Densities, Viscosities, Refractive Indices, and Surface Tensions of Binary Mixtures of 2,2,4-Trimethylpentane with Several Alkylated Cyclohexanes from (293.15 to 343.15) K

Densities and viscosities have been measured over the whole composition ranges for the binary mixtures of 2,2,4-trimethylpentane with methylcyclohexane, ethylcyclohexane, or <i>n</i>-butylcyclohexane at temperatures <i>T</i> = (293.15 to 343.15) K and atmospheric pressure. Meanwhile, the refractive indices and surface tensions were measured at <i>T</i> = (293.15 to 323.15) K and <i>T</i> = (293.15 to 308.15) K, respectively. The excess molar volumes, <i>V</i>_m^E, the viscosity deviations, Δη, and the surface tension deviations, Δγ, for these binary systems are calculated and fitted to the Redlich–Kister equation, and the regression coefficients and the standard deviations of the fittings are given. All of the <i>V</i>_m^E, Δη and Δγ values are negative over the whole composition range for these systems. The values of Δ<i>n</i>_<i>D</i> for these binary mixtures are all small, even negligible. These results may be useful for the development of the hydrocarbon fuels

A hybrid fluid master–apprentice evolutionary algorithm for large-scale multiplicity flexible job-shop scheduling with sequence-dependent set-up time

In this article, a large-scale multiplicity flexible job-shop scheduling problem (FJSP) with sequence-dependent set-up time is studied. In this problem, the large production demand for each type of job yields the large-scale multiplicity manufacturing feature. To address the problem, a hybrid fluid master–apprentice evolutionary algorithm (HFMAE) is presented to minimize the makespan. In the first step, a fluid relaxation initialization method (FRI) and an initialize procedure are proposed to obtain high-quality initial solutions. In the FRI, an online fluid tracking policy is presented to improve the assignment decision and the sequencing decision of operations. In the second step, an improved master–apprentice evolutionary method (IMAE) is presented based on the generated initial solutions. In the IMAE, two neighbourhood structures and three makespan estimation approaches are presented to accelerate the solution space search efficiency. Numerical results show that the proposed HFMAE outperforms the comparison algorithms in solving large-scale multiplicity FJSPs.</p

Additional file 1 of The protective role of mindful parenting against child maltreatment and aggressive behavior: an exploratory study among Chinese parent-adolescent dyads

Additional file 1: Table S1. Comparisons between adolescents included in the study and those excluded. Table S2. Comparisons between the mothers/fathers included in the study and those excluded. Table S3. The paths from mindful parenting and its different factors to adolescent aggressive behavior through child maltreatment among female adolescents and male adolescents, respectively

Thermal Stability and Decomposition Kinetics of 1,3-Dimethyladamantane

For a comprehensive understanding of the properties of 1,3-dimethyladamantane (1,3-DMA) as a candidate of high energy-density hydrocarbon fuels, thermal stability of 1,3-DMA under different conditions is investigated. The thermal decomposition kinetics in the batch reactor between 693 and 743 K has been determined, with the rate constants ranging from 4.00 × 10^–7 s^–1 at 693 K to 35.19 × 10^–7 s^–1 at 743 K, along with the Arrhenius parameters of <i>A</i> = 2.39 × 10⁷ s^–1 and activation energy <i>E</i>_a = 183 kJ·mol^–1. The rate constants for the thermal decomposition of 1,3-DMA are observed to be smaller than those of some typical model fuels, decalin, propylcyclohexane, butylcylohexane, and <i>n</i>-dodecane, demonstrating that the thermal stability of 1,3-DMA is satisfactory. The thermal decomposition of 1,3-DMA in the flowing reactor at temperatures from 873 to 973 K and pressures from 0.1 to 5.0 MPa is further performed. It can be observed that the conversion of 1,3-DMA and the yield of gaseous products increase clearly with the rise of temperature or pressure. The residence time is the main factor for the change of decomposition depth. Methane and hydrogen are the major gaseous products that are produced through demethylation and dehydrogenation. In the liquid residues, toluene and xylene are observed and quantified by GC-MS, HPLC, and NMR as the main aromatics produced. On the basis of component analysis, a hypothetical mechanism of thermal decomposition of 1,3-DMA is proposed to explain the product distribution. It is shown that the different products are mainly obtained through a combination of isomerization, hydrogen transfer, β-scission, and dehydrogenation. The results are expected to provide experimental information for the search of new high energy-density hydrocarbon fuels

Thermal Decomposition Kinetics and Mechanism of 1,1′-Bicyclohexyl

Thermal decomposition of 1,1′-bicyclohexyl, a potential surrogate component of high-density hydrocarbon fuels, was performed in a batch-type reactor to investigate its thermal stability. A first-order kinetic equation is supposed to correlate the decomposition process, and the apparent rate constants, ranging from 0.0223 h^–1 at 683 K to 0.1979 h^–1 at 713 K, are determined. The Arrhenius parameters are determined with the pre-exponential factor <i>A</i> = 6.22 × 10²⁰ h^–1 and the activation energy <i>E</i>_a = 293 kJ·mol^–1. Compared with four typical hydrocarbon compounds, the thermal stability trend is observed in the order of <i>n</i>-dodecane ≈ 1,3,5-triisopropylcyclohexane > bicyclohexyl > <i>n</i>-propylcyclohexane > decalin. Cyclohexane and cyclohexene are found to be the primary products due to the relatively low energy of the C–C bond connecting the two cyclohexyl rings. Bicyclohexyl decomposes into cyclohexane and cyclohexene equivalently at the beginning of the reaction. A probable mechanism on the basis of quantum calculation and GC-MS analyses for the decomposition of bicyclohexyl is proposed to explain the product distribution. It is shown that the formation of decomposition products is mainly obtained through hydrogen transfer, β-scission, isomerization, or dehydrogenation

Piperazinium-Based Ionic Liquids with Lactate Anion for Extractive Desulfurization of Fuels

Three kinds of piperazinium-based room-temperature ionic liquids (RTILs), namely, <i>N</i>-methylpiperazinium lactate ([C₁pi]­[Lac]), <i>N</i>-ethylpiperazinium lactate ([C₂pi]­[Lac]), and <i>N</i>,<i>N</i>′-dimethylpiperazinium dilactate ([C₁C₁pi]­[Lac]₂), have been synthesized by the direct reaction of <i>N</i>-alkyl-substituted piperazines and lactate acid. Together with 1,1,3,3-tetramethylguanidinium lactate ([TMG]­[Lac]), they are employed as new extractants for removing aromatic sulfur compounds, thiophene (TS), benzothiophene (BT), dibenzothiophene (DBT), and 4-methyldibenzothiophene (4-MDBT), from various hydrocarbon fuels. The effects of the temperature, extraction time, and amount of ionic liquid (IL) on the sulfur removal are investigated systematically. The mutual solubility measurements show that the ILs are dissolved in <i>n</i>-heptane with the mass fraction less than 0.01 at 30 °C. The solubility values of 93 gasoline in the ILs are observed with the following sequence: [C₁C₁pi]­[Lac]₂ (0.007 in mass fraction) < [C₁pi]­[Lac] (0.014 in mass fraction) < [TMG]­[Lac] (0.017 in mass fraction) < [C₂pi]­[Lac] (0.070 in mass fraction), and the sulfur distribution coefficient follows the order: [TMG]­[Lac] (1.08 in mass fraction) > [C₂pi]­[Lac] (0.98 in mass fraction) > [C₁pi]­[Lac] (0.78 in mass fraction) > [C₁C₁pi]­[Lac]₂ (0.53 in mass fraction) for 93 gasoline. Selectivity between TS and toluene is observed higher than 4 with the following sequence: [TMG]­[Lac] (13.19 in mass fraction) > [C₁pi]­[Lac] (10.59 in mass fraction) > [C₂pi]­[Lac] (7.12 in mass fraction) > [C₁C₁pi]­[Lac]₂ (4.94 in mass fraction), revealing that these ILs are more preferable to extract TS than toluene from hydrocarbon fuels. The used ILs can be recycled without a significant decrease of desulfurization activity after extraction 5 times. These fundamental results hopefully provide useful information for future commercialization and practical desulfurization

Ortho C–H Bond Activations in an Atmospheric Microwave Plasma Ion Source

C–H bond ortho-substitution reaction has always been a significant and challenging topic in organic chemistry. We proposed a synthesis method based on microwave plasma torches. High-resolution mass spectrometry was used to monitor rapid reaction products. 2-Alkylbenzimidazole can be formed through the reaction of phenylnitrenium ion and nitriles on a millisecond scale. This reaction can achieve the one-step formation of benzimidazoles from benzene ring single-substituted compounds without the addition of external oxidants or catalysts. A similar C–H bond activation reaction can be accomplished with ketones. Meanwhile, the microwave plasma reactor was modified, and the resulting 2-methylbenzimidazole was successfully collected, indicating the device has good application potential in organic reactions such as C–H bond activation reaction

The Modulation of Phosphatase Expression Impacts the Proliferation Efficiency of HSV-1 in Infected Astrocytes

<div><p>Herpes Simplex Virus 1 (HSV-1) is a major pathogen that causes human neurological diseases, including herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE). Previous studies have shown that astrocytes are involved in HSV-1 systemic pathogenesis in the central nervous system (CNS), although the mechanism remains unclear. In this study, a high-throughput RNAi library screening method was used to analyze the effect of host phosphatase gene regulation on HSV-1 replication using <i>Macaca mulatta</i> primary astrocytes in an <i>in vitro</i> culture system. The results showed that the downregulation of five phosphatase genes (PNKP, SNAP23, PTPRU, LOC714621 and PPM1M) significantly inhibited HSV-1 infection, suggesting that these phosphatases were needed in HSV-1 replication in rhesus astrocytes. Although statistically significant, the effect of downregulation of these phosphatases on HSV-1 replication in a human astrocytoma cell line appears to be more limited. Our results suggest that the phosphatase genes in astrocytes may regulate the immunological and pathological reactions caused by HSV-1 CNS infection through the regulation of HSV-1 replication or of multiple signal transduction pathways.</p></div

Significant Enhancement of Optoelectronic Properties in CuInP₂S₆ via Pressure-Induced Structural Phase Transition

Quaternary layered transition metal thiophosphate CuInP2S6 (CIPS) has attracted extensive research interest because of its outstanding optical and ferroelectric properties. Pressure-tuned phase transition is an efficient method to regulate the properties of functional materials in situ, yet there is still much to explore. Herein, we studied the pressure-regulated optoelectronic properties of CIPS and found a four-stage evolution of photoresponsivity under compression. The photoresponse of CIPS barely changes with pressure initially but increases dramatically above 4.2 GPa. Under further compression, the photoresponse first shows a decrease above 7.5 GPa and then a significant increase up to 23.5 GPa. Remarkably, the photoresponse at the highest pressure enhances by two orders of magnitude compared with the starting value. To investigate the origin of these abnormal variations in CIPS, high-pressure UV–vis absorption, Raman, and XRD measurements were conducted and a phase transition from Cc to P3̅1m symmetry was found at approximately 4.0 GPa. We suggest that the pressure-modulated optoelectronic properties in CIPS are closely related to the conductivity change of CIPS caused by its structural phase transition. Our study spotlights the outstanding pressure regulation of optoelectronic properties in CIPS, which paves the way for modifying the behavior of other optoelectronic materials

siRNA transfection effectively downregulated corresponding phosphatase RNA expression in astrocytes.

<p>(a) Determination of the silencing effect of six genes: APP6, ALPL, DUSP11, PPP1CC, PTPN11 and PNKP. The siRNAs of the six genes (ACP6, ALPL, DUSP11, PPP1CC, PTPN11 and PNKP), were used to transfect astrocytes (50 nM). Total RNA was extracted at 48 h post transfection; a relative quantification method was used to calculate the target gene transcription. Data were analyzed using 2^−ΔΔCt. β-actin was used as the internal control. Error bars represent the standard deviation from triplicate samples. * indicates P<0.05. (b,c) Relationship between transfection time and the silencing effect of the ALPL and PNKP genes. The siRNAs of the ALPL and PNKP genes were used to transfect astrocytes (50 nM), and the total RNA was extracted at 24, 48 and 72 hr post transfection; a relative quantification method was used to calculate the target gene transcription. Data were analyzed using 2^−ΔΔCt. β-actin was used as the internal control. Error bars represent the standard deviation from triplicate samples. * indicates P<0.05.</p