bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Predicting Nomogram for Severe Oral Mucositis in Patients with Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma during Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy: A Retrospective Cohort Study
Authors: Liu Zhibing , Huang Lulu , Wang Housheng , Shi Zhiling , Huang Yaqin , Liang Lixing , Wang Rensheng , Hu Kai
Published: December 2022

Background: Oral mucositis is an acute adverse reaction with high incidence during radiotherapy. Severe oral mucositis can seriously affect patients’ quality of life and compliance with radiotherapy. The aim of this study was to identify the risk factors for severe oral mucositis and to develop a nomogram for predicting severe oral mucositis in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Methods: One hundred and ninety patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma were retrospectively screened in this study. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to identify the best predictors of severe oral mucositis. A nomogram was constructed based on the factors. Finally, the discriminative ability of the nomogram was evaluated. Results: Four independent factors predicting severe oral mucositis were identified: age, N stage, the cycle of induction chemotherapy, and dose-volumetric parameter V40 (%) of oral cavity. The area under the receiver of operating characteristic curve of the nomogram was 0.759 (95% confidence interval: 0.691–0.827). Conclusions: A predictive nomogram for severe oral mucositis was established and validated in this study. The nomogram provides a reliable and practical model for clinically predicting the probability of severe oral mucositis in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma before intensity-modulated radiation therapy.
Diet of Bottlenose Dolphin, Tursiops truncatus (Montagu, 1821), in the Northwestern Mediterranean Sea
Authors: Neri Alessandra , Sartor Paolo , Voliani Alessandro , Mancusi Cecilia , Marsili Letizia
Published: December 2022

Cetaceans can be considered good natural samplers of biodiversity due to the different hunting strategies they adopt. In this study, the stomach contents of 28 Tursiops truncatus (15 females and 13 males), stranded along Tuscany coasts, NW Mediterranean, between 2008 and 2021, were analyzed. The prey items were identified at the lowest taxonomic level possible, and assessed in terms of abundance, weight, and frequency of occurrence. The index of relative importance (IRI) was also computed. Overall, 2201 bony fishes and 406 cephalopods were identified. The trophic spectrum resulted in high diversity (69 taxa) and the prey species, 53 fishes and 16 cephalopods, live at different levels of the water column. Predation was mainly based on European hake, Merluccius merluccius (%IRI 26.9), and conger eel, Conger conger (%IRI 25.1). The abundant presence of nocturnal species, such as Conger and Ophidion, indicates the nocturnal hunting activity of the bottlenose dolphin. Furthermore, evidence is presented of the dolphins’ ability to capture fish at night, taking advantage of the sound produced by these fish to locate them. Diet did not show any statistical differences among sexes, except that females preyed upon a significantly higher quantity of octopods than males.
Advances in Mobile Health for Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Authors: Spartz Ellen J. , DeDecker Lauren , Le Danny , Jalilian Laleh , Limketkai Berkeley N.
Published: December 2022

Mobile health has the potential to transform the management of chronic illnesses, expanding treatment from a purely clinic-based approach to a more patient-centered delivery of care. For patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), a condition characterized by a relapsing and remitting course, adoption of mobile health strategies can promote improved quality of care delivery and clinical outcomes. Benefits of mobile health applications for IBD include tracking symptoms to guide disease management, coordinating data exchange across clinical care providers, increasing communication between patients and the care team, and providing educational materials to increase patient engagement and satisfaction. In this review, we present the current offerings for telemedicine systems and mobile applications designed for patients with IBD and discuss the potential advantages and limitations of utilizing mobile health in the care of these patients.
Diet Quality, Nutritional Adequacy and Anthropometric Status among Indigenous Women of Reproductive Age Group (15–49 Years) in India: A Narrative Review
Authors: Kapoor Ridhima , Sabharwal Manisha , Ghosh-Jerath Suparna
Published: December 2022

In India, indigenous communities are nutritionally vulnerable, with indigenous women suffering the greater burden. Studies and surveys have reported poor nutritional outcomes among indigenous women in India, yet systematic documentation of community-specific nutrition data is lacking. We conducted a narrative review of 42 studies to summarise the nutritional profile of indigenous women of India, with details on their food and nutrient intakes, dietary diversity, traditional food consumption and anthropometric status. Percentage deficits were observed in intake of pulses, green leafy vegetables, fruits, vegetables, flesh foods and dairy products when compared with recommended dietary intakes for moderately active Indian women. Indices of diet quality in indigenous women were documented in limited studies, which revealed poor dietary diversity as well as low consumption of diverse traditional foods. A high risk of nutritional inadequacy was reported in all communities, especially for iron, calcium, and vitamin A. Prevalence of chronic energy deficiency was high in most communities, with dual burden of malnutrition in indigenous women of north-eastern region. Findings from this review can thus help guide future research and provide valuable insights for policymakers and program implementers on potential interventions for addressing specific nutritional issues among indigenous women of India.
Optimizing the Hub-and-Spoke Network with Drone-Based Traveling Salesman Problem
Authors: Gao Chao-Feng , Hu Zhi-Hua , Wang Yao-Zong
Published: December 2022

The hub-and-spoke network (HSN) design generally assumes direct transportation between a spoke node and its assigned hub, while the spoke’s demand may be far less than a truckload. Therefore, the total number of trucks on the network increases unnecessarily. We form a drone-based traveling salesman problem (TSP-D) for the cluster of spokes assigned to a hub. A truck starts from the hub, visiting each spoke node of the hub in turn and finally returning to the hub. We propose a three-stage decomposition model to solve the HSN with TSPD (HSNTSP-D). The corresponding three-stage decomposition algorithm is developed, including cooperation among variable neighborhood search (VNA) heuristics and nearest neighbor algorithm (NNA), and then the spoke-to-hub assignment algorithm through the reassignment strategy (RA) method. The performance of the three-stage decomposition algorithm is tested and compared on standard datasets (CAB, AP, and TR). The numerical analysis of the scenarios shows that whether it is trunk hub-level transportation or drone spoke-level transportation, it integrates resources to form a scale effect, which can reduce transport devices significantly, as well as decreasing the investment and operating costs.
Adaptive Significance Levels in Tests for Linear Regression Models: The e-Value and P-Value Cases
Authors: Patiño Hoyos Alejandra E. Patiño , Fossaluza Victor , Esteves Luís Gustavo , de Bragança Pereira Carlos Alberto
Published: December 2022

The full Bayesian significance test (FBST) for precise hypotheses is a Bayesian alternative to the traditional significance tests based on p-values. The FBST is characterized by the e-value as an evidence index in favor of the null hypothesis (H). An important practical issue for the implementation of the FBST is to establish how small the evidence against H must be in order to decide for its rejection. In this work, we present a method to find a cutoff value for the e-value in the FBST by minimizing the linear combination of the averaged type-I and type-II error probabilities for a given sample size and also for a given dimensionality of the parameter space. Furthermore, we compare our methodology with the results obtained from the test with adaptive significance level, which presents the capital-P P-value as a decision-making evidence measure. For this purpose, the scenario of linear regression models with unknown variance under the Bayesian approach is considered.
CSI-Former: Pay More Attention to Pose Estimation with WiFi
Authors: Zhou Yue , Xu Caojie , Zhao Lu , Zhu Aichun , Hu Fangqiang , Li Yifeng
Published: December 2022

Cross-modal human pose estimation has a wide range of applications. Traditional image-based pose estimation will not work well in poor light or darkness. Therefore, some sensors such as LiDAR or Radio Frequency (RF) signals are now using to estimate human pose. However, it limits the application that these methods require much high-priced professional equipment. To address these challenges, we propose a new WiFi-based pose estimation method. Based on the Channel State Information (CSI) of WiFi, a novel architecture CSI-former is proposed to innovatively realize the integration of the multi-head attention in the WiFi-based pose estimation network. To evaluate the performance of CSI-former, we establish a span-new dataset Wi-Pose. This dataset consists of 5 GHz WiFi CSI, the corresponding images, and skeleton point annotations. The experimental results on Wi-Pose demonstrate that CSI-former can significantly improve the performance in wireless pose estimation and achieve more remarkable performance over traditional image-based pose estimation. To better benefit future research on the WiFi-based pose estimation, Wi-Pose has been made publicly available.
Fragility Induced by Interdependency of Complex Networks and Their Higher-Order Networks
Authors: Zhang Chengjun , Lei Yi , Shen Xinyu , Li Qi , Yao Hui , Cheng Di , Xie Yifan , Yu Wenbin
Published: December 2022

The higher-order structure of networks is a hot research topic in complex networks. It has received much attention because it is closely related to the functionality of networks, such as network transportation and propagation. For instance, recent studies have revealed that studying higher-order networks can explore hub structures in transportation networks and information dissemination units in neuronal networks. Therefore, the destruction of the connectivity of higher-order networks will cause significant damage to network functionalities. Meanwhile, previous works pointed out that the function of a complex network depends on the giant component of the original(low-order) network. Therefore, the network functionality will be influenced by both the low-order and its corresponding higher-order network. To study this issue, we build a network model of the interdependence of low-order and higher-order networks (we call it ILH). When some low-order network nodes fail, the low-order network’s giant component shrinks, leading to changes in the structure of the higher-order network, which further affects the low-order network. This process occurs iteratively; the propagation of the failure can lead to an eventual network crash. We conducted experiments on different networks based on the percolation theory, and our network percolation results demonstrated a first-order phase transition feature. In particular, we found that an ILH is more fragile than the low-order network alone, and an ILH is more likely to be corrupted in the event of a random node failure.
Tone Mapping Method Based on the Least Squares Method
Authors: Zhao Lanfei , Li Guoqing , Wang Jun
Published: December 2022

Tone mapping is used to compress the dynamic range of image data without distortion. To compress the dynamic range of HDR images and prevent halo artifacts, a tone mapping method is proposed based on the least squares method. Our method first uses weights for the estimation of the illumination, and the image detail layer is obtained by the Retinex model. Then, a global tone mapping function with the parameter is used to compress the dynamic range, and the parameter is obtained by fitting the function to the histogram equalization. Finally, the detail layer and the illumination layer are fused to obtain the LDR image. The experimental results show that the proposed method can efficiently restore real-world scene information while preventing halo artifacts. Therefore, tone mapping quality index and mean Weber contrast of the tone-mapped image are 8% and 12% higher than the closest competition tone mapping method.
Data Optimization for Industrial IoT-Based Recommendation Systems
Authors: Beshley Mykola , Hordiichuk-Bublivska Olena , Beshley Halyna , Ivanochko Iryna
Published: December 2022

The most common problems that arise when working with big data for intelligent production are analyzed in the article. The work of recommendation systems for finding the most relevant user information was considered. The features of the singular-value decomposition (SVD) and Funk SVD algorithms for reducing the dimensionality of data and providing quick recommendations were determined. An improvement of the Funk SVD algorithm using a smaller required amount of user data for analysis was proposed. According to the results of the experiments, the proposed modification improves the speed of data processing on average by 50–70% depending on the number of users and allows spending fewer computing resources. As follows, recommendations to users are provided in a shorter period and are more relevant. The faster calculation of modified Funk SVD to exchange the optimal parameters between nodes was proposed. It was determined that execution time can be reduced on average by 75% for using ten nodes exchanging the optimal decomposition parameter compared to using one. Using Spark technology for faster calculation on average by 20% compared to Hadoop was proposed. The architecture of the IIoT system was proposed, which uses a modified Funk SVD algorithm to optimize data on edge devices and monitors the effectiveness of providing recommendations using control centers and cloud resources.
The Voltage Balance Control Strategy of Static Var Generators DC-Side Capacitors Based on Fuzzy-PI Adaptive Cascaded H-Bridge
Authors: Gong Renxi , Feng Yuan
Published: December 2022

A voltage balance control strategy based on the fuzzy adaptive PI (Proportional Integral control) is proposed to address the problem of unbalanced capacitor voltage on the DC side of cascaded H-bridge static var generators (SVG). In the control strategy, fuzzy control is introduced based on PI control. A duty ratio correction is added to all levels’ public active power duty ratios, thereby realizing the balance of DC-side voltages at all levels. A test was conducted by building a single-phase three-H-bridge unit cascaded SVG simulation platform. The results show that the DC-side voltage balance can be controlled by the voltage balance control strategy at all levels effectively. It has the advantages of a simple control structure, double closed-loop control with decoupling of the system’s current DQ, no coupling effect, a fast response speed, and high precision. The voltage balance control strategy can exert a good control effect when the system experiences a sudden voltage imbalance.
Low Leakage Current Metal–Insulator–Metal Device Based on a Beryllium Oxide Insulator Created by a Two-Step Spin-Coating Method as a Novel Type of Modified Pechini Synthesis
Authors: Jeon Young Pyo , Hong Dongpyo , Lee Sang-hwa , Lee Eun Jung , Cho Tae Woong , Kim Do Yeon , Kim Chae Yeon , Park JuSang , Kim Young Jun , Yoo Young Joon , Park Sang Yoon
Published: December 2022

Beryllium oxide (BeO) is considered to be an attractive alternative material for use in future industries in areas such as semiconductors, spacecraft, aircraft, and rocket technologies due to its high bandgap energy, useful melting point, good thermal conductivity, and dielectric constants. In this context, our approach is a novel method to produce BeO thin films based on a two-step spin-coating innovation of the conventional powder synthesis method. The surface morphology and the crystal structure of BeO thin films were observed to be dependent on the citric acid/beryllium sulfate ratio and the sintering temperature, respectively. To characterize the BeO films, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy was conducted for an elemental analysis. Furthermore, the bandgap of the BeO thin films was determined by reflection electron energy loss spectroscopy. Finally, the leakage current of a planar metal–insulator–metal device consisting of Au/Ti/BeO thin film/Ti/Au electrodes was determined to be below the nA range over the linear voltage sweeping range of −20 V to +20 V. These results can assist researchers in the areas of morphology control strategies, phase transfer theories, and applications that utilize BeO thin film manufactured by a solution process.
Beauty in the Eyes of Machine: A Novel Intelligent Signal Processing-Based Approach to Explain the Brain Cognition and Perception of Beauty Using Uncertainty-Based Machine Voting
Authors: Aldhahi Waleed , Albusair Thekra , Sull Sanghoon
Published: December 2022

The most mysterious question humans have ever attempted to answer for centuries is, “What is beauty, and how does the brain decide what beauty is?”. The main problem is that beauty is subjective, and the concept changes across cultures and generations; thus, subjective observation is necessary to derive a general conclusion. In this research, we propose a novel approach utilizing deep learning and image processing to investigate how humans perceive beauty and make decisions in a quantifiable manner. We propose a novel approach using uncertainty-based ensemble voting to determine the specific features that the brain most likely depends on to make beauty-related decisions. Furthermore, we propose a novel approach to prove the relation between golden ratio and facial beauty. The results show that beauty is more correlated with the right side of the face and specifically with the right eye. Our study and findings push boundaries between different scientific fields in addition to enabling numerous industrial applications in variant fields such as medicine and plastic surgery, cosmetics, social applications, personalized treatment, and entertainment.
Hydrogen Vortex Flow Impact on the Catalytic Wall
Authors: Lemanov Vadim , Lukashov Vladimir , Sharov Konstantin
Published: December 2022

An experimental study of a hydrogen-containing jet’s impact on a palladium-based catalyst in an air atmosphere was carried out. High-intensity temperature fluctuations on the catalyst surface are obtained in the case when large-scale vortex structures are contained in the jet. These superstructures have a longitudinal size of 20–30 initial jet diameters and a transverse size of about 3–4 diameters. To form such structures, it is necessary to use long, round tubes in the Reynolds number range of 2000–3000 as a source of the impinging jet when a laminar-turbulent transition occurs in the channel according to the intermittency scenario. This effect was obtained at a low hydrogen content in the mixture (XH2 = 3…15%) and a low initial temperature of the catalyst (180 °C). It is shown that the smallest temperature fluctuations are obtained for the laminar flow in the tube (<1.5%), and they are more significant (<4%) for the turbulent regime at low Reynolds numbers (Re < 6000). The greatest temperature fluctuations were obtained during the laminar-turbulent transition in the tube (up to 11%). Two important modes have been established: the first with maximum temperature fluctuations in the local region of the stagnation point, and the second with the greatest integral increase in temperature fluctuations over the entire area of the catalyst.
An Improved Correlation of Compressibility Factor Prediction of Variable CO2-Content Condensate Gases
Authors: Wang Chenhui , Jia Ailin , Guo Zhi , Huang Suqi , Shi Xiaomin , Cui Feifei
Published: December 2022

The injection of carbon dioxide (CO2) into gas reservoirs has become an important way to enhance gas recovery and reduce CO2 emissions. Large discrepancies are observed when predicting natural gas compressibility factors with high CO2 content by several well-known empirical correlations. An explicit correlation is proposed to improve the prediction accuracy in the estimation of compressibility factors on condensate gases with variable CO2 contents. The analysis of the results is carried out on the basis of 202 experimental data from 9 various mixtures of natural gases. The results show that relative deviations of compressibility factors predicted by conventional empirical correlations increase with the increase in CO2 mole fraction with an average error of 8%. The average error of the new method is less than 4%. The effect of compressibility factors on the estimations of dynamic reserves is studied and the compressibility factor causes a 3% reduction in dynamic reserves estimation. The proposed correlation has fewer uncertainties and more accurate results than other correlations that involve the iterative process in calculating compressibility factors of natural gases with variable CO2 contents.
Novel Energy Management Control Strategy for Improving Efficiency in Hybrid Powertrains
Authors: Broatch Alberto , Olmeda Pablo , Plá Benjamín , Dreif Amin
Published: December 2022

Energy management in electrified vehicles is critical and directly impacts the global operating efficiency, durability, driveability, and safety of the vehicle powertrain. Given the multitude of components of these powertrains, the complexity of the proper control is significantly higher than the conventional internal combustion engine vehicle (ICEV). Hence, several control algorithms and numerical methods have been developed and implemented in order to optimize the operation of the hybrid powertrain while complying with the required boundary conditions. In this work, a model-based method is used for predicting the impacts of a set of possible control actions, choosing the one minimizing the associated costs. In particular, the energy management technique used in the present study is the equivalent consumption minimization strategy (ECMS). The novelty of this work consists of taking into account the thermal state of the ICE for optimization. This feature was implemented by means of an extensive experimental campaign at different coolant temperatures of the ICE to calibrate the additional fuel consumption due to operating the engine outside of its optimum temperature. The results showed significant gains in both WLTC and RDE cycles.
Impact of Multi-Year Analysis on the Optimal Sizing and Control Strategy of Hybrid Energy Systems
Authors: Al-Khaykan Ameer , Al-Kharsan Ibrahim H. , Ali Mohammed Omar , Alrubaie Ali Jawad , Fakhruldeen Hassan Falah , Counsell J. M.
Published: December 2022

Grid-connected hybrid energy systems (HESs) represent a very promising option for addressing the problem of power outages worldwide. The selection of a suitable optimization approach and operational strategy are important aspects of the optimal design and operation of these HESs. This study aimed to find the optimal grid-connected PV/battery system sizes to supply electricity for a residential house in Karbala, Iraq, using two control strategies, load following (LF) and cycle charging (CC). The optimization was performed using HOMER software with and without the multi-year effects. The comparison analysis was carried out by considering the techno-economic and environmental performance of the feasible systems. The simulation results indicate that optimal configuration is achieved by using the CC strategy. Furthermore, the multi-year module affects the optimal results dramatically. Under the CC strategy, the multi-year effects increase the required PV size from 6 kW to 7 kW and the required number of batteries from 18 to 20, leading to an increase in the net present cost from $26,750 to $33,102 and a decrease in CO2 emissions from 7581 kg/year to 7379 kg/year. The results also show that the optimization results are highly affected by the variations of some critical parameters, such as solar radiation, average load, and battery degradation limits. The achievements indicate the higher effectiveness of the multi-year effects and control strategy on the optimal design of HESs.
Evaluation of Water Inrush Hazard in Coal Seam Roof Based on the AHP-CRITIC Composite Weighted Method
Authors: Xiao Lele , Li Fan , Niu Chao , Dai Gelian , Qiao Qian , Lin Chengsen
Published: December 2022

The more complex the hydrogeological conditions of a mine, the more likely the coal seam is to experience water inrush during the mining process, and the greater the degree of the water inrush hazard. The scientific and reasonable prediction of water inrush in mines with complex hydrogeological conditions is of great significance to the safe and efficient operation of coal mines. Taking the roof water inrush problem of the No. 3 lower coal seam in the Jisan Coal Mine as the research object, the factors affecting the roof water inrush of the coal seam were comprehensively considered from three aspects: the aquifer property, the mining fracture development and the geological structure. The evaluation index system was constructed by selecting 10 factors, including the aquifer depth and thickness, core recovery rate, brittle–plastic rock thickness ratio, number of water-resisting layers, development height of the water-conducting fracture zone, fault density, frequency density, scale index and variation coefficient of the coal seam floor dip angle. At the same time, based on the dual influence of subjective and objective weighting, the scientific and reasonable weight of each factor was ensured. The AHP-CRITIC composite weighting method was used to calculate the comprehensive weight of each factor. Finally, the roof water inrush risk prediction model was constructed. According to the prediction results, the study area was divided into a low-risk area, medium-risk area and high-risk area. Compared with the actual situation, the prediction results were basically consistent with the actual situation, and the prediction results can provide the basis for the prevention and control of water in a coal mine.
Effects of Internal Heat Exchanger on Two-Stage Compression Trans-Critical CO2 Refrigeration Cycle Combined with Expander and Intercooling
Authors: Shi Benlin , Chen Muqing , Chi Weikai , Yang Qichao , Liu Guangbin , Zhao Yuanyang , Li Liansheng
Published: December 2022

Because of the limitations of traditional refrigerants, the application of trans-critical CO2 technology in domestic gas conditioners and other fields is becoming increasingly popular. This paper proposes a new CO2 trans-critical refrigeration system. Combining the internal heat exchanger and expander components, as well as the two-stage compression cycle, we analyzed the effectiveness of the expander, internal heat exchanger, and intercooling on system performance under various operating conditions in terms of energy, exergy analysis, and optimal discharge pressure. The system performance can be changed by changing the cycle conditions and internal heat exchanger effectiveness, which reduces system power consumption and the percentage of exergy losses of gas cooler components. Compared to the single-stage compression with expander cycle, the systems cycle power consumption is reduced by 2–15.7% and the maximum system COP is increased by 2.93–6.93%. From the view of energy effectiveness, the system’s maximum COP increases by 3.9% and the percentage of exergy losses of gas cooler decreases by 22.5% with the effectiveness of internal heat exchanger varying. The addition of an internal heat exchanger has resulted in improved system performance, which is important for providing a relevant cycle model for the application.
Optimization of Urban-Scale Sustainable Energy Strategies to Improve Citizens’ Health
Authors: Adibhesami Mohammad , Karimi Hirou , Sharifi Ayyoob , Sepehri Borhan , Bazazzadeh Hassan , Berardi Umberto
Published: December 2022

Sustainable energy strategies have been a critical subject for sustainable development, especially in cities. Citizens, as an integral part of the urban environment, play a significant role in urban spaces, as does their health. An accurate understanding of citizens’ mental, social, and physical health in urban settings is required to design and plan better cities. This study aims to assess the level of alignment with health factors in Mahabad, a major medium-sized city in Iran. Previous studies indicate that the built environment can influence health dimensions. Health factors depend to a great extent on how well the environment is formed and how it is put together. This research is a descriptive, analytical, cross-sectional study that analyzes the environment’s psychological elements and physical and mental health factors of Mahabad’s citizens. According to the Cochran model, 384 questionnaires were distributed among households. For data analysis, SPSS 12 and Arc GIS software were used. The main results of this research show that five factors, “Environmental quality”, “Identity and social relationships”, and “Readability”, have the most impact on the physical and mental health of citizens (respondents). These issues are much more pronounced in the downtown neighborhoods. This study showed that urban experts can understand different levels of public health by knowing the historical, social, cultural, and economic factors and characteristics. The result will help decision makers, city authorities, designers, and urban planners to be more informed about citizens’ health and the ways to improve it.
Review of the Economic and Environmental Impacts of Producing Waxy Crude Oils
Authors: Sousa Ana M. , Ribeiro Tiago P. , Pereira Maria J. , Matos Henrique A.
Published: December 2022

Within the oil and gas industry, there is unanimity that wax deposits-driven pipeline blockages are a critical environmental concern and an economic liability of up to billions of dollars. However, a quantitative assessment of such an impact and, especially, of the different individual impacts that add up is absent from the current scientific literature. Such a gap is a deterrent for better-focused research. Given the production transition to heavy and paraffinic oils, harsh climatic zones, and extremely deep offshore oilfields, an extensive investigation is increasingly needed. The current endeavour was inspired by such a challenge and a review of the most recent technical and scientific publications was devised. A PRISMA-inspired and adapted methodology for systematic reviews was adopted. Over two hundred research articles, conference papers, books, theses, reviews, public databases and industry and government agencies reports were considered. As a result, a significant research gap is filled, both with the compilation, critical revision, and systematisation of the dispersed published scientific and technical data on the matter and with the definition of a quantitative economic impact appraisal for the wax deposition issue.
Usage of GAMS-Based Digital Twins and Clustering to Improve Energetic Systems Control
Authors: Gronier Timothé , Maréchal William , Geissler Christophe , Gibout Stéphane
Published: December 2022

With the increasing constraints on energy and resource markets and the non-decreasing trend in energy demand, the need for relevant clean energy generation and storage solutions is growing and is gradually reaching the individual home. However, small-scale energy storage is still an expensive investment in 2022 and the risk/reward ratio is not yet attractive enough for individual homeowners. One solution is for homeowners not to store excess clean energy individually but to produce hydrogen for mutual use. In this paper, a collective production of hydrogen for a daily filling of a bus is considered. Following our previous work on the subject, the investigation consists of finding an optimal buy/sell rule to the grid, and the use of the energy with an additional objective: mobility. The dominant technique in the energy community is reinforcement learning, which however is difficult to use when the learning data is limited, as in our study. We chose a less data-intensive and yet technically well-documented approach. Our results show that rulebooks, different but more interesting than the usual robust rule, exist and can be cost-effective. In some cases, they even show that it is worth punctually missing the H2 production requirement in exchange for higher economic performance. However, they require fine-tuning as to not deteriorate the system performance.
Lignin-First Biorefinery for Converting Lignocellulosic Biomass into Fuels and Chemicals
Authors: Luo Zhongyang , Qian Qian , Sun Haoran , Wei Qi , Zhou Jinsong , Wang Kaige
Published: December 2022

Driven by the excessive consumption of fossil resources and environmental pollution concerns, a large amount of biorefinery research efforts have been made for converting lignocellulosic biomass into fuels and chemicals. Recently, a strategy termed “lignin-first,” which allows for realizing high-yield and high-selectivity aromatic monomers, is regarded as one of the best prospective strategies. This review summarizes recent research advances in lignin-first biorefinery, starting from the raw lignocellulose through lignin-first processing and moving to downstream processing pathways for intermediate compounds. In particular, for the core purpose of producing liquid fuels, the corresponding downstream processing strategies are discussed in detail. These are based on the structural properties of the intermediates derived from lignin-first biorefinery, including the catalytic conversion of lignin and its derivatives (aqueous phase system and pyrolysis system) and the cascade utilization of carbohydrate residues (fermentation, pyrolysis, and hydrothermal liquefaction). We conclude with current problems and potential solutions, as well as future perspectives on lignin-first biorefinery, which may provide the basis and reference for the efficient utilization of lignocellulosic biomass.
Recent Advances on Heteroatom-Doped Porous Carbon—Based Electrocatalysts for Oxygen Reduction Reaction
Authors: Li Xue , Liu Guolei , Zheng Han , Sun Kuizhao , Wan Linna , Cao Jing , Asif Saira , Cao Yue , Si Weimeng , Wang Fagang , Bokhari Awais
Published: December 2022

Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells are considered one of the alternatives to fossil energy sources. The slow kinetics of the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) at the cathode and the high price of Pt-based catalysts remain one of the key challenges for the commercial viability of proton exchange membrane fuel cells. However, their high cost and susceptibility to poisoning severely limit their use for large-scale commercial applications in fuel cells. Heteroatom-doped porous carbon has attracted extensive attention from scientists due to its advantages such as high specific surface area and the properties conferred by heteroatom doping. On the one hand, we discuss a variety of current methods for the preparation of heteroatom-doped porous carbons, including the template method and the activation method. On the other hand, we discuss the application of heteroatom-doped porous carbon in Pt catalysts, transition metal catalysts and metal-free catalysts. Finally, we also present the pre-existing and challenges of heteroatoms in ORR catalysis, which will drive the development of ORR catalysts.
A Comprehensive Review of Machine-Integrated Electric Vehicle Chargers
Authors: Mustafa Uvais , Ahmed Rishad , Watson Alan , Wheeler Patrick , Ahmed Naseer , Dahele Parmjeet
Published: December 2022

Electric Vehicles are becoming increasingly popular due to their environment friendly operation. As the demand for electric vehicles increases, it has become quite important to explore their charging strategies. Since charging and traction do not normally occur simultaneously and the power electronics converters for both operations have some similarities, the practice of integrating both charging and traction systems is becoming popular. These types of chargers are termed ‘Integrated Chargers’. The aim of this paper is to review the available literature on the integrated chargers and present a critical analysis of the pros and cons of different integrated charging architectures. Integrated chargers for electric vehicles with three-phase permanent magnet synchronous machines, multi-phase machines and switched reluctance machines were compared. The challenges with the published integrated chargers and the future aspect of the work were been discussed.
Progress in Power-to-Gas Energy Systems
Authors: Schaffert Johannes
Published: December 2022

Hydrogen is expected to become a key component in the decarbonized energy systems of the future [...]
Comprehensive Analysis of the State of Technology in the Field of Waste Heat Recovery from Grey Water
Authors: Piotrowska Beata , Słyś Daniel
Published: December 2022

The use of energy from waste can be a key means of reducing the consumption of fossil fuels and thus reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Waste energy can be a worthy alternative to conventional energy sources in construction. This paper presents data on energy consumption for the preparation of domestic hot water in residential buildings. A review of the literature sources and inventions in the area of waste energy recovery from grey water was carried out. It also presents the results of research on prototypes of devices used to receive energy deposited in wastewater, published in recent years. The benefits of using drain water heat recovery systems for preheating utility water in residential buildings are presented. An analysis of technical solutions for grey water energy collection units was made, revealing their advantages and disadvantages. Great importance was attached to the review of patent sources as well as devices available on the market. According to the authors, the results of the technical review may be useful for contractors and designers of heat recovery equipment and installations, researchers and potential users of these technologies.
Investigation of Stress Sensitivity of Shale Nanopores via a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Method
Authors: Chen Mingjun , Lai Zhehan , Kang Yili , Fang Sidong , Liu Hua , Wang Weihong , Shen Jikun , Chen Zhiqiang
Published: December 2022

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is widely used to characterize the pore structure of rock. The nanoscale pores and fractures are well developed in a shale gas reservoir. The closure of nanopores caused by the increase in effective stress during the gas production process could induce stress sensitivity in shale nanopores, which has a great impact on the single-well productivity in the middle–late development stage. In this paper, shale samples from the Longmaxi Formation were taken to investigate the nanopore stress sensitivity via an NMR method. Samples with different degrees of pore and fracture development were selected and NMR experiments under different effective stress conditions were carried out. The results show that: (1) As the effective stress increases, the pore space in shale is continuously compressed, and the cumulative pore volume of shale decreases; (2) There is a more pronounced decrease in the cumulative pore volume of samples containing larger pores with the increase in effective stress. However, there are obvious differences in the pore volume changes in different pore sizes; (3) The transformation of nanopores of different sizes occurs in the process of effective stress loading. When the effective stress is small, the pores with diameters larger than 50 nm are mainly transformed to those with diameters of 10–50 nm. When the effective stress increases to a certain extent, the pores with diameters of 10–50 nm are mainly transformed to those with diameters of 0–10 nm; (4) There are significant differences in the compressibility of nanopores of different sizes. Larger nanopores generally have a higher compression coefficient and a stronger stress sensitivity. In the process of effective stress loading, the compression coefficient of pores with diameters between 10 and 50 nm changes relatively slowly, which can well-maintain the pore shape and quantity. Based on the variation in porosity ratio with effective stress, a new method of dividing shale nanopores is proposed; those with diameters smaller than 10 nm, those with diameters of 10–50 nm, and those with diameters larger than 50 nm.
Anaerobic Digestion as a Component of Circular Bioeconomy—Case Study Approach
Authors: Seruga Przemysław , Krzywonos Małgorzata , den Boer Emilia , Niedźwiecki Łukasz , Urbanowska Agnieszka , Pawlak-Kruczek Halina
Published: December 2022

Current and future trends in the world population lead to the continuous growth of municipal waste volumes. Only in the EU-28 approx. 86 million tons of biowaste is produced yearly. On the other hand, the recent energy crisis calls for a fast transition towards more local and renewable energy sources. Most of this stream could be recycled through anaerobic digestion (AD) to produce energy and high-quality fertilizers. This paper presents a balance of dry anaerobic digestion of municipal biowaste based on three years of system monitoring in an industrial-scale AD plant. The results indicate that the average biogas production rate of 120 Nm3/ton of fresh waste can be achieved. Biogas utilization in combined heat and power (CHP) units leads to an overall positive energy balance at significantly reduced CO2 emissions. The overall CO2 emission reduction of 25.3–26.6% was achieved, considering that biogas utilization is environmentally neutral. Moreover, biowaste conversion allows digestate production to substitute mineral fertilizers in agriculture and other applications. It is beneficial for soil protection and a broader environmental perspective.
An Improved Model−Free Current Predictive Control of Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor Based on High−Gain Disturbance Observer
Authors: Zhang Yufeng , Wu Zihui , Yan Qi , Huang Nan , Du Guanghui
Published: December 2022

Predictive current control (PCC) is an advanced control strategy for permanent magnet synchronous motors (PMSM). When the motor drive system is undisturbed, predictive current control exhibits a good dynamic response speed and steady−state performance, but the conventional PCC control performance of PMSM that depends on the motor body model is vulnerable to parameter perturbation. Aiming at this problem, an improved model−free predictive current control (IMFPCC) strategy based on a high−gain disturbance observer (HGDO) is proposed in this paper. The proposed strategy is introduced with the idea of model−free control, relying only on the system input and output to build an ultra−local current prediction model, which gets rid of the constraints of the motor body parameters. In the paper, the ultra−local structure is optimized by comparing and analyzing the equation of the state of the classical ultra−local structure and PMSM system. The system’s current state variables are incorporated into the ultra−local system modeling, as a result, the current estimation errors existing in the classical ultra−local structure are eliminated. For the unmodeled and parametric perturbation part of the ultra−local system, a high−gain disturbance observer is designed to estimate it in real time. Finally, the proposed IMFPCC strategy is compared with the conventional model−based predictive current control (MPCC) and the conventional model−free predictive current control (CMFPCC) in simulation and experiment. The results show that the current steady−state error of the IMFPCC strategy in the case of parameter variation is only 50% of the MPCC method, which proves the effectiveness and correctness of the proposed strategy.
Effects of Soil Warming on Soil Microbial Metabolism Limitation in a Quercus acutissima Forest in North Subtropical China
Authors: Wang Jinlong , Zhou Meijia , Hu Haibo , Kuai Jie , Wang Xia , Chu Lei
Published: December 2022

In order to explore the influence of climate warming on soil microbial metabolism in the ecosystem and reveal the relationship between soil microbial metabolism limitation and environmental factors, in this study, the effects of warming on soil enzyme activities and nutrient availability were investigated by setting underground heating cables at 2 °C and 4 °C soil warming in a typical Quercus acutissima forest in the northern subtropics, and enzyme stoichiometric models were used to evaluate the limits of soil microbial metabolism. The results showed that soil warming significantly increased the activities of β-1,4-glucosidase (BG) and L-leucine aminopeptidase (LAP), and significantly increased the contents of nitrate nitrogen (NO3−-N) and available phosphorus (AP) in soil. The soil warming increased soil microbial C limitation and alleviated soil microbial P limitation. Our study showed that the change of soil microbial C and P limitation caused by warming may cause a large amount of SOM decomposition in a short period, leading to a large fluctuation of soil carbon turnover, which is not conducive to the stability of the soil C pool. This study provides important insights linking microbial metabolism to soil warming and improves our understanding of C cycling in forest systems.
The Influence of Visitors’ Recreation Experience and Environmental Attitude on Environmentally Responsible Behavior: A Case Study of an Urban Forest Park, China
Authors: Weng Lisheng , Zhu Yijin , Xu Xiangting , Yang Jiayi , Zheng Shuhui , Liu Huifang , Wang Hairong , Zhu Liqun
Published: December 2022

Nature-based tourism destinations such as national forest parks have become important places for outdoor recreation. This study empirically investigates the structural relationships among the four subdivided dimensions of recreation experience (education, aesthetics, entertainment, and escapism), environmental attitude, and environmentally responsible behavior. In addition, the mediating effect of environmental attitude and the moderating effect of gender are also examined. A field survey was conducted in an urban forest park to collect data, and 468 usable questionnaires were collected. Results indicate that, in addition to the educational experience, the entertainment experience, aesthetic experience, and escape experience have significant positive impacts on visitors’ environmental attitudes and environmentally responsible behavior. In addition, environmental attitude partially mediates the relationship between recreation experience and environmentally responsible behavior. The results of moderating effect analysis demonstrate that men and women have differences in terms of recreation experience and environmental attitude. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed, and nature-based tourism destinations are encouraged to emphasize the four subdivided dimensions of recreation experience, especially the educational experience.