A TEM study of morphological and structural degradation phenomena in LiFePO4‐CB cathodes

LiFePO₄‐based cathodes suffer from various degradation mechanisms, which influences the battery performance. In this paper, morphological and structural degradation phenomena in laboratory cathodes made of LiFePO₄ mixed with carbon black (CB) in a 1 mol/L LiPF₆ in EC : DMC (1:1 by weight) electrolyte are investigated by transmission electron microscopy at various preparation, assembling, storage, and cycling stages. High‐resolution transmission electron microscopy imaging shows that continuous SEI layers are formed on the LiFePO₄ particles and that both storage and cycling affect the formation. Additionally, loss of CB crystallinity, CB aggregation, and agglomeration is observed. Charge–discharge curves and impedance spectra measured during cycling confirm that these degradation mechanisms reduce the cathode conductivity and capacity. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Human factors methods for early evaluation of control room systems – guidelines for use in practice

Formative human factors (HF) evaluation is an important activity in control room design. Its purpose is to provide design feedback in the development process, preferably early so as to lower the risk of late and sub-optimal design changes. Early evaluation requires assessment of higher level design decisions due to the gradual specificity of design decisions made as the development process progresses. There is also a need to further develop HF methods that are applicable in practice. The purpose of this article is to seek understanding of, and base guidelines on, the practical use of HF methods for formative assessment of higher level design decisions in control rooms. Evaluations in three development projects at a Swedish nuclear power plant were studied, identifying 18 method guidelines. The guidelines related to: 1) the method’s ability to define, adapt, focus and balance; 2) execution of the evaluation workshops; 3) the communicative purpose of the evaluation activity. Comparing the identified guidelines with literature showed similarities, but also highlighted unique guidelines. The compiled results can be used to further develop methods for early formative evaluation of control rooms in practice.     

Maternal age and congenital cytomegalovirus infection: screening of two diverse newborn populations, 1980-1990

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is the leading cause of congenital viral infection in the United States. To prevent damaging congenital CMV infections, it is necessary to have accurate population estimates of prevalence and to identify maternal factors associated with an elevated risk of congenital infection in the newborn. From 1980 through 1990, 17,163 offspring of predominantly low-income nonwhite women who delivered at a public hospital and 9892 newborns of predominantly mid- to upper-income white women who delivered at a private hospital were screened for congenital CMV infection. Women < 20 years old (adjusted prevalence odds ratio [POR], 4.8; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.6-8.9) at the public hospital and all nonwhite women (adjusted POR, 1.6; 95% CI, 1.1-2.2) had an increased risk of delivering an infected newborn. Newborns of adolescent women in both populations had the highest prevalence of clinically apparent infection. Offspring of nonwhite low-income adolescents are at greatest risk for congenital CMV infection and more damaging sequelae.     

Nucleic acid concentration in the brains of inbred rats of different strains

The changes of nucleic acids content in the formation of conditioned skin-defence reflex was studied on inbred rats of various strains. In WGA rats the reflex was formed on the average aight stimulations. An increased RNA content was discovered by cytophotometric determination of the nucleic acids content in the neurons and perineural glia of the cerebral cortex in August rats only. It is assumed that an increased RNA synthesis in the animals of this strain can serve as the basis for their better training.     

Cyclic nucleotides attenuate lipid peroxidation-mediated neuron toxicity

Recent studies suggest that increased lipid peroxidation and lipid peroxidation products, such as 4-hydroxynonenal (HNE), contribute to neuronal loss in conditions associated with oxidative stress. The focus of the present study was to determine possible neuroprotective effects of elevated cyclic nucleotide levels against lipid peroxidation and HNE-mediated neural toxicity. Application of 8-bromo derivative analogs of cAMP or cGMP resulted in attenuation of HNE-induced increases in mitochondrial calcium, reactive oxygen species, and neuron loss. Similar results were obtained when neural cells were pretreated with the phosphodiesterase inhibitors zaprinast or isobutylmethylxanthanine (IBMX). These data are consistent with a possible neuroprotective role for elevated cyclic nucleotide levels in disorders associated with increases in lipid peroxidation and HNE.     

卟啉类L—B膜分子间相互作用的光谱研究

以无取代的meso-四-(4-N)-吡啶基卟啉及其过渡族金属(主要Cu~(2+)、Zn~(2+))络合物制备L-B膜,以近紫外-可见吸收光谱和荧光光谱为手段,研究叶啉类分子在氯仿溶液中,L-B膜状态下以及固态状态下的相互作用。探讨分子聚集体的存在对光谱性质的影响。 为了研究叶咻类分子间的相互作用及其对光谱性质的影响,我们首先分析了叶啉在CHCl_3溶液中及固态状态下的近紫外-可见吸收光谱和荧光光谱。并将其与叶啉类分子的L-B膜作比较。结果表明,卟啉类的Soret吸收带带宽及峰位置在三种状态下均不相同,L-B膜的情况介于溶液中的和固体下的情况之间,说明了在L-B膜中,卟啉分子存在着某种形式的聚集体,且在这种聚集体中分子间的相互作用程度比固体弱,可以认为L-B膜上的分子呈准晶体状态。