Kinematics and Robot Design I, KaRD2018

This volume collects the papers published on the Special Issue “Kinematics and Robot Design I, KaRD2018” (https://www.mdpi.com/journal/robotics/special_issues/KARD), which is the first issue of the KaRD Special Issue series, hosted by the open access journal “MDPI Robotics”. The KaRD series aims at creating an open environment where researchers can present their works and discuss all the topics focused on the many aspects that involve kinematics in the design of robotic/automatic systems. Kinematics is so intimately related to the design of robotic/automatic systems that the admitted topics of the KaRD series practically cover all the subjects normally present in well-established international conferences on “mechanisms and robotics”. KaRD2018 received 22 papers and, after the peer-review process, accepted only 14 papers. The accepted papers cover some theoretical and many design/applicative aspects

Functional Nanomaterials in Biomedicine

The great success of nanotechnology promotes a tremendous revolution in the biomedical field. Functional nanomaterials have been widely applied for the treatment of various diseases, such as cancer, bacterial infection, diabetes, inflammation, and neurodegenerative disorders. Various therapeutic nanoplatforms have been developed with therapeutic functions and intelligent properties. However, the development of nanomedicine suffers from several challenges prior to their clinical applications. For instance, disease detection in an early stage is a critical challenge for nanomedicine. It is difficult to detect disease markers (e.g., proteins, genes, or cancer circulating cells), so nanoprobes with high sensitivity and selectivity are required. Moreover, to overcome drug resistance, it is highly desirable to develop functional nanomedicines with the combination of multiple therapeutic modalities, such as chemotherapy, photothermal therapy, photodynamic therapy, chemodynamic therapy, radiotherapy, starving therapy, and immunotherapy. Additionally, the stability and degradability of most nanomedicines in biofluids should be carefully evaluated before their administration to humans. This book provides researchers with the latest investigations and findings in this field

Actuators for Intelligent Electric Vehicles

This book details the advanced actuators for IEVs and the control algorithm design. In the actuator design, the configuration four-wheel independent drive/steering electric vehicles is reviewed. An in-wheel two-speed AMT with selectable one-way clutch is designed for IEV. Considering uncertainties, the optimization design for the planetary gear train of IEV is conducted. An electric power steering system is designed for IEV. In addition, advanced control algorithms are proposed in favour of active safety improvement. A supervision mechanism is applied to the segment drift control of autonomous driving. Double super-resolution network is used to design the intelligent driving algorithm. Torque distribution control technology and four-wheel steering technology are utilized for path tracking and adaptive cruise control. To advance the control accuracy, advanced estimation algorithms are studied in this book. The tyre-road peak friction coefficient under full slip rate range is identified based on the normalized tyre model. The pressure of the electro-hydraulic brake system is estimated based on signal fusion. Besides, a multi-semantic driver behaviour recognition model of autonomous vehicles is designed using confidence fusion mechanism. Moreover, a mono-vision based lateral localization system of low-cost autonomous vehicles is proposed with deep learning curb detection. To sum up, the discussed advanced actuators, control and estimation algorithms are beneficial to the active safety improvement of IEVs

Gas, Water and Solid Waste Treatment Technology

This book introduces a variety of treatment technologies, such as physical, chemical, and biological methods for the treatment of gas emissions, wastewater, and solid waste. It provides a useful source of information for engineers and specialists, as well as for undergraduate and postgraduate students, in the areas of environmental science and engineering

Afforestation Drives Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Changes in China

Afforestation has been proposed as an effective method of carbon (C) sequestration; however, the magnitude and direction of soil C and nitrogen (N) dynamics following afforestation are not well understood. This study was designed to examine soil C and N dynamics following afforestation and to determine how various factors affect soil organic C (SOC) and total N (TN) after land-use conversions through the compilation and analysis of published data from 61 individual studies (512 observations at 61 sites in China). This analysis showed that for different previous land uses, post-afforestation SOC, TN, and C/N ratio varied in diverse temporal patterns. The relationship of soil C-N coupling was related to land use prior to afforestation and forest age. At 0-100cm soil depths, SOC and TN increased at rates about 023 and 003gkg(-1)y(-1), respectively, and the C/N ratio was about 019y(-1). SOC and TN were significantly affected by tree species, forest age, and soil depth. SOC, TN, and C/N were negatively correlated with soil bulk density (p005) but positively correlated with soil total phosphorus (p<001), soil moisture (p<001) and soil microbial biomass C (p<001) and N (p<001). Additionally, SOC and TN were higher for the mid-level humidity index in China and were also determined by precipitation, temperature, and forest age. These results highlight the importance of previous land use, tree species, soil depth, and forest age in determining soil C and N changes in a range of environments and land-use transitions. Copyright (c) 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Large-scale soil organic carbon mapping based on multivariate modelling: The case of grasslands on the Loess Plateau

The Loess Plateau is considered one of the world's regions with severe soil erosion. Grasslands are widely distributed on the Loess Plateau, accounting for approximately 40% of the total area. Soil organic carbon (SOC) plays an important role in the terrestrial carbon cycle in this region. We compiled more than 1,000 measurements of plant biomass and SOC content derived from 223 field studies of grasslands on the Loess Plateau. Combined with meteorological factors (precipitation and air temperature) and the photosynthetically active radiation factor, the topsoil SOC contents of grasslands were predicted using the random forest (RF) regression algorithm. Predicted grassland SOC content (1.70-40.34gkg(-1)) decreased from the southeast to the northwest of the Loess Plateau, with approximately 1/5 of the grassland exhibiting values lower than 4gkg(-1). Observed SOC content was positively correlated with observed plant biomass, and for predicted values, this correlation was strong in the desert steppe and the steppe desert of rocky mountains. Air temperature was the most important factor affecting SOC contents in the RF model. Moreover, the residual error of observations and predictions increased as the grazing intensity varied from none to very severe in the temperate desert steppe, and this RF model may not perform well in plains. The use of the RF model for SOC prediction in Loess Plateau grasslands provides a reference for C storage studies in arid and semi-arid regions, and aboveground biomass and temperature should receive more attention due to increasing C sequestration

Interaction of soil water storage and stoichiometrical characteristics in the long-term natural vegetation restoration on the Loess Plateau

Knowledge of the soil water and stoichiometrical characteristics (SC) during long-term natural vegetation restoration is essential for managing the restoration of vegetation. To evaluate the response of soil water storage (SWS), soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen content (TN) and total phosphorous content (TP) to long-term natural vegetation restoration (similar to 160 a), we examined the soil moisture and SC in areas with different restoration ages located in the central part of the Loess Plateau, China. Our results showed that the SWS decreased significantly with vegetation restoration and that the C:P ratio, N:P ratio, TN and TP increased significantly. The SWS increased gradually, whereas the SOC, C:P ratio, N:P ratio, TN and TP in each restoration stage decreased significantly with increasing soil depth in the 0-60 cm soil layer. These parameters tended to be stable in the soil layer below 60 cm. Vegetation acts as a link between SWS and soil SC, and they interact with each other indirectly. SWS and SWC showed an significant positive relationship (P < 0.01), whereas SWS and SOC, TN, TP, C: P ratio, and N: P ratio showed significant negative relationships (P < 0.01), thus, SOC, TN and TP are the key chemical factors affecting SWS.. These results could help estimating the productivity and sustainability of semiarid ecosystems and improve future eco-environmental reconstructions

Effects of soil aggregate stability on soil N following land use changes under erodible environment

Soil nitrogen (N) dynamics have considerable effects on the terrestrial carbon cycle, and land use changes could affect soil N through impacts on soil aggregate stability. This study selected nine sites including apple orchards of different ages and restored sites to explore the effects of soil aggregate stability on soil total N (STN), ammonium N (AN), and nitrate N (NN) following different stages of apple orchard on the Loess Plateau of China. The results showed that when compared with apple orchard sites, the restored sites had higher contents of STN and lower contents of AN and NN, but when compared with restored sites, inorganic-N storage played a more important role in the apple orchards. Following different stages of apple orchards, the STN, AN and NN contents and mean weight diameter (MWD) of soil aggregates were all improved. MWD had a negative effect on inorganic-N content at 10-30 cm soil depths but had a positive relationship with soil N at 0-10 cm soil depth. In addition, planting apple orchards destroyed soil aggregate stability in this erodible environment, but it could be restored soon after abandonment. Therefore, considering soil N and soil aggregate stability, it is feasible to plant apple trees in this area and we propose that the effects of trade-offs between soil aggregate stability and soil erosion on soil N in terraced agroecosystems should be a focus of future research