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Soil moisture (SM) is a critical parameter in Earth’s water cycle, significantly impacting hydrological, agricultural, and meteorological research fields. The challenge of estimating surface soil moisture from synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data is compounded by the influence of vegetation coverage. This study focuses on the Weigan River and Kuche River Delta Oasis in Xinjiang, employing high-resolution Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 images in conjunction with a modified Water Cloud Model (WCM) and the grayscale co-occurrence matrix (GLCM) for feature parameter extraction. A soil moisture inversion method based on stacked ensemble learning is proposed, which integrates random forest, CatBoost, and LightGBM. The findings underscore the feasibility of using multi-source remote sensing data for oasis moisture inversion in arid regions. However, soil moisture content estimates tend to be overestimated above 10% and underestimated below 5%. The CatBoost model achieved the highest accuracy (R2 = 0.827, RMSE = 0.014 g/g) using the top 16 feature parameter groups. Additionally, the R2 values for Stacking1 and Stacking2 models saw increases of 0.008 and 0.016, respectively. Thus, integrating multi-source remote sensing data with Stacking models offers valuable support and reference for large-scale estimation of surface soil moisture content in arid oasis areas.

Green construction is considered to be a construction model that pursues high resource efficiency and the utilization of reduced environmental impacts through technological innovation and management optimization under the realization of the project’s iron triangle. The realization of its performance relies on the level of stakeholder capability configuration. To reveal the optimal capability configuration and interaction between regulators and executors, this study constructed a utility model based on a post-positivist methodology. By analyzing the optimal capability configuration and coordination levels of regulators and executors according to the practices and constraints of green construction, this study conducted a static analysis to compare the effects of marginal value on regulators’ capability input and coordination coefficients. Finally, a sensitivity analysis uncovers the changes in capability configuration interaction and coordination coefficients at different stages of green construction. The results indicate that high levels of coordination in green construction cannot be maintained in the long term; continuous capability input from regulators is required for sustained support. Only by eliminating external uncertainties, reducing the variable costs for executors in advancing green construction, and controlling their risk aversion can executors be truly motivated to promote green construction. The capability configuration of both regulators and executors adjusts with corresponding marginal values. The capability configuration of executors shows a trend of initially increasing and then decreasing as the progressive coefficient rises. The model proposed in this study ensures that the final coordination level stabilizes at a relatively high level, which is between 0.6 and 0.7. In summary, the breakthrough findings provide critical insights into green construction management, contributing to the achievement of the anticipated green construction objectives.

With the rapid development of the Internet of Things (IoT), the positioning accuracy requirement of the IoT is increasing, especially for those applications without Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) signals. Ultra-Wideband (UWB) is treated as a high-accuracy positioning method that can be utilized in GNSS-blocked environments. However, UWB’s performance is still limited when it is applied in practical applications due to errors such as Non-Line-of-Sight (NLOS) errors, multipath errors, and systematic errors in UWB range values. To constrain the impacts of these mentioned errors on UWB positioning accuracy, this work proposes a novel UWB positioning model by introducing a UWB ranging offset calibration algorithm and a moving average filter into a robust extended Kalman filter. In such a UWB positioning model, the ranging offset calibration algorithm is employed to limit the infuence of UWB systematic errors, and the prior residual-based IGG-III weighting model is used to restrain the impacts of NLOS and multipath errors. The moving average filter is to further decrease the impact of the measuring noise on UWB positioning parameter estimation. To investigate the effectiveness of this proposed method, three sets of UWB experiments are arranged in three classic user environments. The experimental results show that (1) after applying the UWB ranging offset calibration algorithm, UWB positioning accuracies in classic environments, namely indoor condition, outdoor condition, and transition area are increased by 50.3%, 20.2%, and 46.9%, respectively; (2) the moving average filter can effectively improve the smoothness of UWB positioning results in terms of standard deviation; (3) the prior residual-based robust theory brings about 49.4% and 25.2% positioning improvements to horizontal and vertical components under poor measurement quality conditions, but such improvements are rather slight when there are good-quality measurements; and (4) after applying the ranging offset calibration algorithm and moving average filter to the robust EKF together, the elevation accuracy of UWB positioning is increased by 67.1%, 22.2%, and 50.5%, respectively, in the three classic user environments.

This examined the effects of Lonicera japonica extract (LJE) with different chlorogenic acid (CGA) contents on lactation performance, antioxidant status and immune function and rumen fermentation in heat-stressed high-yielding dairy cows. In total, 45 healthy Chinese Holstein high-yielding dairy cows, all with similar milk yield, parity, and days in milk were randomly allocated to 3 groups: (1) the control group (CON) without LJE; (2) the LJE-10% CGA group, receiving 35 g/(d·head) of LJE-10% CGA, and (3) the LJE-20% CGA group, receiving 17.5 g/(d·head) of LJE-20% CGA. The results showed that the addition of LJE significantly reduced RT, and enhanced DMI, milk yield, milk composition, and improved rumen fermentation in high-yielding dairy cows experiencing heat stress. Through the analysis of the serum biochemical, antioxidant, and immune indicators, we observed a reduction in CREA levels and increased antioxidant and immune function. In this study, while maintaining consistent CGA content, the effects of addition from both types of LJE are similar. In conclusion, the addition of LJE at a level of 4.1 g CGA/(d·head) effectively relieved heat stress and improved the lactation performance of dairy cows, with CGA serving as the effective ingredient responsible for its anti-heat stress properties.

Our previous study showed that early supplementation with 10 g/(d·head) of galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS) in newborn Holstein dairy calves reduced the incidence of diarrhea and improved growth performance and mineral absorption. Since the dose of 10 g/(d·head) was the lowest by dose screening in our previous study, the present study was designed to investigate whether a lower amount of GOS has similar effects on growth performance, immune function, serum nutrients in newborn Holstein heifer calves, and to further investigate its effect on appetite-related hormones. Twenty-eight healthy newborn (1 day of age) Holstein heifers with similar average body weight (41.18 ± 1.90 kg) were randomly divided into four groups (n = 7): the control group (CON group), which received heated raw milk, and three experimental groups, which received heated raw milk supplemented with 2.5 (GOS2.5 group), 5 (GOS5 group), and 10 g/(d·head) (GOS10 group) GOS. All heifer calves were fed the same starter for 28 d. Supplementation with GOS linearly increased the final body weight, average daily gain, and feed efficiency in heifer calves (p < 0.01). Compared with the control group, the average daily gain and feed efficiency of heifer calves were significantly higher in the GOS5 and GOS10 groups than in the control group (p < 0.05). Furthermore, supplementation with GOS quadratically enhanced the starter and total average daily feed intake of the heifers (p < 0.01), especially in the GOS2.5 and GOS5 groups, (p < 0.05 vs. CON). The serum concentration of immunoglobulin A was linearly increased by GOS supplementation (p < 0.05), and the levels in the GOS5 and GOS10 groups were significantly higher than those in the CON group. Meanwhile, GOS linearly decreased serum interleukin-1β and interleukin-6 concentrations (p < 0.05). The serum concentration of triglycerides was also linearly decreased (p < 0.05), whereas total protein and blood urea nitrogen were linearly increased (p < 0.05). Supplementation with GOS linearly decreased the serum concentration of leptin (p < 0.05) but increased cholecystokinin and glucagon-like peptide-1 (p < 0.05). Increasing doses of GOS linearly improved serum calcium and copper concentrations (p < 0.01) and quadratically enhanced the concentration of magnesium, which peaked in the GOS5 group (p < 0.05). In conclusion, GOS supplementation reduced the incidence of diarrhea and improved the growth performance and immune function of Holstein heifer calves.

Digital PCR (dPCR) has great potential for assessing gene editing or gene mutation due to its ability to independently inspect each DNA template in parallel. However, current dPCR methods use a fluorescence-labeled probe to detect gene variation events, and their ability to distinguish variated sequences from the wild-type sequence is limited by the probe’s tolerance to mismatch. To address this, we have developed a novel dPCR method that uses a primer instead of a probe to sense gene variation. The enhanced Taq DNA polymerase in the PCR system has a high mismatch sensitivity, which enables our dPCR method to distinguish gene mutations from wild-type sequences. Compared to current dPCR methods, our method shows superior precision in assessing gene editing efficiency and single-base DNA mutation. This presents a promising opportunity to advance gene editing research and rare gene mutation detection.

The current study examined the effects of supplementary zinc proteinate (ZnPro) and zinc oxide (ZnO) on growth performance, diarrhea, antioxidant capacity, immune function, and mineral element concentrations of calves aged 1 to 28 days. A total of twenty-four newborn calves were divided randomly into 3 groups (n = 8; 2 males and 6 females per group), and each received: 0 mg/d Zn (CON), 627 mg/d ZnPro (80 mg/d Zn; ZnPro group), and 101 mg/d ZnO (80 mg/d Zn; ZnO group). The calves received the additive in their milk during the first 28 days of life. Compared with the CON group: ZnPro and ZnO improved average daily gain (ADG) and decreased the feed:gain ratio (FGR) between days 1 and 14 (p < 0.05), while the ADG increased and FGR decreased only in the ZnPro group between days 1 and 28 (p < 0.05). The incidence of diarrhea decreased (p < 0.05) in the ZnPro and ZnO groups between days 15 and 28 as well as days 1 and 28, but decreased (p < 0.05) only in the ZnPro group between days 1 and 14. The serum immunoglobulin G (IgG) concentration of the ZnPro and ZnO groups increased on days 14 and 28 (p < 0.05). ZnPro supplementation increased serum IgM concentration during the whole study, while ZnO enhanced serum IgM concentration only on day 14 (p < 0.05). In the ZnO group, the serum concentration of cytokines interleukin (IL)-10 increased on day 14, while that of IL-1β increased on day 28 (p < 0.05). In addition, ZnPro reduced the serum malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration on days 14 and 28 (p < 0.05). Both ZnPro and ZnO increased the serum concentrations of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and metallothionein (MT) on day 14 (p < 0.05). With zinc supplementation, plasma Zn concentration increased (p < 0.05) on days 14 and 28 of age. We concluded that supplementary ZnPro and ZnO reduced incidences of diarrhea and promoted the immune function, but ZnPro improved the growth performance and antioxidant capacity of Holstein dairy calves to a greater extent.

The fundamental mechanisms of ultrafast demagnetization and magnetization recovery processes in ferromagnetic materials remain incompletely understood. The investigation of different dynamic features which depend on various physical quantities requires a more systematic approach. Here, the femtosecond laser-induced demagnetization and recovery dynamics in L10-Fe0.5Pt0.5 alloy film are studied by utilizing time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr measurements, focusing on their dependences of excitation fluence and ambient temperature over broad ranges. Ultrafast demagnetization dominated by Elliott-Yafet spin-flip scattering, and two-step magnetization recovery processes are found to be involved in all observations. The fast recovery time corresponding to spin–lattice relaxation is much shorter than that of many ferromagnets and increase with excitation fluence. These can be ascribed to the strong spin–orbit coupling (SOC) demonstrated in FePt and the reduction of transient magnetic anisotropy, respectively. Surprisingly, the demagnetization time exhibits no discernible correlation with ambient temperature. Two competitive factors are proposed to account for this phenomenon. On the other hand, the spin–lattice relaxation accelerates as temperature decreases due to enhanced SOC at lower ambient temperature. A semiquantitative analysis is given to get a visualized understanding. These results offer a comprehensive understanding of the dynamic characteristics of ultrafast demagnetization and recovery processes in iron-based materials with strong SOC, highlighting the potential for regulating the magnetization recovery process through temperature and laser fluence adjustments.

The internal pressure and temperature of type IV on-board hydrogen storage cylinders constantly change during the hydrogen fast-filling process. In this work, a 2D axisymmetric computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model is established to study the temperature rise of hydrogen storage cylinders during the fast-filling process. The hydrogen filling rate, ambient temperature, volume, and hydrogen inlet temperature were investigated to evaluate their effects on temperature rise inside the cylinders. The effects of the inlet pressure rise and pre-cooling patterns on the temperature rise of large-volume type IV hydrogen storage cylinders are analyzed, and the optimal filling strategy is determined. The research results show that a greater filling rate causes a higher hydrogen temperature rise at the end. The ambient temperature increases linearly with the maximum hydrogen temperature and decreases linearly with the state of charge (SOC). As the volume increases, the temperature rise of the cylinder increases. Reducing the inlet hydrogen temperature helps control the temperature rise, and the hydrogen inlet pre-cooling temperature required for large-volume cylinders is lower. If the filling time remains unchanged, a high pressure rise rate should be avoided, and a linear pressure rise pattern is optimal. Reducing the initial cooling energy is key to optimizing the filling strategy.

Antimony (Sb) is regarded to be a potential alloying-type anode for lithium-ion batteries due to its excellent electrochemical reversibility and high theoretical specific capacity (660 mA h g−1). However, huge volume expansion accompanying rapid capacity fading seriously hinders its commercial application. Herein, double-carbon-modified spindle-structured Sb@C@NC were constructed via galvanic replacement using a Fe-based metal-organic framework (MOF) with polydopamine-coated-derived Fe@C@NC as reactants. Due to the unique double-carbon-encapsulated structure, the Sb@C@NC anode effectively moderates the volume fluctuation and maintains the integral framework from collapsing during the annealing and cycling process. As lithium-ion battery (LIB) anodes, Sb@C@NC attained excellent cycling performance (389 mAh g−1 at 100 mA g−1 after 100 cycles) and superior rate capability (a reversible capacity of 343 mAh g−1 at 2000 mA g−1). Such an MOF-based approach provides an adjustable strategy for Sb-based nanomaterial and shield light on the applications of Sb@C@NC in other fields.

To improve the characteristics of a tractor power transmission system, make the transmission system not only meet the geometric principle but also meet the working speed requirements of the tractor, realize the continuous adjustment of the speed ratio, and solve the power interruption caused by the change of speed ratio. This paper not only proposes a new type of five-stage hydraulic mechanical continuously variable transmission (HMCVT), but also proposes a geometric design method based on I-GA. In this paper, the intersection position of each working section is introduced in the optimization design process, and six wet clutches, one brake and two planetary rows are used to achieve a flexible geometric design. The results show that the HMCVT proposed in this paper can effectively match the required speed of the tractor. After optimization, the transmission ratio characteristics are consistent with the target characteristics (the average error is about 3.27% and the common ratio is about 1.81); the simulation results based on Simulation X are highly consistent with the theoretical design values (the MAPE of 36 simulation experiments is about 0.72%); and the maximum speed of the tractor is 41.62 km/h. The proposed HMCVT design scheme and optimization design method provide a direct basis for the research and development of the composite power transmission system of tractors or other vehicles and agricultural machinery.

The hydro-mechanical continuously variable transmission (HMCVT) has complicated transmission characteristics. To analyze the influences of various factors on HMCVT’s efficiency characteristics and build a more precise HMCVT efficiency characteristic model, the paper conducted a full factorial simulation test for and a modeling study on a novel five-stage HMCVT’s efficiency characteristics. The full factorial test considered four factors with a total of 160 groups of test samples and used a range analysis method. Moreover, we proposed a piecewise modeling method for HMCVT efficiency characteristics based on the improved genetic algorithm (I-GA) and compared the precision of seven models. Research results showed that the working stage with the power output from the planet carrier had relatively higher efficiency. The variable pump’s displacement ratio had the greatest influence, and the HMCVT’s efficiency characteristics presented two variation laws with the boundary that the displacement ratio is 0. The load power and the engine speed showed a positive correlation and a negative correlation with the efficiency characteristics, respectively, and the influences decreased as the factor values increased. The modeling method proposed had high modeling precision and the mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) of seven models was in the range of 1.6884~3.1375%. The estimation precision greatly could be improved (the MAPE reduced by 7.7024% and the R2 increased by 9.2943%) by introducing the first-order term of engine speed on the basis of a two-factor model (in which the factors were the displacement ratio and the load power). The paper aimed to offer direct reference information on parameters of the mechanical design and control strategy development of HMCVT from an energy-saving perspective in the design stage.

The volume expansion during Li ion insertion/extraction remains an obstacle for the application of Sn-based anode in lithium ion-batteries. Herein, the nanoporous (np) Cu6Sn5 alloy and Cu6Sn5/Sn composite were applied as a lithium-ion battery anode. The as-dealloyed np-Cu6Sn5 has an ultrafine ligament size of 40 nm and a high BET-specific area of 15.9 m2 g−1. The anode shows an initial discharge capacity as high as 1200 mA h g−1, and it remains a capacity of higher than 600 mA h g−1 for the initial five cycles at 0.1 A g−1. After 100 cycles, the anode maintains a stable capacity higher than 200 mA h g−1 for at least 350 cycles, with outstanding Coulombic efficiency. The ex situ XRD patterns reveal the reverse phase transformation between Cu6Sn5 and Li2CuSn. The Cu6Sn5/Sn composite presents a similar cycling performance with a slightly inferior rate performance compared to np-Cu6Sn5. The study demonstrates that dealloyed nanoporous Cu6Sn5 alloy could be a promising candidate for lithium-ion batteries.

Previous studies have shown that Bacillus subtilis natto affects rumen fermentation and rumen microbial community structure, which are limited to detect a few microbial abundances using traditional methods. However, the regulation of B. subtilis natto on rumen microorganisms and the mechanisms of microbiota that affect rumen fermentation is still unclear. This study explored the effects of live and autoclaved B. subtilis natto on ruminal microbial composition and diversity in vitro using 16S rRNA gene sequencing and the underlying mechanisms. Rumen fluid was collected, allocated to thirty-six bottles, and divided into three treatments: CTR, blank control group without B. subtilis natto; LBS, CTR with 109 cfu of live B. subtilis natto; and ABS, CTR with 109 cfu of autoclaved B. subtilis natto. The rumen fluid was collected after 0, 6, 12, and 24 h of fermentation, and pH, ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N), microbial protein (MCP), and volatile fatty acids (VFAs) were determined. The diversity and composition of rumen microbiota were assessed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The results revealed LBS affected the concentrations of NH3-N, MCP, and VFAs (p < 0.05), especially after 12 h, which might be attributed to changes in 18 genera. Whereas ABS only enhanced pH and NH3-N concentration compared with the CTR group (p < 0.05), which might be associated with changes in six genera. Supplementation with live B. subtilis natto improved ruminal NH3-N and propionate concentrations, indicating that live bacteria were better than autoclaved ones. This study advances our understanding of B. subtilis natto in promoting ruminal fermentation, providing a new perspective for the precise utilization of B. subtilis natto in dairy rations.

Fatigue induced by prolonged exercise not only leads to the decrease of exercise capacity, but also might be the cause of many diseases. In consideration of the side effects of pharmacological drugs, dietary supplements seem to be a better choice to ameliorate exercise-induced fatigue. The present study aimed to investigate the anti-fatigue effect of Salecan, a novel water-soluble β-glucan, during exercise and explore the underlying mechanisms. Male Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) mice were divided into five groups, including the Rest group and the other four Swim-groups treated with Salecan at 0, 25, 50, and 100 mg/kg/day for four weeks. Salecan treatment markedly increased the exhaustive swimming time of mice in the forced swimming test. Exercise fatigue and injury-related biochemical biomarkers including lactate, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine kinase (CK), alanine transaminase (ALT), and aspartate transaminase (AST) were ameliorated by Salecan. Salecan reversed the decreased serum glucose levels and glycogen contents caused by exercise. In addition, Salecan improved oxidative stress induced by exercise through regulating Nrf2/HO–1/Trx signaling pathway. Thus, the beneficial effects of Salecan against fatigue may be due to its positive effects on energy metabolism and antioxidation defence. Our results suggest that Salecan could be a novel potential candidate for anti-fatigue dietary supplements.