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To monitor, diagnose, and suppress the inter-turn short-circuit faults (ITSCFs) of a submersible motor, an approach for the on-line identification of its winding faults has been proposed based on monitoring the stator current. First, an ITSCF model with the global leakage referred to the stator is given. With this model, the detection parameter, which is equal to the ratio of the turns of the fault windings to the total turns of the windings in the healthy phase, can be derived. Second, a faulty model described by the fourth order state-space equation of the motor with a winding fault has been given. Based on sampled stator voltage and stator current, the detection parameter has been solved and used to estimate the location and the turns of inter-turn short-circuit windings of the motor in real time. The accuracy and the robustness of the proposed approach has been illustrated with a 1.5 kW motor that is fed by a 10 kW inverter. Experiment shows that the identification accuracy in terms of the number of the ITSCF windings of the motor stator is less than 3. It can give a reference for the on-line diagnose the ITSCFs of the stator windings of a submersible motor that works in 2 km deep well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Supratentorial extraventricular ependymoma (SEE) is a rare subset of ependymomas located in the supratentorial parenchyma, and little is known regarding its management and prognosis. Our study aimed to reveal the prognostic factors in patients with SEE and the roles of programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1), programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1), Ki-67, and neural cell adhesion molecule L1 (L1CAM) in predicting these patients' outcomes. Methods: We retrospectively studied the clinical features and prognostic factors in 48 patients with SEE admitted to our center from April 2008 to October 2018. Tissue slides were constructed from patient samples, and PD-L1, PD-1, Ki-67, and L1CAM expression levels were evaluated by immunohistochemistry. Results: Patients with gross total resection (GTR) had better progression-free survival than patients with subtotal resection (STR). Moreover, the recurrence hazard ratios in patients with STR at 3, 5, and 10 years were 8.746, 6.866 and 3.962 times those of patients with GTR, respectively. PD-L1 positivity predicted worse progression-free survival, while the recurrence hazard ratios for patients with PD-L1 positivity at 3, 5, and 10 years were 10.445, 5.539, and 3.949 times those of patients with PD-L1 negativity, respectively. Multivariate analysis revealed that PD-L1 expression and GTR could independently predict outcomes in patients with SEE. Conclusion: PD-L1 expression was an independent and more readily obtained predictor of outcomes, representing a simple and reliable biological prognostic factor for patients with SEE. Further studies are needed to explore PD-L1 inhibitor treatment for patients with ependymoma. Clinical trial registration: No clinical trials were performed in the study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electron and hole transport properties in a high-mobility n-type copolymer poly{[ N, N′-bis(2-octyldodecyl)-naphthalene-1,4,5,8-bis(dicarboximide)-2,6-diy1]-alt-5,5′-(2,2′-dithiophene)}[P(NDI2OD-T2), PolyeraActivInk™ N2200] are investigated. The electron mobility is observed to be more than two orders of magnitude higher than the hole mobility. The thickness-dependent current density versus voltage ( J- V) characteristics of N2200 electron-only and hole-only devices cannot be well described using the conventional mobility model. However, the thickness-dependent and temperature-dependent J- V characteristics of N2200 electron-only and hole-only devices can be accurately described using our recently introduced improved mobility model only with a single set of parameters. Within the improved model, the mobility depends on three important physical quantities: the temperature, carrier density, and electric field. For the semiconducting polymer studied, we find the width of the Gaussian density of states σ = 0.082 eV and the lattice constant a = 0.8 nm for electron transport, while the width of the Gaussian density of states σ = 0.11 eV and the lattice constant a = 0.8 nm for hole transport. It is clear that hole transport exhibits a significantly stronger disorder than electron transport. This is also reflected in the lower hole mobility, as compared to the electron mobility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One kind of novel ionic liquids (ILs) with a tertiary amino moiety and a quaternary ammonium group were synthesized and identified by FT-IR, H and C NMR. The elemental chemical state and basicity of ILs were determined by XPS and Hammett indicator method, respectively. Then the catalytic performance of these bi-functional catalysts was investigated in one-step synthesis of dimethyl carbonate (DMC) from ethylene oxide (EO), carbon dioxide and methanol. The best catalytic performance with 99% EO conversion and a maximum of 74% DMC selectivity was obtained using [N]I as catalyst under optimized reaction conditions. And the catalyst could be reused for several times. Normally, stronger basicity could be obtained by altering the anions with different nucleophilicity in ILs and a better catalytic activity could be achieved correspondingly. A mechanism that both the ring opening of epoxide through nucleophilic attacks and the transesterification play an important role in the reaction was proposed based on experimental results. Graphical Abstract: One kind of novel quaternary ammonium ionic liquids has been developed and for the first time used as bi-functional catalysts in the one-step synthesis of dimethyl carbonate (DMC) from ethylene oxide, CO and methanol. Normally, stronger basicity could be obtained by altering anions with different nucleophilicity in ILs and a better catalytic activity could be achieved correspondingly.[Figure not available: see fulltext.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A ca. 4000a decadal-resolution climate proxy record of the mean grain-size from a lake (or mash) sediment at the southern margin of the Tarim Basin, correlates visually with the atmospheric 14C record from tree ring (residual Δ14C, solar proxy) and the GISP2 ice core δ18O record (temperature proxy). In general, Δ14C maxima (solar minima) are coincident with cold (wet) periods in the study area and cold periods in the Greenland ice core. Power spectrum analysis revealed statistically significant periodicities of 196a, 121a, 97a, 62a, 45a and 33-30a, which are similar to those principal solar-oscillation periods as inferred from the atmospheric radiocarbon and other proxy records. Possible solar forcing is addressed to be the main driving forcing of climate change in the southern margin of Tarim Basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

LCL filter parameters and control parameters are interdependent and inter-restricted. They can all affect the stability of a static synchronous compensator (STATCOM) under the effects of a complex power grid such as harmonic grid voltage and grid impedance variation. An advanced parameters optimization method integrated with LCL filter and control strategy is proposed. At first, the ABC-Pareto algorithm (Pareto multi-objective optimization of an artificial bee colony algorithm) is used to reasonably choose the LCL filter parameters. Under the premise of using capacitor current feedback active damping control and grid voltage feedforward control, the mathematical models of the STATCOM are derived. The constraints of control performances on the control parameters are obtained. According to these constraints, it is possible to construct a satisfactory 3D space. The control parameters can be chosen reasonably by finding the optimized space when the power grid is changed. Simulation and experimental results show the effectiveness and superiority of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) has attracted wide interests in civil engineering but it has large deadweight, which limits its application in lightweight structures and rehabilitation. Compromising the merits of UHPC and lightweight concrete, ultra-high-performance lightweight concrete (UHPLC) is a potential solution to solve the drawback of high self-weight. Based on particle densely packing theory, this study proposed a UHPLC manufacturing approach using shale ceramic sand and air-entraining agent (AEA). An experimental study was conducted to systematically examine the effects of the types and contents of AEA on various performances of UHPLC, including its workability, mechanical properties, durability and microstructure. The results show the following: (1) The addition of AEA resulted in the decrease of UHPLC in elastic modulus, compressive strength and flexural strength but bring UHPLC higher specific strength; (2) A void system that is featured with homogeneous distribution of pores and an appropriate size and could be formed by adding a suitable amount of AEA; (3) The optimum proportion of AEA in UHPLC was 0.01% in consideration of its influence on UHPLC from the perspectives of microstructure, durability and mechanical properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lots of heat generated in the cutting deformation zone can cause the temperature rising of cutting tool and workpiece during the cutting process. Tool temperature is mainly depended on the heat energy entering into tool in the secondary deformation zone. Higher working temperature can weaken the cutting tool strength and then deteriorate the tool wear. Advanced coating layer deposited on the tool substrate can change the tool-chip friction and affect the heat partition in the tool-chip interface. In order to reveal the mechanism of heat conduction in the secondary deformation zone, the model of heat partition into cutting tool was built. With the aid of finite element method (FEM), the relative parameters which were necessary for the solving of heat partition model were quantified. Actual cutting experiments were carried out to the verification of the FEM models by means of the cutting force and temperature measurement. Influences of coatings (i.e., coating materials, coating thickness) and cutting speeds on the heat partition were analyzed. And then, rake face temperatures obtained at four kinds of coated tools were compared. The investigation results showed that TiC coating appears as the maximum value and Al2O3 coating appears as the minimum value of heat partition coefficient into cutting tool among these four kinds of coatings (i.e., TiC, TiN, TiAlN, Al2O3). With the increasing of coating thickness and cutting speeds, heat partition into cutting tool all showed a decrease trend. Al2O3-coated tool had the maximum rake face temperature among these four kinds of coated tools; however, the location of peak temperature on the rake face of Al2O3-coated tool was the shortest distance from the tool tip. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Synthesis of HDC by methoxycarbonylation of HDA with DMC was carried out over the bulk and hybrid heteropoly acid (HPA) catalyst. The catalysts were systematically characterized by XRD, FTIR, SEM and NH-TPD techniques. The by-products produced in the reaction were identified and a possible reaction pathway was proposed based on the by-products analysis. The performances of bulk and hybrid HPA catalysts were evaluated. The H[SiWO] catalyst revealed high performance compared with other catalysts and its high performance was attributed to its acidic properties. Effects of reaction parameters and reusability of the H[SiWO] catalyst were also investigated. Under the optimized reaction conditions, HDA conversion reached 93.2% with 64.8% HDC selectivity and only 3.8% by-product selectivity. Moreover, a possible reaction mechanism was proposed for the synthesis of HDC over H[SiWO] catalyst. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: A key step of delivering extracellular agents to its intracellular target is to escape from endosomal/lysosomal compartments, while minimizing the release of digestive enzymes that may compromise cellular functions. In this study, we examined the intracellular distribution of both fluorecent cargoes and enzymes by a particle delivery platform made from the controlled blending of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) and a random pH-sensitive copolymer. Methods: We utilized both microscopic and biochemical methods to semi-quantitatively assess how the composition of blend particles affects the level of endosomal escape of cargos of various sizes and enzymes into the cytosolic space. Results: We demonstrated that these polymeric particles enabled the controlled delivery of cargos into the cytosolic space that was more dependent on the cargo size and less on the composition of blend particles. Blend particles did not induce the rupture of endosomal/lysosomal compartments and released less than 20% of endosomal/lysosomal enzymes. Conclusions: This study provides insight into understanding the efficacy and safety of a delivery system for intracellular delivery of biologics and drugs. Blend particles offer a potential platform to target intracellular compartments while potentially minimizing cellular toxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) has become a leading technology for determining protein structures. Recent advances in this field have allowed for atomic resolution. However, predicting the backbone trace of a protein has remained a challenge on all but the most pristine density maps (<2.5 Å resolution). Here we introduce a deep learning model that uses a set of cascaded convolutional neural networks (CNNs) to predict Cα atoms along a protein's backbone structure. The cascaded-CNN (C-CNN) is a novel deep learning architecture comprised of multiple CNNs, each predicting a specific aspect of a protein's structure. This model predicts secondary structure elements (SSEs), backbone structure, and Cα atoms, combining the results of each to produce a complete prediction map. The cascaded-CNN is a semantic segmentation image classifier and was trained using thousands of simulated density maps. This method is largely automatic and only requires a recommended threshold value for each protein density map. A specialized tabu-search path walking algorithm was used to produce an initial backbone trace with Cα placements. A helix-refinement algorithm made further improvements to the α-helix SSEs of the backbone trace. Finally, a novel quality assessment-based combinatorial algorithm was used to effectively map protein sequences onto Cα traces to obtain full-atom protein structures. This method was tested on 50 experimental maps between 2.6 Å and 4.4 Å resolution. It outperformed several state-of-the-art prediction methods including Rosetta de-novo, MAINMAST, and a Phenix based method by producing the most complete predicted protein structures, as measured by percentage of found Cα atoms. This method accurately predicted 88.9% (mean) of the Cα atoms within 3 Å of a protein's backbone structure surpassing the 66.8% mark achieved by the leading alternate method (Phenix based fully automatic method) on the same set of density maps. The C-CNN also achieved an average root-mean-square deviation (RMSD) of 1.24 Å on a set of 50 experimental density maps which was tested by the Phenix based fully automatic method. The source code and demo of this research has been published at https://github.com/DrDongSi/Ca-Backbone-Prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The adverse effects of high concentration of phenolic compounds in wastewater on aquatic organisms are a major environmental issue. In recent years, treating organic wastewater by algae has attracted attention because this treatment is economic, efficient and eco-friendly. Here we review the use of algae in removing phenol and phenolic derivatives. We discuss phenolic wastewater treatment, mechanisms of adsorption and degradation, and effects of excessive phenols on algal cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of promising Ce–Co–Fe catalysts were successfully synthesized using a cetyl-trimethylammonium-bromide-assisted co-precipitation method and investigated for diesel soot combustion. The surface morphological and structural properties were systematically examined using various techniques: X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope, N2 adsorption–desorption, Raman spectroscopy, temperature-programmed reduction and in situ diffuse reflection infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy. The catalyst–soot combustion activities were tested in O2 and NO + O2 using a temperature-programmed technique. Nanometer crystalline solid solutions were formed with high surface areas when the Fe and Co cations were co-doped in the ceria lattice. Transition metals doping played a key role in increasing oxygen vacancies and promoting the redox performance of Ce–Co–Fe catalysts. Co–Fe co-doping accelerated the oxidation of soot under both "tight" and "loose" contact conditions. Among all the ceria-based catalysts, Ce80Co15Fe5 showed superior activity with T10 = 256 °C and high selectivity with S CO 2 = 100 % under tight a contact mode. The observed high catalytic activity following co-doping was proved to have occurred because of various reasons such as improved redox properties, increased oxygen vacancies and high surface area. The presence of NO in O2 also promoted soot oxidation, which follows the NO2-assisted mechanism. Moreover, the in situ DRIFTS performed under an isothermal condition in NO + O2 confirmed the strong adsorption capacity for NOx species on the doped ceria catalyst. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The soot combustion on Pd-doped La2Sn2O7 pyrochlore oxides was studied. Palladium promoter was doped into the pyrochlore system via two ways: bulk substitution (La2Sn1.9Pd0.1O7) and surface impregnation (Pd/La2Sn2O7). The catalysts were characterized by XRD, BET, SEM, HRTEM, PL, XPS and H2-TPR measurements. Pd modifications increased the concentration of surface oxygen vacancy, especially Pd/La2Sn2O7. The different morphologies of palladium promoters were revealed in the two palladium-doped catalysts. Palladium was present primarily in the form of a lattice Pd2+ in the bulk-doping sample, with trace of metal palladium deposited on the surface. As for the surface-doping sample, PdO was the predominant form, accompanied with some of highly dispersed metallic palladium. Due to the adhesion of massive surface palladium species on Pd/La2Sn2O7, a strong metal oxide interaction occurred in the interface between Pd species and La2Sn2O7. The activity evaluation results show that Pd/La2Sn2O7 possesses the highest performance, exhibiting the lowest activation energy (98.83 kJ/mol) for soot combustion. Surface Pd/PdO redox couples as well as Pd-O-Sn interface species were identified to be the active phases for the superior catalytic behavior of Pd/La2Sn2O7. A possible oxidation mechanism for the reactions has been speculated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cesium-promoted LaCoO perovskite-type catalysts were synthesized for catalytic soot combustion. The cesium promoter was introduced into the perovskite system via two different ways with the same Cs loading: one is Cs doping (LaCsCoO), and the other is Cs supporting (Cs/LaCoO). The physicochemical properties of the catalysts were characterized by XRD, N-sorption, SEM, EDS, H-TPR, NO oxidation and NO sorption techniques. For Cs-supported sample, the promotion effect on the redox properties of transition metal has been observed. The catalytic NO oxidation activity on Cs-supported sample was higher than that on Cs-doped sample due to the improved reducibility. Under O atmospheres, the two kinds of Cs-containing catalysts exhibited similar ignition activities under tight conditions with soot ignition temperature decreased to about 350 °C, which can be related to the enhanced oxygen mobility and the improved contact between soot and catalysts. In the presence of NO, the superior soot oxidation activity on Cs-supported catalyst was related to its higher NO productivity, larger NO consumption and more stored nitrates accessible in soot oxidation process. Thus, the different ways to introduce cesium have different impacts on the properties and activities of the perovskite catalysts. Graphical Abstract: Cesium surface promotion is much more effective than the bulk promotion in soot oxidation over LaCoO perovskite catalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantitative trait loci (QTL) mapping provides a powerful tool for unraveling the genetic basis of yield and yield components as well as heterosis in upland cotton. In this research, a molecular linkage map of Xiangzamian 2 ( Gossypium hirsutum L.)-derived recombinant inbred lines (RILs) was reconstructed based on increased expressed sequence tag-simple sequence repeat markers. Both the RILs and immortalized F2s (IF2) developed through intermating between RILs were grown under multiple environments. Yield and yield components including seed-cotton yield, lint yield, bolls/plant, boll weight, lint percentage, seed index, lint index and fruit branch number were measured and their QTL were repeatedly identified across environments by the composite interval mapping (CIM) method. From a total of 111 non-redundant QTL, 23 were detected in both two populations. In the meantime, multi-marker joint analyses showed that 16 of these QTL had significant environmental interaction. QTL for correlated traits tended to be collocated and most of the QTL for seed-cotton yield and lint yield were associated with QTL for at least one yield component, consistent with the results observed in correlation analyses. For many QTL with significant additive effects, positive alleles from CRI12, the inferior parent with lower yield performance, were associated with trait improvement. Trait performance of IF2s and the large number of QTL with positive dominant effects implied that dominance plays an important role in the genetic basis of heterosis in Xiangzamian 2 and that non-additive inheritance is also an important genetic mode for lint percentage in the population. These QTL can provide the bases for marker-assisted breeding programs of upland cotton. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low-density-lipoprotein (LDL) receptor-related proteins 5 and 6 (LRP5/6) are Wnt co-receptors essential for Wnt/?-catenin signaling. Dickkopf 1 (DKK1) inhibits Wnt signaling by interacting with the extracellular domains of LRP5/6 and is a drug target for multiple diseases. Here we present the crystal structures of a human LRP6-E3E4-DKK1 complex and the first and second halves of human LRP6's four propeller-epidermal growth factor (EGF) pairs (LRP6-E1E2 and LRP6-E3E4). Combined with EM analysis, these data demonstrate that LRP6-E1E2 and LRP6-E3E4 form two rigid structural blocks, with a short intervening hinge that restrains their relative orientation. The C-terminal domain of DKK1 (DKK1c) interacts with the top surface of the LRP6-E3 YWTD propeller and given their structural similarity, probably also that of the LRP6-E1 propeller, through conserved hydrophobic patches buttressed by a network of salt bridges and hydrogen bonds. Our work provides key insights for understanding LRP5/6 structure and the interaction of LRP5/6 with DKK, as well as for drug discovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DNA-AFLP techniques have found new applications in recent years. Currently, the methodology is used to establish differential gene expression and construct linkage maps. In the present study, a transcriptome map based on cDNA-AFLP techniques was constructed using an immortalized F (IF) population of 171 lines. The lines were derived from intercrosses between 180 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) of the cotton hybrid Xiangzamian 2 ( Gossypium. hirsutum L.). A total of 302 transcriptome-derived fragments (TDFs) were mapped onto 26 linkage groups that covered 2,477.06 cM in length with an average distance of 8.23 cM between two markers. Seventy-one QTL for yield and yield component traits were detected by CIM procedures based on four environments, with 13 QTL identified in at least two environments. Some TDFs co-located with yield QTL were subsequently sequenced and analyzed by online homology searches. Potential candidate genes for yield and yield component traits were found to encode proteins involved in DNA replication, transcription, translation, and biosynthesis regulation. Furthermore, genes regulating metabolic processes signal transduction, transport, and structural components of organelles were identified. Correlation analysis between expression patterns of TDFs and trait performance detected six TDFs positively correlated to both yield and yield heterosis: six TDFs positively correlated to yield, and seven TDFs to yield heterosis. These TDFs have potential for cloning the functional genes responsible for each corresponding trait and have future value in marker-assisted selection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]