An Alarm Method for a Loose Parts Monitoring System

In order to reduce the false alarm rate and missed detection rate of a Loose Parts Monitoring System (LPMS) for Nuclear Power Plants, a new hybrid method combining Linear Predictive Coding (LPC) and Support Vector Machine (SVM) together to discriminate the loose part signal is proposed. The alarm process is divided into two stages. The first stage is to detect the weak burst signal for reducing the missed detection rate. Signal is whitened to improve the SNR, and then the weak burst signal can be detected by checking the short-term Root Mean Square (RMS) of the whitened signal. The second stage is to identify the detected burst signal for reducing the false alarm rate. Taking the signal's LPC coefficients as its characteristics, SVM is then utilized to determine whether the signal is generated by the impact of a loose part. The experiment shows that whitening the signal in the first stage can detect a loose part burst signal even at very low SNR and thusly can significantly reduce the rate of missed detection. In the second alarm stage, the loose parts' burst signal can be distinguished from pulse disturbance by using SVM. Even when the SNR is −15 dB, the system can still achieve a 100% recognition rat

A chromosome-scale genome sequence of sudangrass (Sorghum sudanense) highlights the genome evolution and regulation of dhurrin biosynthesis

Sudangrass [ Sorghum sudanense (Piper) Stapf] is a hybrid between grain sorghum and its wild relative S. bicolor ssp. verticilliflorum and is grown as a forage crop due to its high biomass production and low dhurrin content compared to sorghum. In this study, we sequenced the sudangrass genome and showed that the assembled genome was 715.95 Mb with 35,243 protein-coding genes. Phylogenetic analysis with whole genome proteomes demonstrated that the sudangrass genome was more similar to US commercial sorghums than to its wild relatives and cultivated sorghums from Africa. We confirmed that at seedling stage, sudangrass accessions contained significantly lower dhurrin as measured by hydrocyanic acid potential (HCN-p) than cultivated sorghum accessions. Genome-wide association study identified a QTL most tightly associated with HCN-p and the linked SNPs were located in the 3’ UTR of Sobic.001G012300 which encodes CYP79A1, the enzyme that catalyzes the first step of dhurrin biosynthesis. As in other grasses such as maize and rice, we also found that copia/gypsy long terminal repeat retrotransposons were more abundant in cultivated than in wild sorghums, implying that crop domestication in the grasses was accompanied by increased copia/gypsy LTR retrotransposon insertions in the genomes

Geometric morphometric analysis of Protoconites minor from the Cambrian (Terreneuvian) Yanjiahe Formation in Three Gorges, South China

The Ediacaran to Cambrian transition is a critical interval of time during which major evolutionary changes occurred. Recently, abundant Protoconites minor have been recovered from the silty shales of the lower Cambrian Yanjiahe Formation (Terreneuvian, Fortunian - Stage 2) in the Three Gorges area of South China. These fossils represent an important ecological diversification of macroscopic organisms at the onset of the Cambrian. Protoconites minor is a probable cnidarian-grade organism preserved by carbon compression. Herein, geometric morphometric analyses are applied to crack out specimens of P. minor to reveal any cryptic morphological details that may have implications for their morphological diversity, ontogenetic processes, and taxonomic identification. These statistical analyses reveal a strong relationship between size and shape, which indicates that the overall shape of P. minor was mainly controlled by allometric growth. The smaller specimens are generally wider at the anterior and more commonly have straight-sides. Larger individuals tend to be narrower at the anterior, with bending more common. Our analyses demonstrate that there are transitional forms between larger, strongly bent specimens and smaller, straight specimens, suggesting that the assemblage likely consists of a single species

Enhanced corrosion protection by Al surface immobilization of in-situ grown layered double hydroxide films co-intercalated with inhibitors and low surface energy species

Abstract(#br)In this work, a novel in-situ grown layered double hydroxide (LDH) film co-intercalated with inhibitors (vanadates) and low surface energy substance (laurates) was immobilized on Al substrates. A long-term monitoring of electrochemical impedance spectra (EIS) of the various samples in 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution demonstrated the synergetic protection of the intercalated two functional species. Meanwhile, the X-ray diffraction (XRD) result of the samples after immersion in NaCl solution for a long time presented the anion-exchange process between vanadates/laurates and chlorides. The synergetic effect of the two species loaded film significantly contributed to the enhanced long-term corrosion protection of aluminum

Active corrosion protection by a smart coating based on a MgAl-layered double hydroxide on a cerium-modified plasma electrolytic oxidation coating on Mg alloy AZ31

A composite coating was produced via (i) plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO) with Ce salt sealing, on which layered double hydroxides (LDHs) were deposited via a hydrothermal treatment, and (ii) then modified by phytic acid (PA) via an ion-exchange reaction. The final coating (characterized using XRD, XPS, FT-IR, SEM, EDS and GDOES) consisted of LDHs/Mg(OH)/CeO/Ce(OH) with a non-uniform Ce distribution. The corrosion protection and self-healing ability were investigated using polarization curves, EIS, immersion tests and SVET. The composite coating modified with PA showed the most superior corrosion protection and self-healing ability, attributed to the synergistic effect between Ce species and phosphate

Work-related injuries of rehabilitation therapists and measures for prevention

BackgroundRehabilitation therapists often perform physically demanding treatments that may result in work-related injuries, yet related studies are scarce. This study aimed to investigate the work-related injuries of rehabilitation therapists and provide feasible preventive measures.MethodsA cross-sectional study was carried out in 34 regions across China using an online questionnaire. The survey gathered responses primarily from 1,198 rehabilitative therapists working in 120 health institutes. Following data collection, descriptive analysis, chi-square tests, logistic regression, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were employed to analyze the data.ResultsIn this study, the incidence of work-related injuries was reported to be 87% (n = 1,041). The top three musculoskeletal issues reported were low back pain (12%), neck pain (10%), and shoulder pain (9%). Logistic regression and ROC curve analysis identified that working as a physiotherapist and years of work experience (OR [95% CI]: 1.03 [0.99–1.07]) were significant contributors to the incidence of work-related injuries. Specifically, neuro-physiotherapists (OR [95% CI]: 3.04 [1.56–5.92]), musculoskeletal physiotherapists (OR [95% CI]: 2.46 [1.16–5.18]), and intensive care physiotherapists (OR [95% CI]: 4.70 [1.24–17.88]) were at higher risk. Furthermore, five factors were proven to be associated with injury prevention as reported by therapists: patient engagement (OR [95% CI]: 0.38 [0.23–0.62]), improving techniques (OR [95% CI]: 0.59 [0.39–0.90]), maintaining exercise habits (OR [95% CI]: 0.59 [0.40–0.86]), utilizing instruments (OR [95% CI]: 0.80 [0.53–1.19]), and strengthening education (OR [95% CI]: 0.43 [0.21–0.90]).ConclusionThe present study investigated the factors contributing to work-related injuries among rehabilitation therapists, with a focus on identifying both risk and preventive measures. These findings offer new perspectives on decreasing injury risk

Long-term exposure to air pollution and lung function among children in China: Association and effect modification

BackgroundChildren are vulnerable to the respiratory effects of air pollution, and their lung function has been associated with long-term exposure to low air pollution level in developed countries. However, the impact of contemporary air pollution level in developing countries as a result of recent efforts to improve air quality on children's lung function is less understood.MethodsWe obtained a cross-sectional sample of 617 schoolchildren living in three differently polluted areas in Anhui province, China. 2-year average concentrations of air pollutants at the year of spirometry and the previous year (2017–2018) obtained from district-level air monitoring stations were used to characterize long-term exposure. Forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1), and forced expiratory flow between 25 and 75% of FVC (FEF25−75) were determined under strict quality control. Multivariable regression was employed to evaluate the associations between air pollution level and lung function parameters, overall and by demographic characteristics, lifestyle, and vitamin D that was determined by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry.ResultsMean concentration of fine particulate matter was 44.7 μg/m3, which is slightly above the interim target 1 standard of the World Health Organization. After adjusting for confounders, FVC, FEV1, and FEF25−75 showed inverse trends with increasing air pollution levels, with children in high exposure group exhibiting 87.9 [95% confidence interval (CI): 9.5, 166.4] mL decrement in FEV1 and 195.3 (95% CI: 30.5, 360.1) mL/s decrement in FEF25−75 compared with those in low exposure group. Additionally, the above negative associations were more pronounced among those who were younger, girls, not exposed to secondhand smoke, non-overweight, physically inactive, or vitamin D deficient.ConclusionsOur study suggests that long-term exposure to relatively high air pollution was associated with impaired lung function in children. More stringent pollution control measures and intervention strategies accounting for effect modification are needed for vulnerable populations in China and other developing countries

Recent applications of Cp2TiCl in natural product synthesis

This review highlights the recent applications of titanocene(III) complexes in the field of natural product synthesis from the seminal precedents to the development of modern catalytic methods. The power of the titanocene(III)-based approaches is demonstrated by the straightforward syntheses of many natural products from readily available starting materials.We thank the Regional Government of Andalucía (project P09-FQM-4571), MICINN (project CTQ-2011.22455), and CEI-Biotic for financial support. SPM thanks the Regional Government of Andalucía for her FPI fellowship. DM and AGC thank the Regional Government of Andalucía and the MICINN ( Juan de la Cierva) for their postdoctoral contracts

Fracturing of hard rocks by microwave treatment and potential applications in mechanised tunnelling

Extremely hard and abrasive rocks have posed great challenges to mechanical excavators such as tunnel boring machines and roadheaders by increasing the cutter wear and decreasing the penetration rates. Microwave treatment prior to mechanical rock breakage has been recognised as a promising technology. This PhD project measures/derives the dielectric properties of commonly encountered rocks and minerals and investigates the effect of microwave treatment on the physical and mechanical properties of three igneous rocks (gabbro, monzonite and granite) using a 2 kW single-mode microwave system. Experimental results indicate that microwave can effectively and efficiently weaken hard igneous rocks by generating macro/micro cracks in the heterogeneous rock matrix. The thesis also discusses the technical considerations of using microwave on tunnel boring machines in the field

Multilinear Riesz Potential on Morrey-Herz Spaces with Non-Doubling Measures

<p/> <p>The authors consider the multilinear Riesz potential operator defined by <inline-formula> <graphic file="1029-242X-2010-731016-i1.gif"/></inline-formula>, where <inline-formula> <graphic file="1029-242X-2010-731016-i2.gif"/></inline-formula> denotes the <inline-formula> <graphic file="1029-242X-2010-731016-i3.gif"/></inline-formula>-tuple <inline-formula> <graphic file="1029-242X-2010-731016-i4.gif"/></inline-formula>, <inline-formula> <graphic file="1029-242X-2010-731016-i5.gif"/></inline-formula> the nonnegative integers with <inline-formula> <graphic file="1029-242X-2010-731016-i6.gif"/></inline-formula>, <inline-formula> <graphic file="1029-242X-2010-731016-i7.gif"/></inline-formula>, <inline-formula> <graphic file="1029-242X-2010-731016-i8.gif"/></inline-formula> and <inline-formula> <graphic file="1029-242X-2010-731016-i9.gif"/></inline-formula> is a nonnegative <inline-formula> <graphic file="1029-242X-2010-731016-i10.gif"/></inline-formula>-dimensional Borel measure. In this paper, the boundedness for the operator <inline-formula> <graphic file="1029-242X-2010-731016-i11.gif"/></inline-formula> on the product of homogeneous Morrey-Herz spaces in nonhomogeneous setting is found.</p