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A bilinear map whose domain and target sets are identical is called a self-bilinear map. Original self-bilinear maps are defined over cyclic groups. Since the map itself reveals information about the underlying cyclic group, the Decisional Diffie–Hellman Problem (DDH) and the computational Diffie–Hellman (CDH) problem may be solved easily in some specific groups. This brings a lot of limitations to constructing secure self-bilinear schemes. As a compromise, a self-bilinear map with auxiliary information was proposed in CRYPTO'2014. In this paper, we construct this weak variant of a self-bilinear map from generic sets and indistinguishable obfuscation. These sets should own several properties. A new notion, One Way Encoding System (OWES), is proposed to summarize these properties. The new Encoding Division Problem (EDP) is defined to complete the security proof. The OWES can be built by making use of one level of graded encoding systems (GES). To construct a concrete self-bilinear map scheme, Garg, Gentry, and Halvei(GGH13) GES is adopted in our work. Even though the security of GGH13 was recently broken by Hu et al., their algorithm does not threaten our applications. At the end of this paper, some further considerations for the EDP for concrete construction are given to improve the confidence that EDP is indeed hard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Depression is a kind of emotional disorders caused by a variety of factors, with the accelerating pace of life, people in life and work facing competition pressure is increasing, the incidence of depression is increasing year by year, so the in-depth study of the pathogenesis of depression, and the development of depression risk prediction model is becoming increasingly important. Method: This study data is derived from the 2017-2018 follow-up data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey database, a publicly available database using a multi-stage, hierarchical, clustered, probability sampling design to determine a nationally representative sample of non-institutionalized US civilians. Participants completed home interviews, laboratory measurements, and a physical examination. Details of the survey design have been published previously. This study evaluated the risk factors for the occurrence of depression from this study from multiple variables such as age, sex, and combined complications. Four machine learning algorithms (logistic regression, Lasso regression, support vector machine, random forest) were used to establish predictive classification models and compare the area under the subject operating feature curve and accuracy. The dataset was validated using a 10-fold cross-validation. Result: We excluded the invalid samples for 815 included samples, of which 570 cases were divided into the validation set and 245 cases were divided into the training set. The area under the curve (AUC) of Nomogram establishing risk of depression based on logistic regression was 0.73. Among the three machine learning models, the Lasso regression-based model AUC was 0.548, a mean AUC for support vector machines was 0.695, and a random forest AUC of 0.613. The support vector machines-based model predicted the best performance compared to other machine models. Conclusion: Random forest-based prediction models are able to assist clinicians in providing decision support when it is difficult to give an exact diagnosis. The model has good clinical utility and facilitates clinicians to identify high-risk patients and perform individualized treatment. The established four models of logistic regression, Lasso regression, support vector machine, and random forest all have good predictive power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The helium coolant in the primary circuit of the high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) contains traces of impurities, which can induce the corrosion of superalloys when exposed to elevated temperatures. The superalloy damage caused by the corrosion could threaten the safe operation of the reactor. In this work, the corrosion behavior of a representative superalloy (chromium-rich iron base alloy Incoloy 800H) was investigated under the impure helium at different typical temperatures of HTGR. An experimental setup developed for studying the high-temperature corrosion of superalloys was used to investigate the chemical reactions and corrosion behaviors of Incoloy 800H. It was found that CO2 is an important oxygen source in the reaction with chromium, and CO is released as the product. In addition, the observation and computation of the critical temperature (TC) of the reaction between CO2 and carbon in the alloy show that TC is much lower than that (TA) of the microclimate reaction, which indicates that CO2 can protect the scale from destruction. Furthermore, the slight decarbonization of the alloy was found above TC. Also, a model developed by the thermodynamic analysis was proposed to explain the mechanism of slight decarbonization and predict the critical temperature when the CO2-C reaction occurs. This work presents a guideline for protecting the oxide scale of superalloys used in HTGR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"Anode‐less" sodium metal batteries (SMBs) with high energy may become the next‐generation batteries due to the abundant resources. However, their cycling performance is still insufficient for practical uses. Herein, a metal organic frameworks (MOF)‐derived copper‐carbon (Cu@C) composite is developed as a sodiophilic layer to improve the Coulombic efficiency (CE) and cycle life. The Cu particles can provide abundant nucleation sites to spatially guide Na deposition and the carbon framework offer void volume to avoid volume changes during the plating/stripping process. As a result, Cu@C‐coated copper and aluminum foils (denoted as Cu‐Cu@C and Al‐Cu@C foil) can be used as efficient current collectors for sodium plating/stripping, achieving, nearly 1600 and 240 h operation upon cycling at 0.5 mA cm−2 and 1 mA h cm−2, respectively. In situ dilatometry measurements demonstrate that Cu@C promotes the formation of dense Na deposits, thereby inhibiting side reactions, dendrite growth, and accumulation of dead Na. Such current collectors are employed in Na metal cells using carbon‐coated Na3V2(PO4)3 (NVP/C) and copper selenides (Cu2‐xSe@C) cathodes, achieving outstanding rate capability and improved cycling performance. Most noticeably, "anode‐less" Na batteries using Al‐Cu@C as anode and NVP/C as cathode demonstrate promising CE as high as 99.5%, and long‐term cycling life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Twelve new specimens of sporidesmium-like taxa were collected from freshwater habitats in China and Thailand. Phylogenetic analysis of nuc 28S rDNA (LSU), internal transcribed spacer (ITS), translation elongation factor 1-alpha (TEF1-α) and second-largest subunit of RNA polymerase II (RPB2) sequence data, combined with morphological data, revealed that they are Distoseptispora species. Among them, six new species, including D. aqualignicola, D. aquamyces, D. crassispora, D. curvularia, D. nonrostrata and D. pachyconidia, are introduced. Two new combinations, D. adscendens and D. leonensis, are transferred from Ellisembia. A new habitat and geographical record are reported for D. clematidis, collected from a freshwater habitat in China. New RPB2 sequence data for D. dehongensis are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, an enterprise financial risk indicator system is established to warn about the financial risk of enterprises. First, the related knowledge of financial risk and its measurement is introduced. Next, the financial risk indicator system of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is established based on back propagation neural network (BPNN). The rough set theory is adopted to simplify the indicator. Finally, the BPNN model is used to predict the financial situation of SMEs. The results show that in the 490th iteration, the performance of the BPNN-based financial risk early warning system for SMEs can reach the optimal and meet the accuracy requirements of initialization. The error of the enterprise financial risk early warning model converges to the target error, so the calculation result is credible. The actual output after training is close to the expected output. By judging the actual output value, it can be known that the financial risk status of SMEs in 2016, 2017 and 2018 is of low alarm. This exploration has a certain preventive effect on the financial risk of enterprises and provides a basis for the rapid development of enterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To systematically evaluate the efficacy, safety, recovery speed, and long-term visual quality of excimer laser corneal refractive surgery and to provide evidence-based medicine for the promotion and use of excimer laser corneal refractive surgery. Methods. Randomized controls on excimer laser refractive surgery in Web of science, PubMed, EMBASE, ScienceDirect, Cochrane Library, China Knowledge Network (CNKI), China VIP Database, Wan Fang Database, and China Biomedical Literature Database (CBM) were searched by the computer. Randomized controlled trial (RCT) data were extracted independently by two researchers, and the risk of bias of each included RCT was assessed according to the Cochrane Handbook 5.1.0 criteria. Meta-analysis of the collected data was performed using RevMan5.4 statistical software. Results. In the end, 9 high-quality literatures were included, with a total of 4366 samples, and meta-analysis was used. There was no significant difference in uncorrected visual acuity WMD after excimer laser keratorefractive surgery, but there was a statistically significant difference in WMD in the safety of excimer laser keratorefractive surgery. The results of uncorrected visual acuity (close) indicated the following: Chi2 = 13.56, DF = 5, P = 0.02, and I2 = 100%; the results of uncorrected visual acuity (distance) indicated the following: Chi2 = 34.44, DF =5 (P < 00000), and I2 = 85%; the results of best corrected visual acuity (myopia) indicated the following: Chi2 = 0.65, DF = 3, P = 088 > 0.05, and I2 = 0%; the results of best corrected visual acuity (hyperopia) indicated the following: Chi2 = 1.80, DF = 3, P = 0.61 > 0.05, and I2 = 0%. Conclusion. Excimer laser corneal refractive surgery is safe and effective, with faster recovery and better long-term visual acuity treatment effect. However, more studies and follow-up with higher methodological quality and longer intervention time are needed for further validation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei (EHP) and Vibrio parahaemolyticus acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (VPAHPND) are two of the diseases that have frequently infected farmed shrimp in recent years, causing great economic losses to the shrimp industry worldwide. In this study, we established a sensitive and accurate duplex droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) method that can simultaneously detect and quantify the two pathogens simultaneously. The results showed that the ddPCR methods could detect EHP and VPAHPND specifically. The sensitivity levels of ddPCR for EHP and VPAHPND were 2.3 copies/μl and 4.6 copies/μl, respectively, which were 10‐fold higher than the sensitivity of the qPCR assay and showed good reproducibility. Twenty‐six suspected diseased shrimp samples were used for practical determination. For EHP, the detection rates of ddPCR and qPCR were 53.84% and 42.31%, respectively; for VPAHPND, the detection rates of ddPCR and qPCR were both 23.08%. The results indicated that the ddPCR method shows superiority for detection in samples with low viral loads, which will facilitate monitoring of the source and transmission of EHP and VPAHPND and will help control shrimp epidemic disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the application of higher and higher power density IC in power driver circuits, an efficient modeling method of thermal design and heat dissipation is desired. In this paper, the printed circuit board (PCB) heat dissipation without heat-sink is discussed. Firstly, the thermal resistance of PCB thermal via array is analytically modeled. Then, the optimal via diameter and number are found in a limited area for minimum thermal resistance. Secondly, the radial temperature distribution is analyzed and a method of designing a proper copper pad for heat dissipation under the design power is posed. Finally, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations are developed to verify the posed model and method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Aqueous rechargeable batteries offer a safe alternative for electrochemical energy storage, integrating cost-efficiency and energy density to meet the demand for stationary applications. Recent efforts have focused on the improvement of electrode materials in aqueous electrolytes, particularly the cycle life and energy reliability of batteries. The anion intercalation chemistry in graphite could be an alternative cathode candidate, often requiring an upper cut-off potential above 4.5 V vs. Li+/Li. Such a potential readily exceeds the electrochemical stability windows of water-based electrolytes. Herein, we provide a progress report and critical comment on the reversible intercalation chemistry in graphite compounds, i.e. , anion and halogen intercalations, for the development of economical, high-energy aqueous rechargeable batteries. In addition, this review focuses on the charge carrier species, their charge storage mechanisms and battery configurations, aiming to provide solutions to solve the remaining key challenges for aqueous batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abrupt capacity fade can have a significant impact on performance and safety in battery applications. To address concerns arising from possible knee occurrence, this work aims for a better understanding of their cause by introducing a new definition of capacity knees and their onset. A curvature-based identification of a knee and its onset is proposed, which relies on the discovery of a distinctly fluctuating behavior in the transition between an initial and a final stable acceleration of the degradation. The method is validated on experimental degradation data of two different battery chemistries, synthetic degradation data, and is also benchmarked to the state-of-the-art knee identification method in the literature. The results demonstrate that our proposed method could successfully identify capacity knees when the state-of-the-art knee identification method failed. Furthermore, a significantly strong correlation is found between knee and end of life (EoL) and almost equally strong between knee onset and EoL. As the method does not require the full capacity fade curve, this opens up online knee-onset identification as well as knee and EoL prediction. [Display omitted] • A curvature approximation method to measure the rate of capacity fade is proposed. • A new oscillatory degradation phenomenon is discovered. • The oscillatory degradation phenomenon is used to identify knee and knee-onset. • The method outperforms the state-of-the-art method on both synthetic and real data. • The method can be used for online knee-onset identification and knee prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Starch a natural polymer, has made significant advancements in recent decades, offering superior performance and versatility compared to synthetic materials. This review discusses up-to-date diverse applications of starch gels, their fabrication techniques, and their advantages over synthetic materials. Starch gels renewability, biocompatibility, biodegradability, scalability, and affordability make them attractive. Also, advanced theoretical foundations and emerging industrial technologies could further expand their scope and functions inspiring new applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The carburization and tensile behavior of Alloy 617 corroded at 950 °C for 100 h in the impure helium containing methane were investigated. In helium containing 20 ppm CH 4 , Alloy 617 exhibited slight carburization and held its plasticity. However, in helium containing 200 ppm CH 4 , Alloy 617 was carburized to a depth of over 20 % and lost plasticity. In addition, the stress-strain curves in the plastic phase at room temperature exhibited a serrated flow phenomenon in both two environments, primarily caused by dynamic interactions between carbide-induced crack pinning and stress-concentration-induced crack unpinning. [Display omitted] • Accurate control and real-time detection of gas levels in the ppm range are achieved in this study. • The decomposition of methane at 950 °C is only related to itself and is not affected by the alloy. Carburization occurs only when free carbon from methane decomposition is deposited on the surface of the alloy. • The microstructure of Alloy 617 exhibited dramatic differences in the environments containing different levels of CH 4 , with a relatively smooth surface when the CH 4 content was 20 ppm, but a rough surface covered by a large amount of carbon and carbide when the content increased to 200 ppm. • The ductility of Alloy 617 is highly sensitive to the CH 4 content. The fracture mode of the alloy shifted from ductile fracture to brittle cleavage fracture when the content of methane increased from 20 ppm to 200 ppm. • Alloy 617 showed stress serrations in the plastic deformation stage at room temperature. The main reason for this phenomenon may be the dynamic interaction between carbide-induced crack pinning and stress concentration-induced crack debonding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Doxorubicin (DOX) is an effective anti-tumor drug accompanied with many side effects, especially heart injury. To explore what effects of sophocarpine (SOP) on DOX-induced heart injury, this study conducted in vivo experiment and in vitro experiment, and the C57BL/6J mice and the H9C2 cells were used. The experimental methods used included echocardiography, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), dihydroethidium (DHE) staining, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) staining, western blotting and so on. Echocardiography showed that SOP alleviated DOX-induced cardiac dysfunction, as evidenced by the improvements of left ventricle ejection fraction and left ventricle fractional shortening. DOX caused upregulations of creatine kinase (CK), creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), while SOP reduced these indices. The relevant stainings showed that SOP reversed the increases of total superoxide level induced by DOX. DOX also contribute to a higher level of MDA and lower levels of SOD and GSH, but these changes were suppressed by SOP. DOX increased the pro-oxidative protein level of NOX-4 while decreased the anti-oxidative protein level of SOD-2, but SOP reversed these effects. In addition, this study further discovered that SOP inhibited the decreases of Nrf2 and HO-1 levels induced by DOX. The TUNEL staining revealed that SOP reduced the high degree of apoptosis induced by DOX. Besides, pro-apoptosis proteins like Bax, cleaved-caspase-3 and cytochrome-c upregulated while anti-apoptosis protein like Bcl-2 downregulated when challenged by DOX, but them were suppressed by SOP. These findings suggested that SOP could alleviate DOX-induced heart injury by suppressing oxidative stress and apoptosis, with molecular mechanism activating of the Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wässrige wiederaufladbare Batterien sind eine zentrale Technologie für die Realisierung erneuerbarer Energiequellen. Sie versprechen, den Anforderungen stationärer Speicheranwendungen in Bezug auf Kosteneffizienz und Leistung gerecht zu werden. In den letzten zehn Jahren lag der Fokus der Bemühungen auf der Verbesserung von Elektrodenmaterialien und ihrer Anwendung in hochkonzentrierten Elektrolyten. Dieser Aufsatz beleuchtet die neuesten Erkenntnisse zu diesen Elektrolyten und deren wässrigen Batteriesystemen, die eine erhöhte Energiedichte, Zyklenfestigkeit und Sicherheit bieten. Es wird eine aktuelle Zusammenfassung der vorgeschlagenen Strategien zur Überwindung der noch bestehenden Herausforderungen bei konzentrierten wässrigen Elektrolyten präsentiert. Der Fokus liegt dabei auf wässrigen Batteriesystemen mit Lithium und Post‐Lithium‐Ansätzen, die verbesserte Energiedichten infolge einzigartiger Vorteile konzentrierter Elektrolyten bieten. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aqueous rechargeable batteries are becoming increasingly important to the development of renewable energy sources, because they promise to meet cost‐efficiency, energy and power demands for stationary applications. Over the past decade, efforts have been devoted to the improvement of electrode materials and their use in combination with highly concentrated aqueous electrolytes. Here the latest ground‐breaking advances in using such electrolytes to construct aqueous battery systems efficiently storing electrical energy, i.e. offering improved energy density, cyclability and safety, are highlighted. This Review aims to timely provide a summary of the strategies proposed so far to overcome the still existing hurdles limiting the present aqueous batteries technologies employing concentrated electrolytes. Emphasis is placed on aqueous batteries for lithium and post‐lithium chemistries, with potentially improved energy density, resulting from the unique advantages of concentrated electrolytes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Meige syndrome is a rare neurological disease characterized by segmental dystonia, specifically blepharospasm and oromandibular dystonia. These symptoms are often accompanied by complex movements of the eyelids, lower facial muscles, mandible, and neck muscles. Bilateral blepharospasm is the most common feature of this disease. In this case report, we present the successful treatment of refractory blepharospasm in a 72-year-old woman with Meige syndrome via 2 incisions resulting from myectomy and in situ surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For residential buildings with radiator heating system, the supply temperature is conventionally adjusted by weather compensator, which results in large fluctuations in the indoor air temperature and high energy consumption of heating. The solutions on current researches mainly focus on heat prediction of demand side, so that the supply temperature can be adjusted according to the predicted heat demand and achieve a heat balance. However, this requires a significant amount of historical data, which limits their applicability. And the lack of pre-simulation platform of the new strategies makes their practical application more difficult. In this paper, a digital twinning of secondary district heating system (DHS) is created, which considers both human behavior and radiator heat dissipation characteristics. A new supply temperature regulate strategy based on indoor temperature feedback is proposed. It contains an indoor temperature prediction model, which require a small amount of measured data and can keep the prediction error within ± 0.6 °C. The control effects are analyzed by comparing the proposed regulation strategy with the weather compensator. The result shows that the new temperature regulate strategy is superior to the weather compensator in maintaining indoor temperature and can save energy by 5.4%. • The simulation test bed of radiator heating system for multi-family buildings. • The accurate indoor temperature predictive model. • Energy saving rate is 5.4% compared with weather compensator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An open source software (Aerosol and Air Quality Research Lab-Aerosol Dynamics Model, AAQRL-ADM) used for aerosol dynamics simulations is developed by including four models: discrete, discrete-sectional, method of moments, and modal. First, the mathematical description of these models as well as the effects of aerosol dynamics available in the software are reviewed, and a modal model is developed to use multiple modes to represent particle size spectrum. Second, the design of a working principle and user graphical interface (GUI) of AAQRL-ADM is described. Third, the models in AAQRL-ADM are validated by investigating the evolution of particle size distribution (PSD) in considering the effects of coagulation, condensation, and nucleation. Next, the trade-off between simulation accuracy and numerical efficiency is discussed for all of the four models, and a guide to choosing the appropriate aerosol dynamic model in practical simulation is presented. Finally, discrete-sectional, moment, and modal models are used to investigate the particle size distribution in a furnace aerosol reactor along a streamline, coupled with the velocity and temperature profiles. AAQRL-ADM is provided free of charge for the use of public researchers. Copyright © 2020 American Association for Aerosol Research [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the electrochemical power sources community has launched massive research programs, conferences, and workshops on the "post Li battery era." However, in this report it is shown that the quest for post Li‐ion and Li battery technologies is incorrect in its essence. This is the outcome of a three day discussion on the future technologies that could provide an answer to a question that many ask these days: Which are the technologies that can be regarded as alternative to Li‐ion batteries? The answer to this question is a rather surprising one: Li‐ion battery technology will be here for many years to come, and therefore the use of "post Li‐ion" battery technologies would be misleading. However, there are applications with needs for which Li‐ion batteries will not be able to provide complete technological solutions, as well as lower cost and sustainability. In these specific cases, other battery technologies will play a key role. Here, the term "side‐by‐side technologies" is coined alongside a discussion of its meaning. The progress report does not cover the topic of Li‐metal battery technologies, but covers the technologies of sodium‐ion, multivalent, metal–air, and flow batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although plasmas commonly present as electrical neutrality, for plasma jet plume at atmospheric gas pressure, it might appear nonneutral polarity due to plasma bullet being consisted of a large amount of electron avalanches. In this paper, the polarity transition and the ionization enhancement of atmospheric argon plasma jet plumes generated by the repetitive microwave pulses are studied. Three interesting phenomena have been found despite of discharges either with or without the hairpin metal wire, including: 1) a potential voltage pulse with positive polarity invariably arises steeply at each moment of power on; 2) high-speed photograph images show that there are ionization enhancements happened twice in each pulsed periods; and 3) ahead of the confluence point, the polarity transits from negative to positive while behind of this point, its positive polarity changes into the negative one. Moreover, the experiment results and electromagnetic simulations suggest that the theories of guided negative ionization wave and microwave resonant discharge excited by surface plasma polaritons should be used to interpret the spatial–temporal discharge process of the proposed microwave plasma jets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A single drop with different Weber number impacting on a static liquid film of different thickness is recorded by a high-speed camera. • A series of image pre-processing procedures are performed to detect and extract the secondary droplets from the image. • The evolution of the secondary droplet number, diameter and velocity are carried out. • The effect of Weber number and the dimensionless film thickness on the features of the secondary droplets is investigated. In this paper, an experimental study of the generation of secondary droplets produced by a single droplet impacting on a static liquid film is studied. Different factors are investigated through a high-speed camera at 5000 fps, such as the Weber number of the falling droplet, and the dimensionless liquid film thickness. Several technics are used to improve the image quality to detect the secondary droplets. Especially, a particle tracking algorithm is developed to calculate the velocity distribution of the secondary droplets. The influence of time, Weber number and dimensionless film thickness on the number, diameter and velocity distribution of the secondary droplets are performed. The results show that as time increases, the number of the secondary droplets rises up in the dimensionless time with the range of 0 < τ < 2, then decreases during the rest time regardless the Weber number and the dimensionless film thickness. The maximum value of the diameter distribution of the secondary droplets becomes higher, and the range of the velocity distribution becomes narrower over time. As increasing the Weber number, the number of secondary droplets grows up, as well as the peak value of the diameter distribution. Also, the increase of Weber number has a slight effect on the width of the velocity distribution of the secondary droplets. The results also show that, after the droplets impacting on liquid film with different thickness, the number of the secondary droplets changes little at different film thickness. Additionally, the dimensionless film thickness does not have a strong effect on the diameter distribution or the velocity distribution of the secondary droplets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, point cloud representation has become one of the research hotspots in the field of computer vision, and has been widely used in many fields, such as autonomous driving, virtual reality, robotics, etc. Although deep learning techniques have achieved great success in processing regular structured 2D grid image data, there are still great challenges in processing irregular, unstructured point cloud data. Point cloud classification is the basis of point cloud analysis, and many deep learning-based methods have been widely used in this task. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to provide researchers in this field with the latest research progress and future trends. First, we introduce point cloud acquisition, characteristics, and challenges. Second, we review 3D data representations, storage formats, and commonly used datasets for point cloud classification. We then summarize deep learning-based methods for point cloud classification and complement recent research work. Next, we compare and analyze the performance of the main methods. Finally, we discuss some challenges and future directions for point cloud classification. • We first give a detailed introduction to the 3D data and make a deeper interpretation of the point cloud for the reader's understanding, and then give the datasets used for point cloud classification and their acquisition methods. • We summarize recently published research on point cloud classification reviews, building on which to complement state-of-the-art research methods. • We discuss the advantages and limitations of subcategories of methods based on their classification. This classification is more suitable for researchers to explore these methods on actual needs. • We give the evaluation metrics and performance comparisons of the methods, and then analyze some current challenges and future trends in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• High temperature oxidation experiments and characterization analysis were carried out for three kinds of superalloys under extreme air ingress accident. The oxidation rate index n and parabolic rate constant k of the three superalloys are calculated, which provides a reference for air ingress accident of VHTR steam generator in engineering. • The relationship between k p and k t is discussed. For superalloys with similar oxide layer density, when almost all the weight gain of the alloy comes from oxidation, L is related to the internal oxidation rate of the alloy. The higher the L , the higher the internal oxidation rate and the more obvious the internal oxidation degree. Inconel 617 alloy, Incoloy 800H alloy and Hastelloy X alloy are three alternative superalloys for heat transfer tubes used in the steam generator (SG) in the very high temperature gas cooled reactors (VHTR). In this paper, the oxidation kinetics of isothermal oxidation of three superalloys in the circulating air at 950 ℃ during the air ingress accident is investigated. Oxidation kinetic parameters of superalloys, such as the oxidation rate indexes (n p and n t), mass parabola rate constant (k p) and oxide layer thickness parabola rate constant (k t) are calculated by the experimental data. In addition, tested samples of superalloys were analyzed by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results show that these three superalloys exhibit parabolic oxidation behavior in air atmosphere. The oxidation behavior of Incoloy 800H alloy is closer to the cubic oxidation law as time increases. The mass gain of three alloys does not fully match with the growth law of the oxide layer, which should be attributed to the internal oxidation degree of the alloy. The arithmetic square root of k p and k t , L , are proposed to quantify the internal oxidation degree. And the L of Inconel 617 alloy is the largest compared to Inconel 800H alloy and Hastelloy X alloy. This work is helpful to explain the behavior of oxidation of superalloys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Effect of impurity ratios on the high temperature corrosion is important. • The higher P H2 / P H2O ratio would decrease the oxidation ability of gas. • The higher P CH4 / P H2O ratio would cause severe carburization for alloy. • The guidance on impurity ratio control for HTGR could be established. Helium is utilized to be the coolant of the high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR), which contains trace impurities in the primary circuit. The impurities may cause various corrosion behaviors of superalloys at elevated temperatures. In this study, the oxidation and carburization of Inconel 617 and Incoloy 800H at 950 °C in impure helium were investigated. According to thermodynamics and kinetics, the different ratios P H2 / P H2O and P CH4 / P H2O were set in this research, which leads to different oxidation and carburization behaviors of alloys at 950 °C. When P H2O is at a constant concentration, high P H2 would reduce the oxidation capacity of the atmosphere, and high P CH4 will cause severe carburization. Due to the presence of the silicon oxide interlayer, the oxide layer of Incoloy 800H has poor adhesion and it is easier to be destroyed at high temperatures. It may be the reason that Incoloy 800H has weaker resistance to carburization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Six reformer inlet parameters like the helium inlet temperature (T 3 i n l e t) and flow rate (F 3 i n l e t), process gas inlet temperature (T 2 i n l e t) and pressure (P 2 i n l e t), process gas inlet flow rate (F 2 i n l e t) and steam to carbon ratio (S) are considered. • Reformer performance characteristics coupled with HTR-10 including the methane conversion rate (X C H 4) , carbon monoxide conversion rate (X CO) , thermal efficiency (η) are analyzed. • Relative errors of the methane conversion rate X C H 4 between the calculation results and the reported values are less than 5.40%. In this paper, the heat and mass transfer characteristics of the steam methane reforming (SMR) hydrogen production performances using HTR-10 are analyzed. The hydrogen production performances includes the methane conversion rate (X CH4), carbon monoxide conversion rate (X CO), thermal efficiency (η) are evaluated. In addition, the reformer inlet parameters includes the helium inlet temperature (T 3inlet), flow rate (F 3inlet), process gas inlet temperature (T 2inlet), pressure (P 2inlet), process gas inlet flow rate (F 2inlet) and steam to carbon ratio (S) are considered. Based on the reformer performance parameters (including X CH4 or η or X CO), reformer inlet parameters (like F 2inlet , F 3inlet , T 2inlet , T 3inlet , S , P 2inlet) and reformer length, the value of the third type of parameter are obtained using the retrieving program. Relative error of X CH4 between the calculation results and the reported values is less than 5.40%. System characteristics of the coupled system are obtained and can be helpful for the related applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • A hierarchical extraction method was established for determination flavonoids and triterpenes in T. kirilowii. • An UHPLC-MS/MS method was established for quantification multiple compounds. • Reveal the distribution of resource components in different parts of T. kirilowii. • The results could be useful for the rational utilization of T. kirilowii. Abstract Trichosanthin (root of Trichosanthes kirilowii Maxim.) has received much attention, but T. kirilowii has received little systematic analysis. A comprehensive evaluation of flavones and triterpenes in nine different parts of T. kirilowii would, thus, be of value to fully understand the potential medicinal properties of T. kirilowii. A hierarchical extraction—simultaneous determination method was established, which based on different types of components had different response on the MS detector. The hierarchical extraction method extracted 3, 29-dibenzoyl rarounitriol solely, which response lowly on the MS detector in the mixture of one step extract, in order to obtain accurate results in the next UHPLC-MS/MS assay. By this method, ten flavones, three tetracyclic triterpenoids, and one pentacyclic triterpenoid in the extracts of T. kirilowii were determined. The results showed the level of flavonoids in leaves was higher than those in the other samples, tetracyclic triterpenoids mainly existed in root and root bark, and pentacyclic triterpenoid, especially 3, 29-dibenzoyl rarounitriol was concentrated in the seed kernel. According to principal component analysis, the F values of the leaves of all varieties were generally greater than those in other parts. The leaves might provide a supplementary source of flavonoids, and the root and root bark could be a good choice for tetracyclic triterpenoids. The analysis results revealed the distribution of flavones and triterpenes in different parts of T. kirilowii and provided reference for the research and rational utilization of T. kirilowii. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • A piezoelectric droplet generator was designed and fabricated. • Results of the droplet train impact were recorded by a high-speed camera. • The comparison has been made with the single droplet impact to understand the difference in mechanism. • Effect of impact frequency, Weber number, and surface static contact angle have investigated and relevant empirical correlations were obtained. Abstract An experimental study of successive impingement of a single train of monodispersed millimetric-sized droplets at low Weber number (We < 200) is presented. A piezoelectric droplet generator which is capable of adjusting droplet impact frequency and droplet diameter is fabricated and used to produce monodispersed millimetric-sized droplets. The interaction phenomena between the droplet-surface and droplet-film were observed using a high-speed camera at 4000 fps. The variation of the dimensionless spread factor and flatness factor of the liquid film formed by the successive impacts of droplets over time were recorded. The impact frequency of droplets was varied between 40 Hz and 85 Hz. The Weber number ranged from 29.6 to 196.6. And three types of solid surface with different static contact angles (71.5°, 82.7°, 90.1°) were tested in this work. The results showed that the impact frequency of droplets in the selected range had a minor effect on the maximum spread factor and post-impact oscillation. The maximum dimensionless spread factor of the liquid film formed by the successive impacts at the same dimensionless time tends to be greater when Weber number was higher and static contact angle was lower. The post-impact oscillation was more violent when Weber number was lower and static contact angle was larger. Empirical correlations for the maximum spread factor and average flatness factor under different conditions were obtained based on the experiment results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the rapid development of cloud computing, amounts of new concerns for security have been suggested. Cryptographic protocols are useful tools to address the problem emerging in cloud computing. Among those protocols, program obfuscation gradually showed the exclusive advantages that it can provide for cloud computing. In this paper, we present a cloud signing scheme, which can outsource the signing rights of a client to a cloud server securely by applying obfuscation. To improve the efficiency of obfuscation, we construct an obfuscator for all polynomial-size CNF circuits, which has the potential to avoid matrix branching programs and multilinear maps. A new notion of homomorphic encoding schemes, whose functionality is weaker than that of graded encoding schemes, is defined to complete our construction. The obfuscator is proven to be virtual black-box secure in the idealized homomorphic encoding model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For the first time, CaV6O16·3H2O (CVO), synthesized via a highly efficient and fast microwave reaction, is used as a cathode material for aqueous zinc-ion batteries. Ex situ X-ray diffraction confirms the structure of this material to be stable upon reversible Zn2+ intercalation, due to its large interlayer distance (8.08 Å). The pillaring effect of calcium makes the as-prepared CVO an excellent Zn2+ cation host. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Cyanide based ionic liquid derived nitrogen-doped-carbons (N-C) has been demonstrated to be fascinating conductive coating agents to improve the performance of lithium ion battery electrodes. To explore its role in electrodes of sodium ion batteries (SIBs), SnS nanoparticles interpenetrated with a high concentration of such N-C ((hN-C@SnS)) are synthesized and comprehensively investigated as anodes for SIBs. We demonstrate that hN-C@SnS electrode can exhibit a remarkable cycling stability as well as a promising rate capability. Especially, the role of cyanide based ionic liquid derived N-C in a sodium ion battery electrode is systematically investigated for the first time by a series of characterization techniques, concluding that the superior cell performance are mainly benefiting from the homogeneous interpenetration of N-C as effective conductive network, rather than its advantageous role in Na+ storage and electron transport. In addition, ex situ XPS measurements strongly suggest that the conversion step of SnS is irreversible, while the alloying process to Na x Sn is mostly reversible, which is in strong contrast with previous reports. Graphical abstract Image 1 Highlights • A cyanide based ionic liquid is used as source for nitrogen-doped carbon (N-C). • SnS nanoparticles interpenetrated with N-C (hN-C@SnS) are synthesized via microwave synthesis. • HN-C@SnS exhibit remarkable cyclability and rate capability when used as sodium-ion battery anode. • The superior performance arise from the homogeneous interpenetration of the N-C conductive network. • New insights on first cycle reaction mechanism of SnS are proposed based on ex situ XPS characterization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While there are several computational studies on differential mobility analyzers (DMA), there is none for high flow DMA to classify nanoparticles less than 3 nm. A specific design of a high flow DMA, a half mini DMA, is investigated to predict its performance through numerical modeling in the incompressible flow regime. The governing equations for flow field, electric field and aerosol transport are solved using COMSOL 5.3. The transfer function of the half mini DMA is compared with that of a nano DMA (TSI 3085). The results show that both the height of the transfer function and resolution (R) of the half mini DMA are much better than those of nano DMA in sub-2 nm particle size range. Finally, the transfer function of half mini DMA is evaluated for different values of aerosol flow rate to the sheath flow rate (q/Q). Comparison of the simulated transfer function with existing models from Knutson-Whitby and Stolzenburg is also elucidated. It is found that the former model overestimates the resolution; whereas the latter is close to the simulation results for q/Q above 0.067. This work provides a useful method to study the flow regimes and transfer function of a high flow DMA. Copyright © 2018 American Association for Aerosol Research [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hen egg is commonly used in some cereal-based food, including cakes and bread. Ovalbumin, one of the major components of egg white protein, can affect the performance of the food product. The interaction between ovalbumin and gluten protein and its effect on property of dough and quality of Chinese steamed bread was investigated in this study. Sodium dodecyl sulfate–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) patterns indicated that ovalbumin was surprisingly not incorporated in glutenins by covalent bond, whereas size-exclusion high-performance liquid chromatography showed that glutenin macropolymer content in glutenins increased slightly. Furthermore, dynamic rheology experiments indicated ovalbumin led to a decrease in G ′ and G″ of dough. Based on molecular dynamic simulation and SDS-PAGE results, it was inferred that ovalbumin was not hydrolyzed by endopeptidases during dough fermentation and crosslinked to gluten proteins during steaming. Finally, ovalbumin improved maximum dough height (Hm) during dough development and specific volume of Chinese steamed bread. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Federated learning is an emerging paradigm that enables multiple organizations to jointly train a model without revealing their private data. As an important variant, vertical federated learning (VFL) deals with cases in which collaborating organizations own data of the same set of users but with disjoint features. It is generally regarded that VFL is more secure than horizontal federated learning. However, recent research (USENIX Security'22) reveals that it is still possible to conduct label inference attacks in VFL, in which attacker can acquire privately owned labels of other participants; even VFL constructed with model splitting (the kind of VFL architecture with higher security guarantee) cannot escape it. To solve this issue, in this paper, we propose the dispersed training framework. It utilizes secret sharing to break the correlations between the bottom model and the training data. Accordingly, even if the attacker receives the gradients in the training phase, he is incapable to deduce the feature representation of labels from the bottom model. Besides, we design a customized model aggregation method such that the shared model can be privately combined, and the linearity of secret sharing schemes ensures the training accuracy to be preserved. Theoretical and experimental analyses indicate the satisfactory performance and effectiveness of our framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Meat adulteration has become one of the most concerning issues in the global food industry, affecting economic investment, public health and so on. In this study, a real-time fluorescent loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP)-microfluidic assay was developed to simultaneously detect pork, beef, sheep and duck in foodstuffs using species-specific primers targeting the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene and cytochrome c oxidase subunit gene. Various primers were precoated in different reaction chambers of the real-time fluorescent LAMP-microfluidic chip, and the entire amplification was completed within 30 min. The real-time fluorescent LAMP-microfluidic assay exhibited good specificity and high sensitivity, with the limit of detection reaching 0.1% (w/w) in simulated adulterated samples, satisfying authentication requirements. The accuracy of this novel method was validated using 33 commercial samples and was comparable with that of the typical real-time qPCR assay. In summary, the real-time fluorescent LAMP-microfluidic assay can simultaneously detect pork, beef, sheep and duck in commercial products to verify the label certification of meat and prevent food adulteration. • A digital microfluidic chip based real-time fluorescent multiplex LAMP assay to identify meat. • The real-time fluorescent LAMP-microfluidic assay shows the limit of detection reaching 0.1% (w/w). • No cross-reactivity was detected in 14 different species using this assay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Sodium‐ion technology has the potential to become the next generation of low cost and environmentally friendly electrochemical energy storage system for grid‐level applications. The low cost and abundant raw materials employed in sodium cells have driven the recent increasing interest in sodium‐ion batteries (SIBs), which appear especially appealing, since manufacturers can use the already existing production technology of lithium‐ion batteries. However, SIBs are still an early stage technology, which requires several issues affecting cell performance to be addressed. Despite the accelerated development of cathode materials, anode materials still require further investigation and optimization to reach high energy density performance. In the pursuit of high capacity anode materials, several alloying‐, conversion‐, and combined conversion–alloying‐based electrodes have been investigated. This review offers a comprehensive overview on the recent progresses toward the realization of “beyond‐insertion” anode materials. The role of nanostructuration with the associated advantages and disadvantages is presented for each class of compounds, combined with the main strategies adopted to improve the electrochemical behavior. Finally, an overview of the challenges and perspectives associated with the development of the next generation of anode materials is presented with a particular focus on the role of the electrolyte solutions and solid/electrolyte interphase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Moisture separators are widely used for eliminating the droplets from the gas–water/steam mixture flows. The volume fraction of droplets is often not small in most separators, so the collision behavior of droplets is crucial in changing their velocity, size and number distributions to affect the separation abilities of these separators. In this paper, the collision models of droplets are established to simulate the droplet-laden flows in the moisture separators. First, a stochastic searching algorithm to find the collision droplet pairs is performed by utilizing the collision kernels and defining the mean free path of a droplet. Second, the criteria to distinguish the different regimes of binary droplet collision are carried out. The regime map drawn by these criteria is highly consistent with that from previous experiments. Third, a set of formulas to predict the velocity, size and number distributions of droplets after bouncing, coalescence, reflexive and str etc hing separation are proposed based on the conservation law and some empirical relations. Finally, the separation abilities of the cyclone and swirl-vane separators are investigated by simulating the droplet-laden flows coupled with the droplet collision models. As for the cyclone, the simulation separation efficiencies are in good agreement with the experimental data. It is further shown that the separation efficiency curve begins to climb up very quickly in the region with small droplet diameters, and then keep constant as the droplet diameter increasing. As for the swirl-vane separators, the simulated separation efficiencies are little larger than those of the experiment within 5% difference, which is mainly due to the fact that coalescence dominates the collision behaviors from the simulation results. The theoretical and simulation results show that these collision models present a new view to study the flowing behaviors of the droplets in the moisture separators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Boring trepanning association (BTA) deep hole drilling is one of the most important manufacturing techniques to produce a large length-to-diameter ratio hole for industrial applications. In addressing the challenge of excessive surface damage, inefficiency and poor indexing in BTA deep hole drilling, for which there are limited studies reported. The functional behaviour of deep hole machining and the correlation between the machined surface quality, subsurface layer deformation and the machining conditions are investigated in this paper, together with the drilling mechanism. Various parameter combinations are used to produce different samples on which surface roughness and microstructures are studied. Metallurgical characterization is performed on the subsurface regions, followed by qualitative and quantitative mechanical nanohardness investigations. Electron microscopic analysis reveals various surface features such as grooves and plateaus, folding, material flaking that are exclusive to deep hole drilling. It has been found that improved surface integrity in BTA drilling relies on a trade-off among feedrates and speeds. Although considered sample dependent, combination of a feedrate of 28 mm min −1 and a speed of 630 r min −1 can produce nearly excellent surface integrity. Grain structure observations over the subsurface reveal three different layered zones including an ultrafine grain structure layer, a transitional grain structure layer and a substrate material layer. A significantly hardened (56% increase) surface layer on cutting-and-burnishing region comparing with the solely cutting region is detected. The subsurface grain features are induced by repeated thermo-mechanical functioning that causes grain refinement and thus materials hardening. The different surface integrities are the result of comprehensive functions of the machining parameters and combined drilling mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Na 3 V 2 (PO 4 ) 3 (NVP) is a promising cathode material for sodium ion batteries due to the good electrochemical performance in terms of cycling stability and rate capability. However, in order to access this performance a carbon coating is required to enhance the intrinsically poor material's conductivity. Herein, we systematically investigate the role of N -doped carbon (NC) coatings on both the structural and electrochemical properties of NVP materials. NC-coated NVP materials with various nitrogen contents have been rationally synthesized by a novel solid-state method allowing the selective N -doping of the carbon coating. In fact, the N -doping changes the disorder and graphitic character of the carbon layer, strongly impacting the electrochemical performance of the NVP/C composite materials. Results suggest that the appropriate N -doping amount of the carbon leads to highly decreased electrode polarization and excellent cycling stability at high rate, enabling the NVP materials with high energy and power efficiencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Basalt fiber reinforced concrete, a new high performance cement-based composite material, is a focus of attention and has developed rapidly in recent years. In this paper, the impact behavior of BFRC with six kinds of volume content (0%, 0.05%, 0.1%, 0.15%, 0.2%, 0.25%) subjected to various high strain rates was investigated using a 74 mm-diameter split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) apparatus. And the effects of volume fractions and strain rate on dynamic compressive strength and toughness were studied according to the stress-strain curves obtained by the experiment. From the microscopic point of view, by analyzing the scanning electron microscope (SEM) photographs, this paper made a research on the micro-properties and pore structure of BFRC. The fiber distribution situation and the interface between fibers and cement were observed. By studying the micro-properties and pore structure of BFRC, the interface properties and the strengthening mechanism of BFRC were analyzed. In the end, the dynamic constitutive law of BFRC was derived based on an improved Zhu-Wang-Tang (ZWT) dynamic constitutive model which took into account the material damage. The new equation was used to fit the experimental stress-strain curves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discrete Element Model (DEM), embedded into computational fluid dynamics (CFD), is developed to simulate the behaviors of wet granular-fluid flows in a thin spouted bed possessing two-dimensional characteristics. A cohesive contact model in presence of pendular liquid (polydimethylsiloxane oil) bridges between particles is improved on the basis of lubricated sliding friction and restitution coefficient of the wet grains. Special algorithm and array structure are designed to search the neighbors of wet grains. Then, the comparison of frequency, granular patterns, connecting networks, particle velocity profiles and spout geometry between the DEM simulations and our previous experiments are performed. The DEM simulation results indicate that the minimum spouting velocity ( U ms ) is almost the same for both wet and dry system, which agrees well with the prediction by a simplified formula. The voidages and gas velocities along the spout axis of wet granular system are found to be larger than those of dry one. It well explains the larger vertical particle velocities of wet grains over those of dry ones. Finally, the granular temperature distributions are discussed. High granular temperature occurs not only along the spout, but also at the fountain-annulus corner. Comparing granular temperature at different bed levels, we found that granular temperature of wet case is larger than that of dry one in most regions of spout and fountain, but it is nearly the same in annulus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Wuning tungsten deposits in northwestern Jiangxi are located in the Middle-Lower Yangtze River metallogenic belt of SE China. This article decodes the large tungsten-mineralized ore field by analysing three typical deposits: Shimensi, Dahutang, and Shiwendong. The Shimensi deposit shows three mineralization styles, and the associated hydrothermal alteration mainly includes K-feldspathization, greisenization, chloritization, silicification, and carbonatization. The sulphur isotopic compositions of sulphides in the Dahutang deposit indicate that the sulphur source was homogeneous and closely related to magmatic sulphur. The lead isotopic compositions of sulphides suggest multiple sources that were also closely related to magmatism. The carbon isotopic compositions of calcite indicate that hydrothermal fluids were derived from the granitic magma. Hydrogen and oxygen isotopic compositions of quartz veins indicate that the ore-forming fluids had a magmatic-hydrothermal origin, but mixed with meteoric water. Fluid inclusions from the Shiweidong deposit are low density, indicating medium-high T and low-medium salinity, further suggesting that it was a shallow magmatic-hydrothermal deposit, and the metallogenic hydrotherm mingled with the surface water late in the evolution of the system. Mineralization was related to Early Cretaceous magmatism in eastern China. The subduction of the palaeo-Pacific plate and the subsequent lithospheric delamination reflected transition from a compressional to extensional tectonic regime. The upwelling of the hot asthenosphere triggered partial melting of the Neoproterozoic Shuangqiaoshan Group, with high W background concentrations. The ascent of the magma resulted in the exsolution of the ore-bearing magmatic hydrothermal fluid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective(s): MicroRNA-21 (miR21) is aberrantly elevated in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients, the significance of this microRNA in RA pathogenesis and treatment, however, has not been investigated. In this study, by using RA-derived fibroblast-like synoviocyte (FLS) cells as a model, we investigated the effect and corresponding mechanism of miR21 inhibition on FLSs invasion. Materials and Methods: miR21 expression in synovial tissue and FLSs in RA patients and non-RA controls were determined by stem-loop RT-PCR. The effect of miR21 on FLSs viability and invasiveness were evaluated using miR21 inhibition. Cell viability was evaluated by MTT assay and the expression of genes at mRNA and protein levels was determined by RT-PCR and Western blot, respectively. Results: Our results showed that miR21 expression was highly increased in synovial tissue and FLSs in RA patients. Also, we reported that miR21 inhibitor treatment could significantly suppress the invasiveness of FLSs without affecting cell viability. The decreased FLSs invasion by miR21 inhibition was associated with down-regulated expression of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-1, MMP3, and MMP13. Further analysis revealed that miR21 inhibition could suppress the expression of TGFβ1 and Smad4, but promote that of Smad7. Moreover, suppression of FLS invasion and MMPs expression by miR21 treatment could be counteracted by additional TGFβ1 treatment. Conclusion: Our results indicated that miR21 inhibition can down-regulate the expression of MMP1, MMP3, and MMP13 and consequently suppress the invasiveness of FLS, which is achieved through TGFβ1/Smad4/7 signaling pathway. The findings of this study could offer a novel approach for RA treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, one dimension steady-state and pseudo-homogeneous model of the hydrogen production reformer in the steam methane reforming (SMR) process using the high temperature gas-cooled test reactor of 10 MW (HTR-10) as heat source (HTR-10/SMR) is simulated based on the semi-coupled solution method using matlab2016b. Firstly, The axial variations of hydrogen production performance including temperature (T 2), methane conversion rate (X CH4), carbon monoxide conversion rate (X CO) and hydrogen production per mole methane (Y H2/CH4 or total hydrogen production (Y tH2)) as well as thermal efficiency (η) are investigated. Then, it is noted that Y H2/CH4 decreases from 2.92 mol H 2 /mol CH 4 to 2.53 mol H 2 /mol CH 4. However, Y tH2 increases from 2.33 kmol/h to 3.23 kmol/h with the increase of the inlet process gas flow rate (F 2inlet) from 4 kmol/h to 6 kmol/h. Finally, Y tH2 increases with steam to carbon ratio (S) when S < 4 and decreases when S > 4. The maximum value of Y tH2 with 3.03 kmol/h is obtained at S = 4. Especially, X CH4 , X CO , Y H2/CH4 and η are in the range of 70.54%–90.78%, 38.56%–54.30%, 2.50–3.07 mol/mol CH 4 and 54.55%–64.57%, respectively, when T 3_inlet is in the range of 850–950 °C. The effect of the process gas temperature and pressure on the system performance can be neglected. • Reformer performance coupled with HTR-10 for nuclear hydrogen production are analyzed. • Parameters of the nuclear hydrogen production system are evaluated. • It demonstrates an integral method for the evaluation of the coupled hydrogen production system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Non-dimensional analysis between various typical experiment facilities and steam generator (SG) of the nuclear power plant (NPP) are carried out. • Influences of the combinations of the PBM kernel and wall boiling model are evaluated. • Various parameters including the bubble size distribution are compared and validated with the experiment data. • It demonstrates an integral method for the selection of the model combination in the subcooled boiling flow. Assessments on the combinations of the population balance model (PBM) and wall boiling model are meaningful for the calculation of the steam generator (SG) of the nuclear power plant (NPP). Firstly, the non-dimensional analysis between the report experiment and the SG of the NPP are carried out. Then, the influences of the models of the active nucleation site density N n combined with the PBM kernels are analyzed. Lastly, the error analysis on the combinations is illustrated. The results show that the one model combination performs relatively better for the calculation of the Sauter mean diameter (SMD) d p (maximum relative error 6.09%), void fraction α (maximum relative error 20.06%) and superficial liquid velocity j l (maximum relative error 2.06%) of the SG of the NPP. This study demonstrates an integral method and process for the selection of the model combinations in the subcooled boiling flow conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AP1000 (Advanced Passive 1000) moisture separator that consists of primary, gravity and secondary separators is a crucial device to eliminate droplets from steam and supply dry-saturated steam to turbines. In order to understand the working mechanism of AP1000 moisture separator, droplet-laden flows are simulated in moisture separators based on the Lagrangian–Eulerian approach. In terms of details, the actual droplets are represented by parcels whose equations of motion are cast in a set of ordinary differential equations (ODEs), and the steam phase is described by Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equations. Particularly, the numerical stability of solving the ODEs by using a fourth-order Runge–Kutta scheme is analyzed by a theoretical method in order to increase the time step size to save the computational time. Further, a distinct algorithm is introduced to rise the execution speed of locating a droplet in the grid by about 6000 times. The results show that, firstly, the separation efficiency of primary separator is beyond 90%. According to the moisture distribution on the x – z plane, the swirl-vanes placed in the inner barrel indeed play an important role to eliminate droplets. Secondly, the gravity space has no separation function, but it can make droplets follow the steam without speed disparity. Thirdly, the separation efficiency of the secondary separator is about 25%. This low value is attributed to the fact that only the hooks at the first and third stages can trap droplets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Though MXenes, a new family of 2D transition metal carbides, are generating considerable interests as electrode materials for batteries and supercapacitors, further application is hindered by their low capacities and poor rate capabilities. Here we propose a simple route for the synthesis of Cu 2 O particle hybridized titanium carbide Ti 2 CT x (T = O, OH) composites via a solvothermal method. Electrodes containing Cu 2 O/MXene were fabricated without carbon black, and tested as anodes for lithium ion batteries. A discharge capacity of 143 mAh g −1 was obtained at a discharge current density of 1000 mA g −1 and the capacity retention was near 100% after 200 cycles. The hybrid electrodes with open conductive frameworks exhibited significantly improved electrochemical performance, suggesting a new method for preparing MXene-based composites for energy storage application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The current meta-analysis evaluated the association between vitamin B12 intake and blood vitamin B12 level and colorectal cancer (CRC) risk.Design: The PubMed and EMBASE databases were searched. A dose-response analysis was performed with generalized least squares regression, with the relative risk (RR) and 95 % CI as effect values.Setting: The meta-analysis included seventeen studies.Subjects: A total of 10 601 patients.Results: The non-linear dose-response relationship between total vitamin B12 intake and CRC risk was insignificant (P=0·690), but the relationship between dietary vitamin B12 intake and CRC risk was significant (P<0·001). Every 4·5 μg/d increment in total and dietary vitamin B12 intake was inversely associated with CRC risk (total intake: RR=0·963; 95 % CI 0·928, 0·999; dietary intake: RR=0·914; 95 % CI 0·856, 0·977). The inverse association between vitamin B12 intake and CRC risk was also significant when vitamin B12 intake was over a dosage threshold, enhancing the non-linear relationship. The non-linear dose-response relationship between blood vitamin B12 level and CRC risk was insignificant (P=0·219). There was an insignificant association between every 150 pmol/l increment in blood vitamin B12 level and CRC risk (RR=1·023; 95 % CI 0·881, 1·187).Conclusions: Our meta-analysis indicates that evidence supports the use of vitamin B12 for cancer prevention, especially among populations with high-dose vitamin B12 intake, and that the association between CRC risk and total vitamin B12 intake is stronger than between CRC risk and dietary vitamin B12 intake only. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A B-dot was used for measuring cathode emission current in the injector of a linear induction electron accelerator. The measured current waveforms in commissioning were different from our initial expectation. This could well be explained by that the measured current waveform was the sum of actual emission current and displacement current. The displacement current could be derived by the measured diode voltage and the calculated diode capacitance. The actual emission current waveform was then obtained by subtracting the displacement current from the measured waveform. The pure displacement current waveform was also measured by the B-dot, while there was no emission from a thermionic cathode. The calculated and measured displacement current waveforms were well consistent with each other. The B-dot’s sensitivity factor calibrated by comparing the aforementioned two waveforms was equal to our theoretical estimate within an error range. The obvious displacement current may also exist in the similar pulsed power facilities, which contain high-voltage and fast pulses. It can be processed by the same methods discussed in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]