An H∞non‐fragile observer‐based adaptive sliding mode controller design for uncertain fractional‐order nonlinear systems with time delay and input nonlinearity

In this paper the problem of non‐fragile adaptive sliding mode observer design is addressed for a class of nonlinear fractional‐order time‐delay systems with uncertainties, external disturbance, exogenous noise, and input nonlinearity. An H_∞ observer‐based adaptive sliding mode control considering the non‐fragility of the observer is proposed for this system. The sufficient asymptotic stability conditions are derived in the form of linear matrix inequalities. It is proven that the sliding surface is reachable in finite time. An illustrative example is provided which corroborates the effectiveness of the theoretical results.     

Noble Metal Ion-Directed Assembly of 2D Materials for Heterostructured Catalysts and Metallic Micro-Texturing

Assembling 2D-material (2DM) nanosheets into micro- and macro-architectures with augmented functionalities requires effective strategies to overcome nanosheet restacking. Conventional assembly approaches involve external binders and/or functionalization, which inevitably sacrifice 2DM's nanoscale properties. Noble metal ions (NMI) are promising ionic crosslinkers, which can simultaneously assemble 2DM nanosheets and induce synergistic properties. Herein, a collection of NMI–2DM complexes are screened and categorized into two sub-groups. Based on the zeta potentials, two assembly approaches are developed to obtain 1) NMI-crosslinked 2DM hydrogels/aerogels for heterostructured catalysts and 2) NMI–2DM inks for templated synthesis. First, tetraammineplatinum(II) nitrate (TPtN) serves as an efficient ionic crosslinker to agglomerate various 2DM dispersions. By utilizing micro-textured assembly platforms, various TPtN–2DM hydrogels are fabricated in a scalable fashion. Afterward, these hydrogels are lyophilized and thermally reduced to synthesize Pt-decorated 2DM aerogels (Pt@2DM). The Pt@2DM heterostructures demonstrate high, substrate-dependent catalytic activities and promote different reaction pathways in the hydrogenation of 3-nitrostyrene. Second, PtCl₄ can be incorporated into 2DM dispersions at high NMI molarities to prepare a series of PtCl₄–2DM inks with high colloidal stability. By adopting the PtCl₄–graphene oxide ink, various Pt micro-structures with replicated topographies are synthesized with accurate control of grain sizes and porosities.     

An extended hesitant fuzzy set using SWARA-MULTIMOORA approach to adapt online education for the control of the pandemic spread of COVID-19 in higher education institutions

The world has been challenged since late 2019 by COVID-19. Higher education institutions have faced various challenges in adapting online education to control the pandemic spread of COVID-19. The present study aims to conduct a survey study through the interview and scrutinizing the literature to find the key challenges. Subsequently, an integrated MCDM framework, including Stepwise Weight Assessment Ratio Analysis (SWARA) and Multiple Objective Optimization based on Ratio Analysis plus Full Multiplicative Form (MULTIMOORA), is developed. The SWARA procedure is applied to the analysis and assesses the challenges to adapt the online education during the COVID-19 outbreak, and the MULTIMOORA approach is utilized to rank the higher education institutions on hesitant fuzzy sets. Further, an illustrative case study is considered to express the proposed idea's feasibility and efficacy in real-world decision-making. Finally, the obtained result is compared with other existing approaches, confirming the proposed framework's strength and steadiness. The identified challenges were systemic, pedagogical, and psychological challenges, while the analysis results found that the pedagogical challenges, including the lack of experience and student engagement, were the main essential challenges to adapting online education in higher education institutions during the COVID-19 outbreak.

     

Numerical investigation of the configuration of the pools on the flow pattern passing over pooled stepped spillway in skimming flow regime

Spillways are hydraulic structures which transfer water to the downstream. Stepped spillways areseriously attended to, since they are highly efficient regarding energy dissipation. In this study, the flow pattern over stepped spillways was simulated with five different pool configurations. The VOF method was used to simulate the flow free surface, and K??(RNG) was employed to model turbulence. The results obtained fromthe numerical model were fairly consistent with the experimental results. The results demonstrated that theflow velocity and the residual head showed significant differences in the spillway width with regard to different pool configurations. The pool configuration in which the pools were installed as staggered configuration of flat and pooled steps showed the least residual head at the downstream and as a result the greatest energy dissipation.     

Ranking alternatives in a preferential voting system using fuzzy concepts and data envelopment analysis

In this paper, a new method for aggregating the opinions of experts in a preferential voting system is proposed. The method, which uses fuzzy concept in handling crisp data, is computationally efficient and is able to completely rank the alternatives. Through this method, the number of votes for certain rank position that each alternative receives are first grouped together to form fuzzy numbers. The nearest point to a fuzzy number concept is then used to introduce an artificial ideal alternative. Data envelopment analysis is next used to find the efficiency scores of the alternatives in a pair-wise comparison with the artificial ideal alternative. Alternatives are rank based on these efficiency scores. If the alternatives are not completely ranked, a weight restriction method also based on fuzzy concept is used on the un-discriminated alternatives until they are completely ranked. Two examples are given for illustration of the method.     

A Puzzle of Quantum Phase Transition on Gd-IMC by Tuning of Conduction Electron Concentration

Based on the critical unstable of both crystal and magnetic structure of Gd-intermetallic compound near the competition of two strongly independent subsystem （＂local 4f7＂ and ＂conduction electron concentration＂）, a new QPT （quantum point transition） is predicted by calculation of： （1） The band structure and density of state by density functional theory where a strong narrowing fluidity of fermions around EF with shifted to negative value ＂-0.8 eV ＂is observable in the Gd-intermetalliccompound system while in the Y-case, it is not dominated. An antiferromagnetic state on the fluidity of conduction band can be investigated; （2） The internal magnetic field due to short range exchange interaction Jij between the nearest neighbor of local magnetic moment of stable s-state of Gd （L = 0） through the mean field approximation and of Eigenvalue-Eigenfunction ~.（k） are calculated. While a strong negative value of Jy is predicted, the eigenvalue L（k） of the system shows a strong antiferromagnetic phase in the reciprocal lattice direction 〈010〉, 〈001〉 in the correlation length 3.38 ~A. Although the antiferromagnetic state at Rc 〈_ 3.38 °A is a puzzle but it is completely dominated at Rc = 9 °A after passing through the competition between ）.λmin（O） and λmin（π） in the ranger of 3.2 °A 〈 Rc 〈 9 °A. Since both of the antiferromagnetic subsystems are sensitive to the predicted KF, the effect of decreasing of conduction electron is proposed to investigate, the change of the antiferromagnetic ordering state to the competition of ferromagnetic state （in direction 〈010〉） and antiferromagnetic state （in direction 〈001 〉 and 〈 100〉） resulted to paramagnetic state in the long range Rc = 9 °A.     

The odontogenic differentiation of human dental pulp stem cells on hydroxyapatite-coated biodegradable nanofibrous scaffolds

The authors aimed to design nanofibrous (NF) scaffolds that facilitate odontogenic and osteogenic differentiation of human dental pulp-derived mesenchymal stem cells (DPSCs) in vitro. For this purpose, hydroxyapatite (HA)–loaded poly (L-lactic acid)/poly (?-caprolactone) (PLLA:PCL 2;1) blend NFs were prepared using the electrospinning method. Alizarin red activity and cell viability were evaluated by MTT assay, and SEM revealed the proliferation properties of NF scaffolds. QRT-PCR results demonstrated that HA-loaded PLLA/PCL can lead to osteoblast/odontoblast differentiation in DPSCs through the up-regulation of related genes, thus indicating that electrospun biodegradable PCL/PLA/HA has remarkable prospects as scaffolds for bone and tooth tissue engineering.     

Crude oil price forecasting: a biogeography-based optimization approach

The importance of crude oil in the world economy has made it imperative for efficient models to be designed for predicting future prices. This paper proposes an alternative approach based on a time series and biogeography-based optimization (BMMR–BBO) for the estimation of the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil price. To evaluate the forecasting ability of the presented model, we compared its performance with those of time series functions. The results of the experiment showed that BMMR-BBO performed better than the other methods and is a fairly good option for crude oil price prediction. The proposed model can be useful in the formulation of policies related to international crude oil price estimations, development plans, and industrial production.