bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Functional role of skeletal muscle-derived interleukin-6 and its effects on lipid metabolism
Authors: Lin Weimin , Song Hongbin , Shen Jieqiong , Wang Jing , Yang Yue , Yang Yinhua , Cao Jiacheng , Xue Li’e , Zhao Fanglu , Xiao Tianfang , Lin Ruiyi
Published: July 2023

The detrimental impact of obesity on human health is increasingly evident with the rise in obesity-related diseases. Skeletal muscle, the crucial organ responsible for energy balance metabolism, plays a significant role as a secretory organ by releasing various myokines. Among these myokines, interleukin 6 (IL-6) is closely associated with skeletal muscle contraction. IL-6 triggers the process of lipolysis by mobilizing energy-storing adipose tissue, thereby providing energy for physical exercise. This phenomenon also elucidates the health benefits of regular exercise. However, skeletal muscle and adipose tissue maintain a constant interaction, both directly and indirectly. Direct interaction occurs through the accumulation of excess fat within skeletal muscle, known as ectopic fat deposition. Indirect interaction takes place when adipose tissue is mobilized to supply the energy for skeletal muscle during exercise. Consequently, maintaining a functional balance between skeletal muscle and adipose tissue becomes paramount in regulating energy metabolism and promoting overall health. IL-6, as a representative cytokine, participates in various inflammatory responses, including non-classical inflammatory responses such as adipogenesis. Skeletal muscle influences adipogenesis through paracrine mechanisms, primarily by secreting IL-6. In this research paper, we aim to review the role of skeletal muscle-derived IL-6 in lipid metabolism and other physiological activities, such as insulin resistance and glucose tolerance. By doing so, we provide valuable insights into the regulatory function of skeletal muscle-derived myokines in lipid metabolism.
Dissociated coupling between cerebral oxygen metabolism and perfusion in the prefrontal cortex during exercise: a NIRS study
Authors: Hiura Mikio , Funaki Akio , Shibutani Hirohide , Takahashi Katsumi , Katayama Yoichi
Published: July 2023

Purpose: The present study used near-infrared spectroscopy to investigate the relationships between cerebral oxygen metabolism and perfusion in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) during exercises of different intensities.

Methods: A total of 12 recreationally active men (age 24 ± 6 years) were enrolled. They performed 17 min of low-intensity exercise (ExL), followed by 3 min of moderate-intensity exercise (ExM) at constant loads. Exercise intensities for ExL and ExM corresponded to 30% and 45% of the participants’ heart rate reserve, respectively. Cardiovascular and respiratory parameters were measured. We used near-infrared time-resolved spectroscopy (TRS) to measure the cerebral hemoglobin oxygen saturation (ScO2) and total hemoglobin concentration ([HbT]), which can indicate the cerebral blood volume (CBV). As the cerebral metabolic rate for oxygen (CMRO2) is calculated using cerebral blood flow (CBF) and ScO2, we assumed a constant power law relationship between CBF and CBV based on investigations by positron emission tomography (PET). We estimated the relative changes in CMRO2 (rCMRO2) and CBV (rCBV) from the baseline. During ExL and ExM, the rate of perceived exertion was monitored, and alterations in the subjects’ mood induced by exercise were evaluated using the Profile of Moods Scale-Brief.

Results: Three minutes after exercise initiation, ScO2 decreased and rCMRO2 surpassed rCBV in the left PFC. When ExL changed to ExM, cardiovascular variables and the sense of effort increased concomitantly with an increase in [HbT] but not in ScO2, and the relationship between rCMRO2 and rCBV was dissociated in both sides of the PFC. Immediately after ExM, [HbT], and ScO2 increased, and the disassociation between rCMRO2 and rCBV was prominent in both sides of the PFC. While blood pressure decreased and a negative mood state was less prominent following ExM compared with that at rest, ScO2 decreased 15 min after exercise and rCMRO2 surpassed rCBV in the left PFC.

Conclusion: Dissociated coupling between cerebral oxidative metabolism and perfusion in the PFC was consistent with the effort required for increased exercise intensity and associated with post-exercise hypotension and altered mood status after exercise. Our result demonstrates the first preliminary results dealing with the coupling between cerebral oxidative metabolism and perfusion in the PFC using TRS.
QTL mapping and analysis for drought tolerance in rice by genome-wide association study
Authors: Yi Yueming , Hassan Muhammad A. , Cheng Xinxin , Li Yiru , Liu Huan , Fang Wuyun , Zhu Qian , Wang Shimei
Published: July 2023

Rice drought resistance is a complicated quantitative feature involving a range of biological and agronomic variables, but little is known about the underlying genetics and regulatory mechanisms that regulate drought tolerance. This study used 120 recombinant inbred lines (RILs), derived from a cross between drought tolerant Lvhan 1 and susceptible Aixian 1. The RILs were subjected to drought stress at the first ear stage, and phenotypic data of 16 agronomic and physiological traits under varying conditions were investigated. Genome-wide association study (GWAS) on the drought resistance index of traits was carried out. A total of 9 quantitative trait loci (QTLs) associated with drought-related traits were identified on chromosomes 2, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10, which includes QTLs for plant height (PH) qPH10.1, effective panicles number (EPN) qEPN6.1, panicle length (PL) qPL9.1, thousand-grain weight (TGW) qTGW2.1, qTGW6.1, qTGW8.1, leaf length (LL) qLL7.1, leaf width (LW) qLW7.1, and leaf area (LA) qLA7.1. The fraction of phenotypic variation explained by individual QTL varied from 10.6% to 13.9%. Except for days to flowering (DTF), the mean values of all traits under normal water management conditions were considerably higher than those under drought conditions. Except for the DTF, the drought resistance index of all rice traits was less than 1, indicating that drought treatment reduced the EPN, FGPP, SSR, PH, and LA, which affected the growth and development of rice. The drought resistance index of DTF was 1.02, indicating that drought prolonged the heading time of rice and diminish the yield parameters. Along with identifying QTLs, the results also predicted ten candidate genes, which are directly or indirectly involved in various metabolic functioning related to drought stress. The identification of these genomic sites or QTLs that effectively respond to water scarcity will aid in the quest of understanding the drought tolerance mechanisms. This study will facilitate the marker-assisted rice breeding and handy in the breeding of drought-tolerant rice varieties.
Mindful sharenting: how millennial parents balance between sharing and protecting
Authors: Walrave Michel , Robbé Sofie , Staes Luna , Hallam Lara
Published: July 2023

Background

Sharenting, parents’ sharing of personal information about children on social media is becoming increasingly controversial. Its potential risks have drawn some parents to engage in mindful sharenting: parents’ application of strategies to reduce the potentially negative effects of sharenting, as they are aware of the impact sharenting can have on the child’s privacy.

Objective

This study aims to investigate parents’ motives for engaging in mindful sharenting, the strategies they implement and how relatives and acquaintances react.

Methods

In-depth interviews were conducted with eight mother–father dyads in Belgium. At least one of both respondents had to be born between 1980 and 2000 (i.e., millennial parents), having a child aged between 0 and 6 years. Conversations were transcribed ad verbatim, coded in Nvivo, and were analyzed thematically.

Results

The reasons leading parents to engage in mindful sharenting were previous negative experiences they encountered or heard of from acquaintances. In addition, parents aimed to safeguard their child’s privacy and prevent any misuse of their identity or any other forms of aggression. Furthermore, certain parents wish to grant their children the freedom to choose which media content about them is shared online at a later stage in life. As parents are aware of potential benefits of sharenting, they employ strategies to ensure their child’s privacy, while still enjoying the benefits sharenting offers them. These strategies include photographing the child from a distance, the child looking away from the camera, focusing only on a body part, covering the face with an emoticon, blurring the face, or cutting recognizable parts from the photo. However, parents engaging in mindful sharenting are also confronted with questions and negative comments from family members and acquaintances. This makes them feel like they must justify their decision. Moreover, they are sometimes confronted with family members posting identifiable pictures of their child, which leads to privacy turbulence, and parents having to clarify and renegotiate the privacy boundaries concerning image sharing.

Conclusion

Parents deciding to engage in mindful sharenting engage in several strategies to balance between the opportunities sharenting can offer them, the social pressure they experience to post child-related updates, and their objective to protect their child’s privacy. However, some parents face criticism, making them feel pressured to justify their decision and having to clearly explain to family members not to make identifiable pictures of their child available online.
Communicative and linguistic factors influencing language development at 30 months of age in preterm and full-term children: a longitudinal study using the CDI
Authors: Ogneva Anastasiia , Pérez-Pereira Miguel
Published: July 2023

Introduction

Previous studies showed that very preterm children have a delay in communicative (gestures) and linguistic development as compared to full-term children. Earlier use of gestures, as well as of word comprehension and production, have been found to be predictive of subsequent word production and/or language delay in both very preterm and full-term children. Not many studies on communicative antecedents of language, however, have been carried out with low-risk preterm children in comparison to full-term children.

Methods

In the present study a sample (N = 142) of low-risk preterm children has been followed using the Galician version of the Communicative Development Inventories (CDI) at the ages of 10, 22, and 30 months of age and their results were compared to the results from a sample (N = 49) of full-term children at the same ages. The determinants of language measures (vocabulary and grammar) at 30 months of age have been studied through linear regression analyses.

Results

ANOVA results indicate that there were no significant differences between the groups in any of the measures obtained with the CDI at any time, nor were there any differences in lexical or grammatical developmental trajectories between both groups (repeated measures ANOVA). Linear regression analyses showed that the predictors of language at 30 months of age are somewhat different for the full-term than for the preterm group.

Discussion

While the use of first communicative gestures at 10 months is a predictor of word production at 30 months of age for the full-term group, participation in games and routines seems to play a significant predictive role for preterm children. Word production at 22 months is the factor with a major incidence on word production at the age of 30 months for both groups. Previous specific measures of grammatical development have a clear determinant role in grammar measures at 30 months of age for the full-term children, while in the case of preterm children previous lexical development seems to be more relevant.
Educating to sexuality care: the nurse educator’s experience in a multicenter study
Authors: Gradellini Cinzia , Mecugni Daniela , Castagnaro Elena , Frade Fátima , da Luz Ferreira Barros Maria , Palma Sara , Bocos-Reglero María Jesús , Gomez-Cantarino Sagrario
Published: July 2023

Background

Sexuality is an issue inherent in the lives of all human beings. Education for Sexuality takes place informally, through relationships with the environment, with the family as a model, and formally, as a pedagogical practice in Teaching. Education for sexuality is recognized as an instrument of social transformation that leads to changes in behaviors and norms related to sexuality.

Objectives

Knowing the perception of nursing professors about sexuality education in professional training, recognizing attitudes of these professors in relation to sexual education and identifying barriers in education for sexuality.

Methods

Exploratory and descriptive study, using qualitative methodology. Data collection was carried out from semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis.

Results

The interviewees consider sexuality education to be very important, being taught in the nursing course, addressing different themes. In general, they reported feeling comfortable teaching these topics. The identified barriers to the level of education students are in, students’ knowledge and reactions to the topic, religious and cultural issues, and the time available to talk about the topic and professional aspects.

Conclusion

Sexuality is a fundamental theme in nursing education and needs to be further explored to overcome the barriers associated with its approach.
Oligosaccharides and diet-related dilated cardiomyopathy in beagles
Authors: Bokshowan Elise , Olver T. Dylan , Costa Matheus de O. , Weber Lynn P.
Published: July 2023

Introduction

In 2018 the US Food and Drug Administration reported a potential link between grain-free, legume-containing dog foods and the development of canine dilated cardiomyopathy in atypical breeds. One hypothesis was that high oligosaccharide content in legumes reduced bioavailability of taurine, an amino acid with some previous links to canine dilated cardiomyopathy.

Methods

To address this hypothesis, in the present study, 8 Beagle dogs consumed four diets: a husbandry commercial dental diet, and three test diets formulated with either 30% rice (control), 30% pea (grain-free) or 30% rice with the addition of 1% raffinose (the predominant oligosaccharide found in peas). The study was conducted in a randomized, crossover design with 5 week feeding periods. Measurement of basic health parameters (weight, body condition score, complete blood cell count, chemistry panel), plasma amino acids, cardiac biomarkers (plasma N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) and cardiac-specific troponin I), fecal bile acids and echocardiographic exams were completed pre-study after feeding the husbandry diet as well as after each test feeding period.

Results

Echocardiography showed 9–11% reduction in ejection fraction and 17– 20% greater left ventricular end systolic volume with the husbandry diet compared to both grain-containing test diets. Concentrations of plasma NT-proBNP were 1.3–2 times greater after the husbandry diet compared to the grain-based diet, with the oligosaccharide and pea-based diets showing intermediate levels. Plasma taurine levels were unchanged across diets, while plasma methionine levels were highest and cysteine/cystine levels were lowest after dogs ate the husbandry diet.

Discussion

Results indicate that raffinose in the diet is sufficient, but not required to see an increase NT-proBNP, but did not induce any changes in cardiac function after 5 weeks of feeding. Whether this could progress to reduction in cardiac function with longer term feeding is uncertain. A reduced cardiac function along with the greatest increase in NT-proBNP was observed after feeding the husbandry diet that contained the highest amount of insoluble fiber but did not contain legumes or oligosaccharide. Further research into the impact of insoluble fiber in the dental diet is needed to support these novel observations.
Biocidal effects of a wipe-down procedure using common veterinary cleansers on microbial burden within working canine exterior coats
Authors: Perry Erin B. , Discepolo Dakota R. , Liang Stephen Y. , Scott Maurnice , Williamson Kyleigh , Bender Kelly S.
Published: July 2023

Introduction

Recent work demonstrating reduction of aerosolized contamination via a wipe-down procedure using common veterinary antiseptics offers promise regarding health concerns associated with cross-contamination from working canines to humans. While mechanical reduction can be achieved via a wipe-down procedure, the biocidal impact on flora within the exterior coat is unknown.

Methodology

This study assessed the biocidal impact of antiseptics on the exterior bacterial community of the canine. Lint-free towels were saturated with 2% chlorhexidine gluconate scrub, or 7.5% povidone-iodine scrub diluted at a 1:4 ratio. Treatments were rotated across the dorsal aspect of kennel housed Foxhounds (n = 30). Sterile swabs were collected in triplicate prior to, and following wipe down, stored in Amies solution at 4°C, plated onto nutrient agar and reduction in colony forming units (CFU) was measured across both treatments. Statistical analysis utilizing PROC GLM examined effects of treatment (p ≤ 0.05). Molecular analysis of the 16S rRNA gene was completed for 3 hounds.

Results

Reduction in CFU was measured (p < 0.001) for both antiseptics. Qualitative molecular data indicated that both antiseptics had a biocidal effect on the dominant microbial community on the exterior coat with gram-positive, spore-forming taxa predominating post-treatment.

Conclusion

Effective wipe-down strategies using common veterinary cleansers should be further investigated and incorporated to safeguard working canine health and prevent cross-contamination of human personnel.
Generating Loop Patterns with a Genetic Algorithm and a Probabilistic Cellular Automata Rule
Authors: Hoffmann Rolf
Published: July 2023

The objective is to find a Cellular Automata (CA) rule that can generate “loop patterns”. A loop pattern is given by ones on a zero background showing loops. In order to find out how loop patterns can be locally defined, tentative loop patterns are generated by a genetic algorithm in a preliminary stage. A set of local matching tiles is designed and checked whether they can produce the aimed loop patterns by the genetic algorithm. After having approved a certain set of tiles, a probabilistic CA rule is designed in a methodical way. Templates are derived from the tiles, which then are used in the CA rule for matching. In order to drive the evolution to the desired patterns, noise is injected if the templates do not match or other constraints are not fulfilled. Simulations illustrate that loops and connected loops can be evolved by the CA rule.
Current Challenges and Future Advances in Lung Cancer: Genetics, Instrumental Diagnosis and Treatment
Authors: Vicidomini Giovanni
Published: July 2023

Lung cancer is a malignancy with a poor prognosis, with only 20% of patients having an overall survival longer than five years from diagnosis, and this prognosis has still not significantly improved despite developments in understanding the genetic evolution of lung cancer; improvements in the accuracy of diagnostic procedures; and refinements in the treatments with multimodal regimens, including surgery, radiotherapy and systemic therapy (chemotherapy, immunotherapy and targeted therapy) [...]
Can STEreotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) Improve the Prognosis of Unresectable Locally Advanced Pancreatic Cancer? Long-Term Clinical Outcomes, Toxicity and Prognostic Factors on 142 Patients (STEP Study)
Authors: Comito Tiziana , Massaro Maria , Teriaca Maria Ausilia , Franzese Ciro , Franceschini Davide , Navarria Pierina , Clerici Elena , Di Cristina Luciana , Bertolini Anna , Tomatis Stefano , Reggiori Giacomo , Bresolin Andrea , Bozzarelli Silvia , Rimassa Lorenza , Bonifacio Cristiana , Carrara Silvia , Santoro Armando , Zerbi Alessandro , Scorsetti Marta
Published: July 2023

Aim: The gold standard of care for pancreatic adenocarcinoma is the integrated treatment of surgery and chemotherapy (ChT), but about 50% of patients present with unresectable disease. Our study evaluated the efficacy in terms of local control, survival and safety of stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) in locally advanced pancreatic cancer (LAPC). Methods: A retrospective study (STEP study) analyzed patients with LAPC treated with a dose of 45 Gy in 6 fractions. Local control (LC), distant progression free survival (DPFS), overall survival (OS) and toxicity were analyzed according to the Kaplan-Meier method. Results: A total of 142 patients were evaluated. Seventy-six patients (53.5%) received induction ChT before SBRT. The median follow-up was 11 months. One-, 2- and 3-year LC rate was 81.9%, 69.1% and 58.5%. Median DPFS was 6.03 months; 1- and 2-year DPFS rate was 19.9% and 4.5%. Median OS was 11.6 months and 1-, 2- and 3-year OS rates were 45.4%, 16.1%, and 9.8%. At univariate analysis, performed by the log-rank test, age < 70 years (p = 0.037), pre-SBRT ChT (p = 0.004) and post-SBRT ChT (p = 0.019) were associated with better OS. No patients experienced G3 toxicity. Conclusion: SBRT represents an effective and safe therapeutic option in the multimodal treatment of patients with LAPC in terms of increased LC. When SBRT was sequentially integrated with ChT, the treatment proved to be promising in terms of OS as well.
Chinese Few-Shot Named Entity Recognition and Knowledge Graph Construction in Managed Pressure Drilling Domain
Authors: Wei Siqing , Liang Yanchun , Li Xiaoran , Weng Xiaohui , Fu Jiasheng , Han Xiaosong
Published: July 2023

Managed pressure drilling (MPD) is the most effective means to ensure drilling safety, and MPD is able to avoid further deterioration of complex working conditions through precise control of the wellhead back pressure. The key to the success of MPD is the well control strategy, which currently relies heavily on manual experience, hindering the automation and intelligence process of well control. In response to this issue, an MPD knowledge graph is constructed in this paper that extracts knowledge from published papers and drilling reports to guide well control. In order to improve the performance of entity extraction in the knowledge graph, a few-shot Chinese entity recognition model CEntLM-KL is extended from the EntLM model, in which the KL entropy is built to improve the accuracy of entity recognition. Through experiments on benchmark datasets, it has been shown that the proposed model has a significant improvement compared to the state-of-the-art methods. On the few-shot drilling datasets, the F-1 score of entity recognition reaches 33%. Finally, the knowledge graph is stored in Neo4J and applied for knowledge inference.
Critic Learning-Based Safe Optimal Control for Nonlinear Systems with Asymmetric Input Constraints and Unmatched Disturbances
Authors: Qin Chunbin , Jiang Kaijun , Zhang Jishi , Zhu Tianzeng
Published: July 2023

In this paper, the safe optimal control method for continuous-time (CT) nonlinear safety-critical systems with asymmetric input constraints and unmatched disturbances based on the adaptive dynamic programming (ADP) is investigated. Initially, a new non-quadratic form function is implemented to effectively handle the asymmetric input constraints. Subsequently, the safe optimal control problem is transformed into a two-player zero-sum game (ZSG) problem to suppress the influence of unmatched disturbances, and a new Hamilton–Jacobi–Isaacs (HJI) equation is introduced by integrating the control barrier function (CBF) with the cost function to penalize unsafe behavior. Moreover, a damping factor is embedded in the CBF to balance safety and optimality. To obtain a safe optimal controller, only one critic neural network (CNN) is utilized to tackle the complex HJI equation, leading to a decreased computational load in contrast to the utilization of the conventional actor–critic network. Then, the system state and the parameters of the CNN are uniformly ultimately bounded (UUB) through the application of the Lyapunov stability method. Lastly, two examples are presented to confirm the efficacy of the presented approach.
Weighted Sum Secrecy Rate Maximization for Joint ITS- and IRS-Empowered System
Authors: Yang Shaochuan , Huang Kaizhi , Niu Hehao , Wang Yi , Chu Zheng
Published: July 2023

In this work, we investigate a novel intelligent surface-assisted multiuser multiple-input single-output multiple-eavesdropper (MU-MISOME) secure communication network where an intelligent reflecting surface (IRS) is deployed to enhance the secrecy performance and an intelligent transmission surface (ITS)-based transmitter is utilized to perform energy-efficient beamforming. A weighted sum secrecy rate (WSSR) maximization problem is developed by jointly optimizing transmit power allocation, ITS beamforming, and IRS phase shift. To solve this problem, we transform the objective function into an approximated concave form by using the successive convex approximation (SCA) technique. Then, we propose an efficient alternating optimization (AO) algorithm to solve the reformulated problem in an iterative way, where Karush–Kuhn–Tucker (KKT) conditions, the alternating direction method of the multiplier (ADMM), and majorization–minimization (MM) methods are adopted to derive the closed-form solution for each subproblem. Finally, simulation results are given to verify the convergence and secrecy performance of the proposed schemes.
Drones are Endangering Energy Critical Infrastructure, and How We Can Deal with This
Authors: Kootala Akhilesh , Mousa Ahmed , Pong Philip W. T.
Published: July 2023

Drones are becoming a greater threat to modern electrical grids with the capability to cause expensive and time-consuming damage repairs to substations and transmission lines. Consumer drones have the potential to cause harm at a low cost, and finding methods to counter these threats is becoming more crucial to keep grids secure. In 2021, there was an attempted attack on a substation with a consumer drone which highlighted the need for research in this area. Previously, there has been a large focus on counter drones around places such as airports; however, more focus is warranted to analyze drone impact on the grid infrastructure. Methods to counter drones’ harmful impacts vary from physical methods to using electromagnetic waves. This article looks to identify and propose potential applications for existing technologies, as well as developing anti-drone technologies. These methods have not been adopted yet; thus, there is a great opportunity to utilize these existing technologies to defend the grid. The methods investigated were surveillance cameras, patrolling drones, nets, signal jammers, and energy weapons. The existing technology is currently lacking in the area of drone defense and can be improved with existing studies. However, there is a need to identify those methods and find ways to apply them to the power grid. Different defending technologies vary concerning their potential implementation. This paper also identifies and categorizes different results these methods produce to counter drones and their associated costs.
Expectations of the Inhabitants of South-Eastern Poland Regarding the Energy Market, in the Context of the COVID-19 Crisis
Authors: Woźniak Marian , Badora Aleksandra , Kud Krzysztof
Published: July 2023

The aim of this study was to determine the expectations of the inhabitants of south-eastern Poland in relation to the main trends emerging in the energy market, in a specific crisis situation resulting from the response to COVID-19. The time range of the research covered the period from March to December 2022, i.e., the time just after the official easing of the most drastic restrictions related to COVID-19 in Poland. The CAWI method was used in the study. Access to the survey form was granted to several dozen people, who invited other respondents to participate in the survey. A total of 732 questionnaires were collected, of which 637 were verified, meeting the research assumptions regarding the place of residence of the respondents. The study was correlational in nature, as it looked for relationships between the examined features, without the possibility of influencing the level of individual variables. As the study used non-probability sampling, the inferences apply only to the study group. Two research questions were formulated: (1) Did the COVID-19 crisis shape the expectations of the inhabitants of south-eastern Poland regarding the energy market, and were these expectations consistent with the policies of the state and the European Union? (2) Were perceptions of the energy market and social phenomena differentiated in terms of sex, place of residence, and type of heating in the respondent’s apartments? Statistical analyses of the collected material were performed using Statistica13.3 and MS Excel 19. The greatest support among respondents was recorded for the optimal use of the country’s own energy resources, and the development of energy networks, in conjunction with the expansion of its own energy potential, and improvement of energy efficiency. Respondents confirmed the need to increase the use of renewable energy sources. However, the EU trend of abandoning electricity production in nuclear power plants was not confirmed. This is also evidenced by Poland’s energy policy, which emphasizes the development of the nuclear energy market. Men were more positive than women about the implementation of nuclear energy in Poland. Women rated the development of RES use higher than men. Both women and men had a more positive attitude toward renewable energy than toward nuclear energy. Respondents living in rural areas assessed the development of RES higher and showed greater interest in increasing energy efficiency. The limitations of this study are that all the variables were measured simultaneously, so the study is cross-sectional, and additional attention may need to be paid to other causes of the studied phenomena.
Eco-Friendly Drilling Fluid: Calcium Chloride-Based Natural Deep Eutectic Solvent (NADES) as an All-Rounder Additive
Authors: Rasool Muhammad Hammad , Ahmad Maqsood , Siddiqui Numair Ahmed , Junejo Aisha Zahid
Published: July 2023

Designing an effective drilling mud is a critical aspect of the drilling process. A well-designed drilling mud should not only provide efficient mud hydraulics but also fulfill three important functions: enhancing mud rheology, inhibiting hydrate formation in deepwater drilling, and suppressing shale swelling when drilling through shale formations. Achieving these functions often requires the use of various additives, but these additives are often expensive, non-biodegradable, and have significant environmental impacts. To address these concerns, researchers have explored the potential applications of ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents in drilling mud design, which have shown promising results. However, an even more environmentally friendly alternative has emerged in the form of natural deep eutectic solvents (NADES). This research focuses on an in-house-prepared NADES based on calcium chloride and glycerine, with a ratio of 1:4, prepared at 60 °C, and utilizes it as a drilling mud additive following the API 13 B-1 standards and checks its candidacy as a rheology modifier, hydrates, and shale inhibitor. The findings of the study demonstrate that the NADES-based mud significantly improves the overall yield point to plastic viscosity ratio (YP/PV) of the mud, provides good gel strength, and inhibits hydrate formation by up to 80%. Additionally, it has shown an impressive 62.8% inhibition of shale swelling while allowing for 84.1% improved shale recovery. Moreover, the NADES-based mud exhibits a 28% and 25% reduction in mud filtrate and mud cake thickness, respectively, which is further supported by the results of XRD, zeta potential, and surface tension. Based on these positive outcomes, the calcium chloride–glycerine NADES-based mud is recommended as a versatile drilling mud additive suitable for various industrial applications. Furthermore, it presents a more environmentally friendly option compared to traditional additives, addressing concerns about cost, biodegradability, and environmental impact in the drilling process for an ultimate global impact.
Effect of Hydrothermal Carbonization on Fuel and Combustion Properties of Shrimp Shell Waste
Authors: Saha Swarna , Islam Md Tahmid , Calhoun Joshua , Reza Toufiq
Published: July 2023

Shrimp shell is a popularly consumed seafood around the globe which generates a substantial quantity of solid wet waste. Hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) could be a viable pathway to convert wet shrimp shell waste into energy-dense hydrochar. The present study aims to assess the fuel properties, physicochemical attributes, and combustion properties of shrimp shell hydrochar generated with a wide range of HTC temperatures (110–290 °C). Results showed that a rise in carbonization rate results in a decline in mass yield to as low as 25.7% with the increase in HTC temperature. Thermogravimetric analysis indicates shrimp shell hydrochars to be more thermally stable than raw dried feedstock. Results from the bomb calorimeter report a maximum HHV of 27.9 MJ/kg for SS-290, showing a 13% increase in energy densification compared to raw shrimp shell. The slagging and fouling indices determined for the hydrochars further assisted in addressing the concern regarding increasing ash content changing from 17.0% to 36.6%. Lower ratings of the slagging index, fouling index, alkali index, and chlorine content for hydrochars at higher temperature indicate the reduced probability of reactor fouling during combustion. The findings of the analysis demonstrate that HTC is a promising approach for transforming shrimp shell waste into a potential fuel replacement.
Some Perspectives for the Gasification Process in the Energy Transition World Scenario
Authors: Monteiro Eliseu , Ferreira Sérgio
Published: July 2023

Energy demand has increased over the years due to population growth, industrial, and socio-economic developments, cornerstones of human civilization. Additionally, climate change alarms are placing the energy transition in the top concerns of intergovernmental organizations. Therefore, there are several reasons for concern regarding the need for a new paradigm in the world energy scenario. This perspective article focuses on the contribution that the gasification process may have in the global energy transition scenario. The perspectives for a full world energy transition are that it cannot be accomplished without a transportation fuel transition and an industry transition. Biomass gasification is a sustainable process that allows the production of a large range of commodities such as electricity and heat, biofuels, and chemicals. Meanwhile, some challenges such as tar, impurities, and soot must be overcome or at least limited to an acceptable minimum to promote the economic viability of the gasification plants before they can effectively contribute to the world energy transition. In this regard, further research should be made focused on improving the syngas quality and the economic viability of a biomass gasification plant. This can be achieved by several means including new reactor designs, advanced gasification processes (e.g., plasma gasification and supercritical water gasification), and intensifying the gasification process.
A Novel Mode Un-Mixing Approach in Variational Mode Decomposition for Fault Detection in Wound Rotor Induction Machines
Authors: Bazghandi Reza , Hoseintabar Marzebali Mohammad , Abolghasemi Vahid , Hedayati Kia Shahin
Published: July 2023

Condition monitoring of induction machines (IMs) with the aim of increasing the machine’s lifetime, improving the efficiency and reducing the maintenance cost is necessary and inevitable. Among different types of methods presented for mechanical and electrical fault tracing in induction machines, stator current signature analysis has attracted great attention in recent decades. This popularity is mainly due to the non-invasive nature of this technique. A non-recursive method named variational mode decomposition (VMD) is used for the decomposition of any signal into several intrinsic mode functions (IMFs). This technique can be employed for detection of faulty components in a current signature. However, mode mixing of extracted IMFs makes the mechanical and electrical fault detection of IMs complicated, especially in the case where fault indices emerge close to the supply frequency. To achieve this, we rectify the signal of stator current prior to applying VMD. The main advantage of the presented approach is allowing the fault indices to be properly demodulated from the main frequency to avoid mode mixing phenomenon. The method shows that the dominant frequencies of the current signal can be isolated in each IMFs, appropriately. The proposed strategy is validated to detect the rotor asymmetric fault (RAF) in a wound rotor induction machine (WRIM), in both transient and steady-state conditions.
Hybrid State of Charge Estimation of Lithium-Ion Battery Using the Coulomb Counting Method and an Adaptive Unscented Kalman Filter
Authors: Fahmy Hend M. , Swief Rania A. , Hasanien Hany M. , Alharbi Mohammed , Maldonado José Luis , Jurado Francisco
Published: July 2023

This paper establishes an accurate and reliable study for estimating the lithium-ion battery’s State of Charge (SoC). An accurate state space model is used to determine the parameters of the battery’s nonlinear model. African Vultures Optimizers (AVOA) are used to solve the issue of identifying the battery parameters to accurately estimate SoC. A hybrid approach consists of the Coulomb Counting Method (CCM) with an Adaptive Unscented Kalman Filter (AUKF) to estimate the SoC of the battery. At different temperatures, four approaches are applied to the battery, varying between including load and battery fading or not. Numerical simulations are applied to a 2.6 Ahr Panasonic Li-ion battery to demonstrate the hybrid method’s effectiveness for the State of Charge estimate. In comparison to existing hybrid approaches, the suggested method is very accurate. Compared to other strategies, the proposed hybrid method achieves the least error of different methods.
Comprehensive Analysis and Evaluation of the Operation and Maintenance of Offshore Wind Power Systems: A Survey
Authors: Yang Cheng , Jia Jun , He Ke , Xue Liang , Jiang Chao , Liu Shuangyu , Zhao Bochao , Wu Ming , Cui Haoyang
Published: July 2023

Offshore Wind Power Systems (OWPS) offer great energy and environmental advantages, but also pose significant Operation and Maintenance (O&M) challenges. In this survey, we analyze these challenges and propose some optimization strategies and technologies for OWPS comprehensively. The existing literature review mainly focuses on a certain field of offshore wind power O&M, but lacks a comprehensive introduction to offshore wind power. We consider the energy efficiency, reliability, safety, and economy of OWPS from various aspects, such as offshore wind and wave energy utilization, offshore wind turbine components, and wind power operation parameters, and compare them with onshore wind power systems. We suggest that OWPS can benefit from advanced design optimization, digital twin, monitoring and forecasting, fault diagnosis, and other technologies to enhance their O&M performance. This paper aims to provide theoretical guidance and practical reference for the technological innovation and sustainable development of OWPS.
Sustainable Development of the European Electricity Sector: Investigating the Impact of Electricity Price, Market Liberalization and Energy Taxation on RES Deployment
Authors: Halkos George E. , Tsirivis Apostolos S.
Published: July 2023

Replacing conventional CO2 intensive generation with green electricity from RES constitutes an essential prerequisite of sustainable development. Renewables play a vital role in achieving the UN’s goals for clean low-cost energy production and the reverse of climate change process. Based on a comprehensive dataset including observations for 17 European countries between 2003 and 2020, the present research attempts to unveil the fundamental determinants of RES deployment. A panel FMOLS approach was utilized to provide a detailed analysis of the impact of electricity prices, energy taxes and competition level in both power generation and the retail electricity market on each country’s RES percentage participation in electricity production fuel mix. The final econometric outcomes verified the strong statistical significance of all examined variables for the vast majority of the countries, constituting them crucial aspects of national energy strategies. However, both the actual effects as well as the impact size were found to differ significantly across Europe, signifying the complexity of the EU’s task to develop a unified, autonomous and eco-friendly electricity market based on the principals of a fundamental energy strategy. Contributing to state authorities’ and EU’s colossal effort to deal with the crucial challenges of RES power generation, the paper proposes a series of targeted individual and groupwise policy implications.
Assessing the Feasibility of Hydrogen and Electric Buses for Urban Public Transportation using Rooftop Integrated Photovoltaic Energy in Cuenca Ecuador
Authors: Cevallos-Escandón Antonia , Barragan-Escandón Edgar Antonio , Zalamea-León Esteban , Serrano-Guerrero Xavier , Terrados-Cepeda Julio
Published: July 2023

A main restriction of renewables from intermittent sources is the mismatch between energy resource availability and energy requirements, especially when extensive power plants are producing at their highest potential causing huge energy surpluses. In these cases, excess power must be stored or curtailed. One alternative is increasing urban solar potential which could be integrated to feed electric buses directly or alternatively through hydrogen (H2) as an energy vector. H2 from renewable electricity can be stored and used directly or through fuel cells. This study aims to determine the H2 capability that could be achieved when integrating large-scale photovoltaic (PV) generation in urban areas. This analysis was carried out by determining the PV energy potentially generated by installing PV in Cuenca City downtown (Ecuador). Cuenca is in the process of adopting renewal of the public transport vehicle fleet, introducing a new model with an electric tram main network combined with “clean type buses”. The conventional diesel urban transport could be replaced, establishing a required vehicle fleet of 475 buses spread over 29 routes, emitting 112 tons of CO2 and burning 11,175 gallons of diesel daily. Between the main findings, we concluded that the electricity that could be produced in the total roof area exceeds the actual demand in the study area by 5.5 times. Taking into account the energy surplus, it was determined that the available PV power will cover from 97% to 127% of the total demand necessary to mobilize the city bus fleet. The novelty of this work is the proposal of a combined methodology to find the potential to feed urban transport with urban solar power in cities, close to the equatorial line.
Research on Online Temperature Prediction Method for Office Building Interiors Based on Data Mining
Authors: Tang Jiale , Liu Kuixing , You Weijie , Zhang Xinyu , Zhang Tuomi
Published: July 2023

Indoor environmental parameters are closely related to the energy consumption and indoor thermal comfort of office buildings. Predicting these parameters, especially indoor temperature, can contribute to the management of energy consumption and thermal comfort levels in office buildings. An accurate indoor temperature prediction model is the basis for implementing this process. To this end, this paper first discusses the input and output parameters of the model, and then it compares the prediction effects of mainstream prediction model algorithms based on data mining under the same data conditions. The superiority of the XGBoost integrated learning algorithm is verified, and a further XGBoost-based indoor temperature online prediction method is designed. The effectiveness of the method is validated using actual data from a commercial office building in Haidian District, Beijing. Finally, optimization methods for the prediction method are discussed with regard to the scheduler mechanism proposed in this paper. Overall, this work can assist building operators in optimizing HVAC equipment running strategies, thus improving the indoor thermal comfort and energy efficiency of the building.
Assessment of Energy Demand for PHEVs in Year-Round Operating Conditions
Authors: Graba Mariusz , Mamala Jarosław , Bieniek Andrzej , Augustynowicz Andrzej , Czernek Krystian , Krupińska Andżelika , Włodarczak Sylwia , Ochowiak Marek
Published: July 2023

In this paper, particular attention is paid to an advanced variant of the plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, known as PHEV, which combines two functionalities: the vehicle’s internal combustion engine (ICE) and the electric motor. The study described herein also presents the influence of factors such as the ambient temperature, vehicle speed and traffic distance on the PHEV’s energy consumption. It has been shown that the vehicle’s range estimated based on its electronic control module (ECU) is about 20% shorter per annum on average for its year-round operation in everyday driving conditions. When analyzing the energy consumption based on the vehicle’s unitary energy consumption model, attention was paid to values that are strongly correlated with traffic and weather conditions. In addition, the authors emphasized that the estimated total energy consumption of a battery electric vehicle (BEV) or hybrid vehicle (PHEV), relative to the normative values arising from the type approval test cycle, deviate from the actual values arising from real driving conditions and often vary substantially. As shown in this paper, the energy consumption intensity of a vehicle is significantly influenced not only by its speed but also by weather conditions, including ambient temperature. In extreme cases, energy consumption intensity can increase by up to 68% relative to a WLTP (Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicle Test Procedure) cycle.
Innovative Approaches to Enhance the Performance and Durability of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells
Authors: Abokhalil Ahmed G. , Alobaid Mohammad , Makky Ahmed Al
Published: July 2023

PEMFCs, or proton exchange membrane fuel cells, have enormous potential for clean energy and environmentally friendly transportation. PEMFCs’ cost, performance, and durability, however, continue to be major obstacles to their mainstream deployment. This study examines recent developments in PEMFC technology with an emphasis on novel oxygen reduction reaction catalysts, creative flow field designs, methods for reducing degradation processes, and system-level optimization and integration. The results show that innovative studies in these fields have significantly increased the performance and longevity of PEMFCs while lowering expenses. For PEMFC technology to evolve further, be successfully implemented in a variety of applications, and contribute to a more sustainable future, more research and development must be put forward.