It is a weak link of engine stability.

To improve the accuracy and reduce the calculation cost for the inverse problem of centrifugal pump impeller, the new inverse method based on proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) is proposed. The pump blade shape is parameterized by quartic Bezier curve, and the initial snapshots is generated by introducing the perturbation of the blade shape control parameters. The internal flow field and its hydraulic performance is predicted by CFD method. The snapshots vector includes the blade shape parameter and the distribution of blade load. The POD basis for the snapshots set are deduced by proper orthogonal decomposition. The sample vector set is expressed in terms of the linear combination of the orthogonal basis. The objective blade shape corresponding to the objective distribution of blade load is obtained by least square fit. The Iterative correction algorithm for the centrifugal pump blade inverse method based on POD is proposed. The objective blade load distributions are corrected according to the difference of the CFD result and the POD result. The two dimensional and three dimensional blade calculation cases show that the proposed centrifugal pump blade inverse method based on POD have good convergence and high accuracy, and the calculation cost is greatly reduced. After two iterations, the deviation of the blade load and the pump hydraulic performance are limited within 4.0% and 6.0% individually for most of the flow rate range. This paper provides a promising inverse method for centrifugal pump impeller, which will benefit the hydraulic optimization of centrifugal pump.

In order to realize the stator’s internal flow field measurement of the multi-stage axial compressor, many different lengths of L-type five-hole probes and one four-hole probe have been designed. The detailed 3D (three-dimensional) flow fields in the stator blade passage of original and modified large scale compressors have been measured with the probes traversed by a probe traverse mechanism. The objective of the study is to assess the measurement method of adopting multi-hole pneumatic probes to achieve the flow field of stator vane passage. Results clearly demonstrate the flow field characteristics of stator blade passage in original and modified compressors. Furthermore, the reliability of adopted multi-hole pneumatic probes is validated. Therefore, it is proved that the probe traverse mechanism drives the L-type five-hole probe or other probe method can be applied to internal flow field measurements for the stator of large scale multi-stage compressors.

The potential of hyperspectral imaging in the spectral range of 1000–2500 nm with multivariate analysis for the prediction of oil and protein concentrations in five peanut cultivars was investigated. Quantitative partial least squares regression (PLSR) models were established using the extracted spectral data from hyperspectral images and the reference measured oil and protein concentrations. The PLSR models established using the whole spectral data pretreated by the multiplicative scatter correction (MSC) method showed good results for predicting the oil concentration with a determination coefficient (RP2) of 0.945 and root mean square errors of prediction (RMSEP) of 0.196 and for predicting the protein concentration with RP2of 0.901 and RMSEP of 0.441. In addition, eight optimal wavelengths were selected for protein and oil contents, respectively, using the regression coefficients of the PLSR analysis and used for simplifying the obtained models. The simplified PLSR models also showed good performances with Rp2of 0.933 and 0.912 for predicting oil and protein concentrations. The whole results demonstrated that the NIR hyperspectral imaging technique coupled with chemometric analysis is a promising tool for rapid and non-destructive determination of oil and protein concentrations in peanut kernels and has the potential to develop a multispectral imaging system for future on-line detection of peanut quality.

Expression of concern for ‘NIR hyperspectral imaging with multivariate analysis for measurement of oil and protein contents in peanut varieties’ by Jun-Hu Cheng et al., Anal. Methods, 2017, 9, 6148–6154, https://doi.org/10.1039/C7AY02115A.

Tropomyosin (TM) is a major crustacean allergen, and the present studies have tried to reduce its allergenicity by processing technologies. However, most research stopped on the allergenicity and structure of allergens, while information about epitopes was less. In this study, we first investigated the effects of cold plasma (CP) combined with glycation (CP-G) treatment on the processing and trypsin cleavage sites of TM from shrimp (Penaeus chinensis). The results showed a significant reduction in the IgE-binding capacity of TM after CP-G treatment, with a maximum reduction of 30%. This reduction was associated with the combined effects: modification induced by CP destroyed the core helical structure (D137and E218) and occupied the potential glycation sites, leading to sequent glycation on conserved areas of TM, especially the epitope L130-Q147. Additionally, CP-G treatment decreased the digestion stability of TM by increasing the number of cleavage sites of trypsin and improving the efficiency of some sites, including K5, K6, K30, and R133, resulting in a lower IgE-binding capacity of digestion products, which fell to a maximum of 20%. Thus, CP-G is a valuable and reliable processing technology for the desensitization of aquatic products.

Characteristics of cold plasma (CP) treatment and enzymatic (papain and alcalase) hydrolysis on IgG/IgE-binding ability β-lactoglobulin (β-LG) were compared, which is analyzed by immunoblot, WB, ELISA, and LC-MS/MS analysis. Results indicated that CP treatment exhibit similar characteristic to enzymatic hydrolysis to cleave the polypeptides chain of β-LG for reduction of its IgG/IgE binding ability. A similar tendency of decline in IgG/IgE binding capacity of β-LG after CP treatment was achieved in comparison with alcalase hydrolysis, which was reduced by 57.69% (IgG) and 56% (IgE) (for 4 min CP treatment) and 61.89% (IgG) and 27.54% (IgE) for alcalase hydrolysis (75 min), while no significant difference was detected for papain hydrolysis. Immunoblot and LC-MS/MS analysis confirmed that the antigenicity reduction was ascribed to the breakdown of the IgG/IgE linear epitopes of β-LG. Further combined with CP treatment (1 min) with alcalase hydrolysis (75 min), the reduction of antigenicity of β-LG reached 68.46% (IgG) and 59.26% (IgE). This study suggests that CP treatment is a promising alternative to enzymatic hydrolysis for hypoallergenic protein-producing.

The pore characteristics and slurryability of two coal blends between Shigang anthracite coal and Huangling bituminous coal (SG/HL), and Guizhou anthracite coal and Xiaotun lean coal (GZ/XT), respectively, were investigated. The fractal dimensions of coal were calculated in the two regions of P/P0< 0.45 and P/P0> 0.45 and defined as D1and D2, respectively. Upon an increase in the blending ratio of parent coal with smaller BET surface area (SBET) and total pore volume (TPV), the SBETand TPV of coal blends monotonously decreased. D1was mainly related to the Smeso/macro(10–220 nm)/Stotaland mineral phase within coal while D2was closely affected by the Vmeso(2–10 nm)/Vtotal. D1of SG/HL coal blends had no apparent linear correlation with the pore structure parameters whereas D1of GZ/XT coal blends changed linearly with the pore structure parameters. Both D2of SG/HL coal blends and that of GZ/XT coal blends changed linearly with the pore structure parameters. The slurry quality of coal water slurry (CWS) prepared from coal blends is comprehensively affected by the physicochemical properties and blending ratio of parent coals. Therefore, the maximum solid loading (MSL) and water separation ratio (WSR) of CWS prepared from coal blends do not always change linearly with the blending ratio of parent coal.

The indirect chemical effects of fuel dilution by CO2on NO formation were investigated numerically in this paper. CH4doped with NH3was used as fuel, while CO2and O2were mixed as oxidant. The dilution effect of CO2was then investigated through adding extra CO2to the reaction system. An isothermal plug flow reactor was used. An unbranched chain reaction mechanism is proposed to illustrate the chemical effects of CO2on the H/O/OH radical pool and NOx. Due to the reaction between CO2and H, extra NO will be formed in fuel-rich conditions, while NO will be inhibited in fuel-lean conditions and high CO2dilution conditions. The reaction affected the radical pools of OH, H, and O of the branched chain reaction, and then the formation and reduction of NO. The pool of H had the greatest effect on NO reduction. The results suggest that the indirect chemical effects on NO formation differ between diluted fuel oxy-fuel combustion conditions and normal oxy-fuel conditions.

A universal deterministic noiseless quantum amplifier has been shown to be impossible. However, probabilistic noiseless amplification of a certain set of states is physically permissible. Regarding quantum state amplification as quantum state transformation, we show that deterministic noiseless amplification of coherent states chosen from a proper set is attainable. The relation between input coherent states and gain of amplification for deterministic noiseless amplification is thus derived. Furthermore, we extend our result to more general situation and show that deterministic noiseless amplification of Gaussian states is also possible. As an example of application, we find that our amplification model can obtain better performance in homodyne detection to measure the phase of state selected from a certain set. Besides, other possible applications are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACTTryptophan-rich antigens (TRAgs) are an antigen family that has been identified in human and rodent malaria parasites. TRAgs have been proposed as candidate antigens for potential vaccines. The Plasmodium vivaxTRAg (PvTRAg) family includes 36 members. Each PvTRAg contains a tryptophan-rich (TR) domain in the C-terminal region. In this study, we recombinantly expressed all 36 PvTRAgs using a cell-free expression system, and, for the first time, profiled the IgG antibody responses against all PvTRAgs in the sera from 96 vivax malaria patients and 40 healthy individuals using protein microarray technology. The mean seropositive rate for all PvTRAgs was 60.3%. Among them, nine PvTRAgs were newly identified in this study and showed a seropositive rate of >50%. Five of them, PvTRAg_13, PvTRAg_15, PvTRAg_16, PvTRAg_26, and PvTRAg_29, produced higher levels of IgG antibody, even in low-endemicity countries. In addition, the results of an immunofluorescence analysis suggest that PvTRAgs are, at least in part, associated with caveola-vesicle complexes, a unique structure of P. vivax-infected erythrocytes. The mechanism of formation and the function of these abundant membrane structures are not known. Further investigation aimed at determining the functions of these proteins would lead to a better understanding of the blood-stage biology of P. vivax.

Petroleum coke and lignite are two important fossil fuels that have not been widely used in China. Petroleum coke–lignite slurry (PCLS), a mixture of petroleum coke, lignite, water, and additives, efficiently utilizes the two materials. In this study, we investigate the effects of the proportion (α) of petroleum coke on slurryability, rheological behavior, stability, and increasing temperature characteristics of PCLSs. The results show that the fixed-viscosity solid concentration (ω0) increases with increasing α. The ω0of lignite-water slurry (LWS, α= 0) is 46.7 %, compared to 71.3 % for the petroleum coke–water slurry (PCWS, α= 100 %), while that of PCLS is in between the two values. The rheological behavior of PCLS perfectly fits the power-law model. The PCWS acts as a dilatant fluid. As αdecreases, the slurry behaves first as an approximate Newtonian fluid, and then turns into a pseudo-plastic fluid that exhibits shear-thinning behavior. With increasing α, the rigid sedimentation and water separation ratio (WSR) increase, indicating a decrease in the stability of PCLS. When αis 60–70 %, the result is a high-quality slurry fuel for industrial applications, which has high slurryability (ω0= 57–60 %), good stability (WSR < 2 %), and superior pseudo-plastic behavior (n≈ 0.9).

Unreacted ammonia in Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) and Selective Non-catalytic Reduction (SNCR) technology may be adsorbed by fly ash and lead to ash blocking in the air preheater or hindering the secondary utilization of ash. Ammonia adsorption by fly ash may have a close relationship to the concentration of ammonia in flue gas. Regarding Ximeng lignite and Yangquan anthracite as the subjects investigated, NH3temperature-programmed desorption (NH3-TPD) was utilized to study the relationship between ammonia chemical adsorption and mineral composition of the ash, the atmosphere of ash production, cooling rate of ash as well as the amount of residual carbon in the ash. The results show that rapid cooling and reduction atmosphere could increase the amount of amorphous phase in the ash and facilitate ammonia adsorption. On the other hand, ash with residual carbon could adsorb more ammonia than mineral ash as a result of acidic functional group on the surface of residual carbon.

A novel cavity perturbation technique utilizing open-ended coaxial resonator is presented in order to measure the complex permittivity of insulating substrates at microwave frequencies. This technique can afford quite high accurate measurement results without singularities, and simply. According to the operation frequency of the resonator, the geometric parameters of the resonator are designed. Based on the perturbation technique, a new formulaic method of data analysis has been proposed which can extract complex permittivity of samples, and with the resonant frequency and the quality factor shift, one can calculate the complex permittivity of the measured materials. Experiment has been conducted with the quartz and sapphire to verify the formulaic, and the test results fully verify the correctness of the proposed method.

Based on the construction of the subway analysis of risk factors, through the integration of the owners and the construction side of the interface and enhance training, established based on GIS (geographic information system) and artificial intelligence support to high-speed broadband networks as the basis, with advanced technology, massive data dynamic scheduling based on the use of three-dimensional visual representation of management information systems.

Based on the Government of BT project risk analysis, the main risks are guaranteed by law, decision-making risk, management risk, liquidity risk, project quality and schedule risk. It Propose to develop risk control measures, to establish risk control mechanism to ensure the orderly conduct of the project.

Based on the international project risk, because of government credit, through cost control, construction of cycle control and other measures, it proposed government guarantees, commercial insurance, investment portfolio and other risk prevention approach.