Enhancement of energy storage density in antiferroelectric PbZrO3 films via the incorporation of gold nanoparticles

In this work, antiferroelectric Au–PbZrO₃ (Au–PZO) nanocomposite thin films were prepared by chemical solution deposition (CSD), and the effects of Au concentration on the antiferroelectric properties and the recoverable energy density were investigated. The results showed that the optimal Au concentration in the Au–PZO nanocomposite thin films was about 1 mol% for structural and electric properties. In the Au–PZO nanocomposite thin films with 1 mol% Au, Au nanoparticles (NPs) were distributed uniformly in the perovskite PZO matrix. Moreover, the recoverable energy density was 10.8 J/cm³ at 600 kV/cm, which is 42% higher than that of the pure PZO films. The results demonstrate that adding an appropriate amount of noble metal NPs in antiferroelectric thin films is an effective method to improve the energy storage properties.     

Association of size‐fractionated indoor particulate matter and black carbon with heart rate variability in healthy elderly women in Beijing

Associations between size‐fractionated indoor particulate matter (PM) and black carbon (BC) and heart rate variability (HRV) and heart rate (HR) in elderly women remain unclear. Twenty‐nine healthy elderly women were measured for 24‐hour HRV/HR indices. Real‐time size‐fractionated indoor PM and BC were monitored on the same day and on the preceding day. Mixed‐effects models were applied to investigate the associations between pollutants and HRV/HR indices. Increases in size‐fractionated indoor PM were significantly associated with declines in power in the high‐frequency band (HF), power in the low‐frequency band (LF), and standard deviation of all NN intervals (SDNN). The largest decline in HF was 19% at 5‐minute moving average for an interquartile range (IQR) increase (24 μg/m³) in PM_0.5. The results showed that smaller particles could lead to greater reductions in HRV indices. The reported associations were modified by body mass index (BMI): Declines in HF at 5‐minute average for an IQR increase in PM_0.5 were 34.5% and 1.0% for overweight (BMI ≥25 kg/m²) and normal‐weight (BMI <25 kg/m²) participants, respectively. Moreover, negative associations between BC and HRV indices were found to be significant in overweight participants. Increases in size‐fractionated indoor PM and BC were associated with compromised cardiac autonomic function in healthy elderly women, especially overweight ones.     

Reliability Allocation for Series-Parallel Systems subject to Potential Propagated Failures

To analyze the dependent failures in the early stage of system development, this paper considers the potential propagated failures in the reliability allocation process. Factors which can be used to not only measure the component importance but also to reflect the influence brought by propagated failures are proposed. Specifically, cooperative game theory is introduced to explore how the propagated failures affect the failure severity level. Failure rates are obtained by using the Alpha Factor Model with the consideration of dependence among components. Reliability improvement rate is also developed to proportionally assign the target improvement of system reliability to the corresponding components. Furthermore, reliability allocation frameworks for series, parallel and series-parallel systems are designed respectively to make the proposed model meet a wide range of applications. An illustrative example of a hydraulic cooling system is presented to show how the proposed approach is applied. The allocation results demonstrate that the proposed method can achieve a valid reliability improvement with the minimum error.     

Temperature-sensitive polyurethane (TSPU) film incorporated with carvacrol and cinnamyl aldehyde: antimicrobial activity,sustained release kinetics and potential use as food packaging for Cantonese-style moon cake

Temperature-sensitive polyurethane (TSPU) films incorporated with carvacrol and cinnamyl aldehyde were prepared for the potential use of food packaging. The antimicrobial properties and sustained release kinetics of carvacrol and cinnamyl aldehyde in TSPU film were investigated. Results indicated that cinnamyl aldehyde and carvacrol had favourable antimicrobial properties at relatively low addition ratio. The diffusion and release of carvacrol were linearly related to temperature and its addition ratio. The release rates of carvacrol from TSPU film increased from 0.6% to 2.2% with the increase of addition ratio and temperature. The first-order kinetic equation could be used to describe its diffusion and sustained release process. TSPU films could significantly prolong the shelf life of Cantonese-style moon cakes by effectively inhibiting microbial growth and decreasing lipid oxidation comparing with commonly used polyethylene food packaging. Results obtained in the present work can provide technical guide of sustained release food packaging films with antimicrobial properties.     

PCEC hydrogel used on sustained‐release hyaluronic acid delivery with lubrication effect

Injection of bionic synovial fluid (BSF) is a conventional method to improve the lubricity of artificial joints, but BSF cannot maintain long due to the dilution and degradation of BSF in human body. To prolong the effectiveness of hyaluronic acid (HA), which is the major component of BSF, this study applies a temperature‐sensitive poly(?‐caprolactone)–poly(ethylene glycol)–poly(?‐caprolactone) (PCEC) hydrogel loaded with HA to achieve long‐term lubrication. In addition, Fourier transform infrared, nuclear magnetic resonance analysis, X‐ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and gel permeation chromatography spectra were used to analyze the structure of the synthetic hydrogel. Rheological test and test tube inverting method were used to characterize the thermosensitivity. The lubrication properties of the released solution were characterized by UV–vis, tribological tests, SEM, and 3D laser confocal scanning microscope. The experimental results reveal that the triblock PCEC hydrogel contains both hydrophilic block and hydrophobic block, and both PCEC and PCEC/HA hydrogels have phase‐changed effect when the temperature increases from room temperature to body temperature. Moreover, the friction coefficient of the released solution from PCEC/HA hydrogel is approximatively 38% lower than that of phosphate buffer saline. And the ability of shear resistance and creep recovery of PCEC/HA hydrogel are better than that of PCEC hydrogel. This study provides an effective approach to achieve long‐time lubrication effect for artificial joints. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2018 , 135, 46228.     

水电工程EPC项目保险管理实践浅谈

水电工程采用EPC建设管理模式带来了保险管理主体的改变。通过大型水电工程EPC建设管理模式保险管理工作的实践,对这种模式下的保险方案的制定进行了分析,对工程保险常见理赔争议及分歧进行了探讨,并对总承包单位保险管理工作提出了建议,以推动水电工程EPC建设管理模式下保险管理工作的开展。     

Discovery of the Tiancilactone Antibiotics by Genome Mining of Atypical Bacterial Type II Diterpene Synthases

Although genome mining has advanced the identification, discovery, and study of microbial natural products, the discovery of bacterial diterpenoids continues to lag behind. Herein, we report the identification of 66 putative producers of novel bacterial diterpenoids, and the discovery of the tiancilactone (TNL) family of antibiotics, by genome mining of type II diterpene synthases that do not possess the canonical DXDD motif. The TNLs, which are broad‐spectrum antibiotics with moderate activities, are produced by both Streptomyces sp. CB03234 and Streptomyces sp. CB03238 and feature a highly functionalized diterpenoid skeleton that is further decorated with chloroanthranilate and γ‐butyrolactone moieties. Genetic manipulation of the tnl gene cluster resulted in TNL congeners, which provided insights into their biosynthesis and structure–activity relationships. This work highlights the biosynthetic potential that bacteria possess to produce diterpenoids and should inspire continued efforts to discover terpenoid natural products from bacteria.     

Microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg-5Li-1Al sheets prepared by accumulative roll bonding

Ultrafine-grain and high-strength Mg-5Li-1Al sheets were prepared by accumulative roll bonding (ARB) process. Evolution of microstructure and mechanical properties of ARB-processed Mg-5Li-1Al sheets was investigated.Results show that, during ARB process, the evolution of deformation mechanism of t Mg-5Li-1Al alloy is as follows: twinning deformation, shear deformation, forming macro shear zone, and finally dynamic recrystallization (DRX). The grain refining mechanism changes from twin DRX to rotation DRX. With the increase in ARB cycles, strength of the Mg-5Li-1Al sheets is enhanced, whilst elongation varies slightly. With the increase in rolling cycles, anisotropy of mechanical properties decreases. It is conclusive that strain hardening and grain refinement dominate the strengthening mechanism of Mg-5Li-1Al alloy.