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The quest for stretchable properties is at the forefront of research dedicated to on‐skin light–emitting devices. Inspired by the natural wonders of bioluminescence, electrochemiluminescent devices (ECLDs) are distinguished by straightforward design and reduced operating voltage, marking a departure from traditional current‐driven electroluminescent devices (ACELDs). The primary challenge of fully‐stretchable ECLDs lies in crafting electrodes that simultaneously satisfy the demands for conductivity, transparency, stretchability, oxidation resistance, and interface stability. This research introduces a groundbreaking wrinkled polymer‐gold composite electrode. It extends to 50% stretchability, offers outstanding conductivity at 10 Ω sq−1, achieves transparency above 60%, and withstands over 10 000 stretching cycles. Employing this material, alongside stretchable electrospinning fiber luminescent layers, enabled the creation of fully‐stretchable ECLDs. These devices not only shine brightly at 30 Cd m−2 but also retain more than 90% of luminosity when stretched up to 50%. Furthermore, this work has engineered stretchable devices featuring singular patterns and multi‐dot arrays. They exhibit consistent luminescent output under bending, twisting, and stretching when applied to skin. These findings not only highlight the potential of polymer‐gold composite electrodes in overcoming challenges faced by stretchable electronic devices but also provide new ideas for wearable technology that seamlessly integrates with human body. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Potassium‐ion hybrid capacitors (PIHCs) are regarded as one of the promising candidates for large‐scale energy storage technologies. Nevertheless, the lack of suitable anode materials combined with fast ion diffusion kinetics and favorable cycle stability restricts their application. Herein, a catalyst‐confined graphitization strategy is proposed to synthesize low‐cost coal‐based carbon anodes, which have controllable heteroatom co‐doping and rich defect sites, together with local graphitic domains. Density functional theory calculations and kinetic analysis are performed to uncover the coupling effect for heteroatom dual‐doping and defective structures. Importantly, the introduction of graphitic domains ensures good electric conductivity and charge transfer kinetics while preserving rich defects and active sites. The optimized NC‐950 exhibits superior potassium storage capacity, which delivers a high reversible specific capacity (363.3 mAh g−1), impressive rate capability (93.9 mAh g−1 at 2 A g−1), and stable cycling performance. As a practical device application, the PIHCs (NC‐950//AC) are assembled using the NC‐950 anode and commercial activated carbon (AC) cathode, which exhibits the maximum energy density of 97.0 Wh kg−1 and excellent cycling stability (10 000 cycles). Significantly, this work unveils a new pathway to developing low‐cost and fast reaction kinetics carbon anode for advanced electrochemical supercapacitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ROWE's stress–dilatancy relationship is widely employed to characterise the shear dilatancy behaviour of granular materials. However, particle breakage energy dissipation is excluded from the ROWE's energy balance equation. In this study, three crushable granular soils with significantly different strengths were subjected to triaxial testing, and the dissipation of energy during the tests was explored. For all three materials, the incremental particle breakage energy dissipation increases and then decreases. It was assumed that at the critical state, particle breakage ended and only frictional energy dissipation occurred. To more accurately characterise the energy dissipation process, an exponential expression of particle breakage energy dissipation is added to the ROWE's stress–dilatancy relationship. The proposed stress–dilatancy relationship is consistent with the shear dilatancy behaviour of crushable granular materials, and the modified energy equation can more precisely describe the energy dissipation process. The hypothesised stress–dilatancy relationship is applicable to three distinct types of crushable granular materials with varying strengths, including sand-gravel material, landslide dam material and calcareous sand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Ca24Al24.08Zr3.92O64]4+(4e−) electrides are ceramic materials with low work functions that can store high‐density free electrons. So, it has great application potential in electron emission. In this paper, The mixed powders of CaO, Al2O3, ZrO2, and Al in a certain stoichiometric ratio were used as precursors, and [Ca24Al24.08Zr3.92O64]4+(4e−) blocks were fabricated through in‐situ reduction. The synthetic block samples have fewer pores, cracks, and impurities, and the blocks' relative density reaches 99.6%. At the same time, the blocks' cages were injected with high‐density electrons during the sintering, and the electron density reached 2 × 1021 cm−3. This makes the sample realize the transition from insulation to conductor. In addition, the block's emission current and effective work function is 1.75 A/cm2 and 2.25 eV, respectively, at 1100°C. The research in this paper provides a new way for the low‐cost and industrial production of high‐quality [Ca24Al24.08Zr3.92O64]4+(4e−). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Once developed, hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS) cannot be cured. The identification of early biomarkers for HAVS will facilitate the early detection of patients and prevent deterioration of the condition. Findings suggest that PGI2 and ANP are probably effective in the diagnosis of HAVS. Objectives: Purposes of this study are to study the changes in expression of vascular regulators after vibration exposure and during the onset of vibration-induced white finger (VWF) and to screen for vascular regulatory factors that could be used as early biomarkers of HAVS. Methods: Using judgmental sampling from a Chinese factory, workers with VWF and hand-transmitted vibration exposure but without VWF were selected for research. Blood samples were taken from all subjects, and the levels of nine of the vascular regulators were measured using ELISA. Results: Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was performed on nine vascular regulators to assess their diagnostic sensitivity for VWF with the following area under the curve results: PGI2 = 0.861, ANP = 0.840. Conclusions: Collectively, PGI2 and ANP exhibited the most potential for the early diagnosis of HAVS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of intelligent manufacturing, more and more nonstandard parts are used in high-precision assembly. The robotic assembly method based on attractive region in environment (ARIE) has been proven to have good performance in the high-precision assembly under the limitation of robot system accuracy or sensing accuracy. However, for the assembly of nonstandard parts, especially nonconvex parts, the existing ARIE-based strategy lacks a targeted design. In the assembly process, the nonconvex structure may cause blocking problems, which will lead to assembly failure when using the strategy. In order to solve this problem, this paper proposes a new assembly method by using the geometric features of constraint region based on the concept of ARIE. Specifically, first, when using the ARIE-based classic strategy, the reasons for the possible blocking problem in the assembly of a class of nonconvex axisymmetric parts are analyzed in detail. Second, a multi-step sliding strategy is proposed based on the theory of ARIE to solve the possible blocking problem in the assembly process. Third, impedance control is used to enable the peg to achieve the desired compliant motion in the proposed strategy. The improvement in the success rate of the proposed method is verified by the comparison experiment of small clearance peg-in-hole assembly, where the structure of the peg is nonconvex and axisymmetric. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aiming to address the problems of the high bit error rate (BER) of demodulation or low classification accuracy of modulation signals with a low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), we propose a double-residual denoising autoencoder method with a channel attention mechanism, referred to as DRdA-CA, to improve the SNR of modulation signals. The proposed DRdA-CA consists of an encoding module and a decoding module. A squeeze-and-excitation (SE) ResNet module containing one residual connection is modified and then introduced into the autoencoder as the channel attention mechanism, to better extract the characteristics of the modulation signals and reduce the computational complexity of the model. Moreover, the other residual connection is further added inside the encoding and decoding modules to optimize the network degradation problem, which is beneficial for fully exploiting the multi-level features of modulation signals and improving the reconstruction quality of the signal. The ablation experiments prove that both the improved SE module and dual residual connections in the proposed method play an important role in improving the denoising performance. The subsequent experimental results show that the proposed DRdA-CA significantly improves the SNR values of eight modulation types in the range of −12 dB to 8 dB. Especially for 16QAM and 64QAM, the SNR is improved by 8.38 dB and 8.27 dB on average, respectively. Compared to the DnCNN denoising method, the proposed DRdA-CA makes the average classification accuracy increase by 67.59∼74.94% over the entire SNR range. When it comes to the demodulation, compared with the RLS and the DnCNN denoising algorithms, the proposed denoising method reduces the BER of 16QAM by an average of 63.5% and 40.5%, and reduces the BER of 64QAM by an average of 46.7% and 18.6%. The above results show that the proposed DRdA-CA achieves the optimal noise reduction effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analysis of signals with oscillatory modes with crossover instantaneous frequencies is a challenging problem in time series analysis. One way to handle this problem is lifting the 2-dimensional time-frequency representation to a 3-dimensional representation, called time-frequency-chirp rate (TFC) representation, by adding one extra chirp rate parameter so that crossover frequencies are disentangled in higher dimension. The chirplet transform is an algorithm for this lifting idea, which leads to a TFC representation. However, in practice, we found that it has a strong "blurring" effect in the chirp rate axis, which limits its application in real-world data. Moreover, to our knowledge, we have limited mathematical understanding of the chirplet transform in the literature. Motivated by the need for the real-world data analysis, in this paper, we propose the synchrosqueezed chirplet transform (SCT) that enhances the TFC representation given by the chirplet transform. The resulting concentrated TFC representation has high contrast so that one can better distinguish different modes with crossover instantaneous frequencies. The basic idea is to use the phase information in the chirplet transform to determine a reassignment rule that sharpens the TFC representation determined by the chirplet transform. We also analyze the chirplet transform and provide theoretical guarantees of SCT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pedestrian crossing chaos has become one of the significant problems of urban traffic nowadays, and the irregular behavior of pedestrians affects traffic operation and regional safety to a certain extent. Aiming at the safety of pedestrian crossing in the advance right-turn lane, the pedestrian path deviation (PPD) is proposed to quantitatively describe the pedestrian crossing path deviation and analyze the impact of PPD on pedestrian crossing safety. With four advance right-turn lanes at an intersection in Qingdao as the investigation site, the spatiotemporal information of pedestrians and motor vehicles is collected to analyze the characteristics of pedestrian path distribution and the influencing factors of pedestrian crossing under the factors of traffic flow and environment. The pedestrian-vehicle conflict characteristics are analyzed from the perspective of conflict rate and deceleration-to-safety. The severity level of human-vehicle conflict is classified according to the cumulative frequency of safety deceleration, and the severity model of human-vehicle conflict based on ordered probit is established. The results show that buildings such as large shopping malls and transportation hubs have an attractive effect on pedestrians. Under the influence of unilateral buildings, the proportion of irregular use of pedestrian crosswalks reaches 46.9%. There is a significant positive correlation between pedestrian flow and PPD index, and the increase of pedestrian flow causes the aggravation of pedestrian path deviation. The results of the analysis of PPD with pedestrian-vehicle conflict rate and conflict severity show that the increase of PPD significantly increases the risk of pedestrian-vehicle conflict occurrence; in addition, motor vehicle speed and PPD have significant effects on the severity of pedestrian-vehicle conflict, and the increase of both vehicle traffic speed and PPD causes the aggravation of the severity level of pedestrian-vehicle conflict. Combined with the above findings, the PPD index has some value in quantifying pedestrian spatial violations as well as regional safety evaluation, and the findings can provide theoretical guidance for the establishment of traffic facilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the understanding of skeletal muscle inflammation is increasingly clarified, the role of Treg cells in the treatment of skeletal muscle diseases has attracted more attention in recent years. A consensus has been reached that the regulation of Treg cells is the key to completing the switch of inflammation and repair of skeletal muscle, whose presence directly determine the repairing quality of the injured skeletal muscle. However, the functioning process of Treg cells remains unreported, thereby making it necessary to summarize the current role of Treg cells in skeletal muscle. In this review, the characteristics, origins, and cellular kinetics of these Treg cells are firstly described; Then, the relationship between Treg cells and muscle satellite cells (MuSCs), conventional T cells (Tconv) is discussed (the former is involved in the entire repair and regeneration process, while the latter matters considerably in causing most skeletal muscle autoimmune diseases); Next, focus is placed on the control of Treg cells on the phenotypic switch of macrophages, which is the key to the switch of inflammation; Finally, factors regulating the functional process of Treg cells are analyzed, and a regulatory network centered on Treg cells is summarized. The present study summarizes the cell-mediated interactions in skeletal muscle repair over the past decade, and elucidates the central role of regulatory T cells in this process, so that other researchers can more quickly and comprehensively understand the development and direction of this very field. It is believed that the hereby proposed viewpoints and problems can provide fresh visions for the latecomers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the properties of symbol transformations of cyclic Hadamard matrices are studied. An infinite class of (n − 1) -variable 2-resilient rotation symmetric Boolean functions are constructed, and the nonlinearity of the constructed functions is 2 n (n − 1). The crucial technique of this method is to determine a subset T ⊆ F 2 n − 1 satisfying a correspondent condition. This is a new construction of 2-resilient rotation symmetric Boolean functions via switching the supports of (n − 1) -variable rotation symmetric Boolean functions of degree one, i.e., f 0 n − 1 (x 1 , x 2 , ⋯ , x n − 1) = ⊕ i = 1 n − 1 x i , where n = 4 t. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aiming at the problems of incomplete dehazing of a single image and unnaturalness of the restored image, a multi‐scale single‐image defogging network with local features fused with global features is proposed, using fog and non‐fogging image pairs train the network in a direct end‐to‐end manner. The network is divided into global feature extraction module, multi‐scale feature extraction module and deep fusion module. The global feature extraction module extracts global features that characterize the contour; multi‐scale feature extraction module extracts features at different scales to improve learning accuracy; in the deep fusion module, the convolutional layer extracts the local features that describe the image content, and then the local features and the global features are merged through skip connections. Comparative experiments were carried out on artificially synthesized fog images and real fog images. The experimental results show that the algorithm proposed here can achieve the ideal dehazing effect, and is superior to other comparison algorithms in subjective and objective aspects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • It is the first time to propose the guiding role of rhodamine 6G on formation of counterintuitive assembly of gold nanorods. • By comparing the aggregates of rhodamine 6G, H-dimer is determined to be the main inducing factor for the self-assembly. • A novel zigzag chain composed of three H-dimers in between gold nanorods induces the self-assembly. Self-assembled nanostructures with highly ordered and diversified patterns can be obtained by adding additives that directionally control the interparticle interactions. However, due to the complex non-covalent weak interactions in the self-assembly process, the active mechanism of additives is not fully understood, resulting in the limitation of obtaining the nano-superstructures. The introduction of rhodamine 6G (R6G) enables gold nanorods (GNRs) self-assembled into a counterintuitive tetragonal superlattice, during which the exploration of the influence of R6G molecular interactions on the GNRs self-assembly is of importance. We present the detailed investigations of spacial configuration, binding modes, and aggregated degree of R6G molecule on formation of the tetragonal GNRs superlattices by combining the experimental and simulated results. By analyzing the peak position and peak intensity in the fluorescent spectra of assembled samples and pure R6G samples, H-dimer is verified as the main cause for inducing the tetragonal superstructures. Molecular dynamics simulations reveal that 2–3 H-dimers adsorbed obliquely in a zigzag chain manner on the surface of GNRs is the most stable state of the self-assembly. This work would contribute to a deeper understanding of the complex colloidal nanoparticle self-assemblies and push forward the development of the bottom-up nanoscale superstructures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Film cooling is commonly categorized as a jet in crossflow phenomenon. Due to its fully three-dimensional flow field, characteristically two-dimensional (2-D) cooling effectiveness distributions are observed on the target wall. A theoretical method for 2-D film cooling effectiveness distribution predictions is developed by modeling the diffusion and convective transportation in the lateral direction. The effective diffusion coefficient is introduced to quantify the combined effects of the turbulent and laminar expansion. The convection effect, mainly the vortex entrainment, is quantified based on the analytical Oseen vortex. The intensity, scale, and location of the kidney vortex are modeled, respectively. The 2-D model in the current study can well satisfy the demand both academically and industrially. The time consumption of a 2-D effectiveness distribution calculation is on the magnitude of 1 × 10 − 2 s. The prediction error is within 8% if given especially correlated model coefficients, or within 14% otherwise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Optical encryption provides a significant implementation strategy for information security, which can be ascribed to multichannel, simple operation, and high security. Multiple responsive luminescent material has emerged as an ideal candidate for optical encryption, owing to intelligent responsive ability and unclonable security. Herein, a structural doping strategy is developed in the layer‐by‐layer self‐assembly process to elevate the maneuverability of light‐emitting color and mode. By encapsulating lanthanide doped inorganic matrix and layered hydroxide with PMA, the recognizable red‐orange fluorescence can be produced in the invisible region, and realizes the conversion of yellow and green fluorescence in visible region. Meanwhile, both excitation source and emission color can be used as distinguishable encryption means, which enables structural doping complex to be multiplexed and encoded with high capacity and complexity. Furthermore, asymmetrically and symmetrically coded flexible labels with specific color sequence are prepared by brushing process, and specific encryption key are set to ensure the nonlinearity of cryptosystem. Through the integration of dual‐mode and adjustable light response codes constructed by structural doping strategy, multidimensional high‐level information encryption can be realized, which opens up a deep exploration in the field of information security for the application of multifunctional optical properties of light response materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current severe situation of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has not been reversed and posed great threats to global health. Therefore, there is an urgent need to find out effective antiviral drugs. The 3-chymotrypsin-like protease (3CLpro) in SARS-CoV-2 serve as a promising anti-virus target due to its essential role in the regulation of virus reproduction. Here, we report an improved integrated approach to identify effective 3CLpro inhibitors from effective Chinese herbal formulas. With this approach, we identified the 5 natural products (NPs) including narcissoside, kaempferol-3-O-gentiobioside, rutin, vicenin-2 and isoschaftoside as potential anti-SARS-CoV-2 candidates. Subsequent molecular dynamics simulation additionally revealed that these molecules can be tightly bound to 3CLpro and confirmed effectiveness against COVID-19. Moreover, kaempferol-3-o-gentiobioside, vicenin-2 and isoschaftoside were first reported to have SARS-CoV-2 3CLpro inhibitory activity. In summary, this optimized integrated strategy for drug screening can be utilized in the discovery of antiviral drugs to achieve rapid acquisition of drugs with specific effects on antiviral targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An integration method is developed based on mass and momentum conservation laws to predict trajectories of transverse jets in crossflow. The dominant mechanisms of jet deflections, namely, the jet ingestion and the drag force, are quantified. The evolution of the jet size is determined by modeling the growth of the counter-rotating vortex pair, bringing closure to the equation set. Results are compared with experimental data at different velocity ratios, density ratios, and turbulence intensity. Good agreements between predicted results and experimental data demonstrate the advantages of the proposed model over the commonly adopted correlation in prediction accuracy and generality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have failed to draw a consistent conclusion over the effect of vitamin D administration on asthma. We hypothesized that vitamin D supplementation could improve the clinical efficacy of corticosteroids in patients with asthma as measured by exacerbations, Asthma Control Test (ACT) score, and lung function in order to maintain asthma control. We searched Web of Science, PubMed, the Cochrane Library, and ScienceDirect up through January 20, 2021 for randomized controlled trials analyzing the effect of vitamin D supplementation on asthma exacerbation. Studies were limited to patients with moderate to severe asthma who were treated with corticosteroids. We identified 12 studies involving 1,543 participants in this meta-analysis. Vitamin D supplementation significantly reduced the risk of asthma exacerbation (pooled risk ratio (RR) 0.70, 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.59, 0.83; P <.05). The pooled RR of the ACT score was 0.04 (95% CI, −0.19, 0.27; P >.05). The pooled standardized mean difference in vitamin D levels was 1.07 (95% CI, 0.77, 1.38; P <.05), and in the percentage of forced expiratory volume in one second was −0.02 (95% CI, −0.13, 0.09; P >.05). The pooled RR of adverse events was 1.06 (95% CI, 0.89, 1.25; P >.05). We performed subgroup analysis and meta-regression of serum vitamin D levels but found no source of heterogeneity. Vitamin D supplementation safely reduced the rate of asthma exacerbation but did not improve ACT score or lung function among patients with asthma treated with corticosteroids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, an adaptive neural network control scheme is presented for an uncertain wheeled mobile robot (WMR) with velocity constraints and nonholonomic constraints. In practice, dynamic parameters of the system, which may change in some conditions, are hard to obtain precisely, and the velocity of the WMR should be constrained for safety. To deal with the uncertainty of the robot, adaptive neural networks are used to approximate unknown robotic dynamics, and the barrier Lyapunov function is used to guarantee the constraint on velocity. The tracking error of the closed-loop system is proven to converge to a small neighborhood of zero. Both simulation studies and practical experiments are provided to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed control scheme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photodriven nonoxidative coupling of CH4 (NOCM) is an attractive potential way to use abundant methane resources. Herein, an n‐type doped photocatalyst for NOCM is created by doping single‐atom Nb into hierarchical porous TiO2–SiO2 (TS) microarray, which exhibits a high conversion rate of 3.57 μmol g−1 h−1 with good recyclability. The Nb dopant replaces the 6‐coordinated titanium on the (1 0 1) plane and forms shallow electron‐trapped surface polarons along [0 1 0] direction and the comparison of different models proves that the electron localization caused by the n‐type doping is beneficial to both methane activation and ethane desorption. The positive effect of n‐type dopant on CH4 conversion is further verified on Mo‐, W‐ and Ta‐doped composites. In contrast, the doping of p‐type dopant (Ga, Cu, Fe) shows a less active influence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photodriven nonoxidative coupling of CH4 (NOCM) is an attractive potential way to use abundant methane resources. Herein, an n‐type doped photocatalyst for NOCM is created by doping single‐atom Nb into hierarchical porous TiO2–SiO2 (TS) microarray, which exhibits a high conversion rate of 3.57 μmol g−1 h−1 with good recyclability. The Nb dopant replaces the 6‐coordinated titanium on the (1 0 1) plane and forms shallow electron‐trapped surface polarons along [0 1 0] direction and the comparison of different models proves that the electron localization caused by the n‐type doping is beneficial to both methane activation and ethane desorption. The positive effect of n‐type dopant on CH4 conversion is further verified on Mo‐, W‐ and Ta‐doped composites. In contrast, the doping of p‐type dopant (Ga, Cu, Fe) shows a less active influence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the vast and complex nature of the power systems, the study of distributed solution to multi-objective OPF (MO-OPF) problem is vital. However, the existing distributed MO-OPF approaches are based on mathematical programming techniques. The tedious repetition of algorithmic executions is inevitable. Moreover, they can hardly solve the non-differential problem. In this paper, the coevolutionary multi-objective evolutionary algorithm (MOEA), combining the idea of decomposition, is introduced to solve the distributed MO-OPF problem. The decomposition first occurs on decision variables. After segmenting, multiple subpopulations can coevolve in a distributed manner under the support of a new proposed distributed fitness evaluation method. Further, an objective decomposition (OBD) method is applied to the proposed distributed MO-OPF approach. The problem is decomposed again based on objective functions. By this OBD method, the fitness assignment problem is effectively alleviated and a more extensively covered pareto front can be obtained. The experimental results on two systems of different scales first show the effectiveness of the proposed distributed approach and then demonstrate the excellence of the OBD method in large-scale system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Proposed an energy-based rotational spring-mechanical slider mechanics model. • Elucidate the droplet drying-induced mechanical deformation and assembly mechanisms of 2D nanomaterials on a solid substrate. • Developed a coarse-grained model of graphene and its virtual force field interaction with liquid for large-scale molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Assembly of two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials by droplet drying offers a straightforward and low-cost route to obtain their bulk forms for widespread applications in manufacturing and printing of functional structures and devices. However, unlike rigid nanoparticles that usually do not experience mechanical deformation, 2D nanomaterials are easily deformed and folded during assembly by evaporative drying, and traditional assembly theory that can address these fundamental deformation mechanisms is currently lacking. In the present study, we have developed an energy-based rotational spring-mechanical slider mechanics model to describe the mechanical deformation and assembly of 2D material graphene on a solid substrate during the evaporation of its droplet solution. In the development of theory, the mechanical folding deformation of 2D material graphene itself is modeled by the rotational spring, and the folding-induced interior interactions of graphene itself and its assembly interactions with neighboring ones and solid substrate all due to van der Waal force are modeled by the mechanical sliders. The surface wettability of substrate and the evaporative modes of droplet on substrate including constant contact angle (CCA), constant contact radius (CCR), and their combination are also incorporated into the mechanics model. In parallel, large-scale molecular dynamics (MD) simulations with the development of coarse-grained model of 2D graphene and its virtual force field interaction with liquid is performed and show remarkable agreement with theoretical predictions on both assembly patterns and dimensional sizes. The effect of graphene size and its interaction strength with substrate on assembly is also elucidated. This work uncovers fundamental assembly mechansim of mechanically deformable nanomaterials by solution drying, and also provides immediate application guidance to ink-based printing techniques for manufacturing deformable nanomaterials-enabled devices with controlled patterns on substrates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a common neurodegenerative disorder. Cinnamon procyanidin oligomers (CPOs) are flavonoids with many claimed health benefits.Objective: This study aimed to elucidate the neuroprotection of A-type CPOs (CPO-A) and the underlying mechanisms in cultured cell and animal models of PD.Methods: Thirty male mice (C57BL/6, 9-wk old) were assigned to 3 groups (n = 10), and were given daily gavage of saline [control and 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) groups] or CPO-A (150 mg/kg, CPO-A group) during days 1-15 and daily intraperitoneal injections of saline (control group) or MPTP (20 mg/kg; MPTP and MPTP + CPO-A groups) during days 11-15. After the motor behavior test, all mice were killed on day 16 to collect the substantia nigra (SN) for assaying the neuroprotective effects of CPO-A. SH-SY5Y cells were treated with 12.5 μM CPO-A for 2 h or 3 activators of stress-related kinases (5-25 μM) for 12-48 h followed by 1 mM 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (MPP+) for assays of viability, morphology, and stress status.Results: Compared with the control, the MPTP treatment decreased (P < 0.05) locomotor activity by 21%, and tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) positive neurons by 55% and Th mRNA concentration by 51% in the SN. The CPO-A treatment attenuated or restored (P < 0.05) these changes and inhibited (P < 0.05) the MPTP-induced activation of P38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (P38MAPK) and P53, along with the downstream expression of BCL-2 associated X protein (BAX) in the SN. In SH-SY5Y cells, the CPO-A treatment blocked (P < 0.01) the MPP+-induced accumulation of intracellular reactive oxygen species and neurotoxicity. However, this protection was abolished (P < 0.05) by activators of the P38MAPK/P53/BAX pathway.Conclusion: CPO-A protected against MPP+-induced cytotoxicity in SH-SY5Y cells and MPTP-induced neurotoxicity in mice by regulating the P38MAPK/P53/BAX signaling. Our findings reveal a novel role and mechanism of a food flavonoid CPO-A in preventing neurodegeneration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Multifunctional core-shell nanostructure, which can be applied on bio-imaging and photothermal therapy (PTT), has attracted tremendous interest in recent years. Here, Ag@NaGdF 4 :Yb3+, Er3+ core-shell nanostructure incorporating luminescent, magnetic and photothermal conversion properties was prepared via a simple method. The as-prepared nanocomposites (NCs) exhibit uniform core-shell sphere morphology, green up-conversion luminescence (UCL), good paramagnetic and photothermal conversion behaviors. The luminescence resonance energy transfer (LRET) between Ag nanoparticles (NPs) and NaGdF 4 :Yb3+, Er3+ NPs were researched. The cytotoxicity test on HeLa cells using methyl thiazolyltetrazolium (MTT) assay shows good biocompatibility of the core-shell NCs. Moreover, in vitro computed tomography (CT) and UCL imaging studies and in vitro PTT of living assay suggest that the core-shell NCs can be used as theranostic nanoagents for dual-mode imaging guided PTT for tumor. Graphical abstract Ag@NaGdF 4 :Yb3+, Er3+ core-shell nanostructure was prepared via a simple method. The as-prepared nanocomposites can be applied in dual-mode imaging and photothermal therapy. fx1 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new series of N‐alkyl‐N,N‐dimethyl‐N‐(3‐thienylmethylene)ammonium bromides (designated as NTA‐n, n = 8, 10, 12, 14, and 16) were synthesized. The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and potentiodynamic polarization showed that NTA‐n could protect availably X70 steel from attack of HCl with an inhibition efficiency of about 95%. And the inhibition ability follows the following sequence: NTA‐8 < NTA‐10 < NTA‐12 < NTA‐14 < NTA‐16, suggesting that prolonging alkyl chain may enhance the inhibition capacity of the molecules. Theoretical investigation backs up well the experiment results. The correlation of theoretical calculation with the experiment results illustrated clearly double logarithmic relations between the corrosion current and the computed quantum chemical parameters such as the highest occupied molecular orbital energy (EHOMO), energy gap (ΔE), molecular volume (ν), electronegativity (χ), the total energy of iron crystal with the adsorbed inhibitor molecule (Etotal), the interaction energy of Fe (1 0 0) surface and inhibitor molecules (Einhibitor), while an equation resembling Hammet relation was existed between the corrosion currents and the fraction of electrons transfer (ΔN). These linear correlations suggest the relation of the inhibitor structure with its inhibition activity: long alkyl chain and electron donating groups in NTA‐n will enhance the corrosion efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract Highlights • Yb3+/Er3+/Eu3+ ions doped NaGdF 4 phosphors have been prepared by l -arginine assisted-hydrothermal method. • Dual-mode (up- and down-conversion) luminescence was achieved by Er3+, Eu3+ and Yb3+ doping. • Tunable color can be achieved by adjusting the contents of Eu3+ ions and excitation wavelength. • Unique optical and magnetic properties made the phosphors widely applied. Abstract Rare earth ions doped luminescence nanomaterials have broad applications ranging from television tubes to biological imaging. A series of Yb3+/Er3+/Eu3+ ions doped NaGdF 4 dual-mode (up- and down-conversion) luminescence phosphors have been prepared by l -arginine assisted-hydrothermal method. The results show that the synthesized samples are all pure β -NaGdF 4 with one dimensional micron structure. Changing the excitation wavelengths and Eu3+ ion concentrations, multiple (yellowish green, yellow, orange) emissions are obtained. Moreover, the energy transfer, luminescence mechanism and paramagnetic properties of the samples have been discussed in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract Highlights • Nano-sized Pt/Al 2 O 3 is an efficient catalyst for VOCs abatement prepared by modified ethyl glycol reduction approach. • Pt particle sizes can be controlled by changing pH values. • Catalytic performance increases with decreasing the Pt particle size. • The content of Pt0 species is not the decisive factor for benzene oxidation. • The structure sensitivity is explained by the surface adsorbed oxygen. Abstract A series of Pt/Al 2 O 3 catalysts possessing controlled Pt particle sizes (1.2–2.2 nm) could be single-step synthesized by means of modified ethylene glycol (EG) reduction approach. Their catalytic activities were evaluated for the catalytic complete oxidation of benzene, as typical volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The results showed that Pt/Al 2 O 3 catalyst with 1.2 nm Pt size exhibited optimum catalytic oxidation activity of benzene at 145 °C. It has been confirmed that the content of Pt0 species, which is regarded as active center for complete oxidation of benzene, is not the decisive factor in the process of benzene oxidation. The structure sensitivity was explained by the surface adsorbed oxygen. The electron transportation from Pt to O is in favour of the activation of adsorbed oxygen, which is beneficial to enhance catalytic activity. Moreover, the catalysts showed excellent adaptability for different VOCs and durability for benzene oxidation during the long-term continuous test, whether in dry air or in the coexistence of CO 2 , cyclohexane or H 2 O. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photothermal therapy (PTT) guided by bioimaging has attracted much attention. Recently, the multifunctional nanomaterials with multimodal imaging and high-performance therapy effect are extremely important. In this work, a novel nanostructure with Ag nanospheres (NSs) encapsulated Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) film which decorated by Ba 2 GdF 7 :Yb 3+ , Ho 3+ nanoparticles is synthesized by a simple method. The novel nanostructure endows the NCs remarkable originality and excellent multifunctional performance. The morphology, structure, optical properties, biocompatibility, cytotoxicity, superparamagnetic properties and photothermal therapeutic efficiency of the Ag@PVP-Ba 2 GdF 7 :Yb 3+ , Ho 3+ nanocomposites (NCs) are investigated. The results show that Ag@PVP-Ba 2 GdF 7 :Yb 3+ , Ho 3+ NCs possess good upconversion luminescence (UCL) performance and X-ray computed tomography (CT) imaging ability. Furthermore, in MTT cytotoxicity measurement, the NCs exhibit low cytotoxicity and excellent biocompatibility. Moreover, the PVP film coating of the NCs can largely promote the stability. In addition, outstanding photothermal conversion ability and stability are also obtained upon NIR laser irradiation. Utilizing the prominent photothermal effect, PTT in vitro shows efficient photothermal killing effect on tumor cells. Therefore, Ag@PVP-Ba 2 GdF 7 :Yb 3+ , Ho 3+ NCs from multifaceted research provides a break to multifunctional nanomaterials for multimodal imaging detection and high-performance tumor photothermal therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon-based materials exhibit the advantages of low-operating voltages and non-toxicity and are thus considered promising anode components for potassium-ion batteries (PIBs) and lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Herein, hydrothermal treatment and KOH activation combined with high-temperature carbonization were employed to fabricate hierarchical porous carbon, in which the low-cost coal as the carbon source. The proposed material shows rich microporous structures that facilitate Li+/K+ adsorption/desorption and promote capacitive contributions, thus improving the dynamics of the electrochemical reaction. CBC-700 (carbonized at 700 °C), as an LIB anode material, delivers a specific capacity of up to 844 mAh g−1, maintains 597 mAh g−1 under 1000 mA g−1 current density, and exhibits excellent capacity reversibility. When applied as a PIB anode material, the reversible specific capacity is preferable, with a value of 314 mAh g−1, and the specific capacity at 500 mA g−1 is 235 mAh g−1, apart from exhibiting excellent capacity reversibility. Significantly, it is highly expected that the coal-based carbon shows potential as an anode for the large-scale production of highly efficient LIBs and PIBs. • The hierarchical porous carbon was prepared by using low-cost coal as the carbon source. • The prepared CBC-700 exhibits a high specific surface area and significant surface capacitive contribution. • The prepared CBC-700 delivers superior electrochemical performance for lithium/potassium ion batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Adult degenerative scoliosis (ADS) is a 3D deformity that greatly affects the quality of life of patients and is closely related to the quality of paraspinal muscles (PSMs), but the specific degenerative characteristics have not been described. Methods: This study included ADS patients who were first diagnosed in our hospital from 2018 to 2022. Muscle volume (MV) and fat infiltration (FI) of PSM were measured by 3D reconstruction, and spinal parameters were assessed by X-ray. The values of convex side (CV) and concave side (CC) were compared. Results: Fifty patients were enrolled with a mean age of 64.1 ± 5.8 years old. There were significant differences in MV, FI, and Cobb angle between male and female groups. The MV of MF and PS on the CC was significantly larger than that on the CV. In the apex and the segments above the apex, the FI of the MF on the CC is greater than the CV, and in the CV of the segment below the apex, the FI of the MF is greater than the CC. Besides, there was a significant positive correlation between the FI and Cobb angle in the MF of the CC-CV. Conclusion: There were significant differences in the MV and FI of PSM on both sides of the spine in ADS patients. It was determined that the PSM of ADS showed different degrees of degeneration in different levels of the lumbar spine and were positively correlated with Cobb angle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Spermidine/spermine N1-acetyltransferase (SSAT) is a catabolic regulator of polyamines, ubiquitous molecules essential for cell proliferation and differentiation. In this study, the molecular characterization of the SSAT1 gene of the Sichuan white goose was analyzed, as well as its expression profiles in various follicles and tissues. The open reading frame of the SSAT1 cDNA (GenBank No. KM925008) is 516 bp in length and encodes a 171-amino acid protein with a putative molecular weight of 20 kDa. The predicted SSAT1 protein is highly conserved with those of other species, especially Gallus gallus. SSAT1 mRNA was ubiquitously expressed in all the examined tissues. The highest level of SSAT1 mRNA expression was found in the pineal gland (P<0.05), and was 12-fold greater than in the heart. The level of SSAT1 mRNA expression was relatively lower in preovulatory follicles, while it was higher in postovulatory follicles (POFs), particularly in POF1. Furthermore, as postovulatory follicles degenerated, SSAT1 expression gradually decreased. Our findings suggest that SSAT1 might play important roles in mediating the physiological function of the pineal gland and regulating the regression of POFs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Thyroid associated ophthalmopathy (TAO) is an autoimmune disease, which involves inflammation and tissue remodeling. Pentraxin-3 (PTX3) is a component of innate immune system and recently implicated in autoimmunity. This observation may indicate that PTX3 participates in the inflammatory process of TAO. Methods. All studies were performed on TAO patients and healthy controls (45: 28 in total). RNA-seq was used to detect differential gene expression of orbital adipose-connective tissue. Quantitative PCR was performed to verify the results. PTX3 protein in orbital adipose-connective tissues was visualized by immunohistochemistry (IHC). PTX3 concentration in serum was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results. RNA-seq showed 1.86-log⁡2FC higher PTX3 expression in the orbital adipose-connective tissues from TAO group than controls (FDR = 0.0059). qPCR confirmed the difference (5.59-fold increase, p=0.0012). The presence of PTX3 protein was demonstrated. Orbital adipose tissue from healthy controls showed weak staining for PTX3 while tissue from TAO group was strongly positive. Serum PTX3 concentration was significantly elevated in patients when compared to the control group (1.9-fold increase; p<0.0001). Conclusions. Patients with TAO showed increased presence of PTX3 in orbital tissue and serum, which may suggest a potential relationship of PTX3 and TAO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Hot-wire anemometer quantified threshold flow velocity distribution. • High-speed imaging and numerical modeling were used for flow visualization. • Flow direction influences spatters redeposition and influence parts quality consequently. • Consistency of flow direction influences the consistency of parts quality. Large-scale laser powder bed fusion (large-scale LPBF) has been widely applied in aerospace, automobile, military and other fields to obtain light-weighted, highly customized parts. However, as the building area grows, it becomes more difficult to produce consistent parts at different locations on the building area. One of the biggest challenges it to maintain high-speed shielding gas flow with uniform flow direction across the enlarged powder bed area. In this study, two types of gas flow inlets were designed: inlet without grid (no restriction on the gas inflow) and inlet with grid (aim at limiting the degrees of freedom on z direction) to study the factors related to shielding gas flow influencing parts quality consistency in large-scale LPBF. The threshold flow velocity distribution on the base plate and quality consistency of built parts (density and tensile properties) under two inlet conditions were compared. According to the experimental results and the analysis of high-speed imaging and CFD simulation, it can be concluded that building position and consistency of flow characteristics on the powder bed influence the consistency of parts quality, which is crucial during large-scale LPBF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lithium-ion capacitors (LICs) are emerging as one of the most advanced hybrid energy storage devices, however, their development is limited by the imbalance of the dynamics and capacity between the anode and cathode electrodes. Herein, anthracite was proposed as the raw material to prepare coal-based, nitrogen-doped porous carbon materials (CNPCs), together with being employed as a cathode and anode used for dual-carbon lithium-ion capacitors (DC-LICs). The prepared CNPCs exhibited a folded carbon nanosheet structure and the pores could be well regulated by changing the additional amount of g-C3N4, showing a high conductivity, abundant heteroatoms, and a large specific surface area. As expected, the optimized CNPCs (CTK-1.0) delivered a superior lithium storage capacity, which exhibited a high specific capacity of 750 mAh g−1 and maintained an excellent capacity retention rate of 97% after 800 cycles. Furthermore, DC-LICs (CTK-1.0//CTK-1.0) were assembled using the CTK-1.0 as both cathode and anode electrodes to match well in terms of internal kinetics and capacity simultaneously, which displayed a maximum energy density of 137.6 Wh kg−1 and a protracted lifetime of 3000 cycles. This work demonstrates the great potential of coal-based carbon materials for electrochemical energy storage devices and also provides a new way for the high value-added utilization of coal materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The possibility that two concurrent crystallization processes occurring during the crystallization of polymers may account for anomalous fractional values of the Avrami exponent, of no theoretical significance, is reconsidered using data from the recent evaluation of the kinetics of crystallization of poly (ethylene terephthalate) which placed emphasis on evaluating the secondary crystallization stage. In general constant n values in excess of that expected for the crystallization mechanisms could readily be interpreted in terms of the additional crystallinity developed by the secondary process and these values increased commensurate with the rate constant of secondary crystallization. The difference in mechanisms of primary and secondary arises from differences in the mechanism of chain segment diffusion by reptation and the free energies of nucleation of the two growth steps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An efficient and thorough water disinfection is critical for human health. In this study, UVA-LEDs, nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) and a boron-doped diamond anode were respectively used as the UVA source, the iron chelator and the anode for the UVA/electro-Fenton (E-Fenton) reaction to treat wastewater. The disinfection performance of the UVA/E-Fenton had been investigated. The mechanisms of the E. coli inactivation had been clarified. The results showed that complete disinfection (about 5.6-log removal) could be achieved within 50 min at a certain condition due to the synergistic effort of the UVA, anodic oxidation and the electro-Fenton. The quenching experiments and the electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) detection indicated that •OH, • O 2 − and 1O 2 play important roles for inactivating E. coli. The results of SEM images and genomic DNA electrophoresis suggested that both the cell structure and the DNA had been thoroughly destroyed during the UVA/E-Fenton process. Increasing the UVA irradiation, oxygen bubbling could improve the disinfection rate, while it also would increase the energy consumption. The appropriate Fe and NTA ratio was 1:2 to realize an efficient Fenton reaction under near neutral condition. Complete disinfection was also achieved within 50 min when it used for treating real wastewater. Thus, the UVA/E-Fenton process is a satisfied way for water disinfection. [Display omitted] • Both the cell structure and the bacterial genomic DNA was completely destroyed. • Disinfection was achieved by the synergetic effort of UVA, BDD and electro-Fenton. • Complete disinfection was achieved within 50 min under certain conditions. • It revealed a satisfied performance in real wastewater disinfection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the long history of traditional Chinese medicine, Panax notoginseng has been used as a key herb for the treatment of blood diseases. Brain microvessels support adequate blood circulation to maintain normal physiological function, therefore, brain microcirculation disorder is an important therapeutic target for various brain diseases. However, the role of Xueshuantong (XST) injection composed of saponins from P. Notoginseng (PNS) in the amelioration of cerebral microcirculation disorder is unclear. Cerebral microcirculation disorder and inflammation play a vital role in stroke. Capillary endothelial cells and adjacent tight junctions are fundamental to the structure and function of cerebrovascule. XST injection has been used clinically in the treatment of stroke, but no studies have reported its indication in cerebral microcirculation disorder. This study is to explore the action and mechanism of XST injection in the alleviation of cerebral microcirculation disorder in middle cerebral artery occlusion/reperfusion (MCAO/R) rats. MCAO/R rats and LPS-induced bEnd.3 cells were employed for the investigation of effect and mechanism of XST injection. Brain damages were evaluated by neurobehavioral assessment, 2, 3, 5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining, hematoxylin and eosin staining (H&E), and Nissl staining. Morphology and density changes of cerebral microvessels were monitored by immunohistochemistry. Cell permeability was detected by measurement of trans-endothelial electrical resistance (TEER) and sodium fluorescein (NaF) leakage. The mRNA and protein expressions of inflammatory cytokines, tight junction proteins, adhesion molecules, Janus kinase 2 (JAK2), signal transducer and activator of transcription-3 (STAT3), inhibitor of NF-κB (IκB), nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) and c-jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) in brain microvessels and lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced bEnd.3 cells were measured by real-time PCR and Western blot, respectively. XST injection at 48 mg/kg significantly improved the neurological damage, inflammatory infiltration, and microvessel morphology, and increased microvessel density in brain of MCAO/R rats. The endothelial permeability was significantly mitigated by XST injection in LPS-induced bEnd.3 cells. Meanwhile, the tight junction proteins such as zona occludens 1 (ZO-1) and occludin were elevated remarkably in brain microvessel of MCAO/R rats and LPS-induced bEnd.3 cells. Moreover, the expression of inflammatory mediators including interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cycloocygenases 2 (COX-2), vascular cellular adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1), matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2, and MMP-9 were inhibited by XST injection. In addition, XST injection suppressed the phosphorylation of JAK2, STAT3, IκB, NF-κB and JNK, which could be abolished by anisomycin, the JNK agonist. XST injection improved cerebral microvescular structure damage and dysfunction in MCAO/R rats through inhibiting inflammation activated by JNK mediated JAK2/STAT3 and NF-κB signaling pathways. The novel findings may provide theoretical basis for the clinical application in the treatment of cerebral microcirculation disorder. MCAO/R promotes microvascular endothelial cell activation and release of inflammatory mediators such as IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, VCAM-1 and MMP-9, and induces cerebral microcirculation disorder in rats. XST injection improves cerebral microvescular structure damage and dysfunction in MCAO/R rats through inhibiting inflammation activated by JNK mediated JAK2/STAT3 and NF-κB signaling pathways. [Display omitted] • XST injection improves cerebral microcirculation disorder in MCAO/R rats. • XST injection suppresses inflammatory response of the cerebral endothelial cells in MCAO/R rats. • XST injection inhibits the activation of JAK2/STAT3 and NF-κB signaling pathways by deactivation of JNK. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The crossflow, one of the most important flow structures in the turbine endwall, has significant effects on the endwall film cooling. However, there is a lack of quantitative analysis on it due to the complexity of the endwall flow field. In the current study, a turning channel is utilized to generate the crossflow free from vortex structures. Experiments are conducted and numerical results are utilized to supplement flow-field details. Effects of the momentum ratio (I), crossflow intensity, and main-flow Reynolds number (R e D) are analyzed. Theories of three-dimensional boundary layer flow are introduced to help reveal underlying mechanisms. It is observed that coolant trajectories obey linearity in the cylindrical coordinate. Then, the deflection of coolant can be quantified using the straight-line slope, and I is demonstrated to well scale the coolant migration under the crossflow, which guides predictions on coolant trajectories. Reversely, the disturbance of cooling injections on the crossflow is non-negligible, mainly suppressing the crossflow development. Besides, the crossflow enhances the coolant spreading, and improves the cooling performance. R e D has non-negligible effects on the cooling performance by altering the crossflow profile in the boundary layer. Lower R e D leads to a distorted coolant spatial distribution, resulting in a severer main gas/coolant mixture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the UVA (Ultraviolet A) drinking water disinfection was promoted by electrolysis. The influences of the UVA, electrolysis current, bubbling and temperature were investigated. The disinfection mechanisms and bacterial reactivation had been studied. The results revealed that the treatment time needed to reach the DL (detection limit, about 5.4 log removal) was shortened from 180 to 80 min by the electrolysis. The total electricity consumption decreased from about 126–57.0 kJ/L. Compared with increasing the UVA irradiation, increasing the electrolysis current in a certain range was more preferred to improve the disinfection rate. Oxygen bubbling or higher temperature could enhance the E. coli inactivation. The quenching experiment and EPR (Electron paramagnetic resonance) detection confirmed that ROSs (1O 2 , ·O 2 - and ·OH) played important roles for the disinfection. Compared with the treatment with UVA alone, the cell membrane damage was more severe by the promoting method. In addition to the dramatically reduced enzyme activity, the synergistic process degraded most of the bacterial genomic DNA, and the bacteria were completely killed. Therefore, hybrid with electrolysis is a better way for the application of the UVA-LED disinfection. [Display omitted] • The electricity consumption was reduced sharply by the electrolysis promotion. • The promoting process degraded most of the bacterial genomic DNA. • 1O 2 , ·O 2 - and ·OH played critical roles in the disinfection. • Complete disinfection was achieved within 80 min under certain conditions. • The promoting process avoided the bacterial reactivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ectopic pregnancy is a leading cause of death for child-bearing aged women. Most patients with ectopic pregnancy experience suffer psychological distress which seriously affects their physical and mental health. The psychological distress, influencing factors, measurement tools, and nursing interventions in patients with ectopic pregnancy in China are reviewed in this article. The results showed that the main psychological distress of patients with ectopic pregnancy is anxiety, depression, uncertainty sense of disease, and low self-esteem. The main factors affecting the psychological distress of ectopic pregnancy patients included life-threatening disease, different marital status, and reproductive needs. The main intervention methods for psychological distress in pregnant patients included: cognitive behavioral therapy, emotional therapy of traditional Chinese medicine, and family support. The majority of cross-sectional surveys in China focused on psychological conditions of the patients with ectopic pregnancy, and there are very few longitudinal studies. Large-sample, multi-center longitudinal studies should be conducted in the future to monitor the development of ectopic pregnancy. Qualitative research should be conducted on patient experience, to provide guidance and basis for the implementation of targeted nursing interventions and to further explore standardized, continuous, and generalizable psychological care protocols for distress interventions for patients with ectopic pregnancy, thereby minimizing psychological distress such as anxiety, depression, and uncertainty in patients with ectopic pregnancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A simple strategy is presented for the bifunctional detection of environmental organic vapor and temperature by utilizing H-bond interactions to trap a butterfly-vibration-based fluorophore (DPAC-OH) in a polyurethane (PU) matrix. The method opens up a new path for large-scale environmental inspections and the design of dual-response luminescent materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The removal of paint as an industrial requirement is still a significant issue in the fields of ship and aircraft skins. How to judge the effect of laser cleaning after the removal of paint on the substrate is a tough problem. The effect is evaluated primarily by considering the amount of paint residue and the extent of substrate surface damage. The amount of paint residue is analyzed by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), Fourier-transform infrared spectrum (FTIR), and photothermal conversion performance. The damage to the substrate surface is assessed utilizing an X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and true color confocal microscope (TCCM). The results manifest that the paint can be completely removed at a laser energy density of 1.66 J/cm2. When laser energy density is 1.78 J/cm2, the surface of Al alloy appears some nanostructures. This work offers fundamental research and practical guidance for laser cleaning of paint on an aluminum alloy surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recycling of spent Li-ion batteries (LIBs) is an emerging global concern. Current recycling technologies generally include multiple purification operations and involve the use of lots of chemicals, which compromise their competitiveness in terms of both economic and environmental benefits. Herein, we propose a spray pyrolysis technology-based closed-loop for regenerating single-crystal cathodes from spent LIBs, which could simultaneously achieve the separation of Li and transition metals (TMs) and obtain high-quality precursors for the synthesis of single-crystal cathodes. As an exemplary study, spent LiCoO2 is first converted into chlorides through a chlorination process. More than 95% of Li is selectively leached out by the "spray pyrolysis–water leaching" process. Simultaneously, the Co3O4 leaching residue could be directly used as a precursor for synthesizing high-performance single-crystal LiCoO2, while the gaseous HCl produced in the pyrolysis process could be recycled in the chlorination process. Therefore, this closed-loop of Li, Co, and Cl holds great economic benefits as it gets rid of the complicated purification operations and precursor preparation processes (such as coprecipitation), opening a new avenue for LIBs recycling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artemisia annua L. (A. annua) is a traditional Chinese medicine that has been used since ancient times to treat malaria, eczema, dermatomycosis, jaundice, and boils. Modern pharmacological studies show that it has immunosuppressive and anti-inflammatory effects. However, the mechanism of A. annua in the treatment of atopic dermatitis (AD) remains unclear. This study was aimed to investigate the effect of A. annua water extract (AWE) on 2,4-dinitrochlorobenzene (DNCB)-induced AD mouse model and tried to explore its possible underlying mechanisms. AD was induced in BALB/c mice by the topical repeated application of DNCB. Oral drug intervention of AWE and dexamethasone (DEX, positive control) began from the 7th day and continued for 13 consecutive days. The clinical skin score, ear thickness and the weight of ear and spleen were assessed. The ear tissue were stained with toluidine blue and hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) to detect inflammatory cell infiltration. IgE, terleukin (IL)-4 and IL-13 levels in the serum and IgE level in splenocytes were quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The mRNA expression levels of IL-4, IL-6, IL-13, IL-17, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) were measured by quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction. The phosphorylation levels of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs)-p38 and nuclear factor (NF)-κB in ear tissue were detected by Western blot. Results demonstrated that AWE treatment significantly attenuated the AD-like symptoms in DNCB-induced BALB/c mice, including the skin dermatitis severity and ear edema. Further study disclosed that AWE treatment suppressed the expressions of IgE, IL-4, IL-6, IL-13, IL-17, TNF-α and TSLP at mRNA and protein levels. Moreover, AWE showed inhibitory effect on the phosphorylation of p38 MAPK and NFκB in ear tissues of AD mice. Collectively, our results suggested that AWE suppressed DNCB-induced AD in mice probably by restraining Th2 type inflammatory response. These findings might pave the road for the potential clinical application of AWE for AD treatment. [Display omitted] • AWE attenuated the AD-like lesions in DNCB-induced BALB/c mice. • AWE mitigated DNCB-induced mast cells and eosinophils infiltration. • AWE reduced Th2-related inflammatory responses in DNCB induced AD mice. • AWE inhibited the over-activation of p38MAPK/NFκB pathway in AD mice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Hybrid carbonation models coupling ANN and SVM were developed by linear combination. • Hybrid AI-based carbonation models have superior prediction power than other models. • Grey relational analysis provides a more logic way to select attributes. • Relative importance of inputs on output are analyzed for better model establishment. Carbonation of concrete has significant influence on the service life of constructions and great effort has been made to establish an accurate and efficient model of carbonation that incorporates both internal and external factors. We present a hybrid machine learning (ML) approach that combined two single ML models: artificial neural network (ANN) and support vector machine (SVM). A literature survey generated a database containing 532 records of accelerated carbonation depth measurements for concrete mixtures inclusive of fly-ash blends. Six inputs comprising cement content, fly-ash replacement level, water–binder ratio (w/b), CO 2 concentration, relative humidity and exposure time were selected for modeling, justified by grey relational analysis. The four ML models had excellent accuracy in predicting the carbonation depth of concrete, with the correlation coefficient ranging from 0.9788 to 0.9946, but the two hybrid ML models achieved superior performance to the single ANN and SVM models with characteristic higher correlation coefficients, lower mean value for the absolute error and lower standard deviation for its distribution. In addition, compared with other commonly known empirical carbonation models, the hybrid ML models showed more accurate carbonation depth prediction with smaller root mean square error. Furthermore, the weightings of the contributions of six selected factors to carbonation depth disclosed that CO 2 concentration, w/b and binder content had higher relative importance to carbonation depth and should be given greater weighting in future carbonation model development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vision-based road detection is one of the key techniques of autonomous driving, intelligent vehicles, and visual navigation. At present, methods based on vanishing point perform best with general roads. However, it is difficult for them to meet the needs of a real-time system due to high time consumption. This paper presents a fast detection method, namely simple road detection, which achieves high efficiency by employing sky segmentation and two new optimization schemes-sample convolution and fast voting. The optimizations are based on lookup tables, sample computing, and computing simplification. The interval sampling in sample convolution makes the proposed method flexible to meet various efficiency and accuracy demands by different sample-step values. Mean filter and vote orientation limitation are also proposed to help improve detection accuracy. Experiments have been conducted with a large number of road images under different environmental conditions, and the results demonstrate that our proposed method is efficient and effective in detecting both structured and unstructured roads. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Three annealing mechanisms are present in poly (ethylene terephthalate). [•] Below the crystallization temperature interlamellar crystals form. [•] Annealing without melting occurs by lamellae thickening and is diffusion control. [•] Near the m.pt. annealing involves recrystallization followed by lamellae thickening. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Melting point increases with temperature and time due to thickening of lamellae. [•] Increase with temperature used to determine equilibrium melting point. [•] Growth is diffusion controlled depending on the square root of time. [•] Chain entanglements and impurities in the inter-lamellar regions slow to diffuse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interaction between the film-cooling jet and vortex structures in the turbine passage plays an important role in the endwall cooling design. In this study, a simplified topology of a blunt body with a half-cylinder is introduced to simulate the formation of the leading-edge horseshoe vortex, where similarity compared with that in the turbine cascade is satisfied. The shaped cooling hole is located in the passage. With this specially designed model, the interaction mechanism between the cooling jet and the passage vortex can therefore be separated from the crossflow and the pressure gradient, which also affect the cooling jet. The loss-analysis method based on the entropy generation rate is introduced, which locates where losses of the cooling capacity occur and reveals the underlying mechanism during the mixing process. Results show that the cooling performance is sensitive to the hole location. The injection/passage vortex interaction can help enhance the coolant lateral coverage, thus improving the cooling performance when the hole is located at the downwash region. The coolant is able to conserve its structure in that, during the interaction process, the kidney vortex with the positive rotating direction can survive with the negative-rotating passage vortex, and the mixture is suppressed. However, the larger-scale passage vortex eats the negative leg of the kidney vortices when the cooling hole is at the upwash region. As a result, the coolant is fully entrained into the main flow. Changes in the blowing ratio alter the overall cooling effectiveness but have a negligible effect on the interaction mechanism. The optimum blowing ratio increases when the hole is located at the downwash region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]