bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Statistical analysis on ambient RF energy harvesting for low‐power wireless applications
Authors: Inbaraj Divya , Kailasam Muthumeenakshi , Sankararajan Radha 
Published: February 2018

SummaryRenewable energy sources from the earth constitute another option apart from the available ones for wellspring of energy for economizing on cost of power supply. The energy obtained from ambient sources is called energy harvesting. Energy‐harvesting low‐power systems have acquired a remarkable consideration as a viable hotspot for expanding both energy efficiency and spectral efficiency. Radio frequency (RF) energy harvesting from ambient source is a promising technique for fulfilling the irreplaceable power prerequisites for powering the low‐power devices. Hence, it requires the development of an antenna for harvesting RF energy. In this paper, a coplanar waveguide (CPW) antenna has been designed and fabricated using FR4 lossy substrate. This CPW antenna covers frequency bands from the most important RF patrons (GSM 900, GSM 1800, 3G, and Wi‐Fi) within the frequency range from (0.58 to 3 GHz) with a percentage fractional bandwidth of 116% with the center frequency of 1.65 GHz. The fabricated antenna then has been experimentally validated at SSN College of Engineering campus. The effects on the RF power density level for CPW antenna are examined by statistical approach known as Taguchi method. The L9 and L8 orthogonal arrays and analysis of variance are implemented to analyze the execution qualities. The CPW antenna control factors are distance, time, and number of receivers. Then, statistical test (P) are used to determine the significant factors on RF power density.
Prediction of designer drugs: Synthesis and spectroscopic analysis of synthetic cathinone analogs that may appear on the Swedish drug market
Authors: Carlsson Andreas , Sandgren Veronica , Svensson Stefan , Konradsson Peter , Dunne Simon , Josefsson Martin , Dahlén Johan 
Published: February 2018

AbstractThe use of hyphenated analytical techniques in forensic drug screening enables simultaneous identification of a wide range of different compounds. However, the appearance of drug seizures containing new substances, mainly new psychoactive substances (NPS), is steadily increasing. These new and other already known substances often possess structural similarities and consequently they exhibit spectral data with slight differences. This situation has made the criteria that ensure indubitable identification of compounds increasingly important. In this work, 6 new synthetic cathinones that have not yet appeared in any Swedish drug seizures were synthesized. Their chemical structures were similar to those of already known cathinone analogs of which 42 were also included in the study. Hence, a total of 48 synthetic cathinones making up sets of homologous and regioisomeric compounds were used to challenge the capabilities of various analytical techniques commonly applied in forensic drug screening, ie, gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS), gas chromatography–Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (GC–FTIR), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and liquid chromatography quadrupole time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry (LC–QTOF–MS). Special attention was paid to the capabilities of GC–MS and GC–FTIR to distinguish between the synthetic cathinones and the results showed that neither GC–MS nor GC–FTIR alone can successfully differentiate between all synthetic cathinones. However, the 2 techniques proved to be complementary and their combined use is therefore beneficial. For example, the structural homologs were better differentiated by GC–MS, while GC–FTIR performed better for the regioisomers. Further, new spectroscopic data of the synthesized cathinone analogs is hereby presented for the forensic community. The synthetic work also showed that cathinone reference compounds can be produced in few reaction steps.
Characterizing habitat suitability for a central‐place forager in a dynamic marine environment
Authors: Briscoe Dana K. , Fossette Sabrina , Scales Kylie L. , Hazen Elliott L. , Bograd Steven J. , Maxwell Sara M. , McHuron Elizabeth A. , Robinson Patrick W. , Kuhn Carey , Costa Daniel P. , Crowder Larry B. , Lewison Rebecca L. 
Published: February 2018

AbstractCharacterizing habitat suitability for a marine predator requires an understanding of the environmental heterogeneity and variability over the range in which a population moves during a particular life cycle. Female California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) are central‐place foragers and are particularly constrained while provisioning their young. During this time, habitat selection is a function of prey availability and proximity to the rookery, which has important implications for reproductive and population success. We explore how lactating females may select habitat and respond to environmental variability over broad spatial and temporal scales within the California Current System. We combine near‐real‐time remotely sensed satellite oceanography, animal tracking data (n = 72) from November to February over multiple years (2003–2009) and Generalized Additive Mixed Models (GAMMs) to determine the probability of sea lion occurrence based on environmental covariates. Results indicate that sea lion presence is associated with cool (<14°C), productive waters, shallow depths, increased eddy activity, and positive sea‐level anomalies. Predictive habitat maps generated from these biophysical associations suggest winter foraging areas are spatially consistent in the nearshore and offshore environments, except during the 2004–2005 winter, which coincided with an El Niño event. Here, we show how a species distribution model can provide broadscale information on the distribution of female California sea lions during an important life history stage and its implications for population dynamics and spatial management.
Usnic acid, as a biotic factor, changes the ploidy level in mosses
Authors: Goga Michal , Ručová Dajana , Kolarčik Vladislav , Sabovljević Marko , Bačkor Martin , Lang Ingeborg 
Published: February 2018

AbstractLichens and mosses often share the same environmental conditions where they compete for substrate and other essential factors. Lichens use secondary metabolites as allelochemicals to repel surrounding plants and potential rivals. In mosses, endoreduplication leads to the occurrence of various ploidy levels in the same individual and has been suggested as an adaptation to abiotic stresses. Here, we show that also biotic factors such as usnic acid, an allelochemical produced by lichens, directly influenced the level of ploidy in mosses. Application of usnic acid changed the nuclei proportion and significantly enhanced the endoreduplication index in two moss species, Physcomitrella patens and Pohlia drummondii. These investigations add a new aspect on secondary metabolites of lichens which count as biotic factors and affect ploidy levels in mosses.
Template‐Derived Submicrometric Carbon Spheres for Lithium–Sulfur and Sodium‐Ion Battery Electrodes
Authors: Weinberger Manuel , Munding Johannes , Lindén Mika , Wohlfahrt‐Mehrens Margret 
Published: February 2018

AbstractHighly microporous submicrometric carbon spheres were synthesized by etching a sol–gel derived silicon oxycarbide (SiOC) material with aqueous hydrofluoric acid solution. The resulting material shows a large total pore volume of 0.63 cm3 g−1 and thus acts as an ideal host for elemental sulfur. Melt impregnation was used to synthesize a carbon–sulfur composite (50:50 wt %) as a cathode for lithium–sulfur batteries. Characterization by electron microscopy clearly showed that the sulfur is homogeneously distributed within the carbon particles. Electrodes prepared from the composite show good cyclic stability at higher specific currents (e.g., at 500 mA g−1); capacities (related to the active material content) as high as 241 mAh g−1 were retained after 100 cycles and coulombic efficiencies quickly reached values close to 100 %. The material was also tested as an anode in sodium‐ion batteries. Compared to the SiOC precursor, the carbon shows significantly improved electrochemical performance. For instance, at a specific current of 100 mA g−1, a capacity as high as 89 mAh g−1 was retained after 100 cycles, whereas SiOC showed a lower capacity of approximately 70 mAh g−1.
Turbulent flow structures and geomorphic characteristics of a mining affected alluvial channel
Authors: Barman Bandita , Kumar Bimlesh , Sarma Arup Kumar 
Published: February 2018

AbstractSediment mining in rivers may have a major impact on river geomorphology and research is required to quantify these impacts. In this research, experimental studies were conducted to analyse the morphological changes of channel bed and the turbulent characteristics of flow in the presence of mining. The channel bed profile shows erosion at the bank of the pit and that the erosion expands to the whole width of the channel and propagates downstream with time. The deposition of sediment occurs along the upstream edge of the pit and the depth of the pit decreases with time. Velocity reversal occurs at the central bottom of the pit related to a recirculation zone. Reynolds shear stress and the turbulent intensities become higher in the mining pit region and downstream of it as compared to the upstream section, causing a more rapid movement of bed particles. Analysis of the bursting phenomenon shows that the contribution of sweep and ejection events to the total Reynolds shear stress is more dominant over outward and inward interaction events. The dominance of the sweep event over ejection is observed at the near‐bed region for all the sections, but the depth range of dominance of sweep events in the pit and downstream of the pit is found to be more than the upstream. The increase in thickness is responsible for the increase in bed material transport. The increased sediment transport capacity at the mining pit and downstream of it caused the deformation and lowering of channel bed downstream. An empirical formulation of bedload transport for mining induced channels is derived from two different sized uniform bed materials. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Further results on the performance improvement in mixed RF‐FSO systems using hybrid DF/AF (HDAF) relaying
Authors: Khanna Himanshu , Aggarwal Mona , Ahuja Swaran 
Published: February 2018

AbstractThis paper presents the performance of a dual‐hop mixed radio frequency (RF)‐free space optical (FSO) system employing a hybrid‐decode/amplify‐and‐forward (HDAF) relaying protocol. The RF link forms the first hop and the FSO link is the second hop for the proposed system model. The assumption of the absence of the direct FSO and RF link between the source transmitter and the destination receiver ends is made for the analysis. The RF link is affected by short‐term multipath fading and long‐term shadowing phenomena and is characterized by the generalized‐K fading distribution, whereas the FSO link is modeled by the gamma‐gamma fading, representing moderate to strong turbulence scenarios. We assume pointing error‐induced misalignment fading to be significantly present over the FSO link. We analyze the outage probability for the system employing amplify‐and‐forward, decode‐and‐forward, and HDAF relaying protocols and show the benefits of using HDAF relaying in mixed RF‐FSO systems. The optimum relay position that results in the best outage performance is investigated. Furthermore, the bit error rate performance for a q‐ary phase shift keying (q‐PSK) modulated signal and the channel capacity for the proposed system employing HDAF relaying protocol are also evaluated. The expressions in closed form for the outage probability, bit error rate, and channel capacity are derived. The asymptotic outage and error performance at high signal‐to‐noise ratio is also evaluated. Furthermore, the performance of the system is demonstrated by numerical plots.
An implicit 2D hydrodynamic numerical model for free surface–subsurface coupled flow problems
Authors: Shokri Naser , Montazeri Namin Masoud , Farhoudi Javad 
Published: February 2018

SummaryA 2‐dimensional hydrodynamic finite volume model has been proposed for simultaneous simulation of free surface and saturated porous media. The governing equations of the former are 2‐dimensional averaged in a unit width of Navier‐Stokes, whereas that of the latter are Darcy law. An efficient, simple, and stable algorithm has been proposed to track the surface elevation in Cartesian coordinate system by which the water elevation in each computational column has been computed along with the other pressure unknowns simultaneously. The surface position has not been considered to remain in a specific layer so the number of cells in each column have been variably adjusted in accordance with the water surface elevation. Performance of the coupled model has been validated against a range of hydrodynamic problems including propagation of linear short wave, seepage test, tidal oscillation in a lagoon system, gravity current, and saltwater intrusion. Comparison between numerical results, analytical solutions, and experimental data demonstrates that the model represents well the interacting surface water and ground water flow and solute transport processes.
Aerogels made of chitosan and chondroitin sulfate at high degree of neutralization: Biological properties toward wound healing
Authors: Concha Miguel , Vidal Alejandra , Giacaman Annesi , Ojeda Javier , Pavicic Francisca , Oyarzun‐Ampuero Felipe A. , Torres César , Cabrera Marcela , Moreno‐Villoslada Ignacio , Orellana Sandra L. 
Published: February 2018

AbstractIn this study, highly neutralized, highly porous, and ultralight polymeric aerogels prepared from aqueous colloidal suspensions of chitosan (CS) and chondroitin sulfate (ChS) nanocomplexes, formulated as quasi‐equimolar amounts of both, are described. These aerogels were designed as healing agents under the inspiration of minimizing the amount of matter applied to wounds, reducing the electrostatic potential of the material and avoiding covalent cross‐linkers in order to decrease metabolic stress over wounds. Aerogels synthesized under these criteria are biocompatible and provide specific properties for the induction of wound healing. They do not affect neither the metabolic activity of cultured 3T3 fibroblasts nor the biochemical parameters of experimental animals, open wounds close significantly faster and, unlike control wounds, complete reepithelialization and scarring can be attained 14 days after surgery. Because of its hydration abilities, rapid adaptation to the wound bed and the early accelerator effect of wound closure, the CS/ChS aerogels appear to be functional inducers of the healing. Previous information show that CS/ChS aerogels improve wound bed quality, increase granulation tissue and have pain suppressive effect. CS/ChS aerogels are useful as safe, inexpensive and easy to handle materials for topical applications, such as skin chronic wounds. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 106B: 2464–2471, 2018.
The effects of bi‐functional anti‐adhesion scaffolds on flexor tendon healing in a rabbit model
Authors: Liao Janice C. Y. , He Min , Gan Aaron W. T. , Wen Feng , Tan Lay Poh , Chong Alphonsus K. S. 
Published: February 2018

AbstractProgressive tendon adhesion is a major challenge in flexor tendon repair. The authors developed a bifunctional anti‐adhesion scaffold and hypothesized that its application would reduce adhesion formation and deliver mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) to enhance tendon healing. The scaffold was fabricated by an electrospinning machine before surface modification. The flexor tendons of 29 New Zealand rabbits underwent surgical repair and randomized to control, scaffold and scaffold loaded with MSC group. At 3 and 8 weeks post‐surgery, range of motion (ROM), biomechanical properties, and histology were examined. There was no significant increase in ROM and biomechanical properties between the three groups. The histology showed successful delivery of MSCs but no significant difference in nuclear morphometry. This barrier delivers and retains MSCs within the tendon repair site. However, its sheet form and wrapping around the repair site may not be optimal for tendon healing. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 106B: 2605–2614, 2018.
Can gamma irradiation during radiotherapy influence the metal release process for biomedical CoCrMo and 316L alloys?
Authors: Wei Zheng , Edin Jonathan , Karlsson Anna Emelie , Petrovic Katarina , Soroka Inna L. , Odnevall Wallinder Inger , Hedberg Yolanda 
Published: February 2018

AbstractThe extent of metal release from implant materials that are irradiated during radiotherapy may be influenced by irradiation‐formed radicals. The influence of gamma irradiation, with a total dose of relevance for radiotherapy (e.g., for cancer treatments) on the extent of metal release from biomedical stainless steel AISI 316L and a cobalt‐chromium alloy (CoCrMo) was investigated in physiological relevant solutions (phosphate buffered saline with and without 10 g/L bovine serum albumin) at pH 7.3. Directly after irradiation, the released amounts of metals were significantly higher for irradiated CoCrMo as compared to nonirradiated CoCrMo, resulting in an increased surface passivation (enhanced passive conditions) that hindered further release. A similar effect was observed for 316L showing lower nickel release after 1 h of initially irradiated samples as compared to nonirradiated samples. However, the effect of irradiation (total dose of 16.5 Gy) on metal release and surface oxide composition and thickness was generally small. Most metals were released initially (within seconds) upon immersion from CoCrMo but not from 316L. Albumin induced an increased amount of released metals from AISI 316L but not from CoCrMo. Albumin was not found to aggregate to any greater extent either upon gamma irradiation or in the presence of trace metal ions, as determined using different light scattering techniques. Further studies should elucidate the effect of repeated friction and fractionated low irradiation doses on the short‐ and long term metal release process of biomedical materials. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 106B: 2673–2680, 2018.
Enhancing the removal of pollutants from coke wastewater by bioaugmentation: A scoping study
Authors: Raper Eleanor , Stephenson Tom , Simões Francisco , Fisher Raymond , Anderson David R , Soares Ana 
Published: February 2018

AbstractBACKGROUNDBioaugmentation and biostimulation were investigated for their ability to improve the removal of thiocyanate (SCN–), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), phenol and trace metals in coke wastewater. Additionally, the ability of the microorganisms supplemented with the bioaugmentation product to survive in a simulated river water discharge was evaluated.RESULTSA commercially available bioaugmentation product composed mainly of Bacillus sp. was mixed with activated sludge biomass. A dose of 0.5 g L–1 increased the removal of Σ6PAHs (sum of fluoranthene, benzo[b]fluoranthene, benzo[k]fluoranthene, benzo[a]pyrene, indeno[1,2,3‐cd]pyrene and benzo[g,h,i]perylene) by 51% and reduced SCN– below 4 mg L–1 enabling compliance with the EU Industrial Emissions Directive (IED). Biostimulation (supplementing micronutrients and alkalinity) allowed compliance for both SCN– and phenol (<0.5 mg L–1). Bacillus sp. accounted for 4.4% of the microbial population after 25 h (1.5 g L–1 dose) which declined to 0.06% after exposure to river water (24 h). Exposure of the activated sludge biomass to river water resulted in a 98.6% decline in viable cell counts.CONCLUSIONIn order to comply with the IED, bioaugmentation and biostimulation are recommended for the treatment of coke wastewater to enable an effluent Σ6PAHs of 6.6 µg L–1, 0.3 mg L–1 phenol and 1.2 mg L–1 SCN–. Such techniques are not anticipated to impact on downstream river water quality. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry
Polymer‐coated viral vectors: hybrid nanosystems for gene therapy
Authors: Rajagopal Pratheppa , Duraiswamy Sowmiya , Sethuraman Swaminathan , Giridhara Rao Jayandharan , Krishnan Uma Maheswari 
Published: February 2018

AbstractThe advantages and critical aspects of nanodimensional polymer‐coated viral vector systems potentially applicable for gene delivery are reviewed. Various viral and nonviral vectors have been explored for gene therapy. Viral gene transfer methods, although highly efficient, are limited by their immunogenicity. Nonviral vectors have a lower transfection efficiency as a result of their inability to escape from the endosome. To overcome these drawbacks, novel nanotechnology‐mediated interventions that involve the coating or modification of virus using polymers have emerged as a new paradigm in gene therapy. These alterations not only modify the tropism of the virus, but also reduce their undesirable interactions with the biological system. Also, co‐encapsulation of other therapeutic agents in the polymeric coating may serve to augment the treatment efficacy. The viral particles can aid endosomal escape, as well as nuclear targeting, thereby enhancing the transfection efficiency. The integration of the desirable properties of both viral and nonviral vectors has been found beneficial for gene therapy by enhancing the transduction efficiency and minimizing the immune response. However, it is essential to ensure that these attempts should not compromise on the inherent ability of viruses to target and internalize into the cells and escape the endosomes.
Fewer peripheral asymmetrical cortical veins is a predictor of favorable outcome in MCA infarctions with SWI‐DWI mismatch
Authors: Yuan Tao , Ren Guoli , Quan Guanmin , Gao Duo 
Published: February 2018

BackgroundOutcome prediction of asymmetrical prominent cortical veins (APCVs) on infarction is still debated and may help in selecting patients for reperfusion treatment.PurposeTo explore the relationship between fewer peripheral APCVs and the outcome in the patients of acute/subacute middle cerebral artery (MCA) infarctions as well as the relationship between this sign and stenosis of ipsilateral MCA.Study TypeRetrospective case–control study.PopulationWe enrolled 41 patients with MCA acute/subacute infarction. Compared to the low sign of cortical veins of contralateral hemisphere on susceptibility‐weighted imaging (SWI), these patients were divided into fewer (n = 28) and prominent APCVs (n = 13) groups.Field Strength/Sequence3.0T conventional stroke sequences, including T1‐weighted imaging, T2‐weighted imaging, fluid‐attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR), diffusion‐weighted imaging (DWI) (b = 0 and 1000 s/mm2), MR angiography (MRA), and SWI.AssessmentWe explored the relationships between fewer peripheral APCVs sign and clinical outcome, as well as the relationship between this sign and the degree of ipsilateral MCA stenosis.Statistical TestsFisher's exact analysis, logistical regression, as well as Cohen's kappa coefficient were used for statistical analysis.ResultsFewer and prominent peripheral APCVs were detected in 28 (56.10%) and 13 (43.90%) patients. In 28 patients with fewer peripheral APCVs, 23 patients (82.14%) had a favorable outcome (modified Rankin Scale [mRS] ≤2), and five patients (17.76%) had an unfavorable outcome (mRS >2) (P = 0.010). In terms of MCA stenosis, the rate of normal and mild to moderate stenosis of MCA in the fewer APCVs group (82.14%) was higher than that in the prominent APCVs group (23.08%) (P < 0.001). More severe stenosis of ipsilateral MCA was found in patients with prominent APCVs group (76.92%) than that of fewer APCVs group (17.86%). The peripheral APCVs was positively correlated with the degree of MCA stenosis (r = 0.538, P < 0.001).Data ConclusionFewer peripheral APCVs may suggest a favorable outcome in unilateral MCA infarction. The patency of ipsilateral MCA may correlate to fewer APCVs and favorable outcome.Level of Evidence: 3Technical Efficacy: Stage 5J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2018;48:964–970.