Structural silicone sealants after exposure to laboratory test for durability assessment

During the service life of structural sealant glazing (SSG) facades, the load-bearing capacity of the silicone bonds needs to be guaranteed. Laboratory tests can assess the durability of SSG-systems based on mechanical characteristics of the bond after simultaneous exposure to both climatic and mechanical loads. This article studies how the material characteristics of two common structural sealants are affected by laboratory and field exposure. Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) confirms a reduction in the dynamic modulus of exposed silicone samples. Results from thermogravimetric analysis, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and small-angle X-ray scattering/wide-angle X-ray scattering show differences between the two sealants and indicate no/minor changes in the composition and morphology of the laboratory and field exposed sealants. Mechanical characterization methods, such as DMA, and tensile and shear testing of the structural bond, are shown to be sensitive toward the combined climatic and mechanical loadings, and are hence suitable for studying degradation mechanisms of structural sealants.     

Lactobacillus reuteri-fortified camel milk infant formula: Effects of encapsulation,in vitro digestion,and storage conditions on probiotic cell viability and physicochemical characteristics of infant formula

Lactobacillus reuteri fortified camel milk infant formula (CMIF) was produced. The effect of encapsulation in different matrices (sodium alginate and galacto-oligosaccharides) via spray drying, simulated infant gastrointestinal digestion (SIGID), and storage conditions (temperature and humidity) on the viability of L. reuteri in CMIF and the physicochemical properties of CMIF were evaluated. Compared with free cells, probiotic cell viability was significantly enhanced against SIGID conditions upon encapsulation. However, L. reuteri viability in CMIF decreased after 60 d of storage, predominantly at higher storage humidity and temperature levels. At the end of the storage period, significant changes in the color values were observed in all CMIF, with a reduction in their greenness, an increase in yellowness, and a wide variation in their whiteness. Moreover, pH values and caking behavior of all CMIF stored at higher temperature (40°C) and humidity [water activity (a_w) = 0.52] levels were found to be significantly higher than the samples stored under other conditions. Over 30 d of storage at lower humidity conditions (a_w = 0.11 and 0.33) and room temperature (25°C), no significant increase in CMIF lipid oxidation rates was noted. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy analysis showed that, compared with the other storage conditions, CMIF experienced fewer changes in functional groups when stored at a_w = 0.11. Microscopic images showed typical morphological characteristics of milk powder, with round to spherical-shaped particles. Overall, camel milk fortified with encapsulated L. reuteri can be suggested as a promising alternative in infant formula industries, potentially able to maintain its physicochemical characteristics as well as viability of probiotic cells when stored at low humidity levels (a_w = 0.11) and temperature (25°C), over 60 d of storage.     

10%精草铵膦铵盐SL的UPLC-MS/MS分析方法

[目的]建立10%精草铵膦铵盐可溶液剂的超高效液相色谱-三重四级杆质谱(UPLC-MS/MS)定量分析方法。[方法]使用Zorbax SB-C18色谱柱,流动相为0.1%甲酸水-乙腈,流速为0.3 m L/min,在多反应监测(MRM)模式下进行正离子扫描,测定样品中精草铵膦的含量。[结果]在0.005~0.5 mg/L的质量浓度范围内,方法线性相关性良好,相关系数R2为0.9996,标准偏差为0.056,变异系数为0.56%,加标回收率在97.82%~100.84%之间。[结论]该方法操作简便、准确度和精密度高,适用于10%精草铵膦铵盐可溶液剂的定量分析。     

饱和块状混合回填土地基的一维固结分析

用块状渣土置换软弱地基和回填低洼谷地等是处置工程渣土的有效途径。为了分析饱和块状混合回填土地基的固结性状，运用混合物理论建立了其一维固结模型。首先，假定块状土固相和充填土固相之间满足等应变条件，获得了饱和块状混合回填土中各相应变与块状土孔隙变形和充填土孔隙变形的关系式。其次，在小应变条件下，根据自由能势函数方程建立了饱和块状混合回填土的一维线弹性本构方程，再结合达西定律和应力平衡方程获得了一维固结控制方程。再次，利用分离变量法得到一维固结解析解，通过退化本文模型与已有模型进行对比，验证了本文模型的正确性。最后，基于所得解析解，分析了充填土孔隙渗透系数、块状土孔隙渗透系数以及流体交换参数等因素对饱和块状混合回填土地基固结性状的影响。分析结果表明：充填土孔隙渗透系数对饱和块状混合回填土地基整体固结性状起主导作用；在固结初期，块状土超孔压会有一定程度的上升，且3个参数具有相似的作用机理。     

Human DDX17 Unwinds Rift Valley Fever Virus Non-Coding RNAs

Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) is a mosquito-transmitted virus from the Bunyaviridae family that causes high rates of mortality and morbidity in humans and ruminant animals. Previous studies indicated that DEAD-box helicase 17 (DDX17) restricts RVFV replication by recognizing two primary non-coding RNAs in the S-segment of the genome: the intergenic region (IGR) and 5′ non-coding region (NCR). However, we lack molecular insights into the direct binding of DDX17 with RVFV non-coding RNAs and information on the unwinding of both non-coding RNAs by DDX17. Therefore, we performed an extensive biophysical analysis of the DDX17 helicase domain (DDX17_135–555) and RVFV non-coding RNAs, IGR and 5’ NCR. The homogeneity studies using analytical ultracentrifugation indicated that DDX17_135–555, IGR, and 5’ NCR are pure. Next, we performed small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) experiments, which suggested that DDX17 and both RNAs are homogenous as well. SAXS analysis also demonstrated that DDX17 is globular to an extent, whereas the RNAs adopt an extended conformation in solution. Subsequently, microscale thermophoresis (MST) experiments were performed to investigate the direct binding of DDX17 to the non-coding RNAs. The MST experiments demonstrated that DDX17 binds with the IGR and 5’ NCR with a dissociation constant of 5.77 ± 0.15 µM and 9.85 ± 0.11 µM, respectively. As DDX17_135–555 is an RNA helicase, we next determined if it could unwind IGR and NCR. We developed a helicase assay using MST and fluorescently-labeled oligos, which suggested DDX17_135–555 can unwind both RNAs. Overall, our study provides direct evidence of DDX17_135–555 interacting with and unwinding RVFV non-coding regions.     

Analytical Modeling for Translating Statistical Changes to Circuit Variability by Ultra-Deep Submicron Digital Circuit Design

This paper presents a physics-based compact gate delay model that includes all short-channel phenomena prevalent at the ultra-deep submicron technology node of 32 nm. To simplify calculations, the proposed model is connected to a compact α-power law-based (Sakurai-Newton) model. The model has been tested on a wide range of supply voltages. The model accurately predicts nominal delays and the delays under process variations. It has been shown that at lower technology nodes, the delay is more sensitive to threshold voltage variations, specifically at the sub-threshold operating region as compared with effective channel length variations above the threshold region.     

分级加载电压下考虑有效电势变化的软黏土电渗固结理论

分级加载电压技术能够有效延长电渗处理的时间,改善地基的处理效果并能有效降低能耗。在利用分级加载电压技术开展电渗试验时,随着土体的排水固结,土体各点的电势会发生明显的变化,这与现有的电渗固结理论假设土体各点电势保持不变有所差异。利用自主设计的电渗试验仪器开展了分级加载电压下的电渗室内试验,分析了电渗过程中土体有效电势变化的规律。基于该规律并结合Esrig固结理论建立了在阳极处不排水、阴极处排水条件下考虑土体有效电势变化的电渗固结理论,得到了分级加载电压条件下考虑土体有效电势变化的超静孔隙水压力和平均固结度的解析表达式。研究表明,在电压分级加载过程中,土体有效电势变化规律表现为随时间先基本保持不变,后呈抛物线状先增后减。通过试验案例验证了考虑土体有效电势变化所求得解析解的合理性,且该数值计算结果相较于Esrig数值计算结果,前者更加接近实测值,该固结方程的建立为后续分级加载电压技术的推广应用提供了理论依据,也为实际工程提供了参考。     

培养原料种类的减少对人工窖泥发酵剂菌群结构的影响

为实现人工窖泥发酵剂（APMSC）的品质控制，从前期开发的发酵剂配方中分别取出老熟窖泥、曲药、酒糟和黄水初步形成4个简化配方，采用扩增子测序和色谱技术比较了各配方发酵剂的微生物群落结构及香味物质含量差异。结果显示，各配方发酵剂样品中共检测到70个微生物操作分类单元（OTU），其中71.43%为各组样品共有，未检测到独有OTU。各配方样品的优势微生物均存在于其余分组中，仅物种相对丰度有所差异。根据酿酒有益微生物的丰度高低，选择了一种简化配方（无老熟窖泥作原料）发酵剂养护窖池，使酿造白酒的主体香味物质含量得到显著提高。结果表明，即使缺失了某一种培养原料，人工窖泥发酵剂的功能微生物物种也可能由其他原料补充，而原料种类的减少是实现发酵剂品质控制的主要途径。