Decorative near-infrared transmission filters featuring high-efficiency and angular-insensitivity employing 1D photonic crystals

We present a new scheme for visibly-opaque but near-infrared-transmitting filters involving 7 layers based on one-dimensional ternary photonic crystals, with capabilities in reaching nearly 100% transmission efficiency in the near-infrared region. Different decorative reflection colors can be created by adding additional three layers while maintaining the near-infrared transmission performance. In addition, our proposed structural colors show great angular insensitivity up to ±60° for both transverse electric and transverse magnetic polarizations, which are highly desired in various fields. The facile strategy described here involves a simple deposition method for the fabrication, thereby having great potential in diverse applications such as image sensors, anti-counterfeit tag, and optical measurement systems.

     

Enhanced linear magneto-resistance near the Dirac point in topological insulator Bi2(Te1−xSex)3 nanowires

Nano Research - We report the composition and back-gate voltage tuned transport properties of ternary compound Bi2(Te1−xSex)3 nanowires synthesized by chemical vapor deposition (CVD). It is...     

Simulation Analysis of the Heat Transfer Performance of an N-type Microchannel Heat Exchanger

A microchannel heat exchanger with a triangular wave and symmetrical triangular wave structure was proposed in this paper. In addition, a new N-type microchannel heat exchanger was developed to balance the heat transfer performance and pressure drop. The relationship between different configurations of the N structure of the microchannel and the heat transfer performance was analyzed. The results showed that, at a high inlet flow rate, the symmetrical triangular wave microchannel had the best heat transfer performance, followed by the triangular wave microchannel and the straight channel. At the same flow rate, the degree of disturbance of the fluid was highest in the symmetrical N-structure microchannel, and an excellent heat transfer effect was observed.     

Association of solid fuel use with risk of stunting in children living in China

Stunting adversely affects physical and mental outcomes of children. It has not been examined whether household air pollution from solid fuel combustion is a risk factor for stunting in children. In a total of 41,439 children aged 6-17 across China, height was measured using a unified protocol. Multivariable linear regression models and logistic regression models were used to assess the associations of solid fuel use for cooking/heating with stunting in children. Adjusted for covariates, cooking/heating with solid fuel was significantly associated with a lower z-score for height for age and sex (β = −0.21 [−0.32 to −0.09] and −0.17 [−0.31 to −0.03], respectively) and an increased risk of stunting with an estimated ORs of 1.34 [1.07~1.68] and 1.37 [1.02~1.83], respectively. The risk of stunting associated with solid fuel use was statistically significant in high-age children. And the effect was greater on girls than on boys, though the difference was not statistically significant. Our study suggested that Chinese children living in households using solid fuel had a significantly higher risk of stunting than those living in households using cleaner fuel.     

The biological mechanisms of butanol tolerance and the application of solvent-tolerant bacteria for environmental protection

Toxicity caused by the accumulation of butanol in fermentation media is an important factor limiting the concentration of butanol. There is currently no systematic research in place investigating the butanol tolerance mechanism of bacteria such as Clostridium acetobutylicum, which adapts to butanol stress and regulates its growth and metabolism. Here, research results related to the butanol tolerance of C. acetobutylicum are reviewed to understand the molecular basis of changes in butanol-tolerant strains. Organic solvent-tolerant bacteria play an important role in the fields of biofuel production, enzyme preparation and bioremediation. An analysis of limitations of the application of organic solvent-tolerant bacteria has revealed that future research should focus on combining the microbial tolerance phenotype with specific utilization to achieve an optimal balance between organic solvent tolerance and production. This review serves as a reference for the improvement and engineering of strains that tolerate organic solvents. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry     

Wearing prediction of stellite alloys based on opposite degree algorithm

In order to predict the wearing of stellite alloys,the related methods of rare metals data processing were discussed. The method of opposite degree(OD) algorithm was put forward to predict the wearing of stellite alloys.OD algorithm is based on prior numerical data, posterior numerical data and the opposite degree between numerical forecast data. To compare the performance of predicted results based on different algorithms, the back propagation(BP) and radial basis function(RBF) neural network methods were introduced. Predicted results show that the relative error of OD algorithm is smaller than those of BP and RBF neural network methods. OD algorithm is an effective method to predict the wearing of stellite alloys and it can be applied in practice.     

Effect of Temperature and Strain Rate on the Hot Deformation Behaviour of Ferritic Stainless Steel

Metals and Materials International - The flow behaviour and microstructure characteristics of a ferritic stainless steel were investigated using plain strain compression test on a Gleeble 3500...     

Improved Input and State Estimation for Linear Stochastic Systems with Direct Feedthrough

This paper is concerned with the problem of joint input and state estimation for linear stochastic systems with direct feedthrough. Based on the fact that each unknown input between any two time steps is always bounded, a novel improved algorithm is proposed. Compared with existing results, this algorithm can effectively enhance estimation accuracy. Moreover, the stability of the algorithm is also discussed. Finally, an illustrative example is given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.     

Supramolecular Glyco‐nanoparticles Toward Immunological Applications

Glyco‐mimicking nanoparticles (glyco‐NPs) with Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) donor and acceptor groups formed via dynamic covalent bond of benzoboroxole and sugar from two complementary polymers are prepared. The glyco‐NPs are proved to be quite stable under physiological conditions but sensitive to pH. So the glyco‐NPs can be internalized by dendritic cells with integrity and nontoxicity and then dissociate within the acidic organelles. This particle dissociation is directly observed and visualized in vitro, for the first time via the FRET measurements and fluorescent microscopy. This feature makes controlled release of drug or protein by glyco‐NPs possible, i.e., when model antigen Ovalbumin is loaded in the glyco‐NPs, the released Ovalbumin in dendritic cells stimulates T cells more efficiently than the free Ovalbumin itself as a result of the enhanced antigen processing and presentation. Thus, the results enlighten a bright future of the glyco‐NPs in immunotherapy.