Mesoporous High‐Surface‐Area Copper–Tin Mixed‐Oxide Nanorods: Remarkable for Carbon Monoxide Oxidation

Mesoporous, high‐surface‐area Cu–Sn mixed‐oxide nanorods were fabricated for the first time by nanocasting with the use of mesoporous KIT‐6 silica as the hard template. The Cu–Sn nanorods are significantly more active than 1 % Pd/SnO2 for the oxidation of CO and possesses long‐term durability and potent water resistance; they thus have the potential to replace noble metal catalysts for emission‐control processes.In rod we trust: Mesoporous, high‐surface‐area Cu–Sn nanorods are successfully fabricated for the first time by nanocasting with the use of KIT‐6 silica as the hard template; these nanomaterials are significantly more active than 1 % Pd/SnO2 for the oxidation of CO, and furthermore, they have the potential to replace noble metal catalysts for emission control.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/137536/1/cctc201600221.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/137536/2/cctc201600221-sup-0001-misc_information.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/137536/3/cctc201600221_am.pd

The effect of nitric oxide on the pressure of the acutely obstructed ureter

Acute ureteral obstruction leads to changes in pressure inside the ureter, interrupting ureter function. The aim of our study is to explore the relationship between nitric oxide (NO) concentration and pressure in the ureter and to observe the effects of nitric oxide on the revival of renal function. We created the animal models by embedding balloons in the lower ureters of anesthetized dogs and expanding them to simulate acute ureteral obstruction. First, the test animals were pre-treated intravenously with different doses of L-NAME (non-selective nitric oxide synthase inhibitor) to inhibit nitric oxide synthase (NOS), and 10 min later, each subject was administered an intravenous dose of isoproterenol (10 μg/kg). We measured ureter pressure (UP), total and peak concentrations of NO (using an NO monitor, model inNO-T) in ureteral urine, and the volume of the urine (UFV) leaking from the balloon edge. After a certain amount of time had elapsed, it became clear that the dose of L-NAME was inversely related to the total and peak concentrations of NO, the rate of change in UP, and the volume of urine produced. We conclude that L-NAME prevents the NOS from inhibiting the release of NO, then inhibits the effect of isoproterenol reducing the pressure of the acute obstructive ureter. Inversely, we think that NO can reduce the pressure of the acute obstructive ureter and make the obstructive ureter recanalization. And when more the concentration of nitric oxide, the more the pressure will be reduced, and more urine will be collected

Evaluating how lodging affects maize yield estimation based on UAV observations

Timely and accurate pre-harvest estimates of maize yield are vital for agricultural management. Although many remote sensing approaches have been developed to estimate maize yields, few have been tested under lodging conditions. Thus, the feasibility of existing approaches under lodging conditions and the influence of lodging on maize yield estimates both remain unclear. To address this situation, this study develops a lodging index to quantify the degree of lodging. The index is based on RGB and multispectral images obtained from a low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle and proves to be an important predictor variable in a random forest regression (RFR) model for accurately estimating maize yield after lodging. The results show that (1) the lodging index accurately describes the degree of lodging of each maize plot, (2) the yield-estimation model that incorporates the lodging index provides slightly more accurate yield estimates than without the lodging index at three important growth stages of maize (tasseling, milking, denting), and (3) the RFR model with lodging index applied at the denting (R5) stage yields the best performance of the three growth stages, with R2 = 0.859, a root mean square error (RMSE) of 1086.412 kg/ha, and a relative RMSE of 13.1%. This study thus provides valuable insight into the precise estimation of crop yield and demonstra\tes that incorporating a lodging stress-related variable into the model leads to accurate and robust estimates of crop grain yield

Five-Year Longitudinal Assessment of the Downstream Impact on Schistosomiasis Transmission following Closure of the Three Gorges Dam

Schistosomiasis, caused by Schistosoma japonicum, is a significant parasitic disease and public health problem in China. How the parasite is transmitted there can be categorized into four distinct modes (modes I–IV) and it is predicted that the Three Gorges Dam, recently completed, will affect the way schistosomiasis is spread in these modes. We monitored transmission for a 5-year period (2002–2006) in eight villages, representative of the three modes (I–III) below the dam across four provinces (Hunan, Jiangxi, Hubei and Anhui) to determine whether there was any immediate impact of the dam on schistosomiasis spread. Human schistosomiasis incidence declined considerably within individual villages and each mode, and the yearly odds ratios (adjusted) for infection risk showed significant downward trends in all three modes over the follow-up period. The decreased human S. japonicum incidence recorded across transmission modes I–III was probably attributable to annual human and bovine praziquantel drug treatment. If an increase in schistosome transmission had occurred as a result of the dam, it would be of negligible size compared with this treatment-induced decline. There had thus been virtually no immediate impact of the TGD on schistosomiasis transmission downstream of the dam over the 5-year surveillance period

Simultaneous determination of kolliphor HS15 and miglyol 812 in microemulsion formulation by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with nano quantity analyte detector

A novel method for simultaneous determination of kolliphor HS15 and miglyol 812 in microemulsion formulation was developed using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with a nano quantitation analytical detector (UHPLC–NQAD). All components in kolliphor HS15 and miglyol 812 were well separated on an Acquity BEH C18 column. Mobile phase A was 0.1% trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) in water and mobile phase B was acetonitrile. A gradient elution sequence was programed initially with 60% organic solvent, slowly increased to 100% within 8 min. The flow rate was 0.7 mL/min. Good linearity (r>0.95) was obtained in the range of 27.6–1381.1 μg/mL for polyoxyl 15 hydroxystearate in kolliphor HS15, 0.8–202.0 μg/mL for caprylic acid triglyceride and 2.7–221.9 μg/mL for capric acid triglyceride in miglyol 812. The relative standard deviations (RSD) ranged from 0.6% to 1.7% for intra-day precision and from 0.4% to 2.7% for inter-day precision. The overall recoveries (accuracy) were 99.7%–101.4% for polyoxyl 15 hydroxystearate in kolliphor HS15, 96.7%–99.6% for caprylic acid triglyceride, and 94.1%–103.3% for capric acid triglyceride in miglyol 812. Quantification limits (QL) were determined as 27.6 μg/mL for polyoxyl 15 hydroxystearate in kolliphor HS15, 0.8 μg/mL for caprylic acid triglyceride, and 2.7 μg/mL for capric acid triglyceride in miglyol 812. No interferences were observed in the retention time ranges of kolliphor HS15 and miglyol 812. The method was validated in terms of specificity, linearity, precision, accuracy, QL, and robustness. The proposed method has been applied to microemulsion formulation analyses with good recoveries (82.2%–103.4%)

Development and validation of a GCâFID method for quantitative analysis of oleic acid and related fatty acids

Oleic acid is a common pharmaceutical excipient that has been widely used in various dosage forms. Gas chromatography (GC) has often been used as the quantitation method for fatty acids normally requiring a derivatization step. The aim of this study was to develop a simple, robust, and derivatization-free GC method that is suitable for routine analysis of all the major components in oleic acid USP-NF (United States Pharmacopeia-National Formulary) material. A gas chromatographyâflame ionization detection (GCâFID) method was developed for direct quantitative analysis of oleic acid and related fatty acids in oleic acid USP-NF material. Fifteen fatty acids were separated using a DB-FFAP (nitroterephthalic acid modified polyethylene glycol) capillary GC column (30 mÃ0.32 mm i.d.) with a total run time of 20 min. The method was validated in terms of specificity, linearity, precision, accuracy, sensitivity, and robustness. The method can be routinely used for the purpose of oleic acid USP-NF material analysis. Keywords: Oleic acid, Fatty acids, Gas chromatography, Method development, Derivatization-fre

Farmers’ Credit Risk Assessment Based on Sustainable Supply Chain Finance for Green Agriculture

With the development of green agriculture, the demand of farmers for operation loans is increasing. Supply chain finance is becoming a new way to solve the problem of difficult credit in agricultural development. As the importance of sustainability issues continues to rise, there are growing numbers of practical examples of combining agricultural supply chain finance (ASCF) with sustainability, and the attendant risks are emerging. The objectives of this study are first to construct a risk indicator system for sustainable ASCF, then to propose a fuzzy decision method that considers the confidence of decision-makers, and finally to perform a risk assessment of a credit case in the coffee bean supply chain. A combination of the neutrosophic enhanced best–worst method (NE-BWM) and combined compromise solution (COCOSO) is used to evaluate risk problems. The practicality and effectiveness of this research method is verified by a numerical simulation and a comparison with the method. The results show that the credit rating of core companies is the most important indicator. In the context of green and sustainable development, this indicator system is more suitable for the current green transformation development of agriculture and can help decision-makers scientifically and reasonably assess the risk level of ASCF. When loans are needed to transform green agriculture, this study provides new ideas for credit models for various actors in the agricultural supply chain and offers a new entry point to the issue of sustainable agricultural development

Research on High Speed Cutting Parameter Optimization and Fault Diagnosis Technology

High speed cutting process is a very complicated process; cutting parameters have a significant effect on cutting process and play a key role in the process of product manufacturing. The overall scheme of high speed cutting parameter optimization and its fault diagnosis have been introduced. The mathematical model of the selected cutting parameters was established and the optimized parameters were obtained by combining the experimental design with the technology of data processing. The statistical description of high speed cutting process control was introduced and the fault diagnosis model of cutting parameter optimization by using the neural network was proposed. Finally, the mathematical model in the present study is validated with a numerical example. The results show that the present method solved the problem of poor universality of high speed cutting data effectively and avoided the inaccuracy of physical and chemical mechanism research. Meanwhile, the present study prevents the passive checks of the cutting and gets better diagnosis of the complicated cutting fault type