batterydata/paper-abstracts huggingface dataset:
In order to easily and simply improve the cyclability of the Sn film negative electrode, we selected Co as a matrix metal and tried to prepare the Co–Sn alloy film negative electrode by a pulse electrodeposition method. The surface morphology of the deposit was almost the same as that of the Sn film, although aggregation partially occurred. The content rate of Co and Sn in the deposit was almost the same as the composition percentage in the electrodeposition bath. X-ray diffraction measurement showed that the deposited film could be assigned to a metastable Co–Sn alloy, while the co-deposition of crystalline Sn was not observed. The galvanostatic charge–discharge tests indicated that the discharge capacity and the charge–discharge efficiency of the Co30.5Sn69.5 alloy film electrode at the 1st cycle were 529.2mAhg−1 and 87.9%, respectively. Furthermore, the film electrode showed a good cyclability and discharge capacity of 470.5–617.5mAhg−1 during 50 cyclings. Alloying Sn with inactive Co could effectively improve the cyclability of the Sn film electrode prepared by the pulse electrodeposition method.
Résumé Introduction Le modèle cognitif du traitement de la musique propose un fonctionnement modulaire qui met en évidence deux voies principales de traitement du message musical, une voie mélodique et une voie temporelle, permettant l’accès à la reconnaissance de la musique. Il révèle, en outre, un traitement spécifique de l’encodage tonal de la hauteur qui n’est commun avec aucun autre système cognitif, pas même celui du langage. À notre connaissance, la prise en charge rééducative d’un trouble amusique n’a pas encore été rapportée. Objectif Nous présentons une prise en charge thérapeutique inspirée des travaux réalisés de la thérapie de la surdité verbale pour vérifier si une rééducation spécifique à l’aide de la discrimination de mélodies peut permettre la régression de l’amusie. Méthode Nous rapportons l’étude d’un patient présentant une amusie réceptive acquise depuis quatre ans. L’analyse de son déficit amusique à l’aide d’une batterie spécifique (la MBEA) a montré une atteinte de la voie mélodique sans atteinte de la voie temporelle en se référant au modèle cognitif de Peretz. Une rééducation informatisée a été réalisée. Elle était basée sur des entraînements de discrimination de mélodies, en utilisant une procédure d’apprentissage sans erreur avec indiçage visuel estompé progressivement. Résultats Après la thérapie, une amélioration des différents composants et du score global de la MBEA a été notée et n’était pas expliquée par une récupération spontanée puisque nous étions à plusieurs années de l’accident neurologique. L’effet se maintenait sept mois après la rééducation. Le transfert en vie quotidienne n’avait pas été testé systématiquement, mais le patient a pu reprendre l’écoute de la musique qu’il aimait. Conclusion Cette étude montre la possibilité de rééducation des déficits amusiques.
The safety profile of Puritane™, a closed system electronic vapour product (EVP), was evaluated when used by smokers of conventional cigarettes (CCs) for 24 months in a real-life setting. The study was a two-centre ambulatory clinical study with 209 healthy volunteers. Outcome measures included adverse events (AEs), vital signs, electrocardiogram, lung function tests, exposure to nicotine and selected smoke constituents, nicotine withdrawal effects and smoking desire. No serious AEs related to EVP use were observed. The most frequently reported AEs were headache, nasopharyngitis, sore throat and cough, reported by 28.7%, 28.7%, 19.6% and 16.7% of subjects, respectively, which dissipated over time. Small decreases in lung function were not considered clinically relevant. No clinically relevant findings were observed in the other safety parameters. From Month 2, nicotine withdrawal symptoms decreased. Smoking desire and CC consumption steadily decreased over time in all subjects. EVP use was associated with reduced exposure to cigarette smoke constituents, whereas urinary nicotine levels remained close to baseline. Body weight did not increase in CC subjects switching to the EVP. In conclusion, the aerosol of the EVP at study was well tolerated and not associated with any clinically relevant health concerns after usage for up to 24 months.
The prediction of crystal structures is one of the most essential challenges in designing novel functional materials. A data-driven prediction technique that uses the database of known crystal structures and substitutes ions among materials of known crystal structures to concoct new crystal structures has been proposed. This technique has been applied to generate crystal-structure candidates for the purpose of first-principles-calculation-based high-throughput computational screening. However, this technique has a functional limitation that the ion substitution tendencies are available only for typical ions such that their associated crystal structures appear in well-known materials. To overcome such a limitation, this work introduces an idea of collaborative filtering to the calculation of the ionic substitution tendencies. Based on this idea, we develop symmetric matrix factorization (SMF) method to model underlying substitution conditions. In addition, we present a symmetric matrix co-factorization (SMCF) method to incorporate additional knowledge pertaining to chemical properties in estimating the substitution tendencies among ions with extremely small amount of previous knowledge in the database. The performance of the prediction is investigated along with existing techniques through in silico experiments using real crystal-structure database. The numerical results show that the proposed SMF- and SMCF-based prediction outperform existing techniques in terms of the prediction accuracy.
The exhaust gas from an internal combustion engine carries away about 30% of the heat of combustion. The energy available in the exit stream of many energy conversion devices goes as waste, if not utilized properly. The major technical constraint that prevents successful implementation of waste heat recovery is due to its intermittent and time mismatched demand and availability of energy. In the present work, a shell and finned tube heat exchanger integrated with an IC engine setup to extract heat from the exhaust gas and a thermal energy storage tank used to store the excess energy available is investigated in detail. A combined sensible and latent heat storage system is designed, fabricated and tested for thermal energy storage using cylindrical phase change material (PCM) capsules. The performance of the engine with and without heat exchanger is evaluated. It is found that nearly 10–15% of fuel power is stored as heat in the combined storage system, which is available at reasonably higher temperature for suitable application. The performance parameters pertaining to the heat exchanger and the storage tank such as amount of heat recovered, heat lost, charging rate, charging efficiency and percentage energy saved are evaluated and reported in this paper.
Open-circuit-voltage (OCV) data is widely used for characterizing battery properties under different conditions. It contains important information that can help to identify battery state-of-charge (SOC) and state-of-health (SOH). While various OCV models have been developed for battery SOC estimation, few have been designed for SOH monitoring. In this paper, we propose a unified OCV model that can be applied for both SOC estimation and SOH monitoring. Improvements in SOC estimation using the new model compared to other existing models are demonstrated. Moreover, it is shown that the proposed OCV model can be used to perform battery SOH monitoring as it effectively captures aging information based on incremental capacity analysis (ICA). Parametric analysis and model complexity reduction are also addressed. Experimental data is used to illustrate the effectiveness of the model and its simplified version in the application context of SOC estimation and SOH monitoring.
A novel direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) incorporating an ultrasonic transducer is introduced based on a recent provisional patent application [J. Ge, J. Han, H. Liu, Ultrasounically enhanced fuel cell system, U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/815,268, June 21, 2006]. The ultrasound transducer is embedded in the methanol supply line and is used to enhance the performance of a DMFC. The technique of introducing ultrasound through methanol supply line significantly reduced the potential losses in ultrasound transmission to the reaction sites of the fuel cell. Series of experiments have been conducted to study the effect of the ultrasound on the performance of the DMFC. The experimental results showed that the high-frequency vibrations of the ultrasound through the methanol supply line enhance the cell performance significantly and consistently. The experimental results unequivocally demonstrated the feasibility of using ultrasound to enhance DMFC performance and the effectiveness of introducing ultrasound into a DMFC via methanol supply line to minimize the wave transmission losses.
Age-related neuropathologies progressively impair cognitive abilities by damaging synaptic function. We aimed to identify key components within the presynaptic SNARE (soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor attachment protein receptor) machinery associated with cognitive performance and estimate their potential contribution to brain reserve in old age. We used targeted SRM proteomics to quantify amounts of 60 peptides, encoded in 30 different genes, in postmortem specimens of the prefrontal cortex from 1209 participants of two aging studies, with available antemortem cognitive evaluations and postmortem neuropathologic assessments. We found that select (but not all) proteoforms are strongly associated with cognitive function and the burden of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathology. Specifically, greater abundance of STX1A (but not other syntaxins), SYT12, full-length SNAP25, and the GABAergic STXBP1 variant were robustly associated with better cognitive performance. By contrast, greater abundance of other presynaptic proteins (e.g., STXBP5 or tomosyn, STX7, or SYN2) showed a negative influence on cognition. Regression models adjusting for demographic and pathologic variables showed that altered levels of these protein species explained 7.7% additional between-subject variance in cognition (more than any individual age-related neuropathology in the model), suggesting that these molecules constitute key elements of brain reserve. Network analyses indicated that those peptides associated with brain reserve, and closest to the SNARE fusogenic activity, showed greater centrality measures and were better connected in the network. Validation assays confirmed the selective loss of the STX1A (but not STX1B) isoform in cognitively impaired cases. In rodent and human brains, STX1A was selectively located at glutamatergic terminals. However, in AD brains, STX1A was redistributed adjacent to neuritic pathology, and markedly expressed in astrocytes. Our study provides strong evidence, indicating that select presynaptic proteins are key in maintaining brain reserve. Compromised ability to sustain expression levels of these proteins may trigger synaptic dysfunction and concomitant cognitive impairment.
Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) are an indispensable tool for studying the world׳s oceans. They can be equipped with sophisticated sensors and are capable of collecting scientific data under difficult and harsh conditions. Most AUVs rely on batteries to operate, making energy a critical resource. This paper evaluates the benefits of adaptive sampling strategies that allow AUVs to change sensing behaviors by modeling and tracking underwater features. For many AUVs, particularly gliders, these strategies can effectively extend mission duration. Often, necessary or likely preconditions of environmental features can be detected with simple, low energy cost sensors in combination with modeling software. Once precursors have been identified, more sophisticated and energy-hungry sensors can be utilized, collecting scientific data of higher quality. The use of both hardware and software trigger chains can reduce the energy consumption of sensors without sacrificing the collection of relevant data. We used thermocline detection software together with a lower powered sensor to trigger more expensive fluorescence and backscatter sensors on the Slocum Glider. The use of several different thermocline detection algorithms enabled us to compare their precision and power/energy savings. We show energy savings of up to 82% in simulations, and 50% and 63% through two at-sea experiments.
The stability of Al-doped Li7La3Zr2O12 in air was studied in this paper. It was found that Li7La3Zr2O12 (LLZO) was unstable in humid air. Water vapor strongly affected its stability relative to composition, mechanical integrity, ionic conductivity and cell performance. X-ray diffraction studies of the surface of a one-year-old sample showed formation of La(OH)3 and Li(OH)·H2O impurity phases, indicating the decomposition of Li7La3Zr2O12. The mechanical strength of the pellet was low, and it easily crumbled. Facile H+/Li+ ion exchange in the electrolyte was confirmed by measuring the pH of an LLZO powder/water suspension. SEM observations show the reaction with water vapor initially occurs at the grain boundaries. AC impedance measurements showed the overall conductivity decayed after the pellet was stored in air for one week. Protecting a Cu0.1V2O5/Li7La3Zr2O12/Li all-solid-state battery from humidity significantly improved the cell performance at room temperature.
An amorphous Si film with thickness of 350nm was fabricated on both Cu substrate and Ni film (under layer)/Cu substrate by direct current (DC) and radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering. The surface morphology, crystallographic structure and electrochemical properties were investigated. Flat surface was formed in Si/Cu film, whereas in Si/Ni/Cu film a rough surface was formed consisting of Si clusters. In a Si/Li half-cell test with current densities of 210 (0.05C-rate), 810 (0.2C-rate) and 4200mAg−1 (1C-rate), the surface-modified Si film electrode exhibited a significantly improved cycle performance compared to the Si film deposited on only Cu substrate. LiFePO4/Si full cell tested at current density 85mAg−1 of (0.5C-rate) displayed the first charge capacity of 154.0mAhg−1, corresponding to 90.5% of theoretical capacity of LiFePO4 and the capacity retention of 79.4% at 20th cycle.
A hybrid material of carbon-coated Fe2O3 submicro-particles loaded on graphene nanosheets (Fe2O3@C/GNs) is prepared by a two step route including a hydrothermal and a subsequent glucose impregnation-pyrolysis process. The obtained material is composed of GNs and ∼400 nm size Fe2O3 particles coated by thin carbon layer with a thickness of 5 nm. As an anode material for lithium ion batteries, Fe2O3@C/GNs hybrid shows an improved electrochemical performance in the initial coulombic efficiency (71%), reversible capacity (900 mA h g−1 after 50 cycles at a current of 200 mA g−1) and capacity retention rate (82% after 50 cycles). This result is much better than the synthesized bare Fe2O3 and Fe2O3/GNs electrodes. In addition to the contribution of GNs, the carbon-coated layer around Fe2O3 particles is believed to be a key factor to improve the electrochemical performance of Fe2O3.
Thin films of LiCoO2 prepared by radio frequency magnetron sputtering on Pt-coated silicon are investigated under various deposited parameters such as working pressure, gas flow rate of Ar to O2, and heat-treatment temperature. The as-deposited film was a nanocrystalline structure with (104) preferred orientation. After annealing at 500–700°C, single-phase LiCoO2 is obtained when the film is originally deposited under an oxygen partial pressure (P O 2 ) from 5 to 10mTorr. When the sputtering process is performed outside these P O 2 values, a second phase of Co3O4 is formed in addition to the HT-LiCoO2 phase. The degree of crystallization of the LiCoO2 films is strongly affected by the annealing temperature; a higher temperature enhances the crystallization of the deposited LiCoO2 film. The grain sizes of LiCoO2 films annealed at 500, 600 and 700°C are about 60, 95, and 125nm, respectively. Cyclic voltammograms display well-defined redox peaks. LiCoO2 films deposited by rf sputtering are electrochemically active. The first discharge capacity of thin LiCoO2 films annealed at 500, 600 and 700°C is about 41.77, 50.62 and 61.16μAh/(cm2 μm), respectively. The corresponding 50th discharge capacities are 58.1, 72.2 and 74.9% of the first discharge capacity.
Lead (Pb) and decabromodiphenyl ether (BDE209) are the main contaminants at e-waste recycling sites, and their potential toxicological effects on terrestrial organisms have received extensive attention. However, the impacts on the oxidative perturbations and hydroxyl radical (·OH) generation in earthworms of exposure to the two chemicals remain almost unknown. Therefore, indoor incubation tests were performed on control and contaminated soil samples to determine the effects of Pb in earthworms Eisenia fetida in the presence of BDE209 through the use of several biomarkers in microcosms. The results have demonstrated that the addition of BDE209 (1 or 10 mg kg−1) decreased the enzymatic activities [superoxide dismutase, catalase (CAT), peroxidase] and total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) compared with exposure to BDE209 alone (50, 250 or 500 mg kg−1). Electron paramagnetic resonance spectra indicated that ·OH radicals in earthworms were significantly induced by Pb in the presence of BDE209. The changing pattern of malondialdehyde (MDA) contents was accordant with that of ·OH intensity suggested that reactive oxygen species might lead to cellular lipid peroxidation. Furthermore, CAT exhibited more sensitive response to single Pb exposure than the other biomarkers, while T-AOC, ·OH and MDA might be three most sensitive biomarkers in earthworms after simultaneous exposure to Pb and BDE209. The results of these observations suggested that oxidative stress appeared in E. fetida, and it may play an important role in inducing the Pb and BDE209 toxicity to earthworms.
The COVID-19 Psychological Wellbeing Study was designed and implemented as a rapid survey of the psychosocial impacts of the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), known as COVID-19 in residents across the United Kingdom. This study utilised a longitudinal design to collect online survey based data. The aim of this paper was to describe (1) the rationale behind the study and the corresponding selection of constructs to be assessed; (2) the study design and methodology; (3) the resultant sociodemographic characteristics of the full sample; (4) how the baseline survey data compares to the UK adult population (using data from the Census) on a variety of sociodemographic variables; (5) the ongoing efforts for weekly and monthly longitudinal assessments of the baseline cohort; and (6) outline future research directions. We believe the study is in a unique position to make a significant contribution to the growing body of literature to help understand the psychological impact of this pandemic and inform future clinical and research directions that the UK will implement in response to COVID-19.
Lithium metal is considered one of the most promising anode materials for realizing high volumetric and gravimetric energy density, owing to the high specific capacity (∼3860 mAh g−1) and the low electrochemical potential of lithium (−3.04 V vs. the standard hydrogen electrode). However, undesirable dendritic lithium growth and corresponding instability of the solid electrolyte interphase prevent safe and long-term use of lithium metal anodes. This paper presents a simple electrolyte approach to enhance the performance of lithium metal batteries by tuning the dielectric constant of the liquid electrolyte. Electrolyte formulations are designed by changing the concentration of ethylene carbonate to have various dielectric constants. This study confirms that high ethylene carbonate content in a liquid electrolyte enhances the cycling performance of lithium metal batteries because the electric field intensity applied to the electrolyte is reduced in relation to the polarization of the electrolyte and thus allows smooth lithium plating and formation of a stable solid electrolyte interphase. We believe that this approach provides an important concept for electrolyte system design suitable to lithium metal batteries.
Unique one dimensional ZnFe2O4 hollow fibers with integrated tubular mesoporous nanostructures have been fabricated successfully using a two-step process, combining the single-spinneret electrospinning and the simple post-treatment techniques. The original hollow fibers that were obtained from the single-spinneret electrospinning device consisted of a ZnFe2O4 shell and a carbonaceous inner fiber layer (fiber-in-tube structure). The unique integrated tubular nanostructure of the hollow fiber (tubular structure) was then achieved by removing the inner fiber layer using a hydraulic treatment process. A series of analyses were carried out to study the characteristics of the hollow fibers, such as morphologies, structures, crystalline phases, chemical compositions and pore properties. It was found that the ZnFe2O4 tubular structure exhibited a higher capacity of 1026mA h g−1 after 260 cycles at a current density of 200mAg−1 than the fiber-in-tube structure (711mAhg−1) under the same experimental conditions. However, the tubular structure suffered a larger capacity loss and longer capacity fading period in the first few cycles of the charge-discharge, indicating a weaker cycling stability compared with the fiber-in-tube structure. These differences in electrochemical performance during the charge-discharge processes were due to the diverse morphologies and nanostructures of the hollow fibers.
Currently, constructing an advanced structure to address the weaknesses of MnO-based anode materials in regard to large volume variation upon cycling and inferior conductivity still needs to be further improved for endowing the MnO anode with a desirable lithium-storage performance. Herein, an ingenious sandwich-like CNT@MnO@N-doped carbon coating (NC) hetero-nanotube architecture with partial MnO being inlaid into CNT is synthesized through an elaborate route including template and coating strategy and utilized as a hopeful lithium-ion anode material exhibiting large specific capacity, long-term cyclability, and high rate capacity synchronously. The outer NC layer could not only enhance the electro-conductibility of MnO as well as efficiently confine the reaggregation and ameliorate the volume variation of MnO nanoparticles upon cycling, but also avert the direct contact between MnO and electrolyte which could lead to the unexpected depletion of lithium. The inner CNT could ensure the 1D hetero-nanotube structure benefiting to preserve the structural integrity during cycling, and also facilitate the electron transport. Additionally, the inlaying of MnO nanoparticles into CNT could boost the transfer and storage of lithium ion. Therefore, the CNT@MnO@NC electrode reveals a high Li+ storage capacity (665 mAh g−1 at 0.1 A g−1), outstanding cycling performance (617 mAh g−1 after 500 cycles at 1 A g−1) and superior rate capability (421 mAh g−1 at 2.0 A g−1), calculating based on the weight of CNT@MnO@NC composite. According to kinetic study, it is uncovered that the CNT@MnO@NC electrode presents an enhanced capacitive effect towards Li+ storage, featuring with the characteristic faradaic surface pseudocapacitive charge-storage mechanism. This work puts forward a promising strategy to prepare 1D heterostructured anode materials with improved conductivity and structure stability for boosting lithium-storage.