Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Structural Analysis of Ligand Protected Smaller Metallic Nanocrystals by Atomic Pair Distribution Function Under Precession Electron Diffraction

Atomic pair distribution function (PDF) analysis has been widely used to investigate nanocrystalline and structurally disordered materials. Experimental PDFs retrieved from electron diffraction (ePDF) in transmission electron microscopy (TEM) represent an attractive alternative to traditional PDF obtained from synchrotron X-ray sources, when employed on minute samples. Nonetheless, the inelastic scattering produced by the large dynamical effects of electron diffraction may obscure the interpretation of ePDF. In the present work, precession electron diffraction (PED-TEM) has been employed to obtain the ePDF of two different sub-monolayer samples ––lipoic acid protected (~ 4.5 nm) and hexanethiolated(~ 4.2 nm, ~ 400-kDa core mass) gold nanoparticles­­––randomly oriented and measured at both liquid-nitrogen and room temperatures, with high dynamic-range detection of a CMOS camera. The electron diffraction data were processed to obtain ePDFs which were subsequently compared with PDF of different ideal structure-models. The results demonstrate that the PED-ePDF data is sensitive to different crystalline structures such as monocrystalline (truncated octahedra) versus multiply-twinned (decahedra, icosahedra) structuresof the face-centered cubic gold lattice. The results indicate that PED reduces the residual from 46% to 29%; in addition, the combination of PED and low temperature further reduced the residual to 23%, which is comparable to X-ray PDF analysis. Furthermore, the inclusion of PED resulted in a better estimation of the coordination number from ePDF. To the best of our knowledge, the precessed electron-beam technique (PED) has not been previously applied to nanoparticles for analysis by the ePDF method.
A xenon collisional-radiative model applicable to electric propulsion devices: I. Calculations of electron-impact cross sections for xenon ions by the Dirac B-spline R-matrix method

A fully relativistic Dirac B-spline R-matrix (DBSR) method is applied to calculate the oscillator strengths and electron-impact excitation cross sections involving the 5s25p5, 5s5p6, 5p46s, 5p45d, 5p46p, and 5p47s states of a Xe+ ion. A fully relativistic approach is necessary for this problem, since the spin–orbit coupling is of the same order as electron correlations in the outer shells of Xe+. Also, there is a complex open-shell structure with strong term dependence in the one-electron orbitals. The oscillator strengths are also calculated and agree well with available experimental measurements. We select some important excitation cross sections out of the ground, metastable, and quasi-metastable states of Xe+ for the collisional-radiative (CR) model to be discussed and analyzed. The present paper is the first one of a series of studies on a CR model of xenon ions in plasma diagnosis and numerical simulations of Hall and ion thrusters. In subsequent papers, the cross-section data for the Xe+ ion, together with those for neutral Xe from our previous calculation, are used to build a comprehensive CR model for electric propulsion systems involving xenon. Furthermore, the predictions of this model will then be examined by experiments in both Hall and ion thrusters.
Fused Pyrazine- and Carbazole-Containing Azaacenes: Synthesis and Properties.

A new family of azaacenes has been designed and synthesized by incorporating the electron-withdrawing sp2 -hybridized nitrogen of pyrazine and electron-donating nitrogen of carbazole in a molecular skeleton. Two different conjugated lengths of 8-ring aza-nonacene and 10-ring aza-undecene have been achieved by an efficient condensation reaction. The unique optoelectronic properties of these molecules were investigated using both experimental and theoretical techniques. The azaacenes show visible-region absorption and near-infrared (NIR) fluorescence. These compounds can serve as hole-transport semiconductors for solution-processed organic field-effect transistors (OFETs). Single-crystal transistor devices of one of the aza-nonacenes exhibit hole charge transport behavior with a hole mobility of 0.07 cm2 /Vs and an on/off current ratio of 1.3x106 .
TiO2/SGNs as photocatalyst for degradation of water pollutants

A novel photocatalyst, titanium dioxide/spherical graphene nodules (TiO2/SGNs) composites were prepared successfully by hydrothermal synthesis. SGNs were synthetized by simple thermal pyrolysis of methane in a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) reactor over home-made MgO from dolomite. The structure of TiO2/SGNs composites was investigated by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray powder diffraction, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Raman spectroscopy and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The results showed that an anatase type TiO2 was obtained, and TiO2 and SGNs were successfully combined. FT-IR and XPS results lend support to the proposed mechanism of formation of TiO2/SGNs composites through the bonding between oxygen vacancy sites in TiO2 (Ti–O–Ti bonds) and in-plane oxygen functional (epoxy) groups in SGNs possibly via Ti–O–C bonds. The photocatalytic activity on methylene blue (MB) degradation proved that TiO2/SGNs composites were more effective under UV light than pure TiO2, SGNs and dark reaction. Kinetic studies indicated that MB degradation followed Langmuir–Hinshelwood model better, the increase of the initial concentration of MB, the apparent reaction rate constant decreased. The results indicated that the TiO2/SGNs composites could be employed as an efficient photocatalyst for the removal of textile dyes from effluents.
Temperature evolution associated with dynamic phase transformation in shape-memory TiNi alloys

ABSTRACT In this paper, temperature evolution in shape-memory TiNi alloys was in situ measured in the process of phase transition under shock loading tests. It was shown that the temperature increased during loading, while unloading, it would keep the maximum value constant or decreased, depending on the strain rate. The corresponding dynamic response indicated that the hardening property is related to phase transition strain and the transformation path has remarkable strain-rate effect. The reason for this phenomenon is essentially due to the temperature dependence of the phase transformation stress. Moreover, the evolution of temperature was consistent with the change of stress, suggesting that this dynamic phase transition deformation is uniform. The theoretical calculation shows that the mechanism of temperature evolution results from the release of latent heat and the hysteresis dissipated energy. The results of this investigation provide insight into intriguing strain-rate-dependent phenomena intrinsic of TiNi alloys.
Application of lightweight expanded clay aggregate as sorbent for crude oil cleanup

This paper presents studies on the effect and capacity of lightweight expanded clay aggregates (LECA) as adsorbents for cleaning up crude oil from aquatic environment. These studies incorporate the effect of adsorbent particle size, surface modification, API (American Petroleum Institute) degree, and the contact time. Sorbent characterization has been determined using SEM, XRD, XRF, and BET. Optimum sorption was reached during the first 10 min, followed by a steady state of crude oil sorption. Furthermore, results indicated that fine LECA particles have higher adsorption efficiency due to the increase of specific surface area. Decreasing the API degree had a significant influence on the rise of the adsorption rate. The results indicated that the LECA performs better in heavier oil than lighter oil. Overall, LECA was found to be a proper adsorbent for cleanup oil spill from an aquatic environment, which could also be collected from the water surface rapidly.
Numerical convergence of the Sinc discrete variable representation for solving molecular vibrational states with a conical intersection in adiabatic representation

Within the Born-Oppenheimer (BO) approximation, nuclear motions of a molecule are often envisioned to occur on an adiabatic potential energy surface (PES). However, this single PES picture should be reconsidered if a conical intersection (CI) is present, although the energy is well below the CI. The presence of the CI results in two additional terms in the nuclear Hamiltonian in the adiabatic presentation, i.e., the diagonal BO correction (DBOC) and the geometric phase (GP), which are divergent at the CI. At the same time, there are cusps in the adiabatic PESs. Thus usually it is regarded that there is numerical difficulty in a quantum dynamics calculation for treating CI in the adiabatic representation. A popular numerical method in nuclear quantum dynamics calculations is the Sinc discrete variable representation (DVR) method. We examine the numerical accuracy of the Sinc DVR method for solving the Schrodinger equation of a two dimensional model of two electronic states with a CI in both the adiabatic and diabatic representation. The results suggest that the Sinc DVR method is capable of giving reliable results in the adiabatic representation with usual density of the grid points, without special treatment of the divergence of the DBOC and the GP. The numerical uncertainty is not worse than that after the introduction of an arbitrary vector potential for accounting the GP, whose accurate form usually is not easy to obtain.Within the Born-Oppenheimer (BO) approximation, nuclear motions of a molecule are often envisioned to occur on an adiabatic potential energy surface (PES). However, this single PES picture should be reconsidered if a conical intersection (CI) is present, although the energy is well below the CI. The presence of the CI results in two additional terms in the nuclear Hamiltonian in the adiabatic presentation, i.e., the diagonal BO correction (DBOC) and the geometric phase (GP), which are divergent at the CI. At the same time, there are cusps in the adiabatic PESs. Thus usually it is regarded that there is numerical difficulty in a quantum dynamics calculation for treating CI in the adiabatic representation. A popular numerical method in nuclear quantum dynamics calculations is the Sinc discrete variable representation (DVR) method. We examine the numerical accuracy of the Sinc DVR method for solving the Schrodinger equation of a two dimensional model of two electronic states with a CI in both the adiabatic a.
Measurement of ammonia, amines and iodine species using protonated water cluster chemical ionization mass spectrometry

Abstract. A new water cluster Chemical Ionization-Atmospheric Pressure interface-Time Of Flight mass spectrometer (CI-APi-TOF) is introduced. The instrument is designed for the selective measurement of trace gases with high proton affinity, such as ammonia, amines, and diamines that are, for example, relevant for atmospheric new particle formation. Following the instrument description and characterization, we demonstrate successful measurements at the CLOUD (Cosmics Leaving OUtdoor Droplets) chamber where very low ammonia background levels of ~ 4 pptv were achieved (at 278 K and 80 % RH). The estimated level of detection of the water cluster CI-APi-TOF can be estimated as ~ 0.5 pptv for ammonia and it is significantly lower for amines. Due to a short reaction time (
FPGA based laser frequency stabilization using FM spectroscopy

Frequency stabilized light sources with narrow linewidth are mandatory for atom interferometry based experiments. For compact experiment designs used on space platforms, tunable DFB diode lasers are often used. These lasers combine low energy consumption with small sizes, but lack long-term frequency stability. This paper presents an FPGA based laser frequency stabilization system for highly variable target frequencies using frequency modulated Rb-spectroscopy achieving latencies below 100 μs. The system consists of a DFB laser, a Rb-spectroscopy cell, a laser current controller and an FPGA board with an analog-digital conversion board. The digital part of the frequency stabilization system is a SoC mapped on an FPGA. The SoC consists of a processor, enabling user interaction via network connection, and the dedicated frequency stabilization module. This module consists of a demodulation stage, digital filters, a frequency estimator and a controller. To estimate the frequency, small ramps of the laser frequency are generated using a high-speed DAC connected to the laser current controller. The absorption spectroscopy output of this beam is sampled using a photodiode and a high-speed ADC. After signal conditioning with digital filters, the frequency estimator extracts the present mid-frequency of the laser applying pattern matching with a prerecorded reference spectrum. The frequency controller adjusts the mean laser current based on this estimation. The performance as well as the accuracy of the proposed laser stabilization system and its FPGA resource and power consumption are evaluated.
A new anterior pharyngeal region specific fluorescent co-transformation marker

Description Among the fluorescence-based co-transformation markers, two of the most commonly used markers are pharyngeal expression of green fluorescent protein (GFP) and red fluorescent protein (RFP) under the myo-2 cis-regulatory element (Frokjaer-Jensen et al., 2008; Tabara et al., 1996). However, bright expression of GFP or RFP in the posterior pharynx, i.e. in the isthmus and in the posterior pharyngeal bulb, restricts expression analysis of reporter genes that express fluorescent proteins with overlapping spectra in the head neurons. This shortcoming particularly limits the choice of fluorescent proteins that can be used when simultaneous imaging of multiple distinct reporter genes is required. We report here generation of a new fluorescence-based co-transformation marker that allows easy identification of transgenic animals based on bright TagRFP expression only in the anterior pharyngeal region (procorpus region) muscles at all developmental and adult stages (Figure 1) and does not interfere with the analysis of reporter gene expression in the head neurons.
A Review of the Graphene Synthesis Routes and its Applications in Electrochemical Energy Storage

Abstract Graphene – a carbon nanomaterial has gained huge research interest due to its intriguing and extraordinary properties such as large surface area, excellent electrical conductivity, ultra-thinness, high electron mobility, and superior mechanical strength. The combination of graphene with other inorganic nanoparticles can significantly boost its physiochemical properties and hence, opens up new frontiers of its utilization. Grapheneis significantly exploited for the energy storage systems due to its great potential for electrochemical energy storage . However, the experimental electrochemical performance of graphene is still far away from the theoretical facts. This study critically evaluated the existing synthesis routes for the production of graphene, graphene-based composites and their utilization in the energy storage applications. Furthermore, the techno-economic analysis of the synthesis methods was undertaken to determine the best routes in terms of sustainability for commercial graphene production. Lastly, the fundamental understanding of graphene growth mechanisms and the overall intricacies of the synthesis processes were highlighted and the possible way forward is proposed. Therefore, in the quest for the development of effective alternative yet sustainable energy storage devices; it is hoped that this research will give useful insights to researchers and key players in the electronics industry. Graphical Abstract
The evaluation of an embedded system kit as A C programming teaching tool

This paper describes the methodology used in evaluating the effectiveness of an embedded system teaching tool for C programming. Teaching programming is one of the major problems among schools and universities. To overcome this problem, a teaching module and an embedded-system training kit for teaching programming to beginners were developed. The teaching module and kit were then tested on selected groups of school children. Focusing more on the testing phase of the research work, this paper gives a detailed account of the testing process and the evaluation method used. The result shows that the students are interested to learn programming using the embedded system.
Synthesis and characterization of hydrophilic gilsonite fine particles for improving water-based drilling mud properties

Abstract In this study, hydrophilic gilsonite fine particles were produced by reaction of natural gilsonite with a mixture of sulfuric acid and nitric acid followed by a planetary ball mill process. The hydrophilic gilsonite was characterized using FTIR, XRD, FE-SEM, DLS, elemental analysis, and mass spectroscopy. All experiments showed that the characteristics of the hydrophilic gilsonite, due to its surface modification, were different from those of natural gilsonite. Moreover, hydrophilic gilsonite molecules were dispersed in water as fine particles with an average diameter of 300 nm without adding any dispersant. The effects of hydrophilic gilsonite on the rheological properties as well as the fluid loss of the water-based drilling mud were investigated before and after the hot-roll process. The results showed that simultaneous adding of 10 g of hydrophilic gilsonite fine particles to the base fluid and reducing the starch concentration to half of its initial value resulted into the best composition for efficient water-based drilling mud. In this case, the rheological properties of the mud were stabilized with a minimum change in the decrease of the yield point, foam formation was prevented after the hot-roll process, and the pH of the system was stabilized in a suitable range at high temperatures. Moreover, this composition could reduce the fluid loss by 50.8% and the filter cake thickness by 66.7% in low-temperature, low-pressure conditions, while the fluid loss reduction was 75% in high-temperature high-pressure conditions. Moreover, the results revealed that hydrophilic gilsonite was an effective additive during the 16 h hot-roll process. Graphical Abstract
Expanding Polyethylene and Polypropylene Applications to High-Energy Areas by Applying Polyolefin-Bonded Antioxidants

Despite a broad range of commercial applications, polyolefins, including polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), are not recommended for applications that require long-term exposure to elevated temperatures, high electric fields, organic solvents, and combinations of those, due to both chemical and physical stability concerns. This paper discusses current antioxidants/stabilizers and cross-linking technologies and their shortcomings under extreme application conditions. The incompatibility of polar antioxidants in nonpolar and semicrystalline polyolefin prevents homogeneous distribution with adequate concentration required for protecting the polymer chain from thermal–oxidative degradation. A new approach for incorporating hindered phenol (HP) antioxidant groups in the polyolefin chain offers a specific HP concentration homogeneously distributed in the polyolefin matrix, which not only shows effective antioxidation protection but also in situ forms a polymer network via a coupling reaction between two d.
Evaluation of Anticancer activity of Ethanol extract of Bauhinia tomentosa Linn. on A549, Human Lung Carcinoma Cell lines

Objective: The aim of the present study is to evaluate the anticancer activity of ethanol extract of B.tomentosa (EBT). Methods: The anticancer activity of ethanol extract of B.tomentosa was evaluated by MTT Assay, AO/EtBr Fluorescence assay and DNA Fragmentation assay against A549 (human lung cancer cell line). Results: Treatment of A549 cells with EBT (at IC50 concentration) for 48 hrs significantly inhibited the proliferation in a concentration dependent manner. AO/EtBr staining confirms the occurrence of apoptosis in A549 cells after the treatment of EBT. From DNA fragmentation assay, it is evident that EBT has also significantly induced DNA damage in treated A549 cells. Conclusion: Thus the present study demonstrates the anticancer activity of EBT. The ethanol leaf extract of B.tomentosa has shown potent anticancer activity on A549 cancerous cell line. Further studies are needed to identify the bioactive molecules and to explore its mechanism of action which might throw light in the development of new alternative drug for lung cancer.
Characterization of Cellular Sources and Circulating Levels of Extracellular Vesicles in a Dietary Murine Model of Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis

Circulating extracellular vesicles (EVs) are a novel and emerging biomarker for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). It has been demonstrated that total circulating EVs and hepatocyte‐derived EVs are elevated in male mice with diet‐induced NASH. How hepatocyte‐derived EVs change over time and other cellular sources of EVs in NASH have not been determined. Our objective was to define the quantitative evolution of hepatocyte‐derived, macrophage‐derived, neutrophil‐derived, and platelet‐derived EVs in male and female mice with dietary NASH. Fluorescently labeled antibodies and a nanoscale flow cytometer were used to detect plasma levels of EVs. Asialoglycoprotein receptor 1 (ASGR1) and cytochrome P450 family 2 subfamily E member 1 (CYP2E1) are markers of hepatocyte‐derived EVs; galectin 3 is a marker of macrophage‐derived EVs; common epitope on lymphocyte antigen 6 complex, locus G/C1 (Ly‐6G and Ly‐6C) is a marker of neutrophil‐derived EVs; and clusters of differentiation 61 (CD61) is a marker of platelet‐derived EVs. Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease activity score (NAS) was calculated using hematoxylin and eosin‐stained liver sections, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used for measurement of the fat fraction and elastography. Hepatocyte‐derived EVs increased in both male and female mice at 12 and 10 weeks of feeding, respectively, and remained elevated at 24 weeks in both male and female mice and at 48 weeks in male mice and 36 weeks in female mice. Macrophage‐ and neutrophil‐derived EVs were significantly elevated at 24 weeks of dietary feeding concomitant with the histologic presence of inflammatory foci in the liver. In fat‐, fructose‐, and cholesterol‐ (FFC) fed male mice, platelet‐derived EVs were elevated at 12, 24, and 48 weeks, whereas in female mice, platelet derived EVs were significantly elevated at 24 weeks. Hepatocyte‐, macrophage‐ and neutrophil‐derived EVs correlated well with the histologic NAS. Conclusion: Circulating cell‐type‐specific EVs may be a novel biomarker for NASH diagnosis and longitudinal follow up.
A Review Study on Shortest Path in WSN to detect the Abnormal Packet for saving Energy and Efficient Data Collection using AODV

: The main motive of this research is to study energy-efficient data-gathering mechanisms to abnormal packet data for saving the energy. To detect the abnormal packet irregularities is useful for saving energy, as well as for management of network, because the patterns found can be used for both decision making in applications and system performance tuning. Node distribution in WSNs is either deterministic or self-organizing and application dependant. The sensor nodes in WSNs have minimum energy and they use their energy for communication and sensing.
Growth and Labor Supply in the Presence of Habit Formation in Consumption

This paper examines a model with habit formation in consumption. The model leads to higher equilibrium values in consumption, output, capital accumulation and labor supply than the neoclassical growth model with elastic labor supply. Comparative static analysis shows that an increase in the importance of consumption in the recent past in habit formation is associated with a decrease in growth and labor supply. On the other hand, an increase of the importance of habit stock relatively to present consumption, is found to stimulate growth and labor supply.