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Developing antibacterial and biocompatible coatings remains a challenge. A promising new thought is addressed to control the ion release behaviors through the design of the phases, structures, and morphologies of the products. In this study, TiO2-CuxO/Ag coatings were prepared via co-sputtering combined with annealing, the changes brought by different annealing temperatures were characterized, the physical, electrochemical, and antibacterial properties were concerned, and the relationship between biological performance and ions-releasing behavior was investigated. Results showed that the TiO2-CuxO/Ag coatings performed the morphologies of larger Ag particles seeded like islands on the dense CuO, such features improved the hydrophilicity and corrosion resistance of the Ti substrate. Rising the annealing temperature further enhanced the surface roughness, hydrophilicity, Young's modulus, hardness, and dynamic coefficient of friction of the coatings. Within the initial 3 h of soaking, both metal ions contributed to playing the antibacterial roles and produced a synergistic enhancement effect to satisfy the reduction of Staphylococcus aureus to 99.9%. In the next 3–120 h soaking, Ag releasing was suppressed and Cu releasing maintained its slow and stable trend, which made sure that the MC3T3-E1 cells could proliferate and adhere on the negatively charged coating surface, and copper oxide nanoparticles were phagocytized by cells. Among all TiO2-CuxO/Ag coatings, the M500 sample displayed superior performances on the surface roughness, contact angle, mechanical Young's modulus, and surface hardness, also realized the aim of killing pathogenic bacteria first and then activating cell survival, which enabled it to be potentially applied in clinical treatment.

Appropriate straw incorporation has ample agronomic and environmental benefits, but most studies are limited to straw mulching or application on the soil surface. To determine the effect of depth of straw incorporation on the crop yield, soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN) and greenhouse gas emission, a total of 4 treatments were set up in this study, which comprised no straw returning (CK), straw returning at 15 cm (S15), straw returning at 25 cm (S25) and straw returning at 40 cm (S40). The results showed that straw incorporation significantly increased SOC, TN and C:N ratio. Compared with CK treatments, substantial increases in the grain yield (by 4.17~5.49% for S15 and 6.64~10.06% for S25) were observed under S15 and S25 treatments. S15 and S25 could significantly improve the carbon and nitrogen status of the 0-40 cm soil layer, thereby increased maize yield. The results showed that the maize yield was closely related to the soil carbon and nitrogen index of the 0-40 cm soil layer. In order to further evaluate the environmental benefits of straw returning, this study measured the global warming potential (GWP) and greenhouse gas emission intensity (GHGI). Compared with CK treatments, the GWP of S15, S25 and S40 treatments was increased by 9.35~20.37%, 4.27~7.67% and 0.72~6.14%, respectively, among which the S15 treatment contributed the most to the GWP of farmland. GHGI is an evaluation index of low-carbon agriculture at this stage, which takes into account both crop yield and global warming potential. In this study, GHGI showed a different trend from GWP. Compared with CK treatments, the S25 treatments had no significant difference in 2020, and decreased significantly in 2021 and 2022. This is due to the combined effect of maize yield and cumulative greenhouse gas emissions, indicating that the appropriate straw returning method can not only reduce the intensity of greenhouse gas emissions but also improve soil productivity and enhance the carbon sequestration effect of farmland soil, which is an ideal soil improvement and fertilization measure.

This paper studied an integrated process planning and scheduling problem from a machining workshop for large-size valves in a valve manufacturing plant. Large-size valves usually contain several key parts and are generally produced in small-series production. Almost all the parts need to be manufactured in the same workshop at the same time in the plant. Facilities have to handle various items in one order, including different models, sizes, and types. It is a classical NP-hard problem on a large scale. An improved NSGA-II algorithm is suggested to obtain satisfactory solutions for makespan and manufacturing costs, which involve large optimization parameters and interactions. A two-section encoding method and an inserting greedy decoding method are chosen to enable the algorithm. The dynamic population update strategy based on dynamic population update and the adaptive mutation technique depending on the population entropy changing rate are selected for enhancing both the solution quality and population diversity. The methodology was successfully implemented in a real-life case at a major valve machining workshop operated by Yuanda Valve Company in China. By taking into account realistic factors and restrictions that have been identified from a real-world manufacturing setting, this technique aids in bridging the knowledge gap between present IPPS research and practical valve production implementations.

Objective Traditional total hip arthroplasty (THA) is often performed by visual inspection due to the lack of reliable reference, which results in inappropriate position of prosthesis and poor outcomes. This study attempts to introduce a novel patient‐specific instrumentation (PSI) system and assess its effectiveness and accuracy compared with freehand operation and robot system through bone model experiments. Methods Equally divide 30 sawbone models into the freehand group, PSI group, and robot group. Ten sets of prosthesis parameters were randomly generated as planning, and the three groups underwent simulated THA depending on these parameters. After the placement of the femoral prosthesis, the acetabular anteversion plan was adjusted in the PSI and robot groups so that the combined anteversion was maintained before and after adjustment. After the surgery, the actual prosthesis parameters of all bone models were measured and analyzed statistically. Results No statistically significant difference was found in femoral anteversion error among the three groups (p = 0.951). The errors of acetabular cup anteversion, acetabular cup abduction, and combined anteversion in PSI group were 3.92° (2.94°, 4.62°), 5.65° (4.63°, 6.70°), and 3.93° (2.94°, 4.62°), respectively, which were significantly smaller than those in the freehand group [11.84° (9.92°, 13.87°), 13.54° (9.81°, 15.21°), 16.04° (8.18°, 19.25°), respectively, p

Objective Accurate placement of the screws is challenging in percutaneous cannulated screw fixation of calcaneal fractures, and robot‐assisted (RA) surgery enhances the accuracy. We investigated the outcome of percutaneous cannulated screw fixation of Sander's type II and III calcaneal fractures. Methods This retrospective study analyzed clinical data of 26 patients with fresh closed calcaneal fractures (28 fractures) who were admitted to our center from January 2022 to July 2022. All fractures were divided into the RA group and the open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) group according to the surgeries performed. RA surgery was performed by closed reduction or open reduction combined with a tarsal sinus approach. Age, sex, operation time, preoperative waiting time, length of postoperative hospital stay, wound complications, and American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society Ankle Hindfoot Scale (AOFAS) at 3 months postoperatively were compared. Preoperative and postoperative radiographic parameters (calcaneal length, width, height, Böhler angle, and fixation rate of the sustentaculum tali) were documented. The chi‐square test, one‐way analysis of variance, and Wilcoxon test were used for the comparison of categorical, normally distributed, and nonnormally distributed continuous variables, respectively. Results The calcaneal width, height, and Böhler angle were significantly corrected postoperatively in both groups. The postoperative calcaneal lengths in both groups were also corrected. However, no significant difference was found. No significant differences in calcaneal length, width, height, and Böhler angle were observed between the two groups. The operation time (p

Objective: This report describes the first successful use of 3D image-guided robot-assisted reverse shoulder arthroplasty (RSA) and validates the feasibility of this technology. Methods: The clinical data, preoperative preparation, surgical procedure, and postoperative outcomes of a patient with proximal humerus fracture who underwent 3D image-guided robot-assisted RSA on May 18, 2023, at Beijing Jishuitan Hospital were summarized. Results: The patient underwent 3D image-guided robot-assisted RSA successfully. The surgery lasted for 2 ​h and blood loss was about 200 ​ml. No significant adverse events were observed during the procedure. Immediate postoperative joint range of motion was as follows: forward flexion 150°, abduction 90°, neutral rotation 50° externally and 60° internally, with no dislocation. The drainage tube was removed on the second postoperative day, and an X-ray examination confirmed the proper positioning of the prosthesis. Conclusion: In conclusion, we are the first to report the successful use of 3D image-guided robot-assisted RSA, demonstrating the feasibility of this technique. However, further upgrades and enhancements to the orthopedic robotic system are necessary to provide more assistance to surgeons.

Graphene has garnered widespread attention, and its use is being explored for various electronic devices due to its exceptional material properties. However, the use of polymers (PMMA, photoresists, etc.) during graphene transfer and patterning processes inevitably leaves residues on graphene surface, which can decrease the performance and yield of graphene-based devices. This paper proposes a new transfer and patterning process that utilizes an Al intermediate layer to separate graphene from polymers. Through DFT calculations, the binding energy of graphene–Al was found to be only −0.48 eV, much lower than that of PMMA and photoresist with graphene, making it easier to remove Al from graphene. Subsequently, this was confirmed through XPS analysis. A morphological characterization demonstrated that the graphene patterns prepared using the Al intermediate layer process exhibited higher surface quality, with significantly reduced roughness. It is noteworthy that the devices obtained with the proposed method exhibited a notable enhancement in both consistency and sensitivity during electrical testing (increase of 67.14% in temperature sensitivity). The low-cost and pollution-free graphene-processing method proposed in this study will facilitate the further commercialization of graphene-based devices.

Rainfall intensity and slope gradient are the main drivers of slope surface runoff and nitrogen loss. To explore the distribution of rainfall runoff and nitrogen loss on the Miyun Reservoir slopes, we used artificial indoor simulated rainfall experiments to determine the distribution characteristics and nitrogen migration paths of surface and subsurface runoff under different rainfall intensities and slope gradients. The initial runoff generation time of subsurface runoff lagged that of surface runoff, and the lag time under different rainfall intensity and slope conditions ranges from 3.97 to 12.62 min. Surface runoff rate increased with increasing rainfall intensity and slope gradient; compared with a rainfall intensity of 40 mm/h, at a slope of 15°, average surface runoff rate at 60 and 80 mm/h increased by 2.38 and 3.60 times, respectively. Meanwhile, the subsurface runoff rate trended upwards with increasing rainfall intensity, in the order 5 > 15 > 10°. It initially increased and then decreased with increasing slope gradient, in the order 5 > 10 > 15°. Total nitrogen (TN) loss concentration of surface runoff shows a decrease followed by a stabilization trend; the concentration of TN loss decreases with decreasing rainfall intensity, and the stabilization time becomes earlier and is most obvious in 5° slope conditions. TN loss concentration in subsurface runoff decreased with increasing rainfall intensity, i.e., 40 > 60 > 80 mm/h. The surface runoff rainfall coefficient was mainly affected by rainfall intensity, a correlation between αs and slope gradients S was not obvious, and the fitting effect was poor. The subsurface runoff rainfall coefficient was mainly affected by slope gradient, the R2 of all rainfall intensities was surface runoff > subsurface runoff. The surface and mixed runoff modulus increased significantly with increasing rain intensity under different rain intensities and slope gradients. Overall, rainfall intensity significantly affected slope surface runoff, and slope gradient significantly affected nitrogen loss.

Abstract Maize (Zea mays L.) is one of the most widely distributed and important crops in China. Maize ear differentiation plays an important role grain yield formation. However, it is unclear if ear and root morphophysiology status affects yield formation by altering ear differentiation and development under different nitrogen (N) conditions. The aim of this study is to understand how the ear differentiation and development are affected by ear and root morphophysiology traits, as affected by the N rate. The experiment consisted of two N rates: high nitrogen (180 kg ha−1), and low nitrogen (60 kg ha−1). Two N-efficient varieties (NEVs) and two N-inefficient varieties (NIVs) were grown in the field. The results showed higher nitrogen accumulation and grain yield in NEVs than in NIVs, which was mainly attributed to the increased N uptake by the larger root system under both N conditions. Under high N conditions, among ear differentiation-related traits, only FR was significantly positively correlated with grain yield, and NEVs ensure FR through higher N concentration and ZR content in ear at the fertilization stage. Under low N conditions, NEVs obtained higher FP, SR and FR through higher N concentration and IAA in ear at the early stage of ear differentiation, maintained lower AR and BTL by higher RA, R-ZR and E-ZR at the late stage of ear growth. These results suggest that NEVs have a more complex mechanism for obtaining higher grain yield under low N conditions than N sufficiency, and that phytohormones play an important role in this process.

Different crop genotypes showed different adaptability to salt stress, which is partly attributable to the microorganisms in the rhizosphere. Yet, knowledge about how fungal communities of different genotypes in soybean respond to salt stress is limited. Here, qPCR and ITS sequencing were used to assess the response of rhizobial fungal communities of resistant and susceptible soybean to salt stress. Moreover, we isolated two fungal species recruited by resistant soybeans for validation. The assembly of fungal community structure might be strongly linked to alterations in fungal abundance and soil physicochemical properties. Salt stress derived structural differences in fungal communities of resistant and susceptible genotypes. The salt-resistant genotype appeared to recruit some fungal taxa to the rhizosphere to help mitigating salt stress. An increase of fungal taxa with predicted saprotrophic lifestyles might help promoting plant growth by increasing nutrient availability to the plants. Compared with the susceptible genotypes, the resistant genotypes had more stronger network structure of fungi. Lastly, we verified that recruited fungi, such as Penicillium and Aspergillus, can soybean adapt to salt stress. This study provided a promising approach for rhizospheric fungal community to enhance salt tolerance of soybean from the perspective of microbiology and ecology.

Abstract A high-precision micro-displacement sensor based on tunnel magneto-resistance effect is reported.We designed and simulated magnetic characteristics of the sensor, and employed chip-level Au-In bonding to implement low-temperature assembly of the TMR devices. We employed the subdivision interpolation technique to enhance the resolution by translating the sine-cosine outputs of a TMR sensor into an output that varies linearly with the displacement. Simultaneously, using the multi-bridge circuit method to suppress external magnetic and geomagnetic interference. Experimental result shows that the micro-displacement sensor has a resolution of 800 nm, accuracy of 0.14 $$\%$$ % and a full-scale range of up to millimeter level. This work enables a high-performance displacement sensor, and provides a significant guide for the design of a micro-displacement sensor in practical applications.

As a highly regenerative organ, the intestine is a promising source for cellular reprogramming for replacing lost pancreatic β cells in diabetes. Gut enterochromaffin cells can be converted to insulin-producing cells by forkhead box O1 (FoxO1) ablation, but their numbers are limited. In this study, we report that insulin-immunoreactive cells with Paneth/goblet cell features are present in human fetal intestine. Accordingly, lineage-tracing experiments show that, upon genetic or pharmacologic FoxO1 ablation, the Paneth/goblet lineage can also undergo conversion to the insulin lineage. We designed a screening platform in gut organoids to accurately quantitate β-like cell reprogramming and fine-tune a combination treatment to increase the efficiency of the conversion process in mice and human adult intestinal organoids. We identified a triple blockade of FOXO1, Notch, and TGF-β that, when tested in insulin-deficient streptozotocin (STZ) or NOD diabetic animals, resulted in near normalization of glucose levels, associated with the generation of intestinal insulin-producing cells. The findings illustrate a therapeutic approach for replacing insulin treatment in diabetes.

Traditional mechanical bone drilling is prone to heat generation and debris accumulation which will cause tissue damage in orthopedic surgeries. Therefore, research on contactless laser bone drilling has become a mainstream trend in the development of bone surgery. This study presents a laser rapid drilling strategy for bone surgery with minimizing thermal osteonecrosis and debris based on the design of dynamic focusing and spreading droplet cooling. The laser drilled hole suffered from low temperature (Tmax = 46.2 ○C) under clinically accepted threshold of 47 ○C, presenting osteocyte-filled lacunas, visible Haversian canals and increased pullout strength when compared with that following mechanically drilling. An intact bone column without debris was extracted from a 4-mm-deep hole in vitro on a sheep tibia which provides a clean surgical method with increased drilling rate of 0.94 mm3/s. The criteria dimensionless We constant related to spreading droplets leading to effective heat transfer is determined as2.8 × 103 × Re-1/2 ≤ We ≤ 1.9 × 10-2 × Re7, yielding a high convective coefficient of 0.11 W/mm2·K for cooling. The comprehensive results of laser bone drilling proved the effectiveness of the presented technology and setup, which is significant in realizing rapid, debris-free orthopedic surgery.

Excessive, long-term chemical fertilizer application adversely affects soil quality and maize yield. The combined application of biochar with chemical fertilizer can increase maize yield and improve soil fertility. A four-year field experiment was conducted to determine soil physio-biochemical properties and maize yield under a soybean–maize rotation in the black soils of Northeast China. There were five treatments, including no fertilization (CK), fertilizer (NPK), fertilizer + biochar (15.75 t·hm−2, BC1), fertilizer + biochar (31.50 t·hm−2, BC2), and fertilizer + biochar (47.25 t·hm−2, BC3). Compared with CK, the number of macroaggregates and the average weight diameter of soil aggregates in BC2 treatment increased significantly by 10.3% and 24.5%, respectively. The soil pH in the study area was 7.03, and it increased in all treatments except for BC1. The highest pH of 7.17 was recorded in NPK and BC2 treatments, which was around the optimal soil pH. In contrast to the CK and NPK treatments, the biochar application increased soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN) content. The BC2 treatment improved soil C/N and increased the copy number of soil bacteria by 25.6% compared to CK. The combined application of chemical fertilizer and biochar was better than NPK treatment alone, and improved soil mechanical composition and fine soil particle contents (powder and clay). Mixed biochar with chemical fertilizer application also significantly increased maize yield and the weight of 100 grains increased from 9.5% to 10.9% compared to CK. The maize yield of the three fertilizer and biochar treatments was higher than treatments with applied chemical fertilizer alone, in the order of BC2 > BC3 > BC1 > NPK > CK (BC2 treatment increased by 34.8%). Additionally, the maize yield was significantly and positively correlated with soil aggregates, organic carbon and total nitrogen (p < 0.05) as well as the 100-grain weight (p < 0.01). The application of 31.50 t·hm−2 (BC2 treatment) of biochar can enhance soil physicochemical properties and improve maize yield.

As a core component in the gas transmission process, the internal wall surface of a gas pressure regulator is prone to failure due to long-term exposure to a high-pressure gas environment, resulting in poor reliability of the regulator. Thus, a thermo-hydro-mechanical coupling model for the FL gas pressure regulator is established in this paper, and the thermo-hydro-mechanical coupling results are verified by engineering data. The effect of valve opening on the parameters (temperature, deformation, and stress) of the gas pressure regulator is studied in detail through simulation. The results show that the stress is greater at the sleeve, valve bore, and outlet valve seat wall under the opening of 20% of the regulator. Finally, the response surface method is used to optimize the regulator to obtain a good fit and high predictive ability of the response surface equation. The optimal parameters for the gas pressure regulator are as follows: the wall thickness of the sleeve is 7.25 mm, the diameter of the valve bore is 25 mm, and the wall thickness of the outlet seat is 31.05 mm. The maximum equivalent stress with this combination of parameters is 135.62 MPa.

Wetland cover classification grows out of the need for management and protection for wetland sources to depict wetland landscapes. Exploring improved classification methods is important to derive good-quality wetland mapping products. This study investigates and applies two artificial neural network (ANN) based ensemble methods, namely, the MultiBoost artificial neural network (MBANN) and the rotation artificial neural network (RANN), for wetland cover classification, taking the Zoige wetland sited in the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau, China as the case area. The RANN trains and combines diverse ANNs by constructing a series of sparse rotation matrices, whereas the MBANN is developed from the sequential iteration in combination with the parallel sampling technique. Sixteen features related to wetland covers were extracted based on the digital elevation model data and Landsat 8 OLI images. The deep visual geometry group (VGG11) and random forests (RF) were implemented for comparison with our methods. The classification capability evaluation shows that our ensemble methods significantly improve the single ANN and outperform the VGG11 and RF. The RANN yields the highest overall accuracy (0.961), followed by the MBANN (0.942), VGG11 (0.934), RF (0.931), and ANN (0.916). We further concern and evaluate the classifier’s robustness because it reflects the uniformity of classification capability. The RANN and the MBANN are insensitive to the reduction in data size, resistant to feature variability, and not influenced by data noise. Overall, the use of ensemble techniques can refine single ANN in classification capability and stability. The results from this study attest the important role of ensemble learning, which provides a promising scheme for wetland cover classification.

Thermo-reliability of physical vapor deposition (PVD) Cr/Au on sapphire substrates was systematically investigated to improve the routing interconnection for high-temperature sensors. Cr and Au films were sequentially deposited on sapphire through magnetron sputtering. Samples with various Au layer thicknesses were subjected to annealing experiments at different temperatures and times. The temperature and processing time affected the dimension of Au particles and changed the surface roughness. With the increase in the temperature and treatment time, the agglomeration of Au particles increased, and the diameter enlarged substantially. Furthermore, the agglomeration effect is enhanced with the increase in the Au film thickness. However, the annealing time under the same temperature had a limited effect on the resistance. All the samples exhibited a low resistance at 700 °C. Moreover, compared with 100/500 nm Cr/Au films, the resistance of 100/1000 nm Cr/Au films slightly changed before and after annealing at 500 °C. Thus, thermo-reliability of PVD Cr/Au was beneficial for high-temperature sensors. The results of this study provided theoretical support for the practical applications of Cr/Au films.

In this study, a bio-composite (IBWS700) was prepared using inorganic phosphate-solubilizing bacteria (iPSB), which were immobilized on biochar produced from wheat straw (WS700). Further, the bio-remediation effects of the composite for lead (Pb) in soil were also investigated. The presence of different Pb species, physicochemical properties, enzyme activities, and immobilization mechanisms of Pb in soil were also evaluated. Compared to free iPSB and biochar, IBWS700 significantly decreased the lead bio-availability whereas increased the residual fraction, also affected available phosphorus (AP), cation exchange capacity (CEC), organic matter (OM) and activity of urease, alkaline phosphatase, sucrase and catalase. Interestingly, the changes in the enzyme activity, AP and OM performed twice increases with increasing Pb concentration, which was rarely reported. The reason might be attributed to the reconstruction of bacteria communities with high Pb load. Further, the immobilization mechanisms mainly included bio-adsorption and bio-precipitation. SEM revealed that the surface of IBWS700 covered with a large number of heterogeneous colonization of iPSB and white stack after Pb2+ adsorption. FTIR spectra showed that O-H, C-O-P, CO, and C =C could play important roles in bio-adsorption. Moreover, XRD analysis indicated that bio-precipitates were mainly Pb5(PO4)3Cl. In general, the use of IBWS700 could effectively immobilize Pb2+ and improve soil quality.

At present, extracting water-soluble organic matter (WSOM) from agricultural organic waste is primarily used to evaluate soil organic matter content in farmland. However, only a few studies have focused on its vertical behavior in the soil profile. This study aims to clarify the three-dimensional fluorescence spectrum characteristics of the WSOM samples in 0–60 cm black soil profile before and after different chemical fertilizer treatments after six years of fertilization. Fluorescence spectroscopy combined with fluorescence and ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopies are used to divide four different fertilization types: no fertilization (T0), nitrogen phosphorus potassium (NPK) (T1), biochar (T2), biochar + NPK (T3), and biochar + N (T4) in a typical black soil area. The vertical characteristics of WSOC are also analyzed. The results showed that after six years of nitrogen application, T2 had a significant effect on the fluorescence intensity of Zone II (decreasing by 9.6% in the 0–20 cm soil layer) and Zone V (increasing by 8.5% in the 0–20 cm soil layer). The fluorescent components identified in each treatment group include ultraviolet radiation A humic acid-like substances (C1), ultraviolet radiation C humic acid-like substances (C2), and tryptophan-like substance (C3). As compared with the land with T1, the content of C2 in the 20–60 cm soil layer with T2 was lower, while that of C2 in the surface and subsoil with T3 was higher. In addiiton, there were no significant differences in the contents of C1, C2, and C3 by comparing the soils applied with T3 and T4, respectively. The composition of soil WSOM was found to be significantly influenced by the addition of a mixture of biochar and chemical fertilizers. The addition of biochar alone exerted a positive effect on the humification process in the surface soil (0–10 cm). NPK treatment could stimulate biological activity by increasing biological index values in deeper soil layers (40–50 cm). Nitrogen is the sovereign factor that improves the synergism effect of chemical fertilizer and biochar during the humification process. According to the UV-Vis spectrum and optical index, soil WSOM originates from land and microorganisms. This study reveals the dynamics of WSOC in the 0–60 cm soil layer and the biogeochemical effect of BC fertilizer treatment on the agricultural soil ecosystem.

This article presents the design method of a compact MEMS switched-line true-time delay line (TTDL) network over a wide frequency range extending from 2 to 42 GHz using TTDL units. The TTDL units, namely the cascading radio frequency micro-electromechanical system (RF MEMS) switches and GCPW, were employed in the proposed TTDL network to improve the delay-bandwidth product (DBW) while maintaining its compact size and low delay variation (DV). For comparison, a theoretical analysis of the RF MEMS switch was performed while observing the switch performance with various top electrodes. The MEMS TTDL network has a compact size of 5 mm × 5 mm, with a maximum delay of 200 ps and a minimum of 30 ps. The maximum insertion loss of 9 states is 10 dB, and the in/out return loss is better than 20 dB across 2-42 GHz. The group delay variations are within ±2.5% for all the delay states over the operating frequency range. To the best of our knowledge, the proposed TTDL network obtains the most control bits among the TTDL networks offered to date.

Multi-fractured horizontal well (MFHW) technology is a key technology for developing unconventional reservoirs, which can generate a complex fracture network called a stimulated reservoir volume (SRV). Currently, there are many relative analytical models to describe the fluid seepage law, which are not suitable for volcanic reservoirs as of yet. The reasons are as follows: (1) due to the development of natural fractures, multi-scaled flow (matrix, natural fractures, SRV) should be considered to characterize MFHW flow in volcanic reservoirs; (2) non-Darcy flow and stress sensitivity should be considered simultaneously for seepage in volcanic reservoirs. Thus, this paper presents a novel MFHW analysis model of volcanic reservoirs that uses a multi-scale dual-porosity medium model and complex flow mechanisms. Laplace transformation, the Duhamel principle, the perturbation method and Stehfest numerical inversion are employed to solve the model to obtain dynamic pressure response curves. The results show that the pressure response curve can be divided into eight stages. Sensitivity analysis shows that the parameters of hydraulic fractures mainly affect the early flow stage. The parameters of the SRV region mainly affect the middle flow stage. The parameters of unreconstructed regions, non-Darcy flow and stress sensitivity mainly affect the late flow stage.

In the past, reservoir engineers used numerical simulation or reservoir engineering methods to predict oil production, and the accuracy of prediction depended more on the engineers’ own experience. With the development of data science, a new trend has arisen to use deep learning to predict oil production from the perspective of data. In this study, a hybrid forecasting model (CNN-LSTM) based on a convolutional neural network (CNN) and a Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) neural network is proposed and used to predict the production of fractured horizontal wells in volcanic reservoirs. The model solves the limitation of traditional methods that rely on personal experience. First, the production constraints and production data are used to form a feature space, and the abstract semantics of the feature time series are extracted through convolutional neural network, then the LSTM neural network is used to predict the time series. The certain hyperparameters of the whole model are optimized by Particle Swarm Optimization algorithm (PSO). In order to estimate the model, some production dynamics from the Xinjiang oilfield of China are used for comparative analysis. The experimental results show that the CNN-LSTM model is superior to traditional neural networks and conventional decline curves.

Haematopoietic lineage commitments are presented by a canonical roadmap in which haematopoietic stem cells or multipotent progenitors (MPPs) bifurcate into progenitors of more restricted lineages and ultimately mature to terminally differentiated cells. Although transcription factors playing significant roles in cell-fate commitments have been extensively studied, integrating such knowledge into the dynamic models to understand the underlying biological mechanism remains challenging. The hypothesis and modelling approach of the endogenous network has been developed previously and tested in various biological processes and is used in the present study of haematopoietic lineage commitments. The endogenous network is constructed based on the key transcription factors and their interactions that determine haematopoietic cell-fate decisions at each lineage branchpoint. We demonstrate that the process of haematopoietic lineage commitments can be reproduced from the landscape which orchestrates robust states of network dynamics and their transitions. Furthermore, some non-trivial characteristics are unveiled in the dynamical model. Our model also predicted previously under-represented regulatory interactions and heterogeneous MPP states by which distinct differentiation routes are intermediated. Moreover, network perturbations resulting in state transitions indicate the effects of ectopic gene expression on cellular reprogrammes. This study provides a predictive model to integrate experimental data and uncover the possible regulatory mechanism of haematopoietic lineage commitments.

During the test of microelectromechanical system (MEMS) devices, calibration of test cables, loads and test instruments is an indispensable step. Calibration kits with high accuracy, great operability and small loss can reduce the systematic errors in the test process to the greatest extent and improve the measurement accuracy. Aiming at the issues of the conventional discrete calibration piece unit, which presents cumbersome calibration steps and large system loss, an integrated electronic calibration chip based on frequency microelectromechanical system (RF MEMS) switches is designed and fabricated. The short-open-load-through (SOLT) calibration states can be completed on a single chip, step by step, by adjusting the on–off state of the RF MEMS switches. The simulation results show that the operating frequency of the electronic calibration piece covers the range of DC~26.5 GHz, the insertion loss in through (thru) state is less than 0.2 dB, the return loss is less than 1.0 dB in short-circuit and open-circuit states, the return loss under load-circuit state is less than 20 dB and its size is only 2.748 mm × 2.2 mm × 0.5 mm. This novel calibration chip design has certain esteem for advancing calibration exactness and effectiveness.

Although crop rotations have been widely shown as an effective approach for improving yield or soil quality in the long term, the relationship between crop rotations and quality traits of crop or biochar-based fertilization is still unclear. To address this, we conducted a long-term field experiment in the Heilongjiang province of China to investigate the effects of crop rotation and biochar-based fertilizer application on the crop yield, soil parameters, crop quality, and agronomic traits in 2014–2020. The effects of rotations on crop production and soil properties were evaluated with the average yield variability during the 7 years of this study. Our results showed that the diversified corn and soybean rotations had a significant positive effect on average crop yield compared with their monocultures. The corn yield was enhanced by 0.6 Mg ha−1 (5.4%) in the corn–soybean–corn (CSC) crop sequence compared with monoculture corn. Similarly, soybean yield was enhanced by 0.21 Mg ha−1 (9.7%) in the soybean–corn–corn (SCC) crop sequence compared with monoculture soybean. However, a negative effect of crop rotations was detected on the protein content of soybean compared with the monoculture soybean, while a positive effect was detected on oil content. Additionally, no differences were detected in crop yield between biochar-based fertilization and mineral fertilization treatments, but a significant positive effect of biochar-based fertilization was observed for any crop on both protein and oil content. A significant effect of crop rotation was found on the percentage of total soil N (TN), available soil N (AN), and available soil K (AK) content. The SSS crop sequence treatment illustrated the highest TN values at 0.18%. The CCC crop sequence treatment increased AN and AK content by 9.1% and 7.8%, respectively, compared with SSS (p < 0.05). We conclude that crop rotations increase crop yield and biochar-based fertilizer application, improving crop quality traits in the long term. Thus, the addition of biochar-based fertilizer could efficiently enhance the yield and quality of crop in the rotation cropping system. The findings of this study may provide useful information for designing sustainable cropping systems based on rotations.

The long-term application of sensors in a high-temperature environment needs to address several challenges, such as stability at high temperatures for a long time, better wiring interconnection of sensors, and reliable and steady connection of the sensor and its external equipment. In order to systematically investigate the reliability of thin coatings at high temperatures for a long time, Au and Cr layers were deposited on silicon substrates by magnetron sputtering. Additionally, samples with different electrode thicknesses were annealed at different temperatures for a varied duration to study the effect of electrode thickness, temperature, and duration on the reliability of samples. The results of tensile and probe tests before and after heat treatment revealed that the mechanical strength and electrical properties have changed after annealing. In addition, the bonding interface was analyzed by a cross-sectional electron microscope. The analysis showed that long-term continuous high-temperature exposure would result in thinning of the electrode, formation of pores, recrystallization, and grain growth, all of which can affect the mechanical strength and electrical properties. In addition, it was observed that increasing the thickness of the gold layer will improve reliability, and the test results show that although the thin metal layer sample is in poor condition, it is still usable. The present study provides theoretical support for the application of thin coatings in high temperatures and harsh environments.

Platinum is an ideal material for high-temperature resistant device packaging due to its higher melting point and good electrical properties. In this paper, the thermocompression bonding of Pt–Pt metal electrodes was successfully realized through process exploration, and the package interconnection that meets the requirements was formed. A square bump with a side length of 160 µm and a sealing ring with a width of 80 µm were fabricated by magnetron sputtering. Different pressure parameters were selected for chip-level bonding; the bonding temperature was 350 °C for about 20 min. Analysis of the interface under a scanning electron microscope found that the metal Cr diffused into Pt. It was found that two chips sputtered with 300 nm metal Pt can achieve shear resistance up to 30 MPa by flip-chip bonding at 350 °C and 100 MPa temperature and pressure, respectively. The leakage rate of the sample is less than 2 × 10–3 Pa·cm3/s, the bonding interface is relatively smooth, and the hot-pressed metal bonding of Pt electrodes with good quality is realized. By comparing the failure rates at different temperatures and pressures, the process parameters for Pt–Pt bonding with higher success rates were obtained. We hope to provide new ideas and methods for the packaging of high-temperature resistant devices.

Soil erosion of sloping farmland in the Miyun reservoir area in Beijing has become a serious issue and has threatened the ecological environment and safety of the reservoir area. We used the Taishizhuang Village Non-point Source Pollution Prevention & Control Base in the Miyun reservoir as a study area and performed a comparative analysis of the physicochemical properties of soil of the upper, middle, and lower slopes of the Scutellaria baicalensis + Buchloe dactyloides plot (Treatment 1, T1), Morus alba + Buchloe dactyloides plot (Treatment 2, T2), Salvia miltiorrhiza + Cynodon dactylon plot (Treatment 3, T3), Platycodon grandiflorus + Cynodon dactylon plot (T4), and a barren land control plot (Control check, CK), to explore how different hedgerow patterns affect the soil’s physicochemical properties, anti-erodibility, and fractal characteristics. We found the following: (1) The primary soil mechanical composition included sand particles in the upper slopes, whereas it was soil fine particles in the middle and lower slopes. (2) The fractal dimension of the slope soil showed a significant negative correlation with sand particles (R2 = 0.9791) while being positively correlated with silt particles (R2 = 0.9635) and clay particles (R2 = 0.9408). (3) All hedgerow patterns increased soil nutrients, with the Morus alba + Buchloe dactyloides hedgerow plot increasing the soil total nitrogen (STN), soil total phosphorus (STP), and soil organic matter (SOM) content by 213.89–282.69%, 55.56–58.15%, and 29.77–56.04%, respectively. (4) The Morus alba + Buchloe dactyloides hedgerow plot significantly decreased the soil erodibility factor K value, improved soil anti-erodibility, and reduced soil erosion. (5) The K value of the soil erodibility was significantly negatively correlated with clay particles, soil fractal dimension, and STP (p < 0.01); positively correlated with sand particles; and negatively correlated with silt particles, STN, and SOM. Therefore, the Morus alba + Buchloe dactyloides hedgerow planting contributes to clay particle conservation, soil nutrient content improvement, soil structure optimization, and soil anti-erodibility enhancement.

A chip-level hermetic package for a high-temperature graphene pressure sensor was investigated. The silicon cap, chip and substrate were stacked by Cu–Sn and Au–Au bonding to enable wide-range measurements while guaranteeing a high hermetic package. Prior to bonding, the sample was treated with Ar (5% H2) plasma. The Cu–Sn bonding was firstly performed at 260 °C for 15 min with a pressure of 9.9 MPa, and the corresponding process conditions for Au–Au bonding has increased to 300 °C, 20 min and 19.8 MPa respectively. The average shearing strength was 14.3 MPa, and an excellent leak rate of 1.72 × 10−4 Pa·cm3/s was also achieved. After high-temperature storage (HTS) at 350 °C for 10 h, the resistance of graphene decreased slightly because the dual bonding provided oxygen-free environment for graphene. The leakage rate of the device slightly increased to 2.1 × 10−4 Pa·cm3/s, and the average shear strength just decreased to 13.5 MPa. Finally, under the pressure range of 0–100 MPa, the graphene pressure sensor exhibited a high average sensitivity of 3.11 Ω/MPa. In conclusion, the dual bonding that combined Cu–Sn and Au–Au is extremely suitable for hermetic packaging in high-temperature graphene pressure sensors.

A graphene membrane acts as a highly sensitive element in a nano/micro–electro–mechanical system (N/MEMS) due to its unique physical and chemical properties. Here, a novel crossbeam structure with a graphene varistor protected by Si3N4 is presented for N/MEMS mechanical sensors. It substantially overcomes the poor reliability of previous sensors with suspended graphene and exhibits excellent mechanoelectrical coupling performance, as graphene is placed on the root of the crossbeam. By performing basic mechanical electrical measurements, a preferable gauge factor of ~1.35 is obtained. The sensitivity of the graphene pressure sensor based on the crossbeam structure chip is 33.13 mV/V/MPa in a wide range of 0~20 MPa. Other static specifications, including hysteresis error, nonlinear error, and repeatability error, are 2.0119%, 3.3622%, and 4.0271%, respectively. We conclude that a crossbeam structure with a graphene sensing element can be an application for the N/MEMS mechanical sensor.

Planting rice in saline–alkali land can effectively improve saline–alkali soil and increase grain yield, but traditional identification methods for saline–alkali-tolerant rice varieties require tedious and time-consuming field investigations based on growth indicators by rice breeders. In this study, the Python machine deep learning method was used to analyze the Raman molecular spectroscopy of rice and assist in feature attribution, in order to study a fast and efficient identification method of saline–alkali-tolerant rice varieties. A total of 156 Raman spectra of four rice varieties (two saline–alkali-tolerant rice varieties and two saline–alkali-sensitive rice varieties) were analyzed, and the wave crests were extracted by an improved signal filtering difference method and the feature information of the wave crest was automatically extracted by scipy.signal.find_peaks. Select K Best (SKB), Recursive Feature Elimination (RFE) and Select F Model (SFM) were used to select useful molecular features. Based on these feature selection methods, a Logistic Regression Model (LRM) and Random Forests Model (RFM) were established for discriminant analysis. The experimental results showed that the RFM identification model based on the RFE method reached a higher recognition rate of 89.36%. According to the identification results of RFM and the identification of feature attribution materials, amylum was the most significant substance in the identification of saline–alkali-tolerant rice varieties. Therefore, an intelligent method for the identification of saline–alkali-tolerant rice varieties based on Raman molecular spectroscopy is proposed.

Abstract Background Identifying the interactions between proteins and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) is of great importance to decipher the functional mechanisms of lncRNAs. However, current experimental techniques for detection of lncRNA-protein interactions are limited and inefficient. Many methods have been proposed to predict protein-lncRNA interactions, but few studies make use of the topological information of heterogenous biological networks associated with the lncRNAs. Results In this work, we propose a novel approach, PLIPCOM, using two groups of network features to detect protein-lncRNA interactions. In particular, diffusion features and HeteSim features are extracted from protein-lncRNA heterogenous network, and then combined to build the prediction model using the Gradient Tree Boosting (GTB) algorithm. Our study highlights that the topological features of the heterogeneous network are crucial for predicting protein-lncRNA interactions. The cross-validation experiments on the benchmark dataset show that PLIPCOM method substantially outperformed previous state-of-the-art approaches in predicting protein-lncRNA interactions. We also prove the robustness of the proposed method on three unbalanced data sets. Moreover, our case studies demonstrate that our method is effective and reliable in predicting the interactions between lncRNAs and proteins. Availability The source code and supporting files are publicly available at: http://denglab.org/PLIPCOM/.

Synthetic dyes have caused serious ecological and environmental threats in our daily lives. Effective and inexpensive dye-degradation methods are desperately perused for decades. In this work, ultrasonic-vibration treatment is found as an effective approach that can dramatically improve the degradation performance of industrial Fe78Si9B13 amorphous powders towards methylene blue. As demonstrated by synchrotron X-ray nano-computed tomography and scanning electron microscope combined with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, the micro-channels on the surface or inside of Fe78Si9B13 particles offer a shortcut for fast mass transfer and supply plenty of reactive sites with low density and high energy due to the structural rejuvenation after ultrasonic vibration. It leads to the reduction of the reaction activation energy of degradation under the pseudo-first-order kinetic model and an exceptional decomposition capacity. Our work not only extremely drives down the current costs of wastewater treatments, but also provides a promising approach for tuning the effectivity of alloying catalysts via manipulating the potential energy state of metallic glasses based on the high-frequency mechanical vibration technique.

The study and accurate prediction of the movement of overburden rock mass and surface subsidence are crucial for a safe production in metal mines. This study investigates the relationship between the movement laws of overlaying strata and the time space of a mined-out volume using Rock Failure Process Analysis (RFPA) System. Furthermore, the movement, deformation, and failure laws of overlaying strata are examined in different positions when a goaf volume is certain and the failure behavior of the overlaying strata. This study analyzes the similarities and differences of the overlaying strata comparatively. Results show that, regardless of the movement range or subsidence value of the overlying rock mass, a power function relationship is observed between them and working face advancement. Setting the equation shows that the scope of the overlying rock mass is significant when the ratio of a certain position distance roof to the working face distance is small. The results provide a reference for controlling the displacement of the overlying rock mass and treating goaf.

The surrounding rock structure plane survey is the basis for mine geological structure evaluation and stability of surrounding rock. On the basis of the unascertained measurement theory and scanline method, the surrounding rock stability of the underground geological structure plane in Lingbao Luoshan Gold Mine is evaluated. First, according to the structural plane five grading standards, the 9 single-index measure functions are constructed. Second, the information entropy is used to determine the weight of each indicator. Accordingly, a multi-index comprehensive measure evaluation vector is established. Finally, the confidence level is used to determine the structural plane stability level. Results show that surrounding rock grades of middle sections of R1, R2, and R3 are Grades III, IV, and IV in Lingbao Luoshan Gold Mine, respectively. The evaluation grade is consistent with the actual situation of the mine, and strengthening the surrounding rock support for the middle sections of R2 and R3 is necessary. According to engineering practice, the evaluation model of the underground structure of metal mines established in this study has a practical value.

Copper nanoparticles (Cu NPs) fabricated by physical vapor deposition (PVD) were introduced in Cu-Cu bonding as surface modification. The bonding structure with Ti adhesive/barrier layer and Cu substrate layer was fabricated on both surfaces first. Loose structure with Cu NPs was then deposited by magnetron sputtering in a high pressure environment. Solid state Cu-Cu bonding process was accomplished at 200°C for 3min under the pressure of 20MPa. Die shear test was carried out and an average bonding strength of 36.75MPa was achieved. The analysis of fracture surface revealed a high-reliability bonding structure. According to cross-sectional observations, a void-free intermediate Cu layer with thickness around 10nm was obtained. These results demonstrated that a reliable low temperature time-saving Cu-Cu bonding was realized by Cu NPs between the bonding pairs. This novel bonding method might be one of the most attractive techniques in the application of ultra-fine pitch 3D integration.

Temperature is a significant factor in the application of graphene-based pressure sensors. The influence of temperature on graphene pressure sensors is twofold: an increase in temperature causes the substrates of graphene pressure sensors to thermally expand, and thus, the graphene membrane is stretched, leading to an increase in the device resistance; an increase in temperature also causes a change in the graphene electrophonon coupling, resulting in a decrease in device resistance. To investigate which effect dominates the influence of temperature on the pressure sensor based on the graphene–boron nitride (BN) heterostructure proposed in our previous work, the temperature characteristics of two BN/graphene/BN heterostructures with and without a microcavity beneath them were analyzed in the temperature range 30–150 °C. Experimental results showed that the resistance of the BN/graphene/BN heterostructure with a microcavity increased with the increase in temperature, and the temperature coefficient was up to 0.25%°C−1, indicating the considerable influence of thermal expansion in such devices. In contrast, with an increase in temperature, the resistance of the BN/graphene/BN heterostructure without a microcavity decreased with a temperature coefficient of −0.16%°C−1. The linearity of the resistance change rate (ΔR/R)–temperature curve of the BN/graphene/BN heterostructure without a microcavity was better than that of the BN/graphene/BN heterostructure with a microcavity. These results indicate that the influence of temperature on the pressure sensors based on BN/graphene/BN heterostructures should be considered, especially for devices with pressure microcavities. BN/graphene/BN heterostructures without microcavities can be used as high-performance temperature sensors.

A composite material based on polyethylene terephthalate (PET, about 1% by mass) and Al85Y8Ni5Co2 metallic glass was obtained by mechanical alloying and consequent spark plasma sintering. The spark plasma sintering was performed at a temperature near to the super cooled liquid region of the metallic glass. Mechanical properties and the structural characterization of the composite material were obtained. It was conceived that composite samples (Al85Y8Ni5Co2/PET) have a better thermal conductivity in comparison with pure PET samples. The formation of the crystalline phases causes degradation of physical properties. It was calculated that the activation energy for crystallization of the Al85Ni5Y8Co2 metallic glass is higher than that of the other types of metallic glasses (Mg67.5Ca5Zn27.5 and Cu54Pd28P18) used for composite preparation previously. This denotes a good thermal stability of the chosen metallic glass.

In primates, high-acuity vision is mediated by the fovea, a small specialized central region of the retina. The fovea, unique to the anthropoid lineage among mammals, undergoes notable neuronal morphological changes during postnatal maturation. However, the extent of cellular similarity across anthropoid foveas and the molecular underpinnings of foveal maturation remain unclear. Here, we used high-throughput single-cell RNA sequencing to profile retinal cells of the common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus), an early divergent in anthropoid evolution from humans, apes, and macaques. We generated atlases of the marmoset fovea and peripheral retina for both neonates and adults. Our comparative analysis revealed that marmosets share almost all their foveal types with both humans and macaques, highlighting a conserved cellular structure among primate foveas. Furthermore, by tracing the developmental trajectory of cell types in the foveal and peripheral retina, we found distinct maturation paths for each. In-depth analysis of gene expression differences demonstrated that cone photoreceptors and Müller glia (MG), among others, show the greatest molecular divergence between these two regions. Utilizing single-cell ATAC-seq and gene-regulatory network inference, we uncovered distinct transcriptional regulations differentiating foveal cones from their peripheral counterparts. Further analysis of predicted ligand-receptor interactions suggested a potential role for MG in supporting the maturation of foveal cones. Together, these results provide valuable insights into foveal development, structure, and evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]