317 research outputs found
Identifying PV module mismatch faults by a thermography-based temperature distribution analysis
Photovoltaic solar power generation is proven to be effective and sustainable but is currently hampered by relatively high costs and low conversion efficiency. This paper addresses both issues by presenting a low-cost and efficient temperature distribution analysis for identifying PV module mismatch faults by thermography. Mismatch faults reduce the power output and cause potential damage to PV cells. This paper firstly defines three fault categories in terms of fault levels, which lead to different terminal characteristics of the PV modules. The investigation of three faults is also conducted analytically and experimentally and maintenance suggestions are also provided for different fault types. The proposed methodology is developed to combine the electrical and thermal characteristics of PV cells subjected to different fault mechanisms through simulation and experimental tests. Furthermore, the fault diagnosis method can be incorporated into the maximum power point tracking (MPPT) schemes to shift the operating point of the PV string. The developed technology has improved over the existing ones in locating the faulty cell by a thermal camera, providing a remedial measure and maximizing the power output under faulty conditions
Exclusions for resolving urban badger damage problems: Outcomes and consequences
Increasing urbanisation and growth of many wild animal populations can result in a greater frequency of human-wildlife conflicts. However, traditional lethal methods of wildlife control are becoming less favoured than non-lethal approaches, particularly when problems involve charismatic species in urban areas. Eurasian badgers (Meles meles) excavate subterranean burrow systems (setts), which can become large and complex. Larger setts within which breeding takes place and that are in constant use are known as main setts. Smaller, less frequently occupied setts may also exist within the social group's range. When setts are excavated in urban environments they can undermine built structures and can limit or prevent safe use of the area by people. The most common approach to resolving these problems in the UK is to exclude badgers from the problem sett, but exclusions suffer a variable success rate. We studied 32 lawful cases of badger exclusions using one-way gates throughout England to evaluate conditions under which attempts to exclude badgers from their setts in urban environments were successful. We aimed to identify ways of modifying practices to improve the chances of success. Twenty of the 32 exclusion attempts were successful, but success was significantly less likely if a main sett was to be excluded in comparison with another type of sett and if vegetation was not completely removed from the sett surface prior to exclusion attempts. We recommend that during exclusions all vegetation is removed from the site, regardless of what type of sett is involved, and that successful exclusion of badgers from a main sett might require substantially more effort than other types of sett
The extracellular calcium-sensing receptor regulates human fetal lung development via CFTR
Optimal fetal lung growth requires anion-driven fluid secretion into the lumen of the developing organ. The fetus is hypercalcemic compared to the mother and here we show that in the developing human lung this hypercalcaemia acts on the extracellular calcium-sensing receptor, CaSR, to promote fluid-driven lung expansion through activation of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator, CFTR. Several chloride channels including TMEM16, bestrophin, CFTR, CLCN2 and CLCA1, are also expressed in the developing human fetal lung at gestational stages when CaSR expression is maximal. Measurements of Cl−-driven fluid secretion in organ explant cultures show that pharmacological CaSR activation by calcimimetics stimulates lung fluid secretion through CFTR, an effect which in humans, but not mice, was also mimicked by fetal hypercalcemic conditions, demonstrating that the physiological relevance of such a mechanism appears to be species-specific. Calcimimetics promote CFTR opening by activating adenylate cyclase and we show that Ca2+-stimulated type I adenylate cyclase is expressed in the developing human lung. Together, these observations suggest that physiological fetal hypercalcemia, acting on the CaSR, promotes human fetal lung development via cAMP-dependent opening of CFTR. Disturbances in this process would be expected to permanently impact lung structure and might predispose to certain postnatal respiratory disease
Packing of Compressible Granular Materials
3D Computer simulations and experiments are employed to study random packings
of compressible spherical grains under external confining stress. Of particular
interest is the rigid ball limit, which we describe as a continuous transition
in which the applied stress vanishes as (\phi-\phi_c)^\beta, where \phi is the
(solid phase) volume density. This transition coincides with the onset of shear
rigidity. The value of \phi_c depends, for example, on whether the grains
interact via only normal forces (giving rise to random close packings) or by a
combination of normal and friction generated transverse forces (producing
random loose packings). In both cases, near the transition, the system's
response is controlled by localized force chains. As the stress increases, we
characterize the system's evolution in terms of (1) the participation number,
(2) the average force distribution, and (3) visualization techniques.Comment: 4 pages, 7 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev. Let
Torsional Force Microscopy of Van der Waals Moir\'es and Atomic Lattices
In a stack of atomically-thin Van der Waals layers, introducing interlayer
twist creates a moir\'e superlattice whose period is a function of twist angle.
Changes in that twist angle of even hundredths of a degree can dramatically
transform the system's electronic properties. Setting a precise and uniform
twist angle for a stack remains difficult, hence determining that twist angle
and mapping its spatial variation is very important. Techniques have emerged to
do this by imaging the moir\'e, but most of these require sophisticated
infrastructure, time-consuming sample preparation beyond stack synthesis, or
both. In this work, we show that Torsional Force Microscopy (TFM), a scanning
probe technique sensitive to dynamic friction, can reveal surface and shallow
subsurface structure of Van der Waals stacks on multiple length scales: the
moir\'es formed between bilayers of graphene and between graphene and hexagonal
boron nitride (hBN), and also the atomic crystal lattices of graphene and hBN.
In TFM, torsional motion of an AFM cantilever is monitored as the it is
actively driven at a torsional resonance while a feedback loop maintains
contact at a set force with the surface of a sample. TFM works at room
temperature in air, with no need for an electrical bias between the tip and the
sample, making it applicable to a wide array of samples. It should enable
determination of precise structural information including twist angles and
strain in moir\'e superlattices and crystallographic orientation of VdW flakes
to support predictable moir\'e heterostructure fabrication.Comment: 28 pages, 14 figures including supplementary material
Rare germline variants in DNA repair genes and the angiogenesis pathway predispose prostate cancer patients to develop metastatic disease
Background
Prostate cancer (PrCa) demonstrates a heterogeneous clinical presentation ranging from largely indolent to lethal. We sought to identify a signature of rare inherited variants that distinguishes between these two extreme phenotypes.
Methods
We sequenced germline whole exomes from 139 aggressive (metastatic, age of diagnosis < 60) and 141 non-aggressive (low clinical grade, age of diagnosis ≥60) PrCa cases. We conducted rare variant association analyses at gene and gene set levels using SKAT and Bayesian risk index techniques. GO term enrichment analysis was performed for genes with the highest differential burden of rare disruptive variants.
Results
Protein truncating variants (PTVs) in specific DNA repair genes were significantly overrepresented among patients with the aggressive phenotype, with BRCA2, ATM and NBN the most frequently mutated genes. Differential burden of rare variants was identified between metastatic and non-aggressive cases for several genes implicated in angiogenesis, conferring both deleterious and protective effects.
Conclusions
Inherited PTVs in several DNA repair genes distinguish aggressive from non-aggressive PrCa cases. Furthermore, inherited variants in genes with roles in angiogenesis may be potential predictors for risk of metastases. If validated in a larger dataset, these findings have potential for future clinical application
Effects of control interventions on Clostridium difficile infection in England: an observational study
Background: The control of Clostridium difficile infections is an international clinical challenge. The incidence of C difficile in England declined by roughly 80% after 2006, following the implementation of national control policies; we tested two hypotheses to investigate their role in this decline. First, if C difficile infection declines in England were driven by reductions in use of particular antibiotics, then incidence of C difficile infections caused by resistant isolates should decline faster than that caused by susceptible isolates across multiple genotypes. Second, if C difficile infection declines were driven by improvements in hospital infection control, then transmitted (secondary) cases should decline regardless of susceptibility. Methods: Regional (Oxfordshire and Leeds, UK) and national data for the incidence of C difficile infections and antimicrobial prescribing data (1998–2014) were combined with whole genome sequences from 4045 national and international C difficile isolates. Genotype (multilocus sequence type) and fluoroquinolone susceptibility were determined from whole genome sequences. The incidence of C difficile infections caused by fluoroquinolone-resistant and fluoroquinolone-susceptible isolates was estimated with negative-binomial regression, overall and per genotype. Selection and transmission were investigated with phylogenetic analyses. Findings: National fluoroquinolone and cephalosporin prescribing correlated highly with incidence of C difficile infections (cross-correlations >0·88), by contrast with total antibiotic prescribing (cross-correlations 0·2). Interpretation: Restricting fluoroquinolone prescribing appears to explain the decline in incidence of C difficile infections, above other measures, in Oxfordshire and Leeds, England. Antimicrobial stewardship should be a central component of C difficile infection control programmes
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