Circular Accessible Depth: A Robust Traversability Representation for UGV Navigation

In this paper, we present the Circular Accessible Depth (CAD), a robust traversability representation for an unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) to learn traversability in various scenarios containing irregular obstacles. To predict CAD, we propose a neural network, namely CADNet, with an attention-based multi-frame point cloud fusion module, Stability-Attention Module (SAM), to encode the spatial features from point clouds captured by LiDAR. CAD is designed based on the polar coordinate system and focuses on predicting the border of traversable area. Since it encodes the spatial information of the surrounding environment, which enables a semi-supervised learning for the CADNet, and thus desirably avoids annotating a large amount of data. Extensive experiments demonstrate that CAD outperforms baselines in terms of robustness and precision. We also implement our method on a real UGV and show that it performs well in real-world scenarios.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figure

Characterization of the Differential Aroma Compounds among 10 Different Kinds of Premium Soy Sauce

Investigation of the aroma differences among different kinds of soy sauces is beneficial for controlling their flavor quality and processing improvement from the perspectives of raw materials and brewing techniques. The aroma compounds in ten premium soy sauces (CB, HT1, HT2, LH, LJJ1, LJJ2, QH, XH1, XH2, WZ) were qualitative and quantitative analyzed by solid phase extraction and solid-phase microextraction combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The contributions of aroma compounds to the aroma characteristics of premium soy sauce was determined by sensory evaluation, calculation of aroma activity value (OAV) and partial least squares regression analysis (PLSR). A total of 86 volatile compounds were identified in 10 premium soy sauces, 44 of them were both detected in 10 soy sauce. The 30 aroma compounds with OAV≥1 were detected, the 5-ethyl-4-hydroxy-2-methyl-3(2H)-furanone showed the highest OAV (373~4698), followed by 4-methoxy-2,5-dimethyl-3(2H)-furanone (0~1473). WZ soy sauce had a strong smoky aroma due to the highest variety of phenolic and ketone compounds. The overall aroma profile of CB soy sauce was the weakest with the lowest concentration of ethanol (25.775 μg/L), but the highest content of pyrazine compounds (182.796 μg/L), of which 2,6-dimethylpyrazine was 66.256 μg/L. XH1 soy sauce had a strong sauce aroma and alcoholic notes, due to the highest ethanol content (147.257 μg/L) and higher phenolic content, for example the concentration of 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol (18240.479 μg/L) was the highest. XH2 soy sauce had a strong malty aroma. The content of 2-methyl-1-propanol (51.223 μg/L) and 2,3-butanediol (57921.798 μg/L) in LH soy sauce was the highest among others. The content of 1-octen-3-ol (61.219 μg/L) in HT1 soy sauce was the highest. Combination of OAV and PLSR analysis confirmed the ethyl acetate, 3-hydroxy-2-butanone, 2,3-butanediol, 3-ethyl-2,5-dimethylpyrazine, 4-methoxy-2,5-dimethyl-3(2H)-furanone, 4-ethylguaiacol and 4-ethylphenol were the key aroma-active components that contribute to the aroma differences among 10 kinds of premium soy sauce

Multifunctional porous silicon nanopillar arrays: antireflection, superhydrophobicity, photoluminescence, and surface-enhanced Raman scattering Multifunctional porous silicon nanopillar arrays: antireflection, superhydrophobicity, photoluminescence, and s

Abstract We have fabricated porous silicon nanopillar arrays over large areas with a rapid, simple, and low-cost technique. The porous silicon nanopillars show unique longitudinal features along their entire length and have porosity with dimensions on the single-nanometer scale. Both Raman spectroscopy and photoluminescence data were used to determine the nanocrystallite size to be <3 nm. The porous silicon nanopillar arrays also maintained excellent ensemble properties, reducing reflection nearly fivefold from planar silicon in the visible range without any optimization, and approaching superhydrophobic behavior with increasing aspect ratio, demonstrating contact angles up to 138 • . Finally, the porous silicon nanopillar arrays were made into sensitive surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates by depositing metal onto the pillars. The SERS performance of the substrates was demonstrated using a chemical dye Rhodamine 6G. With their multitude of properties (i.e., antireflection, superhydrophobicity, photoluminescence, and sensitive SERS), the porous silicon nanopillar arrays described here can be valuable in applications such as solar harvesting, electrochemical cells, self-cleaning devices, and dynamic biological monitoring

Discrete control for state of charge balance in DC microgrids considering the disturbance of photovoltaics

This study examines State of Charge (SoC) balancing control in DC microgrids subject to photovoltaic (PV) fluctuations, aiming to optimize power distribution in energy storage systems influenced by PV disturbances. The proposed approach enhances both the lifespan of storage systems and microgrid stability. To mitigate voltage variation due to PV perturbation, the paper introduces an adjustment in droop control offset. Additionally, it presents a novel discrete Sliding Mode Controller (SMC) characterized by reduced parameter sensitivity, thus enhancing control responsiveness. A SoC balancing control strategy employing sliding mode control is developed to equalize SoC levels across Battery Energy Storage Systems during both charge and discharge cycles. The stability of this strategy is substantiated through the construction of a Lyapunov function. Simulations conducted in a distributed DC microgrid environment using Simulink/SimPower Systems demonstrate the efficacy of the discrete SMC and the SoC balancing algorithm, achieving uniform SoC in energy storage nodes during operation, with improved robustness against PV perturbations

Surface engineering for ultrathin metal anodes enabling high-performance Zn-ion batteries

Zn metal battery has been considered a promising alternative energy storage technology in renewable energy storage and grid storage. It is well-known that the surface orientation of a Zn metal anode is vital to the reversibility of a Zn metal battery. Herein, the (101)-oriented thin Zn metal anode (down to 2 {\mu}m) is electrodeposited on a Cu surface by adding dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) electrolyte additive in ZnSO4 aqueous solution. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) observation indicates the formation of flat terrace-like compact (101)-oriented surfaces. Insitu optical observation confirms that the (101)-oriented surfaces can be reversibly plated and stripped. DFT calculations reveal two mechanisms for the nucleation and growth of the Zn-(101) surface: (1) formation of Zn(101)//Cu(001) could lower the interface energy as compared to Zn(002)//Cu(001); (2) large reconstruction of the Zn (101) surface with DMSO and H2O absorption. Raman, XPS, and ToF-SIMS characterizations indicate that adding DMSO in ZnCl2 could facilitate the formation of ZnO-based SEI on Zn metal surface, while OH- and S-based SEI can be obtained with DMSO in ZnSO4. The electrochemical testings are performed, which demonstrates a higher cyclability for the (101)-oriented Zn in the half cell as well as a lower charge transfer barrier with respect to the (002)-dominated surface of the same electrode thickness. Zn||V2O5 full cells are further assembled, showing better capacity retention for the (101)-Zn as compared to the (002)-Zn with the same thickness (5 {\mu}m, 3 {\mu}m, and 2 {\mu}m). We hope this study to spur further interest in the control of Zn metal surface crystallographic orientation towards ultrathin Zn metal anodes.Comment: 21 Pages 6 Figure

<i>In Situ</i> Fabrication of 3D Ag@ZnO Nanostructures for Microfluidic Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Systems

In this work, we develop an <i>in situ</i> method to grow highly controllable, sensitive, three-dimensional (3D) surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates via an optothermal effect within microfluidic devices. Implementing this approach, we fabricate SERS substrates composed of Ag@ZnO structures at prescribed locations inside microfluidic channels, sites within which current fabrication of SERS structures has been arduous. Conveniently, properties of the 3D Ag@ZnO nanostructures such as length, packing density, and coverage can also be adjusted by tuning laser irradiation parameters. After exploring the fabrication of the 3D nanostructures, we demonstrate a SERS enhancement factor of up to ∼2 × 10⁶ and investigate the optical properties of the 3D Ag@ZnO structures through finite-difference time-domain simulations. To illustrate the potential value of our technique, low concentrations of biomolecules in the liquid state are detected. Moreover, an integrated cell-trapping function of the 3D Ag@ZnO structures records the surface chemical fingerprint of a living cell. Overall, our optothermal-effect-based fabrication technique offers an effective combination of microfluidics with SERS, resolving problems associated with the fabrication of SERS substrates in microfluidic channels. With its advantages in functionality, simplicity, and sensitivity, the microfluidic-SERS platform presented should be valuable in many biological, biochemical, and biomedical applications

Shape-Controlled Synthesis of Hybrid Nanomaterials <i>via</i> Three-Dimensional Hydrodynamic Focusing

Shape-controlled synthesis of nanomaterials through a simple, continuous, and low-cost method is essential to nanomaterials research toward practical applications. Hydrodynamic focusing, with its advantages of simplicity, low-cost, and precise control over reaction conditions, has been used for nanomaterial synthesis. While most studies have focused on improving the uniformity and size control, few have addressed the potential of tuning the shape of the synthesized nanomaterials. Here we demonstrate a facile method to synthesize hybrid materials by three-dimensional hydrodynamic focusing (3D-HF). While keeping the flow rates of the reagents constant and changing only the flow rate of the buffer solution, the molar ratio of two reactants (<i>i.e.</i>, tetrathiafulvalene (TTF) and HAuCl₄) within the reaction zone varies. The synthesized TTF–Au hybrid materials possess very different and predictable morphologies. The reaction conditions at different buffer flow rates are studied through computational simulation, and the formation mechanisms of different structures are discussed. This simple one-step method to achieve continuous shape-tunable synthesis highlights the potential of 3D-HF in nanomaterials research

Combining the Masking and Scaffolding Modalities of Colloidal Crystal Templates: Plasmonic Nanoparticle Arrays with Multiple Periodicities

Surface patterns with prescribed structures and properties are highly desirable for a variety of applications. Increasing the heterogeneity of surface patterns is frequently required. This work opens a new avenue toward creating nanoparticle arrays with multiple periodicities by combining two generally separately applied modalities (i.e., scaffolding and masking) of a monolayer colloidal crystal (MCC) template. Highly ordered, loosely packed binary and ternary surface patterns are realized by a single-step thermal treatment of a gold thin-film-coated MCC and a nonclose-packed MCC template. Our approach enables control of the parameters defining these nanoscale binary and ternary surface patterns, such as particle size, shape, and composition, as well as the interparticle spacing. This technique enables preparation of well-defined binary and ternary surface patterns to achieve customized plasmonic properties. Moreover, with their easy programmability and excellent scalability, the binary and ternary surface patterns presented here could have valuable applications in nanophotonics and biomedicine. Specific examples include biosensing via surface-enhanced Raman scattering, fabrication of plasmonic-enhanced solar cells, and water splitting