batterydata/paper-abstracts huggingface dataset:
Sunlight-driven water splitting to produce hydrogen and oxygen provides a pathway to store available solar energy in the form of stable, energy-dense chemical bonds. Here we investigate a tandem particle-suspension reactor design for solar water splitting comprising micron-scale photocatalyst particles suspended in an aqueous solution with soluble redox shuttles. A porous separator facilitates redox species transport between the hydrogen and oxygen evolution reaction compartments while averting gas crossover. A two-dimensional, transient model of the reactor is presented to illustrate the coupling between light absorption, interfacial electron-transfer kinetics and species transport, and their combined impacts on overall solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency. The volumetric reactivity of the suspended semiconductor particles is dictated by combining the (photo)current–voltage behavior of a photodiode with Butler–Volmer electron-transfer kinetics. For the first time, a quantitative approach to determine the impacts of surface-dependent redox shuttle kinetic parameters on reaction selectivity in a Z-scheme system is established. Model results provide insights on the effects of optical, transport and kinetic properties of the semiconductor particles and the redox shuttles on the overall reactor performance. Solar-to-hydrogen reactor efficiencies predicted with BiVO4 particles for oxygen evolution are at least two times larger than efficiencies achieved with wider band-gap TiO2 particles due to enhanced visible light absorption; hydrogen evolution with SrTiO3:Rh particles was considered for both cases. Superior performance is predicted with proton-coupled electron transfer redox shuttles (para-benzoquinone/hydroquinone and iodide/iodate) that absorb little-to-no visible light, while also facilitating operation at near-neutral pH conditions, as compared to the non-proton-coupled triiodide/iodide and iron(III)/iron(II) redox shuttles. For 1 cm tall reaction compartments, diffusive species transport is fast enough to sustain reactor operation at a 1% solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency for both para-benzoquinone/hydroquinone and iodate/iodide redox shuttles with less than 2.2 mg L−1 of each of BiVO4 and SrTiO3:Rh particles in the solution.
This paper reviews the renewable energy systems emulators proposals for microgrid laboratory testing platforms. Four emulation conceptual levels are identified based on the literature analysis performed. Each of these levels is explained through a microgrid example, detailing its features and possibilities. Finally, an experimental microgrid, built based on emulators, is presented to exemplify the system performance.
The concept of multi-microgrids has the potential to improve the reliability and economic performance of a distribution system. To realize this potential, a coordination among multiple microgrids is needed. In this context, this paper presents a new distributed economic model predictive control scheme for the coordinated stochastic energy management of multi-microgrids. By optimally coordinating the operation of individual microgrids, this scheme maintains the system-wide supply and demand balance in an economical manner. Based on the probabilistic forecasts of renewable power generation and microgrid load, this scheme effectively handles the uncertainties in both supply and demand. Using the Chebyshev inequality and the Delta method, the corresponding stochastic optimization problems have been converted to quadratic and linear programs. The proposed scheme is evaluated on a large-scale case that includes ten interconnected microgrids. The results indicated that the proposed scheme successfully reduces the system wide operating cost, achieves the supply-demand balance in each microgrid, and brings the energy exchange between DNO and main grid to a predefined trajectory.
The electrical dynamic characteristics of a lithium-ion battery have been simulated by an equivalent circuit, which is derived from the measured impedance. The transient voltage response to the various kinds of applied current waves such as single pulse, single rectangular, triangle, and sawtooth waves is experimentally examined and calculated by using the numerical Laplace transform with the equivalent circuit. The experimental and calculated results are compared and discussed, focusing on the range of current where the linear relationship is valid. Changing the time range, the state of charge (SOC) and the battery temperature as parameters, their influence on the linear range of the applied current has been investigated.
It has been shown that the inappropriate use of antimicrobial household agents selects for organisms with resistance mechanisms (e.g. efflux pumps), which could lead to the development of antibiotic resistance. The reverse hypothesis, that antibiotic-resistant organisms become tolerant to other antibacterial agents (e.g. disinfectants) due to the action of efflux pumps, has however not been extensively examined. The objective of this study was to establish whether there is a link between antibiotic resistance in potential gastrointestinal pathogens and reduced sensitivity of these organisms to commonly used household antimicrobial agents. In this study, tetracycline and ofloxacin sensitive and resistant Escherichia coli (9 strains) and Salmonella spp. (8 strains) were isolated from poultry and clinical samples. In order to assess whether these bacteria had active efflux pumps, ethidium bromide accumulation assays were performed. Extrusion of the active components of three commercial household agents (triclosan, sodium salicylate, and ortho-phenylphenol) by efflux pumps was tested using spectrophotometric accumulation assays. In order to simulate the kitchen environment, in-use disinfectant testing using the commercial household agents was performed to determine changes in their efficacy due to antibiotic resistance. Active efflux pump activity and extrusion of all three active ingredients was observed only in the antibiotic resistant organisms. The antibiotic sensitive bacteria were also more susceptible than the resistant isolates to the household antimicrobial agents at concentrations below that recommended by the manufacturer. These resistant bacteria could potentially be selected for and result in hard to treat infections.
A battery for automated neuropsychological tasks to explore the frontal lobule functionality is developed. Tasks are specific to evaluated different regions of the frontal lobe such as Prefrontal Dorsolateral, Ventromedial, Ventrolateral and Orbitofrontal cortices, which permits an accurate evaluation of frontal dysfunctions. The following tasks were included: Test of reversal response, to evaluate the Prefrontal Ventrolateral & Orbitofrontal cortices performance assessing the subject’s ability to reverse a learnt response. Stop Task: It is designed to assess inhibitory control and evaluate the Prefrontal Ventromedial & Ventrolateral cortices function. Wisconsin Card Sorting Test: measures the executive function and explores flexibility of cognitive strategy changes to evaluate the Prefrontal Dorsolateral Cortex. Gambling Task: is a psychological task thought to simulate real-life decision making, which permits the performance evaluation of the Prefrontal Orbitofrontal cortex. This battery benefits to psychiatrics, neuro-psychologist specialists, relying on a tool to objectively evaluate different function disorders of the frontal lobe regions. Different brain pathologies are detected using this set of Neuropsychological tests. This is a research tool used in clinical disorders such as ADHD and schizophrenia. Psychiatrists and neuro-psychologists are benefited counting on automated implementation of these tasks for studying frontal lobe diseases.
ABSTRACT This paper presents a non-invasive, self-powered system that can be used in the suppression of vibrations medically affecting people. Mechanical vibratory signals are picked up by piezoelectric sensors. Magnitude and frequency information is given as a voltage. Electronic circuitry filters, amplifies and gates the signal before either storing or manipulating and feeding the signal back to piezoelectric actuators, at the required phase and amplitude to suppress the vibrations. Outcomes of the paper show the use of different flexible piezoelectric materials to effectively increase energy storage and reduce vibrations. Advances in low power electronics have provided a means of solely powering devices from piezoelectric harvested energy, especially with the advent of piezoelectric ceramic fibre composites. Energy harvesting has been implemented in hand cranked radios, shake powered flashlights, wind farms, and solar energy. Through the use of standard electronic techniques acquired power can be converted, stored and regulated. Piezoelectric fibre composites are capable of extracting energy from mechanical forces with the aim of collecting a portion of the mechanical energy associated with normal activates and utilising this in the creation of a self powered device to suppress low level vibrations.
Objective Writer’s cramp (WC) is a task-specific focal dystonia. WC is characterized by involuntary contractions of muscles of the hand and arm during handwriting, resulting in impaired writing with exaggerated finger forces. The generalization of symptoms to other fine motor tasks is widely discussed. The aim of the study was to determine affected fine motor aspects with an extensive testing battery. Methods Twelve people with WC and twelve healthy controls were examined. Performance in the Jebsen-Taylor Hand Function Test, Nine-Hole-Peg Test and 2-point discrimination was evaluated. To analyze object manipulation skills, we examined grip forces, temporal measures and other aspects of force control during (1) lifting actions with variations of weight and surface (2) cyclic movements (3) visuomotor tracking (4) fast force changes and (5) grip strength. In addition, correlation between the dependent variables of the fine motor tasks and the handwriting deficits was assessed. Results WC patients had impaired performance in the visuomotor tracking task (root mean square error (RMSE), p = 0.03 and time lag, p = 0.05) and the fast force changes (frequency, p = 0.01). There were no statistically significant group differences in the other tasks. We found a correlation between the RMSE of the tracking task and the time needed to write the test sentence (r = 0.643, p = 0.01). Conclusion WC patients revealed abnormalities in complex fine motor performance in tasks with high demands on coordination and visual components, specifically in tracking and fast force changes. Significance This suggests a deficit in visuomotor integration, coordination and cognitive aspects related to movement processing particularly with respect to low forces. These insights may prove useful in the development of targeted training approaches.
The energy-demanding nature of solid-state synthesis can be circumvented by using solvothermal synthesis routes involving milder heat treatment steps. Herein, we exploit one such route, ultrasonic sonochemical method, for the synthesis of Na0.44MnO2 insertion material. Using simple oxide and carbonate precursors, the target compound can be successfully prepared by restricting the final annealing (at 900 °C) to within 2 h. Rietveld analysis confirms the purity of final product assuming an orthorhombic framework (s.g. Pbam). Involving a step-wise voltage profile with the average Mn4+/Mn3+ redox potential ∼3 V (vs. Na/Na+), it delivers reversible capacity over 110 mAh.g−1 at a rate of C/10 with decent rate kinetics and cycling stability. Ultrasonic sonochemical synthesis can be employed for synthesis and rapid screening of variety of insertion materials for sodium-ion batteries.
The requirement that animals be used in research and testing in order to protect humans was formalized in the Nuremberg Code and subsequent national and international laws, codes, and declarations.
Nickel oxide with a high surface area showing high capacitance is reported here. Mesoporous microspheres (MMS) of 250NiO, 300NiO, 350NiO, 400NiO and 500NiO are synthesized by calcining mesoporous α-Ni(OH)2 at 250°C, 300°C, 350°C, 400°C, and 500°C, respectively. The mesoporous α-Ni(OH)2 was prepared by a hydrothermal method. 250NiO has the highest specific surface area of 295m2/g, and a high specific capacitance of 1,140Fg⿿1 at a current density of 10Ag⿿1 from galvanostatic discharge measurements. The cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic discharge measurement and electrochemical impedance analysis exhibited that the pseudocapacitive behavior is more clarified for NiO prepared at higher calcination temperature. Apparently, the high specific capacitance of 250NiO results from the mesoporous pores and high specific surface area enhancing the transportation of ions during the charging and discharging process to store high energy. The power density and energy density of the 250NiO are 2.5kWkg⿿1 and 59W h kg⿿1 respectively at the current density of 10Ag⿿1.
Lithium–sulfur batteries (Li–S batteries) are promising next-generation energy storage devices due to their high theoretical energy density, low cost, and environmental compatibility. When trying to convert experiment into practice, one finds that sulfur cathodes, especially a cyclic octasulfur cathode, and lithium metal anodes present several problems, including sulfur shuttling, the fact that S is an insulator, complex 16-electron reactions, and the formation of lithium dendrites. In recent years, organosulfur compounds have been extensively investigated for Li–S batteries in order to solve these problems and understand the electrochemical process during their redox reactions. This review aims to summarize the different functions of organosulfur compounds, and figure out a guideline for understanding and using them in Li–S batteries. The organosulfur compounds currently used as active materials are classified into three types based on their electrochemical behavior, and design principles of the molecular and polymer structures of organosulfur compounds are concluded. Based on these design principles, we summarize how to control their electrochemical performance, and suggest possible electrochemical mechanisms and other characteristics. Finally, we propose guidelines for the development of promising organosulfur compounds using emerging technologies, including advanced characterization techniques, innovative methods of synthesis of such compounds, and machine-learning techniques.
This article is based on a consensus conference, which took place in Certosa di Pontignano, Siena (Italy) on March 7–9, 2008, intended to update the previous safety guidelines for the application of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) in research and clinical settings. Over the past decade the scientific and medical community has had the opportunity to evaluate the safety record of research studies and clinical applications of TMS and repetitive TMS (rTMS). In these years the number of applications of conventional TMS has grown impressively, new paradigms of stimulation have been developed (e.g., patterned repetitive TMS) and technical advances have led to new device designs and to the real-time integration of TMS with electroencephalography (EEG), positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Thousands of healthy subjects and patients with various neurological and psychiatric diseases have undergone TMS allowing a better assessment of relative risks. The occurrence of seizures (i.e., the most serious TMS-related acute adverse effect) has been extremely rare, with most of the few new cases receiving rTMS exceeding previous guidelines, often in patients under treatment with drugs which potentially lower the seizure threshold. The present updated guidelines review issues of risk and safety of conventional TMS protocols, address the undesired effects and risks of emerging TMS interventions, the applications of TMS in patients with implanted electrodes in the central nervous system, and safety aspects of TMS in neuroimaging environments. We cover recommended limits of stimulation parameters and other important precautions, monitoring of subjects, expertise of the rTMS team, and ethical issues. While all the recommendations here are expert based, they utilize published data to the extent possible.
Chromosomal instability manifesting as aneuploidy is the most frequently observed abnormality in solid tumours. However, the role of aneuploidy as a cause or consequence of cancer remains a controversial topic. In this review, we focus on the karyotypic imbalances recorded for cancers of the upper gastro-intestinal (GI) tract, together with their associated pre-malignant lesions and the potential of aneuploidy as a clinical tool for patient management. Numeric chromosomal aberrations are common throughout gastro-oesophageal cancers and their precursor lesions. Additionally, specific chromosomal aneusomies have been identified as early changes in pre-dysplastic tissues suggesting they may be actively involved in driving tumourigenesis. As a progressive increase in the severity of aneuploidy with neoplastic progression has also been observed, it has thus been shown to be a useful prognostic indicator for patient classification as low or high-risk cases for cancer development. However, the biological basis for the aneuploidy in cancers of the upper GI tract needs to be established to understand its consequences and role during carcinogenesis, which is necessary for improving diagnostics and establishing novel targeted therapies.
Hierarchical Li4Ti5O12-TiO2 microspheres are synthesized via an oil/water interface method with the assistance of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and following calcination. The as-prepared Li4Ti5O12-TiO2 microspheres are consisted of nanoflakes (ca. 15nm in thickness); moreover, Li4Ti5O12 and anatase TiO2 in the nanoflake building blocks are bounded by (011) and (001) facets, respectively. More especially, it is found that CTAB plays a very important role in the phase and morphology of the Li4Ti5O12-TiO2 composite. When employed as the anode materials for lithium-ion batteries, the Li4Ti5O12-TiO2 microspheres show initial discharge capacities of 234, 170, 151 and 140mAhg−1 at charge/discharge rate of 1, 5, 10, and 20C, respectively; furthermore, after 100 cycles at 5C, the discharge capacity remains at 158mAhg−1 with a capacity retention of 92.9%. The excellent electrochemical properties of the product can be ascribed to the synergistic effect of the exposed Li4Ti5O12 (011) and anatase TiO2 (001) facets, abundant phase interfaces, hierarchical structures, and thin flake-like building blocks.
All-solid-state lithium batteries (ASSLIBs) employed inorganic solid electrolytes are attracting increasing interest for electrochemical energy storage devices due to their advantages of high safety, high energy density, wide operating temperature range and long cycle life. However, the large interfacial resistance originated from the insufficient solid-solid contact at electrolyte/electrode interface hinders the development of all-solid-state batteries. In addition, the interfacial compatibility and stability also greatly affect the electrochemical performance of batteries. This review summarizes the challenges and progress for the studies of interface problems in ASSLIBs. Based on the review, we attempt to propose alternative approaches to the issue and prospective developments of ASSLIBs.
Advanced lithium-ion batteries for renewable energy storage applications have become a major research interest in recent years. Much better performance can be realized by improvements in the material surface design, especially for the cathode materials. Here, we present a new design for a surface protective layer formed via a facile aqueous solution process in which a nano-architectured layer of LiF/FeF3 is epitaxially grown on bulk hierarchical Li-rich cathode Li[Li0.2Ni0.2Mn0.6]O2. Coin cell tests of this material in the voltage range of 2–4.8V indicated a high reversible capacity (260.1mAhg−1 at 0.1C), superior rate performance (129.9mAhg−1 at 20C), and excellent capacity retention. Differential scanning calorimetry showed good thermal stability. The enhanced capacity and cycling stability are attributed to the suppression of interfacial side reactions as well as the conversion reaction resulting from the introduction of LiF/FeF3 as a surface protective layer.
Chronic inorganic manganese (Mn) exposure has been known to induce neurological disorders similar to Parkinson's disease (PD). Apoptosis has been shown to be involved in manganese-induced neurotoxicity. However, the up-stream molecular mechanisms for cell apoptosis are not established. α-Synuclein (α-syn) is a major component of intracellular inclusions in PD, Alzheimer's disease (AD), and other neurodegenerative disorders. We investigated the role of α-syn in manganese chloride (MnCl2)-induced apoptosis. Results show that MnCl2 enhanced transcriptional and translational α-syn overexpression, and apoptosis as measured by caspase-3 activity and flow cytometry. Overexpressing α-syn exacerbated manganese-induced apoptosis, whereas antisense α-syn treatment significantly reversed MnCl2-induced apoptosis in human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells. In conclusion, our results imply that intracellular α-syn overexpression may be responsible for MnCl2-induced apoptosis.
Thermal stability of the solid electrolyte interface (SEI)-layers formed on graphite, mesocarbon microbeads and carbon-black anodes is shown to be dependent on the type lithium salt used in the electrolyte. Exothermic breakdown of the passivation layers formed on cycled electrodes using LiCF3SO3 or LiN(CF3SO2)2 in EC/DMC electrolyte solutions is compared on the basis of DSC, XPS and confocal Raman spectroscopy measurements. Lithium ions in intercalated carbon electrodes are shown not to be involved in the exothermic reactions below 250°C. However, changes are observed in the chemical composition of the SEI-layers using XPS on electrodes stored at 150°C.
Although telehealth is becoming more popular for delivery of care for individuals with musculoskeletal pain, to our knowledge telehealth has not been used to manage Achilles tendinopathy. This research aimed to explore the experience of participants and physiotherapists with gym-based exercise interventions for Achilles tendinopathy monitored via videoconference.
The M-doped (M=Y and Eu) microporous zirconosilicate AV-3 materials, possessing the structure of mineral petarasite and with Zr/M ratio of 4, have been prepared via hydrothermal synthesis. The structure of these materials contains elliptical channels, running down the b- and c-axes, defined by mixed six-membered rings, consisting of pairs of SiO4 tetrahedra linked by ZrO6 octahedra. There are also six-membered silicate ring channels running parallel to the c-axis. M ions predominantly occupy Zr positions, sitting on the channel surface and making AV-3 a proper system to create new multifunctional photoluminescent material. The solids have been characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDS), solid-state magic-angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance (MAS NMR) and photoluminescence spectroscopy.
This chapter discusses various types of intrusion detection systems with a focus on how technology has enhanced the level of safety and security over the years. Also discussed are the types of alarm systems and ways to select the right one for your home or organization.
The role of protected areas as biodiversity repositories has become increasingly important in face of increased deforestation. By adding free-living exotic mammals, removing forest-dependent native ones, isolating forest patches from large protected areas and reducing landscape forest cover, human activities may drive mammal communities towards regional biotic homogenization.