Machine Learning‑Assisted Low‑Dimensional Electrocatalysts Design for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

Efficient electrocatalysts are crucial for hydrogen generation from electrolyzing water. Nevertheless, the conventional trial and error method for producing advanced electrocatalysts is not only cost-ineffective but also time-consuming and labor-intensive. Fortunately, the advancement of machine learning brings new opportunities for electrocatalysts discovery and design. By analyzing experimental and theoretical data, machine learning can effectively predict their hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) performance. This review summarizes recent developments in machine learning for low-dimensional electrocatalysts, including zero-dimension nanoparticles and nanoclusters, one-dimensional nanotubes and nanowires, two-dimensional nanosheets, as well as other electrocatalysts. In particular, the effects of descriptors and algorithms on screening low-dimensional electrocatalysts and investigating their HER performance are highlighted. Finally, the future directions and perspectives for machine learning in electrocatalysis are discussed, emphasizing the potential for machine learning to accelerate electrocatalyst discovery, optimize their performance, and provide new insights into electrocatalytic mechanisms. Overall, this work offers an in-depth understanding of the current state of machine learning in electrocatalysis and its potential for future research

Vancomycin associated acute kidney injury in patients with infectious endocarditis: a large retrospective cohort study

Background: Vancomycin remains the cornerstone antibiotic for the treatment of infective endocarditis (IE). Vancomycin has been associated with significant nephrotoxicity. However, vancomycin associated acute kidney injury (AKI) has not been evaluated in patients with IE. We conducted this large retrospective cohort study to reveal the incidence, risk factors, and prognosis of vancomycin-associated acute kidney injury (VA-AKI) in patients with IE.Methods: Adult patients diagnosed with IE and receiving vancomycin were included. The primary outcome was VA-AKI.Results: In total, 435 of the 600 patients were enrolled. Of these, 73.6% were male, and the median age was 52 years. The incidence of VA-AKI was 17.01% (74). Only 37.2% (162) of the patients received therapeutic monitoring of vancomycin, and 30 (18.5%) patients had reached the target vancomycin trough concentration. Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that body mass index [odds ratio (OR) 1.088, 95% CI 1.004, 1.179], duration of vancomycin therapy (OR 1.030, 95% CI 1.003, 1.058), preexisting chronic kidney disease (OR 2.291, 95% CI 1.018, 5.516), admission to the intensive care unit (OR 2.291, 95% CI 1.289, 3.963) and concomitant radiocontrast agents (OR 2.085, 95% CI 1.093, 3.978) were independent risk factors for VA-AKI. Vancomycin variety (Lai Kexin vs. Wen Kexin, OR 0.498, 95% CI 0.281, 0.885) were determined to be an independent protective factor for VI-AKI. Receiver operator characteristic curve analysis revealed that duration of therapy longer than 10.75 days was associated with a significantly increased risk of VA-AKI (HR 1.927). Kidney function was fully or partially recovered in 73.0% (54) of patients with VA-AKI.Conclusion: The incidence of VA-AKI in patients with IE was slightly higher than in general adult patients. Concomitant contrast agents were the most alarmingly nephrotoxic in patients with IE, adding a 2-fold risk of VA-AKI. In patients with IE, a course of vancomycin therapy longer than 10.75 days was associated with a significantly increased risk of AKI. Thus, closer monitoring of kidney function and vancomycin trough concentrations was recommended in patients with concurrent contrast or courses of vancomycin longer than 10.75 days

Soluble interleukin-2 receptor combined with interleukin-8 is a powerful predictor of future adverse cardiovascular events in patients with acute myocardial infarction

BackgroundLittle is known about the role of interleukin (IL) in patients with acute myocardial infarction (MI), especially soluble IL-2 receptor (sIL-2R) and IL-8. We aim to evaluate, in MI patients, the predictive value of serum sIL-2R and IL-8 for future major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs), and compare them with current biomarkers reflecting myocardial inflammation and injury.MethodsThis was a prospective, single-center cohort study. We measured serum concentrations of IL-1β, sIL-2R, IL-6, IL-8 and IL-10. Levels of current biomarkers for predicting MACEs were measured, including high-sensitivity C reactive protein, cardiac troponin T and N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide. Clinical events were collected during 1-year and a median of 2.2 years (long-term) follow-up.ResultsTwenty-four patients (13.8%, 24/173) experienced MACEs during 1-year follow-up and 40 patients (23.1%, 40/173) during long-term follow-up. Of the five interleukins studied, only sIL-2R and IL-8 were independently associated with endpoints during 1-year or long-term follow-up. Patients with high sIL-2R or IL-8 levels (higher than the cutoff value) had a significantly higher risk of MACEs during 1-year (sIL-2R: HR 7.7, 3.3–18.0, p < 0.001; IL-8: HR 4.8, 2.1–10.7, p < 0.001) and long-term (sIL-2R: HR 7.7, 3.3–18.0, p < 0.001; IL-8: HR 4.8, 2.1–10.7, p < 0.001) follow-up. Receiver operator characteristic curve analysis regarding predictive accuracy for MACEs during 1-year follow-up showed that the area under the curve for sIL-2R, IL-8, sIL-2R combined with IL-8 was 0.66 (0.54–0.79, p = 0.011), 0.69 (0.56–0.82, p < 0.001) and 0.720 (0.59–0.85, p < 0.001), whose predictive value were superior to that of current biomarkers. The addition of sIL-2R combined with IL-8 to the existing prediction model resulted in a significant improvement in predictive power (p = 0.029), prompting a 20.8% increase in the proportion of correct classifications.ConclusionsHigh serum sIL-2R combined with IL-8 levels was significantly associated with MACEs during follow-up in patients with MI, suggesting that sIL-2R combined with IL-8 may be a helpful biomarker for identifying the increased risk of new cardiovascular events. IL-2 and IL-8 would be promising therapeutic targets for anti-inflammatory therapy

The Law of Instability and Failure of the Slope of Dumping Site: A Case Study in Inner Mongolia, China

In order to study the law of instability and failure in the process of loading of the south dumping site of Hesgoola Coal Mine, the FLAC 3D numerical simulation experiment and the bottom friction simulation experiment were carried out for the deformation and failure of the slope of the south dumping site, the law of instability and failure in the process of loading of south dumping site is obtained, and the relevant safety precontrol measures and suggestions are put forward. This is of great significance to ensure the safety production of the south dumping site of Hesgoola Coal Mine

Design and kinematics of a lightweight cruciform continuum robot

The design of new lightweight and dexterous configurations is a major research focus for continuum robotics. This work proposes a cruciform continuum robot. Its unique feature is that it is formed by multiple cruciform-arranged elastic sheets with a single dimension of motion connected in series, and thus it has low-coupling motion characteristics. In addition, the cruciform continuum robot has the advantages of lighter weight (65gg), better dexterity, and higher motion accuracy. In this paper, the forward and inverse kinematics models of the cruciform continuum robot are established by geometric methods based on the assumption of constant curvature, and its workspace is analysed. It is experimentally verified that the tip position errors are less than 1gmm, and the cable length errors are less than 0.4gmm. Further, the cruciform continuum robot is successfully used for the nucleic acid detection simulation experiment, which confirms its good dexterity and man-machine safety. The main contribution of this paper is to provide a new configuration for the lightweight and dexterous continuum robots, and to further provide a reference method for improving their modelling accuracy from the perspective of structure.</p

Studies on Kinetics, Isotherms, Thermodynamics and Adsorption Mechanism of Methylene Blue by N and S Co-Doped Porous Carbon Spheres

Heteroatom-doped carbon is widely used in the fields of adsorbents, electrode materials and catalysts due to its excellent physicochemical properties. N and S co-doped porous carbon spheres (N,S-PCSs) were synthesized using glucose and L-cysteine as carbon and heteroatom sources using a combined hydrothermal and KOH activation process. The physicochemical structures and single-factor methylene blue (MB) adsorption properties of the N,S-PCSs were then studied. The optimized N,S-PCSs-1 possessed a perfect spherical morphology with a 2–8-μm diameter and a large specific area of 1769.41 m2 g−1, in which the N and S contents were 2.97 at% and 0.88 at%, respectively. In the single-factor adsorption experiment for MB, the MB adsorption rate increased with an increase in carbon dosage and MB initial concentration, and the adsorption reached equilibrium within 2–3 h. The pseudo-second-order kinetic model could excellently fit the experimental data with a high R2 (0.9999). The Langmuir isothermal adsorption equation fitted well with the experimental results with an R2 value of 0.9618, and the MB maximum adsorption quantity was 909.10 mg g−1. The adsorption of MB by N,S-PCSs-1 was a spontaneous, endothermic, and random process based on the thermodynamics analyses. The adsorption mechanism mainly involved Van der Waals force adsorption, π-π stacking, hydrogen bonds and Lewis acid–base interactions

Elastic Moduli and Mechanical Properties of Mo₅SiB₂ Single Crystals in the Mo-Si-B System

With outstanding high-temperature properties, the intermetallic Mo5SiB2 alloy is regarded as an extremely competitive ultra-temperature structural material. The maximum Young’s modulus of 398.0 GPa for single Mo5SiB2 crystals was found to be at the vertex of the [010] direction, while the minimum value of 264.0 GPa was found in the [001] direction. For hardness, the maximum value was 451.7 HV after compression at 1200 °C in the radial direction, while the maximum hardness was 437.2 HV at 1300 °C in the axial direction of {111}, showing obvious anisotropy. Under compression, the flow stresses rapidly increased and then decreased with the increase in strain, corresponding to the two different stages of work hardening and softening. An EBSD test showed that the grain orientation remained the same at different rates, but the texture was different. After high-temperature compression, the crystal underwent plastic deformation, dislocations slipped along the slip plane, and the grain rotated, so the grain texture changed from {111} to {001}

Preoperative estimation of the liver graft weight in adult right lobe living donor liver transplantation using maximal portal vein diameters

An accurate preoperative estimate of the graft weight is vital to avoid small-for-size syndrome in the recipient and ensure donor safety after adult living donor liver transplantation (LDLT). Here we describe a simple method for estimating the graft volume (GV) that uses the maximal right portal vein diameter (RPVD) and the maximal left portal vein diameter (LPVD). Between June 2004 and December 2009, 175 consecutive donors undergoing right hepatectomy for LDLT were retrospectively reviewed. The GV was determined with 3 estimation methods: (1) the radiological graft volume (RGV) estimated by computed tomography (CT) volumetry; (2) the computed tomography-calculated graft volume (CGV-CT), which was obtained by the multiplication of the standard liver volume (SLV) by the RGV percentage with respect to the total liver volume derived from CT; and (3) the portal vein diameter ratio-calculated graft volume (CGV-PVDR), which was obtained by the multiplication of the SLV by the portal vein diameter ratio [PVDR; ie, PVDR = RPVD 2/(RPVD 2 + LPVD 2)]. These values were compared to the actual graft weight (AGW), which was measured intraoperatively. The mean AGW was 633.63 ± 107.51 g, whereas the mean RGV, CGV-CT, and CGV-PVDR values were 747.83 ± 138.59, 698.21 ± 94.81, and 685.20 ± 90.88 cm 3, respectively. All 3 estimation methods tended to overestimate the AGW (P < 0.001). The actual graft-to-recipient body weight ratio (GRWR) was 1.00% ± 0.19%, and the GRWRs calculated on the basis of the RGV, CGV-CT, and CGV-PVDR values were 1.19% ± 0.25%, 1.11% ± 0.22%, and 1.09% ± 0.21%, respectively. Overall, the CGV-PVDR values better correlated with the AGW and GRWR values according to Lin's concordance correlation coefficient and the Landis and Kock benchmark. In conclusion, the PVDR method is a simple estimation method that accurately predicts GVs and GRWRs in adult LDLT

Preparation of Hollow Core&ndash;Shell Fe3O4/Nitrogen-Doped Carbon Nanocomposites for Lithium-Ion Batteries

Iron oxides are potential electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries because of their high theoretical capacities, low cost, rich resources, and their non-polluting properties. However, iron oxides demonstrate large volume expansion during the lithium intercalation process, resulting in the electrode material being crushed, which always results in poor cycle performance. In this paper, to solve the above problem, iron oxide/carbon nanocomposites with a hollow core&ndash;shell structure were designed. Firstly, an Fe2O3@polydopamine nanocomposite was prepared using an Fe2O3 nanocube and dopamine hydrochloride as precursors. Secondly, an Fe3O4@N-doped C composite was obtained by means of further carbonization treatment. Finally, Fe3O4@void@N-Doped C-x composites with core&ndash;shell structures with different void sizes were obtained by means of Fe3O4 etching. The effect of the etching time on the void size was studied. The electrochemical properties of the composites when used as lithium-ion battery materials were studied in more detail. The results showed that the sample that was obtained via etching for 5 h using 2 mol L&minus;1 HCl solution at 30 &deg;C demonstrated better electrochemical performance. The discharge capacity of the Fe3O4@void@N-Doped C-5 was able to reach up to 1222 mA g h&minus;1 under 200 mA g&minus;1 after 100 cycles