Accelerated discovery of cathode materials with prolonged cycle life for lithium-ion battery.

革新的材料設計手法により超長寿命2次電池開発に成功 -多数の高精度計算データを活用して材料開発を大幅に加速-. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2014-07-30.Large-scale battery systems are essential for efficiently utilizing renewable energy power sources from solar and wind, which can generate electricity only intermittently. The use of lithium-ion batteries to store the generated energy is one solution. A long cycle life is critical for lithium-ion battery when used in these applications; this is different from portable devices which require 1, 000 cycles at most. Here we demonstrate a novel co-substituted lithium iron phosphate cathode with estimated 70%-capacity retention of 25, 000 cycles. This is found by exploring a wide chemical compositional space using density functional theory calculations. Relative volume change of a compound between fully lithiated and delithiated conditions is used as the descriptor for the cycle life. On the basis of the results of the screening, synthesis of selected materials is targeted. Single-phase samples with the required chemical composition are successfully made by an epoxide-mediated sol-gel method. The optimized materials show excellent cycle-life performance as lithium-ion battery cathodes

サクラマチ ショウギョウ シセツ ヘイテン ニ ヨル コウレイシャ ノ コウツウ コウドウ ノ ヘンカ ニ カンスル インタビュー ブンセキ

熊本市桜町にある県民百貨店の閉店は、普段百貨店を利用していた消費者へ大きな影響を与えた。本稿では高齢者を対象としたインタビュー調査を行い、交通行動への影響について分析を行う。分析の結果、都心部近郊に居住し、公共交通を普段から使用する高齢者にとって閉店の影響は大きいことが分かった。Closure of a department store in Sakuramachi, Kumamoto would have a major impact on its daily customer. We conducted interview survey for the elderly to examine how they are affected and changed their travel behavior. We found that the impact is heavily for the aged, the residents near the central city area, and daily public transport user. These findings are demonstrated on maps using GIS

Impact of Different Attitudes toward Face-to-Face and Online Classes on Learning Outcomes in Japan

During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, online-based learning has become mainstream in many countries, and its learning outcomes have been evaluated. However, various studies have shown that online-based learning needs to be optimized in the future, and the number of reports for this purpose is currently not sufficient. The purpose in this study was to determine the relationship between academic performance and attitudes toward face-to-face and remote formats among Japanese pharmacy students enrolled in a course designed for knowledge acquisition. A combination of face-to-face and remote formats was used in a practice course for sixth-year pharmacy students, designed to improve academic performance through knowledge acquisition. To evaluate learning outcomes, we used a questionnaire that was administered to the course participants and the results of examinations conducted before and after the course. Online-oriented and face-to-face-oriented groups differed in their attitudes toward the ease of asking questions of faculty and communicating with the faculty members and classmates in each format. In a knowledge acquisition course for Japanese pharmacy students, the study revealed that the same academic outcomes were achieved, regardless of the students’ own perceptions of their aptitude for face-to-face or remote learning style

Safety and Efficacy of the Noncessation Method of Antithrombotic Agents after Emergency Endoscopic Hemostasis in Patients with Nonvariceal Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding: A Multicenter Pilot Study

Background and Aims. The present study aimed to clarify the safety and efficacy of the noncessation method of antithrombotic agents after emergency endoscopic hemostasis in patients with nonvariceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB). Methods. In this multicenter, prospective, pilot study, we performed emergency endoscopic hemostasis for nonvariceal UGIB in patients taking antithrombotic agents and resumed the medications without a cessation period (group A). The clinical characteristics, types of antithrombotic agents, UGIB etiology, treatment outcome, and adverse events were evaluated. We used propensity score matching to compare treatment outcomes and adverse events with our previous cohort (group B) in whom antithrombotic agents were transiently discontinued after emergency endoscopic hemostasis. Results. Forty-three consecutive patients were prospectively enrolled. The main antithrombotic agents were low-dose aspirin and direct oral anticoagulants; 11 patients (25.6%) were taking multiple antithrombotics. Peptic ulcers were the main cause of bleeding (95.4%). Endoscopic hemostasis was successful in all patients and the incidence of rebleeding within a month was 7.0%. Propensity score matching created 40 matched pairs. Endoscopic hemostasis was performed by soft coagulation significantly more frequently in group A than in group B (97.5% versus 60.0%, P < 0.001). Neither the rebleeding rate within a month nor thromboembolic event rate was different between the two groups. However, the mean duration of hospitalization was significantly shorter in group A than in group B (8.6 ± 5.2 d versus 14.4 ± 7.1 d, P < 0.001). Conclusions. Antithrombotic agents possibly can be continued after successful emergency endoscopic hemostasis for nonvariceal UGIB