batterydata/paper-abstracts huggingface dataset:
The mechanism of the experimentally reported enhancement of lithium ion transport in LiFePO4 cathodes with glassy lithium diphosphate surface layers ultrafast (dis)charging of Li ion batteries is clarified by atomistic molecular dynamics simulations. A significant redistribution of Li+ from the phosphate glass surface layer into the subsurface LiFePO4 phase constitutes a rapid electrostatic storage component, and – more importantly – this Li+ redistribution constitutes a “heterogeneous doping” enhancing the defect concentrations on both sides of the interface. The resulting deviations from local electroneutrality qualitatively change the transport properties. For temperatures close to room temperature simulations yield an enhancement of ion mobilities in surface-modified LiFePO4 by up to three orders of magnitude via the mesoscopic multiphase effect. A layer-by-layer analysis of ion mobility in structurally relaxed heterostructures indicates a continuous variation of the mobility as a function of the distance from the interface with the maximum mobility close to the interface. For nanoparticles of suitably chosen dimensions, Li+ diffusion remains enhanced compared to bulk values even at the center of the cathode material crystallites. Moreover, the role of Li Fe / / Fe Li antisite defects for the dimensionality of ion migration in bulk and nanostructured LiFePO4 is analyzed yielding criteria for a transition from one-dimensional to higher-dimensional long-range migration. This allows reconciling discrepancies between experimental single crystal studies and previous theoretical studies for the ordered LiFePO4 structure.
Bisphenol-A (BP-A) is a xenobiotic estrogenic compound used in a wide range of consumer products. BP-A was tested for its genotoxicity by employing three cytogenetic assays, viz., chromosomal aberration test, micronucleus assay and test for c-mitotic effects in Swiss albino mice. Studies were carried out for three doses, 10, 50 and 100mg/kg in single oral exposure and 10mg/kg in repeated oral exposure (for 5 days). It is evident from the present investigation that although BP-A failed to induce conventional chromosomal aberrations and micronuclei, its genotoxic potential was manifested in the form of achromatic lesion and c-mitotic effects in the bone marrow cells. It can also be speculated from the results that the threshold concentration of BP-A required for the formation of MN is much higher than that for the induction of c-mitotic effects.
Irrigation water quality influences many aspects of agroecosystems, but less is known about how complex microbial and biological communities respond to changing water quality due to causes such as reuse irrigation. The objectives of this study are to monitor and assess the environmental impacts of reclaimed wastewater irrigation on water quality and soil that might cause potential health hazards and to assess its agro-environmental effects. Two sites, which are irrigated by filtered wastewater after UV (Ultraviolet) treatment and from an agricultural reservoir that satisfied the agricultural water quality standards of Korea, were selected as treatment and control, respectively. The environmental impacts of irrigation water quality on paddy soil, microorganisms, and arthropods were investigated. Monitoring results for water, soil, health risks, and eco-environments of the reclaimed wastewater irrigation site demonstrated no adverse effects in the paddy field. This research showed that reclaimed wastewater irrigation did not present significant environmental risks for the rice paddy agroecosystem, although long-term monitoring is needed to fully characterize its effects.
This study adopts airflow management technology to improve the local temperature distributions in an automobile to counteract the greenhouse effect. The automobile's temperature can be reduced to almost the outside temperature before the driver or passenger gets into the vehicle. When the engine is idling, the greenhouse-control system can be activated to remove the hot air from the car. An appropriate negative pressure is maintained to prevent stuffiness and save energy. The greenhouse-control system requires electrical power when the engine is idle, and a battery cannot supply sufficient power. An auxiliary solar-power supply can save energy and reduce the greenhouse effect of sunlight, while creating a comfortable traveling environment. It ensures that the engine is not overburdened and increases its service life, conserving energy, protecting the environment and improving comfort.
Novel mesoporous carbon materials (MCMs) with excellent electron conductivity and high surface area are successfully synthesized from waste litchi shells. The as-prepared MCMs possess a narrow pore size distribution (0.5–2.0 nm) and exhibit similar electron conductivities to conductive carbon black (Super P, Timcal). Because of the unique properties of MCMs, they are used as host matrixes to encapsulate sulfur for lithium-sulfur cathodes. The obtained MCMs-sulfur (MCMs-S) composite cathodes deliver a high initial specific capacity of 1667 mAh g−1. Moreover, 300 °C treated MCMs-S composite cathode shows a more stable discharge capacity than the untreated MCMs-S composite cathode, it remains 612 mAh g−1 after 200 cycles at a high current density of 0.5 C.
Coenzyme Q2, polyprenyltransferase (COQ2) variants have been reported to be associated with multiple system atrophy (MSA). However, the relationship between COQ2 variants and familial Parkinson’s disease (PD) remains unclear. We investigated the frequency of COQ2 variants and clinical symptoms among familial PD and MSA. We screened COQ2 using the Sanger method in 123 patients with familial PD, 52 patients with sporadic PD, and 39 patients with clinically diagnosed MSA. Clinical information was collected from medical records for the patients with COQ2 variants. Allele frequencies of detected rare non-synonymous variants were compared by public database of the Exome Aggregation Consortium (ExAC) and Japanese genetic variation database, using Fisher’s exact test. We detected two probands with rare variants in COQ2, the p.P157S from Family A, whose patient was clinically diagnosed as having juvenile PD, and the p.H15 N/p.G331S from Family B, whose patients shared common symptoms of PD. Furthermore, in an association study comparing these familial PD and MSA cases with a public variant database, eight non synonymous variants were detected in COQ2. Three of these were very rare variants, namely, p.P157S, p.L261Qfs*4, and p.G331S, and one variant, p.G21S, was found to show a significant association with familial PD. COQ2 variants rarely may associate with the disease onset of familial PD. Our findings contribute to an understanding of COQ2 variants in neurodegenerative disorders.
The influence of ytterbium on the electrochemical property of PbCaSn alloy in 4.5molL−1 H2SO4 solution is studied by cyclic voltammetry (CV), linear sweep voltammetry (LSV), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and Mott–Schottky plot. The results show that Yb can improve the corrosion resistance of PbCaSn alloy in 4.5molL−1 H2SO4 solution. Mott–Schottky plot reveals that the anodic film on PbCaSn alloy at 1.28VSCE appears an n-type semi-conductive character, Yb can decrease the slope of M–S plot, implying the increment of the defect density within the anodic film, which is beneficial to improve the conductivity of the anodic film. According to the results obtained from EIS, it can be found that the growth of Pb(II) compounds (PbSO4·PbO, 3PbSO4·PbO and PbO) is significantly inhibited by adding Yb.
Despite many desirable properties, the vanadium redox flow battery is limited, in the maximum operation temperature that can be continuously endured, before precipitation begins in the positive electrolyte. Many additives have been proposed to improve the thermal stability of the charged positive electrolyte. However, we have found that the apparent stability, revealed in laboratory testing, is often simply an artifact of the test method and arises from the oxidation of the additive, with corresponding partial reduction of V(V) to V(IV). This does not improve the stability of the electrolyte in an operating system. Here, we examined the oxidation of some typical organic additives with carboxyl, alcohol, and multi-functional groups, in sulfuric acid solutions containing V(V). The UV–vis measurements and titration results showed that many compounds reduced the state-of-charge (SOC) of vanadium electrolyte, for example, by 27.8, 88.5, and 81.9% with the addition of 1%wt of EDTA disodium salt, pyrogallol, and ascorbic acid, respectively. The cell cycling also indicated the effect of organic additives on the cell performance, with significant reduction in the usable charge capacity. In addition, a standard screening method for thermally stable additives was introduced, to quickly screen suitable additives for the positive vanadium electrolyte.
Morphology and composition changes occurring at the surface of CuO thin film electrode, used as conversion material for lithium-ion battery, were investigated at different stages of the electrochemical cycling by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Analyses were performed on samples obtained in LiPF6 containing carbonate-based electrolyte and prepared by linear sweep voltammetry. The formation/partial dissolution of a solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) was evidenced by XPS analyses. The SEI layer formed on lithiated CuO thin film during the first reduction between [3.5–0.8] V/Li+/Li is characterized by a LiF-rich inner layer and a Li2CO3-rich outer layer. Furthermore, reduction/oxidation cycles induced important surface morphology modifications. In particular, the growth and then the vanishing of large spherical nodules (∼400 nm in diameter) were observed during the lithium insertion and the subsequent deinsertion. During the twenty first cycles performed, even if a stable electrochemical behavior was shown, breathing of the thin film was also clearly evidenced by AFM images with the appearance and disappearance of numerous cracks as a function of Li removal and Li insertion processes.
Groundwater is the backbone of public water supply in Paraguay but it is threatened by contamination and over-exploitation. To increase the awareness of this crucial resource and the environment in general, a comic book for primary school pupils was developed, accompanied by posters, games and videos. The acceptance of the package was greatly improved by providing teachers with training workshops and a guidebook that allowed them to integrate the material seamlessly into their syllabus. The format of the guidebook was previously harmonized with the Ministry of Education. Identification between the characters of the comic and the audience was fostered by using a country-specific natural and social background. A physical groundwater model was used to increase understanding of the importance of groundwater in the water cycle.
The present study is interested in the role of the corpus callosum in the development of the language network. We, therefore, investigated language abilities and the language network using task-based fMRI in three cases of complete agenesis of the corpus callosum (ACC), three cases of partial ACC and six controls. Although the children with complete ACC revealed impaired functions in specific language domains, no child with partial ACC showed a test score below average. As a group, ACC children performed significantly worse than healthy controls in verbal fluency and naming. Furthermore, whole-brain ROI-to-ROI connectivity analyses revealed reduced intrahemispheric and right intrahemispheric functional connectivity in ACC patients as compared to controls. In addition, stronger functional connectivity between left and right temporal areas was associated with better language abilities in the ACC group. In healthy controls, no association between language abilities and connectivity was found. Our results show that ACC is associated not only with less interhemispheric, but also with less right intrahemispheric language network connectivity in line with reduced verbal abilities. The present study, thus, supports the excitatory role of the corpus callosum in functional language network connectivity and language abilities.
A change in the microstructure of Ti-Si alloys synthesized by high-energy mechanical milling through post-annealing significantly enhances their electrochemical performances as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). The microstructures of ball-milled and post-annealed powders are investigated using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM). The Si phase is uniformly distributed on the silicide (TiSi2) matrix. The individual Si domains of the mechanical alloying (MA) sample consist of amorphous and crystalline regions with a diffuse interface between the two phases. When MA powder is annealed at 600 °C, the Si phase has a well-developed nanocrystalline microstructure: a multi-grain structure with random orientation of nanometric crystal domains. Annealing at 600 °C causes a significant improvement in electrochemical performance parameters like cycling stability and rate capability. However, when annealed at 800 °C, the electrochemical performances deteriorate due to an increase in the size of Si domains.
A Co–B alloy/ethylenediamine (EDA) hybrid electrode system has been developed by adding EDA into electrolyte. Charge–discharge measurements show that the inorganic–organic hybrid electrode system exhibits high discharge capacity and long cycle life at elevated temperature (55°C). Specifically, in the electrolyte containing 0.09M EDA additive, the discharge capacity of Co–B alloy electrode after 100 cycles is still up to 601.7mAhg−1 at 55°C. However, for the electrode in EDA-free electrolyte, its discharge capacity is sharply decreased to only 138.5mAhg−1 after 100 cycles. ICP-OES and IR measurements are used to clarify the reason of the improvement in the electrochemical properties. These results show that beneficial effect of EDA on electrochemical properties of Co–B alloy electrode can be attributed to in situ electrochemical oxidation of EDA during discharge cycles. First the oxidation of EDA contributes to part of the discharge capacity and secondly the oxidation products absorbed on the electrode may help to suppress the dissolution of Co at elevated temperature. Evidence is presented suggesting that the oxidation of Co can induce co-oxidation of EDA.
The prototype for the wind turbine rotor of low technicality described (Renewab. Energy, 24 (2001) 275), is capable of driving various mechanical systems requiring limited power. We examine a device of low technicality, capable of satisfying the modest electrical needs in households. It comprises a generator made up of an assembling of bicycle dynamos.
The MIRS microwave radiometer–spectrometer is described. The instrument is being developed using a conceptual design that was the first stage of ground preparations for the Convergence Space Experiment (SE). At the next stage of SE implementation, it is planned to use the proposed technical solutions as design documentation for manufacturing test and flight prototypes. MIRS is a multi-frequency scanner and sounder intended to record the characteristic radiothermal radiation emitted by the system of the Earth’s surface and atmosphere. The set of frequencies of the received radiation is in the range of 10 to 200 GHz. The device is to be installed on the Russian Orbital Segment (ROS) of the International Space Station (ISS). Conical scanning of the Earth’s surface is done by rotating an antenna unit mounted on a fixed base. With a 1.3 s period of rotation and a constant Earth incidence angle of 53.1 deg, continuous coverage of the Earth’s surface is ensured in a swath 800 km wide with spatial resolution of 10 km for the highest-frequency channels. Nine radiometer–polarimeters laid out as a full-power radiometer are used as radiation receivers. The MIRS antenna system is an offset parabolic antenna with separated irradiators. The optimum design solutions allowing the main problems of the SE to be solved and the MIRS parameters to be maintained under operating conditions on board the ISS are chosen for the conceptual design.
Inflammation is a ubiquitous underlying mechanism of the links between diet and cognitive functioning. No study has yet evaluated the overall inflammatory potential of the diet, using the dietary inflammatory index (DII), in relation to cognitive functioning. In a French cohort of middle-aged adults, we evaluated the association between the DII, assessed in midlife, and cognitive performance evaluated 13 years later.
Despite a growing catalogue of eradication projects, documented successful vertebrate eradications on the mainland remain scarce. Reporting on successful campaigns is crucial to counter pessimism on ambitious programmes to tackle invasive species and to allow conservation practitioners, wildlife managers and scientist to learn from previous experience. Moreover, there is a need for basic information on the effectiveness of control methods and management strategies that can be used. In this note we report on a successful low-tech eradication campaign of a local population of Pallas’s squirrel Callosciurus erythraeus, a species of tree squirrel with documented ecological and socio-economic impacts in its invasive range. The population was eradicated from a suburban park of about 15 ha using baited mesh wire life traps, in five consecutive capture campaigns between October 2005 and January 2011. Using maximum likelihood estimation from catch-effort data we calculated initial densities in the park at 3 squirrels ha−1. Although control started quickly and the extent of the invasion was limited, the campaign took over 5 years and required an estimated investment of over €200,000 including 1.5 years of post-eradication surveying. We provide basic data on the methods used to eradicate this invasive rodent. Critical success factors and possible improvements with respect to the specific context of this case are discussed. Adding this species to the list of species of EU concern currently under development could provide incentive to minimise impact of this tree squirrel at the continental scale.
The present study provides detailed experimental results on the synthesis and characterization of carbonized lithium titanate spinel (LTO) composites as electrode materials for lithium ion capacitor. The LTO particles were grafted with a porous carbon layer obtained from the pyrolysis of camphor. The graphitic nature of the carbon was confirmed through Raman spectroscopy. The relative contributions from the capacitive and diffusion controlled processes underlying these electrodes were mathematically modeled. Electron transport mechanism underlying these electrodes was determined by measuring the work functions (φ) of LTO and carbon grafted LTO using ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy. These carbon grafted LTO composites exhibited an energy density of 330 mWh·L−1 and a peak power density of 2.8 kW·L−1, when employed as electrodes in coin cells with excellent cycling stability at the end of 4000 cycles.
In an attempt to identify an active material for use in lithium secondary batteries with high energy density, we investigated the electrochemical properties of gallium (III) sulfide (Ga2S3) at 30°C. Ga2S3 shows two sloping plateaus in the potential range between 0.01V and 2.0V vs. (Li/Li+). The specific capacity of the Ga2S3 electrode in the first delithiation is ca. 920mAhg−1, which corresponds to 81% of the theoretical capacity (assuming a 10-electron reaction). The capacity in the 10th cycle is 63% of the initial capacity. Ex situ X-ray diffraction and X-ray absorption fine structure analyses revealed that the reaction of the Ga2S3 electrode proceeds in two steps: Ga2S3 +6Li+ +6e− ⇆2Ga+3Li2S and Ga+ xLi+ + xe− ⇆Li x Ga.
A battery thermal management system (BTMS) has become an essential part in battery-driven electric vehicles (EVs) in order to remove the generated heat from the battery which leads to enhanced performance. BTMSs have been implemented in EVs by adopting different technologies that include natural air cooling systems, forced air cooling systems, liquid cooling systems, and using heat pipes and fins. However, phase change material (PCM) embedded systems have gained a lot of attention due to their availability, low cost, and high sensible and latent heat in the field of BTMS. In the last two decades, thermoelectric coolers (TECs) have also been applied to BTMSs to make an active or semi-passive system with another cooling system. In this paper, a state of the science comprehensive literature review is presented on PCM (a passive system) and TEC (an active system) based BTMSs. A synthesis of the literature is presented in a tabular format to give a clear indication on the relative performances of the BTMSs. Moreover, limitations of the batteries, PCMs, and TECs are also discussed to identify the future research possibilities in the area of BTMS for EVs.
Rare earth elements (REEs), Platinum group metals (PGMs) and other critical metals currently attract significant interest due to the high risks of supply shortage and substantial impact on the economy. Their uses in many applications have made them present in municipal solid waste (MSW) and in commercial and industrial waste (C&I), since several industrial processes produce by-products with high content of these metals. With over 4000 landfills in the UK alone, the aim of this study was to assess the existence of these critical metals within landfills. Samples collected from four closed landfills in UK were subjected to a two-step acid digestion to extract 27 metals of interest. Concentrations across the four landfill sites were 58±6mgkg−1 for REEs comprising 44±8mgkg−1 for light REEs, 11±2mgkg−1 for heavy REEs and 3±1mgkg−1 for Scandium (Sc) and 3±1.0mgkg−1 of PGMs. Compared to the typical concentration in ores, these concentrations are too low to achieve a commercially viable extraction. However, content of other highly valuable metals (Al and Cu) was found in concentrations equating to a combined value across the four landfills of around $400 million, which increases the economic viability of landfill mining. Presence of critical metals will mainly depend on the type of waste that was buried but the recovery of these metals through landfill mining is possible and is economically feasible only if additional materials (plastics, paper, metallic items and other) are also recovered for reprocessing.
Novel 2D LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 hierarchical nanosheets are successfully synthesized through a simple sol-gel strategy with ethanol dispersion of carbon nanotubes as addictive. The nanosheets with thickness of ∼100 nm appear porous and are formed by 100 nm nanoparticles. As cathode for lithium ion battery, the 2D porous hierarchical nanosheets demonstrate high specific capacity of 137.7 mAh g−1 at 20C (1C = 200 mA g−1), which is much higher than those of its counterparts. The high capacity can be still maintained during 100 charge/discharge cycles and the capacity retention is up to 90.1%. The excellent rate capability and cyclability may be attributed to the distinct 2D porous hierarchical structure.