Current Status of Angiogenic Cell Therapy and Related Strategies Applied in Critical Limb Ischemia

Critical limb ischemia (CLI) constitutes the most severe form of peripheral arterial disease (PAD), it is characterized by progressive blockade of arterial vessels, commonly correlated to atherosclerosis. Currently, revascularization strategies (bypass grafting, angioplasty) remain the first option for CLI patients, although less than 45% of them are eligible for surgical intervention mainly due to associated comorbidities. Moreover, patients usually require amputation in the short-term. Angiogenic cell therapy has arisen as a promising alternative for these “no-option” patients, with many studies demonstrating the potential of stem cells to enhance revascularization by promoting vessel formation and blood flow recovery in ischemic tissues. Herein, we provide an overview of studies focused on the use of angiogenic cell therapies in CLI in the last years, from approaches testing different cell types in animal/pre-clinical models of CLI, to the clinical trials currently under evaluation. Furthermore, recent alternatives related to stem cell therapies such as the use of secretomes, exosomes, or even microRNA, will be also described.     

Topology optimization for crashworthiness of thin-walled structures under axial crash considering nonlinear plastic buckling and locations of plastic hinges

Although topology optimization is established for linear static problems, more effort is required for solving nonlinear plastic problems. A new topology optimization approach with equivalent static loads (ESLs) is suggested to find the optimum topologies and locations of plastic hinges of thin-walled crash boxes by considering crash-induced deformation, the main crash energy-absorbing mechanism. Together with finite element method crashworthiness analyses, considering all nonlinearities with rate-dependent plasticity, the method was developed using an appropriate time-incremental scheme of ESLs without removing any high values of loads. Analyses show that the crash boxes with optimum topologies have energy-absorbing capabilities equivalent to the original structure. The proposed method is evaluated for two crashes: a crash box at low speed and a double cell subjected to high-speed collision. The results indicate that this method captures nonlinear crushing behaviours and accurate locations of plastic hinges where, if proper reinforcements are made, energy absorption can be enhanced.     

基于关键路径延时检测的自适应电压缩减技术

为了减小传统的最差情况设计方法引入的电压裕量,提出了一种变化可知的自适应电压缩减(AVS)技术,通过调整电源电压来降低电路功耗.自适应电压缩减技术基于检测关键路径的延时变化,基于此设计了一款预错误原位延时检测电路,可以检测关键路径延时并输出预错误信号,进而控制单元可根据反馈回的预错误信号的个数调整系统电压.本芯片采用SMIC180 nm工艺设计验证,仿真分析表明,采用自适应电压缩减技术后,4个目标验证电路分别节省功耗12.4％,11.3％,10.4％和11.6％.     

The potential of energy flexibility of space heating and cooling in Portugal

This study assesses the potential of energy flexibility of space heating and cooling for a typical household under different geographical conditions in Portugal. The proposed approach modifies the demand through the optimization of the thermostat settings using a genetic algorithm to reduce either operational costs or interaction with the grid. The results show that the used energy flexibility indicator expresses the available potential and that flexibility depends on several factors, namely: i) thermal inertia of the archetypical household; ii) the time of use electricity tariffs; iii) users’ comfort boundaries; and iv) the geographical location of the houses.     

Nb和时效时间对热轧中锰TRIP钢中P偏聚的影响

热轧态中锰TRIP钢首先经650 ℃退火2 h,随后在550 ℃进行等温时效热处理,采用场发射扫描电镜(FE-SEM)研究该钢中P的偏聚和时效析出行为的变化情况。结果表明,中锰TRIP钢中P在晶界的偏聚是一种非平衡偏聚现象,临界时间约为50 h,与理论计算结果48 h较为吻合。在局部偏聚区域内,C与P存在共偏聚的关系,即P偏聚量高的地方,C含量也高。而合金元素Nb具有抑制P偏聚的效果,在20~70 h时效时间内,可以相对降低6.57%~19.5%的最大P偏聚量。根据电子背散射衍射(EBSD)菊池线分析,P偏聚量低于2.28at%时,P为固溶状态,高于2.28at.%时,P为析出状态。     

Ballistic behavior of plain and reinforced concrete slabs under high velocity impact

This work presents a numerical simulation of ballistic penetration and high velocity impact behavior of plain and reinforced concrete slabs. In this paper, we focus on the comparison of the performance of the plain and reinforced concrete slabs of unconfined compressive strength 41 MPa under ballistic impact. The concrete slab has dimensions of 675 mm × 675 mm × 200 mm, and is meshed with 8-node hexahedron solid elements in the impact and outer zones. The ogive-nosed projectile is considered as rigid element that has a mass of 0.386 kg and a length of 152 mm. The applied velocities vary between 540 and 731 m/s. 6 mm of steel reinforcement bars were used in the reinforced concrete slabs. The constitutive material modeling of the concrete and steel reinforcement bars was performed using the Johnson-Holmquist-2 damage and the Johnson-Cook plasticity material models, respectively. The analysis was conducted using the commercial finite element package Abaqus/Explicit. Damage diameters and residual velocities obtained by the numerical model were compared with the experimental results and effect of steel reinforcement and projectile diameter were studies. The validation showed good agreement between the numerical and experimental results. The added steel reinforcements to the concrete samples were found efficient in terms of ballistic resistance comparing to the plain concrete sample.     

泥页岩井壁稳定研究及在临盘地区的应用

从岩石力学和物理化学两个主要因素简要分析了井壁失稳的机理，指出泥页岩井壁失稳是由力学与化学两方面因素共同作用的结果。钻井液与泥页岩存在化学势差，并改变了井壁附近的孔隙压力，降低岩石强度。借助于井壁处有效应力的变化,将泥页岩与钻井液相互作用时页岩水化所产生的力学效应与纯力学效应结合起来，计算出任意井斜方位井眼围岩应力状态，利用测井资料求出有关岩石力学参数和Mohr Couloumb准则，计算得出防塌的临界钻井液密度。     

嵌入式RTOS中任务优先级反转问题研究

针对嵌入式实时系统任务调度策略的特点，任务在运行的时候可能被更高优先级的任务中断。分析了嵌入式RTOS中的最高就绪任务的查找算法，指出该调度算法存在的不同优先级的反转问题，并且针对这一问题进行研究，给出了相应的优先级继承方案。较好地解决了RTOS中任务调度中的优先级的反转问题。     

Flash器件中氧化硅/氮化硅/氧化硅的特性

对普遍采用的氧化硅/氮化硅/氧化硅( ONO)三层复合结构介质层的制备工艺及特性进行了研究分析,研究了ONO的漏电特性以及顶氧( top oxide)和底氧( bottom oxide)的厚度对ONO层漏电的影响.结果表明,采用较薄的底氧和较厚的顶氧,既能保证较高的临界电场强度,又能获得较薄的等效氧化层厚度,提高耦合率,降低编程电压.     

Field Static Load Test on Kao-Ping-Hsi Cable-Stayed Bridge

Field load testing is an effective method for understanding the behavior and fundamental characteristics of a cable-stayed bridge. This paper presents the results of field static load tests on the Kao-Ping-Hsi cable-stayed bridge, the longest cable-stayed bridge in Taiwan, before it was open to traffic. A total of 40 loading cases, including the unit and distributed bending and torsion loading effects, were conducted to investigate the bridge behavior. The atmospheric temperature effect on the variations of the main girder deflections was also monitored. The results of static load testing include the main girder deflections, the flexural strains of the prestressed concrete girder, and the variations of the cable forces. A three-dimensional finite-element model was developed. The results show that the bridge under the planned load test conditions has linear superposition characteristics and the analytical model shows a very good agreement with the bridge responses. Further discussion of deflection and cable forces of the design specifications for a cable-stayed bridge is also presented.