Thermal,mechanical and chemical effects in the degradation of the plasma-deposited α-SiC:H passivation layer in a multilayer thin-film device

Amorphous, hydrogenated silicon carbide (-SiC:H) deposited by a plasma-enhanced-chemical-vapour-deposition (PECVD) process has been used as the topmost passivation layer in a multilayer thin-film device, namely, a thermal ink-jet printhead. Normal operations of the device involve rapid heating of the multilayer structure at several kHz, repetitively forming vapour bubbles that grow and collapse in an otherwise liquid environment. During such operations, the -SiC:H layer is subjected to a variety of thermal, mechanical and chemical stresses that are detrimental to its integrity. It is found that thermally activated failures may occur when the multilayer structure is driven for extended periods of time or by pulses of excessive magnitude or duration, or when the -SiC:H film is so thick as to store excessive elastic energy due to large differential thermal expansion effects. It is also found that severe mechanical (namely, cavitation) effects associated with bubble collapse cause early device failures if the surface of the device is exposed to an unlimited liquid reservoir; however, such adverse effects are greatly mitigated by the presence of a nozzle plate in the vicinity of the top surface. Finally, it is shown that high pH and various chemicals tend to etch the -SiC:H thin film through an oxidation-dissolution process, removing the passivating material rapidly and leading to device failures.     

CD8+ T Cell-Induced Expression of Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinses-1 Exacerbated Osteoarthritis

Despites the fact that T cells are involved in the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis (OA) little is known about the roles of CD8⁺ T cells in this disease. We investigated the effects of CD8⁺ T cells and the expression of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases 1 (TIMP-1) on joint pathology. Using anterior cruciate ligament-transection (ACLT), OA was induced in mice. The knee joints were histologically assessed for manifestations of OA. The CD8⁺ T cells from splenocytes and synovium were flow-cytometrically and immunochemically evaluated, respectively. Local expression of TIMP-1, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-13, and VEGF were examined. Cartilage degeneration was slower in CD8⁺ T cell knockout mice than in control mice. CD8⁺ T cells were activated once OA was initiated and expanded during OA progression. More CD8⁺ T cells from splenocytes expressed TIMP-1 in ACLT-group mice than in Sham-group mice. The number of TIMP-1-expressing CD8⁺ T cells in OA mice correlated with the disease severity. TIMP-1 expression in cartilage was co-localized with that of MMP-13 and VEGF. TIMP-1 protein was detected in synovium in which angiogenesis occurred. During the pathogenesis of OA, the expression of TIMP-1, VEGF and MMP-13 accompanying with CD8⁺ T cells activation were increased. Furthermore, inhibiting the expression of TIMP-1 in joints could retard the progression of OA.     

2-丙酮氧基-3,4-二氟硝基苯的制备

对２,３ 二氟 ６ 硝基苯酚（简称ＤＮＰ）和一氯丙酮缩合反应生成２ 丙酮氧基 ３,４ 二氟硝基苯进行了研究,讨论了反应时间、催化剂的用量、原料配比、反应温度等对反应的影响。在原料的物质的量比为ｎ（ＤＮＰ）∶ｎ（ＣＨ３ ＣＯＣＨ２ Ｃｌ）∶ｎ（ＫＩ）∶ｎ（Ｋ２ ＣＯ３）＝ １∶１．４∶０．１３∶２,反应温度５０℃,反应时间６ｈ 的条件下,产品的收率达８７％ ;同时找到了以乙醇水溶液提纯该产品的新方法。     

An automatic controller extractor for HDL descriptions at the RTL

Extracting controlling finite-state machines can significantly reduce state space and thereby speed functional verification. The controller extraction algorithm uses an approach that frees it from restrictions on HDL code writing style     

Cross-Linked Hyaluronate and Corticosteroid Combination Ameliorate the Rat Experimental Tendinopathy through Anti-Senescent and -Apoptotic Effects

The combination of cross-linked hyaluronate (cHA) and corticosteroid showed more rapid pain or functional improvement in knee osteoarthritis and adhesive capsulitis. However, rare evidence of this combination in treating tendinopathy has been reported. We hypothesized that the specific formulations of cHA and dexamethasone (DEX) conferred amelioration of tendinopathy via anti-apoptosis and anti-senescence. In this controlled laboratory study, primary tenocytes from the human tendinopathic long head of biceps were treated with three cHA formulations (cHA:linealized HA = 80:20, 50:50, and 20:80) + DEX with or without IL-1β stimulation. Cell viability, inflammatory cytokines, tendon-related proliferation markers, matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), senescent markers, and apoptosis were examined. The in vivo therapeutic effects of the selected cHA + DEX combinations were evaluated in a collagenase-induced rat patellar tendinopathy model. The expression levels of inflammatory mediators, including IL-1β, IL-6, COX-2, MMP-1, and MMP-3 were significantly reduced in all cHA + DEX-treated tenocytes (p < 0.05, all). The cHA (50:50) + DEX and cHA (20:80) + DEX combinations protected tenocytes from cytotoxicity, senescence, and apoptosis induced by DEX in either IL-1β stimulation or none. Furthermore, the two combinations significantly improved the rat experimental tendinopathy by reducing ultrasound feature scores and histological scores as well as the levels of apoptosis, senescence, and senescence-associated secretory phenotypes (p < 0.05, all). We identified two specific cHA formulations (cHA (50:50) and cHA (20:80)) + DEX that could ameliorate tendinopathy through anti-senescence and -apoptosis without cytotoxicity. This study provides a possible approach to treating tendinopathy using the combination of two well-known agents.     

An experimental technique for the measurement of flame propagation in heterogeneous fuel sprays

Abstract

An experimental technique was developed to get a real‐time measurement of the flame propagation in heterogeneous fuel sprays. A monodisperse aerosol generator was used to generate the combustible tetralin (C₁₀H₁₂) mist and suitable acoustic devices were adapted to produce the required flat flame fronts. Results compare favorably with the conventional multiple exposure and high‐speed photography methods.     

Improving cost-effectiveness for the furnace in a full-scale refinery plant with reuse of waste tail gas fuel

The waste tail gas fuel emitted from refinery plant in Taiwan e.g. catalytic reforming unit, catalytic cracking unit and residue desulfurization unit, was recovered and reused as a replacement fuel. In this study, it was slowly added to the fuel stream of a heater furnace to replace natural gas for powering a full-scale distillation process. The waste tail gas fuel contained on average 60 mol% of hydrogen. On-site experimental results show that both the flame length and orange-yellowish brightness decrease with increasing proportion of waste gas fuel in the original natural gas fuel. Moreover, the adiabatic flame temperature increases as the content of waste gas fuel is increased in the fuel mixture since waste gas fuel has a higher adiabatic flame temperature than that of natural gas. The complete replacement of natural gas by waste gas fuel for a heater furnace operating at 70% loading (i.e. 3.6 × 10⁷ kcal/h of combustion capacity) will save 5.8 × 10⁶ m³ of natural gas consumption, and 3.5 × 10⁴ tons (or 53.4%) of CO₂ emission annually. Recovering and reusing the waste tail gas fuel as natural gas replacement will achieve tremendous savings of natural gas usage and effectively lower the emission of carbon dioxide.     

A Bibliometric Study of Semiconductor Literature, 1978–1997

Semiconductor is the key element for information industry. The present study investigated the growth of semiconductor literature based on the database of INSPEC. Well-established bibliometric techniques, such as Bradford-Zipf's plot and Lotka's law have been employed to further explore the characteristics of semiconductor literature. Quantitative results on the literature growth, form of publication, research treatment, publishing country and language, author productivity and affiliate are reported. Moreover, from the Bradford-Zipf's plot, 25 core journals in semiconductor were identified and analyzed.     

A Multi-Level Power Converter Interface for a Battery Energy Storage System

Abstract—

This study proposes a multi-level power converter for a battery energy storage system (BESS) with bidirectional power flow. The multi-level power converter includes a DC-DC power converter, a selection switch set and a full-bridge inverter. The DC-DC power converter performs bidirectional power conversion and provides a DC voltage that is greater than the peak voltage of the utility. Integrating the selection switch set and the full-bridge inverter produces a five-level AC voltage that controls the real power flow and the reactive power flow between the battery set, the DC-DC power converter and the grid. Because partial power is directly processed using only the selection switch set and the full-bridge inverter, the DC-DC power converter is operated only when the grid voltage is greater than the voltage of the battery set. Therefore, the power conversion efficiency for the proposed BESS is improved. The proposed BESS uses only eight power electronic switches, so the power circuit is simplified. A hardware prototype with a digital signal processor controller is used to verify the performance of the proposed BESS. The experimental results are as expected.