A GPU-accelerated three-dimensional SPH solver for geotechnical applications

A three-dimensional GPU-accelerated SPH solver is developed and ready to be released as an open-source tool. In this paper, the SPH formulation, geomechnical aspects of SPH modeling and the GPU parallelization are presented. A numerical case of granular flow passing a cylindrical obstacle is simulated to show the performance of the solver

Transport properties of concrete after drying-wetting regimes to elucidate the effects of moisture content, hysteresis and microcracking

Drying and wetting induce a number of microstructural changes that could impact transport properties and durability of concrete structures, but their significance is not well-established. This research examines pastes, mortars and concretes with different w/b ratios, binders, aggregate sizes, curing and conditioning regimes. 50 mm thick samples were dried to equilibrium at either 105 °C, 50 °C/7% RH, 21 °C/33% RH or gentle stepwise at 21 °C/93% RH → 3% RH, and then rewetted stepwise by humidification at 21 °C/33% RH → 86% RH and full saturation to produce varying degrees of damage and moisture content. Oxygen diffusivity and permeability, electrical conductivity, microcracking, accessible and total porosity were measured at different conditioning stages over 3-year period to better understand the effects of shrinkage, hysteresis and drying-induced damage on transport properties. The effect of supplementary cementitious materials (GGBS, SF) and implications of drying-wetting on concrete durability are discussed

A study of Al1-xInxN growth by reflection high-energy electron diffraction-incorporation of cation atoms during molecular-beam epitaxy

Molecular-beam epitaxy of Al1-x Inx N alloys with different indium (In) contents, x, were studied by in situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED). Growth rates of the alloys were measured by the RHEED intensity oscillations for different source flux conditions, while the lattice parameters were derived from the diffraction patterns. It was found that under the excess nitrogen growth regime, incorporation of aluminum was complete whereas incorporation of In atoms was incomplete even at temperatures below 400 °C. © 2008 American Institute of Physics.published_or_final_versio

Photoconfigurable, Cell-Remodelable Disulfide Cross-linked Hyaluronic Acid Hydrogels.

Dynamic photoresponsive synthetic hydrogels offer important advantages for biomaterials design, from the ability to cure hydrogels and encapsulate cells in situ to the light-mediated control of cell-spreading and tissue formation. We report the facile and effective photocuring and photoremodeling of disulfide-cross-linked hyaluronic acid hydrogels, based on photo-oxidation of corresponding thiol residues and their radical-mediated photodegradation. We find that the mechanical properties of disulfide hydrogels and the extent of their photoremodeling can be tuned by controlling the photo-oxidation and photodegradation reactions, respectively. This enables not only the photopatterning of the mechanical properties of hydrogels but also their self-healing and photomediated healing. Finally, we demonstrate the ability to encapsulate mesenchymal stromal cells within these materials and to regulate their protrusion and spreading in 3D matrices by controlling the mechanical properties of the disulfide networks. Therefore, synthetically accessible photoconfigurable disulfide hydrogels offer interesting opportunities for the design of soft biomaterials and the regulation of cell encapsulation and matrix remodeling for tissue engineering

A study of Inx Ga1-x N growth by reflection high-energy electron diffraction

Epitaxial growth of Inx Ga1-x N alloys on GaN (0001) by plasma-assisted molecular-beam epitaxy is investigated using the in situ reflection high-energy electron-diffraction (RHEED) technique. Based on RHEED pattern changes over time, the transition of growth mode from two-dimensional (2D) nucleation to three-dimensional islanding is studied for various indium compositions. RHEED specular-beam intensity oscillations are recorded during the 2D wetting-layer growth, and the dependences of the oscillation period/frequency on the substrate temperature and source flux are established. By measuring the spacing between diffraction spots in RHEED, we also estimated indium composition, x, in alloys grown under different flux combinations. Incorporation coefficients of both gallium and indium are derived. Possible surface segregation of indium atoms is finally examined. © 2005 American Institute of Physics.published_or_final_versio

Transition between wurtzite and zinc-blende GaN: An effect of deposition condition of molecular-beam epitaxy

GaN exists in both wurtzite and zinc-blende phases and the growths of the two on its (0001) or (111) surfaces are achieved by choosing proper deposition conditions of molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE). At low substrate temperatures but high gallium fluxes, metastable zinc-blende GaN films are obtained, whereas at high temperatures and/or using high nitrogen fluxes, equilibrium wurtzite phase GaN epilayers resulted. This dependence of crystal structure on substrate temperature and source flux is not affected by deposition rate. Rather, the initial stage nucleation kinetics plays a primary role in determining the crystallographic structures of epitaxial GaN by MBE. © 2006 American Institute of Physics.published_or_final_versio

Coherent and dislocated three-dimensional islands of Inx Ga1-x N self-assembled on GaN(0001) during molecular-beam epitaxy

Molecular-beam epitaxy of Inx Ga1-x N alloy on GaN(0001) is investigated by scanning tunneling microscopy. The Stranski-Krastanov mode of growth of the alloy is followed, where the newly nucleated three-dimensional islands are initially coherent to the underlying GaN and the wetting layer, but then become dislocated when grown bigger than about 20 nm in the lateral dimension. Two types of islands show different shapes, where the coherent ones are cone shaped and the dislocated ones are pillar like, having flat-tops. Within a certain range of material coverage, the surface contains both coherent and dislocated islands, showing an overall bimodal island-size distribution. The continued deposition on such surfaces leads to the pronounced growth of dislocated islands, whereas the sizes of the coherent islands change very little. © 2005 The American Physical Society.published_or_final_versio

Determinants of 2009 A/H1N1 influenza vaccination among pregnant women in Hong Kong

During the 2009-2010 A/H1N1 influenza pandemic, pregnant women infected with the virus experienced excess morbidity and mortality when compared with other groups. Once a vaccine was available, pregnant women were a priority group for vaccination. Only a few studies have reported on the uptake of 2009 A/H1N1 influenza vaccine among pregnant women during the pandemic and none were from Asia. The purpose of this study was to examine factors associated with 2009 A/H1N1 influenza vaccine uptake among pregnant women in Hong Kong. Using a multi-center, cross-sectional design, we recruited 549 postpartum women from four post-natal wards in Hong Kong over a 4-month period during the second wave of the A/H1N1 influenza pandemic in the winter and spring of 2010. Only 6.2% (n = 34) of participants had received the 2009 A/H1N1 influenza vaccine and 4.9% (n = 27) had received the seasonal influenza vaccine. The most common reasons for not receiving the 2009 A/H1N1 vaccine were fear of causing harm to themselves or their fetus. A high knowledge level (OR = 19.06; 95% CI 5.55, 65.48), more positive attitudes (OR = 3.52; 95% CI 1.37, 9.07), and having a family member who had the 2009 A/H1N1 influenza vaccine (OR = 7.69; 95% CI 2.92, 20.19) were independently and positively associated with vaccination. Study results show an unacceptably low uptake of the pandemic A/H1N1 influenza vaccine among pregnant women in Hong Kong. Interventions to increase influenza vaccine knowledge and uptake among this group should be a priority for future pandemic planning and seasonal vaccination campaigns.published_or_final_versio

A joint analysis of influenza-associated hospitalizations and mortality in Hong Kong, 1998–2013

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