bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Inhomogeneous Distribution of Polytetrafluorethylene in Gas Diffusion Layers of Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cells
Authors: Froning Dieter , Reimer Uwe , Lehnert Werner 
Published: January 2021

AbstractPolymer electrolyte fuel cells require gas diffusion layers that can efficiently distribute the feeding gases from the channel structure to the catalyst layer on both sides of the membrane. On the cathode side, these layers must also allow the transport of liquid product water in a counter flow direction from the catalyst layer to the air channels where it can be blown away by the air flow. In this study, two-phase transport in the fibrous structures of a gas diffusion layer was simulated using the lattice Boltzmann method. Liquid water transport is affected by the hydrophilic treatment of the fibers. Following the assumption that polytetrafluorethylene is preferably concentrated at the crossings of fibers, the impact of its spatial distribution is analyzed. Both homogeneous and inhomogeneous distribution is investigated. The concentration of polytetrafluorethylene in the upstream region is of advantage for the fast transport of liquid water through the gas diffusion layer. Special attention is given to the topmost fiber layer. Moreover, polytetrafluorethylene covering the fibers leads to large contact angles.
Efficient simultaneous removal of heavy metals and polychlorobiphenyls from a polluted industrial site by washing the soil with natural humic surfactants
Authors: Piccolo Alessandro , De Martino Antonio , Scognamiglio Francesco , Ricci Roberto , Spaccini Riccardo 
Published: January 2021

AbstractWe evaluated the effectiveness of natural organic surfactants such as humic acids (HA) from lignite to simultaneously wash heavy metals (HM) and polychlorobiphenyls (PCB) from a heavily contaminated industrial soil of northern Italy. Supramolecular HA promote in solution a micelle-like structure, where recalcitrant apolar organic xenobiotics are repartitioned from surfaces of soil particles during soil washing process. Concomitantly, the HA acidic functional groups enable a simultaneous complexation of HM. A single soil washing with HA removed 68 and 75% of PCB congeners for 1:1 and 10:1 solution/soil ratios, respectively. The same HA washing simultaneously and efficiently removed a cumulative average of 47% of total HM, with a maximum of 57 and 67% for Hg and Cu, respectively. We showed that washing a highly polluted soil with HA solution not only is an effective and rapid soil remediation technique but also simultaneously removes both HM and persistent organic pollutants (POP). Soil washing by humic biosurfactants is also a sustainable and eco-friendly technology, since, contrary to synthetic surfactants and solvents used in conventional washing techniques, it preserves soil biodiversity, promotes natural attenuation of unextracted POP, and accelerates further soil reclamation techniques such as bio- or phytoremediation.
Discrete element analysis of the punching behaviour of a secured drapery system: from laboratory characterization to idealized in situ conditions
Authors: Pol Antonio , Gabrieli Fabio , Brezzi Lorenzo 
Published: January 2021

AbstractIn this work, the mechanical response of a steel wire mesh panel against a punching load is studied starting from laboratory test conditions and extending the results to field applications. Wire meshes anchored with bolts and steel plates are extensively used in rockfall protection and slope stabilization. Their performances are evaluated through laboratory tests, but the mechanical constraints, the geometry and the loading conditions may strongly differ from the in situ conditions leading to incorrect estimations of the strength of the mesh. In this work, the discrete element method is used to simulate a wire mesh. After validation of the numerical mesh model against experimental data, the punching behaviour of an anchored mesh panel is investigated in order to obtain a more realistic characterization of the mesh mechanical response in field conditions. The dimension of the punching element, its position, the anchor plate size and the anchor spacing are varied, providing analytical relationships able to predict the panel response in different loading conditions. Furthermore, the mesh panel aspect ratio is analysed showing the existence of an optimal value. The results of this study can provide useful information to practitioners for designing secured drapery systems, as well as for the assessment of their safety conditions.
Prioritising Targets for School-Based ADHD Interventions: A Delphi Survey
Authors: Perry Roisin Carlotta , Ford Tamsin Jane , O’Mahen Heather , Russell Abigail Emma 
Published: January 2021

AbstractMany studies have investigated the effectiveness of school-based ADHD interventions at modifying different social, emotional and behavioural target outcomes. However, there is a lack of evidence about which targets stakeholders perceive to be most important. This study sought to obtain consensus on which outcomes are perceived to be most important. A total of 114 people with ADHD, educational professionals, parents of children with ADHD, clinicians and researchers participated in a Delphi survey with 3 rounds. The importance of 52 intervention targets was rated on a scale from 0 to 8 (8 being extremely important). Consensus was reached if >70% of a stakeholder group rated a target as between 6–8 and <15% rated it as 0–2. Targets were dropped from subsequent rounds if more than 50% of stakeholder groups rated it as 0–5. Targets that all four stakeholder groups reached consensus on in any round were automatically included in our final outcome set. Comments were analysed using Thematic Analysis. All four stakeholder groups reached consensus on the importance of seven targets: ability to pay attention, conflict with teachers and peers, executive functioning, global functioning and quality of life, inattention symptoms, organisation skills and self-esteem. Four overarching themes were identified: Complexity of ADHD, Relationships, School Context, and What ADHD means to me. School-based ADHD interventions should target outcomes identified as most important to those who stand to benefit from such interventions. Some outcomes prioritised by our participants have not yet been targeted in school-based ADHD interventions. Implications of our findings for intervention and research design are discussed.
Climate Change Projection in the Twenty-First Century Simulated by NIMS-KMA CMIP6 Model Based on New GHGs Concentration Pathways
Authors: Sung Hyun Min , Kim Jisun , Shim Sungbo , Seo Jeong-byn , Kwon Sang-Hoon , Sun Min-Ah , Moon Hyejin , Lee Jae-Hee , Lim Yoon-Jin , Boo Kyung-On , Kim Youngmi , Lee Johan , Lee Jiwoo , Kim Jun-su , Marzin Charline , Byun Young-Hwa 
Published: January 2021

AbstractThe National Institute of Meteorological Sciences-Korea Meteorological Administration (NIMS-KMA) has participated in the Coupled Model Inter-comparison Project (CMIP) and provided long-term simulations using the coupled climate model. The NIMS-KMA produces new future projections using the ensemble mean of KMA Advanced Community Earth system model (K-ACE) and UK Earth System Model version1 (UKESM1) simulations to provide scientific information of future climate changes. In this study, we analyze four experiments those conducted following the new shared socioeconomic pathway (SSP) based scenarios to examine projected climate change in the twenty-first century. Present day (PD) simulations show high performance skill in both climate mean and variability, which provide a reliability of the climate models and reduces the uncertainty in response to future forcing. In future projections, global temperature increases from 1.92 °C to 5.20 °C relative to the PD level (1995–2014). Global mean precipitation increases from 5.1% to 10.1% and sea ice extent decreases from 19% to 62% in the Arctic and from 18% to 54% in the Antarctic. In addition, climate changes are accelerating toward the late twenty-first century. Our CMIP6 simulations are released to the public through the Earth System Grid Federation (ESGF) international data sharing portal and are used to support the establishment of the national adaptation plan for climate change in South Korea.
Uncertainty analysis of discharge coefficient of circular crested weirs
Authors: Parsaie Abbas , Haghiabi Amir Hamzeh 
Published: January 2021

AbstractThe circular crested weir (CCW) has been introduced as weirs having a high discharge coefficient (Cd). The ratio of flow head to the radius of the crest (H/R) is the most important parameter affecting the Cd, that the $${\text{Cd}} \approx a\left( {H/R} \right)^{b}$$

Cd
≈
a

H
/
R

b

can mathematical model their relation. In this study, the parameters of the Cd formula (i.e., a and b) were uncertainty analyzed using Monte Carlo (MC) and Bootstrap methods (BM). To perform these methods, some of the built-in functions of Excel software were utilized. The results declared that the average values of a and b were 1.187 and 0.140. The outcome of the MC method showed that the range of a and b at 95% confidence interval changed between 1.179 to 1.194 and 0.134 to 0.146, respectively, while at the same confidence interval the BM ranged from 1.187 to 1.200 and 0.133 to 0.147.
Enhancement strategies for transdermal drug delivery systems: current trends and applications
Authors: Ramadon Delly , McCrudden Maeliosa T. C. , Courtenay Aaron J. , Donnelly Ryan F. 
Published: January 2021

AbstractTransdermal drug delivery systems have become an intriguing research topic in pharmaceutical technology area and one of the most frequently developed pharmaceutical products in global market. The use of these systems can overcome associated drawbacks of other delivery routes, such as oral and parenteral. The authors will review current trends, and future applications of transdermal technologies, with specific focus on providing a comprehensive understanding of transdermal drug delivery systems and enhancement strategies. This article will initially discuss each transdermal enhancement method used in the development of first-generation transdermal products. These methods include drug/vehicle interactions, vesicles and particles,stratum corneummodification, energy-driven methods andstratum corneumbypassing techniques. Through suitable design and implementation of activestratum corneumbypassing methods, notably microneedle technology, transdermal delivery systems have been shown to deliver both low and high molecular weight drugs. Microneedle technology platforms have proven themselves to be more versatile than other transdermal systems with opportunities for intradermal delivery of drugs/biotherapeutics and therapeutic drug monitoring. These have shown that microneedles have been a prospective strategy for improving transdermal delivery systems.Graphical abstract
Public Actors Without Public Values: Legitimacy, Domination and the Regulation of the Technology Sector
Authors: Taylor Linnet 
Published: January 2021

AbstractThe scale and asymmetry of commercial technology firms’ power over people through data, combined with the increasing involvement of the private sector in public governance, means that increasingly, people do not have the ability to opt out of engaging with technology firms. At the same time, those firms are increasingly intervening on the population level in ways that have implications for social and political life. This creates the potential for power relations of domination, and demands that we decide what constitutes the legitimacy to act on the public. Business ethics and private law are not designed to answer these questions, which are primarily political. If people have lost the right to disengage with commercial technologies, we may need to hold the companies that offer them to the same standards to which we hold the public sector. This paper first defines the problem and demonstrates that it is significant and widespread, and then argues for the development of an overarching normative framework for what constitutes non-domination with regard to digital technologies. Such a framework must involve a nuanced idea of political power and accountability that can respond not only to the legality of corporate behaviour, but to its legitimacy.
Comparative study of hard X-ray undulator beamline performance in the Korean 4GSR and the PLS-II
Authors: Cho Byeong-Gwan , Kim Yongsam , Shin Seunghwan , Koo Tae-Yeong 
Published: January 2021

AbstractA new light source based on the electron storage ring, dubbed the “diffraction-limited storage ring” (DLSR) to keep the full intrinsic wave nature of X-rays had been proposed since the early stage of storage ring history and has finally been developed successfully, and an upgrade and a new construction programs have now chosen in the worldwide synchrotron facilities. The construction of the so-called “4th generation storage ring” (4GSR), which is a newly-coined term aiming in the same direction, was decided in Korea. The Korean 4GSR is expected to be 10–100 times brighter than the Pohang Light Source-II (PLS-II). Hard X-ray undulator beamlines will benefit from the 4GSR due to its low emittance approaching the diffraction limit. In the PLS-II, more than 10 hard X-ray undulator beamlines are currently in operation. We present a comparative study of the representative hard X-ray undulator beamlines by using the cutting-edge diffraction-spectroscopy techniques in the PLS-II and the 4GSR for better understanding the upcoming light source in Korea. The figures-of-merit of the two specific experimental techniques, resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) and resonant X-ray emission spectroscopy (RXES), are discussed for comparison of the two light sources. Both RIXS and RXES are sometimes referred to as a “renaissance” in X-ray science and are, therefore, strongly expected to be adopted in the 4GSR beamlines.
Development of a Remote Online Collaborative Medical School Pathology Curriculum with Clinical Correlations, across Several International Sites, through the Covid-19 Pandemic
Authors: Guiter Gerardo E. , Sapia Sandra , Wright Alexander I. , Hutchins Gordon G. A. , Arayssi Thurayya 
Published: January 2021

AbstractIntroductionDue to the Covid-19 social distancing restrictions, in March 2020, Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar decided to replace students’ clinical instruction with novel online electives. Hence, we implemented an innovative online and remote pathology curriculum, anchored on virtual microscopy and Zoom videoconferencing: ideal tools to support online teaching.ObjectiveTo assess a new curriculum implementation at Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar.Materials and MethodsThis for-credit, 2-week elective included 6 synchronous Zoom sessions where complex clinicopathological cases were discussed in small groups. We used open access digital microscopy slides from the University of Leeds’ Virtual Pathology Library (http://www.virtualpathology.leeds.ac.uk/slides/library/). Students independently prepared for these sessions by reviewing cases, slides, readings, and questions in advance (asynchronous self-directed learning anchored on a flipped classroom model), and wrote a final review of a case. An assessment and feedback were given to each student.ResultsFour elective iterations were offered to a total of 29 students, with learners and faculty spread over 4 countries. During the Zoom sessions, students controlled the digital slides and offered their own diagnoses, followed by group discussions to strengthen autonomy and confidence. We surveyed learners about the elective’s performance (program evaluation). Students conveyed high levels of satisfaction about the elective’s overall quality, their pathology learning and online interactions, with minimal challenges related to the remote nature of the course.Discussion and ConclusionsTechnological innovations mitigate sudden disruptions in medical education. A remote curriculum allows instructionat any distance, at any time, from anywhere,enhancing educational exchanges, flexibility and globalization in medical education.
Directional correlation coefficient measures for Pythagorean fuzzy sets: their applications to medical diagnosis and cluster analysis
Authors: Lin Mingwei , Huang Chao , Chen Riqing , Fujita Hamido , Wang Xing 
Published: January 2021

AbstractCompared to the intuitionistic fuzzy sets, the Pythagorean fuzzy sets (PFSs) can provide the decision makers with more freedom to express their evaluation information. There exist some research results on the correlation coefficient between PFSs, but sometimes they fail to deal with the problems of disease diagnosis and cluster analysis. To tackle the drawbacks of the existing correlation coefficients between PFSs, some novel directional correlation coefficients are put forward to compute the relationship between two PFSs by taking four parameters of the PFSs into consideration, which are the membership degree, non-membership degree, strength of commitment, and direction of commitment. Afterwards, two practical examples are given to show the application of the proposed directional correlation coefficient in the disease diagnosis, and the application of the proposed weighted directional correlation coefficient in the cluster analysis. Finally, they are compared with the previous correlation coefficients that have been developed for PFSs.
Neutrosophic fuzzy goal programming approach in selective maintenance allocation of system reliability
Authors: Kamal Murshid , Modibbo Umar Muhammad , AlArjani Ali , Ali Irfan 
Published: January 2021

AbstractSelective maintenance problem plays an essential role in reliability optimization decision-making problems. Systems are a configuration of several components, and there are situations the system needs small intervals or break for maintenance actions, during the intervals expert carried out the maintenance actions to replace or repair the deteriorated components of the systems. Because of the uncertainty associated with the component’s operational time, failure, and next mission duration create a new challenge in determining optimal components allocation and evaluating future missions successfully. In this paper, a multi-objective selective maintenance allocation problem is formulated with fuzzy parameters under neutrosophic environment. A new defuzzification technique is introduced based on beta distribution to convert fuzzy parameters into crisp values. The neutrosophic goal programming technique is used to determine the compromise allocation of replaceable and repairable components based on the system reliability optimization. A numerical illustration is used to validate the model and ascertain its effectiveness. The result is compared with two other approaches and found to be better. The method is flexible and straightforward and can be solved using any available commercial packages. The extension of the concept can be useful to other complex system reliability optimization.
An Informal Education Intervention in Response to the Covid-19 Pandemic: Homework Mentorships in a Berlin Refugee Shelter
Authors: O’Connell Courtney , Lucić Luka 
Published: January 2021

AbstractThe Covid-19 pandemic and resulting damage is often portrayed in staggering numbers and statistics. This article offers, by contrast, a personal and qualitative account of employees, volunteers, and young residents at a refugee home in Berlin, Germany. Through the story of a boy who has spent the past 4 years in several of Berlin’s 84 remaining refugee accommodations, we examine the inequalities that already existed in Germany and how the pandemic has exacerbated them. To provide ample context, we critically assess the so-called Welcome Classes that children and teens have been attending since their arrival to the country in or around 2015 and argue that the segregation experienced at school mirrors the isolation from the host society that refugees and people seeking asylum are subjected to residentially. We then present an emergency response to school closures: A digital homework mentorship program designed to mitigate the heightened barriers to social interaction and access to education brought about by the pandemic. We explore the sociocultural theory underpinning the program, describe its methods, and offer a qualitative evaluation of the results. Finally, we discuss how the informal education intervention helps fill gaps in the system, offering an approach that can be used going forward to promote learning, social-emotional development, and inclusion of young people with migration and refugee backgrounds.
Surface treatment-controlled solvothermal synthesis of highly active reduced 1D titania with heterojunctioned carbon allotrope
Authors: Badreldin Ahmed , Zakaria Yahya , Mansour Said , Abdel-Wahab Ahmed 
Published: January 2021

AbstractOne-dimensional (1D) nanowire black titania heterojunctioned with multi-wall carbon nanotube (bTiO2 NW/MWCNT) structures were successfully synthesized via a facile single-step hydrothermal procedure, coupled with succeeding surface treatments and a solid-state physiochemical mode of reduction. Paramagnetic SiO2-coated Fe3O4 microspheres were fabricated and used as cores for the seeding and growth of the bTiO2 NW/MWCNT photocatalyst. The as-prepared photocatalysts were characterized via X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoemission spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The results of materials characterization confirmed formation of 1D bTiO2 NW structure with chemically bound MWCNT atop the reduced Ti3+ propagated lattice of the predominantly (101) exposed facets of anatase TiO2. Controlling the surface treatment process and NW growth time to maintain the anatase phase and stability of surface morphology upon reduction allowed for superior visible light-driven photoactivity. The visible light-driven photocatalytic degradation of 10 mg/L methylene orange was recorded at 97.4% in 20 min of 0.7 Sun intensity. The apparent reaction rate constant (k) of the as-prepared photocatalyst (0.1439 min−1) is ~ 18 times higher than that of pristine TiO2. Utilization of paramagnetic cores for in situ photocatalyst collection upon water treatment is highly recommended for newly developed materials. Further, performing surface treatment procedures of prepared titania-based photocatalysts has been proven to have a notable advantageous effect on photoactivity and is thus suggested for similar materials.
Analysis of gold nanoparticles in a hydrocarbon solvent by single particle-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (spICP-MS) and TEM
Authors: Nelson Jenny , Saunders Aaron , Poirier Laura , Lopez-Linares Francisco 
Published: January 2021

AbstractSingle-particle inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (spICP-MS) is used increasingly to characterize element-containing nanoparticles (NPs) in various samples, providing data on the number, concentration, size of particles, as well as the dissolved element concentration. Because there are currently only three examples of spICP-MS analysis of NPs in hydrocarbons in the literature. There is a clear need for hydrocarbon-based NP reference materials (RMs), available for analysts to develop and validate new methods. Here, an analysis of spICP-MS data is presented for two custom-developed gold NP RMs in toluene. The particle size data obtained by spICP-MS is compared with the total particle diameter obtained by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and shows the excellent agreement among both techniques.
Graphical abstract