Mechanical Properties of Recycled Concrete in Marine Environment

Experimental work was carried out to develop information about mechanical properties of recycled concrete (RC) in marine environment. By using the seawater and dry-wet circulation to simulate the marine environment, specimens of RC were tested with different replacement percentages of 0%, 30%, and 60% after immersing in seawater for 4, 8, 12, and 16 months, respectively. Based on the analysis of the stress-strain curves (SSCs) and compressive strength, it is revealed that RC’ peak value and elastic modulus decreased with the increase of replacement percentage and corroding time in marine environment. And the failure of recycled concrete was speeded up with more obvious cracks and larger angles of 65° to 85° in the surface when compared with normal concrete. Finally, the grey model (GM) with equal time intervals was constructed to investigate the law of compressive strength of recycled concrete in marine environment, and it is found that the GM is accurate and feasible for the prediction of RC compressive strength in marine environment

Genome-wide association analysis of time to heading and maturity in bread wheat using 55K microarrays

To investigate the genetic mechanisms underlying the reproductive traits (time to flowering and maturity) in wheat and identify candidate genes associated, a phenotypic analysis was conducted on 239 wheat accessions (lines) from around the world. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) of wheat heading and maturity phases was performed using the MLM (Q+K) model in the TASSLE software, combined with the Wheat 55K SNP array. The results revealed significant phenotypic variation in heading and maturity among the wheat accessions across different years, with coefficients of variation ranging from 0.96% to 1.97%. The phenotypic data from different years exhibited excellent correlation, with a genome-wide linkage disequilibrium (LD) attenuation distance of 3 Mb. Population structure analysis, evolutionary tree analysis, and principal component analysis indicated that the 239 wheat accessions formed a relatively homogeneous natural population, which could be divided into three subgroups. The GWAS results identified a total of 293 SNP marker loci that were significantly associated with wheat heading and maturity stages (P ≤ 0.001) in different environments. Among them, nine stable SNP marker loci were consistently detected in multiple environments. These marker loci were distributed on wheat chromosomes 1A、1B、2D、3A、5B、6D and 7A. Each individual locus explained 4.03%-16.06% of the phenotypic variation. Furthermore, through careful analysis of the associated loci with large phenotypic effect values and stable inheritance, a total of nine candidate genes related to wheat heading and maturity stages were identified. These findings have implications for molecular marker-assisted selection breeding programs targeting specific wheat traits at the heading and maturity stages. In summary, this study conducted a comprehensive GWAS of wheat heading and maturity phases, revealing significant associations between genetic markers and key developmental stages in wheat. The identification of candidate genes and marker loci provides valuable information for further studies on wheat breeding and genetic improvement targeted at enhancing heading and maturity traits

Genetic basis of the very short life cycle of ‘Apogee’ wheat

Background: ‘Apogee’ has a very short life cycle among wheat cultivars (flowering 25 days after planting under a long day and without vernalization), and it is a unique genetic material that can be used to accelerate cycling breeding lines. However, little is known about the genetic basis of the super-short life of Apogee wheat. Results: In this study, Apogee was crossed with a strong winter wheat cultivar ‘Overland’, and 858 F2 plants were generated and tested in a greenhouse under constant warm temperature and long days. Apogee wheat was found to have the early alleles for four flowering time genes, which were ranked in the order of vrn-A1 \u3e VRN-B1 \u3e vrn- D3 \u3e PPD-D1 according to their effect intensity. All these Apogee alleles for early flowering showed complete or partial dominance effects in the F2 population. Surprisingly, Apogee was found to have the same alleles at vrn-A1a and vrn-D3a for early flowering as observed in winter wheat cultivar ‘Jagger.’ It was also found that the vrn-A1a gene was epistatic to VRN-B1 and vrn-D3. The dominant vrn-D3a alone was not sufficient to cause the transition from vegetative to reproductive development in winter plants without vernalization but was able to accelerate flowering in those plants that carry the vrn-A1a or Vrn-B1 alleles. The genetic effects of the vernalization and photoperiod genes were validated in Apogee x Overland F3 populations. Conclusion: VRN-A1, VRN-B1, VRN-D3, and PPD-D1 are the major genes that enabled Apogee to produce the very short life cycle. This study greatly advanced the molecular understanding of the multiple flowering genes under different genetic backgrounds and provided useful molecular tools that can be used to accelerate winter wheat breeding schemes

Mechanical properties of full-grouted sleeves with grouting defects

Prefabricated concrete structure is an important aspect of the building structure development in China, while the grouted sleeve connection represents a key tool for connection on prefabricated concrete structure parts. Various grouting defects may arise during the prefabrication and actual construction processes, thereby causing unsafe connection among components. Here, we report determination of the mechanical properties of a full-grouted sleeve with grouting defects，using the defect position (end defect, middle defect, uniform defect, unilateral defect, and horizontal defect) and the defect length as test variables. We generated a total of 11 groups of full-grouted sleeve specimens, with one group as a full-grouted standard specimen. All specimens were subjected to a unidirectional tensile test, and failure mode, ultimate bearing capacity, load-slip curve, load-displacement curve as well as load-stress curve obtained. Meanwhile, the ANSYS software was used for numerical simulation. Notably, our numerical results corroborated experimental findings. The detailed profiles of mechanical properties of full-grouted sleeve connection with defects, described in this paper, are expected to serve both as a baseline and reference for further investigations

Deformation of Combined Retaining Structure in Geological Environment

As a new type of sliding support structure, composite support structure has excellent performance. It is a structure in which two rows of reinforced concrete piles are placed in an appropriate position and the front pile head is connected with the back pile body by a rigid beam. It will form a double row spatial structure, similar to the seating. h-type anti-slide pile can save (or even do not need) anchoring components, form a double-row pile supporting structure system, and achieve good supporting performance. By adjusting the position of tie - beam, the new type anti - slide pile has wider universality and applicability. We can make assumptions in the actual calculation.h - type anti - slide pile has strong anti - overturning ability. The compressive strength of the front pile and the tensile strength of the back pile can form a pair of effective anti-overturning bending moments, and the rigid joints also improve the anti-overturning ability

Underground Structure Inspection in Geological Groundwater Environment Base on Geologic Radar Technology

How to accurately detect the anti-slide pile and the surrounding rock hole is the key to the correct application of the concrete quality treatment method, at the same time, it can ensure the control effect to a certain extent, and make the treatment project more economical and effective. The presence of water in the reinforced concrete layer, coupled with the void shape, and the irregular nature of the water in the hole, may be filled with air, mud, soil and other media factors, so there is considerable complexity. The number of abnormal bodies in the contrast enhancement diagram increases significantly, which is helpful for us to observe the loose area of anti-slide pile. We can find the pixel value corresponding to the feature by detecting the abnormal data of the pile one by one

Functionalized Chiral Twisted Optical Fibers: A Review

With an increase in the volume of information exchange and perception, the demands for intelligent, miniaturized, and integrated optical devices for information acquisition are also increasing. As the core component of optical networks for transmitting information, further optimization of their structural characteristics to generate richer optical characteristics and apply them to information exchange and optical field control has become a key research hotspot. The introduction of chiral twist characteristics has led to new phenomena and applications in optical field transmission and the transformation of traditional optical fibers or microstructured optical fibers (MOF). Therefore, this review mainly begins with the principle of chiral optical fibers, introduces their preparation and latest application scenarios, and finally discusses their potential future development prospects

Macro and micro analysis on deformation characteristics of fine sand under different groundwater table change

By using the samples of fine sand in Shanghai’s seventh layer, creep tests were performed to investigate the deformation characteristics of fine sand under different groundwater table change. It was revealed that the creep of fine sand is closely related to groundwater table change: when the effective force caused by groundwater table change is smaller than pre-consolidation force, the deformation is mainly elastic. When effective force caused by groundwater table change is bigger than pre-consolidation force, the compression deformation is large and the rebound is small; and the deformation is mainly viscoelastic plastic when equal to pre-consolidation stress. Through the scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis it was found that creep of fine sand is dominated by the slip of particles, not by the breaking of particles. And the fine sand particles are squeezed under the load induced by the groundwater table change, and the particles slide along the indirect contact surface of the particles, resulting in the continuous adjustment of position and relative displacement. Mercury injection test shows that the pore size distribution of fine sand has little change before and after the test

NARFL deficiency caused mitochondrial dysfunction in lung cancer cells by HIF-1α–DNMT1 axis

Abstract NARFL was reported to be a component of cytosolic iron–sulfur cluster assembly pathway and a causative gene of the diffused pulmonary arteriovenous malformations (dPAVMs). NARFL knockout dramatically impaired mitochondrial integrity in mice, which might promote mitochondrial dysfunction and lead to worse survival rate of lung cancer. However, the underlying molecular mechanism of NARFL deficiency in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is unknown. Knockdown assay was performed in A549 and H1299 cells. The protein levels of HIF-1α and DNMT1 were measured, and then Complex I activity, mtDNA copy numbers and mRNA levels of mtND genes were determined. Cisplatin resistance and cell proliferation were conducted using CCK8 assay. Cell migration and invasion were detected using wound heal assay and transwell assay. Survival analysis of lung cancer patients and KM plotter database were used for evaluating the potential value of NARFL deficiency. NARFL protein was expressed in two cell lines and knockdown assay significantly reduced its levels. Knockdown NARFL increased the protein levels of HIF-1α and DNMT1, and downregulated the mRNA levels of ND genes, mitochondrial Complex I activity, mtDNA copy number, and ATP levels. The mitochondrial dysfunction caused by NARFL deficiency were ameliorated by siHIF-1α and DNMT1 inhibitor. Knockdown NARFL increased the drug resistance and cell migration, and siHIF-1α reversed this effect. Moreover, NSCLC patients with NARFL deficiency had a poor survival rate using a tissue array and KM plotter database, and it would be a target for cancer prognosis and treatment. NARFL deficiency caused dysregulation of energy metabolism in lung cancer cells via HIF-1α–DNMT1 axis, which promoted drug resistance and cell migration. It provided a potential target for treatment and prognosis of lung cancer