Search

The effect of a high static magnetic field (HSMF) on the evolution of cube texture in directionally solidified Fe-3.0 wt. % Si alloy was studied. The results show that the <001> crystal orientation of an α-Fe single crystal was parallel to the direction of the HSMF, and a sharp cube texture was successfully formed in the final ingot. With the increase in growth speed, the main texture of the Fe-3.0 wt. % Si alloy evolved in the way of <001>→<081>→<120> along the pulling direction when an HSMF was applied. The orientation transition was attributed to the magnetocrystalline anisotropy of the α–Fe crystal during the directional solidification process. As a result of texture optimization, the specimens with an HSMF had higher saturation magnetization and permeability than the sample without an HSMF. Furthermore, a new creative method to tailor the cube texture of Fe-based alloys during the directional solidification process assisted by an HSMF is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Malnutrition has led to growth retardation in many adolescents and health deterioration in adults all over the world. Recently, there has been increasing attention on balanced diets as a preventive measure. This study evaluates the daily diet of a student, aiming to optimize the amino acid score (AAS) across three meals per day. By using balanced diet criteria as constraints, we established a single-objective nonlinear programming model, maximizing AAS as the objective function. The model was solved by using a simulated annealing algorithm, and we obtained a diet that is both balanced and high in AAS. This study helps to raise awareness about individual nutritional needs and provides guidance for dietary structure improvements, thereby contributing to global public health enhancement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The advantages of genetic modification and preferable physicochemical qualities make nanobody (Nb) easy to develop a sensitive and stable immunosensor platform. Herein, an indirect competitive chemiluminescence enzyme immunoassay (ic-CLEIA) based on biotinylated Nb was established for the quantification of diazinon (DAZ). The anti-DAZ Nb, named Nb-EQ1, with good sensitivity and specificity, was obtained from an immunized library via a phage display technique, where the molecular docking results indicated that the hydrogen bond and hydrophobic interactions between DAZ and complementarity-determining region 3 and framework region 2 in Nb-EQ1 played a critical role in the Nb-DAZ affinity processes. Subsequently, the Nb-EQ1 was further biotinylated to generate a bi-functional Nb-biotin, and then an ic-CLEIA was developed for DAZ determination via signal amplification of the biotin–streptavidin platform. The results showed that the proposed method based on Nb-biotin had a high specificity and sensitivity to DAZ, with a relative broader linear range of 0.12–25.96 ng/mL. After being 2-folds dilution of the vegetable samples matrix, the average recoveries were 85.7–113.9% with a coefficient of variation of 4.2–19.2%. Moreover, the results for the analysis of real samples by the developed ic-CLEIA correlated well with that obtained by reference method GC-MS (R2 ≥ 0.97). In summary, the ic-CLEIA based on biotinylated Nb-EQ1 and streptavidin recognition demonstrated itself to be a convenient tool for the quantification of DAZ in vegetables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, Ce, Zr, and Al are used to promote Y2O3 as supports for Ni/NiO, with the expectation to obtain more efficient catalysts for DRM reaction. XRD and Raman results have testified that all the three cations have been doped into the lattice of Y2O3 to form a solid solution structure, thus obtaining supports with decreased crystallinity and improved surface areas. As a result, all the modified catalysts display evidently improved reaction performance. The Ni–support interaction of the modified catalysts is enhanced in comparison with the unmodified catalyst, thus having improved Ni dispersion. Moreover, the modified catalysts have improved alkalinity, which is beneficial to activate CO2 and enhance the activity. In addition, it is found that all the modified catalysts possess a richer amount of surface active oxygen species (O2δ− and O2−), which is critical to eliminate carbon depositions. It is believed that the interaction of these factors is responsible for the enhanced DRM performance of the modified catalysts. In situ DRIFTS results have confirmed that the addition of the secondary metals can improve the DRM activity of the catalyst by accelerating the conversion of formate intermediate species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Researchers have shown that single-photon light detection and ranging (lidar) is highly sensitive and has a high temporal resolution. Due to the excellent beam directivity of lidar, most applications focus on ranging and imaging. Here, we present a lidar detection system for night environments. Different from MEMS, we choose a large divergence rather than scanning to detect unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Collection and detection are achieved through the use of high-efficiency optical devices. With time-correlated single photon counting (TCSPC), we performed subsequent drone search work at centimeter resolution. We believe that we have developed a new technique for detecting UAVs. We show how the field of view influences the detection process. For some key areas of air defense, it is extremely necessary to find UAVs quickly and in a timely manner. In short, the results represent an important step toward practical, low-power drone detection using lidar. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs 16 (ADAMTS16) has been reported to be involved in the pathogenesis of solid cancers. However, its role in gastric cancer (GC) is unclear. In this study, the role of ADAMTS16 in gastric cancer was investigated. The effects of ADAMTS16 on cell migration, invasion, and proliferation were investigated by functional experiments in vivo and in vitro. Downstream signal pathways of ADAMTS16 were confirmed by using bioinformatics analysis, co-immunoprecipitation, and immunofluorescence. Meanwhile, bioinformatics analysis, qRT-PCR, western blot, and dual-luciferase reporter gene analysis assays were used to identify ADAMTS16 targets. The expression of ADAMTS16 in GC was analyzed in public datasets. The expression of ADAMTS16 and its correlations with the clinical characteristics of GC were investigated by immunohistochemistry. Ectopic ADAMTS16 expression significantly promoted tumor cell migration, invasion, and growth. Bioinformatics analysis and western blot showed that ADAMTS16 upregulated the IFI27 protein through the NF-κb pathway, which was confirmed by immunofluorescence and western blot. Dual-luciferase reporter gene analysis identified a binding site between P65 and IFI27 that may be directly involved in the transcriptional regulation of IFI27. IFI27 knockdown reversed the promoting effect of ADAMTS16 on cell invasion, migration, and proliferation indicating that ADAMTS16 acts on GC cells by targeting the NF-κb/IFI27 axis. ADAMTS16 was associated with poor prognosis in clinical characteristics. ADAMTS16 promotes cell migration, invasion, and proliferation by targeting IFI27 through the NF-κB pathway and is a potential progressive and survival biomarker of GC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Featured Application: The system described in this paper can automatically distinguish polycrystalline silicon cells in the process of color sorting. It can also be used in floor board sorting with similar color, coffee beans sorting with quality judged by color, etc. which need color sorting. In this paper, a method of color discrimination based on sample sensitivity to light wavelength is proposed based on the reflection spectra of a large number of samples and the statistical calculation of the measurement data. A laser detection system is designed to realize the color discrimination. For the color discrimination of polycrystalline silicon cells, the most sensitive wavelength, 434 nm, and the least sensitive wavelength, 645 nm, of polycrystalline silicon cells is obtained according to this method. A laser detection system was built to measure the polycrystalline silicon cells. This system consists of two lasers, optical shutters, collimating beam expanding systems, an optical coaxial system, sample platform, collecting lens, and optical power meter or optical sensor. Two laser beams of different wavelengths are beamed coaxially through the optical coaxial system onto a polycrystalline silicon cell and are reflected or scattered. The reflected or scattered lights are collected through a lens with a high number aperture and received separately by the optical power meter. Then the color value of the polycrystalline silicon cell in this system is characterized by the ratio of light intensity data received. The system measured a large number of previous polycrystalline silicon cells to form the different color categories of polycrystalline silicon cells of this system in the computer database. When a new polycrystalline silicon cell is measured, the color discrimination system can automatically classify the new polycrystalline silicon cell to a certain color category in order to achieve color discrimination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A solar dedicated ventilation system based on active disturbance rejection controller (ADRC) has been designed in this study and tested by experimental research to acquire better control accuracy and energy-saving potential compared with former systems. This system involves photovoltaic, solar thermal, and dedicated ventilation systems and ADRC. The solar energy replaces traditional energy to realize energy-saving potential, and ADRC takes the place of a conventional controller to gain control accuracy. The experimental results show that the temperature standard deviation is from 0.09 to 0.15 °C and difference between maximum and minimum is 0.33 to 0.49 °C (<0.5 °C) at different outdoor conditions to meet accurate control requirements. The results also show the energy-saving potential of the solar dedicated ventilation system as being equal to the power consumption of traditional systems, not including extreme situations. The solar dedicated ventilation system was used for actual operation of the cooling system of a laboratory precisely and efficiently. Consequently, the solar dedicated ventilation system based on ADRC is most suitable for hot and humid places to achieve the energy-saving objective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-speed counter-current chromatography (HSCCC) coupled with precolumn derivatization was developed for isolating and purifying fructo-oligosaccharides (FOSs). Firstly, the total FOSs were precolumn derivatized and then separated by high-speed counter-current chromatography (HSCCC) with two-phase solvent system petroleum ether–n-butanol–methanol–water (3:2:1:4, v/v). Secondly, the obtained compounds were deacetylated and the fructo-oligosaccharides (FOSs) with high purity were obtained. Their structures were identified by mass spectrometry (MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). This research successfully established a novel strategy for separation and purification of FOS. There is no doubt that the application of the research will be beneficial for the quantitative and qualitative analysis of products containing FOSs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cross-domain decision-making systems are suffering a huge challenge with the rapidly emerging uneven quality of user-generated data, which poses a heavy responsibility to online platforms. Current content analysis methods primarily concentrate on non-textual contents, such as images and videos themselves, while ignoring the interrelationship between each user post's contents. In this paper, we propose a novel framework named community-aware dynamic heterogeneous graph embedding (CDHNE) for relationship assessment, capable of mining heterogeneous information, latent community structure and dynamic characteristics from user-generated contents (UGC), which aims to solve complex non-euclidean structured problems. Specifically, we introduce the Markov-chain-based metapath to extract heterogeneous contents and semantics in UGC. A edge-centric attention mechanism is elaborated for localized feature aggregation. Thereafter, we obtain the node representations from micro perspective and apply it to the discovery of global structure by a clustering technique. In order to uncover the temporal evolutionary patterns, we devise an encoder–decoder structure, containing multiple recurrent memory units, which helps to capture the dynamics for relation assessment efficiently and effectively. Extensive experiments on four real-world datasets are conducted in this work, which demonstrate that CDHNE outperforms other baselines due to the comprehensive node representation, while also exhibiting the superiority of CDHNE in relation assessment. The proposed model is presented as a method of breaking down the barriers between traditional UGC analysis and their abstract network analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The accumulation of ice on surfaces can cause harm in many industries. Our work describes an experiment and a simulation of the deicing effect based on a simple device combining a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membrane and water phase transition. The device resulted in a minimum ice adhesion strength of 0.327 kPa, and the ice adhesion strength was still less than 5 kPa after 15 cycles, which meets the requirements of automatic deicing. It also held up after flushing with water and sand currents. In addition, our finite element simulation illustrates that the ice adhesion strength decreases greatly due to the change in initial stress distribution and the separation mode of ice. The fracture between the ice and membrane initiates from one side, and propagates gradually along the contour of ice while at the same time spreading rapidly towards the center. Compared with other icephobic methods, such as expensive and vulnerable micro/nano-surfaces or functional composite coatings, this low-cost and environment friendly device appears promising for large-scale deicing applications in various engineering fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper mainly studied the electrical performance improvement of black silicon photovoltaic (PV) cells and modules. The electrical performance of the cells and modules matched with black silicon was optimized through three different experiments. Firstly, in the pre-cleaning step, the effect of lotion selection on the cell performance was studied. Compared with alkaline lotion, using acidic lotion on black silicon wafer can achieve an efficiency improvement of the black silicon cell by nearly 0.154%. Secondly, the influence of oxygen flux control of the thermal oxidation step on the improvement of cell efficiency was studied. The addition of the thermal oxidation step and its oxygen flux control resulted in an efficiency increase of the black silicon cell of nearly 0.11%. The most optimized volume control of the oxygen flux is at 2200 standard cubic centimeter per minute (SCCM). Finally, in the module packaging process, the selection of components will also greatly affect the performance of the black silicon PV module. The most reasonable selection of components can increase the output power of the black silicon PV module by 6.13 W. In a word, the technical indication of the electrical performance improvement suggested in this study plays an important guiding role in the actual production process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) has been widely used for the detection of organophosphate and carbamate pesticides, due to its high sensitivity and low limit of detection to the presence of pesticides. The homology modeled recombinant Bombyx mori Acetylcholinesterase II (rBm-AChE II) and docking results with multiple pesticides inferred that Y398, located at the bottleneck of the active site gorge, might be important for enzyme sensitivity. Thus, three mutants (Y398G, Y398F, Y398W) were constructed and exhibited different enzyme activities and sensitivities. The results showed that Y398W possessed a remarkably increased enzyme activity, while Y398F had a significant reduction. The Y398F has an approximately 2-fold lower IC50 for some pesticides than the wild type enzyme, indicating a higher sensitivity. With the detailed investigation of the conformations of computer simulation, we propose that for the positively charged and small substrate ATChI, a larger side chain at position 398 improves the fixation of the substrate in an appropriate conformation for catalysis. For bulky substrates such as pesticides, the diffusion in the active site gorge may be related to the enlargement of the bottleneck by having proper orientations more easily. In addition, a more hydrophobic side chain at the bottleneck seemed to be beneficial for ligand diffusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]