Brake wear particles, as the major component of non-exhaust particulate matter, are known to have different emissions, depending on the type of brake assembly and the specifications of the vehicle. In this study, brake wear and wear particle mass emissions were measured under realistic vehicle driving and full friction braking conditions using current commercial genuine brake assemblies. Although there were no significant differences in either PM₁₀ or PM_2.5 emissions between the different cooling air flow rates, brake wear decreased and ultrafine particle (PM_0.12) emissions increased with increasing cooling air flow rate. Particle mass measurements were collected on filter media, allowing chemical composition analysis to identify the source of brake wear particle mass emissions. The iron concentration in the brake wear particles indicated that the main contribution was derived from disc wear. Using a systematic approach that measured brake wear and wear particle emissions, this study was able to characterize correlations with elemental compositions in brake friction materials, adding to our understanding of the mechanical phenomena of brake wear and wear particle emissions.

Small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a cancer with poor prognosis. For relapsed extensive-stage (ES) SCLC, second-line treatment options are scarce. Topotecan was the only approved treatment in this setting until 2020. Since topotecan induces significant toxicities, alternative off-label regimens are being used. This study evaluated real-world efficacy and safety of Paclitaxel Gemcitabine chemotherapy in patients with relapsed ES-SCLC. We retrospectively reviewed data from all consecutive patients with relapsed ES-SCLC who received Paclitaxel Gemcitabine chemotherapy from september 2008 to january 2022 in two centers. Patient characteristics (n=188) were: PS≥2: 24.5%; brain metastasis: 42%; platinum-sensitive disease: 41%. Patients received Paclitaxel Gemcitabine as second- (77%) third (18%) or fourth (6%) line of therapy. Median progression-free and overall survival were 2.1 (95CI 1.8–2.4) and 3.8 (95CI 3.3–4.8) months in the overall population, respectively, with 17% response rate (RR) and 28% disease-control rate. PS, history of brain radiation, platinum-sensitive disease, liver, and adrenal gland metastasis were associated with longer survival in univariate analysis. PS was the only prognostic factor in multivariate analysis, with 21% RR and 4.1 months median DOR in PS 0-1 patients. Paclitaxel Gemcitabine chemotherapy may represent a treatment option in PS0-1 relapsed SCLC.

This literature review delves into the realm of fault detection techniques for transmission lines, aiming to provide a comprehensive overview of recent advancements and key trends in the field. Employing a structured approach, the review synthesizes a plethora of research spanning from 2019 to 2024, sourced from diverse databases including IEEE Xplore, ScienceDirect, ResearchGate, Scopus, Litmaps, and Google Scholar. The methodology encompasses a systematic literature search protocol, stringent inclusion and exclusion criteria, meticulous data extraction, and a multi-dimensional analysis framework. The literature review uncovers a spectrum of fault detection methodologies, ranging from traditional signal processing techniques like Discrete Wavelet Transform and phase angle-based methods to cutting-edge deep learning algorithms such as Capsule Networks and Convolutional Neural Networks. Insights gleaned from the review underscore the critical importance of fault detection in maintaining the reliability, safety, and efficiency of power grids, highlighting its role as a frontline defense against widespread outages and equipment damage. Key findings from the review shed light on the efficacy of different fault detection approaches, showcasing their strengths and limitations across diverse system conditions. Furthermore, the review identifies common trends and challenges, including the need for real-world validation, scalability, adaptability to various network configurations, and cybersecurity considerations. This literature provides valuable insights and recommendations for future research endeavors in fault detection for transmission lines. By embracing advancements in both traditional and emerging techniques, researchers can continue to enhance the resilience and dependability of power transmission systems, ensuring their ability to withstand evolving challenges and safeguard critical infrastructure.

We present an analytic calculation of the cooperative decay of a one-dimensional chain of N two-level atoms in the single-excitation configuration. Whereas the subradiant decay is zero for infinite lattices, we prove that for finite lattice the subradiant decay rate decreases as 1/N. We compare the results obtained using the scalar and the vectorial model. The calculations provide simple analytic expressions for the decay rate of the excitation, for arbitrary lattice spacing.

Fault detection in transmission lines plays a role in maintaining the dependability and steadiness of power networks. Traditional methods for identifying faults often struggle to handle the diverse nature of real world fault situations. Machine learning (ML) algorithms offer a data centered approach that can adjust and learn from datasets potentially overcoming the limitations of traditional approaches. This document presents a review of progress in using ML for detecting faults in transmission lines. By drawing insights from a variety of studies we explore how ML algorithms have evolved in fault detection, including techniques like networks, recurrent neural networks featuring Long Short Term Memory and convolutional neural networks. We delve into the spectrum of applications where ML is used for fault detection across fault scenarios and operational settings. Additionally we discuss the obstacles and prospects linked to putting ML based fault detection systems into practice such as challenges with data quality, model interpretability and integration with existing grid monitoring systems. Lastly we outline future research paths focused on pushing forward the boundaries of fault detection, in power transmission systems through approaches and collaborative endeavors involving academia, industry players and policymakers. In general, this review highlights how machine learning has the power to revolutionize fault detection methods enhancing the resilience and dependability of power systems.

Creating accurate emission models capable of capturing the variability and dynamics of modern propulsion systems is crucial for future mobility planning. This paper presents a methodology for creating THC and NOx emission models for vehicles equipped with start-stop technology. A key aspect of this endeavor is to find techniques that accurately replicate the engine stop stages when there are no emissions. To this end, several machine learning techniques were tested using the Python programming language. Random forest and gradient boosting methods demonstrated the best predictive capabilities for THC and NOx emissions, achieving R2 scores of approximately 0.9 for both cold and hot engine emissions. Additionally, recommendations for effective modeling of such emissions from vehicles are presented in the paper.

We propose a novel moving median estimator specifically designed for online detection of threshold crossings in multi-channel signals, such as extracellular neural recordings. This estimator offers two key advantages: a reduced sensitivity to outliers and the elimination of memory requirements for storing arrival times. Furthermore, its design facilitates parallel implementation on FPGAs, making it ideal for real-time processing of multi-channel recordings.

Telecoupling, interactions between social-ecological systems across large, often global, distances, drives negative impacts from the forest-based carbon market. Yet, these negative impacts have been underreported; and therefore, likely vastly underestimated. We identify how these unintended negative impacts may occur and provide recommendations for the forest-based carbon market to better account for externalities by prioritising positive social impact, expanding comprehensive ecological outcomes and improving transparency of investments. We call for a carbon market that is designed to account for its global interconnectedness.

The mortality of birds resulting from collisions and electrocutions with overhead lines, such as power lines, and phone line among others, has been implicated in the decline of various avian species globally. Specifically, overhead line collisions pose a significant threat to the conserva-tion of the Canarian houbara bustard (Chlamydotis undulata fuertaventurae), an endangered sub-species endemic to the Canary Islands. This study centres on the postmortem findings of Canarian houbara bustards that have collided with overhead lines, providing insights into the post-collision outcomes for these birds. A com-plete standardized necropsy of nine Canarian houbara bustards revealed that polytrauma was the cause of death in all cases. The most notable gross lesions associated with trauma included bone fractures, soft tissue lacerations, haemorrhages, luxations, and hemocoelom, with certain body regions being more frequently affected. Histopathology, immunohistochemistry, and en-tomology analysis confirmed that numerous birds survived the initial trauma, exhibiting varia-ble survival intervals before succumbing to their injuries. We concluded that when a houbara bustard collide with an overhead line it frequently survives the initial trauma. The histopathology, immunohistochemistry, or entomologic analysis may be helpful to approximate the timing interval between trauma and death.

When a grid-forming (GFM) inverter is connected to a low or medium voltage weak power grid, the line impedance with resistive-inductive characteristics will cause power coupling. Typical GFM decoupling control strategies are designed under nominal line impedance parameters. However, there are deviations between the nominal line impedance and actual parameters, resulting in poor decoupling effects. Aiming at this problem, this paper proposes a power decoupling strategy based on a reduced-order extended state observer (ESO). Firstly, the power dynamic model of GFM is established based on the dynamic phasor method. Then, the model deviation and power coupling due to line impedance parameter perturbation are estimated as internal disturbances of the system, and the disturbances are compensated on the basis of typical power control strategy and virtual impedance decoupling. Good decoupling performance is obtained under different impedance parameters, improving the control strategy's robustness. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by the results of RT Box hardware-in-the-loop experiments.

Recent advancements in semiconductor photonic and electronic devices such as Uni-travelling-carrier photodiodes (UTC-PDs), have played a significant role in the development of Terahertz communication technology. However, a major challenge that still persists is the limited output power from a single UTC-PD required for practical transmission distances. To enhance the output power, we propose and demonstrate a novel Terahertz wave power combining technique using a photomixer device that comprises of two arrayed UTC-PDs monolithically integrated with a microstrip line-based 2 × 1 Wilkinson power combiner and a rectangular patch antenna on a Silicon Carbide (SiC) substrate at 300 GHz. At photocurrents of 8 mA and 10 mA from the two UTC-PDs, the device experimentally exhibited a 7.3 dB increase in power relative to the power obtained with 8 mA UTC-PD and a 4.4 dB increase in power relative to the power obtained with 10 mA UTC-PD, when both UTC-PDs were irradiated. This implies that power can be enhanced by a factor of N2 if the photocurrent is multiplied by a factor of N. This technology presents a holistic and cutting edge platform for further power multiplication by further increasing the number of arrayed UTC-PDs.

Kisspeptin (KISS1) and its cognate receptor (KISS1R) are implicated in the progression of various cancers. However, a theranostic radiopharmaceutical targeting the KISS1 receptor (KISS1R) has yet to be explored. A gallium-68 labelled kisspeptin-10 (KP10) has potential as a pan-tumor radiopharmaceutical for the detection of cancers. Furthermore, a lutetium-177 labelled KP10 could find therapeutic application in treating oncological diseases. We attached DOTA to the NH2-terminus of KP10 as we posited that this modification would not impair biological activity and showed that receptor stimulation of inositol phosphate accumulation in HEK293 transfected with the KISS1R gene was similar for KP10 and DOTA-KP10. We describe optimization of radiolabeling with gallium-68 and lutetium-177 and stability in serum, plasma, and whole blood. Pharmacokinetics was established with µPET/CT and ex vivo measurements. Dynamic studies with µPET/CT demonstrated that background clearance for the radiopharmaceutical was rapid with a blood half-life of 18 ± 3 minutes. DOTA-KP10 demonstrated preserved functionality at KISS1R and good blood clearance. These promising results advocate the further development of KP10 structures which have high binding affinity along with proteolytic resistance.

Seeing atomic configuration of single organic nanoparticles at sub-Å spatial resolution by transmission electron microscopy has been so far prevented by the high sensitivity of soft matter to radiation damage. The difficulty is related to the need to irradiate the particle with a total dose of few electrons/Å2, not compatible with the electron beam density necessary to search the low-contrast nanoparticle, to control its drift, to finely adjust the electro-optical conditions and particle orientation, and to finally acquire an effective atomic resolution image. On the other hand, the capability to study individual pristine nanoparticles, such as proteins, active pharmaceutical ingredients, and polymers, with peculiar sensitivity to the variation of the local structure, defects, and strain, would provide advancements in many fields, including materials science, medicine, biology, and pharmacology. Here we report direct sub-ångström resolution imaging at room temperature of pristine unstained crystalline polymer-based nanoparticles. This result is obtained by combining low-dose in-line electron holography and phase-contrast imaging on state-of-the-art equipment, providing an effective tool for the quantitative sub-angstrom imaging of soft matter.

Electrification of society, increasing renewable energy sources and mobility charging lead to new loading patterns for power transformers. Dynamic load conditions induce enhanced mechanical stress on the transformers’ windings, potentially causing degradation of the solid insulation over time and compromising the transformer's short-circuit withstand capability. Thermal expansion of the windings, caused by losses in the copper conductors, occurring as the transformer is load-ed, increases the stress. Conversely, magnetic losses in the core and tie plate expansion contribute to a reduction in stress. This paper presents the effect of step changes in core losses and copper losses by on-line measurements of the clamping pressure, to better understand the mechanical stresses acting upon the solid insulation cellulose materials.

Typhoons bring great damages to transmission line systems located in coastal areas. Strong wind and extreme precipitation are the main sources of damaging effects. Transmission lines suffered from wind-driven rain exhibit more susceptibility to damage due to the coupled effect of wind and rain water. This paper presents an integrated numerical simulation framework based on mesoscale WRF model, multiphase CFD model and FEM model to analyze the motions of a transmission line subjected to coupled wind and rain loads during typhoon events. A full-scale transmission line in Zhoushan island is employed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed framework by simulating typhoon evolution in terms of wind fields and rainfall, solving the coupled wind and rain fields around the conductor and predicting the dynamic responses of the transmission line during Super Typhoon Lekima (2019). The results show that the horizontal displacements of the transmission line under the joint actions of wind and rain increases approximately 17%~18% compared to those of wind loads only. It is important to consider the coupled effects of wind-driven rain on conductors in the design of transmission lines under typhoon conditions.

Positioning based on wireless signals such as mobile communication networks has become an important means to provide high-precision location services in environments where satellite signals are blocked. In complex environments such as indoor and underground, wireless signal propagation is obstructed and non-line-of-sight (NLOS) phenomena appears due to serious occlusion and reflection. The time delay caused by NLOS effects has little impact on communication system but can significantly increase positioning errors in positioning systems. Therefore, effective suppression of NLOS errors is crucial to improving 5G positioning accuracy. To address the insufficient feature extraction of existing NLOS error suppression methods, the neglect of residual NLOS measurement errors, and poor stability of position estimation results, this paper innovatively proposes a NLOS mitigation and location estimation method for 5G positioning terminals. Simulation and experimental test results demonstrate that the proposed method outperforms the comparative methods both theoretically and practically, achieving an average positioning accuracy of 1.85 meters in complex indoor NLOS environments. The method proposed in this paper provides a new strategy for NLOS error suppression in indoor 5G positioning, which can significantly contribute to high-precision location services based on commercial 5G networks.

κ Draconis is a binary system with a classical Be star as the primary component. Its emission-line spectrum consists of hydrogen lines, notably the Hα line with a peak intensity ratio (V/R) variations phase-locked with the orbital period P = 61.55 days. Among binaries demonstrating the Be phenomenon, κ Dra stands out as one of a few systems with a discernible mass of its secondary component. Based on more than 200 spectra obtained in 2014 − 2023, we verified the physical parameters and constructed the mass function. We used part of these data obtained in 2014 − 2021 to investigate regions in the circumstellar disk of the primary component that emit the Hα line using the Doppler tomography method. The results show that the disk has a non-uniform density distribution with a prominent enhancement at Vy≈ 99 km s−1 and Vx≈−6 km s−1 that corresponds to a cloud-like source of the double-peaked Hα line profile. We argue that this enhancement’s motion is responsible for the periodic variations of the Hα V/R ratio, which is synchronised in orbital phase with the radial velocity (RV) of absorption lines from the atmosphere of the primary component.

The partial discharge (PD) event in high voltage insulation releases energy, exerts mechanical pressure, and generates elastic waves. Detecting and locating these PD events through short-duration acoustic pulses is well-established, particularly in gas-insulated systems and oil-insulated transformers. However, its full potential remains untapped in solid insulation systems, where the propagation capability of acoustic pulse and the acoustic reflections pose fundamental challenges to the Acoustic Emission (AE) detection technique. This study investigates the influence of reflections and multiple paths on the propagating acoustic pulse in polymeric insulating materials using a finite element method (FEM) in COMSOL. It was observed that the reflections from the boundary influence the propagating pulse's shape, peak magnitude, and arrival time. An analytical MATLAB model further quantifies the impact of multiple propagation paths on the shape, magnitude, and arrival time of the pulse travelling in a cylinder. Additionally, a Perfect Matched Layer (PML) was implemented in the COMSOL model to eliminate reflections from the boundary, and it revealed that the acoustic pulse magnitude decreases with distance following the inverse square law. In essence, the models aid in measuring how reflections contribute to the observed signals, facilitating the precise identification of the source of the PD event in the tested system.

High-precision dynamic positioning of highway vehicles is the foundation and prerequisite for achieving intelligent connected transportation. For the shortcomings of GNSS/INS combination and GNSS/INS/OD combination in tunnel vehicle positioning, this paper proposes a tunnel vehi-cle positioning method of GNSS/INS/OD combination based on lateral distance measurement and lane constraint. Firstly, lateral distance measurement of vehicles inside the tunnel is conducted based on laser radar point cloud data. Secondly, map matching positioning is performed based on lateral distance measurement, odometer, and lane markings. Experimental results demonstrate that for a 4.6 km tunnel, the average absolute error of lateral positioning is 0.294 meters, and the longitudinal positioning error is no more than 0.6 meters, which can effectively meet practical operational requirements.

This research aimed to investigate the relationship between climate policy uncertainty (CPU), clean energy (ENERGY), carbon emission allowance prices (CARBON), and Bitcoin returns (BTC) for the period from August 2012 to August 2022. The empirical analysis strategies utilized in this study included the Fourier Bootstrap ARDL long-term coefficient estimator, Fourier Granger Causality, and Fourier Toda Yamamoto Causality methods. Following the confirmation of cointegration among the variables, we observed a positive relationship between BTC and CARBON, a positive relationship between BTC and CPU, and a negative relationship between BTC and ENERGY. In terms of causal associations, we identified one-way causality running from CARBON to BTC, BTC to CPU, and BTC to the ENERGY variable. The study underscores the potential benefits and revenue opportunities for investors seeking diversified investment strategies in light of climate change concerns. Furthermore, it suggests actionable strategies for policymakers, such as implementing carbon taxes and educational campaigns, to foster a transition towards clean energy sources within the cryptocurrency mining sector and thereby mitigate environmental impacts.

In this paper, a 100CMM regenerative thermal oxidizer (RTO) system based on a high heating device for low-emission combustion is implemented at a volatile organic compound (VOCs) gas generation workplace. Existing RTO has a structure that repeats the inflow and discharge of VOCs gas into a cylindrical drum-type rotating disk and has excellent energy efficiency with a heat recovery rate of 95% or more. However, when used for a long time, there is a problem that rotation stops or explodes due to the discharge of pollutants due to dust and thermal expansion due to high temperature of 800℃. To overcome this, a RTO based on a high heating device was developed to reduce low-emission combustion emissions and energy use. Through 177 hours of demonstration time, the oxidation efficiency of VOCs was 98.87%; the waste heat recovery rate was reduced by 95.78%, the fuel consumption was reduced by 21.95%, and the nitrogen oxide concentration was 3.9 ppm

This paper presents an acoustic emission (AE) detection method for refined oil storage tanks, enabling online detection of corrosion points and microleakage in the tank floor. The method utilizes an explosion-proof acoustic emission instrument to detect the floor of a refined oil storage tank. By calculating the time difference between the defective acoustic signal and the speed of acoustic wave transmission, a mathematical model is constructed to analyze the detected signals. A technical scheme for acoustic emission detection in storage tanks is designed, and the instru-ment is used to carry out acoustic emission testing on the product oil storage tank floor. Based on these test results, location analysis of acoustic emission sources is conducted on the bottom plate of the tank, evaluating its corrosion condition accurately. The consistency between the evaluation and subsequent open tank tests confirms that using acoustic emission technology effectively captures corrosion signals from product oil storage tank bottoms. Consequently, it significantly improves inspection efficiency by avoiding unnecessary tank-opening operations. Combining this method with open tank inspection operations such as the leakage magnetic method, one can fully grasp the status of the refined oil storage tanks.

Antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and chemo-preventive features have been reported for the carotenoid diatoxanthin. Diatoxanthin is only produced by a few groups of microalgae where it functions in photoprotection. Its large-scale production in microalgae is currently not feasible. In fact, rapid conversion into the inactive pigment diadinoxanthin is triggered when the cells are removed from the high-intensity light source, which will be the case during large-scale harvesting of microalgae biomass. Zeaxanthin epoxidase (ZEP) 2 and/or ZEP3 have been suggested to be responsible for the back-conversion of high-light accumulated diatoxanthin to diadinoxanthin in low light in diatoms. Using the CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing technology we knocked out the ZEP2 and ZEP3 genes in the already commercially used marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum to investigate their role in the diadinoxanthin-diatoxanthin cycle, and to determine if one of the mutant strains could function as a diatoxanthin production line. Light shift experiments proved that ZEP3 encodes the enzyme converting diatoxanthin to diadinoxanthin in low light. Loss of ZEP3 caused the high-light accumulated diatoxanthin to be stable for several hours after the cultures had been returned to low light, suggesting that zep3 mutant strains could be suitable as commercial production lines of diatoxanthin.

This paper studies the maximum reliability of multi-hop relay UAV, in which UAV provides wireless services for remote users without direct communication link on the ground as a coded cooperative relay. In this paper, the analytical expressions of total power loss and total bit error rate are derived as reliability measures. Firstly, based on the environmental statistical parameters, a LOS probability model is proposed. Then the problem of minimizing the bit error rate of static and mobile UAVs is studied. The goal is to minimize the total bit error rate by jointly optimizing the height, elevation, power and path loss, and subject to the maximum allowable path loss con-straints, transmission power allocation constraints and UAV height and elevation constraints. At the same time the total path loss is minimized to achieve maximum ground communication cov-erage. However, the formulated joint optimization problem is non-convex and generally difficult to solve. Therefore, we decomposed the problem into two subproblems and proposed an effective joint optimization iteration algorithm. Finally, the simulation results are given, and the analysis shows that the optimal height of different reliability measures is slightly different, and using the mobility of UAVs can improve the reliability of communication performance.

The last 50 years witnessed the emergence of various so called “hyperpolarization technologies” that allow generating large magnetizations of spin ensembles. This Editorial Essay provides a brief overview of the use of these technologies in various fields, including medicine, chemistry, and quantum sensing. It is concluded that critical questions still need to be addressed to harness benefits of nuclear hyperpolarization in clinical medical imaging while interdisciplinary innovation can unlock potential of novel (yet unexplored) methods. My hope is that this Editorial Essay provides valuable insights into the current state and future directions of spin technologies.

A novel compressible real gas 1D finite volume thermofluid network modelling methodology is proposed that can be applied in the analysis of supercritical CO₂ (sCO2) power cycles. It is applied to simulate centrifugal compressor performance via a mean line approach that directly solves the mass, energy, and momentum balance equations for the discretized flow channels within the machine along with the associated loss models, component characteristics, and applicable compressible real gas equation of state. This can be integrated seamlessly with the rest of the power cycle components like pipes, valves, heat exchangers, etc., thereby eliminating the need for static performance maps and the associated difficulties to ensure similarity over the whole range of operation. This direct simulation of the internal flows also makes it possible to do integrated cycle design optimization that includes the geometry of the compressors, and to simulate fast transients for dynamic analysis. The methodology was applied to simulate well-documented air and sCO2 centrifugal compressors and compared the generated results with that of conventional thermofluid network incompressible and compressible ideal gas approaches. The results indicate that the proposed compressible real gas approach can capture the stagnation pressure changes and isentropic efficiencies with good accuracy for both cases over the whole range of mass flow rates and shaft rotational speeds. In contrast, the conventional thermofluid network incompressible and compressible ideal gas approaches are only applicable in selected regions of the fluid property regime and suffer from discretization errors and inappropriate treatment of the relationship between stagnation and static pressures. Furthermore, comparative analyses between the newly proposed approach and the traditional mechanical energy balance method are performed, showing that the latter approach needs to be discretized more finely through the compression process to correctly capture the polytropic compression path shape, whereas the former more accurately captures the stagnation pressure changes through the analyzed compressors with only a single increment per compressor component.

Contemporary global policy, driven by concern for the environment, imposes increasingly stringent goals for reducing CO2 emissions. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop effective models that allow an accurate prediction of CO2 emissions from vehicles powered by alternative fuels such as CNG. This article presents the process of creating one of the first models of CO2 emission for a vehicle powered by CNG. Emission modelling is based on data obtained from chassis dynamometer tests and road tests using the portable emission measurement system (PEMS). CO2 emission modelling was conducted in Python programming language using the Optuna framework for the XGBoost technique. The models obtained were validated, with indicators R2 0.9 and RMSE 0.49 for data from chassis dynamometer tests, and R2 0.7, RMSE 0.71 for road test data. This work has the potential to be used by transportation decision makers involved in environmental analyses and policymaking for urban areas.

Non-exhaust road transport emissions in cities contribute to poor air quality and create health impacts. This paper presents a new study of the emitted particles due to the tyres-road wear ‘TRWP’ in real driving and gives their emission factors EF. The most frequently observed particles were <1 µm; followed by particles size between [1µm, 4µm] for urban, suburban and highway areas. These particle sizes are well-known to have a higher degree of toxicity. An overall analysis of all the measured pollutants gave EF equal to 30 10+12 #/km and 35 10+12 #/km, respectively for urban and sub-urban areas; and 5 10+12 #/km on highway. The analysis of the 19 most emitted pollutants, taken individually, showed that their EFs ranged from 0.003 to 18.142 10+12#/km. The obtained EF are above the value of the Euro standard for vehicles, but are below the values for vehicles unequipped with a particle filter. Significant test analysis confirmed that inertia of chemical pollutants is homogeneous. EF assessment of the PM10 and PM2.5 emitted is equal to 1.45 mg/km and 0.35 mg/km respectively. These results should contribute to the emergence of future regulations of non-exhaust emissions and should help to analyse the exposure-impact relationship to TRWP.

Many corporations have now revised their value statements to showcase their commitment to sustainable development and green business due to the pressing issues of climate and environmental damage. Despite the importance of value statements that can direct companies to achieve sustainable goals, what kind of values can be perceived as organizational orientations to sustainability remains unknown. This study explores how the general public views the inclusion of sustainable components in value statements from the listed companies in Hong Kong by using Q-sort methodology (n = 30). Analyzing the final sample of 40 value statements extracted from 27 listed companies, we identified three factors related to sustainability, namely, Empowering business process management, Empowering customer-centric excellence, and Empowering sustainable progress. This study provides an additional component to the traditional triple bottom line by suggesting that internal operation of a company is an emerging idea to understand corporate sustainability.

Data on Stark broadening parameters, spectral line widths and shifts, for 15 multiplets of N VI, which spectral lines are broadened by collisions with electrons, protons, alpha particles (He III) and B III, B IV, B V and B VI ions, are presented. They have been calculated, using the semiclassical perturbation theory, for temperatures from 50,000 K to 2,000,000 K, and perturber densities from 1016 cm−3 up to 1024 cm−3. These data are particularly of interest for the analysis and modelling of atmospheres of hot and dense stars, as e.g. white dwarfs, and for investigation of their spectra, but also for analyis ad modelling of laser driven plasma in proton-boron fusion research.

As a major coal country, China faces the issue of significant gas emissions during the coal mining process. This study aims to improve the utilization efficiency of mine gas, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and promote the low-carbon and green transformation of the coal industry. A 10kW gas regenerative thermal oxidation (RTO) experimental system was constructed. The effects of initial methane concentration, low-temperature flue gas proportion, and operating load on combustion temperature, methane oxidation rate, high-temperature flue gas energy, and system thermal efficiency were studied. The results show that when the combustion temperature is below 600°C, the CH4 combustion reaction cannot proceed effectively, and the system temperature continuously decreases and cannot be maintained stable. The experiment determines the stable operating methane concentration range of RTO. In this experimental system, the lower limit of the initial methane concentration is 0.28%, corresponding to an 86% methane oxidation rate. As the initial methane concentration decreases, the combustion temperature also decreases, and the methane oxidation rate follows suit. The higher the low-temperature flue gas proportion, the higher the combustion temperature, and the system thermal efficiency and output heat decrease with the increase of the low-temperature flue gas proportion. This experiment explores multiple factors affecting regenerative thermal oxidation, providing an basis for ensuring the safe and stable operation of the system and optimization. Improving the thermal insulation and heat exchange performance of the storage body can expand the lower limit of the initial methane concentration, thereby increasing the stability and thermal efficiency of the system.

Various wood fibres, including pine and flax, are used in wood–plastic composites (WPCs). This paper studies the effect of the lignin content on the morphological and thermal degradation and damage due to the ultraviolet (UV) aging of polypropylene/flax (PP-flax) and polypropylene/pine (PP-pine) fibres composites. Flax and pine fibres exhibited distinct densities of 1.51 and 1.47 g/cm³, respectively, potentially influenced by growth factors and varying compositions of light substances, such as hemicellulose, lignin, and impurities. The thermal decomposition mass loss increased proportionally with the percentage of lignin in the fibre. From 238°C to 390°C, the pine fibre exhibited a 72% mass loss compared to flax fibre, which showed a 54% mass loss, owing to the higher lignin content in pine fibres. Based on differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), the fibre composition affected the material melting temperature. Moreover, DSC curves revealed a higher degree of crystallinity in the case of the PP-flax biocomposite (12%) compared to pure polypropylene (9%) and PP-pine (6%). This result can be attributed to the high content of crystalline components in flax fibres, such as cellulose. Acoustic emissions analysis confirmed that the high lignin content delays degradation and mitigates the appearance of microcracks on the surface of the PP-pine biocomposite. Overall, the study provides valuable data for understanding the UV degradation phenomenon in biocomposites and highlights the influence of fibre composition on material performance.

Background: Several studies recently confirmed the emergence of resistance to antimalarial drugs in sub-Saharan Africa. Multiple first-line treatment (MFT) is one of the measures envisaged to respond to the emergence and spread of this resistance. The aim of this study was to identify perceived advantages and disadvantages of several MFT deployment strategies and to better understand potential implementation drivers and barriers. Methods: A qualitative survey was conducted in seven sub-Saharan countries amongst key opinion-leaders, national decision-makers, and end users. A total of 200 individual interviews were conducted and findings were analyzed following a thematic inductive approach. Results: From a policy perspective, the new MFT intervention would require endorsement at the global, national, and regional levels to ensure its inclusion in guidelines. Funding of the MFT intervention could be a bottleneck due to costs associated with additional training of healthcare workers, adaptation of drug delivery mechanisms, and higher costs of drugs. Concerning the MFT deployment strategies, a slight preference for the segmentation strategy was expressed over the rotation and geographic approaches, due to the perception that a segmentation approach is already in place at country level. Conclusions: The findings highlighted the need for a collective approach to MFT deployment through the engagement of stakeholders at all levels of malaria management.

Acoustic emission monitoring (AEM) has emerged as an effective technique for detecting wire-breaks resulting from, e.g., stress corrosion cracking, and its application on prestressed concrete bridges is increasing. The success of this monitoring measure depends crucially on a carefully designed sensor layout. For this the attenuation of elastic waves within the structure’s material is determined ideally in-situ through object-related measurements with a reproducible signal source, typically a rebound-hammer. This assumes that the attenuation coefficients derived from rebound-hammer tests are comparable to those from wire-breaks, thus allowing their results to be directly applied to wire-break detection without further adjustments. This study challenges this assumption by analysing attenuation behaviour through an extensive dataset. Employing time-domain and frequency analysis, the research generates attenuation profiles from laboratory experiments and in-situ measurements across various girders and bridge structures, extracting the slope and standard deviation of the residuals. While generally validating this approach, the findings highlight differences in attenuation behaviour from among wire-break signals and rebound-hammer impulses, whereby the latter potentially underestimates the relevant attenuation of wire-breaks by approximately 20 %. Consequently, a transfer factor is proposed to adjust object-related measurement results for wire-break scenarios, including a variance of 1.0 dB/m to cover a 95 % confidence interval for sample scattering. Moreover, the anisotropic attenuation behaviour across different structures was studied, showing that transverse attenuation consistently exceeds the longitudinal, significantly influenced by structural features such as voids. In prefabricated concrete bridges with in-situ-cast concrete slabs, transverse signal transmission remains unhindered across multiple elements. Finally, the results provide a valuable reference for the design of sensor layouts in bridge monitoring, particularly benefiting scenarios where direct in-situ experiences are lacking.

In politics and society, organic farming is widely seen as the ideal way to address the many challenges facing agriculture and food security. In order to examine the extent to which this view is realistic, the impact of organic and conventional farming is compared on the basis of relevant criteria such as land requirements, greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity, food quality, production and environmental costs, reduced meat consumption, the need for agricultural imports and the global expansion of arable land. Land is considered to be a central factor. Such a comprehensive analysis is necessary to assess the impact of different influencing factors and to provide important suggestions for targeted decision making. Although organic farming has a positive impact on land use in many ways, it quickly reaches its limits. The low yields and high production costs resulting from the limited choice of means of production make organic farming an unsuitable model for the future in a world with limited arable land, a high and growing demand for food, and low incomes for large sections of the population. It can, however, provide significant impetus and contribute important technological knowledge for the further development of agriculture as a whole to meet the complex objectives of sustainability, greenhouse gas mitigation, biodiversity and global food security by incorporating all available technologies. Based on this, a model for responsible, sustainable intensive agriculture is outlined and proposals for an eco-social framework to support this model are put forward.

The purpose of this work is to study the mechanism of running-in during the friction and to determine the informative parameters characterizing the degree of its completion. During the friction, contact interaction of rough surfaces causes various wave phenomena covering a wide range of frequencies, the subsequent frequency analysis can provide information about the sizes of wave sources and thereby clarify the mechanism of interaction between surface roughness. The using of the wavelet transform for processing of the signals of audible acoustic emission made it possible to determine the beginning and the end of the change in the frequency ranges of the interaction of roughness. The code developed by the authors was used to analyze the acoustic emission signals by using wavelet energy and entropy criteria. The mother wavelet was chosen by carefully evaluating the effectiveness of 54 preliminary candidates for the mother wavelet from 7 wavelet families, ac-cording to three criteria: 1) maximum wavelet energy; 2) Shannon entropy minimum; 3) maximum energy-to-Shannon entropy ratio.

Ammonia can be considered a relevant compound in the future energy sector, playing a significant role as an energy carrier, storage, or carbon-free fuel. However, the production of this molecule has a high energy demand, and the use of natural gas, which is not free of controversy due to the accidental leakage into the atmosphere produced during extraction and the fact that it is a non-renewable source, contributes to increasing greenhouse gas emissions. Reducing the process’s energy demand and carbon footprint will be essential to making ammonia a clear alternative for a carbon-free economy. Given the vast experience in ammonia production and handling, this gas seems to be the logical step forward in the evolution of the energy sector. However, the current uncertainty in the global market requires cautiousness in decision-making. Several factors may impact economic growth and human welfare, thus needing a careful assessment before taking any transcendental decisions that could affect worldwide energy prices and raw material availability.

Quantum cryptography revolutionizes secure information transfer, providing defense against both quantum and classical computational attacks. The primary challenge in extending the reach of quantum communication comes from the exponential decay of signals over long distances. Addressing this challenge, we have developed Quantum-protected Control-based Key Distribution (QCKD), overcoming transmission range limitations by monitoring signal leakages and rendering leaked quantum states significantly non-orthogonal. This paper reports on the experiments with the QCKD, conducted over a 1,707 km fiber line. We demonstrate advancements in critical components of the protocol, showing its remarkable scalability and adaptability for extended distances and multi-user configurations.

Banana plantation is an important type of agro-ecosystem in the tropics, and it is important to carry out a quantitative assessment of the carbon footprint of the banana growing process for the development of low-carbon agriculture to cope with global warming. The carbon footprint of two banana cultivation processes was assessed using the life cycle assessment method through field trials and farmer surveys in Chengmai County, Hainan Province, China. The results showed that: (1) N2O emissions caused by the application of nitrogen fertilizers and compound nitrogen fertilizers were the largest source of carbon emissions from banana plantation farmland, and the production and transportation of common compound fertilizer were the second largest source of carbon emissions. Banana fruits and plants were the main contributors to carbon fixation in banana plantation ecosystems, with about 24.72 t CO2 eq hm-2 for Musa paradisiaca AA, and 34.66 t CO2 eq hm-2 for M. AAA Cavendish var. Brazil. (2) The annual carbon emissions of Musa paradisiaca AA and M. AAA Cavendish var. Brazil farmland systems were 35.40 t CO2 eq·hm-2 and 43.83 t CO2 eq·hm-2, respectively, and the annual carbon fixation was 38.23 CO2 eq·hm-2 and 48.17 CO2 eq·hm-2, respectively. The banana plantations had a negative carbon footprint per unit area, showing a net carbon sink function. (3) Banana is a plant with high carbon emission and strong carbon fixation capacity. Scientific management in the field can achieve the decrease of agricultural inputs, high quality and abundant agricultural products, and the reduction of carbon footprint of farmland.

We introduce a series of twisted donor-acceptor (D-A) carbazole-benzophenone based electroactive bipolar derivatives that were synthesized through the reaction of 4-fluorobenzophenone with various partially alkylated 3,3’-bicarbazoles. The comprehensive structural characterization of these compounds is provided. These amorphous materials exhibit suitable glass transition temperatures ranging from 57 to 102 °C and demonstrate high thermal stability, with decomposition temperatures reaching 400 °C. Moreover, the developed materials exhibit elevated photoluminescence quantum yields (PLQY) of up to 75.5% and favorable HOMO-LUMO levels, along with suitable triplet-singlet state energy values. Due to their good solubility and suitable film-forming properties, all the compounds were evaluated as blue emitters dispersed in 4,4’-bis(N-carbazolyl)-1,10-biphenyl (CBP) host for the fabrication of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) in concentration dependent experiments. Among these experiments, the device containing 15 wt% of the guest 4-(9’-{2-ethylhexyl}-[3,3’]-bicarbazol-9-yl)benzophenone demonstrated the best characteristics, achieving maximum brightness of 3581 cd/m2, current efficiency of 5.7 cd/A, power efficiency of 4.1 lm/W and external quantum efficiency of 2.7%.

This research focuses on exploring generalized electron emissions in one-dimensional conducting materials, specifically examining field emission and thermionic emission. Additionally, the study investigates one-dimensional thermal radiation. The current density is derived for both one-dimensional thermionic emission and one-dimensional field emission. A generalized current density in one dimension is devised, taking into account arbitrary accelerating fields and temperature conditions. The formula for the one-dimensional current density is depicted with accelerating field and temperature across various work function materials. The current is also represented as a function of both temperature and electric field for various temperatures.

The mechanisms of formation of induced intrinsic and impurity radiative states, which consist of intrinsic and impurity electron-hole trapping centers in irradiated Ca2P2O7-Mn and Ca2P2O7 phosphates, were investigated using thermoactivation and vacuum-ultraviolet spectroscopy methods. These centers are excited at photon energies of 4.0 eV and 4.5 eV, which are within the matrix's transparency region. New radiative induced states at 3.06 eV and 2.92 eV are demonstrated to be generated upon the excitation of anions by photons with energies of 5.0 and 5.64 eV. This process is due to charge transfer from the ion to the impurities, specifically Mn^2+ O^2- Mn^2+ and the neighboring ion O^2- (P2O7)^4-. Furthermore, upon the excitation of matrix anions with photon energies exceeding the band gap (8.0 - 8.25 eV), electron trapping by impurities such as Mn^2+ and (P2O7)^4- ions results.

The study of emission, propagation, and reflection of balls in Newtonian mechanics, employing the laws of conservation of momentum and energy when the mass of balls converges to zero, concludes that the kinematics of light is like that of massless balls. The kinematics of light explains why light speed is the constant in each inertial frame in which the light source and reflective mirror are at rest, why the laws of physics have the same form in each inertial frame, and why any experiment in an inertial frame cannot prove the motion of that the other inertial frame. The theory of special relativity misapplies symmetry observed in phenomena to two inertial frames; therefore, it duplicates a physics phenomenon from one inertial frame, considered stationary, into another. Moreover, Lorentz’s transformation offers light speed at the constant in the moving and opposite direction of the inertial frame but is variable in any other direction. Therefore, the theory of special relativity rejects itself with these unacceptable conclusions.

This study investigated the characteristics of radio-frequency middle-pressure argon plasma used in the atomic layer deposition (ALD) of Al2O3 films. Based on the electrical characteristics, that is current, voltage, and phase shift between them, and stability of plasma plume, the optimum plasma power, allowing reliable switching on the plasma for any step of an ALD cycle, was determined. Spectral measurements were performed to determine the gas temperature and reactive species that could be important in the ALD process. The density of metastable argon atoms was estimated using tunable laser absorption spectroscopy. It was concluded that plasma heating of substrates did not affect film growth and proposed that the crystallization-enhancing effect of plasma was due to the action of OH radicals, produced in the plasma.

An optical frequency comb (OFC) generator based on an electro-optic Talbot laser and cross-phase modulation (XPM) in a high nonlinear fiber (HNLF) is designed and demonstrated. The Talbot laser is an electro-optic frequency shifting loop to produce repetition rate multiplied pulses, and these pulses working as a pump signal induce XPM process in the HNLF to modulate the phase of a probe signal. At the output of the HNLF, OFCs with a multiplied line-spacing can be generated. The effects of the pump power and the HNLF length on the performance of the generated OFCs are theoretically analyzed. In the experiments, the line-spacing of the generated OFCs is respectively multiplied to be 10 GHz, 15 GHz and 20 GHz with a factor of 2, 3 and 4. The center of the OFCs is tuned in a 4-nm range by adjusting the wavelength of the probe signal.

This research concerns the virtual reconstruction and technical constructive analysis of the emblematic and disappeared Matriz church of Ambato city, whose structure was demolished after the collapse of its vaults in the 1949 earthquake, about which it was said to have had deficiencies in its construction. Through an exhaustive historical review of documents and images, its constructive hypothesis was achieved, and using photogrammetry technique, its virtual reconstruction was obtained, where, through the interpretation and understanding of the generated plans, the verification of its technical and constructive characteristics associated with its hypothetical mechanical behavior inherent to its stone construction was carried out. For the structural study, the principle of the Limit Analysis of Structures was used, where through a graphic static approach, the technical stability conditions of a masonry structure are established, in this case, to give an interpretation to the possible poor execution of the church's work, and eventual cause that could have contributed to the collapse of its vaults.

The outstanding occurrences of red wood ant nests (RWA; Formica rufa-group) at two study sites in the Oberpfalz, NE Bavaria, Germany, could be confirmed by the 2023 re-inventory (a total of 5,393 nests and an increase by ≈8 %). RWA nests preferred mature and medium mature pine-dominated forests. Standing and downed dead wood do not negatively influence nests. Nest counts with woodpecker cavities and the diversity of the herb layer increased. The highly clustered nests in NW-SE direction suggests a strong interaction between nests distributions and the tectonic environment. Our developed (re-)inventory approach in combination with the comprehensive photo database is a valuable tool for a) monitoring the entire forest habitat including woodpecker cavities and dead wood in, at and around nests, and b) identifying GeoBio-Interactions. Such a comprehensive approach leads to more accurate and realistic counts of RWA nests during (re-)inventories and provides scientific evidence of the status quo of RWA occurrence. Our results disproved the unfounded and scientifically unsubstantiated blanket statement by laymen of the ASW Landesverband Bayern e.V. that RWA nest numbers in the Oberpfalz or even in the entire Bavaria are in sharp decline. We suggest seven to eight years as a suitable time interval for re-inventories.

This study investigates the influence of adding hydrogen as an additive to gasoline in a four-stroke engine, utilizing a comprehensive thermodynamic comparative analysis conducted with self-developed engine model. The research aims to assess the performance, emissions, and efficiency of the engine when using gasoline-hydrogen blends, and to provide insights into the potential benefits of this approach. First the engine performance and emissions under different hydrogen blending levels were examined. A range of different air-to-fuel ratios (rich to lean) and varying percentages of hydrogen were considered. This systematic variation allowed for a detailed evaluation of the influence of hydrogen content on combustion efficiency, power out-put, and emissions characteristics. The analysis results included key parameters such as indicated specific fuel consumption and mean effective pressure. Additionally, the study focused on range prediction of nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions, which are a critical environmental concern asso-ciated with internal combustion engines. The analysis of pressure and temperature profiles throughout the engine cycle shed light on the combustion characteristics and efficiency im-provements associated with hydrogen addition. In terms of emissions, the study projected that all emissions were reduced except NOx, which is highly dependent on hydrogen percentage, and it might be reduced in some cases, but with higher temperatures and pressures associated with hydrogen addition in most cases there is actually NOx increase, especially at higher engine loads.

The statistical analysis of impact of the top 50 solar flares of X-class (1997-2023) on the global seismic activity, as well as on the earthquake preparation zones located in illuminated part of the globe and in the area of 5000 km radius around the subsolar point was carried out. It is shown by a method of epoch superposition that for all cases the increase of seismicity is observed, especially in the region around the subsolar point (up to 38%) during 10 days after the solar flare in comparison with preceding 10 days. The case study of aftershock sequence of strong M=9.1 earthquake (Su-matra-Andaman Islands, 26.12.2004) after the solar flare of X7.2 class (20.01.2005) demonstrated that the number of aftershocks with magnitude M≥2.5 increases more than 20 times after the solar flare with a delay of 7 days. For the case of the Darfield earthquake (M=7.1, 04.09.2010, New Zealand) it was shown that strong solar flares of class X and M probably triggered two strong aftershocks (M>6) with the same delay of 6 days on the Port Hills fault, which is the most sensitive to external electromagnetic impact from point of view of the fault electrical conductivity and orientation. Based on the obtained results the possible application of natural electromagnetic triggering of earthquakes is discussed for a short-term earthquake prediction using confidently recorded strong external electromagnetic triggering impacts on the specific earthquake preparation zones, as well as ionospheric perturbations due to aerosol emission from the earthquake sources recorded by satellites.

Livestock farming plays a crucial role in agriculture and is important in meeting people's needs for a better life in the new era. However, due to China's "double carbon" target, the development of animal husbandry has been affected by the level of carbon emissions. To study the spatial dis-tribution and dynamic evolution of livestock carbon emissions in Shandong Province, we used panel data from 16 prefecture-level cities in Shandong Province from 2001 to 2022 to determine the spatial differentiation of livestock carbon emissions in Shandong Province and their dynamic evolution by combining spatial and non-parametric estimation methods based on livestock carbon emissions and livestock emission intensity measured by city. The results of the study show that the distribution of carbon emissions from animal husbandry in Shandong Province is in a "dis-persed-aggregated" pattern, and the intensity of carbon emissions shows a gradual downward trend, with a ladder-like distribution characterized by high in the west and low in the east. Through the analysis of the dynamic evolution of nuclear density, we observe that the regional differences of animal husbandry carbon emissions in Shandong Province are expanding, showing the characteristics of polarization. The difference of carbon emissions in the peninsula is gradually narrowing, and the phenomenon of polarization is weakening. The carbon emissions of animal husbandry in the central and western regions of Shandong are polarized.

In vitro glucose uptake in yeast cell facilitated by Abelmoschus esculentus L. (okra seed) for management of type 2 diabetes was studied. Plant material was collected, identified, processed, and stored for further use. 80% methanol was employed for extraction and sonicated to release antidiabetic-bioactive component in solution and was filtered, concentrated, freeze-dried, and fractionated using standard techniques. Glucose uptake at an initial concentration of 5mM/L and 10mM/L by the crude extract was consistent to that of the known standard drug while at 25mM/L glucose concentration was equivalent with the crude extract. Also, at 0.625 mg/mL the linear equations, and R2 demonstrations that the crude extract was higher in dose predictability than the standard drug as presented by the equation; y = 35.754x - 57.822, and R² = 0.9502 (95%). The extract-fractions were employed to evaluate the ability of yeast cell line culture to take up glucose from the system through DPPH, FRAP, lipid peroxidation and anti-diabetes effect of extract-fraction assays. Extract-fractions were found to poses antioxidant activity high enough to inhibit stress-related diseases. The extract fractions were active as drug candidates both at low and high concentrations and were better compared with the standard drug and standard antioxidant was comparable. The high bioactive extract fractions require encapsulation with a nanoparticle as a drug candidate for type 2 diabetes patients. And an animal trial of the drug candidate may be necessary to monitor the in vivo performances of the extract fractions and subsequent human volunteered trial.

Deep learning (DL) algorithms used for DOTATATE PET lesion detection typically require large, well-annotated training datasets. These are difficult to obtain due to low incidence of gastroenteopancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs), and the high cost of manual annotation. Furthermore, networks trained and tested with data acquired from site specific PET/CT instrumentation, acquisition and processing protocols have reduced performance when tested with offsite data. This lack of generalizability requires even larger, more diverse training datasets. The objective of this study is to investigate the feasibility of improving DL algorithm performance by better matching the background noise in training datasets to higher noise, out-of-domain testing datasets. 68Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT datasets were obtained from two scanners: Scanner1, a state-of-the-art digital PET/CT (GE DMI PET/CT; n=83 subjects), and Scanner2, an older-generation analog PET/CT (GE STE; n=123 subjects). Set1, the data set from Scanner1 was reconstructed with standard clinical parameters (5 minutes; Q.Clear) and list-mode reconstructions (VPFXS 2, 3, 4, and 5-minutes). Set2, data from Scanner2, representing out-of-domain clinical scans, used standard iterative reconstruction (5 minutes; OSEM). Reconstructed datasets were divided into training, validation, and testing datasets in a 60%, 20%, 20% proportion, and a deep neural network was trained with each: Network1 for Scanner1 and Network2 for Scanner2. DL performance (Network1) was tested with out-of-domain test data (Set2). To evaluate the effect of training sample size, we tested DL model performance using a fraction (25%, 50%, and 75%) of Set1 for training. Scanner1, list-mode 2-minute reconstructed data demonstrated the most similar noise level compared that of Set2, resulting in the best performance (F1=0.713). This was not significantly different compared to the highest performance, upper-bound limit using in-domain training for Network2 (F1=0.755; p-value=0.103). Regarding sample size, the F1 score significantly increased from 25% training data (F1=0.478) to 100% training data (F1=0.713; p<0.001). List-mode data from modern PET scanners can be reconstructed to better match the noise properties of older scanners. Using existing data and their associated annotations dramatically reduces the cost and effort in generating these datasets, and significantly improves the performance of existing DL algorithms. List-mode reconstructions can provide an efficient, low-cost method to improve DL algorithm generalizability.

We propose a method for creating parallel Bessel-like vortical optical needles with an arbitrary axial intensity distribution via superposition of different cone-angle Bessel vortices. We analyze the interplay between the separation of individual optical vortical needles and their respective lengths and introduce a super-Gaussian function as their axial profile. We also analyze the physical limitations to observe well-separated optic needles, as they are influenced by mutual interference of the individual beams. To verify our theoretical and numerical results, we generate controllable spatial arrays of individual Bessel beams with various numbers and spatial separations by altering the spectrum of the incoming laser beam via the spatial light modulator. We demonstrate experimentally how to implement such beams using a diffractive mask. The presented method facilitates the creation of diverse spatial intensity distributions in three dimensions, potentially finding applications in specific microfabrication tasks or other contexts. These beams may have benefits in laser material processing applications such as nanochannel machining, glass via production, modification of glass refractive indices, and glass dicing.

The performance of the presurgical test (preSurg) for temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) was evaluated via video-electroencephalography (VEEG), electroencephalography (EEG), 99mTc-HmPAO single-photon emission tomography (SPECT) and 1.5 T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in a group of 112 men (37.0 ± 1.1 years) and 106 women (39.7 ± 1.1 years) operated on for TLE. The epileptic zone (EZ) was adequately identified to determine whether the patient reached an Engel I grade (EI) at least one year postop. Accuracy was evaluated by the coefficient α, ranging from 3 (when result = EZ) to 2 (result in the same hemisphere as the EZ), 1 (noninformative result) or 0 (EZ in the contralateral hemisphere). The simplicity of diagnosis was defined as the number of preSurg surgeries needed to identify the EZ. EI was obtained in 85.8% of patients even though 42.2% of patients had noninformative MRI results. For preSurg α was (mean ± SEM) = VEEG (2.83 ± 0.04) > MRI (2.14 ± 0.08) > EEG (1.87 ± 0.09) > SPECT (1.71 ± 0.09). The accuracy (combination of sensitivity and specificity) was calculated as follows: VEEG (0.797) > MRI (0.518) > EEG (0.446) > SPECT (0.360). The likelihood positive ratio was greater, and the likelihood negative ratio was lower for VEEG. The most relevant factor for the regression model was VEEG (3.106) > MRI (2.558) > EEG (1.905), and the factors were not significantly related to SPECT. EZs in EI patients with low simplicity were identified mainly by VEEG. A very good postoperative outcome can be obtained even in TLE patients with no lesions on MRI. The VEEG is the most reliable preSurg test and may be the only reliable test for patients with very low simplicity (i.e., difficult).single paragraph of about 200 words maximum. For research articles, abstracts should give a pertinent overview of the work. We strongly encourage authors to use the following style of structured abstracts, but without headings: (1) Background: Place the question addressed in a broad context and highlight the purpose of the study; (2) Methods: briefly describe the main methods or treatments applied; (3) Results: summarize the article’s main findings; (4) Conclusions: indicate the main conclusions or interpretations. The abstract should be an objective representation of the article and it must not contain results that are not presented and substantiated in the main text and should not exaggerate the main conclusions.

Cardiotoxicity is an unwanted side-effect arising from different medications. The term describes a diminution of heart function, affecting especially left ventricular ejection fraction, which can progress to heart failure. Pediatric oncology patients treated with drugs of the anthracycline group, e.g., doxorubicin, can evolve to heart failure patients in adult age. Nuclear Medicine imaging of fatty acid oxidation and glycolysis accurately describes normal and altered heart metabolism. The most common finding is a state of cardiac glycolysis, which is reflected by increased uptake of 18F-desoxyglucose (18F-FDG) at a time when fatty acid oxidation is decreased. Glycolysis has recently been recognized as being the result of coenzyme Q10 deficiency as part of adaptation to hypoxia. Low LEVF correlates with impaired fatty acid oxidation. This deficiency can arise from chemotherapy and radiation and can be corrected by supplementation. Drugs like enalapril can improve fatty acid utilization. We will review relevant Nuclear Medicine imaging studies as well as fundamental biochemical data that demonstrate this pathogenetic path.

Measuring and predicting Carbon Emission (CE) is important to enabling the main culprit of various urgent environmental issues including global warming. However, prior studies did not fully incorporate the impact of micro-level urban streetscapes, which might lead to biased prediction of urban CE. To fill the gap, we developed an effective framework to predict residential CE in urban areas from widely existing and publicly available street-view images (SVI) using machine learning. First, we used a semantic segmentation algorithm to classify more than 30 streetscape elements from SVI images to describe the built environment whose features might affect residential and transportation CE. Second, based on the streetscapes quantified, we trained a 10-fold cross-validation method with various machine learning models to predict the CE at the 1KM grid level using CE data from the PlanetData. We found first, built environment features such as sidewalks, roads, fences, buildings, and walls are significantly correlated with the residential CE. Second, the presence of buildings and subtle streetscape features (e.g., walls, fences) indicates higher-density residential areas which are related to more residential CE. Third, vegetation (e.g., trees and grass) are reversely related to residential CE. Our findings shed light on the feasibility of using a single and open data source (i.e., the SVI) to effectively model neighborhood-level CE for regions across diverse urban forms. Our framework is useful for urban planners to inform new town development and urban regeneration towards the low CE goals.

The electrification of process industries is one of the main challenges when building a low-carbon society since they consume huge amounts of fossil fuel generating different emissions. Heat pumps are one of the instruments to perform industrial sector of carbon-neutral market players. This paper proposes an approach to improve the economic feasibility of heat pumps within the process plants. Initial energy targeting with Grand Composite Curves was used and supplemented with the detailed design of the evaporator and compressor for different condensation and evaporation pressures. The trade-off between the capital cost of the heat pump and the electricity cost was investigated and optimal configurations were selected. The case study investigates the gas fractioning unit of a polymer plant where three heat pumps were integrated into distillation columns. The results demonstrated that the heat recovery is 174 MW and requires an additional 37.9 MW of electricity to reduce hot utility by 212 MW. The selection of evaporation and condensation pressure of heat pumps allows saving of 21.5 M€/y for 7 years of plant operation.

In the context of the French tertiary decree, it is crucial to reduce the energy consumption of buildings by first addressing the design of the electrical architecture. Implementing Direct Current (DC) nanogrids in buildings could offers a promising advantage for energy efficiency, significantly impacting overall energy consumption and sustainability goals. For an insulated area with a subtropical climate, such as La Réunion island, DC nanogrids could also facilitate the insertion of local renewable energy sources, especially solar energy. This article presents the deployment and efficiency evaluation of an end-to-end Low Voltage Direct Current (LVDC) nanogrid, from conception to real-world installation within a company. The nanogrid consists of a photovoltaic power plant, a Lithium-Iron-Phosphate (LFP) battery, and DC end-use equipment such as LED lighting and DC fans for two individual offices. An innovation is provided for the power supply and energy management of terminal equipment using the Power Over Ethernet (PoE) standard IEEE 802.3bt. The efficiency of the nanogrid is measured to be 40% higher than the efficiency of an installation powered by PV and distributed at 230 VAC. These results are obtained under certain deployment conditions, which are discussed in this article, in order to enhance the energy efficiency of buildings by using 48VDC. The nanogrid hardware and software infrastructure, the methodology employed for efficiency quantification and the measurement results are described in the paper.

Italy has been defined as the "logistics platform" of the Mediterranean Sea. The Italian port system, with 11,6 million TEUs handled and 61,4 million passengers by 2022 (Assoporti data Jan‐Dec 2022) [1] is the key to guarantee this condition through adequate levels of reliability, safety and sustainability. This contribution addresses port logistics and shipping, focusing on primary issues related to the energy sector with a specific focus on what can be observed in the Italian context. Specifically, decarbonization of the maritime sector and related infrastructural problems (e.g. Cold Ironing or alternative fuels, where the uncertainty about resources availability and related cost do not allow for an easy strategic planning by both the shipowner and the port authority), as well as policies such the Emission Trading System (ETS) will be analyzed. All these issues, if addressed with a critical review, could represent the driving force of the national port sector for its growth and its competitiveness at a global scale.

Purpose: The aim of the study is an approach to a nanocomposite with copper nanoparticles, constituting a bacteriostatic surface for maintaining the human lung cells' function. Methods: The polyelectrolyte layer coating with copper nanoparticles incorporated was designed. As a bacteriostatic factor, copper nanoparticles were applied as a colloidal solution of copper nanoparticles (ColloidCuNPs) and solution of copper nanoparticles (CuNPs). The influence of polyelectrolytes on selected Gram(+) and Gram(-) strains was examined. The function of the human adenocarcinoma A549 cell line of epithelial human lung cells cultured in the presence of nanocomposite layer coatings was analyzed, as well as their morphology using flow cytometry, fluorescence microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. In addition, the material of layer coating was assessed using AFM and SEM-EDX characterization. Results: It was observed that polyelectrolytes polyethylenimine and poly-L-lysine do not induce proliferation of E.coli strain. On the other hand, it induces the proliferation of S. aureus strain. Due to CuNPs effectiveness against E.coli strain, CuNPs were selected for further research. The designed coatings at proper NPs share sustained the function of human lung cells cultured within 10 days of culture. The AFM and EDX characterization confirmed copper presence in the layer coating nanomaterial. The presence of CuNPs in polyethyleneimine-based nanocomposite deepens the bacteriostatic effect on E. coli compared with PEI alone. Meanwhile, incorporating CuNPs in PLL at share allowed A549 cell maintenance, did not exert a bacteriostatic influence on the examined strain.Conclusion: The platform based on polyelectrolytes incorporated with copper nanoparticles ensuring the growth and morphology of the human lung epithelial cells can be considered an element of the system components for medical devices for maintaining the human lung cells' function.

Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) have garnered considerable attention in academic and industrial circles due to their potential applications in flat panel displays and solid-state lighting technologies, leveraging the advantages offered by organic electroactive derivatives over their inorganic counterparts. The thin and flexible design of OLEDs enables the development of innovative lighting solutions, facilitating the creation of customizable and contoured lighting panels. Among the diverse electroactive components employed in the molecular design of OLED materials, the benzophenone core has attracted much attention as fragment for synthesis of organic semiconductors. On the other hand, the benzophenone also functions as a classical phosphor with high intersystem crossing efficiency. This characteristic makes it as compelling candidate for effective reverse intersystem crossing, potentially leading to the development of thermally activated delayed fluorescent (TADF) emitters. These emitting materials witnessed a pronounced interest in recent years due to their incorporation in metal-free electroactive frameworks and the capability to convert triplet excitons into emissive singlet excitons through reverse intersystem crossing (RISC), consequently achieving exceptionally high external quantum efficiencies (EQEs). This review article comprehensively overviews the synthetic pathways, thermal characteristics, electrochemical behaviour and photo-physical properties of the derivatives based on benzophenone. Furthermore, we explore their applications in OLED devices, both as host materials and emitters, shedding light on the promising opportunities that benzophenone-based compounds present in advancing OLED technology.

For esophageal cancer patients treated with neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT), restaging using F-18-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography computed tomography (PET-CT) following nCRT can detect interval metastases, including liver metastases, in almost 10% of patients. However, in clinical practice, focal FDG liver uptake, unrelated to liver metastases, is observed after chemoradiotherapy. This radiation-induced liver injury (RILI) can potentially lead to overstaging. Liver radiation damage is also a concern during distal esophageal cancer radiotherapy due to proximity to the left liver lobe, typically included in the radiation field. Post-CRT, if FDG activity appears in the left or caudate liver lobes, thorough investigation is needed to confirm or rule out distant metastases. The increased FDG uptake in liver lobes post-CRT often presents a diagnostic dilemma. Distinguishing between radiation-induced liver disease and metastasis is vital for appropriate patient management, necessitating a combination of imaging techniques and an understanding of the factors influencing radiation response. Diagnosis involves identifying new foci of hepatic FDG avidity on PET/CT scans. Geographic regions of hypoattenuation on CT and well-demarcated regions with specific enhancement patterns on contrast-enhanced CT scan and MRI are characteristic of radiation-induced liver disease (RILD). Lack of mass effect on all three modalities (CT, MRI, PET) indicates RILD. Resolution of abnormalities on subsequent examinations also helps in diagnosing RILD. Moreover, it can also help to rule out occult metastases, thereby excluding those patients from further surgery who will not benefit from esophagectomy with curative intent.

Given the imperative of security, sustainability of supply, strategic considerations, and energy independence, there is a widely acknowledged need to persist in utilizing coal as the primary fuel for electricity generation in power plants. However, in order to combat the rising levels of CO2 in the atmosphere, it is crucial to advance the development of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies that enable fossil fuel power plants to achieve zero emissions. These technologies play a pivotal role in capturing and effectively storing CO2, thus ensuring that coal-based power generation can continue while significantly reducing its environmental impact. By implementing CCS solutions, fossil fuel power plants can transition towards a more sustainable and environmentally friendly energy future.The utilization of chemical solvents for CO2 absorption, coupled with long-term storage, presents an intriguing and commercially viable technology for CO2 capture. However, the significant energy demands of the solvent regeneration process necessitate optimization, particularly in large-scale power plants. While the current cost of CO2 capture stands at approximately #55,000.00(Naira) per ton of CO2, the objective is to reduce this cost to below #25,000.00(Naira) per ton of CO2. This reduction in cost is essential to ensure the economic feasibility and widespread adoption of CO2 capture technologies in power generation.This research paper explores various approaches to address the energy demands associated with amine scrubbing integration in a commercial power plant. It provides a comprehensive analysis, both technically and economically, of the performance of these different approaches. While some of the proposed schemes may result in minor efficiency reductions, the key objective is to calculate the specific cost per ton of CO2 captured. The primary focus is on identifying the most suitable configuration to implement large-scale, cost-effective schemes that can serve as a foundation for CO2 capture demonstration projects. By determining the optimal configuration, this research aims to pave the way for the successful implementation of efficient and economically viable CO2 capture technologies in the power generation sector.

Monolayer graphene absorbs 2.3 percent of the incident visible light. This “small” absorption has been used to emphasize the visual transparency of graphene, but it in fact means that multilayer graphene absorbs a sizable fraction of incident light, which causes non-negligible fluorescence. In this paper, we formulate the light emission properties of multilayer graphene composed of tens to hundreds of layers using a transfer matrix method and confirm the method’s validity experimentally. We could quantitatively explain the measured contrasts of multilayer graphene on SiO2/Si substrates and found sizable corrections, which cannot be classified as incoherent light emissions, to the reflectance of visible light. The new component originates from coherent emission caused by absorption at each graphene layer. Multilayer graphene thus functions as a partial coherent light source of various wavelengths, and it may have surface-emitting laser applications.

Roadway accidents significantly contribute to intermittent congestion and increased CO2 emissions on freeways. This research introduces a statistical approach designed to predict the rise in CO2 emissions resulting from traffic disturbances or jams triggered by such incidents. It also assesses the influence of varying levels of accident management effectiveness in different situations. To construct these scenarios, the study employs VISSIM, a traffic modeling software, incorporating diverse factors such as traffic volume, vehicle types, incident durations, and freeway lane counts. It then produces traffic flow characteristics in the form of vehicle paths. The emission estimates are derived by correlating these simulated vehicle paths with emission rates from the MOVES model. The study then applies a regression analysis to examine the connection between the increase in emissions and various influencing factors. The findings indicate that this approach efficiently reflects the impact of variables like accident duration, vehicle mix, and traffic volume on CO2 emissions across different lane configurations. The accuracy of these predictions is also confirmed. The outcomes suggest the model's potential usage in guiding efforts to lower emissions and determining the optimal duration of incident management, particularly in terms of lane closure, to mitigate emission impacts. This paper also discusses the limitations of the model and the future improvement direction.

Right heart masses are usually suspected during a routine examination by transthoracic echocardiography or due to cardiac symptoms. Although very important, sometimes it may be a challenge to differentiate between normal structures (variants) and aberrant or pathologic masses regarding the right heart cardiac tumors. In the last entity, the majority of primary cardiac tumors in adults and children are benign; however, they may have a malignant counterpart. Right heart tumors might involve not only the walls (myocardium, endocardium and pericardium), but also valves and cardiac chambers. Cardiac tumors exhibit altered signal intensity and enhancement characteristics, requiring the use of several imaging methods following a multimodality-imaging algorithm that culminates in the excision or biopsy of the tumor formation. Therefore, various imaging modalities, including echocardiography, computer tomography, positron emission tomography, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, scintigraphy or, even, invasive angiography, can be useful during their diagnosis. Echocardiography is the first-line non-invasive imaging modality used in the evaluation of the right heart tumors. Before the other diagnosis imaging modalities it is essential for defining morphology, assessing size, observing dynamic appearance, and evaluating functional abnormalities and hemodynamic consequences,. However, all imaging methods have frequently a complementary role; therefore, an integrated imaging approach is recommended.

In this paper, a 100CMM regenerative thermal oxidizer (RTO) system based on a high heating device for low-emission combustion is implemented at a volatile organic compound (VOCs) gas generation workplace. Existing RTO has a structure that repeats the inflow and discharge of VOCs gas into a cylindrical drum-type rotating disk and has excellent energy efficiency with a heat recovery rate of 95% or more. However, when used for a long time, there is a problem that rotation stops or explodes due to the discharge of pollutants due to dust and thermal expansion due to high temperature of 800℃. To overcome this, a RTO based on a high heating device was developed to reduce low-emission combustion emissions and energy use. Through 177 hours of demonstration time, the oxidation efficiency of VOCs was 97.87%; the waste heat recovery rate was reduced by 95.78%, the fuel consumption was reduced by 21.95%, and the nitrogen oxide concentration was 3.9 ppm

Abstract: Background: Aging is an important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and con-vincing data has shown that chronic low-grade inflammation, which develops with advanced age, contributes significantly to cardiovascular risk. Objectives: The present study aimed to use ¹⁸F-FDG/¹⁸F-NaF-PET/CT imaging to respectively gauge arterial inflammation and microcalcifi-cation in healthy elderly and to assess the potential benefits of a tyrosol- and hydroxytyrosol-rich diet on these two markers of atherosclerotic plaque fragility. Methods: Eleven healthy partici-pants (mean age 75 ± 5.67 years) were supplemented for 6 months with high polyphenol-rich extra virgin olive oil (HP-EVOO), extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), or refined olive oil (ROO). The partic-ipants underwent PET/CT imaging with ¹⁸F-FDG and ¹⁸F-NaF radiotracers at baseline and after 6 months. ¹⁸F-FDG and ¹⁸F-NaF uptakes were quantified using standardized uptake values (SUV) and were categorized based on artery calcification and olive oil type. Results: A total of 324 slices of the aortas of the imaged participants were analyzed for arterial inflammation and 327 slices were analyzed for microcalcification. 18F-FDG uptake was significantly higher in the non-calcified segments than in the calcified segments (SUVmax = 2.70  0.62 and SUVmax = 2.54  0.44, respectively, p<0.042). Conversely, the non-calcified segments displayed significantly lower 18F-NaF uptake than the calcified segments (SUVmax = 1.90 0.37 and 2.09  0.24, respec-tively, p<0.0001). The 6-month supplementation with HP-EVOO induced a significant reduction in 18F-FDG uptake in both the non-calcified (2.93  0.23 to 2.75  0.38, p<0.004) and calcified seg-ments of the aortas (2.25  0.29 to 2.15  0.19, p<0.02). 18F-NaF uptake was also significantly low-er in patients supplemented with HP-EVOO (SUVmax = 1.98  0.33 at baseline compared to 1.85  0.28, after the 6-month supplementation, p<0.004), whereas no significant effect was observed with EVOO. Conversely, participants supplemented with ROO displayed a significant increase in 18F-NaF uptake (SUVmax = 1.78  0.34 to 1.95  0.34, p<0.0001). Conclusion: The present study confirmed that ¹⁸F-FDG/¹⁸F-NaF-PET/CT imaging is a valuable approach for assessing age-related arterial damage and demonstrated that a phenolic compound-rich diet reduces both arterial inflammation and atherosclerotic lesion microcalcification.

The transition region is a very thin but most peculiar layer in the solar atmosphere, located between the solar chromosphere and the corona. It is a key region for understanding the coronal heating, the solar eruptions triggering, and the origin of solar winds. Here, the gradients of all physical parameters are very high, including plasma density, ionization degree, temperature, and magnetic fields, etc. Therefore, the transition region should be highly dynamic, such as fast energy releasing and transporting, plasma heating, and even particle accelerating. They include two physical aspects: thermal and non-thermal processes. The thermal processes can be observed from the ultraviolet (UV) and extreme ultraviolet (EUV) emission by multi-wavelength images. The non-thermal processes, however, should be related to radio emissions especially at millimeter wavelengths, and the frequency range should span from several GHz to beyond 300 GHz, and the emission mechanism should be highly related to the magnetic fields and variations. The ultra-wide broadband spectral observations at millimeter wavelengths with high spectral resolutions may provide rich dynamic information about the transition region, such as non-thermal energy release and transmission, the flows of plasma and energetic particles, the magnetic fields and their variations, the generation and transportation of various waves, and the formation and evolution of the source regions of solar eruptions. Here, we discussed the spectral characteristics of millimeter-wave emission from the transition region and proposed a new conception of ultra-wide broadband millimeter-wave spectrometers to observe them.

In this study, we propose an efficient field-free line (FFL) generator for mechanically driven FFL-magnetic particle imaging (MPI) applications. The novel FFL generator comprises pairs of Halbach arrays and bar magnets. The proposed design generates high-gradient FFLs with low-mass permanent magnets, realizing fine spatial resolutions in MPI. We investigate the generated magnetic field using simulations and experiments. Our results show that the FFL generator yields a high gradient of 4.76 T/m at a cylindrical field of view of 30 mm diameter and a 70 mm open bore. A spatial resolution of less than 3.5 mm was obtained in the mechanically driven FFL-MPI.

Cognitive linguistics is founded on the assumption that language is a reflection of universal cognitive principles, implying that all cognitive processes share a common origin. This assumption is known as the 'Cognitive Commitment.' The present article examines the sensory schema hypothesis, which traces all forms of expression back to sensations. This theoretical framework integrates the physicality of the body with sensations that underlie human experiences and their linguistic and non-linguistic expressions. By challenging the traditional dichotomy between mind and body, it provides a more integrated understanding.

Cities are important sources of anthropogenic methane emissions. Municipal governments can play a role in reducing those emissions to support climate change mitigation, but they need information on the rate of emissions to context mitigation actions and track progress. Here, we examine the application of satellite data from the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) to estimate city-level methane emissions rates in a case study of the City of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. While satellites are touted as a global methane monitoring system, we found limited observational coverage over Calgary that precluded the reliability of measurement-based models to track the annual emissions. In this work, we integrated valid observations over three years (2020-22) and used mass balance modeling to derive a long-term averaged emission estimate. The column-averaged dry-air mole fraction (XCH4) enhancement over Calgary was small, 4.7 ppb, but within the city boundary, we identified local hot spots in the vicinity of known sources (wastewater treatment facility and landfills). The city-scale emissions estimate from mass balance was 215.4 ± 132.8 t/d CH4. This estimate is approximately four- and six-times larger than estimates from Canada's gridded national inventory report of anthropogenic CH4 emissions and the Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR v8.0), respectively. Valid observations are more common in warmer months and occur during a narrow daily overpass timeslot over Calgary – these effects may bias the emissions estimate. Overall, the findings from this case study highlight the challenge of deriving routine (sub-annual to annual) satellite-based estimates of city-scale methane emissions in similar geographic settings and suggest that more granular emissions inventories are needed to improve methane reporting.

Due to the ever increasing global warming, the scientific community is concerned with finding immediate solutions to reduce or utilize carbon dioxide (CO2) and convert it in useful compounds. In this context, the reductive process of CO2 methanation is well investigated and attractive due to its simplicity. However, it requires the development of highly active catalysts. In this mini-review, the focus is on biochar-immobilized nanocatalysts for CO2 methanation. We summarize the recent literature on the topic, reporting strategies for the design of biochar with immobilized nanocatalysts and their performances in CO2 methanation. We review the thermochemical transformation of biomass into biochar and its decoration with CO2 methanation catalysts. We also tackle direct methods of obtaining biochar-nanocatalysts, in one pot, from nanocatalyst precursor-impregnated biomass. We review the effect of the initial biomass nature, as well as the conditions that permit to tune the perfomances of the composite catalysts. Finally, we discuss the CO2 methanation performances and how they could be improved keeping in mind low operation cost and particularly sustainability.

A novel quasi-twisted miniaturized wideband Branch Line Coupler (BLC) is proposed. The design is based on bisecting the conventional microstrip line BLC transversely and folding bisected sections on double-layered substrates with a common ground plane in between. The pair of quarter wavelength horizontal parallel arms is converted to a Z-shape meandered microstrip line in the designed structure. On the other hand, the pair of quarter wavelength vertical arms are cut by half into two lines and converted to a periodically loaded slow wave structure. The bisected parts of BLC are placed on the opposite side of the doubled-layer substrate and connected through four vias passing through the common ground plane. This technique enabled a compact BLC size of 6.4×18 mm2, which corresponds to a surface area miniaturization by ~50% as compared to the classical BLC size of 10×23 mm2 at 6GHz, Moreover, the attained relative bandwidth is 73.9% (4.6-10 GHz) for S11, and 75.8% (4.5-10 GHz) for S33 as compared to 41% for the ordinary BLC at the same resonant frequency. The circuit is constructed on a double-layered low-cost FR4 substrate with a relative permittivity of 4.3, and a loss tangent of 0.025. An isolation of -13dB was realized in both S13 and S31 demonstrating an excellent performance. The transmission coefficients between input/output ports S21, S41, S23, and S43 are between -3.1dB to -3.5dB at the frequency of 6GHz. Finally, the proposed BLC provides phase differences between output ports of 90.5o and 94.8o at the frequency of 6GHz when the input ports 1 and 3 are excited, respectively. The presented design offers the potential of being utilized as a unit cell for building a Butler-matrix (BM) for sub-6GHz 5G beamforming networks.

We report recent enhancements of the online atomic database at the Ohio State University, NORAD-Atomic-Data, that provides various parameters for radiative and collisional atomic processes dominant in astrophysical plasma. NORAD stands for Nahar Osu RADiative. The database belongs to the data sources, especially for the latest works, of the international collaborations of the Opacity Project and the Iron Project. The contents of the database are calculated values for energies, oscillator strengths, radiative decay rates, lifetimes, cross sections for photoionization, electron-ion recombination cross sections and recombination rate coefficients. We have recently expanded NORAD-Atomic-Data with several enhancements over those reported earlier. They are as follows. i) We continue to add energy levels, transition parameters, cross sections for atoms and ions with their publications. ii) Recently added radiative atomic data contains significant amount of transition data for photo-absorption spectral features corresponding to x-ray resonance fluorescence effect, prominent wavelength regions of bio-signature elements, such as phosphorus ions, and emission bumps of heavy elements, such as of lanthanides, that may be created in a kilonova event. We are including iii) collisional data for electron-impact-excitation, iv) experimental data for energies and oscillator strengths for line formation, v) experimental cross sections for photoionization that can be applied for benchmarking and other applications, and vi) introduction of a web-based interactive feature to calculate spectral line ratios at various plasma temperature and density diagnostics, starting with our recently published data for P II. We presented summary description of theoretical backgrounds for the computed data in the earlier paper. With introduction of experimental results, we present summary description of measurement of high resolution photoionization cross sections at Advanced Light Source of LBNL synchrotron set-up and briefly discuss other set-ups. These additions should make NORAD-Atomic-Data more versatile for various applications. For brevity, we provide information on the extensions and avoid repetition of data description of the original paper.

Climate-induced changes contribute to the thawing of ice-rich permafrost in the Arctic, which leads to the release of large volumes of organic carbon into the atmosphere in the form of greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide and methane. Ground ice constitutes a considerable volume of the cryogenically sequestered labile dissolved organic carbon (DOC) subjected to fast mineralization upon thawing. In this work we collected an unique geochemical database of the ground and glacier ice comprising the samples from various geographic locations characterized by a variety of key parameters, including ion composition, carbon-bearing gases (methane and carbon dioxide) bulk biogeochemical indicators and fluorescent dissolved organic matter (DOM) fractions. Our results show that interaction with solid material—such as sediments, detritus, and vegetation—is likely the overriding process in enrichment of the ground ice in all the dissolved compounds. Terrigenous humic-like dissolved organic matter was predominant in all the analyzed ice samples except for glacier ice and pure tabular ground ice from Mare Sale (Western Yamal). The labile protein-like DOM, indicating an autochthonous source, showed no correlation to humic components and probably associated with microbial abundance in the ground ice. The sum of the fluorescent DOM components satisfactory correlates to DOC, indicating the adequacy of the estimation. The pure tabular ground ice samples exhibit the highest biogeochemical quality which may be responsible for the amplification of permafrost organic matter decomposition upon thawing. Yamal impure tabular ground ice and ice wedges are extremely enriched in methane compared to the samples from other locations which should cause a portion of direct methane emission upon the putative thawing.

In the last ten years, plasma waste treatment has gained increasing prominence as a technology in response to growing challenges in waste disposal and the recognition of opportunities for generating valuable by-products. The efficiency and outcomes of this process are intricately linked to the characteristics of the plasma involved, such as plasma enthalpy and heat flux. We employed an experimental radio frequency inductively coupled plasma (RF-ICP) torch operating at atmospheric pressure to generate plasma. Utilizing optical emission spectroscopy (OES), we measured plasma parameters, specifically the effective electron temperature (Teff) and plasma density (ne), while varying argon gas flow rates and RF powers. Our investigations revealed that both flow rate and RF power exert significant control over plasma parameters, and we observed an unusual phenomenon within this range of discharge pressures. Consequently, both the plasma's enthalpy and the heat flux it generates are influenced by variations in both flow rate and RF power.

Surface processes such as coatings, corrosion, photocatalysis, and tribology are greatly diversified by acid-base interaction at the surface overlayer. This study focuses on the action of metallic copper surface as an electron donor/acceptor related to inactivation of viruses; it was found that regarding Cu2O or Cu materials electrostatic interaction plays a major role in virus inactivation. We applied TPPE method to clarify the mechanism of electron transfer (ET) occurring at light irradiated copper surfaces. The TPPE characteristics was strongly influenced by the environments, which correspond to the temperature and environment dependence of the total count of emitted electrons in the incident light wavelength scan (PE total count, NT), the photothreshold, and further the activation energy (E) analyzed from Arrhenius plot of NT values obtained in the temperature-increase and subsequent temperature-decrease processes. In this study we reexamined the dependence of the TPPE data from two types of Cu metal surfaces: Sample A, which was mechanically abraded in alcohols, water, and air, and Sample C, which was only ultrasonically cleaned in these liquids. The NT for both Samples slowly increased with increasing temperature, reached a maximum (NTmax) at 250C (maximum temperature, Tmax), and after that decreased. For Sample A the NTmax value decreased in the order H2O > CH3OH > C2H5OH > (CH3)2CHOH > C3H7OH, although the last alcohol gave Tmax = 100C, while with Sample C the NTmax value decreased in the order: C3H7OH > (CH3)2CHOH > C2H5OH > CH3OH > H2O. Interestingly, both orders of the liquids were completely opposite: this means that Cu surface can possess two-way character. The NT intensity was found to be strongly associated with the change of the hydroxyl group (Cu-OH) to the oxide oxygen (O2) in the O1s spectra in the XPS measurement. The difference between the above orders was explained by the acid-base interaction mode of the Cu-OH group with the adsorbed molecule on the surfaces. The H2O adsorbed on Sample A produces the electric dipole Cu-OH+---:OH2 (--- hydrogen bond), while the C3H7OH and (CH3)2CHOH adsorbed on Sample C produce ROH+---:O(H)-Cu (R = alkyl groups). Gutmann’s acceptor number (AN) representing the basicity of the liquid molecules was found to be related to the TPPE characteristics: (CH3)2CHOH (33.5), C2H5OH (37.1), CH3OH (41.3), H2O (54.8) (the AN of C3H7OH could not be confirmed). With Sample A the values of NTmaxa and EaUp1 both increased with increasing AN (Up1 means the 1st temperature-increase process). On the other hand, with Sample C the values of NTmaxc and EcUp1 both decreased with increasing AN. These findings suggest that Sample A acts as an acid, while Sample C functions as a base. However, in the case of both types of Samples A and C the NTmax values were found to increase with increasing EUp1. It was explained that the EUp1 values depending on the liquids originate from the difference in the energy level of the hydroxyl group radical at the surface denoted. This is able to attract electrons in the neighborhood of the Fermi level of the base metal by tunnelling. After that due to Auger emission electrons are released, leading to the ET in the overlayer. These electrons are considered to have a strong ability of reducibility.

The short-lived positron-emitter carbon-11 (t1/2 = 20.4 min; b+, 99.8%) is prominent for labeling tracers for use in biomedical research with positron emission tomography (PET). Carbon-11 is produced for this purpose with a cyclotron, nowadays almost exclusively by the 14N(p,a)11C nuclear reaction, either on nitrogen containing a low concentration of oxygen (0.1–0.5%) or hydrogen (~ 5%) to produce [11C]carbon dioxide or [11C]methane, respectively. These primary radioactive products can be produced in high yields and with high molar activities. However, only [11C]carbon dioxide has some utility for directly labeling PET tracers. Primary products are required to be converted rapidly and efficiently into secondary labeling synthons to provide versatile radiochemistry for labeling diverse tracer chemotypes at molecular positions of choice. This review surveys known gas phase transformations of carbon-11 and summarizes the important roles that many of these transformations now play for producing a broad range of labeling synthons in carbon-11 chemistry.

The research on the impact of excavation of underpass tunnels has already had certain results, but there is a lack of research cases of double-line highway tunnels with oblique angles underpass the existing railway tunnels, especially the method of determining the area of the impact of the dynamic and static loads of the new tunnels and existing trains to be enriched by considering them at the same time. In this paper, based on the tunnel project of the new double-line Shiqian Highway Tunnel with oblique angles underpass the Hurong Railway in Wanshoushan. By constructing a three-dimensional finite element model and simulating the application of static tunnel excavation load, dynamic blasting load and dynamic train operation load of the existing tunnel, the overall displacement of the existing tunnel and the settlement value of the bottom plate of the track surface by the static tunnel excavation load were analyzed. Then, the stresses, vibration speeds and displacements of the tunnel due to the dynamic blasting loads and the dynamic train operation loads were obtained. The results show that: the area of influence of the static loads of the new tunnel excavation on the existing tunnel is divided into three types of perturbations presenting strong, weak and slight; the area affected by the blasting dynamic load of new tunnel excavation is a circular domain with the datum point in the tunnel section as the center; the area affected by the dynamic load of train operation in the existing tunnel is an ellipse with the center of the track surface of the existing tunnel as the datum; there is an anomalous shape in the area affected by the blasting dynamic load of new tunnel excavation and the area affected by the dynamic load of train operation in the existing tunnel.

Control of canine infections with Leishmania infantum (L. infantum), a major zoonotic disease in Brazil and southern Europe is becoming increasingly important due to their close proximity to humans, the increasing import of dogs from endemic regions and impact of climate change on vector spreading. Simple, rapid and reliable diagnostic tests are therefore needed to detect infected dogs. Here, we re-evaluated different serological methods for the diagnosis of canine leishmaniosis (CanL) in Croatia and Brazil. The diagnostic performance of the indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) and the VetLine® Leishmania ELISA was compared with three rKLi8.3 based diagnostic test systems, the rKLi8.3 ELISA, the INgezim® Leishma CROM lateral flow test (LFT) and the VetBlot® Leishmania LineBlot. CanL symptomatic dogs were efficiently diagnosed by all tests, except the VetLine® Leishmania ELISA, which is based on whole Leishmania antigens. The advantage of rKLi8.3 was also observed in oligo-and asymptomatic dogs from Brazil and Croatia, although with reduced diagnostic efficiency compared to symptomatic dogs. Similar to IFAT and rKLi8.3 ELISA, the LFT did not cross-react with other common canine pathogens, showed a very high specificity for healthy dogs from endemic regions of both countries and did not react with healthy, vaccinated dogs in Brazil. In conclusion, sero-diagnostic tests based on the rKLi8.3 antigens are superior to whole parasite antigens and the LFT has the advantage of providing a laboratory independent, rapid and specific diagnosis of CanL.

The small-molecule iododiflunisal (IDIF) is a transthyretin (TTR) tetramer stabilizer and acts as a chaperone of the TTR-Amyloid beta interaction. Oral administration of IDIF improves Alzheimer’s Disease (AD)-like pathology in mice, although mechanism of action and pharmacokinetics remain unknown. Radiolabeling IDIF with positron or gamma emitters may aid in the in vivo evaluation of IDIF using non-invasive nuclear imaging techniques. In this work, we report isotopic exchange reaction to obtain IDIF radiolabeled with 18F. [19F/ 18F]exchange reaction over IDIF in dimethylsulfoxide at 160 °C resulted in the formation of [18F]IDIF in 7±3% radiochemical yield in a 20 minutes reaction time, with a final radiochemical purity of >99%. Biodistribution studies after intravenous administration of [18F]IDIF in wild-type mice using positron emission tomography (PET) imaging showed capacity to cross the blood-brain barrier (ca. 1% of injected dose per gram of tissue in the brain at t&gt;10 min post administration), rapid accumulation in the liver, long circulation time and progressive elimination via urine. Our results open opportunities for future studies in larger animal species or human subjects.

With the global warming and the frequent occurrences of harsh environments, mooring line failures are frequent. Response analysis of the platform structure and its residual mooring system under multiple mooring line failures is needed. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the change law of platform motion response after mooring line failure to find out the reasons for the change. Studies for different failure combinations of mooring lines show that the variation of the steady-state equilibrium position of the platform is closely related to the stiffness, with a clear functional. The duration and amplitude of the transient response are mainly influenced by the Morison drag force. And it was found that the suspended mooring line reduced the motion responses. It is also found that the mooring line failure increased the effective tension and suspension length of the riser. Based on the improved Dezert-Smarandache theory (DSmT), it is calculated that mooring line failure has little effect on the failure probability in different zones of the riser.

This study explores the dynamics of liquid holdup in a lab-scale co-current two-phase upflow moving packed bed reactor, specifically examining how superficial gas velocity influences the line average external liquid holdup at a fixed superficial liquid velocity. Utilizing Gamma-ray Densitometry (GRD) for precise measurements, this research extends to determining line average internal porosity within catalyst particles and the overall external bed porosity. Conducted with an air-water system within a bed packed with 3 mm extrudate porous particles, the study presents a novel methodology to calculate liquid holdup, grounded in Beer–Lambert's law. Findings reveal a decrease in liquid holdup corresponding with increased superficial gas velocity across axial and radial locations, with a notable transition from bubbly to pulse flow regime at a critical velocity of 3.8 cm/sec. Additionally, the lower sections of the packed bed exhibited higher external liquid holdup compared to the middle sections at varied gas velocities. The liquid holdup distribution appeared uniform at lower flow rates, whereas higher flow rates favored the middle sections.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is enforcing increasingly stringent regulations on ship carbon emissions, The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has been implementing progressively strict regulations on ship carbon emissions, leading to the adoption of the virtual arrival (VA) method by many vessels to reduce their carbon footprint. However, the effectiveness of the traditional VA method often varies in busy ports with complex traffic organization scenarios. To address this, our study presents a novel, comprehensive model that integrates vessel scheduling with the VA approach. This model is designed to achieve a dual objective: reducing carbon emissions through Virtual Arrival and simultaneously minimizing vessel waiting times. In addition to these goals, it incorporates essential aspects of safety, efficiency, and fairness in port management, utilizing the NSGA-2 algorithm to find optimal solutions. This model has been tested and validated through a case study at Ningbo-Zhoushan port, employing its dataset. The results demonstrate that our innovative model and algorithm significantly outperform traditional scheduling methods, such as First-Come-First-Serve (FCFS) and Virtual-Arrival Last-Serve (VALS), particularly in terms of operational efficiency and reduction in vessel carbon emissions.

In the face of climate change, bringing more useful alleles and genes from wild relatives of wheat is crucial to develop climate-resilience varieties. We used two populations of backcrossed recombinant inbred lines (BIL1 and BIL2), developed using two intra-specifically diverse Aegilops tauschii accessions from lineage 1 and lineage 2, respectively, and backcrossing to common wheat cultivar ‘Norin 61’. The study aimed to identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) associated with heat stress (HS) tolerance. The two BILs were evaluated under heat stress environments in Sudan for phenology, plant height (PH), grain yield (GY), biomass (BIO), harvest index (HI), and thousand kernel weight (TKW). Grain yield was significantly correlated with BIO and TKW under HS; therefore, stress tolerance index (STI) was calculated for these traits as well as for GY. A total of 16 heat tolerant lines were identified based on GY and STI-GY. The QTL analysis performed using inclusive composite interval mapping identified a total of 40 QTLs in BIL1 and 153 QTLs in BIL2 across all environments. We detected 39 QTLs associated with GY-STI, BIO-STI, and TKW-STI in both populations (14 in BIL1 and 25 in BIL2). The QTL associated with STI were detected on chromosomes 1A, 3A, 5A, 2B, 4B, and all the D-subgenomes. We found that QTL detected only under HS for GY on chromosome 5A, TKW on 3B and 5B, PH on 3B and 4B, and grain filling duration on 2B. The higher number of QTLs identified in BIL2 for heat stress tolerance suggests the importance of assessing the effects of intraspecific variation of Ae. tauschii in wheat breeding as it could modulate the heat stress responses/adaptation. Our study provides useful genetic resources for uncovering heat-tolerant QTLs for wheat improvement for heat stress environments.

Campylobacter jejuni is a zoonotic bacterium, causing intestinal infection in humans. One characteristic feature of the pathogenicity process is the ability of this bacterium invading the epithelial cells. Several factors have been identified to contribute to this process and some recent analyses revealed changes in the bacterium cell on molecular level. However, our knowledge is still limited about responses of the host that accompany the bacterial internalisation and survival process. This study focused on molecular events on transcriptomic level detected between the 1st and the 3rd hour of internalisation in INT407 epithelial cells. From the 41.769 human genes tested, altogether 19,060 genes and 22,734 pseudogenes and introns were shown by whole transcriptome analysis to be affected in different extent. Most affected functions regulate transcription (28%), signal transduction (21%), apoptosis (15%), immune responses (9%), transmembrane transport (6%), cell-cell signaling (3%), cell-cell adhesions (3%) and carbohydrate metabolism (3%) and to a lesser extent other functions. Our results provide insight into a scenario where, the invaded cell focuses on survival, but, at the same time, flashing the possibility of pushing the process toward the death of the invaded and metabolically disrupted cell.

The broad emission bump in the electromagnetic spectra observed following the detection of gravitational waves created during the kilonova event of merger of two neutron stars in August 2017, GW170817, has been linked to the heavy elements of lanthanides (Z=57-71), and a new understanding of creation of heavy elements in the r-process. The initial spectral emission bump has a wavelength range of 3000 - 7000 \AA, thus covering the region of ultraviolet (UV) to optical (O) wavelengths, and is similar to those seen for lanthanides. Most lanthanides have large number of closely lying energy levels which introduce extensive sets of radiative transitions which often form broad region of lines of significant strength. The current study explores these broad features through photoabsorption spectroscopy of 25 lanthanides ions, Ho I-III, Er I-IV, Tm I-V, Yb I-VI and Lu I-VII. With excitations only to a few orbitals up beyond the ground configurations, we find most of these ions cover large number of bound levels with open $4f$ orbital and produce tens to about hundred thousands lines that may form one or multiple broad features in X-ray to UV, O, and infrared (IR) regions. Spectrum of each of 25 ions is presented indicating presence, shape and wavelength region of the features. Accuracy of atomic data to interpret the merger spectra has been a outstanding problem. The present study aims at providing improved atomic data for energies and transition parameters obtained using relativistic Breit-Pauli approximation implemented in the atomic structure code SUPERSTRUCTURE. The present data have been benchmarked with available experimental data for energies and transition parameters. The study finds that number of ions under the present study are possible contributors of the emission bump of GW170817. All atomic data will be made available online at NORAD-Atomic-Data database.

RNA, as an important substance for regulating biological growth and development, has significant implications for visualization research. However, many spontaneously fluorescent substances in plants greatly interfere with the effectiveness of plant bioimaging. Aggregetion- induced emission luminogens (AIEgens), due to their luminescent properties, tunable molecular size, high fluorescence intensity, good photostability, and low cell toxicity, have been widely applied in the animal and medical fields. We have found that AIEgens have great potential as RNA fluorescent probes for efficient imaging in plants. In this review, we first introduce several common RNA labeling forms and point out their pros and cons. We briefly describe the development of AIEgens and the AIE mechanism, and then present various practical applications of AIEgens, including detailed examples of their use as biological markers. To further promote the application of AIE in the field of RNA, we suggest the use of AIEgens to modify target RNA via techniques such as click chemistry or CRISPR/Cas, to achieve RNA visualization in plants. highly possible to modify target RNA with AIEgens in vivo for RNA visualization.

When disposing of waste metal resources in landfills, environmental issues such as soil contamination may arise. Recycling these resources not only recovers valuable metals but also mitigates environmental pollution. Platinum (Pt), a valuable metal used in fuel cells for its high water production activity, will see increased future demand as a fossil fuel alternative. This study analyzes the environmental and resource reduction effects of recycled Pt, considering the growing emphasis on its recycling for stable supply and demand of Pt. The environmental impact and resource consumption of recycled Pt with primary Pt (from natural mines) were compared and analyzed using the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) technique. Results revealed that resource consumption for primary Pt was 8.25E+01 kg Sb-eq./kg, significantly more than the 5.45E+00 kg Sb-eq./kg for recycled Pt. This represents an environmental reduction effect of approximately 93%. In the case of greenhouse gas emissions, primary Pt emitted 1.35E+04 kg CO2-eq./kg, while recycled Pt emitted 6.94E+02 kg CO2-eq./kg, resulting in an environmental reduction effect of approximately 95%. In conclusion, recycling Pt, compared to primary extraction, offers substantial environmental and resource reduction benefits. This study underscores the significance of recycling and highlights the potential environmental improvements achievable through sustainable practices.

The importance of the national security of supply has been emphasized in recent years due to the COVID-19 pandemic and changes in operating environments. Thanks to autonomy and resiliency in fuel procurement, organizations with decentralized energy plants may be able to quickly adapt to the changing needs of society. The main aim of this study was to increase the sustainability of a Finnish CHP plant's wood procurement by determining the company's profitable wood procurement region while keeping the forests renewable. The income received from the sale of energy and the costs incurred from the procurement of wood were collected from the ERP system as input data for the developed DSS. The environmental sustainability of wood procurement was assessed by considering the additional costs caused through the EEAP mechanism if the carbon sink of the forest worsened due to wood procurement in the area. The supply chains were compared so that the CHP plant managers could adopt the best energy wood value chains. The results showed that updating the procurement strategy would be necessary. The CHP plant managers should purchase energy wood from a larger procurement area than the current one and focus on roadside purchases of wood. The Techno-Economic Wood Payment Ability Model was a useful part of the DSS to guide wood buyers toward sustainable wood procurement by increasing the share of renewable forests.

Aircraft heat exchangers play a crucial role in maintaining thermal balance and ensuring that essential components operate efficiently and safely. In this context, it is highly relevant to gain knowledge about the deterioration and the predominant damage mechanisms of these components. In this study, two different non-destructive methods are employed to analyze the damage initiation of a heat exchanger part during fatigue test. On the one hand, Acoustic Emission technique is employed using membrane-free microphones capable of capturing a broad bandwidth. The acoustic events were classified by a machine learning algorithm to determine their source and damage mechanisms. On the other side, Digital Image Correlation (DIC) allowed the measurement of the strain evolution along the test and more precisely, redistributions were considered as damage indicators. As a result, it was identified that AE served as early damage indicator as the cumulative number of events was in good agreement with the severity of the damage. With respect to classification two clear clusters ascribed to different type of events were identified. In the case of DIC, strain redistributions gave clear indications of damage or deterioration but at a later stage compared to AE

In the field of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) for rotorcraft, two significant challenges are resolving the complex vortex structures in rotor wakes, and representing the moving rotor blades in the ambient airflow. This study addresses the first challenge by using a third-order unstructured finite volume solver, which, compared to its second-order counterpart, has substantially lower dissipation. Consequently, even relatively coarse meshes are capable of resolving small vortices. With this background flow field solver, the second challenge is addressed by modeling each rotor as an Actuator Disk Model (ADM), or describing individual rotor blades as actuator lines, designated as the Actuator Line Model (ALM). Both of these models are equipped with an improved correction for aerodynamic losses at blade tips, which is thoroughly presented in the methodology section. The numerical experiments section centers on analyzing errors linked to various sampling approaches. Additionally, the article discusses comparisons between vortex theory and ALM, specifically regarding calculations for fixed-wing aircraft. Furthermore, high-order precision and parallel efficiency are exemplified in scenarios encompassing rotors engaged in both hovering and forward flight rotors. The results in this paper demonstrate that the combination of the ALM/ADM with the improved tip loss correction and the third-order finite volume solver presents a new way of developing efficient tools for the aerodynamic analysis of helicopter rotors.

Laser scanning 3D imaging technology, because it can get accurate three-dimensional surface data, has been widely used in the search for wrecks and rescue operations, underwater resource development, and other fields. At present, the conventional underwater rotating laser scanning imaging system maintains a relatively fixed light window. However, in low-light situations underwater, the rotation of the scanning device causes some degree of water fluctuation, which warps the light strip data that the system sensor receives about the object's surface. To solve the problem, this research studies an underwater 3D scanning and imaging system that makes use of a fixed-light window and a spinning laser (FWLS). A refraction error compensation algorithm is investigated that is based on the fundamentals of linear laser scanning imaging and the dynamic refraction mathematical model is established by the motion of the imaging device. During the imaging process, the incident angle between the laser and the light window varies due to the scanning mode of the system. The experimental results show that the reconstruction radius error is reduced by 60% (from 2.5 mm to about 1 mm) when the measurement data for a standard sphere with a radius of 20 mm are compensated. Moreover, the compensated point cloud data exhibits a higher degree of correspondence with the model of the standard spherical point cloud. This study has a specific reference value for the refractive error analysis of an underwater laser scanning imaging system, and it provides certain research ideas for the subsequent refractive error analysis of various scanning imaging modalities.

The aim of this study was to investigate the performance of the developed real-time controlled bio-liquor circulation system (BCS) on a farm-scale to optimize bioreactor operation for manure treatment, and to subsequently reduce both manure-related malodor and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from slurry pits. The BCS was operated sequentially as per swine manure inflow (anoxic, aerobic, and settling) circulation to the slurry pit. The duration of each operational phase was self-adjusted in real-time using a novel algorithm for detecting the control point on the oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) and pH (mV)-time profiles, the nitrogen break point (NBP), and the nitrate knee point (NKP) in the aerobic and anoxic phases, respectively. The NH₄-N in the slurry manure was thoroughly removed (100%) in the bioreactor, optimizing the duration of each operational phase by accurately detecting real-time control points. The newly-developed real-time BCS decreased the nitrogen and organic matter content in the slurry pit manure by > 70%, and the potential ammonia and methane emissions by 75% and 95%, respectively. This study highlights that the this improved BCS that utilizes ORP tracking and pH (mV)-time profiles can effectively optimize BCS operation, and thereby reduce malodor and GHG emissions from swine farms.

Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) have ushered in a technological revolution with their remarkable impact on diverse sectors of our daily lives. These versatile devices known for their outstanding display and lighting capabilities, have become indispensable components in various industries including smartphones, tablets, televisions, and automotive applications. This paper delves into the development of a group of twisted donor-acceptor-donor (D-A-D) derivatives incorporating bicarbazole and benzophenone structures for potential use as blue emitters in OLEDs. The synthesized compounds, namely DB14, DB23 and DB29, were designed with various alkyl side chains to enhance their film forming properties as for blue emitters. Characterization and evaluation of these derivatives included photophysical, electrochemical, thermal, and electroluminescent analysis. Some of the OLED devices incorporating these emitters demonstrated promising performance with maximum current efficiency (CEmax) of 2.6 cd/A and external quantum efficiency (EQEmax) of 5.3%. Notably, the DB23 emitter exhibited the highest EQE among all devices. The study also emphasizes the influence of host-guest energy transfer, optimal doping concentrations, and molecular structures on device performance. This research not only contributes to the understanding of advanced OLED materials but also provides insights into designing efficient blue emitters for future display and lighting applications, thereby advancing the field of organic electronics.

The physical and mechanical properties of rocks will change significantly after being subjected to high temperatures, which poses safety hazards to underground projects such as coal underground gasification. In order to investigate the effect of temperature on the macroscopic and microscopic properties of rocks, this paper has taken sandstone as the research object and conducted uniaxial compression tests on sandstone specimens at different temperatures (20-1000 ℃) and different heating rates (5-30 ℃/min) at 1200 ℃. At the same time, the acoustic emission (AE) test system was used to observe the acoustic emission characteristics of the rock damage process, and the microstructural changes after high temperature were analyzed with the help of a scanning electron microscope (SEM). The test results show that the effect of temperature on sandstone is mainly divided into three stages: Ⅰ (20-500 ℃) stage is the strengthening zone, the evaporation of water and the contraction of primary fissures, sandstone densification is enhanced. Specifically, the compressive strength and elastic modulus increase, the macroscopic damage mode is dominated by shear damage, and the fracture micro-morphology is mainly brittle fracture. Stage II (500-600°C) is the transition zone, 500°C is the threshold temperature for compressive strength and modulus of elasticity, and the damage mode changes from shear to cleavage damage, and the sandstone undergoes brittle-ductile transition in this temperature interval. Stage III is the physicochemical deterioration stage. The changes in physical and chemical properties make the sandstone compressive strength and modulus of elasticity continue to decline, the macroscopic damage mode is mainly dominated by cleavage damage, and the fracture microscopic morphology is more toughness fracture. The effect of different heating rates on the mechanical properties of sandstone was further studied, and it was found that the mechanical properties of the rock were more deteriorated under higher heating rates.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has garnered significant attention in the fields of cancer treatment and drug-resistant bacteria eradication due to its non-invasive nature and spatiotemporal controllability. Iridium complexes have captivated researchers owing to their tunable structure, exceptional optical properties, and substantial Stokes displacement. However, most of these complexes suffer from aggregation-induced quenching, leading to diminished luminous efficiency. In contrast to conventional photosensitizers, photosensitizers exhibiting aggregation-induced luminescence (AIE) properties retain the ability to generate a large number of reactive oxygen species when aggregated. To overcome these limitations, we designed and synthesized a novel iridium complex named Ir-TPA in this study. It incorporates quinoline triphenylamine cyclomethylated ligands that confer AIE characteristics for Ir-TPA. We systematically investigated the photophysical properties, AIE behavior, spectral features, and reactive oxygen generation capacity of Ir-TPA. The results demonstrate that Ir-TPA exhibits excellent optical properties with pronounced AIE phenomenon and robust capability for producing singlet oxygen species. This work not only introduces a new class of metal iridium complex photosensitizer with AIE attributes but also holds promise for achieving remarkable photodynamic therapeutic effects in future cellular experiments and biological studies.

The brick manufacturing sector in Bangladesh is experiencing rapid growth, leading to notable environmental and health concerns. The primary objective of this research is to examine the Savar Upazila, a region of significant economic significance owing to its favorable brick manufacturing conditions and proximity to Dhaka city. Brick kilns, among other sources, constitute significant contributors to air pollution. The study utilized primary and secondary data to examine brick kiln emissions' effects on the surrounding area's environment and public health. The collection of primary data was conducted in multiple zones within Savar Upazila, which is home to a significant number of brick kilns. The utilization of secondary data provided valuable insights regarding the toxic pollutants discharged by these kilns and the corresponding health risks they pose. The participants provided accounts of various health ailments, such as dermatological conditions, optical difficulty, and respiratory complications, further aggravated by brick kilns' incidents. The prevalence of crop losses, soil degradation, and reduced agricultural yields was confirmed by 74% of the respondents. The trees and crops in the surrounding area experienced adverse effects due to the deposition of dust particles. During periods of inactivity, the concentrations of sulfur oxide (SOx) were between 6 and 9 times lower compared to periods of operation. Similarly, nitrogen oxide (NOx) levels were observed to be 4 to 6 times lower during non-operational phases. The degradation of water quality in adjacent bodies has been attributed to the deposition of dust and ash originating from brickfields, resulting in substantial repercussions on aquaculture. A significant proportion of participants indicated experiencing diverse health issues, notwithstanding the employment prospects generated by brick kilns, thereby underscoring the adverse consequences on both the environment and the local economy.

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a technique developed to measure possible environmental impacts during the manufacture and use of a given product or service. Additive Manufacturing (AM) has proven to be suitable in several industries, especially wire and arc additive manufacturing (WAAM), offering many advantages such as delivery time and reduction in terms of material waste, energy consumption and equivalent CO₂ emissions (CO₂e). This study aimed to develop a methodology to evaluate environmental indicators during the life cycle assessment, from gate-to-gate, in the production of two low-alloy carbon steel metal parts (flanges) using ER-90 wire and allowed identifying the main stages that most influence environmental indicators. The total energy consumption in the production of flanges 1 and 2 were, respectively, 10,239.0 MJ, 12,754.0 MJ and the total carbon footprint, respectively, 714.1 kgCO₂e kg^-1 and 749.3 kgCO₂e kg^-1.