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The FCC structured CoCrFeMnNi high entropy alloy (HEA) has attracted great attention due to its excellent ductility and strain hardening ability, but the lowest yield strength is insufficient for structural applications. To achieve high strength and ductility, we developed a new strategy called harmonic structure (HS) consisting of soft coarse and hard fine grains via controlled mechanical milling time. The SEM and EBSD microscopic characterizations reveal that the formation of HS from surface to the interior of powder is due to a difference in the degree of plastic deformation. The hardness of HS HEAs increased with increasing distance from center to surface regions due to a reduction in grain size. Compared with the homogeneous HEA, the yield strength of HS HEAs increased from 370 MPa to 730 MPa and 760 MPa due to grain boundary strengthening, dislocation strengthening, and twin boundary strengthening effects. While HS HEAs exhibited enhanced strain hardening ability due to gradient structure with their mechanical incompatibility provide back stress strengthening. Furthermore, the compressive deformation behavior of homogeneous and HS HEAs was analyzed by microstructural evolution.

Thermoelectric devices are environmentally friendly renewable energy sources that use waste heat to generate electricity. So far, p-type Bi–Sb–Te-based alloys with high thermoelectric properties were fabricated using low-dimensional and single growth methods as small-scale, laboratory-grown samples. However, large-scale fabrication processes are required for commercial applications of thermoelectric devices. In this work, large amounts (2–3 kg) of p-type 20%Bi2Te3–80%Sb2Te3 alloy powders were fabricated using the gas atomization (GA) process under an inert gas atmosphere. Subsequently, a large-scale sample, 64 mm thick and 25 mm in diameter, was consolidated from the as-fabricated GA powders using spark plasma sintering at 673 K. The homogeneity of the microstructure, density, thermoelectric properties, and mechanical properties of the high-thickness sintered bulk were systematically investigated at various positions. The EBSD texture analysis revealed that an almost similar microstructure existed in all positions of the bulk sample, which was comprised of a mixture of coarse grains and fine grains randomly distributed throughout the matrix. The peak electrical conductivity of 1100 Ω−1 cm−1 was obtained from the top position of the thick sample, which had a relatively higher carrier mobility. The maximum power factor of 3.96 mW/mK2 was achieved by the top part of the specimen, because of its higher electrical conductivity. The lowest thermal conductivity of 0.964 W/mK at 350 K was obtained from the bottom part of the specimen. As a result, the maximum figure of merit, ZT of 1.25 was achieved in the bottom position of the high-thickness sample. Homogeneous (within 5% of variation) thermoelectric transport properties were observed throughout the fabricated high-thickness sintered sample, regardless of position.

In the present study, Cu54Ni6Zr22Ti18 bulk metallic glass composites were developed by spark plasma sintering(SPS) using gas atomized Cu54Ni6Zr22Ti18 metallic glass powders and Ta powders. Metallic glass composites with Ta phase were fabricated by SPS. The successful consolidation of Cu54Ni6Zr22Ti18 metallic glass matrix composites with the Ta phase was achieved through the strong bonding due to the plastic deformation of the Ta powder and the super-plastic behavior of the metallic glass powder in the supercooled liquid state during SPS. The deformed Ta phases were well distributed in the Cu54Ni6Zr22Ti18 metallic glass matrix. The compressive fracture strength and total strain were 1770 Mpa and 10.2%, respectively, for the Cu54Ni6Zr22Ti18 bulk metallic glass composite with 40 wt% Ta phases. The uniformly dispersed deformed Ta phase in the Cu54Ni6Zr22Ti18 metallic glass matrix effectively impedes the propagation of the first shear band and generates a second shear band, causing a crossing of the shear bands, resulting in an improvement in plastic strain. This increase in plastic deformation is related to the fact that the deformed Ta phase, uniformly distributed in the Cu54Ni6Zr22Ti18 metallic glass matrix, acts as a source of shear bands and at the same time effectively suppresses the movement of the shear bands, dispersing the stress and causing wide plastic deformation.

In this article, we propose a novel real-time threshold voltage ( $V_{th}$ ) compensation method for AM-OLED display. The proposed method predicts $V_{th}$ shift of driving thin-film transistors (TFTs) based on the equation derived from the sensing line charging with TFT’s drain current. The prediction equation requires two consecutive source node voltages to consider the mobility variation, and only takes hundreds of microseconds to predict $V_{th}$ shift. It is short enough to monitor the real-time $V_{th}$ degradation, since the prediction can be carried out during the vertical blank time. Also, very high prediction accuracy was confirmed through Smart SPICE simulation. We simulated severe mobility variation and $V_{th}$ shift circumstances, and the simulation results showed that the prediction error was less than one just noticeable difference (JND) margin though out all gray levels. We expect that the proposed method can achieve more accurate and faster real-time $V_{th}$ degradation compensation for high resolution and large-sized OLED displays than conventional one.

BACKGROUND: In patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), some problems might occur in fracture healing; however, clinical evidence is limited. Therefore, we compared the time to union and complication rate of femoral fractures between RA and non-RA patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study included 42 RA patients who underwent osteosynthesis for femoral trochanter or shaft fracture. For comparison with the RA group, 126 non-RA patients were selected as a control group. The RA group was divided into the trochanteric (RA group I) and shaft fracture group (RA group II) for comparison with each control group (control groups I and II). We analyzed risk factors for nonunion or delayed union and divided patients according to whether atypical or ordinary fracture in shaft fracture. RESULTS: Time to union (p = 0.823) and complication rate (p = 0.440) did not differ significantly between RA group I and control group I. A significantly longer time to union (p = 0.001) and higher nonunion rate (p = 0.013) were observed in RA group II compared with control group II. The presence of RA (p = 0.040) and atypical femoral fracture (p = 0.006) were significant risk factors for nonunion or delayed union. CONCLUSIONS: The high prevalence of atypical femoral fracture among the femur shaft fractures in the RA patients was considered a significant risk factor for nonunion and delayed union.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the incidence of symptomatic venous thromboembolism (VTE) after chemoprophylaxis in patients with pelvic and lower-extremity fractures, and to identify risk factors for VTEs in this subgroup of patients. To detect VTE, multi-detector computed tomography (CT) angiography was performed. Of 363 patients assessed, the incidence of symptomatic VTE was 12.4% (45 patients), and the incidence of symptomatic PE was 5.2% (19 patients). For the risk-factor analysis, a higher Charlson comorbidity index (p = 0.037), and a history of external fixator application (p = 0.007) were associated with increased VTE risk. Among patients who had VTE, male sex (p = 0.017), and above-the-knee fractures (p = 0.035) were associated with increased pulmonary embolism (PE) risk. In conclusions, the incidence of VTE in post-traumatic patients is not low after chemoprophylaxis. Risk factors for VTE and PE are different among patients with pelvic and lower-extremity fractures.

Based on the dimensions and thresholds of power and power density of a commercial shock absorber in the Korando car (an SUV branch), a single-phase 8-slot 8-pole tubular permanent magnet (PM) machine was designed and fabricated. The main focus of this paper is on the increase of output power in a given space and reduction of the volume. This is successfully solved using a novel structure for PM and considering a number of slot–pole combinations. Furthermore, a multiobjective optimization is performed to find the tradeoff between various objectives. The experimental results reveal that the proposed machine can possibly regenerate a maximum of 339.95 W and an average of 96.67 W in terms of its output power. Considering the active volume, which includes PM, iron core, pure copper, and an electromagnetic air gap, the estimated maximum and average power density are 0.311 and 0.087 W/cm3, respectively. Despite these satisfactory results, one of the major drawbacks to exploiting this machine is its high electromagnetic force, which causes negative effects on safety and driving comfort. With the aim to commercialize the proposed device, further work will be concentrated on the reduction of electromagnetic force and on performance of the road tests.

Histological and cytological observations of the human anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) had been described, but the differentiation potency based on their location is still unknown. To determine and compare proliferation and differentiation potential of cells derived from distal and middle thirds of the ACL remnant, ACL remnant was initially marked at the distal third (within 10 mm from the tibial insertion) and middle third (between 10–20 mm from the tibial insertion) and then dissected. Both the middle and distal third regions of ACL remnant were analyzed using CD34+ cell counting. Cell proliferation rate did not differ in both middle and distal third regions of ACL remnant, but they showed different characteristics in cell differentiation depending on their location. The distal third region of the ACL remnant had a tendency for chondrogenic differentiation with higher expression of CD34+ cells. On the other hand, the middle third region of ACL remnant had a strong tendency for osteogenic and ligamentous differentiation. Characteristics of the ACL remnant tissues should be considered when performing remnant-preserving or harvesting ACL remnants for tissue engineering.

A series of hollow structured (Sn,Ti)O2 solid-solutions with varying Sn content are prepared by a soft template method. Not only a complete incorporation of Sn4+ into TiO2 lattice but also a Sn O Ti bonding is identified, and morphologically, interconnected pores are confirmed between the hollow (Sn,Ti)O2 solid-solution nanoparticles. In battery performance, along with enhanced lithium storage, consistent utilization of Sn in voluminous alloying/de-alloying reactions is demonstrated. Beyond the TiO2 typically known as a stable anode material, the superior capacity retention of solid-solution rather containing Sn shows that the Sn O Ti bonding in (Sn,Ti)O2 solid-solution leads to the synergy effect of increased energy density from Sn and stable capacity retention from Ti.

This paper investigates an energy-harvesting system that uses of vibration energy at a shock absorber for electric vehicles. This system mainly comprises a linear electromagnetic generator and synchronous buck converter. To obtain the electrical energy through a linear electromagnetic generator, the perturb and observe maximum power point tracking (P&O MPPT) scheme is applied at the converter. The power converter circuit is designed with a diode rectifier and synchronous buck converter. The generated electric power is able to transmit to the battery and the damping force of the shock absorber is adjusted by the controlled current of generator. The linear electromagnetic generator was designed as a single phase eight-slot eight-pole tubular permanent magnet machine. The performance of the proposed energy-harvesting system was verified through simulations and experiments.

Luminescent hexagonal dominant copper indium sulphide (h-dominant CIS) quantum dots (QDs) by precursor-injection of mixed metal-dialkyldithiocarbamate precursors. Owing to the different reactivity of the precursors, this method allowed the CIS QDs to grow while retaining the crystallinity of the hexagonal nucleus. The photoluminescence (PL) spectra exhibited dual emission (600–700 nm red emission and 700–800 nm NIR emission) resulting from the combined contributions of the hexagonal (wurtzite) h-CIS and tetragonal (chalcopyrite) t-CIS QDs, i.e. the NIR and red emissions were due to the h-CIS QDs and coexisting t-CIS QDs (weight ratio of h-CIS/t-CIS ~ 10), respectively. The PL intensities of the h-CIS as well as t-CIS QDs were enhanced by post-synthetic heat treatment; the t-CIS QDs were particularly sensitive to the heat treatment. By separating h-CIS and t-CIS successfully, it was demonstrated that this phenomenon was not affected by size and composition but by the donor-acceptor pair states and defect concentration originating from their crystal structure. The h-dominant CIS QDs in this work provide a new technique to control the optical property of Cu-In-S ternary NCs.

Refractory high-entropy alloys (RHEAs) show a great potential as structural materials due to their remarkable properties, such as high strength and thermal stability. Despite these advantages, the RHEAs still suffer from the limited ductility at room temperature. To overcome the strength-ductility trade-off, the new RHEA design strategy, transformation-induced plasticity (TRIP) HEAs, have been developed by applying metastability-engineering approach. With the newly developed RHEAs design strategy, we designed metastable RHEAs, TiZrHfVxNbxTax (x = 1.0, 0.5 and 0.1) with decrease of the β-stabilizing elements (V, Nb, and Ta) to promote the transformation-induced ductility and work-hardening capability. The proper addition of the β-stabilizing elements (V, Nb, and Ta) into the ternary equi-molar TiZrHf alloy (TiZrHfV0.1Nb0.1Ta0.1) leads to stress/strain-induced phase transformation from the body-centered cubic (BCC) to hexagonal-close-packed (HCP) α′ and/or orthorhombic α″ phases. Detailed studies on the phase transformation sequence during the deformation were carried out using X-ray diffraction (XRD), electron back-scattered diffraction (EBSD), and transmission-electron microscope (TEM), which revealed the stepwise phase transformation that is responsible for the strong strain hardening behavior. Furthermore, we further suggested the new transformation-induced-plasticity (TRIP) HEA design strategy, applying the Bo-Md approach.

Shin-Woo Ha,1 Jin-Kyu Lee,2 George R Beck Jr1,3,4 1Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA; 2Department of Chemistry, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea; 3The Atlanta Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Decatur, 4The Winship Cancer Institute, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA Abstract: To date, delivery of light-emitting diode (LED)-activated compounds to cells and tissue remains a challenge. Silica-based materials possess good biocompatibility and have advantages of control of size and shape. Fluorescent silica nanoparticles (NPs) have been synthesized and used for applications such as cell tracking and tumor identification. Here, we report the synthesis and optimization of fluorescent silica NPs, which incorporate a naphthalimide dye with triethoxysilanes that are excited by the blue LED wavelength (LEDex NPs). The NPs can be imaged in the 420–470nm wavelength, demonstrate a high quantum yield, are stable in a range of pH, and are taken into the cells. Therefore, these NPs represent a novel imaging technology for biomedical applications. Keywords: naphthalimide, imaging, bone marrow stromal cell migration, reduced toxicity&nbsp

In the background of enhancing thermoelectric (TE) figure of merit of solid-state materials, the introduction of porous structure can significantly decrease lattice thermal conductivity by intensifying phonon scattering at the inhomogeneous microscale pores. Herein, we developed a porous structure in Cu0.07Bi0.5Sb1.5Te3 compounds by utilizing PVA as the pore former, and systematically studied its effect on thermoelectric properties. The results revealed that the reduction in thermal conductivity (~28%) was greater than the decrease in electrical conductivity (~17%) with increasing porosity, indicating long-wavelength phonon scattering was enhanced at micro-scale pores. Consequently, a peak zT of 1.342 at 400 K, and a zTavg of 1.254 in the temperature range of 300–500 K and an ηmax of ~9.4% at ΔT = 200 K were achieved in the porous sample (10.58%), which all are higher than that of dense sample. The hardness and compressive strength of the porous samples were significantly higher than commercial zone melting ingots. The proposed methodology is a cost-effective and efficient way of producing high-performance TE devices with good mechanical stability for real life practical applications.

Coherent precipitates hardening is currently emerging strengthening mechanism of the various high entropy alloys (HEAs). Recently, CrMnFeCoNiAlx HEAs have been studied to show a phase transition from face-centered-cubic (FCC) to body-centered-cubic (BCC) and formation of coherent precipitates (B2-NiAl) within the BCC matrix. The coherent precipitates in the CrMnFeCoNiAlx alloys could contribute to increase the strength but lead to considerable reduction of the ductility. The present work systematically investigated a series of CrMnFeCoNiAl0.5Tix alloys to further improve the strength and plasticity, as compared to the previously reported CrMnFeCoNiAlx HEAs. As a result, an increase of Ti addition leads to the phase transition from FCC to BCC and formation of lamellar structure and hierarchical precipitates reinforced by B2-NiAl and L21-Ni2TiAl phases. Excellent mechanical properties were achieved from CrMnFeCoNiAl0.5Ti0.1 and CrMnFeCoNiAl0.5Ti0.2 alloys. The mechanical properties of the CrMnFeCoNiAl0.5Tix alloys were discussed via theoretical strengthening mechanisms.

The analyses of phase composition, microstructure and the mechanical properties were conducted for as-cast TaxAl0.7CoCrFeNi2.1 (x = 0.3, 0.5, 0.6 and 0.7) eutectic high entropy composites (EHECs). With the x value increases from 0.3 to 0.6, the phases of dendrite changed from L12 to B2 and volume fraction of ultrafine-eutectic matrix consisting of Face-centered cubic and Laves phases increased. When x = 0.7, the Laves phase appears as the primary dendrite and the matrix region changed into the bimodal eutectic structure (L12 + Laves and B2 + Laves). Thermo-physical parameters could be used for understanding phase formation in EHECs. Experimental and theoretical comparison using thermo-physical parameters shows a reasonable consistency. Depending on the microstructural variation, the yield strength increased from 1304 MPa (x = 0.3) to 2154 MPa (x = 0.6) and plasticity decreased from 17% (x = 0.5) to 4% (x = 0.6). In order to understand the nano-to-micronscale deformation mechanisms depending on the microstructural variations, the systematic investigations of post-deformed samples (x = 0.5 and 0.6) were carried out by multi-scale SEM, TEM, and AFM analyses.

The crystallization behavior has been studied in Zr62Al8Ni13Cu17metallic glass alloy. The Zr62Al8Ni13Cu17metallic glass crystallized through two steps. The fcc Zr2Ni phase transformed from the amorphous matrix during first crystallization and then the Zr2Ni and residual amorphous matrix transformed into a mixture of tetragonal Zr2Cu and hexagonal Zr6Al2Ni phases. Johnson-Mehl-Avrami analysis of isothermal transformation data suggested that the formation of crystalline phase is primary crystallization by diffusion-controlled growth.

This study was conducted to develop calcium-fortified shank bone extract (SBE) and to determine the effect of adding calcium lactate on physico-chemical characteristics of SBE during cold storage. The following five experiment groups were used: Control (0%, no addition), T1 (0.05% calcium lactate), T2 (0.1% calcium lactate), T3 (0.5% calcium lactate), and T4 (1% calcium lactate). When the concentration of calcium lactate added to the SBE was increased, the pH, redness, and yellowness values were significantly reduced, whereas the salinity, sugar content, and turbidity of SBE were significantly increased. Sensory parameters such as aroma, flavor, and overall acceptability in the control, T1, and T2 had similar scores. The TBARS values of SBE was significantly increased when 1% of calcium lactate was added, and the VBN values of SBE with calcium lactate at day 7 were higher than that of control (p

This study aimed to examine the anti-diabetic effect of germinated waxy black rice (GWBR) using streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. In the diabetic rats, GWBR supplementation for 8 weeks reduced plasma blood glucose concentrations, improved glucose clearance and prevented diabetes-induced weight loss. Rats with STZ-induced diabetes who received GWBR supplementation exhibited decreased expression of sodium-dependent glucose transporter 1 (SGLT1) and glucose transporter (GLUT) 2 genes and proteins in the small intestine via decreases in hepatocyte nuclear factor (HNF)-1α, HNF-1β, and HNF-4α, transcriptional factors that are involved in the regulation of SGLT1 and GLUT2, compared with the rats with STZ-induced diabetes that did not receive GWBR supplements. GWBR supplementation also enhanced the expression of GLUT4 and the genes and proteins involved in GLUT4 translocation, such as insulin receptor (IR) and insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS1), and increased the phosphorylation of phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) and protein kinase B (PKB, Akt) proteins in skeletal muscle. GWBR further increased glycogen synthase (GS) 1 by decreasing glycogen synthase kinase (GSK)-3β in skeletal muscle. Interestingly, GWBR recovered STZ-impaired pancreatic β-cells, resulting in increased insulin synthesis and secretion. In addition, GWBR reduced serum triglyceride, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, aspartate transferase and alanine transferase concentrations and increased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations. Taken together, these findings suggest that GWBR could be a candidate for improving the diabetic condition by regulating glucose uptake in the intestine and muscle and regulating the secretion of insulin from the pancreas.

Non-contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture is mostly caused by a pivot shift mechanism including valgus collapse and internal tibial rotation. In female athletes, the incidence of ACL rupture has been reported to be significantly higher than in their male counterparts. However, to date, there have been limited reports and controversy regarding sex differences underlying injury mechanisms of ACL and severity of injury. In this study, we hypothesized that 1) in patients with non-contact ACL rupture, the incidence and severity of pivot shift injury, which are determined by injury pattern on MRI, would be significantly higher in females, and 2) anatomical factors associated with pivot shift injury would be significantly associated with female sex. A total of 148 primary ACL ruptures (145 patients) caused by non-contact injury mechanisms were included in this study. Among them, 41 knees (41 patients) were female and 107 knees (104 patients) were male. The status of the osseous lesions, lateral and medial tibial slope, depth of the medial tibial plateau, collateral ligaments, and menisci were assessed by MRI and compared between sexes. The severity of osseous lesions at the lateral tibial plateau, lateral femoral condyle, medial tibial plateau, and medial femoral condyle were comparable between sexes. There were no significant differences between sexes in the location of tibial contusions (p = 0.21), femoral contusions (p = 0.23), or meniscus tears (p = 0.189). Lateral tibial slope was found to be significantly larger in females (8.95° vs. 6.82°; p

Muscle tissue is often removed during hamstring tendon graft preparation for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. The purpose of the study was to test whether preservation of muscle remnants on a tendon graft is beneficial to the graft healing process following ACL reconstruction. Co-culturing of tendon-derived cells (TDCs) and muscle-derived cells (MDCs) was performed at various ratios, and their potential for cell viability and multilineage differentiation was compared to a single TDC cell group. Ligamentous and chondrogenic differentiation was most enhanced when a small population of MDCs was co-cultured with TDCs (6:2 co-culture group). Cell viability and osteogenic differentiation were proportionally enhanced with increasing MDC population size. MDCs co-cultured with TDCs possess both the ability to enhance cell viability and differentiate into other cell lineages.

This study was conducted to find pork quality to meet the needs of consumers. Thus, the meat quality and fatty acid composition of longissimus muscles from purebred pigs (Landrace, Yorkshire, and Duroc) and three-way crossbred LYD pigs were compared and evaluated. Chemical compositions of longissimus muscles were significant (p

The sizes of mono-dispersed titania nanoparticles (TNPs) can be precisely controlled within a diameter range of 70–650 nm by varying the concentration of water and titania precursor. The water content of the acetone solvent is varied, and ethylene glycol (EG)-stabilized titanium butoxide is used as the titania precursor. Increasing the amount of water can reduce the sizes of TNPs through the formation of a large number of small seeds in the initial reaction state. To obtain small TNPs without any aggregation, Tween 20 is used as a surfactant. Synthesis of TNPs using solvents and chelating agents other than acetone and EG, respectively, is also investigated. For example, other solvents, such as 1,4-dioxane and tetrahydrofuran, and chelating agents, such as triethylene glycol and catechol, are used for the synthesis and size control of TNPs.

Platform business models as AppStore, SNS (social network service) and online marketplace are creating new markets and providing opportunities to dominate. And they are considered as a blueprint for future business. Trying to create or enter a new business area, the more interested companies and consumers can be induced to minimize the risk. Platform could maximize the profitability of private companies, as well as provide various improved citizen services with minimum cost in public sector. Platform's ability to link multiple public agencies are capable of keystone. Therefore, designing the platform service model in public sector, setting an R&R (role and responsibility) of each related agency for platform governance to be considered in the perspective of national innovation system (NIS, National Innovation System).

We successfully prepared magnetic nanoclusters (MNCs) with regular size distribution and high solution stability. To increase the therapeutic effectiveness of MNCs, various factors such as the size distribution of particles, external field frequency and strength should be optimized. The correlation between heat generation ability and the various factors was evaluated by measuring the specific absorption rate. The 60 nm MNC showed the highest heat capacity ability in the various field conditions. Breast cancer stem cells (bCSCs) with chemo/radio-resistance were exposed to the optimized alternating magnetic field after treating with the MNC. The MNC promoted an appropriate temperature increase within 10 min and the particles influenced directly heat shock protein 70 and 90 damage during the magnetic hyperthermia. Thus, the treated CSCs were progressed to the thermal-mediated apoptotic cell death. Our optimization for magnetic hyperthermia will be useful for a variety of research on cancer cell therapy.

Nanostructured tungsten composites were fabricated by spark plasma sintering of nanostructured composite powders. The composite powders, which were synthesized by mechanical milling of tungsten and Ni-based alloy powders, are comprised of alternating layers of tungsten and metallic glass several hundred nanometers in size. The mechanical behavior of the nanostructured W composite is similar to pure tungsten, however, in contrast to monolithic pure tungsten, some macroscopic compressive plasticity accompanies the enhanced maximum strength up to 2.4 GPa by introducing reinforcement. We have found that the mechanical properties of the composites strongly depend on the uniformity of the nano-grained tungsten matrix and reinforcement phase distribution.

This study investigated the effect of rice bran fiber (RBF) and wheat fibers (WF) on microbiological and physicochemical properties of fermented sausages during ripening and storage. The experimental design included three treatments: Control, no addition; RBF, 1.5%; and WF, 1.5%. During the ripening periods, the addition of dietary fibers rapidly decreased pH and maintained high water activity values of fermented sausages (p

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles are widely used in cosmetics, sunscreen, electronics, drug delivery systems, and diverse bio-application fields. In the workplace, the primary exposure route for TiO2 nanoparticles is inhalation through the respiratory system. Because TiO2 nanoparticles have different physiological properties, in terms of size and bioactivity, their toxic effects in the respiratory system must be determined. In this study, to determine the toxic effect of inhaled TiO2 nanoparticles in the lung and the underlying mechanism, we used a whole-body chamber inhalation system to expose A/J mice to TiO2 nanoparticles for 28 days. During the experiments, the inhaled TiO2 nanoparticles were characterized using a cascade impactor and transmission electron microscopy. After inhalation of the TiO2 nanoparticles, hyperplasia and inflammation were observed in a TiO2 dose-dependent manner. To determine the biological mechanism of the toxic response in the lung, we examined endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and mitochondria in lung. The ER and mitochondria were disrupted and dysfunctional in the TiO2-exposed lung leading to abnormal autophagy. In summary, we assessed the potential risk of TiO2 nanoparticles in the respiratory system, which contributed to our understanding of the mechanism underlining TiO2 nanoparticle toxicity in the lung.

Microstructural investigations of a Fe 81 Nb 9 B 10 ultrafine-eutectic composite reveal that spherical eutectic colonies are composed of the radial lamellar structure together with NbFeB pro-eutectic phases which are central area on radial structure. The spherical eutectic colonies are proposed to be effectual in high yield strength as well as large plasticity by a rotational motion of those along the colony boundary during deformation. Formation of the wavy and dense shear bands is related with strong interaction between specific microstructure and localized shear deformation. Accordingly, the control of microstructural and mechanical factors in hierarchical ultrafine composite is crucial for enhancement of macroscopic mechanical properties.

In most prior research on training and development, employees’ attitudes toward their organization have been viewed as consequences of training interventions rather than as antecedents. This study asserts that affective organizational commitment and organizational identification are performance predictors of training designed to directly address the collective interests of the organization. Additionally, we expected that organizational identification has a stronger positive effect on training performance than does organizational commitment. To test these hypotheses, the independent variables were measured in 149 trainees prior to the beginning of the training program. Observers’ ratings of behavioral performance were evaluated as the training outcome using an assessment center method. The analysis showed that organizational identification significantly predicts training performance, whereas organizational commitment does not.

Formation of an icosahedral phase in the bulk glass forming alloy during crystallization from amorphous phase and solidification from melt is investigated. The icosahedral phase with a size of 10 to 15 nm forms as a thermodynamically stable phase at intermediate temperature during the transformation from amorphous to crystalline phases such as Laves and -(Ti-Zr) phases, indicating that the existence of the icosahedral cluster in the undercooled liquid. On the other hand, the icosahedral phase forms as a primary solidification phase even though the Laves phase is stable at high temperature, which is can be explained based on the high nucleation rate of icosahedral phase relative to that of competing crystalline Laves phase due to lower interfacial energy between icosahedral and liquid phases.

A transmission electron microscopy analysis was conducted on the oxide layers of Mg–5.5Al–0.25Mn (AM60) alloys with different levels of CaO content formed in a thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA) system at 450 °C for 7 h. It was found that the oxide layer in AM60 + CaO grew as a columnar structure and, resultantly, that the oxide layers had different thicknesses with different levels of CaO content. The columnar oxide grains that were formed on the Mg + CaO alloy grew on the [1 0 0] MgO , resulting in a more compact and thicker initial oxide layer compared to the normal oxide layer. The columnar growth of the oxide layer in AM60 + CaO formed due to the Ca, which dissolved from CaO.

Hydrophobic gradient alloy quantum dots (QDs) were prepared through a facile organic route. The amphiphilic, non-ionic polymer (PVP) was absorbed onto the surface of QDs, and therefore, the PVP coated QD (QD@PVP) could be dispersible in both polar and non-polar solvents. The QD@PVP was dispersed in ethanol and tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) was added with a basic catalyst in order to generate silica shell encapsulated QDs (QD@SiO2). We report a preparation method for QD@SiO2 that maintains their high luminescence and thermal- and photo-stability using dimethylamine (DMA) as a basic catalyst. White light-emitting-diodes (WLEDs) incorporating the QD@SiO2 exhibited good performance in terms of superior luminescence efficiency and high color purity.

This study investigated the meat quality and storage characteristics of pork loin marinated in grape pomace powder during different storage periods. The experimental design included six treatments : pork loin containing only 100% water (Control, C); pork loin containing a combination of 20% grape pomace and 80% water (T1); pork loin containing a combination of 40% grape pomace and 60% water (T2); pork loin containing a combination of 0.5% grape pomace powder and 95.5% water (T3); pork loin containing a combination of 1.0% grape pomace powder and 99.0% water (T4); and pork loin containing a combination of 2.0% grape pomace powder and 98.0% water (T5). The pork loins aged by grape pomace and grape pomace powder showed decreased crude protein, crude fat, crude ash, pH, redness, and yellowness values; however, their moisture, lightness, and shear force increased significantly. During cold storage, marination with grape pomace and grape pomace powder reduced the 2-thiobarbituric acid value, volatile basic nitrogen value, and total microbial count in pork loin. Thus, marination with grape pomace and grape pomace powder improved the meat quality and storage characteristics, and could be used to improve storage stability of pork loin.

Previous approaches for utilizing automatic test equipment (ATE) vector repeat are based on identifying runs of repeated scan data and directly generating that data using ATE vector repeat. Each run requires a separate vector repeat instruc- tion, so the amount of compression is limited by the amount of ATE instruction memory available and the length of the runs (which typically will be much shorter than the length of a scan vector). In this paper, a new and more efficient approach is pro- posed for utilizing ATE vector repeat. The scan vector sequence is partitioned and decomposed into a common sequence which is the same for an entire cluster of test cubes and a unique sequence that is different for each test cube. The common sequence can be generated very efficiently using ATE vector repeat. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed approach can achieve much greater compression while using many fewer vector repeat instructions compared with previous methods.

Magnetic multi-granule nanoclusters (MGNCs) were investigated as an inexpensive means to effectivelyremove arsenic from aqueous environment, particularly groundwater sources consumed by humans. Varioussize MGNCs were examined to determin e both their capacity and efficiency for arsenic adsorption for differentinitial arsenic concentrations. The MGNCs showed highly efficient arsenic adsorption characteristics, therebymeeting the allowable safety limit of 10 g/L (ppb), prescribed by the Worl d Health Organization (WHO), andconfirming that 0.4 g and 0.6 g of MGNCs were sufficient to remove 0.5 mg/L and 1.0 mg/L of arsenate(AsO